InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Unexpected Circumstances ❯ Dreamscapes ( Chapter 4 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
(Two months earlier)
It was a warm day, not as hot as the summer days have been recently, and it was exceedingly more bearable than the past few days. Three humans, two demons, and one half-demon all walked along a path underneath the canopy of the forest basking in the shade of the trees. Jokes were being told by the monk, who happened to have a real knack for story telling, and everyone laughed at his carefree attitude. If anyone were to see them now, they would have never been able to guess that they had just fought off a bull demon tainted with a jewel shard. The battle was the first that they'd had in over a month, and it was a welcome break from roaming the country sides of Japan with no action whatsoever. The group had been feeling rather put out; they had no jewel shards, no sign of Naraku nor his incarnations, and it had been a HOT summer.
The bull was almost eight feet tall with broad shoulders and very sharp horns. It was the first jewel shard they had found since Naraku had taken theirs, and the bull demon definitely did not want to give it up without a fight. The battle started when Inuyasha first tried his `Blades of Blood' attack, which stuck the demon in the legs, but it didn't stay down long. Before they knew it, it was charging them at a speed they couldn't have thought possible for a creature that size. It took them all off guard and Inuyasha had to tackle Kagome to get her out of the way of it path. Sango threw her large boomerang at the bull demon and managed to cut off one of its hands. It snarled and began kicking up dust as one could imagine a bull would do. It charged for her and came close to knocking her down before she jumped up and around it, leaving it dazed as Miroku flung sutras to subdue it for a while. With the help of Inuyasha, Kagome was back on her feet, a little shaken, but otherwise okay. She shakily reached for an arrow and notched it in her bow, waiting for the perfect opportunity to shoot. Inuyasha tried the wind scar twice and it failed both times. This time, Kagome was ready to take aim.
“Inuyasha, try it again as I shoot!” yelled Kagome.
“You got it! Wind Scar!!” bellowed Inuyasha.
“Hit the mark!” Kagome pleaded to her arrow.
Both attacks swept upon the bull demon with a deadly force. The bull demon looked on in horror as both attacks landed upon his being, slicing away at him until he was no more. The jewel shard that had been within the demon slowly floated down into Kagome's waiting hands, purifying instantly at her touch.
“Well done you two! Well done indeed!” exclaimed Miroku as he jogged up to his companions. He was happily sitting on the sidelines, just in case he was needed, Inuyasha having previously stated that he wanted to fight this demon on his own to work out some frustration. He, Sango, and Kirara with Shippou on her back, walked up to them with smiles on their faces.
“Wow Kagome, I think your arrows are getting much stronger. That was amazing!” Sango elated.
“Yeah Kagome, that demon didn't even know what hit him! The look on his face was priceless!” exclaimed Shippou.
“Ahem, aren't you forgetting someone? I did most of the work, all she did was shoot a lucky arrow,” Inuyasha postured.
“Lucky…arrow? What the heck is wrong with you Inuyasha! WE worked TOGETHER! WE defeated the demon, and all you can say is LUCKY ARROW?!” Kagome fumed.
Inuyasha sunk away from the mad Kagome with his ears pinned against his head. Was it just him, or did she seem to get taller? Maybe he was shrinking?
“Feh! I don't know what everyone's getting so worked up about. You should all just be glad that she hit her target at all! Kami (God) knows she needs practice!” he stated.
That had done it.
“SITSITSITSITSITSITSITSITSIT BOY!!” wailed Kagome.
Miroku cringed at the sight of their friend swiftly kissing the ground. Sango's mouth was agape in awe of the large hole that Inuyasha was now occupying and Shippou and Kirara tsked and shook their heads.
“What an idiot,” Shippou declared.
****
Later that night, the group had made camp along the tree line on the outskirts of the Western lands. Everyone was assigned a task to help including gathering wood for the fire, getting some water from the stream, catching fish, and cooking. Each was cheerfully eating their dinner; it was a celebration after all, they got their first jewel shard in weeks and they finally felt as if they were making some progress. Inuyasha, even though still a little sore over being sat, enjoyed his fish and ramen that Kagome had brought from her time. He knew that he couldn't have taken the demon down without her, but it just wasn't his way to say thank you. Kagome knew this, but still kept her wishful thinking. She glanced at Inuyasha was making a total pig of himself, stuffing half of the fish and a big serving of ramen into his mouth at the same time. She smiled lightly and repressed a giggle at the sight of a noodle hanging precariously from the side of his mouth and returned to enjoying her meal.
After dinner, Kagome showed them a new card game from her time. It started out with all of them playing, but soon it was just down to her and Sango. They boys were busy mending their bruised egos, when Sango screamed out in joy, “Blackjack!” Kagome pouted a little but smiled as her friend threw the cards in the air, cheering. They all settled in for the night after playing a few more games. It was warm, so Shippou, instead of curling up with Kagome in her sleeping bag, decided to sleep next to Kirara. Sango was drifting off to sleep; keeping an eye open to make sure Miroku was keeping his lecherous hands to himself. They both drifted off to sleep and Miroku even started snoring a bit. Inuyasha made his way up a tree to watch over the group; being a half-demon, he didn't require a lot of sleep. Kagome closed her eyes and welcomed a pleasant sleep; after such an exciting day she was worn out, so it didn't take long for her to doze off. Although the day was a success, her dreams were violent.
(Kagome's dream)
Two red eyes were watching her and her friends from a distance. He moved quietly among the trees slipping in and out of the bushes, eyes glued to their group of travelers. He motioned to something off to his right that was lurking in the faint shadow of the trees. He then turned his gaze back to the group and let an evil smile cross his face, as well as let a sinister laugh fill the air. He jumped back a few yards a kept watch as the being set off to do its work.
The group was walking along the path, laughing and joking as they did. They were still happy over their jewel shard and were talking with each other excitedly. Kagome stopped in her tracks and turned her head over her shoulder. She was sure she just heard something, but the others didn't seem to of have. She scanned the scenery carefully in search for anything amiss.
“Oi, Kagome! You comin' or what, we don't have all day ya know!” hollered Inuyasha
She shrugged and turned back around to once again start walking. When her eyes fell forward she gasped as she saw a huge bear-like demon standing in front of them; seemingly to have come out of nowhere. The others had been looking her way at Inuyasha's proclamation, so they didn't see it until it was directly upon them.
“Inuyasha look out!” Kagome screamed.
She was brought out of her dream by Inuyasha shaking her gently. When she opened her eyes she saw two golden orbs looking at her with concern. She felt tears starting to form in her eyes and she reached out and flung her arms around Inuyasha's waist. He was momentarily shocked, but slowly held her against him, patting her back somewhat uncomfortably trying to calm her.
“Geeze Kagome are you okay? It was just a dream, don't worry,” Inuyasha said soothingly.
“Yeah, I know,” she started as she let go of her embrace. “It just seemed so real.”
“You wanna talk about it?” he asked.
“No, I'm fine, really. It just startled me,” she said as she lay back down on her sleeping bag.
“Alright, but if you start screaming again, don't blame me if you wake up in a river, I won't be so easy on ya next time,” he teased.
“Gee, thank you Inuyasha,” she replied as she smiled.
He jumped back into his perch and she closed her eyes. She could feel him watching her and she smiled a little to herself.
“Good night Inuyasha,” she whispered for only him to hear before she drifted off to sleep once more.
`Good night, Kagome' he thought.
The next few nights her dreams were the same though sometimes they revealed less, sometimes they revealed more. The vividness of the dreams varied, leaving her at a state of uncertainty whenever they stopped to make camp for the night. Gradually she was starting to become afraid of falling asleep, knowing that her sometimes horrible nightmare were awaiting her. Inuyasha was always there to wake her up when she became fitful, giving her comforting words and a small embrace that she secretly enjoyed. He semi enjoyed his role in comforting Kagome, well, that was until he had his turn at a nightmare involving Kikyo. After that night, he couldn't look at Kagome without feeling guilty that he was `cheating' on his first love.
(Inuyasha's dream)
It was night and their group had set up camp in a small clearing. Everyone had eaten and settled in for the night. Inuyasha was sitting next to a tree sitting with his legs crossed and his hands tucked into the sleeves of his haori (shirt/outer coat). He had his sword held protectively against his chest and he scanned his eyes over the camp. Everyone was sleeping soundly. He tilted his head back to rest against the tree and then he saw it. A lone soul collector was soaring high above the trees, beckoning him to its master. He took a deep breath in and looked over at Kagome who was resting peacefully in her sleeping bag. He smiled to himself and looked back up into the sky. He lifted from his position on the ground and set off towards Kikyo, he would tell her of his decision tonight. He came upon a field, empty of any trees. She was standing in the middle of the clearing with her head tilted up towards the sky. In the moonlight she looked even more fragile and much more like porcelain.
“Tell me Inuyasha, does that girl mean more to you than I do?” questioned Kikyo.
“What? Why would you ask me something like that?! You know I love you!” Inuyasha replied.
“You look at her the way you used to look at me, with love and compassion. So tell me, what is she to you?” Kikyo pressed on.
“Kikyo, I've never stopped thinking about you, you know that! I do love Kagome, but Kikyo, I promised my life to you. You are the one that holds my heart, my life, in your hands.”
The look on Kikyo's face after he admitted this was one of pure joy, something that he hadn't seen since before the incident with Naraku. It made her look ethereal, she was indeed a beautiful sight. He vowed to himself to bring that look upon her face more often, whatever it took.
They shared a sweet embrace that made him sigh in content. His first love was coming back to him. He finally saw a genuine smile on her face after way too long, one that wasn't brought on by thoughts of his demise. Yes, he loved Kagome, but his life with Kikyo had been entirely too short and he was going to try like hell to make up for lost time.
After this dream, he started to become distant from Kagome; he hadn't even offered her rides upon his back like he normally would. He knew it was tearing her up inside, but he couldn't shake the feeling of his own treachery, he just couldn't think of Kagome in any other way as a friend, not when he so deeply cared for Kikyo.
`When all of this is over, I'm going to follow Kikyo, it's the least I could do for her, I owe her my life. There would be no sense in leading Kagome on, not when I can't promise to be here for her.'
****
A week had past and Kagome was still tormented by her dreams, and they had actually become more vivid and lifelike. When the day came that the half bear, half bird demon showed up ready for battle, she partially believed she was having one of her dreams yet again. Fortunately for her and her friends, she realized that this was no dream and did her part in defeating the demon. She came to the conclusion after that battle, that there was more to her dreams than she had previously thought; these were not merely dreams, they were visions. She didn't know if she should tell Inuyasha or not about this visions; he wasn't exactly acting like himself lately. After a tantalizing argument with her mind and conscious, she decided against telling the group. They didn't need to worry about her any more than they already had to; she was already such a burden, what with them having to save her all the time. So instead of spilling her secret, she kept close records of her dreams, in case there was anything that was of importance that she would need to remember. A few days went by with dreamless sleeps and she finally started to relax again. At least she had been able to sleep through the night; she wouldn't want to bother Inuyasha.
The days drew on and yet again, they found themselves in a stagnant search for Naraku, his incarnations, a jewel shard, anything! Sure there were minor demons that came out of the woodwork every now and then, but none that proved to be of any use to them. All they were good for was a small fight; at least it kept them a little occupied. They came upon a small village on their journey and Kagome insisted that they stop and get some food and perhaps a nice, comfortable bed for the night. Miroku, being the ever devious monk that he was, talked to the owner of the nicest tavern and solemnly warned him of a dark, ominous cloud that hung over his abode. The man hastily agreed to let the monk exorcise the aura, and the group had gratefully accepted accommodations for the night. Although they were tired and annoyed with the lack of evil, jewel possessing half-demons, each held a smile on their faces as they drifted off to sleep with full stomachs.
Though it had been many nights since she'd had one of her `visions', this night proved rebellious as she slipped into a deep sleep. A few minutes into her slumber, she unknowingly started twitching her limbs. Short spasms racked her body as she lay dreaming, but Inuyasha couldn't bring himself to go to her, not even when she started whimpering. `Keh, it's just a dream, she'll get over it,' he attempted to convince himself.
(Kagome's Dream)
Naraku's malicious eyes watched over the group yet again. Hoping to toy with the emotions of his enemies, he decided to send them a `warm-up' before he sought them out again later. The group came across a pass and he noticeably saw them tense and prepare themselves for battle.
“Not as dense as I thought they were,” Kagome heard Naraku say. “This should be an entertaining experience.”
What appeared to be Naraku, descended upon the group in a calm fashion, but was quick to take action against all of them. The first shot that Inuyasha took against his person was laughable. It did no more destruction than a slight slap in the face would do. Another tentacle was released, but she couldn't tell if it hit its target or not. Kagome saw herself draw her arrow and take aim at Naraku from where she sat on the ground. `How did she get on the ground?' She released her arrow and everything went dark.
All there was darkness; she couldn't see what happened after she had released her arrow; did it hit the target? Slowly the blackness began to fade into another scene. She saw her friends sleeping in their camp; Sango, Miroku, Shippou, and Kirara. Inuyasha was nowhere to be found. In flashes she saw dark red eyes and snaky tentacles reaching out for her and her friends. She saw herself being pulled away from her friends by the arms of their enemy and then everything once again went black.
Her eyes jolted open and she took a couple of heavy breaths to slow her fast beating heart. That dream was less vivid than the one's she had had a few days ago, but was nonetheless terrifying. She wiped a hand across her brow and removed the cold sweat that had gathered there. She looked around the camp at her friends, still sleeping comfortably in their bed rolls. Inuyasha was perched in his tree with his eyes closed, although she highly doubted he was sleeping. She looked down at her sleeping bag and saw that Shippou had curled up next to her sometime during the night. His bushy tail and red hair the only things visible as he lay curled up in a ball. She smiled to herself and closed her eyes in an attempt to salvage the rest of her sleep time. However, visions of Naraku kept flashing through her mind every time she closed her eyes; and her being dragged off away from her friends.
She felt the warmth of the sacred jewel shards hanging around her neck. Naraku has almost completed the jewel and would no doubt come after the one's that they have collected. She shivered as she thought of her dream; she couldn't let the most recent one happen, she could not allow Naraku to take her, Inuyasha would not allow Naraku to take her. `Just because he's been really distant lately doesn't mean he doesn't care about me. He still wants to see Naraku fall just like the rest of us. *sigh* even if he doesn't care for me, he would never allow Naraku to have the jewel shards. But what happens if he becomes “preoccupied”? Upon thinking of her dream a little more, she took the only precaution that she could think of; she stuffed the little glass vile with the jewel shards into the back pocket of Shippou's pants. In her dream, he was safe, so she didn't need to worry about him, at least now, if she was taken, Naraku would not gain possession of the shards and they would not be back to where they were two months ago.
Heaving a great whimper, she lay back down on her sleeping bag and closed her eyes at another attempt to sleep. Lately she had done everything she could to avoid her dreams, staying up later than normal to study, write in her journal, or even just lay awake to watch the stars. She had even gone a couple days without rest before her body couldn't keep up anymore and she had succumbed to sleep. `Great, now I'm an insomniac, that's just what I needed,' she thought to herself. Tonight, she was going to get some much needed sleep. After a few restless position adjustments, she finally found herself comfortable and let the dream world claim her. No nightmares were had that night, with which she was grateful. The soft midnight blue sky surrounded the small camp like a blanket. Small insects could be heard, chirping their merry songs into the night. A soft breeze kept the night cool, a welcome change from the hot weather, and the group slept in peace.
Inuyasha let out a small sigh and shook his head while he looked at his companions. Miroku seemed to be dreaming hentai (pervert) dreams as his hands twitched and lightly squeezed shut and then open again. Good thing Sango chose to sleep on the opposite side of the fire tonight, otherwise Miroku's dreams just might come true. Sango herself talked in her sleep quietly, but Inuyasha was still able to hear her mumbled words of `pervert' and something about cramming her Hiraikotsu far up into places he'd rather not mention. She saw her face scrunch up as she glowered a little as well. Shippou's little tale twitched slightly, lightly hitting Kagome's face every now and again, making her absently run her hand across her nose to rid of the tickle. Kagome herself looked as if she finally was able to get a dreamless sleep for the first time in days. Inuyasha shook his head a little and forced himself to look away from her. He couldn't allow himself to be close to Kagome, not while Kikyo was still in his heart; he had to avenge their betrayal that Naraku had his hand in. It tore him up inside every time Kagome smiled sadly at him, and every time she had one of her nightmares; he just couldn't get close to her, not the way he knew she wanted. It just felt so wrong to harbor any sort of feelings for Kagome, Kikyo was he love, his life! He tightened his grip on Tessaiga and leaned his head back against the tree hard as if to knock all thought from his mind. With one last look at the sky, he closed his eyes and relaxed again, letting the sounds of the forest take him through the night.