InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Watcher In The Woods ❯ Day Two: The Scent ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer: I still don't own Inuyasha, but plans are in the works.



The morning sun was rising over the horizon chasing away the darkness of night. Inuyasha was the first to awaken. He stretched his limbs as he sat up. He felt rested and alert. Kirara greeted him by brushing against his knee. The half-demon stands and sniffs at the air. All the scents around him were familiar except for one. That one, he couldn't place...he didn't know who or what it was. He wandered off into the forest to investigate.

Inuyasha circles the camp trying to home in on the source of the scent. He follows the scent to a tall tree. He leaps up into the branches thinking that the owner of the scent could still be there. The half-demon found evidence that someone or something had been in the tree but was long gone. He sniffs at the air again and finds a scent trail leading north of the camp and he follows it.
The young demon follows the scent for about one mile and it disappears. He sniffs the air while circling the immediate area to try and pick up the scent again. He finds nothing. My nose must be playing tricks on me, he growls to himself. Inuyasha decides to walk back to the camp.

Shortly after he heads back, with all senses on alert, Inuyasha hears humming. He looks around and sees a small child in a clearing. She is picking wild flowers. When the child sees him she gasps and nearly drops her bundle. The two stare at each other for a moment.

Inuyasha broke the silence. “Are you ::cough:: lost, little girl?”

“My lord says that I must not speak to strangers when I am out by myself,” she cried. The little girl takes two steps back, turns and runs away.

Inuyasha nervously stood at the other end of the clearing watching the child as she ran. “No need to get all worked up over nothing. It was just a human girl,” he said out loud. He was still agitated over the loss of the scent he was tracking. The halfing shakes his head and scratches at an itch on the back of his neck as he walks back toward his friends.


Inuyasha made it back to camp. He found his friends busy around the fire. Kirara and Shippou were chasing each other around a tree. Miroku was nursing his cheek and Sango was polishing her weapon. Kagome was cooking breakfast for her companions at the fire.

The group didn’t notice that Inuyasha was back until they heard the sound of a snapping twig and looked in the direction the sound came from. “It’s about time you guys woke up. We need to get going.” Inuyasha walks over to where he slept during the night and packs up the sleeping bag. He unsuccessfully tried to keep himself from sneezing. “Why don’t you start packing?”

“We thought we should have a good breakfast before we leave,” said the monk. “Where did you go off to this morning?”

“When I woke up, I thought I smelled something. I went to check it out,” Inuyasha answered, coughing.

“Did you find anything?” Miroku asked, as he started packing up their gear.

Inuyasha stifled a cough and shook his head. “Well, not what I was looking for anyway. All I came across was a little human girl. She ran away from me.”

“What did you do to make her run?” Miroku chuckled.

Inuyasha glares at him, “What kind of a guy do you think I am?” Miroku was about to say something but Inuyasha cuts him off. “Don’t say it, ::cough,cough:: monk.” The half-demon stomps over to the campfire.

Kagome was getting ready to hand the breakfast out to her friends when Inuyasha sat down next to her. She looks at Inuyasha with concern and asks Sango to give the bowls to the rest of the group. She offers a bowl to the half-demon but he wouldn’t take it. “Are you feeling all right? You haven’t eaten for two days now. Wait, what’s this?” Kagome noticed an area of dry blood in Inuyasha’s hair, on the left side of his neck. She gets closer to him to examine it. “Let me see.”

“It’s nothing,” protested Inuyasha, “leave it alone.” He tries to get away from her but she grabs a bit of his hair to stop him. “I had an itch and I must have scratched too hard. I told you it’s nothing!”

“I still want to see it,” demanded Kagome. “Don’t move.” She moves his hair out of the way. What she found was a blood filled blister, about the size of a small river rock, that had been scratched open. “I’ve seen you scratching but I didn’t know it was this bad. Let me get something for it.” She goes to her backpack to get her first-aid kit.

Shippou and Kirara were running past Kagome as she was cleaning Inuyasha’s wound. The little fox demon saw the wound on Inuyasha’s neck and stopped in his tracks. “Eeeew, Inuyasha! What happened to you?” The half-demon wouldn’t answer him.

“It’s nothing to worry about, Shippou. It’s just a scratch,” said Kagome as she dressed the halflings wound. “Inuyasha, I’ve also noticed that you’ve been coughing and sneezing a lot. I have some medicine in my backpack that should help.” She reaches in her backpack again and pulls out a bottle of could medicine. She pours the required amount of the liquid into a cup and hands it to the half-demon.

Inu Yasha sniffs at the cups contents and in disgust said,"You want me to drink THIS? It smells worse than that stuff Kaede makes."

"Don't be childish, Inuyasha. You're worse than Souta when it comes to taking medicine. If you don't you might get worse. You won't be able to fight well in a weakened condition."

How DARE that wench call me weak! Inuyasha thought to himself. He glared and growled at the offending girl and swallows the medicine in one gulp. "Ugh! Are you happy now? THAT ::gag:: is the WORST ::gag, cough:: remedy I've ever tasted!" ::cough, cough, gag, cough:: Inuyasha looks around the campsite and notices all of his companions staring at him. "What are you looking at? Pick up camp! Get a move on!"

Oh, he can be such a baby at times. Thought Kagome as she hurriedly packs her backpack. Miroku douses the fire and Sango tears Shippou and Kirara away from their games.

"Myouga?" called Inuyasha, getting the flee's attention. "Where do we go from here?"

The flee points in the direction the should travel next. "That way milord."

The halfling starts walking in the direction Myouga pointed to leaving his friends behind. "Hey, Inuyasha! Wait up!" Yelled Kagome. She and her companions quickly fall in behind him.


"Bored, bored, bored...I'm SO bored. Kagome," Shippou sighed, "Can we play a game?"

"Ok, Shippou...How about..." Kagome pauses to think. "I spy with my little eye, something that starts with T."

"Tree?" Shippou guesses.

"No."

"Tick?"

"No."

"Turtle?"< br>
"No."

"Toad?"

"No."

"Tessaiga?" Screamed the little fox as he lunges toward it.

"YES!!" Kagome screamed.

Inu Yasha protectively grasps the Tessaiga, "Don't even ::cough, cough:: think about it. ::cough::"

"But INUUYYASSSHAA....!"

"I spy with my little eye, something that starts with an I," Kagome said.

"That's easy....INUYASHA!!!" Shippou pounces on Inuyasha.

"Get...::cough, gag:: off me!!!" Inuyasha grabs Shippou by the tail and tosses him behind the group.

"OUCH! Not again!" Cried Shippou as he flies through the air.

Kagome and Sango laugh loudly at the event before them. Sango then looks toward Miroku to see his reaction. He wasn't paying attention to what was happening in front of him.

"Oh...Kohana, I hope you're alright," Miroku breathed as his thoughts drift away from the current game.

::Flashback::

A young Miroku is chasing a little girl along a river bank. He is very curious about her because of her appearance. She was like no one he had ever seen before. The little girl had pale skin and long blond hair. "Excuse me, little girl? Are you human or demon?"

The child stops in her tracks and turns around to face him. "I'm human, you idiot. Just because a person looks different doesn't mean they are a demon. How would you like it if someone called you a demon? You don't exactly look normal either. What's with that hole in your hand, huh?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry...I did not mean to offend you. What is your name?" Asked Miroku, out of breath.

"My name is Kohana O'Neal."

"I'm Miroku. O'Neal? What kind of name is that?"

"My father was not from this country. He was an explorer from a land called England."

"Was? What does he do now?"

"I do not know...as he is no longer among the living." Kohana looked toward the ground and started to cry.

"I'm so sorry, Kohana." Miroku stepped closer and rested a comforting hand oh her shoulder.

::End Flashback::

"Hello? Anybody home? The fire is lit, but no one's home!" Giggled Sango as she taps her fist on Miroku's forehead.

"Miroku, are you alright? Where were you just now?" Asked Sango, concerned.

"I was thinking about someone I knew when I was young. She lived in that village we're heading to." Sayed the monk. His thoughts now in the present.

::cough, cough, gag, cough, gag, hack.....::

Kagome looks around the area and finds Inu Yasha several yards behind his companions and walks toward him. "Inuyasha? Are you ok? I think you need some more medicine. It's about that time anyway."

::Cough, cough, gag, gag, cough:: "Why should I. ::cough:: I refuse ::cough, hack:: to take anymore of that slop. ::cough, gag, cough:: It's not working. ::cough, cough:: If it did, ::cough:: I wouldn't ::cough:: be doing this." ::cough, hack cough...sigh::

"You're overestimating that medicine. It doesn't cure with one dose. You need to take more of it and give it time," Kagome said, concerned.

Inuyasha glared at her and started to growl but was interupted by another coughing fit landing him on the ground.

"I'll add something to it to make it taste better for you, ok? I think I have some honey in my backpack." She added.

Kagome puts her backpack on the ground and kneels down. She opened up her backpack and rummaged around for the medicine and honey. After she poured the required amount of medicine and a little honey into a cup she handed it to Inuyasha. When he took the cup Kagome could feel heat radiating from Inuyasha's hands. "Inuyasha, your hands are hot. Do you have a fever?" She then puts her hand on his forehead. "You DO have a fever. I think we should stop here for the night so you can get some rest."

"Kagome, please don't tell the others. We need to keep moving. The longer we delay, the longer it'll take us to get there."

Kagome looks in the direction of their friends and finds that they are still walking down the path playing the game, oblivious to what is going on between her and Inuyasha. "I won't say anything, but, you have to promise to take it easy when we make camp. Now take your medicine."

"Keh, all right.....grrr.....::cough, cough::" Inuyasha, not being used to sweets, sniffs at the concoction he was given. It still smells horrible, but if I don't drink it, she'll probably make me sit. He drank the concoction without a word. When he emptied the cup he handed it back to Kagome. "Let's get going." ::gag::

As Inuyasha stands he feels a wave of dizziness. Kagome picks up her backpack and notices that Inuyasha is having difficulty. She puts her arm around Inuyasha's waist for support. He doesn't seem to mind and wraps his arm around her shoulders. They walk down the path to catch up with their friends. As they walk, Inuyasha surveys the area. Something doesn't seem quite right but he can't figure out what it is.

Miroku and Sango were resting on a log that had fallen across the path. Shippou and Kirara were playing tag not too far away and were the first to see Inuyasha and Kagome walking down the path. He noticed that they were walking a little closer than usual. "It's about time, you two!" The couple quickly release each other. Inuyasha carefully walks over to where Shipou is sitting and hits him, nearly missing his target.

"Everybody, keep your eyes and ears open....I have a feeling we're being watched."

As they traveled on, Inuyasha's condition was getting visably worse. He was coughing and sneezing more often and he had difficulty keeping his balance. He had also been scratching more often, the rash spread down to his back and abdomen. "Hey, gang? I think we need to stop. Why don't we camp..."

"Kagome....don't!" Interupted Inuyasha.

"I know I made a promise, but, I can't keep it. You can't go on like this much longer. You need to stop and rest, NOW!" Kagome whispered at her friend.

"But...."

"I think it's a good idea, Kagome," said Miroku, "we could all use some rest. This is a perfect spot."


Not too far down wind, someone was watching Inuyasha and his friends. He put up a barrier to keep himself hidden, both by sight and scent. He watched as they set up their camp and prepared their meal. It's about time that fool stopped. He is going to kill himself if he keeps going like that, thought the mysterious man. When they are all asleep I will take a closer look at that idiot.
And so he waits...

The mysterious man grew impatient as time marched on. The young girl by the halfling's side showed no signs of going to sleep. She looked intent on keeping vigil over her friend through the night. The man held a clenched hand out infront of him and uttered an incantation. When he opened his hand with his palm facing out the young girl slumped over in deep sleep.

When it was safe to move in closer, the man did so. He knelt down beside Inuyasha to examine him. He put a hand on his forehead and noted a high fever. He listened to his breathing and heartbeat. The man opened the halflings kimono slightly and saw the rash that was developing on his chest. The girl made a paste of some herbs and placed it on the young man's rash before he fell asleep.

It is as I thought. His scent reeks of it. Thinks the man. He is not pleased. The man takes a look at the items that were left by Inuyasha's side. These potions will not help his condition. What he needs grows in the mountains. I will collect it and return in the morning. With that thought the man silently left the sleeping travellers.


To be continued: