Title: The Approaching Storm
Author: sabor ice
Pairings: Kagome/InuYasha, Sango/Miroku
Brief Summary: After a brief visit to Priestess Kaede's village, InuYasha and his companions follow up on another Naraku lead. But, what dangers will lie ahead for them?
Disclaimer: I don't own anything from InuYasha; however, this story and anything original in it does belong to me.
Author's Note: Feedback appreciated, but please don't comment if you're just going to be mean - I don't care for distasteful comments. Thank you.
Chapter One - An Outing Turned Sour
Kagome silently stood on the hillside just outside Priestess Kaede's village. The warm winds of summer gently caressed her sun-kissed skin, giving her a strange sense of peace and comfort - two feelings that were gracious distractions from her difficult everyday life. The view of the land, wide and full of wonder, was quite remarkable from the crown of the hill. Whenever she and her companions had the chance to return to the village during their journey, Kagome always drew herself away from crowded village life in order to answer her restlessness with a few moments of peace alone. After weeks of traveling and numerous battles fought, Kagome welcomed the time in order to cleanse her thoughts and find some peace of mind.
From down the hill and quite far from where she stood, Kagome could feel InuYasha's intense golden gaze on her back. Even in times of peace or rest, the half-demon was ever watchful of her; he never bothered her when he knew she wished to be alone, and although Kagome was thankful he respected her personal space every now and again, she also felt fortunate to know he loved her so.
The young woman folded her hands inward to rest them against her chest. Her long, dark hair was momentarily blown back by a gentle gust of air, before flowing prettily about her shoulders again. She raised one hand to inspect the callous-like wounds that had formed on her slender digits after using her bow so continuously the past week. They were nothing more than microscopic bumps along her soft skin now, having healed nicely during her short stay at the village. Naraku and his minions had been quiet for far too long. It was as if he had simply disappeared, and Kagome could only fear what the demon was planning now. Naraku was ruthless and persistant, so the girl could only assume the worst. While shards of the Shikon Jewel were still unclaimed in the wild vastness of Feudal Japan, (some as well in the dark entity's possession), nobody was safe, and everybody knew it. The only thing Kagome wanted to know was: would it all ever end? And, if it all did end - if she purified the Shikon Jewel, or the jewel was destroyed, and Naraku was defeated - what would happen to her?
Sighing deeply, the adolescent raked fingers back through her hair, gently pinning it to the side as she turned her head to peer down the hill. Her dark eyes first fell upon Shippo and a small girl from the village. They happily tossed a small, blue ball back and forth to one another. Everytime the ball returned to the fox demon's possession, Shippo would transform into a different shape or object, clearly trying his best to impress the young girl with success. Kagome found herself smiling at the sight of the two. Innocence was a heart-warming feeling - one that she sensed seemed to be disappearing little by little as she journeyed and learned more of the Feudal Era. Back in her era, children could be children. Here, children were often forced to grow up quickly, in order to take on the responsibilities of adults. It truly saddened Kagome when she thought about it. She loved Shippo dearly - almost as much as she loved her own brother, Sota, and she simply could not picture the little fox demon having to take on adult responsibilities when he was still just a child.
Kagome's gaze flickered over to two of her other companions and friends, Miroku and Sango. Earlier, the monk had asked Sango on a picnic, and although at times she acted as if she could not stand him at all, Sango had eagerly agreed. A smirk played across Kagome's lips as she briefly watched the two. Sango suddenly slapped Miroku in the face before standing and stalking off, indicating the monk must have either said something offensive or tried to stroke her bottom again without her consent. Miroku rushed after the woman, and only moments later, they seemingly were made up. Love did strange things to people. Kagome's smirk turned into a sad smile then. How wonderful it must've been to be able to openly love one another. How the dark-haired young woman yearned for the same with the one she cared for so deeply. Alas, why did she sometimes feel like perhaps she and he were never meant to be?
"Whatcha doin'?" came a familiar voice.
Kagome gasped in surprise, having been startled so suddenly. Her hand went from her chest to rest by her side again. Narrowing her dark eyes somewhat, she glanced at InuYasha.
"Don't sneak up on me like that! You nearly gave me a heart-attack, InuYasha!" the young woman exclaimed, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Hey, don't go yelling at me! I ain't the one standing there all googly-eyed like an idiot!" the half-demon countered, crossing his arms over his chest as well.
"An idiot am I?" Kagome wondered. She lifted her chin proudly and closed her eyes as she turned away. "Sit!"
"Aah!" uttered InuYasha, as Kagome's command made him involuntarily crash to the ground.
He growled under his breath. He despised the beads around his neck - the ones Kaede had placed on him in order for him to be controlled by one stupid little word that formed on Kagome's lips one too many times. What InuYasha despised more was that he couldn't do anything about it; the spell of obedience was bound to the beaded necklace and he was stuck wearing the necklace. Wincing, the half-demon reluctantly climbed to his feet again. By then, Kagome had all ready begun heading back down the hill. InuYasha swiftly caught up with the young woman.
"What was that for? You promised me you wouldn't do that anymore!" the dog demon exclaimed.
Kagome stopped and turned to face him, hands on her hips.
"I said I wouldn't do it unless you deserved it, and you did derserve it," she replied, matter-of-factly, trying to ignore the fact InuYasha was only a couple inches away from her face as they spoke.
The two immediately began bickering back and forth - each stubbornly sticking to their own opinion. A few meters away, Shippo, whom had joined Miroku and Sango on their picnic blanket, was the first to notice Kagome's and InuYasha's behaviors. He turned over onto his stomach and laid next to Sango's faithful feline-like demon companion, Kirara, and continued to watch the two with mild interest.
"Looks like they're fighting again," Miroku dutifully noted.
"Nothing new there," Sango added, with a disapproving shake of her head. "One would think they'd get tired doing it all the time."
"You kidding? Those two always argue," Shippo chimed in. "And, we know it can only end badly for one person, and that's - "
Before the little fox demon couldn't finish his statement, Kagome's "sit" commands reigned supreme throughout the area. Shippo silently counted how many times she must've said the word by how many times InuYasha repeatedly crashed to the ground.
"Wow. He must've made her really mad," Shippo said, with wide eyes.
"This could prove to be awhile," Miroku added. The three companions sighed collectively.
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As the group made their way back to the village, Kagome noticed how disgruntled InuYasha still appeared to be. His shoulders sagged somewhat, and his arms were crossed. His facial features remained neutral, as they usually did. InuYasha never liked to show weakness if possible. The only thing that really gave him away this time was his twitching right ear. Whenever InuYasha was upset or angry with her, his right ear always twitched. Kagome found it to be rather adorable, though she never admitted it to him - it would bruise his masculinity too easily. The half-demon had felt Kagome's gaze on him since they had begun their trek back. He couldn't take being watched like that anymore, so he glanced back at her with a sneer.
"What are you lookin' at?" he wondered, his right ear now twitching uncontrollably.
The dark-haired young woman merely gave him a sweet smile and shrugged in response.
"Huh! I should've known it was nothin'," InuYasha replied, before turning away again. "I'll never understand women."
Miroku gently cleared his throat. When it came to the art of womanizing, Miroku considered himself an expert. Any time words of wisdom seemed appropriate when it came to women, the dark-haired monk had no choice but to offer some free advice.
"Well, you see, InuYasha, it takes a man of a certain character to understand women - take a sensitive, caring man like myself, for example," he began. "I learn the needs of a woman - her desires even - and, I take it all into consideration when - "
InuYasha's ears perked up when he sensed Kagome had stopped walking. He turned around, an almost un-interested look upon his youthful face. As he was about to ask what was keeping her, the half-demon noticed the awkward expression on her face. In the midst of his so-called speech, Miroku's hand had idly found its way to Kagome's bottom, and he was stroking it! Sango had also noticed what was happening, and she took it upon herself to whack the horny monk upside the head quite harshly with the edge of the large boomerang-like weapon she always carried with her.
"The only character you retain is the character of a lecher," Sango said, matter-of-factly, rightfully turning her nose up at her lover. "Let's go Kagome, Kirara."
The three of them continued on into the village, leaving Inuyasha and Shippo behind with a now half unconscious Miroku. Shippo climbed up and perched on InuYasha's head. He leaned forward on his small paws somewhat as he looked down at the monk with no empathy whatsoever.
"When are the two of you ever going to learn how to treat your women right?" the boy demon asked, tsking them afterwards.
"Shut up! What would you know?!" InuYasha spat out, knocking the fox demon to the ground with his hand.
Shippo bounced from his back onto his butt with a small cry. He raised his small hands to cover the top of his head, fearing InuYasha would strike him again. All the while, Shippo was whining and crying for the half-demon to leave him alone because he didn't do anything wrong. Suddenly, the familiar sound of Kagome's voice rang out from inside the village.
"InuYasha!" her voice echoed. "Miroku! InuYasha, hurry!"
Always fearing the worst when it came to Kagome's safety, InuYasha sprang into action quickly, his large strides hastily taking him inside the village. Miroku, whom had just finally pulled himself together, and Shippo, were not far behind him. Whatever the matter was, it sounded urgent. Worst of all, both Miroku and InuYasha could all ready sense that a dark aura was somewhere nearby, and a dark aura was never a good sign.