Chapter Two: Professionals
"What is it, InuYasha?" Sango asked, rising to her feet.
"I smell demons," he replied stiffly.
"So soon?" Jin asked, also moving towards the door.
InuYasha held up his arm, blocking the priestess from exiting. "Stay here. We'll take care of these guys."
"How many are there, InuYasha?" Kagome asked.
"Two. You said your two bandits were a kitsune and a bat, right, Priestess?" InuYasha never took his eyes off of the darkness outside.
"Yes. The bat wears all black, has wings, and wears a wide-brimmed hat. The other drapes a white material about him and has long, silver hair." Jorue replied steadily. Her eyes betrayed her unease.
"That's all I needed to know." InuYasha responded in a business-like manner.
Miroku followed him out the door, with Sango behind him and Kagome with Shippou in her arms trailing them.
There was only a half-moon but it shone brightly enough to see clearly by. The group walked into the woods about a half mile from the shrine until they reached a clearing. It was clear to them that InuYasha intended to take the two demons on alone, so they hung back. Sango stayed within a few feet of Kagome while Miroku moved to stand a few paces ahead and to the left of the girls and kit.
A soft, chilly breeze blew in from the east, bringing with it flickers of movement on the edge of the trees. A flash of white at the corner of Kagome's peripheral vision made her turn jerkily to her right.
There, on the edge of the trees was a tall figure clad in soft white cotton. His golden eyes flashed briefly before he disappeared.
Shivers of electric fear raced down Kagome's spine and exited through her fingertips and toes. Something is wrong here, she thought. These indeed were not some low-class demons with an unusual amount of luck. These rouges were professionals.
Then, there they were. They stood side by side as casually as if they had been at the head of the path all along.
A worn, inky-black hat hung low over one's face; only a thin-lipped smirk was visible. The one in white stood partially bare-chested. The wind picked up and tossed long silver hair around a chiseled face with haunting yellow eyes that were daringly reminiscent of Sesshoumaru's.
The silence was shattered by the bat's demand. "We've come to collect the Jewel shards in your possession."
"Not on your life!" InuYasha raged, pulling Tetsusaiga out and pointing it at each demon in turn. "Leave now and I'll spare you!"
"Pah!" the bat spat. "We have stated our claim on the Jewel. Now tell us why we should allow you to keep it."
"I could ask the same of you!" InuYasha cried, swinging Tetsusaiga onto his shoulder. The new weight of the sword was still something InuYasha had issues with, and he practically fell over at the added bulk.
The two demons laughed, and their mockery damaged InuYasha's ego. "You want to know why we want the Jewel fragments?" The kitsune asked, speaking for the first time. "All you need to know is that we will put it to good use."
"And just who," InuYasha's voice was dripping with sarcasm, "might 'we' be?"
The bat in black swept his hat off of his head, his bow mockingly low. "Kuronue, at your service."
"Youko Kurama," the other said carelessly; he absent-mindedly fingered a rose that had come out of nowhere. Suddenly, the air was full of crimson petals and when the whirlwind was gone Youko held a long, thorny whip coiled loosely in his right hand.
"Now, which of you has the shards?" he asked, sweeping over each of them (except InuYasha) with a critical eye.
"HEY!" the hanyou shouted indignantly. "What makes you think I don't have it?"
Youko chuckled. "I was waiting for a reaction like that. I didn't know whether or not you had it, but your words just proved you don't."
"What the hell! How could you tell that?"
"If you had said something like 'what makes you think they have it?' then I would know you had the shards, because you are obviously the leader of the group. And as leader you have to protect them from me, yes?" Youko didn't miss a beat. "But, since you referred to yourself, it means that you are trying to deflect my focus from them, meaning one of your comrades has it. Also, if you had possession of the Jewel, I figure you wouldn't want to draw so much attention to yourself."
While InuYasha sputtered Youko's eyes traveled over the group behind him.
Sango and Miroku immediately took defensive stances, each moving subconsciously toward Kagome to try and block her and Shippou from view.
"So that leaves that girl and the kit," he mused.
"WHAT?" InuYasha shouted, turning around and glaring at Sango and Miroku as if they'd told Youko outright who had the fragments.
"It was easy enough to figure out." Youko shrugged nonchalantly, but his eyes glinted with the pride of outsmarting the hanyou twice in a row…Not that it was a challenge, of course. "The female exterminator and monk moved defensively towards that other girl, meaning to protect her, the kit, and the shards."
In the background, Kuronue laughed. "Come, Youko. Enough of your games of the mind! We have business to attend to."
"Of course." With a flick and relish, Youko cracked his whip, the tip just nicking InuYasha's ear. Seconds later, a single drop of crimson spilled out, painting a strand of his lovely mane wine-red.
A feral growl reverberated in InuYasha's chest. How dare he! The bastard would pay! InuYasha's right hand grabbed Tetsusaiga's hilt and gripped it so tightly his knuckles turned white. The balance on his shoulder was precarious; if he tried to pull on it too slowly, he wouldn't get it off. However, if he swung too hard, he'd lose control and the momentum would knock him on his butt in front of two smart-ass demons. No, sir. He wasn't about to let them get another laugh on his behalf!
"We'll give you one last chance to hand over the shards peacefully," Kuronue said in an off-hand tone of voice.
"Go to hell!" InuYasha yelled, switching his grip on Tetsusaiga and swinging it from his shoulder with perfect timing.
"I had been hoping you'd say something like that," Youko said, a smooth grin polishing his face. "Rose Whip!"
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