Title: The Greater Life.
Chapter 2: The Beginning Of The End
Disclaimer: I, unfortunately, own no one from the InuYasha manga/anime
Summary: After overcoming old obstacles, the team starts to live normal lives amongst themselves. When a new villain appears, the team will have to get back together. But are they strong enough to defeat their newest foe?
Red eyes glinted in the dark branches of a tall tree. A slender woman plucked a feather from her hair, retreating in the wind once it grew larger. She glanced down at the two figures she'd been watching. "InuYasha, I will hide this from Naraku. You better kill him." The woman's feather floated away, towards dark mountains in the distance.
"Kagura!" The woman jumped. She could've fallen off the rocky ledge she'd landed on only seconds before. There was anger in the voice that had called her. She hesitated: had he found out her silent plots against him once again? "Get in her now Kagura!" This time the woman, Kagura, entered the cave she'd been standing in front of.
Kagura kneeled in front of a red eyed man with long, dark hair. "They've completed the Shikon Jewel, Naraku." Her silky voice told him monotonously.
"Is that all you have to report?"
She looked up at the man. Such a vile creature she worked for. "I left once I saw it around the miko's neck." An albino child stepped from the shadows then, holding a small mirror. In it, Kagura's lie was obvious. It showed her sitting in the same tree she'd been sitting in for quite a few minutes, spying on the new couple. 'Kanna, won't you ever see the light?' She looked down at the ground, scared stiff. Naraku would have her head. Her sister, her own sister had betrayed her once again.
"Kagura. I'm only going to give you one more chance. If you do not succeed in the mission I'm about to bestow upon you..." Naraku showed a red item, clenched in his palm. A smirk went across his features. When he squeezed his hand to a tight fist, Kagura fell to the ground gasping. "You'll follow the group here. Then... you'll kill the miko bitch." His words echoed in the small area, then both Kanna and Naraku disappeared.
Kagura hung her head low. She would have to do it. Unless... She could free herself from Naraku beforehand. 'No...' It wouldn't work. Her plots never worked. She decided she might as well succumb to Naraku's wim. She wouldn't be free from his grasp until he was dead. She would have to wait for InuYasha to kill him. Soon hopefully. Another week and Naraku would have most of his power back. If they waited to come after him, or couldn't find her scent that she'd so obviously placed to lead them to this place... Then there was no way Naraku would ever be defeated.
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InuYasha paced in front of the hut. "Damn it wench! What's taking so long?" He yelled back. He should have woken her up earlier. His amber gaze landed on the monk and he froze. "What are you smirking at?"
"You must be more patient, InuYasha. Women obsess over their looks, so it takes them longer to put themselves together." Miroku replied coolly. He looked at the door to the hut and sighed, his thoughts on his dear, sweet Sango.
"Don't even think about it, you lech. Kagome is in there too." With that the hanyou started pacing again. He hated that he knew exactly what Miroku was thinking. And was thinking almost the same thing about Kagome. His Kagome.. He paused his thoughts and smiled. His Kagome. She loved him. And, god dammit, he loved her to.
"Come on InuYasha!" Kagome waved a hand in front of his face. He was daydreaming, which seemed to be his new favorite thing to do. And, quite frankly, she didn't want to know what about. "Hellooooo InuYasha! Anybody home?" She reached up to rub his ears, the perfect opportunity.
Kagome's hand was stopped only a few inches shy of those adorable, fuzzy ears atop InuYasha's head. He tightened his grip on her wrist, enough so that she would get the picture without being harmed. "Don't do that." He growled down at her.
"But InuYasha... I have to... They're just so cute!" Kagome giggled and tilted her head, a bright smile gracing her lips. If he honestly thought that she wouldn't touch his ears, he had another thing coming. Life with him was going to get so much more fun.
InuYasha flattened his ears atop his head, almost completely covering them with his hair. He let go of Kagome's wrist and looked towards the forest. He'd scented Kagura last night, if they hurried he might still be able to smell her trial. "We should get going."
Sango emerged from the hut in her slayer's outfit. She pulled her hair back into a high ponytail, nodding to Kilala. When the two-tailed cat transformed, Sango hoisted up the hiraikotsu and climbed on her back. "Let's get this done and over with then." Once they'd killed Naraku she'd be able to move on with her life. 'Little brother... We're finally going to avenge your death.'
"So where are we headed this time?" Miroku's voice yelled over the loud winds whipping past everyone's head.
InuYasha landed on a tree branch, then took another great leap. "The mountains in the Eastern Lands it looks like..."
Kagome dug her face into InuYasha's hair. The wind was much to cold this morning. "How long do you think it'll take us?" She mumbled into his shoulder.
"At this rate... I'd say we could almost be there by nightfall. But I'm not sure."
She grumbled. "We're going to stop and camp for the night at least, right?"
"Of course!" Sango smiled over at her. "We 'weak humans' can't put up a good fight without a good night's rest."
"That's right Kagome. Don't you worry." He hadn't planned on stopping... This would just mean he'd stay up and play 'look-out.' Nothing out of the ordinary of course.
Hours later Kagome rolled out her sleeping bag. She was grateful for the seasons. With summer just around the corner, she wouldn't have to worry about being to cold. She let out a sigh of relied after she laid down. A look on the other side of the camp showed that she and InuYasha were the only two left awake.
She looked up in the trees, staring at InuYasha's dark outline in a high branch. "Hey, InuYasha?"
"What is it wench?"
"You sure you're comfortable up there?" She spoke hesitantly, afraid of how he'd react. "It's warmer down here."
"I'm fine. Go to sleep." His voice was soft, hard to hear.
"Are you sure?"
"You have no idea just how comfortable trees are, Kagome." He paused and looked down. The runt wasn't with them on their journey tonight. A sudden idea, and he jumped down from his perch. He landed softly next to Kagome. "You want to come test it out?" He grinned, lips curling over his fangs.
"Alright..." Kagome did her best to hide the eagerness in her voice to make it sound more nervous. "No funny stuff though, okay? I don't want to fall from that height."
InuYasha scooped her up into his arms and leaped back up to 'his' branch. He got comfortable, then loosened his hold on Kagome enough so she'd be able to get comfortable as well. "Don't worry." He whispered reassuringly. "I won't let you fall." She moved then, sitting up against his chest. His arms rested around her waist, and her hands laid across his.
"Goodnight InuYasha." She whispered tiredly.
"Night Kagome." He whispered into her hair.
"I love you."
"I know." She sighed and he nuzzles her neck, inhaling her scent. "I love you too."
In the next few passing minutes, Kagome mumbles a few other incoherent words. She soon drifted off to sleep. InuYasha noticed that she seemed to sleep more soundly then she did on the ground. He couldn't help but to watch her sleep. In the light of the moon her skin looked pale blue. A vision of beauty. Soon, he swore, she'd be his completely.
A few hours after the sun rose over the horizon InuYasha caught the sounds of the others. They were waking up. He sighed and tightened his hold on Kagome. They would probably want to leave soon. "Kagome... Time to wake up." His voice was hoarse from not being used for so long, but still just barely above a whisper.
Kagome grumbled and pushed her back closer to InuYasha. "Five more minutes... sleepy..." She closed her eyes tightly, falling almost immediately back to sleep.
"No. Wake up." When she waved her hand lazily at his command, he lost his patience. He growled and nipped her ear gently. "Wake up." He breathed. "We've got a big day ahead of us."
She yipped and jumped, glaring at hands around her waist. "Fine. I'm up, okay?" She rubbed her ear and sighed. That hurt.
"Kagome!" The monk's voice echoed across the small area. "Kagome where are you?"
"Knock it off monk! You're going to give away out position and put us all in danger!" InuYasha sighed and licked the hand that Kagome was using to rub her ear. He hadn't mean to hurt her. His demon instincts took over sometimes... he couldn't help it. "I'm sorry Kagome." He pulled her body to his chest and made his way down the tree.
She looped her arms around his neck. "It's okay..." She had assumed it had been an accident on his part. Painful or no. She prayed though, that no other part of her body would fall under prey of those teeth of his. 'I hadn't thought about it that was, I suppose...' Once InuYasha had both feet on the ground Kagome slid from his embrace and let go of his neck. She turned to the suspicious glares of her friends. "What?" was her stupid question. It didn't quite register how bad that had looked.
InuYasha folded his arms across his chest. "Let's go." He started walking away, to hide his blush from the rest of the group. Miroku went after him, with Kilala at his heels. Sango stayed behind with Kagome though, staring over at her dumbfounded friend.
"Do you have something you want to tell me Kagome?" Sango started walking next to Kagome, the two of them well behind the rest of the group. The young woman had become so close to Sango over the years, and she was starting to consider her as- more or less- a younger sister. The only family she had left... Quite frankly. She just wanted to make sure Kagome wasn't getting into something that might break her heart.
Kagome looked over at Sango and smiled. "He told me he loved me Sango." She sighed happily, looking towards InuYasha walking ahead of them. His ears were facing towards the two of them. She could tell he wasn't listening to a word Miroku was saying. "I know he means it to... I can tell..."
"What about Kikyo? You're going to get hurt." Her worry had increased tenfold. Kagome was being irrational.
"I'm not. He even said so himself. She's dead, that was then and this is now." She pulled a few strands of hair from her face, smiling softly. "I love him and he loves me. Trust him Sango... I know I do." The hanyou looked back then, giving her the faintest of smiles. This was going to work out. Kagome just knew it.
A/N: yay. Finally finished typing the chapter. And it only took about 3 days.
wooosh.
This chapter is one of my favorites(not counting chap. 4)
Hope you guys like it to.
:D