-Ten-Faced Paladin
Inuyasha Maximum By Ten-Faced Paladin Chapter 3: Hot Spring Complications.
The friends were slowly making their way down a road as they travelled. Inuyasha led the way with Kagome riding her bicycle close beside him. Sango and Miroku walked side by side just behind them. For once, Shippo was not riding in Kagome's basket that was mounted to her bike. He was hitching a ride on the friends newest companion, Wolfang, an alien robot from another planet called a Maximal. They had just left a village afte fighting a similar alien robot named Grabdscythe that was called a Predacon.
Kagome pedaled with the bottle she held their jewel shards in around her neck. It now held a new addition to their collection. Normally Inuyasha would have been smug about this victory, but he was now grumbling in annoyance and anger.
"Oh come on Inuyasha," Kagome sighed. "Will you just forget about it already?"
"No," Inuyasha grunted. "We risk our necks for that bunch of spineless humans and what's the thanks we get? They throw us out!"
That statement was very true. After Grandscyhte got blasted into the distance and Wolfang resumed his wolf form, the village headman confronted the group and asked them to leave posthaste. He probably thought that the group attracted the two metal men. No one could really blame him for thinking that. The only real perk that Inuyasha saw to leaving was that Koga did too, but not before flirting with Kagome one last time.
"At least they let us keep the jewel shard," Kagome shrugged. "Come on, you can't stay upset forever."
Inuyasha growled as he glared into space again. The friends remained quiet again before they came to a fork in the road. None of them could see anhy buildings that made either path very desirable.
"So which way?" asked Wolfang.
"Allow me," Miroku spoke as he stepped forward.
He stepped up to the fork annd held out his staff before him. He closed his eyes and let go of his staff. It fell forwardand landed on the ground pointing to the right.
"Right it is then," Miroku nodded.
Just as he leaned down to pick up his staff, two travellers could be seen making their way towards the group from down the path on the left. They were talking to each other and not really acknowledging the group that stood before them.
"That rest stop had some great food didn't it?" the first man asked his friend.
"It sure did," the second agreed. "That hostess was a real beauty too.
Miroku's hand suddenly stopped ashe heard that little bit of information. As the travellers calmly walked past, Miroku quickly reached out to his staff and slowly turned it towards the path left.
"Divine intervention," he stated calmly.
Sango growled dangerously as she glared at the monk. Wolfang could have sworn that he could actually see flames coming off of the demon slayer.
"Does this sort of thing happen often?" he asked the fox child on his back.
"It happens plenty of times," Shippo replied. "Miroku's a pervert who gropes women whenever he gets the chance. He usually does it to Sango though. He'll never learn."
Wolfang thought about Shippo's words before replying, "If he does it mostly to Sango then doesn't that mean he finds her the most attractive?"
"Maybe," Shippo shrugged. "Grown up stuff is kind of complicated sometimes."
Unknown to them, Sango had overheard the ocnversation. When Wolfang made his comment, she started blushing. She really hadn't thought of it that way before. It didn't excuse his actions of course, but it did put a reason behind his actions beyand normal letchery.
"Feh," Inuyasha snorted. "I'm hungry anyway."
With that, the decision was made and the friends went down the left path. Within a few short minutes they did find the rest stop in question. It was a decent place and they could immediately see the hostess as she stood outside. She really was a true beauty. She wore a thin Kimono and she also had long black heir which she had tied back.
"My, those travellers did not lie," Miroku remarked before he started walking towards her.
He was quickly stopped as Sango grabbed his small ponytail, she then jerked hard and brought him back to the others.
"Hold it right there lover-boy," Sango growled.
While Sango dealt with Miroku, Kagome leaned over to Wolfang, "Do you think you could keep quiet while we're around other people? Talking wolves aren't a thing you usually see here."
"No talking," Wolfang nodded. "Got it."
The group all made their way to the rest stop and soon got themselves something to eat. Everyone was enjoying themselves and the friends conversed normally. By this it usually degraded to Shippo and Inuyasha fighting again until Kagome said that one word, sit. Miroku also got himself pounded by Sango when he took the opportunity while she was sitting down and slipped his hand under her before she actually sat down.
'If this is normal,' Wolfang thought to himself. 'I'd hate to see what these guys are like when they're tense or upset.'
The hostess soon came to see how they were all doing. She seemed a little wary about Inuyasha, but other than that, she was perfectly calm.
"You know," she began. "There's a hot spring down the road if you want to take a bath. It's free of charge."
"Really!" Kagome gasped, stars in her eyes."Oh thank you so much!"
After the food was gone and paid for, the friends made their way to the spring. It was pretty far from the road so there was plenty of privacy for anyone who used it. After playing a game of rock, sissors, paper, which Kagome said was used to make several big decisions where she came from, the boys had to pick up sticks for the fire while the women and Shippo got to enjoy the hot spring first. Wolfang decided to do his share and help out. By the time the fire had been started, the sun had set.
Inuyasha and Miroku sat around the fire while Wolfang leaned against a tree in his robot form. None of them spoke and the girls hadn't returned yet. No one spoke until Miroku seemed to have had enough.
"I wonder how dear Sango and lady Kagome are doing," he commented casually.
"Don't even think about it letcher," Inuyasha growled.
Miroku held up his hands in protest, "Please, I was mearly wondering if they would require something to make the bath more enjoyable."
"Oh?" Inuyasha continued to growl. "How were you planning to aske them?"
Miroku's gaze turned to the Maximal sitting by a tree, "Why, Wolfang shall go ask them."
Wolfang perked as he heard his name. He had been listening the entire time so he knew what the entire coversation was about.
"Sure, I can go," Wolfang shrugged. "Don't see why you guys can't though."
Inuyasha sputtered and tried to stand up to stop the Maximal, but miroku grabbed him by his hair to keep him down.
"Easy there," Miroku spoke. "He volunteered for this on his own behalf."
"They're going to kill him you know," Inuyasha growled.
"Better him than us," Miroku calmly stated. "This way we will be able to tell that the girls are okay."
"Coward," Inuyasha spat.
Wolfang trekked through the forest with some difficulty. It all looked the same to him. The path had melted away some time ago. he wondered if Kagome and Sango hadn't gotten lost after all. It wasn't that difficult to imagine really.
"Sango?" he called. "Kagom-aaaaaaahhhhhhh!"
While Wolfang had been calling out, he suddenly stepped off a bridge that had been hidden from view by bushes. He tumbled head over heels ddown a bumpy hillside down to the ground. He managed to hit some rocks on the way down and he finally came to a stop only to fall face first into a pool of water.
"Ow," Wolfang muttered as he sat up.
He looked forward and saw the hill he had tumbled down. He shook his head and and noticed that the water was giving off steam.
"So this is a hot spring," Wolfang muttered. "I was expecting something like the oil pools or energon spa's back home."
"Yeah it's really nice," someone spoke from above Wolfang. "What are you doing here. Men can't came here right now."
Wolfang peered upwards and found Shippo sitting on his head in an inner tube of some kind.
"Oh, hey Shippo," Wolfang nodded. "Why can't men come into the hotspring?"
"Because there's naked women here you pervert!" Kagome's voice shrieked.
Wolfang quickly turned around saw both Sango and Kagome standing about a foot or two behind him. They had white towels wrapped around them and they both looked really mad. Sango was also hefting a large rock in her hands. Wolfang glanced at them curiously before slightly hitting the side of his head.
"I guess I don't know all the terms on this planet," Wolfang grimaced. "What does 'naked' mean anyway?"
Shippo leaned over his inner tube and stared strangely at the Maximal, "You honestly don't know?"
"Uh-uh," Wolfang he replied, carefuul not to shake his head too much.
Shippo looked to the two women with a smile that was threatening to turn into outright laughter. Kagome stared at him like he had grown a second head out of his shoulder. Sango seemed just as shocked, but she didn't drop the rock.
Kagome snapped out of her daze and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder, "I'll handle this."
Sango looked at her friend and adn then reluctantly nodded. Kagome smiled and walked up to Wolfang while clutching her towel tighter.
"Okay Wolfang," she began. "I'll explain what you need to know."
Wolfang then got the condensed version about why males weren't allowed to come into hot springs while females were there. The Maximal listened closely and when Kagome got to the real need-to-know points, he clamped his optics shut and began to back away while Shippo leaped off his head.
"Oh,...uh..excuse me then," Wolfang stuttered. "They guys wanted to know if you two were okay. Uh...I guess you are so I'll just be going then."
"We'll let it go just this once," Sango smiled. "If it happenes again then expect no mercy."
Wolfang nodded guickly as he made his way out of the spring and onto dry land again. He briefly tripped over the edge onto his back. After he got back up again, he bolted up the hill again, not daring to look.
"That was nice of the boys," Sango remarked. "I just wish they hadn't suckered Wolfang into doing this."
"I guess," Kagome hummed as she got comfortable again. "Miroku didn't even try anything perverted. There's hope for him yet."
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Wolfang found his way back to the fire and resumed his original position of sitting next to a tree. Miroku glanced at him in surprise while Inuyasha seemed shocked to see him again.
"I trust you found them?" Miroku asked curiously.
"Yeah, I found them," Wolfang replied. "They're okay."
Miroku began to gape while Inuyasha face-faulted into the dirt. Wolfang watched the rection curiously. Kagome was right. They would freak when they heard about what he saw. Too bad he was sworn to secrecy lest Sango and Kagome make Inuyasha's 'sit' look like a bruise on the neck.
"Y-you saw them?" Miroku stuttered.
Wolfang nodded as Inuyasha sat himself back up again, "You act like you expected them to kill me or something."
"She does it to me everytime I even get close," Inuyasha growled. "What makes you so damn special."
"Animal magnetism I guess," Wolfang smirked. "That or maybe I got the benefit of the doubt."
Miroku had still been gaping while that little exchange went on. In a split-second, he was up in Wolfang's face, shaking his shoulders.
"How did you do it?" he cried. "To gazeat the beauty of Lady Kagome and Dear Sango without harm!"
His rant was cut off as a fist camedown on his head, knocking him unconcious again. Wolfang looked up to see Sango standing above them with a clenched fist. Kagome was a few steps behind her with Shippo sitting on her backpack.
"Ahhh," she sighed happily. "A real bath and no one being peverted."
"Hey!" Inuyasha barked. "The wolf peeked!"
"Unlike you or Miroku," Kagome commented. "Wolfang talked to our faces. Not our chests."
Inuyasha grumbled and sat by the fire again. He continuously muttered about 'wenches' and 'baka ookami.' Wolfang shook his head. He was never really going to understand these people, but he also knew that he didn't have to since they were quickly becoming good friends.
Wolfangs thoughts were suddenly cut off as blue sparks began to race across his body again,"Slaggit, BEAST MODE."
As he resumed his wolf form again, Shippo walked over to the Maximal. He glanced curiously at Wolfang before asking his question.
"Hey Wolfang, why do those blue sparks keep coming off you like that?" he asked.
Wolfang looked down at the fox-child before answering, "It's called energon overexposure. There's plenty of names for it. It just means that my robot form was exposed too long to energon. My wolf form protects me from it."
"Is energon really that bad?" Shippo continued.
Wolfang shook his head, "No. It's the raw stuff that hurts me. It's unrefined. The only wierd thing is that I'm not picking up any kind of raw energon in the area."
"Hmm," Shippo pondered as he and Wolfang walked back to the fire.
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In the dead of night, Grandscythe was still trudging through the swamps in beast mode. He was picking up a Cybertronian signal and he was determined to find it. It had to be a stasis pod. the signal was too small to be a base of any kind and it was too big to be a beacon.
"At least a beast mode won't be a problem," Grandscyhte muttered to himself.
He was right about that. A wide variety of insects lived in the swamp and were buzzing around him as he thought that. The amount of repltiles he hadn't even counted yet. They only thing left to do was actually find the stupid thing.
"It has to be around here somewhere," Grandscythe grumbled.
Grandscythe came to a clearing whic had a huge knarled tree that was on a solid piece of land. The moonlight could be seen cutting through the night air and shadows. Grandscythe grinned when he saw the tree. Not because it was in any way beautiful to him. It was because the stasis pod that he was after was interwoven in the branches of the tree itself.
"About fragging time," Grandscythe grinned.
Now was the beginning of his revenge on that Maximal and his friends.
To Be Continued.
A/N: There you go. Happy? A new Predacon is on the way. WHat is his name? What will be his beast mode? I already know that. Do you want to know? Read the next xhapter and find out. It's as simple as that.