Shippo transforms into his fox form and allows Rai to mount him. "Will we be spotted? I don't feel all comfortable sleeping nude," he sighs, as he flies off.
"We can sleep on opposite sides of a bush. The barrier will make you invisible to any passers by, whether they are demon or human. If you want extra security, create a blanket of leaves to cover yourself with. I sleep like that when I'm forced to sleep outside. I'm nude but covered up. Although I think for today, you'd better hold my hand. The dream will be intense and if you have someone you care for sleeping next to you, it will add security for you."
"Will we accidentally, you know…"
"Not unless you want to," Rai smirks, seductively, walking her fingers up his furry neck.
"Rai, please," he blushes. She lies on his back, running her claws through his soft fur. "Mm… that feels good." He finds a super dense track of forest and flies down through the trees.
Rai points out a ring of bushes between two tall Japanese oaks. "Looks sort of like a marriage bed, doesn't it?"
"You want to sleep there?"
Rai nods. "We're lucky to find this. I was thinking we would be sleeping on the ground, but this is much better."
Shippo swoops down and lands beside the bushes. "They're huge. Much bigger than what we saw in the air." Rai stabs the ground on her side with the Naosusaiga, creating a barrier of invisibility. Shippo transforms back to his demon form, standing next to her.
"I suppose we should get ready," sighs Rai. She unfastens her armor and starts stripping off her clothes.
"Wait! You're getting nude!"
"What's the matter? You've seen my body before."
"Well, uh…" he turns around, "I didn't uh…"
"Take a chill. You'd better get ready too. I promise I won't look."
"When InuYasha was getting serious around Kagome, he never undressed like this. Neither got into it."
"They did eventually, or they wouldn't have a daughter."
"That only happened after they were married."
"You mean before then they never did it?"
"I don't know."
"One couple's experiences are different than another's. No two relationships start out the same. InuYasha and Kagome started it beside that tree. Chichi-ue and Haha-ue met when she was a child and then she died from a wolf attack. Ours was at the brothel in Nagasaki, both looking for action."
Rai slips off her outfit and leaps up onto the bushes. She sits on the edge of the bush, staring up as the sky, while Shippo undresses. He looks up at her, basking in the sunlight, seeing the light blanket over her naked body. He imagines seeing wings protruding off her back, like an angel. The soft breeze brushes through her long silvery hair, touching her doggie ears. "Rai, may I…just…"
Rai closes her eyes and allows him to sit next to her. "I won't look at you, but yes."
"I know I shouldn't be so embarrassed. I don't really care if you look at me. You've studied it back at the brothel."
Rai opens her eyes and studies him. "You really are attractive. Like a statue of a god."
"Really? You think I look like a god?" She rests her arm on his shoulder, petting his long red hair.
"Can I touch them?" Shippo asks. Rai smiles and rests her head on his shoulders. He gently takes his fingers and rubs her ears. "I just had to touch them."
"It feels soothing. I don't why Oji(san) objects to having his ears rubbed. It feels good, even tickles."
"Probably because you're not as wired as he is. Your father is more relaxed, like you are. You don't let things bother you and you react with a calm, cool head." "You also think quickly it intense situations. I like how you thought to get Miroku and Kagome out as quickly as you did."
"I had to. It takes thirty minutes between the time you hear that sloshing noise to having your body regurgitate. I didn't think Oba(san) would be happy to come home to her body with vomit all over it. That'd be much worse."
"You have a point there. Kagome likes being clean."
"So you tired, Shippo?"
"I'm getting there." Rai scoots across the flat top of the hedge. Shippo moves towards the opposite side of the bush.
"If you want, I can put you to sleep."
"I'll use fox magic to make a cover out of these leaves."
"You might want to lie on your stomach. So when we're dreaming, when it gets to the intense parts…well, you're a man…"
"I follow. Thanks for telling me." He lies on his stomach with a cover of leaves over his body. "What about you?"
"I've been through this. I'm at the point where the dream doesn't scare me anymore. I don't get sick nor do I get traumatized that badly."
"What's the reason?"
"Fight or flight. Your body's reacting to what your ghost saw. Vomiting is one reaction, extreme nightmares are the next. How much you willing to bet when we're together back in the village tonight, everyone will have his or her story to tell? We'll be able to compare our dreams with theirs." She holds his hand. "I won't let go, I promise."
"I'm ready," Shippo yawns, closing his eyes.
Rai closes her eyes, "Nemutte naosu. Hogo o yumemiru…" She drops off, falling asleep after the last word of her incantation.
Rai awakens and finds herself standing in the cave again. Shippo opens his eyes and finds himself standing beside Rai, holding her hand. Both are wearing white kimonos with nothing on their feet. They walk through the entrance of the cave. The cave howls with wind blowing through it. Two dead dogs rest upon the ground, which is littered with skulls and bones of dead demons and humans. The foul stench of decay and miasma pours out of the cave, blowing past the nostrils of Rai and Shippo.
"I don't like this. This place is creepy," shivers Shippo.
"This is the start of things," whispers Rai, "Don't talk too loud, or you'll upset those dogs. Dead dogs never rest. If we fly past them quietly, then we should be safe." She holds Shippo's hand and floats cautiously towards the entrance. A strong gust of wind rushes from the cave, tickling Shippo's nose, tempting him to sneeze.
"Hold it until we get past them," Rai whispers. Shippo covers his nose and mouth with his hand. The two float closer to the entrance when more troublesome wind tempts Shippo's nose. He tries to sneeze quietly, but is tempted to sneeze as hard as he can.
Suddenly the temptation becomes too great and Shippo sneezes with all his might. Just then he hears the angry sounds of growling behind him.
"Don't look at them. Just run!" Rai races with him, holding his hand tightly. The dogs barrel after them, each snapping their teeth at them. The pair race towards one of the entryways tunnels. One of the dogs barely misses Shippo's feet by a few inches. Shippo places his hand over his chest, panting.
The pair starts walking forward when Shippo accidentally steps on a loose rock in the floor. Just then, the Earth begins to quake in front of them, as the floor begins to give way. Soon they stand on a ledge looking over a huge lava pit. Pillars of stones mark the walking path. "We need to cross this. We need to do this quickly too, because this whole room is collapsing."
"Will we die? Shouldn't we go back and find another path?"
"If you do that, the dogs will kill you. It's too late to pick another tunnel."
"What if I were to transform?"
"Demon magic doesn't work here. Just run as fast as you can across this thing. This is the only option there is. Run and don't look back." She grabs his arm and races across the tops of the stone pillars. Each pillar crumbles with every step they take. Shippo sees an exit at the end of the collapsing trail.
He stares wearily at the exit. "That's too far. I can't make it."
"You can, I'll hold on to you." Rai steps back and leaps as far as she can. She lands on the wall, just below the exit.
Shippo tries to secure his fists around Rai's arm, but finds himself losing grip. He looks back and sees a dead dog trying to leap at Shippo, only to fall into the pit and turn into dust upon impact of the lava. "G…get me out of here. Help, I can't hold on m…much longer."
Rai hoists him onto the wall and secures him by wrapping his body around hers. She grasps the rocky floor of the doorway, hoisting her body through safely. She braces herself and assists Shippo up to the safety of the solid floor. He struggles to his feet, as Rai rises to her feet, too.
He leans against a wall, wiping his face with his hands. "That's what this is like? These dreams of yours?"
"I've gotten used to this. But it's not done yet," she warns. Suddenly the floor drops at a slope and some force sides them down without warning. Shippo tries to grab onto some sturdy boulder or embedded skull, frantically, but continues to fall fast down the slope. Rai tries to embed her feet into the floor, but has a hard time finding footing. Finally she stops herself, shortly before reaching a pile of spikes on the floor. She leaps away from the spikes and braces herself to catch Shippo. He barely misses the spikes about two inches from his crotch. Rai steps away from him for a few minutes.
"Why did you back away just now?" asks Shippo. Suddenly he starts urinating on the spikes.
"It's the same reason I said sleep on your stomach. I'll bet you, if you wake up, you'll see your body doing this. At least on a bush that huge, it won't matter. Your body's reacting to this."
"But you're not going."
"Didn't think I would. I've been through this several times."
Rai waits for Shippo to finish, then catches his body. "How much further must we go on? I don't know if I can take this." Shippo walks towards a wall, rubbing his face. "I t…thought back in that lava pit, I was going to die. I can't stop shaking. How are we going to get through this?"
Rai holds him as tightly as possible. She embraces him, trying to calm him down. "We can get through this. It'll be okay. This is what the dream's all about. It's a trial, really. This dream is meant to test your psyche and spiritual stamina. Here all your paranoias and fears about going through the cave are put to the test. That way when faced with the real cave, you can pass through without fear."
"Does this place have scary traps like this?"
"In many parts, yes. It's why it's called Hell's Labyrinth."
"Is it like this for everyone?"
"Each person experiences the dream different. I'm sure when we go back to the village, Oji(san) and the others will have all sorts of stories to talk about."
"Should we continue?"
"We better. This place is about to get hairy."
"I'll say," replies Shippo, staring at the ground. Thick bushels of blue hair poke through the floor, just as the ground becomes soft and fleshy. He looks back at the spikes and sees them turning into protruding teeth. "Rai, let's get out of here. I think we landed on the face of a huge demon."
He turns to see two former entryways become fleshy, like eyelids. Shippo grabs Rai and races her away from the monster's huge nose. He tries holding his palms out the demon. "What! My powers! It's like when I was a child."
Rai grabs his wrists, "I told you demon magic doesn't work here. He can't use it either. Just his brute force." She races down the demon's back, with Shippo following close behind. The back of the huge beast swerves around corners like a snake, extending through every place on the floor.
Suddenly the beast roars and starts moving its body. Despite its huge body, the demon doubles back and starts following them. In front of them, an army of huge venomous spiders stands, poised for a strike. Shippo looks back and sees the mouth of the beast follow them, with its mouth wide open. Just then he spots a passage and picks up Rai's body. He races inside the passage, just as the mouth of the beast chomps through the spiders.
He pants heavily, while still holding Rai's body. "Where are we?" he asks, "It's so dark."
"Run until you see light!" commands Rai.
"What's the matter?" he asks.
"Just run. You'll know what's in here in a few minutes. You have to run straight through."
As he runs with her in his arms, he hears the clattering of ominous wings. "They're bats, aren't they?"
"Killer bats. If we stay put for one second, they will feast on us immediately. They'll pick us clean, not leaving so much as a bone behind."
Shippo heeds her warning and charges forward in the complete darkness. Suddenly, he sees a light, as Rai described at the end of the tunnel. They reach the end of the tunnel and see a huge underground temple, at the bottom of a ravine.
"What are you stalling for? Jump! Surviving a fall from here is better than being ripped to shreds by bats." Shippo jumps with her, cradling her against the rush of the free fall from the tunnel.
They land in the temple courtyard, bordered by a trickling brook. The temple itself is vast. Its walls are covered in white paperboard and the roof is lined with lime green tiles. The temple is open and exerts an aura of peace and tranquility.
In the center of the temple sits a large golden statue of Buddha. Immediately in front of him stands a small golden square table incased in a clear glass chest. Upon the table, glows a bright red jewel. Protecting the case on either side of it, are two dead dogs, each lying asleep with his head upon his front paws.
Shippo and Rai approach the room with caution. "Is it safe? I don't want to disturb those dogs. I've had enough of this place," Shippo trembles, shaking in fear.
"Do not be alarmed, my son," thunders a voice, "If you've made it this far, then those dogs will not attack. You and this woman have earned the respect of this temple."
Shippo blinks his eyes, trying to think. "Rai, I recognize this voice. Something familiar, but it's been so long since I…"
Just then a man, with his head of a fox, looking similar to Shippo steps forward from the shadows of Buddha's statue. "Ch…Ch…Chichi-ue?" tears start forming in his eyes. He sets Rai down and stares straight into the eyes of his father. "It's…uh…it's been so long." Tears trickle down his face.
"Shippo, look at you. Last time I saw you, you were just a baby. Now you've grown to look like me." His father embraces him, holding him as tight as he can.
"How…are you…here? I thought this was…"
"You should thank the beautiful hanyou dog who brought you here. She knew this dream would be hard on you, so this little end would be pleasant for you."
"But back there I was so sure I was going to die. I thought I was going to join you in the Netherworld. I wasn't brave at all. I'm still a child who runs from fear, not faces it like a man." Shippo buries his face into his father's shoulder, weeping bitterly.
"That's not it. Shippo, did you not survive this dream? You protected Rai. She guided you through this because she knew this dream. This is one of the seven dreams from Hell's Labyrinth. She's dreamt them all. But this time you were there to protect her. Isn't that what a real man is supposed to do?" Rai rubs Shippo's back, and his father hands him over to her.
"Shippo, so sorry I had to put you through this nightmare. But this is exactly what I had to go through. I was scared, just like you. But I've learned to concur this fear. Shippo, for you to even survive this the first time through, you're really brave and strong. You don't let it own you." She holds him, letting him cry.
"I haven't grown up at all. I was pretending like InuYasha said. I'm still a…"
"Shippo, it's okay. You were scared of this place…"
"That's not what I mean. My real fear was when I thought you would die. I don't want you to die. But I was so afraid I was going to fail you. Then that would prove to InuYasha…" Rai quickly silences him with a kiss.
Rai wipes away his tears with her fingers. "Don't worry about him. What does it matter what he thinks? You're a man, Shippo. You're the man I've fallen in love with." Rai kisses him again.
His father watches them with a nostalgic look on his face. 'Son, you really are becoming like me. When I met your mother, I was in love with her like this.'
"Son, it's time I leave to the Netherworld again," sighs his father.
Shippo swiftly turns to face him. "You're leaving now, Chichi-ue, but you just got here."
"Don't worry. I'll see you again. I'll visit you in your dreams, just like Rai's grandfather visits in hers. The Great Dog General was the other one who requested me to come. I had to, I wanted to see you again, my precious son." Shippo embraces him, crying again.
"It's time for us to wake up anyways." Rai disappears, as she starts to wake her body up.
Rai opens her eyes and sits up slowly. She blinks and still sees Shippo asleep, with tears streaming from his eyes, soaking the bush under his head. She places her hands over his head. "Mezameru, taisetsu na Shippo-kun."
Slowly he starts to open his eyes and sees Rai through blurred vision. Tears drip from his eyes and roll down his face. "Rai? You just disappeared." He hangs his head, trying to snuffle back his tears. "I thought something grabbed you, just now." Rai embraces him, holding his head just under her chin. Shippo's tears pour down her body, streaming around the rounded shape of her breasts.
She kisses the top of his head. "It's okay. Just let it go. You were so scared. I understand what you're going through. So go ahead and cry as much as you want. I won't think less of you as a man." Shippo weeps bitterly, holding onto Rai.
Rai suddenly releases her embrace. She sits with her knees erect. "Shippo, look away."
"Why should I?" he asks. She starts going on the bush. He shrieks and turns away.
"I wasn't going to be the only dreamer left out."
"Yeah but you're awake and doing that on purpose," he sighs, "It's not fair you get to pee after you wake up."
Rai leaps downs from the huge hedge a short time later. Rai glances around the forest, walking out of the protective barrier. She sees rocky out crops in various places around the forest. She jumps back onto the bush and stands on it. She quickly leaps into the oak tree next to her. She sees beyond one of the out crops pillows of steam rising up from shrouded water, warming the air.
"Shippo, I think I know why else we peed on this bush."
"I noticed the air was warm when we fell asleep. It was warm and moist."
"Past this bush on your side, there's a hot spring. That trickling sound we heard in the dream was really coming from that. You want to take a dip. We're already naked, so what do you say?"
Shippo nods and Rai leaps back down to the ground. She grabs her clothes as well as his and pulls the sword out, dispelling the barrier. She looks around, still seeing the forest vacant of any humans or demons. The only things she sees are a couple of does with their fawns, grazing nearby the hot spring. Overhead, a small flock of songbirds fly into the branches of the two oak trees. Rai spots a nest in a lower branch of the tree next to her side. In the nest, she hears tiny cheeps from the babies, crying out for their mother. She points out the nest to Shippo. He smiles up at them, watching the mother bird feed her babies.
Rai strolls the ground, passing the bushes, heading for the hot spring. Shippo meets her, as he climbs off his side of the bush. He tries to cover himself with his hands, trying to walk past the deer without being spotted.
"What's the matter?" chuckles Rai, "You worried about what these does might see."
"N…no, it's nothing like that," he blushes, obviously lying.
"It's probably nothing they haven't seen before. Those two does have probably seen their husbands' thing. Daily, I would suspect." Rai laughs at him. "Yours is a cute thing. Beautiful, like a god's." "I've spent all that time at the dojo; there were times I saw some of my peers walking around naked. One guy looked like he stole an Asian elephant's trunk. Another guy looked like he built his thing from clay wrapped around an old rotting log."
Shippo chuckles at her story. "You really think I look like a god? To me you look like an angel. I love your smell and the way your ears feel. Your skin is so soft. Your breasts are so perfect. You've got the cutest butt. Your legs are so sexy. I want to touch your body, but I know I shouldn't. That would make me no different than Mirok…" Rai wraps her arms around his neck and silences his voice with a warm, seductive kiss.
"Shippo, you want to? Here? Now?"
"Now? I thought you wanted to wait."
Rai drops her belongings and pulls him to the ground. She lies on top of him, with a bed of soft grass under his head. "You were poking me, so I thought why not."
"I don't want to get you pregnant."
"I'm not in season, so it won't matter. Just shut up and let's do it." He creates a blanket with the grass and fox magic, providing them with some privacy. She pays little attention and kisses him continuously. She smiles, closing her eyes. Rai breathes his scent in, relaxing her body. "Your scent is wonderful. It's the same scent as back in the brothel. That's how I really knew you were in Oji(san)'s village. I followed your scent all the way from Nagasaki."
"You really did? You came to track me down?"
"I'm a dog demon. Isn't it the ability of a dog to track down her prey by following his scent? Especially when it's the sweet scent of a fox."
"I guess. Was falling in love with me another dog trait?"
"You can blame my human heart for that. I'm in love with you, Shippo. Someday, I want to be yours forever. I want to bear children with you. If one day we have to depart for the Netherworld, I want you beside me."
"You want all that? For real?"
"Just picture us, sitting in our own castle. You'll be the lord and I'll be your princess."
"For real? Serio…" she kisses him before he could finish speaking.
Shippo rubs his hands over her soft body, stopping short of her butt. "Shippo, why are you hesitating? You can touch it if you want." He slides his hands cautiously over her butt, squishing it gently with his fingers. "I'll just get you back and play with your tail," she sighs with a seductive smile.
"Is that so?" he asks, seductively.
"You got to play with my ears and butt. It's only fair I get to grab your tail."
"Sure. So huh should we stay like this?"
"What? Are you finished already?"
"I've had a long day. That nap wasn't relaxing at all."
"You liked the end. I wanted to give you that at least."
"Rai. I've got other reasons to stop. Those does are heading this way with their babies. They might get mad at us, maybe even blame us for exposing their kids to such adult stuff."
Rai sighs and sits back up. She stands and offers Shippo a hand up. She picks up their belongings and walks with him to the hot spring. She sets the stuff neatly beside the spring and climbs over the crown of rocks guarding the spring. Shippo follows after her and slides into the hot pool first.
Rai steps delicately in, testing the water with her feet. Suddenly she loses her footing and starts falling into the water. Shippo quickly notices her and catches before she could be seriously hurt. "You okay?"
"That wasn't very graceful, was it? There goes your angelic impression of me," she pretends to pout. Shippo laughs at her, trying to collect himself.
He sets her into the water gently, letting her relax. She smiles calmly, letting the water send her into a state of bliss. Rai dips below the water line, soaking her hair and letting the water clean out her ears. She resurfaces, spitting water from her mouth.
Rai suddenly feels a presence behind her and turn to see a young fawn staring at her. "Hey little guy. Hope you don't mind us here."
She finds a fallen ripe pear on the ground and slices it apart with her claws. She slides out of the water, sitting next to the fawn. She offers him a slice of the fruit. He munches on the sweet fruit, and then noses her for a second piece. Another fawn sees Rai feeding his brother and walks over to her. She finds another pear and offers it to the second fawn. She giggles as they nuzzle her. She pets their faces with her hands.
"Easy, you two. You don't want your mother getting mad," she giggles, being tickled by their noses. One of the does trots over to her. She looks into Rai's eyes, as though smiling at her.
"Pleasure meeting you, ma'am." Rai bows. "Your sons are handsome and very friendly."
The doe looks over at Shippo, sniffing at him. "Hope you're not offended we're in here," replies Shippo, "My girlfriend and I found this hot spring and couldn't resist." The doe smiles and shakes her head.
Rai offers the doe fruit, petting her while she eats it. "You're such a good mother." Rai stands to pet her neck. The doe softly nibbles on Rai's shoulders, kissing her. Shippo watches Rai pet the doe, studying her tender ways. The two fawns look up at Rai treating their mother with such care.
The doe finally steps back and looks down at her boys. She snorts, ordering them to their feet. As the two fawns walk away, the doe bows her head to Rai and Shippo, who smile and bow in return. "That was amazing, Rai."
"Well I've had practice talking to Inazuma. I can talk with any animal, really."
"What really amazes me is she didn't get mad at us. She told us to continue our bath."
"We didn't pose a threat to her boys, so that's why she let us stay here." Rai sits back down, casually.
"Deer are almost never that friendly. You just have a way with animals. Neither InuYasha nor Sesshomaru are like this."
"I can't explain it, but it just comes naturally. I've always been able to talk with animals and make them feel comfortable around me." Rai sighs and looks at Shippo. "When I'm in battle against bandits, I usually try to spare the lives of the horses. I hear what they say and try to relieve them of their human owners. I pray for their souls as well, when they get killed in battle."
"You're a kind person. I've seen traits like this in Rin and Kagome. Perhaps the part that makes you human makes you feel this way. Rin is another that cares for all living things, whether they are human or beast."
Rai starts to climb back into the hot spring, when her nose picks up something. "Shippo, I think we'd better get dressed and head back to the temple."
"Yeah, I smell it too. Off in the distance, to the west of here." Rai releases a tiny portion of her powers, drying off her skin.
"If you step out, I can dry you off too." Shippo complies and stands in front of her. Rai holds out her hands with dragon heat and sweeps over Shippo's body. "Can't beat having a dragon's powers in one's body. It's how my swords work."
"It's interesting. With InuYasha and Kagome, she has a problem seeing him naked. With Sango and Miroku, she hates him touching her in sexual means."
"Like I said, no two relationships are alike. It feels good when you grab my butt, and I think your thing is the prettiest one I've seen on a man."
"We'd better hurry and get our clothes on," hustles Shippo. Both start dressing as fast as the can.
"Last one to finished dressing, gets to pay for dinner tonight," challenges Rai.
"No. Gets to have the winner grab one body part."
"What part did you have in mind?" Rai rolls down the top of her white crisscrossing top, exposing her breasts. "Go ahead and touch them. Get that desire out of your system."
"Really?" He holds out his hands and rubs his fingers around her breasts, like an artist molding a sculpture. He draws his fingers around each breast, and then gently played with her nipples. Rai rolls her eyes and practically melts with his touch.
Rai bites her lip. "You have no idea how good this feels. I'm so glad those deer aren't here right now. Shippo, you can do that whenever you feel like."
"It's like you read my mind. Well almost. I do know how it feels, to be groped and have it feel good. I was also thinking about me."
"Your tail? No, opposite side of the tail," she guesses.
"You can touch both places. Around the others, it can just be the tail. All alone with just us, go ahead."
"I don't know…I don't feel comfortable."
"I won't force you. I'm just saying if you want to, like during sex."
Rai shrugs, "Well, might as well get it over with. Or I won't be comfortable." She hesitates, trying to bring her hand closer to the hem of his pants. She winces nervously. "I c…can't. I just…that dream was much easier than this," she whines.
"Think of something before the rain hits. Here," he grabs her hand and slides it into his pants. "See it's not so bad. That's what your body gets to feel."
"Oh it's soft. Feels like a sponge." She jerks her hand back out.
"That wasn't so bad, was it?" asks Shippo.
"N…no. It felt soft. I just won't tell anyone about it."
"It can be our secret, though I don't know how long you can keep it secret around the other girls."
"I'll just tell Oba(san) and Sango about how open our relationship is. Just so open and so…" "I promise I won't tell them everything. It'll be our own secret."
"I see the look in your face. I don't mind if you tell them girl-to-girl. Maybe they can give you advice, or you give them advice on how to approach their men."
"You want me to tell. You're going to tell the guys then."
"Maybe we can keep it a secret. The groping parts, I mean," replies Shippo.
"It's a deal. We won't talk about the private touching. That'll be our secret."
Shippo extends his hand, "You want to shake on the deal." Rai gives him a menacing glare.
Rai grabs his hand, forcing him to embrace her. She locks lips with him, engaging him in a kiss. Just then she props his lips open with hers and slips her tongue in his mouth. His eyes open wide with surprise and excitement. She slides her tongue out slowly, and then pulls it back in her mouth. "That's how we'll make things a deal, my beloved kitsune prince."
The scent of the wind changes to a musty odor. Rai looks overhead in the sky, watching dark clouds rumble in the sky. Rai quickly secures her armor and swords, while Shippo transforms back into a fox. Rai mounts him and the two take off, flying away from the clouds, as fast as possible.
Shippo flies as fast as he can, trying to beat the ominous cloud back to the village. Rai sees the red tiles of Kaede's temple come into view. 'Hold on. Not yet,' Rai prays, as the stubborn storm cloud seems more than eager to beat them. Shippo sees Inazuma following them close behind.
Inazuma closes in and flies along side Shippo. "We know. We smelled the storm coming," replies Shippo.
"Did you do this on purpose?" Rai taunts at Inazuma, giving him a sly look. He neighs and shakes his head. "I see, so this storm isn't your doing. I knew that, I was just yanking your chain."