I do not own Inuyasha or its characters.
I would like to thank InitialA, psychochick32, and Patchcat for their combined efforts in editing this story. They've done an amazing job cleaning up my mistakes.
Deserted was nominated for Best Drama at the Inuyasha Fanguild, but was DQ'd for punctuation issues. These three wonderful women have been kind enough to go through this story to edit the errors so that it can be reinstated and go through the voting process which begins on Febuary 15th.
Deserted 7: Instinct
Kagome sat in the parking lot of the Tavern. After driving aimlessly for hours, she was no closer to figuring out the new twist in her life. The overwhelming sense of missing him was the only reason she'd finally given in and made her way back. But why she would miss Inuyasha still eluded her. They'd never shared a real friendship, didn't have a romantic attachment…unless wild, almost-sex counted.
Shaking her head in confusion, Kagome turned off the ignition. She gathered her CDs and shut the door. A single beep bellowing from the front of her truck assured her of its locked status. With a soft sigh she made her way to the Tavern and all the people within it that she didn't want to see right now. She loved them, yes, but her drive had done nothing for her mood and she didn't want to risk biting someone's head off. Something inside her screamed for Inuyasha, was still screaming for him, leaving her frustrated and more than a little uneasy.
It didn't make any sense. No matter how hard she tried to sort through her thoughts and feelings, all she could come back to was the intense need to get back to the Tavern. Being closer to Inuyasha should have made her uneasy. Instead, with each step that carried her back to him, the screaming in her head eased, but the heat in her body increased.
Voices on the dock pulled her from her thoughts, and Kagome frowned. Why was everyone loading their bags tonight? They weren't supposed to leave until tomorrow afternoon.
"You going to bring your shit, Koga?"
Kagome smiled at the sarcasm laced in Shippo's voice, her smile brightening at the wolf's callous reply. "Hold your ass, you flea-bitten runt. I'm getting to it! What room am I in, anyway?"
"Wouldn't you like to know."
"You little shit! Just wait till I get my claws around your neck, Shippo. Not even Kirara'll save you then."
Kagome laughed softly. Shaking her head, she continued her trek to the Tavern. A shadow by the door caught her gaze, and for a moment she hesitated.
When Jinenji stepped from the shadows, she could do nothing but smile at the horse demon. "I've been watching for you," he said.
"I thought so. It was the movement that startled me, not you, Jinenji."
Stepping up to the demon who'd been her friend and guardian for so long, Kagome reached to take his arm. Frowning, she tipped her head to the side when he pulled away. "That's not a wise idea, Kags."
"What do you mean, Jin? What's wrong?"
"Your, ah, mate's upstairs. Demon's don't like other males touching the female that belongs to them."
"I am my own person, Jin. I don't belong to anyone."
"I'm sorry, Kags. It's just the way it is." Jin bowed his head, though he did move closer to her side.
"Should we get inside? I'll take your CD's to the yacht for you if you'd like."
"Sure, Jin, but I'm telling you, you're overreacting. Inuyasha is far from protective, and this mating business is just something we'll have to work out between us. Everything will be back to normal soon."
"Whatever you say, Kagome."
Jinenji shook his head thoughtfully. Kagome had no idea how deep a demon's instincts ran or how serious her mating was.
Inuyasha may not have been protective of Kagome in the past, but the half-demon would kill to protect her now. Jinenji hated that he couldn't allow her his arm. He'd always escorted Kagome from the parking lot to the Tavern, but that was before she'd mated the half demon dog. Jinenji wasn't a pack member. Allowing Kagome his arm would have forfeited his right to it, and he liked said limb right where it was: attached.
Kagome made her way up the stairway lost in thought. She wasn't angry with Inuyasha, or her friends for that matter. Sesshomaru had been right; something inside her had accepted that Inuyasha had made her his.
She was as responsible for last night as he was. If she had been put in his position, she might have left, too. It was as sudden for him as it had been for her. If he'd been as confused as she had been, she could understand his need for time to figure it out. Hadn't that been what she'd been doing for the last few hours; driving around aimlessly while her mind sorted through last night's events?
She'd have to find a way to apologize to Sesshomaru for overreacting. He hadn't deserved her anger and was only stating the obvious. Why she'd snapped at his insult to Inuyasha was still something she hadn't figured out. She'd never stood up for Inuyasha before, so why now? Why was she so angry about it? Why was she suddenly so protective of him?
Shaking her head to dispel the lingering thoughts, Kagome sighed. Everything was so confusing.
She and Inuyasha would simply have to work out this whole mate business. If he was as stubborn as she was, they'd have it figured out soon enough. And if not, at least their chemistry was right.
Reaching to tuck a stray hair behind her ear, Kagome moved silently through the hallway. Pulling the apartment key from her pocket, she nearly dropped it when Inuyasha's voice resonated behind her.
"Thinking of me?"
Swinging around, Kagome found herself face to chest with Inuyasha. Glancing up she noted the smug expression on his face. "Hardly," she hissed, turning to unlock her apartment.
She ignored his soft sigh, just as she ignored the way her pulse quickened and her blood heated. "We need to talk," Inuyasha murmured softly, causing a shiver to race down her spine.
"About what?"
"You know what."
"Look, Inuyasha." Turning around, Kagome bit her lip against the vision he made. The lighting of the hallway lit his hair, the silver strands glistening beneath the artificial light. His eyes nearly glowed, a yellow-gold that reminded her of the setting sun. Dressed in a casual button down shirt and his trademark Levis, she was reminded of the attraction she'd had for him before all this mating business had happened.
"This isn't your fault," she finally muttered. "Last night happened because some part of you wanted it. Some part of me wanted it, too. We'll figure all this out but not tonight, all right? I can't process all of this right now. All I want is a hot bath and some loud music to drown out the thoughts in my head. I'm tired of thinking. I'm tired of not knowing. And to be honest," she turned back toward the door, hand twisting the door handle as she gave it a gentle push. "I'm tired of trying to understand it all."
Inuyasha watched Kagome turn away, the picture of her naked in a hot bath effectively halting his tongue's normal operation. She'd be a vision, her skin wet, her eyes pleading with him to join her.
When the door swung open, Kagome's gaze met with the carpet of the floor. She could remember just how rough that carpet had felt against her back the night before, how attentive Inuyasha had been.
"Stop," Inuyasha growled, his voice husky and rough.
Kagome froze; hand on her stomach, her gaze riveted on the floor, her attention centered on the demon behind her. Her body was on fire, his nearness doing things to her that she couldn't explain. It left images in her mind of the two of them tangled together in erotic positions, his taste on her lips, his fingers on her -
Kagome jumped when the door slammed behind them. She found herself pressed sensuously between the wall of her apartment and the wall of Inuyasha's body.
"What are you doing to me?" she whimpered, raising her hands to push against his chest only to find herself pulling him closer, her fingers tangled in the buttons of his shirt.
"You are doing this. Not me," Inuyasha growled, his nose finding her neck, his soft breath coating her skin.
"I am no-"
"You are," he purred, his tongue darting out of his mouth to taste her skin. He barely suppressed the urge to bite her again.
"Do you know how many times your need has left me in a cold shower today, Kagome? Do you have any idea how hard it has been not to hunt you down and finish what we started last night?"
"You left me, remember? You left this ache," she whispered. "Why do I want you so badly? Why is my every thought centered on tasting you, touching you?"
He moaned when she squirmed against him, her words hitting him harder than any demon could have. "Because you're mine," he groaned. He buried his nose in the crook of her neck, inhaling the sweet scent radiating from her skin: wildflowers and rain.
"I belong to no one, Inuyasha. No one."
Inuyasha's demon howled; he couldn't stop himself when he buried his teeth deep into her mark. He was determined to show her that she was his, now and forever.
Kagome moaned. Her fingers splayed across his chest, fingertips touching the satin softness of the flesh beneath his shirt. Heat spiraled throughout her body, touching every last inch of her flesh, coating her core in searing fire that left her aching for his touch.
She felt his hands at the back of her thighs, felt her ankles lock together around his waist as he lifted her higher. She pulled him closer, his arousal pressing hard against her, eliciting another moan from her throat and a savage growl from his.
When he pulled away his eyes were red, his fangs lengthened in a feral snarl. Inuyasha was dangerous like this. She knew it deep in her heart. But she wasn't frightened at all; she was aroused. The heat spiraling through her body raged into an inferno.
"That mark says you are mine, Kagome. And this one," he gripped her hands, the material of his shirt clutched between them and pulled. The buttons lining the front gave way, shooting in various directions throughout the room. Her vision filled with the glorious expanse of his flesh. Every muscle of his chest was perfectly shaped, every breath he took expanding and contacting the ridged muscles of his abdomen. "This one says I'm yours."
She watched him pull her hand to his chest, placing her palm over the mark on his flesh. His mark was identical to her own. With her fingertip, Kagome outlined the crescent. Her eyes were drawn back to Inuyasha's face when she heard his sharp intake of breath. Any hope of coherent thought disappeared when she saw his expression.
His features were pulled tight, his lips drawn back to expose lengthened fangs, head tilted back on his neck. His silver hair was loose, hanging wild about his face. His eyes were closed, as if her touch brought him both immeasurable pleasure and immense pain.
"This one says I'm yours." His voice echoed through her head, and in that moment she was lost. She would give anything to see that expression on his face, again and again. His response to her touch was intoxicating, addicting. She knew without a doubt that she'd never have enough of him.
Without thought she leaned forward, something inside her demanding she taste him, touch him, bite him.
The first touch of her tongue against his flesh was his undoing, and Inuyasha's legs gave out. He landed on his knees in front of her, her legs still wrapped securely around his waist. Kagome wasn't sure which feeling she wanted to acknowledge first: the hard hit her bottom had taken when they'd fallen… the stinging pain she felt in her upper jaw… or the intense desire to finish what she'd started.
Opting for the latter, Kagome opened her mouth. She closed it over the mark on his chest, her tongue coating the flesh in one swift stroke.
The need to bite him was overwhelming. She wanted to taste him, wanted all to know that he was taken! She didn't give thought to what she was doing, ignored how unnatural it was to want to sink her teeth into his flesh. Following instinct, Kagome gave in to the urge to make him her own.
Inuyasha was wrong. The mark on his chest made him her mate, but her bite would make him hers.
With another swipe of her tongue, Kagome shivered, then bit deep. His skin was salty, his blood bittersweet against her lips. It coated her throat, setting nerve endings on fire until she nearly screamed with the intensity of it. She could feel his hands caressing her, his touch soothing the searing ache boiling just beneath her skin.
Inuyasha fell onto his back, Kagome straddling his waist. With blurry eyes, he watched her raise up, felt her bend forward. When she kissed him, he tasted his blood on his tongue, his need for her building until the blackness began to consume him.
Her words whispered past his ears, bringing a satisfied smile to his lips.
It was just so her.
"Now we're even," she whispered, before collapsing onto his chest. There'd be plenty of time later to evaluate what she'd done; when the blackness evaporated and reality crept in.
"Kagome, are you ready?"
Koga stepped into Kagome's apartment, his face lighting up with a smile of genuine amusement. Shippo, Sesshomaru, and Miroku piled in after him. "I would never have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself," Miroku murmured, eyes resting on the prone forms of Kagome and Inuyasha.
"Are they ever going to get it right?" Shippo questioned. "Doesn't he know that you're supposed to make love to your mate first, then mark her so the blackout only happens once?"
"Marking a human is different. Kagome wouldn't have had the fangs needed to break his skin until after Inuyasha marked her. She was told of the mark earlier this evening but had yet to mark Inuyasha as her own. She obviously has now," Sesshomaru answered.
"You owe me fifty bucks!" Koga laughed, turning toward the kitsune.
"The hell if I do. You said three days. It's only been one," Shippo growled.
"I believe it is I who won the fifty dollar bet," Miroku piped up, holding out his hand expectantly. "I bet Koga one day. "
"You bet Miroku, too?" Shippo shook his head. Reaching to pull the money from his pocket, he handed it over to Miroku. "You never make a bet with Miroku. He always wins."
Koga dropped a fifty into Miroku's hand. "I need to quit gambling," Koga whined.
Sesshomaru moved further into the room. "Let's get these two to the yacht. Shippo, you and Miroku get Kagome's belongings. Koga, you carry Inuyasha. I'll bring Kagome."
"What about Yash's bags?" Shippo questioned.
"If you'd have left your room for more than a minute, you'd know he loaded them already. God, I hope your room is a long way from mine," Koga grumbled.
"Why? Is the sexual tension too much for your badass to handle?" Shippo laughed. Jumping away from Koga's incoming fist, Shippo's smile only brightened. "Your room's right next to mine, Fleabag."
I was stunned speechless when I opened my email on Friday. There within the pages were not one, but two nominations for Best Drama and Best Romance at the Inuyasha Fanguild.
I want to thank Kits-the-Kitsune for nominating 'Deserted' for Best Drama. I am honored by the nomination, and I can never thank you enough!
I would also like to thank KnittingKnots for nominating Skin for Best Romance as well.
I never dreamed that anything of mine would be nominated for such an honor, and I thank you both from the bottom of my heart.
These are my first nominations ever, and I haven't the words to express my gratitude. The stories still need to be seconded to pass to the voting stages, but I am thrilled that they were nominated at all.
Thank you both!
And thank you to everyone who continues to support this story, as well as my others. I don't know what I'd do without you all. You are my motivation, and inspiration, and I hope that this and my other stories continue to please you.
I do hope you enjoyed the citrus. Please don't hesitate to let me know. I love hearing from you, and each review leaves me desperate to get the next chapter up. I am working on the next installment, and hope to have it up soon.
Thank you for all your reviews! Please keep them coming. I can't wait to hear from you all again.
Neisha
