Forever Home - The Girl
~Kitty
"He was a ferocious man. He had been ill-made in the making. He had not been born right, and he had not been helped any by the molding he had received at the hands of society. The hands of society are harsh, and this man was a striking sample of its handiwork. He was a beast - a human beast, it is true, but nevertheless so terrible a beast that he can best be characterized as carnivorous."
― Jack London, White Fang
Chapter 10: A place where monsters do more than go bump in the night
'What a faithful noble dog you are…'
Inuyasha's ear twitched as he slept.
'How dare you betray me, Inuyasha!'
A whimper, a flinch, a growl.
'I curse you! I curse you! I curse you…!'
All four paws twitched synchronously as his mind raced through the foliage. The voice in his dreams haunted him, chased after him. No matter how far he ran, her voice stayed close to his ear, mocking, and dripping with malice.
'I curse you, Inuyasha! You are mine, forever, and you will pay for your betrayal! You belong to me!
The touch of her hand startled him and he roused with a half-crazed yowl. Kagome's eyes were round and frightened when he finally was able to focus on them.
"Inuyasha?" She leaned forward, concern seeping into her grey irises. "Are you ok, Inuyasha?"
Ah, he could see the resemblance now. How many countless centuries had he spent erasing her face from his memory? He saw it now, the elegant cheekbones, the even set eyes. The name couldn't escape his canine lips and so the sound that came was a whine. But in his heart, the name echoed and crashed and made him shudder.
'Kikyou…'
Kagome's eyebrows knit together in confused concern while her hands supported his shivering face. Somewhere behind her, a snide little voice seemed to mock his nightmare but was hushed quickly. Inuyasha squeezed his eyes closed, trying to dispel the face of the angry woman who'd betrayed him, banish her from his vision. It took several tries, but gradually, his golden, yellow irises were able to refocus on her face and see Kagome, not the shadow of a ghost from his memory. He took a long, deep breath and let it out. Then, he brought his large, shaggy bulk to stand, briefly let his face rest in her open hands, then nudged past her, to a dark corner of the yard where he could be away from the activities when Hitomiko arrived to begin instruction on the use of the wench's powers.
...
The afternoon serenity was broken by a startled yowl. A large white dog flopped over backwards from the wooden porch and quickly righted himself before scrambling backward a few paces. The girl he was moving himself away from rubbed her chin where he'd struck her with the top of his skull and heaved a sigh. An older woman stood behind her, arms crossed in obvious displeasure.
"This is not a wise use of your time, Kagome," Hitomiko chided the younger girl, "you should be meditating and practicing barrier spells. I did not remove the remnants of your sealing spells to have you spend all your time poking around a trifling curse"
Kagome huffed, wiping a hand over her perspiring forehead. "Just one more time," she said.
The older miko nearly rolled her eyes. It had already been several 'just one more' attempts and still yielded no results. Inuyasha was glaring at the young miko in training, sporting a couple new bald patches on his head and shoulders. Ever since learning that she might be the only person capable of lifting his curse, she'd taken it as her top priority to break it.
"The paperwork and red tape will be immense if you were to succeed in breaking his curse."
Kagome sighed. "I know," she replied, "Just let me try one more time."
Inuyasha, by this point, had decided on an emphatic 'hell no' and flopped onto the green lawn, ignoring Kagome's calls. He nuzzled his nose into the grass, paddling his paws as though swimming on his side and the antics might have been adorable if those present weren't so frustrated with each other. An old voice from the porch chided him not to go tearing up the tidily maintained lawn. Giving up on his cooperation, Kagome heaved an exasperated sigh before turning to the older woman.
"Ok, fine, let's do this barrier training thing."
Kagome brushed off her lap, Inuyasha's fur floating up and irritating her eyes. Hitomiko came forward to kneel in front of the young girl and smiled gratefully when Kaede appeared bearing a tray of herbal tea. She poured them both a steaming cup and gestured for Kagome to drink. Kagome made a face when the thick liquid slid over her tongue and she swallowed with difficulty. It was strong, and nauseatingly sweet. She mentally made a note to brush her teeth immediately following this priestess training session.
"Now," Hitomiko was saying, "Close your eyes and breathe. Bring your focus inward, to your breathing, to your heart beat."
"I don't think I can hear my heart beating," Kagome said, peaking an eye open surreptitiously. Hitomiko's voice stayed even and calm as she continued.
"Imagine your heart," she said, "Imagine it beating. Go deeper, find your center."
"Um… Question."
Hitomiko sighed. "Yes, Kagome?"
"What exactly does finding my center mean? My friend's yoga instructor says that a lot but I have no clue what it means, beside maybe trying to balance on one foot."
Hitomiko's face was stiff and determined. She rallied a commendable amount of patience and calm, setting her jaw and opening her eyes to look at her distracted young pupil.
"To find your center is to find your spiritual self, your soul. It is a refuge where you can be reassured of your purpose and your goodness."
Kagome pondered that for a moment, figuring she at least ought to put a little effort into it.
"So… another question," she said, "are there any other ways to find your center? Because I honestly have no clue what you're talking about."
"Perhaps we should start with simple breathing and clearing the mind, Priestess Hitomiko," Kaede suggested, greatly amused by how the lesson was progressing. The sun began to slowly creep downward in the sky and Kagome was saved when her mother returned from shopping.
"Hello dear," she said to her daughter, "Good afternoon miss Kaede, priestess Hitomiko."
"Hey guys! We're back!" Shippou bounced into the room, nearly tripping over the still quite hot tea set placed on the floor. The kit hopped into Kagome's lap, looking around for the grumpy presence that haunted her shadow.
"Where's Inuyasha? Did you break the curse?"
Kagome sighed. "No," she said, "Can't quite get it…"
"That's ok, dear," her mother said, setting down some shopping bags and offering a package of tea to Kaede, "I'm sure you'll figure it out."
Hitomiko strove valiantly to keep calm, clearly unhappy with the ceaseless distractions interrupting her lesson on making spiritual barriers. What Kagome needed was a several month long intensive boot camp away from all distractions. For one with such strong spiritual powers, especially now that the seal that suppressed them had been removed, her ability to make conscious use of them was severely lacking. Ideally, Kagome would learn enough right now to create a minimal defense barrier, but even so simple a task seemed to be reaching for the restless young woman, hence why the fully fledged priestess had insisted that Kagome be confined to Kaede's warded grounds until further instructions were received from headquarters. Hitomiko stood with a sigh, deciding it was time to return to her hotel.
"I'll return for today," she announced, ignoring Kagome's sigh of relief, "We will resume our lesson on meditation tomorrow morning at eight."
Kagome groaned but nodded. With Hitomiko out the door, Kagome relaxed, eagerly sticking her nose into the fruits of her mother's shopping expedition. Mrs. Higurashi laughed at her daughter.
"Say, I know Inuyasha isn't truly a dog, but we stopped by a pet store and bought some of these," she said, pulling out several long, dry, sinewy sticks, "Do you think he'd like them?"
Kagome stared at the offering, eyes wide and lips pinched together in a determined effort not to giggle.
"Sure…," she answered her mother, "I'm sure he'd love them!"
The young woman grabbed one and set off to find Inuyasha. She closed her eyes and practiced sensing him, the strange flickering aura that tickled her mind. It was odd, now that she was learning to sense the powers surrounding her, the distracting shimmers in her vision seemed to lessen. Following her senses like a hound follows its nose, Kagome located the still sulking dog hanyou behind the guest house, in a little corner excavated to form a comfortable nest.
"Hey grumpypants," Kagome said in greeting, "My mom got something for ya."
Inuyasha lifted his head, eying her suspiciously. Something in the tone of her voice told him that the wench was up to something. He took a wary sniff, already salivating despite himself.
"Bully stick, dogs love 'em!" Kagome held out the stick, the smelly, meaty odor hitting his nose. There had to be something wrong with it, Inuyasha was sure the lilt in her voice belied some sort of sneaky practical joke. Unable to pick out the catch, Inuyasha finally relented and reached for the treat with his mouth. It was hard, and rough at first, but softened to a satisfyingly tough, gummy texture that relaxed him as he chewed. Kagome watched him happily for a few moments before speaking.
"Gosh Inuyasha, I didn't think you'd like chewing on cow penis so much!"
A gob of saliva wandered into the wrong tube and Inuyasha choked on it, making a fit of coughing and hacking. He stood, backing away from the stick as though it had struck him, making faces as he tried to spit out the remnants of chewy bull penis from his mouth. It was a difficult task for a dog's mouth with its clumsy tongue.
Kagome was belly laughing, clutching herself and wobbling, nearly toppling over. Shippou crept over to see what the commotion was about and stared at the scene in confusion.
"What's going on, you guys?" He asked, eyes wide and head tilted.
Inuyasha managed to recover from the surprise enough to make a very threatening growl towards to kit, causing the child to jump and scuttle towards Kagome for safety.
"It's ok, Shippou," Kagome held the green eyed demon close to her, her own eyes swimming with mirth, "Inuyasha was just enjoying his bully stick too much."
She had to gall to give him a cheeky wink before the smells of dinner lured her back to the front of the guest house. He vaguely heard the sounds of Mrs. Higurashi lightly scolding her daughter for the prank.
He turned his nose downward to eye the offending treat with a disgusted grimace. Reluctant to touch the shriveled cow parts, he tried to nudge the half chewed up stick out of his little nest. When nudging and kicking didn't remove the thing from sight, he finally gave in and picked it up with his teeth, swinging his head to fling the stick to the other side of the yard. 'Ugh… that fucking wench…'
The savory smells of dinner finally broke through his resistance, and he crept around to the source of the delicious smells, catching a conversation that threw him back into his past.
"The legend of the Shikon no Tama goes back to ancient times. The Higurashi shrine in Tokyo was the site of its demise."
"Demise…? If it was destroyed, how did it end up inside of me?"
"That's a mystery. Even the elders had no answers for us when you were conceived."
"So what exactly is the Shikon no Tama anyway?"
"Well, as the legend goes, there are four souls trapped inside the jewel. Three demons and one warrior priestess. With the last of her life force, she trapped all four of them inside the jewel to battle for eternity. The possessor of the jewel influences the battle. Evil intent gives strength to the demon souls. Pure intent helps the priestess. The clash of energies inside the jewel makes it powerful. That's why it needed to be sealed away and hidden."
"So, unless it's sealed away, I'll keep getting attacked by demons like that giant centipede thing from before?"
Her mother's voice was sad and grim when she answered.
"Yes, and now that the jewel's presence is known, many more will come seeking it."
Kagome thought on this for a bit before speaking again.
"How was it destroyed last time?"
Mrs. Higurashi frowned, scratching her cheek.
"You know, Kagome, I don't know," she replied, "Why don't I call your grandfather later and ask him. He must have some old records stored up somewhere…"
The conversation was abruptly cut short when Inuyasha shouldered the door open. He gave Kagome a stink eye and walked up to Mrs. Higurashi, hoping his face expressed the degree of his hunger enough to beg some delicious beef stew from the steaming pot on the stove. The two women stared at the dog for a moment, taking in the pert ears and eagerly wagging tail, before Kagome burst into laughter while her mother caved in and pulled out another bowl from the cabinet.
"You're going to ruin his appetite for kibble," Kagome said to her mother.
"Perhaps," Mrs. Higurashi said, "But he's done such a good job protecting my daughter, and I'm going to be relying on him to protect you in the future. I need to butter him up, no?"
Mrs. Higurashi gave Inuyasha a wink as she set down the savory bowl of stew and Inuyasha would have snorted at her joke but instead immediately set about devouring the offered food. The topic switched to more menial things and he tuned them out of his mind as he sought out a comfortable corner to nap in, full bellied and satisfied.
…
"Ok, sounds good. Bye, brat."
Inuyasha looked at her curiously, surprised she would refer to anyone by 'brat'. The girl just winked at him when she noticed his stare and he snorted and returned his head to his paws and pretended to sleep. Kagome laughed at him lightly, absently placing her phone on the kitchen counter and accepting a warm mug of tea from Kaede.
The wind blew restlessly across the tops of the trees surrounding the property. The wrinkles on Kaede's old face deepened as she looked up in concern. She could feel it as certain as she could sense rain in her old bones. There were powerful beings moving about, and she knew what it was they sought. Priestess Hitomiko must have felt the presence as well and aided Kaede in strengthening her wards that morning.
The elderly woman reacted with surprise when Kagome's phone dinged and an image of a nekomata appeared on its screen. Kagome turned to check the device and Kaede spoke up with concern.
"Who is sending you pictures of a cat demon, child?"
Kagome looked startled at the question and Hitomiko glanced over curiously.
"A what?"
"The image on your phone," the old woman explained patiently, "That is a nekomata, if ever I saw one."
Kagome frowned, clearly not certain at all whether to believe her landlord.
"That's a new cat my friend picked up. It was orphaned on her property and she's been raising it."
Kaede's wrinkled old face didn't seem placated by that knowledge and she reached out her hand.
"Allow me a closer look, child," she said.
Kagome's eyebrows lifted into a skeptical expression but she gave in to the old woman's request, pulling up the images of Sango's new kitten and handing over the phone.
"Yes," Hitomiko confirmed, "That does appear to be a nekomata."
Kagome frowned with mild concern. "Is this something I should warn Sango about?"
Kaede shrugged, trying to maneuver the device. "Is there another picture from a different angle?"
"Yeah, just swipe right."
Kaede fiddled with the device.
"Swipe? Where?"
"Just swipe right." Kagome wagged her finger in the air to demonstrate.
The screen went black and Kaede's eyebrows puckered. "I fear your phone is defective, it seems to have crashed."
Kagome suppressed a giggle and reached over to hit to home button, bringing up the lock screen. It surprised her to note the traces of humor in Hitomiko's eyes as well.
"It's fine, it just went to sleep."
"How does an electronic device go to sleep?"
"It… it just does," Kagome said, not in the mood to explain, "just run your finger from right to left to go to the next picture."
It was impolite, Kagome knew, and she swallowed her laughter at the sight of Kaede figuring out how to navigate the touch screen phone. Eventually, the older woman got the hang of it and managed to view several images of the young kitten, both cementing her conviction that the cat was a demon, but also realizing that it was harmless. The news was a relief to Kagome and she decided her friend probably didn't need to know about her new cat's true nature.
"What's this about a demon cat?" Kagome's mother breezed in, an armful of groceries hanging from her hands.
"Sango's new cat is apparently a demon."
"My… Is it friendly?" Mrs. Higurashi asked absently, depositing several tea packages on Kaede's kitchen counter and mentally ticking off her remaining tasks before she needed to return to the university and to work.
"Kaede says so," Kagome said with a shrug, "Plus, it's a kitten, I'm sure Sango will raise it to be friendly."
The girl flipped through the pictures Sango had sent her, giving them a closer inspection. The red eyes had startled her, but Sango was not known for her excellent photography skills and Kagome had just assumed the redness derived from the flash. The double tails though, that was unmistakably unnatural, now that she wasn't writing it off as a unique mutation.
"Can I see! Can I see!" Shippou hopped up to Kagome's shoulder, eager to check out this cat demon.
Kagome laughed, cautioning Shippou to be careful with his claws, before handing him her phone.
"Aw! She's cute!" Shippou exclaimed, "I bet Sango won't have any mouse problems now!"
"Mm…," Kagome murmured in response, moving to help her mother with the groceries. Her mother waved her off, tonight's haul wasn't so much that she couldn't handle it on her own. Moving on, the young woman called out to her mother just as she was disappearing towards the guest house.
"Hey, mama!" Mrs. Higurashi paused and turned back towards the kitchen.
"Yes, dear?"
"Souta called, he's back for spring break and says you left your phone at the house."
Kagome laughed as her mother's eyes went wide.
"Can I borrow your phone, dear? I forgot spring break started this week!"
Kagome laughed again, handing her mother her phone. And then she allowed herself to be pulled back into priestess lessons for the rest of the afternoon.
…
An exasperated sigh erupted from the normally calm priestess and she raised herself from the floor and whisked into the kitchen for another cup of tea. Her pupil was giving her more problems than anticipated and she was ready to confiscate the jewel herself as the child appeared determined to refuse all instruction in the use of her powers. Kaede chuckled as she entered the room and handed her a ready mug.
"Any progress, Priestess Hitomiko?"
She sighed again and gratefully accepted the calming tea.
"I have half a mind to simply take the jewel with me back to Japan and leave Kagome here."
"Seriously," a voice came from the hallway. A moment later, the subject of conversation arrived in the kitchen. "Take the thing and go. I don't want it!"
Kagome was about as frustrated as her mentor, and her head hurt from trying to focus so hard. She also accepted a cup of tea and slumped face forward against the kitchen counter, enjoying the cool feel of the granite against her forehead.
"I supposed we can break for ten minutes…," Hitomiko conceded. Kagome was up instantly and out the door and both fully trained priestesses watched her go.
"Have you thought of starting with sensing and commanding spirits?" Kaede asked.
"Something so advanced?" Hitomiko exclaimed, "It's too early to have her doing that."
Kaede watched as Kagome quickly located Inuyasha and flopped to the ground beside him. The old woman disagreed. This young, budding priestess had a sensitivity towards beings outside of herself. It's what made her so successful with the homeless dogs. She made a mental note to discuss it with Kagome later that evening.
Priestess Hitomiko was watching the girl and the dog carefully, her eyes narrowed and pensive. It was apparent to anyone with eyes that the girl had an absolute trust in the large white dog, carelessly using the creature as a pillow, ignoring his grumbling protests. It made her uneasy to see one so gifted associating with something so unstable and impure.
"Why do you continue to house the hanyou, Kaede?" She asked the old woman. Kaede glanced outside and sighed. Her personal experiences with spirits had been slightly different than a conventional upbringing. But she understood what Hitomiko was getting at. The peace between demons and the spiritually gifted was a fragile one. While they all worked together to keep their little world a secret, there was still much animosity between the two factions, especially now with demons remaining so powerful while the quality of gifted humans dwindled.
"I sense he has a part to play, and he is protective of Kagome," Kaede supplied in answer, "Should anything go wrong with my wards, or your barrier, he is her last line of defense."
A frown graced Hitomiko's forehead and she sighed and let go of the topic. Kaede looked askance at the priestess. Protection wasn't the real reason she permitted the boy to stay. Outside, the great white dog turned to glance down at the girl sprawled against his side listening attentively to whatever it was she was saying and Kaede saw a tenderness there despite all his usual prickliness and antisocial behavior. Beyond simply protecting the girl, or the jewel, the old woman felt compelled to shelter the bond that was growing between these two young people and something inside her was soothed to see it grow.
She sighed and shook her head, and poured her guest another cup of tea. Perhaps the head priestess's heart will warm to the idea of this unusual pairing, perhaps these two can forge a new unified path between their two groups, but until then, she hoped for Inuyasha's sake that he didn't do anything stupid as he seemed prone to do.
Hitomiko finished her tea and stepped outside to call Kagome. The girl groaned and rolled over to grab hold of Inuyasha, nuzzling her nose into his fur and making the dog appear very, very uncomfortable. She only laughed at his discomfort and ruffled the fur between his ears, what fur that remained after so many failed attempts at breaking the curse. With a huff and a groan, she resigned herself to an afternoon of priestess training. The lesson was tiresome, just as fruitless as prior lessons and left both teacher and student wearied and cranky.
Finally dismissed from Hitomiko's meditation lesson, Kagome was just about to escape to the guest house with Shippou and Inuyasha for her mother's leftover cooking when Kaede caught her.
"Child," the old woman said, "Take dinner with this old woman tonight, I have some thoughts for you to consider."
Kagome tried her best not to groan but slowly trudged back into the house. Kaede gave her a pitying look but smiled reassuringly at Inuyasha, who was giving her a suspicious glare. To the background soundtrack of Shippou's chatter, Kagome helped Kaede set the table and sit down to eat. A few bites into the hearty meal, Kagome spoke up.
"So, what did you want to talk about?"
"Your training, child," Kaede said. Kagome didn't bother to hold back her groan this time, and let her head fall forward heavily, nearly dunking several locks of her hair into her dinner. Kaede chuckled at her.
"Priestess Hitomiko is very traditional. It's difficult for her to adapt her approach to things."
"Or her prejudices," Kagome added wryly. The young woman's obstinacy against the priestess wasn't just because of how boring and abstract the lessons were. She was growing more and more aware of the presences around her and felt the older woman's hostility towards Inuyasha very keenly.
Kaede gave Kagome a crooked smile, stating with a mild sigh, "Perhaps the politics of our little world should be a topic for another time. It's far more pertinent that you learn to defend yourself now that you've awakened as a miko."
Kagome grunted and nodded and returned her attention to shoveling dinner into her mouth.
"As I was saying," her grainy voice continued, "Priestess Hitomiko has one approach to training up those with spiritual sensitivity, but it's not the only way to access your powers."
Kagome looked up now, clearly interested and this encouraged Kaede. She paused briefly, debating over how to convey the correct information without giving away too much. The techniques she was about divulge were dangerous if used improperly.
"As you may already be aware," Kaede began carefully, "there is 'energy', 'ki', in all things. All creatures, youkai, even the wood that supports this house, or the blades of grass beneath your feet. And where enough ki is accumulated, a soul, tamashii, exists."
Kagome frowned, glancing around the room, trying to test out what Kaede just said. She could clearly sense Shippou beside her, a tightly focused little ball of energy that pulsed happily and innocently and it made her smile. She tried to sense the ki in the wood and grass, like Kaede suggested but came up empty.
"I'm supposed to be able to sense the grass?" Kagome asked doubtfully. The wrinkled face across from her laughed with amusement.
"I suppose if you can focus enough, in theory you should be able to," the old woman said, "The very weak, and the very strong, those can be difficult to sense. Everyone has a sensitivity to those around them. Some have a larger range than others in terms of what they can sense."
Kagome frowned deeply, dinner completely forgotten. She tried to focus on the auras around her, only able to pick out the woman in front of her, and the demons beside her. She contemplated this new knowledge a bit more and Kaede's eye crinkled as she watched the gears in the girl's head turning.
"So, is it like the visual spectrum?" Kagome asked, "How humans can't see infrared and stuff like that?"
Kaede was sure she had no clue what Kagome was talking about. But it sounded correct she supposed. She shrugged and continued with her lesson. The dinner continued smoothly, punctuated by Kagome's questions and Kaede's answers. By the time they were cleaning up, Kagome felt significantly better and much more enthused about these priestess lessons and was eager to try out some of the suggestions Kaede had planted in her mind.
...
This state of house arrest was beginning to drive Kagome insane. It had already been at least a week since the incident and between the frustrating meditation sessions with Hitomiko, and this newly acquired information from Kaede, Kagome felt restless and caged in the gated property. She lay in bed, staring fiercely at the ceiling, eventually giving up on sleep and quietly getting out of bed and slipping on her clothes before stepping outside. The slender limbed girl snuck quietly through the yard. With her mother's departure earlier that day, her car was no longer blocked in the driveway and Kagome was determined to go for a joy ride.
The gate squeaked traitoriously as she tried to ease it open and she cringed, casting a glance around to see if the noise alerted a certain guard dog to her intended departure. Sure enough, a pale, graceful shape materialized beside her.
Kagome sighed, taking in Inuyasha's narrow eyed, stubborn, and thoroughly miffed expression where he stood, barring her exit. There were still too many unfriendly shadows in the area for him to just let her waltz around the neighborhood unprotected. To emphasize his displeasure at seeing her attempted departure, he lifted his lip to display a single, pearlescent fang.
"Come on, Inuyasha. I can't stay cooped up like this! I just can't!"
She tried to garner sympathy, making her eyes as wide and dewy as she could. Inuyasha snorted, clearly unmoved.
"Please! Just this once. I'm going to lose my mind here!"
Still, Inuyasha maintained his position.
"Why don't you come with me?" Kagome offered a compromise, "You can be my guard dog?"
At this, Inuyasha seemed to consider the request, blinking. She pressed her advantage.
"I have Kaede's omamori. We can play it safe and just go for a quick ride around the block. C'mon, wont it feel good to feel the wind on your face?"
Inuyasha sighed, also feeling cabin fever; he could use a quick jaunt. Finally relenting, Inuyasha followed her like liquid silver as she crept to her car. The sight of it brought her up short with a cry of dismay.
"What happened to my car?!"
The front bore several dents and scratches and her bumper had a large crack that definitely wasn't there before. But that wasn't the worst of it. Her hood was dented badly and almost absolutely required repairs. Inuyasha carefully set his face into the most innocent expression he could manage. Kagome was muttering to herself as she assessed the damage.
"When did I last go out…," she asked under her breath. Suddenly, last week's awkward drive, post centipede demon, came back to her.
"... Inuyasha…"
The white dog swallowed hard.
"Did you do this?"
He tried to hold her eyes, but eventually had to glance away.
"Argh! Seriously?" Kagome ran both her hands through her hair, "I don't have the cash to get this repaired!"
The young slender woman marched up to him as he tried to back up quickly. She poked him roughly in the nose, her face a picture of displeasure.
"After I figure out how to break this curse, you are totally paying me back for this!"
Inuyasha licked his lips nervously, hastily nodding agreement. His distraction by the young woman's ire had given the dark shadow watching them time to hide its presence and by the time Inuyasha remembered to stay vigilant, all traces of the sinister intent had been concealed. Kagome's thoughts had also moved on and now she was scratching her head. Reluctant to take her damaged car out for a spin, she decided that a quick walk around the neighborhood would have to suffice.
They walked silently for some time. There was a park nearby and the change of scenery away from the buzzing wards helped Kagome feel more settled and she sat on a bench to consider the evening.
Kaede had sat her down for a lesson of her own and she had to admit, this different approach to her spiritual powers made more sense to her. She'd been doing it instinctively already and the little exercises and guidances from the elderly priestess clicked almost immediately.
The young woman looked over at Inuyasha and shifted over on the bench.
"Hey fuzzy butt, come sit with me."
Inuyasha gave her a look but ambled over to hop onto the cement slab. Almost unthinkingly, she raised her hand to stroke his fur. The dog flinched at the initial contact but quickly stilled when he saw the disappointment rising in her eyes. The wench really had a thing for petting him apparently, and he supposed there are worse things she could develop of habit for.
Plus, she was damned good at it.
Her fingers were little messengers of heaven and they ran over his skull with expert precision. He found himself leaning into her touch before he could help it, a warm rumble emanating from his chest. Suddenly, the support her arms provided vanished and he was surprised to find himself falling against her chest, her arms wrapping tightly around him. Kagome giggled when he made a yelp of surprise.
"I almost don't want to break the curse," she whispered, "You're just so nice to cuddle."
Before he could blush, she sat up again.
"Let me try again?" Kagome asked, catching his eyes and trying to read them. "The stuff Kaede taught me today might work this time."
Inuyasha sighed, the wench was stubborn. But he shifted and nodded and she took a deep breath and let it out and sat facing the large white dog, trying to bring her mind to focus.
Focusing on his aura, his energy, was a strange, fuzzy thing. It was shrouded and slippery, somehow amorphous and shifting, like it was battling something. Shippou was much more clearly sensed, and she seemed to remember his brother, the intimidating daiyoukai, had a far more stable feeling aura. But Inuyasha, Inuyasha's demonic ki was elusive and alien.
'Observe it first,' Kaede had cautioned her, 'Feel it out, understand it from all sides.'
Kagome tried to mentally move around the focused orb of energy that was Inuyasha. She gently reached out with her mind, trying to get a sense of its texture, its personality. It was hot, surprisingly, but it didn't burn. A friendly sort of flame and seemed to welcome her more than it deterred. If she could just peel away the strange black shroud that appeared to be strangling it…
The zap was audible in the space between them and both girl and dog flinched in reaction. Another new bald spot appeared on his back, joining the patchy collection of white and pink. The darkness did not want to be removed.
Inuyasha was leaning away from her, with a wary look on his face. Kagome sighed with a crooked smile.
"Sorry, bud."
She raised a hand as an olive branch and after a second, he closed his golden eyes and lowered his head, allowing her to gently stroke his soft downy ears and massage his skull. They sat there in peaceful silence for several minutes, enjoying each other's supportive presence.
Inuyasha noticed it first, having spent many human lifetimes on the run from dark auras with malintent. But Kagome's quickly developing spiritual sensitivity caught up quickly and both girl and dog turned sharply toward the new threat. And when it revealed itself, Kagome's stomach turned to lead and she felt it drop to ground like a brick. The large, horned monster loomed above them in the haunting moonlight, bloody red eyes laughing down at their tiny forms. The presence she felt, somehow both familiar and foreign, was nauseating and she fought back a physical reaction to the sensation.
Dark, and sticky, and toxic. Her guts swirled and it took her several moments to process the wave of sensory input. Wide-eyed with a primal fear, she unconsciously leaned back into Inuyasha's warm fur and an arm came up to brace itself against his patchy chest. She tried to scream but her throat had constricted in fright and it was a struggle even to breathe. This… This was way worse than that oversized bug from last time…
The hand that rested against the fur on his chest was suddenly pressing against skin as the dark shroud of the curse was overcome by his instinctive need to protect her. Kagome couldn't deny the relief she felt when she turned her head to see his human face, golden eyes glaring fiercely at their adversary. But how were they to combat an opponent so huge?
The beast threw its head back to laugh and the sound was terrible and nauseating. "My master will take the jewel, little girl, and you… wouldn't you make a pretty prize in his fighting ring!"
Kagome was stunned and her brain could only process one thought at a time. 'Jewel?' she thought, 'isn't the jewel sealed? How does it know about the jewel?'
"I don't fucking think so!" Inuyasha growled, fangs and claws flashing.
The thing stood tall above them and laughed again. It raised its long arm to strike and Inuyasha leapt upwards toward it. Kagome looked on in horror when the monster moved with dizzying speed, changing directions and ramming its fist into Inuyasha's side before the white-haired figure could react, and now the boy that was once a dog lay prone and dazed on the other side of the park.
"I can hear you…," the creature said, laughing, "You want to know how I know about the jewel? I can hear you."
The tall dark shape laughed again and Kagome was certain her ears would start bleeding. Her heart wanted to dash to Inuyasha's side but her legs were frozen solid. She nearly burst into tears of relief to see Inuyasha shift and groan and sit up with a hand on his head and a growl on his lips.
"Inuyasha!" She cried, willing her legs into motion. They stumbled, they wobbled, but they supported her weight and she tried to make her way towards him.
"You should be more worried about yourself, little girl!"
The voice from above alerted her to the oncoming attack but even as her eyes registered the sight of the great, monstrous, clawed hand that descended down upon her, her mind couldn't quite comprehend what was happening and it fell to Inuyasha to deflect the blow.
"Bitch! Call up a barrier! Or at least MOVE IT!"
The rage in his voice woke her up, jump started her into action and she tumbled backwards to the ground, everything rushing through her mind in quick succession. Ready or not, she was going to have to defend herself with the meager training she'd received from Kaede and Hitomiko. She looked up from her vulnerable position, accidentally getting an eyeful of Inuyasha bare ass, but it was only a fleeting acknowledgement. There were more pressing issues to be dealt with right now.
She desperately tried to remember her lessons with Hitomiko, with Kaede, anything, and a modest little spark of pink light sputtered into being in front of her… then vanished with a zap.
"DAMMIT!" Inuyasha growled above her, witnessing the failed attempt at a barrier. Keeping an ear focused on the demon above them, he shouted at the trembling girl behind him. "Try it again! Shit, try again, wench!"
Kagome tried to swallow her shaking nerves and focus her mind. Quite a task for someone who didn't know how to find her center. The next pink glow was even more pitiful than the last. Meanwhile, Inuyasha growled at the giant, purple monster who only laughed at the boy's posturing.
"You're feelings for the human girl are disgusting," the thing cackled, "You want to protect her? You want to keep her safe? How safe can she be when you also want to claim the jewel for your own!"
There was a moment of silence as the creature's words resounded around them. Inuyasha winced at having this buried desire dragged out and confirmed for Kagome and glanced at the young woman, who was wide eyed and trembling. At him? At the demon? It was hard to tell. He shook his head, not the biggest problem right now, and returned his attention to the purple monster. The red eyed demon glanced at Kagome and snickered, and chortled, and roared with laughter, even while preparing for the attack it sensed from the half demon.
"Not so comfortable with your pet puppy now are ya, girlie?" It taunted, sensing the brief flash of doubt that raced quickly through her heart, "How would you feel to know what else he thinks of you, eh? How at night, he dreams of-"
"Shut the fuck up you disgusting bastard!"
Giving up on Kagome's potential as a miko, Inuyasha took matters into his own hands and launched himself into the air, claws bared. The creature only laughed and swatted Inuyasha away again. He crashed to the ground in a flail of arms and legs and Kagome's heart jumped into her throat. Above her, the frightening beast cackled.
"I know your thoughts, I can read your every move!"
The dog demon was durable and leapt back to his feet. "Read this, ass-face!"
Kagome sensed a strange, bubbling power rise up inside the boy and golden light streaked through the air as Inuyasha slashed at the giant purple demon. She was awestruck for a moment, to witness this skilled use of his you-ki first hand, but then horrified when his adversary reacted as though it were just a trifling annoyance and easily dodged the attack, swatting Inuyasha away again. The white-haired demon had already adapted to his opponent's speed and was able to brace himself as he was struck, but when he lashed back, again, the demon was ready for him and matched strike for strike. Some of the larger demon's strikes met their target and Inuyasha's blood splattered onto the ground beside her.
His blood.
Something about those thick, dark stains seeping into to the dirt drew out a strange surge of emotion from inside of her. Almost in a daze, she reached out with shaking fingers and trembled to feel the warm liquid against her fingertips. He was bleeding because of her. He was bleeding for her.
Kagome felt a wave of angry strength bubble up within her chest and she stood up on her shaky legs, the glint in her eyes focused and hard. She took Kaede's suggestion of sensing the beings around her and quickly found the inky substance that was this purple, horned beast. There was a dormant instinct in her and she leaned into it, placed her trust in it, and she imagined striking at that evil aura in her mind.
A terrible scream tore through the air and Kagome's heart froze momentarily, terrified that it might belong to Inuyasha. When her eyes focused on the scene in front of her, her legs collapsed on themselves, relieved to see Inuyasha still standing, but the monster he faced somehow brought to his knees, four deep gashes ripped through its chest.
"Oi, wench! Whatever it was you did, do it again!" Inuyasha called to her, crouching down and flexing his hands. Kagome gulped and tried to focus again, reaching out with her senses to find the monster. The exertion from using her powers was taxing her quickly and it took longer this time to find the you-ki around her. To her surprise, she found two, and she cried out to Inuyasha.
"There's another one!"
"Eh?!"
"Goshinki," a new voice sounded from above them. Kagome raised her eyes to find the little figure hovering on what looked to be a giant feather. Despite being so high in the air, Kagome, strangely, was able to make out her face with surprising detail and was caught by how chillingly familiar those cold red eyes were. The intimidating woman continued to speak to the monster below.
"Goshinki, you're taking too long, just finish them off and retrieve the jewel."
"Shut up, wind bitch! I do this my way." The purple monster named Goshinki turned hateful, red eyes to the human girl. Kagome shivered in fright as the monster spoke again.
"Master wants them both," it said, "Master wants to play with them both."
"And he's gonna be fucking disappointed," Inuyasha snarled, launching himself at the large beast again. Goshinki laughed and outmaneuvered the dog hanyou, again spouting taunts of how easily he could predict the boy's movements. Inuyasha was showing signs of fatigue and Kagome wondered how much longer this could go on. With another smash, Inuyasha went crashing to the ground near her and she rushed to kneel beside him, a weak, pink shimmer desperately trying to materialize around them. She had to figure out how to create a barrier now.
Suddenly, the floating figure above them shifted, looking off to the side before dipping down, her bright red and white fan raised.
"You're out of time," she said, "We end this now."
With a twist and a flick, she swung downward with the fan, a rainstorm of razor sharp blades materializing in the wind that descended towards her targets. Inuyasha swore and shoved the girl to the ground behind him, ready to take the brunt of the attack. Kagome screamed, everything in her being trying to call up some amount of defense for both herself and the dog demon in front of her. Her powers materialized around them weakly and faded, and then she was engulfed in a blinding white light. The sounds of his screams reached her from a distance followed by a crash above her and she looked around, disoriented, before being caught up in a pair of clothed arms and the barrier above her creaked and groaned and then all went silent.
"Damn, they got away," a voice beside her head said.
Kagome looked up sharply, wild eyed and frantic. Priestess Hitomiko had a gentle hand on the younger woman's head, trying to calm her down.
"This is why I insisted that you stay within Kaede's protected circle," she scolded gently, but Kagome wasn't listening.
"Inuyasha! Where is Inuyasha?" Kagome cried, scanning her eyes around the park to where she'd last seen him. In a panic, she realized she could no longer sense him and she suddenly felt nauseous with the realization that he'd been taken. Pushing out of Hitomiko's arms, she screamed for the boy that she'd come to rely on for safety and comfort.
"Inuyasha! INUYASHA!"
A/N: oh boy! Shit just got real! Before you ask, yes, bully sticks sold at pet stores are bull penises. Yummy… my dog goes absolutely gaga for them :P