Me: Here's another one!
Disclaimer: "InuYasha" is property of Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Viz, and all those other people who bring this series to us!
Story 10: Hazy Feelings
Climbing up a mountain is sometimes a perilous task in itself. Climbing up a mountain engulfed in fog can make the situation even worse. This is what Inuyasha and the others were finding out. Of course, it didn't help that the ledge they were forced to travel across was precariously narrow.
"Couldn't we have just waited for the fog to clear?" Shippo was perched upon Inuyasha's shoulder so as not to be stepped on by the others.
"And give Naraku more time to retrieve the shard?" Inuyasha retorted.
"Still, this is pretty dangerous." Kagome scanned around her. She couldn't see anything past this fog; she could barely make out Inuyasha.
"As long as we stick together and take it slowly, we should be all right," Miroku commented from behind. "And no sudden movements."
"And that means no touching," Sango stated sternly as she walked ahead of him.
"What?" Miroku said incredulously. "What makes you think I was going to do something like that?"
"Experience."
Kagome kept herself against the side of the mountain as they pressed on. "Right… no sudden movements," she mumbled to herself. "No… sudden…" she looked to her shoulder when she felt this light tickling feeling. Beginning to crawl up her neck was long, fuzzy insect. "AHHH!" Kagome screamed so loudly it echoed throughout the mountainside, startling all the others.
Inuyasha whipped round as soon as he heard Kagome's cry. "Kagome?" he shouted through the fog.
"Wahh! Get it off!" Refusing to touch the insect, she continued to squirm around in an attempt to shake it off instead.
"Get what off?" Inuyasha tried to look frantically around for what was distressing Kagome.
"Kagome-sama, don't move!" Miroku tried to warn her.
Caught up in her emotions, Kagome failed to realize that she was getting dangerously closer toward the edge of the cliff. Retreating backwards, she bumped into Sango and tripped up on a pebble on the ground. She felt the weight of her bag carrying her overboard, and in a panic frantically clawed at the air to try and find something stable to hang on to. What she ended up grabbing was the strap of Hiraikotsu.
Sango was alarmed when she felt herself being pulled forwards into the fog. Kirara jumped off her shoulder to transform into her larger self, in an attempt to save the two from falling. The fog altered the youkai's judgment however, and Kirara ended up missing the girls as they plummeted over the mountain.
The boys panicked when they heard them shout, their blurred figures disappearing from sight.
"Kagome!" Inuyasha snatched through the air, coming up with nothing.
Miroku anxiously turned his head in all directions to try and find where they currently were. "Sango! Kagome-sama!" The fog was just too thick to see them, and if he tried to clear the area with Kazaana, he could risk sucking the others up. When Miroku, Inuyasha and Shippo were able to spot each other, they realized that the girls had really fallen off the cliff.
"Darn it!" Inuyasha made to jump off after them, but Miroku grabbed his sleeve.
"Inuyasha, don't! If you just go after them like that, something might happen to you. We can't see anything clearly in this fog and if we get hurt it'll make searching for them even worse."
The hanyou grit his teeth. He knew Miroku was right, but he also knew that falling led to landing; and with them being up so high, he didn't want to think about how hard the girls would hit the ground.
Kirara showed up at that moment, and motioned for the three to get on.
"Kirara!" Miroku looked at Inuyasha and Shippo. "Let's go."
The other two nodded.
"Unf…" Gradually opening her eyes, Kagome reached up and put a hand over her head. She found herself staring upwards into a dreary looking sky, her body feeling slightly sore on the soft grass. Her bottom lip was stinging, and when she touched her fingers to it, she realized that there was a cut run through it.
She tried to collect her thoughts of events previous to this. She remembered falling, that was for sure, and would explain why she was lying on the ground with an aching body. Playing back the memory, she recalled having unintentionally dragged Sango down with her. As they were falling, Sango had yanked Kagome upwards so that Sango would be below, thus helping to cushion Kagome's fall.
The Miko went wide-eyed, and she sat up as quickly as she could, eyes darting around the area. "Sango-chan? Sango-chan!"
"Up here," someone groaned from above.
Kagome turned around and looked up in the direction of the voice. Up in the trees, Sango was stretched across a few branches with Hiraikotsu. She slipped off the strap around her weapon, tumbling down to the ground with a thud.
The taiji-ya sat herself up, rubbing her head. "Ow… that wasn't a great idea…"
"Sango-chan!" Kagome rushed to her friend's side and sat down beside her
"Hey, Kagome-chan." Sango smiled and squinted at her. "Are you all right?"
"I'm fine, but -" Kagome gasped. "Sango-chan, you're bleeding!" Indeed, Kagome spotted a trail of the red sticky substance making its way down the side of Sango's face.
Sango took a quick glimpse at it before replying, "Oh, it's nothing. Besides, it looks like you didn't make it out without a scratch either."
"Sango-chan, I think a blow to the head outranks a cut on the lip anytime." Kagome brought her bag around and reached in for her first aid kit. "Here, let me clean you up." Opening up the white box, she took out a cloth and some cleanser to wipe off the blood. As she rubbed it against Sango's face, she said, "You didn't need to do that you know."
"Do what?"
"Pull me up while we were falling."
"Oh, that. Well I didn't want you to end up with this instead." Sango pointed at her injury.
"So? You could have been hurt even worse, and it's not like your life isn't more important than mine."
At this, Sango didn't say anything. She averted her eyes away from Kagome, breaking the communication between them. Kagome was surprised with this reaction.
"Sango-chan, it isn't." Kagome leaned forward to try and look at her.
Sango shifted her gaze to Kagome. "Isn't it?"
The statement took Kagome aback. "What?"
"I think when it all comes down to it; we all value your life over our own."
Kagome thought about this. It was true that she usually had Inuyasha looking out for her most of the time. The hanyou was always worried about her – when he noticed it at least. The others watched for her well-being as well, whether it was on the battlefield or something having to do with Inuyasha.
She sat herself up and said, "Well you can all stop thinking that. I'm a capable person myself, you know. I don't always need looking after."
Sango glanced at her when she spoke; listening to what Kagome had to say. She smiled at her. "Yeah." Sango shifted a bit in her seat. "But I would like to do something about that cut on your lip. Do you have anything for it?"
Kagome opened her mouth to answer, but no sound came out. Her vocal cords apparently decided to malfunction when Sango reached her hand up and began stroking the cut on her lip with her thumb. It was a very delicate gesture, and it made Kagome blush.
She pulled her face away and turned to the side stuttering, "N-no, I don't think so. Don't worry, I'll be fine."
"Are you sure?" Sango looked at her apprehensively.
"Of course!" Kagome took out a roll of bandages from her kit. "Here, let me finish fixing you up." She knelt beside Sango and began wrapping the gauze around her like a headband. As she did so, Kagome asked, "So what should we do now?"
"It'd probably be best to stay in one spot and wait for the others to find us."
"Okay; then I guess we'll wait for them here." Kagome stared off into the fog. "I hope they find us soon."
"Me too."
When the others reached the bottom of the mountain, they immediately started their search for Sango and Kagome. The fog was still heavy, making visibility a problem.
"Kagome! Sango! Where are you?" Inuyasha called for them as he walked around, searching for them on instinct rather than wits.
Miroku kept close with Inuyasha so they wouldn't get separated. "With this fog it made it difficult to tell around what area they fell in," he remarked.
"And it's still causing problems for us," Shippo added from atop Kirara.
"Inuyasha, can't you try picking up their scent?" Miroku proposed.
"I'm trying, but there's something nasty in the air that's masking it from me."
"Something nasty?" Shippo echoed. "What do you think it is?"
Inuyasha frowned. "Whatever it is, it's not going to stop us from finding them!"
A roaring fire was going in the area the girls were in. It served three purposes: one, as a signal in case the others were close by; two, luminosity for themselves; and three, warmth. Kagome had laid out her sleeping bags to rest on, and remained there in case they would have to spend the night.
"Sango-chan, do you want anything to eat?"
"No, I'm fine thanks."
Kagome left her bag next to the tree trunk she was leaning against and sighed. Gazing around her, she wished this fog would clear up. Sure it would make it easier for them to be found, but it also would have supplied some scenery to look at. She glanced to her right at Sango. The taiji-ya appeared to be staring off into space, but Kagome knew she must have been watching out for any signs of danger.
Kagome redirected her gaze back into the fog. "I'm sorry."
"Hn?" Sango looked at Kagome.
"I'm sorry for having pulled you down the mountain with me," Kagome clarified.
Sango blinked at her. "It's all right." She returned to her prior position. "I'd have rather you pulled me down the mountain with you than leave you here alone."
These words stuck in Kagome's mind. They initially surprised her, but then had the aftereffect of making her feel warm and embarrassed. This sensation however was soon replaced with a new one – a very rancid, unpleasant one.
"Um… Sango-chan," she said slowly. "Do you smell that?"
Sango bolted up from her seat. "It's a youkai!"
"A youkai?" Kagome darted her eyes around. "Where?"
"Be-"
"Ah!" Kagome found that her bag was being dragged away from her. "No, my bag! All my stuff's in there!" She got up from the ground and chased after whatever it was that was causing her bag to escape her.
"Kagome-chan, wait!" Sango watched her silhouette fade into the fog. She reached behind her and grabbed Hiraikotsu, pursuing after her and making a mental note of what direction they were headed in.
"Wait! Stop!" Kagome ran up ahead, being careful not to run into anything on the way. "Hold i-" Her journey was abruptly halted when her foot plunged into a nearby stream. "Ah!" She pulled her wet foot out of the brink. "Oh, where did my bag go?" Kagome looked round to her left and heard a shifting sound. "There!" She got up and headed towards the noise, which oddly started to sound like grumbling. Glimpsing the sack's yellow colour, she lunged forwards and grabbed it.
At first she claimed success, but her attitude changed once she took notice of a few other factors. Glimpsing upwards, she found the source of the gurgling noise, as well as that putrid smell from earlier. It was a youkai alright, glowering down at her with its beady, yellow, pupil-less eyes. Its whole body was like compost, dyed a disgustingly dark shade of brown. The smell emanating from its folds was beyond the worst thing Kagome had ever smelt in her life. She thought for sure that if Inuyasha were here, he'd be knocked out in two seconds flat.
The youkai had Kagome's bag clamped in its decomposing hands, attempting to take off with it. She pulled back on her bag to try and wrangle it out of its grasp, but it only served to anger the youkai. It snatched at Kagome's arm, tugging her up onto her legs. The youkai brought Kagome's face to its own, and it squinted at her.
"Jewel… shards…" it breathed with a rotting scent.
"Ew…!" Kagome pinched her nose with her free hand.
"Jewel… shards…" the youkai repeated.
"Yeah, okay, I heard you!" Kagome shouted, at the same time not trying to take in the stench. "Just stop talking!"
"Kagome-chan!" Sango rushed to the scene, slipping her poison protection mask over her face.
Kagome twisted around in the youkai's grasp. "Sango-chan!"
Sango drew her katana and ran up to them. The youkai however got wise to her actions, and shot out his arm, an array of mangled mess charging at Sango. She pulled up Hiraikotsu, the attack plowing into her weapon. Stepping to the side, she sliced her katana into its arm. The end fell off, but that didn't matter – the youkai simply regenerated itself.
'Oh, great,' Sango thought. "What's its weakness? Hm?"
"Ah!" Kagome shouted as she slipped into the stream again. "Oh, not again!" She shook her foot out, drips of water flying around. The youkai groaned and lurched back away from her.
"The water?" Sango dropped her gaze to the flowing bed of liquid. "Kagome-chan, get down!" She threw Hiraikotsu in the youkai's direction.
Kagome ducked as the bone boomerang flew at them. It landed with a splash into the water, kicking up the cool fluid onto the shore. The youkai howled as it washed over its decaying body, dropping both Kagome and her bag in favour of retreating in the opposite direction.
"Kagome-chan, are you all right?" Sango came up beside the other girl.
"Y-yeah." She waved her hand in front of her face to try and clear the air. "I just – Wah!" Kagome's rapid movements caused her to slip on the wet grass, sliding down into the waterbed.
Sango leaned over to check on her condition. "Kagome-chan?"
"Ah…" Kagome looked down at herself, completely surrounded by water. She stood up, drenched in it, the liquid drizzling down her uniform. "Oh, my clothes are soaking…!" She shivered and hugged her arms close to her body.
"You'd better let them dry out so you don't catch a cold." Sango picked up Kagome's bag and swung it over her shoulder. "Let's head back to camp."
Kagome stepped out of the stream. "You remember the way?" She was surprised Sango was able to do such a thing while they were on the run.
"Yeah, just follow me." Sango started walking alongside the stream. "It's a good thing we lit that fire. It'll make it easier to find the way back."
"And to dry my uniform," Kagome added as an afterthought.
Sango continued to travel upstream, Kagome tagging along. When they took a right, a dull luminosity came into view up ahead.
"We're almost there," Sango said over her shoulder. "So what happened to not needing looking after?" she smirked.
Kagome half-lidded her eyes. She turned away and pouted. "Well, I think we all need looking after once in a while."
When they reached the campsite, Sango dropped off their things and began setting up a place for Kagome to dry her clothes by the fire.
"All ready," Sango announced as she stabilized the branches by the inferno. She got up and turned around, seeing that Kagome had already removed her soaked socks. Kagome was facing away from Sango as she continued to undress.
Placing her hands at the hem of her blouse, Kagome started to pull it upwards and over her head, the wet material peeling off her body as it clung to her skin. Watching this triggered something in Sango, which was odd as she had seen Kagome undress before her previous to this. Maybe it was because this time around Kagome's clothes were dampened? Whatever the case may be, it caused a crimson hue to cross Sango's face.
Kagome meanwhile became aware of the possibility that Sango was watching her as she removed her clothing. This prospect made her feel self-conscious as she started to wriggle out of her skirt. A shiver went through her insides, but her body was feeling quite warm, regardless of the fact that she was by now half-naked. She didn't want to admit it to herself, but undressing in the presence of Sango felt somehow… erotic. Reaching down to her undergarments, this sensation became even stronger.
"Um, Kagome-chan." Sango interrupted the girl's fervid thoughts. "Maybe you should get some dry clothing before you undress completely."
"Oh, um – yeah, okay." Kagome removed her hands away from her body, heading over to her bag for a change of clothes.
Watching her go, Sango heaved a sigh of relief. She picked up Kagome's wet socks, blouse, and skirt, hanging them up by the fire.
"Oh, no…!" Kagome groaned.
Sango glanced back at her. "What is it?"
Kagome looked up from her bag. "I don't have a change of clothes; oh, what a time to not pack my pajamas." She closed the flap of her bag and sighed. "I suppose I could just get under my sleeping bag…"
Sango turned her gaze from Kagome to her own belongings. Undoing the blue cloth around her possessions, she drew something out. "Here."
"Hn?" Kagome shifted around to see Sango holding out her kimono to her.
"It's not as good as Inuyasha's, but it should give you some warmth."
Kagome blinked at her, then down at the kimono. She reached her hands out, Sango placing it in her arms. "Thank you, Sango-chan," she said with a hint of awe in her voice. She slipped the kimono over her body after removing her undergarments, wrapping it around her. Kagome hugged the material and sighed, taking in Sango's faint scent which lingered on the fabric. "It's not Inuyasha's all right."
Sango eyed her from where she was seated.
Kagome smiled. "It's better."
"Augh!" Inuyasha traipsed about with his sleeve over his nose. "That smell is getting worse!"
"Yes, even I can smell it now." Miroku glimpsed about the area.
"It's bad!" Shippo cupped his hands over his nose. "Where's it coming from?"
Inuyasha growled. "A youkai."
"A youkai?" Shippo whipped his head around. "Where?"
The group stopped in their tracks, backs to one another to prevent any surprise attacks. Since they couldn't see, they tuned their ears to listen for any out-of-place noises. Gradually, they heard a kind of rustling sound coming closer. Then, that unpleasant aroma began to intensify. Inuyasha felt his knees turning to jelly; his eyes rolled back, and he fell flat on his face. The others looked down at him; the hanyou was making moaning incomprehensible sounds, his eyes like twisters.
"Inuyasha?" Miroku stopped down to examine what had happened.
"The smell must have been too much for him," Shippo said in a nasally voice.
Miroku got back to his feet. "All right, I'll take care of this problem. Shippo, Kirara, watch Inuyasha and stay behind me."
"Got it," the kitsune replied as Kirara walked over to Inuyasha.
"Okay…" Miroku closed his eyes and concentrated. He calmed his nerves and searched the air for the sign of jyaki. The monk snapped his eyes opened and shouted, "There!" He tugged the beads around his hand and forearm off to let loose the curse Naraku had put on his family. "Kazaana!" The void in his hand went at full force, sucking in anything in its path, including the stench in the vicinity. The wind blew back at the others as Miroku kept a look out for his unseen target.
Then, a groaning sound came at them. Miroku and Shippo's eyes widened when they saw something dark and ragged, being vacuumed up into Kazaana. As soon as it was in, Miroku swung his beads over his arm to close the wind tunnel.
Shippo leaned in to Kirara. "Wha-was that the youkai?"
"Must have been," Miroku replied. "I don't sense any other youkai, and that scent seems to be diminished."
"Yeah," Shippo gazed downwards," but Inuyasha still looks out of it."
"Apparently so." Bending down, Miroku pulled one of Inuyasha's arms over his shoulders. "Kirara, do you think you can carry him?"
The feline youkai nodded with a growl, Shippo moving over to make room for the hanyou. Miroku rolled Inuyasha onto her back, making sure he wouldn't be able to fall off.
"Okay," Miroku stated adamantly. "Let's go find Kagome-sama and Sango."
Sango threw another piece of wood into the blaze. The fire crackled as it ate at the timber, flames flickering with the lights dancing across the campsite. It had been a while since the encounter with the youkai, and Sango was beginning to speculate how much longer it would take the others to find them. It wasn't that she was necessarily worried they wouldn't eventually, but it gave her something to think about as it was quiet all around her. She sat back against the tree they were taking shelter under and stared into the fog.
Kagome meanwhile was lying on her sleeping bag, back facing Sango. The taiji-ya had offered to keep watch while Kagome rested, thus explaining her current situation. She glanced down at her, the firelight moving over her body. Wondering if Kagome was awake, she opened her mouth to speak.
"Ka-" her voice caught in her throat when Kagome turned over. Kagome hadn't bothered to tie Sango's kimono together. The result was that when Kagome flipped over, Sango was left with a full view of Kagome's cleavage. Sango's face went hot, her eyes dilating. She gaped uncharacteristically for a moment, until she whipped her head away from the sight. 'O-okay… didn't need to see that.'
Gradually, she turned back around to check if what she had seen was truly real. Kagome was sleeping soundly, oblivious to what was happening. Sango watched as her chest moved up and down with every breath she took, her kimono taunting to slip completely off of Kagome. Sango whirled back around and put her hands to her face.
Sango thought intensely, 'No, what am I doing? I can't have these feelings around Kagome-chan. I'm like… like… like…' She squeezed her eyes shut. 'Houshi-sama!' The thought resounded through her mind like a warning siren. As soon as she got herself under control, Sango directed her attention back to the snoozing girl.
Kagome slept peacefully, her expression showing no signs of discomfort. Cautiously, Sango crawled next to her, intending to cover up the offending area. She sat by her, staring down at Kagome. Sango felt her heart rate speed up just by looking at the other girl. It got even worse when she reached out to pull her kimono together. Her hand shaking, it slipped, brushing up against Kagome's exposed skin. She instantaneously retracted her hand away, blushing furiously. Kagome stirred slightly, but she didn't wake up.
Sango tried to get a hold over her breathing, shaking off what just happened. When she managed to gather her bearings, Sango tentatively tried again. She stretched out her arms and took the material in her fingers. Sango shut her eyes and successfully brought the edges together. Sitting back, she let out a breath of relief having done the dubious deed.
The taiji-ya tilted her head back down to once again lay her eyes on Kagome. What was with this excessive observing of Kagome anyway? Was it excessive? Sango rubbed the palm of her hand up against her face. This was strange, and yet… she found that this moment was unique, and unconsciously something she wanted.
The fire's glow was illuminating against her features, making the cut on Kagome's lip quite visible to Sango. She wrestled with the thought in her mind, but slowly, she got down on her arms, leaning in to Kagome. Sango's face lingered just above her, until the taiji-ya tenderly pressed her lips against the miko's. Overwhelming warmth took her over, Sango finding this experience to be a pleasing one.
When she just slightly pulled away, the pressure against her lips increased. Sango jerked back and opened her eyes, Kagome grasping onto her forearms.
"K-Kagome-chan!" Sango spluttered, her face getting red. "H-How long have you been awake?"
In a hoarse whisper, she replied, "Since I turned over."
Sango's insides tightened from the throat down. "Y-You have?" She looked off to the side with her cheeks burning. "I – I –"
"Sango-chan," Kagome muttered softly. "It's okay."
"What?" Sango's voice was still shaky, shock now being added to her tone.
"I don't mind. In fact…" She tugged a bit on Sango's arms. "I'd like for you to do it again."
"But, what about Inuyasha?"
"And what about Miroku-sama?"
This proved to silence Sango. Her expression became soft, and in a quiet manner, she murmured, "I don't want him."
Kagome slid her fingers under the straps of Sango's taiji-ya uniform, tugging down on her again. "And I don't want Inuyasha."
Sango advanced forward the rest of the way, sealing their lips for the second time that night.
Miroku looked next to him at Inuyasha. "Are you feeling any better, Inuyasha?"
"M-ar-n-gah-rr…"
"I think he is," Shippo observed from atop Kirara's head. After a few more steps, Kirara growled. "What is it, Kirara?"
"Hn?" Miroku squinted his eyes. Ahead of their path, Miroku thought he saw a faint glow.
Shippo followed Miroku's gaze. "Is that them?"
"It's a possibility. Come on, but be careful."
They ploughed ahead through the fog, taking care that they weren't coming into any contact with danger. Soon, the fog began to thin out, and their ability to see became clearer. Miroku could make out two figures sleeping side-by-side in front of a fire.
Sensing the presence of others, Sango began to stir. She sat up groggily and blinked. "Houshi-sama?"
A grin spread across the monk's face. "Sango, Kagome-sama!"
"Hn…?" Kagome got up as well, rubbing the sleepiness out of her eyes. "Miroku-sama?"
"Kagome-sa- Ah?" Miroku did a double take. "Uh, Kagome-sama… are you wearing Sango's kimono? And, uh…" He continued to stare at her, apparently distracted by something.
"Hm?" Kagome glanced down at herself. Her eyes widened when she saw the area between her breasts exposed, quickly deducing that was the reason for Miroku's behaviour. "AHH! Miroku-samaaa!" She brought her arms up in front of her body.
"Huh? What's going on?" Inuyasha came up from behind Miroku, stumbling a bit as he was just recovering from his dizzy spell.
"OSUWARI!"
"WARGH!" Inuyasha slammed down on top of Miroku, the two of them hitting the earth with immense force.
Sango blinked at the two boys implanted into the ground, looking up when she heard mewing. Kirara came bounding up to her in her small form, jumping into her arms.
"Kirara!" Sango smiled as she cuddled her companion affectionately.
"Kagome! Sango!" Shippo came up through the fog after Kirara.
"Shippo!" Sango greeted the kitsune with another smile.
"We finally found you! Oh?" Shippo noticed the hanyou and monk face-down in the ground. "What happened to Inuyasha and Miroku?"
Kagome closed her eyes and made a face. "They're adjusting their vision," she retorted stiffly.
"Hm?" Shippo's eyes traveled from the two in the soil to Kagome. "Ah, Kagome – why are you wearing Sango's kimono?"
"It was after we met a youkai in the fog," Sango replied, stroking Kirara's fur.
"A youkai?" Shippo repeated. He leaned forwards. "Was it dark and really smelly?"
"Huh?" Kagome twisted around to look at Shippo. "Yes, as a matter of fact it was."
"Shippo, did you meet that youkai?" Sango asked.
Shippo nodded. "Yeah, we did, but Miroku took care of it." He grinned. "I guess it's a good thing we found you when we did."
"Yeah, but," Kagome exchanged glances with Sango. A smile graced the miko's face. "There was no rush."
Me: Wow, I've made it up to ten stories (if you count "Doujinshi by a Houshi" as two separate parts)! Haha, aren't you guys tired of reading these yet?
Anyway, in honour of hitting the tenth mark, I'm thinking of trying out a KagSan fanart. I just need an idea… hmm… Well, when I'm done I'll tell you. Bye-bye for now!