Thanks to loveless an the living fantasy, xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx, I love snowy owls, iheartwinky, That person nobody knows, KiraraGoesMeow and Anya Primrose for reviewing the last chapter!
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, just the OCs.
They had chat lightly of other subjects for the rest of the day. The sinking sun caught Inuyasha's eye. He stood up, giving Miroku, Sango, Kouga and Miki a small smile.
"I think it's best if Karin and I go now," he said. "Who knows what we might find on our way home today?" he joked lightly.
Miki and Sango's heart ached for him. He had gone so long without his mate. And with a daughter, no less. He tried to put a brave face on all these years, but with this woman's appearance, he was starting to crack.
Miki and Kouga got up, joining Inuyasha. "We'd better head home too," said Kouga gruffly. "It's a long way back to the den and its way past Mamoru's bedtime."
Miki took his hand and squeezed it gently. The feeling made Kouga feel complete. For the first time since she had gotten attacked, he let a genuine smile appear on his face. He squeezed her hand back before tearing out of the hut.
"That was a great thing you did, Inuyasha," said Miroku with a small smile.
Inuyasha leaned on against the door frame. "Eh. Kagome would've done the same."
He was able to say Kagome's name without tears forcing their way into his eyes, but it still hurt him. It hurt him to relive all his happy memories with her. He felt a reassuring hand on his arm. He jumped slightly, not expecting Sango to comfort him. She also had a small smile on her face.
"You've been so strong, Inuyasha," she whispered. "For Karin. The fact that she's running around so happily with Misaki and Harumi proves that you've grown since we met you."
He looked down, trying to keep it together. When he realised that he would most likely lose it in front of them, he turned around and started walking out of the hut. "Karin and I should get home now."
Sango pulled her hand back, biting her lip. She thought she had said the wrong thing when she felt Miroku's hand on her shoulder. She looked up at his violet eyes.
"You didn't say the wrong thing, San," he said softly. He stared off into the distance. He could faintly see a small figure that was holding an even smaller figure's hand. "The pain of losing Kagome is a lot for Inuyasha to handle. He feels that her death is his fault. And on top of all that, there's a woman going around with sacred arrows hurting the people who are close to him."
He turned back to Sango and brushed a stray strand of hair out of her face before wrapping his arms around her. She shocked at first, but she soon found herself returning the hug. She felt his fingers combing her hair.
"I can't imagine what Inuyasha is going through and I don't want to," he whispered into her hair. "Promise me you'll be careful, Sango."
He pulled away to look her in the eyes. Indigo locked with chocolate. "Promise me," he whispered.
She felt herself melt into his arms. She buried her face into his chest before nodding. "I'll be careful," she murmured.
It had gotten dark. Inuyasha was mentally kicking himself for leaving Sango and Miroku's hut so late. He was holding Karin's hand as tight as she could. A few minutes later, he felt a tiny hand on his. It was trying to pry his hand off. He looked down.
"Daddy," she hissed. "You're hurting me."
"Sorry," he said, loosening up on his grip. "I'm worried, Karin," he confessed.
"Worried about the lady?" she asked.
He nodded before remembering that it was too dark for her to see. "Yeah." They walked in silence for a couple of minutes. It was still a while before they would reach the hut. He focused his hearing. Nothing was rustling in the trees today. It was absolutely silent.
Suddenly Karin tore her hand out of Inuyasha's. He turned around, about to lose it when he saw Karin's face. Her mouth was a thin line. Her eyebrows were furrowed and she was looking down. He crouched down so that they were eye level.
"What's wrong-" started Inuyasha.
She shushed him before he could finish. He fell silent, wondering what was taking all of her concentration and focus. She looked up after a couple of minutes. "I hear something," she said quietly.
"What?" He focused his hearing. He concentrated on his surroundings. His ears twitched. His eyes swiveled over to Karin, who was anxiously looking up at him. He had heard it. It was faint, but he heard it. It was a soft padding on the ground. Someone was making their way toward them.
He didn't even wait for her to ask if he heard it. He scooped her up and ran as fast as he could back to the hut. Once they made it to the hut, he carefully set her down in her futon. He contemplated going outside to see exactly what was making all of that noise outside.
"Karin, hold still," he said softly. "I'm just going outside to see what made that noise."
She slowly nodded. It pained him to see the fear that was in her eyes. Her eyes were huge and innocent looking. He tore his eyes away from her and tentatively took a step out. He trained his hearing on his surroundings again. His eyes raked his surroundings. He crouched down, ready to attack.
Nothing.
He straightened up and scratched the back of his head. He cocked his head to the right, confused. He turned around, yawning.
Crack.
He whipped around, claws out. He gripped the hilt of his Tetsusaiga. He carefully pulled it out, holding it in front of him. He carefully looked around. Nothing was around him. Why was he feeling so uneasy? Why did he feel like someone was watching him?
He slowly lowered it, still cautious of his surroundings. He raised an eyebrow at the silence. It was almost taunting him.
Dimwit, it seemed to say. You can't find who or what you're looking for.
He bared his teeth. His blood was starting to boil. Just exactly what was out here?
Something shifted in the distance. It didn't go past him. He bounded over by the trees where he saw the shift. He stopped a few feet away, just in case. His golden eyes pierced the shadows. What he saw made his blood run cold. His mind went numb. The sword slipped out of his hand and fell into the grass with a soft thud.
A woman was standing among the trees. He could barely make out her chocolate iris and her shaggy black bangs. She was wearing traditional miko attire. She had arrows slung over her shoulder.
He dared to take a step forward. He slowly reached out before withdrawing his hand. He stared at the woman before him, holding his breath.
"K-Kagome?" he asked hoarsely.
A light appeared in her eyes, making them dazzle. He could see a faint smile on her lips before she disappeared. He gaped at the now empty spot before him. He waved his hand in the air where the woman was standing. Nothing was there. He looked around wildly, trying to decide if he had just been reunited with his dead wife.
"Hey!" shouted Miki.
She was standing in front of a group of rather rowdy wolf youkai. She held a hand to her temple, aggravated. She had stood there for the better part of two hours, trying to call order. She sighed before looking over her shoulder.
"Kouga just had to leave now…" she said trailing off.
She turned around, closing her eyes. She was fed up with how everyone treated her. It pissed her off. The constant rude behaviour toward her. It wasn't like she personally did anything to offend them.
"What's wrong, Sis?"
She turned around and sighed in relief. "Ginta, Hakkaku. It's so nice to see you," she said. Her eyes fell on the demonesses next to them. "Yuki, Emiko, how are you?"
Shortly after Kouga had gotten mated to Miki, Ginta and Hakkaku had found mates of their own. Ginta's mate, Yuki, was a soft-spoken and sandy-haired youkai with warm amber eyes. Yuki was like the timid and shy sister that Miki always wanted. Emiko, however, was a youkai with icy blue eyes and long brown hair. Emiko was rough on the edges, but her heart was in the right place. She'd do anything for her loved ones.
The four youkai glanced at the crowd in front of her. "Trouble relaying news?" they guessed.
She looked down, ashamed. She was a horrible co-leader. She couldn't even relay news to her tribe. Honestly, what could she do right?
Yuki strode forward. She stood by Miki's side and peered at the crowd in front of her. They were all chattering away, not caring about anything or anyone. She turned back to Miki. Her amber eyes flooded with worry. "How long have they not been listening to you?"
"Much too long," she sighed. She squared her shoulders and faced the crowd again. "HEY!"
There was not a single youkai that turned around to give their leader their attention. She groaned, turning to the youkai behind her. She rubbed her neck. "That's it. I am killing Kouga when he comes back with Mamoru."
Emiko glared at the rambunctious crowd. "Hold on," she muttered. Hakkaku nervously gulped at the blue fire he saw in her eyes. Whatever she was going to do wouldn't end well for anyone.
She stood right in front of the crowd, still glaring. "OI! SHUT IT!"
Everyone fell silent, wondering which youkai had signed up to die early. Miki was standing next to Ginta and Hakkaku, feeling mortified. She felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at Hakkaku, who gave her a small smile.
"Don't worry about it, Sis," he assured. "Emi's just…loud. Her voice cuts through the noise."
Emiko had come back, looking rather satisfied. "I seriously question the youkai in our tribe." She closed her eyes and shook her head. "To show that much disrespect to their own tribe leader…It's disgusting."
"Thanks, Emi," said Miki. She stood before the group and took a deep breath. "As you all know, there have been sightings of a woman with sacred arrows. It is believed that the deceased miko, Higurashi Kagome, has somehow resurfaced. All of you are being warned. This miko may attack you for no reason at all. You all are advised not travel alone or past nightfall."
She could faintly hear someone in the crowd say something about the attacks.
"Didn't Miki get attacked?"
"Mmhmm. She almost died."
"We would've been better off..."
She felt weak-kneed at the comments. She tried to ignore them and continue on, but she didn't have the heart to.
"She has been sighted near the village," she added softly before retreating to the den.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ginta and Hakkaku give the crowd a murderous glare.
She hopped up to the furs and sank in them. She wasn't one to cry. No, she was stronger than that. But it still hurt her to know that her own tribe wouldn't care if she had died. They actually wanted her to die. They only listened to Kouga. She turned on her side, closing her eyes.
"Kouga, I'm going to murder you for leaving me alone with the tribe."
"C'mon, Princess. You wouldn't kill me, would you?"
Her eyes snapped open. Kouga was standing before her, smiling. Mamoru was in his arms, squirming. She stood up and took Mamoru from him, bouncing him on her hip.
"What's this about killing me?" he asked lightly. "I thought we settled our differences."
"You know damn well why I'm angry," she snapped turning around. She rubbed Mamoru's back before setting him down. She turned around and glared at Kouga.
"Your tribe doesn't give a damn what I say." She took care to put extra emphasis on 'your.' "In fact," she continued. "They, quote, would prefer that my life get snuffed by the arrows."
He narrowed his eyes at the noise outside of the den. His blood boiled at her words. He grabbed her wrist and dragged her outside. "Dammit," he muttered. "This is really pissing me off."
He stopped in front of the crowd. It was immediately silenced before he even said a word. He glared at the youkai, his hand still on Miki's wrist. It annoyed him. All of it. How the tribe disrespected her. How could they do that to their own leader?
"Can someone repeat what Miki just said?" he asked.
No one responded. They all looked at one another, knowing that they were in for another rage filled lecture.
Kouga was absolutely furious. He rubbed his temple in annoyance. "Listen, Miki is your leader too. She's at the same level as me. I don't understand why you all don't give her the same respect you give me."
Everyone was silent. The atmosphere changed. The tension was thick. You could cut it with a knife. Miki took a few steps back.
"It looks like you got your point across, Kouga," she said softly.
He glanced at her retreating figure. He turned back to the youkai. "You all are dismissed," he sighed. He made his way back to the den.
Miki was rocking Mamoru to sleep. She looked up when he began impatiently tapping his foot.
"What the hell was that?" he demanded.
"It's no use," she sighed. "You're just wasting your breath."
He took Mamoru out of her hands and lay him down to sleep. He roughly pulled her up. He gripped both of her shoulders tightly, shocking her.
"You can't let people walk over you," he said angrily. "You have to stop putting yourself in this state of mind. You have to believe in yourself."
She looked away, biting her lip. "It's not that easy, Kouga. You've had it easy your entire life. You've been their leader for years. How long have I been their leader? What nobility do I have?"
She pulled away when she felt his grip loosen up. She turned so that her back was to him. He wanted to say something to make her feel better, but she walked away before he had a chance to.
He placed his hand on his forehead and glanced at his son's sleeping form.
"Why don't they have a single ounce of respect for your mother? Or better yet, why does she let them treat her this way?"
Read and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome.
Next Monday, I'll be going to Canada for a week-long trip. Which means...no updates. :( I'll be sure to update as soon as I get home.