Disclaimer – I don't get a dime from anything related to Inuyasha, nor do I own the rights to the manga, the anime, etc….

A/N thanks for the reviews…short chappie.

Chapter 21 – What Took You so Long?

Inuyasha was still picking up Kichiro's trail with agonizing slowness when he found out how the bastard had hidden Kagome's smell. Laying on the ground in front of him was an old, damp fur. The inside was covered with Kagome's scent.

"Asshole wrapped her up like an eggroll and hid her scent." He muttered to himself. As he stood there, however, he realized that now, finally, he could smell her. He could follow her scent trail as clearly as if someone had drawn him a map.

It scared him to death.

This Kichiro had gone to a lot of trouble to hide his trail, but he'd never destroyed it. He could have covered it with other smells, wrapped himself up in something the same way he'd done to Kagome. He could have left her scent hidden until he and his captive were completely untrackable. The way Kichiro had done it said that he wanted Inuyasha to be slowed, but not stopped. The only reason Inuyasha could think of for him to leave the fur here was – not good. Likely, it was to let him know that whatever was going to happen, it didn't even matter that Inuyasha would be able to find Kagome. Because either Inuyasha wasn't strong enough to stop what was going to happen…or he'd be too late to stop it.

"Kagome." he said grimly, and started sprinting along her trail, desperately hoping. Maybe he'd been quicker, better than that damned cat had thought. Maybe he'd be on time to save Kagome, to keep her alive, to keep her whole. Please.

As the scent veered onto a familiar trail, Inuyasha spat. "You son of a bitch, you took her to your house? Fucking cocky bastard…" he leapt along the trail, following her scent into the house and down a set of stairs to a heavy door. He slammed the door open, sprinting in, ready to kill and rend and tear…

Kagome looked up, dazed, from a pile of dark fur on the opposite side of the open room, naked as the day she was born. A large bruise covered her left shoulder and her wrists were bruised and abraded: they'd obviously been tied at one point. Kichiro was absent, and considering the state of his scent, it looked like he hadn't been gone long. Inuyasha stopped, his hands dropping to his sides, useless.

Alive. She was still alive. That fucker hadn't killed her. He closed his eyes a moment, trying to let that thought sink in. Gods, he'd been so certain he would find her already dead, terrified she'd been left bloody and cold, gone forever. He tried to readjust to the idea that she was still here with him. Kagome was alive!

But…

He opened his eyes, looking again at her nude body, stiffening as he realized what it meant. He wanted to weep and howl and find that fucking bastard and rip him to shreds inch by inch. Because there was only one reason he could think of for the cat to have stripped her and not still be in the room.

Kichiro must have already taken what he wanted…

"Oh, Kagome…" he whispered brokenly. "Oh Gods, I…"

"Inuyasha?" she asked softly. He crept over slowly, his heart ripped out of his chest, cursing softly under his breath as he came.

"…hell-spawned, cock-sucking, roach-fucking... castrate that son of a bitch with a dull rock…" He shut up as he reached her and gathered her carefully in his arms, holding her tightly.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I should have gotten here sooner. I should have been faster. Kagome, I'm so sorry." Inuyasha mumbled in a shattered voice, his hand stroking her hair like a child's. "I'm so sorry."

He heard her mumble something against his chest and flinched, loosening his hold to hear whatever curses or recriminations she was about to heap on his head.

"Why?" she asked, her eyes a little hazy.

"He hid his trail and … there's no excuse. I was too slow…" she held a finger up to his lips to stop him.

"No. Why are you sorry?"

"Why? I should have protected you! Instead, that bastard raped you and I-"

"He did?"

"-wasn't even around to protect you! I- what?"

"You mean that man? No…no he didn't rape me. I'd remember something like that. No…that didn't happen." Her eyes crossed a moment as she obviously thought hard. "Uh uh. Nope. He didn't rape me. I'm glad your eyes are back to normal, Inuyasha. What took you so long? I waited and waited and waited and waited and waited and …" Inuyasha looked down at Kagome, worried. Chatting like they were sitting around the campfire, as though she wasn't naked, wasn't in danger, hadn't been attacked. As though everything she said made total sense. Was she in shock? Had that fucking cat broken her mind?

He pressed his palm against her cheek as he looked into her dark eyes. "Kagome, it's all right. It's not your fault. It's my fault. You don't have to hide it."

Brow crinkling in confusion, she burbled. "I'm not hiding anything. That man didn't rape me. He was going to…maybe? I know he was…he was definitely coming on to me. I remember that. And then…and then he said he was you, and then he said we were married, and then…he left." She nodded emphatically. "He was talking and bowing and then he left. He's not here anymore. He left."

"But, Kagome, your clothes…" he glanced over at her school uniform piled next to the furs.

She yawned slightly, leaning her head on his arm and rubbing against him slightly, "I got hot."

"You got hot." He repeated slowly. She nodded, pleased he understood. She didn't seem broken, he thought to himself. Confused, not making sense in the slightest, but it was more like…actually, it reminded him a lot of how she'd been after all that sake on their wedding day. Well shit, that Fucking Asshole had doped her up on something! "You got hot so you took off all your clothes in the house of some utter stranger who just raped you?"

"Who didn't rape me. And it's not like he was here anymore, anyway." She said calmly. He looked at her for a moment and then focused on his nose. Rubbing his face on her hair, he scowled as it reeked of cat, but he finally felt something loosening inside as he realized there wasn't anything further. There was no smell of cat coming from her bare skin, no musky reek of sex, no blood. He didn't know what had happened, but she was right, Kichiro hadn't taken her. The only thing was… Kagome's scent was rather aroused.

"Kagome, are you…are you turned on right now?" he asked in a surprised voice.

"Mmmm hmmm." She purred, stretching in his arms and reaching up to pull his unresisting head down for a kiss. Shocked golden eyes stared into hers as she aggressively thrust her tongue into his mouth. He was still for a moment before he thrust back fiercely, bruising her lips. When Kagome finally pulled her head away, she looked at him curiously, touching her slightly abused lips.

"I thought I lost you." He said harshly, pulling her in close, gripping her tightly for a long moment, "but we need to go now, Kagome. We need to get you away from here, okay?" If Kichiro hadn't done what he'd first intended, he could be back any time now. Maybe he'd been waiting for whatever drugs he'd used to take affect. Or maybe he was simply waiting for Inuyasha to come out with Kagome before jumping them both, thinking Inuyasha would be preoccupied. His hackles wouldn't stay down as he wondered where the cat might be. He needed to get her out of here.

"Kagome? Come on, we need to get going." He said softly, and she smiled and patted his back. Then he felt tugging on his suikan and pushed her away from him for a moment, trying hard not to look below her face.

Fine, be noble, said his conscience. But let me tell you, I'm looking until someone comes and pokes out my eyes.

This is serious. We don't have time for this.

We won't have time for this when we're dead and in our grave. Right now…Kagome is hot.

Inuyasha shook away his thoughts. "Kagome, what are you doing?" he asked, keeping his voice soft, trying to be considerate.

"You have too many clothes on. Take 'em off." She mumbled.

YES, MA'AM! His conscience saluted.

Shut the fuck up!

"Kagome, we're not safe here, remember? We need to go?" he said, his voice strained from the effort it was taking to keep it calm. She doesn't know what she's saying, she doesn't know what she's saying, he repeated to himself, carefully pushing her hands away from his clothing.

She reached back over immediately. "…too many clothes. You should take them off. Much prettier that way…"

"No, Kagome." His voice trembled with the effort stay nice, stay gentle…don't scare her after she's been through something like this!

"You should take off your clothes." Grab, push away.

"No, Kagome." Have…to stay…calm.

"You take off your clothes right now, Inuyasha!" she ordered, glaring at him.

"I am not fucking getting naked in this goddamn cat's house! Kagome, you idiot, let go already!" he yanked her hands from around his waist, at a total loss why she was suddenly smiling widely.

"You called me an idiot." She said happily, "I knew it was you."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" he growled. This was driving him crazy! She'd been kidnapped and…maybe other things…and now, when he still had to get her somewhere safe and protected, NOW is when she decided to get amorous and loopy? Fucking cat and his stupid ass drugs…

"I want to see you naked!" she said crossly, ignoring his voice, pulling at his clothing again. She reached around and he felt her squeeze his butt.

He turned bright red, pushing at her hands. "Kagome! This isn't the place! You…Kagome!" he gave a startled yelp as she reached down and cupped his privates through his clothes. "Not here, Kagome! That tomcat could be back any time now, we need to get you to safety…Kagome!" She had tightened her grip around him and tugged slightly. He forced himself to remove her hand with an effort of will he didn't even know he possessed.

"Oy, that's just cruel, Kagome. We can't do that now! I need to get you safe, and then kill that cat, and then… Shit, just hold onto that thought, okay? When we're safe, you can…I'd love it if you. Dammit, just hold onto that thought!" he said, laying her on the furs for a moment and taking off his suikan.

"There, see, now just take off the yukata." She said happily.

"This is for you, dummy!" Inuyasha said, wrapping it around her.

"But my clothes are right here!"

"Are you going to put them on?" he asked, reaching over to grab her top and skirt.

She frowned, glaring at him cross-eyed again. "No. You're no fun at all. Okay for you to do it but when I try to… big cheater. And this is too scratchy, take it off!" she said, pushing at the red cloth bundled messily around her.

"That's what I thought." He growled softly, scowling, wondering exactly what Kagome might have tried to do to Kichiro if she was acting this way towards him. He shook his head, trying not to think about it: it wasn't her fault. Whatever had happened, it was all that fucking cat's fault. He just needed to get her away from here for now and deal with the rest later. Although, if the affects didn't wear off by the time she was safe, maybe that wouldn't be too bad, he thought, gulping as she tried to reach for his groin again. Kagome was awfully damn sexy...

"We need to get back to Sango and Mirkou, Kagome." He said gruffly, scooping her up and trying to keep her from pushing off the suikan at the same time, her clothes hanging from one hand. "and then…there's gonna be one less cat in the village pretty damn soon." He paused at the doorway, scenting the air for any ambush before he sped up the stairs with her, tucking her head under his chin as he ran, his hand periodically gripping tighter, just to make sure she was still there. She was actually all right.

"Don't forget to take off your clothes when we get there." Kagome reminded him in a grumpy voice.