Hey everybody! I FINALLY got around to getting this written, no thanks to classes, finals, work, and effing writer's block. . Ugh. This chapter was hard to churn out, but hopefully it's enjoyable for you guys. You would not believe how many times I freakin' proofread this thing and I STILL found mistakes in it. Oh well. If you spot inconsistencies, let me know and I'll fix it! ^^
And now, with much relief and not-so ado, I present to you...
Chapter 21 (finally...)
Chapter XXI: The Fallout
The demons all stood stone still as they took in Akurei's news.
"What?!"
"When!"
"How did this happen?"
"Who killed him?"
"Vengeance upon the fiend!"
The cries of the wolf demons and the wolves reverberated throughout the cavern and echoed through the valleys of the mountains.
"What is going on here?!" Aki shouted from the back of the cavern.
"Aki," Akurei called. She moved to the back of the cave and bowed respectfully to her Tribe Leader. "Daiki has perished in battle fighting the demon Naraku. Naraku's subordinate slew him and goes by the name Kagura, the Wind Sorceress. She murdered him along with all of Daiki's warriors. No one escaped alive from that battle save Kagura."
"How did you come to find this out?" Aki asked, his voice booming.
"Inuyasha and I were following the scent of miasma and blood and we came across a castle. When we entered, the first thing we saw was a sea of blood and the bodies of our Tribe members lying hacked to death. No one was alive. They weren't able to dodge the attack that Kagura unleashed."
Everyone gasped and started talking all at once when she stopped talking. The noise got louder and louder with the sounds of fear and grief becoming more prominent until everyone was unified in the emotions running rampant through the cavern. Aki paled and leaned heavily on a stalagmite that protruded from the ground.
Akurei bowed her head and moved to slump against the wall. She slid down and leaned forward, resting her arms on her knees. She listened, eyes blank, as the sounds died out and the Tribe began to truly mourn their loss. Damn you, Daiki, Akurei thought. Why did you have to go out for those Shards? You knew that pretty much anyone who ever went after the Jewel died because of it and you still went after it.
Night had fallen, and nobody seemed to be awake. Akurei sat in front of the cavern, keeping watch. Aki decided to keep everyone close by, at least for the night, so that they don't lose anyone else. Akurei gazed out over the barren stone, covered in an onyx sky dotted with diamonds and the Milky Way shined overhead with the sheen of a pearl. The red-brown stone was bleached to stark grays and blacks in the light of the moon, the sight calling to her. It whispered, Come fly with us. Come to where the moon never sets, and magic roams free.
Akurei's body ached to fly and soar through the starlit heavens, but her heart remained firmly rooted in the earth, knowing that her family would always be in these stark lands of sandstone and clear skies. She looked back into the cavern at the sleeping forms and then looked back out to the horizon, lost in thought, not noticing the figure that stole up to her side until he slid his arm around her shoulders, startling her.
"Hey, Okami," she murmured once she caught the scent of the demon who had his arm around her shoulders.
"Hello," he replied, "Are you planning on going on a revenge-driven rampage?"
"I said I would get revenge for them when I saw their bodies lying in the vast pools of blood," she muttered darkly. "I have to. Naraku's devious. He'll use anyone and anything to get at his enemies. Koga's already out for Naraku's head and I am as well, so anyone else of our Tribe getting involved is just too dangerous."
"But still, you shouldn't go out there alone," he insisted. After a moment of silence, he continued, "Akurei, it's not safe for any of us to be travelling alone."
"I have Kagome and the others with me," she reminded him.
"Three humans, a half-breed, and a young demon," he countered. She shot him a look for the use of "half-breed", but let it slide.
"If I don't, Naraku will win. And nobody will be safe. Besides, he owes the Wolf Demon Tribe a blood debt, and I intend to collect," she rebutted.
"Well, clearly I can't argue with you. Still," the blond-haired demon chuckled. He put his arm around her thin waist, causing warmth to radiate throughout her body, and not just because of his body heat.
After a while of gazing out over the canyons, Akurei was leaning heavily on Okami's shoulder, her eyes drooping. His arm remained securely around her shoulders to keep her from falling, but when he saw her eyes close, he smiled and picked her up, carrying over to her ledge, laying her on it and pushing her long tail onto the rocky shelf as well. He smirked as he recalled how she was bothered when people messed with her tail, and yet he just moved the smooth scaled appendage with impunity, knowing that she won't get mad at him since she was sleeping on the job. Just another day of slacking off amongst the wolf demons, he thought with a dry chuckle. There was barely any room on the ledge since Akurei was occupying most of it, but he managed to squeeze in between her body and the cavern wall, falling into unconsciousness.
The following morning, Akurei awoke and stretched, her joints popping and releasing the tension. It took her a moment to gather her surroundings, since she last remembered sitting out with Okami in the mouth of the cave. She recalled the way he insisted that she stayed behind, and wondered why.
He cares about you, a voice whispered inside her.
No duh, she countered in her mind. He took care of me and became my friend, despite the fact that I was just a dumb little half-demon who didn't know about her powers. I probably annoyed him a lot, but he decided I was worth the hassle. Oh well, he's a good friend.
Her thoughts broke off as Okami said, "Good morning, Akurei," startling her.
"Morning," she replied. Okami moved to hug her and she stood, nudging him affectionately as she had every morning prior. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, his musky scent of wolf and male reaching her nose and her heartbeat quickened a little.
"Is Aki going to announce himself as the new Tribe leader, or do we put it to a vote?" she asked him, trying to get her mind off of his scent. It was no different from before, but today it was incredibly tempting.
"Usually whoever the previous leader's second was gets the job, but that doesn't happen if they're not fit for it. The second not inheriting the position is fairly rare, but it can happen."
"Really?" she replied. "So who becomes the new second?"
"Usually whoever the new leader decides is adept enough to help in leading the Tribe," he explained.
"Ah. So—" she started, but was interrupted by Aki walking into the front cavern. There is a whole system of caverns and tunnels that snaked through not just the mountain, but the surrounding cliffs and valleys, allowing them easy access and unseen passage around the central cave. Usually only females with young pups or children are allowed to stay within the confines of the caves, for protection, but it's not uncommon for the entire tribe to hide within if there is a serious enough threat. Akurei never heard of an instance where this occurred, but Okami told her that the system was large enough to house their Tribe three times over comfortably. She had never been inside, though, and so had to go off what Okami and the others told her.
"Everyone, we need to decide who will succeed Daiki," Aki announced. "Since I was his second, I shall lead unless there is a more worthy candidate. Does anyone wish to claim this place?"
Nobody spoke out against his claim, but there were some murmurs of agreement that he should succeed Daiki, considering he's been his second for centuries.
"Since there is no opposition," Aki began, "I will take his place, and my second shall be Okami. He's not entirely useless, after all."
There were some chuckles at that, since usually Okami tries and fails to get people to listen to him because he's a pushover most of the time. Akurei nudged him affectionately. "If you're not entirely useless, then what does that make them?" she asked, pointing at a few of the goofier demons. They started to make arguments that they weren't useless, and banter resumed amongst them, if a little more somber than it was before Daiki's death.
Later that evening, Okami finally slumped down next to Akurei. "Wow, this is complicated. I never knew Aki had to do so much. I just scheduled watches and hunting parties for the next month. It's ridiculous how they don't cooperate. And we can't let the females go out unless it's absolutely crucial because we've got several soon-to-be mothers."
"Tired, huh?" Akurei grinned. "Well, once the pups are born, you're going to be even busier."
"Ugh, don't remind me," he mock-groaned. The demon then proceeded to slump onto her lap and pretended to snore.
"Ha, you wish," she teased. "You know the only reason you like to sleep on my ledge is because that means you get to be away from all of the sleep-talkers."
"Yeah, but you have to admit, they do it an awful lot," he replied.
"True, but that doesn't mean my lap is free game," she smirked as she shoved him off. He laughed and sat up.
"Maybe not, but it's better than the cold, hard stone," he retorted.
"So… my heart," she teased, poking his chest. He chuckled.
"Hey love-birds! Can you shut it? It's past sunset," Daichi's voice complained from somewhere within the slowly-moving masses as everyone began settling down to sleep.
"Sorry, Daichi," Akurei apologized. She sent a mildly accusing look to Okami, who shrugged sheepishly, and she shifted into a dragon before lying comfortably on her big ledge. Okami curled up next to her on it and since it was still cold at night in the north, Akurei spread her wing over him, keeping the night chill away.
The following morning, Akurei woke up face-to-face with Yuki. The dragon snorted and rolled over, flopping a paw over her eyes. I know that look in your eyes, Yuki, she muttered sleepily. I don't need to practice my shapeshifting. I'm perfectly capable of transforming myself.
"Yeah, but you only turn into a few forms," the demon girl retorted. "You need to be able to change into anything at will." When Akurei didn't respond, she pulled on her ear. The sleepy half-demon growled, but slumped into a semi-sitting position. "Come on, I saved you a fish," Yuki teased. At that, Akurei whipped around and tried to get at the fish. As she tried to grab the fish, Yuki moved farther away, always just out of Akurei's reach, making the dragon move outside the cave. Their antics woke the rest of the Tribe, who began cheering one of the two girls on as Akurei circled her friend, trying to find a way to get at her breakfast. Just as she was about to give up in pure frustration, Yuki giggled and tossed the fish out of the cavern and into the open sky. Akurei bounded toward it and caught it midair with a neat snap of her jaws. Her claws caught onto one of the rocks, halting her descent with the scream of talons on stone.
Alright, you win, Akurei called to Yuki. The demoness laughed and started to slide down the cliff face, the dragon close behind.
"Alright, now scoop up some shadows," Yuki instructed. Akurei tried, but when they coalesced in her hand, they slipped away as soon as she lifted them. "You have to show the shadows you're the boss, not the other way around. Once you can order them around, you can do practically anything. Try it again."
Concentrating, Akurei bent down and plunged her hand into the shadows as though it was water. She scooped them up and when they tried to slide through the cracks between her fingers, she scrunched her brow and forced them to stay in her hand. There was resistance, but Akurei pushed through it. "No. You will obey me," she growled. Her eyes flashed violet and the shadows settled down, an inky pool in the cup of her hand.
"Very good," Yuki praised. "Now here's the hard part. I want you to shoot those shadows as though they were throwing knives. Let them float into the air, tell them to sharpen into points, and flick your thoughts at your target. The shadow spears will follow your every whim."
Akurei nodded, focusing on the shadows in her hand, and with a mere thought, the shadows formed into three blades. She looked over at a rock, and following Yuki's instructions, sent her thoughts to the rock. She got distracted, however, by a bird, so one blade hit the bird, another the rock, and the final one flew clear over the rocks, slicing the tree branches as it dissipated.
"Try again."
With a growl, she nodded, and collected a larger pool of shadows. This time, there was no resistance from the shadows as she scooped them up. Instead of making them float, she flung the liquid darkness from her hand, sending crescents of shadow blades in an arc in front of her.
They sliced through branches and bushes like daggers through tissue paper, leaving a mess of broken branches on the ground around them. Yuki stepped up from behind Akurei and said. "Not bad, not bad. Although you could've just sent them into the air instead of damaging all those trees."
The half-demon grinned sheepishly. "Well, you told me to fling the blades of shadow."
"True enough," she conceded. "Now let's see what you can turn into."
Eight hours and four new forms later, Akurei was bent over, huffing from the effort. She could now transform into a raven, a panther, a horse, and a Japanese Lung. Yuki was pleased with her progress, but was disappointed that Akurei was incapable of being any other color save shades of gray, black, and demonic violet. However, Akurei could completely control the shadows now, which both demons were pleased about.
"Well, it's almost sunset. We might as well just go home," Yuki said. "Good job today."
"Thanks," Akurei huffed. "But I think the other dragon form was a bit redundant. I can already transform into a dragon."
"Yeah, but you should still learn how to transform into the dragons native to this land; otherwise you might end up as dinner for a lord."
"Whatever. Let's go home," she said, exhausted. Yuki laughed and led her through the trees, which dwindled away into moss and hardy plants as they approached the ravine. The two girls ran swiftly through the twists and turns until they found the cave. Akurei collapsed onto her ledge as soon as she picked her way through the demons and wolves as they settled down for the night.
Morning came swiftly, and Akurei was sitting with Okami and Yuki for breakfast when she told them, "I need to get going. I have to help Kagome and the others."
"Already?" Yuki asked. "Damn. I was hoping we could get through a few more days without Okami sighing like a human in a love-sick ballad," she japed, shooting a grin at the demon in question.
He retorted, "I do not! Everyone is crazy around here!"
She laughed and shoved him playfully. "Whatever, lover-boy."
"'Lover-boy'?" Akurei asked, trying and failing to suppress her grin.
"Yeah, you should see him," the demoness laughed. "He's hopeless," she said as she punched his arm.
"Hm," Akurei smirked. "You'll have to tell me about this special lady of yours who keeps abandoning you some other time, dude. I've gotta go."
Yuki laughed at the expression on Okami's face. With a final quick good-bye, Akurei waved and sprinted lightly over a few still-sleeping forms before throwing herself to the open sky and shouting in glee during her two seconds of freefall before opening her wings and taking off into the azure sea.
The wind rushed past Akurei's face as the ground flashed by in a dusty red blur. Her wings beat strongly, taking her higher into the sky as the warm sun touched her feathers, inspiring her to fly higher, soar on updrafts, and otherwise take advantage of the lovely weather. Daiki would be all over my ass telling me to get moving, she thought with a laugh that ended in a sad sigh. He also would smile immediately afterwards and say that it was too nice of a day to stay in the cavern and make everyone get out so they could enjoy the daytime.
She shook her head forcefully. She missed the old demon. Although wolf demons weren't sung of as the most powerful of all, they held a secret power in their deep bonds that when tested, nobody, not even the most powerful, could best. A strong Tribe could easily have the same leader for centuries because all of the demons and wolves shared their life energy, making each of them as powerful as Sesshomaru or even his late father, if not more so. By accepting her into their fold, she helped the Tribe become stronger. As a result, everyone looked healthier and had more energy and she herself felt more invigorated knowing that she had a family worth protecting and cherishing. So that great of a loss of so many demons not only affects them with their politics, but also their collective energy and life-force of those who remained. The survivors were usually left listless and depressed until they could bear the grief and compensate for the lost demonic energy.
Akurei knew how good it was that the wolf demons had that unique trait with their demonic aura. One time Okami got into a scrape and he got pinned by some fallen rocks. His arm was badly broken and bleeding, but when Daiki, Akurei, and a few other wolf demons got there and pulled the rocks off him, he healed as quickly as though it was little more than just a crack. His arm was completely restored by nightfall because of the strength of the Tribe when ordinarily it would take about two or three days before he had begun to heal.
Reminiscing, Akurei didn't notice the four figures way down below. The little dark-haired girl looked up and saw Akurei fly past, and thought little of her, thinking she was a bird as she rode upon a twin-headed dragon led by a little imp, following the imposing demon lord.
Akurei landed after a few hours of flying to where she last left her friends, but was confused when she couldn't find them within the area. She walked until she found the scent trail left by Inuyasha and Kagome as they had left the destroyed village. Akurei walked along the roads and pathways, following the swift path they took. Kirara's scent was there, meaning that she had flown with Miroku and Sango riding her back, but since she doesn't touch much while she flies, there's not a lot for her scent to cling to.
She took her time, figuring that so long as the scent of blood wasn't mixed in with the others that it meant nothing was wrong. After a little while, she entered a forest and gradually noticed that it was easier to follow their scents, even catching Miroku and Sango's scents. Realizing that they were fresh, she picked up her pace, running after her friends.
She sprinted and as she rounded the bend, she suddenly bowled Inuyasha over, the two of them tumbling to the ground in a heap.
"Gah! Get offa me!" Inuyasha yelled.
"Akurei! You're back!" Shippo crowed, leaping down from Kagome's shoulder.
"Hey Shippo," she replied. She tried to untangle herself from Inuyasha, but found that she couldn't stand. Inuyasha tried to push her off him, but his leg was pinning her tail very painfully.
"Come on, Akurei, get off," he griped.
"Well, you're leg is on my tail!" she retorted.
"And you're layin' on me!" he growled.
Akurei growled half-heartedly and tried to sit up without pulling on her tail. She moved off to his side, letting him get up and free her tail. She stood and brushed the dust off her clothes and out of her hair from her tumble. As she did, she caught a familiar scent of wolf.
She turned to the path she had just come down and saw a blue-green whirlwind disappear as Koga leapt out from within, continuing to run until he was right in front of Kagome, her hand clasped to his chest.
"Hello, Kagome, how have you been?" he asked, smiling at her.
"Hey, Koga. Whatcha doin' here?" she asked. She returned his smile, but Akurei could see that she wasn't very comfortable.
"I caught your scent and so I decided to check on you," he said, sounding fairly confident with himself. "That mutt is taking care of you, right?"
"Hey! Who're you callin' a mutt?" Inuyasha snapped.
"Inuyasha, cool it," Akurei said, knowing that it was pointless. The hothead would easily explode over the littlest things.
Completely ignoring "the mutt" as he called Inuyasha, Koga's eyes remained locked on Kagome's. Akurei moved forward, shoving Inuyasha to the side and making him stop his rant that nobody was listening to, and bowed slightly as deference to the more highly-ranked wolf. "Hello, Koga," Akurei said respectfully. "How have you been?"
"Eh, I've been better. How is your Tribe?" he asked.
"Grieving," she replied. "The news was a shock to them all. Daiki was our Tribe Leader for the past five hundred years. It will be a while before our Tribe can fully recuperate from his passing."
"Yeah, Daiki was always a good leader," Koga reminisced. "A bit stubborn at times, but he knew what was best for his Tribe."
She nodded and Kagome finally had an opportunity to step away from the demon who vied for her love. The human did and Koga said, "Kagome, why don't you just ditch the dog and come with me?"
"Well, um, I—" Kagome started, but was saved by Inuyasha getting mad again.
"Says the mangy wolf!" he retorted.
"Inuyasha!" Akurei rebuked. The dog half-demon looked startled at her chastising, but then returned to glaring at the wolf demon.
"See, mutt? Even Akurei's siding with me," he taunted.
"I'm not, actually," she replied. "But considering his insult was also aimed at wolves in general and their insinuated mange, I took offense since I don't have mange nor do any of the wolves I've seen."
"Eh, good point," he conceded, proving he didn't hear half of what she said. Akurei didn't take offense at this since Koga clearly had more important things to focus on. Namely Kagome.
"So, Koga, you run away from any battles recently?" Inuyasha said, attempting to bait Koga into another argument.
"Nope. Oh, that reminds me, hey, mutt-face," he called back. "Take care of Kagome. I've gotta go waste Naraku. See ya." He waved with a smirk and turned around to run, the blue whirlwind forming from the sheer speed of his movements.
"Well, he's awfully confident for a guy who just ran from a fight," Sango observed.
"That damned wolf!" Inuyasha yelled.
"Oh shut it, Inuyasha," Akurei chided.
"You wanna get into this?" he challenged.
"No, I want to find Naraku," she replied. "You smell that?"
"Smell what?" he asked, sniffing the air. "Naraku!"
"Yep. Blood and miasma," Akurei agreed, pinpointing the direction the scent got stronger. She looked over at her friend, an evil grin on her face. "Let's go find him."
Without waiting for an answer, she leapt and shifted into a dragon. She ran through the trees along the little pathway with Inuyasha hot on her trail. She saw a clearing and burst through the bushes, shifting back into her normal form as she slid to a stop. Naraku wasn't there, much to her disappointment, but there was a demon of sickly pale skin with pale hair and eyes.
"Akurei!" Koga called.
"Koga! Do you know what the hell that is?" she asked, pointing to the demon.
"Its name is Juromaru," he called back. "I'm outta here. See ya!"
"Wait!" she cried, but it was useless, he was already gone. Her attention was returned to the fight at hand when Juromaru opened his mouth and a ball of light flew out of it. It struck the ground before ricocheting to tear through Inuyasha's chest. "Inuyasha!" she cried.
The half-demon staggered as the light went continued through his back and escaped into the ground again. "Are you alright?" she asked.
"I'm fine, but damn that hurts," he groaned. The light returned to Juromaru's mouth and the demon crouched down to attack. Akurei shifted into a defensive crouch in front of Inuyasha. A deep throaty growl bubbled up from her chest, sounding more like the snarl of some large beast rather than a slight half-demon girl.
In response, Juromaru opened his mouth again, revealing bright white sparks. Suddenly, the ball of white light burst from his mouth and zoomed straight toward Akurei. She wasn't expecting it, and so tried to swat it away, but it struck her and carved her chest up fairly badly before she clawed at it, making it disappear into the ground. The shoulder wrap was torn, and so her armor was sliding down her chest. With another snarl, she shifted into a small dragon and followed the spark of light, chasing it as quickly as possible. The light dove into the earth, so she followed. Surprisingly, it had displaced dirt, meaning it was solid, rather than just a ball of intangible light. She followed, and noticed that it wasn't much farther ahead of her. With a strong pounce, she was on the vile thing. It sliced at her with sharp claws, but she bit and scratched right back.
"Unhand me!" it cried.
Never! You will pay in blood for what you did to my friend, she growled right back. To prove her point, she snapped at its face. The ugly little demon looked exactly like Juromaru, except with the body of a worm and claws as sharp as a tiger's upon legs like a praying mantis. It was covered in the same ugly pinkish-gray color as its hair, but intelligence sparked in its eyes, unlike its larger counterpart.
She clasped her jaws around the base of one of the claws, biting down with all her force on the delicate joint, and eliciting a satisfying scream of pain from the tinier demon. Now, she growled, what are you?
"Ah! I'm Kageromaru!" it cried. "Now unhand me, beast!"
You're sorely mistaken if you think you can escape me, she retorted. With a surge of shadows, she shifted into her normal form, her jaws still clamped around Kageromaru's claw. Her fangs strengthened, breaking through the tough skin and allowing his meager amount of blood to flow. The demon sliced at Akurei's now-vulnerable throat, forcing her to release him. As soon as she released him, he moved to attack her, but she was able to deflect his attack as quickly as he moved. He flew at her again, only to find himself face-to-face with a thick draconic paw, which proceeded to slam him into the earth. Akurei held him there with her foot for a moment, then was bowled over by something that felt like a boulder. There was a crushing pressure on her throat. She clawed desperately as the strong hands began to close her windpipe. A face loomed over her, and for a moment, she thought that Kageromaru grew in size, but then she realized he was wearing a kimono. It was the beast Koga called Juromaru, and he was much stronger than Akurei. He began to lower himself onto her and close her throat, and despite the fact that his eyes showed no intelligence or ability to even think of such carnal desires, she felt pure, undiluted fear burst in her chest. She had heard so many tales about girls her age in the city, and even knew a few that barely got away. Out of desperation, she sucked in a precious breath, and screamed.
It was the perfect scream that girls could unleash should someone try to attack them. It was high, it was shrill, and most of all, it was loud. Juromaru's face contorted from one of stupid shock to one of pain. Akurei ran out of breath, and Juromaru resumed his choke-hold on her, but she smelled blood. Small red droplets caught in his hair and dripped onto his kimono, so she knew he was now mostly, if not entirely, deaf. That meant that anyone could attack him from behind, not that it would help her, because he still was choking her. Juromaru jammed his thumbs even higher up her throat, sealing off her airways entirely. Akurei clawed at his hands again, scratching them deeply, but he didn't relent. She dug her nails into his wrists, but even joint damage wasn't enough to prompt him to let go. She kicked his chest weakly, only managing to tear his kimono. Her vision began to fade, so in a last ditch effort to escape, Akurei shifted into a Japanese Lung. Her body grew explosively long and thick, making Juromaru's hold on her break and allow her to gain her freedom. Inuyasha jumped back from where he was trying to attack Juromaru as her tail lashed through the clearing, a black scaled whip that took out the mindless demon. Juromaru went flying and Akurei followed him, the coils of her body moving as she sprang onto the demon. He smashed his fist into her neck, but her scales deflected the blow. She grinned evilly, looking like some dark demon from a night in hell, and said, I'm not weak, Juromaru. Now taste my flames!
She opened her maw and dark violet flames streamed out in a swirling whirlwind of death that drove Juromaru right back into the clearing. Sango! Where's Kageromaru?
"He's out of the ground!" she called. Koga circled where he saw the small demon come up, blocking his attempts to escape, and Juromaru went to his brother.
"Inuyasha!" Miroku called.
"Windscar!" the half-demon shouted. He brought the Tetsusaiga down in a sweeping cut, sending out five golden waves of destruction. Juromaru and Kageromaru were caught in the blast and disintegrated swiftly.
Blinking, Akurei shifted back and touched her throat. It felt a little swollen and it hurt to breathe. She turned to Inuyasha and opened her mouth to thank him, but nothing save a small croak came out. Frustrated, she shifted into a raven and flew over to his shoulder. Thanks for that save, she said. But I'm not able to speak. He got me pretty good, so I'm just going to stay like this 'til my throat heals.
"Whatever," he replied. Akurei flapped to the ground and shifted, curling up next to Kirara as a jaguar, meaning she failed to notice when Koga resumed his earlier conversation with Kagome and Inuyasha, making the latter even angrier than he already was. She sighed in resignation as Koga and Inuyasha argued, but when she heard Koga leave, suddenly Kagome and Inuyasha were arguing.
"Here they go again," Shippo groaned.
"You want to get your wounds patched up?" Sango asked Miroku.
"Mm-hm," he replied. The two humans left, with Shippo following them. Akurei and Kirara stayed to watch as the argument escalated.
After about five volleys, Kagome shouted, "Oh, sit boy!" Inuyasha's rosary glowed and the magic forced Inuyasha to faceplant into the ground. She then huffed and said, "I'm going home."
Akurei's eyes widened. She looked at the priestess, who was stomping off into the woods, and bounded after her.
Kagome! Wait up, she called. She scrambled to her paws and darted after the priestess. With a pounce, she landed next to her friend. Why are you going home?
"Inuyasha's an idiot," she huffed.
Well, no duh, but what'd he say to piss you off so badly?
"He thought I was flirting with Koga."
But you weren't, she replied. If anything, he ought to be worried that I'll betray you lot out of love and loyalty to my Tribe. By rights, I should be defending Koga since he's the Tribe Leader.
"Yeah, but you're not the one Koga's convinced himself that he's in love with."
That's how Koga is. He always fixates on something new. I'm actually surprised he hasn't found a mate yet amongst the female members of the Wolf Demon Tribe.
"Yeah, but I need to get away from Inuyasha for a couple of days," Kagome responded.
Want me to give you a ride to the modern world? Akurei offered.
"That'd be great. I need to get bandages and stuff anyways," she grinned. In response, Akurei shifted into her dragon form and allowed Kagome to get on. She took off and let Kagome guide her to Kaede's village.