Prompt given:
"Hey, hey, calm down. They can't hurt you anymore."
"Where's Kagome!?" Inuyasha bellowed, his face twisted into a fierce scowl, heat surging energetically throughout his body.
The camp of bandits laughed and cheered as their demon leader took the stage front and center, his boots sloshing in the loose mud, an arrogant grin giving a curve to his thin lips. Inuyasha surveyed his surroundings, his sense of smell useless thanks to the onslaught of pouring rain. Thunder roared over head, a flash of lightning illuminating the grounds before them, and the half demon's glower deepened even further, causing his nose to wrinkle and twitch. She wasn't in sight, but she was there. His instincts were on alert, blaring, his ember eyes frantically darting back and forth to see where the hell they were keeping his wife.
"I was told you'd come."
"I'm not here for small talk! Where the hell is she!?"
The demon's brows arched as his smile grew wider, one of shock, a chuckle causing Inuyasha's blood to boil over. He had a white-knuckle grip on the hilt of his sword, the power emanating from the blade flowing, whirling, so much so that Inuyasha wasn't sure he'd actually have to make any move in order to decimate their entire camp. All he needed was to make sure Kagome was out of harm's way, and he'd happily rip apart each person there with a flick of Tetsusaiga.
"We have her, half demon." He raised his chin upward in a way to hold his nose higher than Inuyasha's head. Though they were yards apart and their heights were incomparable where they stood, it was common for demons to signify they were above Inuyasha in such a manner. "Put down your sword."
"Like hell!"
"Put down your sword!" He hollered, his demeanor doing a significant one-eighty, his voice booming along with another clap of thunder. Inuyasha ground his teeth, keeping Tetsusaiga exactly where it was.
The demon glared at the hanyou, waiting for his order to be obeyed, a surge of infuriation causing heat to rise along his neck when the lesser-being adamantly refused. He wanted to play this game? Fine. So be it.
"Fetch the wench." The demon growled to a nearby bandit, his command immediately followed. The group of men snickered and smirked, their hoots and howls growing more rambunctious as small, resisting grunts caused Inuyasha's ears to twitch, moving closer to the forefront of the crowd. His gut clenched painfully, forcefully keeping himself glued to his spot, a wild heat burning at the walls of his stomach while she was dragged through the group, appearing in front of him. Another sharp, damn-near debilitating ache shot through his body, as if the strike of lightning miles off that lit up the marks on her beautiful face was actually coursing through his veins and threatening to cause him to crumple to his knees.
Kagome noticed the hanyou, an instant flash of anxiety washing over her, causing her feet to move in his direction and slip. Before her own mistake could make her fall, though, she was forcibly thrown to the floor, her cheek colliding with the wet, sticky mud. A roaring cheer erupted throughout the campground, laughter taunting her, something Kagome had recently heard too many times to count. To make matters worse, she could hardly pick herself up. Her wrists were tightly fastened behind her back, exactly where they'd been for the past two days, making it impossible to push herself away from the ground. She heard her name called, the beautiful, deep voice bequeathing her senses, and tears began to sting at the lids of her eyes.
Standing idly by while Kagome was tossed to the puddled floor, watching her use her shoulders and legs to turn her face out of the mud, not being able to help her was one of the hardest things Inuyasha had ever had to do. A close second was watching the putrid demon before him lay his hands on her. He'd picked her up to stand, pretending to be the gentle monster he wasn't.
"Now, now, friends." He settled the crowd, turning Kagome to face him. He bent down to meet her at eye level, swiping his palm across the dirtied side of her face to flick away only the clumps of mud that stuck to her skin. "Welcome to the party, priestess."
With a quick lurch, Kagome spit in his face, the mixture of dirt and saliva smacking just beneath his eye. "Screw you!"
"Filthy whore!" The demon gripped at a chunk of her soddened hair, bringing a yelp from her mouth as he twisted her around to face Inuyasha, his other hand- after wiping his cheek of her spit- grasping her jaw and forcing her to face her husband. "Salvation is just feet away, and you still feel audacious enough to threaten your chances?"
"Stop it!" Inuyasha screamed, clutching his sword impossibly tighter.
"There's your disgusting half-breed of a husband, wench! Look at him!"
Kagome cried loudly, her abdomen quivering violently as she ached to be in Inuyasha's arms.
"Get your hands off her!"
"Or what?" The demon chortled, his fingers releasing Kagome's face to travel down the loosened folds of her robes, revealing the center of her chest as he moved further down. "You'll kill me? I believe your woman as my shield is all the protection I need."
For the first time, Inuyasha allowed his eyes to sweep over Kagome, taking in the marks in various places. Her clothes were wrinkled and torn, barely hanging onto her frame, acting as the superficial layers of evidence of her rough treatment. Her kosode was practically translucent and sticking to her flesh. The dark stains of dirt and now mud all stood out heavily, even through the rain, and though her face was slick and smudged, he'd already seen the light bruises on her temple and jaw.
"Lower your sword, half-breed, and we may bargain."
With minimal hesitation, and a few burning curses clutched in the middle of his throat, Inuyasha complied. Tetsusaiga was sheathed at his side, and he waited through the throttling cry of thunder before opening his mouth. "What the hell do you want?"
"The Sacred Jewel."
"It doesn't exist!" Kagome shouted, wriggling in his hold. He gave a steady yank to her hair, causing her chin to shoot upward as she followed his hand to lessen the pain.
Inuyasha instinctually stepped forward at her cry, bringing a quick warning from the offending demon. It's never happened before, and he'd never admit this out loud, but Inuyasha found himself suddenly wishing for the incredible speed Koga used to bear. Hell, he'd even go for the speed that damn wolf possessed now. If it meant they could get Kagome away from the fucker as soon as physically possible, he'd even happily accept the guy's help- and accompanied gloating.
The demon chuckled, his grip on her hair loosening as she was finally able to hold her head upright again. Quick, slow breaths caused her chest to rise and fall, her molten brown irises colliding with his as she blinked the drops of water flowing from the tips of her bangs from her eyes.
"You looked so tough with that sword, half-breed, I almost believed you could take me. Now that you're standing there defenseless, all I see is a helpless dog." The entire band of ruffians erupted into a boisterous laugh, backing up their leader and aiding to fuel Inuyasha's incandescent fire. "Hand over the jewel, and you may leave unscathed with your- uh- partially scathed woman."
"You want the Sacred Jewel?" Inuyasha asked, the hint of curiosity on his brow. "Not a problem. I've got it right here."
"Show me!" The demon eagerly shouted, stepping forward with Kagome, causing her to nearly stumble with his jerk.
"Hang on, gotta fish it out of... I know I've got it here somewhere." The hanyou dug through the small pockets in his suikan and hakama, patting the palms of his hands against his chest and trailing down to his stomach.
"Do not toy with me!"
"Who's toying? You have my wife!"
"Then why has she been insisting it was destroyed!?"
"She's a priestess, you dumb ass! It's her job to protect the thing!"
"Inuyasha, no!" She played along, grunting at the sharp pull of her thick locks.
"I knew you were lying," He goaded. "And you! You're so willing to give it away?"
"It's my job to protect her." Inuyasha growled.
"Show me!" The demon repeated, a smile baring his dangerous fangs.
Inuyasha continued to rummage through his soaked robes, inching closer to them. The man tensed uneasily, pulling Kagome's back flat against his torso, but never telling him to stop. She winced as his hand now gripped her arm, squeezing her bicep in anticipation, guiding her two steps forward. As if he found something, Inuyasha's jaw set, a scowl settling heavily onto his face as he stopped, a formed fist visible within the confinements of his suikan.
"Trade off."
"No! Show me, first!"
"That's not the way this is going to work! You want the Sacred Jewel and I've got it! Quite frankly, considering Kagome's state, I don't fucking trust you to do the fair thing if I toss it over!"
"Bold, coming from someone who doesn't hold the upper hand!"
"Don't I?" Inuyasha cocked a brow indignantly. "In my hand, I hold a lot of fucking power."
The demon narrowed his eyes, piercing the hanyou with a skeptical look. He wasn't one to gamble with Kagome's life, but what the hell else was he supposed to do right now? The way he saw it, she was in danger either way. If he whipped out his sword, he risked immediate repercussion, and she was at a distance that he couldn't jump across quick enough. But, if he was able to get the leader of this dim-witted camp to come forward and meet him half way...
Inuyasha took another easy step forward, testing to see if the demon would waver. He didn't. There was hesitation and dubiety, but he began to march through the mud. Every muscle in his body went ridged, a burning sensation spreading through his chest like wild fire scorching the woodlands. The closer they all got to each other, the more the embers fueled his motive.
Finally, Kagome was within reach. He could see how tense her neck had become, both from the fucker's grip on her head and from the stress, and he could see the heavy way her chest rose and fell, little twitches befalling her body. Rain did nothing to clean the smeared dirt from her cheek, but she blinked consistently to keep her sight of him clear. Then his eyes retrained on the man holding her, his thick hand gripping her arm so tight the soaked sleeve of her kosode bunched and folded. Inuyasha's upper lip gave a twitch as he fought back his scowl, trying to remain as straight faced as possible during their transaction.
"Well, half-breed?"
Once more, he shifted his gaze back to Kagome, and she gave an infinitesimal nod in answer to his silent question.
"Nice doing business with you." Inuyasha smirked, finally pulling his fist out of his suikan, revealing an extended middle finger. A flash of rage crossed the demon's face, but before he could react, the hanyou lunged forward, throwing the same hand out to clutch his neck with enough force his opponent was thrown backward to the ground. Kagome gave a jolting whine, dragged down with the both of them as the demon had yet to release her hair. Inuyasha squeezed his fingers even tighter around the demon's throat, listening to the forced gasps and strangled breathing, waiting him out until he let go of Kagome and opted to fight against Inuyasha's grip. The bandits surprisingly stayed put, their dying shouts washed out by a clap of thunder. Without their fierce leader, they were nothing. "I find it funny that you thought I needed my sword to kill you. Who's helpless now, bitch?"
Kagome squirmed her way to an upright position, folding her knees in the soft mud beneath her so she could turn herself around and scoot away. She scanned the camp of bandits, their eyes wide and jaws agape, searching for signs that they'd revolt. They were noticeably quivering in shock, some backing away from the scene before them. A flinch to the side caught Kagome's eye as a man raised his hatchet and ran through the field, a battle cry breaking through the storm.
"Inu-"
"Close your eyes, Kagome!" He barked, and she immediately complied, pressing them shut and ducking her head as another way to protect her from the sight. Thunder shielded her ears from the deathly wail of the bandit, but she couldn't hold back the shudder that came over her, or the hollow feeling in the center of her sternum.
There were some screams and heavy patting from hastened footsteps in the mud far from her, moving further and dying away. Still, she kept her eyes shut. It was the safest she'd been in over forty-eight hours, ironically where the darkness provided a sense of relief, because she knew her husband was on the other side of her borders.
The slosh of quick running in her direction caused her to flinch, a jerk at the reins around her wrists bringing a chocked gasp from her throat.
"It's just me, it's just me." He hushed her, his voice losing the harshness it once held and soothing her shaking. Kagome felt the twisted rope fall from her indented flesh, the sudden and sharp tingles in her fingertips telling her that blood was flowing freely once more. It was painful and she couldn't help but whimper slightly as she tried to rub and shake it out. Inuyasha's clothing rustled as he shifted to her front, a calloused hand gently caressing the apple of one of her cheeks and bringing her eyes to blink open.
Once more, she scoured the area, peeking around his shoulders to make sure it was finally over. Two bodies lay behind him. The rest of the camp was abandoned. Inuyasha moved to block her view, incorporating his other hand against her jaw to gain her undivided attention.
Kagome's bottom lip gave an unsettling quiver, her trembling breath painful to his sensitive ears. The tip of her nose and the clean edges of her cheeks became a shade of pink as she began to cry, clutching at his robes as she pulled herself into his chest, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. She was frantic in her movements, burying her face in his neck as she clung to him.
"Hey, hey, calm down. They can't hurt you anymore." Inuyasha whispered, holding her, finally letting out his first steady breath since the moment she'd been taken. She was trembling against him, heartbreaking mewls warming the skin of his neck. "I've got you, Kagome. It's okay now. I've got you."
When her mind settled and the adrenaline coursing through her veins began to ease, she pulled away. Not enough for their arms to drop or a significant gap to form between them, but just enough so she could take him in. His eyes were shadowed, the denseness of the clouds hovering above growing darker as the sun began to set behind them. His silver hair was three shades deeper, thickened by the never-ceasing rain, causing rogue strands to stick to his cheeks and neck. He was even more soaked through than she was, his fire rat clinging to his body, no doubt chilling even a half demon.
"I'm sorry it took so long to find you!"
Kagome shook her head.
"No, don't do that! Don't be self-righteous right now, idiot! I never stopped searching for you; not for a second!" He exclaimed, using his sleeve to wipe her cheek clean of dirt. "Are you hurt?"
"No, I-I'm..." Kagome gave a violent shiver, the cold finally overcoming her as her nerves quelled. "Okay. Not hurt."
Inuyasha gave a thankful and heavy sigh of relief, bowing down to press a kiss to her forehead. As a flash of lightning brought him back to their whereabouts, he quickly angled himself and wedged an arm in the curve behind her knees, tucking her head beneath his chin to cover her to the best of his abilities as he carried her off. She quietly requested they head home, understanding that it would take a bit longer than fortuitously stumbling into a cave or finding a nearby village- not with the help of Inuyasha's nose. It might even be quicker considering the circumstances. All the hanyou wanted was to get her warm and dry, but he'd be damned to deny her anything she requested right now.
Kagome's fingers curled against the center of his chest, gently clutching the hem of his suikan, releasing to fiddle a little, then clutching again, her nails gently scraping against the thread as she distracted herself. She still shivered slightly, but as they moved further away from the thickness of the storm, the rain fell softer, fading into a meager drizzle. Each breath she exhaled provided him with a further sense of peace. Bruises would fade, as would this nightmare of a situation, and he'd personally make sure to be the herbs that prevented any emotional scarring. She was okay- thank god she was okay. She survived the worst, and he could take it from here.