Hmm... Going to take a minute to try and explain some problems in the last chapter. In the scene where Kagome is being bandaged by Inu Yasha and is half asleep, Taomaru and Inu Yasha are both asking her questions about what happened in the fight. Remember, Taomaru can pop up in her breams and can sense when things have happened- that, or be sheer coincidence, he was patrolling for the dream youkai (she's still lurking around somewhere) at the moment Kagome began to fall asleep. As Kagome voices her answers, Inu Yasha is listening, thinking that she is answering him (he doesn't remember the dream mesh) and his questions. Inu Yasha stops asking her questions but Taomaru doesn't, asking where Inu was. When Kagome replies, yes; she is speaking out loud and Inu Yasha does hear her answer.
Okay, that should do it. Any other questions, send me an email. On a wonderful note, I have an editor who is helping me go through my stories. This helps immensely because now I can keep trying to finish it all! Yay Tel!!! Now, off we go!
Ch 5 Perfume and Hanyous don't mix well
Inu Yasha froze as Kagome answered his questions. Her voice was thick with fatigue and the hanyou knew she was almost completely asleep. Her head was resting over his shoulder, her body held against his. Inu Yasha had pulled her into his lap and against his chest when he still smelled blood leaking from somewhere. As soon as he got a view of her back he found the source. On a stroke of inspiration, he had started questioning her not really expecting an answer.
When she had answered him and he found out what had really happened, the hanyou could only sit in shock, holding Kagome and not knowing what to do. He finally laid her back on the bed, drawing the covers over her. As she turned on her side toward Duchess, the towel slipped and revealed a clear view of Kagome's body, the fabric pooling around her breasts and hiding her modesty. Inu Yasha didn't look away, allowing himself to indulge in the sight of her body. Even bruised and battered, she was still pretty. He touched her swollen lip, watched her pull away. She had a black eye but it was fading, invisible in the low light.
He was done here, through for the evening. He had patched Kagome up and due to those injuries she was in no shape to go traipsing around the woods. Yes, Inu Yasha was through with his responsibilities, could now go home; the only problem was that he didn't want to leave. Kagome rolled over onto her stomach. "Dunno." She muttered suddenly and Inu Yasha's ears perched up. "Looking for me at the Shrine. He had to be so angry… I was late again." The hanyou blinked, wondering what question she was answering and where the question was coming from. On the last she looked serious and unhappy. "Inu Yasha can't protect me all the time…He'd have to be with me all the time and he can't… too… dangerous…" And then she shut up, finally asleep.
Inu Yasha really didn't want to leave her alone now, but he didn't look forward to the teasing he would get in the aftermath. When he returned tomorrow, Kagome would be with him- hopefully- and she would stop any teasing from the others. Well! That was settled. Or almost. Inu Yasha still had the nagging fear that he would hurt her while they were asleep. Unconsciously he looked at her neck, trying to see the spot that had greeted him the last time he woke up next to Kagome. Her shoulder and the way she was positioned blocked it from view. Besides, she had nothing on- there was no way he could lay beside her and get any sleep. Inu Yasha grabbed a spare pillow and flopped onto the floor beside Socrates. The dog looked at him, its head tilted to one side, ears raised. "Quiet you." Inu Yasha huffed. "It's only temporary."
He can't protect me all the time… What the hell did she mean he couldn't protect her all the time- he'd protected her from everything so far! Until now. The thought nagged at him. Kagome had been hurt by enemies and he hadn't been around to protect her. It was funny; Inu Yasha had always thought that any serious threat would come while they were in his time, in the Warring States. That notion was dissolving under this new evidence- Kagome's time just had more subtle, more dangerous enemies in some respects. It was a disturbing revelation.
He sniffed and he caught the unidentified scent that had made him dopey earlier. It was stale now and didn't affect him as much as it had earlier; he had left Kagome's window open when he left earlier to air out the smell. There were still traces of the scent, enough to make him restless; wanting to do something but not knowing what. All right, maybe not knowing was spreading it a little thick; Inu Yasha knew exactly what he wanted to do. And it had everything to do with the girl sleeping on the bed above him.
The hanyou growled, unable to sleep, and stood up. If he couldn't do what his body wanted, then maybe he could track down the source of his misery. He paced the room, hunting for the strongest concentration. As he neared Kagome's dresser, his blood felt hot and he began to feel pretty good- the irritating feeling from before. It's here! It's got to be one of these damn bottles. He fumbled through the collection of decorative glass bottles. They were all shapes and sizes, making it difficult to get a good grip on any of them. Inu Yasha picked up a random bottle, the glass so smooth it kept slipping through his fingers. He nearly dropped it twice; the last time hitting the atomizer and getting sprayed full in the face.
As soon as the perfume was released, Inu Yasha knew he had found the source of his problems. He felt his nose shut down, so over stimulated that it couldn't handle it. He dropped the bottle and luckily it fell into an open clothes drawer. If the bottle had broken and the rest of the scent released, Inu Yasha didn't know what he would do. As if was he was having trouble concentrating, coughing and holding his hands over his nose, driven by the screaming desire to get away from the scent. But it had sprayed him in the face and he couldn't get away from it!
He stumbled backwards, tripping over something soft that bit him back. He fell to the floor, hands over his nose and felt like he was suffocating. He had to get up, had to leave the room but couldn't; it was as if getting sprayed, getting the scent full force, had scrambled his brain and short circuited his nervous system. The hanyou couldn't get up, couldn't smell, couldn't open his mouth or else the perfume would get inside him and never go away. And sugar coating the panic that was galloping through his system, Inu Yasha felt relaxed. He felt calm, peaceful, and not a little horney. Crawling into bed with Kagome sounded wonderful, holding her, caressing her body. Licking her cuts and helping her heal and then, later when she felt better, they could….
"No!" Inu Yasha coughed, not caring if he woke Kagome. "NononoNO!" He beat his hands against the floor and the dogs began barking and whining. The hanyou ripped his yukata off, rubbing his face in a part of the coat that hadn't been sprayed by the perfume. He rubbed, grinding the fabric into his skin- he had to get rid of it, had to make the smell go away! He heard a surprised, "Hm?" from Kagome and knew she was awake.
He looked at her, still rubbing his coat against his nose, saw her sniff and calm the dogs. Her nose wrinkled. "What the…?"
"The liquid!" Inu Yasha howled and then coughed violently, the sound like the barking of the roused dogs. He continued to cough, bending forward until his head touched the floor. His thoughts were rioting around in his head; panic, lust, fear. All three were making his body go into overdrive. He was shaking with adrenaline, his lungs screaming for the very air that was only making the problem worse. His demon powers had been awaked and were trying to combat the perceived threat the only way available: by heating his body temperature and burning it away. As bizarre as it sounded, this was not a bad idea- the increased heat was burning away the perfume's chemicals in his blood stream and oxidizing anything that survived. Unfortunately, it was a time consuming and energy depleting process.
Inu Yasha felt movement beside him and tried to pull away. This motion was halted however by Kagome's arm, which held him still while she shoved her towel against his face and held it there. She pulled his yukata away with her foot, making more room for the towel. "Inu Yasha? Inu Yasha, can you hear me?" She demanded and his ears rotated toward her. She held his body against hers; waiting for some sign that he was okay. That sign came as a surge of strength that sent her sprawling to the floor. The hanyou had risen to his knees, gasping in huge draughts of air. Socrates was barking; tail wagging as he positioned himself protectively between the hanyou and Kagome.
On the bed, Duchess whined, finally dropping to the floor and cautiously approaching Inu Yasha's gasping form. Kagome got up; clutching the comforter she used to cover herself with when she crammed the towel into Inu Yasha's face. She knelt beside Inu Yasha, putting a hand on his face to get his attention. His head rolled toward her, his breathing calming down. He blinked, his eyes running in reaction to the spray. His nose was swollen, the area puffy. He looked miserable but managed a weak smile before his eyes closed and he fell against her. She caught him, surprised, and laid him on the floor. Immediately, Duchess fell on him, licking his face and neck.
Kagome looked at the whole scene, at the problem before her. She stood and grabbed some clothes, gritting her teeth when she moved too fast for her battered body to handle. She dressed in a plain, high neck blue shirt and a pair of semi-faded jean overalls and began repacking. She made several trips up and down the stairs, leaving the unconscious dog demon in the care of the two canines. She checked his breathing and temperature every time she was in the room and shoving things into her traveling bag. On her last trip, she brought up two smaller backpacks designed for four legged carriers. The dogs looked up from their lounging on and around Inu Yasha; their tails wagging enthusiastically, the excitement the packs elicited palpable. "We're going for a walk!" Kagome told them and began fitting the backpacks on the furry backs.
In the Warring States, a little while later.
It had seemed like a good idea at the time! I huffed from exertion, Inu Yasha literally strapped to my back, his weight more than I expected. Duchess and Socrates were in full gear, their leashes in my hand. We had come through the well with remarkably little hassle- it was getting out that would be the fun part. It was so dark that calling for help was out of the question; more than likely, other things would answer that had no intention of helping and every intention of just eating me. It was a fate I did not wish to experience, spent my entire visits here avoiding. Nope, calling for help was not an option. The toughest part of the climb would be getting the dogs out. I had known that would be the case before I jumped through with them in tow but still... The reality was intimidating.
I took the rope out of Socrates' back pack and looped the climbing claw through one end. What I needed was a wench but that idea was a little late, so the rock climbing gear it was. I swung the clawed end until I was confident it would go over the lip of the well and not come back down and hit me in the head. It sailed up and over; I pulled it until it became taught, making several experimental tugs before I was confident it was secure. What I needed to do was get the dogs up first- I wasn't sure how the well worked but if the dogs got caught in time somewhere I'd be toast. I rethought that plan; without another person it was unfeasible.
All right; I'd go up first. I tied the end of the rope to Socrates' backpack and pulled out Duchess' rope, doing the same with one end. The other end I took in my hand, tying a loop to slip over my wrist. I let go of the dogs' leashes- it would only strangle them it I pulled them up using that. The dogs woofed loudly, not quite a bark, and I shushed them by petting their heads and murmuring soothing words. The quieted thankfully and I kissed their heads. I began scaling the wall using the rope I had set up, all the while shushing the canines. The climb was very hard with Inu Yasha's extra weight but not as hard as I thought it would be. By the time I reached the surface I was sweating and panting, happy to prop Inu Yasha by the Old God tree.
Now for the dogs. I peered over the wooden edge of the well- they were still there, looking up at me expectantly. I shushed them again, smiling at them and began pulling up Socrates. The dog whined but stayed relatively quiet; after all, he had been trained for this. The harness was designed for this instance and had been tested for heavier weights than the Great Pyrenees. The rope kept slipping, making Duchess bark and Socrates whine louder. I pulled the rope until it went around a nearby tree, using the trunk as a bracer until the dog scrambled over the well side. I repeated it with the Kuvasz and soon they were both sniffing and trying to inspect the area s if they hadn't traveled up twenty feet and 500 years into the past.
I used the ropes as leashes, winding the excess around my forearms. I picked Inu Yasha up again, this time unable to stand up straight because of all the energy I had used to haul everyone up out of the well. I got us going in the right direction and the dogs practically pulled me all the way to the village. I knocked on the wall by Kaede's doorway, leaning against the doorframe while I waited for the old priestess to answer. The dogs sniffed and inspected every part of the front of the house. At last the door flap pulled back and Miroku and Sango looked out at us all in complete surprise.
After the initial shock, the others pulled Inu Yasha inside and laid him by the fire. I sunk into a corner, holding the dogs by their leashes now while I repacked their back packs. Because I had had to carry Inu Yasha on my back, I couldn't bring my pack with me. I planned to go back and get it after I had a minute to get my second wind. The dogs sniffed at everyone, taking particular interest in Shippo and Kaede. The kitsune sat on my lap, looking worriedly at my face.
"What happened?" Shippo asked urgently once everyone had settled and could listen.
"Did Inu Yasha hurt you?" Miroku asked and I couldn't help but be surprised. The dogs lay down on either side of me like two furry supports. I stroked their fur while I faced the inquisition.
"And why are these dogs here?" Sango asked, Kirara on her shoulder. The cat youkai was clearly unhappy with the dogs being in the hut.
Best to get this over with and then go get my bag before I got too comfy. "No, Inu Yasha did not hurt me. I fell and that's why I'm all banged up. I don't know what's wrong with Inu Yasha- I woke up and he was on the floor trying to grind his coat into his face." Belatedly, I realized that Inu Yasha's coat was still on my bedroom floor. "From the smell of him, I think he accidentally sprayed himself with one of my perfumes. The dogs are ones that my family is looking after temporarily. The rest of the Higurashis are unavailable so I have to look after them. Because I had to come here, I had to bring the dogs with me." There; that about covered it. I climbed painfully to my feet, tying the leashes around a support beam so the dogs wouldn't wander off.
"Where are you going?" Kaede asked as I gave Shippo to Miroku.
"I don't want to keep going back and forth through the well all night. I'm gonna go get my pack and then we can set off tomorrow with no delays." I scratched my head, wincing when I found a hidden bump; and here I'd thought I'd blocked all of the attacks. Duchess and Socrates whined loudly as I walked stiffly toward the door.
"We'll go with you." Sango said and got up, Miroku with her.
"No," I waved them off. "Please stay here and help Kaede treat Inu Yasha; she'll need you if he freaks out like he did in my room." And I headed out the door before they could protest. I gritted my teeth and began a light jog; I wanted to be there and back as fast as I could. I reached the well and hoped through, landing hard and beginning the high climb up the stone wall. I walked to the house, holding a stitch in my side and holding a hand across my abdomen. When fighting the leader of that band of idiot girls, she had kicked me hard in the gut, low and just above my pelvis- in short she hit me in my uterus and it really hurt! The area had swelled and that was a good thing, all be it painful; it meant that it was healing.
I dashed up the stairs to my room, grabbing Inu Yasha's coat, and slipping it on before putting my arms through the arm straps of my backpack. I nearly fell over when I was done; the thing was just too heavy. But I had come this far, had done so much, that I refused to be beaten by my backpack. I made my way downstairs, slowly less I topple over, and out the front door. I made it to and then through the well but that was as far as I could get on my own.
Damn it! I needed a rope and didn't have one. I sighed and hoped the vines- and my muscles- would hold. "A nice rest." I panted as I climbed. "A nice long rest as soon as I make it out of the well." I reached the top and climbed out, sitting heavily down on the ground and panting to catch my breath. I leaned back against my huge bag, one hand holding my belly as I winced and felt my body yell at me for over using it. "Oh, my God." I sighed. "How am I gonna get to the village?" I was surprised I had made it this far alone. I should have let Sango come with me, at least to help me back to the village -and for company in this dark place.