Disclaimer: I'm bored of writing these things... and I'm hungry... so I'll
go get some food now...
(A/N: I'm back now! That was quick! Well, now I'm going to get chocolatty paw prints all over the keyboard... oh well!)
Two Faced
Concentrated Purity
Kagome finally allowed Inuyasha to pull her to her feet and smiled slightly at his sweet offer. But when she tried to pull her hand back... she realised he wasn't letting her go. The smile slipped from her face at once and she stared at their hands. "Inuyasha...?"
He didn't answer and when she finally got the nerve to look him in the eyes she was not a happy bunny. "Let go." She said shortly.
"Why should I?" he tugged her forward and his arms closed around her in a matter of seconds. She gasped and stiffened, quite unsure of what to do with herself in such a position. She couldn't really believe it was possible to feel so safe... and so threatened at the same time. Part of her wanted to lean into his embrace and feel his support and strength... but there was another part, a larger part that still made it difficult for her to be this close to him. His strength scared her, that she wasn't afraid to admit. But she was more frightened of what he could do to her heart than the harm he could inflict physically.
"Inuyasha - please don't start this again." She mumbled against his shoulder.
"Start what?" he sounded pretty casual, almost smug. Mainly because he could hear the sound of her heart beat picking up the pace. "I'm just giving you a friendly hug."
"You don't give friendly hugs - now let me go." She ordered, trying to twist away.
She pushed her hands against his chest and got some leverage to lean away from him slightly so she could face him. She opened her mouth to snap at him again, but all protest was cut short when he pressed an open mouthed kiss to her lips.
All at once that electric like thrill ran through her arms to her chest, just like the first time but stronger. The pleasure of feeling his mouth against hers was almost staggering... but with it came the emotional pain that she couldn't avoid. When he pushed his tongue into her mouth forcefully, he completely dominated the kiss, leaving her a little stunned and unresponsive. She really was too surprised to do much else other than stand there and let him do what he wanted to her.
But the more he kissed her the stronger that thrill felt... until it was almost painful. And she had to wonder - was that excitement, or heartache? She couldn't be sure... but maybe it was both? And with that came a strange longing. Longing to be with Inuyasha? Longing to get out of this embrace? Longing to trust him...?
She didn't want to deal with this yet, she wanted to escape it. Right now. She had to get out of there.
"Inuyasha - stop!" she pushed against his chest again to get away, but one of his hands pushed her feeble attempt to push him away, while the other went to the nape of her neck to hold her in place. His assault on her lips turned rougher and his tongue all but ravaged her mouth, annoyed that she wasn't responding to him anymore. Annoyed and afraid that he was losing her.
Kagome tried to turn her head away to catch a breather to speak but he was unrelenting and her brain was fast turning to mush. Her common sense was skipping out the door and if she didn't stop the kiss and slam that door then she'd be in trouble. "Stop..." she mumbled against his lips, still trying feebly to get away from him. "No!"
And what was worse was that she was beginning to understand what that thrill feeling was in her arms and chest. It was almost like a subconscious knowing feeling... knowing that the person she was kissing right now was the person she wanted to give all her future kisses to. Something she would not abide by.
Inuyasha could feel it to, but couldn't give a flying fig about what it meant. All he knew was that if felt nice and he felt it only when he was kissing Kagome. That meant he should kiss her more often.
"Inuyasha!" she managed to tear her head away. "Stop or so help me I will scream rape!"
He was beyond caring about what she would scream and moved to pull her back.
"Cooties!" she yelled as a last resort and fortunately that seemed to snap some sense into him and he released his grip on her.
Kagome stumbled back at once, holding her fingers against her puffy lips and glaring at him. "If you had any integrity you'd never do that again!"
Inuyasha took a few seconds to collect his awareness back together before glaring back at her. "Don't pretend you didn't like that!"
"I don't have to pretend! I DIDN'T like it!" she snapped and made to run away.
Inuyasha quickly grabbed her and spun her back around to face him. "Stop running away!"
"It's a free country - I can run wherever I please!" she snapped.
"Then look me in the eyes and tell me you never want me to do that again!" he snapped, glaring at her.
Kagome's gaze faltered to his chin. "Don't do it again!" she said meaningfully.
"To the eyes!" he growled dangerously.
A few moments later and she complied, locking gazes with him. A shiver ran from where his hands gripped her upper arms to her spine. Her mouth worked for a few moments before she managed to find her voice, but even then it was only a whisper. "I'm sorry... please... don't kiss me again... ever."
He stared at her for what seemed like an eternity and she stared right back, making no effort to hide her feelings. She really had meant what she'd said...
Slowly his grip on her arms loosened and she stepped back slightly, afraid he was going to grab her again. When he didn't she turned her back on him and started walking away, shakily, back to her room.
"Kagome..."
She stopped and hugged herself, but didn't turn around. She owed him enough to hear him out this time.
"This can't just be it... you can't just walk away." He scowled at her back.
"Then how can it be so easy to walk away?" she shrugged, not really understanding her own words. She turned suddenly and smiled at him. "Let's just stay friends, ok?"
Her was stumped by her complete and total ease with that smile of hers, and he could only nod dumbly in reply.
She smiled again and made her way back to her room.
Once she was gone his scowl deepened and he turned angrily to find something to take his anger out on. The water pump was the closest thing and he shattered it with one fell kick. "Screw you! Who needs you anyway!" he yelled, certain she could still hear him.
He stormed away from there, looking for more stuff to shatter.
Miroku and Sango finally allowed themselves to breathe easier when Inuyasha had stomped away, obviously in a fowl mood. Miroku gestured for her to leave the doorway first.
"I guess they broke up, huh?" Sango whispered, still cautious of enraged dog demons hanging around.
"Yeah... too bad... they were such a cute couple." Miroku agreed as they made their own way back to the inn rooms.
^_^
"So when are we setting off to the airport?" Kagome asked her father as she sat on her new pack of clothes on bare essentials.
Her father glanced back at the inn behind them. "When the others stumble out of bed, I guess."
Kagome sighed and looked at the rest of the group. There were five marines now and six airmen. That was all that was left of Miroku's crew and her father's crew. The rest were either missing, dead, or had set off to the airport a few days ago, probably not wanting to stick around to find the others in such dangerous country.
Sango, Miroku, Shippo and Rin were still inside and faffing around getting packed up late. This meant Kagome had to wait with her father, Inuyasha, Hojo and Kikyo. Every now and then she kept glancing at Inuyasha anxiously, trying to gouge how he was feeling after last night. But unfortunately he wasn't letting much through that deadpan expression. He just stood with his arms folded, his jacket long gone and discarded elsewhere. He still had his sword, Tessaiga, slung across his back with a strip of cloth that he'd undoubtedly torn from the sheets of the inn.
He suddenly switched his gaze to her and she looked away quickly, even though she knew she'd been caught staring. He watched her a few moments before looking away and again and moving off out of sight of the front of the inn.
Kikyo watched the exchange between the pair with interest. Word was that they'd had a lovers tiff and weren't speaking to one another. It made sense by the way they were acting now. But they'd get over it. It was just a fling after all... it wasn't like they'd find true love together so soon in life.
Suddenly Sango burst out of the inn entrance with a fairly disgusted expression. "Yuck!"
"What?" Kagome asked as she stormed over. Sango all but tipped her off her pack and dived inside for a canister of water. When she found one she tipped it back, took a long swig, and then spat it out again. "Blargh!"
"Hey! That water is expensive, you know!" Kagome protested as Sango swished another mouthful around before spitting it out on the ground. "What's the matter with you?!"
"Marmite! It's disgusting! Yuck!" Sango shuddered. "Tastes like bird faeces!"
"And only YOU would know how that tastes, wouldn't you Sango?" Inuyasha commented as he arrived back from wherever it was he had gone.
Kagome frowned at the other girl. "I thought you hated marmite."
"No kidding!"
"Then why did you eat it?" Kagome cocked her head.
Sango froze before thrusting the water canister back. "Never mind!"
She stomped off again to join Rin and Shippo who had just trudged out of the inn, still looking half asleep. Not soon after that Miroku came out looking pretty content.
"What took you so long?" Inuyasha frowned at him.
"Had to finish my breakfast." He patted his stomach. "Never start the day without a marmite sandwich to keep you going."
Everyone's eyes snapped between a rather red looking Sango and a content looking Miroku and caught on. Kagome was gaping at them both. "You mean...?"
It was pretty obvious how Sango had managed to get the taste of marmite in her mouth now... but no one was going to say it out loud.
"Let's get moving." Kagome's father gestured for everyone to start off and so everyone stood and started trooping off in the direction of the one dirt road heading south.
Kagome was by Sango's side in a heart blink. "Sango...?"
"I know..." she sighed.
"Why would you eat Miroku's sandwiches when you knew they were marmite?" Kagome asked.
Sango stared at her in disbelief. "I don't believe you..." she shook her head and moved off.
"What?" Kagome called after her.
^_^
It was getting towards midday when they decided to stop for a rest and have food to keep them going. Kagome was thankful, mostly because her stomach was growling so loudly it was putting everyone off their march. Since there were no towns or inns along the road to the airport, they just had to sit on the grass by the road side and eat the stuff they'd brought along. Had they been English they would have been stopping every five minutes for a tea break... fortunately they were a little too pressed for time to try that.
Actually, only Inuyasha was the one who didn't want to eat anything and leaned against one of the trees silently, waiting patiently for the others to finish. Kagome was growing concerned with his behaviour. Inuyasha was a naturally reserved person... but he wasn't usually this quite and distancing himself from the others.
Inuyasha had good reason to be ticked off though. He hardly got any time alone with Kagome anymore because now she'd found her friends and her father. Sure he was happy for her... but now she didn't really need him anymore. That just pissed him off.
"Why don't you sit down Inuyasha?" Kikyo asked, pausing as she passed him. "An army marches on its stomach, right?"
"How would I know?" he snapped.
Kikyo smiled faintly and shrugged. "You seem unhappy?"
Why couldn't she just leave him alone. "Do I?"
"Taking a wild guess... I'd say that Kagome found out your little espionage game." Kikyo folded her hands together behind her back. "Am I right?"
"There is no espionage, Kikyo." He sighed, rolling his eyes. "There was no mutiny of conspiracies anyway."
"Right, I forgot, you still don't trust me."
"Oh, I trust you fine." He snorted. "I just don't like deluded bitches like you."
Kikyo shrugged again, lightly. "And you wonder why she doesn't want to be with you...?"
She walked away, heading off to have a discussion with Rin now.
Inuyasha turned his head away from her and glanced at Kagome who had previously been talking with Miroku and Sango. Hojo had gone over in the short time Kikyo had been talking to him and was now engaging an apparently very hilarious discussion with Kagome. She laughed every now and then as he told her the funny story with animated hand gestures that made Inuyasha scowl. He could never make Kagome laugh like that, or really engage in simple small talk... though why should he care. He snorted and looked away.
"And when the neighbour came over the next day, my brother kept making lemming noises!" Hojo laughed and Kagome was close to tears. "I was dying of embarrassment!"
"Your family seems crazy!" Kagome gasped, dabbing her hands at the tears of mirth. "You HAVE to introduce me to them some time."
Hojo looked delighted. "Sure, when we get back to the Northern territory we can do anything... as long as it doesn't involve demons. I've had enough of demons."
"Me too." Kagome sniffed and spared another glance at Inuyasha who was glaring off into the distance.
Suddenly a rather cold and intense shiver ran up her spine and she shuddered as it seemed to chill her bones.
"What's the matter?" Hojo asked. "Are you cold?"
"No..." she knew the feeling. She'd gotten it every time they'd come across a large smelly monster... but this shiver was ten times worse than that.
The ground started to shake and everyone looked around, trying to locate the source of the earth shaking. The airmen and marines were the first ones to spot it. "Demons! Coming right at us!"
Everyone shot to their feet and stared off in the direction the men were looking in. Kagome's mouth went dry when she recognised them...
There had to be at least seven of the monsters, all identical to the one that had injured Inuyasha quite badly. Except these centipede demons were even bigger than the last one. That one had been just a bit taller than the average tree... these ones rose about the tree tops and were almost three times the size of the little one that had attacked her and Inuyasha. They could pass for buildings...
"Oh god... oh god..." Kagome fought the urge to high tail it. She had to stay and defend Inuyasha... or more like he could defend her now.
"Um... they're big..." Sango said awkwardly, gaping at the approaching monsters.
"Yeah - well they're slow - I say we run for it!" Miroku said loudly and everyone else nodded in agreement. There was no way they could defeat those seven demons, they were completely unarmed and defenceless.
"They're only after Kagome - we should just give her up!" Kikyo said logically.
"If we get her killed then who will complete the prophesy?" Someone else argued.
Well, it was nice to know they valued her life...
They all turned to run, but it just wasn't happening. Because right behind them they could see three more of those enormous centipede monsters approaching, blocking their escape. And there was no way they could just run off to the side before two more were coming from the left and three more from the right...
"We're surrounded!" Kagome's father was turning around, looking this way and that for some kind of escape.
"Cowards..." Inuyasha muttered as he drew Tessaiga from over his shoulder. Though even he had his doubts that he would be able to bring down fifteen such creatures when only one of the mini ones had brought him down fairly rapidly. But he had to protect Kagome, they were only after her.
Glancing back at her he could see she didn't look too well. She was sweating and shivering and couldn't seem to be able to hold her head up straight. It didn't look like she was going to be fit enough to kill all these demons this time.
The centipede monsters were beginning to close in on them now. And it was only going to be a matter of seconds before they were going to be crushed.
"We died for our country, men." Kagome's father said gravely.
"And women - there are us girls here too!" Sango snapped.
"And we're not dead yet!" Miroku snapped.
"Fifteen against us... poor sods." Inuyasha sighed. Everyone looked at him strangely and he quickly added, "I mean poor us."
Kagome was being overwhelmed by the intense shaking and cold that seemed to grip her muscles and gut, though no one seemed to notice that she was being forced to her knees. "Dad...!"
He glanced down at his daughter and was by her side at once. "What's wrong?!"
Not that it would matter in a few seconds.
"Their evil..." Kagome gasped out, clutching her stomach. "It's hurting me!"
"It's ok, don't worry." Her father gathered her close and she clung to his shoulders for all she was worth. The pain was unbearable.
Inuyasha was getting restless, he could feel something that was making his skin tingle and the air behind him seemed hotter than usual. He glanced over his shoulder to see the source of the heat and the tingles was Kagome. Or at least he thought it was...
"Dad..." she ground out, her eyes tightly screwed shut as the pain tore through her.
Then her body went into spasms and convulsed. She screamed as she lost control and contorted out of her fathers arms.
"Kagome!" Inuyasha made to reach out to her, but the nearer he got to her the more he found the heat unbearable.
It was only a matter of five seconds before the demons hit that Kagome gave a rather strong spasm of the body, and from her shot of shockwave of soft pink light. It seemed to create a ripple in the air as the shockwave spread outwards the way ripples appear after throwing a stone in a pond. It passed through the group harmlessly until it met Inuyasha... and it threw him rather powerfully backwards and against a tree. He was knocked unconscious at once by the impact and slid bonelessly to the ground.
The shockwave continued on, passing through Inuyasha a second time, making him twitch impulsively, before spreading outwards to the approaching demons. It hit them faster than they could retreat and at once they disappeared... or were vaporised or something...
They seemed to disintegrate from the outside to the inside until they were gone. The shockwave continued on for quite some distance until it disappeared completely.
There was complete silence from the group after that. The demons that had just been about to squish them into seven types of hell had disappeared and Inuyasha had been knocked out cold and had a small trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth.
They were sort of at a loss for what to do when Kagome gasped and threw herself up onto her knees, startling the hell out of Sango. "Kagome, don't do-"
She stopped herself short when Kagome started to heaved and gasp as though she couldn't breathe. It took them all a few moments to get over their initial shock and realise what was happening.
"She's choking!" Miroku cried out.
"On what?" Shippo frowned.
"I don't know - her tongue?!" Miroku was the first to reach her just as she was beginning to turn blue. "Sorry Kagome, this might hurt..."
He wrapped his arms around her waist and gave a sharp jab backwards. Kagome jerked with him but continued gasping and clawing at her throat. He tried the Heinlich-manoeuvre again, and again until she gave a choked cough and spat something from her mouth that landed on the ground.
Kagome sagged visibly as everyone leaned closer to see what the hell she was choking on. Sango shook her head, clearly confused. "What the hell is that...?"
"What was it doing inside of her?" Hojo asked.
"Kagome, did you swallow this?" Miroku asked sternly.
Kagome shook her head weakly and started to fall back. Her father caught her just in time and supported her carefully. "That's... the Shikon jewel..." he frowned.
"The what?" Sango reached to pick it up, but the moment she touched it with her finger she hissed and pulled back. "Ow!"
"You can't touch it - it's concentrated purity." Kagome's father looked just as shocked as everyone else, but he seemed to know what he was talking about.
They all stared at the rose pink jewel that lay on the ground, glowing softly, though covered in Kagome's saliva. "What does that mean?" Sango whispered.
"It's a bi-product of her powers I think..." Her father held her close as she slipped unconscious quietly. "She can't control it... I think she WILL kill the demon race if this continues..."
"She'll kill him too." Kikyo said calmly and everyone looked up to see who she was talking about.
Their gazes fixed on Inuyasha who was still slumped with an unnervingly peaceful look on his face. But he looked pretty bashed up now...
Sango bit her lip and looked at Miroku. "This isn't good..."
(A/N: Confused yet? I am... anyway, next chapter - 'Let Go' ^_^ )
(A/N: I'm back now! That was quick! Well, now I'm going to get chocolatty paw prints all over the keyboard... oh well!)
Two Faced
Concentrated Purity
Kagome finally allowed Inuyasha to pull her to her feet and smiled slightly at his sweet offer. But when she tried to pull her hand back... she realised he wasn't letting her go. The smile slipped from her face at once and she stared at their hands. "Inuyasha...?"
He didn't answer and when she finally got the nerve to look him in the eyes she was not a happy bunny. "Let go." She said shortly.
"Why should I?" he tugged her forward and his arms closed around her in a matter of seconds. She gasped and stiffened, quite unsure of what to do with herself in such a position. She couldn't really believe it was possible to feel so safe... and so threatened at the same time. Part of her wanted to lean into his embrace and feel his support and strength... but there was another part, a larger part that still made it difficult for her to be this close to him. His strength scared her, that she wasn't afraid to admit. But she was more frightened of what he could do to her heart than the harm he could inflict physically.
"Inuyasha - please don't start this again." She mumbled against his shoulder.
"Start what?" he sounded pretty casual, almost smug. Mainly because he could hear the sound of her heart beat picking up the pace. "I'm just giving you a friendly hug."
"You don't give friendly hugs - now let me go." She ordered, trying to twist away.
She pushed her hands against his chest and got some leverage to lean away from him slightly so she could face him. She opened her mouth to snap at him again, but all protest was cut short when he pressed an open mouthed kiss to her lips.
All at once that electric like thrill ran through her arms to her chest, just like the first time but stronger. The pleasure of feeling his mouth against hers was almost staggering... but with it came the emotional pain that she couldn't avoid. When he pushed his tongue into her mouth forcefully, he completely dominated the kiss, leaving her a little stunned and unresponsive. She really was too surprised to do much else other than stand there and let him do what he wanted to her.
But the more he kissed her the stronger that thrill felt... until it was almost painful. And she had to wonder - was that excitement, or heartache? She couldn't be sure... but maybe it was both? And with that came a strange longing. Longing to be with Inuyasha? Longing to get out of this embrace? Longing to trust him...?
She didn't want to deal with this yet, she wanted to escape it. Right now. She had to get out of there.
"Inuyasha - stop!" she pushed against his chest again to get away, but one of his hands pushed her feeble attempt to push him away, while the other went to the nape of her neck to hold her in place. His assault on her lips turned rougher and his tongue all but ravaged her mouth, annoyed that she wasn't responding to him anymore. Annoyed and afraid that he was losing her.
Kagome tried to turn her head away to catch a breather to speak but he was unrelenting and her brain was fast turning to mush. Her common sense was skipping out the door and if she didn't stop the kiss and slam that door then she'd be in trouble. "Stop..." she mumbled against his lips, still trying feebly to get away from him. "No!"
And what was worse was that she was beginning to understand what that thrill feeling was in her arms and chest. It was almost like a subconscious knowing feeling... knowing that the person she was kissing right now was the person she wanted to give all her future kisses to. Something she would not abide by.
Inuyasha could feel it to, but couldn't give a flying fig about what it meant. All he knew was that if felt nice and he felt it only when he was kissing Kagome. That meant he should kiss her more often.
"Inuyasha!" she managed to tear her head away. "Stop or so help me I will scream rape!"
He was beyond caring about what she would scream and moved to pull her back.
"Cooties!" she yelled as a last resort and fortunately that seemed to snap some sense into him and he released his grip on her.
Kagome stumbled back at once, holding her fingers against her puffy lips and glaring at him. "If you had any integrity you'd never do that again!"
Inuyasha took a few seconds to collect his awareness back together before glaring back at her. "Don't pretend you didn't like that!"
"I don't have to pretend! I DIDN'T like it!" she snapped and made to run away.
Inuyasha quickly grabbed her and spun her back around to face him. "Stop running away!"
"It's a free country - I can run wherever I please!" she snapped.
"Then look me in the eyes and tell me you never want me to do that again!" he snapped, glaring at her.
Kagome's gaze faltered to his chin. "Don't do it again!" she said meaningfully.
"To the eyes!" he growled dangerously.
A few moments later and she complied, locking gazes with him. A shiver ran from where his hands gripped her upper arms to her spine. Her mouth worked for a few moments before she managed to find her voice, but even then it was only a whisper. "I'm sorry... please... don't kiss me again... ever."
He stared at her for what seemed like an eternity and she stared right back, making no effort to hide her feelings. She really had meant what she'd said...
Slowly his grip on her arms loosened and she stepped back slightly, afraid he was going to grab her again. When he didn't she turned her back on him and started walking away, shakily, back to her room.
"Kagome..."
She stopped and hugged herself, but didn't turn around. She owed him enough to hear him out this time.
"This can't just be it... you can't just walk away." He scowled at her back.
"Then how can it be so easy to walk away?" she shrugged, not really understanding her own words. She turned suddenly and smiled at him. "Let's just stay friends, ok?"
Her was stumped by her complete and total ease with that smile of hers, and he could only nod dumbly in reply.
She smiled again and made her way back to her room.
Once she was gone his scowl deepened and he turned angrily to find something to take his anger out on. The water pump was the closest thing and he shattered it with one fell kick. "Screw you! Who needs you anyway!" he yelled, certain she could still hear him.
He stormed away from there, looking for more stuff to shatter.
Miroku and Sango finally allowed themselves to breathe easier when Inuyasha had stomped away, obviously in a fowl mood. Miroku gestured for her to leave the doorway first.
"I guess they broke up, huh?" Sango whispered, still cautious of enraged dog demons hanging around.
"Yeah... too bad... they were such a cute couple." Miroku agreed as they made their own way back to the inn rooms.
^_^
"So when are we setting off to the airport?" Kagome asked her father as she sat on her new pack of clothes on bare essentials.
Her father glanced back at the inn behind them. "When the others stumble out of bed, I guess."
Kagome sighed and looked at the rest of the group. There were five marines now and six airmen. That was all that was left of Miroku's crew and her father's crew. The rest were either missing, dead, or had set off to the airport a few days ago, probably not wanting to stick around to find the others in such dangerous country.
Sango, Miroku, Shippo and Rin were still inside and faffing around getting packed up late. This meant Kagome had to wait with her father, Inuyasha, Hojo and Kikyo. Every now and then she kept glancing at Inuyasha anxiously, trying to gouge how he was feeling after last night. But unfortunately he wasn't letting much through that deadpan expression. He just stood with his arms folded, his jacket long gone and discarded elsewhere. He still had his sword, Tessaiga, slung across his back with a strip of cloth that he'd undoubtedly torn from the sheets of the inn.
He suddenly switched his gaze to her and she looked away quickly, even though she knew she'd been caught staring. He watched her a few moments before looking away and again and moving off out of sight of the front of the inn.
Kikyo watched the exchange between the pair with interest. Word was that they'd had a lovers tiff and weren't speaking to one another. It made sense by the way they were acting now. But they'd get over it. It was just a fling after all... it wasn't like they'd find true love together so soon in life.
Suddenly Sango burst out of the inn entrance with a fairly disgusted expression. "Yuck!"
"What?" Kagome asked as she stormed over. Sango all but tipped her off her pack and dived inside for a canister of water. When she found one she tipped it back, took a long swig, and then spat it out again. "Blargh!"
"Hey! That water is expensive, you know!" Kagome protested as Sango swished another mouthful around before spitting it out on the ground. "What's the matter with you?!"
"Marmite! It's disgusting! Yuck!" Sango shuddered. "Tastes like bird faeces!"
"And only YOU would know how that tastes, wouldn't you Sango?" Inuyasha commented as he arrived back from wherever it was he had gone.
Kagome frowned at the other girl. "I thought you hated marmite."
"No kidding!"
"Then why did you eat it?" Kagome cocked her head.
Sango froze before thrusting the water canister back. "Never mind!"
She stomped off again to join Rin and Shippo who had just trudged out of the inn, still looking half asleep. Not soon after that Miroku came out looking pretty content.
"What took you so long?" Inuyasha frowned at him.
"Had to finish my breakfast." He patted his stomach. "Never start the day without a marmite sandwich to keep you going."
Everyone's eyes snapped between a rather red looking Sango and a content looking Miroku and caught on. Kagome was gaping at them both. "You mean...?"
It was pretty obvious how Sango had managed to get the taste of marmite in her mouth now... but no one was going to say it out loud.
"Let's get moving." Kagome's father gestured for everyone to start off and so everyone stood and started trooping off in the direction of the one dirt road heading south.
Kagome was by Sango's side in a heart blink. "Sango...?"
"I know..." she sighed.
"Why would you eat Miroku's sandwiches when you knew they were marmite?" Kagome asked.
Sango stared at her in disbelief. "I don't believe you..." she shook her head and moved off.
"What?" Kagome called after her.
^_^
It was getting towards midday when they decided to stop for a rest and have food to keep them going. Kagome was thankful, mostly because her stomach was growling so loudly it was putting everyone off their march. Since there were no towns or inns along the road to the airport, they just had to sit on the grass by the road side and eat the stuff they'd brought along. Had they been English they would have been stopping every five minutes for a tea break... fortunately they were a little too pressed for time to try that.
Actually, only Inuyasha was the one who didn't want to eat anything and leaned against one of the trees silently, waiting patiently for the others to finish. Kagome was growing concerned with his behaviour. Inuyasha was a naturally reserved person... but he wasn't usually this quite and distancing himself from the others.
Inuyasha had good reason to be ticked off though. He hardly got any time alone with Kagome anymore because now she'd found her friends and her father. Sure he was happy for her... but now she didn't really need him anymore. That just pissed him off.
"Why don't you sit down Inuyasha?" Kikyo asked, pausing as she passed him. "An army marches on its stomach, right?"
"How would I know?" he snapped.
Kikyo smiled faintly and shrugged. "You seem unhappy?"
Why couldn't she just leave him alone. "Do I?"
"Taking a wild guess... I'd say that Kagome found out your little espionage game." Kikyo folded her hands together behind her back. "Am I right?"
"There is no espionage, Kikyo." He sighed, rolling his eyes. "There was no mutiny of conspiracies anyway."
"Right, I forgot, you still don't trust me."
"Oh, I trust you fine." He snorted. "I just don't like deluded bitches like you."
Kikyo shrugged again, lightly. "And you wonder why she doesn't want to be with you...?"
She walked away, heading off to have a discussion with Rin now.
Inuyasha turned his head away from her and glanced at Kagome who had previously been talking with Miroku and Sango. Hojo had gone over in the short time Kikyo had been talking to him and was now engaging an apparently very hilarious discussion with Kagome. She laughed every now and then as he told her the funny story with animated hand gestures that made Inuyasha scowl. He could never make Kagome laugh like that, or really engage in simple small talk... though why should he care. He snorted and looked away.
"And when the neighbour came over the next day, my brother kept making lemming noises!" Hojo laughed and Kagome was close to tears. "I was dying of embarrassment!"
"Your family seems crazy!" Kagome gasped, dabbing her hands at the tears of mirth. "You HAVE to introduce me to them some time."
Hojo looked delighted. "Sure, when we get back to the Northern territory we can do anything... as long as it doesn't involve demons. I've had enough of demons."
"Me too." Kagome sniffed and spared another glance at Inuyasha who was glaring off into the distance.
Suddenly a rather cold and intense shiver ran up her spine and she shuddered as it seemed to chill her bones.
"What's the matter?" Hojo asked. "Are you cold?"
"No..." she knew the feeling. She'd gotten it every time they'd come across a large smelly monster... but this shiver was ten times worse than that.
The ground started to shake and everyone looked around, trying to locate the source of the earth shaking. The airmen and marines were the first ones to spot it. "Demons! Coming right at us!"
Everyone shot to their feet and stared off in the direction the men were looking in. Kagome's mouth went dry when she recognised them...
There had to be at least seven of the monsters, all identical to the one that had injured Inuyasha quite badly. Except these centipede demons were even bigger than the last one. That one had been just a bit taller than the average tree... these ones rose about the tree tops and were almost three times the size of the little one that had attacked her and Inuyasha. They could pass for buildings...
"Oh god... oh god..." Kagome fought the urge to high tail it. She had to stay and defend Inuyasha... or more like he could defend her now.
"Um... they're big..." Sango said awkwardly, gaping at the approaching monsters.
"Yeah - well they're slow - I say we run for it!" Miroku said loudly and everyone else nodded in agreement. There was no way they could defeat those seven demons, they were completely unarmed and defenceless.
"They're only after Kagome - we should just give her up!" Kikyo said logically.
"If we get her killed then who will complete the prophesy?" Someone else argued.
Well, it was nice to know they valued her life...
They all turned to run, but it just wasn't happening. Because right behind them they could see three more of those enormous centipede monsters approaching, blocking their escape. And there was no way they could just run off to the side before two more were coming from the left and three more from the right...
"We're surrounded!" Kagome's father was turning around, looking this way and that for some kind of escape.
"Cowards..." Inuyasha muttered as he drew Tessaiga from over his shoulder. Though even he had his doubts that he would be able to bring down fifteen such creatures when only one of the mini ones had brought him down fairly rapidly. But he had to protect Kagome, they were only after her.
Glancing back at her he could see she didn't look too well. She was sweating and shivering and couldn't seem to be able to hold her head up straight. It didn't look like she was going to be fit enough to kill all these demons this time.
The centipede monsters were beginning to close in on them now. And it was only going to be a matter of seconds before they were going to be crushed.
"We died for our country, men." Kagome's father said gravely.
"And women - there are us girls here too!" Sango snapped.
"And we're not dead yet!" Miroku snapped.
"Fifteen against us... poor sods." Inuyasha sighed. Everyone looked at him strangely and he quickly added, "I mean poor us."
Kagome was being overwhelmed by the intense shaking and cold that seemed to grip her muscles and gut, though no one seemed to notice that she was being forced to her knees. "Dad...!"
He glanced down at his daughter and was by her side at once. "What's wrong?!"
Not that it would matter in a few seconds.
"Their evil..." Kagome gasped out, clutching her stomach. "It's hurting me!"
"It's ok, don't worry." Her father gathered her close and she clung to his shoulders for all she was worth. The pain was unbearable.
Inuyasha was getting restless, he could feel something that was making his skin tingle and the air behind him seemed hotter than usual. He glanced over his shoulder to see the source of the heat and the tingles was Kagome. Or at least he thought it was...
"Dad..." she ground out, her eyes tightly screwed shut as the pain tore through her.
Then her body went into spasms and convulsed. She screamed as she lost control and contorted out of her fathers arms.
"Kagome!" Inuyasha made to reach out to her, but the nearer he got to her the more he found the heat unbearable.
It was only a matter of five seconds before the demons hit that Kagome gave a rather strong spasm of the body, and from her shot of shockwave of soft pink light. It seemed to create a ripple in the air as the shockwave spread outwards the way ripples appear after throwing a stone in a pond. It passed through the group harmlessly until it met Inuyasha... and it threw him rather powerfully backwards and against a tree. He was knocked unconscious at once by the impact and slid bonelessly to the ground.
The shockwave continued on, passing through Inuyasha a second time, making him twitch impulsively, before spreading outwards to the approaching demons. It hit them faster than they could retreat and at once they disappeared... or were vaporised or something...
They seemed to disintegrate from the outside to the inside until they were gone. The shockwave continued on for quite some distance until it disappeared completely.
There was complete silence from the group after that. The demons that had just been about to squish them into seven types of hell had disappeared and Inuyasha had been knocked out cold and had a small trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth.
They were sort of at a loss for what to do when Kagome gasped and threw herself up onto her knees, startling the hell out of Sango. "Kagome, don't do-"
She stopped herself short when Kagome started to heaved and gasp as though she couldn't breathe. It took them all a few moments to get over their initial shock and realise what was happening.
"She's choking!" Miroku cried out.
"On what?" Shippo frowned.
"I don't know - her tongue?!" Miroku was the first to reach her just as she was beginning to turn blue. "Sorry Kagome, this might hurt..."
He wrapped his arms around her waist and gave a sharp jab backwards. Kagome jerked with him but continued gasping and clawing at her throat. He tried the Heinlich-manoeuvre again, and again until she gave a choked cough and spat something from her mouth that landed on the ground.
Kagome sagged visibly as everyone leaned closer to see what the hell she was choking on. Sango shook her head, clearly confused. "What the hell is that...?"
"What was it doing inside of her?" Hojo asked.
"Kagome, did you swallow this?" Miroku asked sternly.
Kagome shook her head weakly and started to fall back. Her father caught her just in time and supported her carefully. "That's... the Shikon jewel..." he frowned.
"The what?" Sango reached to pick it up, but the moment she touched it with her finger she hissed and pulled back. "Ow!"
"You can't touch it - it's concentrated purity." Kagome's father looked just as shocked as everyone else, but he seemed to know what he was talking about.
They all stared at the rose pink jewel that lay on the ground, glowing softly, though covered in Kagome's saliva. "What does that mean?" Sango whispered.
"It's a bi-product of her powers I think..." Her father held her close as she slipped unconscious quietly. "She can't control it... I think she WILL kill the demon race if this continues..."
"She'll kill him too." Kikyo said calmly and everyone looked up to see who she was talking about.
Their gazes fixed on Inuyasha who was still slumped with an unnervingly peaceful look on his face. But he looked pretty bashed up now...
Sango bit her lip and looked at Miroku. "This isn't good..."
(A/N: Confused yet? I am... anyway, next chapter - 'Let Go' ^_^ )