CHAPTER FOURTEEN
*
"Are we almost there?" Kagome asked.
"Almost," Inuyasha grunted. He hadn't said much on this trip, but then, Kagome thought, he didn't talk much when they were traveling in general. His bare feet flew over the branches and rocks, and at times he almost seemed to forget
Kagome let out a frightened squeak as he landed lightly on a cracked rock ledge on a steep, dry riverbank. Bits of rock began to fall as the crack widened underneath them. "Inuyasha! We're gonna fall!" she cried.
"No, we're not," Inuyasha said coolly. He pushed off the ledge and leapt up the rock face. Kagome squeaked again as the rock, under pressure, crumbled into halves. The cracking fragments crashed down the leafy hill, before disappearing in a cloud of dust.
"Inuyasha!" Kagome shouted. "Be careful! We could have gotten hurt back there!"
"Stop yellin' in my ear!" Inuyasha snapped. "I know what I'm doing!"
Kagome clamped her mouth shut. Just when I think he's being nice, he starts acting like a complete jerk again! she thought angrily. I should never have agreed to come. But then... there are Shikon shards at stake. I guess I should just be quiet and talk about this stupid behavior problem of his later on...
But her feelings of unease continued as Inuyasha carried her up the mountainside. He brushed by tree trunks and ran under low branches, making Kagome duck quickly. And he landed on unsteady ground, more cracked boulders and dead branches, slipping often and almost dropping her once.
"Inuyasha, maybe we should slow down," Kagome said hesitantly. She was hanging on for her life, but kept her voice steady. "This doesn't seem like a... a very safe place."
"Feh," was all Inuyasha said to her.
What's wrong with him? Kagome thought. He's never acted this... well, this RECKLESS before. Usually he doesn't ignore me either. Her fingers dug into the red material of his sleeves. "Inuyasha, are you... okay?" she said hesitantly.
"Yeah, sure," Inuyasha said, taking several small leaps up a rock face. "Any reason you ask?"
"You've been kind of weird recently."
"I'm just on edge. You've been weird too."
Kagome rolled her eyes. He just doesn't get it, she thought. Sometimes I wonder why I even talk to him.
"Can you describe this thing that MIGHT have Shikon shards?" she said, changing the subject. "I mean, could it have attacked the villagers? Or eaten them, or something?"
Inuyasha paused on the heavy, gnarled boughs of a windblown tree. "Might have done that. It's big enough, even though I didn't smell any blood coming from it."
"You're not making this easy for me," Kagome said, frustrated.
"Sorry." But he didn't sound sorry. What was more, Kagome noticed, he didn't inquire further. He just kept running, jumping, climbing higher and higher up the mountain...
A shiver ran down Kagome's spine. She had the cold, heart-racing feeling of danger that she had had in the village -- the sense that something bad was nearby. She reached back and touched her bow and quiver, just to be sure they were both there. "I-Inuyasha," she said hesitantly.
"Yeah?" Inuyasha said absently.
"I don't... do you feel anything strange? Like there's a demon nearby?"
"I don't feel nothin'." Inuyasha paused on a small, leaf-strewn clearing. "We're almost there. Hang on a minute more."
Kagome felt that dread growing stronger as Inuyasha finally set her down, on a little mossy clearing ringed with trees. It was pretty, and she would have appreciated it more if the fear wasn't almost making her shake. To her surprise, she felt Inuyasha's clawed hands touching her shoulders, to steady her. "Kagome," he said slowly, "before we go hunting for that demon, I need to talk to you."
"What about?" Kagome said. There was something odd in his eyes, something that she couldn't quite identify.
To her surprise, Inuyasha leaned forward and gathered her into his arms. Kagome was surprised, flustered. For a moment, she felt nothing except Inuyasha's arms, and his breath in her ear. "I-Inuyasha," Kagome whispered. "Did you... actually bring me up here... for the shards?" Something about this wasn't right...
"Sort of," Inuyasha said quietly. "In a minute, neither of us will have anything to worry about."
TO BE CONTINUED
*
"Are we almost there?" Kagome asked.
"Almost," Inuyasha grunted. He hadn't said much on this trip, but then, Kagome thought, he didn't talk much when they were traveling in general. His bare feet flew over the branches and rocks, and at times he almost seemed to forget
Kagome let out a frightened squeak as he landed lightly on a cracked rock ledge on a steep, dry riverbank. Bits of rock began to fall as the crack widened underneath them. "Inuyasha! We're gonna fall!" she cried.
"No, we're not," Inuyasha said coolly. He pushed off the ledge and leapt up the rock face. Kagome squeaked again as the rock, under pressure, crumbled into halves. The cracking fragments crashed down the leafy hill, before disappearing in a cloud of dust.
"Inuyasha!" Kagome shouted. "Be careful! We could have gotten hurt back there!"
"Stop yellin' in my ear!" Inuyasha snapped. "I know what I'm doing!"
Kagome clamped her mouth shut. Just when I think he's being nice, he starts acting like a complete jerk again! she thought angrily. I should never have agreed to come. But then... there are Shikon shards at stake. I guess I should just be quiet and talk about this stupid behavior problem of his later on...
But her feelings of unease continued as Inuyasha carried her up the mountainside. He brushed by tree trunks and ran under low branches, making Kagome duck quickly. And he landed on unsteady ground, more cracked boulders and dead branches, slipping often and almost dropping her once.
"Inuyasha, maybe we should slow down," Kagome said hesitantly. She was hanging on for her life, but kept her voice steady. "This doesn't seem like a... a very safe place."
"Feh," was all Inuyasha said to her.
What's wrong with him? Kagome thought. He's never acted this... well, this RECKLESS before. Usually he doesn't ignore me either. Her fingers dug into the red material of his sleeves. "Inuyasha, are you... okay?" she said hesitantly.
"Yeah, sure," Inuyasha said, taking several small leaps up a rock face. "Any reason you ask?"
"You've been kind of weird recently."
"I'm just on edge. You've been weird too."
Kagome rolled her eyes. He just doesn't get it, she thought. Sometimes I wonder why I even talk to him.
"Can you describe this thing that MIGHT have Shikon shards?" she said, changing the subject. "I mean, could it have attacked the villagers? Or eaten them, or something?"
Inuyasha paused on the heavy, gnarled boughs of a windblown tree. "Might have done that. It's big enough, even though I didn't smell any blood coming from it."
"You're not making this easy for me," Kagome said, frustrated.
"Sorry." But he didn't sound sorry. What was more, Kagome noticed, he didn't inquire further. He just kept running, jumping, climbing higher and higher up the mountain...
A shiver ran down Kagome's spine. She had the cold, heart-racing feeling of danger that she had had in the village -- the sense that something bad was nearby. She reached back and touched her bow and quiver, just to be sure they were both there. "I-Inuyasha," she said hesitantly.
"Yeah?" Inuyasha said absently.
"I don't... do you feel anything strange? Like there's a demon nearby?"
"I don't feel nothin'." Inuyasha paused on a small, leaf-strewn clearing. "We're almost there. Hang on a minute more."
Kagome felt that dread growing stronger as Inuyasha finally set her down, on a little mossy clearing ringed with trees. It was pretty, and she would have appreciated it more if the fear wasn't almost making her shake. To her surprise, she felt Inuyasha's clawed hands touching her shoulders, to steady her. "Kagome," he said slowly, "before we go hunting for that demon, I need to talk to you."
"What about?" Kagome said. There was something odd in his eyes, something that she couldn't quite identify.
To her surprise, Inuyasha leaned forward and gathered her into his arms. Kagome was surprised, flustered. For a moment, she felt nothing except Inuyasha's arms, and his breath in her ear. "I-Inuyasha," Kagome whispered. "Did you... actually bring me up here... for the shards?" Something about this wasn't right...
"Sort of," Inuyasha said quietly. "In a minute, neither of us will have anything to worry about."
TO BE CONTINUED