A/N- It feels so good to be writing again. I feel horrible about not updating for way over a month, but I lost my motivation. But I think I have it back, and I am ready go!
The Colors of Emotions
Chapter 33
False Calm
The group had settled themselves for a meal, as they all were emotionally and physically exhausted. Kagome stubbornly refused to even think about her problems until she had had warm food, and she held a countenance of calm as she worked at heating the water to make ramen. She had changed into a pair of jeans and a sweater that had been packed into her bag, as the dress was terribly uncomfortable to wear for such a long period of time. The others sat in a circle in Kaede's hut discussing what should be done next. Luckily, the weather was relatively warm, and the breeze that blew in from where the wall had once stood was pleasant.
"Well, I think we should rest here for a bit, if that's okay with Lady Kaede of course." Miroku offered his opinion. Kaede however shook her head at this idea.
"What do you mean hag? Why can't we stay here?" Inuyasha rudely asked.
"Inuyasha!" Kagome scolded. But she turned to Kaede with curiosity on her face, "Did you have a better plan Kaede?"
"Ye all need to leave immediately." Kaede stated. At the blank stares she received, the older miko realized she needed to elaborate. "I have never thought that Kagome's power could manifest so quickly. After seeing that attack, I am truly worried for all of your safety."
Kagome shamefully looked down. "I'm sorry I pose such a threat." She murmured sincerely.
Kaede sympathetically smiled, "I don't mean it like that. That came out harsher than I meant it to. It is just that the longer Naraku is allowed to live, the more danger ye are in. If he can get into your mind, than all that power is practically in his hands."
"Damnit!" Inuyasha slammed his fist onto the ground. The soup Kagome had begun distributing in bowls almost spilled, and Kagome scowled at him. Lowering his voice, the hanyou continued, "I wish there was some way I could stop him from entering Kagome's mind." He grumbled.
"Inuyasha, I know ye are worried about Lady Kagome, but I know very little about what Naraku is doing. Ye know about as much as I do. There needs to be an extremely strong connection that is focused through a solid object. I hate to break it to ye, but there is nothing I can think of that would enable ye to do this. I also don't know what to do if ye were even able to come up with such a connection." Kaede lectured. She turned to Miroku, "Do ye know anything else Lord Miroku?"
Miroku snapped out of his thoughts and shook his head. "I don't know much at all." He answered. Sango gave him a curious glance. Was it just her, or did the monk seem nervous?
"Feh." Inuyasha spat.
"Inuyasha? Do you want your ramen?" Kagome sweetly asked holding out a steaming bowl.
He eagerly accepted it, and gulped the hot liquid and noodles down happily.
Kagome smiled, "You're very predictable you know that."
Inuyasha wiped his mouth with his sleeve and scowled at her. "What's that mean?" He asked offended.
"Well, whenever you start sulking, all I have to do is give you food and you're practically back to your old self." Kagome explained with a smile.
Inuyasha just glared, "I am not predictable."
"Of course you're not." Kagome assured off-handedly with a smirk on her face.
Miroku saw the obvious start of an argument and nudged Sango for her to cut in.
The exterminator nodded. "So what do you propose we do if we don't stay here and rest?" She questioned.
"Find and kill Naraku." Kaede said matter-of-factly.
Inuyasha halted his bickering with Kagome and stared at the old woman, "Well thanks for that bit of advice since we couldn't figure that one out." He stated sarcastically. "What do you think we have been doing for the past three years?"
"No more shard searching. I want ye to focus entirely on killing Naraku. Besides, most of the shards are probably either in Kagome's or his possession. There cannot possibly be that many more." Kaede reasoned.
"Lady Kaede, you make it sound so easy to even find Naraku. He very rarely makes an appearance, and more often than not, it ends up being a gollum." Miroku said.
"There is one who almost always knows where he stays." Kaede conspiratorially murmured.
"And that would be…?" Inuyasha angrily growled having no clue who she was talking about.
"A village, about a days travel to the north, says that the souls of dead maidens are being stolen. Only one name comes to mind when told of such a cruel act." Kaede turned her gaze to Inuyasha.
"Kikyo." He whispered. Kagome frowned, but she knew Kaede was right.
"You think Kikyo will know where Naraku is?" Kagome asked.
"Most likely. She seems to have a connection to him at least." Kaede answered.
"Well, we're not accomplishing much sitting around here." Miroku advised.
"I would like to talk to Inuyasha and Kagome for a moment, why don't the rest of ye pack things up outside." Kaede suggested.
Miroku and Sango nodded, and the exterminator bent to pick up Kirara, while Miroku snatched a reluctant-to-leave Shippou. "We'll be outside." Sango assured.
Inuyasha and Kagome sat confused before the older miko, and she waited until everyone had left before she began speaking. "Kagome, can ye sense your powers before that become dangerous?"
Kagome hesitated and then nodded. "I can catch myself if I am paying attention, and I have learned to stop them immediately."
"What!" Inuyasha yelled turning towards the nervous Kagome. "Why didn't you stop your powers before? You didn't stop them at the wedding! You didn't stop them in your dream! I thought you could barely control them!"
"Inuyasha let her speak!" Kaede snapped.
Kagome looked nervously between the face of the expectant miko and the fuming hanyou. "Well, at the wedding I was really distracted, and besides, jealousy was a new emotion. I wasn't looking out for the feeling of my power, and it just kind of snapped."
"And your dream?" Kaede prompted.
"I attacked on purpose." Kagome whispered.
"Why?" Kaede pushed further.
Inuyasha remembered the conversation from earlier that day.--
"What made you attack?"
Kagome decided to answer as truthfully as she could. "Kikyo was hurting you. I…needed to stop her."—
His anger dissipated immediately. He answered for her, "She was protecting me."
"Oh." Kaede nodded, and she smiled. "Well at least we know ye are putting your powers to good use." Her attention focused on Inuyasha. "Now your turn." Kaede frowned. "Ye are not to leave Kagome's side to run after my sister. Kagome needs ye to stay by her, even if she denies it." Her focus turned once more to Kagome. "I'm sorry dear, but I do not have faith in your ability to control those powers of yours on your own."
Kagome was about to protest, but Inuyasha interrupted her, "I understand."
The younger miko was speechless. She didn't think he would agree to not being allowed alone with Kikyo.
"Good, then when ye find my apparition of a sister, ye must all approach her together."
The two in front of her nodded, stood, and left the hut. Kagome turned and asked over her shoulder, "Are you sure you don't want us around to help you with that wall. I feel really bad about that."
Kaede only smiled. "Your life is more important than a silly wall child."
Inuyasha thought to himself that he couldn't agree more.
*
Night approached fast for the traveling companions, and Kagome personally couldn't wait to rest her head and get some shut eye. It had been a long day, and her muscles were sore from walking for such a long period of time. Inuyasha was relentless, and he only allowed the weary friends one short rest the entire time they had walked. A clearing had been found easily enough, as many times all one had to do was wander slightly off the path and a nice spot could be found.
Kagome unrolled her sleeping bag at the base of a tree, and Shippou immediately snuggled into it. Everyone else made themselves comfortable, but no one would state the obvious worry that was hanging in the air.
That was until little Shippou could no longer stand the silence. "Kagome, what happens if Naraku enters your mind again tonight?" Now the question had been thrown in the air, and no one had a good answer to it.
"Don't worry Shippou, we might get lucky, and maybe he'll leave me alone tonight." Kagome replied with a smile.
Shippou looked eagerly into her eyes, "You really think?"
"Sure. Now get some sleep sweetie. I'm sure you'll need your strength tomorrow to walk to rest of the way to that village."
"Take your own advice Kagome. You're practically dead on your feet." Inuyasha scoffed. She turned to him and playfully stuck out her tongue before plopping beside Shippou in her sleeping bag.
No one took Kagome's cheery attitude seriously, but what could be done. Naraku would indeed most likely enter her mind tonight, and none of them could do a thing. But if they slept, and kept their strength, then they could at least help her when they had to fight for her.
Kagome was asleep as soon as her head hit the makeshift pillow that was a rolled up towel. In truth, she should have tried to stay awake that night, as Naraku entered her mind as soon as Kagome was dreaming.
*
"Oh my dear. It is so good to see you doing better." Naraku cooed as he pulled Kagome up from her lying form in the mist.
"I'm afraid I can't return the greeting." Kagome grumbled as she out of habit smoothed the wrinkles from her sweater.
"Now what do you say you stop this little game and just submit to my control now. It saves me the trouble of kidnapping you if you just willingly stray from your group and wait for me to get you. It won't be long you know. I think I know exactly how to break your mind to be completely loyal to me."
"What are you going on about? I didn't understand any of that." Kagome grumbled.
With a sigh, Naraku walked towards her. "I really can't wait until I have officially gotten you on my side. It will be so much fun to see the hanyou's face when he knows he has lost the battle."
"Inuyasha will not lose." Kagome hissed. "We'll beat you. I have control of my power now, but I really can't wait to use it on you and have you feel what I'm capable of."
"I wouldn't mind feeling what you're capable of right now," was his lustful reply. Naraku grabbed her arms forcefully and dragged her struggling form towards his larger body. His lips crashed to hers, and Kagome bit his bottom lip to release her. Naraku pulled his head back with a scowl and licked the blood that had accumulated where she had bit him. He threw her small body onto the ground, and he followed soon after, officially pinning her to the ground with his much heavier form on top.
"Get off of me." Kagome snarled.
"Not yet my little Kagome."
She shrieked and brought her knee up to knock him in the groin, but his leg overlapped hers and her efforts were fruitless. A clawed hand reached up and ripped a long horizontal line along the front on her sweater. A thin scratch appeared just above her breasts where he had sliced, and Naraku bent to lick the blood off the exposed flesh.
"Don't touch me!" Kagome desperately shouted.
She screamed again when she felt a hand crawl underneath her shirt…
*
Inuyasha hopped up into the branches of the tree Kagome had settled under, and he watched as Miroku, Sango, Kirara, and Shippou dozed off. He could hear their slower heart beats and steady breathing, and was positive that they had been whisked to dream land.
Kagome wasn't sleeping, as her breathing was not steady and she was making small noises. "Kagome, get some sleep." He ordered, a bit more forcefully than he meant to. But his nerves were frayed. She didn't answer, so he figured she had ignored him. Kagome had the jewel shard on and they didn't have to worry about her attacking in the middle of the night, but what if Naraku decided that tonight he didn't need Kagome anymore for his plan and he just killed her?
'You're being paranoid.' His mind told him.
'No I'm not, I'm just worried.' Inuyasha harshly replied to himself.
'Is it because you love her? What if Naraku doesn't kill her, but he takes her. You know what I mean. He sees her as a mate. Kagome could be Naraku's mate. How does that sound?' His mind was taunting him.
Inuyasha's eyes flashed red, but the Tetsusaiga around his hip immediately calmed him. For a moment there he almost lost control. The thoughts that were running through his head made him want to tear something to shreds.
He realized that Kagome was still very much awake down below him as her breathing was staggered, and he heard the rustling of cloth as she continually moved in her sleeping bag. With a growl he leaped off his perch to land beside her. "Hey, would you get some sleep. I'm keeping watch. I won't let anything…" His words died in his throat when he realized that Kagome was actually very much asleep.
He was slightly confused until the sleeping young woman in front of him murmured with a snarl, "Get off of me."
"No." He whispered. "Kagome! Wake up!"
Inuyasha almost lost it when blood began to stain the front of her sweater because of a scratch that was way too close to her breasts for comfort.
A growl started to emit from the furious hanyou, and it only intensified when Kagome yelled, "Don't touch me!" followed by a scream.
*
I have such a terrible habit with cliffhangers. Don't kill me, the next chapter will be out soon. I promise!
I love all of you. Thank you for waiting so long and still being a loyal reader.
Please review!
-vold-