Chapter Seven
The Search
"Kagome, I'm tired."
"We're all tired, whelp, so shut it!" InuYasha snapped, glaring fiercely
at Shippou before Kagome could answer him.
"Just give it a rest, InuYasha," Kagome said, trying hard to keep a calm
face as she scooped up Shippou, cuddling the kitsune close.
"Keh."
Kagome sighed reluctantly and continued trudging wearily after the
hanyou, her eyelids drooping. It had been a long day. InuYasha refused to let
them make camp, and insisted that he didn't want to waste any more time than
necessary looking for the "Dumb wench" and that they would continue until
he got some kind of hint of where Sesshomaru had gone off to.
"Can't we please just rest now?" Kagome pleaded, stifling a yawn.
"What, you wanna stop now?" The hanyou demanded, a tone of annoyance
in his voice. "I thought you were all worried about that girl."
"Please, InuYasha? We're exhausted, and Sango-chan-"
She was cut off by a loud yell of "PERVERT!" and a very loud crash,
as the said demon slayer raised the largest rock available and brought it down
heavily on Miroku's head, effectively knocking the lecherous monk unconscious.
"Oy! Lech!" InuYasha yelled. "Get the hell up and stop grabbing Sango's
ass. She's gonna kill you one of these days."
Miroku didn't respond.
"Keh!" The hanyou grumbled. "I guess you got your wish, Kagome. We
ain't goin' anywhere soon."
Kagome slumped down with a sigh of relief, took her suitcase off of her
back and unrolled it, crawling in as Shippou cuddled up next to her.
"Pathetic," InuYasha muttered, preparing to leap up into a tree to
sleep.
"Oh, and InuYasha-" Kagome continued without opening her eyes, her
calm voice masking the seething fury that had been rising in her gut all day.
"-SIT."
WHAM.
-----
"Is anyone there, Kirara-chan?" Sango asked softly as she stood beside
the lake, the early morning sun glittering on the waters and bathing her in a
soft lake.
The cat demon mewed reassuringly, blinking her large red eyes as
she watched her mistress curiously.
Sango smiled and stripped off her outer garments quickly, wading
into the still freezing water. She'd learned, after living around Miroku for
a while, that it was wise to have Kirara sniff things out before she attempted
bathing.
The slayer shivered and walked further in until the water was up to
her shoulders, at which point she gritted her teeth and forced herself to dunk
her head under the water, resurfacing after a few seconds, spluttering and shivering
in the icy water.
"C-c-cold-" She hissed through chattering teeth, taking another deep
breath and diving under the water, this time staying and swimming below the
surface until she ran out of breath and resurfaced.
Kirara watched in confusion, wondering why on earth her mistress
would want to do such a clearly unpleasant thing, then yawned and stretched,
curled up and went to sleep in the sun.
Meanwhile, the faint sounds of splashing had reached the ears of a
certain lecher, who was slowly making his way toward the source of the sounds
by now.
Miroku peered through a clump of bushes, his eyes lingering on the
scene before him for a long time.
Kirara was curled up on the beach, asleep, so she wouldn't hear or
smell him out. Sango was swimming... Nude... In the lake. He'd had this
dream before, only minus the Kirara. And Sango had been more than willing
to let him see her when she got out of the lake...
He smiled faintly and contented himself with watching from a distance,
an all too well known gleam entering his eyes. Ah, Sango...
The slayer resurfaced one last time, gasping for breath. That should be
enough for now. More than enough. She didn't think she could take anymore
of the frozen water. She made her way out of the water and, still shivering, reached
for her kimono, when a rustling sound from a nearby brush called her attention.
It couldn't be Miroku, could it...? Kirara would have known...
Sango walked cautiously over toward the brush and pulled it aside.
-----
"Kagome, what was that?" Shippou asked, glancing curiously in the direction
the sounds had come from.
"Sounds like Miroku getting his ass kicked," InuYasha commented dully,
munching on a bucket of Ramen he had convinced Kagome to get out.
Kagome narrowed her eyes half-heartedly at the hanyou, but in all honesty,
she was trying very hard not to laugh. It did really sound like the said lecher getting
his ass kicked. And a certain demon slayer doing the ass-kicking.
"Did you manage to find Sesshomaru's scent?" She asked instead, deciding
to keep the peace.
"If I had, would we be sitting here?" He snapped back.
Kagome sighed. "You know, you could at least make an attempt to be civil."
"Yeah, InuYasha," Shippou said, giving the hanyou a scathing glare. No one
was allowed to be rude to Kagome. Not while he was around.
"Feh," InuYasha muttered, turning back to his ramen.
-----
"InuYasha, what is it already?" Kagome asked impatiently, scowling at the
hanyou, who was still bent over with his nose to the ground, sniffing frantically at
something and refusing to acknowledge her presence. "InuYasha!"
InuYasha looked up at her finally, an annoyed expression on his face. "It
could be Sesshomaru's scent, but I'm never gonna find out if you keep bothering
me, am I?!" He demanded, then went back to sniffing the ground.
Kagome rolled her eyes, then looked back at Sango and Miroku, who
were still not on speaking terms. It had been a long day, and everyone's nerves
were stretched to the breaking point.
"That's it!" InuYasha said suddenly, standing up in a flash.
"What? Where?" Kagome asked quickly, watching him eagerly.
"Kagome, get on my back," He ordered, not answering her question.
Kagome sighed, but obeyed, clambering onto InuYasha's back when he
crouched down to make it easier for her. Shippou left his place on Kagome's
shoulder to cling to InuYasha's back with her.
Sango nudged Kirara, who, understanding, instantly jumped from the
slayer's shoulder to the ground, transforming into her larger demon form in a
cloud of flames. Sango jumped onto her back, waiting grudgingly for Miroku
to do the same.
"Did you find his scent?" Kagome questioned.
"Yeah."
"What about Amaya...?" She asked hesitantly, not sure if she wanted
to hear the answer.
"She's not there."
...
"What do you mean, she's not there?" Kagome demanded, worry
rising in her stomach.
"She just isn't," InuYasha replied, taking off at full speed as Kirara ran
close behind. "Sesshomaru's scent is easy to pick up, but it's just him and those
creeps that always hang around him. No sign of anyone else."
Kagome was silent for the remainder of the journey, as she tried to
quiet the feelings of discomfort and worry that began to torment her.
-----
Author's Note: Yet another chapter in this fanfiction... Well, this is where I thankee all the readers!! [Tackle-huggle-glomps the readers] THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! [Cough.]
Reviewer response
K005 -
I believe that's how it sounds, yes.
faerystrangeme-
Thanks! I always like the scenes where Kagome 'sits' InuYasha... Heh... Amusing, even if it makes me extremely pissed off at Kagome... [Twitch] Thanks for the praise, anyway. I wasn't planning on this being a very humorous fic, but it seems determined to have its moments, anyway... Heh... Hopefully, I will be able to put in more stuff like that.
LostArtist -
Thankees! I was originally planning on having her pair up with someone else, but it was too much of a cliche... Nobody ever does Kouga, and they're so completely different that they're perfect for eachother. [Sweatdrop] At least, that's how I see things in my demented little world I call a mind...
K-chan-
Thank you! [Curtsy] Fluff is fun, isn't it? [Grin] I love writing stuff like that... Sigh... But this is an angst fanfic... It may not be all fluff. [Hint hint] Ahem...