Another's Name But My Heart

By Lady of the Ink

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, but you knew that . . .I hope. But I do own this plot and all the twists that it takes.

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Chapter Thirty-One

If You Came to Me

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Kagome moved as quickly as the unknown terrain allowed. Long, vine-y bushes wrapped themselves around her ankles, remaining there to be dragged behind her after being ripped free from their roots by her hurried pace. She had pulled the cloak's collar up to protect her face and neck from the slapping tree branches. Even with that precaution, she had earned several stinging scratched over the course of her daylong journey.

None of these things mattered to her or even really registered in her mind. She had one goal and one goal only- to make it back to the village in time to warn Inuyasha of the ambush. It didn't matter that she couldn't be a part of his life after all that she had done. That was a pain that she could find a way to live with. But if she got there too late . . .if she no longer had the comfort that he, at least, was alive, well, and happy . . .she didn't think she could stand it.

She quickened her steps as that image took hold in her mind. She had to be in time; it was the only option she would allow. She'd get there and pass on her warning, leaving Inuyasha safe and free to live his life however he wanted. Even if that meant his marriage to Kikyo.

Tears formed in her eyes and she struggled to keep them from flowing. A sharp stitch grew in her side due to her quick pace but she ignored it. She didn't have time to give in to her physical and emotional pain. Kagome knew she had to keep herself focused or risk breaking down and being of no use to anyone.

The sky darkened until night fell completely. Kagome forged onward, finding her way by feel rather than by sight. Unseen obstacles rose in her path, sending her to the ground more than once.

It was with no small amount of relief that she heard her name being called. She finally drew to a stop as she waited for Kouga to reach her side. He did so quickly, no more than a moving shadow to her straining eyes.

"He's settled with the pack. They'll take care of him till he's fit enough to leave." She heard him shift his weight, dried leaves crackling beneath his feet. "I still don't see why you're in such a hurry to warn that dog-breath. If he's not demon enough to take care of himself, then he deserves what he gets."

Kagome reined in her annoyance by reminding herself that she needed his help. Without his night vision and speed, she would have no chance of making it to the village before dawn. She took a deep calming breath before answering him. "I know that you don't understand my reasons and I'm not asking you to agree with them. All I'm asking is for your help, even though I know I don't have the right. I know we just met and everything but I . . .I just don't know what else to do!"

The tears that she had fought down earlier made a reappearance as she was swamped with a feeling of uselessness. She felt like the most pathetic person in the world, having been maneuvered into such a position in the first place and then making it worse. How stupid had she been to fall in love with the very person she was actively deceiving? How naïve had she been to, if only for a short while, entertain notions of a happy ending? How weak had she been to run away from Inuyasha without facing him, leaving a note as a sign of her cowardliness?

She sniffled, drawing a groan from Kouga. "Don't cry. I don't know what to do when women cry." He made a sound that was half sigh, half growl. "I'll get you where you thing you need to go. Just don't think it means I'm givin' up on you. I'll make you my woman yet." His next sentence was so under his breath that she was barely able to make it out. "And if I get the chance to knock that mutt around, all the better."

Before Kagome could yell at him for his comment, she found herself being swept into his arms. "Hold on tight," he advised just before he took off. She had no choice but to wrap her arms around his shoulders and bury her face in his neck as he raced through the trees. As the wind whipped past her, she squeezed her eyes closed and renewed her silent entreaties that they be in time.

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The sky was just beginning to lighten when Kagome recognized the path she'd taken out of town. Tapping Kouga on the shoulder, she put her mouth close to his ear and yelled for him to circle around. She didn't want to risk running into anyone she knew from the village. By entering from the west instead of the east, they would also be significantly closer to the church.

Aside from the deserted path around the stone wall, most of the area was thickly forested. Even Kouga had to slow down in order to make it around and between all the trees. As he did so, the wind whipping past her ears quieted enough for her to hear another sound drifting on the morning air. It was the familiar, distressing sound of church bells tolling an important event.

Her grip on Kouga tightened and her heart throbbed painfully in her chest. If the bells were still ringing, then the ceremony hadn't started yet. They would be cutting it close, but it looked as though they would make it in time.

Or so Kagome thought until Kouga uttered a curse and skidded to a sudden stop. It took her a few seconds to brush her hair out of her eyes, but once she did, she immediately saw what had caught his attention.

Just ahead of them stood a man. At least Kagome assumed it was a man. Swathed as it was in a white pelt from head to toe, the figure could have been any number of things. He was facing in the other direction and at first she was unsure of whether or not he knew of their arrival. When he slowly turned to face them, though, she got the strangest feeling that he'd known they were coming for quite some time.

"Damn!" Kouga swore, starting to lower her to the ground.

"What is it?" she asked in a whisper.

"He's the one who attacked the demon from earlier."

Kagome could feel her eyes widen as every other part of her body froze. The image of the demon's bloody form flashed through her mind, raising goosebumps across her skin. Someone who could do so much damage to a trained soldier was obviously a threat. The only positive side to her standing face to face with such a dangerous foe, she thought with grim humor, was that it meant he wasn't at the church yet. As long as they occupied him, Inuyasha and the others would be safe.

Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for Kouga and herself. The eerie aura surrounding Naraku, as the scout had called him, was an almost tangible promise of pain. The question wasn't if he would attack, it was when and how.

Kouga apparently felt the same. The arm that had just dropped from her waist when he's set her down returned to its former position. His grip was firm as he shifted closer to her so he could whisper in her ear. "When the time comes, find a spot out of the way and stay there. I'll take of him."

Kagome wanted to warn him about the brash confidence in his tone but she didn't get the chance. A split second after he finished speaking she was slung into his arms as he took off. She could feel the coiled power in hid body as he raced forward, moving so quickly that the trees around them blurred into streaks of brown and green. She caught a single glance of Naraku over Kouga's shoulder and immediately wished she hadn't. Dark tendrils seemed to boil from beneath his pelt, stretching outward and upward like blind, groping hands.

In the same instant that she saw one of them move in their direction, it impacted. Kagome couldn't be sure where it hit on Kouga, just that she caught a glancing blow across her hip. Kouga staggered a bit, his breath leaving his lungs in a heavy whoosh. He quickly regained his balance and struggled to pour on more speed. When he hissed in satisfaction, she dared to hope that they were momentarily safe.

The next thing she knew, she was free of Kouga's arms and flying through the air. The ground returned all too soon, rising up to greet her with bruising force. She cried out as she landed on her injured leg, the impact sending a hot burst of pain from her hip to her toes. Squeezing her eyes shut, she panted for breath as tears streamed down her cheeks. When she finally recovered enough to look up, she was stunned by what she saw.

Kouga was little more than a blur as he darted through the trees. He was leaping and dodging between trunks so fast that she would have thought it impossible for anyone to lock onto him. That thought was proved wrong as Naraku struck time and time again. Chunks of wood flew as the tentacles shot through all in their paths to reach Kouga and flay his flesh.

Kagome knew she had only one choice; she had to try and get to the village while Naraku was occupied by Kouga. The feeling that she was abandoning the wolf demon hurt her, but she could tell he wouldn't be able to keep his evasion up forever. She had to find help and find it fast.

X

Miroku stood against the wall of the church's back room with his hands clasped behind his back. He was almost completely motionless; his eyes were the only part of him that moved. They bounced back and forth across the room as they followed the path of one very agitated hanyou.

A loud growl ripped through the room as Inuyasha paused just long enough to rake his hands through his hair in an almost violent manner. It was an action he had repeated so often in the time they'd been standing together that Miroku was surprised that the floor wasn't littered with silver strands.

"You seem . . .uneasy, Inuyasha," he stated calmly. It was perhaps the largest understatement he had ever uttered, but he'd long since learned the value of starting slowly when it came to Inuyasha. He had to be led toward confiding his true thoughts, not thrust into them all at once. The second course of action would result in an explosion of rage and nothing more.

An angry glare was the only response to his statement. He took it as a sign to continue. "Your current state wouldn't have anything to do with the event about to take place, would it?" Another growl. Miroku had to fight back a smile. "If I might be so bold - When someone feels as unsure of an action as you do now, it's best for them to take a step back and make sure that it's what they really want to do."

"Of course I want to do this! It's all it'll take to fix everything. I have to do it."

Miroku refrained from pointing out the differenced between wanting to do something and having to do something. He had a feeling that Inuyasha already knew. What he needed to do was get Inuyasha to acknowledge the next basic truth: that a wedding was not something to go through with because you felt you had to. The only question was which tact to take in order to get the right result.

"You know that due to my position in the village, I'm privy to the opinions of the people here. I have to say that from what I've heard, they really like the changes that you've made. They've been saying that you're the best ruler this village has had in a very long time." He paused slightly before going in for the kill. "I find it hard to imagine that they would reject you in favor of someone who did a poor job, with or without a marriage to solidify your claim."

Inuyasha's steps slowed and Miroku knew he was getting through. He pushed onward. "I think you would have a good chance of keeping all that you've acquired without shackling yourself to a woman you obviously feel nothing good towards. If I'm right, do you really wan to never try and have to deal with Kikyo forever?"

"But my parents and the villagers think that I'm already married to Kikyo. They think this is just a show wedding for the benefit of my family."

"The people here would probably be ecstatic to know that Kikyo isn't really your wife, and I can't imagine your parents wanting anything but for you to be happy. From the time that I've spent with them, I'd say they'd be more understanding than you think." He didn't say it out loud, but he would be very surprised if Inuyasha's parents didn't know something of the situation happening right beneath their noses already. The too-pointed questions about Kikyo and Inuyasha's relationship had left him without a doubt in his mind that they were far from in the dark.

Inuyasha had come to a total stop, obviously deep in thought. His gaze was locked on the wall, but the vagueness in his eyes made it clear that he was seeing something else. All of a sudden he gave a sharp nod of his head. "You're right." He turned abruptly and headed to the smaller of the room's two doors. It led through a small hall to another door that was the church's rear exit.

It was that path that Inuyasha took without looking back. Miroku's eyes went from the open door to the closed one leading to a roomful of people and back again. Quickly gathering his senses, he hurried after the hanyou, catching up to him a good distance away.

"Inuyasha, you can't just leave! You have a dozen or more people back there expecting a wedding, including the bride and your parents! You have to go back and explain this to them."

"They're in the church and you're the priest, so you explain it to them. I have something to do."

"You can't be serious!"

Inuyasha shot him a look that said yes, he was quite serious. Miroku swallowed hard, imagining the coming confrontation. It would be hard enough trying to explain everything to Inuyasha's parents without having an audience of guardsmen and villagers.

His distressing thoughts trailed off as he noticed the frown on Inuyasha's face. He'd lifted his chin and his expression was darkening with every passing moment. "What is it?" Miroku asked.

The reply was awhile in coming and in a tone more growl than anything else. "Kagome . . .and blood."

"Are you sure?" he asked, but Inuyasha had already taken off. "Inuyasha!" His yelling had no effect; Inuyasha didn't even slow down. Miroku stood as still as stone as he watched him vanish into distance.

While his body was frozen, his mind was anything but. He had heard from Inuyasha himself that Kagome had left the village days ago. His best scout had confirmed her departure. She had no reason to return when she had been so determined to leave in the first place. It would have taken something very big to bring her back, and on that day of all days.

His thoughts shifted slightly. The scout that had checked up on Kagome had then been sent to meet with the others trying to find Kikyo. They had all returned, but he hadn't.

Almost without realizing it, his mind began clicking different bits of information together like puzzle pieces. He remembered the short conversation that he had had with Sango just that morning. She had told him about Kohaku's revelation that a powerful demon named Naraku had been behind the attack on him. She had also said that there was a very good chance that Kikyo was his accomplice, though neither she nor Kohaku had been close enough to her to confirm it.

If the solitary scout hadn't met up with the others, who had he met up with that was keeping him from returning? Was it the mysterious and dangerous Naraku? And what of Naraku himself? Was he truly in league with Kikyo? Had they come up with some plan before her capture that had him even then on his way to free her?

A heavy sensation grew in the pit of his stomach. Miroku had a feeling that something very big was about to happen and that Inuyasha was walking into it blindly. If Sango's estimation of Naraku's strength was even close, Inuyasha was going to be in a lot of trouble. Hesitating for only a moment, Miroku headed for the church to take matters into his own hands.