A Change
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or any of its characters. Any new characters are my creations; please tell me before you use them.
AN: I'm so sorry that I haven't updated lately.
Inu: Yeah right! Ya lazy bum, even you don't care about this crappy story!
Sun: Of course I do, my muse just decided she would take a Holiday, Not my fault!
Inu: Sure, whatever you want to believe, just make sure I stay with Kagome!
Sun: Oh you'll be with Kagome, don't you worry. evil grin as she turns to type
Inu: Why am I suddenly worried about that?
*thought*
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Chapter 9: A Day
Inuyasha awoke the next day before all the others, and noticed that he and Kagome had switched positions during the night. Normally he was leaning against the wall with Kagome asleep against him, and the Tetsiaga was within easy each of his hand. Today Kagome was spooned against him as they lay stretched out on the floor, he head was buried in his shoulder and he could feel her breath wafting against his neck. Inuyasha shivered in delight at the feel of his Mate pressed so intimately against him, he could feel the rise of her chest and the softness of her hair as it mingled with his, the black and silver strands entwining around them to form a blanket that looked like a star filled sky. Inuyasha just lay there as a feeling of complete and utter peace washed over him, filling all of his senses with a feeling of contentment. Inuyasha pulled back slowly from Kagome and just sat and watched her as the light started to filter into the hut as day began to break.
Inuyasha barely noticed as the others in the hut started to awaken. Kaede was the first to arise her bones creaking as she wandered around to start cooking breakfast. Miroku and Sango were the next to wake up, both going out to take care of business, and all the while Inuyasha just continued to watch Kagome sleep, keeping absolutely still so that none of the others would realize that he was awake as well. *Gods she's so beautiful. I can't believe that she has agreed to be mine; I thought no one would ever want me. She's just even more beautiful with her eyes open, please Kagome open your eyes and look at me. Let me see those gorgeous blue eyes.*
At that moment Kagome started to shift as she began to wake up. Kagome groaned as she shifted against Inuyasha and her eyes started to flutter. Her eyes opened slowly and he caught a glimpse of vibrant blue slits before he was totally pulled under by her gaze. Kagome smiled softly at Inuyasha the hand that was entwined with his squeezed gently.
"Hey." Kagome whispered, "What are you doing?" Inuyasha reached out a hand and brushed back some of her hair from in front of her eyes, not even caring if anyone knew they were awake or not anymore.
"Just watching you sleep your beautiful beloved." Inuyasha leaned into Kagome slowly giving her time to back up if she wanted, but Kagome leaned forward as well and their lips met lightly for what seemed like the very first time. The first kiss was soft, only a gentle rubbing of their lips together but they both felt a zing of passion running through their bodies. Kagome let out an almost silent whimper as Inuyasha drew away before leaning back in. This time the kiss was more intense as Inuyasha leaned over Kagome, rolling her onto her back and pressing even deeper into her body. Kagome's hands sunk into Inuyasha's hair as she pulled him closer their lips fusing in an intricate dance. Inuyasha licked at Kagome's lips and she easily opened for him. Kagome groaned deeply in her throat as their tongues dueled sliding along each other. Inuyasha explored the recesses of Kagome's mouth, his tongue memorizing the soft and ruff places in her mouth, coaxing deep moans from her body. Inuyasha sighed into the comfort of Kagome's mouth and his hand was slowly drifting over her side when they heard Miroku clear his throat.
"If you two would mind, take the show to another place please? I don't want to have to watch you if I can't do something like that myself." They could both hear the smirk in his voice, even from their passion induced haze. Inuyasha groaned as he tore himself away from Kagome and buried his head in her neck. Kagome looked up at Miroku from over Inuyasha's shoulder and glared.
"I don't like you right now Miroku." Kagome declared as Inuyasha slowly started pulling his body away from hers. Inuyasha groaned deeply but continued to move away from Kagome.
"It's okay; we have to get up for training anyway. But the bozou monk was rude." Kagome watched as Inuyasha's eyes flashed and he was standing up right in seconds, Inuyasha brought his hand down on top of Miroku's head with a smack and watched as the Monk dropped unconscious to the floor. "That's for being a lecher and watching what we were doing." Inuyasha reached down for Kagome and smiled slightly at her, pulling her up to his level. Inuyasha looked around and saw that everyone but Shippo was now up, and that breakfast was ready. Inuyasha snorted before going over and collecting his bowl. He looked over at Kagome, "I'm gonna head on out to set up the training area, wake up Shippo and eat your breakfast and I will come back to get you when I'm done. All right?" Kagome nodded as she walked over to Shippo to shake him from where he was sleeping curled around Kirara.
"That would be great. Do we need anything special for today?" Kagome turned to look at him with an awakening Shippo in her arms.
"Not really, bring you Bow and Arrows so you don't have to walk back to get them after lunch and make sure Shippo has his magic items with him when you leave as well, and that would be it." Shippo rubbed his eyes as he woke up fully and reached out for Inuyasha. Inuyasha stilled as he picked up the fox kit he now called son. Shippo wrapped his arms around Inuyasha's neck and squeezed giving Inuyasha a hug, Shippo pulled back with a yawn.
"Morning Dad." Shippo then hopped down from Inuyasha's arms and walked over to the fire leaving Inuyasha stunned in the middle of the room. Kagome giggled at his expression and watched as he regained control and then walked over to kneel by Shippo, he grabbed a bowl and filled it for the little kitsune and then as he gave him the bowl nuzzled his head into the top of Shippo's in a manly expression of affection. Shippo's head jerked in surprise to look at his father, but Inuyasha was already walking out the door with a blush tingeing his cheeks. When he was well away Kagome finally laughed out loud at the combined expressions of surprise she had seen on Inuyasha's and Shippo's faces.
"What's so funny Kagome?" Sango questioned as the Exterminator walked by her friend on the way to the fire. Kagome shook her head as she joined the other members of their group by the fire.
"I just find it funny how much Father and Son resemble each other even when they're not related." Sango smiled and nodded in agreement both watching as Shippo quickly ate his food and went to gather the things he would need for the day. Kagome just smiled fondly at her son.
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Almost half an hour later Inuyasha was done with the scent trials and heading back to the hut for Kagome and Shippo. The wind and other animals would slightly confuse the trail he had laid for the two of them and that was exactly what he wanted to happen. If they could follow the trial he had laid today without much trouble tomorrow he would increase the difficulty. And with so many creatures running through his forest it was bound to be distracting, especially for Kagome, who had never really used her senses before. Sure, she was using them now, but because she had never used them to try and pinpoint something they were still at a human level, and he would need to cure that first thing. He needed to make Kagome's Hanyou senses take over and start working; Kagome would never want to go back to a normal human after she realized how awesome it was being a hanyou. As Inuyasha approached the hut he could see Kagome and Shippo standing in front of the porch waiting for him, and the sight made his breath catch. There were the two most important people in his life and they actually wanted and accepted him, they didn't think he was a freak. *And they love me.* The thought breathed along his consciousness and it made Inuyasha smile broadly and pick up speed to where he was loping when he reached them. He skidded to a in front of them and hid a small smile as Shippo let out a squeak in surprise, as he had been distracted by trying to read the spells stitched into his mother's armor.
"Daaaddd! Don't do that!" Shippo commanded as he hopped from Kagome's arms onto Inuyasha's shoulder. Inuyasha reached up and lightly bopped Shippo on the head in response, making the hit as playful as possible.
"I shouldn't be able to surprise you Shippo, even if you are doing something else. That's what your training is going to be for. By the time I'm done with you and we're back on the road you should be able to tell how many Youkai are around us at all times, and even if you are involved with reading or repairing a torn sleeve you should not be stunned when another creature, human or otherwise, walks up to you." Shippo was listening with rapt attention to his Father turned teacher and Kagome was nodding her head soaking up the information.
"So what do we do first, oh Wise Hanyou?" Kagome questioned, a giggle trapped in the back of her throat. Inuyasha had an evil gleam in his eye as he looked at her.
"Keh! You'll lose your sarcasm in just a minute Kag, you are going to have to try and keep up with me as we head to the starting point for our training. You manage to do that fairly well and I'll allow you to take a 2 minute break at anytime during the day. And believe me, the two minutes will be a godsend if you win." Kagome shook her head at him, as if she thought that the challenge would be way too easy, but nodded anyway. Inuyasha gave a tilt of his head in acknowledgement, grabbed Shippo around the waist, and took off like a shot for the woods. Kagome's eyes went wide in surprise and she cried out as she leapt after the dog demon.
"Inuyasha! That's not fair! Get your scrawny ass back here!" All that could be heard was Inuyasha's laughter.
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Inuyasha landed gracefully in the middle of the clearing. He set Shippo down carefully, and waited calmly for Kagome to arrive.
"1…2…3…4…5…6…7…*Thump!* There you are Kagome, what took you so long?" Inuyasha questioned as he looked over at the flushed Inu-hanyou. Kagome's breathing was fast and shallow, her chest heaving with its need to put air in her lungs. As Inuyasha watched Kagome struggled to keep her feet as they threatened to give out from the exertion, she swayed, but managed to stay standing. Inuyasha's eyebrows went up as Kagome glared darkly at him.
"You took off with out telling me. That was not fair! I don't care how long it took; I should still get that two minute break!" Ohhh, his Kagome was steamed at him. Inuyasha hid a smug grin; even he was smart enough to value his life.
"I said you had to stay with me, I never said it was fair Kagome. No Youkai is going to say, 'oh here I go, I'm running away now! Or I'm coming to get'cha!' It's not going to happen, and you need to be prepared to react in an instant to anything that is coming after us. Now you made it here only 7 seconds after I did, and that is very good for a first try, but tomorrow when we do this again I want you to try even harder, because when you get the time down to 4 seconds, I'll reward you with that 2 minute break. Okay?" Kagome looked pissed as hell, but she grudgingly nodded. By this time though, Shippo was feeling upset at his parents.
"Inuyasha! Kagome gets a chance to get a break, why don't I?" Shippo whined looking up at his Father. Inuyasha grinned down at him and nodded.
"You'll get your chance to have a break Shippo, just hold on. Now," Inuyasha reached inside his robes and pulled out a leaf wrapped package, "What do you all smell?" Inuyasha questioned as he crouched down and pulled back the coverings so that they could see a dead rabbit laid out. Its neck had been snapped, and so there was no blood, but still Kagome was slightly skittish of being around a dead animal. Inuyasha saw this and immediately held out a hand, bringing the newest Inu-hanyou closer to the dead animal. He looked at Kagome directly and tapped her nose with the hand that had formerly held her wrist. "What do you smell?" Shippo had already taken in the scent of the rabbit and was eager to reply.
"The leaves and the rabbit!" Came his easy reply and Inuyasha nodded patting the young boys head.
"That's right Shippo, but you already know what a rabbit smells like, we have to teach Kagome that. Now Kagome, What do you smell?" Kagome leaned closer to both of them, her nose very close to the rabbit.
"I smell, you Inuyasha and Shippo. Umm… there's a green scent that I guess is the leaves, Right?" Inuyasha nodded his head and motioned for her to continue. "Under all that is an earthy smell combined with a scent of fur, and an old tang. Would that be the rabbit?" Inuyasha's grin split his face as he sat fully on the ground, bringing Kagome with him.
"Exactly, that scent with out the tang is the rabbit; the sharp tang you're picking up is the rabbit's fear as it died. It's a scent that you can smell on anyone not just animals. Now do one more thing for me, but keep that scent of the rabbit in mind. Sit back on the grass and breathe in exactly the same way you did when you were getting the scent of the rabbit." Kagome looked skeptical, but did what she was asked, and relaxed back into the grass. Kagome closed her eyes and breathed in through her nose. Kagome's nose went wild as the scents of the forest assaulted her, the grass and the wind, and all the different creatures running through the forest, all left their own trail on the world. Kagome's ears perked and for the first time really opened to the world about her. She was assaulted with all the sounds, little twits and sighs, loud roars from a long distance, and a crash of antlers. Kagome's ears twitched in all directions as she began putting sounds and smells together to form a picture. She added the sense of touch to the picture, the feel of the wind running over her and the sun as well, and all of the sudden behind her eyes; she could see the forest come alive. It stole her breath, the vibrant smells and voices that rang through out this place made her breath catch her breath and open her eyes to see the beauty around her. When her eyes opened Kagome was disoriented as the picture in her head and the one around her clashed. She swayed but was caught by Inuyasha as he whispered to her.
"It's all right Kagome. Just sit for a few moments, understand that what you are hearing and smelling are things you can't see. If you wandered off with just you other senses you would wind up hitting a tree or bush with your head." Kagome nodded and slowly the information she was getting settled into an understandable overall picture. Inuyasha noticed the change in her demeanor and looked closely at her face. "You okay now?" Kagome grinned at him and sat up in the grass, Shippo bounded into her arms.
"It's great isn't mama? All the smells and sounds you can hear that others can't! It's amazing." Shippo's tail was wagging as they looked around and Kagome scratched his head.
"Yes it is Shippo." She turned back to Inuyasha. "So what do we do next?" Inuyasha grinned and stuck the rabbit back in his robes.
"Do you all still have the scent of the rabbit?" He watched as both Kagome and Shippo stood an|
d nodded. "Good, I used that rabbit to lay a scent trail around this forest. It leads many places, but not all of them are obvious. I want you all to find the rabbit's trail from here onward. You have from now until an hour before the zenith to find the end of the trail, roughly four hours total, or you are stuck with me for an extra thirty minutes today at the end. Now for Shippo, your challenge is that if you can find the end of the trial before Kagome can you get to have the 2 minute break. This may seem unfair Kagome, but look at it this way. While he has had more experience at smelling, he has no practice tracking certain scents, and you are faster and have a better nose than he does because your Youkai side has already had its growth spurt." Inuyasha looked at his two students and they agreed to the terms he had set and begin looking for the trail. "I'll be hanging around above you so don't worry about being caught off guard by anything too big." He declared as he vanished into the trees. Kagome sighed at his antics and raced off into the forest after Shippo.
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Kagome trudged into the clearing that held a grinning Inuyasha, and nothing else. It was a little under four hours later and Kagome was wet, dirty in unthinkable places, sweaty, and down right pissed.
"You look like you had fun Kagome, I'm glad." Inuyasha called from where he sat with his back against a tree. "It seems you found the trial well enough, have you seen Shippo recently?" Kagome growled menacingly at the smirking Inu-hanyou, her clawed hands flexing in a need to wrap them around his neck.
"You did all of that on purpose Inuyasha!"
"What did I do on purpose Kagome? I assure you that I only laid a game trial that any animal could have taken." Inuyasha sat trying to look completely innocent, but Kagome wasn't fooled.
"Through a Briar Patch with a Mud puddle in it! I would think a rabbit would avoid a mud puddle." Kagome seethed as she came even closer to the lounging demon. Inuyasha just looked at her.
"Yes, the rabbit would have avoided the mud puddle, and it did, but it also would have still used the Briar Patch, it's you who didn't sense the mud until you were in it. As well as the stream that you seem to have fallen in to, it may have been hidden, but it was defiantly small enough for a rabbit to jump. Is it my fault that you were so concentrated on the rabbit's scent that you forgot to listen or even look for other dangers?" Inuyasha smugly questioned, and Kagome stopped reaching for his throat and blinked at his statement. Inuyasha watched as her ears wilted back onto her head from their perked position, and Inuyasha reached forward stroking one of her ears. "You did really well for your first time at tracking beloved, It means you have a good nose, and won't give up. You just have to learn to listen to the obstacles around you as well as what you are tracking. Now, have you seen Shippo?" Kagome by this time was purring into his hand, and she had to shake herself out of the pleasure induced stupor.
"Shippo wasn't too far behind me; he should be getting here right about…" Kagome cocked her ears to one side and listened for the rustling of the brush. "Now." And with that Shippo tumbled into the clearing, and though he had taken longer than his mother, he was considerably cleaner than her. Kagome watched as Shippo's expression fell when he saw both of them all ready there, but then he realized how dirty she was compared to him, and he grinned at her.
"Mom, you're all dirty! Did you fall into a mud pool or something?" Shippo giggled as he watched his mother. Kagome growled playfully at her son and started toward him as he laid on his side laughing. Kagome grinned evilly and reached for Shippo picking him up.
"Awww now Shippo, don't you want to give your mother a hug?" Kagome started to rub her face and clothes against Shippo, and he squealed in surprise and started to squirm away from the wet dirty Inu-hanyou. Kagome laughed and dropped Shippo back to the ground and he ran over to Inuyasha. Inuyasha picked Shippo up and ruffled his hair.
"Well, you all did well for the first day, and this defiantly gives me a gauge of your abilities for the rest of your training. Now, it's time for Shippo to head off to the Kitsune camp for his lessons, right?" He looked over at Kagome and she nodded her head. Inuyasha held Shippo tight before taking off into the trees. Kagome easily followed, not surprised that he hadn't given her a warning about leaving, but even now it was easier to tail her Mate, she still couldn't really keep up, but she wasn't completely left behind.
It only took a few minutes for them to arrive at the Kitsune clearing and Kagome was pleased to see that there was a group of kit's with Sunfire already around one of the fires. Kagome and Inuyasha touched down not to far from the fire and watched as Shippo ran to join the others there. Sunfire waved over at the two before they left, and Kagome caught a glimpse of SolarFlare running out to meet Shippo before both of them took off back into the forest. Inuyasha took them back to the clearing were they had begun the tracking chase and where Kagome had left her bow and arrows. Kagome started at the fire pit she saw dug in the middle of the clearing now. Inuyasha turned back to Kagome from where he had landed and smiled as she came down next to him.
"Now, since the first part of the day is over it's now time for lunch, but there is one catch. You have to help me catch it. We already have the rabbit from earlier this day, but that is most defiantly not enough for even one of us." Inuyasha kept his face perfectly straight as he watched Kagome's face. "I'm going to find one scent in this forest, if you can track that scent to the source, the animal, then I will catch it and we can eat lunch. Later you will start hunting for our food, but you must become more proficient at tracking animals, and using your claws before we even try that. Do you think you could give it a try?" Inuyasha tilted his head to the side in question, and watched as Kagome bobbed in place in excitement.
"Of course I can, come on!" Inuyasha huffed at her, and put his nose to the air. Almost immediately he caught the scent of a young deer running through the forest. He grinned as he pulled Kagome toward him and put her nose to the wind. "You smell the deer Kagome? An earthy smell mixed with a tangy meat scent and a deep musk? That's the deer, do you have it?" Kagome nodded her head and leaned forward. "Good, now follow it to the deer for me." Kagome grinned and took off through the woods. Inuyasha raced above her in the trees and watched with pride as she already put his criticism to use, watching were she put her feet, and what she ran into. Kagome dodged tree trunks, and hopped over logs and small bushes in her path. Kagome landed once in a small stream, but quickly corrected herself. Kagome stopped dead in her tracks and Inuyasha looked around, he spotted the deer not fifty feet a head of her. Inuyasha jumped down from the tree branch and silently joined Kagome on the forest floor. He scented the deer and crouched down next to Kagome, "You head back to the clearing and I'll meet you there with the deer, 'kay?" Kagome nodded her head and waited for Inuyasha to spring after the frighten deer before turning back and tracing her way to the clearing. Kagome heard the crash of Inuyasha running through the forest and grinned as she walked the fire pit in the center of their clearing; she lit the fire there and waited patiently for Inuyasha to come with the food.
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Kagome shifted next to Inuyasha as they sat next to the roasting deer, they had already eaten their meal, but there was still a lot of meat left on the deer, they were cooking it to bring it back to Kaede and the others.
"Hey Inuyasha? What is Shippo learning while we're doing this?" Kagome questioned as she leaned into her feature Mate. Inuyasha thought for a few moments before responding.
"It's not much, the group lessons would be etiquette inside a pack and the ranks that each person could earn with in that pack. When he goes off with Sunfire he will be learning the 'guy' stuff. What changes he will be going through and all the other urges he will get after he has his change." Inuyasha blushed as he explained this to Kagome. "I got the lessons for both of my growths at one time, because Sesshomaru wanted me gone as soon as possible, but you remember what it was like to have the lessons right? Or at least the demon you integrated with should remember because she already went through her growth." Kagome dug deep inside her memories and found what she was looking for. There buried deep was a catch of memories about time spent with an older looking female, as she explained the intricacies of going into heat, and how her body would give off a certain scent at certain times. Kagome blushed as she suddenly became conscious of how close she was to Inuyasha and how her body reacted to his presence. Inuyasha drew in a deep breath and smelled the fact that Kagome's body was now giving off an enticing hormone. Inuyasha growled as his body reacted to Kagome's and he reached out to turn her head to his. The kiss burned all the way down to her toes, the fire igniting in her belly. Kagome moaned into Inuyasha's mouth and got an answering response from deep in his throat. They were still making out when Shippo, Foxfire, SolarFlare, and about ten other kits ran into their clearing. Shippo giggled as he caught his parents in another compromising position. The other kits stopped, stunned, and then joined Shippo in giggling over the two older adults kissing. SolarFlare ran up next to the two demons, who had not yet noticed the Kitsune's, and asked innocently,
"Does he taste good miss Kagome?" The little voice right next to them snapped Kagome and Inuyasha out of there haze and Kagome looked down in surprise at the little fox child. Even in her haze she had heard the question, she looked over at Inuyasha and grinned.
"Yes SolarFlare, he does taste good." Kagome stood with a smirk, and Inuyasha groaned laying back on the grass with his hands over his eyes in exasperation. The Kits on the ground laughed out loud and started crawling over the Inu-hanyou on the ground. Kagome was standing off to one side with SolarFlare and Shippo, but Sun Fire walked over to the Hanyou. He stood over the prone Dog Demon until he lifted his arm and opened his eyes. Sun Fire crouched down on to his level.
"I can see now why you like your feature Mate, she is a feisty one, I like her very much." Inuyasha growled at the smirking Fox and suddenly sat up, spilling two other Kits on the ground at the same time making them yell in surprise. Inuyasha grinned as he stood clasping hands with Sun Fire,
"So are you ready to start our magic training?" Sun Fire grinned and made a noise low in his throat that made all of the Kits stop whatever they were doing and come to sit near the older Fox. Kagome's eyebrows rose as she watched Shippo and SolarFlare run to join the others and sit quietly.
"I wish I could learn how to do that, if we could get him to listen to us that well I wouldn't stress so much." Kagome grinned to show she was joking around, then took Inuyasha's hand and went to sit down herself. This was going to be fun, at least she hoped so.
******************************************************************************** "Now," Sun Fire was saying almost an hour later, "Kitsune magic is really illusion, but as you age and get older what you are trying to achieve is to make that illusion seem real. While if someone touches your magic they will know it is an illusion, you should be able to make some one believe that you are picking something up, anything within reach, even the person themselves. You can also make the person believe that they are being hurt or made to do something, and the stronger you get the longer the illusions last. But there is also a physical aspect to the Kitsune magic as Shippo has learned. The illusions must be based off of something physical, a leaf or a spinning top, that we can make into something else, also we do use physical magic, the Foxfire is an actual physical magic that can hurt another person, we have other's as well, but you must master the Foxfire first. This is where we can help Inuyasha and Kagome on their magic because Dog magic is a physical magic, not many Dogs can really do magic, but the royal families in both Dog packs have access to the Magic of their line. The reason I had you center yourselves is that the magic comes from within you; you must find that ball of magic that rests in your body and pull it out to use it. Whether you are casting an illusion or actually performing a physically attack you will be using that same magic source and will pull from it in the same way, it will be the result that is different. For today I just want you to try and pull out that ball of magic. If you manage to tap into you will glow with the color of your power, this should happen whether you are a dog or a fox. Do you all understand?" Sun Fire looked over the demons sitting before him, the kits were mostly calm, but they all twitched periodically. Sun Fire smiled as he watched the kits ever present energy bounced around their bodies, and even though they moved sporadically he could tell that they were all centered to some degree, he was pleased to notice that Shippo and SolarFlare were the most centered of the bunch, but even they moved. Inuyasha and Kagome on the other hand were deathly still, the only sign of life was that they still breathed and he could see the rise and fall of there chests. He got no response of acknowledgment from any of his students in front of him, but as he reached his aura out he could feel them trying to connect with there magic. For a good thirty minutes nothing happened and no glows of auras could be seen, but then all of the sudden, almost as if in tandem, both Shippo and SolarFlare lit up like small stars. Shippo's aura was a deep blue that leapt and climbed like a like fire, SolarFlare was an opposite in color. Her aura matched her fur, the colors of orange and red blending so that it looked like she was about to burn herself up, but he knew that wouldn't happen. Sun Fire walked over to both kits and whispered to them.
"Very good you two, now see how long you can hold that power. When it gets to be too much release it, don't try to keep hold of it to the point of pain, because getting even this far on the first day is a great accomplishment." And then it continued with the waiting, he didn't think anyone else would be able to connect with there auras today, except maybe for Kagome or Inuyasha, as they had both used it before. There auras would be a sight to see. Sun Fire didn't have to wait long though, and it came as a surprise when Inuyasha managed to bring out his aura. Inuyasha's color was a bright green, like the color of leaves, and surprisingly it was very calm. There was almost no flicker or wave to his aura, as if his inner nature was full of patience. Sun Fire actually stepped back when out of the blue Kagome's aura burst around her, and he had to move away as he felt its pressure on him. For a while he was confused as to why he couldn't move closer to Kagome, but then he realized that she had two auras slowly melding into one. Kagome's demon aura was a beautiful red color, healthy, and her Miko aura, the part forcing him away from her, was a pure blue-white. He knew somehow that when finally Kagome's auras merged he wouldn't be forced from her anymore, but her power would greatly increase, to equal Inuyasha's power after he had his second growth. Inuyasha right now was very strong for his kind, and his magic would grow even more when his second growth hit. He would be able to cast spells that could level half of this country or more. He would be a formidable enemy as soon as he was taught. Now with both of them together though they might actually be unstoppable. Sun Fire shivered at the thought of what would happen if he ever pissed his new friends off.
"Okay you all, that's enough for today. Tomorrow well continue like this until all of you can at least connect with your magic." He watched as the kits and the two Hanyou's came out of there meditative states, and disconnected from there magic. Inuyasha shook himself off as he stood.
"Okay that was… weird." Sun Fire smiled at the Hanyou and nodded.
"That's supposed to happen to you the first few times. Soon you'll be able to call on your aura with only a thought and it won't give you a weird 'sick' feeling." Kagome and the others nodded before Kagome looked over at Inuyasha.
"So what's left for today? We still have about two hours left before we get to go back to the hut." Inuyasha looked at Sun Fire and then around the clearing.
"Well this is where we part ways with the Kitsune, I guess they'll head back to camp and we'll continue with our combat training. I'll teach you to use weapons beside your bow and arrows, your claws as well. Is that all right with you Sun Fire, or do you want to train together?" Sun Fire shook his head and started to lead the other kits away.
"We train a certain way and have been for a while. Shippo would have trouble catching up with the others, and he really does need to learn from his Father." Inuyasha nodded and waved as they disappeared through the trees. He turned back to Kagome and Shippo and motioned them over.
"What this part is going to entail is that I will have targets set up, and for thirty minutes you will use your main weapons to attack them, Kagome will use your arrows, and Shippo will use his magic. Then for the rest of the time I will introduce other weapons, like staffs, swords, and your own claws. This will help you in the long run greatly; you need to learn other things besides long range weapons. Now Kagome go set up your bow and I will set up the targets." Kagome obeyed by walking over and stringing her bow and attaching her quiver to her back. Shippo was all ready so he sat and watched as Inuyasha strung old hides over trees. Kagome came back and watched with Shippo as he finished. Inuyasha landed easily next to Kagome and motioned to the hides. "Now, Shippo you aim for the first ten and Kagome take the second ten. We'll leave these here and when you destroy most of the hides then you will move up a level. Go ahead." Kagome and Shippo nodded and set up, took aim and fired.
"Fox Fire!" Shippo cried and watched as his aim went wide. "Awww, that's no fair! It should hit, Fox Fire!" He cried again, but with the same result. Kagome was doing well. She hit her first six marks and the then with a resounding –crack! - the bow snapped right in the middle. Kagome cried out in surprise and Inuyasha walked over to her.
"Just as I thought, with your increased strength and reflexes you're a better shot, but you are going to need a stronger bow." He reached out and wiped away a streak of blood that formed when a splinter of the wood had grazed her cheek when the bow had snapped. "Okay Shippo, stop for now, well start on accuracy again tomorrow after we get Kagome a new bow. For now well concentrate on claws." Inuyasha grabbed a log and slammed it into the ground. "For the first few days well just use this." Inuyasha stuck out one claw and scraped it down the log, pulling a thick curl of wood away from the branch. "You will sit and use your claws to wind this down to one staff with a point; this will strengthen your claws so that you can use them to do actual damage to others. You will do this until the end of the day. Now get started." Even though Kagome and Shippo whined about the fact that they had to do something so menial they set to work. As they finally go into doing the work time passed easily for them and it wasn't long before Inuyasha called them to a halt. There muscles were aching, but they had actually accomplished something on the top of the log. Kagome grinned,
"I thought that this would be boring, but I can tell that even now my claws are getting stronger, the more you use them, the stronger they get." Shippo pouted at his mother and held up his hand.
"But I have splinters in my hand now." He whined, tears starting to form in his eyes. Kagome picked him up and examined his small hands, seeing where the small back splinters stuck out of his paw. She tasked and looked at Inuyasha.
"Lets hurry back to the hut I have tweezers there to pull these out." Inuyasha nodded and took off into the trees with Kagome right behind cradling Shippo's hand.
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Hours later Kagome sat curled in Inuyasha's arms; clean, in clean pajamas and with a full stomach. She had removed the splinters from Shippo's paw earlier, and now all she wanted was to curl up and go to sleep. The day had taken way more out of her than she thought it would have, but it was a good tired. Kagome looked up at Inuyasha from her position in his arms and smiled as she realized he was all ready asleep.
"I Love you Inuyasha, goodnight." Kagome whispered before falling asleep with a great feeling of well being. Tomorrow was another day and she was happy to be sharing it with her loved ones, maybe they could include Sango and Miroku sometime.
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TBC………………………………………………
Oh Yeah!!! A new chapter out finally! And it's longer than all the others, I hope you like it and I'm sooooo sooooo soooo sorry for the long delay. I hope that my muse stays with me so I can get the next chapter out soon. :) Please review, it really does help me get to writing.
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or any of its characters. Any new characters are my creations; please tell me before you use them.
AN: I'm so sorry that I haven't updated lately.
Inu: Yeah right! Ya lazy bum, even you don't care about this crappy story!
Sun: Of course I do, my muse just decided she would take a Holiday, Not my fault!
Inu: Sure, whatever you want to believe, just make sure I stay with Kagome!
Sun: Oh you'll be with Kagome, don't you worry. evil grin as she turns to type
Inu: Why am I suddenly worried about that?
*thought*
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Chapter 9: A Day
Inuyasha awoke the next day before all the others, and noticed that he and Kagome had switched positions during the night. Normally he was leaning against the wall with Kagome asleep against him, and the Tetsiaga was within easy each of his hand. Today Kagome was spooned against him as they lay stretched out on the floor, he head was buried in his shoulder and he could feel her breath wafting against his neck. Inuyasha shivered in delight at the feel of his Mate pressed so intimately against him, he could feel the rise of her chest and the softness of her hair as it mingled with his, the black and silver strands entwining around them to form a blanket that looked like a star filled sky. Inuyasha just lay there as a feeling of complete and utter peace washed over him, filling all of his senses with a feeling of contentment. Inuyasha pulled back slowly from Kagome and just sat and watched her as the light started to filter into the hut as day began to break.
Inuyasha barely noticed as the others in the hut started to awaken. Kaede was the first to arise her bones creaking as she wandered around to start cooking breakfast. Miroku and Sango were the next to wake up, both going out to take care of business, and all the while Inuyasha just continued to watch Kagome sleep, keeping absolutely still so that none of the others would realize that he was awake as well. *Gods she's so beautiful. I can't believe that she has agreed to be mine; I thought no one would ever want me. She's just even more beautiful with her eyes open, please Kagome open your eyes and look at me. Let me see those gorgeous blue eyes.*
At that moment Kagome started to shift as she began to wake up. Kagome groaned as she shifted against Inuyasha and her eyes started to flutter. Her eyes opened slowly and he caught a glimpse of vibrant blue slits before he was totally pulled under by her gaze. Kagome smiled softly at Inuyasha the hand that was entwined with his squeezed gently.
"Hey." Kagome whispered, "What are you doing?" Inuyasha reached out a hand and brushed back some of her hair from in front of her eyes, not even caring if anyone knew they were awake or not anymore.
"Just watching you sleep your beautiful beloved." Inuyasha leaned into Kagome slowly giving her time to back up if she wanted, but Kagome leaned forward as well and their lips met lightly for what seemed like the very first time. The first kiss was soft, only a gentle rubbing of their lips together but they both felt a zing of passion running through their bodies. Kagome let out an almost silent whimper as Inuyasha drew away before leaning back in. This time the kiss was more intense as Inuyasha leaned over Kagome, rolling her onto her back and pressing even deeper into her body. Kagome's hands sunk into Inuyasha's hair as she pulled him closer their lips fusing in an intricate dance. Inuyasha licked at Kagome's lips and she easily opened for him. Kagome groaned deeply in her throat as their tongues dueled sliding along each other. Inuyasha explored the recesses of Kagome's mouth, his tongue memorizing the soft and ruff places in her mouth, coaxing deep moans from her body. Inuyasha sighed into the comfort of Kagome's mouth and his hand was slowly drifting over her side when they heard Miroku clear his throat.
"If you two would mind, take the show to another place please? I don't want to have to watch you if I can't do something like that myself." They could both hear the smirk in his voice, even from their passion induced haze. Inuyasha groaned as he tore himself away from Kagome and buried his head in her neck. Kagome looked up at Miroku from over Inuyasha's shoulder and glared.
"I don't like you right now Miroku." Kagome declared as Inuyasha slowly started pulling his body away from hers. Inuyasha groaned deeply but continued to move away from Kagome.
"It's okay; we have to get up for training anyway. But the bozou monk was rude." Kagome watched as Inuyasha's eyes flashed and he was standing up right in seconds, Inuyasha brought his hand down on top of Miroku's head with a smack and watched as the Monk dropped unconscious to the floor. "That's for being a lecher and watching what we were doing." Inuyasha reached down for Kagome and smiled slightly at her, pulling her up to his level. Inuyasha looked around and saw that everyone but Shippo was now up, and that breakfast was ready. Inuyasha snorted before going over and collecting his bowl. He looked over at Kagome, "I'm gonna head on out to set up the training area, wake up Shippo and eat your breakfast and I will come back to get you when I'm done. All right?" Kagome nodded as she walked over to Shippo to shake him from where he was sleeping curled around Kirara.
"That would be great. Do we need anything special for today?" Kagome turned to look at him with an awakening Shippo in her arms.
"Not really, bring you Bow and Arrows so you don't have to walk back to get them after lunch and make sure Shippo has his magic items with him when you leave as well, and that would be it." Shippo rubbed his eyes as he woke up fully and reached out for Inuyasha. Inuyasha stilled as he picked up the fox kit he now called son. Shippo wrapped his arms around Inuyasha's neck and squeezed giving Inuyasha a hug, Shippo pulled back with a yawn.
"Morning Dad." Shippo then hopped down from Inuyasha's arms and walked over to the fire leaving Inuyasha stunned in the middle of the room. Kagome giggled at his expression and watched as he regained control and then walked over to kneel by Shippo, he grabbed a bowl and filled it for the little kitsune and then as he gave him the bowl nuzzled his head into the top of Shippo's in a manly expression of affection. Shippo's head jerked in surprise to look at his father, but Inuyasha was already walking out the door with a blush tingeing his cheeks. When he was well away Kagome finally laughed out loud at the combined expressions of surprise she had seen on Inuyasha's and Shippo's faces.
"What's so funny Kagome?" Sango questioned as the Exterminator walked by her friend on the way to the fire. Kagome shook her head as she joined the other members of their group by the fire.
"I just find it funny how much Father and Son resemble each other even when they're not related." Sango smiled and nodded in agreement both watching as Shippo quickly ate his food and went to gather the things he would need for the day. Kagome just smiled fondly at her son.
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Almost half an hour later Inuyasha was done with the scent trials and heading back to the hut for Kagome and Shippo. The wind and other animals would slightly confuse the trail he had laid for the two of them and that was exactly what he wanted to happen. If they could follow the trial he had laid today without much trouble tomorrow he would increase the difficulty. And with so many creatures running through his forest it was bound to be distracting, especially for Kagome, who had never really used her senses before. Sure, she was using them now, but because she had never used them to try and pinpoint something they were still at a human level, and he would need to cure that first thing. He needed to make Kagome's Hanyou senses take over and start working; Kagome would never want to go back to a normal human after she realized how awesome it was being a hanyou. As Inuyasha approached the hut he could see Kagome and Shippo standing in front of the porch waiting for him, and the sight made his breath catch. There were the two most important people in his life and they actually wanted and accepted him, they didn't think he was a freak. *And they love me.* The thought breathed along his consciousness and it made Inuyasha smile broadly and pick up speed to where he was loping when he reached them. He skidded to a in front of them and hid a small smile as Shippo let out a squeak in surprise, as he had been distracted by trying to read the spells stitched into his mother's armor.
"Daaaddd! Don't do that!" Shippo commanded as he hopped from Kagome's arms onto Inuyasha's shoulder. Inuyasha reached up and lightly bopped Shippo on the head in response, making the hit as playful as possible.
"I shouldn't be able to surprise you Shippo, even if you are doing something else. That's what your training is going to be for. By the time I'm done with you and we're back on the road you should be able to tell how many Youkai are around us at all times, and even if you are involved with reading or repairing a torn sleeve you should not be stunned when another creature, human or otherwise, walks up to you." Shippo was listening with rapt attention to his Father turned teacher and Kagome was nodding her head soaking up the information.
"So what do we do first, oh Wise Hanyou?" Kagome questioned, a giggle trapped in the back of her throat. Inuyasha had an evil gleam in his eye as he looked at her.
"Keh! You'll lose your sarcasm in just a minute Kag, you are going to have to try and keep up with me as we head to the starting point for our training. You manage to do that fairly well and I'll allow you to take a 2 minute break at anytime during the day. And believe me, the two minutes will be a godsend if you win." Kagome shook her head at him, as if she thought that the challenge would be way too easy, but nodded anyway. Inuyasha gave a tilt of his head in acknowledgement, grabbed Shippo around the waist, and took off like a shot for the woods. Kagome's eyes went wide in surprise and she cried out as she leapt after the dog demon.
"Inuyasha! That's not fair! Get your scrawny ass back here!" All that could be heard was Inuyasha's laughter.
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Inuyasha landed gracefully in the middle of the clearing. He set Shippo down carefully, and waited calmly for Kagome to arrive.
"1…2…3…4…5…6…7…*Thump!* There you are Kagome, what took you so long?" Inuyasha questioned as he looked over at the flushed Inu-hanyou. Kagome's breathing was fast and shallow, her chest heaving with its need to put air in her lungs. As Inuyasha watched Kagome struggled to keep her feet as they threatened to give out from the exertion, she swayed, but managed to stay standing. Inuyasha's eyebrows went up as Kagome glared darkly at him.
"You took off with out telling me. That was not fair! I don't care how long it took; I should still get that two minute break!" Ohhh, his Kagome was steamed at him. Inuyasha hid a smug grin; even he was smart enough to value his life.
"I said you had to stay with me, I never said it was fair Kagome. No Youkai is going to say, 'oh here I go, I'm running away now! Or I'm coming to get'cha!' It's not going to happen, and you need to be prepared to react in an instant to anything that is coming after us. Now you made it here only 7 seconds after I did, and that is very good for a first try, but tomorrow when we do this again I want you to try even harder, because when you get the time down to 4 seconds, I'll reward you with that 2 minute break. Okay?" Kagome looked pissed as hell, but she grudgingly nodded. By this time though, Shippo was feeling upset at his parents.
"Inuyasha! Kagome gets a chance to get a break, why don't I?" Shippo whined looking up at his Father. Inuyasha grinned down at him and nodded.
"You'll get your chance to have a break Shippo, just hold on. Now," Inuyasha reached inside his robes and pulled out a leaf wrapped package, "What do you all smell?" Inuyasha questioned as he crouched down and pulled back the coverings so that they could see a dead rabbit laid out. Its neck had been snapped, and so there was no blood, but still Kagome was slightly skittish of being around a dead animal. Inuyasha saw this and immediately held out a hand, bringing the newest Inu-hanyou closer to the dead animal. He looked at Kagome directly and tapped her nose with the hand that had formerly held her wrist. "What do you smell?" Shippo had already taken in the scent of the rabbit and was eager to reply.
"The leaves and the rabbit!" Came his easy reply and Inuyasha nodded patting the young boys head.
"That's right Shippo, but you already know what a rabbit smells like, we have to teach Kagome that. Now Kagome, What do you smell?" Kagome leaned closer to both of them, her nose very close to the rabbit.
"I smell, you Inuyasha and Shippo. Umm… there's a green scent that I guess is the leaves, Right?" Inuyasha nodded his head and motioned for her to continue. "Under all that is an earthy smell combined with a scent of fur, and an old tang. Would that be the rabbit?" Inuyasha's grin split his face as he sat fully on the ground, bringing Kagome with him.
"Exactly, that scent with out the tang is the rabbit; the sharp tang you're picking up is the rabbit's fear as it died. It's a scent that you can smell on anyone not just animals. Now do one more thing for me, but keep that scent of the rabbit in mind. Sit back on the grass and breathe in exactly the same way you did when you were getting the scent of the rabbit." Kagome looked skeptical, but did what she was asked, and relaxed back into the grass. Kagome closed her eyes and breathed in through her nose. Kagome's nose went wild as the scents of the forest assaulted her, the grass and the wind, and all the different creatures running through the forest, all left their own trail on the world. Kagome's ears perked and for the first time really opened to the world about her. She was assaulted with all the sounds, little twits and sighs, loud roars from a long distance, and a crash of antlers. Kagome's ears twitched in all directions as she began putting sounds and smells together to form a picture. She added the sense of touch to the picture, the feel of the wind running over her and the sun as well, and all of the sudden behind her eyes; she could see the forest come alive. It stole her breath, the vibrant smells and voices that rang through out this place made her breath catch her breath and open her eyes to see the beauty around her. When her eyes opened Kagome was disoriented as the picture in her head and the one around her clashed. She swayed but was caught by Inuyasha as he whispered to her.
"It's all right Kagome. Just sit for a few moments, understand that what you are hearing and smelling are things you can't see. If you wandered off with just you other senses you would wind up hitting a tree or bush with your head." Kagome nodded and slowly the information she was getting settled into an understandable overall picture. Inuyasha noticed the change in her demeanor and looked closely at her face. "You okay now?" Kagome grinned at him and sat up in the grass, Shippo bounded into her arms.
"It's great isn't mama? All the smells and sounds you can hear that others can't! It's amazing." Shippo's tail was wagging as they looked around and Kagome scratched his head.
"Yes it is Shippo." She turned back to Inuyasha. "So what do we do next?" Inuyasha grinned and stuck the rabbit back in his robes.
"Do you all still have the scent of the rabbit?" He watched as both Kagome and Shippo stood an|
d nodded. "Good, I used that rabbit to lay a scent trail around this forest. It leads many places, but not all of them are obvious. I want you all to find the rabbit's trail from here onward. You have from now until an hour before the zenith to find the end of the trail, roughly four hours total, or you are stuck with me for an extra thirty minutes today at the end. Now for Shippo, your challenge is that if you can find the end of the trial before Kagome can you get to have the 2 minute break. This may seem unfair Kagome, but look at it this way. While he has had more experience at smelling, he has no practice tracking certain scents, and you are faster and have a better nose than he does because your Youkai side has already had its growth spurt." Inuyasha looked at his two students and they agreed to the terms he had set and begin looking for the trail. "I'll be hanging around above you so don't worry about being caught off guard by anything too big." He declared as he vanished into the trees. Kagome sighed at his antics and raced off into the forest after Shippo.
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Kagome trudged into the clearing that held a grinning Inuyasha, and nothing else. It was a little under four hours later and Kagome was wet, dirty in unthinkable places, sweaty, and down right pissed.
"You look like you had fun Kagome, I'm glad." Inuyasha called from where he sat with his back against a tree. "It seems you found the trial well enough, have you seen Shippo recently?" Kagome growled menacingly at the smirking Inu-hanyou, her clawed hands flexing in a need to wrap them around his neck.
"You did all of that on purpose Inuyasha!"
"What did I do on purpose Kagome? I assure you that I only laid a game trial that any animal could have taken." Inuyasha sat trying to look completely innocent, but Kagome wasn't fooled.
"Through a Briar Patch with a Mud puddle in it! I would think a rabbit would avoid a mud puddle." Kagome seethed as she came even closer to the lounging demon. Inuyasha just looked at her.
"Yes, the rabbit would have avoided the mud puddle, and it did, but it also would have still used the Briar Patch, it's you who didn't sense the mud until you were in it. As well as the stream that you seem to have fallen in to, it may have been hidden, but it was defiantly small enough for a rabbit to jump. Is it my fault that you were so concentrated on the rabbit's scent that you forgot to listen or even look for other dangers?" Inuyasha smugly questioned, and Kagome stopped reaching for his throat and blinked at his statement. Inuyasha watched as her ears wilted back onto her head from their perked position, and Inuyasha reached forward stroking one of her ears. "You did really well for your first time at tracking beloved, It means you have a good nose, and won't give up. You just have to learn to listen to the obstacles around you as well as what you are tracking. Now, have you seen Shippo?" Kagome by this time was purring into his hand, and she had to shake herself out of the pleasure induced stupor.
"Shippo wasn't too far behind me; he should be getting here right about…" Kagome cocked her ears to one side and listened for the rustling of the brush. "Now." And with that Shippo tumbled into the clearing, and though he had taken longer than his mother, he was considerably cleaner than her. Kagome watched as Shippo's expression fell when he saw both of them all ready there, but then he realized how dirty she was compared to him, and he grinned at her.
"Mom, you're all dirty! Did you fall into a mud pool or something?" Shippo giggled as he watched his mother. Kagome growled playfully at her son and started toward him as he laid on his side laughing. Kagome grinned evilly and reached for Shippo picking him up.
"Awww now Shippo, don't you want to give your mother a hug?" Kagome started to rub her face and clothes against Shippo, and he squealed in surprise and started to squirm away from the wet dirty Inu-hanyou. Kagome laughed and dropped Shippo back to the ground and he ran over to Inuyasha. Inuyasha picked Shippo up and ruffled his hair.
"Well, you all did well for the first day, and this defiantly gives me a gauge of your abilities for the rest of your training. Now, it's time for Shippo to head off to the Kitsune camp for his lessons, right?" He looked over at Kagome and she nodded her head. Inuyasha held Shippo tight before taking off into the trees. Kagome easily followed, not surprised that he hadn't given her a warning about leaving, but even now it was easier to tail her Mate, she still couldn't really keep up, but she wasn't completely left behind.
It only took a few minutes for them to arrive at the Kitsune clearing and Kagome was pleased to see that there was a group of kit's with Sunfire already around one of the fires. Kagome and Inuyasha touched down not to far from the fire and watched as Shippo ran to join the others there. Sunfire waved over at the two before they left, and Kagome caught a glimpse of SolarFlare running out to meet Shippo before both of them took off back into the forest. Inuyasha took them back to the clearing were they had begun the tracking chase and where Kagome had left her bow and arrows. Kagome started at the fire pit she saw dug in the middle of the clearing now. Inuyasha turned back to Kagome from where he had landed and smiled as she came down next to him.
"Now, since the first part of the day is over it's now time for lunch, but there is one catch. You have to help me catch it. We already have the rabbit from earlier this day, but that is most defiantly not enough for even one of us." Inuyasha kept his face perfectly straight as he watched Kagome's face. "I'm going to find one scent in this forest, if you can track that scent to the source, the animal, then I will catch it and we can eat lunch. Later you will start hunting for our food, but you must become more proficient at tracking animals, and using your claws before we even try that. Do you think you could give it a try?" Inuyasha tilted his head to the side in question, and watched as Kagome bobbed in place in excitement.
"Of course I can, come on!" Inuyasha huffed at her, and put his nose to the air. Almost immediately he caught the scent of a young deer running through the forest. He grinned as he pulled Kagome toward him and put her nose to the wind. "You smell the deer Kagome? An earthy smell mixed with a tangy meat scent and a deep musk? That's the deer, do you have it?" Kagome nodded her head and leaned forward. "Good, now follow it to the deer for me." Kagome grinned and took off through the woods. Inuyasha raced above her in the trees and watched with pride as she already put his criticism to use, watching were she put her feet, and what she ran into. Kagome dodged tree trunks, and hopped over logs and small bushes in her path. Kagome landed once in a small stream, but quickly corrected herself. Kagome stopped dead in her tracks and Inuyasha looked around, he spotted the deer not fifty feet a head of her. Inuyasha jumped down from the tree branch and silently joined Kagome on the forest floor. He scented the deer and crouched down next to Kagome, "You head back to the clearing and I'll meet you there with the deer, 'kay?" Kagome nodded her head and waited for Inuyasha to spring after the frighten deer before turning back and tracing her way to the clearing. Kagome heard the crash of Inuyasha running through the forest and grinned as she walked the fire pit in the center of their clearing; she lit the fire there and waited patiently for Inuyasha to come with the food.
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Kagome shifted next to Inuyasha as they sat next to the roasting deer, they had already eaten their meal, but there was still a lot of meat left on the deer, they were cooking it to bring it back to Kaede and the others.
"Hey Inuyasha? What is Shippo learning while we're doing this?" Kagome questioned as she leaned into her feature Mate. Inuyasha thought for a few moments before responding.
"It's not much, the group lessons would be etiquette inside a pack and the ranks that each person could earn with in that pack. When he goes off with Sunfire he will be learning the 'guy' stuff. What changes he will be going through and all the other urges he will get after he has his change." Inuyasha blushed as he explained this to Kagome. "I got the lessons for both of my growths at one time, because Sesshomaru wanted me gone as soon as possible, but you remember what it was like to have the lessons right? Or at least the demon you integrated with should remember because she already went through her growth." Kagome dug deep inside her memories and found what she was looking for. There buried deep was a catch of memories about time spent with an older looking female, as she explained the intricacies of going into heat, and how her body would give off a certain scent at certain times. Kagome blushed as she suddenly became conscious of how close she was to Inuyasha and how her body reacted to his presence. Inuyasha drew in a deep breath and smelled the fact that Kagome's body was now giving off an enticing hormone. Inuyasha growled as his body reacted to Kagome's and he reached out to turn her head to his. The kiss burned all the way down to her toes, the fire igniting in her belly. Kagome moaned into Inuyasha's mouth and got an answering response from deep in his throat. They were still making out when Shippo, Foxfire, SolarFlare, and about ten other kits ran into their clearing. Shippo giggled as he caught his parents in another compromising position. The other kits stopped, stunned, and then joined Shippo in giggling over the two older adults kissing. SolarFlare ran up next to the two demons, who had not yet noticed the Kitsune's, and asked innocently,
"Does he taste good miss Kagome?" The little voice right next to them snapped Kagome and Inuyasha out of there haze and Kagome looked down in surprise at the little fox child. Even in her haze she had heard the question, she looked over at Inuyasha and grinned.
"Yes SolarFlare, he does taste good." Kagome stood with a smirk, and Inuyasha groaned laying back on the grass with his hands over his eyes in exasperation. The Kits on the ground laughed out loud and started crawling over the Inu-hanyou on the ground. Kagome was standing off to one side with SolarFlare and Shippo, but Sun Fire walked over to the Hanyou. He stood over the prone Dog Demon until he lifted his arm and opened his eyes. Sun Fire crouched down on to his level.
"I can see now why you like your feature Mate, she is a feisty one, I like her very much." Inuyasha growled at the smirking Fox and suddenly sat up, spilling two other Kits on the ground at the same time making them yell in surprise. Inuyasha grinned as he stood clasping hands with Sun Fire,
"So are you ready to start our magic training?" Sun Fire grinned and made a noise low in his throat that made all of the Kits stop whatever they were doing and come to sit near the older Fox. Kagome's eyebrows rose as she watched Shippo and SolarFlare run to join the others and sit quietly.
"I wish I could learn how to do that, if we could get him to listen to us that well I wouldn't stress so much." Kagome grinned to show she was joking around, then took Inuyasha's hand and went to sit down herself. This was going to be fun, at least she hoped so.
******************************************************************************** "Now," Sun Fire was saying almost an hour later, "Kitsune magic is really illusion, but as you age and get older what you are trying to achieve is to make that illusion seem real. While if someone touches your magic they will know it is an illusion, you should be able to make some one believe that you are picking something up, anything within reach, even the person themselves. You can also make the person believe that they are being hurt or made to do something, and the stronger you get the longer the illusions last. But there is also a physical aspect to the Kitsune magic as Shippo has learned. The illusions must be based off of something physical, a leaf or a spinning top, that we can make into something else, also we do use physical magic, the Foxfire is an actual physical magic that can hurt another person, we have other's as well, but you must master the Foxfire first. This is where we can help Inuyasha and Kagome on their magic because Dog magic is a physical magic, not many Dogs can really do magic, but the royal families in both Dog packs have access to the Magic of their line. The reason I had you center yourselves is that the magic comes from within you; you must find that ball of magic that rests in your body and pull it out to use it. Whether you are casting an illusion or actually performing a physically attack you will be using that same magic source and will pull from it in the same way, it will be the result that is different. For today I just want you to try and pull out that ball of magic. If you manage to tap into you will glow with the color of your power, this should happen whether you are a dog or a fox. Do you all understand?" Sun Fire looked over the demons sitting before him, the kits were mostly calm, but they all twitched periodically. Sun Fire smiled as he watched the kits ever present energy bounced around their bodies, and even though they moved sporadically he could tell that they were all centered to some degree, he was pleased to notice that Shippo and SolarFlare were the most centered of the bunch, but even they moved. Inuyasha and Kagome on the other hand were deathly still, the only sign of life was that they still breathed and he could see the rise and fall of there chests. He got no response of acknowledgment from any of his students in front of him, but as he reached his aura out he could feel them trying to connect with there magic. For a good thirty minutes nothing happened and no glows of auras could be seen, but then all of the sudden, almost as if in tandem, both Shippo and SolarFlare lit up like small stars. Shippo's aura was a deep blue that leapt and climbed like a like fire, SolarFlare was an opposite in color. Her aura matched her fur, the colors of orange and red blending so that it looked like she was about to burn herself up, but he knew that wouldn't happen. Sun Fire walked over to both kits and whispered to them.
"Very good you two, now see how long you can hold that power. When it gets to be too much release it, don't try to keep hold of it to the point of pain, because getting even this far on the first day is a great accomplishment." And then it continued with the waiting, he didn't think anyone else would be able to connect with there auras today, except maybe for Kagome or Inuyasha, as they had both used it before. There auras would be a sight to see. Sun Fire didn't have to wait long though, and it came as a surprise when Inuyasha managed to bring out his aura. Inuyasha's color was a bright green, like the color of leaves, and surprisingly it was very calm. There was almost no flicker or wave to his aura, as if his inner nature was full of patience. Sun Fire actually stepped back when out of the blue Kagome's aura burst around her, and he had to move away as he felt its pressure on him. For a while he was confused as to why he couldn't move closer to Kagome, but then he realized that she had two auras slowly melding into one. Kagome's demon aura was a beautiful red color, healthy, and her Miko aura, the part forcing him away from her, was a pure blue-white. He knew somehow that when finally Kagome's auras merged he wouldn't be forced from her anymore, but her power would greatly increase, to equal Inuyasha's power after he had his second growth. Inuyasha right now was very strong for his kind, and his magic would grow even more when his second growth hit. He would be able to cast spells that could level half of this country or more. He would be a formidable enemy as soon as he was taught. Now with both of them together though they might actually be unstoppable. Sun Fire shivered at the thought of what would happen if he ever pissed his new friends off.
"Okay you all, that's enough for today. Tomorrow well continue like this until all of you can at least connect with your magic." He watched as the kits and the two Hanyou's came out of there meditative states, and disconnected from there magic. Inuyasha shook himself off as he stood.
"Okay that was… weird." Sun Fire smiled at the Hanyou and nodded.
"That's supposed to happen to you the first few times. Soon you'll be able to call on your aura with only a thought and it won't give you a weird 'sick' feeling." Kagome and the others nodded before Kagome looked over at Inuyasha.
"So what's left for today? We still have about two hours left before we get to go back to the hut." Inuyasha looked at Sun Fire and then around the clearing.
"Well this is where we part ways with the Kitsune, I guess they'll head back to camp and we'll continue with our combat training. I'll teach you to use weapons beside your bow and arrows, your claws as well. Is that all right with you Sun Fire, or do you want to train together?" Sun Fire shook his head and started to lead the other kits away.
"We train a certain way and have been for a while. Shippo would have trouble catching up with the others, and he really does need to learn from his Father." Inuyasha nodded and waved as they disappeared through the trees. He turned back to Kagome and Shippo and motioned them over.
"What this part is going to entail is that I will have targets set up, and for thirty minutes you will use your main weapons to attack them, Kagome will use your arrows, and Shippo will use his magic. Then for the rest of the time I will introduce other weapons, like staffs, swords, and your own claws. This will help you in the long run greatly; you need to learn other things besides long range weapons. Now Kagome go set up your bow and I will set up the targets." Kagome obeyed by walking over and stringing her bow and attaching her quiver to her back. Shippo was all ready so he sat and watched as Inuyasha strung old hides over trees. Kagome came back and watched with Shippo as he finished. Inuyasha landed easily next to Kagome and motioned to the hides. "Now, Shippo you aim for the first ten and Kagome take the second ten. We'll leave these here and when you destroy most of the hides then you will move up a level. Go ahead." Kagome and Shippo nodded and set up, took aim and fired.
"Fox Fire!" Shippo cried and watched as his aim went wide. "Awww, that's no fair! It should hit, Fox Fire!" He cried again, but with the same result. Kagome was doing well. She hit her first six marks and the then with a resounding –crack! - the bow snapped right in the middle. Kagome cried out in surprise and Inuyasha walked over to her.
"Just as I thought, with your increased strength and reflexes you're a better shot, but you are going to need a stronger bow." He reached out and wiped away a streak of blood that formed when a splinter of the wood had grazed her cheek when the bow had snapped. "Okay Shippo, stop for now, well start on accuracy again tomorrow after we get Kagome a new bow. For now well concentrate on claws." Inuyasha grabbed a log and slammed it into the ground. "For the first few days well just use this." Inuyasha stuck out one claw and scraped it down the log, pulling a thick curl of wood away from the branch. "You will sit and use your claws to wind this down to one staff with a point; this will strengthen your claws so that you can use them to do actual damage to others. You will do this until the end of the day. Now get started." Even though Kagome and Shippo whined about the fact that they had to do something so menial they set to work. As they finally go into doing the work time passed easily for them and it wasn't long before Inuyasha called them to a halt. There muscles were aching, but they had actually accomplished something on the top of the log. Kagome grinned,
"I thought that this would be boring, but I can tell that even now my claws are getting stronger, the more you use them, the stronger they get." Shippo pouted at his mother and held up his hand.
"But I have splinters in my hand now." He whined, tears starting to form in his eyes. Kagome picked him up and examined his small hands, seeing where the small back splinters stuck out of his paw. She tasked and looked at Inuyasha.
"Lets hurry back to the hut I have tweezers there to pull these out." Inuyasha nodded and took off into the trees with Kagome right behind cradling Shippo's hand.
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Hours later Kagome sat curled in Inuyasha's arms; clean, in clean pajamas and with a full stomach. She had removed the splinters from Shippo's paw earlier, and now all she wanted was to curl up and go to sleep. The day had taken way more out of her than she thought it would have, but it was a good tired. Kagome looked up at Inuyasha from her position in his arms and smiled as she realized he was all ready asleep.
"I Love you Inuyasha, goodnight." Kagome whispered before falling asleep with a great feeling of well being. Tomorrow was another day and she was happy to be sharing it with her loved ones, maybe they could include Sango and Miroku sometime.
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TBC………………………………………………
Oh Yeah!!! A new chapter out finally! And it's longer than all the others, I hope you like it and I'm sooooo sooooo soooo sorry for the long delay. I hope that my muse stays with me so I can get the next chapter out soon. :) Please review, it really does help me get to writing.