Hello. YAY YAY YAY my reviews have multiplied! I have 6 new ones!!!!!
I know it's been a while since I updated, but the good news is I now know what my next project is after DOD! It's called Ten Thousand Shades of Yellow, and I have so many ideas! I can't wait to start it (Don't worry, I'll finish DOD first!)!
10Y is a sci-fi romance (same pairings) that's got a sorta Ayashi no Ceres kinda feel, with a little bit of Andromeda thrown in for no good reason (I am probably the only person on the planet who draws from a Western sci-fi/action random TV show and a Japanese fantasy/horror/romance philosophical manga…). And I'm pretty sure it's an original idea, too! Speaking of which, it will probably be much longer than DOD, and if I changed the names I could probably get it published…hmm…(strokes beard)… If you want more info, check my bio page.
And no one has entered my contest (AGAIN). Oh well, it was a stupid idea. I may or may not update on my birthday (more likely not), but next time you will all receive a severe chastening!!!!
I WOULD LIKE TO ISSUE A WARNING. ANY REVIEWS THAT HAVE BEEN SIGNED WITH RANDOM MONIKERS SUCH AS 'WHAK AND S---- C----' OR 'MORE PERVY JUNK' OR ENDING IN 'HIGHO, SLEEPY' ARE THE RESULT OF THE DERANGED BEING KNOWN AS MY BFF AND SHOULD BE IGNORED IN ORDER TO PRESERVE THE SANITY OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC.
Disclaimer: (the anti-depressants have worn off slightly, but the author is still out of it)…Yasha…not own…but…Inu…own…beer mat…uh…bed rat…bread tap…Breathtrap! That's it, Breathtrap…
Evil Thing O' The Day: my kitty (the one who's very Miroku) decided last night that my bra looked tasty…
Kokuei: (head spinning from length of review) uhh…I think I processed all of that. I'll email you sometime, and I'll read your stories too!
More pervy junk: DIE. Higho.
Dreamteazer: glad you like it. I haven't done much magick myself, but it's cool that I got that kinda close (I've been doing a lot of reading, that's probably why).
Pirate-rover: glad you liked it! I'm also glad people have been so supportive of my philosophical insanity…I may not get around to Te Amo, Maestra for a while (see note above) but if 10Y starts getting too dark I'll start it for balance (oh no here I go again, balance…but TAM would be light, and 10Y dark…heh heh heh)
FlamingRedFox: yay, thanx for putting me on your favorites. When Chipmunks Attack was odd…but hilarious. I wanna read When Squirrels Attack!
Anyway, on with the insanity…
It was now ten days since the new moon, and Kagome and Inu-Yasha continued to train. Kagome had developed a habit of touching Inu-Yasha whenever they were together—a hand on his shoulder or arm, a kiss on the forehead of cheek; simple gestures to reassure him she wasn't afraid. She had taken his revelation surprisingly well, shedding her fear in less than a week.
He was of course delighted that she hadn't rejected him. The gentle intimacy they now shared pleased him as well, but his joy was tinged with sadness. He still hadn't been able to tell her how he felt. Part of it was a lingering fear of her fear of demons. But most of it was the simple fear of rejection everyone feels when they're in love.
Kagome had progressed in her training as well. She had gotten to the point where Inu-Yasha could wield Tetsusaiga against her and not be (completely) worried.
"Hey Inu-Yasha?"
He looked up over his shoulder to where she was washing the breakfast dishes. "What?"
"When we train today—don't hold back, okay? Fight as though you were training Miroku or Sango."
He gaped at her. "But, Kagome—"
She cut him off. "No buts. I need to know if I'm strong enough.'
"But…" Inu-Yasha trailed off with a sigh. "I don't want to hurt you," he said quietly.
Kagome gave him a small smile. "I know," she said, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. "But I need to be sure. Besides, you're pretty weak."
"I am not!" Inu-Yasha replied indignantly.
"Oh really. Then how come you go all twitchy whenever I do this?" She blew gently on his ear.
Inu-Yasha's shoulders jerked and his ears flicked away from her. "Don't do that," he complained. "It tickles."
Kagome laughed. "See?"
He glared at her and she stuck out her tongue. "Oh all right," he grumbled. "But if I kill you I'll kill you."
"That made no sense at all."
"You know what I mean. Come on, let's get this over with," Inu-Yasha grumbled.
'' '' '' '' ''
"Iron Reaver Soul Stealer!" Inu-Yasha shouted, lunging at Kagome. She bent back out of his way, letting his own momentum carry him past her. He spun around with a curse and aimed at her again, willing himself to believe it was Sango he was fighting and not Kagome.
It helped that she was wearing Sango's clothes and had her hair up like Sango's often was. If he didn't think about it, he could let himself believe Kagome was Sango.
So he relaxed and unconsciously began leading Kagome into one of the choreographed fights he and Sango did in training when Miroku wasn't around to fight with.
Inu-Yasha drew Tetsusaiga and aimed a backhanded slice at Kagome's left side. She slid down into a squat, letting the sword whistle harmlessly over her head. Her leg snapped out to sweep his feet out from under him.
Damn, Sango isn't that fast, Inu-Yasha thought as he fell. He caught himself and flipped upright as Kagome aimed another kick his way. He caught her foot and pulled, forcing her to stumble past him.
She made use of her momentum, turning it into a forward roll. Kagome was on her feet in a flash, running across the yard. Inu-Yasha followed, his super-human speed soon bringing him past her.
He turned to face Kagome, who had nearly run into him. He reached for her throat, but she was faster. Her palm slapped into his gut, bringing with it a blinding rush of pink energy.
Inu-Yasha flew backwards and landed heavily. Oww…if it wasn't for the dampeners I put around her power I'd be dead. Without thinking he released the Breathtrap.
Rubbing his back, Inu-Yasha sat up with a groan. How did Sango get so good? he wondered. Then: Shit.
Inu-Yasha was on his feet like a shot. He ran over to where Kagome lay, gasping for breath, "Oh, no. Oh, no." he muttered. He placed his hand on her chest, between her breasts, connected with the energy pulsing in her, and PULLED. His head shot back and he clenched his teeth, hissing in pain as the raw power flowed up his arm back into his heart.
Kagome moaned and stirred beneath his hand. He sighed in relief and helped her sit up, pulling her into his arms.
"Oh thank God," he whispered into her hair.
Kagome made another pained noise. "What the hell are you trying to do to me, hanyou?" she demanded weakly.
Reluctantly Inu-Yasha let her pull away. "I…It's called as Breathtrap," he said with a resigned sigh. "You hit me with enough power to kill a demon. Most demons have a sort of revenge for that—the Breathtrap. I forgot I was fighting you and not Sango, so I released it."
"But what is it?" Kagome demanded. "And why do I feel like someone tried to fit me into a thimble and then disconnected all my atoms?"
Inu-Yasha blushed. "Well…because they kind of did. Our personal energy is what holds us together. When a demon is killed, that releases the Breathtrap. Basically all the demon's remaining energy is transferred to whoever killed it. The extra force causes that person to…implode.
"I let myself forget it was you I was fighting, and not Sango," he continued. "She knows how to counter the Breathtrap. But you don't and when I tried to remove it I took too much energy. So that's why you feel so…"
"Disjointed?"
"Yeah. See, a Breathtrap fuses with all the loose energy of your body—the energy field—so it's hard to take it out without removing some of the victim's energy at the same time.
"And how do I counter it?" Kagome asked, putting a hand on his shoulder and trying to stand. She let him help her to her feet.
"Well, you have to know it's coming, and accept it, or else you're in trouble. Basically instead of letting it mesh with your energy field you take it into your core."
"Oh…" Kagome replied.
He led her into the house and sat her down at the kitchen table. Inu-Yasha then went to find the first-aid kit. "I'm very sorry," he said, gently bandaging a scrape on her wrist (random injury…). "I…I guess I goofed."
"'Sall right," she said quietly. "Shows you're…you're still human."
She sniffed and Inu-Yasha looked up. A tear ran down her cheek and splashed onto his hand.
"Oh, Kame," he said, wrapping his arms around her. He realized what he was doing and blushed. "I'm just making things worse, aren't I?"
"No," she protested, leaning against him. "I'm not afraid of you, remember? I just…Well, think about it. I've spent almost a moth hiding from demons with a hanyou and training to protect a gem I've never even seen and just had a near-death experience, and only having half my energy makes me light headed. It's enough to make anyone cry."
Inu-Yasha laughed. 'You are entirely too sensible for your own good, you know that?"
"Mm…" Kagome closed her eyes.
"Hey?"
"…What?"
Inu-Yasha bent his head down and kissed her lightly. With the kiss came a jolt of power that sent energy crackling up and down her spine.
"What the—"
Inu-Yasha blushed again. "I figured you'd want your energy back."
One of her eyebrows rose slightly. "You are weird," Kagome decided, leaning against him and closing her eyes again.
"But that's what makes me special."
Kagome laughed. "You say special, I say weird. Let's call the whole thing off," she sang quietly.
"Now who's weird?"
'' '' '' '' ''
The next morning Kagome was in the kitchen making Inu-Yasha coffee while he checked in with K. After a few failed attempts (baka technology…), he managed to connect to the Internet and log into K's website.
PASSWORD?
THERAININSPAINSTAYSMAINLYINTHEPLAIN, he typed.
K appeared on the large screen that covered half a wall in the study. Miroku and Sango were with her.
"Ah, Inu-Yasha, good," she said. "Where be Kagome?"
"Uh…Kagome!" he called.
"Hm?" she said, walking into the study. She handed him a mug of coffee and leaned over his shoulder. "Hey, Sango!"
On the screen, the three spies exchanged glances. Now that it had been pointed out to him, even Miroku could see how Kagome's hand lingered on Inu-Yasha's shoulder, and the way his eyes lit up when she touched him.
They're in love, all three thought. But it was also painfully obvious that they had no idea—or they were afraid the other person didn't feel the same way.
"I finally got through to Mr. Tenant—"
"That's the Director of Intelligence, right?" Inu-Yasha cut in.
"Yes, Inu-Kun," Miroku said with an exasperated sigh.
"Well there's no need to patronize me…"
"If I could continue?" K said irritable.
"By all means." Miroku gave her a cheeky bow.
"Sango, take the monk somewhere and keep him busy," K said without looking at her. "We have business to do."
As Sango towed Miroku off-screen, K continued, "As I was saying, I got through to Mr. Tenant finally, and told him about the situation. He was…less than happy, and…"
"And?" Kagome prompted. "What is it, Kaede?"
"Well…"
"Spit it out," Inu-Yasha snapped. He was getting antsy, and didn't know why—which only made him more nervous.
"He wants Kagome out of your care," K said with a heavy sigh. "I told him you'd never betray us, but he was convinced that your demon blood would…well, 'take over an otherwise loyal brain' was the exact term he used. So now Kagome must come back to Madison and Sango and Miroku will protect her."
"What?" Kagome said in disbelief. Inu-Yasha's hand came up to cover the one on his shoulder. "But—Inu-Yasha would never hurt me! And who does he think he is, that he can tell me what to do? I'll stay with whoever I want!"
"Kagome, we have no choice. He's the Director of Intelligence—his word is final. You need to be under Sango- and Miroku's protection by midnight tonight."
"But—"
"Kagome, we don't have a choice," Inu-Yasha said heavily, squeezing her hand.
"But—"
"Look, Kagome, he said you have to leave and that's what's going to happen!" he snapped. He shook off her hand and stormed out of the room.
Kagome stared after him. "Inu-Yasha…"
"Kagome, ye'd best get ready to go," K said.
She sank down into the chair Inu-Yasha had vacated. "How can they do that? Just because he's a hanyou—"
"We've explained this all ready, Kagome! We're spies--it's in the job description. Everyone is suspecting and suspected."
"But he can't help who his parents were!"
"Kagome, stop being so stubborn! You can complain all you want, but it won't change anything. Look, this isn't the first time this has happened," K said with a sigh. "Inu-Yasha's mixed blood has caused trouble before. By now he's used to it."
"It just doesn't seem fair…"
"And it's not. But there's not a thing ye can be doing to change it. Go get ready."
'' '' '' '' ''
Inu-Yasha was sitting on the bed, staring glumly at his hands. Kagome sat behind him and wrapped her arms around his chest. "Hey."
"Hey," he said quietly.
"K says this has happened before."
"Yeah," he said, trying and failing not to sound bitter. "I guess I'm used to it."
"If it helps, I'd rather stay with you."
"I guess it does, a little," Inu-Yasha replied, turning in her arms so he was leaning against her sideways. "But it doesn't change anything."
"It's not like he issued a restraining order—we can still be friends."
"Yeah," Inu-Yasha replied. Only friends?
"And we'll defeat Naraku and then we can see each other whenever."
"Yeah."
"Hey, Inu-Yasha?"
"Yeah?"
Kagome laughed. "Do you ever say anything but 'yeah'?"
"Yeah," he replied, grinning. "What?"
"Where is the Shikon no Tama?"
He sat up. "You mean you don't know?"
"Well…no. Nobody ever told me, and I figured if I'm supposed to protect it I should know where it is."
Inu-Yasha put his hand over her heart. "It's right here."
"Inside me?"
"In your heart."
"So that means no one can get it out without killing me."
"Uh…yeah."
Kagome laughed nervously. "'Yeah' again. That's kind of scary."
"But you can defend yourself now," he said, looking up at her.
"Yeah…" she said, studying his face. He leaned closer…
"INU-YASHA! KAGOME! GET BACK HERE AND TURN OFF THE COMPUTER BEFORE YE FORGET!"
Kagome and Inu-Yasha both jumped and ran for the study.
"Gods, K, you don't have to yell," Inu-Yasha grumbled. "I'll see you soon," he added, logging off the Internet and unplugging the computer.
"We should get ready," Kagome said quietly. Did he almost kiss me? she thought, going slightly pink.
"Yeah…"
'' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' ''
Gah, bad place to end. Oh well…yeah yeah yeah….
Inu-Yasha: Kagome isn't that good of a fighter
Kagome: (very red) and he's never kissed me!
Inu-Yasha: (also red) and I'm not going to!
Myriadragon: Uh, let's give them a little space… and Remember, Elephants Very Intelligently Examine Windows!