Disclaimer: I do not claim ownership of Inuyasha: Sengoku o-Togi Zoushi. I am borrowing it for entertainment purposes only. No money is being made from the writing or reading of this story. Only original characters and situations belong to me.
I Want Tomorrow
©2001-2002 by Kei
II – The Pain Within
Kagome smiled warmly at her visitor as she set down the bowl of ramen noodles in front of him, but soon frowned when he simply gazed at her indifferently and began eating without so much as a word of thanks. She didn't know what to make of the dog-eared visitor. Speaking of ears…
'No, I really shouldn't do that,' Kagome thought, retracting the hands she had slowly been extending to touch the fuzzy ears poking up from either side of his white-haired head. It would be quite inappropriate and would most likely annoy him, so Kagome decided against it. For now. Maybe one day she would ask for his permission very politely and it would be given to her. Well, that's what she hoped, anyway. He didn't seem to be the type who went through life whimsically; in fact, his face carried a hardened expression, as though he had been through a war and been traumatized by the horrors of life and death.
'Wait, no, not a war. Something just…disillusioned him,' she realized, letting thin vines of her muted powers creep across the wooden floor and up the legs of the dog demon's chair until they reached his chest. They wound about his head, throat, and upper chest, searching for any bit of loose knowledge floating through his aura. If he were untrained in how to control his emotions and demonic powers, she would be able to tell everything about him. However, it was obvious that someone had taken the pains of teaching him to ward off any invaders, because just as the tendrils started glowing green they shattered abruptly. Though the dog boy's face revealed nothing of what he was feeling, Kagome knew he had sensed her questing powers and broken them.
Once more studying his stony, expressionless mask of a face, Kagome almost pitied him; he looked so young! Had he been human, he probably would have been just around her age of sixteen. What person or experience had caused him to become so closed and distrusting? He hadn't even spoken to her yet, and she knew that he was examining her to make sure if she should know anything about him, if she was trustworthy.
'I'm trustworthy!' her mind cried. 'At least, I think I am. If anyone's divulged a secret to me, I've always kept it to myself. If you've been hurt, you can tell me! I'll make the pain go away, I promise!'
Suddenly, the demon raised his head and turned it sharply to her, staring her right in the eye, piercing the fabric of her soul with those morning star eyes. Kagome wondered if the emotions she had been feeling were strong enough to be sent out so he felt them.
Her worries were forgotten when he shoved his empty noodle bowl away from him, indicating that he was finished. She took the dish from him and placed it in a tub of water where all the dirty dishes and utensils were placed to be washed by Kagome or her mother every morning.
Unsure of what to do or say next, Kagome said, "Um, you're welcome to stay here as long as you like. I'm sure my family won't mind. Uh, my name's Kagome. I guess you'll tell me yours when you're ready, huh? You don't seem like much of a talker. That's okay. Sometimes words aren't required."
"Hey, Kagome!" a voice called from outside, and Kagome peered through a window and smiled, waving at whoever had yelled. She turned back to her guest and told him, "Sôta wants me to come out and play. His and Kaede's chores are all done, and Mama and Grandpa have said they're allowed some free time. Would you like to play with us?"
Wordlessly, he stood up from his seat and followed her out. Kagome's younger siblings and Shippô, the kitsune cub, eagerly greeted them. Sôta and Kaede held back their questions about Kagome's companion for later, but Shippô, cute and tactless, leaped right in and demanded to know the demon's identity. "Who's this?" he inquired, hopping effortlessly onto Kagome's slim shoulder and leaning over towards the doglike boy to sniff him.
"Shippô-chan, don't be so rude," Kagome reprimanded, setting him on the ground. "This is a friend of mine who will be staying with us indefinitely. We're all going to be nice to him, understand?" She was eyeing Shippô in particular when she made that statement. "He hasn't told me his name yet, and it's up to him to decide when to do so. Don't badger him about it, and if you want to speak with him, don't just yell out 'YOU!' or something like that. Politely get his attention and then talk. Is that clear?"
"As crystal, Kagome," Kaede smiled, and Kagome ruffled her little sister's dark hair affectionately.
"So, what game are we going t—?" the eldest child began to ask, but stopped abruptly when a twig breaking in the nearby woods caught her attention. She noticed her dog friend's eyes narrow as his nose twitched, and then his face contorted into a look of fury. He suddenly reached his arm out and wrapped it tightly and securely around her slender waist. She shrieked as he bounded easily onto the roof of the house.
"You three, get Grandpa and Mama and go to our hiding spot!" she shouted down to her charges. "You wait there and don't return until I come to get you!"
Obediently following her orders, the trio darted off around the house and into the woods flowing in the opposite direction. Soon after they had vanished, a demon burst through the dense trees and sniffed around in the place Kagome had just been standing a moment before. She muffled her cries with her hand when she caught sight of the beast, a tall, muscular creature with tough crimson skin, large black eyes, and deadly claws extending from its long fingers. Bloody fangs hung out from behind its black upper lip, and Kagome really didn't want to know where the blood had come from. She was praying for her loved ones' safety and also vaguely wondering in the back of her mind what the dog demon's connection to this new demon was.
She looked in surprise at the demon that had been holding her when he gently set her down on the rooftop. Then he jumped back down to the ground and threw himself hard at the other, larger demon, knocking it down. It grabbed her new friend and threw him off, and he collided hard with a tree, but he was right back up again, barely winded. Kagome watched the events with fear for the nameless dog boy; she didn't want him to get hurt!
The two demons tussled, punching back and forth, neither winning nor losing. Then it seemed that the fight was turned in the dog demon's favor when he growled "Soul Shattering Iron Claw!" and swiped his claws at the opposing demon. Steely blades whipped through the air and sliced deeply into the chest of the crimson monster; Kagome inwardly cheered for her friend. But her joy was overturned into deep horror when the red beast looked unaffected and grabbed the dog demon by his neck, squeezing so as to crush it and kill him.
'I have to help him!' Kagome thought. 'Papa would never forgive me if I didn't at least try.'
With the thought of her deceased father, Hirofumi, in her mind, Kagome shoved her foot through the thatch roof of the house. She knew she could get a friend of hers, a local village boy named Hojo, to fix it later. All that mattered now was retrieving her bow and arrows from inside.
She dropped lightly to the floor and quickly sought out her weapons, which she found laying beside her bed pallet. She slung the quiver over one shoulder and across her back and pulled out one arrow, admiring briefly the way the sharp head gleamed in the noonday sun. She shook her head to clear it and ran outside, clutching the bow and arrow tightly.
The demonic dog was struggling valiantly against the scarlet demon's choking grip, but not succeeding at all. Kagome held the arrow tightly in one hand and stared at it, sending a powerful spell into it that would not only help it fly straight and true, but to destroy the demon as well. She just had to be extremely careful of her aim; if she hit her friend, he was done for, though if she didn't hit the enemy he was dead anyway.
She expertly placed the arrow in the bow and drew the string back, eyes glaring at her target. As Kagome exhaled she released the arrow, and her aim proved true. It struck the evil beast right in its chest, through the heart. It fell over and its body disintegrated, in turn loosing the dog demon from its grasp. He thudded to the soil hard, and Kagome immediately ran over to him, discarding her bow and quiver. She knelt beside him and cradled him in her arms.
"Will you be able to stand?" she inquired when he opened his eyes that actually looked…grateful.
Wordlessly, he rose from her hold and brushed himself off, then offered down a hand to help her up. She thanked him and stood up, reaching out to lightly touch his throat to examine it for more serious wounding than bruises. But he caught her hand in his and gave her a little half-smile.
"My name is Inuyasha," he spoke at last. His voice was far gentler than his rather rugged appearance, and Kagome enjoyed the tones playing on her ears.
"Inuyasha," she repeated, smiling happily, overjoyed that he trusted her enough to tell her his name. Though they had only been acquainted for several hours, Kagome wanted him to stay forever with her, holding her hand this way.
"Thank you," he said. "You are so different from her," he murmured, brushing his hand across her flushing cheek.
"Who?" Kagome asked curiously, unable to help herself. She reminded him of some other woman he had used to know?
His face darkened at her question, at simply the thought of this woman. Kagome knew then that this mystery lady was the cause of Inuyasha's barrier he had built up around himself.
"O-oh," she managed to stutter out. "I didn't mean to dredge up painful memories, Inuyasha. Forgive me, won't you? Please, I am very sorry."
Inuyasha's head jerked up at her apology. Never had anyone ever been so profusely contrite toward him before. In all his life, if someone had hurt him in some way, he had never been given any apologies. Kagome was different not only from the monstrous Kikyou; she was different from any other being Inuyasha had ever met. Not even his lovely mother could claim to be as kind and tender as this human girl.
"Think nothing of it," he told her and was rewarded with another one of those gorgeous smiles. His eyes reflected her happiness; the desire he'd had for her to give him one of those smiles had been fulfilled.
"Now, are you absolutely certain that you're all right?" Kagome questioned, desperately in need of reassurance. Inuyasha could feel the worry and concern rolling off her in soothing green waves.
"I'm a hanyou, Kagome, my body heals faster than that of a human," he said, giving her hand a comforting squeeze.
"Okay, but if there's anything you need, anything at all, you let me know," she instructed him, poking him lightly in the chest.
"Actually, I need something right now," he admitted, fighting back a blush at how that sounded. "I'm going to return to my home, and I need you to go with me."