Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.
Chapter Ten: On the Way to Kaede's House
October 6th
It was five long days of grumbling and grouching and complaining, but finally Inuyasha saw the village he was looking for. He glanced at his traveling companion and had a hard time not smiling.
She was worn out. Her clothes were dirty and from all the complaints over the last several days he knew that every muscle in her body was sore. Yet she still looked around with interest at everything, squealing happily when something new caught her eye. She still walked along at a steady pace, never once suggesting that they stop. And she still smiled, somehow making her eyes sparkle no matter how tired she was.
Inuyasha sighed and glanced at the girl beside him as she yawned loudly. She hadn't seen the village yet, nor was her nose sensitive enough to smell the smells of the village and its people.
"Let's camp for the night." Even though it may have sounded like a suggestion, he knew that Kagome knew that it was an order. He saw a now familiar fire spark in her eyes. Preparing himself for a battle with her, he watched cautiously as she was fighting with herself. He smirked. Part of her hated being told what to do, but the other half was so tired any excuse to stop was a good excuse.
When she closed her eyes and opened them again, Inuyasha was happy to see that the tired part of her won. He relaxed.
"Thanks," she said, "That sounds like a good idea."
He wondered why she didn't ask him why they stopped. He could see her glance at the sun and notice that it was unusually early. He saw her eyes calculating, trying to figure him out. Then he saw her shrug and smile. It was a happy, grateful smile. He almost returned it.
"Feh," he said as he jumped onto a low hanging branch, "Your weak human body slows us down."
"You're the one who suggested we stop." He heard her grumble under her breath as she kicked some rocks away from the base of a tree. Inuyasha could tell that she had forgotten that she was mad at him as soon as she plopped down on the ground and let out a contented sigh.
Carefully she began to take off her shoes. "I really wish I had worn tennis shoes… but who knew I'd be traipsing around a forest for weeks," she scolded herself in a whisper. There were many times during their trek that Inuyasha wished he didn't have such superior hearing, her complaints were always whispered to herself. It bothered him that she would never tell him things directly. He wasn't entirely sure why it bothered him so much that she wouldn't tell him, but it did. So he did the only thing he could, wait patiently and watch.
Grimacing at the site of her dirt covered socks, Kagome started sliding them down her calves. Suddenly she hissed in pain.
Inuyasha was crouched in front of her inspecting her feet before the first tear could fall. The surprise of his sudden appearance caused her tears to be forgotten.
"What happened to your feet?" he demanded angrily.
Kagome rolled her eyes. "Blisters, dog boy. You know, from all the walking we've been doing." She attempted to pull her feet away from the demon's scrutiny, but he grabbed her ankles and turned them gently from side to side.
Her feet were an unhealthy shade of bright red and covered in painful looking blisters. Some had already broken raggedly. There was even blood on her socks and shoes. Inuyasha cursed silently at her stupidity and stubbornness, and his own. After all, he knew how stubborn she was. But she hadn't complained, even though she was limping slightly, so he didn't stop.
After the inspection he scowled at her and growled. "Why didn't you say something? You are the stupidest human I have ever met!" He continued to glare at her red and blistered skin. "I could have carried you."
"Oh…"
Inuyasha stood up and crossed his arms, looking away from her. "There's a cold stream nearby if you want to put your feet in. It will make them feel better."
Kagome nodded and started to stand. Her breath left in a gasp as Inuyasha scooped her up. His ears twitched at the sound, then he grinned wickedly. Before the girl could grab onto him, Inuyasha began to race through the woods. He glanced down and saw her eyes. There was no fear in them, just surprise. When he picked up speed he heard her laugh happily as she turned her face into the wind.
Once they reached the water, Inuyasha carefully set the girl onto the bank, then jumped into the branches to watch over her. He winced in sympathy as her breath left in a hiss of pain as she eased her sore feet into the water. Only when she sighed contentedly did he relax. He wasn't sure what was so fascinating about watching her kick her feet happily in the water, but he couldn't help himself.
"Are we close to the village?" she asked.
Inuyasha looked towards the village, and away from Kagome. If she noticed his ears drooping she didn't mention it. He looked back at her and saw her studying him.
"Yes."
"How close?"
"Very."
It was difficult not to smirk when he heard the girl growl again. He briefly wondered why making her mad was so much fun. It surprised him when she said nothing more and turned her attention back to the water. Her feet stopped moving.
"Can you see Kikyo?" he asked curiously. He dropped from his spot on the branch and landed lightly beside his companion.
Kagome's face dropped. "No."
Inuyasha looked into the water. There was nothing unusual about it at all. He looked into Kagome's face and saw that she was angry. Probably with me, he thought. Of course she is, stupid.
He looked at Kagome's reflection through the water. She still looked upset about something. Before he could stop himself he blurted out the truth. "We are close to town. We could have made it there by sunset if we hadn't stopped."
He waited for her to yell at him, but the words never came. She simply stared at the reflections in the water… patiently waiting.
"It might be best if you go in alone to talk to Kaede."
She gasped. "No!"
"Look, you…."
She grabbed onto a lock of his silver hair and pulled his face towards hers. "Please don't leave me!"
Her eyes were desperate. Inuyasha hated the heavy feeling of guilt in his chest. His nose smelled the salt from her tears at the same moment her eyes threatened to overflow. She thinks I'm abandoning her….
"No, you don't understand, stupid. I'm not…"
"Don't leave me, please!"
"Stop pulling on my hair! I'm not leaving you, wench!" He pulled his hair from her grasp and held onto her hands so she didn't have a chance to grab onto some more. That girl has some grip!
"But you said…"
"I said you should go into the village alone to go talk to Kaede. Demons aren't welcome in villages."
She cocked her head to one side. "What?"
Inuyasha shrugged. "Demons aren't welcome, even half-demons like me. They will run us out of town, probably throwing rocks or shooting arrows. If I go in with you, they will hate you too."
The sudden anger in her eyes made Inuyasha flinch. He could swear that he saw her engulfed in flames. His brain scrambled, trying to think of what he might have said to get her so mad at him. He would never admit it to anyone EVER, but he was suddenly very afraid.
"Did. They. Throw. Rocks. At. You?" she asked him calmly. It disturbed him how calmly though. Each word was slow and careful. Her eyes were narrowed and staring at the water again. He was now slightly unnerved. He folded his arms in front of himself, in an unconsciously protective way.
When he didn't answer she turned her unflinching gaze towards him.
"In this village," she asked slowly, "Did they throw rocks at you?"
Inuyasha refused to meet her gaze as he grunted. He didn't like thinking about those days. It's not like the rocks hurt him physically, but the shame and the feelings of being hated were much more painful. Scars heal. Most scars, he corrected himself.
"Did they shoot at you with arrows?"
If it wasn't for his super sensitive hearing, Inuyasha might not have heard the softly asked question. His hand automatically went to his chest. The scar was still there, right above his heart. If she had been two inches lower he would have been dead. Still… he couldn't bring himself to hate Kikyo. She had missed intentionally, he was sure of it.
Mostly sure anyhow.
His actions and silence weren't overlooked by the dark haired girl. When he looked into her eyes he could have sworn that she was reading his mind. She looked sad… and angry. Her emotions whirled in her eyes, it was like she couldn't pin down any one emotion. It was fascinating. Finally she must have decided on sympathy, the flames seemed to have receded to a faint glow.
"We'll figure something else out," she told him as she began swishing her feet in the water, keeping her toes away from a fish with a tendency to nibble. "We don't have to go into that village."
Inuyasha huffed. "Of course you do, you have to speak with Kaede."
Kagome stretched out her arms and leaned back. "Well, I'm not going without you, so we'll just have to figure something else out."
"Look, stupid, you can't be seen with me. Anywhere. I'll leave you with Kaede." Finally Inuyasha said the words he had been dreading.
Journeying with Kagome had been fun. More fun than he ever remembered having in his life! He liked her company. He liked arguing with her. He liked listening to her sing and hum as she walked, breaking the silence. He liked watching her gasp with pleasure every single time she saw a particularly beautiful wildflower or spring of water. He liked HER. And he knew that he was going to miss her.
He wasn't expecting the pain in her eyes, however.
"You don't want to be seen with me?"
"WHAT? No…. that's not…"
"YOU'RE DITCHING ME?"
Inuyasha blinked. One would think that he would have been used to her mood swings by now, but he wasn't. He scooched slowly away from her.
"Kagome, listen to me."
That shut her up. He knew that he rarely used her name. He wasn't sure why, but using it embarrassed him. It felt like he was doing something he shouldn't.
"Kagome, you don't understand. The people here will HATE you… shun you… if you are seen with me. You can't be seen in the company of a demon here. It isn't done." Inuyasha cringed slightly as he spoke the same words that Kikyo had once spoken to him.
He jumped slightly when he felt a hand cover his.
"I don't care," she told him. "You are my friend. And I don't care what other people say. If they throw rocks, we'll just throw them right back. The arrow thing may be a problem though…."
Inuyasha laughed before he could stop himself. It was worth it, however, when he saw her face light up. She giggled and splashed him with water.
"I'll get you a bow and arrow," he promised her. "Then you can shoot arrows right back at them."
Just that moment, facing a mob of angry rock throwing arrow shooting villagers sounded like a whole lot of fun… with Kagome at his side.
