Cowboys and Demons
by The Moose of Death
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of the characters. This is just for kicks, y'know?
Chapter 1: What'd I Miss?
Kagome looked at the clock on the wall and panicked even worse than when the test started. It was the last of her finals and she knew this could be the difference between passing or failing her World History class. Now time was running out and she began to randomly fill in answers. "No no! More time! Need more TIME!" she yelled in her mind.
As she bubbled in the last answer, the bell rang. "Pencils down, papers in! Have a nice vacation! Unless I see you in summer school, of course!" her teacher yelled out as the flocks of students stormed out of the classroom, except for Kagome, who sulked out.
Kagome moaned out load, "I just KNOW I failed that class! And I even stayed out of the feudal era for TWO MONTHS just to study for my finals!" She just couldn't pick her head up, even when her three friends Eri, Arimi, and Yuka circled her. "How were your tests?" one of them asked immediately.
"I did alright on my English test, but" Kagome threw up her fists in anger, "but my World History final was HORRIBLE! I know I failed it. And it's all because of that stupid part about the American Old West! Come on, when am I ever going to need to know that stuff?"
"I think it's a miracle that you've even been around the past two months," Yuka interrupted. "I mean, leprosy isn't exactly something you can walk off." Kagome flinched at that statement and quietly cursed her grandfather.
"Well let's not let that spoil our freedom from school!" Eri excitedly said. "It's the start of our vacation and we need to celebrate now!"
"WacDonald's?" Arimi said plainly.
"WacDonald's."
"I'll pass," Kagome said to the visible dismay of her friends. "I just want to go home and sleep off my despair." She didn't add that she also wanted to check on everybody back in the feudal era. It had been two months and she knew they were getting anxious, even though she explained to them thoroughly that she needed lots of time for final exams. Even Inuyasha agreed not to bother her.
"That's too bad," Eri replied. "I think we were going to invite Houjou to come along."
Kagome laughed nervously. That was even more of a reason not to go. "Thanks, but I really should get going. Maybe some time later this week." And with that, Kagome took off for home and started to think about what she would need to pack.
:-:-:
"Where's that stupid girl!" Inuyasha yelled.
"Calm down Inuyasha," Miroku said serenely as he sat meditatively on the edge of the well. "If you're talking to us, then there's no need to shout."
"I can't help but feel pissed off. Kagome's been gone for way too long now. This is probably the longest we've been without her!"
"If you count the time before we met each other, then we've definitely gone longer," Sango reminded him.
"Come on you guys. Inuyasha just misses her a lot. It's all over his face," Shippo said.
"Yeah, and I think it's written in red now!" Miroku laughed out loud.
Inuyasha couldn't hide his blushing. "Well let's see what's gonna be written in BLACK AND BLUE on YOUR face!" he angrily retorted.
Just as Inuyasha took a swing at Miroku, Kagome popped out of the well and took the blunt end of Inuyasha's fist to her face, sending her back into the well and back to her own time. They all looked in the well and said, baffled, "Errrthat's not good." Miroku, Shippo, and Sango quickly ducked out of sight, leaving Inuyasha as the only one in view as a furious Kagome returned.
"SIT!" Kagome yelled, pulling Inuyasha to the bottom of the well and at her feet. She took the liberty of using the dazed half-demon as her first step out of the well. Fortunately for Inuyasha, he couldn't feel it because the extra-long fall down laid him out cold.
"Hmph. This is the kind of welcome I get?" Kagome smugly asked while rubbing the side of her face.
Miroku immediately took a step next to Kagome and patted his hand on her back. "I offer my deepest apologies on behalf of Inuyasha," he said in the most sincere tone he could.
"Keep it above the equator monk, I'm not in the best of moods," Kagome said while batting away Miroku's hand.
Sango put a hand on Kagome's shoulder and gave her a smile. "It's good to have you back. And don't be so mad at Inuyasha right now. It was really Miroku's fault."
"Yeah. Inuyasha was worried sick about you," Shippo added.
Hearing that, Inuyasha hobbled out of the well. "Just how many times do I have to shut you guys up?" He dusted himself off and headed towards the group, with Miroku recoiling slightly, expecting some sort of retaliation. But before anything could be done, Sango broke the tension by putting the focus back on Kagome. "Let's go see if Kaede can put down the swelling on Kagome's face." Everyone agreed except Inuyasha, whose pride kept his mouth shut.
:-:-:
"Indeed, it hast been quite a while, young ones," Kaede declared as she applied a fresh piece of meat wrapped in a cooled, wet rag to Kagome's face.
"Ewwww" Kagome squirmed a bit but got used to the feeling. "Well I've been kind of busy."
"I was aware that thou couldst not be bothered, but thine friends certainly hadst the ability to visit a poor, lonely woman such as mineself while thou werest away." Kaede then looked at the others with an accusing eye.
"We're very sorry Lady Kaede. We just thought we could get a lead on Naraku or the sacred jewel shards," Sango tried to explain.
Miroku and Shippo helped themselves to some tea while Inuyasha sat quietly in the corner. Kaede gave a furtive survey of them all and raised her nose up in defiance. "Well if thou wouldst have come to visit me," she began, "then I wouldst have been able to tell you all of a fairly strange incident, if I do sayeth so." This caught everyone's attention, and all eyes and ears were on her. "Oh! Thou wisheth to give thine attention to me now?" Kaede asked, faking her surprise.
"Please Kaede," Kagome asked politely, "what happened while I was away?"
Kaede paused and answered hesitantly, "Very wellfor the sake of KagomeI shall tell what I saw." Everyone hushed as Kaede took a moment to reorganize her thoughts. "No less than three nights after Kagome left for her time, a figure emerged from the well. I couldst not tell what 'twas the being, for it made great haste, and the darkness cloaked its distinguishing features. Since then, I have heardst reports of demons heading towards the direction in which the being made off, and I feel that is a concerning fact." Everyone paused to reflect.
Miroku finally broke the meditative silence. "This is strange indeed. What could have emerged from the well?"
"And why would the demons go in its direction?" Sango added.
Miroku turned to Kagome. "Do you think a jewel shard could be involved?"
"Maybe. I'll have to check." Kagome stepped outside with Kaede. "Which way did it go?"
Kaede scanned the horizon and finally pointed saying, "It took off to the northeast."
Kagome looked the way Kaede directed her and concentrated on the area. Finally, she turned back to Kaede and said, "I do sense a jewel shard. It's not very far, either." They quickly went back inside to tell the others.
"Well what are we waiting for?" Inuyasha asked, ready for action. "Let's go get that jewel shard before some second-rate demon snatches it and makes us have to chase it around."
"Do you think whatever it was that Kaede saw has anything to do with the jewel shard," Miroku asked, trying get all the questions answered.
"Feh. Who cares?" Inuyasha cockily blurted. "If it ain't Naraku or a jewel shard, then I don't care. Whatever it is, it probably won't even phase me." Inuyasha got up from his seat and took a look outside. "Well if we get going now, we'll be able to get there before sunset. So let's move it already!"
"AwwwI kinda wanted to have a good night's sleep in a village again," Shippo disappointedly responded.
"You gotta get used to roughing it if you wanna be strong!" Inuyasha imposed on Shippo while picking him up and tossing him outside. Everyone else followed and began heading for the jewel shard, while Kaede saw them off.
A/N: I'm finally back writing fanfics after a long break (even though I haven't written much anyway). It's starting out slow, but I'll have the next chapter up really soon! Any comments, suggestions, praises, flames, etc. are welcome! Especially flames, cuz I'm really open to criticism.