The Race For Kagome
By: LadySol
Rating: R
Disclaimer: I think this goes without saying, I don't own Inuyasha and Co. although I do own the good ol' boyz Korii, Mael, and Kentai and the Lady Maekomari. You may borrow them if you so wish, all I require is recognition, so don't go stealin' and claimin' em as yerz! Got that!? Umm, okay point made. Anyway, enjoy the ficcy.
Chapter 10: Traveling
Kagome was sure it was impossible to feel what she was feeling. Here she was, holding Inuyasha's hand, strolling through the forest towards what she was told were the Southern Lands. She felt calm and at peace but at the same time jittery and uncertain. Shippo pounced gleefully from one parent to another.
"Are we there yet? How far away are the Southern Lands? Why are we going? Momma's not going back to the future soon is she? Momma, do you have any more of those rice cakes?" Kagome almost laughed. At least someone was having a good time. Kagome couldn't pretend she didn't notice the strange looks from Sango and Miroku. She couldn't blame them. Inuyasha had never been this forward with her. He had even blatantly ignored the sight of a soul stealer that had been lurking around Kaede's hut before they left. That had been an amazing sight indeed. Inuyasha made it look like it was no problem. Rather he looked mildly annoyed and they began their quest south in silence.
Kagome stole a glance at her beautiful Hanyou and sighed quietly. It felt good to be here. Holding his hand. Even when Shippo called her 'momma' and Inuyasha 'papa'. It gave her a sense of belonging that she never knew she needed. Yet, with the doubt that clouded the back of her mind was also the slight sting of the bite on her neck. Miroku had commented on it before they left. He had wanted to know if it should be tended to before they left. Inuyasha had all but growled at the poor lecher and stated angrily that if Miroku laid a hand on Kagome then he wouldn't have to worry about the Wind Tunnel anymore since he wouldn't have a hand. Shippo had laughed it off and perched a top Inuyasha's shoulder. Kagome was fairly certain though that Inuyasha's abrasive attitude was the cause of the silence. Well, as silent as it was anyway.
Shippo was unstoppable, rattling off random questions here and there. Just when she was sure Inuyasha was about to crack him a good one on the head, the Hanyou merely gave a snort.
"Shippo?" Shippo froze.
"Papa?"
"Pipe down." Shippo grinned before nestling into Kagome's giant yellow backpack.
"Okay, Papa." Kagome blinked. Inuyasha caught her bewildered glance and smirked.
"What?" She almost laughed aloud. Innocent wasn't Inuyasha's forte.
"Nothing. Isn't that a village up ahead?" Inuyasha looked forward and nodded.
"Yes. Not a shabby one by the looks of it either. We'll get some rest before heading out again." Kagome stopped walking.
"Rest? But we've only been walking for, like, twenty minutes at most. Doesn't it seem like a waste of time?" Inuyasha's response was to smile lightly and place a gentle kiss on the tip of her nose.
"Actually we've been walking for well over four hours at a pretty brisk pace. Sango and Miroku are tired."
"What!? Four hours?" Kagome looked towards the sky to find it almost at midpoint. Holy crap! How had she not noticed that? Inuyasha chuckled and pulled her closer to him whilst pushing her into a slow walk again.
"It's good to know that you're adapting to a fair amount of strength so quickly. But, unfortunately, we have to let the humans rest," he leaned in conspiratorially.
"After all, we wouldn't want to break them, ne?" Kagome seemed startled at this and turned. Sure enough the demon slayer and traveling monk were hunched over on Kirara, looking much worse for the wear. She all but blushed.
"I feel bad that I didn't notice, you know?" Inuyasha shrugged.
"You've got a lot on your mind. You're a new demon. It's normal." Kagome shrugged back as they approached the village entrance.
The town was nice. A lot of the roads were cobblestone and paved in some manner, not the usual mud and gunk they were used to. Kagome openly marveled at the construction taking place. It seemed as if they were creating some type of sewer system. Inuyasha always complained about how badly Kaede's village stunk. Miroku excused himself and Sango. Kagome wasn't sure what they were up to but decided not to comment as Kirara detransformed and took off after the pair. Inuyasha led her through the openly staring crowd. Was this how disconcerting it was for Inuyasha every time the group traveled through a village? Everyone was pointing and whispering openly. Kagome wasn't sure she wasn't hearing what they were saying because she just couldn't or because she was just blocking it out. Whatever it was it was frustrating and made it difficult to wade through the crowd.
"Ignore them, Kagome. They don't understand." Kagome was struck with a sad tang of irony. the words 'they know not what they do' rang loudly in her head. Inuyasha eventually managed to lead them away from the bulk of the villagers to a small stable. Inuyasha plopped down and Kagome followed suit, gently setting down the pack that contained the lightly snoring Shippo.
"What's wrong, Inuyasha?" Inuyasha sighed.
"Nothing. Everything. It all depends." Kagome wrapped her arms around herself. Her newly crimped hair waved lazily in the warm breeze.
"Is this about the, um, bite?" Inuyasha shifted uncomfortably.
"Yes and no. Kagome, do you know why I bit you?" Kagome shook her head.
"No, not a clue. All I know was that it felt almost otherworldly when you did. Like some had slipped me something to drug me." Inuyasha blushed.
"Kagome, when you challenged me and I didn't have Tetsusaiga to balance me out, my inner demon reacted. Do you remember anything?" Kagome suppressed a shiver.
"A little. You kept asking if I would submit." Kagome felt her cheeks redden.
"You also called me a bitch." It was Inuyasha's turn to blush. Kagome stared hard at him, looking mildly annoyed.
"Sorry, it wasn't meant as an insult."
"What? How is that not an insult?" Inuyasha ran a hand through his hair.
"Bitch is what Youkai call a female worthy of attention. I think I was addressing you as a Youkai, not as Kagome." Kagome felt the small spark of anger sizzle away.
"Oh, I see. What about this submitting thing?"
"That's simple. A Youkai always struggles to be the dominant in a relationship. A Youkai refuses to submit to someone weaker than themselves. My demon saw you as a challenger when you attacked me. It's choices were to either kill you, eat you, or fuck you." Kagome swallowed audibly.
"Eat me?"
"A Youkai will eat a creature that's made the mistake of attacking it. But that's besides the point. My demon...I wanted you and by attacking me you made an open challenge." Kagome took a breath.
"So basically I said 'come and get me if you can'?"
"Basically." A small stirring in the yellow pack took Kagome's attention away from the nervous half demon for a second before Shippo settled back into his sleepy state deep inside the bag.
"So you bit me to win?" Inuyasha shook his head.
"No, that's not it. My demon viewed itself as more powerful then you, so I bit you and essentially made a connection with your demon. It's a very intimate thing." He blushed a little bit harder.
"The wave of power you felt was your power combating mine. You were trying the kick me out of your system. Luckily for me I was stronger and rode your power until your demon collapsed." Inuyasha locked eyes with her.
"That's why it felt so good, Kagome. You let me win. You submitted to me." Kagome found a warm tingly feeling at the pit of her stomach. Inuyasha leaned forward, cupping the back of her head.
"So, that aside. Do you submit, bitch?" Kagome grinned.
"Do you submit...Bitch?" Inuyasha smiled and placed a gentle kiss on the bite mark.
"Always, mistress." Kagome could tell he was mocking her. It didn't matter. Kagome leapt into his arms with a squeal. Life, although newly complicated, was looking up.
