Third Time's A Charm- Chapter 3

"Rise and shine!" Inuyasha felt something jerk on his shoulder.

He grumbled and turned, he didn't want to get up. Didn't want to wake up to another day. Not yet anyway. So he ignored her. The woman wasn't having any of that however. He heard a sigh and retreating footsteps and for a happy moment he thought she'd left him be. That is, until her heard the soft movement of liquid and ice cold water came pouring down in a torrent over him.

"AH!" He jumped up and snarled. "What the hell was that about?"

She smiled at him, holding the bucket by the handle innocently. "It's morning." She paused a moment then grinned brighter and added. "Good morning!"

"You. Are crazy!"

"So you've said." She put the bucket down next to the charred remains of the fire. "Would you like something to eat now? Or would you like to get an early start?"

She gestured to a pair of roan horses tied placental to a tree. Inuyasha glanced up at the sky. What he could see through the trees was dusted with pink testifying that it was just barely dawn. Why was she up at dawn? And why was she up before him? She was only human. He glared at her and she lifted and eyebrow.

"Don't give me that look." She said lightly. "Besides, you should thank me. You were snoring."

"I do not snore!" Inuyasha snarled.

She sighed. "Alright then. You don't snore."

He growled. "Stop doing that!"

"Well I'm not going to stand here and argue about it. After all you must be right seeing as you can hear yourself when you're dead asleep." She muttered sweetly.

The was nothing he could say to that so he sat down infront of the fire's remains and dripped. This stupid woman! Who did she think she was? Just what was her deal? He blushed slightly remembering the deal he'd struck then got angry with himself. She should be the one embarrassed. But she wasn't. She wasn't doing anything right! That stupid girl!

"Here." He slanted a suspicious glance up at her as she shoved a bowl beneath his nose. Her lips twitched with a smile. "It's just fried rice. Eat it." She released the bow when he lifted his hands to hold it. "And try to smile!"

"No."

"Come on. It's a new day and you've got your health."

"At a price." He grumbled.

She cast him a look. "Everything has a price Inuyasha. Everything." She walked towards the horses. "I want to get started out before the hour is up."

Inuyasha learned soon that when Akari said she wanted to get started before the hour was up she meant that they would be started before the hour was out. She'd saddled both horses and buried the burned sticks so their camp sight was gone as if it had never been.

"It not a good idea to exert yourself with that poison still in your system." She'd said when he'd growled at the horses. "Riding is the fastest way in the face of that fact."

And that was how he'd come to be stuck on this awkward moving animal, uncomfortable and irritable while she looked perfectly at ease. And so he glowered at her for that. She looked up after a few minutes and lifted an eyebrow at him.

"You aren't still being moody are you?"

"I am not moody!"

She sighed. "You know, all you seem to be doing is trying to pull left when I'm going right. Instead of disagreeing with me all the time why don't you talk to me."

"You just don't get it do you? The only reason I'm here is to get the damn antidote."

"It would be very hard to forget that wouldn't it?" She said with the first traces of temper he'd seen her show. She brushed a dark lock of hair away from her face absently and sighed a bit. "You refuse to make anything easy don't you? It's not like you're married. Are you?"

He growled. "Don't be stupid."

"Well then you shouldn't be so upset. I'm not terribly unfortunate looking after all." She tilted her head slightly. "Are you in love with someone?"

"That's none of your business!" He snarled violently and felt a prick of shame when she flinched away.

She didn't fall silent however, simply went on. "Well judging by that response I'm going to take the answer to that question as a 'it's complicated' and leave it at that shall I?" She paused a moment then spoke again. "Do you have friends or family?"

He hadn't meant to snarl at her. Had meant to simply ignore her and so he answered this question as an apology. "Yes. A brother."

She nodded and smiled. "That must be nice. Do you see him often?"

Inuyasha almost smiled. He hadn't seen Sesshomaru since his full demon brother had ceased trying to take the Tetsusaiga. Did he miss Sesshomaru? That might be under debate possibly. He shook his head a bit and said nothing.

"This journey is going to be very long if you refuse to talk to me." She said then rolled her eyes when he said nothing. "Fine. I might as well stop trying." And she too fell silent.

Inuyasha thought the peace would be soothing and he could forget she was there. But the uncomfortable motion of the beast beneath him became more apparent and her dizzying smell seemed stronger. And, damn it all, she was humming to herself. Quiet enough that if it hadn't been for his sharper hearing he wouldn't have heard it at all so he couldn't be sure whether or not she was doing it to annoy him. Even if she was or if she wasn't it was irritating. Her babbling had distracted him. Annoyed him yes, but distracted him nonetheless.

"Where exactly is this dumb village?"

She looked over at him and smirked. "Oh ho. Now we want to talk?" she smiled. "It's not to far. It's near the forest's heart. It's called Mishima."

"Beautiful Island? It's an island?"

She nodded. "Yes."

He growled again. "But you just said it was in the middle of the forest."

"It is." She said her tone one of finality.

Inuyasha's ears twitched in annoyance with the knowledge that he wasn't going to get anything else out of her.