"The End to the Feudal Fairy Tale"

Chapter 3

Author's Notes: Trying to pick up the pace. Just a reminder, please REVIEW, I really appreciate feedback. It tells me that someone's actually reading this…and wants me to continue. Thanks to those who have reviewed so far!

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, though I would like to. Do you know how much fun it would be to play Frisbee with him? All characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi. The story is mine though, so please respect it.

He stole a quick glance to the spring where Kagome had just finished dressing before shouting at the top of his lungs, "HEY THERE INUYASHA, MIROKU! WHAT'CHA DOIN' OVER THERE?"

Kagome jumped at Shippo's voice, dropping her supplies on the ground and turning four shades of red. In an instant, the surprise was drained out of her face by sheer rage and fire burned in her eyes. "OSUWARIIIIIIIII!"

"Wha-" was all that Inuyasha managed before he was slammed into the ground. He was going to kill that brat when he got up, if he lived that long. Next to him, Miroku wore a grin- one that quickly changed to a frown. He slowly twisted around to see Sango glaring at him from not more than 2 feet away. Miroku had to fight back the urge to curl into a fetal position. Oh my, but how that boomerang was so much bigger and scarier when you saw it close up.

"Aha. Haha. My dearest Sango, surely you don-"

Slam!

Sango let her boomerang fall forward and connect with Miroku's head. He was dropped by the force of the blow and was now mimicking Inuyasha's position on the ground. "Serves you right, you pervert!" She dusted off her hands and stormed towards Kagome.

Kagome was still trying to get over her embarrassment. Just how much had he heard? How long had he been there? Did he see anything? She blushed again. She was going to 'osuwari' him into next year for this one.

Currently, the object of her thoughts was prying himself loose from the dirt. "Damn it!" he cursed.

"You jerk! How could you spy on me? Just what did you think you were doing? Did you think I'd let you get away with it?" she fumed. Inuyasha began to pull himself up from the ground. It seemed like he wanted to say something to his defense.

"Osuwari!" she continued. "Don't even think about talking back! There's no excuse for this, this, well- I'd expect this kind of thing from Miroku, but not from you!" Her anger was beginning to fade. If she didn't get away from him now, her blush was going to come back with a vengeance. Kagome turned to Sango. "Let's head back to the village, I need to relax away from these two."

"I completely agree Kagome-chan." Sango replied.

The girls lifted their chins in an effort to appear truly upset. They started to walk away, but Kagome turned back. "Shippo!" She called. The impish child ran at Kagome and smiling, leapt into her waiting arms. She tousled his hair before standing up; Shippo now perched on her shoulder. He looked down at Inuyasha, who wore not only dirt, but also a death glare, and stuck out his tongue.

"Why you-"

"Inuyasha." Kagome paused. He waited hoping that maybe she was going to forgive him. "Osuwari!" Suddenly the ground came in contact with his face again and he swore under his breath. Kagome walked away, Shippo now sporting a smile almost too large for his small face.

"Can you believe them?" Sango fumed.

"At least you weren't naked!" Kagome blushed. "Naked." She repeated.

"Kagome-chan."

"Well, it was a good thing that Shippo was there to warn us, right?" Kagome inclined her head towards the grinning boy.

"You bet. I wouldn't let those two peek!" He jumped down from her shoulder and stood in an action pose. Kagome almost laughed when she realized the pose looked a lot like one Inuyasha used frequently.

"It was probably Miroku's idea anyway." said Sango. "He's always acting like a pervert."

"But wasn't he unconscious when we left?"

"Well, I had hit him and-" she paused, "Wait. He was unconscious; he was out cold, I'm sure of it!" Sango's expression became unreadable.

"Sango-chan, you don't mean-" Kagome turned very red.

"What is it?" Shippo asked.

Turning at the same time, Kagome and Sango reached the same conclusion. "It was Inuyasha's idea!"

"Oy. Monk." Inuyasha tapped at Miroku with his foot. "You gonna lie down all day?"

Miroku sat up cautiously and rubbed his head. "She's so much stronger than she looks." He attempted to stand and, after wobbling a bit, accomplished the task. "You know, this really is your fau-"

"Say it and I'll flatten you."

"Ah. Aha. Very well then." Miroku sighed. Inuyasha was entirely too irritable lately. He'd have to save the comments for later when he wasn't alone. He chuckled inwardly, that kind of conversation was always better with an audience.

"Hey." Inuyasha called from several yards away.

"Sorry." Miroku hustled towards Inuyasha. After a moment of silence, he added, "So, how many times do you think she'll 'osuwari' you when we get back?"

Inuyasha just stopped. For a moment, not a sound was heard. The wind blew with purpose and a single tumbleweed that had been traveling for years just to make it to this place for this moment, rolled between the two men. "Run." Inuyasha ground out.

"Eh?"

"Run, before I change my mind and decide not to give you a head start."

Miroku took an unsteady step back and then launched himself into a full run towards the village. He spared a glance backward to see a charging half-demon intent on doing him bodily harm. With a look like that, he knew this wouldn't end well.

An hour later, Miroku sat in the corner. He had a few bandages scattered over his body, a new handprint on his face, and a still twitching hand. Looking at him, the villagers began to wonder just what kind of monk he was. Sango glared at him.

"Let his day be a lesson to you, Houshi-sama."

Inuyasha wisely kept quiet. Kagome was acting strange and he wanted to know why. It was like she was thinking about something very confusing. "Kagome-" he began. At the sound of her name, she snapped out of her thoughts and looked up.

"Yes?"

He wanted to find out what was bothering her, but there was no chance to do that with everyone else around, especially while they stayed in the village. People were still pretty wary of demons, half-blood or not. So, he said the first thing that came to his mind, "We should move on tomorrow."

Kagome's expression shifted. "Oh." Then she put on her usual smile and said, "Yeah. We don't want to cause trouble for these villagers if we're attacked again."

"Is your arm well enough to travel Kagome-chan?" Sango added quietly.

"I think so, it doesn't hurt too much." She looked down. "I still won't be able to use my bow. I'll be more of a liability than a help."

"Keh."

"What was that about?" Kagome spun to face Inuyasha.

"You were never much of a help anyway."

He knew he was digging himself a nice, deep hole, but at the moment, it was better to see Kagome angry than sad. "You won't hold us back any more than you always have."

"Why you-"

He'd definitely succeeded in making her angry. Now, she was stomping across the room, glaring at Inuyasha as though she intended to burn a hole in him. Upon reaching him, she growled, "Outside. Now."

"Keh." he retorted as he backed out of the hut.

"Kagome-sama-"

Miroku reached out to stop her, but Sango pushed him back.

"It's better not to get involved right now."

Outside, the sun had sunk behind the horizon. A few birds flew overhead and huts were lit up inside. Kagome sighed, it was a beautiful evening. It was almost a shame that the next few minutes would destroy the tranquility.

"So, why'd I have to go outside?" Inuyasha grunted with a hint of fear evident in his eyes.

"Because I didn't want to break anything."

"Huh?"

"I'd appreciate it if you could try to keep it down. It's getting late and the villagers will be going to bed soon." Kagome seemed lost in thought, like she was contemplating something. "We can talk about the episode at the spring tomorrow, after we've left the village. Okay?"

"Keh."

That was probably as close as she'd get to a 'yes.' "But for now," He tilted his head to the side, concerned about what she was going to say. Then he saw the anger still burning in her eyes. Inuyasha's ears flattened and he had only a moment to brace himself before the fallout.

"Osuwari! Osuwari! Osuwari! O-su-wa-ri!"

The next morning came about without too much trouble. The group awoke as the sun rose over the horizon and set out from the tiny village. Each one thanked the villagers for their hospitality, except for Inuyasha, who simply muttered a "Keh." Kagome waved over her shoulder as they moved farther away. After a few moments of silence, the inevitable conversation took over.

"Which way do you think we should go, Inuyasha?" Kagome said.

"I don't know. How am I supposed to know when Naraku has that damn stone that hides him from me?" He scowled. She mimicked it.

"I don't expect you to KNOW, I expect you to- to-" She huffed, "Oh! I don't know, I just wanted to start a conversation."

"Kagome-sama, perhaps if you are seeking polite conversation, you'd be best to speak with a man like myself." Miroku chimed in.

"Houshi-sama."

Miroku visibly flinched. "Eh-" he cleared his throat, "Perhaps you would like to talk with my dear Sango instead."

"Better." She replied.

"That's a better idea, I know I wouldn't be able to get more than one intelligible sentence from him." She pointed accusingly at Inuyasha.

"You started it!"

"Just stop! Don't make me say it." She yelled.

"I don't give a damn! You're the one who said you wanted to talk!"

"In 3, 2, 1-" Miroku counted.

"OSUWARI!" Kagome screamed. "And I DON'T want to talk to you anymore!"

Stomping away, Sango and Miroku reluctantly turned and followed. "Lady Kagome is very upset with him today." Miroku began.

"I know. It's so sad though. I think Inuyasha tries to start fights with her."

"You may be right, my dear San-"

Elsewhere in the woods, a boomerang could be heard colliding with a monk's head at full force. The trees waved on with the wind, as though nothing had happened. Kagome and Sango walked onward, ignoring their male companions for the moment. Inuyasha cursed and tried to pull himself free from the ground. A short distance behind them, a pair of red eyes took in the scene before the creature buzzed quietly into the distance.

They walked for the rest of the day. The scenery had now turned from thick, green forest to rust-hued streambed. A trickle of water ran through the rocky bottom, the only noise that broke the silence that had been in place all day. "Kagome-chan." Sango glanced to her friend and pointed to her left.

"What is it?" Kagome turned.

"I believe it's a cave."

Kagome paused and looked at the sky. The sun was setting, and she guessed that it would be getting dark pretty soon. "Miroku-sama? Do you know of any villages around here?"

"No, Kagome-sama, I am afraid that I have not been here before." He replied.

"Well, let's go check out that cave then." She smiled. "Maybe we could use it for shelter tonight."

"Hey! We're not stop-" Inuyasha began.

Kagome huffed. "What do you think, Sango-chan?"

"It sounds like an idea to me. Let's go see what's in there."

"HEY!"

"Did you hear something, Sango-chan?" Kagome grinned.

"Not a thing."

"Let's go check out the cave."

"Absolutely." Sango added cheerfully.

Miroku dropped his shoulders in a sad shrug. "I think they are ignoring us."

"No, really? I couldn't have figured that out." Inuyasha growled. "Damn stupid woman." He started to march away.

"Where are you going?"

"If we're going to camp here, we may as well have something to eat."

"Oh." Miroku grinned.

"Oy. What's that smirk for?"

"Nothing! Nothing. I'd better go check on the girls."

"Keh." Inuyasha started running. It should be easy to catch something for dinner, but he'd have to get a fair distance from their camp to find anything. It was useless staying near the girls right now. If Kagome saw him, she'd probably just say the 'o' word before he could say anything. She would probably yell at him too. Inuyasha grumbled as he ran.

Miroku strolled into the cave to find Sango building a fire and Kagome rooting through her enormous backpack. He cautiously sat down near Kagome. She looked up for a moment. "Where's Inuyasha?"

"Ah. He went to find some food."

"Oh."

"Houshi-sama?" Sango piped in.

"Yes my dearest Sango?"

"Could you go and gather some wood for the fire? We're going to need some larger logs if we're going to cook dinner."

"Why, of course."

"Good, then hurry up. Inuyasha won't be long." She replied. Sango stood and practically pushed Miroku out of the cave. Seeing that he was out of sight, she sat next to Kagome.

"Alright," She started, "you've been quiet all day and it's starting to worry me. Is something wrong? Does it have to do with what happened yesterday?"

"Yeah. Something like that." Kagome looked down and drew her knees against her body. "It's just." She sighed.

"You can tell me. I won't say anything to anyone. I promise." Sango held her hand over her heart.

"Well, I've been thinking about the incident at the spring. And, I was thinking about how the whole peeking thing was Inuyasha's idea-"

"Kagome, I really don't think that Inuyasha is going to become like Miroku."

"No, no, that's not it." She waved her hands furiously. "I just think that maybe, maybe Inuyasha does like me."

"He does. I know it." Sango smiled warmly.

"But, it's not always like that. Sometimes he just starts yelling or arguing, and I don't know what to think." Kagome titled her head forward and allowed her bangs to cover her eyes. "I can't keep going like this. I'm just going to ignore how I feel about him and that way I won't be hurt." She wiped her eyes and then lifted her head.

"Kagome-chan-"

"It's foolish to go on loving someone when they'll never return your feelings."

"But, Kagome-chan-" Sango tried to comfort her friend.

"It's okay. I'll be all right and this is really for the best. After all, we can't concentrate on fighting Naraku if I'm preoccupied with Inuyasha."

"If that's really what you want," Sango paused, "then I'll help you out as much as I can."

Kagome reached out and grasped Sango in a tight hug. "Thank you." They sat there for a moment in silence, when Kagome suddenly felt like something was terribly wrong. She sat bolt upright.
"Kagome-chan? What's wrong?"

"Something's not right. It feels like-" she closed her eyes and concentrated, "like-" Kagome gasped.

Sango stood up and grabbed her Hiraikotsu. Kirara had already woken up from her nap in the corner and dragged Shippo towards the girls. Kagome shakily stood up and walked towards the entrance of the cave. Everyone knew what she was going to say.

"It's Naraku."