Owari Nai Yume: Unending Dreams

Disclaimer: InuYasha and all its characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi. Wahhhhhh!T-T

Chapter 10

Her pets were being overly anxious that night, overly intimate, overly aggressive, overly possessive. They were circling tighter, she more often felt the cold fur touch her skin, they more often showed their flat teeth and let them graze over her bare skin, their tongues breaking through to taste her far too often. She was at their mercy, unsure of her own thoughts, she was flooded with theirs, a collective song of something mystifying and so clear. She wanted to speak, tell them to slow or to stop or to speed, but one of her pets held her lips closed with firmly gentle teeth. She was their's and as they caressed her, she felt amazingly calm. The sudden pain of mouths biting down into her flesh tore her from her complacency and she screamed despite the guard in pain and in pleasure. They flew away into the dark night sky as she fell shivering and bleeding to the grass below her forgetting to breathe as the scream died away, swallowed by the dark.

The trees rustled restlessly as a figure appeared in the copse, his white hair shining and hiding his face, cautious and concerned. He approached her and held her close to him as he searched her form for signs of injuries his hand rolling gently through her hair before he removed his coat and covered her bare form with it. As she lowered from the plane her mind had been in, flooded by the toxins of her pets, she became aware of first the warmth, then of his body, then, at last, of him, quiet and clumsy above her, rubbing constantly one of the better placed bites. To many were in awkward spots for him to dare attend more.

"Kagome?" His voice was gentle and worried. "Are you okay?"

"I am," she replied, her voice distracted and sultry, "Are you?"

She saw the lights that showed his eyes disappear a moment and return. "Yeah. What happened?"

"I was ravaged by my pets. I think," she paused and brushed away a stray hair from his face, "I think they made me their Mistress."

"What happened to your clothes?" he asked after a moment.

"What do you think? Torn and destroyed, never to touch my skin again," she whispered leaning up and pulling herself to a seating position on the ground. "What did you discuss with our resident monk as I bathed this evening?"

She could feel him blush. "Nothing."

"Was it about this morning?" she inquired, "Did you tell our friend how I forced myself on you?"

InuYasha was silent, and she had no idea how her comment had been received. His face was dark, hidden from the light of the moon by his hair, and he was silent. He didn't need to speak to make her understand.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, turning away. "I hadn't planned on it. It just happened. I didn't mean to-"

Something cut her off. There was no air. She couldn't breath! Something was on her lips, hot and crushing, consuming her with unnatural heat. It took her a second to understand and assess the situation and another to respond. The air returned and she struggled to breathe.

"Kagome," the voice was soft and the breath was warm on her skin, "if I hadn't wanted you, I could have made you stop."

"I'm not Kikyo," she whispered, "I may have her memories, but I'm not her!"

"I don't want you to be."

"I'm not a replacement, either!"

"Course not."

She let him kiss her again as she leaned back on the cool grass. It would be a long, but pleasant, night.

Kagome opened her eyes and saw the roof of Kaede's hut. Another dream, another few moments of disbelief. The first part had happened. The Kaze no Shimobe had done that that evening, and InuYasha had heard her scream, but the conversation had been totally different. It had been more along the lines of 'are you okay?' and 'I think so'. Clothing had been mentioned, but there had more silence than anything else. The morning before had caused a few kinks in their way of life, but she wasn't going to bring it up. She couldn't stand the rejection yet. Not when Kikyo's memories were showing her a side of Naraku she didn't want to know. So what if he wrote poems or gave her flowers? Hojo could do that! And so could Inuyasha, if he really tried.

That sorted out, she looked around the hut to see Shippo still sleeping under the sleeping bag, Sango and Miroku sleeping on opposite sides of the hut, an alert hanyou at the door, and Kaede behind her. She looked back quickly at the hanyou, still standing in the doorway.

"I thought you were sleeping on the roof," she said quietly, only half daring to look at him.

"It's raining."

She froze and looked away, inspecting her sleeping bag. She was suddenly aware of the rain hitting the roof.

He sat next to her and she swallowed discreetly. She didn't want to be, but she was extremely nervous. Naraku had used a technique very similar to this to...

"Kagome?"

"Yeah?"

"It's nearly dawn. Maybe you should try to get back to sleep."

She shook her head. She knew it was already too late. "I've never been very good at getting to sleep right after I wake up."

"We'll be travelling pretty far tomorrow so don't complain about being tired."

"I won't," she replied softly, almost nervously. Even she heard the quiver in her voice. "InuYasha?"

"Yeah?"

"May I..."

"What?"

"May I lean my head on your shoulder? Maybe it'll help me fall asleep or..."

InuYasha's arm went behind her back and pulled her close enough to lean on him and then some. She moved around a bit until she was comfortable, a bit surprised at his spontaneity. Despite the comfort, it didn't help her fall asleep and she found herself thinking about the morning before. Had she done the right thing? Was she doing the right thing by ignoring it? Would she and InuYasha ever be able to forget about it and move on into their old friendship? Or would it cause InuYasha to see her as Kikyo all over again and she'd lose him to a part of her that wasn't even her?

"Kagome?" InuYasha asked after several silent minutes.

"Yeah?"

"Are you...happy with me?"

"Of course I am, InuYasha. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I'm...not always nice to you."

"Then you have moments like this, when you just hold me and everything is fine," she whispered, snuggling closer to him, "I like you Inuyasha and I know you don't mean everything you say to me. There are times when you're just being tough, but then you let your guard down, and you're so wonderful to be around. I only wish we could have more minutes like this."

"So do I," he whispered, his nose digging into her hair. "I've never met anyone who didn't care about my being a half demon. Or Naraku."

She froze when Naraku's name was mentioned. "Naraku being a half demon has nothing to do with his being evil."

"No," he replied slowly, "But I suppose his being evil isn't enough to stop you from caring."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing. Forget I said anything."

"What's wrong InuYasha?" She was truly concerned. InuYasha wouldn't have mentioned Naraku without reason. Did he know? Had he overheard her talk with Miroku?

He pulled her closer. "Just promise you won't leave me no matter what. Please?"

"I swear, InuYasha. No matter what happens, I won't leave you."

"Good." He swallowed gently. "Try to get some sleep, won't you Kagome?"

She nodded as he walked back out into the rain despite her calling him back.

InuYasha stood impassive as the rain ran over him. There had been something horrible in Kagome's reaction to Naraku's name. Guilt and, he hated to admit it, arousal. She liked Naraku like that, but she liked him like that. He didn't want to see it that way, but maybe, she was a flirt and she was just looking for someone to sleep with. Was her honour even intact? He wasn't sure anymore. That morning had confused him horribly, and now it was worse. Kagome had all but asked him to court her by his time's standards and she was off fantasizing about their arch-foe.

What was he saying? Kagome was a sweet, innocent girl. He would have smelt if her honour had been sullied even if she bathed. The scent of a male's claim was sure to resist washing for maybe a week or so, even a weak human claim. Why her scent had changed was beyond him. Maybe he had somehow touched her as he had spoken and she had reacted to that? Maybe she had been thinking about him. She had just said she liked more time alone with him. Was it too much to know if she liked him like that? Would he in a million years be able to ask her? What in Kami's name was he going to do? There were just so many questions and not nearly enough answers.

The rain slowed to a trickle as the east began to brighten. A new day, the same old mess.

Travel had been easier than usual, and quieter. The rain the night before had been enough to keep the dust down but not enough to make the roads muddy, or too muddy anyways. Shippo playing with Kilala at lunch and coming back covered in mud didn't make anything, besides the forbidding of riding on Kagome that afternoon, come about. Kagome spent some time talking to Miroku quietly about herbs and incense and the like while Sango tried to talk to InuYasha. Needless to say, it wasn't going well.

"I really don't see how you could stand right outside the hut for three or four hours in the rain and not come in. What was so important that you risked getting sick?" She left 'and putting us behind in our shard hunting' unsaid.

"I needed to think."

"Couldn't you have done that inside?"

"Not with Kagome awake."

"So, you're blaming her?"

"Yes."

Sango watched his blank face for a moment as they walked in silence. "Did something happen between you two?"

The panic that ran across his face showed utter terror.

"Not much more than me finding her naked after those things turned on her."

She sighed. He wasn't going to tell her straight out. "I missed you yesterday morning. You weren't on the hut when I woke up like you usually are."

More panic. So that was when it had happened.

"Kagome showed up and cried on me because of one of Kikyo's memories. I was off with her."

"And what happened? Details man!"

"Since when are you a Miroku!"

She grinned evilly. "So something worthy of Miroku happened?"

"N-n-no!" He stuttered, "Th-that's just something Miroku would say!"

"You're blushing." She had to admit it was kind of cute, if freaky, when InuYasha blushed. "What happened after she stopped crying?"

He mumbled something under his breathe and turned away, his face redder than his haori.

"I didn't catch that."

"She kissed me!" he shot through his teeth, practically hissing.

Sango froze. "Pardon?"

"She kissed me. A lot. Happy now?"

That hadn't been what she had been expecting. "How did you react?"

"How do you think?" He was still hissing. "I kissed her back. But it doesn't mean anything."

"What do you mean?" she demanded harshly, but quietly. "That was her first kiss! Of course it means something!"

"She wasn't kissing me." He looked ahead forlornly.

"Of course she was! She loves you, you oaf!"

"She was kissing Naraku."

Sango froze again and actually stoped walking. She had known InuYasha had an inferiority complex, but to think Kagome wanted Naraku was just plain STUPID! Kagome hated Naraku, and that was saying a lot. Kagome hated noone.

"Wh-what makes you say that?"

"Last night I mentioned him and I smelt arousal off of her and," he licked his lips and looked to the ground, "and when I was outside I heard her calling him. That proof enough?"

InuYasha marched ahead leaving Sango behind to think as Kagome and Miroku came up from behind her.

"Hey, Sango! Something wrong? Where's Inuyasha going?"

Violent

"We need to talk Kagome."

"About?"

"You kissed InuYasha."

Kagome froze and Miroku gaped. "You did not tell me this Kagome. When was this? Before or after that dream?"

"A-after, but-"

"The dream with Naraku?"

"How do you-"

"InuYasha heard you."

Kagome clapped her hands over her mouth and shook her head violently.

"He just told me. He thinks you want Naraku and was kissing him. Mind telling me what you were doing DREAMING about him?"

"This is a problem, isn't it Kagome?" asked Miroku solemnly. "I recommend you tell InuYasha what is going on before he gets to far."

Kagome nodded and moved to catch up with InuYasha when they saw he had stopped ahead and was sniffing the air, his hand on Tessaiga's hilt. The next instant, Inuyasha was thrown over and a figure in a white baboon fur was headed towards them, more specifically, Kagome. Before Inuyasha was up, the puppet had her and was running off into the woods. The hanyou was the first to register what had happened and he expressed himself the best way he knew how; a heart wrenching cry:

"Kagomeeeeeee!"

Sorry for taking so long to update. Problems with school and junk. Did I get this angsty or what? RR please.