Dedicated to Kikoto, my 1st reviewer. Thanks!
Kagome woke up slowly at the crack of dawn. She opened her eyes then shut them at the sudden light.
"Ah child, ye are awake." She heard a voice say.
"Lady Kaede?"
"Aye."
Kagome pried her eyes open and sat up, but quickly lay back down as pain shot through her body and she remembered the day before.
She recalled the snake heading for her and feeling something ripping through her stomach. She looked down and saw bandages covering her middle.
"Lady Kaede, can I leave now? I need to see Inuyasha." she begged.
"If ye want to find Inuyasha, he's in the Sacred Tree. He's very angry at himself for what happened to ye."
Little did Kagome know, Kaede had applied a special herb that, when in affect, would work with the body and heal any wound. (You'll see why)
Kagome thanked her and ignored the numbing pain shooting through her as she got up. She got up and walked to the Goshinboku and stared up.
She couldn't see anything, but as she looked around, she saw a pair of feet dangling off the edge of a branch and a bit of red. She grinned and yelled "INUYASHA!"
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Inuyasha was lying against the trunk of the tree and had his feet hanging off the side.
He was thinking about Kagome ever since he had gotten up at the crack of dawn.
His ears perked up when he heard his name being called loudly. He looked down and, with great difficulty, saw Kagome.
"Kagome? She's alright! She's alive!" he thought
He was so relieved; he jumped down and landed right in front of her. Before he even knew what he was doing, he was holding her in his arms and kissing her passionately.
They broke apart and Inuyasha looked at her and Kagome's warm brown eyes bore into his.
"Why the hell did you scare me like that wench! You almost killed me!" he almost screamed at her in a sudden change of mood.
"It wasn't my fault! You think I wanted a hole torn through my stomach!" Kagome retorted.
Inuyasha's eyes softened. "I know I already said it, but I love you Kagome and I don't know what I'd do without you."
"Inu, I love you too and I wouldn't leave you without a fight." She said as she giggled and he pulled her into another kiss.
"And if I did," she added. "Know that it wasn't your fault."
"But what if it was?"
"Then I'd forgive you." She answered as he leaned his forehead on hers and looked in her eyes.
"Nice to know." He said as he smiled softly at her and kissed her.
"By the way." He added. "That must've been the quickest fight we've ever had."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Master, I have found the location of Inuyasha. He lives just outside an old miko named Kaede's village." said a scrawny toad demon.
"Very good Kerai. I am pleased with your progress. Your brother would be proud of the service you've given me." Said a man hidden by shadows.
"Father, you will soon be avenged."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kagome had left Inuyasha to go restock some herbs after their little 'talk'. She was picking some hyssop and humming no particular tune to herself.
Suddenly, she felt two male arms wrap around her and she panicked for a second. Then she heard laughter behind her and she turned around.
"INUYASHA! THAT WAS NOT FUNNY!"
"Oh yes it was! You…. should've seen…. your face!" he managed to get out in his fit of laughter.
She stomped off as he got up and said, "Oh c'mon, I was just kidding"
"Yeah, you're a real riot."
She went into the hut, slammed the door, and started organizing the herbs.
"Kagome, I really was just kidding" he said as he snaked his arms, careful of her wound, around her waist.
"It's okay Inu, you were just 'fooling around'"
"I can make it up to you."
"You don't have to.. How?"
"Like this" he said with a smirk and started to kiss her passionately.
He slid his tongue along her lips and she opened her mouth. His tongue explored her mouth, searching every part of it. Her tongue brushed against his fangs and scraped it. He tasted her blood, which was sweet and tangy, and his demon side, for once, was agreeing with him that all he wanted was Kagome. He was trying so hard not to let his demon side out and take her as his mate, but then he realized that he could if he took this one very hard step and ask her.
He broke off this kiss and said, "Kagome, can we for outside for a minute?"
"Yeah, sure"
He took her hand and took her outside. He led her to the Goshinboku and turned to her.
"It's now or never" he thought. He was practically hyperventilating and was gripping Kagome's hand so tightly that it was turning a light shade of blue.
"Inu, what's wrong? What is it?"
"Kagome, when I met you, I just thought you'd be someone I'd use to get what I wanted, but as I got to know you, I began to think more of you than that. You would stand beside me when my demon side took over or when we fought a demon. I started to like you as a friend, but as time went on, I began to fall in love. You began to treat me as a person worth knowing and not a worthless half-breed. You made me realize that it didn't matter what form I was in, as long as I was me. So I'll try to get you to see the life you taught me through my eyes for the rest of my life if you answer this…."
He pulled a small velvet box from a hidden pocket in his haori.
"Kagome, will you marry me? And be my mate?"
He opened the box and in it, was a gold ring with an emerald flower that had tiny diamonds running along the top half of the band.
"Oh Inu, of course I will, did you even have to ask?" she said as he got up and put the ring on her ring finger.
He laughed as she jumped up and hugged him. He was so happy that he forgot her injury and he hugged her tightly. He remembered when he heard her suck in a quick breath through her teeth.
"Oh dammit Kagome, I'm so sorry!"
"That's alright, it doesn't hurt as much as before and I know you didn't mean it."
Inuyasha's blood started to boil when he remembered how he had let her down. She had said it wasn't her fault, but he couldn't help but think that he had failed her.
"I'm still sorry, for everything."
"Then I forgive you, for everything." She smiled softly as she made a bold move and leaned up and kissed him.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"You know why I got an emerald flower?" he asked her as they walked back when he saw her look at it for the hundredth time.
"No, why?"
"Well what's your favorite color?"
"Green"
"So it was only fair that I got you a green flower and not a red one. Right?"
"Well, maybe." She added as she laughed and ran ahead of him.
He was left in the dust but quickly caught up.
"What did that mean wench?"
"I was joking!"
"Yeah, you're a real riot." He said, mimicking her earlier.
He picked her up and carried her back to the hut and they were outside the door when they heard an explosion and saw a small ball of smoke and fire go up into the air.
"Ah dammit. Kagome stay here."
"No! I'm going with you!"
"No you can't! I'm doing this alone!"
"Why! Because I'm injured! Look, I told you…"
"Listen you stubborn wench! I can't let you get hurt again! I can't! Then I'd have to live knowing that I failed you again! And god knows what I'd do with myself!" he said as he held her arms tightly.
"Inuyasha." His fiancé said calmly as she took her hands out from under his. "I can take care of myself. I make my own decisions. If I am stupid enough to get hurt, that's my fault, not yours. Now get that through your thick head!"
"Yeah, well…" But Inuyasha fell silent and just glared at Kagome stubbornly, and then suddenly, Kagome fell to the ground on her knees and she was groaning in pain and clutching her stomach.
"KAGOME!" he yelled as he kneeled next to her, forgetting all his anger.
She gave a quick intake of breath and stopped, as if she couldn't breathe. Inuyasha knelt in front of her and looked into her eyes. Her normal brown hue was covered, as if a in a trance. They were swirly and unfocused; like she didn't notice that he was there.
"KAGOME! WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON!"
Then her eyes became focused and coffee brown again.
"Inuyasha…" she gasped. "What the hell just happened?"
"I don't know. Are you alright?"
"I think so. Can you help me up?"
"Yeah."
Inuyasha offered her his hand and as she stood up, he realized something.
"Kagome!" he cried excitedly. "Your wound is better!"
"What?"
"Look! You can stand up without any pain!"
"Whoa! Inu, poke my stomach."
"What!"
"Just poke it."
"Fine wench." He said as he poked her stomach with one of his clawed fingers. Touching her skin sent cold shivers through him, and he waited for her to wince in pain, but she didn't.
"I think whatever happened just know healed me."
"Yeah."
"Hey! I can fight now!"
Inuyasha just sighed and mumbled a quiet "Feh."
"But if you get hurt," he said louder. "I'm not gonna be responsible for you." Which they both knew was a lie.
Kagome quickly ran inside and grabbed her quiver and bow. When she shut the door and ran towards Inuyasha, she saw that he was staring out into the distance.
"What do you see?"
"Villagers, coming this way. Get on."
Kagome climbed on his back as he started to jump towards the village.
As they got there in a matter of seconds, all they saw was pure chaos. Houses were on fire and a few villagers were scrambling to put them out. Others were running from their houses with their meager possessions and trying to escape the burning village.
Kagome hopped of Inuyasha's back and noticed a figure walking towards them from the smoke. She could tell it wasn't a villager because it was just walking, not running or anything. She drew her bow and nudged Inuyasha in the ribs.
"Inu, look."
Inuyasha turned his attention to the figure.
"What the hell is that?" The figure smelled like wood and death. It was coming closer and they could almost make out it's features. Inuyasha drew Tetsusaiga, knowing that a battle was soon to follow.
He looked to be in his early 20's and had light auburn hair cascading down to his upper back. He had a face full of scars and his eyes had a hollow, evil look to them.
Kagome shivered as she notched an arrow.
"You won't be needing those, my dear." He said and he sounded like Naraku so much it was scary.
His eyes glowed red and her bow and arrow quiver full of arrows flew towards him. He caught the bow and handed it to a skinny toad servant that kind of looked like Jaken, who already had her arrows.
"This is between Inuyasha and I."
"What did I do, I've never even met you." Inuyasha snapped.
"True." said the man. "So I will introduce myself. My name is Akhei and I am the son of Kaisana and Naraku, and I am here to avenge my father's death. You took the one thing that mattered to me and now you will pay."
"Then bring it on."
"Oh, you thought I was going to fight you half-breed? I'm not going to waste me energy on you." He laughed evilly as he disappeared.
"What the….?" Inuyasha began but was cut off as Akhei re-appeared with his sword on Kagome's neck.
CLIFFY! Tried 2 make this story longer. I think I did. Anyway, REVIEW! And for those who don't know, a hyssop is a purple flower that can be applied to a bite and it will get rid of any poison.
