A/N: Eowyn does not like iPods...Life was easier before when I was ignorant of such technology and I had my CD player and that was it. If I could put all my favorite songs (all 78 tracks) on a CD, then I would. I do not know of a CD that could hold 4.4 hours (according to itunes) of music. Plus, my CD burner is...less than dismal.
So, I have a magical ipod. I should be happy, as all the kiddies in the commercials are, right? Well, first off, I have less battery on this thing for some strange reason then on my ('96 and still kickin') CD player. Then today, itunes decides to randomly delete Four Seasons, my favorite song, off of it, replacing it with a song that I don't like very much. And my battery idicator doesn't work on my ipod either. It says I have tons of battery left, and it dies. Or there is no battery left, and it plays for another hour anyway.
I think my ipod doesn't like my choice of music. My sister has rap and all that crap on hers, and it plays fine. Mine, I have instrumental and Japanese music. My ipod decides to go spastic on me all the time. Perhaps that is why itunes caters to today's "hip" music. Their ipods are programmed to hate anything else.
It's a conspiracy, I tell you.
Chapter 8: Watching Over You
"Inuyasha…Inuyasha!" Kagome cried, shaking his hand and trying to wake him up, her eyes constantly flickering to the wound in his chest. "Inuyasha, please, wake up! Please be all right!"
Kouga glanced down at his rival, before pulling Kagome away sharply. "Stay back, Kagome!"
"What?" she asked, glancing back at Inuyasha…who still wasn't moving. "What's wrong with him? Kouga-kun?"
Bending down to look at the wound, Kouga told her, "He's been poisoned. Its poison that only affects humans. Don't get any closer."
"But…" she glanced at the hanyou, with concern and tears in her eyes. "He'll be okay…won't he?"
Snorting, the wolf replied, "'Course he will. The mutt's only half human, anyway."
Turning back to the wolf youkai, Kagome pleaded, "Kouga-kun, we have to get him to safety. I have to make sure Inuyasha will be okay."
Sighing as he saw the concern in her eyes, Kouga glanced around until he spotted a cave on a nearby cliff. "All right," he sighed in defeat, picking the unconscious Inuyasha up and throwing him unceremoniously on his back to carry him off.
"Wait a minute." Kagome stopped him before she grabbed her backpack, filled with medical supplies. She then followed him as the wolf wrapped and arm around her waist and jumped to the top of the rocky cliff, leading her into the cave.
At that point in time, I was never more worried about him. Inuyasha had been poisoned, and on my account, and though it was only dangerous to humans, his mixed blood still made him vulnerable.
I knew he needed medical treatment right away, but I didn't want to think of what would happen if I wasn't there to tend to him. He was already weak within a few minutes, making me even more worried that his youkai blood wouldn't fight the poison.
Those fearful thoughts still come back to me as I remembered thinking that he could die, and leave me here all alone, in a world still strange to me, without his comforting presence by my side…I don't think I could have gone on if he was ripped from me at such a moment…Without me ever telling him how I feel, or being able to say goodbye…
Kouga set Inuyasha down on the stone floor, and in an instant, Kaogme was at his side, pulling her first aid kit out of her backpack. "I can take it from here," she began, but once again, Kouga stopped her.
"No, Kagome," he told her sharply, pushing her away from the hanyou.
She protested, her eyes sending worried looks back in the hanyou's direction. "But, Kouga-kun, I have to make sure he's all right! He's my friend!"
"I know that, Kagome," replied Kouga, sounding like a defeated man. "But that poison is strong enough to kill a human if they touch it. You need to stay back."
"Kouga-kun!"
Rolling his eyes, the wolf replied, "I'll take care of him, all right? Just tell me what to do."
Deciding this was the only compromise she was going to get with him, Kagome nodded. "All right, but I get to take care of him afterwards."
"Whatever," was his only response as Kouga sat down next to the unconscious Inuyasha and removed his haori and white shirt, only to be greeted with a dark purple gash across his chest.
Kagome gasped as she surveyed the damage; the rat's teeth had sunk deeply into his right side, at a slight diagonal that turned to the left. The gash was already bleeding and giving off a deep purple liquid, no doubt from the poison. "Here, Kouga-kun." Kagome handed him a cloth wet from the water she kept stored up in case they couldn't find a freshwater stream. She instructed him in the rest of the steps required to clean the wound.
It didn't take long for Kouga to clean and wrap Inuyasha up (though Kagome thought she could have done a better job, if Kouga had let her) before handing him off to her to take care of.
Looking at him now, with a white bandage wrapped around his chest, Kagome could see his chest rise and fall ever so slightly with his breathing. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead, and when she placed a hand there, he felt extremely hot.
Biting her lip in worry, Kagome wet another cloth and wiped it across his forehead, brushing away his sweat-soaked silver bangs. He looked so vulnerable lying there, like he was sleeping, and half youkai or not, he was going to have a hard time fighting this poison.
Reaching into her first aid kit, Kagome pulled out a small bottle, filled with antidote for most poisons. She figured it wouldn't do any harm if she tried it, at least. But just as she tipped Inuyasha's head up to pour it down his throat, his eyes opened.
"Ka…gome?" he asked weakly, glancing around the cave and noting Kouga sulking in the corner, while Kagome bent over him like an angel, her face worried.
She sighed in relief. "Inuyasha, how are you feeling?" she asked, but he didn't answer her question.
"What happened?" His voice sounded much weaker than she was used to, it made her heart fall deeper in worry.
"You were poisoned, Inuyasha," she explained quickly, "But since it only harms humans, you'll be alright. I'm taking care of you."
For some reason he was too worn out to contemplate now, those words made his heart rise in his chest. "You're…taking care of me?"
She nodded with a smile. Holding up the bottle of antidote, she asked, "Inuyasha, can you lift your head up? I need you to swallow this." She put her hand behind his head to steady him as she poured the liquid down his throat, but as soon as she was finished, his head fell back, and he was unconscious once more.
But Kagome couldn't help but notice that his head had landed in her lap…almost on purpose. Nevertheless, she wasn't going to move for fear of waking him…and other reasons. Despite the cramps she got in her legs after a few hours of kneeling with his head in her lap like that, she didn't dare move—she wouldn't disturb him now.
As the hours went by and day turned into night, Kagome could start to see the toll the poison was taking on him. His body began to sweat, and Kagome kept the cloth on his forehead while looking over him with worried eyes, hoping that his half youkai blood was enough to fight the poison taking an assault on his human side.
Kouga watched her while she looked after Inuyasha, and couldn't help but feel jealousy in his heart. He was pretty sure Kagome had never been that worried over him when he was hurt. Even when it was dark out and she was tired for sure, he noticed she was staying up, and watching over him, fighting the sleep that was trying to take over. And that was when he could stand it no longer.
Walking over and sitting next to her, the wolf told her, "You should rest, Kagome. I'll make sure nothing happens to the mutt."
Shaking her head while still looking down at the hanyou, Kagome protested, "No, I promised him I would look after him, Kouga-kun. I won't stop now."
Trying to make her see reason, Kouga told her, "Kagome, I know that mangy dog, and I know he wouldn't want you to wear yourself out worrying over him."
"It doesn't matter what you say or what Inuyasha would think, Kouga-kun," she replied softly. "I am going to make sure he's alright, no matter what the cost to me." Turning back to the wolf youkai prince, she explained, "You must understand, Kouga-kun, Inuyasha has always looked after me when I'm in danger, and when I was in trouble or not feeling well, he was by my side, never turning away, no matter what happened to him. This is my way of thanking him for that, Kouga-kun. I won't step aside. Not when he needs me."
When she said those words, it stung Kouga's heart. He had always known that Inuyasha came first in her heart, and he second. But he had thought—no, hoped—that she could come to love him once she realized she would be better off with him instead of Inuyasha.
But, as it seemed, perhaps he was wrong.
Sighing, the wolf turned to go back into his secluded corner of the cave. "Whatever you say, Kagome."
And so continued the long night, while Kouga watched after Kagome while she tended to Inuyasha. Eventually, sitting in the position she had been for hours was getting to her, so she shifted herself and the sleeping hanyou ever so slightly so her back was leaning against a wall, giving her some comfort after sitting up for so long. Inuyasha's head remained in her lap, and she soon began to run her fingers absent mindedly through his soft silver hair, hardly noticing what she was doing, more less what she was doing in front of Kouga.
The fire of jealousy came back to him as he watched her, eventually turning away in a very childish pout, not wanting to watch anymore. Though he was a youkai, he had a long day, and eventually he decided on a little nap to get his strength back up in case some other youkai got ideas.
Though he thought this would go unnoticed by the girl tending to Inuyasha, she did look across the cave to see him with his eyes closed, leaning against the rock wall in what appeared to be slumber. Glancing back down at Inuyasha, Kagome noticed he had begun to sweat again, his head rolling slightly in his sleep, which appeared to be anything but peaceful.
There's no harm in it, Kouga's already asleep. Kagome thought before leaning down, and planting a small kiss on Inuyasha's forehead, instantly feeling him go still and calm down for a moment before she pulled away. "Please, get better, Inuyasha," she whispered, before leaning back and allowing sleep to take her.
The one thing she didn't see was that Kouga had one eye open, watching the entire time.
It was late in the long night when Kagome suddenly awoke, hearing someone cry out. At first, she was unsure of who it was, until she noticed that Inuyasha was drenched in sweat, thrashing in his sleep, and crying out in pain.
"Inuyasha!" she gasped, watching him through this, unsure of what to do. Grabbing hold of his shoulders to steady him while he thrashed, she yelled, "Inuyasha, please, wake up! You're having a nightmare!"
The noise awoke Kouga, and he looked on as Kagome tried to wake the feverish hanyou, but with no luck. Grabbing his hand while wiping the cloth across his brow, she tried again. "It's all right, Inuyasha. You can wake up, everything's okay." she spoke to him as if speaking to a child having a bad dream.
Yet he still tossed and turned, and this time he moaned something she recognized. "Ka…go…me…"
My name? Running her hand across his forehead and brushing away his bangs, she spoke softly, in a calming voice despite her fear that the poison was taking a turn for the worst. "Yes, Inuyasha. I'm here. Everything's going to be all right, Inuyasha. I'm watching over you."
Those sweet words seemed to finally wake him out of it as he lay still, and then slowly, tiredly, opened his eyes. But his expression was of one in relief as he saw her. "Kagome…"
Nodding, she was unable to keep from smiling down at him with fearful tears in her eyes as she spoke softly. "I'm here, Inuyasha. You're safe."
His eyelids fluttered in the urge to close and go back to sleep as he said, "I dreamed…you weren't here anymore…"
Perhaps being a bit more intimate then she usually was, Kagome placed a hand on his cheek, assuring him, "I promised I would always be with you, remember? I won't ever leave you."
The wolf prince had witnessed this all and now, he just felt sick. Unable to watch anymore, he stomped out of the cave, outside to keep watch in case any youkai were nearby. His exit went unnoticed by the two inside.
After her declaration, Inuyasha leaned his head back into her lap once more, and promptly fell asleep, feeling safe knowing she was watching over him. Her scent enwrapped him as he slept. She smelled…so nice…and calming…
Inuyasha awoke in the early morning, feeling back to full strength, yet still like he had fallen off a few cliffs. When he looked up and noticed where exactly his head was, a blush appeared on his face, and he rose and lifted his head out of Kagome's lap, feeling a small sense of loss.
Glancing around the cave, the hanyou noticed that Kouga wasn't inside it anymore. From the scent he could tell, the wolf prince was outside of the cave, apparently keeping watch.
Or maybe it's more because of…Inuyasha glanced back at Kagome, sleeping contently her fingers still slightly entwined in his hair. And the day before, the wolf had been smirking because Kagome had to use his shards to gain information about the Curse of the Shikon no Tama. What irony.
Deciding it wouldn't hurt if she didn't know he was awake, Inuyasha lay back down to rest Kagome's lap, his heart feeling lighter knowing that she had watched over him, all night.
