While Link and Adrian talked amongst themselves, Cathleen had decided to join Kagome well ahead of the boys. She saw the priestess kneeled beside the cage, grasping the bars as she looked upon the sleeping man inside. He was a sight to behold. Beautiful silver hair cascaded about his shoulders, and his skin was very pale, with dark markings along his cheeks.
Judging by the solemnity in the female's countenance, this 'Inuyasha' guy must have been a very close friend of hers. Cathleen could only guess he was caged up in case he should awaken and cause problems and the incense littered around the room was to keep him asleep.
"C-can't you let him out?" Kagome asked, standing up and facing Adrian.
Unfortunately for her, he merely shook his head. "No can do. Sorry, but if I were to release him from there, and let him out of this room, he could pose a threat to everyone," Adrian explained as a matter of fact. "I can't risk putting the lives of anyone in danger like that."
"But you can't just keep him caged up like this," Link replied back.
Adrian scoffed, urging frowns from both Kagome and Link. "Of course I can. After all I am a well renowned Ghost Hunter in these parts."
"Ghost hunter?" Kagome questioned. Inuyasha wasn't even a ghost!
He nodded. "Of course! I capture anything supernatural in these woods and I get a good purchase from them as well, if you know what I mean."
Hearing this, Kagome immediately clenched her fists, her temper suddenly rising. "He's our friend! You can't just auction him off!" And here she thought he was going to release him from his imprisonment.
Cathleen suddenly jumped a bit from the loudness of the young girl's voice beside her, and she couldn't help but step aside, somewhat out of fright.
Even Link saw this, and instead of joining the Princess, he instead placed his hand upon the hilt of his sword, eyeing the ghost hunter.
"Look I'm not a greedy man…But I need to make a living too," He replied with a shrug of his shoulders. He couldn't help but notice the lad beside him grasping the hilt of his sword, and he sweat dropped a bit. He felt…cornered. How unusual.
Kagome approached him. "Then make a living off something else! Not our friend!"
Adrian held his hands up defensively. She sure was a hell kitten when angered. "And I've been meaning to ask you…You travel the countryside with a demon? I've never seen the like in all my life. Tell me; is he your pet and you his mistress?" He snidely asked. "Or is—"
"I am so sick and tired of people always saying that!" She literally stomped her foot. The priestess felt her heart pounding rapidly in her chest, and without a moments breath, she stalked up to him, nearly entering into his personal space before poking him quite roughly against his chest. "Look here, buddy! He and I have been through a lot together, more than you'd ever know! It's not fair that you have him locked up like this, and I ask you nicely to release him! He's not some piece of meat you can sell for a fancy coin!" She shouted. Heck she didn't even know what kind of currency they used here. "Or rupee, or whatever you all call it!"
Adrian raised a delicate brow. Well…he certainly did not know such a woman with a temper. He was about to open his mouth to reply back to her, but he was immediately silenced when she interrupted him.
"I'm not finished yet!"
Link and Cathleen shared a look from across the room.
Deciding to cheer for Kagome, Cathleen couldn't help but throw her arms into the air. "You tell him priestess!"
Sweat dropping, Kagome cleared her throat. "Ah hem…"
"A priestess?" The hunter questioned. This little girl?
Kagome crossed her arms over her chest and glared. "Yeah, what of it?"
"It's just I didn't expect such a young girl, wearing revealing clothing to be of a spiritual nature…" He replied as he eyed her from head to foot.
"Hey, hey, my eyes are up here!" Kagome's face flustered in embarrassment. "And you shouldn't judge a book by its cover…"
Adrian sighed. "A feisty outspoken girl with a temper happens to be a priestess defending her demon friend…How troublesome."
"We just want our friend back," Kagome pleaded, her voice a little hoarse from shouting. She hadn't yelled that much since her and Inuyasha's last fight.
The owner frowned. "Don't turn your accusing eyes toward me. I have done nothing wrong but my job. You see I was appointed by his Majesty himself to protect this Kingdom from vile vermin that haunt these lands. Your friend is caged up solely for that purpose."
Well of course that part made sense. She could understand them caging him up because of his demon blood and the great chance he might inflict harm upon others. It still did not give him the right, however, to sell him off. "I understand you are in charge of capturing entities, but it doesn't give you the right to sell our friend for money. You don't sell people. Inuyasha isn't just a demon; he's a half demon, one that possesses a kind heart."
By this point, Link was beginning to grow frustrated. He had almost heard enough of this hunter arguing with Kagome, and he felt it was really getting them nowhere. "Listen, isn't there any way we can strike a deal here? We'll personally take responsibility for any mishap Inuyasha might cause. Under no circumstances will he harm anyone. So why not offer a trade?"
"A bargain, eh?" Adrian inquired thoughtfully. "Alright…let's say I might be willing to offer a trade…Would you have anything worth as much value as your friend there," He was referring to Inuyasha. "I'm a busy man, so what do you have to offer?"
Something worth the same value as Inuyasha? Were they seriously going to bargain? No, she didn't understand it. There had to be another way to get their friend back. "Link, why should we have to bargain?" She questioned, thus earning baffled stares from the boy and the Princess; the hunter on the other hand merely smirked.
"Kagome?" Link couldn't help but look at her curiously. "What are you—"
When she said this, her attention drifted away from Adrian and his cocky grin to the morbid spirits trapped within their separate cages in the room. An idea surfaced suddenly, and she firmly planted both her fists upon her hips. With a raise of her chin, she replied, "Now I've kindly asked you once and I will not ask again. Let our friend go or I'll purify all of the ghosts in this room," She threatened. "Including you if I have to!" A small vein popped upon her forehead, though it went unnoticed to the ghost hunter. Link on the other hand noticed this and stepped away warily. The Princess, however, looked upon the scene smiling devilishly; the whole scenario where the priestess dared to threaten a ghost hunter drew in her odd fascination. It wasn't every day that she could leave her castle and witness such a confrontation.
Adrian cackled at her small threat. "You wouldn't possibly do that. You're bluffing. You would dare to destroy all my hard earned cash. What kind of person does that make you?" He questioned, and at this Kagome's eye slightly twitched. "I'll tell you what it makes you-"
Kagome glared. "For starters, it makes you a greedy old man who takes joy in selling innocent people for money. I'm just trying to save him from a conman like you…And you call yourself a ghost hunter…He isn't even a ghost. Look at him!"
Adrian eyed Inuyasha from the corner of the room before looking back at kagome. "Well one…I'm hurt. You must be blind not to notice that I'm only twenty eight with my rugged good looks if I might add…
Everyone in the room felt the urge to roll their eyes.
"Two, your friend over there is a wild beast—"
"He's not a beast! He's more human than you'll ever be!" She shouted back.
Adrian coughed. "As I was saying…As I can see already, you are nothing but a troublesome little girl, probably pretending to be a priestess so you can fool the heart of our innocent and lovely Princess over here."
"What?!" She seethed.
"Did I stutter?" He inquired. "Allow me to repeat myself in a way that only you can understand." The smile on his face widened and he approached her suddenly, ignoring the death glares sent his way from all directions. As soon as he was near her, enough to breathe upon her face, he leaned in to whisper into her ear. "You're a fake…"
Kagome's head fell, not literally, but her shoulders suddenly tensed and she couldn't tighten her fists hard enough. She felt her blood racing and her heart pounding so much that she wanted to just run away that very moment. How dare he humiliate her in front of Link and Cathleen. He had no right! He had no right to sell off her friend for money!
"Did I strike a nerve, priestess?" He questioned.
Immediately her head snapped upwards, her eyes giving off a misty clear blue light. Her body was suddenly engulfed in a blue glow, the energy surging off her flesh as her raven locks defied gravity, fanning around her shoulders.
This was a first Link had ever seen the priestess's spiritual powers react in such a way. To be honest, it was a little terrifying. Maybe Shippo was right those times way back when he first got to know the gang. Kagome did have a frightening side. Shippo's words were exact: "Beware Kagome's wrath." Also, as he was watching the ghost hunter step back from the young girl, he couldn't help but remember a phrase he heard long ago: thou hath no fury like a woman scorned.
The Princess on the other hand could not help but smile behind her hands. This was so exciting! She couldn't believe she was actually going to witness a real life priestess in action. At first she had little doubt of Kagome, but now she was a full believer that this girl had tremendous powers just below the surface.
"Do you really want to test me?" Her voice was dark and unsettling. Kagome stepped forward, and the energy suddenly shot out from her form, unexpectedly hurdling toward the closest cage near them, not the one containing Inuyasha, but one, instead housing a Poe. In an instant, the Poe was surrounded by the energy and the next everyone saw, it had disintegrated into a pile of ash.
The Princess gasped, and the ghost hunter cried out in shock.
Realizing she had purified a rare Poe he had captured not long ago, he turned irritably towards the priestess. "Do you realize how long it's taken for me to capture one of those!"
"Just think how much longer it'll take for you to refill all the cages…" She threatened, her spiritual energy rising.
All the spirits and Poes inside their cages, who had witnessed the terrifying sight of their brother being fried to a crisp by a mad woman, cried out in desolate tears. They frantically threw themselves at the bars imprisoning them, but to no avail, they could not escape. Others were spinning around, their minds entirely lost and at a loss of what to do.
Kagome approached Adrian closer, and he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on edge. "I'm beginning to lose my patience…"
In a moment of desperation, he gave in. He threw his hands above him in defeat, and stepped away. "Okay! Okay! Just stop! You want your friend back, fine! Just stop destroying my property!"
Relieved he had finally decided to agree, her spiritual energy lessened, and the ghosts in the room ceased their frightful dances. Still in her trance, she replied, "So you'll let him go?"
"I'll let him go for that necklace of yours."
She frowned. "You're still trying to trade?" She seethed. How pathetic was he going to get?
Adrian scoffed. "Well you destroyed something quite rare of mine, so I want something of yours in return. A rare jewel for a rare ghost. What do you say?" He held his hand out rudely, frowning at her quite angrily.
Kagome touched the jewel around her neck, fingering the shiny surface slightly. Give him the jewel?
Noticing the ghost hunter was referring to the necklace he had given Kagome a while back Ikana, Link couldn't help but step in. There was no way he was going to allow Kagome to give up the necklace just like that. "No."
Kagome looked at Link questionably from beside her, but she couldn't help but think about Inuyasha locked up in the cage in front of her. She wanted to free him from there and get him away from this man.
"Kagome, no," Link warned.
Because it seemed as if she was considering the trade, Adrian stepped closer to the young girl. He noted that her spiritual powers had calmed entirely by now, and for that he was thankful. Reaching out, he lightly touched the crystal of her necklace. "I see great worth in this necklace. It holds strange powers…" He explained softly, as if his words were placing Kagome under a trance to hand it over to him right then.
Angered by his close proximity towards Kagome, Link pushed him aside to stand in front of her. "I'll give you rupees, if that will suffice!"
Kagome's eyes widened at this.
"I don't need your petty change!" Adrian scoffed. "That demon will cost you way more than you can earn in your entire life, kid."
Ignoring his ignorant and selfish words, Link reached into his satchel before retrieving a hefty pouch containing over a few hundred rupees. He held the bag open for Adrian to peer inside. "This is not enough?"
"The cost for a full fledge demon is higher in price…"
Link glared. "And what makes you think her necklace would be a better offer?" He inquired.
Outright ignoring Link, Adrian pushed him aside to stand directly in front of the priestess, his smirk returning. "If you give me that necklace, I give my word that I'll gladly release your friend. Interest free of course. And I'll even throw in this…" He suddenly began searching his pockets, earning Link and Kagome's attention.
When Kagome noticed a small medallion lying in his hand, she couldn't help but reach out to touch it, but Adrian pulled it out of reach with a shake of his finger. "What's that?"
"Something that will return your friend to his normal senses. It will dull the effects of his demon blood. You said it yourself," He explained. "What do you say? It seems fair…"
From Link's disapproving frown to Adrian's somewhat compromising bargain, Kagome couldn't help but ponder. Well, it would be simple enough to just hand over the necklace and Inuyasha and have him returned to his senses. That seemed like a really good choice. But as she thought longer on it, Link had given her the necklace to protect her. Kagome didn't want Inuyasha sold away.
"Well…I don't know…" In truth, Kagome felt saddened she had hurt the poor little spirit with her priestess powers; it didn't deserve such a cruel fate. She felt she had to repay the hunter for her immature behavior to try to scare him into handing Inuyasha over.
"Kagome let me handle this. I will pay for his release," Link exclaimed, hoping she would stay out of it and let him handle this. He honestly did not want to start a fight with her, and having her deny him this hurt him just a bit, though he wouldn't say it aloud.
Sadly, Kagome chose to argue back. "But you need the money for supplies. We don't have much left."
"Either way, let me handle this…"
"But, he's also offering to help revert Inuyasha back to his normal self!" She replied a little louder than necessary. What's more important?"
Link felt his fist tighten. No…he had to stay calm. He understood she was only thinking of her friend, but… The young swordsman turned away from Adrian and took Kagome's hand away from the necklace she had been previously touching. "What if something happens to you and I can't get there in time to save you?" Link questioned, nearly startling her speechless. "This necklace was meant for that purpose, to protect you when I'm not around!"
"Link…"
And yet she would easily just throw that away…If anything, Link didn't want her to give up on the necklace. He wanted to provide for her, he wanted to sacrifice his own belongings instead. That's what he wanted. Why couldn't she understand that? Did she not understand the necklace meant more than just her safety?
Cathleen couldn't help but feel the stir of emotions springing back and forth between priestess and swordsman. It was as though these two were love birds or something and the necklace meant more to Link than it did to Kagome. It was sad, to be honest. Watching this…So much so, that she decided to interfere. "I can offer twice that amount in gold!" Cathleen declared suddenly.
Hearing this, everyone turned towards the Princess in surprise, confidently standing there with her hands planted firmly on her hips. Honestly, they had almost forgotten she was standing there.
"That way everyone's happy! How does that sound?" She asked the others, but they only exchanged looks.
The ghost hunter mused. "Oh but I couldn't have you do that, Princess…Please, this matter doesn't concern you," He politely replied, but Cathleen merely waved her finger.
"Of course it concerns me. They have already won my friendship, and as their friend, I cannot just stand idly by and watch them suffer your torment. Really, how about I triple the offer?" She questioned.
Adrian thought for a moment, his gaze shifting from Kagome's necklace to the demon lying asleep in the cage. He felt a little guilty that the Princess was willing to pay him for such a matter. "Double is more than enough."
"Then we have a deal?" She asked, and from his nod, she continued. "You will release their friend and revert him back to his human form without hesitation?"
He nodded again, a little disappointed he had to give up on the exquisite and rare gem the priestess wore around her neck. Then again, couldn't pass up on gold from the Royal Family.
"Deal!" She celebrated happily before throwing a wink at Kagome and Link. She felt so excited she had helped them out.
Thankful that they would have their friend back without the worry of him having to remain in his demon form, Kagome and Link watched as Adrian unlocked the cage. After which, he stepped inside and placed the medallion around the half demon's neck. One moment he was full demon and the next, everyone's eyes widened a fraction of their size. Inuyasha was no longer a half demon, instead he was human. His hair had changed to black in an instant and his claws and dog ears vanished.
"He's human!" Kagome gasped. She hadn't realized the charm would subdue his demon blood completely.
Adrian of course merely rolled his eyes before pulling the half demon onto his shoulder as if it were nothing. "Of course he's human. If you had him waltzing right into the city looking like he did, you'd run into some serious problems. And for first time guests that's the last thing you'd folks want."
Well that made sense after all.
Because Kagome was pleased with the turn of events, she couldn't help but thank the Princess. As she fell into a short conversation with Cathleen, she couldn't help but notice out of the corner of her eye that Link had suddenly turned his back to them, exiting the cave without a word. "Link?"
As soon as Cathleen and Kagome exited the cave, with the hunter carrying Inuyasha over his shoulder, the priestess couldn't help but saunter over to the young swordsman with his back to them standing near the river's edge.
"Link?" She called, but he merely ignored her or hadn't heard her. Frankly she had a feeling he had heard her, given he turned away from her the moment she called out to him.
Instead, he stepped over to Adrian, who appeared a little discontented all of a sudden. "You will show us the path to the palace, I assume?" Link asked.
"Of course!" Adrian proudly exclaimed. Looking past a few trees hugged closely together across a few large stones away from the river, Adrian led the way. "That path leads up the canyon. It can be a little treacherous at night, but if you follow me, you'll all be fine," He explained assuredly before looking back at the Princess. "Follow closely, your highness. It will not do to have you left behind."
With that said, Adrian led the way, and without even bothering to look back at Kagome, Link turned to follow after. When he felt Kagome abruptly grasp his hand, calling out to him again in question, he only looked at her from the corner of his eye. Link read the confusion in her eyes, but he couldn't help but feel somewhat hurt by her intentions back at the cave.
"Link…are you upset with me? I'm sor—"
"Kagome, let's travel in silence…" He interrupted suddenly, thus causing the priestess to release his hand disappointedly. Without another reply or look her way, Link followed after Adrian.
Feeling a tender wound to her heart, Kagome couldn't help but place her hand upon her chest where her necklace rested. Link was upset with her, and it was her fault; she was willing to give the necklace Link had given to protect her from danger to the ghost hunter, and she had even refused him more than once. It was clear Link valued the fact that he had given her the necklace, but why couldn't he understand that she only wanted to save Inuyasha?
"Priestess Kagome?" Cathleen called out, her dainty hand touching Kagome's shoulder comfortingly. "Do not feel saddened by today's misunderstanding…"
Kagome ruefully looked at her. "Link has never gotten so angry with me before…"
Cathleen frowned. "Would you care if I gave you my opinion on the matter that happened previously?"
Kagome only nodded. "Sure."
"From what I have witnessed, Link gave you the necklace some time back to protect you from harm during his absence, correct?" When Cathleen was rewarded with a nod, the Princess continued. "You were willing to exchange the necklace for the return of your friend, and though I understand both your intentions were true, both of you seem to have misunderstood the other's feelings. If you understand what I'm referring to?"
The priestess couldn't help but scrunch her face in confusion. What had she misunderstood?
Realizing they had fallen a little behind the guys, who were still trekking up the hill around the canyon, Cathleen took Kagome's wrist as they followed along. "Well I do not believe Link is angry with you. Rather he might feel a little hurt, disappointed actually. You were willing to give up something very precious and important," She explained. "I realize Link must care an awful lot about you, Kagome. I can see, or rather I've witnessed it all back there."
"It's true…" Kagome replied sadly. Only recently they had become a couple and now look what happened.
"Men and women tend to think differently, especially when it comes to emotions. Men pride themselves highly before others, and when you were willing to give the necklace up, his pride was hurt. Perhaps he felt you did not care for his affections, Kagome. It might have been that he thought you valued Inuyasha more than his feelings…Does that make sense?"
Kagome stopped suddenly, her eyes widening. "I do care," She replied back. Her hand found the chain of her necklace suddenly. "This means a lot to me…"
Cathleen softly smiled. "Then tell him that…only after the tension has cleared of course."
Now she understood. So that was why Link was ignoring her. It made sense. Even Inuyasha had his sense of pride where he didn't want to admit his true feelings, and it was clear that yes, men and women do differ greatly from one another. So Kagome supposed it wasn't unusual for a misunderstanding to happen between her and Link; it's happened before with her and Inuyasha several times, though she didn't care to recall those sad memories.
Cathleen was right. Right now she would give Link space, but she would apologize and explain her reasoning later, hopefully sooner than later. Kagome just hoped Link didn't take what happened to heart…though he probably did.
"Here we are!" Adrian's loud voice exclaimed suddenly, rousing Kagome from her thoughts to stare at her surroundings.