Kay heres the next chap, enjoy!
Disclaimer; Don't own him, so stop asking!
Ch 6; Stalking and Saving
Kagome was not at all in a good mood. No where close. In fact, she was down-right pissed!
First of all, she hadn't seen anything of Inuyasha today, even though she knew he had been at school. She had seen Miroku talking to him before class started, and yet he hadn't shown up! And, as ridiculous as it sounded, Kagome couldn't shake off the feeling that it was her fault he wasn't there. Second, she kept having flashbacks of her Nightmare going over and over in her mind, making her edgy around every single bloody corner! Not to mention the fact that she had run into Kouga on her way to last period, and now had a big blue bruise on her right arm. And, it seems like Kagome was a magnet for guys she wasn't into. Kouga and this guy she met in 2nd period Hojo had been hitting on her every chance he got, and kept trying to ask her out! She really liked Hojo, but he seemed more like a friend to her then anything. And he was unbearably persistent, and wouldn't leave her alone! AND, to top it all off, she had so much homework it was possible she might require an all-nighter just to finish it!
By the end of the day, Kagome was so pissed off that she didn't even remember that she had promised to go shopping with Sango! So she was a little surprised when Sango ran up to her while she was stomping out the school doors in frustration.
"KAGOME! EARTH TO KAGOME!"
Kagome whipped around, "WHAT?" she barked, stopping when she saw Sango. "Oh, Sango! Sorry about that…"
Sango stared at her. "What happened to you…you look like me when Miroku gropes me!"
Kagome laughed dryly. "Sorry, rough day. So, what's up?"
"Uh…Kagome? Don't you remember? We were supposed to go shopping!"
Kagome blinked in confusion, and then she remembered. "Oh, sorry Sango! I was just so mad…I guess I kind of forgot." She blushed for a second when she remembered something. "Uh… could we go to my house first so?"
"Why?"
Kagome looked at the ground. "Uh….I kind of forgot to bring any money with me…"
Sango just laughed at her. "Well, that doesn't matter! Who needs money to shop anyways, you dolt!" she teased "Sure, We'll drive there first." She waved with her hand. "Come on, my car's over here!" chatting away, Kagome followed Sango down the parking lot towards a really cool red sports car/convertible.
Kagome's eyes went wide when she saw the car. "Oh my…is that really yours?"
Sango coughed. "Ya, its mine."
"But…its so…"
Sango sighed "Ok, I know its an expensive car! What can I say, both my parents are doctors! I just don't like to brag about it."
Kagome grinned. "Hey, that's cool with me. I'm not complaining." Giggling, the two of them hopped in the car and sped off to Kagome's house.
Inuyasha was sitting in the Cherry blossom tree at the front of the School, where he had been sitting for the past hour and a half. He couldn't believe that he had ever wanted to leave the school when he decided to skip classes! At first, that was the most obvious thing in the world to do, but now he didn't even bother. This school was obsessed with catching people skipping, so there were cameras everywhere around the school property. Not like he couldn't easily destroy them, he just didn't want to attract unwanted attention to them. This was his favorite spot to play hooky in, because in this tree he had a perfectly clear view of everything that was happening in the school, but no one could see him. One side of the tree faced the fields, showing Inuyasha what everyone was doing out there, and letting him spy on them for as long as he wanted, unnoticed. He had a plain view of many windows into the school, and the windows were right next to the branches. It did increase the need for caution, but all the humans in the schools were idiots. They never saw him, and neither did any of the teachers. And, at the end of the day, he could just hop down from the tree, and no one would be the wiser. It was perfect.
It was a really good thing Miroku wasn't in his English class, otherwise he would get suspicious if he knew that Inuyasha was planning on skipping the same period regularly. Not that it was new, him skipping or anything, but still. As much of a hentai as the guy was, he wasn't stupid. He would put two and two together, and figure out something was up.
It's not like he really like English class anyways. Why would he need to learn another language when he was never going to use it? Japanese suited him just fine, thanks.
Inuyasha sighed. This Kagome was going to make his last school year a real pain. He was glad he had found out about her, obviously, but all this secrecy and avoiding her was not one his top ten list of fun things to do. I wonder what she's doing now… sighing, Inuyasha moved silently up the huge tree, the way he had thousands of times before. In a few, silent seconds he was in sight of the English window. It was the window right next to Kagome and his seat, so he had to be extra careful not to be seen.
Looking past the branches that were hiding him from the humans, Inuyasha saw Kagome in her seat. She looked different from when he had seen her yesterday. For one, she was wearing a different outfit and make-up, which actually made her look better. Fact two, she looked absolutely pissed.
What on earth could have happened to her to make her so mad? Inuyasha did notice a bruise on her arm, slightly hidden by her shirt. That might be the reason, but something like that just didn't add up to the look she had on her face. She looked like Sango after she had been groped, for crying out loud! And that's pretty bad.
Despite that he had only planned on a quick look, Inuyasha couldn't bring himself to leave. It was like a part of him wanted to just sit there and watch her, glad that there was a window between them. He didn't know her very well, but he did not want to face her when she was angry like that. It seemed suicidal!
Before Inuyasha knew it, the bell had rung and Kagome left her seat. Sighing, he moved further down the tree, and went back to his train of thought. This Kagome seemed to be on his mind a lot lately….there was no way that he would allow himself to become close to her.
As he was thinking this, humans were beginning to pour out of the school doors. Inuyasha sighed and closed his eyes again, leaning against the tree. Nothing bored him more then having to spend so long with humans and not being able to attack. It was so overwhelming sometimes that he just had to think of something else to pass the time, as a way to help control his emotions.
He stayed like that for several minutes until he heard a familiar voice. "KAGOME! EARTH TO KAGOME!" It was Sango's voice! Opening one eye, Inuyasha looked at the base of the tree and saw Kagome standing there. Hearing the voice, Kagome whipped around, looking very startled.
"WHAT?" she snapped, then her expression changed as she looked foreword. "Oh, Sango! Sorry about that…" Inuyasha turned his head in the direction she was looking and saw Sango walking towards her. She looked a little shocked at Kagome.
"What happened to you…you look like me when Miroku gropes me!" Inuyasha chuckled to himself. That was exactly what he had thought.
Kagome laughed dryly. "Sorry, rough day. So, what's up?"
"Uh…Kagome? Don't you remember? We were supposed to go shopping!"
Kagome stared at her for a minute. "Oh, sorry Sango! I was just so mad…I guess I kind of forgot." Inuyasha saw an embarrassed blush creeping up her cheeks. "Uh… could we go to my house first so?"
"Why?"
Kagome looked at the ground. "Uh….I kind of forgot to bring any money with me…"
Inuyasha heard Sango laugh. "Well, that doesn't matter! Who needs money to shop anyways, you dolt!" she said, teasing her "Sure, We'll drive there first." She waved with her hand. "Come on, my car's over here!" he heard them talking and giggling with each other as they walked out the parking lot. Leaning back against the tree, he thought to himself. This could be a good opportunity to find out more about her, besides, he had a bad feeling. Things just didn't seem right to him...no, he would defiantly keep and eye on them tonight.
Kagome ran back into Sango's car after grabbing her purse and wallet. They were chatting about the days events and listening to random music. From Kagome's house it was only a few minutes to the mall, so there wasn't much time for anything to happen. They got out of the car and went inside the mall.
Inuyasha smirked; this was going to be a piece of cake. Human girls got so excited when they shopped, and they paid little attention to what was going on around them. Making sure to stay as far away from them as he could without fear of being seen, Inuyasha pulled up the brown hood of his sweater over his head, covering most of his face and all of his hair, so only below his nose was showing. If, by some chance Kagome did see him, he didn't want her to know it was him following her. Not that it mattered, but still. Watching there every move, he saw them heading into one store and promptly followed them.
Kagome laughed cheerily. "Can you believe people actually wear these?" she giggled, trying on an enormous hat. "Tell me, does this say psycho science teacher to you?"
Sango laughed gaily. "You look fresh out of the nuthouse!"
Kagome put the silly hat back on the rack and was about to reach for another one, when something caught her eye. It was a manikin, wearing a pair of dark blue jeans with a golden trim on them, and was wearing a black t-shirt and brown zip-up hoodie with the store name on it over top. It was the most perfect outfit Kagome had ever seen! Eyes wide and ga-ga-ing over it, she walked over to it slowly, "Wow! This is so…perfect! I must have it! I don't care what it costs!"
Sango looked over at the manikin, also shocked at how awesome it was. "Oh, Kagome! It's so perfect! You have to get it!"
Kagome and Sango looked over where the manikin was, but they couldn't find the clothes that were on it on the shelves. They searched for a few minutes, but couldn't seem to find it. They asked one of the people who worked there, and they said it was the last one in the store. "Why don't you try those on?" the woman suggested. She went over and took the clothes off the manikin and gave them to Kagome.
Kagome went into the change rooms happily, and tried on the clothes. "How do they fit Kags?" Sango asked. Kagome walked out and Sango's mouth dropped. "Kagome…you look awesome!"
Inuyasha, who was pretending to look at some guy clothes, was looking at Kagome through the corner of his eye, and his eyes went wide as he saw her walk out of the changing room. She looked so…Hot…
Kagome smiled and looked at herself in the mirror, turning to get a better look. "I love it! Only…the t-shirt doesn't go. And its way to small for me…I don't think I'll get the t-shirt." Sango looked at her closely and nodded.
"You're right, the shirt is bad. But the jeans and sweater are awesome…and look! They're on sale!"
Kagome squealed excitedly, and the two of them spent another few minutes looking through the store before buying the clothes. Kagome walked out with the outfit, along with a pair of Capri's, and Sango had a pink halter-top and some jeans. They were both in a really good mood, because, since Summer was over, all the summer season clothes were on sale!
The two girls went into several stores afterwards, but they bought little else. Soon they were getting tired, and hungry. The food court was really close, so they decided to grab some food before heading home. Looking around, they didn't see much food that looked to good. "Ew, I don't know If we want to eat here Sango…" Kagome said, looking distastefully at their options. "Wait…is that…Awsome! They have New York fries here!" Kagome squealed excitedly. (No idea if they have one in Japan but oh well) "Oh lets get in line!"
When they got to the front they were surprised to see a familiar face. "HOJO?"
Hojo looked up from the cash register and saw Kagome and Sango. He smiled warmly at them. "Hey there girls!"
"You work here?"
"Yep. A guys got to make a living somehow." He leaned on the counter and smiled at Kagome. "How have you been?"
Kagome mentally rolled her eyes. "Fine. Two Large Fries please."
Hojo sighed. Still playing hard to get I see. "Coming right up, free of charge."
"No Hojo, you don't have to do that…"
He smiled at her again. "Kagome, I wouldn't make you pay. It's no problem, really!"
"Whatever."
Hojo watched her fondly as she walked away. She was so beautiful…he had to get her to go out with him! He just sat there for a minute, gazing dreamily at her…
"Excuse me I said I'd like a medium fry?" A short man told him, annoyed.
Hojo bolted up from his daze and shook his head. "R-right away, sir." He glanced up once more, looking at where Kagome and her friend were sitting. Then something caught his eye. A few tables away from where they were sitting, there was a man wearing a black hooded sweatshirt over his face with nothing in front of him, staring at Kagome with a strong gleam in his eyes. Shaking his head, Hojo looked at the guy again, worry on his face. He didn't like the way that guy was looking at Kagome, and that was all he was doing; looking at her. Hojo had a bad feeling about this…he would keep an eye on this guy.
A few minutes later, Kagome walked over to Hojo, the man's gaze following. Kagome walked up to Hojo and smiled. "Hojo, can I have some more ketchup?"
"Sure." He said nerviously, getting some for her in a little cup. He turned back to Kagome, an intent look on his face.
Kagome regarded him oddly. "Hojo…are you ok?"
Hojo gazed at her seriously, and bent down slightly so she could hear better. "Kagome, I hate to worry you like this, and please don't panic."
"What do you mean."
"Kagome that guy a few tables next to you has done nothing but stare at you since you sat down." He hissed urgently. Kagome gasped and turned her head slightly, looking through her bangs. There she saw the man, who was indeed staring at her. She whipped around, looking at Hojo with fear in her eyes. "Kagome, are you sure you'll be okay? Do you want me to take you home?"
Kagome paused for a minute. "No…Sango will take me home. Don't worry about a thing, we'll leave right away." She went to leave but turned back around, looking at Hojo gratefully. "Thank you Hojo."
"Be careful Kagome." Hojo said seriously. "I'll watch him when you leave."
Kagome nodded gratefully and turned around, trying to act normal. She walked over To Sango, who noticed her worried face, frowning. "Kagome what's the matter?"
"Sango we have to leave." Kagome said quietly, keeping her tone even.
"Why?"
"Look over there." She whispered, tilting her head in the direction of the man. Sango looked through the corner of her eye at the guy, and her eyes went wide. "Hojo said he's been staring at us the whole time, and I don't like it. We should go." Sango nodded, and they picked up their bags and stood up slowly. Not looking in his direction, they headed directly into a large crowd, and came out the other end, heading for the doors. The man saw them leave and stood up hastily.
Hojo, who had been watching this guy since Kagome left the stall, saw him get up and moved around the stall, heading for him. He was going to intervene. Hojo glanced at the door Kagome went through, then back at the man…who had disappeared. He was no where in the food court. Oh crap!
Inuyasha walked hastily out of the bathroom. Man, what a relief! He had been following the girls for hours and had been holding it the whole time! Even vampires knew when they had to go! Stupid girls took so long looking at clothes that all looked the same…
Inuyasha froze. He looked at the table they had been sitting at…they were gone. He anxiously sniffed the air. They had left just moments ago. Inuyasha followed the smell outside, and saw Sango's car pulling out. Crap. Oh well, its not like he couldn't out-run a car. Then he froze again as he caught another scent. His eyes widened. "SHIT!"
"Is anyone following us?" Kagome asked anxiously, looking out in the darkness as if someone was going to jump out at any moment. Why did it have to be so dark out?
Looking in the rear view mirror, Sango saw no car lights. "Nope, all clear."
Kagome sighed in relief. "I'm so glad. That was really creepy!"
"Tell me about it. But, hey! I could have taken him!" Sango said in a tough voice.
Kagome giggled, "Oh, turn here. Its only a few minutes away."
"I know. I just went down this road a few hours ago, remember?" she teased.
Kagome laughed. "Ya, but it looks different in the dark." She frowned, looking down when she heard a faint beeping. It was the gas meter! "Sango! We're almost out of gas!" she cried.
Sango looked down at the gas meter and cursed. "Oh no…" she groaned. "I was going to get some while we were still in town! I completely forgot!"
Kagome was wide eyed. "Well, maybe we have enough to make it to my house…" The car gave a spluttering sound, and slowly wheeled to a stop. "I guess not."
"GRRR!" Sango growled angrily, turning the key, but she got no response. "Danmit, sorry Kagome. Give me a second, I'll call Miroku." Sango dug out her cell phone and dialed a number. It rang a few times, then He picked up, "Hey Miroku its Sango…we got a little problem here…no, the car ran out of gas on the way home…no I was not with a guy…I WAS SHOPPING WITH KAGOME YOU PERVERT...well that's great, but we can't wait that long…ok, see you then…thanks Miroku, I owe you one." Sango slammed the phone down on the seat. "Stupid pervert." She muttered.
"Hey Sango, what's the deal with you and Miroku?" asked Kagome curiously, looking at her friend with intrest. She had been wondering about the two of them since they met the other day. They seemed to like each other, a lot, but there behavior wasn't always couple-like. In fact, she thought that it was really unlikely they were going out, but who knows?
"He's my boyfriend," Sango admitted, but then she mumbled somthing under her breath. "But...I see him sometimes. He hits on other women so much that I wonder about it. And the stupid guy gets jealous over little things, when it's ME who should be suspicious with all the girls he flirts with!" she growled in frustration.
Kagome giggled. She wouldn't put it past him "So what's going on? What's Miroku gonna do?"
"Well, he said he was going to bring us a thing of gas, but he was in the middle of something. He said it was a family thing, and he couldn't get out of it for another hour…"
Kagome groaned, "I can't wait that long, I have to get home."
"That's what I told him." She sighed, giving Kagome a long look. "Well its not that far to your house, so we'll walk. Miroku will come by your house in an hour and take me to the car with a tank of gas."
"You sure we should just leave it here?" Kagome asked, surprised. Leaving a car like this in the middle of the street at night didn't seem to smart.
"Well, you're right of course. But the car has a special lock. If I lock it, no one will touch it." Kagome still looked skeptical. "Well its either that or we sit here for an hour!"
Kagome sighed. Sango was right. "Alright, we can go." She grabbed her purse and bags, making sure she had everything, but before she touched the door handle, she froze. She just couldn't shake off the feeling of anxiousness. "Uh…Sango?" she said nervously, looking around her. "Are you sure there's no one following us?"
Sango glanced in the rear-view mirror. "Kagome, there are no car lights, and I don't see anyone. There is no one there."
Kagome looked in her own mirror. Sango was right. She couldn't see anything. "Ok, well, we should get moving. I don't like just sitting here."
Sango was out in a minute too, and the two of them began to walk down the empty street. Kagome was still nervous about walking in the streets at night, but it was different this time. This time it wasn't an alley, Sango was with her, and there were no freaky footsteps behind her.
There was, however, a dark outline in the shadow of a tree, going unseen by the girls. Inuyasha had been watching them closely, now fearful for their safety. He knew he was here. He could smell him. He had been in the food court, and now he could smell him here. But…he couldn't pin-point it! It would have been only too easy if he was a full vampire, but well…the girls were in danger! Sango would be fine, she had that bracelet, but Kagome was an open target! And he knew better then anyone how appealing she smelled. She was the target, he was sure of it.
He could sense the longing in the air, all of it coming from one being. This was not good. Not good at all. He had to stop this guy somehow, but he couldn't without knowing where he was! Inuyasha sniffed the air once more…he was moving. He looked around the tree at the girls; they had moved so far ahead! They were now on a sidewalk, a few houses in the distance and a fence following along the sidewalk. His eyes widened as he dropped the spell that hid his Vampiric features…he would need them.
That was when she heard it. Kagome heard it. It wasn't the rustling of branches, or the sound of feet moving on grass behind her. It was the sound of eager breath, so low and musky that she almost didn't hear it. But she did. She froze in place. "Sango…" she hissed, her voice barely a whisper.
Sango stopped and looked at her, catching her fearful look. "Kagome, what's the matter?"
"Cant you hear that?"
Sango froze, straining her ears for any sound. After a long, tense minute, Sango moved again and dropped her guard, "You must have been hearing things, Kagome. I don't think there is anyone out there."
Kagome shook her head fiercely, her body paralised with fear. "He's there. I know he's there."
"Who, Kagome?"
"I don't know…" she screached when she heard a low hiss, whirling aroung in terror. Sango heard it too, for she whipped around to face the direction of the noise, fists in front of her.
"WHO'S THERE?"
She heard a small chuckling. They turned sideways, terrified, as they watched a tall figure walking out of the shadows slowly. Kagome looked closely at what he was wearing; it was the hooded sweatshirt! She looked closely at the guy. He looked so pail…and his eyes…they were red. They looked so evil, so hungry, what on Earth was he? "Who are you?" she demanded.
He smiled evilly. "No one of consequence." He said, walking towards them slowly and somewhat intimidating.
He was almost in front of a petrified Kagome, when Sango intercepted him, glaring at him fiercely. "Then you have no business here! Get going!" She said coolly, clenching her fists.
He laughed menacingly, eyes flashing dangerously. "You think to fight me, human?"
"Only if you insist." Sango said flatly, crouching in a fighting stance. She glared harder when he chuckled again: how she hated that laugh.
"Very well." The man leapt towards Sango, his hands clenched as if he was going to scratch her. He slashed at her, but she dodged it easily.
Kagome looked fearfully at this stranger, wondering what he was doing and what he wanted. Her fearful eyes scanned his body, checking to see if there were any hidden weapons, when they landed on his finger nails…they were almost three times as long as a normal persons, like claws! "Sango! Watch out for his claws!" she cried out in warning. Too her terror, he whipped around to face her with blood red eyes flashing longingly at her. She gasped in terror "He can't be human!"
Growling fiercely, he dived towards Kagome with his claws. Kagome screamed and dived for the ground, but the claws scratched her stomach slightly, and blood began to flow down her hips. Clutching it in pain, Kagome looked fearfully at the thing standing above her. He leaned down slowly, mouth open, which exposed enormous fangs that were gleaming white. A vampire? He never got close enough to her though, for Sango dived over and kicked him away.
"YOU ASKED FOR IT!" she screamed at him, diving towards him again, ready to throw another punch.
He growled and grabbed her wrists, throwing her against the fence. Sango let out a surprised gasp as she hit the chain fence, falling to the ground limply. "Sango!" Kagome cried, fearing for her friend, but unable to move herself because of the wound in her side. Kagome noticed that the man's...person...vampire's palms were steaming as if they had been burnt, but she couldn't move! She could only watch helplessly as the vampire walked, more like glided menacingly towards Sango.
She saw the look in his blood red eyes as he gazed at Sango's exposed neck eagerly. It was sickening…and positively frightening! He leaned down and was about to sink his teeth to Sango's unprotected body, when he leapt back as if he was electric shocked. Shaking his head he tried again, and was once again pushed back. Growling in frustration, he glared down at her wrist, and then turned away angrily. His look of frustration turned to one of longing as he saw Kagome's fallen body. His red eyes were livid with a sickening hunger as he stood over Kagome, fangs gleaming brightly in the moonlight. Still clutching her side, Kagome squirmed away from him slightly, but bumped her wound against the curb, screaming in pain. The vampire seemed to take that as an invitation, and with a loud hiss he lunged for Kagome fangs-first.
But he never pierced her flesh, for he was instead thrown backwards from her and into the fence. He shook his head and looked up at his attacker, and saw someone standing above him furiously. The vampire roared and slashed at him, but he dodged and leapt backwards. "That all you got?" stranger's cocky voice yelled, getting into a fighting stance.
The vampire roared at the challenge, but instead of attacking him, he lunged again for Kagome. She screamed, terrified, but once again was not hurt. She looked up to see someone standing in front of her, and he looked familiar…she gasped in shock. It was the guy from before! She would never forget that voice!
The guy growled fiercely at the vampire, standing above Kagome's fallen form protectively. "Leave…them…alone." He growled loudly, claws outstretched.
His opponent laughed. "Why in hell should I?" he hissed, his voice low and raspy, "Fresh blood…so tasty looking too. Why should I be denied it?"
"Because they are my friends." He said slowly.
The vampire laughed manically "Human friends? Humans are nothing more then food, the thing that gives us eternal life. To think that even one such as you would have such human emotions makes me sick. You dare deny me the taste of flesh and blood because you have 'human companions'?" he said, using a mocking voice as he said that last part, and was rewarded with a low growling. He glared at him hard, flexing his claws. "Pathetic Half-breed. You need to learn some manners."
The vampire dived for Kagome and her protector, but ended up with claws in his gut. Gasping in pain, the vampire glared up at his attacker in pain. His face was inches away, and bright red eyes were gazing hard and deadly towards the wounded vampire beneath him. "Unless you want to spend all immortality in unbearable agony…" he hissed "You will leave them ALONE." He threw his victim away from him roughly. "I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU ATTACKING THEM AGAIN!"
The vampire glared at him hardly. "You wish you could keep me away. You think your threat has any value?" he moved foreword, but almost fell to his knees from the wound in his chest. He groaned in pain. "You win tonight." He turned around, leaping above the fence and disappearing into the darkness, but his voice was as clear as if he was right next to them. "But you are a fool if you think you can keep me from her. I WILL dine on her flesh and blood, mark my words."
Kagome, frozen with fear, looked up at her savior for comfort and with gratitude. "T-hank you!" she gasped out, not taking her eyes off him. He turned around, concern filling his eyes, and he bent down to grasp her hand. Kagome stared at him dumb-struck, her eyes huge with shock. "I…INUYASHA?"
Hehehe I do so luv cliffys. I'll try to update soon, but highskool starts on Tuesday, so humor me. OMG IM GOING TO HIGHSKOOL!