Chapter Thirty-Four
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"And you're their executioner?" The wolf demon asks, crossing his arms as he glares at Inuyasha. "Damn you all for murdering my underlings." He goes on lowly, his voice carrying a clear threat. I feel goosebumps appear on my skin at the timber of his voice, much lower and more gravelly than what I was used to with Inuyasha. "You'll pay with your lives!"
"Go on, try it!" Inuyasha challenges cockily, hands at the ready.
'He's not even bothering to draw Tessaiga. Didn't he hear me? The guy has three jewel shards!' I frown at the back of his head.
"How many innocent people have you and your mongrels killed?!" Inuyasha demands riotously. "You reek of human blood!"
"They needed to eat. Got a problem with that, mutt-face?" The wolf demon stated coldly, and I felt my stomach turn at his clear disregard for human life.
Yeah, suddenly the guy wasn't as attractive as before.
Inuyasha, of course, is focused on something else. "Did you just call me a mutt?!" He demands, looking at the guy with wide-eyed bewilderment. I mean I really couldn't blame him, but still, out of all the things he has been called mutt bothered him?
"No, you're right. That would be an insult to canines." The mystery demon agrees sarcastically. Inuyasha's face hardens once more. "You smell much worse!" The demon declares, Inuyasha scoffing with a smirk of challenge on his face.
"Don't like my smell? Then maybe I'll solve your problem by slicing off your nose and stabbing some air into your belly!" Inuyasha offers his violent solution while finally drawing Tessaiga, and I can't help blinking slightly in disbelief at his comeback. I mean, as far as his comebacks go that one didn't sound as schoolyard-ish as the others, but still. I frown as I watch the sword transform the second he releases it from it's sheath, Inuyasha charging forward and leaping into the air to bring the blade down on the wolf demon. The wolf demon leaps up and dodges the blow easily.
He was fast.
'Probably because of the jewel shards in his legs.' I frown deeply, grabbing my bow and notching an arrow while the wolf demon was still in the air. Before I can release it, however, he disappears with a twist, a mini whirlwind surrounding him. A few moments pass before he breaks free from it, and with lightening fast speed bears down on Inuyasha, only missing him my inches and punching the ground instead. It's too late to yell out a warning as the demon twists his leg around, delivering a hard kick to the side of Inuyasha's face and sending him flying.
"Unreal!" Miroku exclaims from slightly behind me. I can't help but silently agree.
"He's fast." Sango murmurs, her voice tense.
"Not for long." I mutter, taking aim at his right leg where I could see the jewel glowing just below the surface of his skin. My arrow glows purple in color just before I release it, sending it flying directly for my target. I hold my breath, before my mouth drops open in surprise as the wolf demon turns sharply and reaches down to catch my arrow in his fist only inches before it would have hit him. His cold blue eyes look down at my glowing arrow, the jewel shard in his right arm helping to diffuse my own power. He simply snaps the arrow in half in his hand, before his cold blue eyes slowly move up to gaze at me, his mouth set in a tight frown. The mystery wolf demon takes his time, gazing at me from head to foot before dropping the broken arrow from his hand, the two halves of the shaft clattering to the ground.
"You're only acting tough because you got some jewel shards! You haven't got any power on your own! Do ya?" Inuyasha points out as he slowly gets back to his feet, leaning on Tessaiga for support. The wolf demon is hardly phased by his words, still staring me down with a calculating glare.
'He's not even paying attention to Inuyasha now.' I frown, reaching back for another arrow and notching it again without drawing it back, my gaze not once leaving the wolf demon's. It was like a stare down between myself and a wild animal, and I was afraid if I looked away it would charge.
"But you've got to know how to use the power the shards give you, you whining whelp." The wolf demon slowly turns his gaze back to Inuyasha, my body relaxing once he had finally broken the eye contact with me.
"If only you could fight as fast as you can talk." Inuyasha bites back irritably, a clear bruise from the wolf demon's well delivered kick on his cheek developing. "Then we'd get somewhere."
'That bruise proves that he is fast and strong.' I don't argue this out loud, not wanting to damage Inuyasha's pride any further. Besides I was kinda in love with the guy, so it would be nice if he survived long enough to get his head on straight.
"Shut up, albino runt!" The wolf demon shouts angrily at him, his own temper slowly unraveling.
"You ought to be checked out for rabies!"
'Wow…they're actually a lot alike.' I hold my lowered bow and arrow in front of me, looking between the two demons with interest.
"They're well matched when it comes to foul behavior." As usual, Miroku has the uncanny ability to state almost exactly what I was thinking.
"He's is a wolf demon." Sango reiterates, her voice tense.
"Have you encountered them before?" Miroku asks as he turns to look at the female Demon Slayer. Before she can answer, the wolf demon before us finally introduces himself.
"I'm Koga, leader of the Wolf-Demon Tribe, and your destroyer!" He announces, before charging Inuyasha once more with a series of punches and kicks that the half demon just barely avoids.
"I've heard about them from other Demon Slayers." Sango fills in. "They're demons who control wolves. Although they appear human, they are no different than the wolves that they command." As if to emphasize her point, the wolves that were left could be heard snarling as they regrouped and approached us.
"Their coming in from either side!" Shippo's nervous voice snaps me into action. I frown, turning sharply and releasing my arrow into the dirt just in front of Shippo, my aura exploding and sending a blinding light in the direction of the wolves. They whimper, backing away with their tails between their legs as they look at my arrow with open fear. I twist around towards my side of the group, holding my hand up with my palm facing outwards. Sending a pulse of my energy towards the other wolves, it causes them to back away in much the same manner.
Little did I know that Koga had been watching the entire scene play out between trading punches with Inuyasha.
"Kirara!" Sango commands, the small cat demon running forward towards the group of wolves that I had managed to back off with my arrow. She transformed, letting out a loud and menacing roar as she did.
The wolves didn't waste any time turning and running in the face of the great cat demon.
'How ironic.' I can't help a small laugh of disbelief at the scene. "Go Kirara." I cheer lightly out loud, before turning back to watch the fight between Inuyasha and Koga once more. With a shout of effort Inuyasha brings down Tessaiga once more on the wolf demon, Koga sliding backwards with insane speed and easily dodging the attack. 'He's just too slow with the sword.' I frown deeply, watching as Koga charged him. In a surprising move Inuyasha slides onto his back on the ground, using his legs to kick up as the wolf demon came at him, sending Koga flying over head and into one of the huts. It disintegrated the minute he came down ontop of it from the force of of his landing, the dust settling after a few seconds to reveal the wolf demon crouched in the centre of the destruction and completely unharmed.
"What a joke! You could barely keep up on the defensive let alone attack!" Koga goads, cocky smirk on his face. I glance towards the suspiciously silent Inuyasha, frowning as I saw him looking down towards Tessaiga with a determined look.
'He wants to use the Wind Scar.' I realize. 'But he's hardly had time to practice.'
Koga leaps from the building, running towards Inuyasha with so much force that a heavy wind rushes over us, caused from the resistance Koga's body against the very air surrounding him. With a yell Inuyasha raises Tessaiga up above his head, his eyes narrowed in clear concentration as his nose flares, trying to pick up the scent of the scar between their energies clashing.
"TESSAIGA!" Inuyasha shouts, and Koga suddenly looks unsure of himself for the first time since this fight had begun. He ends his charge, leaping back and up high into the air. He lands on the roof of one of the huts, Inuyasha blinking at the wolf demon in confusion even as he held Tessaiga up high over his head still.
"Let's retreat! This is too dangerous!" Koga shouts out to his wolves then, before turning sharply and leaping from the roof of the building towards the edge of the village. The rest of the wolves left behind start to bark and follow him, Koga speeding off with a gust of wind in his wake.
"Did he just run away?" Inuyasha sounds as shocked as the rest of us as he stands there, Tessaiga now lowered but still at the ready in front of him.
"It looks like it." I reply, watching the dust settle with wide eyes. From how cocky the wolf demon had sounded, I would have never pegged him as one to retreat from a fight. 'He said it was too dangerous…he was looking out for himself and his wolves.' I think, finding that I couldn't help feeling some admiration for his choice. 'Koga must have sensed the change in Inuyasha's energy, and he wasn't arrogant enough to think he could go up against Inuyasha's Wind Scar.'
What a breath of fresh air to see such maturity.
"Inuyasha?" Miroku speaks up with uncertainty, the half demon having not moved from his position in front of us since Koga had left. Miroku steps up towards him, the bangles on his staff jingling lightly with each step. "Were you about to use the Wind Scar in battle with him?" He asks pointedly. The Tessaiga began to glow with energy while it transformed back into it's natural state, Inuyasha finally moving to look over his shoulder towards the monk.
"Yeah." He admits, disappointment at not being able to clear in his voice as he sheaths his sword. "But the coward up and ran away. I guess he was all talk and no action." I refrain from correcting Inuyasha by stating what had obviously actually happened.
Koga valued his underlings too much to lose them in a needless battle.
'That wouldn't go over well, especially coming from me.' I think dryly, crossing my arms with a raised eyebrow towards the men.
"Makes me wonder…" Miroku trailed off, looking in the direction that Koga had disappeared off to.
"What do ya mean?" Inuyasha asks curiously, turning fully towards the monk with a furrowed brow.
"I wonder if Koga sensed the power of Tessaiga before it hit him?" Miroku asks, and I have to refrain from throwing my hands up in the air at the monk's habit of asking a question rather than stating something he felt confident in knowing. "Maybe his instinct told him that he was in danger?"
'I love Miroku as a friend, really, I do, but if there was one thing I could change about him…' I can't help the image of Miroku grabbing at Sango's ass in his most recent attempt at seduction. 'Okay, two things…'
"If that's the case it's not just brute strength that we're up against." Sango speaks up from behind me, giving the leader of the wolves the credit he was due. I turn towards her, nodding in agreement with a frown on my own face. Silence falls over our group for a few minutes, before Miroku breaks it once again.
"We should get to work burying the dead, or else we won't finish by nightfall." He suggests softly, his blue eyes looking around in remorse at the bodies of the men, women, and children that laid mutilated around us. I frown as the uneasiness sets in once more, stomach churning.
All we seemed to do now was bury people.
True to Miroku's prediction, the last of the bodies didn't get buried until the sun had almost set that evening. Inuyasha and Miroku had both set to the task of burying the few that were left alone, leaving Sango and I to set up camp and get some food on the fire. I volunteered to go gather water from the nearby creek that flowed at the edge of the village, needing a chance to get away from the grim reality that was slowly taking over.
The Jewel was evil, it was no good, and it corrupted anyone, anyone that used it.
'How come Inuyasha can't see that?' I frown to myself, the pot swinging lightly at my side as I walked. I had heard part of his and Miroku's conversation drifting over from the grave site to the hut we had taken up residence in, Inuyasha proclaiming that no matter what anyone thought or said he still intended to use the Jewel to become a full-fledged demon. 'He wanted to be a full-fledged demon to avenge Mayumi's death. He now knows that Naraku, not Kikyo, is to blame for it all. We have to kill Naraku to get the jewel shards that he possesses. Wouldn't still wanting to be a full demon become a mute point then?'
Inuyasha, no matter how good of a person he really was, still craved power.
Finally coming to the edge of the creek, I kneel down and gently submerge the pot into the water to fill it. My chest felt heavy at the thought of losing Inuyasha to the Jewel, tears even starting to burn at my eyes. If it wasn't one thing leading Inuyasha away from me, it was another.
Maybe I should take the clear signs that we weren't ever meant to be?
"Never would have pegged you for a crier." I freeze, aching heart stuttering to a full stop at the gravelly voice. Looking upwards slowly across the small creek, my fears are confirmed as I see familiar ice blue eyes staring down at me, powerful arms crossed over his fur and armor.
"Koga?" To my credit, my voice doesn't shake, but if I moved to stand I wasn't sure my knees wouldn't. The wolf demon smirks at the stunned expression I no doubt had on my face, eyes quickly drying as they regarded him widely.
"For a woman who managed to keep my wolves at bay, you sure are easily startled." He throws me another condescending observation, and I feel my temper flare as I finally stand smoothly with my pot of water.
"For someone who talks a big game, you sure can run away fast when you need to." I bite back, Koga's smirk dropping slightly as his eyes narrowed. I place the pot down at my feet, allowing the energy to flow into my hands, my aura snapping to life at my fingertips. "Inuyasha is going to smell that you're here."
"We're downwind." Koga replies smartly, his arms dropping from crossing his chest to rest at his sides. He takes a step forward, and I take a step back while holding my hands outwards in a clear threat.
"He'll smell you on me if you touch me." I add lowly, Koga scoffing as his toes just barely touch the water at the bank across from the one I now stood by.
"Something tells me that you don't need that mutt to come to your rescue." Koga replies easily, his face softening slightly from the sharpness he had worn before. "I don't want to hurt you, woman." He adds, his voice taking on a softer tone to match the expression on his face. He didn't move any further, but I still kept my hands at the ready just in case. "I just want to ask you some questions."
"Why me?" I frown in confusion, watching the wolf demon curiously over my hands.
"I find it interesting that you can sense the jewel shards." Koga replies easily, his blue eyed gaze slowly raking along my form from head to foot, and then back up. There was no heat in his gaze, nothing that made me feel dirty. It was like he was sizing me up, assessing like he would any of his opponents.
It made me feel incredibly insecure.
"And?" I snap defensively, Koga holding up his hands in a placating manner.
"Enough with the hostility, sweetheart." He murmurs smoothly, the pet-name slipping out without effort. Suddenly he's no longer on the bank, my eyes going wide as he lands directly in front of me, his body blocking out the last bits of sunlight coming from the horizon. I blink, looking up with wide green eyes to see him smirking as he looks down his regal nose at me. Without any preamble Koga leans down, his nose so close to my jaw I swear I could feel it touching my skin, but he wasn't. He takes in a deep breath, a low growl echoing in his chest in response to whatever he smelt. I'm so shocked that I lose my concentration, my energy now flickering weakly at my hands.
"W-what are you doing?" I can't help gasping out, feeling frozen in place as his scent washes over me as well. It wasn't as clean as Inuyasha's pine smell; much more earthy with a hint of what smelt like sandalwood, though I knew that it couldn't be that.
"You're definitely human, like I thought." Koga goes on, as if this entire situation wasn't downright weird. "I can sense your energy. Almost the same signature as the jewel shards…" He trails off, voice questioning as he leans back and gazes down seriously at me. "What are you?" I frown, focusing on my energy once more as I take a step back from him.
"None of your business." I reply evenly, hands opening to reveal orbs of energy in each palm. Koga looks slightly taken aback, surprised even, and it makes me wonder how often someone, a woman in particular, had spoken to him like I was. The surprised look fades into a cocky smirk as he allows me to put distance between us. Looking down at the ground his gaze finds my pot of water. Glancing towards me, before looking back down at the pot, he leans forward and picks it up, shifting it gently to rest directly in front of my feet.
"I'll be seeing you again very soon." Koga promises lowly, the gravelly tone in his voice sending a shiver down my spine.
And if I was being completely honest with myself, it wasn't entirely unpleasant.
His cocky smirk turns knowing, before he spins on his heel and is gone in a flash, leaving me with my hair whipping in the wind he had caused. Heart racing and palms sweating, I shakily lean over to grab the pot he had moved for me, my gaze still locked on the tree-line where he had disappeared towards the mountains. I take a few moments to gather myself, unable to stop one last gaze towards the mountains over my shoulder as I move to return back to the hut. Once I get there the sun had almost fully set, Inuyasha standing outside the door and clearly looking around for me. Once his golden eyes land on my form, relief floods his face, his arms dropping from where they are crossed over his chest as he moves towards me. I watch him, silver hair glinting in the twilight, his handsome face resting peacefully now, and I feel my heart beat twice as hard as it had during my encounter with Koga.
No, there was no denying it. I was completely and utterly devoted to the half dog-demon in front of me.
Inuyasha reached down, gently taking the heavy pot from my hand into his own. "We were getting worried about you. Sango said you had left a while ago for the water." His voice is curious, soft even as he gazes down at me. "You alright?"
"I'm fine." I murmur softly, nodding with a small smile. 'Koga was right, he can't smell him on me.' I hesitate, about to tell him exactly what had made me late, before thinking better of it. If I told him about the encounter with Koga, what good would it do? He'd want to set off in search of the wolf demon tonight, rather than waiting for the light of day when it was safer to try and find him and the jewel shards again. No, it was best he didn't know about it.
"You sure? You seem a little dazed?" Inuyasha presses, a concerned frown on his face.
"Just got to thinking while I was at the creek is all." I murmur softly, turning my head to glance towards the graves in the distance. Inuyasha turns to look as well, sighing softly as he did.
"Yeah. I feel like a professional gravedigger." He admits grimly, his frown deepening. I nod in agreement, before tearing my eyes away from the solemn sight.
"Let's get the water in so we can start to make something to eat." I suggest gently, Inuyasha nodding as he too jerks his head back around towards the home. I follow him in, swallowing thickly as I turn to look instead towards the mountains.
"I'll be seeing you again very soon."
My hand clenches on the wood in the doorway at the memory of the wolf demon's promise. 'Yes you will be, and the next time, we'll be ready for you.' I think with determination, before turning and heading inside.
Later that night I asked Shippo to come outside with me to gather enough wood for the night. It was chilling off recently, making a fire almost necessary to remain comfortable while sleeping. Inuyasha had taken to the task of ensuring it continued to remain stoked through the night, not needing as much sleep as the rest of us. I figured if he was willing to do that, then he shouldn't have to get up in the middle of the night for more wood as well.
"Have you heard of the Wolf Demon Tribe, Shippo?" I can't help asking, wondering if they were well know among other demon clans and groups. Shippo looks up from gathering a couple pieces of wood, nodding.
"Oh yeah! The live in packs up in the mountains." He informs me. "They think they are supreme wolf demons. They bully other demons off their land, and claim it as their own territory." I frown at that, Shippo jumping down from the pile with his gathering of wood and leading the way out of the small shed attached to the house. "My own family was driven out and had to find shelter elsewhere because the Wolf Demon Tribe took possession of the mountains, and they guard them ruthlessly."
"Your family was forced from your home?" I ask sadly, and he nods with a sad frown of his own. I mean, hadn't this kid been through enough in his short life time? 'No wonder he looked so petrified when Koga's wolves had arrived.' I hesitate before asking. "Have you ever heard of Koga before?" Shippo lets out a sigh.
"No. There are so many branches of the Wolf Demon Tribe. Koga bragged to us that he was their new leader, so maybe he caused an upstart and took control of the packs by using the jewel shards?" Shippo offered up, and I'm slightly taken aback by his knowledge of pack politics. Then again, before he had stumbled on Inuyasha and I, he had belonged to a fox demon pack himself. The little tyke knew a lot more, and had seen a lot more, than I gave him credit for.
"We brought more firewood!" Shippo exclaims proudly as he enters the hut, Sango kneeling by the fire pit just beside the front door. It was, what I would guess to be, the feudal era's version of a stove, being covered by a hut like structure made of some sort of hardened clay-like material. The pot containing our supper simmered on top of the rounded hut.
"Thank you." Sango replies to Shippo, smiling widely at the proud boy. I watch his tail fluff up with Sango's recognition of his hard work, smiling myself as I stepped in behind him. "Why don't you two put it over there?" She asks, pointing to the opposite wall beside the door. "By the way, have either of you guys seen Kirara?" She asks lightly, and my eyes widen slightly in realization.
Kirara hadn't been around since well before nightfall, when she had been walking around the premises of the village with Inuyasha.
"No." I reply, my voice sounding unsure as I turn and gently rest my small logs of wood over Shippo's once he had placed his on the floor. "The last I saw of her she was walking around with Inuyasha."
"With him again?" Sango asks, sounding surprised. "She's been following him around constantly lately. I wonder why?" I shrug my shoulders, at a loss as well.
"I could go and see what they are up to if you would like?" I ask lightly. Sango hesitated, clearly not sure, before nodding.
"If you wouldn't mind?" She asks, looking slightly uncomfortable asking me to do so. I wave it off, smiling pleasantly.
"I gotta go and let Inuyasha know supper is about ready anyways." I reply easily. "Be back soon!" I wave to Shippo, Miroku, and Sango, before turning and heading on out towards where I had noticed the two of them had been wandering last, down by the creek. It doesn't take me long to feel a spike in Tessaiga's energy, eyes widening slightly as I follow it to a clearing on a hill just above the creek. As I crest the hill I take in the sight of Inuyasha and Kirara facing off against one and other, the Tessaiga glowing brightly as it was poised over Inuyasha's head. Kirara was calm, simply standing there and watching Inuyasha with rapt attention.
'He's practicing locating the Wind Scar.' I realize, chewing softly on my lower lip. 'So that's what Kirara and him have been doing late a night.' After a few moments Inuyasha lowers Tessaiga, the blade's glow dimming as it reverts back to it's dulled state. He lets out a happy laugh, before approaching Kirara.
"How about that, Kirara? Perfect form!" He grins as he reached the cat demon, gently running his hand over the top fo her head and down her neck. Kirara looks like she's actually smiling at him as he does. "It's been great using you for my training with Tessaiga." He adds thankfully, and I can't help melting a little at the moment I was no doubt intruding on.
'It's so nice to see him playing well with others.' I can't help thinking dryly, a smirk of amusement replacing the smile I had on earlier. Suddenly Inuyasha tilts his head back, his nose flaring as he clearly sniffs the air.
And his golden eyes snap directly towards where I was standing just at the edge of the clearing.
"Smells like the food is ready, Kirara. Why don't you go back and get something to eat?" Inuyasha suggests, the cat demon leaning it's head up to nuzzle under his chin before turning and leaving back towards the village. I step further into the clearing as she leaves, Inuyasha scoffing as soon as he saw the look on my face. "What?" He snaps lightly, and I can't help a giggle that escapes me.
"Nothing." I assure him, finally reaching where he was standing. "It's just really nice to see you getting along so well with Kirara is all." He rolls his pretty eyes at me, crossing his arms over his chest.
"She's a good training partner." He insists, looking in the direction that Kirara had disappeared.
"I can see that." I agree, nodding as I clasp my hands behind my back. "She's one of the few of us that can help you practice detecting the Wind Scar. Shippo is too young." Inuyasha nods.
"That, and I don't want to accidentally hurt the brat. Kirara could defend herself, move out of the way in time." He adds.
"That's true too." I was relieved to hear he was actually thinking it through, rather than needlessly putting anyone in danger. "Why didn't you tell us this is what you were doing with Kirara?" I can't help asking as he turns back to me, a small frown on his face. "Sango was getting a little concerned when Kirara kept disappearing."
"I didn't know how she'd feel about me using Kirara as target practice." Inuyasha states, shrugging his shoulders. "Besides, I can't concentrate with everyone else around. With Kirara I can."
"I'm a distraction, huh?" I ask dryly, Inuyasha scoffing once again as his arms drop from across his chest to rest at his sides. Other than that, he doesn't respond. "Well, come on then, you've gotta be hungry too." I urge, nodding towards the village and starting in the direction it lay.
"You are a distraction, Yua." Inuyasha's gravelly voice speaks up from behind me. My eyes widen as I turn back around to look towards him, finding he hadn't moved at all even after I had started walking. His golden eyes are flashing under the light of the moon, his shoulder's squared as his intense gaze nearly causes my knees to buckle from under me. "But not in a bad way." He adds lowly, his gaze slowly raking over my form from head to toe as a very masculine smirk overcomes his full lips. By the time his eyes come back up to my own, my heart is racing.
'Here we go again.' I swallow thickly as he makes to step towards me, and I find myself panicking. "Okay, good to know." I squeak out, taking a step back as he took another step forward. I clear my throat, feeling my face flush with embarrassment.
So much for trying to play it cool with him.
"Well, dinner is ready, so we should get going." I go on, my voice much more steady now. Inuyasha's smirk widens as he stops, watching me with a knowing gaze. 'That little shit knows exactly how to play me. It's not fair.' I think to myself, inwardly frowning. 'Are my feelings really a game to him?!' I turn on my heel then, walking with determination towards the village.
I can feel Inuyasha's gaze burning against my back the entire way.
The next morning we pack up and head for the mountains, Inuyasha's keen sense of smell directing us. Sadly enough I was starting to get used to the sight of him on all fours on the ground, crawling along as he sniffed the trail.
'This is the same guy that can turn things on for me?' I think to myself, holding back a snort of amusement as I watched him crawling along the rocky ground.
"Alright!" Inuyasha proclaims back towards the rest of us. "I've picked up the scent of the wolves. I'll be able to lead us right to them, no problem! That cocky bastard! I can't believe that he called me a mutt!" The last bit was obviously Inuyasha ranting to himself, though I can't help a snort of amusement this time. Slowly he turns his gaze over his shoulder towards me, his eyes narrowed in clear challenge for me to laugh at him again. I press a hand over my smile, unable to wipe it off of my face.
'I know it's wrong of me, but him being so annoyed by Koga is kinda cute.' I think to myself, glancing towards the others to see that they too were amused by Inuyasha's ranting. Inuyasha, meanwhile, gets up and starts to leap on ahead of us.
"I don't blame him for getting upset at being called a mutt." Shippo surprisingly supports, and I look towards the boy on Miroku's shoulder with surprise. "But when he's sniffing the ground, he sure looks like one."
Well, that didn't last long.
Inuyasha turns sharply at the bend in the mountain yards in front of us, and sends the little fox demon a scathing glare.
"I heard that, Shippo!" Inuyasha shouts angrily back towards our group. "Come here and say that, I dare ya!" He challenges. I groan, leaning my head forward and massaging my temples with my fingers as I close my eyes. In response Shippo makes a nervous noise, slowly shifting around behind Miroku's head and out of sight as much as he could manage.
"He can hear me from that distance?!" Shippo exclaims in genuine surprise. "What a blood-hound! Talk about canine power!"
"Shippo!" I frown at the little boy behind the monk's head.
"Canines are carnivores! Remember that you little runt!"
"That wasn't wise, little one." Miroku sighs, before moving to follow him. Sango shakes her head as well, she and I sharing an amused smile, before she follows the monk. I bring up the rear, looking around at the mountains that surrounded us and the forests below. I mean, it really was beautiful up here. I could see why the Wolf Demon Tribe had taken over.
"Perhaps Kirara and I should go and take a look around from the air?" Sango volunteers as she too looks over the vast range. "We might be able to cover more ground that way?" I blink, kind of surprised we didn't think of that before.
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." I pause for a moment, looking towards Shippo still hiding behind Miroku's head. "Might be best to take Shippo with you as well? Give Inuyasha a little room?"
"You mean give us all a break from their arguing?" Sango replies dryly, and I can't help smirking.
The girl got me.
Miroku easily volunteered to go with the Demon Slayer as well, and I couldn't resist sending Sango a sly look as he climbed onto Kirara behind her, his hands moving to rest easily on her hips. Sango, in return, threw me a dirty look before she grabs Miroku's staff, placing it in front of her across her lap. She moves his hands firmly from her hips to grip it on either side of her before Kirara lifted off and they disappeared overhead.
"Well hurry up! We ain't got all day!" Inuyasha gripes from a good distance in front of me. I roll my eyes.
"Don't roll your eyes at me!"
"Yes, Mom." I mutter under my breath, before sighing heavily and moving along.
An hour later Miroku, Sango, Shippo, and Kirara all returned, meeting us on a ledge higher up on the mountain.
"It's about time you guys arrived. Can you fly any slower?" Inuyasha gripes, his grumpy attitude having persisted.
"If I was you I wouldn't have bothered coming back with his delightful attitude." I pipe up towards the others as they land, Inuyasha sending me yet another dirty look. Without getting off of Kirara, Miroku looks to Inuyasha with an urgent expression on his face.
"Inuyasha, can you smell or hear anything unusual about this area?" Miroku demands, and I frown as I straighten up slightly.
What had they seen out there?
"Oh, so I'm your faithful terrier all of a sudden?! Wondering if I have sniffed out a scent or heard something with my little doggy ears?" Inuyasha complains once again, turning away from Miroku and crossing his arms as he continues on his childish rant. "Damn you guys piss me off! Every single one of you!"
"Inuyasha!" I snap, unable to stop myself this time. "Grow up! Miroku just asked you a question. You need to get over what Koga said yesterday. Why does his opinion of you matter so much anyways?!" Inuyasha sputters in shock at me, turning to look at me wide eyed.
"I don't care what the flea-ridden sack of fur thinks about me!" He insists angrily.
"Well then quit acting like you do!" I insist, sighing heavily and groaning. "And just answer Miroku's question."
"I'm simply asking if you sense another presence in the air like we did?" Miroku explains, a deep frown on his face and his own eyes filled with irritation at Inuyasha's sour attitude. I frown at that, turning sharply to look towards Sango and Miroku.
"Something else is out there?" I ask tensely. Kirara suddenly growls, looking up the side of the mountain as she does. We all direct our attention upwards, my stomach dropping as I see what had gotten the cat demon's attention.
Wolves, dozens of them, racing down the steep incline of the mountain towards us.
No, not towards us…towards Inuyasha.
I pulse my energy outwards towards the wolves as they reach us, managing to hold off the first wave from hitting him.
"SANGO!" Miroku's panicked voice draws my attention, and frantically I look over towards my friends to see them under attack as well. I throw my open hand up, palm facing outwards as I pulse my energy into a wave that takes out the first of the wolves heading for them. With the extra time I could give them, Kirara takes off safely from the ledge.
"YUA!"
It's too late by the time I realized that I was under attack as well. I grunt as the bodies of at least three wolves crash into me, jaws snapping but not biting down on any of my limbs. It sends me reeling back, my barrier in front Inuyasha fading with the loss of my concentration.
My left foot hits nothing but air.
With a scream I find myself weightless, falling over the edge of the cliff. Inuyasha can't do anything, having to deal with wave after wave of the wolves that came at him. I could hear his panicked cries over the snarling as I topple off the edge in what felt like slow motion.
Until suddenly, I'm not falling anymore.
A solid body slams into my back before I can fully begin to fall from the cliff, strong arms wrapping around my middle as I'm launched up high in the air. The drastic change from falling to flying causes my stomach to turn over with nausea. Whoever had me moved me in their arms to carry me against a chest clothed in fur and armor, my legs thrown over one of their arms and my back braced against their chest.
'No way…' I trail off, looking up wide eyed then as I my suspicions are confirmed. Ice blue eyes and a cocky, fanged smirk greet me. "Koga?" I gasp out loud, the wolf demon chuckling low in his chest.
"I told you I'd be seeing you soon." He murmurs in his low gravely tone, before turning us in midair away from my friends. "See ya later, mutt-face! Now she's mine!" He smirks over his shoulder toward the others, before in a burst of wind we were gone. In my shock it takes me a while to actually catch up to what was happening, Koga continuing to put more and more distance between my friends and I. When I finally snap to it I allow my energy to burst forth again, raising a glowing hand in threat towards the wolf demon's face.
"Let me go! Right now!" I demand over the rushing wind. Koga hardly looked phased, staring ahead still rather than looking at me.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." He replies evenly, and I frown, allowing my aura to spark at my finger tips in threat.
"And why not?" I challenge, his grip on me tightening at my words.
"Do you really think that you alone can defeat me?" Koga asks in return, his tone cocky.
"Only one way to find out!" I reply smartly, before slamming both my hands against his armor plated chest. The shock of my hit takes him off guard, causing us to be separated as I go flying in one direction, and he skids backwards in the opposite away from me. I grunt as I skid along the ground, wincing at the feeling of the loose rocks scraping at my skin. Rolling at least a half a dozen times, I come to a terrifying stop at the edge of a cliff. Using my elbows to slowly push myself up onto all fours, I wince at the soreness in my shoulder from the impact it took.
"That wasn't very smart." Koga murmurs lowly, his voice a dark growl. I hear his feet crunching along the loose gravel of the path, his approaching pace slow and determined. Reluctantly looking up, I can see the annoyed frown on his face.
But his eyes said something different entirely.
'He's impressed.' I realize with disbelief, mouth falling open slightly. Koga comes to stand beside me, kneeling down with his elbows leaning against his knees.
"Look," he sighs, "even if you could beat me and take the jewel shards, what makes you think you'd survive a day out here in the mountains by yourself?" He asks pointedly, and I hesitate. "There are things out there far worse than me, take my word for it." He adds vaguely, his head tilting back to look up at the blue sky.
'The presence that Miroku felt earlier…is that what he is referring to?' I frown, slowly moving to sit on my hip. "Did you call your wolves off from my friends?" I ask then, frowning deeply. Koga's attention is successfully redirected towards me.
"Once we were gone, my wolves dispersed. Did you honestly think I'd allow more of my underlings to be harmed or killed than what was necessary to get to you?" He replies, and I feel relief flood through me.
There was hope that they were all okay.
'There is something about this guy…He's dangerous, but he's not like any of the demons we've encountered before that had possession of the jewel shards.' I frown deeply as I gaze up into his handsome face. 'I can't say he's not a killer, not after what he allowed to happen to the village. He is intelligent, though.' I flinch feeling his pointer finger pressing into the center of my forehead, having not noticed his hand moving during my thoughts.
"What's going on behind those pretty green eyes of yours?" Koga asks, sounding genuinely curious as he poked my forehead again. I huff with annoyance, lightly slapping his hand away.
"So, what now?" I ask, knowing he had been right when he said I wouldn't survive on my own out here. 'My friends, I know they are alright, it's like I can sense it deep in my gut. They'll come and find me.' Koga stands, and in a surprising gesture of kindness he offers me his hand to help me up. I take it, ignoring the burning sensation of where the rocks had randomly bitten into my skin roughly through my clothes. With a single jerk of his head, he nods towards the canyon behind me. Turning around I look at it, before looking back towards him, before looking at the wide cavern once more.
Then it clicks.
"OH no!" I frown, raising my hands up and shaking them as I take a step back from him. Koga, meanwhile, is looking at me with amusement. "Yeah, that's not happening. There better be another way around."
"There isn't." Koga replies shortly, extending his hand out to me. "Come here." I frown at that, shaking my head.
"Seriously, you're not getting it. I'm not jumping over that thing!" I take another step away from him. Koga huffs, leaning forward and grabbing my wrist firmly in his hand. He yanks me forward, fluidly lifting me up to rest over his broad shoulder this time. I sputter with indignation, slamming my fists against his chest.
"You're not jumping over it. I am." Koga replies, turning and walking a distance away to give himself plenty of running space. My heart races as I begin to panic.
"Koga, no, please don't!" I can't believe it that I actually resorted to begging, and judging my Koga's cocky smirk, he was enjoying it.
"Take it easy. With the jewel shards a jump like this is nothing." He tries to reassure me, but I'm hardly feeling confident. Without any further preamble he takes off at a run towards the cliff. As we reach the edge, I'm so terrified that I can't utter a single word, my whole body clenched in anticipation of the jump. I can't even scream as he leaps into the air.
Before falling incredibly short of the other side.
"YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!" I finally find my voice, my right hand moving to grip onto his strong bicep and the left reaching around to grip onto the shoulder opposite to the one I was laying over. "YOU LIED TO ME!" Koga grunts as we land on the wall of the caver, his feet digging in, but we continued to slide down further and further.
"I didn't lie to you!" Koga shouts back to me when he finally gets his footing, starting to leap up the side of the mountain. "See?! We're fine! Stop your yelling!" Koga grunts with every leap he makes, my stomach turning with the jolt of each upwards bound. It forces me to be quiet for fear of getting sick, not because of Koga's shouting at me.
If he had ears on his head like Inuyasha did, I'd be pulling them so hard right now.
Once we reach the top Koga continues on for a while longer, my stomach finally settling by the time he stops again. I could feel the way his body stiffens under my own, his gaze turning upwards towards the sky.
"What's going on?" I ask in confusion, before I tense as well as a large shadow passes over us, accompanied by the sound of wings beating. Another shadow overtakes us soon after the first, and this time I could feel the gusts of wind from wings beating above us.
Then I see them.
They emerge from the clouds like a grotesque flock of birds. Their bodies are large and round, huge eyes surrounded by purple markings and large smiling mouths filled with fangs taking up a majority of the space. The faces were outlined in white, while the rest of the body of the creatures was grey in color. They had large wings decorated with dark stripes, and clawed feet like a bird, but on the tops of their bodies there was something very strange.
'T-they look like harpies.This must have been what Miroku was going on about before!' I frown as I see the blue, naked beings conjoined to the top of the body. As they loomed over us, I couldn't help asking breathlessly. "What are those things?"
"They're not canaries, I can tell ya that much, and I bet they want dinner." Koga replies easily, his voice solemn. He turns to look at me, bringing us almost nose to nose with his close proximity to me. "Do any of them have a jewel shard?" He demands, and I can't help looking at him with surprise, before looking back up towards the birds.
"I don't think so." I frown, gazing at them all. "I don't see any from here, at least."
"Take a good look." Koga insists, urging me on. I frown at him, before looking back up towards the growing flock above us. "Not even the ones over the cliff?"
"No." I answer assuredly this time. 'One of these things must have a shard he's after. That's why he kidnapped me!' I realize, chewing softly on my lower lip.
"Fine, then I've got no use for them." Koga replies lowly, before taking off running once more. I have to close my eyes at first, the wind whipping about us so strongly I couldn't force them to stay open. "See ya later, buzzard brains! We're out of here!" And just like that Koga outran them with the help of the jewel shards in his legs. He slowed down after he no doubt felt we were far enough away to stay out of danger.
"Can I get off your shoulder now? It's not exactly comfortable." I frown, wiggling slightly. My stomach was starting to get sore. Koga seems to think on it, before kneeling down so I could slid off of him. He stands back up once I have my balance, swinging his arm that had been carrying me in circles to no doubt loosen his shoulder back up. "If those things cause you trouble, why don't you get rid of them? You're powerful enough to with the jewel shards." I ask as we start walking once again.
"I'm strong enough to take on one, maybe two, at a time. Those things fly in large flocks, though. I wouldn't stand a chance." Koga replies easily, and once again I'm inwardly astounded at his ability to choose his battles wisely.
"Do they have names?" I ask then, frowning as I look over my shoulder towards where we had just ran from.
"We call them the Birds of Paradise." Koga answers, and I can't help lifting my eyebrow at that title. When I thought of Birds of Paradise I thought of colourful macaws, or playful cockatiels. Those things from before were Birds of Hell in comparison.
Suddenly we can hear the beating of wings again coming from behind us. We both turn sharply together, looking to see a rogue Bird Of Paradise closing in on us. Koga huffs in annoyance, frowning.
"Must be one of the younger ones. Those guys are too cocky for their own good." He mutters, reaching out to grab me. I frown, extending my left arm and sweeping it from over my head towards my knees to create a bow with my energy. With my right hand I press my index and middle finger together, extending outwards and drawing back to create the arrow.
"Well then, I guess we better send them a message." I reply evenly, taking aim before letting my arrow fly. When the arrow hits it's target the light of my aura explodes, the Bird of Paradise crying out in pain as it's body disintegrates before our eyes. Frowning, I lower my arms as the light fades, what little was left of the Bird Of Paradise falling to the ground with a thud. There was a huge gaping hole in the side of it's body, the foot twitching slightly before it goes still. I look from the body of the demon towards Koga, the wolf demon having been surprisingly quiet during the entire thing.
He's staring down at me with an unreadable expression in his cool blue eyes, his lips tightened into a frown as he clearly thought hard on something.
"What?" I can't help asking, feeling uncomfortable as he just continues to stare at me. Koga seems to shake himself out of it at that, stepping back away from me and nodding his head in the opposite direction.
"Let's get going. We're not far from the Den." He states, rather than answering my question. I frown in confusion at that, before sighing softly as I turn to follow him, casting one last glance at the dead demon behind us.
Hopefully the others didn't run into those too.
We come to what looked like a small inlet, the sounds of rushing water easily heard echoing throughout the cavern. As we round the corner I'm greeted with the sight of a large waterfall, greenery growing on the rocks and the side of the mountains that surrounded it. My mouth falls open slightly in shock as my eyes widen taking in this little oasis of of nook.
"It's beautiful." I can't help whispering softly to myself, though I knew Koga would hear me.
"It's home." Koga replies easily, pride clear in his voice. I suddenly feel pressure against my lower back, distantly aware that he had settled his large hand there to urge me on. We walk like this, with him guiding me, till a voice shouts out over the sound of the rushing water.
"Hey! It's Koga! Koga's come back!" I look up, seeing two other wolf demons clearly meant to be on guard at the waterfall.
"Hey! Koga!" Another greets happily as we come to stand below where they were positions, right at the base of the waterfall. Koga looks up at them with a smirk, giving them a single wave.
"Hey guys, I'm back." Suddenly he wraps his arm around my middle, jumping over from the ledge we were standing on to a large rock in the middle of the river. His arm never leaves me as I look on stunned at the many wolves and wolf demons that were revealed from this new position. They lined along every ledge, the wolves howling in greeting towards their leader. Soon enough hushed whispers could be heard among them as they all regarded me with uncertainty, clearly confused as to why I was there. I step back nervously in reaction, Koga's arm tightening around my middle to stop me. He leans his head down, his warm breath washing over my ear.
"Don't be afraid." He murmurs lowly to me, his voice almost soothing. "As long as you stick with me, nobody is going to harm you." He pauses, leaning back and smirking. "Not like you couldn't handle yourself if they tried." I can't help blushing at that, looking away nervously from the handsome wolf demon at my side. He jumps with me to the side of the waterfall, leading me into the dark cave that laid just behind it. As we walk in more wolf demons were there to greet us, most of them looking at me with interest as he kept me pressed tightly to his side.
"Hey, Koga! Who's the woman?!" A gruff voice calls out, causing me to flinch slightly. Koga, meanwhile hardly looks affected. His face is the very picture of seriousness, his shoulders squared and his walk powerful.
It was very clear that he was the Alpha, and nobody dared to mess with him.
Koga leads me to the very back of the cave where a bed of fresh hay was piled into a corner. With a gently shove of his arm I'm forced to sit down on it, looking up towards him as he regards me with a cool and confident smirk, his Alpha persona not faltering. The other demons gather around, clearly observing me with hungry eyes. I back away further onto the bed of hay, until my back hits the rock wall behind me.
"That's a tasty looking prey, Koga. Can I have one of the legs? They look plump and juicy!"
"I claim first dibs on the liver!"
"This woman is off limits. I'll kill anyone who tries to take a bite." Koga cuts in, baring his fangs in threat towards the other wolf demons. His blue eyes are sharp as he looks around at them, clearly daring anyone to challenge him. The wolf demons clearly heed his warning, nervously backing away. A few wolves approach Koga, sniffing and gently whimpering at him, and Koga looks over his shoulder curiously towards them at first. "Oh yeah…" He murmurs then, as if remembering something. He reaches for his brown tail, lifting it up to reveal the last person I had expected to see underneath. "I had forgotten this little guy grabbed onto my tail when I had captured the girl. I assumed he had fell off."
"Shippo!" I gasp in shock, scrambling forward from the wall towards the little boy. I watch intently as he grabs the clearly disoriented fox demon by the scruff of his neck. "Don't hurt him!" I shout desperately, Koga looking between me and the boy with curiosity.
Before throwing him careless to his wolves.
"YUA! HELP!" Shippo's voice shouts out as he lands, coming to. I frown reaching my hand outwards and using my aura to pick him up from the centre of the gathering wolves, and bring him right back to me. He grips onto the front of my shirt tightly as I wrap my arms around him protectively, glaring up at Koga.
"Don't you dare touch him. Not now, not ever again." I hiss out lowly, feeling my whole body shaking with rage. The other wolf demons are nervously chattering around us, having obviously been put off by my display of power. Koga scoffs, reaching for the little boy despite my warning.
"My wolves need to eat." I throw my hand out, hardly phased this time to see it glowing red.
I was pissed.
"You need to back off." I insist, before allowing my energy to burst forward. The red streak hits Koga directly in the stomach, his eyes widening in surprise as he's thrown back yards away against the opposite wall of the cave. He hits it hard enough that when he falls forward there is a perfect imprint of his body in the solid rock. I quickly let Shippo down and push him protectively behind me on the hay, standing in front of him now as Koga groans and slowly gets up onto his forearms and knees. One of his lackeys races over to him, offering him help, but he smacks their hand away as he moves to stand, using the wall he had crashed into for support. I wait, holding my breath as he slowly turns his head back towards me, his blue eyes filled with heat.
'Wait, what?!' I think in shock as the smirk slowly spreads across his face.
"You've got more guts than I gave you credit for." Koga murmurs lowly, his voice husky as he slowly stands straight once again. "That was quite the hit."
"Nobody touches Shippo, not if you still want my help." I dictate, meeting his gaze head on then. "I don't care what you do to me, but Shippo isn't to be harmed."
"Yua…" Shippo whimpers from behind me, and I frown as I break the stare down with Koga to turn and kneel down in front of him.
"What is it, Shippo?" I ask softly, his soft blue eyes looking up at me, watering.
"I'm scared." He murmurs quietly, my heart breaking.
'That's right. His whole pack was run out of the mountains by these assholes. Who's to say how many of his friends, his pack-mates, he saw slaughtered by them.' I frown at that, reaching forward and running my fingers through his hair soothingly.
"It's alright. I'm going to protect you. I promise." I assure him, gathering Shippo up in my arms. Shippo nuzzles his nose to my chin as I turn back to face Koga, Koga looking on with interest once again.
"That little tyke means a lot to you, doesn't he?" Koga asks, and I nod, rubbing his back soothingly. Koga hesitates, opening his mouth to say something else, before he's cut off.
"Make way! We have injured here!"
Koga's gaze snaps to the commotion, and he makes his way to where it looked like two wolf demons were seriously hurt, laying on the planks that had been used to carry them.
"What happened out there?"
"Get him some water! Come on, hurry up!"
I frown deeply, warring with myself. Did I volunteer to help? To heal the hurt wolf demons? I was their prisoner for crying out loud!
'But what kind of person, what kind of human, would I be if I didn't help?' I think, looking down towards Shippo. 'The more useful I seem, the less likely they'll be to go behind my back and hurt Shippo.' "Stay here." I murmur quietly to the boy, placing him back down on the hay. "I'm going to go and see if I can help."
"Are you sure?" Shippo asks nervously, looking towards the hurt wolf demons.
"Positive." I nod, before turning and heading over as well. The one that seemed the worst off was still laying on the ground, clutching at his midsection with one hand, the other holding large grey feathers in his fists. 'Birds of Paradise.' I frown as I step through the crowd.
"Was it them?" Koga asks solemnly, having seen the obvious evidence as well.
"Yeah, they attacked during the mid-day changing of the watch." The wolf demon I had seen before at the waterfall answers from beside Koga, looking down towards the injured demons with concern. "Only these two managed to escape." The demon's expression turns to grief. "Others fell off the cliff to their death, or were carried away." Koga looks down at the seriously injured demon at his feet, his gaze solemn. I move to step by him, but his arm extends outwards and blocks me.
"What do you think you're doing?" He growls out low in his chest. I frown, grabbing his arm and shoving it down out of my way.
"I can help him." I insist. "I can heal him."
"His intestines are ready to fall out. Nobody can heal from that." The demon beside Koga argues. I frown in frustration.
"I can if you let me try before it's too late!" I step forward once more, Koga not stopping me this time as I kneel down beside the injured demon. Gently I grab his hand that's over his mid-section to remove it, but he fights me. "Hey, it's okay. I'm going to make it better." I murmur soothingly to the wolf demon, his eyes just barely opening to look up at me deliriously. His hand relaxes, and so I move it to reveal the large gash running horizontally along his lower stomach. I have to swallow back the bile as I do indeed see his intestines right there, ready to fall from his body with one wrong move. Without hesitating further I place my own hands over the wound to staunch the bleeding as I heal him, envisioning his organs returning back into place, his wound sealing up from the inside out as the muscles and skin reattached to one and other. Once I'm sure that he's healed I lean back, swaying slightly with exhaustion. That had been one of the more extensive wounds I had ever attempted to heal.
"T-the wound…it's gone." Koga's surprised voice comes from behind me, and I nod.
"But he's going to be tired from the blood loss." I explain. "I can heal the wound, but I can't give them back blood. He'll need to sleep it off for a while, regain his strength slowly."
"My eye, can you heal my eye?" The other injured demon croaks from where he was being propped up by his companions. His body was already bandaged, along with a wrapping that went over his injured eye. "They rest I'm not worried about, but I can't live without my eyesight." He pleads, and I find myself nodding even though I knew I have exhausted almost all of my energy.
How could I deny anyone their sight, after all?
I slowly stand on shaking legs, taking slow steps over towards the other demon so as to not stumble. I kneel down, landing a little harder than before as my legs gave out on my slightly. Reaching up I undo the bindings, pulling the bandage away to reveal the damaged eye. A large claw mark could be see stretching across it. I raise my bloodied hand, hovering it just over his eye and allowing my healing energy to work. This one doesn't take as much out of me, and soon he's blinking blearily as I lean back to see a perfectly reformed eye.
"It's blurry." The demon murmurs, rubbing at it with the heel of his hand.
"It might be for a little while, but it'll go back to normal." I reassure him. A pair of strong hands suddenly grip my shoulders, alerting me to the fact that I had been deliriously swaying from side to side. 'To be fair, I think this is the furthest I've stretched my healing powers to date.' I think dazedly to myself.
'I would have to agree there. Well done, Yua.' Mayumi chimes in for the first time since this had all started. Her voice is soft, filled with pride. 'You should rest now.'
'I can't. What if-'
'I have a feeling Koga won't let anything happen to you, or to Shippo.' Mayumi murmurs gently, and that's enough for me. I look up over my shoulder through hooded eyes at the wolf demon kneeling behind me, watching me with interest.
"I'm going to sleep now." My eyes close and I feel my body slump against his stronger one behind me, his hands moving from my shoulders so he could wrap his arms around my waist to steady me. "Make sure nobody touches Shippo, okay?" I murmur deliriously. I can feel his chest rumbling with silent laughter against my back.
"I've got you and your little boy." Koga murmurs lowly into my ear.
Just like that, I'm out.
When I wake it's to the echoing sounds of snores throughout the cave, night having obviously come. Torches were hung throughout the cave on the walls, offering plenty of light to be able to see. I could tell I was laying on the same bed of hay that Koga had thrown me on earlier, but the wolf demon himself was nowhere in sight. Slowly I sit up, looking around behind me to find Shippo laying there, curled up and sleeping soundly.
'Thank god I hadn't misjudged him.' I think, relieved to see that Koga had kept his word and no harm had come to Shippo. I sit up on the edge, looking over the numerous bodies that slept scattered on the ground. Chewing softly on my lower lip I lift my hands upwards, having felt the stickiness of the dried blood when I had moved. 'I need to wash this off.' I think with disgust, standing then and making my way carefully around the sleeping demons towards the entrance. I walk up to the waterfall, reaching out and letting the harsh spray wash my hands off.
"Thank you." Just barely holding back a squeal of fright, I turn sharply to see Koga sitting crouched against the wall only feet away from me. Bringing a wet hand instinctively over my racing heart, I take a large gulp of air in.
"You scared me!" I hiss out, frowning. Koga smirks in return, and eventually I relax my shoulders, heart going back to a normal rhythm. "And you're welcome." I add softly. "I mean, I couldn't just sit there and let the one guy die, not when I could do something about it." I offer as an excuse, crossing my arms and turning to look back towards the waterfall.
"How incredibly human of you." Koga murmurs lightly, and I hear him moving to come closer to me.
"I am human." I reply evenly, not daring to turn and look at him.
"Somehow I doubt that." He murmurs easily, standing so his chest was almost brushing against my shoulder. "The way you interact with that little brat of your's and he interacts with you? How you reacted to protect him? That's the type of selfless instinct a female Alpha carries for her young." I blink in shock at that, and he pauses for a second. "And your power signature…it feels so similar to that of the jewel shards…" I have no idea what to say to any of that, not wanting to confirm the last bit of what he said. Koga had treated me decent so far, even listened to me, but I bet all that would go out the window if he realized I could create an entire Sacred Jewel, instead of him having to scavenge for scraps.
"Those Birds of Paradise, do they have something against you wolf demons?" I try to redirect the conversation. Koga sighs as he turns to stand shoulder to shoulder with me, looking out at the waterfall as well.
"They are our arch-enemies, and what happened earlier this afternoon was definitely their doing. They're brutal demons, and we've lost many to them." Koga informs me, his voice filled with clear hatred for the creatures. "Without warning they swoop down silently and capture our comrades with their sharp, powerful claws. Then they eat them. We've come across their nests before and found them littered with hundreds of wolf bones."
"Hundreds?" I gasp, looking towards him with wide eyes. He continues to look outwards, nodding grimly.
"One of the Birds of Paradise possesses a Sacred Jewel shard and now he's even faster than we are." Koga goes on. "A few weeks ago he killed fifty of our wolves in one swoop. It's gotta be the power of the Sacred Jewel. At this rate I'm afraid our packs will be wiped out completely." His voice takes on a tinge of worry, and I feel like everything was lining up even more than before. He didn't want me to seek out the jewel shard just purely so he could take it.
Koga wanted to save his people as well.
"So we need to restore the balance of power somehow." Koga goes on, looking towards me now with his ice blue eyes.
"I get it." I answer honestly then, frowning. "But why didn't you just ask me for my help in the first place? That way we could have avoided the whole mess on the cliffside with your wolves?" I ask, exasperation tinging my voice. Kola's eyes widen slightly in surprise at that.
"Do you honestly think that mutt-face would have helped if I had asked nicely?" He asks doubtfully, and I inwardly groan, having to concede that point to him.
"He would if I said I was going to help." I reply assuredly, fairly confident. Koga lifts an eyebrow at that, tilting his head.
"Funny, I didn't sense his claim on you." He mutters, cupping his chin in thought, before leaning forward towards me, his nose once again inches from my jaw and taking a deep breath. "I can smell him all over you, but he hasn't mated with you. What makes you think you have that much sway over him?" I fight down a blush at that, reaching out and pressing my open palm to the centre of his face, forcing him back from me. Koga smirks against my hand, grabbing my wrist gently and using that to pull me into him, our bodies pressed together as he wraps his open arm around my waist. "So you would have come with me willingly had I asked you for help?" He reiterates, amusement clear in his voice. I roll my eyes, gently pulling my wrist from his hand and pressing both of my hands to his chest to push away from him. He allows some room, but doesn't let me go.
"Well, we'll never know now, will we?" I bite back, huffing in annoyance when he didn't let me go. "What is your big plan anyways?"
"You'll scout out the bird with the jewel shard, and then we'll attack it's nest and steal it from him. Otherwise the fighting between us will drag on and lives will continue to be sacrificed senselessly." Koga finishes, and I can't help lifting a skeptical eyebrow.
"That's your plan?" I ask lowly, doubt clear in my voice.
"Do you have a better one?"
Well, he had me there.
"Why hasn't that stupid mutt-face claimed you as his mate yet?" Koga asks suddenly, his voice holding genuine curiosity. "I mean, even through you're supposedly human, you're powerful." He glances back into the cave, directly to where Shippo was sleeping on the hay. "And loyal," He smirks slightly, "almost to a fault." Koga looks back towards me, his blue eyes calculating. The question bugs me more than I cared to let on, hurt blooming anew in my chest as it was once again thrown in my face that Inuyasha didn't love me like I loved him. I frown, pushing Koga away with earnest this time, looking down and away from him.
"That's none of your business." I murmur lowly, turning back to face the waterfall once more. It's silent for a moment, before his low voice rumbles in my ear.
"Dog-boy might have missed his chance, then." Koga's voice grows husky as he speaks, and I feel the warmth of his breath washing over my ear and down my neck more acutely than before. "Because even if he was too stupid to nab you up when he had the chance, other's won't make the same mistake." His voice holds a promise that has my back straightening and eyes widening in shock. To top it all, I feel his lips brush ever so softly against my jaw, before he pulls away completely and heads on back further into the cave. I swallow thickly, staring ahead in wide eyed disbelief as I slowly reach a hand up and press my fingers to the skin where he had just kissed me.
My heart racing and blood thrumming.
Soooo, what do ya think? Would love to hear your reactions to this chapter :P.
OH by the way, for those who haven't seen yet, I've started a KogaOC story (I'm only one chapter in but I plan to update again very soon). So please go and check it out as well and let me know what you think!
Until next time!
T.O.T.
