Sorry to take so long on this next chapter, life has been rough lately. Enjoy!
The next morning, Kagome was roused from sleep by both a bright light beaming over her face, and Inuyasha's body shifting under her. She mumbled and tried to shift closer, away from the sun in her eyes. She felt his low chuckle vibrate in his chest and moved her face closer, tucking herself against his neck. She could feel his heart beating slow and steady against the pulse point in his neck, and let it lull her back into a light doze.
"It's time to wake up Kagome." She felt one of Inuyasha's ears flick against her hair as he leaned against her cheek to whisper to her and she shivered, refusing to open her eyes.
"More sleep please." she mumbled.
"And here I thought you would want breakfast." He chuckled and Kagome opened one eye to glare firmly at him.
"We both know it's really you that wants food." She raised an eyebrow and he shrugged. "What can I say? You make really good tea." Kagome hummed and tried to snuggle closer again to fall back asleep, but Inuyasha was having none of that. He nuzzled against her neck, his nose shuffling in her ear and it tickled, causing the ex priestess to giggle.
"Inuyasha, cut it out. That tickles!"
"That's the point wench," Kagome swatted at him half heartedly and pulled away slightly, already missing the cozy warmth he'd provided.
"What sounds good for breakfast?" Kagome let out a huge yawn, stretching a little in an attempt to wake up. When Inuyasha didn't respond, Kagome glanced his way to find him staring at her.
"Inuyasha?" He blinked, snapping out of it and immediately began sniffing the air.
"There's some rabbit nearby, but I don't smell that plant you usually use to make tea."
"You mean mint? That's ok, I'm sure I can find something else to make tea with." She peered at her partner curiously as he continued sniffing the air.
"Just how good is your sense of smell anyways?"
"Way better than you puny humans, that's for sure." One of his ears perked behind him, drawing Kagome's eyes and she couldn't help but blush and remember the night he'd been human, when he told her she smelled good. She'd thought alot about that night.
"Uh, Inuyasha?"
"What is it?" he turned his attention to her, missing the blush on her cheeks.
"Before, when I was kidnapped by the spider demons, when… when you almost died. You said I smelled good. Is that true?"
Yeah, Inuyasha knew being human was going to come back to bite him in the ass.
"Yeah, I mean, well, you do. Smell good, I mean."
"What do I smell like? Is it pretty?"
Where was a demon attack when you needed it?!
"Like flowers, I guess." Her delight was obvious at his answer. She clapped her hands together and smiled, eyes sparkling. "What kind of flowers?"
This conversation was so beyond his comfort zone it wasn't in Japan anymore.
"Wench, didn't you want breakfast?!" His woman pouted, but Inuyasha could see a glint in her eyes that meant she was far from letting this conversation go.
"That's not fair Inuyasha! You can't just-" She was cut off and too busy screaming when Inuyasha slid his arms around her and abruptly dropped them from the tree.
"Don't do that!" Kagome snapped when he set her down on the ground, giving her a cocky grin with a fang poking out.
"I'm going out hunting, I won't be far. Just shout if you need me." In a flash he'd leaped up into the trees and was gone, leaving a dazed and annoyed priestess behind. Kagome groaned in anger at both his disappearance and his dirty little trick.
That IDIOT she thought to herself as she left the tree behind and began traipsing through the woods. Who does he think he is? Scaring me like that and just running off… Kagome carefully climbed over a fallen log, being careful not to snag her kimono. Without Inuyasha's nose, finding edible plants was definitely going to be more difficult. She peered around trees, inspected bushes and slowly made her way through the forest. Besides another small patch of sage hidden under a bush, she was finding very little. She eventually came across what she thought were several fruit trees in a small grove bathed in light. Apples maybe? The bark was rough, the apples barely beginning to sprout. Kagome plucked one of the small white blossoms off and brought it to her nose. Definitely apple, but wouldn't be ready until the fall.
Kagome tucked the little apple blossom into her hair and left the trees behind, making a mental note where to find the trees in the future. She found her first real find a minute later, finding a patch of chamomile flowers growing at the edge of the tiny grove where the apple trees had been. The patch had been here a while, seeing how they were beginning to spread into the sunny grove. Kagome carefully plucked some of the plants, being sure to take a few extra for her own future patch. She slid the flowers carefully into her bag and continued on her way. She came across a tiny bubbling stream just a few minutes away from the patch of apple trees, peering into the water to see the tiny bodys of fish flashing in the light. She decided to stop by the bank for a while, feeling the soothing effects of the forest around her. The sunlight was warm on her back, and she could hear birds in the trees and the gentle tumbling of the water before her. Inuyasha's forest was beautiful indeed.
So relaxed and focused was she in her meditation, she didn't feel the tiny prickle of youki as a tiny but harmless mouse demon rooted along the bank opposite of her. When Kagome opened her eyes from her light meditation, her blue eyes met red ones and she let out a small shriek, scrambling to her feet and scraping her palm on the sharp bark of the tree next to her.
"Oh come on!" The priestess hissed, examining the tiny wounds. A few drops of blood welled up, but nothing serious. Hissing to herself, the priestess began to search the banks for something to wrap her hand in. She was so busy focusing, she almost missed the patch of jasmine flowers, hidden behind a beautiful willow tree and secluded next to a tiny round pool in the stream. Carefully, Kagome slid around the tree and knelt by the flowers, reaching out to gently touch one of the tiny white petals, forgetting all about her wound at the rare find in the woods.
Inuyasha suddenly dropped down from the trees next to her, startling her. Both of his hands were flexed, one of his claws had smears of blood from whatever kill he'd found. "Kagome!"
"Inuyasha look!" Kagome gestured to the hidden gem she'd found underneath the tree. He followed her movement, catching sight of the plants and inhaling their scent. His stance relaxed as he realized she wasn't in danger, arms falling to his sides.
"Jasmine huh? Nice find, rare in these parts. Why do I smell your blood?" His eyes narrowed suspiciously as she blushed and hid her hand behind her back.
"Kagome…" He reached for her and gently hauled her to her feet, pulling the offended arm up and inspecting it.
"What the hell were you doing woman?!"
"I was meditating by the stream… I cut my hand when something startled me and I stood up."
"Damn it woman, can't leave you alone for five minutes without you either hurting yourself or getting kidnapped." He rolled his eyes. "Get your stuff, I caught a rabbit. If you're still up for it we'll cook that up and head to another village." Kagome nodded and ran to snatch her bag, excited at the prospect of finally getting breakfast.
"Can you track the jasmine plants? I can't take it now, but I'd like to come back for them later." Inuyasha nodded, kneeling down and offering his back to Kagome. She hesitated for only a second before climbing on. This time he didn't go leaping through trees, instead running for only a minute or two until stopping by a fresh kill and a pile of wood.
"Didja find anything else interesting?" He was genuinely curious about all the weird plants she continuously brought back and magically improved their food with. Kagome nodded and reached into her bag to pull out a flower, letting him inhale the scent to remember it.
"It's chamomile, something else to make tea with. It can also be used for medicine too."
"I smell that plant a lot around here." He remarked back, beginning to prepare the rabbit. "It won't improve the taste of the rabbit, but it does make a very good tea. We can try it tonight if you like." He didn't respond, too busy focusing on his kill to comment back. Kagome busied herself making a fire, watching Inuyasha prepare their meal while she did so. She cringed a little as he dressed it and used his claws to neatly cut it into pieces. He had a few sticks ready, and took his time skewering the meat. By the time he was done, the fire was underway, so he dug the sticks deeply into the ground over the fire, letting the meat roast over the heat.
"How will we know when it's done?" Kagome settled herself next to the fire, peering at the meat. She was used to cooking with a pot in the kitchen after all…
"I can smell it when it's done." Inuyasha flopped down on his back as he replied, relaxing in the warmth of the fire.
"You can smell that?"
"Sure," Inuyasha replied with a shrug. "Smell is really important to dog demons. It's the most important really. I learn alot with my nose."
"Wow," Kagome was genuinely surprised. Her training on demons had never been this in depth. The priest had been very strict on demons- if it was one, it was a threat. No exceptions. She had no idea demons were this complicated. "What else can you tell?"
"If you're afraid, or sad, I can tell based on your scent. It tells me a lot about you, actually." Kagome opened her mouth to respond, but closed it when Inuyasha's ears suddenly perked up and he leaped to his feet, sniffing the air.
"We need to go. There's humans wandering around here."
"But-" Kagome began to protest, looking longingly at their food. Inuyasha shook his head, reaching for her.
"Forget it, let's go-" Before they could make their escape, voices could be heard and the sounds of people moving through the forest. Kagome made it to Inuyasha's side just as a group of villagers appeared through the brush, staring in surprise at the couple before them.
"Demon!" One of the men howled, pointing a hunting spear at them instantly. The rest of them followed suit. Kagome assumed they were a hunting party, though how they expected to find anything the way they were stomping through the forest was beyond her.
"No wait!" Kagome held her hands up in a gesture of peace, hearing Inuyasha give a warning growl behind her.
"We're not a threat to you, we were just on our way." She kept her voice smooth and calm, hoping to keep this encounter from going sour.
"Girl, you've obviously been tricked by this beast. Come with us, we'll take you to the priestess Kaede. She can help you." The man who spoke, older with dark hair and a goatee, offered a hand to Kagome. She shook her head, hearing Inuyasha's snarl behind her.
"I'm not bewitched. I'm here by my own power. Please let us go." The man shook his head, resuming his offense posture.
"We'll take them to lady Kaede, maybe she can talk some sense into this poor girl."
Kagome was getting really tired of people assuming for her.
"We'll come peacefully under one condition. My companion and I are not to be separated. He will not hold back if you try to take me from him." She used her best priestess voice, her face in a serious mask. The men refused to lower their weapons, but nodded and gestured for them to move. Kagome stepped back into Inuyasha's range, practically feeling his anger with her as he wrapped his arm around her back to keep her near.
"What are you doing Kagome?!" He hissed into her ear as they walked. She patted his chest gently. "Just trust me."
After dealing with the fire, they allowed the villagers to escort them to the edge of the forest, which was a lot closer than Kagome realized. Kagome could see a small village straight ahead, bustling with people. Children were playing, adults busy working or talking amongst themselves. As the hunting party approached and people began to take notice, the aura of the village changed. Villagers starred as the couple were led towards the small shrine on the opposite edge of the settlement. Kagome could hear them whispering, but was unable to make out the words. By the way Inuyasha was tense and growling low in his throat, it wasn't a good thing.
An aged woman in white and red priestess robes exited the temple as they approached, studying them with one good eye- the other covered in a patch.
"So, ye must be the banished priestess I've been hearing about." Kagome ducked her head, embarrassment running through her. She heard Inuyasha take a step closer to her.
"Yes I am." A man rushed to the priestess to whisper in her ear. Whatever it was caused Inuyasha to growl low in his throat again.
"The villagers tell me they found ye trapped by a demon in the woods. Is this true?" Inuyasha's growl increased to a snarl next to her, an inhuman sound that had the villagers whispering in fear around them. Kagome shook her head.
"No lady priestess. The demon Inuyasha and I are bound together. My village banished me and left me to die for saving his life. Inuyasha saved me and has taken me in. I remain with him of my own free will, and will continue to do so." Inuyasha's snarling eased at her public declaration, moving himself closer and placing a hand on her lower back as a sign of his own devotion to her. The priestess, who someone behind Kagome whispered was "Kaede", did not show any sign of being surprised by this.
"This was the nature of your crime, my child?"
"Yes," Kagome replied. "I was banished for the unforgivable offense of saving a demon's life." At this, Kaede did look a little surprised. "Strange, the river village told a very different story of events."
"That's because they're a lying bunch of assholes." Inuyasha finally spoke, his body still tense, ears flat against his head. "You didn't hear the things they called her. The shit they accused her of because she stopped the priest from shooting an arrow through my heart!" The villagers began to panic as Inuyasha's voice raised, his deep baritone sounding menacing. Kaede jerked her head to indicate they should follow her. She led them into her hut, shutting the door firmly behind her despite the protests of some of the villagers behind it.
"Inuyasha saved me, Lady Kaede. I would be dead without him right now." Kaede turned her attention to Inuyasha, studying him with her good eye.
"Is this true, Inuyasha?" He stiffened slightly as she said his name, but nodded, crossing his arms.
"Yeah, considering her village threw her out like trash." Kagome elbowed him but didn't respond, instead choosing to bow politely to Kaede.
"Lady Kaede, we were on our way to this village for the purpose of trade- vegetables, clothing and supplies. Will you allow us to trade here? We would be most appreciative. I… I know it wouldn't be much, but I was trained extensively in herbs and healing, I would be very willing to trade such a skill as well."
Little did Kagome know, but lady Kaede was interested in her skills in herbs and healing. Very interested. She wasn't going to live forever, and ever since her own apprentice had decided to travel instead of settling, her village would eventually have no healer to call their own. Perhaps, with time…
"We shall see Kagome, we shall see." the aging priestess replied. She was also very interested in the relationship between the demon and priestess before her. She could see the spell, it was obvious Kagome had done it somehow, as her spiritual power was shining so strongly from the necklace. It bound them together on the surface, but ultimately the bond was their own doing. Kagome's obvious acceptance of her mate's heritage, along with his unflinching devotion to her, was forging tendrils between them that only strengthened the magical bond Kagome had bound them in.
"Seeing as ye are here now, would ye care for some food?" Kaede waved her hand towards the fire, where a stew was bubbling away. She heard Kagome sigh longingly and had to suppress a smile.
-0-
Hours later, Kagome was being carried by Inuyasha on his back as they returned to their home. They'd stayed with Kaede for awhile, Kagome chatting freely with the aging priestess- being her usual warm and bubbly self. Inuyasha was more content to listen to her speak, keeping one ear tuned to his woman and one tuned to noises outside the hut, listening for danger. Kaede had gifted them with some vegetables, which Inuyasha suspected was a bribe more than anything. He may be a half breed, but he wasn't stupid. Kaede had been very, very interested in Kagome's abilities. And seeing as Kagome had already told him the priestess's apprentice had left her, well, it was easy to connect the dots. He was quiet the entire run home, musing in his own private despair at the thought of Kagome leaving him to return to village life. Something his female companion was quick to notice.
"Is something the matter, Inuyasha?" She pounced as soon as he reached the cave and let her down without a word.
"Nothin' doin' Kagome." he muttered back before leaping immediately back into the trees, leaving Kagome to stare after him, slightly hurt and puzzled. She headed into the cave to work on her spare kimono and see about dinner, the excitement over the gifted vegetables beginning to wane as she wondered what was wrong with her half demon.
She worked on the kimono for a short while before giving up completely, unable to concentrate, and prepared their dinner in silence. When it was ready, she left the cave in search of her partner, but finding neither hide nor hair of him.
"Inuyasha!" She called, cupping her hands over her mouth as if that would help him hear her, "Inuyasha!"
Nothing, silence.
"Why that stupid jerk…" annoyed now, Kagome went stomping out of the clearing searching for him, certain nothing would flush him out faster.
A part of her was naive, thinking Inuyasha was being silly and that there were no dangerous demons in his territory. She was wrong.
Not very long after leaving the clearing, a foul smell and thick hissing sound indicated she was about to be interrupted in her search for Inuyasha. She was forced to duck behind a tree to avoid a demon that to Kagome looked like half woman, half centipede.
"Ssssoo the rumors are true, the half demon took a woman after allllll." the creature hissed upon emerging. She had long, dark hair that hung in ragged strands around her bare torso. Her lower body was long and scaly with several legs. Kagome clapped a hand over her mouth to keep from gagging at the smell.
"Who are you?!" She barked around her hands over her face.
"Misssstressss centipede." The demon hissed, a long forked tongue making her sound remarkably snake-like
"I suggest you run for it, mistress centipede. This territory is taken and he does not like to share!"
"Hahaha! Assss if I have anything to fear from a half demon and his bitch! In fact, you look rather tassssty!" Kagome gulped as the demon licked her lips, eyes red and menacing.
"On second thought, running sounds like a great idea!" She took off into the forest, scrambling over logs and racing around bushes and trees. She could hear the hissing of mistress centipede behind her, taunting her. She stumbled against a large tree and ducked behind it, chest heaving as she fought to catch her breath.
"Come out come out priestessssss." She could hear mistress centipede licking her chops and was unable to surprise the shudder that went through her.
"There you are! Pathetic human!" One of mistress centipede's legs slammed inches from Kagome, causing the priestess to shriek and take off running, only to be caught around the waist by two arms.
"I sssshall enjoy eating you, human!"
"No!" Kagome shrieked and held her hand out, feeling her spiritual energy react and surge. Mistress centipede began to scream, releasing Kagome and sending her dropping a good several feet to the ground as she disintegrated, bits of flesh and bone surrounding the ex priestess.
"Ow ow ow!" Kagome groaned as her ankle protested greatly to the drop. Mindful of the body parts, Kagome used her palms to push off the ground and try to stand.
"Oh gross!" The young woman nearly gagged at the blood and other fluids coating her hands.
"Kagome!" Oh now he decided to show up?
"Over here!" Her ankle protested when she tried to put weight on it, forcing her to lean against a tree while trying to find something to clean her hands with.
"What the hell happened here?!" Inuyasha demanded as soon as he saw what remained of mistress centipede.
"Oh that, a demon attacked me named mistress centipede. Is there a stream I can wash my hands in?" Inuyasha looked slightly dumbfounded, but his attention immediately turned to his woman when she groaned.
"I think I sprained my ankle. Would you mind giving me a hand?" He did her a better one and simply scooped her up bridal style, leaping over the remains towards the nearest stream.
"Thank you Inuyasha, that's much better." She sighed a moment later when her hands were clean of fluids. He was standing over her, arms crossed, looking very unimpressed.
"Inuyasha? What's wrong?"
"What's wrong?! You were attacked by a demon!" His ears were pinned to his head out of anger, arms uncrossed with fists clenched.
"I'm fine Inuyasha, I can take care of myself." Kagome crossed her arms over her chest.
"You're injured!"
"I'm ok, I was just looking for you." Inuyasha snorted, crossing his arms again. "You shouldn't have, Kagome. I'm not worth it." Kagome looked startled, standing up despite her injured ankle. Inuyasha caught her by the arms when she stumbled a little bit.
"How can you say that?!"
"Kagome, the villagers called you a demon's whore just for being with me."
Kagome slid her hand up Inuyasha's arm to rest it on his shoulder in an attempt to calm him.
"It's ok Inuyasha-"
"It's not ok!" He snarled, clenching his fists but making no move to shake her off. "I know what I am Kagome. I'm a filthy half breed and I get that. But you... You were a goddamn priestess. They threw out their own priestess because you spared my life. They kicked out a woman who had no hope of making it on her own because she saved a demon!" He reached out, cupping her face in his hand, rubbing his thumb on her cheek.
"You saved the life of a half breed, and in return you lost everything. Your home, your village, your reputation as a priestess. Everything. How can you not hate me for that Kagome?" The pain in his voice had tears spilling down her cheeks, his thumb wiping them away.
"Don't you see Inuyasha? I gained so much more than what I lost. I gained you. You saved me, took me in when you had no reason to do so. The villagers, the priest who helped raise me, abandoned me to die without a second thought. I can't ever regret saving your life Inuyasha, I won't." Without missing a beat, Kagome let go of his shoulder and reached up with both hands to place them on his cheeks, pulling his face down and pressing her lips to his. He was frozen for a moment, shocked, and then kissed her back, the hand cupping her face moving to cradle the back of her head, fingers and claws tangling in her hair.
"Kagome…" He whispered when she pulled back, pressing his forehead against hers.
"Inuyasha." She replied back, brushing her nose against his. His hand moved back to her cheek, the back of his rough knuckles skimming her smooth skin.
"Please don't leave me Kagome, don't go." She pulled back slightly, looking shocked.
"Leave? Why would I leave you? Where is this coming from?" He stood back to his full height, pulling his face from her hands.
"The priestess… Kaede. Her apprentice left her Kagome, and she asked you a lot of questions about your skills. She wanted you to stay there, maybe not now, but eventually she's going to ask you-" Kagome cut him off, pulling his face back down to hers and kissing him again. He responded just as eagerly, one of his hands cupping her face and the other wrapping around her waist to bring her closer.
"I'm not leaving you Inuyasha, not now, not ever." Kagome said firmly when they broke apart. "I swear it. You're stuck with me now, no matter what happens." He tugged her just a little bit closer, pressing his forehead to hers.
"Thank you, Kagome."
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