Chapter Rating : T

[Content is not suitable for children. Contains minor swearing. I'm not your mother, read at your own discretion.]

CHAPTER TWO

Escape

By the time Inuyasha returned, dawn was peeking up over the horizon. Sango was already awake; sharpening and polishing Hiraikotsu "And where have you been all night Inuyasha!" Sango leapt to her feet to confront the hanyo on behalf of Kagome who was still sleeping and unaware of his return.

"None of your damn business Wench!" He growled. Stepping past the slayer to sit as near to Kagome as he could allow himself, resisting the urge to pull her onto his lap where he could hold her sleeping form against him. He would never be able to control himself if he did that.

"You went to go see Kikyo again, didn't you? Are you that blind to how much it upsets Kagome when you keep running off and keeping secrets? You don't even care, do you?" Sango was upset on behalf of her friend. Kagome had cried in her sleep and been fitful all night from the moment Inuyasha had run off. She knew Kagome had deep feelings for the stupid dog boy and that she secretly wished one day Inuyasha would get over Kikyo. 'Your pack thinks you are weak. You are weak.'

Inuyasha's ears flattened against his head for a moment. The faint scent of Kagome's salted tears still lingered in the air. He had upset Kagome again. Of course he had. She thought he was running off to see another woman, just as he had dozens of times before. He felt like a bastard for all the times he made her cry. She had no idea that the spark of love he once had for Kikyo had been long overtaken by the raging inferno that he felt for Kagome. All that was left of Kiyko was a promise to avenge her, nothing more. A soft breeze picked up Kagome's intoxicating scent to slap him in the face with it and cut at the willpower he had regained in the night. "I told you it's not your fucking business!" He snarled through clenched teeth, his claws digging into his own palms drawing blood as he fought to maintain control. His resolve was shattering. How could he possibly protect Kagome, his mate, from anything if he couldn't be near her, how could he protect her from himself? He was wrapped in her scent, sweet, warm, delicate, like the Jasmine and cherryblossoms he remembered from his mother's garden on a warm spring night. His entire being ached with the need to claim her as his. Fire burned through his veins

"What's going on?" The rest of his companions began to stir, awoken from the yelling, and rub the sleep from their eyes. "Oh you're back Inuyasha - " Shippo wanted to reprimand Inuyasha for making Kagome cry again as well but stopped. The little fox went wide eyed and frantically began to shake Kagome by the shoulders in an effort to wake the sleeping girl.. "Kagome! Kagome! Wake up!"

She stirred, pushing herself up from her sleeping bag. " What's wrong Ship- " Her breath caught as she found herself face to face with the demon Inuyasha. A jagged purple stripe was slowly appearing across each cheek and pink tinged the edges of his eyes slowly turning them red. "Inu…yasha?" She breathed. Kagome reached out to place a hand on his arm . She knew her touch usually worked to calm the demon and bring Inuyasha back to her. She glanced to his hip where Tessaiga should be, expecting to find it missing but was shocked to see his demon before her still with Tessaiga in his possession. She was more shocked to see the demon markings darken further as she laid her hand on his arm and recoiled at the viscous growl he gave in response.

"Lady Kagome! Master Inuyasha is not fully himself. You must use your subjugation powers immediately." The little flea demon hopped onto Kagome's arm that she had reached for Inuyasha with and was shouting at her frantically to use the subjugation beads.

"Myoga? What's happ-."

"There isn't any time!" A clawed hand swiped at the tiny interfering demon. Myoga jumped away in time to save his life; instead Inuyasha's razor sharp claws caught the sleeve of Kagome's uniform, shredding the fabric to ribbons. He barely grazed her skin but fine lines began to bead with blood immediately.

"Inuyasha, sit!" At her command the beads jerked Inuyasha to the ground hard. She scrambled away, holding her other hand over her bleeding arm knowing that the spell wouldn't keep him down for long. "Sit!"

"This is not good. This. Is. Not. Good." The flea demon was in a panic unlike any other. He paced around on Kagome's shoulder glancing frantically at his lost lord.

"Myoga, what's going on? Why is Inuyasha's demon blood taking over?" Inuyasha was struggling against the pull of the cursed necklace. " S- sit, Inuyasha." His demon markings had faded slightly as the commands slammed him into the ground but we're steadily darkening again, threatening to take hold. Kagome was beginning to fear the Inuyasha she loved wasn't coming back.

"Gah! This is not good! Lady Sango, please allow Kagome to borrow Kirara! Kagome, you must return to your home at once. I will explain on the way, please hurry!" Urged by the pleas of the flea demon, Kagome took off in the direction of the well on the back of Kirara. Myoga instructed the others to quickly leave the area as well and avoid confronting Inuyasha in his current state for their own safety. Once they were in the air, Myoga seemed to calm a little. "I'm sorry Lady Kagome, I rushed to you as quickly as I could to warn you, but it seems I was too late."

"What's happening to Inuyasha? Why is he losing control? I thought Tessaiga was supposed to keep his demon side in check."

Myoga wasn't sure what to tell her exactly. His master would be furious to find he told the girl too much but he would be equally furious if Myoga didn't tell her enough and she needlessly was hurt. She had already gotten scratched; it wouldn't even scar, but that alone, he knew, would weigh on his master's mind for eternity. "I…uh…hmm. How can I put this? Master Inuyasha is of the noble inu-yokai clan. All demon clans have certain traits that they are subject to and the inu-youkai are no different. Master Inuyasha's sense of smell is impeccable as you know and -"

"Cut to the chase Myoga. What's happening? How can I help him?"

"At the moment you can help him by getting as much distance as possible. For many demon clans, the inu-yokai as well, the mating season has begun." Kagome nearly choked in surprise, she stared wide eyed at the little demon, making him nervous about the information he was expounding. "Inu-yokai find their mates by scent, and once the … er … act has been completed, the two are bound together for the rest of their life. The bond is entirely unbreakable. I can not really say how it would affect you as a human."

"Are you trying to tell me Inuyasha thinks I'm his mate?" A deep blush burned across her cheeks. "That's not possible, Myoga. Inuyasha is in love with Kikyo. It's always been her. I wouldn't be anything more than a cheap replacement." She could feel warm tears welling up inside her. She had strong feelings for Inuyasha, she could admit that much. She loved him. She was in love with him. That fact was hardly a secret to anyone but Inuyasha; he was entirely oblivious to her feelings even when she had flat out told him.

Myoga clenched his four tiny fists, glowering in frustration. 'It's not my place to speak on behalf of Master Inuyasha but if I say nothing …' "Lady Kagome, you can not give up hope for Master Inuyasha! His past actions have been misguided but there is no doubt you are his desired mate. Whatever there was with that other woman, it's just as dead and she is." He flinched slightly, expecting his master's fist to manifest and flatten him for speaking his mind so brazenly. "Being that he is only half demon his instincts may be slightly dulled that under usual circumstances he can control his desires even in this time when they would be most potent. I am afraid however, that …" Myoga cleared his throat, biding time to put his next words sensibly. "Pardon me for saying so out loud. That your human fertility cycle has lined up partially with the beginning of the mating season. Your already lovely scent has Master Inuyasha's demon instincts in a frenzy. As strong willed and stubborn as he may be, he wouldn't be able to resist claiming you this time."

A heat rose in Kagome's face that further burned her cheeks and ears. She had to be the color of Inuyasha's robe by now. "What do- When did - How is that- ?" She stumbled over the questions she had and snapped her mouth shut with a groan. Her brain felt like it was short circuiting. "Is he ever going to go back to normal Myoga?" She asked, skipping her more burning questions.

"I," he paused, and rubbed his chin in thought, "Well, it's not clear. Hanyo don't often live past infancy let alone childhood. For a half demon such as Master Inuyasha to reach this point of maturity is almost unheard of."

"But you have heard of it?" Kagome pressed. An increasing worry that the Inuyasha she loved was now entirely lost began to build in her. "What's going to happen to him?"

"I can only guess but I imagine in a few days when you are no longer capable of bearing him pups for the season, his instincts will start to calm down. He wouldn't be immune to it, but I suspect the two events did not align in the previous year thus allowing him to remain in control of his demonic instinct. But now that his demon blood has won power over him …"

The tiny demon looked more uncomfortable and nervous than ever and spoke in a hushed, grave tone. " Lady Kagome, if in a few days Master Inuyasha does not regain his senses only one thing may quite his demon blood… My Lord would be an ideal mate, inu-yokai are known for their reverence for their females once bonded, but it has always been Master Inuyasha's wish that you remain free to choose your own path. " With those final words Myoga lept from Kirara as she touched ground at the Bone-Eaters Well and vanished in the tall grasses.

"Kirara, thank you for bringing me here, you should return to Sango, I'll come back in a few days to see if Inuyasha is okay." Kagome hugged the cat demon, resisting the urge to return with her. The monstrous cat took a running start, becoming airborne and took off in the direction they had come from.

Kagome sat on the smooth wooden ledge of the well for a moment; processing everything Myoga had told her. Inuyasha never intended for her to find out about wanting her as his mate so that she would be free to choose. She thought back to the few glimpses he had given her to his past. His deep love for his human mother who undoubtedly suffered simply for the crime of falling in love with a demon and bearing a hanyo child. His father had been injured already and died exerting himself to defend his mother. His mother had died when he was still young and unable to defend himself. Inuyasha was over 200 years old by now. He'd spent much of that time alone. Even if she hadn't died early, he would have far outlived his mother and he would outlive Kagome as well. She wondered if it all still weighed so heavy on his mind. Was he so against telling her he wanted to be with her because it might mean she would suffer as his mother had? That if they had children, they too would also suffer as Inuyasha had?

She turned on the ledge, feet dangling into the black depths preparing herself for the fall. She slid from the edge just as a clawed hand reached for her, catching her by the upper part of her injured arm.

A/N : Another sleepless night, another rough chapter. I hope you like it. Once the story is all there I will likely go back and clean it up some, if I did it now the story would never get posted. Also I feel the need to apologize for the slowly shifting pov, if it confusing let me know, I'll try to clear things up.

Poor Myoga risked his Inuyasha's wrath to save Kagome, but seems he only bought her a little time. A warning that I intend to make the next chapter M rated.

Updated 7/22/22 - spelling corrections only. Thank you for letting me know.