Chapter Fifteen: Koga
Kagome found herself in a change of clothes that everyone found more suitable for their travels. It was similar to the priestess outfit that Kikyo wore, but instead of red on the bottom, they were a similar color to the sapphire sword she just received. The back of the haori also had a silver crescent moon embroidered into it. Kagome admitted that it was quite comfortable. The only other outfit she thought to wear was Kikyo's old one, but it always felt awkward, so she just kept coming in her school uniform. She also liked that she wouldn't be stared at because of her clothing anymore.
"So, what are we going to do about what Kagura said?" Kagome spoke up as they watched the bodies of the fallen demons that didn't get a grave burn.
"Naraku currently has Rin and Kikyo in his clutches." Miroku reminded the group. "This isn't something we can take lightly."
"To get them back, he wants Koga's and our jewel shards. He has so many, we can't just give them away." Sango added.
"Is there a reason you do not kill this Koga and take his jewel shards?" Sesshomaru asked.
"He's a friend." Kagome said.
"We could probably convince him to help us get Kikyo and Rin back." Inuyasha suggested in loud annoyance.
"I'm sure he'd help, but if Kagura is meeting us here in a week, it'll be difficult to hunt him down." Miroku added. "We're on a time limit."
"Are we?" Sesshomaru asked. "Kagura said she'd be here in a week. She didn't say there would be a consequence if we weren't."
"While true, I am not willing to risk it." Kagome shook her head. "We can't leave Rin in Naraku's hands for long. I'm confident Kikyo can take care of herself, but Rin is another story. I can't imagine how scared she is right now."
"Does Naraku know how many jewel shards you have?" Sesshomaru asked.
"I doubt it." Kagome answered.
"Then give him half and Koga's." Sesshomaru suggested and the group looked warily at him. "Then you keep some in your possession and retrieve Kikyo. Of course, this only occurs if we can't kill Kagura before she flees. The only problem is whether she brings both Rin and Kikyo."
"Knowing Naraku, she'll be ordered to just bring one. He'll probably keep Kikyo since I doubt that he's aware of Sesshomaru traveling with us now." Inuyasha said. "He'll want to do the trades separately. Kagura said she'll be here, at Sesshomaru's castle in a week. Where does she plan on meeting us?"
"You don't think Kagura would have told him?" Kagome asked.
"Nah. Kagura hates him as much as we do. She does what she's told so he doesn't kill her and that's it." Inuyasha crossed his arms.
"No matter what, we know the first thing we have to do is find Koga and fast." Miroku said, giving the group a heading. "Let's get moving."
Since it was barely the middle afternoon, the group decided to get going toward Koga's mountain territory. Even though he may not be there, since the wolf demon was always traveling to find Naraku, it was the first place they knew they could look and maybe ask someone about him. The time limit pushed the group to moving faster. They didn't walk like normal. Kagome was on Inuyasha's back. Shippo rode on Sesshomaru's shoulder. Sango and Miroku rode on Kilala. They all hurried their travels on roads, through valleys, and past villages to get to their destination as quickly as possible. Thanks to the endurance of demons, the group did not have to stop until night had fallen. When it did fall, they still traveled for another hour before stopping.
"I'm hungry!" Shippo yelled angrily.
"Do not shout in my ear." Sesshomaru scolded the boy.
"Can we stop? I want something to eat." Shippo asked Sesshomaru.
Sesshomaru sighed and slid to a stop. Inuyasha followed suit and Kilala landed off ahead a bit.
"The boy is hungry. How are the res-." Sesshomaru stopped when he heard multiple stomachs growling and saw sweat dripping down his brother's face. It was obvious they were all exhausted. "We should rest for the night."
Kilala suddenly collapsed. Inuyasha fell forward with Kagome on his back. Kagome collapsed with him. Miroku and Sango slid off of Kilala's back and just laid on the ground to the side of the road they were on. Sesshomaru was surprised by all of this. No one hinted at needing rest.
"Thank god." Inuyasha groaned with his face in the ground. "My legs hurt and I need food."
"Heh…" Kagome crawled along the ground to get off of Inuyasha. "At least you can still feel your legs. My blood circulation has been cut off for a while."
"We… We can't move. Kilala needs sleep and a treat or ten. Fish. Get her fish." Sango said, laying like a log on the ground.
Sesshomaru set Shippo down off his shoulder and walked over to Inuyasha. He picked his brother up and threw him over his shoulder, startling him enough to yelp like a dog. Sesshomaru then sat Inuyasha down next to a tree and walked over to the monk. He did the same thing and then moved to Sango, who he carried more gently and laid down next to Miroku. Kagome was next and was laid down near Inuyasha. Everyone watched this interesting show without a word. He cared enough to get them out of the road and lay them comfortably because they were in pain.
"I will hunt for food. Rest until I return." Sesshomaru told them and ran off to the forest.
"Um… Did he just…?" Miroku asked.
"Yep. He did." Sango answered.
"My brother is not the jerk he once was… It's kinda cool." Inuyasha said with a little excitement, but then had to pout by crossing his arms. "But he shouldn't touch me again. That's weird."
"That was adorable." Kagome corrected. "Reminds me of the time I was sick and Inuyasha made that gross soup."
"Right… Did you ever find out what was in that, Kagome?" Miroku asked mischievously.
"Nope and don't you dare tell me." Kagome warned him.
"Fine, fine." Miroku chuckled.
"Hey, it helped you!" Inuyasha said.
"It did. It was very thoughtful." Kagome smiled up at him and then wiggled her legs. "The feeling is coming back."
The group laid in silence, besides a few groans of pain every now and then. Their stomachs all ached as much as their muscles. Shippo jumped up and ran off into the forest the same way Sesshomaru went. Kagome called after him, but he said he'd be right back and kept on going. Kagome looked to everyone else questioningly. They all shrugged, also unsure of where Shippo was going. They took the time to rest, trusting the boy would be fine. Luckily, Sesshomaru returned soon enough with a large boar over his left shoulder. Shippo also came back, walking with a big bundle of wood in his arms beside Sesshomaru. As the two re-entered the area again, Kagome looked up first and smiled at them both.
"That is a huge boar and good idea with the firewood, Shippo." Kagome giggled and rolled onto her stomach. She winced a bit, but pushed herself to sitting position. "Thank you, Sesshomaru."
"Mm." Sesshomaru nodded as he dropped the boar, it hitting the ground with a heavy thud. Sesshomaru immediately began using Shippo's firewood to build a campfire. Sesshomaru's desire to help was a little surprising. While he had been getting friendlier, he wasn't really one to take on chores for the group like this. They found it pleasantly helpful, at least all but one of them did. Kagome watched Sesshomaru curiously, but with more worry than anything else. He wasn't acting like himself. He was rushing around, almost anxious, which wasn't a trait of Sesshomaru's.
Kagome couldn't help but worry about Sesshomaru as she noticed the changes. She pushed herself to her feet and walked over to him. As she knelt down next to him, she placed a hand on his shoulder and felt his body stiffen. He looked up to her, his expression blank. She recognized that as his attempt to hide any of his problems from everyone. She gave him a worried look and he just continued building the fire.
"Take a deep breath and tell me what has you so anxious." Kagome told him. The rest of the group heard it easily since Kagome wasn't exactly trying to hide their conversation, and looked over to them. Sesshomaru got the fire going and clapped his hands together to dust them off.
"I'm fine. We need to get moving as quickly as possible." Sesshomaru said and stood up to walk to the boar. Kagome stood up and crossed her arms, not liking the answer he gave. Inuyasha cleared his throat and when Sesshomaru looked to him, he motioned back toward Kagome.
"She didn't like your answer." Inuyasha chuckled.
"I'm fine, Kagome." Sesshomaru reassured her.
"Normally, I'd think you were." Miroku was the one who spoke up. "But Kagome seems adamant that you're not being honest."
"I want to get moving. The quicker you're rested, the quicker we move." Sesshomaru said again after an irritated sigh.
"Alright." Kagome gave in when she realized he wasn't going to talk. Sesshomaru wasn't fine. He was very upset about something. He wasn't angry or frustrated about it. He was upset and that meant there was something personal on his mind. She wasn't going to ask him to reveal that in front of everyone. Kagome walked over to her pack and pulled out an empty water bottle. "Oh, darn it." Kagome sighed and turned to walk up the road, waving her water bottle to show it was empty. "I'll be right back. The river is right over there, so I'm gonna refill the bottle."
"Be careful." Inuyasha called out after her.
A moment later, Sesshomaru followed her. It was still a little weird to the group to see Sesshomaru so protective over Kagome, but it did let them be at ease. Sesshomaru would protect her at all costs because of the mark. Inuyasha decided to take this time to get the boar ready to be cooked. Kagome and Sesshomaru came to the river and she began refilling the bottle. Once it was full, she stood back up and looked to Sesshomaru with a small smile.
"Now, why are you so anxious?" Kagome asked and Sesshomaru's expression dulled. "Come on! I think I've paid enough attention to understand when something is bothering you. You're constantly on the move, hurrying us along, even doing chores you'd normally say is our responsibility. You're keeping yourself busy and I assume it is because you're worried about Rin, but the tension in your face tells me there is something extra."
"Stop paying so close attention to me." Sesshomaru said, almost pouting.
"Yeah, that's not happening." Kagome tilted her head. "I worry about my friends, so what's going on?"
"Yes, I'm worried about the girl, but I am also angry with myself for leaving her there for so long." Sesshomaru explained as he looked off in the direction of the mountain range they were heading toward. "I should have gone back to get her once I allied with you all."
"Probably." Kagome agreed.
"That is not making me feel better. Isn't that the point of these talks?" Sesshomaru was practically pouting at her.
"If you want reassurance, I'll give it honestly." Kagome told him with a small giggle. "You should have gone back to get her. Unfortunately, until now, Rin wasn't always on our minds, so I wish you had said something. We would have gladly brought her along. The reassurance comes in the fact that you now have a group of allies who will fight by your side to make sure that she comes back to you. You don't have to do this alone and that only increases the chance of Rin being rescued without anything bad happening. Then, we'll continue on our journey as normal."
"Next time, you all need to speak up when you're this tired." Sesshomaru scolded her.
"What?" Kagome tilted her head.
"Every one of you was hungry and exhausted." Sesshomaru said and pointed back to the group. "I am a demon. My endurance is much higher than all of yours. I will stop when you need it. Do not push yourselves like that again. If you end up hurt when we find Koga or Naraku, we won't be at our full strength and the help that I am supposed to have to get Rin back won't be there. I do not want us weakened."
"You're right. I'm sorry. I'll make sure to have everyone be clearer on that." Kagome nodded in agreement. "Honestly, we just didn't want to slow you down. We know how important Rin is. I also think that Inuyasha didn't want to admit he was having a hard time keeping up. Now that things are feeling more friendly between you two, I think he's wanting to impress his big brother." Kagome smiled happily at the thought. "It's sweet."
"He wants… to impress me?" Sesshomaru blinked, the surprise toward that showing clearly on his face. He looked back to his brother, who was in the middle of chopping up the boar. Kagome couldn't see Inuyasha from there, but Sesshomaru could and he let a soft smile sneak onto his face.
"That's a sight." Kagome said after a few seconds of taking in the view. Sesshomaru looked back to her, the smile gone. "I'd like to see it again one day."
"What?" Sesshomaru asked, unsure of what she was talking about.
"You smiled, Sesshomaru." Kagome pointed out sincerely happy. "You smiled about Inuyasha at that. I won't tell, I promise."
"Thank you." Sesshomaru said appreciatively. "Let's get back."
Sesshomaru and Kagome returned with a full bottle of water and gave it to Shippo. Sesshomaru walked over to Inuyasha and helped him carve up the boar. Kagome sat down near Sango and Miroku, watching the brothers work together and enjoying the peaceful view. The brothers cooked up the food while everyone else relaxed. Kagome found herself fascinated with her newly borrowed weapon, Aikizōha. It was so beautiful and decorated in a way that felt more personal than Tenseiga or Tetsusaiga were. There was something special about it.
Before Kagome ended up too distracted by Aikizōha, she remembered something and stood up again. She ran off back toward the river, shouting back to the rest that she forgot something. As she came to the water, she looked over the edge and waited. It took her a couple of minutes and Sesshomaru was not fond of her absence. He kept looking over his shoulder and asking Inuyasha why she was over there again. Inuyasha shrugged. He didn't know. Kagome had a habit of running off when she had something to do. Since she was in his field of view, he wasn't too bothered by it. Kagome wasn't gone much longer anyway. She returned with three fish in hand and walked over to give them to Kilala, who more than deserved a treat.
"I would have gotten more, but I'm not that good at it." Kagome said as Kilala quickly chowed down.
"Thank you, Kagome. She doesn't get it often enough at all." Sango said as she petted Kilala's head.
Soon, the boar was cooked and the brothers passed around enough meet for everyone to enjoy. Shippo ate his piece like he hadn't eaten in days. Before Sesshomaru got to sit down to eat his own, he ripped of a second piece of cooked meat and tossed it at Shippo. The piece of meat hit the boy in the head, knocking him back a bit. Shippo pulled it off his face and glared up at Sesshomaru, who just stared dully at him.
"What was that for?" Shippo asked.
"Chew your food or you'll choke." Sesshomaru scolded the child.
"You can't boss me around! If I don't listen to Inuyasha, why would I listen to you?" Shippo said as he bit down on a big bite of the meant he was given.
"You're as stubborn as my younger brother, aren't you?" Sesshomaru's left eye twitched and Shippo stuck his tongue at him.
"The brat won't listen to you. He only listens to Kagome." Inuyasha said, picking his teeth with his nail.
"Shippo…" Kagome sighed and shook her head. "Sesshomaru is right. Chew your food."
"Yes, Momma." Shippo said as he took a smaller bite and happily did was Kagome said. "I listen to Momma because she loves me. I listen to Sango too. I only listen to Miroku sometimes. They all love me and don't beat me up like Inuyasha does."
"I hit you on the head. I wouldn't call that beating you up." Inuyasha rolled his eyes.
"I see." Sesshomaru brought his hand to his chin, thinking about something as he watched Shippo as he ate.
"Momma, he's staring at me and it's creeping me out." Shippo said and everyone looked to Sesshomaru.
"You okay?" Kagome asked Sesshomaru.
"I'm fine. We should get moving again soon." Sesshomaru said and the group agreed.
As everyone was coming to the end of their food and rest, Inuyasha shot to his feet and looked to the mountain range they had been heading to. The half-demon grabbed the hilt of his sword and Sesshomaru followed suit, assuming the scent they both smelled was hostile. While Inuyasha recognized the scent, Sesshomaru did not and was going to follow Inuyasha's lead on this one. Sango and Miroku got ready to fight when they saw something. A familiar whirlwind came rushing toward them all and stopped about twenty feet away.
"Kill him!" Inuyasha said and ran forward with an unsheathed Tetsusaiga.
Sesshomaru charged ahead, his greater speed carrying him quicker than Inuyasha could move. Kagome realized what was happening and her eyes widened, a moment of terror taking her over. Sesshomaru's blade was quickly covered in demonic energy and he swung it down toward the wolf demon, Koga, without hesitation. Koga was caught off guard by this and had no time to dodge Sesshomaru's attack. Luckily, he stopped about two inches from the wolf demon's face. Sesshomaru didn't stop willingly. He pulled his sword back and looked over his shoulder toward Kagome, who was holding her hand over her heart and trying to catch her breath, coming down from a panic. Inuyasha suddenly burst into laughter at the look on Koga's face.
"That was priceless! You should see the dumb look on your face." Inuyasha said while laughing.
"Kagome, are you alright?" Sesshomaru asked.
"SIT." Kagome screamed in pure anger at the top of her lungs. Inuyasha was very aggressively brought to the ground and ended up in a hole about a foot deep. "You idiot, Inuyasha. You made me use the mark. I am trying not to do that. You're gonna get him mad at me!"
"S-S-Sorry!" Inuyasha's muffled voice came up from the dirt.
"What the hell is going on?" Koga asked, looking around the group. Before he got an answer, he rushed around everyone to get to Kagome's side, taking her hand in his. "Hey, Kagome. How are you doing? This mutt taking care of you?"
"Mutt?" Sesshomaru walked up to Koga, his piercing eyes digging into the side of Koga's head. "You want to say that again?"
"I wasn't talking about you, Sesshomaru." Koga said, rubbing the back of his head with a laugh. "Talking about the one on the ground."
"You know my name?" Sesshomaru asked curiously.
"Yeah. We had a run in a while back, remember? You had a little human girl with you then." Koga explained.
"I remember. You helped save her. I never properly thanked you for that." Sesshomaru said and held out a hand. "Thank you."
"Hm?" Koga looked to Sesshomaru's hand and gladly took it. "No problem. Ever since I met Kagome, my clans don't feed of humans anymore."
"Speaking of that little girl though…" Kagome spoke up and looked hopeful to Koga. "We need your help."
Over the next few minutes, Kagome explained their situation to Koga. Kikyo and Rin had been kidnapped by Naraku and killed many demons at Sesshomaru's castle to get at them. The only way to get them back was to trade the jewel shards for their lives.
"Kagome, that's a lot to ask." Koga rubbed his neck and looked off in a random direction.
"I know, but we don't know what else to do. We don't know where they're being held, otherwise we'd do things differently." Kagome explained further. "Kagura is going to return to Sesshomaru's castle to collect. We're hoping she'll bring Rin and Kikyo there for them, but Naraku isn't that stupid."
"Damn." Koga clenched his fist and closed his eyes. "Naraku needs to die."
"Agreed." Sesshomaru nodded.
"This kid. The human girl. Did you adopt her or something?" Koga asked and everyone looked to Sesshomaru.
"Not exactly. I allow her to follow me if she desires." Sesshomaru explained. "I prefer not to let someone who relies on me die."
"I understand that, which means you can understand that as the leader of my clan, they rely on me to keep them safe too, so giving up a big source of my power to rescue a girl I don't know is not something they'll be happy with." Koga said and groaned in frustration. "Come on, I mean… Would you do it?"
Another question that the group was curious to hear Sesshomaru answer. The group looked to him again. Sesshomaru thought on what he said and found himself looking at Kagome. He took a deep breath and shook his head no, which made them assume he had answered.
"Not normally, no. It would be like handing over my Tōkijin to Naraku." Sesshomaru said, but his tone told them he wasn't done. "But recent… events have brought me to situations I never thought possible. Lately, I have found value in more than just my power. So, today, my answer is different than what is normal for me. Yes, I would do it because I know that those surrounding me… won't… let me down."
The entire group was astounded by the answer that Sesshomaru gave. None of them knew what to say and could only watch the demon lord as he waited for an answer from Koga. The wolf demon groaned in frustration again and looked down to the shards in his legs. He reached for them, but hesitated. This was so much to ask for over a human girl. Suddenly, a rustle in the bushes caught everyone's attention.
"You owe that child those shards." A small green demon carrying a strange two-headed staff stepped up to the group.
"Jaken? I thought you were with Kagura." Sesshomaru questioned.
"No. She left me behind and took Rin. She told me to come kill the wolf-demon for his shards to retrieve her." Jaken explained, pointing his staff toward Koga. "Since you were nowhere to be found, I traveled here on my own to try myself, but… my small stature slows me down."
"So, then you got the same message we did." Inuyasha commented.
"Well done, Jaken." Sesshomaru gave him praise he did not expect.
"Why… thank you, Lord Sesshomaru." Jaken bowed his head politely to Sesshomaru and then looked back to Koga. "Your wolves are the very ones that slaughtered Rin when Lord Sesshomaru originally met her. They took her life in the forest and left her there to rot."
"Th-They did?" Koga asked, glancing to Kagome to see her reaction. Kagome gave Koga a slightly disappointed look.
"Aye, they did. Lord Sesshomaru's power allowed him to bring her back to life." Jaken explained. "But your wolves are what killed her in the first place."
"… Damn it." Koga gave in to the request and removed the shards from his legs. "I did not know this happened, but… I need something in return. I can't hand these over and get nothing out of it."
"What do you want?" Kagome asked.
"How about a kiss?" Koga said jokingly.
"We could just kill you." Both Sesshomaru and Inuyasha said in unison, their demonic auras flaring a bit.
"Okay guys. Calm down." Kagome giggled awkwardly, wondering if Koga realized the danger that he was in.
"I don't know. Why don't we call this an 'I owe you' from the Lord of the Western Lands, hm?" Koga offered up his terms with a smile.
"Done." Sesshomaru agreed, secretly impressed that this wolf-demon knew his title as well. Koga handed over the jewel shards to Sesshomaru, who handed them off to Kagome. "This was much quicker than I thought."
"We were lucky Koga was heading our way. That mountain range is a bit of a maze." Kagome said as she put the jewel shards into the bottle.
"So, what now?" Koga asked. "You guys gonna need any help against Naraku?"
"No, we'll be fine." Inuyasha balked at the idea of adding Koga to the group.
"I think we'll be fine, Koga. Thanks to you, we've got what we need." Kagome said.
"Alright, Kagome." Koga turned to her and brought her hands into his, going back to his usual flirting. "I hate leaving your safety in the hands of that mutt, Inuyasha, so b-." Koga stopped mid-sentence and looked down to Kagome's hands. He looked back up to her and quickly let go of her hands. He looked disturbed as he took a step back from Kagome.
"You alright?" Kagome asked worriedly, but Koga just stared at her. The silence was uncomfortable.
"You've been marked, Kagome." Koga seemed offended by this fact as he tried to comprehend it. "Half-demons… don't mark."
"H-How…" Kagome glanced to Sesshomaru.
"Well, since half-demons don't mark, it obviously wasn't Inuyasha." Koga said pointing back toward the half-demon.
"How could you tell, Koga?" Kagome raised her voice at him.
"Whoever marked you is powerful, so there will be some demons that can sense it." Koga explained, but he looked so uncomfortable talking to Kagome that it made the rest of the group uncomfortable as well. "It's how we know not to mess with someone else's mate. Of course, there are some demons that don't care. It's not like there is something stopping us, but Kagome… what the hell? What about In-."
"Koga, stop." Kagome demanded of him. "Things have changed. That's all you need to know."
"I understand. I hope everything goes well for you and… whoever…" Koga thought for a moment and looked to Sesshomaru. "Well, shit."
"Alright, we need to go." Inuyasha pushed the group as things became more uncomfortable.
"Lucky guy. So, that's why you're around them." Koga smirked and nodded at Sesshomaru. "Congratulations, man."
"Koga, what happened to your wanting Kagome as your woman?" Inuyasha suddenly yelled.
"Kagome obviously wasn't choosing me, mutt." Koga put his fists on his hips. "I did that to bug you. You're easy to mess with. I'm not so stupid that I can't tell when a woman isn't interested in me. Apparently, you never got the message, though. Sucks for you."
"Please, stop." Kagome begged them. She lowered her head so her eyes were shielded by her hair.
"You don't know what you're talking about, stupid wolf!" Inuyasha retorted angrily, ready to fight again.
"Hey, calm down, Inuyasha. She's mated, you can't change that. I'm sorry that things didn't go your way. I do mean that." Koga waved his hands in front of himself, not wanting to fight. "Besides, Sesshomaru's strong. She's got a good mate by her side, so-."
"Will you shut up!" Inuyasha yelled at him again, getting angrier than ever before. "Stop acting like you know anything. Kagome di-."
"Inuyasha." Sesshomaru scolded his brother, cutting him off from saying anything more. "Calm down."
"But he-." Inuyasha stopped as Sesshomaru motioned to Kagome. Inuyasha looked to her and sighed. She was standing strong as an act for Koga, but her body was ready to give out at any moment. "Let's just go." Inuyasha spun on his heel and hurried off.
Sesshomaru nodded to Koga as a goodbye and used an arm to guide Kagome away from him. Koga was obviously confused, but chalked it up to Inuyasha's jealousy. Inuyasha had Kagome leave him for his brother. That sucked.
The other three that stayed quiet, Sango, Miroku, and Shippo, all followed Inuyasha with their moods a little drained. That entire conversation was awkward. Koga's support of Sesshomaru and Kagome as a couple made their stomachs turn. They definitely felt for Inuyasha in that moment. They couldn't tell Koga the truth. Who knows how he'd react?
This interaction did teach them one thing: there would be other demons that could sense that Kagome was mated with a demon. From what they observed, the demons couldn't tell who she'd be connected to, but they would definitely know that she was spoken for.
The group continued on in silence, heading back in the direction of Sesshomaru's castle. They had much more time on their hands now that they were able to get Koga's shards without much problem. Though that was a relief, the conversation that was held with the wolf demon left a bad taste in everyone's mouth. Inuyasha was furious. He walked ahead of everyone and tried to keep a good distance from Sesshomaru and Kagome. At the moment, he couldn't even look at them. His envy was at an all time high. Sango and Miroku were thankful that they didn't have to deal with anything as horrible as the others currently did. Miroku's flirting was easy to deal with in comparison to this. Sesshomaru walked with Kagome at the back of the group. Kagome was holding onto them well, but Sesshomaru could smell the salt of the few tears that tried escaping the corners of her eyes.
"You're a good woman, Kagome." Sesshomaru spoke up suddenly, trying to be quiet enough that only she'd hear. Unfortunately, her friends were close enough to hear that and looked over their shoulders at the two. Sesshomaru sighed when he realized this. Kagome looked up to him surprised and wiped the tears from her eyes. "Do not let what Koga said out of ignorance of your situation bother you. We will get it removed."
Kagome brought her hand up to her neck, running her fingers along the small scars that were there. She could only nod in reply. Her mood wasn't raised, even though Sesshomaru did try. Her body began to tremble, her face distorted and more tears came flooding up.
"Inu-Inuyasha, I-I am so sorry…" Kagome strained to speak as fell to her knees, holding her hands over her face. She felt so guilty about everything and Koga had uprooted any of the confidence she had with what he said. She had been holding so much back to try to be okay for everyone. "I can't do this…" Kagome brought her hands up to her head and squeezed. "I can't do this anymore. I can't pretend that everything is okay. I… I… I need to be alone."
Kagome suddenly shot up and ran off away from everyone else. Sesshomaru turned to run after her, but stopped himself. He wouldn't know what to say to her anyway. Inuyasha was going to run after her too, feeling guilty for fighting with Koga now that he saw how it impacted Kagome. Miroku stopped him and shook his head. Sango was the one that went. Sango dropped her weapon to the side and ran after Kagome.
"Let Sango help her." Miroku said and sat down in the grass. "This is one time I don't think anything we men say will help."
