- CHAPTER SIX – DAWN -


Kagome felt herself waking and resisted. She was so warm and comfortable, she knew opening her eyes meant getting up and being cold. Rolling over, her nose pressed into something solid, and the smell of tamarack filled her face. Had she spilled some? In bed? Why had she taken it out in the first place?

Kagome's eyes flew wide. Bare chest and shoulders blocked her view, caging her in an unfamiliar hold. Her head was cradled by an arm, and another lay draped over her hips. Its weight was heavy, like it had laid there for hours. Clawed fingers dangled at her lower back, curled in towards her, and soft exhales fell into her hair. Craning her neck, she saw Inu-Yasha's usually-lined features slack and unguarded over her.

"AAAHH!" She tried scrambling backward, but the arm at her waist tensed, keeping her in place.

The smoothness of sleep left the hanyou's face as she began to panic, bucking and shoving him away with small palms. He cracked open an amber eye amid a head of disheveled white and released her. "Quiet woman," he grumbled.

Kagome bolted into a sit and gasped for breath. "D-Did we…?"

Inu-Yasha sighed, coming fully awake. "Stay up late monitoring my recovery? Fall asleep only when the sun rose, and I returned to my normal state?" He moved an arm over his eyes. "Yes."

Kagome searched her memory, shaking off disorientation. She hadn't been comfortable. No, no – she'd been miserable and nervous. That was it.

Inu-Yasha's stomach gave a loud rumble. "I'm hungry," he pretended not to notice her conflict. "I haven't eaten in three days."

Kagome touched her own middle. "Me too."

"You ate yesterday. Careful of those thighs."

She made a face. "Leave me alone," instead of being annoyed, she was relieved. Inu-Yasha seemed like himself again. She'd take his rudeness over his human civility – and stupidly-warm embrace – any day.

"You know what you haven't had in days?" Inu-Yasha lifted his elbow and joined her in sitting up. "A bath," he crinkled his nose. "I can't believe I just slept beside the stench of the youkai who did this to me."

Kagome found herself too pleased to be angry. This was so much better. It made it easy to quell the swirling confusion of being half-asleep and not wanting to leave his arms. "You're right," she said, almost cheerfully. "I do."

Inu-Yasha rolled away from her and got up off the bed. "I'm going to the main hall for some breakfast. Ren can show you where the bathing cave is."

Kagome rose on the other side, unable to check a spreading smile. "So you don't mind letting me out of your sight then?"

Inu-Yasha froze. A soft curse slipped from him as details of last night's conversation sharpened into focus. "Of course not," he said gruffly. He had some damage control to do. "My human half is completely full of it. He'll say anything to get into a girl's skirt."

"So being a stalker is his idea of charming?"

Inu-Yasha closed his eyes. Damnit. "I never claimed he was any good."

Glancing to the fire, still smoldering with strong coals, Kagome joined him by the door. "Are you going to get dressed?" She nodded to his bare torso, covered in dried paste.

Inu-Yasha grumbled again and retraced his steps, plucking his kosode from the floor and slipping it on. "I want my haori back when you're done."

Kagome looked down at her makeshift wrap. "Fine by me. Is there something I can change into?"

Inu-Yasha pulled the door open, and Ren blinked at them from the ceiling.

"Good morning sir," he dropped to the floor. "I'll find her something to wear."

Inu-Yasha nodded. "She needs to bathe too," he waved to the northern corridor.

Kagome stepped out into the hall, and Ren moved towards her.

"I thought you didn't like to eavesdrop," she chided.

His cheeks colored. "You were inches away."

"Uh-huh."

Inu-Yasha turned to go, but the koumori cleared his throat. "Sir? The children headed for the cave a little while ago. Will that be a problem?"

"Nope," he was already walking away.

Ren held out a hand for Kagome to go first. "Right this way."


Inu-Yasha had lied, waiting until the pair had disappeared down the poorly-lit corridor, and Kagome's weak human eyes could no longer pick him out, before spinning around and following them. If the children were taking baths, that meant Shippo was there supervising. Inu-Yasha treaded noiselessly, knowing Ren could hear him anyway. He didn't care; his brother wouldn't give him away.

Kagome and the koumori traveled leisurely, slowed by conversation. The girl asked question after question, and Ren was more forthcoming than Inu-Yasha would've liked him to be. The bat hanyou gave answers both frank and detailed; apparently candor as well as esteem had been earned when she'd saved his leader.

Never mind that she'd been the reason he'd gotten injured in the first place….

Inu-Yasha's stomach growled as he headed further and further from breakfast. He cursed Ren as much as his appetite, and grumbled, "Hurry it up."

Magically, the pair started to move faster. The new pace didn't seem to deter Kagome; she continued her barrage.

"How many children are among the Ouja?" She asked.

Ren counted in his head. "Shippo watches the nine youngest, but there are another twelve in adolescence who won't leave the mountain until their battle and survival training is complete."

"And Tunna and Tika are two of those nine?"

Ren nodded as the corridor veered east. "Tunna is the koumori I spoke of yesterday, and Tika is a tanuki hanyou."

"Tanuki? I bet she's so cute," Kagome smiled. "Does she live up to her name?"

"How so?"

"Being part-racoon? She must have a big, bushy tail."

Ren arched a brow. "She does. Is that… 'cute'?"

"Very."

Her guide looked at her from the corner of his eye. "Interesting. I don't know of many humans who would call a hanyou child anything but an abomination."

From far behind, Inu-Yasha palmed his face. Why was Ren being so honest?

Kagome gasped. "Why?"

They began passing several off-shooting tunnels, and the koumori was quiet as he searched for an appropriate answer, trying to be as delicate as possible. "Because humans – most humans – hate what they don't know. What's different from them," he took her elbow and gently led her to one of the side passages. It sharpened down into poorly-illuminated, torch-sparse steps, and Kagome found herself clinging to his spindly arm.

"I think you have that backwards," she said softly. "It's the few who are filled with hate," her voice echoed even as the tunnel walls grew tight.

Ren managed an uncharacteristic scoff. "All the ones the Ouja have met have detested our very existence," he wasn't trying to sound accusing, he just knew his lifetime of experience was far more vast than hers. "Except yourself of course," he added.

Kagome loosened her hold on his arm. "Perhaps they loathe you," her voice went dry. "Because you prey on their city. No one likes thieves and kidnappers, whatever their race."

Ren looked over in surprise. "You've become angry with me."

Kagome gave a clipped nod.

"I meant no offense," he started. "But we weren't always this way. We've changed over the decades to protect ourselves, as Inu-Yasha's father first did when he started this clan."

Though it was hard finding her footing in the small passage, Kagome released him entirely. "I wonder what he would say to your 'changes'," she muttered. "Whose side he would take."

Ren's eyes widened. "Inu-no-Taisho would most certainly side with us!"

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely!" The koumori's usual calm faltered. "He loved us, as he loved Inu-Yasha!"

Inu-Yasha had reached the lip of the tunnel and cursed when he heard his name. "Shut up Ren," he growled. Kagome didn't need to hear a story on the origins of the Ouja.

Kagome watched her guide's ears quiver. "What is it?" She asked.

The diminutive man cleared his throat, suddenly chastised. "We're almost there."

"We are?" She peered into the thick shadows. The steps appeared to go on forever.

"Listen," he paused. "I hear splashing. The children are not being particularly obedient at the moment."

Kagome strained to pick out sounds ahead, but heard only the flare of a nearby torch as it burned through a dense pocket of animal fat. They continued down the stairs until they widened and opened up to a large cavern full of steam. She wanted to ask Ren more about Inu-no-Taisho, and what had made the Ouja shift their values so radically, but a quick glance at his replaced mask of politeness told her it would be pointless. Looking around, she spied pools of water bubbling with heat from deep in the earth. "You have an underground hot spring?" She was both impressed and incredulous.

"Gousuke is an elemental hanyou," Ren beckoned her off the last step. "He's tapped into a water table below us."

Kagome could hear the splashing now. Sounds of laughter and glee echoed off the high walls as a deep voice cried out in protest.

"Tika!" Shippo stood in the middle of the largest spring, bare from the waist up. His sodden tail hung low, grazing the water. "Get back here!" He swiped at empty air.

A little girl exploded from under the surface, splashing the kitsune. "You'll have to catch me!" She shrieked happily.

She was indeed tanuki; pointed ears stuck out from a halo of brown curls, and a large, dark birthmark rimmed her eyes and the bridge of her nose.

Hair and face wet, Shippo grinned good-naturedly and moved for her again.

Kagome started to smile just as Ren left her side, his mask falling away.

"Tika!" He barked.

The girl turned toward the cave's entrance, breaking into a beam at the now stern koumori. "REN!" She launched herself forward, bounding through the deep water with a speed that further revealed her heritage. Climbing out of the pool, she rushed for him, chubby arms outstretched.

He palmed the air, stopping her in her tracks. She dripped on the earthen floor, wearing only a pair of bathing shorts that started to steam in the cooler air. "I only give hugs to good listeners," he said pointedly. Standing firm before her, his small stature seemed to grow.

Past him, Kagome watched Tika's face scrunch up. Her water-logged tail, still unbelievably thick, drooped down in devastation

"I'm a good girl," she fought back sudden tears. "I promise."

"It doesn't sound like it," he scolded.

Shippo waded over to them. "She's alright," he said. "We were just playing," he spotted Kagome and reddened. "I mean… she was playing."

Through the mist in her eyes, Tika saw Kagome too and gave her a half-hearted sniff. "Hi, human girl," she said sadly, far too consumed with Ren's displeasure to give more attention.

Kagome stepped up and elbowed the koumori, sending a meaningful look and jutting her chin to the crestfallen youngster.

He started to wave her away. "I know her antics. She's at a very formative age and needs clear boundaries."

Kagome dropped her hands to her hips.

Ren noticed. His large ears wilted. "You'll become angry again, won't you?"

"Very."

He sighed and crouched down, gently lifting Tika's chin and wiping her tears with a thumb. "Come here," he pulled her into his arms.

A smile burst across her face, and her tail lifted. "I missed you!" She squealed.

"I know," he patted her back. "I've been busy watching Inu-Yasha's new friend."

Still hugging tightly, Tika examined Kagome with more curiosity. "The human?"

Ren nodded. "Her name's Kagome."

"Hi," Tika waved.

Kagome waved back sheepishly.

Shippo sidled up next to her, overcoming his embarrassment. "Here for a bath?" Behind him, his tail flicked back and forth, whipping water across the cavern floor.

She grinned, glancing at the visible grime on her arms. "How could you tell?"

He shrugged. "You're still beautiful. You'd never need a bath if it were up to me."

Kagome kept her grin, trying not to let him see how bad his line was.

Ren's ears twitched as he let go of the little girl, who clung to his neck a moment longer before finally obliging. "Shippo," he straightened, seeming to hear something none of them could. "Can you keep the children in the main pool? Kagome's going to use one of the side springs."

"Of course," the kitsune started. "I can show her where the soap root and extra clothes are before—."

"That won't be necessary," Ren cut in. Yellow-green eyes flicked up at the dark stairs they'd entered by. "You should focus on your duties," his glance fell to a round boy with ogre horns bobbing in the water. He was waving his hands in the air, obviously in a world of play and imagination. "Talon still needs to scrub his face."

Shippo's hands fisted at his sides as red once more crept into his cheeks. Kagome watched him drop his eyes and clench his jaw. "Yes sir," the young man thrust a palm out for Tika, who took it obediently.

"Bye Ren," she called. "Bye human."

Kagome felt the koumori take her elbow, but she pulled it from his grasp. "What was that about?"

Ignoring her, Ren started for one of the smaller pools. "Come on."

She followed, looking over her shoulder. Shippo was wading into the center of the spring, making to scoop Talon up in his arms. Without being told, the other children were swimming towards him. A wretched, half-drowned boy, with big, bat-like eyes and bigger ears, was struggling not to swallow water as he paddled. There was loyalty and devotion in all of their sloppy strokes; many lacked Tika's skill, but small hands broke through the surface with a determination only half-demons could bring to a task.

Shaking her head, Kagome felt the familiar heat of temper begin in her stomach. "You didn't have to do that," she crossed the space Ren had put between them. "Embarrass him like you did."

Nearing the side spring, Ren stopped before a set of stone shelves full of folded clothes carved into the cavern wall. "Shippo was forgetting his place," he crouched and retrieved a drab garment from one of the lower compartments. Holding it up, he measured it against Kagome's frame. "You're very small," he shook his head and searched for something a better fit. "You could almost wear a dress of Shiori's."

"The female koumori right?" Kagome asked. "I wonder how you'd feel if I shamed you in front of her."

Ren stiffened. Still on his heels, he swiveled around and looked up. "I'm not someone who tries to take what's not theirs," the sternness returned to his voice, as if he were still reprimanding a child. "The boy is naïve, but not that naïve. He knows full well who you belong to."

Kagome felt her temper boil over. "I'm not Inu-Yasha's property."

Ren's ears vibrated. "Dramatize my words all you like. Shippo knows better," he selected a faded green dress and rose. "You can wash here," he pointed to the round pool full of slowly rising bubbles at their feet. "I'll be by the steps when you're done."

Kagome glared at the man who remained unmoved by her wrath. Exhaling loudly, she snatched the dress from his hands and stomped forward.

The sides of the spring were still wet with small imprints of hooves and claws, showing the children's play had extended to even this corner. No doubt Shippo would be criticized for that as well. Anger made her fingers shake as she began to untie the makeshift sash around her waist, spinning to face the wall as Ren left.

His steps faded, and Kagome paused, alone for the first time since her abduction. The cavern's other occupants had moved to the far end of the large spring to give her privacy; their voices still echoed, but they ebbed to background as the events of the last week built up in her. Her frustration at Shippo's mistreatment gave way to stronger, suppressed emotions. Grief and despair surged free, and tears as fast as Tika's welled in her eyes. Kagome blinked them back, letting Inu-Yasha's haori carelessly fall as she toed the water before stepping in. Engrossed in her own solitude, she didn't feel a pair of amber eyes watching from the cavern's dark entrance.

Ren returned to the stairs, joining his leader standing among the shadows, who spied without qualm.

"What's wrong with her?" Inu-Yasha was careful to keep his voice low. "She's crying."

"I imagine her ordeal is catching up to her," the koumori put his back to the corner pool. "She's among strangers who are alien to her."

"Kagome doesn't see our differences as much as you think," Inu-Yasha continued to stare, struck at how much Kanaka ugliness the girl had kept hidden. Old white scars and angry new ones covered her back in a crisscross of whippings, the bare shoulders his haori had revealed just the beginning. Marks stretched everywhere. How much flesh had she had beaten out of her in a year? Fury spiked as she dunked down below the water, and he worked for words, overcome. "You don't give her enough credit," he managed.

Ren appraised him. "Or perhaps you give it too freely sir."

Kagome surfaced, running hands through her wet hair.

"Did she shy away from the children?" Inu-Yasha asked hoarsely. "Or you?"

Ren lifted his wings slightly, readjusting them in the warm steam before folding them back down. "While I admit she seems different outwardly, I'm sure her life in Naraku's harem provided ample opportunities for her to perfect feigning tolerance. She probably—," his next words were choked off as a clawed hand seized his throat.

Inu-Yasha saw red. His grip tightened, bruising the koumori's windpipe. "I know you've faced more bigotry than most of us Ren, and that you hide your hatred well," the snarled sentence was canine and thick. "But are you blind?!" Releasing his neck, he spun the other man around. "Look at the 'opportunity' her enslavement gave her!"

Yellow-green eyes widened, as much from Kagome's scarred and puckered skin, as from his leader's volatile reaction.

Inu-Yasha's breathing was ragged, too furious to remember the rhythm for inhaling and exhaling. "She isn't like the people of your village," his entire body shook. "Don't sell her so short."

Ren fingered his throat, thinking of the exchange he and Kagome had started on the stairs.

"Leave me," Inu-Yasha spat. "I'll watch over her."

"But you charged me with—."

Amber eyes narrowed. "You're relieved."

Ren acquiesced, bowing low. "I'm sorry sir."

Inu-Yasha crossed his arms over his chest, looking past him as if he were already gone. The koumori retreated up the stairs, disappearing into the darkness.

The leader of the Ouja returned to the girl beginning to wash, no longer feeling the pangs of hunger in his stomach – something much more consuming was building now. He knew he was starting to obsess over Kagome; his physical aggression toward a brother was proof of that. Inu-Yasha remembered when she had claimed she'd get him into trouble.

"You certainly will," he whispered. Catching sight of Shippo sneaking his own glances at the corner, he shook his head. "All of us."