The Bone Eater's Well
Chapter Three
Kagome wasn't wrong in her assumption. The second time she ran into the Great Dog General was quite a surprise.
Kagome had found herself making an establishment out of the roots of the Goshinboku, placing her sleeping roll in the back of the cove and making a habit of stashing her belongings in the farthest hole.
Two weeks had passed rather uneventfully. Kagome had learned she was clearly not a fisherman and she had zero talent in chasing after small animals. Most times, she ended up empty handed, her stomach grumbling angrily and her pride severely wounded.
She did find though that she was great at starting fires, albeit with her fire starter, and singing lovely songs to the birds hovering overhead. Foraging had been relatively easy as Kaede had spent some time teaching her herbs and plants of all kinds over the course of her three year stay in Edo.
It was boring for the most part, but she found the peace unnerving more than anything.
Kagome had seen no yokai outside of Inuyasha's father. She assumed because of the lack of a human settlement in the region that perhaps that's why she hadn't seen any. Do yokai eat humans even? Even so, she recalled the Feudal Era crawling with yokai of all levels. So why are there practically none here?
In her spare time, she asked herself several questions on yokai behavior and traditions, cursing herself for not inquiring with her expert companions prior. Periodically, Kagome would watch over the well and try to summon the ancient power to life. Her luck was nowhere in sight as the well remained completely dormant.
But the majority of her time was spent here.
The Goshinboku was tall and beautiful- the sun streaming through the large leaves and the roots riding up in tidal waves. She had planted herself steadily on the thickest of roots and she prayed, feet tucked underneath her.
She prayed every day. Sometimes multiple times a day.
"And Kami, please. Please, make sure Souta doesn't forget to feed Buyo."
Her hands were clasped together, focused on finishing her string of prayers, all life around her blocked in her concentration. Kagome bowed low in her kneeling position before rising. A loud thump behind her had her screeching with a jolt and her foot slipped.
Falling forward, she cracked her jaw on the root with a snap! Her hands could barely keep her up on the tall root. Moving to a better position, she rubbed her jaw tenderly and hissed as it throbbed painfully. Toes curling at the sharp pain.
"Miko, you are still here."
Kagome flashed a dark glare at the Dog General.
His white pearly teeth flashed in snarky smirk at her as she raised a lip in warning. Still hissing and gently rubbing her face, Kagome sat on the branch more cautiously.
"What's it to ya?" Kagome crooned, teeth aching from being snapped shut so harshly.
His head tilted comically. Her phrase was as new to him as her attire, and she realized he may not entirely understand her colloquial mannerisms. Shaking her head, Kagome sighed.
"Have your travel companions not sought you out?" The demon was circling her with a wide berth, nose upwards and eyes peering over her.
"No," she chewed her lip. "They haven't. I'm sure they will though."
He hummed in response before pausing in front of her. His body shifted forward and he leaned over her seated position. Her neck craned back to keep her eyes locked on his. The Dog General stared back and she smiled despite her nerves.
"Thank you for asking." Kagome murmured.
"Hm." He hummed again.
Neither moved and silence stretched between them. It was at this moment that her stomach gurgled. Loud.
Groaning, her hand grabbed at her waist and she blushed fiercely. The Dog General's stare snapped down to her stomach as it rumbled again. His fang peaked out dangerously as a snort left him.
"Don't you dare laugh!" Kagome snarled. "I've been eating enough berries that I'm surprised I'm not blue!"
His amber eyes widened at her statement and she sighed, wiping a hand over her face.
The demon glanced around at her strange belongings before he approached the subject. "Do you have no weapons, miko?"
She pouted, shrinking into a slouch. "No."
His questioning gaze had her flinching. "Why?"
Kagome fidgeted. She had left her bow to Kikyo as a parting sign of trust. The older woman had accepted it kindly and Kagome had been happy at the time. Now was a different circumstance.
"I gave it to someone who needed it more than me."
Her answer was met with silence.
He nodded absentmindedly at her before he leapt off the root in a huff. Swallowing down her disappointment at his abrupt departure, Kagome sighed again. I haven't had anyone to talk to for what feels like forever and here he goes running off! Ugh. Stupid dog.
"So much for that." She grumbled before glancing at the Goshinboku one more time. "Guess I'll go wash up."
Her makeshift bath in the nearby river wasn't terribly pleasant, but not unwelcome either. The summer heat was unbearable and she was mildly covered in the moss of the tree. She glanced at her clothes. Of course, they were dirted from her earlier slip and she wondered how best to wash them considering she had completely forgotten her spare uniform at her campsite.
Groaning, she ducked her tresses into the river and shifted to drag the shirt into the water with her. Washing the fabric, she laid it out on the riverbed to dry.
"Hopefully it dries quickly."
Idolly, Kagome began to rinse her body and scrub at the day's grime. Finishing fast enough, Kagome began to try to entertain herself in other ways.
Splashing about in boredom, Kagome skipped a few stones and watched as some fish darted away. Laughing, she slid the arm strap of her bra back into place when it slipped off her shoulder and she turned to grab another pebble from the shore. A large shadow cast over her and she gulped.
Screaming, Kagome spun around with her arms covering her chest. "Turn around!"
She would never have thought her third time encountering the dog demon would be with her so openly exposed in the river. His chuckle rang in her ears and she flushed, dropping into the riverbed in an attempt to cover herself.
"Don't you dare peak!"
She heard a thump and listened to his footsteps. Chancing a glance, Kagome watched his backside as he moved toward the tree line. As quick as he came, the demon was gone in a whisk of silk, gleaming silver strands zipping away.
Deeming it safe enough, she swam to shore to dress in a flash. As she pulled on her skirt and shook out the top, she found a small blade in the grass. She dressed easily and grabbed the blade to inspect it closer. The hilt was lightly covered in white and red stitching with a red tassel hanging from the end. The sheath was nondescript, but the blade was beautifully cut and angled. It was light in her hand and she tested it out.
"Wow." She murmured in awe.
Clutching it to her chest, she tried to sight the demon, but he was gone. His aura pulsating in the far edges of her senses.
A smile tugged at her lips and she whispered a small 'thanks' into the summer wind.
The fourth time meeting him was interesting enough.
Another week had passed by with no response from the Bone Eater's Well to her utter dismay. She had attempted everything but sacrificial rituals to stir it to life with no result.
No hum. No pull of energy. Not even a twitch or a flicker of power.
Kagome was slumped tiredly against the well, stroking the wood.
"Why won't you work?"
Thoughts of her loved ones had tears stinging her eyes and her stomach cramped. Growling, she rose and stared into the depths of the well. The body completely decayed at the bottom.
"Just work, damn it! I want to go home!"
She yelled and shouted angrily. Kagome deflated as the midday sun rose higher.
"What do you seek with the well, miko?"
Kagome darted to find the unexpected face of the demon lord. She gasped, hand flying to her pounding heart and she choked on a gush of air.
"Stop sneaking up on me!" She cried, hand fisting in the front of her shirt.
His answering bark of laughter caught her off guard. His handsome features whirling into a smirk which she had become accustomed to. She froze though when she saw the rather large corpse hanging over his shoulder.
"What are you doing with that?" Curiously, she moved over to watch him.
The dog demon came forth, the carcass draped over his shoulder, the spike of his armor coated in fresh blood. Her stomach twisted and she grabbed at her lower belly when it cramped tightly again.
Moving aside, she let him address the well with a weathered look before he threw the body into the well.
"Hey!" She grabbed at the sleeve of his white kimono.
The body fell to the floor with a sickening plop. Her mouth dropped open. The pelt of the dog demon tickled the side of her face as she peered into the depth of the well. Golden eyes studied her reaction with thinly veiled curiosity.
Nonchalantly, she tugged at the sleeve of his attire to redirect his attention.
Pointing at the corpse, she said, "Why did you do that?"
"Because it is necessary."
Frowning, she attempted again, "And exactly why is it necessary?"
He made an incoherent noise in his throat, but she felt the rumble in her skin. Instincts kicking into overdrive, she dipped back and released his sleeve to have her wrist caught in his clawed hand. His thumb pressed into her pulse and she could feel it thump wildly in his grasp.
"Do you not know who I am?"
"I do." She whispered.
His piercing gaze had her breath hitching. "I think not. I am Toga, the Great Dog General."
He loomed over her, body heat rushing along her skin and energy pouring from their conjoined hands. "I am Western Lord to these lands. It is my duty to protect them from weak yokai who presume to roam them."
Gulping, she tugged at her wrist. "And what does that have to do with putting their bodies in the well?"
He analyzed her question. Gaze burning into her skull.
"It serves to remind those who aim to oppose the Western Lands of what they are to face."
Kagome was no longer able to process his words. She was transfixed in his features, his demonic aura consuming her reiki easily in roaring waves of heat, and she shuddered as he made an animalistic noise in his throat.
"You will enter heat soon. This corpse shall serve as a reminder to weaker yokai of whose lands you have been given access to roam."
"Enter heat-" Kagome blinked, brows pinching together in confusion. "What do you-"
Embarrassment flooded her. Her cramping and recent mood swings. Her barely concealable nerves flaring to life wildly anytime she thought she heard something. She had chalked it all up to paranoia, but counting down in her head backwards- she was just about due.
Hand shooting up to cover her face, legs squeezing together as if to hide the scent of her womanhood from him, Kagome groaned.
"You are unmated and the corpse of the Snake Prince shall protect your camping grounds. Remain on guard."
Kagome frowned, body flushing hot and her cramping increased. She chewed her lip and tugged at her wrist. His thumb brushed over her rapid pulse and she felt a stroke of heat unlike any other pool in her stomach. The Dog General released her and she slowly edged away.
How does he always end up so close?
Coughing into her hand, she wrapped an arm loosely around her waist. She toed the grass nervously. Despite the topic of their conversation, the Western Lord stood regally over her, imposing his will in a very similar fashion to his first born son, and Kagome felt a stab of envy in her chest. Are all Daiyokai like this?
"Thank you, Inutaisho." She punctuated her statement with a sweeping bow. "And thank you for extending your protection to me."
Anger flared in her at his words. "I have given you a means to protect yourself. Do not thank me yet, miko."
She growled. "It's Kagome!"
His amber eyes told of his mirth even if his lips remained thin.
Yes, the Great Inutaisho would continue to surprise her.
