The Call

~ Kitty

Chapter 8: Beating warm against the sea

…

"... the streams are singing bank-full, swaying softly through the level meadows and bogs, quivering with sun-spangles, swirling in pot-holes, resting in deep pools, leaping, shouting in wild, exulting energy over rough boulder dams, joyful, beautiful in all their forms."

― John Muir

He roused that morning to the sound of her laughter mingling with the gasps and gurgles of the river. Sitting up, he was surprised she could make her exit without waking him, although admittedly, her stealth was probably greatly aided by the white background noise of being so close to the river. It was still early, the sun's angle in the sky was still throwing pale pinks against the clouds but the colors were fading quickly as the solar orb gained more height. Allowing himself a wide-mouthed, toothy yawn, he stretched his arms and neck to and fro before slipping out of the fabric shelter and into the light of day.

'Bear cub.'

It was all he could think as he watched her little figure, still drowning in his large jacket, hopping clumsily around the boulders and stones in the river. She practiced her balance, waving her arms haphazardly in the air as she fought to steady herself. A small grey bird flitted past her and she nearly toppled over with a squeak as her head tried to spin around to follow the little speck's flight. The Northern Shrike dipped down into the water, ruffling its feathers and shaking off droplets. Then the bird darted overhead again and again, Kagome tried to rotate her neck beyond her human capabilities and nearly found herself doused in the river had not a steady, firm hand grabbed hold of her arm.

"You're no owl," he said simply, bringing his other hand up to her other shoulder when she continued to fight for balance. "Think you can avoid breaking your leg long enough for me to make coffee?"

She giggled, rolling her eyes at him. "As long as you make me some too."

"Deal."

As he turned to stomp away, Kagome obligingly found herself a comfortable seat beside the ashes of last night's fire. The breeze was cool and the sun was warm and she closed her eyes, content and placid as she soaked up the morning serenity. The little grey bird zipped by again and caught her attention, it's sharp, black markings stunning against its steely grey feathers.

"Shrike," a voice behind her said, "That one's also a vicious little fucker."

"Is everything in Alaska an adorable 'vicious little fucker'?" She reached out to accept her mug, feeling self conscious as her fingers brushed his. For his part, he made no indication to have noticed the contact.

"Only the carnivores," he said, taking a sip from his coffee.

"So," she said, giving him a sly, assessing look, "Does that make you an adorable 'vicious little fucker', too?"

He coughed into his drink and his voice, after he found it, tried to sound annoyed and grumpy. "Do I look 'adorable' or 'little' to you?"

He wasn't quite prepared for the playful, sultry look she gave him, but he felt it, the way her eyes roamed up and down his body in response to his question. She bit the corner of her lip while the other corner curled up in a coy smile.

"Well…," she said slowly, "those wouldn't quite be the adjectives I'd use…"

Kagome had to laugh at the panicked look on his face and she winked at him, then freed him of her presence so he could breathe again. He gasped on several deep draughts of air before raising his mug to down his entire coffee in a single scalding gulp. Something about that look had his mind spinning and in a daze, it gradually dawned on him.

She was flirting with him.

'Well damn…' he thought to himself, 'maybe I have been a hermit for too long…'

In his confounded bewilderment, he didn't notice the rest of their group stirring to life and was caught by complete surprise when a sudden weight dropped to his shoulder.

"So," Miroku said, crouching down beside him at the water's edge. He had the water pump in hand and a string of empty bottles in the other.

"So, what?" Inuyasha asked testily, fairly certain the studiously pumping man was about to tease him relentlessly over the interaction he'd just had.

"So, I'm glad you and Kagome are getting along so well."

'Bingo.'

"I was really worried at the beginning with the whole Kikyou doppelgänger thing."

All of Inuyasha's thoughts and musings were suddenly banished and he turned and frowned at Miroku.

"Why the fuck are you bringing that up now?"

Miroku shrugged. "Kagome's a really nice girl," he said, "She's sensitive, too. She tends to worry too much about others well being before her own. She would have been walking on eggshells all week if she thought you were uncomfortable around her."

Inuyasha's frown deepened as he tried to discern just what Miroku was getting at.

"Well, good then," he said. His lips were tight and he continued to stare at his friend suspiciously. He was certain this wasn't all Miroku wanted to say.

The gasket seal in the water pump squeaked with each push, preceding a little splash of clean, filtered water filling the bottle. Squeak, splash, squeak splash. Eventually, Miroku straightened, shaking out his working arm, and repositioned himself to continue.

"So," he said after resuming, "What all happened with you and Kikyou in the end anyway?"

Even though he'd been bracing for it, Miroku's question was a gut punch right in the diaphragm and Inuyasha felt it like a physical force. Miroku didn't seem to truly expect an answer, and he went right along with his musings, monologuing while gazing out into the swirling, tumbling eddies in the river.

"You ghosted us for months, then suddenly we get a notice that your new forwarding address was somewhere in Nowhere, Alaska." Miroku's voice was strangely disembodied as he went on. He glanced up at Inuyasha and sighed.

"Look, I won't pretend to understand the relationship you had with Kikyou, but she fucked you up, man," he said haltingly, for once sounding like he was struggling for words, "And I'm sure she left all kinds of skeletons behind, but you need to move on, Inuyasha. She's in the past now, you can't let her keep haunting your future."

When no angry outbursts or fisted hand came, Miroku took it to mean his words had hit home. Water bottles filled, he stood, awkwardly patting Inuyasha on a stiff, hunched shoulder, before leaving him to his thoughts and returning to camp. Inuyasha stood by the river for a long time, watching the grey northern shrike dip down and around the water's edge, and letting the trickling, giggling hum of the river drown out his senses. His lips were tight and his stance was stiff and his thoughts struggled to pin down a single cohesive thread to focus on.

He was surprised, really, by his own reaction to Miroku bringing up the ghost haunting his present state. He felt his body's agitation, the way his heart pounded and his palms sweated in his tightly closed fists. But it was nothing like the near hysterical panic he'd felt when Kagome's smiling open face first turned to his and brought the memory of her look alike come crashing down upon him. It was a calmer state of mind and he rode through it with surprising ease. It was in the past. He breathed in and let it out in a careful stuttering sigh. It was in the past and one day, perhaps, he could open that part of himself he'd locked tightly away. But now, he found with considerable astonishment, he could push that box aside, set down the burden of its dark weight, and stroll back to camp where a brightly smiling face would welcome him back and remind him that the sun cast its warmth evenly on all creatures. Although, secretly, hidden even to himself, there was a small, selfish part of him than believed she saved a special brand of joy to smile just for him.

…

"Alright," Miroku said, straightening with a hand on each hip to examine his handy work, "That should hold together… I hope."

Sango came up beside him and eyed the mess of straps and buckles with no small amount of trepidation. They were all tightly clad in neoprene shorts and socks in an attempt to feel warmer in the icy river and Sango looked ready for the raging rapids. Her fiance waited anxiously as she tugged and tested the top heavy bundle of packs teetering and swaying atop the front and back end of their inflated boat and glanced at Miroku with a look that most definitely did not inspire confidence.

"What?" he asked, "We'll never know until we try it out!"

She made a face that said she was expecting everything to fail spectacularly, but instead, she said, "I guess so."

Together, the couple bent down to heave and shove the laden boat into the shallow waters.

At the other packraft, Inuyasha and Kagome were experimenting with a different set up, using their dry sack and packs as seats in the main body of the boat but experiencing similar levels of concern with regards to the success of their configuration.

"I think we're going to scrape up the bottom of the boat this way," Kagome said, standing back and scratching her head. Inuyasha was fussing with the tie downs and growing frustrated as the flappy straps tangled with each other.

"We got all day to figure it out," he mumbled, "As long as we don't spring a leak, we're good."

"Oh my god, I hope not!" Kagome exclaimed, edging closer to peer over his shoulder. She giggled and covered his hands with her own.

"Here, let me try," she said, taking the chaotic mess from him. He let go of the straps slowly, subtly enjoying her hands on his for as long as he could. Tangled gear relinquished, he moved to test the rigidity of their boat, deeming the raft adequately inflated and when he turned around, she was already finished with her task and he took the straps from her to tie loosely to the sides of their raft. When he noted her curious glance, he explained.

"Something to grab onto when you fall overboard."

Kagome coughed, raising her hands to her hips. "Ahem, excuse me? When I fall overboard?"

Inuyasha shrugged nonchalantly. "You're very accident prone," he said, "I can't be there to save you all the time."

She tried to harrumph with mock indignance, but there was an obvious spark of genuine fear in her eyes and he moved quickly to assuage her concerns.

"Hey," he said, reaching out a hand, "Don't worry, I won't let you drown."

She eyed him before grabbing hold of his hand and letting him help her onto a comfortable seat in the raft. The river curved around a bend and out of sight and the water seemed deep enough to actually ride so Inuyasha carefully walked the boat into the middle of the river and hopped in, keeping as much weight as possible on the inflated sides of the raft to keep from bottoming out. Kagome squeaked as she felt the boat lurch and her knuckles were white around the shaft of her paddle. Reaching forward, even as the boat wobbled and swerved in the shallow eddies, Inuyasha planted a steady hand on her shoulder.

"You're OK, I've got you."

Ahead, he watched her dark head nod and felt her hand cover his for a squeeze, and then they both turned their attention to the current as it brought them closer to the riverbend and the unknown.

The shallow river was choppy and quirky, with a malicious sense of humor and a terrible penchant for sudden drops and tight corners and they were all thoroughly soaked before they even got to the first true set of rapids. Kagome's adrenaline was racing through her veins and she hardly noticed her shivering as her ears fought to sift through the noise and the white water to hear Inuyasha as he barked instructions from behind her.

"Paddle right! Other right! Now forward! FUCK!"

Being on water was disorienting, and the threat of being in water was petrifying. Every boulder they bounced off threatened to dislodge her and her entire body would be thrown one way then the other and several times, they managed to slap paddles and entangle each other, causing their little raft to be thrown off course and then she would marvel at Inuyasha's herculean strength as he strong armed the raft back into position to narrowly miss a pinch point or a very jagged looking rock. When the river finally seemed to calm down for a quick breather, Kagome took one look around at her surroundings and her jaws promptly dropped to the bottom of the boat as her eyes opened wide.

At some point during their rocky ride, they'd traveled into a canyon and the speckled grey walls hanging over the winding river outshone any great hall mankind could ever build. The sun was still young in the sky and its yellow light peered down at them shyly in slender, golden rays. It was as if the sun was peeking over the edge of the canyon walls and wondering what sort of crazies would subject themselves to the gauntlet of the Iniakuk River.

"Gawk later, paddle now!"

There is no truer test of nature than to step into the element of water. Water is vicious in its wrath, be it howling rain or thrashing rapids and Kagome was quickly getting her fill of both on this little venture. The narrow canyon came together overhead like the large, gaping mouth of a whale as it swallowed them whole and then it was back to facing the angry, frothy waters. She had only a moment to look up, his voice and the thunderous waters filling her ears to the point of distraction while her eyes briefly took in the terrifying drop, watching two boulders funnel the water together and over to a white, foamy beyond and when their little, insignificant raft tumbled over, a hard bump launched her to the side and the river swallowed her like a hungry god accepting an offering.

She fought her instincts to right herself, unsure where it lay dormant in her mind to avoid standing on unsure footing against a current as strong as this. But it saved her as the waters carried her down river and his shouts were faint in the distance. Being at the mercy of a wild and lively river wasn't an experience for the weak hearted. No amount of paddling with your arms, or kicking with your legs, could counter the river's current and it took you where it willed, without a thought to the bashing boulders or suffocating waves. Kagome could hardly find opportunity to draw breath, every brief surfacing was quickly followed by a dousing. All the while, her life jacket struggled to keep her bottom safe from the bumping and the bruising of the stones below. She had the distinct impression that the river was giving her a spanking, punishment for even daring to brave its rapids.

The whale of a canyon opened its mouth a short while later, spitting her out into an open valley, where the river shallows brought her to a halt along a wide gravel bed and she gingerly picked herself up to stand, dazed and certain she'd lost a few body parts in that ordeal.

"KAGOME!"

Distant shouts came from behind, all overshadowed by his resonating bellow.

"KAGOME?!"

Kagome turned to spot the worried faces of her friends, Sango and Miroku had beached their raft on the gravel bar and were rushing over to her. Meanwhile, the distant bright red of Inuyasha's raft tumbled out of the canyon and was hurriedly being paddled towards shore.

Sango got to her first, taking up her shaking, shivering hands and peering into her face with fright. "Are you alright? Should you be standing? How many fingers am I holding up?"

Her breathing was heavy as her brain slowly caught up with what had happened and then a bubble popped inside of her.

"Haha!" she laughed, hard enough to create a cramp in her stomach, "Oh my god! That was awesome! Let's never do that again!"

Sango persisted her concerned look for a small moment more before cracking a toothy grin of her own, relieved that her friend seemed to be in one piece.

"You really gave me a heart attack back there," she told her, releasing her hands and slapping her gently on the shoulder. Miroku blew out a raspberry as he sighed in relief, shaking his head.

"She's ok!" he shouted to Inuyasha who'd just hit the shore and was scrambling out of the raft. Miroku came forward to help tug the boat further up the bank but Inuyasha had eyes for only one person. He was sloshing up the gravel bar, absently dropping the towline when it went taut in his slack hands.

"KAGOME!"

Through her laughter, she didn't notice the stricken look on his face and only after he grabbed her by the shoulders, roughly spinning her around to face him, did she manage to focus her eyes on the distressed trembling man, the absolute terror in his eyes stopping her mid guffaw. His arms were shaking, like he'd exhausted all his strength in an effort to paddle his way to her rescue and he was thoroughly drenched from head to toe, water running in rivulets down his cheeks like tears. His throat could not produce words, and instead his body moved without thought, crushing his body against his, hard enough to press the air from her lungs and he clung to her with a desperation that belied some deeper trauma that recent events could not account for. Kagome raised her hands to return the embrace while Sango and Miroku looked on, unsure whether to smirk at the bear hug or to frown with concern over the uncharacteristic display of emotion.

"It's ok," Kagome found herself saying, almost cooing as though he were a child just woken from a nightmare. "It's ok, I'm ok, it's ok."

…

It took a long time for heart beats to return to a normal cadence and when their adrenaline returned to baseline, they all found themselves feeling drained and ready for a midday snack. Kagome was still shivering, and Inuyasha had silently went about gathering wood and starting a fire, his expression intense and stiff, his mind far away in thought. He eventually wandered off into the hills overlooking the next bend in the river, muttering that he would scout the rapids up ahead. Sango and Miroku were embroiled with lunch preparations but Kagome watched him go with some apprehension, feeling as though she'd gotten a glimpse of something deep, dark, and secret in the way he'd held her and it compelled her to discover just what it was that created the look of abject horror he'd worn while rushing up to her.

"Here's yours, Kagome," Sango said, tapping her shoulder with the rehydrated packet. Kagome accepted it absently but continued to gaze off in the direction Inuyasha had disappeared.

"He'll be fine," Miroku said, mouth full and chewing, "He just had a scare, he'll be back."

"I think it was more than that."

Miroku sighed, reaching over to nudge at her food with his spoon. "He's always been like this. He just needs to process things on his own. He always comes back."

'Except when he didn't…,' Kagome couldn't help but think. Afterall, thus far, he hadn't come back from his self imposed exile in Alaska. Some things you just can't recover from in solitude and isolation. And she felt that there was something about his reaction to her dip in the water that reached beyond just a superficial fright and clawed at something far deeper inside of him.

With a groan, she stood up slowly, feeling her sore and battered limbs protest the movement. Gingerly, she stretched her arms and shifted her weight from foot to foot. Sango glanced up at her and winced in sympathy.

"How're you feeling?"

"Alive… I think," she said with a grin. Kagome glanced around the gravel bar, marveling over how just a half hour ago, she was convinced she was going to die, or at least be severely maimed by the river. And now, they were lounging on a gravel beach, the golden sun gently drying their clothes and hair, about to dig into a nice, hot meal. She sighed. "I'm gonna walk around to make sure my body still works."

Sango gave her a knowing look but nodded. With the sun bright and hot at her back, Kagome set off, bouncing carefully on her knees and flexed her ankles, absently munching on her lunch as she slowly meandered down the overgrown game trail Inuyasha had disappeared down. The path he took was steep, and very soon, she was hot and sweaty, fighting her way up the cliffside and now very certain that, at the very least, her legs and knees were operational. Her smashing and crashing through the branches obviously alerted him well before she actually happened upon him, but he made no sound to give away his presence and she yelped in surprise when she nearly tripped over his seated figure.

"Hey," she said, not quite sure how to approach him. He was seated against a fallen log, his arms and legs strewn around him like discarded clothing. Everything, from the way his palms lay facing up to his sagging torso slumped against the rough bark, told a story of heartbreak and tragedy. More than concern, Kagome felt a fear for the man before her that clamped around her heart like a vice and she immediately dropped to her knees beside him. Her eyebrows knit together with concern.

"Hey," she said softly, "Are you alright?"

He didn't react to her right away, first blinking his eyes like waking from a dream. He turned his head, meeting her gaze but not seeing her. Then slowly, dilated eyes came into focus and then one more blink before he truly seemed to recognize her.

"Kagome."

"Yup, that would be me."

He blinked a few more times, registering the slight tone of humor in her voice, and remembering what an appropriate response was. With a snort, he answered her.

"Yup, that's you."

"Inuyasha?"

He grunted, casting his eyes aside, down the opposing cliff face and down into the river. Then he followed up with a grim, "Yup, that would be me."

"Are you OK?"

She studied his profile as he heaved a long, drawn out sigh, his back sagging further against the fallen tree. He didn't meet her eyes.

"Yeah," he said quietly, "Yeah, I'm OK."

She continued frowning at him. Nothing in his demeanor suggested that he was ok. Unsure how far she should push him, she carefully stepped over the log and settled herself beside him, their shoulders only barely touching. She sat uncomfortably for a while, desperately wishing to soothe whatever it was that was clearly bothering him but fearful that she would only push him further away. Finally, she heaved a sigh, resorting to a primitive form of comfort for lack of any better ideas.

As she descended from her exhale, slowly, carefully, she let her body fall to the side, dropping her head to his strong, muscled shoulder, and gently leaned her weight into his warm, breathing body. For a tenuous, anxious moment, she wasn't sure what reaction she would get from him, and could only hope that whatever small amount of comfort she received from the physical contact would be replicated for him.

A breath.

Maybe two.

Then suddenly he let out another long, shuddering sigh. His sagging body still held tension but as he began to release it, she felt his weight lean onto her and wordlessly, she shifted, turning toward him and bringing her arms around his shoulders. It was a silent, small moment. No words were spoken. No tears were shed. Just a quiet, tender moment. She felt him breath, a slight pressure against her side as his lungs expanded and collapsed. Around them, the breeze continued to blow through the dense branches and the birds sang their lazy summer songs. And below it all, the constant roar of the river they must continue to face for the next five days. She wasn't sure how long they sat together, each to their own thoughts and drawing some amount of comfort from their shared contact. Her freeze dried meal had congealed and turned cold when Inuyasha finally shifted, sighed, and sat up. He glanced at her meal, tipped it with a finger to glance inside, then wordlessly nicked her spoon from her hand and took a taste.

She laughed at the face he made, reclaiming her spoon and forced herself to take a mouthful. It wasn't gourmet, but it was nourishment, and it was necessary for the ordeal ahead. They looked at each other, each somehow rejuvenated and centered, and a twinkle exchanged from her eyes to his and they both trekked back down to the gravel bar, grimacing as they took turns force feeding themselves the calories in her little food packet and rejoined Sango and Miroku for the next portion of their river journey.

…

And that journey turned out to be on foot. Between Inuyasha's reluctance to put Kagome back on the river, and the next stretch being littered with class five plus maneuvers that even Miroku's blasé attitude could not justify, there was little option but to portage the next mile and a half of the river. So with packrafts, paddles, beer, and other survival necessities, they proceeded to load the gear on their backs and tackle the dense, overgrown, and very steep land route to bypass the turbulent river. It did indeed take multiple trips, and when they reached the peak of the short portage, Inuyasha and Miroku, with a grunt and a thump, dropped their heavy packs and wearily turned around to retrieve the last of their belongings. Sango watched the pair leave before turning with a wink to Kagome.

"Beer up top before carrying all this shit down?"

"Gladly," Kagome answered and she eagerly lightened her load of two twelve ounce cans, tossing one to Sango and cracking open hers.

"Ok, now to shed even more weight," Kagome said to Sango before turning for the trees. They giggled to each other over the sound of their streams and, feeling significantly jollier, took up the heavy, sweaty packs and began the huffy, dusty scramble back down to the river.

The calm waters they dropped down to were a beautiful, deep, mystic blue and Kagome couldn't help but stare into the abyss when they made it to the small, sheltered cove nestled amongst the trees. The water that streamed into the pool was bordered by two, tall cliffs, standing like guardians over them as they carefully laid down their packs. Panting, they eyed each other, before each making squinty faces of painful resignation, turning back the way they came to huff and puff their way back to the very top of their portage, gingerly pulling the next two discarded packs onto their shoulders, grimacing over the cold, slick, sweat soaked shoulder straps of their respective new loads and hauling the gear down to dump alongside their own at the deep, blue pool. By this time, Kagome was dripping with sweat and she very quickly resolved to remedy the discomfort.

Inuyasha, slipping and panting as he descended down the steep embankment, pushed past the last of the branches barring them from the river just as he heard a splash of a body meeting icy cold water.

"Fuck!" He heard her shout, causing his brows to disappear up behind his bangs, "Mother fucking cocksucker!"

With a very curious and rather astonished face, he stepped onto the crunchy gravel, Miroku close behind him, arms laden with rolled up packrafts and life jackets, to see Kagome hurriedly scrubbing herself in the river before beating a hasty exit. Water splashed every which way and her arms waved in the air clumsily to help her keep balance. The extreme cold produced an entertaining stream of profanity from her as she struggled not to scream. Glancing up in her scramble back up the gravel bar, Kagome took one look at the bemused expression on his face, eyebrow arching high above a piercing hazel eye, and stuck out her tongue.

"Jump in," she dared him, "Water's great."

"As I can see…," he said, setting down his load and snagging a beer from the stash the girls had set up in the river to get cold. Miroku copied his actions before inching towards the water until the ripples lapped at his water shoes, just barely brushing the toes inside..

"Yow, that's cold!" he shouted, "Nope, I'ma stay here."

He groaned as he sat down heavily beside Sango, lightly tapping her beer can with his but Inuyasha decided a dip in the river was a great idea. The pool they'd descended to was deep, colored a dark, pristine blue and the high, sheer cliff face leaning over it was a perfect diving platform. He waved off Kagome's concern as he set down his beer and sloshed to the other side of the river in order to scale the cliff for a better view.

Even the short height of six or seven feet above the water transformed his perception of the cove below. Kagome's intent, open face stared up at him solemnly, carefully observing him as he inched to the edge of the rock. Dirt and leaves and rotting twigs scattered beneath his feet, sprinkling the water below and floating downstream. The branches on the trees surrounding him seemed to hold him back, tugging at his raggedly shirt and snagging his braided hair. It was high time he brushed it. A short intake of air, then he stepped off the edge, bringing his legs together in anticipation of breaking the waters surface.

Plunging into water was like taking a leap into a new world. It's like a rebirth. The cold, silky embrace of the river came up over his head and the only sounds he could hear were the swishing current the beating of his own heart. Bubbles peeled off his body like a veil and he curled into himself as he sank. The underwater realm was a strange and alien place, yet nostalgic and familiar all at the same time. Ignoring the burning in his lungs, he cracked his eyes open to gaze up at the distant sunlight, rippling and shifting as the river flowed by. His toes brushed the smooth, round stones at the bottom and he carefully positioned himself for a push to the surface. Unfurling, with a smooth, strong thrust, he launched his body upward to the light, breaking the surface with a sharp gasp for air. Water droplets flew from his skin and his hair as he swung his head around, casting his gaze around himself and spotting the shore. Her eyes were concerned as she watched him and her relief seemed to wash through her and invite him closer. With long, powerful strokes, he paddled his way back and she met him part way, a towel in one hand and a wide smile brightening her face.

"Well, that looked fun," she said, "But you had me worried there when did you didn't come up right away."

He made no move to accept the towel so she took it upon herself to drape the cloth over his head, pressing in briefly around his skull before bashfully dropping her hands.

"I'm ok," he said. His stare was bright and direct as he spoke and there was a shining, lively light in his eyes. It was a strange way, water had, to both bring devastation and rejuvenation all in a single windy river and Kagome smiled back at him, finally convinced that the shadow had passed. Behind them, Miroku and Sango had rested and begun reinflating the rafts and very soon, they were back on the water, adjusting their seats, tightening their grips on their paddles, and bracing themselves for the next test the river would send send their way.

…

"So I should just focus on balancing on the raft?"

"More or less."

The river was calm for a very short section before a modest set of baby rapids broke up the monotony and prompted a quick river safety lesson. While Inuyasha and Miroku, being both the heaviest and the most experienced, were seated in the back where they had ultimate control, the girls quickly learned there were still significant actions they could take to impact whether they would experience the river from above, or from within.

"If nothing else, just counterbalance the boat and keep your head down so I can maneuver."

"I don't need to help paddle?"

"Nah, the river's moving fast enough on it's own, just focus on staying in the boat."

Kagome nodded, making a face to herself. "Sounds easy enough."

Grunt.

She giggled and turned to smile back at him, only to have him nod his chin toward something up ahead.

"Incoming!"

"I'm on it!" she answered him, bracing herself and partway standing, letting her legs cushion her against the rocking and bumping of the water and the rocks. She wasn't sure if this was in any way correct in terms of boating skills and technique, but fuck it, she was staying out of the river at all cost! Around them, another canyon rose up its walls, shading them from the sun and looming high overhead. She had to swallow hard around the lump of trepidation in her throat and behind her, Inuyasha set his jaw, determined to bring them safely to the other side of the rapids. Fearful anxiety transformed quickly into giddy excitement, then extreme, pinpoint focus. The body knew instinctively when its survival was on the line and very quickly, extraneous concerns, worries, and every other stray thought was cast aside. Every firing nerve concerned itself with maneuvering the ride, anticipating and reacting, with all of life's lessons in physics and coordination called to bat. Her muscles positively sang, tensing and releasing. Never in her life had her body ever moved so innately, every fiber contributing to preserving this beautiful creation of evolution.

When they paused briefly in an eddy, Inuyasha immediately concerned himself with ensuring her safety.

"You ok?"

But for once, it was Kagome who couldn't respond with words. Instead, she whirled around, her eyes glittering and her smile wide. She was laughing, her entire body energized, and after a brief moment of incredulous shock, an unconscious smile found its way onto his face as well.

"That. Was. Fucking amazing!" she exclaimed, finally remembering her words. "Absolutely amazing!"

She shouted at Sango as their blue boat made its way through the rapids and Sango and Miroku sent back a chorus of whoops and victorious shouts.

"Hells yeah!" Sango shouted, shaking her paddle above her head and letting out a warcry. "Bring it on, river!"

Her first dip was certainly not her last. Rafts capsized and the river tested them relentlessly but they all remained in one reasonably whole piece, though slightly disheveled, by the time they rounded a corner to a lovely sheltered cove bounded by gentle, forested slopes and decided it was time to end the day.

"Oh my god," Kagome panted as she scrambled out of the boat and onto shore, her smaller dry sack in hand, "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god."

She was shivering badly, hardly capable of releasing the buckles of her life jacket, and desperate to strip off her sodden, clinging clothing without a care or regard to the rest of the party. Abandoning Inuyasha to handle beaching their boat on his own, she immediately sought out a convenient boulder to semi cover herself and promptly began stripping.

"Get it off, get it off!" Her teeth were clattering with each other as she muttered to herself.

"Agh, dude! Cover yourself!" Kagome whirled around, startled by the disgust in his voice, finding herself staring at the bare backend of her best friend's fiance and she shrieked as she turned back around, ducking further behind the boulder. Emblazoned into her mind's eye, the images of three tight bare bottoms glowed like full moons. Apparently they all had the same idea, the cold having sapped a great deal of their energies and inhibitions. There was only comforts and discomforts of a physical kind and all other concerns were unimportant triflings. In very little time, Kagome straightened up with a sigh, her body still trembling from the cold and she carefully stepped out from behind the boulder, the soles of her bare feet tender against the bumpy stones. Her wet clothes lay around her in disarray and her skin tingled as blood began to circulate down to her extremities, tentatively, as if unconvinced they'd seen the last of the cold river for the day. Shyly, she peeked through her lashes at Inuyasha, mildly disappointed by how quickly he'd changed and was reclothed and already turning his attention to fire and stove. As she picked up her things and came closer, he glanced up and quickly slipped off his coat.

"Here," he said, thrusting the jacket into her arms.

"Oh, no," she exclaimed, pushing back, "I have layers."

"Get 'em later," he said, forcing her to take the thick material into her arms. With a sigh and a soft smile, she accepted the offer and revelled in the feel of the soft flannel against her skin. Gradually, Sango and Miroku joined them around the small but growing fire. The stones and boulders of that small gravel bar were quickly put to good use as impromptu dry racks. There was beer that night, and a large hearty supper, but after such a day, they all decided a whiskey nightcap was strongly required. And later, the boats were piled up and weighted down with rocks, and they all slowly trudged up the surrounding slopes for softer ground to set up camp.

It had been a draining day, and they retired early. But when Inuyasha pushed back the fabric door of the tent, he paused in surprise. Kagome's sleeping bag lay unused, tightly zipped and ready for her. But the girl was gone. Swallowing a brief surge of fright, Inuyasha straightened up, spinning around to search for her among the sparse conifers. It took several scans of the surrounding hills before he spotted her, small and crouched in the distance. She'd chosen a small flat bluff above the tent, sitting so still, she may as well have turned to stone. But her expression was perplexing, her brows furrowing and her lips twitching as though distraught. With a look of concern, he climbed up beside her, leaning over her curled figure.

"Kagome?"

She sniffed and blinked, glancing up at him. He started to panic when a single tear escaped her eyes and trickled down her cheek but she laughed at his stricken look, shaking her head and tugging at his leg for him to sit. Then she gestured downstream, their campsite high enough to overlook the next turn the river made before disappearing behind the high walls of the canyon. Tall spruce stood straight and solemn over the frothy waters and grey sloping cliffs constrained the river to its winding course. The sun was fading low in the sky, its golden light tinged with red and pink, and gradually fading to purple and the two figures shifted and sighed together as they absorbed the peaceful scene. Eventually, Kagome took a long deep breath and leaned heavily against him. There was a heat between them, and it glowed where their bodies made contact.

They sat together for a long time, silently reflecting on the long, tumultuous day they'd experienced. The endorphin filled highs had taken her straight up into the skies. The frightening lows had provided a glimpse of something deep and dark and secret in her companion beside her. He sat easily beside her now, thick, muscled legs sprawling in her periphery. And despite her natural curiosity, she found herself ill inclined to ask about his reaction to her first fall into the water. The scene around them compelled her into silence, demanding that she fill her mind with nothing else but to admire the ethereal, ephemeral beauty of the savage mountain sunset.

"It's just… perfect," she whispered, eventually, her voice hushed in awe and reverence. Inuyasha blinked, surprised to hear her voice break the silence.

"It's wild and beautiful and perfect."

A/N: If anyone is interested at all in the route of this trip, pm me and I can share the caltopo route map. As frightening and as much of a logistical/planning nightmare as it was, I would definitely recommend if you have a hankering for adventure (mosquitos and hypothermia aside, 12/10 would recommend). There's also a great youtube video of a couple adventurers rafting the entire thing (we only jumped in part way). It's one of the first hits you get if you search Iniakuk River.