~Freak Attraction: Seven-Man Circus~
Chapter Six: Baths of Brine and Blood
"Oi, time to get up."
Eyelids fluttering open against the soft yellow light of morning, it took Kagome a few moments to decipher whether or not she was dreaming. The voice she knew well – it was one she'd been hearing every day for months now - but the usual shimmering white hair and half grin that accompanied it were nowhere to be found. Inuyasha was usually the one to wake her, but... where was he now? Her sleep-addled brain mulled over the situation a moment more before the previous night came rushing back to her on a bitter wave. Her fingers clutched the old blanket, unwilling to move as she listened to the distant twittering of birds and felt the sun's rays bathing her face through the open tent flap. Tentatively she reached out with her aura, but felt nothing nearby. A discarded sleeping-robe hung on the edge of a dresser drawer across from her, and she knew that Inuyasha had already gone off to train.
The minutes passed slowly as she urged herself to roll out of bed, but her limbs refused to move. She wasn't ready to face a day like this, with Inuyasha sending her accusing glares and avoiding her touch. Wasn't it just yesterday when he'd kissed her senseless right in front of everyone? It felt like eons ago, the memory of his lips against her already faded. How long would it be before things changed? Again worries plagued her, and she wondered if all the noise from the night before meant he'd cleared a separate tent for himself, no longer able to stand her company. What would happen when the seven performers discovered them in separate quarters? Would they throw her out now that her husband had cast her aside? She could see Jakotsu's gloating face in her mind's eye, and her expression soured.
But then a thought came that was even worse, and no matter how she tried to push it away, it sunk in deep and began to fester. What if Inuyasha threw her out first? What if he sent her home, saying he could handle it by himself, that he didn't need her help, that she was only getting in the way? A gale of horrid outcomes flew past her eyes as she thought of Inuyasha facing the gods alone. Them surrounding him, torturing him, mutilating him as they'd done to those twins, until finally he lay dead at the bottom of a filthy cage. And during it all she sat miles upon miles away in her comfortable home, unable to save him just as she'd been unable to swallow her pride and apologize.
That last image spurred her into action as she rolled off the cot, her feet aching slightly as they met the packed dirt. She ignored the sting of rocks and dry patches of grass as she hurried to the open tent flap, hoping somehow that she could catch up to Inuyasha, catch him and say how sorry she was even if he never offered apologies in return – but the sight that met her eyes as she stepped out into the sunlight stopped her in her tracks.
Just to her left stood an alcove where before there'd been nothing. It was built up of boxes and crates and old cabinets, stacked like bricks to form a more or less solid wall. In places where the materials weren't as sturdy or thick, a tent tarp had been draped over top to hide any cracks. And in the center, hidden from all outside view, was a large wooden tub raised up on rocks, weathered but solidly-seamed, with a metal bottom and embers already glowing in a pit underneath. Kagome approached the structure in a daze, noting how the surrounding wall easily rose a foot above her head, the lip of the tub at chest height. It was already full of water. Mouth open, breathing shakily, she reached forward to dip the tips of her fingers in the slightly murky water – and shivered in delight. It was lovely! The warmth of it spread up her arm, and suddenly she ached to submerge in it, realizing she hadn't had a proper bath since the morning they'd left on the train.
Filled with sudden euphoria at the prospect of a good soak, Kagome looked around her little hideaway, noticing that their sleeping tent made up part of the enclosure, the opening facing the backs of a few more storage tents. It would have been best to hang a curtain or something for added privacy, but she knew for a fact that no one would be in this area of the compound this time of day, and biting her lip to hide a smile, her hands eagerly undid the tie of her kosode. Shedding the last of her clothing and placing them in one of the open crates that made her bathing room, Kagome circled to the back of the tub, finding a large bucket upside-down in the dirt ground. The thought crossed her mind that it was the perfect size for doing the wash later, but for the time being it was just the right height for her to seat herself on the edge of the tub and slide into the hazy water with a sigh.
It put her at an awkward level, too short to stand in but too high to sit, and Kagome settled for propping herself against one side of it, her arms draping along the rim and head falling back in bliss as the thick water rippled around her. Breathing deeply, she was filled with the smell of the sea, and wondered if the water had come from some ocean inlet nearby. She trusted that Inuyasha had thought to boil the water first before offering it to her like this.
A smile found its way onto her lips as she thought of the half-demon; it wasn't a big mystery how her new bath had got here: it was obviously Inuyasha's doing. Even without all the clamour and cursing from the night before, his handiwork was evident throughout. The thick wall for privacy, the proximity to their tent, the already prepped and steamy water were all testament to her 'husband's' hard labor.
Leaning away from the wooden rim, she dipped her head back, wetting her thick mass of black hair and sinking her fingers in to scrub away some of the grime that had been accumulating there. She wasn't a fool – she knew he'd likely built her this bathing area as a not-so-subtle hint to wash the rest of Kouga's scent from her body. But… she also remembered how he'd started working on it the moment she began to cry, and looking around she realized he'd probably spent most of the night putting it together. Maybe she was giving him too much credit, but… it seemed an awful lot like an apology. Besides, he knew how fond she was of baths. Splashing some of the warm water on her face, eyes closed as her hands rubbed her skin in slow circles, trying to sort through her lingering frustration, Kagome decided to let the argument go. Whatever his reasoning, she'd accept his gift, and she'd do her part to make sure that not a single patch of skin smelled of anything but sea-salt. She wouldn't spend another night alone if she could help it.
Rubbing the briny water lazily over her arms, Kagome let the worries of the night before melt into the thin tendrils of steam still rising off the water. Baths had always had a calming effect on her, and she hadn't realized just how much she'd been missing them until she sank back into one. Almost without realizing she began to hum, sifting through a few half-remembered tunes before settling on one she could remember her mother singing on long walks outside of the bustling city. It had always unsettled her as a child, a soft voice of reprimand for wandering off, but now… now she found the words a comforting fit. Her voice rose a little higher, and she closed her eyes as the song floated softly off her tongue.
"In that town, in this town, the sun is going down, sun is going down."
"Hurry back the way you came, go back to your home, go back to your home."
Her lips cracked in a smile, fingers lazily tracing the course wood-grain of the tub as she let her thoughts drift to dreaming, hoping that she and her half-demon could make up soon so she could add this song to his repertoire. Wouldn't it be nice to hear him humming it in her ear before bed….
But an altogether different noise sounded in her ears then, a throaty, gurgling chuckle rising up from the ground somewhere close by. Her eyes snapped open, unease gripping her as she slunk further into the water, casting her eyes about for the source of the strange voice. A flash of white caught her eye, and she hissed to see the leering eyes of the god Fukurokuju, Mukotsu, gazing up at her unabashedly from the edge of the constructed wall. Kagome struggled for words, panic throwing out the basic functions of her mind as she wrapped her arms protectively around herself. The circus performer's thick lips pulled up into a sick grin of delight as he mused "By all means, don't stop on my account!" His bulbous eyes widened even more as she drew back, and he muttered excitedly "I knew we should have put you on display as well. A nice bird cage, some false wings – you'd be our human-nightingale! How would you like that?"
"I'd like you to leave" Kagome said crossly, her voice and body shaking, "before I call for my husband!"
Mukotsu's smile only grew more wicked at the threat, his head slowly turning from side to side as he responded "No good! I waited till he was in the thick of training to come searching for you. Renkotsu mentioned the Inugami had built his little bride a bath, and I knew a lovely young thing like you would want to take advantage." He took a few shuffling steps forward on his short legs, and Kagome flinched away violently.
"Stay back!" Her mind raced for a plan, eyes darting about for an escape route, but not even Inuyasha had planned for such a scenario as this. Tendrils of regret began to seep in through the cracks of her fear: if only she'd waited before practically jumping out of her clothes, if only Inuyasha hadn't been so mad at her that morning, leaving her alone without a guardian….
The squat man took another step forward, and water sloshed nearly over the side as Kagome stumbled back. "I'll scream" she warned, unsure whether the move would really help or not. There wasn't much she could do if Inuyasha wasn't in range to hear her, but she just needed a distraction – something to get the creep away long enough for her to put on some clothes and run for help. Once she told Inuyasha what the creep had tried, well… it wouldn't be pretty.
But her threat fell on deaf ears, and Mukotsu only became more agitated. "You women are all the same" he said darkly, eyes narrowed and yellow teeth showing behind his lips, "You'll throw yourself so willingly at the nearest man with a pretty face, but when a plain man comes along that wants you, you pretend that you're somehow above him, that you're pure." A sinister smile returned to his tattooed face, and the circus-god added quietly "but we all know the truth, little bird. There's nothing pure about you, is there? No, not a girl with a demon lover. You gave yourself to a beast with a human face!"
Kagome glared at the little man as he snickered, her fear and embarrassment swallowed up in the anger that always followed such ignorant comments. She didn't speak though – she wouldn't engage him in conversation and give him a reason to stay. Frantically she cast her eyes about for the quickest way back to the tent, lungs filling with air as she prepared to scream and create her distraction.
"I wonder what you'd do if suddenly he weren't so nice to look at."
The words lodged her breath in her throat, her insides chilling at the excited way they'd been uttered.
"Perhaps if we were to tear it up so he didn't look so human anymore… or maybe we should simply cut off his head completely, or give him the face of a real dog? Maybe then you'd realize what a monster it is you chose to be with, and see that you could do worse than to let a human have his way with you."
"I would never let you touch me" she bit back, wishing the man were a demon; her powers were itching across her skin, but she knew they'd have no effect on this attacker.
Mukotsu's eyes darkened, and reaching into his robe, he muttered "Who said you'd have a choice" before pulling out a small round pellet.
Alarms sounded in Kagome's head, panic overtaking her as the little man drew nearer to the bath, and she was just about to jump from the tub and make a run for it when a calm voice called to Mukotsu from the entryway. Both Kagome and the circus-man froze, their attention drawn to the newcomer, and Kagome felt an overwhelming mix of shock and relief surge through her to see Izumo standing at the edge of the wall, his dim eyes trained on Mukotsu.
"Master Fukurokuju, you're needed for training."
There was no sense of urgency in his tone, no look on his face to make Kagome think he'd come to her rescue, but he didn't leave after delivering his message, and Kagome felt a sprout of hope. Mukotsu looked murderously at the half-demon, hand clenching the pellet as he turned back to Kagome. He took a half step toward her before Izumo's steady voice rose up again "It is by Master Bishamonten's request that I am sent."
Mukotsu scowled openly, his gaze bitter as he turned back to the cowering Kagome and seethed "We're not finished, little bird - I'll have you in a cage and at my mercy before you realize what's happened, while your husband gnaws old bones like the mutt he is." Slipping the pill back in his robes he stormed away, shoving Izumo as he passed and muttering under his breath. The half-demon man turned as if to follow him, but stopped just outside the enclosure. Leaning against the side of the tub, Kagome could just see his back as he looked out on the compound and away from her and the tent.
"Izumo?" Her voice was soft and shaky, but not from fear. He made no movement, but eventually responded in his monotone way "I will wait here until you are finished. Then I shall escort you to the monsters to give them their meal."
Kagome hesitated, anxious to get out and back in her clothes, but her curiosity was niggling at her. "Were you ordered to do so?" She couldn't think of any of the seven gods who would care so about her well-being, and Inuyasha couldn't have known she'd be delayed like this.
There was a pause in which he said nothing, and when he spoke again, Kagome was floored by the undercurrent of emotion in his words. "The half-demons need their caretaker."
Wasting no more time, Kagome scrambled out of the bath, wringing her hair in messy puddles on the dirt and patting down her body with her sleeping-kosode. Letting the sun dry the rest of her, she slipped into her cotton romper and sidled into the tent behind Izumo's back, hastily searching through piles of old clothes as silent triumph filled her chest. Izumo had helped her – he wasn't just a puppet! Despite the control the circus-gods had over him, he'd still been able to defy them in some way. He'd taken a risk and chosen to come to her aide. Now… now she just had to convince him to help her one more time.
"Stop fidgeting Inugami – stand still!"
Biting back a growl, Inuyasha glared up at the wooden platform above his head, blocking the view of his sadistic trainer. His arms were beginning to burn from grasping the wooden beams of the modified palanquin for so long, but Jakotsu didn't seem ready to be let down just yet. He'd decided to add a few new tricks to the 'Inugami's' routine, and carting around the God of Beauty had seemed the perfect fit for a subservient phantom. Inuyasha muttered a few curses he thought fit the role of a vengeful spirit just as well.
"What was that, Inugami?"
Golden eyes rolling skyward, Inuyasha groused "Just wondering what the hell you've been doin' up there all morning. Ain't I finished yet?" He'd spent over an hour already lowering and raising the palanquin again and again, eventually adding Jakotsu atop it to make sure he could balance the performer's additional weight. It wasn't a question of if he had the strength… it was more a question of resisting the urge to dump the dress-clad man in the dirt at his feet. He could only take so much of his morbid, uncomfortable conversation before he snapped.
He heard a tapping from above him, as though the god were thinking it over, and eventually Jakotsu's tenor broke through the morning hum as he piped up "Alright Inugami, I guess that's enough for this part of training…" Inuyasha couldn't help but sigh, shoulders slackening with the movement, and Jakotsu shrieked as the platform tipped beneath him. "HOLD STILL, DAMN YOU!"
The brief, wicked idea of messing with the performer crossed his mind - purposefully swaying the palanquin back and forth until the man turned so green he'd look more like a kappa than any god… but then he remembered Kagome. Crying Kagome, pleading desperately for him not to make trouble, to go along with the gods and their training, even though every bone in his body ached to fight back. She'd never explained herself, and after everything last night, well… he didn't feel so inclined to listen to her. But she'd been right, hadn't she? She'd risked her life for him so many times… was it too much to ask for a little trust on his part now?
"Didn't you hear me, Inugami? Lower me slowly so I can step off, and then I want you to put down the palanquin and bow. Understood?"
Biting his lip to keep from arguing, Inuyasha knelt carefully in the dirt, doing his best to keep the carriage stable as he brought it low enough for his passenger to descend. He saw Jakotsu's slippered feet plant firmly in his vision, and once they turned to face him, he shrugged the palanquin from his shoulders and shoved it off to the side. He mulled over the god's last order, and decided to stay bent as he was, hoping it would be enough, but – "On your face, Inugami."
He grit his teeth at the command, claws biting into the dirt as he fought to obey. He'd never bowed. He'd sworn to never abject himself to anyone, and certainly not scum like this man, so underserving of respect or honor that it almost made him ill. But… Kagome had seemed so scared….
Dragging his fingers through the dirt, he brought them to meet before him, palms flattened on the rough earth. Slowly he folded himself over, his brain hammering at his body like a blacksmith beating folded steel into a katana. And just as the heat and pressure made the metal stronger, so too Inuyasha felt his will become a weapon, even as his sweating forehead met his knuckles.
A hum of pleasure sounded above him, and he could feel Jakotsu's presence looming over his prone form. "That's more like it, Inugami. Looks like you finally recognize your place."
'Keep talkin', you bastard' Inuyasha seethed in silence, 'it'll be that much more satisfying when I finally slit your throat.'
The half-demon was abruptly pulled from his murderous thoughts as weight exploded across his bare back, the feel of something powdery coating his skin. He scrambled to his feet flinging curses, and only had time to see Jakotsu holding a burlap sack before his vision was obscured by a burst of white. He sputtered and coughed as the dust-like substance filled his nose and eyes, and he blew and spit to clear it from his mouth. The smell of it filling his nostrils and the taste still clinging to his tongue told him exactly what it was, but he found himself lost as to its purpose.
"What the hell – rice flour?"
"You're too dark, Inugami" Jakotsu answered lightly, as though commenting on the weather, "no one in the crowd is going to believe you're a ghost-dog if you go around looking like you spent the day in the fields."
Vigorously brushing the powder from his bangs and wiping it from his eyes, Inuyasha glared at the grinning circus man, still holding the bag of flour and looking ready to throw more. "Perhaps we'll switch to paint later, but for now this is much more economical. And I wouldn't bother wiping it off – we'll just cover you again."
Inuyasha could do nothing but growl and shudder as he tried to adjust to the sickly feeling of the flour sticking to his sweaty skin. Glancing down at his arm, he noted the deathly pallor it gave his body, but he couldn't help grumbling "why bother with this now? The audience has already seen me."
"Those were only teasers, meant to spread the word" Jakotsu called as he rushed to the side of their training grounds, retrieving a small earthenware pot with a heavy lid. Bringing it carefully back to where Inuyasha stood, he continued in an excited tone "your real debut isn't until tomorrow night's performance, and tonight's the last night to make an impact on the crowd so they'll be sure to come in droves for the real show." Placing the pot on the ground at his feet, he carefully unlatched and removed the lid, and Inuyasha was almost struck down by the overpowering smell of blood.
"Wha- what're you…"
Jakotsu's thin-fingered hand reached inside the dark red pool, emerging with a thick rope indistinguishable in color from its liquid bath. "Relax, it's only boars blood" Jakotsu said with a grin, holding the short length of blood-soaked rope up between them. The almost hungry way he gazed at the bloody mess nearly made Inuyasha back away. But he stood still, frozen with horror he tried to hide as Jakotsu stepped around to his back, saying in a falsely comforting voice "Don't worry Inugami, this is just the last part of your costume. Fight this, and you'll be punished." He had no time to think on those words before Jakotsu's hands had wrapped the rope around his neck, slipping underneath his mass of white hair and squeezing the bloody material firmly against him.
His instinct was to struggle, and his hands rose to tear the noose away, but Jakotsu's shout of "DON'T!" cracked like a whip through his thought process, and when the god of beauty added in a quiet voice too close to his face "wouldn't want anything to happen to your little woman, now would we", he let the man behind him twist the rope even tighter. The blood ran in thick rivers across his collarbone and down his chest, mixing with the rice flour to congeal in rivulets against his skin. Slowly the rope slackened, and Inuyasha took a greedy, gulping breath as his windpipe was freed. Stepping back into his line of vision, Jakotsu didn't bother hiding his pleased grin as he coiled the rope around his hand and purred "There, that wasn't so bad, was it? Now you finally look your part." Replacing the rope in the blood-pot, he took it with a happy smile back to sit with the other supplies, and all the while Inuyasha shuddered under his new coat.
For the first time in ages… he was afraid, and not for Kagome, or for the half-demons, but for himself. He hadn't felt fear like this since learning of his demon-transformation, and even then, that was something he could understand. It was natural, in a way; it was still part of who he was. But this… he couldn't see himself, couldn't see the full result of what Jakotsu had done, but every inch of him felt foreign, as though he were turning into something strange. He'd never felt so inhuman as he did at that moment. And for as much as he'd missed Kagome's presence last night, as much as he'd been looking forward to getting apologies out of the way and having her back in his arms… suddenly, he couldn't bear the thought of her seeing him.
Humming slightly, Jakotsu made a final check of his skirts before stepping into the god's private tent. Despite his fun earlier, he knew better than to waltz around where Suikotsu might see him, spattered in blood; at least during the daylight hours. Once the man's blood-lust took over during the evening performance, he had the whole night to indulge in whatever carnage he could get away with – by morning he'd be back to his well-mannered, controlled self. No, it was always best to wash your hands and clean your clothes after playing if you wanted to keep the townspeople blissfully ignorant. Of course, they'd only be staying another month at most, and then it wouldn't matter.
Lifting the door flap, the performer's face lit as he met not Suikotsu, but Bankotsu's welcoming smile. While caring was somewhat of a foreign concept to Jakotsu, unity was something he treasured highly among his fellow performers, and if anyone had earned his loyalty and respect, it was the aptly titled Bishamonten.
"Brother, I've finished prepping the Inugami. I've got him doing reps now, but if you'd like to see his routine I'd be happy to-"
"No need, Jakotsu" he answered with a wave of his hand. Turning away from Renkotsu who'd been seated beside him with a serious expression, he continued "I trust you've got it all handled. Though… I guess there are some things I'd like to ask you about our halfbreed."
Perplexed, Jakotsu looked from Bankotsu's easy expression to Renkotsu's steely one, answering simply "sure thing" and seating himself comfortably on a nearby crate. Bankotsu smiled, and jerking his thumb back at the other man continued "Renkotsu here says he intercepted the dog and his wife sneaking back into the compound last night. They claimed they'd just been 'having fun' out in the woods, but Renkotsu doesn't buy it."
Scoffing, Jakotsu muttered "I'd rather not hear about their little escapades, thank you. Besides, what else would they be doing out in the woods? They came back, didn't they?"
Renkotsu's brows knit, but he answered evenly "Don't let jealousy cloud your judgement, Jakotsu. Tell me, has the halfbreed shown any signs of rebellion? Any indication that he's not here of his own free will?"
"Why?" Jakotsu asked, his head dipping in honest confusion, "Do you suspect them of something?"
"I suspect them of lying" he answered sternly, and at Bankotsu's snorting laughter, his voice grew tense. "With all due respect, brother Bankotsu, if we're being tricked, I'd like to be aware of it before I find a dagger in my back."
"What are you so worried about?" Bankotsu laughed, leaning back in his wooden chair as his arms crossed behind his head, "It's not like the halfbreed is any threat to us. He's outnumbered, and outmatched! He may be strong, but if he could fight back, don't you think he would have done it by now?"
Renkotsu remained skeptical, and seeing the stubborn attitudes of both his colleagues, Jakotsu quickly interjected "Bankotsu is right – he's no threat to us. Just this morning, I got him to grovel at my feet! I even had a rope around his neck, and all it took was a few words about his woman to get him to behave like a house-dog! I'm telling you, you're worrying for nothing."
"I wouldn't press him on his woman, Jakotsu" the fire-wielder responded in warning, "you're not used to victims with something to lose – they can get pretty nasty if pushed the wrong way."
Jakotsu merely shrugged, fiddling with the edge of his skirt and mumbling "I doubt he cares for her that much."
"Either way" Bankotsu threw in carelessly, "I won't bother worrying about the halfbreed until he steps out of line. We've got ways to make him behave if we have to, and if it comes to that then his woman won't make much of a difference."
Renkotsu's affirming grunt and Jakotsu's grin signaled the discussion ended, and the god of beauty spoke up affably "By the way, have you decided on who to use in the Inugami's act?"
"Actually," Bankotsu started with a spreading grin, "Suikotsu found the perfect specimen this morning: a little girl out on the sea-edge of the mountains, chewed up by wolves and barely alive. It was a good thing he found her after the blood-lust wore off, otherwise he might have finished her." He laughed again, propping his feet up on the crate across from him and continuing "I guess he thought she could be of some use, since there was no one around to claim her, so he brought her back here and patched her up enough to keep her breathing. I had Mukotsu go take a look at her this morning – he's got some plans already, and she'll be done in time for tomorrow's performance."
"She won't cause any trouble though, will she?" Bankotsu scoffed at Renkotsu's worried tone, and answered dismissively "Not like she could if she tried. She's half blind and had her tongue ripped out, and not from the wolves either. Probably a thief or a village outcast or something. We've got nothing to worry about."
Jakotsu grinned, rubbing his hands together as he mused "Hmm, the perfect victim then, to seek an Inugami's vengeance."
"Exactly what I was thinking" Bankotsu answered, meeting the other man's grin with a cruel smirk of his own.
Gentle hands reached into the tank of green water, pulling an unresponsive Ai onto a clean, dry square of cloth. Kagome noted for a moment how the process of drying and dressing the little girl was starting to become second-nature to her, and she prayed neither of them would have to endure it much longer. With the little half-demon warm and nodding off, Kagome placed her carefully into her cage, pausing to brush a stray strand of curls off a round cheek before locking her inside. Were it any other night, she would have been happy to give the half-demons some extra time after the performance to breathe, to enjoy their time outside of the bars, but….
"You're worried about something, aren't you Kagome?"
She didn't turn to face Jinenji right away; she knew she hadn't been very subtle at all that day, but there'd been a lot on her mind… and frankly she wasn't sure how much to share. "It's nothing… Inuyasha and I… had a little argument, that's all. I'm just anxious to put it behind us."
He made a thoughtful sound behind her, and she dared to turn and face him. She couldn't tell him that she was expecting an attack on the circus at any moment – she wouldn't make him liable for that. It would be better for all of them to be kept in the dark, locked safely away in their cages. Besides… it wasn't like she was lying. She had been worrying about her 'husband'.
"He didn't come to visit us today" Jinenji whispered sadly, and Kagome couldn't help smiling a little at the emotion in the giant's words. She wondered if Inuyasha was aware of just how much Jinenji looked up to him… metaphorically speaking. Even the unresponsive half-demons seemed to change when he was around. They were comfortable around her, content even, but whenever he stopped by… she wasn't sure what to call it, but they were drawn to him, like moths to a flame. He was usually too worried about them to notice or care.
She hoped she would get the chance to tell him tonight. She hadn't had the heart to watch his bit at the end of the show, instead following the half-demons back to their part of camp. He hadn't come to eat lunch with her, or dinner, and he'd never returned to their tent. She'd spent hours at their tent, making preparations of her own, remembering everything he'd done for her the night before, hoping beyond hope that he'd be willing to put this whole silly mess behind them… but still she was left waiting.
"I'm sure the 'gods' were just keeping him away." She said it as much for herself as she did for him. "You know how they like to spoil things." Kagome noticed that Jinenji looked mildly uncomfortable with her words, but she ignored it as she lifted Shion into his cage, tucking a thin blanket around his legs and shutting him in as well. Glancing over at Shiori, already wrapped in her black robe and folded around her faintly glowing orb, Kagome moved to usher Jinenji to his own cage when a long, lone howl broke through the night air. Her eyes grew wide, hairs on the back of her neck standing on edge as silence once more fell over the camp. She remained rooted to the spot, her eyes trained on the distant rolling hills, until Jinenji's gentle voice broke her thoughts with a probing "Kagome?"
Her eyes darted to his, and she snapped "get inside the cage" with more intensity than she'd meant to, causing the gentle half-demon to cower a little. Cringing, Kagome tried again in a pleading voice "I'm sorry, it's just… it's not safe out in the open."
The half-demon's blue eyes widened, his large body moving in quick, choppy motions as panic set in, and he settled into his cage, letting Kagome lock him inside without protest. "What is it? Do-do you sense something?"
"Demons" she said quickly, and regretted it instantly when she saw Jinenji begin to shake. "It's alright, I don't think they've come for us. We should be safe." She patted herself on the back for comforting the half-demon as she watched his trembling lessen, but when his wide eyes turned to gaze at her with blossoming understanding, she knew she'd said too much.
"Kagome…"
"Just stay here – stay quiet, and don't draw attention to yourselves. They know not to hurt you. … Please." And without another word she ran off, before those blue eyes could convince her to say anymore. She hated lying to him, to any of them, but dammit all, if Jinenji wouldn't fight for his freedom, she would.
Coming up on the worker's tents, she slowed her pace – no reason to seem conspicuous. Her goal was to reach her tent, hopefully find Inuyasha, and lay low until Kouga's pack had done their job. It was as good a plan as she'd been able to concoct all day. The fact that she hadn't a clue where Inuyasha was at the moment was just something she couldn't help. She passed a few food vendors closing their shops and carpenters putting away their tools, trying not to exude the tension she felt in every fiber… and then another howl rent the air, and every living thing froze. Gazes met across the compound, silent questions flying from eye to eye as each person questioned 'was that as close as it sounded?'
Two more answering howls rose up from the front gates, and hell broke its tether. The craftsmen dropped their tools in the dirt as they raced for cover with panicked gasps. Vendors knocked their pots over still burning coals, letting the mess extinguish itself as they fled their tents. Screams and shouts broke through the night, and above it all, Kagome could hear the snarls and snaps of the wolves drawing ever nearer on pounding feet. Their brown fur burst like autumn leaves from among the tents before her, and Kagome fell back with a startled cry as they sped past. A few of them turned their muzzles in her direction, but with a growl they were off again, and Kagome breathed a sigh of relief to realize that Kouga was keeping his end of their bargain. It was then that the demon himself emerged, following behind his pack at a slower pace than she knew he was capable of. She stayed motionless on the ground, her eyes trained on him, and he sent her only the hint of a smirk before rushing past towards his destination: the main tent and the seven performers.
Kagome stayed prone on the cold ground minutes after they'd passed, regaining her breath. She could still make it to her tent; no one would question or even know of her close encounter; but the thought of Inuyasha, still trapped at the epicenter of the fight, had her feet following an altogether different direction.
Inuyasha heard them coming before he caught their scent, but he kept both to himself. Jakotsu had him resetting the stage props, the flickering light of the torches framing their work area in flame, the only light he had to work by on such a dark night. The other stage-hands had left, leaving him and the gods alone, and he'd be damned if he gave any of them a heads up on the attack. But when the screams of the remaining workers became audible to even their human ears, he knew he'd have to say something.
Renkotsu tensed as he leaned a bundle of fireworks against the back wall, his features alert. "Haflbreed, what's all that racket about?"
Playing it off as casually as he could, Inuyasha paused in stacking another beam, rising to full height and flicking an ear for effect. "It's hard to hear over the yells – something's comin' this way though."
"I want to know what it is" Renkotsu said darkly, approaching Inuyasha with a look that left no room for argument. Behind him Bankotsu had stopped his own activity to watch, the rest of the group following suit. Swallowing in sudden nerves, Inuyasha decided it was time to play along.
Nodding, the half-demon closed his eyes and breathed deeply, sniffing the air intently for a scent he could hardly catch. He could hear them clearly though, and opening his eyes to meet Renkotsu's glare, he answered in a shaking voice "Wolves. Lots of 'em."
"Dammit!" The performer spat, whipping back to grab his fire canon from where it lay on the ground. "I knew we needed tighter security than the bull!"
"We'll deal with that later" Bankotsu shot back, shouldering his massive barbell and directing the others to grab weapons as well. The young man's gaze fell on Inuyasha, watching the group ready themselves for a fight, and he said with authority "Hey, Inugami, you'll fight these wolves for us, or you and your little woman end up as their next meal. Got it?"
Inuyasha's hands were shaking, and he hoped the other men would take it for nerves, and not what it really was: eagerness to finally get some good hits on the wolf who'd dared touch his wife. He wouldn't kill him – he was in no mood to jeopardize their entire plan… but he didn't mind adding a little realism to the ruse.
The group remained where they were, backed against the wall of the stage, weapons at the ready as the sound of panting breaths grew louder. Glancing about, Inuyasha knew he had to think up a plan and fast: they were too close – it would be too hard for the wolves to single out Kyoukotsu like this, and more likely they'd get themselves killed. Not that he cared much for a pack of blood-thirsty predators, but they'd made an agreement, and he intended to make good on his end. As the first of the pack rounded the corner, Inuyasha made a split-second decision and charged, drawing himself away from the group. He kept his claws concealed as he pulled his punches, still managing to stun a few wolves who got too close.
They were avoiding him for the most part though, and Inuyasha realized that they must have had a strategy of their own. Throwing a few more soft hits, he watched as the wolves carefully evaded the other performers, their noses working overtime as they worked to single out their real target – and single out they did, as their eyes rimmed with white and they lifted their muzzles to the heavens to howl at the moon no one could see. From the shadows outside the torchlight, their leader emerged, and the budding fight came to a stand-still as Kouga stood before them, fire reflecting and melting the ice of his blue eyes.
"I've come to take revenge for my fallen comrades" he said in a low voice, arms crossed over his healed chest and thick fur robes. His burning gaze lifted to meet Kyoukotsu's with hatred, and his fangs showed in a deadly snarl as he spat "You'll pay for what you've done, monster!" He leapt before any of the gods could react, twirling midair and raking his claws in a long line across the giant's back. Kyoukotsu roared, and the rest of the gods jumped into action. Kouga dodged with inhuman speed as each of the performers threw their arsenal at him: Suikotsu's daggers, Mukotsu's poison darts, Renkotsu's flames. Ginkotsu's metal smile remained unchanged as rifles rolled and clicked and locked into place on his back, firing away at the wolf as he jumped about.
Watching from the edge of the chaos, Inuyasha saw Jakotsu unfurl the snake around his shoulders, and just as he flicked it back to fling the string of blades at the demon who couldn't keep dodging for long, Inuyasha flung himself into the fray. His own speed had his fist meeting Kouga's jaw in a solid crack, and the wolf was on the ground and rolling away before the snake could change form. At once the projectiles ceased.
Inuyasha didn't have time for relief – he had known his plan would work. It had to. He had banked on the importance of his act, and the seven performers had proven him right: they wouldn't risk damaging their Inugami. Of course… that meant he now had to fight Kouga himself, and make it look believable. He could see the confusion in the wolf-demon's eyes slowly morph into understanding as he punched and scratched; it was enough to hurt, but not enough to injure. This was demon scrapping, nothing more, but to a human it would look like a real fight. Both of them knew it couldn't last forever though, and he could tell that Kouga was already looking for a way out.
As he lunged to swipe across Kouga's stomach, the wolf leapt away from him, landing on his knees and whistling for his pack to follow. They retreated to his side where they'd been posturing at the edges of the firelight, and with only a few steps, they'd backed away into the concealing shadows.
"Inugami!" Inuyasha's ears flattened as Bankotsu's usually calm voice burst out over the small clearing with livid anger. "Where've they gone?!"
Growling, Inuyasha sniffed, listening to the soft pad of paws as they crept around the perimeter of the stage. He bit back a smirk – the sneaky bastards were planning to attack from behind… but how to hide that bit of news? He was kept from having to concoct a story when a sound and a scent so familiar came rushing up that he couldn't help gasping out "Kagome!" And suddenly she was there, stumbling into the firelight, her chest heaving from running so far, black hair half falling in her face from the red ribbon she'd tied it in, kosode sleeves pulled back behind her and her green school hakama brushing over her black shoes as she bent slightly from exertion. He drank in the sight of her, wondering if the real Benzaiten looked even half as beautiful.
Then her eyes met his, traveling slowly over his form, growing wider and wider in fear and absolute devastation, and his name left her lips in a distraught cry of "Inuyasha!"
He didn't understand – he couldn't recall what about his appearance would have made her so upset, he was just so, so happy to see her, but his happiness was short lived. "INUGAMI! NOW!"
Both of them turned to the impatient Bankotsu, and Inuyasha answered hesitantly "I… I'm not sure. I can't smell them over the scent they already left. It's too fresh."
He could hear Suikotsu muttering darkly at the back of the group, and Jakotsu spoke up harshly "Well? Can't you hear anything?!"
"… They've stopped moving."
Huffing angrily, the god of beauty snarled at them, grasping the enchanted snake in his hands and twisting it as he hissed "This is all your fault, you stupid woman! If you hadn't come barging in where you weren't wanted –"
"Leave her outta this." Inuyasha growled, standing protectively between Kagome and the volatile man.
Jakotsu's face only grew more embittered, but Bankotsu's stern "Leave it" had his expression falling.
"But Brother Banko-"
"I said leave it. We don't have time for this." His voice fell to a hush, his free hand rising in warning as he spoke in a whisper that Inuyasha could barely catch "I smell an ambush."
"Kagome" Inuyasha spoke quietly, turning to meet her worried gaze, "stay behind me. Whatever happens, don't get involved."
She nodded, but her eyes drifted to his bare back, her hand rising to her throat and her gaze turning haunted as she said softly "Inuyasha… you're hurt."
Bringing his own hand to his collar, feeling the semi-dry, sticky substance still clinging to his skin, he winced. The boar's blood. Damn that Jakotsu to hell seven times over. Reaching behind him, he grasped her hand wordlessly in his, fighting a smile as her fingers squeezed his painfully tight. He wouldn't tell her the truth just yet – it was only helping their cover for her to think he'd been hurt some time during the fight. That didn't mean he would turn her away though. He could smell the sea-salt on her skin, and that paired with her new wardrobe only made the urge to smile stronger: she'd found his present. It seemed she'd accepted his apology. For his part, he couldn't remember why he'd been so mad at her to begin with.
The hand in his flinched and a violent gasp ripped from Kagome as the curtain behind Kyoukotsu was torn to shreds, and a dozen wolves leapt on the performer's back, biting and clawing with fervor. But just as soon as the attack had started, it ceased, the wolves jumping away as though they'd been burned. Their whimpers filled the clearing, and Inuyasha backed slightly into Kagome's warmth. Something was wrong – something about the circus god had spooked the beasts. In the wake of the attack, Kyoukotsu began to chuckle, a deep-throated sound that soon evolved into a full-blown, bellowing laugh. His head was thrown back, the fire-light casting mountainous black shadows against the torn remains of the stage curtain. Suddenly the bellow rose in pitch, dissolving into a gurgle, and Inuyasha saw the jagged end of a wooden beam protruding from the giant god's neck, a spike of black against the backdrop of the stage. Kyoukotsu's knees buckled, but he didn't fall, a laughing smile lighting his features as he grabbed the end of the beam and pulled it the rest of the way through his neck to dislodge it entirely.
Inuyasha heard a gagging noise behind him and pushed Kagome out of the line of sight, but the damage was already done.
"You think that's enough to kill me?"
The wolves were attacking again, clawing like mad but never biting, and the gods had resumed their volley of attacks, but Inuyasha didn't dare join the fray. If all that couldn't bring one of them down… dammit all, what could? A few of the wolves fell dead from the attacks of the circus men, but the rest never let up, and Inuyasha lost sight of Kouga in all the mayhem. Another whistle sounded through the din, and the remaining wolves pulled back, five of their pack littering the ground like fallen soldiers.
A heavy silence hung over the clearing, the remaining fighters waiting on pins and needles for the next attack. It came in a near silent slice of claws through skin as Kyoukotsu's head slid slowly down his shoulders to land with a crunching thud at his knees. His body soon followed suit.
There was silence save for the pounding of paws against dirt as the wolf-pack sped away in the shadows out of sight, until Bankotsu's quiet order of "kill them" sent the remaining gods bolting after the escaping assassins. With a parting, expectant look at Inuyasha, Bankotsu took off after them.
Turning to a haunted Kagome, Inuyasha grasped her shoulders lightly, relishing in the feel of her as he said earnestly "Listen, go back to the tent, and wait for me there. I'll be back as soon as I can."
Her gaze drifted to the corpse bathed in black shadows, ringed by wolves like some blasphemous shrine offering, but her mouth set in a determined line and she tore her eyes away to give Inuyasha a firm nod. Without wasting another second he sped off after the performers, trying to beat back the unsettling thought that from the first scratch to the moment his head hit the floor, Kyoukotsu's body hadn't produced a single drop of blood.
Kagome was sure she'd checked and rechecked the fire about fifty times before Inuyasha finally came stumbling back to their tent. Her worry over him had been consuming, and to fight it she'd had to let other things consume her, like making sure she wouldn't accidentally boil her husband alive. She could feel his aura approaching as she stood in the alcove, and met him before he could get too close – she still hoped to give him a surprise or two, despite his half-demon senses. He looked distracted enough that she figured she had a chance.
"They killed three more." His amber eyes were darkened in shadow, and she paused in her greeting. "The rest managed to escape into the forest. They didn't want me going in there after 'em, which was fine with me." He stopped just short of her, hesitating, and reached for her hand with a tight grip. "They're questionin' Izumo though. Layin' into him pretty hard. I… I'm sorry."
Kagome winced, her chest burning with the thought of what the men might do to the half-demon. After what he'd risked for them, after what he'd done for her that morning… "It's my fault. I shouldn't have involved him."
"Hey. It ain't no one's fault but his own. He chose to help us, didn't he?" Leaning down to meet her saddened gaze, Inuyasha attempted a half-smirk and said "Besides, your plan worked! One down,"
"Six more to go." She finished morosely. "We've only just begun." Her eyes turned to him then, dropping to his blood stained neck, and her vision grew misty as she said in a thick voice "Inuyasha, tell me what happened. Tell me you're alright, because if I have to look at you like this for much longer, I'll"
"Kagome, relax, it ain't my blood."
Confusion caught in her throat, and he quickly explained "It's part of the 'Inugami' getup: the severed dog-head, see?" Bringing a hand to his throat, he smeared the thick blood away as best he could, showing her the lack of a wound. "They covered me with flour and boars blood as part of the show… I guess you missed my act then."
Relief overwhelmed her at the sight of the blood wiping away to show unblemished, tan skin. She'd thought he'd looked paler, and had chalked it up to blood-loss. Now though, knowing she'd been caught ditching his act, Kagome forgot her worries and was left floundering for excuses.
"Well, I was… you see… after yesterday…."
"Ah hell," Inuyasha said suddenly, pulling her from her stuttering, "It ain't like I wasn't avoiding you too. I mean, after what Jakotsu did to me, with all this freaky make-up, I was kinda… stayin' away on purpose."
"I'm glad it was just fake" Kagome said with a sigh, clutching the seams of her kosode, "after what Mukotsu said this morning, I thought –"
"Mukotsu? He was botherin' you?"
The breath in her lungs seized instantly. She'd forgotten that he didn't know. At the time she'd wanted so badly for him to come save her, but now… now she wanted to save him from it. She knew exactly what his reaction would be.
But just as she knew how he would react, she knew it would be impossible to hide. "It… it was just something he said… one of those stupid threats. He threatened to give you a dog's head. You know he wouldn't do it though."
She knew how stubborn he could be when he had a destination in mind, and wasn't at all surprised when he ignored her statement to ask "Where did he threaten you, Kagome?"
The answer rolled around on her tongue for a while, and she wondered how direct to be, but she knew he would figure it out on his own and so answered simply "Here."
That was all it took for him to drop to the ground, his nose practically in the dirt as he sniffed out a trail of the unwelcome circus-freak. He made a sound of dismay as he caught the scent, his nose following it to their door, following it to the side, following to the edge of the crate wall he'd so carefully built… and his body went stiff as a board, ears laid back in his white hair.
"He… he came and found me while I was"
"While you were bathing." His voice was a hoarse whisper, and as he rose to his feet, Kagome rushed to his side, grasping his arm in reassurance; he flinched from her hold.
"Inuyasha, I know what you're thinking, and it's alright. You couldn't have known he'd come looking for me right when I used it! You can't be watching over me every second of the day!"
He shook his head, refusing to look her in the eye despite her best efforts. "I should have been here. I should have protected you from him. It was my own damn fault for lettin' my anger get the better of me. If I had only said something to you sooner…" His fist clenched and slammed against the crate beside it: the wall shook slightly, making Kagome worry for her new bathing area. "If I can't even protect you from one creep like that, how the hell am I supposed to get us all outta here?!"
"You're not alone in this" Kagome whispered, leaning against his thick mane of hair, "we just… need to be together again. United, y'know? Like we used to be. We need to trust each other."
She smiled as Inuyasha finally turned his head to meet her eyes, his gaze a deep bronze in the dark of the night. "He… he didn't hurt ya, did he?"
"No. Nothing happened. I mean, I was pretty spooked, I'll give you that, but Izumo showed up before he could really get close."
The self-hate that had been clouding his eyes before was quickly pushed away in a new cloud of confusion. Lifting his head from the wall, he met her expression more fully as he asked "Izumo? What was he doing here?"
"That's just it! I don't really know!" Kagome answered excitedly. "He told Mukotsu that he'd been ordered back for training, and then turned away so I could get out and get changed, and then he escorted me to the rest of the half-demons! Inuyasha… he was so different, and that was when…" she bit her lip, and her voice dropped to a whisper as she continued "that was when I knew I could ask him to help us."
Inuyasha was stunned, but soon melancholy took over as he muttered "and what does he get for his noble deeds? A good beating from the humans. You realize this'll probably be the last time he'll ever willingly help us out, right?"
"Maybe" she pondered, eyes drifting down as her hand played through strands of his silver hair. "And maybe he'll surprise us again." He scoffed, but Kagome wasn't about to let things end there. She hadn't gone to all that trouble burning wood and gathering water to have her half-demon end the night in a sour mood. Gripping his ashen shoulder, she pulled him away from the wall to face her smile. There was still guilt marring his features, and she was determined to banish it. "I was going to wait, you know" she said softly, holding his eyes with hers, "I knew I should have waited to use the bath until you came back… but I was just so excited, I couldn't help myself!" Kagome saw the tiniest hint of a smile tug at his lips, and she couldn't resist brushing her hand through the hair at the side of his face. "Thank you for bringing it here, Inuyasha. Apology accepted."
His hands came up to grasp her face, his forehead pressed firmly against hers, blocking the faint light of the stars between them and drenching her world into shadow where all that existed was his voice whispering "No more leaving the camp without me, and no more baths without me neither, alright?" Despite the fervor in his words, Kagome couldn't help but giggle, feeling the heat from his face as he sputtered "I didn't mean- not that you should bathe with me, just – no more makin' yourself vulnerable when I'm not around to protect you, alright?"
Smiling, she pulled gently from his hold and reached up to grasp his hands, saying "the same goes for you though" as he looked back at her perplexed. Leading him carefully through the alcove, she watched with amusement as his nose sniffed the air and understanding dawned on his face. "You didn't think I'd let my husband share my bed smelling like wolf, did you?" He glanced at her sheepishly, no doubt expecting to see the same petty anger she'd shown him the night before, but all he met was a teasing smile.
Releasing her hands, Inuyasha wandered to the edge of the tub and dipped in a few clawed fingers, letting loose an appreciative grunt that had Kagome beaming – she knew he didn't like a scalding bath, and had worked so hard to get it just right. He turned back to her with glowing eyes, leaning against the wooden rim as he said huskily "So… this all for me?"
Biting her lip in a shy smile she nodded, her hands meeting behind her back as her fingers fiddled nervously. In a way, this was her apology too, and she hoped he'd accept.
"Well?" He said expectantly, and for a moment Kagome stopped fidgeting, lost as to what he wanted, until he finished with a smirk "turn around" and she obeyed with a squeak. She heard him chuckling behind her and rolled her eyes, but she couldn't fight her own smile. She'd missed these carefree moments with him.
"There's a bucket of water around back" she called over her shoulder, trying to distract herself from the sound of falling cloth, "You can use it to rinse off the blood. No sense staining the tub." She listened to his feet padding across the ground, her cheeks warming at the realization that he was naked just a few feet away. Her flustered state was interrupted by a sharp bark of laughter, and Kagome almost turned around as she snapped in confusion "What's so funny?"
"Nice rag" was all he said, before Kagome remembered what she'd done and was hard-pressed not to laugh herself. There weren't many spare pieces of cloth to waste for things like cleaning rags, so when the need had presented itself, Kagome had gladly sacrificed her torn blue skirt for the job. It was wide enough that she could get a few more squares from it, and if the boar's blood became a regular part of Inuyasha's performance, they'd need them.
"Glad you like it. Try not to ruin it too much though; I only have so much of that fabric."
"Speakin' of which," he muttered behind her, the sound of sloshing water and the wet slap of cloth painting a picture in Kagome's mind which she really didn't mind, "how the hell did you manage to rip the thing up the side anyways?"
Face burning in embarrassment, Kagome said hesitantly "I was just… trying to rip a bandage… off the bottom."
There was silence for a moment, and then Inuyasha's amused tone adding "Idiot… didn't you notice the weave was going the other way?"
With an angry huff Kagome turned to glare at the grin she could hear in his voice. "Excuse me, I was a little preoccu-EEK!"
"THE HELL, WOMAN!"
Kagome's hand slapped to her mouth as a torrent of giggles burst to the surface, Inuyasha's clawed hands gripping the rim of the tub and ears peeking over the edge all she could see of him… at the moment. She'd seen much more as he'd stood to the side, pulling his mane of hair away to towel the blood from the back of his neck before he'd finally realized she'd been facing him. Unfortunately it'd been too dark to see in much detail. She wouldn't tell him though – she was enjoying his mortification far too much.
"Can you turn around please?!"
With a shrug she turned to face the entryway again, listening to his muttered curses as he finished washing and dumped the remainder of the bucket over himself. Even after the sloshing around in the tub died down as he settled himself, she waited until he said tersely "Okay, you can look" before she dared face him again.
The moment she saw him though, she found she couldn't move. It had been a long time since she'd witnessed a moment like this, and each time… it took her breath away. There was just something about seeing him at night, or in the natural world, that always transported her somewhere else. Leaned back against the rim of the wooden bath, eyes closed and brows pinched as he released a shaky breath, the air around him felt fragile, as if the slightest move would shatter it. Bathed in steam and frosted in starlight, he looked for all the world like a celestial being, and Kagome was overcome with strangest urge to worship him.
She sucked in a breath, shaking her head slightly to dislodge the thought, catching the attention of her subject of interest as he opened a golden eye to glance at her questioningly. The strange vision became earthier, more tangible, but still the feeling remained. But this wasn't a heavenly creature, a spirit or a god or even an Inugami: he was half-man, half-demon, and as real as she was. He was known to have a temper, was unknowingly kind, his stubbornness was a real pain in the neck… and above it all, she loved him like she'd never loved anyone before. Like she never wanted to love anyone else.
He was her best friend, her half-demon, her husband, hers – and she wouldn't lose him to theatrics and boar's blood and starlight. In that moment, she needed to remind herself that he wasn't something beyond her reach. Looking about the crate-wall, her eyes fell on the desired cubby and reached in to find the coarse cloth she'd set aside. She turned to see his back to her, his arms stretched out over the rim, his ears flicked back and trained on her movements, and smiled.
"Say, Inuyasha?"
"Hm?"
Wringing the cloth between her hands, she took a few steps forward and continued in a strained voice "Can I scrub your back for you?"
His head whipped around so fast that the wet ends of his forelocks plastered around his neck and shoulders, wide eyes locked with hers, both of their cheeks sporting red.
"Uh… I…."
His flustered reaction calmed some of the empty aching, but still… there was something inside her that demanded this contact with him. Somehow, she knew it was something they both needed.
"Just a quick scrub" she said eagerly, taking another step forward, noting happily that he didn't flinch or move away. "I'm sure you could use it after all the training…."
He held her eyes only a moment more before turning back without a word, Kagome nervously awaiting his verdict. Then his clawed hands lifted, gripping the mass of soaked white hair to lay it to one side of his neck, his shoulder blades arching as he leaned forward slightly, and Kagome rushed forward. Dipping the cloth into the warm water and shivering at the difference it made in the cool night air, she laid her left hand atop his shoulder and got to work.
It felt marvelous, but not for the reasons she'd thought it would. For every brush against his skin, every contented sigh from his lips, she could feel another stitch being sewn between them. Her hands were the needle threading the string of her soul into the fabric of his, and after a while she was forced to stop as her eyes began to prickle uncomfortably.
The half-demon under her ministrations let out a distinctly canine whine and muttered "What you stoppin' for?"
Kagome smiled softly in response, resuming her scrubbing with a quiet "Oh? So you like it now?"
"It ain't so bad. After all, my back's pretty messed up from training, right?"
Laughing quietly, shaking her head as he rose a little for her to reach more of his skin, Kagome fell into rhythm as she continued the intimate service. She didn't realize she'd started humming until Inuyasha's voice cut her off.
"What song is that?"
It took a moment to remember just what tune had been running through her mind, and she was happy to find the song from that morning still evoked nostalgia instead of the acrid fear that had followed it.
"My mother used to sing it on walks" Kagome explained, dipping the cloth into the water again before running it over his shoulders, "would you like to hear it?"
A quick nod was her only response, but she could sense his eagerness, and sang out softly
"In that town, in this town, the sun is going down, sun is going down;
Hurry back the way you came, go back to your home, go back to your home.
You've traveled very far today, your home has gone away, home has gone away;
Hurry back the way you came, go back to your home, go back to your home.
In the evening sky above the stars begin to shine, stars begin to shine;
Hurry back the way you came, go back to your home, go back to your home."
Her last words fell to trembling silence as wet, clawed fingers came to rest over the hand still holding his shoulder, his voice deep as he said "not a happy song, is it?"
Kagome stopped her scrubbing motions, her other hand coming to rest on the opposite shoulder as she responded "It's not meant to be. It's a warning – about getting lost. It felt… fitting." He nodded, and she wondered if he'd say more, but he did nothing except lightly stroke his fingers over hers. The rough cloth slipped from her hand as her arm slid across his wet skin, her hand leaving his grip as she wrapped him in a hug from behind. "Not everything is happy" she whispered, her cheek pressed into his damp hair, "that's why we make songs – to help carry us along until we can find those happy moments again."
Nuzzling against him, feeling his hands resting against her crossed arms, Kagome felt empowered. She felt she could tell him anything. Maybe… maybe she could finally say in words what she felt he should already know. "Inuyasha… being with you… makes me happy." She was sure she could feel his heartbeat beneath her hands, and as he turned slightly in her grasp, she pulled away to look into his golden eyes. "Even in this horrible place, even surrounded by these creeps… even when you're being a jerk," he gave her a half-grin, and her eyes sparkled, "I'm still happy to be here with you. Please, don't ever send me away." His mouth opened to say something, some protest she was sure, but she didn't need to hear it. Her lips closed over his, stealing his breath as her arms turned him toward her.
It was surprising how quickly he lost all those ethereal qualities as soon as she kissed him. Kissing him was raw and earthy, something she could feel in her bones and never mistake for a spirit. Even his first hesitant responses were grounding, and soon he was leaning against the edge of the bath, his wet chest soaking the front of her robe as he gathered her into his muscled arms. He nibbled at her lip, sucking it into his mouth as she gasped and tried to do the same. She could taste salt on his lips, and delved her tongue in the warmth of his mouth to see what other flavors she could find. Inuyasha pushed back against her more, but it took Kagome a moment to realize he was pushing her away, even as his tongue took its own taste.
Her lips peeled from his as she stumbled back, his hands gently putting distance between them. Her dark eyes searched his in silent question, glad to see he wasn't angry, but grinning almost shyly as he mumbled "just… go over there for a minute, will ya?"
Crossing her arms over her dampened front, Kagome raised an eyebrow and said in a voice husky and somewhat annoyed "Why should I?"
"Because" he answered in a tone mirroring hers, "I need to get outta this thing and I don't want you peekin' at me again."
Sputtering, she turned on her heel, only a foot or so away as Inuyasha clambered from the tub behind her. There was an awkward silence between them, and Kagome felt herself already missing their connection – until a sudden spray of water against her back left her shrieking, and a snickering sound let her know exactly what had happened. "You could have warned me!" But she couldn't hide her smile, even as he came around to face her, dry as a bone from his dog-shake and already dressed in his night-robe.
"Consider it pay-back" he jibed, heading away from her toward the tent entrance.
Kagome shook her head, calling after him "It's not as if I even saw anything! It's so dark out, I can barely see you now!"
A muttered laugh was all she got in response, and quickly her feet padded after him; she stopped after only a few steps though to see Inuyasha blocking her path, his face turned up to the heavens.
"Kagome" he said quietly, his voice devoid of its previous humor, "where's the moon?"
She didn't think of it at first, but turned her own face to the sky, searching for the white sphere that should have been easy to find. All she saw were stars upon stars, but then "I see it! It's…" the answer hit her like another spray of water, and her eyes fell to meet the faint glimmer of his as she finished faintly "it's almost gone."
"Tomorrow it won't be there at all." His mouth was a tight line, brows pinching together as worry invaded every feature. It broke Kagome's heart to see. She hadn't gone to all this trouble to make him comfortable tonight just to lose him to his fears now.
"So then we'll worry about it tomorrow" and with that she grabbed his hand and pulled him into the tent, nearly shoving him down onto their cot as she lit the gas lamp on the floor and got herself ready for bed. She could feel his eyes following her as she undid her ribbon and set it on their dresser, and though he respectfully turned away as she changed into her own night-clothes, she thought she caught him watching her out of the corner of his eye once or twice. Since the only glimpses he caught were of her European underclothes, she didn't mind all that much. Approaching his side once more, all it took was a shooing motion with her hand for him to make room, and she sidled in beside him, leaning down to turn off the lamp and let her eyes adjust to the darkness.
Settling into the blankets and the feel of a body warm and solid beside her, Kagome closed her eyes and sighed in contentment. It was quite the change from the night before, and she'd be happy to never have a night like that again. Inuyasha shifted beside her, turning towards her in the dark, and she adjusted to nestle herself against his kosode while his head and arm rested above her crown.
"These blankets are different" he spoke up above her, his breath rustling through her hair.
Kagome fought off a yawn as she answered "I washed the other ones. They're hanging to dry out back." She felt him yawn in return, and smiling she added sleepily "I'll wash your clothes sometime tomorrow too. They're probably rank by now."
She heard the laugh rumbling through his chest, and his voice puffed out over her head "Ain't you the busy little wife."
Hiding herself a little further in his shirt, she mumbled "Don't get used to it. If they didn't keep you so busy I'd expect you to help."
Kagome was surprised to hear, instead of grumbling, a soft and sincere "I don't expect my wife to cook and clean for me. I know how to pull my own weight." His free arm lifted over her, pulling the blanket to cover her shoulder before settling down on her waist.
It took all her might to keep her breathing steady, to hide the sudden pounding of her heart. He hadn't meant it to sound like that… had he? Like they really were married, or like… like he intended them to one day be. But whatever he had meant by his words, it seemed she wouldn't get an explanation that night; already she could feel his breath evening out and the heavy weight of his arm as it grew limp around her.
*Author's Note:
Not quite on the schedule I planned for myself, but certainly sooner than any other updates! :P
also, in case anyone is wondering about the song, it's a slightly altered translation of the children's folk song "Anomachi Konomachi" which you can listen to at this link (just remove the spaces :3) www. youtube watch?v=Cgu2k-Xlw7I (this link is just the music without the lyrics, but it's the one I listened to most while writing this - here's one with the Japanese lyrics included! www. youtube watch?v=C2NB5NwKySw )
Also big thanks to those who have been sticking with me and this story all this time! You don't know what it means to me! This au is a labor of love, and I mean it - it's a LOT of hard work. But I enjoy writing it, and whenever I see that others are reading and enjoying it too, it just puts me over the moon! :D I know it's a long haul between chapters and we still have a ways to go, but the fic is still moving forward, and there are more surprises to come!