A/N: So it's been months since I updated this, sickness, holidays etc. etc. Promise the next one will be sooner!
Disclaimer: I own nothing, I have nothing, not even money so please don't sue!

Chapter 9

The smell was putrid, she was struggling to breath. The smell seemed to invade her very core. She found it hard to think, let alone find the source.
That's when something started to tickle her arm, and her eyes focused on a big brown bug. Recognition hit her, this was the Japanese stinking bug! And it had sprayed its horrid stinking fluid all over her clothing.

-

Kagome led her horse towards the light, and found Shadow, Kaede's horse, tied to a tree not far from, what she presumed to be, Inuyasha's and Kaede's camp.
She tied her horse next to Shadow and walked towards the camp site.
"Inuyasha? Kaede?" She called out.
"What the hell are you doing here?!"
Kagome jumped at the voice behind her, Inuyasha had apparently heard her approach and had snuck up behind her.
"What are you doing sneaking up on me like that?!" She yelled back at him.
"Don't chance the subject, what are you doing here?! Is everything alright in the village? Where are the kids?!"
Kagome took a deep breath, she had no time to argue with him, she had other urgent matters.
"The village is fine, and so is Aiyo, she's with Sango and Miroku."
She saw the relieve travel across his face, then he frowned as realization dawned on him.
"What do you mean Aiyo is fine? What about Gaia? Did something happen?!"
She trembled a bit under his fiery gaze, her eyes glazed over with worry as she uttered her next words. "She's missing Inu, she went after you. I was hoping she would be here." Kagome could feel the tears that started to form behind her eyelids. "I don't know where she is." Her voice trembled as she spoke.
His breath faltered. She had followed him, and somehow stayed out of his sight and smell. First, he questioned his senses, but he soon realized he could still smell and hear as he always did. He could focus on the sound of crisping wood in their camp fire, and smell the lingering scent of their dinner.
This could only mean 2 things, Gaia had gotten into trouble, and therefor she never got close enough to be heard or smelt. Or, she was a very stealthy young girl, able to evade his senses.
Inuyasha sighed, on the one hand he felt angry for Gaia's actions, but on the other hand, he probably would have done the same thing.
"I haven't seen her, or smelled her." He said honestly.
"Do you think something might have happened to her?" Kagome asked him, her worried eyes searching his for any explanation.
"I'm not gonna lie, she might have gotten into trouble, but, somehow, I think she's more likely very good at hiding from me." A strange sense of pride came over him for just a split second, before he once again felt only worry.
"Do you think she's close?" Kagome asked, with desperation in her voice.
"I'll go scout the area, see if I can pick up her scent." He turned to walk away, but stopped mid step. "You stay here with Kaede."

-
He jumped and soared above the tree line, his nose high in the air, sniffing as he sped over the forest.
Now and then he would get a small whiff of Gaia's scent, and he would change directions, but loose it again quickly.
"How can it be so hard to track her scent?!" He was getting increasingly frustrated.
The only thing calming is mind is that the smell didn't contain any hints of blood. And the putrid smell of death didn't hang around the area either. "I have to find her, to many things creep in the night."
He increased his speed even more until he hit a scent that was all too familiar to him. "ow god!"
His breath faltered as he nearly lost his dinner. "Stink bugs! I'm NOT going anywhere near that place!" He thought as he changed directions again, trying to escape the horrid smell.
-

"O GOD WHY ME!"
Apparently, she had found a stink bug nest, and had sat her tired body right on top of it. They had crawled up into her shirt, in her hair. Kami, they were everywhere! She tried desperately to get them all off her, but whenever she thought she was done, one somehow appeared from somewhere again.
Luckily, she still had the sense to not scream bloody murder, in fear of pulling attention to herself from demon or monster, or worse, Inuyasha.
The stench was so overwhelming she wanted to just roll up and die, her noose was screaming for release. She had decided that rolling in the mud might help her situation.
So, she was now covered in 2 layers of dirt, sweat, lots of twigs, sticks, and leaves. She was sure she looked like a low budget movie monster.
Unfortunately, it didn't help her get rid of the stench much.
She decided to visit the river that she could hear streaming not far from her position, maybe the water would help.

-
Inuyasha had started to give up hope, how was he supposed to find the little brat if her scent kept disappearing?!
His mouth had gotten dry from al the sniffing around and he decided to take a small break at the babbling brook he'd passed a few times in his search.
He jumped down from the trees, sniffing the air. Nothing out of the ordinary, save from the still lingering stench of stink bugs. "Kami only knows why those creatures even exist." He murmured to himself.
He had only taken a few sips of the cool refreshing water when a small sound of rustling leaves caught his attention. His ears turned in all directions, trying to locate the origin of the sound.
Another rustled turned both his ears to the right, and his eyes followed suit.
The darkness was no match for his demon eyes, yet it was hard to figure out what the hell he was looking at!
Out of the bushes staggered a foul-smelling creature, brown in color, no higher than his hips, with sticks and leaves on top of its head. The creature didn't seem to notice him and just staggered towards the water.
Inuyasha slowly rose from his crouched position, and began his quite approach. He'd never seen a demon like this before, and his curiosity was getting the better of him.

The small creature sat down on the river's edge and started a cleansing ritual, it threw water in its face and rubbed as hard as it could. It seemed almost as if it was trying to scrub off its skin!
Inuyasha swallowed as he noticed that the creature had succeeded! The brown skin has started to melt and turned pink. He could no longer hold in his confusion and screamed on the top of his lungs:
"WHAT THE HELL KIND OF DEMON ARE YOU!"

This startled the little creature, as it fell head first, into the water.

-

The water felt so good on her face!
The hardened mud started to soften and wash away. She felt a new-found freedom she hadn't known she missed. She scrubbed heavily to get all the mud out of her pores, when suddenly a booming voice startled her beyond believe.
"WHAT THE HELL KIND OF DEMON ARE YOU?!"
She freaked, jumped, and fell, head first into the water. Disoriented, she kicked her legs, and swung her arms, trying to get a bearing of up and down. Her clothes started to wear her down, heavy with mud, that was slowly washing away in the water.
Finally, she found the surface of the water, but even before she could take her first breath, a force pulled her from the water by her shirt, and hoisted her up above it.
She shrieked, not knowing what or who had grabbed her, and what they wanted from her.
"Get away from me!" She screamed, though it sounded more like a high-pitched wail.
She squinted her eyes and flung her arms around, trying to hit her captor.
Of course, she missed miserably, and decided to open her eyes to at least see who was responsible for her demise.
The wide-eyes, open-mouthed face of a very shocked Inuyasha was staring at her.
"O, mud buckets….."