When a Lie Leads to Truth

(Chapter Eight)

Enroute to the Kouga's Mountains

Kagome clung precariously to Kouga, the wolf demon. One thing that she had learned quickly on this journey was that riding on Kouga's back far less comfortable than that of Inuyasha's. Inuyasha always strode gently, moving like silken water so that she would not fall off; he slowed if he sensed she was the least bit unbalanced. When they ran, Inuyasha and herself were in perfect consort of motion. Not so with Kouga. Though well-intentioned as always, he was blind to her needs and emotions.

"Err, Kouga," Kagome managed to shout out over the unfamiliar turbulence which wound her hair into knots. Kouga finally ceased his dust cloud covered run. Sneezing from the scent of wolf which clotted her nostrils, Kagome tumbled backwards and sprawled out on the ground to rest. Her memories seemed to mock her thoroughly as she recalled how Inuyasha would always halt and stand for a half minute at a time, seemingly for no purpose other than to scan the horizon or to shout at Miroku. A despondent sigh escaped her as the realization of how the half-demon was probably doing it all for her sake since she was as he would say- a weakling.

"Say, Kouga," Kagome tried again. "We are awfully far from your cave. It might take one or two days to get there."

"Not if I run all night, my beloved Kagome." Kagome grimaced at the rich baritone voice as it was an obvious attempt to seduce her.

"Er, right. Well you know Kouga, I am awfully tired and I'm just not as strong as you. So how about we make a camp for tonight?"

"Anything you say." Kagome grimaced at the arm which snuck its way around her waistline. She shook it off by taking a quick step backwards and whirling around towards the woods. To her horror, her next words came out tinny, shrill, and entirely false.

"You know, I think I'll go fetch some firewood."

"I'll come with you." A thousand amorous horrors flashed before the miko's eyes.

"NO! No… that's not necessary Kouga. Thank-you-so-very-much. You know, why don't I stay here and start dinner? You could try and find some kindling to heat the water!"

"Are you all right Kagome?" Kouga asked politely tipping his head at her. "You seem a little off. Did Dog-Boy do something to you? Cause if he did I'll go right back there and teach him some respect."

"No, that's not necessary. I'm all right Kouga, really I am. It's just like I said.. I'm a little tired that's all. Now off you go!" To Kouga's astonishment he found himself being shoved toward the nearest clump of bushes.

"Well, I don't like the idea of leaving you unguarded, Kagome. Mutt-face has gotten you into enough trouble that way for me not to know better. After all, that's the way I met you ain't it?" Kagome's fluster disappeared instantly to be replaced by a very indignant stare.

"That was different! You know Kouga, you really shouldn't talk about Inuyasha that way. He's a very brave person."

"Bah. He's just too stupid to know when it's time to cut loose and run."

"He really is not stupid either." Her hands balled up into fists beside her and the miko almost shook with rage.

"Kagome," Kouga muttered genuinely astonished by her behavior. "Why are you defending him? I thought you were finished with that half-breed. That's why I was taking you back to the mountains to be my bride."

A hand swung out of nowhere and Kouga found himself sporting a red cheek. Even after receiving it, it was difficult for him to connect the blow to his sweet Kagome, especially since now she was curled up on the earth bawling, eyes pressed to her knees. The wolf demon warily lowered himself to crouch by her shaking frame.

"Oh come on now, Kagome, it's not that bad! I take back all the words I said and I promise that from now on I'll be more careful with my language around you. All right? Just stop crying… please?" Truth be told, the wolf demon was panicked since he was uncertain how to cope with Kagome's tears

"I'm sorry." Kagome raised her face from her knees and ran the back of her hand along her moist cheek. "I never meant to bring you into this. It's just that Inuyasha's been acting so weird. After Kikyo's death, I had hoped that he would talk to me about it but instead it seemed like he was pushing me away. What you said to him seemed to make it better for a moment but it just got worse and worse; and then… well he started to act even weirder." At this tidbit of information, Kouga adopted one of his saucier poses leant back against one leg with the foot crossed and his arms folded in front of him.

"Well… I'm almost embarrassed to say," Kagome whispered conspiratorially so that he was lured into leaning closer, "is that he asked me to marry him. Twice." Kouga nearly fell over in shock for more than one reason.

"What?! I can't believe the mutt would have the nerve to ask you something like that like that. And what do you mean twice? Wasn't one no enough for him?"

"Kouga," Kagome admonished lightly her sprinkling of tears evaporating into a smile. "I remember how after Kikyo died you asked Inuyasha to take care of me better; and you understood that I needed to stay by Inuyasha to keep him cheerful. You have done more for me than anyone, Kouga, and while I can never be your bride you will always be my best friend." The hapless wolf demon then found himself being glomped by the schoolgirl.

"Sure thing Kagome." Kouga laughed nervously before pushing her away. A wistful droop escaped the school girl's notice but then his bold, cocky smile returned as it was forced. His words, however rang out rich and true.

"Kagome, we should head out in the morning. I'll take you back to your friends. After a wolf den is no place for a pretty girl like you."

"Kouga.," the miko uttered, clearly touched by his thoughtfulness.

"Yeah, well, like you said I'm your best friend huh? So I had better take care of you and make sure mutt-face apologizes. So... you wanna tell me about it?" A warm grin lit up Kagome's cheeks.

"Sure," she nodded.

One Day Later

Thirty miles downwind, Inuyasha cursed as Kouga's trail of scent vanished. With an uttered oath of disembowelment he waded into the river to check the small islands and bank on the other side. At last his efforts were rewarded when he spied a bit of bruised reed on the side of the bank he originally crossed from. Apparently, the wolf demon had doubled back across the river in yet another effort to elude him.

"Fucking bastard," Inuyasha grumbled again to himself as he looked upwards to Kilala and his other friends soaring in the sky above him. "If he thinks that he's gonna take Kagome away from me then he's about to find out the meaning of the word 'violent'."

Violent. That was the word Kagome always used when he began to get angry with someone. "Inuyasha, there's no need to get violent," she would always say. As if those words would help either of them now.

Ruffling his hair in frustration, Inuyasha sat down on a large rock by the riverbank and sulked. Even if he did find Kagome, it was obvious she would not want to return to him. She had already rejected him and worse, now it seemed she had accepted Kouga's offer to be his mate.

Mate. That word triggered another thought in Inuyasha's mind. It was bad enough to think of Kagome bearing that absurd wolf's children but the moment it happened her first born would belong to Kouga. Eyes trembling to show what his battle-hardened body would not, Inuyasha came to an even more unwelcome conclusion. The terms of the love-curse draped around his neck would be shattered. Kagome would die for certain.

Inuyasha reeled from his sudden realization. Jumping up to his feet, the plaintiff wail of her name came to his lips just as he collided with something tall and decidedly masculine. Inuyasha found himself staring up at a pair of fur shorts and more importantly, at a familiar pair of loafers.

"Ka..Ka…Kagome!" Inuyasha fumbled with his tongue for a moment as his gaze shifted upwards to the girl he admired. Her face was flushed as she peeked over Kouga's shoulder and Inuyasha felt his heart drop sickeningly. She had been alone with the bastard all night. Had she done that with the bastard in his absence? His stomach almost emptied at the thought. Fortunately, a quick sniff to the air revealed nothing to him but the stench of masculine wolf and an abundance of salt water. No stench of desire clung to the air surrounding the two very unbathed persons. Inuyasha swooned again, this time with relief.

"Kagome! Where were you all night! You had us all terrified!"

"Us?" Kagome lifted a tired eyebrow.

"Yes, us," Sango broke in unexpectedly as Kilala landed. Both the two-tail and wolf demon stooped to let her passengers unload. Sango swung quickly off of Kilala's back and strode forward to clasp Kagome's hand in her own. From this action, the miko was reminded of Sango's seemingly impossible strength.

"Um, Sango, my fingers," she pleaded trying to free herself from Sango's vice-like grip.

"Oh? Yes. Sorry Kagome. Just promise us you'll never run away like that again."

"Sure thing Sango." Inattentive to what she was promising, Kagome blew on her raw red fingers.

It was at this moment that Miroku decided to take advantage of the relative confusion. In the ever-clever manner he had perfected, he leant over to Kouga and with a gentle tap, invited him away from the group for a private discussion. He waggled a finger in Inuyasha's direction also, and somewhat reluctantly Inuyasha rose his to his feet to traipse after him. Only Sango, Kilala, and a now bubbling Shippo remained behind. Sango seemed to understand the actions of her purple-robed sweetheart and did all she could to retain Kagome's attention.

"You know Kagome, you smell a bit like a wolf-demon. Now might be a good time for a bath. We could talk also."

"You know Sango, that might not be such a bad idea," Kagome grumbled wearily pushing a strand of her bedraggled hair away from her face. Clods of dirt and stray pebbles had worked their way into it.

"But really, Kagome, I would like to know why you ran away like that. You had us all frightened. Especially Inuyasha."

"I just don't know Sango," the miko admitted blushing. "I suppose there was a reason but I just can't think of it anymore."

"We'll talk about it at the hotsprings. Kilala knows these mountains very well." The two-tail gave off a very pride-filled purr.

"You're the best Sango!" Kagome gave off a contented sigh and allowed herself to be led away.

In a Nearby Clearing

"You see, Kouga," finished Miroku. "This curse is precisely the reason why we have to make sure that Kagome-sama ends up with Inuyasha. Her very life hangs in the balance."

"Let me get this straight," announced Kouga, "Kagome accidentally put a love curse on herself binding her to this mutt-face, and now you want me to help you convince her to be his woman?"

"That about sums it up," said Miroku. The wolf demon leaned back slowly, his long ponytail back swinging pendulously as he huffed. Both monk and half-demon waited with bated breath.

"Well, I'm game." Inuyasha just about fell over.

"What the fuck? Why on earth would you help me!"

"I'm not helping you dog-breath! If you haven't noticed, Kagome is the one woman whom I truly love. I would do anything fro her! And even if it means having to give her up… well that's the breaks. But I would do anything to make sure she was still happy and kicking."

"So you will help us?" Miroku confirmed with a cunning smile.

"Yeah, sure thing human. So what did you have in mind?"

"Well, it is true that I have been trained as a monk and have been rendered a general, overall understanding of demons. But perhaps you, Kouga, could enlighten me as to specifics of demon courting behavior."

"Eh?" Kouga dug the earwax of one ear, confused by the gibberish.

"It means, my good friend," Miroku continued smoothly, "that we are about to stage a most touching and life altering drama that not even Kagome-sama could resist. Both the demons ears perked up at this statement.

In the Uneventful Hot Spring

"Hey, Sango?" asked Kagome.

"Yeah?"

"Do you think the boys are all right? They aren't clawing at one another?"

"They'll be fine," reassured Sango. "After all Houshi-sama is with them and you're not there to bicker over."

"I guess you're right," the miko returned. "Pass the soap?"

Back to the Nearby Clearing Where a Conspiracy Was Unwinding

"So, do you think this enough?" Kouga the wolf demon emerged back into the brilliant sunlight of the clearing. A large stag was draped over his shoulder. Behind him in the filter of leaves, Inuyasha carried a similar burden. He tossed it into a pile of about twenty dead animals, all of whose necks were broken.

"Dunno. This is Miroku's plan after all. In any event, your tribe's gonna be eating well for awhile." He kicked the nose of a deceased boor with his foot. Miroku, nearby, was acting as observer.

"I think that is plenty, Inuyasha."

"Well, then," Inuyasha said with a quirky grin, "let's get to work." He leant over one of his prey and slit its jugular with his claw. Kouga set about to do the same and together, they filled the clearing with a most spectacular pool of splattered crimson.

"Good," said Miroku wearily rubbing his forehead with a hand. Kouga's grey wolves carried the carcassses away. As the sound of their excited barking faded away, he said a prayer for the souls of the poor animals.

"This must be done for the good of poor Kagome-sama. Well, then on to the next part. We must get the two of you to look the part."

"Great!" said Kouga hefting up a large wooden pail. He sloshed its entire contents- several gallons worth of blood which they had carefully saved- into Inuyasha's face.

"What the hell?!" he said sputtering and prepared to do the same with his own pail.

"Now, now, this is not the time for you two to be quibbling!" Miroku interrupted, rapping Inuyasha smartly on the head with his staff. "Now we only have three pails left. Use them carefully."

"Yeah, yeah." Inuyasha stooped down and began to slosh the front of his clothing so that it was completely bloodstained. Kouga did the same.

"Good," said Miroku resting his chin on his hand and tilting his head speculatively, "but not good enough. You're going to have to tear the cloth. No, no, more Inuyasha! And use this black cream to fake bruises."

"What do you have that stuff for?" Inuyasha asked taking a sniff delicately. Miroku shrugged.

"Before I met you, Inuyasha, business was relatively slow and I would often have to rely on various means to support myself. Never mind that now, here let me help you."

Miroku uncapped a small flask and rubbed a generous fake bruise on his cheek. He also furthered the tears in his clothing.

"Now then, something is still missing." He looked at the hanyou as a painter would his master subject.

"I know," said Kouga. "I have just the thing." He pulled a mass of liver and intestines from one of the pails.

"Where did you get that from?"

"Heh, I've been playing at this game since I was a pup. I used to scare the shit out of my adoptive grandpa this way. I'm a pro at it. Here."

Kouga grabbed hold of the front of Inuyasha's kimono and made a new gash in it. He stuffed the mass of innards into the front of the kimono so that they were hanging out.

"That is absolutely horrifying," Miroku approved, "but something is still missing. I know!" He took out one of his spare hair ties and used it to hide Inuyasha's ear in his hair.

"What are you doing?" the hanyou whined nervously.

"Just a second. There, now your ear's torn off." He gazed at the matted, blood stained hair which now clumped to one side of his face.

"Why am I the only one to get beat up?" Inuyasha whined, his ear struggling unconsciously to get free of its restraint.

"Almost done," Kouga said. With a great confidence, he pulled a large eyeball from a pail and tossed it on the ground. To finish the illusion, he accepted a crimson-stained handkerchief from Miroku and tied it over his real eye.

"There. What do you think?"

"Not bad."

"You know, you two," said Miroku clapping both demons on the shoulders, "I'm proud of us. In all my years of fighting demons, I have never seen such a gruesome battlefield. The only thing left is to have you tear down a few trees or something."

"Yeah," Inuyasha smiled. He pulled out his Tesusiaga and allowed into empower. With a similar grin of great satisfaction, Kouga turned his back to him to face the other half of the as yet unscarred clearing.

"When I say ready, you go," he directed Miroku. The monk gave a satisfied nod and walked out harm's way.

"Ready to do this Dog-Boy?" Kouga whispered.

"Anytime you are."

"All right. One... two... ten!" With a roar, the two demons spun at one another then veered in a deliberate miss. Soon, windscar marks littered the clearing.

At the Previously Uneventful Hot Spring

"What was that?" Kagome panicked as what seemed to be an earthquake sent the water and herself vibrating. As the tremors subsided, she fought against the rolling waves to lay draped against the bank. Sango gave her a helpful hand up.

"I don't know. I would almost say that sounds like one of Inuyasha's windscars." Sango's eyebrows knitted upwards in anxiety. Kagome gasped.

"Oh no, Inuyasha!"

"We had better go. Kilala!" With a roar, Kilala empowered herself to her full size and allowed the two girls to climb on board. As the rose, it was to discover that half the hill below them was decimated. Kagome clapped a hand to her mouth.

"Oh no! You don't think Inuyasha would kill Kouga, would he?"

"I don't know, he has been acting kind of strained lately." Kilala dipped down to just skim the leafy treetops with her flaming feet.

Miroku, meanwhile spotted them coming in the distance. He began running in their direction and he skidded to a stop as Kilala paused to give him her consideration.

"Sango!" Miroku shouted as loud as he could, panting heavily. "Inuyasha and Kouga are engaged in a mate claim battle!"

"They are?" Sango sounded absolutely astounded. Kagome tugged on her sleeve.

"Hey, Sango, what's that?" The demon slayer chewed on her lip.

"It's a death match of sorts. Both demon combatants challenge each other over the hand of female they wish to mate and well, it's whoever's left standing who wins."

"That's awful!" Kagome sucked in a deep breath.

"Well, that is what Inuyasha and Kouga were unconsciously trying to do since the day they first met. Or rather since the day you first seemed interested in Kouga."

"It wasn't like that! Kouga is just a friend!" Kagome defended.

"Well, with demons it isn't quite like that," Miroku explained carefully. "Humans make groups of people unrelated to them but it isn't that way with demons. They are always related by blood and even then, sometimes the weak are excluded from among them just as they are with any wild animal."

"That's terrible!" Miroku shrugged.

"You can not blame them for what they are. Their ways, harsh as they may seem, are the means for their kind's survival. In the meantime, I think we should hurry. Inuyasha was faring badly when I last saw him."

"Oh no!" A fury of tears leaked into the miko's eyes. Sango, however, looked at Miroku and wondered to herself why he seemed so unconcerned. Together, they jogged or flew another half mile to the clearing were the noise was coming from. They were met with a terrible sight.

Dozens of uprooted trees created an obstacle course across the clearing. So too, did the thirty foot gouges of evaporated bedrock and shattered rubble. Kongouhasii spears were strewn everywhere imbedded especially in the base of craters formed by Kouga's fist pound attack. Both the hanyou and wolf demon were currently fighting weaponless, using just hand to hand combat to knock each other backwards a few feet at time. Real bruises littered each other's faces and for a moment, Miroku gulped thinking that the battle had taken a very real turn but then Kouga winked with his "one" good eye and the monk relaxed again. Kagome, however was petrified.

"Inuyasha! Kouga! Stop that this instant!"

Inuyasha turned his head slightly at her cry, scenting her river of tears. Kouga tokk this moment of opportunity to "nail" the demon straight into the trunk of one of the many fallen trees. Inuyasha gasped, half from being startled and half from having his gut bruised so unexpectedly. But Kouga's attack was merely for show and as he drew back his hand from Inuyasha's robes, he carried a fistful of the deer innards with him. With a great deal of emphasis, he flung them carelessly to the ground and smirked. Kagome's true scream, heard for perhaps time ever, nearly made him falter in his charade but Kouga had been veteran of enough battles to realize the true merit of bluffing. Curling his fangs upward into a venomous growl he slammed the wood beside Inuyasha's shoulder. The half demon had half-rolled out of harm's way instinctively, but it was difficult enough for Kagome and her friends to see to be fooled into thinking he had made a direct hit. Kouga growled again, this time in a low whisper.

"Fake it Dog-Boy. Make like you're dying."

"What?"

"Damn it, imbecile, fall to your knees or something."

Taking the matters into his own hand, Kouga grabbed Inuyasha by the shoulder and threw him to the ground. Then he stood with one foot on him.

"Why you," Inuyasha stuttered out of rage, not really acting.

The plan almost failed as a boomerang swung wide and whistled over Kouga's head. He had to bend practically into a pancake in order to avoid it.

"What the fuck was that?! Damn it!" Kouga leapt off of Inuyasha's as Sango's furious words of revenge came streaming his way. The miko and demonslayer ran full tilt toward Inuyasha but he could have none of it. Before they could cross the fifty meters which separated them, he dragged himself of the ground and slid Tetsusiaga from his belt. Making a great show of it, it, he "limped" a few feet upright and held a hand up to ward off Sango.

"Stop!" he shouted with anxiety in his voice. The two girls mistook it for sorrow or determination.

"This is my fight. Don't get involved in this."

"That's right," sneered Kouga trying to remuster his fighting spirit which had been spooked by his near death at Sango's hands. "This is a demon-to- demon fight." A strange light flooded through Inuyasha's amber. It was almost as if he had been praised.

"I'll give you one more chance to give up, puppy," said Kouga loudly enough for Kagome to hear every syllable, "if you give up any claim to Kagome than I won't have to kill you. So go ahead, turn tail, go home runt."

"Never," Inuyasha said just as loudly. "I love Kagome, and if I have to live without her then I might as well be dead. Do your worst, Kouga, and by the end of the day we'll know just who is unworthy of her, 'cause when I die I'm taking you to Hell with me."

"No!" Kagome screamed. "Osuwari, osuwari, osuwari!"

Her plaintiffs went without affect, and as if in slow motion, the two demons were obscured by a rising dustcloud, the symbol of Kouga's whirlwind. Inside it, Inuyasha tested the air around him, waiting for any sudden movement. His eyes steeled on Kouga's and he nodded, then jerked his head.

"Use your windscar to give us a break for the river."

"Huh?"

"Your wounds are fake, dumbass, you want Kagome to find out? You're gonna have to bunk with me for a while."

"No way!"

"Just shut the hell up and do it!" Both men growled at one another.

"All right," said Inuyasha finally. "But I'm only doing this for Kagome."

"Yeah, yeah, aren't we all. Now come on! We both need to blow up enough rock to cover. On three. One… two… three!"

On the count of three two attacks sounded simultaneously. A blind of light and noise erupted and then, when the dust clouds settled the two vanished. Kagome screamed again and fainted.