Max – Chapter 2: Return to the Battlefield
~ Kitty
May you grow up to be righteous
May you grow up to be true
May you always know the truth
And see the lights surrounding you
May you always be courageous
Stand upright and be strong
And may you stay
Forever young
- Bob Dylan, Forever Young
"OK! I think I'm all set!" Kagome placed her fists on her hips and looked down proudly at the oversized yellow backpack. A flash of white and red and suddenly he was in front of her.
"Keh, took you long enough. Did you pack enough ramen?"
By now, she was used to his sudden appearances and just rolled her eyes at his question.
"Yeah, yeah," she said, "hate to know what your blood pressure is at these days with all the ramen you eat."
"What's blood pressure?"
A dark, graceful creature made his way to the large, bright backpack, sniffing it thoroughly. He performed his inspection with military precision, efficiently clearing it of any hazards and settling himself back down beside Kagome, awaiting the next call to action. Civilian life was a difficult adjustment and the battle was still strong in his mind. Alert to any changes in his environment, his surprise at the red-clad boy's transformation in the morning light was enough to throw him off the couch. Inuyasha had laughed at the dog and showed off his claws and fangs. "Heh! Didn't expect that didya?"
Now, Max was watching him calmly, cataloging every detail he observed as either a threat or neutral. He sensed agitation in Kagome's movements whenever the boy was nearby, and yet, there was also a joy that crept into her expression. Before he could ponder it further, the girl reached for the bag and took a step toward the old, dark hut that smelled of danger.
Max was up on all fours immediately, taking his place beside her.
"Oh! No, Max, you're not coming with me," Kagome said, turning to crouch down beside the dog, giving him a gentle ear scratch.
"Souta, could you hold Max?"
"Sure thing, sis."
Inuyasha gave the dog a concerned glance as he passed, leading the way into the well house. He could sympathize with the canine. You can take the dog out of the fight, but you can't always take the fight out of the dog. A warrior will always have a warrior's heart.
The whines started quietly at first, then increased in volume and anxiety when Kagome disappeared down the stairs in the dank, musty building.
"Kagome!" Souta yelled, having difficulty holding the dog back. Max quieted briefly when Kagome's face reappeared inside the well house.
"What is it Souta?"
"Max really wants to go with you, he's practically having a panic attack."
Kagome breathed a sigh. "Souta," she said with a little dismay, "There no way I'm taking him, I don't even know if the well will let him through."
Kagome was still too far away for Max's liking and he strained against his collar. First. He was always first. First into the desert, first into hostile territory, first into the dust and the heat and the explosions and the hot splashes of blood and bile and the screaming of dying men.
He started howling. It tore through his chest and out his throat and then he was trembling and panting and his eyes dilated and their whites flashed. Kagome came rushing to his side, concern and fear evident in her eyes and gestures.
"What's wrong with him?!" She cried in a panic. She stroked his neck, his back, murmured to him but he didn't calm down. He paced in circles, he whimpered, he whined. His nose sought out the presence that had disappeared and without the hub his world had centered around, he was lost, adrift in space and aimless, without purpose.
The touch at his side startled him at first. The firm, clawed hand that held him close and still. A vibration rippled through him and slowly, very slowly, his breathing grew deeper and more sedate and his trembling ceased.
Kagome stared in wonder at the scene in front of her. The expression on Inuyasha's face was like nothing she'd ever seen before. Unreadable, yet somehow serene. When he began a gentle growl, somewhere deep in his throat, she felt a shiver race up her spine. They all breathed a sigh of relief when Max relaxed, and blinked, and focused on the people around him.
"Does he have to stay behind, Kagome?" Kagome frowned and blinked, surprised by Inuyasha's complete change of attitude toward Max in the last couple days.
"I could try carrying him through the well slowly and see if it let's him," the hanyou offered.
"I'd have thought you'd be against him coming along. Thought you'd consider him a liability."
"Keh, the dog ain't dumb."
Kagome sighed, not entirely on board with the idea but also at a loss of what else she could do.
"Fine, let me go tell mama," she said, relenting.
Kagome's mother was alarmed to hear their decision, but was understanding like she was with everything else. Max really did look right, standing beside her daughter. They all held their breath while Inuyasha carefully lowered himself into the well with the dog slung over his shoulder. Max was surprisingly calm about the whole endeavor, as if he'd ridden many shoulders while descending into the unknown. A blue light appeared and faded and the bottom of the well was empty when they peered down.
"Well, I guess I should go before Max panics again…" Kagome said with a shrug, giving her mother a quick hug and a kiss and then she, too, disappeared into the well.
…
Kagome landed with a soft thud and looked up at the little square patch of sky above her. A dark, pointed face smiled down at her, the long pink tongue swaying as the dog panted lightly. Max's eyes were bright and alert, and somehow she thought she saw traces of humor in his face as he stared down the well. From beyond, she heard Inuyasha's voice calling.
"Oi, wench, get up here, we ain't got all day."
Kagome sighed and hauled herself out of the well, grateful that Inuyasha had already taken her heavy backpack through. Max greeted her enthusiastically, tail wagging and wet nose pressing against her cheeks and neck. She giggled, taking hold of both sides of his face to give him a thorough head scratch.
Inuyasha sniffed with disgust, unwilling to admit to himself that he was just jealous. "Come on, Kagome, the others are probably waiting for us."
"The others are probably relaxing and enjoying the beautiful day," she retorted. She straightened though, and joined him as he began to head down the well-worn trail to the village. Max trotted ahead, moving silently and efficiently through the underbrush, his nose working hard to detect any signs of threat in the dark wood.
The old war dog needn't have worried. Inuyasha was diligent in his duties and the woods were dark but friendly. A light dusting of frost traced dazzling designs across the surfaces of the fallen leaves scattered throughout the forest floor and Max left wide, moist paw prints when he stepped through them.
When they came upon the village, his body language changed and he retracted his tongue to focus solely on his sense of smell. Kagome stopped instinctively behind the dog, peering down at him curiously.
"What is it Max?"
"He's scouting for danger," Inuyasha muttered, stomping past them and sauntering into the village. The dog hurried to take the lead, quickly and efficiently checking every fence post and every structure. There was no trace of explosive materials in this town and it confused the dog. Ramshackle settlements like this always held danger. Max's guard hairs were up and his mind buzzed with excitement to be back in the saddle, so to speak.
The first villagers they encountered jumped back startled. They were unused to seeing unfamiliar animals emerge from the forest and trot into the village like they owned the place. The men whispered nervously and women held their children close, but Max ignored them. The humans here made no threatening movements and so Max quickly categorized them and moved on.
Inuyasha appeared soon after Max and made no effort to calm the obvious concern the humans had over the dark, predatory creature.
"The dog's with me," he said simply. And the villagers would just have to deal with it. Luckily, Kagome quickly joined them and explained the situation and they all made it to Kaede's hut without incident.
…
"Kagome's back!" An excited voice sang out as they neared the hut. A little figure bounded out from the covered doorway and ran toward them. Max's first instinct was to protect and so he moved himself in front of Kagome, his body loose and ready. But he took his cues from Inuyasha and when the strange, red-clad boy didn't react, Max relaxed and allowed the child to approach.
Shippou, however, had stopped short when he saw the dog. "What is that?" He asked, clearly confused.
"This is Max." Kagome rested a hand between the dog's ears. "He's my dad's old war dog."
Shippou was busy getting nose to nose with Max. They sniffed each other for several minutes before the fox kit sneezed.
"Uh… Hi Max?" The child was not dangerous, Max decided. In fact, by Kagome's reaction, the child quickly became elevated to protected status in the dog's mind. Max wagged his tail and gave the kit a lick.
Shippou giggled and brought a little hand up to pat the dog's head. "I like this one!" He said, "This dog is way better than Inuyasha!"
"Why you little brat!" Inuyasha said angrily. Shippou giggled and jumped onto Kagome's shoulder. Max placed himself in front of them both and Inuyasha flashed his fangs in annoyance before stomping into the hut. Max tilted his head back and forth, unused to the relaxed and undisciplined nature of the interactions between his new comrades.
In the meantime, Sango, Kirara, and Miroku had all stepped out and were curiously watching the dog. Now that Shippou had been officially cataloged in his mind, Max moved forward to investigate the others. Sango knelt down to allow his nose access to Kirara and they sniffed each other seriously for a while. When the dog turned to Miroku, he stiffened and spent a long time sniffing the monk's hand. This. This smelled of danger. He growled at the man who stood so close to his new master with such a dangerous hand.
Kagome saved Miroku by coming up behind Max and placing a calm, silencing hand on his back. "Yeah, but Miroku can't help it," she told the dog.
Miroku laughed nervously, scratching his head.
"Max has good instincts."
"Keh." Inuyasha's voice came from the hut. Miroku sighed and rolled his eyes, knowing what it was that the hanyou would want to be discussing that night. The rumors on the wind seemed to indicate a possible several shards within a few day's travel from the village. Their brief respite due to Kagome's tests and Inuyasha's human night was over and it was time to get back down to business.
…
The air was crisp and the sun was bright and the group of travelers went forth down the road with lightness in their steps. Following the rumor on the wind, they made their way away from the village and two brisk figures lead the march.
The darker shape on all fours circled back frequently, sniffing the ground and the air, letting his mouth hang open to taste whatever his nose detected. The bright red shape leapt from branch to branch in the trees, glancing back every so often, frowning to see one of the dark haired figures behind him stoop down to take up the dog's dark head in her hands and plant a kiss on the creatures snout. The red shape turned and pressed on.
As the day grew old and the sun dipped down, he located a suitable campsite and alerted the rest. The companions had traveled many such journeys together like this and immediately set about their individual tasks. Max turned to Inuyasha, sensing the unspoken leadership the hanyou boy had, no matter the bickering and teasing.
"Me and Max will scout the area," Inuyasha said, glancing at the dog's ready stance. He was impressed by the mutt's stamina, the lean body moved smoothly through the underbrush, keeping pace with the boy above him. When he'd made half a circuit around their camp, he paused, looking down at the canine with a new spark in his eyes. The site was clear, his superhuman nose told him that. But he didn't quite want to return to camp just yet.
"C'mon, Max," the boy called out to the dog below. He took off racing, dropping down to the underbrush and practically flew as his legs pumped feverishly underneath him. The dark, fluid shape raced behind, panting cleanly, like the whirring hum of a well-oiled machine.
"Ha! So the old mutt can keep up!" Inuyasha called out. He received a spirited bark in reply and they continued to race through the forest in the dying light.
Kagome looked up surprised to see Max and Inuyasha returning to camp together, panting, Max's tongue lolling out the side of his long jaws. Inuyasha's eyes were bright and glassy and Kagome took this all in with great amusement.
"Jeez, where did you guys run off to?" Shippou asked, "Did you guys race back to Kaede's and back?"
"Keh," was Shippou's only response and Inuyasha moves towards the fire to see what the night's dinner was going to be.
"Dog's gonna need more meat than that," he stated, turning around and heading back into the darkness. It was as if there was an unspoken agreement. Max made no move to follow, instead positioning himself near Kagome, but slightly distant, closer to the hidden dangers of the forest so he would be the first to respond should any threat arise. Kagome watched Inuyasha go, humored by the sudden emergence of leadership and pack mentality that seemed to have materialized in the demon. When her camp chores were done, she crept nearer to the sleek dog, patting the warm, soft head. Max took a moment to enjoy the soft hand before returning his attention to what lay outside the circle of safety of the campfire. He was alert to all sounds and movements, and Kagome gazed at the somber creature thoughtfully.
By the time Inuyasha re-emerged from the woods, the others had already begun to tuck into their dinners. Inuyasha offered up a gutted rabbit, cleanly skinned with the guts and intestines removed, but several choice organs remained. He silently deboned and skewered the meat and propped it against the fire before collecting his share of ramen from Kagome.
"Thanks for taking care of Max for me," she said to him softly, "I should have brought more kibble."
"Keh, that shit ain't enough for 'im anyway," was the gruff reply.
"Well, thanks, just the same."
Inuyasha shifted with embarrassment and only grunted in response. Max watched the interaction with deep, brown eyes and Inuyasha felt self-conscious to know the creature's eyes were carefully absorbing his actions. When the dog was fed and everyone had settled into their sleeping blankets, Inuyasha took up watch in a tree branch above the rest. For several long minutes, he felt Max's eyes on him and he was painfully aware of the dog below. He sighed in relief when he heard the dog shift and glanced down to see Kagome wrapping an arm around the dark brown shape. Jealousy rose up inside his chest but he stifled it down to a low ache. Then he heard Kagome whisper.
"I'm glad you were there to protect my dad. I wish he could have come home with you."
Max nuzzled into Kagome's warmth, sensing the pain behind her voice and seeking to comfort it. He watched her sigh and saw a wistful smile creep across her face. Words from Kagome's father's journey echoed back to him as he watched the silent strength transfer from the dog to the girl.
'... Whenever the stress gets to me, he'll come up and press himself against me… He's already a better man than I can ever be...'
A/N: So the lyrics I've been quoting at the beginnings of the chapters are from Forever Young, originally written by Bob Dylan for his son. A version by Blake Shelton for the movie Max plays at the end with a slideshow of past and present war dogs and their handlers… Everytime I watch it… Oh. My. God. The feels, they hurt so bad! Good dogs, you all are such good dogs!