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Chapter Two
Kagome repressed a shudder as the woman gazed down at her with a cold smile upon her lips. Kagome had no choice but to believe that the woman meant what she said, and something told Kagome that the first shot had been intended to kill and that it was only luck that she wasn't already dead.
"Why? What have I done?" Kagome asked shakily.
"Well, it's not so much what you have done, but rather what you are. You see, demons are not an acceptable part of Japanese society. In fact, they are rather like a kind of plague that is best wiped off the face of earth. It is odd that I have only just been able to sense your presence, I can not explain why I have not sensed your presence until now but believe me, now that I have, I will kill you."
Kagome felt the tears once again begin to flow. She had not really believed that the cruelty her mother/aunt had told her about was true but now the evidence was standing right before her, and she could also see no real way out of the situation. How could this be happening to her? No more than six hours ago she had simply been Kagome Higurashi, high school student, and human. Now she was going to die. She was going to be killed…
The woman seemed to be deliberately torturing Kagome by taking her sweet time. First she checked her bow and then rolled up her sleeves, all the while keeping her eyes locked on Kagome. And Kagome had no doubt that if she tried to run for it the woman would shoot her in the back. Despite her fear…despite her sadness…a determination welled up withinm Kagome. Since she was to die, she would not die a coward, she would not die running. She would face Kikyo…Kagome lifted her chin as Kikyo pulled an arrow from her quiver and notched it to her bow. Kagmome felt regret flutter incessantly across her mind as she remembered her mom, her grandfather, her brother, and her friends. Heck, she was even remembering Hojo the dork. Kagome heard the sound of the bow string being pulled taut. She held her breath as she awaited her death.
"Good-bye, demon."
Kagome shut her eyes just as she heard the zing of the arrow as it was released and just as she felt something large and heavy come at her and throw her to one side. Then she was being carried at a dizzying speed as the woman Kikyo let out a scream of frustration followed by a bellow of: "Inuyasha!"
Kagome dared to open her eyes, realizing that she was a) still moving, b) with no idea of where she was or how, and c) that she was not dead. She blinked several times at what she saw. It was a guy that was holding her but he couldn't be human. His appearance (not to mention his speed) proved that much. He had long silver-white hair, golden eyes, and two dog ears perched on top of his head. He was also dressed rather oddly, being somewhat out of date; his clothing looked as though it had come straight from the eighties. She supposed that a person could imitat3e the style of any era they wanted but the clothing seemed almost…brittle. She wondered why. Had he kept the same clothes for two decades?
Kagome felt a blush spread across her cheeks as she realized just how close she was to this random guy; she was being carried piggy-back and just about as close as one could be, she could even fell his body heat through his clothing.. Under normal circumstances she probably would have hit him about the head and demanded he drop her but two things prevented this rash action. The first was the realization that this guy had saved her from that woman Kikyo, making it seem a little bit rude to hit him about the head. The second realization was that, Kagome realized with awe, this guy (had that woman called him Inuyasha?) was currently running through the tops of the trees. A drop from here would not be good; so she kept her mouth closed and her hands to herself until they finally halted and were on firm ground. The guy then proceeded to unceremoniously dump her on the ground. Considering his previous treatment, Kagome felt confused at this abrupt change as well as a little shocked and angry.
"What was that for, you big jerk?!"
"Feh, is that all the thanks I get after I save you, weakling?"
"I didn't ask you to! You did that on your own! I don't even know you."
"And?"
"And is your name Inuyasha?"
"So?"
"So, it is?"
"Obviously."
This guy was so rude; what bug crawled up his butt and died? Because of his rudeness, Kagome felt her own temper rising and bit her tongue against a few choice words she would have liked to throw his way. Despite how rude he was, he had saved her life and Kagome didn't want to be ungrateful for that.
Inuyasha continued, "Well, come on…I don't have all night."
"What are you talking about?" she snapped, not entirely successful in that gratefulness thing.
"Lets go, wench."
"The name is Kagome and no, I don't even know who you are. And I'm not coming with you until you tell me who you are and why you just saved me."
"No."
"Fine, I'll just stay here."
"Be my guest, see how long you last."
Kagome calmly sat in the grass. She suspected that he wouldn't actually go. After all, he had saved her, so why would he leave her now only to be found by that Kikyo woman? If anything, his efforts would be wasted. And she figured that ther must be a good reason for him to save her, that he "wanted" to on some level. Inuyasha let out a snarl of frustration. He had, after all, been bluffing. Inuyasha stomped over to Kagome and attempted to bodily haul her to her feet.
"I said, let's GO wench."
"The name is Kagome. And no, I'm going to sit here."
WHOMP! Kagome gaped open mouthed as Inuyasha was somehow pulled bodily into the ground, face first, with enough force to knock a normal person silly. Inuyasha let out a groan and then leapt up and began tugging at a necklace that Kagome hadn't noticed before. Kagome was puzzled. Had it been something she said? That seemed rather far-fetched and dramatic but so much had happened that she felt as though she wouldn't be surprised by anything.
"The name is Kagome," she repeated softly to herself. "And no, I'm going to sit here."
She stared as Inuyasha was once again puled face first to the gournd. Interesting. It did seem that it had been something she said. She'd try it out, figureing it wasn't a common word like 'the' or 'and'. Kagome decided to test out her theory as Inuyasha continued to struggle, yanking at the necklace which didn't seem to be giving way. Was it made of steel?
"Kagome?" she ventured.
Inuyasha continued to struggle, using some very colorful language.
"No?"
Tug, tug.
"Going?"
Grunt, pull, pull.
"Sit?"
WHOMP!!
Ha! That must be it. Kagome decided to make sure.
"Sit! Sit! Sit!"
WHOMP! WHOMP! WHOMP!
After a moment, Inuyasha managed to pull himself upright. He was distinctly red in the face, had leaves and dirt in his hair, and he wasted no time in bellowing at Kagome.
"Would you give it a rest!!"
Kagome smiled sweetly. This was an interesting development, confusing but with the potential to be useful…
If Kagome hadn't been so certain that Inuyasha wouldn't hurt her she probably would have felt rather intimidated by the snarl that distorted Inuyasha's face at the moment. As it was, she simply gazed mildly at him until she felt he would be more receptive to her questions.
Finally, Inuyasha began to feel slightly disconcerted with Kagome simply staring at him. He felt his snarl begin to slip off his face as he felt more and more nervous. Finally he snapped.
"What are you staring at?!"
"You."
Inuyasha gritted his teeth in frustration.
"I realize that! But WHY are you staring at me?!"
"I was simply in awe of how much of a jerk you are."
Inuyasha felt his jaw drop.
'Who does this girl think she is? Isn't she frightened of me? Everyone else is!'
"I am not."
"Yes, you are."
So, in a typical comeback to a statement that he couldn't deny, he responded, "Feh."
Kagome smiled. She had figured this guy out better than he would have liked to know and realized that she had won the argument. However, she also figured that his pride was stretched to its breaking point and didn't press the issue any farther.
"So, Inuyasha. Why did you save me? I don't know you and besides you saving me, you don't seem to like me all that much."
"Feh. You know, you're really starting to get on my-"
Inuyasha cut himself off suddenly as his ears twitched and then he suddenly launched himself at Kagome, pulling her with him as he crashed into the ground some twenty feet away. At the same moment, a black arrow embedded itself into the ground where Kagome had been sitting. Kagome felt her heart leap into her throat and her stomach drop to the same region as her knees. They had been discovered, again.
With a growl, Inuyasha released Kagome and turned to Kikyo who stood some hundred feet away, bow in hand. A cruel smile twisted her lips.
"So, Inuyasha. I see you have not changed much. Though I wonder at you, protecting this girl. You never seemed overly concerned with anyone's welfare but your own. I think I recall you abandoning several female half-breeds such as yourself when Naraku and I appeared. We disposed of them quickly enough but I wonder at your cowardice. I-"
"Shut up!"
Inuyasha had suddenly launched himself at Kikyo and began to slash furiously with his claws but Kikyo had the definite advantage. Not only was she rather nimble but Inuyasha, in his rage, lacked both accuracy and logic, and his strikes were woefully off target. Kagome had by this time gotten to her feet and she closed her eyes briefly, trying to clear her head. Though she had been a demon for less than six hours, she felt the desire to help, and she thought it was possible for her to succeed. Kagome flexed her claws; perhaps she could try to imitate Inuyasha. Since she was not in a rage, she might be more successful. At any rate, she couldn't just stand here.
Kikyo turned her back on Kagome, obviously not regarding her as a threat, to train her arrow on Inuyasha, who halted. He was not fool enough to approach closer. Kikyo let her arrow fly and Inuyasha dodged it. As the arrow zipped through the air, Kagome made her move. She closed the distance between her and Kikyo with all the speed she could muster and brought her new claws slashing against Kikyo's back. Kikyo immediately let out a scream of rage and pain as blood began to seep through her blouse. She soon stifled the scream and turned towards Kagome, who had not the heart to attack a second time while her opponent was so obviously incapacitated.
"You will pay for that dearly, bitch." Kikyo hissed through gritted teeth.
She then was lifted into the air by some kind of weird flying creatures. Kagome thought they seemed a bit like snakes but with the wrong kinds of faces. What were they? Demons? But Kikyo hated demons…Kagome let out a shaky breath that she hadn't realized that she was holding; Kikyo was gone for now.
"Wench! What were you trying to do? Get yourself killed!?"
Kagome felt anger replace her fear. "How about a thank you for saving your life you jerk?!"
"Feh. I was doing fine on my own. I was just getting started when you butted in."
Kagome felt her irritation rise at his ungratefulness. This was just stupid. They'd almost been killed twice and now they were immediately back to sniping at each other. She really didn't feel in the mood to deal with him and his tantrums right now.
"Sit!"
Whomp!
"Now that I have your attention, let's get a few things straight. One, my name is Kagome, not wenchr. Two, I want an explanation. And three, if you don't comply with one and two, I'm going to 'sit' (Whomp!) you until you do."
Inuyasha managed to get up and met Kagome's snapping gaze with an angry look. Kagome did not avert her gaze nor would she back down. She needed answers and though it was not in her nature to make threats or demands, she could see no other way to get Inuyasha to cooperate.
"Fine, I could care less. If it will get you to shut up, I'll tell you. But I'm only gonna tell you once so you better listen up," Inuyasha said grudgingly, crossing his arms. "Your father was a powerful demon and he managed to save my life once. He saved me from a demon hunter named Naraku and so I was bond to your father. He had received a prophecy that both he and his wife would die and he desired that his unborn child would have protection. So he enlisted me to protect and serve you instead of him. He put me into an enchanted sleep that I could only awake from should your life ever be in danger. So I awoke and came to you."
"What about the necklace you wear which causes you to…you know."
"An added bonus for lucky me. Your father didn't entirely trust me-"
"I wonder why."
"-so he put this enchanted necklace on me. I don't have the power to take it off and it ensures that I am incapable of harming you as well as providing a certain bond with you, allowing me to sense when you are in danger. It helped me to locate you today."
Kagome took a moment to digest this information.
"How long are you obligated to protect me?"
"Until the day one of us dies or this necklace is removed."
"By whom?"
Inuyasha turned away. "By you. For all practical purposes, you are my master and in control of me and my life."
Kagome felt a twinge of guilt at the expressionless way Inuyasha spoke. He seemed so trapped by the thought. And she couldn't blame the guy. He was facing a life-time of enslavement. Not that she felt too bad, he was an awful jerk in the first place. Why should she feel sorry for him? But she did all the same.
Kagome tried to speak lightly and not to express the confusion she felt, both for her benefit as well as his. After all, things could be worse and if they were 'stuck together' then she thought she'd make an effort to get along with him.
"So, are you half-demon?"
"Who says I am?"
"That Kikyo woman said something about it while you were fighting her, so I was just curious."
"If you must know, yes, I am."
Inuyasha looked at Kagome out of the corner of his eye. "By the way, why did you choose to fight Kikyo?"
"Well, I was worried about you. You didn't seem too clear-headed and I thought you could use some help."
"Who taught you to fight?"
Kagome was surprised. "No one. I was trying to imitate you."
Inuyasha was silent for a moment. Then said, "Well, let's go."
This time, Kagome followed without a word.
Okay, that's it for chapter two. Please R&R. And I have a question for anyone who knows. Someone told me but I couldnt figure it out. I can't seem to find a way to put in page breaks or astericks, etc. So, if anyone knows, please share! It'll make it easier for everyone to read.