Woo, next chapter! . Anyway, there was a bit of confusion last chapter. Maybe I worded it wrong? Well, I'm not going to be updating faster, I'm going to be updating on the same 'every other day' schedule, but I'm going to try to get chapters done early so I can update early in the day. That is all.
This is a short chapter...
Save Me From Myself
Chapter Sixteen: A Blank Face
Somehow, I didn't transform once I found out what I did. I suppose, with InuYasha there, it stopped me from transforming. But I wasn't thick, I knew that Sango and Miroku were treading lightly around me. Shippo was careful as well, but he still thought of me as a mother or big sister or something, so he was always happy to be with me and would try to cheer me up. InuYasha, he didn't seem to change much at all, besides the fact that he would often be nice to me, instead of insulting me every five minutes.
I would just wish that everything would go back to normal, and I didn't have to deal with all of this any more. But like a hell on earth, it wasn't going to change any time soon.
- - -
Kagome had managed to clean the stains in her clothes to make them a dull pink, but this outfit was pretty much ruined. She had also managed to wash off the blood, but she could smell a bit of a metallic scent lingering on her skin and clothes.
The group left their hideout a few days after Kagome woke up, letting her go back to normal and get over the initial shock of having killed someone. Though, it didn't effect her as much as the miko thought it would. Kagome thought that she would be devastated, but because she couldn't remember killing anyone, she could push it out of her mind easily. She knew it was true, but the only thing that really had an effect on her was the blood that had covered her body.
Hardly a word was spoken when the group was traveling back to Kaede's village. Shippo was almost the only one who talked at all, and even he said close to nothing.
The first day of their travels, the sun was shining and the birds twittered up above. Every so often they would see a wild animal roaming around, but they could hardly see what it was because it left so quickly.
InuYasha's nose twitched as he caught a peculiar scent.
"InuYasha?" Kagome asked, noticing him straining to get his nose higher in the air.
He looked over to Kagome and then back in the air. "There's a village. It's a couple miles away. We should reach there by nightfall," InuYasha said to the group, speaking loud enough for all of them to hear.
"A village?" Sango asked.
Miroku searched through his robes and found the thing he was looking for. "It seems that we have enough money to stay at an inn," Miroku said, sighing. "I guess we're going to have to pay this time."
The rest of the group seemed to twitch in annoyance at the monk.
Their walk to the village was uneventful, and they found a decent inn to stay at. Though, Miroku made sure to get at least half off in his stay there by 'exterminating' a demon.
That night Kagome lay in the room that they were staying in, looking at the wall in front of her and thinking hard.
Naraku said that emotions were the cause of all the transformations. Yeah, he caused one of them, but most of the transformations were caused by negative feelings, Kagome thought. She lowered her eyes.
I know what I must do, Kagome thought, clenching her fist.
Even though she knew what she had to do, she didn't like it.
- - -
Early in the morning the group left for Kaede's village. They traveled as quickly as they could, though they did come across a couple smaller demons that were easily dealt with with a quick slash of InuYasha's claws.
"Kagome?" InuYasha said when they were walking at a normal pace again. "You haven't been talking much, is anything wrong?"
Kagome glanced at InuYasha and gave him a sad smile. "You're such a dope. That's a stupid question to ask," said the miko, her smile fading a bit into a fake one.
InuYasha frowned. "Well, I was just curious since you were acting different. Like you were throwing away any emotion... like you were..." InuYasha didn't finish.
"Like I was Kikyou?" Kagome asked, an emotionless mask going over her features.
InuYasha nodded and Kagome sighed and looked at the path before them instead of at InuYasha. "Naraku said that emotions trigger the transformations. If I get rid of them, then it will be harder to transform. And I heard that the less emotions you have, the more power you have as a miko," Kagome said, her eyes glazing over.
"You don't need to become more powerful or give up emotions!" InuYasha shouted, glaring at Kagome.
Kagome refrained from getting angry. "Yes I do. I've felt myself changing... My aura is different," said Kagome.
InuYasha looked confused. He sniffed the air and his eyes widened in surprise. "You smell a bit like a youkai..." he whispered.
Kagome nodded, confirming what InuYasha said.
"Look, these transformations shouldn't change anything about you!" InuYasha shouted, glaring at Kagome. She didn't look at him, but he could see that her emotionless mask was slipping. "You don't have to lose your feelings, or become more powerful! You're Kagome, and I wouldn't change you for anything!"
Kagome gasped, not looking at InuYasha.
Sango and Miroku watched, wide eyed as InuYasha said the right thing for once. Shippo watched as well, but didn't seem as interested.
When the miko looked at InuYasha, she had tears in her eyes. Then, just as soon as she blinked and the tears slid down her cheeks, Kagome hugged InuYasha tightly around his neck.
"Thank you, InuYasha," Kagome said, backing up a bit, "but I do need to become a more powerful miko. Maybe I can do it without changing my feelings, but it will be hard."
Kagome let go and started to walk away, but heard Miroku say to InuYasha, "Well, I see someone was getting comfortable."
"You bastard!" InuYasha shouted, his face turning as red as a tomato. Kagome's face was turning a similar color.
"AHH!" Miroku shouted as InuYasha started to chase him in circles, threatening to pound his face into the ground.
Kagome turned around and smiled, and InuYasha stopped when he heard something he didn't think that he'd hear in a while. He stopped trying to hit Miroku into the ground and smiled as he watched Kagome get red in the face from laughing.