Kagome was reluctant to be alone with Naraku, but she also knew that she would have to humor him if she wanted answers. He lit a torch and led her off down the beach. After several minutes, her patience was gone.
"Tell me again what happened on the day Hojo disappeared," she pressed.
"Kagome, why do you want to relive such a—?" he started.
"Tell me," she demanded. "Now that I'm here, I want to understand what happened to him. And if there's any chance of finding him…." Her voice trailed off.
"Kagome, he's dead. No man could have survived in this jungle."
"There are native peoples who live here," she snarled, pulling him to a stop.
"Who are cutthroat and savage!" Naraku told her flatly. "And there are youkai galore that will not hesitate to kill a man. And eat him."
She shuddered.
"I'm sorry. I don't mean to frighten you, but-"Naraku apologized, but Kagome would have none of it.
"Did you see any of those natives while you were here?" she asked.
"We encountered no one," he insisted.
"What happened that day?" she asked again.
Naraku narrowed his eyes at her insistence, but began to speak.
SSSSSSSSSSSSSss
Kagome climbed the ladder into the treehouse to find her mother waiting for her.
"Are you alright, dear?" she asked.
"I'm fine, mama," Kagome said. She didn't want to worry her mother, and she had a lot to think about. "I'm exhausted, though. I think I'll go to bed now."
She kissed her mother goodnight and made her way to her room, securing the door solidly. As she readied for bed, she went over what she'd learned and tried to determine what to do next.
Naraku had told her that he and Hojo had headed through the jungle and into the mountains, but that on the way Hojo had dropped one of their bags into a ravine. Provisions and ammunition being precious, he'd climbed down after it, disappearing into the crags and overhangs. Naraku had never seen him again.
When she'd pressed about what they were doing in the mountains, he'd admitted they were after diamonds. It was crazy! It made no sense. Hojo wasn't a treasure hunter, he was an herbologist and wanna-be travel guru. He was supposed to be here searching for new medicinal plants and scouting the area for possible future tourism.
She demanded that Naraku show her this ravine, determined to set out the very next morning, when something had rustled in the bushes, distracting them both. Once the threat was past, if there ever was one, Naraku had once again propositioned her.
When she had again refused, he'd laughed at her and told her she'd be begging for him before they left. He made it a promise. Kagome shuddered. Her gaze turned to the window, and her thoughts to another man who vied for her attention.
Was he out there somewhere? That strange, dog eared man? A little shiver coursed down her spine, ending in a flicker of heat deep inside. Was he watching her this very moment, from some high perch? She turned from the window, unwilling to indulge in foolish fantansy. Surely he'd disappeared into the depths of the jungle, back to wherever he lived.
But who was he? What was he? Had he ever seen Hojo? That thought went round and round in her mind. It seemed obvious that the wild man had been living on his own in the jungle for some time— he was completely uncivilized and could hardly communicate. He must have been away from other humans for years, perhaps even since he was a child.
If Hojo had somehow managed to survive in the jungle after being "lost," perhaps the wild man had seen him. Kagome looked back out through the window, moving close enough that she could feel the breeze. But it was a vast, dark, dangerous jungle. She shook her head. It would have been unlikely that the two men crossed paths. She sighed. Most likely her fiancé had fallen to his death or been otherwise killed when he was separated from Naraku. She had to accept that fact.
This decided, although she knew with the morning she would probably change her mind, she slipped into bed, her body weary. It had been a long day.
SSSSSSSSSSSSsss
She must have slept, for all at once she was awake.
A hard, warm body lay next to hers. Hands stroked her from shoulders to hips. Long, soft hair brushed against her as she opened her eyes to find the wild man in her bed. He looked at her a moment, waiting. She reached out a hand in tentative welcome. It was enough. His head lowered and then his mouth was everywhere: on her breast, sucking and pulling her nipple taut… on her neck, his tongue sleek as it slid along the length of the sensitive tendon there… then he was covering her mouth, warm and strong and demanding. "Woman," he groaned.
Kagome could hardly breathe. Was this real or was she merely dreaming? It sure seemed real enough. Either way, she had no intention of ruining this opportunity. She clutched at him wildly, running her hands over hard, sleek muscle. She felt the power in him, the danger barely leashed. She didn't care. She wanted more this, all of this and she would have it!
His hand found its way between her legs again, and she arched up with a silent cry as he stroked her there. Kagome's own hands weren't idle, she reached up and buried them in his luxurious hair, kneading his scalp and working her way up to his ears. The first touch made him shudder, his whole body going taut.
"Woman," he growled again, needy and slightly breathless.
"Yes," she agreed breathlessly. "Do you have a name?"
He ignored her in favor of tasting her some more with his wicked tongue and letting his fingers explore even further.
She tugged a lock of his white hair, determined to at least know this much.
"Your name?" she asked. "Won't you tell me your name?"
He growled again, a deep warning sound as she continued to tug his hair. Finally he broke off long enough to glare at her. She smiled, and tried a different tact.
"Kagome," she said. "My name is Kagome. What is yours?"
He bared his fangs at her, gritted out, "Man," once more and returned to his previous activities.
###########
It was some time later when she woke again. He was there, crouched at the window. The curve of his muscles and the square width of his shoulders were outlined by the silvery celestial light of moon and stars. A soft breeze stirred his hair.
He was positioned such that she could see only a hint of his features: the bare outline of his mouth and the slender length of his nose. His ears moved constantly, but one kept returning to monitor her. One hand curved around the window frame next to him. Their eyes met when he turned and even from the distance, in the faulty light, she read the heat in his. Desire blazed there.
"Woman," came a very hoarse whisper from the shadowy figure. "Kagome." His arm moved, sleek and muscular, gesturing toward her. Then his hand shifted, settling back into the shadow of his torso as if pointing to himself. "Man. InuYasha."
Kagome was still struggling to get her bearings. But it took only a moment for her to realize that their earlier encounter had not been a dream. They had not completed the act, as Kagome had once again managed to stop him with a 'no'.
He'd snarled a terrible snarl at her then, and before she could stop him or explain he'd shot off the bed and was gone. She had only been afraid her mother or grandfather would overhear them and interfere. Worse, Naraku was likely to show up with his guns, and she definitely did not want that.
She had been a long time in sleeping, replaying the encounter over and over in her mind.
But now? The wild man had come back. His golden gaze held hers and she felt anticipation pounding through her in time with her heart pounding. Her fingers trembling, she raised her hand toward him.
"Man," she said, "InuYasha." And then she beckoned to him. "Come."
If she'd expected him to leap from the window and launch himself ravenously upon her, she found herself disappointed. For a moment, he didn't move, and she thought perhaps he didn't understand, or was now refusing her. But he'd stilled, as if holding his breath. The chamber became very quiet. Expectant. As if something sparked or sizzled. At last, he climbed from his perch on the window, smoothly and gracefully, into the room, bringing with him that scent that she realized she craved.
He stood for a moment, looking down at her. She heard his breathing shift, as if he allowed himself to draw in a deep breath at last, and she felt, rather than saw, him inhale her essence, sniffing, as a wild beast would do when scenting its prey. She shivered, but it wasn't in fear.