DISCLAIMER: Inuyasha and all of the canon characters featured in this fanfic are the property of Takahashi Rumiko, Sunrise, Viz and all other respective copyright owners. I do not lay claim to these characters in any way, shape or form.
Chapter 34
Her whip shot through the gloom. Another crack came as it brushed the root. The spirits gave a screech that sent her staggering. The whole cavern shuddered. Her whip went wide. She snatched it back with a gasp.
"Shit!"
"Got it!"
She hurled the whip out again. The ground lurched. She stumbled into Inuyasha. He grabbed her shoulder to steady her. She recoiled her whip before it burst.
"Damn it," he growled. He shot the spirits a glare. His left hand burst into flame. He gave her a gentle push to the side.
She laid her free hand on his arm."What are you-"
"Buying you some time. Get moving."
"No." She clutched him tighter. "That's what they-"
Another screech ripped through the air. A stream of darkness burst from the largest crack. It surged towards Kagome like a spear. She flinched back against Inuyasha. The tendrils raked past her face. They tore through the rock like a knife through parchment. The ground crumbled into rubble.
Kagome's legs collapsed with the whip burst into spray. She skidded towards the edge with a scream.
"No!"
She shot out her hand to claw back the water. It was already out of reach. Inuyasha grabbed the back of her tunic and yanked her to safety.
"Damnit, Kagome!"
"I-" She swallowed her argument with a sigh. "There's no time."
"Keh, 'course not. Like they're going to give us a fucking chance."
His words were backed by another shudder. He grabbed her under her arms and steadied her against him.
"There."
He nodded towards her feet. A small puddle pooled at her boot. It would have to do.
She reached out and drew the water towards her. She barely had a handful. It wouldn't make a snowball, let alone a whip. Her face fell.
"It's not-"
"There's more."
He nodded towards the wall. She squinted and made out a thin trickle creeping down the rock. She snatched it from the wall and set her sights on the tree's 'd have to take whatever she could get.
More wails rose from below them. Her eyes strayed towards the edge. Inuyasha nudged her shoulder.
"Forget that shit! Just keep going!"
As if she was going to stop now. She stifled her comeback and steadied the water. A faint glow spread over its surface. She took a breath and lifted her water flowed over her hand like a glove.
She reached for the nearest root. It was barely thicker than her arm. A sudden roar shook the entire cavern. The pillar shattered like a tile. The ledge crumbled beneath them.
She grabbed the root with both hands. Inuyasha let go and broke his fall with a burst of flame. Shippou burst into a bubble below him. He caught Mayu with a squeak.
Darkness surged from the rift below them. The spirits shot through screeching. The largest burst to the front of the pack. It leapt towards her with a deafening howl.
"Kagome!"
Inuyasha hurled a punch at its snout. The fox barely flinched. He readied another. The fox swatted him away with its tails. It closed on her with its fangs bared in a snarl of triumph.
"Inuyasha!"
She clenched her teeth and clung tighter. Sudden brightness flared beneath her palm. A lance of light pierced the spirit's snout. It recoiled like a snake.
Kagome held fast to the root. The light flowed outwards from her palm. It spread through the root, bathing everything in azure. The spirits cowered before her. Her grip tightened as her eyes narrowed against the glare.
The largest spirit rounded on her with a snarl. She squeezed her eyes shut. Sparks flared behind her eyelids. The cavern echoed with the foxes' shrieks. Her vision was drowned in light. She couldn't hold it any longer. The tree had taken everything she had. Her eyes rolled back into her head as the whole world turned to blue.
"Kagome!"
Inuyasha shot towards her. He made a grab for her arm. She plummeted out of his reach. His fingers snatched at empty space.
"Shit!"
He threw himself after her. Kirara streaked towards them. Sango bore down on him with iron in her eyes. He flared up his feet and burst forwards. He strained towards Kagome as she hurtled towards the rocks below.
A sudden yowl split the air. A burst of blue rose below them. Inuyasha and Kirara flinched back as one. A red streak shot past his eyes.
"No!"
Sango leapt from Kirara's back. She dove towards Kagome without a flicker of hesitation. Her fingers closed on her arm. A huge tail slammed into Sango's chest. She hit the wall unconscious.
"Sister!"
Kohaku shot out a wire and leapt after her. Kirara followed in his wake. Inuyasha could only gape.
A massive red fox hovered in the air before him. Its five tails blazed with azure fire. Its eyes were searing blue. A leash of coppery cubs trailed behind it. A few smaller adults floated below. Kagome hung unconscious from its jaws.
Not a single dark spirit remained. Relief and exhaustion crashed over him like a wave. His flames sputtered. He clawed them back with a gasp.
"Ka-"
"Inuyasha!"
Shippou shot forwards in a flash of blue. Inuyasha's focus burst like one of his bubbles. He slammed straight into his back. His tiny legs flailed to hold his shape. Two cubs swept in to hold him up. Shippou collapsed back into his usual self with a groan.
"Damnit! Wha-"
"Ugh! Just stay still! You'll-"
A low growl came from below. Kirara stood over Sango with fangs bared. Kohaku crouched beside her, a makeshift blade jutting from his vambrace. She weighed up the fox with narrowed eyes. The fox stood its ground without so much as a blink. Kirara's flames rose higher with her hackles.
Kohaku tugged at her tail. "Kirara."
She turned to him with a growl. He shook his head. Her ears flattened.
"There's too many." He backed his words with another tug."Please."
Kirara answered him with a low rumble. She turned away from the foxes with a hiss and dimmed her leapt astride her in a single bound.
Kirara lowered her head and gave Sango a gentle nudge. She didn't stir. Kirara bent down and scruffed her like a kitten. She turned her defiant glare back to the foxes. They watched without a word. She gave them a final snarland took to the air.
The spirits let her go. Their eyes turned back to Kagome. Inuyasha's chest tightened as he took in every scratch and bruise. Her face was as bloodless as the rocks. Even the Avatar could only take so much shit.
The huge fox turned away from Kirara without a sound. It drifted down towards the cavern floor. The earthbenders scrambled out of its way. Mayu stared up at it with eyes as wide as the cavern.
"Kagome!"
The spirit laid her down as gently as if she was a cub. Its fangs hadn't left so much as a scratch on her. Inuyasha leapt from the cubs' backs and stumbled to her side.
"Kagome!"
The spirit let him pass without a word. He dropped to his kneesand clutched her to his chest. She slumped against him like a broken doll. He breathed a curse.
The spirit lowered its muzzle towards him. There was no fire in its eyes. He still wasn't letting go. He glared at it from the corner of his eye.
The spirit stared straight back. It nodded towards Kagome.
She lives.
"No shit," he snapped back.
A gasp rose from the earthbenders. Shippou clapped his hand over his mouth. Inuyasha replied with a snort. Like he was supposed to be impressed by this overgrown trash bandit. Compared to the nightmares they'd faced this was practically a puppy.
A low groan came from behind him. The earthbenders started. Katashi was starting to stir. Better and better. Inuyasha turned back to the spirit with fangs bared.
It didn't even blink. Its gaze was almost amused. It gave another nod towards Kagome.
You are... friends?
Inuyasha swore the damn fox was smirking at him. Like he was the biggest joke around here. He squared his shoulders and met its stare.
"Keh. She needs a healer."
Indeed.
The fox flicked its tails towards the rest of the leash. They swarmed towards Kagome. The earthbenders scurried aside. Inuyasha stood his ground. His lips drew back as they approached.
"The fuck are-"
We will escort the Avatar to the surface.
"And the rest of us?"
Any friend of the Avatar is a friend of Hikari. The fox bent down for him to mount.
"Hikari, huh." Inuyasha's frown softened a touch. He waved towards the earthbenders. "Well. You heard them."
Katashi stayed flat on his useless arse. His eyes were almost as wide as his jaw. He tried to stammer out a reply. "B-but-"
"Keh. Just get on the damn fox already."
Inuyasha scooped up Kagome and leapt onto Hikari's back. He didn't wait for the yammering old fart to catch up.
For once Katashi didn't argue.
Kagome's eyes opened to darkness. Silence filled her ears. Her body was numb as bone. She lay frozen in panic. Her heart quickened as her memories rushed back to her. Was this-
She flinched at the clunk of a staff. A flicker of light caught the corner of her eye. She turned her gaze towards it. She held her breath and made out snatches of... a tavern song? She sat up for a closer look.
"Who's there?"
Her only reply was more singing. She strained towards the made out a few words here and there. Ones her grandfather certainly wouldn't have approved of.
She swallowed and stayed still. The light ambled towards her. The song echoed off the walls. She should've kept her mouth shrank back into the shadows as the stranger approached.
The footsteps came to a halt. The singing stopped. She blinked and glanced up at the stranger.A smiling middle-aged monk peered down at her.A familiar spark twinkled in his eyes.
"Miro-"
"Kagome!"
She started awake. Her eyes stung with unfamiliar light. She sat up with a groan and rubbed at them.
She wakes.
The deep voice echoed inside her skull. She flinched and toppled backwards as her battles caught up with her in a rush. Someone's hand snatched her arm before she could fall. She gaped up at Inuyasha. Before she could say another word they were engulfed in a cloud of auburn fur.
"Wha-"
Inuyasha brushed the fur aside with a snort. "Already there, Hikari."
"Hikari?"
Kagome blinked and took stock of her surroundings. They were making their way through a tunnel. Ghostly blue orbs hovered above their heads. There wasn't so much as a whisp of a dark spirit. Strangest of all, they were sat on something warm and soft, cradled by a huge fluffy… tail? She gave another start.
"Shi-Shippou?" she squeaked.
Your friend is well.
Kagome raised her head with a swallow. An enormous red fox peered down at her. A polar bear dog would be a mere puppy beside it. It fangs were longer and sharper than any blade. Its jaws could swallow a eyes were sharp but not unkind.
"Oh!"
The fox acknowledged her with a nod. No breath came from its slender snout. She shivered all the same.
I thank you for our freedom, Avatar.
She shook her head. Somehow, they'd survived. That was enough for her. She leaned forwards to peer past the fox's head. "Is-"
"Kagome!"
Mayu waved to her from a smaller fox's back. This one glittered like burnished copper. It acknowledged her with a flick of its twin tails.
"Mayu!" She beamed in relief. "Where's-"
"Here!" Shippou hopped onto the fox's head and gave her another wave. "Everyone's here, Kagome."
"Everyone?"
She took in the procession with widened eyes. Satoru sat behind Mayu. The earthbenders sat or slumped atop the larger foxes. Even Katashi was there, although he was mercifully silent for once. Moon knew where Kohaku and company had got to. She sank back against Inuyasha as the fear drained from her body. He steadied her with his free hand.
"You're all okay?"
"You're asking us?" Mayu's face scrunched into its familiar frown. "You almost-"
"Uh, guys?" Satoru broke in. "We've got company."
"Great," Inuyasha muttered.
Kagome sat up for a closer look. Inuyasha kept a careful grip on her tunic. She squinted through the gloom and made out a lantern wandering towards them.
"Who's there?"
"Aome?"
The voice was human enough. She still wasn't taking any chances. She tightened her grip on Hikari's fur as she weighed her words. Inuyasha gave her shoulder the faintest of squeezes.
"Show yourselves."
More lights winked into view. Nervous faces emerged from the gloom. A low murmur rose as they took in their unlikely lot. A woman's voice broke through the mutterings.
"Mayu?"
Mayu gave a gasp. She slid down from the fox's back before Satoru could pull her back. It let her pass with a bemused blink. She pushed her way to the head of the procession and stared up at the villagers before them.
"M-Mum?"
Constructive criticism is very welcome!
