Chapter 11.-Joining the dots
Whispers of a dream clung to her, like tendrils of mist wrapping around her consciousness.
Almost like deja-vu
She'd been a child once more inside that watercolor world, a scene from her memories playing again. Carefree, she'd play within the shrine grounds as her parents talked with her grandfather about adult stuff. She didn't mind; something about the Goshinboku always felt special somehow, different; it called to her, and the girl would happily ignore the cool breeze and run around the massive tree while chasing imaginary creatures. And then, the rosy pastels of the world seemed to darken as a boy just seemed to appear out of nowhere, silently sitting in front of her, his back leaning against the sacred tree. It wasn't quite the same this time. The childish naïveté that blurred her understanding had faded, and Kagome knew all too well that the sadness inside those eyes was far deeper than she could've understood back then. But she knew what resignation looked like now. He'd been a child, just like her, but he'd already accepted his fate, not even trying to fight what would've been a grim end. Dreams and memories seemed to untangle, the dark stains seeming to glow crimson, and this time, trying to convince herself the blood covering the boy belonged just to him was nothing but an exercise in futility. Still, she was sure the only person left breathing in his version of the clearing was Itachi himself, he had to have been surrounded by corpses. Even then, the girl scrambled to reach him.
Rough hands covered hers once she tried to help him.
Crimson eyes looked at her. They were as calm and kind as always. And lurking underneath that lull was something else. Something new. Something that she'd seen before. A very specific sort of fear that had flooded golden eyes when human blood had stained his hands.
Words swirled around one another, none making it past her lips as the colors of her dream began to vanish, loosing their vibrancy, its tendrils too weak to hold on to her waking consciousness.
The soft sound of pages being flipped was the first thing that registered in her mind; the rhythm was increasingly familiar, reassuring, in a way. For a second, the girl couldn't help but feel a little lost before realizing she was lying down inside Kaede-baachan's hut. Embarrassment flushed through her as the memories came rushing back, and suddenly, staying asleep for another while didn't sound like a bad idea. Gods, the last thing she wanted was to worry the others, but then she went and passed out for who knows how long. Really, if the gods could open up a hole in the ground to swallow her whole, the miko wouldn't complain.
Kagura ended up running away again.
But….it hadn't been all bad, had it?
Yes, fainting was far from ideal, and having the wind witch flee was beyond frustrating, however, at the end of the day, Kagome succeeded. Her barrier held. Compared to what Miroku-sama could do on a smaller scale, it was weak, flimsy, and Itachi kept to his word, making sure the fiery inferno he conjured didn't even touch it. Neither the monk nor Kaede-baachan would've been able to create a barrier that large without extensive preparations. In the middle of a crisis, when just a pebble had shattered her concentration only a few days ago, Kagome pulled it off. Without her, things could've ended way worse. There was no other way to put it, she'd been useful. Not just because of a fluke either; that barrier was the direct result of her own efforts. As long as she kept up with her training, perhaps Kagome would actually have a chance of escaping her shadow.
Honestly, the realization was bittersweet.
Months were wasted away in resignation as she believed her potential started and ended with being able to detect and cleanse the Shikon shards. Any other accomplishment was quickly chalked up to random miracles born out of desperation. Too unreliable to be considered useful. Brave, if a little headstrong, stubborn but open-minded, maybe a little impulsive when she felt insulted (because there was no way to defend her decision to chase Sesshoumaru to his father's tomb when Inuyasha hadn't cared in the slightest), those descriptions fit her, and the girl would've been more than happy to agree with it, flaws and all. And yet, a couple of failed attempts were enough to convince her she wouldn't catch up to her friends. She'd given up on herself too early.
Azure eyes opened slightly, finding the young warrior's form sitting close to a dim lamp.
Itachi was reading one of the books he'd borrowed from her grandfather (one that wouldn't be too sorely missed if something were to happen because there was a limit to what plastic bags could do), he almost looked at home. Kagome had learned to pay attention to the silence though, and there was no mistaking what that flash of an unguarded look said about the young man. He'd given up on himself.
Frustrating questions piled up and the miko didn't have a single answer. Whatever sins this war of his had forced upon his hands, the older teen had made sure not to make even a passing insinuation, gently steering her away whenever she'd try to get too close. Leaving her with nothing but vague niceties that'd be too generic to offer any sort of comfort. Clenching her hands around the rough blanket covering her, she frowned. Yes, he was trying to keep his past hazy, but despite how easy it'd be, he hadn't lied. And be it whatever was left of the bond that tied them together or just the intuition she'd gained after falling through time, something told her he wouldn't do it, even if she pressed the issue. For now, however, she'd have to find a way to make it clear that regardless of his past, she wouldn't give up on him.
Determined, the girl went to sit up, pushing herself off the ground only to feel the old futon slide under her palm. A yelp escaped her lips, her elbow painfully hitting the ground in the worst possible spot. Her eyes closed shut, heat burning her cheeks as she barely managed to catch herself.
"Kagome?"
"Just slipped!" Her voice was rough as she tried to wave away the slight worry in the one word the warrior uttered. "I'm fine."
Peeking through her eyelashes, the girl could see Itachi's hand not quite daring to touch her, hovering close to her arm, ready to catch her if necessary. Her grandfather's book forgotten on the floor. Taking a second to make sure she wouldn't fall, the young warrior moved to hand her a water bottle. Grateful for the excuse to get some time to cool down her embarrassment, Kagome busied herself taking sips of the clear liquid. Glancing at him, Itachi was settling back down, carefully picking up the book.
No, she wasn't going to sit back down and stay quiet.
Wary not to slip again, Kagome moved to sit in front of him. It was a bit childish, but she went through with it anyway, lightly flicking his nose, earning a genuine look of confusion. Being careful not to push too fast was one thing, but letting him pull away was another matter entirely. Especially when she knew exactly why he was attempting to place some distance.
"Stop it." She was being blunt, but this was probably the fastest way to get her words to sink in. "We're not…I'm not afraid, it's not going to happen."
"That's not…" he started.
"Really?" Kagome sighed as dark eyes flickered down for just a heartbeat. "We already knew you were strong, and even this isn't all you can do, is it?"
"It wasn't exactly a basic skill, however, that…" he hesitated a little.
"Do you know why I'm the only one who can carry the Shikon shards?"The change in topics was abrupt, but he still replied. At the shake of his head, the girl continued. "That's because I'm the only one who can carry them and keep the shards from becoming corrupted. Once the shards are tainted, they start to influence whoever is around them. Not just with light compulsions either. They can entirely take over someone's desires. Regular humans have no way of protecting themselves, but monks and priestesses can become victims too. When they're corrupted enough, Miroku-sama refuses to even get near them. Among youkai…Kouga has to be careful not to get too close to strong miasma or he'll need me to cleanse them. Honestly, I think the only person I've come across that can be in direct contact with a tainted shard without losing themselves is Sesshoumaru." But then again, the inu-daiyoukai was in a league of his own. "The shard you picked up was definitely contaminated, but you gave it to me without hesitating.
"I mean, it's not like it's a test of morals or anything. Gods, if I tried to say Sesshoumaru was a good person, he'd probably try to kill me again." Laughter escaped her at the imagined visual, it really was beyond ridiculous. "But it is a sign of how strong someone's will is."
"Kill you…again?"
"Ahem, let's not focus on that," Kagome rushed to say, ignoring the slight shock in the warrior's face. "What I'm trying to say is…I trust you. I believe you won't harm us, besides, I'm not easy to scare away."
"That's quite the bold statement," he smiled at her, his expression softening just a little.
"Hmm, there's a lot I don't know or can't understand." Falling through the well had served to show her how more complex things could be and how shallow some of her views were. "But this world is not that simple; things are never black and white, of that, I'm certain."
Morality was…tricky. For all that people seemed intent on calling her a good person, Kagome could never pretend to know what made a good person. Nuance was complicated and headache-inducing in most cases. The sort of actions that would lead to someone being hauled as a hero in the Sengoku era could end with a one-way trip to prison. Context could make a world of difference. Taking another person's life in a war couldn't be judged in the same way as killing others for fun, and considering Itachi couldn't have been older than maybe ten when they met, then the older teen had lived most of his life in active combat. Whatever he'd done to warrant that fleeting look of fear was likely far more complex than anything she could come up with, and that's precisely why she needed to hear the full story.
Perhaps once they were back in the relative privacy the modern era afforded them, she could try and start to poke around.
Hopefully, mama would've found a helpful book or two she could understand without needing a major-level background on PTSD or the like by the time they jumped down the well.
"You've already helped me so much, of course I trust you." With a soft smile on her lips, the girl moved to sit next to him, leaning on the wall and letting her left hand rest on top of his. "So you can trust me a little too."
"Winning against your logic is no easy feat, I see." Ghost laughter tinged his voice as he moved to let his fingers close around hers.
"Good arguments are kind of a must for an older sibling, right?" Relief flooded through her when he didn't pull away. "I told you I don't scare easily, Sesshoumaru fully intended to melt me with his acid, but we're kind of polite with each other now, despite me not really using keigo."
"I'm sorry…what?" For the second time in a single conversation, Itachi seemed at a loss for words.
"Oh...ahahaha, never mind that." Waving with her free hand, the girl's laugh was a little too high-pitched. "Turns out Tessaiga's protective barrier is quite good, and it works for humans just as well. Other than nearly suffocating, nothing happened. Didn't even get a scratch." From his almost successful attempt to kill her, that is. Stumbling and falling on top of countless broken bones left her with a collection that felt like a million paper cuts when it was time to disinfect them. The last thing she wanted was to risk getting some sort of demonic rabies. "Inuyasha ended up slicing his arm off, so really, you could say we broke even. Plus, a daiyoukai like Sesshoumaru is pretty reliable as an ally, I swear. Anyway, is that one of gramp's anthologies?"
Even Shippo would've been able to see through her frankly pathetic attempt to change the topic, but she needed to stop talking because Itachi's grip on her hand had noticeably tightened more with every word that left her tongue.
From the moment she'd pulled him into this world, Itachi had done everything to help her out, and in every conflict they'd ended up involved with, he always made sure she didn't get hurt. Back when the girl referenced the less-than-ideal circumstances surrounding her first meeting with her friends, he'd remained remarkably calm, even telling her that her forgiving nature was a sign of strength. Something told her, however, that every time she carelessly mentioned how much danger she'd encountered in the past, the young warrior tensed up, and it wouldn't surprise her if he ended up with high blood pressure thanks to her. Not that Kagome could blame him, but there really was no need for him to worry retroactively. At least it looked like Itachi wasn't thinking about whatever had caused that fear to flash in his eyes anymore, silver linings, she supposed.
Dark eyes were locked on her, she didn't need to glance up and see him to know, she could feel his gaze. There was no hiding the rush of heat on her cheeks. Thankfully, Itachi seemed as unwilling to call her out as she was to intrude on his past, because he gave a sigh and lightly pulled on her hand, inciting her to sit a little closer. Settling at his right, Kagome couldn't help but find his warmth reassuring as her embarrassment cooled down. Gods, she was doing an excellent job working herself up.
"It's a collection of folktales and myths," he explained, placing the book in between them. "Some parts are bound to be inaccurate, but even then, it's quite interesting."
"You're quite a curious person, aren't you? Ah, but shouldn't you be resting too? I mean, you didn't sleep at all last night, and you had to have used more energy than me."
"Staying awake for a full night isn't exactly something new to me." The older teen shook his head. "I'm really not that tired."
"Alright then, I'll let it go this time…ah, we've fought an oni before."
Blinking a couple of times at her third sudden change of topics, Itachi still seemed willing to humor her. It'd still take some time for the others to get back here, so the girl was happy to get comfortable, leaning a little on him, making comments every time she found a youkai she could confirm exited, answering whatever question the young warrior had about the anthology's accuracy. He seemed to relax at her side, she wasn't sure how much of the interest he showed in the book right now was for her sake, but the girl found herself appreciating it all the same. And if the fact that he'd made no move to take his hand away from hers left her feeling a little too relieved…well, she could always pretend she was just glad he could feel welcome in this world.
Acceptance wasn't something he was used to.
Hanyous were just wrong enough to be reviled by both human and youkai societies, and that was a truth Inuyasha came to terms with a long time ago. It was just natural, there was no point dwelling or getting upset about it. No one had bothered to offer a hand to him without demanding something from him. Until Kagome showed up. He loved Kikyo, he truly did, but he wasn't an idiot. The village priestess was willing to hear him out, share her own feelings with him, but she'd asked him to change, and while he'd managed to ignore the whispers on the back of his head that questioned how solid their relationship was back when they were together, he couldn't pretend not to notice them now.
Everything was different now.
The people in the village greeted him when he passed by in a way that would've been unthinkable 50 years ago. Hell, children would come up to him and there were no angry yells or worried glare sent in his direction anymore. Not to mention, Miroku and Sango and all the others who trusted him and would watch his back whenever the fighting started. All of it because of this out-of-time, idealistic girl who had no clue how the world worked.
Unsurprisingly, Kagome was sheltered, naïve to the point of foolishness and so damn reckless that someone had to constantly protect her to make sure she didn't get herself killed by being too fucking forgiving. As someone who grew up without knowing how to fight, the futuristic miko was weak, always having to improvise and rely on someone else. And Inuyasha…he was happy with the status quo. Because even the hanyou wasn't shameless enough to demand her affection when he couldn't give his own in return. So he was satisfied to take on the job of her protector and stay by her side for as long as he could. It was only natural for him to be the one to pick up that role either way. No one in their group was stronger than him, so only the hanyou was capable of carrying the burden of having to look after their weakest link during battle. Except…maybe Kagome wasn't the weakest member of their group.
Kikyo had never been able to cast a barrier that big, and she?
Miroku had confirmed the improvised shield wasn't exactly stable, but the scale wasn't something the monk had seen before. Not when only one person was maintaining it. If the girl's training kept going, then her barriers could become quite a useful technique in a fight. It hadn't been that long since she started the whole thing. And now, Sango was also teaching her hand-to-hand combat. How long would it take before the modern miko no longer needed anyone to protect her? No. Even before that…for the last couple of battles, the first one to reach the girl wasn't him either.
Blood clung to the scent of the so-called warrior in the way it only did to those who lived by leaving a crimson trail behind them. And his little fire-show proved how much he was hiding. Itachi was dangerous, but it was painfully clear that he wanted to keep Kagome safe. Despite how much of a mess those stupid insects caused, there wasn't a single scratch on her skin. And of course, the innocent girl who was willing to forgive him and the others for wanting to harm them during their first meeting would never push the warrior away when he was helping her. Besides, it looked like the male had adapted to the weird things and customs that filled Kagome's time with the same ease he had when it came to living in this era. He could use her confusing machines and explain the pointless books she insisted on carrying for that school thing of hers. There were things Itachi didn't understand, of course, but the human was always reading or asking questions.
How would Itachi fare against Naraku? With him here, sticking close to the blue-eyed miko, what role was left for anyone to take?
Claws dug into his palm.
She was still sitting next to him even though everyone else had trickled back into Kaede's hut after making a couple of rounds and reassuring the villagers that everything was ok, right at his side. One of those books of hers loosely held between both of them.
"Is everybody alright?"
'Apart from a slight delay in some of the fieldwork, it doesn't appear like there're any major losses," the monk replied to Kagome's question with a soothing tone. "Though some of them may be a bit more fearful of insects now."
"We might owe Kouga one. I'm not sure we would've found those villages if we hadn't run into him." Sango shook her head and gave a tired sigh.
"Ha, we're letting him run around with the hands, I say he's the one who owes us," the hanyou scoffed, crossing his arms. "Should've known Naraku was involved with this shit."
"Cruel as always…at least we now know why he's been so quiet lately." Miroku's face mirrored the demon exterminator's exhaustion.
"Err…about that…" Blue eyes flickered around the room, Kagome's voice was filled with hesitation, but she seemed to get enough resolve to speak again after looking at the human warrior. "Did anything feel different about this?"
"What do you mean?"
"I'm not too sure myself." The girl shook her head at Sango's question. "But something was off…sloppy, maybe?"
Fidgeting, the girl glanced at the hanyou but it was impossible not to notice how quickly she looked away only to shuffle a little closer to the warrior. It was subtle, but the male gave a light nod and Kagome seemed to relax. As if that gesture had been enough to give her comfort. Irritation clawed inside his guts, his mind refusing to really think about the possible reasoning behind her words.
"Keh, if you're so tired you're spouting nonsense just go back to sleep, wench."
"Now that you mention it, Kagome-sama," Miroku glared at him, a clear warning to watch his words. "One could argue it was more directionless than usual."
"Directionless?" Disbelief gained the silver-haired male's voice. "The whole damn village was about to be destroyed." Had they kept going in a different direction, they would've returned to a massacre. "The hell about that is aimless?"
"Why, we almost didn't face the insects, for one. Besides…I struggle to find a clear goal."
"Right, even if he succeeded and wiped out the village, it's not like any of us will get scared off or run away." The girl's blue eyes were bright once more as she looked straight at him, challenging him to interrupt her. "And even if we were here and failed to get rid of all of the insects in one blow, odds of one of us dying weren't that high."
Goal? Aim?
That bastard was a sadistic fuck who enjoyed making others suffer. There had to be a hundred ways to get his slimy hands on the shards the demon slayers kept, but Naraku had chosen to eradicate every single exterminator and then tried to use Sango to do his dirty work for him. Hell, if the asshole had just taken the Shikon instead of trying to make a show of having Inuyasha and Kikyo kill each other, none of this would've happened. All of the spider's plans were convoluted messes that caused as much pain and destruction as possible. It was all the bastard cared for, there was no reason for them to be wasting time on things that were as plain and simple as the clear blue skies.
Golden eyes found the group's newest addition. As usual, the male was silent, staying on the outside, but his gaze was fixed on the time-traveling miko. And then, Itachi closed his eyes only to open his mouth for the first time since they regrouped.
"Has he done this before?" His voice was dull, just like always.
"Unless Naraku has decided to change his pattern, lying low tends to lead to a big attack of some sort." The monk looked pensive as he continued to explain. "Although, I supposed there have been exceptions."
"Whenever we're close to finding him there's always a big attack," Sango added.
"Yeah, that one's out." The hanyou scoffed again. "The only thing we've been doing is wasting our time by going to all those temples and shit."
Because the girl was nice, she insisted on going to one shrine after another temple, searching for something no one was asking for. Her stubbornness in researching other worlds, or dimensions, or whatever was getting them nowhere. All it did was remind the hanyou there was someone else in the group taking over the spot next to the time-traveling girl. Someone who shouldn't belong, but seemed to seamlessly fit in regardless.
"Is it such an impossibility for this Naraku character to use a temple or a shrine as a shield while he hides inside?" Polite, calm, almost bored, it was as if nothing could shake this guy.
"Demons aren't exactly welcome in holy land." His tone was definitely rude, but Inuyasha couldn't care less. "Not that hard of a concept to understand."
"Thanks to Miroku-san and Kagome's petitions, exceptions were made. Even though some shrines refused, a wandering monk's word was enough for others to breach their barriers." Itachi wasn't even trying to pick up a fight, and yet his voice was irritating.
"Fooling a priest or a monk…is certainly within his capabilities." Miroku didn't even let him try to talk.
That much…had been proved already.
Humans or youkais, it didn't matter. The spider had shown himself to be a manipulator, even convincing his asshole of a half-brother to use a shard once. Sure, Sesshoumaru wasn't fully caught in the trap, and his plan backfired, leaving Naraku with one more enemy chasing his tail, but being able to use the proud Inuyasha daiyoukai even once was impressive on its own.
Most holy people wouldn't give a hanyou the time of day, but there were exceptions, and under the right circumstances, perhaps they could be convinced to vouch for a halfbreed. After all, it wouldn't be hard to arrange an attack on some random innocent humans and then pretend to be the savior, earning enough goodwill from some softer-hearted monk.
What better place to hide away than inside a sacred place?
Before Itachi suddenly appeared in their time, none of them had any reason to go temple hopping, so even if they happened to get close to the place, the holy barrier would mess with both his nose and Miroku's senses. It'd be so easy for them to walk right by that bastard without noticing a single thing. And if Naraku then heard about the group going through a string of shrines, it'd make sense for this attack to be so sloppy. From his perspective, Inuyasha and the others had decided to look into places they'd never been interested in visiting before. With only that information, thinking the group had somehow learned about his genius hiding spot was the most natural conclusion. Panicking and sending out a slow swarm of insects to shift their focus in a different direction was a decent move.
It was the only different action they'd taken lately.
"Naraku is the kind of monster to pull something like that." Every word Sango spoke dripped with hatred.
"Perhaps we should prioritize going to temples, even if their legends and myths aren't related to our previous search." The monk, it seemed, was already convinced of the merits of the suggestion. "Of course, we should still keep our ears open to any rumor we come by."
"You're serious...you really wanna go hunting for Naraku in shrines?"
"Shrines, temples," Miroku replied as if he didn't hear the forced disbelief in the hanyou's question. "Sacred grounds in general."
"It's the best lead we have, the only one, if we're being honest." Kagome jumped back in, pouting.
The girl was right. Even if they were wrong and the insects truly were the big attack the spider had been preparing, they had nothing else to go on. At this point, even Inuyasha could admit the whole thing wasn't as unreasonable as he'd first thought. It was worth a try. But chasing this lead meant they'd had to keep dealing with the holier-than-thou assholes that tended to isolate themselves in those places. Disgusted glares directed at him and Shippo were far too common in there. Half of the shrines that accepted them would either stick them in a heavily warded room, or wait in a garden for the others to finish their research. Then again, the hanyou figured he wasn't used to being welcomed with open arms anywhere anyway. If anything, those wary glares were familiar.
"Fine, let's pretend this isn't insane." With a huff, the hanyou gave up.
"Well, if we're all in agreement then, what follows is to determine what direction to take." The monk gave him a nod. "Do we believe the insects' path points to Naraku's hideout, or is that one more misdirection?"
"Attacking the village was a ploy to mislead us, I don't think he'd leave us such an obvious trail," Sango too seemed convinced.
"So, where we getting close to him last week?" The hanyou couldn't help but ask.
"We could always look all around. See if we can get anything else."
The words he was going to say got stuck in his throat as his eyes fell on the miko.
Kagome was glancing at the so-called warrior once more, fading into the background together with him. Itachi had gone back to the book, looking up every so often, making it clear that the black-haired male was still paying close attention to the conversation, flickering towards the miko as if he was checking in on her before going back to the text. The hanyou did his best to focus on the others, despite his gaze returning to the two humans sitting side by side. He could see her nodding off, eyelids starting to close as her head fell on the warrior's shoulder, her breathing evening out as she fell asleep. Of course, she did. The girl had tired herself so much that she passed out and she'd only rested for about an hour or two, she needed more rest. But watching the male shift to make her more comfortable made his claws dig into his skin again.
Dark eyes met golden.
Impassive and cold, it felt like the man was looking through him. There was no obvious disdain or judgment, but Inuyasha hated it all the same. Huffing, the hanyou jumped to his feet, brushing the others off, Inuyasha went out of the hut, they were currently going on in circles, trying to figure out just how many steps Naraku had been planning ahead. Really, this was another one of those conversations the hanyou felt no need to stay in, sitting there, pretending he wasn't bothered by the innocent contact in front of him. He almost jumped on the roof before deciding against it. They were in the middle of the village, and even if something happened, they should be fine for the few seconds it took for him to get back. It's not like he was planning on going too far. Sleeping on one of the trees at the border of the village would work out well.
Right now, all he wanted was some space.
He had no right, he reminded himself, and he had no one to blame but himself.
Letting go of the past wasn't something simple for him to do, that's why it took him so long to stop pretending he hatted Kagome for being Kikyo's reincarnation. He'd hold onto his hurt and anger, but the girl was even more stubborn than Inuyasha himself, refusing to let him stew in self-pity. So he tried to let go of it, hesitant but willing to take that offered hand. It took some time, but he finally thought he was ready to start moving on. And then Kikyo was back. Walking in the living world and full of rage and hatred, and the hanyou realized there was no way he could let go. Because, even if it wasn't as warm or easy, the love she'd had for him was real too, Kikyo was the first person to ever give him a chance. He'd loved her too, and even now, that emotion lingered. Guilt mixed with the embers of affection and refused to die out, no matter how dangerous it was. Not just for him either. The undead miko was willing to hurt others in her desire for revenge, even if they were innocent, and it was painfully obvious that she held contempt for her reincarnation. As much as he wanted to believe the Kikyo that consumed the souls of women filled with regret or resentment wouldn't harm Kagome or the others, he wasn't an idiot.
Tired, he looked up at the moon shining above him.
Worrying about the things like that now was pointless. Forcing himself to take a deep breath, the hanyou closed his eyes. Unlike humans, the silver-haired male didn't need nearly as much sleep, he could make do for a couple of days before exhaustion knocked him out, but he'd spent all of last night running and if Itachi was right, they might finally get the chance to find Naraku. Being drowsy and distracted wasn't a good idea. His senses were sharp enough to alert him in case something got close to the village and Inuyasha wouldn't have to ignore the blood-soaked scent of their newest addition.
A/N: I'm so sorry for the delay, I ended up loosing this chapter thanks to a power outage and had to rewrite it but just kept editing the thing trying to get it to be as close as possible to the one I remembered over and over only to realize if I kept doing that I could keep it up until the heat death of the universe. Also, grammarly is driving me insane so there might be more mistakes than usual so…sorry again. Anyway, at last, here goes the set up.
Thank you guys so much for reading and any and all reviews/comments/criticisms are greatly appreciated.