blanket fic

A/N * I'm getting into the groove of this story. I had thought to do a short (few chapters) story, hence the lame title. Doesn't seem to be playing out that way though. I have a few more chapters written and some more in mind. I'll keep trying to get a chapter up a day, or at the most every 2 days. I'll try to make them longer too. Oh, promises, promises.*

Disclaimer * I don't own these characters. I'll take Sesshoumaru though.* ^_~


********************************************************************************

InuYasha stood outside Kaede’s door and listened to the bantering of the others. The bonds between them had become so close that sometimes they knew exactly what the other was thinking and feeling. Miroku especially was very good at reading under the surface. It was annoying. The hanyou hated the knowing glint in the monk’s eyes when he and Kagome were together. Of course if he was really being honest, he would admit that the glint was bang on. There was a lot InuYasha felt under the surface.

Kagome was one of those thoughts that occupied much of his time lately. Kagome...

“What’s that stench?”

InuYasha grabbed his bandaged side and took off into the forest. He was becoming more apprehensive the closer he got to the smell. It was like meat, raw meat and sour sweat. And underneath that was something else. Something vaguely familiar.

In the little clearing, InuYasha looked around the carefully. There was a corpse hanging from a rope from a tree. It was bloating and bloodied and the bugs had found it now. That was where the meat smell was coming from.

“Rotting meat. Yuck. I wonder who he pissed off?” He thought.

There were other smells too. The smell of battle, like a sharp sting in the nose and the smell of despair. It lingered there. InuYasha couldn’t tell who despaired more, the attacker or the dead man. He could also smell fear. It almost brought him to his knees. He couldn’t understand why it would though. It wasn’t like he hadn’t smelt fear before. Humans almost always smelled like fear. Sometimes he thought they must live in it.

Except for her. Even when she was afraid, she smelled wonderful. He had never told her how wonderful. InuYasha wrinkled his nose and frowned. This smell, it was so strange. His heart began to pound and his breath came in short puffs.

He went over to the body and cut it down with his claws. He stepped back to avoid the disgusting cloud of stench that billowed up as the corpse settled, and promptly tripped.

“What the fuck? A backpack?”

InuYasha’s eyes grew wide with horror.

“KAGOME!” he screamed.


*******************************************************************************


InuYasha ran around the clearing, sniffing for Kagome’s scent. He was afraid. For the first time in a long time, he felt real fear. He couldn’t find it. But she had been here. Something had terrified her and the scent of it was still here. Faintly. He had to find her.

Finally, there it was, just past where her backpack lay. InuYasha took off running, trying desperately to keep the terror from consuming him.

Kagome was here. Back in his time. She was in danger, maybe hurt, and he hadn’t known. Why hadn’t he known? Why hadn’t he smelled her, sensed her, anything? He had failed to protect her. He had failed her.

Failed, again.

Tears rolled down his cheeks as he bounded through the trees. He never noticed them. They dried in the wind he created as he ran, never falling, leaving silver streaks behind.

He ran and ran. He didn’t need to use his nose anymore. Kagome had left quite the trail of broken twigs and grass. It made him hurt to see how far she had run. He could still smell her fear.

InuYasha knew he was leaving his forest and entering his brother’s lands. He was pretty sure the bastard Sesshoumaru was not nearby. He did have a nasty habit of showing up unexpectedly though. Anyway, he could deal with that asshole anytime.

There was the sound of water up ahead and InuYasha knew Kagome would go there. She had this thing about water and baths. It drove him crazy listening to her sighs, hearing the water caress her body. Bah, baths.

“Keh,” he snorted blushing. “Keep thinking stupid thoughts dumbass.”


*****************************************************************************


A/N * I liked the idea of having InuYasha scream when he found Kagome’s backpack. I was originally going to have him discover the ramen was gone and scream, “What! No ramen?” But I restrained. Next story maybe. I mean really, sometimes these characters are too funny!* ^_~