Dealings of the Heart

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~ % ~ IK ~ % ~

Dealings of the Heart
By: ChibiInuTai

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Chapter 7: Shippou, the Kitsune!

Sandy orange hair blew in the wind as he ran through the forest. Emerald green eyes scanned the surrounding forest, searching for any sign of life. A tree branch scraped the side of his face as he ran blindly through the forest. He had been running for a day non-stop, ‘I must find lord Kouga!’ he kept running north as fast as his small legs would carry him, ‘for dad…’

~ % ~ Flashback ~ % ~

It was a bright and sunny morning near the southern border of the northern lands. A small Kitsune kit stood on a boulder by a small stream. Shippou was his name. He had been practicing with his fox magic all morning so he could impress his father. ‘I must get better!’ Shippou thought as he concentrated. A small pile of wood was piled nearby, surrounded by a small rock barrier

Shippou jumped up in the air and raised his hand. “Kitsune-Bi!” the young kit shouted as a blue fire formed in his hand. He threw the fire at the wood and it caused the wood to catch fire. Shippou jumped up in the air excitedly, “I finally did it! I can use Kitsune-Bi!” Shippou grabbed the bucket he had placed near the boulder and filled it with water from the stream

“Shippou!” Shippou looked up to see his father running towards him and a smile spread across his face. Shippou quickly put out the fire and watched as his father ran towards him. His father picked him up while he was running and hopped across the stream. Shippou noticed his father started running north, usually meaning trouble

“Dad? What’s happening?” Shippou asked while they ran, ‘something’s wrong!’ Suddenly the sky began to cloud over

“Shit! They found me!” Shippou’s father stopped in his tracks and set Shippou down, “Shippou…hide in the tree cover and if I tell you to run then run!” Shippou nodded and ran into the surrounding trees

‘Please be ok dad…’ Shippou thought as his father got into fighting stance

“Come out I know you’re there!” Shippou’s father yelled. There was a flash of lightning and two demons stepped out of the forest on the opposite side of Shippou. The taller demon had coal black hair tied back into a braid and fiery red eyes. The shorter of the two was fat and looked like an overgrown toad. He had no hair atop his head and a long black braid at the back, his eyes also fiery red in color

“So you knew we were there huh?” the taller one said amusedly

“Who are you?” Shippou’s father asked angrily, “What have we ever done to you?”

“I am Hiten and this is my brother Manten,” the taller one informed him, “and you will return the Shikon shards you stole from us or you will die.” Shippou watched as his father reached into his kimono and pulled something out

“You mean these?” Shippou’s father asked as he showed them three pink shards. Hiten nodded and Shippou’s father smirked. “You wont have them, they are now belonging to Lord Kouga!” Shippou whipped around and threw the shards into the forest where Shippou lay hidden

“What!” Manten shouted angrily

“Take the shards and run!” Shippou’s father shouted, “take them to Lord Kouga!” Shippou’s father turned back to the two angry demons, “I’ll hold off these two demons!” Shippou grabbed the three shards and with one last look at his father he ran off to the north

~ % ~ End Flashback ~ % ~

Shippou looked down at the three pink shards in his hand, ‘I must get to Lord Kouga.’ Shippou wasn’t watching where he was going and tripped over a tree root. “Ouch…” Shippou got up again and continued running through the forest. ‘Must get to Lord Kouga… Must get to Lord Kouga… Must get to Lord Kouga…’ Shippou kept thinking that as he ran

~ % ~ IK ~ % ~

Around mid afternoon, Kouga found himself humming happily to himself happily as he walked along the riverbank. Today was a beautiful day and this morning’s episode with Inuyasha wasn’t going to ruin his good mood, nothing was. Kouga stopped near the edge of his favorite spot of the river. ‘Nice day for a swim,’ Kouga thought as he began undoing the straps for his armor. Once he got his armor and furs off he threw them to the side and jumped in the river

Kouga dove under the water and thought about this morning. ‘I guess I really did it bad with him…’ Kouga mused as he resurfaced, ‘maybe I shouldn’t have done that to him.’ Kouga swam across to the other side of the river and sat on a rock that was just a foot below the surface, the cool water reaching up to his chest. ‘Damn, I can’t even resist him. Even If he is cold to me I just can’t stay away from him…’

Kouga undid the band which he used to tie back his hair, ‘why do I feel like this when I haven’t even got to know him that well.’ Kouga his hands through his soaking wet hair and let out a sigh. ‘I wish I knew why I can’t keep my hands off him. Ayame pretty much tore my damn head off for this morning’s incident…’ Just then a familiar smell hit his nose and he inwardly groaned

“Kouga!” a male wolf demon called from across the river, irritation apparent in his voice. The demon had long coal black hair, much like Kouga, and had hazel eyes that glared over at the wolf Lord. He was wearing the traditional wolf furs and armor that his clan wore. He was getting old and was a bit chubbier than most of the wolf demons

“What do you want father?” Kouga called back. Kouga and his father, Kai, did not get along very well. Kouga knew that his father was about to bitch him out for not already claiming Inuyasha as his mate. He had been doing it for that past three weeks that Inuyasha had been here and wouldn’t stop until Kouga claimed Inuyasha. However, Kouga wanted to wait for Inuyasha to decide on his own time and not be forced into something

“When are you going to take Inuyasha as a mate? Mating season is only a month away and you need a mate!” Kai told him as he glared at his son

“Father…” Kouga growled dangerously, “don’t treat me like a damned child! I will let Inuyasha make the decision for himself and I will not force him to be my mate if he doesn’t want to!” Kouga glared at his father, desperately wishing for him to go away

“The council is tired of waiting,” his father informed him, “if you do not mate with him by mating season you will be forced to mate with…” before he could continue Kouga cut him off

“I KNOW!” Kouga yelled angrily. ‘So much for not ruining a good mood,’ Kouga fumed as he glared at his father. Kouga tried to keep his anger in check but it got the better of him. “I don’t need you or the fucking council to hold my damn hand like some sort of child! It is Inuyasha’s choice if he wants to be my mate or not and if he doesn’t then I will find another by mating season!”

“Don’t you dare talk to your father like that!” Kai hiss at his son, “I will not take this from you! You are my son meaning I have a certain right over you!”

“I’m the lord of the northern lands! If you keep pestering me about this I’ll banish you from my lands!” Kouga yelled at his father, Kai opened his mouth to protest but once again he was cut off by an angry outburst from Kouga. “Don’t say I wont do it because you know damn well that I would! Now get out of my face!”

“Fine,” Kai bit out, “but if you don’t find a mate by spring time the council will assign you one and there are many who WANT to mate with you.” Kai left Kouga sitting in the water, totally enraged by his father

‘If he thinks he can threaten me and get away with it, he’s dead wrong!’ Kouga thought furiously as he swam back over to where his clothes sat. ‘That old, fat, dirty son of a bitch!’ Kouga cursed his father as he climbed out of the water to dry off. Once he was dried and dressed he stormed off towards the training grounds to let off some of his pent up anger

He walked along the riverbank in the direction of the training ground but stopped when he saw Inuyasha. He and Ayame were playing with some of the pups in the water and looked to be enjoying themselves. ‘Well at least someone is happy…’ Kouga let out a chuckle as Ayame and little Riana pushed Inuyasha, fully clothed, into the river. Kouga changed his course and headed towards Inuyasha and the others; content to watch them play instead and maybe join in. There were a few other wolf demons and wolves watching the pups play as well

Kouga sat down on the grass near the river where Ayame was standing with the pups. Kouga smirked at Inuyasha as he waded out of the river, dripping wet. His clothes clung to his well-muscled body and his silvery mane clung to him. Ayame turned to him, noticing him for the first time. “Heya Kouga,” she said cheerily

“Yo sis. I see you’re having fun torturing Inuyasha,” Kouga commented as he nodded towards the hanyou

“Definitely,” Ayame laughed

“Yo Inuyasha!” Kouga called to the dog-eared hanyou. Inuyasha glared at the wolf, ‘must still be mad about this morning,’ Kouga mused as Inuyasha made his way over to Ayame and Kouga. Kouga’s blue eyes met with Inuyasha’s golden ones. Kouga smirked and flicked his eyes towards Ayame briefly and then back again; a mischievous glint in his eyes

Inuyasha tilted his head to the side a bit, a look of confusion written on his face. Kouga rolled his eyes. Kouga pointedly looked at Ayame, who was playing with the pups, then at the river. Inuyasha got the hint and grinned like a madman. ‘I suppose this once we can have a little fun,’ Inuyasha thought evilly as he and Kouga walked up to Ayame

“So you two finally over this morning?” Ayame asked in amusement. Inuyasha glared at her and Kouga smirked at Inuyasha. Inuyasha turned to Kouga and nodded, silently indicating that Ayame was in for it. Both started grinning as they grabbed Ayame by the arms. “What do you two think you are…” her eyes widened in shock as she was lifted off the ground, “no! Stop it you two!”

Both of them heaved at the same time and threw Ayame into the river. Inuyasha and Kouga burst out laughing with the pups as a soaking wet Ayame resurfaced. Her eyes narrowed at the two laughing men, who were leaning on each other for support. “You two are so dead,” Ayame said as she waded towards the two

“Oh yeah?” Kouga smirked as she reached the bank where they were standing

“Yeah,” Ayame said as she stopped right in front of the two. Kouga missed the knowing look that passed between Ayame and Inuyasha. “Since me and Inuyasha are already wet…”

“Than it’s only fair you get wet too!” Inuyasha finished for her as they grabbed Kouga, who didn’t struggled as his sister and Inuyasha threw him in the river. Kouga climbed out of the river and smirked

“Too bad I already went swimming today,” Kouga stated nonchalantly

“Well, you went swimming again now didn’t you?” Ayame teased him

Kouga was about to reply when an unfamiliar scent hit his nose. It smelled like a kitsune but what concerned him was the smell of exhaustion, fear and blood, albeit not strong, coming from the direction of the fox demon. Kouga shot off in the direction of the smell, closely followed by Inuyasha and Ayame, who noticed the smell as well. They raced along the river and quickly hopped across it, towards the forest

Kouga was the first to notice a small ball of orange collapsed near the edge of the forest and quickly rushed over. Kouga stopped down to the small kitsune pup and quickly checked him, relieved that there were no serious wounds. Kouga recognized the smell of the pup and knew he belonged to a friend of his, a kitsune named Kujo. ‘What’s his pup doing all the way up here?’

“That’s Kujo’s pup,” Ayame muttered as he picked the small pup up from in front of Kouga

“Yeah…but what’s he doing all the way out here? They live near the southern border…” Kouga and Inuyasha followed Ayame as they walked towards the dens

“Maybe there is trouble down there,” Inuyasha suggested, “Naraku does hold the eastern lands after all…” Kouga nodded, knowing that Naraku was probably causing problems again. The three of them walked in silence to the den, each having their own thoughts about what might have happened. However, the three of them failed to notice the three pink shards the small kitsune held in his hand

~ % ~ Later that night… ~ % ~

Ayame, Kouga and Inuyasha had taken the small pup to Yura, the pack healer. She took care of the small cuts and bruises on his body and had told them that he was merely exhausted and needed rest. Inuyasha and Ayame sat beside the pup, talking to themselves quietly. “I wonder what made him come all the way out here,” Ayame mused as she looked down at the sleeping kitsune

“I was wondering that myself,” Inuyasha said, “I’m sure it can be nothing good and I can bet you ten to one it has something to do with Naraku and his followers.” Inuyasha growled lowly at the thought of Naraku, “why the hell can’t he just leave us alone!”

“He probably wants revenge for what we did to his men back in the western lands,” Ayame told him, “I wouldn’t put it past him…”

“But how would he find out about that? I’m sure he doesn’t know about me coming here unless he has a spy…” Inuyasha’s eyes widened in realization, ‘that Kagome girl…what if she really is a spy for Naraku?’ Inuyasha was brought out of his thoughts when a small groan was heard from the kitsune

“W-where…?” the pup looked around, confused. Emerald eyes peered up at Inuyasha and Ayame curiously

“Shh, child,” Ayame said soothingly, “you are at the wolf den, you must rest easy.” The kitsune sat up at the mention of the wolf den

“I need to speak with Lord Kouga,” the pup told them, “it’s urgent!” Ayame gave Inuyasha a look before standing up and leaving the room to get her brother. Inuyasha picked up the pup and held him in his arms

“Ayame will get Kouga as quickly as she can,” she told the kitsune. “So, what’s your name?”

“My name is Shippou,” the small pup informed him

“Ok. Shippou, my name’s Inuyasha,” Inuyasha said as he held the pup, “what are you doing way up here? I was told you lived near the southern border…”

“My dad said I have to see Lord Kouga…some demons attacked and my dad told me to give him these,” Shippou opened his hand, revealing the three pink shards, “I need his help.”

“These are…!” Inuyasha stared at the shards in shock. ‘How can this be?’ Inuyasha thought darkly, ‘the miko, Kikyo, was protecting the jewel…so how did Shippou’s father get a hold of these…’ Inuyasha looked down at Shippou, “how did your father get these?”

“The demons said that my dad took them from them,” Shippou told him. Shippou lowered his head and the smell tears began to become present, “he was fighting them when I ran…he told me to…I hope he’s alright…” Inuyasha pulled the small demon closer to his chest to comfort him. He knew that his father was probably dead by now but did not say anything for fear of scaring him

“Did these demons have names?” Inuyasha asked Shippou

“They said that they were called Hiten and Manten…” Shippou sobbed as he buried his face in Inuyasha’s shirt. Shippou must have also realized that his father was probably dead by now because he started crying. Inuyasha allowed him to cry his eyes out, feeling sorry for the little kitsune because he knew what it was like to lose family. Inuyasha also felt anger, for he knew who those two demons were and silently vowed to kill them

Kouga and Ayame entered the room and Inuyasha shook his head. Inuyasha looked down at Shippou, “want me to tell them for you?” Inuyasha asked quietly and Shippou nodded

Kouga looked at the hanyou and pup and he nearly winced at the distant, hurt, look in Inuyasha’s eyes. ‘Something must have happened…’ Kouga thought as he and Ayame sat down. Inuyasha told them everything that Shippou had told them and gave Kouga the three shards of the Shikon jewel that Shippou had brought. All three of them knew now that this had to do with Kouga because the miko that guarded the jewel had lived in the eastern lands when it was taken over by Naraku

Ayame was the first to break the deadly silence that had fallen over the room. “What shall we do?” Ayame looked down at the now sleeping kitsune with sympathy, “we simply cannot let this slide.”

“I agree.” Kouga said angrily, “that bastard Naraku has no right to even come near our lands! I will kill the bastards who did this!”

“Hiten and Manten are two of Naraku’s men, so we know for sure who we are dealing with…” Ayame stated. Although she seemed calm on the outside, on the inside she was boiling with rage. Kujo had been one of her childhood friends and like Kouga cared for the kitsune

Inuyasha, who had remained silent, finally spoke up. “I suggest that tomorrow we head south and check things out. We can never be too careful with Naraku, he may be trying to invade…” Inuyasha pointed out, “If I know Naraku he would use an opportunity such as this to attack.”

“But why would he?” Ayame asked, “he knows that we outnumber him at least five to one, so why would he risk a frontal assault?”

“I don’t know but whatever he is planning can’t be good,” Inuyasha said as he looked down at the pup he was holding, “to many lives have ended at his hands…and he must be stopped.” Ayame and Kouga nodded in agreement. ‘He must be stopped once and for all…otherwise…we may not survive…’

~ % ~ Meanwhile ~ % ~

Hiten and Manten made there way through the dark corridors of the castle, both of them were afraid of the wrath of their lord fro failing to get back the shards. They stopped at the entrance to the throne room. “He is going to kill us…” Manten said fearfully

“Let’s hope he isn’t in a bad mood or he will kill us for sure…” Hiten said as he pushed open the throne room doors. They walked in to find Naraku sitting on his throne, with the miko Kagome in his lap. Both didn’t seem to notice their arrival, as they were too busy with each other. Hiten and Manten stopped in front of the throne and Hiten cleared his throat to announce their presence

“Ah, Hiten…Manten…I take it you recovered the shards?” Naraku asked, not looking at them

“We have not my lord…” Hiten said carefully, “we are afraid that Lord Kouga now has them.” Hiten and his brother flinched as Naraku turned to them and glared

“And how did that wolf get a hold of them?” Naraku asked

“The son of the one who took them from us ran off with them,” Manten informed him, “we killed his father but we lost the little brat’s trail when we tried to follow it.”

“I see…” Naraku said thoughtfully as he turned his attention back to Kagome, “well my dear, what do you think we should do about this, hm?” Hiten and Manten visibly flinched, knowing that Kagome could be just as cruel as Naraku himself

“Well…” Kagome said thoughtfully, “Since I’m in a good mood today I say we let them live…” Hiten and Manten relaxed slightly but did not let down their guard, “and I suppose we could get them back when we attack them. These two would be useful in the battle…even if they did screw things up a little…”

“Ah, you are a smart one…” Naraku chuckled as he kissed Kagome lightly on the lips before turning to the thunder brothers. “You two heard the lady. You are safe…for now…but if you fail me again your deaths will be slow and painful.”

“Yes, dark one. We shall not fail you again,” they both stated in unison before bowing and leaving the throne room. Both of them were relieved that they had escaped a painful death this time. They knew that if they failed again that they would not survive the wrath of Naraku

As soon as the two demons were out of hearing range, Naraku spoke to Kagome. “Are you sure we should have let them live? I would have enjoyed killing them…”

“So would I, my love…” Kagome purred as she snuggled closer to Naraku, “we shall kill them once their part has been played. Mayhap we shall let them live if they do a good job…but if not then we shall kill them.”

“I like your logic,” Naraku chuckled and playfully nipped at Kagome’s ear, “it is a good think I have you at my side now.”

“I’m glad to be out of that castle,” Kagome said, “if I stayed any longer that damned Sesshomaru might have caught on to my little game and I would have been killed.” Kagome buried her face in the crook of Naraku’s neck, “and I couldn’t leave you all alone in the world, my love.”

“Yes, I might have done something stupid…” Naraku said as he stood up from the throne, holding Kagome bridle style. “Now let us retire…I am in need of a good loving right now…”

“You truly are insatiable…” Kagome laughed as he carried her off to his room

~ % ~ IK ~ % ~

Once Naraku and Kagome left the throne room a figure stepped out from behind one of the steel knights. She smirked as she made her way out of the throne room; her orange eyes scanned the halls as she walked. ‘My master will find all the information I’ve gathered quite interesting,’ she thought as she made her way out of the castle. She was one of the newly hired servants in the castle and unbeknownst to anyone, she worked for someone else as well

‘I have confirmed his thoughts about Kagome being a spy,’ she thought as she walked through the village at the base of the castle, ‘but an attack on the northern lands will be much more interesting information. He will like this information…’ She walked out of the village and headed towards the northwest, ‘I wonder how much I will receive this time…’

~ % ~ IK ~ % ~

AN – You like? Poor Shippou…don’t worry though! Not everything will be dark and evil! Things will get better!

Who is the mysterious spy in Naraku’s castle? And who is her master? You’ll just have to keep reading to find out now wont you?

Reviews are welcome! Reviews make me happy!