Miko Fried Kitsune ala Mode
Chapter 4 - Her Scent
Shouts followed her as she quickly weaved through the pedestrians, her shoes beating against the sidewalk and her lungs burning with the struggle for breath. A car horn errupted from the left and Kagome twisted, narrowly evading the red convertible swerving in to the next lane. Her whole body trembled, her knees nearly giving out. She ignored the stares, continuing across the street and towards a small park.
Barely stepping over the curb, black hair sliding over her shoulders, she dropped forward with hands on her knees and forced herself to inhale deeply, releasing it with a shaky sigh. Her vision swam, and she blinked rapidly, clearing the fog-like panic clouding her mind.
"Why- Why did I..?" she whispered.
In two years, she had trained, in any number of ways, to defeat demons; to befriend demons, but not to run away from them. But demons weren't suppose to exist in the present. They're was no telling what havoc a demon could do in this time. They could attack her family or her classmates... At least in the past, people were prepared for anything and had been through just about everything as well.
A breeze ruffled her skirt and she arched back with a quick intake of breath as the wind hit her wet shirt. Damn it! Tears sprung to her eyes. Her back burned, searing with pain and as the adrenaline faded from her veins, and she realized her sprint must of reopened the wounds. Glancing around, a few people were watching her and other pretended not to notice her. It wasn't everyday you see a schoolgirl covered with blood, she realized.
She straightened and started moving again, a flush spreading over her cheeks from exertion and one hand against the wall for support. If she wasn't injured she could have ran much further, but her body just couldn't handle the exertion. Not after days and days of bedrest, paired with an obnoxiously overprotective inu hanyou refusing to let her move an inch. She had to take it easy, or else Inuyasha might force her to return to the past just to make sure she wasn't hurting herself. Again.
Kagome paused again, leaning a shoulder against the brick and letting her backpack hang loosely from one shoulder. If that guy- Shuuichi? Is that what her friends called him? - was a demon, then he'd probably be able to follow her easily because of all the blood mixing with her scent. She could use the change of clothes in the bottom of her schoolbag, as well as some bandages and a special potion Kaede had taught her to make and mask her scent with. But even with those precautions, he might still be able to track her if he was a breed of canine youkai. And she couldn't risk leading him back to the shrine or to school. If he was dangerous, he could seriously harm her family or her friends-
Her friends.
"Oh no!" Kagome gasped. I left them there with those demons! Kagome pressed her palm against the brick, shoving away from it and spinning around. She took one step, before stopping again. But, she couldn't go back. She couldn't defend herself in this state. She bit her lip, tensing. But she had to protect her friends- She was the only one who could fight a demon with half a chance of winning.
How could I... Images of her friends on the ground, eyes unseeing, and pools of crimson under them rushed through her mind. Her eyes squeezed tightly shut. She wouldn't let them be hurt. She couldn't live with herself if they were injured, or worse...
She faced down Naraku and lived, Kagome reminded herself. So she didn't have her bow and arrows- her purification powers should be enough. She also had the element of surprise on her side. Besides, they were the only ones with answers to her questions about demon existence in this time. She couldn't run away from that.
Kagome relaxed her muscles, eyes still closed. Wind turned her hair, brushing over her cheeks and sliding over her neck. Rather than retracing her steps back to the noodleshop, it would be easier to pick a battle ground, away from innocent bystanders and somewhere to her advantage like holy grounds, where the area would amplify her own abilities and lower his. All she had to do was lure him there.
Reaching behind her, Kagome wiped her fingers over her wound and brought them before her eyes, the blood dripping off her nails and splattering thickly on the sidewalk. She stared at it for a moment before swiping it over the bricks, leaving a wide arc of crimson. It was an invitation.
She turned away, raising her chin to the wind, murmuring to herself, Come and get me.
Kagome didn't see the figure watchng her behind a plume of cigarette smoke.
Kurama brushed hair away from his eyes, watching the three schoolgirls organizing a search for 'Kagome' while sychronizing their wristwatches. He knew the nearest bus stop was four blocks in the opposite direction she had run, so it was obvious the girl had been fleeing blindly. However, he could track her much quicker than her friends could using his senses; he just had to distract the others long enough so he would find her first.
Now you're thinking like a kitsune! Youko chuckled. Any woman with an energy like that won't get away from us for long. After we have another taste, then we'll get our answers. Kurama didn't bother arguing.
The girl, Yuka, suddenly stomped her foot and a fustrated growl errupted from her throat. "After this is over, Kagome-chan is buying a new cell whether she wants to or not!"
"You know she won't," Eri anxiously shifted her weight to the other foot as she spoke. "Kagome-chan's so stingy about money."
"But It's been five months since her last one broke!" Yuka exclaimed. "What kind of schoolgirl doesn't own a cell?"
Ayumi shook her head. "If she had one, then when ever Kagome-chan gets in trouble or really sick, she can call someone." she said.
"And we can call her when she decides to run off!" Yuka agreed, paused, then added, "again!"
Yuusuke folded his arms beside Kurama, not removing his eyes from the bickering group. "Kurama, do you know this girl or something?" Yuusuke asked. "I don't have a clue what you're thinking, but If she's just a peice of ass Youko's chasing, you're on your own when Koenma finds out."
Youko chuckled. A peice of ass? Is that all he thinks I'm interested in? A smirk settled over his lips. Of course I'm interested in her mind... and just how loudly she can scream my name.
Kurama coughed in to his hand, covering a surprised chuckle, his other side's perverted comment completely expected from the lecherous kitsune.
"I'm not sure." Kurama answered, lowering his hand, and his voice quiet. "But it'd be wise to find out who and what she is. She seems to know about demons."
Yuusuke turned, brown eyes wide. "You serious?"
He didn't answer, however, already approaching the girls. They watched him come closer with steadily growing eyes. He stopped a few feet away, concern filtering through his expression. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't help overhearing. And if you don't mind my asking," he paused, waiting to make sure his question didn't seem to abrupt when he voiced it, he asked, "but is your friend not suppose to be out today?"
Eri crossed her arms over her chest, meeting Kurama's gaze sheepishly and with a slight blush on her cheeks. "Not exactly," she said, scuffing her shoe against the sidewalk. "Kagome-chan came down with a bad cold about a month ago and she was just released from the hospital on Friday. She could relapse if she's not careful."
"She's sick?" Kurama asked. She didn't look sick. Although injured, she wasn't pale or flushed with illness and her muscles were still firm- A girl who had just been released from the hospital wouldn't be able to run very far or nearly as quick without her legs giving out. But what reason who she have to lie to her friends?
Yuusuke scoffed. Kurama turned to the frowning detective striding over to them, hands jammed in his pockets. "You know, last I checked, doctors don't hit their sick patients." He said, voice dripping with sarcasm.
Yuka stiffened and angrily met his eyes. "That's because they don't." She replied. Kurama frowned. Was she implying... Suddenly their dislike of Yuusuke made perfect sense.
The girl had an abusive lover, Youko murmured. Kurama felt the slight rise is youki around him, an unnatural wind pushing his hair off his shoulders. Yuusuke shot him a warning look.
Calm down, Youko, Kurama answered, forcing the energy to disperse. If she is involved with demons, like we think she is, a possessive consort wouldn't be unusual.
If he's human or demon, hitting a beautiful woman is disgraceful. Youko sneered, but his voice was calmer, almost amused now. But with the way she reacted to Yuusuke's comment earlier, she must be able to hold her own in a fight.
Yuusuke, too, seemed to have realized what her friend had meant. "Are you fu-"
"Don't even think about saying it, Yuusuke Urimeshi." A girl's voice warned. Instantly, the hairs on the back of Yuusuke's neck were standing on end as he slowly turned around, meeting the livid gaze of his girlfriend, brandishing her serving tray like a weapon.
"Good afternoon, Yukimura-san." Kurama greeted politely. Yuusuke shot him a dirty look.
"Hey, Keiko." He greeted, discreetly leaning away from her. Her eye twitched.
She crackled with anger. "Forget it, Yuusuke! First you missed our date yesterday," she yelled, "and now you're scaring off all of dad's customers! What do you want?"
"Food, but that's obviously not happening." He grumbled under his breath, shoving his hands further in his pockets. Jerking his head in the direction of the schoolgirls, responding more loudly, "we ran in to some of Kurama's fangirls on our way here."
"So?" She demanded.
"'So?'" He repeated. "It's pretty obviou- Ow!" She whacked the back of his head with her tray, pursing her lips and glaring up at him. Yuusuke had had a growth spurt over the summer, putting her at the slight disadvantage of having to stare up at him during a fight. "Damn it, Keik- Ow!"
"You don't have to be so rude, you know." She grunted, turning away and smiling apologetically towards the three schoolgirls with a bow. "I'm sorry, he-" She started before stopping herself, squinting in thought before the wrinkles in her forehead smoothed out. "I thought I recognized you three!" She said, smiling. "You came in last week, right?"
Yuka nodded, grinning, as Yuusuke rubbed his abused head. "Yeah." She replied. "But I didn't know you were the owner's daughter."
"And the only waitress now since Yuusuke scared off the last one." She sighed, shaking her head. "I was just wondering when I would see you next. But I thought you might be bringing the friend you mentioned this time. Is she not out of the hospital yet?" Keiko asked, voice laced with concern.
"No, she was released on Friday." Ayumi replied. "And she did come, but... well..." Keiko caught one of the other girl's glaring at Yuusuke, and could easily figure out the cause for all the yelling she heard from the kitchens.
Yuusuke started panicking as Keiko's expression darkened, slowly turning towards him with stormy brown eyes. Yuusuke felt a foreboding chill run down his spine. Oh, shit.
"Keiko, I-"
"Yuusuke, how could you!" She exploded.
"I didn't know she was sick!" He defended, holding up both hands in surrender as the youn brunette advanced on him. "And Kurama almost-"
"Don't even try pinning this on Shuuichi-kun!" She interrupted, her small hands clenching her tray. "That girl's been really sick and the last thing she probably needed was some jerk yelling at her!"
"I wasn't yelling at her, I was yelling at them!" Yuusuke growled, jerking his head at the indignant schoolgirls. Keiko took a step back and inhaled deeply, counting back from ten in her head. She exhaled, relaxing her tense muscles.
"So," she asked, a little tense, "what happened?"
Relieved Keiko had detoured off the warpath, Yuusuke's shoulders relaxed in to a shrug. "Hell if I know. Ask Kurama, he's the one that got all weird."
Keiko looked over at the kitsune avatar intently, and she didn't have to ask to get a reply.
"The girl looked like she had been in a fight."
"What?" Keiko's eyes widened. "But-"
"I know. It's odd. But she took off before we could do anything, and she doesn't seem to be familiar with this area."
"Oh, no..."
Yuusuke crossed his arms. "See? So what were you hitting me for-"
Keiko shot him a silencing glare.
"Ow!"
Kurama would've chuckled at the couple, but he knew he'd only be able to follow the girl's scent for a little while longer before it began mixed with the others. He needed to start looking soon.
Kurama turned back to their audience. "I'm sorry about all of this." He apologized. "Would you mind if I helped look for your friend?"
The three girls exchanged glances, murmuring amongst themselves. Yuka was glaring at Yuusuke, but the expression turned in to a devious grin when she met Eri and Ayumi's eyes. "An excuse to be with Minamino?" She whispered. "Remind me to thank Kagome for this."
Eri shook her head at Yuka, but grinned regardless. "We really need the help." She admitted, looking up at the red head hopefully. "Do you know this prefecture well, Minamino-sempai?"
Kurama grinned. "Well enough."
Ayumi looked up at him with large eyes. "Are you sure? Kagome is our friend, and we're responsible if anything happens." She said quietly, hands fisting in her skirt. "Especially if something happens. We wouldn't want to trouble you."
His nose twitched, sifting the faint, earthy smell of the young beauty from their clothes. It was light, a mix of unfamiliar spices and fresh rain. He sniffed again, inhaling more deeply and commiting the pleasant scent to memory.
'Kagome' smells of magic, Youko observed, his tail twitching with interest. Old magic.
"It's no trouble at all," He reassured, resting a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I'll find her."
"Alright!" Eri clapped her hands together. "How about we split up and meet back here in an hour, then?" She suggested.
Kurama nodded, as did the others.
"I hope you find her," Keiko said, as the schoolgirls started off. "Good luck!"
"Yeah, yeah." Yuusuke grumbled, rolling his eyes. He gave Kurama a peircing look. "Don't get too carried away." He warned.
Kurama shook his head. But a very kitsune-like smirk appeared anyway, his eyes flashing gold as he turned away.
"Wouldn't dream of it," He murmured.
Okay, so this chapter is very, very long, ne? But since it was a long time coming, it's more than appropriate. (: To tell the truth, I lost inspiration for this story for awhile (I'm sure you noticed). If there was a plot when I started it, I've long sinced forgotten it. So I've spent the past month constructing a new one. But I'm truly surprised this story has been recieved so well- and still getting reviews after so long! I can't tell you how much I appreciate this- They are probably the very reason I'm restarting this story. So a big heart-felt thank you to all of you! And, lastly, I have midterms in two weeks, so any updates will be postponed until after that. Also, a new story is going through the last stages of editing, and will be posted on any day now. It's also a Kurama x Kagome. Yes, this is shameless promoting.
Thanks again!
oORainOo
Posted on October 7, 2007