InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ His Gift of Protection ❯ There's Fire ( Chapter 5 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of  their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. In other words, I don't own and I make no money from this.

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Originally posted to The Inuyasha Fanfic Contest on July 10, 2012 for Prompt #291 Wishful Thinking. Won 3rd place.

Title: There's Fire
Author: ananova
Rating: T
Prompt: Wishful Thinking (The Inuyasha Fanfic Contest)
Genre: Action/Adventure/Friendship
Word Count: 1039
Summary: An encounter with a group of youkai leads to an unexpected test of the capabilities of Kagome's new gift. Follows Where There's Smoke, The Hunt, The Tanner, and Affirmation of an Oath.

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Inuyasha watched Kagome smile and finger the robe she wore, again, and had to fight to keep a stupid grin off of his face. Instead, pride glowed in his eyes at the thought that she liked his gift. Movement from the corner of his eye had him turning to see Miroku approaching and he nearly groaned. The pervert had been making all sorts of comments since he and Kagome had returned to the group. His eyes narrowed as Miroku reached him. If he commented one more time about Inuyasha trying to prevent others from seeing Kagome's body-

He froze, body tense and senses on alert. Something in the air, a scent, had his hackles raising.

The others noticed. “Inuyasha?” Miroku asked, all teasing comments forgotten. Then he paused as he sensed something as well.

Inuyasha began to growl as the others tensed and reached for their weapons, Kirara transforming into her larger form. There was a rustling in the forest ahead of them, then a group of four salamander youkai emerged.

“Well, well, well. What do we have here?” They eyed the group contemptuously.

Inuyasha growled. “Get out of our way! We don't have time to deal with a bunch of weaklings like you.”

Kagome nearly groaned. Did he have to make every meeting into a confrontation and then a fight?

The lead salamander's eyes narrowed. “Filthy hanyou! Bow before your betters!”

“Keh! As if you could ever be better than me ya slimy lizard!”

The youkai all hissed at that. “Get them!” the leader ordered as he and another leaped at Inuyasha. He easily evaded their swipes, lashing out with his own attacks while trying to keep an eye on his friends.

Inuyasha's eyes widened and he cursed as one of the youkai turned around suddenly, lashing out with it's tail. He dodged the unexpected attack, his eyes narrowing as he realized that he didn't know their full capabilities. A scream from behind him had him whirling around, leaving his back exposed. “Kagome!”

One of the other salamanders had separated her from the others, perhaps believing her to be the weaker, and therefore easier, target. His eyes widened at the rush of flames that shot from the youkai's mouth, heading right for the girl, and he started to move forward to intercept them, to throw himself between the girl and the fire.

He was stopped by a sudden pain in his back as the youkai he had been fighting took advantage of his distracted state to lash out with his claws. His haori protected him from the worst of the attack, and he turned with a growl, Tessaiga flashing through the air as he separated the salamander's head from his shoulders.

He whirled back around, already knowing he was too late to reach the miko. A sigh of relief escaped him as he saw that, though surrounded by flames, she was unharmed. She had been wearing her new robe of fire-rat fur, and had managed to cover her head with the hood before the flames reached her. Perhaps it had only been wishful thinking, but he hadn't wanted to test it's protection so soon. Had in fact hoped it would never need to be tested. He saw Kagome raise her bow and fire an arrow at the youkai attacking her, destroying it in a burst of pink light.

A hiss behind him reminded him that the fight wasn't over yet and he turned in time to catch another lashing tail on Tessaiga's flat. Knocking it aside, he swung his sword and defeated the salamander. Turning back to the others, he was in time to see Sango catching Hiraikotsu on it's return, the youkai they had been fighting also dead.

Inuyasha sighed, returning Tessaiga to it's sheathe as he hurried over to Kagome. “You alright?” he asked, eyes searching her for injuries though he knew there would be none.

Kagome smiled at his concern. “I'm fine,” she assured him, her hands unconsciously smoothing down her fire-rat robe. “Thanks to you.”

“Keh!” He didn't feel like he had any right to be proud. He'd allowed her to be separated from the others, from himself. Left on her own, she'd had to fight against an enemy that he had goaded into a fight, an enemy that he hadn't known the full capabilities of. He slumped slightly, his ears drooping.

Kagome noticed, immediately realizing his thoughts. She fought a sigh and hurried to reassure him. “I mean it Inuyasha. If you hadn't gotten this robe for me, who knows what would have happened.”

His eyes widened at that. There had been no time to give her his haori like he normally would have. Hell, he hadn't even known that she might need it as he hadn't known that the salamander youkai had fire capabilities. He closed his eyes, thankful for that conversation they had had about smoke and fire. Otherwise, he never would have thought to get Kagome her own protective garment and she could have been seriously injured. Wishful thinking or not, his attempt to set her mind at ease had just saved her life. “Keh,” he said again, more softly as he reopened his eyes and gave her a small smile.

Kagome beamed at him. She opened her mouth to thank him again for the robe when the others finally joined them. Her hand immediately rose to her mouth to cover her giggles as Inuyasha snorted beside her.

“What happened to you Bouzu?”

Miroku glowered at him as he patted at his singed, smoking clothing. “Not all of us are fortunate to be fire-proof.” He paused, glancing at Kagome's robe and her uninjured form. Understanding flashed before his eyes. “I can see that you were right to worry about Kagome-sama's safety.” A mischievous  gleam came into his eyes. “Now, how about procuring similar protection for the rest of us mere mortals?”

“Keh! You want a robe of your own, go out and get it yourself!”

Kagome smiled, listening to the two argue good-naturedly, Miroku gently teasing Inuyasha who responded with his usual arrogant posturing, yells and threats. Some things would never change.