InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Mating Season ❯ Crimson and Clover ( Chapter 61 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: SplendentGoddess 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 09.25.2006 | Updated On: 08.12.2008 | Pages: 3 | Words: 6.1K | Visits: 10.6K | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 09.25.2006 | Updated On: 08.12.2008 | Pages: 3 | Words: 6.1K | Visits: 10.6K | Status: Completed
Blanket Disclaimer:
Inuyasha, and the characters therein, are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. I am in no way affiliated with Takahashi, or VIZ Productions.
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Chapter 61 - Crimson and Clover
A/N:
To my knowledge, I’m unaware of any species of clover that’s actually indigenous to Japan, but I don’t care. I wanted to use the title, so I did.
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“Quickly!” Kagome shouted, as they rushed to stop his bleeding.
He hadn’t lost consciousness, but had fallen over from the pain, as he clutched at his chest, yelling and cursing, as he struggled to help them remove his bandages. They obviously weren’t doing any good anyway.
Kagura rushed in at all the shouting, having already been on her way to his chamber to check on him as it was, and the wind-youkai thoroughly freaked at the sight before her. Blood was all around him. She didn’t know how much blood a human could lose and survive, but from the number of humans she had killed during her time, she didn’t imagine that Inuyasha could stand to lose much more. There was no medical way, which she knew of, to stop severe bleeding of that nature, because a youkai’s body naturally stopped the bleeding on their own. But she quickly rushed out to retrieve more bandages nonetheless, not really knowing what else there was for her to do.
Kagome had made it a habit to study emergency medicine after first coming to the feudal era, never knowing who may get hurt, or how. Just because Inuyasha was self-proclaimed as being invincible didn’t mean she’d ever believed it for a second, not to mention Sango and Miroku, or herself for that matter, who were all mortal. As a result, she had a fairly decent amount of knowledge, but it was all book smarts. Nothing that serious had ever been put to the test before.
It looked, to the best of her knowledge, as though Inuyasha had a couple of severed arteries, that for whatever reason had been able to seal themselves while he was hanyou, but were now acting as they should for a human. His youkai ability to shut down the parts of his body that weren’t working properly was no longer functioning, and she was ever so thankful that his lung had in fact healed, evident by his unhindered breathing, as erratic as it was at the moment.
“Fucking son-of-a…ahhhhhhhhhh” he cried, as she pulled free the last bandage, exposing the gushing wound that had all but washed clean the paste Miroku had painstakingly applied.
Kagome tried to concentrate, tried to use her miko powers to stop the bleeding, but she either didn’t have that particular strength, or she was too rattled to think straight enough to hone in on it.
Come on! Come on! You can do it! she chanted to herself, as she concentrated on sealing the opened edges of his wound with a tiny barrier. Only problem was she couldn’t see the edges of his wound from where the blood was emerging, because it emerged faster than they could wipe it away. She also knew a barrier along the top of his entire chest would be pointless, as he’d merely continue to bleed internally.
Trying what she had had exerted her, and the next cry to fill the air was Miroku calling her name as he dove to catch her before her head hit the ground. Sango offered herself two seconds to glance back and be sure that Kagome was all right, and seeing that she was still conscious, the slayer immediately turned her attention back to the man that had become like an older brother to her.
“Kagome?” Inuyasha asked weakly, pain evident in his voice.
“She’s fine…” Sango soothed, not caring that his blood was getting all over her as she frantically tried to press her hands against his wound in an attempt to apply enough pressure to stop the bleeding that way. It could have worked, in theory, if his wound had not encompassed the vertical length of his entire chest. She had no idea where to press her hands.
Meanwhile, Kagome was trying desperately not to break down in Miroku’s embrace, insisting to herself that she must be strong, for Inuyasha. She could not succeed though, nor honestly did she even try, to cease the tears that poured down her face as quickly as her husband’s lifeblood poured from his body. He was quickly becoming pale, and less coherent.
“Miroku…” she sobbed as he held her.
“It’s all right, he can still survive this, but he needs you…” the ex-monk tried to encourage.
Nodding, Kagome wiped her eyes and crawled back over to her mate’s prone form. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. He was supposed to be fine, maybe in pain, but otherwise fine. The paste was supposed to have formed a scab that kept the wound sealed, and he was supposed to lay with his head in her lap, bitching about being weak, and insisting that he didn’t need any of them fussing over him.
Being mated to her had softened his gruff side somewhat over time, but even Kagome hadn’t believed that it would have changed his personality that much. Yet there he was, just laying there, crying out in pain, and absent-mindedly mumbling her name, as Sango and Miroku both frantically tended to him, not receiving one word of complaint for their actions. He was behaving just as he had the night he’d been poisoned by Sesshoumaru. That could only mean one thing. He was dying. He was actually dying.
Not on my watch… Kagome thought stubbornly, suddenly feeling more confident.
Kagura rushed in again somewhere around that time, and handed them yard upon yard of sterile bandage wrap, though Kagome couldn’t have cared less about sterility at the moment, to be honest. They had one very big advantage working for them during their time of disadvantage. They only had to keep him alive until sunrise. If he were human, indefinitely, then he would surely die without the modern technologies of her time. But…he would regain his youkai blood the moment the sun rose. They had give or take roughly eleven hours to go, but it was possible.
“Hold that light up.” commanded Kagome, as she pulled herself to her knees, and the extra torch that Kagura had carried with her, to offer the humans more light, was held high as the wind-youkai remained by their sides, aiding them in any way she could. She owed Inuyasha her life as well, and damn it, she had a sense of honor, no matter how she had been brought into the world.
Come on Kagome, think!
“Miroku!” she suddenly piped up again, and sounding very much so like a commander and chief, ordered “Get the purple herb!”
“Are you sure that is wise?” he dared to question. The purple herb, as they called it - since the name Kaede used for it was often stuttered over in its unpronounceablity - was used primarily as a sleep inducement. It accomplished its task by drastically slowing one’s heart rate, and Kagome had learned that it was in fact an active ingredient in blood pressure medicines that existed in her time.
“Do as I say!” she snapped, mentally inventorying the fact that she would need to apologize to him later. If there was one thing she’d gained from her bond with Inuyasha that stood out above all of her youkai senses, it was definitely her temper.
Miroku trusted Kagome’s judgment, and her advanced knowledge, and without further questioning her decision, quickly reached for the uncrushed clover-like leaves that rested in a pouch not three feet away from them, with all the other herbs.
“Don’t you think we should keep him awake?” Sango urged, having always been taught that when one was on the verge of passing out, you wanted to keep them awake.
“Ordinarily yes, but…” Kagome rung out the blood soaked cloth on the floor beside them, crimson liquid dripping forcefully as it splashed upon the darkened stone, then quickly reapplied it to his chest, leaning with all her strength. “But he’s losing too damn much blood, and it’ll slow his bleeding.”
“Do…” Inuyasha whispered faintly, having heard their conversation. “Do as she says…” he managed to wheeze out.
Ordinarily, he would have been the first to argue deliberately being put to sleep. Of course, he would never admit that the reason behind it was that he was scared. He was scared he would never wake up again. But he also knew that that fright alone was speeding the beating of his heart, which was also quickening the rate at which he was losing his blood. He just had to hope, to have faith in his mate’s knowledge and abilities. He trusted her.
Miroku returned to Inuyasha’s side, by his head, and lifted it with his free hand to make it easier for him. Inuyasha groggily complied, chewing and swallowing the leafy petals that had been presented before his mouth. The effect only took a few moments to hit him, but before he passed out, he managed to look Kagome in the eyes and whisper “See you soon.”
That, alone, brought Kagome more joy, more confidence, than she would have thought possible, under the circumstances. He hadn’t said goodbye, which meant he believed they would save him. She wasn’t about to let him down.
“We need to seal his wound…” she spoke aloud, though she was really only talking to herself, as she sponged the blood free from the area once more, relieved to see that it was reappearing much more slowly now.
Inuyasha’s heartbeat was practically nonexistent, and as a result, he grew more pale and cold to the touch, but Kagome wasn’t as worried, because she knew it was an effect of the medicine. She told herself it was only the medicine as she cleaned the area surrounding his wound with a clean rag, until she finally had its perimeters exposed. Kagome soon found herself wishing she had more advanced surgical tools with her. She would have attempted to stitch him up, if only she’d had sutures and a needle. Hell, she could improvise the sutures if only she had a needle.
Leaning forward, cursing her human eyesight, she absently reached up towards Kagura’s wrist to lower the torch to where she could have more light. In both her and Kagura’s distraction, Kagome accidentally grabbed the upper crown of the torch, and succeeded in burning her hand on the metal.
“Itai!” she shrieked in surprise.
“Kagome!” Sango suddenly cried, worried. “Are you okay?”
Staring at her blistered palm, she shook her head absently. “I’m fine, it’ll heal up, I don’t care about me.” she stated matter-of-factly as she proceeded to sponge away his blood once more. He was bleeding more slowly, but still bleeding.
The tangy nature of his blood caused her burn to sting, which she attempted to ignore, but could not push fully from her mind. As Kagome’s attention was drawn back to the pink and blistered flesh once more, an idea suddenly struck her.
“Of course!” she shrieked to herself as though she were an idiot, as she scrambled to her feet and scurried away from them.
“Kagome?” three voices asked confusedly in unison, as they saw her return to their side, with Tetsusaiga.
“The sword doesn’t transform when he’s human, so it shouldn’t transform for me, either…” she stated as she held it up, pleased to see that it remained dormant. “It’s just like metal while in this state, possessing no demonic properties, acting just like a regular, dull katana.” she said in an almost explaining tone of voice, as she cleared Inuyasha’s chest of blood once more.
“We are aware of this fact,” Miroku started, “But I’m afraid I fail to see the significance-” He shut himself up when he saw Kagome proceed to stick the tip of Tetsusaiga’s blade into the fire of Kagura’s torch.
Understanding dawned in the eyes of the two humans present, but Kagura found herself at a loss, as she obeyed Kagome’s instruction to lower the torch further still, giving her better access as she kneeled before her husband.
“I don’t understand…” the wind-youkai voiced aloud, to no one in particular.
Sango, being fairly familiar with emergency/improvisational medicine herself, decided to speak for her ‘sister’, who was obviously concentrating at the moment.
“I believe Kagome intends to cauterize his wound, and I must say, that is a rather intelligent decision.” Now Sango was glad that they had given Inuyasha the sleeping herb, otherwise, this would hurt like hell.
Kagome, utilizing Sango’s assistance, prepared to pass over his wound one section at a time, immediately following Sango sponging away of the fresh blood, so that the bare wound would be exposed.
Tetsusaiga’s blade was red hot, literally, the tip glowing eerily as she pulled it from the fire. As she pressed it to his skin, everyone tried not to gag at the smell of burning flesh, or flinch at the sizzling sound the contact itself made. But it worked nonetheless, as Kagome found the areas within the wound that were actually bleeding the most severely, concentrating on those locations. Most of his exposed muscle tissue was in fact not bleeding. If the entire area had been bleeding as a whole, he would have died within minutes. Only a couple of small locations were actually oozing blood. Kagome had realized that fact when she’d first seen how long Inuyasha had retained his color and consciousness, knowing from past battle experiences how badly a relatively small wound could actually bleed when provoked to do so. As bad as things had looked in the beginning of this nightmare, it wasn’t in truth quite as drastic as they had feared. It had still been necessary to seal the wound, of course, otherwise he most certainly would have eventually bleed to death, because it did not seem to be clotting on its own, whatsoever.
Now that the wound was sealed, Miroku hurriedly went about applying a new salve, made from a type of red clover, to help ease and soothe the raw, abused flesh of their friend’s chest. It would make his burns more comfortable, like aloe, should he come-to before sunrise. Everyone was relieved to know that Kagome had done it, yet again, and it was a bonus that the horrid scar that had been created throughout this endeavor would heal without a trace by that time the following night.
“I’m still concerned about his loss of blood, though.” she voiced absently, as she sat Tetsusaiga down in a safe corner of the room to cool. “I wish we could give him a transfusion.”
“You mean like what you did during the bonding?” Miroku wished to clarify. He had heard the word “transfusion” used before, but only by demons, referring to the transfer and fusion of one’s blood with another.
“Yes, sort of.” Kagome mumbled, as she cradled Inuyasha’s head in her lap, his complexion pale, skin pasty to the touch. “In my time, humans can transfer their blood to other humans, but there’s no magical bonding or healing powers associated with it. The healing comes from the simple fact that the human in need has gained more blood, because they otherwise would have died from not having enough blood.”
He nodded his understanding, then proceeded to ask, in genuine curiosity, “How is this accomplished?” He knew that all two youkai had to do, or in her case, a hanyou and a human, was to touch two open wounds together, because the youkai’s powers would cause their blood to mix. That could not possibly be the case amongst two mortals, however.
“Umm, it’s complicated. You’re not familiar with most of the technology from my time. I’m not sure how to explain it.”
“Try me.” he responded, not at all offended by her comment, because he knew it was the truth.
“Well, the doctors have needles…um…they’re these small things, that are very pointy and sharp, and can suck out blood, like a mosquito. They carefully attach a tube to this, umm, a tube is…damn…” She ripped off a small piece of bandage, and rolled it very tightly until it was the diameter of a drinking straw. “Like this, only made out of a really good material, soft plastic. You know what that is.
He nodded, being familiar with the foreign substance from her various futuristic objects. In fact, most of the herbs they had packed were stored in pouches made of the clear substance.
“They pull out the blood with that tube, and with another needle, put it directly into the veins of the other person. It’s very very important that the blood never touches the air.”
Miroku nodded, not at all baffled by her fairly accurate description, though he could tell she was displeased with it. It simply amazed him, the level of knowledge that had been acquired by her time. A part of him was sad that he would never live to see it, yet mostly, he felt jubilation in the simple knowledge that humans would, one day, achieve such things.
“Could this not be accomplished with a youkai’s assistance?” Sango asked, having also been listening to Kagome’s description, and said miko’s expression proved that she honestly hadn’t thought of what her ‘sister’ had just suggested.
“Myouga.” Kagura suddenly spoke up, her mind having run along similar lines as the slayer once she’d gotten the visual picture of what her sister-in-law had described.
Nodding, Kagome said “That’s actually a very good idea, but who knows where to find him?”
Sango chimed in with “Yeah, he didn’t journey here with us.”
“Sesshoumaru can call to him with his youki, he should be strong enough by now.” That said, Kagura passed the torch she held along to Miroku, and quickly exited the chamber.
It was around a half hour later that Kagura rushed back into what was being called the vigil chamber, causing everyone to raise their gazes hastily, as they observed her move frantically to the window at the far side of the room, unlatching the shutters and swinging them open.
After that was accomplished, she once again knelt by their sides, asking “How he is?”
Kagome, exhausted as she was, insisted on beating her friends in answering Kagura’s question.
“Mostly unchanged, but I think he really needs that transfusion. His breathing and heart rate are incredibly slow, which was a good thing, induced by the herbs, preventing him from bleeding to death, but…now…” She choked, and Sango, soothing her back, continued for her.
“We’re worried he has so little blood, that it is not moving through his body quickly enough. Kagome has explained that it is the blood in one’s body that takes air to the brain.”
It was a Catch 22, using the herb, and Kagome knew it. Giving someone something to lower blood pressure when they already had so little blood was not the wisest of decisions by far, but at the time it had been necessary. She still stood by her decision. His breathing was shallow, but he was still breathing. His eyes were moving frantically behind their lids, indicating he was dreaming, which she found relieving, because it indicated flourishing brain activity. She wondered if he was dreaming of being in a black void, as she had dreamt after being shot by Kikyou’s arrow. She wondered if he could hear them speaking around him, and if so, if he could understand their words. Her uninjured hand was a permanent fixture at the pulse point on his wrist, and after every beat of his heart, hers seemed to skip one of its own, until she felt his beat once more. She was paranoid that at any moment, he would fall into cardiac arrest, and there wouldn’t be a damn thing they could do about it, if that happened. She couldn’t give him any more medicine, since the only way they had to administer it in that time was to have him consume it. For all the simplicity and beauty of the era, she sometimes found herself missing her own world.
But Inuyasha was a fighter, and they had given him a fighting chance. That was all there was to it. He most certainly would have bled to death if they hadn’t slowed his bleeding, and Kagome would never have been able to seal his wounds with as much blood as had originally been pouring from them. She had done her part. Now, it was up to him, to keep his heart beating. Another pulse shot through her fingertips, and she felt her own echo it in her chest once more.
A sudden flapping drew everyone’s attention to the window Kagura had opened, and while they all sported expressions of surprise and/or confusion, hers was one of impatience.
“It’s about damn time.” Kagura muttered under her breath.
The raven departed as quickly as it had appeared, no explanations. But quite suddenly everyone heard the disembodied voice of a certain somebody crying out “Master Inuyasha! Master Inuyasha! What has happened to him?!”
“Myouga!” the three humans chimed happily at once, and quickly, the situation was explained to the tiny youkai.
“Can you do it?” Kagome asked, not being certain if he even possessed the necessary ability, but believing him their only hope.
“This is not something I have ever heard of, nor ever tried to accomplish…” he answered thoughtfully, adding “But I do not see why it would not work, if I proceed to your specifications.”
They knew that Myouga could suck an incredibly large amount of blood, his body expanding like a balloon to allow for its space. They also knew that he had the ability to turn blood into a consumable medicine within his body, but that was not what they wanted here. Kagome insisted that the blood needed to remain intact, exactly as it is in all its properties, nothing added, nothing subtracted, and no exposure to the air. Kagome at least had a way to test the theory of oxidation. Emptying one of the smallest plastic baggies that had contained some herbs, she resealed the bag, and instructed Myouga to withdraw a small amount of her blood, directly from a vein, and then pierce the plastic of the baggy, injecting the blood into it. Nobody understood the significance of her test, but she assured them, just watch.
Myouga did as instructed, and everyone was amazed at the deep purple color of the blood contained within the bag as he filled it.
“That is the color of blood before it touches the air.” Kagome informed them, to everyone’s amazement. Not even Kagura had been aware of something like that. How could anyone possibly see blood without it having touched air?
As soon as the seal was broken, when Myouga backed away, the blood changed to the typical red everyone was more familiar with, and releasing a final breath to psychic herself up for what was to come, she extended her arm. Miroku, per instruction, tied some wrapping around her upper arm, very tightly, until her veins were practically leaping out of her skin, while Sango did the same thing with one of Inuyasha’s arms. The effect was less dramatic in their hanyou friend, since there was practically no blood present within his body.
Kagome was at least not worried about compatibility, considering they had performed the blood-bond. ‘Type’ didn’t matter, not to them. They possessed each other’s blood. His blood was her blood, her blood was his blood, and she had no doubt whatsoever that the transfusion would work, now that Myouga had passed her little test.
She felt it as his beak pierced her skin, flinching at the sensation of so much blood being drained from her. She had always hated needles. After a few moments of drawing the blood at a safe pace, a bowling ball sized Myouga wobbled his way over towards his Master, and carefully, delicately, pierced his vein as well. As soon as he was sure he had hit the vein, Myouga sucked the tiniest bit of blood first, per Kagome’s instruction as well, to be sure he had made airtight contact. Then, slowly, steadily, using patience and control that only a youkai could possess, he expelled his supply of Kagome’s blood into the hanyou’s body.
Gradually, Inuyasha’s coloring started to return to normal. Not all the way, but definitely better than it had been. He also felt warmer to the touch, cool, but not ice cold. His pulse felt a little stronger, and his breathing became a little deeper.
They had done it.
They tried to tell Kagome that she had done it, but she insisted that it had been a group effort, which was the truth.
The rest of the night was passed much more peacefully, and much of the time was spent on cleanup duty. It wouldn’t due to have blood stains all over the floor in Sesshoumaru’s castle, and since it was technically human blood, Kagome could not simply purify it away, so it was done the old fashioned way instead.
Kagura, in her gratitude to Myouga, allowed the youkai to consume as much of her own blood as he wished, which surprised and delighted him, having not yet had the pleasure. Having not yet dared, considering to whom the delicious youkai was mated.
Kagome was worn out, but had insisted upon helping them, until everyone else insisted that she had certainly helped the most of any of them, and that with her own blood loss, and still not yet fully restored miko powers, she had certainly earned her own rest. Relenting, she allowed Kagura, with her youkai strength, to effortlessly lift each of them, one at a time, and place them together upon the futon, once their bodies had been completely freed of blood, that is. Miroku had wiped Inuyasha down while Sango tended to Kagome. She desperately needed a change of clothing, but Miroku graciously vacated the chamber for a few minutes, allowing the ladies to assist in her dressing. It was then voted that he would return while Sango and Kagura left, to help Kagome dress Inuyasha in a new hakama, that Kagura had fetched along with Kagome’s current yukata.
Now that she was comfortably in bed with her mate, Kagome gazed across the room at the smiling faces of her friends, her own smile increasing when they assured her that they would remain with them both until morning. Kagura had vacated, having her own mate to attend to, though she had insisted that should they need her, they could simply yell out, and she would hear them. They all thanked her profusely for having left her own mate’s side to check on his younger brother, but she had assured them that Sesshoumaru would have insisted upon nothing less.
Kagura kept it to herself, but when she had approached Sesshoumaru, asking him if he felt strong enough to send out a wave to Myouga, she had been surprised by the amount of concern in his gaze, as he’d questioned her regarding her reasoning behind such a request. He too had been concerned regarding his brother’s injuries, considering the proximity of the new moon. They were ever so lucky that Daikomaru had, in fact, not been aware of Inuyasha’s night of weakness, or he most certainly would have waited four additional nights before staging his attack.
Sesshoumaru would have gone to see his brother himself, but he was still unable to walk, a fact that did not please him in the slightest. The bones in his legs had been severely damaged during his fall, as they had taken the brunt of the impact when he’d attempted to land on his feet. He knew he had only made matters worse when he’d forcefully struggled to Kirara’s back, at Kagome’s request that he vacant the battle zone. Of course, having learned afterward what had become of said battle zone, he was ever so thankful that she had possessed the forethought to ensure that he had cleared the area prior to her little stunt. He’d had no idea that she could utilize the Wind Scar. He hadn’t thought it possible for a miko to obtain and control a youkai attack, but Tetsusaiga had recognized her. That was a fact that gave him much to ponder over as he laid bedridden, a simple fact for which he was grateful, as he needed something with which to occupy his mind. He would most certainly need to speak with the miko when they were both feeling more like themselves. As he was at the moment, though, while she was likely the only one, save for his brother, whom his pride would allow to see him in such a condition, he knew she had her own concerns which warranted top priority in her mind at the moment. Inuyasha was in far worse shape than himself, he was told, thanks solely to the unfortunate time of the month. It was a weakness he would never comprehend, and for that, Sesshoumaru was grateful. But having come to a point where he no longer despised his brother, the Taiyoukai suddenly found himself truly worrying for the hanyou. He almost attempted to walk, regardless of Kagura’s orders. It was not that he could not order his legs to obey him, but she had spent hours painstakingly setting each one of his broken pieces of bone, and they were finally laying precisely where they should be. He knew his legs would have eventually set themselves on their own, a youkai’s body simply not designed to permit itself to heal incorrectly, but the added time necessary for each bone to move itself into position would have added several days to his recovery. With Kagura’s assistance, for which he was truly grateful, he should be up and about again in another two days, tops.
Miroku and Sango remained silent, mostly, as they continued to scrub Inuyasha’s blood from the chamber floor. Fortunately, it was stone, and not wood, and therefore, came clean much easier. Sango had absently mentioned, in a mere whisper of course, that it was likely a deliberate design, as youkai had a tendency to acquire rather bloody injuries, that were messy, if not life threatening. Because they were built so much tougher than humans, and most didn’t feel pain in the same manner, physical injuries were even sometimes associated with physical pleasure. Miroku had raised an eyebrow at bit of information, and asked Sango if Kagome had ever shown any signs of such ‘injuries.’ Sango shot him a look that said she wouldn’t tell him even if she had, but did point out that they’d never know since Kagome now healed almost as quickly as Inuyasha did, and that such injuries would no longer be serious for her, either.
“You saw the way she brushed off that burn. Now I know that had to have hurt like hell.”
Miroku nodded his understanding and agreement. Even as a human, Kagome had brushed off the injury, ignoring its pain because she knew it would heal once the sun rose.
“She’s certainly a lot tougher than she used to be.” he whispered in return, and Sango nodded as she replied
“She’s grown so much, I’m so proud of her.”
Kagome smiled as she lay still, listening to her friends. She knew they thought her to be asleep, and she wasn’t about to reveal otherwise. Truth be told, she felt sleep starting to encompass her, finally, and she welcomed it. She was exhausted, but had somehow reached that point where you are ‘too tired to sleep’, not that that concept had ever made any sense to her in the past. But Kagome still relished in the simplicity of lying snuggled against her mate, resting on her left side as she propped him more on his right, resting his forehead against her right shoulder, hoping that even as a human, her scent would reach and soothe him. It was hard for her to draw him into her, considering her bulbous midsection, but she tried her best, entwining their legs together as much as her size would allow. She placed his left hand securely upon her belly, held in place with her right, a small medicated bandage wrapped around her burned palm at Miroku’s insistence, so it wouldn’t sting her until morning. It had hurt like hell, but honestly, not so much afterward. She had burned herself so thoroughly, that most of the nerve endings had died, and for that she was grateful. It would only take a few minutes to heal once she returned to normal. Kagome wondered when on Earth she’d come to think of herself as normal with her youkai abilities, dreading her mortality during the new moon along side her mate. A kick from her hanyou pup reminded her that she…or he, she conceded…would also have such a time of weakness. She prayed that it at least was not during the same night, which she honestly believed would not be the case. She merely shared Inuyasha’s night because she shared his blood, but their pup would have its own different night of weakness. Come to think of it, it might not even be during the night…
Another kick drew her attention back to the here and now, and she nearly gasped, blowing her cover of supposed sleep, when she felt Inuyasha’s hand grip her more firmly in response to the kick, as he unconsciously wiggled his face lower, until it rested in the crook of her neck. If she hadn’t known any better, she would have sworn that he was nuzzling her, even as a human. But then again, she supposed that after two centuries of canine instinct, some things were bound to become habit, no matter what. She responded by tilting her face, rubbing her cheek against the top of his head, right where his ear would ordinarily have been. The action seemed to soothe him, as he stopped squirming, his tongue sticking out to taste her skin once, before all motion was stilled, and he again slipped into deeper sleep. Sighing quietly to herself, Kagome finally permitted her own sleep to find her, as well.
Inuyasha, and the characters therein, are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. I am in no way affiliated with Takahashi, or VIZ Productions.
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Chapter 61 - Crimson and Clover
A/N:
To my knowledge, I’m unaware of any species of clover that’s actually indigenous to Japan, but I don’t care. I wanted to use the title, so I did.
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“Quickly!” Kagome shouted, as they rushed to stop his bleeding.
He hadn’t lost consciousness, but had fallen over from the pain, as he clutched at his chest, yelling and cursing, as he struggled to help them remove his bandages. They obviously weren’t doing any good anyway.
Kagura rushed in at all the shouting, having already been on her way to his chamber to check on him as it was, and the wind-youkai thoroughly freaked at the sight before her. Blood was all around him. She didn’t know how much blood a human could lose and survive, but from the number of humans she had killed during her time, she didn’t imagine that Inuyasha could stand to lose much more. There was no medical way, which she knew of, to stop severe bleeding of that nature, because a youkai’s body naturally stopped the bleeding on their own. But she quickly rushed out to retrieve more bandages nonetheless, not really knowing what else there was for her to do.
Kagome had made it a habit to study emergency medicine after first coming to the feudal era, never knowing who may get hurt, or how. Just because Inuyasha was self-proclaimed as being invincible didn’t mean she’d ever believed it for a second, not to mention Sango and Miroku, or herself for that matter, who were all mortal. As a result, she had a fairly decent amount of knowledge, but it was all book smarts. Nothing that serious had ever been put to the test before.
It looked, to the best of her knowledge, as though Inuyasha had a couple of severed arteries, that for whatever reason had been able to seal themselves while he was hanyou, but were now acting as they should for a human. His youkai ability to shut down the parts of his body that weren’t working properly was no longer functioning, and she was ever so thankful that his lung had in fact healed, evident by his unhindered breathing, as erratic as it was at the moment.
“Fucking son-of-a…ahhhhhhhhhh” he cried, as she pulled free the last bandage, exposing the gushing wound that had all but washed clean the paste Miroku had painstakingly applied.
Kagome tried to concentrate, tried to use her miko powers to stop the bleeding, but she either didn’t have that particular strength, or she was too rattled to think straight enough to hone in on it.
Come on! Come on! You can do it! she chanted to herself, as she concentrated on sealing the opened edges of his wound with a tiny barrier. Only problem was she couldn’t see the edges of his wound from where the blood was emerging, because it emerged faster than they could wipe it away. She also knew a barrier along the top of his entire chest would be pointless, as he’d merely continue to bleed internally.
Trying what she had had exerted her, and the next cry to fill the air was Miroku calling her name as he dove to catch her before her head hit the ground. Sango offered herself two seconds to glance back and be sure that Kagome was all right, and seeing that she was still conscious, the slayer immediately turned her attention back to the man that had become like an older brother to her.
“Kagome?” Inuyasha asked weakly, pain evident in his voice.
“She’s fine…” Sango soothed, not caring that his blood was getting all over her as she frantically tried to press her hands against his wound in an attempt to apply enough pressure to stop the bleeding that way. It could have worked, in theory, if his wound had not encompassed the vertical length of his entire chest. She had no idea where to press her hands.
Meanwhile, Kagome was trying desperately not to break down in Miroku’s embrace, insisting to herself that she must be strong, for Inuyasha. She could not succeed though, nor honestly did she even try, to cease the tears that poured down her face as quickly as her husband’s lifeblood poured from his body. He was quickly becoming pale, and less coherent.
“Miroku…” she sobbed as he held her.
“It’s all right, he can still survive this, but he needs you…” the ex-monk tried to encourage.
Nodding, Kagome wiped her eyes and crawled back over to her mate’s prone form. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. He was supposed to be fine, maybe in pain, but otherwise fine. The paste was supposed to have formed a scab that kept the wound sealed, and he was supposed to lay with his head in her lap, bitching about being weak, and insisting that he didn’t need any of them fussing over him.
Being mated to her had softened his gruff side somewhat over time, but even Kagome hadn’t believed that it would have changed his personality that much. Yet there he was, just laying there, crying out in pain, and absent-mindedly mumbling her name, as Sango and Miroku both frantically tended to him, not receiving one word of complaint for their actions. He was behaving just as he had the night he’d been poisoned by Sesshoumaru. That could only mean one thing. He was dying. He was actually dying.
Not on my watch… Kagome thought stubbornly, suddenly feeling more confident.
Kagura rushed in again somewhere around that time, and handed them yard upon yard of sterile bandage wrap, though Kagome couldn’t have cared less about sterility at the moment, to be honest. They had one very big advantage working for them during their time of disadvantage. They only had to keep him alive until sunrise. If he were human, indefinitely, then he would surely die without the modern technologies of her time. But…he would regain his youkai blood the moment the sun rose. They had give or take roughly eleven hours to go, but it was possible.
“Hold that light up.” commanded Kagome, as she pulled herself to her knees, and the extra torch that Kagura had carried with her, to offer the humans more light, was held high as the wind-youkai remained by their sides, aiding them in any way she could. She owed Inuyasha her life as well, and damn it, she had a sense of honor, no matter how she had been brought into the world.
Come on Kagome, think!
“Miroku!” she suddenly piped up again, and sounding very much so like a commander and chief, ordered “Get the purple herb!”
“Are you sure that is wise?” he dared to question. The purple herb, as they called it - since the name Kaede used for it was often stuttered over in its unpronounceablity - was used primarily as a sleep inducement. It accomplished its task by drastically slowing one’s heart rate, and Kagome had learned that it was in fact an active ingredient in blood pressure medicines that existed in her time.
“Do as I say!” she snapped, mentally inventorying the fact that she would need to apologize to him later. If there was one thing she’d gained from her bond with Inuyasha that stood out above all of her youkai senses, it was definitely her temper.
Miroku trusted Kagome’s judgment, and her advanced knowledge, and without further questioning her decision, quickly reached for the uncrushed clover-like leaves that rested in a pouch not three feet away from them, with all the other herbs.
“Don’t you think we should keep him awake?” Sango urged, having always been taught that when one was on the verge of passing out, you wanted to keep them awake.
“Ordinarily yes, but…” Kagome rung out the blood soaked cloth on the floor beside them, crimson liquid dripping forcefully as it splashed upon the darkened stone, then quickly reapplied it to his chest, leaning with all her strength. “But he’s losing too damn much blood, and it’ll slow his bleeding.”
“Do…” Inuyasha whispered faintly, having heard their conversation. “Do as she says…” he managed to wheeze out.
Ordinarily, he would have been the first to argue deliberately being put to sleep. Of course, he would never admit that the reason behind it was that he was scared. He was scared he would never wake up again. But he also knew that that fright alone was speeding the beating of his heart, which was also quickening the rate at which he was losing his blood. He just had to hope, to have faith in his mate’s knowledge and abilities. He trusted her.
Miroku returned to Inuyasha’s side, by his head, and lifted it with his free hand to make it easier for him. Inuyasha groggily complied, chewing and swallowing the leafy petals that had been presented before his mouth. The effect only took a few moments to hit him, but before he passed out, he managed to look Kagome in the eyes and whisper “See you soon.”
That, alone, brought Kagome more joy, more confidence, than she would have thought possible, under the circumstances. He hadn’t said goodbye, which meant he believed they would save him. She wasn’t about to let him down.
“We need to seal his wound…” she spoke aloud, though she was really only talking to herself, as she sponged the blood free from the area once more, relieved to see that it was reappearing much more slowly now.
Inuyasha’s heartbeat was practically nonexistent, and as a result, he grew more pale and cold to the touch, but Kagome wasn’t as worried, because she knew it was an effect of the medicine. She told herself it was only the medicine as she cleaned the area surrounding his wound with a clean rag, until she finally had its perimeters exposed. Kagome soon found herself wishing she had more advanced surgical tools with her. She would have attempted to stitch him up, if only she’d had sutures and a needle. Hell, she could improvise the sutures if only she had a needle.
Leaning forward, cursing her human eyesight, she absently reached up towards Kagura’s wrist to lower the torch to where she could have more light. In both her and Kagura’s distraction, Kagome accidentally grabbed the upper crown of the torch, and succeeded in burning her hand on the metal.
“Itai!” she shrieked in surprise.
“Kagome!” Sango suddenly cried, worried. “Are you okay?”
Staring at her blistered palm, she shook her head absently. “I’m fine, it’ll heal up, I don’t care about me.” she stated matter-of-factly as she proceeded to sponge away his blood once more. He was bleeding more slowly, but still bleeding.
The tangy nature of his blood caused her burn to sting, which she attempted to ignore, but could not push fully from her mind. As Kagome’s attention was drawn back to the pink and blistered flesh once more, an idea suddenly struck her.
“Of course!” she shrieked to herself as though she were an idiot, as she scrambled to her feet and scurried away from them.
“Kagome?” three voices asked confusedly in unison, as they saw her return to their side, with Tetsusaiga.
“The sword doesn’t transform when he’s human, so it shouldn’t transform for me, either…” she stated as she held it up, pleased to see that it remained dormant. “It’s just like metal while in this state, possessing no demonic properties, acting just like a regular, dull katana.” she said in an almost explaining tone of voice, as she cleared Inuyasha’s chest of blood once more.
“We are aware of this fact,” Miroku started, “But I’m afraid I fail to see the significance-” He shut himself up when he saw Kagome proceed to stick the tip of Tetsusaiga’s blade into the fire of Kagura’s torch.
Understanding dawned in the eyes of the two humans present, but Kagura found herself at a loss, as she obeyed Kagome’s instruction to lower the torch further still, giving her better access as she kneeled before her husband.
“I don’t understand…” the wind-youkai voiced aloud, to no one in particular.
Sango, being fairly familiar with emergency/improvisational medicine herself, decided to speak for her ‘sister’, who was obviously concentrating at the moment.
“I believe Kagome intends to cauterize his wound, and I must say, that is a rather intelligent decision.” Now Sango was glad that they had given Inuyasha the sleeping herb, otherwise, this would hurt like hell.
Kagome, utilizing Sango’s assistance, prepared to pass over his wound one section at a time, immediately following Sango sponging away of the fresh blood, so that the bare wound would be exposed.
Tetsusaiga’s blade was red hot, literally, the tip glowing eerily as she pulled it from the fire. As she pressed it to his skin, everyone tried not to gag at the smell of burning flesh, or flinch at the sizzling sound the contact itself made. But it worked nonetheless, as Kagome found the areas within the wound that were actually bleeding the most severely, concentrating on those locations. Most of his exposed muscle tissue was in fact not bleeding. If the entire area had been bleeding as a whole, he would have died within minutes. Only a couple of small locations were actually oozing blood. Kagome had realized that fact when she’d first seen how long Inuyasha had retained his color and consciousness, knowing from past battle experiences how badly a relatively small wound could actually bleed when provoked to do so. As bad as things had looked in the beginning of this nightmare, it wasn’t in truth quite as drastic as they had feared. It had still been necessary to seal the wound, of course, otherwise he most certainly would have eventually bleed to death, because it did not seem to be clotting on its own, whatsoever.
Now that the wound was sealed, Miroku hurriedly went about applying a new salve, made from a type of red clover, to help ease and soothe the raw, abused flesh of their friend’s chest. It would make his burns more comfortable, like aloe, should he come-to before sunrise. Everyone was relieved to know that Kagome had done it, yet again, and it was a bonus that the horrid scar that had been created throughout this endeavor would heal without a trace by that time the following night.
“I’m still concerned about his loss of blood, though.” she voiced absently, as she sat Tetsusaiga down in a safe corner of the room to cool. “I wish we could give him a transfusion.”
“You mean like what you did during the bonding?” Miroku wished to clarify. He had heard the word “transfusion” used before, but only by demons, referring to the transfer and fusion of one’s blood with another.
“Yes, sort of.” Kagome mumbled, as she cradled Inuyasha’s head in her lap, his complexion pale, skin pasty to the touch. “In my time, humans can transfer their blood to other humans, but there’s no magical bonding or healing powers associated with it. The healing comes from the simple fact that the human in need has gained more blood, because they otherwise would have died from not having enough blood.”
He nodded his understanding, then proceeded to ask, in genuine curiosity, “How is this accomplished?” He knew that all two youkai had to do, or in her case, a hanyou and a human, was to touch two open wounds together, because the youkai’s powers would cause their blood to mix. That could not possibly be the case amongst two mortals, however.
“Umm, it’s complicated. You’re not familiar with most of the technology from my time. I’m not sure how to explain it.”
“Try me.” he responded, not at all offended by her comment, because he knew it was the truth.
“Well, the doctors have needles…um…they’re these small things, that are very pointy and sharp, and can suck out blood, like a mosquito. They carefully attach a tube to this, umm, a tube is…damn…” She ripped off a small piece of bandage, and rolled it very tightly until it was the diameter of a drinking straw. “Like this, only made out of a really good material, soft plastic. You know what that is.
He nodded, being familiar with the foreign substance from her various futuristic objects. In fact, most of the herbs they had packed were stored in pouches made of the clear substance.
“They pull out the blood with that tube, and with another needle, put it directly into the veins of the other person. It’s very very important that the blood never touches the air.”
Miroku nodded, not at all baffled by her fairly accurate description, though he could tell she was displeased with it. It simply amazed him, the level of knowledge that had been acquired by her time. A part of him was sad that he would never live to see it, yet mostly, he felt jubilation in the simple knowledge that humans would, one day, achieve such things.
“Could this not be accomplished with a youkai’s assistance?” Sango asked, having also been listening to Kagome’s description, and said miko’s expression proved that she honestly hadn’t thought of what her ‘sister’ had just suggested.
“Myouga.” Kagura suddenly spoke up, her mind having run along similar lines as the slayer once she’d gotten the visual picture of what her sister-in-law had described.
Nodding, Kagome said “That’s actually a very good idea, but who knows where to find him?”
Sango chimed in with “Yeah, he didn’t journey here with us.”
“Sesshoumaru can call to him with his youki, he should be strong enough by now.” That said, Kagura passed the torch she held along to Miroku, and quickly exited the chamber.
It was around a half hour later that Kagura rushed back into what was being called the vigil chamber, causing everyone to raise their gazes hastily, as they observed her move frantically to the window at the far side of the room, unlatching the shutters and swinging them open.
After that was accomplished, she once again knelt by their sides, asking “How he is?”
Kagome, exhausted as she was, insisted on beating her friends in answering Kagura’s question.
“Mostly unchanged, but I think he really needs that transfusion. His breathing and heart rate are incredibly slow, which was a good thing, induced by the herbs, preventing him from bleeding to death, but…now…” She choked, and Sango, soothing her back, continued for her.
“We’re worried he has so little blood, that it is not moving through his body quickly enough. Kagome has explained that it is the blood in one’s body that takes air to the brain.”
It was a Catch 22, using the herb, and Kagome knew it. Giving someone something to lower blood pressure when they already had so little blood was not the wisest of decisions by far, but at the time it had been necessary. She still stood by her decision. His breathing was shallow, but he was still breathing. His eyes were moving frantically behind their lids, indicating he was dreaming, which she found relieving, because it indicated flourishing brain activity. She wondered if he was dreaming of being in a black void, as she had dreamt after being shot by Kikyou’s arrow. She wondered if he could hear them speaking around him, and if so, if he could understand their words. Her uninjured hand was a permanent fixture at the pulse point on his wrist, and after every beat of his heart, hers seemed to skip one of its own, until she felt his beat once more. She was paranoid that at any moment, he would fall into cardiac arrest, and there wouldn’t be a damn thing they could do about it, if that happened. She couldn’t give him any more medicine, since the only way they had to administer it in that time was to have him consume it. For all the simplicity and beauty of the era, she sometimes found herself missing her own world.
But Inuyasha was a fighter, and they had given him a fighting chance. That was all there was to it. He most certainly would have bled to death if they hadn’t slowed his bleeding, and Kagome would never have been able to seal his wounds with as much blood as had originally been pouring from them. She had done her part. Now, it was up to him, to keep his heart beating. Another pulse shot through her fingertips, and she felt her own echo it in her chest once more.
A sudden flapping drew everyone’s attention to the window Kagura had opened, and while they all sported expressions of surprise and/or confusion, hers was one of impatience.
“It’s about damn time.” Kagura muttered under her breath.
The raven departed as quickly as it had appeared, no explanations. But quite suddenly everyone heard the disembodied voice of a certain somebody crying out “Master Inuyasha! Master Inuyasha! What has happened to him?!”
“Myouga!” the three humans chimed happily at once, and quickly, the situation was explained to the tiny youkai.
“Can you do it?” Kagome asked, not being certain if he even possessed the necessary ability, but believing him their only hope.
“This is not something I have ever heard of, nor ever tried to accomplish…” he answered thoughtfully, adding “But I do not see why it would not work, if I proceed to your specifications.”
They knew that Myouga could suck an incredibly large amount of blood, his body expanding like a balloon to allow for its space. They also knew that he had the ability to turn blood into a consumable medicine within his body, but that was not what they wanted here. Kagome insisted that the blood needed to remain intact, exactly as it is in all its properties, nothing added, nothing subtracted, and no exposure to the air. Kagome at least had a way to test the theory of oxidation. Emptying one of the smallest plastic baggies that had contained some herbs, she resealed the bag, and instructed Myouga to withdraw a small amount of her blood, directly from a vein, and then pierce the plastic of the baggy, injecting the blood into it. Nobody understood the significance of her test, but she assured them, just watch.
Myouga did as instructed, and everyone was amazed at the deep purple color of the blood contained within the bag as he filled it.
“That is the color of blood before it touches the air.” Kagome informed them, to everyone’s amazement. Not even Kagura had been aware of something like that. How could anyone possibly see blood without it having touched air?
As soon as the seal was broken, when Myouga backed away, the blood changed to the typical red everyone was more familiar with, and releasing a final breath to psychic herself up for what was to come, she extended her arm. Miroku, per instruction, tied some wrapping around her upper arm, very tightly, until her veins were practically leaping out of her skin, while Sango did the same thing with one of Inuyasha’s arms. The effect was less dramatic in their hanyou friend, since there was practically no blood present within his body.
Kagome was at least not worried about compatibility, considering they had performed the blood-bond. ‘Type’ didn’t matter, not to them. They possessed each other’s blood. His blood was her blood, her blood was his blood, and she had no doubt whatsoever that the transfusion would work, now that Myouga had passed her little test.
She felt it as his beak pierced her skin, flinching at the sensation of so much blood being drained from her. She had always hated needles. After a few moments of drawing the blood at a safe pace, a bowling ball sized Myouga wobbled his way over towards his Master, and carefully, delicately, pierced his vein as well. As soon as he was sure he had hit the vein, Myouga sucked the tiniest bit of blood first, per Kagome’s instruction as well, to be sure he had made airtight contact. Then, slowly, steadily, using patience and control that only a youkai could possess, he expelled his supply of Kagome’s blood into the hanyou’s body.
Gradually, Inuyasha’s coloring started to return to normal. Not all the way, but definitely better than it had been. He also felt warmer to the touch, cool, but not ice cold. His pulse felt a little stronger, and his breathing became a little deeper.
They had done it.
They tried to tell Kagome that she had done it, but she insisted that it had been a group effort, which was the truth.
The rest of the night was passed much more peacefully, and much of the time was spent on cleanup duty. It wouldn’t due to have blood stains all over the floor in Sesshoumaru’s castle, and since it was technically human blood, Kagome could not simply purify it away, so it was done the old fashioned way instead.
Kagura, in her gratitude to Myouga, allowed the youkai to consume as much of her own blood as he wished, which surprised and delighted him, having not yet had the pleasure. Having not yet dared, considering to whom the delicious youkai was mated.
Kagome was worn out, but had insisted upon helping them, until everyone else insisted that she had certainly helped the most of any of them, and that with her own blood loss, and still not yet fully restored miko powers, she had certainly earned her own rest. Relenting, she allowed Kagura, with her youkai strength, to effortlessly lift each of them, one at a time, and place them together upon the futon, once their bodies had been completely freed of blood, that is. Miroku had wiped Inuyasha down while Sango tended to Kagome. She desperately needed a change of clothing, but Miroku graciously vacated the chamber for a few minutes, allowing the ladies to assist in her dressing. It was then voted that he would return while Sango and Kagura left, to help Kagome dress Inuyasha in a new hakama, that Kagura had fetched along with Kagome’s current yukata.
Now that she was comfortably in bed with her mate, Kagome gazed across the room at the smiling faces of her friends, her own smile increasing when they assured her that they would remain with them both until morning. Kagura had vacated, having her own mate to attend to, though she had insisted that should they need her, they could simply yell out, and she would hear them. They all thanked her profusely for having left her own mate’s side to check on his younger brother, but she had assured them that Sesshoumaru would have insisted upon nothing less.
Kagura kept it to herself, but when she had approached Sesshoumaru, asking him if he felt strong enough to send out a wave to Myouga, she had been surprised by the amount of concern in his gaze, as he’d questioned her regarding her reasoning behind such a request. He too had been concerned regarding his brother’s injuries, considering the proximity of the new moon. They were ever so lucky that Daikomaru had, in fact, not been aware of Inuyasha’s night of weakness, or he most certainly would have waited four additional nights before staging his attack.
Sesshoumaru would have gone to see his brother himself, but he was still unable to walk, a fact that did not please him in the slightest. The bones in his legs had been severely damaged during his fall, as they had taken the brunt of the impact when he’d attempted to land on his feet. He knew he had only made matters worse when he’d forcefully struggled to Kirara’s back, at Kagome’s request that he vacant the battle zone. Of course, having learned afterward what had become of said battle zone, he was ever so thankful that she had possessed the forethought to ensure that he had cleared the area prior to her little stunt. He’d had no idea that she could utilize the Wind Scar. He hadn’t thought it possible for a miko to obtain and control a youkai attack, but Tetsusaiga had recognized her. That was a fact that gave him much to ponder over as he laid bedridden, a simple fact for which he was grateful, as he needed something with which to occupy his mind. He would most certainly need to speak with the miko when they were both feeling more like themselves. As he was at the moment, though, while she was likely the only one, save for his brother, whom his pride would allow to see him in such a condition, he knew she had her own concerns which warranted top priority in her mind at the moment. Inuyasha was in far worse shape than himself, he was told, thanks solely to the unfortunate time of the month. It was a weakness he would never comprehend, and for that, Sesshoumaru was grateful. But having come to a point where he no longer despised his brother, the Taiyoukai suddenly found himself truly worrying for the hanyou. He almost attempted to walk, regardless of Kagura’s orders. It was not that he could not order his legs to obey him, but she had spent hours painstakingly setting each one of his broken pieces of bone, and they were finally laying precisely where they should be. He knew his legs would have eventually set themselves on their own, a youkai’s body simply not designed to permit itself to heal incorrectly, but the added time necessary for each bone to move itself into position would have added several days to his recovery. With Kagura’s assistance, for which he was truly grateful, he should be up and about again in another two days, tops.
Miroku and Sango remained silent, mostly, as they continued to scrub Inuyasha’s blood from the chamber floor. Fortunately, it was stone, and not wood, and therefore, came clean much easier. Sango had absently mentioned, in a mere whisper of course, that it was likely a deliberate design, as youkai had a tendency to acquire rather bloody injuries, that were messy, if not life threatening. Because they were built so much tougher than humans, and most didn’t feel pain in the same manner, physical injuries were even sometimes associated with physical pleasure. Miroku had raised an eyebrow at bit of information, and asked Sango if Kagome had ever shown any signs of such ‘injuries.’ Sango shot him a look that said she wouldn’t tell him even if she had, but did point out that they’d never know since Kagome now healed almost as quickly as Inuyasha did, and that such injuries would no longer be serious for her, either.
“You saw the way she brushed off that burn. Now I know that had to have hurt like hell.”
Miroku nodded his understanding and agreement. Even as a human, Kagome had brushed off the injury, ignoring its pain because she knew it would heal once the sun rose.
“She’s certainly a lot tougher than she used to be.” he whispered in return, and Sango nodded as she replied
“She’s grown so much, I’m so proud of her.”
Kagome smiled as she lay still, listening to her friends. She knew they thought her to be asleep, and she wasn’t about to reveal otherwise. Truth be told, she felt sleep starting to encompass her, finally, and she welcomed it. She was exhausted, but had somehow reached that point where you are ‘too tired to sleep’, not that that concept had ever made any sense to her in the past. But Kagome still relished in the simplicity of lying snuggled against her mate, resting on her left side as she propped him more on his right, resting his forehead against her right shoulder, hoping that even as a human, her scent would reach and soothe him. It was hard for her to draw him into her, considering her bulbous midsection, but she tried her best, entwining their legs together as much as her size would allow. She placed his left hand securely upon her belly, held in place with her right, a small medicated bandage wrapped around her burned palm at Miroku’s insistence, so it wouldn’t sting her until morning. It had hurt like hell, but honestly, not so much afterward. She had burned herself so thoroughly, that most of the nerve endings had died, and for that she was grateful. It would only take a few minutes to heal once she returned to normal. Kagome wondered when on Earth she’d come to think of herself as normal with her youkai abilities, dreading her mortality during the new moon along side her mate. A kick from her hanyou pup reminded her that she…or he, she conceded…would also have such a time of weakness. She prayed that it at least was not during the same night, which she honestly believed would not be the case. She merely shared Inuyasha’s night because she shared his blood, but their pup would have its own different night of weakness. Come to think of it, it might not even be during the night…
Another kick drew her attention back to the here and now, and she nearly gasped, blowing her cover of supposed sleep, when she felt Inuyasha’s hand grip her more firmly in response to the kick, as he unconsciously wiggled his face lower, until it rested in the crook of her neck. If she hadn’t known any better, she would have sworn that he was nuzzling her, even as a human. But then again, she supposed that after two centuries of canine instinct, some things were bound to become habit, no matter what. She responded by tilting her face, rubbing her cheek against the top of his head, right where his ear would ordinarily have been. The action seemed to soothe him, as he stopped squirming, his tongue sticking out to taste her skin once, before all motion was stilled, and he again slipped into deeper sleep. Sighing quietly to herself, Kagome finally permitted her own sleep to find her, as well.