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The runners up are coming to visit.

KURAMA: Hopefully, my cab will get here first.

The first one is Emerald Dragon, for best research. She says to put away your rose.

KURAMA: And why would I do that?

Her livestock are allergic.

KURAMA: She raises animals?

She said she was bringing a baby one. They get colds.


KURAMA: Well she shouldn't bring it, then. It would be her own fault if she must deal with an allergic reaction in her little sheep or calf or goat or...

. . .

KURAMA: Her name was Emerald...

Dragon.

(A cab pulls up and a girl gets out, coaxing a green scaly creature on a leash.)

EM. D.: Hi! Do you want to pet Twiggy?

TWIGGY: (Sniffles)

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"I think I understand," Kouga was saying, "but if these flaturals-"

"Naturals," corrected Miroku.

"-whatever-are so much trouble, then why not drive them from your settlements and be done with it?"

"No, say it with me: Na-tur-al."

"Whatever!"

Inuyasha dug the heel of his palm deeper into his cheek, barely noting the wolf's prattle with Miroku. The trip back to the village had been fun. The human brat hadn't shut up the whole way, and the dog demon had nearly wrung his own neck trying to keep an eye on Kouga and Hojo and Kagome. ...not to mention a loose-handed monk who had never once managed to take a hint that NOW might be a good time to leave off, and Sango was covered in baby barf.

His ear was starting to puff up, probably from when Kouga had smashed it during the fight. It ached every time he moved it and he just couldn't hold it still. Not with what was going on over there.

Nothing but whispers and gawking on the way in, but bring back one rugrat and it's festival day. Hojo was a regular hero.

No sooner had Kirara come within shrieking range of that stinking stickhole of a town than the alarm went up. Inuyasha's hand went halfway to Tetsusaiga before he realized that no one was yelling about a fight. The rest blurred a bit: Sango leaning wearily against Kirara. Kagome pointing Kouga toward the village inn. Hojo handing off the squalling boy to someone, probably the kid's old man. There was a woman in a blue dress nearby, biting the back of her hand.

Weak humans... Can't even protect their own brat.

But did that make it their fault? Human children made it adulthood all the time. His eyes found their way back to the boy. This one would probably grow up too. A faded memory blew past the front of his mind. Wasn't that why humans lived all together in these reeking villages in the first place?

Chubby. They obviously fed him right. They were probably as scratch-poor as everyone else in this town, but their kid looked like he'd never gone to sleep hungry in his life.

And the man of the hour was pointing a finger this way. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes and growled low. What the fuck would Hojo have to say? It's called adoration, moron, now shut up and bask.

"-of course I'm not joking. Do I look like the kind of guy who could kill one of those things?" Hojo pointed again, "I know I was the one who said we'd bring your grandson back, but you should at least thank him." Hojo might have been speaking Kagome's English lesson for all the noise changed. "Higurashi, help me out!"

Stupid bastard, what the fuck did he care?

Mrs. Mura actually looked his way long enough to blink before turning back to Kagome. Inuyasha didn't bother to listen. She'd spin her little sugar-truth about how he was some saint, and all warm and cuddly and didn't he make the cutest sounds when he rolled over to get his ears scratched? The dog demon grit his teeth. He didn't do a fucking thing for anyone's worthless thanks...

Mrs. Mura was fussing about something. Inuyasha looked up. The old woman wanted to carry the kid, but her daughter wouldn't put him down. By now, the woman was probably in worse shape than Sango. Her son was covered in dirt, spit-up, gore and probably worse from the time he'd spent in the snake demon's guts, and the boy's mother was just standing there with her back to him, swaying back and forth as her husband tried to shut the old bag up.

"Why didn't you run when I told you to?"

The woman turned so that Inuyasha could see over one shoulder to the kid's face. He looked asleep. Finally.

"So what you're really saying is that this 'Hojo' can charm any woman he wants," the wolf prince's brow clenched helplessly, "and he doesn't know he's doing it?"

"That is right," answered Miroku.

"Sounds harmless," Kouga gave a snort. "It's just like Inu-koro to get worked up about noth-"

The priest gave a cough, and the dog demon could hear a rattle as Miroku tipped his staff toward the crowd, pointing Kouga toward what Inuyasha had been watching the whole time:

Kagome laughing at something Hojo said. Kagome letting Hojo hold her hand. Kagome trying not to let Hojo see that the red on her face was the blush and not the torchlight.

"Oh."

"Indeed."

"I repeat, dog breath," Kouga raised his voice into a sneer, "why haven't you driven him off? I left you in charge of protecting my woman, and-"

"She's not your woman, wolf turd!" he snapped over his shoulder.

Kouga's eyes narrowed, "I thought we settled this in the woods."

"All we settled was dust on your slow-ass moves!"

"You were the one lying in the dust, dog breath!"

Inuyasha growled. Even if it was only because Hojo had come in and distracted him, Kouga had taken him down. Even if he'd have been up again on his own in a heartbeat and a half, Kouga had taken him down, and there was no taking it back.

Why had he let Hojo sneak up on them like that? The stupid boy crashed his way though the woods like a cow. Had he really gotten that wrapped up in the fight?

Inuyasha eyed the bruise blooming dark under the skin below Kouga's eye.

"What are you smirking at?"

"Shut your ugly hole, wolf turd!"

"Who are you calling ugly, mutt-face?"

Inuyasha revved an answer from his chest. Kouga growled back. Louder.


No, no matter how badly the reeking wolf deserved to get pounded into health food, Inuyasha did not need the kind of focus that made him lose his guard. His fight with Kouga had been amazing, but what good was being able to concentrate his strength if any outside enemy could attack while he was distract-

Thwa-

Inuyasha's hand shot out and caught the Miroku's staff below the head. He snapped a curse and let go. How could someone who spent so much time pulling cons and chasing women still get to have holy powers? Either Buddha was very understanding or Miroku's soul was a lot more pure than it let on.

"That won't work twice in the same night, priest," he sneered, fighting the urge to flex his stinging fist.

The monk cocked an eyebrow, "Far be it from me to keep the two of you from finding other amusements," he asserted calmly, "but have your superior demon senses alerted you to the fact that dinner is ready?"

Kouga's head flipped back toward the center square, nose quickly snuffling. Inuyasha gave a snort. Wolf demons were a rough bunch, especially Kouga's tribe. Before Kagura had cut back their ranks, the wolves and warriors under his leadership had forced three clans of smaller youkai out of their mountains. They hadn't won any points from Inuyasha for their either their brains or their hygiene, but even he had to admit that they were tough, probably vital in their prince's rise to power.

"Hey," Kouga blinked. "Food!"

But if there was one of them who could cook worth shit, he'd eat Tetsusaiga. They'd tried to eat Shippo's screamer mushrooms, for fuck's sake!

"Well then!" the wolf prince got to his feet with a grin. "My woman invited me to spend the night-" Inuyasha bristled at Kouga's smugness, "-and as long as I'm not getting a shard of the Shikon jewel on this trip..."

The dog demon narrowed his eyes after the other youkai's steps, but Kouga barely brushed past Kagome and Hojo before making a beeline for the dumplings.

"Aren't you coming?" asked Miroku.


There was a rustle of robes behind him as the monk got to his feet. There was Hojo with a bowl in his hand, Hojo getting kissed by Mrs. Mura's daughter, Hojo smiling at something Kagome'd said.

Miroku exhaled, "The attitude of these townspeople toward you, Inuyasha, may be less hospitable than gratitude would dictate-"

The dog demon gave a snort.

"-but they have seen fit to provide all of us with a fine meal-"

"Saving you the trouble of another phony exorcism," he grumbled.

"-and you're not exactly encouraging them."

"Who says I want them encouraged, priest?" he shot back. "We both know I'd let this place burn to the ground if it meant getting us another shard of the jewel! I didn't rescue any damn kid so anyone'd think I was some hero."

"No," Miroku agreed, eyes drifting speculatively, "not/ just /anyone, I imagine..."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded.

Miroku shook his head. The priest sat down next to Inuyasha, following his line of vision. "Tell me," he said simply, "why is Hojo still alive?"

Inuyasha gave a grunt, "Kagome made me promise not to kill him, that's why."

"But, strictly speaking," Miroku went on, "you could have allowed Kouga to slay the boy, and still kept such a promise."

Inuyasha pushed back a growl. "It's not that simple," he answered.

"What did she offer you?" asked the monk.

"If Hojo gets home safe, I won't do it for a whole week."

Inuyasha's ears flattened back as his eyes went very wide. 'I couldn't have heard that right.'

"Not what she would have had to offer you, pervert!" he snarled. "Aren't you going to go eat? You ask stupid questions when you're hungry."

The monk pulled his hands together and backed away, but something in his gaze told Inuyasha that this line of questioning was more postponed than ended. "At least come join us while we benefit from your labors," said Miroku. "I for one would say that slaying giant serpents is hungry work."

"Then why don't you go eat something and quit bothering me?"

"As you wish," he conceded, casting his eyes back toward the crowd, "Kouga seems to be more than willing to eat your share." The monk's robes swished against the grass as he walked away.

Inuyasha stared into the dull light. The humans had gathered torches, and the torches had gathered moths. A few of the village girls had clustered around Hojo, probably begging him to tell the story one more time. Kouga was chowing down on dumplings.

Why had he protected Hojo? Miroku was right in a smug-bastard kind of way. Hojo had put Shippo in danger; it wouldn't have been wrong to let him die. And if Kouga had been the one to strike the blow, then Kagome would have gotten mad at him, turned her tears on him, told him that she never wanted to see his lame ass ever again...

Was that it?

I don't want to see her cry. Inuyasha glared down at the boy. Not for him. Not because of him. Not after what he did.

If Kagome knew what Hojo had tried, if she knew what Hojo had thought about Shippo.

"She'd forgive him," Inuyasha's thoughts withered, "just like she forgave the fucking wolf." His fists clenched in the dirt, ripping up chunks of root. Why did she have to be so fucking sweet to them? They didn't deserve it! Violent, weak, ignorant, possessive, stupid-They didn't deserve any of it! No one fucking did!

Idiots. Stupid fucking idiots. They took it as encouragement, a sign that she really did like them best, when all her smiles, her hopes, her kind concern... They were nothing but Kagome being Kag-

Inuyasha blinked into the crowd. Hojo with Mrs. Mura, Kouga by the food, Miroku making eyes at some young woman...

Where had that stupid girl gotten off to?

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KURAMA: (Beats out flames)

I told you not to make her mad.

KURAMA: And I've told you to stop stealing my garments.

The next one is Mommy Rogers. She just wants you to meet her kids.

KURAMA: That doesn't sound so hard.

Aged four and six.

KURAMA: (Drops whip.)