Kenshin and Inu Yasha x-over
Summary: Kenshin wanders into Inu Yasha's feudal Japan...
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"Oh no, this one does not wish to cause any trouble," the rurouni smiled peacefully and bowed to the one who stood in front of him.
"But I must thank you kind sir, at least stay for a meal before you go. Traveling must be hungry business," the older woman smiled and the youthful- looking boy found himself unable to refuse.
"One meal," he agreed, stepping inside with another bow.
"Oh, and what would you name be?"
"Himura Kenshin."
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"Miroku, you pervert!" a loud snapping noise was heard and Kagome sighed.
"Lady Sango—I"
"Oh spare me," the demon huntress replied in a huff, not bothering to look back at Miroku, who rubbed his face ruefully even though he was quite used to this routine.
Inu Yasha looked over his shoulder at the two, still walking. "You know monk, maybe if you gave her a little space you two would get along better," his words were bitter, but there was still a small smirk on the hanyou's face.
"It's not my fault," Miroku replied indignantly, still rubbing the searing red mark on his face. "My hand just finds itself in such places... not to say they aren't nice pla—OW!"
The group of travelers stopped as Miroku hit the ground almost as quickly as the words were out of his mouth, Sango's foot pushing down on the crook of his back. A small demon with a sandy colored, overly fuzzy tail took this opportunity to jump down onto the fallen monk, leaning over his head so his upside-down eyes lined with Miroku's. "What were you going to say?" he asked innocently.
"Well Lord monk, would you care to finish that statement for the young fox?" Sango asked bitterly, silently fuming.
Kagome looked down at Miroku, and (being the kind person she was) looked around to find a quick change of subject. She yawned and looked at the horizon. "It's starting to get dark, we should probably find somewhere to rest."
"But we could make it back to the old hag's house before too long," Inu Yasha protested and Kagome just glared at him. Obviously he was—yet again—only thinking of himself.
"If we stopped I could make some ramen," she replied with a smile.
"Okay, so what are we waiting for?"
'That was way too easy...' Kagome sighed inwardly. 'You can tell he's part animal, all he really cares about is food.'
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The group managed to get a room in a local inn, owned by a kindly old couple. They got to spend the night for free because Miroku 'exorcised' the place, even though each one of them knew there wasn't really anything there.
"I wonder when people are going to start catching on to this," Inu Yasha commented, eating the instant ramen Kagome had prepared for him, as the others ate some almost gourmet foods provided by the inn itself.
"I wouldn't worry, if they refuse us, we can always make something bad happen and then they'll have wished they believed me," Miroku replied steadily, taking a sip of tea.
Kagome just sighed and almost ignored Inu Yasha when he started sniffing the air curiously. He was sniffing like he did when he smelled danger. "What is it Inu Yasha?" Kagome questioned, her gaze held a slight concern at the look on the hanyou's face. "A demon?"
Inu Yasha shook his head, his silver hair falling over his shoulders as he did so. "Nothing like that. Someone who smells of blood. A human. I'm sure of it," he inhaled one more time.
"Do you think he's here as an assassin?" Sango looked at Inu Yasha, but mostly curious at who could be staying here that could possibly pose a threat. This was no second-rate inn.
"That's the thing. He smells of old blood. Not day old, years old. But whoever it is smells strongly of it, like they couldn't wash it away. It's almost..."
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"... like they tried to though," Kenshin sat, listening to the faint voices through the silence of the night.
"So... you don't think they're a threat?"
"This one is no threat," Himura shook his head as he spoke to himself, unaware that the white-haired male in the other room had a dog's hearing. Kenshin jumped as his door opened quickly and he found golden eyes glaring daggers at him.
"You were listening to us?" the man—who seemed to be only part human—asked bitterly.
Kenshin smiled weakly, a bit perturbed by the other's unexpected presence. He heard a cry of "sit!" and the demon crashed into the ground violently. This didn't do much at all to comfort the scared rurouni. A girl with long black hair and strange clothing peeked into the room and blushed slightly. "I'm sorry, he's harmless, really. I think he was just a little surprised that you were listening in on what he was saying."
"I've heard people say worse," his cheerfulness started to fade for a second before he regained his usual composure. "It's nothing. This one wouldn't want to cause any trouble."
"Does 'this one' have a name?" Kenshin looked up, two more people had appeared in the doorway. Another girl, though she was evidentially older than the first, and a male, who appeared to be some sort of monk.
"Himura Kenshin, a simple rurouni. You are a band of travelers I assume."
"Not entirely," the monk replied. "We're just going to a village a few miles away, just north of here."
The rurouni's face lit up. "That's the direction this one was planning to go... would you mind the company?"
"Oh great, another—" Inu Yasha was cut off by another cry of 'sit!' and the young girl started speaking instead as he was left almost broken on the ground.
"You could come with us, we don't mind," she smiled, looking for approval from the others.
"It might prove to be interesting," the older girl (whom he soon found out went by the name Sango) shrugged.
"I'd have preferred if you'd been a girl... but," the monk (Miroku) shrugged it off as well, not really caring since the rurouni was of the same gender as he.
"Well I guess I've got no say in this..." Inu Yasha muttered, ready to bite Shippo's tail off as the little demon toyed with his ears.
"I guess not, but after you just barged in here you can't expect to be treated like royalty," the fox demon replied, still tugging on Inu Yasha's ears.
"Yeah, yeah whatever..."
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The sun rose the next morning casting an orange tint across the land. Only a few hours later the rag-tag group was seen leaving the inn and heading north, the direction of the city where Lady Kaede lived.
"So, why're you heading this way anyway?" Inu Yasha glanced back at the rurouni who'd been staring at the back of his head since they started off.
"No reason really," he replied quickly, knowing the hanyou caught him staring. "And if this one may ask a question; you aren't human, are you? Are you a demon perhaps?"
"Half," the young girl replied for the other. "Why do you ask?"
"Yeah, you got somethin' against demons?" Inu Yasha spat spitefully.
"Oh," Kenshin drew back a bit, aware he'd hit a bit of an unmentionable topic. "No, it's not that at all. This one has never seen the likes of a demon before. In the travels this one had never come in contact with a demon until now."
"Where have you been wandering?" Inu Yasha spat. "There're demons all around here. Until the horizon at least."
Kenshin thought for a moment before replying. "Then it must have always been by luck or misfortune that this one has missed so many demons."
"Probably luck," the monk spoke up for the first time since they'd started their trek across the land. "Most demons aren't nearly as mild- mannered as our own Inu Yasha. And if he was full demon, he'd be something to worry about," Kenshin nodded as the hanyou interjected his own opinion.
"Well then you better start worrying monk, 'cuz we all know what I'm doing with the Shikon jewel," at this a look of pain flashed in Kagome's eyes. Himura caught the momentary lapse and tried to keep it in his mind to ask the girl what was wrong.
The rest of the trip was most uneventful, and was (as trips go) quite short. Only about ten miles of walking was done.
Once the group reached the town it was a short distance to Lady Kaede's hut, where introductions were done between Kenshin and the woman herself.
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"So ye are a rurouni, one who wanders these lands?"
"That is true of this one's lifestyle," Kenshin replied politely.
"And ye say that ye has never encountered a demon? Until ye met Inu Yasha of course," Kenshin nodded and Kaede shook her head. "Very strange indeed..."
"Is it? Until this path brought him to the lands, demons had never been mentioned to this one," he looked around to the others in the hut and they all shrugged and shook their heads. "Is this really that strange?"
"Unheard of in these lands I'm afraid," Sango tried to explain. "My family used to make a living off hunting demons. We can't anymore, but..." Kenshin nodded as he decided not to pursue why her family could no longer hunt demons. Instead he tried to imagine that there were enough demons to need hunting. Almost like bugs in a low-class inn.
"This is a lot to think of," Kenshin muttered and then looked at the pot in the middle of the room. "Especially without any food – But this one does not wish to be any trouble!!" he added quickly, not being selfish enough to ask them to prepare food for him, even though he was starving.
"Oh, it's no trouble," Kagome smiled at him and he sat back, returning the smile warmly. "We never did stop to eat breakfast."
"Fine, but make it quick," Inu Yasha spat, getting up and looking out the door impatiently. "We've got some shard hunting to do."
Kenshin looked at Inu Yasha. Every muscle in the hanyou's body was tense; he was like a wild animal ready to pounce. "You know, if you desire so strongly to leave here, we can. This one has no destination as of now and the company is much appreciated." 'Especially since demons roam these lands...' he added mentally, wanting to see a demon in combat before he was to face one himself.
Inu Yasha sighed with aggravation, but once again Kagome stepped in before he had the chance to speak. "It could be dangerous traveling with us," she warned, wanting to protect anyone she could from harm.
"This one is traveling anyway," Kenshin replied, standing up. "It is preferred to know who your opponent may be before you have to face them."
Miroku nodded. "Indeed he has a point. No matter how skilled a swordsman this rurouni is, he could still be in grave danger walking around by himself without knowing fully what he's up against."
Inu Yasha gave in. "Fine, you can come. Just don't slow us down, now let's get going." Kagome looked at Kenshin who nodded without hesitation. He didn't enjoy fighting, but it seemed it would come to that no doubt on this small journey.
As the group left the usual bickering started, but little did they know of the new dangers that awaited them.
All of them.
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R&R please! Any helpful crits and suggestions would be nice ; A few things are set to happen, but I can always use some filler and side-plots o
Thanks so much for reading my first chappie of my first real non-POV fic. I appreciate it whether you liked it or not.
Btw, I'm not writing too much more unless I know it's worth writing, so please tell me what you thought so I can improve.
P.S. Don't expect all too regular updates if all the chappies are this long...