Beads on a Human


Inuyasha sat in the dark night, a short distance from his sleeping companions. He could never sleep on nights when he was human, so he had volunteered to keep watch. They were all resting comfortably, or as near as he could tell, since he wasn't able to pick up on their breathing or heart beats in this form. He wasn't able to pick up on anything in this form--it seemed that he could barely see, hear, or smell anything. He hated being human. Inuyasha wondered how the others could sleep so easily; he could never sleep. Then he answered his own question--they didn't know any better. They didn't know what it was like, only ever having their own senses. Well, except Shippou and Kirara. Though Shippou slept as soundly as any human. Kirara was probably the most alert tonight, next to Inuyasha himself.

Inuyasha looked around, ready for any sign of trouble. But the night was quiet. Not that that wasn't good, it meant that they wouldn't have to fight for their lives this time. Every other time he had turned human, it seemed like there was someone after them, so Inuyasha was naturally on edge, suspecting something to show up any minute now. But nothing did. Inuyasha brushed the hair out of his eyes, and stuck a piece of it behind his ear, something which felt odd, since he couldn't do that with his normal ears. As Inuyasha moved his hand back down, it brushed against the beads around his neck.

A sudden realization struck him. Kagome had never used the beads on him when he was human. They had either been too busy fighting demons to get into an argument themselves, or he had been too withdrawn to want to talk about anything, much less anything that would get him sat. He wondered if the beads would even work when he was human. Inuyasha certainly wasn't going to ask her to try it; he wasn't sure he wanted to be thrown to the ground in this human body.

Another sudden realization struck him. Inuyasha tentatively grabbed the beads and slowly lifted them, expecting them to magically stop just before they would go over his head. They didn't. He pulled off the beads, and looked at them, his mouth falling open in shock. They were off! Quickly he looked around to make sure that no one had seen him, and then put them back over his head. It wouldn't do for anyone to notice that they were gone. He would wait until just before the sun came up, and then take them off. Then he would wake everyone up and say that he wanted to get an early start. By the time anyone noticed that the beads were missing, they would be too far away to ever find them again. Then there would be nothing that they could do about it.

The beads were annoying, but he had gotten used to it. And it wasn't as if it really hurt him. Kagome sometimes got mad at him, and that was the only way she could retaliate. There was no other way that she could get back at him. It was just one of those things. He didn't hate her for it, but it would be nice to have the things off. The look on her face when she said "Sit!" and nothing happened would be priceless. And he could do whatever he wanted. Not that he was planning anything horrible, but he wouldn't have to worry about getting sat ever again. Inuyasha grinned to himself.

The rest of the night passed quietly, oddly enough. No insane demon wandered across their path, no henchman of Naraku's showed up, and no one wanting his blood arrived. On the whole, it was one of the more pleasant times that he had become human. The sky began to lighten, and Inuyasha waited. Aggravatingly, nervously waited, afraid that one of the others would wake up. But they didn't. Just a few moments before the sunrise, Inuyasha pulled the beads over his head, and flung them as far away as possible. He resisted the urge to laugh out loud.

Then the sun peaked over the horizon, and he felt his strength return and his senses sharpen. He saw that his hair had gone silver again, and his claws were back. It was done. Then Inuyasha saw something in the grass move. He crouched and got ready for whatever was coming out of it, not about to let it spoil his good mood. Inuyasha's eyes widened in stunned horror as he saw what rose up out of the grass. He stared open mouthed, and considered bolting, but it was too late. There was no way that he could escape what was coming. Glowing beads flung themselves at the once again half-demon Inuyasha, then arranging in a circle around his neck. Inuyasha tugged frantically at the beads, but they held fast, not moving an inch over his head.

"SHHIIIIIIIT!" the cry echoed through the still morning air.

Which immediately woke up all of the more alert sleepers. Kirara was standing, looking around for a possible enemy. Sango was drowsily reaching for her weapon, and Miroku sat upright. Shippou stirred only a bit, and Kagome remained asleep.

"What's the matter, Inuyasha?" Miroku asked worriedly, looking around.

"Nothing. Go back to sleep."

Inuyasha sighed. So close, and yet so far.

fanfic