Trinity Blood Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Shadows of Time ❯ Chapter 5

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Title: The Shadows of Time
Author: Ryukotsusei
Fandom: Inuyasha and Trinity Blood
Rating: NC 17

Warnings: Violence, torture, character deaths, language, lemons, spoilers for the entire series just to be safe, and the possibility of out of character characterizations. Read at your own risk.

Pairings: Tres Iqus x Kagome Higurashi x Abel Nightroad

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or Trinity Blood. The series belong to Rumiko Takahashi, and the late Sunao Yoshido. I make no money off of this fan fiction.

Special thanks to KogasHentaiLuver for taking the time to beta this chapter. And thank you to everyone who has chosen to review thus far.

Chapter Five

Sister Esther had only just gotten off the airship a couple of minutes ago and already she could tell that the message that she'd received hadn't been an exaggeration. The Pope was deathly ill and so far nothing could be done to cure him. She still couldn't understand why someone would wish to attack him in such a fashion. What had he done to warrant such a vicious attack? 'I just don't understand; things were going so well, but now...' It was a very real possibility that Alessandro would die and most of the treaties that had been formed would be in danger of falling apart.

'We won't allow that to happen, we can't. There has to be a way to hold it all together, we just need to have faith that he won't die.' But that wasn't the only casualty of the person who had attacked him, the Empress lay in the same ward, slowly wasting away from the same disease and even she was not immune to the effects. Esther didn't even want to contemplate the bloodshed that would follow Seth's death. The vampires would take it upon themselves to eradicate every human in the Empire, just like they'd wanted to do for years.

“Father Nightroad, where are you?” she whispered into the darkness. Even after all this time she still had a hard time finding her way around the compound. 'At this rate it will be dinner time before I find him.'

“Sister Esther Blanchett, you are looking for Father Nightroad?” Father Tres asked, causing the woman in front of him to spin around in surprise.

“Oh! Yes, Father Tres. Might you know where I can find him?” Sister Esther asked politely while trying to calm her racing nerves. Sometimes she was certain that she'd never get used to him moving about so quietly.

“Positive, Father Nightroad is speaking with Cardinal Sforza at this time and they have sent me to retrieve you,” Father Tres said flatly, “Follow me, I will take you to them.”

Sister Esther nodded and then fell in step beside him, “News travels fast around here, and I just got off the airship.”

“Positive, a messenger arrived the moment the ship landed. We've been expecting you,” he replied and continued leading the woman down the correct hallway. He knew that the Cardinal had made her decision as to whether or not the church would provide a new body for the priestess they'd brought in for questioning, but she refused to inform the girl before Sister Esther had arrived. This concerned her after all.

“I'd thought as much, the message I received said it was urgent that I come so can you tell me what's going on?” Esther asked quietly. She was almost half certain that it had something to do with the Pope's current condition and the Cardinal wanted to ensure that the treaty they had with Albion would remain in place. In which case she would quickly put their fears to rest.

Father Tres shook his head, “Negative. The current situation must be explained by Cardinal Sforza, I cannot break protocol.” As it was, they were all under strict orders not to breathe a word of this to anyone and that included even their team mates. Everything was on a need to know basis and the Duchess was the one making that decision.

Sister Esther repressed a sigh, “I see. I guess I can understand that. We wouldn't want to break the rules now, would we?” Aside from a sideways glance, she didn't get a response from her companion, not that she really expected one anyway. Fortunately, he'd brought her exactly where she needed to be and without another word she stepped through the doorway into the Cardinal's personal office. “Your grace,” she said politely in greeting, “It is good to see you again.”

“Sister Esther, I'm pleased that you could return so quickly. I have a favor to ask of you,” Lady Caterina began, not knowing just how the other woman would react to what she was about to request.

“Of course, how may I serve you?” Sister Esther replied immediately. It wasn't often that her imminence would asked for favors and that alone spoke of the importance of the situation. The other woman's face had the slightest traces of worry and hope lining it and a quick glance over to Father Nightroad revealed even less.

“You were informed of the attack and the identity of the person who perpetrated it,” Lady Caterina began, “provided you read the missive all the way through you know that the one responsible is in fact a demon.”

Sister Esther nodded slightly, “It came as a surprise, but if your sources are reliable I see no reason to dismiss it. Is there something that I can do to help you stop this monster?” Demon or not, she was of the opinion that the one who did this should pay for the assassination attempt. She didn't hold the same ideals that Father Nightroad did; she wasn't above killing if the situation called for it.

“In fact there is,” Lady Caterina said and gently placed her hands upon the surface of the desk, “we've located someone who has experience with the demon and knows how he works. Even better, she holds power over the artifact that he is using, but there is a rather large problem.”

“What is it?” Sister Esther asked, running scenarios through her head. 'Perhaps they need sanctuary while they prepare to fight this monster. If he's as powerful as they say, it will take quite a bit of preparation to defeat him.'

“The problem is that she died over a thousand years ago,” she replied and then held up a hand to forestall the barrage of questions that was sure to follow, “What we need to do is recreate her body. Before you ask, yes, we can in fact do it, but there is a catch and this is where you come in. Since she was a priestess of considerable power, the body that is created has to have the ability to possess that power otherwise the energy will destroy it from the inside out. This eliminates quite a few of the donors that we would go to for the DNA sample we would need.”

“And you want me to do it since I do have some talent?” Sister Esther asked, taking a guess at what this favor was. While her abilities weren't exactly anything extraordinary, she wasn't completely devoid of them either. When the blonde seated across from her nodded, she agreed, “Of course, just tell me where it is that I need to go and I'll do it.” Giving up some blood or some hair wasn't a big deal, especially if this priestess would be able to fight the demon as the Duchess believed.

“You have my gratitude,” she replied sincerely and stood up, “Come with me and we'll begin the procedure. Normally the process to grow a body takes months, but with her power, I'm not sure how it will effect it.”

Sister Esther gave the woman a slightly surprised look, “She's that strong?” This was actually all news to her, she'd never heard that it was possible to clone a human much less do it within a few months, but for someone's soul to be so strong that it could actually alter the amount of time it took? The possibilities were staggering.

Lady Caterina nodded and led the red head down the hallway towards the room she'd instructed the priestess and her escorts to wait, “If one is to believe her story, and I do, then yes she's that powerful. Her story is convincing and we've found documentation from the past that leads us to believe she is telling the truth.”

“I see,” Sister Esther replied after a moment and followed the taller woman into a side room. Immediately her eyes widened seeing the two strange beings sitting there staring at her. 'What... are they?'

“Sister Esther, may I introduce you to Mr. Shippo Hakashi and Jaken. Kagome is here as well, but at the moment we cannot see her,” Lady Caterina said to get the introductions out of the way, and then she looked directly at Shippo, “We've come to a decision and we've decided to grant your request. It will take time to accomplish, but we will get started immediately. If all of you would follow me, I will take you to the medical ward where we can begin.”

“Oh thank God,” Kagome whispered fervently, thanking every deity that she could think of for granting her the chance to put things right. Eagerly she followed the woman out of the room with Shippo and Jaken trailing closely behind her, bringing up the rear.

Quickening his steps, Shippo caught up to the Cardinal and looked at her in his peripheral vision, “Thank you for giving us the opportunity to take this bastard out.”

“Just make sure that you do so and we'll consider it even,” the Cardinal replied quietly and then led them down a hallway to the left. While they'd been waiting for Sister Esther to arrive, a vague idea had been forming in her head, but she wasn't sure whether or not it would pan out. Naraku had already done so much damage that was potentially irreversible, and desperately she was trying to come up with a way to undo it all. “Tell me more about Kagome's ability to travel through time.”

“Well, Kagome always traveled through the well on the shrine. Most of the time she needed fragments of the jewel in order to get the portal to work, but there were a few occasions that she was able to go through without them, why?” Shippo asked curiously, wondering just what the woman was thinking. For a human she was extremely intelligent and he was not about to underestimate her.

“Call it curiosity,” she replied thoughtfully, “does this portal still exist?” Since the journey to the feudal era had ended centuries ago, the Cardinal had her doubts, but it wouldn't hurt to ask.

Shippo shook his head and sighed, “No, the war destroyed both the shrine and the well. The only thing that remains now is the Goshinboku, but that's a powerful entity all its own. Once when Kagome was separated from us, stuck in her own time, she used it as a bridge through time and was able to communicate with Inuyasha. Somehow I'm not surprised though considering that the well was made of wood from the tree.” Of course the instance that he was referring to was just another example of Kikyo's and Inuyasha's stupidity. Either one of them should have seen that Kagome was a necessary part of the group and put their divided feelings aside.

“That is a pity. Naraku was not able to acquire the jewel again until he ripped it out of Sister Kate. If the priestess was able to return to the past yet again, the demon would be considerably weaker and easy to kill,” Lady Caterina speculated, as it was she wasn't even sure just how successful Kagome would be against Naraku in this time. The group that had battled the demon in the past was no more and she was well aware of how ineffective modern weapons were against the beast.

“Huh,” Shippo grunted, considering the idea, “It's not a bad plan, especially considering that if it were to take her back there's a good chance that Inuyasha and the others would still be alive. Even though five hundred years had passed for Kagome, time moved differently between the eras. But with the well gone that makes things more difficult. I suppose we could rebuild the well quickly enough if we needed to, it wasn't anything particularly elaborate and I know exactly where it was.” Hell, if he were to be honest the hole still existed, even after all this time. It was just that the wood had long ago rotted away and he'd never bothered to replace it. There just wasn't any point since Kagome was dead and the portal had sealed.

“Hm, it might be worth a shot. We'll be losing a couple of days that could be spent hunting Naraku, but if this works then it'd be worth it. We already know that Inuyasha and Kouga will be willing to help hunt him down, along with your human friends,” Jaken said, joining in with the discussion, “If they're able to defeat him in the past then everything that's occurred so far will be erased as if it never happened, including the miko's death.” Unspoken were his thoughts of his lord living once again, but it didn't need to be added anyway. Already there was an air of anticipation in their eyes and he could see that they both liked the idea.

“Very well, once the revival is complete you will travel with Kagome back to Japan and see if you can find a way to return her to the past. I'll send a team with you to ensure that you have no trouble while you're out there and if it works, they'll go with you. Perhaps then when Naraku is without the jewel they'll be more effective and will aide you in the fight,” Lady Caterina said, her mind working out the details behind this little experiment. While she would suffer the loss of two of her team, it was also insurance that the mission was in fact accomplished. If Kagome died in the past there would be no way for them to help her, but they could ensure that Naraku paid for his crimes. It was just a question of who to send.

Before Shippo could make a comment on the decree, Father Nightroad stepped away from the spot that he'd been leaning against the wall. “I will go with her and lend my strength in the battle against this demon,” he stated firmly. When the Cardinal looked as if she would protest, he held her gaze without wavering, “The Empress is declining rapidly and I'm afraid that she may not last the week. I must do something; I was the one who failed to protect her.”

Suddenly it became all too clear to Caterina and with a sad sigh, she gave in, “Very well, Father Nightroad.” She fell silent then, trying to determine who would be the best to send with him. Many of her operatives had been left in the dark about the revival process they were about to attempt and explaining it to them all to get a volunteer would take time. Not to mention, each of them would have pressing reasons for wanting to remain and there was no telling if they'd even be able to come back if they were to make it through the portal. Eventually she came to the conclusion that there was only one real choice, even though it saddened her to know that she was potentially sending the both of them away for good. “I will send Father Tres with you since he already knows the situation. It will save time in explanations, not to mention you already trust each other to some extent.”

There was also the added factor that in every instance of fighting Naraku in this time, the killing doll had been powerless to stop the demon because of the jewel. In the past, however, his weapons would be more effective and she trusted him to carry out any order he was given. This brought her back to the Crusnik standing in front of her. She understood perfectly why her friend was volunteering for this duty, it was his sister laying on her deathbed, and he felt guilty over what had happened. Truthfully, she sympathized with him since Alessandro was lying next to her and was not expected to live through the night. Although he might be her brother, Caterina had to be strong since he could not. The time for mourning would come later.

“Thank you,” Father Nightroad replied sincerely. This would give him the means to save his sister and it didn't matter if he would have to travel into the distant past, he would take it eagerly. He knew that Father Tres would not object to the arrangement either since it was likely that Lady Caterina could be targeted next. Even though his partner was a cyborg, he had the capability to feel some emotion even if it was slight and the ability to think beyond the orders he'd been given. That combined with the girl's desperate plea earlier in the day to avenge her family's death would be enough to gain his aid. Her words had struck a chord with them both and they'd do everything they could to help her in this fight.

Throughout the conversation Kagome said nothing. Honestly, she had no idea if what they were planning would even work to get her back to the past much less anyone else. The only one who had ever been able to travel time with her had been Inuyasha. Shippo would not be able to accompany her since his younger self was alive in that time. The only one who had the slightest possibility that she could see would be Father Tres and that was because she got the distinct impression that he wasn't completely human. His manner of speaking was off, not to mention the little bit of an aura that he did give off was so muted it was as if it wasn't even there.

Kagome was snapped out of her musings when they were led into a brightly lit room that she could only assume was the medical ward. Immediately her attention turned to two people who were lying on beds with intravenous lines sticking out all over their bodies. But most striking of all was the black aura of Naraku's miasma that covered them. “Oh my God,” she whispered softly, horrified by the picture they presented.

Those softly spoken words had Shippo stopping in place and looking at her in concern, “What is it, Kagome?” When she didn't answer he followed her line of sight to the two pale people laying on the beds and his brow furrowed, “They're covered in Naraku's taint and it's stronger now than it was before.”

“I know,” Kagome replied and made her way to their bedside, “but it's not directly from him. It's almost as if it's... from a separate entity. A detachment perhaps.”

“It was,” Father Nightroad joined in on the conversation even though the others were oblivious to what the miko was saying, “The diseased monster separated from his body. It attacked the Empress first and then His Holiness. Unfortunately we have not been able to stop the plague from progressing.”

Nodding in understanding, Shippo moved over to the bed as well. This wasn't an area that he could aid in, but perhaps Kagome could, “Can you help them or is it too late?” More than once she'd had some luck in purifying the taint from the unfortunate souls that Naraku had come across, perhaps this time would be no different.

“I can try,” Kagome said after a moment's contemplation. Since the Empress was closer to her, she laid a pale hand on the woman's arm and allowed it to pass through her flesh. Her eyes flew open wide and she stared at Shippo in surprise, “She's not a human, but not a demon either. Is she one of the Methusela that you've mentioned?”

Quickly Father Nightroad made a decision concerning the information that needed to be given. It was taking a risk but he couldn't expect a doctor to treat a patient with unknown complications any more than he could expect it of Kagome to treat a being that she knew nothing about. “She's a Crusnik, to be precise, she is my sister. Have you knowledge of our kind?” If they did he'd be surprised, considering that there had only been four of them conceived.

Kagome shook her head, but to everyone's surprise, Shippo nodded, “A Crusnik is a higher form of vampire, one that feeds on the weak of its own species. You were specifically engineered with the nanomachines discovered on Mars. Am I correct?” Even though the question had been asked, he knew that he was right. He and Sesshoumaru had made it their business to know about every being that held power equal or greater than theirs.

“I'm impressed, not many know of us,” Father Nightroad said quietly although he wasn't exactly disturbed that the kitsune knew either. The man was intelligent and cunning; he had to be in order to keep the existence of demons a secret. There were those within the church who would wage a war against them just for being different.

“It's my business to know these things,” Shippo said with the slightest shrug of his shoulders before turning his attention back to Kagome, “They possess no demonic energy if that's what you're wondering and they're not akin to the vampires that used to be spoke of in fiction. There's a chance that you would be able to heal her if you tried,” he said and then turned his attention to Father Nightroad, “but there is also a chance that she could die. As it is now, the plague will consume her. There's no hope if we do nothing. Are you willing to risk it, Father Nightroad? If the healing fails there is still the backup plan of returning to the past, assuming it works. But it's still a risk, which will you choose?”

“Do it,” Seth whispered from the bed and turned her head to face her brother's worried gaze. Pain wracked her body with each breath that she took and merely laying there was an agonizing experience. She hadn't believed the doctors when they'd assured her that they would find a cure, she could see the worry and resignation in their eyes. If there were a chance that she could be freed of this pain whether it was through a healing or a quick death, she'd take it. “Please, Abel, let them try.”

For a moment Abel said nothing and just stared into his sister's eyes, trying to determine if she was lucid enough to even make the decision, but the pain he found there erased that thought. Whether she was or not, she was hurting and if they were willing to trust in Kagome enough to destroy Naraku, why wouldn't he place his faith in her to heal his sister? “Go ahead,” he said finally and then whispered a brief prayer to God to watch over his sister and aid Kagome in her efforts.

Kagome nodded and placed her other hand on the woman before closing her eyes and beginning to focus the power she controlled. She could feel the miasma that had caused the disease flee from the immediate area, but she was not about to be thwarted so easily. “No, I will not fail this time,” she whispered and increased the amount of healing energy she was pouring into the slight form, uncaring of how exhausted she would be later.

The others watched quietly as the pink glow began to envelop the Empress and Kagome attempted to do the impossible. The tension was so thick that it could be cut with a knife and no one even dared to breathe. Yet hope began to form in each of them as they stared at the Crusnik laying upon the bed. Already her appearance was changing and the open wounds which had formed on her skin were beginning to heal.

“She'll be fine. Kagome won't stop until every trace of the disease is gone,” Shippo whispered over to Father Nightroad, confident in Kagome's abilities. Finally the glow faded from the Empress's body and the woman slipped back into slumber. “She'll be asleep for a while,” he said, quick to reassure them that she was indeed okay, “it's a common side effect from such a healing. She'll be awake in a matter of hours.”

But Kagome wasn't paying any attention to what they were saying. Although she was tired, there was still one more person afflicted and she couldn't rest until he was healed as well. Carefully she laid her hands upon him and was immediately greeted by a wave of energy similar to her own, even if it wasn't anywhere near as powerful. The energy flowed quickly from her hands and she found that this time it wasn't taking so much focus to control. Perhaps it was because the man upon the bed was human, she really didn't know nor did she care. All that mattered was that Naraku's poison was being destroyed with a ruthless accuracy and soon, none of the taint remained.

Lady Caterina could only stare at her brother who was now free of any traces of the disease. Now more than ever she was convinced that Kagome could indeed help them and she would do everything in her power to ensure the miko had everything that she needed. “Thank you, Kagome,” she said, looking over in the direction she knew the woman to be.

“You're welcome,” Shippo said, answering for her since there was no way that the Cardinal could hear her anyway. “We should get started, after a session like that Kagome won't be able to do much except rest and recover her energy.”

To this Kagome laughed weakly, “Right now I wouldn't be able to project if my life depended on it... Well you know what I mean.” It warmed her heart to see these people happier than they had been. Now their families are safe and would remain that way, if she had anything to say about it.

“Right, then let's get started,” the Duchess said and began leading them into another room where she knew the doctor would be waiting. When they entered the room it was no surprise to see Father Tres standing there, especially since he'd been the one to inform the doctor of the procedure they'd be undertaking. Fortunately the man didn't ask any questions and began laying out the instruments that would be needed.

“Sister Esther, if you don't mind would you enter room one and put on the gown that's waiting for you please?” The doctor asked and began to prepare the syringe that he would need to anesthetize the area that he'd be making an extraction from.

“Of course,” Sister Esther replied before disappearing into the room that he'd specified. While she wasn't quite certain that she understood why she needed to get undressed, she wouldn't question the doctor's instructions.

Curiously the doctor raised an eyebrow in her direction, “She seems rather calm about the whole thing. Does she know what the procedure entails?” Somehow he doubted it seeing that this practice was only done on extremely rare occasions and it wasn't common knowledge.

Shippo snorted, “I doubt it, but I'm sure you'll do a good job in explaining to her just what it is that you plan to do.” He could only pray that she wasn't particularly squeamish about needles, the length of the one the doctor was preparing to do the ova extraction was long enough to make even him wince.

The doctor resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the vote of confidence and waited patiently until Sister Esther stuck her head through the doorway to announce that she was ready. “Nurse Wilson, if you please. Let us begin the procedure,” he said and gathered his instruments with the woman following closely behind him.

Hearing the door open, Sister Esther looked up and smiled seeing the doctor enter along with his assistance. “So,” she began with just a trace of nervousness, “what is it exactly that we're going to be doing?” A quick glance at the tray revealed a couple of different syringes of various sizes, all which made her eyes widen. However, she knew that some sort of extraction would be necessary. 'They probably just need blood or at the most, they'll remove a section of skin like a biopsy.'

“I'll explain the procedure as we work, I understand that time is of the essence,” he said gently, trying to reassure the girl, “I need you to lay back and relax; we'll try to get this over with as quickly as possible.” The procedure they were about to perform was quite simple and common, the first half of it anyway. What was to follow, however, is where things became interesting and infinitely more difficult.

Taking a deep breath, Esther laid back against the bed as requested and watched with genuine curiosity in her eyes. Moments later the nurse approached and began to push up the top to the gown they'd asked her to wear. Once her stomach was exposed she was rather shocked when the woman began to slide the pants down until they were resting rather snugly across her hips. A vague idea came to her mind of just what they were after, but she wasn't going to make assumptions. After all, weren't the best places to remove skin for grafts and other related procedures from the hip and buttocks area?

That notion was quickly erased when the nurse took an iodine pad and began swabbing her abdomen. Before she could process this new information, the doctor was advancing upon her with the smaller of the two needles.

“Just relax; you'll feel a couple of tiny pricks in a moment. This is to numb the area so you won't feel the second needle,” the doctor said quietly, sparing her a brief look to make sure that she wasn't going to leap off the table. Quickly he pierced the skin and injected the first of the local anesthetic. The slight hiss of pain she gave off lasted only a few moments, and by the time he'd injected her twice more her skin didn't even twitch. “Very good, you did well. We'll just give this a couple of minutes just to make sure that it's working and then we'll proceed to the next step,” he said and then walked over to the ultrasound machine they'd be using next.

'They can't be serious,' Sister Esther thought while she watched him power the machine up and begin inputting her information. Although she'd never been through anything like this before, she had a pretty good idea of what was going on now. That was only confirmed when the doctor returned and applied a massive amount of lubrication to her abdomen and began smearing it around.

“Nurse Wilson, if you please,” the doctor said, gaining his assistant's attention. Once she was in proper position he applied the probe to the patient's body and began moving it around. A detailed image appeared on the screen and within moments he'd found what he was looking for. “Everything looks to be in working order here. Of course, the ova isn't completely ripe, but for what we're doing that doesn't exactly matter,” he said quietly, “Nurse, if you would hold this position we'll begin the extraction.”

Sister Esther watched with wide eyes as the doctor picked up the longer syringe. This one had a clear fluid in it and one of the longest needles that she'd ever seen. 'Oh my God!' It was tempting to bolt off the table when the doctor brought it closer to her body, but she knew that everyone was counting on her. 'I can't let them down but oh... this is going to hurt!'

“Take a deep breath and relax,” the doctor ordered. This was by far the worst part because while the skin was properly numbed, they really couldn't do much for the muscle underneath and no matter what they tried, there would still be some level of discomfort. Some women brushed it off as if it was nothing and others swore they were being killed. As gently as he could he pierced the skin and began forcing the needle deeper into her body, its destination the ovary which would provide them with the egg they needed.

Sister Esther bit her lip and tried to keep from crying out in pain when the needle began piercing through her body. It was unlike anything she'd ever felt before as she could literally feel it when it passed into her abdominal cavity. 'It hurts! Oh God, please make it stop!' Her eyes squinted shut and her hands gripped the edges of the bed, waiting for it all to end. There was no way in hell she was even going to look at the screen to see the needles advance, if she did there was a good chance she was going to get sick.

Finally the needle reached its destination and the doctor smiled, “We're almost done, just another couple of moments.” Slowly he pulled back on the plunger and began the collection. More than one egg was taken to ensure that they didn't have to go through this procedure again and once he had enough, he began withdrawing the needle. “There, it's done. You did well, sister,” he said, his voice warm with approval.

Letting out a shaky breath, Esther opened her eyes to see that the doctor was setting the syringe down. Already the nurse was working to clean her stomach of the lubrication before applying some gauze to the hole that had been left in the needle's wake. “Can I go now?” she asked shakily.

“In a few minutes perhaps. Just lay there and relax for a bit, give the bleeding a chance to stop and your stomach to settle. If you move now you're likely to get nauseous,” the doctor advised quietly. He'd seen it far too often where young women thought they could bounce right off the table, expecting that they wouldn't be affected by the drugs that had been injected only to find out how wrong they were.

For a moment Esther thought to ignore the warning, but when she attempted to sit up her stomach lurched violently. “Maybe you're right,” she whispered miserably and ceased moving. 'I hate doctor's offices. I always come out feeling worse than when I went in.'

~The Next Morning~

Father Nightroad stood before the door to the room that their guests had been installed in the night before after the procedure. There had been no point in waiting around afterwards because the doctor would need to begin the process of cloning which would take hours. Now the embryo was ready though and they could not wait much longer. To do so would give another soul the opportunity to enter and they'd be back at square one. Quickly he brought his hand up and knocked on the door, knowing that they'd already be awake. Before he'd bid them farewell the night before he'd informed them that he would be coming by as soon as they were ready to begin the next step. When the door open, he smiled brightly, “Good, you're awake, Mr. Hakashi. Everything has been prepared, now all that's left is for the soul implantation.”

“Right,” Shippo replied and stepped through the doorway with Kagome following closely behind, “Look, since you're coming with us on the upcoming trip I think we can drop the honorifics. Just call me Shippo, okay?” He'd never been one for formalities in the first place and he didn't see the need for it now, no matter what Jaken said.

To this Father Nightroad smiled, “As you wish, Shippo. Most dignitaries are not so gracious and we must take care not to offend them. I'm sure you're aware of the conflicts that have arisen because of such trivial things.” They moved quickly to the medical building, not bothering to stop and exchange pleasantries with the people they passed, not that he minded all that much. Nor did it appear that the demon at his side was displeased about that little detail. He couldn't blame him; this wasn't a pleasure walk to be certain.

“That's because the human race doesn't need a reason to fight,” Shippo replied absently. It was just one among many stupid reasons that wars had come about and he was sure that there would be worse reasons in the future that they would have to deal with.

From the side, Kagome scoffed, “Right, like the demons are much better. What was the reason we were told that Inuyasha's father went to fight Ryukotsusei again? Pissing rights over who the stronger demon was and who stepped on whose territory? Oh and let's not forget the reason that the bat demons almost destroyed that village, because one of their precious sons consorted with a human female. Never mind the fact that they actually wanted the child and took her from her mother. It was just the fact that the humans breathed the same air and they needed to die. I don't think that the demons as a race have any room to look down their noses at humans because of war.” If they wanted to posture about how much stronger they were that was one thing because in many ways it was true, but she wasn't going to sit there and let that particular comment go unchallenged.

At the sour look that crossed Shippo's face, Father Nightroad couldn't help but chuckle, “Traveling with the both of you is sure to be interesting. Do the rest of you get along so well?” He was almost looking forward to this trip for another reason other than hunting Naraku; he rather enjoyed listening to how freely these two expressed themselves. It was a vast change from how stiff most of the people he worked with were.

“Are you kidding?” Shippo looked at him with a wry grin, “we actually like each other. If you actually manage to get back into the past you might well wish you never went. The arguments between Kags and Inuyasha were... heated to say the least.”

“I'm sure things can't be that bad,” Father Nightroad replied with amusement. If it was that bad they probably wouldn't have worked that well as a team and things would have fallen apart rather quickly. But he'd find that out later, for now they had to get to that point. Stopping in front of the door, he looked to the kitsune, “Are you ready?”

“Yep, let's get this thing started,” Shippo said and walked through the door, knowing they'd follow him in. As expected, the doctor was standing nearby waiting on them. “So this is it, huh?” he asked, staring at the cylindrical chamber that was filled with a clear fluid. Against one side there was a pulsing mass of flesh that had been connected to wires that ran into a separate closed chamber. 'That must be what will serve as the placenta for the time being. Now where is the embryo?'

Seeing the red head peering intently at the tissue, the doctor smiled, “Amazing isn't it? Truly a medical marvel if I do say so myself. The embryo has already implanted within the placenta, you see the light tan spot towards the center?”

“Ah, I see it now,” Shippo said and then looked over to Kagome. Even she was staring at it in awe, as if she couldn't believe that it was finally happening. “Are you ready, Kagome? We'll need to focus our energies together and then let me guide you down the path to your new body.”

“I'm ready,” she whispered and allowed her eyes to close. It took several moments to clear her mind long enough to slip into a trance before seeking out the familiar energy of the kitsune she'd spent so many years with. When she touched the blue aura, it was almost like feeling his arms wrapping around her, protecting her from the outside world. That's when she let herself go, trusting in him to guide her.

Silence filled the room while Father Nightroad and the doctor watched to see what would happen and suddenly the kitsune was enveloped in a soft blue glow. Then tendrils stretched out, reaching for something before wrapping around what had to be Kagome's spirit. And then, they were able to see her, but this time there was no hint of pain on her face. Instead she looked at peace with her eyes closed and the way her hair flowed gently around her. It was like nothing they'd ever seen before.

“Amazing,” Father Nightroad whispered before the image of the girl vanished from his sight. Now all that was left was a softly glowing sphere which was being guided into the tank where it slowly sank into the embryo and then vanished from sight completely. “Did it work?” he asked once Shippo had opened his eyes again.

A large grin settled on Shippo's face and he nodded, “It did. Now the rest is up to Kagome and the jewel. Kagome knows that we're short on time so she's going to try and tap into the Shikon through the bond that she has with it. If it works, we should notice a definite change within the next few hours. If not, we've got a long wait ahead of us.” Something told him though that the souls within the jewel weren't any happier about being in Naraku's possession than they were and in the end, Kagome's plea to them for help would he granted. But until they knew one way or another, it was best not to get too hopeful.

Within the tank, Kagome relished in the feel of actually having a form again, even if it was little more than a speck of flesh. The sensation was one that she'd forgotten over the years and she knew that it was going to take some time to get used to again, but with luck, she'd have all the time she needed. Right now though, she had a job to do. Carefully she felt for the bond between the Shikon and her soul, using the most delicate of spiritual touches so as not to alert Naraku. 'If he has any clue about what we are attempting, he will attack again to ensure we fail. I have to be careful.'

The spirits within the Shikon responded almost instantly and she instinctively soothed away the agitation she could feel roiling off of them. The separation had been hardest on them and she could actually feel the resentment that she'd been the one to banish them from the mortal realm, away from her.

'I'm sorry.' she thought to them sadly. Never had she thought about the souls within as having the ability of conscious thought. Now though she realized that the only time they were truly at peace was when they were with her, taking comfort in the soothing presence that her soul provided.

'I want to help you, will you help me so I can do so?' It would be so much harder to accomplish what they planned without the jewel's assistance which meant that they'd be separated for that much longer. Carefully she imparted the information to them, imparting to the souls the urgency of the situation and then prayed while waiting patiently to see what their answer would be.

“My God,” the doctor whispered, staring at the monitors. There was an immense energy surge that was going straight off the charts. Quickly he spun around and faced the chamber which immediately gained the attention of the others. “Look, its working!”

“Is that?” Father Nightroad asked, staring at the chamber intently. It was obvious that the embryo was growing at a far more rapid rate then was normal. It was amazing watching the changes taking place right before their eyes.

Quickly Shippo nodded and rested his hands against the glass, “She did it, she tapped into the power of the Shikon.” What had been a speck the size of a pea only a few minutes before was now the size of his fist and still growing. At the rate that she was going there was a good chance that she'd be ready to come out of the tank within a few hours.

“I must inform the Cardinal,” Father Nightroad said, making his excuses and leaving the room. Quickly he walked through the corridor, hoping to catch her before she had started the meeting with Cardinal Francesco over the Pope's remarkable recovery. They were keeping the information on what changed a secret from the man, not wanting to know just what his reaction to the demons would be. Fortunately luck was with him and he spotted her alone in the hallway. “Oh thank heaven I found you!” he said once he'd caught up to her.

Lady Caterina arched an eyebrow at the man by her side. As of late it had been rare to see him so happy over something and she couldn't wait to hear what it was, “You have news I take it?” She'd known that the plan for the morning was to implant Kagome's soul within the embryo and while she wanted to be present for it, she'd been forced into making sure that the reports for the latest deaths were in order so she could present them at the meeting with Francesco.

“Yes, Kagome's spirit is now firmly in place and she's tapped into the power of the jewel. We need to make the preparations to return to Japan, if things keep progressing as they are she'll be ready to go within two days time,” Father Nightroad replied in a whisper that did nothing to damper his excitement.

Relief filled the Cardinal upon hearing this. It was wonderful news that put them one step closer to defeating the menace that was plaguing them. “I'll see to it. Speak of this to no one beyond those that already know and make whatever preparations you need in order to depart. I'll arrange an airship to carry your team to Japan under the pretenses of finding an artifact that may take care of the incursions we've been experiencing. I must go quickly lest suspicion be aroused that Francesco would demand be explained.”

“Agreed, I'll inform Father Tres of the development and begin preparations to leave. Excuse me,” Father Nightroad replied and then went to go find his team mate and inform him of the plan. After that he had supplies to procure since while they were ready to go at a moment's notice, Kagome would have nothing in the way of clothing or equipment. 'Oh I hope she's about as tall as Sister Esther, I should have gotten her dress size before she entered the chamber.'

~The next day~

“Is she ready to come out yet?” Shippo asked quietly while looking into the tank, his gaze sweeping over that of his friend. Carefully he placed a hand against the cool glass and a smile came to his face when Kagome mimicked the action with an impish grin. Jaken had long since stopped coming as soon as she'd reached a respectable age, saying that seeing her unclothed was indecent. Personally, Shippo didn't care one way or another. After living with Kagome for so long, neither of them really had much in the way of modesty around the other. Hell, he still remembered bathing with her when he was a child so how was this really any different?

“In just a couple of minutes,” the doctor replied and kept his eyes trained on the monitor. This final stage always seemed to take forever because he had to ensure that her vitals were in a stable enough area that pulling her out of the tank wouldn't send her into shock. Of course that was generally more of an issue with a younger patient which she was not. As it was, he was pleased to see that while they were slightly elevated, they weren't into dangerous levels. Most likely it was due to the fact that Kagome knew she was getting out shortly.

Suddenly the level of fluid began to recede and Shippo held his breath, watching her head break the surface. 'Amazing.' he thought to himself, taking in her appearance. Really, he couldn't even tell that she had to have a body made. With the exception of the scars that had littered her body before, as far as he could tell she looked the same. Finally the liquid was gone and he was getting rather impatient with how slowly the doctor was being, “Alright Doc, you've got the gunk gone now raise the damned glass already.”

Kagome would have laughed at the anxiousness in the kitsune's voice if it hadn't been for the fact that she was attempting to take her first breath in several hundred years. She'd almost forgotten she needed to expel the liquid that she'd been floating in and she really didn't feel like choking. So she coughed and spit the gunk out of her mouth, not caring if she looked particularly lady like or not. Only then did she breathe in deeply, enjoying the fact that she could do so at all.

The grinding of gears filled the air and suddenly the glass chamber began to rise, leaving her seated upon the wire grate. The rush of cool air made her shiver and wrap her arms around her nude form. “Shippo,” she whispered. The sensation felt familiar, but strange at the same time. 'You wouldn't think that just because I've been using mind speech that it would feel so strange attempting to speak again.'

For a moment Shippo wasn't sure exactly what to do, but then common sense kicked in and he snatched up a towel that had been laid nearby. “Here, we need to get you dried off and someplace warm,” he said and draped the material over her shoulders in order to keep her from getting chilled. Carefully he knelt down and put his arm around her waist, “Lean on me and we'll get you off the floor.”

Keeping a firm hold on the towel, Kagome rested most of her weight on the red head and allowed him to guide her to her feet. However, if she'd thought that her first attempt at walking was going to be easy she was wrong. Almost immediately she stumbled, and if it had been for Shippo's arm holding her up she would have fallen flat on her face. “Sorry,” she mumbled, embarrassed that something she'd once taken for granted had become something so difficult.

“Don't worry about it. I'm sure it's going to take some getting used to,” Shippo replied gently, not in the least bit flustered by her lack of grace. Truthfully he had been expecting something of this nature. It had to be beyond awkward finding oneself in an unfamiliar body and then be expected to master it within the first five minutes of having it. “Just take it one step at a time and remember I've got you.”

With her cheeks slightly flushed, Kagome allowed herself to be led over to a nearby chair and breathed a sigh of relief when she finally got a chance to sit down again. Her gaze went to the ceiling just over the tank and she snorted, who in the hell would place an air vent directly over one of those things? What were they trying to do, freeze her?

Sister Esther waited just long enough for Shippo to get the priestess seated and then cleared her throat. “Alright, I'm sure that you're concerned about her, but you need to give her a few minutes to compose herself,” she said clearly and jerked her head towards the door. When the men in the room turned to stare at her she narrowed her eyes, “Out! Shoo, you can't possibly expect her to feel comfortable sitting there naked in front of you all.”

Hearing this had Shippo rolling his eyes in irritation, “I'm well aware of what Kagome needs and she wouldn't object to...”

“It's fine, Shippo,” Kagome replied and put her hand on his arm. She knew that he was just being concerned, but really, she did want to take the chance to dry off and maybe get dressed or barring that, find a blanket to wrap up in. None of those things she could do easily with a kitsune super glued to her hip.

Sighing heavily, Shippo nodded, “Fine, but I'll be just outside the door so if you need me, yell.” Seeing her nod, he stood up and began walking towards the door. The doctor was already moving as well with a clipboard in hand, but Father Tres had yet to budge. “Aren't you coming?” he asked after a moment.

“Negative,” Father Tres replied, barely sparing a glance at the demon. Instead his attention was trained on the priestess and Sister Esther who was attempting to shield the girl from prying eyes.

“Whoa, wait a minute. Why do I have to leave and you don't?” Shippo growled beneath his breath, not liking this new development. 'Fuck, she's not even alive more than an hour and I'm already going to have to beat the perverts off of her? I'd say he was Miroku's reincarnation, but he hadn't tried to grab her ass yet.'

“Cardinal Caterina's orders. I am to remain with the priestess until we board the airship to prevent any attacks,” Father Tres said calmly, clearly not intimidated by the look that he was being given. Catching a glimpse of the girl naked was not a question and it didn't concern him. Protecting her from any possible attacks that might come on the other hand, was.

“I'm countermanding those orders, Kagome will be fine without having a watchdog on her ass for five minutes while she gets dressed,” Shippo countered quickly. Kagome's safety was up to him and there wasn't any way in hell someone was getting past that doorway with him guarding it. Besides, if he were to allow anyone close enough to take advantage of her he'd have both Inuyasha's and Kouga's ghosts haunting his ass. That thought was enough to make anyone's skin crawl.

Now Father Tres turned to look at Shippo impassively, “Negative. You do not have the authority to countermand those orders. The sooner that you leave, the sooner she can get dressed, and you can return.”

“Enough already,” Kagome snapped, fed up with the whole posturing thing going on, “Shippo I know you're just trying to look out for me, but please, I'm freezing here and the longer you two stand there arguing the better chance I have of getting sick.” Once she had the kitsune looking guilty enough she turned her gaze on Father Tres and narrowed her eyes, “And you. I don't care what orders you have. Don't bait him and for God sakes stop talking like that! It's enough to drive a person mad.”

The short tirade was enough to set Sister Esther off and soon her soft laughter filled the air. In all her time at the Vatican she'd never seen anyone speak to Father Tres in such a fashion. Most people were intimidated by him and went out of their way to avoid him. With the exception of those who knew him well, she couldn't remember anyone pointing out the stilted way that he tended to speak. The ever so slight raising of his eye brows just kept her laughter going. 'I don't care what people say, he feels something and I bet he doesn't know what to think about being told off by a woman.'

“Oh why can't people take me seriously?” Kagome muttered beneath her breath, it would figure that her... 'What is she to me now? My twin?' would think the entire situation was funny. “Go ahead and laugh while I catch a death of a cold,” she said and grabbed a second towel from a table within reach. Ruthlessly she began toweling off her hair, nearly groaning when she realized just how long it was now. 'Okay, first thing is to get a second set of clothes and the second is a pair of scissors. I don't see how Sesshoumaru could deal with this much hair every day, but I don't intend to find out.'

“It's because of our height,” Sister Esther replied after taking a moment to somber up, “people used to underestimate me all the time as well. Not so much anymore, but it still happens from time to time. Do you need another towel?” The one that was being used on her hair had to be soaked by now; she couldn't imagine the weight of it all.

“Yeah, thanks,” Kagome said as she passed her the wet one, and then accepted the new towel eagerly. The vigorous toweling resumed and she was only slightly surprised when she felt another one running quickly over her shoulders. Soon enough she was dry and looking forward to seeing just what it was that she'd be wearing. “So,” she began, “what sort of clothing am I going to be running around in? I hope someone remembered I'd need clothes because if it was up to Shippo I might be running around in a towel.”

“Well, we weren't sure exactly what to get you,” Sister Esther said quietly, “Father Nightroad ask me to accompany him into town to go shopping. Unfortunately, there really isn't any Shinto shrines left where we could get miko robes and neither of us thought you'd feel comfortable in our attire. So we settled on normal, commoner clothing. I hope that's alright.” What had made things more difficult was the unknown height factor. Now though it was somewhat reassuring to see that they were similar in height, if not in build. The tops might be a bit tight on the girl she was helping, but not overly so.

“Oh no, that would be fine. I don't mind a bit, thank you,” Kagome said quickly. The idea of being in a nun's habit didn't particularly sit well with her, but it would have been better than nothing. She'd have to thank Father Nightroad for thinking about her since it was obvious now that Shippo hadn't. Eagerly she accepted the bag that was now being extended towards her and reached into it to withdraw a light blue, long sleeved blouse along with a pair of black slacks. A smile slowly spread across her face seeing the choices, “This is far better than what I wore the last time I went through the well. Sometimes I have to wonder what the hell the school principle had been thinking when he'd picked a skirt that short for a uniform. Wait... no, on second thought, I don't think I really want to know.”

“Well then, why did you keep wearing it?” Sister Esther asked, confused as to why she'd put up with something if it was truly that revealing.'Perhaps it's the differences in cultures? We really didn't learn much about the Japanese in school.' Then again, they'd never really needed to.

That question stopped Kagome in her tracks, why had she continued to wear that hideous uniform? Unable to come up with an answer, she shrugged, “Force of habit I guess. I never really thought about it.” Carefully she slid a pair of underwear over both feet and pulled them up her legs as far as she could. “Can you, help me up here?” she asked. She wanted to put the clothing on, but she wasn't too keen on falling on her face either. With the woman kneeling in front of her she wouldn't be that great of support and Kagome didn't want to be held responsible for flattening her.

“Sure thing,” Sister Esther replied and helped the girl to her feet. Kagome's balance was wobbly, but she held her steady while she pulled the undergarment in place and by the time she was finished, she'd seemed to get a slight handle on it. “Are you ready for the pants?” she asked after a moment, hesitant to let her go long enough to grab the next garment.

“Yeah, just don't let go please,” Kagome said and waited for the black material to find its way into her hand. It was a more difficult accomplishment getting them on with her already standing up, but she managed without falling. “Hey, I think I'm getting the hang of this,” she said with a slight chuckle and peered at the tag on the bra and then looked down at her own chest, “Uh, I don't think that this is going to fit exactly.”

A slight laugh of embarrassment came from Sister Esther, “Yeah, I'm afraid you're probably right. We weren't sure what size to get you so we had to guess. We can go and get more later on, but we should probably hurry. Your friend will be worrying if we don't call him inside soon.”

“Yeah, I know. He's a bit overprotective, but I can't say as I blame him,” Kagome said with a sigh. She could still remember the look of anguish on his face when he'd found her body tied to the Goshinboku and what was worse, she hadn't realized that she could speak to him until much, much later. Even then it had been completely accidental on her part, but she had been glad that there was at least someone in the world who would know the truth of what had happened.

“It must have been hard,” Sister Esther replied quietly, thinking about how difficult it must have been with being unable to move on after such a horrific death. While she hadn't heard the whole story, she'd learned enough. Without really thinking about it, she handed the priestess the blouse and waited for her to finish getting dressed.

With a nod of thanks, Kagome took the garment and slid it over her shoulders, working carefully at the buttons. It'd be weird running around without a bra on, but she could live with that. “It's not one of my fondest memories. I mean, it was bad enough watching my family die and by the time it was done I was ready to die, but... I hadn't thought about what Naraku would be doing after that. I didn't count on Shippo coming for me either, I thought if anyone would it would be Inuyasha, but I suppose that he never had the chance. The well sealed upon my death and sometime before Naraku had found me he'd killed my friend.”

“If this works though you'll get to see him again right?” Sister Esther asked hopefully, “I mean, it'll be before Naraku came back to hurt anyone else and if your friends know that he didn't die, it should stop it all from happening.”

“That's the theory,” Kagome said hopefully, “You know I'd never really questioned how the well worked before. Could it have been a spell of some sort? Or maybe it was the tree. Either way though, I'm not entirely sure if it'll work since it was destroyed.” In fact she was extremely dubious that there was even a chance, but to outright ignore the possibility would be foolish.

“Kagome.” Sister Esther began quietly, “Over the past couple of years I've seen many things that were too shocking to believe. Vampires have always been a part of our lives but... I never thought I'd see a being that was powerful enough to destroy them without much of a fight and Father Nightroad was the one to show me that truth. I'd also never believed it to be possible for a human to be grown in less than a day to become the body of an ancient, powerful priestess who had the power to cure someone with a disease so horrific I was sure that they would die. I believe you when you say you could travel through time. You've done it once; I have faith that you'll do it again.” It was the truth too; she had to believe that if anyone could take care of the new menace it was Kagome and her friends. Father Nightroad and Father Tres would be there as well, making sure that Naraku perished like he'd been meant to all those years ago.

“She will,” Shippo replied from the doorway, his tone firm with his conviction, “there's no way in hell she'll allow that bastard to live again. One way or another, it will end.” It was nothing short of the truth since Kagome knew what the stakes were should he survive. Now she wasn't just fighting to take the jewel, she was going to be fighting for the survival of her family, not to mention the friends that had survived to this time.

Firmly, Kagome nodded, a smoldering anger reaching her eyes, “Even if it means giving my life a second time, I won't allow him to escape again. He will pay for everything he's done; I'll make sure of it.” Failure this time was not an option.

“It's good to see that you feel so strongly, but let's not contemplate dying a second time since we just got you back,” Father Nightroad said cheerfully from the doorway. He'd just come in on the last of the conversation and now more than ever he was certain that they'd made the right choice. But before they could expect the girl to do anything about their enemy, there was much they had to do. Confidently he walked towards the girl and held out his hand while smiling gently, “Enough of that for now. We should see about getting you something to eat and then finish preparations. I'm not sure what sort of foods you prefer, but I'm sure that the cooks here can accommodate your tastes nicely.”

~The next day~

By Gods she was tired, but Kagome knew that there was no helping it she literally had no choice. Even though Shippo had all but ordered her to lie down and get some sleep, she'd forced herself to stay up most of the night to get the hang of walking again. 'Oh I think I've got bruises in places I didn't even know I had.' A groan escaped her lips as she allowed her head to fall back onto the cushion behind her head. She'd hoped to get some sleep on the trip to make up for it, but then Shippo had decided to corner her with some lunch and insisted that she eat. Unfortunately she was far from hungry and wearily she pushed the plate away.

“I told you not to push yourself, Kags,” Shippo replied with just a hint of impatience, but it was nearly hidden with concern. He understood why she was pushing herself so hard, but really, she had to be careful. He'd thought she was going to break her neck more than once and the fact that she rebuffed his help after a while had hurt.

The urge to roll her eyes was nearly overwhelming, but for the moment she was able to refrain. “I told you, I can't afford to laze about like a lump on a log. What do you expect me to do, get to the feudal era and ask Inuyasha to carry me everywhere?”

“He would if you asked and you know it,” Shippo replied testily, “Look, Kagome, I know why you have to do it and I understand. But if you hurt yourself in the process you're not going to be doing anyone any good. If you won't take it slowly then dammit, at least accept my help next time!”

“And what about when I get back to the feudal era, Shippo, what then? Do I have to remind you exactly how old you were back then? I appreciate the concern, but I'm not going to be able to rely on you to save me from myself when we get there and have you even thought about what Inuyasha's going to say when he finds out I'm as clumsy as a two year old?” Kagome snapped and then immediately felt guilty. She couldn't take out her frustrations on her friend, not after he'd been there for her for so long. Sadly she looked up at the demon, ignoring the way the other occupants in the room that were looking at them both with apprehension, “Look, I know you're worried, but this isn't something that I can ask you to fix. Naraku is going to be looking for any weakness to exploit and I can't afford to be a burden to the group. You know he'll use me against everyone else if he thinks he can.”

“I know, Kagome, but I promise we won't let that happen. It's okay to lean on someone else for a while,” Shippo replied and ran his fingers through his hair, “If only there was some way that I could go with you. At least then I could give that old dog a swift kick in the ass if he says something he shouldn't.” Of course, there was the possibility that he wasn't giving Inuyasha enough credit, he could be sensitive, on occasion, it was just getting him to tap into that side that was the hard part.

“If?” Kagome snorted in amusement, “You mean when he says something that he shouldn't. He had less in the tact and diplomacy department than Kouga did, who are you kidding?” Oh, she could just see his reaction now as clearly as if he were sitting directly in front of her. “He's going to go from disbelief, to shock, then to anger and guilt. “ I'm going to be lucky if he doesn't shake me like a rag doll while screaming how stupid I was to get myself killed like that.”

“And this is one of your friends?” Father Nightroad inquired curiously. He couldn't exactly see someone grabbing the girl and shaking her silly for something that couldn't be helped, but by the way that they were talking; he was the type to do just that.

To this Jaken snorted, “If he could be called that. I'm not sure what these two fools ever saw in him, but he is one of the crudest, uncouth... Ack!” he squawked when a fist came down on top of his head courtesy of the kitsune sitting next to him. “Why you little brat! How dare you manhandle me in such a... Ack!”

“Enough, Jaken,” Kagome said with a shake of her head, “You might not have liked Inuyasha, but that was because you had your lips permanently affixed to his brother's ass. Since Lord Sesshoumaru could barely tolerate his existence I would have been surprised if you had liked him. Instead you parrot whatever your lord said. Give it a rest before Shippo decides to see if you really can fly or not.”

“In answer to your question, Father Nightroad, yes, Inuyasha is one of our friends,” she said, turning her attention to their two companions who had remained mostly silent since they'd left the Vatican that morning. “If things go as planned you'll get to see for yourself, he's rather rough around the edges, but that's to be expected with everything he's gone through in his life. He's actually a sweet guy underneath it all, just misunderstood.” Of course, if the hanyou had been present, at the moment, Kagome knew he would have scoffed at the idea of being called sweet, and then said something rude just to ruin whatever impression she was trying to give their new friends.

“Then I look forward to meeting him,” Father Nightroad replied and looked out the window to the ground below. As far as the eye could see there was nothing more than trees and mountains which was a distinct change from the water they'd been crossing only a short time ago. “So when we get there,” he began, “how are you planning to open up the portal?”

“Very carefully?” Kagome replied with little amusement, “Truthfully, I'm not certain. The well was the portal itself, but the more that I think about it, the true key was the wood it was made from. The Goshinboku is ancient and was standing proud even when the first legends were recorded upon the scrolls. When you step onto the shrine grounds you can feel the power surrounding the area and it all comes from the tree.”

“We already know it's a bridge, as well since Kagome was able to speak to Inuyasha when she was trapped on her side of time. The Goshinboku answered her plea to speak with him once before, perhaps it will do that and more this time,” Shippo said, although he was careful to keep his hope in check. The best that she could do is pray and see if the Gods would respond.

“Ah, so there is no special ceremony that must be performed then,” Father Nightroad said to himself. He had to admit that he didn't know that much about the Shinto religion so this was all new to him and therefore quite interesting.

“Not particularly, Kagome's powers have always worked on an instinctive level for the most part. When she asks, generally the Gods respond,” Shippo said carefully. He didn't want to give them the impression that Kagome was a miracle worker either. It was generally all or nothing with the girl; she couldn't just call up her power at will. It didn't work that way.

Father Tres had been watching quietly from across the room, filing away bits and pieces of the conversation for examination later. For now though it was time to begin the second stage of the plan, they were almost at their destination. Calmly he walked up to the four and began to speak, “Prepare to depart the airship; we will be above the target in five minutes.”

“Above the target? What do you mean by 'above the target'? I see no port around here,” Jaken muttered and peered out the window, looking for any sign of civilization yet there was none.

“We... sort of decided to bypass the port since it would take so long to hike to the shrine. This will be faster,” Father Nightroad replied with a slight grin which faltered when he saw the stunned looks he was being given, “Don't worry, getting off the ship won't be that bad.”

“And just how do you expect us to do that?” Kagome asked, unsure if she really wanted to know. Having lived in that immediate area for so long she knew that there wasn't really an area that would be suitable for landing a ship as large as the one that they were in.

Weakly, Father Nightroad chuckled and stood up from his seat, “You'll see. Grab your bags and we'll go up to the deck, we'll be able to get down easily from there.” The suspicious looks on his companions faces told him they already had an idea of what was happening, but he wasn't about to inform them any sooner than necessary.

“If you don't mind, Father, you can get the bags. If we're doing what I think we're doing I'm going to have my hands full anyway,” Shippo replied blandly and moved to pick Kagome up. This time, however, she didn't protest to being carried and he didn't blame her. If his suspicions were correct they were about to take a fifty foot drop off of the damned airship. He and Jaken would be able to handle the leap easily enough, but Kagome would not. 'Neither should either of our two traveling companions for that matter. I was right; they are more than they appear.'

Father Tres didn't bother waiting to see how they were getting themselves sorted. Instead, he grabbed two of the nearest bags which contained the food supplies that the Cardinal had sent with them and began walking to the deck, knowing that the others would be following closely. For now he steered his mind away from the Duchess and how she'd come to the decision to send him along on this mission. He would do as he was told, if only to make her happy.

“Well then, it looks like Father Tres has a handle on that. Shall we?” Father Nightroad asked and then directed the others to follow his partner. Quickly he walked behind them and smiled when the scent of fresh air hit him. It was far cleaner than what he was used to, no doubt because there wasn't the cities pollution to deal with. The scenery wasn't bad either, if a little overgrown from what he was expecting. One tree stood out to him though, standing several feet taller than any of the others, “Is that the Goshinboku tree that you mentioned?”

“It is, but something is wrong with it,” Kagome said quietly, studying the tree carefully and then switching her attention to the foliage surrounding it, “Do you see it, Shippo?”

“Yeah, they're starting to wilt and it's the wrong season,” Shippo replied uneasily. Since it was the middle of spring there was absolutely no reason for the plant life being in such a state. While the wilting was barely noticeable, it was there none the less and within a couple of days he was willing to bet the leaves would be falling from the trees. Something was desperately wrong and since the Goshinboku was showing the greatest amount of damage, he was almost certain that Naraku was behind it somehow.

Jaken stared at the miko and kitsune with his brow furrowed, “What would cause something like that to happen? You don't think Naraku beat us here somehow, do you?”

Biting her lip, Kagome shook her head, “I don't think so. As far as we know he believes there is no reason to come back here. I think it has more to do with the Shikon, I can feel it in my soul.” It was faint, but it was there, the pain and anger the souls within the jewel were experiencing because of the death and destruction that Naraku was using it for. If the tree was indeed tied to the jewel then the negative energy might well be affecting it. In the past, Naraku had never obtained the complete jewel much less held it in his possession for so long.

“We should hurry then, there's no telling just how long it takes before things start going to hell and the tree isn't even here any longer,” Shippo replied, his voice tense with the uncertainty and anger he was feeling, “Hold on tight, Kagome.”

Immediately Kagome tightened her arms around Shippo's neck and closed her eyes. She could feel his body tense and then he leapt off the edge like it was only a ten foot drop. 'Oh God, I think I left my stomach up there.'

“Wait, you brat! How am I supposed to get down from here?” Jaken yelled after the kitsune. There was no way in hell he was going to just leap off the side of a ship, he'd become road kill once he reached the ground.

Father Nightroad took one look at the small demon and sighed before grabbing a hold of Jaken's robes. Once he had a firm grip he jumped as well with Father Tres only seconds behind him. The wind rushed passed and for a moment it actually felt as if he had somehow managed to defy gravity and was now weightless. But the feeling passed rather quickly and before long he'd landed on the ground, impacting heavily enough that he was forced to roll out to absorb some of the shock which had Jaken bouncing across the grass like a rubber ball.

Shippo on the other hand landed lightly and chuckled when he saw that Kagome had her face buried in his shirt, “Hey, Kags, you can look now.”

“And to think at one point I liked going on roller coasters,” Kagome said with a groan and allowed Shippo to set herself on her feet. For a moment her balance wobbled, but she managed to catch herself before the kitsune even thought to make a grab for her. “Well, is everyone alright?” she asked, looking carefully over the other four before her gaze finally settled on Father Tres. She still hadn't managed to figure him out as of yet, but she supposed there would be plenty of time for that if this worked.

Seeing the priestess staring at him Father Tres straightened up, “Positive. Departure was successful, now we must proceed to our target.” Although what the woman had said was true about Naraku not having a reason to be here, that didn't mean they could afford to let their guard down. They needed to get to the tree and begin the process for time travel right away.

“You're right,” Kagome replied, “Shippo, do you want to lead the way?” The tree couldn't be far off, but Kagome knew better than to trust her navigational instincts to even attempt finding the tree at this point. Now that she was closer to the foliage she could see the definite damage being done to the plant life and a lot of the smaller saplings were already dead, altering the appearance of the area.

Shippo nodded and peered ahead at the path, it shouldn't pose too much of a problem for the miko to traverse, “Let me know if you need help. Let's go.” With that he began to set off through the undergrowth, taking care to avoid some of the more overgrown areas.

Seeing the others ready to leave without him, Jaken quickly rolled to his feet and began hurrying after them. 'Oh what did I do to deserve this?' As if it wasn't bad enough that he was now nursing a lump on his head from being dropped so unceremoniously, now they were attempting to leave him behind. “Wait for me, dammit,” he said indignantly.

“How about you try to keep up instead, or are you getting too slow as well as senile?” Shippo called back over his shoulder. Hell, even Kagome was doing better than the toad at this rate. “How did you ever manage to keep up with Sesshoumaru all those years? I'm surprised he didn't throw you off a cliff a time or two with all the complaining you do.”

Kagome sighed when Jaken began to protest against the kitsune's accusations. Sometimes she believed that they baited each other out of some sort of misplaced affection for each other. “Enough you two,” she said wearily, “we're here.” And it was about time too, they were beginning to get on her nerves. With a tired smile she looked at Father Tres, “Can I have the smallest of the bags please?”

Nodding slightly, Father Tres dropped the larger of the bags and handed the miko the one that she'd requested. Carefully he watched her as she rummaged about the items that were contained inside. “What are you planning to do?” he asked after she pulled several things out.

“I'm going to appeal to the spirit of the Goshinboku. Many times I listened to my grandfather and learned the ways of making offerings to the spirits in the hopes that they would accept your request,” Kagome replied offhandedly and set a silk clothe upon the ground in front of her. A charcoal incense burner was positioned in the center and from there Kagome laid out the rest of her materials before lighting it. “These are shokoh, or granulated incense. In keeping with my grandfather's teachings, Miroku once taught me the usage of them since they are used commonly in Buddhist ceremonies. Believe it or not, each one is a mixture of different ingredients, with each scent having its own purpose.”

“I thought you said we wouldn't be having a ceremony though,” Father Nightroad said, curious as to what purpose this served. When Shippo had asked for these particular things it had been impossible for them to find and ultimately the kitsune had been forced to call on some of his own contacts for the items.

“It's really not a ceremony so to speak, but an offering. In order to perform a true Buddhist ceremony here we'd need to find a monk of true talent and somehow I doubt they're in abundance around here anymore,” Kagome said quietly and picked up a few granules out of the first tiny package sitting in front of her.

When the first of the tiny grains hit the burner a thin tendril of smoke rose and a sweet scent very similar to vanilla filled the air. “What's that one supposed to do?” Father Nightroad inquired, watching the girl's graceful movements with interest.

The smallest of smiles crossed Kagome's face then since she really didn't mind the questions. “It's called Ansoku-kho and it's meant to sooth and comfort. The Goshinboku is in pain as you can see; this will hopefully reassure the spirit that we are indeed here to end its suffering.” At least that was the hope at any rate; she couldn't be certain just how successful it would end up being in the long run. Slowly she reached for the second package and untied the knots carefully, “This one here is Jin-koh, and it will aid me in the process of meditation. It has great properties of relaxation.”

“I remember when Miroku explained this all to you,” Shippo said with a smile, “Inuyasha thought it was pointless to be learning these things since you weren't going to convert to Buddhism.” Yet even though the hanyou had called it stupid, he had been listening just as intently to the explanations as Kagome was.

“I think it bothered his sense of smell more than anything else,” Kagome replied absently, concentrating on the task at hand. Her friend had paid close attention until Miroku had gotten to the part where he demonstrated the proper way to light the incense and fan the smoke over your body. Then the hanyou had excused himself after having a bit of a sneezing fit. 'Poor Inuyasha, he was complaining about the smell for days.'

“Fascinating, we use incense on occasion, but it's mainly for blessings,” Father Nightroad chimed in. The differences in the religions were quite noticeable, but interesting to witness all the same. “So what must you do now?” he asked after she'd added the final scent to the burner.

“I need you and Father Tres to kneel beside me, each a pace back from where I am and then clear your mind. If you must do anything, feel for the spirit of the Goshinboku, and allow it to guide you,” Kagome instructed quietly, allowing her eyes to close. She heard the two men moving into the position she asked and then she brought her hands together twice, clapping in order to ensure that the Gods were listening.

It was simple to allow herself to sink within a trance and reach out to the Goshinboku, it almost seemed to reach out to her in welcome. Images flew through her mind, showing her just what Naraku was using the jewel for and the bloodshed was staggering. The demon was absorbing any beings he could that contained the slightest amount of power, clearly intending that his next assault on the Vatican would be the last one. 'Please, show me the way to the past so that I can help you. I know you have the power Goshinboku, return me to the past where I can defeat Naraku and bring about the end to the pain and suffering he's inflicting upon you and the rest of the world.' Suddenly there was a jolt of awareness that went through her soul and she just knew that she'd been forcibly connected with the Shikon jewel once again.

'I am pleased that even through all you've endured already, you haven't given up, child.'

Kagome looked up and stared at the woman standing before her, instantly recognizing who she was. Long ago she'd once seen her likeness and although it was dark within the cave, she knew that she'd never forget that face. “Priestess Midoriko, it is an honor to be in your presence. How may I serve you?”

'I think you know the answer to that already or you would not be here. Tell me, child, are you willing to do anything to ensure that Naraku perishes?'

“Of course,” Kagome stated with conviction, “he has been allowed to remain on this Earth for far too long, and the suffering has been great. He must be stopped at all cost.”

Midoriko gazed at Kagome steadily, weighing her soul and was pleased to not find it lacking. 'You realize that the cost to you will be great, but is it one you are willing to pay? Should you succeed you do know that you will be unable to return to your own time, you will not regain what has been lost to you.'

“I understand,” Kagome replied softly, “Since I am returning to the past, once Naraku dies history will be rewritten. I'll have already returned home, but with Naraku gone, I will not die as I had before which means I'll be unable to go home.” Saying this she looked up at the ancient miko and met her gaze unwaveringly, “It doesn't matter though. My family is dead to me now and I would rather live in the past knowing that they are safe than allow things to continue as they have been.”

'And what of your companions? Do you speak for them as well?' Midoriko asked quietly. To send Kagome back to the past was no easy feat even for one such as herself and if the two men with her wished to go as well, there would almost certainly be consequences.

Kagome gasped upon feeling both Father Tres and Father Nightroad appearing behind her although neither of them had moved yet. “I cannot speak for either of them, but they have been affected by Naraku as well. Perhaps asking them if they are willing to make the sacrifices necessary would be better than asking me,” she said quietly, not daring to look over her shoulder at either of them.

Father Nightroad wasn't certain who the woman standing before them was, but he could feel the power radiating off of her, as well as the reassuring aura that she gave off. “If you're asking if we're willing to do anything necessary to ensure Naraku's demise, the answer is yes. Do whatever it is that you need to do, we will not fight you,” he replied calmly and waited to hear what she would say to his claim.

'Even if it means you will never again see those you care about?' Midoriko challenged the man who had spoken to her of killing so easily. A dark aura surrounded him and she could see that he wasn't altogether human, but underneath it all she could sense his determination to do his duty, whatever it might be.

“Even if it means we must remain in the past. We've said our goodbyes and they realize that we may not be returning,” Father Nightroad said quietly, but with conviction. As much as it would pain him to leave his friends behind for good, he would do so if it meant that they would be safe in the long run. That was the only thing that mattered.

'I see.' Midoriko replied and turned her attention to the other male, studying him carefully. 'Then we have a problem. To grant Kagome passage is one thing since she has a connection to the jewel itself through her soul, but in order for the two of you to pass, she'd have to be connected to you as well.'

For a moment Father Nightroad said nothing and considered the consequences of just what such a joining would mean. 'Soul siblings then is it?' That idea didn't bother him in the least, the only true worry that he had was that somehow his powers would affect the girl. 'It shouldn't matter, so long as she doesn't receive the nanomachines then she would remain unaffected and even if she had, there is a good chance that her powers would rebel and destroy it.' Covertly he gazed over at the girl to gage her expression, but for once she was making an admirable attempt at remaining completely neutral. There wasn't a reason to look to Father Tres either, he'd been given his orders and would do everything required in order to see them accomplished. Hardening his gaze, he looked to the ancient priestess, “Fine, do what you must.”

'So determined.' Midoriko mused, critically examining the man's resolve. 'Yet that only solves a portion of the problem. Had the well remained intact, that would be the only issue, but it is not. You will be able to pass, but your friend will most likely have to remain behind.'

“Negative,” Father Tres interjected, “My orders are clear. I will accompany Father Nightroad and the miko Kagome Higurashi to the past to defeat Naraku. This is not negotiable, make the connection.” He hadn't failed to notice the way she'd phrased her words and by saying 'most likely,' he knew that she had a way to make it so he could traverse time as planned. Should the priestess refuse, they would abandon this course of action for the time being in order for him to contact the Cardinal and inform her of the situation.

'Even if it means the destruction of your very being and everything you know to be true about yourself?' Midoriko asked serenely, unflustered by the way he'd all but demanded she do as he said. There was no room for petty posturing in times like these; she needed to know just how far they were each willing to go in order to succeed.

“Wait, what do you mean by that?” Kagome asked her expression one of concern. 'Just what is she playing at? Why would she threaten him for only wanting to help?' Something just didn't add up and she couldn't think of one reason why being soul bonded to her would harm him. After all, she shared a similar bond with Inuyasha through the subjugation necklace and he hadn't been adversely affected.

'Exactly how it sounds, child. Your protector here is not human, not in the traditional sense anyway. The technology that humans have unleashed upon the world has created many things, including the killing machine that kneels next to you.' Midoriko gazed sympathetically at the man in question. Times had changed greatly over the years and she'd been forced to watch most of it, unable to act on the knowledge that she'd acquired. It was against the Gods to create one such as Father Tres, a man that couldn't be called a human, but in possession of a soul nonetheless due to the organic body parts he'd been given. To transport him through time would have been simple if only the well had been in place, but what they would be attempting was so much more. Living flesh was needed in order to traverse time and should she attempt to move him as he was, there was a good chance he would be destroyed, not merely left behind.

“This again?” Kagome whispered, her eyes closing in anger, “What difference does it make as to what he is? I've argued for years that demons were no different from humans once you looked past their abilities, despite the belief that they were evil. I've stood against those who would wish them dead just because they were something that humans could not understand.” She then opened her eyes and stared at the translucent woman before her, “What about him is so different then? I sense no youki from him so he cannot be a demon. Is he a vampire and that's why you threaten him now? If that's the case then we're finished here, I don't know how, but I'll find a way to defeat Naraku here.”

Midoriko sighed and moved closer to the girl before kneeling in front of her. 'Child, you mistake my words and unknowingly twist them into something different from what was intended. Your protector is not human, nor demon and certainly not a vampire. He's a machine, yet, still in possession of a soul which means that there are certain parts of him which must be alive. However, that small amount is not enough for him to traverse time as he is and to attempt it might well destroy that small part of him. Yet, there is another way, but to do so will change him forever. I will not take that step without his agreement.'

“Explain what you mean, Priestess Midoriko,” Father Tres said, his gaze boring into the spirit who had spoken so plainly. The entire conversation had not been what he'd been expecting and Kagome's defense of him left him the slightest bit surprised, even though it failed to show in his expression.

'I'm surprised you haven't figured it out for yourself.' The thought was laced with amusement and the smallest of smiles crossed Midoriko's face. While the cyborg staring at her was intelligent, his way of thinking did not leave much room to explore just what the Shikon could accomplish. Seeing the look of impatience on Kagome's face, she sighed. `Allow me to explain. You know that Naraku is killing for power, using the jewel to accomplish what he could not do on his own?'

“Would we be here otherwise?” Kagome muttered beneath her breath, wondering just where this line of questioning was going. 'Why can't I just get a simple answer to a simple question for once?'

'Good point, child. But what you haven't realized is that with each life that Naraku takes while using the jewel, the death and power absorption in turn makes the Shikon stronger. It is a continuous cycle which is what makes Naraku nearly impossible to beat while it is in his possession. However, he cannot sever the tie your soul holds to the jewel and through that tie; you can access the power whenever you have need of it.' Midoriko watched the light of recognition dawn in the Father Nightroad's eyes with amusement. 'At least he isn't slow on the uptake, no matter what his appearance would lead one to believe.'

“This is why the process of giving Kagome a new body went so quickly. It should have taken months, not just the day that it ended up taking,” Father Nightroad replied thoughtfully. They'd pretty much thought that was what the miko had done, but they believed that it was a hit or miss possibility. Learning that she could tap into that power whenever she needed could prove to be helpful. 'But with the jewel gone in the past, is it even still possible?'

Midoriko nodded slightly, 'Indeed. That is precisely why the process went so quickly and by the same token, the power of the jewel could be used to turn your companion into a human. But before that decision can be made, you all must realize that once it is done there's no going back. A being such as himself should have never been created in the first place and I only offer this option as a means of righting a wrong. It was beyond cruel for them to strip him of his own thoughts and emotions, leaving him as nothing more than a tool to destroy countless lives. What say you, Father Tres? Will you take the opportunity that I am offering you to become human or will you deny it and return to the Vatican while these two take up the task of destroying Naraku?'

At the moment, Kagome wanted nothing more than to protest the absurdness of the situation and say that he was just fine the way that he was, but she couldn't. She didn't know the man and couldn't begin to imagine what it was like to be one without emotions or feelings. This... was only something that he could decide for himself, but she worried. 'Will he do it because he truly wants to or only because he sees it as his duty?'

Contrary to what the ancient priestess had said, Father Tres was not completely unfeeling. He'd felt sympathy with Elise when she'd begged Father Nightroad to kill her because she only brought death and destruction to those she met and in the end, he had been ordered to end her life. Yet in those final moments he'd been unable to do so and had directly ignored the orders he'd been given. No, he was not completely unfeeling; yet, he could not feel to the same extent that most humans did.

The entire situation had thrown him another emotion he never thought to experience, uncertainty. Did he want to be able to experience it all and become more than what he was? He'd never even considered the possibility before and had been perfectly content to lead his 'life' as he had been. In the end though, the reasons behind his decision would come back to the fact that the Cardinal had given him orders to do everything in his power to accomplish the goal and for her he would do anything, even if it meant becoming human, “I accept your offer, priestess. Carry on with the procedure so we can resume the mission,” he stated calmly and waited to see what would happen next.

Midoriko nodded slightly and ignored the startled looks on both Kagome and Father Nightroad's faces. Slowly she stood and advanced upon the other male, stopping only when she was directly in front of him. 'This will hurt, but bear through the pain, it will be over soon.'

Father Nightroad stared through widened eyes when the ancient priestess laid her hands upon his partner's shoulders and began to chant, allowing the power to flow into him. The reaction was immediate and Abel could see the pain lines that appeared on his friend's face. Yet to the man's credit he didn't cry out, even as it became apparent that the pain was increasing. 'Hold strong, Father Tres, God will see you through this trial and I pray that your pain will end quickly.'

The air that surrounded him became stifling and the intensity of the energy around him began to skyrocket with each passing moment. It was strange, although his body had been able to interpret certain data as pain before it was nothing compared to what Father Tres was feeling now, leaving him helpless against the onslaught. Determined not to give voice to his agony, he dug his nails into the palms of his hands and tried to ignore the new sensations coursing through his body even though it was a battle that he couldn't hope to win.

“Father Tres!” Kagome cried out when the man collapsed to the ground and began shaking uncontrollably. Before anyone could make a move she scrambled the few feet over to his prone form and turned him over, although, it took an immense amount of effort on her part. She could hear Father Nightroad hurrying over as well, but she didn't bother to spare him a glance. Instead, she focused on the man in her arms and one look at his face revealed that his body had succumbed to unconsciousness in order to cope with the new sensations. Yet still Midoriko hovered over him and continued to pour the energy of the Shikon jewel into his body. “Stop it,” she shouted when he began to convulse in her grip, “you're going to kill him!”

'Be at ease, child,' Midoriko cautioned and then pulled her hands away, causing his thrashing to cease almost immediately. It was done, at least as much as she could do for him. Altering his body had been the easy part; it had been trying to repair the damage to his brain from the merger with the machines that had caused difficulties. Ultimately, she was forced to leave that piece of him largely alone because they just didn't have the time. 'He'll be fine; he just needs a few moments to recover.' It was her devout wish at this point anyway since a pulse when through the jewel, and she was almost certain that Naraku had noticed now the considerable drain that she'd put on the Shikon. If he figured out what was going on he might well take measures to stop her from sending them into the past. 'We don't have much time; I must finish the soul bond and send the three of you back. I wish you well and... Good luck.'

Kagome stared at her for a moment and saw the concern in her eyes, directed solely at the three of them. Slowly she came to the understanding that as painful as the process had been for Father Tres, it couldn't be helped under the circumstances. They had to go, there just wasn't any time left. “Thank you for your help, Midoriko" she said quietly. Unsure of what was to come next, she pulled the unconscious man closer to her body and began running her fingers through his hair to soothe him. The last thing she wanted was for this to set off some sort of convulsions, he'd come close enough to that already. However, there was nothing to be concerned about and she watched in wonder as her soul grew, spilling out of her new body, and reaching with fine tendrils towards the man in her lap and Father Nightroad, who had moved until he was seated only a few inches away from her.

While he was concerned for his friend, the mist that began to spill out from the miko's body had Father Nightroad staring in surprise, “Kagome! You're... glowing!” Not only that, but an answering mist began to rise up from Father Tres and began mingling with the soft pink glow that Kagome was giving off. 'Their souls are joining and Father Tres looks more at peace. I wonder if it's a side effect of the bond or if it's just his body adapting to the changes.'

“Yeah well, if I had my compact handy I'd let you use it. You're glowing too,” Kagome whispered with the slightest trace of amusement. Now that Father Tres had calmed and she could see the gentle rise and fall of his chest she wasn't quite so panicked. Her eyes calmed and she concentrated on the gentle pulsing that coursed through her body as the bond formed, accepting it into her being. Awareness came to her then of the other two beings and she smiled. The feeling was similar to what she had felt the first time with Inuyasha, but had been too inexperienced to know what it was. Now; however, she instinctively knew that when danger threatened either of them she would know it and should her life be placed in peril, they'd know as well.

Midoriko closed her eyes and raised her hands in the air, calling on the power of the Shikon one final time. The image of the three before her wavered and then faded from her sight, leaving her alone once more. Quickly she whispered a prayer and hoped that the Gods would hear her plea. 'May the Gods bless your journey child, once you're in the past I'm afraid I cannot help you any longer.'

On the mortal plane, Shippo and Jaken stared at where their companions once knelt and the kitsune couldn't help but feel the pang of loss. Now that Kagome was gone, it hit him that he was likely to never see her again and for that his heart ached. A human's lifespan was impossibly short and there was no way that she'd survive to this time period. 'Take care of yourself, Kagome, I'll... I'll miss you.'

End of Chapter Five