InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Demon Blood ❯ Shadows ( Chapter 4 )

"Demon Blood" by Jezunya

Chapter 4: Shadows

Me no own Inu-chan *sniffle sniffle*

Jeez, 12 whole pages!! When I only had like 9 two days ago! See, you guys keep pestering me and I write faster! ^_^ Oh, and this chapter picks up right where the last one left off, so you may want to go back and re-read the very end of Ch 3 again ^_~

Enjoy!

** ** ** ** **

"Inuyasha! Inuyasha!"

He came to at the insistent shaking of his shoulder, slowly cracking open his eyes to find Ketzia crouched over him, peering down at him worriedly. He pushed her away and sat up slowly, groggily wondering when and how he had ended up lying on the ground.

"Are you alright?" Ketzia asked, sitting back on her heels to give him some breathing room. Bannin and his soldiers stood around them in a loose circle.

He nodded, slowly, looking dazed. "I think so… What happened?"

"I don't know…" Ketzia replied, frowning. "We heard you two fighting, but when we got here the girl was gone and you were just lying there, like you'd blacked out or something." Her frown deepened, looking suspicious and worried. "She didn't use her powers on you, did she?"

Inuyasha shook his head no, trying to clear the fog from his mind. What had happened? Kagome had gone back to the village, he'd sat down, and then.. nothing. He couldn't remember being attacked or feeling sleepy, or anything, but then he was suddenly waking up on the ground. He squeezed his eyes shut and forced himself to his feet. He needed to find Kagome.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Ketzia frowned, following after his stumbling steps.

He shook his head but said, "Yes! Go away! I need to find Kagome…"

Ketzia stopped walking after him, letting him continue on to the village on his own. "Heh. Yeah, you really need to talk to her," she smirked. "I can't believe you said those things. Man, you ain't gettin' any for a month!"

"Getting any what..? What the hell are you talking.. about..?" he asked, looking back only to find that the dog-demons had already retreated into the forest. Growling his annoyance, he turned back to the path, scrubbing at his forehead in an attempt to alleviate the headache building up there.

Distracted as he was with the pain in his head, he didn't notice the figures running towards him until he heard the battle cry.

"Hiraikotsu!!"

"Aah!" Inuyasha barely managed to dodge as the giant boomerang sliced through the ground where he'd just been standing. Landing in a crouch, and grimacing when the impact sent a jolt of pain lancing through his head, he looked toward the two humans standing on the path between him and the village. Sango and Miroku glared back at him, both looking ready to battle him to the death if need be. "What the hell are you doing?!" he snarled, beginning to rise to his feet, hands clenched into fists in front of him.

"Shut up, bastard!" Sango yelled back, reaching up to catch her weapon as it came flying back to her. "You die here!"

"What?!" He looked to Miroku. "What the hell is she babbling about?!"

The monk's face only darkened further, his own frown deepening. "You will not get past us, Inuyasha," he said grimly.

Inuyasha's eyes widened. "The hell-?!" And then they both came at him.

Miroku tried several times to paralyze him with his ofuda, but he managed to dodge all of his attempts, and it was actually Sango who really gave him trouble. While she hadn't changed into her full battle gear, she did always wear her black cat-suit under her yukata, and so didn't have any qualms about hiking up her skirt to get in several good kicks. The hidden blades on her forearms were also rather troublesome, and she managed to get a few nasty cuts across his stomach before he could avoid them.

Miroku had just thrown down his sealing scrolls and shakujou to unleash the kaza'ana when a new voice cried out from behind them.

"Stop it!" Kagome yelled, running towards them as best she could with her injured arm. "Sango-chan, Miroku-sama, stop it, please! Don't fight!"

Sango paused long enough to glare at the younger girl. "You're defending him?! After what he did?!"

Kagome slowed to a stop a few paces from them, her eyes flickering to Inuyasha, hunched over holding his stomach and glaring up at her, before looking up at the other girl. "Sango-chan…"

"Kagome-sama, you are a very forgiving person, but this.." Miroku trailed off, gesturing slightly to Inuyasha, who growled up at him.

Kagome looked at the ground, her hand clenching on her injured arm, now hanging in a sling across her chest. She blinked her eyes several times as they began to shine with tears. "Just.. don't fight each other… please…" Her eyes flickered to Inuyasha once more before she dropped her gaze and turned back toward the village.

Sango and Miroku exchanged glances before both following after her, the taiji-ya giving Inuyasha a sharp kick in the side as she passed. He yelped and jumped away a few feet, snarling at her back. "Kagome-chan," Sango called, jogging up beside the young miko. "Kagome-chan, why are you..?"

"Just leave him alone, Sango-chan. Inuyasha can do what he wants…" Kagome sighed, closing her eyes as if in pain.

"But he tried to kill you!"

Miroku frowned deeply from his place on Kagome's other side. "If he is a threat, Kagome-sama, I really don't think we should let him stay here…" Kagome just shook her head and sighed again, wincing and shifting her bad arm.

A low growl was all the warning they got before Inuyasha pounced, grabbing Kagome roughly around the middle and leaping off into the trees with her, ignoring the outraged and shocked shouts of the other two humans as they began to give chase.

Kagome gasped, trying to struggle out of his grasp. "Inuyasha..!"

"Shut up!"

She whimpered, and gave one more weak push against his arms, then gasped again and tried to brace herself as he dropped onto a thick branch high up from the ground. Inuyasha growled deep in his chest, trying to hold her still as she began to struggle again. He wanted to yell at her, tell her that, damn it all, she didn't need to be afraid of him! She shouldn't be afraid!! Growling angrily, he sat against the trunk of the tree and arranged her in his lap so that her back was against his chest and he had his arms around her middle, careful of her injury.

"I-Inuyasha.." Kagome began in a small, frightened voice, trying to pull away from him even as he held her tight.

"Shut up. We need to talk," he growled, glaring over her shoulder. "Well, more like I need to talk and you need to listen." Kagome shivered despite the warm breeze blowing around them, her scent becoming even more filled with her fear.

"Inuyasha-"

"I told you to shut up! Now listen!"

He could feel her scowl. "Osu-" Inuyasha clapped a hand over her mouth before she could finish the command.

"Not unless you want to smash us both," he growled next to her ear, squeezing the arm still around her for emphasis. She whimpered and he removed his hand from her mouth.

"Why..?" Kagome choked out, her voice sounding near tears.

Inuyasha eased his hold on her, allowing her to lean away from him slightly, and looked away guiltily. "I didn't mean any of it.." he finally said lamely.

Kagome sniffled, making Inuyasha wince. Why did he always make her cry? "How can you say that?" she asked, still bent over away from him. "You were going to leave me there.. You were leaving me there! How can you expect me to believe you didn't mean it? Do I really look that stupid to you?!" She curled into herself, her sobs shaking her entire form.

Inuyasha growled and pulled her back up against him, abruptly cutting off her sobs. "The idea was," he growled, his face once again right by her ear, his chin practically resting on her shoulder, "that Ketzia would forget about you and come after me instead."

Kagome quieted, trying to take in what he'd said. Finally, blinking back her tears, she just whispered again, "Why..?"

Inuyasha shifted uncomfortably. He really didn't want to talk about this. All she needed to know was that he'd outright lied to Ketzia about killing her and that he'd sooner kiss Naraku's furry baboon butt than harm her. His reasons for such feelings, however, were quite a more awkward subject (heck, he didn't half understand them himself!) He took a deep breath - he had to tell her something:

"Ketzia generally won't hurt people without reason," he began awkwardly, "but she loves threatening people to get them to do what she wants. If you just tell her 'no' enough, she'll eventually just give up and leave you alone. So…"

"So you thought she'd do that if you said you didn't care about me." Kagome abruptly pulled away from him, and he let her, watching wearily as she shuffled down the branch to sit sideways, her legs dangling off into the air. She looked down at her knees, fingering the sling around her arm as a sad, thoughtful frown worked its way onto her face. "You could always get someone else to find the shards…" she finally said quietly, not looking up.

Inuyasha immediately bristled. "Damn it, bitch, that's not-!" But then he caught himself, rearing back slightly, his face reddening.

Kagome turned a wry, humorless smile on him. "What, now you're going to try to tell me that you don't care about the Shards anymore?" She looked away again, scoffing in an almost too-perfect imitation of the hanyou beside her, "Right.."

Inuyasha could feel his flush deepening even as he glared at her. "No! I just-" He growled in frustration when Kagome sighed and shook her head again, slamming a fist against the tree branch, making her jump. "Damn it, Kagome! When are you gonna get it through your head that this isn't about the Shards, at all! This is about you!!"

Kagome made a disgusted noise in the back of her throat, turning one of the fiercest glares he'd ever seen on him. "Please. You think I'm an idiot? We all know that all you care about is the Jewel - well, the Jewel and Kikyou, anyway. And you know what? I'm sick of it!" Inuyasha looked like he was about to try and interrupt, an absolutely furious expression on his face, but Kagome just plowed on, fueled by her own pent-up anger. "And you know what else? This isn't even the first time you've tried to get rid of me!"

"WHAT?!"

"Oh don't act so shocked," Kagome sneered. She turned so she was facing him completely and began ticking things off on her fingers, "Of course there's all the times you tried to do me in when we first met-"

"I didn't know you back then!!"

"You don't know me now!" Kagome shot back, then continued, "You were perfectly happy to tear apart the story I told to the Thunder Brothers - which, I might add, was my only defense!"

"That's not what I- You told them we were lovers!!"

"And then of course there's the time when you stole the Jewel Shards from me and trapped me in the future," Kagome continued as if he hadn't spoken. "And when you refused to help when we were fighting that toad demon with Nobunaga!"

"I wasn't-"

"And when you left me to get pulled down to Hell with that little ghost-girl, Mayu!"

"But that's not-"

"AND we can't forget all the times you've covered for Kikyou after SHE'S tried to kill me!!"

"When has Kikyou tried to kill you?!" Inuyasha practically screamed at her, finally able to get a word in. Kagome just glared at him, then slowly shook her head, her lip curling slightly.

"Honestly, I don't know how you can keep going on like this," she muttered angrily. "Do you really think-"

"Would you just shut up already?!" Inuyasha snarled, cutting her off, getting up onto his knees so he towered over her sitting form. "I don't know where you're getting all this shit, but it's not true!!"

"Oh?" Kagome asked coldly.

"Yeah! I refused to help that idiot Nobunaga because of his stupid little anti-killing crusade, but I saved your sorry ass when the toad attacked you," he yelled right back at her. "And I tried to stop that Tatari Mokke thing, but it just grabbed you and disappeared! AND I think we both know why I sent you back to your time after the fight with Sesshoumaru!"

Kagome scowled up at him, "Oh really? Enlighten me."

A frustrated snarl practically clawed itself out of his throat. "Do you have ANY idea how close you came to DYING in that fight?!" he roared, his golden eyes blazing with fury.

Kagome frowned at him, though she seemed to be more on the defensive now. "It's not like I haven't been in dangerous situations before.." she muttered, looking away sullenly.

"That was different," Inuyasha said firmly, glaring at her closely. "Sesshoumaru could probably slaughter Naraku, no sweat - and you think I was gonna let you keep hanging around here when the two of them had joined forces?!"

Kagome just looked down at her feet, not answering. If he had really wanted to get rid of her, then why keep saving her all the time? Especially when Kikyou was there, you'd think he'd completely forget about Kagome and get her to help him instead. But… Kagome shook her head. Even she couldn't deny (now that she had calmed down and wasn't so blindingly angry at him) that Inuyasha had saved her life hundreds of times, often getting himself injured or even almost killed in the process. She sighed, closing her eyes..

..And felt herself begin to slide off the branch.

Kagome gasped, feeling a scream building up in her throat as her eyes focused on the ground a good fifty feet below, already rushing up to meet her. But then Inuyasha's arm shot out, grabbing her around the middle, and hoisted her back up to safety.

They just sat for a minute, both breathing hard, Kagome crushed against Inuyasha's chest with his arms so tightly around her that it seemed like he might never let go. But then they seemed to remember themselves, and pulled apart, both blushing and trying to look anywhere but at each other.

"Um, thanks," Kagome mumbled, still blushing and brushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear nervously.

"Yeah…" Inuyasha looked away, feeling rather awkward.

"Look, Inuyasha," Kagome said after a long silence. "I.. I'm sorry.. for jumping to conclusions like that, but…" She swallowed hard, then continued quietly, "But, even if you don't really mean it… it still hurts when you say those things."

Inuyasha could only stare at her for several moments, not knowing what to say. Of course, deep down, he knew she couldn't be completely immune to all his scathing remarks and name-calling. He'd seen himself how she flinched at his words sometimes, but most often he could force himself to ignore it and just keep going. If she backed off whenever he was mean or rude, then she'd never be able to get close enough to find a weakness in him, right? So.. So it was for both of their good! …Right?

Kagome was looking down at the ground again, almost as if she was trying to figure out some way of getting down from the tree without splattering on the forest floor in the process. He sighed and offered her a hand. "C'mon… Miroku and Sango are probably looking for us…"

Kagome started and looked down at the hand that was held out to her. It was strange, how she'd never noticed how sharp his claws were before.. How many lives had ended with a slash of those claws? Her eyes traveled up his hand and what little of his forearm that was visible before it disappeared into his billowing red sleeve. His hands alone held inhuman strength, strength enough to break bones, demolish brick walls, crush the life out of anything within their grasp, and all with very little effort. He was a predator, a dangerous killer. How could it be that this had never occurred to her before?

She looked up from his hand to his face, to find golden eyes burning into her own. She, of all people, knew that he wasn't one to express himself in words, and she knew a peace offering when she saw one. He was asking her to trust him again, to place her safety and security, her very life, in his hands once more.

Without hesitation, she reached out and took his hand.

***

When they got back to the village, after making a quick stop by the well where Kagome's bike and backpack had been dropped, the villagers all seemed more surprised than usual to see them, not the least of which being Kaede herself.

The old miko arched the brow over her good eye when she saw them, giving them both a cool look as Inuyasha strode in, carrying Kagome in a slightly unorthodox position. Due to the girl's injured arm, she hadn't been able to hold onto his back, so Inuyasha had had to carry her in his arms, bridal style. Both blushed at her look, and Inuyasha quickly set her on her feet, then turned to set the bike and pack in the corner of the room.

"I had not expected you to return…" She trailed off, leaving it hanging as she stirred the fire in the center of the room. She hadn't expected them to return at all.

"Keh," Inuyasha muttered, fiddling with the knapsack, keeping his back turned.

Kagome glanced over at him from where she had seated herself by the fire, before speaking softly. "We.. just needed to talk. I guess.. everyone was just overreacting…"

"Amen to that!" a new voice said loudly, and they all looked up at the green-clad figure crouched on the window sill. Ketzia grinned and waved at Inuyasha.

It took about 2.5 seconds for Inuyasha to recover from shock and for his face to change into a furious bright red storm cloud. "What the hell are you doing here?!"

Ketzia just grinned and sat back on her heels, balancing precariously on the narrow window ledge. "What, you didn't think I was just gonna up and leave, did you? And after getting your oath and everything?" She shook her head, still grinning, "I thought you would have known better than that, Inu-chan."

Kagome blinked and twisted to look up at Inuyasha. "Inu-chan?" she repeated, raising an eyebrow as he blushed and glared murderously at the tawny-haired youkai across from them.

Ketzia just grinned back at him, before her face became slightly more serious. "Actually, I wanted to know where we should make camp while we're here.. You know, with Bannin and his soldiers and all…"

Inuyasha blinked, looking surprised, but then his face hardened again. "Whatever. Anywhere in the forest's fine, just stay out of the village."

"What, I can't come visit you?" Ketzia asked, making her eyes large and dewy.

Inuyasha growled, closing his eyes in aggravation. "Fine! Just keep your little horde out of sight!"

Ketzia grinned and saluted smartly. "Yes sir!" She looked about to leap back off the window sill, when she stopped and looked back at Inuyasha. "On second thought," she said, frowning, "we really should be going as soon as possible, so you'd better gather up anything you'll be taking with you.." None of them missed the rather pointed look she gave Kagome just before she left to disappear into the forest again.

"What was that all about?" Kagome asked, after a minute of slightly shocked silence.

Inuyasha just growled under his breath and started to make his way out of the hut. He knew what that was about. Despite Ketzia's playful, often disrespectful-seeming actions, she knew as well as any other dog demon where the authority lay with those around her. And of course, she never passed up a chance to remind him - even in something as small as asking him where they could make camp. It was a pretty obvious statement: it's your territory, you're the one in charge, so I have to ask permission about everything. He growled to himself and trudged out into the trees to go find her and give her a piece of his mind.

Unfortunately though, something else found him first.

***

Sango sighed miserably as they trudged along. They had tried to follow Inuyasha and Kagome out into the forest, but it had been a completely fruitless search. They could find no sign of either the dog-demon or the future girl.

She squeezed her eyes shut, willing the tears that tried to rise behind them. For all they knew, Kagome was already dead. Part of her didn't want to believe that what Kagome had told them was true. Inuyasha couldn't possibly have betrayed her..! But the reasonable side of her mind always won out, and she knew she would have to accept it. Inuyasha was simply an evil, conniving demon just like all the other youkai they'd ever fought. He'd probably been plotting to kill all of them for a long, long time.

Miroku gasped beside her, and Sango looked up at him questioningly, then at the path in front of them where he was staring. She could only gape at the sight.

***

Ketzia stopped in her tracks, halfway back to where she had left Bannin and the soldiers, when a cold thrill ran through her. She knew this feeling. It wasn't as strong as if she or her own counterpart were being attacked, but it was there all the same, nearby.

Shadow.

She turned and sprinted back the way she had come, real fear written on her face.

***

"What happened?! He's not breathing!"

"You don't think he's..?"

"I don't know." Sango stood, moving away from the body, averting her eyes of the sight of their until-recently good friend, lying there, apparently dead.

Inuyasha lay sprawled out on the forest floor, his limbs splayed at odd angles and his face scrunched up as if he were thinking hard. Only he looked… dead. Miroku placed a hand on his chin, not sure what to make of it. Had Kagome used her miko powers on him and then fled back to the village? It was possible, but then wouldn't his flesh be burnt..?

"Move it!!"

The two looked up just as a tawny-haired half-demon came charging in between them, kicking up dirt and brush from the forest floor as she came to a skidding stop in front of Inuyasha's body. She immediately dropped to her knees, her hands going to his face and chest.

"Shit!" Ketzia swore, jerking her hands back. "His skin's like ice!"

"You.." Miroku breathed, taking a step toward the hanyou. "You're that demoness who was looking for Inuyasha.."

Ketzia just growled wordlessly and scooped up the other demon, before turning and taking off in the direction of the village.

"Hey, wait!" Sango yelled, but she was already gone. Grumbling angrily under her breath, she and the houshi set out to follow her.

***

"…so I guess he was trying to trick her into letting me go by-" Kagome and Kaede's conversation was cut short as Ketzia came barreling into the hut, breathing hard and looking around desperately with a certain white-haired hanyou in her arms.

"Fire!" she croaked, lurching towards the cooking fire in the center of the room and dropping Inuyasha unceremoniously on the floor.

"W-What happened?!" Kagome asked, starting to get up, worried eyes going from Ketzia to Inuyasha and back again.

"Hurry! We need to get this fire going! It needs to bigger, and hotter!" Ketzia yelled, ignoring her question. She shoved Kaede's pot of herbs off of the cooking fire and started piling on more logs.

"What are you doing?!" Kagome asked, staring at her as she worked.

"We have to save him!" Ketzia snarled, finally answering her. "The idiot went and got himself attacked! I warned him, but he didn't listen, the baka! Inu no baka, baka!" Kagome was surprised to see the first trace of tears shining in her eyes as she continued to build up the fire.

Finally, Kaede turned away from where she had been inspecting Inuyasha's body. She placed a comforting hand on Ketzia's shoulder. "Child, calm yourself. There is nothing we can do for him now.."

"What?!" Kagome demanded, snapping her gaze up to the elderly miko, while Ketzia just threw off the hand and resumed her task.

Kaede looked pityingly down at the two of them, Kagome staring up at her with glistening eyes, and the hanyou girl with her back to her, still building the fire for some reason. "I am sorry, Kagome," she sighed, looking away. "He's gone." The girl just continued to stare up at her wide-eyed. She must have been in shock or something… Sighing again and shaking her head sadly, the old miko turned and left the room, leaving the girls with their grief.

Kagome swallowed hard, still staring into space even as tears began streaming down her face. "But he can't be.. be… d…"

"He isn't!" Ketzia snarled, suddenly whirling around and leaping to her feet. In one swift motion, she had swung around and hoisted Inuyasha up into her arms again. Moving significantly slower, she took a heavy step towards the now blazing fire, and dropped him onto it.

"No!" Kagome cried, but she too slow to stop her, and could only stare in horror as Inuyasha settled down in the fire, seeming to almost use the logs as a pillow. Was.. Was Ketzia planning to cremate him..? But she had said he wasn't… wasn't… She closed her eyes and looked away as the tears began to fall. She couldn't even say it…

She looked up suddenly at a small sound in front of her. It sounded like a sigh, almost… and it had come from Inuyasha! Her eyes widened as he shifted, his face scrunched in discomfort, then finally settled down, his chest rising and falling with each even breath, now looking like he was merely sleeping.

"Wha-what..? How..?"

Beside her, Ketzia chuckled and then let out a relieved sigh. "He's gonna be okay, now," she said tiredly, leaning back against the wall and closing her eyes, letting herself relax at last.

"What..? But how..? I mean, Kaede said…"

Ketzia cracked one eye open to look at her. "He wasn't dead, if that's what you're asking. The idiot was just 'playing dead.'" She grinned at the look Kagome gave her. "I know, I know, bad pun, but there's really no other way of saying it. When he was attacked, his body just shut down. Unfortunately, it's only a good idea if you have someone right there to revive you, or else you really will die." Her face darkened into a scowl again. "Inu no baka…"

Kagome pursed her lips, watching Inuyasha's peaceful form in the fire. "What.. what attacked him?" she asked quietly, glancing over at Ketzia.

The half-demon sighed, rubbing her forehead tiredly. "A Shadow."

"What?" Kagome asked, giving her an odd look.

"His Shadow," Ketzia repeated more emphatically. "He was out alone in the forest and it attacked him."

Kagome shook her head, frowning, "I don't understand.."

Ketzia let out a long breath, trying to think of how to explain it. It was a strange enough concept for youkai to grasp, much less a human girl like Kagome. "I guess, we have to start with our powers," she said softly, closing her eyes.

"Powers?"

She nodded. "There are six of us. Fire, Water, Earth, Plants, Light, and Dark. We form a… a team, I suppose. As you probably guessed, my power is with flora, plants. Inuyasha's is fire."

"What do you mean? Like he can control fire or something?"

Ketzia opened her eyes and looked over at Kagome, nodding and raising an eyebrow at the slightly confused look on the human girl's face. "What, you've never seen him throw fireballs at anyone?" she asked, half-grinning. "That's like his favorite trick!"

Kagome shook her head, not returning the smile. "No, but.. there have been a couple of times, I guess, when he got blasted by fire but he acted like it was nothing. And not just his usual 'I'm a tough guy who can take any hit you throw at me' routine," she added, smiling at the demon girl now. "It was like he was actually on fire, but it wasn't burning him at all. I guess I always just assumed it was because he was half-demon.."

Ketzia shook her head, still smiling slightly to herself. "No.. I mean, we were all born with our powers, but it's got nothing to do with his demon blood…"

Kagome nodded, letting her gaze fall back to Inuyasha's still figure in the flames. There were a few moments of nothing but the sound of the fire crackling and Kaede shuffling around in the back room, sorting her herbs and medicines, before Kagome spoke again.

"So.. what's with this Shadow thing?" she asked softly, not taking her eyes off of Inuyasha.

Beside her, Ketzia sighed again. "I was a bit surprised Inuyasha hadn't told you about all this, but…" She shook her head and sat up straight, preparing for another long explanation. "The six of us have these.. amazing powers to control nature, but.. it comes with a price, I suppose." She frowned down at the floor, trying to think of a good way to phrase her words. "There is another world, just like ours, but opposite, I suppose. It's made up of the shadows cast by things in this realm," she told her. "Because we are in a way connected to nature through our powers, the same link is formed between the other side of nature and our Shadows." She stopped and looked over at Kagome, her words quiet, "And through that link, they can come to this world."

Kagome shivered involuntarily and frowned over at the she-dog. She still wasn't quite sure what Ketzia was talking about, but the way she said it made it sound like something out of a horror film. "I'm guessing that's not a good thing…"

"No, it's not," Ketzia agreed, shaking her head. "They come to cover everything in darkness, to consume this world… Especially the six of us." She stared down at the floor, biting her lip. "If we were to be overcome by our Shadows, they would posses us, taking our bodies and devouring our minds and souls." She glanced up at Kagome, half-grinning again, "Or, that's the theory, anyway.."

Kagome raised her eyebrows at that. "So, you don't really know..?"

Ketzia shook her head. "No. We're all still here - none of us has been overpowered by our Shadow.. yet, anyway…"

"Yet?"

Ketzia hesitated, a flash of grief darting across her face before she composed herself again. "Two of us would be easy targets - Yoru, because his powers come from darkness anyway, so it wouldn't take much for his Shadow to get to him, and Mizuki. She.. she lost her mate recently, and it's putting a bit of a mental and emotional strain on her, as you can imagine…"

Kagome brought one hand up to her mouth, aghast. "That's.. That's terrible," she said softly, sympathetically. Ketzia nodded, swallowing thickly.

After several moments of silence, Ketzia spoke again quietly. "Actually, I guess I wasn't being completely honest. Inuyasha's really the one I'm most worried about," she said, her eyes straying to the other sleeping half-demon.

"What do you mean?" Kagome asked, frowning thoughtfully.

"Inuyasha's power is fire, like I told you," she said, looking over at the human girl. "And tell me, what is greater than fire? It consumes plants and boils water away. It lights up the darkness, but at the same time obstructs daylight with its smoke. Hell, it'll even burn earth and stone, if it's hot enough." She looked back at the other half-demon, frowning to herself. "Inuyasha is the most powerful of us all, and yet he was taken out so easily today." She looked away, shaking her head. "First of all, if Inuyasha, our leader, can be overcome by his Shadow that easily, then what chance could the rest of us possibly have? And second - if his Shadow were able to possess him, it would have access to and control of all of his powers. There would be no way we could defeat him!"

Kagome just stared at her, her mouth hanging open slightly, wondering at all the information she'd just been given. How could this all be true? Inuyasha had special powers, and not just the ones that came from him being half-demon? And these Shadow things… What if they started to come after them as well? What if they had to fight these things, along with searching for Jewel shards and fighting Naraku? And, what if the Shadow did manage to possess Inuyasha? What would they do? What could they do? She shivered. No matter how she looked at it, it seemed that a whole new dimension of danger had just been added to their quest.

Beside her, Ketzia began to stand, drawing Kagome out of her thoughts. "Well, I probably shouldn't stay in here too long, if he's going to be healing himself," she said, standing and stretching up toward the ceiling.

Kagome frowned up at her, beginning to struggle to her feet as well while cradling her injured arm "What do you mean?"

Ketzia grinned ruefully, glancing over at the sleeping hanyou. "Fire is a power of destruction, while mine is one of growth, so it's sorta like I'm on the other end of the spectrum from him - which, of course, means I'm probably not helping him much by being in here with my aura clashing with his."

"Oh.. should we leave him alone, then?" Kagome asked, looking back at the sleeping half-demon anxiously.

Ketzia blinked, then shook her head. "No, you stay. You'll be able to protect him from the Shadow while he's still weak like this."

"What?"

Ketzia let her gaze drift back beyond Kagome to Inuyasha. "He really is a fool, you know, falling for a woman like that… But funnily enough, even after they had their little falling-out, the miko-bitch's spell actually protected him from his Shadow all that time when he was asleep. Shadow or light of this world, we're still youkai. And purifying power is the only thing I know of that can actually counteract us or our Shadows. And girl, you are practically glowing with the stuff!" She grinned at Kagome's surprised look and turned to push her way out of the hut, letting the flap fall back behind her.

So you'd better keep him safe, miko, she thought as she took off into the forest again. Of course, her next thought was much less dark and was simply about how glad she was to be out of that village. All those buildings of dead wood were giving her the heeby jeebies!

Kagome watched Ketzia go, before slowly turning to look back at Inuyasha's peaceful form. She came and knelt by him again, watching his chest rise and fall with each breath he took, his ears twitching around at random sounds every once in a while. He would be okay ..right?

He has to be, she thought, settling herself back against the wall again, not taking her eyes off of him.

He has to be…

** ** ** ** **

And that's it for this chapter! ^_^ So whadya think? This is the longest chapter so far, by several pages, so I hope you guys appreciate this! Not to mention this was a relatively fast update compared to what I was doing before.. ~_~;

Now, I know I had a notice about this up in my profile for a while, but in case you didn't see that, I'm repeating myself here: THIS IS INU/KAG! PERIOD. There is no way I would ever break up that coupling, especially considering that they are my absolute #1 favorite animanga couple! So don't bother saying in a review, email, IM, whatever, that you think it should be Inu/Ketz (*shudder*) or any other alternate pairing, cuz it ain't happening.

Anyway.. I sorta feel like not much happened in this chapter, although you guys did get hit with a lot of info.. Holler if you're confused, but do keep in mind that even after Ketzia's rather lengthy explanation, that's still not the whole story ^__^

Inu no baka - Stupid Inu!

Kaza'ana - Miroku's Air Rip

Ofuda - Miroku's sealing/purifying scrolls

Shakujou - Miroku's staff

Wow, Miroku has just about all of the key-terms this time.. sheez… ~_~;

Please Review!!! ^_^