InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Okaeri Nasai, Welcome Home ❯ Wolf ( Chapter 3 )

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Okaeri Nasai

Chapter 3: Wolf

Kat and Akkiko were sure they were losing their minds. First of all, Kagome was standing near what looked to be a thousand year old tree, arguing with a boy in a red kimono who had dog ears. Real, freakin' dog ears. Secondly, Meg had pointed ears, and a fluffy tail. Of course, she hadn't realized this yet.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Back to when the three girls woke up in the well.

~~~

"Ugh. . ." Akkiko mumbled.

"Akkiko?" She heard a voice from far off. "Akkiko?" Akkiko mumbled something, but still didn't wake up. "Akkiko no baka, wake up!!"

Akkiko reached over, and hit what she thought was her alarm clock. Kat stumbled back, her eyes squiggles. Getting up, Akkiko headed in the direction which she thought was to the bathroom. Instead, she hit a wall. WHAM!!

"Stupid wall," she muttered, and tried to find her door.

WHAM!! She hit another wall. Opening her eyes, Akkiko was astonished to see she was in a box. Kat glared at her, a little bandage on her head.

"We're still in the well, you idiot," she told her friend.

Akkiko glared, still sleepy. "Oh sure, go ahead and make fun of me! It's just because I'm smaller than you!" Suddenly she grinned. "But that doesn't mean I can't kick your ass!"

Kat stuck her tongue out at Akkiko, then fumbled around in the dark, trying to find Meg. Her hand connected with something furry.

"EEP!" Kat jumped back as the furry thing moved a little. She heard Meg mutter something. "Meg, don't move!" Kat hissed. "There's a wild animal right beside you!"

"What?!" Meg leapt to her feet. "Oh my God!!" She hugged the wall of the well and looked around her feet. "Where the hell is it?"

Akkiko squinted. "Meg?"

"What?"

"I think the animal is on your butt."

Meg's face turned blue, then red, and then. . .

"Incoming," Kat said dully. She and Akkiko quickly stuffed their fingers in their ears.

"EEEEEEEEEYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" Meg ran to the opposite wall and scrambled up faster than you could blink. Akkiko and Kat shaded their eyes, looking up.

"Didn't think she could move that fast," Akkiko commented, and she and Kat followed at a slower pace.

Now they were at the top of the well, and, once again, were sure they were losing their minds.

"Meg?" Kat said hesitantly.

"Did I get the furry thing off my butt?" Meg demanded.

Akkiko snorted. "I would think that would be difficult as it is attached."

Meg turned, looking down at her butt. "Hey," she said. "I have a tail."

Akkiko and Kat fell over. "Brilliant observation, Sherlock," Akkiko muttered.

Meg's hand came up to scratch her head. "Hey, I have pointy ears, too!"

Kagome and the boy she was arguing with suddenly became aware of the girls' arrival.

"Who the hell are they?" the boy said. Kat and Akkiko stared at him. He was dressed in a red kimono, his feet bare. He had long silver hair and his nails were grown in long claws. His eyes were a steely amber, and his pupils were slitted. He was frowning, and the girls could see that his canines were pointed. Peeking out through his hair were two ears that were similar in size and shape to a dog's.

Akkiko and Kat blinked; Meg was discovering the fact that she had fangs in addition to her tail and ears. Suddenly Akkiko ran up to the dog-eared boy, grabbed the front of his kimono and pulled him down several inches. Then she took hold of his ears and rubbed them gently.

Kat giggled. "Hey, they squeak!" she said, delighted.

Akkiko laughed as well. "That is so cool! I want pointy ears, too!"

Kagome was very pale. "How . . . the hell . . . did you three show up?" she said slowly.

Kat shrugged. "I have no idea; all I remember is Meg grabbing me, lots of bright light, and then I was knocked unconscious. Then I woke up, and someone-" she glared at Akkiko, "-smacked me. Hard."

Akkiko smiled. "Whoops. Sorry."

Meg suddenly laughed. "My tail-it's fluffy!" She waved it from side to side. Little did she know that there was a pair of eyes following her butt as she waved it.

"Hentai!" The three girls turned as there was a loud "WHACK!!" heard from the bushes. A tall man dressed in blue robes stumbled out, rubbing the back of his head.

"I'm sorry Sango! I didn't mean to, really!" he was saying.

"Sure, you didn't mean to, you lech!" A woman carrying a rather large boomerang followed him out of the bushes, her expression somewhat pissed.

The two of them stopped as they caught sight of the three girls. One of them looked disturbingly like Shippo, only she was bigger, and female.

"K-Kagome?" Sango said. "Are these your friends?"

"Uh. . ." Kagome sweatdropped. "Yeah, they are, but I have no idea how they got here." She leaned over to Akkiko, who still hadn't let go of Inu-yasha's ears. "How did you get here, by the way?"

"Uh . . . Whoa. . ." Akkiko stumbled a bit and touched her temple, relenting her grip on Inu-yasha's ears.

"What's wrong?" Meg asked, still getting used to her fangs.

"I know it's going to sound cheesy, but . . . I feel a disturbance in the force."

Kat and Meg fell over. "Akkiko-YOU'VE watched Star Wars?" Kat asked, shocked.

Akkiko shrugged. "Yeah, so what? I feel a disturbance here, people, let's focus!"

Meg got up and looked around. "So, what does this `disturbance' feel like?"

"Um . . . a disturbance?" Meg whacked Akkiko on the head, a vein twitching in her temple.

"Baka! Do you have any idea what it looks like?"

"How about the giant dust tornado that's heading straight towards us?" Kat asked, pointing. Meg and Akkiko looked and saw that there was, indeed, a tornado heading towards them.

Kagome's jaw dropped. The boy dressed in blue stared at the tornado.

"Hey, isn't that-"

"It is," Kagome sighed. The tornado stopped three feet away from her, and as the winds dispelled Kat, Meg and Akkiko could see a tall boy with long black hair tied in a ponytail. His clothes were compiled of brown fur and blue armour-like material. Kat, standing behind him, saw a wolf tail waving slightly.

`God,' she thought. `How many people here have tails?!'

"Kagome," the newcomer said, draping an arm over her shoulder. "I've travelled this far distance to ask a favour."

Akkiko shook her head. This guy was hot, but man, was he fake. She heard growling behind her and turned to see the dog-eared boy clenching his hands, and gritting his teeth, physically holding himself back from tearing the wolf-boy to pieces.

"Hey, I'm Akkiko, who're you?" she whispered. "And who's the bishie hitting on Kagome?"

"He is Inu-yasha," the blue-robed boy whispered to Akkiko. "And the boy . . . what did you say he was doing?"

"Hitting on Kagome."

"Ah, yes. The boy `hitting on' Kagome is Kouga."

"Oh." Akkiko grinned. "He's hot."

Meg was thinking the same thing, although she wasn't looking at Kouga; she was looking at the boy in blue robes.

"Psst," she hissed to the girl with the boomerang. "Who's the guy with the staff?"

"That would be Miroku. He's a monk, but you would never guess it. `Chastity' isn't in his vocabulary."

In the meantime, Kouga had still been hanging all over Kagome. "I was wondering if you could spare a shard of the Shikon jewel. If I had another one, I know that I could go and get revenge on Naraku for what he did." He looked at Kagome with begging eyes.

Kagome, however, wasn't buying it. "Kouga, we've been through this before: I am not giving you anymore shards of the jewel. If you want to help us look for them, then-"

"Over my dead body!" Inu-yasha growled. "There is no way in hell he's joining us."

Kouga turned to Inu-yasha, a loathing expression in his eyes. Kat sweatdropped; obviously these two weren't buddy-buddy.

"I wasn't talking to you, mutt," Kouga snapped. He looked at Akkiko, who was still standing quite close to Inu-yasha. His eyes travelled over to Meg, who was admiring Miroku (her brain most likely setting up a fool-proof plan for a way to seduce him), and then to Kat, who was just standing off to one side, observing.

He suddenly grinned. "Well, it seems you haven't done too badly for yourself, Inu-yasha. You've picked up two new human girls and a vixen." A cunning gleam shone from Kouga's blue eyes. "Well, since I can't take any of the jewel shards from my dear Kagome, and she won't give them to me nicely, I guess I'll just have to use some other means."

Suddenly Kouga took off running, but not before snatching up Kat and running off before she could even scream.

Akkiko and Meg blinked, looking at each other, then after Kouga, then at each other again. Finally it clicked what had just happened.

"Oh, I'm going to kill him," Meg said, cracking her knuckles. "He is going to die a very slow, painful death."

"Not if I get to him first," Akkiko said. The two girls started off, the same ticked off expression on both their faces.

"Wait!" Kagome called. "You don't even know where Kouga lives!"

Meg and Akkiko looked at each other. "She has a point," Akkiko said.

Turning back, Meg cleared her throat. "Okay, I have no idea where we are, or what the hell is happening. What I do know is that Kat, my older sister, was just kidnapped by some fancy-schmancy track runner with a tail. If I don't go to rescue her in two point five seconds, I may self destruct, so let's get the introductions over with and get going."

Miroku sweatdropped. "Is she serious?"

Akkiko sighed. "I would like to say she's joking, but when it comes to friends, Meg can get scary when our safety-or chastity-is threatened." She glared in Meg's direction. "Even though she does like setting us up sometimes."

Kagome sighed. "Okay, here's a brief summary. You three fell through the Bone-eater's well, which is a portal in time to Feudal Japan."

Meg and Akkiko sweatdropped. Suddenly Akkiko grinned maniacally. "Welcome to the Era of Warring States!" she said cheerfully. Everyone stared at her. She coughed. "Sorry, moment called for it."

"I have no idea how you three get here," Kagome continued. "Usually it's only myself and Inu-yasha that can travel through time. But anyways. . ." Kagome nodded towards the monk. "That's Miroku, and the lady with the boomerang is Sango, the demon exterminator." Sango smiled and bowed. Kagome pointed to the dog-eared boy, who was still looking somewhat pissed off at Kouga's arrival and departure. "That's Inu-yasha, the half-demon."

Inu-yasha's ears pricked and he glared at Kagome. "Must you bring that up?"

Kagome frowned. "But it's true!"

"So? You don't need to go telling two complete strangers!"

"They're not strangers to me!"

"I don't know them!"

"Obviously you will get to know them; we're going to save their friend from Kouga!"

"Why should I? If Kouga has something to keep him preoccupied, then he won't bother us."

Suddenly Meg loomed over the poor hanyou, flames behind her. "What . . . do . . . you . . . mean. . . `keep him preoccupied'?"

Akkiko laughed nervously. "Oh, shit, she's gonna kill someone."

Miroku came over to her. "I am so sorry for the trouble Kouga has caused. It must be terrible for you to have your friend suddenly snatched away." He bent down, taking one of Akkiko's hands. "Please believe me when I say that we will do everything we can to save her, all right?"

Akkiko sweatdropped. "Uh . . . o . . . kay?"

Miroku rose and put an arm around Akkiko. "And if you need anyone to comfort you, please, don't hesitate."

"Uh, mister, you don't know me, but if you did, you would know I don't need anyone to-" Akkiko stopped and her face turned bright red as she felt something rub her butt.

Meg, who was bitching Inu-yasha out, suddenly stopped as she heard, "HENTAI!!" screamed from her friend, and when she turned she saw Miroku fly back several feet, compliments of a punch delivered by Akkiko's fist.

"He groped me!" Akkiko shrieked, still red.

"That's so gross," said a new voice. "You just groped your sister."

Inu-yasha growled and his hands went to the handle of a sword Meg hadn't noticed before. "Who are you?" he called out. "Show yourself!"

A figure dropped down from the treetops. She had pale skin, and her blue-black eyes were expressionless as she watched them. Her long blonde hair looked terribly out of place around the other dark-haired persons. She was dressed in a traditional kimono, the cloth made of fine silk and woven in a deep blue with silver edging. In her pale hands she held a glass orb which seemed to be filled with red smoke. A small smile was on her lips as she bowed.

"Who the hell are you?" Meg said before thinking.

The woman smiled a little wider. "I am," she said dramatically, "the oracle."

~~~

Kat hung on, her heart beating a hundred times faster than usual. This Kouga person ran at about the speed of sound, jumping over rivers, hills, and trees with no effort at all. Kat would have been impressed, but she was too miffed at being kidnapped to admire the wolf-demon.

Finally they stopped in front of a tall waterfall. Wolves and men that looked like Kouga lounged around the river, and Kat guessed that this was near their home.

A wolf demon came over and grinned at Kouga, his fangs gleaming. "Hey," he said, "who's the wench? Have you given up on that Kagome-girl or did you bring us a little snack before dinner?" He went around and lifted Kat's skirt an inch or two.

That did it. Kat shrieked and kicked the offending demon in the face, then elbowed Kouga on the crown of his head. He dropped her and she finished off the pervert by kicking him in the gut.

"Hentai!!" she screamed, hands holding her skirt down. Then she turned her wrath on Kouga, face pink. "And just who do you think you are, wolfie? Do you think it's an effective way to get a girlfriend by just picking her up and running off with her without even being properly introduced?" She glared at him, poking a finger into his chest. He stared at her, dumbstruck, rubbing the top of his now-aching head.

A couple more wolf-demons whispered to each other. "Gods, she's even more violent than Kagome," one said.

"As long as she doesn't notice me, I'm fine with her being here."

Kat, in the meantime, continued her rant. "If you don't take me back to my friends right now, I swear I will-"

"You'll what?" Kouga grinned at her and Kat noticed just how sharp those fangs were.

"Grr. . ." she said, still glaring, trying to come up with an effective comeback. Something whined beside her. Looking down, she saw a wolf sniffing her hand. Immediately Kat softened and she became like a little girl in the presence of bunny rabbits.

"AWW!" she shrilled, dropping to her knees and petting her new friend. "Wolves!" A few more came over to join their fellow as Kat petted and shook paws.

[A/N: What? I like wolves.]

Kouga's jaw dropped, as did the jaw of every other wolf-demon present. Here was a human girl playing with their wolves as if they were lap dogs?!

Kouga tapped Kat's shoulder. "Uh, excuse me, but aren't supposed to be terrified?"

Kat raised an eyebrow at him, looking bored. "Oh, yeah . . . eek." Turning her back on him, she continued playing.

~~~

"The . . . Oracle?" Akkiko said hesitantly.

"Yes," the so-called Oracle smiled. "The Oracle. Also known as Kameko Haru."

"Is that supposed to mean something to us?" Meg said bluntly.

"No, I wouldn't think so."

"Whoa, back up," Akkiko said, "what did you mean Miroku just groped his sister?"

Kameko laughed. "Well, if you want me to expand on that topic, you'll first have to save your other friend. Then come back here. I'll be waiting."

"Hey," Inu-yasha took a step forward. "Have you been spying on us? Cause personally, I don't like people who stick their nose into my business."

"Oh, it's not just your business anymore, half-demon Inu-yasha. These girls are very important. I suggest you help them."

"No one tells me what to do," Inu-yasha growled. Suddenly he felt a fist connect with the back of his head.

He glared at Meg. "What was that for, bitch?!"

Meg glared back. "First of all, I am not a bitch. It appears I am a vixen. Second, my friend is still kidnapped, and I don't see us to going to rescue her. So get a move on, puppy boy and lead the way."

What followed next had to be the staring match-or should I say glaring match-of the century.

*Interruption*

Akkiko: Now which century is that?

Meg: What do you mean?

Akkiko: Well, we come from the 21st century, but we're stuck in the 16th century. So which century is it?

*both look at Kat who is typing away furiously at the keyboard*

Meg: Kat? Ka-at? Did you hear Akkiko's question?

Kat: Not my department!!

*end*

Akkiko sighed. "At this rate, Kat will be dead before we show up."

Kagome nodded. "Time to take action." She walked up to Inu-yasha, who ignored her, preferring to drag out his glaring match with Meg a little longer.

"Inu-yasha?" Kagome said sweetly.

"Keh?" the hanyou growled.

"Osuwari."

Suddenly the necklace of prayer beads around Inu-yasha's neck pulsed and he was dragged down into the dirt.

Meg stared at him, then at Kagome. "Hey, can you teach me to do that?"

Akkiko sighed and turned back to the oracle-lady. "Can you-hey, where'd she go?" The clearing was empty of any oracle. Only Kagome, Inu-yasha, Miroku, Sango, Akkiko and Meg were left.

"How'd she do that?" Kagome asked.

"I can't sense her presence anymore," Miroku said, blinking in confusion.

Meg and Akkiko looked at each other uneasily. "We can't worry about that now. Kat could be in danger!"

~~~

Kat yawned, tired from running around. The wolves she had befriended seemed to be very fond of tag.

Kouga observed her from the river. She was undoubtedly human, but there was an edge to her scent that made her seem . . . different. Different from Kagome and the two humans she travelled with, at least. But she was human, and ever since he had met Kagome he had been partial to human women. Not only that, but this girl was liked by the wolves. She would be perfect as a mate. . .

He rose and walked over to Kat. "Hey, we were never formally introduced, were we?"

Kat looked up at him, saying curtly, "No. You picked me up and just started running."

Kouga coughed. "Well, let's start over." He held out his hand, smiling winningly. "I'm Kouga."

Kat blinked. "I'm . . . Kat."

"Kat?"

"It's a nickname. Short for Katherine."

"Kath-er-in?" Kouga said it slowly. "Strange name-but pretty." He scrutinized her carefully and grinned, baring his fangs. "I'm gonna make you my woman."

Kat stared at him, slightly disturbed. Kouga laughed at her expression and walked away, tail swishing behind him.

Kat stood there, frozen, until the wolves started whining and licking her hands. Her mind was in a whirl. She had SO not just been hit on by this guy, who she'd known for all of two minutes.

~~~

Meg, Akkiko, Inu-yasha, Kagome, Sango and Miroku all started walking down a forest path, in the direction of Kouga's cave. Sango had changed into pink and black armour, and Kagome had picked up a bow and a quiver of arrows from the nearby village.

"This had better not take long," Inu-yasha growled. Meg glared at his back, holding back the urge to smack him again.

Akkiko was thinking the opposite. `Wow, he's so tough,' she thought. `And his sword is so cool, and his ears are so cute, and that hair . . .' In short, she was in heaven.

*interruption*

Akkiko: Kaaaaaaaaaat!

Kat: She's gonna kill me!!

Akkiko: Are you trying to publicly degrade me?

Meg: I don't think she's trying. . . .

Akkiko: *glares* No comments from the peanut gallery, you peanut!

Meg: I'm hurt. . .

Kat: *hiding in bomb shelter* Just remember, Akkiko-if you kill me, I can't finish this!

Akkiko: Which is why I'm gonna kill you after!

Kat: I'm doomed. . .

*end interruption*

"It'll take as long as it takes," Meg snapped at Inu-yasha. "We have to go and rescue Kat-who knows what that demon is going to do to her."

"I wonder if he used the `I'm gonna make you my woman' line yet," Miroku mused.

Suddenly Meg loomed over him. Akkiko sweatdropped.

"Uh-oh, Meg's gone into Armageddon-mode."

"MATTE!!" something screamed behind them. The group turned, and suddenly a little boy with a fluffy tail leapt out of the bushes and tackled Inu-yasha. "Inu-yasha, you bastard, you left me behind again!!"

"Shippo!" Kagome said, outraged. "Don't swear!"

The little boy, whose ears were pointed, as were his teeth, beat his tiny fists against Inu-yasha's chest, trying to do damage. [-_-;;] Suddenly he felt a hand close around his tail as Akkiko picked him up.

"Hey!!" he squawked. "Put me down!!"

Akkiko, ignoring the pup's outbursts, held him up so that she was looking at both Meg (who had stopped verbally berating Miroku upon Shippo's arrival) and the kitsune.

"Wow, that's so . . . creepy," Akkiko said finally. "You two-I mean, you look so-"

"They could be siblings," Sango said, also looking from Shippo to Meg.

Meg made a noise in the back of her throat. "Okay, One: I'll admit there're some similarities, except of course that I'm hell of a lot bigger and female. Two: Akkiko, for God's sakes, put the poor guy down before he gets an ulcer. And Three: This happy little reunion isn't getting up any closer to Kat!!" An ugly look settling on her face, Meg flipped her braid over her shoulder and continued down the path.

Akkiko set Shippo down and ran after her friend. The little kitsune looked from Meg to Kagome. "Who was that?" he asked, confused. "Why are they dressed like you, Kagome?"

Kagome picked him up and continued walking. "I'll explain on the way."

~~~

Kat wandered back over to the river, trying to figure out how the hell to get out of this mess. That Kouga idiot seemed like an okay guy-but claiming her for "his woman" went a little over the line. Not to mention each time he smiled at her now, Kat's skin crawled.

The only problem was now the wolves liked her so much they wouldn't let her go very far from the den. They would whine and yelp until one of the wolf-demons came and then she would have to come up with a believable excuse. It just didn't work.

Kneeling over to get a drink, Kat nearly choked as she got an idea. She stared up at the waterfall, and then her eyes went along the river path until it dipped out of sight. It was a risky move, but. . .

"Kat," said a voice behind her. Kat nearly jumped into the river in surprise, but a hand on her shoulder prevented her from moving.

Taking a deep breath, she turned, smiling. "Hello, Kouga."

"I've brought back a nice boar for dinner, and it'll be finished cooking soon." The wolf demon grinned down at her. "So you might want to wash up."

"Oh, yeah, I'll do that," Kat said, smiling to herself. `What an idiot,' she thought. `He doesn't even know what I'm planning!'

"Oh, and by the way, Kat. . ." Kouga winked at her. "Don't try and escape, right?"

Kat gave him her most winning smile. "Of course not."

Turning her back to him, she busied herself with the pretence of `cleaning herself up'. She heard Kouga turn and begin to walk away, and without another word, Kat stood and threw herself in the river.

It wasn't as deep as she thought, but she was quickly picked up and carried away by the current. She fought to the surface and as a breath of air entered her lungs, she heard Kouga's shout of dismay. Grinning wickedly, Kat began treading the water, carrying herself even further away from the wolf-demon camp.

"My first Great Escape," she gasped to herself. "Not bad."

YOINK!! "ACK!!" Kat screamed as something grabbed the back of her collar. It was a very big talon. Kat stared as she was pulled from the river by some sort of huge bird-thing-only it wasn't a real bird, it was something from a nightmare, with a huge, gaping mouth, and a human torso on top of its head.

As the bird-demon started to carry her away, Kat heard a jumble of voices from the den-"Damn those birds, they're back!" "Shoot it down!" "Don't hit the human!" "Yeah, Kouga'll kill you if you do!"

A single thought went through Kat's head: `Oh my God, I'm going to die.' Gritting her teeth, she shook her head.

"No way in hell," she muttered. "I'm not gonna die this far from home, in some strange time that isn't my own. I'm not going to die-I can't hurt my friends and family like that." Twisting in the bird's grip, she tugged at the back of her uniform until it tore free. As she fell back into the river, she saw Kouga leap from the bank and slice the bird-demon in half.

Reaching the surface again, Kat bumped into a rock and climbed out of the river, gasping for breath. Kouga neatly landed on a nearby rock, scooped her up, and returned to the bank.

"S-sorry," she stuttered. "I fell in. . .Stupid me. . ."

Kouga patted her back and helped her up. "You're staying in the den for now," he said. "We'll keep you out of sight of those damn Birds of Paradise."

That was the thing that had snatched her? Kat thought dully. What a stupid, oxymoronic name.

~~~

Meg and Akkiko blinked. "Did . . . did you just feel that?" Meg asked hesitantly.

"It felt. . ." Akkiko stopped and tried again. "It felt like I was underwater."

"I felt something grabbing the back of my shirt." The two girls stared at each other for a second and then ran up to Inu-yasha.

"Can't we go faster?" Meg demanded.

"Don't you know any shortcuts?" Akkiko asked.

"Kat could be in trouble and we have to get to her FAST!!" they said at the same time.

Inu-yasha stepped back, looking harassed. "Stop harassing me you freaky wenches!!" he snapped, and jumped into a tree. Sitting down, he said, "Kouga's den is right over that hill."

Meg and Akkiko looked up at the hill, smiled evilly, and began running. Sango, Miroku, Shippo and Kagome all looked at each other and ran after them. Before going five steps, Kagome turned back to the tree Inu-yasha was in.

"Come on, Inu-yasha," she called. "We may need your help!"

"Keh," Inu-yasha snapped. "Why should I-"

"OSUWARI!!" *CRASH!!* "You're so pig-headed!"

Inu-yasha dragged himself up from the newest crater in the woods, and glared. "You don't leave much room for argument, do you, bitch?"

"Not really," Kagome said over her shoulder, catching up with the others, who had stopped.

"Like I said," Meg grinned. "You have GOT to teach me how to do that! Now then! You guys go save Kat-I'll go, ah, *take care* of Kouga." The maniacal look on her face left no room for argument.

~~~

Kat huddled in the den, away from everyone that had finished dinner.

`If those guys don't come save me soon, I'm gonna kill them,' she thought darkly. `Honestly-' she heard crashing from outside the cave, `you'd think they'd have something better to do-' More crashing. `-then just sit . . . around . . . on their . . . butts-' "OH MY GOD, the roof's falling down!" she screamed as the roof crumbled and deposited Akkiko, Inu-yasha, Kagome, Sango, Miroku, and Shippo into the cave.

The wolves all leapt to their feet, growling, and the wolf demon's also picked up their spears and axes, but before they could actually do anything Kat had ran across the cave to latch onto Akkiko.

"I knew you guys would come and save me!" she squealed, squeezing her friend.

"Kat-let-can't-breathe!!" Akkiko managed to get out.

"Come on," Kagome said, "We've got to get out of here quickly." She drew an arrow from her quiver and released it. It lodged in the ground two inches from a wolf demon's foot and in the shock that followed the group charged forward. Inu-yasha immediately set to knocking out as many demons as he could, paving a clear path for the others to follow. Soon all of them had gotten clear of the den and were hiding in the forest.

Kat looked around. "Wait a second," she said. "Where the hell is Meg?"

"She's . . . erm. . . taking care of Kouga." Akkiko looked nervously back at the den, as if expecting to see a mushroom cloud erupt any minute.

Kat blinked. "You know . . . somehow, knowing Meg is `taking care' of Kouga doesn't comfort me."

Akkiko sighed. "I'll go get her."

"Oh no," Inu-yasha said, cracking his knuckles. "Allow me to go get her."

Kat and Akkiko stared at him, then at each other, and then back at him. "NO!" they said, and Akkiko ran off towards the wolf den as Kat tackled Inu-yasha, holding him down.

Kagome sighed as Inu-yasha pried Kat off with little effort, and opened her mouth.

As Akkiko was running away, she heard "Osuwari!" and grinned. Peeking over the hill, she looked around for her newly-tailed friend.

"Oh, Lord." Akkiko rubbed her eyes. She could not believe what she was seeing. Where the hell could you find pink hairspray in the feudal era?

~~~

Kat and the others looked up as Meg and Akkiko entered the clearing where they were waiting. Meg had a very satisfied look on her face, and Akkiko was looking very disturbed.

"What happened?" Kagome asked.

"What did you do to Kouga, Meg?" Kat looked half-afraid of what the answer would be.

"You don't want to know," Akkiko said quickly, grabbing Kat and Kagome's hands and dragging them-literally-along the path. "Come on; let's get back to the oracle-lady-person-thingy. . ."

Meg's grin widened. As she went past Inu-yasha, he muttered to Miroku, "Whatever she did, if it keeps Kouga out of way I'm fine with it, but honestly-if she doesn't get that look off her face I may have to slit my wrists to put myself out of my misery."

"Double for me," Miroku said, and the two boys followed the others.

~~~

"You're kidding," Kat said, as the group neared the clearing where Kameko Haru had made her entrance. "You're saying that after I was kidnapped, this chick claiming to be an oracle dropped in from nowhere and said Miroku was groping his sister?!"

"That's basically it," Akkiko said dully. "I don't get it either-we just have to trust that she'll be there when we arrive."

"Don't get your hopes up," Meg said flatly. "I personally think she'll be long-" She stopped short as they entered the clearing.

"Well, hello," Kameko Haru smiled, taking a sip from a tea cup. She was on the other side of the clearing, under a tree that blocked the afternoon sun. Sitting on a grey blanket spread out beneath her, the oracle gestured to the tea set she had brought along. "I'm afraid the tea's gone cold-and honestly, I don't blame it. I was starting to think you wouldn't show up at all."

"Can't you just look in your pretty crystal ball and go `bibbidy bobbidy boo' or something?" Meg asked sardonically.

The jib did not seem to faze the woman. "No, I'm afraid that won't do me any good, Megan Amanda Thorn."

Meg's face went quite pale. "How-how do you-"

Akkiko thought it would be best to intervene at this point. "Okay, Miss Oracle-From-the-Great-Beyond," she began hotly. "You said we'd get answers when we rescued Kat. Here she is-" Akkiko grabbed Kat's shoulders and pinched her cheeks to emphasize her point, "-so now we want answers."

Kameko Haru rose gracefully and smiled as the three girls, as well as the hanyou, monk, demon exterminator, kitsune and reincarnated miko that were hovering behind them.

Keeping the smile on her face, the oracle said, "As you wish."

# # #

. . . Do you people know how long it took me to finish this chapter? GAAAAAAAAHH!!

Muses: Please excuse her, she's hyper.

Dark Angel Kiki (aka Kat): I am NOT . . . well, if I said I wasn't I would be lying, and I never lie about the truth!!

Muses: That's circular logic.

Kat: Do I look like I care?

Meg: HOW can you just END it like that??

Akkiko: Yeah-write more! More! MORRRRRRE!!

Kat= -_-;;

Kat: And you people say I'M hyper?!

Muses=>_<;

Oh, BTW, if you're interested in what Meg did to Kouga, don't worry, I'll touch on THAT subject . . . later [evil grin]

Disclaimer: Look at it this way: if I owned Inu-yasha, Kikyo would have thrown herself off a cliff by now-and stayed DEAD!!!! No, me-I just own the plot and myself. Akkiko owns herself, and Meg owns herself-

Meg: And I own Miroku!!

Kat: No-NO, Meg, if you start saying you own Miroku, you'll be sued.

Meg: But I DO own him!!

Lawyers: Ahem.

Kat and Meg: CRAP!!