Disclaimer: If, after 24 CH, you don't know he doesn't belong to me, then you got issues.

A/N: Why is it so hard for everyone to believe that Inu is dead? He isn't alive in the future, so he had to die sometime! All right, the truth. He was holding out for more money; I got no money because I'm a broke college student, so I wrote him off. Sorry guys, but Inu got greedy. Who should Kagome end up with, Hojo? Inu's childhood friend? Totally new character? Any reviewer wants to lend their name to be Kagome's new love interest? If not, she could end up alone and have an imaginary boyfriend.

Through the Rose Colored Lenses

Ch.24

By Sailor Scribe

Kagome stared at the screen in disbelief as the jewel began to glow around her neck. Her skin was hot with power and her hair was floating due to her unstable aura. She had planed it so well: leave Inu Yasha safe at home, distract Naraku, cut her brother lose, and purify the bastard. Now, she stared at the red cap, his red cap. The first present she had ever given him. This was not fair! They had only been dating two days! They deserved more time than that! Hot tears of anger and regret began to race down her cheek. "Why was I so stubborn? Why didn't I accept him sooner? Why didn't I tell him I loved him?" The anger rushed to her stomach where it fermented into a small ball that grew with each passing thought. She turned to Naraku defiantly, tears evaporated by her sudden rush in power.

"Bastard! I'll see you burn in hell if it's the last thing I do!" Her miko energy sparked around her in an uncontrolled massive force. Bankotsu and Yura made a discrete exit from harm's way. By the looks of it, Kagome was going to purify all of Tokyo within two seconds, and they didn't want to be in the direct line of the explosion.

"Unfortunately, you won't get the chance. Admit it. You are weak…weaker than that hanyou of yours. Give up now, and I will make your death quick." Naraku had a disturbingly pleasant smile on his face, as if he was talking to a girl scout trying to sell him cookies.

"You'd be lucky if I give you such consideration." Kagome rushed forward, landing a kick on Naraku's chest. He was surprised to be knocked down, but quickly smiled as he thought,

"Now, this is going to be fun." Standing up, he sent a wave of energy in her direction. Kagome lifted her hands in a defensive position, but was amazed when her fingers became electrified with power that neutralized his attack.

"Shit, all this power, and I don't know how to control it. Focus Kagome, or he will win. NO! Over my dead body will Naraku walk out of here alive, tonight!" Kagome thought as she successfully sent a purifying ray of miko energy at her target. "Bull's eye!" Kagome smiled as she saw Naraku screamed in pain as his legs dissolve. Her smile faded as he looked at her and smirked. In place of his legs, green tentacles began to grow increasing his height and dark aura. Kagome swallowed hard as her fear added to the storm of power racing in and out of her skin. "How can I control it?"

Naraku smirked at the worried look on the miko's face. She hadn't seen anything yet. Kagome's screams echoed through the empty warehouse as one of Naraku's tentacles flew at her. Her energy exploded around her as she was projected into the air. Suddenly, the warehouse was filled with a blinding light.

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Souta covered his ears and shut his eyes close. After his sister cut him loose, he wanted to rush to her, but she had given him a clear signal to run. He trusted her. But, now, even outside the building, he could observe the results of the fight. He wanted to run back and help his sister. "That's her voice! I have to help her, but what can I do? I'm not strong like Inu Yasha…Inu Yasha!" Souta stood up and ran up the intersection, the chilling screams from his sister echoing in the back of his mind. "There was to be a payphone nearby."

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Kagome felt like she was floating in a warm fluffy word. "Maybe I died and was reincarnated as a marshmallow. A happy marshmallow that is being warmed up to make smores…" Her thoughts were interrupted as she felt herself fall mercilessly towards the ground. She tried to breathe, but the air was too thin. Her scream was caught in her throat, and she felt drained, as she fell on top of soft hair, or was it fur. It reminded her of Buyo's coat, only longer. She felt the hair intertwine with her wrists and ankles, holding her tightly secured, as the echo of voices came in and out of her consciousness:

"Hold her still, Yura!"

"No! Let her go!"

"You dare defy me!"

She tried to force her eyes open. She wanted to scream, "Yes, I do! I defy all!" But, she didn't have the strength, and that other world…the marshmallow world…that world was so warm, even if it had gotten darker.

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"What is the meaning of this, Bankotsu?" Naraku eyed the young man wearily as Yura wrapped the miko into a safe cocoon of hair.

"Why are you surprise, Naraku? Surely you didn't believe that I blamed Inu Yasha for what you did to my team?" Bankotsu's voice was laced with venom. "When the car exploded, Inu Yasha was the first to rush to our aid. He was there at the hospital until I was out of critical condition. No one who wants you dead goes through that much trouble to make sure you are fine. It didn't take me long to figure out it was you when you approached me with information about the explosion. The one thing that I don't understand is, why?"

"Why? Why? Did you really think I would stand by and allow you dirty humans to associate with my blood? Like hell I was going to allow you to stain this family with your worthless ningen blood." Naraku declared as he attacked him with a tentacle. Bankotsu quickly dodged it.

"I'm going to enjoy destroying you, Naraku, not only for my friends, but also for Inu Yasha. My only regret was not being able to warn him about your final plan." Bankotsu drew his large sword and pointed it at the smirking hanyou.

"Really? You would kill the uncle of the woman you love?"

"No. You stopped being my uncle the day you put the hit out on the man I love." Yura said stepping up to Bankotsu's side. "We do this together." She whispered into his ear as she slipped her hand around his.

Naraku took a second to ascertain the situation. He knew he could destroy those two without much trouble, but the miko seemed to have a pocket of untouched power within her. If she learned to control it, with the help of the Shikon, he would not be able to take her down. "Where is the girl?"

"Safe." Yura replied. Naraku growled and attacked the two traitors.

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Souta's legs were failing him. How long had he been running? It felt like an eternity. "Don't these people have phones?" He questioned as he made his was onto the next street. He had managed to run out of the warehouse district and into the main part of town, illuminated only by street lamps. He took a moment to look at the overcast sky. "It must be past midnight." He reasoned as he examined the area for stores or public establishments that might be open so late. Suddenly, his eyes brightened as he saw a black S.U.V. driving towards him. "A car! And cars have phones!" He reasoned as he rushed to the middle of the street and held his arms up. But, the car did not slow down. It seemed as the driver was struggling with someone or something. Frozen by fear caught in the high beams of the car, Souta screamed. The car suddenly swerved and ran strait into a light post. Smoke came out of the engine as the light above it flickered. Recovering his bearings Souta rushed to the driver's window and knocked hoping he or she wouldn't take the crash too personally. "I need help!"

The window slowly rolled down, and Souta gasped as he came face to face with an angry pair of violet eyes.

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"Yura!" Bankotsu screamed as he saw Naraku thrust a tentacle through the girl's shoulder. She screamed in pain as he sliced through it. She pulled it out fighting from the dizziness.

"How much more blood can I lose?" She wondered as she strangled the life out of the piece of flesh in her hands. Naraku laughed at their misfortune.

"Did you really believe you could defeat me? A mere human and a worthless hair youkai, defeat the Lord of the Southern lands?" He laughed haughtily as Bankotsu's eyes flared in anger. He would not be denied his revenge. He raised his sword again and attacked, but was pushed aside by another tentacle.

"Damn it." He tried to stand. "Inu Yasha was right," he thought, "I do need him to defeat this bastard. Guys, I'm sorry I failed you. I hope you can forgive me in heaven." They had been at fighting like this for hours. In the beginning, Naraku had let them believe that they had the upper hand, but it seemed that now Naraku had grown bored of the game. Yura had been hit hard by that tentacle, without to mention all times they had scraped past her, cutting open her legs. Bankotsu guessed he had internal bleeding, and a concussion or two. Naraku enjoyed throwing him across the room like an old baseball, except that Bankotsu did not bounce.

"I've got you now!" Yura declared. Bankotsu raised his head in surprise as he saw Yura's hair web weave around Naraku. He smiled.

"Thank you baby." He was ready to give into the sleepiness when suddenly Naraku's laughter rang throughout the warehouse. Yura tightened her web, only to find it go slack.

"What?" She questioned as she retrieved her hair ends. "They snapped."

"I guess I'm just too thick-skinned." He laughed as his tentacle went through her stomach. "Too bad you weren't." He continued to laugh as he shook her off his appendage, as if she was a piece of dust. Bankotsu tried to stand but failed as the darkness consumed him.

"Yura." He gasped. Naraku smirked at the pitiful sight before him,

"Now, where is that annoying miko?"

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Kagome had been pulled out of her marshmallow world by the sudden intrusion of light. "Huh?" She groggily opened her eyes to find the confusing sight of black hair covering her face and body. She tried to comb through it, and was happy to see that the hair easily went slack. It took her a few more minutes to fully awaken and realize she was in a ventilation chamber. "How the hell did I get here?" She rolled over and tried to remember. "I was fighting Naraku…then the light…the clouds…the hair…the darkness. Kami, I feel so lightheaded…and where is that light coming from. I'm in a vent for crying out loud!" She looked down and noticed it was the jewel around her neck emitting the light. She touched it lightly, causing her confusion to clear.

"Inu Yasha…" She sighed. That was one thought she would have rather forgotten. "It was dark, maybe it wasn't him." She braced herself on her hands and knees as she spoke out loud the words she wanted to ignore. "No, it was him. Inu Yasha would never lend that cap to anyone, not even me." Taking a deep breath she crawled towards the vent opening. "Naraku, you fucking bastard, tonight, you are mine!"

She examined the area around the vent before making any moves to exit the safety of her current position, though the light of the Shikon was bound to give her away eventually. "Man, what happened here?" She wondered as she took notice of the burning screen where she had last scene Inu Yasha, the broken steps and the caved in second floor. "It looks like a war zone out there. I hope Souta made it out alright. Damn, how long have I been out?" She took a look at her watch: four thirty. "Who did this?"

The silence of her world was destroyed as the ventilation screen was ripped off its hinges by a run-a-way tentacle. She screamed feeling the tingling power return to her fingers as she purified the rushing appendages. "That isn't a nice way to say hello." She heard him laugh. He was enjoying the smell of her fear. "But, I'll let it pass because I am having such a wonderful night. The dog bastards are dead, I got rid of the unwanted family, I will soon own your body, and the power of the Shikon will finally be mine…after so many centuries.

"Centuries?" She questioned. "You were the evil that separated the miko and her hanyou lover?"

"And now I will do it again."

"But why?" She knew she was trapped. The only way out was straight in front of her, and he seemed to have suddenly decided to stand there. Could she control her power enough to rush him? Did she have a choice if she wanted to live?

"Because I can!" She saw the tentacles race towards her again, and taking a deep breath, she raised her arms in a shielding position as she rushed forward to meet her fate. The light wrapped around her, eradicating any appendage that tried to touch her. She made it out of the vent, and onto the shaky floor. The railing below her gave signs of giving in under her weight. Then, she noticed it. Naraku was hunched over with long grey tentacles emerging from his waist onto the floor below her. He was so tall in this manner.

"What kind of youkai is he? Can he be more than one? Kami," her eyes shot open as she realized who she was facing, "he is a human cloth…a thousand demons woven into one in a human's body…that explains the aura, and if he defeated the original miko…that means he was strong to begin with…and has had five hundred years to gain in strength. How am I to purify him?" Her thoughts were interrupted as one side of the railing fell. She held on tightly to the floor as she recognized his victorious smirk. He was seconds away from destroying her, and he would accomplish it without having to lay a slimy tentacle on her.

"Fuck you!" She screamed as she let go. Holding the Shikon no Tama tightly, she felt herself defy the laws of gravity, lightly touching the ground. Naraku looked at her in surprise.

"Did she figure it out?" he wondered in fear.

"I'll see you in hell." He didn't have time to raise a shield as she raised her arm releasing her untamed energy. She smiled as she heard him scream, but she soon encountered a resistance. "He's fighting back? How?" She raised her arms higher but she felt the force push her back. "No!" she screamed as she was pushed back losing balance. She screamed as she hit the wall feeling the burn of Naraku's youki.

"Kagome!"

"Inu Yasha? Have you come to escort me to the next world?" She opened her eyes and saw the silhouette of her angel behind the rising sun. "Inu Yasha." She whispered, her body feeling numb as her soul reached out to its mate, whishing to be reunited one last time before the end of time.

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I am please to say that Inu Yasha and I were able to come to a monetary compromise. He accepted the one penny that Meche Benz donated, in return for coming back as a ghost. I wanted to expand on this chapter, but Meche like it this way, and this way you guys might end up with an extra chapter in the end. It depends on who you guys vote to be Kagome's next boyfriend. Love you a ton and a half, especially after 603 reviews. I am off to do my homework, even though Meche wants me to continue onto the next chapter.