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Finding Kagome	By : MetsukiKaraTen Category: InuYasha > Het - Male/Female > InuYasha/Kagome Views: 8806 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.

Chapter List
- 42
- 43
- 44
DISCLAIMER:: I don't own
anything InuYasha, however I do own an overactive imagination...

Special thanks to::

Sacred_Sagittarius and
Mooman_fl

for the brainstorming
sessions and outstanding beta job.

FINDING KAGOME

Chapter 43

Hugging
herself, Tina stood transfixed as she watched the rear lights of the
nondescript brown compact rapidly disappear down the hospital drive.
The vehicle carried away the most fascinating person she had ever
met. Both of the men had a strange ethereal air about them, but the
injured one, Ginta, had been no less than . . . captivating. She
had a sneaking suspicion that the last thing the guy was concerned
about was avoiding a hefty E.R. bill.

'There's
no plastic surgeon, Tina. I was born like this.' She tried to
suppress an involuntary shudder. Damn. Now
there was a claim worthy of the annual 'weirdest patient of the year'
award.

That escape could not have been the first time for
them to do something like that. No, it had to be practiced. But, as
quickly as Ginta was healing, she had her doubts that he ever
intentionally sought out medical treatment. Just like some
superhero. Something out of a comic book. She shook herself
slightly. Superheros were fantasy, right? He hadn't had any I.D.
when he was brought in and even the name the other guy had given him
sounded straight out of some fantasy novel. Fantastic, yes. But the
guy was real enough. She could still feel his caressing touch
on her skin.

Maybe he was one of those rare people that actually lived 'off the
grid' of modern society. She had never understood why someone would
want to live that way. Actually choosing to be invisible. What was
nagging her was the 'why'. Did he have any idea just what he had
asked her to do? Glancing back at the gurney that was left
haphazardly tilted off the sidewalk, she concluded that, most likely,
he did. He'd asked for her help without offering any explanation.
Just 'make it go away'. Like he knew he could trust her. She had
barely spoken to him, and he had entrusted her to aid him.

But
if she were to be caught doing something like that, actually doing
what he asked, it could mean her job. Possibly even her career.
Tampering with patient records was . . . well, illegal wasn't a
strong enough word. Prohibited, Taboo, verboten, weren't even strong
enough. 'Unethical' said it all. Ethics were the governing force in
medicine. But was it ethical to force treatment on someone who didn't
need it? To save a life, of course it would be. But Ginta didn't
look like his life was in immediate danger, at least in those last
minutes before he rushed off.

Raising
her chin, she cocked her head in consideration. She did have a
completely clean slate, professionally. She wondered if the review
board might chalk something like that up to naivety. The
foolishness of youth. That is . . . if she were to be caught
doing something unscrupulous . . . It wasn't like she would be
stealing drugs or supplies. She wasn't a thief. But she was quite
capable of being sneaky should the need arise.

Her
brain went into overdrive, listing all the things that would have be
done to 'erase' his visit. She'd seen the chart. Had
surreptitiously made herself intimately acquainted with it. He'd
been there for several hours, only the C.T. scan results, indicating
no serious recent brain trauma had stopped his full
admittance. There were questions, though. More questions than
answers. The scans weren't . . . normal. She hadn't seen the films,
only glanced at the preliminary radiology report. The file was
pending, awaiting a full analysis by the resident with a flag for
oncology. They suspected the abnormalities could be tumors. The
oncologist was based out of the area, so copies would be FedExed to
him. But that wouldn't be till morning.

The
C.B.C. had disclosed a variety of strange enzymes, and the lab had
been completely unable to type him, which was a first as far as she
knew. Again she was certain the test results were being held for
further analysis. That would mean digging into the hospital database.
It was a wonder Dr. Barton hadn't sent him upstairs for at least a
24 hour observational hold.

But,
a significant stir had been raised in several departments. She
doubted that anyone could completely 'make it go away'. Either the
guy had some serious health issues, or he was a mutant. He sure did
seem to heal fast. Ok, maybe not as fast as Wolverine. Shaking her
head violently to dispel the comic book images, she began walking
over to the abandoned equipment.

Maybe those abnormalities in his brain were causing some kind of
mania. A delusional episode, where he actually believed he was a
super being. Tina's eyes softened and the right side of her mouth
quirked up into a lopsided grin. A very attractive, sweet,
delusional super being.

But
then again . . .

No
mania crafted those ears. Delusion couldn't accelerate the healing
process.

Picking
up the scrubs off the sidewalk and pulling the gurney back to the
door she considered the steps a person would have to take,
hypothetically speaking of course. First, get the orderly to
straighten the examination room, and wipe up that spill in the
hallway. All standard procedure anyway. Velma was due for a break
soon, and Dr. Barton, who had been attending, would be ending his
shift in another half an hour. So charts could pretty easily be
'accidentally' shuffled, possibly even misplaced. It had been a
pretty busy night, but things had slowed down the last hour or so.
For charts to go missing wasn't unheard of, though rare. So much for
the hard copy . . .

She
grinned mischievously, letting her imagination run with the idea.
Brian in the lab owed her favor, didn't he? She'd found that first
edition Spiderman for him last month. And he has a girlfriend in
Radiology. Maybe she could snag those films before they got sent out.
The Mission Impossible theme began looping in her head, and she
openly laughed at herself and how quickly she had fallen into
scheming. 'I should be a writer,' she mused inwardly as she slipped
the IV bottle and scrubs under the sheet, then pushed the gurney into
the door and down the hall. Glancing up she spotted one of the
orderlies returning from his meal break.

“Yo!
Stan! Could you get that mess over there?”she pointed to the
wet trail, noting the smear where her escapee had obviously slipped,
“Someone could fall . . . oh, and straighten up 3B for me?
Looks like one of those kids went on a rampage in there.” She
adopted a look of resigned irritation, a test of her ability to act.
No kids had been in that examination room. Just a delusional maniac
who didn't want to be there in the first place.

“Yeah,
sure . . . I'm on it,” Stan replied, trotting off for the mop.

Proceeding
toward the nurse's station, her thoughts continued on their little
vacation from reality. Something about Mr. Ginta Akuba had inspired
in her a sense of adventure, something that had most definitely been
lacking in her life.

“Hey
Velma, aren't you getting hungry?” She asked as she passed the
desk, “I can cover for you if you want to go now . . .”

“You
sure?” The elder nurse asked. Tina nodded, pushing the gurney
against the wall. “How's Mr. Pretty ears?”

“Still
in dreamland, but there's R.E.M. So he'll probably wake up soon,”
She smiled sweetly, not exactly sure why she was doing this. “I'll
hold down the fort, go ahead.” She nodded toward the cafeteria.
Velma tucked her chin and grinned guiltily before grabbing her
handbag and heading down the hall.

Tina
picked up the phone and dialed, then started thumbing through folders
with the current charts. “Hi there, Brian! How's it going?
Enjoying Spiderman? . . . Say, aren't you seeing Sue over in
Radiology?” She grinned mischievously, pulling an all too
familiar chart. Running a thumb over it in an almost affectionate
gesture, she slipped it into a bottom drawer for later retrieval.
It's terrible how paperwork sometimes gets shuffled on a busy night.

In
her head, the Mission Impossible theme continued to play. She really
should look up that website the charming Mr. Akuba had mentioned.

88*88*88*88*88

Selene sat on the edge of her bed and eyed the reports
haphazardly scattered on the opposite side. She'd had no time to ask
her questions, but perhaps come morning she would be able to. She
figured that would be a good enough reason to call in late. Maybe
call in for a personal day. After today she sure could use a day
off. Glancing at her digital alarm clock, she groaned. Morning was
only a couple of hours away.

She
could hear the low voices of the men through her closed door, and
silently thanked any and all deities, including a few of the Saints
from her parochial upbringing, that they were finally talking instead
of shouting at one another. It had taken them long enough. She
couldn't shake the image of the enraged demon out of her head. Or
the the horror of discovering her weapon was missing, the very thing
that had been required to effectively fight that demon.

But
Kagome somehow had miraculously known how to stop him. It seemed that
her best friend had more than one kind of hold on the legendary
Dog-boy.

She'd
overheard the drone of his voice from the bathroom, as she was
pulling out an old pillowcase to make a sling for Michael. She
figured it was the long delayed phone call to his brother. Relieved
that she hadn't needed to make the call to him herself, she wondered
how 'old Seth' was taking the news. Probably not well. InuYasha had
said that he had no idea if the changes were permanent or not. That
had to be a very frightening thing for him . . . yet he didn't
really act any differently. Perhaps a little more surly than before.
But he seemed to always be on the surly side. Well, most of the
time.

She
lingered for a moment on the memory of the singular embrace that she
had received from the hanyou. There had been nothing surly about
that. It had been comforting. Comfort for childish fears inspired by
her equally childish nightmares. Somehow, that simple gesture by a
virtual stranger had proffered a legitimacy to the terrors left
behind by her dreams. Ok, maybe not so childish. Maybe not exactly
nightmares. She had avoided talking about them as much as possible,
because she'd simply been unwilling to accept that they could be
based on something other than her overactive imagination.
There were so many contradictions. The name they were calling her
wasn't the only name she remembered. In one of her more vivid
dreams, her name had been something sounding very close to 'Annie'.
That was what the boy had called her. He had been so sad, as that
woman with the fan dragged him away from her. She had again awakened
crying and reaching out for him, as if she could possibly pull him
back. Just who that boy was still remained a mystery. No one had
mentioned him. No one else seemed to 'remember' him.

If
her dreams were indeed memories, then that boy had died in the same
battle as Miroku. She shuddered at the visual replay of the
massively tentacled creature grabbing him up, the way his eyes
simply dimmed and went out as something small, dark and ominous was
plucked from his back. Just like a toy with it's battery abruptly
yanked out, dangling as limply as a marionette with it's strings cut.

She
could still feel the rage that had erupted inside her as she watched
the beast toss his lifeless form away like so much garbage. That
was when the larger-than-life wasps had seemed to fill the air and it
was then that Miroku had held up his hand and after shouting for her
to hold on, uncovered it causing a hurricane force wind. She had
tried to stop him. He looked . . . apologetic as he did it. She had
jammed Hiraikotsu into the ground, holding on for dear life as debris
flew past, then without warning, it all abruptly ended in a massive
explosion. And Miroku was simply . . . no more. In the blink of an
eye. A single beat of her frantic heart. All that was left was a
crater in the battlefield, and she was left clinging to her weapon.
It was the only thing she had left. Everything else of value to her
was gone in that instant. Something tickled her cheek, breaking her
trance like ruminations and unclasping the the pillow she didn't
remember pulling to her, she reached up to brush it away. Her hand
came back damp, and she sniffed noisily, examining it.

“Damn
it,” she muttered, sniffling again. “I thought this shit
was over with. . .” There was nothing worse to the young
detective than the weakness displayed by her own tears. She was
tough. Reaching into the drawer by her bed, she pulled out the
nearly empty tissue box. Yeah, an empty box of kleenex . . . tough
alright. Dabbing at her nose, her attention was drawn into the open
drawer, noting a small stack of Michael's rice paper creations.
Holding her breath, she gingerly reached a hand into the drawer and
cautiously pressed a finger onto the stack. Nothing happened. Of
course nothing happened. A nervous titter escaped her throat.

“You're
not a demon, Rodriguez . . .” she informed herself out loud,
then shuddered involuntarily. Demons chasing Kagome. A half demon
under her own roof. Well, he had been a
half demon . . .

Pulling
the stack from the drawer, Selene examined the one on the top. She
recognized the design, just like the ones Michael had used to ward
the doors. Glancing at her window, she recalled how Kagome had set
the ones in her apartment. How the window had been broken, but had
not been used to gain entry. She didn't know if just anyone could use
these things, and she debated on even trying.

“What
could it hurt?” she asked herself, sniffing noisily again.
Taking one from the top of the stack she pulled the curtain back,
then licked it and slapped it onto the glass. “Silly monk,
always forgets the windows.”

A
strange sound pulled her attention to the ceiling. Frowning, she
pulled the curtain back again. By the light of a half moon partially
obscured by clouds, she could see that there was a bit of a wind
outside stirring the branches of the old walnut tree. A spring storm
was moving in by the looks of it. Satisfied that what she had heard
was explained by the breeze and the too long unpruned tree brushing
against the eaves, she let out her breath in a sigh of relief, then
lowered the curtain and returned to the bed.

“Is
this what it feels like to have a nervous breakdown?” she
mumbled to herself. Dropping the stack beside her, she pulled herself
into a protective little ball and rocked.

That
was how Michael found her.

“Oh
hell . . . come here baby,” He muttered pushing through the
door and quickly closing it. Joining her on the bed he pulled her
into a slightly awkward embrace, with his right arm still in the
sling. “I thought you were holding up a little too well for all
that's happened.”

“No
. . . I'm fine . . .” she whispered, wrapping herself around
him like a child in need of comfort. God, but the solid feel of him
in her arms was good. She shut her eyes tightly, willing away the
memories of pain and despair. The sound of his heartbeat was strong,
and good, and real.

“Right,
of course you are . . .” he held her close and rocked her,
murmuring in her ear. “You do know the definition of fine . . .
don't you?”

“I
should, monk . . . you're the one who taught me,” she replied,
pulling herself up to press her lips just below his ear, grinning
at the welcome replacement memory. The time he had explained the
acronym.

She
had met him after a difficult day, and they had taken in a movie.
She'd been backup on a drug sting that went wrong, and two officers
had been shot. It hadn't helped that the movie was a Hollywood
construct based on a 'true story', involving law enforcement
corruption at the hands of a drug lord. At coffee afterward he noted
her distraction, and she said she was 'fine'. “I thought so
. . . Fucked-up, Insecure, Neurotic and Emotional,” he
had informed her with a knowing look. For being as insightful
as he was capable of being, that was not one of his better moments.
She'd hit him.

“You still sore?” she murmured into his neck.

“Never
too sore for this,” directing her off of her knees and fully
into his lap, he suppressed a wince and his eyes fell on the Ofuda
that were scattered on the bed alongside her absconded reports.
“Expecting company?” he asked, offhandedly, brushing her
bangs out of her eyes with his good hand.

“Just
being a 'good scout', always prepared . . .” she leaned back
and made a little two finger salute.

“Ah,
well . . . Can't fault a girl for that,” he studied her eyes
closely for a moment. “You need to talk?”

“This
is what I need right now,” she hummed as she took his lips
hostage. Moaning into the kiss, Michael found himself being pushed
backwards against the pillows. Selene straddled him, grinding against
his pelvis suggestively before breaking contact. “Now . . .
where else does it hurt, where did we leave off?” She feathered
his bruised eye and cheek with kisses. Michael stiffened underneath
her turning his head away. The hand on her behind squeezed just a
little too hard.

“Shhh
. . . What's that?” he whispered. Frowning she cocked a brow.
“Listen . . .”

She
turned her head, listening to the quiet and hearing a male voice past
the door, “Sounds like InuYasha is talking, maybe Kagome's
awake . . .”

“No,”
he hissed with urgency, bucking to urge her off of him. “Something
outside . . .” Struggling with one arm to get up, he glared
first at the window then up at the ceiling.

“It's
just a limb, monk . . . brushing against the roof,” she sat
back on her calves oscillating between relief that she wasn't the
only one that was 'hearing things' and irritation that the damn tree
had interrupted her seduction.

“I
. . . don't think so . . .” he cocked his head, listening.
Selene rose to her knees straining to hear what he seemed to think
was not a limb. Both of them nearly jumped out of their skins
when two loud thumps on her door reverberated through the quiet room.

“We're
outta here!!” InuYasha shouted through the door. “You
guys better leave too!”

“What
the . . . WAIT!!” Michael quickly ran to the door and fumbled
with the knob. “I thought you were waiting till morning . . .”

“Someone's
coming . . . I just talked to a guy . . . Kouga's sent someone after
her . . . we gotta move . . . NOW!” InuYasha's report was
rushed and urgent, and as Selene joined Michael at the door she saw
InuYasha slide his sword down the back of his jacket, which he was
wearing over the red pajamas he had donned after his shower. “C'mon
Kagome! Leave that shit!”

The
guy was going to ride his motorcycle wearing his pajamas and toting a
weapon without a permit. Granted it didn't look too terribly
dangerous, as poor as the condition was, but still.

“Who
is this guy?” Michael demanded frantically, stepping into the
hallway to follow. “Maybe it's a trap!! Did you think of
that?? Maybe they're trying to flush you out for an attack!!”

“No
. . .” InuYasha shook his head as he stomped off into the
living room, Michael following. “He said Kouga would kill him,
I know this guy . . . well . . . knew him . . . he called her
'oneesan'. Look, do what you want, I have to get her to the
compound.” Selene stood in the doorway and watched Kagome
follow, yawning and scratching at her disheveled head.

“Who
called me sister?” she inquired, hefting her pack to her
shoulder. Selene shrugged, noting that at least Kagome was dressed.
“Who was that on the phone?” she called out toward the
living room.

“Move
it, Kagome!!” came a bellow from further away. Kagome jumped.
Eyes widening, she worriedly glanced at Selene then trotted to the
living room, passing Michael in the hallway as he rushed back to the
bedroom.

“Grab
a few things, baby . . . we're going to my place . . .” Michael
went to the bed and gathered up his Ofuda, quickly examining each one
then sticking them in different pockets.

“What??”
Selene shook her head, not understanding. “You want to leave??
It's the middle of the night . . .” She followed him as he
reached up to drag a satchel out of her closet and shove it at her.

“Pack,
damnit. He's right, we can't stay here.” Selene had never seen
Michael so intense before. Angry, yes. Worried, certainly. There
was hollow look in his eyes and an aura of resignation that laced his
tone. “You said it yourself, we aren't nearly prepared enough
to take on 'full blown youkai', tonight made that more clear to me
than I care to admit. Now pack.”

That
was when all Hell broke loose.

88*88*88*88*88

Water
whispered through the pipes to the shower, and was the only sound
that punctuated the stillness as Miranda curled her nude form around
her pillow in a nearly fetal position. The shower was a good thing.
Yes. Yes. Kouga smelled atrocious, and she wondered if he had been
drinking while negotiating with that M'noche creep. Either that or
he had rolled around on the floor of a brewery at some point. She
settled on the drinking. His behavior from from the moment of his
return convinced her it had to have been drink. Really strong drink.
It was like she didn't know him anymore. Then again, had she ever
really known him?

She
pondered on what little she had heard of his fight with Ginta. She
still didn't know who Naraku was, but it had enraged Kouga to be
compared to him. 'Abomination' he had called him. Ginta had to have
known that particular analogy would be ill advised. She saw the
flash of regret on Kouga's face after he hit him that last time. She
didn't think he really wanted to kill his most loyal follower. His
oldest friend. The fact that he had been so easily distracted from
the scene told her that had to be so. Thank the Gods Hojo had been
able to recognize her cue to leave.

“What
have I gotten myself into . . .” she muttered into the pillow,
the ache inside competing with the fire of the brands his claws had
left on her hips and back. When she heard Hojo's car start up and
race away, the feeling of relief was short lived once she realized
she was in far too deep with her seduction of the prince to reverse
it. He had become Domination in physical form, intent only on making
her submit to him completely. It was as if he had been punishing her
with his steel grip, his fangs pressed deeply into the back of her
neck. Punishing her for her insolence. Punishing her for standing up
to him. She had been afraid. She had been very afraid. The thrill
that had coursed through her took her by surprise, and in the far
reaches of her mind where thought could do no more than hide from the
violence of his assault on her body, she decided that her own sanity
should seriously be questioned. He was punishing her with sex, but
she found the punishment delicious in its own way, and she rode the
waves of sensation. She was an addict and his touch was her drug of
choice. It was only after he had completely sated himself, heavily
collapsing on her back and mumbling some foreign endearments into her
ear, that the intensity of his aura finally began to subside.

It
seemed like there were only more and more questions as the days went
by, and she wondered if she would get answers to them before
everything blew up in their faces. Kouga said she would be his
guide. She couldn't be a guide if she didn't know the terrain. Nor
if she didn't have a clear idea of their destination. Crystal gazing
only went so far without some kind of background information.

Tossing
the pillow to the side, she determinedly bounced off the bed,
ignoring the smarting of the gouges on her hips. She needed to do
something, anything. Maybe consulting her cards was in order. Just
as it registered that the whispering of the water in the pipes had
stopped, she glanced over to see Kouga standing in the doorway, hair
still dripping and a towel wrapped loosely around his hips, intently
watching her. She froze in her place, unsure of his intentions.

“Gods,
but you're beautiful,” he murmured.

“You're
cruel when you're drunk,” she stated simply. Breaking the eye
contact she reached for her frock on the floor. She wasn't feeling
like being gawked at. At least this time he hadn't ripped it off of
her. “Blind too, I think.” She glanced at the mirror on
her dresser and grimaced at the wildness of her hair and the bruises
on her side.

“I
wasn't drunk,” he denied, lazily reaching for her. She deftly
evaded his grip, meeting his confused reaction with a defiant glare.

“Could
have fooled me. You damn near killed him.”

“Bah!
He's Youkai! It takes a lot more than that to kill a demon . . .”
he folded his arms and leaned against the door frame.

“What
did you just say. . .?” Miranda locked her eyes on him. So, he
had finally used the 'D' word. After witnessing his behavior
tonight, after being subjected to his rage, she could now believe
what Sally had said as truth. Maybe Kouga wasn't as altruistic with
his intentions as he had led her to believe. Maybe he wasn't as
'good' as she had wanted to believe. “Maybe you should just . .
. go . . .” She shook her caftan roughly and slipped it over
her head.

“Whoa
. . . what's your problem?” he demanded, straightening. All
she could do was stare at him with disbelief. It wasn't possible for
him to be that clueless. Or, maybe it was.

“Tell
me, Kouga . . . why was Ginta concerned for my safety? I heard what
he said,” she closed the distance between them. “Why
would he feel the need to say he would protect me, even from
you??”

“He's
confused, that's all . . .” he reached for her, and she backed
up a step, knowing his touch would break her resolve. “He's got
it in his head that girl is Kagome.”

“She
IS Kagome!! She has the Jewel, she's The Priestess reborn . .
. what has that got to do with my safety??” Her face
was bright with anger, her eyes narrowed on her mate. Gods help
me, Kouga can't be evil . . .

“Not
a damn thing, wench!! M'noche is going after the girl tonight, we
should have the Jewel by morning. I'm tired of waiting.” He
folded his arms, warding off any further discussion. It was a done
deal.

“Wait!!”
She shook her head, her mind racing. He told them where to find
Kagome. He told them . . . the same thugs that Ginta had
warned her about. The ones that value nothing. “Are you
telling me you sent those animals to my cousin's HOME?”
She demanded hotly.

Kouga
began to reach for her, then froze still as stone. His face went
completely blank for a moment before his eyes widened slightly, and
as he locked them on hers, he blinked.

“You
bastard,” she muttered darkly, brushing past him. He hadn't
denied it. He'd put her family in danger with his plots.
That look said it all. The idiot hadn't fully considered what he was
doing. She had to call Sally, warn her. If it wasn't too late.

88*88*88*88*88

Kagome
dropped her pack and grabbed her jacket and helmet from the couch.
Hurriedly slipping on the leather jacket, she could hear Michael and
Selene heatedly discussing something back in the bedroom and
InuYasha was yelling at her to hurry up from the front door, which
she really didn't appreciate. She had been sleeping soundly when he
awakened her, and was still foggily trying to get her mental 'ducks
in a row', fighting just the hint of a headache as she settled the
pack onto her shoulders. One might think that there would be time
for a cup of coffee at least. But, no. He insisted they had to go
now, that it couldn't wait. In short, he was being a jerk.

“Just
a second, huh? I'm getting my helmet!” she shouted to him
through the closed window, where he was pulling his bike up to the
door. “Sheesh . . .”

Someone
had called him, she caught the tail end of the conversation, but he
refused to tell her who it was. Someone that had called her 'sister'.
Who in the world would call her sister? She didn't belong to any
fraternal organizations. Some churches would refer to females in the
congregation as sister, but she didn't go to church. She was trained
in Shintoism, but never had been referred to as sister. Who would
know InuYasha that would know her, anyway??

Suddenly
there was piercing howl from outside, the house began to violently
shake and Kagome thought 'earthquake' as her heart jumped into her
throat. She reached for the door jam to brace herself, wrenching her
neck in reaction to the sudden ringing of the phone, while outside
Selene's car alarm simultaneously jumped to life. There was dust in
the air and her eyes widened in horror at a crack that formed in the
ceiling.

“Kagome!!”
InuYasha bellowed from the direction of the front door, and she
shrieked as a squat demon dropped down in front of her. This one
didn't look human at all, with hair in places on it's face where hair
shouldn't be and a mouth that was far too big for the face. Eyes
entirely too large, black as polished onyx, blinked as it grinned at
her exposing entirely too many very sharp looking teeth. Worse yet,
the thing appeared to be salivating. Darting her eyes at the
ceiling she saw the jagged hole he had dropped from, and found that
she wasn't able to rationally accept that the beast had actually come
through the roof. This had to be a nightmare.

“Hello
pretty,” came a deep, gravelly greeting. “Time to take a
ride . . .” Kagome cringed, still not really believing the
thing was there. Even the sound of its voice was straight out of some
classic horror movie. She dodged the outstretched hand, realizing
those arms were way too long for that body, and she ran headlong into
a wall. Stunned, she shook her now fully aching head and the demon
began to chuckle menacingly.

There
was a scuffle off in the bedroom, then a loud crash as another beast
seemed to fly backwards down the hallway bringing remnants of the
door with it. From what she could see, that one looked a little more
human than the thing in front of her. Selene came flying after the
beast in the hallway, dropping a powerful kick to it's head
effectively stunning it. Michael slapped a sutra on the demon's
forehead and Kagome stood transfixed as she watched the speedy
effects of the spell seep out along the creature's skin, sparkling
like smoldering paper. Then abruptly with a howl the beast seemed to
implode before their eyes with a rush of wind, the air where he had
been was filled with a strangely sparkling dust.

“Amazing,
Sally!! I didn't know you could move like that!! Just like Buffy!!”
Michael congratulated his fiancée breathlessly.

“Well,
Hell . . . Actually I was going more for Xena,” she muttered
looking up at the ceiling as the last of the sparkling ash from her
opponent settled. “I take back everything I said about your
rice paper, Monk. You really dusted the bastard!” She glanced
down the hall, ignoring the still ringing phone, then turned,
“Where's Kagome??”

“In
here,” she squeaked, her throat constricting between fear and a
repulsively familiar odor emanating from her pursuer. The monster in
front of her simply shrugged at the demise of his comrade, then as
he grabbed for her again, she swung the easy chair between them.
She managed to dodge the clutching appendage which rent the fabric,
and pieces of the stuffing came away with the hand Her mind
screamed 'BIO HAZARD' on seeing how sinister and filthy the claws
were. Squeaking she used the first thing handy as a weapon, the
helmet in her hand. Circling around she flung it at his face and
backed up to the door where frighteningly strong arms grabbed her
around the waist.

“Damnit!!
Its me!!” InuYasha hissed into her ear as he held her writhing
frame. “Where's your fucking helmet??”

Kagome
heaved a sigh of relief, then pointed at the monster, who was
straightening his now broken nose, and wiping away at the dribbling
blood on his lip. Looking down at the floor, she realized that just
as much damage had been done to her helmet, which now sported a crack
where it lay. Had she done that? This has to be a nightmare.

Selene
and Michael pushed into the room, frantically assessing the
situation. Seeing that InuYasha had Kagome, their focus turned to the
strangely deformed assailant. Selene wrinkled her nose.

“Fuck,
come on!!” InuYasha snarled as he dismissed the now useless
headgear, then literally dragged her out the door to the waiting
motorcycle, leaving the demon to the exterminator and monk.

Selene
squared her stance, her face distorting slightly as she rolled her
nose trying to alleviate the stench in her nostrils, then grinned
menacingly at the demon. “Wanna play?” she asked,
motioning with her fingers. Michael reached into his sling to pull
out another exorcism sutra, and as they approached the demon, the
creature seemed to think better of having paid his little visit. He
jumped, swinging very apelike up and out through the hole he had
entered from, leaving the pair to stand there in befuddled
disappointment.

The
car alarm was still wailing as InuYasha practically tossed Kagome
onto the bike and yanked off his helmet. Taking her face in his
hands, he forced her to look him directly in the eyes.

“Listen
up . . . look at me . . .” he demanded. Kagome's eyes were
wide with fear, but she focused them on him. “Remember how we
used to run?” She looked blankly at him. “Kuso,” he
muttered, “Kagome . . . this is important . . . wrap yourself
around me, understand? Just hold on tight, arms and legs, got it??”
She nodded, gasping for a hysterical breath, her eyes darting around.
He dropped the helmet on her head and cinched it. The damn thing was
too big, but it was better than nothing at all. “Got your
knives?” Again she didn't respond. Grabbing her shoulders he
got directly into her face. “Kagome!! Do – you –
have – your – knives??” Finally a crisp nod from
her, and she raised an arm to indicate her sleeve. Satisfied,
InuYasha twisted his hair back and shoved as much into his jacket as
he could, then mounted and started the bike, “Hold on tight!!”

She
was so frightened she couldn't speak. She could barely breath, and
thinking was a near impossibility. Out of the corner of her eye, she
saw something fly off the roof and bounce off in the opposite
direction. He said hold on, and that's just what she did, wrapping
herself around him in a death grip as they sailed over the lawn and
off the curb. The bump was a shock to her tail bone, and she drew up
even tighter against him, mentally chanting, 'I am one with the
driver, I am one with the driver.'

Ignoring
the stop sign on the corner, InuYasha pushed for as much speed
possible rounding out of the culdesac and onto the 4 lane street that
would lead them to the highway. Two blocks and suddenly he found
himself surrounded. A motorcycle pulled in front of him, the rider
weaving as he stood and twisted to look back at them. Kagome had a
vice grip on his midsection, which was exactly what he wanted, except
it made it hard for him to look to the rear. Relying on the mirror,
he counted two more bikes coming up swiftly behind him. He needed
more speed, but that would put him right up with the one on point
ahead of him.

Kagome
heard the other vehicles coming up behind them, and renewed her grip
around InuYasha. She didn't have much experience riding a
motorcycle, but she knew that whatever move he made, she would follow
it like an extension of his body. Being this close seemed to help
her fear muddled brain. It was then that something struck her.
Something significant. They were running. InuYasha never
runs from a fight. At least not in any of the legends.

Damning
his lowered night vision, InuYasha finally found a narrow opening
between two buildings, and swerved wildly to the left. If he
remembered correctly there was a field back there, and a shortcut to
the main road. Having lost the rider on point was a plus, but only
temporarily and he knew it. He had to either shake these guys off
his ass, or stop them. He had to get Kagome home.

“HOLD
ON!!” he shouted as they broke past the buildings, and the
rough terrain of the field rattled them both to their very bones.
Shifting down and gunning the gas, InuYasha pulled them into a
wheelie, alleviating some of the washboard effect, but eliciting a
shriek from Kagome. The trick was finding a smooth enough surface to
do what he wanted to do. Timing was everything with the machine.
Just like it was with Tetsusaiga. Glancing in the mirror he watched
their encroaching pursuers. One of them appeared to be pulling
something out of a container. Something long by the looks of it.

Kagome
was absolutely certain that her stomach had been left somewhere back
on the far edge of the field. This was crazier than those amusement
park rides she had taken on her senior class trip. She prayed that
she didn't end up hurling all over her fiancée. She already
had enough explaining to do to his brother. That is if they managed
to get that far.

“Oh
shit,” InuYasha muttered. “Kagome!!” he shouted
back to her. “Purify anything that touches you!!”

“What??”
What in the world is he talking about??

“You
know!! Charge up your hands!! One of those fuckers has a chain!!”
He swerved around a cluster of ancient concrete, and Kagome
tightened her grip again. “He's gonna try and yank you off the
bike!! Purify him!!” he shouted hoarsely.

“What
about you??” She called to his ear, loose fringes of his hair
pelting her chin like a thousand tiny black whips.

“You
can't hurt me, remember?? I gotta plan!! Just keep holding on!! No
matter what!!”

Kagome
loosened her grip just enough to glance back, and saw that one of
them was the demon from the living room. Had she been thinking
clearly, she could have ended him right then and there. Just the
thought of ending anything alive was so foreign to her. She had
trouble swatting flies, let alone 'dusting' a demon. The other one,
however, did appear to have something swinging at his side. It could
be a chain, it looked heavier than rope. Could she purify through
chain? Use it as a conduit for her power? Renewing her hold on
InuYasha, she resolved to find out if given the chance. That stinky
one had been in her apartment, she was sure of it. She had a score to
settle with him.

“Not
tight enough!!” InuYasha shouted. Kagome's arms and legs were
starting to ache. She forced herself, locking her hands together,
hooking her feet. “Here we GO!”

InuYasha
slammed on the breaks, and leaned hard left, willing the rear wheel
to rise as the bike flipped around in a one eighty, effectively
slamming the rear wheel into one of their assailants while the other
sped past them. Kagome squealed into his back, but her hold didn't
waver, which told him she was ok. Now stopped, he quickly assessed
the fallen pursuer, who appeared to be out cold and a glance back
found the other turning to continue the chase. The one with the damn
chain. Gunning the engine, pebbles and dirt spewed over the fallen
demon as they spun out slightly before the traction caught.

Kagome
gulped air, and cast a furtive glance behind them to see the one
still chasing them literally run over the unconscious demon, the body
seemed to convulse with the weight crossing over it. If it wasn't
dead before, it probably was now. Though it didn't do the sparkle
thing like the one had at the house. Maybe that was only with Holy
powers. She shuddered, and laid her head on InuYasha's shoulder.
They didn't even seem to care when one of their own was injured.
Even Kouga wasn't that bad. And they were nothing like InuYasha.

“Only
one left!!” InuYasha shouted. “We'll get him!! Get a
knife out!!”

Kagome
released her death grip on InuYasha and dropped her left arm, shaking
it behind her to get the centrifugal force to drop the knife down
into her hand. Concentrating, she suffused the weapon with energy,
and it began to glow. That was when she realized something.
InuYasha wasn't running at all. He hadn't been from the start.
Even as a human, he was using everything available to him to defeat
the enemy. Using everything in his power . . . to protect her.

InuYasha
sped up as they dropped off of a curb back onto smooth pavement. He
watched the last remaining demon through the rear view mirror for any
indication of what his next move would be. So far they had only made
a small portion of the distance to the compound, and he didn't fail
to remember there was one more out there. Somewhere. The one who
had been on point at the start. It was a small team, but Ginta had
said he wished he didn't know them. From the looks of it, InuYasha
could see why. These guys had no sense of honor. So far they had
not involved any other humans, or damaged anything except Sally's
house. He really wanted to keep it that way. He didn't want to
carry the chase onto the highway where other vehicles would be
involved. Vehicles with humans in them.

“Have
I told you today that I love you??” She shouted into his ear,
reaching up to brush down the hair that kept slashing at her exposed
skin.

“You're
crazy, wench!! You know that right??” He replied, unable to
mask a grin.

“Yeah
. . . I am . . .” she responded, then added in a murmur, “about
you.“ Somehow she just knew it was going to be Okay. She was
with InuYasha, and no matter what happened, they would be together.
And that one thought removed the last vestiges of her fear. “I'm
gonna try to hit him with this!!” She held up the glowing
knife. “Slow down, let him get closer!!”

“You
sure??” InuYasha let up on the gas just a hair. “You
think you can do it??”

“I
have to try!!”

“Ok,
hold on!!” He waited for the return of her vice grip and then
hit the brakes. Anticipating his move, their pursuer gave them wide
berth, passing them and maneuvering his own one eighty to charge back
at them. “Remember the chain!” InuYasha warned, then “Do
your stuff, Koi!”

The
chain came, and draped them both just as the demon's bike passed
them. InuYasha grabbed for the outstretched line of it and pulled
hard to prevent their being unseated. Kagome placed her hand over
several links focusing all of her concentration. Surprisingly the
demon literally jumped off the bike, and began rolling up excess
chain like a lasso as he sauntered toward them, his bike forgotten as
it coasted down the street. It was apparent that he assumed this a
surrender.

“It's
good that you are deciding to be reasonable about this,” he
drawled, specifically to InuYasha. “Papa will be merciful and
make your death quick, I'm sure. The girl, she belongs to our ally.
You should be glad I found you and not Kouga.”

Kagome
practically growled and could feel the surge of power leaving her at
the sound of that name. The chain was indeed a conduit and it slowly
began to light up following the line of the links around them.

“I'm
not a piece of god damned property!!” Kagome hissed, pushing
more power into the chain. InuYasha watched on with fascination, his
dark eyes reflecting the luminescence like a mirror.

“You
will tell Kouga that Diego gets the prize, eh bitch? Diego is the
one that delivered . . . what the fuck is that?” The demon
stopped his bragging still fifteen feet away as he watched the chain
light up, moving swiftly toward him.

“Your
name is Diego, huh?” InuYasha asked casually, dropping the
length he had been holding. “Well, Diego . . .” he
waited, assuming a bored expression the as power made its way up to
the loop on the demon's arm. “Go to Hell . . .” a bright
flash and an unholy howl filled the night.

“Good
work, Koi. Your first, right?” he asked, his pride evident.
He twisted in his seat to face her as she watched the dust settle.

“No
. . .” she shook her head, her expression not what he expected.
There was a veil of sorrow in her eyes. It had broken her heart.
“You were my first, InuYasha.” A tear made it's way down
her cheek. “That was someone's child. I know . . .” she
countered at his look of incredulity. “He was a bad guy, I got
it . . .” and she wiped her cheek, thinning her lips
determinedly.

“It
was either us or him, Kagome.” InuYasha cupped her chin in his
hand, and touched his forehead to the helmet. “You did the
right thing.”

“I'm
Okay,” She tilted her head and brushed her lips lightly against
his. “Let's go.”

She
kept her cramping legs down for the rest of the ride, and continued
to clutch the infused throwing knife in her hand as she hugged his
back, chin tucked to avoid the barbs of his flailing hair.

8^8^8^8

Backing
up from the edge of the abandoned tenement, a lone figure studied the
now battered red motorcycle with a narrowed glare, as it sped away in
the direction of the highway. He could follow them. Sure. He could
also be the next one to die. He wasn't stupid. The 'weak assed
human' they were supposed to get past to grab the priestess was
anything but. And there hadn't only been two human females,
alone and unprotected in that house. Kouga had lied. The whole thing
had been a set up.

He
should have suspected as much, when the Ookami made it clear that
feeding on this mission was unacceptable. 'No unnecessary
bloodshed'. He could at least have let them have the other bitch as
a reward. Some bullshit about her being kin to the witch. What
difference did that make? M'noche had knocked him clear across the
room when he got in Kouga's face about it. Fine. Now he'd show his
uncle the truth of it.

Their
plan had been a good one. Scare the living shit out of the women,
grab the little bitch with the jewel and go. Simple. Easy. Fear
was the great paralyzer. Sending Ewok had been a stroke of genius.
He wasn't the sharpest knife in the block, in fact he was more like
an icing spatula, but he was good at making humans very afraid. Just
the look of him was enough to scare old Beelzebub himself. Probably
busy scaring the old bastard right now. Leaping in the opposite
direction, Raoul chuckled at the thought as he made for the field to
retrieve the body. He had to take something back. Some kind of
proof for his Uncle. Sam and Diego had left nothing behind. Nothing
but ash.

Kouga had been manipulating them all along. They had gone along for
the ride, because the final outcome would far outweigh putting up
with him. The Jewel was more than just a prize. It sure as Hell
didn't belong in the hands of a demon that consorts with the very
creatures it would be used to overcome. The Ookami Prince was a fool
if he thought they didn't know he had taken up with that witch. His
excuse that she was a seer and a direct line to the Jewel of Power
just didn't wash, not when he showed up covered in the whore's
stench. Humanity was an infestation that needed to be eradicated.
Exterminated. Worse than roaches. Worse than fleas. Maggots.

And
the clan's 'Fang', their only Prince . . . had just been turned into
a mass of glittering powder by a pair of fucking insects.

Uncle
M'noche was going to blow a fuse.

8^8^8^8^8^8^8

A/N::
Just want to wish everyone who celebrates it, Happy Thanksgiving!!
whew got it posted in time...
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Finding Kagome