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Japanese Volcabulary:

Hai: Yes

hanyou: half demon

Obaa-chan: Grandmother

youkai: demon

Doryoku-mamoru: Power-protect

Kaji tsume: Fire claw

Kogasu usu: Scorch strike

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Episode 16: Kikyou returns

The sun was high in the sky over the hustle and bustle of the village as everyone went about their everyday duties. Rin was inside her hut, stirring a pot of stew, that she had been making. Sango was against the wall, polishing her staff, having nothing better to do.

Just then, Kirara came running in with some sticks in her arms with Miroku following behind with an armful of logs which he set in a pile in the corner.

"There", said Miroku, wiping his forehead," Do you need anything else, Rin?"

"Yes," she replied," but it can wait until after you've eaten."

Kirara stood over the pot and sniffed in deeply. "Mm. It smells really good. I can't wait to have some!"

"I'm sure it'll taste as good as it smells," said Miroku, sitting down, smiling.

Rin chuckled, smiling at them. "Thanks for the compliments but you might want to save it until after you've tried it."

Then, she let her smile disapear as she said," Is she still there?"

Miroku's face grew solemn. "Hai."

"Yeah," said Kirara," She still hasn't moved from that tree yet."

"And you still can get nothing out of her?" she said.

"No," said Miroku, brows furrowed," She will not speak to us or tell us what transpired."

"So," said Rin," we know that Inuyasha has returned through the well and that Kagome has not moved from the tree in which she had once been sealed."

"Don't forget," Kirara added," that I smelled Sesshoumaru's scent and Kagome's blood, too."

Rin sighed. "We can only guess what happened between the three of them."

Sango finally spoke, looking at the door. "Kagome's been up there for three days. I wonder what could have happened..."

-------------------------

The said hanyou was sitting in the tree they spoke of at that very moment where she had been for three days. Her legs were pulled up against her chest, her arms crossed on top of her bent knees. Her face was etched in a fierce scowl, with furrowed brows over her closed eyes. Her hands were pulled into tight fists. You could see dried blood on her hands from where her claws had pierced her palms when she first clenched them. Her whole body was rigid and stiff as if the slightest thing would set her off. Her two black dog ears that were usually upright and swiveling in all directions were now flattened back against her head, as a sign of the battle she was currently having inside herself.

'I don't understand,' she thought,' How could Sesshoumaru trick me like that?'

'Well, he did say your life belongs to him...' said the little voice in her head.

'But that can't be right. Naraku's the reason Sesshoumaru died... right?' she thought.

'Right! Remember, Naraku disguised himself as you and tricked Sesshoumaru!' the little voice replied.

'Yeah, but he also tricked you too. If you had more trust in Sesshoumaru, you would have realized that it had been Naraku!' a second voice interjected.

Guilt filled her. 'So that means Sesshoumaru died because of me.'

'No! That's not tru-' the first voice started.

'Don't listen to her! She's just trying to make you feel better! It's your fault! So, your life in actuality does belong to Se-' the second started.

'Nononononono! That's not true! You don't need to give your life for Sesshoumaru! It's Naraku's fault! Just kill him and you'll be able to aven-' the first interrupted.

'She's just lying to you! You have to die for Sesshoumaru! He DIED for you! D-I-E-D! Died! For YOU! How can you just let his life go to waste like that?!' the second cried.

'You're right,' she thought,' He died for me. So shouldn't I do the same for him?'

'No!'

'Yes!'

'Nooo!'

'Yeees!'

'NO!'

'YES!'

'N-'

'ARGH!' She thought, clenching her fists tighter,'I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK!'

There was silence in her head for a few moments, until...

'What about Inuyasha?' the first replied softly.

Kagome eyes opened as they widened.

"....Inuyasha?...."

Suddenly, there was a flash of red, followed by pain as she found herself blown out of the tree and rolling across the ground. She quickly pulled herself up, gritting her teeth. When she spied her attacker, her ears flattened back again as she let out a low growl.

"Hello, Baby Sister."

"Kikyou," Kagome spat out," What do you want?"

Kikyou smirked, looking down at her younger sibling. "I've come to end your pitiful existence, and then, I will take Mother's heirloom. You don't deserve such a powerful weapon."

Kagome growled, agitatedly, baring her teeth. "I am not in the mood to mess you, Kikyou!"

"Well, that's just too bad, isn't it?" said Kikyou, lifting her hand before her, surrounded with a red glow, before sending a wave of red energy at her.

Kagome quickly dodged it, faster than Kikyou was expected. "Fine! You wanna play? Bring it on!"

She shot towards Kikyou, claws outstretched. "Kaji tsume!"

Kikyou dodged but Kagome managed to land a hit on her armor. Kikyou landed away from Kagome, and narrowed her eyes at the glowing white hot scratches, cooling down to leave five long thin indentions.

"Heh," Kagome said, smirking," Looks like I ruined your pretty armor."

Kikyou did not answer as she shot towards Kagome, claws glowing green as she swiped at her catching her left cheek, sending her flying backwards into a tree with a thud.

The tree trembled with the force of the blow, leaves raining down, as Kagome slid down the tree with a groan.

"Kagome!"

-----------------------

Inuyasha was sitting at the base of the tree that was in the middle of the courtyard. The same tree, he had figured out, that Kagome had been sealed to five hundred years in the past.

"Hm," Inuyasha said, his head lifted up, looking into the leafy branches. He'd returned home three days ago and had recalled their travels to his mom. He closed his eyes as he thought back to it.

-------Flashback-------

Inuyasha had just retold everything that had happened to his mother, as she listened patiently through it all. He had tried to tone down the battles but she had insisted on hearing everything.

She was now sitting at the table across from him with a thoughtful look.

"Mom?" he asked," You okay?"

"Hm?" she looked at him," Yes. I'm fine."

He looked unconvinced. "I knew I shouldn't have gone into detail about the battles."

"No. It's not that," she said," I was just thinking about everything you've told me. You've gone through so much. It just amazes me how fast you're growing up."

She sighed, putting a hand to her cheek. "It seems like only yesterday, you were that little boy I would tuck into bed at night and now here you are going off and fighting demons five hundred years in the past."

She sighed again, and said mostly to herself," They grow up so fast."

Inuyasha was staring at her. 'It kinda sounds weird when she says it like that.'

"Anyways," she said, looking over at him, slyly," it sounds like you're getting pretty close to that Kagome girl."

Inuyasha sighed. 'Here we go, again.'

"Mom, you're not going to try and match me up with Kagome like you did those last, like... a hundred girls, are you?"

She looked at him, innocently. "Now, what gave you that idea?"

He sighed. "Well, I don't know. It might have been the fact that you're humming the wedding march."

She giggled, as she stopped in the middle of the song.

"Well, I can't help it," she said," I just want you to be happy with someone."

"Ye-ah," he said," I know you better than that."

"Okay," she said, grudgingly," I'll admit there's more to it than that."

Then, she looked at him with puppy dog eyes. "But can you really blame me? It's my dream to have some cute little grand babies sitting on my knee."

Then, she said, faking as if she was saying it to herself, but destroying the look with a sly look out of the corner of her eye. "Maybe.... I could even get some puppy-eared grandchildren...."

Inuyasha struggled to beat down the red blush that threatened to consume his face. "Mom!"

She giggled, glancing as his reddening cheeks. "All right, I'll stop."

"There's something wrong with your plans, anyways," said Inuyasha, slumping in his chair," In case you've forgotten, Kagome's in love with Sesshoumaru."

"Mm," she said," I'm not so sure about that. Do you still think she'd love him after what he's done?"

He sighed. "Maybe..."

She shook her head. "I wouldn't be so sure. Besides, if you like her that much, maybe you should try going after her yourself."

"What?!" he cried, blushing," I don't like her like that!"

She shrugged, getting up. "Maybe you don't exactly like her like that.... but you have to admit, you do care about her. Maybe not in a romantic kind of way but, at least, in a friend kind of way."

-------End Flashback-------

'I guess I can admit that after this past month,' he thought,' I have come to care about her as a friend. It doesn't matter if she thinks of me as a friend or not, I'll still stand beside her as one.'

He thought back to what had transpired before he had left.

'I wonder if I really should have left her alone like that,' he thought,' I know she wanted to be, but was it the right thing to do?'

He furrowed his brow, before he got up, coming to a decision.

'I think three days is long enough for her to be alone. I've refilled our supplies, so that we have enough for five people now.'

He smiled, thinking back to the added members of the group.

'It's funny. It took only one month for our little two man team to grow into a five man group.'

It didn't take long for him to grab his bag, say good bye to his Mom, Obaa-chan, and even the brat, and make his way to the well. He pulled himself over the side, dropping down into the violet void of time, and landing in the bottom of the well, before clambering up the side. He pulled himself out, and looked around, taking in a deep breath.

'The air smells cleaner her,' he observed, randomly.

He took a step from the well when he heard a loud commotion coming from the clearing Kagome had been sealed.

"What could that be?" he murmured, taking off in that direction.

He pushed his way through the underbrush, the noise becoming louder as he got nearer. His eyes widened as he suddenly realized that he sensed something.

'A jewel shard!' he thought, quickening his step.

Finally, he made it to the clearing, just in time to see Kagome hit a tree with a loud thud, causing it to tremble with the impact. He could see her left cheek glowing a sickly green as she slid down to the base of the tree with a groan.

Snapping out of it, he cried out," Kagome!"

-------------------------

Miroku, Sango, Rin, and Kirara were eating their stew when everyone felt an extremely powerful youkai enter the area.

"Did you feel that?" asked Sango, setting down her bowl.

"Yes," said Rin," what a powerful youkai."

"What would a powerful demon want in this domain?" asked Miroku," Inuyasha is not here with the jewel shards."

"Maybe someone heard that there were some here," Kirara pointed out.

"Well, whatever it is," Sango said, grabbing her staff as she got up," We should go check it out."

As Miroku and Kirara got up, Rin got up as well. "I will come with you."

"Are you sure, Rin?" Miroku asked, brows furrowed in concern," We don't want the villagers to lose their headmistress."

"Do not underestimate me," she said, grabbing her bow and arrows," I may not have very powerful priestess powers but I can do a pretty good amount of damage."

Sango stared as Rin looked at her, stubbornly.

Finally, Sango sighed in defeat. "All right, if you insist."

"I knew you would see things my way," Rin smiled.

"Come on, Shippo," Kirara said, motioning to small demon.

The small fox kit, trotted up to her, leaping into her arms, before she turned to the door to follow the others outside.

---------------------

"Kagome!"

Kagome let out a groan, as she opened her eyes. "Inu...yasha?"

"Hm," Kikyou said, amused," It looks like your little human has arrived."

Inuyasha unsheathed Doryoku-mamoru at the sight of Kagome's attacker. "What do you want, Kikyou?"

"It is none of your concern little human," she said," I've come to... deal with a few matters, concerning my sister."

"What would that be?" he asked.

"Just to kill her and take back what is mine," she said, as if she were only talking about the weather.

"I won't let you!" he said, prepared to charge at her.

"No!"

Inuyasha stopped, turning to look at Kagome, who was now standing.

"Stay out of this!" she said," This is between me and Kikyou!"

"But I can't just stand on the sidelines while you fight her alone!" he replied," You're my friend and I'll stand beside you!"

Kagome's eyes widened in shock. "Inuyasha...."

"How very touching," said Kikyou, her claws glowing red, as she sent a wave of red energy at Inuyasha," Sorry, I have to ruin it!"

"Inuyasha!" Kagome cried out, speeding towards him.

Inuyasha struggled to dodge but the wave was too big and he found himself, lifting his arms to try and shield himself. Then, just as it was about to hit, something snatched him by the back of his shirt, pulling him out of the way. He felt himself going through he air before he was set on the ground. He turned expecting to see Kagome but was surprised to instead to see two large green eyes with sharp teeth.

"Ah!" He cried out, scrambling away.

He stopped when he heard chuckling. He looked up to see Sango, Miroku, Kirara and Rin, sitting on its back.

"I was surprised when I saw him for the first time too," said Rin, smiling.

"What are you guys doing here?" he asked, getting up.

They all got off as Sango answered," We sensed a very powerful youkai enter the area and we came to investigate."

Then, Kirara latched herself onto Inuyasha's leg. "I'm really glad you're back!"

"Nice to see you too, Kirara," he smiled, looking down at her.

He took the chance to look at the orange creature before him. It was like a large fox with two fangs that came over it's bottom lip. It had a long bushy tail and orange fur all over it's body with white tufts of fur at the tips of its ears. Then, he noticed the large green eyes that looked strangely familiar...

"Shippo?" he said, eyes widened, as he made the connection.

"Yeah, I didn't know he could do this either," said Kirara," Isn't it...how'd you say it again....oh yeah! Isn't it cool?"

"Yeah," he said," Really cool."

"So these are the other humans you're traveling with?" Kikyou asked, making everybody turn back to her," I was told there was only two more humans and yet, I see three."

Then, she looked and Kirara and said," And you travel with two lowly demons, one even being a cat demon? You truly are pathetic, Baby Sister."

"Sister?" said Rin," So this is the older half sister, that you spoke of?"

"Yeah," said Inuyasha," She's a full demon named Kikyou and she's also... Lady of the Northern lands, I think it was?"

"That is correct, human," Kikyou said," Perhaps, you are not as dumb as I first believed."

She lifted up her hand, glowing red. "Shall I finish what I had started?"

"Leave them out of this, Kikyou!" Kagome cried," This is between you and me!"

Just then, Inuyasha remembered the shard he had sensed.

"Kagome!" he cried out," I sense a jewel shard!"

"What?!" Kagome said," Where?!"

"In her left shoulder!" He called back.

Kikyou narrowed her eyes. 'How did he know it was there?'

"Heh," Kagome smirked," All the better."

Then, she rushed towards Kikyou prepared to attack her.

"Kogasu usu!" she cried out, sending a heat wave towards her older sibling.

Kikyou dodged, though the wave singed the tips of her hair, giving off the scent of burnt hair. Kikyou narrowed her eyes, wrinkling her nose, as the scent premated her nostrils.

Kagome quickly rushed towards her again, preparing to attack her with another fire claw but just as she was about to strike, Kikyou disapeared, reappearing behind her. Kagome turned her head, confused, when her eyes suddenly widened as she stopped in her tracks, letting out a noise mixed between a cough and a choke, blood dribbling out of the side of her mouth

Everyone else's eyes widened as well.

"Kagome..." Inuyasha said.

Kikyou impaled Kagome.