Purity

Disclaimer: I own nothing! NOTHING! So please enjoy. InuYasha is not mine to claim, but unfortunately for the whole crew… I'm going to play with. Bahahah!

Chapter Zero

Essence

Th-thump. Th-thump. Th-thump.

Her heart was pounding in her chest as she ran. But she couldn't stop. He was coming after her. It was almost as though she could feel him breathing down her neck. The forest was darker than usual on this day. It almost was it was dreading today, as though it knew something ominous was happening upon this day. All Kagome wanted to do was scream out for InuYasha to save her. But he was the one chasing her. The one who's demon blood was coursing through his veins so violently that it had broken his Tetsusaiga.

'Please, someone save me!' She thought, as tears began to pool in her eyes. It wasn't supposed to happen this way. She didn't want to die, especially not by the one she loved. Inhaling sharply, she felt the root tug at her foot as she collapsed to the ground, tears streaming down her cheeks. She jumped up and began to run again.

"Kagome." She heard, and she sped up. She jumped over a log, but lost her footing and rolled down the hill. She stopped beside a stream, cuts marring her arms now instead of her sleeves. They had been torn off by InuYasha. How had any of this happened?

"Sit!" She screamed, but cursed internally. The subjection beads had broken earlier that day, after seemingly one too many uses. She sobbed as she felt his aura approach. This was going to be the end. She could tell. She began to sit up but InuYasha was on her in an instant, snatching her up by her arm to dangle her in front of his face.

"Kagome." He seemed to purr at her. She closed her eyes tightly. "Look at me Kagome." She didn't, and felt him slap her across the face. Her eyes opened and she stared at him, wide-eyed. "Give me the jewel, Kagome."

"No InuYasha! You're not yourself! It will become filled with taint, and you will be overtaken by power!"

Another slap, then a laugh escaped him. "I can simply find it myself, wench. Give it to me." He shook her. She closed her lips, tightly and averted her eyes, which earned her another slap. "Have it your way." She screamed when she felt air hit her stomach. He had slit her shirt down the middle.

She jerked violently, trying to free herself, and succeeded in punching him in the head before he growled and pinned both her arms behind her chest. A movement caught her eye and she turned to the bushes. "Rin!" She shouted. InuYasha snickered as he turned.

"You will do. Kagome doesn't care for herself but a child she will fight to the end for."

"Run Rin! Run!" She screamed. The little girl turned around, and bolted. InuYasha started to follow her, laughing all the while. Kagome got to her feet and took off after InuYasha, jumping on his back and clawing his face with her hands. He easily removed her, lifting her by her arms and flipping her to the ground. "Leave Rin alone!"

"Then give me the jewel, Kagome."

"Never." He lifted her from the ground and flung her backwards. Her body connected with a tree, and she saw spots. She felt something warm rolling down her face and reached up to touch it, only to find she couldn't move her arms. 'Well this is a pickle…' she thought as InuYasha approached her, his eyes red.

"Kagome, Kagome, Kagome…" He began, and leaned down. He growled low in his throat. "If you only did what I would ask, this wouldn't have happened. I see why, I would never be able to love you. You are no Kikyo. You're not easy and compliant like she is. You're a prude as well. You always held up the hunt, promising me the jewel and now you give me nothing. You've developed quite well over the years though. How long has it been? Three? You're not as fat as you once were, now better toned… and you are very beautiful. But you will never be Kikyo. And I'm going to show you how better Kikyo is then you are, as soon as you hand me the jewel. I'm going to wish her alive, and then I'm going to fuck her here, in front of you while you slowly die. I will show you the pleasure I am going to bring her, but never you."

She felt the tears stinging her eyes but they didn't fall. She felt extremely light-headed. "InuYasha."

"Yes, wench?"

"You are pathetic." With that, he slapped her, making her vision blur more, before she heard a voice she never thought she would hear.

"Half-breed." She promptly loss consciousness seconds after.

Sesshomaru looked down at Kagome. The half-breed had fled upon seeing him, and Sesshomaru knew the wench was going to die. Rin looked up from beside him. "Lord Sesshomaru, please help Lady Kagome. She saved me from Naraku multiple times, as well as Kagura and Kanna. Please." He sighed inwardly as he leaned down to lift the woman into his arms. Her blood dripped from the tree behind her. How she had survived the hit was beyond him. Her blood dripped to his sleeve, and stained it. Rin looked at her, a frown marring her features. She was now eleven, and she was training to become a healer under Kaede but she hadn't been there in quite some time. "Lady Kagome needs washed before we can see her wounds."

The girl was light. It made him feel as though he were carrying a rabbit instead of a full grown woman. She seemed malnourished. Sesshomaru carried her to the stream and submerged her in it while Rin held her face above the water. The water felt like ice against Sesshomaru's warm skin, and he felt the woman shiver, just a tiny movement. He pulled her from the water, staring at the faint outline of abdominal muscles on Kagome's stomach. She wore some strange contraption around her chest. Rin's fingers quickly found the wound on Kagome's head and she frowned at Sesshomaru. "Lord Sesshomaru, she needs a lot of attention. Perhaps we can bring her to the castle with us, so I can heal her? Please Lord Sesshomaru? She is the Shikon Miko, and she destroyed Naraku."

"Jaken."

"Yes Lord Sesshomaru?"

"Help Rin to Ah-Un. We leave immediately."

"Yes Lord Sesshomaru."

When Kagome woke up, she felt like she had a splitting headache. She groaned and went to sit up, opening her eyes wearily. She was laying on something very soft. Reaching to her forehead, she touched it only to find a bandage. "What?"

"Lady Kagome?" Kagome looked over, seeing Rin sitting beside her. "Are you feeling well?"

"Where am I?" Kagome questioned, looking around the room. It was very elegant. There were drapes hung over one wall, making the room dark. There were lanterns on the wall that seemed to make the room well lit though, so Kagome had no trouble seeing. A vanity sat in the middle of the wall opposite where Kagome laid, and a wardrobe was beside it, while beside the wardrobe was a door. A mirror sat on top of the vanity, and makeup and things were lying on the top of it. The walls were light blue at the very top, and faded to a very dark blue at the base.

"At Lord Sesshomaru's castle." Kagome shot up, which made her head spin. She dizzily fell backwards and landed against something soft. It was a pillow. So she was on a bed. She saw the blankets were blue as well, and they were very soft. "He saved you."

"Saved me? From what?"

"InuYasha." She jumped at the sound of Sesshomaru's voice but he said nothing else to her. "Come Rin, it is your bedtime."

"Yes Lord Sesshomaru." She said, but she quickly checked Kagome's bandage before she left. Kagome sat up, slowly this time and looked towards the door. Sesshomaru still stood there, and Kagome jumped at seeing him. She thought he'd left with Rin.

Everything was slowly coming back to her and she blinked back the tears. She reached into her bra and took out the complete Shikon no Tama. A sob escaped her lips but she said nothing as she stared at it. "I wish InuYasha was happy." And the jewel disappeared. She looked down. It was unselfish of her to ask for someone else's happiness. Sango and Miroku had gotten married as soon as the wind tunnel had disappeared from his hand. As far as she knew they had left and began to rebuild her village. Sango had been the one to remove the Shikon shard from Kohaku, and Miroku had helped her bury him, saying a prayer and keeping his hands in check the whole time.

Sesshomaru was still staring at her. She was gazing at the wall with such a sober expression. "Thank you." She finally said. He looked at her. "For saving me. I know you didn't have to but I am grateful none the less. I owe you." When he said nothing she huffed. "Whatever." When she turned around to look at the door and make a very rude comment, she was shocked. He was no longer there. "Sesshomaru obviously doesn't take well to gratitude." She grumbled before she lay down again and fell into a deep slumber, though nightmares plagued her.

Wellll there you go. Yes I don't know why I am writing this with a million other stories to finish, but it just came to me… and I had to write it. Argh!

Please review and tell me if you liked it.

Ciao.

Jaime