Forgive me, but I have to put off working on other fics for this one! But if you want, you can yell at me for it in a review. It might motivate me to work on them sooner! Oh, and no one is permitted to injure and/or kill me or Otulia in any way for what we are about to do.

Otulia: That's right! Oh, and we don't own InuYasha. Got that?

Healing Scars

Ch.1: And So It Began

"I think we should be getting back, Sango," Kagome said worriedly, looking at the dark trees around them anxiously.

"You're probably right. We don't want the guys to worry too much," the demon slayer replied, stepping from the hot spring and wrapping herself in her towel.

Kagome did the same, drying herself thoroughly before getting dressed. "InuYasha's probably going to be angry at us for sneaking away like this," she remarked, glancing up at the moonless sky.

"He'll get over it. It's not like we could pass up a chance at a bath."

The two girls began making their way through the forest back to their camp. Kagome shivered. The trees seemed to be closing in around her, and she felt as though someone were watching them. "Sango," she whispered. "I've got a really bad feeling about this place."

Suddenly, two haggard men leapt from the underbrush, smirking. "Lookie wha' we've found, two li'l lassies all alone in de fo'est," the taller one said with a laugh.

"Wha' a prize, wha' a prize," the other said, an evil glint in his eyes.

"Back off," Sango warned, fervently wishing she'd brought her hiraikotsu along, instead of leaving it behind at camp.

"Feisty, ah we?" the tall man chuckled. "Ah'l de betta. Ah like meh lassies wit a li'l fight in 'em." He stepped toward Sango and took hold of her arm. She swung her other arm in a fierce arc at his head, but he stepped aside, pulling her with him, and making her lose her balance. He smacked her hard, stunning her, as the other man grabbed Kagome, dragging her off into the trees.

"Let go of me!" Kagome shouted, trying to fight him off. But he was too strong for her.

"Ah, shut yer trap, will ya'?" the man grumbled, throwing her to the ground. In an instant, he was on top of her, grinning maliciously. "Yer ah'l mine, now, lassie. Ya'd do best tah keep quiet."

"Help!" she screamed, trying to push him off. "InuYasha!" Maybe he would hear her and come to her rescue. Maybe…

He hit her in the jaw, and pain caused her eyes to fill with tears. Fear overwhelmed her, and she continued to struggle, but in vain. She couldn't get away.

Sango regained her senses quickly. Mountain bandits. She'd encountered them before, though never so far down a mountain. They must have been getting desperate. In any case, she had to get away and find Kagome. Quickly. She heard her friend screaming off in the trees somewhere.

"I told you to back off!" she shouted angrily.

"An' wha' ah ya' goin' tah do, eh?" the man taunted.

He was stronger than her, all right. And he knew it, too. But Sango knew something he didn't. Pressure points.

Not a moment later, her assailant collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Hurriedly, she ran in the direction the other bandit had taken Kagome. A thousand thoughts rushed through her mind. If only tonight wasn't the night of the new moon. InuYasha would have caught the scent of the bandits. Or at least he would have heard Kagome crying out. Why did she have to pick tonight, of all nights, to be careless and go into the forest unarmed? Gritting her teeth, she blocked these thoughts from her mind, focusing all her senses on saving Kagome.

She found them a few minutes later, following Kagome's desperate cries for help. She stumbled through the underbrush to see Kagome pinned to the ground, half undressed, struggling with the man holding her down. Without a second thought, Sango picked up a rock and threw it at him, hitting him squarely on the head, knocking him unconscious. He fell forward onto Kagome, who shoved him off and scrabbled away from him. Sango rushed to her side.

"Kagome, are you okay?"

"Sango, he…he almost…" She burst into tears, shakily re-clothing herself. Sango helped her to her feet and back to the path.

"It's alright now, Kagome. Let's go back to the others now. You'll be safe there." She continued saying reassuring things as Kagome clung desperately to her arm, not even noticing when she started to repeat herself. All she could think about was how stupid she was to have let that happen. It was her fault, entirely.

Shippo was sound asleep, curled up next to Kirara. She had transformed before joining him in sleep, and was now resting peacefully. Miroku sat on the other side of the campfire, his staff by his side, staring up at the canopy of leaves above them.

InuYasha was staring angrily into the leaping flames of the fire, waiting impatiently for the girls to get back. He couldn't believe they'd take the risk of sneaking off to some hot spring, completely unprotected in dangerous territory, on the one night he wouldn't be able to smell out any trouble. They'd hear it when they finally showed up.

He looked up when he heard someone approaching. He could make out sobbing, and a soft voice, though he couldn't hear the words. He stood, tensed, his senses alert for trouble. Miroku looked up as well, his hand firmly on his staff.

Sango stepped into the firelight, holding onto a disheveled and dirty Kagome. The priestess was shaking badly, her eyes, wide with immeasurable fear, trained on the ground.

"Kagome!"

She looked up at the sound of his worried voice. "InuYasha!" she cried, breaking away from Sango and running into his arms, clinging tightly to him. Her legs gave out under her, and InuYasha sank to the ground with her, holding her tightly as she sobbed into his shoulder.

"Sango, what happened?" Miroku asked, just as concerned as InuYasha.

"Mountain bandits," she hissed angrily, her hands balling into fists. "One of them tried to force himself on her." She sighed angrily and sat down, shaking her head. "I'm just thankful I got to her in time."

InuYasha nearly growled. "I'll kill them," he said angrily, starting to get up.

"No," Kagome pleaded through her sobs. "Don't…leave." She was still shaking, and pale as a ghost. Sighing sadly, InuYasha remained where he was.

"It's alright, Kagome," he whispered in her ear. "I won't let anything like that happen to you again."

She cried until she was out of tears, dry sobs racking her body. She was terrified, but she felt safe in InuYasha's arms, and slowly, she drifted off into an exhausted sleep.

Don't kill me! I know it was a horribly written chapter, and I know I was mean and horribly cruel to Kagome, but still, don't kill me! If you give suggestions for the plot, it'll be much appreciated, and I might be inspired to rewrite this chapter and make it better. Either way, please review! I'm so insecure about this one!