Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, the song Every you and Every Me belongs to Placebo.

Cruel Intentions

Kikyo walked softly over the carpet of the forest floor. The gentle breeze that caressed her face would have brought the scent of a dying campfire, if only she could smell in this shell of a body. One of her soul stealers swooped silently past, a globe held tightly in its grasp. She clinched her bow as she stopped at the clearing's edge.

Before her was the soft glow of a fire, long burned low. To her right was a woman with dark hair laid out on a futon. Her hand was clenching the handle of an enormous boomerang. She seemed to be on guard even in her sleep. To her left was priest, sleeping with his back to a tree. A faded red handprint was on his cheek. Across the fire was a girl, sleeping with back to the fire. She was curl around the small fox demon that lay next to her. Above her in a tree was a demon with white hair, his head bowed in sleep.

A soft smile crossed her lips briefly, before vanishing as if it had never been. This would be easy. She would finish what she had come to do and be gone before any of them knew what had happened. Inuyasha would come to her, she knew he would. With the girl eliminated he would happily follow her into hell.

Kikyo silently drew an arrow to her cheek. Carefully she took aim at the back of the little girl who had caused her so much trouble. If she could pierce her heart with a single shot, she wouldn't even scream. It was merciful really. The girl didn't belong here. A single arrow through the heart was far better then being ripped limb from limb by a demon.

With a soft twang the arrow took flight. There was a dull clang as the arrow hit the blade of an enormous fang shaped sword. Kikyo's eyes followed the sword to a clawed hand, up a red clad arm, finally to a white-framed face with glowing gold eyes. The eyes narrowed as the owner bared fangs in silent growl. Swinging to the ground, Inuyasha landed silently, putting himself between Kikyo and Kagome and the fire between Kikyo and himself.

Kagome woke suddenly when she felt the pulse of energy from Tetsusaiga's transformation. Glancing up she to see Inuyasha swing to the ground. She was about to sit up and look around when Inuyasha spoke. Her heart stopped and she lay still, trying to pretend she was still asleep.

"What are you doing here Kikyo?" Inuyasha asked. His voice wasn't cold, but it wasn't welcoming either. "You've been following us for days now, trying not to be noticed by staying down wind. You've never approached our camp before either." His eyes narrowed, "You didn't do this just to try and kill Kagome, did you?"

Sucker love is heaven sent.
You pucker up, our passion's spent.

"Oh Inuyasha," Her voice taking on a soft quality, "Must you still waste your time with this little copy. She is only holding us apart. Come with me now, when she can not stop us." She extended her hand to him. Inuyasha only scowled at her more deeply.

"I've already told you, Kikyo. I have to protect Kagome." He folded his arms over his chest, but kept Tetsusaiga at hand incase she decided to use her bow again.

"A silly promise, to a silly little girl."


My hearts a tart, your body's rent.
My body's broken, yours is spent.

"What do you want Kikyo? You couldn't possibly have gone to all this trouble just to give me the same old spiel." He snorted, "I don't like to repeat myself, as you well know. I will defeat Naraku and put your soul at peace." Inuyasha glanced off to the side for a brief second before looking back at her again. "You know when I first thought you had tried to hurt Kagome, she protected you. I didn't even want to believe it might actually happen." His eyes narrowed, "That you, Kikyo, would actually try and kill an innocent girl."


Carve your name into my arm.

"Inuyasha, you promised to come to hell with me. As long as that girl lives, you can not keep your word. I'm merely allowing you to do so." Kikyo stated in her usual calm demeanor, "We died together. I died to be with you. Your life belongs to me. Come with me now, while there is still time." She took a step towards him and extended her hand to him again.


Instead of stressed, I lie here charmed.
Cuz there's nothing else to do,
Every me and every you.

"No Kikyo." Inuyasha sighed and shook his head. "You aren't going to pull that trick on me again." She frowned ever so slightly but dropped her hand. "I will not leave Kagome unguarded. Not after what happened the last time."


Sucker love, a box I choose.
No other box I choose to use.
Another love I would abuse,

"Even when you thought I was dead, you came for me." Kikyo allowed her lip to turn up just a bit, "You are addicted to me. You could never truly love that copy. It would only be a replacement for me."

No circumstances could excuse.

"I was wrong to leave Kagome alone. I will not do it again. But you are wrong if you think I do not love her. She is one of the best things that ever happened to me. Kagome taught me to trust. Something I could never do with anyone, even you."


In the shape of things to come.
Too much poison come undone.
Cuz there's nothing else to do,
Every me and every you.
Every me and every you,
Every Me...he

"What about Naraku." Kikyou persisted, "If he is ever to be defeated then we must work together, you and I. It was our love that brought him into this world and only by our love can he be vanquished."

Sucker love is known to swing.
Prone to cling and waste these things.

"Our love!" Inuyasha threw his head back in a mirthless laugh. Kikyo's eyes widened slightly and she took a step back. "Our Love! That's a new one. The funny thing is… I never loved you. I loved the Kikyo that died fifty years ago, and you are not her. You aren't even a good copy." He emphasized her favorite insult for Kagome, "The Kikyo I fell in love with may not have been the kindest or most expressive, but she was never cruel like you. She would have been happy I found friends, no mater how odd or perverse. She may not have embraced Kagome like a sister but she would have trained her in the use of her powers, not tried to kill her."


Pucker up for heaven's sake.
There's never been so much at stake.

"Are you really willing to risk the world falling into Naraku's hands for a little girl who could never return any feelings for you! I am Kikyo! You love Me!" Kikyo was starting to loose her hard won composure. "You promised to go to hell with me!"


I serve my head up on a plate.
It's only comfort, calling late.

"I made that promise to Kikyo. But you are not her. Kikyo is dead." Inuyasha replied calmly. "I am staying with Kagome."


Cuz there's nothing else to do,
Every me and every you.
Every me and every you,
Every Me...he

Every me and every you,
Every Me...he

"Then you leave me no choice." Kikyo's face hardened into its usual cold stare. "You will see the error of your ways when this girl is no longer around to blind you. Which do you think will happen first? Will she abandoned you, like everyone but myself has done. Or will she have to die?"

Like the naked leads the blind.
I know I'm selfish, I'm unkind.

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed to slits, his jaw and hands clenched, and a growl rumbled out of his chest. "Kagome will not leave me. She swore she wouldn't. I may not be sweet to her, but she has enough sense to know that I don't have to be."


Sucker love I always find,
Someone to bruise and leave behind.

"You've been pushing me to make a choice between you and her." Inuyasha continued. "I make that choice now. Leave now Kikyo, while you still can. Just know that your only reprieve in all of this is your uncanny resemblance to two women I care for very deeply." Kikyo frowned.


All alone in space and time.

"So you plan to leave me all alone, to walk the earth endlessly as a partial soul with out peace? I will kill the girl and you will come crawling to me on hands and knees like the beast you are! What do you plan to do about it? Kill me? With your own hands? I doubt it. I'm sure once your amusement with her is spent you will come to me. You always come back to me."


There's nothing here but what here's mine.
Something borrowed, something blue.

"I will not let you, or anyone hurt her!" Inuyasha was now struggling to keep his growls from waking those around them. "As far as what I do with Kagome, it's none of your damn business. Kagome belongs to me! If I want to protect her, kill her, or Fuck her it is no concern of yours." He raised his sword so that it was pointing straight at her. "Leave now and know that if I ever get the slightest whiff of your scent, no similarities in appearance will save you."


Every me and every you.
Every me and every you,
Every Me...he

Kikyo narrowed her eyes and set her face into its usual stagnate stare before turning on her heels in a very un-Kikyo like manner and storming off into the forest. Inuyasha watched her go and waited for her to fade from all his senses before slumping to the ground.

It felt good to get that all off his chest. He'd been thinking about it from the first time that Kikyo had to hurt Kagome. Despite all he had said and done, the idea just never set well with him. He knew part of it was that Kagome had been hurt, but the other… It had taken time, but slowly the divide between the Kikyo he had loved and the one that now walked the earth had become too great to ignore. Yes, they shared appearance and memories, but they could never be the same person; no more them Kagome and Kikyo could.


Every me and every you,
Every Me...he

"Inuyasha?" Kagome whispered. He whirled around in surprise. He had been so engrossed with Kikyo he hadn't even noticed when she woke. A stab of guilt went through him. What if she only woke at the end and thought he had let Kikyo into the camp? Or worse, what if she heard what he had said. Not all those things had been meant for her to hear.

"Kagome…" he gulped guiltily as he turned to look at her. She was sitting up in her bedding looking at him with an unreadable expression. In the blink of an eye he twisted his expression into one of uncaring. "Feh! Stupid girl! You should be sleeping. I don't want to listen to you complain about being tired tomorrow." He crossed his arms over his chest and turned up his nose. Kagome gave him a soft smile.

Every me and every you,
Every Me...he

"Did you mean what you said?" she asked gently. His shoulders slumped. So she did hear. Great…

"How much did you hear?" he asked turning to look at her out of the corner of his eye.

"I felt Tetsusaiga transform… everything after that." She replied shyly. She felt like such a heel for eavesdropping.

"Oh." was his only reply. A long silence filled the air between then, neither knowing what to say and fearing what the other might do. "Yeah, I meant it." Inuyasha finally whispered. "But I didn't intend for you to find out this way." She crawled out of her bag to sit next to him. He wasn't looking at her; instead had his head bowed so that his bangs covered his eyes.

Every me and every you,
Every Me...he

"So I belong to you do I?" she asked lightly. "Kouga is the only other person to claim that."

"Feh! That wimpy wolf doesn't protect you. His claim is unfounded!" Inuyasha snorted, but it was only half-hearted. If she had heard that part, which meant she also heard about his claim her could kill her or… oh shit. "You know I'd never hurt you, or do… 'anything' without your permission. Right?" He asked hopefully as he reached up and ran his knuckles across her cheek. Inuyasha smiled inwardly when she didn't flinch or pull away.

"I know." She replied softly. A slow coy smile crossing her face, "Does that mean you do 'things' if you had my permission?" he turned a dark shade of red and she giggled.

"Feh! You've been around Miroku too long!" he looked away to cover his embarrassment.

"I know." She repeated. Then she leaned over and gave him a peak on the cheek. "Thanks for always protecting me Inuyasha." If it were possible the half-demon turned even redder. "And I don't think you're a beast." She moved back to her bedding and curled around Shippou again. "Sleep well Inuyasha." She yawned.

"Feh! I don't need sleep. I'm going to keep watch." He announced hotly. Her only reply was an incoherent mutter. He listened as her breathing evened out and her heart slowed to a sleeping rate. "Thank you Kagome." He whispered into the night.

Every me and every you,
Every Me...he