Chapter Two

Once Inuyasha had been found, and the picnic lunch abandoned, Kagome and the others set off through the dense forest after their new guide, Kallisto. Kagome did not like the nymph. She moved at a pace that only Inuyasha and Kirara could keep up with, refusing to slow down for "mere humans". This was annoying in itself, yet Kagome got the impression she had an alternative motive for trying to shake off the rest of them. She and Inuyasha, whom she was now grudgingly speaking to, would disappear into the trees for several minutes trying to follow the flighty nymph before Kirara, Sango and Miroku could catch up. Had Kagome not allowed Inuyasha to carry her, who knows what the crafty creature would have gotten up to in these secluded moments?

Sango was also noticeably irritated by Kallisto's presence and the reason was obvious: Miroku had not stopped salivating over her since they had met her. It did not help that the nymph was something of a show off; she did not waste a single opportunity to flaunt her beauty and both men seemed unwittingly susceptible to her charms (though Inuyasha would deny all accusations vehemently).

At sundown, Kallisto brought them all to a halt so that they could rest. She found them a pleasant spot by a little woodland brook that had plenty of open space and dry wood with which to build a fire. Here the troupe settled down for the evening, with Miroku starting on making a fire and Sango and Kagome preparing them some dinner.

"So you and Inuyasha are speaking now?" Sango asked, as she and Kagome were chopping vegetables for the stew.

"Just about," Kagome sighed. "It's useless to stay angry at him: he never understands what he's done wrong."

"Yeah, men have a habit of being like that," Sango muttered, casting a dark look up at Miroku, who was using the pretence of examining kindling to keep a close eye on Kallisto.

"Urgh, she makes me sick," continued Sango. "Look at her, tossing her hair and batting her eyelashes! Who does she think she's fooling?"

"Inuyasha is completely denying that he finds her attractive," Kagome snorted, as she threw a pile of finely chopped leek into the stew pot. "I don't know whether to believe him."

She glanced up. Inuyasha was leaning casually against the trunk of a nearby tree. Kallisto was lying on a branch above his head, apparently talking to him.

"Sometimes it's like he's not interested in her at all," Kagome went on. "But sometimes he can't stop staring at her."

"Just keep an eye on her, Kagome," muttered Sango. "If anyone's going to overstep any boundaries, it'll be her and not Inuyasha. He likes you too much."

Kagome was not so sure, but she had to agree that Kallisto was the bolder of the two of them. Throughout their humble but delicious dinner, she found herself observing the nymph's behaviour very closely and was intrigued by what she noticed. Miroku, Inuyasha and Shippo all seemed in their own way intrigued by her: it was as though she had them hypnotised. Stranger still was the way Inuyasha would act when Kallisto addressed him personally. A dreamy, wistful expression would pass over his face, quite unlike any he usually sported, and he would speak with a tenderness in his voice that Kagome had never before heard him use. It was as though no one else were watching, as though he thought he and her were in some private sanctuary of their own. Kagome found it infuriating. He had never behaved like this with her – or even with Kikyo! What was this creature doing that had him in such rapture?

After their meal, in which Kallisto did not partake, Sango and Kagome set about clearing up, despite Miroku's offers to help.

"I want to get out of the way," Kagome confessed to Sango, as they headed towards the brook. "Let's see how she behaves when she thinks we aren't watching."

"Good idea," smiled Sango. "I'd like to see what Miroku gets up to when we're not around."

The two girls stepped across the tiny stream and disappeared behind a copse of trees. Their camp was still perfectly visible yet no one seemed to have notice them vanishing.

"Good," Kagome thought, smiling to herself. "When they do notice, they'll think we've gone for a walk or something. I want to see what that nymph gets up to."

She fished in her bag and produced a pair of binoculars, so she could get a better look. Sango, who had never seen binoculars before, needed some instruction, but once she realised their benefits, she was as keen to use them as Kagome.

"I can see everything," she whispered, peering around the tree at the camp. "Right down to the silly smirk on Miroku's face. These are fantastic!"

They agreed to take it in turns to binoculars, depends on what was happening.

For a few minutes, everything in the camp seemed normal. Kallisto was back in her tree; Miroku and Shippo were conversing merrily, with Inuyasha joining in as he saw fit. Yet when it seemed like the two girls were not coming back, things took an interesting turn. Kallisto sprung nimbly down from her bough and settled herself casually next to Inuyasha. At first, the half-demon seemed to pay her no attention. Yet she inched closer and closer until their two bodies were touching. Inuyasha turned to face her and the same dreamy, careless expression crossed his face. A slender green hand snaked round his shoulder and, to Kagome's horror, he leant back into her arms.

"Why that little temptress!" Kagome whispered. "I knew she was up to something!"

She raised the binoculars to her eyes and continued to watch. Kallisto's lips were moving; apparently she was whispering into Inuyasha's ears. Her long fingers were running through his hair and up and down his back. By the looks of things, he seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the attention. Kagome looked away.

"Here," she muttered, handing Sango the binoculars. "I can't watch anymore."

Sango took the binoculars gently and cast her eyes over to the camp.

"Well, Miroku and Shippo certainly look surprised," she said softly. "Oh, now they're trying to pretend they haven't noticed. This is strange, Kagome, Inuyasha never behaves like this, not even with you. I can't understand – oh! OH! Look at that!"

Kagome peeked around the tree, a lump forming in the back of her throat. She was half expecting to see them kissing yet nothing was different. Inuyasha was still slumped lazily in Kallisto's lap, the nymph still stroking his hair as she gazed down into his face.

"Look at his eyes," Sango whispered excitedly, thrusting the binoculars into Kagome's hands. "Go on!"

Sighing, Kagome lifted the binoculars to her face again, not sure what to expect. Yet it was obvious at once. Inuyasha's eyes were glowing, if very faintly, with some strange green light, the same light she could see dancing in Kallisto's eyes.

"I thought I saw it earlier, when she was talking to Miroku," murmured Sango. "It was just the tiniest flicker in the pupils – it was gone so quickly I figured it was a reflection. But Inuyasha's eyes are really glowing with it! Do you think it's because of her?"

"I have no doubt," Kagome whispered. "I was thinking earlier that she seemed to have them hypnotised: obviously she has! That or it's some kind of spell. Oh this explains so much! When I first came across her in that clearing she was looking right into Inuyasha's eyes – and for a few minutes after she'd moved away, he was so odd, like he was in a trance or a day dream."

"What should we do?" asked Sango. Kagome retreated behind the tree and packed her binoculars away.

"We need to keep an eye on her," she said quietly. "If she's alone with any of them for too long, who knows what she could have them doing."

"Yes," Sango agreed. "My goodness, no wonder there's no demons in this forest – they're no comparison to her!"

"Let's just get back, before she gets up to any mischief," muttered Kagome. Sango gave her a brief nod and they both stepped out from the trees and made back for camp.

It was only a few seconds before they realised something wasn't right. Both Kallisto and Inuyasha had vanished! Kagome turned to Sango, her eyes wide.

"How did she know?" she whispered, and she began to run back to the camp.

Miroku and Shippo both looked concerned as she pelted up to them.

"Whoa, Kagome, where's the fire?" asked Shippo at the look on her face.

"Where did Inuyasha and Kallisto go?" she demanded, depositing her heavy backpack.

"Oh, I don't know," Shippo shrugged.

"We didn't notice they'd gone anywhere," admitted Miroku. "They won't have gone far though, in this time. Why don't you go and have a look?"

Sango, who had just halted by Kagome's side, gave her a worried look.

"What's with the long faces?" Miroku laughed, glancing from one girl to the other. "They'll have only gone to get more firewood or something. Why so worried?"

Kagome looked to Sango: would it be wise to tell Miroku what was going on? Sango answered the question for her.

"Miroku, Kallisto is not what you think she is," Sango informed to monk shrewdly. "Or at least, her intentions are not as she specified. We think she's put some kind of spell over Inuyasha."

"Why would she do that?" asked Shippo, perplexed.

"I don't know," admitted Sango. "But the fact that she's taken Inuyasha out of our sight does nothing to dismiss the idea. We have to find her before she does something."

Shippo still looked confused, but Miroku seemed to have understood.

"We'll split up," he suggested, getting swiftly to his feet. "We'll cover more ground that way. Sango, come with me. Kagome, you take Shippo and Kirara. Meet back here in ten minutes if you haven't found him."

Kagome nodded and gathered Shippo up in her arms. She felt somewhat nauseous, having no idea whether or not she would be able to find Inuyasha or what she would discover if she did find him. She could only hope the cunning wretch had not gone too far.