InuYasha: What the hell are you guys are doing back here?!

Shippo: Cause they want to read on. Duh.

Chiyo: Hey, InuYasha, can I touch your ears?

InuYasha: WHAT?! NO!!

Chiyo: Kyaa! But they're so soft! (reaches up to grab them)

InuYasha: Geroff, geroff!! (anime falls)

Laura: (sighs) A little concentration on the story would be very much appreciated. (clears throat) Moving on...enjoy Chapter Two!


Chapter 2: The Meeting

Chiyo slowly became aware that she could feel her body again. The blackness that had pulled her down into unconsciousness was gradually fading away. That, at least, seemed like a good thing.

Then the pain came.

It wasn't as bad as before, but it was enough to make Chiyo wish she was unconscious again. Moving didn't seem like an option – her muscles were too sore. Chiyo slowly opened her eyes. It looked like she was in...a forest? It was nighttime, and she could hear a fire crackling beside her. She could smell the smoke, too; it was so strong that it made her eyes water. A groan escaped Chiyo's lips – the pain was getting worse. Something moved somewhere close by, and Chiyo heard footsteps; a person? Well, yeah, someone had to have lit the fire. But who could it be? Was Chiyo in danger? She tried to get up, but a sharp pain stabbed at her spine; so much for that idea. The footsteps were getting louder, closer. A voice came next. "Oh good, your awake." It was a girl's voice, and it sounded strangely familiar to Chiyo. Whoever it was knelt down next to her, and finally came into view.

Whatever pain Chiyo had been feeling before, she completely forgot it the instant she saw the girls face.

Chiyo jumped up and squealed in shock, then clipped the back of her heel on a rock and fell over backwards, landing on her back (did I forget to mention that Chiyo is rather clumsy?). The other girl jumped up, startled, then came over and knelt beside Chiyo again. "Are you alright?" she asked, looking anxious. "What's wrong?"

'I'm dreaming I'm dreaming I'm dreaming I'm dreaming I'm dreaming I'm dreaming...' Chiyo shouted over and over again in her mind. She tried to speak, but her mouth just kept opening and closing, like she was trying to imitate a guppy or something. "Are you alright?!" the girl asked again, becoming frantic. Chiyo couldn't just stay silent. She forced herself to gulp, to remember how to speak. She opened her mouth, and whispered;

"...Kagome...?!"

There was no mistaking it. The wavy, black hair with the big fringe on the side, the brown eyes, the green-and-white school uniform with the red tassel Chiyo loved, the knee-high white socks, even the square-ish brown school shoes! There was no doubt that this girl kneeling beside Chiyo was Kagome Higurashi, the teenaged heroine of 'InuYasha.' That would also explain why her voice had been so familiar as well. The only thing that Chiyo wasn't sure about was, well...

HOW?!

Kagome gasped softly, her mouth briefly in an 'o' shape before she abruptly snapped it shut. She stared at Chiyo like she'd just grown another head. After what seemed like a very long silence, she finally said, "...how do you know my name...?"

Suddenly, there was a stabbing pain in Chiyo's chest, and she sat up, gasping and clutching her torso. Kagome jumped up and ran to her bag (the same oversized, yellow one that she always carried with her in the episodes), quickly returning with a small bottle of pink liquid. "The medicine must be wearing off," she mumbled to herself, unscrewing the lid. She produced a spoon from her pocket, then poured the liquid carefully onto it. "Here, drink this," she told Chiyo, handing the spoon to her. "It may taste funny, but it'll help stop the pain."

Chiyo took the spoon in a shaking hand and thrust it into her mouth, swallowing loudly. Gradually, as the medicine took effect, the throbbing pain in her chest dulled, and her breathing slowed back down to a normal pace. All the while Kagome didn't take her eyes off Chiyo. Chiyo, on the other hand, avoided Kagome's gaze at all costs. They both sat in silence, seeming to be waiting for the other one to talk. It was so quiet, Chiyo could hear the sound of everything around her; she could even hear the footsteps of a beetle crossing the ground in front of her. Chiyo frowned, staring at the bug. How could she possibly be able to hear it that clearly and loudly?

Kagome suddenly cleared her throat, causing Chiyo to jump at the noise. How come everything was so loud?

"Umm..." Kagome didn't know how to begin. "So...has the pain, y'know, gone?"

Chiyo nodded stiffly, still not looking up.

"Uh, well...I really don't think I know you, but...you seem to know me."

Chiyo flinched, but otherwise didn't respond. Kagome waited until the silence became awkward again. "So..." she started again, "I guess...what I'm trying to say is...how do you know my name?"

Chiyo still kept silent. She was still getting over that the fact that she was sitting right next to Kagome.

KA-GO-ME!

She took a deep breath, and tried to clear her head. She needed to answer Kagome soon; she couldn't just sit here in silence forever. Chiyo lifted her head and finally looked at Kagome. The shock of her being here hit her again, but Chiyo forced herself to mentally compose herself and answer. She took another deep breath, and opened her mouth to answer. But she never got the chance.

For that instant, something suddenly slammed into her with the force of a tow truck.

Chiyo felt a rush of the cold night air as she was sent flying, then was winded as she smacked into a tree. A hand closed around her neck, pinning her against the trunk.

"Ah! What are you doing?!" Chiyo heard Kagome cry.

"Who are you?! What were you doing to Kagome?!" an angry, threatening voice yelled at her. Chiyo's heart missed a beat at the sound of that voice – it was even more familiar than Kagome's had been. She didn't need to look down to see who had her pinned here, but she did anyway. The same angry face as her computer background stared back at her, only this time it wasn't just an image on a screen; it was real.

InuYasha.

Chiyo felt entirely ecstatic, completely bewildered and utterly petrified all at the same time. Here was her absolute favourite character in the whole world, InuYasha, standing right in front of her. On the other hand, he was threatening to kill her because, in his eyes, he thought she was here to hurt Kagome. And that is not a good thing for InuYasha to think about you if you valued your life.

Man, was this the worst situation Chiyo could possibly be in now.

InuYasha pressed his hand tighter on Chiyo's throat, and his claws dug into her neck. Chiyo gasped as they punctured her skin, and spots of blood appeared. "Answer me!!" he yelled at her. Chiyo tried to speak, to explain that she didn't mean any harm, but she couldn't; InuYasha's hand was too tight on her neck.

"Let her go, InuYasha!" yelled Kagome. "She can't breath! Look at her, she's turning blue!"

"No! You're in danger, Kagome! She's here to kill us!"

Chiyo couldn't breath, but she could manage to shake her head just the slightest bit.

"You see, InuYasha? Let her go or she'll suffocate!!"

"But Kagome! She stinks of-"

"SIT BOY!"

Suddenly the pressure left Chiyo's throat, and the next instant a loud crash echoed through the forest. Chiyo crumpled to the ground, gasping for air. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw InuYasha spread out in his usual 'sit' position. Kagome ran up to Chiyo and checked her neck, which was now covered in a great deal of blood. Kagome scowled and turned to InuYasha. "Look what you did!" she yelled at him. "You idiot! You're so outrageous sometimes!"

InuYasha pulled his face out of the ground and looked up at Kagome. "I'm the idiot?!" he shouted back. "What about you? How could you possibly want to protect her?!" InuYasha was now getting to his feet, and he was glaring at Chiyo.

"But...I haven't...done...anything..." Chiyo gasped. "I...I don't...even know...how I got here..." She than began a forceful fit of coughing and, to her horror, specks of blood flew out from her mouth onto the ground.

"Oh, don't give me that pitiful 'I'm innocent' crap!!" InuYasha spat at Chiyo. He turned to Kagome. "I'm serious, Kagome, we can't trust her!" he said to her, in a gentler tone.

"And why, might I ask, can't we? What has she done?!" Kagome yelled back, not bothering to be gentle at all.

InuYasha then drew his sword, the Tetsuaiga, and pointed it at Chiyo. If Chiyo had not been on the verge of death, she might have gasped in awe. But instead, she almost fainted in fear.

"Because," InuYasha said with a voice full of hate, "she absolutely reeks of Naraku!!"


Laura: Dun-dun-DUUUUUUN!!

Chiyo: Why do I have to be the one who stinks all the time?

InuYasha: Because you have B.O. problems.

Kagome: InuYasha!

InuYasha: What? It's a fact of life! The truth hurts, y'know.

Kagome: (whispers) If you're going to say that, be subtle about it! (to Chiyo) Here, Chiyo, have these. I don't really need'em, so you can have them. (hands Chiyo 10 cans of deodorant, a box of perfumes and 5 tubes of toothpaste)

Chiyo: ...(sweatdrop)