Disclaimer: Inuyasha and co. have still managed to elude me. I consulted an expert on the subject and have since purchased a magical device known as a "clicker", which is supposed to enforce my will upon Inus. I have marched around clicking this infernal device, but have not yet had either Inuyasha or Sesshoumaru respond to pledge their eternal loyalty. I'll be leaving a scathing review on that trainer's website later -.-

~Chapter Three~

Miyako closed her eyes as she made the transition. The temperature dropped and she could sense the world around her becoming darker. It was as if she had been standing in the sun and a cloud passed by overhead, casting a shadow over everything. Opening her eyes, she glanced around. She and her brother were standing beneath the same tree, but the world around them had changed. Instead of the tranquil forest softly lit by the light of the setting sun, it was as if twilight had fallen over everything. The bright colors were muted and had changed from warm greens and browns to cool blues and grays, and a cold mist clung to everything. Around them the animals of the forest continued about their lives, birds chirped and fluttered about up in the canopy and squirrels chattered as they scampered through the branches. The sounds, even to the twin's sensitive ears, were muted as well, almost as if they were hearing echoes rather than the sounds themselves. Everything was a little darker, a little different, washed out. Except, of course, for the spirits.

Everywhere she looked, Miyako could see bright splashes of color in the darkness as the ghostly creatures flitted through the trees and slunk through the underbrush. All different sizes and forms, they crawled or flew, invisible outside their own domain. This was their world. She and Katsurou had discovered when they were very young that they could slip into the spirit world and had kept it a secret from everyone, even their mother and father. They had called it shadowing, because it was easier to slip into the spirit world through shadows, and had used it often and gleefully. Anything they could carry they could take into the spirit world, as long as it wasn't alive. By shadowing, they could slip undetected past nurses and guards alike and none had caught them as they adventured around the castle, and sometimes just outside it. In the spirit world the twins could see the true forms of the creatures around them, and it had taught them a great deal about the true nature of things. A deer peeked tentatively through the foliage before tiptoeing out from the cover. Its ears flicked back and forth nervously, but beneath the grayed body of the gentle animal Miyako could see the oni who had assumed the deer's form, hoping to entice a predator close enough to be captured and consumed. While the false body leaned down to graze, the oni turned towards them, furrowing it's brow in confusion. Miyako and Katsurou held very still as it glared at them, searching for something it could not see. Finally, the oni was distracted by some movement in the woods and set its bait-body meandering innocently off into the trees after its prey.

Miyako took a deep breath. They had learned very quickly what a dangerous game they played, balancing the physical and spirit world. The further they sank into the spirit world the less physical influences affected them. They would not be hungry or thirsty and could walk right through physical barriers, but they had discovered that if they could not burn energy from their bodies, they began burning energy from their own spirits. As they entered deeper into the spirit world they could not be harmed physically, but their souls were vulnerable to attacks from angry, aggressive spirits. If they brushed too close to the physical world, they could be seen and suffer attacks to their physical forms, but were unaffected by spirits. It was a difficult line to walk, staying grounded enough that spirits could not sense them but ethereal enough to avoid detection on the physical plane. They could not maintain it for long and would have to choose quickly. Often it came down to which part of them was in the greatest danger; their bodies or their souls.

With the oni gone the children could sense no immediate threats in the area and so slipped deeper into their spirits, leaving the physical world almost completely behind. Looking up, they saw the tengu as clearly as if he had been standing next to them, circling frantically as he searched for some sign of them. Inside the great bird, they saw his human form as well, eyes wide with panic. After a few moments, he ceased circling and raced away, though oddly enough he did not head back towards the castle. Miyako frowned, but was distracted by her brother's delighted snicker. Glancing over, Miyako was struck anew at his appearance in the spirit world, though she had seen it nearly all her life. Unlike the glowing spirits who were at home on this plane, she and her brother seemed to be made entirely of darkness. His eyes glowed an eerie blue as the shadows that made Katsurou's face shifted into an impish smile. At the same time, his beast gaped at her in a dog-grin, tongue lolling out of his mouth happily, the two images hovering over each other. Miyako grinned back and felt her beast wriggle with glee at the trick they were playing.

"He'll never find us!" Katsurou exclaimed, his voice reverberating oddly. "Let's go!"

They adjusted their packs on their shoulders and together the two of them bounded off in the direction of the second camp, laughing as they ran straight through trees and rocks. After a while, they began to tire and slowed to a walk, conserving their spirit energy by slipping closer to the physical world. Though they were still incorporeal enough to avoid leaving a trail, they were no longer able to walk through obstacles and were forced to wind their way around trees and cliffs. As they walked, Katsurou glanced around, distracted. He sent a tiny pulse of power into the area around them and waited expectantly. Moments later a whirl of color exploded in his mind and he grinned excitedly as a little spirit flitted into view. He held up a hand and the sprite fluttered over, landing on his wrist and clamping its mouth over the tip of his thumb. Katsurou waited patiently as the sprite, in the form of a tiny dragon, sipped at his energy before turning and waddling up his arm to his shoulder, diving under Katsurou's shadowy hair.

"Hello, Mimic," Miyako said with a smile. The little spirit popped his head out from his hiding place around Katsurou's neck, several ghostly strands of hair caught on his miniature horns.

"Hello Mimic!" the little creature chirped, then disappeared back into his makeshift den. Katsurou laughed as it wriggled against his neck, letting his happy energy flow into the tiny spirit. The twins had met Mimic when they were little, and when Katsurou had shared some of his spirit energy to feed the creature it had bonded to him immediately. Mimic had stayed with the twins and over time had become bonded enough that he could sometimes appear to them on the physical plane. Though it was not exceptionally bright, the little clown could take the form of anything it saw and could repeat simple phrases, resulting in much hilarity for his youkai friend. The little spirit may not have been very tough, but the twins had learned to watch it closely for signs that a threatening spirit might be in the area. If Mimic ran, they should too.

Together, the trio made their way deeper into the forest, headed toward the river that wound its way through the western territory. They walked in companionable silence, Mimic sending content bursts of colors into Katsurou's mind as they traveled.

Katsurou began bouncing on his toes excitedly with every step, causing Mimic- who now a squirrel- to chortle happily as it clung to the collar of his kimono. They were getting closer to the camp, and with every step Katsurou grew more eager to arrive. The sun had sunk deeper in the sky and the shadows were stretching across the ground when the trees opened up and they found themselves on the shore of a lake. The sun was still high enough to sparkle on the still water as they gazed across at the forest on the far side, though they stood in the shadows of the trees.

"The camp is right on the other side," Katsurou said excitedly, "let's just go across!" Miyako licked her shadowy lips and her beast flicked an ear tensely.

"I don't know, that's there's not a lot of cover for us and we'll be fully shadowed. Maybe it would be better to go around…" she replied uncertainly.

"Around," Mimic muttered, chewing nervously on Katsurou's ear. He squinted at the far bank.

"It's not that far, we could run it," he said confidently. Miyako still looked unsure and glanced up at the sky, looking at the sun where it sat perched right above the tree line.

"We should wait until it gets a little darker," she suggested, but Katsurou rolled his eyes.

"If we wait any longer it will be completely dark by the time we reach the camp. Let's just go!" he growled, and his eyes glowed briefly as he settled deeper the spirit world. He took off over the water and with a curse Miyako shadowed completely and followed him. She caught up easily and together they raced across the lake, their spirits too light to break the surface.

They were halfway across and Miyako was beginning to relax when Mimic screeched shrilly and launched himself away from Katsurou, flapping his new bird wings frantically. Miyako had only a second to meet Katsurou's horrified gaze as they both felt a malevolent force rising from the depths of the lake. They dove to the side as the enormous spirit exploded from the water, the glassy surface undisturbed by the evil spirit. The twins got a good look at its momentum carried it into the air. The spirit looked like a giant koi, and as it fell back to the water its angry eyes fixed on the twins. Katsurou felt its hatred shoot down his spine like a lance.

"Change back!" he cried frantically.

"We can't!" Miyako screamed, "It's too bright. Look out!"

Katsurou dove to the side as the koi breached again right beneath him. The spirit flailed in frustration as it missed its quarry and sank once more into the water.

"It's a water spirit, it's tied to the lake. We have to get to shore!" Miyako gasped as they dodged the creature once more. The thing was astoundingly fast for its size. Katsurou glanced back at the sun, which continued to inch its way unhurriedly below the trees, the shadows slowly stretching across the surface. An idea struck him.

"Turn around!" he cried, and Miyako shot him an incredulous glance as she leaped away from the creature.

"Get to the shadows!" he clarified, and an instant later both of them were running as fast as they could towards the middle of the lake. The evil spirit followed, gaining on them as they raced desperately towards their goal. With a burst of speed, the creature launched itself into the air, mouth opened wide as it descended upon its quarry. The twins cried out in terror as they leapt forward, arms reaching out towards the shadows.

The twins' physical bodies crashed through the surface of the water and Katsurou felt a chill surge through him as the spirit passed through them harmlessly an instant later. He pulled himself to the surface and kicked his feet, treading water as he fought to catch his breath. Miyako popped up a moment later with a gasp, her soft flowing hair plastered to her face in a very undignified way. She shoved it out of the way with a glare that would have killed anyone but her brother and he grinned at her, his terror already turning to elation. With a snarl she pulled her fist back and punched him as hard as she could in his arm, causing him to yelp and scurry away through the water. She turned, leaving him behind as she began to swim towards the shore, and he hurried to catch up. As they dragged themselves onto the beach, Miyako leaned over to wring the water from her hair, still glaring at her brother.

"I told you we should go around, you moron!" she hissed.

"Moron!" came a voice from trees, and Mimic fluttered down to a low branch and fluffed up his feathers reproachfully.

"Shut up!" Katsurou snapped at the little spirit, "Don't side with my stupid sister!"

"Stupid," Mimic muttered darkly, and Katsurou growled at it.

"Come on, let's just get to camp. I want a fire so I can dry off," Miyako said waspishly, and Katsurou followed her, glaring at Mimic who had changed into a koi fish and was now swimming through the air around Katsurou's head.

The remainder of their trek was soggy, but uneventful, and by the time they reached the bank of the river where they intended to make camp the sun had set completely. Katsurou tossed his pack down by a tree as he looked around.

"Alright! How about I unpack and you go get some sticks for fi—" At Miyako's withering glare, Katsurou cut off abruptly.

"You know what? I'll get the sticks, you set things up here." He ducked quickly into the trees, Mimic a rabbit at his heels, and Miyako reached for the packs and began setting out their supplies. When he finally returned with an arm full of wood his sister had organized everything into a respectable campsite, and within moments the twins had a pleasant fire burning. They huddled close to it, their damp kimonos slowly drying as the heat sank through and finally began to warm them. Miyako grabbed the two extra blankets that her mother had insisted they take and grudgingly held one out to her brother, which he took as a sign of forgiveness and accepted with a grin. They sat in companionable silence, staring into the fire. At last, Katsurou spoke.

"Do you think they will be worried?" he asked quietly, clearly thinking about their parents. Mimic, now a fox, yipped comfortingly at him and nuzzled him with its sharp nose. Miyako pulled her blanket around her defiantly, her expression mulish.

"Probably more worried than they would have been if they'd let us go like they were supposed to," she said darkly. "Then we'd be at the camp like we were supposed to."

Katsurou nodded, but it wasn't in his nature to hold onto his anger and he was beginning to feel guilty about running off.

"Maybe we should have turned around and told them we knew we were being followed," he said quietly. "Then they might have really let us do it on our own."

Miyako frowned, refusing to give in.

"Or they would have just made the tengu go with us anyway. You know how they are, they think we have to be protected from everything. You were right the first time, this is a better way to prove that we can take care of ourselves. Besides, Mama was much younger than us when she was lived in the woods, and nothing ever happened to her."

Katsurou nodded his head in agreement, and they once again fell silent. Together they listened to the sound of the river flowing over the rocks nearby and the hum of the crickets as they called to their companions in the darkness.

"Maybe we should go back," Katsurou said suddenly. Miyako glared at him, prepared to issue a scathing retort when suddenly Mimic vanished. The twins froze, staring at each other.

"What happened to the crickets?" Miyako whispered. Katsurou opened his mouth to reply when a sudden blur of motion behind Miyako caught his eye. Before his answer could change into a cry of warning, a sudden burst of pain exploded in the back of his head. As the darkness rushed in he saw Miyako reaching for him, struggling desperately against whatever held her in its grasp, and then he saw nothing at all.

A/N: Looks like mama Rin's instincts were right! Who on earth would have the guts to mess with Sesshy's babies?! As always, please R&R, I'm loving the responses I've gotten so far! You guys rock my socks =^.^=

~ShadowS