Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha and so on and so forth.
Author: I've been really busy lately, but I think I'm back to a regular updating schedule. Or I will be soon, anyway. Read and Review, as always.
Kagome stared at the blank white paper, pencil in her hand and her eyes somewhat unfocused. She placed the tip of the pencil down. 'Indent' She thought vaguely, moving the pencil about an inch over. Then she stopped again. Words just weren't flowing. A paper on American history...How stupid. Why should anyone care about other country's origins? 'I guess that's what I get for signing up for International Studies.' Kagome dropped her pencil, erasing the tiny dot her lead had made on the paper.
Kagome smiled to herself and snatched her pencil once more. "Sacred Jewel Shard-A Hanyou's story." She underlined the title and paused for a moment.
So small, the sacred Jewel
To bring such pain and anger
To heighten powers and bring distrust
To bring betrayal and danger
So small, the sacred Jewel
To be broken even smaller
To be scattered across the land
To grow the tree even taller
So small, the sacred Jewel
To break a love so true
So small, the sacred Jewel
To give hope anew
So small, the sacred Jewel
I don't want it any more
All it does is bring me pain
And agony galore
Kagome frowned at the words scrawled across the paper. It wasn't exactly worthy of a Nobel Prize or anything, but it seemed fitting at the moment. Tossing her pencil back onto the desk, she looked out the window and saw Inuyasha sitting high in a tree several yards away, clearly sleeping. "What is he doing?" She wondered out loud, then shook her head and fell face-first onto her bed, not bothering to get under the covers.
Inuyasha cracked open one eye, watching as Kagome plopped onto her bed. He tilted his head to one side, wondering what she had written on the paper. She appeared to have a great deal of trouble with it, but seemed pleased with the end result. "Damn, I wish I could see it." Inuyasha muttered to himself, scowling as he craned his neck, trying to read it, but couldn't from that distance. Frustrated, he turned and made himself comfortable, waiting for morning.
When morning finally came, Kagome yawned, sitting up and wiping the sleep from her eyes. She stumbled into the bathroom, splashing water on her face. She had taken a shower last night, sometime between trying to start her history paper and writing the poem. Now, she ran a brush through her hair, skipping several tangles, lack of enthusiasm being responsible for that. She trotted downstairs, greeting her mother who was busy cooking, and was slightly surprised to see Inuyasha already wolfing down her mother's food.
"Good morning, Kagome." Her mother said lightly, apparently quite pleased that Inuyasha was enjoying the food so much. Kagome smiled, sitting opposite Inuyasha and starting to eat her own breakfast.
"I'll wait for you at the well." Inuyasha said suddenly, just as Kagome sat down. He sprang to his feet, rushing out the door. Kagome lifted one eyebrow, but simply shrugged and continued to eat. Inuyasha turned and trotted back towards the house once he had gone all the way around it. He sprang to Kagome's window, pressing his nose against the glass and smiling as he spotted the poem on her desk. The smile faded as he continued to read, and once he had finished, he simply sat on her windowsill, thinking.
Kagome's thoughts wandered, as they so often did in the morning, and she ended up thinking about her poem. She hadn't really been focused on what she was writing, the words seemed to echo from her pencil on their own. "Oh no." She said suddenly and stood abruptly. Grandpa and her Mother stared at her. Without explaining, she turned and ran upstairs to her room as quickly as she could, just in time to see Inuyasha sitting in her window.
"Let's go, Kagome." He said quietly, hopping down from the windowsill. Kagome sighed, sweeping the poem from her desk. She had fully intended to throw it away, but instead folded it up and stuck it in her pocket.
"Inuyasha, I can't go!" She called after him, trying to catch up as he walked towards the well house.
"And why not?" Inuyasha asked, sounding childish and grumpy.
"I..." Kagome's voice faded, then she calmed herself down. "I'm going out with Hojo tonight." She said smoothly.
"You'll be back in time." Inuyasha said, walking over to the well. Kagome caught his arm just before he jumped in.
"I really don't want to miss this." She said carefully. "I'll come back to the feudal era as soon as it's over, ok?" Inuyasha glared at her.
"Fine." He said, jumping into the well. Kagome let out a small yelp as the bright blue light flashed in her eyes, then stood frustrated as Inuyasha vanished.
"What's so special about a 'Winter Formal' anyway?" Inuyasha growled, stomping through the trees to where he had left Miroku and Sango.
"Hello, Inuyasha." Miroku said once he came into view. He frowned slightly. "Where's Kagome?"
"She had things to do." Inuyasha muttered angrily. "Come on. Let's go."
"Go where?" Sango asked, scrambling to her feet and picking up her Hiraikotsu. "We don't have any leads as to how we can defeat Naraku." Inuyasha glared at her.
"Well we won't get anywhere just sitting around staring at each other." Sango's eyes widened in mild surprise.
"Ok, ok." She said. Inuyasha took off at a dead sprint through the trees. "INUYASHA!" Sango cried, but he didn't slow down. Miroku looked just as baffled as she did. "We'd better go..." Sango said as Kirara transformed. Sango and Miroku clambered onto her back and the firecat took off, trying to catch up to the half demon running beneath them.
As Inuyasha ran, he became aware of a bizarre scent wafting through the trees from up ahead. It smelled exactly like Kagome...But there was also the scent of her mother's cooking...And strangely enough, the scent of roses. He sped up, feeling as though his heart would burst. Sango frowned, seeing Inuyasha's speed increase even further.
"What...?" She was cut off as Kirara also sprang forward, going faster than she ever had. Shippo climbed to the front of Kirara's neck, eyes wide. "I smell ninja food! And strawberries and rain!" He said happily, reaching his head forward as if to make Kirara go faster. Sango and Miroku stared at each other.
"I don't smell any of those things..." Sango said warily. Then suddenly she stopped, staring at Miroku, who had fallen asleep. "I actually feel a bit tired myself..." Sango suddenly shook her head. "Wait...I know what this is..." Her voice began to fade as she fought to remain conscious. "It's a demon...We have to fight it..." She murmured.
"No, Miroku, wake up." She beat his arm feebly with one fist. "Our desires will destroy us..." After a few more seconds, the smell of wildflowers and honey drifted to Sango. Blackness began to close over her vision just as a small village came into view. She thought she smelled Miroku as well, but he was behind her, he scent would be going the other way...Confused, she finally passed out, leaning forward into Kirara's fur as the firecat began to descend towards the village.
Kagome smiled, looking at her reflection in a mirror. A deep midnight blue dress fell from her shoulders down to her ankles. The dress itself was strapless, and tiny diamonds made the material sparkle and glitter in the light of her room. Her mother knocked on the door twice, then came in.
"Here, Kagome." She said kindly, holding out a pale blue wrap, draping it over her daughter's shoulders. "Thanks, mom." Kagome said happily, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. Her hair was swept back into an elegant bun, with two curled strands framing her face.
She hugged her mother just as there was a knock at the front door. Kagome rushed downstairs, forgetting all about Inuyasha for the first time. Hojo smiled upon seeing Kagome. "You look beautiful." He said simply, offering her his arm. She grinned and took it. "Thank you," She glanced over her shoulder. "Bye mom!" She called, and the pair walked out the door.
Inuyasha reached the village just as Kirara landed a few paces in front of him. Overwhelmed from all these pleasing scents, he barely noticed the unconscious Miroku and Sango. "What's going on?" Shippo chirped, hopping down from Kirara's back as their favorite scents began drifting away. "I want my ninja food!" He cried, running forward towards the largest building. Kirara followed, and Inuyasha himself was itching to run in the direction of Kagome's scent, but he restrained himself.
He was starting to feel tired, anyway. "Inu...Yasha..." Sango's voice caused him to look over at her. She was barely awake, having fallen from Kirara's back as she sprang towards the building. "It's a rare demon...One who takes demon and human desires and destroys them using the desires themselves. Humans fall into a deep sleep when they smell the demon, who takes on the scent of each individual's most beloved thing, while full demons become slaves to it..." Her voice began to drift, but Inuyasha was suddenly thinking more clearly.
He grasped Sango's shoulder. "No, wait, Sango, how do I defeat this demon?!" He said urgently.
"I'm afraid you can't." A voice from ahead of him caused Inuyasha to look up, seeing an extremely humanoid demon standing a few feet away, except for the fact that his skin was a deep midnight blue. That was Inuyasha's favorite color, as it turned out. "You want Kagome...It's obvious. Just as the monk and demon slayer pine only for each other. The two demons inside are already slaves to me...But I think I'll have a bit of fun with you...Hanyous are always interesting to deal with."
The demon stepped down from the steps of the large building, and Inuyasha shook his head, the scent of Kagome drowning out the others. Sango had passed out again, and Miroku was smiling faintly in his sleep. "Lecherous monk. Probably dreaming something filthy about the demon slayer." The demon said, smiling bitterly.
"Oh, but do I detect a hint of jealousy?" The demon reached out, stroking Inuyasha's cheek with one long, blue finger. Inuyasha snarled, although he found he couldn't move. The moment the demon touched him, he felt his Youkai surging forward, trying to take control. And it was winning. "Yes...Why don't you go retrieve your dear priestess now? It is your greatest desire, is it not?" The demon whispered.
Inuyasha's eyes suddenly blazed red. "Kagome." He murmured, turning and sprinting off through the forest towards the well, leaving the demon smiling behind him.