Disclaimer! All characters from Inuyasha mentioned in this story belong fully to Rumiko Takahashi and are being used solely for the purpose of entertainment and I am not receiving any form of payment or currency for my writing besides the enjoyment from those reading.

Chapter Three

The sun peeked over the trees and Kagome blinked her eyes and revelled in the warmth it gave her she looked around and saw a small fire going, with two fish cooking on sticks poked into the ground next to it. Kagome smiled, over the course of a few days the two had a routine, Setsukō would wake at dawn and would manage to catch something for a decent meal, it usually consisted of fish or smaller prey like a rabbit, but she would start cooking it before Kagome would wake. Kagome would then clean the area and dispose of what was left of their meal and they would continue their travel.

The two had become fairly close in the short amount of time they had been together, Kagome assumed it was due to the fact they had to rely on one another for survival so it was only natural to form a bond. The two women had quite a lot in common as well, they both enjoyed soaking in the hot spring and not just for bathing, they both enjoyed the sound of rain and Kagome found herself really enjoying being around Setsukō. The woman was so nice and caring but she didn't once hint at Kagome not being able to care for herself. They had, a day ago, come across a low-level boar demon that charged at them, Kagome channelled Reiryoku into her fingertips and shot it towards the demon, surprised by the sudden burst of holy energy the demon turned tail and ran. Setsukō had then run up to her and exclaimed how fantastic she thought it was. Setsukō never put Kagome down, and the selfish part of Kagome didn't want to let Setsukō go because she was the first person in a long time that didn't see Kagome as someone that needed protecting and that for once there was a person who actually needed Kagome to protect them.

Kagome stretched and rubbed the last bit of sleep from her eyes with a sigh, looking down at Setsukō's outer haori that they used as a blanket, luckily it was almost summer and so it didn't get too cold, but that didn't stop the Miko from wishing she had her supplies. Kagome leaned near the fire to check on the fish and looked around the area, curious as to where Setsukō had gone off to. Suddenly the all too familiar aura of her favourite wolf demon washed over her, the two shards in his legs hummed out their own form of greetings. Kagome perked up when the tell-tale cloud signalled his approach. When the dust cleared the wolf only had a moment to glance around before Kagome launched herself into his arms with a squeal of delight. When she pulled away a light blush formed across her cheeks and she noticed the yellow straps of her backpack on his shoulders.

"Is that my backpack?" she looked up at him but realised that he wasn't focused on her words, Kōga was looking her over, circling around her, "Kōga?"

"What the hell happened Kagome? I was stopped by the kitsune and the fire cat and they told me that you were in danger!" He narrowed his eyes and lifted his hands to cradle her cheeks, "Do you know how worried I was?"

"Wait, Shippō and Kirara? Are they alright?" Kōga rolled his eyes but couldn't be upset, Kagome's heart and soul were always concerned with others and she never put herself above the kit.

"Yes dove, they are fine a little exhausted looking for you, but Ginta and Hakkaku took them to the old Miko, I came to look for you - which wasn't easy by the way, that undead one did a good job at covering your tracks." Kagome looked relieved at the news but Kōga was curious why she had a sad smiled when he mentioned the clay Miko. There was a rustle and instantly Kōga pushed Kagome behind him taking a protective stance. Kagome looked at him in question when Setsukō stepped out from the brush, her sleeve filled with berries, she blinked at the two in front of her. Setsukō was about to say something when Kōga let out a growl.

"Kōga, she's a friend!" Kagome tried to explain and ease Kōga's protectiveness, but the wolf didn't budge and growled deeper when Setsukō took a small step but froze when he bared his fangs.

"Why don't you have a scent?" Kōga's eyes narrowed at the stranger. Setsukō backed away and looked to Kagome in confusion. It never occurred to Kagome that Setsukō might have other issues since they were both humans.

"Setsukō doesn't have a scent, Kōga what do you mean?".

"She doesn't carry a scent of her own, she has your scent on her - around her - but she smells of nothing," Kōga stared at Setsukō warily, "if it wasn't for the fact that I can see her standing in front of me, I would have never had known she was there."

"Kagome, do you think that it has something to do with these?" Setsukō asked quietly as she lifted up her arm, her sleeve falling to reveal the shackle, but before Kagome could respond Kōga grabbed Setsukō's arm and pulled the limb close to inspect it. As quick as he grabbed her wrist he dropped it and turned to Kagome.

"How long have those been on her?" the wolf demanded, the serious tone his voice carried worried the Miko.

"I found her almost a week ago, so, about three weeks at the most I think, why? Do you know what they are?"

"They are binding cuffs, very powerful magic was put into those," Kōga looked down in thought, "I have only seen a likeness to those once a long time ago - we need to get her to your old Miko as soon as we can, it's dangerous to have that kind of magic on for too long."

Kagome and Setsukō both agreed that they felt much better now that Kōga was travelling with them, and Kagome was ecstatic to have her bag and supplies again. With the wolf prince, the girls no longer had to struggle to get food, as Kōga was more than happy to provide for 'his woman' as he called her, much to Kagome's embarrassment. Setsukō thought it was cute, how much Kōga cared for the Miko. Kagome seemed to relax more in Kōga's presence, even enough that when they came across a Hot spring and Kagome grabbed her bag and Setsukō's arm, leaving an amused Kōga as he set up camp.

When the two girls reached the spring Kagome started pulling out her bathing supplies, stepping into the water Setsukō looked at all of the items that Kagome was pulling from her odd yellow bag, Kagome sunk into the warm water with a sigh and two odd containers in her hands.

"What are those Kagome?" Kagome opened the bottle and offered it to Setsukō to smell, her eyes brightened at the scent "Oh, it smells like lavender!"

"It's called shampoo, we make it in my village, it helps clean your hair" Kagome chuckled at the childlike wonder on Setsukō's face, "I can wash yours if you'd like."

"Tell me more, of your village, I see you carry so many strange items, like your odd 'back sack' and your clothes" Setsukō waded over to kneel in front of Kagome, mesmerised as the gooey substance foamed as Kagome worked it into her hair. Kagome giggled.

"It's called a backpack, they are sacks that can hold a lot of items, my clothes are a uniform I use for tutoring, all the girls my age in my village wear them though I admit that it's not my first choice of clothing, dip into the water and rinse your hair" Setsukō nodded and sank into the water, Kagome put some conditioner in Setsukō's hair and took her comb to try and work out the tangles that she couldn't before.

"Do you have family in your village?" Kagome hummed a yes.

"I have my Grandfather, my mother and my younger brother still there," Kagome smiled as she thought of her family, "My duty as a Miko takes me away from them but they understand, I go home as often as I can." Setsukō smiled, having a family must have been nice. Once Kagome felt that Setsukō's hair was untangled enough she ordered the girl to rinse her hair once more, happy that the dull grey was a little more vibrant now that the dirt was completely washed out of it. Setsukō sank into the water with a far off look.

"I remember a garden, filled with Uke Yuri, I think I spent a lot of time there" Kagome looked startled for a moment, her expression made Setsukō chuckle and wave a hand, "I don't remember a place but it's more of a feeling, a vague memory."

"Don't worry Setsukō, Kaede will help us figure out what happened." Kagome tried to reassure her friend but only received a small smile and Kagome knew that the girl didn't fully believe her. When they were done with their bath Kagome passed Setsukō a towel to dry off and pulled two yukata from her bag both given to her for her birthday by Sango. Kagome was very excited to finally be clean with a new set of clothes, after putting hers on she turned to see if Setsukō needed any help just to find that she had hers done almost expertly, which just solidified Kagome's suspicions further.

The small trio got to Kaede's much faster with Kōga having joined them, Ginta and Hakkaku were both sitting outside of Kaede's hut when the three arrived. Their arms crossed and Kagome could tell that they took their 'guard duty' seriously. When they saw Kagome they both jumped from their position and ran over, scooping Kagome up.

"Sis! So happy to see you safe and sound!"

"We were so worried when the kit told us you were all alone, luckily boss found you!" Kagome let out a gleeful shriek from being lifted into the air but she happily returned the affection. Kōga huffed off to the side but Setsukō only chuckled. Kōga turned his attention over to the other girl in question and she shrugged.

"I'm just enjoying how smitten you are" Kōga blushed which made Setsukō laugh wholeheartedly, drawing the attention of the three in front of them. Ginta and Hakkaku quickly swarmed around Setsukō.

"Who is this?" Hakkaku asked with narrowed eyes, he knew that Kōga attracted a lot of female attention but there was only one woman who belonged with him. Kagome placed her hands on her hips and gave them a stern look.

"Her name is Setsukō and she's a friend, be nice!" Ginta and Hakkaku both looked like scolded puppies as they rubbed the back of their necks. Kōga couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled up, only Kagome could put his men in their place, pride swelled in his chest. Kōga knew even with everything going on that he may now finally have a chance to show her how much he cared for her.

"Ah, Kagome so it was ye that was the cause of the ruckus out here?" Kagome turned to face Kaede with a smile, "Ye had us all wound up with worry when the kit told us what happened, but ye are safe here now, come inside and tell me the full story."

The old Miko ushered everyone inside her small hut, with the whole group it left little space but they made do, the moment Kagome entered Kirara and Shippō both became attached to her and made themselves comfortable on her lap and after they all situated themselves Kagome started her tale, from the moment she sent Shippō away, to Kikyō fighting Naraku's hold - telling her to find the shrine of Inari, finding Setsukō and the shackles and then to this moment. Kaede frowned as the story finished and she turned to face Setsukō, motioning for the girl to show her the shackles. As she studied them her frown only grew.

"Ye need to get these removed as soon ye can, otherwise ye'd be stuck in this form forever." Setsukō's brows furrowed, the only one in the group that didn't seem so surprised was Kōga.

"Stuck in this form, I don't even know what these are let alone who would be able to remove them, I only have more questions" Kaede sighed and patted Setsukō's shoulders sympathetically.

"These are very powerful binding cuffs, tools that were once used by Priests to capture and subdue powerful yōkai long ago, these have been modified to hold the shards which seem to only enhance the power," Kaede sat back and looked Setsukō in the eyes, "The only one that could have placed these on you is someone with a high level of Reiryoku."

"Someone went through a lot of trouble to get you out of the way, but why they didn't kill you when they had the chance is my question, you don't put bindings as strong as these on a yōkai just to turn her human and leave her in the middle of nowhere." Kōga stood with his arms crossed leaning on the wall Kagome was sitting against. Both she and Setsukō looked at him in shock. Kaede nodded in agreement.

"Unless it was a form of revenge on ye for doing something?" Kaede added a thought but Kagome shook her head.

"If that were the case, why would they make her forget her memories, she could have easily just started somewhere new and given up on the thought of finding out her past, it would defeat the purpose of punishing her."

"What if it was about revenge on someone else if they take away every memory she had of that person they can never have her back - nothing would be worse than a loved one not remembering who you are," they all seemed to think on Kōga's input, "either way we can't figure out who she was until we get those bindings off of her." Kagome found it endearing as he seemed to take charge and couldn't help but to study his features, he seemed so relaxed, her eyes wandered over his body, taking in his muscular arms as they crossed over his chest, his neck up to his face, and she felt warmth spread across her cheeks as his eyes met her own and he gave her his signature smirk. Kagome's face lit up and she snapped her attention away, mortified that she had been caught ogling.

"There are very few ways that I know of that can remove them, none are going to be easy. First is to find the one that put them on in the first place, Second find a priest or priestess powerful enough to remove them, or Third I believe would rest with Lord Sesshōmaru, his Tenseiga may be able to cut through the enchantments holding the cuffs together, as they are formed by runes from the netherworld."

Kagome and Kōga shared a look at the thought of asking Sesshōmaru for help, Kōga looked down at the Miko "Maybe if you take me to where you found her, I can pick up a scent of whoever did this..."

Kagome sighed, "It's back in the west, but it has been almost weeks and the area was a complete bloodbath, finding a scent now might prove difficult."

"That may be true but there may be clues in the carnage," Kagome couldn't deny that Kōga was right and nodded her head.

"Either way, I believe it was not an accident that ye found her that day child, the Kami guided ye to her, it was fate and she is the key to saving your friends," Kaede's words settled in Kagome's mind as she stood to get ready, but Kōga placed his hands on her shoulder.

"I'm as eager as you are Kagome but sleep here tonight, comfortable and warm" Kagome smiled and nodded her head, happy to finally sleep without the nagging sensation in the back of her mind of being outside.

"I think that I will stay here" Setsukō lightly said, happily accepting the tea Kaede offered, "If it wouldn't be too much trouble for you, of course."

"Of course not child, I could actually use a hand or two, if ye would be willing to help" Kaede smiled, her one visible eye crinkled before she became serious and turned her attention to Kagome, "Now ye must get some rest, your journey has just begun and I doubt it will get any easier from here on out."

I hope you enjoyed chapter three! As usual please leave a review and stay tuned for the next chapter!

- Iskra