Disclaimer: No I do not own Inuyasha. That awesome privilage belongs to Romiko Takahashi. Thank you!

Disclaimer 2: /?Greek-Mythology-Hercules-The-Mortal-Who-Became-a-God&id=37435 is the sight where I found all the information and copied the section on the Hercules myth. I did not write it myself.

Just so you know I will be putting Greek myths into this story so if you've already read them bear with me or if I get something wrong tell me so I can correct myself.

Chapter 8: Half God, Half Demon

"These four gods interest me." Miroku said for the thousandth time.

"We know." Kagome said pulling the sheets snug over the windows. Sun would be setting soon and that meant demons would be appearing so they were locking down.

"I just wonder who they are?" he said making more notes. "Maybe if we pray to them..."

"Miroku, I spent my first year like this praying." Inuyasha said walking inside the house and locking the deadbolt. "I don't think it will work." He had been out 'marking his territory'.

Kagome had been disgusted at first at the thought of him peeing on a light post but Inuyasha assured her that demons were cautious about entering another's clearly marked territory. Just another layer he said. So she avoided thinking about it.

"Maybe we need to pray to them spacifically." Miroku continued undaunted.

"Just drop it Miroku." Sango said as she finished lighting their candles. Kagome made herself a mental reminder to tell Inuyasha to get more matches when he went out tomorrow. "If a god was going to help they would have done it already."

He wasn't listening however and was mumbling to himself about the elements.

After a dinner of canned corn and fish, he went right back to his notes. Mumbling and looking through his books and making notes, the others ignored him. When everyone went to bed he was still at it, like a crazy man.


Inuyasha had begun to trust Sango and Miroku enough to leave the door unlocked. He was convinced they weren't demons and besides that he was always with her and he was a very light sleeper so if they crept in, silent, in the dead of night, he could still hear them.

He could also hear them if they burst into his room, slamming the door against the wall, yelling in victory like Miroku did.

Kagome and Inuyasha shot up in bed as Miroku rushed in, his face flushed in excitement. "I've found him! I've found him!"

"I'm going to kill you, Miroku, unless you tell me that you're dying." Inuyasha growled as Sango walked in rubbing her eyes.

"What's going on? Miroku, are you still up?'

"Sango! I found him!" He pulled her into his arms and spun her in a circle making her cry out.

"Found who?" Kagome asked wishing he would answer then go away. Inuyasha was already cracking his knuckles in anger.

"Hercules!" He said in triumph.

"Some one found him a long time ago, Miroku." Sango said as she broke out of his embrace. "You're a little late." She sat down next to Kagome on her bed.

"No, no, no! Look!" He held out his Greek myth book and shoved it into Kagome's hands. "Read it! Read it!"

Kagome sighed. "It's dark, Miroku."

Before she finished he had ran out of the room and was returning a moment later with a candle. "Here, now read." he placed the candle in Inuyasha's hands so she could see.

Knowing she wouldn't be able to get back to sleep without doing this, she read outloud, "'Of all the Greek heroes none is more brave than the mighty Hercules.' What does-"

"Read!" Miroku instisted.

She sighed and did as she was bade, "'The son of the adulterous Zeus and a mortal woman, his life was made by Hera Queen of the Gods who did not appreciate her husband's lechery.'"

"I know how she feels." Sango said leaning back, smirking.

Miroku frowned and opened his mouth but Kagome continued reading before he could speak. The faster she indulged him the faster he would go away and let her sleep. She read:

"Zeus, the King of the gods was an unfaithful husband. He had a weakness for worldly pleasures. He fell in love with Alcmene, the wife of Amphitryon. In a short time, Alcmene conceived Hercules. This angered Hera and she tried to kill Hercules. Hercules survived his first fatal assault with a miracle.

When Hercules reached adulthood he became a famous warrior. He also fell in love with a beautiful woman called Megara. Megara became the mother of Hercules' children and together they made a happy family. However, things were to be different. Hera took a vow to irritate Hercules during his lifetime. She tricked Hercules into a wild rage. In his rage, the mortal god Hercules killed his family. This was exactly what Hera wanted!

When Hercules returned to his normal state of mind, he saw things were beyond remedy. He prayed to Apollo to get rid of his crime. Apollo was the sun god who could read into the future. We find in Greek Mythology that Hercules requested his advice. Apollo assigned him ten important tasks (later it was turned to twelve) as the way of purifying his soul.

The Delphic oracle sent him to Tiryns where the king Eurystheus ruled. Hercules was expected to serve him as laborer for twelve years of his life. However, the difficult service was not fruitless. Apollo promised him immortality. He was to become a god. However, the great Hercules of greek mythology had one problem, Hera. She actually kept her promise to make Hercules' life as wretched as she could. Nevertheless, with the assistance of Hermes and Athena, Hercules pulled off his term of twelve years with excellence. In addition, he became the greatest mortal on the earth to become a god.

The honorable penance of Hercules and his eventual success is what makes him so special. His success brought him immortality, which would have been unthinkable for ordinary mortals. Hercules' first task was to peel off the skin of the horrifying Nemean Lion after capturing one. His next task was to kill The Lernean Hydra. The Lernean Hydra was a serpent with nine heads, which never gave peace to the lives of those around it. The third task for him was to bring a Hind (a sacred red deer) from Ceryneia to the king. The deer was the pet of Diana, the Moon goddess.

The fourth task for Hercules was to bring a live Erymanthian Boar. It was very dangerous to men and animals living around the mountain Erymanthus. Then Hercules was asked to clean up King Augeas' stables in one day. Are you thinking what is so great about it? King Augeas had an awesome amount of cattle of cows, bulls, goats, sheep and horses. Hercules proposed to King Augeas that he would clean the stable only if he rewarded Hercules with a tenth of his cattle.

After this success, Eurystheus was planning to make something tougher for Hercules. He commanded Hercules to force out an enormous flock of birds, which assembled at a lake near the town of Stymphalos. Goddess Athena helped him with a pair of bronze krotala, an item similiar to castanets. The Cretan Bull was an easy task for Hercules. Hercules wrestled the bull, and then delivered it back to King Eurystheus.

The eighth task was to bring the Man-Eating Horses of Diomedes. It was followed by the battle against the Amazonian female army to get the belt of Hippolyte, the queen. The tenth labor was an awesome one. Hercules had to go around the world, to bring the cattle of the Monster Geryon. It had three heads and three sets of legs all attached at the waist.

The tricky assignment was the eleventh one. Eurystheus asked Hercules to get the Apples of the Hesperides. These were the golden apples gifted by Hera to Zeus. These apples were strictly guarded by a hundred-headed dragon, named Ladon, and also by Hesperides, daughters of Atlas. The other obstacle was that Hercules had no idea where these apples of Hesperides were located. Eventually, Hercules found the location from Nereus whom he seized until Nereus gave him the location of the apples of Hesperides.

Then Hercules found out through Prometheus, whom Hercules had helped, that he would have to have Atlas retrieve the apples. Hercules agreed to hold the sky and the earth while Atlas retrieved the apples. When Atlas returned with the apples, he told Hercules that if he would hold the sky and earth for the rest of time, that he would take them to Eurystheus himself. But Hercules fooled Atlas by asking him to hold the earth until he padded his shoulders. Atlas took Hercules place holding the earth, and Hercules picked up the apples and ran.

After making the great Hercules do all sorts of unbelievable errands, Eurystheus made sure that he did not succeed the last time. So, he ordered Hercules to abduct Cerberus, the underworld beast. Did you ever hear a living man visiting the Hades? However, Greek mythology tells us Hercules was no ordinary man. He was a hero.

He eventually did complete all the tasks, purified his soul and rescued the princess of Troy from a ravenous sea-monster. He also facilitated Zeus to beat the Giants in a great battle for the control of Olympus. He married again, to the charming Deianira. She presented him a cloak, which was coated with what she mistakenly thought to be a magic love potion. She was told that the balm would make the person love her forever.

Ironically, it was poison, which burned Hercules skin. Hercules, not being able to endure the pain asked his friends to kindle a fire. Then Hercules placed himself on the fire to be burned up alive. But the gods looked down, and Zeus thought that Hercules had suffered enough. So he asked Hera to end her anger toward Hercules, which she did. Then Hercules was brought to Olympus in Athena's chariot by Zeus' request.

This Greek mortal Hercules is undoubtedly the greatest hero of Greek Mythology."

Kagome shut the book. "Okay, Miroku, what's your point?"

"The end Kaogme." Miroku said. "I thought maybe he was just another powerful demon humanoid but that last part caught my attention. He was burned in fire but he survived."

"Because the gods ordered it?" Kagome asked passing the book back as Sango yawned.

"No. Because he was the god of courage and fire. And I have a theory-"

"Surprise, surprise." Kagome and Sango said at the same time making each other laugh.

"Will you pay attention." He gripped.

"Not at this hour." Inuyasha said kicking him off the bed where he had sat himself during the tale.

He hit the ground with a thud but it didn't stop his enthusiasm. "Look, he was the most couragious Greek hero? He survived after being burned alive? How else would humans describe it than as the will of the gods? And, this is the most unbelievable part, he was a half god!"

There was a moment of silence before Inuaysha said, "So?"

Miroku sighed. "Look, we've already determined that the 'gods' were just demons, right? So instead of being half god he's actually-"

"Half demon." Kagome finished, looking at Inuyasha.