Sadly I do not yet own them.

Carolina came across a small villiage near mid afternoon. She approached the edge of the villiage and paused, allowing the villiagers to see her and determine that the odd looking woman was not a threat.

Once most of them had stopped staring she continued to walk through the villiage untill she saw the villiage miko. She paused and turned toward the middle aged prietess. The woman strode out to meet the visiting youkai and stopped with roughly two yards between them.

"What buisness have you here Youkai?" She was polite enough but Carolina could sense a hint of distrust in the miko.

"I am merely passing through. I am trying to find someone. Tell me, did a group of youkai, a hanyou, and some humans pass through here in the past three days?"

"Do you refer to the group two days ago with a perverted monk and an Inu hanyou?"

"Hai, that would be them."

"They went toward the west."

"Thank you." The youkai dipped her head and continued along her path.

As she left she got the feeling that someone was watching here. She turned and looked back toward the villiage. None of the humans were looking in her direction, but she sensed a youkai aura. A strong one. But she saw no youkai, was it invisible?

Invisablity spells were possible for strong youkai, but rarely used. If a youkai was strong enough to hide from with such a spell it was strong enough to sense your aura anyway. Though they could be used for spying. She hadn't sensed the aura before and so it must have been masked. Then it was gone, the youkai must have either masked it again or moved on.

Carolina continued on her way. Many youkai were territorial, perhaps this one only wished to see her on her way and so stayed hidden to watch her leave. When she had been walking for many minutes and could no longer see the smoke from the villiage she broke into a light trot. She briefly considered a canter but she could not keep up that kind of pace quite as long. Ultimatly she would cover more ground at a trot.

After a couple of hours at this brisk pace Carolina came to a large clearing with a small creek running though it. She decided to rest here, no sense in over exerting herself. She dropped her backpack by a large tree and went to drink fom the creek.

She stopped and lifted her head. She suddenly felt a youkai presence, that same one she had felt back at that villiage. It was infront of her now. She also felt the presence of two other youkai behind her. One to the left and the other to the right. A stench reached her nose, one of these was a spider youkai. The other two were down wind so she could not tell what they were yet.

She focused on the one that seemed closest, the spider youkai. In moments a tall shapely woman emerged from the brush. She had long jet black hair and black eyes. She was dressed in a black kimono with a bright red obi.

"Who are you and why are you following me?" Carolina asked cooly, her face as expersionless as ever.

"My companions caught your sent back near town. It is unfammilliar to us so we wished to find out what you were. You are not a Japanese youkai, are you perhaps from the continent?"

"My origins are my own concern. You have yet to answer my first question, who are you?" The other two were now in the clearing, closed enough to smell. One was a tiger the other a dog, both were male.

'Foolish of them to keep company with this spider.' She thought. 'They must be rather weak minded.' Though Carolina could sense that they were physically strong, thus useful, at least for a short while.

"Give us your name and we shall give you ours"

"My name is May." She lied.

"I am Shino." The spider replied, "My companions are Kuro and Toshi. I heard you inquireing about a group of youkai and humans in the villiage. Would the group you asked about happen to be the pack of the inu prince, Inuyasha?"

'Prince? He never said he was a prince. Though he has mentioned and older brother, so it really doesn't matter doest it?' Carolina was surprised but it did not register on her face. "Perhaps."

"Are you his friend or his foe?"

"That is my concern, not yours."

Shino's face darkened. "Do not talk back to me little girl. Answer my question!" Carolina didn't respond, only stared cooly at the spider. "I will make you answer my question!" She took a menacing step forward.

She then stopped and smiled wickedly while examining the young youkai. "Yes, I will make you answer." She paused. "But my you are a pretty little thing, aren't you? Very pretty." She looked past Carolina at the two male youkai. "Boys, how would you like to play with our new friend? Make her to answer my question and I let you have her for the night."

Carolina could not completely conceal her anger at such a crude threat. She tossed her head just slightly and pawed at the ground with her foot a few times before she caught herself and made her foot stay still.

The spider smiled in amusment. "Now just what was that my pretty little dear? A pony are we? Perhaps you will answer my question if I give you some grain?"

Carolina's eyes darkened now. She snorted through her nose and bared her teeth. "I am no horse!" She snarled momentarily losing control of that traiterous foot once again.

Then a quick movement to the side caught her attetntion and she just managed to duck as the tiger's fist flew over her head. And jumped to the side as the dog also attacked. She struck a blow across the tiger's cheek and then opened her palm and slammed it into the chest of the dog sending blue energy courseing through him.

The jolt sent him flying back but did not kill the powerful beast. He managed to pick him self up and lunged at her again. She jumped to the side and he flew past her then jumped back as a tiger fist nearly caught her temple.

The spider jumped in and slashed at the girl with long razor sharp nails, missing her by a fraction of and inch as she dodged to the left. Carolina was fast. Very fast. But when the battle is three against one it is impossible to dodge every blow. The tiger caught her in the abdomen with and open hand. The force knocked the wind out of her and his claws tore into her flesh ripping her from just above the navle to half way to her left hip.

With the female stunned the dog shot a cloud of poison gass from his claws into her face. She blinked and sneezed once then glared at the dog. The poison had no effect on her and she hit him with another jolt of blue energy from her palm then turned the same attack on the tiger knocking him back about ten feet.

She turned back to Shino with her palm once again glowing with crackling light but the spider caught her arms with her nails and held them. Carolina managed to wrench herself away only to have her shoulder and her arm shredded by those razor nails.

The dog dove at Carolina but she dodged him and managed to grab hold of his hair at the back of his head. Shino made another swipe at Carolina but she twisted the dog around infront of her. Before the dog could act to protect himself his mistress's long nails sliced neatly through his throat and hot bloood spewed over all three as he died.

The tiger and spider were momentarily stunned and Carolina lept away and turned back. This had to end now! The jewel on her forehead began to glow and she was engulfed in a bright light. Before the light had even faded she lunged at the tiger. Her horn was thrust into his stomache and a toss of her head tore him open. She wheeled around and kicked him to the ground then turned to stomp directly on his face, crushing his head. She turned to the spider whose eyes were glowing red...

Sesshomaru was leading his company to a nearby cave. A storm was approaching and though it was still a good distance away he didn't want to risk Rin getting caught in the rain and getting sick again. The wind shifted and he caught Carolina's sent. His head snapped in the direction the wind had come from, so much blood! Why must her scent aways be accompanied by the scent of youkai blood?

Sesshomaru turned to Jaken. "Take Rin to the cave. Once she is safe inside gather fire wood to last out the storm but do not go far from the cave. Leave Ah 'Un with her." Then he turned and left quite quickly with no explination. They were use to him taking off with out saying why though, so it did not worry them.

As he approached he heard the sounds of battle. He then came to the clearing and saw a very large black widow fighting a small, light brown horse, barely the size of a large pony. wait, no, that wasn't a horse.

At first glance it appeared to ba a horse, it was almost identical to a horse, but its long slender legs ended in cloven hooves like a dear. It had a long tufted tail. And it had a pearl colored horn about a foot long coming from its forehead surounded by a white star shaped blaze.

Carolina tried to stab at the giant spider with her horn and strike it with her front hooves then dodged back as it lunged foreward to sink it's fangs into her. She managed to dodge the venomous bite, not that the venom would do any harm to her.

One of it's sharp, spinly legs came down at her. She tried to dodge that as well but it caught her in the right foreleg. Blood sprayed from the wound. Carolina was tiring fast and it slowed her down.

Then she saw white out of the corner of her eye. She locked eyes with Sesshomaru for just an instant them jumped well away from the black widow. Sesshomaru drew Tokijin and the battle was over.

Carolina shifted back to her humaniod form and looked wearily at the white inu youkai. His eyes were on the gash in her arm. It spayed blood with each beat of her heart. Even if he had bandages with him she would soon bleed to death.

Carolina closed her eyes and summoned the last of her strength. Sesshomaru watched as the horn/jewel began to glow and then his mouth fell slightly open as the one fatal wound closed it's self before his eyes. Carolina began to sway and the youkai lord rushed foreward and caught her against his chest as she fell.

He stared down at the woman in his arm. She was pale as death. She would not bleed to death yet but she would certainly die with out care. He had to get her back to the cave. What he wouldn't give to have two arms just now! As carefully as possible he moved her to lay over his shoulder and flew back to camp.

Rin and Jaken stared at Sesshomaru as he entered with the wounded woman over his shoulder. He knelt down and slowly lowered her to the ground. Rin helped to hold her so that she would not simply drop from his shoulder. Then he carefully cut away the shredded top and covered her with a blanket.

"Jaken, her pack is in a feild not far from here. Take Ah 'Un and retrieve it before the storm arrives. Rin, get me a bowl of water and a cloth." He commanded while he covered her. both obeyed immediatly. "Get some bandages Rin." He said once the girl had provided the cloth and water.

Sesshomaru folded the blanket up so that her chest was coved but her abdomen was not. He carefully cleaned away the blood and dirt from the wound. He and Rin wrapped the bandages around her waist then he folded the blanket down to clean and banage her shoulders and arms. Once that was done they cleaned and bandaged the rest of the minor cuts and abbrasions that covered Carolina's ivory colored skin.

Meanwhile Jaken had returned with the backpack and been sent out for more firewood. When he had returned Rin's evening meal had been prepared and Sesshomaru had told the girl to go to sleep. She had protested, she wanted to sit up with Carolina. But in the end she had gone to sleep.

Sesshomaru sat beside the wounded girl and stared out at the rain. He looked at her and saw her eyes flutter open. She struggled to focus on his face. "Sess- Sesshomaru?" She asked in a horse whisper. She tried to move her arm.

Sesshomaru grabbed her hand to stop her movement. "Do not move. You should slee..." He stopped mid word when he felt her fingers close around his as she drifted back into oblivion. He did not take back his hand while she slept. He squeezed it gentley instead, only to offer some comfort of course.