Hey everyone sorry this took so long- my computer had a virus, so I've been
offline most of this month. Hope you're all still reading.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Inu Yasha glanced over the faces of his sleeping friends. Making sure they wouldn't hear him, he got up and slid outside of the hut, gathering up his sword along the way. Once outside, he began to jog at a steady, ground- covering lope. Though the trail was over a week old now, he could still track Kikyo by scent, and follow her to wherever she might be. Then they would fight- and see who would win, and who would die.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Kikyo_
Kikyo watched Inu Yasha's progress in a pool, scrying out his location.
'Good. . .' she murmured. 'Good. . . he is coming alone. I can take him out easily- and then I will kill that bitch Kagome. Without Inu Yasha she will not have the will to live- even if I cannot kill her with arrows, I can coax her off a cliff, or have someone else kill her. The bitch will be glad to follow her dog down to hell.' Kikyo sat silently, watching the dog-demon run, and thought back to the betrayal. Her hatred rose inside of her, and she stood, turning from the image.
When he came- she would be ready.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Shippo, Kagome, Sango, Miroku_
Shippo watched Inu Yasha creep out. As soon as the dog-demon was outside, Shippo woke Kagome, Sango, and Miroku.
'Quick! He just left. . . if we hurry we can catch him still.' They quietly followed Inu Yasha, keeping to the brush, out of sight from Inu Yasha, and from Kikyo. They knew that Inu Yasha would have to fight alone, at least at first- but if he seemed to be losing that fight, then they would help him defeat the evil sorceress.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Inu Yasha_
Inu Yasha had been running for several hours when he noticed that the smell of his friends, which had been strong back at the hut, had not faded. It should have been steadily decreasing, as he put more distance between them. Instead, it had stayed constantly strong.
'Ah-ha. So they decided to come anyway, eh? Well- I can lose them. Might as well now, so they can't follow later. . .' he said to himself. Taking a good bearing on Kikyo's path, Inu Yasha swerved off of it, pretending to follow the trail on the woods to the side. In the woods he took twisting routes and strange detours, till he was sure that he'd lots them completely. He then returned to the path, continuing on his way.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Kikyo_
'What on earth is that dog doing?' exclaimed Kikyo, watching his path. Inu Yasha was running the strangest course through the woods, getting nowhere, and she _knew_ she had not walked through that area. He wasn't following her course, at all! What on earth did he think he was doing!
She watched as he finished his strange obstacle course, and returned to her trail, running faster now. Why-ever he had done it, he was finished now. She shrugged.
'Dogs.'
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Shippo & co_
'What's he doing?' queried Shippo. Miroku shrugged.
'I don't know- Kikyo's path must lead in to that forrest there. Well, we'll wait a moment, and if he doesn't come back out in a second, we'll follow him.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Inu Yasha_
'Ha! Their scent is fading already- I lost them. Good- now, to find Kikyo. . .' Inu Yasha steeled himself for battle. Even as his friends' scent faded, so Kikyo's scent strengthened. He was getting close.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Kikyo_
'He's getting close. I will go get ready. When he comes, I will easily seduce him- and when he comes to me, I shall take him down into death. Come to me, Inu Yasha- come to meet your doom.' She smiled, a small, cruel smile that held no joy in it. She prepared herself to meet him.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Inu Yasha_
Inu Yasha walked into the forest where Kikyo's trail turned. It led into a sort of clearing, which was a clearing only in the sense that no plants (except moss) had been able to survive because of the incredible darkness caused by the shade of the monstrous tree in the center. Its limbs twisted eerily, and its broad, dark leaves blotted out all of the sun, so one could not tell that it was actually day outside. Pale lighted balls glowed around the lowest branches, providing small light for seeing. Its trunk loomed over Inu Yasha, growing wider as it reached its base, where gigantic roots split the ground. Seated on one of these roots was (yep, you guessed it) Kikyo, dressed in a white kimono.
Kikyo slid silently off of the root and ghosted towards Inu Yasha, bare feet noiseless on the soft moss. She smiled, a haunting, yet somehow seductive smile. Inu Yasha froze, unable to move. Here, alone with him, and unarmed, was the woman that he had once loved so much that he had been willing to become a human for her. Here, smiling up at him, was all that he had ever wanted, ever needed, ever known. And here she stood before him, welcoming him, for once not trying to kill him. Though in his mind he knew better, he began to feel that maybe she had finally realized how they had both been deceived, that it was not Inu Yasha who had killed her, that he still loved her, even now. Perhaps she had finally remembered the love that she had had for him. . .
Kikyo slid her arms around Inu Yasha's neck, not speaking, merely gazing into his eyes. He fell completely under her spell, unable to run even if he had wanted to. A small part of his brain was yelling at him to turn now, and kill her, but he ignored it, only looking at Kikyo. Kikyo ran her hands along his muscular arms and chest, loosening his haori and letting it slip off of his shoulders. Inu Yasha quivered, not daring to move lest she stop. Kikyo pressed herself against him, her hands never stopping, rubbing along his back and arms till he couldn't help himself- he rumbled a slight, growling purr from his chest, and took her into his arms in a gentle embrace as she continued to work her hands over him.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Shippo & co_
'Oh no. . . we lost him! NO! We can't lose him! We can't. . .' Kagome collapsed against a tree, shaking with the effort of not bursting into tears. Sango came over and put an arm around her shoulders.
'Hush, Kagome. We'll find him. We've got Shippo with us, remember? Come on- Inu Yasha can't be _that_ far off. The sooner we go, the sooner we'll find him.' She turned to Shippo, who had his little nose to the ground, trying to find Inu Yasha's scent. Miroku stood behind him, fingering the beads covering his hand, and looking around nervously.
'Come on, Shippo. Lets go.'
Shippo sniffed energetically, but still found no new smell of Inu Yasha.
'I'm sowwy, Kagome. I don't know where he went. I can't find him.'
'We're. . . we're lost. We won't be there for Inu Yasha, and Kikyo will kill him, and we'll still be stuck here in this infernal forest, trying to find him before it's too late!' cried Kagome, her knees giving out as she sank along the tree trunk to the ground. Shippo padded over and snuggled into her lap, starting to cry too. Miroku nervously looked away, keeping guard. Sango looked around at the group and shook her head exasperatedly.
'You're all a big bunch of babies. Kagome, get up. We're GOING to find Inu Yasha. Shippo, stop crying. How would you like your father to see you now? Miroku, quit fiddling with your hand and help me get them up! Come on! We'll retrace our steps out of the forest, and see if Inu Yasha came back out of it- after all, we know which direction he was going before he turned in here.' She pulled Kagome to her feet.
'In fact,' she continued, 'I'll bet he came in here, just to lose us like this! That's why we've been following him over all of these twists and turns! And once he knew we'd get lost, he went back out of the forest and returned to Kikyo's trail. Now, HURRY!'
Kagome blinked, thinking it all through- it did sound like something he'd do. . . In fact, it sounded so much like that dog, she wanted to slap him! Angrily she took the lead, storming out of the forest so quickly that Sango, Miroku, and Shippo were left behind, staring after her. She ran out, back into the fields, and sure enough, there was Inu Yasha's trail again. She followed it at a run, not even pausing for the others to catch up.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Inu Yasha glanced over the faces of his sleeping friends. Making sure they wouldn't hear him, he got up and slid outside of the hut, gathering up his sword along the way. Once outside, he began to jog at a steady, ground- covering lope. Though the trail was over a week old now, he could still track Kikyo by scent, and follow her to wherever she might be. Then they would fight- and see who would win, and who would die.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Kikyo_
Kikyo watched Inu Yasha's progress in a pool, scrying out his location.
'Good. . .' she murmured. 'Good. . . he is coming alone. I can take him out easily- and then I will kill that bitch Kagome. Without Inu Yasha she will not have the will to live- even if I cannot kill her with arrows, I can coax her off a cliff, or have someone else kill her. The bitch will be glad to follow her dog down to hell.' Kikyo sat silently, watching the dog-demon run, and thought back to the betrayal. Her hatred rose inside of her, and she stood, turning from the image.
When he came- she would be ready.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Shippo, Kagome, Sango, Miroku_
Shippo watched Inu Yasha creep out. As soon as the dog-demon was outside, Shippo woke Kagome, Sango, and Miroku.
'Quick! He just left. . . if we hurry we can catch him still.' They quietly followed Inu Yasha, keeping to the brush, out of sight from Inu Yasha, and from Kikyo. They knew that Inu Yasha would have to fight alone, at least at first- but if he seemed to be losing that fight, then they would help him defeat the evil sorceress.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Inu Yasha_
Inu Yasha had been running for several hours when he noticed that the smell of his friends, which had been strong back at the hut, had not faded. It should have been steadily decreasing, as he put more distance between them. Instead, it had stayed constantly strong.
'Ah-ha. So they decided to come anyway, eh? Well- I can lose them. Might as well now, so they can't follow later. . .' he said to himself. Taking a good bearing on Kikyo's path, Inu Yasha swerved off of it, pretending to follow the trail on the woods to the side. In the woods he took twisting routes and strange detours, till he was sure that he'd lots them completely. He then returned to the path, continuing on his way.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Kikyo_
'What on earth is that dog doing?' exclaimed Kikyo, watching his path. Inu Yasha was running the strangest course through the woods, getting nowhere, and she _knew_ she had not walked through that area. He wasn't following her course, at all! What on earth did he think he was doing!
She watched as he finished his strange obstacle course, and returned to her trail, running faster now. Why-ever he had done it, he was finished now. She shrugged.
'Dogs.'
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Shippo & co_
'What's he doing?' queried Shippo. Miroku shrugged.
'I don't know- Kikyo's path must lead in to that forrest there. Well, we'll wait a moment, and if he doesn't come back out in a second, we'll follow him.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Inu Yasha_
'Ha! Their scent is fading already- I lost them. Good- now, to find Kikyo. . .' Inu Yasha steeled himself for battle. Even as his friends' scent faded, so Kikyo's scent strengthened. He was getting close.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Kikyo_
'He's getting close. I will go get ready. When he comes, I will easily seduce him- and when he comes to me, I shall take him down into death. Come to me, Inu Yasha- come to meet your doom.' She smiled, a small, cruel smile that held no joy in it. She prepared herself to meet him.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Inu Yasha_
Inu Yasha walked into the forest where Kikyo's trail turned. It led into a sort of clearing, which was a clearing only in the sense that no plants (except moss) had been able to survive because of the incredible darkness caused by the shade of the monstrous tree in the center. Its limbs twisted eerily, and its broad, dark leaves blotted out all of the sun, so one could not tell that it was actually day outside. Pale lighted balls glowed around the lowest branches, providing small light for seeing. Its trunk loomed over Inu Yasha, growing wider as it reached its base, where gigantic roots split the ground. Seated on one of these roots was (yep, you guessed it) Kikyo, dressed in a white kimono.
Kikyo slid silently off of the root and ghosted towards Inu Yasha, bare feet noiseless on the soft moss. She smiled, a haunting, yet somehow seductive smile. Inu Yasha froze, unable to move. Here, alone with him, and unarmed, was the woman that he had once loved so much that he had been willing to become a human for her. Here, smiling up at him, was all that he had ever wanted, ever needed, ever known. And here she stood before him, welcoming him, for once not trying to kill him. Though in his mind he knew better, he began to feel that maybe she had finally realized how they had both been deceived, that it was not Inu Yasha who had killed her, that he still loved her, even now. Perhaps she had finally remembered the love that she had had for him. . .
Kikyo slid her arms around Inu Yasha's neck, not speaking, merely gazing into his eyes. He fell completely under her spell, unable to run even if he had wanted to. A small part of his brain was yelling at him to turn now, and kill her, but he ignored it, only looking at Kikyo. Kikyo ran her hands along his muscular arms and chest, loosening his haori and letting it slip off of his shoulders. Inu Yasha quivered, not daring to move lest she stop. Kikyo pressed herself against him, her hands never stopping, rubbing along his back and arms till he couldn't help himself- he rumbled a slight, growling purr from his chest, and took her into his arms in a gentle embrace as she continued to work her hands over him.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* _Shippo & co_
'Oh no. . . we lost him! NO! We can't lose him! We can't. . .' Kagome collapsed against a tree, shaking with the effort of not bursting into tears. Sango came over and put an arm around her shoulders.
'Hush, Kagome. We'll find him. We've got Shippo with us, remember? Come on- Inu Yasha can't be _that_ far off. The sooner we go, the sooner we'll find him.' She turned to Shippo, who had his little nose to the ground, trying to find Inu Yasha's scent. Miroku stood behind him, fingering the beads covering his hand, and looking around nervously.
'Come on, Shippo. Lets go.'
Shippo sniffed energetically, but still found no new smell of Inu Yasha.
'I'm sowwy, Kagome. I don't know where he went. I can't find him.'
'We're. . . we're lost. We won't be there for Inu Yasha, and Kikyo will kill him, and we'll still be stuck here in this infernal forest, trying to find him before it's too late!' cried Kagome, her knees giving out as she sank along the tree trunk to the ground. Shippo padded over and snuggled into her lap, starting to cry too. Miroku nervously looked away, keeping guard. Sango looked around at the group and shook her head exasperatedly.
'You're all a big bunch of babies. Kagome, get up. We're GOING to find Inu Yasha. Shippo, stop crying. How would you like your father to see you now? Miroku, quit fiddling with your hand and help me get them up! Come on! We'll retrace our steps out of the forest, and see if Inu Yasha came back out of it- after all, we know which direction he was going before he turned in here.' She pulled Kagome to her feet.
'In fact,' she continued, 'I'll bet he came in here, just to lose us like this! That's why we've been following him over all of these twists and turns! And once he knew we'd get lost, he went back out of the forest and returned to Kikyo's trail. Now, HURRY!'
Kagome blinked, thinking it all through- it did sound like something he'd do. . . In fact, it sounded so much like that dog, she wanted to slap him! Angrily she took the lead, storming out of the forest so quickly that Sango, Miroku, and Shippo were left behind, staring after her. She ran out, back into the fields, and sure enough, there was Inu Yasha's trail again. She followed it at a run, not even pausing for the others to catch up.