Disclaimer: (fanfiction writer's oath)

We didn't own it,

We don't own it,

We won't own it.

Ouch.

Boo hoo, wahhh, switched again, this time to Chels's account. It's been edited tho.

Chapter Nine: Cold Meetings

The night air was cold on Sesshomaru's face as he stood on the porch of his palace. He and Inuyasha had reached it that evening and were waiting for Unmei to catch up to them, as Sesshomaru had predicted she would stop by and help herself to provisions from his stock. He was getting exceedingly good at predicting her movements, as anyone's.

"She here yet?" Inuyasha was solemn.

A crash interrupted them and the squawk of demon guards reached their ears.

"Apparently so." Sesshomaru was less than warm as he strolled toward the sounds.

Unmei couldn't keep her heart from racing ahead of her, she knew Sesshomaru knew she was here, in fact she had gone out of her way to make a couple of the guards scream to alert him. She could have easily just run them through without a sound. And she didn't want to sound like 'school-girl-in-love' but…

"Please, Unmei, good guards are hard to find these days, and we are short on them already." Sesshomaru was silently approached from behind.

"They aren't good guards." Unmei rolled a shoulder.

"Hmm."

"We should get going."

"Provisions are in my quarters, along with everything we may need."

"All right!" Unmei was off to the quarters like a shot.

The trek was long and hard into the mountains of the Western Lands, it took less time than it would for three humans but still went agonizingly slow. Everyone was uncomfortable, Unmei being the only female, Sesshomaru being –well- Sesshomaru, and Inuyasha being a hanyou. Inuyasha was really very strong, but the pace that had been set was swift with very few stops, even the two youkai were having a very hard time of it. They had sent Kannokki off in front of them to scout two days ago, and hadn't heard from him yet.

"Stupid idea, sending Kannokki off, I shoulda known he wouldn't come back, the two-timer." Unmei was breathing heavily as they stopped for a break among the snowy craigs.

"Yeah, he probably…knew the way too." Inuyasha gasped out.

"Get down." Sesshomaru's chest rose and fell lightly as he gazed off into the snowstorm.

"Wha'?" Inuyasha croaked, his throat sore from the abuse of breathing through his mouth.

"I said, get down." Sesshomaru crouched behind a rock and let the snow pile on him.

Unmei threw herself down, cursing her dark garment. Inuyasha followed suit and tried to bury into the snowdrifts.

"They've seen us." Unmei breathed.

Seven dark shapes of bird-like demons materialized out of the blizzard. They circled once around the mountaintop.

"When they get here, jump up fightin'." Inuyasha whispered.

The birds landed.

Unmei and Inuyasha jumped to their feet; the snow fell off of them and the chaos ensued.

"Gah!" Inuyasha's blood stained the white snow as his shoulder was slit by the bird's talons. "Iron Reaper!" He took a swing at one and the wing exploded in a shower of crimson droplets.

"Fate of Doomed!" Unmei slashed one opponent down and started on the next. She was feeling the effects of the sleepless journey now, they weighted her limbs and made her slower than acceptable, a claw caught her on the back and made he tumble into another, it sliced cloth and skin, she felt a muscle strain and then go limp.

Sesshomaru delayed to get up, then he made his attacks from behind, swiftly and silently. He watched his companions get battered and fall with all except three of their opponents. Two of the remaining enemies made eye contact and then scoop the fallen comrades up with their claws, the third lingered too long and Sesshomaru gained control of it, he guided it after the two and knew where they were going: the tunnels.