Thank you for those who have taken time to review! Here's the next chapter and I hope you all enjoy it. A note on this chapter- Since I am unsure what age Shippou actually is, and precisely what age his mentality is, I just decided to age him another 50 human years. This is not exact at all, but unless someone has a more scientific way of figuring out a youkai's age, it's good enough for this story. ^_^

Lady Pyro: In episode 75, a cat demon arc is introduced concerning an invasion that happened about fifty years prior. Inuyasha had just been sealed when the invasion started, so he doesn't know anything about it. Shippou states that he even doesn't know anything, and Inuyasha responds, "You were a kid then, that's why." So he has to be at least 50. Some stories say kitsune can live up to 900 years old, so for what he is, Shippou is quite young. :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of its characters.

Chapter Three

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"Inuyasha!"

Kagome's signature yell was heard echoing through the night, causing the hanyou to jump to his feet and run towards the source. How could she get in trouble already?! She was just with me! Expecting some sort of youkai or other equally horrific creature, he was quite baffled to see Kagome scrambling around the campsite, lifting everything in order to see under it. Miroku and Sango had looks of sleepy puzzlement as they watched.

Hand dropping from Tetsusaiga, Inuyasha stared at the human girl. "What are you doing?" A thought struck him, "Tell me you didn't lose the Shikon Shards again!"

"No! This is worse!" Kagome knelt and started removing things from her backpack. What could be worse? Inuyasha thought, but before he had time to voice the question, Kagome exclaimed, "I lost Shippou!"

Sango frowned, shaking the last remnants of sleep from her as she rose to her feet, "I'm sure he's not lost, Kagome-chan. He probably couldn't sleep and went for a walk."

Miroku nodded in agreement, adding sagely, "Sometimes men need time alone."

Inuyasha just remained silent. Why do they always have to go and say what I was gonna say?

Kagome shook her head, turning to Inuyasha with a pleading look in her eyes, "Will you go find him? I would feel better if he wasn't alone out there. Especially feeling as he does."

Inuyasha wanted to protest. He really did. Yet, something in Kagome's gaze halted the refusal on his tongue. Not that her look affected him. He just didn't want her to use The Word, which she would if he got her upset. Because that was all he was concerned about. Really. "Oh, Fine. I'll go find the runt." He turned away, but not so fast that he didn't see the relieved gratitude on Kagome's face. Feeling oddly lighthearted, his attempt at sounding grouchy didn't come out as harsh as he wanted, "Besides. None of us will get any sleep tonight if I don't."

"Thank you, Inuyasha." Kagome smiled at his back, her voice quiet enough that only the hanyou managed to hear her. He spared a glance back at her, hesitating before offering a curt nod and heading in the direction he was certain Shippou had gone.

As Inuyasha entered the woods, his nose was assaulted by a myriad of smells. It took him a moment to sort through them and figure out the precise way the fox youkai had gone. Something about this is wrong. The hanyou was not known for being the most intuitive of the group, but even he could sense it. He slowed, hand moving to his sword and ears and nose straining for whatever he could pick up. There! He smelled it. It was a youkai, definitely, but not Shippou. The scent mingled with the kitsune's, as if deliberately attempting to mask it. Inuyasha smirked. A stupid youkai thinks it can throw me off its track? We'll see about that. He continued on the invisible path that the scents were leading him on, tenaciously following the right smell through the forest. Inuyasha was nothing if not stubborn.

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"Ahh...How refreshing." The young kitsune was offering the youkai more strength then she had hoped for. But then, young youkai always gave more life than those pathetic human children did. It wouldn't be too much longer now. The youkai had done this many times and had no remorse. It was her youth and beauty she was preserving, and that was far more important than those lives she took. She had already taken fifty years from the kitsune in her arms, and because he was youkai, she knew there was many more to take. Capturing other youkai was always such a boon, but one she rarely accomplished due to the fact that parents so often guarded them.

"So you're the one responsible for Shippou's absence." The accusing voice cut through the youkai's revelry. Her eyes widened as she recognized the hanyou from earlier. He stood at the edge of the pool, the transformed Tetsusaiga at the ready.

Releasing her grip on the kitsune, she offered Inuyasha a seductive smile, "There is no reason for weapons." Her eyes turned into fathomless pools of blue, her voice hypnotic, "No reason at all."

"Feh! If you wanted to use those tricks, you should have tried Miroku!" Inuyasha was clearly unaffected by her attempts. His concern was for Shippou. He'd never admit it, but though he gave the kitsune a hard time, he actually liked the kid. He wasn't certain what the youkai had done to Shippou, but he knew it was bad. The fox was unconscious and his skin pale. Anger filled Inuyasha, his golden eyes sparking as he looked back to the youkai. "Picking on kids that can't defend themselves, huh? That's pathetic. I'll enjoy destroying you."

Eyeing that giant sword, and the angry hanyou that wielded it, the youkai clearly decided that discretion was the better part of valor. She laughed, lifting a hand in quick motion, "I would love to indulge you, hanyou, but I object to being destroyed." Water from the pool rushed up in a tunnel around the woman...and Shippou.

Frustrated, and knowing he couldn't use Kaze no Kizu because Shippou was inside, Inuyasha lept into the air and slammed his sword against the wall of water. His reward was being thrown back onto the shore, completely drenched. The wall collapsed, the youkai having vanished. Yet, a solitary form remained laying on the rock.

Inuyasha stared, dumbstruck at the sight before him. The little fox youkai was no longer little. In fact, if the hanyou had not been certain it was Shippou, he would doubt his own eyes. Before him was a tall young man-young, of course, being a relative term. His appearance seemed to imply the same age as Inuyasha if not a little older. The groan that escaped the kitsune's lips was by no means in the usual high-pitched note, but was instead a deep sound suspiciously close to a growl.

His clothes had apparently ripped in the transformation from boy to man, leaving Shippou basically uncovered. Inuyasha's brow furrowed as he noticed the oddest thing of all- Shippou's legs. While the tail was still quite obviously present, Shippou's legs were no longer those of a fox. Instead, strong, human-style legs were shown beneath the tatters of what had been the kitsune's pants. His voice hushed from astonishment, Inuyasha said the only thing he could think to say, "Shippou?"

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I hope you enjoyed it and please review! Chapter four will be out soon. Any questions are welcome and I'll do my best to explain my reasoning on things. ^_^