THE GAME

The Start

The sun was setting on another brilliantly sunny day and the sky was starting to slur with the many colors of the rainbow. Hundreds of buildings stood high against the horizon as Kagome rushed out of the house with a shoe still grasped tightly in her hand.

"I'm leaving, now! See ya' in about a week! Boy is Inu-Yasha going to be made at me. I said I'd be back before sunset."

She ran while stumbling to put on her right shoe and carrying an over stuffed nap-sack. In the mists of all this she half jumped, half fell down the well (that is used as a median between there two times).

"You're late you know?" said a young boys voice from above her. She knew that it wasn't Inu-Yasha because it wasn't yelling at her. Which was all he pretty much did. Except for those few moments when he seemed to become a totally different person. But then again some one would always say or do something to make him turn around and become the old yelling Inu-Yasha. No this defiantly wasn't Inu-Yasha. So who was waiting for her? "He's really mad."

"Oh, he'll get over it." Kagome retorted coolly then thinking about it she asked, "How mad is he Shippo?"

"I think he's on the verge of being PO-ed. Keade actually had to put a spell on him so he wouldn't go down the well after you. Why?" Kagome threw her pack up over the side of the old Bone Eaters well. With an earth shaking THUD! And then began to climb up after it.

"Oh, just wondering." You could never be too careful with Inu-Yasha's temper. What if he some how got those prayer beads off? She thought about it for a second and then decided to forget it. He wouldn't hurt her. Would he? Now Kagome was fully out of the well and was looking around while she picked up her bag.

Even though this wasn't the first time she'd crawled out of the Bone Eaters well it still amazed her about how much Japan had changed sense Inu-Yasha's time.

There were trees that doted the rolling hills as Shippo and Kagome made there way toward Kaede's village and vast fields of crops to either side of them. Then, up ahead was a very angry Inu-Yasha sulking at his usual post atop a tree branch. Suddenly he jumped up and landed right in front of Kagome's face.

"So what's your excuse this time!? Huh!?" he screamed with a fit of rage in her face.

"I had a lot of homework to do and only three days to do it in. Not to mention the make up tests I missed. Then."

"Again with these tests! What's so important about them? They just seem a big pain to me."

'Good he's starting to cool down.' Thought Kagome. "They would seem like a waste to you, but as soon as this is all over and I go home they are going to help me get a good job."

As they walked back to Kaede's house it finally dawned on Inu-Yasha.

'So she's not going to stay here? No, why would she? She's always being attacked by demons or hurt. Why would she want to stay?'

They'd walk onward Kagome smiling every time they past some one, soon she saw Miroku and Sango. And, as always, Miroku was pestering Sango trying to get her to like him, but it obviously was not working. Because as soon as Sango saw Kagome she went running up to meet her leaving Miroku to waddle up behind her looking fairly depressed at not getting any further with his and Sango's "relationship". Hearing all the 'hellos', 'your lates ', and 'I'm sorrys ' Kaede stepped out of her hut with Myoga on her shoulder. Myoga promptly jumped to his master's shoulder.

Soon afterwards they were all sitting down around the fire in Kaede's house eating steamed rice with vegetables and chicken. Kaede's house was a pretty good house by feuding states standards. One big room all made of wood and a bamboo screen door. In the corner farthest from the door folded neatly was her futon and sleeping 'pillow'. In another corner (closest to the door) was Kagome's over stuffed pack, a bow, and some arrows. Once they were finished Kaede said, "I have heard of an other demon in these parts, but I am not sure it is in the possession of a part of the jewel."

"What kind of demon is it, Lady Kaede?" Asked Sango.

"I don't know anything about this demon except that it has been moving in this direction. And the only way I know of this is that villagers from the west say that they have seen the many people it has all ready killed left on the sides of the roads. None, that I have heard of, have actually seen it."

"So what do we do?" Kagome asked with a worried look upon her face. "We can't just sit here and wait for it to come."

"No. We should head west and meet it somewhere out side the village." Miroku announced.

"I agree." Voiced Myoga, "We will also have an element of surprise since it will not be expecting us to come after it."

"Ok!" Kagome said as she rose up. "We should leave now, so we can meet this demon as far away from the village as possible." With that she picked up her nap-sack, bow, and arrows, then walked out the door.

"Wait for me Kagome." Shippo said as he scurried out after her, but outside, Kagome was nowhere to be seen. "Kagome?" He asked uncertainly to the chill November wind. "Kagome?!" Shippo asked a little louder noticing the ripped pack a few yards off to the left of him and the splintered arrows.

Finally, Inu-Yasha immerged from Kaede's hut to notice that Kagome's sent was very faint, as if she was somewhere far away. Then his eyes fell upon her scattered belongings. Franticly he shot into the air like a bullet looking all around for any trace of where Kagome was. And in the distance he could see two demon figures heading west with an unconscious Kagome hanging over the larger ones shoulder.

With out a moment's hesitation he sped off after the culprits. 'If they hurt her I'm going to.', he thought, however as he was thinking of the worst things possible to do to them he noticed that the late autumn air was growing chiller and droplets of rain were beginning to fall. Soon he was flying into a full-blown storm. Kagome's sent faded away as it was replaced with fresh water and the sound of rustling leaves stirred into the loudest crashes of thunder thought possible. The only way he could fallow them now was because of the flashes of lightning that illuminated them every few seconds.

Kagome, as best as he could tell, was now drenched and her head was bobbing left and right with the wind. The demon holding her was a dark forest-green with a brown cape that billowed under Kagome's head hitting her in the face every time a large gust came about. The other was short and very hard to see, it almost seemed that he was the same color as the sky at some times. As if a dark puke gray.

Lightning struck the side of the mountain off to the left. Boulders flowed down the side of it, like a water fall, into the valley of dormant trees below. When Inu-Yasha gazed back up at the next flash of lightning to see where they were going, all he could see for miles was the endless hurricane that circled among him. He jumped down into the needle like branches around the area he last saw them to look for prints, pick up a sent, anything. But mud washed around his feet and sheets of water poured upon him. Inu-Yasha had for once lost track of Kagome.

CRACK! Inu-Yasha threw his fist through a withered tree. BOOM! Thunder crashed and rumbled all about him.

CRACK! Flash. BOOM!

"We did what ye asked of us." Said the smaller demon, "Here, is the girly ye requested, Lord Iyo." Flash, a figure is illuminated in light. It is tall with glowing green eyes. BOOM!

"What shall I do with her, me lord?" Muttered the green one.

"Bind her hands, then throw her in the corner over there." He pointed to an area that was encompassed in complete darkness, but water could be heard dripping somewhere among the lightless corner.

Kagome awoke to the incessant dripping of something on her face. And when she tried to move to brush away the water that was there, she found that her hands were tided behind her. Finally managing to sit up she realized that she was inside of a cave. Slightly lit by a fire; around the fire were two of the ugliest demons she had ever seen. The first one she saw fully, was an ugly green monstrosity. He (At least Kagome thought it was a he.) had yellow-green hair, two glowing red eyes (The right one had a deep gash over it.) and reddish boils upon his hideous mug. He had arms and hands but no legs or feet. He just hovered above the matted dirt of the cave. Suddenly his eyes met Kagome's and she began to shiver with a cold emptiness that filled her. "Eh? Girly ye awake?" Kagome just sat there in fear, that she hopelessly tried to hide. "Eh?" He repeated with a slight laugh.

Now the second evil being turned to face her. This one was very short (almost a third of the size of his companion) and dark gray skin. He had white frizzy hair that stood out on end. Much like an afro but not as thick, almost as if he had been struck with lightning one to many times and it just stuck like that. This one also had what looked to be rusted armor. It one looked her over and whispered something to the other, stood, and left. As that one left, the other floated over to Kagome then dragged her over the fire side.

"Yer a pretty one 'ent ye?" He exclaimed after a minute of just staring at her.

"Humph!" was the reply Kagome gave him as she threw her head to one side.

"Rah, stop pestering our guest." Came a falsely friendlier voice. "Go outside. I have another job for you. Obi will fill you in." Rah bowed and hovered silently out the cave entrance. "Now." Said the demon in front of her. He looked like an adult human except for his florescent green eyes. "I hear that you have something I want." His face was now right in front of her's.

Kagome thought of saying, "You really need a Tic-Tac." But instead she sputtered out, "I-I have nothing that would concern you." 'This guy is the most human-like, out of all of them. But he still makes me wrench. And what about that job?'

"Oh, But you do." He muttered while reaching toward her. "A certain jewel shard." His hand still inching closer to where the jewel hung on its chain. Hidden under her shirt. ".the largest of all." Then with demon like reflexes her grabbed the jewel from around her neck tearing the front of her uniform in the process. Not the whole front of her shirt, but it was still noticeable. However this demon didn't seem to care.

Kagome followed the jewel in his hand. It glittered in the fire light, so innocent like. It was dark out side and considerably wet, as if it had been raining earlier.

"Don't worry. I'm not going to use it." He spoke finally. Kagome's eyes betrayed her curiosity of 'why'. "Well not just yet anyway. No. I think I'll have some fun first."

The last thing Kagome saw was a hand coming toward to hit her and the last thing she felt was the hard rock meeting with the left side of her face.