Miroku sat down gently beside the prone Sango. He looked nervously up at Atma, who simply grinned back.

            "You aren't going to hurt her, are you?" Miroku asked. His voice held a barely disguised threat.

            Atma thought for a moment. "Well, honestly, no." She said. "However, the healing process is going to hurt like hell." She grinned at him, in a silly lopsided grin, but her voice was dead serious. "You should hold her hand tight, and no matter how badly she screams, don't interrupt me."

            Miroku scowled at the dragon, and gave her a deadly, suspicious look. "What are you going to do?"

            Atma shrugged. "Well, I'm going to simply speed up her healing process very quickly."

            Miroku thought for a while. "How will that hurt?"

            Atma gave him a knowing look. "You know that pain when someone sets a bone, and then the dull ache that accompanies the weeks of recovery?" She asked. Miroku nodded. "Imagine all that happening in about five to ten minutes." She said.

            Miroku's eyes widened, and he nodded, slowly. He had had a broken leg before, and it hadn't been pleasant.

            Atma regarded the horrible burn on the panting youkai hunter's side. The skin and flesh had literally been burned away, and left only a gaping hole in the girl's side. The nerves there were almost beyond repair, and Atma knew that merely playing with time wouldn't help that. She would have to go in directly.

            Miroku saw her gaze, and asked quietly. "Is there anything you can do for the burn?"

            Atma sighed. "I'm powerful enough to help." She said. "It's just that I'm not that great with human anatomy." She said rubbing the back of her head. "I can't just go in and start poking around. I need to actually know what I'm doing." She shrugged.

            Miroku looked to the ground. "There's not much you can do then.

            Atma turned to him and shook her head. "I'm sorry." She said. "She'll live, but there will be a real big scar."

            Miroku looked up suddenly, a perturbed look on his face. She had made it seem like there was no hope! And here she was a little worried of a scar? The girl had a gaping hole in her side, for crying out loud! Of coarse there would be a scar!

            He scanned the dragon's face for any sign of mockery, but there was only nervous sincerity. Was she really that apprehensive about a scar?

            Miroku nodded. "I think we can live with a scar." He said carefully.

            Atma sighed in relief, and walked over to Sango's side again. "Okay, girl." She said sweetly. "Were ready to begin. Brace yourself."

            Sango smiled up at her. "I've had a sickle stuck three inches into my back before, and been hit by lightning." She managed to get out. "I think I can take a little healing."

            Atma smiled at her sweetly, and rolled her eyes. "If you insist." She said, sighing. She nodded to Miroku, who sat and grasped Sango's hand.

            Atma nodded, and closed her eyes.

            Kitty watched on the sidelines in rapt fascination. Khellendros's magic had been flashy, but very weak, and he was arrogant. This was really the first time she was going to see someone who was good at it perform. She wandered what it would look like.

            Miroku also watched curiously as the dragon shrugged relaxed, and sat down, and carefully lifted Sango's head into her lap. She crooned soothingly to the girl, and slowly she relaxed.

            Suddenly, Miroku felt something. It wasn't a feeling of spiritual powers. It wasn't the same as an omen. It was a slight prickling all over his body. The dragon's odd eyes closed.

            At any moment, Kitty knew, she would start to glow, the weather would grow stormy. She would lift of the ground, and all sorts of other things would happen.

            She was disappointed.

            Whatever they had been expecting, it didn't happen.

            Atma opened her eyes. There was no wind, no glow, no lightning, no nothing. But at the same time, Sango's eyes opened, wide. The youkai slayer began to scream.

~~

            InuYasha growled in frustration, and shook his head in frustration. His own mind was turning against him. First he would think about Kikyo, then suddenly she would turn into Kagome, and then the thoughts would turn darker, to the light curve of a hip, or how very short he skirt was, or other interesting details of the girls odd uniform (Or lack of it, on some occasions). Then he would shake his head to clear his mind, and then the little logical part would laugh at him.

            It had happened for the fourth time now, and InuYasha was getting very tired of it. He loved Kikyo, plain and simple! Kagome was a good friend, and dear to him! That was why he was doing this!

            'You are an Idiot!'  The logical part said.

            'Shut up!' InuYasha said, proverbially, tying the rebel section of his brain to a chair and gagging it.

            'Mmph!' the logical section said from around the gag.

            InuYasha shoved the chair into a closet, and returned to the thoughts at hand.

            Kagome did mean a lot to him, but that didn't mean that he loved her, did it? He loved Kagome. Wait!  Kikyo! Kikyo! He loved Kikyo! Not Kagome!

            'You just keep telling yourself that!' A voice said from the closet of his mind.

            'Shut the hell up!' InuYasha roared inside, pushing a mental cupboard in front of the mental closet door.

            InuYasha's pace on the icy path quickened, and he began putting his feet down so hard that the ice crackled under his feet slightly.

            InuYasha's teeth gritted, and his eyes narrowed dangerously. He loved Kikyo. That was final! Kikyo was who he loved! Not Kagome! Even if Kagome was really cute.

            'And nice!'  The voice supplied from around the closet.

            And nice. Really… REALLY cute and nice.

            'She accepts you for who you are, you know.'  The voice pointed out. 'Not even Kikyo did that. She wouldn't have you unless you were human. Remember?'

            Yes… Kikyo only wanted him as a human. Kagome didn't seem to really care. That was true.

            'Yeah. She's a nice girl.'  The voice said, coaxingly.

            Yes. Yes she is.

            'You love her!'

            I… love her?

            'Yes!'

             I love her…

            'YES!'  The voice said triumphantly.

            InuYasha suddenly snapped out of his reverie, and snatched the Annoying little section of brain out of the closet, though the cupboard, and held it up by its throat.

            'Shut the hell up, Bastard!' InuYasha thought savagely.

            'So close! Damn!'

            'I love Kikyo!' InuYasha said threateningly. 'Just drop it!'

            "Um… InuYasha?" Kagome said sleepily, poking her head out from the blanket.

            "I said, drop it!" InuYasha growled out loud.

            "What?" Kagome asked, confused.

            InuYasha suddenly looked back at Kagome, blushing slightly. "N-nothing." HE stuttered. "Are you doing okay?"

            Kagome smiled at him. "Yeah, fine!" She said. "I feel better, almost."

            InuYasha looked at Kagome. The smile was false, there were bags under her eyes, she was trembling slightly, and all in all looked terrible. Why wouldn't she just let him help her?

            He growled inwardly, and sighed. "Were getting pretty close to the top." He said. "It shouldn't be long."

            Kagome nodded. "Good." She said.

            Silence fell as they both just looked ahead, watching the icy path come and go. Kagome sat in pain in her warm cocoon, and, not being able to go to sleep watched the icy, winter land go steadily by.

            InuYasha's breath was coming out in ragged, frosty breaths. His eyebrows seemed to be frozen, and the biting air had made his eyes water, and frozen his tears hard to his cheeks.

            Kagome was suddenly touched, even through the pain raging through her body, that InuYasha had been so faithful. He was doing this all for her! He had certainly changed. He never would have done anything like that when they had first met. She smiled slightly.

            He might say it was just because she was a jewel detector, but she knew better. He was stuck u, arrogant, impulsive, and could be the most annoying and selfish person she had ever heard of at times! But still… every once in a while… she would get a glimpse of him past his hard, outer shell. He was kind there, and shy, but still strong and noble. She liked what she saw there. If only he showed it a little more often…

            InuYasha suddenly stopped. Kagome winced as she was thumped against his back. "What's going on?" She asked.

            InuYasha began to back up very slowly.

            Kagome looked over his shoulder. "Oh." She said, very softly.

            Standing there, looking at them with cool interest was a large, white, scaly head. The deep icy blue pools that were its eyes blinked, and the toothy mouth turned upward in an icy, nasty grin.

~~

            Sango screamed. Her eyes glazed over almost instantly, and her back arched. Her broken leg twisted, and cracked unnaturally, and burns and blisters on her body slowly began to reduce in size. The scream died, and she began to breathe heavily and unnaturally, tears oozing from her eyes. She took a deep breath, then screamed again, a long, pain-filled, bloodcurdling scream. Her hands curled into fists, then unclenched again, and then she curled up, turning on her side, doubling over, screaming whenever breath would allow, and sobbing pitifully when it would not.

            Miroku clutched her hand tightly, wincing as the youkai slayer tightened a vice like grip on his hand. Slowly, the gap in her side began to close, the skin slowly filling in. Miroku felt an urge to go and lose the meals that he hadn't even had in the last few days.

            Sango's breath finally gave out, and she lay on the ground, panting, tears running down her cheeks. Then, she savagely began to beat her head against the sand.

            Miroku's eyes widened, and then he reached down and grabbed her head, holding it down gently but firmly.

            The wound finished closing, leaving a large, whitish, scar on her side. Slowly, her breathing calmed, her eyes closed, and her body unclenched.

            Grateful that it was over, Miroku sighed, and let go of the young girl's head.

            Atma looked up at him, and nodded. Miroku sighed again, and gently replaced his long purple robe over Sango. Slowly, she grasped it, and turned slightly to make herself more comfortable.

            Atma, chuckled slightly, and put her hands behind her head. "Well!" She said in a cheerful voice. "That went well."