Chapter IV: The Jewel is Stolen... by a Little Girl

Sesshoumaru growled as he sliced the 7th youkai into ribbons that afternoon. The cold prince felt hot shame and anger burning inside him, still fresh. He had let himself get caught off guard twice.

Twice.

Though the taiyoukai had much righteous anger on the inside, his face remained calm and collected.

'That girl... how dare she put this cursed thing on me? This is personal. If she does that subduing spell in public, my reputation will fall into shambles,' Sesshoumaru smirked bitterly, the very thought of her restraining him infront of many who'd feared him making him shudder inwardly. 'No! I will not soil the family name like that foolish Inuyasha did, without even knowing so.'

He broke out of his stupor when he intuited another youkai struggling to scamper to safety before feeling his angered wrath. He easily caught up with it, flexing his claws and slashing in a downward rotation, effectively decapitating the poor over-sized bug demon. He fled from the spurting yellow blood of his recent kill.

'Naïve girl. She does not know I do not make promises with lowly humans.'

Frowning, he gazed down at his bloodied hands, the annoying (usually sadistically pleasing) metallic salty smell wafting up to his delicate nose. 'I should not let my rage take over me again... If it gets too far, who knows what will happen...'

The smug demon walked in a straight line, slashing any tree or plant in his way. Soon Sesshoumaru arrived at his destination, which was a small vacant stream in his standards. He plunged his malodorous hands swiftly into the moving stream. Clouds of green, (the poison from his claws) as well as clouds of red blood blurred the water. He half-smirked when he saw a large amount fish float to the surface, his anger slightly sufficed with seeing death of insignificant beings.

Dipping his other hand into the water, he started to fall into deep thought. 'That girl is not of here. She is different. Her aura, scent, appearance, and accent... they are not of this world. I deem all humans selfish loathful creatures. Yet this girl, by the looks of it, put everyone else's welfare before her own, or maybe I am just giving her too much credit,' indeed, he was astonished with the girl. After all, the only humans he had ever met were plagued with at least one of the Seven Deadly Sins. The girl that mystified him seemed pure; as if untainted by the harsh cruel reality... it was her eyes that gave this very comment away.

Sesshoumaru's thoughts suddenly drifted to Kikyou, the woman he strangely held a high dislike for. Every time she had visited, she always wore her kimonos in a voluptuous fashion, and many times flirted with male servants whenever her dear suitor wasn't looking. Sesshoumaru himself was once one of her targets, but unlike the others he was not so shallow as to fall for the false demure yet seductive attitude of the woman. He'd just stared at her with a look of intense boredom and pushed her lightly to the side and went on his way.

Maybe it was her concubine personality, or the fact that she actually could possibly hold a true liking for his disgusted yet respected younger sibling.

The differences between the girl and Kikyou now were vast, where similarities end with their ironically alike yet unique physical features.

The Western Prince instantly remembered why he had come here to kill Kikyou. She was going to assassinate Inuyasha with the same dagger that killed his father... or so he assumed. The woman stank of lies and deceit in which before there was none but pure love and loyalty. She changed with her time spent in lavish living with InuYasha, losing the finer things of the simplicities of life as well as her morality and purity that he himself had admired for at least a moment in time.

Sesshoumaru noticed how everytime she claims her love of InuYasha, he seemed to hear the slightest skip of a beat within her heart.

Like symptoms to a deadly disease, Kikyou was showing signs of future hostility. He remembered such behavior from his father's human wife.

He got up from his kneeling position and suddenly made a decision. 'I will not leave these lands until Kikyou dies by my hands. But how will I kill that woman with the girl in the way...'

~

A little girl sat down humbly alone in her hut/hiding cave. She was orphaned, with no one to take care of her since her parents were slain by wolves. For a month the little girl has been living like this, not telling anyone anything. Her parents' death has silenced her, and she has not said a word ever since.

Slowly, the girl wiped away her tears from her chocolate eyes as she always did after reminiscing memories of her brother, mother, and father's tragic deaths. She pushed herself out of her sitting position and stood up, walking out of her cave and into the forest to catch some fish from the stream. Youkai attack even in broad daylight, yet she did not care. Why was she living in the first place? Nobody knew her name much less cared for her...one of these days, she will have to let go of life and join her family in the afterworld...

 The small child neared the stream and gasped at the sight. Fish were floating on the surface of the water. That wasn't all. The water had turned a sickly green, as if died. She frowned slightly, knowing the fish was probably inedible now, with the poison coursing through them.

She gasped once more when she heard two youkai voices getting closer and hid in a bush.

Peering out the bushes, she glimpsed a snake and worm youkai conversing. The girl heaved a sigh of relief since she knew that snake and worm youkai could not hear or smell very well, so they would not know of her presence. However, they could easily sense movement through the earth, and if she moved a foot, they would feel it and would notice her presence. So she remained rooted to her spot and listened to what they were saying.

"I heard the Shikon no Tama has been reborn," the snake youkai hissed. It paced around the shore of the poisoned stream; silently pondering what was the strange cause. "Every youkai had tried to retrieve it and failed miserably."

"How, I wonder?" the worm youkai thought aloud.

"A strange girl, from the future, they say, is the new protector. If any youkai that she does not trust, has a tainted mind and soul, or desire the jewel for evil intentions get within three feet of her, they will be blown away to bits," the Snake youkai replied. "It is impossible to get that jewel now."

"You mean if you do not desire the jewel, you will be able to take it? What nonsense is that?" the worm scoffed. "But what if we are to manipulate a certain human who does not desire the jewel?"

The girl was listening contently to their conversation when she felt something scurrying around at her feet. Suddenly tensing, she looked down and saw a little mouse. The mouse was actually a rat, and its eyes were a deadly red.

She squeaked when the rat crawled on top of her foot and prepared to bite. Eyes widened, she kicked the rat off her foot and stumbled clumsily on a tree root.

The snake and worm paused from their talk. "Did you feel that?" the worm asked. "It came from those bushes over there."

The snake and worm slithered through the bush and found the little girl sprawled on the floor, trembling terribly. She turned wide, terrified eyes towards them.

"Well, look what we have here, my worm friend," the snake sneered. "It seems we got our certain human to get us the Shikon Jewel." It coiled itself around the little girl and forced her to look into its eyes as it started to hypnotize her.

~

Kagome and Naraku quietly made their way back to the village. Every now and then, the young teen would cast a sideways glance at the hanyou, only to see him grimacing about and grasping his shoulder often. Kagome suddenly stopped walking, causing Naraku to pause also. He turned to look at her. "What is it?"

"You're in pain. I've been checking up on you now and then, and I noticed how you keep on holding your shoulder like that," Kagome responded quietly. "Why?"

"When that dog buried his claws into my shoulder, he had injected poison into it also. It's nothing the matter, it will heal," Naraku lied.

Kagome placed her hands on her hips and leaned forward slightly. "Yeah, right! Don't think that I don't know anything about poison! It's not something that will just 'go away' like a cold! It'll stay inside you, eating you alive," Kagome retorted back. "And to top it all off, you're bleeding, aren't you afraid of loosing too much blood?"

"And what are you going to do about it?" Naraku said coldly. Yet his voice had another note to it... dazed, perhaps? Yes, he was speaking in a dazed way. Kagome felt her worry start to spread. "Naraku?? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." Naraku swooned a little. 'I am starting to feel a little fatigued. I will just... rest here..' Naraku dropped to one knee. 'A small rest is all I need.'

Kagome gasped and ran to his side. "Hey, you're definitely not all right! Here, let me help you up. Kiochi-san's shrine isn't too far away from here. Can you walk?" Kagome slung one of his arms around her shoulder and slowly helped him up. She felt his body relax onto her. Kagome staggered under his height. 'He's so tall!!! This is going to be hard.' Kagome, at a steady pace led the dazed Naraku towards the shrine.

She looked at his face. Crimson eyes were closed, but she could tell he was still awake. She carefully led him up the stairs of the old shrine. Kiochi, who was wearing a red miko outfit, ran towards them. "Kagome-san! Naraku! What happened, you two look like a mess... And Naraku, you are bleeding all over the floor!" she exaggerated a bit about the bleeding-all-over-the-floor part.

Kagome looked down at her turquoise miko outfit and laughed nervously at the sight. They were tattered at the sleeves and dirt was clearly shown on her white gi. "Gomen nasai, Kiochi-san, we had a little run-in with a youkai."

"Yes, alright," Kiochi pulled part of Naraku's gi down to see the wound. She gasped at the sight. "What is this green substance...?" A slim finger scooped up a small amount of slick green liquid. It stung her finger and immediately she purified it, eyes widened in shock. "This type of poison... it's a type of poison only a inu youkai acquires! Dog demons only live in the western lands, in exception of Naraku..."

"Naraku's a dog demon?!"

"I suppose I never told you that..." Naraku announced.

"Yes, he is a dog demon," Kiochi nodded. "But there is no time to speak about that! Kagome-san, you must get a few herbs from the village! And quickly! The poison inside him stays dormant for only so long, and soon it will overcome his body and paralyze him!"

"What?" Naraku hissed.

"Hurry, Kagome-san, what are you waiting for?" Kiochi said hastily. "Naraku, we will need to wash out your wound and fast. Come," Kiochi grabbed Naraku's arm and dragged him down the hallways of the shrine. With a determined look on her face, Kagome rushed out of the shrine and hopped onto her bike and rode to the village.

~

"Well, did it work?" the worm asked impatiently. The snake uncoiled itself around the little girl. "The hypnotizing effect may take a few hours to kick in," the snake hissed. "But I had told her telepathically to get us that jewel."

The little girl stirred from unconsciousness. She crawled backwards away from the youkai, looking an inch away from being frightened to death. The worm cackled. "Do not worry, little girl, you will not die until you get the Shikon no Tama for us."

"Yes, after you get the Shikon no Tama and give it to us, you will die a slow and painful death."

"Oh really?" a deadpan voice asked lowly from behind them. The two slithering youkai turned around. The worm sneered. "And who are you? A weak demon, disguised in a pretty-boy humanoid form, I suppose?"

The 'pretty boy' also known as Sesshoumaru, Of the Western Lands, (but the demons didn't know that) stared up composedly at the worm that surpassed over him about a few feet. "You actually believe that this girl will get you the Shikon no Tama?" he asked impassively. "I believe that your deed is extremely low, but quite suiting for trash such as yourselves." His voice hardened at the last part.

"What did you say?" the snake hissed angrily. "We'll break that handsome little human face of yours!" The snake angrily launched itself at Sesshoumaru, who didn't move an inch. It coiled itself around his stiff body. "Feeling the pressure now?"

Sesshoumaru kept his eyes on the little girl, completely ignoring the fact that a snake was trying to squeeze the living life out of him. His eyes slowly traveled onto the snake, but his position did not.

"Are you finished?" he asked harshly. The snake felt aggravated, tightening its grip on him. Sesshoumaru, meanwhile, felt annoyed, and an hand bolted up and encircled the snake's 'neck'. "You are wasting my time, reptile." Sesshoumaru's eyes flickered slightly over to the worm youkai that clearly flashed 'you're next'. The grip he had on the snake loosened, and the slithery thing tried to choke out apologies. "H-Have mercy!"

With a small flick of his wrist, Sesshoumaru flung the snake into the poison contaminated stream. "You are fortunate that I have already killed many youkai today," Sesshoumaru announced placidly, his golden eyes turning into slits. "Otherwise..."

The worm let out a small gasp of horror and disappeared into the darkness, forgetting about its snake companion. Sesshoumaru's eyes dwelled on the little girl. She suddenly stood up and looked up at him curiously.

"What are you doing out here in the forest?"

The girl did not respond, only looked down. Sesshoumaru did not feel irritation from her lack of replies. Instead, he felt his traitorous feet walking over to her and kneeled down. He was surprised that even with himself kneeling down, he was still taller than her by more than a foot. The little girl looked up at him. "R...Rin."

"Is that your name?" Sesshoumaru asked.

The little girl nodded. Sesshoumaru slowly stood up, not wanting to startle the little girl by using his normal speed. "Return to your mother," Sesshoumaru ordered, his back turned to her. "Many different youkai appear at night, most not so considerate as myself."

He was about to leave, when the little girl spoke up again. " Rin does not have a mommy."

Sesshoumaru halted. He was far away from the little girl, but he still heard her ghostly whisper. "That is not my problem." He continued, attempting to ignore the girl's hoarse voice and the slightest trace of pity welling inside him.

"Rin does not have a mommy and daddy, or brother," she paused, as if remembering something. "R-... My family died."

Unable to resist the pull of his deeply concealed conscience, Sesshoumaru turned to face her again. "So you've been living alone then?"

Rin nodded.

"Whom do you live with?"

"Rin lives by herself."

"I see..." Sesshoumaru turned around once again, to leave. Rin felt her heart sinking. Just when she thought she had someone, they leave her. She sadly turned around also, to return to her small cave. Hopefully that sharp rock she found earlier was still there.......

"You are free to follow me, if you want," the ensuring voice rolled over to her. "If you do not want to be alone anymore."

The little girl suddenly broke into a smile and followed the youkai.

Sesshoumaru heard her small footsteps on the dirt. 'So she decided to follow me... interesting human. Why am I doing this in the first place?'

"What is stranger's name?" the girl asked shyly.

"It is Sesshoumaru."

"Hai! Arigatou, Sesshoumaru-sama."

Sesshoumaru almost smiled, but even if he did, it would've been a wry one. 'This little girl has manners.' The footsteps behind him ceased. Curious on why, Sesshoumaru turned around.

Rin looked different. Her eyes were glowing red, and her hair was floating. Sesshoumaru raised a brow. 'Oh yes, the snake had put a hypnotism spell on her. This will be interesting. Perhaps I will get to meet that miko who put this cursed necklace on me again.'

~

"Is he going to be alright?" Kagome whispered, not wanting to wake the currently asleep, or unconscious Naraku. Kiochi nodded. "Of course, but that poison that was injected into him is extremely powerful. He will not be able to get up for a few days, but he will be able to become conscious and talk a little while. Of this I might be wrong, however. He's a hanyou, so his healing might be a lot faster than what I suppose."

"How was he poisoned, Kagome-san?" Kaede asked, carefully placing her tea cup down on the smooth floor.

"A man named Sesshoumaru attacked me today, and Naraku saved me. I can't believe I forgot to thank him," Kagome suddenly felt guilty. "And it's all my fault Naraku's like this."

"It's not your fault. Naraku will be fine," Kiochi laughed. "But did you say Sesshoumaru? Isn't he a prince from the western lands?" Kiochi asked, stupefied. "Why would he come all the way here to attack you?"

"I believe he mistook me for Kikyou," Kagome uttered uncomfortably. "May I ask what affair Kikyou has with this Sesshoumaru?"

Kiochi stared lamely down at Naraku's face, as if hesitant to say anything. "Sesshoumaru... he is Inuyasha's brother. Inuyasha is the future Lord of the Western lands. Kikyou has been paying visits to Inuyasha for a few months now, trying to fool him to think that they are deep in love. Her secret mission is to assassinate Inuyasha on the day of his crowning."

"But why?"

"That, I cannot tell you. But I'll tell you this much: Kikyou used to love Inuyasha endlessly...." Kiochi paused and sipped her tea. "A long time ago, another woman, Hitomi, from this exact same village had done this deed, to Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru's father.

I was an adolescent when Hitomi had killed Inutaisho, she came back with loaded carts filled with the lord's gold, and she looked like she had made a bet and won against the emperor himself. That night the whole village had a large celebration of the western lord's death. Kaede and Kikyou's mother, Kanjou, Lady Gomeka and I had despised the plan to assassinate the lord, but thus, it was rendered could not be helped.

Lord Inutaisho was a kind demon that was merciful. Hitomi had been in love with Inutaisho at first, but when heard of the money, she turned her love down for riches. Or at least, that is what we were and are led to believe. (there are still many loose ends to this story..)

"The night the village was celebrating, the three of us, (me, Kanjou and Gomeka) were at the shrine along with all the children. The children were all playing in a small court that was part of the shrine, blissfully unaware of the corruptness happening in the village. Lady Gomeka, Kanjou, few other men and women and I were secretly sending prayers asking for forgiveness to Inutaisho for Hitomi's sinful deed. You see- Inutaisho was friends to plenty of humans -he never looked down upon us, or discouraged us or attacked us- and we were grateful for that.

To our surprise, he responded. He told us that his eldest son, Sesshoumaru, was going to attack the village to avenge him. He also seemed to understand that we did not rejoice his death but mourned it. So with his spiritual energy, he created a shield around the shrine that warded off evil youkai and Sesshoumaru himself.

The village was destroyed and many lives were lost. But those who had come to the shrine were protected. We have rebuilt the village, but this shrine had always remained the same," Kiochi ended her long explanation.

"What about Hitomi?" Kagome whispered.

Kiochi looked pale, regarding the memory with hesitation. "We found her severed head on the end of a sword. Her skin had been burned off, and her body had many deep gashes in them, made by poisonous claws. It seems that the Sesshoumaru was overcome with grief, anger, and hatred. And now, he probably learned of Kikyou and her assassination, and deems to have his revenge the second time. Although... I do not see how he could. Maybe he's simply a good judge in character."

Kagome shuddered. That man that she had put a prayer bead necklace was a revenge-driven killing machine.

The three of them suddenly silenced. Kagome stood up. "If you guys don't mind, I'll be taking a walk now."

"Be careful, Kagome-chan," Kaede called out to her as she left.

Kagome smiled at the way Kaede addressed her name. Kagome-chan.

Kagome walked towards the village, deciding to explore a tiny bit. She breathed in the cool nighttime air as she trekked on. 'Sesshoumaru... the poor guy, losing his father like that. I'd probably do the same thing if I were in his shoes. I guess I can't blame him for attacking me. I mean, he DID think I was Kikyou. And he was only trying to protect his kid brother. That Inuyasha fellow... I wonder who he is.'

She paused when she sensed two figures coming her way. She turned around and saw only a little girl. Pushing away the thought about the other figure, she kneeled down. "Hey! What are you doing out after dark? Your mother must be worried about you."

The little girl kept her head down, so Kagome couldn't really see her eyes. "Hello?"

Kagome stared at the little girl, waiting for a reaction. The girl slowly brought her head up to look Kagome in the eye, who let out a startled gasp when she saw the little girl's eyes. They were glowing an intense red, like a fire!

Letting out an inhuman growl, she grabbed at the jewel around Kagome's neck. Kagome fell backwards, taken aback by the little girl's sudden actions.

Smirking, the girl pulled Kagome's necklace off her head and stepped back.

Her crimson eyes flashed once before she suddenly disappeared in thin air, leaving behind a cloud of dust. Kagome hastily stood up. "Oh no...! The jewel... I must find it!"

She was trying to sense for the jewel, when a low chuckle pulled her out of her deep concentration. She turned her head to see none other than...

"Sesshoumaru," she stepped back.

There he was, leaning lazily against a tree, his arms crossed. His head was bowed slightly so he could look down at her. He chuckled once more, the sound of it bitter and sardonic. "Lost the jewel already?"

Kagome looked down. "I have...to...I have to find it. Do you know where the girl-" She suddenly felt the pull of the Shikon Jewel from the west. Without a word, she dashed towards the direction of the Shikon Jewel. She was stopped abruptly when she bumped into something soft. "OOMF." She looked up to see Sesshoumaru staring down at her, obviously amused. Kagome backed up hastily.

"Do you forget you do not have the safety of the Shikon Jewel with you?"

"I don't care! Get out of my way, I have to get that jewel back, or else I'm done for!" the words were said more to herself than to the condescending male infront of her. She tried to step to the side but he was infront of her again. "You truly need to calm-"

"-Down!" she yelled in a forceful tone at the top of her lungs and ran, towards where her instincts was the jewel. 'Why did I take my responsibility so lightly?'

Sesshoumaru fell flat on his back, suffering degradingness but that didn't devastate his amusement. He was aware of the fact that she would cry that subduing spell, sooner or later...

He propped himself up and marched nonchalantly towards the path she went.

~

Kagome felt uneasy as she scampered through the awfully dim forest. 'I have to get that jewel back,' she thought frantically. At last, she reached her destination. The little girl was standing a few meters ahead of her. "You...you give that jewel back right now. That's not a toy- it's a big responsibility of mine, and any accidental wish can-" she noticed the desperation in her voice.

The little girl stood impeccably still until finally she collapsed to the ground. Kagome's face had perplexity written all over it. Two pairs of eyes suddenly glew from a dark spot of the forest. A large 30-foot long snake suddenly appeared. "Hello, Miko... I see you've fallen into my trap."

"You... you possessed the little girl?" Kagome demanded, outraged. "How could you do such a thing?"

~

Sesshoumaru felt the anger vibrating from the girl. 'She is a strange one, indeed.' He sat comfortably on a tree limb, watching the oh-so-amusing little scene.

~

"I have the jewel, now. You cannot stop me," the snake cackled. The snake had the jewel in a tight grip at the end of its tail. All of a sudden, he flicked his tail up. The jewel soared through the air, and the snake caught it. In its mouth.

Kagome's eyes widened. "Oh my...- you aren't going to eat it, are you?"

The snake didn't reply and just swallowed the jewel. Kagome sank to her knees like the world has ended. "NO!"

The snake cackled once more, and grew about twenty feet in height and 5 feet in width. "I am famished. A little snack wouldn't hurt," the snake hissed loudly. He closed in on Kagome, poisonous saliva falling from its mouth.

Kagome, overcome with loss, fell to her knees. "How can I let this happen?" she whispered. Her head was bowed low, her bangs shielding her eyes from the rest of the world. "I can't believe I failed my biggest responsibility. No, it's not over yet. The snake only swallowed the jewel."

She was unaware that a certain youkai was listening to every word she was murmuring. Her head tilted up, showing tears flowing down her face. "I will not allow you to have the Shikon no Tama!! I'll tear you damn stomach if I have to!!"

Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at her colorful choice of words and was reminded of his brash little brother. He was drawn from his ponderings when the girl's aura flared.

It all happened too fast. Kagome's eyes flashed with energy, and her whole body was glowing pink. Her miko energy took shape of a bow and a single arrow. Kagome grasped the energy bow and arrow and aimed it straight at the youkai's neck. "Give back the Jewel, and I will spare your life, you little snake!"

"I think NOT!" the Youkai hissed venomously. It dove forward in a blur of green and black.

~

Sesshoumaru noticed that Rin was on the grass, completely defenseless. In a blink of an eye, he came down and retrieved her from the grass and jumped back to his tree. He watched as the battle in the clearing prolonged, the unconscious little girl with him stirred, but did not wake. Sesshoumaru glanced back downward to the fascinating fight.

~

Kagome let the arrow fly towards the snake, colliding with its chest. The Snake gave an agonizing roar as blood poured from the opened wound. Kagome whisked another arrow and prepared to strike the snake once more, but she did not see the tail that was headed her way. She was hurled into a tree and fell unconscious. The snake threw up some fresh dark blood on the grass. "You little wench... you will die!!"

It tried to launch itself at her, but failed miserably when it was hurled back about fifty yards away. Kagome's opened her eyes, feeling a great pain throbbing in her head. "I have to... get that jewel back... no matter... no matter what."

Kagome limped towards the snake, grasping her sprained arm. The snake glared down at her and prepared to dive down and eat her alive.

~

Sesshoumaru was convinced. She was a noble one who did not care for her life. Foolish, but brave. She is deserving of his assistance.

He leapt down gracefully from his tree and walked towards the youkai. "That is enough."

"It's you again!!" The snake sneered. "With the Shikon no Tama, I am one- hundred times stronger... and I will kill you where you stand!!" the snake momentarily forgot about Kagome and slithered speedily at Sesshoumaru.

Sesshoumaru sprang into the air to look the snake straight in the eye. His eyes were half-open, indicating that he was not at all threatened by the snake youkai. "You actually need a little trinket's help to gain power? Truly disgusting."

- - - - - - - - - - -
END CHAPTER 4
Sayonara!