DISCLAIMER:  I do not own Inuyasha or anything to do with it.

One Cold Starry Night

By:  Of Memories Past

Chapter 2: The Blood Within

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"Be safe, Kagome." Inuyasha tore over the frozen countryside in search of the missing miko. The vibrant, amber eyes drew in every ounce of light made available by the moon and the stars. He would find her. He must. The thought of some demon carrying his precious Kagome off into the night caused his limbs to move all the faster. "Wait." Inuyasha stopped with wide eyes for a moment before picking up speed again. "Where did that thought come from?" But he knew it did not matter. Deep down, Inuyasha knew all that he needed to know. It was simply a matter of surrendering himself to the emotions that were becoming more and more difficult to ignore everyday. He pressed on, determined to find her.

And that's when it reached him. The scent slowly crept into his senses, setting every nerve ending on fire as countless thoughts raced dangerously through his mind. That scent—every particle of it screamed youkai.

Thoughts of Kagome mauled and devoured by a giant demon started the initial change in his blood. Inuyasha tensed as every sense intensified. He could hear every blade of grass that moved with the cruel winds; he could discern the dead leaves among the live ones on the bushes of trees deep within the forest. Youkai blood began to pulse through his veins, and Inuyasha desperately fought to suppress it. Not now…

The metallic scent of something warm and sticky touched his nostrils, and suddenly and anger that he had never felt before rushed through him. The scent was blood! Kagome's blood! And he could smell the foul odor of youkai mixed in with the scent of her sweet life-giving fluid.

Mixed with fear, hatred, and the need to protect someone he cared so deeply for, the demon within would not be controlled. He shouted out in anger and pain as the sharp fangs forced themselves out, glistening in the bright moonlight. He watched with pleasure as the claws grew right before his eyes. Youkai blood now pumping freely through his veins, Inuyasha felt a rare strength. And he could pinpoint exactly where the demon holding Kagome lay. Violently, he turned scarlet eyes toward the direction he had scented the youkai. That demon was going to die.

"Hang on, Kagome. I'm coming."

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It had all been so sudden. One minute she was looking up ahead at her friends, and the next a silent intruder had rushed by and taken her. Kagome still wondered at the unusual occurrence as the sat freezing against the back of a sturdy tree. She warily eyed the demon pacing in front of her.

Deep, gray hair framed the pointed face of the wolf demon while in his humanoid form. At least in this form she didn't feel the same terror she had when he had kidnapped her. In his true form, the demon stood about eight feet at the shoulder. Long, sharp claws extended from the padded paws, and razor sharp teeth shone in the moonlight. Kagome shuddered.

First mistake.

Sensing her fear, the demon circled her yet again, the fierce gray eyes full of lust making him all the more intimidating. Kagome defiantly stared back, refusing to let him terrorize her though she truly felt the fear pulsating through her body. This demon had a look in his eye that did not bode well for her.

With a snarled smile, the demon reached out a clawed hand and snatched her chin, forcing her to look up. "Human or not," he whispered wickedly "you will be a more than decent mate." Deep, gray hair fell over one of his eyes as he smiled cruelly.

"I will not be your mate," Kagome whispered boldly, locking her gaze with his. "I have already been promised to another." The lie gave her a bit of strength and hopefully a bit of time. She knew that Inuyasha would be coming to look for her. She prayed that he would arrive shortly. This youkai did not need to let his mind wander any further…

Startled, she jumped when the wolf demon laughed. "Taken?" he questioned leaning closer. "I do not detect the scent of another on you." The sadistic smile faded as he harshly grabbed Kagome's face. "Are you lying to me, foolish girl?"

Kagome remained silent.

That sinister grin appeared once again on the youkai's face. "Well then, let us just get this over with. Shall we?" He tilted her neck to the side. "Mine," he whispered possessively.

Not wanting to see anything of the claiming rite, Kagome closed her eyes. She kept on wondering how she had gotten herself into this mess. "Slave to a demon? No, I can't…!"

But the demon did not touch her anymore. He did not have the chance to. A quick, violent breeze seemed to pull itself from the already windy atmosphere and rush past her. And then she heard it: small thumps. Something was hitting the ground.

Kagome opened her eyes to find pieces of the demon about to claim her strewn about the land and others still falling. She grimaced at the horrible sight, but also sighed in relief. She was safe.

Or so she thought. Fear gripped her once more as she looked up to find a fully transformed Inuyasha standing before her with sharp claws extended. She knew that those claws could rip her to shreds without effort.

"Did he touch you?" his rough voice asked.

Kagome watched as he clenched his fist tighter and tighter until his own blood seeped out of the new wounds in his hands. "No," she said timidly.

Crimson eyes flashed toward her and she flinched. "At all?"

She swallowed. "He…he grabbed my face."

"That's it?" the hanyou asked coming closer.

The close proximity shook up Kagome. Inuyasha was not himself, and she did not want to feel the wrath of the bloodstained claws. "Inuyasha, stay away," she warned weakly.

"Is that it?" the same voice asked, crouching down in front of her.

She nodded meekly and then gasped as once clawed finger tilted her chin up gently. "I'm not going to hurt you, Kagome."

Even though he stayed in his demon form, Kagome could see in those bright, red eyes that Inuyasha had not lied to her. For some reason she felt…safe.

Taking the outstretched, clawed hand, Kagome accepted his help up. She was relieved that he had shown up in the nick of time. She started to walk forward, anxious to get back to the cave and warm up, but a tug from Inuyasha brought her back to him.

She tensed as she felt her back pressed against his body and a clawed hand carefully move the hair back from her neck. One of his claws lightly brushed across her neck, and she gasped from surprise as she realized that no blood had been drawn.

A light chuckle from the hanyou turned youkai caused her to start. "I told you that I would not hurt you," he said lightly.

Whether or not he was going to hurt her did not matter at the moment. Inuyasha was not completely himself yet. Kagome went to turn around but then shuddered as she felt the back of his hand stroking her neck.

"Inuyasha, what are you doing?" she asked, licking her lips nervously.

Behind her, Inuyasha smirked slyly. "I'm going to make sure that no one ever bothers you again."

The sensation of Inuyasha's fangs coming down on the side of her neck alarmed Kagome at first. The sharp tips lightly penetrated her flesh, but she surprisingly felt no pain. She felt…comfortable? Sighing, Kagome relaxed as she waited for Inuyasha to release the gentle nip.

Disappointed and somewhat dizzy when he finally released her, she slowly turned around to face the red-eyed hanyou before stepping forward and going into his arms. She instantly fell asleep.

Shifting the sleeping girl, Inuyasha sped off into the night. Demon or not, they both needed to get somewhere warm…and soon.

A/N: Finally finished with the second chapter. Hopefully the third will be out in the next few days. Please read and review. It helps me to keep going with the stories to hear your opinions since I have a zillion other things piled on me at once~ Of Memories Past.