A/N: *screams* It burnsss, Preciousss! It burnsss usss!

Congratulations on some impressive flames! And to top it all off, I have a headache. Thanks very much poohsbestfriend, you gave me a concussion! Happy? Oh, and – yes, she meant it.

Well, most of you were very understanding, and some even cheered! Amazing. Here's the next bit.

Disclaimer: I know who owns it, and it's not me.

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Tempting Fate

Chapter 16: Kouga's Shards

Kouga stood frozen to the spot, his mouth hanging open in shock. 'Did she really just say that?' He made no move to follow her; his muscles were aching horribly in the aftermath of that purifying energy.

Inuyasha was at a complete loss. His confused mind was trying desperately to catch up with current events, but it wasn't having all that much luck.

'What happened here? All I remember is, I arrived here, saw Kouga and Kagome – no wait, that was a dream. Wasn't it?' He looked around, finally noticing the injuries the both of them had received. 'No, we were definitely fighting, so it can't have been a dream.' He thought about that for a moment. 'Unless, this is a dream?' He jabbed an experimental claw in his arm, but nothing changed. 'Nope, not dreaming.' He shook his head dazedly, sinking to his knees in furious concentration. 'Okay, we fought but I don't remember it. The only thing I remember is Tetsusaiga coming straight at me, and then I couldn't move. Which means I didn't have Tetsusaiga during the fight, meaning-'

The full import of the thought finally hit him, making him rock back on his heels.

'I was full youkai!'

Even now the fight was just a blur in his mind. Nothing was clear or definite. But the memory of Kagome's final words slammed home like a hammer. 'She chose...neither of us? Well, I guess that means she didn't pick the wimpy wolf-boy. But – I thought she did? Unless – that was all a dream, too...But if what she said was real, then...' He stiffened, his head snapping up in horror.

'She didn't choose me! Oh, gods, she didn't choose me...'

***

Oblivious to the drama playing out behind him, Miroku pushed his limbs to the limit in an attempt to keep up with Kirara. However, despite their best efforts he, Kohaku and Shippo soon began to lose ground to the flying youkai cat. As he was running, a sudden thought struck him. 'Hiraikotsu – Inuyasha ripped it free.' And now Sango was apparently defenceless against Kagura, whom he could now see descending quickly on one of those huge feathers she tended to use.

"Mizumi!" he gasped at the wolf who was a good way ahead of him. It wasn't all that loud, owing to his lack of breath, but fortunately her sensitive ears heard his voice and she doubled back, curiosity written on her face. "What, Miroku?"

"Do you remember the weapon Sango was using back there, against Inuyasha? The boomerang?"

"Yeah – what about it?"

"It's still there; he tore it loose in the battle. Can you go back and get it?" She nodded, already heading towards the spot. "Hurry," he breathed fervently, his eyes drawn to the aerial battle that was brewing.

In the air, Sango had also noticed the very inconvenient absence of Hiraikotsu from her arsenal. Cursing her luck, she began ducking and weaving, trying to present as difficult a target as possible. 'Let's see – a sword, some knives, a few vials of youkai poison...nothing to defend me from wind blades here,' she thought frantically. 'What am I going to do?' She looked up to see Kagura heading directly towards her, determinedly meeting the wind youkai's eyes.

'Hiraikotsu or not, I'm not backing down.'

***

Kohaku concentrated on breathing as he ran, his sword bumping against his leg with every stride. As worried as he was for his sister, his instincts were screaming at him to watch the one he had once called 'monkey-man'. He might have been only a young warrior, but he was a warrior nonetheless – and one who had had experience with the wily villain himself. Knowing Naraku's love of playing tricks, Kagura was not the one to worry about.

"Shippo!" he panted breathlessly, sparing a quick glance at his comrade. "You can see further than I can – what's Naraku doing?" The kitsune scrunched his eyes up in a squint, then let his expression go slack in confusion.

"He's not doing anything!"

"Yet," Kohaku warned ominously. "Keep an eye on him."

"You think something's going to happen soon?"

"Just trust me."

***

Kouga returned to reality with a resounding 'thud'. His woman had refused him – it was an ugly fact that he simply didn't want to face. His youaki nature wanted to go mad, wanted to tear something to pieces and watch it bleed. He needed an outlet for his anger...he needed someone to blame. His furious gaze landed on the shellshocked hanyou close by.

"You!" he hissed, throwing self-control to the winds. "You did this!" The wolf youkai let out a howl and charged towards his strangely non-responsive rival. But before he had gotten very far, a tan-coloured blur slammed into him, knocking him off balance and pinning his arms back. "Kouga, no!"

"Mizumi, let go of me. The hanyou is mine!" Mizumi resolutely tightened her hold on her leader, watching Inuyasha warily.

"You know Kagome would never forgive you if you followed through on that threat!" she muttered into his ear pointedly. "And quite frankly, there's a different hanyou you should be worrying about." He cursed – how could he have forgotten?

"Where's Naraku?"

***

Inuyasha's ears pricked at the word 'Naraku'. Blearily shaking himself out of the slump he had fallen into, he spotted the strange sight of a youkai wolf ('A female? Since when?') picking up Sango's Hiraikotsu as though she planned to use it herself. 'Huh? Where's Sango?' He looked around, finally catching a glimpse of Sango and Kirara, flying against – Kagura, it looked like. His gaze wandered down until he saw Kagome, running towards the danger just as fast as she could go.

Despite what had transpired between them that day, his protective instincts flared up. 'Where are your bow and arrows, you lunkhead? Gah! Stupid twit, going into a fight without weapons!' He was after her like a shot; this time with Tetsusaiga securely strapped at his side.

***

"Fujin no mai!"

Sango watched the blades come flying towards her, estimating the damage they would cause, when a male cry startled her.

"Kazaana!"

Her eyes widened as the flying blades were pulled down to the ground. A few escaped to nick her shoulder and arm, tearing small rips in her skin and drawing blood – but most disappeared into the black maw of Miroku's cursed hand. But she couldn't keep staring, she reminded herself sharply. Another volley of blades would be coming soon.

Miroku winced as a few blades caught at the edge of the Kazaana, widening it further. In spite of the pain, he trained his hand on Kagura, ready to intercept her next attack against his beloved. However, a new sound had him scrambling to wrap the rosary beads around his wrist once more. "Saimyoushou! Well, that trick obviously won't work twice," he reflected, unamused. His eyes flicked to Shippo as the kitsune gave a sudden shout.

"He's gone!" He looked – sure enough, there was a cloud of miasma where Naraku had been standing just moments before.

"Kuso! This is bad. Where did he go?"

***

Kouga was speeding towards the battle, Mizumi not far behind him, when a sudden rush of miasma knocked him clean off his feet. He went sprawling, ending up in an ignominious heap on the ground. Before he could even twitch a muscle to get away, his most hated enemy was standing over him.

Kouga realised belatedly that he had vastly underestimated the extent of Naraku's power – fighting Kagura and his other minions was nothing like fighting the hanyou himself. The noxious miasma overpowered his senses, leaving him completely defenceless. A strained twist of his head showed that Mizumi had encountered the same problem. He struggled to move, sweat breaking out on his brow with the effort, but it was no use. His limbs felt like they were made of lead.

Naraku watched his captive's pitiful fight for freedom, a smirk twisting his lips. "Not so fast are we, now? It's not as easy when you don't have a miko to fight for you." Kouga snarled at him, but it came out as more of a choking sound.

"You leave Kagome out of this, bastard!" Naraku bent down, tutting at him sardonically.

"So sorry, but it's too late for that. And now-" he reached out a clawed hand - "I'll be taking these!"

Two swipes and the Shikon shards were resting in his palm, glistening wetly with Kouga's blood. "Finally!" He clenched his fist, embedding the shards deep in his hand. Power began to flow, restoring him, boosting his energy until the air around him seemed to crackle with it. He looked down at the powerless wolf prince. "You're not worth my time to kill, youkai," he spat contemptuously. "Go back to your hole in the ground like the coward you are!"

Miasma swirled, blinding the two wolves. When it cleared, Naraku was gone. Kouga tipped his head back and howled in frustration.

***

Kagome's miko senses picked up on the sudden increase of power as the shards were transferred just before Kouga's howl tore through the air. She stopped dead in her tracks, alarmed at the sheer amount of dark Shikon energy that had appeared. The miko stood, uncertain of whether she should go back and help Kouga or continue towards the others.

The sight of Kagura unleashing yet another attack on her friends made up her mind for her. She turned one last time to doublecheck that Kouga and Inuyasha were still relatively unhurt before going on. To her amazement, Inuyasha was not far behind her. "He's chasing me?"

Inuyasha had almost caught up to Kagome when his senses warned him to duck. He flattened himself to the ground, feeling a solid form speed overhead. Looking up, the hanyou paled. "Kagome! Look out!"

Kagome twisted around, only to stop short at the sight of Naraku standing squarely in her path. Her eyes were drawn inexorably to the two shards buried in his right hand.

"Hello again, miko. It's time for you to die."

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Slightly longer chapter than usual, but a 'killer' (ha!) cliffy at the end. And you thought the last one was bad...

Reviewer replies:

Faerie demoness – Um, no. Sorry.

Ayesha – They did deserve it, didn't they? Stupid males. I have no beta, I do all the editing myself.

Saiyan Princess – Oh, he'll beg. Don't you worry. Glad you like it!

Aamalie – Actually, she did mean it. Very seriously. The chicken is back in Kaede's village still, but we'll see it before the end of the story. I have plans for that bird...

Badgerwolf – Yeah, I like seeing a Kagome with a spine. Girl power!

InuYashasGurrl – I'm glad you liked the idea – and hiding the fire extinguisher was just plain mean! Nevermind, I'll get one for future disasters.

ShadowHeart – You, my friend, have been very understanding. Thank you for leaving Mr Hyde in his box where he belongs. Did you get my Stormwalker reviews? Hope you liked them.

Lady Tiger Lily – Oh yes, isn't it ironic? The trio (I refuse to say 'threesome' – yuck!) will work this out, but there's a villain to defeat before that can happen.

C-dog – Sorry, she's not kidding. But she's not happy about it, either. You'll see.

Rogueandkurt – You might want to use some more of those 'non-existent words of exasperation!' for this chapter...sorry about that. I just always seem to write cliffies...

Aznchick – She hasn't lost her mind...wait and see how it works out.

Murasaki Kitsune - Thanks for the fire extinguisher. Saved my life, you did. I'm glad you think the story is improving as it goes...

Mvdiva – Good forecast, I'd stick with option two.

Krista – Good grief, what a violent person! I have no defence against grenades *gets blown up* Ow.

Ashley (InuMad)- Another extinguisher hidden from me! Aw, how cruel. But then, I'm already dead from grenades and other stuff, so I guess it doesn't matter, ne? Ah, I can't fool you, can I? I already said there'd be a happy ending. It's getting to the end that's fun...

Darkinuyasha – It was harsh, but it makes the story that little bit more interesting...

Candace – Inu/Kag will win out in the end, don't worry. I just have to figure out how!

Miztikal-Dragon – Sorry for the slight delay. Don't fall off your chair this time!

Poohsbestfriend – Ah! The pain! My head will never be the same again. And I'm a zombie now, so you'll just have to put up with me. Can a person die twice? Sounds like a question for Kikyo, doesn't it? Yep, I'm going to be a typist, with some receptionist stuff thrown in. Fic writing is great practice! Thanks for the congrats, and the four reviews in one day, hope you like this part.

A/N: 20 reviews for Ch 15! Holy cow. Well, the part you've all been waiting for is coming. Naraku v Kagome. It will be huge. Ciao!