Chapter 2: Kagome's Trap

The next day, the group proceeded to walk the long trail to find Naraku and his castle. The same air held between Kagome and Inuyasha. They both hadn't talked to each other since the night before. Sango, Miroku and Shippou didn't know what to think, and didn't say anything about it.

"I smell..." Inuyasha said. "Naraku!" He leaped forward.

"C'mon Kirara! Miroku, Shippou, hop on!" Sango said and got on top of Kirara.

"I'm coming!" Kagome jumped on her bike and peddled as fast as she could to catch up. She would normally ride on Inuyasha's back, but the feelings between them were tense at this point.

'If only it weren't for that kiss...my first kiss to be exact.... it wasn't even a real kiss...I mean...Koga's nice and all...but...' Kagome got lost in her thoughts and her bike hit a huge rock in the trail, and sent her flying. She fell to the ground with a large thud and starting rolling down a hill. She finally stopped at the bottom. After a few moments of just lying there, Kagome got up, dazed.

"Owe..." She said, whispering. She looked at her surroundings. 'It looks as if I'm in the middle of a forest.' She thought.

"I wonder where Inuyasha and the others are..." Kagome said out loud.

Meanwhile, Inuyasha came to a halt in front of a large lake. "I smell him, but I have no clue to where he is..." Inuyasha looked to the right of him. Kirara landed next to him and Sango, Miroku, and Shippou jumped off of her.

"I don't know where Naraku is." Inuyasha said.

"Then you should look harder..." A voice sprang from the lake, causing ripples in the water.

"NARAKU!" Inuyasha held his breath and leaped into the water.

"Inuyasha!" The others all said at once.

"I guess we must follow him into the water?" Sango asked.

"Right!" Miroku grasped a hold of her hand and took Shippou onto his back. They then jumped in after him.

Inuyasha swam as fast as he could, to where, he didn't know. Until, he saw that castle. 'That, must be the castle that we've been searching for. Naraku's castle!' he thought, and swam even harder.

Kagome wandered through the forest, almost losing hope of finding her friends. "I don't understand it...I was right behind them...oh, yeah...and then I fell..." She said to herself. "Wait...is that them? Are they resting?" Kagome ran up to her friends.

Inuyasha finally reached the underwater castle, the others swimming after him. He smashed through the exterior and was inside of it.

"NARAKU!" He screamed. "Wait...why can I talk...I'm underwater..." He looked around him. 'Yeah...I'm underwater all right...' he thought. The voice of Naraku was heard once more.

"It's a barrier. It's a barrier that can allow you to talk underwater. Yes, fancy, isn't it? Well, I made it myself." He scowled from the shadows.

"Show yourself!" Inuyasha yelled. The others flew through the wall Inuyasha busted through.

"Inuyasha!" Miroku said.

"Huh?" Sango said, confused." We can talk underwater?" She asked.

"It's some kind of barrier! Naraku made it!" Inuyasha said to them. "Naraku! Get out here and fight me!" He yelled.

"If that is what you wish." He swam out from the shadows.

"Hmmm...this is more like it!" Inuyasha said.

"Oh my god! Inuyasha! Where's Kagome!" Sango yelled at him, hoping to find a reasonable answer.

"Damn it... I don't know!" He yelled back at her.

"Hehehehe...I see that annoying miko has fallen into my trap...good...good..." Naraku said, grinning evilly.

"What the hell did you do to her!?" Inuyasha screamed at him.

"Well, why don't you look into this bubble and find out..." Naraku held his hands up, and formed a bright, blue bubble. "See?" He said, and showed all of them. It showed Kagome running through the forest.

"Kagome..." Inuyasha said, as he peered into the blue sphere.

"Guys! I've been looking all over for..." Kagome stopped running and stood in front of her friends. They were covered in blood, and appeared to be dead. "You?" She said. Kagome dropped down to the ground.

"No..." Inuyasha said. "No, Kagome! We're not dead!" He yelled.

"Oh, God...please, no!" Kagome put her hands up to her face. She started to cry. "Why? How could this happen?" She asked herself. She looked up, hot tears streaming down her flushed face. "It didn't happen...this would never happen to Inuyasha..." Kagome convinced herself.

Naraku's eyes flickered nervously. 'She couldn't have figured this out...not yet...' He thought.

"This is all a trap!" Kagome yelled. "Whoever did this, stop it! This never happened! My friends are still alive!" Kagome yelled to the sky. "Inuyasha would never have let this happen! He would never let himself die...not like this!" She screamed. "Kagome is smart...perhaps too smart..." Naraku said.

"What are you thinking you bastard!?" Inuyasha yelled at him.

"NO! IT DIDN'T HAPPEN!" Kagome yelled once more.

With that, Inuyasha threw his claws at the blue bubble, popping it. "ARGH!" He groaned while doing so.

Naraku swam off to the ceiling. "I will see to it she will not live to see your face again..." He then disappeared into thin air.

"Damn him!" Inuyasha screamed and swam through the wall, and up to the surface of the lake.

"C'mon!" Miroku yelled, and they all followed Inuyasha.

"I must find Inuyasha before..." Kagome was interrupted when the "fake" Inuyasha awoken, and started to cough madly. "Inuyasha?" She said, almost whispering.

"Ka...gome..." He said. Kagome went over to him. "Please, sit beside me..." Kagome nodded and sat down next to him.

"Inuyasha...I..." She started.

"Kagome...no...don't apologize...It's too late for me. Naraku...he tricked us... he tricked us all...and now..." He coughed again.

"Oh, Inuyasha..." She put her hand up to his face. 'Maybe this is the real thing...something is just very wrong here...' Kagome thought to herself. Inuyasha took her hand in his and faced her. She gasped. "Inu...yasha..." She said.

"Before I die...hold me..." He said and looked her directly in the eyes. She nodded and tangled her arms around his waist. He then put his arms around hers as well.

"We must find Kagome before it's too late!" Inuyasha yelled at the others who followed behind him on Kirara.

"What if Naraku has found her first!" Miroku yelled.

"Shut up! Don't even think about that!" Inuyasha cried, then shuddered.

"She was inside some kind of forest..." Sango said.

"That forest..." Inuyasha said and headed toward the long line of woods in front of him. "I can smell her...she's in danger!" He ran even faster, almost too fast for Kirara to catch up.

"Inuyasha..." Kagome whispered. "Don't leave me..." She began to cry again.

Inuyasha grinned. "I won't..." He then cracked his knuckles, ready to pierce them through Kagome's heart.