~A/N: Thanks to my reviewers: Suki1, nekoyasha (you can keep my parents ^__^), Dragon of Sesshomaru, Stacerue, Skitzoflame, Chillkat. We can't forget to give big hugs to the ever faithful beta reader who is spending her spring break with her mom and sister. Please keep clicking that button, I read and cherish every review, esp. the parent napping, but I insist that nekoyasha keep them forever, oh and while you're taking people, I'm giving you my sister and my cat. Enough with the mindless insanity, and now on with the story.

"Death is the only inescapable, unavoidable, sure thing. We are sentenced to die the day we're born."

-Gary Mark Gilmore

Chapter 4

***Last time***

The last day of the cycle was coming to an end. She was really excited about it because eating nothing but pickles and rice for a hundred days really grated on her taste buds.

***Now***

In real terms, Kagome had made so much progress. In the two weeks, or almost so, that she technically had been there, she mastered her stealth powers, her healing and regenerative abilities, and she even started to battle with her powers. A few more months and she would no longer need her bow and arrows to fight. Better yet, and more promising, she would not need Inuyasha. She liked that idea. She could and will protect herself from now on.

Supper that night was ramen, and even that was better than the rice and pickles. Casually, Kagome asked what was to be supper for the next night. Since Kagome was progressing ever so nicely, Genkai told her that she could have anything she wished. That was a given, she wanted oden.

That night she asked Yukiro if he would start another loop tomorrow. He highly suspected it was for the oden. He didn't know what that stuff was, but he sure wanted to find out after he saw Kagome salivate at the mere mention of the word. Therefore, he nodded his head in agreement.

So tomorrow, they would go into another loop. If this kept up, both would be at their peak by the end of the time cycle. The day that Kagome wanted repeated simply for the sake of eating oden (for the next little while) was not what she expected.

First, another boy came up the shrine steps. He looked like a giant brute. As soon as he saw her, he tried to hit on her. Kagome was flattered, but he was not what she was looking for. He looked like the demons that attacked Yukiro, all brawn and no brains. As soon as he opened his mouth, Kagome's theory was proven correct.

Turned out this was the same guy that Yusuke said that was apart of his team. Therefore, if he was definitely human, that meant that he was Kuwabara. So two down two to go. She had yet to meet the demons of the team. She was a little disappointed that the one called Kurama was in school, but the one Kuwabara kept calling shrimp was due to arrive at any moment now.

So Kagome left them to their bantering and went to go and see if she could manipulate her powers. She took a bow and a quiver of arrows and walked into the forest. She was now going to search out the demon presence in the woods.

She told them what she was going to do, and everyone nodded except for Kuwabara who took a hiss fit screaming that a human could not defend herself against such powerful demons in the forest.

Kagome ignored him and took off yelling over her shoulder that they better be having oden for supper and that Genkai should make her a pot of the stuff. Yusuke laughed and went back to talking to a baffled Kuwabara.

The demons seemed to be waiting for Kagome to enter. The demons that lurked in the forest might be full of malice and hate, but even demons valued their lives, so she struck a bargain with them. She found out that these demons were unaffected by Yukiro's time loop. It made her job easier. Instead of striking a bargain with them everyday, she would simply meet them and they would help her train. In return she would let them live and grant them sanctuary in the forest.

They were tricky demons; they lurked and moved in the shadows, so she really found a great sparing partner. Not that Yukiro wasn't a good sparing partner, but after a hundred days, his moves became predictable. Yukiro seemed to love the challenge as well. That first night, they got creamed and whipped. This only fuelled her determination to do better. As she requested, a rather large pot of oden was made for her and Yukiro.

Despite their small frames and bodies, they both ate the whole thing. After Kagome was satisfied, she asked who the demon was. She felt his presence when she emerged from the forest, but the smell of oden was too tempting to confront him.

Kuwabara referred to him as Shorty, and she found out from Yusuke that his name was Hiei. Yusuke informed her that since tomorrow was Friday Kurama would join them after he was finished with school.

Kagome decided that it was time that she introduced herself to the demon. He was standing on one of the highest branches of a tree. A pang of guilt and sorrow filled her heart. That stance reminded her of Inuyasha. When she reached him, he glared down at her. Kagome smiled, that was the same smirk that graced Sesshomaru's face. The only difference between the two was that she was more afraid of Sesshomaru. If that said anything at all.

She laughed. If she touched his markings and didn't fear for her life, then what hope in hell did Hiei have in scaring her? None.

The demon didn't want to talk to her, nor did it answer any of her questions. Kagome vowed that she would have the demon talking to her before the loop was completed. She left him standing there and went to get ready to sleep.

The loops went pretty much the same. Kuwabara and Yusuke talked so much about their work and the private lives of their friends, she felt like she knew them all intimately. The only exciting thing, besides being told over and over again about Kuwabara's love Yukina, was after a few weeks of training with the demons in the forest she actually hit one. She wanted to make a purifying sliver; instead she created a whip, and almost purified it. She caught herself in time and stopped the attack. This time after supper, she controlled herself and saved a bowl of oden to give to the demon as a token of apology.

The demon devoured the food faster than Kagome could ever have. She was walking back inside when Hiei stopped her and asked her why she was feeding the evil demons. Kagome laughed at him and started to walk away. It was then she realized that this was the first time that he had talked to her. She decided to play; she told him and asked a question of her own. He tried to back out of it, but she told him that she had answered his question; it would only be honorable to do the same.

She walked with him while they were asking each other's questions. She found out that he had a sister that didn't know he existed. Kagome put two and two together and came out with the right answer: Yukina was Hiei's sister. She felt sorry for the girl, come on who wouldn't? A brute like Kuwabara as your 'love' and Hiei for a brother. Someone must have been playing a cosmic joke on the girl, and it somehow got out of hand.

Kagome thought that the idea of her never knowing and always searching for what stood in front of her was absurd. She told him that he should go and tell her. It's better to have lived and learnt then to have played the 'what if' game.

It was at this time, he clamed up and took his familiar Inuyasha pose, 'Hmed' and went up into the tree to contemplate what she had told him.

It was at this point that Kagome realized that she was secretly working out her own problem with Inuyasha. It came like an epiphany; she was not in love with the dog demon. She looked up at him with a sisterly love, not a lover's love. She didn't want to see him hurt. She knew that Kikyo would hurt him in the end and she didn't want to see that again.

She felt a million times lighter. She no longer carried a burden that would haunt her dreams. If she could jump into the tree she would have hugged the fire demon for all he was worth.

Kagome decided that the only way to get Hiei to talk was if she brought a bowl of oden for a demon in the forest. Her powers were growing, and she was able to defeat two of the demons now without breaking into a sweat, but her powers were still a little off.

Kagome used Hiei's questions, which were the same every time, to find out more about him. To him she was asking random questions that fit no pattern, but to her she knew all the answers that she wanted, and now she wanted to know the less specific questions.

During one loop, she decided to give the demons of the forest a break, and they understood what she was doing. They had seen and heard her converse with the cold fire apparition.

The three humans were conversing in the front, while Kagome waited for Hiei to arrive. She felt him well before she could see him. He tried to mask his powers, but she had already locked onto him. She called out to him and looked directly at him. Although she could not see him, she knew he was there. He had no choice but to come down and reveal himself.

He deemed distraught that he was caught so quickly upon arriving. She only had a few days left before the time loop finished, and she wanted to help him out. After all he was the one that inadvertently lifted the burden from her shoulders; it was only fair that she repay him for his wisdom.

After long hours of conversation, she convinced him to visit his sister and tell her the truth. This at first didn't go over too well, it was only after she told him about the time loop, and the fact that she knew so much about him did he agree.

After supper he returned and took her aside, and hugged her. She knew that this was a rare thing because at first he was all awkward, then he finally broke down crying.

She looked down at him, small jewels were pouring from his face. She smiled, and he told her that Yukina had accepted him. He looked so much younger without the heavy weight of the secret weighing him down. He backed away and told her that he was going to see his sister, and he left.

Kagome smiled and looked down at the floor where a large ruby remained. She figured that he would not want anyone to see it, so she placed in her pocket. She knew the feeling Hiei was experiencing, because she went through that too. She was happy for him.

The last few days were spent heavily training in the forest. It was the last day of the loop, and Kagome finally got the hold of controlling her powers as a weapon. She was exhausted. Yukiro looked how she felt. The poor guy tried so hard. He could shift into larger beings and he increased their power, but not enough to his liking.

The two had bonded so much during the loops that Kagome thought of him as hers, much more than Shippo. The young fox was precious to her, but there was that bond that they formed while training. Kagome stopped at the same tree that Hiei resided every loop. She told Yukiro to go on ahead, the small demon knew just what she was going to do so he nodded his head and agreed.

Kagome called to the fire demon. All he did was look at her condescendingly. She stuffed her hands into her pockets and she felt something in her pocket. She pulled it out and gasped. It was the ruby jewel he cried when he told her the good news. It was supposed to have vanished when the loop restarted.

This gave her an idea. She asked for the demon to simply listen to her for a few minutes, and then she would leave him alone. The demon shrugged and jumped down beside her. Kagome found that her legs were too tired to stay standing, so she sat against the tree. She motioned for Hiei to do the same, but he 'Hmed' and stood there.

She sent him a cold warning glare, and decided to sit beside her. She told him the story of the time loop, and how during that time they had grown close, and everyday was a new experience. At first he did not believe her, but when she started in about his sister his interest was peaked.

She told how during one time loop he confessed and he came back overjoyed. He called her a harlot, and a liar. Kagome softly shook her head. She now knew why the jewel remained. It wanted Hiei to know the truth, and to embrace it, not fear it.

She looked Hiei in the eyes; she told him that what he really wants and needs would set him free. He still didn't believe her words. She asked him to hold open his hand. Cautiously he did so, and she stood up.

"You gave me this when you told me. Now I give it to you to prove that she misses you too." She dropped the ruby in his opened hand. "Go to her Hiei, she will accept you for who you are because she is your sister, and you are the only one that can help her." Kagome walked towards the kitchen. Before she reached the doors she felt Hiei leave. That was a good sign; it meant he was going to take her word, or at least she hoped.

It would be good to see that demon smile again. Tomorrow would be a new day. Even though she had eaten oden for a hundred days, she could go another hundred more. She didn't think that Yukiro could handle it. Seems that the little demon had his fill for the next several lifetimes.

Kagome made her announcement that she would be only staying until Saturday then her training would be complete. The trio seated at the table were surprised by how fast she had grown in power. Tomorrow Genkai would test her skills against the boys and Yukiro, and she would be the judge if Kagome was ready to leave or not.

She now could heal their broken bones and she even once regenerated one of the forest demon's legs. That was a gruesome sight, and she felt bad for taking it off in the first place. Not to mention the stench and the pain the demon must have felt. She told herself that she would search out Sesshomaru and give him back what they took from him.

The rest of the night was uneventful. Kuwabara protested at fighting a girl, and kept hitting on her, despite Kagome's attempts to throw Yukina in there. Secretly she was apologizing to the ice apparition for using her as bait. However, that failed to work and she had to fend for herself because Genkai went to bed, and Yusuke found it utterly amusing.

She finally told them about her quest for the jewel shards, but still she was mysterious, since they would remember it in the morning. She told them how she was looking for pieces of the jewel, but refrained from telling them that this was the legendary Jewel of Four Souls. Besides she wondered if they even knew about it. She did however leave out the part of her well, and her expeditions in time travel. Yusuke protested that he would know if there was a demon walking around in the middle of downtown, but Kagome left him to solve that mystery.

She felt a familiar demon presence and excused herself. She walked outside and Hiei jumped from his tree and stood in front of her. He took her hand and handed her back the jewel. He told her to keep it; it was a token of his gratitude. She in turn told him that she would never reveal his soft side. She had a sense of dejavu. Kagome thought for a second if Sesshomaru and Hiei were related somehow, but then she dismissed the idea completely.

Seemed that was a good way to end a loop, and so she decided that she was going to turn in for the night. She bid everyone a good night and cuddled up next to Yukiro, who was snoring away at her head. She smiled as she let sleep take her.