A/N: Here is the long-awaited chapter 3. Sorry it took me forever. I really wanted to finish A Fighter's Story before I got back into this one. Now, I promise to be faithful and continue on this beloved idea. No reviews for this chapter, so we go right to the good stuff!

Curse of the Gypsy

Chapter 3

The day passed as every day normally did. Each of the clan performed their duties. They readied what was left of the camp for removal at first light. It was an easy-going day for the gypsies. By mid-afternoon, most of them were lounging in their tents, or sitting around the fire. That was where Sango and Miroku ended up after helping their prospective family with all of the left over chores.

Miroku sat around the flames, still brooding over the rip in his vest. He was not a seamstress, and frankly, if he took a needle to this garment, it would look much worse than it did now. He was interrupted from his thoughts when someone tapped him on the shoulder and sat beside him. Kagome.

"I ripped it this morning," he explained with slight embarrassment when she eyed the vest laying in his lap.

Kagome only smiled and reached out both her hands as she sat next to him. Miroku gladly handed it over. Kagome reached into the pocket of her skirt and retrieved a needle and small spool of thread. A good gypsy was always prepared, she'd jokingly say whenever such feats were performed. She expertly threaded the needle and set to work mending the tear.

Sango saw this and elbowed Miroku in the side. "Why are you making Kagome do that?" she hissed at him. "It's your vest and you make her mend it for you like she was your wife!"

"Jealous?" he teased. Sango scowled.

"He didn't make me do anything," Kagome said calmly, a smile playing at her lips. Although she enjoyed watching the flirty fighting dramas her two friend acted out everyday, Kagome was usually mediator. Today, she just didn't want to see Miroku knocked down after he had helped her this morning. "And Song, if sewing a tear is a sign of being a wife, I suggest you learn how to mend your own first." Her fingers moved deftly, small stitches penetrating the cloth.

Sango blushed but continued. "But you shouldn't have to clean his messes," she argued. "He's a practically a man."

"Thanks," Miroku said with a smile. "I'm glad you noticed."

Sango rolled her eyes and pushed him off of the log he was seated on. "Pervert."

When he stood up again, brushing off his clothes, Kagome handed him the vest. "Here Miroku."

"Wow," he commented, shrugging into the vest. "Good as new. Thanks Kagome." She smiled and tucked the thread back into her pocket.

"It was nothing. What can I do but help my 'big brother' in need?" she joked, poking him on the nose. Miroku only smiled that clueless, innocent smile that made him famous. Sango rolled her eyes and huffed a little.

"Oh Sango," Kagome laughed, slinging an arm around her friend's shoulders. "Would you be the best of friends and help me prepare dinner this evening?"

Sango grumbled. "I always help you. Why can't you get Souta to do it?"

"The same reason you can't get Kohaku to help you," Kagome laughed. Together, to two girls went about their daily ritual of cooking food enough to feed the entire camp. At twilight, all the clan gathered around the center fire and waited for Sango and Kagome to dole out their portions. Now that winter was closing in, they had to ration their supplies until reaching their camp in the south. Kagome, who always had a kind heart, slipped a little extra food to her two children charges. A few older clans members saw, but no one commented. They were a family unit that looked after their own.

When everyone was served and eaten at their own tents, Kagome spooned a portion of the mutton stew into a two bowls and headed for the tent that held Inuyasha. Kaede had fed him before, but she was sure that he would be hungry again if he was awake.

For manner's sake, she paused before entering, asking for permission. "It is all right that I enter this tent?"

"Do what you want," a cross voice answered. Kagome, undaunted, entered with the food in her hands and happily sat beside the bedroll.

"I thought you would be hungry," she explained.

"The old hag gave me food hours ago," Inuyasha said with a suspicious look. "Why are you giving me more?"

"Evening meal," Kagome said with equal suspicion. "You mean to tell me you live off one meal a day?"

"I live off what I can get," he responded. "Not all of us have tribes of people to take care of our every whim."

"Oh, I see now," Kagome said lightly, placing the bowls beside her and producing a spoon from her pocket. "You're jealous of us."

"Jealous?!" Inuyasha raged indignantly. "Why would I be j--" He was cut off when Kagome deposited a spoonful of stew in his mouth.

"Shut up and eat," she ordered. "You'll need your strength when we move come dawn." He glared at her, but chewed poignantly slow, just to irritate her. He succeeded, but Kagome would not show her annoyance.

This went on a while. Kagome fed him, Inuyasha ate, and when he was finished she ate her own. "Why are you being so nice to me?" he asked while she sat beside him, eating her food with a quiet elegance.

"Why not?" she posed.

"Do you always answer questions with another question?"

"Sometimes," she said with that quirked half-smile. "More as I've gotten older."

"And how old is that?" he asked, looking at her in speculation. He would guess sixteen by way of face; his profession often had him assessing potential lifts. Inuyasha was no fool of his looks, it was one of the things his chief most valued in him. Inuyasha's job in the thief guild was to charm wealthy girls, then get into their purses. Someone he doubted this girl would fall for any such tricks.

"I'm seventeen," she said with a sigh. "Though I feel much older." She ate another few mouthfuls of her food with a pensive expression. Midnight eyes shifted from a distant memory to notice she was being watched again. "And how old are you, master thief?" she asked in an amused voice.

Inuyasha frowned. "I'm nearly nineteen," he responded with a certain hint of pride.

"Well, aren't we important?" she mocked. That deflated his ego a considerable amount. "If you'll excuse me, I have much to do before we depart." Kagome got to her feet, dusting off her skirt, and left with the empty dishes to help with the clean up.

After the last of dinner was gone and cleaned, Kagome sat around the fire with the rest of the clan. Every night, as a matter of tradition, one of the clan would tell a tale or sing a song for the evening entertainment. When the sky darkened, and the day was done, the gypsies of old would sit around their fires with full bellies and purses. Now, there were less of the full purses and bellies, but more filled hearts.

Tonight was a night for a song. Eri, Yuka, and Sasuka, were the performers this evening--the best singers in the clan. They were triplet sisters, all sixteen, and all strikingly beautiful. They stood together at the far end of the fire. Yumi sat near them with her harp in her lap, pulling a few strings until it became a lulling melody.

Eri's voice began the words of an old ballad. Slowly, Yuka and Sasuka joined their sister. All three voices wove together to form a tapestry of sound so complex and simple, so elegant and bewitching, that all movement in the came stopped to listen. Everyone was always transfixed by the song of the three sisters. Kagome often called them Sirens, and that name had stuck. Whenever performing, the three had the name of The Siren Sisters.

When the song faded out into the night, the clan applauded and whistled until the three girls giggled and bowed, blushing. Thus Kagome told all that it was time to retire. The two of the clan stood on guard duty for the first half of the night remained around the fire--tonight it was Sango and Kohaku--but all the rest retired. Kagome nudged Rin and Shippou toward their tent. Both children rubbing their eyes and yawning widely.

Yumi put away her harp on her cart, then fell into step with her daughter. "Seeing as how my tent is occupied," she said with a smile. "Daughter, may I share yours?"

"Of course Momma," Kagome agreed with a smile. "I will be relieving Sango for guard detail tonight, so you know."

Yumi nodded. "I'll watch the little ones."

Kagome smiled in the fading light. "Thank you."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

As promised, Sango fetched Kagome for her turn as guard sometime in the early morning hours. Kagome was already awake and gratefully accepted the chance at being somewhat occupied. She took with her a small pile of mending to work on as she sat by the fire, a bow and arrow also by her feet.

When Souta emerged from his and Kohaku's tent, Kagome promptly sent him back to bed, saying she could handle the duty without him. Grateful and sleepy, Souta placed a tired kiss on his sister's cheek before returning to dreamland. Thus Kagome spent the rest of the morning until dawn.

When the pale morning light capped the forest surrounding the camp, the gypsies instinctively stirred from their tents. They rubbed sleep from their eyes and began to deftly dismantle their sleeping quarters. Bedrolls were rolled, tent poles were taken down, tents were folded and stowed in carts. The horses were hooked on to carts or lead ropes. Few of the clan rode horses, and few of them rode well enough to make an entire journey. Kagome was one of those who rode well.

She packed up her mending, carefully folding and stowing all of her, Rin, and Shippou's belongings in their small cart. Then she carefully buckled their horse into the harness, sliding soft hands over his flanks and whispering soft words into his ear. Rin and Shippou happily clamored on to the driver's bench while they waited for the rest of the caravan to prepare.

Kagome helped her mother and grandfather pack. Then she went and helped Souta and Kohaku--ever the last minute pair--before going to see to Inuyasha. He had managed to sit up when he heard all the racket being made outside and when Yumi appeared inside the tent and began taking things out.

"You really are leaving this morning, huh?" Inuyasha asked when Kagome appeared.

"We were delayed when I found you," she said with a smile. "We have to get to our winter camp before the first snowfall or the passes will be blocked."

"Where is this camp of yours?"

"In the south, a valley below the Mountains of Mourning. We usually winter outside of the city of Malay, by the ocean. They have a winter festival that lasts most of the season so we always like to perform there." Kagome spoke as she unfolded a shirt she had carried in from outside. It was Inuyasha's shirt, once torn and bloody, but now clean and mended. He looked at her with surprise. Kagome smiled and handed it to him. "Get ready, I'll be taking you with me."

"Why?" he asked assertively.

"I'm the only one with room enough," she laughed. "I only care for two small children, and they don't care much. I don't have that much myself, so there is room enough for you in our cart."

Inuyasha nodded, trying his hand at getting farther up than sitting, but couldn't rise without Kagome's help. He grudgingly rested most of his weight on her small shoulders and was equally surprised when she held him up without much difficulty. He was led outside into the pale morning light, over to a small cart where two young children sat on the driver's bench.

Moving aside a few small bundles, Kagome helped Inuyasha sit in the back of the cart. There was a lot of pain returning to his shoulder and torso, but she soon slipped him a drink with herbs to lessen pain. By the time she climbed into the driver's seat, taking the reins and urging her horse into an easy trot, the entire camp was packed up. It looked like no one had ever been there before.

Kagome was the last cart in the caravan, and she whistled idly as they started off. Inuyasha soon drifted back to sleep in the back of the cart. Rin and Shippou leaned against Kagome from either side, also lulled into a light sleep from the beat of hooves and song whistle from Kagome.

The gypsies made their way slow that day, not wanting to rush their horses back into painful trekking. They stopped briefly at midday, at a small lake, to water the horses and break bread for an afternoon meal. Kagome woke all three of her sleeping charges long enough to feed them. Once fed, both children fell back to sleep under the warm sunlight. Kagome, also warm under the heat of the day, laid her vest as a pillow for the children in the back of the cart as they curled on bundles of clothes for a bed. She rolled up her long sleeves to the elbow, clicking her tongue for her horse to take up his pace again.

This time, Kagome was in the lead of the caravan. Her brother and Kohaku followed them closely, and the rest followed. Sango, riding on her demon companion--a cat named Kirara--weaved amongst the carts to make sure everyone was all right. Miroku, on a horse, did the same. He was an accomplished equestrian, the one who taught Kagome how to ride after her had joined the caravan seven years before.

Both teenagers pulled up beside her cart after a while of riding. "Hello Kagome," Sango greeted, patting Kirara's side as she rode.

"Hello Sango, Miroku," Kagome greeted. "All is well?"

"For the moment," Miroku said with a nod. "Some of the back carts are a little questionable. We'll have to check the wheels after we stop for the night. I don't know if we'll have enough spare axles if another one breaks."

Kagome sighed. "We'll have to purchase a few extra at the next town."

"Do you think they'll sell?" Sango asked in a low voice. "You know what happened last year." Inuyasha perked at this, finding all talk before rather boring. He pretended to be asleep, but opened one amber eye at the mention of an opportunity to nick something at a town.

"They'll sell," Kagome said with a sly grin. She pulled the reins on her horse's leader just enough so that his head came up and his steady trot was formed into a brisk canter. "All they need is a little nudge in the right direction."

"Kagome, you are certainly going to hell," Miroku laughed, turning his mount and kicking it so that the horse bucked once and galloped off along the side of the road. "I'll catch up with you later."

"Bye Miroku," Kagome waved.

"I should go too," Sango said with a sigh. "I saw a few signs of large game off the roadside. If I move fast enough, I might get lucky. There could be venison tonight."

"Happy hunting," Kagome waved as Sango urged Kirara toward the back of the caravan. Once there were gone, Kagome turned her head to look back at Inuyasha. "You might as well talk to me now that you're away," she said with a sly grin.

"How'd you know I was awake?" he muttered, disappointed in his skills.

"It wasn't hard," Kagome said, slowing her horse now that they were fair difference in front of her brother and Kohaku. "Your breathing changes in sleep."

"You could hear over this ruckus?" he asked doubtfully.

"When you've grown up around the clatter of carts and the beat of hooves," Kagome explained. "You learn to hear over it fairly easy."

"Huh," he said in response. Shifting his position slightly, happy that there was not yet any pain, Inuyasha turned to face Kagome's back. She had her black hair plaited it a heavy braid that hit her back with every jump the cart took, and there were quite a few of them, but she sat straight and her head was high. Perfectly content.

"You have questions," she continued. "You might as well ask them."

"Would you answer them?" he countered, happy with his own way to trip her up. Inuyasha was caught off guard when she laughed, a low chuckle that tingled down his spine.

"I am a gypsy, sir," she said with pride in her voice. "A born gypsy, I might add. We can't lie."

"Can't lie?" he asked in disbelief.

"Well, we could," Kagome relented. "But it is against our nature and our beliefs. The core of a gypsy's power is honesty with others and in one's self. That is what my Papa always told me." She nodded at her own words and looked over at the two child in the cart, making sure they were still resting comfortably. Shippou was curled up on Kagome's vest and Rin was using his tail as a pillow. Both were still sound asleep, but they would be up late into the night so they would need the rest. "Ask what you will."

Inuyasha was puzzled, mistrustful, and hesitant. Most of all, he was curious. It was in his nature, and the great impulse of his nature eventually won out over the rest of him. "Are all of you gypsies?" He remembered her saying that a monk and apprentice were here, and they were not gypsies. Also, the old hag who had tended him was not a gypsy by blood.

"Not hardly," Kagome said with fondness. "The only true gypsies in this clan are myself, my brother behind us, my mother who's tent you occupied, and my grandfather. The rest are strays like yourself."

"Pardon me?"

"Strays," Kagome continued with amusement in her voice. "People with gifts, outcasts who need a home."

"Pretend for a second that I know what you're talking about," he commented crossly. Once again, Kagome chuckled to herself, clinking to her horse again. The gelding picked up his pace reasonably. "What's the difference? Can't you just join a clan and say 'I'm a gypsy'?"

"It's not that simple," Kagome laughed. "It's more than just words, it's a matter of belief and trust, family and love."

"Feh," he commented.

"Oh, and I'm sure one can become a thief overnight?" she said with a raised eyebrow. He scowled and Kagome laughed once again.

"There are three ways to become a gypsy, technically," she explained. "You are born a gypsy, like my brother and myself. You can marry a gypsy, or you can be adopted by a clan. Everyone of this clan, apart from my blood family, was adopted by us."

"Adopted how?"

"My, you are a curious one," Kagome said in mock exasperation. He sniffed and she chuckled. "There is a ceremony, where the one wishing to be adopted swears their love and loyalty to the protection and future of the clan, so long as they live."

"Sounds serious," Inuyasha commented.

"It is," Kagome assured him. "When one is adopted by the clan, they become part of a family for the rest of their lives. It's a commitment of honor."

"Sounds like too much responsibility," he huffed.

"Try being the Laoch," she muttered under her breath. Inuyasha's hanyou ears swiveled so that he picked up her uttered words. Deciding it was better to let sleeping dogs lie (haha!), he pressed on with other questions.

"So, all these people are strays right?"

"Yes," Kagome said, her voice light once more.

"How did they all get here?"

"Everyone has their own story," Kagome said thoughtfully. "My own family, we lost my father ten years ago, when I was seven. He was our Laoch, our leader, and without him we tried for a normal life. The world is very prejudice against my kind, so we were driven from any town we went to. Eventually, we met up with Kaede in one town. She was a rogue healer that people tried to have burned as a witch. Miroku and his master Mushin were traveling monks until they joined us in travel, eventually pledging themselves to our clan."

"So they gave up their calling to a temple?" Inuyasha asked in his shock. Monks usually never strayed far from their Gods and temple dwellings.

Kagome shook her head. "Their temple was burnt down years ago. They were on a pilgrimage of truth and understanding. Mushin said that he believed that we were in need of spiritual guidance more than a reckless village. So they remained with us."

"What about the others?"

"Well," Kagome said, shifting a little to look over her shoulder. "You've seen Sango. She and her little brother are from a city in the far north. Five years ago, while out on a journey with a few members of her tribe, she and her younger brother were kidnapped. They were sold as slaves and shipped across the waters until they reached this land. I found them on a slave block, going to the highest bidder. When someone tried to buy Kohaku and not Sango, she broke her bonds and killed two guards. They were going to slaughter them both if I hadn't stepped in."

"So they owe you their lives."

"No," Kagome denied. "I only gave their lives back. They stayed with us instead of returning to their people for pure love and honor."

"What about the others, like the girls who sang last night, and the two kids?"

Kagome sighed softly. "The Siren Sisters were run from their village after their mother's death because when they are together, they can combine their minds in unison to move things. When all three are touching, they can read minds and feelings off of people and even objects."

"Empaths…"

"Correct. As for my little ones here," she said, looking down at the children. "Shippou was orphaned by two demons, and Rin's family was slaughtered by bandits. She was almost killed by Kouga's pack actually, but I pleaded to saved her."

"Kouga?" Inuyasha asked, hearing the different tone she used when she said his name. It was almost a wistful version of her normal lit.

"He was once a leader of a demon wolf tribe in the far mountains," she explained. "All of them were killed by a feared enemy of ours. Now there are only three, Kouga, and his two henchmen--Patch and Spike. They joined us about three years ago."

"And that's all of them?"

"There are a few others," Kagome said, shifting her position again. "A few gifted folk cast from their homes and left for dead if not taken in by us. That's what I mean by strays."

"Interesting," Inuyasha muttered.

"Don't get too happy," Kagome said with a smile. "We've got nothing to steal." He scowled, but Kagome happily clucked to her horse and he turned to make his way down the track off the road to a clearing that would serve as camp for the night.

When the other carts were all gathered in the clearing, Kagome stood on her cart and stretched, gently waking her two young charges. "Higurashi Clan," she called out to them.

Miroku road among a few who were talking. "Hush up," he scolded. "The Laoch is speaking." That silenced them all.

"We will rest here for the night," Kagome said, her hands linked in front of her. "We'll make a fire and water the horses, set camp for nightfall. Sango has gone hunting for the evening meal and should return shortly." A happy murmur went through the clan. "Tomorrow afternoon, we should reach our first stop, so be prepared to perform for our supper."

A whistle, followed by three rowdy male cheers broke the silence again. For some reason, Kagome blushed. Inuyasha couldn't comprehend at the time what it meant. She raised her hands to silence the laughter. "Let's break our fast," Kagome said with a grin. Everyone cheered and set about their work.

Inuyasha looked up at the girl still standing on the cart with a satisfied expression. It occurred to him then that she truly was the leader of these people. And if their leader was so young a girl, it meant easy preying. She might not be a fool, but honest people with soft hearts are easy prey. The deviant part of his mind formulated a plot to find out just what went on among these gypsies.

A/N: Well, here we are. Chapter 3, finally! Chapter 4 will be up shortly, promise!