The Western Lord's brows pulled together, his usually indifferent expression marred by an unpleasant frown of intense concentration. The undead miko's words had stuck with him, and throughout the day he found his mind wandering, replaying the words she had spoken. Finally, in a desperate attempt to regain his peace of mind, he had sat down to ponder over these things carefully.

He knew her to be Inu-Yasha's wench; she could not deny the fact when she absolutely reeked of the half-breed. Then again, her words had been so grave, so somber, effectively severing any connection she might have had with the hanyou. But he doubted her words to be truth, for he had seen one such as her traveling with his half-brother all the various times he had taken it upon himself to attack him.

Now, however, he was not quite so sure. His nose was superior, and even to weaker youkai the difference should have been plain; the miko had smelled strongly of dirt and clay, while the one he had seen on the other occasions bore no such scent. Perplexing, then, that two people could look so astonishingly alike that even his keen eyes had a hard time telling the difference.

Though, now that he took the time to think about it, their style of dress had been quite different. The woman from today had worn the garb of a miko, for that was indeed what she was. The other had clothed herself in some odd fashion; he would almost go as far as to say it bordered on being indecent. It figured her company would not bother the half-breed.

So, perhaps the wench had not been lying. Perhaps his brother had indeed chosen the strange girl over the one he had just met. If that were the case, then the plan he had in mind would be very simple to carry out. But, if things were more complex, as he believed it all to be, then his revenge might be further away than he hoped. He did, however, recall with great satisfaction that the last time his half-brother and him had met the hanyou had carried the stench of both women. He decided rather quickly that he would use them both, to absolutely ensure success.

His plan was quite simple, really. Snatch both women right out from under Inu-Yasha's nose and then bide his time to fuel the half-breed's rage. In time, the hanyou would come for them, but out of fear for their safety, would find himself at the Western Lord's beck and call. The first thing on the agenda though, of course, was to rid Inu-Yasha of the Tetsusaiga. After that, he would unleash the weaker of the two women and proceed to tear his half-brother asunder. The task would be simple, really, if Inu-Yasha did not have his beloved sword.

The ugly toad-like imp approached the aristocratic youkai with great care. "L-Lord Sesshoumaru?" it tentatively began.

Amber orbs glanced briefly at the frightened creature. "What is it that you want, Jaken?" the taller of the two inquired, speech fluid and not at all like the toad's stuttering rasps.

"M-mightn't we be c-continuing our quest for the great s-sword of your f-father, me Lord?"

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed. "The fang," he corrected. "It is the fang I seek,"

Jaken's eyes bulged to nearly twice their usual size. "O-of course me Lord!" he nearly threw himself to the ground in despair.

The silver-haired youkai pointedly ignored the toad's groveling. "I have...a plan," he slowly conceded, as if unsure whether to confide in the strange creature or not.

"A plan you say?" Jaken straightened himself immediately, with an over-confident smirk. "A plan devised by the great Sesshoumaru is bound to succeed!"

"Indeed," Sesshoumaru drawled, nearly rolling his eyes at Jaken's sudden change in attitude. "You and Rin shall both play a rather large part,"

"That brat?" Jaken scorned, his nose wrinkling in disgust. "But me Lord, surely you can think of someone more qualified to aid you in your greatest triumph than an impudent human child?"

Sesshoumaru's eyes became fine slits. "Personally," he snorted. "I find her to be more capable than certain other members of my staff,"

That shut Jaken up at once. It was several moments before the humbled creature chose to speak again, "Would it suit me Lord to divulge his excellent plan to the likes of me?"

"In time," Sesshoumaru responded enigmatically, no longer in the mood to put up with the toad's antics.

Jaken nodded so enthusiastically it was a wonder his head didn't just nod itself right off. "O-f course, me Lord! I would never think of pressing such a err, matter!"

~*~

She knelt by the side of the brook, stroking the top of her thumb with extreme care. Though she was by herself, and though she rarely spoke anyway, an air of unusual silence seemed to circulate around the shrine maiden.

Thoroughly perplexed was she, for her body had just done what she had started to believe was the impossible; bleed. It had snagged on rough tree bark as she journeyed through some dark woods or other, and sliced right open. Promptly, a thick crimson liquid had spilled forth from the wound.

It had astonished the miko, to say the least, though she was not all together unpleased with this turn of events. In fact, it almost made her feel giddy inside- almost. She had inflicted further cuts on herself in an attempt to elicit the same reaction, but her body would not comply. It must have been a fluke. It must have been. Why else, after that time, would the usual speck of dirt emerge instead?

Yes. Surely she must have been imagining things. But, if that was truly the case, then why did a few droplets of a mysterious red material remain on her thumb, now dry? And why did her thumb tingle so, had it just been wishful thinking?

A/N: Long time no update, eh? Well, my school routine has settled down considerably, now that I know just what the heck I'm doing and not wandering around like some lost little sheep. I still have Kung Fu on Monday's and Thursday's, so that eats up a bit of my updating time, but oh well, you'll live. Oh, and there's a couple of things to address...

Review Responses:

Everyone (In General): Big thanks!

Lynnxlady: Thank you for your two kind and thoughtful reviews; your questions and comments are much appreciated, for I see that you are paying rapt attention to my work, something that makes me feel all...'wiggly' inside. I'm so pleased that you understand the Kikyou/Sesshoumaru thing. But, no...That's not what I wanted to say...Oh, yes! The comma and period within quotation deal: In every English/Language Arts class I've had, I've been taught that you should never use a period to end dialogue in a story except in direct quotes or exerts. I have noticed it to be mixed in books, both the occasional comma and the occasional period. That having been said, I've been writing this way for more than three years now, so even if it is correct, I seriously doubt I'll change it. Bad habits die hard, after all. Thank you for your concern, however.

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