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Author's Notes: Sorry for the long break, guys, but it's been a bad week. I've been fighting the same cold for about ten days now, and frankly my body finally started wearing out. I missed two days of school, so I am now bogged down with lots of makeup work, and also I was sleeping away most of each day. I just haven't had any inspiration to write. But now I do, so I hope none of you are too mad at me!
Thanks for all the wonderful reviews, as usual I love each and every one of them. Especially all the guesses as to who the new bad guy is. So many of you are starting to get the right idea that you probably won't be shocked when you finally find out who it is. Oh well, that's what happens when you have a bunch of smart readers!
A lot of you have mentioned having more Inu/Kag fluff and less about Kikyou. Don't worry, that's coming. I have just been needing to set the stage for the story, and that meant reintroducing Kikyou into the plot.
This chapter is mostly the conversation between Nancy and Kagome, with a little action involving Inuyasha, Kikyou, and Gideon. But trust me, the action is coming. I just have to, again, set the stage. I hate it when stories get right into the action, and thus have no plot to back it up. Do you understand?
Anyway, thanks for reviewing, and I hope you enjoy this chapter. And, in response to several of you, I took first place at the district solo competition, and will be going to state. I thought I had already mentioned that, but maybe I didn't. I can't remember! Enjoy chapter four!

FrameofMind: Thanks for the compliment! I love 'Dead Famous' too, so I consider that high praise! And don't worry, I have no intention of abandoning 'Soul Therapy', there should be an update in the next day or so, it's just been slow for the same reasons as with this story! And as for your comment on the other story, I completely agree. Writing is a skill that only improves with practice, and I truly believe that since I've started writing these stories I've seen my own abilities improve. In fact, when I'm done with the stories I'm working on, I'm contemplating rewriting/reposting 'Out of the Darkness'. What do you think? Thanks for the reviews!

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Title: Soldiers in a Timeless Battle

Author: dolphingirl0113

Chapter: Four

Rating: PG-13 (for language and, at times, sexual implications)

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

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Her very tone set him on edge, and Inuyasha felt his body tense instinctively. Kikyou was not the kind of woman to worry over nothing.

"What do you mean? Naraku is dead." But even as he said it, Inuyasha felt the doubt in his mind. He was dead, wasn't he?

Kikyou moved forward, the man named Gideon at her side. "I'm not so sure he is dead."

"And what gave you that idea?"

"Something strange is going on in the forest. There's someone in there protecting themselves against discovery. They already attacked one of the people from our village, and when Gideon and I went to investigate, we were attacked as well."

That would explain the man's black eye, Inuyasha noted at one point. "Did you see this person?"

She shook her head. "No. I only heard a voice."

"And was it Naraku's?" Kikyou hesitated.

"I-I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?" Inuyasha felt himself panic. When it came to Naraku, he didn't like not knowing. "You of all people should know what his voice sounds like!"

"Stop yelling at her," Gideon said suddenly, a frown on his face. Inuyasha glared in the direction of the man, wishing suddenly that he wasn't there. It wasn't that he was jealous, but at the same time the human didn't know a thing about Naraku.

"Keh, I wasn't yelling at her, baka," he scoffed, looking away. Gideon tensed.

"What did you just call me?"

"Gideon please, that's just how he is, he didn't mean anything by it," Kikyou soothed, touching her husband's arm. Inuyasha simply continued to look away. The miko returned her attention to the hanyou. "At times the voice sounded like Naraku's, but at other times it sounded different. I can't be sure who it was."

Inuyasha sighed. "I know." He looked away. "But if he is still alive, I need to know about it. What other clues told you it could be Naraku?"

Kikyou looked at her hands. "He knew about us, before everything happened." Inuyasha nodded. That was a big clue. Other then his close friends, only Naraku knew that Inuyasha and Kikyou had once been in love.

"This is serious," he finally commented, looking away. "If Naraku is still alive, he will want revenge."

"Yes, he will go after the people who tried to kill him." Inuyasha tensed visibly and looked at the well.

"Kagome." He looked toward the forest and sniffed, but couldn't find a trace of Naraku's scent. It used to be he could smell the demon miles away. "He won't lay a hand on her."

Kikyou watched the hanyou with great fascination. He had truly changed since they were young. His life was no longer driven by anger. Kagome had given him a purpose and a reason for living, whereas she had not.

"Kikyou, I thought I sensed your presence," an old voice drifted into the clearing. The younger miko turned to see Kaede approaching, and smiled.

"Good day to you, sister." Kaede smiled, but then grimaced while her eyes twinkled.

"It isn't fair that I was born after you, and yet you still carry the same beauty as you did fifty years ago." Kikyou smiled.

"Yet it came at a price I would not wish on anyone."

"I know." The older miko could sense that something was wrong, and turned to Inuyasha. "What's happened?"

The hanyou turned to look at her, and his eyes were full of worry. "Kikyou believes Naraku may still be alive."

"Alive? Naraku?" Kaede looked up at the sky for a moment. "That is impossible."

"Nothing is impossible," the hanyou retorted, "Your sister is alive and well, when she should have died long ago. Who is to say the same thing didn't happen to Naraku?"

"Because the arrow Kagome used would have purified his soul and sent him on to the afterlife. He was pure evil, and as such there was no good to cling to in order to remain alive."

"Perhaps Kagome's arrow wasn't strong enough," Inuyasha continued, as though refusing to hear what Kaede said. But the old woman shook her head.

"Don't be ridiculous Inuyasha, Kagome has become a very powerful woman in her own right. According to Sango, the arrow she fired was charged with the pain and anger she had toward her rapist. There is no way Naraku survived an attack of that magnitude."

"Still, I won't believe that until I can see for myself that this person haunting the forest is not Naraku."

The group sighed together, and Kaede seemed to suddenly notice Gideon, standing off to one side. "Who are you?"

He blushed, and Kikyou smiled as she touched his arm. "This is Gideon. He is my husband." She met his eyes and pointed at the old miko before them. "Gideon, this is my younger sister Kaede."

"Younger?" He chuckled. "Now I know I've seen it all."

"Watch yourself, young man," Kaede scolded kindly, and moved to touch his arm. "I am pleased to meet you."

"Keh, enough with the pleasantries," Inuyasha snapped, and the group turned to look at him. "Let's go and find out what is in the forest that is so dangerous."

"Inuyasha, Gideon and I were just there, and whoever it is refused to come out and face us."

"Well, this bastard hasn't met me yet, has he? So who knows what he'll do when I threaten to use tetsusaiga to rip apart his home!" Inuyasha smirked and touched the hilt of his sword. If it was Naraku, he wouldn't have the chance to hurt Kagome.

He heard Kikyou sigh behind him. "Very well, we'll go." She turned to Kaede with a smile. "And when we return, I should like to talk with you sister."

"As would I with you," the older woman replied, backing away as the trio moved toward the woods. "They're going to need help," she whispered to herself, and walked as quickly as she could back to her hut to tell Miroku and Sango what was going on.

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Kagome sighed and drummed her fingers on the table belonging to the café, the sun of October warming her otherwise chilled body as she waited for Nancy to arrive. The day had been long, and she found herself taking a long swig of her ice tea, trying to prepare herself for what she knew would be an equally long conversation.

Nancy had woken up in Kaede's hut, surrounded by everyone peering at her intently, and nearly jumped ten feet in the air. The poor woman was so rattled that Kagome had finally decided to take her home and give her a day to come to terms with what had happened.

"Kagome?" She turned to see the older woman before her, still dressed in her work attire of a blouse and matching skirt and jacket.

"Hi! Have a seat." Nancy took it and sat back in her chair, taking the cup of ice water from the table and drinking nervously for a few seconds before looking up at Kagome once more.

"Okay, can you tell me what's going on?" Kagome set down her own beverage and leaned back in her chair.

"Where would you like me to begin? You ask me questions, and I'll answer them."

"Okay, first I have to ask this: I wasn't dreaming yesterday, was I?" Kagome smiled.

"No."

"Alright, then tell me how you first found out about this well. I highly doubt you just decided to jump into it one day."

"I was pulled down the well by a demon from the feudal era seeking to possess something called the shikon no tama."

"The what?"

"It's a jewel of immense power that was created long ago by a priestess named Midoriko. It was about this big," she demonstrated with her fingers, "And, when whole, would grant its owner one wish."

"Okay, so it's an important jewel." Nancy sighed and raised her eyebrows slightly. "And this demon wanted the jewel because?"

"Because it was the treasure anyone sought. Somehow, it sensed the jewel through the well, and managed to pull me back into its time. When I got there, the jewel was pulled from my body and I had to go fight to get it back."

"It was pulled from your body?"

"Yes, because it was burned with the priestess Kikyou, who is my incarnation."

"Kikyou?" Nancy looked absolutely lost. Kagome resisted the urge to laugh and decided to take a different approach.

"Okay, lets start over. Kikyou was a priestess who was given the shikon jewel to protect with her life. She was a kind woman with great spiritual powers, and accepted the task as her duty. She was, however, unhappy that it made life difficult for her, as she was so different.

"One day, a young hanyou by the name of Inuyasha tried to steal the jewel from her so that he could use it to become a full fledged demon. But she caught him, and took the jewel back. He began to follow her around, trying to take it again, but in the process the two fell in love."

Kagome closed her eyes briefly to shut out the image of Kikyou and Inuyasha holding each other that day when she had come back to her time with the intention of never returning. No matter how much time was put between herself and that moment, it still burned.

"Kikyou asked Inuyasha to use the jewel to become completely human, in the process destroying the jewel for good. In her mind that meant she could be normal again, and marry the man of her dreams.

"It looked like Inuyasha was going to go through with it until one day they were deceived into betraying one another by a demon named Naraku. He disguised himself as Inuyasha and attacked Kikyou, leaving her to die while taking the jewel. He then disguised himself as Kikyou and shot at Inuyasha, prompting the hanyou to attack the village temple and take the jewel for himself, finding it, conveniently, where Naraku had left it.

"But the real Kikyou had not yet died, and she used the last of her strength to pin Inuyasha to a sacred tree, putting him into a deep sleep. She then died herself, but her final wish was to be burned with the jewel so that it could never harm anyone again. And that's where I come in."

Nancy put up her hand for silence. "Before you go on, clarify something for me: this is the same Inuyasha that you're married to now?"

"Yes."

Nancy nodded her head and looked like she found the whole situation both amusing and unbelievable. "Okay, just checking. And who is Naraku?"

"Naraku was a demon who used to be a man named Onigumo. He was wounded, then cared for by Kikyou, and in the process he developed an infatuation with her. But when he discovered that she was in love with someone else, he became jealous, and in order to get his revenge sold his soul to a horde of demons, thus becoming the monster Naraku."

"So he did all this because he was obsessed with Kikyou?"

"Yes."

"And Kikyou is your incarnation?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Continue."

Kagome felt like she was showing Nancy a movie, with the other woman occasionally stopping the show to ask a question. It was rather amusing.

"When I was pulled down the well, I ended up in the feudal era fifty years after what had transpired between Naraku, Kikyou, and Inuyasha. Since the jewel had been cremated with Kikyou, it too was reincarnated into my body, along with her soul. So you can imagine my surprise when this demon pulls it from my chest.

"The demon chased me into a clearing where I came across an old tree just like the one next to my home. And on the trunk was a handsome young man with an arrow through his chest, apparently in a deep sleep.

"With a demon fast approaching and I not knowing what else to do, I grabbed the arrow and broke the spell, thus waking Inuyasha from his fifty year sleep. But when he first saw me he mistook me for Kikyou, and began yelling all sorts of obscenities to my face." Kagome grinned wryly. "Not exactly what you would call love at first sight.

"But anyway, he finally acted out of instinct and destroyed the demon. Problem was, after that happened he tried to kill me as well, though now he claims he was only trying to scare me.

"For my protection, Kaede, who was Kikyou's younger sister and an old woman by then, placed an enchanted beaded necklace around his neck, allowing me to command him. Whenever I say the word sit, he does a face plant."

Nancy suddenly burst out laughing, and Kagome felt her eyebrow twitch slightly at the unexpected interruption. "That would certainly explain his sudden fall through the table that day in the cafeteria."

Kagome smiled, recalling the memory as well, before continuing. "Anyway, to make an incredibly long story short, the jewel was stolen one day and carried off by several ravens and I, in an attempt to get it back, fired an arrow, but it missed the bird and hit the jewel instead, shattering it into many pieces scattered all over the place. Inuyasha and I had no choice but to work together in order to collect the jewel shards, and for the next three years that's exactly what we did."

Nancy nodded. "Then explain to me how all your friends came into the equation. Like Miroku."

"Miroku is a monk who used to have a curse on his hand thanks to Naraku that would one day swallow him into darkness. Inuyasha and I met him while traveling through a village, and when he first saw the shikon shards decided to make our acquaintance, so to speak." Kagome felt her body twitch in irritation as she recalled the way he had groped her.

"Okay, so Miroku's a monk." Nancy put a finger to her chin thoughtfully. "I never saw that one coming. And Sango?"

"She is a demon exterminator whose village was destroyed by Naraku. Her younger brother, Kohaku, was possessed and killed all of her family before her eyes before attacking Sango herself. Mortally wounded, she was approached by Naraku, not realizing he was at fault, and accepted a jewel shard for her injuries with the false information that Inuyasha had killed her family and destroyed her village. She went after Inuyasha, but eventually found out the truth, and when she did, decided to join us." Kagome smiled. "And, somewhere in there, she fell in love with Miroku, though we're still not sure how, considering he's a lecher."

"A lecher?"

"Never mind."

"Whatever. So how about Kouga?"

Kagome laughed. "Now that one's actually a funny story. He kidnapped me when he found out I could see shikon shards, intending to use me against his enemy, these huge birds who attacked his wolf tribe."

"Wolf tribe?"

"Yeah, he's a wolf demon, and a prince at that."

"Oh." Nancy was clearly trying to act like everything she was hearing was the most normal conversation in the world.

"Anyway, somewhere along the way he got this crazy idea that he was in love with me, and when Inuyasha came to rescue me, he announced it to everyone, declaring that I was his woman."

"His woman?"

"Yeah, that's how demons do things."

"Well, I'm not going to be anybody's woman, so Sesshoumaru can get that out of his head right now."

Kagome smiled and continued. "After that, Naraku, wanting the jewel shards in Kouga's legs, attacked his clan and killed them all, leaving Kouga alone. From that point forward his soul purpose in life was revenge, and he would pop in on our group once in a while to see how I was doing and help out when he could."

"And what about Ayame? How does she fit in?"

"She's a wolf demon he met when she was very young, and at that point Kouga promised to marry her someday. She came back several years later and asked for him to fulfill his promise, but at that point he had completely forgotten. To be honest, I'm not sure how or why they got together."

"Okay, fair enough. So, tell me more about Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru."

"Sesshoumaru is the son of a demon union, and as such he is a full fledged demon. Inuyasha, on the other hand, is a hanyou because his father married a human woman. His father died when he was very young, and his mother is all he had in the world. Others shunned him for being a hanyou, and after his mother died he had no one to protect him from their ridicule. He became bitter about life, and all he wanted was to wish to become a full- fledged demon like his older brother, thinking that would solve all his problems. And that is how he met Kikyou."

"Okay, so that explains Inuyasha. But what about Sesshoumaru? Who the hell is that green man? And is Rin really his niece?"

"Sesshoumaru is a demon lord who inherited control of the western lands from his father after the older demon's death. When I first met him, the brothers were searching for a sword called the tetsusaiga, a sword forged from the fang of their father with immense power. Inuyasha claimed the sword, while Sesshoumaru was given another called tenseiga.

"Ever since, he was bitter and would try to take the sword. During one fight he even lost his arm, only enraging him even more. He continued to come for Inuyasha, and it was only after he was deceived by Naraku that he began to shift his motivation toward destroying the demon, meaning the brothers, for once, had something in common.

"As for Jaken, as far as I know he's just some kind of servant to Sesshoumaru. And Rin, well, no one really understands why they formed a bond, but he found her after her village was destroyed by Kouga's wolf tribe. Sesshoumaru revived her with the tenseiga, and ever since she's been following him around. It's sort of like a father/daughter thing, I guess."

"He revived her?"

"Yeah, with his sword. Remember how I told you about tetsusaiga, and how Sesshoumaru wanted the sword for himself? Well, his father left him a sword as well, called the tenseiga. Both swords were forged from their father's fangs, but while one can destroy a hundred demons with one stroke, the other can revive them."

Nancy stared straight ahead. "So then, Sesshoumaru, he is, um, a powerful demon?"

"One of the strongest I have ever seen. Technically, he is even stronger then Inuyasha."

"And he's a lord?"

"Yes, complete, I believe, with a castle."

Nancy whistled. "And my mother said my work would keep me from marrying well." Kagome raised an eyebrow.

"Excuse me?"

"Never mind." The blonde woman returned her attention to Kagome. "So you all spent three years hunting down this Naraku. Did you eventually kill him?"

"Yes. Not long after my rape, we were cornered, and I killed him."

"You? That's impressive." Kagome blushed.

"It was ironic that I would be the one to kill him," she commented, looking up at the sky, which had begun to turn pink with the coming dusk. "I was the only one who was not directly affected by his cruelty."

Nancy took her glass of water again and sipped before asking another question. "So what happened to this jewel? Is it still around?"

Kagome shook her head. "No. It was destroyed when I gave it to Kikyou to make a wish so that she could live again."

"Wait a minute." Kagome looked up to see Nancy giving her a strange look. "Kikyou is still alive? I thought you said she was cremated and everything."

"She was. And then she was resurrected."

"Resurrected?" Whereas a moment ago Nancy had looked comfortable with everything she was hearing, she now looked tense again.

"Yes, by a witch. At first, she took the soul in my body, and I was dead, but then I fought to get it back, so that my soul returned to me, leaving behind only the part that hated Inuyasha."

"So, all she had to live on was her hate for someone else?"

"Yes, but she wasn't completely alive. She had to absorb the souls of the dead to continue to exist."

Nancy made a face as though the idea repulsed her, and inwardly Kagome agreed. It wasn't something she enjoyed thinking about either.

"Once she was brought back to life, Naraku pursued her, and when she finally learned the truth about his deception, she no longer tried to kill Inuyasha, but rather wanted to destroy Naraku."

"Like everyone else in this story," Nancy offered, and Kagome smiled slightly before continuing.

"Since she no longer blamed Inuyasha for her death, she suddenly decided that she still loved him, and wanted to take him with her into hell. The first time she tried, I called him back. After that, she tried to kill me once for taking him away." Kagome sighed. "It was a long road of pain and misery for the three of us. I think now, looking back, Inuyasha had the worst time. He had two women who loved him, and he loved them both. One was his first love, while the other was someone new, who didn't, deep down, want to change him into a human."

Nancy watched Kagome for a few seconds before finally seeming to make all the connections. "So let me see if I have everything correct. Kikyou and Inuyasha fell in love while Kikyou was guarding this shikon jewel. But they were both betrayed by a bad guy named Naraku, who used to be a human named Onigumo."

"That's right."

"Okay. So Kikyou died and Inuyasha was pinned to a tree for fifty years, when you come along. You're pulled down a well and, in order to save yourself, you free Inuyasha. In the process, you discover that you're the reincarnation of his first love, Kikyou, and the two of you are forced to work together when this jewel is broken."

"So far so good." Nancy nodded.

"Great. Along the way, you meet Miroku, who's a lecherous monk, Sango, who is a demon exterminator, Kouga, who is a wolf demon prince and who declares you his woman, Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha's older half brother, and you have to deal with a resurrected Kikyou wanting to kill you and take Inuyasha with her to hell while living off the souls of dead people."

"Right."

"And you all hate Naraku."

"Right."

"Okay. So a few years later you've finally gathered all the jewel pieces, made the jewel whole once more, and you kill Naraku. The guy everyone hates."

"Right."

"So then you give Kikyou the jewel, she wishes to be alive again, and it disappears. And now, you're all living happily ever after, with Sango married to a lecherous monk, Kouga married to the little girl he promised to marry in the first place, and you just married the man who used to love the woman who is your incarnation."

Kagome nodded her head dramatically. "Right."

"Good lord." Nancy went silent for a minute before shaking her head. "And then there's me, in love with an all powerful, unemotional demon lord five hundred years in the past." She shook her head and smiled. "Man, have we got lives soap operas only dream of."

Kagome laughed. "So, you believe me?"

Nancy shrugged her shoulders. "Why not? I mean, this is the way I see it: either it's the truth, or I get fifty percent of the profit when you sell this story as a novel."

Kagome cocked her head to the side. "You know, that's not a half bad idea. I could make millions off a story like that."

But Nancy was shaking her head with a serious face. "Don't even think about it. You're going to law school and then coming to work for me."

Kagome frowned playfully. "Yes ma'am."

"And don't call me that until I'm forty." Kagome laughed again.

"Whatever you say."

"So, when do we get to go back?"

"You mean you actually want to?" Nancy acted surprised by the question.

"Of course! Now that I know the truth, I'm not letting my little demon lord slip away."

Kagome had the sudden image of Sesshoumaru on a leash, a happy Nancy White prancing in front of him, and smiled. "Well, if anyone can handle him, its you."

Nancy laughed. "Damn straight." They rose from their seats, but the blond suddenly touched Kagome's arm, a playful smile on her face. "But just in case, do you think I can get one of those enchanted necklaces?"