Disclaimer: after fifteen chapters you would think that I don't own it!
Author: well thanks again LOTRwolf !!!! You're awesome yet again! Also I would like to thank my reviewers for all of the reviews you have sent me!!!! ::hands out an extra chocolate chip cookie to everyone:: over 130! I feel so loved!!!!!!!!!!!! Well oki im going to get in this story's bit o' action!!! So on with it!!!
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oki im soooo sry but I was so busy with school this week that I didn't have time to write your responses but for everyone thanks soooo much for the 135 reviews my other didn't do so well but thanks to my wonderful reviewers you all are THE BEST!!!!!!!
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Kagome stood in a lone clearing, a single piece of loose leaf notebook paper with scribbling on it was pinned to the tree that lay in front of her.
'Damn my math homework'
Kagome drew back her bow with a practiced ease and took a careful aim at her homework. She fired but let her bow swing forward causing the arrow to go off.
Kagome gave out a tired sigh and used another arrow, she made the same mistake and the arrow landed neatly next to the other won.
'Ugh!'
PB
Kikyo wandered by, her shinidama-chuu (soul collectors) not too far off; She heard two 'thwacks' of arrows hitting wood and found Kagome aiming at a white square on a tree.
"Why can't I get this right?!"
"Because you string is too loose"
Kagome gave a small jump and turned to find her predecessor behind her.
"Here let me see it"
Kikyo walked over slowly and Kagome could hear a small sigh of annoyance as the older woman took the bow out of her hands with little force and sat herself on the ground, Kagome joining her.
Kagome watched as Kikyo placed the bow in between her knees, on hand, moving with a masters ease, pulled on the string lightly.
"Definitely too loose" Kikyo unconsciously murmured out loud.
Kagome couldn't help but stare at Kikyo; she was a graceful woman who was beyond her years. Kagome couldn't help but envy her a little bit.
"Kikyo?"
"Yes?" Kikyo answered not looking up at her, her eyes still trained to the tips of the bow.
"What happened between you and InuYasha? If you don't mind me asking?" Kagome blushed lightly.
Kikyo looked up, one of her naturally thin eyebrows arched up, the smallest of grins on her face.
"InuYasha is a hardheaded dog.....and sometimes you unwillingly have to use force...." a small frown suddenly replaced the smirk but was suddenly overtaken with Kikyo's usual impassive features.
Silence filled the clearing and Kikyo gave the bow-string one final tug before gently shoving it into Kagome's hands.
"Now give it a try"
Kagome got up and pulled out another arrow from the stash in her quiver, she placed it in the string and indeed noticed the tension that was rebuilt into the string. She pulled back and let it soar, and it hit....right on question thirty-two.
Kagome gave a smile and Kikyo smirked, her arms crossed.
'Just what to expect from you'
A sudden chilly wind swept through the clearing, both miko's (priestesses) feeling and ominous chill run up their spines.
"Something's not right" Kagome muttered loud enough for her fellow priestess to hear.
"We're definitely close to him....nothing is that evil except for that spawn" Kikyo's shinidama-chuu (soul collectors) suddenly swept to protect their mistress. Kagome suddenly felt Kikyo's unsettled part of her spirit flare up and filled with the vengeance.
"We should head back to the group..."
"You go and tell InuYasha to go east-toward, I may not rejoin you group tonight"
"Wha-"
"Go!"
Kagome bit her bottom lip and nodded slowly before taking up her three arrows pinned to the tree and replacing them in her quiver before going the fifty paces that it took to get back to the site.
"Why send her away maiden?"
"Kagura"
Kagura came out from behind the shadows, her deadly fan open lightly fanning her, making it innocent and hiding the evil power it held.
"So why? Scared of her dying?"
Kikyo didn't let an emotion flicker across her face.
"Heh thought so"
"What do you want with me?"
Kagura let the smirk fade
"Following my masters orders"
"He knows he can't kill me so he sends in a poor replacement"
Kagura narrowed her eyes and snapped her fan closed.
"Who said to kill you? Im only here to pass on a message"
"Which would be?" Kikyo didn't like the evil pouring off her, it seemed to be enhanced.
"He's waiting for his final shard" Kagura told as she swept a feather from her bun and into the air so that it would turn into her getaway.
Kikyo's eye followed her path of escape and snorted with anger.
'Damn you Naraku!'
PB
"Your saying she told us to meet her east-toward?!" InuYasha asked kagome urgently.
"Yea, it looks like she's going after Naraku single-handed" Kagome said sadly.
"So the lady is gone?" Genko looked up from his and Shippo's game of catch.
"For now" Kagome answered, her voice filled with concern.
"We should get going then InuYasha" Miroku sounded from next to the fire; his clothed hand sprinkling water over the burning logs to smother the flames and embers.
"Yes" Sango appeared from the brush, donned in her Tajiya uniform, her hair currently being swept up into a high ponytail.
Kagome, Shippo and Genko clamored onto InuYasha's back while Sango and Miroku got on Kirara; kagome decided to leave her bike and hid it in the brush.
Kagome directed InuYasha as he wove between the wildly grown timbers and ran into the clearing. Kagome noticed that Kikyo was still in the clearing as before.
Kikyo looked behind her to see InuYasha's companions and him himself stop short behind her. Kikyo waited for Kirara to land before giving them the update.
"Naraku sent Kagura, he says he's waiting for the final shard.
Kagome let her hand unconsciously grab the little bottle around her neck that contained the precious shard.
"So which shall we do InuYasha?" Miroku asked; his arms folded hugging his staff to his body as he leaned against the demon cat.
"Ain't it obvious?! We go and attack Naraku!"
"Now?" Sango asked still on top of her faithful demonic friend.
"Shouldn't we rest?" Kagome suggested idly from behind.
InuYasha gave off a faint growl but gave a short nod. Kagome re-made camp with help of Shippo and Genko as InuYasha, Miroku, and Sango scouted the area shortly for any of Naraku's minions. Kikyo wandered off herself, to the edge for the clearing and seemingly fell asleep, but with her shinidama-chuu (soul-collectors) sweeping around her, a trained eye could see that she was stocking up on her souls.
PB
Night fell with chilly winds sweeping in and out, threatening to put out the nice warm fire that took Kagome and the young ones hours to keep it strong.
InuYasha currently had his beloved Tetsusaiga out of its sheath and across his lap, using a scrap of cloth he polished the sword and tested the sharpness of the blade. Miroku and Sango were off to a corner by the undergrowth, a little ways from the fire, Miroku had part of the hiraikotsu draped across his own lap while Sango had the other across hers. She was running a sort of polish made from the fat of a dragon to keep her boomerang bone from snapping in half in the heat of battle.
"Need any help?" Miroku asked idly, watching his fiancée easily wipe down the heavy weapon in the stinking polish.
"if you want" she answered, dipping the already stained cloth back in the oyster-shell casing and into some black and purple, rotten-fish smelling gunk.
Miroku unconsciously scrunched his nose at the smell of the polish and ran another scrap of cloth with the gunk along the edges.
"Are you worried for tomorrow...Houshi-sama? (Lord Monk)" Sango asked in a light whisper.
Miroku didn't answer right away but stopped scrubbing.
"I don't know...it feels like I should be worried for tomorrow means that I may be rid of my curse for good....but then it feels like I shouldn't because that means our journey shall end"
"You don't want it to end?" Sango asked arching her eyebrow.
"Of course I do, I want to be rid of this hell-hole....but what's going to happen after we beat Naraku? I mean..." Miroku suddenly stopped Sango's scrubbing hand with his own and started rubbing his thumb over the tops of her powerful, yet smooth hands "I know what im looking forward too..."
"But where will we all go from here?"
Miroku shot her his award winning grin.
"yes....will Kagome-sama go back to her mystical world....what will happen to Shippo, what is going to happen to the jewel...so many questions and yet no answers...what will happen to your younger brother?"
Sango felt herself frown but she didn't shed a tear. She rested her hand on the half polished hiraikotsu and let her head rest on her monk's shoulder, closing her eyes and enjoying the warmth of his hand over hers.
"We will live thorough it...I know we will..." Sango felt her eyes tearing against her will.
"I will always be there to protect you Sango-chan"
"Same here.....Miroku....."
PB
Kagome and InuYasha snuck glances at the cuddling couple and Kagome felt a loving warmth fill her.
'Good for you...Sango-chan'
"Surprised she hasn't slapped him yet..." InuYasha murmured and let himself a smirk.
"Why would Sango slap Miroku?" Genko asked innocently, abandoning his and Shippo's game of jumping jacks and crawling into his mothers lap.
"Because Miroku's a pervert" Shippo answered knowingly as he scooped up the metal jacks and the rubber ball.
"Pervert..." Genko looked confused.
Kagome sweat-dropped and shook her head.
"Why don't you two get to sleep...we have a big day tomorrow...." Kagome trailed off wirily.
"Uh-huh I'm going to battle Naraku!" Shippo stated standing up with his shoulders back and his little fist slapped over his heart.
InuYasha gave a snort but stopped when he saw Kagome's death-glare.
Shippo unrolled the sleeping bag and climbed in with Genko automatically curled into a little ball and burrowed under the warmth of the Lycra blanket.
Kagome sighed heavily as she heard the light snoring of Genko and Shippo sleeping and reached for her quivers and some borrowed flint from Kaede.
She stroke the stone flint against the stone tip of her arrow heads and pointed it to the fire, making sparks as she hit it a little harder.
"So ya ready for tomorrow?" InuYasha asked as she shuffled closer to Kagome, running the back of his blade against the opening of his sheath and sliding it in its sheath.
"I guess...." she said shifting a little.
InuYasha sensed the worry in her in the way she was rigid a little bit and he felt a little bad. He felt his courage rear so he wrapped his arm around her back and settled it on her hip.
"You know I will be there to protect you right?" InuYasha whispered to her.
Kagome dropped her arrow and flint and suddenly hugged InuYasha, burying her face in his shoulder.
"But what if I loose you or Genko or Shippo or Sango or Miroku! What will I do! What if Kikyo's plan fails what if!!!!"
"Nothing like that will happen, no one will die!"
"How do you know!!!!?" Kagome moaned, trying to push back the tears forming in the corners of her eyes.
"Because if anyone is going to die...it's going to be Naraku that I promise you!"
Kagome pulled her face from his shoulder and looked up into his face, it was serious, her molten eyes determined and his grip on her tightened. Kagome felt a tear fall and buried her face back into his shoulder, letting her tears fall and letting the dread of the morrow fill her.
PB
Author: ::blink blink:: wow so yep! The end is near but how will it end?! ::dun dun DUUUUN!!!:: but don't worry! The next chapter isn't the last! I promise there will be AT LEAST twenty chapters AT LEAST! Ill warn you when I will post the last chapter I promise! And now since my dad finally moved the three year old computer into my bedroom and the new one where this thing im typing on was I can type later into the night!!! YAAY MY OWN COMPUTER!!!!!! Wh00t! lolz
And yes a lil' of both Mir/San and IY/Kag and yea the action sucked lolz but wait till I get the final battle typed up ::rubbs hands evily:: that's going to be fun to write!!!!
Till next week!