Chapter 5: Back to the Village

They finally reached the spot where the anque plants grew. "Okay, Kagome. We're here. Pick as many as you need." Kouga exclaimed.

Kagome picked almost 30 flowers. "How many do I need? I never asked. I'll just grab some. 1... 2... 3..."

"Okay, I think this is all I need." Kouga looked at her.

"Kagome, for a poison cure, you only need like five flowers." Kouga looked kind of surprised by her answer.

"But, they're pretty. Plus, if someone gets poisoned again, I'll have some with me." was her answer.

"Oh, I never thought of that. Great idea, Kagome!" Kouga smiled.

"We had better get going. I have to get back to Sango and Miroku." Kagome explained.

"Oh yeah, we had better leave! Hop on, Kagome. I'll carry you."

"Uh..." Kagome looked a bit hesitant. "Okay." She jumped on Kouga's back, like she always did with Inuyasha, and Kouga took off running down the mountain.

"Oh man! Kouga isn't here. Where could they have gone?" Shippou wondered to himself. Shippou looked up towards the mountain, and saw to his surprise, a large cloud of dust. "YAY! Kouga's coming, and Kagome's with him!"

Sango and Miroku looked, too. "You're right, Shippou! They are coming, really fast, too." Sango exclaimed.

Kouga arrived with Kagome on his back and skidded to a quick halt right in front of Sango and Miroku, kicking up another huge cloud of brown dust. Sango stood completely still as Kouga set down Kagome, while Miroku and Shippou were waving the dust away from their faces. Sango looked a bit angry.

"What I the world do you think you're doing, kidnapping Kagome again? Come on, Kagome, let's go." Sango walked over to where Kouga had just put Kagome down, gently grabbed her shoulders, and pulled her away from Kouga. Kouga looked a little confused.

"I didn't kidnap her! What in the world are you thinking?!" Kouga yelled at Sango's back.

"Thank you, Kouga, for the anque plant." Kagome looked back at Kouga, smiling, from in front of Sango. Kouga stopped yelling and looked at her. Then he smiled.

"You're welcome, Kagome. I hope they work for you. Cause, I don't know what I'd do if I lost you." Kouga waved to Kagome as she walked over to Kilala, Miroku pulled her up, and they started to rise up into the air.

"Goodbye, Kouga! Thanks again for the flowers!" Kagome yelled, waving.

"Goodbye, Kagome! I'll see you again soon!" Kouga yelled back. "I wonder who had poisoned her, or if she really was who was poisoned. I bet it actually was Inuyasha who was poisoned, the idiot! Kagome lied to me." Kouga looked slightly mad, but he dismissed the feelings and walked into his cave.

"Do you think I got enough of the anque plants?" Kagome asked Miroku on the way back to Kaede's village. She pulled out the plants and held them out for Miroku to see.

Miroku looked down at Kagome's hands, then back up at Kagome with his eyebrow raised and this somewhat amused look. "Kagome, you have more than enough. Don't worry."

"Sango, can we go any faster?" Kagome asked politely, but with a worried expression on her face.

"Maybe, but not much faster. Kilala, faster!" Sango looked over her shoulder at Kagome and saw that she was crying. "Kagome, don't worry. We'll get there in time. Inuyasha will be okay. Trust me!" Then, a sudden strong gust of wind blew up from beneath them, and they were all roughly knocked off of Kilala and sent hurtling toward the ground. 200 feet from the ground, 100 feet, 50, 30, 20...

"AH!" Inuyasha sprang up from the mat he had been laying on, drenched in sweat. "Whoa, what was that about?" he wondered aloud, panting and wiping sweat from his brow. "That was weird. I just dreamt Kagome was falling off something, and plummeting toward the ground." Inuyasha thought to himself.

"Inuyasha, be ye alright?" Kaede hurried into the hut after hearing Inuyasha's yell.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Inuyasha looked over at her. "Are they back yet?"

"Nay, not yet, Inuyasha, but they will be here soon. I hope!"

10 feet from the ground, and Kilala came into site. Kagome was the first to grab hold of Kilala's fur, then Sango a split second later with Shippou clinging to her, then Miroku. Then, like a foot from the ground, Kilala slowed down and landed as gently as she could from her fast descent.

They all breathed a sigh of relief. "Whoa, that was close!" Sango exclaimed. Kagome was speechless, and Miroku was laughing hysterically.

"Why are you laughing?!" Sango yelled at Miroku and whacked him on the back of the head. "That wasn't funny!"

"Sango's right; that wasn't funny." Shippou shouted with his fur all winded.

"Can we just go?" Kagome finally found her voice. "I don't know how much time we have left, but I don't think it's very long." Kagome climbed back onto Kilala.

"You aren't going anywhere, just yet." A familiar voice said from above them. Sesshoumaru was hovering on his three-headed monster right above the group.

"And why not?" Kagome asked boldly, handing the anque flowers to Shippou and sliding off of Kilala.

"Am I correct that you have an anque plant; a plant that is able to cure my brother's poison?" Sesshoumaru asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yeah, that's correct!" Kagome yelled at him.

Sesshoumaru jumped off the monster and drifted down to land a few yards in front of Kagome, while Sango and Miroku quickly walked over to stand beside her.

"Give me all of the plants you have, and I may spare you all." Sesshoumaru said holding out his hand in front of Kagome.

She took a few steps toward him getting a surprised reaction from both Sango and Miroku. She stopped right in front of Sesshoumaru never taking her eyes off him, then looked at his hand and suddenly swatted it away from her.

"I won't give a single one to you!" Kagome screamed. Sesshoumaru looked at his hand then down at Kagome. He quite suddenly grabbed hold of Kagome and lifted her up level with his face by the front of her shirt. Miroku and Sango rushed forward to try and help, but Sesshoumaru knocked them back.

"You're either very brave or very stupid." Sesshoumaru remarked, looking Kagome right in the eyes. She was scared; he knew she was, but she didn't show any fear at all.

"You won't get any of the flowers. They're going to Inuyasha whether you like it or not." Kagome exclaimed, starring right back at Sesshoumaru. Sesshoumaru was startled slightly by her courageous act, but as always his face was expressionless.

"If you want this foolish girl back alive, I suggest that you give me the anque plants that you have." Sesshoumaru said coldly, looking beyond Kagome at Miroku and Sango. Miroku turned on his heel and walked briskly over to Shippou.

"Give me all the flowers except six!" he demanded quietly. "Hide those six." Miroku turned back around to face Sesshoumaru and started walking up to stop a few feet in front of him and Kagome. "Here they are, now put Kagome down!"

"Miroku, what are you doing? Don't give the flowers to Sesshoumaru! He'll destroy them!" Kagome yelled.

"I'm sorry, but it's the only way!" Miroku replied. He laid the flowers into Sesshoumaru's outstretched hand. "Now put Kagome down!" Miroku yelled again.

"Very well." With that Sesshoumaru threw Kagome roughly into Miroku's arms and they both toppled over. "My business here is done." He floated back up onto his three-headed monster and flew away, out of sight.

Wow, she's pretty brave to stand up to Sesshoumaru like that. Well, I got some reviews already, and thanks to all of you! I'll update soon. Byes!