Kage was still grinning like an idiot. Oh, how she hated that youkai. His little idea of revenge had had different affects then he expected, but he liked the turn. She had woken from her faint about thirty minutes later and she was mad.

"So, it didn't work?" Sesshomaru asked the two of them. Kagome just kept glaring at Kage and Kage just kept that stupid grin on his face.Kagome was about ready to cut off his lips.

"I told you it wouldn't work, it was a well," Kage stressed. Kagome glared harder but remained silent. It was then that the guys showed up.

"Yo," Yusuke said as he flopped down on the couch by Kage. Sesshomaru and Kagome were sitting in lazy boy chairs across from it. Kuwabara sat next to Yusuke on the couch. Kurama opted for the foot stool of one of the chairs and Hiei sat on the windowsill closest to Kagome. Sesshomaru noticed this and gave him a small warning glare, but Hiei just hned.

"What's going on?" Kuwabara asked when he noticed the silence.

"Something seems to be wrong with the well," Sesshomaru supplied.

"I can't get back," Kage added. Kurama nodded but glanced at Kagome.

"Is, uh, something else wrong?" Kagome stiffened and Kage got another stupid grin on his face.

"Nothing at all," Kage said as he leaned back and crossed his arms. Shortly following his words was a pillow that came out of nowhere. He didn't let it faze him as he removed it from his face,tossed it to the side, and kept grinning.

"Then, what should we do about it?" Kagome asked after calming down a little.

"What is there to do? It didn't happen in the first place!" Kage let his voice carry in a lazy manner.

"Then how do you explain the change in your surroundings? Insanity?" Sesshomaru asked stoically, having enough of the youkai. Kage blinked but remained silent.

"Lets go check it out and see," Sesshomaru said as he stood up and walked out the door to the well house. Kagome quickly followed him.

Once everyone had entered the small, enclosed space and walked down the creaky steps, Kagome walked over to the edge. She briefly glanced down inside, seeing the remaining bones of Mistress Centipede and other demons that had encountered the village.

"Everything looks normal," Kagome stated as she turned back around to address them, "and I can still feel the power of the well." Kage raised an eyebrow but remained silent, maintaining a great distance from the well. Sesshomaru noticed with a slight smirk causing Kage to growl.

The depths of the well were dark and hard to make out. Even with the door opened, the corners and ceiling of the well house remained thrown into shadows. It was hard for even the piercing gaze of the demons to make it out. Under the steps leading to the rest of the world, black slinky shadows twisted and curled like wisps of smoke in the wind.

"Yusuke, do you sense that?" Kurama spoke quietly, but everyone heard it cut through the silence. Yusuke stared at the curling shadows.

"What are they?" he asked aloud.

"Spirits." Hiei had a glint in his deep crimson eyes as he watched the spirits coil up between the steps and circle in the air above them, "We must leave." The sureness of his voice threw everyone off.

"Now!" Hiei yelled as he swiftly unsheathed his kantana and blocked one of the twisting spirits that had aimed to strike him. The black smoke moved with deadly precision, striking hard and fast.

"Spirit Gun!" Yusuke shouted as he sent a blast at one that was drawing nearer. It went through it, just swatting at it and changing its course slightly before it was back on track.

"It's not working!" Yusuke shouted to the others as he tried again with another one, "It only blows them back a little."

Kurama was using his rose whip to slash them right down the middle, but they always came back. Kuwabara's spirit sword wasn't doing much damage either. Sesshomaru was doing the most damage with his whip, sinking his poison into the spirits and sending them back. He was protecting Kagome who had yet to really learn anything about her powers as a shadow kitsune.

"Hey!" Yusuke yelled as a sudden thought struck him, "Can't Kagome control shadows?" He looked over his shoulder at her, but during this lapse he was struck by one of the spirits. It sliced through his shoulder, protruding out the other side and rendering him incapable of using his Spirit Gun.

"Yusuke!" Kurama cried as he sliced through the spirit and helped the detective to his feet.

"Get out," Sesshomaru growled as he swiftly picked Kagome up and dodged the spirits out of the well house. Slowly, Yusuke managed to dodged his way to the stairs and take them three at a time, Kuwabara closely following him.

"Kurama, let's go," Hiei said as he turned to the stairs. Kurama nodded before turning to catch Kage's attention. But he wasn't moving. The spirits were drifting around him like snakes, but they made no move to attack and he just stood there and watched them.

"Hiei!" Kurama yelled when Kage raised his hand to touch one. Hiei hurriedly drew his kantana again.

"I don't know what you're trying to pull," Hiei growled as he glared with all his hatred at Kage, "but you will not succeed." Kage looked at him in surprise as the spirits drifted away back under the stairs.

"I don't know what you're talk—," Kage began, startled.

Hiei cut him off by putting his blade to Kage's neck and slicing, "You tried to kill us!" Kage jumped back before the blade could do any real damage.

"What are you talking about?" Kage looked confused by Hiei's actions.

"Don't toy with me, fool!" Hiei swung again and caught his arm. He continued to attack, swinging, aiming for vital points. He grabbed his kantana like a dagger and threw it swiftly at Kage. Kage had no time to dodge and was struck through the shoulder, pinned to the wall. Not one sound came from his mouth.

Hiei walked up to his shaking figure, "How dare you?" Kage remained silent, glaring fiercely.

"Why are you really here?" Hiei growled at him, his look promising torture. When he was not answered, he reached up and grabbed the hilt of his sword. Kage grimaced his face contorting with pain, but he still remained silent.

"What is your objective?" When Kage refused to answer, Hiei slowly twisted the sword, scraping it against bones, muscles, and flesh as Kage writhed beneath it. With one quick jerk, Hiei pulled the sword out along with a sharp cry of pain from Kage.

"Hiei! What are you doing?" He looked up to see Kagome leaning against Kurama, trying to rush past him to help Kage.

"Kagome you must listen—," Kurama began but she cut him off.

"No!" She pushed past Kurama and gathered Kage in her arms, crying, glaring at Hiei.

She stared him straight in his fierce crimson eyes and whispered bitterly, "How could you?" Hiei had intended to explain but when he saw the cold, distant look in Kagome's eyes, he briefly wondered why he attacked Kage, doubting his intentions. Was it jealousy? Was he bitter at how close the two had come?

"Get out," Kagome growled at Hiei. He remained still, standing there with the same cold mask, but regret danced in his eyes, "All of you get out!!!" She yelled as loud as she could before letting the grief consume her, burring her face in Kage's neck.

Hiei stood watching her, hurt, before turning and leaving with Kurama trailing behind. Leaving her alone in her sorrow.

Have I done the right thing?

TBC...

So sorry for the long wait! School is rough; we're taking our finals. But I got today off because I exempted two of my finals. So, I finally had time to type. I should be studying, but ya'll have waited so patiently, I haven't gotten to many threatening notes about my lack of updating. I was going to make it a lot longer but I thought that that was a good place to leave off.

Oh, I've decided that she will be a shadow kitsune since they were the two top voted. This will be the last time to vote for pairings so choose wisely. I have left only the most voted for.

Pairings:

Sesshomaru

Hiei

Kurama

Sess/Hiei

Hiei/Kurama

Kurama/Sess

Kage