13

Robin was getting used to having demons around. She petted Kilala's soft fur whenever she found herself close enough. She hardly noticed Inuyasha's ears anymore. She was beginning to wonder which demon she was descended from. She didn't even react when Shippo jumped onto her shoulder.

"That was good shielding back there," he said.

"Thank you," Robin replied.

"I'm not that good yet. But I will be when I get stronger."

"You use a fire shield too?"

"Only when I have to. I held off a house fire once."

"That's pretty good."

"It took a lot of energy though."

"That's okay. Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"Are there any normal wells in this country?"

Shippo tilted his head to the side, not understanding.

"Never mind," Robin said and glanced at Amon. His eyes were narrowed as they always were when he smelled a witch.

"Is he close?" she asked him quietly, drawing closer to him.

"Is who close?" Shippo asked.

"Petra," Amon replied and nodded.

"Should we be on our guard?" Sango asked from behind them.

"Yeah," Amon said without turning around.

A dark cloud seemed to descend on the group. Robin knew this cloud well. She had always called it anxiety, but its real name was fear. She reminded herself that courage didn't exist without fear. They were walking towards a high hill that seemed to loom over them as they drew closer. Robin was gazing up the slope when a dark figure appeared on the path at the top.

"Amon," she said, getting his attention.

"Is that him?" Inuyasha asked, putting his hand on his sword.

"Yeah," Amon replied. "Let us handle it."

The figure at the top of the hill stopped and dodged behind a tree.

"He's seen us," Robin said. "Take cover."

They all jumped off the path into the woods before Petra's shot hit. The stone peg struck the middle of the path with a spray of dirt.

14

Petra cursed at his lousy luck. He had only two pegs left. If he didn't take care of these hunters quickly, he'd have to start picking up dull rocks from the ground. He hated doing that. The ones he sharpened himself were so much better. But no time to think about that now. He could see the hunters and their friends moving behind the trees at the bottom of the hill. In a minute they would start moving closer to get better aim. But they couldn't get too close or he'd be able to shoot them despite the trees. If he tried to run, they would chase him. It was a stalemate.

A rustling in the undergrowth behind Petra made him catch his breath. Had one of them managed to circle around already? He whirled around and fired one of his pegs. The small creature standing a little way down the hill yelped and fell backwards.

"Sesshomaru-sama," he wailed as he rolled down to the bottom of the hill. He came to rest on the path and lay still. Petra recognized him of course, but he wasn't worried. He'd be long gone by the time that demon found his sidekick dead.

15

Robin was right on Amon's heels as he charged up the hill with his gun at his shoulder. Petra was distracted. Now was their chance. If they could get close, he wouldn't be able to react fast enough. Petra turned and saw them as they broke from the tree cover. He reached out to launch his last peg at them but Amon leveled his gun at the same moment. The peg and the bullet flew past each other through the warm afternoon air. The bullet pierced Petra's heart and threw his body back against a tree.

The peg came within a few yards of Amon before Robin leapt out in front of him. The peg hit her fire shield and stuck in mid-air. Petra's hand was still outstretched, pushing the peg forward even as he died. Robin's jaw tightened as the peg inched closer. Why wasn't he dying fast enough? It had to be the jewel shard. A little movement in the corner of her eye caught Robin's attention.

She had forgotten all about Shippo who had been clinging to her shoulder the whole time. Now he was throwing his blue foxfire at the peg to compound Robin's own shield. Amon moved smoothly up to Petra at the crest of the hill and raised his gun again. The second shot went through the witch's hand, sending the jewel shard sailing down into Inuyasha's waiting hand.

Petra gasped and slumped down on the ground, finally dead. The stone peg dropped from the midst of the blue and orange flames. Robin and Shippo both breathed a sigh of relief as they let their fire die. It suddenly occurred to Robin that Petra had been the last shard-witch. With him gone, she and Amon could have their lives back. She looked up at Amon who was still standing on the top of the hill. She was hoping to make eye contact but something on the other side of the hill was holding his attention.