Author's Note: Again, I don't own Inuyasha or any of the characters or any of that crap. Yay. Saying that just makes me FEEL better. ^_^

~

Everything throbbed. Kagome woke up to the most unpleasant, uncomfortable feeling she had ever experienced in her life. It wasn't exact pain…it was more of the knowledge that if she moved a single muscle she would be writhing in agony. Slowly but surely, it dawned on her that this certainly wasn't her quaint little room in her quaint little house. You idiot…why would it be?

She felt almost detached from the experience. However, whenever she closed her eyes, she would see Kouga's face contorted in pain as his body was crushed back against the hard rock. He saved me…she thought almost bitterly. He attacked me, and then he saved me…if he hadn't come after me, then I would have…Kagome couldn't help but wince at the thought. She'd be dead.

Extremely carefully Kagome began to sit up. It hurt more than she could possibly describe, but it wasn't death sort of pain. It was just really sore really bad pain that she knew would fade as soon as she stopped pushing herself. Kouga was his name…right? Her legs felt like they were broken. She could feel bandages wrapped tightly around her body, and for a split second blushed a deep crimson when she thought of how she must look. But, much to her relief, whoever had healed her had also taken the effort to wrap her up in a robe as well as umpteen billion layers of vaccine soaked pieces of cloth. She had thousands of little cuts, she knew, but the gel pressed against them didn't hurt so bad.

As she looked down at herself, Kagome couldn't help but glow in the aftermath of it all. She had just escaped from a man who wanted to do god knows what to her, and she survived a fall off of a cliff. Oh, and do I ever have the scars to prove it…

Soon enough, guilt took over her senses. Kouga had saved her…Kouga, some complete stranger had risked his own life to save her. Sure, in the beginning he had tried to kidnap her and perhaps even sell her off to some whorehouse, but Kagome could have escaped from that. Without Kouga's help, she would never have been able to escape from death.

"M-Miss!" Kagome looked up, startled, nearly breaking off her already sore neck in the process. Standing in front of her was one of Kouga's groupies, with the strangest looking hairstyle she had ever seen. It was a mohawk, a very badly done one as well, with little bits of white hair jetting up from the top of his head like grass.

"Are you all right? Please rest…If Kouga finds out that I allowed you to hurt yourself once more he'd…"

"OI!!" The wolf-man flinched, lowering his head. For a moment, Kagome was almost certainly convinced that it was Kouga who made the sudden intrusion. But, much to her surprise and relief, it turned out to be a man she had never seen before. He loomed over the two of them in the doorway, a look of disgust on his face.

"Oi! The smell of this place is horrible!" He raised a hand over his nose, faking some coughs.

The timid little wolf-man raised his hands in defense. "Th-that's just the antidotes I've been administering to this young girl's skin while she heals!"

The intruder snorted. "It's the filthy sense of wolf that's getting to me! Now, where is that good for nothing Kouga bastard?" He glared down at the mohawk man, stepping even closer to him. The poor thing was obviously terrified out of his mind.

Kagome, with extreme care, shifted herself back onto the futon that was laid out behind her to get a better look at the man. He had long white…no, silver hair, that seemed to puff out behind him like he was in a constant blast of wind. His eyes were a dirty gold, and he had these peculiar dog ears that Kagome could not take her eyes off of…His outfit was nothing to think about, though, as it was nearly the same thing as Kouga's except much more…red.

"Oh? And who's this wench?" The dog-man turned his eyes to Kagome now, raising an eyebrow. He leaned in a little closer, his nose twitching as he sniffed lightly. She smells like…

W-Wench?! "Look…" Kagome hissed lowly. "I don't know just who you think you're talking to but…"

He gave a little grunt, turning his head to the side. "I think you're the one confused, bitch."

"Bitch?!" Kagome was getting furious. "Who's the one with the dog ears now?! Or do you forget so soon?! Judging by your hair I'm sure you haven't looked in a mirror in-…"

"MISS!" Kouga's friend had a look of pure terror on his face, staring at Kagome in such a pleading way that she really had no choice but to shut up before he had a heart attack. "I didn't come here to bicker with some silly wench, I'm here about wolf breath."

Wolf breath? Kagome thought vacantly to herself, watching the strange youkai turn this way and that, sniffing the air before exiting back into the hall. What an immature insult…

"What an unpleasant surprise!" Kagome could hear that the rude man had finally found Kouga, though they were out of the doorway and she couldn't see the conflict.

"Inuyasha, what the hell do you want?" Kouga was obviously just as upset about the meeting as dog-man was. Kagome heard a thud and suddenly there was no more sound at all. Panic struck her, images of this 'Inuyasha' plunging his claws through Kouga's heart came to her mind. The wolf-man, however, calmed her with a gentle pat on her shoulder. "Don't worry. They're just discussing business. Now get back to rest; it won't be long before Kouga will be coming to see you."

Kagome, who had already been sitting on the futon, lay back onto it, being careful not to induce herself into any more pain. Of course it hurt, but, it could be much worse. She tried not to think of what had just happened, for her mind was much too hazy now to really focus on anything. She was tired and convinced herself that if she slept, maybe everything would be all better when she woke up.

~

"Get up."

Kagome felt like she was floating around in some thick liquid, even as she returned back to consciousness. Contrary to what she had hoped, she only felt worse now. Much, much worse. Not only did her bones ache continuously, but she doubted if she could even see straight, never mind think straight. Two hands gripped onto her shoulders, joggling her around a bit, just making everything hurt that much more. "I said wake up."

She managed to pry her eyes open half way, squinting to focus on the figure above her. It was Kouga, kneeling next to her futon, looking the exact same way he had looked when she had first him…well, she couldn't even remember. How long have I been here…? Kagome rose her arm to her head, rubbing it with extreme caution. How had he healed so quickly?

"Are you alive yet?" Kouga held her surprisingly gently as he pulled her up into a sitting position, trying his best to get her full attention without causing any more pain than what was necessary.

Looking up at her savior, Kagome could only nod.

"Good…Now, I know this is sudden, but I have a favor to ask of you."

Kagome stared vacantly before blinking. "Wh-…what? Where am I? And…and why have you healed…and…and…"

"Don't think you'll get any special treatment." The sudden anger in Kouga's voice startled Kagome, making her feel strangely inferior to her surroundings. "I saved your life. You owe me. You owe me your life." Of course, Kagome new this was true. But did he need to put it so harshly…? She felt more frightened of him right now than thankful.

"I, in a similar position, have a debt to pay off to an old friend of mine. I know you're not healed yet, but…For the time being, you will work there as his servant."

Much to Kagome's surprise, Kouga began to laugh, no doubt because of the look of confusion and god knows what else that passed her face in that instant. "I like you. You've got speed, bravery, and you're clever. How about this, then? Once you've served my time, you can come back and be my woman."

Kagome's jaw dropped. "Excuse me?!" 'His' woman?! The man saved her life but HONESTLY… "First of all, I don't even know who the hell you are, where I am, and why you even picked me up in the first place! You're the one who chased me off that cliff, so it's YOUR fault my life was in danger!" She immediately regretted saying that. She knew it wasn't completely true. And even if it were the truth, that didn't take away the fact that he had been kind to her as of yet.

A look flashed through Kouga's eyes, and Kagome couldn't tell whether he was upset or just amused. She felt like some circus animal…Oh god…I just want to go home… "Get up." Kouga barked out to her, standing himself. "You'll be leaving in only a few hours. Don't bother packing, you won't need it. Don't question anyone, don't look anyone in the eye, in fact, don't even speak. Don't introduce yourself. No one cares about your name. No one ever will. But don't worry about it. I'll be back to get you. I promise." He gave her chin a little nudge, flashing her a smile that told her to be more worried about that than anything else.

Before she even knew it, Kouga was gone. She sat there for a numerous number of minutes before she comprehended what was going on. "Sold…" she muttered bitterly to herself. "Who was I kidding? I'm just going to be sold…I'm going to be sold as a pretty object to be put on a pretty shelf…" 'Don't introduce yourself. No one cares about your name.'  That's what he had said to her. This was too much for her to handle. She wanted to go back to bed and never ever ever wake up, not until she was safe back in her own little bed in her own little room. Through force of will alone, Kagome stumbled up onto her feet, legs breaking once more beneath her as she made her way out the door.

~

For the next hour Kagome clung to the wall as she made her way down the wide corridors of the multi-roomed shrine she had been residing in. Countless numbers of maids and servants had walked past in the time it took her to make it outside, and none of them even gave her a second glance. They didn't stop, they didn't smile, they didn't do anything. Is this what I'll become…?

"It took you long enough!"

Kagome looked up to see Kouga standing there in the hall, a short green toad thing by his side, waving around some staff as if it were a baton to get other's attention. "So it's settled?" The toad thing's voice was as gruff and repulsive as its looks, and Kagome could forget about her pain for nearly a second. That is, until she looked up to Kouga.

He was staring at her with such a sense of pity and sympathy in his eyes that Kagome didn't know what to do. This man had the strangest mood swings she'd ever seen. Though, when she thought about it later on, her pathetic, limping, battered, bruised, and broken body was more than deserving of a sympathetic glance. "How…How long have I been here…?" She asked timidly. When had it come to a point where even talking hurt?

The toad looked disgusted and let out a little grunt of disapproval. "Don't worry, Jaken-sama." Kouga said quite calmly, shooting a glare at Kagome that immediately retracted any earlier good feelings she may have had before. "I'll make sure that she never speaks again in Jaken-sama or Sesshoumaru-sama's presence."

The dark-haired girl's eyes widened as she stared at the two. What does he mean by that…?

"Now, hurry up wench, we haven't got all day!" The little green thing squawked, hobbling out the door, but not after whacking that staff of his into Kagome's head as if she was some sort of dog. All she could do was stand there in shock, unable to move, leaning her bodyweight against the thick walls of the temple. She could feel tears come to her as the sense of endlessness grew deeper and deeper in the pit of her stomach.

"Go. If you know what's good for you, you'll go. Humans don't survive long here. I did my best to protect you, but…You're on your own after this." Kouga spoke quietly to her. She felt as if she was walking off to her own hanging. She turned her head to the wolf-leader, with such a look of misery and confusion that he twitched visually. "It won't be long." He said, lowering his eyes to the ground. "I promise."

If…If this is my funeral, then… "Thank you." Kagome held her head up high as she limped down the hallway, eyes burning with effort. Don't give up, Kagome! she chided herself. You can always escape. As soon as you heal, you can escape! Just hold on… As she passed by Kouga, he reached out, pressing his sharpened nails into the skin of her hand. "Don't do anything stupid. Remember…You owe everything to me. Never forget that."

Once more the raven-haired girl couldn't help but look up at him, but with contempt, anguish, or gratefulness, she wasn't sure. Before she could say anything, Kouga leaned down close to her ear. "What is your name?"

He asked it harshly and quickly, as if it were a sin. She got the feeling that it was something that must be kept extremely secretive.

"…Kagome."

Kouga smirked and took her hand into his, pressing something down into it, and then quickly shoved her out into the fresh air, where an old-fashioned carriage awaited, with Jaken sitting at the reins of two very strange looking horses. "Stupid human! Hurry up!"

With as much dignity as she could muster, Kagome tripped forward toward the carriage, eyes narrowing with the sight of the horrible little toad man. However, she couldn't help but be curious to why this had all been set up for her. There were thousands of other servants in that house…All of them healthy. Well, much healthier than her, anyway. She moved around whatever Kouga had given her in her palm, and it only took a few seconds to realize it was the coins. It was her mother's coins, and she couldn't help but wonder what her family was doing right now. The thought of them setting out a grave for their daughter…She had to fight to choke back a sob.

After further goading from the ugly little man, Kagome had managed to swallow down the pain and step as gracefully as her condition allowed into the small, rickety looking carriage. And there, sitting with a bored, if not disgusted look on his face was the same man that Kagome wished so desperately not to see. Inuyasha.