Well heres chapter 7. Not much else to say this time around so on with it.

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

Kagome stared idly at the sky. It had been two days since the group had left the village and no more demons had shown up and for that she was glad. Kagome needed the time to collect her thoughts. She was by no means over the incident with the snake, quite the contrary. It was a very prevalent thought in her mind at the moment. She was thinking about what the man from her dream had said to her.

'That was but a small piece of yourself you added. In the end it will not determine who you really are. Take comfort in that if such a thing truly disturbs you' he had said. But what does it mean? Thought Kagome as she turned these and other words over in her mind. The fact of the matter is she couldn't not be disturbed by what had happened. She had torn the things head off for god's sake! But what was more disturbing still was the fact that she simply wasn't capable of such a feat. Or at least… she had thought she wasn't.

Kagome shook her head. No, she knew she wasn't. She had tried to lift a large rock the previous day, a feat nowhere near as impressive as the incident with the snake, and she hadn't been able to budge it.

Kagome shook her head again. She was getting sidetracked. In those brief moments she had felt like what her double from the dreams must be like had she been real. What if she is real? Thought Kagome shuddering a bit at the thought. It was her after all. Was she a possible future for Kagome?

Kagome snapped out of it when she heard someone say "What are you concentrating so hard on?"

She looked over to see Inu-Yasha staring at her quizzically. "Oh…nothing" she muttered sheepishly.

Inu-Yasha snorted. "Right" he muttered, "and my brother is suddenly going to walk out of the bushes and apologize to me for being a bastard all these years".

Kagome blushed before rounding on Inu-Yasha and saying, "well if your going to act like that I wont tell you".

Inu-Yasha sputtered at a loss for words for a few seconds before settling for a simple grouchy sounding "keh" and looking away.

Miroku grinned and patted Inu-Yasha in the shoulder. "Cheer up Inu-Yasha" he said, "I'm sure she will tell everyone if it's important".

Inu-Yasha muttered some more before going ridged and sniffing the air. "What is it Inu-Yasha?" asked Sango laying a hand on her boomerang.

Inu-Yasha sighed heavily and shook his head. "You'll see in a minute" he growled.

Now what could that mean? Thought Kagome. She blinked when she saw a dust cloud off in the distance moving along the road. The cloud grew bigger until it was a small tornado. When it was about ten feet away the tornado dissapeared and a man skidded to a stop not a foot away from the group looking for all the world like he should have fallen over but didn't.

"Hey" he said flashing a toothy grin.

"What do you want Kouga?" grumbled Inu-Yasha sourly.

Kouga just ignored Inu-Yasha and walked straight up to Kagome. "Hey" he said taking her hand in his, "It's nice to see you again Kagome".

Kagome blushed and started fidgeting. Kouga though, clueless as ever, didn't notice. Why does he always do this? Thought Kagome. It got to be very disturbing sometimes.

Inu-Yasha snarled at Kouga. "Hey fleabag" he said grabbing the wolf demons shoulder, "I asked you a question".

Kouga let Kagome's hand drop and glared at Inu-Yasha. "Let go of me mutt" he growled, "before I break that arm off".

"Just try it wimp" snarled Inu-Yasha.

"Inu-Yasha" said Kagome getting very tired of Inu-Yasha and Kouga's little argument.

"Huh?" asked Inu-Yasha glancing at her while still holding onto Kouga.

Kagome had a wicked gleam in her eye. "Sit boy" she said. The rosary around Inu-Yasha's neck activated and he did a face plant. However since he had been holding Kouga at the time he drug the wolf down with him.

"What was that for!" shouted Inu-Yasha spitting dirt out of his mouth.

Kouga hauled himself up and rubbed his sore shoulder. "You deserved it mutt" he grumbled.

"Hey you fell over to" shouted Inu-Yasha hopping to his feet.

Kouga jumped up to and stared at Inu-Yasha right in the eye. "That's only because you wouldn't let go of me when I told you to".

Kagome was getting really fed up now and forced her way in between the two. "Knock it off, the both of you" she shouted.

By not the others where making a conscious effort to not laugh and failing miserably. Except for Shippo of course who was just rolling around on the ground laughing his head off. It was then that Ginta and Hakkaku showed up panting from the effort of keeping up with Kouga. When they finally caught their breaths and spotted the scene in front of them they looked confused as possible. "Uh boss?" asked Ginta, "what's going on?"

Kouga finally backed away and dusted himself off. "Just proving a point" he snarled not taking his eyes off of Inu-Yasha.

Hakkaku blinked stupidly. "But I thought…?" he began before getting cut of rather rudely by Inu-Yasha.

"What point is that?" he snapped straightening his own cloths, "that you're a smelly wimp? I could have told you that".

"Will you two just stop it" Kagome shouted. These two where fast getting on her last nerve. Then to Inu-Yasha she said, "look, if Kouga is here there's probably a reason".

Miroku and Sango nodded in agreement. Shippo was to busy wiping the tears from his eyes to notice. "I agree," said Sango.

With a sour sounding "Keh" Inu-Yasha stomped a short distance away and sat down but didn't take his eyes off of Kouga.

Kagome gave a sigh of relief before tuning to said wolf demon. "So whay are you here Kouga?" she asked.

"Actually I came to ask for your help," he said.

"Well well the mangy fleabag come crawling to us," said Inu-Yasha, a smirk covering his face.

"I didn't ask you mutt" Kouga shouted back, "it's just Kagome I need".

"Hey" said Kagome tapping her foot impatiently.

"Uh, right" muttered Kouga, "well here's the thing. I think I saw a demon that has a jewel shard but I'm not sure".

"Really? What makes you think that?" asked Kagome.

Kouga shrugged, "just a hunch. Seemed a lot stronger then it should have been".

"Why are you telling us this?" asked Inu-Yasha then he smirked. "You got beaten didn't you wimp".

Kouga snorted, "as if" he muttered. He glared at Inu-Yasha then and said "Besides I'm asking for Kagome's help not yours. I can't see the energy from the jewel shards".

Kagome considered this for a minute then turned to the others. "What do you guys think?" she asked.

Miroku shrugged and said, "we may as well listen to him".

Inu-Yasha made a strangled noise from the side but everyone ignored him. Sango nodded and said, "we have no other leads after all".

"Don't I have a say in this?" shouted Inu-Yasha.

888

Inu-Yasha sulked at the back of the group for the rest of the day while Kouga led them to where he had seen the demon. Suddenly Kagome stopped and a look of concentration crossed her face. "What is it Kagome?" asked Sango.

Kagome frowned a bit. "I'm sensing a jewel shard" she said pointing off the road. She turned to Kouga and asked "Is that where you saw it?"

Kouga nodded. "Well lets get going. The sooner I show the fleabag up the sooner he'll leave".

"In your dreams mutt" said Kouga.

Kagome sighed and did her best to ignore them. Before they started going again Kouga stopped argueing with Inu-Yasha long enough to turn to Ginta and Hakkaku and say "wait here you two".

"Uh, why boss?" asked Hakkaku.

Kouga rolled his eyes. "Just do it okay".

They both nodded.

"Maybe you should wait here to Shippo" said Kagome, "I don't want you to get hurt".

Shippo looked reluctantly at the two wolf demons.

"Don't worry about them," she said smiling, "they wont hurt you". Then to Ginta and Hakkaku she said "will you boy's?"

They nodded at her and Ginta said "yes ma'am".

"Well alright" said Shippo still looking a little doubtful he hopped down to the ground from Kagome's shoulder, "But be careful okay?"

Kagome patted the kitsune in the head to reassure him. "Deal" she said.

"Will you hurry up Kagome?" shouted Inu-Yasha who was already several yards away.

"Comeing" she shouted running after them.

Sango fell to the back of the party and whispered something to Kilala. "Keep an eye on them" she whispered. The small feline demon mewed before hopping to the ground and bounding back to where the other three were waiting.

888

"Is this the place?" whispered Kagome eyeing the cave the jewel shards power had led her to.

Kouga nodded and said, "yes that's where we saw it alright".

"Well lets go then" said Inu-Yasha leaping out of the bush.

"No don't," said kagome grabbing vainly at Inu-Yasha in an attempt to stop him.

"Hey you!" he yelled into the cave, "get out here".

"Inu-Yasha should practice more restraint," said Miroku standing up as well.

"No kidding," said Sango following suit along with everyone else.

They didn't have to wait long before a rumbling was heard coming from the cavern. "Uh that stink," said Inu-Yasha covering his nose and gagging. Kouga wrinkled his nose to. It smelled like death and decay.

A low rubbing began to shake the ground and everyone readied their weapons when two big yellow eyes shone through the darkness of the cave. "Who dares disturb me?" it hissed. It stepped out of the cave revealing itself at that point.

It was a good ten feet tall and was hunched over and covered in scale's giving it the appearance of a bipedal lizard. Except the scales themselves where more like carved chips of bone tied together to make armor.

Inu-Yasha just snarled at it and, not one for subtlety, attacked it. He swung the tessaiga down in a vicious overhead chop that would have bisected the thing had it not moved out of the way at the last second. As it was dodging it reached out and grabbed Inu-Yasha's arm then, using his own momentum, catapulted Inu-Yasha sending him crashing into a nearby tree.

Kagome blinked in surprise. It's so fast she thought. The thing noticed her and laughed. "Surprised girl?" it asked. Kagome didn't dignify it with a response. All at once everyone attacked. Kouga leapt into the air aiming a flying roundhouse kick at the things head but it reached out and easily grabbed his foot and twisted sending Kouga to the ground in a heap.

Miroku was next. He called and incantation and tossed a sutras at the demon but it just swatted the paper aside shredding it with his claws. At the same time Sango hauled back and let her boomerang fly. It connected with the things midsection sending it skidding back a few feet. Sango caught the boomerang and tossed it again immediately after at the exact same time Kagome loosed an arrow. The demon tucked its legs in and rolled under both attacks and was up in a flash.

"You'll pay for that girl" it snarled charging at Sango.

"Oh no you don't" shouted Inu-Yasha having recovered from the blow he had received by now. He darted in front of the thing and blocked its claws with his sword forcing them up high then, reversing his grip, slashed at the demon's legs.

It vaulted over Inu-Yasha avoiding the blow but ran right into Kouga's fist in the process. It staggered back clutching at its shout it pain.

By now Kagome had taken aim with another arrow and loosed it at the demon. It noticed at the last second and managed to twist away avoiding most of the blow but the sacred arrow still clipped it's side taking a chunk out of it's scaly hide. Kagome finally managed to locate the jewel shard at this point. "Everyone" she shouted, "the shard is in his chest".

She can see the shard? Thought the demon shaking the pain away. With the extra power from the shard the wound was almost totally closed. Not for long it thought snarling. He dodged another of Miroku's spells and charged straight for Kagome. She fired an arrow at it but this time the demon was ready and just swatted it aside. "Your mine" he snarled.

"Kagome" shouted Inu-Yasha swinging at the thing from the back. It rolled with the blow coming up and around behind Kagome. It grabbed her around the waist and neck and yanked her off the ground.

"Hello precious" it hissed in her ear.

"Put her down," shouted Kouga taking a swipe at the demons head. It dodged the attack and squeezed harder causing Kagome to cry out in pain.

"Now now" it said, it's face a warped parody of a grin, "we can't have that now can we". He snarled at the group who where all standing stock still now. "Move and she dies" said the demon as he started backing toward his cave.

It's hopeless thought Kagome. Then, like before, what felt like liquid rage started to boil up inside her. Not again she thought frantically trying to resist it. But it was no use. The instincts where too powerful this time. Wait, instincts. That's wasn't how it was before. Kagome felt as if her mind was contorting. It was still that dwelled in her mind but… there was no resisting it anymore. She gave into it again. Only this time completely.

"What the hell?" said Kouga looking genuinely horrified. Kagome didn't smell the same anymore.

"On no" said Inu-Yasha, "not again".

"What!" shouted Kouga. "This had happened before?"

Inu-Yasha nodded temporarily forgetting his rivalry with the wolf demon. "Once" he said.

The lizard demon had noticed too bit it was to late for him. "Release me" snarled Kagome freeing her right arm from its grasp. There was a searing pain all up the demon's side and onto his face then and he released the girl reflexively.

As the thing stumbled back Kegome raised her covered hand showing off a razor sharp set of claws. She grinned sadistically at the thing and licked some of the blood away showing glistening fangs.

888

The small wasp-like insect that had been watching the fight buzzed off. It had seen all that was needed and now had to return to its master.

Author's notes

Darn I didn't update every day of the first week. Oh well you all have to admit six updates is still damn good. And here is number seven one day later then I tought but this chapter was also way harder (well the middle of it anyway) to write then I tought. Well this will probably be the hardest one to write anyway. Oh and I have Thursday and Friday off so I may just have two chapters on one of those days. Well Cya.