Disclaimer: I don't own any characters except for the ones I made up (and you should know which ones those are.)

Author's Note:

Kagura: A little OC in this chapter, and possibly in future ones. I've been planning a story using Kagura and Sesshomaru (a lovely pairing), but that'll come…much later.

Kumiko: A girl's name. I know this…well, I knew it before but I never felt like excusing myself until now. I found a person with this name, right here in my life! Yeah, so that's why.

Dark Lineage

Shade Twelve

"Let me go!" Kagura said impatiently, yanking at her wrist. Kumiko had tied some material around their wrists, and for some reason she could not break it. It only allowed for about a foot of movement, and she seemed to be the only one not comfortable with it. Kumiko strode ahead, not caring if it made her run to catch up.

He had leapt up as soon as his feet had touched the bottom of the well, tugging her along after him. She had thought to try and get back to the future through the well, suddenly afraid of all that could happen, but had only succeeded in doing something to her ankles and knees. The portal hadn't activated, so she had landed heavily. Nothing had been broken or sprained, but anything faster than a walk was painful.

Kumiko didn't care. He had just jumped back in after her and secured that tie. He had added a mild warning as to the consequences of trying to free herself, and had said nothing else.

"Where the hell are we going?"

"To see the Nanashi and her dear companions."

"Why? I haven't done anything to warrant their interest!" she protested.

"Of course you have. I believe Mitsuko will be most interested by you, as a matter of fact. I do pity you a bit, but nothing I said was false. You won't be harmed, and you are not obligated. We can protect you from Naraku."

"What's with the 'we'? I thought you said you were separate from any major working faction."

"I am. I just like to think my loyalties and assets lie in their hands." He replied calmly.

"Bastard." She mumbled, thinking his empty promises over.

"…Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Why can't you do some magic or use some power to get us there faster?" Kagura whined, trying to either make him take a break or free her.

"You're probably the only demon who can get us there by power. The dark mikos like to guard themselves very well. Otherwise, for the rest of us, feet and wings or whatever will have to do."

"You're probably just too lazy to do anything. This doesn't count for anything. No matter how powerful your dark mikos are, Naraku is more so. I struggled to free myself for quite a while. It was only luck that he left earlier from the island which weakened the connection enough for the kraken's poison to sever it. Even now, though, I can still feel a small thread of him around my heart. He's not completely gone, and I'm not too eager to go back."

"The dark mikos are much more powerful than your Naraku."

"Impossible. The little S.O.B. controlled everything. If you mikos were here before, why didn't you step in to take a share? I doubt you all have enough self-control to do that. Every single time you think you've met the ultimate enemy, another pops up." Kagura sighed.

"You could be right. But you are wrong at the same time. One division, the Nanashi's which you are going to meet soon, has perfect mind control. Her sister, Mitsuko, and her both received training in their lives. They can think about something without thinking about it consciously." He paused, and then grinned. "That doesn't really make sense, does it."

"It doesn't have to. I understand what you're trying to say."

"Oh really? That's good. Maybe your powers are getting more refined."

"…Are we there yet?"

Kimo licked the blood off her finger. It had splattered a bit while she was having fun, and was now staining her even, white skin. The dark monk had been disposed of, having outlived his use. (It was a clean job, slow, but still clean. The look in his eyes had been quite amusing, and served double in shutting her inner voices up.)

That phrase was actually quite peculiar, if one sat down and thought about it. The exact meaning could be inferred, and it was usually quite accurate in all usage.

She still hadn't been granted an 'audience' with the Nobu yet. Most likely he was avoiding her. It was one of three reasons.

One, that she was a formidable foe. He would want to avoid her and her power. Wrath often invokes deeper powers. Kimo wasn't sure if this would make her flattered or annoyed.

Two, she was too insignificant to attend to at the moment. This made Kimo angry, and she quickly dismissed the idea. She'd been resurrected, evidently, and he could possible hold the strings. If this was so, he'd had to have had a reason for bringing her back to life.

The third was that the Nobu had simply forgotten about her, but it was the least likely. She wasn't an easy person to forget, and his messengers and servants had assured her that it was not the case. The excuses they had made didn't quite reassure her the way she wanted to be, but they would do.

Whatever the reason, she still had been waiting for a few days. It wasn't polite, and even if she wasn't as powerful as he was, she could still cause some disturbances. It was true that her hunger to know about her past would probably serve as a fairly strong leash, but even the strongest chains can break because of the weakest link.

In other words, if she got angry enough, her past wouldn't matter anymore. She was a wolf grabbed by the ears, ready to bite at the slightest sign of weakness.

Kimo suddenly smiled pleasantly and snapped her fingers, making the servant who had just arrived jump.

"Tetsaki's waiting for you outside." Once the servant had delivered her message, she left, leaving Kimo with the decision of going or not.

"Hm…if I don't go, I can always blame the girl who told me. Say her message wasn't clear, or even better, there was no message. He wouldn't care, and I wouldn't be affected at all." She mused out loud, not caring who would hear her.

"But I must admit, I'm interested."

Tetsaki paced the grounds outside the castle impatiently. The Nobu had an aesthetic side, and had strategically decorated the grounds with gardens and other things pleasing to the eye. The paths were worn with use, but remained beautiful despite the smooth, old look that every one had.

Kimo, the stronger part of Kagome. It was actually rather ironic that she would end up with the Nobu, when the woman who had started the whole chain of look-alikes was with the Nanashi. He would have thought that the Nanashi would want to keep tabs on all three. She only had Kieoko, while the weaker Kagome was with her companions, and Kimo was here. All three were so vulnerable on their own. So vulnerable. But some more so than others. Kieoko could take care of herself. She had in Hell, and the world they were on now was much easier to live on.

Kimo, to some extent, could also take care of herself. She had received the stronger and darker side of what would have been Kikyo's powers. Her ability to use them was also quite advanced. It was unnatural.

The one who had kept Kagome's place was a mere babe compared to the other two. She would die soon, but the hanyou could probably keep her fairly safe. He had fought off the krakens admirably well.

A small sound alerted him to the arrival of someone else. 'So she's actually come…'

"What do you want?" Kimo asked brusquely, crossing her arms.

"That's not polite." He said, at a loss of words to say against her blatant rudeness.

"I'm not feeling very polite today." She grinned.

"I can see that." Tetsaki replied, still not knowing how to lead in to what he had wanted to meet with her about.

"Whatever. You're wasting my time. Can you get me a meeting with the Nobu? He owes me some major answers."

"No, I can't. I just needed to talk to you about the Kagome, Kieoko, and Kikyo." Tetsaki had decided that straight out was the way to go.

"Kagome's the miko girl the stupid people in that village thought I was."

"Yes."

"In that case, let's talk some more. Do you know if there's anyone close enough to eavesdrop?" She asked sweetly, reminding Tetsaki that Kimo may be the most dangerous out of the three. The fact was, she was a woman with a will, and when there's a will, there is always a way.

"The Nobu had safeguarded his lands, and if properly raised, the wards will be able to cut off the senses to intruders if necessary. I'm not sure if those limitations extend to him, however, so we may have to go further." Tetsaki thought for a moment, then nodded to show his opinion hadn't changed.

"That's alright; I can take care of him if his setting can get rid of the rest." She said cheerfully, and started walking away. Tetsaki lengthened his stride by just a little to catch up. No one should make him run or scuttle to overtake them.

They rounded the corner, and Tetsaki mumbled a few garbled words and raised his hand. To an outsider's eyes, nothing would have happened. To Kimo and Tetsaki, a shimmering gray veil had fallen in a small dome around them.

"Interesting…"

"Yes, quite. You understand that you're in a lot of danger?"

"Of course. I've been in danger since the day the Nobu 'resurrected' me, which, by the way, is not entirely the right term for my situation. He didn't put me back into my old body."

"Would that be Kikyo's body or Kagome's?" Tetsaki grinned.

"Who's this Kikyo?" Kimo frowned.

"Oh yes, that would be part of what I needed to tell you. I'm assuming that you know that you've died."

"Yes…" She glared.

"You don't know any more details about that, right?"

"Yes…" Her glare heated.

"Alright, it's a bit complicated. I'm gonna have my head cut off, or maybe my heart retracted and given back to Naraku, but I think it's worth it." He stopped, considering her. "You've made me talk more, and that's unusual. I like it."

"The whole chain of reincarnation and resurrection goes back to one priestess named Kieoko, about 60 years ago."

"I've seen her once before; she served the Nanashi. Pretty, but she looks nothing like me. And if it was really her, wouldn't she be shriveled up and looking like a hag?"

"Not necessarily. You see, she was the protector of the Shikon no Tama, and a powerful master of the white arts. This attracted a lot of attention, and not just from demons. The dark mikos also took a hand in it. It was realized that she held a lot of potential to become one of them, and so they began to corrupt her. It was also realized that she couldn't be changed in the manner they wanted her to be, so they decided that Hell would be the best place to get what they wanted accomplished."

"Others of her lineage could also carry the corrupted blood, so they couldn't be warned. So, a replacement was needed."

"Is this Kagome or Kikyo?" Kimo interrupted, her mind absorbing all the information without any doubt.

"That would be Kikyo. She was a dark miko high in the ranks that had been existing. She was powerful in the use of illusions and 'foolery', if I may be so coarse as to state. She volunteered for the part, eager to get away from Hell."

"Tetsaki, why do you know so much about this?" Kimo frowned suspiciously. "I don't think this kind of information is just given to anybody if they ask for it."

Tetsaki sighed. He had been hoping that she wouldn't ask. What he had to answer could very well destroy the fragile bond of trust that barely existed as it was.

"Answer me."

"I have eyes and ears."

"That's not all."

"The Nobu wanted me to be the one to tell you, since you seem to be the most comfortable with me."

"Figures. I thought I could like you for a person, but it turns out he's behind this as well." Suddenly a bright flash of anger contorted her features, and the gray dome was destroyed.

"You may tell me the rest some other time. But now, there's a dark monk I must question or destroy. Preferably the latter." She grinned, and started running. Her strides ate up the ground, until Kimo was nothing but a blur.

"My fault…" He mumbled, also beginning to run, in the opposite direction. Moments later, a shadowy shape began dashing through the air.

"Kagome, can I ride in the basket?" Shippo asked, loping along beside her bike. Kagome looked down and scooped him up, almost falling down in the process. Shippo leapt eagerly to his seat of choice and began surveying the people behind them. Kagome was leading because she could still sense the shards, and the few that remained were the only things they had to get. It was also a good way to get their minds off of the trouble that had been brewing.

It was clear that the Shikon no Tama would play but a small part in the upcoming chaos, but it was one small piece of their universe that had not crumbled away yet. A small part that could still carry on.

Inuyasha walked behind Sango and Miroku. He stared at his feet; surprisingly, did not fall. The Shikon no Tama had always been a depressing subject, and now, it was all he thought about. It was better to think of what he could still control, than what he could not. Kieoko had said she would contact them soon, and 'soon' had passed already.

"They're really close, Inuyasha." Kagome announced, looking back. The bike wobbled treacherously.

"Keep your eyes ahead, wench. You're bad enough as it is." He growled back at her, focusing on the bike to keep from seeing the hurt expression in her eyes. It would be better to remember that she wasn't who she used to be. It would be better.

The demon in question walked calmly – no, glided. It was in its humanoid form, and looked bored.

Inuyasha copied its look and wearily drew the Tetsusaiga. He ran in front of it and slashed.

Only to miss.

Again, and again.

His sword met with air.

Finally, the silent opponent spoke.

"It's been rather hard to find you. People do like to wander around these days. Kieoko told me you were still searching for the shards, so I decided to find a couple and make you come to me instead."

Inuyasha stopped his aimless swinging and glared.

"What does she have to do with anything?"

"Oh, nothing if you think that you don't need her anymore. But it would seem that you do. I'm a messenger."

"Prove it." Inuyasha said uncertainly.

"Inuyasha, get the shards already!" Kagome called from the sidelines, no one else having been close enough to hear the exchange.

"In a moment!" he shouted back absently.

"What's the message?" Inuyasha asked tersely.

"Hah, you are to follow me."

"…"

"It is the truth."

"…and how am I supposed to get the others to do that? Kagome and Shippo don't even know about Kieoko or the note."

"It's your problem." He sat down, the Tetsusaiga falling with him, only to be stopped by an unseen barrier.

"Idiot." He mumbled to himself, reaching out and grabbing his sword back. He walked back to where Kagome was sitting, and held out his hand. She took it with a puzzled look, and asked,

"What about that demon?"

"What about it?"

"We can't just leave it there!"

"Why not? He just wants us to follow him, that's all." Inuyasha replied sarcastically, still walking to where the monk and exterminator were waiting, also with confused expressions.

"Well, what if he wants to lead us into a trap? Are we really following him?" Kagome asked, concerned.

"Just shut up." Inuyasha sighed. Kagome fell silent, and Inuyasha cursed internally again.

"Inuyasha, why are you walking away from that demon?" Sango asked as soon as they drew within human earshot.

"He wants us to follow him, so I'm conferencing." The hanyou growled, then drew closer to Sango. In a lower tone, he added, "He says he's from Kieoko."

Kagome tapped his shoulder.

"What!"

"Why are you whispering to Sango? Do you like her?" She asked innocently, maybe even paranoid. Behind the innocence laid a faint threat; 'If you answer positively, I'll beat the hell out of you.'

"Uh – no! I was just telling her…."

"Yes?"

"I was telling her that…Miroku's hand is getting close to her ass again!" Inuyasha stuttered. It was lucky for him that Miroku had been moving in.

"Oh really…" Kagome observed him for a few more seconds before turning to Sango.

"Do you think we should 'follow' this demon?"

Sango paused, thinking fast. To answer her positively would bring waves of suspicion down. Miroku decided to step in, even if Kagome's paranoia would spread to cover him as well.

"Kagome, I think we should follow. With Inuyasha's sword and half-demon strength, my Wind Tunnel, Sango's Hiraikotsu, and your sacred arrows, we should be fine." He soothed.

"If you all think so." She said childishly, crossing her arms and stalking off.

Author's Note:

I've been gone for a really long time, so I would really appreciate some nice reviews. Life hasn't been really nice.

Reviews, please?