She could not sleep, so she lay in bed, nerves strung and body ridged. Hugging her arms carefully to herself, Kagome wished she could simply close her eyelids, and forget about what happened during the last few hours. She also tried to convince herself, albeit unsuccessfully, that Miroku was just joking when he threatened her with that deadly no-nonsense smile... Her fingers reached for the lock of hair Miroku twirled, and she shivered, unfamiliar with this side of him. True, she didn't know him too well, but, um, maybe she just shouldn't even judge people by their appearances. Still, she could not help but wonder if he meant what he said.

Her mind drifted back to the injured boy who left the house. Where could he have gone to? Would he be all right? Was he hurt? Of course, he was already hurt when he stumbled out the door. What could have caused him to blow up in the first place? (Kagome only came outside after the phone call.)

Oh well, he was probably having a tantrum because some girl turned him down, or maybe Sesshomaru usually smacked his brother around in the middle of the night. That was probably it, and besides, the jerk deserved whatever he got…However, a little voice in the back of her head argued 'he did look pretty beat up when he left the house, and violence never solved anything anyway'. Well, that punch to the head sure solved his pig headedness, so Kagome hoped he learned some manners too. 'He wasn't that bad; he didn't hurt you, did he? And he let you sleep in his room.' The annoying voice droned on… "Oh, just shut up." Kagome scolded, and the voice obediently scurried away. "I'll think about this tomorrow," She mumbled as she shifted her position to the side and dozed off.

The hallway on the second floor doesn't creak as much as it used to, because the rug was installed last year. So, it was absolutely silent as footsteps slowly padded towards Kagome's room. As he slowly turned the doorknob and quietly stepped inside the dark room, her even breaths told him she was asleep. He ventured another foot into the room, but a sudden movement from her still body kept him at bay, so he halted and waited, watching her from the doorway with cold, unblinking eyes.

"Soon," he whispered.

Meanwhile:

"Hey, that guy looks totaled, what say we go talk to him, eh?" The man in the grey checkered-shirt grumbled in a low voice.

"Iono, the dude looks like Sesshomaru with that hair color; matter of fact, could be him." The man opposite of him whispered.

"Ha, do you really think The Sesshomaru would be bumbling around in the middle of the night? And besides, Sesshomaru never limps, can't even get hurt, the bastard fights like a demon. I've seen it with my own eyes, and it wasn't pretty sight. Was as if he was possessed or something," the man paused for a few seconds, "horrible night it was, the amount of blood over the lot would've made you sick. That little shrimp over there couldn't be him."

"Well, if you say so…," said the other man hesitantly.

The two quietly stalked the unidentified figure up until the next street when suddenly; one of the men grabbed the other by the shoulders and dragged them behind a dumpster.

"Hey, what'd you do that for?" The other one grumbled.

"Shhh, quiet, I think he stopped." They both poked their heads out from behind the dumpster, and indeed the stranger had stopped.

"I know you're there." The Sesshomaru look-alike drawled out.

"Shit, what do we do?"

"What else can we do, might as well reveal ourselves," said checkered- shirt.

The other man gave a terrified squeak.

"Besides, there's only one of him and two of us, nothing to be scared of, you big chicken."

So they jumped out from behind the dumpsters.

"Might as well cut the crap since you seem to know what we're after, so be a good boy and empty your pockets and you won't get hurt." Grey-checkered shirt guy said, whilst his partner nodded his head in agreement.

But the look-alike didn't empty his pockets or seem to hear him at all. 'A wise guy, eh, well the more fun when I get to mess him up.' Just as the thought passed his mind, the man with the silver hair slowly turned around.

'Heh, guess he won't need no persuading.' "Well? Empty your pockets!" The man said, flicking out his blade.

"Oh, but they are empty." The strange look-alike dawdled, as he made a motion to demonstrate such.

"I don't care, we're leaving with something tonight, or you'll be dead meat." The checkered-shirt man said. Signaling his partner, they both closed in on the look-alike.

None of them saw the gleam in his eyes, or the grin that curved his lips as he flicked out his own blade.

'Now where did that idiot go?' He couldn't have gotten far in fifteen minutes, what with no car and no money…, he checked. He had a good idea of where Inu Yasha was heading to, but he had no idea where Kikyo lived, much less what her house looked like All he knew was that it was a good enough distance away to be taking the bus.

His thoughts lingered back into the living room with Sesshomaru and Inu Yasha, and he understood. It was just one lost too many for Inu Yasha, both brothers had suffered, while Inu Yasha was brash and open about his feelings, Sesshomaru was quiet and reserved, all emotions locked down and under control. Each brother blamed the other, but if nothing else, they still had each other. And now, with Kikyo out of the picture, Inu Yasha had fallen downhill and plummeted off a cliff.

"God, he's so hotheaded!" Miroku sighed and wiped his forehead. Randomly running around didn't seem to help at all, so he stopped to catch his breath for a moment. He leaned his back against the fence of a parking lot, and when his breath slowed, he took comfort in the silvery moon. While he gazed absentmindedly at the round orb, he vaguely remembered a time when his father and he used to watch it together on fogless nights. Of course, that was before he died…

He shoved his hands in his pockets, pushed himself off the fence, shook those lingering memories away, and continued on in a hurried rush to find Inu before anything happened to him. Well, in this case, if Inu Yasha 'happened' to find Kikyo first…Miroku shivered at the thought and nearly broke out into a run, only to trip over something very hard on the floor.

"Who the hell threw the fucking sofa out again?" He got to his feet cursing and was about to carry on when he noticed that the cushion was breathing!

He gasped, and bolted down to examine the phenomenon, fame and fortune flashed before his very mind…

Just to discover that it was only a badly injured human being, and Miroku's hopes instantly deflated, quickly replaced by annoyance and resentment, 'nothing good ever happens to me'.

As he examined the body, he concluded that the person had a fractured kneecap, at least two broken ribs along with a dislocated shoulder blade and an open wound to the stomach. He also speculated internal bleeding and a few other unpleasant boo-boos. In other words, this guy didn't look too good.

Yet the way the blade was twisted just below the abdomen reminded him of Inu Yasha's own "style" of gutting his enemies.

Miroku took the man's pulse and was relieved to discover that he was alive, but a few feet away from this man lay another body. However familiar Miroku was with injuries, he still cringed slightly at gore, but he had a responsibility, a responsibility to clean up after his best friends' mess. He sighed again, stood up, and hesitantly stepped over the first man to inspect the second. And he was relieved, the second victim had similar injuries on him, if not more serious.

He ran to the payphone across the street, disguised his voice, and reported the results of a violent, drunken brawl between two men, and hung up. Now that help was on the way…

He had better hurry before Inu Yasha did something stupid again.

Abandoning all dignity, he sprinted down the street following the small trickle of blood that would hopefully; lead him to his…friend.

Inu Yasha panted as he ran the rest of the way to Kikyo's house with only one thought occupying his mind; get to her. But, except for the throbbing pain in his left arm, he felt wonderful, and strangely rejuvenated.

He skidded to a halt as he arrived at her home, a large two story with lacey curtains behind the windows, and a chimney. Which way should he enter? He looked up and saw that her bedroom light was lit, so she was home. He headed towards the back entrance, which was in the backyard. He easily climbed and jumped over the fence without waking the neighbors and took the key under the welcome mat. Predicable, that is what she was, Heh.

He climbed the squeaky stairs without caring whether or not anyone heard. It didn't matter now, he'll finally get to see Kikyo and she'll laugh at him for falling for that stupid, little joke and everything would be fine again. He didn't bother knocking on the door; surely she was expecting him with a devious smile and laughing eyes. So he felt relieved when he heard her giggles from the door, but…there was another voice, much deeper and hoarser. Inu Yasha pushed open the barrier between him and Kikyo and was shocked.

The two figures on the bed stared back at him in surprise. However, Kikyo still had the dignity to cover up her swollen breasts with the blanket, while her partner continued to gape open-mouthed at the unlikely guest. But, after a moment or two, he too regained his composure and stood up.

"What are you doing here dog turd?" The other man said reaching for his undergarments.

It took a few seconds for Inu Yasha to register the words, and he growled, but he still had his eyes on Kikyo. His mouth opened and closed several times before his trembling voice was heard, "Is this who replaced me?"

Kikyo didn't return the gaze as she wrapped the blanket around herself. "Who else could it be? Oh come on, don't look so shocked, we all knew this would happen some day, it was only a matter of time..."

"But, why, what do you mean?"

"Look just forget it, ok?" I got tired of you so now, I have him." She jerked her finger at the underwear clad boy.

"Oh, and I forgot the introductions, this is Koga, and this is Inu Yasha, my old boyfriend." She emphasized harshly.

"Humph, we already know each other, so don't waste your breath. But Kikyo, one thing I don't understand is what you see in this freak here." Koga said warily eyeing the dirty and slightly ruffled Inu Yasha.

"Yea, a big mistake I made, so Inu, now that you have your question answered, hurry up and go so Koga and I can get back to business," She said smiling sweetly at him.

However, several seconds passed without a response.

"Inu Yasha? Just go home, ok? You're bleeding on my carpet." But Kikyo glanced uncertainly at the white haired youth who had his face hidden and shoulders shaking.

"Aw, C'mon Inu Yasha, don't cry, I didn't hurt your feelings that much, did I? And here I thought you were made of tougher stuff." A harsh laugh scraped by her throat.

"Hey, leave already, the lady chose me so that just makes you the third wheel, so be a smart puppy and get out of here." Koga sneered, "Otherwise I'll have to dirty my hands and kick you out personally."

But Inu Yasha remained motionless.

So Koga walked up to Inu Yasha and clasped him by the shoulders, "I'll be a moment, going to take out the trash first." Koga was about to push him out the door when Inu Yasha grabbed his arm and twisted. "Get your hands off me."

Koga winced, "Since when have you come back to life? You've been a fucking vegetable this whole time, so I was just helping you out. Koga tried to wrench his arm free from the other's grasp, but Inu Yasha's hands wouldn't budge.

Inu Yasha only squeezed harder, bruising Koga's poor wrist even more. Before Koga could utter another word, he was on the floor with Inu Yasha lashing out at him.

In blind rage, Inu Yasha repeatedly punched Koga in the face. He faintly felt his knuckles connecting with flesh and bones, and he saw nothing but red. He didn't bother listening to the nagging voice at the back of his head, his resolve to wipe this man's presence off the face of the earth made everything else insignificant. He didn't hear the cries that came from Kikyo, and he didn't feel someone tugging his arms.

"Inu Yasha, let go of him!"

"Oh my god, you're going to kill him!"

However, someone saved Koga and whacked Inu Yasha over the head with a flower vase; Inu Yasha reasonably stopped and slumped over seeing stars and rainbows.

What happened next, or how he got outside was completely lost to him. He was only vaguely aware that he was outside when he felt the cold wind whipping his face. But Inu Yasha was never aware that the wind would hurt so much. But the sting in his cheeks somehow gave him the feeling that it wasn't the wind at all. He felt his body being dragged and felt almost grateful for the treatment; he was too tired to even stand by himself. So, Inu Yasha tried to thank the kindly elephant, but his tongue wasn't working properly so all that came out of his mouth was a jumble of noise. But after a few seconds later though, he realized that, unfortunately, his ears were working.

"What the hell did you think you were doing? Course I knew you were stupid, but this, this goes beyond the limit of stupidity!" A familiar voice screamed into Inu Yasha's poor eardrums.

However, something finally clicked and Inu Yasha found his tongue again, "Who're you calling stupid, you're the one with the stupid, long nose here" He instantly regretted speaking; it only hurt his head.

"What the hell are you talking about? Are you still dreaming? I'm talking to you, idiot! What were you thinking, marching up to Kikyo's house and beating that Koga guy up? Do you know how much trouble you're going to be in? You might even face a lawsuit. But, lucky you, I came along just in time before you killed that stupid bastard" Miroku finally stopped though; he realized that Inu Yasha had fallen asleep.

"Of all the idiotic..., c'mon Inu, get up," But his plea was to no avail, Inu Yasha was sleeping like the dead. So, an irritated Miroku none too gently grabbed his friend by the arms and hoisted his limp body onto his back. Miroku grunted, "Heavy…"

And thus, the kind Miroku struggled on home, all while quietly cursing his unconscious friend.