Hey, guys! Sorry it took so long. Hope you like the chapter… it's past midnight, I'm sleepy and cranky, and I'm not exactly chock full of ideas for what to write. What the heck… I'll just start typing, and see what comes out… if you don't like it, flame it, whatever. I'll be too asleep to notice.

As long as you're reading my little author's ramble up here at the top of the page (which you're probably not anyway), I may as well make a dedication. Maybe this is the first one I've made so far. I'm too tired and lazy to check right now. I'll give somebody a dollar to check for me. Just kidding. So, anyway, I'm dedicating this chapter to to my friend, who will remain anonymous, so here I will call her Mallard. Like the duck. Haha! Okay, anyway, she was the one who inspired me to post anything here on the site, since she's posted stuff, and I owe her a lot, cuz she's a good friend too. Everybody say "Hi Mallard."

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. If you think I do then you're probably as dumb as he is.

Happy reading...

The group moved north quickly, covering as much ground as they could. According to Raori's map, they were getting very close to Takinoshi's lair. At the rate they were going, they predicted that they would be there in only a day or two.

That night, they all stayed up again, including Inuyasha. However, during one rather loud attack in which Raori mixed her fire with Sesshomaru's poison and they attacked a tree together – the tree burst into flame, withered from of the poison, toppled over, and crashed into one of its fellows with a terrible crash – Kagome and Miroku jerked awake.

They were on their feet in a second, thinking that some danger had come. They reached for their weapons, glancing around them warily.

"It's all right, it's just us," Kagura said quickly. "Sorry about that."

The two humans stared at the tree as it fell still, completely destroyed. "What happened?" Miroku breathed, his eyes locked onto the smoldering trunk. "What did you do?"

"Practicing," Inuyasha replied, slinging Tetsusaiga over his shoulder. "Training."

Shippo, who had woken when Kagome got up, jumped up onto her shoulder. "Can we train, too?" he asked, his tail twitching in excitement.

The demons glanced at each other. Inuyasha shrugged and Sesshomaru looked as stoic as ever. Raori and Kagura nodded, beckoning for them to join the team. "We are strategizing," Kagura explained. "We have shown each other our attacks and are figuring out ways to use them to fight better as a group."

"Do you mind if we help?" Miroku asked.

"Not at all," Raori said. "That is, if you're sure you don't need the rest."

"I'm fine," he shrugged, glancing at Kagome and Shippo. The girl was already reaching for her bow and arrows, nodding. Shippo nodded, too.

"All right. What can you all do?" Kagura asked. "Show us."

Kagome demonstrated her arrows, Miroku showing what his powers and staff could do. Shippo was eager to chip in and managed to conjure up some foxfire, but as he was very young and not as strong as he would like, he couldn't hold it for very long. Gesturing for the others to keep working, Raori moved to one side with him, doing her best to help him keep it up longer.

They worked throughout the night, using their powers together. They made great progress, and by morning they felt ready for a fight with Takinoshi – even one with Naraku.

As they all ate quickly and moved on, heading north, Kagome found herself lagging behind. She ran to catch up, so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed the group moving so far ahead of her. It had been wonderful, amazing, the practice – seeing Inuyasha and Sesshomaru work together. It made her feel like they could do anything.

Inuyasha glanced behind him as he noticed her running to catch up. He paused, waiting for her to catch up to him. They walked together for a while, slightly behind the rest of the group.

"When do you think we'll find Takinoshi?" Kagome asked, glancing up at Inuyasha.

"I don't know," he replied, shaking his head. "Another day or two, maybe. But one thing's for sure – we'll be ready when we do find him."

"Yeah, all this training's really helping," she said optimistically. "It's amazing, watching you and Sesshomaru fight alongside each other. Whoever this guy is, I bet he won't stand a chance against all of us, especially now that we've got three demons to help us."

"You mean two demons and one stuck-up pompous…"

"Stop, Inuyasha," Kagome sighed. "Sesshomaru agreed to help. The least you could do is give him some credit."

Inuyasha glanced at her. "I just can't help but feel nervous around him," the hanyou explained in exasperation. "We've hated each other for forever, and every time I see him I keep expecting him to suddenly fly at me like he usually does."

"So do I," Kagome shrugged. "It takes a while to get used to it, but you will. Sesshomaru isn't our enemy anymore, Inuyasha. He's our friend now. As soon as Naraku's gone and the shards are safe, then I'd tell you to start worrying, as he wouldn't be bound to us for any reason any longer, but for now I think we're safe from him. Relax. We'll never win any fight if we're busy fighting amongst ourselves."

"Yeah, you're right," Inuyasha grumbled. "But that doesn't mean I have to like him."

Kagome shook her head with a smile at his stubbornness. "Come on," she said, reaching up and gently kissing him before taking his hand and pulling him after her. "We're behind."

Suddenly something hurtled towards them, slamming into Kagome with enough force to knock her off her feet. She yelped in shock, warning the others, who spun around at the sound. A giant hawk-demon had lifted her into the air in its talons, crying out angrily as it fingered the jewel that hung around her neck with one of its talons.

Inuyasha yanked out Tetsusaiga, readying himself to charge, but Raori laid a hand on his shoulder to stop him. "Remember our plan for attacking enemies in the air?" she said under her breath. "Consider this practice. Remember your part."

As soon as she'd come, she was gone. Inuyasha gripped Tetsusaiga fiercely in his hands and gritted his teeth, remembering his part in the plan and acting on it.

The bird froze in surprise as Sesshomaru leapt up in front of it, slashing out once and giving it a stinging blow across the chest. It quickly turned away, only to find Raori blocking its path. She struck out and slashed its shoulder, making it wobble in the air. The bewildered creature turned backwards, but was met with Inuyasha, who nearly slashed its beak in half with Tetsusaiga. It glanced upward, but Kagura stood at the ready on her feather, shooting a wind-blade down and slashing its back fiercely.

With nowhere to turn, the bird screeched and started to dive downwards, attempting to soar below them to get away.

It was over in less than a second. Three wind-blades, fused with both poison and fire, shot down into its back, just at the nape of the neck. The bird cried out, dropping Kagome, who squeezed her eyes shut. Inuyasha was already below her, sheathing Tetsusaiga and reaching out just in time to catch her.

The other demons landed around them, checking to make sure Kagome was alright before turning away to examine the corpse of the bird. It was quite dead, and their joined attacks had burned a searing hole straight into its back, through its heart, and out the other side. Sango, Kohaku, and Kirara, who'd known nothing about the nightly training the demons had gone through together, stood at a loss, staring at the felled demon in shock. They hadn't even had a chance to raise their weapons and the fight was already over. Miroku and Shippo, who'd been a part of the training, smiled widely as they approached the bird and examined the extent of the wound it had received.

The demonswere indeed powerful.

Kagome stood shakily, glancing at the bird and smiling softly at the demons in thanks. Raori smiled slightly back at her, turning and sitting to speak with Kagura for a moment. Sesshomaru stood to one side, silently replaying the battle in his mind. Each of them had played their part perfectly. Even his worthless half-brother had been in the right place at the right time, doing the right thing. It was one thing to destroy a tree successfully. It was another to destroy a live enemy in battle, keeping your head and taking part in the strategy despite the exhilaration of battle. He'd almost expected Inuyasha to let them down, but the hanyou had actually performed quite admirably, doing his part and then managing to catch the human just afterwards. It looked as though Takinoshi wouldn't stand a chance.

But of course, if there was one thing the Lord of the Western Lands never did, it was underestimate an enemy. This was an ignorant flying demon with a brain that was probably no larger than his fist. A demon such as Takinoshi, whomever he was, would be more powerful than that – otherwise he would not inspire such caution in one such as Raori, who would stare down even the powerful Lord Sesshomaru with a fearlessness that almost intimidated him.

Kagome sat down heavily on a tree trunk, still slightly shocked by the whole thing. Inuyasha sat beside her, taking her hand comfortingly. Shippo started over to comfort her, too, but – maturely, for once – decided to leave the two alone for a while.

"Are you okay?" Inuyasha asked anxiously, glancing her over.

"Yep," Kagome replied, glancing up at him and smiling brightly. "You guys were awesome! The demons were right – all that training really did help. That demon didn't even know what hit it! I don't think Sango or Kohaku did, either. Did you see the looks on their faces?"

Inuyasha nodded silently, amazed at her cheerfulness. She was attacked by a demon, and just as quickly, she was bright and chipper again. Any normal human girl would have fainted from shock or trauma – but not Kagome. Of course not; she was no normal human girl. She was different, special, whatever you want to call it. It was this, along with her imperishable spirit and kindness, that made him love her so much.

She glanced up at him, noticing the vacant look in his eyes. "Inuyasha? Are you okay?" she said, waving a hand before his face. "You're spacing out."

He smiled at her slightly, reaching over and tucking a stray hair behind her ear. She returned his smile, her own full of unconditional love, and leaned over to kiss him. He kissed her back, feeling himself relax for the first time in a long time. Being with Kagome could do that to him.

She gently slid her arms around his neck, inching closer to him. She didn't care whether anyone else was watching; she had no reason to be ashamed. Inuyasha stroked her cheek with a clawed finger, his heart full of gratitude that he'd managed to tell her that he loved her. This was worth it. The mere sight of her love-filled smile was worth it.

Sesshomaru glanced at them once before turning to the other two demons. He was uninterested in Inuyasha's love life. If the idiot wanted to fall in love with a human, he couldn't care less. As long as they didn't drag him into it, it wasn't his business.

Raori glanced up at him and gestured for him to join them. "Kagura and I have decided to include the humans in our nightly training," she said as he sat down beside her. "The two exterminators are good fighters – I have seen both of them in battle – and to not include them would be unwise. Do you agree?"

Sesshomaru nodded silently, glancing at Sango and Kohaku. The young boy was staring at the bird carcass, absentmindedly running his fingers over his sickle. Sango glanced back at Inuyasha and Kagome a few times, smiling slightly at the sight of them together, before turning and inviting the monk to sit with them. Miroku did so, patting the fire-cat on the head as he spoke softly to Kohaku.

"Well, we'd better get moving," Kagura sighed, putting away her fan now that the battle was over. "The miko has had enough of a break, and I've had enough of watching her with the hanyou. Let's go. The longer we sit around talking, the later we'll get to Takinoshi's lair."

Raori nodded in agreement, moving over to the exterminators. Miroku rose as she approached, staff in hand. "Are we ready to depart?"

She nodded at the three of them before turning to Inuyasha and Kagome, who had detached and were rising to meet her. Shippo, who'd covered his eyes while they were kissing, jumped up on Kagome's shoulder and gave Raori a smile. "Let's go!"

The demon gently returned the smile, marveling at the child's innocence. "Yes, let's," she said, and leapt into the sky, followed by two demons, one hanyou, and a fire-cat.

They traveled for the rest of the way in that fashion, following Raori's lead. As night fell, she bade them stop for a short while and checked the map she had put in her pocket back at the beginning of their journey. Oh, how that seemed so long ago… it felt like ages since she'd packed away her boring life of the past and adopted this new life with these people. How long had it been, really? A week? A year? A millenium?

Yet, despite the length at which time insisted on inching past her, she found that she didn't mind. If traveling for all eternity with this group was to be her fate, then she'd just have to live with it. In all actuality, she really didn't mind. She was starting to like these people. Kagome was kind and cheerful – bordering on annoying, yes, but not quite. Inuyasha, rude as he was, took some getting used to, but he wasn't that bad either. Kagome obviously brought out his better side. The little fox-demon was cute and obviously cared for Kagome more than any other. The exterminators were good people and fought with a bravery she'd never witnessed before in any human. The monk… he was a little harder to see into, but he was just as kind and considerate as Kagome. He served as the guard for the group. Not only did he protect them from harm physically, he also was there to comfort any of them whenever he was needed. And, though she would never say it to his face for fear of embarassing the humble monk, it was plain to her observant eyes that he was head over heels in love with Sango.

The additions to the group – the other two demons – were a little more complicated. This Kagura was obviously a good fighter, and dedicated to their cause, and she'd begun to trust the wind mistress. If they were to go after this Naraku character, one who knew him could prove useful, in the least. And the demoness was proving a steadfast friend. She obviously hated Naraku with all her heart – any fool could look into her eyes and see that.

And then… there was Sesshomaru. Oh, where to begin? The stoic demon was so complex, and yet so simple, that she had trouble in even finding expression in his face, let alone reading him and being able to describe him in intelligent conversation. If she had to say anything, she'd say that he was quiet and proud of what he was. He didn't like to be pulled into the affairs of others, especially his brother, Inuyasha. No – his half-brother. She almost smiled, picturing the glare Sesshomaru would have given her if he'd heard her refer to Inuyasha as a brother. No, that was the icy taiyoukai's one flaw – his hatred for Inuyasha. How could they be on the same side, working as a team, if they were forever pitted against one another in a personal feud? It was ridiculous, yes, but there was no way to force them to resolve whatever issues they had between them.

Other than that, Sesshomaru was incredibly interesting. He was shrouded in mystery that was enhanced by the fact that he hardly spoke and hardly ever displayed any emotions whatsoever. She shook her head. She'd heard tales spoken of the stony demon lord of the Western Lands, but this was worse than she'd imagined. He wasn't stony. He was stone itself.

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, she realized she'd been staring at the same spot on the map for almost a full ten minutes. She quickly scanned it for where they were, then for Takinoshi's castle, and folded it up again resolutely. "Are we ready to go?" she asked, glancing around at the others.

They nodded. As they leapt into the air again, Kagura caught up to Raori, moving beside her in the air. "Raori?" she inquired hesitantly. The taiyoukai glanced at the wind-demon and nodded for her to continue. "Is something wrong?"

"No," Raori said, surprised. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, you spent quite a long time staring at a lake halfway across the map from where we're trying to go," Kagura pointed out. "I just wondered where you were. What was on your mind?"

Raori glanced ahead of her thoughtfully, scanning the constellations in the sky and comparing them to the route they were to take. "Nothing, really. Just considering where I am and how I got here. What my life would've been like if I hadn't chosen to come on this crazy adventure. How boring my life would be if all of this hadn't happened."

"So you're glad you came?" Kagura said, glancing at Raori with a smile.

Raori thought for a moment before replying. "I am," she said, nodding. "If I hadn't, I would never have met you all, and then where would the fun in my life be?"

Kagura laughed lightly. "I'm glad you joined, as well. If you hadn't, I would never have been accepted into this group, and I'd still be in Naraku's grasp." She nodded behind them at the group. "Not to mention that they'd be completely lost without you to guide them."

Raori smirked slightly. "Oh, I think Inuyasha could've led them to Takinoshi quite admirably. Don't underestimate him."

Sesshomaru was suddenly beside them, as silent on the wind as an eagle. "What is there in him to underestimate?" he said quietly, glancing at them. "His skills are so meager that it is impossible to think him any lower than he already is."

Kagura concealed a laugh, shaking her head at the demon lord.

Raori glanced at Sesshomaru, suddenly serious. "You know that's not true," she said softly. "The hanyou is more than you depict him as. True, he acts rashly, and he could be a little less rude, both to friends and enemies… but he has determination, if nothing else. He will not give up a fight, and he will put his own life at risk for those he loves – by this, of course, I mean the miko. He will take chances that could destroy him, leave him gasping for his last breaths, to defeat his enemies. And even when he is aware that all is lost, he will not beg for mercy, as a stronger demon may."

She fixed Sesshomaru with an icy stare that nearly matched his own. "I have known the half-demon for less than a turn of the moon, and yet I already know all this about him. How can you, his own half-brother, be so blind as not to see this? The hanyou is more powerful than you would like to admit. Don't do as you always do and give him reason to despise you. If you fight alongside him, rather than against him, you will both be stronger. We cannot defeat Takinoshi – certainly not Naraku – if we cannot even get along with ourselves."

Sesshomaru said nothing, but lowered his eyes thoughtfully. Though his expression (as usual) displayed none of his feelings, inside he was confused and surprised. Raori was right. However difficult it was for him to admit it, however low it made him sink, however angry it made him… she was right.

As always.

He fell back, moving at his own pace, considering what he'd been told. Kagura watched him for a moment before glancing back at Raori, who almost looked sorry for what she'd said.

"It's all right," Kagura said reassuringly. "I think he needed to hear that. Maybe it'll end up for the better. It's certainly made him think. Come on; we're following you. Pay attention to where you're going, or we'll end up lost somewhere." She considered Raori for a moment. "I'd suggest stopping for practice like we usually do, but the humans haven't spoken up or shown signs or weariness, and you look like you wouldn't be able to concentrate anyway. We'll just keep travelling for another half hour or so. Try and forget about everything; just concentrate on our path. If we stray, there's no telling where we could end up." She slowed, leaving Raori to herself.

Raori snapped back to attention and turned slightly east, putting the conversation with Sesshomaru out of her mind for the moment. Maybe she'd done some good in telling the demon lord off, maybe not. Either way, there was nothing more she could do, for Inuyasha or for Sesshomaru. They'd just have to wait and see how things turned out.

As she glanced up at the starry skies, she felt her mind start to wander again. She quickly snapped herself out of it, just in time to notice the dark figure shooting towards them. She opened her mouth to shout out a warning, but the words were torn from her throat as the creature slammed into her. The two dropped down like a stone into the thick forests as Kagura's cry alerted the others.

"Raori!"

Okay, I'm too tired (since now it's 1 a.m.) to write anything here except goodbye. So, goodbye….