Hey again!I feel like writing, so I'm back! Hope you like the story. It's fun to write. I hope it's just as fun for you to read.

On with the story…

Morning in the underground prison was a grim affair. None of them had any way of knowing whether Raori was even still alive. They tried to reassure themselves by pointing out that she could never have found Naraku so quickly, but that thought couldn't banish their fears. Nothing could.

They were delivered food by a servant of Takinoshi in the afternoon. Only the humans ate. Inuyasha found that he wasn't hungry and gave his share to Kagome.

They were all silent, gazing off into different parts of the prison, but their thoughts were all the same – hoping Raori was all right. Sesshomaru was annoyed by this – he should have been trying to think of a way to escape this place, not worrying about her. She could take care of herself.

But he couldn't get his thoughts off her.

He tried many times. He looked over the prison, searching for weaknesses. He brooded on his hatred for Takinoshi. He thought of everything he could that didn't concern her – but found that in avoiding thoughts of her, he only missed her more.

Frustrated, he began to pace inside his cell, his thoughts racing. If only there was some way they could get help for her…

Suddenly he narrowed his eyes. Maybe they could talk Takinoshi into letting a few of them go out and help her fight. After all, if she failed, he didn't get his shard – and if he kept some of them imprisoned, he still held the power to make them do what he wanted. What could it hurt?

When the dark servant entered with their food again at night, he spoke to it. "Send for Takinoshi," he said, his voice quiet. The others glanced up in surprise – it was the first word anyone had spoken that entire day.

The servant glanced at Sesshomaru for a moment and disappeared, giving no reply.

However, a few moments later, Takinoshi descended into the room.

"I have a proposition for you," Sesshomaru said quietly, gaining everyone's attention. "Naraku is the most powerful half-demon I have laid eyes on – more powerful than most full-fledged demons. Raori cannot face him by herself."

Takinoshi interrupted. "She mentioned this," he said quietly. "I was not aware he was so powerful."

"Our whole group's been tryin' to kill him for forever," Inuyasha growled. "And we still haven't managed it."

Takinoshi looked slightly surprised, but glanced back at Sesshomaru, gesturing for him to go on. The demon did so, his eyes on Takinoshi's. "I would ask that you allow some of us to go to her aid."

"Having you here is the only reason I can force her to go," Takinoshi pointed out.

"Then only send a few of us," Kagura continued, understanding Sesshomaru's point. "Then we will have to do as you ask for the sake of the ones you keep here."

"You might as well," Kagome said, a light of new hope in her eyes. "I mean, if she doesn't beat him, you won't get your shard back – if you send more of us, it's more likely we'll succeed."

"And more likely that you'll ignore Naraku and come together to try and rescue your friends," he replied. "With only a few in here and most of you loose, it would be no problem to break in and release them. I am no fool. Don't insult me by assuming I am."

"We're not," Kagome quickly said. "We're the good guys – the honest ones. If we say we'll go destroy Naraku, you can trust that that's what we'll do. Besides, we hate him anyway, and any chance to destroy him is one we'll take. Just let a few of us go, please! Raori will die if she goes up against him alone."

Takinoshi turned away, seeing both their logic and all the things that could go wrong. "I will consider it," he said coldly.

"Consider it? We don't have time! She could be dead by now!"

He glared at Kagome. "If this Naraku is as powerful and clever as you claim, miko, undoubtedly she has not found him yet. Continue arguing and it will be you who does not survive."

She fell silent, glaring right back at him, and he left the prison angrily.

Sesshomaru resumed his pacing. That hadn't gone as well as he would've liked, but at least Takinoshi knew what they wanted – and saw the reason for it. It was still possible he would change his mind and do as they asked.

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Raori couldn't say she wasn't nervous, but she certainly was glad that Kouga was with her. The wolf-demon had told her everything she needed to know, and thanks to his help, she felt ready to fight. It was a shame that all the late-night training Inuyasha's group had done would be for nothing – they'd prepared so hard for a fight with Naraku, and now she was the only one there. She could start the same kind of practice with Kouga, but when there were only two, there wasn't much of a point. Still, they practiced some, when they grew weary of travel and wanted to rest. They discussed strategy. They didn't put much heart into it, as Kouga thought of all battles as totally unpredictable and found it pointless to prepare.

They moved onwards, not stopping, searching always for Naraku's scent. They found it sooner than they'd hoped to – around midday, Kouga noticed it lingering slightly southwards of them. They followed it, pausing every once in a while to sniff the air and be sure it was still there. It led them to the mouth of a stone cave.

Raori peered inside. Even her demonic eyesight couldn't pierce the darkness of the caverns. She glanced at Kouga, who was cautiously sniffing the entrance.

"I doubt it's really Naraku," he murmured to Raori. "Probably just a puppet."

Raori shrugged. "Why not fight it anyway? I'll have some idea what the real Naraku's like."

Kouga nodded, and they entered the cave, side by side, relying on their noses rather than their eyes. After a while, they became used to the darkness, and wandered through the many caves searching for their prey.

Finally, after what felt like forever, they emerged into a giant room, lit with torches along the walls. It was cold and silent inside. They stood in the entrance, staring around. The place looked deserted. Of course, Kouga noted, it would be just like Naraku to trick them by putting them off their guard…

Sure enough, a second later something shot for them. Both leapt out of the way, watching as the dark shape moved back slightly, glaring at them. They could just make out the form of Naraku – tall, the baboon pelt's eyes leering at them. Raori hesitated, narrowing her eyes at the strange hanyou, and Kouga stiffened. "That's him," he growled quietly. "We can't usually see his face thanks to the stupid pelt. Careful, he's got poisonous arms that'll come up out of the ground, so don't ever let your guard down."

Raori had gone before he'd finished speaking, darting out of the way as one of the posionous arms sprung up from the ground underneath her. The puppet hissed, glaring at her. Raori glared right back at him, circling him for a moment before darting for him.

She was blocked by a barrage of tentacles, which swiped at her fiercely. She slashed at them and they fell to the floor lifelessly, but more quickly took their place, and she found herself unable to touch Naraku himself.

Kouga had attacked, but was having the same problem. They fell back, glancing at one another. Raori thought quickly, motioning for him to go around to Naraku's other side. He did so, the shikon shards in his legs assisting him in moving so quickly that Naraku didn't notice. Raori attacked the tentacles before her, swiping out with such ferocity that they fell before her like flies. Naraku snarled in anger, turning all his attention towards her, but she leapt up over his attacks and went on destroying his many arms as though she did it every day.

It was while he was trying to stop her that Kouga attacked him from behind. The wolf kicked the hanyou in the back, sending him reeling. Raori leapt out of the way as tentacles went flying. Naraku whirled around to face the wolf-demon, and Raori took advantage of this to strike at Naraku's shoulder and send him to his knees. Confused, being attacked from both sides, Naraku sent out another barrage of tentacles, but the two demons fought side by side and sliced them to pieces, seeing that Naraku was tiring. When the hanyou stumbled slightly under the effort of holding them back, they took advantage of the moment, leaping forward.

In an instant, Raori's claws had slashed his chest, leaving a trail of blood and fire. Naraku yelled at her angrily and started towards her, but was stopped by Kouga's fist in his side.

He threw them off, backing away angrily. The two demons didn't give him a moment's rest, instead leaping at him and attacking again. Naraku angrily called up one last tentacle attack – but he was too slow, for even as the arms rose up from the ground, Raori had slashed him across the back and he fell to the ground, crumbling away into nothing. Kouga quickly crushed the wooden figure that appeared in its place.

They'd defeated the puppet.

They left the caves, backtracking out into the sunlight. Neither spoke, but there was a sense of companionship between them. They'd fought their first battle together and survived. Kouga had almost enjoyed it, too – it was nice to fight alongside someone who was fast and strong, like him. Inuyasha was so slow it was almost boring fighting him. Raori was faster – it sped up the battle, and he didn't have to wait on anyone else. She was impressive. He was starting to look forward to the fight against the real Naraku, with someone like her on his side.

Maybe they had a chance after all.

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Takinoshi sat back in his chair, propping his feet up on the table as he thought over the situation. He could see Sesshomaru's point – if Raori failed to defeat Naraku, which was looking more and more likely, he could lose his shard for good. He knew what would happen then – since he had the last shard, Naraku would come back for it and take it the same way he took the first one. The last thing Takinoshi wanted was for the hanyou to get all the shards and become a true demon.

"I have no choice," he muttered to himself. "I really don't. She needs help."

He sighed, rising from his desk and reaching across it to take the keys from their hook on the wall. His mind was made up. He didn't really have any other choice. No matter how he disliked the prospect, he knew what he had to do.

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Raori and Kouga wandered through the maze of valleys that covered the land for miles around. After they'd defeated the puppet, Kouga had lost the scent of Naraku, and they were left to simply wander and hope they would come across something and get lucky.

They wandered for a while, but they couldn't find the scent anywhere, and as night fell they decided that they would start asking around in villages. It was possible someone had noticed the half-demon and could tell them in what direction he was traveling. They turned east and asked around in every village they found, but the villagers shooed them away, wary of them being demons and claiming they'd never heard of anybody called 'Naraku.'

No luck.

Two days after they'd fought and defeated the puppet of Naraku, they came across a nice, quiet little village. The few warriors that lived there caught sight of the two demons and prepared for a battle, but Raori quickly called out to them and assured the villagers they meant no harm.

"We come without violence in mind," she assured them. They paused, hesitating, and Kouga went on.

"We're looking for a half-demon called Naraku. You seen him around, by any chance?"

The soldiers nodded grimly. "He passed through here not two days ago. He wrecked the miko's home, and the chief elder's, too. We're trying to rebuild them now."

The two demons glanced at each other. A new light of hope shone in their eyes. They hadn't had any news in days – maybe this would prove helpful. The soldiers listened curiously as they spoke to one another. "Do you think we should stop?" Raori questioned, looking to Kouga. "We probably won't be able to catch up with Naraku, so I see no point in moving onward just yet. We may as well take any opportunity that we can get to rest and regain what strength we have used up already in this chase."

Kouga shrugged and nodded. "I guess that's not a bad idea. If you guys would be so kind, we'd like to stay a night in your village," he said, turning back to the soldiers. "We're out huntin' Naraku, and now that we've got some news as to where he's headed, we may as well take a break."

The soldiers glanced at one another hesitantly. "We would be foolish to accept demons into our village so readily," one said after a moment.

"I will help in rebuilding your damaged houses, as a token of my gratitude," Raori said quietly.

Kouga nodded. "Yeah, same here."

The men considered their offer a moment longer before nodding and bowing to them. "Thank you, youkai. Come with us. We will see what the miko says of this. If she approves, you may stay."

They followed the soldiers back down the hill and into the village.

The miko was slightly reluctant. "I don't know," she said doubtfully when the soldiers finished telling of their request for a night in the village. "We have already had enough trouble as it is – how can I trust that you won't attack us while we are still weak?"

Raori replied calmly, knowing that they would need the rest and accepting that she might have to bow down to a few humans to get it – all things considered, they had every right to be wary, and she didn't blame them. These were troubled times. "With all due respect, honored miko," she cut in, "if we had any ill will towards your village, we could have destroyed it long ago. I assure you, we have no foul intentions towards you, and merely ask that we be allowed a night of rest before going after the hanyou."

Kouga nodded. "Yeah, your soldiers said he passed by here not too long ago. We're out after him. We need to get some rest before we head out again. We'd only need to stay one night, and we'd help with rebuilding those huts Naraku tore down."

The miko eyed them suspiciously. "Why do you need to rest? You are youkai; you do not need sleep as much as humans do. You could certainly do without it."

"We've both been through quite a bit," Kouga shrugged. "Her especially. Besides, we'd need to stay, at least for a little while, and ask around the village for any information anybody's got regarding Naraku, like where he was going and what he wanted."

The miko hesitated. "If we agreed to let you stay here for one night, would you tell us the tale of how you came to be here and why you are after Naraku?"

Raori nodded. "Yes, I would do that."

"Then I suppose I shall accept you as guests in our village." The miko nodded to them and rose. "Now, walk with me for a short while. I am curious as to why two demons are so intent on chasing a hanyou across these lands. What has this Naraku done to you to cause you to despise him so?"

They got up and followed her out into the village. She walked with them down by the springs that lined the edge of the village, listening to their story with interest.

Kouga started, telling of how Kagura had destroyed his kin. The miko nodded sympathetically as he continued with his story from then up until the point where he'd met Raori.

The miko turned to Raori. "And you? How did you come to be after Naraku?"

Raori sighed slightly. "It all began in a mansion that I owned in the Western Lands. A hanyou, Inuyasha, and a group of humans that traveled with him approached me, asking for jewel shards. I had none, and told them so. A flea with them informed me that he had heard a rumor saying I was in possession of the last shard.

"From his description of the demon who told him that rumor, I learned that a taiyoukai called Takinoshi held the last shard. I went with Inuyasha and his brother, Sesshomaru, to find it. With us were a miko, an exterminator and her younger brother, a houshi, a kitsune, a fire-cat demon, and a wind-demon, the one that had destroyed Kouga's kin and turned on Naraku. We headed North and found the range of volcanoes that Takinoshi resided in. It didn't take long for him to find us, and we fought him upon the side of the mountains."

Raori paused a moment, remembering. "In the middle of our battle, a landslide swept down upon us and we were all seperated. Takinoshi took advantage of that seperation and saw it as a weakness – he captured everyone in the group but myself. I fled from him, determining to set the others free.

"Not long after, Takinoshi found me, but rather than capture me, he asked that we make a deal. In return for the freedom of my friends, he would have me do a deed for him."

"What deed?" the miko asked, listening curiously.

"He asked that I kill Naraku. Apparently, Takinoshi had been in possession of two shards, and Naraku had stolen one of them. He wanted Naraku dead, but he couldn't leave his lands to chase the half-demon. I agreed to do it, and set out to find Naraku. On my way, I met Kouga, and he has helped me prepare for a fight, as he knows more of Naraku than I. We have searched high and low, but found only a puppet of the real Naraku. I fear the creature that passed through this village was also nothing more than a puppet, but I would follow it anyway, for it may lead us to the true Naraku."

The miko nodded thoughtfully. "Whatever attacked our village went west after leaving," she informed them. "I recognized it from the tales foreigners tell as Naraku, the half-demon who wears a baboon pelt. I do not know whether it was a puppet or not, but it was strong."

Raori nodded. "I am not surprised."

The miko sighed and gestured to a building on their left. "That is the inn; the woman just inside will give you rooms to stay the night in."

They bowed thankfully to her and she turned away, leaving them to themselves. They kept walking in silence until they came to the two damaged huts. The villagers were hard at work rebuilding them, but they could see that it would take a long time and a lot of hard work. Raori approached them, her eyes examining the houses. She could see the way they were built, and realized that a strong blow would simply tear them down again.

"It'll be a lot easier If you change the structure," she informed the men, gesturing as they glanced at her in surprise. "Cross the planks there. It will grow to be more sturdy and won't collapse the next time you are attacked."

"Actually, that's not a bad idea," one of them commented. "Thanks."

She nodded, offering politely to help them with the construction. They agreed, staring as she and Kouga worked alongside them, youkai mingling with ningens. Not many would do this for them. They supposed they'd better take advantage of the extra hands while they still could.

By nightfall, both huts were raised to suitable standards. Raori leapt gracefully from hut to hut, doing her best to fix the roofs so that the nighttime rains wouldn't disturb the newly replaced floors. One little boy climbed up beside her, holding the boards in place while she secured them. She thanked him and moved on to another part of the roof. He started to follow, but lost his footing and slipped with a startled cry.

Raori was there in a flash, catching his wrist before he could hit the ground and lowering him gently into his mother's arms. The woman thanked her gratefully, but the demon had already vanished over the side of the roof once again.

When the two demons had done all they could to help, they met up back at the inn and were given two rooms by the innkeeper, an old lady who thanked them profusely for their help.

They settled down to rest, both knowing that tomorrow would be a long day.

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Takinoshi made his way down the steps and into the jail, glancing around at his prisoners. They glanced up at the sight of him, all of them silent. His eyes swept over them – the half-demon standing protectively over the miko, the monk doing the same for the exterminator, the wind-demon clenching her fists and glaring at him.

Takinoshi didn't know much about Naraku, but he knew enough to realize that the evil hanyou was strong – very strong. They'd need all the help they could get. And it was obvious that these people all hated Naraku with a passion. If they promised him that they'd help Raori, he trusted it.

"Get up," he ordered them all.

"Why should we?" Inuyasha snarled back angrily.

"If you want to stay here, that's fine with me," Takinoshi shot back with a shrug, revealing the keys.

"You're going to let us help Raori?" Kagome asked hopefully.

Takinoshi didn't reply, but unlocked her cell and nodded to their weapons, which were lying the corner. She ran over and handed Tetsusaiga to Inuyasha, who took it, looking slightly relieved to have his sword back again. Kagome watched as Takinoshi freed Sango and Miroku, then Kirara and Kohaku.

"You will all be released," Takinoshi informed them, setting Kagura free and nodding to her as she stepped out into the open. "And you will all fight Naraku. I have realized that you are right; Raori cannot do it alone."

Shippo hesitated. "What about you?"

"I will accompany you," Takinoshi said, unlocking the last cell and releasing Sesshomaru.

"And help us defeat Naraku?" Kagome said, eyes wide. "That would be so great of you!"

Takinoshi glanced at her and nodded.

Inuyasha smirked slightly. "Naraku's as good as dead," he growled, turning towards the doorway and leaving the prison. The group emerged into the sunlight once more, breathing in the fresh air. Sesshomaru finished tying Tenseiga and Toujikin to his waist and emerged last, glancing around at the rocky volcano range.

"Which way?" Sango asked, fastening Hiraikotsu on her back.

"South," Takinoshi replied, nodding in the right direction. "After Naraku took my shard, that is the direction he went. I have not been able to catch his scent since, but if he had returned North, I would have been aware."

Inuyasha let Kagome on his back. "Let's go, then," he said in his usual impatient voice.

They prepared to leave, and ascended into the air as one group, united for a single purpose and determined to remain together at any cost.

Inuyasha may be right, for once, Kagome thought as she glanced over at Takinoshi. The dark demon was at the head of the group, his long hair streaming out behind him as he led them south. She smiled slightly to herself – he'd come around. Takinoshi was powerful, something their fight with him had made all too clear. Having him on their side would help them a lot.

Naraku is as good as dead.

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Raori woke early in the morning, when the sun was still beneath the horizon. Kouga was already awake and speaking with the miko about Naraku. Most of the villagers were still asleep, but a few were at work on the houses already. They nodded to her as she walked by.

A lot was on her mind. She knew enough about Naraku to know that she should be intimidated by him. She had enough to worry about, what with the fight she knew was coming and the fact that she may not survive it. Now that she thought about it, though, that wasn't even the extent of her problems. Takinoshi was up there on the list. Could she trust him to release her friends after this was all over, or would he break his word and keep them locked away? Could his promise to her be false? Was Naraku really as strong as Kouga claimed, and could he really destroy both her and the wolf demon? For that matter, could they even find Naraku? There were so many things that could go wrong, and such a small chance that any of it could go right…

She shook herself, pushing such pessimistic thoughts out of her mind and returning to the world around her. She didn't know if she would succeed, or even live, but if they were going to do any fighting, she'd have to stay alert and ready for a fight. She had learned that it was the only way to stay alive.

When she finally came upon Kouga and the village miko, it was to see that they had finished speaking. Kouga was ready to go, and restlessly waited as Raori thanked the miko for her generosity and bade her goodbye.

"The pleasure is entirely ours," the miko said kindly. "You have shown the people of this village that all youkai are not as violent and dangerous as their reputations claim. Thank you, and may good luck light your path and guide you to Naraku. Be careful."

Raori gave her a smile and turned east with Kouga, moving to the edge of the village. The rest of the villagers looked up and waved farewell to them as they turned to the road ahead and departed.

They traveled in silence for a while, moving quickly and keeping their senses alert for any sign of Naraku or his puppets. They traveled for hours without stopping, and finally, as dusk was beginning to fall, Kouga paused to sniff the air experimentally. Raori landed beside him, watching as he sifted through the many smells of the forest and settled on one.

"Naraku," he growled triumphantly.

Raori smirked slightly. "At last."

"He's there," Kouga said after a moment, nodding to a mountain range that was just barely visible on the edge of the horizon. "Can you smell him?"

Raori nodded, testing the wind as it blew towards them. "Yes. It is a slightly different smell from that of the puppet we faced. Does that mean…"

"It's the real Naraku," Kouga nodded. "I think so."

"Now all we have to do is hope he doesn't change location before we can reach him," Raori nodded, turning to the mountains and setting off, Kouga right beside her.

The fight would be hard, they knew, and there was always that dark possibility that they wouldn't live through it, but right then, darting through the beautiful forest with the wind blowing wildly past them, they felt as though they could do anything.

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Takinoshi stopped them as dusk fell. They had covered a considerable distance, but none of them had caught Naraku's smell. Raori's was faint, but they could smell it, and were tracking her southward across the vast forests. If they could only catch up to her before she met Naraku…

Sometime in the late afternoon, Inuyasha had stopped running, having caught another scent. A few minutes of sniffing around told him who the smell belonged to.

"Kouga," he growled angrily. "What does that mangy wolf think he's doing?"

"Kouga's with Raori?" Kagome asked, her eyes lighting up. "That's good news!"

"What!"

"Oh, come on, Inuyasha. At least now Raori isn't alone, and she's got someone with her who knows all about Naraku. I know you don't like Kouga, but he's really not that bad, and it's nice of him to help like this."

Inuyasha grumbled, but took off again, following the two scents as they traveled in a fairly straight line.

They rested a little during the night; Kirara and Inuyasha were slowing down a little. In the morning, Takinoshi picked up Raori's scent again and followed it, noticing that Kouga's traveled alongside it the entire time.

They reached a small cave and entered cautiously – they could smell Raori, Kouga, and Naraku, all from inside the dark cavern. Slowly, they advanced, ready for a fight, but what they found told them that there was no danger.

Shippo jumped down from Kagome's shoulder and examined the crushed doll that had once been a puppet.

"Looks like they beat it," Inuyasha commented, sniffing the doll. "Not bad."

"Come," Takinoshi said, turning back towards the edge of the cave. "We will find nothing here. Let us continue onward. Their smells are faint, but I can still make them out."

They followed him past a series of villages until they came to one where the two scents lingered, as though Raori and Kouga had spent some time there. The group was met by a group of soldiers who warily fetched the miko to come and greet the strange band.

"Greetings," Takinoshi said politely, moving to stand in front of the others. "We come in search of two demons who passed through here not long ago."

The miko narrowed her eyes. "What business do you have with them?"

"We're their friends," Kagome replied, moving to stand beside Takinoshi. "You saw them?"

"Raori and Kouga?" the miko remembered. "Yes, the two young demons searching for Naraku. They stayed the night not two days ago and helped us rebuild a few houses that Naraku had destroyed when he attacked."

"Which way did they go?" Inuyasha asked, sniffing the air.

The miko gestured east. "They were tracking Naraku, and we sent them east, the direction he went after his attack on our village. If you are searching for your friends, due east is the way you want to go."

"Thank you so much," Kagome said thankfully.

The miko nodded to her. "You may feel free to rest here awhile, if you wish to," she offered.

Takinoshi shook his head, taking charge again. "We cannot. We strive to reach Raori and Kouga before they come across Naraku. If we are to do so, we had better not stop, not even for rest."

The miko nodded. "Good luck. Give Raori and Kouga my regards when you meet them. You are welcome in this village, if you should ever need shelter, any of you." She bowed to them and moved aside to let them pass.

They immediately darted onwards, heading east and hoping they weren't too late.

They traveled through the night, moving as quickly as they could. The scents were getting stronger, which must mean they were getting closer. Inuyasha was grateful, though he didn't say it aloud – he didn't know how long he could keep up this long-distance running. He was starting to tire.

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As they approached the mountain range, Kouga and Raori saw that it stretched across the entire horizon for miles – going around it would take more time than they wanted to waste.

They decided to stop for the night at the base of the first mountain and take the long trek through them the next day. They didn't need the rest as much as they needed something to eat. Kouga was on the lookout for a boar or a deer, but all he found was a wild pig the size of a large cat. He caught it easily, and roasted it over a fire, sitting back and letting the wonderful smell waft past his nose.

"There's a spring not far away," Raori informed him, sitting and watching as the meat sizzled over the fire. "In case you're thirsty."

Kouga nodded. "Yeah, I'll head down there after we eat," he said, licking his lips.

Raori smiled as he began to drool and closed her eyes, leaning back against a tree. "You know," she said with a sigh, "except for the part where we're chasing a hanyou that's supposed to be more powerful than anyone we've ever fought and the fact that we might not live to tell about it, this is kind of nice."

Kouga nodded his agreement. "Yeah. It could sure be worse."

Raori glanced over at him. "Thanks for coming with me. It'd be much, much worse if I had to do all this alone. I'm glad I've got somebody with me."

Kouga gave her a lopsided grin. "Same here. You're not bad to have in a fight, either."

Raori smiled back at him and closed her eyes again, settling down, feeling a sense of security come over her as she relaxed slightly.

(A/N: No, this is not going to turn into a Kouga / Raori fic. Just consider yourself in her situation. I'd be glad Kouga was there, too. Especially if he caught dinner for me…)

When the sun began to creep over the horizon again, they moved on, entering the mountain range and warily keeping a lookout for danger. Kouga knew from experience that Naraku could appear without warning, and kept his guard up as he ran onward. Raori followed, her nose informing her that they were getting closer. Naraku was in the mountain range, probably only a few hours away from them.

The time was drawing near.

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The group stopped again when they found the camp Kouga and Raori had stopped at. The embers of the fire were still slightly warm – they were catching up. They'd traveled all through the night, and only stopped once, to let Inuyasha take a minute to catch his breath. He was really starting to tire.

As they landed and let the exhausted hanyou take a drink from the nearby spring, Kagura approached a tired Kagome. "He has been running nonstop for almost two days," she said under her breath to the miko, who nodded. "He needs to rest."

"I know," Kagome sighed. "I feel like I'm weighing him down."

"You can ride with me," Kagura suggested. "It would help him move faster."

Takinoshi glanced over at them from where he stood beside Sesshomaru. "Now that we know we're close, the faster we can go, the better," he said to them.

Kagome nodded enthusiastically. "Thanks, Kagura!" she said thankfully.

Inuyasha returned to see Kagura help Kagome onto the large white feather. "Kagome, what're you doing?" he said warily, though by then he basically trusted Kagura.

"Helping you," she replied. "I'm going to ride with Kagura so you don't have to carry me."

Inuyasha shrugged. "Suit yourself," he said, not bothering to put up a fight. The feather lifted into the air, and Kirara followed it, as well as Sesshomaru and Takinoshi. Inuyasha sighed and took off along the ground again. Shippo, riding on Miroku's shoulder, glanced over at Kagome, who was trying to get used to sitting on a giant flying feather. Kagura laughed as the miko held onto the edges, squeezing her eyes shut until she was used to the height.

They moved onward, still following the trail, and as time wore on Takinoshi and Sesshomaru began to catch Naraku's scent. They set their course towards the same mountains Raori and Kouga had just arrived at and sped up, praying they weren't too late.

Okay, there's that chapter. I realize not much happened, but oh well. In the middle of writing it I had an idea for the next chapter, so that one will be coming out soon. I've decided, now that I've got the ending in mind, I'll just go ahead and finish the story. I hope you guys like it.

Thanks to HahaI'mBetterThanYou for reviewing The Aftermath. You're awesome! And if anybody's got any ideas for any further stories, or for some stuff I can add into this one before I finish it, please speak up – you won't ruin the story, I promise! I used to think I wouldn't be able to write at all, and I would never have seen myself publishing anything, not even on but if you just keep writing you get good at it, or so people tell me. I still have a lot to work on, but I write constantly, so I'm getting better.

At first I wasn't sure if I should bring Kouga into it, but then I figured I might as well. Looking back, I saw that Kagome hadn't really told her much about fights with Naraku, so she needed somebody to help her out. Kouga was just an idea that popped into my head. I mean, why not? He's cool, and although Inu doesn't like to admit it, he's really powerful. I know a lot of people like to bash Kouga, but I think he's not that bad, so in this story he's good! I don't like bashing… except Naraku! Kukuku…

Til next time!