A/N: 50+ reviews for 3 chapters? Everyone who reviewed rocks. Thanks a lot.

Head Over Feet

You've already won me over in spite of me
And don't be alarmed if I fall head over feet
Don't be surprised if I love you for all that you are
I couldn't help it
It's all your fault
Alanis Morissette

"So what are we supposed to do about Jaken?" Sango asked, only minutely interested. She was too busy trying to keep Rin in one place. The girl was a bundle of energy, and Sango had already grown tired of her. 'Well that can't be good; she's only been with us for less than an hour.' Miroku looked over and laughed as he watched Sango holding one of Rin's small legs, trying to keep her from running off.

"He won't be gone long. When he comes back I'm sure he'll stay here and mope until my brother returns." Inuyasha walked down the palace stairs, the scent of blood hanging heavy on him. He had been inside searching around, looking for any clue that Naraku left behind, but he had found none. He looked down at the piece of paper in his hands. It had directions and landmarks. "Well, apparently it's almost directly east of here. Let's go." he said and began to walk east. The rest of them followed, a sense of dread falling over them.

Not more than an hour later, the bundle of fur that Miroku carried began to stir.

"Hey! Shippo's moving." he called. They gathered round him. Shippo moved around so that his face was turned upwards. His eye slowly opened. A faint smile curved his lips when he saw all the concerned faces above him.

"What's up?" he said weakly, his voice cracking from no use. Everyone laughed, a fair amount of tension dripping off of them.

"Can you stand?" Miroku asked, aching to put him down. He had been carrying the kid for a while now and his arms were starting to cramp. Shippo muttered a 'yes' and Miroku put him on the ground, kneeling next to him to be there to catch him if he fell. Shippo was a little wobbly, but after taking a few steps, he seemed fine.

"Other than that concussion, I think you're alright." Sango said reassuringly, and that was when Shippo first caught sight of Rin. The little girl was beaming at him, practically vibrating with anxiousness to talk to him.

"Who are you?" he asked. After a few awkward moments that children face when first meeting each other, they walked behind everyone else, chatting away happily as the procession moved forward. Sango swore she was going to lose her mind if she looked back and saw them running off one more time. 'Well, at least some people are happy at the moment…' Miroku sighed, watching the sun set into the horizon. He heard the faint scolding of Sango. The children were really going to need to calm down, but he could understand. Shippo had a lot of pent up energy after being sick for a few days.

For those few moments he tried to forget about the immense danger they were all about to face.

XoXoXoX

The cold night air was almost unbearable. Her teeth were chattering and her eyes were watering with the wind. She looked ahead of her, wondering how her companion was doing. His white hair flowed out around him, a sleek silver whip. His robe was billowing around him, and she was sure his injury must hurt in the icy gusts, but he showed no pain. 'He hasn't even glanced back here to see if I'm still alive.' she though wryly. She cast her eyes to the ground and wished that they could travel during the day, but Sesshoumaru had ordered that they only travel by nightfall. Naraku could spot them easier in the daytime. With her eyes cast downwards, she didn't see Sesshoumaru stop, and thusly crashed into him. The impact knocked her backwards and she struggled to keep the sheet covering her. She was slightly annoyed when she saw that he hadn't moved at all.

"Well?" she asked angrily, grouchy because of the cold and of her own aching bones. She had travelled all this way without wearing shoes and her feet were sore.

"We'll camp here." was all he offered her as he sat down and closed his eyes. He was glad she didn't notice that his breathing was quick and shallow. His chest wound hurt terribly and now it was itching in the process of healing. He was surprised when she didn't make any tart remark about their camping ground, a small clearing in a wooded area. He glanced at her.

"Fine. I'll be going to sleep then." she said, sitting down and then laying on the ground. She was determined to tough it out as much as he was. She knew he was in pain and she was angry that he wouldn't ask her for help. 'We're partners. We help each other. Well if he doesn't want my help, then that is just fine with me.' she told herself, making her skin hot with anger. Things had gone sour between them. Kagome was one hundred percent positive that it was because of her kiss. She didn't mean it, she had just been so happy at leaving, and so thankful he had helped her. Of course, there were other ways to say 'thank you' to someone, but kissing just seemed right. And even now, as she lay a distance away from him, shivering in the cold, she still wanted his companionship. She even admitted to herself that the kiss wasn't all that bad. She sighed and turned herself over so that her back was facing him.

Sesshoumaru watched her as she turned away. In the moonlight the angry bruises on her arms were even more grotesque. He felt guilt rise up in him, something he was starting to sincerely hate. Guilt wasn't something he was used to. It was too raw of an emotion, too purely human. A strong breeze suddenly whistled violently through the trees, causing his skin to rise and his eyes to water slightly. He looked over to Kagome and saw that her body had begun to violently shiver. He had known the whole trip that she was practically freezing to death, but she had said nothing, so he didn't bring it up, surprised at her strength of will. It was then that he was surprised at just how cold he himself was. He shrugged it off and lay down on his side, letting sleep take him over.

The cold woke her. She grunted angrily, cursing Mother Nature, and she turned to go yell at Sesshoumaru for picking the camp site. Her words died in her throat when she looked at him. He was asleep, his face in peaceful repose, but he was shivering just as much as she was. 'This is stupid. I know how we can get warm.' she thought, getting up and walking over to him. She crouched down and picked up one of his heavy arms, knowing that he wouldn't feel it. She had come to realize the he was a very heavy sleeper. 'It's probably because he doesn't sleep all that much…' She laid herself gently next to him, putting his arm back down on top of her. She curled into his body and instantly felt warmer. Her eyes shot open when she felt his arm pull her closer into him. She wondered if he was awake, but his slow, deep breathing proved otherwise. She smiled, and then let herself sink into sleep.

XoXoXoX

"So?"

"So what?"

"Did you give it to him?"

"Of course I did." Kagura said, walking away from Naraku. Her red eyes seethed with an almost tangible hate for the man standing before her. She hated being bound to him. His dark eyes searched her face, finding amusement in her anger.

"Good. He'll be here soon then." he laughed, walking over to sit on one of the plush pillows in the main room of his palace. Kagura stayed standing, watching him. It wasn't until he took a drink out of a cup on the table that she noticed that there was no dungeon key on the chain hanging from his neck. She debated on whether or not to tell him. She let a smile onto her lips when she decided that he was better of not knowing. 'And besides, I don't want to be the only on in here when he realizes his key is missing. And I think I know where it is…' Kagura was broken out of her haughty reverie when there was a commotion in the lower floors. She could hear heavy footsteps running up the stairs. 'Damn! The guards probably know that Sesshoumaru has fled.' Kagura thought. As soon as the guards busted through the door, she had quickly made her escape. She was sure that some death would occur tonight after Naraku found out. She let her thoughts drift to Sesshoumaru. 'What a clever man. I approve.'

Naraku looked at the guard carefully, not liking the fear that leaked off of him. He raised an eyebrow, questioning the man.

"Sir, your prisoners have escaped." the guard said, his voice very audibly cracking. Naraku froze, staring at him, anger boiling over him until his skin was hot with it. He stood up and let his hand go to his neck. 'It's gone!' he yelled at himself for being so damned stupid. "What do you want us to do? Follow them?" the guard asked, taking a step back from Naraku.

"No. I'll go after them." he said. The guards visibly pulled themselves together, all of them feeling relatively safe now that Naraku had decided to go after them himself.

They discovered how very wrong they were when he started attacking.

When all of the bodies were beheaded, a very bloody Naraku walked out of his palace, determined to find his prisoners and make them pay for escaping him.

XoXoXoX

He felt something moving against him. He opened his eyes, angry that he had been disturbed. Looking up he saw that it was almost dawn. The growl died on his lips when he saw that Kagome had pressed her back into his stomach, as if trying to get as close to him as possible. He was surprised at how good it felt to wrap his arm around her and pull her body closer to his. He rested his chin on the top of her head and watched the sun come up.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" she asked. He was startled by her sudden words, and perturbed that she had awakened and he hadn't known it. He stayed quiet. Kagome just smiled at his silence, too happy to be angered by it. She felt warm and content laying there in his arms, watching the sun come up. 'I've never done this with Inuyasha. It's so peaceful.' she thought. She sat up slowly and turned to look at him, offering him a small smile.

"What?" he asked her, sitting up himself. She shook her head.

"Nothing." She saw suspicion in his eyes, and it really saddened her. "Why are you so suspicious of me?" she asked, truly curious to find out if she had done anything to warrant such behaviour.

"I am suspicious of everything. You're no exception." he replied, sitting up straighter, not taking his gaze from her face. For once, Kagome didn't feel scrutinized by it.

"That's no way to live." she said, having to raise her voice to be heard above the morning bird calls. She felt so at ease with the sunlight streaming warm and comforting on her. Sesshoumaru leaned up against a tree, hiding in the shade, still only a bare touch away from her.

"I've been living like that for a while." he finally replied, his voice softer than usual. Though there was no emotion in his voice, Kagome could feel the years of sadness packed into the words. She felt herself lean forward.

His froze when she placed her soft lips on his. He was surprised at her sudden boldness. He felt her hesitate, and then begin to break away, but he put his hands gently on her arms, below her bruises, and pulled her closer to him. She put her hands on either side of his face and then kissed him on the chin, the cheek, planting a kiss on each eyelid. She wanted to touch every part of his soft face. She laid one more kiss on his mouth before he gathered her up into his lap. She nuzzled her head into his neck and sighed in contentment, wondering when he was going to return to the cold Demon Lord who would pretend like none of this ever happened. It made her angry that he would shrug her off eventually, but she knew now that at least he wasn't made of stone like she had thought.

She closed her eyes, not caring about anything at the moment, save for his soft hand rubbing her back.

XoXoXoX

A/N - Wow that chapter did not want to be written. Sorry it's so short. Next one will be longer, I swear. Review please!