A/N: Hey, here is Chapter nine of this one! I hope you guys enjoy it! Please review and let me know what you think! Thanks!

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Dream of Me
Chapter Nine

"Kagome?" Her mother repeated. "Who is this? Is she...is she one of our ancestors?" she asked after a moment, seeing the similarity between her daughter and the unknown girl.

"Kikyou?" whispered Kagome and Inuyasha in unison.

"What are you doing here?" asked Kagome. "How did you get here?"

Kikyou laughed. "Honestly. As if you are the only one who possesses some of the sacred jewel shards." she smirked. "You think I could not figure out how you were disappearing as you have been? I heard my sister talking..."

"Kikyou...what do you want?" Inuyasha demanded. He had a firm hold on Kagome's hand, but stepped forward protectively. "You shouldn't be here. You need to go back where you came from."

"Back where I came from?" she repeated. "Now, are you talking about going back down that well...or would you rather I just died again?"

Inuyasha seemed to be taken aback for a moment. He blinked. "What...what do you want?" he repeated, his voice stronger this time. "If you do not want anything, then you need to go home...understand?"

"Do not presume that you can tell me what to do, Inuyasha." she snapped. "You are already aware of what I want. I have told you once before...have I not? I want the remainder of my soul back...and I want you."

Kagome blinked. "Kikyou...you can't...I can't...you know that..." she stammered.

"I can't what?" she smirked. "Have my soul back, or have Inuyasha back?"

Kagome gulped. "Neither."

"Neither?" she repeated. "Are you so sure about that?"

"Yes, she's sure!" Inuyasha yelled. "Kikyou, I love Kagome, and you can't have her soul. It's hers. I will not let you hurt her..."

Kikyou laughed. "I don't think you have a choice, Inuyasha. See, no matter what you say, I will still want my soul back...and there are two things that I realize which you seem to be making an effort to ignore..."

"Excuse me?" Kagome coughed.

"One...either way, Kagome will die, either by my hands or Naraku's, and I will get my soul back. Two...I'm the original, and I'll always be the better shot..."

Akira gasped. "What are you..." she began.

Kikyou had her bow raised, and aimed squarely at Kagome. Kagome paled as Inuyasha stepped in front of her. "Inuyasha, no!" Kagome yelled. "You don't have to do this..."

"No, he doesn't. He's only making things more difficult for me..." Kikyou agreed spitefully. "Unfortunately for him, he has forgotten yet another detail about me...I'm better at this than both of you..." With a wave of her hand, Inuyasha was thrown backwards into the sacred tree, and a strong purple barrier formed around him. Kikyou laughed.

Kagome paled even more. "Kikyou...why are you doing this?" she whispered. "Where are the..." but Kagome could already see the jewel shards. They were inside of Kikyou's clay body, and glowing a bright purple. Their normal pink glow had obviously left long ago. "Your jewel shards...they are polluted..." Kagome realized. "Why didn't you..."

"They are not mine. They are his." she smirked.

"His?" Kagome repeated, blinking. "You mean...? But you wouldn't..."

"I did." she laughed. "Why do you insist on talking to me? Do you think you will talk me out of it? The only thing that keeps me from my soul is your life. Which do you think is more important to me?" she asked Kagome, pulling back on her arrow.

"Kagome!" her mother screamed, although the frightened woman had not moved from her spot. It was as if her feet were cemented to the ground somehow.

"Mom...go inside, and keep Gramps and Souta away. I don't want them to have to see this..."

"Kagome...!" she yelled.

"Go, mom!" Kagome screamed.

"No!"

"Kagome!" This time, the scream was from Inuyasha. "Get your bow! You can't just let her hit you like that! Run away! Did you hear me? Run, damn it!"

Kagome did as she was told, and turned to run. An arrow sailed past her head, nearly hitting her. She gasped, and jumped out of the way. Bolting to the well house, Kagome was upset to see that neither her bow nor her quiver full of arrows was where she had thought it would be. She must have left it in the feudal era when she went to get Inuyasha...

"Damn..." she frowned.

"No bow?" Kikyou smirked. "You know, you shouldn't leave things so important just lying around like that..."

"What are you going to do?" demanded Akira.

"Isn't it obvious?" Kikyou laughed.

"Kagome! Why aren't you running? Get away from her!" Inuyasha yelled from inside his little bubble.

Kagome shook her head. "I'm not running away!" she replied sharply. "I can't! If I leave you here...she'll..." Kagome shivered at the thought. "It just isn't going to happen, okay?"

"And how do you expect to defend yourself?" laughed Kikyou.

Kagome began to pray, and Kikyou continued to laugh. A light pink barrier had erected itself around Kagome, but this did not seem to upset Kikyou in the least. She continued to laugh, and pulled back even farther on the arrow that was loaded into her bow.

"Goodbye, Kagome. I will take good care of my soul when I have it back.." Kikyou promised, letting the arrow fly.

Inuyasha paled, and jumped, but only ended up being thrown back into the sacred tree. He groaned, but stood back up, and continued this action, repeating the same results over and over again. The arrow hadn't hit Kagome yet. It was fighting against the little barrier that Kagome had erected. Kagome looked worried, but continued to pray nonetheless. Her weak barrier was losing the fight with Kikyou's purifying arrow. Inuyasha, meanwhile, was still trying to free himself. Growling, he finally unsheathed the tesseiga, and sliced at the barrier. One, two, three times he sliced at it with no effect.

"Kagome!" he yelled.

Everything happened within the blink of an eye. Inuyasha's sword broke through the barrier...Kagome looked up...the barrier failed...the arrow flew forward...and Kagome fell to the ground. She did not move.

"Kagome!" her mother sobbed, still unable to move. She dropped to her knees.

Inuyasha caught Kagome as she fell to the ground.

"Kikyou! You..." Inuyasha growled.

Kikyou laughed as her soul collectors appeared. "Get it..." she commanded, pointing in Kagome's direction. Inuyasha stood, slashing at the soul collectors as they approached Kagome's body. She still hadn't moved. Inuyasha sliced the soul collectors in half, but they just kept coming.

"Get away from her!" he snarled. "Leave her alone!"

"She's gone, Inuyasha!" Kikyou smirked. "She has no need for it!"

Inuyasha yelped. One of Kikyou's soul collectors had dived into Kagome's body. Seconds later, it emerged with a large, white ball of light, and carried it over to Kikyou.

Kikyou laughed. "I feel so much better now." she smiled. "I guess that means you'll be coming with me now, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha stood, shaking his head, and cracking his claws in anger. "Kikyou...you will pay. Give it back. Give it back to her, or I'll kill you..." he threatened, although his voice was frighteningly calm. "How dare you? How dare you hurt her?"

Kikyou blinked. "You...kill me? That is almost laughable, Inuyasha."

From somewhere deep within his throat, Inuyasha let out a deep, low growl, and again pulled his sword. Akira had managed to crawl over to Kagome, although she still said nothing. When Inuyasha growled, she looked up, a small amount of fear in her eyes, and hugged her daughter's body.

"Inu...yasha...?" she stammered.

Inuyasha continued to growl, as if he hadn't even heard Kagome's mother talking to him at all. Inuyasha looked up, still growling, and pulled his sword behind his elbow, raising it above his head.

Kikyou took a step back. "Inuyasha? Come to your senses. Get over yourself! You can't save her!"

Inuyasha's eyes were red with his fury, and his growling did not subside. He seemed to be pulsing with his anger. He took several steps forward.

"Inuyasha..." Kikyou repeated, a note of warning in her voice.

"You hurt her..." Inuyasha said, seemingly ignoring Kikyou's warning. "I told you to leave her alone!"

Kikyou seemed to take this as a bad sign, and took several steps backwards. "Inuyasha..."

"Goodbye, Kikyou..." Inuyasha smirked, bring the sword down swiftly.

Kikyou did not have time to retaliate. The sword came down quickly, and Kikyou fell to the ground and shattered into pieces. Inuyasha carefully picked up the polluted jewel shards and pocketed them. Kikyou's soul collectors hovered above what was left of her, but this time only one of them held a white ball of light in its clutches. This was Kagome's soul. Her complete soul.

Inuyasha stared at the soul collector. "Give it back to her..." he commanded the soul collector, pointing to Kagome. "Give it back, now..." he repeated.

The other soul collectors had diminished. Inuyasha was staring at the remaining one as if he was about to kill it. The red of his demonic side still shone in his eyes. After a moment, the soul collector flew over to Kagome and dropped the white ball of light. Soon, the color that had left Kagome's body returned to it. Inuyasha stepped forward, and Akira jumped out of his way. He picked up Kagome's limp body and headed towards the well house.

"Inuyasha!" Akira cried, rushing forward. "Where are you going?"

He growled, and Akira stopped. "Have to save Kagome..." she heard him growl as he disappeared into the well.

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A/N: I've got to leave it there, but I hope you guys liked it! Please review and let me know what you think, and I will try to update soon.