Disclaimers Notice: The only thing I own is the way in which I chose to use the characters and setting (oh, and a few of my own creations…)

Authors Beginning Note: I know, evil Authoress for being so late on her updates, but its really not my fault! Well, at least…I couldn't control it anyway, so, please forgive me! Tiss the season of love!

Happy Valentines Day!

I hope you enjoy!

Shout it outs!

Tanwen-Whitefire: Lets just say that I am in now way finished w/ Miyako yet.

Rayame325: Thank You, Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, very much! I really appreciate your help!

Valeese: One things for sure, I would hate to be Miyako at that point.

Ame: Yes, but readers do get bored after too many chapters, so where does that leave me? Oh well. I do however appreciate your support!

Danni: Well, thank you for your advice. I know sometimes I get sloppy, and even though I have yet to read a chapter w/o grammatical/spelling errors, I realize that to be no excuse for my lazines.

Demoness of Evil: But you have to realize that some of my other readers can't stomach all of that lovey-dovey nonesense. Too bad for them ne? Just have patience. I assure you that fluff is a mere foot from your grasp.

Chapter 59

Moving Forwards

"Boy, I demand to know where we are going right this instant!" Jakan went to thwack Kohaku on the head. Unfortunately Rin's foot just 'happened' to be in the way.

"Is Jakan stupid? He can not talk. Didn't you remember?" Rin reprimanded. Neelah glared down at him.

"Just what's your problem? Aren't you supposed to be like an Ambassador to Lord Sesshoumaru?"

"Actually no, I am his retainer. Lord Balgus would be the…" Neelah racked him with her knuckles on his bald tiny head.

"Ouch! You blatant girl!"

"Well guess what. You've just been demoted. You are now serving as Lord Sesshoumaru's Ambassador and as such, I highly doubt you would want to make a bad impression upon his people. After all, your actions could end His Lord's grand reputation." Neelah grinned mischievously. Jakan began to sulk. Rin wiped the sweat off of her forehead.

"Wait. Rin is tired. Let us rest for a moment." The boy looked over his shoulder. Rin and Jakan looked tired, but Neelah seemed almost completely winded. The castle was big, but the life of a servant is not as active as that of a warrior or traveler.

He looked up at the rumbling clouds. It was going to rain again. He nodded at Rin and she jumped up in glee.

"So boy, what shall we call you? Can you write?" Neelah asked turning to him.

"What? Of course he can't write. Only nobles and merchants. All common born are not taught, for they have no use…"

Kohaku squatted on the ground and began to scribble little letters in the dirt.

"Kohaku?" He nodded.

"Will you write us how you know where it is we are going?" Kohaku stood up.

"You can't abandon us! You stupid human! Just you wait until Lord Sesshoumaru hears of how…" Kohaku glared at the jabbering toad and motioned for the two girls to come. He pointed at something in the dirt.

"Rin doesn't see anything." Kohaku reached down and picked up three single white strands of fur.

"Is that really…"?

"Impossible. Its just white hair! That doesn't mean…"

"Jakan, Rin commands you to be quiet! It grates her nerves!" Jakan stood open mouthed. Never before had this little girl spoken so harshly to him. He fell on his jolly green rump and stuck out his upper lip.

"I can't believe our luck! You must have trained with the best. Not even I could have spotted that on my own." Neelah praised. Kohaku blushed and looked back towards the sky.

"It's going to start raining again." Neelah voiced his thoughts.

"We should make camp. Lord Sesshoumaru said it is not good to sleep in the rain." Rin recited. Kohaku nodded and they traveled into a heavily forested area. Neelah and Rin collected sticks, but Kohaku mysteriously disappeared.

"He's left us! Its all apart of Naraku's insinuos plot to make his revenge upon Lord Sesshoumaru!"

"Rin is not happy with you Jakan. Kohaku is helping us, not Naraku." Rin gave him the cold shoulder and soon they had a nights worth of wood set.

"Jakan, will you light a fire?"

"No." Rin stared at him. Jakan was not behaving like his usual self. Agitated, she stomped over to him, thumped him on the head leaving a bump, and taking his staff away from him.

"Wait! Don't use that you could…" Rin did as she had seen Jakan do so many times and without incident, lit a nice inviting fire.

"If Jakan not do his job, than Rin will do it for him." Rin huffed and watched the flames on the opposite side of the circle of Jakan.

Kohaku came back and tucked under his arm was a large mouse looking thing.

"What is that?" Neelah asked. None of them knew. Except for Kohaku, who set it down, gathered some sturdy sticks, and trudged back into the forest with both the mouse and huge rodent.

"Rin wanders is that is not our supper."

"Disgusting." Neelah made a face.

"He's probably poisoned it." Jakan muttered under his breath. Rin glared at him and he commented no further. A steady rain began to fall but only a few drops reached below the forests thick canopy.

When Kohaku came back, he had on each stick skewered pieces of meat, which he then placed over the fire to cook.

"Lady Miko, your presence is requested by the great Kanjaku Yoshibaki."

"Who?" Miroku leaned in and whispered to her.

"He's the head monk of the North Eastern monasteries. He's been placed as one of the four hierarchies among the monks. Not even I have met him."

"Is Kagome in trouble?" Shippo worried.

"But why does he want to see me?" The messenger bowed.

"I was merely sent to retrieve you, the manner of this summoning is not known to me." He stood up.

"Can my friends come?" The man blinked.

"You were the one requested, not them."

"We will accompany her to as far as Yoshibaki's tent." Miroku said using his last name in respect. The man looked disgruntled but nodded. Their pace quickened and they moved ahead of the crowd of mikos, demons, and other warriors who had come to join the Monks camp.

They recognized the huge tent immediately.

"Both he and the other chief Monks stay in the same tent. That is why it is considerably larger. A meeting room was also made in there as well." Miroku said. Every now and then he would give a little tidbit of monkian knowledge. Kagome however wasn't paying too much attention. Her stomach tossed. She was nervous.

This is just too much…too much all at once…it's hard to believe…so much has happened…it's hard to remember where some of it ended…and other parts began…

She felt a warm hand gently wrap around hers. She looked over at Inuyasha who gave her an encouraging look. She smiled.

"Touran, do you know where we are?" The small girl asked. She looked delicate, as delicate as the deadly flowers that were in her powers looked.

"We are crossing the Middle plains. Only a few more days and we should be there." Touran didn't even bother looking back at Shunraun. Kauran flicked her tail in annoyance as she sat upon her brother's shoulder. She gracefully jumped off and began walking.

"There's nothing! It's like a desert." She pointed out negatively.

"How are we supposed to find anything to eat?" Shurran looked down at the completely gone flab that had been on his stomach. A few meals of meek water and game were not enough to feed someone as big as he sufficiently.

"Oh quite your wining. We go forth for a good cause, but if you cowards want to desert, that's fine by me." Touran glared at her siblings. They all looked away, standing defensively.

"Good, now lets keep going."

"I don't get why she's being so touchy."

"No kidding. It's not like we've never complained before."

"Especially when we mention Sesshoumaru…"

"She's in love." The flower panther finally said adding to the conversation.

"What are you talking about Shunraun?" She shook her head. Kauran looked up and Shurran who also looked confused.

"You aren't making any sense." Shurran shook his head. Shunraun began to slowly distance herself away as she watched Touran carefully.

"I can't believe I didn't see it earlier, or maybe it just now became obvious." She watched as Touran took quick glances every here and then at her idol of affection.

"Ayame!" Kouga was already running to the spot he had heard her before anyone could comprehend what that noise had been. Even the grass took seconds before the wind tilted it after Kouga had speed by. His wind was violent, and dangerous.

He stopped and the wind tornado he had spun now whipped away. He looked at the large scraggly demon. It looked like an uncannily large wolf that'd starved to death, rotted in the swamps, and then arose from the dead. Ayame stood defensively, and her escort lay dead on the ground, his eyes open and dull.

The beast lunged and Ayame flung green spinning leaves as sharp as razors. It cut the skeletal's skin, but no hindering damage was done. Kouga sprung into the air, kicking the beast in between the eyes. In less then a seconds notice, the beast grabbed his foot and swung him into the ground.

"Kouga!"

"What the hell is that thing?" Ayame swooped in the air as the demon lunged at her. Strands of red gently landed in the grass. She grabbed her one pigtail and saw that most of it had been shaven.

My…my hair…it…my hair…its gone…

It took her a moment as she landed on the ground and stared in disbelief at the strands that stood out on the grass like blood in water.

Kouga began spinning circle around the demon creating a whirlwind.

It spat out an icy liquid, and Kouga's attack was stopped in mid stride as he leapt out of danger.

"Hey Ayame!" He whipped at the things face again only to be thrown.

"You…you no good, dirty, rotten, mushy brained, sapskulled, idiotic, egotistical, power hungry, maniac, monster!" Ayame's anger boiled even higher with each insult until her sight blurred red. The monster lunged at her, spitting icy liquid at the same time, but Ayame moved much too quickly. Kouga stood up and looked at the amazing angel of death as she made even him look slow and weak. An unstoppable onslaught of razor leaves rained down on the beast until its image blurred in green.

"Die!" Ayame screamed. With one kick, the thing landed on its side, bleeding fountains of blood. Kouga didn't know what to say. He was speechless. Ayame looked at the beast and slowly sunk to her knees and grabbed what was left of her pigtail.

"Is…is she crying? Over her hair?" Kouga was absolutely dumbfounded. This girl had whooped up on a powerful demon, and all she could worry about was her hair.

"Woman. I'll never understand them." He walked over and unsheathed his sword, taking hold of her remaining pigtail.

"What are you doing!"? Ayame jumped up shrieking.

"I'm cutting the rest off! That's what."

"But my…my hair!" She grabbed it protectively.

"You want it to look goofy? It's not like it won't grow back or nothing." She lifted her hand and took out the hair holder, and cupped the fallen flower gently. Kouga looked at the lopsided cut. On one side, her hair flowed to the middle of her back; on the other it grazed the middle of her neck evenly.

"Okay. You can cut it now." She drawled out somberly. Kouga turned her around and grabbed the long locks. As he swiped, she flinched.

"There, all done." He handed her the loose strands of flame and she let out a long huge sigh. He sheathed his sword. A distant shouted told him that their companions were coming.

"Better late than never I guess."

"I'm sorry." Ayame whispered ever so softly.

"For what?" Kouga was absolutely stumped. This girl just wasn't anything he's ever met up against. Always saying and doing stuff that threw him off guard.

"You were right. I shouldn't have gone off like that." Kouga blushed.

"Ayame!" Mariko was the first to reach them and hugged her friend tightly.

"Ayame your hair it's…Kouga! You…" Natsuko was abruptly stopped in mid tempest as Ayame gently pulled her shoulder.

"It was my fault. I was being clumsy and the demon clipped my hair. Kouga just fixed it up for me is all."

"Boss! Boss! Are you all right?"

"Yah, what happened? I've never seen you run so fast."

"Just a stupid demon." He shrugged and coolly walked past.

"Wow, Kouga must be stronger than we thought if he defeated this by himself." They said upon examination.

"Who says he killed him?" Ayame said smugly.

"But he had to of, who else…"

"You mean, you killed the demon?" Ayame put on a victors smile and wore it gloatingly.

"You better believe it, though Kouga helped a little, but I was the one that officially killed it."

"Wow Ayame." Ayame put on a façade of heroics and joy, but inside she felt different.

I was scared…and really…angry…my heart beat…it was so fast…I couldn't breath…and…then Kouga showed up…and even though He didn't do much…just being there helped me…then when my hair was chopped…I got so angry and just wanted to kill the demon…and that helped get me over my fear…but if it weren't for him…no…stop it Ayame…you can't do this…not now…not ever…he loves Kagome…and even if she doesn't love him back…he will chase her to the ends of the earth…and leave me behind…stop it before you hurt yourself…

Her heart slowly cracked. She smiled a fake smile that even fooled Mariko and Natsuko.

She stepped to the body or the thief who had accompanied her and said a silent prayer before stabbing him in the heart with a nearby stick.

"Why did you do that?" Hakkaku asked. Natsuko answered.

"It is to prevent any necromancer from ever using his body for the bidding of his or her will. We learned about it in the wars up in the mountains. There was a Necromancer by the name of Sei, and he used the bodies of the dead. We noticed that he was unable to use the corpses of those who had been stabbed in the heart, so then every time we could, we made sure to honor the dead and perform that ritual. Sometimes, if we could we would perform the Rite of Dead much more respectably, but too many would merely get a quick stab with an arrow or sword. It was better than nothing." Hakkaku shuddered.

Ayame's victory was dulled by the thought of death as they went back to camp. A few of the thieves, who had come to help, shook their heads at their dead companion. They were lucky just to be attacked by one demon, and only to have one of their men die, but where they travel, there are many warriors, and that leaves the question open. How many more from their side will die?

Authors Ending Note: I know, some of you are like 'What is up with the hair melt down?" Well, a woman's source of pride and glory is her hair (Well so goes the saying) That and I know if my hair were ever tampered w/ or cut like that in any manner (unless I specifically ask it done professionally) I would get soooo angry. I figured that it would be good to show such strong emotion in Ayame.