A/N: So, whilst I slack off my studying, I decided to be nice and do one more update before the week of torture. I won't be able to update again until Friday, sorry guys. But, at least I gave you this, right?

Part IV

Chapter 23: Fighting Love

Inuyasha splashed water onto his face, taking particular care to wipe off his mouth. He stood in the stream, bare chested, the water he was splashing rolling down his chest and over his strong muscles.

His red youkai eyes flashed once more as he wiped off his lips. Disgusting!

Inuyasha didn't have a clue what went on the night before, but it definitely wasn't to his liking. One minute, he was trying to kill her, the next, she was kissing him. When she broke away, a smile and tears on her face, he was stunned. He had no idea why she had suddenly decided to kiss him...or why he had a deep desire to kiss her back.

That's what drove him over the edge, his desire. He was a youkai, and youkai were only supposed to kill humans. Before, he didn't know why that annoying girl was his mate, but now, after putting everything together, he knew.

He knew that there must have been another "him" at that time, specifically, a hanyou. A grin caught his face. Of course, youkai were superior to hanyou, so he had now taken over this weak hanyou's body.

But Inuyasha knew, whenever he was around Kagome, whenever he had a deep desire for her, it was the hanyou trying to break free once more. It was the hanyou that loved Kagome, the hanyou that forbid him from killing her.

It was the hanyou that made him bring her back.

After he had punched her, hard, she fell to the ground in a faint. Inuyasha didn't know what to do with her. At first, he just wanted to leave her, before she could have any other effects on him. But he didn't want to leave her…A youkai might get her, bandits may come and take her hostage, something might happen to her. Growling in protest, he knew he couldn't just leave her.

So he picked her up, and carried her off, deeper into the woods, traveling all night. He took her to a cave, far into the woods, and left her there, venturing out not far from it to wash away the human scent.

Inuyasha stepped out of the stream, over to his white shirt and damp haori. He found it with Kagome, knowing it to be his, and had also doused it in water, trying in vain to get her sweet scent from it. He put on his shirt, and picked up the haori, and approached the cave, slightly lit with rays from the morning sun.

Inside, he lay his haori on rocks to dry. The cave wasn't very deep; it was about the size of a hut, with a low ceiling and slightly arched walls. It wasn't roomy, but it was somewhere to keep her safe.

Though Inuyasha did not love this girl, he did share one feeling in common with the hanyou, he wanted to keep her safe. He turned and looked at her. Kagome was still asleep, resting with her hand across her stomach, on a bed of grass. He could hear her shallow breathing with sleep, and he seemed hypnotized as he watched her chest rise and fall with every breath.

He came closer to her, into the darker part of the cave, and sat beside her sleeping body. She looked so peaceful in sleep, like an innocent child, having done no wrong. He felt a jolt in his stomach as he saw the small scabs over the light wounds his claws had inflicted on her neck. He glanced at his claws, the very same that had hurt her the night before, feeling an entirely new emotion; guilt.

As he looked at his claws, and then glanced over to the sword that leaned against the side of the cave, he realized that he could really hurt her. He was a powerful youkai, she was a weak human…he could actually kill her if he wasn't careful.

That thought brought on more mixed feelings. Being a youkai, he wanted to kill her, and keep these human emotions at bay, but the hanyou trapped inside of him just wanted to protect her, and make sure she was safe. He had tried to rid himself of her the night before, and so leave behind all those human feelings, but it had backfired, and so caused him to feel them stronger.

A small growl escaped him as he curled his right hand into a fist, his nails digging into his mating scar. His red eyes became angry once more. It was all this girl's fault! If she didn't affect him like this, the hanyou wouldn't have broken free that time!

As he leaned over her, his claws extended, the youkai anger flowing through his veins once more, he felt the familiar bloodlust rise in him once again. He wanted to see her bleed, to feel the delight as his claws ripped through her flesh, to hear her cry out and moan in pain—

Or did he want her to moan in pleasure, hearing her cry his name in the night, when all else was asleep? He also wanted the joy of feeling her in his arms, being with her as one, touching her with his hands, making her his forevermore. Inuyasha wanted to have her once more, and hear her gasp as he felt her, moan as he kissed her—

He wanted both, to hear her scream as he took her forcefully, to see the fear in her eyes. Crying out in pain as he made her submit to his will…or seeing her scream in fear as he slashed at her, delight rising inside of him as he saw her blood on the ground.

Inuyasha didn't know which one to choose anymore. Before, he would have certainly wanted to rip her to pieces, like any other human he had met, but mating had given him a new idea for torture, one that he knew would possibly hurt her more.

But no matter what this girl had done to him, he couldn't do either. He knew he would never be able to do it. Being around her was enough to make the human emotions stir in him once more, trying to hurt her would only bring the hanyou from him again. And he couldn't let that happen, he didn't know what the foolish hanyou would do in his body.

Turning away sharply, he walked away from her and sat near the front of the cave, watching the wind whisper through the trees.

Kagome finally stirred. The first thing she knew was a painful throb in her stomach, and the second, that everything felt fuzzy. She slowly opened her eyes, to see a rock ceiling, different from the wooden one of the hut. She sat up sharply, looking around. She was in a cave, lying on grass, in the middle of a forest.

Her eyes focused on Inuyasha as he turned around and looked at her. He was still a youkai, red eyes, purple stripes, the long fangs, but there was something…different about him, somehow. She had seen him as a youkai before, but every time, he had looked angry. Now, though his face was slightly changed, Kagome could clearly see a look she had seen on Inuyasha many times, worry.

But, as soon as she saw it, he turned away, and looked back out of the cave. It then registered on her that he was wearing his haori once again, but she knew she didn't need it anymore. No matter what he looked like, he was here, with her, and that was enough for her.

But why is he with me? She wondered. Last night…she remembered when he had tried to kill her. And how he had hit her viciously, making her pass out. It seemed like he wanted me to be dead…why would be bring me here?

As she remembered the night before, a jolt went through Kagome as she remembered Inuyasha's transformation. It wasn't a dream, was it? she thought, remembering his confused face as he looked on the scene, how he said he didn't remember anything about what had happened.

Kagome's heart fluttered as she remembered the single kiss they had shared. It was such a little thing compared to what they had been through before, but it was enough. She had never been happier in the moment when she thought he had turned back into a hanyou.

Could it have been a hallucination? she wondered. That's happened to me before…did I just imagine him like that? But…it seemed and felt so real…

Her heart had resigned itself to the fact that her Inuyasha was gone before, but now that she didn't know if there was a possibility if he could come back or not, it felt even worse.

Kagome stood up from the make-shift bed, and walked over to Inuyasha, still avoiding looking at her. She sat down next to him, looking out at the trees. She knew her friends would not know she was here, or that she had even been kidnapped, she had told Sango she was thinking of going back to her time anyway, they would all think she had gone back, no one being able to check to see if this was true.

"It's pretty." Kagome said, looking at the view of the small area around the cave. There were only a few trees, with light passing through in rays to sparkle on the water. In this moment, it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

Her eyes glanced over at Inuyasha. He didn't answer. His red eyes were still fixed on the view, anywhere but her. He sat with his legs crossed, his arms folded across his chest, his long claws in plain view. If he didn't have the long, protruding fangs, Kagome could have sworn he looked more like her Inuyasha than ever. Youkai Inuyasha wasn't the same person as her lover, but the more she saw of him, the more alike she noticed they were.

Kagome tried again to get him to speak. "Don't you want to talk?" She asked, with a soft smile, hoping he would say something.

Inuyasha still said nothing, preferring to ignore her. It was easier to get control of his emotions when he ignored her. But Kagome was becoming annoyed, and as usual, he didn't sense it.

Kagome grabbed his arm, forcefully turning him towards her. "Look you! You kidnapped me and brought me here, tell me why!"

Her outburst caused anger to flash in his eyes. A growl escaped him as He grabbed the hand that held him, gripping it tightly by the wrist. Kagome gasped. She had forgotten that it wasn't the old Inuyasha, but the new one, who couldn't be controlled by her sudden, angry outbursts.

"Fine." Inuyasha said, in his deep youkai voice, his red eyes glaring at her. His claws dug into her wrist, and Kagome flinched with pain. "I brought you here because you are my mate. And as my mate, you'll do what I say."

He let go of her wrist, shoving it back at her. Kagome's eyes shown with a slight fear of him. He was not going to kill her, like he had tried, but ordering her around so forcefully…was not something she was used to. Though he had given her a small scare because of it, there was something she had to know. "I…I'm your mate?" she asked, her voice small.

Inuyasha turned around, a growl of confusion escaping him, as he looked at her with a stare of incredulity through his crimson eyes. "I mean…" Kagome asked, "You've accepted me as your mate?"

He didn't answer, just like he had before, but the way he turned around to look back at the trees was enough of an answer for her. This answer brought on a mixture of feelings for Kagome. On one hand, it might mean that he was starting to come back, if he had admitted to himself that she was his mate…but on the other side, he could order her to do anything, and she would have to do it, because she was his mate. She could refuse, of course, but she didn't want to anger him now.

But, if he's starting to come back…Kagome slowly reached out a hand to him, and put it on his shoulder, feeling him jump in surprise. "Inuyasha," she said, a small smile creeping up her face. "I'm sort of glad, that you brought me here."

As usual, he didn't reply. But unlike what Kagome assumed was the reason, his constant determination to ignore her, it was really because her voice had him hypnotized. "I mean," she continued, "It gives us some time together, like we had…before."

"Before what?" he asked, his voice low with annoyance.

Kagome sat in front of him, her brown eyes glaring. "Don't act like you don't know! Back before, when you were a hanyou!" His eyes turned sharply away from her. "Don't deny it, I know you know about that! You were a hanyou before, and your heart was human, remember? You know this isn't you!"

"That Inuyasha is gone." He replied sharply, glaring back at her. "And he's never coming back. It's done. And though we both don't like it, you're mine."

Kagome shook her head, her eyes turning to love. "Both don't like it?" she slowly reached her hand out, and touched his cheek, right over the purple stripe across it. Inuyasha didn't even bother to force her away, his eyes lit with surprise. "Inuyasha, No matter what you look like, I still want to be with you…No matter what form you're in, I still love you."

Her words unexpectedly lit up Inuyasha's heart. A minute before, he had hardened his heart against her, but he couldn't keep her out now. As the ice began to melt around his heart, everything suddenly became peaceful…The world wasn't one big battlefield, filled with blood for the spilling. It was filled with beauty, with life, with— Kagome…

A small gasp came from Kagome as she saw Inuyasha's eyes start to fade. The red slowly started turning to pure white, blue turning to amber. The purple stripes were beginning to disappear, and his fangs were definitely shrinking. Inuyasha…he's turning back!

But he blinked forcefully, turning away for a moment, and then when he looked back at her, his eyes were once again their red hue, everything back into place. His eyes were no more peaceful, not they were violently angry. Inuyasha grasped Kagome by the shoulders, claws digging into them, getting a gasp from her.

"You are my mate." He repeated his voice threateningly deep. "And you must do what I say." He flung her over back by the grass bed, hearing her yelp in surprise, her eyes fearful. "Don't move." He ordered. "And don't," his eyes flashed dangerously, "talk to me!"

Kagome's breaths came shakily,as she watched him place himself back where he was before, looking outside. Her heart thumped in fear as she remembered the anger in his eyes, anger at her for once again bring his hanyou side to the surface. But that statement she had made, it was all true. No matter what he was, no matter what he had done to her, she still couldn't keep herself from loving him.

It would be easy to hate him for the things he did. For the things he was doing to her. It would make everything more bearable. But she couldn't. She could never hate him, and thus, her heart suffered more torture than it had ever felt. She drew her knees up to her chest, and sat with her eyes downcast, saying nothing as she was told.

Inuyasha felt the unusual guilt once again, knowing that he had dug his claws into her skin once more. He didn't feel any pleasure from her blood on his claws; he felt a deep sinking in his chest. This wasn't supposed to happen. He was a youkai. She was human, he wasn't supposed to hurt her and then hate himself for it.

He gave a small growl to himself as he thought, his eyes flashing and gripping his hand into a fist, Damn hanyou!

Inuyasha knew that if he didn't hurt her as he did, he would find himself falling in love with her once more.

A/N: So…here's a moral for you, if you have sex with your boyfriend, he might turn evil and kill people, then kidnap you and abuse you! Remember that, children!

Just a reminder, this is my last chapter before a week break for finals. Have a good break! (Or not...I'll miss it too, you know.) But I promise you, I'll have a chapter up on Friday, so don't forget!