Author's Note: First point of order! THANKS SO MUCH YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME! I thought we'd get 60 reviews and I woke up this morning and there were 83 of them! You guys are soooo awesome.

Second point of order! A great big "Thank You" to fireblazie, who kindly pointed out that I had anonymous reviews disabled. Thanks so much for telling me that, I was completely unaware :P

For those of you that wanted to know whether Kikyou and Inuyasha broke up - well, she's pretty much plotting revenge against him and Kagome so I think it's safe to say that they hate each other. :D

Let's see if we can reach 100 reviews after this chapter!

Chapter 5: Kikyou's Revenge

Two weeks had passed; two weeks in which Kagome, Sango, Miroku and Inuyasha had become better friends and grown even more apart from everybody else in Cameron Drake High School. The last remnants of Inuyasha's time of popularity had faded into the dust; the last few people that had followed him hopefully, confident that he would once again claim the title of "The Coolest", had given up on him and instead turned to their new leader, Arik. Kikyou had taken to glaring at Inuyasha whenever they passed each other, but everybody else in the school acted as if the group of outcasts didn't exist. Inuyasha was beginning to feel all the effects of being unaccepted; the constant silent treatment, the wide collection of cold shoulders, and the utter cast-outedness. But he always looked forwards to seeing Sango, Miroku and Kagome; so long as they were all together, the rest of the idiots in Cameron Drake could go stuff themselves, for all they cared. They were happy, just being themselves. The rest of the high school looked down their noses at them; the group of exiles had become almost alien.

It was Wednesday. On Wednesdays Kagome had to come to school early, as her little brother had a band practice of some sort and her mother wouldn't be able to drop her off at school at the normal time. The previous Wednesday, Inuyasha had been able to come early as well, but this time something had come up and he had been unable to accompany her. He would only be able to get to school around the same time that Sango and Miroku did. Kagome hadn't minded; she would be able to take care of herself, after all, and it would give her time to think about Sango's 'big date' with Miroku that was coming up on Saturday. It had been decided that the four of them would go, but Inuyasha and Kagome would leave halfway through so that Miroku and Sango could have some 'alone time'. Sango hadn't been very happy about this, but eventually agreed to it after Miroku had sworn not to grope her, and proved himself by not touching her for an entire day. It had obviously been difficult for him, but in the end he had managed to win Sango's partial trust.

Kagome made her way along the familiar path to the large tree that stood in the middle of the schoolyard, a smile growing on her face. Nobody else in the school came close to the tree; it had become the territory of what the entire student body referred to as "The Four". Kagome settled herself beneath its wide branches, entertaining herself by twirling her hair around her finger and daydreaming about how the date would go. Apparently Miroku was planning to take Sango to a fancy restaurant near a lake. Sango had promised Kagome that they would go shopping on Friday after school, to pick out outfits for the both of them. Kagome didn't have anything fancy that still fit her, and Sango just liked going clothes-shopping -for all her outward violent tendencies, she was just a normal teenage girl underneath.

Lost in thought, Kagome almost didn't hear the footsteps approaching her; but when she did hear them, she looked up and smiled. "Inuyasha, I thought you said you were going to be late?"

She didn't receive an answer. "Inuyasha?" she asked again, before feeling something hard hit her head. All sounds around her faded away into nothingness as she slipped into unconsciousness.

When Kagome finally came to, her first instinct was to freeze. The only thing supporting her was a thin branch beneath her, and a skinny tree trunk. She felt along the wood's surface; there was only one tree in the grounds of Cameron Drake High School - The Four's tree -and its trunk would only be this thin ifshe was sitting very high up. Instinctively, she wrapped her arms around the wood, feeling a cold wind tousle her hair. She knew that she was high off the ground. She ran her hands over her surroundings again, trying to find some way to get down, and came across a piece of paper with raised marks on it. She picked it up, recognizing the Braille alphabet. Rubbing her head - it still hurt from whatever had hit her - she ran her fingers over the letters, reading the note.

Kagome,

I warned you not to disturb the social hierarchy. We need to teach you a lesson. This is step one. I wouldn't suggest moving very much; who knows what would happen if you fell?

The note was unsigned, but Kagome knew who it was from: Kikyou. She had been planning revenge on Kagome -for taking Inuyasha away from her -for a long time. She dropped the piece of paper, notwanting it anymore, and she wrapped her hands tightly around the branch beneath her. She wondered if there was any way to get down on her own; otherwise, she'd have to wait for Sango, Miroku and Inuyasha to come. In the meantime, she had her fear of heights to deal with.

She stuck out one of her legs, trying to come into contact with a branch on a lower level. There was nothing in front of her that she could reach, but behind her, her shoe bumped into a sturdy branch a foot or so below her. She held onto her current branch very tightly, lowering herself as slow as she could until both her feet were touching the lower branch. Balancing herself as well as she could, she let go of the higher branch, shifting her weight to the lower one. She tipped backwards a little bit, but managed to grab onto the trunk of the tree before she fell over.

Her heart was beating hard in her chest; that was the most frightening thing she had done in a long time. What if she had fallen over? How far away was the ground?

But she forced these thoughts out of her head as she stuck out her leg again, looking for yet another lower branch to fall onto. Again, she found one that wasn't too far away. She did the same thing that she had done before, but this time almost completely lost her balance before she managed to grab onto the trunk.

Wiping the sweat from her forehead, she sat down on the branch, leaning against the trunk of the tree. At least she was making some progress, no matter how slow it had been. Oh, if only Inuyasha was here; he would be able to get her down from the tree in a matter of seconds.

She looked in the direction of the parking lot, hopeful that she would hear the sound of car tires, some kind of reassurance that her friends would come soon; but there was only the sound of birds singing in the distance. It was much too early for anybody else to be in the schoolyard, and even if there -was- another person, there was virtually no chance that they would help her out of this predicament.

So she stuck out her leg again, this time coming into contact with absolutely nothing. She slumped forwards, feeling defeated. There was no way that she could just make a blind jump for another branch; she could get very badly hurt. There was always the possibility of making herself hang down from the branch she was sitting on and try to find a lower level that way; but there wasstill the chance that she'd still find nothing, and she doubted that she would have the strength to pull herself back up.

However, after waiting a full five minutes with her back against the trunk of the tree, shaking out of nervousness, she decided that she had to at least try and get herself out of this mess. She couldn't believe that Kikyou would do such a horrendous thing as bring a blind girl up to the top of a tree. What kind of monster even -thought- of such a plan, let alone carried it out?

But she tried not to think thoughts that would make her angry, as she needed to concentrate as much as possible on the task at hand.

With a death-grip on her current branch, she managed to lower herself slowly under it. As her feet fell away from the branch she completely lost her balance and began to fall; but she hadn't yet let go of the branch above her, so now she was merely hanging from it. She kicked around, trying to find another branch that she could let herself fall onto; she wouldn't be able to hold herself up like this for very long. Luckily, she managed to kick something solid. Her foot aching slightly, she swung herself until she was pretty sure that the branch was below her, and let go of the only thing connecting her to the tree.

Time, as well as her heart, seemed to stop as she hung in midair for a split second, not touching anything save open air; completely separated from the world. But she was only hanging in the air for a split second before her feet hit the branch that she had been aiming for, and she hugged herself tightly to the trunk of the tree, scared out of her mind. What had propelled her to do something so stupid? She could have missed the branch, she could have fallen all the way down to the ground, she could have been -killed-...

A few tears fell down her face as she refused to let go of the tree's trunk, which was thickening now that she wasn't as close to the top. She was still scared out of her mind, and although she was happy with her progress, her body, paralyzed with the prolonged fear, was refusing to let her go any further. So now she was helpless, holding onto the tree for dear life, her eyes squeezed shut more out of reflex than anything, silent tears streaming down her face.

"My lovely Sango, are you excited about our big night?" Miroku asked teasingly. Sango grumbled and ignored him. Inuyasha had to suppress a chuckle; they had been acting like this for a long time now, Miroku seeming as if he was walking on air, Sango blushing furiously whenever he mentioned the date. Inuyasha got the feeling that she was looking forwards to it, though she absolutely refused to admit it, even to herself. He grinned. He, too, was looking forwards to it; who would miss a chance to see Miroku out on a date with -anyone-, let alone Sango?

But his urge to laugh stopped just as suddenly as if somebody had put a bullet through his head when they came to the tree that had become their territory. Sango and Miroku stared at him for a moment, not understanding, and then followed his gaze; up into the branches of the tree.

Kagome was still holding onto the branch below her, her knuckles as white as snow. She had a bleeding cut on her knee that she didn't even seem to know existed. She was crying, holding onto the wood as if it was her lifeline. She was at least twenty or thirty feet off the ground; maybe seven feet below the highest branch of the tree.

"Kagome!" Sango shouted, looking up at her best friend. "Inuyasha, can you go help her or something?"

Inuyasha was already beginning his ascent up the tree, easily reaching the branch that Kagome was sitting on. He stood in front of her, balanced on a lower branch, at eye level with the crying girl. She seemed to be in a state of near-panic, not even noticing that he was there.

"Kagome?" Inuyasha asked gently. Her eyes snapped open and she cried out in shock, falling backwards off her branch; Inuyasha caught herarm easily, bringing her back to the branch she had been sitting on, but was unable to actually lift her up. He wasn't balanced enough for that; in all likelihood, if he tried to lift her from her current position, they would both fall. She held on to his wrists as tightly as she could, surprising Inuyasha with her strength. "Kagome, are you alright?" he asked. She shook her head in response.

"Inuyasha, is that you?" she asked, crying harder now for some reason that Inuyasha couldn't understand. "Inuyasha, it was horrible - they knocked me unconscious - and then I was at the top of the tree - and I climbed down here but I almost fell and then I froze and I was just waiting and...and...it was so horrible," she cried, the words falling out in a rush. Anger flared up in Inuyasha.

"Who did this?" he asked, already knowing the answer. "It was Kikyou and her gang, wasn't it?" Kagome could only nod in answer, still refusing to let go of Inuyasha. "Come on, we have to get you down," he said. "Can you slip off the branch?"

Kagome shook her head furiously, letting go of Inuyasha's wrists and instead holding onto her branch. "How high up are we?" she asked. Inuyasha bit his lip, knowing that if he told her, she'd get even more panicky than she already was.

"Kagome, it really doesn't matter, I'm going to get you down from there," he said. "Just slip off the branch, I promise you won't fall."

"How high up are we?" she asked again. "Tell me and then I'll come down."

Inuyasha looked down at the ground, trying to judge how high up he was. "Twenty-five, maybe thirty feet," he answered truthfully. Kagome's face blanched.

"You've got to be kidding me," she said, "How far did I manage to come down?"

"Were you at the very top of the tree?" Inuyasha asked. Kagome nodded, and Inuyasha found himself surprised again. "Well then, I'm proud of you, because you managed to come down six or seven feet." Just like the last time she had tried to climb the tree, Inuyasha was surprised at her bravery. "Okay, now you promised me that you'd come down."

"And you promised that I wouldn't fall," Kagome reminded him.

"Right," Inuyasha answered. "Now, just slip off the branch."

Kagome bit her lip, but loosened her grip slightly on the branch below her. "Where are you?" she asked. "Just keep talking so I know where you are."

"Alright," Inuyasha said. He began to tell Kagome all about Miroku's plans for his date with Sango. "He's going to take her to some restaurant," Inuyasha explained, "and apparently when we're gone, if everything's going well, he might try to kiss her."

Kagome gasped. "He wouldn't!" she said. She was almost ready to slip off the branch hand Inuyasha kept talking, explaining how Miroku's a little nervous, but confident that everything would go fine. He stopped talking when Kagome finally lifted herself off the branch, sliding perfectly towards the branch that Inuyasha was standing on. He held her up as she regained her balance, a huge smile spreading across her face when her feet were on something solid again.

"See? That wasn't so difficult," Inuyasha said. "Now, do you want to make your own way down the tree or should I bring you down?"

"You can just bring me down," Kagome answered, and Inuyasha noticed that she was shaking. "I think I've had enough excitement for one morning."

Back at the bottom of the tree, Miroku and Sango were watching this progression of events with disbelief in their eyes. "She made it all the way down there on her own?" Miroku asked. "I don't think I'd ever do that if I couldn't see where I was going; heck, I might not even do that if I -could- see where I was going."

Sango chuckled. "Yeah, she's one-of-a-kind," she agreed. She began to cheer when Inuyasha finally made it all the way down the tree with a still-shaking Kagome in his arms. She had grabbed fistfuls of his shirt and was refusing to let go, even when Inuyasha told her she was on solid ground.

"I don't believe you," she answered. "You're an evil liar." But it was obvious that she was teasing him. Inuyasha laughed.

"Well, you could just stay in my arms forever, but by the end of time, you'd be pretty dizzy," Inuyasha said, spinning around three times as fast as he could. Kagome shrieked again.

"Okay, okay, put me down now," she said, smiling. Inuyasha complied, setting her down on the grass. She immediately sat down, running her hands through the blades of grass almost disbelievingly.

"Thanks so much for getting me down from there," she said, her voice still quivering from the scare. "You have no idea how freaky it is."

"I can imagine, dear Kagome," Miroku said, sitting down next to the girl. "But I'm sure that with a guardian angel as suitable as Inuyasha, no harm will come to you as long as you live." Kagome laughed a bit. Inuyasha glared at Miroku.

"Come on guys, there are more pressing matters at hand," Sango said. "You two can argue all you want after we get our revenge on Kikyou."

Kagome, Inuyasha and Miroku fell silent as they thought about this. "We -do- need to get our revenge on her, don't we?" Inuyasha asked, pondering the possibilities.

"Inuyasha, you know her better than the rest of us do, seeing as you were a couple for such a long time," Miroku said, almost teasing Inuyasha. The half-demon glared at him. "What's the one thing that she's most afraid of?" he asked.

Inuyasha's ears folded onto his head as he thought about this. Miroku, unable to help himself, burst into laughter at the sight. Inuyasha glared at him.

"What's so funny?" Inuyasha asked, his voice threatening. Miroku continued to giggle helplessly.

"Your...ears..." he managed to choke out, before collapsing with laughter again. Sango rolled her eyes.

"Kagome, the reason Miroku is so utterly beside himself is because Inuyasha's ears are pressed against his scalp," Sango explained. "It is kinda funny, though," she said, grinning.

"I don't get it," Kagome said. "How can his ears be pressed against his scalp?" She scratched at her own ears. "They're on the side of your head, not on top of it."

Sango and Miroku stopped laughing, staring at Kagome. "You mean you never knew?" Miroku asked. Kagome looked in his direction with a confused look on her face.

"Never knew what?" she asked. Inuyasha gawked.

"I'm a half-dog-demon," he explained.

"I know that," Kagome answered. "What does that have to do with your ears?"

Inuyasha mumbled an answer incoherently under his breath. Kagome cupped her hand around her own ear, trying to hear what he was saying. "Sorry, what was that?" she asked, smiling. "I didn't quite catch what you said."

"I have dog ears," Inuyasha said, a little louder. Kagome's eyes widened in shock, and she immediately stood up and ran behind Inuyasha, kneeling down and combing her fingers through his hair. Inuyasha tensed up in shock. "What on earth are you doing?" he asked, looking over his shoulder at the girl. She was beaming.

"Where are they?" she asked. Inuyasha rolled his eyes as Sango walked over to Kagome, guiding her hand over to the fluffy white dog ears that stood on top of Inuyasha's head. Once Sango had helped Kagome find them, she sat back down next to Miroku.

Kagome squealed in delight, scratching happily at the dog ears. Inuyasha glared at Sango for only a moment before he couldn't help but give into the pleasure of having his ears rubbed. Kagome giggled as Inuyasha began to purr faintly.

"Why didn't you -tell- me you have dog ears?" she asked, obvious delight in her voice. "Omigosh, they're so cute!" Inuyasha hated himself for being utterly helpless. It just felt so good...

Miroku fell over laughing, and even Sango was chuckling as Inuyasha's eyes closed halfway and he leaned into Kagome's touch.

"Why didn't we tell her about this sooner?" Miroku asked, between fits of laughter. "I can't believe that we prolonged this entertainment for so long..."

Eventually Inuyasha grew tired of the jokes being made at his expense. "Oh, shut up," he said half-heartedly. Kagome stopped rubbing his ears, and Inuyasha mentally kicked herself for wanting her to start again. "I don't understand why you guys find that so funny."

Kagome rubbed her hands together in delight. "Okay, that's it. I'm going to have to remember those ears, but for now, I think we should get back to Kikyou." The very thought of the heartless girl sent shivers through Kagome.

"I'll think about the best thing we can do to get back at her," Inuyasha said. Kagome smiled. "But for now, we should probably be getting ready for class."

Sango looked down at her watch. "Crap, he's right," she exclaimed. "We're going to be late. Come on, come on! See you guys at lunch," she said, smiling at Inuyasha, Kagome and Miroku before running off. Miroku followed her, leaving Inuyasha with Kagome.

"I honestly can't believe that you didn't tell me about those ears of yours," Kagome said, delight in her voice. Inuyasha groaned, took Kagome's hand, and led her into the school.

Author's Note: Oooh, that chapter was fun to write. And I know that you're all just dying to see Kikyou get her just desserts! If you have any suggestions for what "The Four" (tee hee hee)should do to her, tell me in a review! Who knows, maybe I'll find one (or two, or three) that I like:D

Let's see if we can hit 100 reviews after this chapter! i:hugs everyone: