Morning arose a bit too quickly for Kagome, scrunching her eyes when the sun hit her face. She opened them and looked around. Kaede slept on the other side of the hut, and noticed immediately that where she was, or when she was, was all real.

She was still in the past, or repeating it in this case. There was no Miroku, no Sango, no Shippo, and not even Naraku, not yet anyway. But at least she wasn't alone. Inu-yasha was with her. There was the upside to it. But now the challenge would be to not change the past. This was real, and Inu-yasha knew it as well.

But something still bothered her. 'Mistress Centipede had all six arms the second time I saw her. But weren't one of her arms suppose to be in the well when I hit her?I don't get it . . . was it something that the well or . . . did someone actually sent us here?'

That was something she hadn't told Inu-yasha yet; she planned to tell him later. Right now she had to sneak out and head for the well, as she did before when she wondered if the well could send her home. Before she exited the hut, she looked around the area, making sure no one was watching, then made a run for it to the nearest tree and hid behind it. She looked around again, this time noticing a clad of red hidden in the tree next to Kaede's hut, but Kagome noticed more the amber eyes that watched her from there.

'Inu-yasha.'

They looked to each other for a period of time till Inu-yasha mouthed out something to her.

'Be safe.'

Kagome smiled brightly to him and nodded, turning then to the woods and toward the well, taking her time.

Inu-yasha sighed as she disappeared into the depths of the woods. He had to wait for Kaede to go look for Kagome around the village before he could bound off to, purposively, 'look' for her.

'But why do I have a bad feeling about letting her go?'

Kagome had to take the woods instead of the road to the well, trying to remember which way she went to get there. She knew that the bandits were behind her, long ago hearing their footsteps. She silently waited for them to catch up, then stopped and awaited for them to sneak behind her and snatch her.

It didn't surprise her when they grabbed both of her arms and covered her mouth, and then began dragging her to their place. She struggled and whined, but she wasn't scared . . . not as much, anyway. But why? Kagome knew that Inu-yasha will come to her rescue at the nick of time. She had full confidence that he will come to rescue her.

But something was wrong, and she knew it, when her eyes were covered with a blind.

Inu-yasha fidgeted on his perch on the roof. It had been a while since he had seen Kagome last, and he was getting worried. 'Kaede should be up by now!', he thinks, 'She shouldn't sleep in so late. Doesn't she have chores at this time of morning?'

He was annoyed and he knew it. But he had to wait. He didn't have a choice. If he left now, there might not be another chance for the jewel to shatter. This was a one time thing that had to be done. He had to. If he had to wait forever, he would . . . would he?

All thought's halted when Kaede's head popped out of her hut and looked around. "Kagome?" she called. "Where did she get to?"

'Close enough.'

He bounded off to the hideout.

Kagome's eyes were still covered when she was slammed to the wooden floor, strong, dirty arms holding her down. The blind was finally removed, and she was faced with the boss, the boss that was a walking corpse. The dummy was slouched on the floor drinking sake, and also drooling. Kagome was disgusted. The body lifted itself warily to a better sitting position.

Kagome struggled for freedom, but knew it was no use from the start since she was barely trying and her captors were too strong. She was suddenly lifted from her collar by the dummy, then dropped. She looked up to see the big man favoring the Shikon Jewel that was once around her neck. Kagome tried to reach for it.

"Hey!" she called. "Give that back!"

She was suddenly faced with his blade. "Huuhhh . . .hold her."

Kagome was held in front of him by his goons. He lifted his sword above her, and aimed.

'What?' she thought confused, 'something's wrong. He doesn't look that dis-coordinated.' She gasped

His blade came down fast.

'Oh no.'

He hit his target.

"Kagome!" Inu-yasha slammed into the wall of the thieves hideout, claws drawn and ready to slash at any man who had Kagome.

But the room was completely empty.

"What? Where is everyone?" There was no trace of any scent of Kagome or the bandits being here. That meant that they were never here to begin with . . . meaning they were somewhere else.

'No! Why didn't I use my nose! I thought that they would be in the same place as before! . . . Wait, if they weren't here, that meant that the past has changed. Then . . .'

"Dammit!" he quickly caught Kagome's scent, and dashed toward that direction. If the past has changed, that meant that anything could happen, even . . .

"No. . . I can't think of that! I won't let that happen! KAGOME!"

Short and sucky, but its still a chapter and a very important part of this fic. And BTW:

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I am the almighty evil author! I will update as long as u guys give me more reviews! Heheheheheheheheh . . . .