Disclaimer: I PROMISE I DON'T OWN INUYASHA!

Well, ready for another chapter?

Well, here you go!

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Chapter 9

Kikyo's mind wandered as she made her way to the cave. She would use everyone else to her advantage, all of them thinking she was on their side, when she was really on her own. Hatred was burning inside her since she had released her claim on Inuyasha. That growing hatred pushed her to accomplish her greatest desire. Soon, Inuyasha and Naraku would be killed, and she could move on.

'Men are such fools...why would they trust me, a dead woman, who has no other wanting in her heart than to get revenge?' She thought with angry emotions rolling inside of her, 'Men, who call themselves great, are really no better than women. They can't read what a woman feels if she doesn't wish them to, except for fear...but I have none.'

She reached the enterence of the cave and stopped shortly and continued on, going in.

"Kikyo...finally, what took you so long?"

She looked at Naraku with an unemotional face, wondering if he really believed she was on his side after all he had done to her, after all the pain he had caused her.

"I have the innocent to look after, unlike you, who repeatedly injures them, keeping me away longer," She responded calmly, the lie aparently satisfying the half-demon.

He stood from his silk mat that laid on the floor, walking to her, coming close, too close for Kikyo herself to be comfortable, "I'm a demon, that's what I do. I kill, and I enjoy it."

Kikyo despised the way he smiled as he spoke, and to show it, said, "You're not a demon, Naraku, you are a half-demon, no better than Inuyasha."

"We'll just see, won't we Kikyo? I'll kill him, and his friends, and then we'll know who's stronger."

"I know who's stronger," Kikyo said without fear as she looked into his wicked eyes, "Without me, you will be unable to defeat Inuyasha. He IS the stronger one, no matter if you deny it, but Inuyasha could never bring himself to kill me."

Naraku's anger slipped briefly, then he smiled again, "Of course, why didn't I think of it before...Inuyasha wouldn't kill you, the woman he loved before I made you betray eachother. Yes...Kikyo, if you wish to live, you will be the one to kill Inuyasha."

Kikyo smirked, her first sign of emotion since she had spoke with him, "You fool, I am already dead. Why do you and Inuyasha have so much trouble grasping that? Your threats of death do not scare me, but still, I will play whatever part you would like me to in Inuyasha's death."

A cruel, quiet laugh made an unusual chill go down the dead priestesses spine.

"Very good..."

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"You idiot...how did you fall? The ground is completely flat," Inuyasha asked having gotten back from getting food just in time to see Kagome sitting on the ground with tears of pain in her eyes.

The group had finished burrying the dead, and then Sango and Miroku went off together. Shippo and Kohaku were off playing, and Kirara was sitting next to the fire, asleep.

"It's not like I meant to!" Kagome yelled angrily as she struggled to stand up then stepped down on her sore ankle.

It coudn't support the weight though and it gave out, but Inuyasha caught her in his arms as she started to fall, and they were yet again staring eachother in the eyes.

As he looked at her, he scolded gently, "You've always been a cluts. How do you plan to battle with your ankle like that?"

"It's fine...I just need to move it a little..." Kagome lied quickly and Inuyasha scowled.

"Ha, yeah right. You look like you're about to cry."

Wanting to prove him wrong, she tried to walk again, and her foot had barely touched the ground before she winced and started to wobble, using Inuyasha's arm to steady herself, defeated.

"I told you..." Inuyasha scooped her up into his arms, one arm under her knees and the other supporting her back, "I don't understand how you've survived this long in my time..."

Kagome knew of course, but didn't say anything, surprised to be caried the way she was.

'Inuyasha, what are you doing?' Kagome thought to herself.

He put her carefully down on her sleeping bag, then asked, "Where's your injury kit?"

She was taken aback, but answered non the less, "It's in my bag. What are you doing?"

He gave her an impatiant look which more or less told her to hang on as he dug through her bag, aparently on a mission, practicly throwing everything out, other than the box that held the necklace, which he put gently to the side.

"Let me see your ankle," He ordered, finally finding it at the bottom of the bag and coming to sit beside her, holding a large wrap used for sprains.

"But how did you know to use that?" Kagome questioned.

"You used it on Sango's wrist before, remember? Now be quiet and let me fix it."

Kagome couldn't help but giggle. That sounded so funny coming from him.

"What?" He glared, her little laugh making him suspicious.

"Nothing..." Kagome replied, still smiling as he wrapped the stretchy cloth around her ankle making it just tight enough to where it would help, but not hurt her.

"Thanks, Inuyasha." She whispered.

"Feh."

Kagome looked at him. He sat there the same way he always did, arms and legs crossed, face emotionless. He was sometimes grouchy and blunt, not to mention annoying, but he was so absolutly caring, she was touched.

He tried to act so tough, but it was him who had just bandaged her ankle, it was him that tried to help her whenever he could.

He was always there to catch her.

Inuyasha looked at her briefly and growled, "What have I told you about looking at me like that? It's annoying."

"Yeah, well you have no room to talk! You're always staring at me and you don't see me getting angry every time!"

"That's not the same thing!" Inuyasha yelled and stood up, walking away from her before he said something stupid that would just manage to embarass him.

He headed towards the trees, finding a huge one that would be perfect for him to sit in and just think.

'She doesn't understand...She looks at me, and it makes me feel different, like I can't control myself...' Inuyasha thought with a helpless sigh, 'It's not like I ever tell her anything so she can understand...but she always seems to work it out anyway.'

Sitting there in the three foot wide tree branch, he felt alone. Would this loneliness he was feeling so soon from being away from her just a preview of what he would feel like if she left his era forever, not able to leave her other family and friends?

Did Kagome know how much he hated being away from her? When she went back to her time for days, time to him felt like forever, and to make himself not feel so week, start fights with her whenever she came back, trying to hide the fact that he had missed her.

She was his weekness, the one thing that could make him give up everything just to make her happy. Why had it taken him so long to realize that? Why had he always blinded himself from his feelings for her? Was it Kikyo...was it his belief of how he felt about her what made him not be able to see Kagome the way he did now?

Was it his regret, his inability to protect her before what had made him want to try again, or the pitty that he felt for her having died believing he had killed her?

Kikyo really was dead, something he had always had trouble remembering, but now, Kagome was the one that needed him, she was the one that needed whatever protection he could give her, even though he had failed Kikyo, he could not and would not fail Kagome. She was his everything, something Kikyo hadn't been. She was the one who had told him that being a half-demon wasn't a bad thing, that he was perfect as one.

Before her, no one had ever told him that.

"Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha's heart warmed at Kagome's voice which carried up to him from the round.

He stared down at her intently, knowing she was unaware he was just above her. The trees were her support as she was still unable to walk on her ankle without causing herself pain, and Inuyasha cursed himself. He should have known she would come looking for him, even if that meant hurting herself more.

"You really are an idiot...what are you thinking? Your just going to make your ankle hurt more," He scolded and jumped down beside her.

Kagome jumped, nearly falling over. She had thought about asking Kirara to take her, but she had been sleeping and didn't want to wake her.

Ignoring his comments, she went on to say what she had come to say, "I'm sorry Inuyasha...I didn't mean to make you angry."

"Forget about it, you didn't, I just needed to go and think. You shouldn't have come here by yourself. There are demons, and with your injury, there's no way to outrun them, and plus, you didn't even bring your bow and arrows."

Inuyasha got angrier at the thought of her being killed, eaten by some demon, without any protection at all, and he continued, "You could have gotten yourself KILLED. Doesn't that matter to you?"

With a frown, Kagome looked at the dirt, understanding that he was right, and she had been an idiot, "I wasn't thinking about myself when I left, I was thinking about you."

Inuyasha looked at her, finally, something she said that he could understand. He often did the same thing, forgetting about himself and only worrying about her, "It's getting dark, we should get back before the others come looking for us."

He helped her climb onto his back, making sure he didn't bump her ankle, and secretly worrying how long it would take to heal.

"Inuyasha, I'm sorry I didn't think before coming after you...I should have at least brought my arrows and-"

"Kagome, don't worry about it, alright? I understand."

'He understands? But he never understands...' Kagome thought to herself, 'Is he mad that we will have to wait until my leg heals to move on?That would slow us down so much...I could travel though, with Inuyasha carrying me.'

"Inuyasha?"

"Yeah?"

"How long will it be before we reach Naraku?"

Naraku was hidding again, Inuyasha knew that, but he still had his scent, and with that, it didn't matter where the bastard was hiding, he would kill him no matter what, and once he was dead, they would go after Akakios and his daughters.

Suddenly, the strong scent of Sango's blood filled his nose and he ran faster, forgetting to answer Kagome's question, and her forgetting she had asked one, "What is it Inuyasha?"

"It's Sango, I can smell a lot of her blood..."

Kagome gasped, holding onto Inuyasha around his shoulders as tight as she could as he ran faster than he normaly did.

'Miroku, you better be there with her...' Inuyasha growled in his mind, because if the monk wasn't, they had a major problem on their hands.

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Hmmm...I wonder what happened...-hand covers evil grin-

Well, you'll have to wait to find out until I update again...SO anyway, what do you think?

Was it blah? How about ok?

So, does anyone have any guesses to what happened? You can put what you think when you review! -smile-