(Very long chapter that could probably be cut up a bit better. Takes place the night before chapter one. No, really. I skip around through time like crazy. I don't know what I was thinking, but there you go. Hunting and fighting a Shadow Demon, methinks. I'm too lazy to read it. If you bother to, though, please leave a review and let me know how it goes. Bad grammar is STILL there.)


Chapter 2

The high ground, a small cliff with large boulders that jutted out at random angles through the grass, looked down into the vast, open valley that was devoid of any tree or brush. The crisp, green grass stretched towards the horizon in an uninterrupted sea of hills and plains. Far in the distance, dim and small in the gathering darkness, was a range of snow-topped mountains. The sun hovered high above the peaks, diminishing in size and light as night crept inevitably closer. Heavy black rain clouds waited overhead with the ominous intention of loosing their storms across the valley. They were thick with water, hardly able to contain it, and yet still they waited for the time of their own choice. On this cliff stood the six companions, surveying this scene. A cold wind rolled down from the mountains, whipping over the grass like a wave, breaking over their faces.

"I smell demon." InuYasha said, his voice unintentionally loud. He stood atop a high rock that jutted out from the face of the low cliff. The hillock on which they stood seemed like an ugly scar on an otherwise blemish free body. With its white wall and sparse, dead grass it did not fit in with the beauty around it. The half-demon had his hands on his sword, one wrapped around the hilt while the other gripped the scabbard. "Really close, too."

"The wind could be deceiving your nose." Said Miroku serenely. His sharp blue eyes scanned the horizon critically while his mind swept over the land. "I do feel something abnormal here, but not a demon. If what you say is correct, then this demon is unimaginably weak." InuYasha squinted down at the monk, who was standing beside him but on the ground just below.

"I don't know why you think your guesses are more reliable than my nose!" He said. He sniffed the air indignantly, just to be sure. "There is definitely a demon here."

"Kirara senses it too." Said Sango from behind them. She held the small cat demon in her arms. Kiraras soft, cream fur was bristling, her black ears flat against her head. She was growling lowly, her nose wrinkled, her two tails rigidly twitching. Sango ran a hand through the fur on her back to comfort her. "It's strong, what ever it is." She said, looking down at Kirara, her forehead knit in concern. She thought about following Mirokus example and scanning the horizon for signs of the demon, but the deepening gloom stole her attention. The clouds were moving against the wind, gathering together and in doing so blocking the slowly setting sun from view. Sango frowned, finding something vaguely familiar in the unnatural movements of the clouds.

Kagome, with Shippo on her shoulder, climbed onto a boulder not too far from InuYasha. The young fox-demon slid from his perch as she climbed, and had to catch on to her shoulder with his sharp claws to keep from falling. Kagome winced and reached up, taking Shippo into her arms once she was safely on the boulder. She squinted through the dimming light, and Shippo followed her gaze. He could not see it, but there was something in the distance. It flickered and danced, moving fleetingly away from them. Kagome gasped, drawing backwards so suddenly that she nearly threw herself from the rock. She wheeled 'round, pointing off in the direction she had seen the flicker.

"A jewel shard!" She yelled in excitement. All the group turned their heads in her direction, including Shippo who craned his head backwards to looked up at her chin. She nodded at their bewildered looks, her hand hoping up and down as she pointed fervently. "InuYasha, look there! See that shadow? You must be right! There's a jewel shard running from us!"

Miroku hopped up to share the boulder with InuYasha, straining his eyes against the darkness to see what Kagome had meant. There was, to his surprise, a thick shadow moving across the grass. It did not move very quickly, and Miroku was unable to determine what it was. Even with it in his sights, he could not feel the presence of an evil demon coming from it. InuYasha pushed Miroku out of his way, sending the monk toppling from the rock. He caught himself and landed on his feet, spinning around to glare up at the half demon in irritation.

"A jewel shard!" InuYasha followed the invisible line traced by Kagomes finger and saw the shadow for himself. He gagged on a scoff, looking over at the girl, "Why didn't you see it earlier, Kagome?" He asked accusingly, his shoulders tense and his jaw set firm. He didn't wait longer than that for an answer, however. He leapt from the boulder, his powerful legs launching him across the valley in a burst of almost blinding speed. He was running before he landed, his bare toes biting into the earth and kicking up clods of dirt as he took off in the direction of the jewel shard. These clods, accompanied by torn grass and various bugs, hit Miroku who was only a few moments behind InuYasha. He yelled in annoyance, his arms raised as shields against the unintended barrage. His voice, however, was lost against the pounding of his sandaled feet and the whistling of the wind about his ears.

Kirara leapt from Sangos arms. With a roar that grew from a soft meow to a deafening thunder she transformed. Fire enveloped her as her lithe body lengthened and thickened with powerful muscles. Her bushy, black striped tails grew and whipped at the air, flames rustling through the thick fur harmlessly. Her black paws grew in size, claws emerging from thickly padded toes, and her ankles were wreathed in fire. Her muscles rolled and tightened powerfully, while her teeth lengthened and sharpened. Two fangs grew down from the roof of her mouth to the size and lethality of knives. The fire washed away on the wind, save for the wisps on her ankles and tails. She roared once more, boldly and in earnest, nodding her head at Sango. Sango, after handing her pack to Kagome to care for, leapt on to the demons back. She was wearing her casual kimono and long green skirt; not having time enough to change into her armor. The Hiraikotsu was strapped to her back, and she had tucked her katana, in its scabbard, into the sash around her waist. Before rushing after the two boys, she turned to Kagome.

"Don't get too close, either of you." She looked quickly at Shippo with a stern glance, and he nodded quickly, "I have a very bad feeling about this, and Kirara does too. Take care of each other." At this Kagome and Shippo exchanged bemused looks. Sango was gone, however, before either could question her worry. Kiraras heavy paws kicked at the air and she took flight almost effortlessly, Sango bent low over her back with her arms around her neck. The two left on the hillock watched as Kirara and Sango cut through the air after the boys, flames curling in their wake.

Kagome plopped herself dejectedly on the rock, legs crossed with her elbows on her knees and her hands cupping her face. She sighed heavily, her eyes straining across the distance after her friends. She could see nothing now, save the occasional glimmer of the jewel shard. Shippo hopped from her shoulder and nestled himself in her lap. She looked down at him, her face bland.

"I guess we just sit here and wait for them to come back with that shard." Said the fox-demon, sounding very pleased with the idea. He made himself comfortable in her lap, resting on his side with his head on her thigh and his legs curled up against his chest. His eyes did not stray from Kagomes face, however, and the sadness of it destroyed his good feeling. He sat up, leaning against her leg with his arms folded over his chest. "What? Do you want to go and fight with them, Kagome?"

"No." Answered Kagome after a moments' thoughtful pause. "No, I don't like battles. I just wish there was something I could do to help them more often." She leaned back, putting her hands on the boulders surface behind her to keep balance.

"You can see the jewel shards! Without you we'd be chasing out tails!" Shippo said happily, his cheerful green eyes sparkling with his natural, youthful exuberance, "And you're a great shot with your bow, too!"

"Hmm…" Kagome looked up at the sky, and Shippo knew that the conversation was over. He continued to watch her face, unsure as to if he had helped her or not. Her gaze did not flicker down to him, however; but instead grew more and more intent on the sky.

"Are you okay?" Kagome jumped at the sound of Shippos voice. The silence between them had grown thick, though; she had not been aware of it. Shippo patted her knee apologetically, continuing, "You look confused. What's wrong?"

"Nothing…" Still she did not look down at him. Frowning, Shippo followed her eyes into the sky, but could not figure out what puzzled her. In this way the two looked exactly alike, staring into the stars with a shared look of confusion. "The sky." Kagome stated after another long spell of silence, "Doesn't it seem dark to you?"

"It's night time, Kagome." Shippo looked at her as if she had gone mad, arching an eyebrow at her. She shook her head and pointed, directing his attention once again towards the sky. He looked off to where she was pointing, and soon caught what she had meant. His fur bristled as a shiver ran down his spine. "Now that you mention it… it does. It's cold, too. And there's no wind now! The sky is so thick… and look! Those clouds are covering the sun!" It was his turn to point now. He leapt from Kagomes lap and directed Kagome to look toward the mountaintop. The rain clouds had multiplied, and they now blanketed the sky so thickly that not one ray of the evening sun could break through. The air below the clouds was heavy and hung listlessly, shutting out the starlight and creating a curtain of black that spread across the entire valley. It grew thicker, Kagome thought, in the direction InuYasha and the others had gone. She was startled from her contemplation by this thought.

"InuYasha!" She got to her feet, stumbling in her haste. She looked out across the valley, standing on the very tips of her toes to get a better view. Shippo copied her, though, he did not know what she was looking for. "They must have caught the demon by now, if that's what it was. I can still see the jewel shard… kind of… they must be fighting it."

"Yeah, but I can't see any sign of a fight, and I can't hear anything either. Do you think something's happened to them?"

"I don't know…" She felt her chest tingle as she swallowed down her anxiety. "You remember what Sango said? That she had a bad feeling about this? Now I have it!"

Shippo looked up at Kagome thoughtfully, skeptically.

"But Miroku said he didn't feel a demon. I didn't either…" He closed his eyes and let his mind expand over the valley. He seized suddenly hugging himself tightly as he shivered. "But now I do! Kagome, I don't know how Miroku missed it… it's almost unbearable. This presence, I don't know what it is, but I've never felt anything like it… It's just evil, and it's growing! Like this horrible darkness!" He quivered, his body suddenly overcome with terror, "Kagome! I'm scared!"

Kagome knelt down and picked Shippo up, wrapping her arms around him and hugging him tightly to her chest. She sat down with him, rocking protectively. She was surprised at how furiously he was shivering.

"Don't worry. Ill protect you: and the others will protect us!" She looked down at the young demon in her arms, concerned and bewildered by his sudden submission to fear. He curled up in her arms, covering his face with his bushy light brown tail. She raised her eyes to the horizon and felt herself shudder at the thought of her friends in danger. "Shippo… we can't sit here and do nothing…"

"But you don't like battles!" Shippo cried, his voice muffled by his tail and hands, "You told me you would protect me! Now you want to go and fight?"

"Shippo, we don't even know if the others are okay or not. But if they're not," She gently put Shippo down and stood, leaping from the rock and going to the pile of packs that the others had left her with. She stooped and fished from the pile her bow and quiver. "We have to go and help them. The least we can do is go and check. I know you're scared: I am too. I can feel the shards power, and its black and evil. But… InuYasha risks his life for us everyday and if he needs me to, I'll do the same. Right now I feel like he needs me!" She floundered for words, her red face hidden by the darkness. Shippo worked his way to his feet slowly, steeling himself. Kagome looked down at him. "I'll protect you, I promise. Stay here where it's safe."

Shippo was silent as Kagome readied to lower herself over the face of the small cliff. She paused, however, when he ran to her and spoke.

"I don't want to be safe if it means I could lose you and all my other friends." He spoke firmly, nodding his head. His eyes were rimmed with tears, his insides torn in the battle against the evil he felt in the air. He leapt at her, climbing up her body until he was in her arms and she was hugging him tightly. She looked at him in surprise. "If you're going to be brave and do something you don't want to do like fight, then I will too! I'm not a coward! I'll go with you, Kagome, and protect you like InuYasha does."

"Shippo…" She felt as though she should protest: tell him he had to stay here. What could he do in battle, if it were a serious one? But she couldn't bring herself to let him go, "Okay. We'll protect each other, and the others. Ready?" In truth, she hardly felt capable of answering this question. Shippo, however, was fully resolved.

"Yeah!" He answered quickly, a hint of his regular cheerfulness returning to his tone. Kagome found comfort in this and she smiled at her small friend.

"Okay." Shippo climbed to her shoulder so she could have her hands free. She took a deep breath and then started forward, slowly climbing down the rock face to the soft grass below.

Not being blessed with fighting skills, years of training, or demon powers: Kagome knew she had a long walk before her.


InuYasha and Miroku ran side by side, their footfalls almost identical. Both had slowed from their earlier racing. They wanted to conserve some energy in case they had to fight the demon for the jewel shard, which was generally the way things happened. As they went on they began to realize that the world around them was nothing but black, and though they ran close to each other, Miroku could only just make out InuYashas profile beside him with his human eyes.

"This is definitely the work of a powerful demon." Said Miroku, his tone heavy. He had been wrong earlier when he had adamantly protested to there being a demon. He did now know how he had erred: even now he could only sense the presence of resounding evil. It felt, to him, as if it were bodiless: that the darkness itself was what they should be concerning themselves with. He yelled to InuYasha, despite how close they were, and still his voice fell flat on the dead air. "But I still cannot sense it. We're close: we must be. The shadows here are so thick, and the oxygen is very thin. This must be a shadow demon we're dealing with. We must proceed with caution."

"Pfft. Man, I'm glad you came along: I would never have guessed that." InuYasha said, his tone dripping sarcasm. The half-demon stopped abruptly, catching Miroku by the arm and pulling him violently from his run.

"Hey, what are you doing, InuYasha!" Yelped the monk angrily. He yanked his arm away from InuYashas claws, rubbing his shoulder. He had almost succeeded in pulling it from its socket. InuYasha scowled at him, and then pointed.

"There's the demon you can't sense!" He said with a growl. Miroku squinted, expecting not to be able to see what InuYasha was pointing at. He surprised, though not pleasantly, that the demon was only a few feet from them, and he could distinguish it as if it were bathed in light.

The creature loomed over them ominously, filling their sight with its grandeur. There was no color to be found on him: only a thick, empty black that covered his body like skin drawn too tightly. He had no markings to indicate a clan: no clothes or armor, no weapons and no face. Two slits, almost invisible against the black of his head, opened and closed slowly as he breathed. He had no ears, eyes, or mouth. His immense body, easily twice that of InuYasha, towered in a mesh of disproportioned parts. His shoulders were large and very wide set, and from them his body thinned at the waist and split into two long, jointless legs that were built like tree stumps. One arm -his left- hung at his side lifelessly as he stood watching the two strangers, his body slightly hunched forward. There was no elbow to be seen, and the large, fingerless ball of a fist was touching the ground. His right arm was bent over his bold chest, considerably shorter it looked much like a humans, though; the hand was fingerless. His faceless head was hanging lifelessly on an unnaturally long neck, which gave it the appearance that it was bowing. It's whole body was smooth and almost shone in the darkness, wreathed in an evil aura that stood out against the shadows. He had no defined muscles, nor did he seem to have any bones. His chest did not rise and fall with the opening and closing of the slits on his face. InuYasha and Miroku were not even sure that this creature was male, or if it really was a living demon. Miroku took a step backwards after looking the demon over critically, putting a hand on InuYashas elbow nervously.

"What now?" Asked the monk in a voice meant only for InuYasha. The half-demon did not stir, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on the demon before them. Without them noticing –until now- the shadows had deepened around them. Miroku could no longer see InuYasha, save a faint outline that he attributed more to his monk training than to his eyes, and the demon was now gone. When it had vanished, or just how, was lost to Miroku. He looked around, surprise and at the same time impressed. "InuYasha, we must be careful. This demon is very powerful."

"Yeah… I noticed." InuYasha answered tersely. His body was tense and his breathing heavy. He was slightly nervous, but over that he was anxious to begin the battle. His sword, the Tetsusaiga, was in his hands. The large, thick blade seemed alive against the darkness: burning with an invisible fire. The shadows swirled around it, breaking and dying away when they drew near. Miroku saw it, and frowned thoughtfully. This was all a spell by the demon, but not a very powerful one by the looks of it.

A diversion, perhaps? Thought the monk. He raised his staff, hold the thick golden bar with both of his hands.

The battle began before either had time to react. The ground beneath their feet rumbled, and then exploded upwards, sending the two flying into the air like lifeless rag dolls. The darkness around them shattered to reveal a red sky, the sun setting in west. The crimson sky was laced with blue lightning and the low rumbling of thunder suddenly filled their ears. They had not been aware that the storm had broken whilst lost in the swirling shadows produced by the demon. Compared to the black they had just experienced, the dusk was blinding. InuYasha caught his balance mid-flight, arching his body around into a front flip. He landed heavily on his feet, kicking up a cloud of dust as he moved to escape the giant clods of earth that fell from the sky. Miroku, meanwhile, was tumbling through the sky haplessly, unable to regain his sight quickly enough to catch himself. Through his disorientation he felt something icy cold wrap around his ankle and he was then yanked from the sky. The demon, with his long arm, had caught Miroku and slammed him into the ground, then raised him up and did it again. Each time he did it he gained more force, and Miroku was soon losing himself to the relentless beating. With an unearthly screech of anguish from the demon Miroku felt himself released, though the arm remained wrapped lifelessly around his ankle. He leapt to his feet, his sense returning quickly, and then again to join InuYasha a few feet away from the now plainly visible demon. He used his staff to free his foot from the dead limb. The Hiraikotsu sailed through the sky, turning tightly and finding its way back to Sango. She caught it effortlessly as Kirara hovered in the sky.

"Miroku!" Called Sango, "Are you alright?"

"Yes!" He waved up at her and smiled vaguely in an effort to prove his claim, "Thanks to you!" Sango frowned down at him, leaning forward to get her voice across the distance between them.

"Be more care-" Sango was interrupted as the demon launched another attack. Kirara was sent spiraling backwards as a ball of black energy collided with her underbelly. It exploded on contact, opening up like a blanket and then engulfing the cat-demon in a skin-tight net of darkness. Sango was sent from Kiraras back by the force of the attack. She watched helplessly, free falling backwards, as her friend was enveloped by the ominous black. She closed her eyes, expecting to hit solid earth. She was surprised, however, as the demon appeared beneath her in time to catch her in his misshapen arms. Kirara fell from the sky like a stone, crashing heavily into the grass.

"Did you see that?" Miroku asked incredulously. Both InuYasha and Miroku had leapt into action at the site of their friends being attacked, but neither had gotten very far before it was all over. Miroku, who was slightly ahead of InuYasha, had hoped to be the one to catch Sango, but he was only a little more than halfway to her. InuYasha stopped, nearly crashing in to the arrested Miroku.

"Yeah!" He said, pushing the monk forward. He snorted indignantly, "He materialized out of the shadows of the clouds. He's a shadow demon alright, and a damn powerful one."

Sango stared up at the faceless demon, completely entranced. The long arm she had severed had grown back and was slowly wrapping itself around her neck like a creeping vine. The touch of it against her bare skin was shockingly cold. It stole her breath away even before it had tightened enough to choke her. He raised her level to his face, her feet dangling high above the ground. She felt as though she were staring into deep, fathomless eyes that captured her very soul. She could not draw away or struggle, or even blink. Her chest was stilled and her senses were dulled. She hardly felt alive, and for the others she did not look it.

Miroku and InuYasha attacked the demon together. Miroku leapt into the air and brought his staff down at the demons head. InuYasha brought the Tetsusaiga slashing down at the arm that held Sango by the neck, cutting it cleanly from the demons body. No blood came from the wound, but the demon did cry out in pain. He reeled backwards in an effort to escape InuYasha, only to have Mirokus' attack make contact. The staff buried itself onto the demons head. It met no resistance from bone or organ, sinking in as if he had struck shaped mud. Miroku pulled the staff backwards, startled. The crater he had created remained, and the demon roared in agony. He doubled up helplessly, moans emanating from nowhere. His left arm grew back suddenly, shooting from the stump with a sickening slurping noise. He groaned the whole while, as if re-growing his limbs caused him almost as much pain as losing them. At the same time as his arm reformed, his head ballooned and the indentation left by Mirokus staff popped outwards. He straightened up, standing calmly. His head turned this way and that, seemingly looking from InuYasha to Sango to Miroku and back again.

"He can heal himself, and does not bleed…" Miroku mumbled to himself, poising for another attack. He raised his staff defensively, never taking his eyes from the demon. "Yet he feels pain… is he immortal?"

While Miroku kept the demon at bay, InuYasha helped Sango to her feet. She was shaken and breathless, but otherwise okay. The icy cold touch that had inflicted her was fading quickly, and her heartbeat had regained its usual rhythm.

"Thanks…" She panted, patting InuYashas shoulder. She shook her head in an effort to clear it. "Oh! Kirara!" She ran to the cat-demons side, nearly shoving InuYasha off of his feet. She knelt beside her fallen comrades head, shocked by the demons condition. Kirara was frozen stiff, her legs bent and captured in the middle of thrashing. Her mouth was open in a tremendous roar of outrage that had never left her throat. Her eyes Her eyes were wild and seemed to reflect fright, but they were empty of life. Her chest was stopped mid-breath. Sango put her ear against the once warm and soft fur of Kiraras chest, but could not make out a heartbeat. Kirara was completely encased in a dark skin of cold, impenetrable glass shadow. It glistened dimly in the starlight, thunderless lightning flashing and lighting it in a strange purple glow. Sango struck it with her fists, each strike growing in desperation. It felt as though she was hitting ice, and soon her blood smeared uselessly over the crystal like surface. Her hands were numb from both the cold and her relentless efforts to break the spell, and so she did not realize that her knuckles had split until she had seen the blood. She ignored the sting that follows noticing a wound and continued to beat her fists against Kiraras chest.

"Sango! Stop it: you're hurting yourself! Come on!" InuYasha wrapped his strong arms around her, stopping her fists by taking one into each of his own hands. He took a few steps back and hoisted her to her feet. "Miroku needs our help!" He let her pull away from him, backing up as she span to face him. She looked as though she wanted to hit him, but she softened as he snorted impatiently. He raised his sword and turned his attention back to the shadow demon. "Come on. The only way to break a spell is to kill the demon that cast it!" With that he leapt off to help Miroku. Sango, after a final glance over her shoulder at Kirara, followed after him.

Miroku, as it so happened, was in dire need of their help. After his first strike he had not been able to land any more attacks. The shadow demon moved with increasing speed and grace as the sun slowly drew closer to the horizon. It dodged Mirokus attacks almost before he could launch them. With his friends so near, Miroku did not dare release the vacuum of his Wind Tunnel, and so he had been forced into defense, only ever having enough time to block the demons attacks. The shadow demon used his long arm like a whip, with expert precision and speed. Miroku soon found himself blocking multiple attacks, or so it seemed with the speed at which they came, and quickly lost what little ground he had. The demon wrapped his arm around Mirokus waist and was whipping him around in the sky like a toy. He held the monks staff in his human like arm, his balled fist wrapped around as if it had been made to hold it.

"How many times do I have to cut this thing off?" Yelled InuYasha. The Tetsusaiga once again sliced through the black arm. InuYasha felt a stronger resistance this time, and had to pull the sword harder in order to sever the arm completely.

He's getting stronger! Thought InuYasha as he turned to watch the demon carefully. Miroku fell from the sky, free from the demons grip. He landed with a thud next to InuYasha, who had taken a step sideways to avoid him. The demon yelped and drew back, his featureless face turned towards the half-demon. InuYasha quailed, his knees buckling. He felt the demons hatred bearing down on him suddenly, a cold grip seizing his heart. He felt, for the first time in a very long time, genuinely afraid. He shook it off quickly, however; his pride too strong to allow for such things. He growled and mumbled something incoherent, then looked down at Miroku.

"You okay?" He asked stiffly. Miroku got up, noting that InuYasha has not sounded very worried. He groaned, leaning forward.

"Yes." He said, painfully straightening up, "My back seemed to have softened my fall." He bitterly rubbed his back, but grew serious as his eyes drifted to the demon, "With the night he grows stronger. If we don't hurry up we may not defeat him."

No sooner had he spoken did Sango attack. She could not hear Miroku, standing behind the demon, but she felt what he was saying. The Hiraikotsu tore through the demons' midsection, cutting his legs cleanly from his top half. Both halves hit the ground soundlessly. Miroku and InuYasha had to jump to avoid a similar fate as the boomerang sliced through the air. It made a wide arch, just beyond where the two had been standing, and returned speedily to Sango. She caught it with both hands. A cloud of dust erupted as she slid across the earth, her feet planted so steadily that she created a skid mark with her heels. The force with which she had thrown the boomerang had only multiplied in its' flight, and she felt lucky that she had not been thrown to the ground when she caught it. InuYasha and Miroku smiled across the decapitated body at Sango, both looking rather smug, but her attention was drawn from them. Kirara had stirred, free from the curse. She quickly returned to her smaller form, her strength extinguished. She mewed pathetically as Sango took her into her arms.

"Oh… Kirara…" She was relieved to see her friend alive, but it was a painful sight. The cat was hardly breathing, her breath coming in long, painfully deep gasps. Blood matted the fur on her stomach where the attack had first struck her. She was shivering violently, despite her fur. "You'll be okay now…" Sango hugged Kirara close to her body, hoping to warm her in this way. Miroku came up behind her, his footsteps soft over the grass.

"Here, let me see her." He said, kneeling down beside them. Sango passed Kirara to him hesitantly. InuYasha walked over to them from the mess of the demon, carrying Mirokus staff. The rings chimed as he walked over to stand just behind Miroku, looking over his shoulder. Miroku ripped from the hem of his robes a bandage for Kiraras deep wounds. Sango stood, feeling as though there was more for her to do. She wandered over to the demons' remains and began to inspect them closely. There was no blood, as before. No little bits of flesh anywhere. The cut had been clean. To Sango, who had done the same to many demons before this one, it had been unnaturally clean. She sighed and reached out a hand to touch the severed end of the bottom half of the demon.

"Hmm… What's she doin'?" InuYasha watched Sango go over to the demon. He made to follow her, but Miroku stopped him.

"I need your help. Can you hold this for me?" He motioned to the bandage. He was having trouble tying it off with Kirara being so small.

"You're useless, you know that?" InuYasha stooped and swatted Mirokus hands away. He took the bandage in his claws and tied it off easily. "There. That wasn't so hard!"

"No, I suppose it wasn't," Said Miroku whimsically. InuYasha eyed him curiously, knowing the monk well enough to see that he was up to something. Miroku stood, holding Kirara to his chest like he would a young child, cradling her in his arm. "We should return to Kagome and Shippo: perhaps you should collect the jewel shard from the demon?"

"What?" InuYasha frowned, his upper lip curling over his fang, "Why do I always have to dig around in corpses?" He crossed his arms over his chest indignantly, as if the very thought insulted him.

"I always thought you enjoyed it." Said Miroku with a laugh. InuYasha tossed him his staff, none too gently. He caught it with his free hand, grinning broadly. The half-demon cursed the monk under his breath, emphasizing certain words for effect. He turned and began to walk sluggishly towards the demon, his head bowed.

Sangos piercing scream cut through the air. As if on cue, the sky was torn open and the clouds unleashed their stored torrent. The rain fell in sheets, relentless and accompanied by thunder and lightning. InuYasha snapped out of his bitter anger at the sound of Sangos cry. He looked up just in time to see Sango collapse. She at first struggled desperately to stay on her feet, but her body seemed to seize and she fell forward into the new mud, lying very still. The upper half of the demon was hovering a few feet above the ground, limbs and head hanging lifelessly. The lower half had completely vanished. InuYasha ran over to Sango, but Miroku got there first. He dropped to his knees, putting Kirara down in the grass hurriedly, but gently. He took Sangos head into his lap, her body as stiff as stone. He put the back of a hand to her cheek and was startled by the cold. She was encased in the same unbreakable purple ice as Kirara had been.

"Look!" InuYasha yelled. He was standing protectively in front of them, Tetsusaiga in hand, his free arm raised in a point. The demon was radiating a strange, thick black aura and its' body was trembling violently.

"He's going to recover his legs!" Miroku yelled over the heavy claps of thunder and the surging tide of rain, "You have to stop him!"

"Damn right I will!" InuYasha raced towards the demon, swinging the Tetsusaiga high above his head. He yelled as he brought it down at the demon, holding nothing back. His attack was halted before the Wind Scar could muster, the thick blade bouncing off an unseen barrier. It was sent flying from his grip. When the Tetsusaiga hit the ground it had transformed back into an old, rusty, beaten sword.

"What the hell?" He said, just above his breath. The sword had not been thrown from his grasp simply because the shadow demon had willed it. It was not strong enough yet for a deed like that. Something had happened during InuYashas attack that he had not expected. He raised his hands before face, turning them over slowly. He watched in dumb horror as his long claws retracted, rounding to form regular fingernails. He felt a strange tingling at the top of his head as his pointed dog ears reshaped themselves and then relocated to the side of his head. His thick silver hair darkened to ebony as his orange eyes flickered and dimmed to an almost black brown. "Fuck!" He looked up at the sky, rain falling in his eyes. Night had fully settled over the valley, with no moon to disrupt the darkness.

The shadow demon, meanwhile, was undergoing his own transformation. As InuYasha lost power, the demon gained it in excessive amounts. His legs sprouted from the severed end of his body with a grotesque pop. His body rippled and tensed, the muscles of his chest and back expanding and crawling beneath his leathery black hide. He rumbled as he transformed, his form completely changing. When his change was complete he seemed to be a totally different demon. He was shorter now, with broad shoulders and a thick, muscular neck. His arms, while one was still too long to be natural, were more shapely and bold. He now had long, strong fingers and thick legs that matched the build of his upper body and well supported his new weight. The only thing that remained the same was his face. It was still smooth and ultimately featureless, save the two slits of a nose that had not moved. They opened and closed at a much quicker pace now, however, whistling shrilly even over the intense rain and thunder. The demon no longer stood with a forward hunch. Instead his shoulders were drawn boldly back and, if it had been at all possible, he would have been grinning cockily.

"InuYasha!" Cried Miroku at the site of his friend. How could they have forgotten the New Moon? It was something so vastly important and yet they always seemed to forget about it. The days of their travels were always long, and thus they easily lost track of the calendar. Without his demon powers InuYasha could not wield the Tetsusaiga, and so was practically helpless now. Sango was immobilized and only Miroku remained at full health, though a bit bruised. He rose, putting Sango down in the wet grass and gathering mud, and reached for the enchanted beads that were wrapped around his right hand. "InuYasha, get behind me!"

InuYasha hurried and collected his rusty sword before he took shelter behind Mirokus knees, bowing over Sangos inert body. Miroku pulled the beads from his wrist and held out his hand with the palm facing forward. A large black hole opened up in the center of his hand instantly and began to act like a mighty vacuum. It roared to life, it's power unfathomable, even by those who witness it: including Miroku. Giant chunks of earth and stone were ripped from the ground easily and then, however massive in size, vanished inside the vortex. Miroku held his right hand stable with his left, the hole-cursed hand outstretched as far as his arm would let him. His short black hair rustled in the swirling winds about his body. The falling rain was pulled from the sky so that the area before him was suddenly dry. Wisps of cloud and even bolts of blinding lighting fell prey to the inescapable pull of Mirokus Wind Tunnel. The Shadow Demon, however, remained stationary. Even as the ground around him fell away in blurred streaks of mud and grass his feet stayed firmly planted. His body did not seem at all affected by the Wind Tunnel: even the strange, flowing black aura around him remained unharmed. Shocked, but undeterred, Miroku held his arm steadfast, his grip tightening and his face hardening in resolve. If the wind itself did not unearth the demons feet then he would simply wait for the ground beneath him to give way. The demon could not escape the pull if he had nothing to brace himself with. The demon raised his hand, mimicking Mirokus' stance. At once Miroku was afraid that the demon would somehow copy the Wind Tunnel, as it seemed it had strength enough to do anything it wished. It wouldn't surprise Miroku should the demon have yet another power to show them. His fear, however, proved to be unfounded. Instead the demons' fingers began to elongate, thinning into flat strips as they got longer, and the waving tops began to flag towards the Wind Tunnel. After a lengthy moment the flattened parts of the fingers gave way to the suction and broke from his hand. Miroku felt them enter the Tunnel with a sharp, bitterly cold sensation that traveled the length of his arm. At once he felt his body seize, suddenly frozen from the inside. He fell to one knee, quickly covering the hole once again with the beads. The blood in his veins seemed now to flow like jagged shards of ice, ripping at him with a terrible touch as it coursed through him. His heart soon began to react to the demons poisoned flesh, slowing as if a hand was holding it tightly, forcing the blood from it and keeping it from pumping. InuYasha was on his feet the instant Miroku went down, the rusty Tetsusaiga in his hands. He caught Miroku by his shoulder, propping the monk up.

"Are you okay?" The half-demon asked, more sincere than the last time. Miroku merely nodded, in answer, too occupied with his internal problems to form words. "Alright. Stay back and keep Sango company: let me handle this!"

InuYasha lunged forward, yelling angrily, the wind rustling through his baggy clothes as the rain lashed at his face cruelly. The demon seemed to watch him come, his face turned towards the black haired InuYasha with a bemused tilt. InuYasha let his foot sink into the mud, and then through himself into the air, bringing his sword down in a diagonal slash that would have cut the shadow demon in two had the fang been transformed. As it was, however, the blade was not strong enough to do anything more than burry itself into the flesh of his boneless shoulder, getting stuck as if it was held there. The demon raised his shorter hand and took hold of the blade, while the other grabbed InuYasha by the neck and pried him forcefully from the trapped sword. InuYasha could not free himself from the demon, despite the slowness and measure with which he moved, for he was lost in a trance. The demon had caught the half-demons eyes with his faceless gaze and, in his human state, InuYasha could do nothing to break the spell. The demon could now kill InuYasha at his leisure.

With this in mind the demon lifted InuYasha by the neck until he was a good foot off of the ground, hanging helplessly limp above the demons head. The demon did not break 'eye' contact and, without turning his head, was able to pull the Tetsusaiga from his shoulder. He then tossed the sword carelessly over his shoulder as one would rubbish. It fell harmlessly to the mud, sinking beneath a murky puddle.

Miroku watched as the demon began to beat InuYasha senseless. He used his fist, newly acquired knees, and even his head to land a variety of blows on his living punching bag. Every move that he made was like gothic poetry in motion: but with a sledgehammer attached to the end of it. He threw InuYasha around like a sac of potatoes, first beating him about the head to render him unconscious and then attacking him freely in whatever manner came to mind. It was obvious that the demon was having some real fun in the spontaneity his spell was allowing him, as muffled gurgles that seemed almost like laughter filled the air. The monk struggled desperately to rise, but it was no use. His body was completely incapacitated by the black poison he had absorbed. The demon took particular pleasure in the guttural sounds InuYasha made when he was punched in the stomach, and the color of his blood as it seeped from the corners of his mouth.

"InuYasha!" Miroku yelled, hardly able to form the word. It was not his voice, however, that took the attention of the demon away from his games. It was a second, much higher voice that came hurrying over the grass. The demon raised his head, turning his blank face towards the source. It was a young girl, running fearlessly towards him. She was staring directly into his face and yet did not fall under his trance. She held a bow notched with an arrow, the string drawn back tightly. There was a fox-demon child on her shoulder, looking just as resolute. The demon turned to face them directly, bending all the malice and power of his stare towards the girl with the clear brown eyes with no avail. The girl halted only twenty feet away from him. The bow was held steadily at his heart, and the girl was not intimidated by the size of her opponent, nor the evil that seemed to pour from him. InuYasha was still in the demons grip, but was now struggling because the demon had lifted his spell at the arrival of the girl. The demons fist did not loosen despite how desperately he sank his fingernails into the demons flesh.

"Release InuYasha right now!" The bow string tightened with a crack as the girl, outlined majestically by the heavy rain, drew it threateningly further back.

"K-Kagome!" InuYasha gasped. He could not breathe. Not only did the grip on his neck keep oxygen from his lungs, the hand that held him was shockingly cold. It made him even more aware of the screaming pain in his chest as his body burned and begged for air. He watched the young girl with one eye closed, his vision too blurred for anything else. The Shadow Demon took a step closer to Kagome. InuYasha was dragged a short distance through the mud, the demons' arms held loosely at his' side. He had a very casual manner, almost tauntingly so. Kagome tensed, her eyebrows furrowing severely.

"Don't come closer! Let him go or I'll shoot off your arm!" Kagome aimed the bow to support her claim. The demon hesitated. Miroku, still struggling against the poison, left Sangos stiff body to join Kagome and Shippo.

"The jewel shard, where is it?" Miroku gasped. The few feet he had traveled seemed to have stolen the remainder of his strength. "Aim for the shard!" Kagome nodded without looking at the monk. Her keen brown eyes had already spotted the shards that empowered the demon. She did not move her bow towards them.

"There are four!" She said, "Two where each eye should be." Hesitating, her bow wavered between the two targets she had chosen. She did not want to shoot for the shards and have the demon, in his death, kill InuYasha. But if she freed him from the demon it might be able to escape with only a small injury. She frowned, closed her eyes briefly, and made her choice. She released the arrow with a twang from the string. As it flew through the air a purple light exploded from its tip, encompassing the entire arrow and leaving a long trail of unbroken radiance in its wake. The demon shrieked in horror and anguish as the arrow sliced through its flesh with ease. His skin and muscle crumbled and tore before the power of the arrow, the light itself dissolving the very fabrics of his evil borne body. He continued howling horribly as his arm fell away from his body. The arrow struck earth and vanished in the mud. Black blood splattered everywhere, and the demon clapped his remaining hand over the wound in an effort to keep at least some of his volume in his body. InuYasha was freed from the demon and rolled away from it the instant he was able. The hand that still gripped his neck fell away as he got to his feet and escaped to join Miroku, Shippo and Kagome. The demon let out a final screech, one so high that it brought Kagome to her knees with her hands clamped over her ears, and vanished in a violent surge of wind. The storm cleared almost instantly, and the starlight shone down behind the last fall of rain.

"Good job Kagome!" Yelled Shippo happily. He bounced up and down on her shoulder and whooped, beating his fists in the air, and then hugged Kagomes face. It was clear that he was happy not only because the demon had gone but that he did not have to confront it himself. His friends, as far as he could see, were alive and okay. "You beat it!"

"Shut up, Shippo. That thing isn't dead." Snorted InuYasha. He stood beside Kagome, after pushing Miroku out of the way, and was helping her to her feet. Kagome looked at him, frowning. "What are you looking at?"

"I…' She blushed and shook her head, "The turn of the cycle. I'm sorry I didn't remember it."

"Yeah, well. I didn't even remember it." He then turned his attention to Miroku, who was sitting in the mud with his head bowed, "You okay?"

"Every time you ask me that," Started Miroku as he looked up and accepted the hand InuYasha was offering him, "I feel you are less than sincere with your concern. But yes, I'm fine. The poison seems to be receding now that the demon has left." He nodded at InuYasha, flexing his right hand and watching it closely, "The spell is broken, I think."

"The demons spell… oh! Sango!" InuYasha looked over his shoulder, searching for and finding the limp body of the demon slayer curled up in the grass. He went over to her, the rest of the group close behind him. He kneeled beside her, taking her into his arms to help her sit up. She was shivering and still rather stiff, but the spell that had imprisoned her was broken and she was breathing deeply after being so long deprived of oxygen. Her cheeks were flushed with blood and her skin was already regaining its color. Kirara, who had been curled in a ball on Sangos chest now rested in her lap. The cat demon was doing better now, no longer trembling as violently as before, but her wounds had already stained the bandage Miroku had given her black with blood. Sango looked up at the black-haired half-demon and blinked, vaguely confused.

"W-what h-happened?" She shuddered, hugging herself closer to the warmth of InuYashas' battered body. He wrapped his arms around her, the long sleeves of the fire-rat robe acting like a blanket. Miroku and Kagome joined the two, Kagome kneeling behind Sango with her arms around her shoulders, weaving through those of InuYasha, and Miroku by her legs, his hands on her knees. Shippo sat with Kirara on her lap. They did not answer right away, each more concerned for her health and getting her warm. She looked about the faces of her friends and felt her strength and the heat of her blood returning to her body. She smiled, resting her head against InuYashas chest. She was utterly exhausted and yet, at the same time, completely content.

"The demon escaped." Miroku said at length. The others nodded slowly, roused from the closeness of the moment by his words. He continued, "With four jewel shards. I do not know where it has gone: I was never able to sense it."

"Puh." InuYasha moved to stand, Kagome taking Sango from his chest to hers as he did so. He moved away from them, walking slowly, painfully to where the Tetsusaiga had been thrown. He bent and picked the rusty sword up, returning it to its scabbard. "Even in this pathetic, useless form I can smell that demons blood. He'll be easy to track: we should go after him now! Kagomes arrow weakened him- he'll be simple to kill now!"

"Are you crazy?" Kagome asked sternly. InuYasha looked as her in bewilderment. She was frowning at him, and Sango was giving him a similar look. Miroku cleared his throat.

"I believe what Kagome means is this: you cannot follow after a demon in your human form. Could it not be possible that you only smell the demon because its blood covers your clothes?" InuYasha crossed his arms over his chest indignantly, snorting at the floor, "None of us are fit to engage that demon again tonight. We are all but human, and need our rest. Sango is fatigued and half frozen: I doubt she can even walk. Kagome must be exhausted by such a long trek from the cliff where we left her, and the power in that arrow surely must have drawn from her own energy. As for myself… my Wind Tunnel is burning from the poison it absorbed. It has subsided, and I do feel my strength returning, but I should not last long if I dare go after that demon again so soon. And you in your human body cannot wield the Tetsusaiga. Without your demon powers you would surely die-"

Before he could continue, Miroku was assailed by both Sango and Kagome. Sango had reacted first, pushing away from Kagome and swinging her hand forcefully to slap the monk hard across the cheek. Her hand fell away and almost instantly Kagomes hand made contact in the same spot. He was sent sprawling over Sangos legs, his face landing in the mud. Shippo and Kirara had fled the moment they had seen where Mirokus hands had been traveling during his speech and now sat at Sangos face, giggling and grinning at the hapless monk. Sangos face was bright red, and even Kagome was blushing for her friend. Miroku, using his words as a cover, had been rubbing Sangos leg. Because she had been so cold she had not complained. She had lsot herself in his words, as the others had, and did not notice his rubbing progress up her leg and across her thigh. She did catch him, finally, once his hand had slipped just above the back of the top of her thigh and there stayed, caressing the spot tenderly. Her sudden tension and short gasp had alerted Kagome to Mirokus actions, and she had reacted in the first way that came to mind. InuYasha looked on in a stupid wonder, blinking at the scene. Miroku pushed himself up, shrinking away from the two girls as both raised their hands again warily. His cheek burned furiously as he sat cross-legged in the mud, his arms resting peacefully in his lap. His look was serene, with a defeated sag in his shoulders and a slight note of pain in his voice.

"I was only trying to warm you, Sango." He said, his eyes closed and his head bowed slightly forward. He sat with his back to the girls, so only InuYasha could see his red cheek, which seemed to glow in the gloom of the moonless night. Sango, still blushing, got to her feet with Kagomes help.

"I'm warm enough, thank you." She said, shivering as she spoke, "Let's return to the cliff: it should be dry there and the view will keep us out of harms way should the demon return." Kagome nodded her agreement. InuYasha stomped his foot, which only succeeded in a splash and a gurgle as his foot disappeared into the mud.

"That will only put more distance between us and the jewel shard! The demon won't risk coming back after getting its arm blown off!" He yelled, raising a threatening fist towards no one in particular, "We don't have to fight him tonight: we'll just follow him! We can't let him get away with the shards!"

"InuYasha." Miroku rose, tucking each arm into the opposite sleeve of his robes, "We cannot travel tonight. The demon was injured badly by Kagomes arrow, and because he ran away I can only assume that he can not heal himself. He will not make good time, even if we give him the night. Let us return as Sango suggests: our possessions are there, anyway." InuYasha snarled bitterly, pulling his foot from the mud with some effort. He sighed, rolling his shoulders back. He looked up at the moonless sky, his dark eyes moving from star to star. Now that the demon had fled InuYasha could see how beautiful the night was. He moved passed Miroku to Kagome and Sango, turning his back to them and offering it to Sango. She accepted the ride and wrapped her arms around his neck. He tucked his arms under her knees and took her on to his back with some effort. Even in his human form he was strong enough to run with someone clinging to him, but injured it was a painful task. Miroku stood and found the Hiraikotsu. He held it against his back and over his shoulder with some difficulty. How ever easy Sango made throwing the bone boomerang did not take away from the fact that it was incredibly heavy.

"Kagome, you can carry Shippo and Kirara, can you not?" He asked with a grunt, moving closer to the group.

"Of course!" She stooped as she answered and Shippo leapt onto her shoulder once more. Kagome took Kirara carefully into her arms. "Poor thing… are you badly injured, Kirara?" The cat-demon mewed timidly, murring softly as she got comfortable in the cradle of Kagome arms.

"Alright, fine. Let's get going already." InuYasha said, already walking across the muddy, flooded grass. Miroku and Kagome followed after him, exchanging equally smug glances. InuYasha was just as eager for a rest as they were, despite his numerous complaints.

"When we get there…" Said Sango in a dreamy voice, already drifting off to sleep, "wake me. I have seen a Shadow Demon like this before…"

"You've seen on before? Why didn't you tell us this earlier, you know: when we were fighting it?" InuYasha snapped, looking back at her. But she did not reply; sleep already overcoming her. "Feh."


Kagome and Shippo lay in the shadow of a rock a few feet away from the edge of the small cliff. The fox-demon rested in the girls' arms and she slept with a peaceful smile on her face. The night was deeper now: a couple of hours had passed since the battle had ended and InuYasha, despite her request, had let Sango sleep. He now woke her and she joined him and Miroku at a small campfire. The three sat equal distances apart, the fire between them flickering shadows across their tired faces.

"Sango." Said Miroku, yawning slightly. Though he was fatigued, his sapphire eyes burned as brightly as the flames. He did not look at either of his friends as he spoke, instead keeping his gaze fixed on the center of the fire, "How are you feeling?"

"Exhausted. But better. Has the poison flushed itself from your blood?"

"Enough with the small talk!" InuYasha blurted out, already annoyed. He made sure to keep his voice low enough not to wake Kagome, "Sango, you said you've seen a demon like this before?"

Sango nodded, looking at the half-demon directly. He had wrapped his injuried, but not very well. He didn't see the need, considering they weren't fatal and he would recover once his demon body was restored. His black hair shone in the light of the fire, making it seem as if it, too, were alight. The same could be said about his eyes, though, it was not the reflection of the fire that made them so bright. He, of the three of them, seemed the least weary and was eager to learn all he could about this new enemy. She smiled at him, and he looked a bit confused, which only broadened her pleasant smile.

"Yes, when I was much younger. It was not as powerful as this one, nor did it have the power to change its form. Still, it was a challenge for my father and the others of our village. This demon attacked a near by village, murdering anyone in its path. Rumor of its horrible destructive nature came quickly to us through our scouts, and many of the villagers begged the warriors to stay: to let the demon find whatever it was looking for and move on, so our kin did not have to risk facing such a beast. But my father could not allow such a terrible thing to go on unchallenged. I followed him when he left with a group of others. It was dawn when they attacked it and it still managed to slaughter many of the slower or weaker of the group. Shadow demons, you see, cannot fight at full strength in the light of the sun. Or, that was what we had thought. But this demon was hardly affected by the morning sunlight, and my father alone managed to escape the battle unscathed. It was because he resolved not to let the demon touch him: it did not have the right to. Or so that's how I saw it as I watched from the branch of a tree. My father fought with a terrible force that I had never seen in him before, just because the demon had so enraged him with its senseless bloodshed. That was when I decided I would be like my father and grow to kill those monsters that existed only to feed upon the helpless. But this demon… he was borne of shadows, and even in the light of early day it was almost too much. No matter how my father attacked it, despite how many limbs he chopped off or wounds he inflicted the demon recovered and kept on attacking. It was bred for the sole purpose pf murder, and so could not allow itself to be killed easily. At last my father severed the thing in half, after many of the slayers he had brought with him had fled of fallen. Impossible waves of pure black blood poured from the wound. It burned my fathers armor like a very potent acid. But it was dead. The high noon sun destroyed what remained of its shriveled body and my father returned to the village to a heroes welcome…" Sango had bowed her head during her tale, her voice dropping so that it was only just audible over the crackle of the dying fire. After a pause, InuYasha stirred.

"That's a nice story, but it doesn't tell us anything. You cut the demon in half, just like your dad, but it didn't die! It didn't even bleed. Sango, there must be more? How can we kill this thing?"

"There is more, though, I don't know how useful it will be to us. This demon… it was not of our world. The living, breathing world that people are born into by nature or by the will of the Gods. This demon was created entirely from a concentrated, unadulterated mold of human malice. We never did discover just who spawned such a thing, or why it set upon our neighbors, but the priest that came to bless the area where the demons blood had ruined the land told us how it could have came into being. Any human, be it a king or a wanderer, has the power to create the most horrible of beasts, just by the darkness of their souls. If they had suffered a hurt or a disappointment, or harbored some long secret ill will towards someone, or a bitter hatred of some far off land… all they would have to do is find an enchanted wax mold, which also has good purposes, and pour from their very heart, mingled in with their own blood, the harbored blackness and the evil intent of their darkest nightmare… and from the wax mold would be created a ball of the deepest of shadows, terrible and woeful to behold. The human could then nurture the ball with their tainted soul and, with every ill thought, the demon would be formed. What form is impossible to predict: the blacker the human heart the more grotesque the form. The demon is an extension of the humans heart… and so anything it does the human can see and control directly. But the demon can also act on its own, though, it can never be parted from its human. When my father killed the Shadow Demon so many years ago… nothing like it ever returned to the village. We thought that this could mean the human, with the shock of suddenly losing the black half of his heart, had died. So the priest thought too…"

Miroku shifted uncomfortably.

"So, then, we must find the human that is controlling this demon. We cannot defeat the blackness of his heart, and so must go and destroy the body. Though there is something fundamentally wrong with slaying a human so thoughtlessly, if he is so absorbed by the purest of evils of his own heart than perhaps death is too good a fate for him."

"Yeah, well, I'll give the bastard what's coming to him." InuYasha said, his tone rather calm, "I knew we should have followed the thing. It probably went back to its human. Now we'll have to do it in the morning. Oh well. Sango, go back to sleep now: I can see you shivering from here. Miroku; you too. I don't want to hear either of you whining that you're tired tomorrow." He rose, moving from the small ring of firelight to take a cross-legged sitting position atop the large rock that looked over Kagome and Shippo. Sango smiled, looking down at Kirara, who was sound asleep in her lap.

"He's not as tough as he likes to pretend." She said, rubbing Kiraras' ears softly. "Will you put out the fire, Miroku? I can hardly keep my eyes open."

"Yes, I can hear that in your voice. I will extinguish it, do not worry about that. Go ahead and lay down." He stood and bent over, gathering dirt to throw on the low fire. Sango did as Miroku told her, resting her head on her Hiraikotsu while hugging Kirara to her chest like a stuffed animal. As he was covering the flames and stamping them out, Miroku spoke to her, "Sango… the story of your father and the battle with the Shadow Demon was a stirring one. You spoke of him in such high reverence… I know it must have been difficult for you. After witnessing his unfortunate demise at your brothers' hands… I do not know where you get the strength. Though he did not say so, InuYasha appreciates all that you have told us tonight. It really will help us destroy the demon and gather those shards. I, too, appreciate the strength you show us on a continual basis. Sango… it's because of this strength that I must ask you, though you have always so kindly denied me in the past, if you-"

"She's asleep, you idiot." Came InuYashas voice from somewhere in the darkness, "Shut up and do the same."

Miroku cleared his throat, kneeling beside Sango. InuYasha was right: the demon slayer was fast asleep. She was snoring ever so lightly, lying on her side with her back to the monk. His eyes traveled down the length of her body and he forced himself to resist the temptation. He instead directed his attention to her shivering. She had still not been able to shake the icy feeling of the spell the shadow demon had paralyzed her with only hours before. Smiling vaguely, Miroku settled himself beside her, draping his arm over her shoulder carefully. She let out a soft sigh and the monk hesitated, fearful that he had woken her up. She leaned back against his chest, smiling because of his warmth. Miroku yawned and relaxed, closing his eyes. Sleep came swiftly to the monk, the rest blessed with pleasant dreams.