"People have Hope. Becasue they cannot see Death standing behind them."

-Anika.

The Darkness Within Our Hearts - Chapter 12: Unwanted Feelings.

Just then a monk came along with an injured man. "Excuse me mistress. Could you please heal this poor soul. My powers have weakend and I believe that I cannot save him."

"Old man, I don't know what your thinking but it sounds crazy..." Rei said. "Go ask a miko for help or something..."

"But you are a miko, are you not?"

Rei's magenta eyes widened slightly at the old monk. "I'm not a miko...!" She said turning away slightly.

"But I sence a powerful miko arua within you, child."

The samurai's eye twitched. "If I help that half dead guy, will you leave?" The monk nodded and gentley laid the injured man down on the moist grass, Rei kneeled down and leaned in bringing her hands over the man's wound. A white light glowed in her hands and the wound began to slowly heal...

"Can't beleive I'm helping this poor bastard..." Rei thought and turned her attention to Karin, who was watching closely with curiousity and excitment in her brown eyes. "And why am I still here in the first place?"

Rei stood up and dusted her average temorary village clothes. Without saying another word Rei walked away from the old monk and man, with Karin following closely behind her.

"Onee-chan! That was amazing! You saved that man's life." Karin chirped happily. "Your a great miko."

Rei stopped in her tracks once she heard herself being addressed as a miko. "I'm not a miko..." Rei almost spat out.

"Hm?" Karin blinked in confusion.

Rei began to mumble to herself but Karin stood by and listened carefully. "It is true that I was raised to be a miko but I refused that kind of destiny...hmph...helping people? I'd rather kill-" Rei quickly slapped her her hand over her mouth, realizing she ws speaking out loud.

"You rather what?" Karin asked.

"It's nothing...let's go to the Sakura trees..." Rei reminded little Karin, the short black-haired girl smiled and grabbed Rei's hand once more and guided her down the path.

"Why me?" Rei sighed.

oo.

Anika stretched her back and gave a loud yawn. She look at the reating humans and her eyes hooked on to Inuyasha, she gave a little smirk and walked over to the sleeping Hanyou. Inuyasha immediently awoke and unseathed his sword and pointed it at Anika, she raised and eyebrow.

"I knew your not to be trusted!" Inuyasha barked, waking up the others.

"Wha...what's going on?" Kagome yawned.

"Anika here was trying to attack me! And take back the Shikon Shardes we took from her!" Inuyasha snapped.

Anika blinked. "Oh yeah...you still has those." The red youkai extended her arm out. "Give them back please."

"Please? Ha! The hell I will!" Inuyasha smirked.

"Ok fine. Not like I need them anyways, and I have no intension of fighting you either..." Anika said as she walked past the armed Hanyou.

"Where are you going?" Sango asked.

"I'm going for my run. I'll catch up with you guys later..." She answered sheepishly. And dashed off in a heep of smoke.

oo.

Anika ran down the pathway and thought to herself. "Hmmm...those humans are actually really interesting. Their funner then I first thought." Anika ran and saw a little girl in a orange-yellow kimono in the middle of the road. She yelped in surprized and stopped almost hitting the little girl. "You idiot! It's dangerous to walk on the road like that" She snapped.

"S-Sesshomaru-sama..." The small girl cried.

"Hm? Sesshomaru-sama?" Anika repeated.

"RIN!" A little voice shreaked. "I'll save you!" Anika turned around and saw a small olive-green youkai who held a large staff with two heads. "Rin! Get away!" The small demon yelled, the small girl ran away from the red youkai and made some distance from her.

Anika raised an eyebrow. "Ok then? What do you think your do-" Anika was interupted by a blaze of fire engulfing her.

Soon after the fire died out leaving an empty field. The small demon laughed. "Hahaha! Feel the wrath of the mightly Jaken!"

The girl named Rin smiled, coming out some behind a rock. "Good job, Jaken-sama."

"Thank you!"

"So...your name is Jaken, eh?" Jaken froze in his tracks and slowly turned around. "Jaken. A pathetic name for a pathetic youkai...your kind makes me sick..."

"Y-your a-alive!" Jaken asked in a shooken voice. The female youkai stepped on Jaken.

"Of course I'm alive you idiot! I'm a fire demon! I'm immuine to your tricks!" Anika snapped. "Now...what to do with you and the girl..." Anika wondered as her folded her hair back into place. "Ah. I know! How about I have some lunch. Today's special? A Tall Glass of Iced Rin and a Jaken for bonus."

Jaken's and Rin's eyes widened in fear as Anika advanced on the two, til a flash of white thundered in and stood in front of the two shorter people. "S-S-Sesshomaru-sama..." Rin whimpered.

"Oh. You must be the mightly Sesshomaru that little brat was crying about..." Anika smirked. "The Lord of the West." Sesshomaru stood there, without saying a word he pulled out his sword from his sash. Anika looked very amused. "Oh? This should make my day! Show me what you've got!" She smirked getting into a fighting stance.

"Then, prepare to get your life taken by my hands..." Sesshomaru glared.

oo.

Rei sat under the sakura tree and watch Karin run around and try to catch the falling sakura peddles. Karin caught a whole sakura flower and ran over to Rei, presenting the flower to her. "Here...for you." Karin smiled sweetly. Rei took the sakura and placed it on her lap, Karin laughed happily and sat beside the samurai.

There was a long silence before Karin spoke up. "Hey onee-chan. Your so pretty...do you have anyone? I mean...do you love anyone? Someone speacial?"

A slight blush formed on the raven haired girls cheeks. No one has ever asked her at kind of question before, because they'd be dead before they could say anything. "N-no..." She spoke clamly.

Karin blinked twice. "But I thought you loved someone named...uhh...Bankotsu..."

Rei's face turned beat red. "What? No! Wait...how'd you know that name?" Rei asked, trying to change the subject.

"When you were having a fever, you were tossing and tunring in your futon, mumbling 'Bankotsu! I'll get you! Bankotsu!'"

"Oh."

"I assumed...he was someone very dear to you."

"No, he's just some guy that I end up running into and now he's running about like an idiot." Rei said turning her head away. "And I'm gonna be the one to kill him..."

"Well. If you don't love anyone, you should live with me and my brother" Karin chirped. "You can marry my brother and become my sister!"

"No thanks..." Rei declined. "What wrong with me? My heart is pounding! Maybe if I kill the girl it'll go away...no! That won't work! Oh, crap! What should I do now? Run away? Yes! Leave the village as soon as possible." Rei thought.

Rei quickly stood up. "Karin...I have to leave now..."

"W-why" Karin asked, her eyes growing large and depressed. "Why do you have to leave so soon! I-I...I thought you would stay and..."

"Sorry kid. I just can't." Rei simply said and walked away from the small brown eyed girl and into the village.

Rei walked into Karin's and Kyousuke's home and looked for her clothes. "Leaveing so soon?" A male voice asked. It was Kyousuke.

"Yeah." Rei nodded then her voice turned sharp "Damn it! Where are my clothes?" She asked digging through a pile of clothing.

"Uhhh...you might have forgotten...but we found you in rags."

"Oh yes."

Kyousuke smirked. "I know some appropriate clothes you can wear."

"Really? You mean...warrior type clothing, right?" Kyousuke nodded. "Alright! Give em' to me!"

Later -

"Hurry and come out already!" Kyousuke called.

"No! Liar, your a liar!" Rei said from behind the curtains. "I'm not coming out."

Kyousuke sighed and walked over to the curtain Rei stood behind, Kyousuke grabbed the curtain and ripped it down, making Rei yelp in surprise. "See. It doesn't look bad."

Rei wore priestess clothing, a white top and black bottems. "You bastard..." Rei hissed.

"Hey better then the rags you were waering eariler, or do you perfer to go naked?" Rei shook her head in disapproval. "Then don't complain."

Rei sighed. "Fine, thank you. I'm leaving now."

"Have a safe trip..."

"I'll bet..." Rei before she walked out of the small house and away from the village. Rei thought to herself as she walked down the dirt path for about 20 minutes.

"Where is that acursed Anika?" Then Rei thought of what Karin had said earlier. She blushed. "What the hell? Why am I? Agh! Damn that Bankotsu! Once I find him I'll...I'll...KISS HIM! Wait! No! Kill him! KILL HIM! What the heck is wrong wiht my brain! IT'S MAKING ME SICK!" Rei stopped and gasped. "Ah! I forgot my weapons! Gotta go back." Rei turned on her heels and headed back to the village, unaware that her weapons were never in the village in the first place.

oo.

Meanwhile with Inuyasha and the others. Kagome had brought some food from her time and everyone was feasting on Kagome's mother's delicious home-made cooking.

"Inuyasha! That was mine!" Shippo whined.

"Too bad! I got it first" Inuyasha laughed and ate a peice of meat, which he took from Shippo.

Shippo began to cry and whine. "WAAAHHH! INUYASHA! HE...HE TOOK MY FOOD! KAGOME!"

"Shut up you little snot!" Inuyasha barked.

"Inuyasha..." Kagome warned. "Be nice."

Suddenly a strange voice echoed in the air. "HOHOHO!"

"Santa?" Kagome asked.

"WE'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR YOU, HALF DEMON,INUYASHA!" The voice chooed.

"Where is it coming from?" Sango asked looking in every direction.

"COME OUT DEMON!" Miroku shouted.

"AS YOU WISH! HOHOHO!" A gust of wind swirled around everyone, as soon as the wind died down, there stood two...GIANT PEIGINS?

"WHAT THE HECK?"

oo.

Rei walked and into the village again. "Man, this is so troublesome." The strange thing was...no one was in sight. "Hm? Hello? Anyone here? Hello!" Rei shouted and walked around the corner of a house. Her eyes widened at the sight.

All the villages have been slaughtered, blood was smeard everywhere, some of the villagers bodies cut into half, another missing half of his face, some limbs lay about but what was worse is Rei found little Karin lay in the middle of the road soaked in her own blood.

End of Chapter 12.

Anika: Oooo. Wonder what will happen next!

Rei: Meh. Whatever...

Kyousuke: And you never see me again...

oo.

The Darkness Within Our Hearts: Chapter12 - Unwanted Feelings. Complete!

Date posted: June 08, 2005

Disclaimer: Does not own InuYasha.

Copy Right of author, Rei Aiyanami.