A/N: I would have gotten this out sooner, but I had to completely rewrite Inuyasha's scene about five times before I was satisfied with it.

Moving on, I'm determined to make this note short. I'm just going to ask if there are any requests for the final battle, to let you know that there are only three more chapters for this story at the most (my limit is twenty), and that I'm listening to the perfect song for writing the rest of the story, especially the ending scene, which I will reveal at the very end as a thank you to the band for making it.

One last thing- are any of you completely against certain endings? Like humour, happy, sad, angsty, general, action/adventure endings? At all? Please let me know, so that I can calculate that into the rest of my story. I'll try to accomidate everyone, but since I've basically got it written already, that may be a bit difficult. But I will try, and I guess that's what counts.

Now, enough of this. I apologize for this being so short, but I've already got the rough layout for the last three chapters, so there's not much more I could do to make it longer. Sorry.

The village was quiet when Kagome and Souta passed through. Snow had begun to fall, drifting lazily over the two travelers. The town looked like something from a fairytale. Kagome didn't even notice as they passed through the town square and out of the village bounds. She was too busy keeping Buka moving forward.

They had traveled all night when they left, and then all day the next morning. They had only stopped to water Buka and give the faithful pack animal a short rest before moving on. Kagome had kept her feet moving, but it had long ago become a mechanical movement. One foot in front of the other, again and again, until she reached her house. Then she could stop for a moment's rest before confronting her father.

Finally, nearing midnight with the full moon high overhead, Kagome caught sight of her home. With a weary smile, she hurried Buka the last few yards to the house. She needn't have worried about the old beast; Buka sped up at the sight of the rundown barn, knowing that a hot meal and warm stall were only feet away.

"Souta, we're here," Kagome said. She shook her brother's shoulder and woke him from a tired sleep. "I need you to get off Buka so I can put him in his stall, alright? You go on inside and get to bed. You need sleep." Kagome deftly untied Souta from Buka's back and helped to slide him off of the animal.

"'ll tell Kensh'n 'nd Kaoru yer here," the young boy mumbled sleepily before stumbling into the house.

Kagome took hold of Buka's bridle and led him into the barn. She picked out a clean stall and lead him into it, turning him around so that she could undo his bridle and the packs on his back. She threw all of the tack outside the stall and proceeded to wipe him down, giving him meaningless murmers of praise and topping it off with some food. She apologized for not having any hot mash before locking him in the stall.

Content munching was her only answer. Kagome picked up her bags and trudged to the house. She didn't even bother taking off her boots when she walked inside; she was too tired and there was nobody in the room to greet her anyway. She set the packs down just inside the doorway and made her way to her father's room.

As soon as she opened the door she saw Kenshin's red head sitting next to her father. The baker turned and smiled at Kagome in greeting, then turned back to Kagome's father. Kaoru appeared from the side, carrying a bowl of steaming water. She nodded to Kagome and set the bowl down next to Kenshin, who proceeded to dip a cloth in the liquid and bathe Mr. Higurashii's forehead.

Kaoru walked up to Kagome. "Hello, dear. It's alright, he's doing as well as can be expected." Kagome nodded. "We're trying to sweat out the fever, and so far it seems to be working."

Kagome suddenly noticed how stifling it was inside the house. The fireplace in the corner of her father's room was built up as high as possible. Both Kenshin and Kaoru were wearing white cotton, both nearly drenched in sweat. Kagome could feel perspiration gathering on her forehead and moved to wipe it away.

She swayed dangerously and shot out a hand to grab the doorframe. Instead, she latched onto Kaoru, who clucked her tongue in disapproval.

"What are we going to do with you? First Souta comes in, only half aware, and then you come in on the brink of collapsing." Kaoru's grip on Kagome's arm was like steel, the only thing keeping Kagome balanced. "You, my dear, are going to sleep and not worry about your father for a bit. Kenshin and I can take care of him while you rest, and we'll let you take over as soon as we think you've recovered."

Kagome tried to say that she was fine, that she would be able to take care of her dad and that they could go back to their own house, but her mouth was too dry. Only a croak left her lips, her tongue practically glued to the roof of her mouth.

Kaoru led Kagome into her room, forcing the young brunette onto her bed. Kagome didn't have any strength to fight back. When a glass was placed to her lips, she drank the water greedily. After her thirst was sated, she laid back and her eyes closed of their own accord. She could hear Kaoru talking and tried to pay attention, but it was too much of an effort. Slowly, she fell asleep.

A handful of days later, Kagome and Souta were taking their own turns at keeping vigil over their father. At the moment, it was Kagome's turn to sit in the hot room and make sure their father didn't hurt himself with all of his hallucinations. Souta was somewhere in the other part of the house, probably sitting and staring into the fire. Kagome knew she would be, in his position.

Kaoru had walked the two children through the steps in caring for their dad, and then had left saying she would check in later in the week. Kagome couldn't find enough words to express her gratitude towards the strange woman. She wouldn't be there, sitting next to her only remaining parent, if Kaoru hadn't stepped in with her husband.

However, now Kagome couldn't do anything but wait. Things were looking very bad for the elder Higurashii, and he only had a small chance of coming out of the fever alive. It ate at both Kagome and Souta, and each showed it in their own ways.

Kagome would sit there for hours, drifting off and letting her mind worry in circles over her father. She knew she should have been doing something constructive, anything to get her mind off of the now always stifling room. She should have read, gotten her book and drifted off to a fairytale land where her problems paled compared to those of the protagonist's. Yet, the only book in her possession was in the bag that she had taken from the castle; the same one with the enchanted mirror.

She didn't want to look into the reflective surface and see the inhabitants of the castle. It would mean that she would never go back there, and she didn't want that to happen. Still, she had made a promise to Youko. One she wanted to keep, and was putting off using the excuse of her father's illness.

Shaking her head to stop her past dwelling, Kagome looked up at the sound of a door opening. Souta poked his head into the room.

"Kagome?" he asked. "In'yasha's at th' door. 'E wants teh see ye. I tried ta be telling 'im teh go 'way, but he won't be leavin'."

Kagome nodded and stood. "You watch over dad and I'll tell him to leave us be, okay?" After recieving a nod from her brother, and switching positions, she made her way to the door.

She opened it to reveal the black haired boy that had been after her affections since childhood. He hadn't changed at all; in fact, he seemed to have sunk deeper into whatever muck he was born from since she had last seen him. Sighing tiredly, she leaned against the door. "What do you want, Inuyasha?" she asked.

Inuyasha drew himself up, trying to appear regal. However, Kagome couldn't help but compare him to Youko. She tried not to, but she was unable to stop herself. Where Youko was a graceful phantom, Inuyasha was an awkward puppy. He had none of the finesse and air of the prince, his attempts at appearing commanding and fake silent demands for respect made him look like a childish fool. He had nothing against the arrogant fox, not even his intentions towards Kagome.

Inuyasha cleared his throat, the wind catching the sound and bringing the smell of alchohol towards Kagome's face. "I wanted to know if there was anything that I could do to help you, my dear Kagome."

Kagome shook her head. "Thank you, but we'd rather be left alone." She tried to shut the door, but was stopped by a foot forcing itself inbetween the doorframe. Anger spiked, her frustration channeling into agitation. "Inuyasha, leave us alone please. We don't need any help."

Inuyasha's face appeared concerned, but Kagome could see a flicker of something she didn't like in his eyes. She couldn't catch it, but she knew it would eventually bring trouble. "Kagome, you're a woman alone in this house. Women shouldn't be alone without a man to watch over them."

Kagome fisted her hand and placed them furiously onto her hips. "So, I'm a helpless maiden, am I? I'll have you know that both my brother and my father are in this house as well. Or did you conviniently forget about them?"

Inuyasha's brow furrowed. "A mere boy and an invalid couldn't help if bandits came to call." At that comment, he seemed to be searching for some sort of reaction from Kagome. He got one, most definately, but the raven-haired fury didn't think it was the one he wanted.

"A mere boy he may be, but he came to find me when nobody else would. He walked through the forest, the one which nobody before us had come back from alive," with good reason, she added silently, "and brought me back here to help care for my father. They are both bigger men than you have ever been," she hissed.

Inuyasha straightened angrily. "That goes too far. You need someone to watch over you and make sure that you aren't attacked by the bandits that live in the forest." He placed a hand on the door and tried forcing the door inward.

Tried. Kagome, thanking every moment in which she had helped work at any sort of labor both at home and the castle, held it in position fairly easily. Inuyasha was weak from not doing anything but drink, and it didn't take a genius to see what that had brought over him. "You will not step foot in this house. And where did you get the idea that bandits are what cause people to disappear in the forest?" she accused.

"It's the only explaination! Bandits take people and sell them as slaves overseas, taking women and turning them into toys for their every whim." He tried to press forward, but couldn't even disturb the door a fraction of an inch.

"The only explaination? Have you ever thought about the fact that some people, like myself, didn't want to leave?" Kagome figured there wasn't any harm in twisting the truth a bit, as nobody would believe that demons and the like killed any mortal to enter their domain. Besides, after a while, she really hadn't wanted to leave. A pang in her chest forced the sad thoughts from her mind.

"There was a perfectly wonderful place where I met a lot of kind people who let me stay there after I got lost." That was true enough. "After a while, I didn't feel like coming back. I didn't see a reason to, until I learned about my dad." Again, that was true. She really hadn't seen a reason to leave, especially since she had more friends there than she had in the entire village.

Inuyasha growled. "Kagome, they have you brainwashed! There is no castle there outside of the one where the last known inhabitants died there over seventy years ago. Everyone knows that!"

Kagome glared and chose to defend the people who had treated her with respect and care during the stay. Well, most of them had. For the most part. "Have you ever thought that there are other explainations, different things that happen without a logical reason? Did you ever stop to think, using what little brainpower you have left after all of your alchoholic binging, that maybe they don't want to be found?"

Inuyasha smirked. "Prove it," he said simply.

Kagome stopped. She began to grow nervous; she hadn't wanted to have to take out the mirror so soon. She would have preferred to not have anyone know about it if she could.

And in her moment of indecision, Inuyasha's eyes lit up in triumph. "I knew it, you were tricked!"

Kagome had never been able to take it when people insulted those she cared for. So she told Inuyasha she had proof and went to retrieve the mirror. Walking back to the door, she held it close to her chest. She couldn't let that go; it wouldn't be right, after everything that they had done for her.

Opening the door, which she had slammed shut behind her, she held the mirror out in front of her. She ignored Inuyasha's mocking, instead concentrating on the image of Youko. Why she chose him, she didn't know. The surface began to glow with a ghostly mist, clearing slowly.

The image that appeared was one that made Kagome even more depressed than before. Youko was sitting in his study, staring into the fire. He had his head down, his hands hanging off to the side. His ears drooped slightly, just enough to show a bit of what he felt inside. Somehow, Kagome knew it was because of her that he looked so desolate.

She held the mirror up to Inuyasha. "There, you see? That's a part of the castle, and that's one of the people whom I stayed with." She moved the mirror when Inuyasha made a grab for it. "He gave me this, as a reminder of everyone there, and you will not touch it." Her voice was ice.

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes at the image. "Kagome, that's a demon! What are you doing, showing demons in fanciful mirrors." Kagome heard his gasp of surprise when the image moved, with Yuusuke joining the image. The brunette butler was saying something to the oblivious prince, but there was no sound.

Kagome's voice shook with fury. "I am well aware that he is a demon. But just because he's different doesn't mean he's evil. He was one of the kindest people to me, him and Yuusuke both. I owe them so much, and I won't have you calling them bandits or evil people. Now get the hell out of my life."

Kagome slammed the door shut in Inuyasha's shocked face, quickly barring it shut. She had purposedly swore, when she knew that no proper girl would use such foul language. It gave her just enough time to barre the way inside, as Inuyasha began to scream and bang on the door moments later.

Kagome flipped the image to face her, and stared into it. If one were to look into her eyes at that moment, they would see the same sandness and longing that had plagued Youko the moment Kagome had turned her back to him. Of course, following the unwritten law that said that all lovers were oblivious to their feelings until the last possible moment, Kagome was completely unaware of the feeling that had been growing inside her for a long time.

Outside, while the young maiden stared into her magical mirror, Inuyasha stalked off to the village with cruel intentions in mind for the castle inhabitants.

End Chapter
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