Sango: guess Hiraikotsu worked!

A1969: it worked wonders dearie.

Sango: don't call me that.

A1969: by now all of you should know that I don't own Inuyasha. Just you wait! When I complete the Shikon Jewel, it will be all mine!
Sango: uh-oh, here she goes again.

Chapter Five: Transformation

CoCoCoCoCoCo

"Close your eyes," Kikyou ordered. Clara shut her eyes again but it was kind of hard to do, especially if there was a water fall nearby.

The young woman inwardly sighed. It had been a week since she left with Kikyou and she wondered how her mother was doing. Kikyou had begun training her. Clara thought that meditating at least ten times a day for an hour was quite boring. Kikyou also insisted that she wear the traditional garb of a priestess. Clara didn't want to wear a white haori and red hakama because they were similar to Kikyou's. Instead, she settled for a white haori and a dark blue hakama.

Clara had been shocked to learn that Kikyou was, shall we say, dead. She was even more shocked when she learned that Kikyou used the souls of the dead so that she could move her clay body.

Meditating beside a waterfall wasn't exactly boring. Clara decided to close her eyes and listen to the fall of the water rather than continue meditating.

"You must realize," Kikyou, who was sitting cross-legged next to her, said. "That meditating helps you focus more on your spiritual powers."

"Hmm…" The sound of the falling water was quite soothing.

Kikyou sighed. She could tell the girl was not concentrating. The experienced priestess's eyes moved to the Shikon Jewel that Clara wore on her neck like a necklace, the way Kagome had done before she, Kikyou, gave half the jewel to Naraku.

"Lady Kikyou," Clara said, opening her eyes.

Kikyou looked at her. "What is it?" she asked as a soul collector hovered eerily above them.

"I was wondering," Clara went on. "If…well…you would let me go back to my own time…"

Kikyou raised her delicate eyebrows at her. "You wish to return?"

"I want to see my mother," Clara hastily said. "But I'll be back, I promise!"

Kikyou considered this for a moment. "Under one condition," she said.

"What would that be?"

"You are to take Asuka with you," Kikyou said referring to her Shikigami, who was standing just a few feet away from them.

She wants me to take Asuka with me because she's afraid I won't come back, Clara thought, inwardly sighing. Clara didn't mind Asuka that much. Though she was quiet, Asuka was actually kind hearted, for a Shikigami.

"Fine," Clara said with a slight grumble.

"Then leave," Kikyou said softly. "You have three days to return, understood?"

Clara nodded. Another Hitler, Clara thought with a sigh.

CoCoCoCoCoCo

Alexis Rose stared with anticipation at the telephone on her desk in her study. It had been weeks since her precious daughter was missing. She sighed. The authorities said that Clara had most likely run away. She frowned at the desk.

She wouldn't be surprised if her daughter had actually run off. She had been too hard on her, she knew that well, but it was just in her nature and it was hard to get rid of.

The phone on her desk rung, making Alexis jump in her chair. She picked up the phone. "Hello?" she asked breathlessly.

"Mrs. Rose?" a man asked. "This is inspector Nakamura."

"And? Do you have any news of my daughter…?" Alexis asked. She could feel her heart beating in her chest.

"Actually," Nakamura went on. "A woman said she saw a girl matching your daughter's description. The woman said that the girl went into the Higurashi shrine."

"Find her…please," Alexis pleaded, tears forming in her eyes. "We fought before she vanished and I…"

"Yes, I understand," Nakamura said softly. "We'll find her, Mrs. Rose."

CoCoCoCoCoCo

"I have an interesting plan," Hakudoshi said to Naraku. Naraku looked up at Hakudoshi. Ever since he had lost once more to Kikyou, he had been thinking about the absolute way to take revenge.

"What is this plan of yours, Hakudoshi?" Naraku asked.

"Give me the half of the Sacred Jewel. I have a plan that might kill off Kagome, Kikyou and perhaps, even Midorikos' reincarnation," Hakudoshi said pompously. Naraku looked up at him for a moment. What if the boy lost half the jewel during this so called plan of his? What if his plan failed?

"What is your plan?" Naraku repeated his unanswered question.

Hakudoshi smirked as he told his plan to Naraku. As he went on, a wicked smile formed on Naraku's lips as he handed Hakudoshi half of the dark Sacred Jewel.

CoCoCoCoCoCo

"Inuyasha, what do you think you're doing?!" Kagome roared angrily at the hanyou, who had thrown out the contents of her backpack in search of some unknown artifact.

"Looking for something," the hanyou muttered as he threw out a bottle of shampoo. Sango caught it before it could hit the ground and shatter to a million pieces.

"What are you looking for, exactly?" Kagome inquired, placing a hand on her hips.

"You know…that yellow stuff." Kagome's alarm clock came zooming past the miko. Miroku caught it before it could break.

"Yellow stuff?"

"You know, the one that we pour hot water in," Inuyasha said, his head practically in the backpack.

"You mean Ramen?" Kagome inquired.

Inuyasha pulled away from the backpack, Ramen held triumphantly in his hand. "Bring out the hot water, woman!" the hanyou ordered.

"Inuyasha," Kagome went on, ignoring the order. "Didn't I tell you that I would be cooking for you?"

"You did?" Inuyasha asked, clueless. "I don't recall…"

Sango looked at Inuyasha and then Kagome. The priestess was building up steam. "I try to do something nice for you and you disregard it!" the miko half shouted. "Is that all I'm ever good for, Ramen?!"

"That and jewel shards," the hanyou said. If Kagome hadn't been so infuriated, she might have sensed the joking tone in the hanyou's voice.

"HOW COULD YOU SAY THOSE THINGS?!" Kagome roared. Sango wondered for a moment if it was Kagome's time of the month.

"I meant it as a joke, you idiot!" the hanyou said, standing up and raising his voice.

"IT WASN'T A GOOD JOKE, BAKA!" Kagome's voice rose above Inuyasha's.

Sango sighed and began counting backwards…10…9…8…7…

"Jeez, can't you take a joke?!"

"THAT JOKE HURT!"

…6…5…4…

"THEN YOU'RE A FOOL FOR BELIEVING SUCH A JOKE!"

…3…2…1…

"SIT BOY!"

Inuyasha crashed to the ground, raising dust as he did so. Sango and Miroku sighed and gave Inuyasha a you-did-it-again look. "You are so tactless!" Kagome snarled as she turned on her heel and stalked off.

CoCoCoCoCoCo

"I think it was this way," Clara muttered more to herself than to the Shikigami who was walking beside her. "You'd think that I should've known the way by now."

Asuka was silent.

Clara sighed. Where was that well again? She inwardly berated herself for not memorizing the familiar twists and turns of the forest.

The bushes beside them suddenly rustled. Clara jumped and Asuka looked more alert. Kikyou had entrusted Clara's safety to her since the young priestess didn't know how to use her powers just yet. The bushes continued rustling and then a raven haired girl stepped out of them.

"Kagome!" Clara said with excitement as soon as she saw her friend.

Kagome blinked, looking slightly bewildered at seeing Clara there. She smiled at Clara and ran to give her friend an embrace. "Clara! How are you? What are you doing here and where's Kikyou?" Kagome asked happily.

"Kikyou told me that I could go and see my mother," Clara answered. "What are you doing here?"

"I…had to get away from Inuyasha…" Kagome's voice trailed off. Clara narrowed her eyes at Kagome.

"You're in love with him, aren't you?" she asked softly.

Kagome looked up at her and blushed. "What has he done to piss you off?" Clara asked.

"It's not…really worth mentioning…" Kagome said. They were silent for a while. Asuka's presence seemed to have been forgotten.

"Why don't you come back with me to the present?" Clara suggested. "Besides, I'm sort of…lost."

Kagome smiled at her. "Of course…are you taking Asuka with you?"

Clara nodded. "I'm beginning to get the feeling that Kikyou might be just like Adolfa."

Kagome laughed as both of them headed towards the well.

CoCoCoCoCoCo

"Apologize to her, Inuyasha," Sango said. Inuyasha was sitting across from them, his back turned on them.

"Why should I?" the hanyou asked, not looking at them.

"She asked you if you were in the mood for her cooking and you said yes," Miroku pointed out.

"Well, it isn't my fault if I don't remember!" the hanyou said in a loud voice.

Sango decided that it was time to use their old tactic. "Poor Kagome," the taijiya said with a sigh. "She's all alone in the forest…"

"Who knows what danger has befallen her…?" Miroku said, following Sango's lead. Inuyasha's ears twitched.

"A demon probably…" Shippou didn't finish his sentence since Inuyasha, not being able to stand the thought of what was happening to Kagome, stood up and glared at them.

"Listen, you lot," Inuyasha began in a loud voice. "I'm off for a walk and I'm not going to look for Kagome!"

Sango and the others laughed. They knew what he was really going to do.

CoCoCoCoCoCo

"Kagome! Kagome!" Inuyasha jumped over trees in search of Kagome. "Damn her, where could she have gone?"

Inuyasha landed beside an old tree and sighed. Sango was right. He had told Kagome that he was in the mood for her cooking. We shouldn't be fighting, Inuyasha thought as he leaned against a tree. We just fought recently and now we're at it again…

"Hello, Inuyasha," a voice said. Inuyasha snapped out of his stupor and was startled to see Hakudoshi in front of him, riding on Entei.

"Hakudoshi!" Inuyasha said as he whipped out his Tessaiga. "Whaddya want?"

Inuyasha inwardly cursed. He had been so immersed in his thoughts about his fight with Kagome that he had failed to catch wind of Hakudoshi. "Seems you've been doing some thinking," Hakudoshi pointed out the obvious. Inuyasha tightened his grip on Tessaiga. "So has Naraku," the boy went on. Inuyasha watched as he pulled out the half Shikon Jewel from the sleeve of his haori. Hakudoshi held the jewel in front of Inuyasha.

"What are you playing at?" Inuyasha demanded, eyes straying to the jewel.

Hakudoshi smirked. The jewel pulsed with dark energy and before Inuyasha knew what was happening, the jewel darted from Hakudoshi's hand and embedded itself into Inuyasha's right shoulder, spraying blood all around. The hanyou gasped as he knelt on the ground, against Tessaiga. Blood dripped from the wound inflicted by the jewel in his right shoulder. Inuyasha gasped. He had never felt this much pain before…

Hakudoshi's smirk widened when he saw that Inuyasha's demon blood was tainting the jewel even further. He watched as Inuyasha tried to pull the jewel out. There was a pulse of energy from the dark half jewel.

The hanyou's eyes widened in shock as he let go of Tessaiga. Hakudoshi walked towards him and procured a piece of cloth from his haori and used it to pick up Tessaiga. Hakudoshi walked back towards Entei just as another pulse of dark energy rippled through the jewel.

Inuyasha gasped and held his shoulder tightly, trying in vain to take out the jewel. No, Inuyasha thought. The dark energy of the jewel's making…transform…

"Kill them," a voice came from the jewel.

"Kill the women you love…as well the reincarnation of Midoriko…Kill them all…"

"NO!" Inuyasha snarled at no one in particular except, perhaps, for the voice within the jewel.

"Kill them…feel their blood on your claws…"

There was another pulse of energy. Inuyasha screamed as his eyes turned red. A purple marking appeared on each of his cheeks. His claws seemed to grow sharper as the hanyou bared his fangs dangerously.

Hakudoshi smirked as he watched Inuyasha transform.

CoCoCoCoCoCo

He could smell him.

About a mile from where Hakudoshi was with Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru and his group were resting-mostly because of Rin-under the shade of a tree near a river.

Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes. He could smell his brother with Hakudoshi. Inuyasha's scent, though faint, was different. The daiyoukai could tell that his brother was transforming and he wanted to know why Inuyasha was transforming while Hakudoshi-of all people-was there.

"Jaken," Sesshoumaru called out the imp as he stood up from where he sat.

"Yes, Milord?" Jaken asked as he approached his lord. He and Rin had been catching fish.

"Make sure no harm comes to Rin."

Jaken sighed. His lord was leaving again. "Yes, Milord."

CoCoCoCoCoCo

"I don't know how you find your way around these forests," Clara said with a sigh as she and Kagome entered the clearing where the well was.

"You sort of get used to it," the miko said as she eyed the Sacred Jewel around Clara's neck. It's so pure, the priestess thought.

Asuka was following close behind them and Kagome thought that she didn't look pleased to be 'babysitting'.

Clara and Kagome stopped in their tracks. "Kagome…I think…I…" Clara said.

"I can sense it too," Kagome said as she and Clara turned to the other end of the clearing. "I can sense the presence of the jewel…"

"He comes," Asuka said quietly.

A moment later, Inuyasha burst into the clearing, Hakudoshi following close behind him. "Inuyasha!" Kagome shouted.

"Why does he look like that?" Clara asked.

"He…he's…transformed," Kagome said softly. Her eyes wondered from the dark Sacred Jewel embedded in Inuyasha's shoulder then to Hakudoshi and she understood all.

"Hakudoshi!" Kagome shouted. It was then that she realized that she had no weapons.

Inuyasha suddenly charged towards them, his fangs gleaming. "Clara, run!" Kagome shouted. But there was no need. Asuka got in front of them both and quickly put up a barrier. Inuyasha attacked the barrier with his claws, his mad eyes red.

"Kagome, what's gotten into him?" Clara asked as Inuyasha continued attacking the barrier.

"The dark jewel's transformed him," Kagome said, close to tears.

"The jewel in his shoulder, right?" Clara said.

"Now, now," Hakudoshi was suddenly above them, naginata pointed menacingly at Asuka. "No barriers." He struck Asuka's barrier with his naginata. The weapon went through and cut through Asuka who turned back into a paper doll.

"Asuka!" Clara said. The barrier dissipated and Inuyasha was now growling menacingly at them both.

"Run!" Kagome shouted as she grabbed Clara's hand. They both ran and Inuyasha followed. Clara glanced behind her shoulder and to her dismay Inuyasha was gaining. "Kagome…what…can…we…do…?" Clara asked as she panted from the effort of running.

Kagome didn't know. She didn't know what to do. She suddenly tripped on a tree root and fell to the ground. "Kagome!" Clara shouted as she stopped in her tracks to save her friend.

"Run!" Kagome shouted.

Inuyasha was suddenly standing next to her. The hanyou flexed his claws and thrust them toward Kagome. Kagome's eyes widened. She prepared herself for the blow and the death that came with it…

A blast of blue energy came hurtling from the trees towards Inuyasha. The hanyou was blasted off his feet and sent flying into the trees. There was a moment's pause as the rubble and dust from the attack settled down to reveal Kagome's 'savior'.

Sesshoumaru walked calmly out of the trees. Emotion didn't show on his face, as usual. "Isn't that Inuyasha's half-brother?" Clara asked as she helped Kagome to her feet. The miko nodded. "I just don't see the reason why he's here, though," Kagome said. Still, she was thankful for Sesshoumaru's timely appearance.

Sesshoumaru's eyes strayed to Hakudoshi. "Now what on earth would you be doing here?" Sesshoumaru asked in a tone which suggested that he could care less.

Hakudoshi only sniggered. "What's it to you? Ah, you're here to help your brother, aren't you?" Hakudoshi's remark earned him a glare from the demon lord.

Inuyasha run back into the clearing, eyes still red, fangs still bared. "Inuyasha," Hakudoshi said. "Why don't you begin with your brother?"

At the boy's apparent command, Inuyasha sprang towards his brother. Sesshoumaru forced back his brother with sword pressure. "If we don't do something," Kagome said with worry. "Inuyasha will get killed!"

Clara's eyes strayed to the hanyou who was engaged in bloody combat with his brother. Her eyes fell on the dark half of the Shikon Jewel in the hanyou's shoulder. "Kagome," the young woman said. "If we take out or purify that Jewel…will Inuyasha return to normal?"

"Yes," Kagome said feeling hopeful, but then she fell back into a state of hopelessness. "I can't purify that…I haven't any arrows or a bow for that matter."

Clara bit her lower lip and before Kagome could stop her, she darted out towards Inuyasha. "Clara!" Kagome shouted.

Hakudoshi looked at the girl. Naraku had told him the dangers about the girl getting too close to the jewel. "Inuyasha…pull back…"

The hanyou suddenly sprang away from his brother and jumped over Clara. Inuyasha ran off…that means…he doesn't want me to get too close! I'm on the right track! Clara tore after Inuyasha. Kagome ran after them and so did Sesshoumaru.

Hakudoshi narrowed his eyes dangerously. He could let Kagome and Kikyou go alive, but Naraku told him to make sure that he killed Midoriko's reincarnation.

"That's what I'm going to do," Hakudoshi said softly as he followed them on Entei.

CoCoCoCoCoCo

End of Chapter.

Sango: do you want me to use Hiraikotsu again?

A1969: hm…it's getting old. I know! –brings out Miroku- do your thing, monk!

Miroku: -about to open his wind tunnel- you know what's going to happen if you don't review!

A1969: well said, monk.