Chapter 22
"Maybe We Can Just Nope Out of This Situation"

The sound of her scream was shrill and piercing and loud.

Her father moved towards her, arm outstretched, as blood covered his face.

Her mother had told her stories.

Cleaned up versions of what had really happened to her father that night.

The older she got, the more she'd reveal tiny details that Kagome had never heard before.

There had been an accident. And for years—years—Kagome thought that her father had died in a car accident. That somewhere his car had crashed into another or vice versa, and he'd just never made it home.

And then her mother slipped up a little.

When she asked about it at the end of her elementary school years, her mother revealed that it hadn't really been an accident.

And a couple years or so later, Kagome thought that maybe there'd been a drunk driver or maybe it had been raining?

Kagome had been young enough that she could remember if the roads were wet, or maybe they weren't? Maybe her father had taken a turn too quickly, and his error of judgment was one that he couldn't physically recover from.

She'd slipped up a couple years ago though.

Kagome had found a picture of their family standing in front of a car that she didn't immediately recognize. But it had been at her home after her father had passed.

"Oh, that's your father's car," her mother had explained when she showed her the picture.

"I thought Dad's car was totaled?"

Kagome watched the brief moment of realization where her mother knew that she'd screwed up.

"Oh," her mother whispered, quickly closing the photo album as if that would keep Kagome from asking her questions.

"Why would we have Dad's car if it was totaled in an accident?" She sat next to her mother on the couch, leaning forward to mute the television.

"Because your father was not in a car accident."

Kagome sat, waiting, semi-patiently for her mother to continue.

"Your father had gone to the convenience store on the corner—"

"The one that I always go to?"

Her mother nodded.

"Yes, and while he was in there, some teenagers decided—" Her mother took a deep breath, holding it for a moment. "Some kids decided that he wasn't going to go home that night."

"What—what did they do?" Kagome's voice had fallen into a whisper.

"They beat him to death. There were three of them, and the three of them killed your father."

"What did they want?" Kagome asked. "We aren't wealthy."

"No, they didn't want money. They didn't even take his wallet." Her mother's eyes were glassy now, and she sniffled. "They just wanted the notoriety."

"Were they ever caught?"

Her mother gave a slow nod.

"They were caught by the police attempting to beat another man to death with a crowbar and a tire iron."

It seemed heinously unfair that her father would die for such a foolish reason. For some punk kids to get a name for themselves at the expense of her father. Especially when they didn't even really want anything from him to begin with.

"Are they in jail?"

"They are. They are serving life imprisonment for the death of your father and attempted murder of the other man. They tried for the death penalty, but they were able to strike a deal by turning in the third attacker."

"So they just get to exist? And Dad doesn't?"

"I know, sweetheart. It's not fair, but we made out okay. We have the shrine, and I set aside his life insurance for the both of you to go to college, if you want."

Kagome had seethed for days afterwards.

That long line of Higurashi anger was a dangerous thing indeed, but all it did was serve to make her angry and disappointed that she'd gone without for so long that her life had become normal without him.

It wasn't fair.

Her father tripped over something, falling to the stone pavers with a solid thud.

Reaching for the knob, her fingers twisted around the smooth metal, slipping and sliding, as her father rose to all fours, head tilting up to look at her as he began to scuttle along the ground. His legs and arms were bent out at the sides, impossible angles for any human to manage—much less actually move as quickly as he was.

An arm wrapped around her waist, swinging her inside as the door slammed shut with a loud bang.

"What the fuck is that?!" Inuyasha shouted, just as her father reached the door. She could hear the loud scratching against the wooden panel at the bottom.

The doorknob turned, and Inuyasha threw his foot against the door, bracing it closed as it began to swing open.

"The fuck you are!" He shouted, and her father's face rose partway slowly over the glass panel that extended halfway down the top portion of the door. His eyes locked onto hers, clouded and yellowed.

She lunged forward, grabbing the deadbolt and twisting it shut. Her father lurched for her when she did, banging his head against the glass and leaving a bloody smear.

The knob twisted and rattled, but the door didn't move with Inuyasha's foot braced against it.

Her father's face rose completely above the glass, staring for a beat before his mouth opened, gaping and too wide for any living human being, extended far beyond his neck, showing every single yellow tooth he still had in his mouth.

His skin had turned a rotting brown color contrasting the sharp whiteness of the skull beneath.

And then his head snapped to the side, mouth closing, but the flesh had torn from being over extended, leaving great gaping holes in the side of his face, and he scurried off into the night.

Inuyasha slowly lowered his foot from the door, shifting to look out the glass.

"Looks like it's gone," he muttered, leaning away from the door. "You okay?"

Kagome gave a slow nod, still staring out the window.

"You're sure?" She whispered, hands shaking, even as she gripped his arm that was still wrapped around her.

"I can't hear nothin', and no one's out there now." He let out a slow breath. "Care to tell me what the fuck that was about, and why the fuck you were outside?"

"There was a man—"

"That wasn't a fucking man, Kagome!"

"I know that now!" She snapped. "I thought he was lost!"

"And you just decided to go walking around on your own!"

"I used—I—I just wanted to be normal!"

"What about any of that was fucking normal? And what? You couldn't wait for me to piss before you go stomping out there?"

"Please, can you just make sure that it's gone?"

He huffed, upset—and he had every right to be—but shifted his grip so he could get move her away from the door.

"Wait, you could see it?" She asked, craning her head to look at him.

"No shit I fucking saw whatever the fuck that was!"

"You saw it!"

No one else had ever seen anything before. No one had ever seen Hina. No one had ever seen the figures and the monsters. It had always been in her head.

So what did it mean that Inuyasha was seeing it too?

"What the fuck are you—"

Inuyasha's voice dropped off suddenly, and she looked up at him, seeing his mouth open and eyes wide. Kagome turned her head slowly, following his gaze as his arm tightened from where it was wrapped around her waist.

The kitchen was—

The table was on it's side, chairs piled haphazardly on top; she wasn't even sure how she'd manage to take them back down.

The kettle rocked back and forth on its side across the room from where it had been.

Every cabinet door was thrown open, some of them still swinging from the force.

Somewhere a door slammed shut, spurring Inuyasha into action.

"Nope," was all he muttered, before spinning them back towards the back door. "We are not staying here."

He reached for the door knob, and the rotten fleshed monstrosity hit the glass with such force that Kagome was more surprised that the glass didn't break as she screamed. Blood and something gooey smeared across the glass, and she shrieked.

"Fuck!" Inuyasha recoiled, dragging her with him, before spinning them both around.

Kagome shrieked again, coming face to face with the thing that had been outside, and now loomed right in front of them, spindly spidery legs drawing it up to an unnatural height that was clearly impeded by her ceiling.

Inuyasha leapt backwards, claws swiping at the thing, as its teeth snapped way too close for comfort near her face. He slammed back first into the door, and Kagome could feel the ferocity of whatever it was rattling the door on the other side and twisting the knob so violently she was afraid it would snap off.

"Hold on," he said, spinning her around, throwing her arms around his neck and sweeping her legs up in one arm.

She could see the two bright white eyes slithering lowly over the ground towards them. Kagome held on, arms tightening their grip as Inuyasha moved.

He darted around the thing, spinning mid-leap up the stairs, to send a slice of youki back at it, before landing pristinely at the top and ducking into her room.

He kicked the door closed, practically tossing her on the bed, before picking up her dresser and setting it down directly in front of the doorway.

Kagome would've protested, but she was too preoccupied with the bright purple petals that littered—everything. The floor, her desk, her bed, the nightstand. All of it, covered in bright purple spots.

"Inuyasha?" She whispered.

"It's going to be fine, Kagome," he snapped, ripping a drawer open and grabbing a handful of clothes and shoving them into her backpack.

"Inuyasha," she repeated, drawing her legs up onto the bed, because it felt like something was waiting to grab her and drag her down underneath it.

But he was ripping open drawer after drawer, and she didn't even care that he was wrist deep in her underwear.

"We're getting the fuck outta here, and we ain't coming back until that fucker's dead and gone."

It was in here, wasn't it? Whatever it was, it wasn't gone.

It had just been waiting for the right moment to appear. When she was at her weakest, and now—now it had made it's grand unveiling.

"I don't know what the fucker wants," Inuyasha continued ranting, "but the hell am I letting it get its fucking whatever-it-has on you."

He moved away from the dresser, and Kagome spotted the message sprawled across her window reflected in her mirror.

Swinging her backpack over his shoulders, he finally looked at her.

It was clear as day in the mirror. Meaning that the bright red script dotted in feathers had been scrawled on the outside of her window.

She's mine, dog.

It was only then that Kagome noted the four bird heads carefully arranged on her windowsill.

A warning meant for her.

He was panicking. He knew he was panicking.

He was pretty sure he'd never moved faster in his life when he heard her scream.

Every muscle tensed, and he was sure that if he'd been mid-piss, everything had clenched so tight, he wouldn't have made a mess anyway.

He was down the stairs and in the kitchen, gliding through once he saw she wasn't in there, to the back door where she stood, watching some—some thing—crawling towards her like a fucking giant ant or some shit.

And she just stood there until he jerked her inside and slammed the door in the stupid thing's face. Because that fucker could move.

And judging from how hard it tried to get it in, it wasn't exactly weak either. It actually took effort to keep his leg braced against the door.

And then the fucking kitchen!

It hadn't been like that when he'd come through!

What sort of fucking fuck could do that? What sort of fucker could do that so quietly that he couldn't hear them?

And he'd thought it was better to deal with something that he could fight rather than something that moved that quickly and that quietly and had no fucking smell either.

He'd wanted to get her to the well and come back and take care of this bullshit before her family got home, but his hands were full of Kagome—and his sword was upstairs.

Because her time was supposed to be fucking safe.

Because that fucker was supposed to be dead.

And he had every intention of making sure that actually happened as soon as Kagome was safe.

He'd thought that risking the trip outside was better. That thing could move, but he was faster, more agile, even while holding Kagome.

But—his luck, of course—fucker wasn't gone.

And he'd made the impulse decision to go to her room. He turned to head upstairs, and he only just barely managed to recover fast enough to slam them both into the back door and avoid getting her pretty face snapped off.

And how the fuck did that thing get inside?

How long had it been inside?

And why hadn't he fucking smelled it or sensed it?

What the fuck was wrong with him?

He'd shifted her around, so that he could move better and make sure she didn't fall and darted around the thing as it moved much faster than it should have. Teeth snapping and legs stabbing at him as he darted around between them.

So when he'd slammed her door shut hard enough to rattle the walls and he practically threw her across the room on her bed, he'd been so panicked that he'd just lifted her chest and set it in front of the doorway to at least slow it down a little.

It wouldn't stop the thing, but it could at least slow it down a little.

"Inuyasha?" She whispered.

"It's going to be fine, Kagome," he said, snatching her backpack from the floor next to her desk, and practically ripping the drawer out of the chest in his attempt to pack her bag, because he wasn't letting her stay there with—with—with that!

She wasn't safe here, so he was going to drag her back to his time—the safe one for fucking once!—and they were going to stay there until he could figure this shit out.

"Inuyasha," she repeated, louder this time.

"We're getting the fuck outta here, and we ain't coming back until that fucker's dead and gone." He pulled open another drawer, biting his lip as he just grabbed handfuls of her undergarments and tossed them inside. "I don't know what the fucker wants," he continued trying to say something reassuring, because he knew that she was terrified—fuck, he was too! "But the hell am I letting it get its fucking whatever-it-has on you."

Fuck.

Her bandages weren't in here.

Probably still in the bathroom where she put that stupid box.

She'd have to do without for time being.

He snapped the top closed, swinging it over his shoulders, before turning to look at her.

His eyes lit over the petals thrown over the room. They were all over the fucking floor.

Her bed.

The desk.

But she wasn't looking at him.

Her legs were drawn up to her chest, and she was staring past him.

He turned his head, following her wide-eyed stare, seeing the sprawling message in blood and feathers in her window.

His hackles went up.

She's mine, dog.

Like fuck she was.

He turned towards the window, noting the bird heads planted on the sill.

What sick fucking game was this thing playing?

"Kagome," he said, eyes flicking over to her, but she wasn't looking at him. A shift of movement out of the corner of his eyes drew his gaze.

Something blacker than the night outside her window moved, and he only caught a glimpse of a bright white grin spreading across its face before it disappeared back into the blackness.

"Kagome," he said, softly but urgently, turning towards her, "we gotta—"

His voice died off as the thing that had been outside and downstairs, loomed over her, mouth gaping open as if to swallow her whole. Her eyes went wide, and she lunged off the bed towards him, arms reaching out for him.

"Kag—!"

A pair of hands wrapped around his throat, snapping his head firmly to the side and dropping him unceremoniously on the floor. His fingers twitched, and his vision grew to a haze as a foot stepped over him towards Kagome.

The small movement over her desk drew her attention away from the window, and she dove for Inuyasha as Hina wrapped her spindly fingers around his neck and twisted.

"Inuyasha!" She howled as something grabbed her ankle, dragging her back from where Hina just let him fall in a heap. "Inuyasha!"

This wasn't real. It wasn't real. It couldn't be real.

It couldn't.

Because that would mean—that would mean—

And he couldn't be—he couldn't!

She stared at him, trying to claw her way across that tatami mats covering her floor.

"Inuyasha!" She screamed, but he wasn't moving, and his eyes were glazing over.

She was watching him die.

In case you were wondering, Hina said, stepping over his body with an ease that angered her, this is very much real life.

Whatever held her captive, released her, and she scrambled towards him, hands hovering over his skin.

"Inuyasha?" She whispered to him. "Inuyasha, please."

The Dog is dead. Let it go already.

"Why?" Kagome asked, eyes filling and overflowing with tears. A few dripped into his hair as she pushed it back and away from his face.

He was in my way.

"What do you want?" Her voice was soft and wet, sounding as broken as she felt.

Hina cautiously scooted the dresser away from the door where Inuyasha had placed it.

I have already told you. She spoke clearly as she reached for the door knob. My bellflower is all that matters.

Kagome watched her friend open the door and step out.

"And I already told you that I don't know what that means! I don't know who or what a bellflower is supposed to be!"

Come. She said, holding her hand out.

"I'm going to kill you," Kagome seethed; her voice dark and menacing. She was done! So done with all of this!

You keep promising me such things, and yet, the creature wearing her friend's face motioned to Inuyasha's still form. Now are you going to be a good girl or will I have to wear Daddy's face again?

"I'm not going anywhere with you!" Kagome grabbed her alarm clock and chunked it with as much viciousness as she could muster up at Hina's head. She dodged easily enough, and Kagome heard the unsatisfying crack and crunch of it hitting the floor at the bottom.

Hina sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose with her fingertips, like she was capable of suffering from a headache.

Kagome sincerely hoped that she was the cause of her headache!

You make life much more difficult than it has to be.

Hina moved quickly, snapping her arm towards Kagome, and she watched in horror as it slid out, elongating into something more snakelike than a human arm. Scooting away until her back hit the wall, Kagome looked at Inuyasha for just a moment before she felt the tentacle wrap around her ankle, and jerk her towards the door.

Scrambling, she dug her fingers in and grabbed whatever she could to try and stop Hina from dragging her away. Her fingers caught on the doorway, and she held on as tight as she possibly could against the tentacle wrapped around her ankle and pulling her towards the stair.

Inuyasha turned his head towards her right as her fingers slipped off the door jamb, and the door slammed closed in front of her.

His head was killing him, and he wanted nothing more than to lie there and wait for whatever this was to be remedied by his demonic healing.

But there was a noise beside him, and he shifted ever so slightly, wincing as his neck crackled way more than it should've at the small movement. He knew the feeling of snapped bone rubbing against itself.

Fuck, he was going to ache for days.

The bones hadn't had time to reset fully, and he watched, eyes wide, as the fucking creature dragged her out of the room with Kagome inadvertently slamming the door shut behind her.

Fuck!

Kagome roared behind the door, a sound that made him wince and never wanted to hear from her ever again.

Scrambling as fast as his body would allow—which wasn't fast enough—he dove for the door on hands and knees, ignoring the pain that rocketed up his limbs and into his spine.

Shoving it open, he watched in horror as the thing—now black and almost fluid looking—held her upside down by her ankle. He couldn't even tell where its fucking face started or ended.

It reminded him of that dumbass painter and his stupid smelly ink shit.

He couldn't tell exactly, but it felt like the thing turned towards him, the bright white of its teeth gaping at him as it just casually tossed Kagome off the landing and towards the floor.

His body moved—sluggishly and off-kilter—before he could even fathom what he was doing or how badly it actually hurt.

His toes hit the edge of the stairs, and he just leapt, arms outstretched and reaching for her.

It was all he could do to wrap his arms around her, and twist them both right before he hit the ground, cracking his head against the floor.

Kagome stared at the thing as it held her at her ankle, and she was completely powerless to do anything but what it wanted.

As much as she wanted to blast the thing into oblivion, past experiences had taught her that her reiki was useless in this situation. She'd tried time and time again to blast it, and it just kept coming back like nothing had ever happened. Like she'd never even tried to hurt it.

She hadn't even been able to save Inuyasha.

The way her fingers had wrapped around his jaw, the look of surprise and fear on his face would haunt her for however much longer she lived.

And she howled her frustration and sorrow at the monster, swiping her fingers out at it, just wanting to hit it just once. Make it bleed. Her time was limited and she knew that, especially with the way the creature was holding her up, like a predator just waiting to bite into a meal. She wanted to hurt it just as badly as it had hurt her.

"I don't care how long it takes," she hissed, low and menacing, "I'll kill you for what you did to him."

The creature just lifted her higher, almost so that her foot was touching the ceiling. It made a soft sound in the back of its throat, as a noise drew Kagome's attention.

Her door swung open, and there he was, a terrified look on his face, and for the moment, Kagome forgot about the blood rushing to her head, because he was crouched there in her open doorway, just staring. It almost looked like he'd just come to, but she didn't care, because he was alive.

But before she could even say a word of warning, the thing snapped its arm and she went flying. And all she could think of was how much this was going to hurt.

She opened her mouth to scream, the inhale already happening as the floor approached far quicker than she could reasonably react, but then arms wrapped around her middle as she sailed through the air.

Clawed hands tucked her in close, spinning them around at the last moment as they struck the ground.

Inuyasha's head made a sickening crack as they hit, and Kagome jerked herself up to look at him.

"Inuyasha?" She rose up to all fours, hovering over him. He was alive? She'd watched—she'd watched Hina snap his neck with glee. "Inuyasha?" Her fingers lightly touched his jaw.

He was completely still again.

He'd hit his head so hard against the floor.

"Inuyasha?"

There was a sound behind her, and Kagome flinched at the sound of something coming down the stairs. She ducked her body down, covering him—protecting him—her arms circling his head as the thing skittered closer. She had no way to defend either of them, and no way to drag him off out of harm's way. She only had herself and that was all that she could offer him.

She would protect him with her body like he'd done her.

There was the soft clicking of teeth above her, and she tightened her grip around him.

Inuyasha's arms wrapped around her back, pulling her in tightly as he rolled them as strong jaws snapped shut with an audible clack right where she'd been.

Inuyasha rolled so that he was hovering over her, his face in a tight snarling grimace.

"Hold on," he grunted, and she redoubled her grip on him as he practically threw them both away from the creature, sliding across the wooden floor.

She is mine! The creature snarled at them, all six limbs planted firmly on the floor.

"The fuck she is!" Inuyasha snapped back, an arm still wrapped firmly around her back, as he rolled to a crouch just outside the living room.

You can't have her this time, Dog! The creature lunged for him again, and Inuyasha dodged, swiping claws at a leg that threatened to spear the both of them, severing it from the body. The creature howled, rearing back, and Inuyasha took his opportunity to bolt through the hallway towards the back door. His free hand came up to wrap underneath her for support.

Barreling through, he spun mid-leap, the arm around her back leaving as his youki sliced through the air, and she turned her head just enough to see the strike land a direct hit to the creature's face.

Inuyasha staggered as he landed on the stone pavers, stumbling almost to the point of falling backwards.

He hadn't fully healed yet, and Kagome made sure that her arms stayed away from his neck.

He shouldn't be fighting, but Kagome felt pretty sure that she would be dead if he hadn't come to when he did.

He lurched towards the well, panting.

"You got the shards?" He asked.

"They're in my bag!"

"Fuck!"

He pivoted suddenly, grabbing her arm as he threw her weight around to his back.

She squealed at the sudden shifting, every muscle tightening so she didn't fall, but clawed fingers snagged her arm as she started to slip.

The creature lunged again, almost haphazardly, and Inuyasha leapt away from it, grunting at the landing before running along the side of the house and towards her bedroom.

He was going to take her through the well.

He had to get her bag first.

"You gotta hold on Kagome. I can't do both," he said as she worked to press her legs into his side and snag fistfuls of his haori front in her hands.

He leapt up, the move itself not as sure as he scrabbled to keep their purchase on the branches of Goshinboku.

"Are you okay?" She asked him.

"Fine, just worry about you," he grunted, leaping again towards the window ledge and throwing it open.

She felt his knee strike the sill as he darted in, sending him sprawling on all fours in the middle of her bedroom.

"I can—"

"You just hold the fuck on to me!" He snarled, pushing himself up with a hard grunt.

He took a stumbling step towards Tetsusaiga, holding it up to her.

"Hold onto this," he said, and she grabbed the scabbard with one hand, and shifting herself higher onto his back to solidify her grip.

Planting a hand on the edge of her desk, he leaned down to grab her backpack, a low growl vibrating through his body to hers.

"You good?" He growled.

"Yeah," she said, twisting her hand into his shirt until she was sure her knuckles were white.

"We're gonna have to move."

She nodded.

He darted out towards the stairs as something large and loud landed behind them. He landed partway down the stairs before leaping again. The landing was not smooth, and his leg slid out from under him as he fell to all fours.

"Inuy—"

"Just hold on!"

He jerked forward, scrabbling on all fours until he was upright and sprinting down the hallway towards the kitchen.

Darting towards the counter, he slammed into it as his hand snagged the small pouch of medicine before pushing off and heading towards the back door.

Kagome's eyes widened at the kitchen looking completely normal. Nothing was out of place.

Hadn't it—?

He dove through the doorway, still left open from a few moments ago.

You can't have her! The creature snarled just behind them.

"She was fucking mine first!" He snarled, spinning on his heel, but one hand held her pack and the other was under her. Kagome thrust the Tetsusaiga at the approaching limb.

White bolts of lighting shocked the creature, making it rear back, and Inuyasha landed another quick swipe before sprinting towards the well house with the creature roaring in pain behind them.

Heavy footsteps followed his own, and Kagome tried to look back at it, just to see.

"Keep your head down!" Inuyasha ordered, and she immediately pressed her face into his shoulder as the familiar jerking feeling landed in her stomach as he leapt upwards, spinning in the air.

His hand left her thigh as he swiped twice with a hard, guttural shout.

His landing was hard and jostling, not like his usual movements, and her grip faltered for just a second; the end of Tetsusaiga's scabbard knocked against the ground, the noise loud and clattering in the quiet of the night.

"I got you," he told her, hand coming up under her rear to support her. He ran towards the well house as the creature picked itself up from the ground.

Throwing the door open, the creature roared, clearly angry at its failure.

Inuyasha vaulted the over the edge and into the time slip.

There was a hard yank along her spine, almost painful, and she must've made a noise, because Inuyasha turned toward her.

But then the time slip was over, and Inuyasha landed, staggering forward enough that he put his hand out to brace himself, breathing so heavily that he was almost gasping.

"One more," he said quietly, hand coming up to grip her arm, but she wasn't entirely sure that he was talking to her.

It was a hard leap, and either his legs gave up or he misjudged, because he only just managed to snag the lip of the well with his hand, feet scrabbling under them as he hauled them up with a grunt and a groan, quite literally rolling them both over the edge and onto the grass.

They landed on their sides, both of them breathing harder than they should, and it took Kagome a moment to pull her leg out from under him. She set Tetsusaiga to the side, reaching for his shoulder.

"Inuyasha?" She asked, already trying to roll him onto his back.

He hissed, a grimace covering his face as she moved him.

"Just gimme a minute," he said. She pressed her fingers to his neck, feeling his heart race under his skin.

"How bad is it?" She asked as his own hand tugged hers away from his throat. "Inuyasha," she repeated, "how bad are you hurt?"

"Just need a sec," he mumbled, squeezing her hand. "Then I'll take you to the hag's, okay?"

"Inuyasha," she started, her other hand coming up to grip his.

"Nothing dangerous here," he mumbled, eyes closing. "Don't go off."

"You're hurt!"

"Fine," he took a deep breath, and it was quiet for a second. Kagome felt the panic seeping in, because what if the creature here wasn't destroyed either? "Shit was like that the whole time?"

"The thing?" She asked, and he grunted his answer. "Usually, yeah."

"Fucking scary as shit," Inuyasha mumbled.

"Yeah," she whispered, looking around at the dark trees surrounding them.

"Sorry," he whispered, and she really wasn't sure what he was apologizing for.

But when his hand slackened around hers, she redoubled her grip, squeezing his fingers tightly.

"Inuyasha? Inuyasha!" She shouted at him, but he didn't respond. Fingers hovered at his neck as she stared at his chest, making sure that he was still breathing. His chest still moved steadily, albeit too quickly for his normal.

He'd said that there wasn't anything dangerous around here, but what did she do? Did she hobble her way to the village and call for help? Did she stay here with him?

She really didn't want to leave him unattended, especially since he was so injured, and the injuries were her fault.

He'd balk at that, but they were. She wasn't strong enough, and that thing had almost taken him from her.

Her worst nightmare come to reality, and she just couldn't handle that. Kagome didn't know what to do.

She wanted to stay, but he needed help. But there was no way that she could move him safely.

Settling the hand she held on his chest, she leaned over him to pick up Tetsusaiga, positioning it so it laid over him and placing both his hands over it.

She'd have to leave her bag behind with him.

Using the edge of the well, she pulled herself to her feet.

"I'll be right back with the others, okay?" She grimaced. Maybe not right back, but as quickly as she could manage.

Hobbling her way towards the trees, she used them as a crutch and support as she balanced herself on her heel.

It was so dark in the trees, and every noise sounded like the shadows shifting to reveal bright white teeth sliding into a malevolent grin.

"Miroku!" She shouted. "Shippo!"

Her body quaked, with the effort of moving, and she struggled to keep herself upright in the soft damp soil under the trees.

"Kirar—!" She squeaked out the end of her name as her heel slipped in the earth, and she went crashing down in a small heap.

Her knee struck a root, and she yelped loudly, hands coming up to clutch it close as she waited for the throbbing aches to stop.

She whimpered in the dark woods, trying to convince her body to keep moving. Inuyasha needed help, and she was his only way of getting it.

Shifting her weight, she dragged herself back up, but her knee gave out a painful twinge the moment she put any weight on it. Walking, or her version of it at least, was no longer a viable option.

Whimpering, she let her body slide back down to the earth, keeping her knee off the ground as much as possible, and continued forward on all fours all the while calling out for her friends, hoping that one of them would hear her.

After a considerable amount of time and distance—or at least what felt like a considerable distance—there was the sound of jingling rings in the distance moving towards her.

"This way?" Miroku asked someone.

"Miroku!" She shouted, and she watched the light pause.

"Kagome?" He called, slowly moving in her direction.

"Over here!"

She sighed as Miroku came into sight, pushing a branch out of the way.

His eyes widened as he knelt down in front of her.

"Kirara," Miroku said, turning towards the fire cat, "go get Kaede!" She trilled quickly, running back towards the village.

"What happened? Where's—?"

Kagome grabbed the sleeve of his robes, balling them up into her hands.

"Inuyasha is hurt! You have to help him!"

"Where?" He asked, and she pointed down the way she'd come.

"By the well!" She cried. "You have to go get help!" The air wasn't thick enough. "His neck—" She gasped in a lungful of air. "You have to go!" She wheezed out her statement in a rush of air that she wasn't able to get back down into her lungs.

"Kagome," Miroku said, reaching out with one hand to grab her arm. "I am not leaving you here alone. Kirara is fetching some help. Let me take you back—"

"No! Go! He needs help!" She shook his arm in emphasis.

Miroku glanced back towards the village before giving her a slight nod.

"Okay, then we'll both go."

"No! I need to go back! He's not awake!" She lurched in the direction of the well, and Miroku's arm stopped her.

"Kagome, calm down before you hurt yourself."

"We have to go back!"

"Okay, I'll take to Inuyasha, alright?"

"He—he needs help," she whimpered.

"It's okay. We'll take good care of him together, okay?" Kagome nodded, sniffling as Miroku moved closer to her, sliding his arm under her legs and then the other supporting her back.

He picked her up off the ground, grabbing his staff in the process and walked them both towards the well.

"Can you tell me what happened?"

"It wasn't dead," she whispered. "It came back."

"I see," he said smoothly. It wasn't long before they came back into sight of the well, and Kagome strained her eyes to see if Inuyasha had moved at all.

Miroku set her down beside Inuyasha's still body.

"Inuyasha?" She asked, as Miroku placed fingers against his neck.

"His neck is hurt. He—we—he barely got us here. I thought—it was—" Kagome grabbed one of his hands, holding it tightly in her own.

"He's alive. I think he's just unconscious. We'll wait for Kaede together, alright?" Miroku lightly patted her shoulder.

"Miroku?!" Sango's voice echoed through the trees, and Kagome could see the glow of Kirara's feet.

"See?" He said to her, gently rubbing her shoulder. "Over here! By the well!"

Kirara landed in the clearing with Sango and Kaede on her back. Shippo leapt off. "Wait here with Inuyasha, alright?" He asked, hand on her shoulder as she gave him a quick nod. He stood, jogging towards them.

Kagome nodded, pressing his knuckles to her cheek. His hands were warm to the touch, even though the night was cold.

"Kagome!" Sango shouted, and Kagome turned towards the sound of her friend's voice, but Miroku was already in front of them with his hands up stopping either of them from dismounting.

"Inuyasha is hurt. We need to move him carefully. Kagome says his neck is injured."

There was a pause, but small little hands pressed on her thigh, and Kagome looked at Shippo's face in the dim glow of Kirara's flames.

"We will go fetch some village men and a sheet to move him gently," Kaede stated. "Come Sango. We should hurry."

"We'll be right back, Kagome," Sango called after her. "You'll stay here with her?"

"I will make sure that they're guarded."

A small ball of fox fire appeared next to her, and she looked down at Shippo, who cradled the little ball in his hands.

"Sometimes the dark is scary," he admitted, and she felt the beginnings of a small smile. Miroku came and sat down beside her gently rubbing her shoulder blades with his hand.

"He said that there was nothing dangerous around here," she told him.

Kagome held his hand to her chest. He was breathing, and the pained look across his face was gone at least.

"Inuyasha has ensured our safety many times. It is the least that I can do."

She nodded again as they waited for Sango and Kaede's return with Shippo's small foxfire illuminating the clearing for them.

They returned with a small group of men in tow, and Kagome still held onto his hand, rubbing her fingers along the thin flesh of his inner wrist.

Nothing had changed.

"Kagome," Miroku said, and she clung to his hand a little tighter in fear that he'd make her let go. Then she shouldn't know whether he was safe or not.

Kaede kneeled down by Inuyasha's head; her fingers pressed gently against his neck, poking and prodding. He didn't react at all.

"He's okay?" She asked; her voice remaining quiet.

"There was some injury here, but I believe his youkai blood is fixing the damage. Aye, but we should still work with caution." She motioned the men closer. "Ye will need to show great care when moving him."

The men nodded their assent and followed Kaede's instructions on bunching the sheet up just so and placing it under his shoulders as Kaede carefully lifted his head and neck with her hands. The men carefully pulled the sheet under his body as Kaede held it taut under his head.

Once they were done, they made sure it was positioned correctly before carefully lifting him up under Kaede's careful instructions. Miroku gently pulled Inuyasha's hand from hers, and she couldn't help but cling to him, hands reaching for any slip of him that she could reach.

"Take him into my hut. Sango, Shippo," Kaede said, turning towards the small kit, "will ye be so kind to light their way? I do not want them to stumble."

The small kit looked up at her, patting her thigh before darting off to light the path. Sango and Kirara moved to guide the way back to Kaede's.

"Miroku, can ye help Kagome?"

"Of course," he said. "Here, hold onto me," he guided her arms around his neck and carefully lifted her up from beside the well.

"Inuyasha will be fine. He's too stubborn to let anything keep him down for long," Kaede said. "I have known him for many years, and I have yet to find someone as stubborn as him."

While Kagome couldn't argue that point, she'd never seen him so still.

They marched forward towards the village through the night, and Kagome buried her head into Miroku's shoulder.

A/N: Happy Halloween! I genuinely hope that you guys enjoyed the chapter and the spookiness!

I am moving soon-like right before Thanksgiving soon-so I'm probably not going to be updating this story in particular until December. Sorry, but I just don't think that I'll have the time and ability. I do have part of the next chapter drafted, but I really just need more time to write. Can someone just pay me a living wage to just write? ┗( T﹏T )┛ (The dream, right?)

As always, let me know what you think!