Chapter 5

I am so happy with some of the kind comments that you guys are leaving me. I have been using these stories as a kind of de-stressor. I really hope that I can entertain you with this version of our favorite characters. Thank you AmyRoseAlice for your kind review. :D For anyone following both this tale and What Once Was Lost, Now Is Found I'll be posting a new chapter for WOWLNF tomorrow afternoon. Hope that you guys enjoy.

Disclaimer: Inuyasha and story belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, this is just a fan fic.

Elish was just settling down for the night when she saw how Shippo was giggling with Kagome in her sleeping bag. Rin had loved the story of Winnie the Pooh and now had wandered off to relieve herself. Elish was wondering if the little girl slept near Kagome and Shippo or near her lord. When Rin returned she gave a wistful glance at Shippo and then began preparing her bed roll next to the dragon. Elish frowned and glared at Sesshoumaru. Obviously Rin wanted more affection but the stoic lord was not the cuddling type. Sesshoumaru had his eyes closed and seemed to be done for the night, so Elish gathered her meager items and went to Rin's side.

"Rin do you mind if I sleep next to you tonight? I don't camp often and I would feel safer with a more experienced traveler." Elish smiled as Rin's eyes lit up and Rin eagerly nodded, patting the ground next to her. The little girl was a bit lonely Elish figured and it seemed that she was honored that Elish sought her protection. Rin explained how Master Jaken and Ah-Un normally watch at night, unless Master Jaken fell asleep, but it didn't matter because her lord was always watching.

Elish quickly glanced at said lord and found that he was still resting against the tree, and he had his eyes closed. He was probably sleeping. Elish turned back to Rin and decided to verify however because quite frankly Elish didn't know if demons needed sleep.

"Lord Sesshoumaru looks like he is asleep. Do demons sleep or is he just resting his eyes?"

Rin giggled and glanced over at her beloved lord. "Lord Sesshoumaru doesn't sleep often, but he does sleep. Lord Sesshoumaru nearly always keeps watch at night when we are with Master Inuyasha. He says that doesn't trust Master Inuyasha that well to let him keep watch without getting us all killed."

Elish glanced back at Sesshoumaru and found that his eyes were open and staring at her as to make the point that he had been paying attention to everything going on in the camp, even if his eyes were closed. Elish gulped and watched Sesshoumaru close his eyes again—very slowly. She paled and turned back to Rin.

"Well he seems like he can handle everything himself so why don't we head to sleep like the others and get a good start for tomorrow?"

Rin shook her head and lay down facing Elish as Elish finished unpacking her sleeping bag and finding Mr. Bun-Bun. Rin's eyes went wild when she saw the bunny and she raised back up and exclaimed with delight at how beautiful the bunny was. Elish asked her if she would like to sleep with Mr. Bun-Bun that night, and Rin was a bit overwhelmed and held the stuffed rabbit with such gentleness and reverence. The girls said their good nights and lay down. After fifteen minutes Rin had passed out closely snuggling the bunny, and Elish rolled over to face Sesshoumaru.

She was alone in the past with a weird motley crew of demon slayers and she was staring at the most dangerous being in all Japan, ruler of the Western Lands. Kagome had warned her that Sesshoumaru didn't like humans that much and that it would be in her best interest if she avoided angering him, talking to him, or anything that would draw his deadly poison from his claws. She had recounted how Sesshoumaru had tried to kill her in their first meeting by spraying poison all over her to melt her, and repeatedly afterwards he tried for Inuyasha's sword. It was best for her neck to stay out of his way. Elish had heard Kagome, but for some reason she wasn't seeing the deadly demon lord that everyone was so afraid of across the camp fire.

He was a gorgeous, elvish-looking, young man as far as she could tell, but looks could be deceiving. Elish found that Inuyasha was brass and loud but protected Kagome to a fault, Miroku was a lecherous monk which sounded like an oxymoron, and Sango was kind and gentle but seemed to have a level head and could turn violent in a moment (especially when the monk's hands went wandering). Sesshoumaru was the only unattached male that Elish could look at that wasn't too young, a two-headed dragon, or small and warty. Not that she needed encouragement; she could look at Sesshoumaru all day. Too bad he didn't care for humans, but a girl could dream.

So Elish stared at Sesshoumaru until she fell asleep, and in her dreams, she fell down the well again and met the devil under a pale moon.

The next day was a long march and Elish almost cried for joy when Inuyasha announced a hot springs was nearby and they would make camp for the night. The girls all gathered their bathing supplies and headed to the springs for a good long soak. Shippo came along too, and at first Elish was a bit unsure of disrobing because he was a boy. But after she so how fast Sango, Kagome, and Rin had disrobed and jumped into the water, she realized that these were different times and her modern sense of modesty was out of place and unwarranted. Besides, Shippo was diving and blowing bubbles and not even paying attention.

Elish sank into the hot water and closed her eyes to the world around her half listening to Kagome and Sango debating about what plan Naraku could be plotting, and what will they would do if Kikyo decides to show up again. She wasn't sure who Kikyo was, but it seemed like Kagome became a bit depressed at the mention of her. Elish put two-and-two together and realized Kikyo probably had something to do with Inuyasha. After about thirty minutes the ladies and Shippo were making their way out of the hot springs and toweling off ready to head back. Elish sunk lower in the water.

"Aren't you getting out Elish," Kagome asked as she wrapped a towel around her head.

"Actually I would like to stay a bit longer if you don't mind."

"Do you want us to stay and keep you company?"

"No, I think that I will be fine. I just want a moment. I'm still processing all of this; it still feels unbelievable."

Kagome smirked, "I didn't want to believe it either when I first got here, but after some time it grew on me and I prefer the quiet, starry nights to the noisy ones of Tokyo."

Elish smiled and watched as the group headed back to camp as she thought about how long she would be trapped in this world and what would she do if she couldn't ever return. Kagome had said that a demon had pulled her into the past looking for the Shikon no Tama. Kagome felt that she would be able to travel this world until she completed the mission of restoring the jewel whole, but why was Elish here? No demon had pulled her through time. Kagome had confirmed that the cat that had clawed her was the family cat, Buoy. So why Elish? She didn't have fancy Miko powers, nor was she a demon. So what was the point?

Two eyes scanned the clearing and found themselves resting on the voluptuous female floating in the water. She looked like a water nymph and she was all alone. The stag youkai ran his hand over his groin and licked his lips. He stepped into her line of view and grinned ever so slightly. "My, my what have we here? You are one lovely looking human if I do say so myself. How did you get out here in the middle of the forest all alone?"

Elish heard a rough gravelly voice and raised her head off the rock on which she was leaning. When she saw who, or what, was talking to her she paused for a terrifying moment as she stared at a grotesque half-man, half-stag creature that was hairy and had two larger antlers protruding from his head. He had on nothing but a loin cloth and she could tell that he was at half mast already. She stared in horror and did the only thing that a sensible young lady would do, in the woods all alone and naked as a jay bird. She screamed bloody murder!

=(^_^)=

Author's Note: Poor Elish, it's been pretty easy sailing for her so far. Nothing jumping out of the dark to bite her, but I'm afraid she is about to learn about the new world that she is living in and the different demons that inhabit it.