The New Half Demon In Town

by Ellanore Rising

A Half-Wolf-Demon girl comes downstairs to find her mother gone. She jumps through the well in her basement and finds Koga. As they come to know each other better, the girl's dark past becomes known. Also on my website: /animefanstories

4. Friends

* * * * *

Koga

* * * * *

As soon as I saw that Jakotsu, I knew it was all a trap. A plot to lure me away from Susan. I tried to fight my way out of it, but Jakotsu was soon joined with Ginkotsu, Renkotsu, and Suikitsu. We were out numbered, out-gunned, and out-matched. And then I heard Susan's screams.

"DAMMIT! MOVE, YOU BIG BASTARDS!!!!!" I shouted, managing to rip a hole into that monsterous machine that Ginkotsu had become. And then the tables turned. Renkotsu used that fire-breathing thing on me, and I nearly avoided being roasted like a salamander in a fire.

"YESH!" Ginkotsu shouted, firing one of his cannons off at me while Suikotsu attempted to slash Hakkaku and Ginta to shreads while the Gay guy sliced through anything and everything that weren't his comrades. We were loosing. We were loosing badly. We were going to die.

But then things changed. Oh, yes, they changed.

In a split second, a flash came through the battle field, flooring Suikotsu and Renkotsu, and greatly frightening Jakotsu and even Ginkotsu seemed at a loss for words. Though he didn't let it show.

"Yesh?" he asked uncertaily.

And then the flash turned around to face me, and I gasped.

It was a half-Demon girl, with orange and black stripes on her cheeks and ears that were shaped like a cat's. Her long hair was a dull yellow, and her lips were glossed with the same kind of black stuff that Susan put on her's. Her disdaintful glance landed on Baldy, and she bared her teeth, showing her fangs that were longer than even mine.

"You." she said in a sweet but annoyed voice, pointing at him. "You and your friends get out of here. Immeditely."

"Or what?" Suikotsu demanded, climbing to his feet.

"Or you meet my friends the claws." she threatened, raising her right hand and tightening it so the knuckles cracked.

The four men exchanged a look and as one, they jumped on Ginkotsu and rumbled away.

"Heh." the slim girl said like she owned the world. "Cowards."

At another glance, I took in her loose skirt that came to her center-thighs, the pants underneath, and the long-sleeved, sweater-like top. Her black and orange tail swished here and there, and seemed to have a mind of it's own.

"Uhm," I said, looking at her. "Thanks for saving us."

"Sure." she answered, casting that half-lidded look in my direction. "They were pissing me off, anyway."

"Ri-ight." I said. "So, I'm Koga, and these two are Hakkaku and Ginta."

"Kebi." She said, looking away. "From Egypt."

"Alright." I said, making a mental note to ask Susan where Egypt was.

"Koga." Kebi said, suddenly looking over at me. "I think you'd better get going if you're going to save your friend. And by the way, I like her, so I'm coming along if there aren't any major objections"

"Right!" I said, suddenly remembering the reason for my sudden panic. "Let's get going."

Kebi rolled her eyes.

"Finally." she muttered. "Stupid Wolf."

* * * * *

Ellie

* * * * *

"Ellie, don't go there!" Pizlop was squeeling. I ignored him. I didn't see the danger in going into Susan's basement.

"Ellie!"

I sighed.

"Pizlop, you need to lighten up!" I chirped, smiling at the penguin. "Derik asked me to check out her house in case she's still here!"

"So then why're you going into the basement?"

"Duh. I want a Cherry Coke and the fridge's broken!"

"Ellie, the power's been shut off!" Pizlop told me.

"Ah, go back into the back pack!" I said, stuffing Pizlop back into the pack.

People say that I'm dumb, taking orders from a penguin. But I'm not. Honest! It's just easier to have Pizzy tell me what to do!

So anyways, I was at school that day and Derik had come up to me and Heidi and asked us if we'd seen Susan since the party the day before. She usually called one of us or something, and Ty and Tay-Tay always knew what was going on with the girl. But none of us had heard from her. She wasn't picking up her phone, and none of us could even find her mom. So Derik had sent out a search for her. Heidi got New York City, Derik was taking the town, Tyler was out in the country, and Taylor was in charge of searching newspapers, the Internet, and questioning people about Susan in her spare time. Me? I was searching her house looking for any sign of my friend.

So far, there'd been nothing. And I do mean in the literal sence, nothing. All of her blankets were gone, any canned or perserved food, all of her make-up and clothes, and even her sewing kit had simply vanished.

"Susan's on vacation!" I said happily.

"Ellie?" Pizlop said in a voice that said quite plainly he thought I was an idiot.

"Hm?" I asked, trying to turn on the TV.

"The power's out, it's freezing in here, so the heat's off, her mom's stuff is still in the master bedroom, and the whole house feels deserted. Susan is not on vacation! I think that something's happened to her. And Ellie?"

"Yeah?"

"The TV is not going to work!!"

"Then I need a soda." I said, going into the kitchen. I grabbed a Cherry Coke from the blackened fridge, and opened it. I took a sip and frowned.

"The bubbles went bye-bye!" I gasped, tapping the can.

"ELLIE!!" Pizlop roared. "WHAT DON'T YOU GET ABOUT THE POWER BEING OUT?! THE BILLS OBVIOUSLY HAVEN'T BEEN PAID!!"

"Okay, okay!" I said, plugging my ears. "So the basement'll be cold, and Susan keeps soda in the basement!"

So that was how I ended up in Susan's basement, looking around hopelessly for a can of Cherry Coke.

"Hmmm." I said, taking the lid off of a wooden fridge built into the ground. "Is the soda in here?" I asked, reaching in to find the cans.

"Ellie!" Pizlop cried. "Get away from that well!"

"Oh, don't worry!" I said, grinning. "I'm not going to fall into the fri-iiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!"

Um, I guess I did fall into the fridge.

As I fell screaming into the freezing cold hole along with Pizlop, I was twisting. I felt my head strike the side. Dazed, I couldn't even scream. I could only fall as time seemed to slow down and I finally landed on my stomach, tasting sand.

"OMPH!" I gasped as I landed.

"Ellie! Ellie! Ellie, are you okay?!" Pizlop, who was safe in the bag, was squeeling.

"Ohm. Oh. Ah. Ow." I murmered, pushing myself up. "Pizzy? I think I have a concussion. I hit my head on the way down. And I don't think that we're in Susan't basement anymore. It's snowing."

"Well." Pizlop huffed. "What was your first. . . Ellie! Oh, my God! You said 'concussion'! Do you know what that is?!"

"Sure. It's when you hit your head and your brain gets seriously messed up. I think it's like a blood clot or it could be a bruise or something." Then it dawned on me. "Oh, my God! I've never said something that sophisticated before! Pizzy, what's going on?!"

"You said 'sophisticated'! Ellie, I think that bonk on your head did what I've been trying to do for years! It finally knocked some sence into you!"

"Yeah. Sure. Let's get out of this stupid well, alright?" I said, climbing up.

If I thought it was over, I was wrong.

"Pizlop?" I asked slowly. "Why're we in the woods?"

Pizlop never answered my question. Because at that moment, a very pretty boy and a really cute little girl came out of the trees.

The boy had a cold expression and long silver hair. A cresent moon was on his forehead, and he had long nails that could almost be claws. The girl just had black hair and dark brown eyes.

"Hey." I said, flashing them a smile. "Hey, me and my penguin here are kinda' lost. Can you guys tell us where we are? Oh, and have you ever heard of a girl named Susan?"

* * * * *

Susan

* * * * *

I was beyond pissed.

My wrists were still taped up (for the life of me, I still couldn't figure out how Bankotsu had found out how to use the frickin' Duct Tape), my mouth was still taped up, though through out the hours we'd been walking, the section over my lips was beginning to become moist (I could feel my lips chapping), my arms were falling asleep from being pinned to my rib cage, I couldn't see, my nose was as good as dead, and I was beyond tired. And that wasn't even the worst of it.

I was in the presence of a perverted psycopath who was leading me up a mountain that made me feel sicker and sicker with every step that we took.

My demon powers had returned to me, but a lot of good it did me if I couldn't break the tape all tied up like I was, and even if I did, there wouldn't be much use in it since Bankotsu probably would have killed me on the spot anyway.

So all I could do was follow orders and keep walking. It was really my only chance at survival. And then I felt it.

I walked right into the barrier.

I stopped short, my lips trembling again. If I took one more step up the mountain, I would be purified, and while that doesn't sound like too much of a threat, believe me, it is. It means that I would most likely be killed. Painfully. Like grabbing onto an electrically charged wire fence and waiting for the electricity to kill me.

"What'd you stop for?" Bankotsu asked.

I growled deep in my throat. How was I supposed to tell him if my mouth was cemented shut?!

"Oh, right." he said, peeling the shit off my face. I gasped in pain as it seemed it almost ripped my face off.

"Owwwwww!" I complained, trying to ease the pain without my hands. Not easy. "Ack! Ouch! Ah!" I continued. "Oh, don't you know anything?" I added to Bankotsu. "That's a frickin' sacred barrier! It'll kill me!"

"Huh?" Bankotsu said. "Oh, right. Naraku warned me about that thing. Said that you'd be okay since you're half human. So move it!"

Sure. I'll just walk into my death like a good little girl. I thought sarcastically. I really didn't want to. Even if Naraku was right and I wouldn't be purified, it would probably hurt. But which would I want? Pain and then a voilent death or just good old pain? Decisions, decisions.

I bit my lip and walked foreward as Bankotsu ordered me to.

The pain was enormous. I probably passed out at one time or another. But I just kept going. My legs protested my every move toward Mt. Hakurai, and my brain was screaming from the pain, my limbs seeming to be on fire. Eventually, my legs gave way and I fell flat on my face, whimpering something about burning up. Bankotsu scooped me up and carried me in, even though I screamed and withered. It probably didn't help that I was loosing feeling in my fingers and I couldn't see. But then I felt my ears receding along with my claws.

And I couldn't help it. With Bankotsu holding me, I fell asleep with my head against his chest and my arms tied up.

* * * * *

When I woke up after what seemed like hours, I was in a cave. The Duct Tape was still around me, and I wasn't alone. Jakotsu and Renkotsu had joined Bankotsu, and they were debating about something or another. I guess I should note that I couldn't see them, but I could recgonize their voices.

"Bankotsu, we can't keep her here with us!" Jakotsu, the guy who liked Tyler, whined.

"Well, what else are we supposed to do?" Bankotsu demanded. "Just let her go? I don't think so. That was what fighting Koga was all about!"

"Koga." I whispered to myself, and I heard three rustles around me.

"Big Brother." Renkotsu said. "I don't think it's necessairy to keep her bound anymore. It's not like she can run anywhere."

"Right. Okay. Now, how do I get this stuff off of her?" Bankotsu wondered. "Oh! I know! Renkotsu, you get her loose!"

"Uh, why me? I'm not the one. . . Never mind. I'll do it." And with that, he sliced at the tape around my arms, freeing them and then going at my wrists.

"Stay still." he told me grudgingly. "Big Brother will kill me if I slice off one of your hands by mistake."

"Uh. . ." I said, nodding my head. "Okay. . ."

"Thanks." I said dully, untying the blindfold and blinking at the sudden light. I rubbed my wrists to get the blood pumping again.

Renkotsu nodded and motioned at Jakotsu to accompany him out of the cave. I glared at Bankotsu, not trusting him for one minute. I didn't think it a coincidence that the other two would leave the minute I woke up.

"Alright. I'm ready for an explanation." I said, crossing my arms and not dropping my gaze.

Bankotsu smiled at me.

"Hey, isn't it obvious?" he asked, moving foreward faster than I could react and cupping my chin in his hand.

"Oh, now don't you dare do that agai-" I began before he silenced me in one of his violent kisses. This time it was slower, but not any less bruising or humiliating. I tried to pull away, but he planted his hand on the back of my neck, gluing his lips to mine. And it seemed to make him angry when I tried to get away from him, because he pressed his mouth even harder on mine and forced my lips open. He prerssed my head against the wall, so I still couldn't slip away, and then he roughly grabbed my upper arms with his hands, bruising my arms in his vice-like grip. I tried to break away, but he was simply too strong and I was just a human, after all.

And then I felt his tongue slip into my mouth gently caressing my own tongue and the insides of my cheeks. It almost tickled, and I won't lie that it felt awesome. Is that wrong? That I hated the guy but I liked it when he gave me some tongue?

And then, at long last, he pulled away and I slapped him while breathing a little harder myself.

"Don't fucking kiss me, you pervert!!" I told him, biting my lip. "Don't ever touch me, 'cause if you do, then I'll hit you so hard that you'll have to invent dentists a few centuries early!"

Bankotsu grinned at me.

"Aw, c'mon. It wasn't that bad. Personally, I thought it was pretty amazing."

"You would." I muttered, looking away. Cuz you're a pervert!! I thought sullenly.

"So." he said, suddenly buisness like. "What were you saying?"

I tried very hard to stay patient. It wasn't easy.

"I wanted to know." I said, saying each word slowly. "Why you kidnapped me and distracted Koga and the others."

"Oh. Yeah. I guess I just didn't like that wolf sleeping next to you." Bankotsu laughed.

I felt my mouth drop open and the anger quickly settled in. What buisness was it of his if I slept next to Koga?!

"What's up?" he asked, tilting his head off to the side.

My mouth worked in my brewing furey, but I could't seem to get any sound to come out. Finally, I said:

"You were spying on us?! You-you-you-"

And then he kissed me again.

Dammit. I gave him an opening! I thought, balling up my fists but letting his hot breath sear my mouth anyway. I thought it was probably my best move to staying alive if I just didn't fight him. This time, I forced my body to go limp so he wouldn't think I was fighting. It was an instinctive move, but I guess he took it some other way, because he pulled me in closer to him and pulled my limp legs around his waist. He placed my hands on his shoulders and held the underside of my thighs. Lifting me up, he slammed me against the cave wall, making me gasp in pain and pull back. He let me stay like that for about two seconds before he was kissing me again, his lips tracing my jaw bone and slowly working his down my neck.

I whimpered.

"Cut it out." I said in a whisper, but almost contrary to my words, my thighs tightened up around his waist and my hands gripped his shoulders very tightly. If I didn't know better, I would have said that I actually liked it.

Slowly, he worked his mouth back and started nibbling my earlobe. I let out a moan of pleasure.

"Ban-kot-su-stop!" I ordered, jerking my head off to the side and closing my eyes, waiting for him to slap me. I didn't trust men too much, Derik, Tyler, and Koga and Hakkaku and Ginta being the exception, and only then because they were Wolves too, and I certainly didn't trust Bankotsu too far. From what I'd experienced, if you let a guy like Bankotsu get too far and you pulled away, he'd slap you and tell you to shut up and just go with it. And then there were all the harrassing phone calls, restraining orders, and cops to deal with afterwords when you pressed charges agianst the guy.

I waited for the shattering blow that I was sure would come, clenching my teeth and feeling my muscles tighten up in aprehension. But Bankotsu suprised me.

"Why're you so afraid?" he asked, setting me down and cupping my chin in his hand. I dared to raise my eyes, and when I did, Bankotsu was looking back at me almost tenderly, and a little worried. I guess I really must have tooked terrafied.

I sucked air into my lungs (I had forgotten to breathe) and felt my shoulders tense up.

"Nothing." I murmered, looking away. "Just forget it, alright?"

"No, tell me!" he insisted, grabbing my arm and making me flinch away, screwing my eyes shut again.

"LET GO!!" I shreeked, slapping his hand. He jumped. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself.

"I. . .I. . . sorry." I whispered, feeling my eyes water up. "It's just. . . well, the last boyfriend I had kinda' slapped me around, is all."

It was a little harder than a slap. I added to myself. More like slamming me into the wall and almost pulling my hair out of my head. I remembered when he'd broken my arm after pounding me into the floor and kicking me a few times. I shuddered. I tried not to remember what the guy had done to me, since I still had scars from it. I wiped the salty water from my eyes and looked away.

Just forget about it, Susan. I told myself. It's a thing of the past, the guy is in jail, and he's never going to find you here. But Koga, you'd better hurry up and get here somehow. Oh, but the barrier. . . Koga, if you can find me, don't you dare get yourself killed!

* * * * *

Kebi

* * * * *

After about five minutes, it became clear that the majority of these Wolf-Demons weren't the brightest. The leader, Koga, was alright, but the other two quickly drove me insane.

Just put up with it, Kebi. If you want to avenge your family, just tag along until you know where Naraku is.

I hated Naraku for fooling my mother and step-father, then killing them and my little sister and older half-brother. I'd sworn to kill him for it.

I'd never been close to any of my family except for little Alexandria. Ally. My little sister. The only other half-Demon that I knew, torn to shreads by the strange Japanese babboon and the albino girl with him. I loved Ally like no other, as only an older sister can love her younger sister. I loved Ally more than I loved my mother, Cleo, my step-father Amun, and my half-brother Brom. I never liked Brom, but Ally was worth avenging. And then Susan came along.

Even with her strange name, her almost obscene clothes, and odd gadgets, I felt I could relate to her like no other, for she, too, was feuled my a blood-feud. She, too, felt the burning need to revenge her family. And thought I senced that her past was darker than she was letting show, I felt for certain that we weren't so different. Had she, too, been shunned for all of her life, only accepted by her closest family? Or had her life been much more brutal and bloody?

One thing I knew, though. She was one of the few that could unconciously adjust her aging rate to match that of the one she held most dear. I only knew of a select few who had that gift, one from what was called 'Spain' and another from Itally. As for myself and Ally, it was every six years. Koga, of course, was imortal like any demon and only changed once in a very long while.

"It's this way." I said, leading the way towards the mountain that the leader of the strange group had snatched Susan off to.

Though Koga clearly wanted to know more about me, I kept silent while we ran, and he didn't press the issue. That was one thing that I could like about him. He knew when to keep his mouth closed.

After a while, the sun rose, but we didn't stop. I was more than used to running through the night, and apparently, Koga was, too. However, when we got to the base of the mountain, Koga doubled over and seemed to be fighting the urge to hurl. Behind us, Hakkaku and Ginta were involved in similar activities. I personally got a good blast from that damnded barrier and had to fight a wave of nausia of my own.

"The Sacred Barrier." Koga choked out.

"Yes." I agreed. "I do think that I am the only one who can pass through. I will simply revert back to my human form, while you will be instantly purified."

"Wait a minute!" Ginta shouted, looking around in confusion. "You mean that Susan's behind that barrier?! She's as good as dead!"

Everybody ignored him. Why waste time on stupid things?

"I'll bring the girl back." I promaced, taking a step into the barrier. I felt my powers waining, and eventually, I was reverted back to my Human form. I wanted to bring her back. And then I saw a young girl. She couldn't have been more than ten, with black honey-colored curls and bright blue eyes, dressed in clothes that looked eerly like Susan's, walking around Mt. Hakurai like she was out for a morning stroll!

"Hey!" I shouted over to her. "Kid!"

She took one glance at me, and I think she tried to shout back, but then the mist closed in and a second later, I could have sworn she was never there.

What was that? I wondered. A ghost? No, she looked solid. So what was she?

I put the mater out of my mind and kept going. And finally, after hours of walking, I saw the cave. I snuck up, and I saw her.

Asleep, in her human form, Susan looked frail and weak. Some blankets were strewn around her, and she tossed and turned, moaning every so often and shook her head frantically. What on Earth she could have been dreaming about that caused such a reaction baffled me, but I guessed it had to be pretty awful. On the other side, even though it was very cold out, the leader of the Band of Seven, Bankotsu, was sleeping without any blankets, his arms crossed even in sleep. I silently snuck over to her, and I was shocked to see that she was covered in some kind of gray bands that stuck to her skin. They were around her ankles and bound her wrists behind her back, making her unable to run off on her own. Of course, the Band of Seven thought their only problems were InuYasha and his group, who would have no reason to save Susan even if they had wanted to, the Wolf-Demon Tribe, who could not enter the barrier, and Sesshomaru and his group. Sesshomaru and his lackey Jaken were in the same situation as Koga, and the little girl traveling with him, Rin, would never be aloud to go after Susan on her own. Sesshomaru wouldn't trust her with any of InuYasha's friends, and he wouldn't want to save Susan anyhow. So in their mind, all they had to do was tie Susan up and she wouldn't go anywhere.

"Hey." I whispered under my breath, shaking the girl gently.

"Huh? Oh, wha-" I quickly placed my hand over her mouth for fear that it would wake Bankotsu up.

"It's alright. I'm with Koga." I hissed, slicing the silver bands on her wrists with a sharp rock. "My name's Kebi."

"Kebi." She whispered, taking the rock and freeing her ankles. "Like from Egypt?"

I made an 'Mm-hm'ing sound and nodded my head, taking her hand and leading her out of the cave. She let go as soon as we were outside, and walked beside me, not letting up on the questions.

"What part of Egypt are you from?"

"Around the Nile." I said, glancing around me. "Near the Ancient Palace."

"How'd you know where to find me?" she demanded, ducking under a rock that was jutting out.

"I just went as far up on the mountain as I could get before I got the the cave." I said, smiling slightly. "You see, I'm a half-Demon too, and I have a natural sence of direction."

"Really? What kind of demon?" she asked, her eyes lighting up.

"Tiger." I told her.

"Wow. The only other Half-Demon I ever knew of besides myself and InuYasha is. . . never mind." she added, smiling. "Oh, look! It's Koga!" she broke into a run, and Hakkaku and Ginta cried out joyfully :

"It's Susan! She's alive!"

Susan ran right through the barrier, and I don't even think that she realized her Demon powers had returned. She ran right up to Koga and flung her arms around his neck, pulling him into a tight hug.

"Koga!" she laughed, looking up into his eyes. He looked down, laughing like a moron. And then, as though she'd just thought of the idea, she grabbed the back of his head, stood on her tip-toes, pulled Koga's head down, and kissed him, right on the spot.

* * * * *

Ellie

* * * * *

"Lord Sesshomaru?" the little girl said, looking at the pretty-boy in astionishment. "Didn't that half-demon girl say that her name was Susan?"

Sesshomaru nodded.

"Oh, yes! I remember! She looked at me like I was funny for calling her 'Lady Susan'! I have to say, she sure was a nice Half-Demon. InuYasha does get annoying, you know?"

I felt myself going into shock.

"Half-Demon?" I asked. "Well, I wouldn't know anything about that, but was her hair really curly hair? And did she seem to really like dark colors?"

The little girl frowned.

"Well, her hair was curly, but I don't know about the dark colors. She was in. . . well, pants kinda' like yours, and some kind of grey shirt. I think it had some blue words on it." I nodded. That sounded an awful lot like our school sweat shirts with a pair of jeans. "Oh! And she had this wolf with her! I think it was named after some kind of jem! Oh, hang on, let me think. Was it Pearl or Opal or Saphire or-"

"Ruby?" I asked, a smile hitting my lips. "A grey wolf with black ears and a white belly?"

"Yeah!" the girl cried, a smile lighting up her whole face. "That's the girl!"

"How do you know her?" the Sesshomaru asked, speaking for the first time. I had to hold in a gasp. That voice. . . SO HOT!!!!

"Oh! Um, I'm her best friend." I said, only stretching the truth a teeny bit. I was one of her best friends.

Sesshomaru nodded.

"She went in the direction of the OxTiger." he told me. "The north east."

"Yeah!" the kid piped up. "But I wouldn't be too worried about her. She's with that Wolf-Demon Koga. He'll keep her safe!"

I frowned.

"Koga? Never heard of the guy. And what in the good name of God is a Wolf-Demon?"

"What, do you live under a rock?" some green imp asked from Sesshomaru's feet.

I glared at him.

"No. I just live a very, very, very long ways away." I told him.

"Ooooh! Lord Sesshomaru, I like this girl! Can she come with us? Please? Please? Aren't we going in the direction of the OxTiger anyways?"

Sesshomaru looked over me. And at that moment, Pizlop poked his head out of my bag.

"Ah! Nice and cool out here! Reminds me of home! Hey, Ellie, it's going to snow tonight. I can feel it in my wings!"

I shoved the nuscince back into my pack.

"Sorry." I muttered, rolling my eyes. "My penguin. Pizlop. He loves snow. Oh, and apparently it's going to snow tonight."

Sesshomaru gave me a once-over again and then turned around.

"I suppose she can tag along if she wants to." he said. "But we'll need to know her name."

"Oh, right. Sorry." I said. "My name's Ellie, and my penguin is Pizlop. I call him Pizzy. Who're you guys?"

"I'm Rin!" The cheerfull kid said. "That's Master Jaken" she pointed at the imp-dude. "That's Lord Sesshomaru," the cold guy. "And this here is Ah-Un." she completed, patting a two-headed dragon that suddenly came out of the forest. "Do you want a ride?"

* * * * *

Susan

* * * * *

Yes, I kissed Koga. And yes, I thought he was going to hit me. And yes, he kissed back with such a force it sent my brain spinning.

Because his lips were nothing like Bankotsu's. He was warm and kind, his lips and hands not bruising me. It wasn't a one-sided kiss like Bankotsu's were. I was kissing Koga, and he was kissing back. True, he wrapped his hands around my waist and squeezed a little bit, but I had moved my hands down to his back and was pressing him to me and managing to hug him at the same time.

"Ahem. If you two are quite finished. . . " Kebi said in a tolerant tone. "There's someting I need to tell you all.

Koga and I broke apart, but his hand found mine and I gave it a squeeze.

"Yeah." I said, blushing. "Sorry, Kebi. Go ahead."

Kebi rolled her eyes. I saw that some tiger marks had appeared on her face, claws grew out, her hair had turned from red to blonde, her eyes from brown to green, cute little ears on top of her head (kinda' like InuYasha's) and a tiger tail had grown.

"Well, now that I have everybody's attention, I thought you should know that I saw something very strange on the mountain."

"What was it?" Koga asked, temporairly taking charge.

"It was a kid." she said slowly. "I think she was around ten. She had this black curly hair, and these aqua eyes. And here's the strangest part. She was dressed like you, Susan."

I think I went into shock. My eyes widened, and my mouth parted.

"Susan?" Koga asked, immedietly concerned. "Susan, are you alright?"

"Sis?" Ginta asked. "Sister?"

"Hey!" Hakkaku shouted, waving his arms over his head and jumping up and down. "Snap out of it. . ."

But his voice was fading out. I didn't even hear Ginta or Koga. I felt my eyes roll up into my head. And I was falling. Falling into the darkness, with only one thing circling through my head.

Jenny. She's alive. Jenny. Jenny. Oh, Jenny.

* * * * *

Ginta

* * * * *

Koga caught Susan as she fainted after hearing about that kid.

"What's wrong with her?" I asked as we ran, Koga carrying Susan, away from the mountain.

"I don't know." Hakkaku said, looking over sympatheticaly at Susan's limp form. "But I guess it was something about that girl that set Susan off."

I nodded as Koga led us through the woods so far that Kebi began to tire, since tigers aren't built for running a long distance.

"Think that's enough distance?" Hakkaku asked, noticing Kebi's fatigue.

"Yeah." Koga said, gently setting Susan down. "Well don't just stand there! Get her some water! And blankets!"

Hakkaku ran off to the stream to break away some of the thin ice to get to the clean water underneath, and I rushed over to Susan's pack to gather up her blankets. Hakkaku came back with the water as soon as I had fetched the blanktets. Koga gently tipped the water down Susan's throat, and she woke up, hacking up all the water.

"Oh, God!" she suddenly cried, shaking her head. "Jenny!"

"Who?" Koga asked, giving her a funny look.

Susan's eyes brimmed with tears.

"Jenny. My little sister." she said in a voice barely above a whisper.

"Sister?" Kebi asked sharply. "You have a sister?"

The girl nodded.

"I do." she whispered, her shoulders and ears drooping. "She's five years younger than me. My mom was only one month pregnant when my dad left. She didn't even know when he ran off or else I think she could have stopped him." then she began to cry. "I thought she was dead!" she gased, wiping her eyes as fresh tears began to fall.

"Shhhh." Koga cooed, pusing the water into her shaking hands. "Here, Susan, drink this and tell us what happened."

Susan nodded weakly.

"Alright." she whispered, sipping the water. "It was a few years ago when I was nine. My mom had taken me and Jenny to some kind of festival, I forget what kind. I turned my back for one second to look at this doll stand. I was holding her hand, I didn't think anything could happen!" Her voice was rising hystarically. "But the next thing I knew, her hand was ripped out of my own and Jenny was screaming for me and my mom. I turned around, and some guy was carrying her off! We chased after them, and the police raised an Amber Alert, but we never found her." Tears fell fast and furious down her face. "Oh, Jenny! I loved her so much, and for the past four years I've thought she was dead! I mean, after a few months, you stop thinking that the cops will bring home that laughing girl you grew up with, and you start wondering if they'll find the body in a desert or whatever." She looked at Kebi who looked very spooked. "I know it was Jenny. When she was human, she had black curls and aqua-blue eyes. Did. . . did she have a scar on her face? Right above her eye brow? Did you notice, Kebi?"

Kebi nodded.

"Yeah. Jagged. Like lightening."

Susan smiled a wattery smile.

"Yeah. That was Jenny, all right. When she was three, she fell into a door and sliced open her head. She's had that scar ever since." Then her smile faded. "That's another thing to hate myself for. I couldn't protect her from that. . . DAMMIT!!" she shouted, balling up her fists and digging her claws into her hands. "I should have kept her safe! I HATE myself! I fucking let my little sister get kidnapped!"

Koga looked like he was going to slap her. She was scarring me, too. I'd never seen Susan in this state, and had no idea of how to react. I mean, she was usually so funny and smart-mouthed. I never thought that she'd have her own dark past. . .

Just when I was about to say something, or let Koga slap her to haul her to her sences, or maybe pour some cold water over her head, anything to get her back to normal, Kebi stepped foreward and kneeled in front of Susan. I thought she was going to smack Susan herself, but Gods, was I wrong.

"No." she said, shaking her head in denial. "It's not your fault. Susan, listen to me!" she ordered, grabbing the other girl's shoulders and giving her a sound shake. "You couldn't stop that guy from snatching up your sister, you had no control over whatever Naraku did to your mother, and it wasn't your fault that your father left. Susan, look at me!" Susan reluctantly rose her eyes up to meet Kebi's. "I've been in your exact same position, alright? Naraku killed my mother, my sister, and my mother's second husband and his son. I know what you're thinking right about now, and let me tell you this: just because you're a survivor doesn't mean that it's your fault the others aren't. So stop blaming yourself so we can think up some way to get your sister and mother back!"

I was in shock. Kebi?! She seemed the least likely to reveal her past! But what she said seemed to work on Susan, because she whispered:

"Really?"

"Yes." Kebi said forcefully. "I'll bet you anything that all this can be pinned on Naraku. Your parents and sister. And," she added. "Naraku likes to mess with people's heads. I'd bet that right about now, he's sitting behind that barrier on Mount Hakurei and thinking 'I've got her mind fucked up pretty good now!'. Dammit, Susan, will you fucking listen to me?! Stop your blubbering! It's a thing of the past and we can't change that! But your little sister needs you, and you're going to go to her if it's the last thing you do. Gosh darn it, don't you want to save Jenny?!"

"Of coarse!" Susan said indignately. "I'll save Jenny if it's the last thing I do! But. . . what if she doesn't remember me?" she asked in a whisper. "She was so young. I mean, we were close, but what if Naraku messed with her mind, or what if I'm just some dream that she's half-forgotten about?"

Koga finally moved foreward and slapped her face. Not hard, mind you, but enough to get Susan to shut up and listen.

"WHO CARES?!" he roared at her. "SHE'S YOU SISTER, FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! IF SHE DOESN'T REMEMBER YOU, THEN WE'LL JUST HAVE HER SMELL THE SIMIALRATIES. MEMORIES NEVER GO AWAY! THEY'RE JUST HIDDEN IS ALL!"

Even though he didn't really hurt her that much, her cheek was turning red. For a second, anger flashed in her eyes, but then swift understanding.

"Thanks." she whispered, pressing her hand to the stinging area. "I guess I needed that, huh?" she flashed us her old smile. "So let's get working on. . . oh. The Elder's back." she sighed, standing up and turning to greet the talking Elder.

"Susan!" he wheezed. "I had to run to get a head start. Julian isn't really sticking to procedure here. He's coming right behind me! He'll be here in about half an hour!"

* * * * *

Ellie

* * * * *

I liked Rin. She was nice and funny. And Sesshomaru was pretty cool. Kinda' cold, but who in hell cared? Ah-Un was awesome, and he didn't bother Pizlop, either, so that made him great. Jaken, however, was a different story.

I hated that imp the instant I saw him, and that hatred only intensified as we walked toward the direction that Susan was hopefully in. Not only was the thing short and whinny, he had this high-pitched voice and a superiority complex against me and Rin. And he made it very clear when I let Pizlop out of my bag since it was so cold out that he would feel comftorable that he didn't like Pizlop at all. In fact, he had already threatened him multiple times with that weird two-headed staff thing. I had already bopped him on the head every time he spoke out against Pizlop, Rin, Susan, Uh-Un, worms, rocks, and everything in general. Sesshomaru had done nothing to stop me, so I took this as a sign that as long as he deserved it, it was cool to hit Jaken.

After a while, Sesshomaru told me that Susan was getting pretty close.

After another five minutes, something hit me.

"Hey, Rin?" I asked, glancing down at the girl.

"Do re me fa sol la tea- Yes? What is it, Lady Ellie?"

I looked at her strangely but ignored the 'Lady Ellie' part.

"Don't your parents worry about you traveling around like this? I mean, you're so young."

Rin sighed.

"Not really. You see, my parents and brothers were killed a while back by bandits, so I've pretty much been on my own since then. But Lord Sesshomaru found me and he's been taking care of me ever since, so it's not so bad. What about your parents, Lady Ellie?"

I grimaced.

"Yeah. An alcoholic mother and an absent, buisness-obsessed father are really going to notice that I'm gone. That's why I started hanging around Susan and the others, you know. I guess when other kids' lives are so messed up, you kinda' forget about your own problems, and after a while, they get really small. Cuz' all of our lives suck. When Susan's mom is actually around, she's usually Google-stalking some guy or doting over Susan, and the doting sessions are few and far between. Derik's sister is in jail for murder, and his dad is currently smacking his mother around whenever she makes him mad. Tyler and Taylor moved out last year when they turned seventeen since they couldn't put up with their father's bull anymore, and Heidi, well, her folks are divorced, her father's a psociopath serial killer in Riker's, her mom's always at work, and when she's home, she's so messed up about her brother's getting his girlfriend pregnant that she doesn't have any time for Heidi." I looked away. "I dunno. Maybe the others will miss me. Derik and Ty and Tay-Tay and Heidi, I mean." Then I smiled, putting on a brave face. "But let's change the subject. How about we talk about-"

"The fact that your friend is in the clearing up ahead?" Sesshomaru suggested, coming to a halt and nodding towards an area in the woods.

"Oh!" I said. "Right!" I added, running over. And I saw the strangest sight. Susan was standing there in her filthy pajamas, surrounded by three men in skirts and a girl who bore a startingly resembalance to a tiger. Two wolves were in the clearing with them. One I knew was Ruby, and the other was very old and he was freaking speaking English and telling Susan that some guy named Julian was coming.

"What?!" Susan was crying, feeling her filthy hair and looking down at her pajamas. "Now?! I look like a wreck! And I smell like I havn't showered in months! I can't. . . OH MY FUCKING GOD!!" she added, catching sight of me. "ELLIE?! What the hell are you doing here?!"

I smiled bashfully and came out of the clearing.

"Hey, Susan. What's up?" I asked. "You look like shit." I added.

Susan rolled her eyes.

"Oh, thanks so much, Ellie. I feel so good about myself now. . . Alright. Who in hell are you?" She added, planting her hands on her hips. "Cuz' you can't be Ellie, not talking like you actually have a brain."

"I fell into that stupid well in you basement while I was looking for you and got thirsty so I went looking for soda and hit my head while I was going down." I told her. "But more importantly, don't you have some occasion to get pretty for?"

"Oh!" she gasped. "You're right. Hakkaku! Get some water hot for me while I find something decent to wear. I don't think I can exactly wear all black when I meet my. . . father. . ." she sounded like she was just trying out the word. "for the first time, now can I? Hm. . . maybe an Aero sweatshirt and American Rag? Yeah, that'll be fine, I think. Oh, but what T-shirt? Oh, God. Um, maybe. . . "she muttered to herself for a while, pulling a pink Aeropostale sweatshirt and dark blue jeans out of her bag.

Well, this should be interesting. I thought dryly. Susan in something other than black and dark colors. Pink at that!

But I kept my mouth shut. I just couldn't wait to see the others' reactions.

* * * * *

Susan

* * * * *

As soon as I stepped out of the bushes, all eyes were on me. I mean it! Ellie was talking to Koga and Kebi, the Elder and Ruby were conversing, and Hakkaku and Ginta were tending the fire and trading fake war stories. But when I stepped out, all noise stopped. As it turned out, the only clean pair of jeans that I owned were too small, and all of the others were so filthy dirty I wouldn't have worn them anyways. So I ended up in a white mini skirt and black leggings. That combined with my pink Aero sweatshirt, well, I felt odd to say the least.

Why I even owned those colors, Ididn't know.

Anyway, I stepped out about fifteen minutes later with dripping wet hair, since I'd taken a very quick bath (I'd used the water that I'd ordered Hakkaku to heat up), dressed for all I was worth like a prep, and my makeup kept to a minimum.

Did I feel weird? Yes.

Did people stare? You bet they did.

Was I a little bit pissed off? Hell, yeah!

"Ellie." I said, trying not to shout. "Can you braid my hair for me?"

"It's harder when it's wet." She said doubtfully, surveying my look.

"Can you just try?" I begged, fearing that I wouldn't have the patience myself at the moment.

"Alright. But it might get all frizzy." She warned, walking over and scraping her fingers across my scalp. It was a strangely soothing feeling, and after a while, all of my stress was gone.

At least, it was until Hakkaku had to open his big mouth.

"Hey! You finally look normal, Susan!" he cried.

I was about to punch him, but Koga did it for me.

"Don't you dare insult her!" he said, baring his fangs.

Kebi laughed, and I think we all were a little freaked out by that.

"Ha ha ha!" she howled, rolling on the ground. "Oh, Gods! You don't actually-"

"Kebi!" I shrieked. "I think I hear something!"

I didn't really, but if I'd let her go on, she would have said that Koga liked me. And I didn't want Hakkaku, Ginta, and Ellie knowing that. Mainly because Ellie learned all too late that my taste in boys wasn't exactly the best, due to my abusive ex-boyfriend.

My clever cover-up didn't seem to fool my friend, though.

"do you like him?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Maybe." I muttered back, giving off a grin. "Tell anybody and I'll wreak havoc on your soul." I added playfully as she gave my hair a vicious yank in return.

"Ouch! Ellie!" I complained, biting my lip. "That really hurt!"

"Sure. Whatev." she said back, and I heard her smile turn to a buisness-like frown. "So. What's all this about being a Half-Demon or something like that?" She asked.

"E-Ellie! How'd you know about that?" I gasped, too shocked to answer.

"I get around. Have you ever heard about a guy named Sesshomaru?"

"The Dog-Demon? Yeah, I know him. Why? You're not tagging along with him, are you?"

"Sure am. Is there something wrong with him or something?"

"N-o." I said slowly. "I just thought. . . well, I've met his half-brother InuYasha, and I guess he's okay, but can't Sesshomaru be a little. . . you know. . . cold?"

"Cold? Well, I guess so." Ellie said. "But he's alright. I like him." she added, and even though I wasn't facing her, I could tell she was getting tense.

"He is pretty cool." I admitted. "I guess I don't really have any reason to dislike him, and he did help me save Koga, Hakkaku and Ginta a few days ago, so I'd be able to tolerate him."

"Koga, Hakkaku and who?" Ellie asked.

"Koga, Hakkaku and Ginta." I said. "Koga's the one with the black hair, Hakkaku's the one with the Mokawk, and Ginta's the guy in the fur vest. They're Wolf-Demons like my father was. . . is. I'm still getting used to saying that he's alive. . ."

Ellie finished up with my hair and strung an elastic around the nape on my neck.

"A Wolf-Demon? Wait, I thought your mom's a human. . ."

"She is. She's a Sorceress. That's like a Witch, but not as evil and without the warts. And unlike a Priest or Priestess, she doesn't rely on holy forces to get her powers. I guess you could say her kind is a free bird. She gets her powers from the enviroment."

"Like a Fairy?"

"Sure. Something like that."

"Cool. So do you have super-powers?"

I grinned.

"Depends on how you mean 'super powers'. I mean, you've seen me in gym, but I'm really much faster than that. I can go at about fifteen MPH, twenty if I'm really pushing it, but Koga over there can go at about thirty or fourty. Then again, he has Sacred Jewel Shards jammed in his legs. Hakkaku and Ginta are pretty slow, only about ten or twelve. But the human average is about seven-point-five, so even they'd be faster than you. I'm strong from a Human perspective, but to a Demon, I'm pretty average. And that's from a more advanced Demon's point of view. From a Lesser-Demon, I kick ass. I have a wolf's nose, regardless, and on top of that, my ears are pointed like any Wolf-Demon."

"But I mean like magical powers." Ellie persisted.

I sighed.

"I'm not sure. My mom and great-grandmother were Sorceresses, but my grandmother wasn't. But then again, she didn't even believe in them, and that might have held an element. I'm pretty in-tune with nature, but my mother's powers didn't really show up until she was about fifteen, and even then they only came on full-force when she was eighteen. I'm fourteen, and they havn't shown up if I have them, but you really don't know."

Ellie groaned.

"You're just confusing me, but fine."

We looked off a little ways away to see Pizlop and Ruby holding a conversation.

"Ruby's glad to see Pizlop agian." I said quietly, translating for her. "She's missed him."

Ellie looked distant.

"Pizlop's missed Ruby too." she whispered. "I know he seems all aloof and everything, but in reality, he was really torn up about you guys going away. So was I." she added, looking at me with misty eyes like she might start crying. "MacKenzie's really been getting on all of us since you've left. Oh, I know it's only been a few days." she said hurridly. "But she thinks she's scarred you off. Even Vivi's been getting all high-and-mighty."

"Sorry." I said. "I've missed you too. But look, Ellie, I just can't come back. Too much is happening over here. Naraku- that's the bad dude who messes with everybody's lives- has my mom. My father's going to be here any second, and my little sister is here somewhere."

"And you have a boyfriend." Ellie teased. I punched her.

"Do not!" I protested.

"Do so!" she insisted. "I've seen the way you and that Koga guy look at each other! He likes you and you like him!"

"Shut the hell up, Ells." I ordered. "Koga doesn't think of me like. . . like that." I fought a sob rising in my voice.

"Yeah, he does." Kebi said, slauntering over. "I saw you kiss him. He kissed back like the world was going to end that very minute. I saw it. He so likes you, Susan!" and for a minute, I saw that in a different life and a different time, Kebi could have been one of my girlfriends at school.

"What?!" Ellie gasped, shaking me. "You-you kissed him?! Susan!! That's so. . . so. . . I don't even have a word for how awesome that is!"

I laughed.

Ellie! Stop shaking me!" She did. "Okay! I'll admit it! I kissed him!"

"And he kissed back?!"

"Totally." Kebi confirmed. "He's so into her it's not even funny."

"Shut up." I ordered, feeling the blush rise on my face.

"You li-ike him!" Ellie teased.

"Fine! I like him!" I nearly shouted. "And from what you say, you're into Sesshomaru!"

Ellie didn't bat an eyelash.

"Yup. Dead on." she said. "Got a problem?"

I smiled.

"Nope. If I did, it'd be awful hypocritical of me, seing as I'm the product of when a Demon falls in love with a Human."

Kebi and Ellie laughed.

"Sure." Ellie snickered. "And would that be why you were denying you like Koga just a minute ago?"

"No. I was denying it because that's the instinctual thing to do." I said, rolling my eyes. Damn all of these inferences!

"Well-" Kebi began, but at that moment, he came into the clearing.

* * * * *

Koga

* * * * *

He was wearing a skirt, despite the cold. His armor was like mine, completely covering his chest. His hair was long and black, flowing freely down his back. He looked strong, and you could definately tell that he worked out a lot. You could tell from the strong facial features and shape of the eyes that he was related to Susan. In fact, they looked a lot like each other.

Julian. The great founder of the Wolf-Demon Tribe. Father of Susan and some girl named Jenny. Husband to the Sorceress Taylor. Somehow I expected him to be. . . I don't know. . . more headstrong. Like the times I'd met him before. But he just stood there, staring at his eldest daughter with pleading eyes. Susan, for her part, swooned a bit and the Human girl who was named Ellie had to hold her arm gently so she didn't fall. For the first time I'd ever seen him, Julian looked unsure.

"S-Susan?" he asked as though worried about getting her name wrong.

Susan managed a shaky laugh.

"Who else were you expecting?" she asked. "George Bush?"

Julian, for his part, smiled back at Susan.

"Just like Taylor. . ." he murmered, shaking his head. "You're just like your mother. . ."

"Well." Susan said dryly. "Since I've been living with my mother for the past few years, I'd better act a bit like her."

"Susan. . ." Julian said, begging. "What can I say to make you believe that I didn't want to leave you and your mother-"

"You mean me and my pregnant mother, don't you?!" Susan demanded sharply. "Cuz' my mom was pregnant when you left!"

Julian looked shocked and hurt at the same time.

"Taylor. . ." he moaned, sinking down. "Was. . . was pregnant?!"

"She didn't even know." Susan lamanated. "She was still under a month. But if you'd stuck around for another few weeks, she would have told you that she'd skipped her period. Guess it didn't occur to you to check, did it?!"

Susan was furious. She was almost literaly steaming with anger. Her face was almost red, and her eyes were shooting daggers. She was getting some revenge for her mother. But at the same time, tears stream-lined down her face.

"So I guess you never knew that I have a little sister named Jenifer! I guess you never knew that my little sister Jenny was kidnaped when she was four freaking years old! I guess you never knew that my last boyfriend used to beat the shit out of me since I wouldn't sleep with him and I used to cry at night because you couldn't be there to get him off my back! I guess you never knew that my mother spent half of her miserable life either glued to the computer Googling you to try and track you down or leaving me home alone to go and look for you! And I guess you never knew that she was just kidnaped by Naraku and she's prabably fucking dead right about now! But I guess you never really cared, since you just walked out without even telling mom where in hell you were going! What happened?! A human suddenly not good enough for you?! That why you came back here?! Huh?! Is that it?! To try and get the others to forgive you for leaving?!"

Julian burried his face in his hands, too ashamed to look at his daughter.

"I've spent years cursing and hating myself for letting Jenny get kidnaped!" Susan was saying, the tears flowing even faster. "I've wanted to die every fucking day for letting some guy snatch my little sister away from me! And my mother's hated herself for not seeing sooner what my boyfriend was doing to me for months since I didn't want to worry her! I was bruised and scared and frightened every day from Januanry to October because I didn't want to add more to her plate!" She collapsed, gasping for air. "But if you were there, things could have been different!" she continued in a sob. "Mom wouldn't be so messed up. You could have caught that guy who took Jenny away. You could have beaten the snot out of that guy who was smacking me!"

I think her tears frightened me more than anything. I could handle her terror, or anger and peppiness. But I flat out could not handle Susan crying! It was impossible! Like Naraku being nice, or man reaching the moon! It simply did not happen! But here was the proof, sobbing gently in front of me. And here I was, unsure if I should hit her again, or hug her, or stay out of it or even take Susan's side. What would Susan do if the positions were reversed? What would I want her to do, or would regret not having done later? The answer came to me in a snap.

Ask for Julian's side. Sure, Susan was pissed at him, and sure, it wasn't really my place, but if it was me, I would have died later, not knowing why my father left my mother and me.

"Susan." I murmered, sinking down next to her. "Suze, listen. Maybe we should hear your dad's side of things here. I mean, it's not really fair to keep jumping to conclusions like that."

Susan uttered a shuttering breath and turned to look at her father.

"Right." she said. "So. Start talking." she ordered, narrowing her eyes at Julian.

* * * * *

Julian

* * * * *

I had never expected Susan to be so old. Somehow I was still expecting the little Kindergarten girl that I had left behind. I still expected her to be five. But instead, she was an emotional teenage girl. I remembered my teens. Overwraught with complex emotions and then I had met Taylor. . .

"So. Start talking." Susan said, bringing me back to reality.

I sighed.

"How much do you already know?" I asked.

Susan's already narrow eyes narrowed even more.

"I know that you and my mom met with she was sixteen and a couple years later you two ran off to the present. And that you had me and mom was pregnant for Jenny when you took off without a word of goodbye." my daughter said.

I groaned.

"I didn't have time to say goodbye, Susan, please believe me. I heard that a demon named Naraku had come about and was causing havoc. I did tell your mother that I loved her and might be back. But after I got back here, I learned that Naraku was stronger than I thought. Gods, the amount of people that he's killed so far!"

"You don't have to tell me twice." Koga muttered. "You heard about my comrades?" he added to me.

"Of course." I told him.

"Naraku?" Susan asked sharply. "That's the ass-hole Demon who stole Mom away! And Koga, didn't he kill all of those Wolf-Demons a while back? And I'm almost thinking he messed around with InuYasha and Kagome too!"

Koga nodded.

"Would make sense." I said grimly.

"Sooo." the girl from the present said, walking over to Susan. "This is your dad, Suze?"

"Yeah." Susan said. "This is Ellie." she told me.

"And I'm Kebi." the half-Tiger girl said from her perch on a tree-log.

I nodded, and vagely wondered if I should tell Susan about that promace I made a few years back while Taylor was still pregnant for her.

* * * * *

Susan

* * * * *

I could hardly miss the look my father (I guess he was okay, but he was a long way from 'Dad') was giving me.

"What?" I asked dully, wondering what this guy had up his sleve this time.

He shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh, it's nothing much. Just a promace I made a few years back." he said.

"About me, right?" I asked sharply. "Wha'd you do?!" I demanded suspiciously.

Julian looked uncomftorable.

"Well, it's just this thing. It hardly applies to you right now, since you're so young, but I did make this promace to Koga's father when you were still in your mother's womb."

"And that would be. . .?" I asked.

If possible, he looked even more skeeved out.

"You see, Susan, my Koga's running the tribe I helped to found. He took charge just recently, so this isn't political or anything, but when I ran away with Taylor, Koga's father followed me. For a while. He eventually went back, but not before I and your mother had a talk with him. And we found out that his own mate had a son. Koga." he added, nodding at Koga. "We were actually old childhood friends, and we made a deal. He wouldn't tell the others where I went, but I had to do something in return."

"And that would be?" I repeated, dreading his answer but desperate to know.

He shifted his weight and took a breath.

"Well, it's that if we had a child, and it was a girl, then when she was old enough, she should marry Koga."

He said it simply. As though he told his daughter every day that she was promaced to the guy she already sort of liked. But I felt myself going into shock. My jaw dropped and my eyes widened. I covered up my mouth with both hands, and muttered:

"Oh, my. . ."

But I never finished the sentance, because for the second time that day, my eyes rolled up into my head and I fainted.

* * * * *

Koga

* * * * *

I caught Susan on her way down, although I felt like passing out myself. I liked Susan, I really did. I even thought it might be more than just liking her. And I guessed she felt the same way, or else she wouldn't have fainted like that. She would have started shouting that she wouldn't marry me in a thousand years or something like that.

Ellie, Ruby and Kebi were on their feet and shouting something about how Julian shouldn't have done that to Susan before he even knew what sex the baby was going to be, or even if Taylor would get pregnant at all. Julian didn't seem to mind, and actually agreed with their comments.

"I know I shouldn't have done it, but I was desperate!" he was saying.

I looked down at the limp form of the girl I was betrothed to. I didn't much mind the thought of marrying her. In fact, I kind of liked it. In her own way, Susan was beautiful. And not only that, she was smart and happy and individual. But, and there was that big but, I didn't think she would like to marry me.

Full-blooded Wolf-Demons are married off all the time, and aranged marrages are often part of our daily lives. I had never been subjected to it, and I was grateful for that. But, judging from what Susan had told me before, there were hardly any forced marrages in her time and country, besides the cults that sometimes sprang up. Hypothetically, she was close to my age, but in reality, I was centuries older than her. I didn't realize that I'd even said that out loud until I saw Kebi, Ellie, Julian, Pizlop, and Ruby all nodding their heads in agreement.

"That's true." Kebi said. "But she's a special kind of Half-Demon. She can instinctually change her aging rate to match that of the one she loves." she smirked. "And I'm pretty sure that she loves you a whole lot." she added.

I ignored the last comment.

That's right. I thought. I've heard of that kind of thing happening when I Demon mates with somebody who has magic and they have a kid. I guess Susan is one of those legendary babies.

I glared around the clearing and then sighed.

"Well. . ." I said, shaking my head. "I guess we'd better wake her up."

Hakkaku nodded and smacked her face. I groaned.

"I meant with water or putting her head between her knees." I told him as Susan moaned.

"Umm." she was saying. "NO! I DON'T WANT TO GO TO GYM CLASS!!! NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" Then she woke up fully, blushing this really pretty scarlet. "Oh. Hiya, everybody. Did I pass out again? I've got to stop doing that, huh?" She was nervous, and I guessed it was because she'd remembered why she fainted in the first place.

"So-o." She said. "Ahm. . . Uh. . .yeah. . . That was freaky." She looked at me. "It didn't happen, right? My dad did not marry me off before I was even born, right?!"

I shook my head.

"Yeah. It did happen." I told her.

"This is insane!" Ellie blurted out. "She's fourteen! She shouldn't be getting married off just like that!"

She stalked out of the clearing with Pizlop in her arms, going toward Sesshomaru's scent. Kebi followed her, and so did Ruby and Julian, who was hauling Hakkaku and Ginta after him. Litterally.

Susan looked down and bit her thumb with her upper teeth.

"So, um. . ." she mumbled, not looking at me.

I sighed softly and said gently:

"Look, I'm okay with this if you are, but I don't think anybody's going to force you to. . . you know. . . marry me."

Susan looked up at me.

"Seriously?" she asked, her eyes pleading with me.

"Yeah. So we're just going to say no, then? I'll go and tell your dad-"

"No!" Susan gasped, grabbing my arm. "Just hear me out, alright?"

I nodded.

"The reason I passed out wasn't because I was. . . you know. . . upset. Actually, I was damn well pleased. I don't mind this thing, either. I just thought you would be pissed off. Actually," she blushed scarlet again. "I really like you. And I, um, well, I-I sorta. . ." she trailed off, looking down again.

"So, you don't. . . I mean. . ." I couldn't keep the joy out of my voice. "You actually want to go through with that stupid promace?"

"Well. . .yeah, I guess." Susan said, hugging herself. "It's just. . . like. . . I mean, it might have. . . have happened anyways, right?"

I nodded. It almost definatly would have happened.

"Yeah." I said. "Kinda' fast, but yeah."

I saw tears starting to form in Susan's eyes.

"Oh, Gods, don't cry again!" I blurted, pulling her close. "I don't think I can handle it!"

"Sorry." she whispered, pushing back the tears and pressing herself into the cold armor on my chest. But she seemed to like it, somehow, and pressed even harder. I was actually enjoying myself.

And then, unable to restrain myself, I looked down at her and pressed my lips against her hair. She let out a small gasp and stiffened just for a millisecond. I cupped her chin in my hand and raised her head, looking deep into her eyes. Then I brought my lips down on hers, feeling the intensity from the both of us as she kissed back.

"But hey," I whispered when we broke apart. "I want to know what happened to you. The whole story."

Susan bit her lip, but looked up at me with determined eyes.

"Alright." she agreed. "I'll tell you everything."

End Chapter

Mua-ha-ha-ha-ha!!!! I leave you at a cliff-hanger until the next chapter! I'm so Evil!! Mua-ha-ha-ha-ha-HA!!!!

Anyways, I got a little more into Kebi and Ellie, and you finally get to meet Julian! Houray for you! I guess that was a shocking ending to the chapter, since you definately did not see that coming, but I thought it'd be awesome!

Great! So I'm engaged to Koga! And there's more to come!

IN THE NEXT CHAPTER:

Because Ellie is based on my friend Kayla, who has an awesome crush on Sesshomaru (Sorry, Sesshy fans, I just don't see it.), I'm going to be putting in some more Ellie/Sesshomaru where Ellie's not the only one doing the gawking. . .

Also, as I'm sure you're dying to know the whole story, I'm going to put in the whole story of what's happened to me since my dad left, complete with an un-named, abusive ex-boyfriend, a mom who just can't let go of the past, a kidnapped little sister, and a Crazy Cat Lady who doesn't know when she's met her match in a certain, Half-Wolf-Demon girl! And let's not forget about Kebi, the mysterous, yet somehow cool, Half-Tiger-Demon girl! We get to read her whole story, since I myself am dying to know what happened in her family! I've give up planning this out, and am instead just doing it as I go along. I'm never sure what exactly is going to happen, but it's fun to work it out with Kayla and Casey, who Ellie and Kebi are based on!

No, none of this has happened to me