Disclaimer: Inuyasha is sooo not mine.

Chapter 26

"So what do you want to do about him?" Naraku asked Sesshoumaru, who was pacing back and forth and deep in thought. Naraku whipped out his gun and racked the slide mechanism, breaking the heavy silence of the room. "Shall I go upstairs and--?"

"No, imbecile, you can't." Sesshoumaru ceased his movements and shot Naraku a dirty look. "Put that thing away; Souta's in the room for heaven's sake." He motioned towards the teenager, who sat in the corner of the room, reading. "Besides, I don't like seeing guns in my house."

Naraku clicked his tongue impatiently at Sesshoumaru. "Oh, c'mon! Let me shoot somebody! I'm loaded and ready to go, for pete's sake!" whined the investigator. "Look, why do you ask me to hunt these scumbags down if you won't let me end their miserable existance? I thought that was the point of the whole thing."

"I said no, Naraku."

"Killjoy." Naraku slipped his gun back into holster. "You've definitely lost sense your sense of fun."

"Are you just going to keep him here until Kagome gives a statement?" Ginta broke in. He was having a smoke with Hakkaku and Kagura in the other corner of the room near an open window. "Or do you just plan on torturing him first?" he added with a smirk.

Sending a dark look Ginta's way, Sesshoumaru resumed his seat behind his desk. "I will wait for her statement to arrive or I will wait to hear his confession from his own mouth. Either way, he will be charged with assault."

When Naraku started in again about not being allowed to do as he pleased, Souta closed his book and left the room after ascertaining that no one would notice his departure.

No one did.

He went up the stairs and straight to the room that held Hiro and Yuki. Knocking softly, he unlocked the door and opened it without waiting for an answer. On the bed lay Hiro, with his back to the door. His brother, however, was facing the door. He sat up slowly when he saw Souta appear and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. He eyed the teenager warily.

"Yes? Have you come on an errand from that bastard step-brother of yours?"

"No." Souta came in and shut the door quietly behind him. "You hurt my sister," he said softly. "You had no need to do what you did. Kagome has never hurt anyone." He tilted his head to the side and regarded Yuki solemnly. "Why did you do such a thing?"

"Oh, is that all?" Yuki glowered at the boy. "Don't get me started, kid." He paused a moment, then asked, "Why do you want to know anyway? I don't think your sister would want you to discover that she's a lying little whore."

"Don't you dare say such things about Kagome." Souta walked over to Yuki and stared hard at him. "Even though you love my sister, you say such cruel things about her. How can you act like this? I don't understand--"

"What's there to understand? Look, kid, get it straight. I don't love her. Got it?" Yuki reached over to the bedside table where his cigarettes and lighter sat. He tried very hard not to look at the boy's face; it was so incredibly like Kagome's.

The young man shook his head. "You're lying."

Yuki's hand jerked back and he stared with shock at Souta. "What? I'm not lying."

Sighing, Souta smiled softly. "Yet another lie." Moving closer to the blond man, Souta reached out and touched his face. "Your aura. It's better than any polygraph test." He moved his hand over Yuki's head in an arcing motion. "Kagome," he said quietly, then smiled. "Ah, there we go. Your aura has flared into hues of red and pink. You still love her." He stepped back, his brown eyes twinkling. "You know, if you apologize, she will forgive you." Souta bowed, then turned and headed back to the door.

"She will? Really?" Not caring if his voice sounded desperate and full of longing, Yuki felt his heart beat like mad inside his chest. Was there hope for him after all?

The teenager cracked a smile. "Oh, she'll forgive you because that's the kind of person my sister is. But don't get me wrong, but you'll have to do some serious ass-kissing if you want her back. I suggest you start looking for fool-proof groveling techniques and definitely think about getting down on both knees. Don't forget about chocolates; my sister loves chocolates. But honestly, Kouga will be a hard act to follow. He loves her like crazy and she knows it. You'll have a really hard time competing with him, so I guess you'd better throw some prayer into it too, if you want her back in your life. Sorry, I didn't mean to get your hopes up too much, Yuki. She may never be with you again, but at least she'll have forgiven you." Again he turned to go, but Yuki called softly out to him.

"Wait, please."

Souta cast a glance back at Yuki, who had grabbed his cane, which had been propped up against the nightstand, and struggled to stand on his feet. The boy rushed over to him and wrapped his arms around his waist, helping him up. That caused Yuki to stare with at him with some surprise.

"Why did you do that?" asked Yuki, ignoring the little stabs of pain in his bad leg.

"You needed help," Souta told him matter-of-factly, "so I helped you."

"But... I don't understand. Don't you hate me? Don't you wish I was dead? I mean, I hurt Kagome."

Souta shook his head. "I don't hate you, but I hate what you did to my sister. It wasn't fair." He stepped away from Yuki.

"Not fair? She lied to me about seeing anyone, but she was, the whole time I was pursuing her." He hung his head. "All she had to do was tell me she didn't love me, then I wouldn't have made such an immense fool of myself, like forcing a woman who's in love with someone else to marry me. Damn, do you know how stupid that made me feel?"

"How many girlfriends have you had before you were with Kagome?"

Looking at Souta, Yuki blinked. "Girlfriends? Very few. I'm not the relationship type. The women I was with were merely lovers, that's all." He shrugged, his expression neutral.

"Well, Kagome has never had a boyfriend, at least until Kouga came along and she's never had sex with men. Yes, she told me herself, so don't look at me like that. We tell each other everything. But really, you have no right to get upset with her for having one boyfriend before you. You didn't honestly expect her to come to you without even having had her first kiss already, did you? Kagome told me that Kouga has confessed to wanting to sleep with her, but he's never gone farther than letting her know it. So, don't you think that seems unfair when you compare her past to yours?"

"As usual, Souta, you're incredibly perceptive."

Both Yuki and Souta turned to see Hiro lying on his side, facing them, his head propped up on his hand. "I thought that Yuki would have actually figured that out for himself, but of course he needed someone to point him in the right direction. Blondes aren't very bright, are they?"

While Souta chuckled behind his hand, Yuki sent his brother an ugly look. "And here I was, thinking you actually gave a damn about me, Hiroshi," he grunted unhappily.

"I do, brother dear, but now do you realize that you've been in the wrong from the very beginning? She lied to you to protect Kouga after you threatened his life as well as to keep from hurting your feelings. But she never lied to you about loving you. She does love you. Very much."

Yuki shook his head sadly. "Not as much as she loves... him. All I wanted was to be important to someone; to be special. But I meant nothing to her."

Sitting up, Hiro scooted over to the other side of the bed where Yuki and Souta were. "Hell, Yuki, do you know how important you are to Kagome?" He got off the bed and took his brother's shoulder. "I've heard from Miroku that she knew something terrible would happen to you. She knew it, Yuki. She could feel something evil in the air the day of the wedding, and even though you assaulted her, she let everything happen that was supposed to happen because she knew you would live when you walked away from her."

"Oh god," muttered Yuki, grasping his cane harder, his face pale. "He came after I left, didn't he? The... the hitman, I mean. She knew someone wanted to kill me?"

Souta nodded. "When Kouga came in, he found the guy standing over her, preparing to rape her, but Kouga stopped him. We don't know if the guy would have killed her in your place though--"

Yuki's frame began to shake strangely and Hiro leapt forward before he hit the floor. Together, Hiro and Souta lifted Yuki and laid him on the bed.

"Shall I go get Sesshoumaru?" asked Souta quietly. "You know, to call a doctor?"

"Hold on a moment." Hiro turned to Yuki, who lay on his back, eyes fluttering open. "Yuki? Do you need a doctor? Are you in any pain?"

Unfocused green eyes stared up at the ceiling, tears welling up and spilling over down the side of his face towards his ears. "I left her all alone and helpless to face a death that was meant for me." He shook his head, as though he was arguing inwardly with himself. "I'm... a monster," he whispered brokenly, his chest hitching slightly.

Hiro and Souta looked sharply at each other. "Yuki--" began Hiro, but Yuki shook his head again.

"No, don't say anything," he said in a low voice. "I am a monster. What have I done?" His face crumpled and he turned over on his side, away from their stares. "What have I done to her?"

Stroking his brother's hair, Hiro looked over Souta again. "Do you think you could ask Sesshoumaru for a couple of his sleeping pills? I'm worried about Yuki. I know his leg has got to be hurting him pretty badly right now. If Sesshoumaru won't agree to it, I'll go down and plead with him. I know he's a fair man underneath it all--"

"Don't worry, Hiro. I'll get them." Souta bowed and left the room, shutting the door behind him. He ran to his room where he changed quickly into his pajamas and mussed his hair. Then he hurried downstairs and back to Sesshoumaru's study where, to his surprise, everyone was still there.

"Oh, Souta, I thought you went to bed," his step-brother said as Souta walked through the doorway. "What's up, little man? Can't sleep with all the noise these idiots have been making?"

Souta walked right up to the desk. "Sesshoumaru, you love me, right?"

Sesshoumaru sat up, startled. "Huh? Well, of course I do. What on earth are you--"

"And you'd do anything for me, right?"

The pale man golden eyes narrowed as he studied the boy before him. "Souta, you know I would. What is this about?"

"I need one of your sleeping pills, please."

Across the room, Inuyasha blurted out, "What the hell for?"

"Leave me alone, Inu." Souta shot him a dark look, then turned back to his guardian, presenting him with tear-filled eyes. "Please, aniue. I need one. Just one." His lower lip trembled.

Sesshoumaru was on his feet and around the desk before Souta could object. He took the youth by the shoulders and peered into his face. "Souta, are you alright? What's wrong?"

"I'm fine. It's just that... I can't sleep." He turned his face away from the probing gold eyes. "Having that man here... and talking about what he did to my sister..." Suddenly, he pressed his face against his step-brother's chest and put his arms around his waist. "This isn't what Kagome would have wanted. She would want you to forgive him no matter what. But I'm not that strong. I don't want him here, aniue! I don't want him near me! Please send him away!" He began to cry, clutching at Sesshoumaru's shirt.

Sesshoumaru stood quite still, stunned at his little brother's words. "I... I didn't think of how you would react, Souta. Forgive me." He hugged Souta to him and kissed his head. "Okay, little man. I'll be right back." He let go of Souta and left the room.

The ensuing silence was broken by a quiet "Oi."

Wiping his eyes, Souta looked up and over at Inuyasha, who was staring suspiciously at him. "Yes?"

"You've never needed something to help you sleep before. What's wrong with you?"

"Leave the boy alone, you jerk," muttered Kagura. "Can't you see he's upset?"

Inuyasha sneered at her. "Why don't you shut your hole, woman. Nobody asked you. And why the fuck are you and him still here? Isn't it past your bedtime? Or does Naraku always keep you up late at night anyway?"

Sesshoumaru returned in time to witness the spectacle of his brother getting his ass severely beaten by a woman. Of course, it didn't help matters seeing Hakkaku holding Inuyasha down and laughing hysterically with each blow that fell.

"That's enough. Leave my foul-mouthed little brother alone. Get out Naraku, and take your violent assistant with you. Your job is done for today. I'll call you in the morning with further instructions." He turned to Souta and handed him a pill and a bottle of water. "Here you go, Souta. Go get some sleep, okay?"

"Sure. Thank you, aniue." Souta ran out of the room and up the stairs. At the top of the landing, he turned back to make sure no one had followed him, then ran down the hallway to Yuki and Hiro's room. Knocking softly, he let himself in. "Here, I got it," he said, giving the items to Hiro, who was now rubbing Yuki's back. "I had to lie to aniue to get it. He locks his medicines up in a cabinet, you see. He's done it ever since I was younger. He was afraid I'd get into them and take them by accident."

"Thank you, Souta," said Hiro, giving the boy a grateful smile. He helped Yuki sit up and watched him as he swallowed the pill. "You're so kind. Just like your sister."

"If only. She's the nicest person I know." Souta looked at Yuki, who was drinking his water and watching the teenager with uncertain emerald eyes. "Don't look so nervous, Yuki. You'll be leaving this house soon. By tomorrow morning, I imagine. Tomorrow afternoon at the latest. He'll let you leave because I told him I don't want you here, Yuki." He chuckled.

The Yamadera brothers turned shocked eyes on Souta, who only gave them a sunny smile. "Wow, Hiro, did Kagome never tell you? One of my favorite pastimes is acting. Since I'm out of high school now, I'm in a community theater production of Shakespeare's Othello." His smile widened and a wicked glint lit up his chocolate brown eyes. "Can you guess which role I play?"

"Oh, gosh, let me guess," muttered Hiro, a hint of sarcasm lacing his voice. "Iago?" He sighed when Souta nodded, his bright eyes shining with an almost unholy light. "I never would have guessed that you... of all people..." He shook his head bewilderedly. "You don't seem the type to play the role of someone so manipulative, Souta."

"Yes, I know. That makes me the perfect person to play him, don't you think? Well," he said heading for the door, "I'd better get to bed. If I don't see you in the morning, I guess this is goodbye for now." He waved at them, the young, innocent expression returning to his face. "Good night!" Then he was gone.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Sesshoumaru was finally alone in his bedroom after kicking everybody out of his house. As Jaken bustled about the room, putting his freshly laundered clothes away, Sesshoumaru got ready for bed. He looked over at the bottle of sleeping pills that Jaken had placed on his dresser. They would probably come in handy later on...or maybe not. He couldn't bring himself to touch them. He hadn't slept since the night before the wedding. Even so, sleep seemed too far away to touch.

'So,' he thought walking into his bathroom, Yuki's presence bothered Souta. That just would not do. Despite his desire to keep the bastard under his roof where he could keep an eye on him, the well-being of his nineteen year old ward took precedence over waiting for a confession from Yamadera.

He brushed his long hair with great care and braided it. After tying off the end, he reached for his toothbrush, which Jaken had all ready for him to use.

'Yes,' he thought, staring hard at his reflection in the mirror. 'I will set Yamadera free tomorrow. I can't have him disrupt my family's life any further than he already has.'

As he left the bathroom, he found Jaken standing by his bed, turning back his sheets. "Oh, thank you, Jaken, but I'm not feeling sleepy right now."

The butler eyed Sesshoumaru with uncertainty. "If you say so, Sesshoumaru-sama. Here, please drink this." He held out a cup of tea.

"Two questions. One, what are you trying to make me drink and two, is there something in it that I should be concerned about?" asked Sesshoumaru warily, eyeing the teacup with distrust.

"It's just some plain green tea, Sesshoumaru-sama. I've noticed you haven't been sleeping again," Jaken said with a disdainful sniff, thrusting the cup into Sesshoumaru's hands. "You've always fallen asleep after having some strong green tea late at night, ever since you were a little boy. Your mother kept the pantry full of it in case you were too hyper to sleep at bedtime."

"Yes, I remember, Jaken, but I suspect that between the two of you, I was given some mild sedative to knock me out." Sesshoumaru sighed and took a generous sip. "I always knew there was a conspiracy afoot."

"That is a lie, Sesshoumaru-sama!" The little man puffed up like an angry hen. "We never put anything in your tea! You've just always been susceptible to strong green tea and no one knows why." He retrieved the cup when Sesshoumaru finished it and followed him to the bedroom.

When Sesshoumaru reached his bed, he staggered slightly and sat heavily down upon the mattress. "Apparently it still works." He lifted a hand and touched his forehead, yawning mightily. "I'm suddenly incredibly sleepy."

After Jaken managed to get his master into bed and tucked him in, he collected the teacup. "Of course you are and your suspicions were correct. I slipped you a couple of your sleeping pills." He stepped away from the bed when a long, pale arm reached out to swipe at him. "I do not care if you are furious with me, Sesshoumaru-sama, but you need your sleep. Kagome-sama isn't here now to help you sleep and quite frankly, she may never be. But I do know this, if you don't get your sleep, you'll fall ill and Kagome will worry about you. You don't want that, do you?"

Sesshoumaru mumbled a sleepy reply and Jaken nodded sagely as the angry golden eyes slid closed. "Good night, Sesshoumaru-sama," Jaken whispered and left the room.

oooooooooooooooooooooooo

The very next day, Sesshoumaru got up feeling a bit groggy, but rested. He recalled that Jaken had tricked him into drinking some spiked tea, but did nothing. Jaken only ever acted in the best interest of his master.

After breakfast, Sesshoumaru called Hiro and Yuki into his office. "I have given this matter great thought," he began as they sat down on the chairs before his desk, "and I realized that Souta would rather you not remain under this roof. Your very presence disturbs him and seeing how he is in my care, I must do what is best for him."

The brothers couldn't believe their ears. Souta had managed to get Sesshoumaru to let Yuki go after all!

'Damn, he really is a great actor if Sesshoumaru believed it,' Hiro thought bemusedly and knew instinctively that Yuki was thinking the very same thing.

"So, does this mean I can leave now?" Yuki asked, a slight edge to his voice. He did not want to stay one more minute in this god-awful house.

Morikawa leaned back in his chair. "Certainly. Feel free to depart whenever you wish." He waved his hand, indicating the study doors. "Oh, one moment before you go," he said as they got up to leave. "Don't think this means the whole incident will be forgotten, Yamadera. I will have someone keeping an eye on you at all times, just so you know. Eventually, you will pay for your crime against Kagome."

Yuki's face slid into a frown. "Look, do what you've gotta do, but I just wanna get the hell outta here. Okay? I'm in desperate need of a shower... to get the stench of Morikawa off of me." He sent Sesshoumaru a piercing glare and hobbled out of the room with the help of his brother's arm around his waist.

Sesshoumaru sat for several long moments after the two departed.

ooooooooooooooooooooo

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

When Kagome awoke the next morning, she found herself wrapped up in soft blue sheets and Kouga's arms. She very nearly freaked out when she realized the two of them were naked. It took her a moment to remember just why the both of them were naked and she relaxed, laying her head back against Kouga's chest, which served as her pillow. Memories of last night filled her mind and she felt sad and very disappointed. She would have liked for Kouga to have been her first. She knew that she would never regret giving her virginity to him. He was worth it.

She sighed and without thinking, she absently skimmed her fingertips lightly up and down his back. His body jerked suddenly and a short laugh burst from him. Kagome quickly drew back to find Kouga's bright blue eyes twinkling down at her.

"Sorry, honey. That tickled," he said with his sexy grin. He stared passionately at her, then reached over to kiss her lips. "Damn I love you so much, but I'm glad you're awake because I've really gotta pee. You wouldn't let go of me all night, so I've just been waiting here patiently for my little sleeping beauty to awaken. Too bad I gave you your kiss after you woke up. I would have loved to have seen you wake up after I kissed you."

She smiled mistily at him and withdrew her arms from around his waist. With a murmur of thanks, he bounded up from the bed and disappeared into the bathroom, but not before giving her a good view of his well-shaped, bare backside.

Grinning to herself, Kagome turned over on her other side and stared at the window. It was probably mid-morning, but she couldn't tell for certain. It was rather dark outside, so she guessed that it must be incredibly overcast today.

Getting up and after locating her nightgown, she slipped it on and went to the balcony doors. There, she opened it and stepped out onto the balcony. A blast of cool air hit her and she sighed. The scent of rain was heavy on the unseasonably cool summer breeze but it felt good.

A warm body pressed itself against her back and a pair of lips rested on the place her neck and shoulder met. "It's a beautiful day," Kouga murmured seductively against her skin. His lips traced a path up her neck and to her left earlobe, which he delicately nibbled on. His arms went around her waist, pulling her back against him. "I think it's going to rain soon, though. I was surprised when it didn't rain last night. I thought that with all the lightning, we would have gotten a good soaking as well."

She nodded and opened her mouth to speak, but then remembered that nothing would come out. Sadly, she pressed her lips back together. Kouga must have sensed her emotions, for he took her by the chin and turned her head around to face him. "I love you," he whispered, kissing her deeply. His right hand cradled the right side of her face, careful to not disturb her bandages, and held her head back against his shoulder.

When he let her go, he resumed nipping at her left ear. "Kagome? You know, I have to be honest with you. Even though I'm glad I stopped before I did anything to you last night, I was also pretty disappointed. I really wanted to keep going." He grunted against her shoulder. "Damn Miroku and my conscience. Oh well, perhaps that was exactly what I needed. I'd have felt terrible if you weren't ready for that."

'Disappointed, huh? That's exactly how I felt,' Kagome thought and laughed silently, turning in his arms and putting her own arms around his waist. She shook her head as he held her. That was what she loved about Kouga. He could never stay pissed at anyone for too long and he was always thinking of her feelings.

Shutting her eyes, she just stood there, relishing the combination of warmth from Kouga's amazing body on the front of her body and the cool of the air at her back. So comfortable was she, that her eyes closed...

She was running through the darkened rooms, looking for a way out. She could not find the front door, nor a back door but when she finally stopped running, she took a look around the room she was in. It was familiar to her; she'd been here before. Over to her right, she saw a sliding glass door and wondered when this had appeared, for she knew that she'd run everywhere there was to run...

Coming up to the glass, she looked through it out to a balcony and beyond that lay downtown Tokyo. Now she knew where she was. This was Yuki's apartment.

A sound from behind her made her jump and she whirled around. A scream wrenched from her throat, her heartbeat loud in her ears. Yuki was behind her, a bloody knife in his hand, his golden hair and fair skin covered in blood. The front of his shirt was drenched in blood as well and she saw with horror that it flowed freely from a wound in his throat. His throat had been slashed from ear to ear.

"Yuki!" she shrieked, automatically reaching for him. "Yuki!"

'Help me,' his voice whispered in her head; no sound passed his lips although they were moving. 'Help me, Kagome...'

He vanished into thin air, leaving Kagome screaming his name over and over again...

oooooooooooooo

"Kagome? Baby? What's wrong?! Answer me, baby, c'mon!" Kouga was shaking her and Kagome felt her body grow unbearably heavy. Her knees buckled beneath her and she dropped to the ground, but Kouga caught her before she hit the balcony floor.

Looking up into Kouga's panicked eyes, she could still see Yuki's face... and his throat. God! His throat! The image was too much for her to bear; whoever had done this horrible thing cut down to the bone...

Quickly shoving herself away from Kouga, Kagome pulled herself up with the balcony railing and very nearly launched herself over it except that a pair of firm hands kept her from doing so. She wretched helplessly as hot tears streamed down her face. When she was through, she stepped back and turned shakily to Kouga, who scooped her up and took her back to bed.

"Oh god, sweetheart, are you okay? Just lie down for awhile, alright? Let me go get Akira for you," he said and after yanking on a pair of sweatpants, he dashed out of the room.

She did not want to bother the good doctor over a disgustingly graphic nightmare, but it was all just too much to handle and besides, something did not feel right. Remembering the dream from the night before, Kagome recalled Yuki being covered in blood, but she did not see his throat slashed like that. He held a huge knife in that dream too, and his lips moved as though he were talking, but she could hear nothing.

By the time Kouga had returned with the sleep-touseled doctor, Kagome had slipped back into sleep. The dream came yet again, only this time, she paid careful attention to everything around her while trying hard to ignore the feeling of fear that had once again taken hold of her senses. She stopped running and really looked around. Yes, like before, she was in Yuki's penthouse apartment.

There was a dragging step behind her and carefully swallowing her terror, she turned around. As before, Yuki was making his way towards her, the long knife in his hand. He raised his arm and showed her the blood-covered blade. Unable to help herself, she covered her mouth with her hand and backed away from him. Her gaze had gone to the front of his shirt, then up to his throat.

Again she screamed his name, feeling the tears run down her face. His lips were moving silently while his whispering voice sounded in her head, its tone a little more urgent than it had been before.

'Help me, Kagome,' he pleaded, his eyes full of pain and desperation. 'You must help me!' His eyes burned with a fierce green light, but it was fading fast.

"But Yuki, how? How can I? This is a nightmare. A dream! Nothing can hurt you in a dream!"

The dream Yuki shook his head, sending a river of blood spurting out of his wound, drenching his already blood-soaked shirt. 'Please help me,' he repeated desperately. 'I need you! I don't want to die!' He vanished then, leaving Kagome screaming his name into the darkness of his empty apartment.

She stood there for a moment after her voice died away and when silence reigned over her once again, she heard a noise coming from somewhere down the hallway. It was a sound so soft in volume that for a second she doubted whether she heard it at all. But then it came again... and it froze the very blood in her veins.

A laugh. It was a low, pleased chuckle that seemed to come from the direction of Yuki's bedroom. Kagome felt faint and she knew what that sound meant. Someone was in the apartment. Someone who was not Yuki.

Soft footsteps padded down the hallway and Kagome quickly ducked behind one of the large leather sofas. Peering around the side, she saw a shadowy figure emerge from the hallway and make its way over to the balcony doors. From her hiding place, Kagome could see that it was the figure of a man with slumped shoulders. He was holding something in his arms, cradling it.

He slid the door open and stepped outside. The man tilted his head back and took a deep breath of the night air before walking right up to the railing. Instinctively, Kagome ran to the door and yelled at the man to stop. He did not turn around immediately, but when he did, Kagome saw that he was an older man, probably in his late 50s. He was tall and rather good looking, but his expression was, in a word, disturbing.

"I have done you a favor, young lady," he said, smiling oddly at her. "Now he will never hurt you or my beloved Tsubaki again." He opened his arms and showed her what it was that he held against his chest before turning and leaping off of the balcony.

ooo

Kagome woke to the sound of Kouga's and Akira's voices in an attempt to calm her down. But Kagome could not be calmed down... not when the vision of seeing Yuki's severed head in that man's arms filled her entire mind with dread and horror. Her arms and legs flailed in the air as she fought them off, causing both men to move back a bit and she took that opportunity to curl up into a ball and rock back and forth as she wept silently.

They stayed with her until the weeping subsided enough to gain her attention and Akira showed her a pen and paper. "Here," he said gently, holding them out to her. "Tell us what happened, Kagome. We want to help you, but you need to tell us what's wrong, okay?"

She stared up at him, her brain not quite comprehending what he meant. A part of her knew what she had to do, but it didn't quite sink in all the way. All she knew was that her brain and body felt numb. She couldn't even call to Miroku, as much in shock as she was.

Kouga moved forward and touched her arm. "Baby, please tell us what's wrong. I'm worried about you and I want to know what's going on with you. I want to help you as much as I can."

But Kagome only shifted her gaze and stared vacantly into space, leaving Kouga and Akira to glance at each other worriedly over her head. What was going on with her?

ooo

Downstairs, the sound of the front door opening made the two men start.

"Hey! Anybody up yet?" Hakkaku called out, only to be shushed by his brother.

"Be quiet, man! Kagome might not be feeling well yet," admonished Ginta. "Come on, help me put these groceries away. You can do what you want, Miroku. Kouga's with her right now, so just knock on the door. It's the first room on the right on the second floor."

"How do you know that? About him being with her, I mean?" asked the monk.

Ginta replied, "Because he refuses to leave her by herself, that's why." He winked at Miroku and headed off to the kitchen with grocery bags in hand.

Miroku watched the elder Kawase brother walk away and turned, looking around the room. It was simple, yet elegant; it definitely held a woman's touch although it was a bit old-fashioned. He went to the stairs and ascended.

Akira met him on the landing. "Miroku, we didn't expect to see you here," he said, shaking the monk's hand. "We're glad you came. Kagome just woke from having a nightmare and right now, she's pretty much unresponsive to us." He led Miroku into the room where Kouga was trying unsuccessfully to get Kagome to talk to him.

"Excuse me," Miroku said respectfully and knelt beside the bed in front of Kagome. He said nothing, but reached out and touched her face. 'Kagome, can you hear me?'

She did not reply, but he caught glimpses of horrible, bloody pictures in her mind.

'Kagome? It's me, Miroku. I'm here to help you. I want to tell me everything you saw.'

He felt her mind stir but she seemed to be closed in on herself, shielding herself from something. For the next several minutes, Miroku tried getting her to come out but with no success. "She's hiding," he said at last, getting to his feet. "Kagome saw something that disturbed her so much, she's pulled into herself."

"What? What did she see?" Kouga asked, sitting down beside her on the bed.

"Well, I'm not certain, but the images were... bloody. I saw a long, blood-covered knife and a slit throat, too. Whose it was, I don't know, but whoever it was never could have survived such a wound."

"Damn," murmured Akira, shaking his head. "I wonder if this is another vision or just a really gruesome nightmare."

oooooooooooo

Kagome stayed like that for the rest of the day. She slept on and off, but when she did sleep, it was not long before she woke violently, arms shooting outwards, almost as if she was fighting off an invisible attacker.

Kouga was terribly concerned and watched her constantly, despite the others volunteering to take turns keeping an eye on her. But the very next morning, Kouga woke suddenly when he realized that Kagome's side of the bed was empty. He jumped out of bed and checked the bathroom. Finding that empty, he ran out of the bedroom and dashed down the hall to check every room, occupied or not, to see if she was there.

She was not.

He ran downstairs, ignoring the sleepy questions of the other males in the house. It finally dawned on him that she was not in the house when he saw the front door unlocked. Dashing outside, he saw that his car was missing.

His heart stopped dead in its tracks and he wheeled around, running back inside the house. But it wasn't until after he'd gotten dressed that he found his gun had mysteriously vanished from his dresser drawer that he really began to panic.

"GINTA!" he yelled, flying back down the stairs with his phone, wallet and motorcycle keys in hand.

Ginta, who was half way dressed, hopped out of his room as he was pulling on a pair of jeans. "Yeah?" he asked, yawning.

Below, Kouga was hurriedly lacing up his boots. "Wake the others! Kagome's gone!"

There was a cry of "what?" and a heavy thud. Kouga looked up to see Ginta pulling himself up off the floor with the help of the banister. "What did you say? She's gone?!"

"Yes. My car is gone... and so is my gun." Kouga's face was grave. "There's only one thing I can think of that would require Kagome to carry a gun."

Ginta's eyes were wide in his face. "Oh my god," he whispered, face paling drastically. "She's gonna off Yuki."

Kouga nodded and ran out of the house. A moment later, the sound of a motorcycle could be heard starting. The engine revved for a moment, followed by the sound of tires squealing. Then, silence.

By the time Ginta managed to get his jeans on properly, he turned to see three stricken men standing wide-eyed in the hallway outside their bedrooms. He scowled at them. "Yes, yes, you heard him. Kagome-neesan took off with Kouga's piece. Let's get the hell outta here and hope to kami she hasn't done anything foolish." As he returned to his bedroom to find a clean shirt, he muttered under his breath, "I really hope Kouga finds her in time."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Kagome was on the road. It had taken her nearly an hour to discover the way back to Tokyo. She never knew there were still places in Japan that were so well hidden away from civilization as Kouga's lovely home was. By the time she reached the city, she knew the others were not far behind her. Miroku had sent out thoughts to her, telling her not to be silly, but she ignored him. She could feel him try to pry into her mind, but she kept the door to those gruesome images firmly closed to him. There was no way she would subject him to what she had been shown.

Reaching Yuki's apartment building, Kagome parked in the parking garage and headed for the lobby with Kouga's gun in the pocket of her khaki trousers. As the elevator doors opened, Kagome heard the roar of a motorcycle come close to the double doors in the front of the building. She stepped into the elevator car just as the sound of running feet echoed throughout the lobby.

"Kagome! Wait! Someone, stop that elevator!"

Kagome pressed herself flat against the back of the car just as Kouga's wild countenance and wind-blown hair appeared through the closing elevator doors. He lunged for the elevator just as it closed in his face.

Breathing a sigh of relief, she relaxed against the cold, mirrored wall of the elevator. Man, Kouga certainly drove fast!

When the doors opened on Yuki's floor, Kagome stepped out and looked down the hall to her right. Sure enough, there was Yuki, who was moving painfully slow and leaning heavily on his walking stick, just as he was reaching for the doorknob to his penthouse. His free hand was sliding the key into the lock.

Fear spiked through her and she ran down the hallway, heading straight for him. Just as he pushed the door open, Kagome lunged at him, wrapping her arms around his waist. Yuki started violently and yelled loudly. He let go of the door knob and twisted his body, his arm snapping backwards in an attempt to rid himself of his attacker.

Kagome went flying away from him and slammed against the wall opposite of Yuki's front door. The gun in her pocket fell out and skidded a short way away from her.

Seeing who it was he had hit, Yuki cried out, eyes opening wide. "Kagome! Oh god, I'm so sorry! I didn't know it was you!" He turned towards her to help her up, but just as he took one step in her direction, he saw her right hand grab the gun off the floor and aim it right at him as she got to her feet. The look on her face was indescribable and it frightened him to see it.

"What are you doing? Please! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you, Kagome, I swear!" Yuki cried, taking a step backwards. "Don't shoot me, I beg of you!"

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

A/N: Okay guys, this is where the story line splits. sigh I've really, REALLY struggled with this decision, but one of my reviewers brought me back down to earth. They told me that if they wanted to read a Kouga/Kagome fic, they could go somewhere else to read one. I completely agree with them. This fic started as a Yuki/Kagome on this website, so therefore it is only right it should end as a Yuki/Kagome fic on this website.

I do thank everyone who voted for Kouga to be the winner, so even though he won 14 to 11 against Yuki, Kouga's ending will be the one posted on my livejournal. But, I hope my little Kouga supporters won't be too upset... I've decided that there will be a third possible ending to this story. It too, will be posted on my livejournal. If you haven't guessed by now, it will be an ending with the Fluffmeister himself. whew It's a lot of work, but it's fun and it's sort of my way of apologizing for overturning the votes for Kouga's ending and sticking it on my livejournal instead.

Oh! I have some good news, gentle readers! I have already begun a new fic with a new pairing. It's still far from postable and doesn't even have a title, but the pairing will be...

(drum roll, please)

/drum roll/

Hiro/Kagome!

I can't wait until the first chapter is ready to post! But until then, I shall be working diligently on the three separate endings for 'Blindsided'. Wish me luck!

Peace and much love,

Raven Skye Blackhawk