CHAPTER IV: RAIN BEFORE THE STORM

It was already nightfall when Tokiya and the others reached the temple. It was almost pitched black and the only light that can be seen was from the house located at the back of the temple. They continued to walk when suddenly Tokiya felt a strong aura coming from the other side of the temple. He looked at Recca and based on his reaction it seemed that he also felt the aura.

"Hime, why don't you go ahead of us?" Recca said, "Mikagami and I will just have to check something."

Tokiya immediately cut off whatever Yanagi was about to say, "Don't bother. You don't seriously think of letting her go alone right?" he said to Recca, "Or would you rather go with me than be with Yanagi?"

"Fine! I get it." Recca said half annoyed.

He was about to go to the direction where he felt the strong aura when Yanagi called him.

"Please be careful." She said.

He just nodded in return then continued walking until he reached the far end of the temple. And there he saw it. A man wearing a strange white kimono, his long silver hair falling from his back. But what caught his attention more was the girl the strange man was carrying. It was so easy for him to recognize her. Her purple hair almost covering her face in a wild manner. She looked as if she's in so much pain. And anger just blazed through him like an open fire.

"Let go of her." He said in a voice so grave he might actually turn someone to ice.

The man looked at him with his golden eyes and instead of doing what he told him to, he just pulled Fuuko possessively closer to his body. "I won't."

Kagome was currently travelling through the well, she's in the dimension between the feudal era and the present time. She still can't believe what happened earlier. She didn't expect Sesshoumaru to be able to use the well and travel through it. But what shocked her the most was when Inu Yasha jumped into the well, nothing happened. He just remained in the bottom.

Nothing like that ever happened before. As far as she can remember, only she and Inu Yasha can use the well. Then her cousin used it to travel through the Feudal era and now Sesshoumaru was able to use it as well. And to make it all perfect, Inu Yasha can't seem to travel through it.

"The shikon might have something to do with this." She thought as she remembered what happened in the temple when Fuuko touched it. She shook her head. This was not the time to think about that stuff. She must first make sure that they will find this friend of her cousin. Even though she's not sure how in the world she will heal Fuuko.

And with that, she was back in the present time. After climbing out of the well, she heard noises outside. She immediately went outside and saw Sesshoumaru holding Fuuko tightly in his arms while being attacked by a man with long gray hair.

On any other occasion, she might be amazed because the crystal like sword the man was holding was emitting ice daggers. But instead of being amazed she was horrified. Because at any moment those ice daggers might accidentally hit her unconscious cousin.

"Stop it!" she shouted at the top of her lungs.

The man stopped and looked at her. She went to them and looked at the man angrily. "What are you doing? Can't you see that he was holding someone unconscious? What if you hurt her, huh?"

"That girl is my friend and I won't do anything to hurt her. I just don't trust that man holding her. Who are you anyway?"

His words rang to her ear like some kind of alarm. She grabbed his arms and said frantically, "Your Fuuko-neechan's friend? Then… then you must know someone who has the ability to heal. Fuuko-neechan was poisoned and she needs to be treated immediately or else she might die!"

Tokiya was pacing around the house of Fuuko's relatives, he and Recca were waiting news on Fuuko's condition. After hearing what Kagome, Fuuko's cousin, said about Fuuko being poisoned they did not waste any time and immediately brought her to Yanagi. They brought her to her cousin's room and was now with the two girls. He doesn't have any doubt on Yanagi's ability to heal but he was still worried sick. And there's also that problem with that strange man. He still felt irritated when he remembered how that man held Fuuko.

"What do you think happened to Fuuko?" asked Recca.

He did not answer, instead he looked up and saw Kagome coming down the stairs. "Would you mind answering his question?" he asked her. "Because, I too was wondering how she came to that state."

She went near them and sat on a chair. "Of course you have the right to know what happened."

"Before you explain to us what happened, how's Fuuko's condition first?"

"She's fine now. Yanagi-san just needs to treat her other injuries and she will be as good as before. Well, I'm really puzzled as to how she did that but I'm just glad that Fuuko-neechan's out of danger now." She said with obvious awe in her voice. "I don't really know how to explain things in a way that you would believe me. But you might as well listen to a long story."

Then they listened to a surely unbelievable story. If Tokiya did not experience things that were also unexplainable to human understandings, he would not believe a thing that Fuuko's cousin said. But with his experience with the Madougus and the Urabutou Satsujin, he could not doubt a thing that Kagome said.

"You mean Fuuko travelled five hundred years in the past because of that jewel like thing?" Recca said, clearly in amazement.

"Yes, I believe that's the case."

"So you think that this shikon no tama was in Fuuko's possession?" he asked.

"Yes because I think that's the only reason why Fuuko-neechan was able to travel through the well. And I think that's also the reason why she was attacked by youkais."

"Youkai? Then, youkais really did exist back then?" Recca said, again with amazement.

"Then that means that this shikon can attract a youkai." He said more to himself than to the people around him. "That man who was with you, is he also a youkai?" he asked, remembering how strange he dressed and how his golden eyes shine like a beast.

"Sesshoumaru-san? Yes, he was a youkai. An inugami to be exact."

"An inugami? Kakoi! Where is he? Can I meet him now?" said Recca like a kid who just heard something really amazing.

"He's outside and I don't think he would be happy to see anyone. He doesn't like crowds you see." Kagome said almost laughing at how Recca acted.

"What is his relation to Fuuko?" he asked, again remembering how that inugami held Fuuko possessively in his arms.

Kagome looked at him for a while and then smiled as if she just discovered something. "I also want to know about that."

After the brown haired girl finished whatever it was she was doing with Fuuko, she left the room. Sesshoumaru entered through the window and looked at the girl lying on the bed. Her skin has now regained its natural color. He can't understand why but he somewhat felt relieved when he heard that she's now out of danger.

He still can't believe how things turned out this way. He was now at a world different from his own. As how Inu Yasha's lover told him, this was the world five hundred years in the future. Everything around him looks strange to him, the buildings, the lights, even the stars look different.

He looked again at Fuuko's sleeping face. She looked so innocent that no one would think that this very girl slain hundreds of youkais by herself. She puzzled him in every way. He had never met any human girl who could handle herself the way she does. She was tough but there's something in her that speaks of naivety and innocence.

At that moment, how he wished that he could see her green eyes full of vigor and life. On impulse, he reached his hand and touched her cheek. It felt so warm against his hand. He didn't notice that his head was slowly drifting down to her face. His lips were inches away from hers when the door suddenly opened. He looked up and saw the man who attacked him earlier standing near the opened door. His blue eyes clearly full of rage.

"I would advice that you stay away from her now before I changed my mind and I kill you."

He stood up and looked at the man eye to eye. "Killing me would be difficult and I don't think that you can."

"Do you want to try?" the man said in a challenging tone.

"By all means, be my guest. But before that…" he bent down and kissed Fuuko on the cheeks. He looked at the man and saw how dim his expression became because of what he did. He smirked and with that he left the room.

Tokiya almost followed the inugami, he was so angry that he really could have killed the youkai. Instead, he calmed himself. "That inugami-" he went beside the bed where Fuuko was lying. "How can you let that stupid inugami kissed you?"

Everything was pitched black. That's how Fuuko sees it. She tried to shout but nothing came out of her mouth. Then she saw a single light. She followed it until she saw in front of her a girl with long wavy black hair. She knew the girl but she can't seem to remember where she saw her.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"You journey has now begun." She said in a very sweet voice. "Many paths will open for you. And the only thing you have to do is to choose." With a smile, she was gone.

Panting, Fuuko woke up. "A dream…" she thought.

She looked around and saw that she was in a very familiar place. Then she realized that she was on her cousin Kagome's room. She got up and her surrounding suddenly whirled. "Aw… my head hurts."

As if on cue, she suddenly remembered everything that happened. Her Fuujin absorbing the shikon, going through the bone eater's well and travelling five hundred years in the past. She was attacked by a number of youkais and was poisoned.

"Fuuko-neechan!" cried by a voice coming from the door. She looked up and saw Kagome. Her cousin immediately went to her and hugged her tightly. "I'm so glad you're awake."

She hugged her back. "How long was I out?"

"Three days."

"Three days? No wonder I'm hungry."

Kagome let go of her and just laughed at what she said.

"How did I get here? And how come I'm cured? If I remember correctly, I was poisoned by a youkai."

"Your friend, Yanagi-san, healed you. When you said that you have a friend who has the ability to heal, we immediately brought you back here."

"Yanagi? How did you find her?"

"It's just pure luck I think. Because when we got here, your friends were already here looking for you."

Friends? "Where are they?"

"Yanagi-san left for Tokyo yesterday. She doesn't want to go until you woke up but there was an urgent matter that she needs to attend to. Recca-san went with her."

Then Recca and Yanagi were the only ones looking for her. Well, what could she expect? That Tokiya would actually look for her? As if. "I see. Did Inu Yasha carry me until we got here?"

"No. Don't you remember? Sesshoumaru-san was the one who found you and he was also the one who carried you until we got here."

By the mention of the name, she remembered the beautiful stoic face of the dazzling inugami. "Was he still here?"

"Yes, he refused to leave until he was sure that you're really safe and out of danger."

She can't help but smile because of what Kagome said. That means she was not really dreaming when she heard his voice during her delirium. "Where is he?"

"Outside, by the big tree. He was always there, sitting on one of its branch."

After hearing it, she got up and opened the window.

"What are you doing neechan?"

"Going out. It's faster this way." Then she jumped out of the window.

"Neechan!" Kagome shrieked. She looked outside and saw that Fuuko safely landed and was now on her way to the big tree. She just shook her head. Now, she really wondered what kind of relationship her cousin has with the aloof inugami.

Fuuko immediately saw Sesshoumaru sitting on one of the branches of the big tree. His long silver blue hair was swaying freely with the wind. He was still as beautiful as she remembered him.

"Shou-chan!" she called.

He looked down. "You're well as I can see it."

"Yeah. Thanks to you."

He went down and stared at her. "I didn't do anything."

"Wow. Are you being humble? That's so not like you."

"And what do you want me to say? That you owe me your life?"

"Well, I wouldn't go that far. But you can just accept my gratitude."

"Then it is accepted. Now that you're out of harm's way, I should be going back to my own timeline. The air here upsets me."

"I'll go with you!" She said without giving much thought to it.

"No, you won't." a very familiar cold voice said from behind her.

She turned around and she felt like her heart just stopped beating. Standing in front of her was a man with long gray hair ponytailed at the back. His icy blue eyes were still void of emotions. It was the very man who had brought love to her heart and at the same time, broke it like a piece of glass.

"Mii-chan…"

"You're not going anywhere with that inugami." He said as he approached them.

All the pain and anger that she felt when he rejected her just came bursting through her. "I would go anywhere and with whomever that I want. And by the way, it's none of your damn business."

"Yes it is." He said firmly then grabbed one of her ams.

He was about to pull her when Sesshoumaru suddenly grabbed one of her free hands. "Can't you see that she doesn't want to?"

"Let go of her."

"You let go."

To be continued…

A/N: Sorry for the super late update. _ I've been busy these past months. But here it is, chapter four. I know it's a little short, but please just bear with me.

Thank you to all the people who continue to read this fanfic. I hope you'll enjoy reading this one as well.

The next chapter will be updated next month so wait for it.

For the first time readers, don't forget to write your review.

Arigatou gozaimasu minna-san! XP