It seemed like he had been there an eternity and he wished for nothing more than for lightning to strike him dead where he lay. Unfortunately no cloud ever covered the unbearable heat of the sun and so he lay on the increasingly hot sand wondering if the heat he felt was the suns doing or if it was the result of his whacked out thermostat. He had no way of knowing and nor did he care anymore.

This was hell to him, being beaten up randomly with no way of stopping the beater, pain coursing through his entire body for seemingly no reason. It was horrible; it was almost as if his body was failing. From his increasingly darkening vision to how his limbs began to ignore his commands. If his heart were to beat he was almost certain it would barely be beating. What in the three worlds had he done to deserve such a fate?

It wasn't that he was fearful of dying; he had done so twice already. But, he would never know if anyone would find out of his passing unless Koenma or Botan told them and that was highly unlikely. He'd probably be listed as missing and, after a long while, be presumed dead. He wasn't even certain if he was in the Makai or Ningenkai anymore, but he could strongly assume the Makai. For some reason he felt as if he were in Raizen's old territory, but he could just as easily be within a desert.

The person who had been attacking him on a random basis hadn't been around for quite some time, not that he was complaining, but it made him wonder how close he was to death. Maybe his attacker sensed he would die soon and decided to leave him to his misery. Or maybe he was watching him in amusement just because he could do nothing more than lay there and accept his fate.

'I hate this, I have too much time to think,' he thought wryly. He never was an optimist nor a pessimist, just somewhere in between. However, his current state didn't seem to allow him any good thoughts. 'I can safely assume whatever that chick put into me was poison,' if he had the strength to growl he would have. 'I wish I could see her one last time so I can punch her face in.' No doubt she'd be a hero back in the Makai for killing the infamous Yusuke Urameshi, boogey man to the demon race. Just because he was now part demon, did not mean they hated him any less. 'I wonder if I'll stay dead this time,' he couldn't help but wonder. He certainly had a knack for escaping death so he could never be sure when his tale would finally end. 'Well, I don't really have any regrets, except that I won't be able to tell anyone goodbye. That would be about it though.' He had managed to maneuver himself onto his back and waited for death to finally claim him.

Unfortunately when he received a sharp kick to the side he realized he still had more torture to go through. The heel of a foot rammed down onto his stomach causing him to cough up blood, for the thousandth time. He cried out as an unexpected energy slammed into him, causing a small crater to form in the ground from the pressure. The blurry form heaved him out of the crater and deposited him onto the ground roughly.

"You've been wishing for death to come haven't you?" The tone of voice was still as sickly sweet as poisoned honey. "Unfortunately for you, it won't come any time soon." A hint of satisfaction was within the speakers tone. Yusuke opened his mouth and attempted to form an insult, but found his voice had left him. He was hefted up by his hair to the level of his attacker. "You are weak, just as you always were….just as you always will be."

'Weak? I'll show him weak!' Yusuke inwardly growled. 'If I ever have a sudden burst of strength now would be a good time!' He attempted to lift his hand and form his spirit gun, if only in his last act of defense, but felt his blood run cold as a finger was placed calmly to the side of his neck. His breath hitched and he could swear he would have been shaking had he had the strength to do so.

"You want to hurt me don't you?" The attacker laughed darkly. "But you can't even form the Spirit Gun to do so, can you?"

'He's just trying to…scare me,' Yusuke's mind tried to reason. However, somewhere deep within him something told him that this was not a bluff. His neck grew warm in the spot where the finger still was held. For the first time in hours he could make out color; dark red energy filled his vision.

"Still can't guess who I am?" A chuckle escaped his lips. "Ah Yusuke, you have so much to learn about yourself. You have so much power and yet refuse to use it. It's sickening, an insult to your race."

'Shut up!' He wished he could voice his thoughts and see this bastard, but his wish was not to be granted.

"How about I give you a taste of what your power could do?" Yusuke inwardly winced. What did this person mean? Did he mean to kill him? The finger was suddenly removed from his neck just before he felt the release of an immense amount of energy. His dulled eyes widened in disbelief.

'Who is this person?' Obviously pleased about Yusuke's state of shock, the man dropped him to the ground. 'If I didn't know any better I'd say that was…..but how?'

IIIIII

Inuyasha listened to Sango's light breathing as he continued through the unfamiliar terrain. The darkness that cloaked the area was unnerving and had him on edge, he was forced to slow down to a walk because of the danger that lurked around him waiting for him to make a single mistake or slacken his guard. His ears swiveled around atop his head keeping an ear out for predators as he continued to search for the unique scent of the plant.

Unexpectedly he caught a fain whiff of raspberries and fresh rain, an odd combination...yet very pleasant to the senses. He started to feel odd, sluggish almost, his limbs started to feel numb. His head began to swirl about in a daze taking him away from the current situation to a blissful fogged state.

Sango grunted in pain as she was dropped to the ground, rousing her rudely from slumber.

"Inu-" She began, but stopped upon seeing the strange state the hanyou had fallen into. His eyes were glazed over and he seemed to struggle to keep upright. Realization suddenly dawned on her. "We must be close," she muttered. She had forgotten the drug-like effect the plant had on demons with a highly sensitive sense of smell. She nearly hit her head with the palm of her hand, but helped Inuyasha sand upright instead. "Inuyasha." Golden eyes turned to her, but whether he registered what he was doing was unknown. "You have to stay here while I get the plant," she instructed slowly. He gave an awkward nod as she helped him sit against the trunk of a withered tree. "Stay here," she repeated. Again he nodded and gave a sort of loopy smile. He was definitely out of it.

Not sure about her decision, Sango walked off to retrieve the plant. Getting him any closer to the plant would be unwise unless she had it concealed in a cloth and tucked beneath her armor. She would also gather a few other plants in order to mix the smells so hopefully Inuyasha wouldn't be affected so strongly.

When she began to wade through knee deep water Sango knew she was close to it. The plant only grew near, or in, water. She began to feel slightly lightheaded as she came closer to where it grew and found herself giggling at nothing. She had to throw her arms out to either side of her to keep her balance when she began to sway.

"No." Another giggling fit occurred. "I have to keep my mind…clear." She was certain both she and Inuyasha would not speak of this…ever. The fog she remembered so clearly from her childhood surrounded the flowers. The water took on a pinkish hue in this area confirming that they were indeed the flowers she was looking for. She swayed again and nearly fell into the water when she almost blacked out. In the back of her mind, through the fog that had taken over her mind, she dimly remembered her gas mask. It would most likely help. Her arms were surprisingly heavy to lift and it was even harder to put the mask on. Her fingers fumbled with the ties as she tried to tie it before falling victim to another giggling fit thus forcing her to start over again. She landed heavily in the water effectively soaking her entire backside. Somehow she found this utterly hilarious. Her sides began to hurt and her eyes began to water.

'What was I here for again?' For some reason she couldn't remember for the life of her.

"Oh well," she giggled. Her gas mask fell into the water unnoticed. She was faintly aware of a dark figure standing in front of her. "Stay back demon! Or I shall beat you with my Hirikotsu!" She stood and attempted to look threatening as she grasped her Hirikotsu, but fell backwards due to its weight and her drug-like state. She found this hilarious as she sat up and looked at her submerged weapon. "It so heavy!" She crossed her arms and pouted. "Why do I have a heavy weapon? Can't do anything with it…maybe drop it…." She was clearly out of her mind. "Do you know why I am here?" She asked the unfortunate soul who stood before her. After a few minutes of silence she spoke again. "You…talk more." Again she was answered with silence. She made another attempt of standing with her weapon, but made no progress.

A hand was placed upon her forehead; she looked at the intruding appendage cross-eyed before opening her mouth to speak. But no words came forth, instead her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she slipped into unconsciousness.

IIIIII

Kagome walked slightly behind Miroku, the sun had set a while ago leaving them shrouded in darkness. Kirara was asleep within her arms rebuilding her strength so she would be able to fly them back to the village once all was said and done. Kagome's mind traveled to Sango and Inuyasha several times. She tried not to think of the things that could have befallen them, worrying would do no good especially since she was in no range to help. She couldn't even be certain how far they were.

She cast another look to the unconscious man upon Miroku's back. Not even five minutes ago his entire body had tensed and lost nearly all of his color. Now his body was limp again, but his breathing was erratic and color still had not returned to his face. Several times Kagome spoke to him –Miroku had no idea on what to say- in an attempt to bring him to them if only for a while. So far it had no effect, but Miroku encouraged her to keep trying. Even if her words made no outward difference, perhaps they still reached him.

She had noticed several marks on his body that looked like healing scratches earlier, but now they weren't there. She didn't say anything to Miroku choosing instead to keep this information to herself. She was suddenly reminded of Inuyasha, of how his body was able to heal itself at an alarming rate. Kagome shook her head. Perhaps she was just over thinking this, yes…that had to be it. She was just putting too much thought into it.

"Are you all right Lady Kagome?" Miroku questioned for the second time that hour.

"Yes," she assured him. "I'm just thinking." He nodded his head and didn't question any further. "Are you?" He must be tired from carrying the unconscious man; she couldn't remember how much time had passed since they began on foot. They hadn't even stopped once.

"Do not worry about me Lady Kagome," he smiled reassuringly. "I will be fine." They left it at that and let silence surround them once again.

Suddenly a sweet smell and warmth encased them; it was faint, but soothing. She felt her muscles relaxing for the first time in hours and all weariness left her body.

"We're close," Miroku suddenly announced. His tone was light and cheery, opposite of what it sounded like moments before. A beautiful scene lay beyond the foliage they had trudged through. It looked like something that came out of a painting in a museum.

"Wow," Kagome breathed. Pure white flowers grew at the side of the spring, the water ripples looked almost as pearly white. The grass that grew around the spring was the greenest Kagome had seen and she could bet it was also as soft as it looked. The moon shone down onto the waters surface making it look mystical.

After drinking in the entire scene Kagome was reminded of what they were to do now. A dark blush crept onto her cheeks at the thought as her eyes widened to the size of saucers. Miroku looked on curiously before he realized the cause of her sudden embarrassment; he chuckled beneath his breath not daring to be any louder for fear of provoking her infamous temper.

"I'll be…over here," she spoke nervously and strode across the grass putting as much space between herself and the two men as possible without leaving the area.

IIIIIII

Wow, I can't believe how long it took to write this chapter. I finally sat down and listened to 'Breath Into Me' over and over until I had this chapter written. So yeah, I hope you enjoyed it! Sango and Inuyasha are goin' through some wacky stuff. Miroku and Kagome have finally gotten Yusuke to the spring. What will happen next? Y'all will have to wait to find out. Reviews are always nice to get, so please leave one to let me know how I'm doing or if there's anything I can improve on. Till next time!