Chapter one

Kagome fisted her hand until her knuckles were white. 'This has gone on long enough.' Stretching out her hand, she inhaled slowly, closing her eyes. Energy began to pool around her, sending sparks of pink light flying towards her enemy. Her once blue eyes now alight with pure pink energy. She could see the demon before her flexing its claws, wanting nothing more than to sink them into her skin. Not this time. Bringing her hand close to her before forcing the energy she had been building straight towards the demon at lightning fast speed that lit up the alley for a second before the sound of rain was all that was heard.

Calming herself, she called back her energy within before approaching the area where the demon once stood. Only a scorch mark remained. Dammit, another dead end. This was really starting to irritate her.

"You're getting more merciless."

Miroku leaned against the brick wall just inside the alley, a cigarette resting between his lips.

"Am not," she said without any real defense. "I gave him a choice the day before and a few hours later I find the blood of an innocent human on his hands. He decided his future."

Miroku just shrugged. Giving up on trying to convince the man, she made her way towards the street; Miroku following close behind. Couples that were still out walking in the rain around them gave them a wide girth. This caused Miroku to fall into step beside Kagome. "It always pisses me off how they avoid us like this," his voice barely above a forced whisper.

"Can you blame them? We're two people wandering the streets at midnight, in the rain, wearing dark, heavy clothing. Our appearance just screams 'danger'. If I were them, I'd be running to the other side of the street."

"It's because of us that they get to sleep safely at night. They should not be scared of us."

She couldn't blame Miroku for feeling that way. Truthfully, she feels the same way but such is the life of a 'Hunter'. She had come to grips with it shortly after her tenth birthday when Miroku had reminded her of her nightmare just four years prior. From then on, she has been taught the ways of a Hunter, or Slayer as others would also call it. Many nights, she would be wandering the streets looking for her prey. And many nights she would not be disappointed. It surprised her, the number of evils that hid in the shadows of Tokyo but what truly scared her was how good she was at ending those evils. She was told of the demon that came that night looking for her and how her family had fought valiantly for her safety. How Miroku was asked to look after her and he has never let her down.

The rain began to lighten to a drizzle; their breaths coming out in large puffs of steam then disappearing up into the night sky. "We got another hit, thought you might want this one."

Kagome thought about it but the call of her bed was drowning out all thought of doing one last 'hunt' for the night. "Nah, I'll sit this one out," she said, waving him off, "besides, I think I've been taking away your thunder."

"Honey, you still have a long way to go." He laughed. "Do you want me to follow you home?"

He never fails to ask. Even when he's broken and bloody, he'd always ask.

"I'll be fine, it's just a few more blocks. Go." She said while nudging him.

Nodding, he gave her a quick kiss on her temple before turning to walk the other way, pulling his fedora down to cover his eyes from the bite of the rain.

Kagome rested against the inside of the red door of her little two story house. She was exhausted.

Pulling off her long black coat and red scarf, she hung them up in the closet next to the door. She hated closets.

Walking to one of the bathrooms that was near the kitchen, she grabbed a towel and began to dry her hair. She was in no position to take time off for a cold. They're numbers were already few and far between. Any able body Hunter was of use - even on their death bed.

Sneaking a peak in her fridge, she frowned when all she saw was a box of baking soda, a bowl of withered grapes and a case of beer. She personally was a wine drinker herself but Miroku had been crashing at her place from time to time. The beer was most likely a gift for himself. He always did complain about her not having anything to drink other than water. But she didn't have time. Other than her 'night job', she was on a very strict budget. Kindergarten teacher doesn't exactly make the 'big bucks'.

Sighing to herself, she gave up on looking for a meal and made her way up stairs to her lonely bed. Slipping on pajama shorts and a dry tank top, she slipped into her bed and prayed for happy dreams this night.

The alarm sounded loud to her ears as she buried herself further into her pillow. Her arm making its way out from beneath the comforter, swinging around until she found the dreaded contraption that woke her. Groaning as her sore muscles kept her from moving too quickly. Stretching before opening her window, she smiled to see that there was not a cloud in the sky.

After taking a shower, she donned a floral blouse with dark fitted jeans and flats. Today, she was going to teach her class outside.

Skipping downstairs, she wasn't at all surprised to see Miroku spread out on her couch. She changed her locks several times before but he had a nasty habit of picking locks. Obviously, he didn't get the hint. Finally she gave up with the notion that he would make dinner whenever he was over. And Kami bless the man, for she had noticed that he had brought her a sandwich from a deli that opened early. Checking her watch, she grabbed a light sweater, her sandwich, keys, and bag and headed out to the elementary school that was four blocks away.

One of the perks of being a kindergarten teacher was that you got to leave early. Saying goodbye to her students, she waited a few minutes to finish up some things before she too left for the day.

It was still beautiful outside and her kids loved having class beneath the tall shady tree, learning the cycle of caterpillar to butterfly. Walking home on the same route she always does, she suddenly felt a surge of energy run down her back. Becoming fully alert, she continued down the sidewalk to her home, making sure to turn down the block before her house in hopes of finding out who was following her. No such luck. The feeling disappeared as soon as she rounded the curb. Not giving into relief so quickly, she still continued to take the wrong route and double back just in case she missed anything. Finally making it home, she allowed herself to breathe. She had defiantly felt that energy before.

Characters: Rumiko Takahashi

Story: Desert – Bandit