Playing with Fire: CHAINED

Summary: After the finale battle against Naraku, Kagome and Kilala are thrown back to her time, but not her home, it would seem the Shikon Jewel has other plans. Now, lost in a forest Kagome wanders around until finally passing out do to exhaustion and hunger. When she wakes up a week later she finds herself in the hands of a fire spirit and its owner Hao Asakura, who happened to come across her while taking a walk with his faithful companion, Opacho. Finding himself unable to walk away from her sense a certain Jewel seemed to find amusement in his suffering. Chained mentally against his will to a girl he's never met before. What will become of the 15 year old girl? How will they break the hold each other have over one another? What of her friends in the past? What will her cousin Anna, think when she sees Kagome with Hao? How is Kagome connected to the Tao family? And how could she have known so many Shamans and have no idea that they were, in fact, Shamans? Read and Review.

Disclaimer: I in no way shape or form own either InuYasha or Shaman King.

KEY

Flashback/Dream

Flashback

Telepathy

-Hao-

\Kagome\

-Shikon-

Thinking

'Thinking'

Chapter Eleven

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Darkened Cave

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"It isn't so bad..." Kagome was walking ahead of Hao, she could still feel the tingling on her lips from when he'd kissed her, and she could still feel his eyes watching her. She turned around to see him one last time before she was too much farther in the cave, but saw nothing. "What? I didn't realize I had walked so far already...I've only been walking for a few seconds, not even minutes! Why can I not see the sun outside! HAO~!" Kagome fell to her knees, the water touching her was cold for only a moment before it no longer bothered her.

"Calm down Kagome, calm down! It's a test, Mana is Shamanic Power...that means it's my power, my energy...I need to use my Mana to get out of here...but I can't just turn around and go back, I have to go straight...I...have to go...which way is straight...I can't see anything! My feet, hands...they are right in front of me, aren't they? No...no, no, no...you are losing your head~! Just..." Kagome breathed deeply, "...just breathe...I think my eyes are close...though, I can't tell. I don't even know if I'm speaking or thinking any more. It doesn't matter though; I just need to keep moving..."

She took a few steps, her heart was beating so fast, it was painful; her chest was sore as her heart pounded ruthlessly.

'I'll get out of here...I'll do it in seven days, and I will prove to Hao...that I am not expendable!'

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Hao made himself comfortable on the other side of the cave, wondering if it was really worth his time to wait for her, he looked to the chain which moved gently every so often, letting him know when she was walking, of if she'd stopped...though, he assumed, after a while it would just go still and allow her the needed distance to do what was necessary for her to become stronger. Thinking about it carefully, he knew what he was doing. He was building her up to be the perfect Shaman Queen...his Queen. A cruel smirk graced his lips as he settled down for the wait.

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(Three Days Later)

Kagome shook nervously, or at least...she thought she might be shaking. She was sure, if she could see her body right now, it would be shaking! She had seen something! She had seen red eyes, red! Those blood, crimson red eyes! HIS EYES~! 'Imaging things...' she walked, "Must be," her head was buzzing, all of these thoughts...or was it her speaking. She wasn't sure anymore. She'd lost track of what was and what wasn't a long while ago...around the time she'd started this crazy trial. "...Hao..."

"Kukuku...~"

She stopped walking...or maybe she was still walking...was she looking around for the source of evil and diabolical laughter. She was sure that was something she would normally do, but she couldn't tell anymore, if her body was moving, if it wasn't...she wished somebody was with her...hell, she wanted Hao with her!

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(Three Days Later)

Hao looked at the mouth of the cave, a voice from behind could be heard and he quickly moved out of sight. Hiding his energy with the help of the Shikon Jewel, he watched as Yoh's friends arrived at the cave's exit where Yoh would soon be stepping out to see daylight for the first time in seven days...if he hadn't died. Kagome had been in there for six days, and he still had one more day left to wait before he could know for sure whether she was worth the effort he was putting into her.

"Anna..."

"He's coming! Master Yoh is coming! He's close to the exit!"

Hao glanced to the excited pinkette and raised a brow. 'Master Yoh? Hardly...'

A countdown to how many feet away his brother grew from the exit started until...he finally stepped out; tattered clothes, smiles and all.

"Yo! Long time no see guys."

"Humph...still has a long way to go." Hao left, wanting to leave before he decided to kill his other half and be done with it. It would do him no good if he lost his patience with his overly laid back brother so soon. He would be sure to return with the hour so that he could be there for Kagome upon her arrival.

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(One Day Later)

Kagome felt warm. Yes...she felt warm. Walking on dry, solid ground, she was smiling, completely at ease with her surroundings as she continued along the rocky trail she'd chosen to take. "I'm almost there Hao...soon...soon." With ease, she moved just slightly to avoid tripping over a large rock. Her body was completely relaxed; her mind was one with nature itself.

She wasn't quite sure when it had happened. Her mind had been on overdrive almost the entire time, running a hundred miles a second...and suddenly, she just stopped! She was getting nowhere fast with all of her thinking and worrying...she just put it all on the backburner and let it simmer before dumping her thoughts down the drain entirely.

Kagome saw the light filtering through the cave ahead of her. Closing her eyes as an immediate reaction to the sun, she blinked slightly before opening her eyes wider and wider each time she shut them and reopened them. A figure stood just outside the caves exit, and a smiled found its way to her face as she realized just who it was. Taking off in a run, she grabbed the rope closing off the cave and skid beneath it, effortlessly coming to her feet and stopping short a foot or two away from the boy she was chained to.

Hao looked her over; "..." he didn't say anything upon her exiting the cavern.

"..." The chain warmed up a bit and shortened the distance between the two of them, pulling them in closer to one another, causing Kagome to laugh a bit. "Hao...I'm tired,"

He smiled, "let's go back to camp, you did well, Kagome. You did real well."

Kagome let her head fall gently onto his chest and Hao's arms wound gently around her waist before he scooped her into his arms and called on his Spirit of Fire to carry them back to camp.

As Kagome fell asleep, he took his time looking her over and noticed the new additions running along her thigh, over her shoulder and even...around her neck. He would do a more thorough check of her body once she'd had a nap and after she'd cleaned up a bit so that he could have a better view without the dirt smudges hiding anything else; for now however...she needed rest...she'd earned it.

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Me: Here is chapter eleven~! Since we never really had an episode or chapters that went inside the Cavern of Shamans, I had to really flow with the bits and pieces I did get from the Anime and Manga. Working it into one thousand words was the hard part, because how do you describe darkness and losing touch in one thousand words? I just did it in eight, lol. Anyways, review, and let me know what you guys think of this chapter, nyan~!