A/N: All right, I am only gonna say this once. I hate Kikyo. She freaking needs to die…again. She will be mentioned in this story but she is not going to play any sort of big part in the action, and out of deference to those who happen to like her I will not stoop so low as to bash her (At least in the story text). And that's all I have to say about that.

"God send everyone their heart's desire!"

William Shakespeare – Much Ado About Nothing

Kagome held tightly to InuYasha's shoulders and instinctively tighten the grip her thighs had around his waist when he soared high into the air and landed on a far off tree, only to push off again. He grunted, but didn't say anything.

She normally would have enjoyed flying through the trees with the hanyou, but her mind was still on Chie.

"Do you think Chie is going to be all right?" she questioned, her warm breath tickling his sensitive ears. The right one twitched and he frowned.

"Keade said she would and Kohaku will be with her."

She smiled softly. That had been a surprise considering that Sango's little brother usually didn't react to others that way. Apparently he was very fond of Chie and when the little girl had grasped his hand and asked him not to leave her he has twined his fingers with hers and stayed.

Kohaku didn't like to be touched. Usually the only ones who could get away with hugging him or holding him where Sango and herself; she had been pleasantly surprised when the boy had agreed to Chie's request of his own volition. It was a sign that perhaps, after all this time, he was finally healing.

InuYasha suddenly stopped and when they landed on the next tree and Kagome was almost unseated. He felt her slip and immediately tightened his clawed hands around her silky thighs, ignoring the heat that threatened to crawl up his neck.

Kagome gasped, righted herself, and asked.

"Why are we stopping?" He scowled.

"I smell blood, human blood. Blood that I a smelled before." A worried frown creased her delicate features.

"Whose?"

"It's Isamu's"

InuYasha felt the slight tremble she couldn't contain against his back. He unconsciously held her tighter and she gripped his shoulders convulsively.

He briefly thought that maybe he should leave her here, but he knew that she would throw a fit and from the smell of things they didn't have time to waste. Besides, he could protect her better if she was with him.

"Hang on," he growled and leapt. She tightened her hold as they sailed down from the tree and landed gracefully on the ground. InuYasha sniffed the air and took off to the north. He grunted as branches slapped against his face and finally he cleared the growth and stumbled into a small clearing. Kagome gasped.

"Oh Isamu." She struggled to be let down. InuYasha held her there, senses alert. She huffed in annoyance.

"InuYasha! Let me down. Isamu is hurt." She struggled some more and he felt his annoyance spike.

"Stop that, dammit. We're not alone."

Kagome, who had been about to sit him, gasped and went still. Confident now that she wouldn't try to run to the injured man he slowly let her go and gritted his teeth when he felt her soft curves rub sensuously against his back. Not the time or place, he thought disgusted with himself.

He scowled. Those moments of awareness between him and the miko were becoming more frequent and they needed to stop, dammit. He chanced a glance at her out of the corner of his eye and drew his sword.

His problem lately was that Kagome at fifteen had been undeniable beautiful but Kagome at nineteen was drop-dead-too-sexy-for-her-own-good-gorgeous. His protective instincts had been going haywire. He completely ignored the voice in the back of his head saying those weren't the only instincts shorting out.

He growled, drew Tetsusaiga and made sure Kagome was behind him. She in turn had drawn her bow and notched an arrow, a look of determination twisting her features.

"Where?" she asked. He pointed with his chin.

"Beyond those trees. Ogre demons. Smells like five or six of them."

She nodded and shifted so her weapon was pointed in the direction he indicated. InuYasha grinned and yelled.

"Keh, I know you're there so you smelly bastards might as well come out and fight."

There was a loud roar and suddenly five very large demons burst out and ran at them. Kagome let her arrow fly. It glowed pink with her miko power and pierced the heart of the first brute. The ogre screamed as its youkai blood was purified and it dissipated into ash.

InuYasha wielded Tetsusaiga and slashed two of the demons before they could get close to him, but the fourth and fifth caught him with giant clubs and sent him flying. He sailed backwards and slammed into the trunk of a large tree with a loud grunt.

Kagome managed to leap aside as the ogre closest to her brought his club down where her head had been, but she was too slow to avoid his backhand slap. InuYasha watched the miko as her head snapped to the side and she was thrown to the ground. She didn't move.

Pain sharp and sudden clenched his heart as he gazed on her prone form. He could smell blood, her blood. Suddenly a half mad howl tore from his throat and red tinged his eyes. Tetsusaiga pulsed and he had to fight his youkai blood as it boiled just under the surface. His claws clenched convulsively around Tetsusaiga's hilt and he attacked, brutally slashing through the nearest demon's head.

The ogre didn't have a chance to scream as his head rolled from his body and came to rest near a tree, sightless eyes staring at the sky. The massive headless corpse teetered and fell trapping the other ogre. With a half mad smirk the hanyou sheathed his sword and bared his claws. He was on the trapped ogre before he could wiggle out from under his companion.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," he snarled. The demon stilled.

"You dare give me orders, filthy half-breed." InuYasha's lips twisted into an unpleasant grin, baring his fangs.

"I swear ogres. You have gotta be the stupidest fuckers alive."

The ogre sneered and InuYasha drove his claws into his chest, ripping him apart. He fell dead as the blood dripped from his hand.

Fear like nothing he had ever known clenched his heart as he wiped his hands clean and ran over to Kagome.

Tentatively, he lifted her head and was relieved to find her breathing. She groaned when he moved her and slowly came back to consciousness.

"Did anybody get the number of that bus?" She croaked and shook her head. She instantly regretted it as pain spiked under her skull.

"Dammit, lie still stupid, you're hurt." She attempted to glare at the hanyou but that required focus and the jackhammer pounding in her brain wouldn't let her concentrate. She settled for gripping the sleeve of his fire rat robes tightly.

"Isamu?" He grunted and slowly eased her down.

"I'll check," he murmured and made his way over to the prone man. What he found surprised him. The ronin was still alive and he was staring at him.

"InuYasha…Chie…got to find…" he croaked. The hanyou pushed him back down when he tried to stand.

"She's fine. She's with Kaede. She's going to be fine, Isamu."

He had been fighting InuYasha, still trying to stand, but the half-demon's words finally registered. He gripped his robes in a vice grip.

"The village…in trouble. We have to…get to the village."

InuYasha looked from the man to Kagome and cursed. He could carry them both, but it was going to slow him down. Still, he knew he couldn't leave either of them especially since he could still smell ogres in the area, not that leaving Kagome was ever an option.

"Think you got the strength to hold on to my back?" Isamu seemed to consider the proposition solemnly before nodding and croaking.

"Yeah"

"I'll be right back," InuYasha muttered. He returned to Kagome and without asking swept her into his arms in a bridal carry and tucked her into his chest.

"InuYasha, what…"

"We need to get to the village and you're in no condition to walk. Neither is Isamu. He's going to have to ride on my back, which means I have to carry you. No whining."

Kagome usually wouldn't let him get away with that bossy tone but her head hurt too much for her to think. So she did the easiest thing she could think of, she snuggled against him.

InuYasha felt his awareness of her amplify and he growled low in his throat. Dammit! He thought.

He didn't want this, not now. Not when they had finally fallen into a comfortable routine together. He'd thought he'd buried those feelings he had for her years ago. He knew now, like he had known then, that he and she were an impossible dream, a fairytale, and everyone knew that fairytales didn't come true.

He'd tired once to believe in fairytales. He tried with Kikyo and everyone knew how that had ended. The undead miko was still around, although he didn't see her much now that Naraku, the bastard, was dead.

He tightened his hold on Kagome. Despite the limits he'd put on their relationship she was important to him. So important that he couldn't imagine being without her.

Not that he didn't have feelings for Kikyo, but he could honestly say that those feelings were regulated to the part of his heart that held his past. One thing for certain, there was no way he was going to allow her to drag him to hell.

He winced inwardly. When he'd told her she hadn't been happy about it, but after everything that had happened in the past four years he had found that he couldn't find the energy to be too upset over her reaction.

Simply put, he may still care for Kikyo, but he cared for Kagome more.

He still hoped to help Kikyo find peace one day, but it wasn't his top priority and it sure as hell wasn't something he was going to give up his life for.

Kagome snuggled closer and he gritted his teeth. She was trying to kill him. He scowled as he made his way over to Isamu and with the other man's help managed to secure him on his back. With one finally grunt and adjustment he took off running.

He only hoped they reached the village in time.