The Ties That Bind Us

So I know a bunch you probably hate me for seemingly dropping this story, but I assure you this is not the case. I am a student, and due to this my time is very limited. I do not get to write my own stuff very often, and when I do it is nearly always crap, and/or I cannot seem to get in the writing mood. But I am stubborn, and someday I will finish this story. I am finishing my final year of school this year, as long as everything goes well, and I want to get back into writing as much as possible. So, if time allows I will be putting more effort into updating this fanfiction, but once again I cannot promise how often this will be. I thank you all for staying with me, and I hope that I do not disappoint. That being said, this chapter remains raw and unbeta'd so please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes. I will correct them as they are pointed out to me or I sit down and take the time to edit it more thoroughly.

So without further adieu, here is the long, long awaited third chapter. Please leave me a review, as they make me want to write faster, and keep me from thinking this story is just a waste of time. See you all at the bottom.

Chapter 3: Foes

Breath panting between parted lips, Kagome stumbled her way through the forest, feet pounding on the ground, the hard thumps loud in the sudden silence of the surrounding trees. She could feel the presence of the yokai, and despite her best efforts to sneak away from within their ranks, they had slowly begun closing in around her, making her drop any effort to be stealthy. The five demons started to close rank, corralling her on all sides. Sprinting now through the forest she tried desperately to evade them but with no avail. One of the yokai dropped down from their place in the treetops a few feet in front of her, cutting off her intended path. Forced to skid to a stop, Kagome reached behind her to draw her bow and an arrow from her quiver, holding them before her as her only means of protection.

The demon stood slightly crouched, dim light glinted off the long tusks protruding from the corners of his mouth, nicely displaying two rows of razor sharp teeth. Its body was hunched, a great lump of flesh protruding from his back making him unable to stand up straight. Great clawed hands held a crude, handmade weapon made of a sharpened rock shaped into a long jagged shank, while his feet spread wide into a split hoof. The rest of them noisily emerged from the gloom of the trees one after another, completely surrounding her and effectively cutting off any means of escape.

They all looked rather similar, sharing the same evil sneer and bloodthirsty look in their eyes, only varying in size and ferocity. Each of them held a crude handmade weapon in their claws, some brandishing arrows like herself; others held blades and axes she assumed were taken from other travelers or bandits that had the unfortunate luck to run into these creatures, much like herself. Scraps of different color clothing draped their deformed bodies, not doing much but to cover the most essential areas.

Boar demons. They were not necessarily strong foes, but terrifying opponents to face without backup.

"Lookie here, boys," crowed the one in front of her, slurring his words as his tusks impeded his speech. "What a lovely morsel we have here. You look good enough to eat."

The rest of the yokai laughed uproariously as if that had been the funniest thing they had heard in years. Kagome clenched her hands tighter around her bow, rotating slowly around, trying to keep them all in within her sight. "Stay away from me," she warned, pulling back on the string in a threatening manor.

"Wow, this one's got spunk, "cackled the one to her left, reaching out and grabbing her arm before she had a chance do dance away from his grasp. Pulling her to his chest he locked both her arms behind her back, bending her over slightly so she had no leverage to maneuver. "I like that," he whispered into the side of her face, his slimy tongue licking the lobe of her ear.

Pure terror laced through Kagome as the boar yokai's wet appendage made contact with her ear, and the position he held her in took on whole other meaning. "Let go of me," she screamed, struggling in earnest, doing whatever it took to get away from him. The boar demons continued to laugh as they began closing in on her; malice glinting in their black eyes. The one holding her wrenched her arms harder behind her back so she was nearly bent in half, face level with her knees.

Kagome couldn't hold back a pain filled scream, tears falling from her eyes as she squeezed them shut. I'm going to die, she thought, I'm really going to die here in these god forsaken woods. InuYasha and the others aren't coming for me this time. Ice rolled through her veins as the reality of the situation hit her. The boar demon's mocking laughter filled her ears, seeming to echo through her head.

No, she thought. I will not let it end this way.

"I will not let it end this way." This time, it was said out loud.

"Shut up you disgusting ningen!" spat the one that held her. Using one hand to gather her wrists the other reached down to grab her by the hair, pulling her head up roughly. The movement tore another scream from her throat. "The way I see it," the boar whispered again, "you have no choice in the matter."

"I will not let you do this!" Kagome's mind reeled. She needed to do something, anything. She would not allow herself to be the victim any longer, the person who always needed others to protect her and come to her aid. She would not let these sad excuses for demons be her end, and so she reached out with her mind, not really thinking about what she was doing, and found...

Power.

Power raced through her body, chasing away the pain and fear, filling her up with a sense of rightness. It burned through her veins like lava only to collect in the centre of her chest in a raging ball of energy, almost suffocating from the weight of it. Kagome recognized the feeling of it as her sacred abilities coming forth; it was the same taste, the same sensation as when she shot one of her arrows in battle, and from the time she had purified mistress centipede on her first journey through the well. But this time it was heavier; more. It pulsed in her veins, and Kagome concentrated on the feel of it, willing it to do as she wished. Concentrating on the gip the boar yokai had on her hands and scalp, she shut out everything else, trying to focus on channelling all that energy into those two places.

With a brilliance that she saw even behind closed eyes, pink celestial light shot forth from her body, almost burning her skin where it came into contact with the yokai's flesh. She imagined that her power was like a knife, giving it shape and purpose, sinking it into the body that pinned hers. The boar yokai let out a painful howl that reverberated through the forest, releasing her so suddenly she stumbled to the ground, barley managing to catch herself before landing face first in the soil. Surprise caused her to lose her concentration, and she felt her spiritual powers stutter, and then dissipate entirely.

The boar yokai that had held her was nothing but a pile of ash and bone that now littered the forest floor, smoke still rising from the remains. Kagome looked on in shock, glancing back and forth between the pile of ashes and her hands. The rest of the boar yokai seemed to share her amazement, taking fearful steps back in case she decided to turn that fearsome power on them as well.

"What are you waiting for, boys?" goaded the one who had initially stepped in front of her path. "Finish her off already!"

"But boss," slurred one of the ones behind her, "She's a miko! We can't just kill her."

"And why not," roared their commander. "I order you to bring me her head!"

The boar yokai shuffled uneasily. None of them wanted to suffer the same fate as their companion, but to disobey their leader would mean severe punishment, a fate much worse than death, as most of them believed; many having suffered at his hands more than once. Clutching their knives and spears more firmly, they began to reluctantly close in on the young priestess.

Kagome was sure that she would not be able to accomplish what she had just done a second time that night. She felt drained and knew she would need at least a few hours of recovery before her spiritual powers would be fully restored. She had only one option, and that was to make a run for it.

Without a second thought Kagome scrambled up to her feet and took off into the depths of the forest as fast as she could, snatching up her discarded bow and leaping over the pile of ash that was once a yokai. Enraged screams rang out behind her moments before she heard them in hot pursuit, crashing through the underbrush and hacking their way through tree limbs as they fought the forest to get to her.

Kagome was no match for demon speed, even ones as large and bumbling as this lot and it would only be a matter of time before her energy gave out and they caught her. She was hoping that with them being so much bigger than her that they would have even more difficulty weaving through the maze of trees and branches and that it would give her a small advantage. She just needed enough time so she could hopefully locate InuYasha and the others. They were her only hope now.

Her chest burned as she gasped for breath, running at full tilt. The crashes of the yokai were growing further away, but they were still too close for her liking. Grabbing a low hanging branch above her she swung herself over a small brook, landing safely on the other side. Without missing a step she headed off further into the woods only to stop and turn, looking back towards where she had just landed.

A brook must be fueled by a bigger body of water! She realized. The stream must be nearby, and if she just followed the brook it would lead her right to it. Grinning at her good fortune Kagome changed trajectories, running along the bank of the small brook.

Foliage began to thin and the sound of water could be heard off in the distance. The stream was only a few feet away, and Kagome felt a flash of triumph, knowing that hopefully help was only a little further. Moments later she burst through the edge of the forest, the stream she had been looking for shining like a haven in the dim light. Following its twining path she soon spotted the small bank where she and Sango had bathed a few hours previously, and knew she was close to their camp at last.

The miko could have sobbed in relief, but her satisfaction was cut short as a spear flew out of the woods behind her, neatly impaling itself right in her path, causing her to stumble and crash to the forest floor. Pain shot up her back and arms as the impact rattled her small frame, momentarily stunning her. It was only a few seconds later that the yokai were on her once again.

Forming a tight circle that she would not be able to penetrate without cutting a few of them down, the boar yokai snorted in satisfaction as they finally corralled their prey. Despair quickly replaced the elation she had felt just moments earlier. There was no way she would be able to put o a repeat performance of whatever the hell had happened earlier, and they would cut her down without hesitation if she so much as twitched her hand towards her bow.

"Not so cocky now are you, you little bitch." The commander of the horde stalked forward, his large frame towering over her smaller stature. Looking at him from the ground she could make out that his face was marred by thick scars, making his ugly mug even more unappealing up close and personal. Drawing his sword from the worn leather sheath at his hip the boar demon sneered down at her.

"I was hoping to run you through with something else, but now you have really pissed me off!" Kagome couldn't help the scream that escaped her throat as the blade came rushing towards her, lifting an arm in front of her face on reflex and waited for the crippling pain.

When it didn't come she slowly peeked over her raised appendage in morbid curiosity only to see the bastard standing there, blade halfway between the two of them seemingly frozen. Slowly, as if from some horror movie, blood began to seep from his chest, running down his torso in rivulets that left his skin stained red. Like a puppet that had had his strings cut, the yokai collapsed to the ground, split in half from hip to shoulder.

Kagome scrambled back from the corpse in shock, an action that was quickly imitated by the remaining soldiers. Almost comically they all whipped their heads to the far side of the small clearing where a lone figure stood draped in white and red, a whip of green light emanating from the figures right hand.

"Sesshomaru-sama."

So Sesshomaru finally makes his appearance. Let me know what you all thought, both good and bad!

Til' next time, and don't forget to hit that "Review" button!