Chapter Three: Angel or Devil?

Kagome took in the appearance of the teenager walking, barefooted, towards them. Kagome could feel her heart beating against her chest in an almost violent manner… as if it was trying to break free. She just stared at him as he came to stand just a few feet away from them and looking at Bankotsu with a look of disgust.

He then turned his head slightly to look down at Kagome with a strange stare in his eyes that Kagome didn't recognize…

… the way that he was looking at her…

…the only thing that she could think of to describe the stare was…

…like she was something he wanted to eat.

But nevertheless, she couldn't take her eyes off his. They were mesmerizing. She could get lost so easily in those orbs. She watched as he walked forward to Bankotsu and shoved him backwards, away from Kagome.

"You should've listened," he said darkly as he advanced on Bankotsu.

Bankotsu stood his ground, and put of his fists, readying for a fight, "And you should mind your own busy dog-face."

"As soon as I take care of you!" The man yelled as he then began to fight with Bankotsu. Scared, Kagome shut her eyes and tried to block out the sounds of punches and the scuffling of feet as they continued to dodge each other's blows. Finally, when she heard the sound of a body hitting the ground and a muffled moan, she was able to open her eyes.

The first thing that she saw was Bankotsu laying on the ground with a bloody lump on his head and the man standing over him, brushing his clothes off. "You ok?" he said.

It took Kagome a minute to realize that he was speaking to her. "Y-y-yes," she stuttered.

After he finished brushing off the wrinkles in his clothes, he cautiously approached her and crouched down before gently placed a hand on her shoulder. His touch scared her and she flinched away from him. He seemed to frown when she cowered back as far as she could…

"Shh..." he murmured. Kagome didn't understand why he was telling her to calm down… that was until she realized that she was whimpering pathetically; like how a whipped puppy would.

Her savior lightly stroked her hair and said that she was safe now. Slowly, Kagome started to relax, and allowed the stranger to help her get back to her feet.

"So…" the man asked as he looked down at Bankotsu's unconscious form before continuing, "You mind telling me why this jerk was bothering you?"

Kagome shook her head in disgust, "Well, he's the most popular guy at my school. All the girls at school are in love with him… except for me… and I guess…"

"He wanted to get to know you?" the man finished for her in a repulsed tone. Kagome nodded, while putting her face in her hand, trying to get to grips on what just happened.

Without her noticing that she was doing it, she was leaning against him slightly. Kagome could feel the tears falling down her face as she was just beginning to comprehend how far that Bankotsu could've gone.

She pressed her face into her savior's kimono, trying to stop her shaking. She felt the man freeze for a moment before he very gently pushed her away so that he could look at her. He brushed his thumb across Kagome's flushed cheek, wiping away a stray tear that still trickled down her face. Kagome then took a few steps back away from him once she saw what she was doing.

She was crying into the coat of a person she didn't even know!

"What's your name?" the man asked gently.

'He doesn't seem that dangerous,' she thought as she timidly smiled back. 'And besides, he did save me…'

"My name's Kagome," she murmured, her eyes dropping from his melted gold ones. "Thank you… for saving me."

"Kagome..." he voice echoed. She and looked up to see that he was, glancing around them uneasily. She stared at him, her head cocked to one side.

"I... I think you should get out of here," he murmured, suddenly grabbing Kagome's hand and pulling her towards the front door. Kagome was baffled; it was almost as if he was desperate to get somewhere public… safe even?

He tugged her towards the door and she glanced up at his face as he did so. Maybe he was worried that more guys were around? She saw that his body shaking and his tongue was running over his lips… as if he was longing to eat something. He glanced down at her. It was as if he couldn't take his eyes away from her; it was as if he was hypnotized by something.

She then noticed that he was starting to lean in towards her neck, and he opened his mouth… to reveal his teeth… no not teeth… fangs.

Kagome froze, staring at him in horror out of the corner of her eye. She tried to wrench her wrist out of his grasp but as she did so, he shoved her against the wall, holding her to him. Her mouth went dry as his mouth went to her throat, his fangs brushing her skin. She stiffened at the foreign felling and tried to force him to get off her. She felt his tongue over her neck, coating the area in saliva, before she felt a slight sting… it was the feeling you get when you're at the doctor's getting a shot.

But this was also different than any shot she ever received from a doctor.

It was the most horrible… and yet wonderful feeling she could've imagined. She could feel as if all her worries and pain leave her body along with her energy. Like she was being drained on strenght…

It felt as if she was spellbound and she couldn't move. She then closed her eyes in bliss as she felt herself getting light-headed… and then… sleepy.

She gasped in shock as she fell into darkness. The last thing that she remembered were a pair of strong arms catch her before she fell… and the glimmer of gold eyes turning to a blood red color.

The next thing that Kagome knew… she was waking up in the backseat of the car. She blinked a few times to try to clear her foggy head and look around.

"Kagome?" said a voice that she recognized.

"Ayumi?" Kagome asked in confusion.

"Oh Kagome!" cried Eri's voice from the front seat. Kagome's vision was blurred as she struggled to make out her friend's worried faces. "Eri? Yuka? What happened? What's going on?"

Yuka's voice then spoke, "You had us worried. We all thought that what that guy said was one big lie and he was the one that attacked you."

Kagome sat up a little straighter. "Guy?" she repeated, "What guy?"

"You really don't remember do you?" said Ayumi sympathetically. "Well, it was almost midnight, so we were looking around for you. Someone then told us that they saw Bankotsu drag you outside. But when we went out, we saw Bankotsu knocked out cold on the ground, and this man holding you in his arms."

"We were about to call for help when he came over and held you out to us saying that Bankotsu attacked you," said Yuka.

Eri then said, "At first we thought that he was lying… but then Bankotsu sat up saying that he was going to kill him for stopping his fun."

Kagome shivered at the memory of him pinning her against the wall.

"So I'm guessing that it's true?" asked Yuka.

Kagome could only nod, as her friend gasped in outrage and horror.

"As soon as Bankotsu woke up," said Ayumi looking amazed, "The guy who had you in his arms… he put you down, and ran over to Bankotsu and… I still can't believe he did that…"

"Did what?" asked Kagome as she leaned her head back against the seat, feeling sick.

"He ran over and kicked him in the head as he yelled at us to call the cops," said Eri looking sickened, before Yuka spoke.

"I ran in and told Hojo what happened, he called the cops and Bankotsu was arrested. Hojo wanted to know if he should call an ambulance for you because… well no offense Kagome, but you look terrible."

"None taken," said Kagome rubbing her temples, "I feel terrible."

"Anyway," went on Yuka. "We were going to call for an ambulance, but the guy who saved you said that you just fainted and should be alright after some sleep."

"He also said that we should just take you straight home," said Ayumi, "And then he left."

"It was creepy," said Yuka shivering slightly. "It was like he just faded into the darkness."

"I still can't believe that Bankotsu would do something that though," said Ayumi. "That guy was dressed like someone from feudal Japan for Halloween, and said that he was out for a midnight run when he heard yelling and decided to check it out. Once he saw Bankotsu force you up against the wall he ran over and knocked him out."

"And then what happened?" Kagome asked. She remembered Bankotsu holding her up against the wall, and a golden-eyed stranger with silver hair appearing out of the darkness… but she couldn't remember anything that happened after that.

"He then said that when he looked behind him, you were on the ground," said Yuka looking scared.

"He picked you up and was going to take you back inside when we showed up looking for you," Ayumi spoke up.

"At least that's what he said," finished Eri.

"You sure you're ok Kagome?" Ayumi asked as she put her hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah," replied Kagome sleepily. "I-I just want to sleep right now."

"Don't worry," answered Yuka, "We're on your street right now. Just hold on a little bit longer. I still can't believe that Bankotsu!"

"Yeah but…" said Eri with a lopsided smile, "You know the saying right? You can't have a good party without having some getting arrested."

The 3 girls chuckled slightly, but Kagome didn't say a word. What happened? She couldn't remember…

But then Ayumi was shaking her by the shoulder and telling her that they got her home. "You want us to walk in with you Kagome?" she asked.

"No," Kagome answered as she mustered up her strength, when in truth she felt like she was about to pass out.

"Hey don't worry," said Eri soothingly. "Tomorrow's Saturday so you can sleep in right?"

"Oh that's right," said Kagome shaking her head, trying to clear her brain. "I forgot about that too." She forced a smile at her friends and asked, "Do me a favor… don't tell my mom. She's going to flip out if she hears about this."

As Yuka parked in the driveway, as close as possible to the back door as she could get, Kagome opened the door and slowly dragged her body out. She asked Ayumi one last thing before she shut the door and waved her friends goodnight. Once they left, Kagome slowly made her way to the back door.

She forced her tired and aching body into the house. She noticed that all the lights were off, so that must mean that her mother and Sota went up to bed already. She felt so weak and light-headed that she was having trouble walking straight. She put one hand on the wall, and made herself find the stairs and slowly crawl up… oh man… she hadn't felt this bad since they had that blood drive at school last year.

She hadn't eaten that day and after she donated some blood, she felt like she was about to pass out. It was like she was reliving that feeling again, only this time, she felt like she had given a lot more than a small of blood. What was wrong with her? She felt so drained.

Finally, she was able to make it to the top of the stairs and collapsed; she gasped for breath like she had just run a marathon. She could feel herself beginning to black out again… luckily her room was just a few more feet away. She gritted her teeth and slowly crawled over to her door and reached up to turn the knob.

The door creaked open halfway, and she crawled in. Too weak to shut the door behind her, she used the last of her strength to get up on her feet and collapse in exhaustion on her bed, not even bothering to try to change out of her costume. She couldn't even muster up the energy to pull her blankets up as she then immediately drifted off into a deep sleep.

The last thing that she remembered was feeling a slight breeze… and what Ayumi said when she got out of the car…

*Flashback*

"Ayumi? Did the guy who saved me from Bankotsu say what his name was?" she asked as she fought to keep her eyes open.

Ayumi thought for a minute before answering, "I think he said that his name was something like… Inuyasha?"

*End of Flasbasck*

Inuyasha? Well that answered one question. The last question that crossed her mind was wondering if she was saved by an angel or a devil.

(I just thought that voting for chapter names would be fun for everyone. But since I got so much negative response about doing it, you don't need to worry anymore. It's not that I have trouble thinking of chapter names, I just wanted to give you guys some entertainment?)