~ 03/05/10: Heeyy it's been two weeks and finally I got this out. I kinda wish I written more but I got lazy. Enjoy!

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You're Kinda, Sorta, Basically, Pretty Much, Always On My Mind.

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I Don't Own Inuyasha

"Talking"

56. A Failed Attempt

"Inuyasha, wake up! Kaori's gone!"

Inuyasha's eyes flew open and he shot up, straight out of bed. "What!?" He shouted. His eyes first landed on Shippo -who was trembling with fear- then to the empty patch of hay beside him. "What do you mean she's gone!?"

"She's gone!" Shippo cried, "We left to find some herbs for you and when we got back she was no where to be found!"

Inuyasha cursed and stared around the hut. Sango was sitting up, staring back at him, and Miroku stood tense in the doorway. Inuyasha watched Miroku for a second longer. He looked worried and almost guilty. Inuyasha ignored it and scrambled to his feet then collapsed down again as the pain pulsed through his torso.

"Inuyasha be careful. You're wounds are not fully healed yet." Miroku warned him, "We're all worried about Kaori but you can't just recklessly-"

"Shut up, monk," Inuyasha glared, "Kagura's scent is all over this place."

"If it has something to do with Naraku then I'll take care of it."

"By yourself!?" Sango cried, "Do you really think you can take him on yourself? After what just happened!?"

"It's the only way obviously." Miroku said, surprisingly calm, "You are in no position to even stand and neither is Inuyasha. Kaori is missing and if this is the only way to find her again then so be-"

"Wait!" Shippo shouted. He raced from the hut then back again, carrying something long and pointed.

"An arrow?" asked Sango.

"Kaori's arrows.. disappear as soon as they touch the ground," Shippo said, "Maybe it's a clue?"

Inuyasha took it out of Shippo's hands, holding it carefully in his own. "Kikyou.."

"What?" Sango asked.

"It's Kikyou. She did it," Inuyasha murmured, his voice barely audible.

"Are you sure?" Miroku asked, watching the hanyou carefully.

Inuyasha got to his feet -slowly this time- and took a step toward the door. "There's no mistaking it, it's her scent."

The two men watched each other with hard, serious eyes- battling out a silent argument. Finally after a long tense moment, Inuyasha stalked from the door and Miroku turned his back to the taijiya.

"Shippo take care of Sango."

"No!" Sango shouted. She scrambled to her feet as Kirara growled viciously. "I'm going with you!"

Miroku faced her. "You can't fight."

"It's Kaori. I don't care if I die, I'm going with you!"

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I stood there, unmoving and still, my eyes locked onto the two people before me. I tried to process the words she had just spoken. Daughter? No. It couldn't be her.. My mother left over 50 years ago. If these were the same people then.. she wouldn't look like the same person in the painting.. there's no way. But as I continued to stare, her smile never faltered. My tail and ears twitched and I sniffed the air, taking a small step back. This had to be a plan created by Naraku. This, right here, was just impossible. But as I sniffed I caught no scent of Naraku anywhere. Was it possible to create such a huge hoax yet have not your scent on anything?

"Kaori-sama?"

I tensed and spun to face the voice. My redheaded captor -Shoji?- watched me with a mildly amused face. Our eyes locked for a moment, until a laugh sputtered up my throat.

"Heh, yeah, okay. Welcome home, my daughter," I muttered, my hands shaking, "I'm no one's daughter."

The human laughed, a sweet one yet lacking the deamonistic charm. "Kaori, you are so silly. Of course you are our daughter."

"No. Heh. No," I replied, uneasily, taking a few more steps away, "My mother abandoned me."

Her face fell and the room grew tense. My tail twitched again sensing danger and I turned my attention to the youkai behind them. Dark energy grew up around them, each their eyes burning holes in my body -as if saying: How dare you upset our Queen.

I took this as a signal to run.

I spun around racing toward the door we had come. But I felt hands close around my arms and pull me back, further and further away from the door. The humans guarding the eastern and western walls suddenly moved to the south, blocking my only exit with 50 rows of mortal flesh. I looked at the hands that held me, and seen Shoji there, the only unglaring face watching me. He pushed me to my knees at the feet of the royal couple and held me there.

"I'm sorry, Takaharu-sama," Shoji apologized, "She's been this unstable since I brought her back from the cave."

Suddenly, before anyone could sense it, I yanked my katanas out of their scabbard and cut through his flesh, forcing him to release me. He hissed, and I backed up against the wall, tense and wary of a brewing war around me.

Seconds ticked by, as everyone took in the sight of the redheaded boy as he clutched the wound along the length of his arm. I felt the ground rumble and the air grew thick with anger and demonic energy. All of a sudden I was bombarded with weapons and claws. Humans charged from the right, youkai sprung from the left and I braced myself for battle.

Gripping the hilts tightly in my fists I defended myself against my furious attackers, careful not to kill. The humans were simple to force back, taking no more effort than closing a door; the youkai however, were more difficult. At some point in the battle I came face to face with a vicious looking woman. She bore sharp long pointed fangs and long cat-like claws. Her blood red eyes watched my every move; her iron strength beating me back.

Finally my back hit a wall as I blocked another attack from my lethal opponent. Already supporting an injured arm and leg -contrast to a mere scratch along my cheek and forearm- I'd gotten her good. Of course with swords on my side I had a slight advantage but it was minuscule to her pure youkai malice and speed. She lunged toward me, her claws bared. I went to leap -to run toward the now exposed exit in the chaos- but the wall behind me moved and arms flew out around my body, a dagger to my throat and once more I was brought to my knees.

The woman laughed, stepping toward me. She snatched an axe from a human warrior, knocked out on the floor, and raised it above my neck. An evil smirk appearing on her dark face was the last thing I saw before I clenched my eyes shut, giving up and accepting this end.

"Kaori!"

My eyes snapped open and I searched the crowd. "Inuyasha!?"

But as I thought I seen something bright red coming towards me, something hard and blunt struck the back of my head and I was gone.

When I awoke my room was bright as sunshine seeped in through the crack in the doorway. I blinked, staring fixedly at the ceiling, carefully watching the dust float above me in it's spectacular random dance. My head pounded, feeling wet and hot at the back. From the scents in the room I could tell I was still in the castle. I wasn't where I thought I should be. Not in my room. Not in my hut. Not with Inuyasha.

"So, what exactly were you trying to accomplish?"

I closed my eyes again in frustration. When I opened them up again they landed on that splotch of red I had seen in the chaos so many moments before. That splotch of red, siting on the head of my babysitter: Shoji. He stood by the window, his arm healed and seeming perfectly happy. If anything, I would have thought the battle before had been a dream, but the ripped fabric in his black shirt reminded me of my failed attempts.

"I would have thought that would be obvious," I hissed through clenched teeth.

He laughed, "What? Little half-breed you, attacking me, then taking on a whole room of youkai and trained human warriors only to get knocked out and almost killed if not I had stopped Ninko-san.. I guess you were trying to get yourself killed?"

I growled and closed my eyes again. "Go away. I hate you."

"Yes that is quite obvious."

"So leave."

"I can't. I'm ordered to stay here."

"Then break the rules and give the princess some peace."

"Princess?" His voice was full of amused surprise.

I sat up slowly and glared at him. "Yes. Princess. I'm their daughter according to them so therefore I am the Princess, your higher up, so obey me and go kill yourself."

Shoji laughed again. "Takaharu-sama was completely outraged at you display of immaturity and just about disowned you. Mika-sama however is unchange-"

"I don't really care," I sighed, laying back down.

"Really?"

I didn't reply. I shut my eyes, trying to fall back asleep, but their faces kept crossing my mind. Why now? Why had she abandoned me and never tried to find me sooner? How was Kikyou in contact with these people and for how long? Either way, I wasn't sure I cared anymore. I just wanted to leave. I just wanted to go. To be with my friends and not have to put up with this anymore.

"So.." Shoji's irritating voice broke through the silence and I gave an exasperate sigh. "Who's Inuyasha?"

My stomach lurched. I swallowed back the lump that had appeared in my throat and said, "None of your business."

"No. But I'm curious," he replied, kneeling down in front of my face. "For some reason that was the person whom you called out to when you heard your name, before you were knocked unconscious."

"So? I don't care. You're old and mean and you kidnapped me taking me away from the people I like and I hate you," I snapped, rolling over.

"I'm not old!" He gasped, appearing in front of my face again.

"It doesn't change the fact that I hate you."

"You barely know me."

"That's irrelevant as well."

Shoji sighed, "You are a very frustrating girl."

"Thank you," I replied, "I take pride in my frusteratingness. Now leave me alone."

"I already told you I can't do that, Kaori," He said, almost sounding irritated.

"Whatever happened to good old fashioned 'breaking the rules'?" I asked.

"Who is Inuyasha?" He asked again, avoiding my question.

I growled and carefully got to my feet. "The guy who is gonna come here and kill you for kidnapping me."

Shoji got to his feet as well and followed me as I stomped toward my katanas. "I really doubt that."

I smirked, hitching the swords to my hips. "I don't."

As the words left my lips the ground trembled from a loud explosion not fair off. I breathed in deeply, tasting the air, and the smirk on my face grew. I slowly pulled the katanas from their sheaths keeping my eyes locked on the boy in front of me. I pointed the tip to his stomach and his smile grew to match my own. "Ready to eat your words?" I asked.

Shoji pressed his index finger against the point of iron and pushed it from his body slowly. "Like I said, I really doubt I will."

Another explosion and a bright golden light smashed through the paper doors behind me.

"Kaori!"

I yanked the katana back and spun on my heel, racing toward Inuyasha. He looked worried, and angry; his golden eyes searching the room for me through the dust. "Inuyasha!" I shouted. I grabbed his arm, pulling him from the room before Shoji could respond. But something worried me more than Shoji. I could smell the scent of Inuyasha's blood soaking into his clothes.. Had whatever her name was - Ninko injured him? If not her than who else?

"How did you find me?" I asked, as he started moving on his own. Outside it was brighter than ever. Many samurai were knocked out cold on the ground (which from the scents in the air had been torn up from getting attacked twice from the Kaze No Kizu). I spotted Sango and Miroku hovering over the southern wall. Both were in battle positions ready to fight anything that was to come and stop this escape.

"You're bleeding," Inuyasha replied. He sounded hostile and aggressive. His hand was tense and rigid, squeezing tighter over mine at every noise.

I lifted my free hand to my cheek but felt nothing. Confused, I wondered where else I could have bleed but that question was soon answered as the "scratch" along my forearm burned in pain once the wind picked up.

A sudden surge of demonic energy stopped me in my tracks and my breath caught in my throat. As I turned to look a bright flash of silver smashed between Inuyasha and I, and we were forced apart. I leaped and landed a few feet back, coughing as the dust settled in my lungs. I heard Shoji chuckle.

"I told you I really doubted it."

As the air cleared I saw the amount of youkai now surrounding us. All and more of the youkai I had seen in that grand room last night. Each just stood, not in a crouch or wearing a hostile expression. Each were like mindless zombies, only doing what the commander obeyed them to do. Shoji stood between Inuyasha and I, his back to me, facing Inuyasha with a sinister grin.

"And you must be Inuyasha, I take it?" He asked.

Inuyasha growled, gripping tighter on the Tetsusiga. "Who's asking!?"

The cat-like scent of Ninko hit me at that moment and once again a blade was against my throat. I felt her long sleek arms hold my arms back and I was pressed up against her tall lean body, her strength keeping caged in. A large man circled me, his brown eyes leering, clutching a long axe in his hand. I recognized his scent from the night before: the wall that moved.

"Why the man who holds precious Kaori-sama's life in his hands, of course." Shoji replied. Inuyasha's eyes met mine and there was nothing in them that I was sure he had seen but suddenly the rage I sensed from him exploded and the Kaze No Kizu raced towards us. Ninko dodged the attack -as did Shoji and the large leering man. She pulled me along with her, piercing my throat with the dagger as we landed beside an amused Shoji.

"Kaori!" I looked up. Sango, Miroku and Kirara landed on the ground beside Inuyasha. Sango looked barely able to stand and I felt a pang of guilt.

Shoji eyed them. "Heh. Well this is interesting."

End Of Chapter 56

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R&R Please

Thanks 4 Reading

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~ Woooo lame ending. lmao i suck :]