A/N: Alright, so this chapter is short. However, the next isn't too far off...and I get a sense that this chapter might answer or provoke more questions. It felt as if it should be on its own rather than paired with a Shippo segment.

In a couple hours he was to hop back down the well and let Kaede and Shippo know about them staying longer in Kagome's time. In a couple hours he could take a sigh of relief at being back in his familiar time. For now though, he wore Souta's dumb ball cap as he made his way through the slicked halls of the healer's giant…uh hut? He couldn't remember the name, but he remembered where that Sue girl was sleeping.

He rounded the corner into the hallway where she was being kept and neglected to sign in at the nurse's station. A large orderly stopped him promptly once in the ward.

"Excuse me, but you need to sign in."

"I'm here to see Sue."

The man blinked—obviously not used to anyone contradicting him. "Uh…well that's fine, but all visitors need to sign in."

"I was here last night," Inuyasha insisted.

"Great." The man crossed his arms and frowned. "You still need to sign in."

The hanyou rolled his eyes, but turned to the counter beside where he'd been stopped, found a sheet of paper with "Visitor Sign In" at the top. He scribbled his name as best he could—never learned how to write all fancy like Kagome, but he could read damn it—then once again tried to make his way past the annoying orderly.

He was once again stopped with a hand help up to his face. Inuyasha felt himself scowl. "What the crap now?"

This man seemed to be enjoying this now. "What's that at your side?"

The silver-haired male was confused for a moment then looked down to the sword which bumped at his jean-clad hip. "Oh this…" He was at a loss. How to you explain that if you didn't carry it, you'd be the bigger threat without the sword? How was this modern human idiot supposed to understand that he knew he might be on edge today with his best friend's doctor's appointment weighing on his shoulders? How do you tell someone that after yesterday's close call he wanted to carry the motherfucker with him at all times even in this stupid time era?

"Yeah that. Is that a sword?"

Inuyasha tried to determine what would be the best course of action. Should he lie? Should he run? Which way? Should he tell the truth?

"Uh, yeah it is." Apparently, he'd decided on the latter.

"Uh huh. You know we do not permit weapons in this ward."

The amber eyes narrowed as the hanyou thought about his comeback. Then they relaxed back into their normal half-pissed off expression. "Yeah, but this isn't real."

The orderly blinked and shuffled in his purple scrubs. "But…you just said—"

"It's a stage sword. I have rehearsal right after this and I can't really run home in time to get it. Its not sharp at all."

Wow, he was proud of himself. Maybe he was finally learning some finesse. He silently thanked Kagome for talking his ear off about her senior play a couple years ago.

The man in front of him looked utterly perplexed. "Um…okay I guess that's okay."

Damn right it is, Inuyasha thought but kept from saying aloud.

He was about to open his mouth to excuse himself from the presence of this idiot, when he suddenly heard a long high pitched beep. The orderly in front of him turned toward the sound down the hall, and two nurses from behind the counter suddenly ran forward.

"Room 322," one called out as they hustled to the end of the hall.

Inuyasha didn't understand what the sound meant, but he knew it was never good when healers ran like that. He once saw old Kaede run—it was the day three kids had been caught in a landslide. It was a run that meant healers were in a hurry—healers in a hurry was never good. And they were running to Sue's room.

He bolted past the orderly, nearly knocking him over in the process. He leapt past the two nurses, easily bypassing them and sprinting into the room before they did.

The dark blonde woman was straddling the window sill with one leg outside on a ledge of a sort, with the other in the room itself. Her light gown billowed around her, exposing her backside with every few gusts of wind. She stopped her movements when he rushed into the room ahead of the others and her eyes fell to meet his. Inuyasha knew she was trying to hop out the window.

"Inuyasha!" The woman sounded startled but very familiar with him. Had he ever told her his name?

"Hey now." He put his hands up in the air. "Why don't you come back inside?"

Her face looked almost relieved to see him, but he couldn't fathom why. "Come on, we need to go."

He felt his nose crinkle. Was she crazy? "No, no. Sue, you need to come back inside and get back into bed."

She stared at him incredulously for a second, the shook her head quickly. "Where are the others?" Her Japanese was flawless.

"Others?" Where had he seen that expression before? He stepped forward with his hand held out. "We can talk inside." He could hear the nurses' footsteps finally catching up.

She lowered her gaze then flicked her eyes to the door. "Inuyasha, let's get out of here now."

For some reason, Inuyasha desperately wanted to follow her order. It was something in her tone, and he knew it was the inu in him. The inu wanted to follow her lead. What would make it want to do that?

A nurse pounded into the room, then stopped short when she saw that the machine was flat-lining not because her patient was dying, but because she had unhooked herself.

"Inuyasha, they had things inside me." The woman widened her eyes at him in need. "Please let's get out!"

There is was again, and Inuyasha felt himself frozen from his youkai side. His dog side. The side which automatically followed the alpha.

What the hell? I am the alpha!

Not to her…

It was then that Inuyasha took in a deep breath—as if scent might confirm to him what his primal brain was telling him, but of course it couldn't. This wasn't her body after all.

At one last look from the wide pleading eyes—but strong; still insanely willful and strong—he leapt past the bed, past the horrible beeping machine, and through the window. He captured her in his arms as he flew through the sill, and hauled her with him onto the roof. She quickly righted herself so that she was riding piggy-back just as Kagome used to. She held on with her legs and arms like a pro as he hopped from this building to a smaller one across the street.

He growled out as he leapt into a crevice between two buildings which could be called an alley, but for the lack of width.

"You're a pain in my ass, Sango."