A/N: Okay you guys, I know this is late but Bella had some difficulties getting this chapter to me. Did everybody hear about the Artic blast we had last week? Well, that and other things, gave her complications. And if you think about it, the cold was really bad. Down in Texas, where I live and where the weather is mild, it dropped below freezing and stayed below forty degrees for a whole three days. Granted, it wasn't as bad like up north, but for Texas, it was pretty cold. Plus, the electricity went out too. So I hope you can understand the things both of us had to go through. Now, read the chapter. And for fair warning, there is a little "questionable" scene. Nothing explicit, I assure you, but I certainly freaked out when I read it. Kudos, Bella!

Disclaimer: Don't own Inuyasha.

Chapter 6: Attacked by the beast

Inuyasha was finally feeling better, though he still had to take his inhalers, doctor's orders. Today he really had the urge to swim and begged me to join him so her e I was, perched atop an inflatable lounge in the middle of the pool soaking up the sun the way a sponge did water while Inuyasha swam lazy laps around the pool looking completely at ease. We were behind our house, where we had built a big pool. We just hadn't used it or mentioned it to no one yet. No doubt all of our friends would come every day to just hog the place. Inuyasha and I needed some alone time, didn't we?

"Come join me in the water." Inuyasha said, resting his arms on the lounge.

"Is it cold?"

"Just a little cool. It feels nice though." He said shrugging. I wrinkled my nose at him and he wrinkled his back before we both started to laugh. I motioned for him to move but suddenly I was launched into the water. I was momentarily paralyzed as my body adapted to the feel of the moving water around my body before I propelled myself to the surface. Inuyasha was right; the water was cool and soothing.

"Inuyasha, look what you made me do!" I said, splashing him with water.

Inuyasha laughed. "Me? You're the big klutz here!"

"Oh, you're gonna get it!"

A huge water fight thus began, and ended with me losing badly. After that, we played around for a while, diving, racing and turning flips before I realized my phone was ringing. I hadn't gotten any calls in a while so I was curious to see who it was. By the time I reached my phone it had stopped ringing and I had three voicemails. I was about to check them when the familiar ringtone started up again. I quickly pressed the green button and put the phone up to my ear.

"Kagome!" Ayame's voice came strong over the phone. "Why haven't you called to R.S.V.P for my wedding yet?" She nearly yelled. I could almost imagine her red mane of hair flying around her head in an angry cloud.

"I haven't gotten the invitation yet," I said trying to calm her. "I will as soon as I get it."

"What do you mean? I sent that thing off centuries ago! Damn postal service!" She said. She hung up before I could say anything else. All I got was a dial tone.

Well that was weird. Maybe Inuyasha might've gotten it and had forgotten to tell me. No big.

But when I asked Inuyasha if he had caught sight of it, he told me he hadn't. Quickly getting out the pool, I took a quick shower so I could go check the mail while Inuyasha ordered some lunch. I opened the mail box but nothing was there.

How strange.

I bounced slightly on the couch while Inuyasha put a movie into the DVD player. I was waiting for the pizza delivery guy to get here. I had already told Inuyasha that I wanted to get first pick of the pizza. He said I'd have to beat him to the door, which I planned on doing because Inuyasha had a tendency to eat like a half-starved Neanderthal after swimming and I wanted to get a few good slices before he totally demolished it. The movie had just started when the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" I said launching myself from the couch, grabbing the money from the coffee table as I went. I could hear Inuyasha laughing behind me as I ran into the other room. I swung open the door and motioned to the delivery guy to wait while I counted out the money. I looked up holding out the money and realized that Ayame was standing in the doorway. "Oh, I. . ."

"He's behind me." Ayame said, jabbing her finger behind her and pushing her way through the door. I gave the money to the scrawny teen and took the pizza to the kitchen where Ayame was leaning against the counters. She didn't look happy.

"They said the invitation should've gone through about a month and a half ago. You don't have it, so where'd it go?"

"I don't know Aya. I swear to you, I would've called as soon as I got it if I had it." I grabbed her hands. Ayame sighed. "We'll be there Ayame, don't worry. Inuyasha and I wouldn't miss it for the world." I said squeezing Ayame's hands. "When's the wedding?"

She gave me a small smile. "Tomorrow; I would've called you sooner but we didn't realize you weren't on the guest list until we went through it again last night." Ayame said in an agitated tone. Yikes, yikes, yikes! Tomorrow? What the hell would I wear now?

"We can do that! No problem!" I said, hoping Ayame wouldn't notice the freaked out expression in my eyes. She gave me a grateful smile and headed towards the door.

"By the way Kagome, have you guys watched the videos Miroku and I left you?"

I turned red instantly."No. We can't find the box and even if we could, no!"

"It was worth a shot." Ayame laughed before closing the door behind her. I shook my head as I put my pizza on a plate; my friends were insane and soon, they were going to drive me up a wall.

"Yash honey, we have a problem."

Inuyasha peeked at the pizza in the box. "Yeah you took all of the good slices and left me with the ones with no meat." He said jokingly.

I sighed. Why must my husband be so silly sometimes?

"No, really; Ayame's wedding is tomorrow afternoon. The post office did something weird and lost our invitation so she just stopped by to give me another one. I don't know what we're going to wear but we need to get them a present and need to do it soon."

"That's bad." Inuyasha said, his gold eyes widening. "Did we already get them something?"

I crossed my arms. "Nope."

Inuyasha shrugged."Oh. Well, we can go tomorrow morning. We'll just have to get up a little early."

"We can't go tomorrow; I have two interviews tomorrow morning." I started pacing, suddenly anxious. How could that invitation have not come? Everything was just too bizarre.

"Well, then let's go." Inuyasha said grabbing a slice of pizza with one hand and my wrist with the other. Out the door we went to trek in the suburban jungle of stores to find something for Ayame and Kouga.

Afterwards, I got into the car and set the bag at my feet. I hadn't found anything to wear, which was okay because I was sure I had something at home that was decent enough to wear. The only thing that bothered me was the fact that all we had found for Kouga and Ayame's wedding gift was a dish set. It was cool, I guess, but I really wanted to give them something with a lot of thought and meaning put into it. But then again we would be able to get them something else later; something really spectacular. I just had to figure out what.

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The Next Day. . .

"Inuyasha where's my earrings?"

I had just gotten home from my interviews about twenty minutes ago and was rushing to get dressed. Ayame's wedding started in an hour and we needed to leave ASAP. If only I could find my earrings. I could've sworn I put them on my dresser last night but they were nowhere to be found and Inuyasha said he hadn't saw them when he woke up this morning. I bit the inside of my cheek and turned to look for them in my jewelry box. They weren't in there either. First the invitation and now my earrings. I let out an agitated breath; those had been my favorite earrings.

"Are you sure this is okay?" Inuyasha asked moving away from the closet. He had on a pair of jeans and a Hawaiian shirt. Ayame had told us to wear something bright or beach related. I was wearing a turquoise summer dress that I found in the back of my closet. I figured we should be okay with what we were wearing but Inuyasha wasn't so sure.

"Bring a nicer shirt if you're not comfortable with what we're wearing, but I should tell you Yash, you should know Ayame's not going to want everyone to be all dressed up and uncomfortable." I said, looking into the mirror and putting the finishing touches on my hair. Inuyasha nodded and reluctantly went to get the car keys.

We were breathless when we got to the sight and chose a seat somewhere near the front. The ceremony was being held at a beach that was specifically used for special occasions. The arch around the altar was covered with a trillion different exotic flowers like birds of paradise, Amazon and stargazer lilies and some beautiful pink and purple flower that I couldn't describe. There was a small orchestra on the side playing music while we waited for the service to begin.

Inuyasha laughed and leaned towards me. "I'm glad I didn't change." He whispered when he spotted another person walking past in a Hawaiian shirt. Almost all of the men here were wearing one.

I gave him a knowing smile and mouthed "I told ya so."

The music changed to the bridal march and we turned to see Ayame walking down the aisle of silk that had been laid on the sand. She had her arm linked through her father's. She hadn't wanted any bridesmaids or groomsmen because they felt like it would only cause problems later so other than the flower girl and the ring bearer, Ayame and Kouga were the only ones in the wedding procession. Ayame went to stand across from Kouga. She looked beautiful; her dress was strapless and made of lace that ended in a slight angle a little below her knees. Kouga was wearing a white button up, that he had open over a white wife beater and was wearing khaki pants. They were both smiling so wide and looked so excited and I couldn't help but feel happy for them. We watched the rest of the service go on without incident and at the end when they kissed, we all cheered.

Then, to all of our surprise, they released, not doves, and no not butterflies, but peacocks; two large male peacocks that proudly displayed their beautiful tails as they strutted around the beach.

Leave it to Ayame. She just had to be original. A group of us went to admire them and started to laugh when a little boy went to touch one.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you sweetie." I said trying to warn the little boy but he tried to pluck one of the feathers from the bird and ended up running and screaming at the top of his lungs for someone to stop the bird.

The reception was also held on the beach. The sun had set and our light came from the moon and the strategically placed tiki lanterns. It was still hard to find anybody in the dark, especially since there was so many of us, but I thought I had spotted Kagura on my way to get something to drink. I went off in that direction but I didn't see her so I shrugged and continued on in my pursuit to find something to drink.

Somebody grabbed me by the waist and I turned to see if it was Inuyasha, since he had gotten lost in the crowd sometime earlier and I hadn't seen him since. I just finished talking to Sango so I assumed that it was him, but with the way things were happening, I shouldn't have been surprised to see it wasn't him. Damn my rotten luck.

I jumped as I looked into the violet eyes and realized who it was.

"What are you doing here Takeshi?" I pulled away roughly. Just his presence gave me the chills and the urge to run. I stood my ground because I wanted to show that I wasn't going to run away.

"I wanted to see you." He purred, touching my check softly. I slapped his hand away, but he didn't seem fazed. "Remember that invitation you didn't get? Well, I had to take it so I could know when to come. And my, don't you look beautiful." This time, he tried to close the space between us, but I wasn't having it.

"Leave me alone." I muttered angrily, trying to walk away and be done with him.

But of course he didn't let me. This was Takeshi we were talking about.

Instead he grabbed my hand and started to pull me away from the busier part of the party. I tried to pull away, but Takeshi was a heck of a lot stronger than I was. Again, damn my inability to pull away.

"Kagome please, I just want to talk to you for a moment." His voice sounded so soft, so sincere, like a lulling sound, but I knew better. That was just the trick he used to capture his pray and I wasn't stupid enough to fall for it.

"Well, hurry up." I said, a bit fearfully. I really needed to find Inuyasha; I didn't trust this guy at all. Almost without thinking I speed dialed Inuyasha and kept the phone hidden behind my back. Luckily, he hadn't noticed.

"Listen Kagome, I know we got off to a bad start and all but I think we should rethink our relationship. I'm not that bad of a guy once you get to know me." He slowly started to close in on me and I found myself being cornered and I cursed under my breath for not realizing this before.

"Where is all this coming from?" I demanded, angry and scared at the same time. I needed to buy some time for Inuyasha to get here.

"I find myself being very attracted to you Kagome. Surely you know that you are a beautiful woman and you can't blame me for wanting to get to know you a little better." He purred, running a hand through my hair. I shivered from his cold touch, but I seemed to be paralyzed.

"I'm not sure if I want that." I said my breath coming in shallow little breaths. I closed my eyes. Where are you Inuyasha? I had my back pressed against something and Takeshi was pressing himself into me and I didn't like the way this was going. Not one bit.

He leaned in too much for anyone but Inuyasha to lean in. "You're just a little confused. You think you love Inuyasha, but I can show you that he's really just a distraction. He can't give you what you need, but I can, kitten. I can do that and so much more. You just need to know what you're missing."

Before I could cry out, he had pressed his lips against mine. His lips were hard and too warm against mine and I didn't like the way that he kept trying to force his tongue into my mouth. I tried pushing away but he pressed even harder against me. I wanted to scream but he was preventing that too. I started to panic.

Oh god, I was going to be taken advantage of and there was nothing that I could do to stop it! I was going to get freakin raped by a man that… Agh! I couldn't even think of words bad enough to describe him. I didn't respond to what he was doing, though he tried hard to get me too. It was all just too disgusting though.

Since he had my hands pushed uselessly behind my back, I was defenseless; I had already dropped my phone and had no chance of trying to call for help. Takeshi began to run his hands up and down my body and I struggled to get free.

Please somebody help me!
I closed my eyes trying to block all it out but then Takeshi started to reach under my dress. I couldn't take this and I wasn't going down without a damn fight. I was Kagome Takahashi for Pete's sake! With my new found courage, I kicked him hard enough to break away from his assault on my lips and let out a blood curdling scream before he slapped a hand over my face and banged my head against whatever it was behind me.

"Shh. We don't want anyone disrupting us." He said too gently, too calmly. He knew no one was coming. Hell, I knew no one was coming. Tears started to stream down my face. Takeshi had begun to kiss me again when suddenly he pulled away from my body. I crumpled to the sand below and looked up to see Inuyasha holding Takeshi by the back of his shirt.

"Nobody touches my wife like that, nobody, you sick bastard!" Inuyasha yelled punching Takeshi in the face hard enough to knock him on his butt. Inuyasha went at him again and had hit him a few more times when Sango, Miroku and a few guys ran over. Sango helped me off of the ground and took me a few feet away while Miroku pulled Inuyasha off of Takeshi and the other guys detained Takeshi. Inuyasha was still trying to get to Takeshi when Miroku whispered something to Inuyasha that made him stop. Miroku went to the guys who held Takeshi and they left the scene quickly. Inuyasha came over to me and grabbed me from Sango, who had tried to calm me down.

"You're okay baby, you're okay." He murmured holding me against his chest. He kissed my hair but I couldn't answer him at the moment. I couldn't find my voice. I just held on to him tightly and hid my face in his shirt so no one would catch sight of the tears that were streaming down my face.

Inuyasha picked me up gently and carried me over to the car. He didn't say anything the whole ride home but I could feel him fuming beside me. I would be just as mad as him if I didn't feel so violated and so vulnerable.

When we got home I headed straight for the shower. I felt gross and needed to scrub the scent of Takeshi from my body. I was so freaked out by the whole ordeal that I obsessively began to scrub at my skin, making it red and raw. I forced myself to stop and got out of the shower. I put on my bathrobe and went to our room to find Inuyasha sitting on the bed, already dressed in his usual muscle shirt and boxers.

"Are you okay?" He asked, pulling me gently into his lap. I nodded and curled up like a child against him. Inuyasha wrapped his arms around me, making me feel safe and warm. "Let's get you ready for bed." He helped me into my gown and tucked me in, tucking the covers tight around me before he leaned down and kissed my forehead. "Night Kagome."

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A/N: Damn. It was that good.

Well, I have to say, this was very, very suspenseful. I really thought Kagome wasn't going to be saved, but Inuyasha came! But wasn't this still a good chapter? (Apart from the Takeshi weirdness? I freaking got the chills reading it.) I loved it a lot so review for Bella ok, you guys? She'd love it, you know.

One more thing. No one has voted for this story on my poll as of yet. You guys really, really need to do that, ok? You want to get frequent updates? Go vote please! I love writing this, and I'm sure Bella does too, but I will go by reader demand. Make this first place and vote! (The poll in on my profile and there a few details there.)

~Daichi