Chapter 28: Nightmare or Reality?

Kagome laid down in the bed and closed her eyes in an attempt to sleep, but the uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach was getting to her. She rolled around in attempt to make herself comfortable, but even that turn out to be... unsuccessful. It seemed that night had descended upon them quickly because outside of the window was nothing but darkness, and it only seemed to add to the eeriness and sense of foreboding that was punching her in the face; giving her one hell of a headache. She ended up laid flat on her stomach, her sash on the floor and the harori she wore splayed open all around her. Then suddenly through the open window came a deep purple mist that slowly leaked into the room and towards the unsuspecting mermaid. She rolled over onto her back and blue eyes opened to see nothing but purple mist all around her. She gasped inhaling the foul smelling gas and began to gag in an attempt to purge it from her lungs. Her body convulsed on the bed, arms thrashing here and there. She was confused and her mark began to sting and sizzle, she felt a fake calm projected on her, as if trying to stop her, her body became heavy and harder to move as if she was chained down. Her arms slowed and then completely stopped and soon she wasn't even able to move her head let alone kick her legs. She stared unseeing, up at the ceiling. 'Was this how she was supposed to die?' she thought as her body relaxed and her eyes closed.

' am I to truly die alone, here, in my inu's bed, without him even knowing?' then suddenly she heard a chuckle and the scream of the kit, Shippo.

Her eyes opened wide, glowing an arctic crystal blue. She felt furry rise up within her as she finally understood why she feared, not for her own safety, but for that of the kit she considered like a son to her. Her whole body was encompassed in this blue glow as she fought with what ever force was trying to hold her down. She moved her arms, using them to sit up from the bed, soon she was standing and walking towards the door. She didn't know where she was going she just began to walk, then she was running and then sprinting down the hall. Fear for her kit fueling her legs to move faster and more accurately then they had ever done before. She then found herself outside the bath house that she knew her kit to bathe in. the door blasted open with a bang to unveil her kit, unconscious and limp hanging from the arm of Naraku.

"You." she growled out.

He turned surprise clearly written on his face. "how are you moving still my miasma should have..." he paused, he had seen it though it was slight, her body was dragging, she wasn't fully conscious. He smiled darkly, he could use this. She was more powerful then he thought, her powers and will where the only things keeping her standing here in front of him, instead of in the coma he had planned for her to be in.

"ahhh, my Utako it is not yet your turn, you shall see the kit soon, and if you want you may even come for him, but of course I will need something of yours to trade for his life."

"You Monster!" she spit. "Put him down." she growled lowly at the vile kumo-hanyou.

"uh uh uhh! In time, my little mermaid, in time." he then moved to leap through the window.

Kagome quickly stepped forward pulling her hands up in a sweeping motion as she growled "And where do you think you are going?" a giant wall of water came in front of him and froze, cutting off his access to the window. He eyed it carefully before turning and only having time to put up his force field as he saw Kagome spin, her hands moving around a she pulled the water up from the indoor onsen and used it to wrap around him in a ball completely covering his force field. She then brought her arms in and curled her fingers. The ball began to compress and close in around him. He had to create barrier after barrier because each layer he created was slowly crushed and broken under the weight of her power. He pulled up the kit and placed a dagger to his throat.

"ENOUGH!" he called. The ball of water stopped compressing around him and melted away. "Either you let me leave now with the kit alive, or I kill him. You have one day to come for him, or he will die, see you soon." he then used his miasma to break through the wall of ice "And by the way Utako you look good enough to eat." groaned Naraku as he took in her body as she stood there. She pulled the top closed with one hand and used the other to throw a spear of water at the kumo-hanyou, but he merely side stepped it and escape throwing an "and oh, please do come alone." over his shoulder as he vanished into the night.

"Noooo!" came Kagome's piercing scream that moved throughout the whole castle. Catching the ear of not only the demons but one human as well. Sesshomaru was the first to move.

Something was horribly wrong. He could feel nothing but calmness through the mating mark, the scream was obviously from his mate. He made it to the source of the scream and found his mate in the male bathing house wearing nothing but his harori, sitting in a heap upon the ground a blue glow encasing her whole body and her eyes glowed the same blue but brighter.

"Utako." he called as he stood in the door way, Inuyasha and Miroku finally catching up to him.

She turned her head and looked at them, her powers expanding in her unquenchable anger.

"Oih, what the fuck happened in here?" asked Inuyasha as he looked around to see spears of ice embedded in the walls and a wall of frozen ice that was several feet thick coating the wall and window except for the spot with the gapping hole.

That phrase seemed to anger her more for her eyes seemed to glow more as her powers lapped around her the water in the bathing area becoming wavy with the invisible current. The water moved over the edge of the floor and brushed by Inuyasha's feet, causing his eyes to widen. Kagome sat in the middle of the water holding onto the harori with one hand while the other held her in a sitting position, her tail pushing the water around her back and forth.

Miroku looked around, she seemed devastated as his eyes came back to land on the mermaid in the middle of the floor. She was beautiful that couldn't be denied, but she was also deadly, and very angry. He turned and watched Sesshomaru approach her.

"Kagome, what has happened?" she turned glowing blue eyes up to look at him and then back down to the water. She removed the hand that was holding the top closed and then held out above the water. Up came a little ball. The ball began to spin and as it did the wind picked up around it. The water was pushed back so that it began to form a round, small whirlpool around her so that where she sat was completely dry but the water continued to circle around her. Sesshomaru stepped forward just to hear a voice that had him obeying and his beast stirring.

"Stay away." the sound of bells tingling, the sound was enchanting, mythical, and alluring. Inuyasha moved forward, closer, and the more he stepped into the water the deeper he sank. "No." she called , which only brought the idiot closer as his speed increased. Sesshomaru watched as the ball floated in front of Kagome and his idiot brother moved closer. The monk quickly whacked him on the head and pulled him out of the water, and pulled him from the room unconscious.

Kagome wrapped her arms around herself as the ball floated in front of her. The water began to move upwards and encase her in a ball, slowly.

She was closing herself off, he could feel nothing but calmness through the mark, but watching her face he knew she felt anything but what was being portrayed to him. He stepped forward and refused to get pulled under what spell she was casting. He was not as weak and feeble minded as his half brother. He would not be taken as a fool.

"Kagome." he called commanding her attention. She looked up at him and watched as he walked closer. His own youki pushing forward and pushing her water away clearing the area where he walked.

"NO!" called Kagome as her hands grabbed her head and she tried to scoot away. Her powers buffeted him pushing him back but he continued on.

"Kagome, you will stop this."

"No, all who are near me shall die!" she whispered as she said this the ball dropped and she stuck out her arm. Then there was silence as her powers pushed out. The monk wrapped himself and Inuyasha in a barrier and Sesshomaru lept forward.

She opened the eyes she hadn't known she had closed and felt the clawed hand wrapped around her own smaller one. She looked up to see golden eyes peering back into her glowing ones. He was inside her frozen ball of ice, his pants being soaked through by the waist-high waters. She tried to pull her hand free, but his grip was too strong. With one swift pull she was up and in his arms, bridal style, her tail lapping gently in the water.

"What ever has happened, I will always be here to help you, no one will die." he spoke gently as she threw her arms around his neck and over his shoulders as she hugged him tightly. He then used his own powers to melt the ice that surrounded them and walked out towards the monk, once out of the ice Kagome's tail vanished leaving legs in their wake. Kagome felt hot in his arms, when she was usually cool to the touch.

"Monk, something ails her, she is feverish."

Mirkou dropped his barrier and walked into the nearest room and turned on the light. Sesshomaru laid Kagome down upon the bed.

"First I need to know who did this?"

"Naraku." spoke Kagome, "the room reeked of the vile kumo-hanyou." added Sesshomaru.

"That is what I assumed but I wanted to be sure." said Miroku. "It could possibly his miasma?"

he then placed his hand on Kagome's face and everyone watched as it glowed a light purple. Then all of a sudden the miasma flew out of Kagome and then into the shocked and surprised monk; into his nose and mouth. He then fell to the ground into coma like state. Kagome was then up, her eyes still glowing. The air around Sesshomaru and Inuyasha began to pop, crack and sizzle as water vapors appeared from no where. Inuyasha began to curse from his shock and surprise while Sesshomaru merely smirked. She placed her hands in front of her as they too glowed and the water came towards her and then coated her left hand all the way up her wrist and stopped only once it reached her elbow. The air stopped sizzling and calmed and she then leaned over the monk as she held her top closed with her other hand. She then placed her left hand on his face and watched as the water coated his face. She then made a pulling motion and watched as the black and purple miasma was pulled from the monk and coated in the water.

Once most of it was gone, Miroku gasped as he came too, feeling his throat, nose and eyes burn. He then felt a small hand on his chest pushing him down and he obeyed. He heard cracking and sizzling and then felt coolness on his face. He felt as the substance went into him, pulled on the foreign and tainted miasma and then as it left him, leaving him feeling pure and clean

Kagome pushed the monk back down as she repeated her actions a second time after letting the first one simply float in front of her so that she could deal with it once it was all gone. Once done she brought the two balls of water together to make one and then focused on the impurity within the water. The water and her glowed brightly and then the glow was gone and the water clear, it then vaporized, and Kagome stopped glowing. She looked around herself and frowned. She would have pinched herself, but she didn't need it to know that this was no dream, but her worst nightmares beginning to come to life. She looked up to the other three as Miroku stood and whispered.

"He has Shippo."

Sesshomaru stiffened, if he was able to get to Shippo so easily what of his ward. He was gone in an instant, no one moved to go with him, they all had the same thought.

'Rin.'

he bust into the door and found her room empty the window wide open and a note on the bed. He picked up and read it.

"Send the mermaid alone by tomorrow night or the girl will die along with the kit.

Love,

Naraku.

P. S. Welcome back."

his growl echoed throughout the whole shiro and into the forest.

Back in the room with the others the half demon and human shuddered as Kagome said "Oh no." and her aura filled with guilt.

He was back amongst them in the room in no time as he handed the note to the monk who proceeded to read it aloud.

They then looked to Kagome.

"How do you want to do this?" asked Inuyasha.

"i'll do what he has asked, go alone."

Kagura left the house of the moon easily with a little girl in tow, things obviously went smoothly if she was able to get out so easily, and with the note she left she was sure that the daiyoukai would have plenty of reason to show up.

"Have you brought the girl?" asked her master from the shadows as he sat in his chair.

"Yes, master."

"good put her in the room with the kit."

"yes, master."

once kagura left the room she walked into the side room and saw the kit curled up into a ball all except for one hand that was tied up in one of the chains she had been in herself. She shuddered. She then took the girls arm and placed it in the adjacent chain and laid her next to the kit.

"Hey kit, get up." she watched as the boy moved, looked and then gasped.

"Rin-chan?" the boy then looked at her. "Why?"

"Dont ask me, I dont know, im just following orders, but dont worry, kanna swapped out the chains, you will be able to break yourself and her free when the chance comes, but dont do it yet or you will die. Be patient kana or I will let you know when its time." she spoke loudly and whispered other parts hoping her secret message wouldn't be understood by her master. Then kit nodded and began to cry as he winked at kagura. The kid was smart. She left.

sooooooooooooo you know what to do: REVIEW! LOL

KAR