Twilight was upon the world, and the sun was quickly setting. Sesshomaru leapt towards the scent of Inuyasha and his humans. They had been harder to find than he had expected; nowhere near Kaede's village, but their scent was. In fact, he found himself having to turn back towards the direction he had just come from. Damn it, in his haste, he had simply headed to the location the group could normally be found. Lords make mistakes too (Just don't admit it). The miko would surely help Nazoki. His destination was farther than he had anticipated, yet the lord did not halt. What could he possibly do about miasma on his own? Sure, he could help a bit, but then again, if his assumption was right, his efforts would prove useless. The only reason Nazoki's throat would be afflicted would be if she had attempted to drain Naraku. Why she would was a mystery to him, but then again, she probably did not know who he was. Behind his cool expression, anxiousness swelled within him. He was getting closer. He could hear them conversing with one another.

"Do you think he'll be okay in the morning, Inuyasha?"
"How should I know?" The half-breed responded in his usual crude tone.

Ignoring the ongoing conversation, Sesshomaru leapt into the clearing of the forest. Catching sight of Kagome, the man grabbed the back of her shirt, and leaped into a tree.

The girl had been lecturing Inuyasha about his manners, and using a nicer tone. Inuyasha was sitting on a fallen log, with his arms crossed, eyes closed. A fire sat between them, providing warmth. Tesseiga was perched against his shoulder, and the man frowned at the constant demand for kindness

"And if you think I'll just-" Kagome's words were cut off, and Inuyasha opened one eye. She was gone. Everybody else was asleep. Kagome had disappeared. Frowning, the half breed studied his surroundings.
"Inuyasha!"

Above him. Gazing up, Inuyasha found Sesshomaru, gracefully leaping from tree to tree. The lord glanced at him over his shoulder, holding Kagome behind himself.

"FLUFFY! YOU BASTARD! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING TO KAGOME?!"
As Miroku, Sango, and Shippo sat up, they found Inuyasha jumping into the trees overhead. Drowsiness clouded their minds and they peered at one another.
"He said Sesshomaru?" Sango asked, and Miroku nodded.
"Mmkay..." Laying back down, Sango sighed. The others followed suit, and sleep settled over them once more.

Not caring that Inuyasha was chasing after him, Sesshomaru continued to take Kagome to the forest he had found Nazoki in. The miko would understand. He did not have to explain himself. She was so nosy, and caring that the moment she saw Nazoki, she would completely forget the fact that he had dragged her away without so much as a "how do you do".

"Sesshomaru! What are you doing?!" The girl yelled, only to receive silence as her response. She continued to call the lord's name, fully aware of the fact that she was being ignored.
"Sesshomaru, you bastard! Get back here and fight me, man to man!"
Turning to face Inuyasha, Sesshomaru continued to leap away. He tossed Kagome up- much to her surprise- and caught her with his arm around her waist so not to injure the girl.
"Inuyasha, you and I are simply not in the same class." Calmly stating the facts, the lord jumped out of the way of a swing of Tessaiga.

"HEY! IDIOT, I'M RIGHT HERE! YOU COULDA HIT ME!" Kagome screeched, and Sesshomaru glanced at her.

"Put her down, you bastard! I'll kick your ass!"
Gazing back and Inuyasha, Sesshomaru scowled.
"You dirty half breed. Remember your place." Stopping in the middle of a dark, open field, Sesshomaru contemplated kicking Inuyasha's ass. After a short moment, he opted to deal with him later. Sesshomaru set Kagome down, and glanced at the miko.

"And what the heck are you doing?! You can't just grab me and start running off! You scared me half to death!"

Showing no hint of emotion, Sesshomaru turned away from the girl.
"Climb on my back."

"What?!" Kagome demanded, and the lord sighed. So tedious. The human wanted an explanation. Sesshomaru did not explain himself to anybody; especially to a lowly human. So nosy, and falsely entitled. Alas, she was the only one who could carry out his will. It was either Kagome, or finding Kikyou. He was unsure of whether the clay corpse could still purify though. He would have much preferred if Kagome was a good human, and did as instructed.
"There is no time to explain. This Sesshomaru will show you, come with me."

After a moment of interpreting the low tone of the man's voice, Kagome frowned, and offered a brief nod. It had to be about Nazoki. She could tell; he needed her help (though he would never admit it).
"'Kay." The girl responded, and soon she was safely perched on the lord's back.

"KAGOME! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" Shouting from behind the pair, Inuyasha started towards them.

"Inuyasha, it's okay, I'll be back soon!" With that, Sesshomaru glanced at his half brother, and leapt away once more.

"What the- Kagome! Don't go with him!"

Seeing that Inuyasha was following Kagome sighed. 'Oh brother.' She thought. Obviously, if Sesshomaru had gone through the trouble of finding her, he required her assistance. Most likely, it was a private matter. In addition, she would get all the juicy details. Oh, and she wanted to help too. After all of the commotion earlier, she had to. It was not every day that Sesshomaru sought anybody out for assistance.

"Inuyasha, sit!"

The lord caught sight of the half-breed crashing to the ground. What a pleasing image. However, he had no time to enjoy it. He needed to get Kagome to Nazoki. But what if the vixen had fled the forest? It was obvious that she did not want to see Sesshomaru. If she had allowed the river to carry her downstream, her scent would be lost. In the blink of an eye, the two morphed into a golden orb. It was more convenient to travel as such.

Upon reaching the forest, Sesshomaru traveled to the spot he had last seen Nazoki. Night had settled, yet with his superior senses, seeing was not an issue. Immediately shifting back to his original form, the lord traveled downstream. To his relief, Kagome was not speaking as much as he expected. As they moved through the darkness, she clenched his sleeve. Soon, the girl started to ask questions. Of course. Silence was a rare thing to maintain around Kagome.
"What's out here? ... Sesshomaru, I know you hear me. Hey!"

Ignoring the voice behind him, Sesshomaru picked up a scent. Nazoki had definitely crawled from the river here. Slowly turning his back to the water, the lord continued. Her trail was faint, but still existed. He could find her. He would. Now if Kagome would just shut up and let him concentrate.

"So what did you find here? Is there some kind of demon that I need to purify? Is it a jewel shard? Maybe you need my help seeing something? What about Naraku? Did you find a lead on him? Hmm... But I guess you wouldn't come to me over something like that. You would just dive right in, and beat him up, huh? How is Rin doing? What about Jaken? This is about Nazoki, huh? Miyoga told us what happened. I bet you were lonely. Are you okay? Is she? Did you find her? Are you listening to me?"

'GAAHHHHH- That human!' 'I am trying to pay attention...' 'She will not stop talking!'

Internally grumbling, Sesshomaru froze in place. Nazoki was here. She was just a few meters away. Somewhere... The lord's eyes settled on a small rock formation. Atop the boulders laid a woman. It had to be her. A ray of moon light illuminated her silhouette, and she appeared to be sleeping.

"She was infected with Miasma. Purify it." Setting Kagome down, Sesshomaru glanced at her over his shoulder.
"Purify her? But what if I-"
"Purify the miasma, don't kill Nazoki." Blankly staring at the Miko, Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow. Of course, he did not bring her here to kill the vixen. How clueless was this human?! As if the lord would go to all the trouble of finding her, so she could kill somebody! He could easily destroy anybody he wished, without her help. After a second of hesitation, Kagome nodded, and said "Kay". So informal. Alas, this was the only priestess he could find. Internally groaning at the amount of time she had just wasted on understanding the situation, (Which he was positive she still did not) Sesshomaru watched as the girl walked to Nazoki.

The vixen did not even move. Kagome examined her in the moonlight, seemingly assessing the damage. When the miko placed her hand to Nazoki's throat, she emitted a bright pink glow, which washed over the pair. Sesshomaru watched, just hoping she did not suddenly lose control and purify Nazoki's head off. The power caused violent winds to whip around the two, and Kagome's skirt and hair started to wildly blow away from the scene. Nazoki's hair was blowing too, and Sesshomaru studied the woman's back. Did Kagome know what she was doing? She did not seem too sure of herself...

Seconds passed, and Kagome's light died down. The girl turned to Sesshomaru and grinned.
"Are you finished?" He asked, impatience weighting on his voice.
"Yeah!" The miko cheerfully responded.
As Sesshomaru started towards the two, Kagome's smile grew wider.

"So, you came and got me to help you because Nazoki was injured?"
Glancing at the girl, Sesshomaru leaned over the vixen on the boulder. She was still sleeping, and the darkness of her throat was gone. It appeared that the woman had tried to clean herself up. Her yukata was slightly damp, and she held a peaceful expression.

'It didn't work- the Miko is lying to us!'
'Silence, it worked. Nazoki is just sleeping...'
'Why? Why does she not awaken!? Attack her- the lying Miko! She did not help!'
'Shut up. This Sesshomaru will do no such thing.'

"Sesshomaru?"
Turning to peer at Kagome, the lord remained in place.
"Hn?"
"You really asked for my help, because of Nazoki? You must really lo-"
"This Sesshomaru requested no such thing." The words caused a deep frown to take Kagome's features, and she clenched her firsts.
"Hey! If it wasn't for me she would still be sick!"
Opting not to answer, Sesshomaru gently worked his arm under the bends of Nazoki's knees. He snaked his hand around the curve of her hips, and rested his palm on her back. She was so light; easy for him to carry. Picking the woman up, Sesshomaru glanced at Kagome. Her frown had faded, and she was suspiciously grinning. The girl was going to run and tell the first person she saw, he just knew it. Internally sighing, Sesshomaru stepped to her side. In a matter of seconds, the three were a golden orb, moving back towards Inuyasha's camp.