ATTENTION READERS: This is the Beta version of LH5W, if you want to read the official, updated version of the story, you'll have to go over to DeviantArt. com and head on over to my page. My username is Aloubell. You can also get there by going to my fanfiction. net profile which provides a link over there.
In any case, this Beta version is basically the rough draft of LH5W, my first attempt at it. Much of the plot points from this version will be the same in the official version, but there are significant and consistent characterization changes, a few (but very important) plot differences, expansion of past ideas, and overall better quality in storytelling.

All of this will be done over on DeviantArt. I no longer will write the story in traditional prose nor submit/update it here to fanfiction. net. The Beta version will remain here, just know that it isn't the 100% official story.
The official version will be written in a lazy prose mixed with play-writing elements (you'll get what I mean when you see it).
This is the new format for the story from now on.
So please head on over there if you're interested in updates to the story! Thank you for stopping by =D

-Aloe

PLEASE NOTE: The official version is being written somewhat out of order. The official version will start on chapter 46, the place where the Beta version left off. The official version will go on to complete the last chapters of Season 2. Once those are done, I will redo the story over again from Chapter 1 which will be the official version.

Having said that, if you choose to continue on reading, I hope you enjoy the Beta version and look forward to the official!

"Hit him again, Aki!" Shippo shouted out. "He probably can't feel anything!"

It was really feeling like a peaceful day, sun shining bright, birds singing, no demons attacking, no women screaming, no smoke in the air, so we decided to totally destroy it by practicing my magic—more specifically, my Fire magic. Ugh.

I laughed nervously while slightly lowering my wand. "For some reason, I kinda doubt that Shippo…" I'm really not doing this on purpose you know.Though Inuyasha was probably thinking otherwise.

To avoid seriously serious injuries, Inuyasha seemed to be the only target—ahem, practice partner—that would be able to walk away from this in one piece. He had scratches all over his body, as well as torn robes. If he didn't have the Robe of the Firerat, and if he wasn't a half-demon, this would have been tragic. I knew Inuyasha was strong, so he could take it, but I couldn't help but feel a little bad. After all, a bunch of explosions wasn't…well…fun. Especially for the person on the receiving end of the stick.

Inuyasha faced Shippo in fury. "What are you, a moron? Of course I can feel it!" He definitely wasn't the only one. The once beautiful, perfect, serene, green field we decided to rest on now had broken branches on trees, totally obliterated trees, burnt grass, and smoke—things we thought we had a break from today. The scents of burnt…everything really…filled the air all because THAT DAMN FIRE DOESN'T WANT TO WORK! Miroku, Sango, Shippo—who was cheering on Inuyasha getting tossed around like a rag doll—and Kirara were all resting and watching the practice in a "safe zone" I suppose. In other words, a place that I haven't desecrated yet. Nature must REALLY hate me right now.Could you really blame it? Hell, I'd be mad if someone was charring me to a near crisp. Before I could think of a proper, not-so-awkward apology, Inuyasha added harshly, "If she didn't keep screwing up, I wouldn't be in this mess!"

What? I gripped onto my wand tighter, gritting my teeth from the much offense taken by his statement. Making sure to aim at his head, energy filled my wand releasing the fire that he just ignited. In an instant, a medium sized explosion, appeared on the ground at Inuyasha's feet (I was nice and decided to not get his head). The guy went flying, and cursing, into a bunch of trees grouped together, snapping each one of them in half.

Turning my back on him, I crossed my arms. "Sorry," which was lathered with a layer of heavy sarcasm, "I must have screwed up again! My bad." Now that...was on purpose.

Miroku sighed. "You think he would've learned by now."

Sango nodded. "No kidding."

Snickering, Shippo skipped over to Inuyasha. "See? That's what you get for calling me names—" A hand reached out from the wreckage and grabbed Shippo's tail. He squirmed viciously. "I'm sorry Inuyasha! Please don't hurt me!"

Inuyasha sat up and brought Shippo up to his smokey face. "I'm sorry, run that whole confident speech by me again."

"What? I didn't say anything! It was the wind!"

"The wind, huh?" He brought a fist back, preparing for a fierce swing at the small demon. "If it's the wind, it probably won't be able to feel this!"

"Inuyasha! Just put him down. He's just a kid Mr. Hot Head, get over it." I commanded (Hot Head...ha...it's a pun 'cause I just blasted him). With noticeable hesitance, as well as a glare, he threw Shippo to Miroku, who effortlessly caught him.

With tears in his eyes, Shippo pointed at his bully. "You're such a big meanie!"

While scoffing, Inuyasha walked toward me. I stiffened. Keep your composure, Aki. He slammed a hand on top of my head—making me feel short compared to him—and looked at me in the eye. His golden eyes in a concentrated gaze. I tried to look away.

"Now," he began sternly, "what the hell were you trying to do?"

I gave him a cynical look as I replied as innocently as my tone would allow me. "Practice my magic. What else?" You were the one acting like a complete ass.

He started to talk calmly. "Well could you do that," then his voice raised about ten times its normal volume, "WITHOUT TRYING TO KILL ME?"

"Please, that was sooo not a big enough explosion to kill you." He was a freakin' half demon. If a few small explosions like that had the power to do him in, then that would just be insulting...to him.

"So, you admit you were trying?" We narrowed our eyes at each other. Get. Outta. My. Face. In my world, most people never dared to get close enough to me and speak to me like that—they were usually smart enough to stay clear, whether I wanted them to or not. Either way, it showed that i wasn't just some weak puppy that could be bossed around.

Before any real fire was produced, Miroku intervened. "Okay, this is where it ends." He looked in my direction first. "Perhaps we should end practice for today. Is that alright, Aki?" With one last glare, I nodded, figuring that it was safer to not have Smokey the Bear come out of nowhere and scold me for torching the half-demon and causing a serious forest fire.

He then switched to Inuyasha. "Maybe it wouldn't be the best idea to anger someone who can produce something that could potentially kill you."

"Right," He scoffed skeptically, "she can't even control that power." What? Can't control? Hearing him say that clicked something inside of me that felt unfamiliar, a sort of boiling that proved to be a great outlet for anger should I let it. The split second I released it, the tree behind the group sitting down suddenly burst into flames, making them scramble away from it the quickest they could. Inuyasha instantly grabbed me and jumped away about twenty yards from the instantly combusting tree. Seeing the raging blaze snapped me back into the right state of mind.

"W-where did that fire come from?" Shippo stuttered.

I noticed Sango in a train of thought. "Maybe…" Her eyes trailed to me as did everyone else's.

I blinked. Did I do that? Seriously? "My Fire powers do work!" Looking up at my protector with triumph in my eye, I continued, "In your face Inu-" It was then that I noticed his hands squeezing my arms protectively. Looking up into his eyes, I noticed something soft and concerning in them. "I-Inuyasha?" What's up with him? His touch was making me slightly uncomfortable.

He spoke somewhat softly to me, yet still maintaining its commanding tone. "You can't control your powers. Not well enough to fight."

My eyes widened from disbelief. "That's not fair!" Like he honestly had the right to determine whether or not I was allowed to do something. The nerve of that guy! "My magic is controlled enough to take down demons and you know it!" His hands relaxed and lowered on my arms. I began to flush and tense up at the notion. However enough of my body was functioning enough to have enough sense to pull my hand away. "I've already been in a good number of battles and I'm still alive."

"I don't want you in any fight, Aki." Why is he acting like this? The guy had been so harsh only a few minutes before and now he was acting like I was something so fragile as if I were made of glass. This behavior had been happening a lot recently and I didn't know whether or not I should make heads or tails over it.

I stepped away, increasing the distance between us. "You don't decide that." How else can I get stronger? You get to fight all the time and build your skills.Standing on the sidelines was not my thing.

"Look, can we come to some kind of understanding?" Miroku suggested as he broke the tension between us. I exhaled loudly and looked down at the ground while Inuyasha turned to the side away from me. "Tonight is the night of the New Moon. So hopefully, there won't be any fighting at all." My head shot up.

That's right! The night of the New Moon…Every month during the new moon, Inuyasha turns into a human because of his human genes. When this happens, he loses all of his demon powers. All of them. His sword, the Tetsusaiga, won't even transform in his hands. Until sunrise, he's stuck in that state. Totally vulnerable. Which is why engaging in battle with a demon—say, Naraku—would pretty much be suicide. Not that I couldn't handle myself, though.

I sighed. Sango continued from where Miroku left off. "Don't worry Aki, tomorrow we can practice some more," she winked, "then you can tell Inuyasha off when you take down a huge demon by yourself." I nodded slowly, knowing that were doing the best in dealing with whatever kind of relationship Inuyasha and I had. But I really wished that these people would stop babying me. I wasn't weak. Yeah, so I wasn't in my profession as long as all of them had been, it didn't mean that I was incompetent.

"Maybe…you're right." I gave a small fake smile, pretending as if I was okay with ending the conversation there. These guys are too protective of me. I can take down a demon no problem. Why don't they have faith in my powers? In a way, it hurt to know that they all thought so little of me. If they knew what I was capable of—the part of me that I wasn't revealing—then they'd know that I wasn't someone just anyone could mess with. If only I had what it took to control that part of me though.

Shippo jumped onto my shoulders. "I think that you're strong Aki."

Giving a more generous smile, I hugged the tiny fox-demon. "Thanks, Shippo." You may be the only one.

The night sky was clear. The infinite number of shimmering stars placed in the sky like a beautiful work of art would have made the perfect romantic spot…you know, if the guy you were a little interested in wasn't being a complete and total ass. Since that whole episode at the training grounds, we've been ignoring each other like two immature children.

We all sat on the floor of an abandoned shack we found after walking a few miles. Sango, Shippo, and Miroku have been trying to fill the awkward gap between us by talking about miscellaneous stuff that had absolutely nothing to do with anything. So I ended up completely tuning them out.

As they slept soundly in the shed, I sat there, wide-awake, staring at the now human Inuyasha. He looked similar to his normal half-demon state, except his white hair turned a silky black and his eyes had gone from golden-yellow to a really dark brown almost black. The fierceness never left them though. Not for a second. His claws turned to regular nails and his fangs just became human teeth.

And no demon powers. Hell, even I could probably defeat him if I really wanted to.

Despite all of this, he still had the stubbornness of a wall made from both brick and steel.

Much to my chagrin, he was just as awake as I was. So, it's a stare down he wants, huh? Without saying anything, I began to explore those eyes of his. Slowly, a warm feeling engulfed me making just sitting there unbelievably uncomfortable. Those human eyes still had the ability to penetrate me just like his golden half-demon eyes. Damn.

I groaned. "Stop looking at me like that."

He didn't stir. "Why don't you just fall asleep already?"

"Why don't you?"

He scoffed and spoke a little louder. "You can't still be mad." Says you.

"Will you be quiet? People are trying to get some peace around here." I leaned against the wall staring outside the window at the moonless night.

"Aki—" Suddenly, my wand started to glow at the tip, shining with such energy only emitted when a bunch of shards are nearby. I gasped. Naraku! As I slowly looked up at Inuyasha, he gave me a look that said 'Don't you dare go anywhere.' Or perhaps that look said 'I'll go, you stay.' Whichever way it was, it still had the condescending tint to it that I couldn't stand.

Getting up to my feet, I held my wand at the ready. Inuyasha shot up the moment I turned toward the exit. He jumped in front of my path to block the way.

"You aren't going out there alone!" He roared. If it were up to you, I wouldn't be going anywhere at all during any time.

"Well, you sure as hell aren't gonna go," I stepped closer. "Out of my way."

"No!"

"I can do this!" Inuyasha extended an arm out and grabbed mine, using enough force to keep me me from going off. He may have been a human, but he was still a guy and my muscles and everything were weaker than his, putting me at a disadvantage when it came to brute strength. All I could do was stand there, wand lowered but still glowing. His notion was so unexpected that i was stunned. A part of me wanted to be mad at him for holding me in such a way, but i knew he was only doing it out of concern. Every inch of me wanted to just drop my guard right there—and my wand.

But I just couldn't do it.

There wasn't any time to be feeling mushy stuff now. I was the only one who could do this—I had to do this.

Besides, if we stayed in that position long enough, Miroku and Sango's senses would have picked up that somethingw was going on. And there was no way in Hell that I'd get caught in some soap opera moment...no matter how much I sort of wanted to stay there, even with how uncomfortable I was.

Bringing my wand up once more without a word, I instinctively touched the glowing tip to Inuyasha's side sending an peculiar shock of some kind throughout his body. I somehow felt the surge go through him as my wand kept connection. When I felt it was enough, I took away the wand to witness him fall to the ground with a thud!

Running out of the shed into the dark night, I looked back at Inuyasha and how I positioned him on the wall to make him more comfortable. I don't know what I did, but it needed to be done. Right when he hit the ground, the others' eyes shot open, and they all sent me looks of confusion and alarm. There wasn't enough time to explain the whole situation, and I couldn't risk the trying to stop me either. So I had no choice but to repeat whatever spell it was, producing some deep blue electro waves that put them to sleep on contact. By time you all wake up, I'll prove that I'm neither weak, nor a burden.

I'm sorry guys.

Looking forward into the dark woods, I hoped that each of the elements were on my side this time. Including Fire.

I may not be a demon, half-demon, demon slayer, or a monk. But dammit, I am a woman and a force to be reckoned with! Look out Naraku! 'Cause you're gonna get the fight of your life!

ATTENTION READERS: This is the Beta version of LH5W, if you want to read the official, updated version of the story, you'll have to go over to DeviantArt. com and head on over to my page. My username is Aloubell. You can also get there by going to my fanfiction. net profile which provides a link over there.
In any case, this Beta version is basically the rough draft of LH5W, my first attempt at it. Much of the plot points from this version will be the same in the official version, but there are significant and consistent characterization changes, a few (but very important) plot differences, expansion of past ideas, and overall better quality in storytelling.

All of this will be done over on DeviantArt. I no longer will write the story in traditional prose nor submit/update it here to fanfiction. net. The Beta version will remain here, just know that it isn't the 100% official story.
The official version will be written in a lazy prose mixed with play-writing elements (you'll get what I mean when you see it).
This is the new format for the story from now on.
So please head on over there if you're interested in updates to the story! Thank you for stopping by =D

-Aloe

PLEASE NOTE: The official version is being written somewhat out of order. The official version will start on chapter 46, the place where the Beta version left off. The official version will go on to complete the last chapters of Season 2. Once those are done, I will redo the story over again from Chapter 1 which will be the official version.

Having said that, if you choose to continue on reading, I hope you enjoy the Beta version and look forward to the official!