Chapter 7

"Why are we going back to California again?" Kagome asked for the second time since they got in the car. They'd ditched the van, taking license plates from under the seat, and borrowed a regular looking Honda Civic, swapping the stolen car's plates for the ones they'd taken from the van.

Sesshoumaru looked ready to commit murder. He liked Kagome, but that didn't mean he couldn't be angry with her, and right now, he was furious. He was worried about his friend and her friend and brother, he didn't know how they were going to get back to El Paso to go through the portal, not without alerting the sorcerers, who most likely had wards set up there now where they didn't before, to track portal magic.

"Because, for the third time, they won't expect it. They'll expect us to stay in Texas, so we're not going to stay in Texas, or near Texas. We're going to northern California. Please don't ask again, I'm mad at you." Sesshoumaru groaned internally when he realized that those four words had actually left his mouth. Kagome gaped at him, and Inuyasha snickered in the back seat.

"Excuse me?" she demanded in a deceptively calm voice.

"You heard me," Sesshoumaru snapped. Whatever. In for a penny, in for a pound. "You had to go and use your debit card. We were hours from freedom, and you gave them a way to track us. I know it wasn't on purpose, and I know you didn't think about it, but that's the problem Kagome, you didn't think! You're in danger, and so is your friend here, and now I have to be the one to train you, instead of your cousin, who would be much better at training you than I will be." He took a deep breath and let it out on a sigh. "Plus, I'm worried about everyone. Especially you."

Kagome was at a loss for what to say. Mostly because he was right. She didn't think about anything except her inability to think about anything other than her father. And instead of waking someone up to talk to her, she'd used her card, which she'd known from watching TV that it could be tracked. She just hadn't thought about it, and that was the problem. So she said the last thing that she wanted to say, "You're right." Sesshoumaru's head whipped to face her so fast that she thought he would get whiplash. He immediately turned back to face the road. "I wasn't thinking about anything or anyone but myself, and I put everyone in danger. You have every right to be angry with me. And for what it's worth, I'm sorry." And thought the words burned coming out, she knew that she'd done the right thing when she saw the tension in his shoulders relax a bit.

A few minutes later she felt his hand slide into hers, his fingers wrapping around hers in comfort. She squeezed his hand in gratitude and smiled.

Sango hit the packed earth hard on her side, the wind knocked out of her, and instantly she was surrounded by growling people with glowing eyes. Shifters? I really hope they're friendly. She rolled to her knees, but didn't get up, not wanting to show aggression. A moment later, Souta landed on his back next to her.

"Dammit Sesshoumaru!" He yelled, scrambling to his feet, looking ready for a fight. One of the shifters stepped forward and kicked the backs of his knees, knocking Souta off of his feet. He sprang back to them, spun on the balls of his feet, and punched the shifter in the face. His skin was smoking. The shifters surrounded him, growling louder, and in his growing rage, Souta caught fire. The shifters leapt backwards away from him as Miroku stumbled through the portal and it closed behind him.

"Dammit Sesshoumaru!" He yelled, turning back to where the portal stood and coming face to face with a regal looking woman with long black hair and eyes like the evening sky. He dropped to his knees in a sloppy bow. "Elizabeth, I'm so sorry to just portal in like this." Baring her teeth, the woman he'd called Elizabeth wrapped her hands in his hair, yanking his head back, and Sango snapped, climbing to her feet.

"What the fuck are you doing?"

"Sango, don't."

"No, this is bullshit, we obviously would not be here unannounced without a good reason and she looks like she's about to kill you!"

"She isn't. Not yet anyways."

While they'd been arguing, Elizabeth had lowered her head and sniffed at Miroku's neck. She stood straight, nodding her head.

"As entertaining as this is, cub, I'm just checking to make sure he is who he says. Now follow me please. And tell your friend that he should calm down or we'll douse him in ice water."

"Where's my sister?" Souta growled, stomping over to Miroku, still on fire. Miroku took a step back, making sure not to touch Souta.

"She's back in El Paso with Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha. She'll be fine. Sesshoumaru will take care of her." The flames rose higher.

"How do I know he's not going to take advangage of her?" He growled. "I see the way he looks at her, and her fucking prom date tried to kill her. I'm not going to have some older, experienced playboy messing with her head."

Miroku laughed. "He might be a couple years older, but experienced? Playboy? Have you met the guy? He was in captivity most of his life. I'm pretty sure he's never… well, you know. I think you should be more worried about her taking advantage of him. I think he really cares about her."

The flames died down, but Souta's skin was still smoking. "But he barely knows her."

"Exactly. Now let's follow the queen and figure out where we're staying."

They followed Queen Elizabeth through a city made in the middle of the jungle, elaborate buildings made from the trees and rocks. There were clothing stores and homes and what looked like repair shops. It looked like a normal city, but without the cars and grocery stores. It seemed like food was not something to be bought or traded, just given. She led them into the biggest house they'd seen yet, and sat on what was obviously a throne, facing them. Mitoku knelt, but he was the only one, and he groaned in what was obviously embarrassment from their lack of respect.

"She's the queen guys," he muttered.

"We're American." Sango said. "And I'm not going to bribe some monarch for safety by being someone I'm not. And I'm not some sniveling coward who bows to people I don't even know because of their status. That level of respect must be earned."

The queen smiled, her canines, Sango noticed, were longer than normal. She wondered what breed of shifter the queen was. "I like you. You're blunt and honest and we need some more of that here. Miroku, you may stand. And I'll give you three each a room here, where I can keep an eye on you, and where I can set up training for the two of you." She nodded at Sango and Souta, her eyes coming to rest on Souta. "If you sudden burst into flames is any indication, you're sorely in need of it. Have either of you ever shifted before?"

"No," Souta said. "We didn't even know that we were… shifters… until like a day or so ago."

"Fascinating. Miroku, what are they?"

"We're pretty sure Souta and his sister Kagome are phoenix shifters, but we're not sure about Sango. Sesshoumaru suspected she's a feline shifter. Possibly a lion."

The queen had gone still, her eyes resting on Sango in a way that made her uncomfortable. "Is that so?"

"I guess. Why does it matter so much to you?" Sango asked, not in a rude tone, just genuinely curious.

The queen stepped down from her throne, threw her head back, and began to shift. Her jaw lengthened, her fingers growing claws and hands folding into paws. Elizabeth's back hunched, black fur growing over her skin. When the shift was over, a giant lioness sat where the queen had stood. And suddenly, Sango really hoped she was a lion.

"If I'm a lion shifter, would that mean that we're related?" she asked hopefully. The word orphan had permeated her brain since she'd found out about her parents. There had never been anyone else. No aunts or uncles or grandparents or cousins, so for her, being an orphan meant having no family. Nobody of her blood. And that burden, that pressure of knowing that she was the only one left to carry on the family had been crushing her slowly over the day or so it had been since she'd found out. Has it really only been one day? She was brought out of her thoughts when Elizabeth nodded. Tears suddenly filled Sango eyes at the sudden relief that she felt. She trusted Sesshoumaru enough to believe that he knew what he was talking about, naming her a lion shifter, and that meant that she wasn't alone anymore.

She had a family.

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