A/N: Heh heh heh, I love cliffhangers, don't you? *evil smirk*.

Disclaimer: I no own Inuyasha nor anything from the anime.

CHAPTER 6

Kagomes P.O.V.

I woke up a while later, feeling something cold and wet on my forehead, though I was already freezing. I started to sit up, only to immediately cringe in pain and clasp my hand over left my shoulder, which I found to be bare and bandaged. I looked and the gauz was slightly soaked through and probably needed to be changed soon. The red blotch was in such a strange place that the bandages had to be wrapped around my breasts as well.

That's when I noticed my shirt and vest where missing. My right arm was wrapped as well. Not only that, but I started to feel light headed.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down, girl. Take it easy." Sango said, pushing me back down by one shoulder. I looked up at the sky, noticing it had already gotten dark.

"What happened?" I asked, groggily. "I feel like hell turned over."

"Well, that's to be expected. After all, you took an arrow to the shoulder. Not to mention it was poisoned. That's bound to make anyone feel like crap." Sango said, smiling lightly. "So what did they want?"

"Well, first off, they weren't bounty hunters; they were bandits using that as a cover. It looks like Fluffy's gonna have to watch out for them too. And they claim the king sent them, and that didn't sound like a lie." Kagome sighed, meddling with the idea in her head.

"But, why would he send thugs to take this job? I mean, he's got men of his own, right?" Sango asked.

"Isn't it obvious, the king is too greedy for his own good, so he sent people he wouldn't have to pay. And by the way, don't call me Fluffy, that's my brother." Inuyasha said.

"Okay then, we're going back to Fluffy-Ears." Kagome smirked. Inuyasha halfheartedly glared. "And actually, the bandits would demand to be paid as well. His men would just get their salary as a reward."

"What if the bandits had a bounty on them?" Sango asked. Kagome shook her head.

"No, they would want to be paid for their work or else ruin their reputation as 'Bandits'." Kagome explained. "They don't care about bounties, so long as they can satisfy their greed."

"Maybe he just wanted to keep it quiet." Miroku suggested, now standing next to the hanyou. Kagome again shook her head.

"No, that wouldn't make sense. If that were the case, he'd just ask a bounty hunter." Kagome said.

"Am I wrong to assume that bounty hunters share their tales of adventure at home?" Kagome sank back a little. "If bandits were to do so, they could only share amongst themselves, and when they went back to collect their payment, the king would order his guards to kill them. And it would serve an even better purpose if they had a bounty on their heads." Miroku explained.

"He'd be killing two birds with one stone." Sango muttered.

"That's exactly right, Sango dear." Miroku said.

"But then what's the point in asking me and Sango, personally, to take up this bounty?" Kagome asked. Everyone stayed silent for a moment, pondering what she'd said.

"… There's definitely something more to this than meets the eye." Sango grumbled.

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it now. You guys get some sleep; I'll keep an eye out for any more signs of trouble." Inuyasha said, beginning to walk away.

"No, I'll keep first watch, you sleep." I said.

"No, you need to rest. I didn't get you back here for you to overwork yourself." He snapped, turning to me sharply.

"I can take care of myself, Inuyasha. Besides, I can't sleep now that I've slept all day." I said standing up. When I was on my feet, I felt lightheaded again and black spots filled my vision. I felt myself falling but was caught by strong arms. Once my vision cleared I saw silver hair at their back.

"You need rest. I won't say it again." Inuyasha said quietly but firmly. He picked me up bridal style and laid me down on my back, resting my head on what I'd assume was my pack. Still feeling kind of lightheaded, I had no strength to argue, so I just closed my eyes and fell asleep again.

Inuyasha's P.O.V.

"Keh, can't sleep my butt." I muttered under my breath. I stood up from my crouch by the bounty hunters side. 'She's already asleep.' I thought.

"Get some sleep, I'm taking first watch." I said, leaping up into a nearby tree. Miroku did as I said and laid down for sleep, but Sango sat there, staring at me for a moment before she shrugged and settled down as well.

I listened around me with my demonic hearing, but all I could hear was the rustling of leaves and the even breaths of the four below me. I sniffed the air but it was just the familiar scents of Miroku and Shippo and the two slightly unfamiliar scents of Sango and Kagome, with just a tinge of blood, both old and fresh… not just theirs either.

I kept my ears and nose open, searching for any sign of a threat for the next couple of hours when I heard some ones breath hitch and become controlled. They got up and walked to my tree with heavy steps. I took a peak below me and saw long dark hair. 'That rules out Miroku.' I thought, then took a whiff of the air. 'Wildflowers…' I thought. 'Kagome'

"Thought I told you to rest, wench." I said, dropping from my branch and landing in front of her. It still surprised me how many scars she had marring her skin, and those were just the ones I could see. There were at least twelve on her stomach and five on her chest, above the gauz and a couple coming up from underneath.

I don't think I could count how many were covering her arms. This girl's seen a lot of battles.

"I thought I told you I couldn't sleep." She snapped weakly. "Besides, as I recall, you owe me a little tale. How do you now Kikyo?" She said, starting to pale a little bit, but she seemed unaffected by it.

'Damn, I did say that, didn't I?' I cursed myself. "Can we deal with that tomorrow? You need to lay down or you're gonna faint again." I said, trying to get her to go back to sleep. She smirked.

"Fine, then tell me bedtime story." She said, mimicking a child.

"Wh-what?" I asked, confused.

"You want me to go back to sleep, right? Tell me what happened between you and Kikyo and I will." She said. I grumbled.

"…Fine, just lay down, alright? You look like you could topple over any second." I said, crossing my arms. She smiled triumphantly and did as I asked, walking back to were she was sleeping before. I sat down cross legged next to her and waited for her to settle, then I sighed, deciding where to begin.

"I met her in this forest a couple months ago. She was being attacked by a couple of wolfs that were scrounging around for an easy kill." I started.

~*~*~FLASH BACK~*~*~

"Ah! Someone! Help me!" I heard a woman scream and ran to see what was going on. I saw a cluster of wolves, surrounding a black haired woman who was desperately trying to get away from them. She was bleeding all over, the packs claws having all but shredded her clothing. I jumped in front of her kicked one that was about to take a bite out of her leg. He backed off, snuffing and sneezing, saying something that only I could understand.

'Worm, leave, this is our dinner!' He growled at me.

'Not on my watch. Scram and you can live to have another meal.' I threatened.

He huffed but barked at the others, signaling a retreat and they scampered off to find another meal. I turned to the woman shaking behind me.

"You alright?" I asked, crouching in front of her.

"Y-yeah, just shaken up is all." She stammered. "Th-thank you."

"It's no problem. You got a name?" I asked. She nodded.

"K-Kikyo…" She said.

~*~*~END FLASH BACK~*~*~

"After I saved her, I took her back with me and introduced her to Miroku and Shippo. Shippo patched her up and she stayed with us for a little while, all the while I hid my wolf from her.

"After a few weeks, we got attacked by some bandits just looking for some 'fun' and I had to transform to fend them off. Kikyo was terrified of me afterwards. She ran away.

"About a week later, she came back and apologized for running away. She said she needed time to think things over and she wouldn't leave this time. Even though Miroku and Shippo welcomed her back with open arms, I knew something was off. She almost seemed...anxious and I could smell blood on her. I brushed it off as nothing though.

"A month or two passed and she had snuck away one night. I figured she was just going to the bathroom, so I decided not to follow her, but when she came back… she tried to kill me. She betrayed me and ran off again. I'm never gonna forget that face. Pure hatred is what it was." I snarled at the memory. Kagome stared at me with an almost apologetic look.

"What?" I asked, unsure of why she was looking at me like that. She didn't say anything, just sat up and hugged me. I stared at her, bewildered.

"…You got lucky." She mumbled into my chest.

"What?" Now I was really confused. She let go of me.

"At least she didn't attack Miroku or Shippo. If your story adds up, when she left you the first time she came to my village. She started asking my mother tons of questions about our family and this old story that has been passed down through the generations. I figured she was just rambling so I didn't pay her any mind.

"But one day, grandma shooed me out to speak with her alone. When Kikyo came back out she was as pale as a ghost. She walked to the back yard, where my mom was. Curious, I followed her. She started screaming at my mother. Then, next thing I know, she yanks the axe off the wood chopping block and killed her.

"I ran, scared as a mouse at that moment, back inside where grandma was. I'd told her what happened but before we could leave, Kikyo marched in and tried killing grandma too. Grandma dodged the first attack, but the second one took her eye out… almost literally. That made me snap out of my daze and I ripped the axe from her hands. She ran.

"We didn't see her again until a few months later. She was in the process of stealing Kiara, Sango's pet and stead, when Kohaku, Sango's younger brother, caught her in the act. To keep him quiet, she kidnapped Kohaku and took Kiara, but just as she took off, Sango saw her and a bound Kohaku on Kiara's back. We've been accepting jobs all over in order to simultaneously hunt her since." Kagome finished her story and now, it was my turn to stare.

"I'd let it go if there weren't two key reasons for me hating her guts right now. One, she attacked Sango's family in order to get at me. Two… Kikyo's my cousin… and she attacked and killed her own family. That's something I'll never forgive." She said darkly.

"… You've mentioned your grandmother before and now you tell me your mother's dead, that Kikyo, your cousin, killed her… what about your dad?" I couldn't help but ask.

"He abandoned my mother when he found out she was pregnant. I never knew my dad either." She said. "… You said you had a brother, before, when I called you Fluffy. Since we're talking about family here, why not tell me about him?" She asked.

"Not much to say, other than he's a total Jackass. He's not a werewolf, but he's full dog demon, so I guess you'd say he's my half brother. I call him Fluffy because he always has this big fluffy pelt wrapped around his right shoulder." She chuckled when I said that.

"He sounds interesting." She said.

"Yeah yeah, just go to sleep. I told how me and Kikyo met, now you keep your end." I told her.

"Fine, but you should sleep too. Wake Sango up, she's used to taking second watch when we feel we need to." She said and laid down.

"…You're not sleeping." I smirked.

"I'm working on it!" She barked. I chuckled. After Kagome went to sleep I woke Sango up and she took over. Then I jumped in my tree again and slept the rest of the night.

A/N: DOOOONE! Tell me how you guys liked it! I'll update soon, I swear! Yes, I know, Kikyo's a Biatch.