"The castle lays above us." Kikyo determined resolutely, feeling an immense and dark power enveloping the skies over her head and trembling through her with severity. On the path just behind her shoulder, her travelling companions came to a halt when the words they'd been waiting to hear reached their ears.

Two days and two nights had passed, and neither Inuyasha nor Koga had slept or eaten, the humans only stopping for very short periods to rest or replenish. They had followed the coordinates given by Naraku's fallen henchmen and knew that soon Kikyo would sense the presence of the demon they sought. Each hour that passed, even with an end in sight, had brought a darker expression and harsher slope to the tension in Inuyasha's shoulders as he leapt just ahead of the humans, begrudgingly keeping them in mind as he pursued forth.

Now, sliding to a halt so the dust rose behind him, Inuyasha veered next to Kikyo and sniffed the air resolutely.

Behind the priestess, stopping to monitor the sensations in the clearing, the monk nodded his agreement.

"I feel it, too."

"Yes, there is definitely a demonic aura here." Sango hefted her weapon and looked around, securing their perimeter for any looming threat. Inuyasha and Koga, though keeping distance from one another, took her lead and glanced around with their noses actively seeking out potential intruders. When they found none, they looked up toward where Kikyo had gestured, taking in a hovering mass of dark clouds.

"But how can you tell where it is?" Koga squinted, trying his best to peer into the foggy atmosphere, seeing nothing. He only felt the great tremor of demonic energy, just as the others had described. Anchoring his legs, he prepared to be on the offense; just like before, the demon Naraku could appear out of nowhere, surprising them all at any moment.

"I can sense the edges of a barrier; it's flimsy, as it's cast so far. This castle must be immense." Kikyo turned to Miroku, and he returned her glance patiently. "Do you know the chant which accumulates a barrier of protection?"

"I know it." Miroku nodded, stepping beside the priestess with his staff clenched in his fist.

"Could you say it backwards?" Kikyo questioned, expression unchanging at his baffled response. "It can help to weaken the barrier ahead of us; once that is done, it will become permeable."

"I-I can try," Miroku gulped, thinking for a moment before awkwardly stumbling over the words in his mind, letting them roll out of his lips with uncertainty. Gradually, as he repeated the phrases, the words caught up to themselves and he murmured the prayer as though it had been written backwards to begin with.

"You said permeate?" Inuyasha raised his sword, eager to let loose some of his violent energy, relieved when Kikyo nodded. Though he would have plenty of sword for Naraku to eat when he finally caught up to him, the helpless feeling as time passed had been weighing him down, and he needed to retaliate.

"When I signal you to swing, divide the paths of the wind." Kikyo turned from him and continued to chant with the monk, until a light disruption in the energies ahead of her told her that the time had come. Tipping her fingers back to grab an arrow, she flicked her eyes to Inuyasha and nodded her head briskly, not breaking her spell as she pulled the bow back and released.

Heaving his sword above his head, Inuyasha let the blade fall with a mighty blow, forcibly rerouting the direction of the cut winds and pushing the surge of power alongside Kikyo's arrow to race toward the dark clouds overhead. Both sailed into the night sky, crashing in a field of lightless motion that shimmered, briefly visible, before cracking and evaporating, revealing a looming and nightmarish castle hovering above their heads.

Kirara made a few trips to transport the group up to the great porch that wrapped all around the outside of the building, connecting each wing to the next in the massive and intimidating mansion. After delivering her final load, Inuyasha and Kikyo, the large feline dropped back down to wait for the party to return, primed for a quick get away if needed.

When Inuyasha and Kikyo set foot on the large wooden planks, they found Miroku still chanting the prayer that had made the barrier visible in the first place. Kikyo kindly placed her hand on Miroku's shoulder, ignoring the way that the demon slayer bit her lip and looked away at the contact.

"You've done well, monk." Kikyo praised, nodding her head and pointing down the way that led to the first large section of rooms in their path. "I'm sure, as you all sense, the demonic aura is worst in this direction."

"Truly, I'm hurt."

The travellers whipped around to collectively face a new presence in their midst, a tall woman holding a fan spread across her jaw so only the glint of her deep red eyes surveyed each intruder over its folds. They could just make out the green beads of her dangling earrings as she tilted her head, fanning herself lightly. She wore a kimono of purple and white, though basic, of fine material, even as her sallow skin spoke of horrors the group had no time to ponder.

"Who are you?" Sango demanded, hoisting her weapon over her shoulder and holding it defensively between herself and the fierce looking woman who, she was absolutely sure now, was a demon.

A demon who smells just like Naraku, Inuyasha thought, just like the other one from the village.

"You noticed his demonic aura over Kagura of the wind?" The woman snapped her fan shut and pouted with a full lower lip; her porcelain face tilted in a downcast manner. "I must be losing it in my age. Kanna, why don't you show our visitors to the ceremonial room? I'm sure they're here to witness the wedding."

No more information was needed for Inuyasha to let loose his stance and race forth, brandishing Tessaiga at the woman and the ghostly pale child that appeared at her side. As his hands shook and his legs picked up pace, he hollered with insatiable rage,

"Where the fuck is she?"

Kagura easily leapt out of the way of his mismanaged dive, only to immediately jump aside again as Koga sailed forward with his claws extended, prepared to gut her throat. Springing back from her two attackers and coming to a stop behind Kanna, she allowed the small girl to raise her mirror, ready to absorb their attacks on her behalf.

"Listen, it's only our job to stop you." Kagura whipped her fan out, readying herself as well to attack in the event that Kanna's mirror should fail. "It's really just the priestess who is meant to attend. The rest of you are our kill."

"Don't be stupid." Inuyasha hitched his sword up again, ready to swing. "Comply or not, but anyone standing in my way is dead. So just tell us where you have Kagome before I end your miserable life!"

Kikyo remained silent as she watched her friends leap into confrontation, absorbed by the words Inuyasha spat forth in genuine bloodlust; but not, as she had suspected, for the return of the shikon jewel to his possession, or rather, hers, but for the relinquishment of the young miko from another world. Inuyasha, demanding the release of some human girl before even thinking to inquire about the jewel; it mystified her, even when an onslaught of blades from Kagura's fan swept over the hanyou and pierced his exposed forearm, sending a stripe of blood gushing from a fresh wound.

"Damnit!" he seethed, lowering his fire rat robes and backing away as Koga flew past him, uttering a chiding shout,

"Out of the way, half breed!"

The wolf demons foot lodged itself in Kanna's face, knocking her back and sending the mirror flying out of her hands. Sango hurried to smash the device with her weapon, directing it to hurtle at the glass and rebound with a shatter. She caught the Hiraikotsu as it sailed back to her, heaving its weight into her hand with ease and a sharp nod of success. Miroku watched, impressed, then stood before the slayer with his fingers pinching the tell-tale material on his right hand.

"Enough of this, you two." He faced Kanna and Kagura with his hand elevated palm first, raising an eyebrow at them forebodingly. "You may not have seen what your own Lord has cursed me with, but I shudder to imagine sharing its power and using it on any living soul. I will spare you, should you comply with us. Now, do not make us repeat our inquest."

"That's it, I'm out of here" Kagura reached into her hair and pulled a feather from among the strands, holding it between her forefinger and middle finger, and with a soft blow, watched it expand to her full height before shifting to sit atop. Pulling Kanna with her, she muttered under her breath, "This is a suicide mission, and he knows it. Damn half-demons, I don't have to put up with this."

"Naraku," came Kanna's voice, soft and expressionless in the resounding echo of the massive building. Even Koga strained to hear her with his supernatural ability as she followed up, "He will kill you."

"Yeah, well, he can kill me, or they can kill me." Kagura gestured toward the monk with a knowing contortion turning her lip down, "You haven't seen the monk's Kazaana in effect. With the Samyousho distracted and our Lord in his chambers," She said this word with a noticeable disgust wrinkling her nose and narrowing her eyes, "We won't have any protection. Trust me Kanna. It's better to choose your poisons."

"Your heart beats in his hand." Kanna warned, lowering her face, but shut her mouth afterward, having said more than enough to make her point.

"Hey, wait a second!" Inuyasha bellowed as the feather began to rise hurriedly, hastily spinning on the currents of the wind away from the group as they remained decidedly stuck on the porch of the floating castle below. As Kagura and Kanna disappeared into the clouds, their hope for an easy attempt at finding Kagome vanished, until Kikyo interrupted their staring after the demon duo as they grew smaller and smaller to state,

"I sense spiritual power. It is Kagome; she's throwing a shield." Closing her eyes, Kikyo softly added, "But it will fail."

"I can't smell her, Kikyo. Tell me which way." Inuyasha waited for Kikyo to point before jetting off ahead while others still formed a reaction. At a close second, Koga took up his trail, screaming for Inuyasha to wait up.

"You're probably going the wrong way, idiot!" He hollered, but made no attempt to change their course as they sprinted in the direction from which Kagome's scent just barely began to creep into their senses.

XOX

Although she could observe Naraku from where she lay chained, the amount of power it took to maintain her shield had seemingly doubled, and shaking beneath her efforts, Kagome could only barely make out what was happening outside of the shimmering barrier. The gossamer walls that had kept Naraku's hands at bay now began to flicker with weakness in her limpid state. The first sign that her protection was beginning to waver was the way her rumbling stomach interfered with her meditative stance, then the tiredness of countless sleepless hours, and finally the growing agony of her withering spiritual power that worsened before she could ever numb completely to it. It seemed an eternity before Naraku stopped pacing and began to stare past her, his fists and teeth clenched. She made out the words,

"That fucking traitorous bitch will regret that decision,"

And then he was upon her once more, boring down with eyes of hatred as, exhausted, Kagome held herself together with one hope still lingering through her; that Inuyasha, as he had promised, would not let anything hurt her. Trying not to feel fear even as the powerful yokai bared his teeth and repeated his words of intent, to torture her slowly in the worst way possible until she passed, she let the shield roll over her, wave after wave, even as her spirit began to falter. The weight of the full jewel at her neck reminded her of the importance of pressing on with all she had.

Please, she thought to herself, burying her mind in the depths of another prayer, this one not a keepsake from Kikyo or Kaede but her own private request to the heavens to deliver her safely from this moment. Please, not him. I can't weaken for this evil man. I must defeat him. I have to.

Naraku waited impatiently as unforgiving pain continued to bloom through her body, screaming to her that she was almost out of time. An ache in her soul ravished her senses, protesting its continuation though her mind struggled to uphold its pensive position. Soon the overwhelming throbbing that pulsated through her was too much of a distraction, and the shield she had so carefully and painstakingly fostered over an unknown, but seemingly endless period of time, gave one last flicker before dissolving over her in a sparkling retreat.

"Ah, Kagome, a formidable attempt," Naraku's grin spread in a repulsive response to the barrier's destruction, not sparing one moment before leaping on top of Kagome's now limp and powerless body, sweat glistening on her forehead from the exertion she had succumbed to. Lumbering over her with a hand slowly closing at her throat and wrapping the beaded necklace in his fingers so the jewel dangled above her chest, the half-demon lowered his face to hover just atop hers, fangs grazing her lower lip. "You're weak, and your fragile little shield only delayed the inevitable. You've lost your right to foreplay, whore."

Her mind raced as the words slapped her senses and she fought to regain herself, particularly when Naraku's tongue reacquainted itself with her skin in a nauseating attack. Feeling sickness creep over her, she gave one last effort to force a shield before a distinct and thunderous howl encouraged her head to turn. Eyes darting to the ferocious red glow of a full demon's enraged stare, she watched as it burst into motion, animalistically charging toward Naraku, who suddenly took on a look of pure terror. While the blur of white and red streaked near her, Kagome squinted her eyes, trying her best to form any recognition in the savage eruption out of the full demons quaking lips and merciless face adorned in purple streaks. It was only the sight of two white ears poking through the long silver-white hair that made her eyes widen in understanding.

"Inuyasha!" She gasped, but the full blood yokai showed no signs of quelling, only locked in on his target, red eyes glowing for revenge as the transformed dog demon hurtled toward Naraku in a hypnotized wrath.

A/N: Phew, and we're back! With the website crashing yesterday there was a little delay in updates, but here come my favourite chapters! I haven't been writing much lately, it's been very busy over here, but I'm sure I'll get another surge soon. Until then!