"You're quite intuitive," Miroku commented, but Jim only shrugged.

While Jim was preoccupied talking with Shippo and Link, the youngest Bomber, who was still quite attached to Sango's side, looked up at the slayer, before taking her hand in his own once more, much to her confusion.

"Yes?" She asked.

"Before you leave…can I ask you something?" Noah asked, and at her nod, he looked her straight in the eye. "What's…your favorite color?"

She almost sweat dropped. For a minute there, she thought he was going to ask her something of more importance. "Uh…well I'd have to say pink."

Now that he noticed, she was wearing pink on her black jump suit, and he couldn't help but smile. "Pink looks really good on you…Then how about your favorite food?"

Sango wanted to pat the small child on the head. He seemed like a sweet boy, but she had a feeling the child had already developed a small crush on her. "Well…I'd have to say Dangos or Moon Cakes," She replied, but it was entirely lost on the child because he never heard of such foods. "They come from my home country. Think of them more as sweets but with a spicy kick to them."

"My dad is a renowned chef in town. How do you make them?"

Sango mused to herself. It seemed her friends were still talking amongst themselves, and they didn't seem in that much of a rush, so she decided tell the child of the recipe, and to her surprise, she saw him take out of piece of paper from his pocket before scribbling away onto it. "Can I ask why you wanted the recipe?"

After finishing up writing, Noah stuffed the paper back into his pocket before flashing her a grin. His cheeks reddened at the thought. "I just want things to be perfect for our wedding ten years from now. But don't worry, because first we have to set up a date…"

Yet again, she sweat dropped. So that's what this was all about. He had actually been serious about her the entire time, but she was sure that with time, he would eventually get over her. Still, that didn't stop her from blushing. She supposed she felt flattered, but she had no idea what how to respond to the boy.

"What are you two talking about over here?" Asked a curious monk. He stepped the slayer, noticing her reddened face before staring between her and the small child. When he noticed the little boy glowering at him from beneath his red bangs, Miroku canted his head to the side. "Did…I interrupt something?"

Before the Bomber could reply to that with a 'YES,' Sango placed a hand on the monk's shoulder before shaking her head as if to say nothing was interrupted. The sight of her being so touchy with the man left him feeling a little bitter.

Finally overcoming her embarrassment, she knelt and gently patted the little boy's head. "You take care of yourself, you and your friends," She replied before standing back up.

"Hey Sango, come here for a second?" Kagome called beside Link and Inuyasha, and she offered her goodbye to the pouting child.

Now that he was left alone with the monk, Noah couldn't help but focus his attention on him now. "What's your relationship with Sango?"

Miroku blinked. "My relationship?" He asked before smiling innocently. "Why we are simply—"

"You better keep your hands off her next time," He replied, causing the monk to sweat drop. After that, he once again brought his two fingers toward his eyes and shot them right back at the monk before turning his back on him entirely to return inside the sewer with the rest of his Bombers friends.

Jim waved his goodbyes to the gang. "You take care of yourselves!" With that said, he, too, disappeared into the tunnels.

After the children returned to their hidden base, the group focused their attention on the town. From what they could see through the dim haze, all the houses were boarded up tight and the windows covered by large planks. Most of the buildings had fallen, from what they suspected was the previous earthquake not long ago. It was silent…too silent. Just where was everybody?

As they walked around observing their surroundings, Miroku couldn't help but turn and pat the priestess on the shoulder.

"Kagome would you happen to know what this gesture means?" He asked, and he mimicked the same gesture as that of the Bomber who seemed to dislike him. "Does it mean he wishes to poke my eyes out?"

Kagome couldn't help but laugh. "No. It means I'm watching you," She explained before shaking her head at his interpretation of it. "Where did you see that from?"

Miroku scratched his chin. 'He's watching me?' Looking back at the entrance of the narrow space hidden between the wall, he couldn't help but scratch his cheek. "Did I do something to upset him?"

Inuyasha snorted at this. "Yeah, you showed interest in Sango," He explained, and it was at this point that Miroku's eyes widened.

"So I'm to presume he likes her…" He muttered to himself. It all made sense now. "Well, if that's the case, he's certainly out of her league."

"I don't know…" Inuyasha replied suddenly, causing the monk to stare at him as if he knew something he didn't. "We'll see in ten years."

Miroku frowned. "You do not believe we will still be here after all this is taken care of, do you Inuyasha?" It seemed impossible. Somehow he had a suspicion the half demon was joking with him.

Inuyasha shrugged. "Never know…ten years isn't that far away, and with the way this crazy world works, time flies by fast."

"Oh stop it, will ya," Sango replied. Now was not the time to make jokes. What was more important was locating the one responsible for putting up such a strange barrier around the town.

It was at this point that the fog suddenly thickened, and when they thought something was about to transpire, they immediately took action and prepared themselves for a battle soon to follow, but nothing happened. By this point, it was entirely impossible to see anything within the fog, and they were all left standing back to back, waiting.

Eventually something did happen. It was a noise. Something out there was screeching awfully loudly, and it was enough to make the half demon move from his spot and glare.

"What's wrong, Inuyasha?" Miroku asked, taking note of the change in their friend's demeanor.

"I hear something…" The half demon replied.

Kagome listened, but she didn't have a clue as to what it was he heard. "Are you sure? I don't hear anything."

"Me either," Shippo replied from her arms.

Of course they didn't hear anything; with his hearing, he was able to pick up even the faintest of noises unreached by the human ear. Inuyasha felt the hairs on his arms stand up on end as his eyes searched everywhere in the fog for the one making that awful noise.

SCREECH…SCREECH…SCREECH…SCREECH…SCREECH

"I know you're out there!" He hollered.

"Who is out there?" Sango asked.

"Is it the evil person?" Shippo asked.

He wanted to laugh at the 'evil' part. "Its evil alright…Show yourself you old hag!"

The screeching noise picked up, nearly squealing as it nosily picked up pace, and it was so loud that even his friends finally took notice of it. A faint outline of a figure came rushing toward them, and before Inuyasha could turn around and avoid that attack, he was left screaming as the familiar spiky wheels of a wheel chair sped right over his foot.

The fog suddenly died down, strange enough, and the noise from the wheel chair came to an abrupt halt. Dropping their guard, the group was surprised to see Granny there, alive and well in her wheel chair, if not a little…weird.

"Granny?" Kagome called.

Looking over her shoulder, Granny's eyes locked onto the half demon, who was holding his injured foot, shooting her many threatening glares before slowly wheeling her way down the steps until she disappeared from sight.

Everyone sweat dropped before turning their attention to the seething half demon.

"That is one odd old woman…" Miroku commented.

"Are you alright, Inuyasha?" Shippo asked.

"That son of—I swear to god just you watch! I'm going to take that fucking wheel chair and tear it apart and—" He nursed his foot at this point, growling in obvious rage, and once again, everyone sweat dropped.

When the little fox child bounded over to inspect the damage done to the half demon's foot, Shippo gaped. "Wow, she got you good this time…She eve left tracks on your feet!"

Granny had appeared and then disappeared just as quickly as she did, and they were a little concerned as to why she was outside in the first place, after seeing the town as it was now.

"Halt!" A loud voice caught the group by surprise, and when the turned, they saw an older man approach them, dressed as a guard of the town, they turned to him confusedly. "You should all be inside! The town isn't safe at the moment!" He explained, but everyone already knew this.

"But sir, you see—" Before Sango could continue, he interrupted.

"Don't argue with me! Just do as you're told," He explained. After all, he was doing his duty to make sure everyone was kept safe inside their homes. "It's too late to evacuate as everything is now."

Unable to even argue with the man, they silently nodded.

Satisfied that they seemed to get the message, he was just about to turn around to inspect the other side of town, but he stared at the group for a moment as if seemingly remembering something of great importance. "Just a quick question. Have any of you seen an old woman in a wheel chair by any chance?"

"I think he's referring to Granny," Kagome whispered, and at this, her friends nodded in silent agreement.

The town guard continued, despite their silence. "That wretched old woman will be the death of me, I'm sure! We even took down all the ramps in town, but she still somehow finds a way to escape from the house!" He turned away from the group before sauntering down the stairs. "Notify one of the guards if you see her." With that said, he left.

OOO

While the entire town seemed empty enough, the group made their way to the North part of town in hopes of quickly seeking assistance from the Great Fairy. They had hoped, perhaps, she knew why such turmoil had shadowed the town, but to their disbelief, they only stood in the open field of Clock Town. The entrance to the Great Enchantress's Fountain, the Shrine, was entirely overgrown with thick vines and thorns.

Besides the fact that the entire place outside was a mess, judging by the toppled over trees, red mail box and fences, this however was the biggest shock.

The group immediately ran up the small incline to stand in front of the cave, and from such closer inspection, they realized the thorns were protruding from the inside, where they hoped the Great Fairy was still well.

Grief and worry clouded the priestess as she stood frozen to her spot. Last night's dream came to mind, and she wondered if it was the Enchantress's dying words for her to save Serena and not her own life. Why hadn't she said anything of the town? Of course, Kagome had thought of warning her friends about her dream, but then again, she thought perhaps it was a better idea to keep it to herself.

"What the hell is this?!"

Miroku and Sango did their best to chop away the thick thorns blocking their path, but no matter how hard they tried, the vines were impenetrable. Even Inuyasha had also attempted to cut away at the greenery, but just like his companions, nothing seemed to work. Shippo had attempted his fox fire, but that also failed. There was no way of getting inside and no way to tell if the Great Fairy was okay or not.

Cursing, Inuyasha flexed his claws. "Iron Reever Soul Stealer!" Unfortunately that didn't seem to work either. What the heck were those vines made of?

"What are we going to do?" Kagome asked. If fire couldn't work, then what would? The thorns were as hard as stone, maybe even stronger.

From behind them, they heard a sinister high pitched chuckle, and when they turned to acknowledge the individual, attired in a richly fashion of silk clothes and a suspicious grin, they grew wary. He didn't seem very threatening, what with his hands folded neatly in front of him as he stood in a somewhat leaned posture, smiling at them with half closed eyes. Upon his back was a rather large backpack, even larger than that of Kagome's, with varied assortments of masks in many shapes, colors and sizes.

"Who the hell are you?!" Inuyasha growled, but that only earned another chuckle from the red haired man with the Cheshire smile.

"Why, I am the Happy Mask Salesman," He greeted with a soft bow. "How do you do?" He asked, and when he saw their suspicious stares, he couldn't help but scrutinize their situation. "Oh, but I see you are in a bind. You can't break the seal that blocks the cave. What a pity," He exclaimed with a shake of his head.

Hearing this, Link approached the grinning man, but he stood no closer than a few feet. Honestly, Link wasn't sure if he trusted the Happy Mask Salesman; he always felt such a sinister feeling surrounding the man, and the fact that he seemed to know many things puzzled him. "I take it you never returned to Hyrule…" He inquired with narrowed eyes.

Happy Mask Salesman only continued smiling. "I never left in the first place, Link."

Inuyasha exchanged glances between the two. "Wait, you two know each other?"

Noticing the suspicious glare gracing the young swordsman's face, the Happy Mask Salesman went into a little more detail. "Escaping this…place is not so simple, but I'm sure you're well aware of that."

"What's he talking about?" Shippo asked the monk beside him, but he only received puzzled looks from his friends. Somehow, he didn't like the way the Happy Mask Salesman was conversing with Link. It was like…he already knew something that Link didn't know.

The traveling merchant frowned. "No?" When he looked upon the group, standing there watching him with strange distrust, he couldn't help but approach them, but he stopped the moment Inuyasha reached for his sword. "So the Goddesses have brought ones so full of life into this tragic and forgotten world? How…strange."

Kagome leaned into Sango. "What does he mean by that?"

"Ones so full of life?" Sango asked, but it fell on deaf ears.

Fed up with the strange man and his creepy grin, Inuyasha moved away from his companions and unsheathed his sword. "How the hell do you know that?!" As far as he knew, no one in their group breathed a word to anyone, except Anju and Kafei about the Goddesses supposedly bringing them into Termina. So how the hell did this creep find out? Unless…Inuyasha wondered if this guy was the one they were after.

But the Happy Mask Salesman only continued smiling, and he did not answer Inuyasha's question. "It seems you're lost in your attempts to restore peace to this land, correct?"

Link nodded. "I'm sure by now you've realized that. You've been following us this entire time, haven't you?" He questioned, but the Happy Mask Salesman only laughed.

"Nothing escapes you," Replied the merchant. "Yes…I have been following you," He admitted. "Now don't look so upset," He replied to the boy. "My reasons for doing so are my own, though I wouldn't say they were entirely innocent..."

Shippo didn't like the sound of that. So this weird guy, this entire time, had been following them? Why? He didn't trust him, that was for sure, and neither did any of his other friends, Link and Inuyasha especially.

"Who the hell told you the Goddesses sent us?!"

The priestess placed a hand upon his arm, but he only pulled away from her, glaring at the merchant, who didn't seem the least bit fazed by his snarl.

Again, the Happy Mask Salesman laughed.

Miroku turned to the half demon. "Inuyasha, he says he has been following us since the beginning…No doubt he overheard it during our travels."

"Why was he following us?" Sango asked. "Should we trust him?"

"I don't know Sango…Let's wait and hear him out first," The monk replied.

Taking notice of the young priestess, standing beside the slayer and young fox child, the peddler couldn't help but frown. It seemed her future didn't look so bright, but her present, however, seemed cheerful for the time being. 'It seems that the path she has chosen will no doubt lead to an unsettling future, but not all would be lost…'

"Are you just going to stand there staring all day or are you going to explain yourself?!" Questioned Inuyasha. He was getting annoyed by his constant grinning and how he, sneakily might he add, followed them without his noticing.

As if he were sudden roused from deep thought, the peddler turned to the half demon, nodding his head slightly. His Cheshire smile returned at full force and he once again folded his hands in front of him. "Ah yes, it would seem I had almost forgotten why I had appeared before you in the first place," He admitted. "I have come to ask a favor of you."

"And what favor would that be?" Link asked. Surely this wasn't another request to retrieve a dangerous and important mask or artifact that would somehow threaten to destroy the land again.

Happy Mask Salesman eagerly lowered his body into a deep bow before straightening his posture. Perhaps luck was on his side. Unfortunately, before he could say anything, a certain half demon interrupted, blatantly shoving the young swordsman out of the way to stand directly in front of the grinning merchant.

"Listen here; we don't have time for favors! If you haven't already noticed, look around! You see that barrier surrounding this town? You see all those buildings boarded up? Hell, did you even look at the sky?!" He questioned, and when it seemed the Happy Mask Salesman was unaffected by this, he only snarled. Just who the hell was this guy?

The peddler nodded only once. "If you help me, I'll help you."

"Help us?" Inuyasha asked, dumbfounded. "And just what makes you think you can help us?" Did he know something they didn't?

The merchant held up a hand before withdrawing it to his side before continuing. "My favor is something easily manageable, I assure you. With the great feats you and your friends have encountered during your travels, I know that without a doubt, it will be quite a simple task," He explained. "I only need your answer. I can change your fate, if you simply trust me."

Change their fate? Trust him?