Ann stood before Kagome, the guardian priestess of the Shikon Jewel, feeling a swirl of emotions. Here was another traveler from the future, just like her. Was it coincidence or were there other forces at work here.

The other struggle for Ann was the fact that they happened to be looking for each other at the same time. Was it another coincidence?

"I don't even know where to start." Ann admitted, her voice tinged with uncertainty as she glanced at Kagome.

Kagome nodded in understanding, her finger tapping thoughtfully against her chin. "Well, how about introductions?" she suggested, her eyes bright with curiosity.

Ann nodded in agreement, feeling a slight sense of relief at the simple suggestion. "Okay. Well, like I said, I'm Ann," she began. "In my time, I am from the United States, but over the last couple of years I lived in Shinso Mizu village."

As Kagome introduced herself, Ann couldn't help but notice the warmth in her smile, a stark contrast to the uncertainty swirling within Ann's own mind.

"This is Inuyasha," Kagome continued, gesturing towards the demon beside her. Ann's gaze lingered on Inuyasha, his striking appearance commanding her attention. His moon-colored hair and pointed dog ears intrigued her, sparking a silent curiosity.

"I wonder if they're real," Ann found herself thinking as Kagome moved on to introduce Miroku. But before she could ponder further Miroku was suddenly in front of her, down on one knee, clutching her hand, and gazing deeply into her eyes.

"I can tell you are a noble and strong woman," his earnest expression sending a flush of embarrassment to Ann's cheeks. "Would you bare my children?"

"Wait? What!?" Ann exclaimed, her voice betraying her surprise as she instinctively tried to pull away.

"I don't have long to live and wish to see my child before I go," he shifted in closer to her, making Ann face burn as she tried to lean away from him. Suddenly, the giant boomerang that had almost taken Ann's head off, smacked down on top of his head dropping him to the ground.

"Sorry about him," the other young woman grumbled, lifting her weapon off of him as if it weighed nothing. "He is still being trained." Kagome chuckled and said,

"This is Sango." She pointed to the other young woman who had long, black hair tied up in a ponytail. She was beautiful, tall and very athletic looking. She slung her giant boomerang onto her back as Kagome continued. "She is a demon slayer."

"Really," Ann said, immediately interested. "Shinso Mizu is a demon slayer village.

"I've heard of it," Sango said, also intrigued. "I had never traveled there, but my father had met the village leader."

"My uncle," Ann said, nodding her head.

"Your uncle?" Kagome asked, confused. "How can that be? Did he travel with you?"

"No," Ann sighed, "It's kind of the opposite. His sister, my grandmother, managed to travel forward in time."

"How is that possible?" asked Sango. Ann shrugged.

"I still don't know," she said, frustrated. "Nobody has been able to answer that question for me."

"Hey, Kagome, don't forget about me," the small child tugged at her sleeve.

"I'm sorry," she pulled the child with the fox tail into her lap. "This is Shippo. He has been traveling with me and Inuyasha ever since he lost his parents. He has fox magic that has managed to get us out of a few tight situations. And this," she said, as she pointed at the giant saber-toothed cat, "is Kirara."

"Um…I know this is going to sound horrible, but why are you traveling with demons?" Ann asked nervously. "I learned nothing but awful things about them and my experiences haven't been good either."

"Not all demons are evil," Sango explained kindly. "Although I will admit that it's a small percentage."

"What kind of experiences have you had with demons?" Inuyasha asked, his eyes narrowing. "I can smell Naraku on you, so you might as well start with him." Ann felt a slight weight at the thought of her first encounter with Naraku.

"I was in a boat with my family when I was pulled underwater by him," Ann said tightly. Her hands clenched. "He drug me so far down to the point that I thought I was going to drown and then he placed this mark upon me." She pulled her kimono top apart enough to show the burn on her chest in the shape of a hand. Sango came closer and gasped.

"Why would he mark you?" she wondered.

"I don't know," Ann admitted, frustration lacing her voice again. "My uncle thought it might be to track me. I'm not sure about that part, but I know that he can talk inside my head."

"Eww. Creepy," muttered Kagome, shivering.

"Yes, and my fear is that he might be able to hear my thoughts, although nothing has happened to make me sure of that," Ann said. "It's just a fear." Miroku suddenly rose up from the ground, seeming unaffected after Sango had struck him, sat cross-legged and asked,

"If Naraku is after you, why did you leave your village? I'd think you'd be better protected there."

"I left because I was scared of what he is capable of. I didn't want to wrap my village up in this problem." Ann explained. She continued on with the story of Naraku showing up as a lord and what he wanted her to do.

"Sesshomaru?" Kagome asked as she and the others glanced at Inuyasha. "Are you sure of that name?"

"Umhmm," Ann nodded her head. "My uncle said he was the son of Inu no Taisho. That he was a dog demon. Do you know of him?" Everyone glanced at Inuyasha, but remained silent. Finally, Inuyasha gruffly spoke up.

"Yeah, we know him. He's my half-brother." Ann's mouth dropped open and then clicked shut. There were so many questions that swirled through her mind, and she wasn't sure where to start. Inuyasha's brow furrowed as he looked at her intently.

"Why would Naraku send you after Sesshomaru?"

"That question has been bugging me too, but, more importantly, why would Naraku send me to the one group of people that would set me straight about who Sesshomaru was?" Ann asked, confused. "I mean, he must have realized this would happen."

"This is all part of some big plan," Inuyasha growled. "I don't like this. I feel like he has us all right where he wants us."

"What should we do?" asked Kagome, concerned. "We can't stay here, but I don't think we should go to either of our villages either."

"I agree," said Sango, "but we also need more information before we should act. The question is where do we turn for that?"

"Our camp is near here," Kagome said. "Why don't we go back there and maybe get some sleep. Maybe things will be clearer in the morning. Ann, you're more than welcome to join us."

"That'd be great," Ann smiled, relief washing through her. "Thank you."

After walking for about five minutes, the group reached the camp and settled in for the night. Ann curled up at the base of a tree, wrapping her cloak around herself for warmth. As sleep took her, she entered a dream of a warm sunny day with Ichiro. A large, emerald, green meadow filled with multi-hued wildflowers surrounded them. The smell of damp Earth rose up to Ann. She picked a few flowers and brought them close to admire their delicate details.

Ichiro moved in next to her to admire the flowers and then wrapped his arms around her. He gently kissed her and then before she could react, he tipped himself over backwards, bringing her with him. She shrieked, but then laughed when they landed on the springy grass. She gazed into his kind face, stroking back stray hairs from his handsome face. She kissed him, long and hard, her body heating with need. She ground her hips against him and moaned.

"Ichiro, I need you," she whispered breathily. A familiar, malicious chuckle vibrated the chest she lay across.

"You might have to settle for me."

Ann eyes popped open to find she was looking into Naraku's malicious gaze. She screamed and immediately struggled to escape his hold. He only held her tighter and rolled them over to where he was on top of her. Ann's fists tightened into balls, and she began to strike him in the sides of his face. His face swung back and forth with each blow, but his grip only tightened on her.

Suddenly, the scar on Ann's chest started to burn. She could actually hear her skin sizzle and she cried out as she tried to pull her clothing away from the pain. Naraku caught her wrists and pinned them roughly against the ground. The beautiful meadow morphed into a rocky wasteland, and the blue sky turned red.

"Welcome to hell," Naraku mocked as his red eyes gleamed. He rocked his hips against hers and licked the valley between her breasts, eliciting a whimper from her.

"Thank you for making this easy, Ann," he inhaled her scent, making her squirm. "I will have to thank Inuyasha too. I will now have the shards of the Shikon Jewel that they have collected."

"You are a bastard," Ann spat. "If it wasn't for you, I could be living in peace." Naraku smirked.

"If it wasn't for me, you would have never met your precious husband," he sneered. "Speaking of, wouldn't it be horrible if something happened to him and your village if you didn't follow my directions?" Ann gave him a bewildered look.

"What? You still want me to find Sesshomaru?"

"I do," Naraku dipped his head to graze his nose along her breastbone. "I believe you actually might be able to kill him."

"Yeah, right," Ann tried to shrink away from him, but there was nowhere to go.

"You will do as I ask," Naraku voice was low, but his gaze drilled into her. "If you don't do this, I will kill everyone you love including this one." He released her wrist to rest his hand over her womb. Ann froze. How did he know?

"If fact, I think I will allow you to carry this one and give birth to it. Once it is born, I will roast it alive over a spit and devour it in front of you. Only then will I kill you." His threat was delivered nonchalantly, but it still chilled her.

"You fucking monster," she whispered. He grinned, revealing stark white teeth, his eyes blazing wildly.

"Now, how about we finish this dream off right." His hand went to her breast and squeezed. That was all Ann could handle. Her powers, which she usually kept safely walled away, erupted in a fiery burst. Naraku roared in pain as Ann's body burst into purple flames and drew away from her. Everything blurred and suddenly she was back in the campsite.

"Ann! Stop!" Her body was still engulfed in purple flames, but Inuyasha had her by the shoulders and was trying to shake her awake. The flames climbed up his clothing but didn't seem to be burning him. Taking a deep breath and forcing herself to calm, she brought the flames back under control until they disappeared.

"What the hell was that," Inuyasha snapped, his grip tightening on her shoulders. "You could have killed us!" Ann shook from the effort of managing her powers and finally looked into Inuyasha's golden eyes.

"We have to split up," she said, her voice shaking. "You were right about Naraku having us right where he wants us. He plans on stealing the jewel shards you have."

"Damn it," muttered Inuyasha as he released her. Ann stood on wobbly legs, gathered her things and turned to leave when she turned back to Inuyasha.

"Where can I find your brother?" she asked, still agitated from her dream. Inuyasha jumped to his feet and took her arm.

"Don't go after him. He will kill you." Ann shrugged his hand off and said,

"That's fine. Now where can I find him?"

"Honestly. I couldn't tell you," Inuyasha said with a shrug. "He's a wanderer. He could be anywhere."

"Well," Ann said with a heavy sigh of defeat. "I guess that's what I'll become too." She smiled at Inuyasha, turned and quickly darted off into the shadows of the forest.