TO ANY RETURNING READERS- PLEASE READ CHAPTER ONE BEFORE THIS AS IT HAS BEEN REVAMPED WITH MORE WORLD BUILDING AND OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION

THANK YOU

~NOW ENJOY~

(Chapter 2)

The birds were chirping. The sound was cheerful, beautiful in its own way.

And after what Kagome just went through? It was music to her ears.

Kagome blinked, blearily attempting to make sense of everything. She opened her eyes for a moment, only to close them once more, having been overwhelmed by the light. She was nauseous- I'm going to throw up- and dizzy –why is the world spinning?- and she just couldn't bloody get up.

Her senses had been overwhelmed by panic and she couldn't comprehend anything except for the songs of the birds and the floor beneath her arse. Her closed eyes felt strangely dry, as if there was some sort of dust stuck in them. Bile rose in her throat and she could barely restrain herself from spilling out the contents of her stomach.

Deep breaths, she thought.

In.

The fear began to ease away and her eyes began to feel moist once more beneath their tightly shut lids. Her chest hurt, the pain overwhelming her senses once she had regained enough of her composure to even pay attention to it. It took a few moments for it to begin to ebb away, but eventually it settled into a dull ache.

Out.

There was a weight on her arm. It was stiff and its grip was loose on her thin, pale arm. Suddenly, it fell away and she registered the sound of something thumping onto the ground. Kagome wished she could open her eyes enough to find out what it was, but the light hurt so much against her eyes when she tried to crack them open. She just had to wait until she felt okay enough to get up…

She opened her mouth to scream, to call out for help, to just bloody say something but no words came out. Help sounded really good right now, but it wasn't going to come anytime soon. Her voice was nonexistent, it seemed, with her dry throat feeling as raw as it did and it only served to make her encounter with that demon even more real.

Demon.

Every daiyoukai she knew or saw was incredibly beautiful, flawless in their own way. They looked like gods- with perfect skin, ethereal hair of varying colors and glowing eyes. Daiyoukai had always looked far too perfect to be human, which is why when she learned of lesser demons she hadn't believed the stories when they said that they were imperfect, ugly.

The thought had seemed impossible at the time but now, when she was confronted with such a creature, of the thought that there was a lesser demon so close to her home, it didn't seem so unrealistic anymore.

Because there was absolutely no way that…that thing could have possibly been a member of the race that lived amongst her people.

No, it was far too disgusting to be a daiyoukai, what with its lack of proper clothing, its long centipede body, the way its entire face split apart whenever it opened its mouth and the way its fangs were far too crude and cracked, almost dirty in their appearance. In fact, its fangs hardly looked anything like proper fangs at all, resembling tusks at best and pointed stones at worst. It was amazing that they even fit in the demon's mouth at all.

Of course, these thoughts had inappropriately crossed her mind during the encounter itself, but now it was actually settling in.

Hadn't they all been killed during the Tajiya Movement?

The aurors are coming, Kagome thought in a desperate effort to reassure herself. Souta had to have gotten help. I'll be okay, they'll come save me…

That's right...Souta had been there. But he hadn't been in range of the demon. He had to have run to Ojii-san…

The birds' songs kept ringing in her ears.

oOo

Kagome wasn't sure as to how much time had passed by the time she was in any condition to move. The shock of being faced by a creature that only her nightmares could have produced in such a close proximity, combined with the fatigue that could only have come from using that strange accidental magic (because what else could that light have been?) to ward away the demon had taken its toll on her body.

She opened her crystal blue eyes and looked up to the top of the well, only to be greeted by the bright, blindingly blue sky instead of the dark wooden ceiling of the well house.

The sudden realization jolted her awake and sent her into full out panic mode once more.

Her heart raced and she looked around in a frenzy, desperate to discern her new location. There were vines- since when do vines grow in the well?

Well...not that she had ever seen the inside of the well but come on, there was no light in there. How could plants even begin to grow in that deep, dark pit of despair?

Her hand suddenly began to ache for her wand as she stood up, only to scramble back to one of the walls as it caught her eye.

After coming face to face with one of the world's most horrid creatures (to be read as Severus Snape), one might think that very few things would have the capability to scare Kagome this badly.

Of course, when confronted with the severed arm of the demon that had just attacked you, you wouldn't exactly be jumping for joy either, now would you?

The arm's flesh was tender and a pasty shade of porcelain, fragile enough in its appearance that it looked as if it could fall apart at any given moment. Its fingers were bent at an odd angle, as if it was gripping thin air. A pool of thick red blood formed under the detached appendage, spreading as more of the vile smelling liquid poured out through the arm. Kagome's nose wrinkled in distaste as the scent hit her delicate senses, causing her to back further into the wall.

"Ew, ew, ew…" she muttered, trying to get as far away as possible from the offending limb. Unfortunately, this didn't exactly mean much considering how small the well was- forcing her to begin climbing the vines that covered the stony surface of the well.

Kagome's arms felt weak in her current state, trembling as she gripped the vines with all her might. Each movement was a trial as her legs threatened to give out on her and send her tumbling back to her bloody little friend. Her breaths turned ragged as she struggled to climb further, forcing herself not to think about the fall that awaited her should she finally give up.

The climb felt like an absolute eternity.

Her limbs felt like lead and she knew that the only thing keeping her going was the adrenaline from seeing the severed appendage laying on the ground before her.

Sure, she had seen worse before and all (i.e. Voldemort) but she had never been stuck in such a small place with with a pool of blood and a hunk of flesh (because she refused to acknowledge the idea that the limb was still in living, perfectly usable condition, despite the fact that it was commonly known that demon cells could last far longer than human ones without energy, perhaps even for years at a time). It was… not an experience that she would like to have repeated. At all. Like ever.

Finally reaching the top of the damned well, Kagome immediately fell down onto the soft, grass covered ground as she hoisted herself out of the well.

It had occurred to her that even with what she had just gone through, her body's reaction was a bit of an overkill. She hadn't lost any blood, hadn't hit her head, or anything really.

She knew it had to have been the accidental magic.

Kagome thought that she had long since outgrown her accidental magic phase, but magic was known to be volatile in situations like this. But then again, since when did any sort of magic leave the body in such a condition?

The sunshine felt rather nice against Kagome's sweaty face.

It was nice and warm, comforting her with it's gentle embrace. It was best to think about this later- when she wasn't feeling as if she had just ran eighty laps around the pitch that housed one of the most ridiculous sports Kagome had ever heard of. After all, what kind of a game basically made it so that all it took to win was to catch one measly little ball- basically rendering the rest of the gameplay useless? Well, Quidditch apparently. Kagome never really did understand why Harry liked the sport so much. Perhaps it was because it was one of the only things that he stood out in because of his own abilities, rather than his much too famous name?

After a few minutes of basking in the sun's warm glow, Kagome's ragged breaths finally evened out and she shakily stood up, finally ready to face the world and whatever challenges it gives her.

The first thing she noticed was that she was in a meadow. A meadow. Wasn't she just in the well house a few moments ago?!

The well itself was vastly unchanged, aside from looking much newer than it had previously, almost as if it had just been built. But that was impossible, considering the fact that it had been built hundreds of years before Kagome's time. Maybe it wasn't even Kagome's well at all.

Yeah, that's it, Kagome thought. I must have somehow accidentally apparated here! That would explain why that thing's arm was lying there. I mean, it was probably touching me while I apparated so I ended up taking it with me!

But deep inside, Kagome knew that that was not the case. Apparition wasn't something that a person could just do "accidentally". It was an art form in a way, focusing your magic and guiding it so that it would take you to the place you most desired. It took too much practice to get it to work even for a short distance. That, and Kagome didn't hear the telltale crack that often signaled the use of apparition. So that was out…

Walking along the pathway, Kagome tried to see if she could make out anything familiar about this forest. She knew she was hopelessly lost but-

"Holy crap…" she whispered. "It's the Goshinboku!"

The gargantuan tree stood towering over the forest. There was no mistaking it. Kagome had grown up with that tree and as such it was impossible for her to not be able to recognize it on sight. Kagome could hardly contain her excitement. Maybe her family was there! In hindsight it didn't make much sense considering the surrounding area, but Kagome refused to let her hope die down just yet.

She walked as quickly as possible, not quite trusting herself to run without tripping and falling. If she was somehow right about this…then she wasn't quite sure about what this meant.

Why would the Bone Eater's Well be in a forest? How could such a huge tree just randomly transport itself like this? It didn't make much sense, but her instincts told her that it was nothing short of the truth. If there was anything she had learned from being a Gryffindor these past few years then it was to always trust her instincts above all else.

The walk didn't take very long. Kagome rested her hand upon the ancient bark, its familiar feel comforting her as she caught her breath.

"Ojii-san really should lock up that well house…" Kagome thought aloud. "And that cat needs to learn to stay away from places like that!"

It was true. Buyo was technically the cause of this whole mess, although it's not like he really knew any better. The thought of the beginning of the whole incident made her feel sick to her stomach. What if Souta had been the one to go down to try and find the damn cat? What if he had been the one to get abducted by that strange demon? Souta was only ten years old- he couldn't even use a wand yet!

Kagome sighed, "I guess it could've been a lot worse then…eh, Goshinboku?"

Of course, it wasn't as if she had expected the tree to actually respond to her. Although, some company would've been rather nice…

Kagome circled around the tree, trying to see if there was anything else in the area that could help her figure out where exactly she was.

And that's when she saw him.

He was without a doubt gorgeous in that way that all daiyoukai inherently were. His features were sharp and chiseled with a calm, ethereally peaceful look decorating his face. Long, soft looking silver hair cascaded down to his waist, contrasting against the bright red of his traditional Japanese clothing.

However, there was also something that set him apart from the traditional appearance that had grown used to seeing from her country's demonic population.

Unlike other demons, who were like idols- more than just pleasing to the eye but meant to be worshipped from afar- this one in particular seemed almost…warm. Inviting. Kagome wasn't sure why, but she immediately felt some sort of kinship with this strange boy, despite not even knowing his name.

The boy's chest was impaled by an old, worn-looking arrow that looked as if it had been decaying for years. However, for some reason Kagome didn't think of it as the mortal wound it appeared to be. There was something else to it, or at least that's what her instincts seemed to be screaming.

But that wasn't what really caught Kagome's attention.

His ears on the other hand…

Kagome, like the fourteen-year old girl she really was, couldn't help but gasp at the sight of them.

Merlin, they're so cute! Kagome thought excitedly. They're just cute little doggy ears!

Unable to help herself, Kagome stood up on her tippy-toes and reached for the boy's dog ears. They were strangely out of place on him- what with all of his other incredible features- but at the same time they seemed as if they belonged on him.

They're so soft…

They felt like warm felt under her fingers, smooth and yet slightly fluffy at the same time. It occurred to her that she may be messing with someone's corpse but then again, how could a dead body possibly be so warm?

His body wasn't nearly as cold as one would expect a corpse to be, especially not one that had been hidden under the shade of a tree as huge as this one. In fact, it almost seemed as if he was radiating heat, as if he was simply asleep and that the arrow wasn't even there. Perhaps he was in a coma? Kagome couldn't help but wonder if-

Whoosh.

An arrow zoomed past Kagome's head, embedding itself in the Goshinboku's tough bark.

Kagome's eyes widened as she let out a startled gasp. Kagome slowly turned towards the perpetrators, wondering as to whether or not the boy would end up with a companion in his seemingly eternal slumber.

oOo

"Isn't this a bit much?" Kagome wondered aloud as she lay on the ground in the center of the village that she was pretty damn sure didn't exist anywhere near her home.

After all, a village of feudal cosplayers would probably be pretty hard to miss… The whole traditional garb and top-knots thing would definitely stick out like a sore thumb back in Tokyo.

The girl was all tied up as if she had been hit by a very well aimed and overpowered Incarcerus.

Being jumped and tied up by a bunch of old men was probably not the best way to spend her birthday. Actually, being attacked by that six-armed thing and its ridiculously large breasts probably wasn't either. But on the bright side, the assault did help her vocal chords make a miraculous recovery! ("THIS IS SEXUAL HARASSMENT! STOP IT, I'M NOT EVEN INTO BONDAGE!")

What, just because they didn't actually touch me like that doesn't mean that it's not harassment…

Perverted comments tended to make prudes (like they obviously were, come on, just look at the way they were commenting on how unladylike her pants are!) stop right in their tracks. Sadly, these prudes didn't get the reference.

Stupid prudes…

The villagers were ignoring her words entirely, instead focusing on commenting on her clothes, how she was probably a spy or even a witch (ha) for being found with some Inuyasha person.

Hey that must be who he-

Kagome's thoughts were cut off when the whispers came to an abrupt halt as the villagers all parted to create a path leading straight to her.

"Make way for Miko Kaede-sama!" someone shouted from the back.

A lone elderly woman stood at the center of the newly created pathway, hunched over and using a longbow as a crutch. The woman was wearing the uniform of a miko, a priestess that tended the shrines of Japan as opposed to travelling around and helping the mundane with their more easily explained powers as many spirituals tended to do. Spirituals often hid their healing powers behind herbal remedies and their ability to purify evil behind odd stories and simple coincidences, making it easier for them to mingle with the mundane.

The miko stopped in front of her, reaching out to grab Kagome's chin and examine her more closely with her lone eye.

"The girl is not a demon, though her garb may be stranger than any I have ever seen," she said thoughtfully, turning Kagome's face as she continued her examination.

So the old woman isn't blind, Kagome thought wryly. "Yeah, I know. Now would you please let go of me and tell me what's going on here?!" she demanded.

As per usual, she was ignored. "But Kaede-sama-" someone began.

"Silence," the elderly miko cut them off sharply. "If she were to be a demon then mere ropes would not hold her back. The simple act of trying to restrain her would have resulted in the deaths of her captors before they ever managed to reach the village."

Yes, finally, someone intelligent! "Thank you!" Kagome said in exasperation. One accusation debunked, a hundred more to go. "This is all a huge misunderstanding!"

Kaede eyed her critically. "A misunderstanding? Tell me then, why were you found trying to free Inuyasha from his prison?"

Oh great, so dog boy's a criminal of some sorts. "I wasn't! I'm only trying to find my way home! His, um...ears...just interested me! That's all!"

The old miko raised a greying eyebrow. "You would defile a corpse for your own amusement?"

If Kagome could have raised her arms in defense, she would have. "No, no, he didn't look or feel like a corpse!"

"There is an arrow through his vile heart. How could he be anything but?" the woman asked sardonically, though the look in her eye told Kagome that her guess was spot on.

Vile?

"I just...it felt like he was only sleeping! Look, I'm really sorry about all this and all but I have to get home!"

"And where might that home be?"

"Um...Tokyo?" Kagome said unsurely. Wasn't it obvious from her clothing that she wasn't from this weird town and that she had to at least be from some urban area?

"I know nothing of this…'Toh-kee-yo' that you speak of," Kaede said, making Kagome wince at the butchering of her home's name.

"That's impossible!" Kagome exclaimed in disbelief. "Tokyo's huge. How could you not have heard of it!" Everyone everywhere knew exactly what Tokyo was. Was she even in Japan anymore? No...she had to be...where else could she possibly find a miko?

Kaede frowned thoughtfully. "Perhaps you are farther from your home than you originally thought? Or maybe you hit your head recently. You seem to be telling what you believe to be the truth."

Kagome could feel her irritation rising as she glared at the old woman. Calling me delusional now? Like she has any room to be talking! This feudal cosplay act has gone on for long enough! "What I 'believe' to be the truth? It is the truth! Besides, don't you think this is going too far? Dressing up as if this is the fifteen-hundreds, tying me up like some kind of criminal, then making it out as if I'm the crazy one here?! Kami, I bet even Inu-whatever is in on it too!"

The miko looked rather taken aback, but Kagome continued to glare at her. This was bullocks. What, did that stupid Bone Eater's Well take her back through time or something?

Kagome froze as the thought hit her.

No way…

Kaede's wrinkled face contorted in her confusion. "I assure you that none of this is an 'act'. It seems as if your head injuries were more extensive than I could've imagined…untie the girl so that I may treat her properly."

Okay. You know what? Kagome lived in a world of magic and demons. Hermione time traveled all the time to get to all of her classes last year. It's not all that implausible.

I just have to play along for now.

Plastering a smile onto her face, Kagome shook her head. "Yeah, you're absolutely right! I'm sorry, I guess I really did wander a bit too far from home," she laughed nervously. "I'm such a klutz too, I must have crashed into a tree at some point. Whoops?"

The men untied her cautiously. Kagome restrained herself from glaring at them for tying her up in the first place. Being pissy probably wouldn't help her case…

Kaede regarded her warily. "I see...come with me, child. We have much to discuss."

Kagome nodded enthusiastically, wobbly standing up and taking a shaky step towards her. The ropes had been too tight and were starting to cut off her blood circulation by the time they were finally gone. A man reached out to steady her, a gesture that she greatly appreciated.

Talk about a crazy birthday… she thought humorlessly, following after Kaede into one of the many outdated wooden huts.

oOo

Kagome relaxed on a comfortable mat in the hut, sipping at her delicious soup. It sure was nice to be getting some actual food after all that…

Her recent talk with Kaede as the old woman had set about treating her nonexistent head wounds and getting her something to eat had definitely confirmed a few things.

First of all, the woman was definitely a spiritual, if a bit of a weak one. Kagome could feel the spiritual powers at work as she was being 'healed', but they definitely didn't feel strong enough to be used offensively.

It was a very good thing that Kagome hadn't used any proper magic in a while (apparently that weird light thing didn't count?) or that spiritual healing might've just made her life even worse than it already was.

Second of all, she was definitely in the past. So far into the past. Like, before the Tajiya Movement kind of past. Which meant that there were lesser demons everywhere.

Meaning that she was wandless and entirely helpless in a world of bloodthirsty monsters. And it wasn't as if she could go crying to her Nii-san like she would have back when she was younger, unfortunately.

But sadly, she didn't think that Nii-san's past self- if she could even find the dude- would take too kindly to that since daiyoukai weren't very fond of humans, mundane or not, until recent years.

Speaking of which… Kagome could already hear the 'why the fuck did you go anywhere without your wand?! What kind of a fucking idiot does that?' lecture waiting for her at home. Nii-san was actually a taiyoukai that Ojii-san had formed a close friendship with when he was younger, a relatively young one by demon standards (twenty-one by demon standards, eight hundred by human ones). He had taken a shine to Kagome when she was younger for whatever reason and was definitely the best older brother figure that Kagome could ever ask for.

Anyways, there was also the issue of Kaede giving her these weird looks. It was almost as if the old woman recognized her from somewhere, though Kagome couldn't imagine her knowing her from anywhere. Perhaps Kagome looks like an ancestor of hers or something?

It still felt weird.

"Thanks so much for the food, Kaede-sama! It's really good," Kagome praised, taking another sip of the delightful soup.

"It is nothing, child. Anyway, I would like to know how you plan on returning to-"

CRASH!

BANG!

Destruction sounded from outside the hut, causing Kaede and Kagome to drop their food and rush outside.

The devastation assaulted Kagome's eyes the moment she stepped outside of the hut.

Houses were crushed and there were corpses, of both people and livestock, littering the ground. The remains of some of the wooden houses were on fire and the village militia was desperately trying to keep the cause of all the destruction at bay.

Screams resonated in the air and they filled her ears just as the birds' songs had done earlier. It was the very picture of a classic horror movie scene, blood and gore galore.

As for the cause itself...that had been obvious from the moment she laid her eyes upon the scene.

It's that demon from before!

It only took a moment for the demon to spot her again, its beady black eyes honing in on her immediately.

"The jewel, the jewel!" it cried in its distorted voice. "I MUST HAVE THE SACRED JEWEL!"

The centipede demon lunged for her sharply. Kagome jumped out of the way, only to be grazed by one of its sharp legs. She could feel something warm and wet trickling down her shoulder, staining her light blue t-shirt red.

Kagome bit her lip, trying her best to ignore the new onslaught of pain.

"We must lure it to the Bone Eater's Well in the forest of Inuyasha!" she heard Kaede exclaim from behind her.

"The forest….it's in the west, right? Where that light is?" Kagome asked urgently. She wasn't sure what exactly that pink light over the trees in that direction was, but pink light tended to be a good thing in Japan and ancient spiritual power like what was probably in the well after it being on sacred ground for so long was more than enough to cause such a phenomenon in the presence of a demon.

"Yes but-"

"Great," Kagome cut her off, her classic Gryffindor recklessness shining through. "I'll lure it towards there, just stay safe here!"

If it wants me, then it can have me. I can't just let that demon kill all these people!

Kagome broke off into a run, silently thanking Merlin, Kami and any other deity for her body's recovery from whatever that weird accidental magic did to it.

The demon faithfully followed after her, screaming about 'the Sacred Jewel' all the while.

Kagome dutifully ignored the pain in her shoulder, dodging the centipede creature's attacks and winding around trees as much as she could, especially one's with thin spaces between them that kept the demon at bay for a few much needed seconds.

Bullocks….it's over now…

She had tripped over a rock, crashing to the ground in front of the Goshinboku. The demon was gaining on her, it wouldn't be long now…

"Aw, what's wrong Kikyo? Getting tired of that little cat and mouse game that you were playing with bug lady over there?"

Kagome jumped to her feet in surprise at the sudden intrusion, only to be greeted by a pair of piercing gold eyes. "What the...aren't you supposed to be asleep?!" she asked incredulously. This is impossible...can adrenaline make people hallucinate? Or were that demon's legs coated in poison?

"Asleep? Please, like that little enchantment of yours could keep me down forever. I'm surprised though, you're looking even stupider than usual. Can't you do anything without me around? Killing that centipede's practically childsplay," the boy- Inuyasha- said mockingly, anger burning in his eyes.

"How the heck am I supposed to kill a demon without my wand?! And stop acting as if you know me, my name's Kagome, not Kikyo!" Kagome exclaimed. The demon was going to catch her soon, it was only a matter of seconds before it reached the Goshinboku…

Inuyasha gave her a flat look. "Just how hard did you hit your head just now? A wand? Are you kidding me?"

"I didn't hit my head at all!" Kagome protested.

"Yeah, sure you didn't, Kikyo," he drawled. "You even forgot your own name. You're supposed to shoot one of your fancy sacred arrows up that thing's ass."

"I'm not a spiritual! I've never even held a bow in my life! And how many times do I have to tell you? I'm not Kikyo!"

"Delusional too. That thing's not even poisonous, have you finally gone off the deep end and started taking weird drugs? That would explain things."

The demon was approaching them…. Kagome braced for impact, only for that impact to never come.

The villagers!

"And now you need a bunch of villagers to come save your sorry ass? Wow, not only are you a druggy, but you're a pretty fucking pathetic one too," Inuyasha commented idly.

"Oh just shut your trap!" Kagome snapped hotly, taking the chance to move away from the demon's reach. The villagers had restrained it with ropes and arrows (were they following me the whole time) but those wouldn't last forever.

Kaede had been right. Mere ropes were no match against a real demon, lesser or not.

Kagome climbed up onto the lower part of the Goshinboku, hoping to use it as a quicker way to get across the small hill before the demon regained its bearings.

Arms grabbed at her and Kagome panicked, grabbing onto the nearest thing- Inuyasha.

"OW! OW! OW! THERE ARE PLENTY OF BETTER THINGS YOU COULD'VE GRABBED ONTO KIKYO!"

"I'M NOT KIKYO!" Kagome shouted back.

"YES YOU ARE- oh, wait, you're not. You look kinda different actually…not nearly as cute..."

"THAT'S WHAT I WAS TRYING TO TELL YOU, YOU IDIOT!"

"Oh just stop shouting and let go of me already! Your damn screeching's hurting my ears!"

"HOW COULD YOU BE THINKING OF YOUR EARS AT A TIME LIKE THIS?!"

"The jewel!"

"Don't you have anything better to say?!" Kagome shouted at the demon, holding onto Inuyasha for dear life, not noticing the way his amber eyes narrowed at the centipede's words.

The demon's pulling became stronger, more incessant. Kagome could feel something rising inside her, something strangely familiar, and she instinctively let go of Inuyasha.

"Let me go!" she screamed, the pink light erupting from her hand once more.

The demon shrieked in agony, falling back as more of its arms fell off.

Kagome fell to the ground at Inuyasha's feet, panting heavily, her heart sinking as the same feeling from when she was in the well before overtook her senses.

"Not a priestess my ass," Inuyasha muttered.

Kagome forced herself up, the adrenaline from the ongoing battle overriding whatever this weird magic was doing to her. "It's impossible for me to be a priestess," she mumbled back in response. Her stomach began to tingle and she looked down, only to see that it was...glowing?

"What the-"

She didn't even finish her sentence before the demon assaulted her again, pushing her back and biting through the glowing area in her stomach. It threw her up into the air, blood spurting from the wound as a small, pink jewel emerged from her midair.

Is that the….and did it just...come out of me…?

Kagome and the jewel both crashed into the ground, the impact leaving Kagome struggling to stay conscious.

Blearily, Kagome reached for the jewel, only partially aware of Inuyasha shouting in the background for her to give him the jewel.

Her hand never reached it.

In an instant she was crushed against Inuyasha, tied to him by the centipede's long body.

She could hear it-she- speaking to them. Something about a...half-demon? But her head felt weird and her limbs weren't responding and she just couldn't focus properly.

Inuyasha was bantering with it. Keeping it busy. What if…

"Hey," she whispered, her voice hoarse. Inuyasha's ears immediately perked up.

"Hm?"

"...can you...take this thing on...and win…?"

Inuyasha snorted. "Of course I can. This thing's a small fry compared to me."

"...then...do it already…"

"In case you haven't noticed I'm kinda pinned to this damn tree here. If I could move then bug lady would already be dead by now," he deadpanned.

Kagome's voice grew clearer as the fuzziness began to disappear. "If I can get rid of this arrow...would you fight it?"

"Hell yeah, wench-"

"It's Kagome."

"-just pull out the arrow. Can you do it?"

"...I think so."

The demon, unfortunately, had no intentions of waiting for them to finish talking. Its long, snakelike tongue slithered out of its mouth, picking up the small pink orb and consuming it.

"Hurry up already!" Inuyasha snapped. "It's eating the jewel!"

The demon's skin began to fall off (what the heck, ew, ew, ew) as its arms came back on and it took on a more monstrous appearance than what it had before (somehow). Its new skin was a dark grey and yellow fangs replaced its lips. Its eyes were no longer humanoid, instead taking on the appearance of two large, glowing blood red orbs.

"Okay, okay!" Kagome snapped back, shakily reaching up to pull the arrow out with all of her admittedly diminished strength. "You better save us now!"

In the background Kaede (Huh, when'd she get here?) was shouting at her not to free Inuyasha but what other choice did she have?

The arrow came loose more easily than expected, disintegrating in her hand in a burst of the pink light that Kagome had come to associate with spiritual energy.

"Inuyasha…?" Kagome asked in concern, as she felt the demonic energy pulsate, freed at last from its seal.

Inuyasha didn't answer her. Instead, his lips curled into a wicked smirk, his eyes gaining a sadistic edge that hadn't been present before. "Freedom...now the jewel is mine!"

WAIT WHAT?!

The demon's body tightened around them, suffocating Kagome for the brief second before Inuyasha destroyed their constraints with a flash of yellow demonic energy from his claws.

Kagome fell to the ground again- wow I've been doing way too much falling today- as Inuyasha nimbly combatted the demon. Hie movements were swift and strong, obviously outclassing the enhanced lesser demon.

"Iron Reaver, Soul Stealer!"

The demonic light erupted from Inuyasha's claws again, cleanly bisecting the entirety of the long demon and causing it to crumble into large pieces. Inuyasha laughed at the weakness of his prey and Kagome felt fear rising up in her chest.

Just who did I just release…?

The hunks of flesh scattered around her. But it wasn't over just yet…

The pieces were still moving!

Kagome shot up in surprise, a wave of dizziness going through her as she struggled to stay standing. "Why isn't it dead yet!"

"The jewel, child! You must find the piece holding the Sacred Jewel! Look for the light!" Kaede called out to her.

Kagome nodded in agitation. "Jewel this, jewel that! Why the hell does everyone even want this thing?" she muttered under her breath as she scanned the area for the jewel's light.

"Hurry, before Mistress Centipede comes alive once more!"

"Oh you have got to be kidding me…" she groaned, spotting the glowing hunk of flesh. "There!"

Kaede nodded. "Good job," she said, reaching into the monstrous flesh and taking out the jewel, causing the creature to finally disintegrate.

"Thank Merlin," Kagome breathed out in relief that it was finally over.

The old woman took Kagome's hand, placing the jewel in it. "This is your responsibility now, Kagome. Only the one who can see the sacred jewel even when it is not in plain sight can possess its tempting power."

"But...I'm not a priestess!" Kagome protested. This thing contained a lot of spiritual energy...it was inappropriate! She couldn't handle something like this…

"Yes you are, if an untrained one at that. How else would you have been able to ward off Mistress Centipede?"

"Accidental magic." Magic and spiritual power did not work well together. End of story.

"Accidental what now?"

"Ummmm-"

"Aren't you forgetting about something?" a voice cut into their conversation. Kagome looked up for a moment, distracted, and that was all Inuyasha needed to make his move.

In a split second he was standing over her, staring down into her eyes. "In case you haven't noticed, that centipede was never your biggest problem to begin with. If you thought that she was bad, then I'm your worst nightmare."

Kagome's jaw hung open. But...he's supposed to be our ally!

"The jewel's useless in your hands," he continued. "So what'll it be?"

"I-"

Inuyasha didn't give her the chance to continue. "Are you going to just hand it over….or shall I rip your arm right off with the jewel still in it?"

TBC

A/N

Hi everyone! Been awhile, hasn't it? Sorry for the late update- inspiration just comes and goes like that. Anyways, I'd like to thank everyone who's reviewed, followed and favorited this story.

Seriously. I reread this thing last night and started wondering how the hell people could even read this. So obviously, I had to fix it. AP Language and Composition does wonders for one's writing style. Plus, this chapter was too short when I first looked at it again, so yeah. Canon needed to be played with a bit anyways, since the major divergences should be coming up after the Kikyo stuff, I think? We'll see…

I hope you all enjoyed this new and improved version.

Before anyone asks, Kagome's Nii-san is definitely not an OC. But you guys can all take guesses on who it is!

P.S. Reviews=Inspiration which means quicker updates!

Also, this is officially going to be updated every Sunday.

Natripper and goldengirl55- as my irl besties, feel free to yell at me every time I miss an update day. It'll stick eventually.

Special shoutout to Crossover Junkie for all the interesting info! It really got me thinking about the world building that I needed to do.