A/N:Happy New Year! First off, sorry for such a long hiatus. School got in the way, then came family, and then my sanity went. But hopefully this chapter will appease you guys long enough for the next one, which I hope to have out before another year passes. Thanks for all the wonderful reviews and the amazing support that you guys are lending. You don't know how inspiring it is to read your responses, and they're what kept me writing (PS, thanks for all the goodies that you've been sending my way!)

Chapter 4 has finally been edited due to a technical error, if anyone wanted to know why that was reposted.

Although I wish I could thank each and every one of you personally, I'm afraid I don't have the time (if only there were more hours to a day… sigh ). But just quickly, to esotaria , thanks for pointing out the whole Kikyo thing--I've had that bit in the rewrite section for a little while now and I hope to have the edited version up soon, so that Kikyo will be more in character (I posted that chapter a little too quickly I think)…

Also, just a quick note, if ever you wish to email me about the story or such, please please please, in the title of the email, refer to my pen name or the story title, or even just "Your fic"… my email is on its highest security level due to the insane amounts of junk mail I get, and that means that many of the good emails end up in the junk mail section. And since many emails that have "Hi" as the title are also viruses, I usually don't look at those. And sorry to any one who has emailed me and not gotten a response back. Chances are it ended up in the junk mail section and I didn't open it… Thanks guys and enjoy!

- - -

Chapter 20: As Darkness Falls

- - -

There was a strange thumping in the back of her head. A mundane sound--it droned on, beating away at her already sensitive head.

Squeezing her eyes shut, she muttered something about noisy tap-dancing mice, and tried to find an escape in the fluffy pillows that surrounded her.

But the pillows did nothing. They only muffled the steady sound, and it took the dozing woman a moment to come to the conclusion that the sounds had to be coming from somewhere, but whether that place was her mind or the outside world wasn't exactly distinguishable.

"Kagome!"

What…? Is someone calling me? Augh…so sleepy…must open eyes…

"Kagome, get up! Geez, you always were a heavy sleeper. Don't make me take any drastic measures."

"Don't you dare, Miroku. We don't have time to get you killed right now. Psst, Kagome, you might want to wake up."

Great, now she was hearing whole conversations inside her head. Maybe when she billed Miroku for her veterinary services, she could throw in a few expenses for mental health and well being. After all, it wasn't as if he didn't have the money to contribute to the "Save Kagome's Sanity" fund.

Burying her head deeper into whatever blankets and pillows she could find, the young woman tried in vain to go back to the blissful dreamless state she had found only moments before. A soothing smell tickled her nose as her head found a particular pillow, and hazy images of a certain silver-haired young hanyou began to form in her mind.

Miroku's quick shake of her shoulder proved to be unnecessary, for the images that came to mind brought with them the realization of her situation. Or, to be more precise, the situation that she had last been in when she had fallen asleep, with her good hand wrapped around a certain, dog-eared--

"Nothing happened, I swear!" Kagome cried as she shot up, vigorously trying to rub away the sleep from her eyes. "It's not what it looks like."

Bleary eyes met two sets of rather surprised ones as Kagome found her vision clearing.

If Miroku arched his eyebrows any further, they'd probably pop out of his forehead, she thought dryly, wondering if the look he was giving her was in part due to the man no doubt hidden under the covers by her side. A fact that she had decided, in the last second, to accept without any stammered reasons as to why exactly it happened.

Speaking of which…

Reaching out, she tapped on the mound of blankets next to her. When it didn't move, she tried again, pushing down harder.

Still no contact with anything even remotely solid.

Confused, Kagome tore the blankets away and came face to face with a warm, sweet-smelling mound of cushions. Cushions that did not have golden eyes or silver dog ears or sharp teeth. They were simply unattractive, boring, rectangle-shaped cushions.

"Looking for someone?" Miroku asked, his eyebrows still teetering on the edge of his brow.

"Now is not the time to wallow in your dirty mind," Sango reprimanded, giving his arm a light slap. "Sorry for the wake-up call, Kagome, but we have an unexpected visitor, and I think it would be best if we were all there to greet him."

As if to merely restate the exterminator's opinion, the thumping started again, this time rattling the door and windows with its strength.

Shocked both at the realization that she really hadn't been hallucinating everything and that Inuyasha was currently not sleeping next to her, the young veterinarian could only nod.

"Who is it?" She asked, gesturing to the door with her bandaged arm.

"A certain hanyou's half-brother. Or, at least, we think so." Miroku glanced down at the pillows that should have been the hanyou in question, then looked back to his pale friend. "Guess you don't know where Inuyasha is either? Damn, the one time we need him, he decided to disappear."

The thumping grew louder, edging on the impatient side, and the three humans shared a look.

It was Sango who would prove her martyrdom as she gave a brisk nod to the unanswered question. "I might as well answer the door. He could have done away with me after failing to kill his brother, but instead he handed out a check for half of the agreed payment. Guess it's his way of saying he likes me."

"Either that or he was lulling you into a sense of security before getting ready to do away with you in some dark alleyway when you least expected it" Miroku pointed out, and was rewarded with two very pointed glares.

"You never have good timing with commentary, do you?" Kagome stated, trying her hardest not to continually glance at the rattling door. The steady noise was starting to wreak havoc with her nerves, as well as her thinning patience. "We'll be right behind you Sango."

If it hadn't been for the knocking, the house would have been eerily quiet, save for the soft sounds of shuffling feet. For an instant, Kagome was almost glad for the diversion at the door. It had saved her from trying to answer some awkward questions--questions no doubt emerging from the more perverted parts of Miroku's mind.

But then she only need take another look at the situation to feel a distinct change in attitude. They were three humans--one with a useless arm--and a demon cat who could barely move in her larger form, let alone prepare for an attack in such close quarters.

Damnit, Inuyasha, where are you?

Sango silently mouthed the countdown, waited for the pause between knocks, and then cracked open the door.

Bright light filtered in, shadowing the figure that blocked it. From her position behind Miroku, Kagome could only make out the form of a very tall man. Squinting harder, she waited for someone to make a move.

"I should have known you would turn to the wrong side."

The voice wasn't anything like his half-brother's. Where Inuyasha's words always held a bite to them, his brother's were cold and collected. Perhaps it was just the winter wind fighting its way inside but Kagome felt the goosebumps rise on her arms.

"I may be an assassin at times, Sir, but I am a protector of the innocent first and foremost. And if I am doing my real job, then I don't consider it to be the 'wrong side'," Sango stated, her own voice taking on the qualities of ice.

Surprised by this change in her new friend, Kagome managed a quick look at the rigid back and the set shoulders of the young woman who was currently protecting them. This new attitude was most likely what the exterminator's targets saw in the final moments before their death. But it was still hard for her to see Sango as a scary woman, not when she had seen her cry over the well being of a baby demon cat.

"I don't have time for petty arguments," Sesshomaru said off-handedly. "I need to see that pathetic excuse I have as a brother. Where is he?"

Obviously Miroku wasn't about to let Sango take all the heat. Stepping forward, he too squared his shoulders as he faced off with the imposing figure of the demon in the doorway. "Why should we tell you? You'll only try to hurt him."

"What? Has my brother finally resorted to letting humans stand up for him? I wouldn't think it possible, but it appears he has degraded himself even more."

Later on, Kagome would wonder just what had gotten into her at that moment. It might've been in the words he said, or the way he said them, or perhaps just his whole bearing of his superiority complex. Or maybe her ego had still been stinging from the fact that Inuyasha hadn't had the courage or the decency to hang around until she woke up. Whatever it was, it found its way under her skin, and began to gnaw at her temper. Somehow, her infamous patience had run dry, and her sanity finally took its long-deserved vacation. At least, that was the only reason she could see that would have given her the courage to stand up to the powerful youkai businessman.

"Humans aren't the weaklings you think they are," Kagome said fiercely, brushing off Miroku's restraining hand. " Just because we don't have supernatural powers, or insane strength doesn't mean we can't take care of ourselves. As I recall, we've been able to protect our race from the likes of yours for centuries. Look at Sango, she's beaten more demons than you can possibly imagine, and her family's been doing the same thing for generations. And with demons having such big egos, its no wonder your brother doesn't want to associate with your kind. He's probably sick and tired of having to deal with their snobbish pride."

She was able to expel a good dose of air before her chest tightened as the realization of what she had just done hit home.

Oh…my…god…did I just scold one of the most powerful, one of the richest youkai in all of Japan, like an overbearing housewife?

Eek…

Steeling herself for the worst possible outcome, she ignored the open-mouthed stares of Miroku and Sango and focussed on the shadowed demon. Her previous squinting hadn't paid off, but by being closer, she could see a few distinctive features, such as the purple markings on either side of his face. It wasn't too hard to miss the long silver hair being swept away by the breeze either.

If only the sun weren't behind him, then she might have been able to get a better idea of his reaction. Instead, she had to suffice with the shift in his tone--from cold and calm, to cold and vaguely irritated. At least, she thought it had changed. It was sort of hard to determine whether or not he had been truly affected by her words. He didn't seem to be one who laid the emotions on thick.

"I do not wish to engage in any personal fights with your…kind. Get me my brother, and I will be on my way."

Miroku apparently was the first one to recover from the shock of seeing Kagome's patience burst. He let the door open a little wider, allowing more of the winter wind in. "I don't know what you want with him, but you're not going to get him. Even if it means getting through us first."

Apparently, Sesshomaru had inherited the brains in the family. Where Kagome suspected Inuyasha's stubbornness would only increase at moments like these, his older brother appeared to back off. Of course, she knew it wasn't exactly out of fear.

"Must you humans always be so difficult?" She heard him sigh, and watched the shadow cross his arms over his chest. "Do you really think that three humans will stop me from going after Inu--"

With a quick jerk, the tall man stepped away from the door, flinging his face into the changing winds. The sunlight caught in his silvery locks, and suddenly his features weren't such a mystery any more.

He was a fine specimen of a dog demon. Not that Kagome had too many others in mind to compare him too, but somehow she knew that this Sesshomaru would be considered one of the more ideal males. The golden eyes weren't nearly as expressive as Inuyasha's, but the were just as equally veiled in that shroud of obscurity that seemed to plague both siblings. The dark trench coat that hung off of his lean frame only emphasized the silver locks and defined the planes of his face.

But Inuyasha isn't all the bad looking. He doesn't resemble a block of ice, for one. And those ears…ah, those wonderful ears. That's one thing his brother obviously doesn't have. I just couldn't be happy with a dog demon who didn't have those cute little ears.

Her sweet thoughts soon turned dark as her conscious had the nerve to point out that the very same hanyou with the fuzzy ears had also abandoned her. A point of contention that seemed to be eating away at her no matter how hard she tried to fight it.

Her mouth set in a grim line, Kagome watched Sesshomaru give the air one good sniff as he examined the perimeter of the woods. The golden eyes flicked back to the three humans standing in the doorway, and if she hadn't known any better, she could have sworn the shadow of a smirk had appeared on his face.

And then she blinked.

Suddenly there was neither hide nor hair of the businessman on the porch, nor anywhere in the surrounding area. On the far horizon though, a dark spot was rapidly decreasing in size, and it took the young veterinarian a moment to realize that the speck was actually the very same demon that had disappeared.

Kagome furrowed her brow, watching the speck fade into nothingness. "I didn't know a dog demon could fly."

Miroku gave a one-shouldered shrug. "Inuyasha can do that too, only not on such a great scale. Don't ask me why though. I've never even gotten a clear answer from him."

"So can Kirara, and so can many other kinds of demons." Sango sighed, rubbing a hand over her eyes. "They are a complicated and mysterious bunch, and you're not supposed to understand them on any level. Now are we going to chase after him, or are we going to spend the rest of the day debating the aerodynamics of flight?"

"As much as I love a little philosophy, I think going after him would be a good idea. After all, who else but our favourite hanyou could steal Sesshomaru's attention so quickly?" Miroku took a long look at Kirara, then turned pleading eyes onto her mistress. "And I can think of a great way of catching up to him…"

Not missing a beat, Sango could only shake her head. "Your subtlety amazes me. Look, I'm all for taking Kirara and flying right after him, but someone has to stay with Kagome, in case any more henchmen decide to rear their ugly faces."

All of a sudden, Kagome found two sets of suspicious eyes boring into her. She took a step back, and narrowed her own eyes threateningly. "If you think for one minute that I'm going to let you risk your lives without me, then you're stupider than I thought."

"It's not that we don't want you with us," Sango amended carefully, "But with that injured arm, you're an easy target. You're also Inuyasha's weak point, and if anything else happened to you…well, I don't want to know what silly things he'd do. Wait, don't argue. We don't have time to argue. Just listen for a moment. I may not know you well enough, and you can tell me that I don't really know you at all, and I would probably agree. But what I do know is that bringing an injured warrior into battle is like letting loose a bleeding animal into a tank of sharks. Not only do you risk even more injury, but you also risk being used as a puppet, especially when the enemy knows that you'd be a puppet with a lot of people attached to you. I know you're a fighter, and I respect that. But you'd be safer here, with Kirara."

"And you'd be ten times warmer," Miroku quickly pointed out before his friend could say anything. "It's freezing out there."

Kagome bit her lip, wishing that Sango wasn't so full of common sense. She knew it was a stupid thing to go into battle when her arm was all but useless. She knew that she had no chance at even bettering the odds of her motley group of friends succeeding. But below all that knowledge was the firm resolve to do the right thing. And staying home whilst everyone was off fighting was not the right thing to do.

Yet one look at Sango's face, and it was apparent that the young woman was not going to take 'No' for an answer. So Kagome decided that she would have to exercise a few sneaky skills of her own.

With a huge sigh of defeat, she went to the nearest chair and sank into its depths. "Fine, I'll stay. But if you're not back within the next half-hour, I'm calling the police, and I'm coming to get you."

She missed the shared glance between Miroku and Sango, but she could hear the relief in their voices when they assured her that she could do whatever she wanted if they didn't return.

Wondering if her horrible acting skills were as transparent as she thought them to be, the veterinarian made sure to maintain eye contact with her feet. She was quite aware of her crummy improvising, and her brother, mother, and grandfather had all--at one time or other--pointed out her blatant inability to lie. It was best if she didn't open up the opportunity for discovery of her newly formed plans.

She heard Sango giving Kirara brief instructions, and Miroku grabbing the keys to the snowmobiles.

When the exterminator pointed out the problems with the machines, he merely jangled the keys louder. "We're not going to have a hope in hell of saving Inuyasha if we walk, and my car can't exactly bend in and out of trees. And unless you have some magic fairy dust that can make us fly, then I suggest you take your keys."

Kagome didn't hear any sign of resignation, but she sensed Miroku's triumph in his hurried sentences about keeping a hot pot of coffee around for their return.

It was only when the roaring of the snowmobiles had faded into simple background noise that Kagome flew from the chair, and came face to face with a large demon kitty.

The final obstacle--but then again, Kagome wasn't exactly a stranger to animals, and she had a feeling the despite the demon blood, Kirara was just like any other cat. That included an appreciation for treats and a healthy dose of flattery.

"Aren't you a pretty girl? Yes you are. Oh, and your fur is so soft," She crooned, running a tentative hand up and down the length of the furry neck. "You like that, don't you? How about if I move up here?"

She couldn't stop the smile of triumph spread as Kirara's red eyes closed in pure pleasure, the purrs reverberating in her large chest. It was a fundamental concept in the domesticated animal kingdom: even the meanest creature could be brought to the level of a pup or kitten by a well-placed scratch. Particularly if that scratch was aimed for the sensitive space behind their ears.

Kagome was glad that this law had been passed on to the demonic variety of pets, or she would have been facing the daunting task of forming a new plan.

Instead, she drew her hand away for a moment. "Now wait here just for a second, and I'll go find some of those nice treats your mistress picked up. A kitty as beautiful as you deserves a good treat."

The treats were conveniently in the same room as her winter garments, as well as the painkillers that were going to be coming into handy if the sudden throbbing in her arm grew.

It took longer to get her coat on, due to her injury, but eventually she was as well dressed as any winter-savvy person. Grabbing a handful of the treats that Sango had stocked up on--and dumping the bottle of pills in one of her many pockets--she emerged from the room to find that Kirara had moved.

Her grin of satisfaction fading, Kagome moved towards the large cat that had now placed herself directly in front of the door, blocking the only exit out of the damned cottage, and the veterinarian's last chance to escape and prove her usefulness.

The cat's nose twitched as the treats were held out to her, but another portion of the great 'plan' crumbled as the cat turned her head away from the upturned hand.

Sighing in minor defeat, Kagome dumped the treats in her pocket and faced the impassive crimson eyes. "Look, I don't know how much you understand, but I'm going to try my best." Wondering if this last resort would well and truly classify her as insane, she kept the cat's gaze firmly. "Your mistress, Sango, and our friend, Miroku, are in danger. What they don't seem to realize is that they can't do everything on their own. You know as well as I do that they need some backup, and we aren't going to be of any help by hanging around this trap any longer. So what do you say? Let's go show them what we can do."

Kirara's eyes broke contact for a moment, and Kagome's hope surged for that small instant. That was, until those eyes rested pointedly on the arm resting in the meager confines of a sling.

Although the simple action would have been amazing proof of the cat's intelligence and understanding of humans, it wasn't exactly the right time to be analyzing it all. And however disappointed the scientist in Kagome was to let that moment go, she decided that if she could only get to the battle that was no doubt raging, then there would be other chances in time to study the demon cat.

"See these pills? These will make sure that this arm won't be such a problem. Now I'm going to take one, and then we're going to talk." Deliberately slowing down her actions to get her point across, the young woman took the painkiller and faced the cat once more. "Listen, Kirara. You're not stupid, and I know you love your mistress dearly. But staying here in this cottage is the only stupid thing you could do, especially when the only other people who will protect your mistress are a disgruntled hanyou and a cocky human. You know that they can't possibly succeed without some extra help."

Kirara's ears pricked up a little, and Kagome took that as a sign to proceed. "I care for your mistress too, you know. And I care about the cocky human and even the idiot hanyou too. Neither of us wants to see them hurt, so you have to believe me when I say that they need us to help, even though they didn't say it out loud."

"Please," She pleaded softly, holding out a hand. "Please, we need to make sure that they won't do anything stupid either."

The demon cat sat still, immovable for a second longer, but finally, her haunches lifted from the floor, and the great mass of fur moved to come up behind the veterinarian.

The fresh winter air was perhaps the sweetest thing that she had ever smelled. Smiling into the wind, Kagome relished in her triumph for a moment, before moving over to the demon cat that had joined her on the front porch.

"Think you can get us there?" She asked, and was rewarded with a deep growl. A furry head pushed her closer, and she took that as a sign that she would be allowed to have the privilege of riding on the great demon.

With a small scratch placed behind a large pointed ear, Kagome whispered a thank you, before the body bunched up and the young woman found herself surrounded by nothing but those playful winds. Stifling a gasp, she clung tighter to the scruff of fur that was clasped gently in her hands, and kept her eyes faithfully ahead.

It wasn't that she was afraid of heights. It was just the only flying she had ever done had been while safely buckled into a cushy chair, with flight attendants and highly trained pilots making sure that everything was going smoothly.

Flying on the back of a demon was an entirely different matter, and Kagome wasn't too sure how'd she handle seeing the ground moving underneath her unsupported feet.

So she found solace on the horizon, the fear of the battle ahead mingling with her charged nerves. She'd wasted a lot of time convincing Kirara, and the time that had been spent waiting to go after Sesshomaru may have just been the crucial point in their quest to find and save Inuyasha.

I just hope we're not too late. God, I hope its not too late.

- - -

He was drenched in it now.

The blood--plenty of it his own--had soaked through the coat, through the pants, and had painted his boots an ugly red. At his feet lays numerous mounds of ashes--too numerous to count.

But still they came, popping out of corners that were invisible to his eyes. They came, with claws outstretched and teeth bared, and bony tails swinging.

There was a sharp stabbing pain that had erupted in the back of his skull, and every muscle and limb in his body was aching--some more noticeably than others.

Yet Inuyasha fought each one with practiced motions, all the while aware of the mad man who stood off to one side, laughing occasionally if one of his creatures managed to get a good hit in.

"You must be exhausted, half-breed," Naraku's voice drifted over the noises of the fight. "Why don't you give in? Take a break? My Trackers will be more than happy to help you sleep."

"If you think I'd ever give in to a bastard like you, then you must have shit for brains," Inuyasha yelled back, dodging a set of claws and bringing his own down into the reptilian skin of the creature's neck. It burst into blackened dust, and was replaced by two more coming up from behind.

"See, that's the beauty of it. You will have to give in. No demon can hold up against the army I have created, and you, my unfortunate prey, are only half of one. I suspect that if your limbs don't give out soon, then your mind will, especially when you begin to realize that this is all hopeless. Your friends are dead, sliced into pieces by my creatures. You have nothing left to fight for."

Inuyasha ignored the voice as two more piles of ashes were created by his claws, only to see three of lizards advancing on the right. He struggled to keep his mind focussed, to keep it away from images of the lifeless bodies of Sango and Miroku. To keep it safe from the image of Kagome's face as she was brought down by the sharp claws of the very same creatures that were now trying the same thing on him.

Slicing through the first lizard that dared try to run him through, his eyes picked up on movement in the woods. Surprised, he glanced over, searching the trees for some sign of another form of life out there.

There…behind a large pine, he could just make out a form of--

His concentration disappeared as he felt a set of claws bury into his thigh. With a growl, he swiped out and found purchase in the creature's eyes.

The dust spiraled upwards as the winds played with the mess that he had been creating, and Inuyasha decided to keep his focus on the Trackers rather than following ghosts. Already his thigh was acquiring a new coating of blood, and the lack of it in his veins and arteries was slowly but surely taking its toll. The dizziness was starting to appear, and he knew that it wouldn't be long before he wouldn't be able to fight, let alone think straight.

"So now you're attention span is fading. My Trackers may have an easy job yet, bringing you down. Tell me, Inuyasha, how long will you keep this up? How long before you stop playing idiot and realize that I am going to be the death of you?"

Despite the searing pain, Inuyasha laughed. Slicing at the final lizard, he laughed even as the ash settled at his feet. "Why don't you stop wasting your breath and try to come and kill me, you asshole? Are you really so afraid of me that you have to send your freaks of nature to do me in rather than getting the job done yourself? Oh wait, that's right, you can never do things yourself. You've made a living off of your pawns, Naraku, because you're too much of a wuss to face anyone." He brought his tired gold eyes to meet Naraku, noticing briefly that there was a severe lack of lizards in the area all of a sudden. "You'd probably crap your pants if you ever had to face a real challenge."

Naraku's eyes narrowed, and the hanyou felt his pride surge as he noticed the shadows of a scowl flit about on the lawyer's face

So I've finally gotten to him. The jerk is finally caving in.

Unable to restrain the grin of angry satisfaction from appearing, Inuyasha let out another bark of laughter. "Even if I do die, at least it will be by a bunch of lizards who have the guts to fight. I'll have gone down fighting, just like my friends will have too. When you finally go to hell, it'll be because you were too much of a coward to raise a hand to defend yourself."

Me: One. Slimy greaseball: Zero, Inuyasha mentally tallied as the rage that Naraku had been struggling with finally exploded, and caused his face to distort into a menace of sharp lines. Whether it was truly his comments, or simply the human's frustrations at having his prey fight back so much--or a combination of both--the hanyou wasn't sure. But whatever had gotten him to tick had got him good.

"When you die, Inuyasha, I will make sure that my face will be the last thing you see," The dark-haired man snarled, "And I will make sure you are delivered to the devil himself. KILL HIM!"

The screamed command though, seemed to have fallen on deaf ears. Doing a quick study of the surrounding forest, Inuyasha couldn't see anything emerging to answer its master's call. In fact, the woods seemed deserted of any form of life.

Looking back at Naraku, Inuyasha's slightly maniacal grin grew as the man took note of the lack of Trackers as well. If it was possible, his scowl contorted his face even more.

"I SAID KILL HIM! KILL HIM OR I WILL KILL YOU!"

"Looks like even your engineered lizards have seen you for what you really are," Inuyasha pointed out, resting his aching arms against his equally pained chest. "They probably didn't want to do your dirty work any more."

Naraku sent the hanyou a look that--if looks could kill--would have reduced its target to a boiling, whimpering puddle. But it deflected off of the hanyou, who shot back an equally venomous one, which he also laced with defiance.

The lawyer was ready to yell something when suddenly the snow crunched under someone's--or something's--footsteps. Both human and hanyou fell silent as they watched the new arrival.

It was a Tracker, but rather than charging across the battlefield as all the others had done, this one wove in a zigzagged line as it tried to walk towards Inuyasha. It had barely covered half the distance when it suddenly collapsed. As the body dissolved, Inuyasha caught the glint of sunlight on metal, and suddenly he had an idea as to what happened to the rest of the creatures.

Naraku moved across the battlefield, and retrieved the device that had done away with his minion. Holding the dagger aloft, his poisonous eyes searched the perimeter. He must have seen something, for he suddenly took off into the woods, leaving his "prey" alone in a bloodied and dirtied clearing of snow.

"Thought you might need some help," A voice said quietly, and with a start, Inuyasha came face to face with a weary but very much living demon exterminator.

Maybe it was the shock at realizing that Naraku had been playing him for a fool the entire time with all the threats about his friends, or just seeing a friendly face, but he couldn't stop his heart from soaring.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He asked good-naturedly, making sure the happiness he felt at seeing her was carefully hidden.

"Helping you with a pest problem, that's what. You and Miroku are going to have to get this place sprayed if you plan on bringing tourists up here. I don't think they'd appreciate the infestation." Sango smiled, the gray tinge of her skin giving away the length of the battle that she had fought out in the woods. "You can blame Miroku for getting around to helping you sooner. His snowmobiles kicked out on us halfway here, and so we had to walk the rest of the way."

"Using me as a scapegoat, darling? And I thought we were partners too." Miroku appeared just behind the young woman, his face just as tired. He rested a hand on her shoulder, and Inuyasha would've had to be blind not to notice the warmth of the look they shared. "If anyone's to blame, it's the manufacturer of the snowmobiles. They should know better."

"No, you should know better than to buy a foreign brand," Sango chided, sending him another warm look, before turning to Inuyasha. But the warmth didn't fade when it found his eyes, and the hanyou realized that they had finally made peace with each other. Sure, her attempted assassination would still be a sour point on occasion, but at least they would be able to laugh about it afterwards.

"You're not looking too good there, Inuyasha," Miroku pointed out.

"You never could resist stating the obvious, could you?" Inuyasha shot back, wishing that the dizziness in his head wasn't quite so overpowering. "You're not looking so great either."

Miroku let his eyes travel up and down the blood-soaked form of his friend. "Yes, well I can safely say I'm looking a heck of a lot better than you. Why didn't you come and get us? We can defend ourselves you know, and we probably could have saved you from some of those injuries too."

"It wasn't your fight," the hanyou grumbled, and instantly regretted the words when he saw his friends' faces change.

"Not our fight? We've been helping you through thick and thin these past few days, and you're telling us its not our fight?" Sango cried. "Well guess what? It became our bloody fight the minute we all jumped into the car and drove away from Tokyo. You're just too much an idiot to realize that!"

"Just because you're a stubborn, thick-headed ass doesn't mean that people don't care enough about you to help," Miroku added, picking up on Sango's tone. "Christ, Inuyasha, I can't believe you're still thinking that way! The least you could've done was give us some credit. You can't do everything on your own, and despite what you think, your friends would be more than willing to help you--especially when your life is threatened."

If Inuyasha had been any less of a hanyou, he probably would have shrunk to half his size under their angry glares. But due to his many injuries and inability to think clearly at all, he could only sway a little. "I do give you credit. I really do. I just don't want anyone dead because of me." In a much softer tone, he quietly added, "Because I'd never be able to forgive myself if that happened."

If either human had had a comment, it was abruptly cut short by the insane laughter of only one man.

"Think that you can fool me that easily?" Naraku shouted, striding towards them from the edge of the woods. " I should have known that the half-breed wouldn't have been able to survive without his pathetic friends. And after all that about not hiding behind someone. Tsk tsk, Inuyasha, you really should watch your words. If there's one thing I hate, it's hypocrites."

He flexed his claws and found that his arms had stiffened up. Painful as it was, he gathered himself for another fight, crouching low and forcing back the dizziness in his head.

It happened swiftly--too quickly for anyone to really react.

One minute, Naraku was grinning like a lunatic, brandishing the dagger that had been buried in his creature--the next, the very same dagger was buried in Miroku's abdomen, and Naraku was recovering from his throw.

Inuyasha heard Sango's cry, and he saw her drop down to the young man's side. But the only thing that registered in his numbed body was rage. Rage at the dark-haired bastard that was standing a few feet away, a menacing grin still plastered to his deranged face.

Even the most alert demon would not have been able to follow the events that proceeded afterwards. Inuyasha was ready to dig his claws into whatever part of Naraku he could find when suddenly a large flaming demon cat came crashing into the clearing, grabbed hold of Naraku, and sent him flying. A figure flew off the cat just as it took off after the soaring body, then came running over, and it took Inuyasha's fogged brain a moment to register the dark hair, the arm in the sling, and the worried face.

But before he could even utter a word, Kirara let out a loud roar, and all faces turned to see another, more astounding sight.

Naraku was being held aloft by a manicured set of claws--the claws having found their hold in his neck. The owner of those very same claws stood still, watching the dying face of the lawyer that he held in his grip without an ounce of emotion.

What…the…hell…

Sesshomaru waited a moment--waited for Naraku to take his last gurgled breath--before striding forward and depositing the lifeless body at his half-brother's feet.

It seemed like such an anti-climatic event really, compared to the build-up. The lawyer that had been drawing out his nemesis's death had been killed in a matter of seconds by the sudden appearance of another one of his enemies.

An enemy that had--until today--not even showed the slightest inclination of being a threat.

Well, a threat to Naraku at least.

Sesshomaru's cold eyes fixed his brother with a hard stare. "I have some calls I need to make. See to your friend, and then we shall talk."

"But…What…" Inuyasha stammered, unable to put anything together in its proper place.

"Business, right now, isn't the most important issue," Sesshomaru stated coldly, his gold eyes slanting a glance at Miroku's prone form. " Attend to your friends, and we will discuss matters later."

The great dog demon turned his back, drew out a cell phone, and walked away as Inuyasha stared after his brother with a mixture of confusion and disbelief.

"Inuyasha?"

The voice that he heard was deliberately softened, and he only had to swivel his head to catch a glimpse of dark eyes--eyes that spoke of betrayal and hurt. And somewhere deeper, buried beneath the negatives, was the caring he knew he didn't deserve.

"Inuyasha," Kagome repeated, "Are you okay?"

In spite of the massive amounts of blood loss, the aching in every inch of his body, and the headache that had appeared in the nooks and crannies of his skull, Inuyasha nodded. Or, at least he nodded as much as a man could who really had no control over his physical actions.

"And what do you think you're doing here?" He asked, wishing that he could keep some of the anger out of his voice. "You're hardly in any shape to be outside, let alone trying to help. Or have you forgotten that your arm is useless?"

Kagome took a step back. She had expected a gruff response, but certainly not one such as this. Sure, he had gone through a very lengthy battle--both emotionally and physically tiring--but that still couldn't account for some of the venom that lay under his words.

Frowning, she lifted her arm up and down to demonstrate its mobility. "I took some painkillers for it. But I also have one good arm, and I wasn't about to let it go to waste. Besides, Kirara wanted to help too, and I couldn't very well say no to a demon cat."

"Screw the cat, you knew that it was dangerous, but you decided to risk your silly neck anyway. And for what? So you could try and help in a fight that would have killed you in a second?" Somewhere, in the last clear part of his conscious, Inuyasha was mentally swearing at himself for being such a dimwit. But since that portion was rather well hidden, the rest of his brain took no real notice of it.

Yet even Inuyasha--with head damage and all--had to cringe when the tears pooled in Kagome's dark eyes. "You have really crappy timing, you know. Here I am, thinking that maybe, just maybe I might be able to do something right, and you go and pretend like I did the stupidest thing in the world. News flash, if I hadn't come, neither would have Kirara, and then you would have been fighting that human guy for a lot longer. Count your blessings, you jerk, because you obviously don't realize you have any."

"I would've been perfectly fine if you and that cat hadn't come along and messed up my plans, you…you tree-hugger!"

The hanyou was perfectly aware that he had perhaps delivered the lamest insult in the history of demon and man combined, but there was really nothing he could do. His usual reservoir of curses had been depleted when his head had been smashed for the hundredth time.

Kagome gave a short, derisive laugh, her eyes still suspiciously overly bright. "What plans? Running at whatever comes near you with your claws out? Now that's a brilliant idea. Let's just hope the thing we're running at is blind and a paraplegic, because that's the only person who wouldn't see it coming and be able to duck!"

His pride bruised--since she had managed to hit his plan spot on and made fun of it no less--Inuyasha opened his mouth when a commanding voice broke through."

"Stop it, you two," Sango reprimanded from her position by Miroku's side, "You can have a go at each other later, but right now we have more important things to take care of."

"What? And destroy…all…my…fun?"

Surprised, Kagome and Inuyasha looked down at Miroku. He sent them both a weak grin. "Please…continue…I need…the…entertainment."

Sango sighed. "What you need is a doctor, a hospital, and a serious psychiatrist. And you," She pointedly looked to the hanyou. "You need at least three or four blood transfusions, some surgery and a decent set of clothes."

"Will there…be…nurses?" Miroku asked, his chest heaving with effort.

Even Kagome--although still fuming from the previous argument--had to smile at that. "Of course there will be nurses. But I think Sango will agree with me when I say we should recommend that he be treated by male nurses."

"Or really, really old female ones," Sango said, returning the smile with one of her own. "You know, the kind with knobbly knees, and varicose veins, and dentures, and names like Big Jean and Bertha."

Miroku's face, contrary to that of the women's, looked positively terrified, and if he didn't have a dagger sticking in him Inuyasha suspected he would have been putting up a good hardy fight.

But if he had any protests left in his lungs, they were soon dispelled by the buzzing noise that steadily drew near.

Shading his eyes, Inuyasha looked up into the sky, and watched as a bright red helicopter--with the symbolic letter H painted brightly on each side--descend into the clearing.

Once the chopper had landed, the group was inundated with paramedics, and Inuyasha was pushed out of the way as soon as they realized that he didn't need or want their help.

Instead, he had to content himself with watching their flurry of activities. If anything, it helped him concentrate on keeping his balance.

"Now we can talk."

The hanyou stepped away from his brother, narrowing his golden eyes in defense. If Sesshomaru wanted to defeat his brother, he had the perfect opportunity. Inuyasha didn't think he'd even be able to block a light slap at this point.

But rather than doing away with his half-breed relative once and for all, the dog demon merely fixed him with a disdainful stare. "As much as I wished it many times in the past, Inuyasha, I do not wish you dead any longer."

Inuyasha made sure his surprise at this comment was well covered beneath apprehension. "What about Dad's business? You actually want me to be apart of it?"

Sesshomaru sighed, as if his brother's ineptitude was something of a nuisance. "No, you will not be apart of it. Father's will was doctored, and you and I must sort through the real one. And there is no possibility of that happening if I killed you."

"Ah," was all Inuyasha could really say. He's always had a way with words.

"I shall explain everything once that," He nodded in the direction of the helicopter, "leaves. The authorities will be here soon, and I must discuss with you the unfortunate ending of our family lawyer."

Looking the picture of innocence, Inuyasha shrugged. "You mean when he got attacked by those Trackers that somehow wandered onto Private Property."

"The very same Tracker that he helped to create, and for which he does not have a permit for," Sesshomaru added. "They will also discover that he a hand in manipulating many of the court cases he handled, as well as a black market drug smuggling ring."

"Want to try and pin him for murder too?"

Whether it was surprise at his brother's sudden lack of argument that had Sesshomaru's eyebrows raising, or simply the fact that his brother had the occasionally intelligent thought, one would never know. "There will be a few instances of such an occurrence, yes."

"That's great then. Heck, add in a claim about being abducted by aliens, and we may just have some tabloid material."

If the dog demon had had less control over emotion, he most likely would have rolled his eyes. Yet, much to Inuyasha's shock, it looked as if his brother was considering it.

"We shall see. Now I must go greet the police who will be arriving at any minute. Do not interfere, and try to find some clothes."

The hanyou would sent back a snide remark, but Sesshomaru had already begun walking away, and besides, all the thinking he had been doing was not helping his current state of well being.

With a small sigh of relief, Inuyasha collapsed to the ground, letting his head rest on a clean patch of snow. The helicopter was roaring to life again, and the distant sound of sirens drew closer with each passing second.

But he heard none of that. Closing weary eyes, Inuyasha waited for unconsciousness to claim him.

And it would be later, much later when he would wonder why Kagome's teary face was the only thing his mind could see as he drifted off to secret, shadowedplaces.

- - -

Chapter 21 is surprisingly progressing at a decent pace…