Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own Inuyasha and friends.

A/N: Hey there everyone. Firstly, I'd like to say that I am so, so, so, so, SO very sorry for disappearing for so long. I had a lot of personal crap to deal with that was giving me major writer's block, but I'm back. I just wrote this today, and I'm in a hurry, so I hope there aren't too many mistakes.

I'd like to thank whoever is still reading this, and I'm so sorry for not updating sooner, even though it couldn't be helped.

I need to apologise also for breaking my promise to update at least weekly, and I'm retracting that promise now. I still have tons of crap to deal with, as well as school and work, so I won't make any more promises I can't keep.

I would have let you all know what was going on, but I hate it when people update with an Author's Note instead of a story, and I didn't want to do that to anyone.

So, after that extremely long note, I'm going to say goodbye for now, and wish you happy reading.

Xoxo Dragon Queen23

P.S. Feel free to flame me for not updating sooner. I will allow that this one time, but please do not flame the story or do it any more after this.

Chapter 5:

"I want that thing captured," a cold voice ordered. The demons gathered in the alleyway all looked towards the radio their leader was holding with fearful expressions on their faces.

"Of course Master; your wish is our command," the leader said, her voice empty of emotions. She turned her red eyes to the demons she commanded and raked a disgusted gaze over them. Pitiful, she thought. You'd think they were humans the way they let fear fill them. Permitting a sneer to appear on her beautiful face, she pointed to four of the demons who were standing together.

"You four! Gather your minions and begin to search the area for the thing. Find out where it originates from." The demons nodded, their eyes bleeding to demon-red before they sped away. The woman turned to the rest of the demon lords and flung her arms out wide.

"The rest of you, pair up and spread out. Our Master wants that thing captured alive; fail and it will be your lives." The demon lords nodded before slipping away into the night.

"The things I have to do…" she muttered before plucking a tiny white feather from her intricate hair arrangement. The feather grew, and the woman climbed aboard it before it flew off into the night sky.

The serpent was floating gently through the alleyways of Tokyo when it suddenly stopped in mid-air, the wind bringing warnings of danger. A small shiver rippled through it, and its eyes flashed emerald green as it quickly turned and sped through a side-alley. The wind carried the scents and sounds of pursuit, and the serpent took advantage of that to stay ahead. It flitted through the alleys like it had lived in them all its life, and proved its knowledge of the place by slipping through some almost invisible gaps between the buildings. It knew it could not fly above the buildings or below the streets, for the sky and the sewers were being closely monitored. For many minutes the serpent evaded its pursuers, and what happened next was unforeseeable.

One of the men chasing after the serpent was an extremely fat immortal hermit, more commonly known as a sennin, named Toukajin. He was so large and greedy that many were constantly surprised that he could even move. Toukajin was extremely evil, and wanted true immortality more than anything in the world, so he killed humans and used them to make ninmenka for his elixir of immortality. He was always looking for more humans to use in his potions, and so had decided to join the wind-demoness and her master. That night, however, he wasn't feeling particularly inspired, due to the fact that they were chasing some sort of serpent, instead of humans. Toukajin decided to take a quick break, leaving his minions to keep searching as he sat down and rested. He was looking around idly when he spotted a flash of emerald green in the distance. He hissed at some of his minions to come over, and they hid, watching and waiting to see what was approaching. They waited with baited breath until they could see that the thing coming towards them was an emerald green, serpent-like creature. "Quick, after it!" Toukajin ordered as he and his minions ran through the alleyways, chasing the serpent. They ran almost supernaturally fast as they chased it through the alleys, and just as it was about to get away, someone flung a rope at it, catching it around the neck. More ropes were quickly thrown as the serpent thrashed around, trying to get free of its bonds. Unfortunately, more were wrapped around it before Toukajin's minions began to drag it from the air to the dirty concrete of the alley. It fought bravely, but was subdued far too quickly. It continued to struggle, so much so that some of Toukajin's minions kicked it, hard. It seemed to freeze for a second, before doubling its efforts to get free. Seeing their comrade's momentary success, the other minions began to kick and punch the poor serpent as well. Claws raked across its back and sides, and sharp teeth bit into it everywhere. The serpent let out a sharp cry of agony, struggling even harder to get free when it heard Toukajin laugh menacingly as he stared at it with greedy eyes. In its mind it gave one final scream as it called for help. INUYASHA!

Kagome had never really been aware of what happened when she was asleep. Sometimes she remembered strange things like how Tokyo looked from the sky at night, and how the wind spoke in a gentle and soothing voice, but she had never remembered being conscious for more than a few seconds at a time. That night, however, she found that she could see through the eyes of the serpent that she transformed into. As the serpent wound its way through the alleyways of Tokyo, Kagome tried to change directions as she would if she were walking. When that didn't work, she tried to talk to the serpent in her mind. She begged, requested and ordered, but to no avail; the serpent went along its merry way through Tokyo. Kagome resigned herself to the fact that the serpent didn't give a damn about her or her wishes, so she mentally huffed and turned her mind away from the serpent. She watched in awe at how close the moon and stars seemed to be, and at the different ways the serpent viewed the night. Through its eyes she could see the different colours and textures of the city, and she could feel the wind brushing against her skin like a lover's touch. The serpent had allowed her that much freedom; she would take it and enjoy it while she could. Kagome lost herself in the sensations of flying through the night, and forgot about who she was. She forgot about her human body, and just gave herself to the feeling of the wind brushing against her and leading her through the city. She was so joyful that it took a moment for her to realise that the serpent had stopped, and was floating in mid-air. Kagome tried to relax her mind, fusing her consciousness with that of the serpent. Once she had, she panicked, sensing the danger and malice floating on the wind. Oh Gods, she thought, trying yet again to get the serpent to listen to her. Oh Gods, please don't let whoever this is find me. The serpent suddenly darted into the one of the doorways in the alley, but left its head out to identify the scents of the things headed its way. Kagome's mind froze when the serpent identified them as demons; extremely menacing ones that seemed to be looking for it. Oh Gods, oh Gods, please serpent, move away from here, Kagome chanted in her mind, begging the serpent to leave. Instead, the serpent seemed to cackle in delight at the opportunity for some fun, and decided to tease its pursuers. The serpent floated back into the alley and turned into the darker parts of it, its black eyes flashing a shade of emerald almost as green as its body, before a large gust of wind seemed to lift it high above the city. It drifted in the sky as it searched for its pursuers; seeing the demons spreading out over the city and launching themselves into the sky, the serpent sped back into the alleys, making sure to stay out of sight. Kagome could feel the serpent's heart beating steadily, and wondered why she couldn't feel her own, for she was sure that it was pounding like crazy. The serpent happily wove through the alleys ahead of their pursuers, and Kagome could feel its satisfaction at the fact that the demons hadn't been able to catch them. The serpent floated around for what seemed like hours, but instead of being comforted by the fact that they hadn't even seen a demon so far, Kagome felt a deep sense of foreboding. It wasn't much, just a niggling feeling in her mind, but she still felt quite worried when, after at least fifteen minutes, the feeling still didn't go away. For heaven's sake! she screamed at the serpent. There are demons searching the whole fucking city for you, and I don't particularly want to be here when they do, so for the sake of the Gods, just go home! Kagome screamed in frustration when the serpent continued to ignore her. She knew it could hear her, for it had blocked itself from her, and Kagome could no longer hear its thoughts. Fuck it! Kagome screamed. I won't say anything else; just don't you dare get us killed! Nothing happened, so Kagome mentally sighed and just continued to survey the surrounding area, hoping that if danger did come, she would be able to warn the serpent in time. Fucking cocky thing, she muttered to herself. It would be just her luck if she did see something and the serpent ignored her. How much worse can my life get? Kagome thought miserably. Little did she know, her life was about to get much, much worse.

The serpent honed its senses sharply, and severed most of its mental connection to the girl in whom it rested during the day. It needed to have full concentration to keep eluding its pursuers, and it couldn't do that while the girl's thoughts were hovering in its mind. Although she seemed like a bright girl, the serpent couldn't afford to have any distractions. It pulled the wind to it, wrapping itself in it like a cloak, and tasted the air for danger. The serpent was suddenly, fiercely glad that it had blocked the girl's thoughts, for what it scented next quickly sent it into a panicked state of horror. Somehow while the girl had been screaming at it, the serpent had managed to miss the scent of the large group of demons in the alleys around it. The serpent slowed down a fraction so that it could find out as much as it could about the situation while not alerting the girl to the fact that something was off. Off, the serpent scoffed to itself. Why not just tell the girl that you're pretty much surrounded, and the stupid demons don't even know that they have. The serpent's mind worked furiously as it tried to scent a way out of the current situation, and found it in the form of two groups of demons who hadn't quite managed to block one of the exits. Slowly, carefully, it weaved out of its hiding place and darted through the gap between the two groups. Triumph filled it as it sped past them, but was quickly drained from the serpent when it felt the demons leap towards it. The serpent sped up, desperate to get away and get the girl out of harm's way. It had almost completely pulled away when it felt a rope land around its neck, pulling tight and halting it in mid-flight. More ropes were thrown, and the serpent thrashed around, its fear and the girl's filling it. It was dragged to the concrete by at least twenty demons, and it struggled to free itself. The serpent had almost managed to dislodge one of its captors when one of the large demons close to it swiftly gave it a hard kick to its ribs. The serpent froze for a moment, shocked and in pain, before redoubling its efforts to get free. It seemed that the demon's had been filled with confidence at their companion's success, and decided to help subdue the serpent in the same manner. The serpent was kicked, punched, bitten and clawed as it tried to free itself and save the girl trapped inside it. A sharp cry of agony made it past the serpent's throat, and it struggled harder when it heard the leader of the group laugh as he stared at it greedily. The more the serpent was battered, the more it struggled to keep up the barriers that prevented the girl from sharing its pain, but after a swift kick to its head, the barriers dropped, and the girl's agonised cry filled the serpent's mind. After more brutal punishment, both the serpent's and the girl's spirits joined in an effort to be free. They lunged against the ropes one more before letting out a terrified cry, and each called out to the one person they hoped would save them. INUYASHA!

Toukajin smiled triumphantly as he walked past the cage the strange serpent was being imprisoned in. It filled him with pride to know that he, the one who had caught the vile thing, was now being entrusted with the duty of watching over it, and making sure that it was in too much pain to escape. He was filled with glee as he gave it a swift kick, before strolling down the hall of his mansion to the dining room, where he stuffed his face with ninmenka. He belched loudly when he was done, and ordered his minions to collect more humans. Toukajin sent more guards to watch over the thing, reminding them that they were allowed to tease and punish it, but not enough to break it; that pleasure was reserved for his boss. Once all that was taken care of, Toukajin retired to his bedchamber to sleep.

Across the other side of the city, Inuyasha bolted upright in his bed, before swinging his legs over the sides and pulling on a pair of jeans. He quickly, silently leapt from his bedroom window and disappeared into the night, dodging the guards and security that Sesshomaru had placed around the mansion. Two voices echoed in his mind as he sped towards the city, his nose twitching madly as he searched for any sign of the ones he was looking for. He mostly kept to the shadows as he searched, especially since he had detected the scent of his half-brother, who was supposed to be in the country. He suddenly paused before melting back into the shadows when he detected Sesshomaru's scent growing stronger. Just as Sesshomaru walked past him, a car drove by, illuminating the doorway and Inuyasha.

Sesshomaru was angry, so angry he was ready to kill, but he did not let anyone know that. He had just reached his country manor when he had received a message that necessitated his return to the city. He had received word that his nemesis was in town, and after something; Sesshomaru was there to ensure that whatever it was that his nemesis wanted, he didn't get to keep it for long. Sesshomaru had just left the building he was in when he thought he detected his half-brother's scent close by. Sesshomaru paused, puzzled, for the scent was not completely like Inuyasha's; it wasn't a half-blooded scent, it was the scent of a full demon. Sesshomaru decided to put it out of his mind for now, but as he walked past an alley, he had a sudden urge to turn around and look beside him. Sesshomaru looked at the alley out of the corner of his eye, and just as he was about to give up and turn away, he spotted Inuyasha standing in one of the doorways. Sesshomaru was about to dismiss him and walk away when he noticed that Inuyasha looked different; his claws had lengthened and become more lethal, he had a jagged amethyst stripe slashing over each of his cheekbones, and his eyes had lost their golden colour and turned blood-red. Demon-red, Sesshomaru thought absently as he stared at the demon in the doorway. That can't be Inuyasha. Inuyasha is a hanyou, a half-demon. He lifted his gaze to the young man's head, and lo and behold, silver dog ears sat atop it. What is going on? Sesshomaru thought, but he was interrupted from his thoughts by his servant Jaken's whining voice.

"Lord Sesshomaru, our sources reveal that some of his minions have captured something in an alley to the north of here. They seem very pleased with themselves too," the toad demon informed his master as he hurried to walk beside him. Sesshomaru growled to himself, angry with the distraction, and quickly flicked his eyes over to where Inuyasha was standing. However, while Sesshomaru was distracted, Inuyasha had vanished, leaving Sesshomaru to wonder if it had just been his tired mind conjuring up strange images.

"Jaken," Sesshomaru said softly, making the toad demon pause in his babbling.

"Yes my lord? How may I assist you in your greatness?" he asked, bowing low.

"I want you to find out exactly what it is that has been captured, its location, and, if possible, the reason for its capture."

"Yes my lord!" Jaken exclaimed as he repeatedly bowed and backed away from Sesshomaru, before scurrying away to his master's bidding. Sesshomaru watched as Jaken ran away, before leaping into the air and summoning his cloud to him as he sped off into the night.

To the north, huh? the youkai Inuyasha thought as he made his way through the alleys, searching for whoever it was who had awoken him and summoned him from his rest. He normally stayed dormant inside the hanyou, only emerging when the hanyou was in grave danger. However, in the past couple of weeks, he had been surfacing more often, and had already taken over once. This was the second time in twenty-four hours that he had taken over, and this time the hanyou was unaware of it. His youkai blood wasn't too worried, since this meant that he would be able to act freely, without the hanyou screaming at him. I'll worry about this later, the youkai thought as he leapt onto the roof of a nearby building, scanning the city for any sign of what or who had called him. He was just about to give up on that area, thinking that the toad demon had been incorrect, when he spotted a large group of demons surrounding a cage, giving each other satisfied looks as they loaded it into the back of a truck. Inuyasha decided that this was what he was looking for, so he quietly crept closer to the truck, and just as it was about to leave, he jumped onto the roof, digging his claws in so that he would not fall off as the machine sped through the city. It drove for at least two hours, emerging from the city and leaving it far behind until it stopped outside of a large wall. From his perch on the roof of the truck, Inuyasha could see the castle beyond the wall, and he noted how tight the security was. Seeing a camera turning in his direction, he jumped off the truck and disappeared into the forest. Inuyasha suddenly froze as he felt an ancient presence sweep over him, heading for the truck. Inuyasha was about to leap out from the forest, not caring if anyone saw him, when he realised that the presence was wrapping itself around the back of the truck protectively, and wasn't intending to harm whatever was in the cage. He was reluctant to leave, but he knew that the sun would be rising in less than an hour, and that he needed to get back to his house before the hanyou awoke. The youkai Inuyasha took one final, longing glance at the truck before leaping into the night.

Come, do not tell me that ye are defeated so easily a warm, ancient voice said, waking the serpent from its unconscious slumber. It raised its battered head as its emerald eyes fluttered open, and froze when it saw Munashii, the Goddess of the Void, standing before it. Do not be afraid of me, my darling, the Goddess said as she lifted the serpent's bruised form into her arms. Oh my poor, poor darling; how has this happened? A single tear fell down the Goddess' porcelain cheek as she cradled the serpent to her.

Mother? the serpent asked in confusion.

Yes, my darling?

Why are you here?

I had a feeling ye were in trouble, and I came to see if ye were alright, the Void Goddess said as she ran a gentle hand over the serpent's abused body, and a warm, tingling feeling ran through it.

Then why did you not come to me sooner? I have been lost in this strange time; even the other times I appeared in were not as strange as this one.

Oh darling, I could not make it to ye any faster; your silly brother had set alight another continent, and I had to go and fix things. If I had known what was happening, I would have left that much sooner.

Mother, I think the girl is hurt, the serpent confessed, shame and sorrow filling her. I couldn't keep up the barrier between us, and she got hurt. Tears filled the emerald eyes and spilled down as hopelessness filled the serpent. I haven't been able to wake her, and if her mind is not conscious when the sun rises…

Darling, I am so proud of ye for trying to protect the girl. It is in no way your fault, and I am so proud of ye for keeping the barriers up for as long as ye did. Do not fret, I will make sure that she is awake when the time comes, the Goddess reassured the serpent as it placed a gentle kiss to its forehead.

Mother, can you not stay longer?

I'm sorry my darling, but I must return to your brother. Do not worry, I will awaken the girl. Do not forget that ye need to find your protector and awaken him to his duty as soon as possible.

I will not forget Mother, the serpent promised, and just before it lost consciousness, it said, I love you.

I love ye too, my precious daughter, Munashii said as she kissed her daughter in a final farewell.

Kagome bolted upright in her bed, panting heavily, her heart racing as she looked around her as the remnants of an ancient voice filled her head. Good Gods, what happened? Kagome thought, wincing as she looked at her arm, which was a mottled purple. She had scratches and bite marks all over her skin, and she ached everywhere.

"What the hell happened?" she asked aloud, fear filling her heart.

A/N: So… a lot of stuff happened this chapter. What exactly is the serpent, and what does Kagome have to do with it? And what is Kagome? This will all be revealed, but as of right now, I have no idea when. But never fear, it will happen.

Oh, and Munashii (according to the dictionary I downloaded) means void.

Xoxo Dragon Queen23

P.S. Does anyone want more Inu/Kag fluff?? I'm not sure on how fluffy I want this story just yet.