Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or Yu Yu Hakusho.

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Chapter 6 – "Pathetic, Kagome."

Oddly, Inuyasha and Kagura had left in the morning. Kagome had shrugged it off, apparently trying to pass it off as normal, but Yusuke watched her from his vantage point on the ground, especially when she kept glancing out worriedly at the sky. It was cloudy, even nearing stormy, but that didn't mean anything to Yusuke, so he continued watching her - besides, it helped him avoid Kurama, who seemed rather depressed for someone who had just won. So did Keiko, for that matter. He didn't know what they had to be sad about, but it was slowly affecting everyone else as they moped about the house.

He did stop and take a nap at one point, realizing there didn't seem to be any danger and Kagome wasn't about to tell him what was wrong. Their sleeping schedules had turned odd once they started becoming themselves half the time - they certainly didn't want to waste time, but their humanoid time was roughly four P.M. to four A.M.. They had to put that sleep in somewhere.

He awoke to a distant growl and was immediately on his paws, recognizing Youko's voice. It was a quick lope to the door, and he crouched down there, stopping for a moment to study the situation. There were girls out there. Most of them seemed to be around the perimeter of the property, moving around, but three of them were standing a short distance from Kagome. He didn't know what had been said, but Youko's teeth were revealed as he crept closer to them, low to the ground and clearly angry. He didn't look like the handsome fox right now, he looked enraged - and by the tight-lipped expression on Kagome's face and the hand on Keiko's shoulder, probably rightly so. Keiko was pale, and wasn't telling Youko to back off. That was very telling.

"I wouldn't try it, little fox. I don't care how much of a guest of Kagome's you are, I will kill you if you jump me," The eldest woman in front said, glaring at the kitsune. Hiei hissed from a tree, making one of the two younger mikos start and the one closest turn, swiftly knocking an arrow.

"Shoot him and you'll never leave this property, Miya," Kagome said softly. Yusuke trotted out, keeping his eyes trained on the eldest woman, who was dividing her sneer between Kagome and Youko.

"A useless girl in love with someone bound to outlive her, three males who can't use any little power they might have, and a stupid little spirit guide who got herself caught with the same spell as the boys. You can really pick them, Kagome," The woman scoffed. Yusuke studied her, keeping from growling as he crept closer. The two girls behind her couldn't be older than Kagome - most likely a few years younger, and looking very green. She looked to be middle to late twenties. Yusuke assumed she was a miko. He also assumed no one here would mind if he took a chunk out of her with his teeth.

Strangely, Kagome didn't correct her on the number of change males, though Yusuke could hear Kuwabara scoffing mentally at her stupidity. He almost made a comment, but the man turned lion probably would have looked over at him, and that was exactly what he didn't want. Right now he was suddenly glad of this form - it moved silently, and even though this woman knew there were threats on the ground, she wasn't even looking in his direction.

"What and who I take in is my business. Lay off of Keiko and Kurama, Kagami. None of this is any of your business." Kagome shifted a step away from Yusuke, apparently to step almost protectively in front of the fox and the smaller girl. The three pair of miko eyes followed her and Yusuke grinned inwardly.

"Pathetic, Kagome. I should have known you would defend doomed relationships, considering your... past." Kagami's smile was full of false sweetness and Yusuke shifted his weight, the instincts of his body kicking in viciously as he pounced.

They didn't even notice him until he had knocked the woman to the ground, teeth meeting and ripping flesh wherever possible. He fought the instinct to go for her throat - he didn't think Kagome actually wanted her dead, and he wasn't a murderer. He was just angry.

His ears caught the sound of an arrow moving against a bow, and heard Youko's following ground. Trusting the kitsune to take care of that, he jumped away, spinning as he landed to face the last one. His mind barely had time to register that she too was holding a bow - except it wasn't pointed at him. 'Hiei! Protect Kagome!'

He was too late to stop her from shooting the arrow, but his powerful jaws quickly broke her bow, and one of her arms. He didn't bother with her anymore than that, his brown eyes seeking out his friend - who was fortunately holding an arrow in his mouth, though still hovering to one side of a suddenly pale Kagome. She swallowed, but whispered something to Keiko.

"Youko, stop. That's enough," Keiko said, her voice shaking. The kitsune immediately raised his head, checking her over for injuries. It took a few moments, but eventually his growls died down and he left the scared and only slightly maimed miko behind. Yusuke snarled once more at the girl who had shot the arrow at Kagome before sullenly slinking back behind Kagome, feeling her eyes on him.

"You missed one," Kagome said dryly to Kagami. Yusuke was briefly surprised that she wasn't disgusted by what they had done to this woman - obviously there was a lot of history.

"You filthy whore for the youkai," The woman hissed in response. Yusuke would have given her credit for not screaming in pain as she slowly got to her feet, but only Kagome's hand in the scruff around his neck kept him from giving in to his wolf instincts and ripping out her throat.

"I bet you protect them all," Kagami continued, and Yusuke felt Youko join him when he began to growl. "How good are they in bed, Kagome? Do they know they're being protected by a miko who couldn't even defeat an older, better version of herself?"

The mikos on the perimeter were studiously ignoring the growing miko auras in front of Kagome's house. But apparently, someone else wasn't. Yusuke didn't know where they'd been, but Souta was striding toward them. The girl with the broken arm and bow saw him first, ignoring the trailing kitsune kit. "Souta! Those vicious demons-"

"Protected my sister from you trying to kill her again Yumiko? Yes, it's this little thing called honor," Souta sneered as he walked by, shoving her to one side when she tried to step into his path. Kagami had turned, and was apparently trying to pretend she wasn't bloody and insulting his sister on her own property.

"Souta. It's very nice to see you again," She said smoothly. "I see you're growing into a proper - "

Souta clenched his fists and the next thing Yusuke saw was Kagami hitting the ground again. She looked shocked, putting a hand to her face where his punch had hit her jaw. Yusuke felt like growling. She was bleeding everywhere from his wounds, but she paid attention to the kid's punch more. Something was very wrong with this woman's head.

"So, let's see. Kagome specifically asks that you three don't come. Kagome asks me and Shippo to take a walk. Obviously she didn't have my naivete in believing the others could actually stand up to you three bullies. Let me make one thing clear, since you won't listen to Kagome. I hate you. The very sight of you and your trainees sickens me. You foul the air of our shrine every time you step in. Frankly, if it had been me watching Youko and Yusuke take chunks from you, and Kagome wasn't around, I wouldn't have stopped them from killing all three of you. The girls wouldn't have paid attention, just like they don't pay attention when you try to kill Kagome." He paused for breath and Kagami got to her feet, slowly and carefully. Yusuke watched, puzzled at her submissive attitude to the boy when he was weaker than Kagome in terms of power.

"My sister didn't want the leadership. She gathered you all, connected you, but wouldn't lead you. I thought it odd when you insisted I should take the position when I was older. Then I realized there were fewer males with our powers than females. So I'm going to accept that position, though I backed out before. I'm too young to do it now, but in a year or two, I'm going to copy my older sister, but I'm going to find men with our powers to, and both genders will be in the same network, and you will work together. There will be no more trying to kill those more powerful than you, and we won't be hunting every demon indiscriminatly. You can back away from trying to take control now. It's mine." Yusuke gaped, and he could feel Kagome's surprise through the fingers on his neck. This was something that had come out of nowhere.

"Yes, Souta-san," Kagami whispered.

"Get off my property," Souta growled, pointing toward the steps. The three mikos in various states of injury scrambled as fast as they could toward the steps. There were a few snickers near the perimeter as they passed and Yusuke caught some smirks being exchanged. Obviously the girls of dubious backbone weren't at all displeased at this.

'Fuck me,' Youko's shocked voice whispered over the mental bonds.

"No thanks," Souta answered calmly. "You're a little too furry for my tastes."

Kagome almost choked trying not to laugh.

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Shippo frowned down, almost pouting at the leaf in his hand. He was trying a new spell with his foxfire, but it wasn't working - of course, once his sunlight was cut off by a curious lion-shaped human, it was no longer as interesting. He pounced up onto his feet and glanced up into the dark eyes. "Something wrong?"

'What?' he asked, seemingly startled. 'Why would you say that?'

Shippo smiled, fighting a laugh. The body language of Kuwabara's new form gave away everything - and so did the look in his eyes. "Just a hunch."

'It was odd - seeing them fight like that. I mean, they were going to kill Kagome, but... It was bloodier than I would have thought from them,' Kuwabara explained, obviously uncomfortable.

"It looked bloodier than it was - it's just because it's teeth and claws instead of energy and fists. Less damage done to those three than what could have happened - and they did deserve it. They've tried to kill Kagome more than once, and have killed demons who didn't deserve it - tried to kill me before," Shippo said, dropping his leaf.

'You? But... You're just a kid!' Kuwabara exclaimed, obviously angry.

"A demon kid - And it's the demon part they care about. To them, everything demonic is bad the second its born - Mama hoped they would come around. She has too much faith in the good of people sometimes." Shippo looked down and pretended to be studying the leaf on the ground.

Kuwabara didn't answer and Shippo glanced to the right, growling out in canine, "Your white coat really stands out when you know what to look for, you know."

"Just interested in hearing more about those females," Youko Kurama replied, startling Kuwabara as he slipped out from underneath the roots of the God Tree. "Will they really leave her alone now?"

Shippo shot him an amused look, and his face stretched into a grin. At least Kagome's instincts were usually very correct instead of horribly wrong - she had rescued these ones, after all. "They will. Souta will prove the legend they seek to test."

"Cryptic," Youko grumbled.

"Only because you don't know the answer," Shippo teased, and yipped when Youko growled playfully, lunging for the kitsune kit. Laughing, Shippo ran up toward the house, leaving a befuddled Kuwabara behind.

"It's good to see Shippo getting to play," A new voice commented. Souta was leaning on a staff, watching the boy just manage to outrun the older kitsune - and pretending not to see the times when Youko slowed a trifle or let his feet slide when he didn't need too.

'I didn't think I'd ever see either side of Kurama playing,' Kuwabara admitted.

"As he is a powerful demon, there aren't many he can trust - maybe especially other kitsunes. Shippo is an innocent, and trusts whole heartedly. Though I do hope he doesn't decide to follow his mentor's advice on women when he's older - I have enough problems protecting myself from Kagome's wrath, I don't think I could handle protecting my nephew as well." Souta grinned at the human-turned-lion, but still watched Shippo playing with the white fox.

'Mentor?' Kuwabara had to ask.

"He'll need one eventually - and if your kitsune doesn't object, Shippo will probably ask him. As good as we are to him - we're not kitsunes, and there are some things we can't teach him, or help him with. If we tried, we'd probably harm him." Souta looked up suddenly, his gaze unfocussed for a moment. "I'm going to go check on the girls - by the feel, they should be almost done."

Kuwabara settled beneath the boughs of the God Tree, and watched his friends - Yusuke was no where in sight, but neither was Kagome. He could smell them faintly on the wind, fresh and not too far. Youko had finally pinned the small kit, and though the sounds from his throat were vicious - the boy was struggling to growl back between bouts of laughter. Keiko - Keiko was watching in evident surprise. There was a blue jay on Keiko's shoulder, and a dark form flying in the sky. His sister would probably come again today - hopefully before they changed, since he wanted some clean clothes, and Hiei, Kurama, and Botan had supplied her with information of how and where to get some for them.

He sighed, twitching his round ears. He wanted this month to be over - he wanted to see Yukina – and for when his sister moved to slap him, that she didn't stop, remembering he wasn't as tall anymore. He wanted to go back to being himself - being a lion wasn't bad, not now when they had reminders, but sometimes, when his stomach was full, instead of being full of energy- he just felt lazy. The pride was safe, some instinct seemed to say, and he should conserve energy.

Yusuke didn't do that - sure, he slept in his animal body, but they all did, and food could make him content - but even when lying down, he was constantly aware. Hiei - who knew if Hiei even slept at all in either form. Botan's form always seemed to be full of energy - and Youko obviously was energetic. His seemed to be the most lethargic - and he didn't like it. He didn't like that there were things going on he didn't understand - those women, for instance. He wanted to get out and fight.

But as it was, he had to wait - they shouldn't fight until they were totally themselves again. They were gaining more strength, day by day - but it wasn't enough.

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Yusuke was glad that most of the others had gone inside after they changed and went to eat dinner - and he went out. Kagome was out there too, which was a factor - but a bigger one was the mournful eyes Kurama and Keiko gave each other and him when all three of them were in the same room. He didn't understand it. He had let her go. What more did they want?

He spotted the familiar dark head laying by the roots of the God Tree. Unsurprising. He made sure to make at least a bit of noise as he approached and sat beside her, staring down curiously. "So what was with Souta today? And those women?"

Kagome grimaced and opened her eyes to look up at him. Her usually bright eyes were dim and murky and he almost regretted bringing up the topic. But almost wasn't did, and he waited. She shifted as if to look away and he automatically reached out a hand to draw her back. Both froze and Kagome broke the strained silence hurriedly. "Kagami, Miya, and Yumiko. They... Well. When I got back from... a trip, where I had learned about my powers, I decided that if other mikos were around, we needed to band together - a lot has been lost over the centuries since I - since the feudal era. I found as many as I could - but I didn't want to lead them. This angered those three, because there was a... story they believed I came from, and they didn't understand why I wasn't using my powers and leading them - and if I wasn't leading them, then they should. But I couldn't let that happen either. So they had decided I could either lead them, or I could die, making them the most powerful - or at least the best trained. That will change when Souta gets older. You heard what he said."

"Yeah, I did." Yusuke smirked. "That's some kid. So, how long did it take you to gather the shards of the Shikon no Tama? A year? Two?"

He laughed at Kagome's expression. "Oh, come on. Maybe Hiei and Youko are too focussed on the legends they know about it, but to anyone really listening to the way your brother and kit told it, it's damn obvious."

"Two and a half," she answered finally, still feeling a little stunned - and sheepish. It was obvious when he put it like that.

Yusuke grinned smugly at the expression still on her face and leaned back on his elbows, staring at the darkening sky. "And you're... what? Eighteen? Nineteen?"

"Nineteen next month," Kagome answered.

Yusuke smirked. "I'm older than you."

She gifted him with an amused look. "And you're showing it so very well right now."

Yusuke refrained from commenting on her own relative maturity in the light of how many times she put herself in danger and instead turned his head and twisted his body slightly, studying her before he asked the question. He knew from the stories her brother and kit had been telling that she probably wouldn't allow it - he was of demon blood, and she hadn't known him very long. But he was curious. "Can I see it?"

She looked questioning for a moment - then warily, and finally nervous as she sat up, one hand going to her neck and he saw the chain there. He knew she probably heard the question underneath it, and that he shouldn't be asking her to trust him. But they were placing their lives in her hands and for some reason, he wanted her to trust them back - it would make it all much easier.

Her hand dipped into her shirt, fingers twining around the chain. It came up, and off of her neck, and he almost didn't catch the glittering orb when she dropped it. Carefully, he sat up again, and held the jewel in the palm of his hand, keeping his hand flat and still slightly toward her. It gave the illusion that she could snatch it back anytime - which she technically could, but if he had wanted to keep it, no matter how close his hand was to her, it wouldn't have mattered. Power throbbed inside the jewel like a pulse, and he took it in his other hand, holding it between his thumb and first finger toward the dark sky.

It glowed gently and he grimaced as the power washed over him. "All of that, for this? Weren't there other ways to get power?"

"Maybe. But not like the Shikon no Tama. Its power can grant wishes, though most demons just wanted it to make themselves stronger - one shard multiplied their strength many times. The full jewel could turn a relatively weak demon into something invincible, probably. In Naraku's hands..." Kagome trailed off and he turned his eyes from the jewel to seek hers in the twilight gloom.

"But it's not in his hands," He pointed out quietly, and placed the jewel in his palm, holding it toward her. "It's in yours."

"It's still not as safe as it should be," She responded bitterly as she placed the jewel back around her neck, the chains rubbing against each other gently to clink in the dark night. It reminded him briefly of chains and he felt an unexpected burst of sympathy for Kagome.

"Hell, I don't think there's anyone else it could be safer with. Who else alive understands it as much and can be trusted not to misuse it? From what I heard, even Inuyasha can be swayed by the power." He watched her reaction - what he could see of it in the dark. He heard her shift nervously, doubtfully, and sighed.

"What did happen back there? I mean, why is Inuyasha here and not there anyway?" He asked, and knew it was the wrong thing to do. There was utter silence nearby and he shifted to reach for her as he felt her trying to draw away. For some reason, this was important to him. She was important to him and it confused him a bit - but Yusuke wasn't one to overthink his reactions. He just acted.

"Look, we've all seen you withdraw from Inuyasha and Kagura on certain topics, and the dog grow quiet when we expect him to be his normal stupid self." He fumbled for words and cursed inwardly as he felt more than saw her shaking her head. He had a grip on one wrist, keeping her there physically, but mentally and emotionally was another matter.

"I have no reason to trust you," She pointed out, a little cold - and mostly a bit desperate. He noticed she hadn't said she didn't trust him - just that she had no reason to. For him, words didn't do enough.

He tugged on her wrist and traced a path from her wrist up her arm to her face. She was leaning toward him thanks to his pull and was oddly frozen. He wished he could see her eyes. Her pulse fluttered beneath his fingers and he knew what he wanted to do. He knew what he was going to do, and he made sure not to think about it. If he thought about it, he wouldn't go through with it.

It had been only a couple of weeks. He had just really given up Keiko yesterday. It was too soon, it was the wrong thing to do, and it was probably a mistake. But Yusuke ignored the thoughts mulling in his mind, trying to get his attention, and ran a callussed thumb across her lips. After shifting forward slightly, his hand moved to her chin. She still hadn't moved away and hadn't said even a word to stop him. He closed the distance, putting his lips where his thumb had been earlier.

She was kissing back immediately, surprising him. Hoping that she would respond and her actually not only responding but encouraging him to deepen the kiss were very different. He had half expected her to not move - or run away. Instand their lips were gently pressed together - and then not so gently. By some unknown signal they both opened their mouths. Each brush of their tongues sent sparks down Yusuke's spine and he forced himself to break off the kiss, breathing lightly, his mouth still only a couple of inches from hers.

Sensing her beginning to stiffen and think about it, he scowled and brought her closer, this time just holding her. "Stop. Don't overthink it. Just... Damn it, I don't know. Just let me hold you while you think about it, okay? There's no reason to run."

"There's every reason to run. Usually every boy I kiss ends up betraying me at one time or another." Despite her words, she settled comfortably in his arms and he gladly wrapped them around her.

'She's lonely.' He realized, somehow unsurprised. Despite her family here, besides Kagura and Inuyasha, he hadn't see any friends, and definitely no boyfriends. He knew later his friends would come up with all sorts of objections - but he would worry about it later. He would enjoy the time he had now, and forget about the enemy outside the wards, and forget about all the little dramas and discomfort surrounding his friends. Just a few hours with no worries besides Kagome.

She shifted in his arms and then settled again, her head on his shoulder. She didn't speak, but his heart soared anyway. Later they could think about it and wonder if what they were doing was right or good for them. For now, they could just be.

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Aw, isn't that so nice. Or so you think. Many problems ahead, 'cause that kiss will definitely cause angst.