Disclaimer: No, I don't own Inu-Yasha. . . but you know that already, so leave me alone!

Author's Note: Yes, it was one of those days.

Anyway, this fic is a combination of four things:

1) A one-shot idea I already had.

2) The lyrics of Evanescence's song "Haunted" (which, incidentally, I have used before).

3) An Inu-Yasha AU vampire-related trilogy I'm writing for a friend of mine. Sorta taking the tone from that and mixing it with this. . . and all that good stuff.

4) The fact that I'm currently in the middle of an Anne Rice book. (Pandora, to be specific. It's all right, so far.)

WARNINGS: INU/KAG INDUENDO. ODDLY SHAKESPEAREAN-LIKE FLOWERY LANGUAGE. LIME. PLOTLESSNESS. CONFUSION. (But I offer explanations at the bottom.)

Please enjoy!

X

INCENSE

X

She could sense him- feel him through the silent shadows, his aura piercing her back like a thousand sharpened knives. His pupil-less amber orbs narrowed in the darkness; focusing on her like a laser of light- leaving no trail, no mark. No breath fell from his cold, pale lips- no heartbeat echoed from his chest. He just was.

Yet, he wasn't.

And in that way, she knew he was there. Watching her. Feeling her. Tasting her. Wanting her.

But she ignored him. She turned her inner eye away from his presence, instead concentrating on her prayer. Sapphire pools fluttered lightly shut, hands clasped before her, knees numb from kneeling for hours on end. The gloom danced cautiously around her sanctified form- afraid to venture too far into the candlelight that surrounded her altar.

Outside, the heavens swallowed the stars, burying their glory beneath layers of violet clouds. The blood-stained moon sank behind the jungle of Tokyo city. All was quiet.

All except her rhythmic whispers- the silent chant that repeated her name. A mutated children's song- an innocence that had suddenly become hauntingly horrific. Impure. Tainted. Sinful.

"Kagome, Kagome. . ." she sang in the softest of voices, a voice so sweet that it made the Angels jealous. She knew. They had told her so.

"Kagome, Kagome. . ." he mimicked, a snicker in his wickedly husky tone- soundlessly stepping closer. He waved his hand.

All but one of the two dozen candles that encircled her went out. But still she chanted her strange hymn without stopping- entering an odd trance. Slowly allowing her eyes to slide to a half-lidded state, she parted her fingers in a flourish. A line of incense sticks burst into life before her; tendrils of pink and gray smoke coiling through the solitude of the forsaken temple. Free, wavy locks of charcoal curled more dramatically in that moment of unforeseen magic- the male standing soundlessly behind her wincing at the burst of sacred power.

It crackled on the tips of his fingers, racing through his limbs like blistering lightening.

His grin widened.

Leisurely, he allowed his clawed hands to fall against her shoulders; catching in the stray threads that decorated her coarse robes. Again, he felt an energy surge through him- as if he had swallowed holy water or stepped out into the sunlight. But he ignored it, so great was his desire to touch her.

She trembled, arching a bit as his callused digits brushed over her smooth face, glazed pools turning a deeper shade of navy. Her rigid posture slackened slightly, molding into his chest as he crouched behind her, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"You forgot to bring your stake tonight. . ." he hissed into her ear, nuzzling the nape of her neck. Idle palms began caressing her ivory arms, slipping down her front. "Your office must be most disappointed."

"You know very well that my branch of the CIA has called for this meeting, not I," she replied coldly, biting her pink, pink tongue between her teeth. Porcelain cheeks flushed a faint hue of magenta. "They were the ones that wished to extend the olive branch in the first place, and now. Had I my way, I'd have come armed with plenty a silver bullet for you."

"Ooo," he shivered, his breath the only warmth his body had to offer. That warmth tickled her throat most sufficiently, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. "Hidden fire in such a delicate flower. It's almost a pity that I'll soon play the traitor to my clan. I'd have thoroughly enjoyed crushing you in battle with the secretive Slayers."

"You needn't be the wolf in sheep's clothing to all," she corrected, long fingers reaching behind her to tangle in his silvery locks. "Just your leaders. . . we can't have another battle. Not like the one 50 years ago."

"Keh. Ketsueki is old news, and only part of the history books," he scoffed- suddenly twisting her chin so that their gazes locked. His eyes- nothing but glimmering golden spheres- crinkled in amusement. "You should be worried about more. . . current. . . threats." A wild smirk tugged on his mouth; a flash of potent fang glimmered in the weak orange glow.

But this hunter held no fear. She simply grinned in return, lazy and unconcerned. "Ah, but those who do not know history are condemned to repeat it, as the saying goes."

A deep rumbling laugh spilt from him; dark and foreboding as his appearance. It filled the room like a churning sea, drowning her in the sound. "And that is why reincarnations tend to trip along the same paths as their predecessors, yes?"

She grinned, sapphire gems flashing; twisting completely in his embrace. His implication did not go unnoticed. "Yes."

That was all of the prompting he needed.

Their lips met in a passionate frenzy, untamed and hungry. Spiritual energy shot from her touch, sending pleasurable pain through every dry vein in his body. He growled, propping himself up on his knees so that his jean-covered legs would straighten- pushing him to an upright position. Her body followed slowly, heavy from lack of movement. Only their mouths and their tangled arms kept them locked, but they remained together all the same.

Yanking her up without any form of warning, he thrust her against the wall. She went instantly limp.

And in that moment her white blouse fell slightly open. Not much, but enough to incite him. . . enough to bring attention to the ornamental cross that glittered between her breasts, the size of a small novel. Usually he'd have acted offended. But neither cared much for it at this point, their sly goading session over. The unnatural sound of panting reverberated off of the blessed walls, instead.

They grew drunk on the scent of perfume.

"Kagome, Kagome. . ." he crooned tauntingly, locking her arms in a crucifix style with his own; burying his face in her hair. Her own head to lolled weakly to the side. "Kago no naka no tori wa- Itsu itsu deyaru. . . ?" A chuckle, a groan- scraping sharp teeth against the tender flesh that covered her collar. "When does the bird inside the cage come out. . . ? When will this charade be over, lover?

Come out, Kagome. . . come out and play."

A spark of blackened spite flickered near her heart. He nipped her ear with a snarl.

Three. . . two. . .

The sacred symbol that hung against her chest began to crackle, burning her white flesh a shade of bruised purple. Without thinking, her fragile hand shot up and ripped it off, tossing it harshly across the room. With a fluid movement that lasted not all of half a second, it lodged itself- point first- in a nearby statue.

And then she attacked- whirling around in his arms with such inhumane speed that even he didn't expect it- sinking her elongated canines into his throat with a fervor unlike any he'd ever seen. Stolen blood gushed from his punctured arteries like some sort of sick fountain, oozing and trickling down her plaster-colored chin and splattering beside her stained-red eyes. Pupil-less eyes, they were. Haunted and deadly.

"Oh, my, yes. . . I am not the only wolf in sheep's clothing," he purred teasingly, tracing small circles on the girl's back while she fed- hungry and desperate and weak and starving- from his own supply. "Isn't that right, my devious partner?"

She did not reply, only snarled- priestess robes now flecked with lost life. Her pink tongue darted out again, swathing a path down his shoulder to lap up any food she'd missed. The childish hue of the velvety appendage reminded him of how young she really was- still only a baby to his kind.

But babies died fast. . . died fast on the living blood.

Ironic. In so many more ways than one.

"Take this blood. . . for it is my blood that has been given up for you," he quoted, nuzzling her as she calmed, gasping and clawing and moaning her thanks. "Isn't that right?"

"Mmmm. . . Depends on who you ask," she breathed, amused; slowly meeting his tawny pools with her soiled sapphire pair. "But. . . you have the basic gist of it."

"Keh."

She closed her eyes with a loving sneer. And then, their mouths meeting heatedly once more, she impatiently kicked out the last candle, engulfing them in blackness. After all- the darkness was their only friend. After morning came, even they wouldn't be.

But the scent of incense would linger, nostalgically, forever.

X

Okay. . . so let me explain this to you so that no one leaves a review saying: ". . . What the hell was that?"

Inu-Yasha is a vampire. He's working with the vampires to plot human downfall, and all that good stuff. At least, he was- until he joined up with the Slayers, a group of vampire-fighting mortals who work for a secret branch of the CIA. He's like the Slayers' secret agent.

Kagome is also a vampire, but originally she was a priestess with amazing powers. She's officially a Slayer, but she's working for the vampires behind the Slayers' back. (Like a mole.) She's the one who originally recruited Inu-Yasha.

He's also the only one who realizes she's a vampire.

And they're lovers. But they have to pretend they're not so that no one finds out about all the back-stabbing and stuff that's going on.

It all make sense now? Yes? Good! XD

Please R&R! Ja ne!