Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of its characters.

Chapter Four

When she tried to jump down the well, Sesshomaru nearly catapulted himself out of her arms. Unfortunately, she was holding onto him rather strongly. What came out was a weakly timed whine that had him grimacing in shame as everything seemed to go black around them.

He was dead.

To think such a youkai as him would go out from a weak fall that his former body could easily have avoided.

Or at least, that's what he was thinking when the priestess took on a light shade of blue.

Sesshomaru could only watch with a vague sense of interest obscured with dread as things came to a halt. He wondered what magic she possessed, but his thinking was cut short when the glow disappeared as soon as it came, and he was back to looking at the remnants of a well much like the one she had jumped into.

All at once, things seemed to come in a rush.

He smelt and heard things he'd never before. It was overwhelming.

Kagome seemed to notice, looking worriedly down at the puppy in her possession. "I guess you know we're not in the feudal era, huh?" As best as she could, she put Shi-chan in her bag, shushing him when he seemed to growl. "It'll be a lot better for you to wait in there than out here when everything is so loud."

The puppy in her hands ceased to struggle, clearly wanting refuge from the strange happenings. She smiled, pleased that he was listening. "Good, I'll let you out when we get into the house. Promise."

Hands free, she began her trek up the ladder and out of the well house. When she reached the outside, her smile grew bigger. "It's good to be home."

Inside her bag, Sesshomaru tried his best to make sense of things. The foreign place was her home, it seemed, but it was nothing like he knew. He had always assumed she had come from a village like all the others, but it this definitely wasn't the case. It irked him to know he'd fail to keep a closer eye on the friends Inuyasha knew.

Shuffling in the bag, he peered closer at the items inside. Everything seemed to be made out of a material he failed to identify, and his curiosity only grew as more questions arouse. The priestess might as well have come from a different world.

He had pegged her to be a poor girl, but the items she possessed were of high quality. Just who was she?

"Mom, I'm home!" Kagome called out as she stepped inside the house, taking off her shoes. She quickly unhooked her bag and set Shi-chan on the floor. Like a puppy, he set about sniffing the air.

She stepped over him to walk to the kitchen, calling out for her family. When no one answered, she thoughtfully tilted her head and looked around. "Weird."

Tt was then she realized with alarm the blood stains on his coat. "Oh my god!" She cried, rushing over to him. "Shi-chan, I'm so sorry I didn't notice earlier!"

As she tried her best to inspect the wound, she realized it had healed up. "W-what? How is this possible?"

He yipped at her, as if to say he wasn't so weak.

"You're not hurt."

Sesshomaru took notice of the relief in her voice.

"You do need a bath though. You look… terrible like that."

There were many things to be humiliated over. As of right now, he was currently being dunked in the water against his will.

"It'll be fine!" Kagome yelled, trying to get him to sit still. "Let me wash you, dammit!"

The taiyoukai struggled in the slippery tub, trying to claw his way out but catching nothing.

"You have blood on your coat!" She tried to reason, "People will call animal control on me!"

He had no idea what animal control was, but if they could get back at her for him, then so be it.

"I can't believe you got water everywhere." Kagome whined, looking down at her soaking clothes.

To her side sat a wet Sesshomaru shaking himself dry. He was clean at least.

The miko narrowed her eyes at him, "You're devious."

He smelled like flowers.

She was devious.

Sighing, Kagome got up and went to her room. She'd barely begun to pack up some of her textbooks when a small nudge to her feet made her look down, "Shi-chan?"

Said puppy eyed her with interest. Bath aside, he was still reeling from all the information that was hitting him while he was here.

"Are you hungry?" She vaguely noted he had yet to eat anything she'd given him. "Perhaps you're a spoiled dog."

As a dog, he was at her mercy. It was an infuriating thought.

"I don't think you'd enjoy cat food." She mused, shaking her head. "A trip to the store wouldn't be bad."

He'd only heard cat and felt his nose wrinkle. It was no wonder why the place reeked of feline.

"Tell you what, if you behave, I'll let you come with me."

The girl was on a one way thought all on her own. Begrudgingly, he nodded to show he understood, and the girl clapped, "Great! I'll get a leash."

The only way she could reason Shi-chan reacted so horribly was because he was untrained. Trailing sullenly behind her, Sesshomaru resisted the urge to nip at her ankles.

There had never been a day he had been collared.

Today was that day. It was a day of many things.

Looking down at the quiet pup, Kagome offered him a small pat on the head. "I know you're mad, but this is the only way you can come out. Tokyo doesn't allow unleashed dogs."

He wondered who this 'Tokyo' was so he could go and kill them for their audacity but listened quietly. This strange place unsettled him, but he refused to show weakness of any sort. With the way the human girl was strolling utterly unfazed, he assumed the area was safe.

As she led him down the steps of a shrine, he tried to take in the sights and smells before him. Nothing made sense. The more he tried to reason with himself, the more things seemed to become stranger and stranger.

She'd leapt down a well and now they were both in a place that rivaled the luxuries of his estate back home. Down below, he heard the rumbling and chatter of many, many humans.

It was with quiet dread he realized he could sense no other youkai nearby.

Just where was he?

Nearing the edge of the stairs, he noted the abundance of humans. Even further, he saw moving machinery. They confused him. The speed at which they moved disturbed him.

They were so loud and the smells of everything threatened to make him rear back in disgust. Kagome was the only sweet-smelling person in the vicinity.

"Just a bit further, Shi-chan." Kagome soothed, walking at a brisk but relaxed pace. She periodically looked down at him to make sure he was ok, and he found himself oddly comforted by this.

The ground below him was pure rock, and there were many things passing him he couldn't make out. There were, dare he say it, words he had never seen.

He scooted closer to Kagome. The miko quickened her pace when she neared a strange building. It was akin to her home, but the doors moved. In fact, he could see inside them. Did no one close the entrance to their house?

He was surprised when she guided him to a pole and tied him to it.

"Dogs aren't allowed in." She empathetically explained. "I'll be out quickly, so sit tight and behave."

He could only assume she was referencing the leash incident. Dismissing her, he sat down and took to staring at his surroundings. Perhaps he could gather some sort of information while he waited.

In every other direction, it was an endless view of buildings and humans. People stopped to admire him, but he made sure to show his teeth when it looked like they would come closer. An ill-mannered dog tried to sniff him, and he barked at it. It scurried off in a hurry.

This was stupid.

The leash holding onto him was no match for his canines. He snapped it easily. If he was going to explore, it'd be without that weighing him down.

He was down the street in a manner of minutes. In that time, Kagome had grabbed the things she needed and walked out.

"Shi-chan?"

End of Chapter