Moe, Curly, and Larry, times two

They sat around the fire in the cabin, everyone in the group, including both Lina and Kagome, although they were still out cold. The former was in the hands of Gourry, and the latter propped up against Kirara, who was in large cat mode. All eyes kept sweeping back and forth between Inuyasha and Zel, like they expected either one to transform into someone else at any moment.



Or die, which they probably would when the two girls came to.



"Well....I believe we have all discussed and understood what went on between Inuyasha and Zel...will never happen again. What we need to be worried about now is the impact this will have on Kagome and Lina. Espically Kagome." said Miroku, looking torwards the resting form of the miko with pity in his eyes.



"I hope she can forgive me..." muttered Inuyasha, just loudly enough for everyone to hear.



For once though, not one person tried to reassure him that she would.



Lina was the first to come awake, blinking her eyes several times, before sitting up straight.



She looked around the room, before her eyes settled on Zel, and became a smoldering crimson.



"Lina, I'm...." Zel started, but was brained by a cooking pot before he could continue.



"You, me, outside, right now..." Lina hissed in a menacing voice. Gourry, Amelia, and Slyfial both back away from the campfire, instantly afriad of the enraged Mage.



"Actually, I thought it would be best to talk in here, with the witnessess....." started Zel again, before Lina hopped over the fire, grabbed Zel by an ear, and headed for the door.



Amelia, Sylfial, and Gourry all made crossing signs with their fingers over their chests once the two were gone, and Inuyasha gulped as he pondered what his own fate would be.



Turns out, he didn't have long to wait.



A few moments later, Kagome's eyes blinked as well a few times, before she too sat up.



"Oooh...what..." she started, before it became clear to everyone that she remembered precisley everything that happened. She just sat there for several moments, eyes blinking, before turning her gaze to Inuyasha.



"Uuhhhh, Kagome...I don't know what to say..." started Inuyasha, before Kagome stood up and walked around the fire to him. She got down on her knees, and looked him straight in the eyes, causing Inuyasha to gulp.



"That's okay Inuyasha, you don't have to say anything, I understand perfectly." replied Kagome, her lips and voice very neutral and guarded.



"Uhhh..." was all that Inuyasha could manage, still praying to live through his confrontation.



Instead, Kagome looked over to where Shippou was sitting. The little kitsune looked...well...Kagome didn't know how he looked exactly. Perhaps scared, or something along those lines.



"Did Shippou see what happened?" asked Kagome, looking to Miroku.



"I'm afriad so. I explained it as best I could, but I don't know how he took it." replied Miroku, his head downcast.



"I see. Shippou, come here." said Kagome, walking over to and picking up the little kitsune. She began walking torwards the door with him cradled in her chest.



"Kagome...may I ask where you are going?" asked Miroku, worry eteched all over his face.



"Just out for a walk..." was all that she replied, before reaching the door. Just before walking through though, she turned around and looked at Inuyasha.



"Oh, and Inuyasha, one more thing." said Kagome.



"Yeah?" he asked in a cocky attitude, thinking that he had gotten away with what he had done.



Kagome took a deep breath, and everyone quickly vacated the premises around Inuyasha, knowing what was about to happen by instinct.



"sit boy! sit sit sit sit sit SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTT!" yelled Kagome, before proceeding out the door and heading down the trail.



Several of the villagers came running in a few moments later, asking if everyone was okay after the earthquake. They gaped at the massive hole in the floor, before Sango and Miroku escorted them out of the building.



"Do you think Kagome will be okay by herself? Kagura and the others may still be out there." said Sango with a worried voice.



"Good point. We should probably go after them. Let's not interrupt, they need their away time. We'll just silently shadow them." replied Miroku, grabbing his weapon and heading for the door.



"The rest of you stay there and help Inuyasha recover." added Sango as she left with the monk, leaving Gourry, Amelia, Sylfial, and Kirara with the down and out hanyou.



A few moments later, Lina, looking a little steamed still, entered into the hutt. She looked around at everyone present, then down into the crater to see Inuyasha lying in it. Seeing him in such pain, the rest of her anger evaporated, and she went and plopped down next to Gourry.



"Will we be seeing Zel again?" he asked in a low tone.



"It's up to him if he wants to come back or not. But he's still alive to answer your question." replied Lina in a low growl, leaning her head against the wall and closing her eyes.



* * *



Miroku and Sango headed down the trail after Kagome, then stopped when they heard a soft growling sound coming from behind a tree.



They cautiously made their way over, their weapons at the ready, and gave a quick glance.



What they saw was Zel sitting down, bruises covering his head, face, and upper body and arms. He was hissing softly, cursing his own stupidity.



"Hey, are you okay?" asked Sango, feeling sorry for the little half demon.



He gave a quick start, not expecting anyone to come upon him. He glanced up to see who it was, then sighed and lowered his head.



"I'll be fine. What about Inuyasha?" asked Zel.



"He may recover, eventually. Did you see Kagome come this way?" asked Miroku.



"Yes, I believe she was heading torwards the nearby stream." replied Zel.



Miroku and Sango hurried off, heading torwards the stream with a cautious haste.



Zel went back to his hissing for a moment, before going silent as a scent reached his nose and sound his ears. He looked up into the moonlite sky, and saw several demons also heading for the stream.



"Shit..." he muttered, his pain forgotten, getting up and heading torwards the stream as well.



* * *



'I thought Inuyasha loved me....so why does he go with a man instead? Am I really that repulsive?' thought Kagome, sitting by the riverbank, Shippou still cradled in her arms.



"Ka..Kagome..." began Shippou, his voice sounding very small, not at all like his brave voice that he usually puts on. He was showing that he was still just a kid, and a very scared one at that.



"Ssshhhh Shippou, it's okay, everything will be okay now." said Kagome, cradling Shippou in her arms and rocking him back and forth very gently.



'I guess...he didn't really have any feelings for me...I must really be ugly...' thought Kagome, as tears began to flow down her face.



"You are not ugly." came a voice from behind her, causing Kagome to turn around in startled fright. She saw Sango standing there, along with Miroku, both of them smiling broadly.



"What do you mean? I must be..I mean if Inuyasha slept with a man, what was I then?" asked Kagome, the tears coming full force.



Miroku gently pulled Shippou away from Kagome as Sango pulled her into an embrace. Cuddling the now sleeping kitsune himself, he began walking back torwards the village.



"Kagome, not one of us finds you ugly. You are really quite beautiful." conseled Sango. Kagome looked up into her eyes, looking for some truth behind her words.



"You don't mean that..." whispered Kagome, finding it hard to believe that anyone really did care for her...after what she witnessed.



"Sure I do...in fact, I find you attractive enough to..." began Sango, before leaning her head in and kissing Kagome gently on her lips. Her eyes widened considerably, as shock blossomed through her body, followed by relief...and a weird kind of heat.



The kiss went on for a few moments, before Kagome began participating, their lips locking together for several moments before they both parted for air.



Sango licked her lips, and Kagome stared at her with something between incredulity and love, feeling immensly turned on and not sure what to do about it.



Unfortunatly, neither of them had time to do anything further. The sounds of snarling reached their ears from above, and both looked up to see several demons heading straight for them. Sango grabbed Kagome and threw both of them into the river to try and hide from them.



From beneath the water's surface, Sango watched as several bright flashes of light engulfed the demons, tearing them to shreds. She and Kagome surfaced to see Zel running in their direction from the village.



"Zel!" said Sango, suprised and happy with him present.



"GET DOWN!!!" he yelled in response, leaping in their direction, his hand on his sword.



Sango looked at him in confusion, before turning around, coming face to face with an ogre standing on the riverbank, club in hand, preparing to bring it down on her head.



Sango brought up her arm for defense, but something flashed over her head, and she saw a brief glint of light reflecting off of steel before the ogre simply disappeared into thin air. The cut made by Zel was so clean and powerful that the demon had dis-integrated right before her eyes.



Two other ogres attacked him from both left and right. He made a horizontal slash with his sword at the one on the right, severing his arms at the elbows as the demon prepared to bring his club down in a powerful blow. The other ogre rushed him from behind, but reversing his sword, Zel stabbed him in the stomach from behind, the second ogre staggering backwards in pain.



Throwing his sword on the ground, Zel balled both of fists together, energy flowing into them as he prepared to unleashed a spell.



"Phlam laser!" he yelled, before throwing both of his arms out to his sides and unleashing two streaming beams of light torwards the ogres. They were both caught in the double blasts and were turned into ash.



Zel picked up his sword and sheathed it, not sensing anymore demons nearby.



"I think they're gone...for now." he said, turning to help both Sango and Kagome out of the water.



They had both already exited though, and were sitting on the other side of the riverbank together. Both of them were dripping wet, and their eyes were running over each other's body. Kagome leaned in torwards Sango's head, and the demonslayer blushed, not wanting to be kissed in front of another person.



Instead, Kagome whispered into her ear; "Later, we finish what we started." said the miko with passion in her voice.



And suddenly, Sango was no longer cold from the water.