So it's a few days late… ah well… Happy Belated Halloween!

Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha or Black Jack

Kikyou revived. Halloween Terror!

Four high school girls giggled as they sat in a cute little café after a long day at school.

"Hey, hey, you know what we should do? We'll be graduating soon, we need to have one last big adventure before we all go our separate ways!"

"You're right! But what should we do?"

"Oh! Hey, remember all those stories about some ogre with the magic kiln? The one's we heard when we were kids?" Mariko suddenly looked up from her iced coffee.

"So what?"

"So what? We should go see if we can find it! It's pretty popular nowadays to try to find out if local legends are true." The girl stated in an informative voice as she looked around the table at her friends.

"Why can't we just go to the graveyard and see if we can raise a spirit there? The ogre's kiln is just a story they tell kids to keep them from going into the mountains. There's supposed to be a bunch of abandoned mines up there." One of the girls complained slightly as she fiddled with the spoon for her icy desert. Chika would rather watch scary anime than hang around in a graveyard but still, an adventure did sound exciting.

"Anybody can go to some old graveyard! Think about it dummy! Wouldn't you rather say you searched for an ogre's enchanted kiln? And if we find it… We can see if the stories about it are true!" Mariko exclaimed.

"I don't know… There are abandoned mines, what if we fall into one?" The most timid of their group, Fumiko, brought up as she bit down on her straw.

"What's wrong Fumiko, chicken? Are you scared of an ogre?" Goaded Tomo.

Fumiko bristled at the accusation, she was just concerned for safety reasons! "I'm not scared!"

"Really? Well then it's settled! We're going to go search for the ogre's kiln this Sunday!"

"Why Sunday?" Chika asked.

"It's Halloween, doofus!" Tomo crowed as she struck what she thought was a cool pose.

"Halloween? But that's a Western holiday…" Mariko stated.

"It's supposed to be a day when magic and stuff is strongest, right? It should be easier to find an ogre witch's kiln on an auspicious holiday." Tomo reasoned as she sat back down from her 'cool' pose.

"That makes sense, so what do we need to do to get ready?"

" 'Kay… Tell your folks that we're going hiking and camping this weekend. We'll leave as soon as school lets out on Saturday (Japanese kids sometimes have half-days on Saturdays). I'll try to find some stuff for a séance if nothing else. Try to find out as much as you can on the kiln so we'll know where to look. Call if you find out anything. But remember, don't tell anyone!" Mariko exclaimed as they set up their plans.

"Don't forget your blankie, Fumiko. If you get scared you can hold my hand, hee-hee!"

"I'm NOT scared!"

With that the four friends parted, each determined to prepare for their 'last' great adventure.

If only they knew how true that would be…

/

Higurashi, Kagome aka. Red Queen was currently waiting for her next job. Business had been slow lately. A very odd occurrence for the trouble-magnet miko.

So now instead of exploring dark jungles in search of youkai tribes, or curing animals or children she was stuck at home, watching a Power Rangers marathon with her robot 'son'. Tobio on the other hand was ecstatic that his Mama didn't have to work.

Kagome was secretly praying for her phone to ring, anything would be better than this torture!

'You know, the Power Rangers have gone kinda downhill since I was a kid… Those one's actually had some good plot to them. These ones, yikes…' She mussed as she watched another flashy transformation.

Shifting her gaze to Tobio, it seemed he was totally absorbed- even going as far as to yelling at the tv when the 'bad guy' did something, well, bad.

If this was what made her son happy, she would suffer through this all-day-Power Ranger-Palooza and pretend to be enjoying it. She just wished that it hadn't started at 6 in the morning. Being woken by a hyper robot child was not a pleasant way to wake up. She had finally dragged herself out of bed when Tobio literally lifted the bed up, she'd prefer it if he didn't lift their furniture.

Yup, here she was one of the world's greatest surgeons sitting on her couch, still in her pajamas, watching Power Rangers…

She couldn't even read a book or new medical journal, Tobio had been very insistent that she watch this with him, making sure she was paying full attention to the shows.

It was cute really; during each commercial break Tobio would show her various Power Ranger 'moves'. He could pull them off pretty well, probably because he was a robot.

Regardless, the famed surgeon could sure use nice cup of coffee to wash down the 'I got up too early muggy-ness', and maybe some cereal too… She should see if Tobio wanted some too, even if he didn't need to eat technically.

'Next commercial break.' She decided as she watched yet another 'unbeatable bad guy' fall to the ground, vanquished.

"All right! Did you see that, Mama? So cool!" Tobio whipped his head towards her as he clenched his fists in excitement.

Kagome immediately put on a 100-watt smile in response, "I know! They're the best, huh?"

"Yup, they're the greatest in the whole world!" He declared as he opened his arms to emphasize 'the whole world'.

"Well, I need to use the bathroom. I'll be right back." She told the boy as she got up off the couch, " I'm going to get some cereal, want any?"

the child shook his head before sitting on the ground in front of the television.

"Oh, hurry up! You don't want to miss the next episode!" The robot pleaded as he turned his attention back to the television, anxiously waiting for the commercials to end.

The ex-time traveling miko was completely unaware of four girls that were about to find something that was better left forgotten.

/

"Okay, so I asked around and most of the stories seem to point to somewhere around here…" Mariko told her friends as she pointed to the map she had bought for this trip.

The girls had gotten a ride from Mariko's father, a man who loved the outdoors and was pleased to see his daughter taking an interest in his hobbies.

"There's supposed to be an old suspension rope bridge somewhere around here." She pointed to another area.

Tomo, Chika, and Fumiko dutifully followed their 'leader' into the woods. The girls proceeded to tromp around in the forest searching. Unfortunately finding a ogre's kiln was a great deal harder than any of them had suspected. Briar patches and other undergrowth had not been planned on and thus the girls were wishing they had the foresight to wear pants as Mariko had.

But bugs could be forgiven and so could the bushes and brambles in the name of adventure. But adventure became all too real when the earth beneath Tomo's feet gave way.

"Tomo! TOMO! Are you okay? Oh God, what do we do?" Chika screeched, as she looked at the hole their friend had fallen through. It seemed she had fallen into one of the abandoned mine shafts. More likely through a dirt ceiling that had eroded with time and disuse rather than the opening shaft of a mine.

The three girls crowded around the hole trying to think of a way to help their friend. Suddenly the girls heard coughing.

"Hey, Tomo-chan! Is that you? You ok?" Mariko yelled into the darkness.

"Yeah, I'm fine! There was a pile of ash or something. You guys need to come down here, I think I found something!" Tomo's voice traveled upwards from the drop.

"I don't think this is a good idea, guys. This is scary! The legend was supposed to be fake!" Fumiko whimpered as she watched Chika repel down the rope.

Fixing an exasperated look at her friend Mariko groaned, "Fumiko! You are such a scaredy cat!"

The timid girl shook her head at her best friend; calling her a coward wasn't going to work this time. She did not want to go!

Sighing, Mariko shrugged her shoulders, "Alright, alright! You don't have to go if you don't want to. But you'll be all alone out here… In the dark scary woods."

Mariko had learned over the years how to manipulate the shyer girl into doing whatever she wanted. Fumiko didn't like to be alone.

Moving so that she could start repelling down the rope, Mariko silently counted. Fumiko seemed to realize what her friend was saying and was struggling to make a choice. Hopping from one foot to another in a strange dance Fumiko made her choice.

"Wait Mariko! Don't leave me!" She cried out as she followed her friend into the darkness.

At the bottom of the rope it seemed that they had found some sort of large atrium-like cavern.

Shining their flashlights around the girls let out sounds of awe.

Tomo looked at the pile of soot she had landed in. "I don't think this is a mine, guys… I don't think gold mines would have soot like this…"

Chika nodded, "Then what is it?"

The others remained silent, unable to answer the question.

Mariko was slowly walking around with Fumiko attached to her arm like a lifeline. "Hey! You'll make me trip!"

"Sorry. Ok we've seen it, now let's go back up!" Fumiko whimpered. There was no question the poor girl was terrified, she was shaking like a leaf.

"Will you relax? We just got here, we should look around some. Don't worry Fumiko, I promise that nothings going to happen to you." The taller girl growled as she ran her free hand through her short hair.

Chika called out to her pals, "Hey! Over here! I think I found a tunnel…"

"Great! Lets go!" Tomo cheered as she followed Chika into the tunnel.

"Hey, wait up! I'm the only one who's got any experience in these outdoor things. I should be in the front!" Mariko declared as she readjusted her heavy backpack and gave Fumiko a small tug.

"Please no, Mariko!" Fumiko whined as her best friend dragged her to the front of the group.

"If you don't like it, cling to Tomo!" Mariko huffed as her friend dragged her heels.

"Yeah, cling to me crybaby!" Tomo jeered at Fumiko tugging at the shorter girl's back pack.

The girls made their way through the tunnel. Chika and Tomo were enjoying tormenting Fumiko who was now crying.

"Grr… Will you two give it a rest? She's wailing into my ears and it's freaking annoying!" Mariko snapped at the two girls.

"Sorrrryyy…. Fumiko's so easy to frighten! Maybe we should have left her back at the entrance!" Chika said in a 'cutesy' voice often used by anime characters. Her latest ambition was to be a voice actor after realizing her previous ambition of being an idol required way too much work.

"So she could wander off and get lost? Cripes she'd get eaten by a bear!" Mariko said testily.

"Hey look the tunnel leads outside. Looks like you were worried for nothing, Fumi!" Tomo stated to the girl still clinging to her best friend.

"Well, that's a letdown… It's a cliff. We have to go back…. GOD, will you stop pulling at me Fumiko! We're going to leave, so you don't have to keep tugging!" Mariko erupted at her timid best friend who was ruining this trip with her cowardice.

Fumiko only gave a strange whimper as she extended her hand to point at something.

Narrowing her eyes to see what could have possibly scared the girl now, probably a lizard. "Wha? … Where did that come from?"

There was a very old suspension bridge held up with rope. She certainly didn't remember it being there a moment ago, but then again she'd been too busy yelling at Fumiko.

Tomo moved a bit closer to Mariko, feeling a bit scared herself now. "That bridge wasn't there a moment ago, was it?"

"Well, lets goooo!" Chika declared in yet another 'cute' voice as she pumped a fist in the air, showing her enthusiasm.

Mariko gave the bridge a contemplative frown as she stared at the half rotted planks and moss growing ropes as it swayed eerily in the nearly nonexistent mountain breeze.

She may have been the one to suggest this whole adventure, but she didn't like the looks of the bridge, "Fumiko and Tomo might be right, Chi. That bridge does not look safe at all."

"Oh, come on! You said that there was supposed to be a suspension bridge that leads to the Ogress's Kiln, remember? Don't you think this might be the one?" Chika said as she took a step onto the rickety bridge. Mariko cringed as the girls' foot touched the first plank, praying to every deity that the wood would hold the high schooler's weight. When there was not so much as an ominous creak, Mariko considered that perhaps the bridge was not nearly as structurally unsound as it appeared to be.

"… You might be right. If we've come this far, we might as well keep going."

With that Mariko lead Tomo and Fumiko onto the bridge.

After a very frightening trip over a seemingly ancient bridge the four girls had made it the other side.

Tomo was now shaking in fear while Fumiko was hyperventilating. It was very dark outside now and they needed to set up camp soon.

"Come on you two. Just a bit more, and we'll set up camp. I'll make you guys some hot cocoa, won't that be nice?" Mariko led the two girls away from the bridge. At least Chika wasn't scared. That would have made it much harder for the tallest girl.

They found a nice open meadow away from the rocky precipice of the cliff where the bridge was located to set up camp. They had a camping stove in place of a fire. Not that they could have found any wood in the rocky area.

"Here you guys go." Mariko said gently to her two friends as she handed them the promised hot chocolate. Mariko was getting worried by Fumiko's behavior. The timid girl seemed to have met her terror threshold and was on the verge of a mental break down.

The girls went to sleep not long after they had discussed their plan for the next day. They would continue to search until noon, then they would go back to the entrance where Tomo had fallen through if they found nothing. They would find a place to hold their séance elsewhere.

/~/~/

"Mornin'." Mariko muttered as her wrist watched beeped. She had set the alarm for 6:30, she wanted all the time they could get to search. After rallying up her tired friends, Mariko marched them along the path they seemed to be on. Fumiko didn't seem as scared, but she figured it was because they could see the sky.

After hiking for an hour they found the end of the trail.

"Oh my God!" Tomo choked out as she stared at the megalith structure before them. Fumiko muttered softly, "This must be it. This is Onigama, the demon kiln…"

It was clearly very old

"This is great you guys! We found it! Now let's see if it's real!" Mariko laughed. The girls began to take photos of themselves next to the giant structure as proof that they had found the legendary kiln with their cell phones.

"Let's take a look at what we can find and see if we can use it!" Chika agreed with their tomboy leader.

The girls then began to search the legendary kiln for clues as to how it worked.

"So who knows the story behind this thing? Like what exactly did the stories say it could do?" Mariko called out as she looked at some strangely shaped mounds of clay nestled in a small cave like open mound next to the kiln.

Tomo recounted the tales of the kiln, "Well it was supposed to belong to an ogress who was also some sort of witch. Urasue, I think. Anyways, she specialized in creating 'spiritual ceramics'. She was able to create beings to do her bidding with this thing."

"Hey look! I found a scroll tucked away in a corner! … I can't read it, the writing style is too old… Hey Fumiko, you can read this right?" Chika asked as she motioned the timid girl over to the scroll.

"Well? Can you read it?"

"…Umm… I think so… there's a bit I don't understand, but I get the gist of what is says…" The girl muttered as she inspected the ancient writing.

"It looks like instructions… The ink is too smudged to read what it says it's for…" Fumiko said slowly as she tried her best to interpret the old scroll.

"Whoa! It must be instructions on how to work this thing! So what's it say?" Tomo asked as she looked over the girl's shoulder.

Mariko laughed, this was going to be so much fun! There was no possible way that there was any real magic right?

"This is WAY better than a séance! What do you girls think? Should we try it?" Mariko asked.

Fumiko was beginning to become curious as were the other two.

"Well it's settled, let's get started now, although it would be cooler to do it at night, we need to head home before midnight my dad'll be waiting where he dropped us off." Mariko declared in her authoritative voice.

"Ne, Fumi. What's the list of stuff?" Tomo called out as she set her bag down.

Squinting at the ancient text she supplied, "Uh, first we need to fill that casket with a potion. I bet that's in those jars over there. Next we need a ceramic figure to bring to life. Maybe we can find something, if not-you're good at pottery right, Tomo? Then we need to have the furnace lit and place the clay doll into it. After… I think it says… 45 minutes? We need to drag the figure out, and it should come to life…"

~!~!~!~

"Man this casket thing is creepy. I think there's someone's hair in there!" Chika whined as she poured in the last of the goopy green contents of the earthenware jar into the strange tub.

"You want to put your hand in that nasty stuff to get it? Wish we noticed it before we filled up the tub-thing." Tomo bantered the other girl slightly.

Chika's face immediately scrunched up in pure disgust, "Ick, no way! I'm sure it doesn't matter…"

"Hmm… Oh, Mariko- you found a doll?" Tomo asked as she looked up from the tub of nastiness. The tall girl was carefully tugging a large clay figure. It didn't look like a person, more like a vague outline of a human body.

Grunting the girl laid the large piece of clay in front of the furnace that Fumiko had managed to light. It was a bit creepy seeing as there was only the single log she had been able to find, yet it seemed like the massive contraption was fully operational with smoke billowing out.

"This was the only one I could find that didn't look broken. The directions said to put a sprig of some plant right?" Mariko asked as she carefully adjusted the clay figure into a better position near the kiln.

"Y-yeah… I think I found some over there… it looks really fresh… maybe someone still uses this thing for pottery?" Fumiko stuttered to her best friend pointing to a cloth covered bundle.

"Whoa, this is fresh. Maybe some still uses it, I'm sure they won't miss one sprig." Mariko stated as she took one of the fresh herbs, "Uh the directions said to place it here right?"

"Uh, a bit higher… Yeah."

"Well lets' fire this thing! Are there any chants we need to say? Surely we have to say some kind of spell, right?" The girl pestered her friend.

"It says something about a magic scythe." Fumiko muttered looking at the scroll while Chika and Mariko pushed the clay figure into the kiln.

"A scythe? What was this tub of … stuff for then?" Tomo asked as she crumpled her nose at the horrible stench of the green liquid.

"It doesn't really say… There's something written but I don't know how to read it…" Fumiko said as she looked at the strange tub.

Chika shrugged, "Maybe it was used for human sacrifice or something. There is some hair in there."

"Well we got 45 minutes to kill, oh but we need that scythe…" Mariko announced.

They found the scythe buried a few yards from the tub.

"Alright! Let's eat lunch and tell scary stories!" Chika cheered as she pumped a fist into the air excitedly.

"Oh no! I don't like ghost stories!" Fumiko wailed as she covered her ears.

/~/~/

Far away in the rebuilt Mushin's shrine a young woman was carrying out some fall cleaning. Kagome had realized that she hadn't cleaned her home in a very long time as she was never home. So she now had a housewife's cleaning apron over top her white miko haori.

It was very strange to see the combination of the apron and the traditional red hakamas. But this wasn't for glamour! It wasn't like anyone was going to see her. She didn't really have neighbors.

Smiling Kagome swept the traditional-like porch as Tobio scrubbed the wooden floors. He was making car noises as he ran on all fours with a washcloth in his hands.

"Doing good, Tobio!" She called out to the robot.

"Will we be done after this, Mama? That new episode of Big Mask is on at one o'clock!" Tobio reminded his mother.

Chuckling at her son's eagerness, "I know, I know! But after this our day of cleaning will be over."

Kagome actually liked Tobio's favorite show Big Mask, the main villain looked exactly like Black Jack! It was especially interesting now as they had added a new character to the show! The new character was the future queen to some far off kingdom who had hired the main character but had been kidnapped by the Black Jack-esque villain. The villain had apparently fallen in love with the woman's beauty admiring her from afar.

The villain had brainwashed the woman into being his slave and was now fighting the main characters as a villainess. The main characters have been trying to free the woman. Kagome had figured out that the royal woman had been modeled after herself so she had a somewhat personal interest in the show.

The miko was thrown from her thoughts as a surge of something pulsed around her, sending her powers flaring in defense.

Kagome gasped leaning into her broom, she felt sick. It was familiar though, she had been through this same type of sickening nausea before, but when?

Gagging Kagome fell to the ground as she vomited a strange green liquid. What in the world? She hadn't eaten anything green. Could it be her small intestines? No, this didn't have the acidic stench of bile nor did it have the consistency of chime…

Heaving large gulps of air, Kagome focused on the mystery liquid. It seemed familiar. Analyzing the fluid she couldn't be sure unless she ran some tests, but there seemed to be large pieces of plant leaves. She didn't know if she could even run the tests in her current condition.

Her heart rate was dropping and it was hard to think. She felt like she was being submerged in a liquid. A distant memory flashed before her eyes she recalled a time in her feudal adventure: she was laying in a large vat of the same mystery fluid she had just vomited, her hands were tied as a ghastly looking old crone cackled over her.

Kagome's eyes flashed in realization. Someone was trying to take her soul once more, using the method that the ogress Urasue had used to revive Kikyou!

But why? And how? Her soul couldn't be pulled from afar by simple magic and at such a distance unless… Unless the person doing this had a piece of her! She was fighting it as hard as she could, but whatever was doing this was being backed up by some serious power!

"Mama! What's wrong?!" The robot cried in alarm as his mother collapsed to the ground coughing and gagging violently.

She didn't have much time to tell the robot everything she would have liked so she spat out important words around the potion she seemed to be vomiting. "Tobio… Urasue! Demon kiln. My soul stolen. Incarnate Kikyou."

It would seem that she was being forced to vomit enough of this potion so that she would be surrounded in it. Which would allow the spell to suck her soul from her body. This was going to hurt…

Kagome felt the familiar pulse of power that seemed to cause her to loose any control over her body. Heart rate: 40 bpm and falling. Her body was now in a supine position, Kagome gave a bloodcurdling scream of pain as her soul was ripped from her body in a large display of light. The last thing she thought was 'At least the jewel is safe...'

/~/~/

The robot child was terrified out of his mind as his Mama stopped moving after the huge light left. "MAMA! What do I do!? Get up, please get up!" He shook her gently.

What could he do? His mother was a doctor but she never got sick. Did doctors have doctors? He needed help! Dashing to the phone Tobio called the only other doctor he knew of.

~!~!~!~

Pinoko was cleaning the dishes when the phone began ringing. "Sensei! The phone! The phone is ringing! Aren't you going to answer it? Why do you always do that?!"

Black Jack listened with half an ear from his rocking chair as his answering machine gave it's normal instructions.

"This is Higurashi, Tobio! I need your help! Mama won't get up! We were cleaning the house and she started vomiting and shaking! I really need your help Black Jack-sensei! Her heart is barely beating an' she's almost not breathing! I gotta call an ambulance!" With that the line went dead.

Higurashi, Tobio- Red Queen's boy if he remembered correctly. Standing up he began to pack medical supplies. Using his computer he looked up Dr. Red Queens address, he could get to Red Queen's house in a few hours if he hurried.

"Where you goin'?" Pinoko called out as she stuck her head out of the kitchen, eyes warily looking at her guardian.

"An emergency. Stay here!" Black Jack ordered with no room for argument.

!/!/

"Oh my God! Look the potion! It's disappearing!"

The girls had followed the instructions and had swung the strange scythe over the clay figure.

"What's happening?!"

The kiln was now billowing torrents of dark smoke into the sky as the flame blazed brightly.

Fumiko began to whimper as she pointed at the ground where they had dragged the clay doll out of the kiln's fire.

Mariko stared horrified as the clay began to chip away, revealing a naked woman! This wasn't supposed to be real!

The clay woman began to stand only to fall to the ground. Blank brown eyes stared emotionlessly from the collapsed woman at the four girls.

She was a zombie!

The terrified girls screamed as a torrent of light came from the sky, hitting the clay woman. The body jerked as the light went into the figure's body.

The four frightened girls were now huddled together in fear and shock as the body began to slowly twitch.

They watched in sheer unadulterated horror as pale white hands slowly and purposely made their way up to the woman's face. She seemed to be testing her new body to see if it was indeed real.

A deep frown formed on the porcelain face as she continued to touch her face. Cold brown eyes snapped open, staring accusatorily at the four girls before trying to use her voice, "W…Whyyy… Why am I here?"

The newly revived Kikyou was the exact same Kikyou that had originally been revived. She would always be stuck in the mode she had died in, a blank slate. As though the adventure of Naraku had never happened.

The spell was designed to bring a soul from the moment of her true death.

Like most potters Urasue had made a spare incase the first one had not been fired correctly in the kiln.

"Why am I here?" Kikyou repeated more forcefully at the girls as she placed her hands on the ground, preparing to lift herself up. Her movements were jerky and uncoordinated as she tried to stand. Kikyou immediately tumbled over as her trembling legs could not support her just yet.

"L-Let's get out of here!" Mariko yelled as her friends screamed as the 'zombie woman' began to rise. With that the panicked high school girls fled as quickly as they could, leaving the zombie behind.

/

The newly undead priestess could only watch as the four young women fled from her presence. 'As they would do well to do.' Contemplated Kikyou, for it was a dire crime to reanimate one such as herself.

She had been unable to sense what the women had been as her powers had yet to come back to her completely. Perhaps they had been kitsune disguised as women? The thought was plausible, as the four creatures had been dressed in the most peculiar way.

After a few moments more of contemplation she stood, having found strength in her new body. The serious women looked about her before heading in the direction she had seen the creatures that had reanimated her had gone. If their ploy was to reanimate others such as herself, it was her duty to put an end to them!

Fumiko wailed as Chika struggled to climb the rope that they had used to descend into the mine, "Hurry up! Hurry up!"

The teens scampered as quickly as they could back into the daylight.

"Oh God! Where's your dad supposed to be?!" Chika wailed as the girls stumbled through the forest desperate to find the road. The moment they spotted the vehicle the girls dove into it screaming for the man to drive.

In their haste the teenage girls left the rope tied to the tree and dangling, unwittingly giving the undead woman the means to follow them.

Kikyou walked along the strange hard black path pursuit of the four possible youkai- though she could not sense even the slightest trace of youkai.

"They must be indeed powerful." Kikyou mused to herself, for only truly powerful youkai could mask themselves from her abilities.

At first she had feared the strange black river she had come across- flaring her powers at the strange formation that was too perfect to be anything but intentional. But then she had stumbled upon the black river after tripping upon a stone. She had braced herself for something horrid- a curse perhaps. But after a moment of lying defensively she realized that the back river was constructed of black stone. Hesitantly she had set out upon it- fearing it would swallow her up or lead her somewhere undesirable.

A couple on a Sunday drive happened to be on this particular road this afternoon. They had expected a sweet afternoon filled with flirting and sweet stolen kisses. They never expected their romantic getaway would involve a naked woman standing in the middle of the road.

A distant rumbling unlike anything she had heard before filled the air. Warily she glanced upon the dark path beneath her feet, would it indeed devour her? The sound was suddenly behind her and the miko spun ready to defend herself. Kikyou stared in shock before narrowing her sharp brown eyes- to a woman who had fought demons all her life the car was a large metal demon that had devoured those people. Hesitation graced her face before she steeled her resolve.

As a priestess she was required to save them!

The couple screamed as a naked woman stood directly in the middle of the road.

"Watch out!" The wife cried to her husband as he swerved the car, slamming on the brakes, to avoid hitting the strange woman.

The woman fell back in astonishment as the strange youkai came unnerving close to striking, her powers had done nothing to slow the beast.

The man shook his head in shock at first before anger began to well up at the pedestrian.

Rolling down his window the man exclaimed, "What the Hell! What the Hell do you think you're doing in the middle of the road!?"

He was silenced by his wife as she whispered, "Oh my God! She's not wearing anything!"

And indeed, the man noticed the woman in the road was without a single stitch of clothing. The couple watched as the woman slowly picked herself up off the hard asphalt road, eyeing them warily.

"Honey she might be a rape victim!" his wife hissed at him as she clasped his forearm tightly. All the better to not get involved the man thought to himself.

Before he could stop her, his wife opened her car door and called out, "Excuse me, Miss? Are you all right? Do you need help?"

His wife turned her head sharply towards him before hissing, "Give me your jacket!"

Grudgingly he took off his jacket and offered it to his wife who snatched it up without a second thought. She approached the pale woman, holding the jacket out to her, "Here, please put this on. We'll take you to the hospital."

Kikyou took the strange garment from the woman and put it on but she could not figure out how to close the garment without a tie of some sort.

The wife watched as the strange woman struggled to place the jacket on herself properly, 'She must be very confused or dazed from her whole ordeal!'

"Let me help you." She offered gently as she proceeded to help the woman zip up the jacket.

Kikyou was very reluctant to enter the metal youkai as the woman tried to guide her into the beast through a square opening on it's side. She kept flaring her purification powers at the beast to no avail. The metal armor must have been very resistant to holy powers.

"It's okay. We won't hurt you. We just want to take you to where you can get help." The man explained from his position at the front of the youkai.

Deciding to believe the couple Kikyou allowed the wife to help her into the youkai's belly.

'I will be able to purify it much easier from the inside.' She reasoned with herself.

The stoic priestess did not allow her alarm to show on her face as the woman reached over her to place a rope like restraint across her chest and lap. Had these people tricked her? No, she could feel no ill intent from these humans.

Instead of moving back to the front seat the wife decided to sit next to the 'traumatized' victim hoping to comfort her and get as much information as she could.

"My name is Moto Mizuki and that is my husband Moto Kakeshi. What is your name, Miss?"

"My name is Kikyou." Was all Kikyou said as she watched the woman place the restraint on herself, securing it with a click.

"What is this strange beast that we now dwell within?" Kikyou inquired as the metal youkai lurched forward, picking up speed quickly.

Mizuki rose a brow at the woman's strange wording before answering, "Ah, yes this car is foreign."

Kikyou did not understand what the woman meant but decided that she must have meant the youkai called 'car' had migrated from the mainland.

The woman reached up towards the front of the 'car youkai' to grab a large cloth sack. Kikyou watched as she dug through the contents of the sack before pulling out a thin rectangular object the miko had never seen before.

"Is it all right if I call the police?"

Uncertain of what the woman was talking about Kikyou gave a small nod.

/

"Pft! Hey get a load of this! Four girls were here claiming they had gone to the demon kiln and brought a zombie back to life!" The policeman gwaffed as he finished filing the report.

"Haw-haw! They must have been drinking, kids do that." His partner replied as he continued to fill out his own reports, most notably one about a woman found naked on a certain road in the mountains...

/

Mrs. Moto helped Kikyou out of the car youkai and towards the strange white building, "They will be able to help you here."

She did not know what this place was- only that she doubted that they would have the means to hunt down the four youkai who had resurrected her if the number of ill and feeble elderly were anything to go by.

She was examined by several people and asked strange questions that made no sense to the miko. What was significant about the date of her birth? And how could one be expected to know the exact number of such a day? Perhaps her mother had known, but Kikyou only knew that she had been born in the summer.

The questions never seemed to end and she never had the chance to ask if all of these pointless questions would help her track down the youkai group who had done this to her. Eventually the questions ceased and she was placed into a chair with wheels and placed in a room. Clearly this was not helping her hunt down those youkai. After a time she decided to leave the room, she would hunt them down and then learn more of the youkai called 'car'. And how to destroy them, she had spied many of the 'car' from the window the numbers were staggering. They were surely planning an amassed attack upon this village! Her duty as a priestess must be upheld! Night fell and the miko felt pressed to move.

Kikyou stared emotionless at the strange hollow cords that had been placed in her arm. With little reservation she tore it from her and stood. She entered the hall and began to search for a way out. A sudden feeling caught her attention as she neared a door. Beyond it she found a great staircase and felt compelled to climb it. The sensation grew as she climbed ever higher, her knees felt weak as she caught a glance out the window- the height was staggering!

Panting slightly at the sight she calmed her nerves as she opened a door, eager to be away from the window though she would never admit it.

'My soul is being called… no, it's being tugged…' Kikyou realized as she neared a wooden door near the end of the hall.

There laying on the strange raised futon, was a woman who looked almost exactly like herself. Her miko powers could tell that this woman was a soulless shell.

Kikyou felt the dull thrum of her soul once again, it would seem that her soul wanted to go to this other woman. "My reincarnation?" Kikyou muttered in uncertainty. That was the only explanation for who this woman could be as she knew that her own body was one made of dust. It was distressing to know that you were dead but entirely unsettling to see the person one would be reborn as.

Dark brown eyes softened as she spotted a small figure curled into a ball on the strange seat next to the other woman.

'A little boy.' Kikyou realized as she gazed at the child.

So, her reincarnation was a mother. Unable to help herself, the undead priestess examined the child.

Her pale fingers sifted softly through the boy's dark hair, wishing that her clay body could feel the fine texture beneath her fingertips.

With a body made of clay and ashes Kikyou could not feel temperature, so she failed to notice the boy's body was ice-cold to the touch as she gingerly inspected his face. The child's face twitched slightly when Kikyou touched the small button-like nose, causing a fierce feeling to swell within the undead woman's heart.

Kikyou gave the shell of a woman on the bed a bittersweet smile, "You are truly lucky. You have what I longed for but could never have… If I had been able to be a normal woman, would my own son have been the same as yours?"

The miko mused as she glanced once again at her reincarnation's child.

"I would be a selfish monster to deprive my reincarnation of the life I, myself longed for. But my time on this Earth is over…" Kikyou whispered solemnly as bittersweet tears began to flow down her face.

"I should hate you, but I cannot. It is not your fault for having the life I wanted, no matter how I wish that it were your fault." Kikyou muttered as she approached the shell, slowly reaching for the woman's hand.

She knew that by touching this woman, her soul would return to her- ending Kikyou's short time of rebirth. Hesitantly she glanced once more at the child before carefully taking the woman's hands into her own. It almost felt like greeting an old friend as warmth rushed into her fingertips and spread upward.

A serene smile graced her face as she felt the clay body crumble.

"Kikyou…" Kagome muttered softly as she stared at the pile of dust next to her bed.

•◘○◙○◘•

Black Jack in his haste had not thought to find out which hospital Red Queen would have been taken to by ambulance and had thus been set back by a few hours in reaching her. A wave of relief hit him when he found his colleague sitting up in bed looking at a strangely large pile of dust by her bed.

Confusion was evident on her face as she took in his presence, "Black Jack-sensei?"

"The boy called my office. He said you were in dire straights." He offered as he assessed her very pale countenance, perhaps a simple case of anemia.

She cast a glance at the boy sleeping on the chair next to her before turning back to him.

A gentle smile graced her face as she gazed at him, "Thank you for coming to my aid. Though, I don't think I need it anymore."

Black Jack reluctantly nodded and turned to leave. Red Queen had a very soothing smile.

~!~!~!~

Omake

Newly released from the hospital Kagome and Tobio made their way around the town.

Kagome stepped into the small café wanting something good to eat before she and Tobio caught the bus back to her town. They would have to hike up the mountain back to the clinic from there, so she needed fuel.

They took seats and began to look through the menu.

Tobio looked in wonder at the fancy and cute deserts, "Mama, can I have a chocolate shake? Look it's got a chocolate panda on it!"

Kagome nodded absently as she scoured the menu for the most nutritionally dense thing she could find.

The bells on the café door began to ring in quick succession as high school girls began to enter, school had let out. It was a very popular café with that age group it seemed if the number of girls in uniforms was anything to go by.

Ignoring all the newcomers Kagome felt it would be wise to get her order placed before these kids started ordering- she wasn't going to wait a half an hour for food. Not when she had a bus to catch. An earsplitting scream disrupted the waiter's attempt to take her order.

"Z-ZOMBIE!" was all she heard as a leather school bag flew towards her face. It was only Tobio's quick reflexes that kept the poor doctor from having to make another trip to the hospital. He caught the bag easily and scowled at the girl who had thrown it, "Don't you be mean to my Mama!"

The waiter had also been caught unaware and had crashed into the table before falling to the ground.

The attacker and her friends began to scream as Kagome made to stand up to admonish the girls for nearly hitting her in the face. But before she could get a word out the four girls bolted, screaming about zombies.

Kagome could only gape at the girls, wondering why her life had come to this. And what was that about zombies? Blue eyes widened in realization. Had they been the ones to revive…? Surely not?

I gave myself the feels writing this! A cute Halloween chapter. I've had this in the making for a long time and finally pushed myself to complete it. If it is a little rough around the edges, please forgive me. And I'm sorry that Black Jack didn't have a huge role just yet. The whole reason I wrote this was based on a sudden musing, "What would happen if Kikyou came back again? To this time period?"

I feel like I've finally come to accept Kikyou as a character (though certainly tragic) and even gained a heartfelt insight to how she must have felt and perhaps most importantly that she still had the capacity to show compassion.

I suddenly love the idea of Kikyou being terrified of cars and 'A Youkai Called Car' sounds like an epic title for an even more epic story! If it inspires you feel free to go out into the world and write that story- bonus points if Kikyou is involved or the main character!