"I'm going with you!"

"No you are not!"

"Am too!"

"Are not!"

Fed up with the two auguring Kagome finally shouted "Lian, Inu-Yasha, be quiet you two!"

Startled the two, who had just been standing almost nose to nose, turned to look at Kagome with identical looks of surprise. Seeing the two staring at her with the same owl like stare Kagome couldn't help but laugh.

"You should see the look on your faces. It's so priceless."

Both people gave Kagome a glare then spun around back to back in a huff.

"He started it!"

"She started it!"

Spinning back to face Kagome Lian pointed to Inu-Yasha "how do you expect us to shop if we have to drag him around. He refuses to dress normal ~"

"I am dressed normal!"

Facing Inu-Yasha with a withering glare Lian said scathingly "for the warring age, not this one. Do you want to send people screaming demon all over the place?"

Seeing Inu-Yasha stand there smirking and flexing his claws Lian shook her head and placed her hand over her face. "Never mind, I forgot who or what I was talking to. Let me just put it this way, do you really want to embarrass Kagome?

Inu-Yasha opened his mouth to retort but then he closed his mouth and looked over at Kagome thoughtfully. Crossing his arms and turning his back to the girls he said " Feh, fine do whatever you want."

Watching Inu-Yasha closely Lian had seen the brief flash of disappointment go across his face as he had turned. Giving a mental sigh she thought "why do I do this to my self?"

Clapping her hands Lian said "all right let's go." Lian then grabbed Inu-Yasha's arm and started to drag him off.

Giving a startled yelp he pulled Lian to a stop and glared at her. "What do you think you're doing? I thought you didn't want me to go?"

Giving him a gentle smile she whispered "no, I just didn't want you to embarrass Kagome. Now that you said you didn't want to we are going to make sure you don't." With that said Lian began tugging on his arm again and then stopped in front of Sota's door.

Knocking on the door Lian called "hey Sota!"

Opening his door to the group outside Sota looked at Lian saying "what is it?"

"I need to borrow a hat for Inu-Yasha. A black ball cap that adjusts would be best."

Realizing that the hat was going to be used for Inu-Yasha, and it was Lian asking, Sota bounded over to his closet and began rumaging through it. After a minute or so he backed out of his closet triumphantly waving a cap just like Lian had asked for.

Taking the hat and ruffling Sota's hair Lian gave him a smile saying "thanks Sota! It's just perfect!"

Sota blushed and turned his head to the side a bit. Looking up at Lian he asked " so what are you going to do with it?"

Looking at Inu-Yasha and adjusting the size accordingly she said "just this. Inu-Yasha put your ears flat." Scowling Inu-Yasha laid his ears flat against his head. Lian reached up and put the cap backwards on his head. she then pulled some of his bangs through the hole in the front. Looking at him critically she then nodded her head "well I guess that'll have to do."

Growling Inu-Yasha swiped the hat off his head and threw it back at Lian "I won't do it."

Narrowing her eyes at him she growled "either wear it or don't come with us."

Glaring at Lian Inu-Yasha snatched the hat back from her and placed it on his head sideways.

Lian rolled her eyes and sighed in exasperation. "Stubborn pain in the ass dog demon" Lian grumbled as she yanked the hat off his head and placed it back on the way she wanted. Giving Inu-Yasha a pointed glare as his hand went to take the hat off again Lian said "ok lets go."

To Lian and Kagome's surprise Inu-Yasha behaved himself very well. After they had gotten him some normal clothes and managed to get him to wear them things went along pretty smoothly. That was until some guys tried to pick up on Kagome and Lian. Inu-Yasha had gone into a manga shop while the two girls went into a shoe store next door to get some boots. After a while Inu-Yasha began to get fidgety. He couldn't place a claw on it but for some reason he had this urge to find his two companions. As soon as he stepped out the door he saw what his instincts had been trying to tell him. Three rough looking guys had Kagome and Lian surrounded and were leering at them. That really pissed him off and he was going to let those guys know it.

"Come on babe, why don't you let us take you out to tea?" said RG #1

Lian gave Kagome a side glance making sure she was behind her and said crossly "look I already told you we were with someone."

"I don't think you're with anyone. You just think you're to good for us, right?" giving the two girls a scathing look RG #2 then nodded to RG #3.

RG #3 started to reach for Kagome and Lian placed her arm in front of her friend. "Inu-Yasha where are you?" Lian thought furiously while watching her opponents. Just as RG #3's hand was about to grasp Lian a pale hand with claws clamped around his wrist.

All three guys turned to see a very irate Inu-Yasha. Giving the punk's wrist one last squeeze, that almost broke it, Inu-Yasha shoved him towards his other two friends.

"I believe the ladies said that they were with someone already" Inu-Yasha said in a glacier tone.

RG #2 gave Inu-Yasha a assessing look. Apparently Inu-Yasha didn't seem dangerous enough because he gave a smirking grin to his buddies and nodded.

"Well it looks like they're going to be with someone new now." That was all The warning Inu-yasha needed before the leader yelled " get him!"

It was all over before you could say *fight*.

Inu-Yasha just gave the mass of twisted and groaning bodies an indifferent glare and then turned and started to walk away. Lian and Kagome hurried to catch up to him. When they all got back to Kagome's house Inu-Yasha still hadn't said a word. Both Kagome and Lian could feel that Inu-Yasha was still angry. The three silently went upstairs to Kagome's room, the two girls with all their packages, and sat down not saying a word.

Lian was about to say something when Inu-Yasha spoke.

"Why?"

The two girls looked at each other with confused looks on their faces.

"Inu-Yasha~" Kagome started to say when Inu-Yasha gave a piercing glare at Lian.

"You could've defended both Kagome and yourself easily, so why didn't you do anything?"

Kagome turned to Lian with surprise on her face. "Lian could fight, and apparently good enough to where Inu-Yasha thought she could fend for herself" Kagome thought in wonder.

Lian's face turned grief stricken and she lowered her head so that her bangs hid her face. "I didn't know."

Inu-Yasha looked at her incredulously "what do you mean you didn't know? You didn't know you could defend yourself?"

Lian shook her head mutely.

Glaring at Inu-Yasha Kagome went over to Lian, put her arms around her shoulders and said softly "what is it that you didn't know?"

In a trembling voice Lian replied "I didn't know how far I could go. I didn't know if things like this happened a lot and if you just kept ignoring them they'd leave. I don't know the rules of this place so I don't know what I can and can't do."

Lifting a tear streaked yet still defiant face towards Inu-Yasha and cried "you don't understand! If They found out that I strayed too far I could be banished for life!"

Kagome and Inu-Yasha both stared at the girl before them in shock.

Kagome gave Lian a quick squeeze and said "if *who* found out, where would you be banished from?"

Whispering Lian said "If my family found out they would banish me from my birthplace."

"How horrible" Kagome said faintly You mean your parents would forbid you from going home if you defended yourself?"

Vigorously shaking her head in denial Lian said "oh no! It's not my parents I have to worry about, it's the rest of my family."

Inu-Yasha gave a disdainful snort and said "If that's all that's stopping you then defend yourself next time. If you're dead you can't get back home any way. Just get packed you two and I'll meet you at the well." With that he turned and jumped out the window.

Getting up Kagome smiled down at Lian saying "Don't be fooled by Inu-Yasha's attitude. His family is practically the same way so he understands what you are going thru."

"What do you mean his family is the same way?"

Sighing Kagome tossed Lian her new backpack and said "I'll tell you as we pack our stuff. I don't know the whole story but I'll tell you what I can."

Kagome told Lian about Sesshomaru and Inu-Yasha to the best of her knowledge and by the time she was finished the two girls had finished packing.

"I see what you meant about our situations being similar. So the way of it is basically because Inu-Yasha is a half breed all other demons despise him and think he is weak. Also because of him being a half breed and being able to wield his fathers sword his brother wants to kill him."

"That's close enough."

"Heh, almost like Malcolm and I" Lian whispered sarcastically.

"What was that?"

Lian smiled at Kagome and shook her head "nothing but a bad memory."

"All right then let's get going" Kagome announced cheerfully.

Laughing at Kagome's exuberance Lian shook her head saying "all right miss energy let's go."

The two friends went down stairs and headed to the well where Inu-Yasha stood waiting. Kagome went into the shrine first.

Inu-Yasha and Lian just looked at each other for a moment, each one knowing what the other was going thru. During this time neither one noticed the quick flash of red that streaked across the yard to disappear into Lian's pack.

The two headed into the shrine and just as they passed through the doorway Lian gave Inu-Yasha a sad knowing smile and said "now we both understand."

Okay ladies and gents this is the fourth chapter to the story. I hope you liked it enough to go on and read the fifth chapter(once I finish writing it that is). Lian meets the rest of the cast and you get to find out what the little creature is in the next chapter! Please keep reading, and until later have a good life! Thanks! >~_^< meow.

Let us know what you think! Email us at TowerML@yahoogroups.com with "Lian" in the subject line.

***The stories, drawings, and characters created by Tower Writers belong to them, so please ask permission before using them, or at least give us credit and link to the Tower.***

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