InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Beside You in Time ❯ 1692: Salem ( Chapter 8 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

The clapboard, white-washed church had so many people packed into it in May that the very walls seemed to sweat. Women touched the edge of their caps, itching to drag them off and reveal their coiled tresses. Men took deep breaths, trying to escape the tight collars and sticky breeches over their calves. A few people were weeping in corners while the rest of the villagers whispered to one another. No one laughed, and if anyone smiled, it was quickly smothered.

Kagome took her place in the second to last pew and placed her hands in her lap. "I don't want to hear anything from you this time," murmured Sesshoumaru, bending over his Bible.

"But it's barbaric," she whispered back.

"I am aware of that, but it was you that said that this is an atrocity well-known in your time. We cannot change these events. We can only observe them."

She swallowed and nodded. "I know, but something is wrong here." She turned her head, touching her chin to her shoulder. "You know, they never knew what caused this hysteria."

"Enough," Sesshoumaru hissed. "We will discuss this later. For now, you will remain silent."

A plain girl with wispy brown hair and a dirty apron paused beside their pew as the last word fell from his mouth. "Goodman Spenser, you look well," she said, a blush staining her cheeks as she curtsied. Her eyes fell to the woman at the taiyoukai's side. "Goody Spenser."

"Mary," Kagome murmured, nodding her head. When the girl didn't move on, Kagome narrowed her eyes and pivoted her shoulders so that more of the dog demon was hidden behind her. "Shouldn't you be joining the other witnesses at the front?"

Mary Warren scowled. "S'pose so," she said. "Can't let those witches get away with their evil acts." She cast one more contemptuous look towards the older, shorter woman and made her way to the front.

Sesshoumaru leaned over once again. "You should not antagonize that girl," he said. "She will turn that pack of witch-hunters against you. And you are the one person in this village that could most easily fit the description of 'witch'."

"She's after you," Kagome said, "and she sees yours truly as the sister in her way. She'll turn against me soon enough no matter what so that you can concentrate on getting yourself a wife."

Sesshoumaru scoffed. "She is a servant and a child."

"She's nineteen - older than Rin when she took her mate. Although the servant thing is a problem for you, I know." Kagome glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "Just do me a favor?"

"And what would that be?"

"If she does get me in front of these vultures, remember that blood is thicker than water." She allowed herself a tiny smile. "Even blood that we've made up."

"That," Sesshoumaru drawled, "believe I can do. Now, silence. I believe they are starting."

The whisper of cotton against rough wood pews filled the meeting house as people began to take their seats. The door at the other end opened, and the three magistrates filed into the room. At the sight of them, the villagers took a deep breath and quickened their pace. The accusers were in place at the front of the meeting house already, and the accused would be brought in momentarily. It had become a well-practiced routine already, and it would not be the last time they all gathered like this.

"The court will come to order," boomed the clerk, and the crowd fell silent. Reverend Parris rose and blessed the proceedings before the Chief Magistrate ordered that Elizabeth Howe be brought in for her trial.

A woman in her fifties entered the room, her hands in irons and with a guard at each elbow. As soon as she crossed the threshold, two girls at the front rose to their feet and screeched. Clawing at their faces, they tumbled back to the floor like heaps of drab cotton. Goodwife Howe recoiled, but the guards held her in place as the girls convulsed and screamed in front of her.

The congregation stirred to life as the doctor and a few others sprang forward to help the afflicted ones, but Kagome remained her place, her hands folded. She only watched Elizabeth, who lifted her chained hands to her head as Mercy Lewis and Mary Walcott writhed on the ground like serpents. "Look at her," she muttered to Sesshoumaru, her mouth turning down. "She knows she's lost already."

"Has she?" Sesshoumaru asked.

Kagome nodded. "I think so. I've read the list of who died, but it was so long ago."

"She has pinched me!" screamed Mary from the front. "She has choked me!"

"Who? Who has done this to you, child?" the magistrate demanded, standing up and bending over the table. His black robe flowed with movement, billowing out and making it seem as if he had black wings.

"Goody Howe! Goody Howe!" yelled Mercy.

"Oh, what idiocy!" hissed Kagome. She gripped the pew in front of her, and her knuckles turned white. "If it weren't so disgusting, I would laugh!"

Ann Putnam stood from where she had sat beside her sisters-in-sin. "Goody Howe has hurt me three times in the most wicked fashion!" she yelled, pointing to the older woman.

Kagome had always thought it impossible to hate a child, but the twelve-year-old Ann had spewed such bile over the past months, that Sesshoumaru's commands were forgotten, and the miko jumped to her feet. She felt the taiyoukai's hand wrap around her wrist in an instant. "Sesshoumaru!" she whispered, turning to him. "Please! She's lying! People have died already because of her. Don't let her do this to Goodwife Howe, too!"

"You just said that the woman dies," Sesshoumaru growled in her ear, yanking her back down to her seat. "Remain silent!"

The magistrate was demanding the same from the front of the meeting house, although it was a few moments before anyone could hear him over the din. Mercy and Mary moaned on the ground, twisting on the floorboards just as a fish does when its thrown out of the water. The doctor worried over them, as the chief magistrate asked, "Goodwife Howe, what do you say to this charge? Here are them that charge you with witchcraft."

Elizabeth tore her eyes aware from the girls that were condemning her to death and lifted her chin. Her eyes were shimmering with tears. "If it was the last moment I was to live, God knows I am innocent of any thing in this nature," she said, her voice steady.

Kagome watched the jury - twelve men that had turned their hard gazes towards the accused woman. It was Sesshoumaru that spoke though, low enough so that only she could hear it. "In their eyes, she is a witch already."

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She stood in the small clearing at the edge of the river under the gray sky. The town bridge and hill were behind her, but she didn't want to turn to see the gathering crowds. She remembered the fear that had crept down her spine when Sesshoumaru had brought her to this town, over that bridge and past that hill three years ago, before the accusations or trials had even started.

Of course, Kagome had known about Salem. After discovering her own powers, she had devoured every scrap of information about other women with similar abilities. She had to learn how to help Inuyasha, she had reasoned - her grandfather could only be counted upon for long-winded stories, and Kaede was always stuck behind in the villages when she needed guidance. But her internet searches and trips to the library had turned up more than she had learned in her world history class. When Sesshoumaru had announced the name of the town where they were going to live, she had refused to go. She suspected then what she knew now - that these atrocities against the innocent would strain all the promises she had made to herself to not interfere with history.

They both knew they would stay though. They were drawn to this awful place by forces more powerful than their own free will. It had taken more than two years, but Kagome knew the reason why. She could feel it, right here on this riverbank - a flickering in her gut, telling her that the other immortals were near. She had felt it before, but it was never so strong.

"We should go after them," Kagome said in Japanese.

Sesshoumaru came into the edge of her vision. "Yes. Now would be the time. Most of the town has shown up to watch the hangings. They will be distracted for some time."

The miko turned to look at Gallows Hill. Five nooses hung in a row, ready for the five women that would be put to death after Reverend Parris read a prayer and gave a sermon on the evil of witches and the Devil. "I hate them," she said. "Of all the horrible things we've seen, I hate them the most. Those women..."

"Were dead long ago for you," finished the taiyoukai. "Concentrate on the task at hand."

She sighed. "Fine. What do you suggest?" she asked. "It'll look a bit weird to walk around town with a sword. You can't go anywhere anymore without a dozen pairs of eyes on you."

"They will not question a pitchfork," he replied dryly, lifting the tool he held. He weighed it in his hands for a moment. "Perhaps I should go alone."

"What? Absolutely not!"

Sesshoumaru nodded towards the scene on Gallows Hill. The magistrates had arrived and were greeting the villagers as the last stragglers approached. "This is distracting you, and you cannot fight."

"I can purify them to death," she muttered. "And do you really think that I spent sixteen years in that German castle darning socks and waiting for an absentee dog demon to come and grace me with his presence?"

Sesshoumaru looked at her for a moment before frowning. "You could not have received considerable instruction. I would have known," he said, his eyes sweeping over her body. "The very way someone moves changes when you have been properly trained."

"Well, it's true that perhaps I haven't been trained by the grand masters of archery, fencing and whatnot," she muttered, "but I'm not an incompetent anymore. I won't fall on my ass or anything."

"Are you certain?"

She sent him a withering glare. "Don't be a jerk. What if you get in trouble? You might need me." At his raised eyebrow, she crossed her arms. "Well, it's possible!"

Sesshoumaru started walking back towards the bridge. "You may accompany me. Do not fail to listen to me, however. A few lessons from bored instructors decades ago hardly qualifies you to make any decisions on your own." He looked at her over his shoulder as she made an irritated sound in her throat. "Decisions regarding battle," he amended.

"That's better," she murmured, jogging a few steps to catch up with him. "And it wasn't just bored instructors. It was mostly Ranulf."

"He was a cripple."

Her jaw clenched. "He was very capable," she said. "After he heard that you hadn't given me any training, he said that I needed to know how to defend myself. He taught me a lot."

Sesshoumaru ran his tongue along the back of his teeth, trying not to rise to the bait. "I would imagine," he managed.

The loud creak of wheels sounded through the clearing, and they looked up to see the wagon rolling over the bridge. Five women were huddled in the corner, their hands shackled together. Men and women followed the wagon, crying and reaching out to the condemned. Elizabeth Howe, her hair uncovered and grayer than it had been just a few months ago, broke apart from the others and clutched at the side of her transport. "Only the Lord will judge me," she said, her voice just as steady as it was at her trial. "He will find me innocent of this!"

A man stepped forward and put his hands on hers. "Mother!" he managed before the wagon stopped and he was pushed away.

Kagome paused in her steps. Sesshoumaru took her elbow. "Time is passing. This is our opportunity," he said.

"Someone should be here that knows the truth."

He frowned as the women were dragged from the back of the wagon. "There are many people that know the truth, but they are not willing to speak and risk their own necks. Others have been accused for doing so."

"Then they're cowards! This entire town is at the mercy of vindictive, little girls!"

"It is different from an immortal's mouth. You could never die as these women will," Sesshoumaru said. He took in a breath as the five old women were placed beneath their nooses. "But I agree that only cowardice allows this to continue. The old woman is wrong. It is not their Lord that will judge them, but your history. And it will do so harshly. For now, we must act as we can."

Kagome had been to the first hanging, when only Bridget Bishop had been sentenced to die. She knew that they would take a long time to give a sermon and to try to coerce last-minute confessions from the condemned. Sesshoumaru was right - this was their chance. "They should suffer now for what they're doing," she muttered, turning and walking along with him, across the bridge and away from Gallows Hill. Reverend Parris was just starting his prayer, asking for deliverance from the five witches and their spells.

"The task at hand," Sesshoumaru said again, steering her away from the farce of justice.

"Yes. Sorry."

"You do not have to come."

Kagome gave a firm nod. "Yes, I do." She sniffed and looked up at him, clear-eyed. "I think we should try the orchard first."

They walked along the road, passing no one. Everyone in the village had gone to watch the five innocent women hang, or they were holed up in their homes, hoping no one would notice their silent rebellion. When he was convinced she would not turn back to disrupt the proceedings, Sesshoumaru released her elbow and put the pitchfork over his shoulder, marring his white collar with the dirt on its handle.

"You know," she muttered, taking off her cap and pocketing it, "those awful girls said that they see the spirits of people. What do they call them?"

"Their 'shapes'," Sesshoumaru replied.

"Do you think they've been seeing the shape-shifters?"

"It would explain some of the accusations," he agreed. "But many of the accusations have arisen in court, in fits with no one touching them. And we would have sensed their presence far sooner."

"We're not sure how their magic works yet," Kagome said. "Maybe it started as some awful prank, and the shape-shifters took advantage of it. Or they started it, and those terrible girls pushed it too far. That awful male shape-shifter would just love to be the cause of this sort of thing. And I don't think his sister has any strong affinity for humans either."

"It could be the other two that we are tracking now."

Kagome nodded. "True, but birds of a feather and all that. I hardly think the other two would be great champions of humans and their safety. Don't you think it's possible? Even probable?"

Sesshoumaru glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "It is possible," he said slowly. "Are you looking for some reason to hate them more? A reason to pin human fallacy on youkai?"

"No. No matter what those shape-shifters did, if anything, it doesn't justify this madness," Kagome replied. She took a breath, twisting her hands into her full skirt. "But it would help me, I think, to blame them for some small part of this, since I can't do anything against the humans themselves."

The orchard came into view - closely spaced rows of small apple trees that bore only the buds of fruit to come. The other immortals were here, they knew. They could feel the pull of their unwilling comrades' presence. "It is entirely probable that they had something to do with the witch hunts," Sesshoumaru murmured. He walked to the first tree and picked up the double-sided axe resting against it, handing it off to Kagome.

She knew that he had said it to encourage her determination, but it felt good to receive his affirmation. The axe was heavy in her hands, but she took it and gripped it until the wood bit into her soft palms. "Then they'll pay for that," she said.

"Good."

They stepped into the orchard together. "We have to be careful," Kagome murmured. "Goodman Endicot's house is in the middle of this piece of land."

"I don't imagine they are trying to avoid us," Sesshoumaru said. "We will find them before any human, although perhaps not before the rain finds us," he added, looking up to the sky. The clouds above were rolling up into the threatening thunderheads that suited a day like this.

Perhaps it was the thick air, but Kagome found her breathing a bit labored. She stepped closer to the taiyoukai. "They could be anywhere," she said, watching as a sparrow fluttered past their ears.

"Shape-shifters do not have complete control over their forms. They are somewhat limited in size and shape."

"They were little monkeys the first time we saw them," Kagome muttered. "I think they have considerable control."

Sesshoumaru frowned. "If you are going to create unnecessary fear within your own mind, you'll get yourself killed."

"That makes me feel better." She paused and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly.

Just as she was about to assure the still-moving Sesshoumaru that she would be alright, something moved in the periphery of her vision. The wind was picking up - she hoped that it had only been the movement of the trees. But when she turned her head, she saw the predatory, glowing eyes of a man dressed in black. He did not blink, and he did not move. He did not even bother to hide behind the tree once again. She could only see his head and his arm wrapping around the tree he stood behind, but his wide, white eyes and his maniacal smile made her heart stop cold as if he had been towering over her with all his bulk. He didn't look anything like the blond, slow-witted Englishman they had encountered in Surat, but she knew it was the same creature.

"Sesshou..."

"I see him," he said from his place ten paces ahead of her. "Don't stare. He wants you to be distracted. Kagome!"

"What?" she asked, whipping her head around to look at him.

His mouth was set in a hard line. "Concentrate. He is there to distract you from the other one." He growled deep down in his chest as she made to look back at the man. "Do not turn. Come here."

She advanced, trying to focus on Sesshoumaru's face. He seemed fine, she told herself. He was annoyed, but mostly unconcerned - at least, he looked that way. She found that her breathing became easier. "I'm sorry," she murmured when she got close to him.

Sesshoumaru took her arm and turned her around so that her back was against his chest and his arm was braced across her shoulders. She found herself staring at the brother again - he hadn't moved, except to follow her with his unblinking gaze. "Now," muttered the dog demon. He had switched to Danish - they had spent a quiet decade there and had never felt the barest twinge of the other immortals' presence. It was a difficult language, and she knew he was betting on the fact that the shape-shifters had never learned it in their travels. "I will protect you, but you will need to watch him for me. Do not get drawn in. Only watch him."

She was fairly certain that he was performing his own misdirection - he had never needed help in a battle, even to keep a look-out. Sesshoumaru didn't need to be looking at a demon to know exactly where he was. Still, Kagome felt relief wash over her at his attempt to make her focus. "Don't leave."

"No. I am only going to look for the other one."

His warmth eased away from her as quickly as it had come, but he didn't remove himself entirely. One of his clawed hands rested on her shoulder as he turned, surveying the rest of the land. Kagome did as she was asked and kept the staring demon in her sight but remained aware of the rest of her surroundings too. It was easier when Sesshoumaru was close. "See anything?" she murmured.

"Hn." He squeezed her shoulder ever so slightly. Yes, he had. "I will deal with it."

"What do I do?"

"You still have your powers, correct?"

Kagome blinked, but resisted the urge to give him an incredulous glance. "Of course. Why wouldn't I?" Images of Ranulf bloomed in her mind, but she shook the memories away - she knew she could still call her powers. She wondered what had made the taiyoukai question that fact though.

Sesshoumaru shrugged, unseen. "I was only making certain of it. I believe it's time for your friend to learn the proper etiquette about staring at females," he said. "When I release you, summon your powers and go after him."

"You think that I..."

"You can defeat a demon almost as easily I can, as long as you keep your miko powers on the surface," he said. "That is why I never felt the need to train you."

Kagome gave a small nod. "Alright. Don't go too far though."

"I will not."

His hand slipped away, and she took a breath, summoning her powers. Her skin glowed, as did the axe in her hands. Just as Sesshoumaru had strengthened her, she felt her miko abilities do the same. She could do this - she was sure of it.

There was a sound of metal hitting wood behind her, but she didn't turn. It couldn't be like last time - she couldn't get distracted by Sesshoumaru's battle. He could take care of himself. "Come on!" she growled at the brother, sounding so much like the dog demon. "Why don't you do something instead of standing there like the creep that you are?" He continued to stare as she advanced. The only thing that convinced her that it was a living creature was the soft rise and fall of his chest and the way his hand twitched over the tree bark.

It wasn't a mistake, when it happened. She couldn't help it. It was natural to keep her eyes closed for a moment longer when taking a deep breath, but he disappeared in that moment.

She stopped. It felt like something was squeezing at her heart again, and she wanted to call for Sesshoumaru. Instead, her hands tightened around the handle of the axe which was still flush with her power. Her eyes swept over the orchard and, convinced that he wasn't in front of her, Kagome began to turn in place.

The sharp pain of a foot between her shoulder blades sent her flying forward - the axe tumbled out of reach. Her powers flickered and died with her surprise. A rough pair of hands turned her over before his weight settled on her. His eyes were still glowing as his fingers wrapped around her throat and began to squeeze. "Still a pretty girl," he said, leering at her.

Kagome grimaced as she lost her breath. He was pressing down on her so close to her body, but there was a small space between their chests. She wouldn't be the helpless damsel in distress, she decided, bringing her elbow into the space. A sharp, strong jab to his solar plexus made him lose his own breath and loosen his grip. Her other elbow crossed over and rammed the demon across the jaw just as her knee came up between his legs. The shape-shifter howled and rolled off of her.

The miko righted herself in an instant and scrambled towards the axe. "Pretty," she rasped as she grabbed it, "and not so helpless."

Her powers flared to life again just as the sky opened up above the orchard and a drenching rain began to fall. The large droplets splashed on her skin and dripped into her eyes. When she wiped away the water, she saw that the demon had disappeared again. It was no real surprise - he was far quicker than she was - and she moved towards the two figures in the distance.

There was a whisper at her ear, and she swung around with the axe, making a wide arc in the air. "No one," she muttered to herself, seeing only trees. "Right. Whatever."

She walked slowly, her eyes moving from side to side and straining to see beyond her periphery. Her mind was probably playing tricks on her, she knew, but she reasoned that it was better to swing at everything real and fake than to miss the one true attack. The rain muffled everything, and her own footsteps were only betrayed by the sweeping of her sodden skirt against the grass.

Something brushed across her shoulders, just where Sesshoumaru had touched her earlier. Swinging the axe again, Kagome saw a shadow move out of the corner of her eye. "Creep!" she snapped, turning in that direction. "Just fight me!"

A long, low laugh earned another strike of her weapon - into the trunk of an apple tree.

Kagome tugged at it, but the axe was wedged into the old wood. Her fingers slipped over the wet handle, and its purification power faded without her firm touch. She stood for a moment, wondering if she should walk away from it. A demon could pull it from the tree in an instant with his superior strength, and she was loathe to hand over the weapon to her enemy. He wouldn't have to touch her if he could strike at her with that. But staying beside it could end with him retrieving it anyway, and she didn't like the look of the sharp blade that jutted out from the wood. It wouldn't be pleasant to be shoved against that.

Sesshoumaru, she decided, was her best bet. She would make a run for it - she pivoted and began to sprint.

"No, no, no, pretty girl!" the demon's voice rang out immediately.

The miko shrieked as she was jammed into a tree - it stole her breath by how much it hurt, even if it wasn't into the axe. "Get off me!" she cried, clawing at him.

He pressed her against the sharp, biting bark of the tree. Kagome tried to elbow him or knee him in the groin again, but her arms were pinned to her sides by his large hands, and it felt like he had suddenly grown extra legs - something cold and slithering was tightening around her legs and the tree. "No more of that, pretty girl," he murmured, shaking his head. For once, he was not smiling, but his eyes still bored into her like screwdrivers.

She shut her eyes and concentrated, forcing every ounce of her power to the surface of her skin. "I'm not as weak as you think!"

The demon hissed but didn't let go. "But not as strong as I am," he gritted out.

Kagome gasped for breath as his slithering appendages wound around her torso, holding her to the tree as vines had once done to Inuyasha. "I don't..."

"You think if you touched your dog demon now that he would be purified?" he snarled. His hands were skimming up her pinned arms, proving his point. "Some of us are stronger than you can ever imagine."

"Not you!"

He snickered. "Well, perhaps... you're weaker than you used to be," the demon suggested with a shrug as his hands wrapped around her neck once again.

She struggled against her bindings, but her power was failing as her lungs reached for air. The edges of her vision were beginning to blur and darken. She chanted one name in her head, over and over - Sesshoumaru.

The glowing eyes of the demon widened, and the light in them died. He looked so ordinary once the glow faded away that Kagome almost didn't realize that the coils around her were loosening and falling away. His hands fell to his sides, and he bowed his head to look at the bloodied blade that had ripped through his chest from behind him. Rain diluted its crimson color almost as fast as it flowed.

Kagome stared at the axe blade for a moment, listening to the demon gurgle on a few blood-drenched breaths. Her arms were free again, and the shape-shifter was still alive. Automatically, she brought the heel of her hand up with all of her remaining strength and heard the crunch of his nose as she shoved the cartilage up into his skull.

"Down, Kagome!"

She spun towards the tree and hunched over - the only sound in the orchard that she could hear was the squelch of an axe being removed from a chest and the heart-stopping thud of the shape-shifter's head as it fell to the ground beside her. Only when the body slumped over to the side did she hear the screeching of the other one - the sister.

"Brother!" The female shape-shifter was standing a dozen yards away, bloodied but in no mortal peril. She seemed rooted to her spot.

"Brother!" she cried again, and Kagome was reminded of the son that had followed Elizabeth Howe to Gallows Hill. She wondered if the pain was the same for both human and demon. The own feeling in her chest was something unidentifiable as she watched the sister cry out in agony. Was this how those girls felt, to see their "witches" hanged? Justified? Relieved? Proud?

Sesshoumaru hefted the axe, still dripping with the brother's blood. He was splattered in it. "Are you alright?" he asked, keeping his eyes on the other shape-shifter, but addressing Kagome.

"Yes," she said, her voice still wispy. "I will be."

The taiyoukai nodded and advanced a step towards the sister, but the movement seemed to wake her from her grief. "I'll kill you, dog demon! I will rip out your heart for this!" she cried out, skittering backwards. She finally turned, and they could see the wings sprout from her shoulder blades in the seconds before she took to the air. She let out a long, keening wail as she disappeared into the clouds.

Sesshoumaru didn't bother to follow her. He dropped the axe to the ground and looked at his companion. "We will meet her again," he said, sounding a bit tired.

Kagome nodded. "Thanks for the... Well, everything, but mostly the good timing," she said, standing straight again. She stepped over the corpse without a second glance. "Are you alright?" she asked, lifting a hand to his only visible injury - a neat little slice along his jaw. Blood was running down his throat.

"I'm fine. I am mostly bruised." His eyes fell to her throat. "As are you."

"Yeah," Kagome muttered, rubbing gently at her neck. She'd be sore for days. "He wasn't hurt by my powers, Sesshoumaru. I tried..." She kicked out at the shape-shifter's limb, and it turned, revealing the burnt skin that was ripping apart at the seams and showing the red muscle underneath. It must have been incredibly painful, and yet he hadn't let go. "It wasn't good enough," she said.

Sesshoumaru stared at the charred hand, frowning but staying silent.

"I'll do better next time," Kagome added, earning herself only a glance in her direction. His eyes were yellow, not gold - they had lost all of their shine in the last five minutes. She looked down at the severed head of the brother to get away from his strange, searching gaze, but the brother was staring at her as well. She never even knew the shape-shifter's name, she realized. "There can be only one," she murmured with an small, ironic smile.

"What do you mean?" he asked, his voice flat.

She blinked up at him. "Oh. It's from this TV show in my time. Actually, from a bit before my time. And it was a movie, now that I think about it. When I was young. Never mind," she finished, mumbling the last few words in embarrassment.

"I will do that." He looked away again and gestured to the body. "Can you purify it now?"

"Yeah, I think," she murmured. Her powers sputtered, as if the rain doused it from her fingertips, but flared as soon as Sesshoumaru gave her yet another sharp glance. In moments, the shape-shifter was nothing but a pile of ash, and the storm beat it into the ground. "Good thing I managed that. A dead body with several legs would probably fit into the whole witch theory for these people. It'd be a bit hard to explain, and I'm sure it's not in the history books."

Sesshoumaru fell back into his silent routine. The rain had washed away most of the blood, but it had also revealed the exhaustion in his face. Kagome couldn't remember a time when he looked so drained. She didn't feel much different - every drop of rain felt like another ten-ton weight upon her shoulders. They were sodden and injured, and she looked forward to nothing so much as her bed with the goose-down quilt and the warming pan between the sheets.

"Come on," she murmured. "Let's get back before anyone misses us."

They walked back towards the road at a weary pace. Sesshoumaru still said nothing, and Kagome found herself less inclined to cheery talkativeness than she had expected for the day they finally defeated one of the shape-shifters.

On the road, they found people slogging through the mud in small groups. The hanging was over - Kagome could hear whispers about how the witches had refused to confess to their crimes, even moments before their execution. She could still hear the contempt in the villagers' voices towards the executed women, but her voice refused to come to her throat to defend the dead. Her feet could only guide her home, to a little brown house set back from the main street of the village. She hated the place - it was miserable and drab inside, just like the New England winters of Salem - but at the moment, she was never so pleased to see it.

Once inside, Kagome kicked off her shoes. They were soaked through, and she probably had blisters. "I'll warm water for some baths," she said, rubbing at her neck again. "Then, I want to sleep for about a week."

Sesshoumaru didn't respond, and she looked back at him. He stood at the foot of the stairs with an expression on his face that Kagome had never seen - it almost looked like regret. "What's wrong?" she asked. Two new emotions from her companion of a century in one day was a tad startling.

"Nothing. I will wait in my room for the water," he said, mounting the stairs slowly.

Kagome watched him go upstairs before moving into the kitchen. She worried over the fire, stoking it within an inch of its life, before setting the water on and waiting for it to heat. She could hear Sesshoumaru moving around upstairs, back and forth over the floorboards until she came to the unavoidable conclusion that he was actually pacing.

She knew he wasn't concerned about the witch hunts - he really only cared about what humans did to one another when it hurt the youkai population in some way. That, of course, left the only other thing that had gone wrong that day - her own foul-up with the male shape-shifter. He had had to save her, as he always did. She had failed to successfully fend off a demon, something that she did not always fail to do.

Had the shape-shifter been right? If she summoned her energy and touched Sesshoumaru, would he be purified? Or would it be a mere annoyance? She knew that he had rebuffed several holy attacks, some by her and her friends. She had always assumed that he was particularly powerful - so many demons had fallen to her purifying touch. But it hadn't hurt the shape-shifter, or at least, it hadn't hurt him enough. Scorching a youkai's hands wasn't enough if it didn't prevent herself from getting killed with those hands. She had weakened. Or perhaps she had never been strong enough.

So was Sesshoumaru now mulling over the thought that she was useless?

She had watched the ceiling more than the pot, and the water was almost boiling over when she looked at it next. "Damn," she muttered, filling a pot with the overly warm water and grabbing a cloth before heading up the stairs.

Sesshoumaru was sitting on his bed - one of only two pieces of furniture in the room. He had stripped to the waist and had removed his shoes - she could see the bruises that littered his body. Some were so red and angry that she wondered if he had internal bleeding - not that he would ever admit it to her. He had cleaned the cut on his jaw, although she could still see the crimson line. She set down the water by the window. "It's too hot. Let it cool for a few minutes first," she said, heading back out to get her own water.

"Kagome."

She stopped in the doorway. "Yeah?"

"Thank you." He still wasn't looking at her.

She took a tentative step towards him. "Are you feeling alright, Sesshoumaru?" she asked. "Is there something I can help you with?"

He held up a hand. "I was simply thanking you for the water," he said.

Kagome frowned. "Yeah, sure. You're welcome." She sighed inwardly and cast him one more concerned glance before closing the door behind her. She went down the stairs and back into the kitchen, preparing another pot for her own bath and trying to ignore the fact that it would be awhile until she could manage to properly wash her hair. Real baths were luxuries, especially to those without servants.

Just as she draped another cloth over her arm, someone knocked at the door. "Naturally," she muttered.

"Good afternoon, Goody Spenser," said the man waiting outside when she answered. His eyes fell to her unbound hair.

She smoothed it back and twisted it over her shoulder before crossing her arms. "Good afternoon, Sheriff," said Kagome, watching the two deputies standing behind him. "What can I do for you? I was in the middle of something."

He held up a piece of parchment. "I have a warrant for your arrest," he replied, "for witchcraft. You have been accused, and the magistrates will examine you." The sigh behind his voice told her how tired he was of passing out these deadly bits of paper.

She could hear Sesshoumaru descending the steps behind her. "On what evidence?" Kagome demanded.

"A witness says that she saw you glowing with light in the orchard and making merry with a devilish creature who had no eyes."

"Making merry?" the miko growled. "You have..."

"She will go with you," Sesshoumaru interrupted, coming to the door. He put one hand on her shoulder. "We recognize the authority of the courts, although my sister is no witch. Your witness is mistaken."

The sheriff shrugged. "That's not for me to decide."

Kagome glanced at the taiyoukai at her side. He was wearing a fresh shirt, unstained by the shape-shifter's blood. She was still covered in filth. "And the warrant? It's just for me?" she asked, earning herself a sharp look from all of the men around her.

"Mary Warren was very clear. She said you were alone," said the lawman.

"Mary Warren," Kagome repeated, her voice flat. "Of course she would accuse me."

The sheriff beckoned to her. "Come, Goody Spenser. We have to take you to the jail."

Kagome spun around. "Don't let them do this, Sess..."

He grabbed her wrist before she could utter his true name. Fresh blood had appeared on his chin where he had been injured, and it was bright against his pale skin. "You will go," he said, and the sheriff reached forward and took hold of her other arm.

"Brother!" she cried, reaching out for him.

"I will get you out," Sesshoumaru said as she was pulled up on a horse in front of a deputy. "As soon as I can."

Kagome gave him a wide-eyed look. "Will you?" she asked before the horses took her away.

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The only one that woke as they slipped out of the jail was Goody Proctor, who slept lightly because of the weight of her baby and the uncomfortable floor. "Goody Spenser?" Her sallow face peeked out from between the bars that covered the cell's tiny window.

Sesshoumaru paused and frowned. He had not made a sound - not even when breaking open the lock on the door or snapping off the irons that hung heavy on Kagome's wrists. It was the miko's footfalls that had woken up the woman. "Goody Proctor," she whispered back. "We can get you out..."

"No," the taiyoukai said.

The pregnant woman was already shaking her head. "My husband is in the jail in Boston," she said. The witch hunts had gotten so bad in such a short about of time that prisoners able to travel were taken to the nearby city to await trial instead of the tiny jail of Salem Town. "I cannot leave him to face the court alone." She reached through the bars and took Kagome's hand. "But you should go. I am glad that one of us is escaping from this place."

"We should all escape," Kagome said.

"No," said Sesshoumaru again, his teeth clenched together.

Goody Proctor glanced at the dog demon. "It will be so much worse for the ones who remain in this village. They will find new victims." She shook her head. "The rest of us have already committed our souls to God, for better or for worse. But you are so young..."

Kagome wanted to protest, but Sesshoumaru's grip was strong - he was dragging her outside. "I'm sorry!" she managed to say before the door closed between them.

The guards were unconscious, slumped over at either side of the jail's entrance. "Why did you do that?" she whispered to him as they hurried down the main street of the town. It was so late that the moon had already set, but she could see faint outlines of the familiar buildings - the meetinghouse, the tavern and a few of the magistrates' houses. The unpaved road was still slippery with the day's rain, and their footsteps were muffled as they moved, hugging close to the store fronts and homes.

"Time runs short." He cut her next question off with a look. "You know we cannot interfere."

She sighed, feeling all of her strength leave her limbs. "This doesn't feel right," she murmured, closing her eyes for a moment.

"It is necessary," Sesshoumaru said.

"Right," she said. "So where is it necessary for us to go now?"

"Boston, at the moment," he replied. They followed the curve of the road out of town and through the marshy land beyond it. Sesshoumaru stopped - tiny lights were dancing in the distance on Gallows Hill. They would be seen if they continued on their path. "We will get to the southbound road through the fields," he said, turning off of the road.

She shook her head. "No. They won't tell anyone they've seen us," she said, walking forward without him. "They can't."

He frowned but rejoined her, and as they crossed the bridge, Kagome was proven right. The lanterns were set on the ground around the graves that had been dug that morning. As witches and as ex-communicants of the church, the five women had been buried a stone's throw from where they had died. It was unconsecrated ground and the ultimate dishonor.

Around each grave, two or three people worked, shoveling the dirt aside in the faint light. A horse was tied to a wagon nearby, its flat bed already prepared with proper shrouds for the corpses. They paused as Kagome and Sesshoumaru came close. "Who's that?" one asked, braver than the others.

"The Spensers," said the closest. His face was in shadow, but Kagome recognized the voice she had heard earlier that day calling for his mother - it was Elizabeth Howe's son. She didn't know that he knew their names. "You were arrested earlier today, Goody Spenser. You still in jail?"

She nodded. "And you're all still in your homes, asleep, as far as we know."

"Do you two need any help?" another asked.

"No, thank you," Kagome said. "We know where we're going."

"Good," said Elizabeth's son as he continued to dig. "It's not right for you to suffer like them. You're so young."

"We must be going," Sesshoumaru said, before Kagome could reply.

"Our condolences," Kagome said instead.

The men and women exhuming the bodies of their loved ones murmured their thanks, and they turned back to their grisly work as Kagome and Sesshoumaru continued along the road. It soon turned south towards Boston, and there was a horse tied to a fence that was saddled and ready.

She ran a hand over its flank. "We could have at least offered to help them. They offered to help us."

Sesshoumaru set his jaw. "No. Now get on the horse." He circled the beast and untied its reins before looking at her again. "I have already packed some provisions," he said, pointing to the bundle lashed to the back of the saddle. "There is a ship leaving for England at midday from Boston Harbor. Here is the money for your passage and for your necessities once you get back to Europe." He drew out a small sack of coins from his sleeve and dropped it into her palm.

She felt its weight and glanced up at him. "This isn't enough for two."

His hands wrapped around her waist and lifted her into the saddle. "No."

"Why not?" she asked, feeling her heart clench within her chest.

"I must destroy the records of our presence here," Sesshoumaru replied, releasing her waist and turning to check the horse's tack.

"But then you'll follow," Kagome said, leaning forward in the saddle. "You can make it to the harbor in time."

He took the reins and led the horse back to the road. "You know where I have kept the money and possessions we accumulated over the years," he said. "You may take whatever you wish. However much you wish."

"Sesshoumaru!" she said. "Answer me!"

He looked up at her with the gray eyes that had become almost as familiar as his golden ones over the years. "I am not coming with you," he said. "I have decided to sever our relationship and part ways."

"Why?" the miko asked, reaching down and grabbing the cloth covering his shoulder. "I told you not to make decisions for me! Why are you forcing me to leave?"

"There is no reason you need to continue in this quest with me," he replied, extricating himself from her grasp. "I have decided that I am the only one that can defeat them. Your presence is unnecessary and only succeeds in endangering your life."

Kagome gaped at him for only a moment before her expression twisted into anger. "No! You're not leaving me!" she growled. "I know I messed up today, but I can get better at it! You know I can. And besides, you saved me. That's what you promised to do - to protect me - and you did! If you're not with me, who can save me if I meet one of them again? What will happen to me then?"

"You will run," he said. "There is risk in this decision, but I have decided..."

"No," she snapped again. "Remember that you don't decide for me!"

"And so I never will again," Sesshoumaru snarled up at her. "This is my decision about the direction my life will take. It is unfortunate that it touches your life as well, but it is necessary. You will leave and go back to Europe. I will find the other three immortals and kill them myself."

"So teach me how to fight like you," she said. "Then we can kill them together. I don't see why I have to be sent off like some child! I'm not so young as everyone in this town apparently thinks I am."

"But you are a child," he growled. "I have centuries of training. You have nothing but a few lessons from a lame wolf. Those shape-shifters could tear you apart, and I have been foolish to keep you around as long as I have. Even if you somehow manage to master the sword, you will never match them or me. They are too fast and too strong. The best human swordsman in the world would fall to them. The only reason you lived today was because he was playing with you, like a cat does with a mouse. What if I had been two seconds longer in coming to your aid?"

She shook her head. "You're never late."

"Someday, I might be," he said.

"Sesshoumaru..."

"You almost died!"

The force of his roar silenced her. He glanced away for a moment, and when he turned back, he was calm and impassive as ever. "You are correct. I promised to protect you," the dog demon said. "I am the threat, and now that I have killed one of them, they will hunt me. Sending you away from me is the greatest protection I can offer. Allow me to live up to my oath."

Large tears began to fall down her cheeks. "But... I don't want to leave. I don't care about the danger."

"Do not force me to dishonor myself by breaking my promise," he said, firm but pleading.

Kagome closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. "I wouldn't do that to you," she whispered at last, "but what will I do?"

"Whatever you wish," the taiyoukai replied. "You will never have to bend to my decisions again. You may go back to Germany and take Ranulf as your mate, if you so desire."

"I don't know what I desire," the miko said. Her cheeks were shining in the starlight with her tears. "I know I'll miss you though."

Sesshoumaru bowed his head. "I will admit," he said slowly, "that you have come to be quite familiar in my life. Almost pleasantly so."

She smiled despite her crying. "Almost?"

He allowed the slightest smirk to touch his lips. "Almost." He handed the reins to her.

"I'm still angry with you for this," she said. "It hurts. You've hurt me."

"I believe such pain would only have increased the longer this was put off," he replied. "Before or after the shape-shifters were defeated, this had to happen."

Kagome nodded and leaned over before he could step away, brushing her lips across his forehead where his crescent mark would normally be. "Then I have to go. I have a boat to catch," she said as she straightened up again. "Give them hell for me."

"I will. Goodbye, Kagome."

"Goodbye, Lord Sesshoumaru," she said, swinging one foot over the horse and urging him into a fast trot.

He stood for a few moments and watched her go down the dark road. She didn't look back.

Sesshoumaru's hand passed over his heart before he turned around and headed home.

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A/N: I can hear the cry of dismay now!

A little history - all the names I used in this chapter are real, the geography is real, and (I hope) all of characters' roles are fairly accurate as well. (I didn't name the sheriff because I couldn't find his name.) Kagome and Sesshoumaru are obviously added - there were no Spensers that I found. The witch trials are so well-researched that it was impossible to find a family with little known about them that consisted of only a male and a female. Anyway, if you were wondering, Mary Warren's history after the trials is unknown, but she was actually accused of being a witch herself before she started turning on people (again). Ann Putnam, although the most prolific of the accusers, was also the only one to apologize for her actions - she died fairly young after being orphaned and left to raise nine siblings on her own. Mary Walcott got married and had several children. Mercy Lewis was a servant like Mary Warren, but I couldn't find anything about her life after the trials.

As for the accused, nineteen people died by hanging, several died in prison and one man was killed by being pressed to death by stones after refusing to enter a plea. The words Elizabeth Howe spoke in this chapter are the same ones she spoke at the trial to defend herself. Almost all of the people killed were 'objectionable' in some way - poor or old or Quakers. Elizabeth Proctor, the pregnant woman Kagome speaks with towards the end, survived because they wouldn't execute her while she was pregnant (although she was convicted of witchcraft). Her husband, John, died by hanging though. They were fine, upstanding citizens in all ways and dozens of neighbors signed a petition attesting to that fact, but it was ignored. To this day, no one knows what made those girls accuse their neighbors of witchcraft.

I should say that if you thought this chapter was at all dark or even hovering near the edge of dark, be warned of the next chapter. There's a lot of suffering on many levels. Don't say I didn't warn you.