InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Bliss of Nights Forgotten ❯ Group Confusion ( Chapter 12 )

By: EvilNekoEatsYourSoul

Last time: "Sesshoumaru-sama?" Rin ran towards her guardian and the woman disengaged herself from the youkai.

Feeling weak and betrayed, Kagome could do little but stand there. Yukiko's eyes, now a deep shade of green, watched her intently. Biting her lip to hold back the tears, Kagome ran past them. As soon as they were out of sight the first of many tears fell.

Chapter 12: Group Confusion

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She had long dark hair that fell in beautiful waves down her back. Her scent was something wild and fresh. Beautiful eyes conveyed one emotion as they stared up into his amber orbs; lust. It burned in her eyes and was apparent in the way she pressed her body against his. Shocked by her sudden brazenness, Sesshoumaru reacted by putting his hands on the green-eyed woman's shoulders to try and push her away. It was at that moment Kagome rounded the corner.

He froze. Their eyes met over the distance. Silence filled the hall. Even the two children had stopped their talking. Yukiko stood still beneath his hands and whispered a "uh-oh" before Rin broke the silence completely.

"Sesshoumaru-sama?" The small girl moved quickly, embracing his leg as Kagome's stare shifted to the woman beside him.

Dropping the hand of the kitsune cub, Kagome ran past them. Already Sesshoumaru could smell the salty scent of her tears down the hall. Pushing Yukiko away, he turned to go after her. But a pain filled groan stopped him as the girl slumped onto the floor clutching her head.

~*~

Pain, pure and hot consumer her heart. Blindly, she ran through the brightly lit halls not bothering to dodge obstacles. It was her own fault, she knew. She had purposely pushed him away and it had all been for nothing. In the end Inuyasha had known anyways. In the end she was still alone. More then ever she wanted to be at home; in her time with her family. Her family who loved her unconditionally and would never hurt her. Why couldn't she go home? There was nothing left for her here.

Rin, that's right. She was here to train Rin. `Leave now and you'll be nothing but Rin's teacher.' The words brought back the painful memory of that night. She had closed more then the door to his bedroom. She had closed the door on their love. And now it seemed she had closed the door to happiness as well.

With memories and tears clouding her eyes she hardly noticed when she bumped into someone. Her body was numb; the arms that were wrapped around her went unnoticed. The morning sun shining on her did nothing to warm her. But when she looked up into golden eyes framed by hair the color of platinum, she saw then.

"Sesshoumaru?" she whispered, not noticing the dog-like ears atop the silver hair or the lack of markings on his cheeks and forehead.

Not knowing what else to do the hanyou held the weeping girl until she calmed down enough to realize he was not Sesshoumaru. Then new tears came because the youkai had not come after her.

~*~

"Where did Kagome-sensei go?" the small black haired girl asked.

"I don't know, but she looked upset."

The two children were sitting in Yukiko's room where Sesshoumaru had placed the girl after she fainted. Rin was watching over the pale girl and Shippou was sitting on the floor drawing pictures with the crayons Kagome had given him earlier.

"I wonder why Sesshoumaru-sama was hugging Yukiko. . . "

The young demon looked up from his picture to frown.

"I don't know, but it sure made Kagome sad."

The two children exchanged a glance before their eyes lit up. In unison they gasped.

"Kagome likes Sesshoumaru-sama!" they said together.

On the bed the older girl groaned sitting up against the pillows. Groggily, she looked at her surroundings.

"What. . . How did I get here?" she asked.

"Sesshoumaru-sama brought you here after you fainted in the hallway." Rin offered.

Yukiko frowned.

"Fainted in the hallway?"

The two children nodded.

"After you hugged Sesshoumaru-sama."

"Hugged. . .?" Suddenly, the normally pale girl turned a deep shade of red.

"What?!?! Rin, where is Kagome?"

"I don't know, she ran away after she saw you and Sesshoumaru-sama" replied Shippou with Rin nodding beside him.

Yukiko got out of the bed, running through the door without bothering to close it. `Oh, no! What have I done? She may not show it, but I know Kagome loves Sesshoumaru; it's only obvious! Even worse, I blacked out again and I don't remember any of it. The last thing I recall was Kagome greeting her friends, and that man in the red haori looking at me. . .' She continued to run through the halls looking for Kagome, leaving the two children looking confused in her room.

~*~

Sesshoumaru followed Kagome's scent into the garden. Her friends were gathered there, looking confused. He ignored them. They were unimportant. The only thing he saw was Kagome being held by his brother.

A deep anger coursed through him and everything was red. The color of blood, his brother would be covered in it if he didn't let Kagome go right now. He had never felt this way before; this deep throbbing fire that bordered on hatred. Jealousy. `So, this is what it feels like, this emotion. Jealousy, anger, hatred they are all related, different forms of each other.'

The hanyou seemed unaware of the dark thoughts aimed at him as he continued to hold the weeping miko. Sesshoumaru glared, his fists clenched at his sides. For the first time he understood what it was like to be impulsive. He wanted to tear Inuyasha away from his Kagome, to beat the hanyou into a bloody mess, but most of all he wanted her to cling to him like that. He wanted her to come to him for comfort and to cry on his shoulder.

`You ruined any chances of that on your own' his mind said. Quickly, he shut the voice away and concentrated on the situation.

"uhh. . . Inuyasha. . . maybe you should let Kagome-sama go now. . ." Miroku said, eyeing the Western Lord warily. He had seen that look of jealousy on too many husbands' faces not to know it. It was something a playboy like him learned to recognize early on in life.

On the sidelines, Sango and Miroku wondered what had upset Kagome. Inuyasha looked just as confused as them as to what was bothering their friend, but he didn't seem uncomfortable holding her. Which only managed to anger Sesshoumaru further.

The hanyou looked up at Miroku, who glanced at Sesshoumaru, who was still glaring at Inuyasha. A growl came from the throats of both brothers. Kagome looked up at Inuyasha before turning to see Sesshoumaru. Startled, she backed away from Inuyasha and looked back and forth between the two; wondering what was happening.

The miko gasped. `My dream! This is like my dream.' Her heart rate increased along with the tension in the air. Inuyasha stood with his hand on Tetsusaiga's hilt, while Sesshoumaru was unarmed. Kagome looked at her hands, remembering that in her dream she had been holding Tenseiga. `Not exactly like my dream, then. But why is he doing this? What is Sesshoumaru thinking?'

To her right, she saw her two human friends tense. Sango was reaching for hiraikotsu and Miroku was gripping his staff. Kagome stood there helplessly. It was silent, until Yukiko came running out of the castle.

"Kagome!" the girl shouted, looking exhausted. Her eyes were once again their usual doe brown color. Simultaneously, all eyes turned to her. For the moment, the tension receded and Sesshoumaru lost the dark glint that had been clouding his eyes.

"Kagome, I didn't mean to-" looking around her, Yukiko turned crimson upon realizing all eyes were on her now. She lowered her head and looked shyly at her feet.

"Kagome, can you please. . .just let me explain it to you?" absently, the miko nodded and followed the girl to a corner of the gardens with Sesshoumaru following her.

~*~

Nervously, Yukiko stood looking at the odd couple, `a miko and a youkai, very strange indeed.' She thought, trying to calm herself before she spoke.

"What happened in the hall. . . I-" Kagome cut her off.

"Wait, Yukiko, there's nothing to explain. Anything that might have existed between us," she pointed at Sesshoumaru and herself, "is over now. I have no right to question you or Sesshoumaru."

"But, I-" again, Yukiko was interrupted, this time by Sesshoumaru.

Turning to Kagome he spoke, sounding annoyed and tired.

"Do you really think I'd lower myself to the standard of seducing a lowly hu-" he caught himself before uttering the insult, ". . . to taking advantage of this girl. She was the one who came to me, I was merely trying to push her away."

Yukiko stood there looking very confused while Kagome looked disbelievingly at Sesshoumaru. Something wasn't right here. Turning to look at the frowning girl, Kagome noticed her eyes. Something in her mind clicked.

"Yukiko, what color are your eyes? And do they ever change color?"

Her frown deepening, the girl looked into Kagome's eyes.

"Brown of course. . . and no. . . why?"

Exchanging a glance, both Sesshoumaru and Kagome nodded. There was definitely something more to this timid girl. Remembering the other day's events, another thought struck Kagome.

"The flame in the field yesterday, the energy you used to chase the youkai out of the ground. . . How did you get that power?"

Again, the girl looked genuinely confused.

"Flame? Youkai? Kagome, what are you talking about?" If Yukiko was acting, which Kagome didn't believe she was, then she was a very convincing actress.

"What do you remember about yesterday?" Sesshoumaru asked.

"Yesterday, I remember sitting out in the gardens with Rin and Kagome. Then those people came, and I was watching them when the man that looks like you, Lord Sesshoumaru, got angry and ran off. After that, I remember having one of my coughing fits, and then everything is blank."

Sesshoumaru looked into the girl's plain brown eyes, seeing nothing to indicate she was lying. He turned to look at Kagome who was giving him a look that said `What now?'

Nervously, Yukiko twisted at the sleeves of her kimono avoiding eye contact with the two.

"Sometimes," the girl began, "sometimes, I have these fainting spells and… days, some times even weeks go by and I wake up not knowing where I am. People would accuse me of doing strange things that I have no memory of. Eventually, they thought I was… possessed by a demon… That's the real reason I left… why I can't go back to my family and why I have no friends… " tears fell from the girls eyes and any anger Kagome had felt towards the girl vanished.

Taking her into a comforting embrace, Kagome soothed the girl. She felt sorry for her, she seemed so kind and yet. . . Something was plaguing her. Kagome wasn't sure what, but she was determined to find out. Feeling uncomfortable with the girl's tears, Sesshoumaru stood in the background thinking of what this could mean.

`This still doesn't explain her strange scent. . . or why her eyes change their color.' the youkai thought, distantly his mind took in the fact that the girl was coughing again. Another one of her `fits'.

"Yukiko?" Kagome called worriedly to the girl who seemed to be losing her strength.

"Yukiko!" the girl fainted, but opened her eyes before even hitting the ground. The innocent brown eyes were gone, replaced by gray ones that were filled with knowledge and wisdom. When she opened her mouth to speak, the voice was calm and soothing to hear.

"Hello," she said, "I don't believe we've met. My name is Chikako."

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