InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Pain of Losing Another ❯ Chapter Six ( Chapter 6 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: ShadyMinion 
Meeting Touga and missing Kagome.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Drama | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 05.24.2006 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.0K | Visits: 458 | Status: Work In Progress
Meeting Touga and missing Kagome.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Drama | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 05.24.2006 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.0K | Visits: 458 | Status: Work In Progress
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Chapter Six
Touga was holding Sakuya gently by the shoulders at a respectable distance from himself. He waited until her tears had ceased falling before he led her silently to the Goshinboku. Like Kagome, Sakuya also had a special connection with the God Tree, and he hoped that by being near it Sakuya would calm down enough to listen to his explanation.
“Sakuya.” He said sternly. “It is for the best.” He enunciated carefully.
“I don’t understand.” She replied softly, her head bowed. “I know that you love your sons, but I love my children as well. I have to protect them. I won’t let my baby to be hurt again. I’m very sorry Touga-san, but I have decline any advances for Kagome’s hand. I won’t make her do something she doesn’t want to do.”
“If she accepts his offer?” Touga questioned, raising a brow.
Sakuya shook her head slowly. “She won’t. I know my baby girl. She won’t accept it.”
Tightening his grasp on her shoulders, Touga waited until Sakuya’s gaze met his own. “Sakuya, please don’t say anything until I finish. Please, just listen to me. Kagome is unwell.”
Sakuya flinched, but kept silent. Touga forged on despite his own bluntness. “I’ve seen Kagome, and I’ve seen what you’ve tried to hide from me. I understand your hesitation in telling me what happened, but you must understand, I see Kagome as my own daughter.
"I first met you and your family personally when Kagome was only four years old. I’ve been there to witness your whole family grow up. I do not wish to intrude on your family, but I want you to know that I do view your children as my own, as well. I want only the best for them. Right now, what Kagome needs the most is to heal. She won’t do that if you keep shielding her from all possible threats. She’ll only become more distant and withdrawn from you.” He said sternly, seeing realization dawning in the woman’s eyes. Then Sakuya blinked, and her gaze softened again. She rolled her shoulders with impressive ease and slipped out of the man’s grasp.
“Thank you, Touga-san. I appreciate your efforts, and I’m happy to hear that you share the same feelings as I do about Kagome, but my answer is still no. Please don’t pursue this path in helping Kagome. I feel that there is something that Kagome is not telling us, and doing what you plan to do may only aggravate her condition.” She offered him a gentle smile, her eyes watery with unshed tears. “I love all my children, and I’ll do all I can to protect them. Nothing else is more important to me than their well-being. I know you understand this and you must feel the same way about your own children. So, you’ll understand if I ask you to leave this alone.” She said softly, in a tone imploring him to agree.
“Sakuya…” He looked at the diminutive woman worriedly. “I can’t do that…”
The woman stood silently for a moment, her head bent toward the ground. Unsure as to what to say to the man, she shifted on her feet. Touga watched her motions intently, almost fearing that she would ask him to leave. After a few moments, Sakuya gently raised her eyes to his once more. “Please come inside Taisho-san. It’s quite cold out.”
Nodding with an expression akin to relief, Touga followed the woman into the house. He knew that for now, Sakuya wanted the discussion closed. They would go inside and make small talk and relieve the tension between them, but then they would reopen their discussion; him persuading her to renew the engagement and her trying to convince him that she could not.
As Sakuya slid the door closed behind them, he laid a hand onto hers. “Sakuya, I do believe we are beyond formalities. You know I don’t like repeating myself.” He said with a mock sternness.
A smile flashed briefly across her features. “Of course, Touga-san.”
If he were thirty years younger, the man would have rolled his eyes. Sometimes, he wished that the woman would be less difficult.
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Kikyou sat in Souta’s room, idly straightening out the teen‘s neglected room as she waited. Shippou kept her waiting but a few minutes before he silently appeared, closing the door almost conspiratorially behind him. “Where’s Souta?” He inquired softly.
A half-hearted grin flashed over her features. “He’s downstairs. He doesn’t need to hear this.” Kikyou replied.
Shippou nodded mutely. He sat on Souta’s desk, adjacent to the chair in which Kikyou was sitting. It was a habit they had formed some years ago. Kikyou, Shippou, and Souta would all gather in Souta’s room in a sort of mini-council. They started it when Kagome had started to become a bit reclusive after her engagement. They had simply wanted to ensure her well-being, unfortunately, they didn’t seem to have been very successful.
Still, old habits died hard, so after leaving Kagome, Kikyou checked up on Hoshimaru once more, before slipping into Souta’s room. She knew that Shippou would check the room before leaving. It would give Shippou a chance to explain things in private.
Not knowing how to start, Shippou stared at the carpet and scuffed the heel of his foot.
“Is he his child?” Kikyou asked abruptly.
Startled, Shippou whipped his head to face Kikyou, who was staring at the carpet herself.
“Yeah. He’s Sesshoumaru’s son.”
Kikyou nodded in acceptance. She had figured it so when she first saw him, but she wanted confirmation. It seemed to make things much more concrete. “She never said anything.”
Shippou shrugged. “Why would she? She never even told me until I found her in the hospital. Then again, she didn’t exactly tell me that either. She was found going into premature labor in the streets.” He said almost nonchalantly, however bitterness laced his tone.
Kikyou paled. “You didn’t know either? I thought that you had taken her away.”
Shippou shook his head, his ginger bangs swaying with the motion. “I went out to find her. It took months since Kagome had been determined to take only the most deserted and rural routes. I only found her when she was checked into a hospital. She had been found literally on the streets, on the Kumo side of Japan.”
“What?! The Kumo side???” Kikyou stared with wide incredulous eyes. “How did she get so far?” It was well known that modern Japan had been divided by the three major corporations. The Higurashi Shrine straddled the border between the Akatsune and Taisho regions. To have reached Kumo land, Kagome would have had to crossed both regions. “How did she do it alone?”
Another shrug was her answer. “Kagome can be very strong when she puts her mind to something. However, that strength was working against us that time. I can only hope to keep a closer eye on her this time.”
“I see.” Kikyou’s gaze returned to the carpet, studying the fibers with false intensity. “So, when do you plan on leaving?”
“Dawn or sooner. I’m going to take my private jet. Once it’s ready, we’ll leave.”
“I see. Would you mind if I allowed the others to stay the night. They won’t be awake to see her leave, but I’m sure it would comfort them to be able to at least stay a little closer to her tonight.”
Shippou tilted his head, pondering her request. The more people there were, the more of a chance there was that they would be caught. At the same time, he understood how much Kagome was loved by all of them. He would at least, give them the hope of seeing her, spending one last night together. It was cruel and selfish of him to want to seclude her away, but he truly believed that it was the best course. “Sure. You’ll explain to them, won’t you?” The redhead asked her almost pleadingly.
“Yes, of course.” Kikyou stood suddenly and wrapped her arms around the younger boy. His lean body stiffened before he returned the embrace. “Take good care of her.”
“I will.”
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Touga was sorely disappointed at his failure of trying to sway Sakuya’s decision. She was adamant in her determination to keep refuse Kagome’s engagement. He had his own reasons for wanting to renew the engagement, and Sakuya had her reasons to disallow it. In the end, they had reached a stalemate.
Though Touga, still wished that the engagement be brought to Kagome’s attention. He understood Sakuya’s determination; she didn’t want her daughter to get hurt again. However, it was Touga’s observation that Kagome had suffered so much under Sesshoumaru’s poor treatment of her. He had thought that it would have been best if Kagome would at least see that not only did Sesshoumaru not think poorly of her at all, but that he desperately wanted her back.
Still, Sakuya had not wanted to risk further harm to Kagome. Understanding her point of view, Touga accepted her decision for the meantime, and took his leave.
On his way out, Touga noticed that Sesshoumaru’s car was still parked in the lot by the base of the stairs, but he had not seen his son inside the house. Curious, he decided to rent a hotel room nearby so he could at least observe the happenings at the shrine. His home was across town, and he preferred to stay a bit closer, just this one night. First meetings generally were the most fragile and could lead to volatile reactions. He hoped that his sons would behave better than what he had already seen. He wanted to keep closer tabs on the Higurashi family. He held them very dearly, and considered them his own family. He wouldn't want to hurt them again, even indirectly.
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Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku were a bit surprised by Kikyou’s invitation for them to stay the night, but they happily agreed. The living room was promptly transformed to accommodate them. Four futons were rolled out on the floor in pairs. It was decided that the girls would sleep side-by-side, and the guys would sleep across from them. The arrangement was more for Sango’s sake than anything else for as she carefully put it, “Miroku has the worst sleeping habits if he’s next to a girl.” Realizing that she spoke from personal experience, Inuyasha and Kikyou readily agreed that the guys and girls would sleep separately, much to Miroku’s chagrin.
Souta and Shippou had already been tucked in, though the two teenage boys had insisted that they were old enough to decide their own bedtime. Kikyou and Sango almost giggled as Inuyasha watched with a huge grin on his face as the two were securely fastened into their respective bed and futon in Souta’s room. Kikyou gave them a wink as she left, but only Shippou would understand it.
Sango flopped happily down onto the futon and cuddled a fluffy pillow to her chest. She giggled suddenly. “It’s almost like sleepovers when we were little, ne?”
Beside her, Kikyou sat down, hugging a pillow as well. “Yeah, I kind of miss those days.” Somewhat more light-hearted at the thought that Kagome was going to be alright, even if she wasn’t with them, Kikyou tried to relax and join in the with the more cheerful mood of her companions. They all had decided that moping would accomplish little, so they would wait until tomorrow to talk things out with Kagome.
“Me too.”
Across from them, Inuyasha plopped onto his own futon. “Keh! Your girly sleepovers weren’t so great. Now, when it was just guys, that was awesome. We stayed up all night eating ice cream and popcorn, and having pillow fights.” He said with a superior tone.
Sango and Kikyou shared a look, then stared at the Taisho with eyebrows raised. “You called our sleepovers ‘girly’?” They chorused.
Inuyasha flushed immediately. “I didn’t mean it like that! I mean our pillow fights were real fights! Where we destroyed furniture and stuff!” He defended quickly.
“And that’s why you aren’t allowed anymore sleepovers, Inuyasha.” Miroku quipped while sitting on his futon beside Inuyasha, with a sigh. “Personally, I much prefer the co-ed sleepovers. There are so many more activities one can do when the gathering isn’t mono-genderic.” He said, his voice low and insinuating.
A moment later found the man face first in his futon. “Men.” Sango hissed under her breath as she went to retrieve the pillow that had gently sent said man into a peaceful slumber.
“We’re not all bad, ya know.” Inuyasha said in defense of his gender.
“No, I suppose you’re right.” Kikyou replied thoughtfully. Sango shot her a suspicious look at her tone.
“Damn straight.” Inuyasha nodded and crossed his arms.
“Shippou and Souta are perfect gentlemen.”
Inuyasha face-faulted. “Hey!! That’s not what I meant!!” He yelled.
“Shhhh, Inuyasha, there are some people in this house who are trying to sleep.” Kikyou chastised her fiancé.
Huffing maturely, Inuyasha fell on his side and pulled the blankets over his head. “Fine!” He pouted, his voice muffled by the cotton covers.
The girls snickered.
“He’s really cute like that. Just like a kid.” Sango grinned.
Kikyou gave an uncharacteristic snort. “Try being his fiancée and find out how cute you’ll find it after a week.”
The covers were thrown back as Inuyasha shot upward into a sitting position. “What’s that supposed to mean?!” He demanded. When the girls just rolled their eyes, he flipped back onto his futon with a huff.
Giggling, Sango and Kikyou tucked themselves into their own futons after turning the lights off.
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An hour had passed before Miroku stirred. He shifted and propped himself up on his elbows. Checking to make sure that the girls were indeed asleep, he nudged Inuyasha, who grunted at the movement.
“Wha..?” He slurred. “You didn’t mistake me for a girl during your night-groping, did you?” Inuyasha asked, trying to blink the sleep from his eyes.
“Kami, no. I think that would cause me trauma to grope a guy.” Miroku muttered. “I wanted to ask you, did you see Sesshoumaru leave?”
Inuyasha tilted his head. Thinking about it, he couldn’t recall Sesshoumaru actually walking out the door or saying that he was leaving at all. Not that his half-brother normally announced his leaving, but it was odd. He hadn’t seen Sesshoumaru since their father had asked to speak with him in private. Inuyasha shook his head, causing his friend to frown. “He probably left with dad, though. Don’t worry about it.” Inuyasha whispered, keeping his voice low, as to not wake up the girls.
Sango shifted, rolling onto her stomach. The guys stilled. Inuyasha had realized that Miroku must have had a good reason to wait for the girls to fall asleep before asking. He had not wanted them to be worrying needlessly. After all, those two were of the most protective of Kagome. When they didn’t show any signs of waking up, Inuyasha continued. “We were all over the house before we went to bed. I didn’t see him anywhere, and I seriously doubt that he went to bathroom for four hours. He’s probably at home crying his eyes out cuz Kagome’s here and he’s not.” Inuyasha rambled. He was babbling as Miroku’s stare became more and more incredulous.
“I’m sure.” He said softly. “Well, sorry for waking you up. Thanks.” Miroku rolled over and pulled the covers to his chin.
“Keh. Was that all.” He muttered to himself, wondering why Miroku had bothered worrying at all. Sesshoumaru was probably at home, he convinced himself, before falling asleep again.
Sango’s eyes snapped open when the even breathing of the guys reached her ears. ‘Sesshoumaru?’ It was funny, she had decided not to think of him in her anger towards the man. He had obviously hurt Kagome in ways that no one had told her about, but she had forgotten about him until Miroku had mentioned it.
Being the fiance of a renowned hentai such as Miroku had given her a sixth sense at his movements. As soon as the man had shifted, she had woken up, but had kept still, wondering what he had wanted. After hearing their brief conversation she realized herself, none of them had seen Sesshoumaru for a while. Where was he?
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Sesshoumaru lay on his side, his arms secured firmly around Kagome’s body. He spooned her form to his and gently nuzzled the top of her head. Kagome’s breaths came out rapid and shallow, with no sign of slowing down and relaxing, yet Sesshoumaru refused to loosen his grasp. He wouldn’t let her go ever again.
He pressed her form harder against his and tightened his grasp, somehow trying to reassure her, but her body remained limp and unresponsive, her breathing light and quick. She hadn’t said a word in the few hours since she had shown him her scars. She hadn’t even moved except when he had moved her.
He had tried to get her to speak, so do something. He had spoken softly, treated her as gently as he could, he had done everything he had known to do to try to reassure her of intentions, but she didn’t seem to understand, or she was unwilling to understand him. In the end, he had simply lain down and curled her body against his own. If she wouldn’t respond to him, he would just have to accept her being near him for now. There wasn’t much else he could do.
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Cold. It was cold, so very cold. Inside her chest, she felt numb; the chilling numb that she usually felt before her skin heated and tears would fall, but they didn’t this time. It was just cold.
The chill slid down to her stomach and settled. It felt like she had swallowed something terrible, but she couldn’t bring herself to throw it up. She simply lay there, unmoving. Her eyes stared blankly and blinking only rarely.
A heavy arm restrained her movement. She barely registered it. She was waiting. The room had darkened, the moon hidden behind thick clouds and no longer able to illuminate the room through the thinly veiled windows. Kagome waited for the breath at her neck to deepen and even out, for the grasp around her body to slacken, and for mostly, the feeling that she knew she would get when Sesshoumaru fell asleep.
It would be the only time Kagome felt somewhat safe. Unknown to most people, Sesshoumaru was an intensely heavy sleeper. It was assumed he slept lightly, since he was prone to awakening at the slightest of noises or movements, but it was an illusion he upheld through many catnaps. When Sesshoumaru truly fell asleep, though it did not happen often, nothing short of a nuclear blast could wake him up. It was one of the many traits Hoshimaru had inherited from his father.
Kagome blinked slowly. She felt an easing of her shoulders, as if tension were rolling away from her. She exhaled. Her back was pressed firmly against Sesshoumaru’s chest. She could easily feel the rhythm of his breathing. She shifted slightly and almost had the breath knocked out of her. Sesshoumaru’s arm constricted so tightly and so suddenly around her midsection, that the air had been forcibly expelled from her. She froze for a moment, afraid she had miscalculated, but he made no other movements.
Gingerly, she tried to lift up Sesshoumaru’s arm. Even unconscious, the man’s grip was strong, and it required more than a little effort to remove the appendage from around her body. She slid from his hold and watched briefly as his arms had tried to regain the semblance of clasping something like before, but only found empty space. He seemed to grimace in his sleep. Realizing that Sesshoumaru must have been disgusted to have been holding her, even if he had been sleeping, she hurried away from him. Kagome went to her desk and pulled out a stationary. She hastily scribbled out two notes, slipping one onto the pillow beside Sesshoumaru’s head, and taking the other one with her.
Kagome delivered her aecond note and slipped soundlessly out of the house. Everyone was tired, whether it was the stress or the day, or the soothing nostalgic feeling one go from being within Higurashi Shrine, everyone slept soundly, and so it was that not a single soul within the shrine noticed when Kagome crept out of the house, across the grounds, and disappeared down the steps.
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Slowly, golden eyes cracked to meet the sparse light of the rising sun filtering in through curtained windows. The sun had barely begun to rise, but with his sensitive eyes, it was already too bright. Silently grumbling to himself, Sesshoumaru rolled onto his side and threw his arm around air. Grasping at nothing where something should have been, Sesshoumaru sat up quickly.
At that moment, before Sesshoumaru could fully understand the situation, Shippou soundless opened the door, and froze. Golden eyes meeting emerald, the two men stared at each other in shock and surprise. The sound of the door clicking shut behind Shippou shattered their standstill.
“You!! Where’s Kagome?!” Shippou demanded, rage and fear filling his features.
Sesshoumaru’s eyes widened. He placed his hand on the mattress to push himself off the bed when he heard a crunching sound. Looking down, he saw a slip of white paper crushed beneath his fingers. A sense of dread instantly sent his stomach plummeting as he slowly lifted the paper to his eyes.
“What is that??” Panicking would do him no good, Shippou knew this, but still, he couldn’t contain the emotion. Every motion the man made caused his hair to stand on end. Now Sesshoumaru was staring at a slip of white paper with a bewildered expression on his face.
“No…” The tortured noise came out of Sesshoumaru’s throat, sounding like a strangled moan. “She can’t…”
Fear dictating his every move, Shippou leapt forward, feeling like his heart had stopped, and snatched the note from Sesshoumaru’s limp grasp. His emerald eyes faded into a dull tarnished cobalt as he read Kagome’s neat handwriting: I’m sorry.
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Chapter Six
Touga was holding Sakuya gently by the shoulders at a respectable distance from himself. He waited until her tears had ceased falling before he led her silently to the Goshinboku. Like Kagome, Sakuya also had a special connection with the God Tree, and he hoped that by being near it Sakuya would calm down enough to listen to his explanation.
“Sakuya.” He said sternly. “It is for the best.” He enunciated carefully.
“I don’t understand.” She replied softly, her head bowed. “I know that you love your sons, but I love my children as well. I have to protect them. I won’t let my baby to be hurt again. I’m very sorry Touga-san, but I have decline any advances for Kagome’s hand. I won’t make her do something she doesn’t want to do.”
“If she accepts his offer?” Touga questioned, raising a brow.
Sakuya shook her head slowly. “She won’t. I know my baby girl. She won’t accept it.”
Tightening his grasp on her shoulders, Touga waited until Sakuya’s gaze met his own. “Sakuya, please don’t say anything until I finish. Please, just listen to me. Kagome is unwell.”
Sakuya flinched, but kept silent. Touga forged on despite his own bluntness. “I’ve seen Kagome, and I’ve seen what you’ve tried to hide from me. I understand your hesitation in telling me what happened, but you must understand, I see Kagome as my own daughter.
"I first met you and your family personally when Kagome was only four years old. I’ve been there to witness your whole family grow up. I do not wish to intrude on your family, but I want you to know that I do view your children as my own, as well. I want only the best for them. Right now, what Kagome needs the most is to heal. She won’t do that if you keep shielding her from all possible threats. She’ll only become more distant and withdrawn from you.” He said sternly, seeing realization dawning in the woman’s eyes. Then Sakuya blinked, and her gaze softened again. She rolled her shoulders with impressive ease and slipped out of the man’s grasp.
“Thank you, Touga-san. I appreciate your efforts, and I’m happy to hear that you share the same feelings as I do about Kagome, but my answer is still no. Please don’t pursue this path in helping Kagome. I feel that there is something that Kagome is not telling us, and doing what you plan to do may only aggravate her condition.” She offered him a gentle smile, her eyes watery with unshed tears. “I love all my children, and I’ll do all I can to protect them. Nothing else is more important to me than their well-being. I know you understand this and you must feel the same way about your own children. So, you’ll understand if I ask you to leave this alone.” She said softly, in a tone imploring him to agree.
“Sakuya…” He looked at the diminutive woman worriedly. “I can’t do that…”
The woman stood silently for a moment, her head bent toward the ground. Unsure as to what to say to the man, she shifted on her feet. Touga watched her motions intently, almost fearing that she would ask him to leave. After a few moments, Sakuya gently raised her eyes to his once more. “Please come inside Taisho-san. It’s quite cold out.”
Nodding with an expression akin to relief, Touga followed the woman into the house. He knew that for now, Sakuya wanted the discussion closed. They would go inside and make small talk and relieve the tension between them, but then they would reopen their discussion; him persuading her to renew the engagement and her trying to convince him that she could not.
As Sakuya slid the door closed behind them, he laid a hand onto hers. “Sakuya, I do believe we are beyond formalities. You know I don’t like repeating myself.” He said with a mock sternness.
A smile flashed briefly across her features. “Of course, Touga-san.”
If he were thirty years younger, the man would have rolled his eyes. Sometimes, he wished that the woman would be less difficult.
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Kikyou sat in Souta’s room, idly straightening out the teen‘s neglected room as she waited. Shippou kept her waiting but a few minutes before he silently appeared, closing the door almost conspiratorially behind him. “Where’s Souta?” He inquired softly.
A half-hearted grin flashed over her features. “He’s downstairs. He doesn’t need to hear this.” Kikyou replied.
Shippou nodded mutely. He sat on Souta’s desk, adjacent to the chair in which Kikyou was sitting. It was a habit they had formed some years ago. Kikyou, Shippou, and Souta would all gather in Souta’s room in a sort of mini-council. They started it when Kagome had started to become a bit reclusive after her engagement. They had simply wanted to ensure her well-being, unfortunately, they didn’t seem to have been very successful.
Still, old habits died hard, so after leaving Kagome, Kikyou checked up on Hoshimaru once more, before slipping into Souta’s room. She knew that Shippou would check the room before leaving. It would give Shippou a chance to explain things in private.
Not knowing how to start, Shippou stared at the carpet and scuffed the heel of his foot.
“Is he his child?” Kikyou asked abruptly.
Startled, Shippou whipped his head to face Kikyou, who was staring at the carpet herself.
“Yeah. He’s Sesshoumaru’s son.”
Kikyou nodded in acceptance. She had figured it so when she first saw him, but she wanted confirmation. It seemed to make things much more concrete. “She never said anything.”
Shippou shrugged. “Why would she? She never even told me until I found her in the hospital. Then again, she didn’t exactly tell me that either. She was found going into premature labor in the streets.” He said almost nonchalantly, however bitterness laced his tone.
Kikyou paled. “You didn’t know either? I thought that you had taken her away.”
Shippou shook his head, his ginger bangs swaying with the motion. “I went out to find her. It took months since Kagome had been determined to take only the most deserted and rural routes. I only found her when she was checked into a hospital. She had been found literally on the streets, on the Kumo side of Japan.”
“What?! The Kumo side???” Kikyou stared with wide incredulous eyes. “How did she get so far?” It was well known that modern Japan had been divided by the three major corporations. The Higurashi Shrine straddled the border between the Akatsune and Taisho regions. To have reached Kumo land, Kagome would have had to crossed both regions. “How did she do it alone?”
Another shrug was her answer. “Kagome can be very strong when she puts her mind to something. However, that strength was working against us that time. I can only hope to keep a closer eye on her this time.”
“I see.” Kikyou’s gaze returned to the carpet, studying the fibers with false intensity. “So, when do you plan on leaving?”
“Dawn or sooner. I’m going to take my private jet. Once it’s ready, we’ll leave.”
“I see. Would you mind if I allowed the others to stay the night. They won’t be awake to see her leave, but I’m sure it would comfort them to be able to at least stay a little closer to her tonight.”
Shippou tilted his head, pondering her request. The more people there were, the more of a chance there was that they would be caught. At the same time, he understood how much Kagome was loved by all of them. He would at least, give them the hope of seeing her, spending one last night together. It was cruel and selfish of him to want to seclude her away, but he truly believed that it was the best course. “Sure. You’ll explain to them, won’t you?” The redhead asked her almost pleadingly.
“Yes, of course.” Kikyou stood suddenly and wrapped her arms around the younger boy. His lean body stiffened before he returned the embrace. “Take good care of her.”
“I will.”
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Touga was sorely disappointed at his failure of trying to sway Sakuya’s decision. She was adamant in her determination to keep refuse Kagome’s engagement. He had his own reasons for wanting to renew the engagement, and Sakuya had her reasons to disallow it. In the end, they had reached a stalemate.
Though Touga, still wished that the engagement be brought to Kagome’s attention. He understood Sakuya’s determination; she didn’t want her daughter to get hurt again. However, it was Touga’s observation that Kagome had suffered so much under Sesshoumaru’s poor treatment of her. He had thought that it would have been best if Kagome would at least see that not only did Sesshoumaru not think poorly of her at all, but that he desperately wanted her back.
Still, Sakuya had not wanted to risk further harm to Kagome. Understanding her point of view, Touga accepted her decision for the meantime, and took his leave.
On his way out, Touga noticed that Sesshoumaru’s car was still parked in the lot by the base of the stairs, but he had not seen his son inside the house. Curious, he decided to rent a hotel room nearby so he could at least observe the happenings at the shrine. His home was across town, and he preferred to stay a bit closer, just this one night. First meetings generally were the most fragile and could lead to volatile reactions. He hoped that his sons would behave better than what he had already seen. He wanted to keep closer tabs on the Higurashi family. He held them very dearly, and considered them his own family. He wouldn't want to hurt them again, even indirectly.
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Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku were a bit surprised by Kikyou’s invitation for them to stay the night, but they happily agreed. The living room was promptly transformed to accommodate them. Four futons were rolled out on the floor in pairs. It was decided that the girls would sleep side-by-side, and the guys would sleep across from them. The arrangement was more for Sango’s sake than anything else for as she carefully put it, “Miroku has the worst sleeping habits if he’s next to a girl.” Realizing that she spoke from personal experience, Inuyasha and Kikyou readily agreed that the guys and girls would sleep separately, much to Miroku’s chagrin.
Souta and Shippou had already been tucked in, though the two teenage boys had insisted that they were old enough to decide their own bedtime. Kikyou and Sango almost giggled as Inuyasha watched with a huge grin on his face as the two were securely fastened into their respective bed and futon in Souta’s room. Kikyou gave them a wink as she left, but only Shippou would understand it.
Sango flopped happily down onto the futon and cuddled a fluffy pillow to her chest. She giggled suddenly. “It’s almost like sleepovers when we were little, ne?”
Beside her, Kikyou sat down, hugging a pillow as well. “Yeah, I kind of miss those days.” Somewhat more light-hearted at the thought that Kagome was going to be alright, even if she wasn’t with them, Kikyou tried to relax and join in the with the more cheerful mood of her companions. They all had decided that moping would accomplish little, so they would wait until tomorrow to talk things out with Kagome.
“Me too.”
Across from them, Inuyasha plopped onto his own futon. “Keh! Your girly sleepovers weren’t so great. Now, when it was just guys, that was awesome. We stayed up all night eating ice cream and popcorn, and having pillow fights.” He said with a superior tone.
Sango and Kikyou shared a look, then stared at the Taisho with eyebrows raised. “You called our sleepovers ‘girly’?” They chorused.
Inuyasha flushed immediately. “I didn’t mean it like that! I mean our pillow fights were real fights! Where we destroyed furniture and stuff!” He defended quickly.
“And that’s why you aren’t allowed anymore sleepovers, Inuyasha.” Miroku quipped while sitting on his futon beside Inuyasha, with a sigh. “Personally, I much prefer the co-ed sleepovers. There are so many more activities one can do when the gathering isn’t mono-genderic.” He said, his voice low and insinuating.
A moment later found the man face first in his futon. “Men.” Sango hissed under her breath as she went to retrieve the pillow that had gently sent said man into a peaceful slumber.
“We’re not all bad, ya know.” Inuyasha said in defense of his gender.
“No, I suppose you’re right.” Kikyou replied thoughtfully. Sango shot her a suspicious look at her tone.
“Damn straight.” Inuyasha nodded and crossed his arms.
“Shippou and Souta are perfect gentlemen.”
Inuyasha face-faulted. “Hey!! That’s not what I meant!!” He yelled.
“Shhhh, Inuyasha, there are some people in this house who are trying to sleep.” Kikyou chastised her fiancé.
Huffing maturely, Inuyasha fell on his side and pulled the blankets over his head. “Fine!” He pouted, his voice muffled by the cotton covers.
The girls snickered.
“He’s really cute like that. Just like a kid.” Sango grinned.
Kikyou gave an uncharacteristic snort. “Try being his fiancée and find out how cute you’ll find it after a week.”
The covers were thrown back as Inuyasha shot upward into a sitting position. “What’s that supposed to mean?!” He demanded. When the girls just rolled their eyes, he flipped back onto his futon with a huff.
Giggling, Sango and Kikyou tucked themselves into their own futons after turning the lights off.
-:- -:- -:-
An hour had passed before Miroku stirred. He shifted and propped himself up on his elbows. Checking to make sure that the girls were indeed asleep, he nudged Inuyasha, who grunted at the movement.
“Wha..?” He slurred. “You didn’t mistake me for a girl during your night-groping, did you?” Inuyasha asked, trying to blink the sleep from his eyes.
“Kami, no. I think that would cause me trauma to grope a guy.” Miroku muttered. “I wanted to ask you, did you see Sesshoumaru leave?”
Inuyasha tilted his head. Thinking about it, he couldn’t recall Sesshoumaru actually walking out the door or saying that he was leaving at all. Not that his half-brother normally announced his leaving, but it was odd. He hadn’t seen Sesshoumaru since their father had asked to speak with him in private. Inuyasha shook his head, causing his friend to frown. “He probably left with dad, though. Don’t worry about it.” Inuyasha whispered, keeping his voice low, as to not wake up the girls.
Sango shifted, rolling onto her stomach. The guys stilled. Inuyasha had realized that Miroku must have had a good reason to wait for the girls to fall asleep before asking. He had not wanted them to be worrying needlessly. After all, those two were of the most protective of Kagome. When they didn’t show any signs of waking up, Inuyasha continued. “We were all over the house before we went to bed. I didn’t see him anywhere, and I seriously doubt that he went to bathroom for four hours. He’s probably at home crying his eyes out cuz Kagome’s here and he’s not.” Inuyasha rambled. He was babbling as Miroku’s stare became more and more incredulous.
“I’m sure.” He said softly. “Well, sorry for waking you up. Thanks.” Miroku rolled over and pulled the covers to his chin.
“Keh. Was that all.” He muttered to himself, wondering why Miroku had bothered worrying at all. Sesshoumaru was probably at home, he convinced himself, before falling asleep again.
Sango’s eyes snapped open when the even breathing of the guys reached her ears. ‘Sesshoumaru?’ It was funny, she had decided not to think of him in her anger towards the man. He had obviously hurt Kagome in ways that no one had told her about, but she had forgotten about him until Miroku had mentioned it.
Being the fiance of a renowned hentai such as Miroku had given her a sixth sense at his movements. As soon as the man had shifted, she had woken up, but had kept still, wondering what he had wanted. After hearing their brief conversation she realized herself, none of them had seen Sesshoumaru for a while. Where was he?
-:- -:- -:-
Sesshoumaru lay on his side, his arms secured firmly around Kagome’s body. He spooned her form to his and gently nuzzled the top of her head. Kagome’s breaths came out rapid and shallow, with no sign of slowing down and relaxing, yet Sesshoumaru refused to loosen his grasp. He wouldn’t let her go ever again.
He pressed her form harder against his and tightened his grasp, somehow trying to reassure her, but her body remained limp and unresponsive, her breathing light and quick. She hadn’t said a word in the few hours since she had shown him her scars. She hadn’t even moved except when he had moved her.
He had tried to get her to speak, so do something. He had spoken softly, treated her as gently as he could, he had done everything he had known to do to try to reassure her of intentions, but she didn’t seem to understand, or she was unwilling to understand him. In the end, he had simply lain down and curled her body against his own. If she wouldn’t respond to him, he would just have to accept her being near him for now. There wasn’t much else he could do.
-:- -:- -:-
Cold. It was cold, so very cold. Inside her chest, she felt numb; the chilling numb that she usually felt before her skin heated and tears would fall, but they didn’t this time. It was just cold.
The chill slid down to her stomach and settled. It felt like she had swallowed something terrible, but she couldn’t bring herself to throw it up. She simply lay there, unmoving. Her eyes stared blankly and blinking only rarely.
A heavy arm restrained her movement. She barely registered it. She was waiting. The room had darkened, the moon hidden behind thick clouds and no longer able to illuminate the room through the thinly veiled windows. Kagome waited for the breath at her neck to deepen and even out, for the grasp around her body to slacken, and for mostly, the feeling that she knew she would get when Sesshoumaru fell asleep.
It would be the only time Kagome felt somewhat safe. Unknown to most people, Sesshoumaru was an intensely heavy sleeper. It was assumed he slept lightly, since he was prone to awakening at the slightest of noises or movements, but it was an illusion he upheld through many catnaps. When Sesshoumaru truly fell asleep, though it did not happen often, nothing short of a nuclear blast could wake him up. It was one of the many traits Hoshimaru had inherited from his father.
Kagome blinked slowly. She felt an easing of her shoulders, as if tension were rolling away from her. She exhaled. Her back was pressed firmly against Sesshoumaru’s chest. She could easily feel the rhythm of his breathing. She shifted slightly and almost had the breath knocked out of her. Sesshoumaru’s arm constricted so tightly and so suddenly around her midsection, that the air had been forcibly expelled from her. She froze for a moment, afraid she had miscalculated, but he made no other movements.
Gingerly, she tried to lift up Sesshoumaru’s arm. Even unconscious, the man’s grip was strong, and it required more than a little effort to remove the appendage from around her body. She slid from his hold and watched briefly as his arms had tried to regain the semblance of clasping something like before, but only found empty space. He seemed to grimace in his sleep. Realizing that Sesshoumaru must have been disgusted to have been holding her, even if he had been sleeping, she hurried away from him. Kagome went to her desk and pulled out a stationary. She hastily scribbled out two notes, slipping one onto the pillow beside Sesshoumaru’s head, and taking the other one with her.
Kagome delivered her aecond note and slipped soundlessly out of the house. Everyone was tired, whether it was the stress or the day, or the soothing nostalgic feeling one go from being within Higurashi Shrine, everyone slept soundly, and so it was that not a single soul within the shrine noticed when Kagome crept out of the house, across the grounds, and disappeared down the steps.
-:- -:- -:-
Slowly, golden eyes cracked to meet the sparse light of the rising sun filtering in through curtained windows. The sun had barely begun to rise, but with his sensitive eyes, it was already too bright. Silently grumbling to himself, Sesshoumaru rolled onto his side and threw his arm around air. Grasping at nothing where something should have been, Sesshoumaru sat up quickly.
At that moment, before Sesshoumaru could fully understand the situation, Shippou soundless opened the door, and froze. Golden eyes meeting emerald, the two men stared at each other in shock and surprise. The sound of the door clicking shut behind Shippou shattered their standstill.
“You!! Where’s Kagome?!” Shippou demanded, rage and fear filling his features.
Sesshoumaru’s eyes widened. He placed his hand on the mattress to push himself off the bed when he heard a crunching sound. Looking down, he saw a slip of white paper crushed beneath his fingers. A sense of dread instantly sent his stomach plummeting as he slowly lifted the paper to his eyes.
“What is that??” Panicking would do him no good, Shippou knew this, but still, he couldn’t contain the emotion. Every motion the man made caused his hair to stand on end. Now Sesshoumaru was staring at a slip of white paper with a bewildered expression on his face.
“No…” The tortured noise came out of Sesshoumaru’s throat, sounding like a strangled moan. “She can’t…”
Fear dictating his every move, Shippou leapt forward, feeling like his heart had stopped, and snatched the note from Sesshoumaru’s limp grasp. His emerald eyes faded into a dull tarnished cobalt as he read Kagome’s neat handwriting: I’m sorry.
-:- -:- -:-
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