InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Unliving ❯ Meeting ( Chapter 2 )

Well, a twelve hour flight wasn't actually her idea of fun. But she'd been through much worse. No running water, no electricity, no one that fluently spoke English, French, Spanish or Japanese… What were the odds, really?

 

 

The plane had landed on Heathrow Airport, in London, at 17:15, local time. It was a cold, rainy day in the big city, and she had an hour until the plane to Blackpool Airport was to take off. She had to eat something. Although she tried not to think about her mother while here, she simply couldn't ignore the vague familiarity with London. She had avoided it since her mother's death, she was aware of it now.

 

 

Maybe it was just too painful to recall those memories. A glimpse towards the fuming crowd waving for a taxi made the decision for her. She would eat as close to the airport as possible. So she exited the crowded place into a barely acknowledgeable rain. The drops were so soft, that she felt then like a spray on her face.

 

 

It was sort of cold, and the slight fog attested to that. The clogged up sounds were reaching her ears in a distant manner, and she felt a little out of place. Which was really strange, considering she was used to traveling. She'd thought she would feel right at home here. After all, she did live in London while still a child.

 

 

All she carried was a huge purse and the briefcase with her laptop. The other bags were in the airport's custody, to be transferred into the plane heading for Blackpool. She'd lost her bags so many times, she did not care to remember. That's why the basics were always at hand. And her laptop was a basic.

 

 

Although, she really did hope the losing-the-bags situation wasn't to repeat itself. It was awkward enough for her to face this… man, but to be left without her belongings too… She didn't want to consider that option. She would make special demands for her bags to be carefully handled.

 

 

She'll just say she has some valuable… African masks there. It wasn't like she'd never carried such things. Well, her host insisted in her taking the thing, when she'd left Africa, last year. It was strange, but the African woman really seemed to like her. Especially her violet eyes.

 

 

 

Kagome inwardly smiled and pulled her leather jacket closer to her body. She vaguely wondered if a leather jacket and worn out jeans built the proper image for who she was supposed to be. A small voice in the back of her head - which she swiftly attributed to her father - shouted that “NO! IT IS CERTAINLY NOT!”

 

 

She shrugged her shoulders, proceeding through the crowd, towards a big sign that said “Eat here!” Well, that was classy… She took another look at the street, and momentarily paused on this alien image that London was offering to her. The rain had intensified, and she could now see the steam rolling out of her mouth, in fizzy patterns, shattering into nothing. She certainly felt out of place.

 

 

`I've just expected something from this place… as if a place could remember me!” She was being ridiculous. Casting the thought aside, she entered the diner, surprisingly coming to the conclusion that it really was somewhat classy, although a little too dark, for her taste.

 

 

She took the first vacant table she could see and hoped they wouldn't take long to cook her meal.

 

 

:---:

 

 

Kagome was staring at the flight officer wide eyed and with her hands stuck on her narrow hips.

 

 

“What do you mean lost? I've told you people to take care of… Argh, never mind! Just… get them back as soon as possible, okay? Jesus Christ, of all the damn stupid things that could have…”

 

 

“Miss Higurashi?” her outburst had been interrupted by a crystalline voice from behind her. She turned around, completely ignoring the man she was yelling at one moment before, to see a blonde young woman dressed in… was that a chauffeur's uniform?

 

 

“Yes.” She responded, more surprised than anything. The woman was in her twenties and most certainly a hanyou. Her bright blonde hair was tied up and hidden in the cap, and her electric blue eyes were smiling at Kagome.

 

 

“Good evening. I will escort you to Muncaster Castle, Miss Higurashi. Will you please follow me to the car?” she gestured to the door, and Kagome took a glimpse at the poor miserable bastard panting in front of her.

 

 

“Just a minute, please.” She threw to the woman, over her shoulder. One would think she had no manners whatsoever. She was just pissed.

 

 

“Where have you sent my bags?” her violet eyes almost stabbed the poor man. She raised her eyebrows in expectance, tapping her foot against the floor. It was a nervous habit. Another one.

 

 

“Uhm… Munich.” Kagome could just kill him. She widened her eyes, took in a deep breath and decided not to commit the murder with witnesses present. She took a minute before speaking, although she was sure her left eye was twitching uncontrollably.

 

 

“Just… send them to Muncaster Castle when you get a hold of them.” she hissed.

“It will only be a day or so, we are very sorry for the…”

“Spare me.” She cut him off and returned her look to the woman.

 

 

“Let's go.” She was tired, and in no mood to hear stupid and useless apologies. The woman walked in front of her to a black Rolls Royce, parked in front of the airport's main exit.

 

 

`A day or so…' she thought, with pain. `Which means they'll eventually arrive back in two days or so…' Why was everyone this incompetent? God!

 

 

“It will take precisely twenty seven minutes to reach Muncaster at this speed, Miss Higurashi.” The strange woman's voice sounded almost ethereal. The wind splattered rain on the windshield, although it was periodically wiped clean. The hypnotic movement gave Kagome an uneasy feeling.

 

 

She raised an eyebrow, not knowing what to answer to the woman. `Precisely twenty seven minutes…' her mind echoed, and she resumed watching the splattered rain, this time on the window next to her seat.

 

 

It was already dark outside and the wind was getting stronger as they approached Ravenglass. The road was occasionally bumpy, but the car was a genuine work of art and took the shocks admirably.

 

 

A few branches from a low tree brushed against the window when the car took a turn, and the sudden noise almost made her flinch. The wind was roaring by now, and the rain poured in streams down the thick glass of her window. It was so dark, she could swear it was the middle of the night.

 

 

A look at her wrist testified that it was merely 7:34 pm. September really made it hard on the sun to light up this place. Kagome vaguely wondered how in the world was that woman making out the path.

 

 

The curvy road they were on lead them to the castle, and Kagome could not help but wonder how much of her suspicions were to be proven correct, about its Lord and master. She toyed with that thought for some time, absently looking at the raindrops gliding down the window.

 

 

As if she could read her thoughts, the young driver sparked her voice, giving Kagome a startle.

“Lord Sesshoumaru will be receiving you within an hour after your arrival, in the main hall, Miss Higurashi. I believe you will find that your quarters are well equipped with garments to replace the ones that you have been temporarily deprived of.”

 

 

Kagome could swear that this woman mocked her, as if she was sure that her clothes would not be proper to be seen by the mighty eyes of Sesshoumaru-sama. She almost huffed. Instead…

 

 

“Thank you. That is very kind of your Lord.” She didn't really know how to name him, while addressing his employee. So she went for what first popped into her mind.

 

 

Kagome really didn't have the chance to wonder why the woman would tell her such a thing, as the dark silhouette of Muncaster Castle began to take shape before her eyes.

 

 

It was a massive, gothic building, situated on a low hill and dimly lighted from the base up by a number of orange colored… no, they weren't spotlights, they were fires. The only source of light, by the way, as no other such thing reached this secluded place. She could distinguish the main entrance, placed between two tall towers, which ended in a broken arch, pointed and seemingly constantly reaching up.

 

 

The rain was still blurring her vision, and the darkness made it the more tricky to make out the castle's architectural display. She knew that gothic architecture was practically built on pointed arches and vaulted ribs, with tall structures and narrow windows, often decorated with stained glass. Some of those were obvious within Muncaster, but it seemed like the owner had brought some altering to the magnificent creation's appearance.

 

 

From what she could tell, there was some Victorian influence in the construction of the entrance, although the castle in itself was a dignified piece of ancient architecture. It must have been dated since 1200, she thought. An eerie feeling creeped up the back of her neck, as Kagome watched the still body moving closer to her. `I am moving closer to it!' she corrected herself, and swallowed the bump in her throat.

 

 

A lightning unleashed its uneven arms and plunged into the ground just outside the western wall of the castle, and her eyes caught a movement up the wall. It was like a shadow which shouldn't rightfully be there. The lightning had lit up the entire western wall. She shook her head, forcing her eyes closed.

 

 

Maybe it was just her imagination. She was tired, and the time belt was getting to her. Her heart began beating faster and faster, as if it was trying to keep pace with the wind intensifying, and the now frequent lightings wounding the black sky.

 

 

Ever so often, she could take a better look at Muncaster Castle, and when she was finally in front of the main entrance, after following a long, curvy path through what seemed to be a garden, she was almost afraid to exit the car.

 

 

The high doors opened with a heavy sound, and a pale stream of slightly orange light rushed out. A figure could be seen in the doorway, and Kagome's vision was blocked by the young woman holding up a huge umbrella for her. Kagome grabbed her briefcase and followed the woman inside.

 

 

She found that the form standing so solemnly in the doorway belonged to a fifty-some year old man who bowed and recommended himself as Ethan. Kagome figured he must be the castle's keeper, as all these residences had a key keeper, other that their master. She asked herself if a control freak such as Sesshoumaru-sama would allow that. Maybe Ethan was just there to open the door.

 

 

The hall was immense, she could barely see the ceiling, and the dim light made it even more difficult for her to analyze her surroundings. There were certainly some pointed arches sustaining the high ceiling, and ribs arched down to the floor. Tall and narrow windows, beautifully decorated in stained glass of various colors raised along the walls.

 

 

Decorations were present everywhere she looked, either carved in the walls or gracefully emerging from them, in twisted paths that seemed to cry out something… she couldn't make out what, though. The silence of the castle was stunning, so heavy and cold to her, and the sound of the storm outside, along with the lightning, filtered through the stained glass, only added to the unnatural look of this place.

 

 

A large stairway opened in front of her, elegantly separated further up in two twin arms, each reaching for their cardinal point. One to the West, the other to the East. At the point where the stairway parted, there was a huge window decorated with a painted glass, which was somewhat unusual for this place. It represented an angel, a divine figure with its wings spread in a majestic motion that almost seemed alive.

 

Her eyes were stuck on the glass painting, as the angel's gold eyes lifelessly stared back at her. His face was perfect, that pale skin looked like fine porcelain, and the silvery, long hair gave him a surreal appearance. His body, though, was terribly wounded and bleeding from every laceration. His clothes were torn and soiled, although his bare feet were not touching the ground.

 

 

Long, elegant arms spread at his sides, and the velvety white wings seemed to protect him from further spoil. A single drop of crimson blood trailed down his perfect face, from his left eye. His face was so… pained, and yet so expectant! He knew there was a force greater than his own.

 

 

Those gold eyes speared her, as a lightning flashed behind the window, making it look like the angel sparked his perfect eyes at her. Kagome let out a heavy breath of air, blinking to gain her calm back. The painting had disturbed her, although she had no idea why.

 

 

She climbed up the stairs, behind the young woman, the muffed sound of their steps on the carpet annoying her to the death. She would be resting in the Western wing, as the Lord would have it. The hallway was dim lighted and tall. Even with all the height, she still felt trapped, looking up at the windows and deciding that she will have enough of this stained glass to last her a lifetime.

 

 

The sustaining ribs crawled up the walls and culminated into the ceiling, a distant point which her eyes could not reach, mostly because of the poor lighting.

 

 

“Don't you have any electricity here?” she found herself asking the woman, not caring if it was presumptuous of her to expect modern accommodations in such an ancient place.

 

 

“Of course we do, Miss Higurashi.” She heard that strange, clear voice, all in all to jovial for her liking.

“It's just that this thunderstorm cut off the electricity and it will take until morning for the generator to be fixed. You see, there is nobody here who can do that, and no villager from Ravenglass travels here by night.”

 

 

Kagome wondered why.

“It's too far away, and secluded between these hills, you see.” Again, like she would have read her mind.

“Oh.” Was all she could word out, as the woman lead her through more dim-lighted, echoing hallways. How she hated echoing hallways!

 

 

Two heavy doors opened in front of her, and Kagome took in the sight of her chambers. `Huge.' Was what she thought of it, at first sight. But she remained silent and nodded as the woman proceeded with instructing her.

 

 

“As you've been informed, Lord Sesshoumaru will receive you in the main hall within an hour, in which he trusts you will have enough time to accommodate. You will be lead to him until you may find your own way through the castle. Proper clothing is to be found in the closet, and you are granted a personal restroom at your disposal. Any questions, Miss Higurashi?”

 

 

Her tone was unwavering, polite, but slightly condescending, which fell bad with Kagome.

 

 

“No.” she said coldly, wanting the strange creature out of her sight. The woman bowed, turned and exited, closing the doors with a slight swoosh.

 

 

`Proper clothing… Until you may find your own way… You are granted…' she shook her head and decided that she did not like this woman.

The room was much like she had imagined, although somewhat larger in size. The style resembled the rest, with the exception of the exaggerated high ceiling, which was replaced here by a seemingly normal one.

 

 

The huge canopy bed was covered with silky sheets in the color of coagulated blood, and the room itself was painted and decorated in several shades of red. It would have been tiresome, if the room wasn't that big. There were a huge desk, a closet with a large mirror carved in, and a dressing panel, along with a smaller table with a mirror, provided with supports and drawers. She assumed they were for make up and such.

 

 

She quickly found the restroom, and was struck by the elegance of the design. It was tastefully introduced into the castle's ambiance, the Lord managing to insert a functional bathtub and toilet into an old architectural structure without damaging the walls and look of the castle.

 

 

`Plumbing rulz!' she squeaked to herself

 

 

Approximately an hour later, she was staring at herself, in that ridiculously large mirror. She was wearing a dark green evening gown, which caught her breasts in a corset. Tying those laces had taken her forever… `Did this… man hear of that wonderful thing called a zipper?'

 

 

From her hips down fell a cascading silky skirt, covering her shoes. She was still fighting to figure out how in the name of God did he know her size… There must have been dozens of gowns, and all sorts of clothing in that closet…with shoes to match!

 

 

She wore none of the jewelry she found in the drawers, they looked too expensive. Her black hair was tied up and a little messy, as always, but she had no idea what else she could do to it, so she just left it that way.

 

 

Maybe she was beautiful… she was really not the one to say. Her face wasn't pale and delicate like a true lady's would be, but tanned and rather plain. She wore no make-up, because she needed none. Her violet eyes were expressive and she had inherited these purple markings on her eyelids, from her father, who had them on his wrists.

 

 

So she sort of had a permanent make up. Not that she cared. She tried to smile at herself, but found that her reflection would not listen to her. A thunder roared outside, and others followed, in a suite, along with more lightning.

 

 

A knock on the door caught her attention.

“Enter.” She heard herself say, although her choice of words did not seem quite…hers.

“Lord Sesshoumaru awaits you. Miss Higurashi.” The man said. It was Ethan. Again. It was Ethan, somewhat taken aback by her looks. She almost smiled, and followed him through more dark, serpent-like hallways.

 

 

`This is all too much… We are in the twenty first century, people!' she thought, exasperated. She almost bumped into Ethan when he stopped suddenly and opened the huge doors to a large hall. A wide window could be seen at the right, stained glass at the edges, but leaving the rest clear.

 

 

She heard the doors close behind her and she stood in almost complete darkness. Rain was violently propelled onto the window, as the wind bent the trees outside the castle. She could see the branches arch in the lightning flashes. She said nothing, just stood there and tried to discern some movement in the room.

 

 

Was he already here? Was he on his way?

 

 

Her eyes rapidly adjusted to the darkness and she thanked her father for those remainder youkai genes. A fireplace rested coldly across the room, and two large stalls were on either side of it. A low, wooden table between the stalls. A thick carpet on the floor. The room was cold, and she felt goose bumps on her arms.

 

 

Some corners were still dipped in darkness, and the occasionally flashes didn't help her make out much there. The room was too large. Several other items were placed across the room, near the walls. The center was clear of any object, and she also noticed there were no paintings on the walls.

 

 

`Odd.'

 

 

All she could hear was the raindrops splattered on the glass, the storm, and the sound of her own breath. Some moronic heart was beating madly inside her chest, and she hated not being able to control it. Kagome frowned and swallowed. It had only been a few seconds since the doors were shut behind her, but it seemed like it had been forever.

 

 

Her eyes widened, as she clearly felt another presence in the room. She could almost hear another breath, almost sense another heartbeat. The almost was driving her crazy.

 

 

“Konban wa, Higurashi-san.” A low voice cut the thick air in the room and hit her right in the chest. A pair of gold eyes flashed open, and she felt her blood freezing in her veins. A silent, graceful movement came from one end of the fireplace, and a lightning revealed long, white hair smoothly falling from his shoulders to his waist and below.

 

 

He glided towards her, and Kagome hated hated hated that she couldn't move a muscle. His motion was hypnotic. He wore a black something, but she couldn't make out much of it. At an arm's length from her, he stopped. His face was as cold as a dead man's. But much more beautiful, she said to herself.

 

 

Suddenly, the image of the wounded angel from the painting over posed his features, and the striking resemblance frightened her. Why would anybody have themselves painted like an angel? It was sick.

 

 

Two magenta stripes slashed across his cheekbones and a dark crescent moon stained his face, otherwise devoid of color, other that the molten gold from his eyes. Those prefect features stood before her, in the light of the storm, waiting… God, she'd forgotten to speak!

 

 

“Konban wa, Sesshoumaru-sama.” She said, and gave a slight bow. Kagome blessed her steady voice. He responded to her bow, and blinked. She felt a shiver pass through her body, as this youkai stood so close to her. She should have felt his body warmth, and yet she did not.

 

 

She should have noticed him from second one she entered the room, yet she had not.

 

 

“I trust your trip here wasn't entirely unpleasant.” That voice. It creeped up her spine and caught the back of her neck. So low, so deep and almost sensual. She knew it was certainly not what he meant by that tone, but she was a woman, and she couldn't help thinking it. Sensual.

 

 

“Arigato gozaimasu. It was pleasant. I had some trouble with my luggage, but I see you came to my aid.” She took a fleeting look at her clothing, and blushed a little. Luckily, it was too dark for him to see it. She hoped.

 

 

His eyes focused on her with an intense look. She felt exposed, like she was naked. A slight narrowing of his eyes, and he lifted his head a little.

 

 

“I'm pleased to be at service, Higurashi-san.” She shivered, and dreaded the fact that he was pure-blooded youkai. Had they all been so… unsettling? His voice was like the flow of silk over an incandescent metal structure.

 

 

“Will you please call me Kagome? I would feel so much more at ease.” She wasn't sure if that was the truth. He seemed a little surprised, but nodded.

 

 

“I must apologize for the lack of electricity, I'm sure Sabrya explained the situation. We will be enjoying it newly the morning next.” His wording confused her a little. So, Sabrya was the woman's name. `Odd.' For the thousand time today.

 

 

“It's quite fine.” She wanted to say she's used to it, but remembered she was not supposed to be a journalist here. He seemed to sketch the shadow of a smile, more like a fleeting wave that disturbed his immobile face for a second, and extended an arm towards the stall on the left of the fireplace. His claws momentarily sparked green… Was she seeing things?

 

 

“Please take a seat.”

 

 

Kagome felt his eyes piercing her back while she headed towards her seat. She felt stabbed, and the awkward feeling of nobody being in the room with her almost made her turn around to see if he was still there.

 

 

Sesshoumaru-sama was… intriguing. It seemed like danger was silently lurking behind those bees that were now waiting for her to make one wrong movement and… snap! She would be dead. In a second. Her violet gaze dug into his inhuman eyes and she shivered. In a second.