Chapter One:

(Two Weeks Ago)

There was a scream overhead, the harsh sound filled with agony and horror, a combination that sent shivers down her spine. The acrid scent of blood and death permeated the air, wrapping around anything that remained living. To the left of her, Kagome could hear the painful sobs of Sango as she hovered over what she knew was Miroku's body. The elder girl was too distracted, too devastated to pay more attention to the fight yet Kagome could hear the sound of Sango pulling out her small sword just in time to block a shuriken from lodging itself into her back. Even now Kagome knew that the huntress would not give up so easily, she knew that Sango would not stop until her body forced her to.

It was only a matter of minutes before Kagome felt Sango's blade lodge into the dirt by her hand. There was a small gurgling sound and Kagome whimpered as she realized that one of the brothers must have been trying to strangle the huntress. The thought of that, the idea that despite her injuries Kagome might be able to save at least one comrade urged her to her unsteady feet, Sango's small katana in her bloody hand.

Her vision wasn't totally gone yet, despite the younger brothers attempt and so with barely a sound Kagome rushed forward and dragged the sword into the elder youkai brothers back, pulling it down with all her weight, brushing against his spine and rupturing important organs. Kagome could hear as the youkai tossed an unconscious Sango to the ground. Pain, almost as great as what she had experienced only hours before, ripped through her and her fighting spirit drowned in it. She hadn't been quick enough, hadn't been able to save her last surviving friend. Devastated and fractured, Kagome sank to the ground at the youkai's feet, too exhausted to do much more than sob brokenly.

Suddenly she felt blood spill endlessly on her shoulder and around her neck, coming disgustingly close to getting on her face. Terrified, she whimpered and tried to back away from the corpse that she knew would be close behind the blood. But when a firm hand landed on her shoulder, she let loose a fractured scream, wishing things would stop going oh-so-wrong. Another hand clamped over her mouth and a smell she couldn't identify, before everything went dizzy and her already fading eyesight went even blacker.

(Present Day)

She sat huddled in the corner, her knees drawn up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them as she leaned her head limply against the stone wall. In the back of her mind she registered the rough texture of the hakama she wore rubbing against her soft skin with even the slightest of movements. Around her wrists and ankles the cold metal burned against her skin, the surface coarse and old. Her bare feet curled into each other in an attempt to keep warm as the pressed into the cold, grimy floor.

The thick sent of urine and body order permeated the air around her, stenches Kagome thought she would have become accustomed to by now. But she had no such luck. After all, if she had even the smallest amount of luck, she wouldn't be trapped here in this Kami-forsaken place. Outside the sound of rain pounding against the roof of the old building was barely audible, but the fact that it was still surprised her. She was noticing many more things now with her other senses than she ever had with her eye sight. Not that she had her eye sight anymore.

Blind. Kami, her mother would shake her head in exasperation if she knew. Kagome liked to stare up into the sky a lot, which often included the sun. Her mother was always teasing her about going blind before she reached thirty. Funny, she wondered what her mom would say if she knew Kagome was blind before twenty. And just as she knew what her mother would say, she also knew that her mother would never know. No, she couldn't go home now, not with everything that happened. Kagome refused to let her mother see the pain she suffered, to see the knowledge that even Kagome refused to accept, the knowledge that she kept so carefully hidden in the back of her mind.

Reaching her fingers up to brush softly over her eyes, Kagome once again touched the soft fabric wrapped around her face. Out of all the days she'd been here, trapped in this hell-hole, this was the one constant her captors had. Every other day one of them would come in and change the bandage around her eyes, knowing it didn't matter if they took it off because she couldn't see them.

Two weeks had passed and still no Inuyasha and Kikyo, not that she was expecting much from the clay pot. It still irked her though that she was somehow keeping Inuyasha from finding her. How Kagome knew that she wasn't sure; all she knew was that something inside of her said this was all Kikyo's fault. Sighing, she brought her hands back down to rest between the crevice of her knees and her chest, once again forced to drift in her thoughts.

Her first few days in this cell, Kagome had been unable to stop the tears as they poured out of her eyes. She couldn't stop herself from shaking out of desperation and fear. Her first few days, Kagome thought she was in a living hell. Oh, how she wished that was true. Hell would be so much better than knowing that she, a worthlessly weak human who was unable to protect herself, had survived a fight her much stronger friends had not. Those first days, she would have given anything to give her life for Sango's or Miroku's, even little Kirara.

Thinking back to the unexpected battle, even though it hurt her to do so, Kagome was able to rationalize that even if she were a strong fighter, there was no way the three of them could have defeated the humanoid youkai. Even with Inuyasha it would have been a close call. Vaguely she wondered what Inuyasha would do when he went back to the village and saw the massacre, all the blood and the corpses of Sango and Miroku. She wondered if he would feel as guilty as she did. But then Kagome vanished those thoughts, knowing that it wasn't his fault, knowing that he didn't deserve such un-loyal wonderings of her mind.

Leaning forward once again, Kagome wondered briefly what it would feel like to have her eyes open and yet be unable to see. She shuddered at that thought though it was immensely more acceptable than the other thoughts running through her ravaged mind.

(Two More Days Pass)

She reluctantly remained still as a pair of large hands unwrapped the bandage from her eyes, one hand holding her still as the other unwound what she assumed was once a white cloth. Throughout the past couple of days her as her captor bound and re-bound her eyes, she gained the feeling that he wanted to say something to her, not only from the slightly gentle way he handled her but also from the way his breathing seemed to stop for a moment only to start up again, as if he changed his mind.

Despite her constant wariness to the man and her own thoughts of escape, Kagome found that she was curious to hear what he had to say. Not only for someone to talk to but also for the sound of someone else's voice aside from her own. It was so depressing to realize that you talked to yourself. "What is…your name?" Was that her voice? Since when was it so hoarse? Sighing, she pushed that thought away just as she did her thoughts of the battle.

Again Kagome could sense the hesitation as he stopped what he was doing for a moment, before sighing as well. "I am Toshimata of the Eastern Kitsune Clan."

At the word Kitsune, Kagome jerked from his touch and whimpered, images of Shippo flashing through her mind. She hadn't seen him since the day before the battle when he went with Keade to gather herbs. Unwilling tears leaked down her cheeks. And to think, she thought she was done with tears.

She could feel Toshimata hesitate again as he reached for her but he didn't try to stop her from crying as he continued, albeit slowly, with his task. "Miko, why do you cry?"

"I…I had a Kitsune pup," she said softly, more tears dripping down her cheeks. "I miss him…"

Frankly, Toshimata was shocked. First of all, since when did a Miko care for a youkai and secondly, since when did a Miko take in a youkai child as her own. It occurred to him then that there was only one Kitsune family he could think of that had gone missing a couple years ago and it was the small Shimazi clan. "What was your…pup's name?" he asked finally, wrapping the new bandage around her head one final time and tying it in the back.

"Shippo." Her voice was quiet and filled with motherly love, warm and understanding. Longing. Painful. "He was so adorable! The brightest green eyes I've ever seen on a child and hair so orange it reminded me of a pumpkin." A small, tearful left escaped her lips and again she wondered when her voice had become so hoarse. "I couldn't turn my back for a moment because he was always playing tricks…"

Although she couldn't see it, Toshimata smiled at her words. He was young himself, only 16 in human years, but he had a couple of younger friends, so he knew how rowdy a young kit could be. Sitting back on his haunches, Toshimata studied the teenager. If it weren't for the tear tracks now running down her cheeks and the bandage wrapped around her eyes, he would say that she looked just like any other human girl her age. Frankly, he didn't really understand why his brother wanted her locked up like this, but he supposed it had something to do with the fact that someone was paying him. Toshimata wasn't stupid and he had noticed the small, expensive things appearing around the small hut, the numerous nights his brother had come home in the morning smelling of a brothel. There was also the amount of strength he found in his brother, a strength that was not acquired in a natural way. He came to a decision.

"Miko, can you trust me? Even for just a moment?"

She was silent for a moment, before nodding slightly. "Kagome. My name is Kagome, not Miko." It was small, barely noticeable, but it was there. Kagome offered up a smile, glad to know that there was still a part of her who could trust, a part of her who could so easily put her life in another person's hands.

"Good."

Before she knew what was happening, the shackles that bound her wrists and ankles were suddenly ripped off her and set softly to the side. She didn't even get a chance to rub some circulation back into them before she felt strong arms lift her and bring her close to a warm chest. She remained silent.

Toshimata walked through the door in front of him, glad he had decided to leave it open on this particular visit. To be honest, he didn't really know where he was going to go with the girl. Not yet anyway. He had orders, but Toshimata had a feeling that something was about to happen and he did not want to be here when it did. Concentrating, he tried to remember the precise locations of the guards from when he had passed them on his way down to the dungeon; two on both sides of the exit, one on the first floor, four by the front door and six by the gates. 15 guards. He wondered if they would follow him or his brother.

That question was answered quickly enough as he stepped out of the dungeon and a cocky voice whispered beside him. "About time you helped her, Toshimata-sama! I was beginning to wander if the hanyou had gotten to you as well as Koshimata-sama." There was silence again, before the other man's voice softened. "Hello Miko-sama." Just the sight of her and Souton wanted to kill the bastards that had hurt her; he didn't even know the girl. "My name is Souton. Don't worry; we'll get you out of here." He wasn't surprised when she didn't say anything. Grinning he turned to Toshimata again. "So, Toshi-chan," he said teasingly as he killed a guard that had snuck up behind them. "How do you wanna do this?"

"Kill the traitors. Anyone who dares to disobey our Lords orders do not deserve to live."

(Four days later, 3 weeks since she was kidnapped)

Kagome sat next to the stream, her feet dangling in the water, just barely brushing against the hems of her hakama. Fresh air. It felt like she had gone longer than 2 weeks without it, yet she knew that wasn't the truth. She knew that even as something small and cold brushed against her foot in the water, that life would go on, that the world would keep spinning. Life would continue on its natural course, doing as it pleased with no consequences to the lives lost or taken throughout time. Life was cold. Life was hard. But still, Life would continue.

A sound to her left caught her attention and she turned instinctively to look, despite the loss of her sight. She was still for a moment, before spreading out her senses. There, on the outer edges, was Souton. Ah. So it was his turn to guard her, was it? Funny. No matter what she told them or how many times she had demonstrated her level of power once out of the prison, they still would not leave her to herself. Then again, Kagome had the very distinct feeling that it had more to do with actually wanting to protect her than any obligation to their mysterious Lord.

All in all, there were only four others who helped to free her from the prison, not counting Souton or Toshimata. There was one male that was extremely silent, speaking only when spoken to. Yet for some reason it was his presence she was able to gain the most comfort from. From what the others had told her, he was a bear youkai with a very gentle personality and fighting skills that rivaled some upper class demon in their court. She wasn't sure what he looked like, but then again, she wasn't sure what she looked like, let alone anyone else. That was probably why she wasn't concerned with her hair or the grime she knew stained her clothing.

Two of the others she knew to be twins; not from any of her senses but more because they had out and out told her, taking it upon themselves to cheer her up and protect her skillfully when it was their turn. Just being around them, despite the fact that she'd have preferred the quiet tranquility that was the bear youkai, Rion, made Kagome think about the better parts of the last three years instead of the constant memories of the deaths that flashed through her mind. From their overly active actions and hyper words, Kagome got the distinct feeling that they were some kind of cat breed.

The final one that helped to save her was called Soaran. By far the other woman had the most distinct temper but whenever it was the bird youkai's turn to protect her, Kagome could sense a distinctly maternal feeling coming from the woman, almost as if watching over Kagome reminded the woman of a child. Honestly she wouldn't be surprised if that was the case, after all, in her current state, Kagome was no more use than a child. The only thing she could possibly do was tell if a demon was approaching. She had a feeling though that they didn't even need her for that.

Souton watched the miko quietly, knowing the girl could sense him and that there was no need for him to announce his presence. Just the sight of her had him wanting to kill the two youkai that attacked her and her group again. Oh yes, he was there. Souton was the one that sealed the killing blow to the first of the two youkai. As he moved to the second one, he found the girl already on the ground, the youkai's blood spilling out on her. Yes, he knew she was strong, knew that if she hadn't been she would already have lost the will to live. And for that, for that small little effort she put in to survive another day, Souton found himself wanting to protect her even more.

He stepped forward, offering up a small smile and a bow, more habit than anything. After all, there wasn't any point of bowing to someone who could not acknowledge it. "Hello Miko-sama. How are you faring this morning?"

Kagome offered up a small smile before turning back to face the stream again, her hands lying limply in her lap. This too was a routine of his. Always, no matter that her answer was the same, he asked how she was. She suspected he asked because he knew he wasn't getting the truth, but Kagome didn't know if she could trust someone with her emotions again. Her life, yes, but not her feelings. Those were hers, to stay locked in her heart forever. "I'm okay, Souton."

"Just okay, Miko-sama?"

That was another thing. No matter how many times she told him to, Souton never called her by name. It was always 'My Lady,' or 'Miko-sama.' It was a curious thing and she wondered if it was because of their Lord or if he honestly thought she deserved the title. Shrugging those thoughts away, she answered his question, forcing another smile and a small laugh. "Yes, Souton."

Studying her, he wondered if he would ever get the chance to see her as he had before, with her fiery eyes and spirited attitude, standing up to those who were stronger than her. Even their Lord on more than one occasion. Six months ago their Lord had given him the task of keeping an eye on the group, informing the Lord if anything out of the ordinary happened or if the group came closer to finding Naraku. He wanted to hit himself for leaving to report to his Lord and leaving the small group open for an attack. He also wanted to kill the white haired hanyou for leaving just hours before the battle started. He was the alpha of their pack and yet he abandoned them. The idiot didn't deserved to live another day. But Souton had been forbidden to kill the hanyou, knowing that only one person had the right to that.

Sighing, he moved to sit next to her, his shoulder brushing against hers. He was surprised when she didn't flinch or try to jerk away from him. Thinking about it, Souton was pretty sure it had something to do with her miko powers, like she could tell he wasn't going to hurt her or something. Shrugging, he waited quietly for her to speak and begin the conversation, just like she always did.

"I'm guessing you want another story, huh? Anything in particular?" she asked after waiting a few minutes to see if he would start the little chat for once. Sitting next to him, telling him about her adventures through the feudal era so far reminded her so much of sitting at home and telling them to her family. Kami she missed them.

Souton smiled, wondering which of her adventures she would speak of this time. Most if not all of them were something to be proud of, especially for a human. He was always eager to listen, mostly because it seemed to distract her from her current thoughts and pains. Glancing at her, he was happy that Toshimata had finally decided to remove the bandages from her eyes and that there was little to no scarring. What scars were there were small and hardly noticeable with her fair skin. Despite the fact that there were sightless, her iris' somehow still managed to keep their deep blue color and it pleased him to look at them. "No, My Lady, nothing in particular."

Sifting through her memories, Kagome decided to tell him about her small side journey a couple of months previously, knowing that it wasn't something he would expect. After all, who would expect a girl to go with one of her most powerful enemy's?

"A couple of months ago, just as I came home from my….village from a vacation of sorts, I happened to run into one of my more dangerous enemy's. For the most part, when I'd see him before, he would always out right attack me, though it wasn't exactly without reason. See, first he would attack his brother, Inuyasha and then I would interfere if things got pretty bad looking for Inuyasha, which they did, often. Soooo, in order to distract Sesshoumaru, I would…heh, I would shoot a purified arrow at him. At that point, he would either rush me and be stopped by Inuyasha or try and melt me, but that only happened once and the sheath to Inuyasha's sword would protect me. Then there were other times when he would send a blast from the Tokijin at me in which case I got my ass out of the way and let them continue. But not for long." She laughed this time, a small but real one that surprised both her and Souton.

Souton was more surprised by the fact that she had attacked Lord Sesshoumaru and still lived to tell the tale. It was interesting.

"Anyway, like I was saying, while I was waiting for Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru approached me. Of course, just as an arrogant jerk would, he picked me up and carried me away without asking me or telling me what he wanted." She grinned again at the thought. "He'd only say 'if you do not cease your screams, this Sesshoumaru will let you fall.' Needless to say, I kept quiet till he landed."

She was silent again, lost in her memories until Souton tapped her knee, smiling even though she couldn't see it. "What happened after that Miko-sama?"

There was another small smile. "I don't really know, to tell the truth. All I know is that one minute he was scaring the hell out of me and the next we were bickering like good friends." She held a hand out in front of her like she could see it, as if just looking at it was the answer to all of her questions. "From then on, I would stay out of any fights between him and Inuyasha. Like I said, I don't really understand it, but I guess nothing but good came from it."

Souton remained quiet, keeping any questions or thoughts he had to himself as he studied her with something akin to awe. Even after all this she could still seem so mesmerizing, so enchanting that he wondered what the hanyou was thinking when he hurt her.

(Two Days Later, Three weeks since she was kidnapped)

The night was silent, filled with a palpably tense air that put Kagome on edge. It were nights like these when the monsters snuck in the dark to attack them, moments like this when all hell could break out and the least expected things could occur.

To her right was Souton, tall and built, standing as close to her as their small group could allow, the one who tried to protect her in every situation. Over the past five days Kagome had grown close to the Inu youkai, telling him stories of her travels with Sango and the others, listening as he talked about his family. Sometimes he even managed to drag a story about her family out of her.

On her left was Rion, the Bear youkai that made her calm just from being in his presence. He hadn't talked much since meeting her but she felt that he didn't really need words to get his point across. Numerous times she could feel him doing things that just as easily made his thoughts known. In front of her was Toshimata and he was quiet, allowing her to fill the silences and keeping her up to date on the news of what was going on. Behind her was Saoran and the two neko twins, all three of whom always tried to take care of her.

They walked in formation, keeping her in the center of them all so that they could easily protect her. Souton said it was because they were getting closer and closer to their goal, closer to the home of their Lord. A home which just happened to be the home of nothing but other youkai, demons that were known to dislike humans.

Sighing, Kagome could feel the presence of them growing strong with each step and was forced to hold down her powers. It would not do to kill the followers of the Lord who was helping her. Beside her Souton tensed and stepped even closer to her, setting a hand on her lower back as a warning to stay close.

She felt a space open up in front of her and knew that Toshimata must have stepped forward to speak to someone because suddenly there was a quiet unlike any she had ever heard, one that put her even more on edge than she was before.

"She is safe M'Lord, but not…unhurt."

There was silence again but Kagome was unable to hear the reply of the Lord and thus unable to tell who it was. It was frustrating.

"Yes, M'lord."

Another silence and then Kagome felt the large aura of a familiar demon coming closer, a demon that tried to kill her on many occasions upon their first meeting but now was an ally.

"Sesshoumaru-sama."