Hey guys! This is Shadows in the Snow, a sequel to With the Wind. If you plan on reading you might wanna check that story out first, but if you don't want to, you don't have to ;)! Please remeber, reviews, comments, ratings, and the whole lot of it; always appreciated! OK on with the story... Shadows In The Snow
Prologue
Sesshomaru's P.O.V
Sesshomaru stared at the ring on his finger. Every now and then it would pulse; showing's its sorrow at the absence of its partner. It happened more and more often as the first snow grew nearer, the anniversary of his wedding. The anniversary of his newfound sorrow. The anniversary of the day they'd taken her away from him.
And once again, he found himself standing alone, missing Yori. It'd been a year since their wedding night and he still remembered it as clear as if it was happening again, the smell of smoke and the feeling of panic that'd risen in the air with it. He remembered the utter horror he'd felt as her fingers slipped from his and she disappeared into darkness. He'd wake up in the night at times, still reaching for her. He remembered how he'd searched for her for days on end afterwards. He remembered how her disappearance affected everyone, how it tore a hole in his heart; a hole that would not heal. Sesshomaru sighed and balled his hand into a fist.
God knows how badly he wanted to forget her, and never could. It was as if his soul was tied to her; a helpless knot that would never untangle, no matter how hard he tried. He knew his sadness was dispersed through the lands. Sometimes when he could take it no longer, he would transform and howl into the night. It was the only way he could empty his soul of this sadness, by the great cries that escaped his throat and pierced the night. Some began calling it The Western Lord's Lament. Regardless, it was the only time he would show his pain and he noticed that it affected the land further than he'd originally thought. The flowers would droop, the wind grew colder, the night grew emptier, and the moon's light seemed to dull as the water failed to reflect it. Sesshomaru sighed because he was still able to count himself fortunate. Ever since that night, Inuyasha and his friends had been restlessly assisting Sesshomaru in his search for Yori. Even Kagura and the wolf Koga were helping.
The night Yori was taken, everyone suspected Naraku. The smoke pellets used were a rare type; the fumes could severely damage a demon's senses but cause a human to only fall unconscious. As soon as the smoke reached his nose, it was rendered useless. The whole thing seemed to be a trick low enough to belong to Naraku. So they'd all rushed to find him. They searched for months, finding leads from time to time but always coming up empty-handed. Sesshomaru cursed his foolishness. I should have been able to protect her, I promised her I would. But he would find her; that he swore.
After failing in the first search for Naraku, the decision was made to split up. Inuyasha, Miroku, and Sango continued to look for Naraku while Koga, Kagura, and Kagome stayed with Sesshomaru to find Yori. And it was then that Kagura had remembered something.
"What about the Sacred Lands?" she'd said. Kagome shook her head sadly.
"We've already been over that Kagura, there's no way she went there."
"No," Kagura spoke firmly. "When I picked her up after she finished her training, she told me everything. Including the fact that Kiesu said she was destined to become the next High Priestess. So, maybe Kiesu kidnapped her and is behind all of this." Kagome gasped.
"She wouldn't!" Kagome's face had taken on a shocked look then and Sesshomaru had balled his hands into fists. He'd remembered how Yori went to find the woman when they'd stopped in Kaede's village. He remembered how Kiesu left that night and hadn't come back. And so the decision to visit the Sacred Lands was made.
Sesshomaru now stood in front of the barrier that undoubtedly separated him and the woman he loved. Before he left that night, Kagura told him the only people who could pass through the barrier were the ones who possessed pure hearts and true intentions, otherwise they would be purified regardless if they were human or demon. But by his main goal, he possessed both of those things. Tonight the snow was destined to fall. Tonight he was destined to find Yori.
So, he stepped through the barrier.
And when he was on the other side of it, a small smile touched his lips. I'm coming Yori. And he ran without any direction, without any trouble. A castle loomed high in front of him and he stopped at the edge of the apparent courtyard as soft specks of snow touched his face. Something was telling him not to continue any further, something in his soul said to stay and watch. So he would stay, he would stay until the bright snow blanketed the ground and the light of the moon cast his dark shadow onto it.
