Last time…
On the ride home, Kagome and I talked about what happened at school in the classes we didn't have together, and I helped her learn how to work the music player. It was a peaceful trip, but little did I know that her previous sickness was just the prelude to many more mysterious absences.
Chapter II: What was Hidden
The two months after Enzeru gave Kagome her birthday gift went by with a new routine. She would go to school for a couple days, but then be absent for weeks at a time. It was becoming a treat to see Kagome at school just four days between her illnesses. At first, Enzeru was worried to death. She would talk to Kagome's trio of friends and heard the strangest ailments for a teenager to go through; bunions, pinworms, and arthritis? That's just not normal, period. Aside from most of what she heard predominantly effected the elderly, Kagome was never one to let herself get beyond the occasional flu.
All the time Enzeru spent with her was only at school, helping her try to catch up on the lessons she missed.
It may have sounded selfish to some, as if Enzeru was demanding more attention from Kagome, but Mrs. Higurashi wouldn't even let her check in on her friend. She had gotten all of her vaccinations and still only insist on stopping by when she has something that isn't contagious. Most of the time, she would call and use the excuse of dropping off homework to even set a foot on the shine grounds. Even then, Sota or their grandfather, Priest Higurashi, would stop her and take whatever papers she had brought while pushing her out.
Enzeru's worry was, once again, replaced by anger. The family was hiding something and she intended to find out. An extended weekend holiday got the upper classman of junior high, along with all high school students, a half day. Enzeru figured Kagome's family wouldn't be expecting any visits around midday. So, without the courtesy of phoning ahead, she hopped on the bus after school to stop by the residence of her so-called best friend.
The bus driver announced over the intercom "Higurashi Shine. Please, ring the bell to depart."
Someone pressed the button before Enzeru could reach it. The doors opened, letting several other people off along with me. Everyone else crossed the street to the multiplex housing, leaving Enzeru alone by the shrine steps. It occurred to her only then that she didn't have a legitimate excuse for the visit. To skip calling was one thing, but not having a reason…
Enzeru made her way up the stone stairway, trying to think up any reason to give the family.
Homework? she thought, frantically ….Without any extra papers in hand? No, that won't work. Just checking in on Kagome? Yeah, like that one ever got me in the house before.
When she made it to the top, Enzeru sighed with relief. For once, Grandfather wasn't outside sweeping the pathways. This gave her the chance to maybe get close to the house before being intercepted.
Oddly enough, she made it to the Higurashi home, in corner of their massive property, without seeing a single person. Enzeru looked around for only a moment when she heard a door slide open. Kagome stepped outside, with a yellow backpack stuffed beyond what anyone would have thought possible! Enzeru's brain gathered enough sense to dive around a corner and kneel before she could be seen. She watched as her best friend shuffled her way from the house to an old shed.
Kagome's family acted as her second…okay, technically third, home. Enzeru knew this property better than anywhere else. Enzeru ran through her memory of the Higurashi Shrine layout. If I remember correctly, that's just an old well house.
Kagome stopped for a moment, feeling eyes on her back. Enzeru pulled her head back and waited in her hiding place, listening.
What is Kagome doing? She wondered, furrowing her brow Wasn't she sick?
Enzeru's temper stemmed out of the obvious fact that, whatever Kagome was up to, she was skipping school. There was no way that her academically adept best friend would let that happen!
A moment later, Enzeru heard the shed door slid open and close again. She soon followed, bounding up the wood steps and opening the door with a snap.
The sudden intrusion made Kagome gasp. Down by the dirt floor, Enzeru's childhood friend stood with her enormous backpack, one knee propped up on the ledge of an old well, preparing to jump in. Kagome recognized the intruder instantly.
"Enzeru, what are you-" she began
"Kagome, what are you doing?" Enzeru barked, as she practically jumped down the steps "Why aren't you in school? We all thought you were sick!" she grabbed Kagome's wrist firmly, "Kagome, you've been skipping school, haven't you! Now, tell me-"
Enzeru failed to notice that the hand she grabbed was supporting Kagome's balance. A slight tug on her part tipped both of the girls over the well's edge. Before she could even notice, they were descending down into the darkness. Enzeru couldn't even get herself to scream. At some point her hand slipped from the grip on Kagome, but the only thing that she could think to do was squint her eyes shut and brace herself for a harsh impact.
Adrenaline must have slowed down her senses because, surely, the well wasn't that deep…
Enzeru finally felt the sensation of being settled on her feet, replacing what should have been the expected crash. She stood still for a few moments to gather her wits. When she did open her eyes, Enzeru was standing at the bottom of the dry well, but she heard a sound...a sound that was familiar, but hasn't been heard in quite a some time.
"Was that...songbirds?" she asked myself
Enzeru looked up and shock washed over me. Sunlight spilled down into the well. Birds tweeted again as she noticed the building's roof was replaced by clear spring skies. Curiosity, as well as confusion, prompted her hand to grip one of the various vines growing down the edge and begin the task of hauling herself out of the well. She gasped at the change of scenery. A grassy, tree-lined meadow surrounded her. The sky had a soft turquoise color that Enzeru hadn't seen so clearly since the last time she was in the United States. The air was clean and the breeze was warm. It almost felt like she was taken back to a home she hadn't seen in years.
"Hey Kagome!" a loud voice called "What took you so long?"
Enzeru's mind snapped back to reality as she saw Kagome to the right of the well. Some distance away, she stared directly at her old friend, eyes wide and jaw dropped.
"Kagome!" the voice called again
A rustling in the trees behind Enzeru grabbed her attention. A smear of bright red danced into her vision as it jumped through the canopies. Green-flecked hazel eyes followed to its landing about twelve feet away. Now standing still, the color revealed itself as a person taking a protective stance in front of Kagome. This young man was quite the unusual sight. He was clothed completely in red, long white hair, and light amber hues that held the stranger in a stern gaze. Yet, the most odd thing about him was what looked like...
Enzeru was at a loss, Are those…dog ears on his head?
"Who the hell are you?" the man snapped "What are you doing here with Kagome?"
Enzeru looked around him to her long time friend, whom was still dumbfounded her mere presence. The newcomer would have still been shocked herself, but the young man didn't redirect all of her attention. When Enzeru didn't answer immediately, he drew a weapon from his side. A gargantuan sword was pulled forth from a sheath one quarter its size.
"Answer me!" he shouted, pointing the sharp blade out with one hand.
Enzeru inhaled a light gasp, her brain finally catching up to how fast everything was happening. That breath hitched in her throat, fear rattling through her body from the sudden danger. She could see from the look in the person's eyes that he was serious, but still couldn't bring herself to speak. In a matter of about sixty seconds from climbing out of the well, Enzeru was faced with someone threatening my life.
Kagome snapped out of her trance at the sight of her friend's fear. She finally spoke as the man let out a sinister growl, "Inuyasha! SIT!"
The young man fell onto his face with a loud thud, dropping the sword in the process. The weapon shrunk back to the matching size of its sheath. The red-dressed man groaned and stood up as Kagome came to Enzeru's aid. The frightened girl felt a shake of her shoulders.
"Enzeru, are you alright?" Kagome asked, her voice sounded distant "What are you doing here?"
Kagome shook Enzeru and asked again, but her focus was on the angry man. He brushed himself off and sheathed his sword, grumbling the whole time. Enzeru's drooping stare set on the sword tied to his side. She noticed the clawed fingers curled around its handle. Her half-lidded eyes followed up the arm, passed the shoulder and settled on his face. He looked like something out of folklore.
Unnaturally golden eyes met her hazels, and she finally put the pieces together. This was no man in front of her; it was a beast, …..A demon…A conclusion her mind couldn't handle.
"Enzeru!" Kagome shouted again,
Her voice was miles away, but Enzeru recognized it. She lazily turned her head toward her best friend as her vision started to blur.
"Ka-...gome...?" Enzeru felt her eyes roll back, then everything went dark.