RAPTURE

A/N: Happy Friday! :) TGIF, am I right? Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

Part II: Kagome, Guardian of the Shikon Jewel

16-year-old Kagome Higurashi lived a peaceful life, despite the poverty that surrounded her. Her mother had been working hard as a baker to keep her children from starving ever since the death of their father, and Kagome's grandfather ran the only shrine in the village. It wasn't much, what with the huge amount of taxes they all had to pay to the King Naraku, but it was enough.

The village was small, and relied on farming and trade to prosper, but Naraku's steeply increasing taxes kept all their noses in the dirt like homeless peasants, along with the threat of his army destroying their village if they didn't pay. So far, Kagome had been especially lucky- the robberies had stopped, and demonic attacks on the human villagers had ended overnight- but she supposed that was because of Sesshomaru, her demon guardian.

"Kagome." The familiar, emotionless voice startled her, and she turned with a blush to see the exact subject of her thoughts approaching her through the trees. Sesshomaru was more than her guardian, he was her childhood love; they went as far back as she could remember, when he saved her from bandits. She smiled warmly at him. His hair was braided today, she noticed, and he wore his usual white dress shirt under his brown leather jerkin.

She held back a sigh. He was always so beautiful.

"Good morning," she greeted cheerfully, waving. He lifted his chin in return, and that's when she noticed the small, red-haired boy bounding along after Sesshomaru, and automatically opened her arms so the child could leap up into them. "Shippo!"

"Hi, Kagome!" He hugged his surrogate mother, burying his face into her chest.

Shippo was a fox demon who had been orphaned a few years prior to meeting her, and she had taken him in without question, loving him like any mother would love her son. She wasn't surprised to see him out in the forest during the day. He stayed out of town, where the people could see his fluffy, auburn tail and know immediately he wasn't human. Ever since Naraku became King, people's tolerance for demons had been slowly dwindling away.

Except for Sesshomaru, Kagome mused, once more gazing at the demon. Then again, no one would dare offend the Might Dog Demon. Sesshomaru caught her look and looked away.

"The kit was becoming restless," he explained.

Kagome's stomach fluttered happily at the sound of his voice- truthfully, Sesshomaru was a demon of few words. Ever since he had rescued her, he had stayed by her side as a faithful guardian, and eventually, they had forged a strange type of friendship. Anything beyond that was shadowed in his past, and she hadn't asked. She smiled warmly at the demon.

"Thank you, Sesshomaru." He didn't reply, and Kagome knelt in front of Shippo. "I hope you're behaving well for Sesshomaru, Shippo. He did a very nice thing, agreeing to watch over you while I'm at the shrine."

"I am," he promised, his tail twitching excitedly. "Are you going to your lessons now?"

"Yes." Kagome cupped the small pink jewel that hung around her neck within her hands. "I can finally use the protection charm to its complete potential, but there's so much more power in the Jewel to unlock."

"You can disappear completely now?" Shippo asked, astonished. "Let me see!"

Kagome flashed a smile and held the Jewel to her heart, allowing her heartbeat to sync with the rhythmic pulsing of power within it until Shippo's eyes, still on her face, were no longer focused. He was now looking through her.

"That's great, Kagome! I can't even smell you!" He looked up at the dog-demon, whose eyes still pierced into her hers. "Can you sense her, Sesshomaru?"

"Yes."

Kagome smiled. She knew he wasn't lying. The Jewel's protection spell never fully worked on him. Though he couldn't hear, see, or smell her, his youki was somehow able to find her no matter how hard she concentrated. Having successfully tested the protection charm on other demons, she suspected it was because he was so used to her presence, but she didn't dare speak the implications out loud. She would only be disappointed- Sesshomaru was a demon, and had better taste than a poor, average looking human.

His eyes narrowed as he felt her sadness, but she quickly dropped the shield, kissing Shippo gently on his forehead with a smile.

"I'll be back by nightfall, Shippo. Stay out of trouble, okay?"

"Okay. Bye, Kagome!" He turned and ran to Sesshomaru, who was still looking at her speculatively, and she waved.

"Thank you again for watching him, Sesshomaru."

"I will be here when you are finished," he replied, turning and walking away. Kagome watched him go, sighing sadly. Of all the nice boys in the village she could have loved, she had to fall for the perfect, untouchable demon.

By the time Kagome's lessons ended, the sun was getting ready to set, and the forest was dark. She could still see for the most part, and peered into the shadows for the white-silver hair or tall, muscular frame that would give away Sesshomaru. She waited for a few moments before sighing heavily and starting back down the path to the village. Perhaps he had forgotten.

"You there! Surrender," a man's voice called out to her from the path. She couldn't see anything but the silhouette of the owner of the voice.

"What?" Kagome blinked, trying to adjust her eyes to the darkness, but the orange hazy lighting of the village behind him made his visage nothing but shadows. "Just who am I surrendering to? And why? I've done nothing wrong."

He gave no other warning, and soon had his hands on her arms and in her hair, dragging her roughly down the path. Kagome let a shocked cry leave her lips before lashing out, her foot catching him behind the knee and sending him crumpling to the ground. Her heart raced in her chest as she backed away. Only one of Naraku's guards would be ordering her to surrender, which meant... trouble in the village.

"Stand back." Another man appeared from the shadows and stepped in front of her, shielding her from her attacker. Kagome saw the long, white plait that swayed along his back and gasped.

"Sesshomaru!" He ducked forward without hesitation or warning, and there was a startled gasp followed by a sickening thud as the body hit the ground. Kagome flinched, recognizing the sound. Sesshomaru was an excellent assassin, there was no doubt about that. The loss of his arm probably hadn't hindered him a bit. He kept his katana unsheathed as he entered the village, Kagome running alongside him. As soon as they reached the end of the woodland path, Kagome felt her knees go weak at the sight:

Her village was in flames.

She could see the havoc and devastation that the fires were causing. Houses were burning, people were screaming and running from armored soldiers, and demons cut down human men with their blades as easily as if cutting through water. Kagome tuned out the screams as best she could, and scanned the crowds for her family. She started into the crowd, shock numbing the instincts that shouted at her to run.

"No." Sesshomaru blocked her way with his sword, glancing back at her over his shoulder. "Stay hidden and flee to the temple. I will find your family and lead them there."

"Sesshomaru, what's going on? Why are they attacking us?"

"Naraku has made his choice," he answered cryptically. "Hurry to the temple."

Kagome nodded reluctantly. She was snuggled safely between the forest and a hut that had yet to be burned, so she could easily escape. As he turned to leave, Kagome grabbed his hand and squeezed it.

"Be careful," she pleaded. Sesshomaru nodded, his promise echoing in her ears as he vanished amid the chaos.

"I will be back."

Kagome shook her head and ducked into the trees. Sesshomaru would bring her family, safe, to the temple, just as he said. The others... What about the others?

"Let go of me!" A young female voice drifted to Kagome's ears, and she looked back in time to see a human soldier hoist a little girl over his shoulder despite her screaming and kicking. The child bared her teeth and bit down on the man's neck, momentarily stunning him. Thinking fast, Kagome grabbed the nearest fist-sized rock and lunged out of the trees.

"HEY!" Kagome yelled, effectively drawing the man's attention. "Let that girl go... or else!"

The man shoved the child away and looked Kagome up and down, giving her a skeptical sneer. "Or else what?"

Kagome lifted her chin defiantly and gave him her best glare. "Or else you'll have to deal with me!"

"Heh. I like your attitude, girl, but this ain't the time or the place for it." He took a breath, and Kagome launched the rock as hard as she could before he could call for any other soldiers in the area. He dropped immediately, and Kagome scooped the girl up into her arms. Just as she began backing away, two other guards materialized out of the smoke, both studying her with malicious crimson eyes.

Demon, Kagome thought fearfully. She swallowed anxiously and looked around, but there was no sign of Sesshomaru. He'll be angry when he finds out I didn't go to the temple, she thought vaguely. She didn't care. She couldn't have just let the girl be taken away to be sold into some sort of perverse slavery.

The streets were less crowded now- most of the women and children had already been rounded up and separated, and the remaining men were either too injured to move, or dead. With a deep breath, Kagome weighed her chances. Calling on the Shikon Jewel, she turned away from the demons who could no longer see her, and ran. The girl in her arms weighed her down, but Kagome sprinted as hard as she could, leaping over a body and gritting her teeth.

I have to get to Sesshomaru!

"Gotcha!"

Kagome shrieked as the hands grabbed at her, pulling her roughly to the ground and snapping her right wrist as she struggled to catch herself. Luckily the girl in her arms wasn't injured, but Kagome couldn't say the same. She was hauled up to her feet, and the girl was dragged away once more.

"You run fast, for a human," her captor said. Kagome gasped at his golden eyes and silver hair. Sesshomaru flitted across her mind, but it wasn't him. This man had darker skin- and dog ears. A demon! But how? I had my barrier up! "If I wasn't a half-demon," he continued arrogantly, "you might have gotten away."

"Let the girl go," Kagome demanded. "She's just a child."

"You're in no position to be making demands, wench," the half-demon snorted. "But whatever you say." He released the girl, waiting until she disappeared from view to drag Kagome, kicking and crying and screaming, over to the wagons where the rest of the villagers had been rounded up. "Naraku doesn't care about little runts like her anyway," he said as he dumped her inside. "He wants women who can reproduce, if you catch my drift."

Fear washed over Kagome's body so fast that nausea pooled within her stomach and made her dizzy. She gasped for air, but it seemed as though she were drowning. Her heart raced a thousand times a second. Summoning up what little strength remained, she screamed as loud as she could.

"SESSHOMARU!" Rattling the bars of her small, cramped prison, she let out one last desperate cry for help. "SESSHOMARU!!"

The horses whinnied and began walking away, knocking her off her feet with their sudden movement, and Kagome felt her heart drop into her stomach as tears pooled in her eyes. Sesshomaru wasn't going to save her this time. He wasn't there.

A/N: Not off to such a great start, is it? Poor Kagome! Anyway, review, please! Reviews are the reason I wake up in the morning. That, and breakfast. Mm, potatoes and bacon... Now I'm hungry.