A/N: Hello my dear readers! We took a long time to update and the reasons why that is will be posted in the A/N of When You Least Expect It. However, we may just DISCONTINUE THIS STORY since people decide to read it and not review it. It is extremely important for people to review this one since it is new to us and we are working in unfamiliar territory. But thank you to the two reviewers that did give us something to go on to say you even liked it. Now! Done with the potential bad news, on with the story!

~ Red & Kita

Chapter Two: The Murder

The feast had begun and everything was set. All the servants were in the kitchen, the guests in the living room with refreshments set and everyone was eagerly awaiting the arrival of the King and Queen of both the Higurashi Kingdom and the Tetsusaiga Kingdom. Kagome had been in the kitchen with Sango almost all day, not actually helping but hiding. Hiding from InuYasha to be exact. Well, more like hiding from InuYasha and his wife. It was time for everyone to go set the table, the Kings and Queens would be arriving shortly and there was no time to waste. The Kings and Queens arrived and greeted each other with friendly gestures. This was it, time for peace.

"Kagome, you have to be out there! You cannot just miss the party of reconciliation of the two kingdoms. It is for your future!" Sango urged, trying to get her out of the kitchen.

"I cannot go in there, Sango. I cannot face InuYasha's wife. I cannot face everyone who knows. Today is just not the day for me to face anyone. I am ill. That is what you will tell everyone, okay?" Kagome turned and walked up the stairs to her room without waiting for a response from Sango.

Sango sighed, "Alright, so now I have to inform everyone and face everyone. Life as a servant is not a pleasant one." She held her head high and walked out into the dinning room where everyone was quietly sitting, waiting for Princess Kagome to arrive. Sango took a deep breath and went over to King Higurashi.

"Pardon me sir," she exclaimed while doing a curtsy, "But Princess Kagome is ill today and said she was not-"

Right at that moment, an ear-piercing screaming was heard throughout the entire room. Sango was the first to leave into the kitchen; no thought of how rude it was to turn her back to the king in the middle of her sentence.

She ran to the stairs but did not have to go up them. For at the base of the stairs lay the person she least wanted to see. Princess Kagome.

The people immediately behind her were the Princes: InuYasha, Miroku, and Sesshomaru. InuYasha had a shocked expression but did not rush to her. Miroku seemed as if he could not look. And Sesshomaru simply pulled her further away from the scene, no emotion apparent on his face.

An Hour Later

Kagome's body had been covered up with a sheet, and taken away. Sesshomaru had done a quick analysis of her body, and had concluded that what had happened to her had not happened when she had been left alone. Someone had poisoned her long before while she had been in the kitchen.

Shortly after, he called on some of the knights to help him situate everyone in the room. People were scattered about the room, forced to focus here and there; every possible exit had been secured so that no one dared to escape. Nor did anyone dare to speak, or look at each other. Not because of the coldness that Kagome's death had suddenly brought to the room, but because Sesshomaru had commanded it. He and other knights had begun taking servants first. Each maid and butler interrogated for quite some time before someone else was called in.

It was going to be a very long night, but the fact that they all would be stuck there was the last thing on their minds. Who killed Kagome? Who would dare murder the Princess of one of the most powerful kingdoms?

Hysterical crying could be heard from one of the rooms, and it was coming from none other than Kagome's mother. Sango sat near the door, wide eyed, and pale. She felt like she'd lose everything she'd eaten that day. How could she of not noticed anything? Who'd handed Kagome her drink? Which drink had it been? Sango should have been the only one to fix and hand her her drink. How could she of been so stupid!? She rested her forehead on her knees, and clenched at her hair as tears began to blur her vision.

Sango jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked over to see none other than Miroku. Sango studied his pale face. She took his hand, squeezing it tight,

"I...I am so sorry. I should not of left her alone. I should have insisted she come down-"

"Sango," he gave the smallest smile she'd ever seen on his face before, "do not. You heard what Sesshomaru said. It did not happen when she went up. Even then, you still could not have known someone had planned to m.."

Tears appeared in his eyes, and that's when she could no longer hold it in. Sango burst into tears. She leaned over, and wrapped her arms around him,

"I am so sorry. I am so sorry."

Miroku sighed, closing his eyes. He wrapped his arms around Sango, holding her close to him. Tears began to slide down his own face. His little sister was gone. Miroku hadn't been there to protect her, and now she was gone.

Meanwhile, InuYasha was standing in a nearby corner. His eyes were downcast, but wide in an almost psychotic way. Kikyo stood near him. She'd tried many times to catch his gaze but he'd just ignored her. Kikyo knew of what had been happening between her husband, and Kagome but she had only thought it to be out of lust. Not anything else. She couldn't hide the frown that came to her face.

"She cannot be dead. Everyone loved her...she cannot be..." InuYasha muttered to himself.

Kikyo sighed softly. He'd been mumbling the exact same thing over and over for the past hour. Finally, she took his chin, and made him look up at her. Kikyo looked him in the eye, and hissed softly,

"She is dead, InuYasha."

InuYasha's eyes, if even possible, widened even more. A couple of people glanced at the two before whispering to each other. Sesshomaru came from one of the rooms where he'd been interrogating one of the servants, and saw what was happening between InuYasha and Kikyo. From how pathetic his brother looked, Sesshomaru knew he could not have done it, but he could not easily put it aside. However, Kikyo...

...had she known of their affair?

A/N: Please review! ^.^