Exposure


The next afternoon Kagome found herself wandering the halls of an enormous castle, cradling a scorched and burnt arm to her chest. She's spent most of the morning in the Forbidden Forest helping Hagrid attend to his hybrid pets, something he called blast-ended skrewts.

"Horrible little creatures," Kagome ground out between clenched teeth when a dull throb of pain shot up her arm. Honestly the burn didn't hurt nearly as bad as she knew it should considering she'd nearly been set on fire by the groundskeeper's odd pets. Apparently Hagrid had a love of all creatures whether they were big, small, dangerous, or temperamental. The blast-ended skrewts were huge and not particularly friendly. Hagrid had woken her before dawn and proceeded to drag her through the trees that surrounded the castle. Apparently a few of the creatures had gotten out of the corral he'd built for them and he needed help to wrangle them back inside.

She learned, however, that when Hagrid said a 'few', it translated closer to half a dozen. They tracked the creatures to a wide clearing where Kagome learned exactly what a manticore-fire crab hybrid was. The blast-ended skrewts were huge and not particularly friendly. Thick, shiny gray armor covered nearly their entire bodies and a single enormous stinger curled over their backs. They didn't appear to have a face, let alone eyes, regardless they didn't seem to have any troubles honing in on the two newcomers' presence. The majority of the hybrids allowed themselves to be ushered toward the pen; the exception being two particularly irritable skrewts that refused to cooperate.

With the reflexes she'd honed in the past, combined with her new demonic speed, she was easily able to dodge the skrewts' enormous stingers until they'd worn themselves out. Hagrid had then given her a grateful grin, visible even from behind his bristly beard, and they began herding the wayward creatures toward the gate. It wasn't until a blast of fiery electricity shot toward her that she realized there was more to be cautious of than just the stinger. She'd jumped back, one arm thrown in front of herself in a defensive instinct. She managed to avoid the full force of the blast but her left arm was grazed.

Hagrid had cursed and hastily coaxed the skrewts toward the fence, locking them inside before barreling to her side.

Kagome tried to reassure him that she was fine and it would be healed soon enough however, Hagrid insisted she allow the school's matron to look at the wound. She protested but Hagrid's persistence and the worried wrinkle of his brows made her to cave within moments. So, with the help of her nonexistent sense of direction, she now found herself lost within the long halls of Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry.

She growled in frustration, descending another flight of stairs. She had already moved up and down several floors without any luck. She couldn't believe they expected young children to be able to navigate the labyrinth of hallways, rooms, and staircases. Exasperated, she huffed and decided to change tactics. Turning her nose to the air she locked onto the freshest scent; the scent of blackberries and ground coffee. Brow furrowing with the effort it took to concentrate on the individual scent while thousands of other lingering aromas layered the hallway, she latched on and began tracking.

If she couldn't find the nurse's office on her own, she'd find someone who could show her. Pursuing the tangy smell, she had to pause when she became bombarded by the aroma of fire, spices, herbs, and an assortment of foods. Glancing around, her brow furrowed in confusion. There weren't any doors nearby but she must have been near the kitchens. She closed her eyes and moved on, trying to ignore the distractions. Another deep breath and she was able to push aside the fog of smell.

He was close. Opening her eyes, she locked gazes with the man she'd been searching for. He was tall and thin with black shoulder length hair. Pale skin was pulled taut over high cheek bones and dark eyes scrutinized her mercilessly from across the long hallway.

Heat engulfed her face in mortification. She must've looked like a nutcase wandering around with her eyes closed. Muscling through her embarrassment, she marched toward the man, fists clenching and unclenching. The man turned to level the full force of his glare on her. She gave an anxious smile in return.

"Excuse me, sir-" She began before he abruptly cut her off.

"Professor," He intoned. "Professor Severus Snape."

"Professor," She agreed, fidgeting. "I don't know my way around and I got lost trying to find the infirmary," Kagome raised her scalded arm for him to see. "I was hoping you'd be able to give me directions." She peered up at the stoic man hopefully.

His impressive height loomed over her silently, a small sneer pulling at the corner of his mouth, before he finally diverted his attention to her proffered arm. Dark eyebrows instantly shot up and suspicious eyes turned to rove her face.

She pulled back, startled at his sudden change in demeanor. She bit the inside of her cheek at her carelessness. The burn was pretty gruesome. Her forearm was a bright, angry red, the upper dermis sloughing off, but the skin was already pinching together; rapidly healing. The power of the demonic blood now flowing through her veins dulled the pain she knew would have had the average human screaming in agony.

"High pain tolerance" She supplied lamely. The dour professor obviously wasn't impressed with her excuse but with a final scrutinizing glare, he spun on his heel, black robes billowing in his wake, and beckoned her to follow. Kagome scurried behind him, keeping pace, grateful to have someone to lead the way through the maze of halls.

A grin pulled at her lips. The erratic cacophony of smells blanketing the halls was an inescapable onslaught on her enhanced senses but, this man marching beside her, his scent calmed her nerves. She could understand how Inuyasha's heightened sense of smell drove him crazy at times. The sudden thought of her companion caused a hitch in her step. She shook her head and took deep breath of caffeine and berries, allowing it to ease away some of the sadness and self-hatred that spilled into her chest. She smiled again and looked at her guide, meeting his gaze. A single brow was raised in her direction, demanding an explanation. A bark of laughter burst past her lips at the sight. Sesshomaru looked at her like that whenever she was doing something he deemed odd.

She ignored his questioning gaze and continued to grin like a fool as they walked.

"So what subject do you teach, Professor?" She was interested to hear what kind of things would be taught in a magical school. Wondering what was true versus what was folklore.

Rather than answer, the man stopped in front of a door and pulled it open.

"The infirmary." He said, impatiently waiting for her to step through the door. Kagome nodded and moved inside. The room was long and each wall was lined with cots. The scent of herbs was heavy in the air and she found herself irritated that she hadn't been able to find it on her own. Regardless, she was happy she'd tracked down the professor. Severus stepped in, moved to a door at the other end of the room and knocked. A moment later the door was opened from the other side revealing a woman with curly grey hair pulled into a tight bun at the base of her neck

"Yes?" She questioned, peering up at the professor.

"Poppy," Snape nodded toward her, stepping aside to reveal Kagome. "I believe there is someone here in need of your services."

The woman stepped toward her, mouth drawn into a thin line, all business. She quickly guided Kagome to one of the cots and forced her to sit down. A half hour passed slowly while Kagome allowed the matron to poke, prod, and finally bandage her arm. Meanwhile Severus observed the interaction silently from the corner. Kagome peered up at him through the veil of her bangs. She assumed he would leave as soon as he'd delivered her to her destination but he seemed to have other intentions.

His unblinking gaze was unnerving and she found herself shifting restlessly on the mattress, despite Madame Pomfrey's reprimanding gaze. The man remained stone-faced, eyes trained on her form as Madame Pomfrey handed her a vial of bubbling white liquid. She quickly downed the contents, an oddly thick mixture, and returned the glass. The matron nodded her approval and escorted Kagome to the door, listing off some side effects that may appear while the healing potion worked through her system. Kagome listened halfheartedly, the majority of her concentration on the silent professor following them to the doorway.

Madame Pomfrey urged her to return within the week so she could monitor her progress. Based on her experience with demons in the past, Kagome had little doubt that the injury would be healed before she woke tomorrow morning. However, based on the stern gaze she was receiving from the older woman she figured that there would be no sense in arguing so, with a final promise, Snape was leading her out the door.

Silence engulfed the couple once again as they navigated the castle. It was nice. Although, the professor wasn't particularly friendly or inviting, the castle itself had a welcoming aura that was hard to ignore. It felt safe and safe was a feeling that had become hard to find in the last few years of her life. They stopped just outside of the door she had used to enter the castle and with little effort she pushed open the heavy, ornate door.

Hogwarts, and the surrounding courtyard, was beautiful. A vast forest teeming with wildlife surrounded the borders. Near the boundary there was a large lake that glimmered with the sunlight. The lake itself had a bounty of wild flowers decorating it's edges. On the opposite side of the courtyard was Hagrid's hut, smoke billowing from the chimney along with the scent of roasting fish and vegetables. It was impossible not to appreciate the sight.

Snape's voice brought her out of her reverie. His words serving as a douse of ice water through her veins.

"I know what you are." Kagome turned toward the man. He remained still as stone, eyes fixed on the surrounding forest. "Dumbledore informed me of his detour through Japan. You don't belong here," Sharp eyes finally turned on her, locking on her wide amethyst orbs.

"If I even suspect you have ill intentions toward anyone within these walls, I will not hesitate to put you down like the animal you are." Kagome noticed the subtle movement of his hand within the folds of his robes. Eyes burning from the tears that wanted to flow down her face, she turned back to the scenery. If the roles were reversed, she would feel the same way. She wouldn't want her loved ones anywhere near someone so dangerous and volatile. The few times Inuyasha had lost control and been overpowered by the demonic blood running through his veins had been terrifying. She didn't know who he would turn on or if she would be able to break him away from the blood lust. She nodded, swallowing past the lump in her throat.

"I understand," She murmured, and without looking back she stepped away, allowing the doors to seal behind her.


Sorry for the slow update! For a long time I was really determined not to post until I had a minimum of 10 reviews. Well... that didn't happen. But I am sooo grateful to everyone who did review or favorite my little disaster (I really need to go back and edit bits of my earlier chapters). So here's my show of appreciation. I love writing. And I love reading other people's writing. So for everyone who's still hanging around, I'd love to hear your feedback. Hope you enjoy! Thanks!