Chapter Four

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hope everyone had a great Christmas! I want to thank those who have reviewed so far, I truly love reading your reviews. They give me much inspiration to keep churning out chapters in a timely manner, haha. Enjoy! ^_^

Lord Sesshomaru left them standing alone in the darkness, his curiosity sated for the moment. Kaori picked up her father's hunting knife from the ground and desperately rubbed the dirt from its blade. With her other hand she grasped Aiko's small palm and guided her back to their home. Like shadows they glided past their sleeping parents and into their own room, where they crawled under the old woven sheets, still shaking from their encounter.

For a few moments they laid there in silence, both unsure of what to say. Finally, Aiko turned over to face her sister, her eyes wide with confusion.

"That demon called you by another name. Why? Why did he do that?"

Kaori sighed, unwilling and unable to explain. She was too young and the story was far too long. Instead, she took her hands and kissed the tops of her fingers reassuringly.

"One day, when you're a little older, I promise I'll tell you. But for now, I need you to promise me that you'll keep what happened tonight between us. This is very important Aiko, I need you to promise me."

Aiko stared at her and leaned in closer, their foreheads touching. "I promise. But Kaori…you're still my sister, right?"

Kaori bit her lip and blinked back the tears that threatened to spill from her eyes. Tenderly she laid her hand upon the young girl's cheek. "Just remember Aiko, our bond is stronger than the blood in our veins. Nothing, not a name or another face, will ever change that."

The young girl dove further into her embrace, her tiny arms wrapped around her frame. They soon fell asleep, and Aiko dreamed of her questions and curiosities. She envisioned her sister's secrets like a tightly locked box, highly guarded and untouchable. Kaori, however, drifted into a nightmarish rest that she couldn't wake from. For brief moments, her mind flickered images of her blood father and mother, draped in decadent silk and attended by a mass of unwilling slaves. She could hear their voices, could feel their ever present coldness and indifference. Their memories echoed in the halls of her memory, forever present.


The next morning Kaori was jolted awake by her mother; her hands shaking as she lifted Kaori from the bed, her words a stream of rambling words. Sometime during the night, Haru had nearly faded from the world in his sleep. Although breathing, his body refused to wake, no matter how much he was shook or how loud Anzu cried. Without hesitating, Kaori pulled Motoshi from his comfortable pen and hooked him up to their old cart. Wrapping Haru in an old blanket, she lifted his large frame from the floor, with Anzu providing support. Gently they placed him in the bed of the cart. Aiko climbed into the cart beside him, tears rolling from her eyes.

"Mama, do you want me to grab your covering? The village has more people than you'd think." Anzu violently shook her head and hopped into the driver's seat of the cart, her lips trembling.

"No, if your father can manage to open his eyes once more, he will see my face without shame."

Kaori nodded her head and jumped in beside Aiko. With a snap of the reins, Motoshi trotted towards the village.


Once they arrived, Kaori directed Anzu to stop at Kagome's dwelling. The young miko was standing just outside her home, speaking with other women in the early morning light. Lacking poise, Kaori leaped from the cart and ran to her, explaining what had happened. Kagome's warm brown eyes filled with worry.

"We need to take him to Kaede, she'll be the one who can help him."

Kagome swiftly led them to the home of the old priestess, who took Haru into her home without hesitation. Despite her generosity, she shook her head when she looked over his rigid body.

"I will do what I can, but he is very close to passing into the other world. This man is young, but he is worn. His spirit seems restless."

Kaori, Aiko and Anzu sat for hours by Kaede's hearth, waiting for a sign of life from Haru's body. Rin sat with Aiko as she cried into her dress. Kaori stepped outside and slid to the ground, her face hidden within her hands. She blamed herself, hated herself for allowing Haru and Anzu to take her away from her unhappy life. If not for her, they could have escaped and never have been all, what was a human slave worth to a daiyoukai?

"Sitting on the ground will do nothing to help, Lady Hoshiko."

Kaori looked up from her palms to see Lord Sesshomaru standing before her, his stance calm and matter-of-fact. Frustrated, she sighed and stood.

"If you have any suggestions, Lord Sesshomaru, I'm open to hear them. I've done everything I can," she said, her teeth grinding against her internalized failure. He said nothing, and simply walked past her and inside. Curiously, she followed.

Inside, Anzu was kneeling over Haru's still body, tears falling from her eyes like a heavy summer rain. She pleaded with him to speak, to respond in any way, but his body did not obey. His breath became shallower and haggard until slowly, all of his movement ceased. Sesshomaru casually walked up beside her and drew his sword, his blade pointing towards Haru's now lifeless form.

"What are you doing?!" Kaori screamed. Rin stood up from comforting Aiko and stopped her, her demeanor calm and assured.

"Let him be. He will not hurt him; he is bringing him back to you, if he can…"

Kaori backed away at Rin's urging and watched as the sword in Sesshomaru's hand pulsed with power. With a large swipe of his blade, the pall-bearers of the underworld were destroyed. Within moments, color returned to Haru's skin and his eyes lit aflame with the warmth of life. Anzu cried with delight and wrapped her arms around her husband. Haru, not realizing that he was ever dead, stared around the room, wondering where he was.

Sheathing his blade, Sesshomaru turned from the man he just saved and began to walk towards the door. Kaori, still in shock from what she witnessed, softly turned her head as Sesshomaru walked past her.

"Thank you, Lord Sesshomaru…" she muttered, her words gentle and hazy. For a moment he paused, their golden eyes meeting in a mutual gaze.

"Thanking me is not necessary, Kaori…" he replied. Without another word, he turned away and walked out the door.


Hours later, once Anzu calmed down from her joyous state, she slowly explained to her husband what had occurred. As expected, his eyes widened with worry. He was still too weak to move from the bed in Kaede's home, and there was surely a bounty upon not only his head, but that of Anzu's as well. As for Kaori...it was difficult to say.

"Anzu, you shouldn't have brought me here."

"And what would you have me do?! To just let you die and leave us alone?"

Gently, he took her hand. "We've always known that our road wouldn't be an easy one. We accepted that a long time ago."

"No Haru, we deserve to have a chance at a happy life, just like anyone else."

"My dear, you seem to forget that our actions will ultimately have consequences. I was, and still am, ready to accept them."

Anzu shook her head, her dark brown hair ruffled and scattered across her face. "We did not ask to be slaves Haru."

He squeezed her fingers and carefully lifted them to his lips, placing a light kiss upon each one. "That's enough. Let's talk about this another time."

It was then that Kaede walked over, her eyebrows furrowed in frustration. Her aged bones creaked as she kneeled beside him, her bony fingers lifting his shirt to reveal the crystal necklace around his neck.

"You may need to continue this discussion with your wife, Haru. Lord Sesshomaru may have saved you for now, good sir, but if you continue to wear this, the aura of your life will be drained once more."

Anzu eyes narrowed. "Are you sure about this? We had these made for our protection some years ago."

"Yes, these were made with improper spellbinding. Whoever created these crystals did so incorrectly; this is why your husband has suffered so. His flesh is too weak to withstand it. You too will eventually feel the effects, if you continue to wear this spell around your neck."

Anzu looked towards Aiko and Kaori, her eyes wide. "And my children…will they…be affected?" she asked, her throat tightening around the words. Kaede nodded her head.

"Absolutely. Kaori, who is obviously not a normal mortal to keen eyes, has already aged rapidly like a human. She has lost hundreds of years of life. If she continues to wear that spell around her neck, she will die in due time, maybe another thirty years at best. Aiko, however, has much less time. Another few years perhaps."

Anzu placed a trembling hand over her mouth, tears flowing from her eyes. Haru grabbed her other hand, squeezing it reassuringly.

"I'm going to assume that there's a good reason why you've hidden yourselves this way. I won't ask; I don't want to know. However, you need to think about an alternative, because it's not a sustainable solution for whatever problem you may have," Kaede said, her hands clasped firmly together. Haru nodded and thanked her.

Kaori, although sitting some feet away with Aiko, heard the conversation clearly. Instinctively, she grasped at the crystal around her neck. What would she do? Surely, once the spell was lifted, their scent would fill the open air like blood pouring into the sea. And like the prey they were, they would be hunted.


Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I look forward to your thoughts and comments, as always!