Hello again! I hope everyone enjoys the new chapter. This one is a little long so I hope you're ready to read! Please review and let me know how I'm doing!
-Saru
EDIT: I tampered with the layout of the file so it's easier to read to give better flow to the story. : )
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha characters, nor am I making any money from this story.
Chapter 6
Memory
His eyelids fluttered open and he looked around. The edge of everything seemed to be blurred, fuzzy. He willed his hand to move to his forehead, fingers encompassing it, trying to soothe the dull ache there. He moved to sit up from the cot he laid on, noticing there were bandages around his torso holding his dried blood. He winced as a sharp pain shot through his stomach.
"Do not try to move, you'll only open the wounds." A ragged old voice called out. An old woman emerged from the shadows. Her rickety limbs moved forward, reaching out to touch him with thin, knobby fingers splaying them across the bandages. "Do you remember anything?" She asked, lighting a small roll of dried leaves and setting them down on a plate.
He worked his mouth, taking a few moments before he remembered how to speak. "Where…Where am I?"
"You remember nothing?"
He shook his head, his eyelids becoming heavy again, his long black hair falling around him. The scent of herbs burning soothed his mind, causing him to feel light headed. The old woman helped him lay his head back down, and she smiled the whole time, her grin missing teeth.
"Good. We have to make sure we get rid of all of those pesky memories."
He nodded in agreement, but deep down inside he could feel that there was something he should never forget: A smiling girl with black hair and brown eyes. What was her name again? Was she just a dream? He shut his eyes again with a smile crossing his lips.
"Kagome…" He whispered before he fell back asleep.
"I'm rather worried, yes. They've never been gone this long. It's almost been 3 months now. I want to go in search of them but I'm not even sure where to look." Sango poked the fire with a stick as she turned her gaze to Miroku. "What do you think?"
"You are correct, they've never been gone this long without giving us some sort of notice before hand…" He tapped a finger to his lips in thought. "Maybe they're just having some extended alone time." He returned Sango's gaze with his own. She rolled her eyes at him.
"I'm trying to be serious Miroku."
"I understand. Inuyasha is more than capable of taking care of the two of them. I think it unwise to just go off in search of them without even an idea of where they've gone. It's best to stay put, that way at least if they return we'll be here to greet them."
Sango sighed, the worry never leaving her face. "I am still uneasy." She murmured leaning into Miroku's open arm, propping her head on his shoulder. Miroku nodded in agreement.
"I am too."
Kagome woke, back feeling stiff. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the dim light of the sun about to rise. Looking to her right she found Sesshoumaru in the same place he had been when she had fallen asleep. Beside her. She moved her head away from his shoulder, eyes looking down towards her wrist. The pricks from his nails were but scabs now, threatening to fall away any day.
Sesshoumaru had said he was going to take her back to the village, but he hadn't. She thought maybe he liked the company, and maybe that he didn't want to give up the search. His demeanor had changed a few days ago, as if he had acquired some sort of information that he wasn't going to divulge to her. It made Kagome irritated.
"Are you awake?" She whispered, brown eyes gazing up towards his face from her place on his shoulder. His eyes were shut, but she had a feeling even if he didn't answer that he was awake. He never seemed to sleep.
"What is it?" His voice was thick and husky and caused Kagome to swallow hard. His voice used to frighten her, now it seemed to caress her in a way that made her feel guilty.
"Why haven't you taken me back to the village yet? You threatened me with that almost a month ago and you still haven't. Do you know something I don't?"
He was silent, but his eyes opened. He looked off in the distance.
"I sensed him, a few weeks back. Haven't you noticed we've been staying in the same area? I've been making a big circle because I'm having trouble pinpointing where the presence is coming from."
Kagome's heart pounded, adrenaline bursting inside of her. "You smelled him? You mean he's alive?"
"I never said that. I sensed him. It's very different. It's not his smell, but it is. I don't know what to make of it."
She nodded, shoulders drooping again. Still, something was better than nothing. "It's a little bit of hope. I've lost count of how long we've been searching."
"Three months and two days."
It had been a long time. Kagome nodded, knowing that he'd have a better idea than she. His mind hadn't been riddled with fear and madness like hers had been, on and off for three months. Kagome self diagnosed herself with Post-traumatic stress, as she had remembered the condition after discussing the idea of school to Sesshoumaru. She was better now, but she still had flashbacks. In those times, Sesshoumaru would hold her until the fear subsided. The two of them were unlikely friends, but in the past few weeks Kagome found herself remembering that passionate kiss in the rain that they had shared.
It was difficult to think of anything else when Sesshoumaru stayed so close.
Guilt filled her stomach then. You're supposed to love Inuyasha. He's the one you've been looking for all this time.
"Kagome."
"Yes?" She looked to him, and then saw where he stared. She turned her gaze to match his. Sunlight peeked over the horizon, the morning sky turning hues of pink, orange and gold with the sunrise.
"Good morning."
Her heart beat resounded against her chest, her mouth going dry. Sesshoumaru…you know how I feel now, don't you?
It was almost as if he had heard her thoughts, the corners of his lips jerking into a faint smirk.
He awoke again, the faint glow of embers giving him enough light to look around. Where was he? It looked like a cave of some sort, and he heard water. His mouth was dry. It was probably from the herbs the old woman had burned earlier.
"Hello? Granny! Are you there?" His voice was scratchy and hoarse. This time, when he sat up, he did not feel any pain. He wondered if days had passed. What was going on here?
"Yes?" It had the same voice, but only this time it was a lot younger. A woman stepped out of the shadows, same clothing that the old lady had worn. Her hair was up in the same style as well, but there was no gray; only silky black hair.
"Who are you? Where's granny?" He asked, irritation rising.
"I am the same. I've helped you, and you've helped me. It's been a long time since I've had memories this tasty…" She licked her lips, tongue freakishly long for someone who looked human. He felt his stomach turn in disgust. Something inside of him wanted to reach for something to vanquish whatever this creature was.
"What have you done to me?" He yelled, pulling his arm and noticing it was tied down. He stared at her, his brown eyes sending her a death glare.
The creature only laughed, flipping her long black hair. "Inuyasha, you don't even remember yourself do you? I must have gotten greedy, I hadn't planned on eating that much."
"Inuyasha? Is that my name? Please untie me, let me go! I don't know what I did, but I can't remember anything! The only thing I remember is a girl with brown eyes and black hair! What have you done to her?"
The creature's eyes widened in surprise before her brows narrowed in anger. "This is how you repay me? Bringing up that filthy human in my presence?" The woman's voice took a horrid tone, vocal cords snapping into something warped. "Listen to me Inuyasha, Kagome is dead. I had her killed. You don't even remember who she is, do you? She was your human lover. You watched her be raped and then murdered by my henchmen. That's when I brought you here. I've been taking care of you ever since. When you're strong, I'll let you have your demon side back. Then we can be together."
Inuyasha felt anger build up inside of him. He used to be strong, and a demon! This woman had taken away the beautiful girl with the smile. He spat at her then, anger taking hold of him.
The woman just smiled. "It's alright," she wiped the spit from her cheek. "I know you don't mean it. I'll just have to eat more. Eat all of Kagome up in your mind and that way you'll never remember her. You'll only think of me." She pulled a pile of herbs from a pocket in her dress, lighting it with the flickering embers, smoke filling up the small cave.
Inuyasha tried to hold his breath, tried to break free, but he was human and weak. His lids fluttered before he became unconscious and fell deep into the land of dreams.
"Are you getting tired?" Sesshoumaru asked, causing Kagome's head to whip up and become alert from her idle daydreaming. She looked around her. Apparently she had been following him blindly again, for quite a while too. The sun was already beginning to set. They had left in search of Inuyasha again, except this time, Kagome had more hope that they would find him. A days' worth of walking through the forest hadn't gotten them any closer to finding him.
"A little bit. My feet are beginning to ache." Sesshoumaru nodded, taking her answer into consideration.
"We'll find a suitable place to set up camp and then we can stop."
"Sesshoumaru, have you been able to pick up on his scent or his presence?" It didn't hurt to ask.
Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed. "It's very strange. I don't know of a good way to explain it to you. I can sense his power, catch his scent. What I'm picking up faintly resembles his smell but I can't say for sure if it is him or not. We'll just have to keep searching."
She nodded. Her foot caught in a root that protruded from the ground, causing her to trip forward. She clutched onto Sesshoumaru's kimono. His arm whipped around her, catching her before she could fall. His amber eyes stared into hers and Kagome feared that her heart might pound right out of her chest.
"S-Sorry," she murmured as he placed her on her feet again. He inclined his head to her and the two of them proceeded to walk.
They found what looked like an abandoned shrine, vines climbing up the wood and stone guardians keeping watch. It had a tiled roof, something that t was a relief to see after weeks of open air camping or abandoned huts with roofs threatening to cave in any moment. A path of stairs led up to the building, but it was clear whomever had been the caretaker had long since gone.
"Wait here." Sesshoumaru's voice commanded as he leapt in the air, avoiding the steps all together. He opened the creaky wooden door, and vanished from sight. After a few minutes he returned with good news: it was safe to use as shelter. Kagome almost wept tears of joy.
"I wonder why they left…" She asked, sliding a hand over some of the tapestries that had been left behind. The inside was mostly intact, it looked as if all valuables had already been scavenged, but there were sleeping pallets hidden away in a chest camouflaged as a statue.
"There are lots of reasons, some not so pretty to think about."
Kagome nodded, a shiver running up her spine. "I'm going outside to air these out a bit." She replied, gathering the pallets in her arms and carrying them outside. Draping them across a banister, she found a stick to beat the dust out of them with.
Thunder rumbled in the distance and the sky began to grow dark. Kagome stopped her pounding, staring off into the distance at the clouds that were beginning to gather.
"Inuyasha, it's going to rain soon, we better get back to the others." Kagome warned, clutching his robes tightly as he ran.
"Feh. I'm not worried about any rain. I want to show you something. We're almost there, I promise."
She sighed, smiling happily as she buried her face in his silver hair.
Lightning lit up the sky suddenly, catching her off guard. Her shrill scream filled the dark and in moments Sesshoumaru was by her side, hand on his blade.
"Sesshoumaru! I'm sorry, I got lost in my thoughts and the lightning frightened me." She let out a breath, adrenaline levels coming back down to normal.
"You seem to be doing that a lot lately." His hand moved away from his blade, face stoic as always.
"I have a lot on my mind…" she whispered, gathering the pallets and carrying them inside. Sesshoumaru followed behind her, sliding the door shut behind them. A soft glow filled the room. He had started a fire in one of the kindling pits. It was warm, but not hot. Outside, the patter of raindrops was heard as the rain began to start. Thunder boomed. Kagome jumped.
"Afraid?" Sesshoumaru asked, his expression almost as if he were trying to tease her. Kagome's cheeks flushed as she threw the pallets to the ground, smoothing them out before she stood and faced him.
"Well I'm sorry that I'm not a dog demon who isn't afraid of anything. Like you've said so many times before, I'm just a fragile human with fragile feelings." She stomped over to him, noticing the corners of his mouth twitching as if he wanted to smile.
"Stop that." She commanded, brows creased in irritation, "I know that you're teasing me in your own little sick way. Just stop it."
His hand cupped her cheek, her heart pounding. "Wha-" She mumbled.
"You're right. It was rude of me." His hand moved away.
"Don't!" The words were out of her mouth before she had time to think. His eyebrows rose as he looked at her, her cheeks reddening. Her hands were caught around Sesshoumaru's in a grip. She quickly released him. "I'm sorry! I don't know what came over me!" Her gaze moved to the floor and she stared at her bare feet. "Like I said earlier, I have a lot on my min-"
Two steps were all it took before she was gathered in his arms and Sesshoumaru's lips were pressed against hers in a kiss. Kagome's eyes widened in shock for a moment before she closed her eyes shut. Her fingers gripping into Sesshoumaru's robes and kissing him back hungrily, her hands weaving into his hair pulling his head closer to hers.
Please forgive me, Inuyasha… Kagome thought, teardrops escaping from the corners of her shut eyes. I'm falling in love with your brother.
