Sesshomaru smoothly rolled the large vehicle into the parking space he was directed into. When everyone exited the car, they all immediately linked up with their partners. Inuyasha offered his elbow to Kagome, smirking playfully at her and she giggled as she looped her arm through his. She noted with interest that Kouga was holding Ayame's hand, like the other couples.
Rin directed everyone to a line where they showed their VIP tickets and received and invisible stamp that could only be observed under UV light. The stamps were for the discounts on food and games, since the VIP tickets were only necessary for the horror events. They decided to start off with the least scary attraction: the hayride, and work their way over the the hospital, which was on the furthest side of the clearing from the stamp booth. Miroku originally wanted to start with mini games, claiming he wasn't in the mood yet, and everyone teased him for being scared. Even Kagome.
"If you're gonna be scared at least own it, Miroku," she jested, much to everyone's amusement.
While they stood in line for the hayride, Kagome conversed with Ayame and Sango. They were planning a relaxing night in the hot tub when they got back, and Kagome was all for it. Being naked with her female friends wasn't an issue to her, and as cold as she was, a hot bath was exactly what she wanted that moment. She was a bit hesitant at first, given Kouga would be in the same house as them, but Sango vowed to mutilate him if he tried peeping on them. Also, Inuyasha was quite adamant about Kouga and his extended interactions with Kagome, since he seemed to be intent on making her uncomfortable.
She couldn't help but be hyper aware of Inuyasha against her, even when he wasn't talking to her. He was mostly talking with Rin and Miroku about the Siren game, but he kept his arm draped over her little shoulders and held her against him the whole time they stood in line, transferring his warmth to her. It felt somehow more intimate than it did when they were in the car. The closed space forced their bodies to remain flush as it was, but out in the open it felt like a more endearing gesture. More... protective. She shyly reciprocated, wrapping her arm around his waist.
When they got to the front of the line, Sango requested a glow stick for Kagome and carefully draped it over her head. As the trailer finally pulled out of a clearing in the trees, everyone began to cheer in excitement while the previous group exited the car. Some of them were laughing and talking excitedly, while others looked like they were spooked. Kagome noted that the trailer was covered in hay and scattered hay bales for passengers to sit on. One of the workers placed a small stool before the trailer and gestured for the next group to settle into the trailer. As they moved along in the line, he punched a hole in their tickets over the hayride stub.
Kagome made a bit of a show struggling to get on the trailer, and Sango and Inuyasha helped hoist her up and she settled between them, embarrassed. The group had almost unanimously agreed to sit right and the front of the trailer. The only exception was Kagome. Inuyasha was on her left, and Sango and Miroku were to her right, with Miokru sitting right at the edge of the trailer. Opposite them was Rin closest to the edge, followed by Sesshomaru, Kouga and Ayame.
Kagome winced as Kouga started throwing handfuls of hay at the friends opposite him. The worker dealing with the tickets firmly told him to stop, as it was against the rules and warned him not to do it again or he'd be kicked out. Once the entire trailer was full, he stood on the edge and explained the rules of the ride, which were mostly common sense. No hitting the actors, no food or drink, no throwing hay at other passengers or out of the trailer. Passengers who weren't wearing a glow stick would be susceptible to be dragged from the trailer and into woods, only temporarily. Kagome gripped her glow stick, infinitely relieved. When the announcement was done he unexpectedly blew an air horn, causing everyone to jump.
Ayame pulled out her phone to record the ride. She previously stated that she'd be taking a lot of pictures and videos and posting them online. Kagome wasn't into social media, apart from their group chat, and wasn't keen on having her picture taken. Not that she was embarrassed of how she looked, but she didn't want to be seen online by a bunch of strangers. So she flipped her hair over her left shoulder and pulled her hood up, zipping her jacket all the way to hide the lower part of her face.
"Are you cold?" she heard Inuyasha ask and she nodded her head as he wrapped his arm around her and unexpectedly pulled her into his lap, hugging her close to his chest. She flushed as she heard Kouga and Rin jeering at them and felt Inuyasha chuckling against her.
The ride started out quietly for the first few minutes. They were riding along what looked like an old village on the outskirts. Small huts dotted the forest through the thick brush and there seemed to be a thick fog that wasn't there before. It was completely dark, the only light coming from the tractor and the occasional cellphone camera flash. The only sounds heard were the frantic whispered exchanges of the passengers and the eerie music played over a sound system through the trees. Everyone bristled with tension when they saw flashing lights in the distance along the path they were on. As they approached the lights, they realized it was a police car that looked like it'd been in a terrible accident. Kagome's heart pounded as the trailer slowly eased past the scene and the flashing lights disappeared in the distance.
Suddenly a loud gunshot was heard from almost directly behind her and she covered her ears and screamed, leaning heavily on Inuyasha and burying her face in his chest and he laughed loudly at her.
"Don't hide your face, Kagome!" Rin yelled at her and Kagome felt her ears heat. "They need to see that bitch stick or you'll get dragged into the forest!"
"Kagome!" she heard a loud, demonic voice calling her name and she turned around to see a Shibito police officer shooting fake bullets and running in a wild, frantic step that only a madman would understand. His skin was a sickly grayish color, and his eyes were completely black, leaking fake blood. She guessed he was wearing some sort of voice mechanism that made him sound choppy and sinister. After a few moments of franatically chasing the trailer, he ran into the woods and disappeared.
The ride continued in this fashion, passing by imitated scenes of the Siren game. Different kinds of Shibito climbed onto the trailer to scare the passengers. At one point, a female village Shibito got right down in Kagome's face, caressing her glow stick and smiling wickedly at her. Her mouth was filled with a dark liquid that oozed out from between her teeth when she opened it. Kouga was howling the loudest out of everyone in the trailer, his voice echoing off the trees, and the Shibito turned around and grabbed both of his ankles, laughing maniacally as she dragged him off the car. Kouga screamed and tried to kick at her, when two more Shibito–one of which was a child–grabbed him by his arms and legs and pulled him into the woods. Everyone laughed at his ashen face as he returned to the trailer a few moments later.
"How was that?" Inuyasha asked Kagome as he helped her off the trailer. She grinned broadly, feeling oddly content that she 'survived' her first horror game. Not to mention, how much fun she had. And seeing Kouga scared out of his wits was well worth it.
"That was actually really fun." She told him.
"Ready for the obstacle course?"
She clutched her glow stick. "I hope so."
"That won't do you any good in there, Pip Squeak," Kouga sneered. "Stick or not, they're gonna run at you to rip that flag off."
Rin rolled her eyes. "You should be the one who's scared to go in there, Kouga. We all saw your face when that lady and that kid handled you."
The others laughed at Kouga's sheepish expression as he huffed stubbornly. They all continued to tease him while they stood in line for the Infection obstacle course. Only six people were allowed in at a time, so Rin and Sesshomaru opted to go first and wait for the others at the exit. Everyone was given a white belt with three Velcro flags attached to it. The object of the game was to navigate through the obstacle course and avoid the Shibito to make it to the end with as many flags as possible. The female college student explaining the game was wearing a Shibito nurse costume that exposed an ample amount of cleavage, and Kouga didn't bother to be discreet as he looked her over. Kagome caught Ayame rolling her eyes in frustration.
Kagome felt herself becoming excited as everyone assembled and fastened their belts when they neared the front of the line. She had more fun than she thought she would in this kind of setting, and was eager for the next two events, especially if she got to see Kouga freak out again.
"My strategy is to tuck two of my flags into my pants and leave the last one dangling in front of me so if the Shibito try to grab it, I can sue them for sexual harassment."
Inuyasha cocked his head to the side as he stared at Miroku. "You're really special, you know that?"
Miroku pretended to choke back tears as he suddenly clasped Inuyasha in a tight bear hug. "I think you're really special, too," he whispered shakily into his friends ear and–much to everyone's amusement–kissed him on the cheek. "God, I love you."
"Umm..." Inuyasha sputtered.
"Something you wanna share with the class, Miroku?" Sango had her hands on her hips, a mockingly annoyed look on her face. Miroku turned around and swept her up in his arms, off her feet and kissed her loudly on her cheeks over and over as she giggled uncontrollably. Kagome, Inuyasha and Ayame joined in laughing at her embarrassed expression while Kouga huffed.
"You guys are whack." He huffed and Inuyasha cocked a brow at him.
"You're just butt hurt because everyone saw your pussy today."
"Fuck you."
"At least he shaved it this time." Miroku wiggled his eyebrows, his arms still securely around Sango.
"I wasn't scared, dammit!" Kouga roared. "I was startled. You would be too."
"Uh huh." Inuyasha was grinning ear to ear. "You screamed even more than Kagome did."
"Kagome–" he said her name like it was a dirty word, "–didn't have to worry about getting dragged off the ride because she's a little chicken shit that had to wear the fucking magical glow stick so these sick bastards couldn't touch her."
"Then maybe you should've gotten one, too."
"I'm not scared like she is."
"Doesn't seem that way."
"Let's see her go on the hayride without the glow stick then."
"Why don't you leave her alone?" Sango cut in. "Like, why do you feel the need to bully her all the damn time?"
Kouga towered over Sango. "Why does she have to act like this innocent, shy little wimp who can't do anything when you're not around?"
"Kouga, get the fuck out of my face." Sango raised her voice.
"Because once again, Kagome is standing there all quiet because she doesn't know how to fucking stand up for herself. She needs Sango dearest here to speak up for her all the fucking time."
"Okay, okay, enough." Miroku said as he and Inuyasha stepped between them.
"Do you have a problem with me, Kouga?" Kagome glared at him. Kouga's head snapped in her direction and his eyes glazed with anger.
"Yeah, you always have to be the fucking center of attention, pretending to be all shy so people are curious about you. I'm not fucking stupid. All you want is attention." He was leaning down to get in her face and Kagome felt her hands trembling in anger and hurt. Where was this vehemence coming from? Was it rooted in him being ashamed of his reaction to the hayride? She guessed that was his issue, and she was used to him being a sore loser, but was surprised and irritated to have him invading her personal space. Right when she was about to shove him back, he was grabbed by Inuyasha and Miroku.
"You need to chill the fuck out, Kouga." Inuyasha growled. "It's really not that deep."
"Kagome, he gets like this when he feels like he's losing an argument or being put on the spot," Ayame whispered to her. "Please don't get upset, he doesn't mean it. He's just really stupid when he's angry."
"I can see that," Kagome's voice was hushed and shook slightly as Ayame hugged her.
"I bet any amount of money he'll apologize later." She winked and Kagome tried to fight a smile. It was hard to be upset with Ayame around, but she was still a little shaken by her spat with Kouga. There was really no reason for him to get the riled up over a little glow stick, so she chose to ignore him until he decided to apologize. Sango and Ayame sensed her distress and kept her busy with conversation while Inuyasha and Miroku tried to assuage Kouga.
Once they were called into the obstacle course, Kagome's heart started pounding again. The course was cleverly set up in a way that they wouldn't be a able to stray from the path. The sides of the path were blocked off by caution tape, walls, furniture debris, and of course, Shibito. It went through houses, a church, part of the forest, and a makeshift coalmine.
Kouga eventually came around and started acting his loud, goofy self again, assisting Kagome and Ayame when necessary. Kagome thought it to be really sweet watching Ayame try to keep up with Kouga, since he was holding her hand almost the whole time they were in there, only releasing it if he absolutely had to. It was amazing the affect she had on him. He was... less prone to be a jerk with Ayame around, in Kagome's terms.
They made it through most of the course with no "casualties" until they reached the coalmine and Inuyasha smacked his forehead off a stalagmite and was dazed for a second as a Shibito sporting a mining hat and a pickax, snatched one of his flags. Kagome and Ayame laughed hysterically at the look on his face when the Shibito scurried off with his flag.
"These bastards play dirty," he grinned as he ran to catch up to the others.
"Sucks to be tall, doesn't it?" Kagome teased.
After some time, they were nearing the end of the course. Kagome recognized the hut in the distance and was glad. She was getting tired because the obstacle course was truly that, as a lot of areas required them to jump over objects on the ground, crawl through small spaces, and even climb ladders and terrain.
At one point Kagome tripped over a set of mine car tracks and was met with a Shibito twisted in a horrible position. She was bent backwards, as if in a bridge formation, but where her stomach should've been was replaced by a large, insect-like shell and her head was contorted upright, staring up at Kagome. Her voice mechanism made her sound like she was making clicking noises like a giant beetle. Kagome stumbled a bit to stand up as the horribly disfigured Shibito charged at her like a bug. Like a spider.
She felt herself being swept off the ground completely and her legs were held securely as she was hoisted over someone's shoulder and they started running. All she could see was the ground and two long legs clad in jeans and a firm backside moving at an alarming speed. His flag that previously dangled from his backside was no longer there, and she heard his deep, exerted breathing. Once they reached the clearing in the hut, he set her down and she looked behind him to see the others in the distance trying to catch up. The spider Shibito was also in the distance, crawling at a frightening speed, given her position.
Ayame tripped on the same track Kagome had, and Miroku and Kouga hurriedly grabbed her arms and hauled her up, running with her until she gained her footing again.
"Leave no man behind!" Kouga was yelling frantically at Miroku, who started laughing.
If that wasn't a sign that he was scared shitless, Kagome didn't know what was.
They all scurried through the hut when suddenly the floor started vibrating and a horde of Shibito broke through the walls, grabbing at the nearest person: Kagome. Kouga shrieked loudly as he was grabbed at by a massive mutated Shibito and it laughed as it tore one of his flags free. Kagome giggled and screamed as she tried to run out of the hut, but she felt the strain of her belt when one of her flags got ripped off. She tailed Sango and Kouga outta there, and the others were close behind, panting and laughing. Kagome bent over in front of Rin and Sesshomaru to place her hands on her knees as she panted to catch her breath.
"Are you okay?" Inuyasha asked Kagome and she looked confused. "You fell pretty hard in there."
She became aware of a slight stinging sensation on her right knee and hand, and instinctively looked at her hand. There were scrapes along the heel of her palm, but it was nothing serious. "Just a few scratches. I'm fine. Really."
"How'd you guys like it?" Rin was clinging to Sesshommaru. "Anyone make it out with all flags?"
"Sango and I did." Miroku said triumphantly. "Kouga lost one."
"Ayame lost two," Kouga rolled his eyes.
"I only lost one," Inuyasha said. "But it's only because I hit my head in that damn cave."
"Oh my God, so did Sesh!" Rin laughed. "I guess being a jolly green giant ain't all that it's cracked up to be, eh?" She playfully nudged her boyfriend and he tried to hide a smile.
"I think you owe Kagome an apology, Kouga," Ayame said. "She may have lost a flag, but she held her own in there."
Sango crossed her arms. "That she did. She was ahead of us a good time we were in there. So much for needing Sango dearest, huh?"
"Don't tell me he went picking a fight because he was scared." Rin rolled her eyes.
"With Kagome of all people?" Sesshomaru cocked a brow and smirked at Kouga as he turned red in embarrassment.
"Yeah, I was only testing her to see if she'd boss up and take off that stupid glow stick but I guess not." He snorted. " I said some things I shouldn't have, but that doesn't make up for her being a chicken."
Kagome raised a brow in response and summoned all of her will to not smirk at Kouga as she wordlessly removed her glow stick and randomly tossed it to the side and leaned toward him, keeping her chin turned up defiantly.
"Let's see if you're ready for the hotel," she said in a quiet, yet clear and daring voice and everyone ooo'd in response to her audacity.
"Looks like Kagome's got balls tonight, Kouga." Sesshomaru was full-on grinning now and Kouga sputtered a bit as everyone heckled him.
Inuyasha raised a brow at Kouga. "Funny how you like to pick on her for being the 'weakest link,'" he used his fingers as air quotations, "yet you reached an octave beyond any soprano I've ever heard."
"That was you?" Sesshomaru and Rin asked in unison before they started laughing.
"We thought that was Kagome!" Rin barely choked out.
The final event of the night was the largely anticipated hospital. For how long the line was, it actually moved rather quickly since such large amounts of people were allowed per group. Once they got closer to the entrance, they realized that the it was staged like a hospital waiting room with a front desk and seating. There was a staircase that led upstairs, which is where the game would start, and the group members would have to work their way down to the basement to exit successfully.
The hospital wasn't as simple of a walk through as the obstacle course would be. Each time a new game started, staff members would block off certain hallways, stairways and doors, so that the path to the goal in the basement would be different each time. Group members were allowed to split up, but were heavily advised not to travel through the hospital alone. If someone was caught by a Shibito, they'd be escorted from the hospital back into the waiting room. Members that made it successfully to the goal would be able to escape the basement.
The bonus award was that if an entire group made it through successfully in under five minutes, they'd be given access to redo an attraction of their choosing.
One nurse guided the group up to the top of the steps and gave them a run down of the rules. Kagome's heart pounded and she was gripping Inuyasha's arm so tightly he winced a bit. Once the door was open and they were let inside, they were met with a very dimly light hallway that looked like another office. There was a small room to the right which was blocked off by a light blue curtain. Rin and Sesshomaru took the lead in the group, and Kagome internally admitted that she was in awe of her friend. Rin was almost as small as she was, but nothing seemed to phase her. Not even the formidable Sesshomaru glare.
At the end of the hallway was an elevator, which was currently running. It opened and a Shibito nurse stepped out, facing away from the group. She wasn't dressed suggestively as the nurses outside were. Her frame was completely covered in bloody, filthy scrubs and her hair was fastened in a bun. She turned and walked into the room on her left and once she disappeared, the group exhaled in unison. Inuyasha had loosened Kagome's grip on his elbow to hold her hand as they quietly made their way forward. Miroku and Sango linked up with Sesshomaru and Rin as they went into the room with the blue curtain. There were four other people in the game that weren't a part of their group, and they made their way into the room across from the desk and disappeared. Kouga and Ayame were grouped with Inuyasha and Kagome as Inuyasha led them cross the room and down a different hallway and froze. The Shibito from earlier was standing at the end of the hallway, which they discovered went to a set of stairs to the lower floor.
"Someone has to distract her," Ayame whispered.
"No shit, Sherlock," Kouga growled. "You volunteering?"
"This way," Kagome pointed to another door just to the left of the hallway. She led the group into a surgical prep room. Just as they entered, a bright light suddenly turned on, revealing a body on the table. His stomach was torn open, revealing his innards and his head suddenly jerked up as he screamed in agony before going limp again. Kagome and Kouga shrieked and Inuyasha clamped his hand over Kagome's mouth as they heard footsteps in the hallway coming toward them.
"Is someone there?" It was the nurse's demonic voice and the group panicked.
"Behind this curtain!" Inuyasha hissed as he aggressively dragged Kagome to stand behind a blue curtain similar to the one in the other room. Kouga and Ayame were close behind them as they heard the nurse enter the room. Her shoes clicked on the floor as she walked around the desk toward the curtain. Kagome peeked through the gap in the curtain, watching the nurse as she approached, and tugged Inuyasha's hand, urging him to inch toward the other side of the curtain. Once the Shibito walked around, they could make a run for it and go down the stairs. Inuyasha, realizing her plan, grabbed Kouga's wrist and pointed with his chin toward the other side of the curtain at Kouga's confused look. Kouga and Ayame nodded in understanding as they all tiptoed to the left as quietly as they could.
"I know you're there..." the nurse said hoarsely as she peeked behind the curtain and tried to grab at Ayame, but they ran for the door. The nurse let out a horrible screeching sound as she started to chase them, but Kouga slammed the door shut as soon as Ayame exited, and they took off down the stairs.
"Time to prep for surgery!" The nurse screamed and the man on the table shrieked in agony again, fueling the group to run faster. There was another staircase for them to run down, but it was blocked off by an oddly placed alcove so they made their way to the other side of the level. There was another nurse pushing an empty wheelchair into a room with red light coming out of it and Ayame took the lead with her back to the wall as she peaked into the red room. The nurse was rummaging through a desk of sorts and Ayame scurried to the other side of the door and peaked in again. The nurse still wasn't looking at the door and she waved the others over.
They reached a bend in the hallways and saw another nurse briefly looking down the hall in their direction before she turned and headed around the corner. The door to the other staircase was right at the end of the hallway and they rushed toward it. Just as Ayame opened the door, the Shibito from the red room came charging down the hallway at them with her arms outstretched as she screamed with that horrible voice mechanism.
Kouga harshly shoved at the others until they all gathered in the staircase and he once again shut the door in the nurse's face.
At the bottom of the stairs was the elevator and the group froze. The door was open, and they could hear the Shibito giggling from inside it, along with the sound of metal on metal scratching. The base of the staircase was at a corner, and they had the option to go straight and sneak past the elevator, or go left down the hallway. They opted for the left, but at the next bend in the hallway, it was blocked off by a rusty set of lockers. Kagome's heart fell into her stomach when the door of the one locker started banging loudly, but Inuyasha's hand was over her mouth before she could scream again. He was whispering quietly into her ear, trying to get her to relax and he slowly turned her around to go back the other way, only to find that Kouga and Ayame had disappeared. Kagome noticed that they were no longer there and her whole body went cold as she trembled.
"Where the hell did they take off to now?" Inuyasha growled under his breath and Kagome paled as she heard the locker behind them burst open and a Shibito jumped out, crawling toward them. Inuyasha hurriedly whisked Kagome back around the corner to the staircase and they crouched down behind the wall in the stairwell. He carefully scooted her behind him so he could peek into the hallway and Kagome kept her hands clamped over her mouth as she heard the soft padding of the crawling nurse right by the door. The nurse stopped, looking around the corner by the elevator and turned around and went back down the hall to the locker, having not seen anyone.
Kagome released a breath she didn't realize she was holding and started taking short, rapid breaths. She was hyperventilating badly, and she needed to calm down before she passed out. Inuyasha noticed the extreme change in her breathing and turned around and tucked her hair behind her ears, his expression softening.
"Jesus, you're so pale. You okay?" he asked as quietly as he could. Kagome realized she was shaking and she couldn't bring herself to speak. She didn't know if she was choked up from her anxiety, or from a deep sense of fear and dread. Maybe it was both. She couldn't get a word out so she shakily shook her head and Inuyasha unexpectedly pulled her into a hug. Her heart hammered loudly in her chest.
"It's okay, it's just a game. No one is really gonna harm you. I'm here." He whispered soothingly, rubbing her back. She wanted to wrap her arms around him but she found it difficult to move, to speak, to do anything. She took deep breaths, trying to relax. She melted into his embrace, hit by an unexpected wave of euphoria. He felt amazing wrapped around her. She felt so safe and warm with him that it was almost overwhelming. Too overwhelming. She was torn between being flustered from his intimate gesture, and gripping fear from being in an unfamiliar situation with being in an attractive boy's arms, and being surrounded by darkness and horror.
Right when she felt she might be starting to calm down, she was overcome by a new, but familiar feeling. She felt like her body was heating up inside, and she felt like crying, but the tears were locked up inside her, causing a weird pressure in her chest and throat, choking her speech. The pressure was building to the point that it was becoming difficult to breath. Her head felt heavy, and her hands started trembling. But she couldn't move.
Suddenly, she heard another set of steps coming down the stairs and looked over Inuyasha's shoulder to see Miroku and Sango looking at them with their eyebrows raised.
"Well well well..." Miroku smirked and Sango stifled a laugh as Inuyasha released Kagome and turned around at the sound of his friend's voice.
"What are you guys doing here?" he raised a brow.
Sango rolled her eyes. "Oh you know, just trying to find the goal like everyone else. Looks like we're interrupting something so we'll just slide around and let you two be..."
"I was comforting her. Kagome needs to get out of here. She's having a bad anxiety attack. She doesn't look too good."
"What?" Sango's eyes widened as she got on the floor and took Kagome's hands. "You okay?"
'Yes,' Kagome wanted to say. Her eyes popped open wide as she realized she hadn't said it out loud. She couldn't say it out loud. Her throat had a lump in it. A barrier, one that prevented any words from coming out. It prevented any sound at all, aside from her erratic breathing.
"Where's Ayame and Kouga?" Miroku asked.
"No idea..." Inuyasha was staring at Kagome with a confused expression.
"Talk to me, Kagome." Sango urged. "You look like you just saw a ghost. Do you want me to call your mother?"
Kagome shook her head.
"Talk, please." Sango begged, her voice shaking now, too. "Can you speak?"
Kagome shook her head again, her chest tightening inside. Oh no. Not here. Not like this. Sango's breath hitched.
"We need to get her out of here." Her voice was firm. "Now."
She pulled Kagome to her feet and walked into the hallway, past the elevator. The Shibito in the elevator didn't notice them, much to Kagome's relief. She looked past a dark gap in the hallway, so dark that it was complete darkness from whatever was on the other side. Sango urged Miroku to go ahead and see what was there, and he obliged, putting his fear of the impending Shibito aside for the safety of his friend. He wasn't exactly sure what was wrong with Kagome, but he knew by Sango's reaction that she was in bad shape. He felt along the darkness and was met with a wall. He traced his palms along the wall, feeling it bend into a corner. Just as he reached around the corner, he saw a bright pink light along the floor. It was a doorway, with the word "Goal" across the threshold in bright yellow letters.
"In here, quickly!" he whispered frantically and heard footsteps approaching him quickly, but was suddenly grabbed on his chest by his shirt.
"Kiritoyaerenzo!" It was a Shibito and he was promptly dragged through the darkness and down a path opposite the one he came from and up a set of stairs. It was the waiting room, the entrance to the game. He noticed Kouga and Ayame sitting on one of the benches. Ayame was smiling sheepishly at him.
"Welcome back," she giggled and Miroku grimaced.
'Ah dammit,' he thought. 'I was so close, too.'
Back in the basement, Inuyasha and Sango rushed Kagome into the dark hallway and toward the goal before the Shibito came back. They pushed through the door and were back outside, met by a staff member congratulating them for making it through the hospital. Sango promptly ignored him and rushed past him to sit Kagome on the grass. Rin and Sesshomaru were there as well.
"Hah!" Rin gloated. "I told you Kouga wouldn't make it through!"
"Ayame and Miroku are in the waiting room too, then." Sesshomaru added camly.
"Five out of eight, not bad. We should all celebrate!"
"Not now, guys." Inuyasha said sternly, watching Sango try to calm down their friend. Kagome wasn't responding to anything Sango was saying now, only staring blankly at her, causing Sango to get more worked up. Sesshomaru and Rin raised their brows at the worried look on Sango's face and the trembling in her voice and moved forward. Rin knelt on the grass next to Sango.
"Is she okay?" Sesshomaru pondered quietly.
"Kagome? What's wrong?" Rin asked softly. Suddenly, Sango turned to glare at her.
"Go get the others," she demanded. "Get them in the car. Tell them we're leaving. Now!"
They all jumped at the sharpness of her voice and Sango glared after Rin and Sesshomaru as they disappeared to get the others. Rin remaining quiet and Sesshomaru obeying orders were quite novel, and Inuyasha furrowed his brow as Sango glared at him.
"Kagome needs privacy." She snapped and Inuyasha frowned.
Kagome didn't so much as glance in his direction as he stood up and slowly backed away. Sango was glaring at him with tears brimming in her eyes. His heart sank at Sango's furious, yet worried expression, and Kagome's perfectly blank one. Her lack of response sent chills down his spine as it dawned on him that this was out of the norm, yet Sango somehow knew what was going on. He didn't know what was wrong with her, and he knew there was nothing he could do to about it. He felt completely helpless. His shoulders slumped as he turned and walked away, and Sango turned her attention back to Kagome. She wrestled her phone out of her pocket and dialed Kagome's mother.
Karori answered on the first ring. "Sango, is everything okay?"
"Karori," Sango's voice shook. "Kagome's having an anxiety attack."
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