"Beginnings are sudden, but also insidious. They creep up on you sideways, they keep to the shadows, they lurk unrecognized. Then, later, they spring." – Margaret Atwood
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The leaves of the large tree shaded the figure below. Thin fingers gripped the cool hard stone surface of the bench that sat under the tree. The figures cerulean eyes stared up into the sky of pale blue. Her face was blank, and she seemed to be thinking deeply. A long breathe escaped her throat as her head bent down to stare at the ground.
Her fingers grazed against the rough edges of the stone bench as she continued to think. Ebony hair cascaded over her shoulder and covered her deep blue orbs from sight. The thoughts in her head were muddled and blotched. Things didn't seem to piece together right in her mind. A jumbled up puzzle was forming in her head, but information was missing.
"I continue to learn, but it feels as if I still have only met him for the first time…" Kagome whispered on her lips. She feared she would never understand Sesshomaru. She knew he could be cruel if need be, but not this cruel.
Shifting her position, Kagome stood up. Her eyes were set half-lidded as she continued to let her mind drift. Swinging her arm downwards she swept her large yellow back-pack onto her shoulder. Slow steady steps took her forward. Her head bobbed as she walked, tousling her hair in various directions.
The last remnants of nature passed her by. So much had been lost through the tales of time. She recognized the fact that time was supposed to change things; however she was only now so aware of how much did change. Instead of thick green foliage that shadowed most of the land in the past; there were sparse bits of green. Lone trees lost among the sea of concrete surrounding them; with only the unbearable beams of sun and relentless beating of rain to keep them company. Trees, once among a thousand similar friends, were to be left behind by others surely to have met their demise. In her current mind-set, Kagome began to pity the life of the lone trees.
The raven-haired girl had been so caught up in her thoughts; she was surprised to find she had reached the first league of her destination. A sigh escaped her lips. Eyes taking on a melancholy look she gazed upon the rickety old shack that held something so overwhelmingly important inside its confines. A hand crept up and rested on her chest above her heart. She gave a silent prayer for the lone trees lost to make the structure before her. She thought the gesture might appear childish, but to her it held infinitely more meaning.
Kagome's hand slowly left her chest to rub against the rough wood of the well-house door. The loud creak of the door sounded its years of age. It faced her now. It was the epitome of all that shrouded her soul. It was the key to an unimaginable world. It was the sacred object that held her life of disarray in its depths. It was the thing that bound her to a seemingly impossible task. It was nothing but a battered well to those that didn't know its secrets. Kagome faced the well back almost defiantly.
The contemplative look that was displayed moments before on Kagome's face was gone. It was replaced by a contorted and crooked expression instead. There was no exact emotion to put on the expression, except defiance. Her eyes were stern and seemed to shimmer with an inner fire. Yet, behind the shimmering flames lay a hidden sadness. Her mouth lay angled on her face; it was neither a straight grim line nor a deep frown. Her body told a different story.
The petite figure was tensed and rigid. Her feet were rooted towards the floor. Her mind told her to head forward, but the physical being refused. No matter of will-power would allow her to go an inch forward. An invisible force held her back. Kagome was beginning to question if what lay on the other side was truly important. A single thought struck her. It was that single thought that was just enough to push her forward.
Her feet shuffled against the dirt floor till she reached the lip of the well. Her deep blue eyes fell into the darkness of the pit in front of her. One leg lifted and placed itself on the other side of the lip of the well. One foot was now lost in the shadows, while the other took in the last bit of light from the crack of the door. Kagome swung the second leg over to where she was now sitting on the lip. With one deep breathe, she plunged into the abyss.
An illuminating light surrounded Kagome as she fell. She found it curious that from jumping into blackness, she would be greeted with brilliant light moments later. It was a surprising phenomenon. The only thing Kagome could correlate it to be, was the light at the end of the tunnel. It was the drop of sunshine after the gloom.
Yet, the light faded just as it would from the sun when it congealed into night. Kagome went from darkness to light, only to be faced by darkness once again. Her gaze looked up to see a snippet of the sky. The shine of the sun found her again. Night and Day, Darkness and Light, Shadows and Sunlight; Kagome discovered this to be an endless cycle in her life.
Her hands gripped the vines that crawled up the side of the well and began to take her ascent. The process was somewhat difficult and grueling. A misplaced foot or false step could send her spiraling down, and cause her to take this journey again. A grunt uttered from the young woman's mouth showed her protest of the very idea. With one last heft, Kagome reached the other side. She balanced herself on the lip before touching her feet to solid ground again.
Stepping away from one of the objects that plagued her being and thoughts, Kagome straightened her yellow back-pack that had weighted her down on the ascent. Kagome's head turned to study the surrounding area. A small solemn smile graced her lips.
The lone trees had regained there companions. The path-ways through them were narrow and shadowed. Deep-green touched their leaves with rich color. The wind whispered some secret message to the forest, which caused the tops of the trees to shake violently and put off the sound of the chattering leaves as they brushed against one another. Everything was as it should have stayed. Yet, nothing ever goes un-changed…
Some realization hit Kagome as she stood there. The forest around her was impeccably beautiful, but eerily silent. Besides the chattering leaves, no other sound floated on the breeze. There were no twittering birds. There were no scurrying animals. There were no sounds of life whatsoever. Something was un-rest in the forest, the notion un-nerved Kagome. A scream pierced the hush-ness of the forest.
Kagome's head snapped to the direction of the shattering scream. Her eyes widened in horror and she began to sprint towards the place of the scream. Many other cries of anguish and terror were heard as trekked closer and closer. Her legs began to burn as she weaved throughout the trees. She bit out a curse as she comprehended that her only weapon of defense lay in the village of screams.
Kagome broke through the trees to look upon in disbelief at the scene before her. Villagers running in complete fright from fires bursting about here and there. Her eyes spotted the enemy. Three-figures dressed in tenebrous black. Kagome's eyes narrowed and she broke into a sprint again. Her eyes fell to her familiar friends as she stampeded down the steps leading into the village.
Inuyasha swiped at the enemy, but couldn't match their speed. They darted around avoiding his attacks with the greatest ease. They were also far too fast for Sango to find an opening. Even worse than the demons continuous dodge of team inu-tachi's advances were their relentless attacks on villagers. This was unacceptable.
"Lady Kagome!" Miroku yelled. His lavender robes fluttered in the wind as he approached her. His eyes were deep and serious. Kagome realized that Miroku couldn't fight. There were just far too many villagers here for him to open up his wind tunnel.
"What's happening?" Kagome asked as she narrowly avoided being singed by flying debris. The flames continued to engulf the structures around them. Miroku grabbed Kagome and led her around the corner of a building.
"These three demons appeared out of nowhere hailing something about a new era, the beginning of the golden age. That is when they began to attack the village. At first they taunted us by just destroying the buildings, but then they started attacking and killing villagers," Miroku answered gravely in a low whisper.
"Why attack this village? Does Naraku have something to do with this?" Kagome asked angered. She couldn't believe what was happening. She didn't defeat her inner demons only to find herself face to face with actual ones. In the back of her mind she realized that that was a ridiculous hope, she just wanted a reprieve.
"I am not sure, but for now we must fight," Miroku said. Kagome watched as Miroku reached for something beside him. It was her bow and quiver. He turned back to face Kagome and outstretched his arm to place the bow into her hands.
Taking up her quiver of arrows, Kagome slid it onto her shoulder. She nodded towards Miroku. Being handed her weapon was a silent compliment. It was a way of him saying he believed in her ability. It was a nice feeling, but now was not the time to dwell on it.
"Let's go…" Kagome said as confidently as she could. Turning to face the shambles, her blue eyes hardened. Once again taking the time to avoid the flickering ambers she made her way into the ongoing battle. Kagome took in the current situation set out in front of her.
Kagome bounded around the last of the flaming debris as she let herself come out into the open. A cough racked her body as some of the billowing black smoke emitting from the burning houses made its way inside her lungs. Hearing the light sound, one of the three attackers caught sight of Kagome and smiled sadistically.
The demon leapt into the sky and prepared to descend upon her. Kagome tensed and readied herself. With swift motions, she loaded her bow. When the demon was just above her she released an arrow. The arrow almost missed, but managed to nick the demon's shoulder.
"You insufferable human!" the demon hissed as another one of Kagome's arrows pierced his chest. The purifying powers of the arrow began to tear away at the demon's very being as he glowed. A moment later the demon ceased to exist and all that remained were the clothes he had worn.
"That's two down," a familiar feminine voice called. Kagome turned towards Sango. The older girl smiled at Kagome, before going to assist Inuyasha in taking down the very last attacker.
This demon had been the one avoiding the team through speed. The demon didn't seem too peachy about losing his other comrades. A swing of tetsuiga missed the demon again, Inuyasha growled in frustration. Being in the middle of the village was making it difficult to fight back. Most of group couldn't do any major attacks without disturbing the already crumbling buildings or injuring more villagers.
"Where's Kaede?" asked Kagome curiously as she watched Inuyasha make another block with his sword. Sango continued to search for any opening to get to the demon, but she took the time to answer back to Kagome.
"She's doing her best to lead the villagers into safety. If we can get this last demon then everything should be fine," Sango said. Everything would be fine? That thought amused Kagome in a cynical, but she said nothing.
She knew this battle might end, and there would be a brief moment of peace. Yet, she knew not everything would ever be truly all right. Her eyes fell to Inuyasha again. She noticed that every time he blocked that the demon had to slow down. She realized that if she just waited for the demon to attack Inuyasha again then she could make an opening.
She loaded her bow in anticipation. She waited for the optimum moment to make her move. Watching a couple more attempts by the demon to attack Inuyasha, she picked up tiny characteristics of what the demon looked like before he attacked. A minute later she saw the tell-tale signs.
"Inuyasha move!" shouted Kagome as she released her arrow. The purifying arrow flew through the arrow towards its target. Inuyasha narrowly missed the soaring arrow as it finally hit its mark.
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It had taken hours to move the shambles into a more orderly shape. A lot of work had to be done, but it seemed a lot more would still be left to do tomorrow. The evening was beginning to set in.
Villagers had to adjust to new problems facing them this night. Some had to bury relatives in the afternoon, some attempted to rebuild houses they had lost, and others had to quell the foreboding feeling that was overtaking their hearts.
Team inu-tachi sat around the hearth of a fire in Kaede's house. The older miko moved slowly around her home, for the excitement of the day had taken its toll on her aged body. The rest of the group remained in complete silence. The day's events had worn each of them down.
The group found they were so tired that they didn't eat their meal with as much vigor as they normally would. There were quiet slurps and occasional gulps. Kagome set half-empty bowl beside her.
She breathed in deeply and closed her eyes. What did it all mean? The events of today didn't make complete sense. Demons had mostly stopped attacking the village a while back. Why attack now? Why this village? What was this so called 'golden era'? The questions continued to swim in Kagome's head.
Turning to her backpack, she dug out her object of interest. Her nimble fingers played along the smooth black fabric. A symbol embellished onto the cloth made it rougher in some areas. With the shadows dancing from the fire, it was hard to tell what the symbol was exactly.
"Kagome may I look closer at that?" Sango asked which broke Kagome out of her train of thought. Handing the material over to Sango, Kagome watched as the others craned their necks to get a closer look.
"Is that from one of the demons?" Miroku asked curiously. Kagome nodded her head. Shippo hovered over Kagome's shoulder to gaze at the tattered piece of clothing. Sango continued to trace the piece of fabric before lying down on the floor for the others to see.
"Why the heck would you keep something like that?" mumbled Inuyasha as he glanced at Kagome from the corner of his eye. His arms were crossed tightly and his hands lay hidden in his enormous sleeves. Kagome twiddled her fingers.
"The attackers bothered. Normally a demon attack wouldn't bother me too much, but these demons seemed far too organized. Normally demons don't have matching uniforms. I thought it was somewhat suspicious," Kagome said confidently. She didn't like Inuyasha questioning about what she did. She knew what she was doing.
"Kagome has a very good point and she's right. This is part of a soldier's uniform" Sango explained, "Just like humans; demons have their own organized armies. Of course there are some differences, but not many. Demon armies are usually under the control of lords like…like Lord Sesshomaru. However I've never heard of any of these armies bothering to attack human villages. They don't find as a threat in the least, so they leave us alone most of the time,"
The room grew quiet again. This new news was somewhat disturbing. Not only because there seemed to be some new foreboding threat, but everyone could now clearly see the symbol clearly as the light of the fire made it shimmer. It was a perfectly sewn crescent moon. Inuyasha's face seemed to darken even more.
Kagome bit her lip. A question teetered on the tip of her tongue. She wanted to let the question out. She needed to let the questioned. Yet, she was almost afraid that after she did that she wouldn't be pleased with the answer. Kagome was fairly certain the thought also lingered in everyone else's mind.
"Does this mean these soldiers could be Sesshomaru's? I mean the uniform has the same moon on it…" Kagome said. She couldn't help herself. Something from inside her begged to ask the dreaded question
Inuyasha shifted uncomfortably. His golden eyes met Kagome's. The young miko said nothing and looked towards the fire. Sango ran her fingers along the fabric the same way Kagome had done. She seemed to be contemplating something.
"I'm not sure. Technically there are two armies that have this symbol. Yet, the story of these two armies is very old in my village. I'm not as well versed in demon politics as I should be," Sango explained. The group took in this new information.
"It would make sense that the story is old in your village, but to demons it could be recent business. Do you remember most of the story? Perhaps it could shed some light on the current situation," Miroku suggested.
"Why are we bothering to get worked up about this?" Inuyasha grumbled. His shoulders seemed to be tense. His golden eyes were narrowed slightly. Kagome shifted uncomfortably and adjusted Shippo who sat in her lap.
"But what if this does concern us? What if Naraku is behind this? We need to ask Sesshomaru…" Kagome began, but was cut off as Inuyasha slammed his fist onto the ground violently.
"No! We are not going to ask that bastard for help. We finally got rid of him a few days ago. If it wasn't for Kagome's stupid suggestion, he wouldn't have been in my hair anyway. Even if it is Naraku's doing, we can handle it ourselves! We don't need his help! Don't you dare suggest that I need his help…" Inuyasha snapped.
Kagome bit her lip. The tension she had left when leaving to her own time was now seeping back into the room. Her cerulean eyes fell to the floor and she tried to breathe slowly. She willed herself not to let the tears fall as her reasoning for leaving came back to her. It was too soon for this.
It was obvious that Inuyasha figured out the real reason she had left. Or perhaps he still felt guilty for leaving her alone with his half-brother. Or it simply was his pure hatred to the other demon. It didn't matter the reason. Kagome could tell that Inuyasha wanted the topic to come to a close.
Inuyasha stood up abruptly and stormed outside of Kaede's hut. Kagome let out a shaky sigh and attempted to collect herself. She gently picked up the piece cloth from the ground. She slowly rolled up the cloth and placed it in her yellow bag.
The others remained quiet and went back to eating. Kagome didn't want the topic just to close, because Inuyasha wasn't entirely comfortable with the subject matter. This incident could be very important. It was in this moment that Kagome decided to take matters into her own hands.
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The glaring sun bore down on the forest below. It was near midday and the forest wild life skirted about. A lone figure made his way through the trees. His long strides were made of large deliberate steps.
His long silver hair floated in the wind and his golden eyes shifted over the forests in its entirety. Something stirred deep inside him. The wind brushed another message passed his pointed ears. He couldn't ignore it.
His face hardened and his surveying eyes became more scrutinizing. Something was on the rise. He was just not entirely sure of what it was. The feeling inside him led him here. Most of the time he would take the logical side of the situation, but his instincts pulled at him .One can only ignore their instincts for so long or else it becomes dangerous.
Most of the time Sesshomaru ignored his instincts for good reasons, He had much experience and knowledge to back up his reasoning. His father had followed his instincts and found himself dead. The great demon lord had let emotions control him and it led to his demise. This was why Sesshomaru rarely let any feeling or emotion overcome him. It only brought pain and death.
Sesshomaru had traveled fairly far southeast in his territory. He was almost out of the borders of his lands. He noticed that if he went any further, he would meet up with his half-brother again. The thought put a sour taste in his mouth. He did not dwell too long on that thought.
He prepared to head back west. The winds whispers seemed to have rung false, because nothing of importance appeared to be here. Yet as he began to turn back around swiftly, a faint noise caught his attention.
The brush beside him started to rustle, but the taiyoukai seemed to not fear what lay beyond the bush His senses told him that creature coming was mostly harmless. No, the demon lord was just curious. He recognized who was coming.
Kagome finally broke free of the bush as she came out into the open. She eyed the new howl her orange jacket had acquired and sighed. Suddenly she tensed as she realized she wasn't alone. Her eyes lifted up to meet Sesshomaru's. Noticing who it was, Kagome's shoulders relaxed. Sesshomaru frowned.
"What are you doing here miko?" Sesshomaru asked plainly. Kagome gained a frown of her own as she took note that Sesshomaru had gone back to referring to her title instead of her name. Ignoring that, she took in a deep breath and approached Sesshomaru.
"I just…I needed to see you again," Kagome said and then she grew quiet. Both froze as her words registered in their minds. The way she had said caused Sesshomaru's chest to clench, but he paid it no mind. Kagome shuffled her feet.
"Why would you want to do something such as that?" Sesshomaru asked a little softer now. Was this what the wind whispered about? Did it have something to do with her? The notion was ridiculous, but curiosity had always gotten the best of him.
"I needed to see you again to ask you some questions. I need answers," Kagome elaborated. The young woman now had the full attention of the Lord of the west. Kagome squirmed under his gaze, but did her best to stand her ground.
"I see no reason I need to answer to you. I have already mentioned things that were not meant to be spoken. Telling you anymore would be foolish of me. Farewell Miko, it would be best if you wandered back to the half-breed," Sesshomaru spoke icily.
He turned his back to the girl and prepared to leave again. He did not want to waste his time any longer. This girl had no right to bother him any longer. Whatever she had to say was most likely of trivial importance. This is what he told himself as he drifted further and further away.
Kagome was taken aback. Sesshomaru couldn't just walk away from her again. She wouldn't allow it. She had so many questions for him. She had risked her life running away in the middle of the night to get to him. Her group didn't even know she was here. She had to do something to make him to stop. One thought burned in the back of her mind and she let it out with the hope that it would get the demon lord to halt his movements.
"What about Nozomi?" Kagome yelled at Sesshomaru's retreating figure. She watched as Sesshomaru's hold body tensed. Kagome almost swallowed her tongue. In that next moment she found long sharp claws gripping her throat.
"Where did you learn of such a name?" Sesshomaru growled as his red eyes pierced into Kagome's very being. Pure terror ripped through Kagome's body. She had only seen this kind of anger pointed at Inuyasha or Naraku. Having it pointed directly at her was a terrifying experience.
"I don't know…" Kagome said hoarsely. She knew telling the demon lord that Nozomi had told her the name herself would have been idiotic. There would be no way that Sesshomaru would believe her. The grip on her throat tightened more.
"Do not mock me! Tell me who has given you this name," Sesshomaru hissed. His rage was rolling off his body in waves. Kagome could barely breathe now. With no oxygen reaching her brain, she was having trouble finding a way to get out of this situation.
"Inuyasha told me," Kagome choked out. Kagome was certain that her esophagus felt as if it would collapse at the way Sesshomaru tightened his hold. Her vision was becoming hazy and her lungs were becoming severely deflated.
"You lie! Tell me human!" Sesshomaru roared. Kagome was now teetering on the edge of consciousness. Suddenly she felt herself fall and air began to fill her lungs again. She panted on the forest floor. Her vision slowly began to clear and she looked up at Sesshomaru. He no longer had his focus on her. She was glad for that.
Sesshomaru's gaze was off into the distance. Kagome followed the path his eyes were looking. Her eyes widened marginally and she attempted to stand up. She continued to stare at the four soldiers. They wore the same uniforms as the other soldiers.
"It's them…" Kagome whispered. Sesshomaru was still enraged, but he was beginning to calm down. He had heard what Kagome had said, but continued to keep his focus on the soldiers. He noticed that the soldiers looked giddily at the human girl beside him.
"Are you going to kill the human? If not, we will gladly do it for you," One of the soldiers cackled. Kagome felt a shiver run down her spine. She did not like where this conversation was headed. Then she felt it, another powerful aura right behind her and Sesshomaru.
The demon lord must have felt it too, because his head turned behind them. Kagome was almost afraid to look behind her. This situation was becoming more and more dangerous. Daring to look back, she did.
A breath caught in her throat. Behind her was a beautiful creature, a very deadly beautiful creature. Yet, the thing that struck her was the similarities between this lovely creature and the one beside her. They were almost too alike.
Another demon looked down at her. He had long black hair tied up in a high pony-tail. His golden eyes narrowed at her and a frown marred his features. The thing that caught most of Kagome's attention, however, was the crescent moon on his forehead. It was the one thing that made these two creatures beside her so strikingly similar, except this crescent moon seemed to facing the opposite direction. The points of the moon faced to the right.
"Well hello dearest cousin, such a pleasure it is to see you. I see you have a human in your clutches. Are you also participating in this golden era? Has Naraku promised you something as well?" the black demon spoke smoothly.
Kagome's interest peaked at the mention of Naraku. It seemed to catch Sesshomaru's attention as well as he approached the other demon. Still feeling unsafe, Kagome followed closely behind. This did not go unnoticed.
"What nonsense do you speak of Kano?" Sesshomaru growled. Kagome continued to watch with interest at the two cousins. She was surprised to find out this new information. Yet, she noticed that Sesshomaru seemed on bad terms with this relative as well.
"The time of great fortune and prosperity is upon us. Naraku has promised us unlimited power in this new golden era that awaits us. He told us of the many wondrous things that will happen. The best part will be the eradication of all humans," Kano said grinning so that his fangs stuck out. Kagome's blood ran cold. This was horrible news.
"Kano you are a fool for letting Naraku manipulate you. As a leader, one should not be too quick to be misled. Any power promised to you is most likely a lie. Do not let yourself to be tricked so easily," Sesshomaru said sharply. Kano sniffed and motioned for the soldiers to come to him.
"I guess I was mistaken. You are not yet one of us. You will learn to appreciate our future lord in time I suppose. My soldiers and I will be leaving now. After we kill the human of course, one less human to deal with," Kano retorted just as sharply as his cousin.
Kagome tensed and felt the urge to run surge down her legs. Suddenly all that faced her was white. Sesshomaru now stood in front of her with sword drawn. She was taken by surprise.
"You will not harm this human for your ridiculous reasons," Sesshomaru snapped as his stood tall. Kano looked disgusted as he stepped back. Kagome realized that Kano was a strong demon, but still not strong enough to defeat Sesshomaru.
"I see that you are still swayed by old habits Sesshomaru. You disappoint me. From hanyous' to humans'? Like father, like son I suppose," Kano quipped. Sesshomaru's eyes gleamed a deadly shade of red again, but he did not make a move to attack the other demon.
Kano took the hint and began to walk away. His eyes shot back to pierce Kagome, who almost trembled under his gaze. She was fairly certain this would not be the last time she would meet this particular demon. The soldiers began to follow and soon the group disappeared into the forest.
Kagome's heart almost jumped into her throat as Sesshomaru turned his gaze to her. She could tell that the demon lord's blood boiled under the cool exterior. She kept quiet and said nothing. She did not want to anger him anymore.
"Leave now, wench. I do not want you in my sights. Go back to my brother at once," Sesshomaru said stiffly. He re-sheathed his sword. Kagome did not move. She was unsure of what to do. She couldn't go wander the forest alone again, especially after finding out the danger that now lurked in it. The night was drawing closer.
"I can not…" Kagome said honestly. Sesshomaru erupted with another growl. She could tell his resolve was crumbling. She felt her chest tighten. Sesshomaru remained silent for a long time. She noticed his one hand was clenched so tightly that blood was dripping from it.
"Why can you not leave?" he asked menacingly. Kagome worked on building up her confidence again. Her independence was slipping over the day. She couldn't let things scare her. She would never amount to anything, if she continued to let herself be fearful.
"I left my group without telling them. They have no idea where I am. Going out into the forest alone now would be suicide. Also, I still have certain questions that need to answered," Kagome said as calmly as she could. Sesshomaru became quiet again. He knew what had to be done, so he let his answer out reluctantly.
"Fine. As of tonight, you are in my care,"
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Eh, I'm not sure if I liked how this chapter turned out. I might change it later. Sadly, there wasn't exactly fluff in this chapter and I apologize. Also, there was a large gap of time in-between parts when I wrote this, which caused it to change styles in places. The ending seems rushed, and I think it's because I desperately wanted to get this chapter out finally. I'm sorry there is so much talking in this chapter, but it had to be done. I hope you enjoyed this chapter anyway and please review. This chapter is dedicated to Michelle (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!).