Gravitation

by Love's Essence

Kagome, forced into a male disguise to join a band, meets famous novelist Sesshomaru. After blackmailing her way into his home, he still has no idea he's a she, what could possibly happen? Rated M for language and Lemons! Partially based off Gravitation.

10. What Lies Within

Disclaimer: As always, the stories and characters belonging to Gravitation and Inu-Yasha strictly belong to their creators. This story is partially based off the series Gravitation

Gravitation

Chapter 10: What Lies Within

"E-Excuse me?"

Kagome stumbled, obviously in shock; the extreme statement had her hand quickly going to her chest to feel her heart still beating quickly inside it; the demoness became immediately apologetic.

"Oh dear, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you."

"Wh-what do you mean you have my heart?!"

The Dou-Hime reached across the small table and placed a soft, comforting hand over the miko's.

"Forgive me child, I spoke incorrectly. Your physical heart is where it should be: with you."

The elder youkai kept her hand over the girl's until she got herself back under control; she turned a little accusingly at Aki who kept his eyes down, refusing to acknowledge the miko's distress, she didn't have to see the hanyou to know what he was doing and was rather annoyed, but she wasn't about to dwell on it. Once her breathing had calmed down the Dou-Hime, turned her attentions to the hanyou.

"Aki, have you told her nothing?"

The hands on his thighs tightened into fists.

"Not a word."

The elder demon let out a long sigh.

"When I received your message, I had a feeling you'd bring her with you."

The half-phoenix raised his eyes to glare at his former mentor.

"And your answer?"

Was all he said, the miko glanced at the two of them in confusion; the Dou-Hime put down her tea cup.

"No. It is impossible to suddenly remember that much without serious consequences; for someone to gain back so many memories, their mind would fall apart trying to process it all."

A sort of resignation fell over Aki and when he turned to her Kagome knew that they were talking about her.

"There, you see? You can't remember what you want without getting hurt. Now let's go."

He made a move to grab her and stand up when as quick as lightning the demoness's hand, shackled his wrist, long fingers keeping him where he was.

"Do not leave the other part out. Miss. Higurashi can handle her memories returning if you tell her what they are first, but you can do better than that. You can show her and I know that a large part of you wants more than anything for her to remember, remember the past between you two."

"That's enough!"

He yanked his arm out of her grip and again made a move to grab the miko so they could leave, he rose to his feet when suddenly the demoness was in front of him, even though she was blind, she knew exactly where his eyes were and she locked onto them. Her hands reached up and she gently framed his face with motherly hands; Kagome watched both in fear and amazement as the milky white eyes shifted to the deepest, darkest of black, there wasn't a shade or hue darker in existence than those eyes, it was as if they opened up and could swallow her whole being with nothing more than a whim. Even though the miko was not the focus of those eyes she still felt her mind, her very being exposed, vulnerable to whatever this woman wished.

"You are in so much pain Aki, it is dwelling in your thoughts, it's always on your mind; you deserve a break from carrying your burden. Now sleep."

The moment she said those words he dropped, his mind wiped clean of every daunting thought and memory so that his dreams would come to him untainted; she gently lowered him to the floor and brushed the hair away from his face with such caring. Kagome looked at the demoness in complete awe; she took down her best friend with the same ease as breathing, which made her wonder and wary… just how powerful was the Dou-Hime?

"I will explain to you what I can."

The elder said as she turned to the miko and sat back down in front of her, but did not touch her tea; with a little more caution, Kagome returned to her seat.

"It is not my place to tell you the truth and return to you your past, the only person who can to that is Aki."

She motioned to his sleeping form.

"I did not lie when I said I had your heart, but I only have a part of it. You and Aki came to me two years ago and asked me to keep it here."

Kagome furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

"Me and Aki? Why him? Why does he have the answer to everything?"

She remembered the little hint her father's spirit gave her at his grave pointing her in the hanyou's direction, but now it was the demoness too. What was it about him that made her so important to her past? And what was all that about her coming here and asking the elder to keep her part of her heart here? The Dou-Hime could see the confusion and rapid thoughts running through her, she did not need her physic sight to know that.

"He truly didn't tell you anything…"

Kagome could hear the sadness in her voice, there was a slight pause, like she was trying to find the best way to say what she wanted to.

"Miss. Higurashi… Aki is the key to your memories because he's the one who made you forget in the first place."

---

This was her third night away from his home and Sesshomaru was becoming agitated; that little human was swinging from one extreme to the next and it was making him dizzy, had he known she was coming into his life with this much emotional baggage, he wouldn't have said a word to her back at that park where they first met. Most people had issues, well, everyone had issues, but this single girl had so many, they were taking numbers and sitting around in a waiting room with old magazines until their turn came up. He was forced to deal with all of them, she unintentionally unloaded her burdens onto him the moment she walked through his door and damn it, he let her in. It was getting to be too much.

"You must admit Mr. Takahashi, there is some resemblance of Miss. Yuki reflected in Kagome."

The demon gave her his darkest glare, but she hardly seemed deterred.

"I pay you to put your chicken scratch on the bottom of the prescription paper, not to aggravate me further."

The woman casually crossed one elegant leg over the other and fixed the position of her glasses on the bridge of her nose, not that it helped much.

"We have talked before Mr. Takahashi, I am just curious why you choose to be silent now."

The shrink may not have known him well, but she knew enough to say that comparing his old flame to his new one was a touchy subject and if he didn't want to talk, he wasn't going to.

"I'll double your fee if you sign my prescription so I can get the hell out of here."

The human sighed quietly and jotted a few unseen notes on her pad.

"Mr. Takahashi, while I am paid well to council humans and demons, money is not a priority for me. Believe it or not I truly do care for you and your well-being."

"Then you are wasting your sympathy."

There was a tense silence for a moment while the doctor studied her patient mentally, assessing what she could and trying to find an angle to work in a real conversation; taking a quick glance at her notes she took a mental deep breath… this was worth a shot.

"Something has changed in your relationship, so much so that you don't want me to hear a word of it…"

Again, that same glare letting her know she was treading on dangerous ground, but she paid little heed, it was time she pushed her patient a little.

"… it's not your relationship going public, such things do not bother you, in fact you may have enjoyed yourself teasing the media while in the spotlight…"

His lack of any response informed her that she was right, so she went back to what had first aggravated him.

"… the relationship is going in the exact same direction as it did with Miss. Yuki, am I right Mr. Takahashi?"

In an instant there was a glint of recognition in his eyes. She had him.

"Quite the déjà vu, not only does Kagome look like her, but everything he does takes you back to that time, he even talks like her, acts like her, smiles—"

"You're wrong."

The demon quickly cut her off and rose out of his seat, this was a first for them, but he showed her no teeth or flaring aura, the professionalism he has developed with this woman had to be maintained, he reputation of calm and control. But now she had gone too far and there was an exception to be made.

"They are nothing alike, in appearance perhaps, but of nothing else. Yuki was elegant and caring…"

Even though his voice had been calm, he knew he had said more than he wanted and, not knowing what else to do, he stopped his words and sat back down. Seething. He was more than willing to have the session end now, but she wasn't going to let him get off that easily; she wanted badly to reach out and touch his hand with hers, but she knew that this would bring no comfort to him so she settled for an empathetic gaze.

"She also betrayed you Takahashi-san. You would have died that night and you had no way of knowing that she—"

"Enough!"

He snapped, on the brink of becoming very unprofessional with her; the gaze which he had locked onto her eyes was deadly and promised violence should she continue. She visibly flinched, but that burst of fear was gone in an instant, this was the break that she had been looking for, this rise of emotions, forcing him to face the old demons—no pun intended—of his past. Yet, something was still missing, she had tried this tactic several times before and never once did he give in or break composure, what was so different now than in the past? She assessed him again, sparing only a few glances his way to take in his visual response: agitated and despite the 'No Smoking' sign above, he lit a cigarette.

"There will be no more discussion of past incidences."

The doctor nodded in agreement, they had gone far enough today, would be unwise to try to push him any further.

"Understood. Now let's talk about something current: Kagome."

He gave her no reaction, this was nothing new.

"You care for him."

Again nothing, but he did give a humorless snigger.

"You've a very twisted mind if you believe I care for that brat in the manner you're referring to. Kagome's a good lay, nothing gets boring."

The woman's lips curved faintly into a smile.

"If that's all you see in him, then why did you end all of your other relationships? Surely he can't satisfy your every desire."

She put down the pen and paper and leaned forward in her seat.

"He is special to you Takahashi-san, you know it as well as I do, but there's no way you'd tell me."

The demon blew out a stream of smoke in her direction and quirked an amused eyebrow at her confidence.

"If you say so, you are the doctor after all."

He rose to his feet and she knew that he was done all-together, for the most part she was satisfied, they didn't exactly make progress in the same way as most of her patients who came into her office willing to work with her, but the demon was a special case and progress had been made. Taking the paper, she scrawled her signature on the dotted line and handed it over to the writer, rising to her feet in the process.

"One last question before you leave, Mr. Takahashi."

The door was already open, one foot out the room, but he stopped and looked back, expressionless.

"Not having Kagome with you in your home hurts, doesn't it?"

She said, referring to the singer's several day absence; Sesshomaru said nothing in response and his demeanor did not change; lighting another cigarette he left with a small nod of the head in her direction which she returned; leaving the question answered and unanswered at the same time. Some things don't need words.

---

"I don't believe you."

Kagome said almost immediately, but already, she felt the heaviness and sharp pain in her heart in the face of the truth, all she had left was her denial and she clung to it like a desperate child.

"Aki wouldn't, he would never do such a thing."

She stated defiantly, but the woman across from her did not buy it for a moment.

"Unless you asked him."

The tai-youkai tried to say as gently as she could; the miko's heart skipped a beat and she gripped the fabric of her shorts, she had to hold onto something to keep her composure while her mind wrapped around her words.

"What?"

Her voice gave away more of her disbelief than her face, it was so hurt, shaky, unstable.

"Two years ago, you were the one who asked him to wipe away your memory."

She shook her head, she didn't want it to be true, there was no way, but she could tell that the demoness was not the type to lie; she had nothing to gain from it. Whatever the Dou-Hime said was the truth, plain and simple. Kagome closed her eyes to block everything out, to clear her head, but it was impossible, there was too much to take in, too many secrets to handle, thoughts swirled in her mind in a self-induced torture and made her stomach tight with knots.

Again she could feel the fragments of a memory begin to come together; again, that pain so strong she couldn't think of anything except how horrible it felt blossomed in her head. She didn't want to, she didn't want to see, but her determination for the truth forced her to look, to take the brunt of the pain, for a moment it was clear in her head, but just as quickly it began to fade.

"No!"

She cried in a panic and tried to get it back, using all of her strength to push through the pain to see, but it wasn't enough, this flash of a memory was buried deep, it didn't want to be found. Suddenly, she felt the tai-youkai's fingertips on her head, her soft touch immediately took away the pain.

"Do you want to see?"

The Dou-Hime asked in all seriousness, but there was an empathetic tone in her voice that scared more than comforted the miko; swallowing the lump in her throat, she nodded.

"Y-yes."

The word had no sooner left her lips when she was swallowed up by the darkness of the tai-youkai's eyes and the memory was thrust into perfect clarity.

At fifteen, Kagome had been living in the Higurashi main house for two consecutive years. It was torture to say the least, there was nothing worse in this world than going through puberty in a family of powerful prudes forever stuck in the old ways. She didn't mind sharing a room with the other girls, it was actually fun, the most she had in this regal prison; she may not have been very close with her fellow cousins, being the great-granddaughter of Lord Kaname and a spiritual prodigy instantly set her apart from them and they showed it.

They were all polite bows and reserved conversation while the sun was up and dressed in their garbs, but at night when the four teenagers were alone in their room the barriers came down, they became no different than any other teen girls. Since Kagome went to a public school and was allowed free range in the outside world she would do simple favors for those who asked, she snuck in magazines, CDs, posters, clothes and even candy. What were normally worthless trinkets became priceless treasures in the hands of her fellow family, the girls openly gushed over pictures of the latest boy band or stunning actor, hid Pocky under their pillows and dabbed on glittering lip gloss when the elders weren't looking.

Between Kagome and other people who came to the main house to visit, their room and all others became decorated shrines to pop culture and the latest fashions. They may have been the future of spiritual leadership and kept up with their family's expectations, but at that moment, in those rooms with yellow candle light they became normal teens, basking in the uncensored freedom that their peers beyond the gates took for granted. The adults were aware of their offspring's transgressions, how they worshipped their favorite stars as strongly as they worshipped the Buddha and proudly admitting their crushes when they thought no one was listening. But they did not care what the youth did so long as it did not interfere with their training or break the laws of the family; if it did, severe consequences ensued.

"Did you hear what happened to O-Ren?"

"Yeah, can you believe it?"

"They said it had been going on for nearly a year!"

"Tch… I say she deserves it."

"True, anyone who's stupid enough to get caught should get what's coming to them!"

"How bad do you think her punishment is going to be?"

"Probably pretty bad."

"Is it true that Lord Kaname is going to be a part of it?"

Kagome walked into her room and found her three cousins sitting in the middle of their room gossiping and absently munching on their precious junk foods.

"Hey, what's going on?"

Three sets of eyes snapped up to her as she slid the door closed behind her, the girls were so wrapped up in their conversation, they didn't notice her coming in.

"Kagome you wouldn't believe it! O-Ren's on trial!"

The miko's eyes went wide.

"What?!"

Her cousins moved over so she could sit with them and she quickly dove in; the three girls nodded rapidly as she took her seat in the open space.

"What did she do?"

Like any court system, the family had their own consequences for unacceptable behavior and actions, but only severe crimes against the family laws were even taken to trial; the girl to her left leaned in and said in a quiet voice, as if this was the most intimate so secrets

"Well, during one of the regular room searches Tsubaki-sama found a loose floor board beneath O-Ren's futon, when she opened it she found letters."

Kagome knotted her eyebrows.

"So what?"

"They were love letters that's what! She had been dating someone from the outside! There were times and meeting places and confessions and everything! There was even an unfinished letter by her stating the next date and location!"

By now her voice had risen well above a whisper in her excitement, Kagome looked down trying to process it all. She didn't know the girl in question very well, O-Ren lived a few rooms down, was quiet and several years older than her, wasn't a very strong miko, but was always focused.

"Did you say that Lord Kaname was going to be part of the trial?"

They all nodded, their whole bodies jittering with teenage anticipation; if the miko's crime resulted in a trial, then her great-grandfather's presence meant that there was going to be no mercy for her.

"I-I have to go."

Kagome said nervously and stalked out of the room, she felt sick, her insides twisting horribly into anxiety ridden knots and she had to get out of there, away from the shameless gossip and slander of her fellow law-breaker. She didn't think that she would ever find something in common with O-Ren, but just now she did, they were both breaking the same sacred law of the family, involved in forbidden romances. Her cousin's capture scared her out of her wits for she knew that this was foreshadowing her fate should she and Aki be caught as well.

She had to go see him. It wasn't quite curfew and most of her fellow family were wandering around outside, but she knew that she wouldn't find him with any of her relatives; she darted to the dense trees around the gardens, far away from where anyone would travel, knowing that he'd be there. She had sensed his weak aura in one of the trees, glanced around to make sure no one was around and leapt into it. Aki was reclined on a large branch, his back on the trunk, had a book in his hand, but was not reading it and didn't look surprised to see her popping in on him. But he didn't look happy either.

It was common knowledge that wherever Kagami—Kagome's father—went, Kagome went and so did Aki; just as she had been living in the main house for two years, so had he. Lord Kaname was not the least bit happy about this, but his heir Kagami had taken Aki under his wing as his student and would not turn the hanyou away so the Head of the Clan was forced to grant the half-phoenix a room in which to stay, making him the only one of demon blood to ever live within the main house walls.

The miko and the hanyou were always seen together, there were rumors about possible flings, but were stamped out quickly; the two were the closest of friends before coming to the main house and once the rumors died people believed that their closeness was nothing more than a friendship which made for a perfect cover for them. With everyone believing there was nothing going on, they could get away with being alone together, of openly touching each other without any suspicions and even being in the other's room. Such was a luxury that no one else had and they were quick to take advantage of it.

"Do you know about O-Ren?"

She asked, there was real fear in her voice; he nodded and remained quiet, Aki had his own way of showing fear, for starters: he didn't look her in the eye. And he smelled faintly of cigarettes.

"Everybody knows; what she did and what's going to happen to her is the biggest topic on everyone's lips. They just won't shut up about it."

He spat, his voice shaking a little; he was angry, livid and worried which made her anxiety worsen.

"What do you think we should do?"

She asked quietly so only he could hear, this question brought his eyes up to hers and looked at her like she was foolish.

"What should we do? Are you stupid?! We do nothing! If anything we should probably keep a little distance from each other."

She flinched away, slightly hurt; she came here for reassurance, not to make herself feel worse. Aki saw that he went a little too far, closed his book and straightened up so she could have more room to move closer to him which she did, albeit a little hesitantly.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to say it like that, but Kagome, what can we do? We're careful enough as it is; if we were going to get caught, it would have happened already."

She nodded in agreement.

"But that doesn't make this any less terrifying."

He grew silent again.

"We'll be fine; just don't let it get to you, okay?"

"Alright."

She responded quietly, but didn't sound anymore confident; with a sigh Aki leaned forward and kissed her cheek lightly which brought about a furious blush from her; his touch had her womb clenching tightly and she gripped the bark tightly to ride out the intimate sensations. God, she hated puberty.

Three days later the trial had been held in an unknown location on the Higurashi grounds, her fellow cousins made it a game to try to find out where it was, looking everywhere, but laughing and not taking it seriously. Kagome was the only one who did and once focusing on Aki's aura she found it rather quickly and waited nervously on a roof adjacent to the building where it was taking place; Lord Kaname's request for the hanyou's presence in the trial worried the miko beyond all reason. It wasn't long before the elders, dressed in their finest robes filed out of the room, the procession looked like that of a funeral: somber faces and even more somber conversation followed by the social martyr with escorts on every side of her.

O-Ren was a puppet doll, walking lifelessly, empty; she kept her composure though, refusing to cry, to crumble before the men and women who glared at her with contempt. The miko had the appearance of a fully mature adult, looking older than her years, but it only gave her a persona of regal standing, her hair was perfectly straight, falling immaculately down the length of her back and wore her best robes as if she belonged in them every day. She looked like a true Higurashi princess about to kneel before the sword of her executioner.

When Aki appeared he was flanked by her father and great-grandfather and obviously not liking it; Kagami placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder while Lord Kaname gruffly barked a few unheard words and walked off, with a few kinder words to him to him her father left the hanyou alone as well. Kagome took her cue and jumped from the roof and landed a few feet away from her half-demon boyfriend, he immediately looked away, visibly angry and hurt, which made her want to comfort him as much as she could in public. Resting her hand lightly on his forearm, he only moved his head slightly in her direction, blocking the view of most of his face.

"Aki, what happened?"

She asked tenderly and he shut his eyes so there was no way he would look at her; he opened and closed his mouth unsure how to make like the answer sound less than the poison it was to the ears.

"It was unanimous, they voted to have her memory removed."

The miko's eyes widened; with a gasp her hand came up to over her mouth.

"What? But-but what did she do to receive such a severe punishment? Surely nothing she and her boyfriend did could have been that bad!"

Aki said nothing for the longest time, too long for her and right as she tried to say something else he opened his eyes and looked at her solemnly.

"She didn't have a boyfriend, Kagome. She had a girlfriend."

For a moment she didn't believe him, but it made sense of her punishment, if there was anything that the Higurashi elite couldn't stand it was anything abnormal and homosexuality was near the top on their intolerable list… that and interspecies relationships. Like the one between humans and demons. Looking at the woman she felt a sense of pride for her, being able to maintain herself in the face of the worst of punishments and this open ridicule without words.

"They want me to do it."

Her head snapped back to him and could see the tears in his eyes.

"I'm going to be the one to erase her memory."

Her lips parted, but she didn't know what to say; suddenly it was too real for them, there was no doubt now that should they be discovered they would face to same fate as O-Ren, seeing all this was like looking into a future possibility and the fact that it was Aki who would rob the miko of her relationship only served to make them feel worse, if this girl was to be an example, the Higurashi did an impeccable job in scaring them. What's worse was that Aki had been present during the entire trial, she had no idea what was said behind those closed doors, but she knew from the look on his face that it was insufferable.

"Aki I'm so—"

"But that's not the worst of it."

He cut her off and motioned behind her.

"Look around you."

She closed her mouth and did just that and saw that everyone from the trial was still standing around, in fact it seemed as if they were waiting for something; the talking had ceased and everyone stood off to the side in a loose semi-circle with the guilty party standing in the center. It didn't add up, even in minor grievances once everything was said and done the guilty party was immediately taken away to be reprimanded, yet it appeared that the trial wasn't over so much as it was moved outside.

"Do you know what the unfinished letter O-Ren was going to send out said?"

Kagome nodded, still confused.

"Yeah, I heard it was the time and place for another date."

She had a bad feeling about this…

"Lord Higurashi sent it out."

Her head snapped back to him again, his voice was controlled now, but he was crying, he made no sounds, but a few tears rolled down the lines of his face. The reality of the situation was too much for the hanyou as he gazed at her, he could only see his miko girlfriend standing in the same position as O-Ren and himself in the position that was about to come. He sat in that room for the longest time hearing the letters read aloud with the harsh monotone voice of Tsubaki, but even with that witch reciting those words, he felt what was said in them, felt the laughter, the joy, the contentment, the love and watched as they were ripped and burned as if diseased. Ashamed and angry by his obvious show of weakness, he broke eye contact with her by dropping his head and gaze to the ground.

Finally it clicked in her head why he was crying, the location, the odd time of the trial, it all made sense: it was a set-up.

"No. They wouldn't…"

"O-Ren!"

All eyes turned to a woman roughly the same age as the convicted miko running towards them; she was dressed in a flowing knee-length skirt and a figure hugging t-shirt. She was beautiful with a pixie face and short hair that bobbed up and down as she ran; even this outsider knew that something was up as she ran into the middle of the ring.

"Sa-Sayuri?!"

The tone in her voice made Kagome realize that O-Ren didn't know either that her beloved was coming and the composure that the once strong woman held crumbled horribly; she fought her way to get to her girlfriend. Taking the escorts by surprise she broke free of their ranks and dashed over to her, they embraced tightly, but the miko held on for all she was worth.

"O-Ren, what's going on?!"

But something in the other woman's voice made Kagome realize she must have figured it out, that they had been discovered, she knew the consequences and in an instant her grip was as tight as her priestess girlfriend.

"I'm sorry, Sayuri! I'm so sorry!"

The escorts came down upon them, two grabbed Sayuri while the other two grabbed O-Ren and pulled hard to tear them apart; they refused to budge, their embrace rock solid, but they couldn't keep it up for long and suddenly a few inches of space formed between them.

"No! Don't let me go!"

The short-haired woman pleaded, but the space grew even more and, while she still could, the miko reached and kissed her lips, taking everyone by surprise by the open display of affection, especially one such as this, but she didn't care any more, she was already convicted with the worst sentence given, what more did she have to lose? The woman named Sayuri was quick to adamantly return the gesture and poured a lifetime of feeling into it. But this distraction enabled the men to wrench them apart until it was only their hands locked in an iron grip; when they looked at each other, both saw each other beginning to pathetically cry.

"Please, don't let go!"

She cried again, but she could already see in her girlfriend's eyes the defeat, the acceptance of her fate.

"I'm so sorry, Sayuri."

"O-Ren, I—"

But the girl was cut short, in a burst of power, Lord Kaname dashed up to the two girls, raised his cane up and with the strength of his spiritual power brought it down on their hands; they screamed in pain and instantly let go, falling back with the men quick to grab their arms and subdue them. The head of the Higurashi turned to the two holding Sayuri and looked upon the girl in disgust.

"Take this unclean filth and throw her out! See to it that proper measures are taken to permanently ban her from the grounds!"

The nodded their heads and readjusted their grips on Sayuri, roughly picked her up by her underarms and locked her in unbreakable holds; with a little effort they straightened themselves up and began to walk away. She did not go quietly, the men struggled as she kicked, jerked, and thrashed about screaming at the top of her lungs as they half dragged, half carried her and absorbing her blows with grunts and winces, but their locks did not waiver.

"You can't do this! Get your paws off me! O-Ren! Let her go! O-Ren! O-Ren!"

Kagome covered her mouth tightly with both hands to keep herself from screaming as hot tears burned her eyes, this was too cruel; as she looked around her a rather large crowd had gathered from the commotion; her cousins had finally found where the trial was being held. None of them were laughing now. O-Ren had collapsed to her knees, her head bowed to the dirt as she openly sobbed and not from the pain of the strike. Kagome had been wrong, punishment had been immediately delivered to the guilty; in their first act of torture, the family forced O-Ren and Sayuri to know the pain of loss and brought her out in public so that everyone could see her as she broke.

Kagome gave an apologetic glance Aki's way before turning and sprinting as fast as she could, as far away as she could from this emotional execution. It was too much. Hiding in a tree on the other side of the grounds, she wrapped her hands around her knees and screamed as loudly as she could out of pain and anger and hatred.

Kagome gasped when the memory ended.

"H-How could they do that?"

She stammered as the emotions from the past welled up inside her; the forgotten pain was suddenly back with a vengeance.

"How could they?"

The demoness still had her hands framing the miko's face, eyes still connected with hers; seeing the memory in her mind as well, the Dou-Hime could only gaze sadly, unable to see, but heard the pain and anguish in this girl who became a woman too soon. The miko wrapped her arms around herself when she felt once again the fragment of another memory come together.

"Oh no—"

She was going to protest the revelation of the next secret, but it was too late as she braced herself and fell back in time, back to her forgotten past.

"How dare you ask that of me!"

Aki cried to the miko, forgetting about the fragile state she was in; there were few moments when Kagome was conscious, when her eyes were those warm brown orbs and not the empty ice blue, but even though she was mentally present, the disheveled robes she was dressed in were still coated in frost, the little empty room she was in was freezing and the Sacred Jewel hanging delicately around her neck glowed a solemn, mournful blue.

"They will wipe my memory anyway Aki, the only thing I can request is who will do the deed… and I want it to be you."

She reached out slowly and grabbed his hand, he flinched, it was so cold it hurt, and her grip was so weak; the miko truly was only a shadow of her former self, being in this state constantly ebbed at her strength and she was deteriorating right before his eyes.

"That's not fair of you; it's down right cruel to say the least."

The girl gave his hand a squeeze in acknowledgement.

"I know."

Was all she said. Judgment had already been passed for her fate by the Higurashi elite, including Kaede-bachan, their vote had been predictable, only her beloved Auntie Kaede voted against the removal of her memory. She had sat silently in the middle of the grand hall, dressed in the extravagant robes of the Jewel's purifier: multiple layers of rich silks of whites, purples, and blues adorned her like a princess, but they were just for show, the Lord Kaname requested she wear fine robes only out of symbolism of who she was. The entire Higurashi clan was present, a sea of white haoris and red and blue hakamas, even her mother and brother wore their robes; the atmosphere was as stifling as a funeral.

"Then why?!"

Aki cried out in anguish, it brought tears to her eyes, with her other hand she reached out to touch his cheek, rest her hand there for comfort, but she realized that it would be too cold; his hand must be in so much pain already, why take away any more of his warmth? She let it drop to her side instead.

"Because you are my most precious person, Aki and these memories are precious. Nobody except you deserves to touch them, nobody must know what we shared except us."

Taking the hand holding his with both, he radiated his heat into her until finally her hand was a healthy color unlike the pale cold that was the rest of her body and pressed the back of her hand to his forehead with desperate need.

"I can't do it."

He said miserably into her soft skin; tears began to well up in her eyes.

"You have to."

His gaze met hers; she saw his pain, the torture the request was putting him through, the tears forming in his eyes as well.

"Please Kagome, don't make me do this."

He whispered quietly, with such anguish and that did it; hot tears spilled free, but froze before they could make it half way down her cheeks.

"I-I'm so sorry, Aki, but I couldn't… I couldn't bear it Aki, if someone else stripped me of my memories. If you want me to beg, I'll beg… I'll do anything you ask of me."

The hanyou squeezed his eyes shut and dropped his head; the grip on her hand tightened to the point of pain, but she did nothing to stop him. He straightened up a little and turned her hand over, palm up; the half phoenix's lips were soft as he placed an intimate kiss in the middle of her palm, spreading more warmth up her arm. She shivered at the act, knowing how wrong it was, but couldn't stop him from doing it, they both wanted it too much.

"Tell me you love me. That is my request."

A new set of tears fell from her eyes.

"I love you, Aki."

She said without hesitation and meant every word of it and he knew she did; in a flash he took her lips with his, soft, but urgent, desperate and she was no different in returning it. Heat spread from their lips throughout her face, he was pouring as much into her as he could and it was draining, but he did it anyway, even though he knew that moments after he stopped the cold would return again. He parted their lips for breath, but kept them close, their faces still pressed against each others.

"Tell me again."

He said huskily.

"I love you, Aki."

She replied immediately and his lips crashed against hers once again; he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his lap and repeated what he did with her hand and lips. In that moment she was warm again, her body more alive than it had been in weeks.

"Again."

He demanded, it wasn't enough, it would never be enough; he could feel her tears, the beginning of her crying as her arms wrapped around him.

"I love you, I love you, a million times I love you, Aki!"

It was too much too soon with this emotional overload, she could feel her consciousness fading; the miko no longer possessed the strength to control her body and her arms fell limply to her sides. The cold battled for dominance once again and they both knew that time was running out and soon she would be lost; embracing her tightly in anger and anguish he yelled into the crook of her neck.

"Okay Kagome, okay! I'll do it!"

She nodded weakly in acknowledgement, closed her eyes and surrendered herself to the unconscious; she held out until she heard her answer from the half-phoenix and now was a time for rest, build up her strength for when she could awaken again. Moments later a stillness came over her; Aki squeezed his eyes shut as Kagome calmly pulled away, but he knew it wasn't Kagome who was moving her body. When he opened his eyes again, he watched her puppet like movements as she drew herself away from him and back to her place, kneeling, hands resting on her thighs with those endless blue orbs staring forward at nothing. The hanyou bowed his head in defeat and nodded.

"I'll do it."

"No! No! No! No!"

Kagome cried in agony when the demoness drew her fingers away, bringing her back to the present; shutting her eyes tightly, the miko gripped her head and hunched her back, bowing her head low and moaning in agony. She sobbed loudly, uncaring of her hostess' presence and rocked back and forth like a helpless child.

"I'm sorry, Miss. Higurashi."

The demoness said as she wrapped her arms around the miko and pulled her into the warmth of her breast like Kagome was her daughter and held her there, tenderly, comforting. The singer smothered her face shamelessly into the Dou-Hime's kimono and cried into the immaculate silk; the demoness stroked her hair with such care, feeling the pain radiating off her.

"I'm so sorry."

She comforted her like the mother who couldn't be there, let her cry until there was nothing left and continued to hold her for long after.

"I'll grant you the choice that I couldn't give Aki…"

The demoness said after a while to break the silence; the two finally pulled away from each other, tears dried up, nothing left but red cheeks and puffy eyes.

"… would you like me to give you a night's rest without suffering?"

Even though the Dou-Hime was blind, she didn't want to look up from the ground as if even a sightless tai-youkai could see the pain and shame on her face. She thought about her request and seriously contemplated allowing herself a forced, but peaceful sleep; it sounded nice, ideal in fact. Too much was going through her mind to sleep well or even at all and this could be the last unhindered sleep for a very long time.

"Thank you Dou-Hime, but no. If I'm going to get my full memory back I have to endure, I can't let myself be crippled by two unhappy memories if I am to take on even worse."

The demoness smiled and nodded in response, quite proud of the girl for her choice.

"I wish your father was still alive to see how strong you've already become."

She gave a humorless laugh.

"Yeah, and see how far I've strayed from the path."

The Dou-Hime blinked a few times.

"Are you speaking of your relationship with the dog lord's son?"

Kagome furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

"You know about Sesshomaru and me?"

There was a slight chuckle coming from the elder woman.

"Aki informed me."

The miko spared a glance at the sleeping hanyou and made a face.

"I suppose he would, wouldn't he?"

"Don't be so quick to condemn Miss. Higurashi, especially after what you just saw."

The miko fell silent and looked at Aki again; the little fling she thought she had with the hanyou had been another cover-up, another lie; two years ago she and her best friend seemed to care about each other much more than she ever thought was possible. Kagome told the half-phoenix she loved him and meant it, she could tell the much by the lingering sensations of the memory and… apparently he felt the same way. She had forgotten those feelings, but he didn't. A thought dawned on her that had her mind racing once again.

"D-Dou-Hime, does Aki…"

She couldn't find the right words.

"… does he still care for me?"

The question felt awkward and scary at the same time, she feared the answer.

"He does."

The elder said easily and with no doubt and all she could do in response was sit numbly, stupidly; quite the shock suddenly finding out her best-friend loved her all this time and never said a word and apparently, she had loved him too… she could feel the headache coming already. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she slowed down her racing heart and began to feel the forgotten memories begin to mold and fit back into place within her mind. Two down, who knows how many left to go. After a while she opened her eyes again and saw that the demoness was still sitting before her, that gaze staring forward at nothing, but she knew that the Dou-Hime was waiting for some kind of acknowledgement from her.

"Thank you for you comfort."

She said in a very controlled voice and that brought a little smile from the demon woman.

"You are strong Miss. Higurashi, it is only a matter of realizing for yourself the true strength that you possess."

Before the miko could properly respond, the demoness rose to her feet and did so in a very graceful and tai-youkai fashion as if her age was little more than a passing phase.

"There is a spare room down the hall, you're free to use it."

She said as the priestess rose after her and gazed quizzically, like a child not sure what to do.

"Can I help you to your room?"

She offered and the Dou-Hime smiled and shook her head as she took elegant steps towards to hall.

"I may be old and blind, young priestess, but I still know how to take care of myself. The day I am unable to do the simplest tasks is the day I will lay down and join my ancestors."

She said it with ease and certainty, knowing that there truly was nothing left tying her to this world, that the deterioration of her body would only come about with the deterioration of her mind. Demons had the luxury of being only being as old as they felt, but she was merely humoring herself; her only regret was not finding an opponent sword's strong enough to die by, they were all too weak and the last thing she wanted was some undeserving demon brat—like the dog lord in his youthful years—end and carry a legend as big as hers.

"You may not be able to sleep well tonight, but you must try. Don't fret, everything that can be taken care of now can be taken care of in the morning as well."

The tai-youkai sensed that the miko had not moved from where she stood, but after her comment she heard the rustling of Kagome's clothes as she walked; without saying any more she proceeded down to the very end of the hall and disappeared behind a shoji door. The miko walked less confidently, less elegantly, (she lacked the natural grace her sister possessed) found the spare room and looked around, it had more than the usual furnishings: shelves full of books, desk, extra futon and blankets. Seeing this she walked over and grabbed a thick blanket and pillow and walked unhurriedly back to the hall where the dead-to-the-world hanyou slept; covering his body and gently tucked the pillow under his head the miko gazed at her lifetime friend who hadn't always been just her friend.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

She asked knowing there wouldn't be answer, but hopefully somewhere in his sleeping sub-conscious he had received her message. Then again, if the hanyou had revealed to her how deeply involved they were with each other, would she have believed him? Probably not; aside from being shown the way she was, the miko never would have accepted it. Seeing him the way he was now, so peaceful and calm, a small part of her wanted to reach beneath the blanket and hold his hand. She didn't. She couldn't. The act felt wrong.

"What kind of a mess did we get ourselves in, Aki?"

Kagome said with a rueful smile which quickly turned to a yawn she couldn't stifle, her encounter with the past had drained her more than she thought; without thinking, the miko laid down on the hanyou's torso padded by the blanket and closed her eyes. She felt his warmth and heard the beat of his heart through its thickness and it brought such an unfamiliar calm to her and she knew that so long as her friend was by her side, she could accept whatever memories would come. The thought no sooner dawned on her mind than she drifted into an uneasy sleep.

---

Aki opened his eyes to bright sunrays glaring in them and made a move to cover his eyes with his hand when he found that he couldn't, his arm was stuck by a soft weight. Lifting his head up and looking down his heart quickened at the sight of a certain miko sleeping on him, er… on the blanket that was on him, but it did not escape his train of thought that had this blanket not been there Kagome may have been sleeping directly on his chest, he may have been able to feel her skin, her heat… 'No.' He said mentally, he had to stop himself and quick, the hanyou didn't know how they ended up like this, but it was dangerous for him. Turning his head this way and that, he scanned the area as if something within reach could extract himself from the makeshift bed without waking her up.

"It's okay, Aki. I'll get up."

His movement had already roused her and with drowsy limbs she pushed herself up off his torso and freed him; it didn't escape her notice (and never would again) at the slight impression of loss from him as she moved away. He knew she caught it, so to save face, he lowered his eyes and nodded. The hanyou quietly rose up and gathered the blanket and pillow; without thinking, she followed, there were no sounds coming from anywhere in the house and judging by the rise of the sun it was still early in the morning. They went to the spare room she didn't use and he carefully folded the blanket and placed the items back in their corner; she furrowed her eyebrows and was about to ask how he knew they came from this room, but then she remembered that much of his childhood had been spent here. And there were more pressing matters to attend; licking her dry lips, she opened her mouth.

"I'm sorry I asked you to make me forget, Aki. I know how much it hurt."

She said quickly and quietly behind him and mentally kicked herself; that could have come out better, but she never was one for making matters simple or smooth. The hanyou's form snapped still and remained that way for several agonizing moments until he turned around and he was seething.

"She told you?!"

His snarl made her a little agitated and she furrowed her eyebrows; great, now she had to defend the Dou-Hime.

"Yes, but I didn't believe her when she told me!"

She said it louder than she expected which and him almost taking a step back; she licked her lips again and finished her thought, but this time rather quietly.

"I remembered it."

The anger dissipated in a moment, it hurt her to see how his face fell and again, he looked away from her.

"What else did you remember?"

The miko bit her lower lip at the small stab of pain recalling last night's events.

"I remember everything that happened to O-Ren and the day I asked you to take my memories away."

The mention of O-Ren's name had him stuffing his hands into his pockets.

"I remembered you agreed and, according to the Dou-Hime, you went through with my request."

"And did a lousy job of it too."

Came a voice from behind, the two jumped at the sound and found the elder demoness standing in the open doorway, fully dressed in a fine black and white kimono.

"I have a rule in my home: no negative talk before breakfast. No sense in losing your appetite this early in the morning. Come, you can help Chidori prepare it."

She beckoned them with an elegant motion of her hand and they followed silently, desperate to get undesirable thoughts out of their heads; down another hall they came upon the kitchen and dining area, well maintained and well used. Aki's sister was wandering around, pulling pots out of cabinets with one hand while rubbing the sleep out of her eyes with the other.

"Dou-Hime…"

The phoenix-girl whined, not caring about the presence of the other two.

"… why are we up so early?"

The elder snickered and brushed off Chidori's complaints.

"The moment our guests are up, so are we, my dear apprentice."

"But Onii-sama is such an early bird—"

A swat from a large wooden on her nose cut her off; the demoness didn't hit her hard, but it was enough to stifle whatever the girl had left to say.

"That's enough, child. Now, have our guests help you with breakfast."

The tai-youkai felt around for the hook the spoon had hung from, found it and placed it back.

"I'll be in by the pond if you need me."

She stated simply and left the three to look around at each other in an uncomfortable silence before splitting off to prepare separate foods. Chidori made sure to assign herself the easy jobs: pouring the rice into the cooker and setting the edamame (soy beans) to boil possibly out of spite as she watched her brother carefully grill the fish and Kagome cut up fruit and mix them in a bowl.

"How's Mama?"

The girl asked meekly after her brother had finished with his preparations; he didn't look up as he set the fish on separate plates.

"Wouldn't know."

He finally said and looked like he would not say anymore on the matter, but she was persistent, knew how to push his buttons and did it purposely.

"You haven't seen her once since you left home?"

Taking a deep breath, the hanyou closed his eyes to resist letting out a growl.

"Saw her in passing a few times."

He admitted, not knowing that he had opened a gateway to a very unpleasant conversation until it was too late; looking back he saw the life come to her eyes as the last of her exhaustion faded away, she tried not to look interested by immediately folding her arms and leaning back on the counter, but she failed miserably, the curiosity bundled up inside her was betrayed by her eyes.

"So you know how she been doing."

She stated matter-of-factly and he rolled his eyes and resisted a groan; Aki turned his back on his sister to give Kagome a "please-help-me" look, but she threw up her hands, not wanting to get involved in a soon-to-be sibling scuffle. Seeing that she wasn't going to save him, he turned back and gave her the best impression of calm, didn't work out so well.

"Okaa-san is fine, Chidori! Okay? In fact she's so fine she doesn't even need to see us anymore."

The girl, like last night, tried pleading with him.

"I-It's not Mama's fault she's like that, you know that Aki, It's because Papa—"

"Don't!"

She flinched at the sharpness of his voice and the deep seated anger behind it.

"Don't you dare call him that! He is not our father and never will be!"

Aki was about to say more

"Breakfast is ready!"

Kagome called out loudly and broke the tension between the two siblings, if only for a moment; she gave a little glare at them before leaving to fetch the Dou-Hime. Opening the shoji door to the garden she found the demoness sitting on a low stone bench, inclining her ears towards the little waterfall that fed into the pond, tossing bread crumbs onto the pond's surface and hearing the koi break the surface, opening their wide mouths and swallowing up the food.

"Breakfast is ready."

The miko repeated again, this time more quietly and the elder turned to face her and stood up.

"Thank you, Miss. Higurashi."

Again, the girl watched as the blind demoness glided along the path without ever once straying or faltering in her steps; as they neared the kitchen her dull human ears picked up the broken sounds of an argument. The Dou-Hime sighed.

"The relationship between siblings is truly the oddest one indeed; never in any other is there more love, devotion, jealousy, and bickering."

---

Kikyo knew Kagome's demon was still alive, after the fire had burned the castle to cinders and the captives set free, she was among the recovery team to search for survivors, but there was no one left; the Onigumo had fled and all the people held inside had made it to safety. She searched for traces of the demon's remains, but found none around the area where she sensed the residual effects of the Tama's power and even spread out from there, but nothing to show of his demise, she knew he had been there, she picked up the lingering trace of his aura. She closed her eyes and rode out the wave of frustration, her little sister had become more resilient to the Jewel's influence, she would have to wait, take her time and plan accordingly. Kikyo's stunt with the Sacred Jewel was little more than a crime of opportunity which did not succeed, she had to be patient, trust in her abilities and come up with another plan, or wait for Kagome to mess up again and leave her open.

"Kikyo-sama, is everything in order?"

A young priest asked timidly, she opened her eyes, took her hand away from where it hovered over the ashen ground and flicked her eyes up to meet his. The miko could tell he had to force himself not to flinch and immediately avert his eyes which made her chuckle inwardly at his fear of her, honestly, was she truly that frightening of a person?

"Yes, let's head back and report what we've found; once we have permission from Kaname-dono we'll come back with more spiritualists to cleanse this place."

Her team had gathered around her and they filed out empty-handed with Kikyo in the lead, the hem of her red hakamas turned grey by the ash, but nothing else. Her subordinates were a mess and they were sheepish to attract her attention for fear of her disapproval which came in a single, expressionless glance back at them; she wouldn't blame them too much, they hadn't completed their training so even learned skills were still done sloppily. The master priestess turned her head back around and continued to walk across the grounds covered in grey snow made of ash and willed more than kicked the ash out of her way and it complied.

Kikyo contemplated telling the Head about her sister's new romance, but once bowed before the malicious elder surrounded by his omni-present cantankerous offspring she knew better than to reveal such a detail now, especially since Kagome had unofficially renounced her position as a miko in the Higurashi family making her no longer bound to the family laws. That was "unofficially", unfortunately for her, once a Higurashi miko, always a Higurashi miko. There would be no literal divorcing of her family and status.

"What did you and your team discover, Head Miko Kikyo?"

The woman blinked at the way she was addressed, she never really liked her title, it sounded too stuffy; raising her head off the floor she met her great-grandfather's eye and refused to look away which amused the old man since few of his children could even do that.

"Not much my lord, there was no physical evidence left from the fire and no human remains…"

She wasn't surprised that he didn't look in the least bit interested by this information.

"… however, there is evidence that one of the Onigumo had been injured in the fight, the imprinted effects by the Shikon no Tama's power proved this. Another demon, unknown to us, had also been injured due to the Tama's use, but did not die."

Lord Kaname seemed a little disappointed, but just as intrigued.

"Injured, but not dead?"

He repeated with too much bemusement for the miko's liking as her glanced around at his aging children for acknowledgement.

"Hn… it would appear that our runaway girl is beginning to realize her talents."

Everyone knew he meant the control over the Jewel, if that was the case, then Kagome was eventually going to be brought back into her life of a full-fledged Higurashi miko, whether she wanted to or not. The possibility was too much to pass up for the old man as his mind reeled with a new set of plans for his wayward great-granddaughter.

"Perhaps there is hope for her yet to rejoin us and be properly trained. If she only attacked and injured demons, then that means that her heart has not strayed from the right path, the only trouble is that stubborn attitude and lack of respect of hers, but I'm sure Tsubaki can be of service there."

The lord turned to his eldest daughter and she gave such a smile that made her father proud.

"I nearly broke her once, I can do so again, Otou-sama."

In that moment it became harder for the miko to keep silent about her imoto's secret and she didn't know why she even bothered; what or who was she protecting with her silence? She was unaware that she was clenching her fist slightly until she felt the pain from her nails digging into her skin, it couldn't be helped, she felt as if she had to physically restrain herself to keep the scandal her sibling had caused in. A great relief washed over her that no one could see as she was dismissed and the elders went about their useless banter; while closing the shoji door behind her Kikyo came to the conclusion that she was saving her sister from suffering at the hands of the old and ignorant so she could deliver the blow personally.

But even as she sensed the contentment from that… she knew she was wrong.

---

"I believe this is what you came here for."

The Dou-Hime returned from the storeroom to Kagome and Aki who were waiting anxiously in the training room where they met last night; in her hands was a simple black lacquer box the length of the hanyou's large hand and the width of the small miko's. There was no lock or complicated set of patterns needed to get the box open, just a thin, slide-off piece of wood for a lid. The demoness set the box on the table next to the cookies, the act seemed so wrong it was almost sacrilegious, an insult to the sanctity of the sweet treats, but she forgave the blind tai-youkai because, at the moment, cookies were not the most important subject.

The miko didn't want to pick it up, its black coloring acting as an almost tangible omen, the very presence of it was unnerving, but she swallowed the lump in her throat and reached her hands out. They were shaking slightly, fearing what even a touch would do to her, but upon looking over at her hanyou companion, she knew by his expression that she was overreacting. She grasped the cool wood and pulled the box towards her, it was light and, had it not been for the slight rattling coming from the inside, she would have thought it was empty. Kagome froze at the sound, her mind reeling with what could be inside, but she quickly realized her actions and set the box on her lap; it's lack of physical weight made up for in mental.

"Do you remember seeing this box, Miss. Higurashi?"

The demoness asked expressionlessly; the young woman spared a glance down at the object once as if one more look would jog her memory, but she shook her head.

"No."

"Makes sense…"

The tai-youkai said easily.

"… you don't remember me or anything about what happened here when you first delivered this box to me because I erased your memories, not Aki, of everything that had to do with this place. Upon your request of course."

The Dou-Hime felt she needed to add that last piece of information as well as an explanation because she knew, even without her sight, that the priestess was still confused as to why her memories were kept here in the first place.

"As I said last night, the two of you came to me and asked quite an unusual request that, even as dear as Aki was to me, I would have refused. I will tell you this young miko: you were a very different person the first time we met, the only reason I agreed to keep that box hidden here was the agony that I felt from you. In a very short time you had lost everything that was precious to you, knowing that, I couldn't possibly turn you away."

Lost everything? What did she mean? There was nothing missing in her life that she could recall except… 'Otou-sama…' she resisted the urge to say anything out loud; she didn't want to stir anything up, not yet. It couldn't be coincidence that around the same time her memory became faulty was around the time of her father's death… but it had been an accident. A twinge in the back of her mind told her immediately that that was wrong, if it had been an accident, then why couldn't she remember? The miko felt a wave of sickness come over her… her father's demise had been no accident, something horrible had happened, so horrible that her memory was erased for it.

"I-If my memories are in this box then why am I having these flashbacks?"

She had to step away from that dark place, she couldn't go there yet… she wasn't ready to and she had to get her mind away from it quick, lest she remember something else. At this question the demoness cracked a small smile.

"Because as skilled as Aki is, even he is still my apprentice; he is barely twenty now and to take on the task of removing real memories and implanting false ones back then was an arduous one indeed. Those relapses in memories you've been having all this time are holes that he didn't quite fill, whether purposely…"

The suggestion in her voice was far too great to go unnoticed.

"… or accidentally."

At this, Aki lowered his eyes and Kagome knew then that it was an accident; all this time he had never meant for her to remember, but he didn't possess the ability to fully remove and replace everything little thing, her relapses were proof of his failure, his weakness. She had imagined that what he put her through was mental triage: take care of the worst and the biggest and hope for the best with the small things.

"They are a good thing in this case, if you wish to remember your whole past, then you need those holes to help ease your mind back into accepting all those memories. Had you come to me, you would have lived the rest of your life without even a nagging feeling about your lost memory; someone could have told you the whole story and it wouldn't spark a thing."

Such information made her shiver a little because she knew without a doubt that it was true; doe eyes flickered down at the box that contained all the answers she needed. It held the truth, but, from what she had experienced already, the truth was not going to be as easy to accept as the two memories from last night.

"Can I open it?"

She asked, but instead of looking at the demoness, her eyes met Aki's; licking his dry lips he gave a single, stiff nod which she returned in acknowledgement and allowed her fingers to pull the lid out of its slot. The wood wasn't glued shut, but it got stuck a few times from not being touched in two years; as the wood sheet came off the miko furrowed her eyebrows at the box's contents.

"A sakura tree branch?"

She asked as she picked the small branch up by its base, but even as she said it, she knew that it was no ordinary branch; the blossoms and leaves, even the wood looked like it had been freshly picked and her nose caught the faint sweetness from the flowers.

"The memories had to be stored in a living thing."

Aki started as a way of explanation.

"Those who have our gift usually use sakura branches because of their adaptively to… abnormal effects; the reason why it still looks fresh is your memories, they're keeping it alive."

A new weight fell upon the branch in a moment as she stared at the innocent looking thing, twirling it around with her index and thumb.

"What would happen to my memories if something happened to this branch?"

She asked, a slight fear rising up inside her as if her mention would give the hanyou any ideas, but again, he wouldn't meet her eye.

"Nothing physical can be done to the branch because you can't physically destroy memories."

Something in the tone of his voice gave her the impression that he wished he could.

---

A knock came at the Sesshomaru's door; he ignored it even after the knocking persisted and hardly took notice when it stopped, however, what he heard next could not be ignored.

"Sesshomaru darling!"

"Puppy face!"

"Puppy face? Hn… never thought to call him that before."

"Come on out, lover!"

"We know you're in there!"

"Pretty please?"

Great, just what he needed… the Exs. Swiveling his chair around in the direction of the door he rose up, left his office and, very regrettably, opened the door; the demon guards he had recently hired kept out the prying eyes of the public and their cameras, but unfortunately they were not skilled enough to ward off three very determined demonesses in all their hyper-sexual glory. Their faces lit up like children on Christmas morning when he stood before them and filed elegantly inside his home like they belonged there.

"We knew you couldn't say no to us, darling."

Hissed Hana of the Hebi (Serpent) Clan, green scales framed the edge of her face, upper arms and thighs while her yellow slit eyes darted up and down his form, her hand casually passing across his chest; he didn't knock it away, merely watching with cool eyes of his own until she finished her scan.

"I didn't say anything."

Was his eventual response and Tsume let out a quiet laugh; she was wasn't particularly tall, in fact, for a demoness, she was quite short, but out of all the youkai in the room she was the oldest, nearly two hundreds years older than her former demon lover. It always kept her interested that this young demon before her was much older than his years, not even a century old and he had already closed and hardened his heart from the rest of the world, and that look he gave her… as a Bird of Paradise she grew up believing that to strike fear meant putting on a scary face, he proved her wrong. The casualty of meeting his eye brought fear to many of her fellow Birds and this ability excited her.

"Sometimes not saying anything is saying something, oh great son of Inu-Taisho."

She teased him with his father's name, but he gave no reaction to her and she wasn't surprised by this as she stepped down for the youkai next to her to say her piece. The last demoness was the youngest of the females, only older than Sesshomaru by a decade, Yuiko was literally a sex-kitten, as a neko (cat) youkai she used her unique features as her money maker. The ever-desirable cat ears and tail came standard with her upon her birth and at fifty thousand yen a month per customer she went live via web-cam on her porn site, taking requests and performing whatever sex act was sent in through the live chat. A human with clip-on ears and belt-tail didn't cut it for people anymore, now that the cat was out of the bag—all puns intended—they paid big bucks for the real thing.

"What's with the long look, puppy face, aren't you glad to see us? On my show customers have to pay extra for guest appearances, yet you get to see all three of us for free. Now, isn't that worth a smile?"

The tips of her index claw traced little circles around his stomach, for such an innocent face she was most likely the least innocent of them all with her tight, blood red dress that pushed her cleavage out and barely covered her behind.

"I thought I was clear with all of you: don't come or call unless I do so first."

The neko gave a classic porn star pout.

"But it's been over six months and you haven't given any girl a call and now all this talk about you having a human boy as your lover has got us all worried."

"Or jealous."

He said with a smirk, he had never gone public with any relationship he ever had even though it was obvious that they existed; Kagome's presence was a threat and insult to their pride that he no longer needed them the get his kicks, that he chose a boy, human above all else, for a partner to have by his side. The lot they knew.

"Regardless of our feelings about your current situation…"

Tsume said, in no way denying his statement.

"… you have a fat phonebook filled with numbers that will eventually come to you like we did. We came as a warning and to find out if you're going sever your relations with us."

"I am."

He said without hesitation, all those nameless faces and exotic figures blurred into each other, they were all the same and they all bored him, he had meant to just toss them aside anyway, but these demonesses coming here made that process both much simpler and harder.

"Now do me a favor and pass this information along to any other who has ideas of coming here."

Hana gave out a laugh that melted into a hiss.

"We will do no such thing; lay in your own bed from now on Sesshomaru, because we won't do it for you."

Yet he knew the moment that they left his home Hana and Yuiko would be the little social butterflies that they were and seethe to everyone who would listen about his choice; Tsume had more class than that, her only loss in this situation was a discrete occasional lover who fit her type, she had more. He wasn't the only one who kept a dirty little phonebook.

"You don't think we could have one more party, puppy face, we're all here after all. It'll be fun, like one last romp before we say goodbye forever."

She purred while pressing herself up against him, her heat radiating on his thigh while her hands moved expertly along the lines of his body; the serpent woman was suddenly latched onto the other side of his body, the same look the was in the neko's was in hers.

"Perhaps that's not such a bad idea. I can do that thing with my tongue that you liked."

Her slit eyes became even narrower at the mention; she drew in closer and breathed in his scent which made her pause, confusion quickly replacing lust as she pressed her nose against his body and breathed deeper.

"You smell different."

She stated, the feline, upon hearing this, dragged a whiff of her own and furrowed her eyebrows.

"You do."

The demoness deduced as well.

"You don't smell sexy anymore, puppy face. What's going on?"

The two didn't understand, they were too young and never learned about their true nature, but Tsume did, her eyes came alive in shock and fascination, when Sesshomaru saw this, he shoved them away. A knowing smile slowly curled the Bird woman's lips up and a dangerous look met hers, the little stand-off passed unnoticed by the snake and feline as they delegated to themselves the cause of the writer's loss of alluring scent.

"This little tryst is over. Get the hell out of my house."

"Aw, already?"

"Did we say something wrong?"

He growled, tempted to bare his teeth at them, but at the sound, Yuiko and Hana flinched away, quickly gathered themselves and left, albeit a little huffy that their libidos were cut down so suddenly, they weren't used to rejection.

"If you change your mind, you know where to find me!"

The neko cried right before the door shut, leaving Tsume who mockingly stayed right where she was until they two bimbos had gone; after a moment of separation the demoness sauntered up to him and took a deep breath in for herself, but unlike the two before, her way of doing so had a level of sensuality and class to it. After allowing a moment for the scents to process in her mind her eyebrows twitched up.

"Yep, you smell like a human alright. Who would've thought, you and that ningen (human) boy… your father must be proud."

At this, Sesshomaru let out a snarl, seized her roughly by her hair and dragged her face close to his; after passing his eyes around her features once he forced the distance between them to close as he crashed his lips against hers; he moved his lips and tongue in the same way as he did before with her, an action that she ardently returned, their hands caressed and grabbed at each other with desperate movements. When they pulled away the demon was even more frustrated than before and Tsume let out a shrill laugh, a classic Bird of Paradise trait.

"You felt nothing, didn't you? You can't get off by us anymore; it's because of your bond with your human."

She laughed again and pulled away so she could look at him; this time he bared his fangs. Sure, the kiss had been a test for him; the result was what he expected, but not what he had been hoping for which pissed him off to no end.

"Your body will only respond to his now; your entire chemistry has changed so that other females won't find your scent attractive."

Her laughter calmed down to a slight chuckle as she studied him with enchanted eyes.

"So tell me, Sesshomaru, how does it feel having human blood flow through your veins?"

Her claws traced his body, not sensual, but as if he were a piece of art, an experiment in progress; to maintain composure and standing with this demoness he said nothing.

"What about the Kizuna (Bond)? To be so intimately linked to someone… what's it like?"

Looking down at her, he knew that she was half-mocking, half-serious, as old as she was Tsume had never mated, her only impressions of what the Kizuna meant came from what she had been told and observed.

"Annoying."

He confessed, she didn't know he was serious.

"This information is not to be shared."

At this, the demoness waved the matter off.

"Your mate is for you to reveal on your own, it's none of my business. I don't keep secrets, but I can choose to withdraw information."

That was a mild relief; he knew she wasn't lying for such an act was below youkai of their standard; with a smile and peck on his cheek she turned and left.

"Good luck with your life. I'll catch you two at a gathering sometime and who knows, maybe I'll have a mate of my own by then."

Tsume gave a wink before closing the door and Sesshomaru huffed.

"Unlikely."

Was all he said as he went to shower, the heavy scents of the demonesses sunk into his clothes and made him grimace.

---

"You like my self-portraits?"

Kagome jumped at the sound of the Dou-Hime's voice coming from behind her; she turned away from the war painting to the elder youkai.

"Ho-How did you know I was looking at your paintings?"

The shock in her voice caused that small smile to widen.

"What else would you be doing standing in my hallway?"

The miko lowered her eyes.

"Sorry."

The demoness patted her arm.

"Don't be sorry, but you didn't answer my question: do you like my self-portraits?"

The girl's eyes narrowed as she looked at the painting again, a battle scene of demons against demons, a black and white dragon above, almost observing, completely dominating. Did the Dou-Hime confuse this painting for another one? Being blind, someone could have pulled a switch and she never would have known.

"Ah… I think you may have the paintings confused. I was looking at this war scene; I don't see any pictures of you."

At this, the tai-youkai laughed.

"Of course you do dear, all these pictures are of me; it's more sentimental than vanity that I still keep these old things, even though I can't look at them anymore. This one…"

She touched the frame.

"… was when I won the plain lands of the East from the Kitsune."

Kagome, even while staring, had forgotten about this elder's bloody and tyrannical past; she looked at the image again, scanning the soldiers, trying to spot the little figure that was supposed to represent the Dou-Hime, but she spotted no such thing.

"I can't find you."

She said after a few moments of searching and a white eyebrow went up.

"I'm a little hard to miss."

Reaching out again she felt around the frame to the middle of the top and dropped down to the painting, her index finger resting on a very specific head.

"There. That's me."

Again, Kagome felt like the Dou-Hime was mistaken; after all, her finger was resting in the center of the great dragon's head, its claws and fangs out, frozen in a silent battle cry while fierce black eyes stared out directly forward… as if they were peering through the miko's very being. She opened her mouth to tell the demoness otherwise when she paused, looking at the dragon and then the Dou-Hime and back again; there was a strange similarity to them that she didn't see before. Her mouth dropped open in shock.

"You're a—"

"Yes."

"But aren't you supposed to be—"

"Extinct?"

"Yeah."

"So are the phoenixes, but Aki and Chidori are as real as you are."

"Then why—"

"People tend to think things no longer exist when they stop seeing them on a regular basis."

Kagome's eyes fell to the ground for a second time.

"So, what happened?"

She finally spoke and the tai-youkai furrowed her eyebrows.

"Excuse me?"

"You used to be this fearsome ruler of an expanding empire, but at the height of your campaign you surrendered everything and fell off the map. So, what happened?"

Her eyes suddenly because rather sad and she turned away, her hand falling away from the painting as she did so.

"Well, if you wish to know we'll have to sit for this story."

She called back as she began walking.

"Fine by me."

Kagome said, trying to control her excitement as she eagerly followed the tall woman; the Dou-Hime led her past the room where the two siblings had made up and were talking ardently about the adventures of their respective lives whenever then had a moment to interject between the other's story, so absorbed they didn't notice the two pass by the open door. She led them back out to the gardens and sat down at the same bench by the pond; with a slight sigh the demoness parted her lips and her melodious voice rang a story of tragedy.

"I suppose there's no better place to start than the very beginning…over a thousand years ago I was a young woman and just came of mating age, as the female heir to the Southern lands it was expected of me to mate and marry and have my husband rule in my stead, but I knew that at that time no man could run my empire better than me. In a twist of fate my parents died before an arranged marriage was ever made, my wish was granted, as their only child I became the new Lady of the South unmarried. Finding a partner was the last thing on my mind, I came into the position with a chip on my shoulder and much to prove to my parents' advisors who were now mine and I showed my strength to command out there on the battlefield."

There was a rueful smile on her lips.

"I grew stronger in those fields, shed my old life and old name; I left as a determined princess and came back as an arrogant warlord. I changed my name and took control of my position, effectively assassinating all my rival relatives fighting for my seat with my own hands. My country prospered and grew and for hundreds of years it was that way until I met Hisayuki, my mate; he became my newest general after the one he served under was killed in battle. From the moment we met I knew he was different; he didn't treat me like the others did, he wasn't scared of me, wasn't afraid to voice his opinion during meetings and openly disobeyed my orders to follow his own. I would have killed him if I didn't need him."

That made the miko smile, but knowing that, even in that joking manner, she was serious.

"Of course he never forgot his place or mine, but he refused to bend over for me and that caught my interest until he openly started courting me. At first I thought he was after my seat, that he felt he could rule better than me, but I was wrong; he was genuinely courting the woman hidden under all that blood and armor. We became mates, forever tied to each other by the Kizuna, but we never married; that was the agreement and he had no qualms with it, through the Kizuna I found out that all he wanted was to make me happy, to fight by my side. I had never had someone care for my in that way before and that made me happier than anything else, so with my mate by my side, we set out on a new campaign: to expand our borders. During the years of preparation I became pregnant."

A slightly wrinkled hand rested on her lower abdomen where the child once grew and lingered there for a moment.

"I went into battle heavy with child because nothing could keep me away, not even the possibility of miscarrying due to stress or injury; I gave birth on the eve of another battle, nursed my son and went off to fight with my mate at sunrise. Yuuzuki grew up used to having his parents leave often for war, he grew up to be a fine demon, a splendid heir; when he was old enough he joined his father and I on the battleground and excelled. We were so proud and so confident of our abilities that we decided to make a bold move: divide the army and attack two different locations. Yuuzuki and I went and fought the Kitsune of the East while Hisayuki went against the Inu of the West. It was our first battle apart since we became mates."

The hand that had pressed against her abdomen now went up and clutched the kimono over heart.

"I knew before they brought his body back that he had been slain, part of me died that night and for the longest time I was inconsolable; it is… painful to lose a mate, especially after sharing the Kizuna."

Kagome reached up and touched the crescent scar above her collarbone, Sesshomaru's claim on her; as she gazed upon the old demoness she knew that the loss of her mate was still painful, even now. Was the Bond truly that strong? If she were to die now, would Sesshomaru be as hurt as the demoness was?

"It was my son who pulled me out of that dark place; before, the only emotion I ever showed, the only time I was alive was in battle as I destroyed my opponents. Yuuzuki wouldn't let such a strong woman, especially his mother and ruler, be crippled when my armies and my people needed a leader; so, it was my son now who fought by my side and became a better man. We were victorious, gaining land from the East and I got my revenge on the West and crippled them; the only battle that was truly left for us was against the Dragons of the South's bitter enemy: the Phoenixes of the North."

The miko's eyes went wide, bitter enemy? She looked over at the tai-youkai's house where two half-phoenixes were relaxing inside and not just any two, but this dragon's apprentices.

"We fought for days non-stop, it was endless, the sun and moon rose and fell so many times that they began to blur together to me, in fact, everything began to blur. My vision was starting to fail, but not enough that I couldn't see in the distance the Lord of the North strike down my precious Yuuzuki. At that moment, nothing mattered anymore, my pride, the battle, the dying army, nothing; my son was gone and I let it happen. Of course I only blamed myself after I tortured the Lord of the North to death, but even revenge didn't bring me the satisfaction that I wanted. My son was still dead, my mate was long since passed as well; all my power, the expanded country, the bounty wasn't worth it when my two most precious persons were in the ground because of it."

Kagome was now able to fully understand why the Dou-Hime chose to keep her memories here; she had lost her father, one of her precious persons, no doubt that when they first met the demoness sensed herself reflected in the miko's situation. The demoness in her darkest hour had no one to turn to for comfort and she didn't want to bring about that same feeling of loneliness upon another person.

"It was ironic that around this time your family, among others rose to the height of their power and took the land back from the demons; when your ancestor came to my home with a declaration of war you should have seen the look on her face when I surrendered all my land and power without a fight or a care. I kept this small parcel of land where my Hisayuki and Yuuzuki are buried and faded into a legend; my vision deteriorated over the years because of the abuse of my power, but I don't need my sight to see anymore."

The Dou-Hime looked directly up at the sun, but did not blink or squint, even the great fiery star couldn't penetrate her darkness, instead, she let the sun warm her face and smile.

"I have done what I could over the years to atone for my past actions, gave up my land, my fortune, my title, even took in two phoenix children to train. I just hope that's enough so when my time comes I have earned my right to be with my mate and son again."

Kagome realized she couldn't do it, she couldn't watch all the people who mattered to her die and continue living; it would be too much. She froze.

"That's it."

She said quietly and the tai-youkai looked back down and furrowed he eyebrows.

"What's it?"

But the miko didn't respond; she had to go to Aki while the epiphany was still fresh and before she got too scared to find out the answer. Dashing back into the house she followed the voices back to the room she passed by and found the half-phoenixes deep in conversation.

"I saw my father die, didn't I?"

She interjected suddenly and the two immediately fell quiet and looked up at her from where they were sitting; the statement made Aki pale slightly, confirming her theory.

"That's it! That's what you made me forget: my father's death!"

Chidori looked at the miko and her brother, she knew that this conversation was not meant for her ears so she ducked her head and rose to her feet.

"I think I'll leave you two alone for this doozy."

The girl left the room and she stepped inside and sat down where his sister was not a moment ago; the half-demon sighed and rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hands.

"That's part of it."

He admitted once Chidori was completely out of earshot.

"Well, what more could have possibly happened?!"

His eyes darkened at her statement.

"There's a lot more hidden inside that little box than you know right now, Kagome. Kagami-sensei's death was… a trigger that set off a series of events you wouldn't believe without seeing."

"But I'll see them soon enough, won't I?"

Clenching his fists, he looked away from her, tempted to stand up and pace the room out of pure frustration, but he remained sedentary, sloppily forcing control over himself.

"Yes, but there's a catch, Kagome."

Uh-oh, she didn't like the way this conversation was going.

"There's a certain time and a certain place we have to be in order to reverse what we've done. In two and a half months you'll have your memory back because in that time is the anniversary of the day I took it away."

He stood up and offered his hand out to her which she grasped and let him pull her to her feet.

"So, until that time, forget about everything that has to do with the box, enjoy yourself while you can and while you're doing that, I'll be doing my damnedest to talk you out of this."

She smiled a little bit, but it quickly faded when she noticed that he was serious; he let his hand linger on hers for a few seconds before letting it go.

"Come on, I'll take you home. Your demon must be wondering where you are."

'He's not mine.' Her mind whispered sadly, she belonged to him, but not vise versa despite her declaration all those months ago in that concert with her rival, Ayaka, and Sesshomaru in attendance.

"I'm fine being yours."

He had said, but she knew that he never wanted to be hers the way she was his now; her claim on him was superficial at best, fictional at worst and this thought stayed with her as she said her goodbyes to the Dou-Hime and Chidori, on the ride home with her arms wrapped around the person who still cared for her and past the gates of the demon's home. She walked through the door into an atmosphere that felt as gloomy as she; the black lacquer box in her hands seemed to blend right in.

"Sesshomaru?"

She called out, but there was no reply; she checked the kitchen, living room and office, but didn't find him there.

"Hey, asshole, I'm back!"

She hoped that would prompt him out of hiding, but it didn't; only after dropping the box off in her room did she check in his and found him sitting on the edge of the bed with a half-empty liquor bottle in his hand.

"I'm gone for four days and you disappear in a bottle? You're not very good with separation are you, Sesshomaru?"

It was meant to be teasing, but the glare she received cut off her laughter before it could even begin; setting the bottle down the youkai rose up without a stumble or loss of balance and took a short, flawless walk up to where she was standing in the doorway. He grasped her chin and tilted her head up to his.

"You reek of that half-breed."

She knew he meant Aki and swallowed the lump that formed in her throat.

"And you reek of rice wine."

Her mouth snapped back quickly.

"There was some business that I had to take care of with Aki, no big deal."

His eyes narrowed.

"You cannot be alone with him, he's too involved about you."

"Yeah, know that now, thanks for restating the redundant news."

A growl rumbled deep in his throat as he drew her up against him.

"I repeat myself to you because it takes multiple attempts for a single string of consciousness to enter that thick skull of yours. So I'll repeat myself again. You are mine, little miko, something I never wanted and if you don't like my treatment towards you, too bad; this is what happens when we lose control of ourselves and now we must face the consequences."

When he finished the anger on his side seemed to dissipate somewhat and so did hers; she took comfort that at least he was saying 'we' instead of 'I' or 'you'. What happened in that hotel room she couldn't blame on him, she was the one who jumped him in the first place, who told him to continue, begged him to even though they both knew he was on the brink of losing himself and together they pushed him over the edge. She glanced over at the bottle on the floor.

"You gonna finish that?"

She motioned towards it.

"What's it to you?"

He asked, she could practically taste the bitterness in his voice and rolled her eyes.

"You're not the only one who's had a shitty day; I just found out that my father's death wasn't an accident and my best friend's in love with me and I never knew it. Hand it over."

The miko thrust her hand out, fingers splayed wide, his golden eyes darted from her hand to her face before reluctantly passing the sake over, the top wasn't on so she just put the lid to her lips and tilted back; after two big gulps she pulled the bottle away and let out a series of coughs, handing the alcohol back to him.

"Smooth."

She choked out the moment she had her voice back; he watched her with amused eyes while sitting back down on the edge of the bed, taking another swig and licking his lips in a way that he knew would get the miko's attention. She caught it and shook her head, pointing an accusing finger at him.

"Oh, no you don't. Nuh-uh. Not tonight."

Was it just him or were all demons horn dogs? After his little speech how could he possibly get in the mood? Yet she couldn't deny the way her body felt, even now; they were too close to each other, too alone, too dark outside, too comfortable of a bed. With a groan she stomped up and plopped down on the bed next to him, her hand once again reaching out, waiting for the bottle to fill it; with a smirk he passed the bottle over to her again and she chugged.

"This sucks."

She spat and a rare sound rang in her ears: Sesshomaru's laughter. Laughter. He had to be drunk or someone was going to die by his hands tonight; probably both.

"My thoughts exactly."

He cooed as he encouraged her to lie down on his bed and surrounded her with his body and warmth. All she could do in response was wrap her arms around him and cling tightly.

---

Hello again all my remaining readers, and congratulations for making it all the way to the double digit chapter! Couldn't have done it without you. I can't think of a better way to sum up the old year by ending with a juicy chapter… well, maybe I can, but that's beside the point.

I've tacked on a little side story that I was going to put in another chapter, but found that there wouldn't be enough room so as a New Year's Eve treat you get a little yarn about Aki and Kagome, whether you read it or not has no effect on the plot, I just had the idea in my head and wanted to throw it in. Enjoy.

As always, thank you for staying with me,

Love's Essence

---

To Hold Her Hand

A proud five-year-old Kagome trailed behind the steps of her father with her brand new, just hemmed priestess garbs that now fit her body; her face lighting up as she passed under the shade of the Goshinboku and ran to catch up to Kagami who pulled ahead of her.

"What are we gonna do today, Otou-sama? I wanna play with the naginata again!"

He laughed and shook his head.

"First, we don't play, my dearest Kagome, we train and second, we're going to be doing something different today. I have a special lesson for you."

This caused a bout of jumping up and down in uncontrollable excitement; she grabbed the hem of his sleeve and peered up at him.

"What is it? What is it? Tell me! Tell me! Tell me!"

Her father placed a steadying hand on her shoulder silencing and calming her at the same time.

"You'll find out soon, be patient."

A smile couldn't help but touch his lips at the torture he was putting her through and motioned for her to follow him which she did without question; as they walked across the grounds of the small shrine they saw a young woman step by step come into view as she walked up the intimidating stone steps, behind her was a little boy holding her hand. The woman momentarily scanned the area and looked visibly relieved when she spotted the priest; she immediately changed direction and headed towards them. Not for all the candy in her Ojii-san's storage house could she take her eyes away from the boy at that moment.

"Ah, Miss. Nakano. I'm so glad you could make it."

The woman approached her father and bowed deeply, the child behind her quickly followed suit.

"I am honored to be here, Higurashi-sama."

Even at her young age, Kagome could tell that the woman before her father was deeply troubled and suffering, bags had set under the eyes of too young a face and her voice sounded tired and desperate, but this observation was short lived as the girl turned her full attention back to the boy. It was obvious to her that the boy was a descendant of a demon, there was no hiding it; he had fire red hair with streaks of gold, his pupils were slits encased in bright amber; at the center of his hairline sprout three long feathers that draped over head, crimson with golden tips, but it was the wings perched on his back and the tail billowing out behind him that brought most of the young girl's attention; they dazzled her with their colors deep and vibrant. Their eyes met and the boy quickly retreated to safety behind his mother's legs; Kagami gave his daughter a nudge to remind her it was rude to stare.

"I'm sorry."

She quickly bowed and apologized and the demon child peered out from where he clung to his mother's pant leg.

"Is this your son?"

He had to ask the obvious and the woman nodded in response, reacting defensively to her son's behavior; the priest walked up to the hanyou and squat down to his level.

"What's your name?"

He asked kindly; the child looked up at his mother for permission which she gave with another nod and pat on his head.

"Aki."

He replied in a quiet and shy voice; Kagami smiled wider.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Aki. Hey, would it be okay if I went inside and had a talk with your mom? You can stay out here and play with my daughter, Kagome."

Again, the hanyou looked up to his mother for guidance, but it would seem for this request that Miss. Nakano needed assurance as well. He rose up from his haunches and turned to the nervous woman.

"He'll be just fine, I promise you. My Kagome is very good at playing with others."

She looked like she wanted to protest, but his persuasive hand guided her away from her son and to a building directly across from where the children were left alone.

"Be a good girl for me okay?"

Her father called back.

"Okay, Otou-sama!"

She cried and turned to the shy boy.

"Come on! Let's go climb the tree!"

Before he could react, she reached out and grabbed his hand, urging him to follow her, but the moment her hand touched his, a look of terror came over his face, Miss. Nakano stopped cold as well with the same look as her son, both look terrified not of the miko, but for her. The two gazed upon her as if they were expecting something awful to happen; Kagome furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

"What wrong? You scared of trees?"

The girl didn't understand what was going on and pulled harder on the boy's hand.

"Come on, don't be scared! It'll be fun, cross my heart!"

When it was apparent that everything was fine, the woman turned back and continued to follow the priest to the room.

"Who is the father?"

Kagami immediately asked as he sat down, closing the shoji door until there was only a narrow strip for both parents to look out and check on their children.

"Sono."

She replied quietly, sounding deeply ashamed; he nodded his head, withholding all judgment.

"I see, the infamous Sono. I've met several of his children, but I must admit that your son has the most striking resemblance to the phoenix."

A stab of pain went through her at the mention of her child's father and she lowered her eyes to the ground.

"How long did he stay with you?"

The priest chose his words carefully so to cause only the least amount of stress.

"Five years. I was a freshman in college when we first met, dropped out when I found out I was pregnant, he promised he would take care of us, but when Aki was three he left the apartment and never returned."

Tears formed in her eyes and the man's eyebrows went up.

"Five years is a long time for Sono."

She shook her head.

"I was young and stupid. I thought he cared for me and our son, but I was wrong."

The fragile thing turned her head away and covered her mouth with her hand to muffle the sob that escaped her lips; Kagami reached out a hand and rested it lightly on her knee.

"He did care for you and especially for the son you gave him, but his story is a typical one: phoenixes are so few in numbers they're almost extinct, he's just doing what he feels is right by his species. He chose you and he cared for you."

She whipped her head back around and gave him an angry glare.

"If he cared for the both of us, if he chose me, then why did he leave?! I could have given him all the children he wanted!"

She couldn't stop the hateful words from spilling free and upon the end of her outburst, her eyes went wide in horror and slapped a hand over her mouth, but he understood that she was still suffering.

"Because there are others that he chose as well. He is a desperate demon, Miss. Nakano, even if you gave him many children he wants a… variety in his offspring."

The woman knew all of this already, but upon hearing it made her heart ache all over again.

"Is there anything you can do to help my son?"

She asked quietly, trying to change the subject.

"What do you want me to help him with?"

Instead of answering, the woman reached out and opened the door wider so they could both easily peer through.

"Look at him."

She said in anguish.

"He looks so much like a demon, but everyone knows that I'm his mother, that he's a hybrid child, a half-demon. I don't want him to suffer anymore; his… gifts are beyond his control and have caused chaos in my family."

"What are his abilities?"

He questioned while observing the boy.

"I-I don't know how to explain it… he can do things to people's minds: read them scramble them, wipe them completely blank and all with a touch. When he was first born my mother picked him up and he wrapped his hand around her finger, she immediately fainted and when she woke up she had no recollection of my relationship with Sono or that I had just given birth to her first grandchild. Almost two years of her memories of me gone in an instant."

He listened intently, if he was help the boy, he had to pick up on everything he could.

"Is that why you were so fearful when my daughter grabbed your son's hand?"

She nodded.

"Is hasn't been safe to let him outside, for everyone who touches him something always happens. Up 'til now, I've been the only one immune to his ability, your daughter is the first stranger to have nothing happen."

The priest smiled, a little pride welled up inside him towards his youngest.

"My daughter has a high concentration of spiritual power making her immune to demonic influence."

At this, Kagami rose up and she followed.

"I can help him, but I must warn you that what I'm about to propose will not be very easy for your son."

Miss. Nakano nodded, suddenly fearful for her child, but she was desperate, whatever he wanted to do, she and Aki had to endure. They left the room to where the two were in the process of climbing up the massive Goshinboku, or at least Kagome was climbing, Aki had hopelessly latched onto the trunk sitting on a branch barely twenty feet off the ground.

"Kagome, come down from there! Your mother will kill me if she found out I let you climb that tree."

The girl whined loudly, but fearlessly hopped down from branch to branch until she reached the hanyou; she stopped and held out her hand to him.

"Come on and jump with me! You can do it!"

He looked at her small hand, before slowly and cautiously extracting on of his own from the trunk and grasped hers; it was warm and soft, smaller than his hand he noticed, he never held a hand smaller than his before.

"Okay, now stand up!"

He did, still keeping himself close to the trunk; she tightened the grip on his hand.

"Good! Now close your eyes and trust me."

That part took a little longer; golden eyes met mahogany ones and then flickered down to the ground below that seemed so far away, but upon looking at the girl again and her lack of fear he took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"Hold on tight!"

She said and pulled them both over the edge, but in his fear he opened his eyes and let go of her hand; so focused she was on trying to get his hand back, Kagome forgot how quickly they were falling to the ground.

"Kagome!"

The priest cried and sprinted to catch his daughter, but he was too far away; the mother let out a strangled cry and dashed over as well imagining the worst that could happen. In a split second Aki saw Kagome was below him, her head about to impale the ground, faster than lightning and without thinking he snatched her hand back again and grasped it with both of his and opened up his tail and wings. The appendages that had never been used before sprang to life and followed instinct; he was flying. The little miko looked up at her savior with awe filled wide eyes and only one word seemed appropriate to describe what she saw.

"Cool."

They floated down slowly and safely; the priest calmed his nerves and walked up to his child while Miss. Nakano sprinted past him and scooped up her son in a tight embrace.

"Oh Aki, sweetheart, are you alright?"

The boy nodded, unable to speak for the tight squeeze his mother was giving him; Kagami gave his girl a quick once over and saw that she was perfectly fine before flicking her on the forehead.

"That was not a smart thing you just did, Kagome."

He said evenly and she rubbed the stinging area on her head and looked down, ashamed.

"Sorry, Otou-sama."

He accepted her apology by a pat on the head and squat down to her height.

"I need your help, Kagome. Go to Ojii-san's storage house and bring me the little box that's hidden in the corner under the ginseng root. Find me using that trick I taught you."

She nodded in understanding; he watched her dash off and then turned to the small family.

"Please follow me."

He led them to another small room, had Miss. Nakano sit on a cushion and Aki in the center of a pentagram etched into the floor; he lit incense and placed the sticks in the five tips of the star.

"Mama, the smoke hurts my nose."

The boy said, making a face and covering his nose with both hands; she wanted to go comfort him, but Kagami held out a hand and stopped her, shaking his head slowly while taking a seat next to her.

"Don't worry, sweetheart, it'll be alright."

She called and tried to do her best from where she could, but when she looked upon the priest again, he was all seriousness.

"I need you to understand something, Miss. Nakano, what I'll do if, you still want this, is to seal Aki's demon blood away the process will be very hard on him and there may be consequences later on in the future."

She looked scared and her voice proved it.

"Consequences? Wh-what consequences?"

Kagami sighed.

"Right now the human blood and demon blood in your son have reached a balance with each other; I'm about to destroy that balance. In order to control his demon blood and maintain that balance, he has to release his demon side at least once a week; the farther his human heart and his demon heart are separated the darker and stronger his demon side will grow and will eventually take over him and turn him into a creature you won't even recognize. Do you understand?"

She nodded.

"Do you still want me to do this?"

She nodded again.

"Yes. My son deserves to have a normal life, I'll do whatever it takes."

Right at that moment Kagome burst in carrying the box and was slightly out of breath, completely oblivious to the tension in the room as she smiled triumphantly.

"I found you!"

She stated and ran up to her father who put on a grin for her and caught her as she leapt into his lap.

"You're getting better."

He stated proudly and took the box from her; he opened it up and inside were necklaces with crystal pendants that had a hollowed out area in the center in the shape of kanji for "Seal". He removed one and opened up the top, with a quick prick to his finger he placed the bleeding area over the opening and filled it up.

"You ready, Kagome?"

He asked and she nodded, holding out her hand; the priest stuck her too, added the few drops of her blood to the mix and resealed the top. He placed the necklace in her hands.

"Go put this on Aki, my dear."

She nodded and walked inside the pentagram, knelt down in front of the hanyou and carefully placed the chain around his neck; he didn't understand, he was scared, knowing, feeling in his every fiber that something was about to happen and was wasn't going to like it, but there she was again, this fearless little girl who held out both of her hands for him.

"Don't be scared, I'll be right here!"

She said with a bright smile.

"If you're afraid just hold my hands, but you don't need to be afraid, my Otou-sama is good at this."

Despite her words, he slipped his hands into hers and she wrapped her fingers around his.

"Y-you won't let go?"

He asked, his voice shaking.

"I promise I won't! You can hold my hand forever and ever if you want to because from now on you're my friend!"

For the first time that day he smiled and nodded his head, mentally taking her up on her childish promise, believed her with his own being and she held his hand, even when he squeezed his hardest as the two sides of him were ripped apart, everything within him was changing, but her hands in his never did.