Promise
Chapter 12: Taken
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, or any other related characters other than Saku, Kaori and Ami.
Kagome felt her heart nearly burst.
Her breath escaped her heavily, until she was gasping for breath, never getting enough oxygen into her lungs, her mind a chaos of fear.
Those words… Had she heard them? No…
Kaori's face stayed hidden in the dark, black eyes barely seen glittering at her, watching, waiting…Waiting for the move to strike…
Kagome was not even aware that she was shaking, her wide dark eyes staring unseeingly into the shadows that were Kaori's face, seeking some kind of reassurance, some kind of hint that it was all wrong, just a joke…
But she knew she should have known. As soon as she had entered this hut, she knew she should have expected something like this. After all, the woman had wanted her alone and kept her in the darkness for so long, that it was only to be accepted that she was evil, sent here to hunt her down and capture her, a villager in disguise…
Kagome's racing heart sank to the floor where it lay, beating too frantically, as she realized that she had fallen for it. Her damned curiosity would be her demise, her stupid reasoning and lack of thought. It nearly made tears well up in her eyes, and she would have started to cry had she not been too filled with fear and shock. She was so stupid… A pathetic human, just what Sesshomaru said she was…
She wanted to call for help as Kaori took another step towards her, still so shadowed and menacing, but her voice would not work. Paralyzed. She was paralyzed. In fear? She had to break free…
Another step.
Oh god…She could not close her eyes even if she wanted to, the darkness approaching her swiftly, the dancing flames danger at its finest. She thought of Inuyasha as Kaori took another step, thought of his face, his eyes, his haori…
And then the tears really did fall, one after another, streaking down her pale cheeks. She would never see Inuyasha again, would she? If he was not already dead, that is. And soon, as the shadow of the woman advanced, soon she would be joining him…
The light of the fire was completely blocked out by the form of Kaori as she stood directly in front of her, blocking all her chances of fleeing, escaping, even though she knew she couldn't. Kagome fell back against the wall in defeat, thinking of how far she had come, how close she was to finding Inuyasha, as Kaori raised a dark arm, black eyes flashing, red kimono glowing in the dim light…
And when Kagome closed her eyes, resigning herself to death, she thought of only one person.
A man with silver hair and golden eyes, claws and fangs and a sword that could destroy all in its path. A man who she had made a promise too, a promise that would now never be fulfilled…
Kagome's thoughts, her heart, her soul, thought of only one person, the demon who she had bond herself too, connected herself to through a single promise.
Sesshomaru…
And somehow, through the haze she was in, through the darkness that surrounded her, the arm coming towards her, she managed to find the only hope, the only thing, she had left.
With a voice that was no more than a raspy whisper, she said his name.
"Sesshomaru…"
And prepared to die.
--
He heard it, deep in his mind, the small, shriveled thing that he could barely call a heart. Through it all, he heard her, a small, weak whisper of desperation, a final hope, carried on the breeze, blasting through his mind.
"Sesshomaru…"
And he knew, all the way down to his bones, that she was in trouble.
He did not wait for Ami, did not wait for anyone; without thought he spun around to face the village, and with a speed that shocked even him followed Kagome's sweet scent, now laced noticeably with fear.
He ran with all he had, everything a blur around him, Ami's voice falling on deaf ears as in the distance he finally caught sight of it, the hut that she was trapped in.
And with one final burst of speed, her name unwittingly fell from his lips.
"Kagome."
--
There was a split second of silence as Kagome, anticipating her death, closed her eyes and tensed her body, inevitably waiting for the pain. She thought that it was all over, her mission, her quest to save Inuyasha, and had no choice but to accept it. Trapped, ready to die by this woman's—this being's—hands…
But the blow never came. A second passed, two seconds. Kagome felt feeling slowly start to return to her body, realized how badly she was trembling, how quick her heart was beating. Beneath the large dose of fear, anger began to arise within her when Kaori did nothing. Why was she tormenting her like this?! If anything, now Kagome knew that she was evil.
She did not dare open her eyes, afraid of what she'd see—the shadows, the fire—as she said, in a quiet but steady voice, "Well, aren't you going to kill me?"
There was some sound; barely audible shifting, a small exhale of breath that was warm against Kagome's cheek. She was still so close to her…
Kagome's body immediately went rigid as a tentative hand reached out to touch her cheek, the cold hand stroking it softly in a way that made Kagome flinch. What was she doing…?
Kagome's breath left her in spurts as she waited for that cold hand on her cheek to lower to her throat, to begin strangling her or something of the sort. It made no sense; why was she doing—
"Do you accept your death so quickly?"
Kagome's body trembled even harder at the words, the stabs of fear pushing at her again. The cold hand stayed on her cheek, oddly gentle and soft.
"Kagome, open your eyes."
She jumped at the command, clenched her eyes shut tighter. No, she did not want to see. This had to be a trap, a way to gain her trust before she got a knife stuck in her, a hand—that cold, soft one—around her neck. No, she refused to fall for that.
"If you're going to kill me," she whispered quietly, "Get it over with."
There was silence, and then…
She nearly gasped as the cold hand fell away from her cheek, as the presence of Kaori moved away from her, far away, back over to the corner of the room.
She stayed flat against the wall, eyes still closed, heart racing as feeling began to return to her, the heady rush of relief began to stir inside of her, followed shortly by that ever present confusion.
"I am not going to kill you."
Slowly, at those words, Kagome cracked an eye open, blinking against the darkness to find Kaori and her red kimono kneeling by the fire, her face, now in light, turned towards the flames, black eyes glittering with an unnamed emotion.
"You're…You're not?" Kagome whispered in a voice filled almost with…awe. She could not understand… As Kaori looked back at her with a sad smile, her confusion, and anger, only grew, starting to overshadow her relief.
"You're not," she repeated, confirming it, "You promise that you're not?"
"I do not promise," Kaori said, her face, now lit up, smiling faintly at Kagome. "I swear."
Slowly, bit by bit the fear began to melt away from Kagome, although she never lost her caution as she stepped away from the wall, feeling weak from the fear that had swept through her. She eyed Kaori's sad face wearily as she slowly approached her, her senses screaming that she should run, seek safety…but that sad look on Kaori's face…It made her senses falter and her heart, that strong, compassionate muscles, felt for the pain she saw on the woman's face, the sadness. And if it was a trap…
Well, she'd find out if it was, now wouldn't she?
"Kaori…" She began, slowly, cautiously, kneeling down next to the distraught woman. "You appeared as though you were about to kill me, so…What changed your mind?"
For one brief second she thought she saw Kaori's dark eyes began to clear, saw the blue begin to peek through beneath the darkness again as though it were being pushed away. With a heavy sigh Kaori ran a hand through her long hair, and Kagome could again see the strange tattoo from before, the insignia of something that seemed almost…blurry in the light. What was it…?
"You must think me insane," Kaori laughed bitterly, "All of them do here, because they have now clue who—or what—I really am. Hell, I hardly know sometimes."
"What…What are you…?" It was the all important question, the answer that might just help her save Inuyasha, might just help her defeat the menace.
As Kaori opened her mouth to respond, her eyes now almost completely blue again, there was a loud thud from outside. Just as Kagome and Kaori turned towards the door a huge blast of energy swept into the room, completely obliterating the door and forcing both girls down on the ground as the fire went out.
As Kagome, disoriented, blinked against the ash and debris and began to sit up, the first thing she saw, through the haze, was the white form of Sesshomaru holding Tokijin to Kaori's slim neck. With a gasp she stumbled to her feet, frantically reaching out to Sesshomaru as he moved his arm back, face pulled in a dark scowl as he prepared to deliver the killing blow…
"Sesshomaru, stop!" She did not know where her voice came from, or the powers that went along with it. All she saw was a burst of white light that sent her falling back to the ground, her hip slamming painfully into the wood floor.
When she recovered from her shock and managed to scramble to her feet, she was both relieved and horrified to find Sesshomaru slammed up against the wall with enough force to almost crack the wood that held the wall together. He was glaring at her with dark eyes as he pulled himself away from the wall, his clothes slightly singed and, to her amazement, she saw that his breathing was erratic. For a moment, she forgot all about Kaori and the troubles that plagued her as she gazed into Sesshomaru's dark eyes, watched them flash at her, for her. And her heart skipped her beat when she realized what he had done, why he was there, and her entire body seemed to warm.
He had heard her…He had come to save her…
And she had paid him back by sending him, by some force she had not known she possessed, flying back into the wall, nearly purifying him. She felt herself pale in guilt, her eyes widening as without thought she scrambled over to him, oblivious to Ami watching from the center of the wrecked room, unaware of Kaori watching her movements with astonished eyes. All that mattered, oddly enough, in that instant was Sesshomaru.
"Oh god Sessho, I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed fretfully as she stopped in front of him, her hands fluttering around nervously as she resisted the urge to touch him. His response was a dark growl, and she looked up to meet his cold golden eyes with a heavy heart.
She knew what was coming, but winced anyway when he asked it.
"You called for my aid, and when I arrive you protect your attacker. For what reason?"
She flinched at the accusation in his voice, and had to look away from those intense golden eyes to the ground, listening as Kaori shifted uncomfortably next to her. What could she say, when she herself did not know why she had saved Kaori?
"Sessho…She wasn't trying to kill me, she—"
"Really?" he drawled, "She wasn't? The fear in your scent speaks otherwise."
"I…I was taken aback, and she wasn't the one to scare me you were!"
"Me?" he growled, and suddenly Kaori and the whole situation were forgotten as he took a menacing step towards her, and she only glared, a scowl working its way on her face. "I saved your life!"
"From what?! Kaori wasn't harming me, she was just about to talk to me when you came barging in!"
"If you did not want me here, than why did you call my name?" he demanded, "Why, for a brief second, did I sense utter fear come over you?"
"Because Kaori was going to attack me, it seemed, but she…But she stopped."
All the anger Kagome felt for Sesshomaru drained away as she looked away from his dark face over to Kaori, a puzzled frown crossing her face, scrunching her brow. Kaori stared back at her with weary, tired blue eyes, eyes that held too many secrets and had seen too many things.
"Kaori, why didn't you kill me? And…if you didn't mean to, why would you act like you wanted to?"
With a sigh Kaori's eyes fluttered shut, before snapping open to land on Sesshomaru and Ami, her eyes clouding with trouble. "I…I can not say, for fear that I might be overheard or…" Her eyes strayed to Tokijin, which Sesshomaru still clutched in front of him in attack mode, "or attacked."
"Sesshomaru!" Kagome was on his case instantly, frowning up at him. "Put that down, right now! I'm sure that Kaori's not going to hurt—"
"How can you say such things?!" Sesshomaru suddenly snapped, his usually emotionless face covered with a dark scowl that sent shivers down her spine as he turned to look at her. "A minute ago, this wench was just trying to kill you!"
"But she didn't!" Kagome exclaimed, rising up in Kaori's defense. "She could have killed me, but she didn't! In fact, she was going to tell me something important about Inuyasha's abductors until you showed up, unnecessarily violent—"
"You will cease saying such things immediately!" Sesshomaru nearly yelled, and the volume of his voice, usually so soft and monotone, sent her heart nearly jumping out of her chest, her eyes widening as her anger was replaced by shock and, though she loathed to admit it, fear. His golden eyes seemed darker, redder, and she knew that eh was just barely hanging into control of his demonic side. She gulped, inhaled sharply; had she done this? She had only been defending Kaori! But he…
He had been worried about her.
The realization nearly sent her stumbling back, her eyes growing wide as she openly gaped at the now openly scowling demon lord, her heart, oddly enough, beating frightfully fast in her chest, rising up and up and up…
And her lips, without her knowledge, curled up into the happiest of smiles, her dark eyes coming alive until they were all but sparkling, softened and tender as she stared at Sesshomaru. He seemed to notice her change of mood, for the scowl on his face immediately slipped away into nothing, his face taking on that look of constant indifference again as he stared down his nose at her, this girl that dared look at him so…softly. For the life of him he could not understand why his heart was skipping beats in his chest.
"Sessho, I appreciate that you were worried about me—"
As quickly as the scowl had vanished from his face, it appeared again, more dark and fearsome than ever under her false assumption.
"This Sesshomaru did not worry about you, girl. I merely wanted to see the cause of the distress." He interrupted her, looking away pointedly at Kaori, who stood silent, watching them both. "And now that I have, I deem it fit to eliminate the threat."
"What?!"
Faster than he thought possible for a human she moved in front of the blade, blocking Kaori as she fiercely glared at Sesshomaru over the tip of his sword.
"You're not touching her Sesshomaru, god! Didn't we just go over this!? She did not harm me in anyway—"
"But she might have, and she may still be planning—"
"She was about to tell me something before you barged in! I mean, I appreciate your concern Sessho but really, you're overreacting! Look, Ami's not nearly as freaked out as you!"
And it was true. Ami stood in the back of the room looking thoroughly bewildered, her green eyes flickering between the bickering pair and the silent Kaori in wonder, not anger.
"That is because the wolf is not capable of perceiving the threat!" Sesshomaru huffed, ignoring the angry growl said wolf demon behind him loosed. "And she is a fool for not perceiving it. there is clear evil radiating from the woman you so ardently protect, and you continue, like an ignorant human, to just let—"
There was only so much Kagome could take, only so much stress she could handle. And Sesshomaru, with his unyielding ideas and stupid assumptions, had reached her breaking point.
"SIT!"
One crash into the already destroyed ground was not enough for Kagome.
"Sit, sit, sit, sit, SIT! My god Sesshomaru, you presumptuous—sit!"
When Tokijin finally fell silently out of his slackened grasp Kagome stopped, letting out a world weary sigh as she stared down at the growling, infuriated white form of Sesshomaru impaled in the ground. "I mean really Sessho, I appreciate your concern but seriously, you took this way out of proportion!"
Seeing that Sesshomaru would not recover for a few minutes—if she was lucky—Kagome swiftly looked back to Kaori, who had dropped her impassive face to stare at the subdued Sesshomaru with wide eyes and a creased brow.
"How did you—"
"Spell of subjugation," Kagome curtly explained, "And forget about him for now Kaori, he's not important. What you were about to tell me is."
Kaori's dark blue eyes snapped to hers, and Kagome shivered from the intensity.
"I was about to tell you something…" the woman repeated slowly, blinking at her in an almost…unnatural way. It was as though Kaori was suddenly gone, absent from the room…
"Yes Kaori, you…You told me you are one of them and yet…You want to give away all their secrets to me. Why…Why would you betray your own kin?"
There was a pause, and Kagome vaguely felt Ami come to stand beside her, absently noticed Sesshomaru struggling to his feet behind her. She had eyes only for the mysterious woman in front of her, the woman that claimed to be evil, and yet had spared her life.
Kaori let out another winded sigh, her blue gaze lowering to the ground, to the ashes where her fire had once been. She felt nervous, Kagome could see, talking in front of Ami and Sesshomaru, still believing that they would attack her. Kagome was quick to put all her doubts away.
"Kaori, just ignore them; I promise they won't hurt you. Right Ami?" she turned to the demoness next to her, who was hesitantly eyeing Kaori. "I said, right Ami?"
"Well Kagome, I don't know…I mean, I won't harm her if she doesn't do anything…"
"And she won't," Kagome affirmed, turning back to Kaori with a kind smile, ignoring the growls of Sesshomaru behind her. "You won't do anything, will you Kaori?"
"I…I can not say Lady Kagome." Defeated, the woman looked at the miko, her light eyes pleading, almost begging for her to forgive her. "I can not control myself at times, and—"
"And it's nothing Kaori, trust me," Kagome cut in, "I saw you struggling with yourself earlier and you won, so…I have no fear."
Kaori gave her a look of poorly veiled astonishment, her already pale face going bone white. "You have no fear…" she whispered, almost to herself, under her breath, the astonishment in her tone, in her eyes, boring into Kagome's…
And then she laughed. Threw back her head and began to madly giggle, cackle, broken laughs of dissonance that had Kagome gasping and Sesshomaru, fully recovered now from his sittings, stepping back in front of her with Tokijin in hand.
All three companions watched silently as Kaori, still laughing, tears now running down her cheeks, raised her head to the sky and spread her arms wide, as though waiting for something, as though pleading for something.
"They don't fear me!" she cried, "She doesn't fear me! I have someone! I have someone! I have…"
All fell abruptly silent as Kaori, breathless, tears still falling silently, lowered her arms, her eyes, darkening gradually to the black color from before, unblinking and wide as she stared at them as though seeing them for the first time, her breath escaping her in ragged gasps.
"I…I…" she was muttering under her breath incoherently, and Kagome, from her position behind now both Ami and Sesshomaru, could only hear a few things.
"I can not fight it anymore, can not hide anymore…Discovered…Discovered! Coming to end my life, to silence me, but I can not…Will not allow them… Secrets…"
As her eyes continued to darken Kaori stepped back until she was against what was left of the wall behind her, her breathing clearly audible now as her chest heaved, her eyes glued not on the demons but the miko barely visible behind them, a worried look clouding her darkened eyes.
With all the strength she had not yet lost, with all the power she had left inside of her, she said in her strongest voice, "If it's the truth you seek talk not to me, but Saku. Talk to Saku. He'll tell you everything you need to know…Oh god, they're coming…Oh god…"
Kagome felt her heart wrench as Kaori fell back against the wall, silent and with tears falling from those dark eyes, and went to move around Sesshomaru and Ami, consumed by the compassion that had always been a part of her. She was ignorant to the way Sesshomaru suddenly tensed, did not sense the ripple that suddenly went through the room, or the tiny hiss Ami let out at the feel of it.
As she reached out from behind Sesshomaru, eyes trained on Kaori and lips parted to say that everything would be ok, that she was there for her, to say anything, it was too late.
With a sudden jolt the roof to the hut flying off completely to reveal the darkened sky above and the two figures, clad all in black, hovering in the midst of it, the center of all the malice, of all the evil. Through the gust of wind that picked up, from behind Sesshomaru's white form Kagome squinted, her eyes adjusting on the figures before widening, her heart quivering and falling as she recognized them.
There was a falling sensation, even though she was standing perfectly still on the solid ground, and suddenly there was no wind, no darkness; only those two figures that she recognized from her nightmares, the two men that had taken Inuyasha and placed her friends under that dreadful spell. And now they were here, eyes of darkness, full of malice and no light, glaring down at her from the dark mass of energy they stood on crackling sparks of amber and red.
She had no clue as to why they would be there…Until one leaned down, moved closer, and closer and closer…And grabbed Kaori's arm. All at once Kagome realized what was happening, but it was too late to stop it.
Kaori offered no resistance as she was brutally, by her wrist, hauled up onto the mass of energy, her face impassive, eyes of night—just like theirs—blank and hollow, staying on the ground, never once looking up to meet the horrified eyes of Kagome.
All Kagome could do was scream Kaori's name as Sesshomaru unleashed his attack a little too late, and the ball of energy, those crude men with their black smiles, were gone, vanishing as quickly as they appeared as outside the sky lightened, and the room fell silent once more.
Kagome had nothing to do but sink to her knees and stare up at that blue sky, the name of the taken girl still echoing on her lips as Sesshomaru sheathed his sword, as Ami looked down in sadness.
"Kaori…"
First Inuyasha and now…
Another one had been taken by them.
Hello, here's the follow up to my cliff hanger which is, sorry, another cliff hanger! Oops, haha. I really didn't want this to be a cliff hanger either! Well, what's our favorite pair plus Ami to do now? Kaori told them to talk to Saku…Perhaps through him the mystery will be solved? Well, I'm not telling until I update, which will be soon, I hope. School's staring back up tomorrow, so it's back to work, work, work…yay…Can you sense my enthusiasm?
Well, thank you for all of your reviews, you were the ones that made me post this faster! I hope this met your expectations!
Well, you know what to do, review, review, review, and I might have the next chapter up by next weekend. I hope.
