S-S: Wondering if I should change the rating to M? Offer your opinions! Also, if anyone cares, I did more art for this story, go check it out, the links are on my profile page.

"Look like the innocent flower, But be the serpent under it" A good quote pulled from Macbeth, that I feel quite fits the castle that appears later in this chapter. *wink*

I don't own InuYasha.

Bloodied hands slipped off the rough wooden bark of the tree. Shiko almost fell to the ground again, for what must have been the hundredth time that night. But this time she caught herself and managed to fall against the tree before she planted into the dirt. She kept falling all the time. At first she had ran, but after running through the night, her legs had given up and her lungs had begun to hurt all the time, pain when she breathed, pain when she walked, pain, pain, pain.

Big purple splotches covered her chest and hips and knees and shoulders, bruises all over that hurt when she fell. A filthy cotton kimono was draped protectively over her head like a shield, a sheet of cloth that might have once been a pretty blue color but was now ripped and dirty and stained with blood that had only half dried and either dripped wet red or clung in clumps of dirty maroon brown. She had grabbed her things and ran, ran faster than she really could and might have twisted her ankle the first time she fell but had ignored it because there was nothing that she could do about it and stopping running would have got in the way of getting away. She had to get away or they would come back.

She wasn't so scared of being found. She was scared of being hurt. She was scared that she would have to kill more people.

There were dirty tear stains running down her cheeks from where she had cried before. She wasn't crying now, possibly because she had run out of tears, possibly because she was too tired and exhausted and scared to cry anymore. She hadn't been able to get a second kimono to cover her jeans and shirt and she knew that she would attract attention.

She stumbled again and a flash of hot pain ran through her bruised side.

It was hard to see. She could see ahead of her, and she could see behind her and she could see herself. She was doing that thing again, that thing where she left her body but now she wasn't able to really stop it or control it.

It was strange. When she moved her body, her little invisible floating pair of eyes called a soul got tugged a bit closer and when she paused for a breath of air, she could float farther away. She tugged her body forward and tried to move more and her eyes flew back into her body.

She didn't want to think. She didn't want to think about the bright red blood and how she had made their heads go all bloody and bang. She wasn't a killer, not really, she didn't want to – never wanted to – kill anyone. Even though she had thought she was prepared, even though she knew that she was trapped in a world that she had thought was not real, she was still just a teenager who had lived a non-violent life.

Her throat caught on her breath and she accidentally tripped again.

She thought that she was heading east. She was trying to go east. East was the right way to go, and she had gone in the direction the sun had risen, but she wasn't sure if she was still going that way after having walked all night. In the morning she would be able to tell again.

Her eyes were so tired, her head hurt. Thinking back, she realized that she hadn't slept in over two days. She hadn't gotten much sleep back at that village shrine and when Rin had been sick she hadn't slept at all. She forced her eyes open. She couldn't go to sleep. If she went to sleep then she would get caught. But she was so tired…

She fell, and from farther away she saw people coming right towards her before her soul snapped back into her body and she fell to the ground with a heavy thud, her eyes fluttering shut.

"Sesshomaru-sama," Rin said worriedly, almost tugging on the demon's sleeve because she wanted him to pay attention to what she had to say, "There's smoke," she pointed to the thick streams of grey and old black smoke rising in the distance, "There's smoke coming from the village where Shiko-san is!"

Rin knew that kind of smoke. She had seen that kind of smoke before, on a hot summer's day that she wanted to forget more than anything. She knew that smoke meant that a town was burning to the ground and she had seen it happen before, she had seen bandits destroy her town. She didn't want Shiko to be there. Shiko was nice and kind and funny and Shiko acted like a mom, when she wasn't acting like Shiko. Rin didn't want Shiko to get hurt by bandits. The naive part of her thought that Sesshomaru could swoop in and save Shiko. And she was kind of scared, because she could only see the smoke now that they were on top of a mountain and it was morning, and she didn't know how long ago this had happened.

"It is a matter concerning humans," Sesshomaru replied, not even stopping, "I am not involved."

"But there's smoke," she said, which made perfect sense in her mind only Sesshomaru didn't see it that way. "Shiko-san will be in trouble. She could get hurt."

He said nothing, and just kept walking east.

"Don't worry Shi," her dad said with a smile, "You'll never actually have to shoot someone. But it never hurts to be prepared."

Shiko smiled as well and leaned forward, raising the gun to try again. The perfect bull's-eye still eluded her, hovering on the edge of her current skill level, taunting her with the fact that she might be able to hit it, just maybe, if she tried harder.

"You'll never be a killer."

"A murderer."

"Killer."

"You're a killer."

Shiko turned to face her dad, but he wasn't there. He was a headless man, only his head was there, but it was-

Was-

Blood, splattered everywhere, bits of brain and bone and goo that couldn't be named, and blood, blood, blood, covering everything in deep dark red. Shiko's shaking hands look down at the gun, and she knew that she hadn't shot at all but her hands were covered in blood.

She screamed.

And the head-blasted man reached his crimson hands towards her throat.

Shiko bolted awake.

Her heart pounded from the blood rush, her eyes still seeing blood red and she had to pause and think and breathe and remember that her father had not died and neither had she. But she had killed. That part was true. None of the rest was, she had to remember that. She ran a hand through her bangs and then froze.

Where the hell was she?

Her hair was out of its ponytail and she didn't have the kimono covering her head anymore. She looked around. She was in bed. A futon on the tatami mat floor, and she was underneath a comfy pale red and yellow checkered blanket. The walls were wooden and there were pairs of sliding paper screens, one leading to another part of what must be this house, and the other one was partly open, leading outside. Daylight streamed in and there was the smell of dirt and grass and a distant chirping of birds. A candle in a brass holder rested to the side of her pillow and the room was very neat and tidy, like it had been swept recently.

Shiko pushed herself up, trying to sit. Her chest groaned in protest and she leaned heavily on her hands. She wasn't wearing her proper clothes anymore. She was in a plain white kimono and her torso was wrapped in bandages. Wherever she was, the people here had changed her, which was creepy, but had tried to help her, which was reassuring.

When she managed to sit up, she noticed that her old clothes were folded into a neat pile at the foot of the bed and her gun, sword, and bag were placed there as well, neatly, as though the person doing the placing was a maid or suchlike.

There was a knock at the door.

Reminding herself to speak in Japanese, Shiko spoke up, "C-Come in," she said, although her voice was raspy, probably from the smoke of the fires and the fact that she just woke up.

The door slid open. A young girl, younger than Shiko but looking a lot meeker entered with a tray of food. "You are awake!" she said happily, setting the tray down near Shiko's bed, "I am so glad, you've been asleep for a day and a half."

"A day and a half?" Shiko echoed. She had really been asleep for so long? But it felt like it had only been for a few hours.

The girl nodded, "Yes miss," she said in the quick and clipped voice that made Shiko realize that the girl was a servant, "A hunting party found you collapsed in the woods a ways away from here. You were lucky to be found. The men brought you back here. The Lord and Lady are very kind, they said that you may stay here for as long as you need to get better. And…" she looked slightly embarrassed, "They had a lady physician tend to your wounds."

"Right," Shiko replied, almost automatically as she tried to take in all this new information at once. "Where- where am I? Where is this place?"

She smiled, "Castle town."

"Yeah, and that would be…?" Shiko questioned again, because the girl's first explanation truly meant nothing to her. "Sorry, I'm from really far away," she added as an explanation.

"You're in the Lord's castle," the girl explained, "But there's a large town surrounding here, and even the castle itself is so widespread that it's like a village itself," she looked back down at the tray of food and held it out to Shiko, "I am sorry, you must be hungry. Please, eat, and then I can change your bandages."

Shiko smiled and gratefully accepted the tray, "Thanks."

She picked up the chopsticks and quickly ate the simple bowl of rice and fish. It was good, definitely like food she expected from a castle. What was Shiko doing here? It was terribly good luck for her to have been found by the hunting party, and she was probably far away from where she had been found. The people here must be pretty kind hearted, to carry her back all the way here when she was unconscious.

Setting the chopsticks down again, she helped the girl with her bandages. It was an awkward affair, since Shiko couldn't move her shoulders more than an inch, but the girl never lost her blush and apologized extensively every time she made Shiko flinch or saw a bruise.

After the girl had hurriedly cleared away the tray, she returned with a kimono that was made of some sort of rich silk and was either one of the Lady's, or a noblewoman's cast off. Dressing Shiko was also difficult, because Shiko had no idea how to put on the kimono or tie the obi, but because Shiko was Shiko, she couldn't possibly let the maid do all the work. The two struggled but managed to get Shiko looking like a presentable lady in the end.

There was nothing to be done about her hair though.

"Why-" Shiko began, as the maid hesitantly and gingerly ran a brush through Shiko's long hair, "Why did they take me in, with hair like this?"

The maid clearly wasn't sure what she should say or not, "Your hair was still covered when the men brought you back. Of course, the lady physician saw right away and informed the Lady. The Lady said… she said 'A lost and broken child should not be turned out due to the color of their hair, a matter of which is not the child's choice.' And then nobody argued afterwards, although, if you pardon my forwardness, I don't think you look like much of a child, miss."

A muffled and fuzzy part of Shiko's brain wondered why the lady would have said such a thing. Wouldn't most, especially – and Shiko wasn't trying to be rude, only honest – especially a rich noblewoman who could have anything she asked for at the drop of her hat? If the lady had not trusted Shiko, Shiko would be dead. The rest of Shiko's mind was suspicious. It was only a small part suspicious, as most of her mind was fuzzy, but it was suspicious all the same.

"The lady sounds like a kind woman," Shiko said honestly.

The girl placed that eager and cheerful smile on her face again, "Oh she is! And the Lord is good hearted as well! Our village prospers. It is even good for servants here."

"If it's not too rude, I should like to meet this lady," With a last painful tug, Shiko's hair was done up into a fancy bun. She might have said 'ow', but only a tiny one, and very quietly.

"Of course!" the girl said, as the question had been a silly one, "The Lady has asked to meet with you once you are better," she held out a hand to Shiko, "I will take you to her."

Shiko gratefully accepted the offered hand and stood up, leaning more than she would have liked on the girl to stay righted. Her side hurt something terrible, like a great big grinding meat pulverizing thing had been sewn into her gut and ground her bruises each time she moved. "Thank you," she said, and then glanced back at the neat pile of her old clothes, "My clothing, can you not have anyone move it or touch it?"

The girl nodded, "Certainly. No one will lay a single finger on your belongings, miss."

Smiling to reassure herself more than the servant girl, Shiko followed the girl out of her room and into a large and airy hallway that was indoors for a little bit and then mostly outdoors.

It was nice actually, the fact that so much of this building was outside. The air was fresh and that smell of dirt, grass, and flowers was light and gently tickled Shiko's nose in the most delightful fashion. And there were people too, lots of people. Men carrying bundles of wood or grain that strolled by in groups of two or three, women with baskets that they carried on their heads as often as in their arms.

"The people here," Shiko said as they walked, "They all look so happy."

"It's rather like a big family here," the serving girl remarked. She stopped in front of a door, "Here we are, miss, let me just knock to let the Lady know you've arrived," she did so, her tiny knuckles making a surprisingly loud noise against the wooden door.

After a moment, there was the expected call from within and the serving girl opened the door, stepping neatly to the side to let Shiko in, and then the door shut behind Shiko.

The Lady was sitting daintily on a cushion, sipping tea and looking out at the pretty rock garden. She had thick dark hair that fell in a carefully maintained and pinned wave down her back and wore what looked like a dozen layers in her intricate kimono. She turned and smiled at Shiko, "Oh, you must be the girl that our men recovered. Please, come in and have a seat."

Shiko walked over to the Lady and noticed a second cushion and tea cup. She sat, and, remembering her manners, bowed her head respectfully, "Thank you for tending to my injuries, my lady."

The older woman waved it off with a cheerful smile, "It wasn't a bother. I am always willing to help people who need it. And please, call me Kanako," Kanako picked up a small clay teapot and poured herself some more tea and then filled Shiko's cup.

The tea was sweet, jasmine. "Kanako-sama," she said, "Do you know who it was that found me?"

"One of the younger boys here I believe," Kanako said, sipping her tea, "I can send for him if you like?"

Shiko shook her head, "Oh no, I don't want to trouble the boy," she stared wistfully at the people and the garden outside, "I heard that the people here are like a family. Everyone looks cheerful, content." Not like the town she had been in earlier, not where people cast her dirty looks, or seemed to be constantly on edge, like nervous rabbits.

Kanako's smile faded a tiny bit, "This town is very lucky. There have been so many attacks, demons, fires, so many villages have been destroyed recently. But we have had no harm done to us, by demons or by people. It is good to breathe easy at night and know that no demons will come in the dark." She placed her teacup down and turned her head towards Shiko, "I am sorry, but I must ask. Are you a demon?"

"No," Shiko replied, self-consciously reaching for a strand of her hair, "I'm one hundred percent human."

The lady almost seemed to blush, "Forgive my rudeness. These things must be asked, you know."

"It's fine," she said, truly not minding the question, "I know that I probably look strange. On my travels, a lot of people thought that I was a demon. It's just a hazard of looking like this."

Kanako nodded sympathetically and Shiko found it strange that a woman like her would have so much pity, no, this was understanding. In some way, she understood what Shiko was going through with having to hide her features. Now that was odd. "Well," Kanako said, "You are welcome to stay for as long as you like. I know that your injuries may take a while to fade, but when you are healed, you may stay as well. We take in strangers and loners often," she said, gesturing slightly to the people passing by, "Many of the servants here were without families and a few of the woman were kicked out of their village."

It was painfully easy to guess why, "And all those people, they've just… found a home here?" she asked.

"Yes," Kanako smiled, "This place is so large that one can never get lonely. Actually, the boy that found you was recently taken in here as well."

That tickled the edge of Shiko's mind.

The door slid open.

It was a maid, carrying something swathed in a kimono carefully in her arms. She walked carefully over to the lady and held out the bundle to her, "Here my Lady. The precious wako just went to sleep."

The Lady's face turned brighter and darker at the same time as she carefully took the sleeping baby in her arms, "Thank you," she said, dismissing the maid. She looked like all mothers do, full of protectiveness as she cradled and gently rocked her baby.

"You're… child?" Shiko said carefully, because she could tell that something was wrong. Not because she could see something wrong right in front of her, but because she knew that there was something wrong, and that was a worrying prospect.

"Yes," Kanako replied, still looking at the baby, "I had him recently. He's the precious heir to this family that me and my lord husband have been longing for," she hesitated, and looked up at Shiko, "You are from far away, yes? You've traveled? Seen a lot of places and heard many stories?"

Slowly, Shiko nodded.

Kanako looked the tiniest bit relieved and a huge chunk of worried and hurried and panicked, "Ha- Have you ever hear about a child being born with white hair? I- I know that he is my child, of course he is, how could he not be. Only, I keep having this strange dream, of a girl with white hair and a boy, and of course, I can't know if it's true because everyone save me and my child that was in the birthing room died. Maybe you know something?"

And Shiko looked at the child and saw a sleeping, tiny infant. Not an infant. The Infant. The other half of Hakudoshi.

Naraku's heart.

She lied no, excused herself and left the room.

She had to think. She had to calm down. She had to kill the child.