Chapter 14
The snapping of a nearby twig made Kagome jerk to attention. She regretted her sudden movement immediately, as she suddenly felt every injury she had sustained over the last two days. Biting back a groan, she pulled Sesshomaru closer to her as she strained to see in the dark forest.
Shaking, she tried to look for the dropped cell phone to shed some light as she listened for more noise over the sound of her heart's pounding, but the crackling of some leaves mere feet away sparked pure panic in her.
Eyes wide, she pulled her uninjured arm back and formed a fist, blue light flaring as her powers rose to the forefront. It illuminated the clearing only briefly, but long enough for Kagome to catch sight of a fox the size of a German Shepard. It stared at her with its bright eyes until the purifying light faded.
Tensing, Kagome shut her eyes, ready for what was sure to be a painful attack, but blue light bloomed beneath her eyelids, followed by a warm hand on her cheek.
"Kagome? It's all right, I'm here to get you."
Shippo could feel her trembling beneath his fingers. The smell of dog demon, wolf, and human blood hung in the air, as well as the scent of burnt flesh. It made chills run up and down his spine.
"Kagome," he prompted again, gently. "You remember me, don't you?" Remembering human night vision, he conjured his fire in the palm of his free hand in order to give everyone some illumination.
Kagome licked her cracked lips, taking in the green eyes and auburn hair of the male in front of her.
"Shippo?" she whispered, eyes wide with disbelief. "Is it really you?"
At his answering nod, the woman threw her arms around his neck, sobbing for all she was worth. As they were hindered by Sesshomaru's weight on her lap, Shippo had to brace himself against the tree Kagome leaned against to keep from falling.
"I thought I'd never see you again!" she cried, voice muffled by his fleece. The fox demon placed a hand on the back of her head, comfortingly running his fingers through her hair.
"It's good to see you too, Kagome," he said, breathing in her scent. It had been far too long. Shippo held her tightly, trying to convey the happiness he felt after being reunited with his dear friend.
After a good cry, Kagome leaned back, wiping her eyes. "I'm so glad to see you, Shippo."
"I bet you are," he replied, rekindling his fire in order to take in Kagome's bedraggled hair and bruises, as well as Sesshomaru's cuts and burns.
"What on earth happened? You both look like hell."
Kagome gave him a tremulous smile, which alerted Shippo to the almost blue tinting of her lips. "Could explanations come after we're somewhere warmer?" she asked, trying to control the chattering of her teeth.
"Of course," Shippo exclaimed, jumping up. "Can you stand?" he asked, making quick work of hoisting Sesshomaru up over his shoulders.
"Yeah," she answered, rising unsteadily to her feet. Her ankle and arm began throbbing in unison, and a sharp pain stabbed her in the side when she inhaled to steel herself for the trek to safety.
"It isn't far," Shippo reassured, watching her wobble. "Less than half a mile."
"That close?" Kagome asked dazedly, following Shippo's fox fire illuminated form through the trees. "That makes me sort of mad."
"What would you have done? It's just a parking lot."
"I thought we were lost in the middle of nowhere. If I hadn't found the phone…"
Visions of freezing to death or being eaten by a bear flashed in her brain, causing her to shudder. Kagome was perfectly aware that finding a parking lot wouldn't have made any difference, but she was so illogically angry that something pertaining to civilization was so well within reach that she couldn't see straight. Actually…
"Shippo," she said faintly, coming to rest up against a nearby tree. "I think you're going to have to come back for me." She gripped her arm in the dark, feeling the fresh blood soaking her sleeve.
"What?" He smelled the blood and turned back, concerned. Kagome was far too pale for his tastes, and more blue, besides. "I can get both of you. Come here." Steadying Sesshomaru with one arm, the foxfire went out as Shippo swung Kagome up onto his hip like a child.
"Put your arms around my neck," he instructed, groaning slightly as he readjusted Sesshomaru's position. "This dog needs to lay off the peanut butter sandwiches," he grunted, earning a half-hearted smile from Kagome, who laid her head on his shoulder as soon as he started moving.
"Hold on," the fox told her, breaking into a loping run. The faster they got to the car, the better.
It felt like hours later the next time Kagome opened her eyes. Above her was a star scattered sky, but it seemed to be moving rather quickly. Raising her head slightly to take in her dark surroundings, she tried to remember when she had fallen asleep, then realized that she was in motion, recognizing the white noise sound of a car traveling over asphalt.
It was dark inside the vehicle, but as her eyes adjusted she could make out Sesshomaru's form slumped on the seat next to her own. His head lolled and rocked gently with the movement of the car, and his impossibly long legs seemed to be folded up against the seat in front of him.
"Shippo?" she called, wincing at how raspy she sounded. She sat up straighter, feeling her damp clothes against her skin and the bruises from her injuries. The air inside the car was warm, however, and she leaned forward gingerly to meet Shippo's eyes.
"Hey," The fox greeted, winking at her. "Feeling better?"
"Much better," She said tiredly, smiling for him. There was a moment of silence.
"So, are you ready to tell me what the heck happened?" he asked, going back to keeping his eyes on the road. "I was waiting for Sesshomaru-sama to arrive in Seattle hours after he was supposed to, you're the one who answers the phone when I call, and he's unconscious. I can't even imagine how this happened."
"It is pretty wild," she admitted, regaling him with her adventure of the last few days. Shippo's listening style was a great deal more involved than Sesshomaru's. He laughed and gasped in all the right places, staying mostly quiet. Kagome was just explaining their escape from the island when Shippo interrupted.
"Wait, wait. Sesshomaru transformed?"
"Yes. He flew us here after stomping everyone…" Kagome trailed off, perplexed by the irritation that was plain on Shippo's face.
"That stubborn idiot. This explains a lot." He glanced at Kagome. "Let me start from the beginning…or sort of the beginning. "
"After electricity and industrialization, we started noticing that some of the older demons were causing problems like blackouts, interference, and the like. Most of the time we can keep it in check, but really powerful demons like Sesshomaru need an outlet every once in a while." Shippo's face contorted into a scowl at this.
"Sesshomaru," he said, pronouncing each syllable slowly, "had a problem remembering that he needed to do that, and was able to get away with it until 1965, when he was on business and caused the great Northeast Blackout here in the States."
"You're kidding."
"Wish I was. After that he decided that he wanted to try something else. D'you remember the pelt he always wore?"
"How could I forget?" Kagome laughed softly, regretting it when her side throbbed, but continued, "He flung Inuyasha across the room with it the first time we met…and I held onto it when he found me inside Naraku."
"Well, it can be used to store energy. Sesshomaru transferred over half of his into it, and it remains warded in a vault below the main house. It's a ridiculous amount of energy, but in this day in age he doesn't need it…unless…"
"He transforms," a dismayed Kagome finished, glancing back at the prone dog demon.
"Right," said Shippo, raising a hand to rub his temple. "He uses so much energy to transform that it is a miracle that he survived flying as far as the both of you did."
Kagome leaned back, covering her face with her scraped hands. "Why…why would he do all of that for me? Risk his life? I-I'm not worth that."
"Hey, don't say that," Shippo said gently, reaching back to take one of her hands. "You are part of our pack - our family. Sesshomaru wasn't going to let anything happen to you."
"I don't really consider myself part of Sesshomaru's family, Shippo. I barely know him."
Shippo gave her hand a squeeze. "Maybe not him, but you know me. How much has Sesshomaru told you about the rest of our family?"
"Nothing." She said, vaguely surprised. "Just about Jaken and Kouga."
"Well," Shippo said, tone thoughtful. "Not sure why he left everyone else out. We can ask him when he wakes up."
"You can't tell me?" she asked.
"You know Sesshomaru. He's got a reason for everything he does. Whatever his reasons for this, I'm positive he planned to tell you soon," the grown kit reassured her.
The two fell silent for a time, both processing recent occurances.
"Kagome…I've been wondering for a long time…and I mean a really long time…"
"Why I left?" she finished for him, looking down into her lap. She knew this question was coming the minute she saw him in the woods.
The fox demon nodded, waiting for Kagome to continue.
"Shippo…I regretted it as soon as it happened. I tried to come back immediately after…but the well wouldn't let me through. I was trapped here…and I wanted desperately to come back to you, to Inuyasha…to say goodbye properly."
She was silent again for a minute, reaching up to touch the jewel, glimmering on the end of its chain. "The reasoning, though…the original reason I had...I just couldn't let what happened to Sango and Miroku and K-Kaede –" she took a deep, shuddering breath in an attempt to keep the tears at bay. "I couldn't let that happen to anyone else because of me. Because of this thing around my neck."
"We all knew the risks-"
"No." Kagome interrupted. "I let my guard down. With Naraku dead, I should have known that others would have come after it. I should have protected the jewel…and I should have been able to protect myself." Her voice grew deeper and more tremulous with each passing second.
"Kagome…" Shippo tried, wracking his brain for anything he could say to comfort her.
"I don't want to talk about it any more tonight," she said quickly, a little harsher than needed. "I'm tired."
And she was. It was getting hard to keep her eyes open.
"Okay," Shippo said, squeezing her hand again. "Get some sleep. It'll be another couple of hours before we make it home."
"Home?" Kagome questioned, sliding bonelessly back against her seat.
"Well, the current one. Sesshomaru likes to move around."
"Sesshomaru," Kagome mumbled, looking over at him. She reached clumsily for his hand, touching it gently. "M'sorry…please be okay."
She leaned her head back then, attempting to get her aches to melt away for a just little while.