The usual excuses of course!

Although this time I was side tracked because I got a new gaming computer built and had to replay all of favorite games... because reasons... /

BUT ANYWAY!

Chapter Thirteen: The Other Beast's Castle

Kagome shivered, convulsing, her bare skin coming in contact with cold hard floors. She felt an ache just behind her eyes and the room seemed to spin around her.

When her vision cleared a woman she recognized stood before her.

The woman rolled her eyes and conjured a blanket, draping it around Kagome's shoulders. When she speaks it's a dead pan voice. "Welcome to Naraku's castle... mistress."

Kagome's fingers clutched at the blanket, crying into her knees. InuYasha... The ache in her eyes grew stronger and her throat burned.

I was right... she thought bitterly, biting her bottom lip to stifle a sob. Naraku found a way to make everything just that much more difficult.

The woman cleared her throat, drawing Kagome's attention. "You may want to consider getting dressed and getting some rest. The Master is taking care of some... business, but will be returning shortly."

Her tone had been all business and dry disinterest but Kagome could have sworn she glimpsed a hint of compassion in Kagura's eyes. Kagome nodded, rubbing away her tears.

"Follow me to your quarters."

She rose and followed Kagura through the castle. Perhaps I will have an ally in this after all.

Sango hummed to herself as she set about her morning task of waking everyone for breakfast. Life in the castle was much more enjoyable now that Kagome and InuYasha were speaking to each other. She wasn't having to walk on eggshells around her stupid dog-eared friend. Kagome wasn't in constant need of a shoulder to cry on. Sure, Kagome was her friend and she always wanted to be there for her, but she had to admit their whole relationship was becoming a bit ridiculous.

Why did everything have to be so difficult for them? Why couldn't their love have come as easy as hers? To be fair they did have the curse looming over their heads and InuYasha's concerns about her safety weren't unfounded. With Miroku everything was simple. He loved her. She loved him.

No mess.

No fuss.

Certainly no fighting... most of the time. At least their fighting was in regards to something other than their relationship.

She shook her head. None of that mattered. Not anymore.

He'd proposed to her last night and Sango had never seen her friends happier. She'd already been by InuYasha's room and found it empty, so she could only assume they'd spent the night in Kagome's room.

She couldn't wait to hear the details!

She sighed in contentment as she approached Kagome's door.

...

Something wasn't right.

The air around the door set her nerves on edge. Being a demon huntress, she'd always been sensitive to the sensation of magic. She'd even come to be able to tell the difference between light and dark magic.

There was dark magic in the air... It had faded considerably but the... sticky feeling still lingered in the air and pricked in the back of her mind. She recognized this particular magic.

It was the same magic she'd felt after Kagome's incident with the nightmare.

She knocked on the door.

"...Come in..."

Sango opened the door, afraid of what she might see on the other side. She peered inside.

InuYasha was on the bed cross-legged and his hair shrouding his face.

One glance around the rest of the room confirmed her previous suspicions. Piles of clothing littered the floor. She shook her head again and sat on the bed next to InuYasha, who had at least put on some pants.

"What- um, what happened?" she asked, seeing the resigned look in his eyes. Everything about him looked different today: his eyes looked hollow and his posture made him look so defeated, even his hair was down. He looked so... defenseless?"Where's Lady Kagome?"

"She's gone."

What?

"What do you mean, she's gone? What happened?"

He sighed. "I just... I don't want to talk about it right now."

Sango jumped to her feet, scowling at him. "I swear, if you've hurt her again-"

"It's not like that."

"Well, what is it like then?" She crossed her arms over her chest. "Last night everything seemed just fine and now, all of a sudden, Kagome is gone and there's dark magic everywhere."

"She had to leave okay?" His eyes focused on her, still not really seeing. "She had to take care of something. She was here... with me. Then she was gone..." The fog seemed to be lifting. He stared at his hands in his lap, fingers flexing before forming tight fists.

"InuYasha?"

His eyes brimmed with tears. "I don't even know when she's coming back. What if she never comes back? This is all my fault, if only I'd told her sooner-"

Sango knelt in front of him, putting her hands on his knees and giving a reassuring squeeze. "InuYasha, no. None of this is your fault. I don't know why we have to keep telling you this. Not everything that goes wrong in the world is your fault."

He buried his face in his hands.

Why did their relationship have to be so difficult?

Kagome paced in her room. It had been a week since Naraku had ripped her from InuYasha's arms. He was still no where to be seen. She hadn't even been able to sleep she was so anxious and stressed. At this point she was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

She honestly expected him to just show up in her room one day and demand to bed her. She'd had recurring nightmares about that exact situation in various circumstances. When she wasn't having nightmares she was dreaming of InuYasha and starting a family with him.

Sometimes that was even worse than the nightmares.

Kagura had become... something. Kagome still wasn't quite sure what to make of the woman's stoic exterior and chilly words. She'd brought her food at meal time and, after Kagome begged for the third time, leaned against a wall examining her cuticles. Bad company was better than no no company at all. Her company was at least better than the few encounters she'd had with Naraku.

She let out a groan of frustration and slid the shoji screen door open. She hadn't realized how accustomed she'd become to the western lifestyle she'd been living. She missed doorknobs. She missed actual doors. Doors with substance that couldn't been seen partially through.

I need to do something otherwise sitting and waiting and dreading is going to be the death of me. She peeked around the door, making sure no one was around. I don't even kno/w if there is anyone here besides Kagura. Seeing the coast was clear, Kagome tiptoed out of her room and made her way down the main hall.

Well, she'd thought it was the main hall. This was the first time she'd been out of her room since she'd arrived. The door at the end of the hall lead to a square courtyard of sorts. All the plants were dead and the small pond at its center was a sickly green color. Each wall surrounding the area had a set of sliding doors leading who knows where.

A knot twisted in her stomach and she suddenly felt younger and more naive than she'd ever felt. She couldn't even see the sky because of the roof that towered over her. No wonder all the plants are dead. Will I shrivel up and die like this too? Locked away and denied even sunshine.

Tears pricked at her eyes.

No! She shook her head and wiped at her eyes. This is not worth crying over. You're stronger than this. She puffed out her chest and set about inspecting behind each door, trying to determine where each led.

...They all look the same. The same exact doors leading to the same exact hallway. How am I supposed to get out of here?

Finding her frustration renewed, Kagome flung open a door she seriously hoped wasn't the one she'd come through. When she reached the door at the end of that hall she threw it open too. It wasn't her bedroom, at least.

It was, however, another hall.

"What is this place?" She clasped her hands to her chest, sifting her way through the littered hall. She didn't want to know what the mystery substance was. It was dark gray and seemed to pulse like... a heart? It started as thin, sparse roots, digging into the floor and walls, growing into thicker roots where they connected to... Plant pods? No they were too thin on the outside and too viscous on the inside. Not to mention she'd never seen a plant like this before and that was saying something.

They glowed a faint purple from whatever liquid was inside.

Amniotic sacs? she thought, taking a step closer when she realized there was the faintest outline of something in one of the larger sacs. "What's in there?" She reached out a hesitant hand and pressed the tips of her fingers experimentally against the surface. There was give in the substance but not so much that it burst with the light touch.

The shape inside stirred. Kagome noticed for the first time that there were what looked like veins attached to the shadowy blob coming from the outer sac.

She froze.

The shape stilled. Kagome released the breath she'd been holding. She put more pressure and her fingers slipped through the outer layer and into the... gooey bits. It was warm and wet, bringing to mind one time she'd helped a villager's cow get through a difficult birth. She bit her lip and powered through, slipping her hand further into the sac. Almost there... She watched with bated breath as her hand came closer and closer to the mystery form. She could almost touch it-

It grabbed her! Something strong and vice-like wrapped around her wrist, pulling her further in. Her heart raced and she scrabbled for purchase on the surface with her other hand only for it to start sinking inside too. The shape inside writhed in erratic, jerky motions, wrapping her other wrist in its grasp.

"No!" Kagome screamed, finally bracing her feet against the wall and pushing with all her might. There was a sick sounding squelch and the figure emerged through the outer sac, landing beside her on the floor. She was flung back on the floor, knocking the wind out of her lungs. She coughed and sat up, scooting away from the human shaped mass.

The shape shifted, sitting up and cupping its face. Then the head turned to stare at her in a sharp motion. "Kagome?"

Kagome squinted in the dim light that emanated from one of the few candles lighting the hall. "Grandfather?"

"Kagome, what are you doing here? You shouldn't be here-" he turned again to a vein that was still attached to his leg. His shoulders hiked up and he reached out to rip it off. "He knows! He knows everything. I was connected to him somehow while I was in there. It's how he was able to take my form and have access to all my memories."

Kagome threw her arms around his shoulders. "I was so worried about you! How long have you been in there?"She pulled back to examine him for any signs of injury.

"Too long." He shook his head and covered her shoulders with his hands. "Nevermind that, right now, we need to get out of here. Naraku knows you released me and he's furious-"

"What do you think you're doing here?!"