Sesshou had never traveled by lightning in all his years, but it was something he did not wish to repeat. The old woman was clearly one of the elder wolves from Kouga's tribe, back when they were Eastern wolves of Japan. Had he known she was going to strike them away, he would have offered to fly. He did not like being relocated without his permission.
The scents of the reservation reminded him of the caves the wolves once inhabited. The grounds were dirty and most everyone walked without shoes. Sesshou could spot Hakkaku's scent somewhere amongst the tribe, but felt no desire to seek him out. For now he would follow this tricky old woman, if not out of duty to Kagome, then out of sheer respect for the elder demon's age and obvious strength. She was clearly much older than even his sire.
He watched Kagome take in the sights around her, arms hugging herself as she stumbled in the dirt and mud of the broken, wet earth. He felt guilty, he knew, for bringing her out into a storm to argue away from the prying eyes of the wolves, but clearly they had failed. However, he had a feeling the elder had other plans aside from Kakushin's.
Many eyes watched them as they followed the silent elder through the reservation, many hiding away their demonic features quickly at the scent of a human, and others reprimanded those that reached for their concealment trinkets, whispering words of "priestess" and "time traveler" as they passed.
Sesshou removed his blazer and dropped the jacket onto Kagome's shoulders as he trailed behind her. She was shivering in the light rain that still fell at a steady pace.
"Huh?" Kagome peered behind her at the gesture and felt her heart sink to her stomach. She had screamed at him, called him names, and belittled him. Had this happened five hundred years ago, she would have been long dead. She needed to apologize, she knew, but this wasn't the time or place. Now if only she could walk right without her heels sinking into the mud.
Thankfully, the old woman stopped them outside a large animal hide tent, the material looking soft and tough at the same time. When she opened the tent, the old woman allowed passage to Kagome, but swiftly smacked her cane down in front of Sesshou's feet, warning him to go no further.
Sesshou was fine with that, and proceeded to stand guard. While he was curious, he knew the wolves' business was more so with Kagome than him. He would wait. Should the need arise for his presence, he would be there in less than a second to protect Kagome.
Afterall, he did not lie. He was devoted to her; her life, however long the span. He would service her needs until the day she died and met Inuyasha on the other side. It still irked him to think that, but he attributed it to the idea of watching another human ward pass away and leave him alone to his immortality. He would never admit it, but he had grown accustomed to companionship, and relished the lazy moments of filling time with no purpose, but to please oneself and those valued by oneself.
Inside the tent, Kagome was amazed to see just how much larger it was on the inside. It appeared there were many rooms, with the first being a communal living space, with a sizable firepit in the middle. There were many plush pillows and blankets around, with small pups lazing about, ranging in age from three to ten years old. Some braided each others long hair, others snoring in groups of two or three.
The old woman gestured for Kagome to sit by the fire and then took her own place atop a fluffy pillow and burrowed herself further into her furs, with only her gnarled fingers poking out to absorb the fire's warmth. Grateful for the warmth, Kagome tried to dry herself by the fire, but was quickly interrupted by two female pups, looking to be around twelve years old, who held up a change of folded clothing and shoes.
"Come with us, Lady Priestess," The first pup said, reaching to help Kagome up. "We can show you where to change." Kagome took the girl's clawed hand and was surprised by the lack of effort it took the girl to pull her up.
"This way, my Lady." The second pup took the lead and guided them through another portion of the tent, appearing to be another small bedroom, with many plush pillows lying around, and a short vanity with a mirror and pillow to sit and view oneself. "When you're through, come back to our mistress."
"Thank you." Kagome accepted the offered clothing, and peered back up to address the two, but found them gone. She could save her questions for later. Right now she was just grateful for the dry clothing.
She quickly changed and eyed herself in the mirror. The clothing was a cross between Japanese and Native American, with a yukata made of animal hide that was smooth and tan, and moccasin boots to go with it. There was a drawstring around the middle of the dress with turquoise beads creating a snake tail pattern at the ends. Gathering her outfit from dinner, Kagome almost wanted to laugh. What would Sesshou think of the new attire? Even she could smell the wolves on her.
Entering the main quarters, the first thing Kagome noticed was the lack of pups lying around. They had nearly overrun the place with their sleeping bodies lounged everywhere, but now they were nowhere to be seen. The only presence was the old woman, the "mistress" of these parts, it seemed.
"Hello?" Kagome approached the elder and with a nod, she was asked to sit. She complied. "Lady Mistress, may I ask why you brought us here?"
When the mistress did not answer, nor acknowledge her, Kagome thought she might be hard of hearing. Opening her mouth to speak louder, she was interrupted by the stern look on the old woman's face. It was a clear no. She was not hard of hearing.
The mistress reached for a charm around her neck, one of the many that adorned her body, and tossed it into the fire. At first, the flames licked away at the trinket, but as it burned away, the flames grew darker, and the reds, oranges, and yellows of the fire took shape. Kagome watched in fascination as a story unfolded before her. There was war, death, and loss. She could make out the wolf and the tortoise, and wanted to ask for verification that it was Kouga she was seeing, but her desire to know more won out, and so she kept her eyes glued to the fire before her, taking in the images that passed her by.
There was much she didn't know about the war that had taken the lives of her friends. There was struggle that Sesshou didn't speak of when it came to the West. Kagome recalled Shippou's wife, the human who was murdered in Eastern territory. Shippou had five hundred years to grieve her, but did he miss her still? Images of a human establishment crossed the flames, and it was overrun by bandits. Many humans were buried that day. She wondered how many were Sango and Miroku's children.
Snowflakes fell and a demon lord stood in front of a single stone grave. In his hand was a flower. Kagome's eyes burned, but not from the heat of the flames, but from the tears that began to form. How could she treat him so poorly, when this is all he's faced to find her once more? Kagome's eyes blurred as the last of the flames showed a girl reaching for something unknown, and burning to death for it.
"I know," Kagome weeped into her hands, "I know, I do," She rubbed her face raw and forced herself to look into the soulful eyes of the wolf elder. "I have to get stronger." The elder smiled, and shook her head no. Reaching to the young priestess, she tapped her forehead with a single gnarled knuckle and then her chest, and nodded yes.
"Stronger, here," Kagome placed her on youthful hand atop the old woman's. "But how?"
Sesshou had been waiting in the rain for nearly the whole night. Another hour or two and he would wait no further. They still had business with Kakushin and it was the last day to finalize arrangements. Either Kagome complied with Kakushin and he would have to murder the wolf prince, or Kagome stood beside him, as a pack, and they returned home as one. He would not delay that outcome. He would bring her home kicking and screaming if he had to.
When the sun began to rise, so did the wolves once more. Hakkaku walked about the camp in odd directions, hoping to avoid the dog lord, but eventually sucked it up and approached him.
"Good morning, Sesshou," Hakkaku smiled warmly, despite the oddly cold feeling coming off the lord in waves. It felt like the good ol' killing perfection was presently killing everyone in his mind. "I didn't expect you here until later today. Kakushin isn't even home yet from the casino."
"Kagome was summoned." Sesshou kept his eyes trained to the sunrise. As soon as the sun passed the horizon, he was going in whether he was welcome or not. The thought of Kagome agreeing with Kakushin had been eating at him for the better half of the hour and he was growing impatient. He needed to speak to the priestess.
"By Kakushin?" Hakkaku paused to sniff the air, doubting his nose, "But he's not here."
"It was the elder." Sesshou watched as the sun inched slowly across. Another minute. Maybe two.
"What do you mean?" Hakkaku scratched his mohawk, moving the strands from either side of his skull, creating a rooster-esque look. "The elders have been dead for nearly three thousand years."
A crash was heard from inside the tent, and both wolf and dog ripped through.
Inside, Kagome was centered inside a bubble of her reiki. The pink glow lit the entire communal room, casting an eerie shadow of her lotus form over everything.
Kagome could feel the reiki in her veins. The sheer power of her soul was overwhelming, and all encompassing. There was so much she knew, so much she could do and see, and yet it had been stilted for so long, always an inch from reaching a potential she never knew she had, until now. Now it flowed and licked every corner, graced every soul, and flourished with the rise of a challenger to her power. Sesshomaru.
"Kagome," Sesshou approached her bubble, "let me in." He had no fear in his heart, nor did he posses ill will or contempt for others. He was here to reassure himself of her safety. He was here for her.
"Yes, my lord," Kagome's eyes that had once been glowing with the pink of her energy, blinked back to the deep blue they always had been. She reached a single hand for him and without hesitation, he entered her force field, unscathed by the purity of her reiki. When he reached his hand to hers, the room glowed with his own sickly green energy, matching her as an equal, dominating only half of the air around them. "Who knew?" Kagome asked, amazed at her own strength. "The girl is strong."
And then it was dark. The force field was gone, Kagome had dropped like a sack of potatoes, no longer glowing or floating with her reiki. Sesshou's own aura snapped off like a power outage, sparking the air with sapped energy. He was there, holding her to his chest, her tiny form cradled in his arms, and he wondered. That wasn't Kagome...was it?