Chapter Thirty-Five: Echoing Across Time

Numb.

Somehow, that's what she'd become.

Rue's eyes were blank and full of tears as she lay cradled between Sango, Shippo, Nanami, Rin, and Kagome: after her first initial breakdown, Sesshomaru had walked up and done nothing but stare at her... but then, he'd spoken a few words that had broken another piece off of her heart. She had listened with a blank soul, a blank everything, as he'd spoken.

"Until your will to fight returns to you," he'd stated coldly, looking at her with an unusually fierce intensity, "stay here. Do not follow me."

Kagome and Nanami had both leapt to their feet in shocked outrage, and Sango had narrowed her eyes with a tight mouth.

"You're unbelievable!" the priestess had shrieked, stomping her foot and digging her leather-clad foot into the ground. "Why, I oughta... how could you?!"

Nanami, on the other hand, had taken a more outright approach and shoved him backwards a step: her green eyes had gone livid, but she didn't falter even for a moment when his cold yellow gaze had landed on hers. In fact, she even pushed it a little too far by leaning in close to his face and baring her fangs. The two of them remained that way for several moments of intense silence, neither one willing to back down.

"After everything you've done and HAVEN'T done, this is the lowest you can go," she hissed so only he could hear, making the demon narrow his eyes. "I know what's happening between the two of you. The scents are all there... on you AND on her. You're abandoning the one who tamed you despite what your instincts are demanding. If you do this, you will break her. And that is something I will not allow."

"Until she realizes that reality will never change, and that humans are weak creatures that hold no compassion for beings like us," Sesshomaru stated coldly, making the woman tense, "I will not have her beside me. Until she can find it in herself to gain back what she's lost, she will stay with Inuyasha. Right now, she is much more suited for your little group than mine."

"But, Lord Sesshomaru!" Rin cried, looking back and forth between Rue and the silver-haired demon. "We just found Miss Rue again! We can't leave her!"

"Rin, we should just stay out of this one," Jaken hesitantly croaked, lifting an uncomfortable hand. "Nothing good will come of it."

"But Master Jaken, don't you care about Miss Rue?! Don't you want her to come with us?!" Rin demanded, running over to him and tugging on his sleeve with a frantic expression. "You missed her just as much as I did, remember?! I heard you talking in your sleep about her, too! We all missed her so much, so we can't just leave her again!"

"Rin," Sesshomaru stated in an emotionless tone, making the little girl look at him with hopeful eyes. "You may stay here or follow me. Do as you wish."

With that, he slowly started walking away, leaving behind a little girl who had turned to stone and a teen who'd practically shattered like glass.

After a moment of watching him walk away from them, Jaken reluctantly followed him... casting glances at Rin and Rue over his shoulder. The little girl looked torn, and she definitely was about to cry: everyone could clearly see it. The moment she let out a sob, however, Rue abruptly stood up and walked over. Then, falling to her knees, the older girl weakly wrapped her arms around Rin's shoulders and embraced her.

"Go with him," she stated softly, stroking the back of the little girl's hair. "I can't go with you, so you need to go in my place."

"But why?" Rin whimpered, staring out at nothing over the albino's shoulder. "Why can't you come with us? It's not fair!"

"No, it's not... but then again, this is also very complicated," the white-haired girl weakly laughed, burying her face in Rin's shoulders. "Grown-up stuff is tough on everyone, ya know? And that's why I have a favor to ask you: it's something that only you can do, so, will you listen to me?"

"Of course!" Rin eagerly exclaimed, pulling away with hope in her eyes. "What is it?"

"I want you to look after those idiots until I see you again," Rue murmured, keeping a level head. "Keep Jaken and Sesshomaru out of trouble."

The little girl stared at her with an expression that was stuck somewhere between optimism and tears.

"I'll try!" Rin exclaimed, giving her a salute before she whirled around and ran down the road after Sesshomaru. After a moment, however, she turned around and cupped her hands to her mouth before shouting one last thing. "I love you, Onee-chan!"

The older girl's heart clenched and lifted her own hands, cupping them to her mouth as well.

"I love you, too!" the albino screamed, silver hair being swept out of her face by the wind. "If you run into Naraku before us, tell Sesshomaru to kick his ass for me! Okay?!"

"I will!" the child called, vanishing over the bend and fading out of sight. "Lord Sesshomaru, wait! Rue says she wants you to kick Naraku's ass!"

I didn't mean it literally, the white-haired girl thought, eyebrow twitching when a sweat drop appeared on the back of her head. Jeez, Rin.

Then she was gone, and her hand fell.

Inuyasha's group slowly approached her from behind.

The winged girl slowly tilted her head back and stared at the orange sky with tired eyes.

She was wondering how her life had become so painful and strange.

"Rue-chan?" Kagome hesitantly mumbled, making the girl slowly turn her head. "This may come as a bit of a shock, but... I think this belongs to you. We found it outside of the cave while you were unconscious, and... well, we kind of... read it. Without permission."

The albino girl blinked and slowly lowered her eyes... but to her utter horror, she saw none other than one of her diaries being held in Kagome's hands. She stood there for nearly half a minute without moving, expression completely blank... but then, everyone present watched as her hand slowly extended out and wrapped around the worn leather diary.

"Your point?" Rue bitterly inquired, giving her a smile that made Kagome wince. "Curiosity killed the cat, you know."

"Sorry," Kagome mumbled, twiddling her thumbs when everyone sighed. "We simply wanted to know more about you."

"If you had asked, I would have told you," Rue stated simply, making all of them stare. "It's not exactly a secret that I was orphaned in an accident, you know."

"Miharu... why did you hurt yourself earlier?" Sango demanded, speaking in an unhappy tone. "I mean, why would you try to chop your own wings off?"

For a long moment, the fifteen-year-old merely stared at the demon slayer with no expression whatsoever in her eyes.

"I don't know, Sango," she stated in a thoughtful tone, averting her fiery yellow eyes. "Why would you hesitate to kill your own brother?"

Everyone instantly gasped, and Kagome clamped both hands over her mouth since Sango's little brother, Kohaku, was something of a taboo subject amongst the group. And judging by how the dark-haired woman clamped up with the question, Rue knew she'd struck a nerve. Which was exactly what she wanted. Sango's eyes had immediately widened with a fierce amount of shock and hurt.

"W-what are you saying, Miharu?" she stammered, looking at the girl with a stunned expression. "Why would you say that?!"

"That was going a bit too far!" Miroku snapped, stepping forward with furrowed brows. "Apologize."

"No," Rue stated simply, slowly closing her eyes and shaking her head with a solemn smile. "I wasn't insulting her, I was asking an honest question about why she acts the way she does when it comes to her little brother. I've heard you two talking about him now and then."

"What do you mean?!" Sango cried, running forward and clasping her skinny shoulders with frantic eyes. "That's totally different from this situation!"

"No, it's not," the angel stated softly, making the woman tighten her grip. "Especially if you consider the feelings behind your own actions."

"Are you purposely trying to hurt me?" the demon slayer growled, narrowing her eyes in fury. "Because if you are, it's working... and you're making me angry."

However, the brunette's infuriated expression faltered when she saw the cold fury in Rue's eyes.

After a moment, her grip loosened and she stared at the girl with furrowed brows, trying to puzzle something through.

"It's not different at all, Sango," Rue stated in a detached tone, making the woman stare at her even harder. "You hesitate to kill your little brother because you love him. You even told me about him once, remember? After what happened with my mother, you said my behavior reminded you of him. You love your brother so deeply that it hurts you to even see something that looks like him being in pain."

"Of course! That's exactly how I feel!" Sango shouted, shaking the girl's shoulders and trying to talk some sense into her; everyone was standing behind the two of them and watching the scene with confused, angry, and downright worried expressions on their faces. Hakkaku and the brown-eyed redhead were hanging a little bit farther back and resting up since they'd used a lot of energy during the fighting. "I could never hurt him, Miharu! But that doesn't explain how this conversation is even relatively similar to my feelings about my brother!"

"Are you dense?" Rue snapped, finally showing a bit of irritation; when Sango's fingers dug into her shoulders, she winced before squeezing her eyes shut and giving up the pussyfooting. "I tried to cut my wings off because Mizuki won't accept me if I'm not normal. I'm prepared to do whatever it takes to make her understand."

Sango's hands twitched and abruptly lifted, hovering an inch above her shoulders.

The woman looked stunned.

"Why?" she whispered, staring at the girl. "How could you still feel attachment for someone who intentionally betrayed you?!"

The white-haired walked several steps away, facing away from them with rigid shoulders.

Sango stopped scowling when a gentle wind swept through the grass: when Rue turned again, however, her eyes had saddened immensely and she looked so defeated that the demon slayer swallowed. After a moment, the albino clasped her hands between her breasts and slowly turned to look at Inuyasha's group, long hair drifting behind her in the breeze. For a long moment, something about her face seemed very, very fragile.

Then, the clouds drifted over the sun again and the fleeting fragility faded away.

"That's precisely the point I'm trying to make," Rue asked, giving her a cold smile. "Ask yourself the same question, Sango: if your brother had intentionally betrayed you, would you still love him? Would you still hesitate the way you do now? Or would you abandon all sense of emotional attachment in favor of acting how others are telling you to do? I love Mizuki Tachibana just as much as you love your little brother... and nothing anybody says can make these feelings go away."

Sango abruptly jumped and stared at her in shock, finally making the connection: she covered her mouth and looked at the ground, eyes wide. She didn't want to admit it to herself, especially since she'd considered the girl to be such a close friend and had even managed to become a bit closer with her through those incidents... but until that very moment... the woman hadn't consciously realized how similar their situations were.

Subconsciously, though, maybe that's why she'd been reaching out to Miharu.

No matter how much she wanted to deny it, she saw a bit of herself in the girl's eyes now and then.

"Fine, you've made your point," she reluctantly muttered, slowly lowering her eyes. "I can't really counter your words now that I understand them. You're right. So, what now?"

"Simple: you and the others are going to resume the search for Naraku," Rue stated simply, shaking her head before she glanced at Nanami and Saelind, who were staring at her in total dismay. "You two are going to help them."

"What?!" the blonde woman shrieked, eyes widening in horror. "What's that supposed to mean?!"

"What about you?!" Saelind barked, lunging forward and glaring down at her. "What are you planning to do?"

"Me?" Rue chuckled, slowly looking up at the sky. "I'm going to leave and collect my thoughts for a few days. That's all."

"Oh, no you don't!" Kagome immediately snapped, bolting forward. "You're not pulling another vanishing act on us!"

"Kagome, hold up!" Inuyasha shouted, eyes widening when she lowered her shoulder. "What the hell are you doing?"

Rue let out a startled squeak when she was tackled to the ground and pinned against the dirt by her arms.

"What are you doing?!" Rue snapped, kicking her legs and trying to buck her classmate off of her. "Kagome-san, get off of me!"

"You had better cut this out right now, Missy!" Kagome scolded, making the smaller girl blink at her like an owl. "Seriously, Rue-chan, we're here to help you: if you can't accept that yet, fine! But regardless of how you feel about it... wherever you decide to go from here, we will be following you. We aren't leaving you to face your problems alone again! Ever! So, just get used to it and come with us!"

Rue stared at her with a stunned expression.

"You're really adamant about not letting me have some alone time for this one, huh?" she finally asked, blowing a strand of snowy hair out of her eyes; the black-haired girl merely grinned at her to make a point. "Okay, whatever... if you really want me to stick around, I will."

"You'd better," Sango muttered, slowly walking forward after Kagome slid off her chest; the demon slayer then bent down and held out her hand, keeping her eyes averted. "You're our friend, Miharu... regardless of what you say, nothing will ever change that."

Rue closed her eyes and let out a huff of air: then she took the woman's hand and allowed herself to be pulled upright.

She was simply lucky that nobody could read her mind.

Or... so she thought.

In truth, somebody was hearing every thought that flitted through her mind on a day-to-day basis.

But it was not someone from the Feudal Era.

No... on the other side of the Bone Eater's Well, far across the ocean in the present Era, an old woman donned in a long black gown was standing in front of a beautifully carved window. She was staring outside at the sky with a dreamy expression, and she looked for all the world as though she were daydreaming about something pleasant, but nobody realized that she was listening to a voice that had been echoing inside her head for a long time.

"I'm a monster," the faint voice whispered, making the elderly woman standing in front of the sheer white curtains open her crystal blue eyes. "It doesn't matter what they tell me... I'm a creature so horrible that not even my own mother could love me."

"I've gone completely mad," the old woman lightly trilled, primly folding her hands as she regarded the scenery of the courtyard garden below. "I've heard this remarkably depressing voice for months now, and yet, for the life of me... I still can't figure out where it's coming from."

The old woman closed her eyes again and listened when faint traces of the voice reached her ears.

As she did so, a faint violet glow lit up behind her eyes.

Her white hair had been pinned up into a bun and her pale skin was somewhat weathered, but she was still tall and beautiful despite her obvious age: the black silk flowed down to the ground and pooled against the marble of the plush room she was standing in when she turned her head to listen. However, just as she began to hear the voice once more, the doors behind her opened and her son walked into the room.

"Mother," he stated solemnly, bowing low and kneeling before her with a nervous countenance; when he lifted his head, his silver hair and fiery yellow eyes caught the light like a mirror. "I apologize for disturbing you during your time of mourning, but we've received more news from the Japanese Government concerning your third cousin's youngest daughter."

"Ruebelle?" the old woman asked softly, slowly turning around and staring at the man with an expression full of otherworldly beauty. "So, they've found her?"

"No... not yet," he hissed, expression contorting when the woman's eyes slowly filled with tears. "They haven't found the princess yet. I'm sorry, mother: the treacherous mortals are still questioning the police department that handled the case. While it is true that we weren't notified of the accident, the reasons for their actions are as of yet unclear. The last place the princess was seen happens to be Tokyo."

"A shrine?" the woman softly inquired, blue eyes rippling in color before flaring to a fiery golden hue. "A shrine run under the name of Higurashi?"

The man blinked and stared at her, mouth parting in subdued shock.

"Mother, you never cease to amaze me," he slowly murmured, slowly shaking his head before rising to his feet. "How do you know of this?"

"My darling son... you should know me well enough to realize that I am not as spaced-out as I seem," the elderly woman sighed, slowly turning her head and staring out of the window with an expression of regal sorrow. "I simply wish to find my cousin's child... we were as close as sisters, she and I. And Ruebelle is indeed alive, my dear: I felt it when she awakened. Our beloved Irelia's youngest daughter is alive... and even if I have to scour this world from the ground to the skies, I will not rest until I know that she is safe. I wish to visit the place of her disappearance, my son."

"You're returning to Japan so soon?" the man whispered, yellow eyes widening in horror. "But, Mother! The negotiations didn't go well, and on top of that, the corruption there is too powerful for your body! If you're not careful, it'll... it'll hurt you!"

"I do not care," the woman stated simply; then her yellow eyes tuned fierce and the man abruptly lowered his head. "You have lived a sheltered life, my son, but for thousands of years, we have hidden ourselves among Humanity in order to survive. Traveling to other countries for political negotiations is my job as a Noblewoman... but flying to a foreign land in search of someone dear to me is my job as Ruebelle's godmother. Japan is nefarious for demons who have survived into this era, and that is why I will publicly announce this endeavor: I don't trust those beasts."

"As you wish, Mother," the man sighed, slowly turning his head and glancing at the painting on the wall. "My Queen."

When he turned and left the room, Queen Elizabeth the second slowly turned her head and glanced at the same painting her son had examined, face softening in misery. Slowly walking up to it, the old woman fluidly shed her outer gown and allowed her enormous feathered wings to spread wide before touching the face on the right side of the painting. She examined every inch of that face before her miserable expression contorted and she wept, leaning against the painting and slowly sliding down to the floor.

The voice from earlier was still there... still crying in silence.

Still begging for someone to help her.

"My poor, darling cousin," she whispered, slowly looking up at the painting; five gorgeous white-haired people were smiling at everyone with proud shoulders and enthralling smiles. Two teenage girls with beautiful smiles, a young woman who had her arm wrapped around a burly black-haired man's waist, and two adorable children who were hugging each other... a little boy and a girl who looked no older than five. "Beautiful Irelia... I swear to you and your husband that I will find your daughter and protect her no matter what."

So saying, the Queen of England folded her wings and slowly slid her outer gorwn back on, hiding the reason why she looked stooped with age.

Then, whirling around, the angel gracefully waltzed out of the room looking out into Buckingham Palace's southern courtyard.

However, later that evening, a silent litany of sorrow started echoing across the time stream, where it reached the tired woman's mind.

A litany that was being written across the pages of a tear-stained diary.

Sometime in Autumn, 1013 A.D.
Dear Diary...

In my long forgotten cloistered sleep,
he and I were resting close in peace.
Was it just the dreaming of my heart?
Now I'm crying, don't know why.

Where do all these tears come from?
Will no one ever dry up this spring?
If you find me crying in the dark,
please call my name from the heart.

Sing with me a tiny autumn song,
with the melodies of the days gone by.
Dress my body all in flowers white,
so no mortal eyes can see.

Where have all my memories gone?
Should I roam again up yonder hill?

I can never rest my soul until
He calls my name, he calls my name from the heart.

In my long forgotten cloistered sleep,
Someone kissed me whispering words of love.
Is it just a longing of my heart?
For a moment of such peace?

Where do all these tears come from?
With no memories why should I cry?
I can never rest my soul until he calls my name,
Call my name, please call my name.

Free my soul from your heart.