Author's Note: Not a very long chapter, but it's the second one today, so let's think of it as a bonus. I would love to hear what everyone thinks about the no doubt confusing fragments of what is happening right now!
Minako seemed to have jumped at the opportunity to explore Horizon Peak. Sesshomaru stopped in the doorway of a little shop, watching his mate looking around excitedly for a moment before turning away and entering the dark shop. There was a demon at the counter and a few browsing. They gave a single glance to Sesshomaru before going back to their business as he moved behind the counter and into the back room. Another demon sat in the back, more rat than man in features. He stood when Sesshomaru entered, nodding to the youkai.
"Never a good sign when you walk through my door," the rat laughed humorlessly. "What is it you wish to know?"
Sesshomaru didn't bother to waste time. He may need to speak with several contacts to gather any information at all. He explained the bottom-feeder's peculiar attack and the poison on its claws. He admired his own recollection of the incident. Someone had attacked his mate, but the rat did not need to know how much it had disturbed him. As Sesshomaru explained the incident, he managed to keep his stoic mask in place, any and all emotion from his voice. For all the rat knew, this was only an issue because it had been an attempt at a personal attack. It wasn't the fact that Minako had been attacked, for all this man knew, but rather that Sesshomaru's mate had been attacked, his living property.
"Interesting," the rat muttered afterward, beginning to pace the room in thought. "A witch, perhaps? Your attacker would need full control of the bottom-feeder to make it go against its nature. You did not hear or see anything odd?"
"Nothing," he said. "I had been wary of an attack and sensed the bottom-feeder, however I did not expect—"
Minako's fear struck Sesshomaru hard enough to knock the breath out of him. And then nothing. He could not feel the connection. Without another word to the rat, he turned and left the shop as he moved quickly across the city. Once out in the crowd, he easily caught Mina's scent on the wind. She wasn't far and he didn't smell any blood, so why couldn't he feel her presence?
Something was wrong.
When Mina's hands touched the woman's skin, several things happened at once. Her body froze in place and she could not move, no matter how desperately she tried. She felt as though she were falling, her mind spinning and her vision going black. Images flashed in her mind, and she saw Alice.
She was in an old and dank cabin, looking out the window for someone. Then she was in the demon city, as though she had stayed in place but the whole world had moved around her. She was watching Minako browse, caught her gaze, and then ran to the tent. She downed a drink that she had pulled from a pocket in her skirts, and rapidly aged just before Mina pulled the drapes aside.
So this woman was Alice.
Then why did Mina feel so afraid? Why would Alice deceive her into thinking that she was someone else? Alice was only a dragon, and as far as Minako knew, dragons could not do this—whatever this was. Why couldn't she feel her body?
The images flashed quickly, and Mina felt sick as she was flung back into her own memories of the little time she had spent interacting with Alice. How was this happening? It felt familiar. Yes, this had happened before. But that was a long time ago, back when that thing was inside of her. When Sesshomaru let that hag touch her and she had been thrown back into her own memories of the night with Hitoshi, shown things that she had been unable to remember.
Vadoma. That's who this woman looked like, that's where Mina had heard the strange accent before. She felt sick, watching as Alice stood over Minako's unconscious body, staring at the wounds left from the poisoned claws of the bottom-feeder. Sesshomaru and Vadoma stood behind her. When did they meet Alice, how did they know each other? A sudden though struck Mina as she seemed to be nearing the end of her fall.
This woman had lied. Her name wasn't Alice.
It was Alexia.
