What's in a Name?

Once again, Kagome saw Naraku's spider threads in the sky connecting somewhere nearby. The heroes stopped at a stairwell leading to a shrine. Before going up the stairs, they asked the villagers if anything happened. They answered that just a few days ago, Lady Hitomiko, the village priestess was attacked and killed by a demon. Just like with Kikyo, her body was being consumed and destroyed by Naraku's threads from the inside. As she laid on her deathbed, Hitomiko decreed that her head be severed from her body and buried in a separate location. None of the villagers could find it in their hearts to carry out her last wish, so she was buried without being beheaded.

Just then, a young woman came by. To the villagers' fright, it was Lady Hitomiko. Inuyasha could tell she was dead based on her scent. Kagome also saw her body surrounded with spider threads. "I gather you must be Kagome," Hitomiko assumed, looking directly at her. "Listen to me, Kagome, you must leave this place immediately. Turn away and never look back," she demanded. "Otherwise, I will have to kill you."

"Is that supposed to scare us?" Inuyasha asked, drawing his sword.

Hitomiko was being pulled back by the threads. "You are a fool. Nothing can separate me from these webs."

It was now clear to Kagome that Hitomiko's body was being controlled by Naraku. Inuyasha decided that the best thing to do would be to recover the dead priestess's remains.

That night, when the heroes returned to the shrine, they saw even more spider threads. Inuyasha was unable to cut them down, but Sango's hiraikotsu was able to. The weapon was unable to get past the gate, however. It was sealed by a barrier. Looking closely, Kagome saw the threads being held together by bells. She shot an arrow at one of the bells, destroying it, unaware that this was part of Hitomiko's plan.

"We are connected," Hitomiko whispered, and Kagome began to be pulled in to the shrine. Her friends followed, but were unable to break through. A barrier created by a priestess can only be destroyed by a priestess. Hitomiko stood before Kagome, holding the arrow she shot. "I don't understand it. What point is there in stealing your feeble power?" And she destroyed the arrow in her hand. "I wonder what Naraku was hoping to accomplish?"

"Lady Hitomiko, I came to your shrine because I want to save you," Kagome cried.

Hitomiko wasn't convinced. She used her spiritual power to wound Kagome's shoulders and trap her in a ring of her own blood. "Kagome, do you think it was by chance that you were given the name 'Kagome'? That name you bear holds a special power; a power hidden within you since the day you were born."

Kagome didn't know what Hitomiko was talking about. For all she assumed, a name was just a name.

"You are no more than a bird in a cage," Hitomiko recited from a song she heard from her childhood. "You shall never leave." Kagome was trapped in the ring, but she was still able to gather her strength and move. Behind Hitomiko, she saw Naraku and reached for her arrow. She shot, but only cut a few threads. Now Hitomiko understood what Naraku was really after. It wasn't Kagome herself, but the power of the bow she obtained at Mt. Azusa. "If I'm not mistaken, that bow was meant to be used by another," Hitomiko mused. "One who would be able to master it."

Kagome was still confused. Was this dead priestess referring to Kikyo?

"You merely aim and release with it, unable to harness its spiritual power," continued Hitomiko. "And yet you believe you can save me? Leave the bow here and be on your way. Do so and your life will be spared. Take it with you and you will die."

Suddenly, more threads came and snared Hitomiko by her neck. Naraku's voice echoed in the room. "Spare her life, will you? Then you leave me no choice." Kagome drew her bow again, but Hitomiko told her to cease. Naraku's voice was heard again, telling Kagome to aim for her chest. Kagome looked and saw a spider in Hitomiko's chest. "Shoot your arrow for her chest. Do so, and Hitomiko will die and you will be saved."

Kagome refused. Hitomiko used her spiritual power to sever the threads holding her and wound Kagome again. "You leave me no choice but to kill you." She approached the ring and smeared her fingertip with Kagome's blood. She placed her finger against her lips and exhaled, turning the ring into one of fire. Kagome shot her arrow once more, aiming for the bells in Hitomiko's hand. The bells came apart and Kagome was free from the trap. Hitomiko wouldn't allow her to escape. She picked up a few bells and tossed them to connect more spider threads to trap Kagome.

Naraku's voice echoed again. "You cannot escape Hitomiko's barrier. The only way out is for you to destroy her. Will you allow her to kill you or will you shoot the spider nesting in her and win your freedom? Before you can choose, I must warn you that if you shoot Hitomiko with your sacred arrow, her soul can never be saved. She will die a demon and so will her soul. She will be cursed to join my spider webs in the fires of Hell for all eternity. Now that I've told you this, if you should choose to shoot Hitomiko, your heart will be corrupted for all eternity as well."

With Kagome's heart corrupted, she would be consumed by the threads as well and slowly be killed by Naraku. But if she allowed Hitomiko to kill her, Naraku would still gain her spiritual powers. So in either case, Naraku would win and get what he wanted. But Kagome would not give in to him. The bells released drops of Kagome's blood. When they touched the floor, they turned into fire. Kagome started running, hoping to escape. She continued to run until the floor came apart at her feet and she fell and got caught in Naraku's spider threads.

Looking down, she saw demons and corpses. Hitomiko told her she was on the brink of the abyss. "Answer me, why were you given the name 'Kagome'? If you cannot understand why, you will be trapped here for all eternity." Kagome tried to free herself, but more threads surrounded her and caught fire. "Can you feel the pain? Are you burning up?" Hitomiko asked. "Though you are surrounded in fire, these flames will never kill you. You will still suffer from them for all eternity."

Kagome thought back as hard as she could. She remembered asking her mother the same question long ago, why she was given the name 'Kagome'. Mrs. Higurashi answered that when Kagome was born, she saw a starlight shape on her chest and as it turned out, the shape is called 'Kagome'. Then Kagome wondered if her mother saw the light of the Sacred Jewel when her daughter was born. This confirmed that the Sacred Jewel had lived inside of Kagome ever since the day she was born.

There was more to it than that. There was also a game called 'Kagome'. One child had to sit in the center and cover his or her eyes while the children surrounding him or her would move and sing. And when the song was over, the one in the center had to guess who was behind them. Kagome was always picked to be the one in the center and every time she guessed who was behind her, she always guessed correctly.

Kagome wondered, was this the power of her name that Hitomiko was talking about? Seeing who was behind her? If so, then if she can combine her spiritual power with the power of her bow, then there just might be a way to save herself and Hitomiko. Kagome looked at the spider again and saw a starlight shape like the one her mother saw. She drew the bow again and took an arrow from her quiver. She shot the arrow, but it disappeared before it could come into contact with the spider. Suddenly, the arrow reappeared behind Hitomiko and continued its path to its true target: Naraku. He was the one Kagome saw behind her and Hitomiko. After Naraku was shot, Hitomiko's spiritual power began giving off immense energy.

Kagome opened her eyes and found herself back on the shrine grounds. She also saw Lady Hitomiko standing in front of her, smiling gently. "You are a true mystery," the priestess told her. "You combined your own spiritual power along with the power of the bow to shatter the evil presence that bound me. You saved me, Kagome. However, it was only in the moment that you released the arrow that your power became visible. Something is sealing your true power. What it is, I do not know." Suddenly, Hitomiko fell. Kagome managed to catch her in her arms.

The priestess smiled again. "Kagome, you truly are such a mysterious person; the source of your power and even your name." Then she closed her eyes one last time, still smiling. Finally, Kagome's friends arrived only to see that she was safe and the priestess had now passed on.

The villagers were happy and relieved that Lady Hitomiko could finally rest in peace. Now they could erect a memorial to her and give her a proper funeral.

As they left the village, Kagome thought about what Hitomiko said and wondered who or what was sealing her powers.