Barrier

He stood outside the shop, staring helplessly at the sign and the name that meant so much to him. He remembered the first time he had given that charming child a sweet, the way delight had filled her eyes and her smile melted his heart, not for the first time.

Now his heart warred between anger and an emotion he couldn't identify. That fickle organ spoke to him, urging him to reconsider his plan to tear her whole world apart. Already he'd put through the paperwork to have the shop closed, to evict her from her apartment and her family from their shrine; he was working on having her brother expelled from University. He wanted so desperately to take everything from her, so that she knew what it was like to be so utterly broken inside.

He wanted it so badly but now, for the first time in centuries, the Daiyoukai was forced to take a good long look, not just at himself but at what he had planned to do. He knew, in the back of his mind, that he wasn't being fair. He didn't have the whole story, had in fact refused to allow her to tell it.

Suddenly, a hand settled on his elbow and he turned unguarded, startled eyes into old warm brown ones. She was an old woman, hunched over with age, as humans were wont to. She smiled kindly at him and motioned to the quietly busy chocolate store. "You needn't worry about being purified young man. Most can pass through without harm." She chuckled, as if in on a secret and nudged him forward.

Raising a brow and allowing her hand to settle where it was, he turned back to face the store and for the first time noticed the subtle barrier that surrounded it. Wrapped around the bottom half of the building like a bubble, the barrier, though barely noticeable, was strong. Surely the girl was not that powerful. "I do not wish to enter. Who erected it?" he demanded.

She smiled brightly, displaying crooked, decaying teeth and a charming dimple almost eroded by wrinkles. "Why, Kagome of course. Such a sweet child. I gave her a few tips on how to go about it and think she had her monk friend help with the actual casting, but it's all her energy. The secret is that it only repels those with ill-intent, even humans!"

o.O.o

Word Count: 403