more to come
The rest of the day took her back and forth across the lands and she was feeling drained from all the traveling. It was getting dark now, Kagome found herself sitting on the grass of a small hill in a quiet clearing. Leaning back, she laid down on the soft grass and gazed at the twinkling stars above, if only she could hear the songs of crickets, or the flutter of a bird, or even the buzzing of fireflies. It would make this moment so much more enjoyable; she was tired of the constant silence. Everything around her was always so... dead.
Still, she did not complain, she did a lot of that in the first decade she became Death and quickly realized it only made the situation sadder. So, she just forced herself to get used to it and clung to the small amount of hope she had in her that one day she'll be able to go home. Until then, she'll try to get as many quiet moments like this as possible, she thought, cupping her hands behind her head, staring at the beautiful night sky.
The hairs on the back of her neck suddenly raised, she blinked, sitting up. The clearing was dark, but the full moon cast a blue glow all around her like sunlight. Her pale eyes glanced around, surveying the tree line, someone was watching her. She felt eyes on her, dark and menacing but could not pinpoint the location. Slowly she stood, grabbing her staff, it was as if the eyes were moving around her. But she knew that was impossible, the clearing was far too big to circle her that quickly. She stepped forward to investigate the odd feeling, but just then her ear began to buzz with the next disturbance. She frowned, but turned away, closing her eyes for a moment she let her body drift through the air, not seeing the pair of red eyes gleaming in the dark forest.
She wasn't sure how long she was drifting for but when she shifted into her shadow form, she found herself on the edge of a demon village. She frowned, a cold pit settling in her stomach, she was back in the West. Trekking forward she realized, a festival was taking place, the village was full of people and torches. There was music as men played their drums and other instruments, dancing, colorful kites, food, laughter, kids, booths to play games, contests, puppet shows, the works.
The Matsuri festival, Kagome thought gliding in and out of shadows, she's been to a few before. They were always so lively and fun. She glanced around, looking for the disturbance but she wasn't getting the feeling it was here. She moved from booth to booth, invisible to all, eyes continuously scanning the area. It was probably another Cipher, she thought with a frown, she really hated those damn bugs. Her eyes feel on a young maiden, watching the adorable badger demoness giggle when a little girl grabbed her hand. She glanced at the friends she came to the festival with a smile as she let herself be pulled into the fun with the other dancing females. She shook her head with a smile, trying to pull away, but the dancers just grabbed her arms. Her head went back in a joyful giggle as she gave in.
Kagome caught herself smiling, it looked like so much fun, she blinked realizing someone else was watching the young demoness. A smirk crossed her face, seeing Hampton standing with a group of soldiers and Akito, all drinking rum and enjoying the atmosphere. She looked over her friends for a moment, Hampton looked the same, just a gorgeous as he usually was. Akito, however, did a bit of growing over the years. The handsome man stood dressed in a white kimono with a blue crescent moon on his back and black sashinuki hakama, a red obi tied around his slender waist. His build was definitely bigger, shoulders broader, arms thicker with muscle. His icy blue tresses were longer, mid back now, the hair around his chiseled face still cut in silky white layers but were also longer, his snowy white bangs pulled back from his eyes and into a ponytail at the back of his head. Pale blue jagged lines were on his cheeks, as well as his wrist, where white claws held tightly to the spear in his hand as he smiled and spoke to his general.
Kagome looked him over slowly, liking what she saw, she watched as he suddenly shivered and glanced around as if he can feel the eyes ogling him. She snickered with a playful roll of her eyes as she moved away from the group of people, she still had a disturbance to find. She glided deeper into the village, leaving the festival behind, her mood changing with each step she took. She was getting rather close to the palace.
It made her move just a bit faster, passing the crow brothers by the gates and crossing the gardens. She entered her once home and her ear continued to buzz; it was definitely here. Immediately she went to the family wing, fearing that it was one of her children in danger. Phasing through the door, she looked around, the three angels slept silently in their beds. She watched as Saya's wolf blinked open her eyes and glanced over to her shadow form. She didn't growl but she did move her tail protectively over her ward. Kagome smiled, it wasn't here, thank the gods, she turned and slide out of the room. She still had to find the disturbance, she moved further down the hall, it was somewhere around here, she could feel it.
She poked her head through a door and saw an old friend of hers laying on the bed. She smiled, phasing fully into the room, her red hair splayed across the soft mattress she laid on, her bangs longer on the sides, curling into her face. Her softly turned up nose scattered with freckles and soft plump lips peachy, slightly open. Jenika was so cute, Kagome thought, she remembered finally setting the young fox up with her brother-in-law. She smiled at the round belly of her friend, another month or two and she'll be ready to pop. Jenika groaned and rolled to her other side, Kagome blinked, then frowned, she found the disturbance.
It was getting late now, Sesshomaru took the time to eat supper with his kids, listening to them talk about their day and tucked them all into their beds. He watched them all fall asleep as he told them another adventurous story about their mother, their wolves curled up beside them. Kagome had always had plenty of stories to tell about her travels and the kids loved hearing about the ones he remembered.
When they were finally out for the night, Sesshomaru quietly touched each of their heads, coating them one by one in his aura. Something he done since they were babies to calm their nerves. With demons it was usually something done by the mother to protect the children from danger and forge a bond. He didn't lie to his kids about how he and their mother met, he told them she was once the Asa Shin Fujo. He told them that she was hired to kill him and that she came close to putting a blade through his heart until she was stopped. He told them that he captured her, he left out Hyde's scheme to take the west from him, but he did explain the more they spent time together, the more they started to like each other. And as their feeling grew, they didn't want to kill each other anymore, instead they started to deeply care for one another. He told them they mated first before the kids came along even though she was already a month or two pregnant at the wedding. The kids liked the fact that their mother was so different, so exciting and fun, they loved asking him questions about her.
He quietly walked out of their room and closed the door, and if he was honest to himself, talking about her did make him feel a bit better at times. Remembering all the times she would do something silly just to make him laugh. It always brought a good feeling to his chest when he thought of her. He was walking down the hall when a shadow slithered by him, he froze, hand touching the hilt of his sword, Bakusaiga. Amber eyes glanced around the family wing, mostly everyone was at the festival, so he knew no one was supposed to be here. A chill sliced through the air, the sword of life tingled on his hip, trying to warn him of danger, he grabbed the handle and pulled it free.
Quietly he crept down the hall, his sword glowing a soft blue as he closed in on the threat. Something definitely was upsetting his Tensiega. His lips turned down in a frown as he stopped outside of Inuyasha's and his mate's room, his sword was pulsing in his hand, so he knew this was where the problem was. His thoughts immediately went to Kagome, the sword always went erratic when death was around. Slowly he opened the door, he knew Inuyasha was out on patrol and knew his mate should be asleep. He paused, so how was it possible a shadow stood over the young fox as she slept, he stepped forward, raising his weapon, " Move and I will behead you."
Kagome blinked; she was so caught up in her thoughts she didn't even realize when Sesshomaru got the drop on her. Slowly she turned, shifting into her regular form as she did, Sesshomaru froze at the sight before him. She was just as beautiful as he remembered. She was dressed in her royal blue kimono, in her hand was her staff that seemed to have grown in size and power.
He blinked slowly, wondering for a moment if he was dreaming, " Kagome?"
Her eyes did not fall on him however, they were focused on what was in his hand, Kagome could feel the Tensiega's power pushing against her own. Burning her with its aura, telling her to leave, " There is a disturbance to the balance inside this palace that I must correct."
Sesshomaru raised a brow, " What are you talking about?" he asked but she didn't look up. He glanced down to his hand realizing she was actually speaking to his sword, not him.
Tenseiga pulsed as if responding, Kagome bit back a hiss as the blue glow of the powerful weapon touched her aura again in warning. She then nodded, " No one is to die in your presence tonight."
As if agreeing to the bargain, the sword pulsed once more before pulling its aura back in and stopping the painful, burning glow. Sesshomaru blinked as his sword stopped pulsing and re sheathed it, looking again to the woman before him, " What is going on?"
Blue eyes looked up and a smile crossed her face, " Sesshomaru." she sighed happily, " I've waited so long to be this close to you."
He frowned, confused, " What do you mean?"
She just shrugged, " I am Death my love, I cannot just expose myself to the living whenever I want to." her eyes again glanced to his waist, " There are rules."
He followed her eyes to his weapon, " Tenseiga has been keeping you away."
She nodded, " Yes. The sword of life is a keeper of fate bestowed to you by the gods, it is well versed in the rules and urges me to follow them."
He stepped closer, " But not tonight."
She nodded again, turning, " As I told Tenseiga, there is a disturbance in the palace that I must correct before I go."
He raised a brow, carefully moving to her side, " What disturbance?"
She took a step away from him, making sure he was at arm's length, her touch still meant death, even in this form. She glanced to the sleeping fox and the Cipher that was on her stomach, draining the raw power of the unborn baby inside her. She reached forward, grabbing it by its neck and pulled it off her, she squeezed the windpipe until it crushed and erupted the entire body into ash.
" A parasite from hell was draining Inuyasha's child of its soul."
Sesshomaru couldn't see the Cipher, so he just assumed the hand motion she just did killed it, " Will she be alright?"
Kagome reached forward and let her hand hover over Jenika's big belly, she could feel the aura of the child inside her slowly fading. " It has taken too much; the child will not survive."
" There must be something you can do."
Blue eyes glanced over seeing Sesshomaru watching her, his amber eyes studying every inch of her. She frowned, pausing for a moment, waiting to see if she was allowed to interfere. The buzzing in her ear did not stop, so she assumed she must do something. She turned, letting her staff go, it stood by itself with the glow of its power. A hand reached inside her sleeve and pulled out a small black pouch, Sesshomaru watched her, " What are you doing?"
She glanced over to him, " Half of the child's soul has been drained, it needs to be replaced if it is to survive."
He raised a brow, " And you can do that?"
She smirked, showing the fangs she was now sporting, " I'm the Grim Reaper baby."
Her free hand reached forward and hovered over Jenika's forehead and pulled a white ball of light from her body. The light swirled in her hand like an orb, she bounced the black pouch in her hand, signaling the magic bag to open. Sesshomaru watched, intrigued, as Kagome grabbed the white orb with her claws and slowly rotated it above the black pouch. A blue light began attaching itself to the white orb like cotton candy, making it grow in size.
Kagome stopped and bounced the bag again, making it close before dropping it in her sleeve once more. She then circled her hands around the blue and white orb making the colors blend better together, merging the souls into one. Leaning over, she let the orb hover over Jenika's stomach before pushing it down with a soft tap. It floated gently into her skin causing her to shiver but not wake, Sesshomaru raised a brow at what he just witnessed, " Is this what Thanatos did to you as a child?"
Kago me stood straight and nodded, " Yes."
He glanced over to her, " Was that part of your soul?"
She shook her head, " No, it was the soul of an unborn serial killer. I scrubbed as much darkness as I could out, but the child will have to be supervised." She glanced over to her mate, " He will need a mentor to guide him through his urges and troubling thoughts. Someone to help him understand how to use his skills for good and not evil and not fall for his base instincts. Someone like you."
He raised a brow, " Like me?"
She smiled, then winked her eye, " You got this baby."
Sesshomaru smirked, he suddenly glanced down, feeling his sword pulse on his hip. Kagome rolled her pale eyes with a frown, " I'm leaving damn." turning and picking up her staff.
Sesshomaru watched her head towards the balcony doors, " Kagome."
She paused and turned towards him, a smile on her face, " If I could, I would be crying right now but my heart does not beat so I cannot feel." She stepped closer, " I love you Sesshomaru and I haven't stopped fighting for us."
He stared at the face he sees every night in his dreams, his voice a whisper on the stilled air, " I will wait for you to come back to me. No matter how long it takes."
Her smile widened, a hand reached out, wanting to touch him, Tensiega pulsed fiercely on Sesshomaru's hip. Kagome jerked back with a hiss, glaring at the weapon for a moment, " I have to go, do not tell Inyuasha or anyone about the baby." she mumbled, shifting into her shadow and disappeared into the night.
Sesshomaru stood there for a moment longer before touching the hilt of his sword, " She wasn't going to hurt me."
The sword pulsed in response and Sesshomaru was tempted to roll his eyes, he knew the sword had a conscious but had no idea it can be so demanding. With a frown he turned and headed for the door, he still had a lot of paperwork to catch up on.
The sky was turning light as the sun began to raise when Kagome re-entered her cave garden. Hades and Thanatos sat in their respected lounge chairs, relaxing in the heat. They watched as she sat silently at the edge of the calming pool, her kimono settling around her like a puddle of ink, her blue eyes sadly watching the swirling souls of the damned beneath the pristine surface.
Hades frowned, " She's doing it again." he whispered.
Thanatos just shrugged, " She gets like that every time she goes to the West."
Hades glanced over to his creation, " I thought Death couldn't feel emotions."
Thanatos made a face and shook his head, " Her heart doesn't beat so she shouldn't but I'm guessing it's her memories of her former life." He then sighed, taking a sip of the blood wine in his cup, " She's going to ask to go home again."
Hades refilled his empty cup, " The answer will be the same, she knows the rules."
Thanatos glanced over to his father, " That's not going to stop her from asking." he frowned, " We should have sealed her memories."
" That is not part of the plan." Hades mumbled, taking a sip of his drink, " This needs to play out as it was meant to. You know what you must do now."
Thanatos frowned, " Doesn't mean I have to like it."
Hades rolled his eyes, " Just do it."
Thanatos sighed and sat up, he picked up his bottle of wine and headed over to his daughter. Silently he sat beside her, the sheer weight of the waves of depression, sadness, and despair radiating around the figure almost made him flinch. It disheartened him because the sheer fact she can feel so much pain when she was supposed to be incapable of any emotions was remarkable. " Kagome." He whispered.
She sniffled, " I'm not crying."
Thanatos smirked, " You can't cry, no heartbeat remember."
Pale eyes, similar to his own, glanced over for a moment before leaning into the bigger man, resting her head on his shoulder so that her voice was whisper, " I wanna go home."
Thanatos face softened, he glanced down, only able to see the dark blue locks of the smaller female laying against him. " Over the decades you spent here, can you not call this your home?"
Kagome sighed, snuggled closer to the warm body, inhaling his scent. Her eyes closed, he smelled of fire, everyone in hell did, their scent carried the essence of something burning. Thanatos scent was of heat and citrus. It was calming to her, serene even, like lemon peels boiling over a fire, the calming scent soothing her into a relaxing lullaby. " Wherever you are, I am home father. But I miss them, Sesshomaru, my kids, the life I had before I was taken."
" Do you regret signing that contract all those years ago?"
Kagome sat up with a sigh, " No. I am your child, it was my destiny to be here with you and no matter the circumstances of how I came to be..." Her hand reached over and laced with the larger one in his lap, " I love you."
He smiled, " My διάδοχος, you make me so proud to call you, my daughter."
Kagome nodded, " I should get back to work."
They stood, hand in hand, Kagome bowed to her father and kiss the knuckle of his strong fist before letting go and turning away. Thanatos watched her head for the cave entrance when someone cleared their throat behind him. He turned seeing Hades cross his arms and tilt his head in Kagome's direction.
He frowned, but knew what he had to do, turning, he raised a hand, " Kagome, wait."
She paused, picking up her staff, " Yes."
He walked over to her, a sour taste in his mouth for what he was about to do, " I just..." He paused, trying hard not to run a hand through his bangs, knowing Kagome will pick up on his worry. With a sigh, he reached forward, touching his child's shoulders and pulling her close.
Kagome blinked, surprised at the sudden affection, " Is something wrong father?"
He shook his head, holding her tight, " No, I just want to tell you that I love you." He mumbled into her hair, " And that I would do anything for you."
Kagome giggled, pulling back, " I love you too."
Thanatos just smiled, a hand rubbing the back of his neck, " I know that."
Again, she giggled, rolling her eyes at her silly parent, a buzzing itching her ear, " I have to go, I'll see you later." she said, summoning her staff to her hand as she turned, heading out the cave entrance.
Thanatos sighed, turning to his creator, a lock of Kagome's hair in his hand, " I do not like this."
Hades just shrugged, opening a bag to place the strand inside, " It is the way of the Gods. Come, we have work to do." turning and walking away.
Thanatos followed him with a frown, an icy feeling in his gut, " This is going to hurt her."
Hades frowned, " I know but it must be done." walking over to another opening in the back of the cave, leading to an elaborate hallway that lit on its own with torches. Thanatos followed in silence, the temperature drastically dropping as they entered the other realms of Hell. They needed to revisit an old friend of theirs.
more to come