Can you survive Camp Sunshine? Especially when the people there aren't
exactly who they seem...?
DISCLAIMER- InuYasha. Kagome. Miroku. Sango. Everyone else. Gotta luv em. They're not mine. ^-^ There, simple.
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CHAPTER 1
*~*Did you know the rhyme of time?*~*
*~*Upon crisp mornings so divine?*~*
*~*Where black raven crowed its song*~*
*~*Grew the evening shadows long*~*
*~*And on the steps a figure plays*~*
*~*Its hair and clothes seen better days*~*
*~*'To Death,' It says, 'Behind these doors'*~*
*~*Where memory fades and silence pours*~*
Kagome blinked as she reread the fading inscription that was nailed to the side of the tall, equally old building. What a creepy little poem!
Kagome glanced down at the pamphlet in her hand again, adjusting her backpack on her shoulders as she compared the picture in the pamphlet to the real house. Yes, this definitely was the place... unfortunately.
She was standing in front of a tattered, 4-story high building that seemed to be about a hundred years old. Besides the little inscription she had just read, the place was completely faded brick, with wide stone steps leading to a double-door entrance. Looking up, Kagome could point out many boarded up windows and two balconies that had more than half of the railing missing. According to the pamphlet her mom had given her, this place had been a large orphanage about seventy years ago. They had closed down for unknown reasons (in other words, the pamphlet didn't say) and had been sold to a different company who opened it up as a summer camp.
Supposedly, there was plenty of things to do in the house, and large fields in the back in which they could 'play'. Or at least, that's the word her mother had used to cover up her true intentions. Kagome had read the pamphlet enough times to know what they were really supposed to do at this camp. It was a camp specifically for teens, and they were supposed to work and learn how to cook, clean, and do outside yard work on their own. Parents thought it was a great chance for their kids to learn what it would be like to become independent adults. The kids thought it sucked. Really sucked.
'Damn that Sota!' Kagome growled in her head, crumpling the pamphlet in one fist as she stared blankly up at the large building, 'If only he had never told Mom about this stupid camp!'
'Then again,' She reminded herself bitterly, 'Sota WANTED me gone this summer so I wouldn't embarrass him in front of his new little girlfriend, Jessica. He's going to be SO dead when I get back!'
Just then Kagome heard a bunch of noise behind her, and turned around to see a bus pull up in front of the used-to-be orphanage. 'These must be the other poor, tortured souls.' Kagome thought with a sigh, waiting to see who would be joining her in this strange camp. Her mother had driven her over, so she had arrived before everyone else.
Kagome watched as the bus began to unload. Most of these people seemed to be a rather gloomy bunch of teens, all moping around or sneering at one another. Only a couple seemed friendly looking, and still none of them seemed happy to be there.
'I don't blame them one bit,' Kagome thought, staring warily at the faded inscription one more time before heading into the group of gathered teens. The camp didn't seem to be fun in the least, and the building was already giving her the creeps.
"OK, get in line, all of you!" A strong voice said from the top of the steps, catching the attention of everyone. Slowly and reluctantly, Kagome and the others got in line under the watchful stare of this older individual. Her voice was harsh and demanding, and her eyes cold. Surprisingly, when Kagome stared at this woman long enough, she almost seemed to be looking at an older version of herself. Almost.
"Watch it," A voice said gruffly as Kagome accidentally stumbled and knocked into the figure in front of her. She looked up into the face of a boy of around her own age, with long black hair and the strangest violet eyes.
"Sorry," She said with an apologetic smile, trying to regain her composure. "I'm a klutz sometimes."
"Yeah, you are," The boy replied gruffly, glaring, "And you'd better keep your klutzy self away from me next time, or else."
"Oh yeah?" Kagome asked, her smile fading as her anger began to surface, "That's nice to know, Mr. Hot-shot. I said I was sorry! You don't gotta be a jerk about it!"
"Quiet in line!" The woman on the steps shouted before the boy in front of Kagome could answer. He turned back around with a 'feh', leaving Kagome to her own angry thoughts. The jerk! She couldn't understand how people could be so mean sometimes!
Her angry thoughts were cut off a couple seconds later as the woman on the steps finished her head count and began to speak. Her voice was thin and hurried, as if she had practiced this speech a thousand times and just wanted to get it over with.
"Hello, and welcome to Camp Sunshine. I am the assistant head counselor, Kikyo. You will call me Ms. Kikyo, and nothing else. I am your superior and you will listen to me no matter what."
"What kind of a name is Camp Sunshine?" A girl muttered from a couple feet away, blowing a bubble with a large wad of bubblegum and wrinkling her nose.
"Great start to a great summer," The boy a bit down the line from Kagome groaned. She couldn't help but secretly agree. This stunk.
"The head counselor at Camp Sunshine, and my superior, is Mr. Naruku. That's what you shall call him, nothing else."
"Yes sir!" A young man spoke up from somewhere down the line, saluting. There were a couple giggles, but they were all drowned out when 'Ms. Kikyo' threw them her evilest glare. She continued with her speech.
"You will be seeing Naruku eventually, but he couldn't make it out today. Other counselors are Kaede, our cook and nurse, and Myoga and Jaken, your two instructors."
As Kikyo said this, she motioned to three people standing a bit behind her, near the double-doors. Kaede seemed like a nice elderly lady, and both of the instructors were short and sqaut. One of them in particular seemed rather annoying and bug-eyed. His nametag told her he was the one named Jaken. She would have to try and avoid him during the next four weeks. (Yes, four whole weeks at Camp Hellhole. She couldn't wait.)
"Activities will start tomorrow, right after breakfast. Now, follow me in a straight line and I will lead you to your rooms. There will be two or three people per room, no coed. All rooms are on the second floor, and NO ONE is allowed on the third or fourth floors. NO exceptions. You have the rest of the day to get settled in, and the dinner bell will ring at six. Curfew is at 8pm, and you will be woken up at 6am every morning. We all hope you will enjoy your stay here at Camp Sunshine."
Kagome gulped, staring up at Kikyo with a look of pure panic. Maybe she should ask for those rules to be written down so she could remember them... and waking up at 6 every morning?! Better yet, maybe she could still run for it. She wouldn't mind walking home, just to get away from this crazy place. And she wasn't the only one looking towards the entrance. Almost every other teen was, but Kikyo pretended not to notice.
"Right, Follow me!"
Kagome kept her eyes longingly on the exit as it slowly got farther and farther away. She could literally feel a huge weight in her stomach as she entered the huge double doors of the mansion, stepping from a world of sunshine and grass into a world of peeling wallpaper and stained floors. Kagome wrinkled her nose as she breathed in the air, coughing slightly. The smell was an old smell, like the kind of smell you get when you walk into your grandparents house. Except, this smell wasn't inviting OR warm... instead, it just gave Kagome a creepy feeling. They walked into a large entrance room, and then straight on, reaching the front stairway and going up. The stairway reminded Kagome of palace stairways, wide and elegant, except with stone steps and railings, not marble. In many places the stone was cracked, and thanks to the dimness factor, Kagome could barely see anything over the railing as they headed up in one silent line.
The dimness was caused by the windows being clouded by thick sheets of dust. It made them have an orangish glow, and the only other light was a few old-fashioned lamps placed strategically in places where no one needed them to be. Kagome would have rather seen where she was placing her feet than a dusty old couch in a side room near the stairs.
"You'd think they would've cleaned this place up for us before we got here." A girl behind Kagome groaned, her voice pleasant-sounding none-the- less. Kagome smiled, speaking loud enough for the girl to hear her.
"I know what you mean. Personally, I think this is all just a trap to get us to clean this place up for them for free."
"Yeah," The girl agreed, laughing quietly, "We're going to have fun being slaves for the next four weeks."
"Yup," Kagome agreed, narrowing her eyes, "And 'Ms. Kikyo' has just been promoted to slave-driver."
There were a couple nervous chuckles, and then the boy behind the girl spoke up. It was the same boy who had called Ms. Kikyo a 'sir'. "That's MISS slave-driver to you!"
"And that's what her name is, nothing else." Kagome agreed sternly, "She is our superior, and we must obey her no matter what."
That brought on a couple more laughs, and Kagome could even swear the boy in front of her chuckled a bit. Glaring at his back, she decided she must have been hearing things. This jerk probably wasn't capable of laughter.
"Quiet in line!" Ms. Kikyo's shrill voice rang out over the heads. The boy behind Kagome coughed, obviously having inhaled some dust.
"Yes Ms. Slav-... um... (cough) Kikyo!"
The nervous line of teens couldn't stand it anymore, and burst into small fits of laughter. Maybe it was because of the weird shadows on the walls, or the fact that they could barely see in front of them... but the littlest thing set them off, and Kagome felt better already. With these kind of people around, she might actually make it back home alive.
"Yura and Rin!" Kikyo finally called, stopping in front of the first door in a well-lit hallway. The bubblegum girl from earlier stepped forward, brushing her short black hair, and was followed by a sweet-looking girl with a very pretty smile. The girl could be described as nothing other than cute, though she was probably about the age of 16. (Yes, Rin IS in this story... and she IS older. Me wanted to put her in, okies? ^-^)
Kikyo marched down the hallway again, before the pair had even entered their rooms. Looking down at a clipboard in front of her, she called out as she reached the next door, "Sesshomaru, Hiten and Manten!"
As she called, two tall boys and a shorter boy stepped out of line. One was very good-looking, with long silvery hair and a blank expression on his face that gave him the look that he was either bored or had no personality whatsoever. The other two, standing closer together, were very weird. They stood together as if they were brothers, but one was bald and fat while the other was slim and good-looking, with long black hair braided behind him. Nevertheless, all three boys gave her a very creepy feeling, as all of them had evil eyes and less than pleasant smiles. Suddenly, the boy in front of her seemed almost tame.
Kikyo continued on, rounding a corner and stopping at the next door. "InuYasha, Hojo and Mirotu."
The only one who stepped out of line at first was a quiet looking boy with ok-looks but definitely a soft-seeming personality. Kagome didn't take much notice of him.
The next to step out of line was the laughing boy who had been talking to Kagome. His hair was tied back in a small tail, and his mischievous eyes seemed very playful. He gave Kikyo a cute pout as he walked passed, making sure to look her over carefully.
"It's MiroKU, Ms. Kikyo, ma'am"
Saluting, he headed in before Ms. Kikyo could do him any bodily harm. With a sigh, the boy in front of Kagome finally shuffled out of line, his angry violet eyes locking Kagome's for a split second before he headed towards the door.
"Come on InuYasha, we haven't got all day!" Kikyo snapped, turning around and marching down the hall again. Kagome blanked, a question crossing her mind. How did Ms. Kikyo know this boy's name already? They hadn't been here long enough for Kikyo to know any of them! Maybe InuYasha's parents and Kikyo knew each other or something... Kagome decided not to let the question bother her. She had different things she'd rather think about.
Like who she was going to be sharing a room with.
Kagome glanced around at the remaining seven teens, shuddering. All of them, except the girl who was in line behind her, seemed REALLY unfriendly. The girl behind Kagome was rather pretty, with strong dark eyes and long black hair up in a ponytail. She just seemed to give off one of those 'friendly' vibes.
Kagome and the girl locked gazes as they walked to the door, giving each other hopeful looks.
Finally Ms. Kikyo stopped, turning back around to scan the crowd. Her narrowed eyes rested on the two girls, and Kagome shuddered.
"Kagome and Sango!"
Both girls stepped forward at the same time, and almost laughed with joy. But Kagome gave Kikyo's back a sidelong look as they entered the room, almost frowning. Kikyo had looked straight at them when she had said their names, but how could she possibly know them by face? This place kept getting creepier! And she didn't like Ms. Kikyo AT ALL.
"THANK GOD!" Sango practically shouted as they shut the door behind them, dropping a small suitcase on the bed in front of her and falling down on top of it with a 'plop'. "I thought I would have to share a room with one of those stiff-neck crackpots!"
"I know!" Kagome laughed, dumping her bookbag down on the other bed. "So you're Sango, right?"
"Yup, and your Kagome, right?" Sango asked, smiling. After getting a nod, she continued. "Nice to meet you! You seem to be one of the few kindred souls in this whole place!"
"Same to you!" Kagome laughed, falling down on her own bed, "This whole place stinks."
"Yeah," Sango agreed, looking around the room. It was small, with two fresh clean beds and washed windows that let plenty of sunlight through. There was a sliding glass door leading out to a small safe-looking balcony, and even the wood floors were swept. "At least they cleaned up the bedrooms for us. Doesn't that Kikyo woman give you the creeps?!"
"This whole HOUSE is what gives ME the creeps," Kagome shuddered, "Did you read that small poem in front of the building?"
"Small poem in front of the building?" Sango questioned, narrowing her eyebrows in thought. Finally she snapped her figures. "I remember seeing some faded looking inscription near the front, if that's what you're talking about. I didn't get to read it though."
Kagome shivered. "You wouldn't have wanted to! Something about some kid on the steps of the building, talking about death beyond the doors. And this place used to be an orphanage!"
"Weird," Sango agreed, stretching out across the bed, "I heard from my mom that this place used to be an orphanage, but they closed down cause someone was killing the kids and staff!"
"What?!" Kagome asked, her eyes going wide, "Are you SERIOUS?!"
Sango laughed, shrugging her shoulders helplessly. "Probably not. My mom told me to try and scare me. I doubt it's true. That pamphlet didn't say anything though, so that's the story I'M sticking with till someone proves it otherwise!"
The girl winked, making Kagome laugh. Finally they both got up, unpacking their stuff and talking as they waited for the dinner bell to ring. A thought occurred to Kagome as she finished, falling back down onto her bed.
"Um... Sango? How, EXACTLY, do we FIND the dining room?"
"Um, somewhere down stairs?" She replied with a shrug, laughing, "We'll just follow everyone else, and if they get lost, we can blame it on them!"
"Yeah..." Kagome began, trailing off as her eyes caught on a small inscription above their balcony window. "Hey, look! There's the inscription from outside in here too! Come on, I'll show you what it says!"
Both girls walked over to where they could see it better. Kagome narrowed her eyes and shook her head. "No, wait a minute, this isn't the one from outside."
*~*Night has come, it's time to dance*~*
*~*Jump and frolic, preen and prance*~*
*~*The Mistress comes, the child weeps*~*
*~*For in her claws, his dream she keeps*~*
*~*And in the night, the shadows birth*~*
*~*The dreamer falls, to meet the earth*~*
Both girls stammered, eyes wide as they slowly backed away from the inscription on the wall. Kagome and Sango absent-mindedly slid closer to one another, both shivering.
"Suddenly," Sango muttered, "This room doesn't feel so safe anymore."
"That's awful!" Kagome muttered, still backing up, "It's a poem about a child sleepwalking and walking right off the balcony!"
"It didn't say balcony, and it didn't say anything about the kid sleepwalking," Sango corrected Kagome's overactive imagination with a shiver, "But it didn't sound good either. I don't think I'm going to sleep tonight."
"We're probably being silly... it's just a stupid poem..." Kagome began, trying to calm herself as goosebumps raced up her arms. A creepy poem that was over seventy years old! Why would such a thing be in an ORPHANAGE?!
"That was around when kids went to this orphanage?!" Sango asked, speaking Kagome's thoughts, "That's cruel! See how much it's freaking us out? Imagine how much it must have scared THEM!"
"Be grateful ye ones who couldn't read." Kagome muttered, her eyes wide. A voice behind them made both girls jump.
"Not quite. The staff who owned this orphanage read the children in this room that inscription every night, describing to them what it meant and telling them it would come true if they acted bad."
Kagome whirled around to see the angry boy from earlier in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe casually. His bright violet eyes held a look of fascination as he stared up at the dusty inscription. "There's a different poem in every room."
"What are you doing in here?!" Kagome yelled, narrowing her eyes. Sango blinked.
"There's more of these nasty poems? In EVERY room?"
"Yup, we have one about some shadow suffocating someone with a pillow in our room." He nodded, turning on Kagome, "And I was just checking who was in here. If you didn't want to talk to anyone, you shouldn't have left your door open, you idiot."
"Door?" Sango asked wittily.
"Open?" Kagome asked, blinking. Both Sango and Kagome glanced at each other, surprised. Had they left their door open?
"I'm sure I closed it... " Kagome muttered, crossing her arms thoughtfully. Sango shook her head.
"I thought you did to! Maybe it wasn't shut all the way... it could have just blown open on it's own."
"Or maybe this jerk is lying." Kagome stated, glaring at the black-haired boy. He narrowed his eyes, baring his teeth.
"Hey, are you calling me a liar?!"
"I'm pretty sure that's what I said!" Kagome snapped back. "And explain exactly HOW you know so much about this place!"
"I'm not lying, idiot!" InuYasha snapped, his eyes angry, "My father was the one who bought this place before he died!"
He seemed to wince as he said the last part, and quickly turned and left without saying anything more. For a second Kagome stared after him, as if in a trance. HIS father had owned this place?! Before he... died? There was something weird about that. If he was telling the truth.
"Come on Kagome," Sango said, picking up her hard-shelled suitcase and standing it up in front of the sliding glass window. "Hold this steady for me while I pry that stupid inscription off. If what InuYasha said is true, there's NO WAY I'm going to sleep with this hanging here!"
"Agreed!" Kagome nodded, letting her thoughts slide back into the abyss of her mind. She'd have to have a talk with him later.
* * * * * * * * * * *
Kagome and Sango actually DID end up finding the dining room. It was to the left of the double-door entrance, and had a line of lit lamps leading towards it. Though thankful, Kagome was starting to wonder about what these people were trying to pull. Were they just trying to be authentic, or what? REAL lanterns, instead of lamps? No TVs, no radios, no outlets?! As far as Kagome could tell, there were no light switches ANYWHERE. and she dreaded to think about not having hot water for a shower. If they even HAD showers.
Sango stopped as they entered the dining room, forcing Kagome to walk straight into her. Muttering apologies, Kagome peeked over her new friends shoulder... and gasped.
The dining room was like no dining room you would find in any modern day restaurant, school, jailhouse or otherwise. It was clearly and completely... different. Long rows of (thankfully) clean wooden tables spread across the large expanse, and the walls were aligned with hundreds of candles. Benches were pulled up against the sides of the tables, and the floors, glittering in the firelight of the candles, were a beautiful emerald color, clearly newly cleaned. What took both girls breaths away, however, was the LARGENESS of the room. The ceiling was way above their heads, so high that they could barely see the top, even with all those candles. The expanse spread out for hundreds and hundreds of meters, carrying a vast sea of these tables and benches. Tables and benches that used to seat bunches of little boys and girls, who would sit here to eat, day after day, week after week. Year after year.
"Woah..." Sango breathed, clearly at a loss for words as she took in everything. It was like standing on the edge of an ocean, and realizing you were hopelessly insignificant in the universe compared to it.
"Yeah." Kagome agreed in the same kind of voice, gulping. Had THIS many kids REALLY been parentless? That was almost too horrible to believe. Growing up without anyone who truly loved you in this... this place.
"You can almost see the kids sitting here eating..." Sango murmured, "Whispering quietly, scared looks in their eyes as they imagined those horrible inscriptions in their rooms... wondering if that would happen to them..."
"Stop it!" Kagome hissed, shooting Sango an angry look, "That's NOT what they were thinking! Don't say that!"
But Sango was too enchanted to pay any attention. Carefully she swept one hand across the surface of a polished wooden table, shivering. Both of them felt it... an undeniable force of sadness and ill-ease sweeping through this large, deserted room. It was very depressing.
"None of the kids were happy here." A voice suddenly spoke up behind them. Both jumped, knowing automatically who it was. InuYasha.
"What do you mean?" Kagome asked suspiciously, turning around with her arms crossed. The boy wasn't looking at them, but rather thoughtfully around the large expanse.
"They hated it here... or rather, feared being here. It was only a place of death, not hope."
"It feels like it..." Sango muttered, still looking around as more and more kids poured into the dining room, chattering and laughing. They were like a couple of ants in a huge field of grass compared to this dining room.
"Why should we believe whatever your saying? You're probably just lying 'cause you enjoy freaking people out, you jerk!" Kagome stormed, standing up to the slightly taller boy and staring him straight in the eyes. InuYasha glared back, an angry sneer on his face.
"You little wench, why would I be lying?! I thought you two would wanna know, because you seemed to feel the essence of this room more than everyone else. Guess I was wrong."
"I do feel something..." Kagome murmured almost inaudibly, glaring at the raven-haired boy in front of her, "But why would I believe anything that you have to say? Did your dad REALLY own this place? Why would you know so much stuff about what happened here, even if he did? Why would he sell it to these guys? And-"
"Breathe," Sango commanded, cutting in. Kagome nodded, taking a breath and glaring at InuYasha as she waited for him to respond. She had more, but she doubted he would answer so many at once, if any.
InuYasha's eyes had turned hard at the mention of his father, and he closed his eyes for a minute, trying to keep his cool. When he finally did look back at Kagome, his eyes were cold.
"You have no reason to believe ANYTHING I have to say girl... I'm no forcing you to. My dad owned this place for a short while, and we lived in it during that time. My dad made it his mission to find out every detail of what happened to this place and its occupants... and in the end that's what killed him. Anything else isn't your business, so you'd better keep your big mouth to yourself and stay out of it."
Kagome's mouth moved speechlessly as InuYasha stomped off, his violet eyes glaring warningly at both girls as he did. Sango moved up to Kagome's side, staring after him with wide eyes.
"I think he's serious."
"He doesn't look like the kind to pull off too many jokes, does he?" Kagome asked, her eyes narrowing. Be it too many mystery novels, or maybe her always-get-ya-into-trouble curiosity, the wheels in her mind were spinning. It seemed to her that this boy was hiding something about this old orphanage. Not only that, but now that her mind was in full-detective mode, it seemed that something REALLY suspicious was going on with this whole camp itself... not JUST InuYasha. Creepy.
"Good evening ladies!" A chirpy voice spouted behind them, making them both turn. It was Miroku, the boy from before. "How are you enjoying your stay at Camp Sunshine?"
His voice dripped with sarcasm and Sango rolled her eyes.
"Not very 'sunny' if you ask me."
"It's awful," Kagome agreed, her eyes still scanning the huge dining room. She felt Sango grab her arm and pull her over to a semi-empty table. Miroku followed.
"Don't let the place get you down!" He said, sitting down across from them and grinning, "Soon you'll have a lot more to worry about... like the work!"
"Lovely," Kagome groaned, slumping her shoulders.
"Why don't you go bother someone else with your great news?" Sango asked, half-joking. The truth was, the boy across from them unnerved her slightly. And she wasn't sure why.
"No thank you," Miroku said, shaking his head, "You guys are the only kindred looking people I could find, besides that Rin girl. You're stuck with me for the rest of dinner."
"Fair enough," Kagome laughed. She couldn't say anything else, however, because right then there was a loud whistle. Everyone went abruptly silent and looked over to see Kikyo standing in the doorway, her arms crossed, glaring at them indifferently.
"I see you've all made it safely to the dining room." She began. The way she said 'safely' made Kagome shiver. "Dinner will be served in a couple minutes, during which Mr. Naruku will come out and introduce himself. Be polite and civil."
"Or you'll be thrown in the slave cages and tortured with heaps of housework," Miroku added in the girls' ears, making both of them grin. Kikyo gave them weird looks, but continued.
"As soon as dinner ends it will be eight, which is your curfew. Everyone must head straight up to their rooms and stay inside for the rest of the night. No exceptions. I suggest you try and get some sleep."
"Why so early?" Kagome whispered to her two companions dryly, glancing out into the dusty, dark hallways, "Are they afraid that we'll mess the place up?"
"More like they're afraid we'll try and escape!" Sango muttered. A couple eavesdroppers at their table giggled, and very soon Kikyo was giving the three the evil eye.
"Tomorrow you will start by being taught proper adult ETIQUETTE, which I believe MOST of you are LACKING. Then we will move on to housework and yardwork later in the week."
"Oh goody," Miroku whispered, yawning, "I can barely contain my excitement."
Finally Kikyo finished her speech, after rambling a bit about how you were supposed to act while dining. No one paid attention. Finally, when she was done, the food was served.
"What the heck is THIS?!" Miroku yelped as a tray and bowl was passed in front of him. The bowl was full of a warm mush, and the tray had two stale- looking sandwich's on them, filled with an even weirder mush that almost looked like coleslaw. Sango and Kagome turned green as theirs was put in front of them.
"Isn't there a rule about food poisoning?" The bubblegum blowing girl named Yura whined loudly from a nearby table. Miroku looked completely... bummed.
"Whatever happened to our one phone call? I'd like to order a pizza..."
"Oh, I forgot to mention!" Kikyo announced, a little too brightly, "This is the kind of food the kids who went to this orphanage ate. Enjoy!"
"Whatever happened to McDonalds?" Sango whispered, her eyes going wide as she stared at her food. Kagome didn't hear her, staring warily at her own food. She could have SWORN it just MOVED.
"This is not going to be fun..." Miroku moaned as complaints started to rise up from all the tables. "Not fun at all..."
After fifteen minutes of staring and poking at their food, a loud cough echoed through the dining room. Heads turned towards the doorway to see a man standing there, his arms crossed. His eyes were narrowed as he glanced over the shocked teens, as if taking in every detail of their appearance. Finally he nodded, though for no particular reason.
"I'd like to welcome you all to Camp Sunshine. I am the head counselor, Mr. Naruku. That's what you will call me, nothing else."
"He sounds exactly like Miss Kikyo!" Sango whispered to Miroku and Kagome. The two shivered in agreement. There was something REALLY scary about Mr. Naruku... and they could tell that just by looking at him. His eyes held a dangerous edge.
"On behalf of the staff and myself, I hope you all will enjoy your stay here. I'm sure Miss Kikyo has already informed you of everything, but I have one reminder for you all... NOBODY goes on the third or fourth floors. Got that? They are OFF LIMITS. Anyone who does will be given double their usual chores.
"Chores? Double?" Kagome echoed hopelessly. Miroku looked disappointed.
"Dang, I was hoping he would say they would send us home."
"I will see you all tomorrow, bright and early." The man continued, "Enjoy your dinner!"
A lot of grumbling followed the Head Counselors speech, but Kagome still didn't miss the glare that Mr. Naruku sent towards a small, almost empty table. Kagome followed his gaze, and realized he was glaring at... InuYasha. She frowned as the boy glared back, his dangerous violet eyes glinting coldly as his eyes moved from Naruku... to Kagome.
Kagome almost jumped, quickly looking away as a frown lit her face. Something really weird was going on around here. And maybe it wasn't just the strange counselors.
The teens spent the rest of dinnertime picking miserably at their food. Kagome could hear her stomach growling the whole time.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Kagome was now lying in her bed, listening to the silence around her as she blinked hopelessly into the darkness that was her and Sango's room. She was supposed to be sleeping... curfew had been two hours ago. But crazy thoughts kept running through her head.
First day at the weirdest camp she had ever heard of, and dinner had turned out to be a disaster. Luckily, Sango had been ready for this sort of situation, and had packed lots of junkfood in her suitcase. Needless to say, they had pigged-out when they had finally gotten back to their room.
But that didn't change things. Camp Sunshine was a real nightmare. There WAS running water and air conditioning, thankfully, but other than that there was really no electricity in the house. No music, no TV, no lights... nothing. In a place like this, Kagome really would have preferred to have a nightlight of some kind... but there was no outlets. In all this darkness, the girls were beginning to know what it felt like for the poor kids who had been confined to this orphanage... and it felt like fear.
Kagome let out a small gasp as a small thump suddenly sounded out in the hall. Then another, and another... almost like something hitting the walls. Kagome wasn't sure which direction the noise was coming from, but it was loud enough to scare her silly.
Thump.
Thump.
Kagome curled the blanket up tighter around her, her mind wondering to the ludicrous poems as the noise continued.
Thump.
Thump.
"S-Sango?" Kagome squeaked, staring out into the darkness of the room where she knew Sango's bed should be.
"Y-yes?" Sango whispered back, awake and obviously just as confused as Kagome.
"Are you making that noise?"
"No. Are you?"
"No..."
Both girls were talking only to hear the sound of the other's voice. They knew it was coming from outside their room, but after all the poems and the strange things they had heard about this place, noises in the night were NOT comforting.
"What is it then?" Kagome asked in a small voice. There was a pause, in which more dull thumps were heard.
"I don't know." Her friend responded just as softly, as if the thing making the 'thumps' might hear them.
"Wanna go check it out?"
It was the bravest thing Kagome had ever suggested, but she couldn't help herself. She wanted to prove to a part of her mind that the noise wasn't some small child with a noose around his neck swinging from the ceiling... or a serial killer, walking down the hall loudly to let his victims know he was coming and there was no escape...
Obviously, Sango felt the same way.
"Sure, let's go."
Both the girls got out of bed, their breathing shaky as they groped around in the darkness, trying to find the other. Kagome reached for the shadowy form in front of her, grabbing Sango's arm and pulling her gently towards the door. Then Sango reached for the doorknob, turning it slowly as they listened to the thumps increase out in the hall, echoing in the empty corridor.
Silently Sango opened the door, and both the girl's blinked and covered their eyes as the light from the hall hit them. The hall had the only electric lights in the building, and obviously no one had turned them off.
Kagome took in a frightened breath, creeping out into the hallway as another 'thump' echoes through the hall. Sango followed her, shutting their door behind them and giving Kagome a quick nod.
Looking down the hall quickly, both girls almost choked at what they saw. The hallway was empty, still resonating with the strange noise from before... but a long trail of blood led down the hall and around a dark corner, smeared all over the wooden floors as if something had been dragged. Not only that, Kagome and Sango both saw clear bloody handprints all over the peeling walls... those of a small child.
"Oh my god..." Kagome mumbled, grabbing on to Sango's arm. The thumps were getting louder.
"Shit!" A half-whispered voice yelped from behind them. Kagome and Sango spun around quickly with small yelps, coming face to face with a very shocked Miroku. "What the hell happened here?!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *
TO BE CONTINUED! (read below quickly ^-^)
A/N: Right, that's the first chapter. There will be more, but I want to warn anyone who's reading this... all the bad guys in the manga/anime might not be bad in here... likewise, all the good characters might not be good in here. Any character is a victim, and not all of them are who they seem. It'll keep you on your toes ^-~ Ciao!
DISCLAIMER- InuYasha. Kagome. Miroku. Sango. Everyone else. Gotta luv em. They're not mine. ^-^ There, simple.
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CHAPTER 1
*~*Did you know the rhyme of time?*~*
*~*Upon crisp mornings so divine?*~*
*~*Where black raven crowed its song*~*
*~*Grew the evening shadows long*~*
*~*And on the steps a figure plays*~*
*~*Its hair and clothes seen better days*~*
*~*'To Death,' It says, 'Behind these doors'*~*
*~*Where memory fades and silence pours*~*
Kagome blinked as she reread the fading inscription that was nailed to the side of the tall, equally old building. What a creepy little poem!
Kagome glanced down at the pamphlet in her hand again, adjusting her backpack on her shoulders as she compared the picture in the pamphlet to the real house. Yes, this definitely was the place... unfortunately.
She was standing in front of a tattered, 4-story high building that seemed to be about a hundred years old. Besides the little inscription she had just read, the place was completely faded brick, with wide stone steps leading to a double-door entrance. Looking up, Kagome could point out many boarded up windows and two balconies that had more than half of the railing missing. According to the pamphlet her mom had given her, this place had been a large orphanage about seventy years ago. They had closed down for unknown reasons (in other words, the pamphlet didn't say) and had been sold to a different company who opened it up as a summer camp.
Supposedly, there was plenty of things to do in the house, and large fields in the back in which they could 'play'. Or at least, that's the word her mother had used to cover up her true intentions. Kagome had read the pamphlet enough times to know what they were really supposed to do at this camp. It was a camp specifically for teens, and they were supposed to work and learn how to cook, clean, and do outside yard work on their own. Parents thought it was a great chance for their kids to learn what it would be like to become independent adults. The kids thought it sucked. Really sucked.
'Damn that Sota!' Kagome growled in her head, crumpling the pamphlet in one fist as she stared blankly up at the large building, 'If only he had never told Mom about this stupid camp!'
'Then again,' She reminded herself bitterly, 'Sota WANTED me gone this summer so I wouldn't embarrass him in front of his new little girlfriend, Jessica. He's going to be SO dead when I get back!'
Just then Kagome heard a bunch of noise behind her, and turned around to see a bus pull up in front of the used-to-be orphanage. 'These must be the other poor, tortured souls.' Kagome thought with a sigh, waiting to see who would be joining her in this strange camp. Her mother had driven her over, so she had arrived before everyone else.
Kagome watched as the bus began to unload. Most of these people seemed to be a rather gloomy bunch of teens, all moping around or sneering at one another. Only a couple seemed friendly looking, and still none of them seemed happy to be there.
'I don't blame them one bit,' Kagome thought, staring warily at the faded inscription one more time before heading into the group of gathered teens. The camp didn't seem to be fun in the least, and the building was already giving her the creeps.
"OK, get in line, all of you!" A strong voice said from the top of the steps, catching the attention of everyone. Slowly and reluctantly, Kagome and the others got in line under the watchful stare of this older individual. Her voice was harsh and demanding, and her eyes cold. Surprisingly, when Kagome stared at this woman long enough, she almost seemed to be looking at an older version of herself. Almost.
"Watch it," A voice said gruffly as Kagome accidentally stumbled and knocked into the figure in front of her. She looked up into the face of a boy of around her own age, with long black hair and the strangest violet eyes.
"Sorry," She said with an apologetic smile, trying to regain her composure. "I'm a klutz sometimes."
"Yeah, you are," The boy replied gruffly, glaring, "And you'd better keep your klutzy self away from me next time, or else."
"Oh yeah?" Kagome asked, her smile fading as her anger began to surface, "That's nice to know, Mr. Hot-shot. I said I was sorry! You don't gotta be a jerk about it!"
"Quiet in line!" The woman on the steps shouted before the boy in front of Kagome could answer. He turned back around with a 'feh', leaving Kagome to her own angry thoughts. The jerk! She couldn't understand how people could be so mean sometimes!
Her angry thoughts were cut off a couple seconds later as the woman on the steps finished her head count and began to speak. Her voice was thin and hurried, as if she had practiced this speech a thousand times and just wanted to get it over with.
"Hello, and welcome to Camp Sunshine. I am the assistant head counselor, Kikyo. You will call me Ms. Kikyo, and nothing else. I am your superior and you will listen to me no matter what."
"What kind of a name is Camp Sunshine?" A girl muttered from a couple feet away, blowing a bubble with a large wad of bubblegum and wrinkling her nose.
"Great start to a great summer," The boy a bit down the line from Kagome groaned. She couldn't help but secretly agree. This stunk.
"The head counselor at Camp Sunshine, and my superior, is Mr. Naruku. That's what you shall call him, nothing else."
"Yes sir!" A young man spoke up from somewhere down the line, saluting. There were a couple giggles, but they were all drowned out when 'Ms. Kikyo' threw them her evilest glare. She continued with her speech.
"You will be seeing Naruku eventually, but he couldn't make it out today. Other counselors are Kaede, our cook and nurse, and Myoga and Jaken, your two instructors."
As Kikyo said this, she motioned to three people standing a bit behind her, near the double-doors. Kaede seemed like a nice elderly lady, and both of the instructors were short and sqaut. One of them in particular seemed rather annoying and bug-eyed. His nametag told her he was the one named Jaken. She would have to try and avoid him during the next four weeks. (Yes, four whole weeks at Camp Hellhole. She couldn't wait.)
"Activities will start tomorrow, right after breakfast. Now, follow me in a straight line and I will lead you to your rooms. There will be two or three people per room, no coed. All rooms are on the second floor, and NO ONE is allowed on the third or fourth floors. NO exceptions. You have the rest of the day to get settled in, and the dinner bell will ring at six. Curfew is at 8pm, and you will be woken up at 6am every morning. We all hope you will enjoy your stay here at Camp Sunshine."
Kagome gulped, staring up at Kikyo with a look of pure panic. Maybe she should ask for those rules to be written down so she could remember them... and waking up at 6 every morning?! Better yet, maybe she could still run for it. She wouldn't mind walking home, just to get away from this crazy place. And she wasn't the only one looking towards the entrance. Almost every other teen was, but Kikyo pretended not to notice.
"Right, Follow me!"
Kagome kept her eyes longingly on the exit as it slowly got farther and farther away. She could literally feel a huge weight in her stomach as she entered the huge double doors of the mansion, stepping from a world of sunshine and grass into a world of peeling wallpaper and stained floors. Kagome wrinkled her nose as she breathed in the air, coughing slightly. The smell was an old smell, like the kind of smell you get when you walk into your grandparents house. Except, this smell wasn't inviting OR warm... instead, it just gave Kagome a creepy feeling. They walked into a large entrance room, and then straight on, reaching the front stairway and going up. The stairway reminded Kagome of palace stairways, wide and elegant, except with stone steps and railings, not marble. In many places the stone was cracked, and thanks to the dimness factor, Kagome could barely see anything over the railing as they headed up in one silent line.
The dimness was caused by the windows being clouded by thick sheets of dust. It made them have an orangish glow, and the only other light was a few old-fashioned lamps placed strategically in places where no one needed them to be. Kagome would have rather seen where she was placing her feet than a dusty old couch in a side room near the stairs.
"You'd think they would've cleaned this place up for us before we got here." A girl behind Kagome groaned, her voice pleasant-sounding none-the- less. Kagome smiled, speaking loud enough for the girl to hear her.
"I know what you mean. Personally, I think this is all just a trap to get us to clean this place up for them for free."
"Yeah," The girl agreed, laughing quietly, "We're going to have fun being slaves for the next four weeks."
"Yup," Kagome agreed, narrowing her eyes, "And 'Ms. Kikyo' has just been promoted to slave-driver."
There were a couple nervous chuckles, and then the boy behind the girl spoke up. It was the same boy who had called Ms. Kikyo a 'sir'. "That's MISS slave-driver to you!"
"And that's what her name is, nothing else." Kagome agreed sternly, "She is our superior, and we must obey her no matter what."
That brought on a couple more laughs, and Kagome could even swear the boy in front of her chuckled a bit. Glaring at his back, she decided she must have been hearing things. This jerk probably wasn't capable of laughter.
"Quiet in line!" Ms. Kikyo's shrill voice rang out over the heads. The boy behind Kagome coughed, obviously having inhaled some dust.
"Yes Ms. Slav-... um... (cough) Kikyo!"
The nervous line of teens couldn't stand it anymore, and burst into small fits of laughter. Maybe it was because of the weird shadows on the walls, or the fact that they could barely see in front of them... but the littlest thing set them off, and Kagome felt better already. With these kind of people around, she might actually make it back home alive.
"Yura and Rin!" Kikyo finally called, stopping in front of the first door in a well-lit hallway. The bubblegum girl from earlier stepped forward, brushing her short black hair, and was followed by a sweet-looking girl with a very pretty smile. The girl could be described as nothing other than cute, though she was probably about the age of 16. (Yes, Rin IS in this story... and she IS older. Me wanted to put her in, okies? ^-^)
Kikyo marched down the hallway again, before the pair had even entered their rooms. Looking down at a clipboard in front of her, she called out as she reached the next door, "Sesshomaru, Hiten and Manten!"
As she called, two tall boys and a shorter boy stepped out of line. One was very good-looking, with long silvery hair and a blank expression on his face that gave him the look that he was either bored or had no personality whatsoever. The other two, standing closer together, were very weird. They stood together as if they were brothers, but one was bald and fat while the other was slim and good-looking, with long black hair braided behind him. Nevertheless, all three boys gave her a very creepy feeling, as all of them had evil eyes and less than pleasant smiles. Suddenly, the boy in front of her seemed almost tame.
Kikyo continued on, rounding a corner and stopping at the next door. "InuYasha, Hojo and Mirotu."
The only one who stepped out of line at first was a quiet looking boy with ok-looks but definitely a soft-seeming personality. Kagome didn't take much notice of him.
The next to step out of line was the laughing boy who had been talking to Kagome. His hair was tied back in a small tail, and his mischievous eyes seemed very playful. He gave Kikyo a cute pout as he walked passed, making sure to look her over carefully.
"It's MiroKU, Ms. Kikyo, ma'am"
Saluting, he headed in before Ms. Kikyo could do him any bodily harm. With a sigh, the boy in front of Kagome finally shuffled out of line, his angry violet eyes locking Kagome's for a split second before he headed towards the door.
"Come on InuYasha, we haven't got all day!" Kikyo snapped, turning around and marching down the hall again. Kagome blanked, a question crossing her mind. How did Ms. Kikyo know this boy's name already? They hadn't been here long enough for Kikyo to know any of them! Maybe InuYasha's parents and Kikyo knew each other or something... Kagome decided not to let the question bother her. She had different things she'd rather think about.
Like who she was going to be sharing a room with.
Kagome glanced around at the remaining seven teens, shuddering. All of them, except the girl who was in line behind her, seemed REALLY unfriendly. The girl behind Kagome was rather pretty, with strong dark eyes and long black hair up in a ponytail. She just seemed to give off one of those 'friendly' vibes.
Kagome and the girl locked gazes as they walked to the door, giving each other hopeful looks.
Finally Ms. Kikyo stopped, turning back around to scan the crowd. Her narrowed eyes rested on the two girls, and Kagome shuddered.
"Kagome and Sango!"
Both girls stepped forward at the same time, and almost laughed with joy. But Kagome gave Kikyo's back a sidelong look as they entered the room, almost frowning. Kikyo had looked straight at them when she had said their names, but how could she possibly know them by face? This place kept getting creepier! And she didn't like Ms. Kikyo AT ALL.
"THANK GOD!" Sango practically shouted as they shut the door behind them, dropping a small suitcase on the bed in front of her and falling down on top of it with a 'plop'. "I thought I would have to share a room with one of those stiff-neck crackpots!"
"I know!" Kagome laughed, dumping her bookbag down on the other bed. "So you're Sango, right?"
"Yup, and your Kagome, right?" Sango asked, smiling. After getting a nod, she continued. "Nice to meet you! You seem to be one of the few kindred souls in this whole place!"
"Same to you!" Kagome laughed, falling down on her own bed, "This whole place stinks."
"Yeah," Sango agreed, looking around the room. It was small, with two fresh clean beds and washed windows that let plenty of sunlight through. There was a sliding glass door leading out to a small safe-looking balcony, and even the wood floors were swept. "At least they cleaned up the bedrooms for us. Doesn't that Kikyo woman give you the creeps?!"
"This whole HOUSE is what gives ME the creeps," Kagome shuddered, "Did you read that small poem in front of the building?"
"Small poem in front of the building?" Sango questioned, narrowing her eyebrows in thought. Finally she snapped her figures. "I remember seeing some faded looking inscription near the front, if that's what you're talking about. I didn't get to read it though."
Kagome shivered. "You wouldn't have wanted to! Something about some kid on the steps of the building, talking about death beyond the doors. And this place used to be an orphanage!"
"Weird," Sango agreed, stretching out across the bed, "I heard from my mom that this place used to be an orphanage, but they closed down cause someone was killing the kids and staff!"
"What?!" Kagome asked, her eyes going wide, "Are you SERIOUS?!"
Sango laughed, shrugging her shoulders helplessly. "Probably not. My mom told me to try and scare me. I doubt it's true. That pamphlet didn't say anything though, so that's the story I'M sticking with till someone proves it otherwise!"
The girl winked, making Kagome laugh. Finally they both got up, unpacking their stuff and talking as they waited for the dinner bell to ring. A thought occurred to Kagome as she finished, falling back down onto her bed.
"Um... Sango? How, EXACTLY, do we FIND the dining room?"
"Um, somewhere down stairs?" She replied with a shrug, laughing, "We'll just follow everyone else, and if they get lost, we can blame it on them!"
"Yeah..." Kagome began, trailing off as her eyes caught on a small inscription above their balcony window. "Hey, look! There's the inscription from outside in here too! Come on, I'll show you what it says!"
Both girls walked over to where they could see it better. Kagome narrowed her eyes and shook her head. "No, wait a minute, this isn't the one from outside."
*~*Night has come, it's time to dance*~*
*~*Jump and frolic, preen and prance*~*
*~*The Mistress comes, the child weeps*~*
*~*For in her claws, his dream she keeps*~*
*~*And in the night, the shadows birth*~*
*~*The dreamer falls, to meet the earth*~*
Both girls stammered, eyes wide as they slowly backed away from the inscription on the wall. Kagome and Sango absent-mindedly slid closer to one another, both shivering.
"Suddenly," Sango muttered, "This room doesn't feel so safe anymore."
"That's awful!" Kagome muttered, still backing up, "It's a poem about a child sleepwalking and walking right off the balcony!"
"It didn't say balcony, and it didn't say anything about the kid sleepwalking," Sango corrected Kagome's overactive imagination with a shiver, "But it didn't sound good either. I don't think I'm going to sleep tonight."
"We're probably being silly... it's just a stupid poem..." Kagome began, trying to calm herself as goosebumps raced up her arms. A creepy poem that was over seventy years old! Why would such a thing be in an ORPHANAGE?!
"That was around when kids went to this orphanage?!" Sango asked, speaking Kagome's thoughts, "That's cruel! See how much it's freaking us out? Imagine how much it must have scared THEM!"
"Be grateful ye ones who couldn't read." Kagome muttered, her eyes wide. A voice behind them made both girls jump.
"Not quite. The staff who owned this orphanage read the children in this room that inscription every night, describing to them what it meant and telling them it would come true if they acted bad."
Kagome whirled around to see the angry boy from earlier in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe casually. His bright violet eyes held a look of fascination as he stared up at the dusty inscription. "There's a different poem in every room."
"What are you doing in here?!" Kagome yelled, narrowing her eyes. Sango blinked.
"There's more of these nasty poems? In EVERY room?"
"Yup, we have one about some shadow suffocating someone with a pillow in our room." He nodded, turning on Kagome, "And I was just checking who was in here. If you didn't want to talk to anyone, you shouldn't have left your door open, you idiot."
"Door?" Sango asked wittily.
"Open?" Kagome asked, blinking. Both Sango and Kagome glanced at each other, surprised. Had they left their door open?
"I'm sure I closed it... " Kagome muttered, crossing her arms thoughtfully. Sango shook her head.
"I thought you did to! Maybe it wasn't shut all the way... it could have just blown open on it's own."
"Or maybe this jerk is lying." Kagome stated, glaring at the black-haired boy. He narrowed his eyes, baring his teeth.
"Hey, are you calling me a liar?!"
"I'm pretty sure that's what I said!" Kagome snapped back. "And explain exactly HOW you know so much about this place!"
"I'm not lying, idiot!" InuYasha snapped, his eyes angry, "My father was the one who bought this place before he died!"
He seemed to wince as he said the last part, and quickly turned and left without saying anything more. For a second Kagome stared after him, as if in a trance. HIS father had owned this place?! Before he... died? There was something weird about that. If he was telling the truth.
"Come on Kagome," Sango said, picking up her hard-shelled suitcase and standing it up in front of the sliding glass window. "Hold this steady for me while I pry that stupid inscription off. If what InuYasha said is true, there's NO WAY I'm going to sleep with this hanging here!"
"Agreed!" Kagome nodded, letting her thoughts slide back into the abyss of her mind. She'd have to have a talk with him later.
* * * * * * * * * * *
Kagome and Sango actually DID end up finding the dining room. It was to the left of the double-door entrance, and had a line of lit lamps leading towards it. Though thankful, Kagome was starting to wonder about what these people were trying to pull. Were they just trying to be authentic, or what? REAL lanterns, instead of lamps? No TVs, no radios, no outlets?! As far as Kagome could tell, there were no light switches ANYWHERE. and she dreaded to think about not having hot water for a shower. If they even HAD showers.
Sango stopped as they entered the dining room, forcing Kagome to walk straight into her. Muttering apologies, Kagome peeked over her new friends shoulder... and gasped.
The dining room was like no dining room you would find in any modern day restaurant, school, jailhouse or otherwise. It was clearly and completely... different. Long rows of (thankfully) clean wooden tables spread across the large expanse, and the walls were aligned with hundreds of candles. Benches were pulled up against the sides of the tables, and the floors, glittering in the firelight of the candles, were a beautiful emerald color, clearly newly cleaned. What took both girls breaths away, however, was the LARGENESS of the room. The ceiling was way above their heads, so high that they could barely see the top, even with all those candles. The expanse spread out for hundreds and hundreds of meters, carrying a vast sea of these tables and benches. Tables and benches that used to seat bunches of little boys and girls, who would sit here to eat, day after day, week after week. Year after year.
"Woah..." Sango breathed, clearly at a loss for words as she took in everything. It was like standing on the edge of an ocean, and realizing you were hopelessly insignificant in the universe compared to it.
"Yeah." Kagome agreed in the same kind of voice, gulping. Had THIS many kids REALLY been parentless? That was almost too horrible to believe. Growing up without anyone who truly loved you in this... this place.
"You can almost see the kids sitting here eating..." Sango murmured, "Whispering quietly, scared looks in their eyes as they imagined those horrible inscriptions in their rooms... wondering if that would happen to them..."
"Stop it!" Kagome hissed, shooting Sango an angry look, "That's NOT what they were thinking! Don't say that!"
But Sango was too enchanted to pay any attention. Carefully she swept one hand across the surface of a polished wooden table, shivering. Both of them felt it... an undeniable force of sadness and ill-ease sweeping through this large, deserted room. It was very depressing.
"None of the kids were happy here." A voice suddenly spoke up behind them. Both jumped, knowing automatically who it was. InuYasha.
"What do you mean?" Kagome asked suspiciously, turning around with her arms crossed. The boy wasn't looking at them, but rather thoughtfully around the large expanse.
"They hated it here... or rather, feared being here. It was only a place of death, not hope."
"It feels like it..." Sango muttered, still looking around as more and more kids poured into the dining room, chattering and laughing. They were like a couple of ants in a huge field of grass compared to this dining room.
"Why should we believe whatever your saying? You're probably just lying 'cause you enjoy freaking people out, you jerk!" Kagome stormed, standing up to the slightly taller boy and staring him straight in the eyes. InuYasha glared back, an angry sneer on his face.
"You little wench, why would I be lying?! I thought you two would wanna know, because you seemed to feel the essence of this room more than everyone else. Guess I was wrong."
"I do feel something..." Kagome murmured almost inaudibly, glaring at the raven-haired boy in front of her, "But why would I believe anything that you have to say? Did your dad REALLY own this place? Why would you know so much stuff about what happened here, even if he did? Why would he sell it to these guys? And-"
"Breathe," Sango commanded, cutting in. Kagome nodded, taking a breath and glaring at InuYasha as she waited for him to respond. She had more, but she doubted he would answer so many at once, if any.
InuYasha's eyes had turned hard at the mention of his father, and he closed his eyes for a minute, trying to keep his cool. When he finally did look back at Kagome, his eyes were cold.
"You have no reason to believe ANYTHING I have to say girl... I'm no forcing you to. My dad owned this place for a short while, and we lived in it during that time. My dad made it his mission to find out every detail of what happened to this place and its occupants... and in the end that's what killed him. Anything else isn't your business, so you'd better keep your big mouth to yourself and stay out of it."
Kagome's mouth moved speechlessly as InuYasha stomped off, his violet eyes glaring warningly at both girls as he did. Sango moved up to Kagome's side, staring after him with wide eyes.
"I think he's serious."
"He doesn't look like the kind to pull off too many jokes, does he?" Kagome asked, her eyes narrowing. Be it too many mystery novels, or maybe her always-get-ya-into-trouble curiosity, the wheels in her mind were spinning. It seemed to her that this boy was hiding something about this old orphanage. Not only that, but now that her mind was in full-detective mode, it seemed that something REALLY suspicious was going on with this whole camp itself... not JUST InuYasha. Creepy.
"Good evening ladies!" A chirpy voice spouted behind them, making them both turn. It was Miroku, the boy from before. "How are you enjoying your stay at Camp Sunshine?"
His voice dripped with sarcasm and Sango rolled her eyes.
"Not very 'sunny' if you ask me."
"It's awful," Kagome agreed, her eyes still scanning the huge dining room. She felt Sango grab her arm and pull her over to a semi-empty table. Miroku followed.
"Don't let the place get you down!" He said, sitting down across from them and grinning, "Soon you'll have a lot more to worry about... like the work!"
"Lovely," Kagome groaned, slumping her shoulders.
"Why don't you go bother someone else with your great news?" Sango asked, half-joking. The truth was, the boy across from them unnerved her slightly. And she wasn't sure why.
"No thank you," Miroku said, shaking his head, "You guys are the only kindred looking people I could find, besides that Rin girl. You're stuck with me for the rest of dinner."
"Fair enough," Kagome laughed. She couldn't say anything else, however, because right then there was a loud whistle. Everyone went abruptly silent and looked over to see Kikyo standing in the doorway, her arms crossed, glaring at them indifferently.
"I see you've all made it safely to the dining room." She began. The way she said 'safely' made Kagome shiver. "Dinner will be served in a couple minutes, during which Mr. Naruku will come out and introduce himself. Be polite and civil."
"Or you'll be thrown in the slave cages and tortured with heaps of housework," Miroku added in the girls' ears, making both of them grin. Kikyo gave them weird looks, but continued.
"As soon as dinner ends it will be eight, which is your curfew. Everyone must head straight up to their rooms and stay inside for the rest of the night. No exceptions. I suggest you try and get some sleep."
"Why so early?" Kagome whispered to her two companions dryly, glancing out into the dusty, dark hallways, "Are they afraid that we'll mess the place up?"
"More like they're afraid we'll try and escape!" Sango muttered. A couple eavesdroppers at their table giggled, and very soon Kikyo was giving the three the evil eye.
"Tomorrow you will start by being taught proper adult ETIQUETTE, which I believe MOST of you are LACKING. Then we will move on to housework and yardwork later in the week."
"Oh goody," Miroku whispered, yawning, "I can barely contain my excitement."
Finally Kikyo finished her speech, after rambling a bit about how you were supposed to act while dining. No one paid attention. Finally, when she was done, the food was served.
"What the heck is THIS?!" Miroku yelped as a tray and bowl was passed in front of him. The bowl was full of a warm mush, and the tray had two stale- looking sandwich's on them, filled with an even weirder mush that almost looked like coleslaw. Sango and Kagome turned green as theirs was put in front of them.
"Isn't there a rule about food poisoning?" The bubblegum blowing girl named Yura whined loudly from a nearby table. Miroku looked completely... bummed.
"Whatever happened to our one phone call? I'd like to order a pizza..."
"Oh, I forgot to mention!" Kikyo announced, a little too brightly, "This is the kind of food the kids who went to this orphanage ate. Enjoy!"
"Whatever happened to McDonalds?" Sango whispered, her eyes going wide as she stared at her food. Kagome didn't hear her, staring warily at her own food. She could have SWORN it just MOVED.
"This is not going to be fun..." Miroku moaned as complaints started to rise up from all the tables. "Not fun at all..."
After fifteen minutes of staring and poking at their food, a loud cough echoed through the dining room. Heads turned towards the doorway to see a man standing there, his arms crossed. His eyes were narrowed as he glanced over the shocked teens, as if taking in every detail of their appearance. Finally he nodded, though for no particular reason.
"I'd like to welcome you all to Camp Sunshine. I am the head counselor, Mr. Naruku. That's what you will call me, nothing else."
"He sounds exactly like Miss Kikyo!" Sango whispered to Miroku and Kagome. The two shivered in agreement. There was something REALLY scary about Mr. Naruku... and they could tell that just by looking at him. His eyes held a dangerous edge.
"On behalf of the staff and myself, I hope you all will enjoy your stay here. I'm sure Miss Kikyo has already informed you of everything, but I have one reminder for you all... NOBODY goes on the third or fourth floors. Got that? They are OFF LIMITS. Anyone who does will be given double their usual chores.
"Chores? Double?" Kagome echoed hopelessly. Miroku looked disappointed.
"Dang, I was hoping he would say they would send us home."
"I will see you all tomorrow, bright and early." The man continued, "Enjoy your dinner!"
A lot of grumbling followed the Head Counselors speech, but Kagome still didn't miss the glare that Mr. Naruku sent towards a small, almost empty table. Kagome followed his gaze, and realized he was glaring at... InuYasha. She frowned as the boy glared back, his dangerous violet eyes glinting coldly as his eyes moved from Naruku... to Kagome.
Kagome almost jumped, quickly looking away as a frown lit her face. Something really weird was going on around here. And maybe it wasn't just the strange counselors.
The teens spent the rest of dinnertime picking miserably at their food. Kagome could hear her stomach growling the whole time.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Kagome was now lying in her bed, listening to the silence around her as she blinked hopelessly into the darkness that was her and Sango's room. She was supposed to be sleeping... curfew had been two hours ago. But crazy thoughts kept running through her head.
First day at the weirdest camp she had ever heard of, and dinner had turned out to be a disaster. Luckily, Sango had been ready for this sort of situation, and had packed lots of junkfood in her suitcase. Needless to say, they had pigged-out when they had finally gotten back to their room.
But that didn't change things. Camp Sunshine was a real nightmare. There WAS running water and air conditioning, thankfully, but other than that there was really no electricity in the house. No music, no TV, no lights... nothing. In a place like this, Kagome really would have preferred to have a nightlight of some kind... but there was no outlets. In all this darkness, the girls were beginning to know what it felt like for the poor kids who had been confined to this orphanage... and it felt like fear.
Kagome let out a small gasp as a small thump suddenly sounded out in the hall. Then another, and another... almost like something hitting the walls. Kagome wasn't sure which direction the noise was coming from, but it was loud enough to scare her silly.
Thump.
Thump.
Kagome curled the blanket up tighter around her, her mind wondering to the ludicrous poems as the noise continued.
Thump.
Thump.
"S-Sango?" Kagome squeaked, staring out into the darkness of the room where she knew Sango's bed should be.
"Y-yes?" Sango whispered back, awake and obviously just as confused as Kagome.
"Are you making that noise?"
"No. Are you?"
"No..."
Both girls were talking only to hear the sound of the other's voice. They knew it was coming from outside their room, but after all the poems and the strange things they had heard about this place, noises in the night were NOT comforting.
"What is it then?" Kagome asked in a small voice. There was a pause, in which more dull thumps were heard.
"I don't know." Her friend responded just as softly, as if the thing making the 'thumps' might hear them.
"Wanna go check it out?"
It was the bravest thing Kagome had ever suggested, but she couldn't help herself. She wanted to prove to a part of her mind that the noise wasn't some small child with a noose around his neck swinging from the ceiling... or a serial killer, walking down the hall loudly to let his victims know he was coming and there was no escape...
Obviously, Sango felt the same way.
"Sure, let's go."
Both the girls got out of bed, their breathing shaky as they groped around in the darkness, trying to find the other. Kagome reached for the shadowy form in front of her, grabbing Sango's arm and pulling her gently towards the door. Then Sango reached for the doorknob, turning it slowly as they listened to the thumps increase out in the hall, echoing in the empty corridor.
Silently Sango opened the door, and both the girl's blinked and covered their eyes as the light from the hall hit them. The hall had the only electric lights in the building, and obviously no one had turned them off.
Kagome took in a frightened breath, creeping out into the hallway as another 'thump' echoes through the hall. Sango followed her, shutting their door behind them and giving Kagome a quick nod.
Looking down the hall quickly, both girls almost choked at what they saw. The hallway was empty, still resonating with the strange noise from before... but a long trail of blood led down the hall and around a dark corner, smeared all over the wooden floors as if something had been dragged. Not only that, Kagome and Sango both saw clear bloody handprints all over the peeling walls... those of a small child.
"Oh my god..." Kagome mumbled, grabbing on to Sango's arm. The thumps were getting louder.
"Shit!" A half-whispered voice yelped from behind them. Kagome and Sango spun around quickly with small yelps, coming face to face with a very shocked Miroku. "What the hell happened here?!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *
TO BE CONTINUED! (read below quickly ^-^)
A/N: Right, that's the first chapter. There will be more, but I want to warn anyone who's reading this... all the bad guys in the manga/anime might not be bad in here... likewise, all the good characters might not be good in here. Any character is a victim, and not all of them are who they seem. It'll keep you on your toes ^-~ Ciao!