The Curse of Tormenting Loneliness
Disclaimer: Unfortunately for me, there will never be a way for me to own Inuyasha and gang... unless I somehow find some information on Rumiko Takahashi and use it against her as blackmail... but where would I get that kind of information. I don't even know how to speak Japanese.
A/N: Sorry it took me so long to update this story! I think it had a lot to do with school and the fact that I didn't get much feedback on this one like I did my other ficcy. But here it is, the next chapter to CTL for any of you even reading this at all. Oh, and I have a thank-you section at the end for all of you who did review. On to the story.
Chapter Two: Mischievous Souta
Kagome couldn't get over the fact that as of yesterday, she would be getting married. And she didn't even know the guy. He wasn't even HUMAN. Why were parents so cruel as to force their children, their own flesh and blood, to marry a complete stranger? And hers just HAD to choose a YOUKAI! Why did her life seem to suck so badly these days?
"I just want the privilege of CHOOSING the man I marry. Is that too much to ask?" Kagome whined into her pillow.
"No!" said a small voice from across the room.
Kagome turned her head to see her younger brother sitting cross- legged on his own bed. She gave him a weak smile as she slowly sat up. "I'm glad YOU understand me Souta. At least there's one person in this family that's sensible."
"What's sensbl?" Souta asked as he cocked his head to the side. He could be so cute when he wanted.
Kagome giggled and patted her bed to motion for him to come sit beside her. Souta's whole face lit up as he jumped from his bed and dived under the covers of his sister's bed. Once his head poked out, Kagome smiled. "I love you!"
"I love you too Ka-me!" Souta smiled back as he gave his sister a big bear hug. "That man is stairy! He thaid I tan't seep wiff yoo anmore cause ony he does when yoo det maweed. An' I wanna seep wiff yoo all time."
"It's okay Souta," Kagome smiled as she messed up his hair. "Sesshomaru said that because he wants you to understand that once we get married, I won't be sleeping here anymore. I will have to sleep with him."
"Why?" asked Souta innocently.
"Because I have to go live with him when I get married," explained Kagome. She just knew the 'why' game was afoot.
"Why?" he asked again.
"Because that's what happens when two people get married. They go to live in a different house than their families," Kagome said calmly. She honestly didn't mind the game as long as it didn't get out of control like it sometimes did.
"Why?"
"Because they... I mean, we are going to start our own family. And we can't do that when our parents and little brothers are around," she winked.
"Do tha' mean I no be yer famy anmore?" asked Souta as visible tears started to form in his brown eyes.
"No. It just means that Sesshomaru and I will be having... um... babies. We'll be the Mommy and Daddy. And then you will be the Uncle. And then you'll have a new playmate to have fun with," smiled Kagome. She hated it when her brother cried. It always made her feel horrible, even when it wasn't her fault.
Souta blinked back his tears, "Ka-me?"
"Yes?"
"When yoo an' Sefmoo gonna have baby?"
Kagome started to giggle. He always said the most uncomfortable things in the cutes way possible. "Not for a VERY long time!"
"How long's tha'?" Souta asked with his innocent brown eyes shining.
Kagome thought for a moment. She had to word this just right. If she didn't watch what she said, her younger brother could ask her for weeks on end when she was going to have a baby. "Well... first we have to get married. And that'll be in two months. Um... remember how long Papa took to come he went on that hunting trip with grandfather a while back?" she asked when she noticed the blank look Souta was giving her.
Brown eyes lit up, "Yea! I 'member."
"Good," Kagome smiled. "Okay, once I'm married to Sesshomaru, then we can start THINKING about having a baby. But once we DO decide to have a baby, you might be seven or even eight years old by then." Hopefully he'd understand that.
"THAT long? I be all growd up by then! I tan't pay wiff a baby when I growd up!" whined Souta as he got out of Kagome's bed. "Ka-me, why tan't yoo an' Sefmoo jus' have baby now?" Without waiting for an answer, he left the room.
"Mummy?" Kagome could hear Souta ask his mother.
"Yes, Souta," came her mother's voice.
"When I gonna be eight?"
"Not for a very long time Dear," answered Mrs. Higurashi with laughter evident in her voice.
"But how long?" whined Souta.
"Sweetie, you have to wait for two winters to pass by before you get to be eight years old," explained his mother in a caring tone.
"How long till fist winner?"
"It's only spring Souta. You're going to have to wait over half a year."
"How long's tha'?" asked Souta.
Kagome smiled at the way her brother was. He'd be asking all morning and her mother would be calmly answering all his questions as best she could.
Well, there was no sense in Kagome staying in bed all day. Sooner or later she'd have to forgive her parents for forcing her to marry a complete stranger. Besides, she was hungry.
~**~
"Would you like to come down to the river with me? I figure that it would be nice to get to know one another better... before we get married and all," suggested Kagome. She had realized that it had been three days since she had a private conversation with her soon-to-be husband. And it kind of bothered her.
"If you insist," sighed Sesshomaru with a bored look. As he stood up from his spot under a tree he added, "Although we will have the rest of our LIVES to 'get to know one another.' So there is ultimately no point. But if it is what you wish, I will abide."
Kagome rolled her blue-grey eyes and made it a point to walk a couple feet ahead of him. Why did he have to say that? Had he said something else, he wouldn't have come off looking like he didn't care. Maybe he didn't mind that his parents were making him marry her... a total stranger.
Suddenly Kagome realized that the river was just beyond the next clump of trees, and neither of them had spoken a word since they started on their little trek. "What's your favorite food?" she asked as her mind screamed to say SOMETHING.
Sesshomaru walked so they were side by side, "Snake eggs are quite delectable if properly prepared."
Kagome scrunched her nose. He had said that so smoothly, it was hard to tell if he was serious. So she looked up to see his face. He was looking straight ahead with an utterly unreadable expression. This was getting her nowhere. "Do you like sausage? Or maybe cow meat? ...I know how to make a really good steak! What about cheese? Or noodles? Chicken eggs?" inquired Kagome as her blue-grey eyes were trained on his face.
A small smile finally broke through the stony blankness of his face, "It is alright if you don't like snake eggs. Not many humans do! It's more of a youkai delicacy. I will teach you how to make it properly for future meals."
"Will I have to eat it? I mean... If I try it and don't like it?" asked Kagome as she mentally crossed her fingers. It sounded disgusting, and it probably smelled and tasted even worse. And she was pretty sure he was serious about the whole thing.
"As long as you make it once in a while, I PROBABLY will not force you to eat it... PROBABLY," he said as the serene river came into view.
Forcing herself no to roll her blue-grey eyes, Kagome decided to change the topic. Maybe the weather? No, that's too boring. The new youkai that have been roaming the area? Na, he wouldn't know anything about that... besides, why would a youkai care if other youkai were terrorizing a village of humans? But he might care... after all, he WAS getting married to one. But maybe it's too soon to bring her problems onto her new fiancé. Maybe they could just talk about their future marriage. "How many kids do you want to have?" asked Kagome breaking the silence.
Sesshomaru gave her a blank stare.
"Or maybe you don't want any kids?" she suggested. That look alone sent shivers down her spine.
"Pups," spoke the youkai simply.
Kagome gave him a confused look, "What?"
Sesshomaru's amber eyes locked onto Kagome's gaze. "Pup. When a youkai has offspring, they are called 'pups,'" he said matter-of-factly.
"Oh, that makes sense," she smiled as his words sunk in. But he still hadn't answered her question. And now she really did want to know the answer. She would ask again, but somehow it just seemed a little inappropriate. So, another long and uncomfortable silence ensued.
Songbirds were singing throughout the forest, making the river seem a little more pleasant. Occasionally a Salmon would jump out of the water to catch a bug it had eyes from below. The tapping of a Woodpecker could be heard from somewhere across the wide river. And faintly, there was the sound of children's voices from the village. Which brought Kagome from her concentration on her surroundings, and back to her unanswered question.
She had always dreamed of having two sweet children of her own, but if Sesshomaru didn't want any kids at all... Then why were they getting married? As far as Kagome understood it, arranged marriages were only 'arranged' so the male bloodline could be carried on to the next generation. Kagome opened her mouth to protest the upsetting conclusion she had come to.
"Most likely fifteen or so," said Sesshomaru in an almost inaudible tone as he unknowingly cut her off.
Kagome's jaw hung open. She always knew she shouldn't jump to conclusions.
Sesshomaru watched his fiancée's surprised reaction from the corner of his eye. Humans could be so fickle. Fifteen pups was NOT that many at all. Sure, his father had only two, but that was because he spent most of his time on the battlefield. He could've told her that he was GOING to aim for twenty-one, but maybe he should wait till they were ACTUALLY married.
Kagome's head started to swirl. Somehow, she didn't think it was possible for her little body to have that many babies. And FIFTEEN PREGNANCIES? FIFTEEN? NO WAY! She wasn't an animal! OR youkai!
Little did she notice, but Kagome had stopped gapping a long time ago and had started grinding her teeth. Her gaze had gone deadly, and she was about to explode. But somewhere deep in her mind she was being told that she mustn't loose her temper in front of her fiancé. She could always refuse to have sex with him once she had three or four children... pups... whatever. She just had to keep her cool for now.
"You seem upset," said Sesshomaru when he decided that any more of that death glare and he would be royally pissed. Kagome blinked and he could tell she was trying to get a hold of her emotions. Somehow, he figured out she was upset about the amount of pups he wanted to have. "We could always have more than fifteen, but I think we should set the minimum at thirteen. I believe any less would be insufficient."
That was JUST enough to set off the dormant volcano. "Insufficient? Minimum?" started Kagome as she desperately fought to control her temper.
Apparently he was wrong.
"Do I LOOK equipped to bear THAT many children?" she growled.
"Pups," Sesshomaru corrected.
"I DON'T CARE!" yelled Kagome as her fuse reached the end. "It's physically impossible for me to have that many PUPS!" she said that last word extra loud to break through his thick skull. "I don't even know you. We've only just met a few days ago, and you plan to have at LEAST thirteen PUPS? I've never wanted more than FOUR. And you want FIFTEEN? Is this set in stone? Cause I haven't seen any evidence."
By then all the cheerful noises in the forest had disappeared. The only sound was the gentle breeze rustling the leaves and the serene motion of the river flowing. But none of that helped Kagome's mood.
Sesshomaru gave Kagome a bored look, "I suppose I can get you a servant to take care of the pups when they are born."
"A servant?" Kagome ground out. "We won't NEED a servant because I will not have that many children!"
Sesshomaru opened his mouth to tell her she had no choice in the matter when Kagome cut him off. "I will not have more than FIVE children at the maximum. Got that? FIVE!" she said as she held up the fingers so he could count... if he even could. Then she spun around and started to stomp back to her little village. "AND THAT'S FINAL!" she yelled over her shoulder at the now snarling youkai. Kagome was determined to get her way, and all she had to do to get it was put her foot down when the time called for it. And this time definitely screamed for it.
But maybe she had been too hard on him? She could've been nicer to him about it. They probably could've even talked about it like adults... even though she was quite and adult yet. This dilemma called for a mother- daughter talk.
Kagome quickened her pace and all but ran to her family's hut on the far side of the village. But she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw two magnificent and very important-looking black stallions grazing in the yard. Who could possibly be with her parents? No one important EVER visited the Higurashi's, not to mention their tiny village. Needless to say, the recent argument she'd had with her fiancé was now far from her mind.
Slowly creeping to the door, Kagome crouched down to peer behind the curtain-door. There was a richly dressed couple sitting at her parents' table. The man had pure white hair that was done up in a loose braid. And the lady had midnight black hair that cascaded down her back. They both had their backs facing the door, so it was hard for Kagome to see what their features looked like. From what she could see, the lady was wearing a delicate pink silk kimono, with tiny white sakura blossoms decorating the matching pink sash around her slender waist. And the man seated beside her was wearing dark armor that almost looked black. The importance that seemed to radiate from their postures, clothing, and transportation screamed upper class to Kagome. But where did they come from and why were they here?
"We were not expecting you for another two weeks," said Mrs. Higurashi as she poured some tea into the guests' cups.
"Well, Gemmi, we decided that it would be more entertaining to participate in the preparations," said the man to Mrs. Higurashi in a cool manner. The way he talked reminded Kagome of someone... but who?
But before Kagome could fit the pieces together, Kaede cleared her throat. "I think that since we are all together, we should go over the wager." She paused for all eyes and ears to focus on her before she continued. "The object is to see if the Higurashi's eldest daughter will agree to marry the Kajitani's eldest son, and vice versa. Do we all still agree that this is correct?"
Kagome's blue-grey eyes went wide when she saw all four nod their heads in agreement. Those were Sesshomaru's parents, and they were all playing with her life like it didn't matter.
Kaede's sky blue eyes rested on the form in the doorway. She knew Kagome was there, but said nothing on the matter. Sighing, she took her gaze off the girl and stared at her folded hands in her lap. The entire room was silent and waiting for her to go on. So she did, "If Jeison and Gemmi Higurashi win, and Sesshomaru is the one to call off the wedding, they get the finest horses money can buy along with $750 000 (A/N: That currency is in the terms of 300 years ago...think about it.). If Kei and Kimiko Kajitani win, and Kagome is the one to break off the wedding, the Higurashis will work without pay for the rest of their lives for the Kajitanis. But, if by chance both Kagome and Sesshomaru agree to go on with the wedding and get married, the deal is terminated. The most either will gain is a son or daughter and your families will be forever united. Does everyone agree?" Kaede lifted her gaze at this moment to look individually at each parent.
Mr. Higurashi reached for his wife's hand beside him, "We agree wholeheartedly."
"We know you don't approve of any of this. And perhaps you're right, but this is an agreement between our two families, and the only reason we involved you in the matter is to make sure no one cheats and tells their child what is as stake," said Mrs. Higurashi with fire in her eyes.
"May your children forgive you when the truth is revealed!" said Kaede defiantly. Again she captured Kagome in her gaze, but she seemed to be asking the girl to forgive her. After all, Kaede hadn't told her even when she probably should have.
Mrs. Higurashi immediately changed her emotions when Kaede's words soaked in. What if Kagome never forgave her and ended up hating her?
Mrs. Kajitani turned to her husband with tears in her magenta eyes, "I don't like this anymore Kei. It just feels too wrong!"
Mr. Kajitani pulled his wife into a hug and whispered something into her ear. At this moment Kagome wished she could read lips. After his wife seemingly calmed down, Mr. Kajitani spoke up, "We all agreed on this years ago. And I'm afraid that Jeison and I are much to prideful to back down when we're this close to the end." This sent Mrs. Kajitani into a fit of sobs and tears.
Kagome finally found it in her to move out of the door. She had her back against the wall as her hands reached for her face to try and stop the angry tears from flowing. Her parents had betrayed her, but she didn't know what to do. If she backed out, her whole family, including Souta, would become servants. But if she continued on as if she hadn't heard, there was no telling if her fiancé would back down or not. "I don't want to marry someone I don't love!" she whispered into her hands.
Grabbing a bow with arrows from their place in the holders by the door, Kagome dashed into the nearby forest. She needed some serious thinking time.
~*On the Opposite Side of the Village*~
"Hey Souta, this enough grass?" asked a little girl as she held out a handful of the said substance.
Souta looked at the amount before bending down to violently rip more grass from the ground. "Tha' nuff now!" he smiled triumphantly.
The girl gave a toothy smile back as she carefully took all the blades of grass out of Souta's hands. She placed the greens on a large flat boulder, and then picked up a pointed rock a little bigger than her hands. "Yoo wanna chop, or me?" she asked as both children eyed the rock.
Taking the rock from the girl, Souta immediately placed it back in her open hand. "I did las' tie. Yoo diff tie, Wissa. I dunna do det some borries."
With that said, Souta trotted a little ways away to a raspberry bush and started to put clumps into the front of his shirt that he was holding out like a makeshift basket. 'Wissa' got to work chopping the grass into smaller pieces. When she was done, she went to the opposite side of the boulder to put the pieces into a small pot her mother had given them to play with. At least that's what she would've done, if she hadn't been busy de-scaling the fish for dinner with her back turned. The pot was now half filled with water from the river, and now it also contained the cut up grass and the raspberries that Souta and 'Wissa' hadn't popped into their mouths.
"Somefin's missin'," said 'Wissa' after she pretended to smell their concoction.
Souta mimicked her pretend sniffing before a light bulb went off in his head, "Sice! Mummy say sice do 'side soup."
"Yeah," squealed 'Wissa' as she jumped up and down. "I know what!" she exclaimed as she bent down to pick up some sand beside their boulder- stove.
"Yeah! But more," said Souta as he dumped a pile of sand into the pot.
"Mm," 'Wissa' hummed as she pretended to taste the soup. "Yoo fink Hiro's gunna eat dis?"
Souta gave a mischievous smile as he rubbed his hands together. "Yup. He has do. We mate him!"
'Wissa' giggled as she stirred the slop with a stick. "An' my brother's gunna like it too!"
"ARISA!" came a very grown-up voice.
"Uh-oh!" said the two children in unison. They both positioned themselves in front of the pot and tried their hardest to look innocent.
A woman wearing an apron that was covered in the middle with a smelly fish substance came through a break in the trees and into the clearing by the river's edge. She had an angry look on her face when she spotted the children. As a mother, she could see the devious innocent looks on their faces. "Where is it Arisa?"
"Where is what Mama?" asked the girl in question.
"You both know exactly what I'm talking about. Where is my pot?" she asked in a stern tone. She gave both children a lit-to-me-if-you-dare look in hopes that one of them would crack.
Her effort paid off when Souta hung his head. "It here. But I tood it, not Wissa." He moved to the side to reveal the missing pot that would have to be cleaned thoroughly before its next use.
"Awe, Mama, we was jus' playin'," Arisa apologized in her please- don't-punish-us-for-being-kids tone.
Her mother sighed and kneeled down in the sand to their level, "I know you were. I just wish you two would've asked me first. Now I have to spend time cleaning this... which means that lunch is going to be late. And Papa won't like that will he?"
Suddenly the sand became very interesting to the girl. "No, he won't like it at all," said Arisa in a small voice.
"Since this is the first bad thing you've done this week, I'll let you get away with it. But..." she warned as she held up a finger to her daughter's tiny nose.
"I wun't do an'thing bad again. I prumise Mama," said Arisa with a hopeful smile.
Her mother stood up and patted both children on the head, "Good." She picked up the dirty pot and dumped its contents out beside the boulder. "You will just have to find something else to put your soup in," she smiled as she went off to clean the pot.
"Da soup in r'in now," sighed Souta as he bent down to poke the mush with a stick.
"Yeah, but we can mate it again," Arisa said happily. "We jus' need another pot!" Both children sat down cross-legged to think. What could they use for a pot? And who could they sneak it from? "We can't sneak from my Mama cause we jus' did that. An' we can't sneak from yur Mama cause she alays catches us. Who else is there?" wondered Arisa out loud.
"ME NO! ME NO!" shouted Souta in excitement as he shot to his feet.
Arisa smiled broadly, "Who?"
"Dayday," smiled Souta triumphantly.
"Who?" Arisa asked from confusion. She didn't know anyone in their village that's name sounded like that.
"Dayday," Souta repeated, "Lady tha' is a' my hoose now. She has losa nee' suff."
"Lotsa neat stuff is good!" grinned Arisa while she rubbed her small hands together. They could probably find more things to play with than they knew what to do with. "Let's go!" she squealed as she ran at top speed towards the Higurashi hut.
"Weigh fo' me," called Souta as he ran after his best friend.
~**~
Kagome had been walking for quite some time. Judging by the position of the sun, it had been two or three hours. She had been walking in a rough circle but still hadn't completed it.
Only a few minor youkai had bothered her, each of which she had taken down with a skilled hand teamed with bow and arrow. They were defeated swiftly and without much thought at all. Kagome was too deeply absorbed in her troubles to notice that the youkai seemed to be increasing in numbers. She used to only encounter one youkai every few days, but in just a few hours she had come across a dozen different species of them.
None of that mattered though, at least not to Kagome's conflicted mind. She had gone through every possibility she could think of. And yet, she still wasn't close to a conclusion. She needed help. And since she couldn't turn to either of her parents, there was only Kaede and Sesshomaru to choose from. But that was another problem in itself. She could go to either the possible betrayer or to the unknown. Neither seemed to be better than the other. Maybe she should just talk to the first one she came across.
That sounded like her best bet, so Kagome turned toward the direction of the village. It wasn't far, and she reached the forest's edge in no time. She was only a few huts down from her own, so she started to slowly walk home. Her blue-grey eyes searching every which way for Kaede or Sesshomaru.
A cold wind blew through Kagome's raven black tresses. Most children of the village were outside playing some game to rid the energy gained from the lunch they had had an hour ago. And as she neared her own hut, Kagome wondered what mischief Souta was probably up to. He was always getting himself into trouble. So, he was either neck-deep in trouble, or he'd already been caught.
As she reached the family hut, Kagome mentally noted that she had seen neither hide nor hair of her younger brother. But just as she was about to go inside the hut, suspicious giggles erupted from the small tent that Kaede and Sesshomaru used as a makeshift home till the wedding.
Maybe Kaede was showing Souta and one of his friends something entertaining and magical. Or there was always the option that this was part of Souta's mischief for the day, because those were the giggles of children hiding something.
Kagome turned to go to the tent. She glanced at the two beautifully perfect horses as she passed them. No matter what Souta was doing, as soon as she found out, Kagome still had to go find someone to talk to about her dilemma. As she zeroed in on her destination, Kagome held her breath and tiptoed to the entrance. She opened the door and her blue-grey eyes fell on two children rummaging through Kaede's herbs and potions.
"This stuff is so cool!" squealed Arisa in as quiet a voice she could. She jumped up and down excitedly.
"Me no!" Souta agreed as he held up a small glass vile with a metallic blue powder inside. More giggles consumed them.
Kagome's eyes went wide when she saw what they were doing. "Souta, put that DOWN!" she all but screamed.
Noticing they were caught, Arisa screamed and Souta jumped. The vile flying out of his hands and up into the air above him. He backed away at that same moment to look at who caught them in the act.
Kagome gasped as she saw the vile bounce off the ceiling of the tent and head straight for the hard floor. Reflex took over as she dove to catch the small container. Her hands were outstretched, but she hit the floor the same time the open vile did. And the metallic blue powder covered her from head to toe.
~**~
Kaede walked out of the Higurashi hut just in time to see Kagome yell something and dive to the floor of her tent. She lifted her eyebrow in confusion. That was strange. It wasn't everyday that Kagome missed lunch and was later found diving into other people's place of residence.
Quickening her pace, Kaede made a beeline for her dwelling. As she reached the door, she pushed it open to see Kagome on the floor with metallic blue powder covering her body. Souta and Arisa were cowering in a corner, eyes wide to see both Kagome AND Kaede had found them. Then her old sky-blue eyes fell upon the broken vile on the ground just out of Kagome's reach. Her eyes went wide when she realized what had been inside the vile was now ON Kagome's innocent form.
Kaede dashed to Kagome's side and snatched up the pieces of the vile, "What happened here?" She glared at the frightened children.
"We was jus' playin'," explained Arisa as tears fell down her cheeks.
"Never, and I mean Never 'play' with my potions! Do you realize what you have done to Kagome?" she scolded as her chubby face went red with anger.
All three sets of eyes went to Kagome's form on the floor. She was slowly getting up from her uncomfortable dive. But there was something very strange happening. It seemed as if her whole body was blinking in and out... fading from existence.
Kagome felt it but didn't see anything different herself. It was like all the energy was being sucked from her body. It was hard to stand and soon she found herself on the ground again. She tried to ask Kaede what that potion was, but no words were able to get past her moving lips. Pain started to coarse through her body and she gripped her sides to try to ease it. But that didn't help at all, the pain was like knives stabbing her repeatedly. It was so painful that soon it became numbing and her blue- grey eyes rolled back as she fainted.
"Get out!" Kaede commanded the children when Kagome fell to the floor after just getting up. But when neither Souta nor Arisa moved from their positions, she moved to the and bent down to capture their gazes. Both children slowly looked to the old woman, "I'm going to need you to leave so I can try to help Kagome."
Souta nodded as he reached for Arisa's hand and led her out of the tent. But when they were out, both kids quietly watched from the door.
Kaede moved to Kagome's transparent figure and knelt down to see if she could get the girl's attention. "Kagome," she called soothingly. But the girl didn't seem to notice her. She gripped her sides as if everything hurt at once. Kaede's eyebrows furrowed at this. "Kagome, you must listen to me," she said softly as she placed a hand on the girl's back. At that gesture Kagome arched her back and seemed to cry out in pain, even though no sound came out. And then she fell into a clump on the floor. Kaede retracted her hand. Opting for the less painful approach, she sat down cross-legged and waited for the girl to waken.
Not long after, Kagome seemed to stir. She rolled onto her back and vaguely saw Kaede through tear filled blue-grey eyes. "What's happening to me?" she asked inaudibly to the old priestess.
Kaede hadn't heard anything, and could now barely see Kagome at all. But it was still clear to the woman that Kagome had woken and was now confused with her painful condition. Knowing the girl could hear her even though it could not be said for Kagome, Kaede did her best to tell her what was going to happen and for how long. She cleared her throat, "Kagome, I know you are in a great deal of pain, but I need you to listen to me very carefully! First of all, the potion that was spilled all over you is called 'Shikon powder.' It is a powerful concoction that was under my protection. I didn't mean for you to bear its curse. But now that you do, I fear you must know what it does."
Kaede watched as Kagome's figure completely disappeared from view. All that was left was empty space. Although she couldn't see her, Kaede knew that she was still there. So she continued, "Shikon powder makes anything it touches invisible. I had it in a magical vile so it wouldn't look too suspicious to anyone else. But the curse on the powder is that when it is put on a human, or youkai for that matter, it goes through the painful process of making that person invisible. The pain you are feeling will go away as you get used to being invisible. You may notice nothing different about yourself, but in reality, no one can see, hear or even feel you. You are like a ghost. And the problem is that the powder is connected with the amount put on you. When I saw you, most of the contents from the vile were on you solely. This is a major problem because this amount has never been used before. And since the powder is linked with the amount, that means that the more powder on a human, the longer that person will be... inexistent in a word."
Kagome listened to every word in painful silence. She could feel the pain subsiding, but the words that were sinking in seemed to make that pain explode twice over.
Kaede sighed sadly as she moved from her spot on the ground to her open bag full of potions. "There is only one thing I can do to help you in this," she said as she reached for a small bag filled with some pink liquid. "I must do this before your pain is completely gone, otherwise you will continue to age and never die. And I fear that this curse will last one hundred years or more. I have one chance, and one chance only to do this, so if you will remain completely still for a moment Kagome."
"Like that'll be hard," Kagome said to herself sarcastically as she remained grasping her sides on the floor.
Kaede moved to where she remembered seeing Kagome last. She opened the small bag and began to carefully sprinkle the pink liquid on the girl. The liquid seemed to suspend in the air for a moment, making an outline of Kagome's body, before it completely disappeared. Once the liquid was all gone, Kaede began to say a chant,
"Vanished from all existence,
Aging from curse's lips,
With this tonic,
Freeze youth's vitality,
Till time of curse lifted,
Kagome forever be young.
Vanished from all existence,
Aging from curse's lips,
With this tonic,
Freeze youth's vitality,
Till time of curse lifted,
Kagome forever be young."
As Kagome listened to Kaede's chant, she started to feel lightheaded. Her stomach felt like it was doing flip-flops. She could even sense the pain slightly fade away.
Once Kaede was finished she sighed and went to put her small bag back in its proper place. "I've given you your youth. Whenever the curse wears off, you will still be just as young as you are today. It's the least I can do for you for not telling you about the secret your parents hold. I'll do my best to explain to everyone what happened here tonight. For now, you might want to become accustomed to this curse as best you can.
A/N: Well, there you are folks. Chapter 2 is officially done... although I hope there isn't as many mistakes as were in chapter 1. And I must apologize for that, I think I was a little exclamation-point-happy. ^_^' But I've gone back through it and fixed all those mistakes. I promise to be more careful when it comes to exclamation points. I've also changed the summary for this ficcy cause I felt that it was a little too... let's just say I also thought it didn't quite fit. Oh, and I decided to say a little thanx to everyone who did review my previous chapter of this ficcy. And here they are...
thetamind: Thank-you so much for being the first person to review this ficcy. And I also thank you for giving your opinion on who you want Kagome to end up with! I'm a Kag/Inu fan myself. Oh, and since I KNOW you haven't even watched the anime yet, I have one thing to say to you... WATCH IT NOW! YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE MISSING YOU SILLY BOY! (if anyone else is actually reading this, yes, I do actually know this person so I can act super strange when I talk to him! ...opps there I go again with the exclamation points... sorry.)
RedHerring: Thanx for reviewing. And I must say that this is a 'fanfiction' so I can do what I want with it. My plan is to have Seshy have puppy ears when he's young. Remember, he's a full youkai, so he'll live for hundreds of years... opps, I think I've given away too much as it is... so thanx again for the nice review.
Roze: Thanx for your review and the vote. I do like Inu/Kag pairing too, just wanted to see what others thought. And I do agree about the summary thing. I've decided to change it, so hopefully the new one you see is a better sounding one... and hopefully you find that it does match my ficcy a bit more.
Lord-Hiei: I thank you for reviewing. And you did make your point with all the I/K's. And I don't think I can apologize enough for the exclamation points in chapter 1. It's an embarrassment and I'll try my best not to let it happen again. And there is a reason for Sesshomaru's strange happiness in the first chapter. You're just going to have to keep reading to find out what that reason is.
If I missed anyone, please tell me and I'll get to you next time... I promise. And don't forget to review once you're done reading this... it's so I know if anyone's actually taking the time to read my work.
Oh, and if you didn't notice, voting is still up for grabs in case someone wants someone else to end up with Kagome. I'm planning to have Sesshomaru, Inuyasha, Miroku, Kouga, and Hojo in this fic, so these are your choices... and even if you want Naraku and for some reason I put him in this ficcy, I WILL NOT PAIR HIM WITH KAGOME. It's against my beliefs... plus I hate him!
KrysTheAngel ^_^
April 2004
Disclaimer: Unfortunately for me, there will never be a way for me to own Inuyasha and gang... unless I somehow find some information on Rumiko Takahashi and use it against her as blackmail... but where would I get that kind of information. I don't even know how to speak Japanese.
A/N: Sorry it took me so long to update this story! I think it had a lot to do with school and the fact that I didn't get much feedback on this one like I did my other ficcy. But here it is, the next chapter to CTL for any of you even reading this at all. Oh, and I have a thank-you section at the end for all of you who did review. On to the story.
Chapter Two: Mischievous Souta
Kagome couldn't get over the fact that as of yesterday, she would be getting married. And she didn't even know the guy. He wasn't even HUMAN. Why were parents so cruel as to force their children, their own flesh and blood, to marry a complete stranger? And hers just HAD to choose a YOUKAI! Why did her life seem to suck so badly these days?
"I just want the privilege of CHOOSING the man I marry. Is that too much to ask?" Kagome whined into her pillow.
"No!" said a small voice from across the room.
Kagome turned her head to see her younger brother sitting cross- legged on his own bed. She gave him a weak smile as she slowly sat up. "I'm glad YOU understand me Souta. At least there's one person in this family that's sensible."
"What's sensbl?" Souta asked as he cocked his head to the side. He could be so cute when he wanted.
Kagome giggled and patted her bed to motion for him to come sit beside her. Souta's whole face lit up as he jumped from his bed and dived under the covers of his sister's bed. Once his head poked out, Kagome smiled. "I love you!"
"I love you too Ka-me!" Souta smiled back as he gave his sister a big bear hug. "That man is stairy! He thaid I tan't seep wiff yoo anmore cause ony he does when yoo det maweed. An' I wanna seep wiff yoo all time."
"It's okay Souta," Kagome smiled as she messed up his hair. "Sesshomaru said that because he wants you to understand that once we get married, I won't be sleeping here anymore. I will have to sleep with him."
"Why?" asked Souta innocently.
"Because I have to go live with him when I get married," explained Kagome. She just knew the 'why' game was afoot.
"Why?" he asked again.
"Because that's what happens when two people get married. They go to live in a different house than their families," Kagome said calmly. She honestly didn't mind the game as long as it didn't get out of control like it sometimes did.
"Why?"
"Because they... I mean, we are going to start our own family. And we can't do that when our parents and little brothers are around," she winked.
"Do tha' mean I no be yer famy anmore?" asked Souta as visible tears started to form in his brown eyes.
"No. It just means that Sesshomaru and I will be having... um... babies. We'll be the Mommy and Daddy. And then you will be the Uncle. And then you'll have a new playmate to have fun with," smiled Kagome. She hated it when her brother cried. It always made her feel horrible, even when it wasn't her fault.
Souta blinked back his tears, "Ka-me?"
"Yes?"
"When yoo an' Sefmoo gonna have baby?"
Kagome started to giggle. He always said the most uncomfortable things in the cutes way possible. "Not for a VERY long time!"
"How long's tha'?" Souta asked with his innocent brown eyes shining.
Kagome thought for a moment. She had to word this just right. If she didn't watch what she said, her younger brother could ask her for weeks on end when she was going to have a baby. "Well... first we have to get married. And that'll be in two months. Um... remember how long Papa took to come he went on that hunting trip with grandfather a while back?" she asked when she noticed the blank look Souta was giving her.
Brown eyes lit up, "Yea! I 'member."
"Good," Kagome smiled. "Okay, once I'm married to Sesshomaru, then we can start THINKING about having a baby. But once we DO decide to have a baby, you might be seven or even eight years old by then." Hopefully he'd understand that.
"THAT long? I be all growd up by then! I tan't pay wiff a baby when I growd up!" whined Souta as he got out of Kagome's bed. "Ka-me, why tan't yoo an' Sefmoo jus' have baby now?" Without waiting for an answer, he left the room.
"Mummy?" Kagome could hear Souta ask his mother.
"Yes, Souta," came her mother's voice.
"When I gonna be eight?"
"Not for a very long time Dear," answered Mrs. Higurashi with laughter evident in her voice.
"But how long?" whined Souta.
"Sweetie, you have to wait for two winters to pass by before you get to be eight years old," explained his mother in a caring tone.
"How long till fist winner?"
"It's only spring Souta. You're going to have to wait over half a year."
"How long's tha'?" asked Souta.
Kagome smiled at the way her brother was. He'd be asking all morning and her mother would be calmly answering all his questions as best she could.
Well, there was no sense in Kagome staying in bed all day. Sooner or later she'd have to forgive her parents for forcing her to marry a complete stranger. Besides, she was hungry.
~**~
"Would you like to come down to the river with me? I figure that it would be nice to get to know one another better... before we get married and all," suggested Kagome. She had realized that it had been three days since she had a private conversation with her soon-to-be husband. And it kind of bothered her.
"If you insist," sighed Sesshomaru with a bored look. As he stood up from his spot under a tree he added, "Although we will have the rest of our LIVES to 'get to know one another.' So there is ultimately no point. But if it is what you wish, I will abide."
Kagome rolled her blue-grey eyes and made it a point to walk a couple feet ahead of him. Why did he have to say that? Had he said something else, he wouldn't have come off looking like he didn't care. Maybe he didn't mind that his parents were making him marry her... a total stranger.
Suddenly Kagome realized that the river was just beyond the next clump of trees, and neither of them had spoken a word since they started on their little trek. "What's your favorite food?" she asked as her mind screamed to say SOMETHING.
Sesshomaru walked so they were side by side, "Snake eggs are quite delectable if properly prepared."
Kagome scrunched her nose. He had said that so smoothly, it was hard to tell if he was serious. So she looked up to see his face. He was looking straight ahead with an utterly unreadable expression. This was getting her nowhere. "Do you like sausage? Or maybe cow meat? ...I know how to make a really good steak! What about cheese? Or noodles? Chicken eggs?" inquired Kagome as her blue-grey eyes were trained on his face.
A small smile finally broke through the stony blankness of his face, "It is alright if you don't like snake eggs. Not many humans do! It's more of a youkai delicacy. I will teach you how to make it properly for future meals."
"Will I have to eat it? I mean... If I try it and don't like it?" asked Kagome as she mentally crossed her fingers. It sounded disgusting, and it probably smelled and tasted even worse. And she was pretty sure he was serious about the whole thing.
"As long as you make it once in a while, I PROBABLY will not force you to eat it... PROBABLY," he said as the serene river came into view.
Forcing herself no to roll her blue-grey eyes, Kagome decided to change the topic. Maybe the weather? No, that's too boring. The new youkai that have been roaming the area? Na, he wouldn't know anything about that... besides, why would a youkai care if other youkai were terrorizing a village of humans? But he might care... after all, he WAS getting married to one. But maybe it's too soon to bring her problems onto her new fiancé. Maybe they could just talk about their future marriage. "How many kids do you want to have?" asked Kagome breaking the silence.
Sesshomaru gave her a blank stare.
"Or maybe you don't want any kids?" she suggested. That look alone sent shivers down her spine.
"Pups," spoke the youkai simply.
Kagome gave him a confused look, "What?"
Sesshomaru's amber eyes locked onto Kagome's gaze. "Pup. When a youkai has offspring, they are called 'pups,'" he said matter-of-factly.
"Oh, that makes sense," she smiled as his words sunk in. But he still hadn't answered her question. And now she really did want to know the answer. She would ask again, but somehow it just seemed a little inappropriate. So, another long and uncomfortable silence ensued.
Songbirds were singing throughout the forest, making the river seem a little more pleasant. Occasionally a Salmon would jump out of the water to catch a bug it had eyes from below. The tapping of a Woodpecker could be heard from somewhere across the wide river. And faintly, there was the sound of children's voices from the village. Which brought Kagome from her concentration on her surroundings, and back to her unanswered question.
She had always dreamed of having two sweet children of her own, but if Sesshomaru didn't want any kids at all... Then why were they getting married? As far as Kagome understood it, arranged marriages were only 'arranged' so the male bloodline could be carried on to the next generation. Kagome opened her mouth to protest the upsetting conclusion she had come to.
"Most likely fifteen or so," said Sesshomaru in an almost inaudible tone as he unknowingly cut her off.
Kagome's jaw hung open. She always knew she shouldn't jump to conclusions.
Sesshomaru watched his fiancée's surprised reaction from the corner of his eye. Humans could be so fickle. Fifteen pups was NOT that many at all. Sure, his father had only two, but that was because he spent most of his time on the battlefield. He could've told her that he was GOING to aim for twenty-one, but maybe he should wait till they were ACTUALLY married.
Kagome's head started to swirl. Somehow, she didn't think it was possible for her little body to have that many babies. And FIFTEEN PREGNANCIES? FIFTEEN? NO WAY! She wasn't an animal! OR youkai!
Little did she notice, but Kagome had stopped gapping a long time ago and had started grinding her teeth. Her gaze had gone deadly, and she was about to explode. But somewhere deep in her mind she was being told that she mustn't loose her temper in front of her fiancé. She could always refuse to have sex with him once she had three or four children... pups... whatever. She just had to keep her cool for now.
"You seem upset," said Sesshomaru when he decided that any more of that death glare and he would be royally pissed. Kagome blinked and he could tell she was trying to get a hold of her emotions. Somehow, he figured out she was upset about the amount of pups he wanted to have. "We could always have more than fifteen, but I think we should set the minimum at thirteen. I believe any less would be insufficient."
That was JUST enough to set off the dormant volcano. "Insufficient? Minimum?" started Kagome as she desperately fought to control her temper.
Apparently he was wrong.
"Do I LOOK equipped to bear THAT many children?" she growled.
"Pups," Sesshomaru corrected.
"I DON'T CARE!" yelled Kagome as her fuse reached the end. "It's physically impossible for me to have that many PUPS!" she said that last word extra loud to break through his thick skull. "I don't even know you. We've only just met a few days ago, and you plan to have at LEAST thirteen PUPS? I've never wanted more than FOUR. And you want FIFTEEN? Is this set in stone? Cause I haven't seen any evidence."
By then all the cheerful noises in the forest had disappeared. The only sound was the gentle breeze rustling the leaves and the serene motion of the river flowing. But none of that helped Kagome's mood.
Sesshomaru gave Kagome a bored look, "I suppose I can get you a servant to take care of the pups when they are born."
"A servant?" Kagome ground out. "We won't NEED a servant because I will not have that many children!"
Sesshomaru opened his mouth to tell her she had no choice in the matter when Kagome cut him off. "I will not have more than FIVE children at the maximum. Got that? FIVE!" she said as she held up the fingers so he could count... if he even could. Then she spun around and started to stomp back to her little village. "AND THAT'S FINAL!" she yelled over her shoulder at the now snarling youkai. Kagome was determined to get her way, and all she had to do to get it was put her foot down when the time called for it. And this time definitely screamed for it.
But maybe she had been too hard on him? She could've been nicer to him about it. They probably could've even talked about it like adults... even though she was quite and adult yet. This dilemma called for a mother- daughter talk.
Kagome quickened her pace and all but ran to her family's hut on the far side of the village. But she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw two magnificent and very important-looking black stallions grazing in the yard. Who could possibly be with her parents? No one important EVER visited the Higurashi's, not to mention their tiny village. Needless to say, the recent argument she'd had with her fiancé was now far from her mind.
Slowly creeping to the door, Kagome crouched down to peer behind the curtain-door. There was a richly dressed couple sitting at her parents' table. The man had pure white hair that was done up in a loose braid. And the lady had midnight black hair that cascaded down her back. They both had their backs facing the door, so it was hard for Kagome to see what their features looked like. From what she could see, the lady was wearing a delicate pink silk kimono, with tiny white sakura blossoms decorating the matching pink sash around her slender waist. And the man seated beside her was wearing dark armor that almost looked black. The importance that seemed to radiate from their postures, clothing, and transportation screamed upper class to Kagome. But where did they come from and why were they here?
"We were not expecting you for another two weeks," said Mrs. Higurashi as she poured some tea into the guests' cups.
"Well, Gemmi, we decided that it would be more entertaining to participate in the preparations," said the man to Mrs. Higurashi in a cool manner. The way he talked reminded Kagome of someone... but who?
But before Kagome could fit the pieces together, Kaede cleared her throat. "I think that since we are all together, we should go over the wager." She paused for all eyes and ears to focus on her before she continued. "The object is to see if the Higurashi's eldest daughter will agree to marry the Kajitani's eldest son, and vice versa. Do we all still agree that this is correct?"
Kagome's blue-grey eyes went wide when she saw all four nod their heads in agreement. Those were Sesshomaru's parents, and they were all playing with her life like it didn't matter.
Kaede's sky blue eyes rested on the form in the doorway. She knew Kagome was there, but said nothing on the matter. Sighing, she took her gaze off the girl and stared at her folded hands in her lap. The entire room was silent and waiting for her to go on. So she did, "If Jeison and Gemmi Higurashi win, and Sesshomaru is the one to call off the wedding, they get the finest horses money can buy along with $750 000 (A/N: That currency is in the terms of 300 years ago...think about it.). If Kei and Kimiko Kajitani win, and Kagome is the one to break off the wedding, the Higurashis will work without pay for the rest of their lives for the Kajitanis. But, if by chance both Kagome and Sesshomaru agree to go on with the wedding and get married, the deal is terminated. The most either will gain is a son or daughter and your families will be forever united. Does everyone agree?" Kaede lifted her gaze at this moment to look individually at each parent.
Mr. Higurashi reached for his wife's hand beside him, "We agree wholeheartedly."
"We know you don't approve of any of this. And perhaps you're right, but this is an agreement between our two families, and the only reason we involved you in the matter is to make sure no one cheats and tells their child what is as stake," said Mrs. Higurashi with fire in her eyes.
"May your children forgive you when the truth is revealed!" said Kaede defiantly. Again she captured Kagome in her gaze, but she seemed to be asking the girl to forgive her. After all, Kaede hadn't told her even when she probably should have.
Mrs. Higurashi immediately changed her emotions when Kaede's words soaked in. What if Kagome never forgave her and ended up hating her?
Mrs. Kajitani turned to her husband with tears in her magenta eyes, "I don't like this anymore Kei. It just feels too wrong!"
Mr. Kajitani pulled his wife into a hug and whispered something into her ear. At this moment Kagome wished she could read lips. After his wife seemingly calmed down, Mr. Kajitani spoke up, "We all agreed on this years ago. And I'm afraid that Jeison and I are much to prideful to back down when we're this close to the end." This sent Mrs. Kajitani into a fit of sobs and tears.
Kagome finally found it in her to move out of the door. She had her back against the wall as her hands reached for her face to try and stop the angry tears from flowing. Her parents had betrayed her, but she didn't know what to do. If she backed out, her whole family, including Souta, would become servants. But if she continued on as if she hadn't heard, there was no telling if her fiancé would back down or not. "I don't want to marry someone I don't love!" she whispered into her hands.
Grabbing a bow with arrows from their place in the holders by the door, Kagome dashed into the nearby forest. She needed some serious thinking time.
~*On the Opposite Side of the Village*~
"Hey Souta, this enough grass?" asked a little girl as she held out a handful of the said substance.
Souta looked at the amount before bending down to violently rip more grass from the ground. "Tha' nuff now!" he smiled triumphantly.
The girl gave a toothy smile back as she carefully took all the blades of grass out of Souta's hands. She placed the greens on a large flat boulder, and then picked up a pointed rock a little bigger than her hands. "Yoo wanna chop, or me?" she asked as both children eyed the rock.
Taking the rock from the girl, Souta immediately placed it back in her open hand. "I did las' tie. Yoo diff tie, Wissa. I dunna do det some borries."
With that said, Souta trotted a little ways away to a raspberry bush and started to put clumps into the front of his shirt that he was holding out like a makeshift basket. 'Wissa' got to work chopping the grass into smaller pieces. When she was done, she went to the opposite side of the boulder to put the pieces into a small pot her mother had given them to play with. At least that's what she would've done, if she hadn't been busy de-scaling the fish for dinner with her back turned. The pot was now half filled with water from the river, and now it also contained the cut up grass and the raspberries that Souta and 'Wissa' hadn't popped into their mouths.
"Somefin's missin'," said 'Wissa' after she pretended to smell their concoction.
Souta mimicked her pretend sniffing before a light bulb went off in his head, "Sice! Mummy say sice do 'side soup."
"Yeah," squealed 'Wissa' as she jumped up and down. "I know what!" she exclaimed as she bent down to pick up some sand beside their boulder- stove.
"Yeah! But more," said Souta as he dumped a pile of sand into the pot.
"Mm," 'Wissa' hummed as she pretended to taste the soup. "Yoo fink Hiro's gunna eat dis?"
Souta gave a mischievous smile as he rubbed his hands together. "Yup. He has do. We mate him!"
'Wissa' giggled as she stirred the slop with a stick. "An' my brother's gunna like it too!"
"ARISA!" came a very grown-up voice.
"Uh-oh!" said the two children in unison. They both positioned themselves in front of the pot and tried their hardest to look innocent.
A woman wearing an apron that was covered in the middle with a smelly fish substance came through a break in the trees and into the clearing by the river's edge. She had an angry look on her face when she spotted the children. As a mother, she could see the devious innocent looks on their faces. "Where is it Arisa?"
"Where is what Mama?" asked the girl in question.
"You both know exactly what I'm talking about. Where is my pot?" she asked in a stern tone. She gave both children a lit-to-me-if-you-dare look in hopes that one of them would crack.
Her effort paid off when Souta hung his head. "It here. But I tood it, not Wissa." He moved to the side to reveal the missing pot that would have to be cleaned thoroughly before its next use.
"Awe, Mama, we was jus' playin'," Arisa apologized in her please- don't-punish-us-for-being-kids tone.
Her mother sighed and kneeled down in the sand to their level, "I know you were. I just wish you two would've asked me first. Now I have to spend time cleaning this... which means that lunch is going to be late. And Papa won't like that will he?"
Suddenly the sand became very interesting to the girl. "No, he won't like it at all," said Arisa in a small voice.
"Since this is the first bad thing you've done this week, I'll let you get away with it. But..." she warned as she held up a finger to her daughter's tiny nose.
"I wun't do an'thing bad again. I prumise Mama," said Arisa with a hopeful smile.
Her mother stood up and patted both children on the head, "Good." She picked up the dirty pot and dumped its contents out beside the boulder. "You will just have to find something else to put your soup in," she smiled as she went off to clean the pot.
"Da soup in r'in now," sighed Souta as he bent down to poke the mush with a stick.
"Yeah, but we can mate it again," Arisa said happily. "We jus' need another pot!" Both children sat down cross-legged to think. What could they use for a pot? And who could they sneak it from? "We can't sneak from my Mama cause we jus' did that. An' we can't sneak from yur Mama cause she alays catches us. Who else is there?" wondered Arisa out loud.
"ME NO! ME NO!" shouted Souta in excitement as he shot to his feet.
Arisa smiled broadly, "Who?"
"Dayday," smiled Souta triumphantly.
"Who?" Arisa asked from confusion. She didn't know anyone in their village that's name sounded like that.
"Dayday," Souta repeated, "Lady tha' is a' my hoose now. She has losa nee' suff."
"Lotsa neat stuff is good!" grinned Arisa while she rubbed her small hands together. They could probably find more things to play with than they knew what to do with. "Let's go!" she squealed as she ran at top speed towards the Higurashi hut.
"Weigh fo' me," called Souta as he ran after his best friend.
~**~
Kagome had been walking for quite some time. Judging by the position of the sun, it had been two or three hours. She had been walking in a rough circle but still hadn't completed it.
Only a few minor youkai had bothered her, each of which she had taken down with a skilled hand teamed with bow and arrow. They were defeated swiftly and without much thought at all. Kagome was too deeply absorbed in her troubles to notice that the youkai seemed to be increasing in numbers. She used to only encounter one youkai every few days, but in just a few hours she had come across a dozen different species of them.
None of that mattered though, at least not to Kagome's conflicted mind. She had gone through every possibility she could think of. And yet, she still wasn't close to a conclusion. She needed help. And since she couldn't turn to either of her parents, there was only Kaede and Sesshomaru to choose from. But that was another problem in itself. She could go to either the possible betrayer or to the unknown. Neither seemed to be better than the other. Maybe she should just talk to the first one she came across.
That sounded like her best bet, so Kagome turned toward the direction of the village. It wasn't far, and she reached the forest's edge in no time. She was only a few huts down from her own, so she started to slowly walk home. Her blue-grey eyes searching every which way for Kaede or Sesshomaru.
A cold wind blew through Kagome's raven black tresses. Most children of the village were outside playing some game to rid the energy gained from the lunch they had had an hour ago. And as she neared her own hut, Kagome wondered what mischief Souta was probably up to. He was always getting himself into trouble. So, he was either neck-deep in trouble, or he'd already been caught.
As she reached the family hut, Kagome mentally noted that she had seen neither hide nor hair of her younger brother. But just as she was about to go inside the hut, suspicious giggles erupted from the small tent that Kaede and Sesshomaru used as a makeshift home till the wedding.
Maybe Kaede was showing Souta and one of his friends something entertaining and magical. Or there was always the option that this was part of Souta's mischief for the day, because those were the giggles of children hiding something.
Kagome turned to go to the tent. She glanced at the two beautifully perfect horses as she passed them. No matter what Souta was doing, as soon as she found out, Kagome still had to go find someone to talk to about her dilemma. As she zeroed in on her destination, Kagome held her breath and tiptoed to the entrance. She opened the door and her blue-grey eyes fell on two children rummaging through Kaede's herbs and potions.
"This stuff is so cool!" squealed Arisa in as quiet a voice she could. She jumped up and down excitedly.
"Me no!" Souta agreed as he held up a small glass vile with a metallic blue powder inside. More giggles consumed them.
Kagome's eyes went wide when she saw what they were doing. "Souta, put that DOWN!" she all but screamed.
Noticing they were caught, Arisa screamed and Souta jumped. The vile flying out of his hands and up into the air above him. He backed away at that same moment to look at who caught them in the act.
Kagome gasped as she saw the vile bounce off the ceiling of the tent and head straight for the hard floor. Reflex took over as she dove to catch the small container. Her hands were outstretched, but she hit the floor the same time the open vile did. And the metallic blue powder covered her from head to toe.
~**~
Kaede walked out of the Higurashi hut just in time to see Kagome yell something and dive to the floor of her tent. She lifted her eyebrow in confusion. That was strange. It wasn't everyday that Kagome missed lunch and was later found diving into other people's place of residence.
Quickening her pace, Kaede made a beeline for her dwelling. As she reached the door, she pushed it open to see Kagome on the floor with metallic blue powder covering her body. Souta and Arisa were cowering in a corner, eyes wide to see both Kagome AND Kaede had found them. Then her old sky-blue eyes fell upon the broken vile on the ground just out of Kagome's reach. Her eyes went wide when she realized what had been inside the vile was now ON Kagome's innocent form.
Kaede dashed to Kagome's side and snatched up the pieces of the vile, "What happened here?" She glared at the frightened children.
"We was jus' playin'," explained Arisa as tears fell down her cheeks.
"Never, and I mean Never 'play' with my potions! Do you realize what you have done to Kagome?" she scolded as her chubby face went red with anger.
All three sets of eyes went to Kagome's form on the floor. She was slowly getting up from her uncomfortable dive. But there was something very strange happening. It seemed as if her whole body was blinking in and out... fading from existence.
Kagome felt it but didn't see anything different herself. It was like all the energy was being sucked from her body. It was hard to stand and soon she found herself on the ground again. She tried to ask Kaede what that potion was, but no words were able to get past her moving lips. Pain started to coarse through her body and she gripped her sides to try to ease it. But that didn't help at all, the pain was like knives stabbing her repeatedly. It was so painful that soon it became numbing and her blue- grey eyes rolled back as she fainted.
"Get out!" Kaede commanded the children when Kagome fell to the floor after just getting up. But when neither Souta nor Arisa moved from their positions, she moved to the and bent down to capture their gazes. Both children slowly looked to the old woman, "I'm going to need you to leave so I can try to help Kagome."
Souta nodded as he reached for Arisa's hand and led her out of the tent. But when they were out, both kids quietly watched from the door.
Kaede moved to Kagome's transparent figure and knelt down to see if she could get the girl's attention. "Kagome," she called soothingly. But the girl didn't seem to notice her. She gripped her sides as if everything hurt at once. Kaede's eyebrows furrowed at this. "Kagome, you must listen to me," she said softly as she placed a hand on the girl's back. At that gesture Kagome arched her back and seemed to cry out in pain, even though no sound came out. And then she fell into a clump on the floor. Kaede retracted her hand. Opting for the less painful approach, she sat down cross-legged and waited for the girl to waken.
Not long after, Kagome seemed to stir. She rolled onto her back and vaguely saw Kaede through tear filled blue-grey eyes. "What's happening to me?" she asked inaudibly to the old priestess.
Kaede hadn't heard anything, and could now barely see Kagome at all. But it was still clear to the woman that Kagome had woken and was now confused with her painful condition. Knowing the girl could hear her even though it could not be said for Kagome, Kaede did her best to tell her what was going to happen and for how long. She cleared her throat, "Kagome, I know you are in a great deal of pain, but I need you to listen to me very carefully! First of all, the potion that was spilled all over you is called 'Shikon powder.' It is a powerful concoction that was under my protection. I didn't mean for you to bear its curse. But now that you do, I fear you must know what it does."
Kaede watched as Kagome's figure completely disappeared from view. All that was left was empty space. Although she couldn't see her, Kaede knew that she was still there. So she continued, "Shikon powder makes anything it touches invisible. I had it in a magical vile so it wouldn't look too suspicious to anyone else. But the curse on the powder is that when it is put on a human, or youkai for that matter, it goes through the painful process of making that person invisible. The pain you are feeling will go away as you get used to being invisible. You may notice nothing different about yourself, but in reality, no one can see, hear or even feel you. You are like a ghost. And the problem is that the powder is connected with the amount put on you. When I saw you, most of the contents from the vile were on you solely. This is a major problem because this amount has never been used before. And since the powder is linked with the amount, that means that the more powder on a human, the longer that person will be... inexistent in a word."
Kagome listened to every word in painful silence. She could feel the pain subsiding, but the words that were sinking in seemed to make that pain explode twice over.
Kaede sighed sadly as she moved from her spot on the ground to her open bag full of potions. "There is only one thing I can do to help you in this," she said as she reached for a small bag filled with some pink liquid. "I must do this before your pain is completely gone, otherwise you will continue to age and never die. And I fear that this curse will last one hundred years or more. I have one chance, and one chance only to do this, so if you will remain completely still for a moment Kagome."
"Like that'll be hard," Kagome said to herself sarcastically as she remained grasping her sides on the floor.
Kaede moved to where she remembered seeing Kagome last. She opened the small bag and began to carefully sprinkle the pink liquid on the girl. The liquid seemed to suspend in the air for a moment, making an outline of Kagome's body, before it completely disappeared. Once the liquid was all gone, Kaede began to say a chant,
"Vanished from all existence,
Aging from curse's lips,
With this tonic,
Freeze youth's vitality,
Till time of curse lifted,
Kagome forever be young.
Vanished from all existence,
Aging from curse's lips,
With this tonic,
Freeze youth's vitality,
Till time of curse lifted,
Kagome forever be young."
As Kagome listened to Kaede's chant, she started to feel lightheaded. Her stomach felt like it was doing flip-flops. She could even sense the pain slightly fade away.
Once Kaede was finished she sighed and went to put her small bag back in its proper place. "I've given you your youth. Whenever the curse wears off, you will still be just as young as you are today. It's the least I can do for you for not telling you about the secret your parents hold. I'll do my best to explain to everyone what happened here tonight. For now, you might want to become accustomed to this curse as best you can.
A/N: Well, there you are folks. Chapter 2 is officially done... although I hope there isn't as many mistakes as were in chapter 1. And I must apologize for that, I think I was a little exclamation-point-happy. ^_^' But I've gone back through it and fixed all those mistakes. I promise to be more careful when it comes to exclamation points. I've also changed the summary for this ficcy cause I felt that it was a little too... let's just say I also thought it didn't quite fit. Oh, and I decided to say a little thanx to everyone who did review my previous chapter of this ficcy. And here they are...
thetamind: Thank-you so much for being the first person to review this ficcy. And I also thank you for giving your opinion on who you want Kagome to end up with! I'm a Kag/Inu fan myself. Oh, and since I KNOW you haven't even watched the anime yet, I have one thing to say to you... WATCH IT NOW! YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE MISSING YOU SILLY BOY! (if anyone else is actually reading this, yes, I do actually know this person so I can act super strange when I talk to him! ...opps there I go again with the exclamation points... sorry.)
RedHerring: Thanx for reviewing. And I must say that this is a 'fanfiction' so I can do what I want with it. My plan is to have Seshy have puppy ears when he's young. Remember, he's a full youkai, so he'll live for hundreds of years... opps, I think I've given away too much as it is... so thanx again for the nice review.
Roze: Thanx for your review and the vote. I do like Inu/Kag pairing too, just wanted to see what others thought. And I do agree about the summary thing. I've decided to change it, so hopefully the new one you see is a better sounding one... and hopefully you find that it does match my ficcy a bit more.
Lord-Hiei: I thank you for reviewing. And you did make your point with all the I/K's. And I don't think I can apologize enough for the exclamation points in chapter 1. It's an embarrassment and I'll try my best not to let it happen again. And there is a reason for Sesshomaru's strange happiness in the first chapter. You're just going to have to keep reading to find out what that reason is.
If I missed anyone, please tell me and I'll get to you next time... I promise. And don't forget to review once you're done reading this... it's so I know if anyone's actually taking the time to read my work.
Oh, and if you didn't notice, voting is still up for grabs in case someone wants someone else to end up with Kagome. I'm planning to have Sesshomaru, Inuyasha, Miroku, Kouga, and Hojo in this fic, so these are your choices... and even if you want Naraku and for some reason I put him in this ficcy, I WILL NOT PAIR HIM WITH KAGOME. It's against my beliefs... plus I hate him!
KrysTheAngel ^_^
April 2004