Disclaimers: All the characters (except the snake youkai) belong to Takahashi Rumiko. All I own are the expensive plushies I splurge on. ::cuddles the hard to find Sesshie plushie::
Thanks to:
KawaiiAngel – Yup, this is a strictly Sess x Kag pairing. I hope that you'll continue to read. So enjoy!
Shikome kido mi – Thanks for the compliment! I do try to keep the fic as readable and appealing as possible. I hope this chapter will give you a little more to chew on.
Crash – Loved your fic! I'm flattered that you think mine has promise. I mustn't disappoint then! Yeah, spelling and grammar can either make or break a fic or any reading material for that matter. That's why I take some time to post each chapter, the editing takes just as long as the actual writing.
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Chapter 1: On The Other Side of the Well
Later that night…
Kagome couldn't sleep. Something was nagging at the back of her mind but she couldn't figure out what it was. It didn't help matters that the recently clear night sky was now overcast with dark clouds skidding across the pale crescent moon. Grumbling softly, she tossed and turned trying to get comfortable so that sleep could come faster. The wind had picked up and she almost jumped out of her skin when a mournful howl came in through her window. Jerking up, she reached to turn on the light when she felt the strange feeling return. Swallowing at the creepy sensation, Kagome slipped out of bed and slowly crept to the window. Peeking through the curtains, she found herself looking at the well shed.
As much as she wanted to tear her eyes away from it, she remained transfixed. There appeared to be something different about it. It seemed to beckon her, a haunting call that she found herself wanting to answer. At the same time, it also sent a deep chill of foreboding that made her want to bury herself under the covers and hide away till morning. Finally managing to break the spell, Kagome yanked the curtains close and scrambled under her blanket. As for how long she remained there, she had no idea. All she knew was that when she awoke, the morning sun was high in the sky.
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As Kagome swept up the leaves by Goshinboku, she couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. It was making her uncomfortable and she kept looking around trying to find the source of the spying. It was also beginning to irritate her. Kagome was not too shy a girl to run away from a confrontation, and as of this moment, she felt like giving a good thumping to whoever it was that was watching her. As she moved closer to the well shed, she barely paid it any attention. The unsettling feeling from last night had vanished and currently Kagome was more focused on finding the peeping tom that was now starting to anger her.
As she manoeuvred her broom by the shed, a muffled thump sounded from behind the wall. Spinning round, Kagome stared at the dark wooden planks wide-eyed. 'What on earth?' came the thought as she frowned. Attempting to peer through the rickety door, she looked for signs of someone inside.
'Grandpa has forbidden any of us from entering. Mama wouldn't have a reason, Souta's too scared and I'm out here. Could it be Grandpa?'
Pushing the loudly creaking door open, she was about to step in when she felt something grab her hand. Releasing a scream loud enough to almost bring the roof down, she spun around to see what it was. An extremely scared and tearful face looked up at her and Kagome quickly regretted her silly behaviour.
"I'm sorry, Souta. I didn't mean to scream like that. I was just a little startled, that's all," Kagome said as she reached down to brush away her brother's tears and comfort him. The young boy sniffled and gave his sister a petulant pout.
"Why are you so jumpy, onee-san?" Souta asked as he rubbed his eyes. "Mama said you looked rather worried and she sent me to look for you." Looking up at his sister, he once more stared into her face. "Is something wrong, onee-san? Why are you opening the shed door? Grandpa said that we shouldn't enter because it's bad luck." Even as he was saying this, Kagome could feel her brother's hand tightening around hers in worry.
"I thought I heard someone, Souta. I thought maybe Grandpa had gone in to check up on stuff."
"But Grandpa's at the house watching Ripley's Believe It Or Not." Souta's eyes then widened at the realisation and he hid himself behind Kagome. Gently squeezing her brother's hand, Kagome then reached for the door's handle to pull it shut. It was at that moment that she saw what was in the shed watching her.
Screaming loudly, she instinctively shoved her brother backwards and out of the creature's reach. Souta's eyes were now as large as saucers and he too, opened his mouth to scream in terror as the monster grabbed his sister around the waist. Kagome struggled in the monster's grip and yelled for him to run away. Screaming for his mother, Souta scrambled away, his small legs struggling to take him away from the monster and towards help.
"Let me go! Help! Help! Mama! Grandpa, help me!" Kagome cried out at the top of her lungs as she struggled frantically in the monster's grip. Distantly, she heard her mother's cries of fear and horror and her Grandfather's frantic chanting of some strange mantra. The monster had retreated towards the well and Kagome saw a strange blue light emanating from it. Somehow, she felt that if she were to enter it, she would not be able to return. That fear lent her further strength.
"Let me go, NOW!"
Shoving her hand into its grotesque parody of a face, she felt a surge of energy coursing through her. The monster shrieked in agony and released her. For a moment, Kagome felt relief flooding her before realising that she was suspended over the well. Without the creature's grip about her, she began to fall. In that instant, she saw her family's faces with fear and terror plastered across, before the sides of the well blocked her view of them.
'Oh god, NO!!!'
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Southern territory of the Western Lands,
Sengoku Jidai
Sesshoumaru paused as his keen senses alerted him to a sudden change in the forest's calm. There appeared nothing out of the ordinary, but the youkai lord knew better. Narrowing his amber eyes, he methodically scoured the forest about him. It was neither youkai nor human although he could pick up subtle traces of their fading stench. No, it was something else entirely. And Sesshoumaru hated not knowing what it was.
"Jaken, watch the pack beast," was his curt command to the small toad-like creature by his feet.
"Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama," came the high-pitched reply.
Without any further acknowledgement of his minion, he took off through the trees. As he moved swiftly through the forest, he felt the faint energy pulses strengthening in intensity. Slowing down, he then proceeded carefully to the site. It was a small clearing with flowering plants, nothing exceptional. In the centre, there appeared to be a wooden construction covered in a tangle of weeds and vines. It was from this structure that the strange energy pulses were emanating.
Sesshoumaru approached it cautiously, his highly-developed senses ready for any possible attack. He picked up a sound and instinctively went into a battle crouch. The noise grew louder and he waited for it to reveal itself. He then heard what sounded like a grunt of discomfort before a small, slender hand emerged to grip the top of the wooden ledge. He watched on as the other hand joined its partner and the grunting increase in volume. Sesshoumaru was now almost annoyed at what appeared to be a human trying to climb out of the wooden structure. If there hadn't been the energy waves, he would have yanked it out and gutted it for the inconvenience it had caused him.
By now, he could see a dark head coming up over the ledge. It popped up as the human levered its body over the side. An uncovered leg swung over and the person managed to tumble over to land in the weeds by the well's side. Panting in exhaustion, it still refused to acknowledge Sesshoumaru's presence. And that was beginning to irritate the youkai lord. The energy's pulsation was now fading and he briefly wondered why. Not that it mattered. The human had taken up his time and will now pay for it with its life. As he moved closer, he noticed that it was beginning to sit up and take notice of its surroundings.
Pausing, Sesshoumaru waited for it to eventually look in his direction. He might as well get a brief kick out of its terror before ripping its head off. The human pulled itself to its feet and turned around. For a moment, time seemingly stilled as Sesshoumaru took in what appeared to be a strangely, if indecently dressed, human female. He couldn't seem to decide at whether to be mildly amused or disgusted at the human's appearance. He did, however, enjoy the look of fear that had begun to creep over her face. Before she could even blink, he was standing directly in front of her and watched as her eyes widened further.
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Kagome felt that this had to be the worst day of her life. First that uncomfortable feeling of being watched, to the appearance of that horrible monster grabbing her, before her tumbling into the glowing well while hearing her family cry out in fear. When she realised that she had stopped falling and now lying on the dirt floor, she found that she had to climb out of the well with nothing but the various weeds and roots to help her. After what seemed like an eternity of climbing (she never could pass the rope-climbing test in gym class), she finally tumbled out into the open. But it wasn't the wooden floor of the shed. Instead, it was a sunny clearing in the middle of a forest.
Her mind was still frantically scrambling to process what had happened when she felt a prickle at the back of her head. Pulling herself up, she slowly turned to see a very traditionally dressed long-haired man with what looked like a fur mantle over his shoulder eyeing her with an unnerving intensity. She couldn't see his face too clearly but his demeanour appeared to be anything but friendly. Feeling fear washing into her, she was about to open her mouth to speak when he suddenly appeared right in front of her. Eyes now goggling, Kagome felt the beginnings of a full-blown terror start within her.
But before anything could happen, there was a sudden tremble under their feet that caused her to tumble forward into him. Startled at the sudden contact, he stiffened and was about to shove her away when the monster burst out into the open from the well. Leaping backwards gracefully, the man brought Kagome with him before silently taking in the monster's appearance. Kagome turned around and gasped as she finally saw the monster in the clear light of day. It looked like a huge snake with clawed appendages protruding from its body. Cruel red eyes focused on her and its mouth widened in a twisted smirk. Unconsciously, her grip tightened in the folds of the man's clothing and she whimpered faintly in fear.
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Sesshoumaru inwardly cursed his poor attention to the situation and glared at the youkai that had interrupted his sport. He heard the female whimper and the sudden clenching of her hands in the folds of his kimono. Somehow, the sound provoked an unusual response within him and he felt a sudden inexplicable need to protect her. A part of him wanted to analyse this odd instinct but his more practical side dictated his attention to the fight that was coming. Eyeing the youkai with cool disdain, he then realised that the girl was the target. As to its fascination with the female, Sesshoumaru guessed that she would appear to be a tasty enough morsel. But it wasn't important though, the youkai was a walking corpse.
Tugging the girl from him, he gently shoved her to the ground out of the way. She barely responded and simply accepted the abrupt dismissal. Ignoring her, Sesshoumaru now focused on the monster before him.
"Give me the girl, inu youkai," came the guttural hiss from the monster. "She is mine to devour."
Sesshoumaru refused to respond. He watched as the snake youkai hiss in fury and prepared to attack. Since his arrival at the well, Sesshoumaru had been spoiling for a fight. It seemed that he would not be disappointed. The snake youkai hissed in anger once more and levelled a strike at the youkai lord. It hit the ground with a force that sent the earth spraying high into the air. Twisting its head about, it searched for the suddenly elusive inu youkai. There was a pale flash and the snake youkai howled in agony as its body was neatly cleaved in two, the bloody spray not touching its attacker. Landing lightly on his feet by the stunned human, Sesshoumaru briefly assessed the success of his attack.
Satisfied, he turned away to once more focus his attention on the girl sprawled at his feet. As he looked down at her, she appeared to be staring fascinated at the remains of the snake youkai. Reaching down, he grabbed her by the scruff of her neck thereby forcing her to get to her feet. Choking at the firm hold he had about her neck, Kagome automatically lashed out. Catching her wrist easily, he was a little surprised at her sudden violent response. Releasing her neck, he instead tightened his grip on her wrist in warning. She winced in pain and she looked up at him as fear and anger warred within the unusual storm grey depths of her eyes.
'The foolish human is actually angry with me,' Sesshoumaru thought and it intrigued him. None that he knew of, save his late father, had ever shown that emotion without paying for it with their lives. Narrowing his amber eyes to intimidate her, he tightened his grip on her further. He heard her gasp and she reached up to grab at his offending hand. Vaguely, Sesshoumaru wondered why he was even bothering with the female but then he felt the pulsing of that energy once more. Growling low in his throat, he turned to the well and tried to locate the source.
"Let go! You're hurting me!" Kagome cried out as she tried to struggle from the youkai's iron grip. But remembering how he had easily killed the monster with nothing more than a savage swipe of his right hand, Kagome was willing to bet that he too, was a monster. Even if a rather handsome one. 'Stop that!' her mind scolded her. 'Thinking about how handsome he looks when he's about ready to rip your arm off is NOT what you should be worrying about!'
Easily ignoring her cries of pain, Sesshoumaru allowed his senses to flow out and search for the source. It was so close but where? Growling at the futility, he realised that the female had now quietened down. The energy was close by, and it appeared to be thrumming with an anxiety. Frowning, Sesshoumaru then glanced at the girl. She was breathing unevenly and as he watched, two trails of clear liquid started to stream down. The drooping shoulders and head indicated that she was resigning herself to her fate. Satisfied at her silence, Sesshoumaru tried to pinpoint the source of the energy once more.
The energy pulses fascinated him on a level he couldn't quite explain. As much as he wanted to dismiss it, it called to him. Now, it had slowed down and possessed a feeling of melancholy. It attracted him and in some deep corner of his mind, it pulled at memories he had refused to acknowledge for a long time. Faint sniffles were now coming from the girl and Sesshoumaru growled low in his throat once more. The damn energy was so close, almost as though it was with him. It wasn't the well and definitely not the dead youkai so that left… Sesshoumaru's eyes widened in realisation.
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Kagome tried to keep her sobbing quiet. She didn't want to cry but the events of the day were beginning to tell on her. Also her worry and fears for her family were now pressing down on her and she was beginning to feel sick at the thought of how they fared. The other great fear was whether she could even return home. After falling into the well, she had carried the hope that perhaps all of this was a nightmare that she would soon wake up from but it was not to be. The cruel grip of the youkai holding her made sure of it. And Kagome couldn't help but feel herself resign to the fact that these were most likely her last few moments alive.
Sesshoumaru stared at the girl in shock as the pieces began falling into place. The energy had appeared only when she had and aside from the distraction of the snake youkai, had once more begun when he was alone with her. How could this human possess such a power? An incredible power that had called out to him from over five miles away. Sesshoumaru did not tolerate such curiosities. As he looked down at the girl contemplating on his discovery, she had turned her face up to look into his. He took in the tear-stained cheeks and grief-clouded eyes, absentmindedly wondering how she could look so frail and yet contain such power. It was only when she spoke that he was pulled out of his thoughts.
"Please let me return home to my family. I really don't know what's happening but I don't want to die. I just want to go home." Kagome couldn't help but to choke back a sob as she spoke. She could barely see his clear golden eyes through her tears but felt the grip on her wrist loosen. She didn't pull free but waited for him to let her go on his own.
The female's eyes drew him in. They were so full of emotion and it captivated him. He had rarely had any opportunity to indulge in this curiosity and now she provided him with many. His grip loosened unconsciously but she didn't pull away. She waited for him to let her go instead. 'Intelligent wench.'
The energy emanating from her tickled his senses and Sesshoumaru made a decision. This strange female from the well held secrets that he, Sesshoumaru, wanted to uncover. If her power was truly potent, he had no wish to see it fall into any of the other youkai's hands. Sesshoumaru was assured in his abilities to protect his lands from any foolish youkai who challenged him, but he wasn't stupid in assuming that he was invulnerable. And the last thing that the Lord of the Western Lands wanted, was a powered-up youkai challenging him for his heritage. No, the girl would remain under his control until he had sated his curiosity regarding her powers.
Besides, she didn't smell as bad as the other humans who'd had the misfortune of crossing his path. It was actually rather pleasant.
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Author's Notes: I had actually planned to post it together with the Prologue but realised that I hadn't checked it for grammar and any accidental errors. It was certainly a long chapter to write. While I try not to write beyond 2500 words per chapter, things don't always work out according to plan. Besides, overly short chapters really irritate me. Before I get a chance to settle into the story, I have to on to the next one. Ah well, to each their own. I've had some people complain that my chapters are a too long. There's no pleasing everyone, right? So please yourself, and hope to find like-minded individuals.
Okay, so Sess and Kag don't seem too much in character but then, I'm attempting something different. It's an Inuyasha Alternate Universe story. There will be NO Inu Yasha and maybe a few other characters. I don't want to spoil it too much as the story will move along on its own. Since Inuyasha is largely action-oriented, it'll be a little harder to include all the drama and characterisation bits. Uh huh, very different from my Weiss Kreuz fic – Dark Moon Ascendant. [A multi-arc fic : 1 down, 2 to go… Yes!]
I hope that you will take time to review this fic. I've got plans for this and would love to finish it. You must motivate me by letting me know what you think of it. Anyway, I'll leave off here until the next chapter. Ja ne!
~ Bern. (April 2003)