This Rose of Velvet
Chapter Five: Preparations for Battle
Sesshoumaru came to school early, and with two lunches. 'Why am I doing this?' he asked himself repeatedly, grimacing at the thought of being so caring and nice. 'Oh, well. Kagome, if anyone, deserves it.'
The teacher was yelling into the phone when the young boy waltzed in.
"I don't care who she is, I will not tolerate this kind of behavior in the homes of my students! It's wrong and... and disgusting!" There was a pause. "Which hospital? Meriku? Fine. No, I don't want a parent-teacher conference. No." With a curt "Goodbye," Miroku slammed the phone into its cradle.
Turning around in his chair, he met Sesshoumaru's surprised gaze. "Oh, Mr. Sesshoumaru... please sit down." He waved wearily at desks.
Sesshoumaru willed the horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach away. He needed strength for this. "What happened?"
"It's nothing you need to concern yourself over," was his response. Then, "But I've seen you with her at lunch... so, I'll tell you. But this should remain confidential."
Impatient, Sesshoumaru fidgeted, his eyes narrowed at the teacher's back dangerously. "Tell me what happened."
"Kagome..." Miroku turned around to look at Sesshoumaru again, his face drawn and haggard. "She's been hospitalized. Her family..." Before he could finish, the door slammed. Sesshoumaru was out of the room and running.
'Meriku. Meriku. Meriku,' his mind chanted relentlessly as his feet pounded the pavement. He knew the hospital to be about twenty city blocks away. He could make it easily within twenty minutes, should he keep running.
The problem was running at a slow enough pace to not attract human attention.
"Kikyo! Kikyo, will you wait up!"
Kikyo flipped her bangs out of her eyes and smiled prettily as she turned to meet InuYasha. He was slightly out of breath, and his eyebrows were furrowed from worry. "Yes, InuYasha?"
"Is it true? Is it?"
Her smile slipped fractionally, and her gaze became piercing. "Is what true?"
"I heard from Atsushi who heard from Reiko who was listening outside the door of Kagome's classroom that Kagome's been hospitalized! Is it true?"
Anger simmered in the pit of her stomach at the thought of her wretched sister, her sister standing up at the table and throwing accusations at Kikyo. Her sister beseeching her equally wretched father. And InuYasha! Worried? "Why?"
"I'm worried, is why! What happened to her?"
"You're worried about her?"
InuYasha gave her a puppy-esque confused look. "What? No! No, Kikyo... I'm worried about you. Do you realize what could happen if the media gets ahold of this? It'll have to go to the government, who will have to take steps." He paused, grasping her shoulders. "If Fori gets incarcerated for this, the entire Higurashi family could get deported."
Panic gripped Kikyo, its bony fingers wrapping about her lungs and squeezing. She jerked out of her boyfriend's grip and stared at him. "Deported? For that? But it's... nobody has ever stopped Fori before!"
"I know... but if the public demands it, they may even behead her. Either way... you'll be away from me." His voice cracked on the last word, and Kikyo gave him a disgusted look.
"Stop worrying about your own sorry hide," she snapped. "Come on. We have to get this to Fori; now."
Sesshoumaru unsuccessfully tried to calm himself. If his blood boiled any more, he may just go demon on this woman. "Listen. You will tell me where her room is, and you will allow me to visit her immediately."
"I'm afraid that's not possible," the secretary insisted primly, filing her nails.
He reached out and wrapped the front of her dress about his fist, pulling her to him roughly. He managed to keep the demon at bay, just barely, but he knew his eyes would be tinged red at the edges. "Do you have any idea who my father is? InuTaisho."
"R-room N-355," she stammered, her face pale in fear.
He dropped her, and left her fixing her mussed hair. Speeding around a corner, he almost ran into a cart toted by a nurse. She yelled at him as he disappeared down the corridor.
N-350. Sesshoumaru ran on.
"I need to speak with Fori Higurashi," Kikyo demanded as she walked into a building, dragging InuYasha behind her.
The receptionist looked up briefly, skimming down Kikyo's disheveled school outfit before nodding. "Certainly, Miss Kikyo. I'll buzz her immediately."
"Thank you."
He was outside her door now. 'I even feel foolish for running. Of course she's not going anywhere.'
It didn't matter, of course. Kagome was hurt, and as much as it pained Sesshoumaru to admit it, he had begun to consider her very good company. Silence and all. It was as if her very presence calmed him.
Taking a deep breath, he opened the door and stepped in.
There she lay, beaten and broken. Half of her face was covered in bruised, and her cheeks and forehead were laced with cuts and scraped. He couldn't gauge the damage under her blanket, but it had to be quite sufficient for her to be in Meriku. The bags of liquid and machinery she was hooked up to beeped occasionally, causing Sesshoumaru to flinch.
Before he knew it, he was over her, his shaking hands tracing the outline of her face, brushing her hair from her face, smoothing her brow. A scar traced itself from her ear down her neck. It disappeared under the blanket.
Sesshoumaru didn't dare look under the piece of cloth covering her. Contenting himself with being near her, he sat down on a chair next to the bed and waited. After a few minutes, he gingerly removed her arm from the confines of the blanket and held her hand softly. Rope-burns circled her wrists, and the same bruises and cuts covered a good portion of her arm.
Laying his head down on her bed, he held her hand to his cheek. There, he drifted into a shallow sleep.
Yumiko straightened her slim white dress as she walked down the corridor. She checked in on every room as she passed them. N-355's door was open, however. 'Odd.'
She opened it further, leaning in to survey whatever oddities were progressing in here. A head of long, white hair lay on the bed next to the Higurashi girl, and a delicate hand clutched at Higurashi's fervently. Yumiko felt her heart tighten.
Higurashi, Kagome. A severe-looking blonde woman who looked to be twenty- five or so had brought her in. "She fell," the woman offered brusquely, her eyes daring Yumiko to argue.
Higurashi had bruises covering seventy percent of her body, and cuts interlaced all the dark patches. Her arm had disconnected with the shoulder and had been that way for quite a while by the time she made it to Meriku. Her left hand was broken in four places, and both her knees had hairline fractures. Her right side seemed to have rug burns going from her shoulder blade to mid-thigh.
The blonde had obviously been powerful, for the head-nurse immediately took Kagome and accepted the half-hearted explanation.
What's more, Yumiko found as she looked through Higurashi's file, was that the girl had scars all over her body as well. Older scars, some ten years or more.
'I wonder who that girl is,' she thought, then closed the door softly as she left N-355. Visitors weren't allowed at this time, and certainly not to that girl, and Yumiko knew she would be fired if her supervisors found out.
And yet, she left that wing with her conscience feeling the best it ever had.
"I see," Fori murmured. "I think I've enough power, and your father has more than enough, to cover this up quite nicely. Don't worry too much about it, Kikyo, dear."
Suddenly, the phone rang. The blonde woman picked it up and answered with a sweet, "Fori Higurashi speaking." There was a long silence, and Fori's expression changed drastically to one of anger. "I specifically said she was to have no visitors!"
"I thought she didn't have friends," InuYasha muttered out of the corner of his mouth.
"She doesn't," Kikyo responded, frowning.
"I see. I... I see. Thank you." Forced calmness fell across her features as she pinned InuYasha with a heady glare. "It seems your brother has paid my daughter a visit."
InuYasha stood so quickly his chair fell backwards. Mouth agape, he stared at Fori unbelievingly. "He wouldn't. He wouldn't! He hates hu..." His eyes flickered to Kikyo. "He hates everyone." He shook his head, knowing that it couldn't be true. "Someone must be impersonating him."
"No, she was quite clear on how he looked. It is Sesshoumaru," Fori said gravely. "InuTaisho's spawn, if he is indeed friendly with Kagome, could make this... difficult. Especially if he fights us. InuYasha, for Kikyo's sake, you must keep your brother quiet, and without alerting your father."
Dumbfounded, InuYasha could do nothing but nod. Kikyo stood, now, and faced InuYasha angrily. "Your brother? That evil... thing you're related to?" Her cheeks turned pink from anger, and her mouth was pinched together.
He offered her an apologetic look, although he knew he had nothing to apologize for. "I didn't know, Kikyo."
"You had better make him keep his trap shut, InuYasha," Kikyo warned, then turned and stalked out of the office.
InuYasha looked at Fori awkwardly, then followed his girlfriend faithfully.
In the darkness, she was only aware of one thing.
Hurt.
Oh, Gods, how she hurt. All over. Deep down, she knew something was numbing the pain, but all the same she could feel the ache against her bones, like a rubber hammer beating into her again and again. Immobilized, she let out a small whimper, only to have the darkness swallow it up.
Slowly, she became aware of a dim light ahead of her. Fighting her way towards it, she ignored the increasing pain as she threw herself out of the darkness.
Her eyelids came open with much effort. Blinking made her want to wince; wincing made her wish she was dead. Turning her head, with much difficulty on her stiff neck, she became aware also of a small, hesitant warmth from her hand. Looking at her hand, she saw a familiar head of white hair laying next to her.
Sesshoumaru.
She tried to say his name, but could only croak softly. It was enough. His eyelids fluttered open like birds amidst sunrise, and his golden eyes immediately sought her blue ones. Regaining memory of the predicament, his eyes shot open as he shot up into a standing position.
"Kagome!"
Weakly, she smiled at him. Ignoring the throbbing discomfort that accompanied the effort, she smiled wider to make him more at ease.
It didn't work. His eyes glistened with unshed tears as he looked at her. Slowly, his hands reached for her face, and feather-light touches flew over her skin. She leaned into one palm, her cheek coming into more solid contact with his skin.
"Do you hurt?" The inquiry was soft, so soft she barely heard it.
She nodded once. "Y... yes. I hurt." Her voice worked, to her surprise. "But the drugs calm it down a bit."
"I won't let this continue." His voice was ragged, fluctuating wildly between calm and hysterical. "I'll make it stop. This can't keep happening."
"How?"
"I'll... I'll get my father to help me."
=========================
A/N
Not a lot of action in this onnneee. But some loveydovey scenes, yay!
Chapter Five: Preparations for Battle
Sesshoumaru came to school early, and with two lunches. 'Why am I doing this?' he asked himself repeatedly, grimacing at the thought of being so caring and nice. 'Oh, well. Kagome, if anyone, deserves it.'
The teacher was yelling into the phone when the young boy waltzed in.
"I don't care who she is, I will not tolerate this kind of behavior in the homes of my students! It's wrong and... and disgusting!" There was a pause. "Which hospital? Meriku? Fine. No, I don't want a parent-teacher conference. No." With a curt "Goodbye," Miroku slammed the phone into its cradle.
Turning around in his chair, he met Sesshoumaru's surprised gaze. "Oh, Mr. Sesshoumaru... please sit down." He waved wearily at desks.
Sesshoumaru willed the horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach away. He needed strength for this. "What happened?"
"It's nothing you need to concern yourself over," was his response. Then, "But I've seen you with her at lunch... so, I'll tell you. But this should remain confidential."
Impatient, Sesshoumaru fidgeted, his eyes narrowed at the teacher's back dangerously. "Tell me what happened."
"Kagome..." Miroku turned around to look at Sesshoumaru again, his face drawn and haggard. "She's been hospitalized. Her family..." Before he could finish, the door slammed. Sesshoumaru was out of the room and running.
'Meriku. Meriku. Meriku,' his mind chanted relentlessly as his feet pounded the pavement. He knew the hospital to be about twenty city blocks away. He could make it easily within twenty minutes, should he keep running.
The problem was running at a slow enough pace to not attract human attention.
"Kikyo! Kikyo, will you wait up!"
Kikyo flipped her bangs out of her eyes and smiled prettily as she turned to meet InuYasha. He was slightly out of breath, and his eyebrows were furrowed from worry. "Yes, InuYasha?"
"Is it true? Is it?"
Her smile slipped fractionally, and her gaze became piercing. "Is what true?"
"I heard from Atsushi who heard from Reiko who was listening outside the door of Kagome's classroom that Kagome's been hospitalized! Is it true?"
Anger simmered in the pit of her stomach at the thought of her wretched sister, her sister standing up at the table and throwing accusations at Kikyo. Her sister beseeching her equally wretched father. And InuYasha! Worried? "Why?"
"I'm worried, is why! What happened to her?"
"You're worried about her?"
InuYasha gave her a puppy-esque confused look. "What? No! No, Kikyo... I'm worried about you. Do you realize what could happen if the media gets ahold of this? It'll have to go to the government, who will have to take steps." He paused, grasping her shoulders. "If Fori gets incarcerated for this, the entire Higurashi family could get deported."
Panic gripped Kikyo, its bony fingers wrapping about her lungs and squeezing. She jerked out of her boyfriend's grip and stared at him. "Deported? For that? But it's... nobody has ever stopped Fori before!"
"I know... but if the public demands it, they may even behead her. Either way... you'll be away from me." His voice cracked on the last word, and Kikyo gave him a disgusted look.
"Stop worrying about your own sorry hide," she snapped. "Come on. We have to get this to Fori; now."
Sesshoumaru unsuccessfully tried to calm himself. If his blood boiled any more, he may just go demon on this woman. "Listen. You will tell me where her room is, and you will allow me to visit her immediately."
"I'm afraid that's not possible," the secretary insisted primly, filing her nails.
He reached out and wrapped the front of her dress about his fist, pulling her to him roughly. He managed to keep the demon at bay, just barely, but he knew his eyes would be tinged red at the edges. "Do you have any idea who my father is? InuTaisho."
"R-room N-355," she stammered, her face pale in fear.
He dropped her, and left her fixing her mussed hair. Speeding around a corner, he almost ran into a cart toted by a nurse. She yelled at him as he disappeared down the corridor.
N-350. Sesshoumaru ran on.
"I need to speak with Fori Higurashi," Kikyo demanded as she walked into a building, dragging InuYasha behind her.
The receptionist looked up briefly, skimming down Kikyo's disheveled school outfit before nodding. "Certainly, Miss Kikyo. I'll buzz her immediately."
"Thank you."
He was outside her door now. 'I even feel foolish for running. Of course she's not going anywhere.'
It didn't matter, of course. Kagome was hurt, and as much as it pained Sesshoumaru to admit it, he had begun to consider her very good company. Silence and all. It was as if her very presence calmed him.
Taking a deep breath, he opened the door and stepped in.
There she lay, beaten and broken. Half of her face was covered in bruised, and her cheeks and forehead were laced with cuts and scraped. He couldn't gauge the damage under her blanket, but it had to be quite sufficient for her to be in Meriku. The bags of liquid and machinery she was hooked up to beeped occasionally, causing Sesshoumaru to flinch.
Before he knew it, he was over her, his shaking hands tracing the outline of her face, brushing her hair from her face, smoothing her brow. A scar traced itself from her ear down her neck. It disappeared under the blanket.
Sesshoumaru didn't dare look under the piece of cloth covering her. Contenting himself with being near her, he sat down on a chair next to the bed and waited. After a few minutes, he gingerly removed her arm from the confines of the blanket and held her hand softly. Rope-burns circled her wrists, and the same bruises and cuts covered a good portion of her arm.
Laying his head down on her bed, he held her hand to his cheek. There, he drifted into a shallow sleep.
Yumiko straightened her slim white dress as she walked down the corridor. She checked in on every room as she passed them. N-355's door was open, however. 'Odd.'
She opened it further, leaning in to survey whatever oddities were progressing in here. A head of long, white hair lay on the bed next to the Higurashi girl, and a delicate hand clutched at Higurashi's fervently. Yumiko felt her heart tighten.
Higurashi, Kagome. A severe-looking blonde woman who looked to be twenty- five or so had brought her in. "She fell," the woman offered brusquely, her eyes daring Yumiko to argue.
Higurashi had bruises covering seventy percent of her body, and cuts interlaced all the dark patches. Her arm had disconnected with the shoulder and had been that way for quite a while by the time she made it to Meriku. Her left hand was broken in four places, and both her knees had hairline fractures. Her right side seemed to have rug burns going from her shoulder blade to mid-thigh.
The blonde had obviously been powerful, for the head-nurse immediately took Kagome and accepted the half-hearted explanation.
What's more, Yumiko found as she looked through Higurashi's file, was that the girl had scars all over her body as well. Older scars, some ten years or more.
'I wonder who that girl is,' she thought, then closed the door softly as she left N-355. Visitors weren't allowed at this time, and certainly not to that girl, and Yumiko knew she would be fired if her supervisors found out.
And yet, she left that wing with her conscience feeling the best it ever had.
"I see," Fori murmured. "I think I've enough power, and your father has more than enough, to cover this up quite nicely. Don't worry too much about it, Kikyo, dear."
Suddenly, the phone rang. The blonde woman picked it up and answered with a sweet, "Fori Higurashi speaking." There was a long silence, and Fori's expression changed drastically to one of anger. "I specifically said she was to have no visitors!"
"I thought she didn't have friends," InuYasha muttered out of the corner of his mouth.
"She doesn't," Kikyo responded, frowning.
"I see. I... I see. Thank you." Forced calmness fell across her features as she pinned InuYasha with a heady glare. "It seems your brother has paid my daughter a visit."
InuYasha stood so quickly his chair fell backwards. Mouth agape, he stared at Fori unbelievingly. "He wouldn't. He wouldn't! He hates hu..." His eyes flickered to Kikyo. "He hates everyone." He shook his head, knowing that it couldn't be true. "Someone must be impersonating him."
"No, she was quite clear on how he looked. It is Sesshoumaru," Fori said gravely. "InuTaisho's spawn, if he is indeed friendly with Kagome, could make this... difficult. Especially if he fights us. InuYasha, for Kikyo's sake, you must keep your brother quiet, and without alerting your father."
Dumbfounded, InuYasha could do nothing but nod. Kikyo stood, now, and faced InuYasha angrily. "Your brother? That evil... thing you're related to?" Her cheeks turned pink from anger, and her mouth was pinched together.
He offered her an apologetic look, although he knew he had nothing to apologize for. "I didn't know, Kikyo."
"You had better make him keep his trap shut, InuYasha," Kikyo warned, then turned and stalked out of the office.
InuYasha looked at Fori awkwardly, then followed his girlfriend faithfully.
In the darkness, she was only aware of one thing.
Hurt.
Oh, Gods, how she hurt. All over. Deep down, she knew something was numbing the pain, but all the same she could feel the ache against her bones, like a rubber hammer beating into her again and again. Immobilized, she let out a small whimper, only to have the darkness swallow it up.
Slowly, she became aware of a dim light ahead of her. Fighting her way towards it, she ignored the increasing pain as she threw herself out of the darkness.
Her eyelids came open with much effort. Blinking made her want to wince; wincing made her wish she was dead. Turning her head, with much difficulty on her stiff neck, she became aware also of a small, hesitant warmth from her hand. Looking at her hand, she saw a familiar head of white hair laying next to her.
Sesshoumaru.
She tried to say his name, but could only croak softly. It was enough. His eyelids fluttered open like birds amidst sunrise, and his golden eyes immediately sought her blue ones. Regaining memory of the predicament, his eyes shot open as he shot up into a standing position.
"Kagome!"
Weakly, she smiled at him. Ignoring the throbbing discomfort that accompanied the effort, she smiled wider to make him more at ease.
It didn't work. His eyes glistened with unshed tears as he looked at her. Slowly, his hands reached for her face, and feather-light touches flew over her skin. She leaned into one palm, her cheek coming into more solid contact with his skin.
"Do you hurt?" The inquiry was soft, so soft she barely heard it.
She nodded once. "Y... yes. I hurt." Her voice worked, to her surprise. "But the drugs calm it down a bit."
"I won't let this continue." His voice was ragged, fluctuating wildly between calm and hysterical. "I'll make it stop. This can't keep happening."
"How?"
"I'll... I'll get my father to help me."
=========================
A/N
Not a lot of action in this onnneee. But some loveydovey scenes, yay!