Title: Another's Name, But My Heart

By Lady of the Ink

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, but you knew that. I hope. But I do own this plot and all the twists that it takes.

General Reminder:

All references to Kikyo mean Kagome unless that section is in Kaede, Kagome, or the real Kikyo's POV.

.

.

Chapter Fourteen

Two Steps Behind

.

.

.

For Kagome, it was a day she'd never likely forget. The trauma of literally stumbling over a seriously injured boy in the woods had made a strong impression on her mind. His youth and slight resemblance to her brother made that impression even stronger. In the short amount of time between Shippo's departure to seek help and Inuyasha's arrival to deliver it, she had connected him to Souta, and thus his condition was of extreme importance to her.

She knew that it wasn't wise to care so much. The first good reason was that if someone questioned her concern, she couldn't give them an honest answer. Kikyo had no brother, and therefore wouldn't be drawn to someone who was of a similar age and build. The second reason was the sheer number and severity of the wounds he had suffered. She had had the opportunity to get a close look while she was alone with him and what she had seen shook her to the core. Even as she made an attempt at stemming the flow of blood, she knew he might already be a lost cause.

Following Inuyasha as he carried his burden back to the castle, she found it hard to keep her questions to herself. The hanyou's short replies helped, and they finished the trip in silence. When Kaede called out a greeting, Kagome switched her attention to the older woman, knowing she was the one who would be taking over. She was proved right in that guess by the healer's first words.

"Bring the boy this way. I have a place ready for him." Kaede's voice was calm and level, and helped Kagome to gather herself. She had been rattled from the moment she had realized it was a body she had tripped on in the woods, and the feeling was only just beginning to abate. Necessity had allowed her a certain level of calmness, but now that the shock was fading, so was her composure. Her hands began to shake, causing her to bundle them in the folds of her already ruined skirt before anyone saw.

She trailed after Inuyasha and Kaede, barely noticing that Shippo and the priest Miroku followed on her heels. All of her attention remained focused on the boy in the hanyou's arms. She needed to know that he was going to be all right.

The room they entered was on the small side, the shelf-lined walls filled with glass jars marking it as an infirmary. With Kaede, Inuyasha, and Kagome inside, it was filled almost to overflowing, prompting Miroku and Shippo to remain in the hall. Kaede motioned to the cot pushed into one corner, obviously wanting Inuyasha to place the boy there. Once that was done, he turned to the two women.

"Do the best you can with him. I'm going to see if I can find some clues about who he is and what happened to him." With a curt nod, he stepped out of the room. Kagome heard the low murmur of voices and assumed he was making his plans known to the others. The sound of their conversation faded as they moved down the corridor.

Turning to Kaede, she found the woman already at work. She had removed the boy's tattered shirt in order to better see his wounds. The deliberateness behind her actions was reassuring, speaking of long practice at just such a task. Kagome knew the boy was in good hands, and that knowledge finally allowed her to take a deep breath.

"What can I do to help?" she asked, hoping that there was something she could do. Merely standing around was giving her far too much time to think of all the complications that could set in, even with the best of care. Luckily for her peace of mind, Kaede had a request. Or rather, a whole list of requests.

"Find a maid and have her bring some hot water here as quickly as possible. Then have someone fetch some loose, lightweight clothing that will fit him. What he's wearing will have to be thrown out. We'll also need some blankets and more bandages. Can you handle all that?"

"Easily. I'll be right back."

Kagome hurried into the deserted stretch of hallway and then stopped as she fought to remember exactly where she needed to go. Kaede had taken her on long tours around the building under the guise of exercise, but now everything that she had learned seemed to vanish from her mind. Taking her best guess, she turned to the left, hoping she had chosen correctly.

Luck seemed to be on her side when she saw a young girl walking ahead of her. From the rag in her hand, she had apparently been dusting in one of the rooms in that wing. Wasting no time in catching up with her, Kagome quickly relayed the list of items Kaede required. The girl took one look at her nearly shredded and blood dappled skirt and hurried to obey. As soon as the girl was out of sight, Kagome retraced her steps back to the little room.

In just the few moments that she was gone, Kaede had made a lot of progress. The boy's bloody and ruined clothes lay in a heap near the door and a thin sheet covered him from the waist down. A small table had been moved to sit right beside the cot, holding a variety of herbs, containers of salve, and a small stack of towels. As she watched, Kaede was carefully removing her makeshift bandages to assess all the injuries.

"Hmm," she murmured under her breath, her brow furrowing as she eyed a particularly bad patch of cuts on his side.

"What? What is it?" Kagome asked, moving closer to see if she could spot what had caught her attention. She winced at the sight of four long, deep gashes stretching for several inches. The odd thing about them became clear when she noticed how evenly spaced they seemed. Kaede moved, twisting her hand so that her fingers lined up with the beginnings of the cuts. It was almost a perfect match.

Kagome shot a questioning look at Kaede. "What . . .what does that mean?"

Kaede sighed. "I'm by no means an expert on the matter, but I'd say that he was attacked by a demon. If they were in human form, their claws would be exactly what it took to cause these sorts of injuries."

Kagome stared at her. "But . . .there aren't any demons around here. I mean, the only ones to set foot in this area for more than a hundred years are Inuyasha, his brother, and Shippo, and I don't think that any of them would have done something like this. Well, Inuyasha and Shippo wouldn't. Sesshomaru on the other hand . . ."

She paused there, interrupted by the entrance of the maid from the hall. Ducking a quick curtsy, the girl stepped forward. There was a small bucket hanging from her arm, the steam drifting lazily from the surface marking it as the hot water. She also had a wad of bandages under one arm, and a stack of clothing under the other. Setting everything down, she cast a look at the boy, quickly averting her eyes when she took notice of all the blood.

"I'll be right back with the blankets," she said even as she darted back out the door.

The supplies signaled the beginning of the real work, and Kagome was determined to help. As Kaede began cleaning and bandaging the wounds on his legs, Kagome started with his head. Pouring a small amount of hot water into a present basin of cool water, she grabbed a rag and set to work.

After dropping it into the basin and allowing it to get soaked, she withdrew the square of linen and wrung the extra water from it. She gently dabbed the boy's forehead with the damp cloth, carefully removing the dirt and dried blood. She bit her lower lip as she carefully avoided the still open wounds for the moment, not wanting to cause him any more pain.

Her concentration was so fierce that it took a minute for her to realize that the maid had returned with the requested blankets. She saw the woman glance down at the injured boy as a frown creased her features. It could have been because he looked much different now that the worst of the blood and dirt had been washed from his face, or it could have been because of something else. Her sense of hope flaring, Kagome jumped to her feet. "What is it? Do you recognize him?" She clasped her hands in front of her, waiting anxiously for the answer.

It was disappointing when it came as a swift shake of the maid's head. "Oh, no, milady. I've never seen him before. It's just . . ." She trailed off, looking unsure of whether she wanted to continue. Kagome's pleading expression must have decided for her, as she sighed and began to explain. "I'm not sure if this is important, but I think it might be. My family owns the inn at the north side of the village, and I went to visit them last night. It was my night off, I swear it!" she added, sounding frightened that she was going to be scolded. "Anyway, I was helping out with serving supper and there was a woman there. She was a stranger, which is rare enough these days, but she was asking a lot of questions."

"What kind of questions?" Kaede asked, obviously as interested in what the girl had to say as Kagome.

"Well, at first she spoke of a boy, her brother, I think she said, who was missing from their home. The description she gave of him, well, it sounded a lot like this boy."

Kagome looked at Kaede, and the older woman looked back. Was it possible that the mystery woman really was the boy's sister? If so, it would certainly be helpful in getting him back to where he belonged. The rest of the girl's words sank in then, along with her troubled expression. Stepping forward, Kagome met her eyes. "You said she talked about her brother 'at first'. What did you mean? Did she say something else afterward?"

"It was kind of odd, is all. She started asking questions about the new lord. When she found out I worked here, she seemed kind of excited, but not in a happy way. She wanted to know exactly what he looked like, where he spent his time, things like that. I think she asked if he'd left for a while and then come back, like he'd gone on a trip. That's all I remember. If I'd known it was important, I would have paid more attention."

Kagome froze, not really catching the apology as her mind went spinning. Pieces of information came back to her, fitting themselves together so quickly she could barely keep up. The boy in the woods with wounds that looked like they'd been caused by a human-ish demon. The girl in the inn asking about her missing brother and then seeking information on the new lord, who just so happened to be a human-ish demon. Was it possible that it meant what she thought it did?

"I'm going to see if I can find some clues about who he is and what happened to him."

At that very moment, Inuyasha was heading back to the place where they'd found the boy. If the woman in the village really was his sister and she'd managed to track him this far, she was likely to wind up there as well. With all the questions she had been asking about him, it was pretty clear that Inuyasha was on her list of suspects as to her brother's kidnapper. If she came upon him in the spot that was still dripping with the boy's blood . . .

Without a word, Kagome turned on her heel. Ignoring Kaede's questions and the maid's startled yelp, she raced through the door and back into the courtyard. As she reached the high wall that was the last barrier before the forest, she saw a group of huntsman returning from their expedition. The one nearest her had a bow slung over his shoulder and a quiver of arrows in his hand.

Without breaking stride, she snatched them away from him amidst his startled yells. She didn't know what she planned to do with them, but having weapons she couldn't use still seemed better than going in empty-handed and completely defenseless. Yanking her skirt up so that she could run faster, she made her way back to the forest with only one thought in her mind.

"Please, don't let me be too late!"