A/N: This chapter contains the reason for this fic to be rated M. - a bad lemon. Consider sskipping that bit

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From the diary of Princess Higurashi Kagome of Musashi
Date: fourteenth day of the first month of summer. Year XXXX

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The full moon tonight will rise in the cloudless sky. Oh, glorious night, made splendid by the jeweled canopy of the stars, illuminated by the moonlight - I can't wait for the glory that is the softer, more spiritual part of the day cycle.

I must prepare and I must be quiet so as to not arouse Rin. I cannot let her hear me this time. I cannot afford it, not tonight, when the moon is full and the kind of my beloved celebrates at the foot of their supreme ruler.

Tonight, oh, it is tonight, no more waiting, no more worrying!

From the diary of Miss Higurashi Rin
Date: fourteenth day of the first month of summer. Year XXXX. Night

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There was tension in the air for the whole day. The servants were even more silent and elusive than usual, but none of them slacked in their duties. I spent a lovely afternoon with Kagome, basking in the sunlight and wandering in the garden that houses all kinds of fragrant flowers - not only from our land, but also from the continent. It was so good to see Kagome in the vibrant-colored surroundings, laughing and with a healthy blush on her cheeks again.

It seems I was worried for nothing; she appears as healthy as before. I guess she was just worried and probably still overwhelmed by the terrible misadventure that had led us to this place.

The garden is so different from the somber keep that embraces it from all sides. It is like a magical place out of a fairy tale and I will miss it when we will go on our way.

Kagome wore a scarf today, covering her neck. When I asked her about it she blushed and giggled, telling me that she just felt like adding it to her attire. She also informed me that it was a gift from a certain young lord and I laughed at her bashful eyes cast to the ground and poor attempts at turning my attention away from her.

But then, as the evening drew neat and we went back into the imposing walls of the castle, into its secretive shadows, the atmosphere dampened our joy a bit. I went to read in the library and to my sorrow saw that Lord Sesshomaru was absent. I tried to read, but felt uneasy alone in the room, which was filled with growing shadows, so I decided to go visit Roku. We played a game, and then I retired to my rooms after dinner, during which no one around the table put much effort in keeping a conversation going.

I think that the lords are unhappy that we plan to leave soon. Certainly Lord Inuyasha is and I think that his brother is as well - he was even more silent in his manner than usual.

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Addendum

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It's probably near midnight and I am scared. I just went to Kagome's rooms and found them empty, the futon not disturbed. Where is she? I heard distant shouts somewhere in the depth of the forest and a cry - I'm sure a feminine cry - somewhere in the keep. I'm not sure, but it sounded like Kagome.

What is going on?

As much as I'm afraid, I have to find Kagome.

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Addendum

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Oh, my poor, poor Kagome! Oh, such a dreadful fate that brought us to this eerie, forsaken castle!

My hands are shaking so hard that I am afraid no one will be able to read my account of this ghastly night - and if anyone reads it, would they even believe what I wrote and not think that I went mad? Oh, kami, have mercy upon our souls and do not forsake my sweet, poor Kagome when she is bewitched and touched by the impure!

I wipe my eyes with my sleeves as I write this; the kimono I wear is ruined, anyway. How could we be so blind, so naive? Now, as I look back on the past days, I can find clear signs of the danger we had put ourselves in, a danger more sinister than the bandits chasing us through the woods.

I spilled ink on myself when I tore a juban to pieces and wrote on it the kanji I was taught in the shrine that would ward off evil. I placed the wards on the windows and doors of my room, but I feel so exposed, so hopelessly vulnerable and cowardly. After all, I didn't do anything to help Kagome; I just fled and hid in my room like a child overtaken by terror and panic.

It is the full moon night, and when I went to check on Kagome, I found her chamber empty, her bed not touched, her night garments neatly folded on the futon. My cousin was gone and I worried for her - she never sleepwalked too far away. Usually, if no one found her, she would wake up on her own when she wandered to somewhere where the floor was chilly.

With that thought in mind, I set out to find her and suggest that I sleep with her to prevent her wandering off. It would be a terrible thing if someone saw her walking around in the night, and I worried that the Shiroinu lords wouldn't want to tie their family to one where maidens were sleepwalking. I have heard of engagements being ended for far less valid reasons.

I hurried down the corridor, feeling uneasy in the silence of the keep, in the eerie light that pooled in spots under the windows and only made the dark areas that much darker. The air felt thick and stuffy in the stone walls, and a part of me wished to wander outside where the scents of the woodlands made the air sweet.

I could hear faint distant noises of celebration - Master Jaken had informed me that tonight there was a celebration in the village, ending a small festival the peasants held.

The corridors seemed even more cold and lonely than even before. I couldn't stop shivering, and listened intently to every noise, as if a monster was lurking about, ready to pounce on me when I relaxed. The light of a small lantern I carried provided little illumination; the candle within the wrought walls of the lantern seemed dim and cool, barely lighting the floor at my feet.

I remembered how I had felt the first day after waking up in this castle - so big, cold and eerie, with servants moving on silent feet, quiet and almost as elusive as the older of the two lords. I wandered further and further, the passages foreign to me, filled with paintings and pieces of art tucked in shadowy alcoves along the wall opposite of the one with windows.

The distant noises of the villagers celebrating only made the silence in the keep that much deeper. I jumped up in fright and almost dropped my lantern when I heard a cry from somewhere down the corridor where I was walking. It was muffled and not too loud, but it sounded feminine and I shivered thinking that maybe it was Kagome, perhaps hurt or experiencing a nightmare.

It took me a long time to gather my courage to follow the corridor, dread slowing my progress. Then, my foot caught on something and I glanced down, my eyes wide when I saw a long piece of golden cloth, wrinkled and discarded on the floor. It was just like a man's obi, but who would leave a piece of clothing lying in the corridor? On the tails of the obi there was embroidered a sigil of a red crescent moon.

I took not even two steps forward when a new discovery made my heart leap into my throat. As I passed one of the alcoves holding pieces of art along the passageway, I caught sight of something eerily white and tall, looming there, fluttering as I walked by. For a second there I thought it was a ghost, since it definitely had no feet, but a closer inspection revealed it to be a nagajuban, pristine white, but torn to ribbons and hanging carelessly from an outstretched hand of a statue in the recess of the wall.

"Ah…!" A familiar voice resounded from a room somewhere before me, muffled and strained. I stepped around the hanging garment and made my way towards where Kagome had to be, for I was certain now that it was my cousin.

What was wrong? Why was she here, in this far part of the keep, in the middle of the night?

I stopped when I reached a shoji door that was not quite slid shut, moonlight pooling on the floor and providing an explanation as to why - yet another piece of silk lay scattered across the doorway, glowing white in the serene light.

I approached the door with a heart beating so hard in my chest that I could barely hear soft noises from within the chamber, a mixture of heavy panting and growls that were unlike anything I've ever heard.

Then at last, I peered inside the moonlit chamber, curious and anxious as to what I would see. And the sight petrified me in the spot where I stood, unable to look away or draw breath.

The room was submerged in the shadow; only the area in front of an opened window was illuminated by the moon. And there, on a thick futon, amidst scattered and torn fabric, I found Kagome.

Her hair was tousled and fell in wild waves over her shoulders, partially obscuring her lowered face as she bent on her hands and knees, gasping for air, her lovely features twisted in the expression of pleasure I saw for the first time on her face. Her pale body was bare, covered only by a sheen of sweat. She looked unaware of the world around her.

And, to my horror, she was not alone in that dark room. Another was with her, kneeling right behind her. Where she appeared like a delicate porcelain treasure, the one with her was nothing but.

Dog ears shivering on top of his head, silver hair swaying behind his back, purple stripes on his face that he was tilting upwards, exposing his long fangs in an animalistic snarl. The creature that was certainly not a human, knelt between my poor cousin's spread knees, holding her by the waist with hands that had every finger tipped with a deadly claw. Growling and grunting he pushed his hips back and forth. I felt a wave of hot embarrassment wash over me when I finally understood what he was doing.

That creature, that creature, was defiling my poor, innocent cousin. I stood there, rooted into the spot, unable to prevent it. What had happened? Had this youkai found sweet, innocent Kagome sleepwalking in this ancient castle and taken advantage of her vulnerable state? Was it the first time this had happened? My mind swirled, remembering all the days that Kagome stayed in bed in the morning, appearing pale and moving carefully about. Was this youkai feeding off of her life force in addition to unleashing his vile urges on my cousin?

The youkai stilled his motions and opened his eyes, glowing red and feral with unholy lust, looking at the poor maiden in front of him. He glided his sinful hands up Kagome's sides, leaning over her and cupping her breasts that swayed with her labored breaths.

"No need to keep quiet, mate," he growled near her ear, raising himself on top of her and putting one hand on the bedding next to hers to steady himself. The other's deadly claws kneaded Kagome's flesh as if he wanted to leave no centimeter of her maidenly body untainted.

The air, already thick as if filled with a strange aura, resounded with Kagome's breathy giggle. The youkai's ears flicked back and forth at the melodic noise.

"Make me," Kagome's voice came out clear and challenging, just like she always spoke when excited. The youkai lowered his face to her shoulder, fangs grazing her skin as a wicked laughter tore from his chest.

"My pleasure," he growled and resumed the movement of his hips, slow and deep as he pushed against my cousin. Kagome threw her head back and moaned loudly, her eyes opened wide but unseeing as she arched her back and allowed this terrifying being to take her like an animal.

I stood there, unable to move, to come to Kagome's help, watching in horror the apparition that took my cousin ,who had bewitched her to surrender herself to his affections. I could feel tension rising in the air around the pair, who pushed against each other, groaning and panting in lustful exertion, focused solely on their sinful actions. I watched as the entity ran his claws down the middle of Kagome's body, dipping his fingers in the dark curls that covered her intimate parts. Kagome's voice grew higher in pitch and she pushed herself harder against her lover, his own enthusiasm matching hers.

I felt cold at the sight in front of me, my poor Kagome reduced to this moaning lover of a youkai. I felt hot as I watched the play of emotions and dance of bodies in the moonlight. I felt it was so wrong of me to just observe, but my body seemed frozen as if by some magic. There was something mesmerizing in the way the two lovers moved in perfect harmony, the pace of their movements growing steadily faster, more urgent. It was so terribly forbidden for a maiden of a noble house to even think about laying with a man that was not her husband - I was sure that Kagome would never have done something so sinful of her own free will. Yielding her maidenhood to the youkai that looked only partially like a human, secreted away in an old castle. And yet, with broken words, my innocent, proper cousin urged the youkai to plunge himself harder and deeper within her body.

It was fascinating, this forbidden vision in front of me. The way the monster's muscles flexed, how his hair draped over their bodies, the sinful sounds they made. Their lust seemed to perfume the heavy air in the room.

It took a small eternity and no time at all for Kagome to yowl like she was not a human herself. The youkai straightened his back and grabbed her hips so hard that I saw thin streaks of blood running down her thighs from where his claws pierced her delicate skin. Growling like a mountain dog, the youkai thrust his hips forward while yanking my poor cousin roughly onto himself. He howled in wicked triumph and my sweet cousin screamed shamelessly once more. They collapsed on the futon under them, panting and unmoving for a long moment.

Then, slowly, the youkai lifted himself off of my cousin's back, resting his weight on his elbows as his crimson eyes looked straight at me, his face twisting from the look of utter pleasure to that of a vicious snarl, his ears laying back.

I almost dropped my lantern when I realized that the youkai noticed me at last, no longer enthralled by what he had been doing to Kagome. With a strangled cry, I managed to will my body to move at last.

I turned on my heel and fled, fled like a doe hunted by a pack of wolves.

I ran, the sound of my own blood rushing filling my ears, my heart fluttering like a caged bird, my feet stumbling, but unwilling to stop. I tried to find my way back to the dubious safety of my room, but all the corridors looked alike, dark and full of shadows that my frightened mind perceived as lurking monsters.

Guilt and fright clawed at my soul, for I had abandoned my sweet Kagome back in that room, slumped bonelessly on the futon with a youkai that had done such a terrible thing to her.

I sobbed and dared not to slow down my pace, only blinking away the hot tears that filled my eyes and made the passage before me blurry.

That was why I didn't notice him at first. It was only when he stepped from the opened window to the middle of the corridor and I ran into him, that I finally realized that there was someone in the part of the castle I was fleeing through.

"Oh!" I gasped as I hit a firm body. Before I could stumble to the cold stone floor a pair of steady hands gripped me by my elbows and steadied me. I wiped my face with the sleeve of my garment, looking up in abject terror, only to meet the cool, serene eyes of Lord Sesshomaru.

"Rin." he hummed. "What are you doing here?"

"I… Oh, I…" I stuttered, finding solace in the calm that seemed to always envelop the lord, his golden eyes scanning my face held no hint of worry, but he turned to lead me, still holding me by my elbow.

"Come," he commanded and I obeyed without a thought, trying to calm myself and gather my thoughts. How was I to tell him that there was a youkai in his castle, that the youkai had tainted my sweet cousin? Would he even believe me? A thought of leading him back to that room flashed before my mind, but I pushed it away in panic - what if the youkai attacked the lord and injured him? I couldn't risk his life like that.

Lord Sesshomaru led me through the darkness with silent, steady steps, making sure I was walking right next to him. In no time at all he led me to a familiar room: the library that was near our bedchambers. With a sigh, I sank onto one of the sitting pillows and watched the lord as he pulled from a cabinet a cup and a bottle of sake.

"You will drink this," he said as he poured gracefully and put the cup in my hands. Then he walked towards the window, standing in the silver light and looking outside. "When you compose yourself sufficiently you shall explain to this one why you were wandering this one's keep."

I had no presence of mind to tell him I rarely was allowed to taste sake, so I just took a sip. It warmed me as it slipped down into my belly and rested there, akin to the flutter of heart that I dared not to acknowledge.

The lord was so beautiful when he stood with his back turned towards me, his hair like spun moonlight, his pristine white kimono hugging his body so perfectly. A wicked thought born from the vision I had seen not too long ago wondered briefly how he looked under all those layers of silk. I pushed it away, thankful for the understanding and patience of the lord, who merely waited for me to speak.

"A youkai," I breathed out, deciding that there was no other way than to tell the truth. He could not believe me, but I had to be honest. "There is a youkai in the castle. He… He bewitched Kagome…"

My voice trembled and my words faded away as I remembered those red eyes, the strange markings on the youkai's face, the animal ears on top of his silver head of hair.

My eyes lifted from the cup I held and found the waterfall of silver that flew down Lord Sesshomaru's back. He had yet to speak or react in any other way to my shaky words.

"I saw him… He… And Kagome…" I tried to string together a coherent sentence, but at the same time was too scared to actually give a name to what I had witnessed.

My eyes never strayed from the silver haired tall man in front of the window.

A new wave of cold washed over me, a bone-chilling realization dawning on me with all the deceptive slowness of an avalanche.

"A youkai," Lord Sesshomaru finally spoke, his words ringing clear in the silent room. "A youkai in the Shiroinu castle."

The man had hair most similar to the wild mane of the youkai with dog ears, just well-groomed instead of tangled.

Then, as I thought that, the lord turned around, his handsome face half-illuminated by the moonlight coming from the outside, half-hidden in shadows.

Lord Sesshomaru observed me with those golden eyes. Golden eyes underlined by two slashes of magenta over his flawless cheeks. In the middle of his forehead appeared a crescent moon, not unlike the crest I had seen on the discarded obi.

"Rin. Aside from the boy that came with you, you are the only human in this castle," he said.

With a cry I threw my cup at the ghostly apparition and fled the room, my steps carrying me in a mad dash to my room. The last thing I saw was the man plucking the cup from the air as if it was nothing.

Oh, gods, what am I to do now? What will happen to Kagome and me? This castle, this place, is full of youkai, of scary monsters, and I am not sure that we can flee them. Oh, heavens, what about poor Roku, locked away in the healing wing? What of Kagome, what is her fate now? Will she be devoured, and we alongside with her?

Will anyone ever know of our fate?