Disclaimer I don't own much. Of course this means Inuyasha and his crew.

Of Fates Unknown

Chapter Nine

When the loud, insistent knock came to her door the next morning, Kagome assumed that it must be one of the boys, and that they had forgotten something in their rush to get to school. The school here was very strict about prompt attendance, unlike their village school had been.

She made a habit of bolting the door at all times, so she had to undo the heavy bolt before flinging it open. Instead of one of the boys, a servant of Lord Inuyasha stood there. Kagome had seen them about the city in their dark blue livery with its gold dog crest.

The youth bowed and extended his hand, which held a small, ornately carved wooden box. "With Lord Inuyasha's compliments, ma'am." Then bowed again and was off before she could say anything.

Kagome stared at the box. After her encounter with Lord Inuyasha last night, she had studied the carvings on her lythra that he had called runes, and she was sure that these were similar. The wood, too, was the same. She closed and re-bolted the door, then carried the box over to the hearth and sat down to undo the elaborate gold catch.

She cried out in surprise when she saw the contents: a necklace and bracelet, both in finely worked gold set with tiny rubies and diamonds. The workmanship was identical to pieces owned by her mother that had been passed down for generations and would have one day become hers, but undoubtedly now belonged to the murderous Vali.

The irony of the gift was not lost upon her as she lifted them out to examine them more closely. They were clearly Ceadda, stolen from her people by Inutashio, Inuyasha's murdering father- just like the Vali had stolen the jewels intended for her.

Then she finally noticed the note tucked into the deep lid of the box. She took it out and unfolded the rich, heavy paper carefully.

"I know of no one more suited to wear these. Thank you for a most pleasurable evening." And it was signed, simply, "Inuyasha."

Kagome read the words again and a chill came over her. "No one more suited". One could certainly take those words several ways. Either they were merely meant to be a compliment, or… She stared at his bold handwriting and asked the silent question: Does he know?

But how could he know? He's said that his grandmother had owned a Ceadda lythra- and he certainly wasn't Ceadda. Surely others possessed them as well.

No, she decided, he hadn't been suggesting that he knew her secret. It was only the flowery words of seduction, words he had undoubtedly used many times in the past. For all she knew, he might have a veritable treasure trove of Ceadda jewels that he bestowed upon women that held his favor. She still disbelieved the fact that he didn't bring women to his bed.

Still, it continued to trouble her that she'd come to his attention. And it troubled her even more that she had found him so attractive. Even now, she could conjure up his image with amazing clarity: those clear golden amber eyes, so striking and deep-set, the silvery flowing hair crowned with those ears give to him by his youkai heritage, and that aura of effortless power. Given the equality that had existed in their village, Kagome had never before known anyone who set himself above all others, and furthermore, was accepted as being superior. It seemed clear to her now that the failure of the tavern crowd to show him deference last night must be the result of his decision that they should not do so. Myoga and Keade, certainly two independent people, had displayed great humility towards him, bowing and curtsying.

She'd thought about her own behavior after she escaped from his presence last night. It undoubtedly would have been much better if she'd shown the proper deference toward him herself. But she hadn't, and a dangerous stubbornness surfaced even now to tell her that she never would, either.

She pondered what to do about the gift. Should she attempt to return it, thereby signaling that she did not find his attentions welcome? Or would that only stir him to further attempts to seduce her? It was unlikely that he'd ever been rebuffed before, and she knew how some men reacted to such a challenge.

Perhaps she should simply send him a polite note, thanking him for the gift but at the same time wording it in such a way as to send a subtle message that she was not interested in becoming one of his bed partners.

She set the open box on the table and drank the rest of her tea as she thought about it. Then there was another tap at the door and she realized it would be Keade. They had planned to go to the market together this morning.

When the older woman came in, she spotted the jewelry box immediately.

"I saw Lord Inuyasha's servant come back here," she said, clearly caught between her curiosity and a desire not to seem to pry. Her eyes kept straying to the box, then moving away quickly.

"Yes. He came with a gift from Lord Inuyasha." Kagome said, picking up the jewelry to show it to her.

After Keade had exclaimed over it, Kagome told her of her dilemma. "I appreciate his generosity, but-" she shrugged.

Keade began to laugh. "So the Lordship has finally met his match, has he? Well, don't worry about it, dearie. He's not likely to bother ye." Then she stopped and frowned.

"'Course I can't recollect any other woman who's said no to him, usually it is the other way round. But he's a good man, for all his love of war."

In the end, Kagome decided to put away the jewels and try to forget about them. She made several halfhearted attempts to write him a note, but gave up when she couldn't find a way to thank him and still discourage him.

During the next week, she kept expecting him to return to the tavern, but he didn't come again- and after that, she relaxed, deciding that he must surely have far too much on his mind to concern himself with a tavern singer, not to mention too many other, more women to pursue.

Kagome continued to be plagued by the dreams each night, although she no longer went outside to stare up at the tower, however drawn to it she felt. It began to seem as though she could almost recall those dreams- or parts of them. They didn't seem threatening, instead, there was a seductive quality to them.

The only thing she could recall clearly from those dreams was a strange, tall object, a sort of cylinder, but one that had sharp edges with a round sort of circular top. It always appeared in that unnatural blue-white color she'd seen that night in the tower. And it seemed, too, that something moved deep within it the circular part, although she was less certain about that.

Slowly, she came to the near-certainty that the strange object must be in the tower, and that it might well be the symbol of her people's power that the captain had spoken of. But she was of a practical nature, and decided that even if she could gain access to the tower, which seemed highly unlikely, what would it matter? She might be Ceadda, but she had no more magic in her than did any other Rhea.

And then came a day when she began to realize how wrong she was.

)O(

After a long cold spell, it was a sunny, almost warm morning. Market was held twice weekly and in bad weather, the vendors set up a crowded shop in a large building near the center of the city. But on this day, they had opted to take the market outdoors again.

The market area lay at the base of the steep hill that was topped by the keep, in an area of rather narrow, winding side streets. Kagome and Keade set out early, before the market had actually opened, in the hopes of finding a good selection of merchandise. There were few people on the narrow, twisting street they took downhill and it was bordered on both sides by tall buildings or stone walls.

They were about halfway down when they heard noises and shouts from above- and turned to see a horseless cart careening down the hill toward them, spilling its contents as it thundered along. As they watched, frozen with shock, it bounced off one wall and then another, then headed straight for them.

There was no place to go! They could not hope to outrun the speeding cart and high walls on both sides prevented them from getting out of its way. Keade cried out, and Kagome opened her mouth to scream as well- but what come out was unrecognizable to her.

Her arm rose of its own volition and her fingers moved rapidly in the air. Something surged through her, tingling along her nerve endings. For one brief instant, she saw the approaching cart through a blinding blue-white light.

Then it was over and the cart had rolled harmlessly past them to crash into the wall farther down. Kagome stood there transfixed, not at all certain what had happened. That force that had rushed through her began to dissipate slowly, leaving her trembling slightly.

Confused, she turned to Keade, to find the older woman staring at her, white-faced. Kagome reached out, then drew her hand back when Keade seemed to shrink away from her.

"Keade? What happened? Were you hurt?"

Keade shook her head slowly, then reached out cautiously to touch Kagome on the arm. "No, dearie, I'm fine."

Her gaze moved off to a point behind Kagome, who turned to see the two men who'd been chasing the cart standing a short distance away, staring at her in openmouthed amazement. As soon as she turned their way, they mumbled apologies and hurried off to deal with the wrecked cart.

The two women went on to the market. Even though Keade made an effort to seem her normal, cheerful self, Kagome could tell that she was deeply troubled. It might have been nothing more than the aftershock of their near-accident, but Kagome kept wondering if Keade had seen or sensed that strangeness that had come over her.

That evening, Kagome was still trying to put together a complete picture of what had happened in those moments when it had seemed certain that the cart would strike them. After the boys had gone off to bed, she sat by the fire and tried to reconstruct the scene- but she was interrupted by Keade's familiar tap on the door.

Kagome invited her in, noting that the woman seemed very grave and distracted. She gave her a cup of tea and Keade took a sip, then set it aside and twisted her hands nervously in her lap. When she spoke, it was with a hesitancy that Kagome had never before heard from her.

"Dearie, I been thinking on this all day, and I got to talk to ye." She paused, staring at Kagome. "D'ye know what happened out there?"

"You mean with the cart?" Kagome asked nervously.

Keade nodded solemnly. "Ye saved us, dearie. I don't know how ye did it- but I do know that ye saved us."

"But I didn't do anything, Keade," Kagome protested, then added quietly, "At least I didn't intend to do anything."

The old woman nodded again. "I though as much. I jest happened."

"What exactly happened?" Kagome asked, having decided that it was time to put her trust in this kind woman.

"Ye said something in a strange tongue, and then ye put up yer hand and, like, drew in the air." Keade stopped, then went on haltingly.

"I saw something like a light- a bluish sort of light- and it was comin' from yer fingers while they moved. And then the cart turned away from us."

Kagome was still for a very long time. All day, she had been seeking an explanation that would deny what Keade had just described. And now there could be no denial. She felt as though the very earth had shifted beneath her. A familiar, if not always safe, world had just been turned upside down, and she feared that it would never be righted again for her.

"Are ye Ceadda, child?" Keade asked softly.

Kagome hesitated for only a moment, then nodded. And after that, it all came pouring out: how she had happened to come here, the dreams, the light in the tower, the vision of that mysterious object, and her powers.

"I didn't seek those powers," she told Keade, but even as she spoke, she thought about how it had felt. "Instead, it seemed that they've found me."

She sighted. "I'm afraid that Lord Inuyasha may suspect I'm Ceadda," she finished, explaining the wording in his note.

"Aye, it's possible. Nothing much gets past him. And he's near certain to hear what has happened today."

"He is?" Kagome frowned, thinking for a moment that Keade meant to tell him. Then she remembered the two men and the looks on their faces.

"Those men must've seen what I saw," Keade told her. "And they'll be talkin' to everyone. It'll get back to Lord Inuyasha at some point."

Kagome sat there frozen with fear: fear for powers she didn't want but apparently had, and fear for what would happen if Lord Inuyasha found out."

"I must leave," she said. "Souta and I will be in terrible danger when he finds out."

Keade got up and came over to her to hug her. "No, dearie, you canna leave in the middle of the winter. T'would be going to your deaths to leave Domna now. Myoga and I will protect ye, if'n it comes to that. We've both family and friends who can help. But I think ye judge Lord Inuyasha to hard. He's not a murderous man."

Kagome was grateful beyond words for Keade's kindness- but she was not reassured. Lord Inuyasha might not be inclined towards murder, but he was even less inclined to tolerate anyone he might view as being a threat to his power and his plan of becoming King of the Rheas: the first king since the days of the Ceadda.

Later, when Keade had gone, Kagome continued to sit there thinking about her situation. Was there any way she could prevent a recurrence of those powers? Had they surfaced only because her life was in danger? If so, it might never happen again.

But then she thought again about how she'd felt- about that wonderful surge of power and that sense of completeness, as though she'd just discovered a lost part of herself. And she wondered if the powers had come unbidden, after all.

)O(

Review responses:

animeturtle932 - Thank you for your wonderful review. I am glad you like story. :)

ramzgurl - It is great to hear from those who enjoy it. I thank you for your lovely review.

tsunami-chan - (giggles) No, there is no triangle. Personally, I am kinda on the bored side of those myself. And Inu-boy is chasing Kags cause lets face it, he's a king. He is use to getting what he wants, and Kags isn't about to roll over for anyone. LOL, sorry had to use the pun. Glad you caught the two part attraction. It will come into play later on, and was hinted (without Inu exactly knowning) earlier too. But don't worry, everything will tie in later. :)

I keep just typing away at this story. (giggles) I hope you are enjoying reading this as much as I enjoy writing it.

Brightest of Blessings,

Lady Banshee 999