Disclaimer I don't own much. Of course this means Inuyasha and his crew.
Of Fates Unknown
Chapter Seventeen
When she returned to consciousness, she was kneeling on the floor at the base of the obelisk, her hands still resting against its warm, smooth surface. It continues to glow, but not so brightly, and when she took her hands away, the light became dimmer still.
She got slowly to her feet, swaying a bit. She felt different- herself, but more than herself. And she also felt fear.
"What have I done?" she murmured, her voice echoing in the silence of the round stone chamber.
But there was no answer. She knew only that she had set herself upon a course from which there was no possible retreat.
Slowly, it came to her that she must have been up here for some time. As the light from the obelisk faded, the tower room became dark, lit only by the rapidly dimming light from outside.
She made her way back down to listen for sounds in the hallway. When she heard nothing, she opened the door, then quickly relocked it and hurried away to her own quarters.
Souta and Shippou weren't there, and she realized that they must be at dinner. She should have been hungry herself, because she hadn't eaten since breakfast. But she felt no need for sustenance. Instead, as her exhilaration drained away, she became so exhausted that she could barely manage to drag herself to bed.
)O(
Kagome's flying fingers grew still, and the final echoes from the lythra were lost in the rafters of the great hall. As before, there was a long silence- and then noisy applause. She stood and bowed, turning slowly to face all the guests before ending with a slight bow to Inuyasha and his guest of honor. Unfortunately, in avoiding Inuyasha's gaze, her eyes met the glittering red eyes of Lord Naraku.
She averted her gaze quickly and stifled the revulsion she felt towards the man. There had never been a time in her life when she'd felt such disgust towards anyone. In fact, like other violent emotions she'd fallen prey to lately, her reaction to him seemed out of proportion to the man himself, however unpleasant his appearance and behavior. But what surprised her most of all was a tremor of something that could almost be considered malevolence coming off the man in waves. As if he was nothing more then a being of pure evil, and only she seemed to be able to see the true extent of it.
Inuyasha surprised her by stepping quickly down from the dais to escort her back to the seat at his side. As she accepted his arm, she noticed his gaze resting briefly on the very spot where the Val-Ceadda lay between her breasts, hidden by the high-necked gown. Had he discovered it missing already? He wasn't wearing his pendant, even though he was dressed formally. She thought perhaps its absence was due to an effort not to irritate Lord Naraku, since he would probably know as well as Inuyasha himself that it was intended to be worn by the king.
As soon as she was seated, Naraku leaned across from his seat on the other side of Inuyasha and began praising her playing. The man was truly repulsive, and even though he seemed quite drunk, she wondered if it was nothing more then a ploy.
She couldn't explain it but she kept feeling that there was more to this man then what he portrayed. He would be considered quite handsome, with his long black hair and pale skin. He was tall, lean, and she was sure that if needed to be, he would be powerful in a fight. But the thing was there was something about those piercing red eyes that removed any kind of beauty the man may have possessed. It made one seem as if he was taking in everything around him without overtly doing so. And when he turned those eyes upon her, staring at her insolently, it was all she could not to shudder at the evil and suppress her anger towards the man.
When she sat back in her chair, effectively hiding herself behind Inuyasha, Naraku addressed his host as though she weren't there.
"A Ceadda sorceress- and a great beauty, eh? I don't suppose you'd care to share her, Inuyasha?"
This time, she was determined to strike the man, but just as she started to rise from her chair, Inuyasha somehow managed to turn to Naraku while at the same time placing a restraining hand on her arm.
"The lady is my guest, Naraku- not my mistress."
Again, Kagome kept her eyes directly on Naraku. Watching him with what she seemed to be an inner light. This man, if he could be called that, was trolling for any and all information. He was not drunk, as the others thought he was, his eyes, they were to focused, to intent, to be under the sway of the drink. No, he played his part, for who would be offended by claims laid by a Lord in such a state. Instead, information may be learned that would otherwise never be said.
She watched as something entered his eye as he smiled. A smile that would have a few cowering if they realized what she did. "Well, then she's fair game, isn't she?"
"No, she is not," Inuyasha stated in a dangerously quiet voice. Kagome could have sworn she heard a slight growl from him as well.
"I think you would do well to give sober thoughts as to who she is," he continued.
Naraku gave pause to the words, the smile gone, with nothing more then a ghost of a smirk left in it's place. Kagome sat there wishing that she did indeed possess threatening powers. She could think of no better use to put them to then to reduce Lord Naraku to a pile of ashes.
A servant refilled her wineglass, and Kagome lifted it to sniff carefully before taking a sip. She felt Inuyasha's eyes on her and turned to see him smiling at her. She felt it as an oddly intimate moment, a quick sharing of a memory that seemed somehow to bind them together.
He turned to Naraku's seeming drunken mutterings, but the unexpected warmth of the moment remained. If only, she thought, knowing full well just how dangerous those words were in connection with Inuyasha. She should not be wasting her time being angry with Naraku, she thought, when her true enemy was Inuyasha. And yet, it seemed that she could not think about him and the danger he represented without also thinking about the hanyou himself in a far different light. Especially with the nagging feeling that maybe, a worse enemy lay ahead.
)O(
Review responses:
hana no tenshi – LOL! I was so tempted to have her suddenly start rubbing his ears. I mean, please. How can anyone resist the ears! (glomps ears) But I was going for a different type of atmosphere. (sigh) I have been very busy this week with this story. :D
And about her powers, it is sort of like the show. She never knew she was a Miko, but suddenly was able to blast Mistress Centipede, or even power up her arrows. Things are happening to her that she just doesn't understand or realize.
About the room, yeah, well I would agree but I am an angel. (adjusts halo to hide horns peaking thru…)
I tried to look for sanity once on E-bay. But I was out bid at the last moment. :"( I had to settle for insanity instead. But on the positive side, I got it for half the price and shipping was much cheaper! XP (wanders off singing "There coming to take me away today… there coming to take me away…")
Well, besides my lapse into insanity, I got another chapter posted. Hope you all enjoy!
Brightest of Blessings,
Lady Banshee 999