A little over two weeks. Better this time, at least, if not as zoom as I would have liked.

Once Upon a Time

Chapter 5

By: Allore NightShadow

Nira visibly relaxed as soon as Taisho closed the door behind him.

"Alright, then. Your name?"

"Kagome Higarashi."

Nira typed in the name and waited a few seconds. Her faced reflected confusion and she backed away from the computer as if looking at it from father away would give her a better understanding of whatever it was she was seeing.

"That's strange."

Kagome raised her eyebrows in question.

"There is a file here on you, but it's a computer copy of a file two hundred years old. I highly doubt that you are two hundred years old. Let's see. Kagome Higarashi, born… wait a second." She stopped reciting and looked at the computer screen intensely for a full minute.

Here was a recent birth date, one merely a little over twenty years ago, on a file older than two hundred. It had been created by the original operator of the system. Some had always thought that he had been born with foresight, how he always was away from the wrong place at the right time, but this topped all the other rumors. A file created before a person was born had to show foresight.

At the bottom of the archive was a warning. 'Do not approach.' At the very bottom of the page was a little spinning top, the archive's creator's signature, how Nira was sure that it was he who created this file.

Knowing better than to delete the file, Nira instead put in her administrator's password and edited it.

"Okay," relaxing herself again, "Kagome Higarashi. Birth date?"

Nira nodded when the birth date was the same as the one in the archive. This could be no typing mistake.

"Address?"

Again the answer received was the same as was already there.

Nira continued with the questioning as a formality. It might be better if Kagome didn't know about this.

"Any children?"

"No."

This was the first answer that was not the same as the information in the file. The file said she had one child, but no information about that child was given.

"And you are a miko?"

Kagome nodded.

"Alright. I'm going to print you out an identification card. You need to keep it with you at all times. I really do mean all times, too. If you are found without it, it could mean big trouble."

Nira finished updating the file, adding in the information that was not provided.

The first to print out was the level one security pass. It would allow Kagome access into any part of the building, even Taisho's private office, should she be able to get past his security personnel.

The next to print was the identification card. One it was her full name and where she worked. All other cards except level three had the address as well as most of their file information, but for level three, that was not necessary. In this age, with so many youkai breeding with humans, many in the archives were in some sub-category of level one, which varied from straight human to the nearly powerless hanyou (as well as some powerless inbreeded youkai, but they were not to be spoken of). Level two were the powerful. Level three was limited to twelve youkai and now one human. It was the category for the most powerful.

Nira handed both newly printed cards to Kagome.

"Where did you get this picture from?" Kagome pointed to the excellent picture of her on both of the cards.

Nira pointed to some strange machine above her. "It scans your facial features and puts them together to form a facial model of you. It is the only machine around that will show your true features no matter what kind of glamour you have on."

Nira turned from Kagome and pressed an intercom button. "Kira." She said into it.

"Yea?"

"In here, now." And she turned off the intercom.

A moment later a male version of Nira opened the door. They could have been identical twins if one was not a male and the other a female.

"Taisho-sama requested that you accompany Higarashi-sama to the basement."

Kagome's brow scrunched at the formal use of her name. "Please, don't use sama."

Nira cocked her head to the side. "As you wish."

Kira opened the door and beckoned Kagome to follow.

"And Kira?" Nira called to her brother before he closed the door.

"Yea?"

"Don't do anything stupid, like hit on her. That is your new boss."

He tripped and fell.

(o)

Sesshoumaru took out six aspirin and swallowed them, all in the effort to hold off a headache. His demon blood immediately attacked the offending drugs, but hopefully some of it would escape and hold off his headache. Modern medicine still held nothing to the millennium old herbs, but unfortunately many of the herbs used on demons were very hard to come by.

This was going to be a challenge. Kagome seemed to have forgotten everything that had to do with her past. Had she not forgotten, she would have immediately recognized him. His features in this age were not so different from those he sported five hundred years ago.

This was a difficult situation. She would not be nearly so much help if she did not remember her past. Those of full demon heritage may even reject her eventually if she did not show herself to be powerful enough to control them. The Great Miko, she who defeated of Naraku, would gain respect. Some human miko would not.

(o)

Kagome stepped off the elevator and into the basement. She was led past a few people, no, youkai, being arrested, past an interrogation room and a few holding cells, and into an office.

"What do you want?" Said the woman behind the desk. "Can't you see I'm busy?"

The woman was bent over a pile of papers, furiously writing. Her hair was black and held in a bun by two feathers at the top of her head. She wore a formal kimono, though the sleeves were folded up in a very informal way.

"But Kagu-…" Kira tried to catch her attention.

"I'm busy! Do you understand me? I have to review thirty new reports, write six of my own, train three new recruits and fire two others. I'm just a little stressed out right now! Can you come back later?"

"But General, Taisho-sama sent me down with this girl. She's supposed to see you."

The woman looked up and froze for a moment.

"Kagome?"

"Do I know you?"

"I'm Kagura." She waited for recognition to light Kagome's eyes, but nothing happened. "I am the Head of the youkai police force."

Kagura had to take a moment to think of how to handle this situation. This looked exactly like the Kagome she knew five hundred years ago, but it couldn't be. She was a human and would have died ages ago. But what if it was? No matter. As it was now, she was just a look alike that happened to have the same name.

"You must be the girl Taisho-sama informed me about."

Kagome didn't say anything.

"Sit down and I'll brief you. Kira, don't you have something else you should be doing?"

Kira nodded and stepped out of the room while Kagome took the seat that was in front of Kagura'a desk.

"I hear that Taisho-sama has made you my direct superior, but let me set you straight. You are just a figure head. You don't know anything about what we do here. You may seem to be a station above me, but I am still the boss here. Got it?"

Kagome furrowed her brow and nodded.

"Good. Now that you understand me, I will get to business. This department is that which polices youkai. We handle any youkai you participates in any type of crime, both mortal and immortal. You will find that there are some crimes among youkai that you have never heard of among humans. You will have to read the book of crimes that I will have placed in your office."

Kagura went to her computer and started something printing.

"This is a police identification card. It says you are a general, technically able to command any of the policing unit, but I am telling you to leave it to the professionals. If you come upon unlawful behavior, take care of it, but do not interfere with anything my unit is doing."

Kagome nodded and took the offered card. This woman was a little intimidating. Her naturally red eyes made it hard to see her as anything but an agitated youkai.

"If you ever have any problems or conflicts with the human police, you can show them this card." Kagura handed Kagome another card. She was making a collection of them.

"They believe us to be a special forces department. Anything youkai related that the human police get a hold of must be immediately taken over by us. Understood?"

Kagome nodded again. This Kagura was just a little scary.

"Now, if you don't have any questions," Kagome shook her head "then you can go back to your office and leave me alone."

Kagome quietly left the room. She should have know that this was all too good.

(o)

Kagome and Sesshoumaru walked into the battlefield, him close behind her so that he would be able to enter Naraku's barrier. Kagura watched them both from the sky, sitting upon her feather.

She wasn't there so much to spy on them, but rather to be as far from Naraku as he would allow when the final battle came to pass.

They didn't walk very far before Naraku sensed them, but he did not come out right away. Naraku liked to play with his prey before he destroyed them.

"And where is your dog-eared companion, miko?" It was Naraku's voice, but it came from a puppet, one that was advancing as the moments passed.

"Obviously he is not here." She stated. She had learned over the years that an enemy who was not thinking straight, be it from anger or from the frustration of being outwitted, was all the easier to defeat. She had learned this from Inuyasha's fights with his brother. Sesshoumaru was a great strategist.

He attacked and Sesshoumaru defended. Kagome moved back so that she could aim her arrow. When Naraku extended his body to attack Kagome and Sesshoumaru was not free enough to defend her, she was suddenly whisked into the air.

"Stupid girl. If your going to defeat Naraku, you can't die now."

(o)

Allore NightShadow

Okay, I really wanted to make this chapter a bit longer, but I seemed to have gotten a bit of writer's block at this point and didn't want to make you wait any longer. So… here you go.

Thanks to:

Midnight faerie

Cookie Girl- good job spotting that.

IYGIRL

Bluediamond-hime