A TALE FROM THE PAST
-by Kittymui-
CHAPTER IV
:: DREAM SEQUENCE ::
He slightly tilted his head as he watched how his mother went to sit down on the floor with her hand making a circling movement on her stomach. "Why are you massaging your stomach mother? Are you unwell?" he asked with a worried tone.
A smile appeared on his mother's face. "No dear, I'm not unwell," she replied as she removed several misplaced strands of her long silver-white hair from her face.
"Then why mother? Why are you always looking so tired lately?" he asked.
"It's because I'm pregnant."
He gave her a puzzled look. "What's that?"
His mother thought for a while before answering. "Well, it means that you will become a big brother soon."
"Me?" he pointed at himself with wide eyes.
"That's right," his mother nodded. "It won't be long before you can meet your baby sister."
"How do you know it's a girl?"
"I just know it," she smiled. "She's in my belly after all."
"What will her name be mother?" he asked curiously.
"Hmm, I haven't really decided yet," his mother said with her finger placed on her chin. "Do you have any ideas?"
He thought for a while but shook his head. "I have no idea..."
Suddenly, his mother burst out in laughter. "I was just teasing you, I already had a name in mind," she confessed with tears of joy filling her eyes.
"Really?? Tell me!"
"You know what? I'll tell you on the day your sister is born," she grinned.
"Then I'm going to ask father!" he said.
"It's no use," her mother chuckled. "Not even your father knows what name I have chosen."
"That's not fair!! You're so mean!!" he pouted. "I'm never going to talk to you if you don't tell me!!"
Right after he said that, everything suddenly became pitch-black before his eyes.
"Mother?" he called out in the darkness. But there was no reply.
Seconds went by and he began to panic. "Mother! Father! Where are you??" he cried.
In a flash, he suddenly found himself standing in the middle of a sea of fire.
"Mother!! Father!!" he yelled as he ran alongside the rivers of flame.
As he dashed with his hand covered his nose and mouth, he didn't notice somebody standing in his path and bumped onto the individual. The impact made him fall backwards to the floor but fortunately missing the raging flames by mere centimeters.
He looked up to the one he bumped onto.
It was a middle-aged man with long curly black hair tied into a low ponytail dressed in a dark purple outfit. His hands were holding onto something.
And that something turned out to be a person, but the heat of the flames prevented him from identifying who it was. At least, not until that person suddenly yelled with a voice that was awfully familiar.
"P-please! Don't hurt my boy!!"
"Mother!!" he cried out and quickly got up to his feet.
"You bastard! Let my mother go!!" he growled as he slashed at the man with his clawed hands. But there was little damage he could inflict with his puny claws.
"Go Sesshoumaru!! Tell your father that Naraku has implanted spies in our fortress!! Go before it is too late!!" he heard his mother cry to him.
"But mother-!"
He was cut off when a sharp pain entered his stomach and a strong force flung him backwards to the floor. Right when he wanted to stand up and run towards his mother again, he realized painfully that a river of fire was blocking his way.
"Please live on for me Sesshoumaru! I know you can do it!! Protect these lands together with your father! I will-"
He scowled when the man with the ponytail slapped her mother to silence her. "You monster!!" he cried angrily.
He knew the man had heard him when he turned to look at him. "You've got guts boy, it's a pity that you're the son of my enemy. You would make a fine warrior," he smirked.
Shivers ran down to his spine as it felt as though his crimson eyes were piercing through his soul. But he quickly shook it off and stared back into the man's eyes.
"Boy! Tell your father that this is only the beginning of the game," the man shouted. "That he will continue to lose those dear to him if he doesn't surrender to me, Naraku!! Mwuahahahaha!!"
The satanic laughter was soon followed by several huge waves of fire that swallowed the man up...
...together with his mother.
And then, everything went black again.
"Sesshoumaru?"
He snapped back into reality and realized he was standing on a grassy hill in the shadows of an old oak.
He turned to the direction where he heard his name, only to find his father walking downwards the hill in a black haori and hakama. "We're leaving," he said.
But he didn't want to leave yet, he thought as he turned back to look at the old oak.
He and his father had identified the spies inside their fortress and they had succeeded in protecting the Western Lands from a disastrous invasion. But the price they had to pay for this temporary peace was too high.
His gold-amber eyes, filled with sorrow, traveled downwards to a square-shaped stone that laid flat on the earth near the trunk of the tree. Several feet beneath its polished surface, rested his mother.
Together with his unborn sister, whose name remained unknown until her death.
:: END DREAM SEQUENCE ::
Sesshoumaru slowly opened his eyes. 'How pathetic...' he thought as he got up from his pillow. He hadn't had that dream for a long time now, but why did it suddenly surface again?
After his mother was murdered, he had demanded his father for information about the man named Naraku. Surprisingly enough, Naraku turned out to be the lord of the Eastern Lands.
Ever since he was little, he had heard about the endless war between the East and the West, but never had he imagined meeting the Eastern ruler in person.
Later, he had also found out that Naraku was in fact a hanyou, a being who had human and demon blood running through his veins. And ever since that day, he wouldn't show a speck of sympathy or mercy towards the human kind. His stubbornness had made him believe that it was the foul blood of the humans to blame for his mother's horrible death.
-.-
Until today, he kept telling himself that those who had human blood running in their body are not to be forgiven.
His thoughts were cut off and he halted his step when he realized he had arrived at the hallway to which the room of the two humans was connected.
From afar, he could see that the sliding doors were open, but since he had the least of intention to enter it, he indifferently continued to walk again.
But while he passed the open doorway, he couldn't help but spot a presence sitting at the back of the room. And eventually, he stopped walking and looked inside.
It was the human child. But why was she alone? Where was her guardian?
'It isn't my business. Why should I care?' he thought inwardly and decided to leave.
Right when he had turned around fully, he caught a small sigh coming from the room. It annoyed him when his conscience told him he shouldn't leave her like that and before he knew it, he was already standing inside the room.
The raven-haired girl in creamy yellow was sitting on the floor with her legs pulled up and her face propped on top of her knees.
Sesshoumaru approached the child and waited for her to realize his presence. Even after so many months he was still able to surprise her and he had to suppress an amused chuckle as he watched her widen her chestnut eyes to show how shocked she was.
-.-
Her mother told her that InuTaisho-sama wanted to talk to her and that she should stay in their room until she got back. But what took her so long?
She was indeed very bored.
The summer was about to end soon and still she wasn't allowed to go outside the room or the fortress without guidance. Within the past couple of months, she had become friends with a certain black-haired female servant named Rin. Of course, she could ask if they could play together in the garden, if only she had some time off from the never-ending household.
'I wonder what Sesshoumaru onii-sama is doing...' she thought to herself. Ever since she had brought him back his mother's kimono, he had become more approachable for her than before. But other than allowing her to be in his room to accompany him occasionally, he wouldn't go as far as letting her follow him wherever he went as much as she had wished to. If only he was her real brother. So she thought as she let out a small sigh.
She cast her gaze downwards to the floor and traced the outlines of her shadow, which was created by the light coming through the doors her mother had forgotten to close. 'Huh..?' she thought puzzled when her shadow began to grow and turned to look aside.
Kagome widened her eyes when she saw the tall figure of Sesshoumaru standing beside her.
Though he didn't show it, she knew he kind of liked to scare her like that, for it certainly hadn't been the first time.
She quickly got to her feet and wiped some wrinkles from her yellow yukata with both her hands. He didn't ask, but she could guess that he wanted to know why she was here all alone and so she began to explain. "My mommy went to talk with InuTaisho-sama. She told me to wait here until she comes back," she said with a bored voice.
Suddenly an idea popped up in her mind. 'Maybe he can take me out of there.' she thought and tried to look as desperate as she could. When the young demon showed no response, Kagome realized she had to pull everything out of her closet to make her plan succeed.
She frowned when Sesshoumaru turned around and began to walk away. 'Aw man...I will certainly die of boredom if I have to stay here any longer!!' she pouted inwardly and tried to look as angry as possible instead of disappointed.
But she was surprised when the boy stopped before the doorway and looked over his shoulder to her.
Joy filled her heart when she realized what he was doing and she quickly ran to his side.
-.-
He knew the child was desperate to leave this room at all costs since she was giving him a sad puppy look. But what puzzled him was why those eyes could bother him.
Thinking that the feeling would go away after leaving the room, he turned around and began to make his way towards the open doors. But irritatingly enough he never made it to the exterior. Somehow, his legs refused to obey him and forced him to halt his step.
After a brief moment of thinking, he finally gave in to it and turned to look at the child. 'She better be clever enough to realize why I am standing here...' he thought inwardly. And to his relief, as if she could hear his thoughts, the girl ran to his side in the following seconds.
Their walk was quiet, as usual, and he was glad about it because the last thing he wanted was a talkative infant near him. Maybe that's the reason he allowed her to be with him sometimes.
It was funny why the child wasn't asking him where they were going. Did she trust him that much?
It was not until some voices pulled him out of his thoughts that he realized that they had been walking into the direction of the main garden, which was located in front of the fortress.
Sesshoumaru stopped walking to listen more carefully and signaled with his hand for the child to stop as well.
-.-
'Huh...?' Kagome thought surprised when they came to a stop right before a corner. 'What's wrong?'
She wanted to ask him, but didn't when she heard some voices talking in a distance.
"I'm very sorry."
Kagome raised both her brows. 'Isn't that InuTaisho-sama's voice?' she thought as she looked up at Sesshoumaru.
Suddenly, she could hear her mother's voice as well.
"Don't be InuTaisho-sama. For more than a half year, I have prayed and hoped, but I guess it is time for me to accept that my husband is never coming back."
Kagome widened her eyes and dropped her face, not knowing that Sesshoumaru had turned his face to look at her.
'Daddy's not coming back...' she told herself sadly. There were tears welling up in her eyes but she bit them back. 'I'll be strong...I won't cry...'
'Mother is there for me...and...' she comforted herself inwardly, lifting her gaze up to meet a pair of golden eyes. '...Sesshoumaru onii-sama too...'
'That's why...I'll be fine...'
-.-
Normally, children of five would start crying when they hear about the death of their loved ones. But not a single drop of tear was visible on her cheek when he gazed down at her.
But then his sensitive ears caught a slight twist in the conversation between his father and the human and he shifted his attention to the corner again.
"Let me protect you and Kagome."
"But InuTaisho-sama...it will be dishonorable for both of us if we stay here any longer."
"Then I'll give you a title."
His father's offer was answered by a moment of silence.
Sesshoumaru scowled. He was definitely not happy to digest what he just heard. The great lord of the Western Lands is going take a human widow as his mate?!
His ears twitched as he listened to the woman's reply.
"InuTaisho-sama, I-"
"I'm truly sorry, I shouldn't have said that. You have just been informed about your husband's death and yet I..."
"No, it is I who should say sorry. It is shameful of me to have a great demon lord like InuTaisho-sama degrade himself to sympathize an insignificant human like me."
Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes as he heard the sounds of colliding fabric. There was no mistaking it. He didn't have to see it with his own eyes to know that his father had pulled the woman into his arms.
"In my eyes, you have never been and will never be insignificant, Izayoi. So don't ever call yourself that."
"Please understand that I have no intention of forcing you to accept me. Nor do I wish to conquer the place in which your deceased husband has taken in your heart. But I cannot let you walk out of here and watch you put your lives in danger when there is something I can do to prevent it. Please let me protect you and your daughter in your husband's place."
"InuTaisho-sama, I am very grateful to hear your kind words, but please give me some time."
At that moment, Sesshoumaru couldn't bear to hear any more of the conversation and turned around to leave.
Before he actually began to walk, he spared the young girl a quick glance. The dog demon didn't have to guess how angry he looked as he saw the fear written over the child's face when their eyes met.
And without saying anything to her, he walked away.
-.-
Kagome didn't quite understand what the demon lord meant by giving her mother a title. And why was her mother hesitating when he asked her to let him protect them? Wasn't that what he had promised from the moment he had offered them to live in the fortress?
The idea to just go around the corner and ask what the whole conversation was about did cross her mind, but she rejected it as soon as she saw the angry look on Sesshoumaru's face. Apparently, he was not too happy to hear what both adults were talking about. But why? Why did it bother him so much?
She was indeed scared when Sesshoumaru suddenly looked at her with his icy glare before he left.
As she watched him disappear into a hallway, she wondered in herself if she had done something to anger him. Maybe she shouldn't have forced him to be her temporary guardian. Was she becoming an annoyance?
Her thoughts were cut off when she heard footsteps coming her way. Thinking that it wouldn't be good if her mother found out that she had been secretly listening to their conversation, Kagome decided to leave.
-.-.-.-
A couple of days passed since she and Sesshoumaru eavesdropped the conversation between her mother and his father, and there was no way Kagome could have missed the strange atmosphere that had been hanging in the air. Maybe it was because of her young age, but she felt as if she was the only one who didn't know about the reasons behind it.
Even her mother was starting to pay less attention to her and went to see the demon lord more often, leaving her alone in their bedroom. Normally, Kagome would be glad to be left alone since she could go to Sesshoumaru. But now she wasn't happy at all, as the silver-haired boy had ignored her ever since the day of the conversation.
'I'm bored...' she thought inwardly as she sat on the floor and fumbled with the sleeves of her soft pink yukata.
Hours went by and Kagome grew impatient with every second. And finally, she stood up. 'I can't stand this anymore!' she told herself angrily. 'If nobody's going to play with me, I will find something to play with myself!'
With that decided, she opened the doors to the hallway and exited the bedroom.
As she walked down the hallways on her own, she thought about where she should go and relief herself from her boredom. And then she arrived at the main garden of the fortress.
She sighed when she spotted a handful of guards standing near the main gate. 'If only I could go outside...' she wailed inside as she looked at the walls of stone standing left and right of the entrance. 'I'm sure there's a lot more to see and explore beyond those walls.'
Suddenly she noticed a horse and a cart filled with tons with standing on the dirt path leading to the gate. 'Maybe I can sneak out if I hide myself between those tons...' she thought and silently made her way to it.
Shortly after she settled herself between the goods, she heard footsteps approaching the cart.
The sound of a lashing whip could be heard and the cart began to move away from the building.
And eventually, it passed the guards and exited the fortress.
-.-
In the meantime, InuTaisho was sitting inside his study with Izayoi accompanying him, totally oblivious to her daughter's leave.
They were both surprised when the sliding doors flung open.
"InuTaisho-sama!"
The demon lord raised a brow when a guard stormed into the room. "What's wrong?" he asked sternly.
" Youkai troops of the Eastern Lands are approaching the borders and they're planning an attack on our fortress!!" one of the guards reported.
InuTaisho widened his eyes and stood up. "What?!"
"Milord, what do we do now?"
"Have all of our men prepare for battle," the dog demon commanded. "Put all servants into safety and have several alarm the villages near the borders!!"
Note: Their fortress is located not very far from the border where the lands of the East and West meet. Hence the safety measures.
"Yes, milord!"
After the guard left in a hurry, InuTaisho turned to Izayoi. "You should go back to Kagome. Stay inside your room and don't come out of it," he said to her. "It could be dangerous."
"I understand," she replied with a nod and she too, ran out of the room.
InuTaisho, who was now alone in his study, gazed down at the two swords kept close to him with the red sash tied around his middle. "We're going to battle again," he said to both weapons as he pulled at the ends of the sash to tighten it.
-.-
InuTaisho was just about to leave the fortress with a group of human soldiers when a woman's voice suddenly called out to him.
"InuTaisho-sama!!"
He turned around to the one who spoke and widened his eyes. "Izayoi! What are you doing out here?!"
The woman ran to his side. "K-Kagome...she's missing!!" she panted.
"What?! Have you asked the guards to search for her?" he asked worriedly.
Izayoi nodded. "Someone saw her hide in a cart of a merchandiser when it was about to leave the fortress not long ago."
"Damn it!" the demon lord cursed.
As he thought about what should be done, he didn't notice a certain silver-haired boy jumping over the walls of stone into the forest.
-.-
It didn't make sense.
He was determined when he decided that he wouldn't spare the mother and child another glance after the day his father proposed to the human. But why was he worried when he heard about the girl's disappearance?
Why did he jump over the walls as soon as he heard that she had left the fortress? He didn't understand, nor did he want to understand. And yet, there he was, standing on the path of dirt in the middle of the forest and sniffing the air.
Fortunately, it wasn't windy today and it didn't take him very long to pick up her scent and the direction where she had gone.
When her scent strayed from the dirt path, he knew she had jumped off of the merchandiser's cart and wandered off into another direction out of curiosity.
Without hesitation, Sesshoumaru walked into the woods with his mind doing nothing else but hoping.
Hoping he would find her before anyone or anything does.
-.- meanwhile -.-
Kagome was looking at her surroundings with wide eyes as she took a short break in a small clearing. With her eyes closed she listened to songs sung by the birds of the forest.
While enjoying the sounds of Mother Nature, the child completely forgot the fact that she had disobeyed her mother again and that she would most definitely get in trouble when they find out. But more importantly, she overlooked the dangerous situation she was in as she could become a prey any moment now.
The serene silence was abruptly disturbed when she heard some footsteps approaching the clearing.
"W-who's there?" she asked, her eyes darting around her.
She felt more awkward the longer she stood there and turned to leave. But a frightened look appeared on her face as she realized she had forgotten the way to return to the fortress.
Kagome took several steps backwards of shock when a person walked out of the shadows of the trees and into the clearing.
The bright sunlight revealed a man with loose curly black hair reaching his lower back. He was wearing a black haori with dark purple edges and a black hakama.
"What's the matter child? Are you lost?" the man spoke with a voice that made Kagome shiver.
She didn't answer to his question and avoided eye contact by looking down at the grassy floor. 'R-run Kagome!!' the voice in her head yelled at her and she quickly turned to run away.
But before she could take her first step, two strong arms grabbed her by her arms and flipped her around. And then she found herself looking into the creepiest crimson eyes she had ever seen.
"Didn't your mother tell you that avoiding eye contact is very rude?" he said as he tightened his grip on her arms.
Kagome wanted to cry out in pain, but no sound came out of her mouth when she parted her lips. Inside, she just hoped for someone to save her from this horrible man.
Suddenly, she caught a flash of pale green flying towards them from the side. It turned out to be a whip and Kagome watched how it circled around one of the crimson-eyed man's wrists and pulled it off of her arm.
Kagome turned to look aside and widened her eyes when she saw the person standing at the other end of the green whip. "Sesshoumaru onii-sama!!" she cried relieved. She wanted to run to him but realized that the creepy man was still holding her other arm.
The man suddenly put up an amused face. "If it isn't the son of the great lord of the Western Lands," he smirked. "I was just about to pay your dear father a visit before I invade and take over his lands. I'm flattered that he sent his son to greet me."
"You!" the silver-haired demon growled.
"Surely I hope you haven't forgotten about me."
Kagome was surprised to hear this. 'They know each other?' she thought as her eyes reciprocated between the crimson-eyed man and Sesshoumaru.
She let out a gasp when the man suddenly hoisted her up by her arm and flung her backwards to the grass. But instead of a hard floor, she made a soft impact with someone's chest. And when she looked up, she realized that Sesshoumaru was the one who caught her.
The dog demon gently lowered her to stand on the floor, but before Kagome could thank him, he had already turned his back to her.
-.-
"Leave," he said to the child behind him.
There was no way he would let her obscure his vengeance on the man who stood before him.
His crimson eyes were something he would never forget. It was the eyes of the man who murdered his mother and his unborn sister.
He frowned when he realized the kid hadn't moved an inch. "I said leave!!" he ordered with a low growl.
"Well, I didn't know you actually cared for the human kind," the crimson-eyed man interrupted with a chuckle.
Sesshoumaru flashed him an icy glare and bared his fangs. "Shut up, you murderer."
But the smile grew wider on the man's face. "Ahh, so you do remember me! I feel so honored!"
"You will regret that," the young demon stated coldly.
"Tsk tsk, such big words for a young pup."
Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes. "Hmp, at least I'm a full-blood," he said and watched how the smile on his opponent's face turned into a scowl.
"Don't forget who you are talking to pup, you're playing a dangerous game right now. One that will take your life if you lose..."
Sesshoumaru readied his claws. "Prepare to die Naraku!!" he cried and he charged forward with his claw first.
But a barrier suddenly appeared around the hanyou and Sesshoumaru was bounced back with great force.
"Ack!" he gasped as he hit a tree behind him. "You b-" he cursed aloud but was cut off when Naraku suddenly appeared before him and lifted him from the grass by grabbing his haori.
"You know...your eyes really remind me of someone..." he heard him say with a chuckle.
"Ah yes I remember now. You're looking at me with the same eyes your mother had right before I killed her."
Sesshoumaru widened his eyes in anger but before he could do anything, he was thrown towards a tree standing at the other end of the clearing.
He quickly back-flipped and set off with his feet on the ground to launch a counterattack.
This time, the enemy didn't use a barrier, but simply swung his fist and hit the Sesshoumaru's face when he was within arm-reach. And he fell backwards onto the grass with a thud.
Through his blurry vision, he saw that Naraku was heading his way and he forced himself to a sitting position. He closed his eyes and shook off the dizziness in his head. When he opened his eyes and lifted his gaze, he suddenly found the raven-haired child standing in front of him with her arms spread out and her back to him.
She was protecting him.
"Go away," he said irritated as he tried to stand up but a shot of pain coming from his leg made him fall back to the floor again. 'What does she think she's doing?! Does she want to die??!' Sesshoumaru thought inwardly as his eyes traveled back and forth between Naraku and the infant.
-.-
Kagome almost jumped up of shock when she heard Sesshoumaru cry out in pain and peeked from behind a thick trunk to see what was happening in the small clearing.
'Sesshoumaru onii-sama!!' she thought worriedly when the creepy man hoisted him up from the floor and she widened her eyes when she realized that the man called Naraku was the one responsible for the death of Sesshoumaru's mother.
She clenched her fists in anger as she watched Sesshoumaru fell to the floor after being hit in the face and she ran out from her hiding place into the sunlight.
She placed herself in front of Sesshoumaru and spread her arms.
"Go away." she heard the injured demon say but she refused to move an inch.
"What's this? A human child protecting a full-blooded demon?" the crimson-eyed man said with a surprised tone as he stopped in front of her.
Kagome gave him a dirty look. "You're a monster," she snarled.
"A kid with a big mouth huh? Your mother really need to teach you some manners...if she's still alive that is..."
Somehow, Kagome got angrier by the second. She didn't like people who hurt other people.
"That boy behind you hasn't got a mother. It's a pity right?"
"Stop it!" Kagome cried. 'Why am I getting so hot...?' she thought as she placed her hands on her chest.
-.-
Sesshoumaru became very annoyed after failing another attempt to stand up. He was angry at the child for her impudence. But he was even angrier at the hanyou for his never-ending chatter.
His eyes widened when he saw Naraku reaching out his hand to the infant. "Kagome!! Get out of here!! Now!!" he cried. But his warning came too late as he watched the kid being lifted up in the air.
He frowned. 'Something is wrong...' he thought as he felt an unusual warmth radiating from her body.
A bright light began to envelope her body and then suddenly, everything became white.
Shortly after that, a loud and painful cry echoed through the forest. It was Naraku's voice.
Followed by a dead silence.
Sesshoumaru slowly opened his eyes when the light started to weaken. The bastard was nowhere to be found.
But where was the girl?
His eyes darted around in search of the child. And all of a sudden, he caught a glimpse of light purple floating in the mid-air. When he looked more carefully he realized it was her. A purplish light that was enveloping her body was slowly beginning to fade and as soon as it disappeared, the child began to fall out of the sky.
Sesshoumaru quickly dashed and caught her before she hit the floor. Then he suddenly realized something strange and with a puzzled look on his face, he gazed down at his leg that was injured seconds ago.
Even with his youkai blood, he wouldn't be able to heal this fast. He shifted his eyes back to the unconscious infant in his arms. Was it because of her? But how was it possible that such a small child possessed such power?
His thoughts were cut off when he caught the scent of his father approaching.
"Sesshoumaru!!"
-.-.- that evening -.-.-
Sesshoumaru stood right outside the room where the child was resting in, and near him stood his father and her mother.
Both adults tensed when the sliding doors opened and revealed an old man dressed in white and gray.
"How is she?" the woman asked with a worried tone.
"It appears that your daughter has exerted her body greatly. May I ask what had happened?" the doctor inquired.
"You needn't know," the demon lord replied. "Can we see her?"
The doctor walked to the side. "But yes of course milord, but I would advise you to be quiet because the child needs her rest."
"Thank you, you are dismissed for now."
"Yes milord," the doctor nodded and turned to leave.
Sesshoumaru watched his father and the girl's mother enter the room and eventually followed.
Guilt began to fill his heart when he saw her lying on the futon at the center of the room with a white blanket covering her body up to her chin. The candle, which was slightly dimmed by a roofless lantern placed over it, stood on a high wooden candleholder near her and illuminated her face with a gold-brown hue.
The mother knelt down besides her daughter and reached out a hand to caress her cheek.
He shifted his attention back to InuTaisho who stood in front of him. "Sesshoumaru, you have not spoken ever since we found you and Kagome in the forest. Now tell us, what had exactly happened before we arrived?" he demanded.
"It was Naraku," was Sesshoumaru's only reply.
His father turned to him with wide eyes but before he could say anything, a soldier entered the room and knelt down.
"What is it?" the demon lord asked.
"Milord, strange things have been happening ever since this afternoon," the human reported.
"Go on."
"We were protecting the borders and waiting for the youkai troops until a strange blinding light suddenly came out of nowhere. After the light faded, the youkai troops had arrived and were about to charge at us," he explained. "But as soon as those youkai reached the borderline, they were vanquished into thin air."
Both Sesshoumaru and InuTaisho raised their brows in surprise. But before they could say anything, a woman's voice beat them to it.
"A barrier is protecting these Western Lands..."
Everyone turned his or her faces to the individual standing in the open doorway. It was a young woman dressed in white and red. Most of her long black hair was tied together at the lower back of her head except for two loose loops resting on each of her shoulders. Despite her young age, her dark brown eyes looked as though they had seen more things and possessed more knowledge than the two dog demons together.
And then a guard suddenly ran into the room and knelt down. "I'm terribly sorry milord. I tried to sent her away, but she refused to leave and insisted on seeing milord before leaving."
InuTaisho held up a hand to signal to the guards that it was okay and turned to look at the intruder. "May I ask your identity human?" he said.
"Certainly," she replied with a polite bow. "My name is Kikyou and I am the head priestess of a shrine located near the Northern borders."
"You have come a long way, miko-sama," the demon lord said and made a dismissing gesture to the two guards before turning back to her. "Come further."
Sesshoumaru's eyes followed the young woman as she entered the room and stopped in front of them. While wondering about the credibility of her words, his father asked her to tell him more about the barrier she mentioned earlier.
"This afternoon, I felt a strong spiritual power coming from near your fortress," she began. "But I was surprised when it disappeared shortly after it emerged and left no trace of it behind."
She took a short pause before continuing. "I thought it was just my imagination when I saw a glimpse of a barrier hanging in the sky after leaving the shrine. But I confirmed what I saw as I walked alongside the borders towards your fortress. Just like I said earlier, there is indeed a barrier protecting your lands and from what I have witnessed with my very eyes, every single malicious youkai that attempts to cross the borderline will be eliminated by pure purification."
"Never in my life have I experienced such great spiritual power," the priestess confessed while shifting her gaze from the two demons to the two humans on the floor. "Can you please tell me the identity of the one who had created that barrier?"
The two adults didn't know how to respond to this but Sesshoumaru pointed at the child lying on the futon. "It was her," he stated plainly. He could see the dumbfounded looks on their faces when they heard this, yet he didn't find the need to say any more.
But after a moment of silence, the child's mother suddenly decided to speak. "My husband was a very powerful priest," she told them, not looking up from her daughter's sleeping face. "But he died protecting me and my daughter."
"Izayoi..." Sesshoumaru heard his father murmur with a caring tone.
"I see..." the priestess nodded understandingly.
"I guess this is not the right place or time to talk about this," the demon lord decided and turned to leave. And the priestess followed.
Sesshoumaru turned to the mother who was still looking at her child with worry written on her face. 'She looks tired and exhausted...' he thought and walked closer to the futon until she noticed his presence and looked up at him. "You should go..." he said dully.
"But my daughter-" she argued with fatigue in her voice.
"I will guard her," he cut her off. "You need rest."
The woman hesitated but eventually gave in when she saw the sincerity in Sesshoumaru's eyes, which the dog demon didn't know he was showing. "Please watch over my daughter," she bowed slightly and stood up.
Sesshoumaru waited until the human left and the doors closed before sitting down next to the futon. He looked at the child's sleeping face and wondered why he believed she was the one who created the barrier when back in the forest he doubted that she could actually possess such great power. 'Her father was a very powerful priest...' he remembered the mother's words. '...and this girl has his blood running through her body.' It did make sense how she was able to create such a strong barrier, but what was the reason behind it?
He reminded himself of how his leg and cheek suddenly healed right after the light faded and the disappearance of the lord of the Eastern Lands. 'Was it because of her powers? And where did Naraku go? Was he purified in the process?' he pondered inwardly.
And suddenly he recalled the last thing he said to the girl when she was still awake.
'I called her by her name...' he realized.
And why was he so nice towards her mother? Wasn't he angry at her? Was his stubbornness, which resulted in his hatred towards humans, beginning to waver?
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Just for your information, Sesshoumaru is 14 at the moment and Kagome is almost 6. And you might wonder why it is dishonorable for both InuTaisho and Izayoi if she and Kagome stayed under his protection. It's because they both have lost their soulmates and they're living under the same roof. It is actually shameful for Izayoi to live in InuTaisho's fortress, because she hasn't got a title (i.e. she's got no right to). I hope I've explained it sufficiently :).
Oh and another thing, you might have noticed that I didn't mention the Northern and Southern Lands. You probably remember Bankotsu mentioning that the lord of the Eastern Lands was responsible for the fall of the Western Lands, so hence I'm only concentrating on the war between the Eastern and Western Lands.
Lastly, some good news! If my calculations aren't wrong, Bankotsu is about to show up after 2 more chapters!
Greets,
Kittymui
-.-.-
Italic: thoughts
-- --: locations
"...": spoken words
-.-.-.-: time gap
-CAPSLOCKED WORDS-: noises
-.-.-
Next chapter: Chapter 5
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What had happened to Naraku? And it's time to decide whether or not Izayoi and Kagome can stay in the fortress. What will Sesshoumaru do? Will he accept the two humans to be part of the family?
Please look forward to the next chapter!!
-.-
Vocabulary:
hanyou: half-demon
miko-sama: a respectful way to refer to a priestess
youkai: demon
haori: short silk jackets
hakama: Japanese pants
futon: a traditional Japanese cotton mattress. It can be filled with foam, wool, polyester or a combination of fibers
yukata: a traditional Japanese garment that's worn during the summer
-.-.-
REPLIES ON REVIEWS:
fallen-anqel: Thanks! I'll try!
Wake-Robin: Thank you :), I'm glad you liked it! I'll try to update as soon as possible!
azn-sakura17: It is rooster indeed :), sorry for the mistake hahaha. Thanks for reviewing!
Skitzoflame: Thanks! Hope you liked the development between Sesshoumaru and Kagome :).
Kiken-Ryuko: Thank you very much!
Duzzie: I'm happy to hear you loved it!!
Kokoro Mizu no Kaze: I'll try to update within every 10 days :)! Thanks for reviewing!
whitewolfmoro11: Pfew...I'm glad you're not becoming impatient about Bankotsu not showing up yet :), indeed I'm very relieved haha.
Rhexi: It's okay :) don't worry about that. School is becoming a bother to me as well. I'm going to have an exam tomorrow and right now I'm using my break to update this newest chapter :). Why Sesshoumaru is gentle towards Kagome? Euhm...difficult to explain, well you do have to keep in mind that he's only 14 years old :). So he's not THAT stubborn and cruel... (yet?) hahaha. Thanks for reviewing! I'm happy to hear that you like the story so far!
evilmaniac: Thanks!!
Inukamisashi: Thank you :)!!
BelleDayNight: Thank you very much :)! I'm very happy with your compliments!
Lady Kaela: I'll try to update (as usual) within every 10 days :)! Thanks for reviewing!!
Mayukagurl: Thanks thanks!! I will!!
Posted: 9 January 2005
Last Edited: 9 January 2005
Spelling check: YES
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Inuyasha or any characters of it. And I do not own whatever elements of this story that seem familiar and had already been used by other creative individuals before. But... I do own the idea of mixing all of these elements together into a new story!