A few moon cycles later, Sesshoumaru arrived at their meeting place only to halt abruptly. He had stormed through the forest, anxious to be near Kagome. He wanted to rant about the most recent unfairness of his father, and calm to her sympathetic and soothing responses. But his anger was forgotten the moment he saw her.
Kagome sat with her knees brought up to her chest, and he could smell the salt from her tears and hear soft sniffles. Her wings were brought close around her body, as if to shield her from the outside world.
Her wings were what caught his attention. They were not their usual, pure white. Instead, they were tinted grey.
He had once asked Kagome about her wings. She told him that when Earth Angels were younger, their wings were white, and change color to reflect their feelings. A yellow hue signified fear or confusion. Red indicated anger. White denoted happiness or serenity. Kagome's wings were almost always white when he saw her. A few times he had seen the white wings with a pink tinge, but Kagome refused to inform him of the meaning. She promised she would tell him, someday.
She had never told him what grey meant.
"Kagome." He did not try to keep the worry from his voice as he kneeled before her. "Kagome, what is wrong? Why are your wings like that?"
She stifled her sobs, but her eyes still glistened. She gave him a shaky smile. "My wings are fine Sesshoumaru." Suddenly she threw herself at him, and her hands clung to his shirt. Immediately, Sesshoumaru wrapped his arms protectively around her as her weeping shook her small frame. "They're sending me away, Sesshoumaru," she cried into his chest.
At her muffled words, which his impeccable hearing allowed him to understand clearly, Sesshoumaru felt his heart freeze and splinter.
"What?" She could not be leaving him. She simply couldn't. He must have heard her wrong. She must not be serious. As Kagome continued to cry in his embrace, however, his disbelief slowly dispersed, and the reality of the situation penetrated his mind. "Why?" he asked her, as her sobs began to subside.
She pulled away slightly, so her shining sapphire eyes could meet his hurt golden ones. "My wings have not changed color. I'm the last of my age group whose wings have not changed color yet. My instructor delayed sending me away as long as she could, but…"
Sesshoumaru long ago asked if she was able to fly. Kagome had laughed and shook her head. She explained that her wings would not be proportionally to her body for several years to come. At that time, her wings would gain a different, permanent color. Training began early, though, so they would learn not to rely on their wings in battle, and even see them as a hindrance when fighting on the ground.
Kagome took a deep breath. "I am holding my classmates behind, now. I—I'm being sent to a special teacher for those like me… at the other end of the forest. I have to live there until my training is over."
"Can't you sneak away, like you do now?"
Kagome shook her head. "It's too far away. And the training sessions will be longer and more trying. I am told that the instructor is stricter as well." She looked at him for a long moment. "Sesshoumaru, I do not want to go. I do not want to leave you," she said quietly. "I do not want to say goodbye. What if… what if I never see you again?"
His clawed fingers touched her tearstained face gently. "Kagome, I—" He could not bring himself to say the words. He told himself that now was not the right time. "I do not want you to go, either. But, we'll see each other again."
"How do you know?" Her words and her voice begged for reassurance.
"Because I would wait forever to see you again," he told her.
She finally seemed to calm. Kagome nodded and her smile was stronger. "Me, too. We'll just think of it as a 'see you later', then."
He nodded and stood, then held out his hand to help her stand as well. Sesshoumaru noted that her wings had lost most of their grey coloring, but they had gained a light pinkish tint.
"Kagome, what is the meaning of the pink in your wings?" He had asked the question many times in the past.
Kagome blushed ever so slightly and shook her head. "The next time we meet, I shall tell you."
He dipped his head in agreement. "Next time, then."
She smiled, then sighed. "I cannot stay away any longer. I must go." She stared at him, as if trying to engrain every detail into her memory. And he unabashedly did the same to her. Kagome brought her hand up to his cheek, gently tracing the magenta stripes. He pressed his cheek into her open palm, and his hand rose to hold hers in place.
Kagome smiled tenderly and leaned towards him, bringing her face to his. She kissed his opposite cheek, the corner of her lips brushing against his. As she pulled back, she slipped her hand out of his grasp.
Sesshoumaru had closed his eyes when he felt her soft lips against his skin, but opened them again at the loss of her touch.
"See you later, Sesshoumaru."
"See you later… Kagome."
She gave him a smile to remember her by before she turned and disappeared into the foliage.
- - - - - -
Years became decades, and Sesshoumaru came to pass a full century of life. He continued to become more remote and stoic. Sesshoumaru never before realized how heavily he relied on Kagome's support.
She was not with him as his father continued to become more overbearing and severe in Sesshoumaru's training. She was not there with him after his mother's failed endeavor to end her own life. She was not with him when his mother's second attempt resulted in what could only be deemed a success, as all that could be found were a note and her scent disappearing at the edge of a cliff that looked upon the ocean.
But he still clung to the belief that they would meet again. Even after all other childish dreams had been lost to maturity, he still had hope for Kagome. His transition to adulthood also allowed him insight to what his feelings truly were. And he wondered if she felt the same.
Then, as he neared his second century of life, and the end of his training, war erupted amongst the Lands.
Greed seemed to have finally consumed the usually passive bear clans of the Eastern Lands. Desire for more land and more power had finally led to the ending of the amity throughout the Lands. Lord Taro, the Lord of the bat youkai of the Northern Lands, was a close friend of Lord Susumu, and so followed the bear youkai to war.
Katsuro and his ally, Yukio, had long been preparing for a war. Combined, their numbers were far greater than that of their enemies. In light of the war, however, Sesshoumaru's training sessions were often postponed. Most likely, he would not finish by his second century as intended. However, his father often kept him by his side, so Sesshoumaru received firsthand experience of wartime measures.
As the war raged on, Sesshoumaru found himself more and more concerned for Kagome's wellbeing. She had told him she would be sent to the other side of her forest, which meant she would be near the North or Eastern border. Her training may have been completed recently, but the possibility remained that hers had been delayed as his was.
Lately, he had heard talk of invasion of the Central Lands, and Sesshoumaru's anxiety increased.
Behind his perfected impassive mask, Sesshoumaru silently longed for Kagome. He longed and worried for her.
Absence seemingly did make the heart grow fonder.
A/N: I apologize for the wait, as well as the relative shortness of the chapter. I will try to do better next time!
Okane-Tsuki: Thank you very much for your review! I assume school has started for you as well?
Inuyasha's hun: I am sorry that you had to wait so long for this chapter. I hope you enjoyed it. Thank you for reviewing!
Demonic Devils: I'm very sorry that I was unable to update sooner. I probably will not take as long this time, so you can look forward to that. Thanks so much for the review! I am very happy to hear that you like the story so far.
Veronica: Sorry for the delay! Please know that I very much appreciated your review, and I will work hard to get the next chapter up soon.
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The Squabbit: I look forward to hearing input from you. I will try my hardest to update soon. Thanks for reviewing!
Sesshie's Black Dominatrix: Thank you so much for reviewing both of my stories. I am very glad that you like them. Unfortunately school is very prevalent in my life right now, but I plan on updating soon.
kawaii-baka4life: Thank you for the compliments! I am flattered to hear that you are enjoying both my fictions. I will try my best to update sooner this time.