Cemetery

Disclaimer: Read the one from before.

Sesshomaru flew at a very quick distance towards the south end of town with Kagome on his back and Riku following. No one knew where he was headed except for Sesshomaru, who didn't inform anyone of his destination. Sesshomaru abruptly, but gracefully, stopped.

Kagome had closed her eyes for the ride and didn't open them yet. She felt with her senses. A cold stillness was in the air around them, wind blowing around once a minute. There was no smell, and the only taste was stale air. Kagome used her miko powers to see what essences were in the area. Hundreds of black glows appeared. She couldn't determine who or what they were but she knew they were dead. She was standing in the entrance to a cemetery.

Kagome's eyes opened. Sure enough, tombstones stood all around her front. She felt almost as if she was paralyzed. The coldness of it all stunned her. How could Sesshomaru take her to a horrendous place like this? How? When all her closest friends were dead he took her to a cemetery to be reminded of them… It hurt.

Sesshomaru wordlessly took her by the hand and lead her and Riku to a tombstone. Kagome squinted, but she couldn't see what the name was. It had been worn away with time. How long it had been, she couldn't tell.

Sesshomaru bent down to the tombstone. He motioned to Riku. Riku stood beside him unwillingly. He knew what Sesshomaru wanted form him, but pretended he didn't. Sesshomaru motioned to him again and he pulled out a yellow cloth ribbon reluctantly. He slowly handed it to Sesshomaru. Sesshomaru nodded and touched his pant leg lightly. Since it was at a horizontal angle, a sword easily slid out. Sesshomaru grabbed the handle and held it point down. He tied the ribbon around it with one hand, holding it with another. It was all wordless.

Kagome was shocked. She had recognized the sword. It was the Tenseiga! It was amazing that he had retained it for so long. It looked good, too. It looked just like when Kagome had seen it last. It was also spectacular how well hidden it was. She hadn't even seen any crease in his pant leg. He didn't look as if he had any cuts either. He must have been very careful. But then again, it had been five hundred years. It must have become routine through all that time. Nevertheless, Kagome was impressed.

Sesshomaru spoke. "Kagome, would you come?" He asked her.

Kagome walked slowly and cautiously over to him. Her steps were slow and light, padding along softly. She was unconsciously trying not to disturb the dead. She stopped a foot away from Sesshomaru. "What is it, Sesshomaru?" She asked him nervously.

"Would you touch the hilt of the Tenseiga?" Sesshomaru asked cautiously. He knew that the Tenseiga was not exactly the fondest object of her memory. It had caused many deaths.

Kagome nodded obligingly. She held out a tentative hand and lightly touched the sword. An aura pulsed around her hand and she tightened her grasp on instinct from the thick aura. It burned her hand and Sesshomaru took a grip over it. It made a difference. Kagome's hand now felt only slightly warm. But now there was a burn. It stung as she maintained a strong grip. Riku took hold of her hand reluctantly and the burn faded away. Did he have healing magic? The sensation suddenly came back. Kagome gasped in pain.

"Think of the one dearest to you!" Sesshomaru yelled. Kagome could tell that he, too, was also in pain. Kagome thought of Sesshomaru. Though she loved her mother, grandfather and brother very much, he was the person who actually understood her, better than anyone else now. Sesshomaru on the other hand, was a mystery to her.

Sesshomaru's method was true to its word. The pain faded away thanks to her thoughts of Sesshomaru. Kagome then supposed that Sesshomaru really was the closest person to her. Yet Kagome struggled to keep from falling on the ground as her legs buckled beneath her. She couldn't fathom why, but she felt the need to. All of her joints grew weak but there was no pain, only stress. Her muscles contracted and everything in her tightened up. She almost screamed out in shock.

A bright light appeared in the sky. It wasn't very big, but was shaped as a cube. Kagome could see it distinctly as she squinted. She focused on it rather than the strange things happening to her body. Sesshomaru and Riku had already done the same. It was directly above them. As she glanced closer, she saw a wide ring around it. She felt a quake around her, though faint. The ground was melting away around her! It was only metres away! As the ring grew smaller, the ground that fell grew closer. Kagome's heart beat faster.

Kagome closed her eyes. She couldn't watch the scene. She was going to die. But, Sesshomaru was her friend. He wouldn't kill her or even think about it! He would certainly never bring her to a graveyard and kill her, killing himself and Rin's son while doing so. She had to believe in him. Kagome thought as she bit her lip. I'll have to.

The ground caved in again. "What is wrong with you, Sesshomaru!" Riku shouted to Sesshomaru. His face was red and showed in a classical colour contrast to his black hair.

Sesshomaru remained calm, though his eyes flicked around the scene. "Nothing. We are going somewhere. Wait." His words were short, brief and uninformative. However, Riku asked no more questions.

The wind had picked up. Kagome's hair had become a mess of grass and twigs. Her hair hadn't even been this dirty in the Feudal Era! Kagome felt the urge to reach back and pick them out. But by doing that she would let go and might stop them from saving Sesshomaru. She held on.

"Aaaaaah!" Kagome screamed as the ground beneath her fell. The adrenaline caught up with her as the wind blew hard with the rapid fall. She no longer felt anything except the wind…

And a smooth landing…

To Be Continued…

Author's Note: Wow, a real cliffy. I wonder where they will go… Obviously somewhere magical. I like this chapter, though. It turned out well. It was very suspenseful. Kagome's very confused… and she didn't die, so that's good. Hey, it's not marked tragedy!

Sorry it's a little late. I know I usually post on Saturdays, but the login page was down. I don't know why! I finished it on Friday.

Thank you guys all who reviewed! I'm saying this because I got NINE reviews for Chapter 15, my highest by, I think, two? Reviews and hits make me happy and loved. I mean, if you don't review, then just make sure to appreciate the story.

I know it's short, but I wanted it to be a cliffy, so I had to cut the next chapter for, you guessed it, next week. Wait for it!

REVIEW! No flames, flamers!