Chapter Three: A "Trip" Down the Well

Hello everyone, and welcome to chapter three! If you found the first two chapters rather odd…well then, we are in agreement. This chapter will probably be longer than the first two, but not by a lot. I'll try to add more in the future.

I'm not entirely sure what Sesshomaru's family name is…is it Taisho, since his father is Inu-Taisho? I'm using Taisho, but if anyone knows what it actually is, let me know.

Anyway, without further ado, I bring you chapter three!

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Kagome's eyes went wide as she fell backwards into the old well. It wasn't that she hadn't felt this time shift sensation before…it was that this time the change was somehow different than normal. Normally, Kagome could feel only a light tugging sensation that she couldn't accurately put into words. This time, the pull was simply harder.

It's so strong, Kagome grabbed at the side of the well to try to stop herself. She felt a little like she was dreaming. Unfortunately, this was the type of dream where, the moment you move, you fall, and fall, and fall…

And eventually hit the bottom? No, that wasn't right. She wasn't dreaming; she was at the bottom of the shrine well.

Kagome chided herself for being so silly. I've done that a million times before, and now all of a sudden I'm going to choose to be scared of it? I think not, she decided as she righted herself and began to search for the cracks she could grip to pull herself out of the well.

Her usual handholds seemed to be gone.

Darn, she thought, anticipating all the time it would take her to recarve them. However, she felt that she should have realized that they would break off or disappear eventually. After all, she had carved them within the first few weeks of time she had spent in the feudal era. She was a little surprised that she hadn't noticed them crumbling before now though.

I have been thinking a lot about finding all of the Shikon shard pieces, so it's no wonder that I missed something like this, Kagome decided. Should I stay, she asked herself. "Or should I go back? She looked upwards. I suppose that as long as I am already here I ought to stay…I can borrow things from Sango if I have to. Kagome and Sango had become as close as sisters throughout the three years they had known each other.

Kagome tried to scramble up the side of the well. She reached out for the lip of the well when she reached it, and almost fell. She snatched at the air by her side, and miraculously, her fingers closed around something soft and fuzzy. She held on tightly as she slipped down the side of the well.

Kagome was startled by a strangled cry coming from outside the well. Suddenly, the upper portion of someone's body appeared at the opening of the well. The person was glaring down at her, and was holding one end of something long, white, and very fluffy.

Kagome completely forgot about her predicament and frowned up at the figure. She couldn't quite make out his face because he was backlit, but she could just discern that the being above her was young, probably a boy of thirteen or fouteen.

"Hello," she said tentatively. "Who are you?"

"Let go."

"What," Kagome asked, taken aback.

"I said," growled the figure. "Let go."

At first, Kagome wasn't entirely sure what the person above her was trying to get her to do. Then she noticed what she was clinging to.

"Oh," she exclaimed, embarrassed. "Sorry, I didn't realize I was holding anything. It was just a reaction I had when I fell, I guess."

The figure above her gave a "humph," and turned to leave.

"Hey," yelled Kagome. "Wait just a second! You can't just leave me in here! I'm trapped!"

The figure turned back towards her in disbelief. "You mean to tell me," he said slowly, brow furrowed, "that you can't climb out from in there?"

"No," she said matter-of-factly.

"How pitiful."

"What," cried Kagome. "Well, I am so sorry, but we can't all be demons!"

The boy frowned again. "Surely you can't see me from down there with your weak human eyes. How did you know that I am a—"

Kagome cut him off, saying, "I'm sorry, but it's fairly obvious. You're acting just like—" Suddenly she stopped. Perhaps it was best not to mention him, considering that she didn't even know who this was. This boy, she thought curiously, is so much like Inu-Yasha… he even sounds a little bit like him.

"Like…" the boy prompted.

"Oh. Like a someone I know," she finished lamely.

"You make no sense, human."

"He says that too," she replied cheerily. "So," she continued. "Could you please help me out of this well?"

The figure shifted uncomfortably. "I have to leave wench. I have no time to help you." He glanced down at her in discomfort. He could see that she really did need his help. Her knees were already covered in dirt from her previous attempts to escape the confines of the well. How illogical, he thought wonderingly. For someone to ask for help… to rely upon the kindness of others to survive.

"Please," Kagome said. "If you see someone around here that is wearing entirely red, has long white hair, and is completely oblivious to what is going on around him, could you send him this way? He'll probably be here soon anyway," she added to herself.

"Yes, you make him sound so reliable."

"Well, he's a lot more helpful than you!"

The boy was surprised. No one ever talked to him that way. If someone had a quarrel with him, they either tried to inflict pain upon him, or simply kept their moth shut. But then again, he had never before graced a lower life form with his insightful conversation.

The human's insult annoyed him. He once again lowered the garment that she had previously seized.

"What are you doing," she asked, puzzled.

Was she ever dense. "Hold on if you want my help wench," he said through gritted teeth. Annoying and stupid: what a winning combination.

The girls face lit up as she took hold of the dangling object.

"Thank you," she said as she climbed from the well. Once her feet were firmly planted on the ground, she looked up at the boy.

For a moment, she forgot to breathe.

Sunlight streamed down through the trees causing long shadows to appear behind each one. There was only a gentle breeze, and very few clouds obscured the pale blue sky. The boy that had helped her from the well stood near her, with a look of badly concealed annoyance on his face. His long silvery hair flowed out behind him as he adjusted the long white garment he had used to pull her from the well. His clothes were white, with the exception of the colored cloth that he had tied around his waist. He might have appeared delicate, if not for the several large spikes that were protruding from the armor on his shoulder. She could see the resemblance between him and Inu-Yasha in his amber eyes, and a glance to his forehead told her all she needed top know. Imprinted in blue shone the crescent moon, the demon mark of Inu-Yasha's half brother. He had attempted to hurt her more than once.

Kagome quickly appraised the situation. If he tries to kill me now, I don't think that I can defend myself. I have no weapons with me; I wasn't planning on falling down the well!

"What is your name human?"

Kagome was surprised. Does he really not know who I am? He looks so different now from every other time that I have faced him…it's almost as if…he just seems so much younger…

"How old are you," she asked abruptly.

The boy arched a silver brow. "Older than you. Now human, I asked you for your name."

"It's Kagome," she said. She was worried. I don't understand what's going on here, she thought miserably. Worst of all, I don't see how I can find out…maybe he isn't who I think he is.

"Human, I am going to leave now. I trust that you can find your way from here. I have no more time to help you." Typical demon, Kagome thought. He asks me for my name and then continues to call me "human." Oh well, I don't care what he calls me, just as long as I can get information on what's happening from him!

"Um…do you have any siblings," she questioned.

Humans were definitely strange creatures. "No," he answered. He wondered vaguely whether everyone this girl talked to had to go through this interrogation process.

"Could I ask you your name as well," Kagome inquired timidly. It would not be good to offend him now; doing so would probably result in her swift death.

"I am Sesshomaru," he replied, and with that he turned and left.

Kagome watched him leave. Fear was gnawing at her insides, and it was all she could do just to stay still and think about what was going on. I know that that was not the Sesshomaru that I have seen…he was younger, meaning that I must have somehow traveled even farther back in time! What will I do if I can't get back through to Inu-Yasha and the others? Worse still, what if I can't get back to my own time! She turned to face the old well with some misgivings. If I jump in, and find that I haven't gone anywhere, I seriously doubt that Sesshomaru will pull me out a second time…

Kagome resolved to try to get back through to her own time, despite the risk involved. She steeled herself, and carefully stepped up onto the edge of the well.

She looked down into the blackness, and took in a deep gulp of air to prepare herself. She was ready to go, but something was keeping her from jumping. She squinted down to the bottom of the well. It seemed shiny, or damp somehow. It doesn't matter, she decided. Don't think, just jump.

Kagome jumped. As she plummeted into the dark, she caught a whiff of something foul-smelling. The ointment Grampa used to try to bring me home! I've made it, she smiled in relief, and her feet touched the solid ground inside the family shrine once more.

……………….

Sesshomaru had just spoken to a human for the first time in his life, and already he had decided that he would never understand their ways, and didn't want to.

The stupid creature, he said to himself. She begged me to help her out of the well, but the moment she thought I was gone she jumped back in. However, it is strange that she got trapped in that well, of all places. Every time I have been there, it has always been filled with water. His face twisted into a slight grimace. I don't see why any being would choose to go back in there…the stench was awful! I couldn't even catch her scent after she jumped back inside.

She was lucky that it was today that she asked for my help, Sesshomaru thought as he returned swiftly back to the castle. I needed a distraction to help me clear my mind; otherwise I would have left her.

Today was unique, because today was Advancement Day, the day when he would be tested to determine whether he was ready to move on to a higher skill level of fighting.

Sesshomaru had been trained to fight by his instructor, Takumi. When he had been younger, Sesshomaru had been afraid of Takumi, but by now the strange demon had earned his respect. Takumi was tall, with broad shoulders, and a muscular build. His hair was always pulled back in a loose braid, and it was of a deep blue with strands of forest green mixed in, while his eyes were the sad gray of the sea after a storm, matching his light gray skin. Unlike Sesshomaru, Takumi bore his demonic mark upon the back of his neck. Sesshomaru had never seen it.

Now he was drawing close to the castle. As Sesshomaru navigated quickly through the network of trees surrounding his home, he caught a glimpse of the outer wall.

The castle was slightly larger than the average feudal castle, and the outer walls had been made from stone. Considering that this was currently the dwelling of one of the most powerful demons in Japan, it seemed very plain. The castle had been built for functionality rather than as a means to show off the wealth of the Taisho family. If not for the huge stone doors that were engraved with the current Lord's demonic mark, one might have thought that this was the castle of a human lord.

Sesshomaru paused outside the doors to allow time for them to be opened. Once they were, he strode through and headed down the main hall for a ways before turning down a corridor on his right. After several minutes he had come upon the great arch that opened into the training room.

It was time for his Advancement Test to begin.

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Well, that's it for chapter three, and I hope that everyone liked it! Thank you so much for reviewing my first few chapters!

Ch. 1 Reviews

1kenshinlover- Thank you! I will definitely keep trying to update! Ooops. Yeah, I didn't mean that Kagome is twelve, I wanted her to be 18…although, now that I am rereading that paragraph, I think that it is a bit confusing. I needed…double past tense? Is that what you call it? I don't know.

Sesshomaru's soulmate- don't apologize! I have to tell you though; your review almost knocked me out of my chair! …But that was a good thing in this case if you were wondering.

Ch. 2 Reviews

Sesshomaru's soulmate- I'll start the next chapter as soon as I can!

niiro-san- I will certainly keep working on the story! I'm glad you think that it is interesting.

1kenshinlover- Heh, heh…I'm glad that you didn't think that I was completely crazy for writing this. I wrote this at 1:30 am—this morning I guess that would be—and I kind of figured that I had gotten a bit too weird with the ointment stuff. I tend to do things like that early in the morning.

I'm-A-Shady-Gurl- OK, here is your first update, and thank you!

Cochrann- Longer chapter…got it. I'll try to work on that, and don't worry, there will be more about Sesshomaru and Kagome's relationship! (and don't worry, she is not going to fall in love with the 13/14 year old Sesshomaru…)

Kagura134- Thank you! I hope that you enjoy the chapter.

(Once again,) A big thank you to everyone for reviewing!

I hope to see you back for chapter four!