A/N: Hey all. This is just a note to tell those of you that usually only read the top author's note that it would be much appreciated if you also read the author's note at the bottom, which is my response to the ban on review responses within chapters. Thanks.
Thousandfurs
Chapter 3: A Day's Work
Kagome stared out over the castle grounds, wrinkling her nose. It was deeply cold, too cold for even snow. Everything was gray, as things were before the dawn. The princess had never been awake this early before, not on purpose. But even if she had tried to sleep through the morning, she wouldn't have been able to in her new home, not with all the servants stamping up and down the stairs over her head, sending blankets of dust upon her.
"Oh… how dreary," she moaned, making her way towards the kitchen and sliding open the door.
"Thousandfurs!" barked Naraku. "You're late, wench!"
Her eyes widened. "But… it's before dawn, Naraku-san."
His own red eyes turned on her. "Yes, Thousandfurs. And that means you're late. Next time you are late, I will throw you out of the castle gates myself."
Kagome lowered her head and curtsied. "Yes, Naraku-san," she murmured.
"Now get to work." He stared at her as she hesitated. "Clean out the ashes, girl! Sweep the floor! Fetch the water! Do something useful!"
The princess jumped in fright, grabbed the bucket from next to the door and went back out into the cold. It blistered her skin, forcing her to pull her hood closer to her face. She stood for a moment, lost. She hadn't been to the well yet. Where would it be? It was still too dark to see it, every shape bleeding into the next in the gray of the morning.
"Looking for something?"
Kagome looked around but didn't see anything.
"Down here."
A tiny demon was at her feet. He had an enormously bushy tail that was almost the size of the rest of him. Ruddy brown legs stuck out from his little pair of pants and a crop of red hair was pulled back by a blue ribbon. He was smiling, although his green eyes were studying her intensely.
"Hello," said Kagome. "Are you a fox demon?"
"Yup," he replied, his tail wiggling as he grinned at her. "My name's Shippo and I work in the stable. Who are you?"
She crouched down next to him. "My name is Kagome and I just arrived yesterday to work in the kitchens. I'm afraid I don't know where the well is though, and Naraku will be angry if I take too long. Do you have time to show me where it is?"
"Yeah, no problem. The king never goes out this early and anyone else can wait." He started walking back into the property. "This way."
"Thank you. So, you're the stable boy? I don't mean any offense but…" she trailed off, biting her lip.
He smiled at her. "Yeah, I know I don't look like someone who can handle horses, but I'm really good at it! Really, I am. Prince Inuyasha always makes fun of me, but even he would admit that no one takes care of the barn like I do!"
Kagome looked at the little fox. "He's not very nice," she said quietly.
"Ah, are you Thousandfurs? The one Prince Inuyasha was talking about yesterday?"
The princess scowled, although it was barely visible underneath the soot. "Yes, I am."
"Inuyasha's a real jerk sometimes," said the fox, dropping all formality. "I'm the only servant that was born here, in the castle. My papa fought for the king! So I'm the only one that can make fun of the prince. The king himself said so."
Kagome laughed, the first genuine laugh in weeks. "That is indeed an honor. Are you going to fight for the king one day?"
"Maybe," said Shippo. "It's been a long time since there was a real war, not since the king married the queen. My parents didn't even know each other then. They met when my papa came home. He came home and my grandma had my mama waiting for him right there! Mama said she wanted to mate with a soldier and grandma gave her Papa."
They laughed together as the well came into view. "So, does your father still fight for the king? Is your mother still glad to be with a soldier?"
The little fox stopped smiling. "My mama died a long time ago and my papa died last year. Two brothers killed him when he went out on a border patrol."
"I'm so sorry, Shippo," the girl said, putting down the bucket by the well.
He shrugged. "It's okay. I have the castle. The king took me in, gave me a job. He said that he owed my papa at least that."
Kagome lowered the bucket into the well. She had seen the servants at her own castle do it a hundred times. She was pleased that she could remember it, probably the only chore she knew how to do properly. "It's good to have a place to call home," said the princess. She heard the bucket splash into the water and started to wind it up, groaning when she felt the resistance of the now full bucket.
"Need help?" laughed Shippo. He leapt up to the side of the well and assisted the girl in pulling the bucket up.
"You're very strong for such a young boy," commented Kagome.
He smiled at her as she lifted the bucket again. The water sloshed against her ankles but the fur protected her. "I'm not that young. I bet I'm older than you."
"I'm seventeen. Eighteen come spring."
Shippo jumped down from the well and walked alongside her, back towards the kitchen. "I'm seventy three. I am young, by our standards."
Kagome laughed, shaking her head. "I should have known. I know a flea that's seven hundred years old and still jumping around like… well, a seventy three year old, apparently." She groaned a little, shifting the weight of the bucket from one arm to another. "This is harder than I thought it would be."
"You look strong enough."
"But I'm not," she replied.
"You will be," said Shippo, "after a few weeks here. You'll be as strong as me for awhile, until I grow up, of course. Then I could beat anyone! Fox demons are known for their strength."
Kagome smiled. "Are they? What are dog demons known for then? Like the prince?"
"For being stubborn," said the fox demon, laughing with her. "Have you seen the king yet?"
The princess shook her head. "No, I haven't. Is he a kind king?"
"The best. He says I'm biased though. A lot of the youkai say he shouldn't have mated with a human, but the king always says that if that's the worst they whisper about him, then he's in good shape. And he's fair and always tries to work things out without violence first, unlike most youkai." He looked up at the girl. "What kingdom are you from?"
"The Nakao kingdom," she said softly.
Shippo wrinkled his nose. "I heard that the Nakao king was horrible, especially since the queen died at the beginning of winter. Is there any truth to the rumors?"
Kagome looked at him sharply. "Which rumors would those be?"
"That he wanted to mate with his own daughter. I heard about it from one of the castle servants and he heard it when he was serving dinner to the king. Everyone was talking about it for days, but the king finally said that it was none of our concern what sins the humans practiced amongst themselves."
The princess shrugged. "I… I don't know. I hadn't heard anything of the kind." She saw that Shippo was disappointed. "But he was a horrible man. I think he must have always been horrible, now that I think about it, but his queen kept it in check until she died."
They reached the door of the kitchen. "I have to go back to the stable now," said Shippo.
"Yes, I know. Thank you for your help."
Shippo smiled at her and waved as he scampered away. "I'll see you later, Kagome!"
The princess waved back and slid open the kitchen door, only to be barked at again by Naraku. "Sorry, Naraku-san," she said, not even listening to his yelling. She set down the bucket of water, got a rag and began to wash off the tabletops, so that food could be prepared for breakfast.
"Good morning, Kagome," said Sango, walking up to her with an armful of vegetables.
"Good morning." She grimaced when she came to a glob of fat and carefully washed around it.
Sango laughed. "Um, Kagome… that's not supposed to be there for posterity. Naraku-san will be angry if anything is left on the table."
"But it's gross."
The other girl laughed again and went around the table. "You haven't done this before, have you? Okay, well, you have to actually clean everything off. Here, just watch." She took the rag and washed the rest of the table, rinsing it out in the bucket. She finished and handed the bit of cloth to the girl again. "Now, do that table before Naraku-san murders us with his glare."
Kagome looked at the head chef, who was certainly staring at the girls with angry glint in his eyes. "Alright," she murmured.
"The trick is to work hard enough not to get yelled at, but not hard enough to kill yourself," advised the elder girl. "Then Naraku-san would just yell at the rest of us to get the body out of the kitchen, and that's such a pain in the ass."
The princess laughed and went to another table, washing it much more vigorously than the first one. Sango wandered away to get a knife for chopping as the door opened again, letting in a fierce gust of icy wind. Kagome huddled back into her furs and looked up to see a thin woman with black hair and red eyes enter the kitchen with a dreadfully pale, short girl.
"Kagura! Where the hell have you been?" Naraku stalked across the kitchen, causing every to look at the woman, who looked like she would rather be anywhere than the center of attention.
"Kanna felt ill," she murmured. "I was tending to her."
The head cook looked down at the diminutive girl. "How can you tell when she's ill?" he sneered. "She always looks half dead."
A defiant gleam emerged in the demoness's red eyes. "She told me that she felt ill. I did not want to bring her until I was certain that she was well enough to work."
"Don't speak back to me, wench, or I'll give you more of what you received last night," growled Naraku.
The demoness named Kagura rubbed her forearm. Kagome could have sworn she saw the shadow of a nasty bruise on her wrist, but the kimono fell back over her hand. "Yes, Naraku-san," she murmured. "Now if you could excuse us, we have work."
Naraku grabbed her wrist, making Kagura flinch and confirming Kagome's suspicions. "I mean it, wench," he snarled at her quietly, although everyone could hear it. "You've been getting especially stubborn lately and I will not stand for it. I am your life, Kagura. Don't forget it."
"How can I, with you breathing down my neck – and other places – forget that you control my every movement?" she snapped, prying off his hand and crossing the room to get to work.
Kagome and Sango looked at each other, raising their eyebrows at this display. Naraku seethed for a moment before snapping at everyone to get back to work, which they did instantly to avoid getting his anger directed upon them.
'This is certainly going to be interesting,' mused Kagome as she scrubbed the table.
A grueling thirteen hours later, the princess couldn't think of anything coherently as she stumbled into the servants' quarters. It was long past dark and almost everyone else had gone to sleep. Even Myoga had popped in and told her that he was going to their room. Naraku, who had moved around the kitchen, pointing out bits of dirt and food that she had missed in the evening cleanup had kept Kagome long past dinner. She had scrubbed the tables, counters, floors and pots all at least three times. Kagura had watched, hunched over on her stool in the corner, making marks in some ledger that the princess supposed was the kitchen's accounts.
She looked down at her hands. They were almost clean from dunking them in the water pail all night. Naraku hadn't commented, but she saw him watching her carefully. Kagome knew what he was thinking, that her hands were not the hands of a laborer. She could only hope that he wouldn't be too curious.
Sighing, she went over to the fire in the middle of the room. It was only glowing embers in the midst of ashes. Someone was supposed to keep alive all the time, Sango had told her that afternoon during their meal, but demons really didn't feel the cold so they let it die. They were the only two humans and no one would go out of their way for them.
Kagome knelt beside the fire and scoop up the ashes in her hands, rubbing them into her arms and her face, where sweat had left streaks. She felt caked in dirt, a new experience for her, but she was surprised at how quickly she got used to it. At least she would not have any trouble cleaning out the kitchen hearths in the morning.
She went to the pantry, pouring some water for herself from the massive jug and grabbing a crust of bread, gobbling both in a very undignified way. She couldn't believe how little the servants lived on, although they seemed to be content about it. No one ever said anything against the king at mealtimes so far, although much was said about Naraku when he wasn't within earshot. Accustomed to palace gossip, Kagome didn't really listen. She had been so tortured by it when she was at her old home, although she had to admit that the things they said about Naraku were interesting, if not disturbing.
The main door slid open and Kagome turned to see an exhausted Kagura step in. "Good evening," she said, before she could stop herself.
The demoness stiffened and looked at her out of the corner of her eye. "Good evening," she replied shortly.
There was an awkward pause. "Is your sister feeling alright?" asked Kagome.
"Yes. She was just a bit overworked and needed a few more minutes of sleep." She eyed the princess warily. "Don't ask me about Naraku. I am sick of the questions."
Kagome leaned down to place her dirty cup in the bin. "I wasn't even thinking of it. Your business is your own."
Kagura lifted an eyebrow. "I thought humans were supposed to be meddlesome."
The princess shrugged. "You live with Sango, so surely you know that we're not all the same."
"Sango is… different," the demoness murmured. "She has been here for so long that I'm beginning to think she is turning into one of us. She is more resilient than many of the youkai here. And I like her very much, but to tell the truth, I don't get very many chances to speak with her. We all work very hard."
"I've noticed that," said Kagome.
Kagura nodded and then made her way across the floor towards the stairs. "I'll tell Sango to wake you each morning," she said. "You can't come late again. Naraku always makes good on his threats."
The princess bowed her head. "I know. Thank you. It would be appreciated."
The demoness disappeared up to the second floor. Kagome finished another piece of bread and went to her cupboard under the stairs. Myoga was sleeping on the shelf, wrapped in a scrap of cloth no bigger than the palm of her hand. Kagome settled down, using her arm as a pillow, and was asleep within moments.
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Days passed by quickly. Kagome found herself being braced by the wind instead of defeated by it. Waking up in the morning wasn't so difficult. Her work was done faster, letting her sleep earlier. Naraku still yelled at her, but she found that it was becoming less intimidating, because he yelled at everyone, regardless of the quality of their work. Carrying water was easier, cleaning the kitchen wasn't as revolting, and the ashes from the fire kept her covered.
Sango was quickly becoming her dearest human friend, something that Myoga was beginning to resent a bit. The flea, however, could talk of their home and of their shared past, which Kagome treasured more than the little demon could imagine. Other than Sango, the princess was surprised to discover that both Kagura and Kanna would willingly speak to her on a regular basis, as long as Naraku wasn't around. She found Kagura to be very witty, in a sarcastic sort of way, when she wasn't feeling beaten down by the head cook. Kanna, on the other hand, scared Kagome a bit. She was cold and quiet and had an aura of knowing things she shouldn't know, but the princess was still grateful for any friendship she could get. Most of the staff simply ignored her, or gave her short orders when Naraku was out.
Every once in awhile she would see Inuyasha, so easily spotted against the greenery in his apple red haori. She would slow down, with the water bucket in her hands, and watch as he walked to or from the stables with Miroku or alone. He never wandered around the gardens, although he often went to the dojo next to the stables, at least once a day.
Once, she saw the king and queen, walking together in the garden. That time, she had stopped and openly stared at the pair. She had never seen two people who appeared so in love. The servants, even the guards, had to keep back as the monarchs meandering along the paths with hands joined. She would smile when the king would lean close to his mate. Her parents had never acted that way. They hadn't even walked together that Kagome could remember.
Although she was happy to see such a happy pair of lovers, afterwards her heart felt heavy for days. When she could not shake her melancholy, she sought out Sango.
"They are lovely together, aren't they?" sighed the older girl as they scrubbed pots in the coolest corner of the kitchen. The warm colors of the fire still danced over their features, mixing with the colder tones of the oil lamps. Everyone looked like jack-o-lanterns in the light, with their eyes deep set and their mouths heavily shadowed.
"Yes. I can't see them too well, but I can feel it. I can actually feel how much they love one another," Kagome replied. "It must be so nice to have love like that."
The girl nodded. "The king deserves it. His first mate died many years ago. Centuries before we were born. They say he loved her, but it was a political marriage and it was the love of friends. When she died, the king really wasn't interested in finding another mate, but then he met Princess Izayoi and he definitely changed his mind."
"Enough to fight a war for her," commented the princess.
Sango smiled. "Yes. It's rather romantic if you don't think about all the demons and humans that died. Really, the humans blame the king for starting the war over the queen, but it was about so much more than that. Things hadn't been going well between the two races for ages and when the king mated with Izayoi-sama, the human kings decided to go ballistic and invade."
"He could have given her back to her father," pointed out Kagome. "It is romantic, but it's war, all the same."
"The king would rather have died, I think," Sango said thoughtfully. "He loved her so much and the queen didn't want to go back either. She is very beautiful. I don't think I can fault the king for adhering to her wishes."
Kagome smiled sadly. "Perhaps that's why the sight depressed me so deeply. Not that I'd ever want it on my conscience, but I'll never marry a man who would start a war for me."
Sango laughed, putting aside one pot for another. "Not many girls will. Don't get depressed about it, Kagome. You'll find someone."
The princess looked down at her fur-covered body and blackened arms. She knew that looked and smelled a fright. "Somehow, I don't have your optimism, Sango."
"If you just washed that stuff off," argued the other girl, grabbing Kagome's arm. She pointed to a soft bit of pale skin shining through on her palm. "Why do you cover up your skin?"
"Maybe I'm just that grimy," said Kagome, laughing softly and pulling away her arm.
Sango turned serious, picking up a rag again to scrub a difficult spot. "No, I've seen you at night, when I wanted water. You smear ashes on yourself. Why?"
"My beauty regimen?" she offered. Seeing that Sango wasn't laughing, Kagome shrugged. "It's really not a big deal. Please let it go."
The other servant frowned, but nodded. "Alright, but I'm warning you that secrets are hard to keep around here." The frown faded to be replaced with a soft smile. "You are my friend though, Kagome. If you ever do want to tell me, I'll willingly listen."
The princess smiled back as she rinsed out her rag. "You'll be the first to know."
"Thousandfurs!"
The sharp bark made both of the girls jump. "Yes, Naraku-san?" said the princess, rising to her feet. The warmth of the kitchen fire had made her feel sleepy and comfortable, and she was shocked at how one man's voice could so easily shatter her pleasant moment. "Is there something wrong, Naraku-san?" she prodded politely, as the demon just stared at her balefully.
"What have you done, you miserable little animal?" he snarled.
"No-nothing, Naraku-san!" she squeaked, seeing that he was holding a switch of birch wood. "I swear it!"
He stepped forward, pointing his favored instrument of punishment at her. She had so far avoided a lashing, but she had seen the welts it left on others – demons, no less – and she had no desire to see the results on her human skin. "You have been ordered to the throne room to meet the king and the queen."
"You're kidding," she said, not thinking before she spoke.
"I am not," he growled in return. "Now get out of my sight. I don't expect that you'll return."
Kagome traded a look with Sango, who could only give her a sympathetic smile. She began to walk across the kitchen, easily ignoring the stares. With her hand on the door, the soot-covered girl turned back to her glowering boss. "Excuse me, Naraku-san, but I do not know where to go. I don't want to be late meeting the king."
The chef stalked over to her, grabbed her elbow and dragged her outside. "You are a pest, Thousandfurs," he said. "I will gladly come to see you kicked out of the castle by the king himself. What did you do? Steal a jewel of the queen's?"
"Naraku-san, when could I have done such a thing? I work from morning until night. I enjoy my sleep too much to spoil it for a bauble of the queen's," she pointed out, panting slightly as he carted her towards the palace.
He turned his red eyes to her. "One of those jewels would be beyond your wildest dreams, you animal. And you're trying to convince me that you do not care?"
Naraku wrenched open the door and pulled her down the hallway. "Please, Naraku-san," said Kagome. "May we slow down? You're hurting me."
"I thought you said you didn't want to be late, Thousandfurs," he said with a sadistic smile. Nevertheless, he slowed down and released her arm, which was surely red underneath the soot. He clasped his hands behind his back and walked alongside her with his head held high. Kagome tried not to be frightened by her superior's strange, rapidly shifting behavior. Instead, she inspected her surroundings with the practiced eye of a princess who had been in more nobility manors than she cared to remember.
It was lovely. She had never seen such strength in such delicate details. The hallways were wide and spacious, with ceilings interspersed with thick dark oak beams. Everything was lit by tiny oil lamps made of gold, which spread the light across the murals on the walls. Kagome could see that these were not the doodles of some distracted artist, but planned carefully. Branches of cherry blossoms danced across the walls, with the occasional bird. Everything was in gold and chocolate brown. Kagome felt as if she was in the presence of true beauty.
They walked along the oak floors towards the front of the castle. Few youkai passed them, usually servants and once a pair of guards coming off duty. Unlike the kitchen staff, these demons were clean and freshly clothed. Although not the angelic, pale creatures she had imagined them to be, they were graceful, exotic and strong.
"What is the king's given name, Naraku-san?" asked Kagome. "I have heard that his wife is called Izayoi, but I have never heard the king's name."
"First off, wench, they're mates, not husband and wife. Demons don't conform to your strange, emotionally frail traditions like marriage. Mating bonds are stronger than such ridiculous displays. Secondly, servants of your inferior rank do not speak the king's name in normal conversation. His given name is too precious to be spoken by filth like you."
Kagome clenched her jaw, refusing to give into her desire to bite back. She thanked Kami when they finally stopped in front of a large door with what she recognized as a royal seal painted upon it. Plumes of what looked like smoke encircled a great sword, all painted in the same color blue as the uniforms of the guards. Various names were inscribed on the blade of the sword, which Kagome guessed to be the names of the great kings of the Taisho kingdom.
Two guards stood by the door, one moving quickly to slide it open. "They are waiting for you, Naraku-san," he murmured.
The head cook stepped into the room before her, not even looking back to see if the princess was following. When Kagome finally got a clear view of the throne room, her mouth fell open. It was massive. The vaulted ceiling made her feel so inconsequential as she looked at the slim tables lining each wall. They had nothing on them at the moment except oil lamps, but she could smell the scent of old paper, the musty aroma scrolls got when they sat in slightly damp places.
"Your Majesty," fawned Naraku, walking forward and bowing at the same time. "It is an honor to be summoned to your presence."
Kagome finally looked at the king and queen, seated at the far end of the room on an elaborate mat and a low table before them set with tea. She caught her breath. This was what royalty should look like, she was certain. The king was white haired like his son, but it was pulled back into a high knot and he had no trace of dog ears. The only sign of his non-human nature was the unnatural beauty of his high cheekbones and shining golden eyes. His queen was much more clearly human, but Kagome didn't know that humans could be so exquisite. Her hair was raven black and pooled on the ground behind her, while her large brown eyes followed every movement with a gentle glow. They were leaning towards one another and the princess was certain that their hands were clasped as usual.
The king looked up at his pair of visitors, smiling softly at the girl. "Well then, you are the one that my son has been talking about? Thousandfurs, I believe he calls you?"
She got to her knees beside Naraku and bowed with all the grace she could muster. "Yes, Your Majesty."
"Ah, and what's your real name? The one you prefer?"
Kagome smiled, thinking that from the king, 'Thousandfurs' didn't sound too bad. "My given name is Kagome, Your Majesty."
"A very pretty name," said the queen.
The princess blushed from the attention. "Thank you, Your Majesty."
The king beckoned to her. "Come here, little one, let me get a look at you." He smiled as she hesitated. "I won't bite, Kagome. It's just so rare to have a human on our castle grounds that I like to speak with any that do come, especially those that work for us. And my queen does miss her people sometimes. It comforts her to know that you are here."
Kagome got up and stepped quietly to the place beside the king and knelt again, her chin tucked into her chest. She wasn't afraid of him, not any more than a human should be frightened of a powerful demon anyway, but she knew her place. Even as a human princess, she would have treated this youkai king with the greatest of respect.
He put two clawed fingers on her chin and lifted her head to look into her eyes. "Are you happy here?" he asked.
She thought for a moment. "I do not feel entirely at home here, among demons who until a few weeks ago, I had never encountered, but my life is so much better than what it was before I came. So yes, Your Majesty, I am happy."
The king took away his hand, giving a brief glance to the soot now on his fingers. "Your Majesty," said Naraku, "allow me to get some water to clean the ashes off."
"Come off it, Naraku," said the king, letting his hand rest on his knee. "A little dirt isn't going to hurt me in any way."
"Forgive me, sire, but she is filthy and might have some sickness," protested the demon chef. Kagome noticed with a chill that although his words were concerned, his eyes said nothing of the kind. They were hungry and barbaric.
The great dog demon set his jaw. "The only thing plaguing this girl is poverty, Naraku, and that is not contagious. In fact, it is something that her employment here should remedy. And even if she did possess some disease, do you really believe that what wouldn't kill a small human girl would destroy a youkai of my health?"
"Of course not, Your Majesty."
He looked serious for a moment more and then smiled at Kagome. "Naraku believes that you could be a spy, my girl."
"From where, Your Majesty?" asked the princess, frowning a bit.
"Well, I expect that's what he wanted us to ask you," said the queen, laughing. "Are you a spy, my dear?"
"Careful with your answer," said the king, his eyes shining in amusement. He tapped the side of his nose. "I can sniff out a lie from a mile away."
Kagome shook her head. "I'm not a spy, Your Majesty."
The royal couple laughed again. "Good girl," said the king. "You may go now. Miroku should be outside. Will you send him in? Naraku, stay for a moment."
The princess got to her feet and bowed as she backed up. The queen smiled at her, but the king's eyes had turned to the head cook and were as serious as she had seen him during their short meeting. Bowing once more, she turned and left the room. Miroku was there, as the king had said he would be, chatting with the guards.
"Ah, Kagome!" greeted the diplomat. "How have things been in the kitchen?"
She curtsied. "Very good, my lord."
He looked up at the door to the throne room in surprise, as if he had just noticed where they were standing. "Were you visiting the king and queen?" he asked.
"I was, my lord. The king asked me to send you in. Naraku-san is in there as well."
The diplomat grinned and rocked back on his heels. "Is he? I wondered why the king sent for me two hours before my report was due. If you hadn't noticed when you were in there, the king doesn't care for Naraku very much. I've never seen a demon brown-nose as much as that damned cook. I expect I'm meant to save the king from a tedious conversation with him." He winked at her. "I am sorry I haven't visited you, Kagome. It's been a rather hectic couple of weeks, diplomatically speaking."
Kagome bit her lip. "Excuse me, my lord, but shouldn't you be going into the throne room? The king is waiting for you after all."
Miroku gave her a rather patronizing smile. "Now, now, Kagome, are you already tired of my presence?"
"No, my lord, but the king…"
"Will be just fine, I'm sure," said the diplomat. He lowered his voice and leaned closer to her. "Truth be told, I leave them together as often as I can, for as long as I can without getting yelled at because I hope that the king will finally fire that old pest. No such luck so far, but I haven't lost hope yet!"
Kagome shook her head with a small smile. "But why do you want to get rid of him, my lord?"
"Did I ever mention that I come from a long line of monks?" he asked. When she shook her head again, he continued. "Well, I do. And although I have broken that tradition by becoming a diplomat, I still know a rotten egg when I see one. And Naraku is rotten. I just haven't caught him at it yet, nothing that would get him kicked out anyway. Do you see?"
"Yes, my lord," she replied.
Miroku gave a sharp nod. "Good, then you can help me. If you see anything suspicious around the kitchens, will you tell me?"
Kagome bit her lip. "I will, my lord, but I should tell you right now that Naraku has no kindness towards me. I know he wouldn't trust me enough to do anything illegal in front of me."
"Well, just keep a look out, that's all I ask," he said distractedly, instead watching a shapely female walk past with some bedding. "Excuse me."
The princess stayed in her spot as the diplomat disappeared around the corner after the servant. Two seconds later, a smack of flesh against flesh rang through the air, sounding distinctly painful. Three seconds after that, the diplomat stumbled back into view, holding his now red cheek tenderly. "Youkai females have such life in them," he said in reply to Kagome's scandalized look. "Ah, well, I suppose I should be going in now. Have a good day, Kagome."
"Thank you, my lord," she said, curtseying again and trying to get over her surprise. Myoga was right. The diplomat was a pervert.
Kagome decided that she should think about this new twist in Miroku's personality on the way back to the kitchens, rather than risk having Naraku discover her dallying outside of the throne room. Especially since he apparently considered her a spy. That one she would never figure out.
She reached the intersection of two corridors and paused. Each one looked the same and she couldn't remember which path she had taken from the kitchen. Naraku had dragged her much too quickly and all she had to show for it were five finger-sized bruises on her arm. Deciding that the left path was the most familiar, she turned and began to walk much slower. Soon, another intersection daunted her. She chose to go right, towards the back of the castle. Three turns later, she was completely lost and no one was about to help.
Rounding a corner, the princess's heart sank. Looking at the wide, brightly lit hallway, she knew she was now in the residential quarter of the castle, somewhere that she should never be as a kitchen servant. She must have come up the back way, although she couldn't really remember how. Her only consolation was that a castle servant was bound to be in this section.
Suddenly, at the other end of the corridor, Prince Inuyasha appeared with a sword slung over his shoulder. They both froze, looking at one another. The prince was the first to recover.
"What are you doing up here? Furry animals like you aren't allowed in my quarters, Thousandfurs," he said with a sneer.
"Forgive me, your highness. I was lost," she replied, bowing slightly.
His golden eyes, so much like his father's and yet without their warmth, swept over her figure. "Keh, whatever, just get out of here. You stink up the place."
Kagome scowled, but didn't let loose the retort on the tip of her tongue. "I don't know how to get back, your highness. I'm lost."
"Don't be impertinent," snapped Inuyasha.
Wondering how such a horrid creature had learned such a long word as 'impertinent', Kagome crossed her arms. "Please, your highness, if you just tell me how to leave, I will more than happy to do so!"
"Turn straight around, go down the stairs and take two lefts," he said shortly. "Now leave."
"Gladly, sire," she muttered, giving him the barest hint of a bow that she could muster. She went back the way she came, trying to pay more attention this time. "That dog needs a collar," the princess said aloud as she finally escaped the castle.
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A/N: Okay kids, so the site has now officially banned review responses within chapters. Rumors about this have been circulating for months, but now we have word from the top. I think that this is a step to prevent authors from having two hundred words of story and two thousand words of review response. I think it's rather unfair to the rest of us, but as you all know, I abide by the rules set forth by this site. I WILL be replying to all the reviews that I can via the site (I'll get to the ones for this chapter soonish). So if you are signed in, I will definitely respond to your review. If you aren't a registered member of the site, well you should be! Just kidding, sort of. I'll respond to the unsigned reviews that I can (i.e. those of you who leave your email address). Please understand though that this is actually a way bigger hassle for me. I enjoyed sitting and answering everyone's reviews at the end of each of my chapters, but emailing individuals is even more time consuming. Please, if you don't get an email back for your unsigned review, don't get mad! I'm a busy girl, just about to go into the real world (marriage and a job), so take pity. Thanks. I've already deleted previous review responses for Thousandfurs and The Broken House of Taisho. Even The Broken Miko. It was quite sad… Thanks again for all of your understanding and support, and know that I do think this is a ridiculous ban, because I love you all and I want to give you the attention you deserve.