"Well, look who's finally awake."

Kagome ignored the gravelly voice coming from behind her. She'd woken only a few minutes ago and she was trying to assess her situation and come to terms with her current predicament. She was lying on her side on a soft bed, the plain white sheet and faded blue wallpaper in front of her not offering much of a view. Her limbs felt heavy and whatever they'd drugged her with left her mind hazy. At least she could tell she was still fully clothed with the exception of her shoes. There was a tightness in her throat, a nasty taste on her tongue, and absolutely no moisture in her mouth to alleviate either problem. At the same time, she was painfully aware of her need to relieve the pressure quickly making itself known in her bladder.

"You can stop pretending, girl. yōkai senses don't lie and neither does your heart rate," the man said, sounding smug.

Resigned to her fate, Kagome turned over, moving slowly partially out of caution but mostly because her body wasn't feeling very agreeable at the moment. A few feet away against the opposite wall were two men standing on either side of a small table. The man to her left had his head turned away, scowling at an old wooden door with his arms folded across his broad chest and one muddy boot propped against the wall. There was a large rip in his dark jeans down the front of one calf and his shirt was missing a button. She recognized him immediately as one of the men who'd chased her through the forest.

The other man she didn't recognize. He was more put together, his dress shirt pressed, dark slacks free from any rips or stains, and shoes polished to a shiny black. He was watching her, a dangerous smirk revealing a sharp fang over his bottom lip. His eyes darted to his partner and back to her, his smirk growing. The predatory gleam in his slitted reptillian eyes made her stomach churn. How long had he been watching her sleep?

Neither of her guards said anything further so Kagome tore her eyes away from them and took in her surroundings. The small room had no windows and only one door. Aside from the table the men were standing around, one chair, the bed, and a small nightstand with a few drawers, there wasn't any other furniture. There also wasn't a clock and Kagome was left wondering how long she'd been knocked out for. Minutes? Hours? A day? Would they even tell her if she asked? She focused on the man that was watching her and opened her mouth to at least try.

"If you're about to start asking questions," he said before she could speak, "don't. Just keep that pretty mouth shut, sweetheart, and you won't get hurt."

She bristled at the pet name and veiled threat but snapped her mouth shut. There were more uncomfortable matters to deal with anyway, like the insistent pain in her lower abdomen. There had to be a toilet here somewhere and they had to let her use it...right?

Despite her fatigue and heavy limbs, she pushed herself to the edge of the bed. Swinging her legs over the side, she put her feet on the floor and tested her ability to stand. Her muscles twitched and protested and, for just a second, she was sure she was going to fall back onto the bed. Her legs steadied though and she managed to stand, mentally congratulating herself for her small victory.

"Bathroom's right over there," the more talkative goon said, drawing her attention then nodding his head towards the foot of the bed. "Probably gotta piss like hell after the long nap you took." He grinned and let out a bark of humorless laughter.

Kagome glared at him then wobbled towards where he'd indicated. Because of her position on the bed, she'd missed the doorless doorway that led into a cramped bathroom. She leaned against the frame, needing the small break. Squeezed inside the bathroom was an old-style squat toilet, a sink, and a shower with a dark curtain. Sighing with relief, she pushed away from the wall and glanced over her shoulder. Unfortunately for her, the man watching the door had a clear view of the entire bathroom, toilet included. And given that she would have to squat, he would be getting quite the show. After a short internal battle of modesty versus comfort, modesty won.

Accepting her suffering for the time being, Kagome shuffled back over and plopped onto the bed to further contemplate her situation. Her reiki, a near-constant presence in her soul since Kikyo had unsealed her, felt drained. Instead of a warm fire, it felt like a dying candle, the flame flickering and threatening to extinguish at any second. The feeling was familiar but she didn't have the energy to examine it further. There were more pressing matters to attend to anyway.

Turning her head and glaring at the two men, she let her anger rise, giving her strength and confidence that should have been impossible. "Either one of you want to tell me where I am?" she asked, continuing to glare between the two men.

Unsurprisingly, they ignored her.

She crossed her arms and sat up a little straighter. "How about telling me who you are?"

The one watching her scoffed and the other one rolled his eyes. Neither tried to stop her questions though and they only looked mildly annoyed. Apparently, lizard-eyes just liked to make empty threats. Maybe she could wear them down.

"Can you at least tell me why I'm here? I feel like I should at least know that."

That made them both grin. "Oh, you'll find out soon enough," the man watching the door said, still not looking at her.

That answer was unhelpful and more than slightly ominous. She tried a few more questions: How long had it been since they grabbed her? Where was Inuyasha? Was he alright? Was he hurt?

Why did her reiki feel so drained?

All to no avail. The two guards let her ramble but remained tight-lipped. Eventually, after what felt like hours, there was a solid knock at the door. One of the men muttered 'finally' under his breath and they both visibly relaxed. There was a scrape and click of a lock turning, then a well-dressed woman with red eyes and a feather tucked into her neat bun let herself in. She dismissed the two guards with the wave of a red and white fan held in her right hand, not sparing them a glance.

The door thumped shut behind the men as they left and the newcomer looked Kagome up and down appraisingly. Raising her chin high, Kagome returned the look. She took in the woman's sleek suit, dark gray and tailored to fit her slim body perfectly. The red pop of color from the scoop-necked blouse she wore under it matched the streaks of her fan perfectly. Black pumps completed her look, the high heal helping her tower over the bed.

The woman scoffed then took a seat at the table and glanced towards the doorway into the bathroom. She crossed her legs and bobbed her foot impatiently. "You can relieve yourself now," she said with a wave of her fan. "I'm sure you didn't want an audience and you seem stubborn enough to let your bladder explode before giving those two morons a show."

Kagome drew her lips to a line and studied the woman for a second longer before sliding off the bed and making a beeline for the toilet. The building pressure had turned to sharp pain a while ago and walking wasn't easy. She stumbled a bit but managed to get herself situated before she made a mess of herself and the floor. To her relief, there was a sprayer and a roll of toilet paper nearby. There was no trash can but she wasn't concerned with causing plumbing problems for her kidnappers so she didn't fret over it.

Finishing her business, she took a moment to gather her thoughts, exploring the bathroom as an excuse to stay put for a second. The sink had unscented hand soap and a hand towel hanging from a ring on the wall. A shelf under the sink held a comb, a brush, a few hair ties, and a small hairdryer. Two bath towels hung on a bar near the shower and a glance behind the curtain revealed soap, shampoo, conditioner, and even a small razor. She may be a prisoner but at least she'd be able to stay groomed.

Turning back to the sink, Kagome paused to study herself in the mirror. There were dark circles under her eyes that contrasted starkly with her pale skin. Her hair was a frizzy mass of dark waves that stuck out in odd places. A small scratch stood out on her temple, too close to her eye for comfort. She licked her dry lips, her tongue rasping as it ran over the parched skin. Her mind, still sluggish, finally registered that she was standing over a sink. She turned on the tap and sipped at the cold water, slowly at first then in large gulps. It was delicious.

"Don't drown yourself in there," the woman called. "I'll catch hell if I let anything happen to you."

"Oh no," Kagome said under her breath. "Wouldn't want to get one of my kidnappers fired."

The woman chuckled. "I'd never be lucky enough to just get fired."

Damn yōkai hearing. Kagome was going to have to keep that in mind going forward. Turning off that water, she finally made her way back out to the main room and plopped herself down on the bed, scooting until her back was against the wall. She folded her arms and crossed her legs and looked over at the woman, still sitting at the table and playing with her fan.

"At least you're more talkative than the other two," Kagome said, keeping her gaze steady. "Are you gonna tell me your name or can I just make something up?"

"Hmm, I like the attitude. It'll go a long way dealing with the morons around here." The woman tilted her head and smirked. "Name's Kagura and, if you're lucky, you'll be seeing a lot more of me than anyone else."

"Kagura," Kagome said then cleared her throat when her voice cracked. Would a glass for more water be too much to ask for? "That's much better than what I was planning on calling you."

Kagura smiled and shook her head. "Don't use all your sass on the first day. You'll want to save some to get through the next few months."

"Months?" Kagome asked.

"Oh, you'll be here longer than that but I don't imagine it will take you more than a few months to...adjust. You seem more resilient than our usual guests." The woman sighed and flicked her fan. "I'll be your attendant, of sorts. Don't push my buttons and I'll do my best not to push yours."

Well, they weren't planning on killing her anytime soon and a lot could happen in a few months. Also, there were certainly worse people than Kagura that she could be dealing with. "Are you gonna tell me what I'm here for or is that a surprise?" Kagome asked.

"You sure you wanna know?" Kagura asked then huffed. "You're here to replace the tools you broke, according to my boss, at least."

"I don't know what that means," Kagome said. Something in Kagura's tone and the way her eyes flashed with what might have been sympathy made a sliver of ice creep up Kagome's spine. "What tools did I break and how the hell am I supposed to replace them?"

Kagura scowled ad flicked her fan a bit harder. "Tools are what my boss likes to call his...well, his employees, I guess." She sounded angry but the contempt in her voice didn't seem to be directed at Kagome. She'd almost spit out the word 'boss' and her head had turned to look at the door leading out of the room. Looking back towards Kagome, she said, "It took years to indoctrinate and train those men you killed and hanyō with reiki aren't exactly common. My boss likes to start them very, very young so they're quite the investment."

So she was supposed to replace actual people? hanyō with reiki? How…?

A wave of nausea made Kagome double over on the bed, her arms wrapping protectively around her stomach. Her entire body felt cold as Kagura's words took root in her mind. "No, no, no..." The mantra continued in her head in an attempt to distract herself but it wasn't working. Pieces of information started clicking together in her mind, like pieces of a disturbiung puzzle. The files her and Inuyasha had read were still fresh: the mixed-blood children with spiritual powers, the families raising them in secret, the so-called 'accidents' that led to so, so many deaths...and the missing children of those families, never found and never talked about, swept under the rug like any good conspiracy.

She knew now, without a doubt, where those children had ended up. How much power did Onigumo Naraku have to keep something like this under wraps for decades? He'd built his own little army from children stolen away from their murdered families. He was an absolute monster and Kagome was his prisoner. Not only had she killed two of his men, but now, if she was understanding Kagura correctly, she would be forced to carry part-yōkai children for Naraku. Then what? They would be ripped away from her and turned into...into whatever Naraku wanted them to be. Her stomach rolled again as she thought of exactly how she would wind up pregnant to begin with.

Kagura cleared her throat. "If you're going to be sick, tell me so I can get you to the bathroom. Neither of us wants to clean up vomit, I'm sure." Her words were harsh but Kagome didn't miss the clear look of sympathy in the woman's eyes this time.

"Your boss is sick, you know that?" Kagome took a few deep breaths and willed her stomach to calm down. She needed to keep a clear head and she needed to try to get more information. "All those families, those missing children, he brainwashed them, used them. What the hell does he want, anyway?"

"Guess you know more than he thought," Kagura said. "As far as I can tell, he wants power." With another flick of her fan, Kagura stood and went to the bathroom. The sink turned on as she continued to talk. "Now, what he wants to do with that power is anyone's guess. Personally, I think he just gets off on being in control," she said, a clear note of distaste in her voice. She reappeared in the doorway with a glass of water and held it out for Kagome. Where she'd gotten the glass was a mystery but Kagome wasn't going to stress about it. "Here, sip this."

Kagome took the glass with shaking hands and sipped the cool water slowly. "Thank you," she said, willing her stomach to calm and trying to even out her breathing. They sat there in silence for a few minutes, letting the information sink in. Kagome studied the glass of water as she tried to work up the nerve to ask the questions she wasn't sure she wanted answers to.

Before she got that far, Kagura started talking again. "Over the next few days, they'll be taking your blood and running some tests to make sure you're healthy and to see when you'll be the most fertile. Once Naraku is satisfied that he won't be wasting any resources, he'll pay a doctor to come and inject you with some powerful yōkai sperm. Nobody is going to force themselves on you; it's all very clinical. Then in nine months, they'll take your baby away and wait until you can do it all over again."

Sugar-coating was not one of Kagura's talents, apparently. "You don't pull any punches, do you?" Kagome asked, somehow both relieved and terrified at the same time.

Kagura shrugged. "Would flowery words have made my little speech any easier to digest?"

"No," Kagome said with a sigh. "I'd ask what happens when he doesn't need me anymore but the answer to that is pretty obvious." Kagura's look of pity was enough of a confirmation.

Three loud raps against the door cut off anymore conversation.

"Time's up for the day," Kagura said. "I'll come by with dinner later but we won't get to speak more until tomorrow."

Kagome shot off the bed without thinking. "Wait!"

A casual wave of Kagura's fan and a gust of wind pushed Kagome off her feet and sent her sprawling back on the bed. "I won't hurt you but you can't just jump at me like that, alright?"

Huffing, Kagome moved to the edge of the bed but didn't stand back up. "Can I get a radio or something? A clock? Some books? I don't know what day it is, let alone the time."

"I'll see what I can do," Kagura said, then pulled the door open and stalked out of the room.

Kagome's stomach grumbled as she paced around her glorified prison and waited for Kagura to bring her her scheduled meal. Her little clock ticked away the seconds, letting her know that her food was now 15 minutes late. During her week or so of captivity, she'd been poked, prodded, had her blood stolen, her powers partially sealed, and her every movement watched like a hawk. But at least they were feeding her well which was great since she'd been positively ravenous since they'd kidnapped her. She almost always ended up eating too much then throwing most of it up later when the stress of her situation reasserted itself. Coming off her birth control probably wasn't helping—not that she'd been great at remembering recently anyway.

The clicking of Kagura's heels coming down the hallway made Kagome's stomach lurch. Hunger and nausea fought for dominance as the smell of her meal reached her. She forced herself to sit still on the edge of the bed, knowing the routine. She picked up one of the books Kagura had procured for her and pretended that she hadn't just been pacing around like a caged animal.

The lock clicked and the door swung open, revealing a disheveled Kagura. She waltzed into the room, her back straight and her head held high despite her rumpled clothes and mussed hair. She didn't look at Kagome as she placed her food on the little table across the room from the bed. Little alarm bells went off in Kagome's head; something was wrong.

"Eat, you're going to need it," Kagura said, her usual humor gone from her voice. She still wouldn't face Kagome.

"No smart-ass remarks about your boss today?" Kagome asked, trying to sound casual.

Kagura sighed and finally turned around. "I have a message for you," she said. She was frowning and her eyes were full of a mix of emotions Kagome couldn't read. "From my boss."

Kagome tensed and set her book aside. Usually, the wind yōkai would bring her food, complain about Naraku, and even sometimes engage in some banter with Kagome. While she wasn't exactly kind, she was usually at least friendly. It was clear on most days that Kagura was in her position unwillingly, held captive much like Kagome, just with more freedom of movement. Today, her flippant attitude, sharp tongue, and bouncing fan were absent. Her stance was rigged, her lips were pressed firmly together, and she wouldn't meet Kagome's eyes.

"Well, what's the message?" Kagome asked even though she wasn't sure she wanted to know.

"It's about you hanyō boyfriend," Kagura said, then hesitated.

"About Inuyasha? What...?" There was a lump forming in Kagome's throat and a painful weight taking up residence in her chest. She asked about him every day and every day she got the same answer: he's not your concern anymore.

The pitying look Kagura gave her almost stopped her heart. Her next words accomplished what her look had not. "He's dead; purified by your blast of reiki."

Kagome couldn't breathe. She prodded at Kagura's yōki, searching for the lie. Reading auras was the only thing she could do with her reiki sealed and she was putting it to the test now. Desperately, she pushed, so much that she could see Kagura's discomfort at the intrusion. Was this why Naraku had let her keep this small bit of her power? So she could see the truth in Kagura's words?

The last time she'd seen him, Inuyasha had been in a blood rage. His human half would have been almost fully suppressed, leaving his yōkai blood to take over; leaving him vulnerable to purifying energy. She'd spent a lot of her time trying to convince herself that that wasn't the case, that his human blood would still ensure he suvrvived. It was her only ray of hope in an otherwise hopeless situation. If Inuyasha was alive, he would come for her, he would save her.

Now she knew he wasn't coming and it was her fault, she'd killed him. She'd purified him as he'd rushed to save her.

"No, he can't be...he's not…" she said, gasping for breath.

Kagura took a step towards her, a hand hovering uncertainly in the air. "Listen, I-"

Shaking her head, Kagome shrank further onto the bed and away from the other woman. "Leave me alone." She curled into a ball and pressed herself against the wall as tears started to stream down her face. "Just go."

She looked up when Kagura cleared her throat. "There's, uh, one more thing."

"What?" Kagome asked, the word sounding more like a grunt. What the hell else could she possibly have to say to her after dropping that bomb?

Kagome couldn't read the look on Kagura's face as she said, "You're pregnant."

"I'm what?" Kagome's hands went to her stomach even as she asked the question. How? They hadn't done anything to her yet outside of running tests, had they? They hadn't drugged her either so it wasn't like they could have done it while she was passed out. That certainly wasn't a procedure you could just sleep through. So how the hell…?

Oh.

Kagura ducked her head and apologized, though nothing was technically her fault. She was just the messenger. "I'll, uh, leave you alone to process," she said as she hurried out of the room, the door thumping shut behind her.

Kagome kept her hands on her still flat stomach, tears rolling down her cheeks. It was almost too much to take in all at once. She was alone, pregnant, and Inuyasha wouldn't be coming for her. The only piece of him she had left was currently growing inside her womb and some crazy man with a power fetish was planning on taking her baby away the second they were born.

As she lay there, unable to stop the tears, Kagome could only come to one conclusion. There was no way in hell she was going to let anyone take her and Inuyasha's child away from her. Her only option was to find a way to escape...at any cost. For now though, all she could do was sob into her pillows and shout out her frustrations until she grew too exhausted and eventually passed out.

Sometime later, an intense, pulsing ache behind her eyes woke Kagome up. She tried to blink away the stinging dryness, with little success. Her throat hurt from sobbing and yelling and her stomach rolled and clenched with hunger and nausea. Fighting the haze that enveloped her mind, she somehow managed to drag herself to the bathroom, pointedly avoiding looking in the mirror.

Before staggering to the toilet, she turned the shower on to the hottest setting she thought she could stand. While the water warmed, she did her business then began to peel her clothes off. The hot water felt like heaven on her clammy skin as she eased herself into the shower. She spent the next half hour trying to scrub away the last few weeks of her life; particularly, the last few hours. Fresh tears began to fall, her mind finally waking up enough to remember the grief of her loss and the fear for her life and the life of her growing baby...Inuyasha's baby.

When her skin started to burn from all the scrubbing, she sank to the shower floor and brought her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs and making herself small. The water pelted her head and neck, running down her arms and back. Still, it couldn't wash away her emotions.

"Why? Why did it turn out like this? What am I supposed to do? Inuyasha…" She whimpered and hugged her legs tighter. It would be so easy if she wasn't already pregnant. Knowing Inuyhasa was dead, she wouldn't hesitate to risk her own life trying to fight her way to freedom. But after finding out she was carrying his child? There was no way she could take that risk anymore. Still, she couldn't let Naraku get his hands on their baby.

Kagome's head throbbed as she tried to think through the pain. It was no use; she was too exhausted mentally, emotionally, and physically. Giving up for the time being, she finally pulled herself up and shut off the water. She dried herself off and dressed quickly before leaving the bathroom. They still wouldn't let her cover the doorway (what the hell did they think she was going to do in there, anyway?), but it still offered a bit more privacy than the main room. She'd been barged in on more than once and she wasn't keen on it happening again.

A plate of food sat on the little table, having been delivered while she was wallowing in the shower. She tried to eat but only managed a few bites before her stomach started to churn painfully. They'd left a bottle of vitamins with her food and she took one, the cold water they'd brought tasting better than any of the food. No that the food was bad; everything just tasted like ash to her right now. She glanced at the clock and cringed at the late hour; no wonder the food was ice cold.

Without much else to do and still feeling terrible, Kagome climbed back into bed and pulled the covers over her head. She let herself feel everything-all the pain, the grief, the helplessness, the fear-and cried until she fell back asleep.

In an interrogation room of a local police station, two men sat glaring at each other.

"You're fucking useless."

"Says the man shackled to a chair." Koga tapped his fingers against the cold metal table, the harsh light of the interrogation room making his features harder than usual.

A growl started to build in Inuyasha's chest. He was not in the mood for Koga's shit. "I can't stay in here much longer. I'm going to lose my shit if I can't start searching for her and you know it."

Koga returned his growl. "You think we're not already searching? Between me, your brother, and Shippo we've got at least two dozen people actively searching and another half dozen trying to get info on the men who grabbed her." He slammed a hand on the table and snarled. "We're doing our fucking best."

For Inuyasha, their best wasn't good enough. Two weeks behind bars had him unbelievably frustrated and angry. Not being able to search for Kagome was killing him little by little as were the string of questions that invaded his mind every minute he was awake. Was she alive? Was she injured? Was she scared? Did she think he was dead? Where was she? Could they get to her before it was too late?

Nobody was sure what happened that day in the woods. Inuyasha should be dead; purification during a blood rage was certain death for a hanyō. Somehow though, he'd managed to survive...only to be carted off and thrown in a jail cell while still unconscious. Even as a human, the police had figured out who he was rather quickly. He came to several hours later with a pounding headache, unable to move in his broken human body. It took two agonizing days for his yōki to return so his body could start to heal properly and they could start to question him. Luckily, by then, Koga and Sesshomaru had already started pulling strings.

They still questioned him but there were no beatings involved this time. Koga assured him that it was mostly due to improvements in the yōkai justice system but Inuyasha was pretty sure Sesshomaru had threatened both legal action and bodily harm if proper protocols weren't followed. Either way, Inuyasha was treated fairly well given his legal standing.

And absolutely none of that was a comfort to him while Kagome was still missing.

"Fuck, how much longer do I have to stay in here?" he asked though he didn't really expect a solid answer. Proving your innocence after so long was no easy task and may very well prove to be impossible.

Someone banged on the door to let them know their time was almost up. Koga shook his head and sighed. "Hopefully no more than another week. Sesshomaru's lawyers are some of the best and it looks like, under more modern laws, we can have your case thrown out completely."

That surprised Inuyasha enough that he stopped scowling momentarily. "How the fuck?"

Koga shrugged. "Money, mutt. The answer is always money."

Figuring it was probably best to not know the details, Inuyasha changed the subject. "How's her family holding up?"

"They're fine. Her mom is worried about both of you but she's a tough woman so she's dealing with it."

"Good. Anything else you can tell me?'

"Not in here, sorry mutt. We're gonna get you cleared though, I promise." Koga cleared his throat and lowered his voice. "I figure it's the least I can do for putting you through all that shit over your father."

"Keh, don't get all soft on me now wolf-shit. Just get me out of here and we'll call it even."

"Yeah, yeah," Koga said, smirking. "Don't think this makes us friends or anything. You still smell like a dog."

"Like wolf stench is any better," Inuyasha shot back, scowling.

Another bang on the door put an end to their conversation.