"I've sailed seas of emotion,

to wander a forest of scars,

I am a dance of light and darkness,

a galaxy of shadow and stars." – R. Queen

Chapter 8

Kagome stepped timidly onto the running rug that stretched down the long hall connecting Inuyasha's personal quarters to the rest of the palace. She had never been a fan on heights, and boy was she high up. It hadn't occurred to Kagome that the estate was nestled precariously close to the edge of a cliff and beyond that was a ravine several hundred feet deep. On the other side of the ravine was a large tower built into the side of a mountain. Currently, Kagome was traversing the hall that connected the two over the ravine, which was more like what she would describe as a covered bridge in her day. Misuzu had left her to make this leg of the journey alone with the promise that she would be back to collect Kagome by the time she was done. The frame of the structure groaned as the bitter wind swept up from the pits of the ravine – Kagome picked up the pace. Every few yards or so sat a narrow table with some sort of relic or prize centered on it: a vase, sword, mask, or gadget. The buttresses above that supported the ceiling were decorated with tattered banners and war flags draped over the beams. Some were burned, others had red-brown stains on them; Kagome wrinkled her nose in disgust. These were all the spoils of war and pillaging she supposed. How macabre. As if on cue, Kagome sensed a dark foreboding lurking like a shadowy mist at her ankles, swirling around her feet and climbing up her legs. Kagome didn't like being here in this trophy hall of slaughter and gloom and reminisced on the dream-like study they'd held their last talk in as she hurried forward.

The long hall spilled into a small foyer with three shoji doors, one on the left, the right, and one in the middle. A small, nervous green imp stood in the middle of the vestibule, his knees nearly knocking together with fear.

The imp clutched a board with papers to his chest and spoke quickly, "The Lord will see you in a moment!" before scuttling off down the hallway. Kagome turned to thank the poor demon but his little feet carried him faster than she could have given him credit for.

The sound of a door sliding open brought Kagome facing to the front again to find Inuyasha standing in the entrance of the middle door.

"Ignore him. I don't keep him around for his bravery, that's for sure." Inuyasha snapped, his jaw ticking with frustration, "Come with me, we'll talk at the table." He turned his back and disappeared inside. Kagome bowed too late and hurried in after him.

Inside she settled at one of a table and he at the other, this one much smaller than the table in his study.

"You look well – in better health than the last time we met" he declared. Kagome was not expecting this is how they would start their conversation.

"Thank you. Harue and Misuzu have taken good care of me." She explained. She considered returning the compliment because he did look well, in the sense that he looked more like himself. He had shed the heavy armor and the pelt, opting to wear only his long white undershirt tucked into his red fire rat hakamas. His hair was still tied up and he wore those odd purple markings on his face, but he looked much more approachable. Yet, something was off. His eyes darted around too fast. His nails clicked impatiently on the table in front of her. The muscles in his shoulders and pectorals twitched in a rhythm Kagome couldn't place. Even though he looked at home in his own quarters, he gave the impression he was seconds away from jumping out of his own skin.

Kagome bit back the sudden urge to ask what his problem was, but she decided to take things slowly instead. She bowed her head and spoke, "I want to thank you for your kindness and hospitality. You have been a gracious host."

Inuyasha leaned back, stretched and flexed his hands and looked wayside, uncomfortable being the target of her gratitude. "Don't mention it. If you are who you say you are then it's the least I can do."

A look of annoyance flashed across Kagome's face, "I've noticed you haven't once called me Kagome directly." Inuyasha cracked his knuckles but said nothing until the silence that stretched between them became nearly unbearable. It was obvious he wasn't going to respond to her pointed observation.

"Did you seal the well? After you disappeared I wasn't able to travel through it." He asked, starting their meeting.

"Why would I seal the well? That doesn't even make sense. I would never cut Miroku, Sango, Shippo, you or anyone else from my life." Kagome scoffed.

"I'm only asking because it's what logically makes sense – that is – if you really are Kagome." Inuyasha growled.

She felt her grip on her cool, demure demeanor slipping, "The well just stopped working! I don't know how or why. I tried so many times to come back and I couldn't. I read books and did so much research but never found any information on "how to fix a time traveling well!" Kagome through her hands up in the air, already exasperated.

"It just stopped working?" Inuyasha sneered and laughed, "and it just picked you up one day and decided to bring you back 150 years later."

"I told you," she reminded him, "It was only 6 years on my side of the well." He seemed to contemplate this in angry silence for a few moments.

"Why did you come back then?" he asked suspiciously.

"To be honest, I'm not sure why. I felt something pull me to the well like I was meant to come back. I fell in and woke up here." Kagome answered. He eyed her suspiciously, probably not enjoying her vague answers, but he said nothing else. She waited a moment before asking her questions she had prepared ahead of time.

"What is this war? Why did mentioning your name back in Kaede's village get me arrested?" She pressed deciding to start at the beginning.

"The war started a long time ago, over a century ago. Men came in ships, they gave the humans guns, the humans stopped being afraid of demons and killed us by the thousands. I am the leader of what is left of youkai existence." He recounted while stroking the sheath of Tessaiga, who's presence Kagome hadn't noticed until then.

"Men in ships with guns? The European invasion?" she watched him turn and study a map on a far wall and knew he was lying. Kagome wasn't the best student in high school, traipsing around the feudal era and skipping class, but she knew basic Japanese history – Europeans did come to Japan, but over a century ago? No, that was too early.

"The humans created The Resistance and we've been fighting ever since." He finished. Kagome nodded slowly, not sure what to make of this phony story but decided to let it slide.

"What happened to the demon who I purified?" she asked. This question dissipated the tense air between them and Inuyasha chuckled.

"His leg was amputated; the tissue was necrotic. It had to be removed. He's been discharged from Tsunekane's team."

"Tsunekane…?" Kagome prodded.

"The man that brought you here – the one with the horn. I've never liked that bastard but he's earned his place here." Inuyasha growled, his bad mood instantly returning. Kagome made a mental note of the man's name who allowed her to be tortured and paraded her around the palace.

"Why was I brought here? I was told you've been looking for me and I heard you're unwell." She continued hopefully.

Inuyasha glared at her hard, "Who told you that?!" he shouted.

Kagome backpedaled, not wanting to tattle on anybody, "It doesn't matter! What matters is why you've been looking for me, have kept me locked up, and the end goal here!" she shouted back at him.

"I haven't been looking for shit! I don't have time." He spat smacking a clenched fist onto the table. Kagome reeled back in shock from the sting of his words. "I have a kingdom to take care of and a war to win! It's none of your concern how I go about that!" She noticed his fist was trembling furiously. He still glared at her but his pupils were so dilated that they swallowed the burning angry gold of his irises. She was losing him and she needed to switch tactics.

"Inuyasha," she spoke to him in what she hoped was a calming or coaxing voice, "Tell me what's going on with you. Are you sick? Injured? What's happened to you while I was away? I want to help you but you need to tell me-"

She was cut off by Inuyasha grabbing the edge of the table and flipping it over. Kagome clapped a hand down over her mouth to trap her yelp and ducked to avoid getting smacked across the head with a table corner. The small piece of furniture toppled over and landed across the room with an unanimated thud. She watched it skid to a stop underneath the map Inuyasha had been studying earlier. When she looked back to the spot Inuyasha had just been, all she discovered was Tessaiga lying discarded on the floor. She swiveled her head searching for any sign of the Lord but it was as if he'd vanished in thin air. She spied a staircase against the far wall leading up to the second floor of the tower.

I should just turn around and go back

I should get Harue

I should throw myself in the ravine because I can't deal with this

Yet Kagome stooped over to gather Tessaiga in her hands and traced her fingers over the worn yet sturdy sheath. She secured the fang in her arms and tip-toed over to the staircase, clutching the sword to her chest as if it were a life preserver. Now that the distraction of the irate hanyou was gone, Kagome could sense that same foreboding feeling she picked up before in the hallway outside. Before, where it was a shadowy mist, it was now a thick airless smoke and it made her stomach sick just standing at the base of the stairwell. What was up there? She peered up the stairs and struggled to see anything beyond. The room she was in was well lit, but the room above was shrouded and dark. Against her better judgement, Kagome placed a foot on the first step and tested it, praying that it wouldn't creak.

She slowly and silently ascended the stairs until her eyes were level with the floor of the second level. She squinted her eyes and strained to make out any familiar objects; an armoire, a weapon rack, a bed. Kagome inhaled sharply, she was in Inuyasha's bedroom - she had to be - and she knew she should not be here. She tightened her grip around Tessaiga's scabbard and took a tentative step, and then another, her eyes darting back and forth searching for a flash of glossy white hair or gold amber eyes. Inuyasha was nowhere to be seen so Kagome took the final step and stood shyly at the entrance to his room. It dawned on her, that as long as she had known Inuyasha, he had never had a space to call his own. Kagome's stomach painfully twisted in protest but she couldn't deny that she was morbidly curious to snoop around his room – so she did.

Closest to Kagome's position near the stairs was a full armor rack sporting all of the intricate pieces Inuyasha hadn't been wearing tonight. She smoothed one hand over the iron shoulder plates and delicately traced the fingers over each spike, pricking her fingers at the top, confirming that they were indeed as sharp as they looked. The large fur pelt he wore in the study was tacked to the back of the shoulder plates, much like her pelt, but softer and more luxurious. Kagome resisted the strong and sudden urge she felt to rub the material against her cheek – she bet it felt like getting kissed by a cloud. She ran her hand down the solid chest plate and lastly picked up the feather-soft silk obi and let it fall from her hand as she walked to the next object of her interest.

Candle sticks of all different shapes and sizes, some melted down to fat messy nubs on flat surfaces and others long and lean squeezed into black iron candelabras dimly lit the room around her. There were so many of them, more than she could count, so Kagome took the freshest candle from a group of five sitting on a table nearby and tip-toed deeper into his lair. She held the candle up and gave the room another once-over, it was large and square, and she could now see another staircase against the far wall the led to the next level. She wondered if Inuyasha had locked himself away in the highest floor of the tower, or had made a dash for the door and disappeared in to the palace.

Clutching Tessaiga to her chest and the waxy body of the candle in her other hand, Kagome approached Inuyasha's bed. A large, four-poster bed with luxurious furs and feather pillows lay strewn about haphazardly and Kagome's lip twitched with envy. She suddenly missed her bed and all of the luxuries afforded to her simply because she was born 400 years in the future. Kagome ran the candle down the length of the large heavy drapery hung lazily from the supports that connected the four posts at each corner of the bed. How nice it must be to draw those drapes on days that you wanted to shut out the world and simply sleep. The head of the bed rested against the rockface of the mountain the tower was built into. Kagome ran her hand across the craggy grey rock until her hand bumped into a single weapon rack that, suspiciously enough, looked just big enough for Tessaiga. She lifted the fang and placed it on the hooks of the rack where it fit perfectly next to the bed. Satisfied, Kagome nodded, assuring herself she had every reason to come into Inuyasha's room to simply return his sword.

Kagome told herself that it was time to go, she had done a good thing, and now she ought to leave. She'd be murdered for sure this time if she was caught snooping around the Lord's quarters but she couldn't stop herself from walking around the foot of the bed to an armoire across the room. Before she reached the dresser, she stilled and watched the stairs for a moment, making sure nobody was observing her from the darkness. That thick sinister she was swimming through was getting heavier by the minute that she spent up in that room and she promised herself that she'd be done after inspecting the contents of this furniture. The third floor would need to wait for another time, she assured herself. Kagome sidled up to the armoire and touched everything that lay on top of it: a new obi, a fang, a dried flower, a ballpoint pen. Kagome picked up the pen and clicked it, marveling at the common writing utensil. This had to have been a pen of hers that was likely left behind at some point 150 years ago. Whether it fell out of her monstrously large yellow book bag or she had set it down in Kaede's hut after finishing her math homework didn't matter. Seeing it here was so out of place and the fact that Inuyasha had kept it all this time was heartwarming. She set the pen down and let her hand run over the last object: a marble. No, wait, not a marble. Kagome picked the bulbous object up carefully and rolled it in her palm holding the candle flame near so she could inspect it carefully. She gasped; it was a bead from the necklace of subjugation that Inuyasha sported many years ago. She spied many more beads on the surface of the armoire. Kagome didn't have him pinned as the sentimental type but that would make her wrong on that belief twice tonight.

"Sit." She whispered to herself, a smile playing across her lips. Suddenly, the bead in her hand came to life, vibrating so furiously that it tickled her soft palm. A movement in the corner of her eye caused her to look at the armoire to see the other beads vibrating, some of them rolling back and forth, humming with life. She watched in horror as a few of the large beads rolled off of the corner of the dresser and too late was she jerking into movement to try to catch them. The beads clattered to the ground when they struck the floor and Kagome froze, hoping nobody was around to hear all of the raucous in the eerily silent tower. She didn't dare move for several minutes and motionlessly watched the beads roll away from her and settle. A bead of sweat trickled down the hollow of her neck as she chastised herself for not leaving as soon as she returned Tessaiga to its mount. When Kagome didn't hear the sound of pounding footsteps approaching, or a sword unsheathing, or knuckles cracking, she determined it was safe to move. New plan: put the beads back and get the hell out of here – never come back. This was too risky. Kagome's stomach was in her throat as she quickly stooped and plucked the beads off of the floor but internally groaned when she saw several resting underneath the armoire. They sat too far back for her to reach but she still tried to wedge her arm under the dresser and grab them. Increasingly worried that she'd be caught the longer she stayed, she wildly searched for something she could fish the beads out from underneath the furniture with. She picked up the candle she had discarded on the floor, now dripping with wax threatening to spill on her hand, and swung it side to side, looking for anything she could use. She was about to grab Tessaiga, a less than dignifying job for an heirloom fang, when something long and mounted to the wall across from the foot of thebed caught her eye. Kagome scrambled toward it reaching out to snatch it, assuming it was another mounted weapon, when she was forced to stop and take several moments to process what she was looking at.

In the dim flickering light of the candle Kagome could see her fingers were centimeters away from grabbing a foot with pale paper skin stretched thinly over delicate bones. Its yellowed toenails were over grown and curling over the toes and the skin looked grey and stony. Kagome's mouth dried instantly and the air felt too thick and hot to breath into her lungs. She snatched her hand back as if she'd been burnt and quickly raised the candle to view the rest. Her eyes widened in mute horror as she located the source of the ominous, ghastly aura that oozed from every crack and floorboard of the tower. Mounted high over her on the wall was the body of a dead woman in traditional miko garb. The woman's skin was dehydrated and nearly translucent against her emaciated and boney frame. Her eyelids had eroded away long ago, leaving her wide gaunt eyes open and in a permanent lifeless gaze. Whatever hair was left hung from her peeling skull in wiry strands and thinning tufts that framed her hollow cheekbones and slack jaw. Her bony hands and birdlike fingers dangled limply by her sides, a stake through her throat holding her in place against the wall.

Kagome felt her stomach launch into her throat and her mouth fill with acidic bile. She stooped over and emptied the contents of her stomach onto the floor, her throat burning and eyes watering. There was a dead priestess mounted to the wall of Inuyasha's bedroom. He slept with this corpse staring at him every night. Kagome's head was spinning. She had to leave, not just the tower but the palace. She needed to escape. With a rush of swift clarity, Kagome knew she was not safe here. A savage wave of nausea threatened to take her to the ground so she quickly devised an escape plan based off of her knowledge thus far of the palace. Get across the ravine, cut across the courtyard into the gardens, somehow scale the palace walls or even climb a tree and jump over, run as far and fast as she can back to the well. Kagome straightened herself and stumbled backwards, unable to tear her eyes away from the priestess's eyes. She stepped back and discarded the candle on the armoire next to the beads when she felt her shoulder brush against something that wasn't there before. In her alarm and confusion, Kagome stumbled over her own two feet while turning to face whatever was in the room with her and she fell onto her rear. She scooted back frantically across the floor when she saw Inuyasha's familiar red hakamas until her back smacked against the dresser, sending the beads of subjugation raining down around her.

Kagome took in the sight of Inuyasha towering above her for the two seconds she had before he grabbed her. He looked the same, except his nails were longer, those peculiar purple lines under his eyes were longer and harsher, and his eyes were glowing blood red.

Kagome tried to find the will power to still her chattering jaw so she could say something, but her body was trembling with terror knowing full-well that she was helpless and trapped in a corner. A blood-curling scream ripped from her throat when he gripped her arm and threw her across the room with incredible force. Kagome hit the far wall near a weapon rack, crumpling to the ground as daggers and swords rained down next to her. She reached out to grab a dagger, wondering for only a split second if she could really bring herself to kill Inuyasha right here and right now, before he was upon her and hoisting her to her knees by the front of her yukata.

"Who are you?!" he roared, his voice representing a guttural animalistic snarl than the voice of a man.

Kagome turned away from him and focused on sweeping her hand back and forth in an attempt to find a weapon. Unhappy with her lack of answer, he threw her again in the direction of the armoire and sent her sliding across the polished floor. She pushed herself to her feet as he quickly approached her again, staggering, but wielding a small dagger in front of her.

"Get away from me!" she shrieked at him hysterically, her voice cracking, "Inuyasha stop! I don't want to hurt you!" she cried out. He stalked toward her so she threw the dagger at him, hoping it'd serve as a distraction long enough for her to circle around him, and ran to the side of the bed, preparing to catapult over it and throw herself down the stairs for her escape. She darted to the side of the bed and Inuyasha caught her effortlessly by the throat and dragged her to the nearest bare wall – under the dead priestess. He slammed her against the wall and pinned her there. Kagome could feel the cold heavy feet of the dead woman above her resting on her head. Her stomach lurched again but there was nothing left. Kagome struggled against Inuyasha's iron grasp, fruitlessly tearing at his hands and wrists trying to loosen his grip.

"Inuyasha—it's me – Kagome!" she choked out between wheezing breaths as she struggled to fill her lungs with air. She desperately searched his eyes for any signs of recognition of humanity. Far, far away she could see his golden irises burning against the angry red of his eyes – he was in there somewhere.

"You lying bitch!" he snarled almost incoherently, "I will send you to Hell with Ubanaki." He reached down a retrieved a dagger that was buried into his abdomen – Kagome must have hit him with it when she threw it at him.

"No… Inuyasha…. Please…" she rasped as he placed the tip of the dagger in the space between two of his fingers. She screwed her eyes shut and feebly tried to pull the dagger away. He fully intended to mount her body here, as well.

Then, there was the sickening squelch of tearing flesh and burbling blood. Kagome opened her eyes and saw Inuyasha, his face blank and his red eyes wide. Next to him was Misuzu with her claws buried deep in his neck. The dagger clambered to the floor and the pressure against Kagome's windpipe vanished. She fell to the ground in a heap and switched between coughing and gasping for air in rapid intervals. Kagome's head was spinning and her stroked her jugular feeling it pulse headily under her fingertips.

"Go!" Misuzu shouted at her interrupting her reverie. She looked up and found Misuzu had now positioned her body between she and Inuyasha, who was now slumped forward onto the moth demon. Her claws were still embedded deep in his neck and blood spilled down her wrists and up her arm, dripping off at the bend in her elbow. Without warning, Inuyasha's legs buckled beneath him and he fell to his knees, Misuzu going down with him. His head lolled backwards and Kagome sputtered in shock,

"You- you- you killed him." She whispered.

"What did I say? Go!" Misuzu shouted at Kagome, forcing her to scramble away on her hands and knees away from the pain. Inuyasha's body convulsed violently and Misuzu began to call out for help. A barrage of bodies swarmed the room, somewhere in the tangle Kagome heard Harue's voice crow above the rest.

"Get him upstairs immediately! You: Carry him! You! Get Tessaiga!" she ordered authoritatively. Kagome curled up against the wall and watched demons spring into action, Inuyasha's limp, shuddering body disappearing behind the wall of staff. Misuzu emerged, covered in blood and locked eyes with Kagome. With exasperation she called out for somebody to take her back to her cell. Without warning, Kagome was hoisted up by her arm and roughly tossed over somebody's shoulder like a dead animal or sack of laundry. Kagome didn't protest – she was still in shock from the debacle that had unfolded in front of her less than two minutes before. Instinctively, she wanted to rub her neck again but her hands were caught by her sides in the vice grip of whoever carried her. Sensing her discomfort, the man carrying her spoke.

"He sure has an odd way of treating prisoners: feeding them well, bathing them, prettying them up only to pummel them in his bedroom. Lord Inuyasha sure does like to play rough with his women, doesn't he?" The voice smooth as whiskey chuckled. Kagome's body went stiff and she was unpleasantly slammed into the present, forcing her to focus on what was happening now. The man strolled unhindered down the great hall with easy long strides. Kagome could only stare and watch the Inuyasha's door shrink in the distance as the man strode purposefully in the other direction across the ravine. She felt a hand pat the back of her thigh a few times in feigned reassurance and she recoiled away from him. She didn't want this vile man ever touching her again for as long as she lived.

"No need to get all shy and tense, it's what demons and humans do." he teased as he bounced her stiff body on his shoulder, "I suppose you're lucky you were with Inuyasha and not me. I don't think anybody could have come to your rescue in time." His voice dropping an octave. Tsunekane's clawed hand remained on her bare thigh only tightened when she tried to shake him off.

Kagome was relieved when she heard the familiar lock and release of her cell and didn't mind that he carelessly discarded her on the ground. Umph she grunted when she hit the hard ground and looked up at him willing him to leave but he didn't. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall casually like he had all the time in the world to watch her like an animal in a zoo. Kagome began to sweat apprehensively and the man opened his mouth to say something but he was rudely interrupted by Harue's sudden appearance.

"You were instructed to leave her here. You have no reason to linger, Tsunekane." She crowed.

The horned demon quickly straightened and bowed his head ever so slightly, "Of course. I'll see if my help is needed elsewhere." He digressed with a pleasant lilt in his voice. He promptly turned and strode purposefully out of the cell, disappearing around the corner before Kagome realized she had been holding her breath.

"Let me see you, child." Harue said, much softer now.

The healer inspected Kagome's throat and arms and legs, confirming that no serious damage was sustained. Her tongue flicked out and tasted the air near Kagome's throat. A series of "Ah's" and "Oh yes I see's" later and the healer nodded in approval.

"I see what happened. The signs were all there. You shouldn't have been allowed to see Lord Inuyasha today." Harue declared.

"You saw… what?" Kagome asked, her voice cracking and her resolve wavering. The adrenaline had worn off and her emotional response was catching up to her. She blinked away tears threatening to pool in her eyes because they were entirely unnecessary this late.

"I can see glimpses of what happened when you experience pain. It helps me build a story." She explained. Harue reached out and ran a wrinkled hand down Kagome's throat.

"You mean you can see things through my eyes? So you saw what happened to me the day I was brought in here?" she asked, her voice trembling. She was losing this battle fast. Harue didn't answer and waited until Kagome's hot tears spilled and she buried her face in her hands. When her sobs turned to snivels, Harue continued.

"I can. I need to consume other's pain to live – it's what gives me life. As you can imagine war-time is prosperous for me."

Kagome wiped her nose on the sleeve of her yukata and studied the old woman, unable to decide if she felt violated by or in awe of her power. She wiped her tear-stained cheeks before pressing further.

"What happened to Inuyasha?"

"He was put to sleep. He'll be okay." She replied nonchalantly, ambling toward the exit.

Kagome lurched forward and grabbed the leg of her hakama, "No! What happened before that? Why did he transform? He wasn't injured and Tessaiga was close by. He lost his temper when I asked him. There's a dead priestess in his room! Please! Tell me what's going on! Or kill me now because I don't want to end up like that!" she pleaded, fresh tears pouring down her face.

Harue turned and looked almost as if she pitied the young woman, "I cannot do that – any of it." She shook her head.

Kagome tried again, not willing to readily give up, "I was told that I can help him. Let me help him! I need to know what's wrong with him first! You have to tell me so I can help him!" she cried.

Harue stopped and considered this, "You really want to help him, child?" she inquired.

"Yes, yes, please let me help him." She sobbed, letting her hands fall to the ground and lowering her head into a deep bow. Anything, anything to buy her time – to extend her life.

The two stood in silence, Kagome's forehead still pressed to the dirt as she inhaled measured shaky breaths.

"Get some sleep. I will come back tomorrow and answer your questions." She decided and shuffled out of the cell, locking the door behind her.

Kagome laid folded on the floor for some time before she had the energy to peel herself off of the ground and crawl into her bedroll. She laid awake for several hours that night dissected the events of the previous evening over and over again in her head. Where exactly had it gone wrong? What could have possibly triggered the transformation? Who was Ubanaki? An enemy? A past lover? Kagome drew the pelt in closer to her body and involuntarily shivered. The last thing she needed was her appearance resembling another dead lover – how long had it taken to overcome that baggage the first time around? At the end of the day, Inuyasha truly didn't believe that she was Kagome. He believed that she was an imposter of some sort – but an imposter that looks exactly like her and has proprietary knowledge about the well? None of this made sense but obviously she wasn't privy to some key knowledge. Kagome's life may depend on proving that she is the real Kagome he knew 150 years ago. But tomorrow she'd at least have answers and after that she could begin working her way out of this mess. For now, her thoughts became hazy as the exhaustion of the day settled deep in her bones. It was well into the night before Kagome's body finally submitted to the call of sleep.

Kagome awoke that morning with breakfast waiting for her - no Misuzu. She slowly munched on her breakfast but discovered she wasn't very hungry. Rather, she was hungry but couldn't stomach any food because she was too anxious for Harue's arrival. She pushed the tray aside and sat on her bed neatly, waiting patienty for the healer.

About an hour later Harue ambled in with a bowl and a cloth. She set the items down in front of Kagome and instructed her to clean up her face. Hesitantly, Kagome took the rag and dipped it in the cold water before meticulously cleaning every inch of her face. When she returned the rag to the bowl she spied brown-red stains on the white cloth that hadn't been there before. She withdrew slightly, realizing that she must have had Inuyasha's blood on her face. She suddenly remembered the feeling of the priestess's cold heavy feet resting on the top of her head. Kagome ran a hand through her hair and rubbed the top of her head in an attempt to dispell the physical imprint it'd left on her memory.

"You have a nasty bruise on your neck." Harue mentioned in passing. Kagome nodded, already aware that it probably looked like a gruesome rainbow of blacks, purples, and blues. She had already tested the flesh on her neck this morning and confirmed that It was very tender.

"What about your shoulder and your back? He threw you pretty hard against the wall." the healer reminded her. Kagome rolled her shoulders and sat up straight. Yep, that was sore, too.

The two regarded each other in solemn silence, Kagome ready to jump from her position on her bed and strangle the poor woman if she didn't start talking. Harue finally settled back against the wall and lowered herself to the ground grumbling about the ailments of age the whole way down. The old woman folded her hands in her sleeves, looked Kagome square in the eyes, and began to spoke.

It was a long time before Harue finished speaking. She regarded the woman openly, waiting to see how she would react. Kagome sat in the same spot on her pelt, rigid, her hands balled into fists, and her lips pressed into a thin line. Everything was clear to her now, for the most part. She knew about the war, she knew about Inuyasha's unexplained transformation, she knew why everyone was so weary of her. Kagome wanted to hear it from him, though. She wanted to know the details, no matter how gruesome, because she needed the whole story as disturbing as it was.

"I want to see Lord Inuyasha." Kagome said grimly, her voice hard and tense.

Harue considered this, "Now is not the best time as you can imagine…" she reasoned.

"I don't care. At least he can't avoid the conversation this way." She shouted, not meaning to raise her voice at the old woman. She couldn't help it though, she was angry and hurt, betrayed, and she felt foolish.

Harue sighed and nodded before slowly standing and guiding Kagome to the door. "Let the young Lord speak and he will tell you all. He has carried this burden long enough."

Kagome nodded and followed the old woman out the door in the direction of Inuyasha's tower once again. Although Kagome already knew a great amount, it was time for Inuyasha to divulge the last 150 years of his life to her himself. She already knew she couldn't help him, but that didn't mean she wouldn't try long enough until she found the opportune moment to escape.