A/N: I'm trying to get this story out and finish it as soon as I could. (I still have Ichi-go pending, and another one I'd like to start, but I can't unless I finish this.) Can't believe its almost a year.

This is still set in the past, and we will go all the way to the present.

I just want to remind you, mature situations in this chapter, and especially the next. Unfortunately, it isn't a lemon.

Standard disclaimer applies. Appreciate your reviews. Thanks, and have a nice weekend.

Six Days

-Day One-

"What are you so worried about?" He said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "We only have six days left. What else could happen in six days?"

Kagome cast her unseeing gaze down, and she gathered the material of her kimono on her hands. The Shrine Girl fell silent, her breath trembling. "Why won't you believe me," she whispered, "How could you not believe me."

I never thought being this close to what I've always prayed for,

Could take me so far away from him.

Six Days. It seemed like a short moment in their extended lifespan, but for her, it would be the longest days of her life. Just yesterday was their Yuinou, and at that moment she never thought she could get any happier. But mentions of their wedding had brought a different level of elation. The Taisho clan would not settle for any less.

The wedding was set for six days. And she never expected it to be the source of her never-ending distress.

Ever since Sesshomaru had asked for her hand in marriage, her father held this curious smile in his face, one that she had never seen before. Gone was the direct, blunt affection for her that she had known and grew up with. He now regarded her almost all too kindly,

And it was disturbing.

Her father was a stranger.

He was planning something. And for the first time in a very long time, Kagome felt one emotion she had only felt when she had faced that blind youkai by the river, so long ago.

She feared.

The warm embrace of her lover relieved her from her trance. "Your father gave us his approval. The wedding is already set. Shrine Girl, I won't run away, if that's what you're scared about."

His attempts at humor were as pathetic as it had always been. And Kagome tried to smile. But her intuition was eating her alive… and she suddenly clung to him, her nails digging into his skin so hard it almost drew blood. "Something's not right," she told him, her voice begging, "Sesshomaru, I just feel it. Something is- "

"Ssshh…" he silenced her with a tender kiss.

Why was she so anxious? What was she so scared about? The Daiyoukai was slightly annoyed. Was she not thankful of the changes her father was trying to make regarding them? Gone was his malicious glare, the detesting aura… he was even speaking to him cordially. For the hundred-and-fifty years he had been in the Higurashi shrine, it was only at these times when he could finally conclude a truce.

And yet his Shrine Girl seemed to have taken the Patriarch's change out of context. She was never this mistrusting before.

"Sesshomaru," she suddenly whispered, "Make love to me."

He frowned at her forwardness. And she even took her own kimono off, her impatience surprising him. He held her wrist, he wanted her to slow down. "Shrine girl… you won't lose me. Not in six days."

She shook her head in frustration. Kagome reached out and slowly felt the outline of his face with her fingertips. And she kissed him, melting in his familiar warmth.

I know…

But somehow, I feel…as if I am slowly losing myself…

She did not wait. She pushed his thick girth into her womanhood, and she slumped on his shoulders, allowing herself to drown in the familiar wave of pleasure that was slowly gaining strength.

"Together Forever," she whispered, "In this lifetime, and the next… and in all others that will follow."

She wanted to shake away the debilitating fear. Kami, she wanted to trust Sesshomaru's assurances that everything will be all right. But she was not naïve to the world. She knew it only took one blink of an eye for everything to change.

She could not get this message through him: A lot could happen in six days.

-Day Two-

"You don't have to come, she is resting," Kyoshiro said through the phone, keeping his voice as low as possible, not wishing to wake his sleeping daughter.

"Higurashi-sama," Sesshomaru answered from the other line, "The business meeting is important, but if Kagome needs me then that meeting can easily be canceled,"

"Her fever has gone down since last night. She'll be fine, Sesshomaru. I've taken care of her for a hundred and forty-eight years." The Higurashi Patriarch turned towards his sick daughter on the futon. "Go to your meeting. I'm her father, I won't allow any harm on my precious Kagome."

"Hai," Sesshomaru said, "But tell her to call me as soon as she wakes up,"

"I will."

When Touga's heir left that night, it was then that his precious daughter started throwing up. There wasn't any contagious disease going on in the community, and if there was, Kagome would have enough resistance against common human illnesses.

But little changes had him wary. The past few days, she had been very picky about her food.

Kyoshiro stood from his position and stared down at her. Her visible blue energy… was slowly being entangled with a curious red sliver. Only high-level priests and priestesses could detect it, it was innate in their life-supporting energy. And Kyoshiro could see it spark, weakly, and it was growing stronger as the days passed by.

Like a little heartbeat, thriving.

His eyes narrowed.

"Papa, did Sesshomaru say he was coming?" Kagome's weak voice drifted through the room. It took a while for Kyoshiro to respond. The hard look on his face washed away, replacing it with a soft, concerned mask.

"No. He said he was busy… There were more important matters he had to attend to."

The Shrine Girl fell into silence. After long, hesitant moments, "Can I call him?"

"No. He told me not to have anyone disturb him today."

"Oh," Kagome sat up from her futon. She closed her eyes momentarily. "I'm so nauseous," she rested her face on the palms of her hands, "My stomach is not upset… but I just feel so queasy…" Kyoshiro watched, as she splayed her other hand instinctively on her abdomen, and she bit her lip. "Where is mama? I… want to talk to her."

"About what?"

Kagome shrunk under his sudden glare. "Something… just a suspicion," and her hands instinctively wrapped around her abdomen, almost as if protecting it.

Kyoshiro shifted. "Drink this," He said, handing her a cup of tea that he had prepared for her, especially for her. "It will help with your nausea,"

"Papa," she said, "I don't like the smell…"

"Drink it." He demanded, and Kagome drew back at his sudden raised voice. Her hands braced slowly behind her, leaning away in alarm,

"Where is mama,"

"Kagome, drink it!" He suddenly said, half of the contents spilling on her lap, burning through her skin. The Shrine Girl gasped in pain and she tried to crawl away, but Kyoshiro snapped. He took the nearby teapot and grabbed Kagome by the hair, yanking her head up, hovering the teapot over her face.

"Open your mouth." He commanded.

Kagome shook her head, her tears spilling down her cheeks, down to the Tatami floor. She started sobbing, her despair washing over his aura like a strong current… pleading, begging. But he refused to waver. He clenched his hand on her jaw, forcing her mouth open, but Kagome remained defiant. He clamped on her muscle, and the girl's jaw finally gave in.

He poured the piping hot liquid into her throat.

She screamed.

Kyoshiro remained deaf to his daughter's tortured cries as it rang through the silent hallways. "Swallow it," he shook her jaw, "Swallow it!"

Reflex kicked in, and there was nothing else she could do. The thick, boiling liquid ran into her throat, and she was forced to drink the torture, searing her raw, burning her alive from the inside. And she felt as if she were drowning… drowning in fire.

Stop,

She cried in her mind, her blue aura flaring in defense. But she tried to suppress it, how could she hurt her own father?

Papa, stop…

Sesshomaru… where are you…

please, help me…

Poison. That was the only thing it would have been, for it to sting on her tongue so bad. The nasty aftertaste left her eyes watering. And she was not able to stop her disgust from violently forcing itself out.

The contents of her stomach regurgitated.

It back flowed like a surge. The acid and bile burned as it made her way up her already raw, injured throat, disgorging the barf out from her gut. But her father clasped his hand over her mouth and he forced her back on the floor, her digested hurl leaking out of her mouth, oozing out behind his cruel hand. "Don't spit it out, Kagome. Swallow it."

She heaved violently, trying to push him away. She was drowning in her own puke.

Someone…

Please help me…

She felt a weak pulse of energy run through her veins. Kagome gagged and choked, sobbing her bewildered, stunned heart out at the horrible realization- she was forced to take back her own vomit. Her blue aura cowered as she took painful swallows,

And her body wracked tremulous from the disgust…. the humiliation…

"I'm only doing this to protect you, my daughter," Kyoshiro said, stroking her hair lovingly, "To protect us… and our lineage…" The Shrine Girl's unseeing eyes widened when she suddenly felt that malicious aura flare in his hands again. It was coming straight towards her mating mark.

Sesshomaru!

The weak pulse inside her flared, erupting into a bright, blinding red light. The blow was so strong that Kyoshiro was hurled several feet away, breaking the screen door, throwing him out of the hallway. And Kagome turned herself to the floor and retched,

Helplessly petrified,

Shaken to her core.

The strange red aura wrapped around her as if it was trying to console her, stroking her weary life energy, comforting her horrified soul. Kagome opened her eyes.

Outlines.

Extremely blurry outlines. She then realized, she was not imagining the outlines in her mind… she was seeing it. And she touched her eyes in disbelief. It was not enough to make images out of, it was extremely hazy. And there was a strange red tinge to her vision,

But she couldn't believe it.

She was starting to see.

How is this possible?

"Kyoshiro!" Her mother screamed, and Kagome snapped her head towards the hallway. She could see the blurry outline of the shoji doors, her unfinished murals on the rice-paper walls,

"Onee-san!" A small figure came dashing towards her. She recognized the outline.

Souta.

She immediately succumbed, receiving his small body willingly in her arms.

"What happened?" the boy cried, and he reached out to touch her face. Kagome winced when his fingertips brushed her cheeks. "He hurt you," he said, "Kagome nee-san,"

She opened her mouth to speak.

And it dawned on her, her voice was gone. Her throat was burned and destroyed from the horrible encounter. She summoned her energy in attempts to heal herself. But there was something her father had infused with the liquid, and Kagome realized:

Her father was the High Priest of Higurashi Shrine.

His powers would easily exceed that of hers.

Her middle-schooler brother pulled away. "It's papa, isn't it," he whispered, "Nee-san… Sesshomaru-sama needs to know," he said, and he cupped her face gently, the child who was a mere six years old. And Kagome could only lament in despair at everything that was happening.

He was too young to be involved in this kind of mess,

He was too innocent to see this kind of abuse.

"Stay here, Nee-san," he said with determination, tears falling from his eyes, "He needs to know about this… he needs to take you away from here,"

And with that, he took off.

The young boy could barely comprehend, he was scared out of his wits. But one thing was clear in his mind. The horror in his sister's blue eyes compelled him to follow his instincts. He dashed past the slumped figure of his father on the hallway and rushed to the large receiving lobby. He shut the door behind him, and he lifted the receiver of the phone.

With shaking hands, he dialed a familiar number, and with one ring the other line answered. "Shrine Girl," the Daiyoukai's voice drifted through, "How does it feel like to sleep the whole day?"

"Sesshomaru-sama," The boy said, catching his breath. Sesshomaru paused, caught off guard by the unfamiliar voice.

"Souta?" Sesshomaru finally asked.

"Sesshomaru-sama, you need to come here immediately. Kagome nee-san is in trouble," his voice was unstable, he did not want to waste precious time, "He hurt her… he hurt her, Sesshomaru-sama… She's covered in bruises, Papa hurt her!"

"Souta, what are you talking about,"

"Sesshomaru-sama please—"

The Shoji Door slammed open, and Souta froze, numbed with fear. His father strode towards him and grabbed the receiver. "Sesshomaru," Kyoshiro said, his voice manifesting an eerie calm.

The boy tried to back away... but he couldn't.

Kyoshiro's hands were clamped firmly around Souta's throat.

"I don't know what kind of illness has befallen my daughter," Kyoshiro said, "But she woke up having these deliriums. She's manifesting these outrageous hallucinations," he clamped his hand tighter when Souta tried to resist, "Her high fevers are feeding her paranoia."

"Sesshomaru-sama, that's not-" Souta cried out, but his protests were in vain. He couldn't breathe, and his eyes were starting to roll to the back of his head.

"What?" Sesshomaru said from the other line, "I thought her fever broke,"

"Apparently not." Kyoshiro continued, "It came back, and she woke up screaming. I'm heartbroken…" he breathed deep, feigning exhaustion. "How could she think I would want to hurt her? I only want what's best for her."

"Higurashi-sama," Sesshomaru tried to stay calm, "Do you think it would be best if she stays with me until the wedding is-"

"No. Somehow her physical immunity is weakened. She wants to go with you. And she is stubborn, she will do anything to make that happen. But Sesshomaru, her condition will worsen if she stays surrounded with Youkai energy. It's best to keep her here, she's safer under our wing."

There was a long pause… and then,

"I understand, Higurashi-sama." The Daiyoukai answered.

Souta's eyes darkened in horror. Kyoshiro grinned. He released the boy, and Souta slumped on the floor, shaking in fear.

"But I'm coming tomorrow to visit her," Sesshomaru said, "Tell her I'm coming tomorrow."

"I will," Kyoshiro answered, bringing his glare to the wide-eyed, horror-struck child curled up on the floor,

"See you tomorrow."

-Day Three-

The Shrine Girl woke up with a startle. She sat up, drenched in her sweat. Her heart was beating so fast she had a hard time catching her breath… and she looked around, wishing it was all a horrible nightmare, brought in by her nervousness of the upcoming wedding.

But she saw the blurry outlines around her, that strange tinge of red.

Her heart sank.

"Kagome," a gentle voice called out to her, and she turned to the source. The blurry, yet familiar, image of her mother was beside her, and Kagome's heightened wariness crumbled.

"My dear Kagome," Anna whispered, "My precious daughter…"

Kagome pointed to her throat.

"I know," Anna cried, "Kagome, I know," and she offered her a glass of clear water. Kagome drew back for a minute, but she looked at the kind face of her mother… and she shrugged away her doubt.

Kagome never realized how thirsty she was until she drank the whole glass. Anna smiled in relief, "There, there, child," she held her daughter in her arms.

As the Shrine Girl tried to calm her frantic mind to no avail, the picture frame on her study caught her eyes… a blurred image of her and Sesshomaru in their Yuinou. And beside it was another obscure photo…

Of two children standing under a sakura tree.

Kagome squinted, and she held her breath in horror. She surmised the children in the picture was her and Sesshomaru, but she could not remember when the picture was taken. And the further she tried to recall, the more gaps there was in her memory.

She pulled back abruptly, her eyes wide in alarm.

"What is it," Anna stroke her hair, trying to calm her hysteric daughter, "My daughter, what is it?"

She pointed frantically behind her, and when her mother's gaze settled on the photo, a curious expression veiled Anna's eyes, like a curtain that fell over that soft, gentle gaze. Her mother cleared her throat, "Sesshomaru-chan? He's downstairs."

Kagome slowly pulled away and looked at her mother in confusion at her sudden hardened tone.

Then, a familiar voice drifted into the hallway. Her heart painfully ached and Kagome bolted up, tearing herself away from her mother and she dashed out of the room. As she ran through familiar, obscured hallways she could feel that little energy also pulse to life, trying to comfort her bruised soul, cocooning her in a warmth she wanted to withdraw into and never return.

She opened the shoji door to one of the rooms, and it was as if her entire being trembled. Familiar white hair, severe golden eyes. Sesshomaru's sheltering presence instantly overwhelmed her.

"My daughter, what a relief. You're finally awake."

Goosebumps rode on her skin, the moment she heard the intruding voice. Her eyes darted towards the person who was seated across her lover, and she stepped back in revulsion.

Her father, smiling worriedly at her.

Kyoshiro stood up. "Well I guess I need to give you both some privacy," he said as he walked towards the doorway. He stopped when he reached beside Kagome, and he dared to bend down and plant an affectionate kiss on the crown of her head. "Don't exhaust yourself."

He continued his way out. Kagome's eyes flew open, an inexplicable rage consuming her. She spun around and reached out to his receding form, but a hand caught her wrist, and she turned back.

It was Sesshomaru.

"Shrine Girl," he said, his cold, calculating eyes melting into that of immense worry, "Kagome." He pulled her into a tight embrace. "Kagome."

Kagome wanted to cast everything in abandon. She wanted to close her eyes and leave everything in his safe presence. But she had no time to waste. She writhed away from his arms and headed to a nearby drawer.

Sesshomaru only watched her silently as she went through the drawers like a madwoman. It was when she started crying was when he decided to step in-

"Shrine Girl,"

She halted and pulled out a box in the topmost shelf. There were blank calligraphy scrolls on her hand, and she walked past Sesshomaru and went straight to the large table. She spread the scrolls and opened the box. In it were her old brushes and an unused tub of ink.

"Kagome, what are you-"

To his amazement, she dipped a brush in the tub and started writing.

"Kagome," a smile dare crept into his features, "You can see…"

Her hands were shaking, and the output came out so crooked it looked like a work of a child who had just learned to write… far from the elegant calligraphy that she had executed so long ago. But Sesshomaru frowned when he noticed big drops of her tears start to fall on the paper, blotting the ink uglier than before.

Frustrated, she shoved the paper closer to him, forcing him to read.

-Everything is an intense blur, but I am starting to see. Sesshomaru, take me out of here,-

"Kagome, you're sick," he said gently, and the Shrine Girl shook her head with such anger, her bitter tears never ceasing. Her hands drifted yet again to the paper,

- Look at me, look at what he's done! I'm hurting all over, Just look at me!-

Her handwriting grew more crooked by the minute, as she was blinded further by her frustration and tears. Sesshomaru reached out for her wrists and tried to steady her, she was so close to hysteria,

"Kagome, Kyoshiro-sama was probably right. I shouldn't expose you further to my Youkai energy for now, it's stressing you more-"

She flung his hands away from her.

-Why… why won't you believe me,- she wrote madly.

Kagome shoved him forcibly away, and she hurled the brush on the floor in anger. It splattered black ink everywhere. She backed away from him. She pointed at her throat, and to the bruises on her face. The burn on her mouth and lips,

And her eyes widened when she saw Sesshomaru's soft look grow cold.

"Your father told me all about it. Kagome, I think I should leave before you harm yourself any further again."

Her vision flickered even more. Her Sesshomaru, her love, the person she trusted the most, was slowly backing away from her…

"You need rest. I don't want you to be acting all erratic in the wedding," he said, and she stared at him in disbelief, "Kagome. Please restrain yourself… don't involve Souta in this again."

If she could have screamed, she already had. With blinding rage, she rushed to Sesshomaru and flailed her fists against him in total refusal, at an utter loss in her realization.

Sesshomaru thought she was harming herself. That she had gone delirious and bruised herself, burned herself, so that her "fake" story would be believable, and they would blame her father.

And she had "connived" with her kid brother, conned him into her twisted plot just to get her out of the mansion.

"You're really sick, Kagome," Sesshomaru braced his hands on her arms and crushed her in his embrace, "And I'm worried, you need to heal. We have three more days, that would be enough time. By then the illness would have gone… that was what Kyoshiro-sama said, "

His own tears had streaked down his face… Kagome realized that he was truly worried for her well-being, that he genuinely believed he was helping her.

But unfortunately, what he believed in was a lie. It was then that her strength left her, and she fell into a helpless crying spell, slumping into his arms, her knees giving way.

"I need to go before this gets worse," he whispered, and the poor, mute girl's hands fell limp as he pulled way.

Unable to hold him back, unable to call out his name, she watched helplessly as his blurry image disappeared from her red-tinged vision.

And she was left all alone in the empty room, with scattered paper and spilled ink all around, and she cried out a silent lament… voiceless… powerless.

She reached out weakly for the brush on the floor and absently scribbled on a crumpled scroll,

-Of all the people, I couldn't believe it had to be you…-

-How could you not believe me,-

-Sesshomaru, how could you not believe me…-

All hope extinguished, spiraling down into a void of despair, she slumped on the wooden floor and cried her heart out.

The strange, weak pulse in her veins- which remained quiet throughout the whole encounter- slowly ebbed out from hiding, gradually wrapping her in its comforting warmth, cocooning her in a quiet assurance, lulling her into a silent sanctuary.

She closed her eyes, allowing herself to be sheltered in its unusual embrace.

-Day Four-

She was growing weaker, and it was getting harder to even lift her limbs. Still, she fought against the invisible binding energy. She tried to stay away from her father as best as she could. Her mother, bless her gentle heart, brought her dinner to her room last night.

She ate heartily in silence, refusing to be defeated by this fucked-up mess. She needed her strength… for what she had no idea. But she was bound to find a way out of this hellhole.

Kagome turned the TV on. A weather report, still very blurry in her eyes, but she could make out the moving images of clouds and raindrops. Paired with the meteorologist's modulated voice, it was supposed to rain hard, starting today, and in the next two days.

She secretly hoped it would not rain on her wedding day.

Kagome bolted up and rushed to her cordless phone and picked up her receiver. Dead silence… Her father had cut their home service, probably yesterday evening.

A scuffle from outside caught her attention. Kagome slowly inched towards the window and peeked outside.

The morning was overcast. Dark, heavy rainclouds had already started to form on the sky. She momentarily closed her eyes, secretly thankful that she was able to see, albeit like a newborn, but still able to see in fuzzy detail the sky that she loved so much. Her gaze drifted down. Two figures were making their way down the thousand steps, she could not recognize who it was because they were under a large umbrella.

A loud banging suddenly jolted her to her senses. Kagome froze, fear starting to creep up into her spine. The loud banging continued… and Kagome would have stayed there, paralyzed in fear, when the door rattled.

"Kagome nee-san… it's me."

Souta's voice called out in urgency. The Shrine Girl's weakened limbs snapped to attention, and she rushed straight to the door and tried to open it.

To her disbelief, she was locked from the outside.

She started to panic.

"Nee-san," Souta said, sensing her distress. She could hear metal clinking with each other, "Nee-san don't worry… I have the keys, I stole it from him while he was getting ready this morning,"

The doorknob clicked, and it opened.

Kagome exhaled in relief. Souta's small form stood by the doorway, he had something in his hands, but she did not bother to find out what it was. She strode towards the boy to engulf him in a tight hug, but he quickly brushed past her. "Quick, there's no time to lose," he said, and he flung the object in his hands to the floor, and it shattered into pieces.

He knelt before it, quickly gathering whatever was inside.

It was his piggy bank, with change and a few bills. His life savings.

Kagome reached out and touched a hand on his shoulder, and his eyes snapped towards her.

"He's out to Shibuya to convince Kikyo nee-chan into sharing them her memories," he said, and Kagome shook her head, confused.

He looked back at her with heightened alarm. "Nee-san, did you eat what mama had been giving you since yesterday? You shouldn't have… it contains heavy binding spells and an ancient memory spell…"

Kagome drew back, her brows meeting in confusion. Her eyes then drifted to the pictures scattered on her wall, and it was as if she was crushed between two falling worlds.

The pictures, she could now barely remember them.

"I eavesdropped last night… He's planning to extract you from your mating mark."

Kagome gasped, a silent cry of despair. She covered her mouth as moans started to escape her throat,

He can't do that. How can he even do that? How is that even possible?!

Souta continued his distracted counting of the change, "He's gonna do a grand exorcism, and he couldn't just do it like he would an ordinary human. You have a hundred and more years of collected memories…

He needs to push those memories down first to decrease the resistance of the exorcism against your soul. And to fill the gaping holes, he said he was going to inject new memories,"

She thought she couldn't cry anymore. But the tears flowed unchecked yet again. He was going to 'extract' the demonic energy from her soul.

And she remained paralyzed in horror-

The energy that he so much hated… did he realize it was bonded to her? That it was already a part of her?

He was literally going to tear her soul in half.

Her body trembled, and her mind frantically raced. At loss of what she was to do, with no one to turn to. That little warm energy had been pulsing gently through her veins, weakly extending its comfort to her, but she barely noticed.

She started to spiral into despair.

Souta shoved the meager cash in front of her. With tears in his eyes he took Kagome's hands and forced her to take it, "Kagome nee-san, there is a train station at the corner of the road. Take a train, and when you reach the second stop, take a cab to this address. Remember, the second stop. It's in Hokkaido. I copied the address from Mama's phone book. It's Sesshomaru-sama's house, I wrote it big so you can see,"

Kagome stared at her brother in disbelief. This was her six-year-old brother. Her six-year-old brother! "I've been with Papa once to visit the Taishos. This should be enough money to get you there,"

The Shrine Girl stared dumbly at the change on her hands,

"I tried calling Kikyo-nee-chan, but all the lines are cut off. Kagome nee-san, go." He reached out and pushed her, "Go," he cried out angrily,

"GO!"

The rain started to pour outside, and Kagome fiercely embraced her brother. Both in tears, both trembling in fear of what was before them, they tried to draw courage form the impossible.

"I'll be praying for you," Souta cried, the Shrine Girl wiping his tears off his small cheeks, "Kagome Nee-san. You'll make it, I'll be praying hard for you."

She nodded, and with one final look of determination, she pulled away from him and headed to the main hall.

The rain was pouring. Her vision was still extremely blurry, but it had improved to a point where she could now recognize Souta's large scribble. She had never been out of the shrine grounds before. She had no idea what the outside world looked like.

Kagome closed her eyes, taking comfort in that warm, little pulse in her energy, as it also seemingly tried to reach out to her, holding her hand, telling her she was not alone.

Taking a broken umbrella and holding a pocketful of change, Kagome stepped outside the familiarity of her home,

and into a modern world she barely knew.

The rain was cruel. But the boy was at the open Prayer Hall, soaking wet from the downpour, refusing to be deterred from his mission. With eyes shut tight and hands clasped so strongly together, he whispered, again and again:

"Please, keep her safe. Please keep Kagome nee-san safe."