Six Days (part 2)

Out of the second stop on Hokkaido,

Take a cab straight to him…

Please… watch over me, please… keep me safe.

The Shrine Girl clenched her fists beneath her flowing sleeves, steeling herself from any emotion that would dare escape her face. It was bad enough that she stood out in the train like an eyesore; in full Miko robes in the middle of casually-dressed people, but it was little strain compared to the real problem:

The cacophony of energy around her.

Mashed up tightly together, weak and strong, malicious and pure… the storm of different life energies left her reeling in confusion. Back in the shrine, whenever there were big events that involved many people, her father would set up a powerful neutralizer that would regulate the flow of the mass of energies; to prevent them from clashing, to not disturb the Shikon Jewel that was rumored to be buried underneath the grounds.

The binding spells were taking effect. Her limbs were so heavy she felt as if she were walking underwater, hobbling with manacles clamped on her feet. Every movement was now an immense task, and it took a taxing expanse of energy.

And the memories of her white Inu were flickering… his rare smile, his golden eyes…slowly fading into the darkness of her mind, like a dying candle into the quiet of the night.

Sesshomaru…

Kagome closed her eyes, trying to find comfort in something, trying to take hold of anything. And she found it, it was that little pulse in her energy. She focused her racing mind to the strange little warmth. It leaned on to her, and she leaned on to it… so comforting it was that she was almost lulled into sleep, almost missed the overhead announcement for her stop.

The Shrine Girl brought herself back to the confusing world, and she hurriedly rushed to the exit. And when she stepped outside on the platform, she was stunned.

The whole train ride took about four hours, and she arrived in the other end in early noon. She expected the sun to be high, but she looked up to a gloomy sky, it reminded her of the weather forecast earlier. The rain clouds were so heavy it had turned the day into a dark, foreboding world. The torrent drummed hard on the roof of the station. She looked around…so many lights, so many people. It wouldn't have been a problem if she could have seen clearly. But everything was still such a blur, and the lights, moving and blinking made her nauseous, the people were bumping into her left and right. Kagome heard several curses of annoyance directed her way, "Watch where you're going!" "Are you blind?" "Country bitch."

A stranger crashed into her, and before she knew it, her umbrella was out of her grasp. The figure then darted away, snatching the umbrella from her hands.

She could feel the rain soak her hair.

Kagome ran to the nearest shelter. Her attention then snapped to her empty hand- her purse was missing, the one which contained what was left of her brother's meager cash.

Her heart raced in panic, her breath in controlled gasps. Kagome's eyes started to burn from her restrained tears, but she forced herself not to cry. She tried to painfully suppress the fear that was threatening to consume her. She was extremely vulnerable now, she will not dare expose that vulnerability further.

She bit her tongue and tried to control herself… her courage was slowly crumbling.

Please… keep me safe.

The Shrine Girl reached out for her mating mark and tried to recall all the memories of him... slowly slipping out of her grasp.

"Lost, Ojou-san?" A stranger said, and she turned beside her to see a group of middle-aged men grinning at her. "Looks like you need some rest. I know of a perfect place for you to get cozy," the man's leer widened, and Kagome turned to run, but he caught her wrist and pulled her towards him. Three other men cornered her to a trap.

"Where are you from?" another one asked. Kagome shook her head and tried to pull away, tried to summon her offensive energy.

But the binding spell had already started to block her channels. She was left powerless.

"She's cute." The other one cut in,

"We're gonna have fun tonight," the third man said and brushed his fingers on her breasts. Kagome opened her mouth to scream.

But she had no voice.

The man snickered, "Oh, I think she secretly likes it," he said, and looked warily around, checking for any curious gazes. When it was apparent that no one else was looking, he slipped his hand between her thighs.

Sesshomaru!

Kagome collected what was left of her strength- she gathered her knee and struck the man on his balls. The pervert immediately lurched in pain. The Shrine Girl bent down and forced her body up, delivering a headbutt that knocked the man holding her unconscious. Scared out of her wits, forcing the tears back from her eyes, she tried to run away. But the two remaining men restrained her. "Feisty one we have here," said one,

"We have the perfect punishment for you later," the other one sneered.

Where are you…

Sesshomaru please… why aren't you by my side…

Kagome wanted to fight back, but the binding spell was getting heavier by the minute. It weighed her already lethargic limbs down, her consciousness was flickering. The resolve she tried to build up on her way had crumbled, and she started sobbing like a little child.

There was nothing else she could do.

Someone help me…

The men started pulling her away. Concerned bystanders looked helplessly, and Kagome met their eyes, pleading for help. But they only watched, refusing to be involved.

Someone… please.

Then, a policeman's whistle rang through the station.

From her blurry vision she could distinguish a uniformed officer running towards them, and he stopped in front of the tensed men. "What's this?"

"She's my daughter," the man answered nervously, "Rebellious little thing. Ran away from home to be with her boyfriend,"

The officer peered at him with suspicion. His gaze then drifted to Kagome. "Young lady?"

Kagome's strength was draining rapidly. But she managed to shake her head in negation, and with flaccid hands she took out the piece of paper where Souta had written the address. The policeman quietly scanned it, and he turned it over, carefully studying the other side. It turned out that it was not a mere piece of paper.

Souta had written the address on the back of a picture: the one where Kagome was proudly holding up an obi to the camera, and Sesshomaru sitting beside her, smiling. They had traditional gifts on the table before them:

It was a picture of the two in their extravagant Yuinou.

The policeman's eyes narrowed. "This is the Taisho heir." He glared at the two men. "Unhand her. You have no idea who you're crossing hairs with."

"My son was involved in a frame-up. He's hanyou… and a new officer. There is much prejudice against him in the task force." the officer solemnly shared, as he flicked his gaze to the woman sitting quietly at the back seat of his police car. Her hands were tense on her knees, her gaze frozen down. He brought his attention back to the road as he drove. "Taisho-sama cleared his name. There is much I must be thankful for. The peace treaty that they developed brought such a big change." He stopped the car when he reached a large gated entrance, and he showed his badge to the guard.

The gates lifted, and they proceeded inside. They were engulfed in a lull of silence.

The police officer pulled over. "I surmise that was a Yuinou in the picture." He turned to her. "Ojou-san, may the Kamis bless you and Sesshomaru-sama."

The radio crackled, and a tinny voice drifted through the receiver: "Dispatch needed in Kenbuchi. Possible child abduction. Anyone near the area, please report."

The policeman lifted his radio. "Unit 9 here. I'm on my way."

The wipers swished back and forth, not really clearing the heavy downpour that ran down the windshield. "This is the Taisho residence," he said, and the girl finally looked up. The policeman was slightly surprised when she looked back at him with such gratitude, and he bowed his head in apology. "I don't have an umbrella, I lent my last raincoat to an old woman,"

The girl clad in Miko robes shook her head and bowed down in gratefulness.

The tinny voice from the radio interrupted again, "Unit 9. Your location,"

"I'm on my way," he repeated. With one last thankful bow, Kagome dragged her already numb body out of the car, and once again, into the rain.

The police car sped off. And she found herself alone once again. But she gathered all that was left of her strength and took a step towards the closed gates.

Her knees wobbled and gave way.

She fell face first on the concrete ground.

Fading… my strength is fading…

The rain pound on her pathetic form. And there was an overwhelming torrent in her mind. Kagome crawled towards the gate, refusing to be crushed under the crippling pressure in her soul.

Your smile… is fading…

She reached out for the doorbell. In her mind, she was reaching out to him, to the image of the man with white hair and golden eyes, as it was being obscured by a thick curtain of haze she could not seem to get out of.

Her limbs could not carry her any longer. Her hand dropped, and she fell limp on the floor. Distant memories hovered before her like a mirage, of Sakura blossoms and water lilies, of unfinished murals and quiet moments of her alone, praying with a smile in the quiet of the oratory hall…

And of him and her, laying on the grass, watching the clouds drift by on an endless blue sky.

I want to call out to you…

But I realize… I can't remember your name.

The curious little energy was also affected by the bind, but it fluttered in her channels, making its presence known. And so Kagome held on to it, the only shelter she had in this confusing world.

Maybe I should rest,

The little energy fluttered faster in protest, trying to keep her awake. But Kagome started to close her heavy eyes,

Just a little rest…

Something shifted before her, and she brought her weary gaze to it. The gate was opening, and a figure rushed to her slumped form. "Ojou-san," it said, trying to rouse her from severe lethargy. He noticed the picture crumpled in her hands and he took it, and when he laid eyes on the photo, he immediately pulled away and pressed the intercom. "Sesshomaru-sama, it's me, Jaken," he hastily said, "Come up to the gate, hurry! The Lady Higurashi… somehow she's here-"

Jaken did not even get the chance to finish what he was saying. Kagome felt the old man's presence being forcefully shoved away, as it was replaced by a very familiar warmth.

"Kagome," the warm voice said, and she brought her weakened vision towards the newcomer. She could see a blur of white hair and blazing golden eyes. And her heart ached, remembering oh so distorted memories that now seemed like a distant dream.

I know you… my soul still recognizes you,

The Shrine Girl felt a gentle tickle on her skin. He was licking her as if in comfort, concentrating on a certain spot at the side of her neck. Her self-awareness was barely awakened from the heavy spell she was under, but she was able to surmise:

A mating mark?

At some point in time…was I mated to you?

The tears that she so desperately held since she stepped in this strange place broke from its restraint, and she finally allowed herself to cry as she melted into the familiar stranger's arms.

"How is she?" his father asked, and Sesshomaru looked up at him, exhausted.

"Her energy is dwindling." Sesshomaru said as he closed the door behind him. "She is asleep… she has been asleep since she arrived." Sesshomaru held the crumpled picture of them in his hands. "Father, I don't know anymore… I'm starting to doubt myself,"

"Maybe we should delay the marriage until she gets well, "

"No." Sesshomaru snapped, and after long moments, he realized the tone he threw against his father. He cast his head down in embarrassment. "No," he said softly.

"Son, is there something you want to tell me?"

"She has been telling me… that something is wrong. But Kyoshiro-sama is saying she is sick, that she just needs rest."

"Who do you believe in?" Touga asked quietly, and the young Daiyoukai was lulled into a deep silence. "Son, who do you believe?"

"I want to believe in her," Sesshomaru finally answered, "But it also sounds so senseless. She's been rambling, delirious… and the last time I saw her, she almost seemed… she almost seemed…" he trailed off, unable to utter the word.

Touga set a hand on his shoulder, "Whatever your decision is, do what you think is best for you and your mate."

Sesshomaru quietly nodded his head.

-Day Five-

Anna's worried voice drifted to the other end, "My Kagome," she cried, "My dear daughter. Thank Kami she's okay,"

Sesshomaru listened solemnly on the other line, torn between keeping his woman or sending her back. He had the foreboding feeling, and he tried to shrug it away. But it kept on nagging him as he watched the Shrine Girl on his bed sleeping peacefully.

"Her energy might be dwindling too fast there. Sesshomaru-chan, if you don't bring her here immediately, it might be too late."

"Higurashi-sama," he said, his voice barely audible, "Is he hurting her?"

The other line fell into a long silence.

"Is Kyoshiro-sama hurting her," he paused, "Please tell me. I can protect her. Keep her away, as what she had begged me. I need to know… I'm so confused. I don't know what to do anymore,"

"Sesshomaru-chan," she finally answered, and Sesshomaru held his breath. "No one is hurting her here. We only want what's best for her. And I'm sure you do too."

The Daiyoukai let out a deep exhale. "I'll take her back to the shrine tonight."

"Thank you."

He hung the phone up.

In the Higurashi Shrine, Anna dropped her cell phone on the ground, setting her palms on her face and cried. "I'm sorry, Sesshomaru-chan," she whispered, "Kagome, I'm sorry."

She clutched her chest, the painful bruises from Kyoshiro's beatings starting to ache in strain.

The Shrine Girl opened her eyes, and somehow, she felt as if it were hard to breathe. A familiar ceiling, cedar walls, the moon peeking through the Japanese maple and Sakura outside the window.

She was back in her room.

I'm not supposed to be here.

She tried to move her limbs, but she was immobile.

Please… whoever is listening…

Whoever is there… keep me safe…

"You slept again for the whole day," a voice drifted beside her, and she turned her weary eyes to the source. In her blurry, red-tinged vision, there was a man with white hair and the most familiar golden eyes.

She did not know him. She did not remember him. But her heart ached, it was a pain that was so overwhelming it immediately brought tears to her eyes.

And he saw it, and his lips curled downwards in restraint. She watched him as he silently cried with her. He reached out and took her flaccid hands, running it on the outline of his face, her palms wet from his streaking tears.

He kissed her hands, bent down and whispered softly, "Kagome. It's a big day for us tomorrow," He forced a pained smile, "Hang in there… we'll see each other tomorrow…" he rambled as he kissed her lips, and he gently rested his forehead on hers. "I have to go."

Those four words stabbed her in her soul like no other pain. She wanted to reach out to him, he started to pull away. Hazy memories of him and her flooded its way into her exhausted mind,

Don't leave me…

Please don't leave me…

She opened her mouth to call out to him.

But she did not have a voice.

And as she watched his receding form, deep inside she felt so betrayed.

White Inu…

Why can't you hear my soul

Calling out to you?

When the Daiyoukai reached the doorway he heard a slump. He turned around, and his eyes widened.

The Shrine Girl was on the floor, her body trembling from her voiceless sobs.

And he wanted to go back. Gather her in his arms, whisper words of comfort, but he knew his presence was making things worse. She managed to lift her blue eyes towards him.

I'm sorry. But I have to do this.

He turned to the door. But an unusual sound caught his attention, and he searched in the dim of the moonlight until he realized-

She was scratching the wooden floor with her nails. And she was scratching so hard and desperate her fingers started to bleed, but it did not stop her from what she was doing.

Sesshomaru shook his head in disbelief, and he rushed to her and wrapped her in a desperate embrace. "Kagome. Please… We'll see each other tomorrow," he could feel the puffs of her warm breath, unsteady and shaking. He pulled away and kissed her bloody fingers,

He gathered her in his arms and lifted her back to the bed.

With one last kiss to her lips, he backed away.

Then her fingers twitched. It caught his attention. Kagome's weary eyes drifted to the floor, and his gaze followed.

He stepped back.

On the floor, etched by her nails was a bloody message for him:

-Don't walk away like this.

Please, take me with you.-

She was crying, her blue eyes pleading. And Sesshomaru clenched his fists in restraint.

"I'll see you tomorrow," he whispered,

And he turned away and closed the door.

"Kagome, daughter. Open your eyes."

Her father's voice roused her to consciousness, goosebumps riding her flesh. The room spun around her, she tried to shake off the sinking feeling.

Although she had gaping holes in memory, there was one thing that was still clear in her mind.

Her father's abuse.

The little red pulse in her energy was weakened. She tried to cradle it in her soul. And her red-tinged vision was flickering. She looked around her-

Unfinished murals on the shoji walls, of realistic Sakura trees, and a White Inu beside a young girl, staring at the infinite blue sky. She was in the roofed Haiden, on her knees, too weak to move. And he was standing before her, the stranger she called her father.

She hung her head and cried, holding on to her last memory of the white-haired man with golden eyes: of his receding form in the doorway, silhouetted in the dark, as he walked away from her yearning, lonely soul.

"I'm sorry, daughter… for blaming you two nights ago."

Kagome shook her head, reaching out for the comforting little pulse inside her, unable to trust anything except for that red energy that stayed constantly beside her in her moments of turmoil.

"When that last bout of red energy flared against me, I realized it was not you. You weren't trying to hurt me," he reached out and cupped her cheek, and Kagome roughly looked away. "My daughter, my poor little daughter." He said, and Kagome watched in horror, as he took out a wooden paddle from the side.

And he lifted his arms and struck.

He hit her stomach. She lurched in pain, blood spilling out of her mouth. Immediately her meager vision flickered, and the little pulse in her energy ached. It was too weak now to fight back, she was too injured to protect it.

"My poor daughter, plagued by two demons."

Kagome's eyes flew wide open, as she started to realize. And her tears spilled, unable to believe…

His father's cruel hand struck again, and she curled sideways on the floor, wrapping her hands protectively around her womb.

No…

Please no…

Unable to fight back she let out silent screams of torture, each blow fading her red-tinged vision, each clout breaking her soul.

The little red pulse was fading, slowly, slowly slipping from her hold.

I can't…

She gasped in desperation, as she tried to crawl away. But she was paralyzed, her body was bruised and stunned.

And with one hopeless sob, he graced her with a final blow. Her womb spasmed wildly, and blood spilled from her womanhood, down to her legs, dripping in abnormal amounts on the wooden floor.

The Shrine Girl shook her head, wishing in her battered mind this was all a nightmare.

That energy that flared in her protection, that same current that lent her temporary, red-tinged sight, the little red pulse that held her hand through her times of distress,

It did not belong to the White-haired Inu.

It was of their unborn child.

With one last comforting flutter, the little red energy finally disappeared.

Kagome broke down on the floor, and she cried her heart out. Unable to fight, her will already crushed into pieces. Now unable to see, back into the dark void of blindness, she felt her father's hand touch her forehead.

A torrent of unknown memories surged into her mind. Images of an unfamiliar Shrine, stranger's faces, a small grocery store, a little school…

Her body shook violently, unable to take the huge amount of memories in such a rapid time.

"Stay away from her!" She heard her little brother scream, and she heard a short struggle ensue. Then the unmistakable sound of a small body crashing through the shoji doors resounded, and her little brother's screams were no more.

Her father's malicious energy flared, and finally, it went straight down to her neck.

Kagome convulsed.

"Kyoshiro," her mother's voice pleaded, as the cruel hand was being pulled away, "Stop it, you're killing her! Kagome, Kagome!"

Another blow bounced on the silent walls, of fists crushing on bone. And the hand with the malicious energy attacked once again.

The pain was incomparable, and she screamed in her mind. Her soul was being pulled apart. She could feel it tearing her insides,

No more…

Please, no more.

She couldn't scream, she couldn't even curl to herself from the immense torture. And she reached out to the little red energy, but it didn't reach back. She was bleeding out, physically, spiritually… everything was painful,

Dizzying, painful…

She could not endure any more.

Her own spirit was fading.

I'm sorry…

To whom she was apologizing to, she did not know. And life was slowly flickering out of her soul…

I'm sorry.

I did all that I can to hold on.

The Shrine Girl closed her unseeing blue eyes, and she took in her last breath.

-Day Six-

"Sesshomaru," she said, and he opened his eyes.

"Kagome, what are you doing here?" She was seated beside him, at the edge of the bed. He shot up from his position and wrapped her in his arms. "Are you all healed?" he pulled away, cupping her delicate cheeks, planting soft little kisses on her face.

She smiled at him, "I came to tell you I'm okay now. And I'm sorry if at one point I got angry with you. But I understand now, you were only trying to protect me. Please, don't blame yourself."

"Kagome, today is-"

She pulled away turned towards the window, the moonlight hitting her form, and she watched the receding stars in the twilight sky. "It's been so long."

Sesshomaru smiled. "This all feels like a dream."

"Sesshomaru," she suddenly said, "I love you."

He chuckled, but then she turned to him. And his breath hitched, he had never seen such sadness in her eyes before.

"Please listen, because I want you to know this, because I need you to always remember. I love you, Sesshomaru."

The Inu's lips parted, "Kagome…"

"I'm going somewhere." She said softly.

"It's dawn." Sesshomaru held her hand, "I'll go with you,"

"Silly Sesshomaru," she smiled, and she reached out and touched his cheek, "You can't."

"Why not?"

Kagome leaned forward and ghosted her lips against his. "Because where I'm going to, is not under this sky."

And she gave him a sweet, gentle kiss.

"Kagome-" He woke up with a startle. Sesshomaru touched his lips and sat still for long moments, trying to comprehend the unusual dream. It all seemed so real.

A loud knocking drifted on his door, and it opened without even waiting for his permission. His father was on the doorway.

"Did you answer your phone?" he said, and Sesshomaru drew back at the alarm in his voice. A cold surge passed through Sesshomaru's spine, "Son, did you answer your phone?"

With numb hands, he checked his smartphone. There were ten missed calls from the Higurashi Patriarch.

"What's this all about?" he managed to say, and dread started creeping into his veins.

"Kyoshiro was trying to call you." Touga said,

"Kagome…She passed away last night…

from a miscarriage."

It was then that the world started fading around him.

And the White Inu forgot to breathe.

"Where I'm going to… is not under this sky."