Blanket Disclaimer: The writer does not own any characters created by Rumiko Takahashi but like everyone else wishes she did. All original characters or concepts are the author's Inuma Asahi De's (with the exception of historical figures).
Chapter Sixty Four
Take Me There
Elizabeth Dresmont had never been much of an adventurous woman. She had a love for the beauty of nature, a love for the ocean that had been passed down to her only daughter, a love for the ethereal freedom that consumed one when they were standing in the middle of what seemed like an endless world and yet, she had never been adventurous, till now.
The door of her carriage swung opened and she inhaled sharply as a hand was offered to her so she might descend. Carefully, she took the offered hand with dainty gloved fingers and stepped outside of the carriage, her eyes turning upwards to look at the rather large merchant ship before her. It was a rough ship to travel so far on but the recently widowed woman could not be picky. After all, it was cheap and would not be making any stops between Port Royal and their destination.
"A sailor will come to collect your things, ma'am." The steward told her as he gently kissed her hand before disengaging with her and offering a bow.
Mrs. Dresmont gave him a slight smile and reached into the small hand bag she clutched in her gloved hands. Coins jingled from between her fingers as she felt for an appropriate one, which she extracted and offered to him with a demure smile on painted red lips. "Merci beaucoup." She thanked him honestly and with the upmost of politeness in her native tongue.
The young man offered her an almost pained smile before his eyes lighted upon the coin, his whole demeanor changing. "Thank you, ma'am." The young boy smiled brightly at the gold piece as it flashed in the sun and took it with just a little too much haste to be appropriate but Mrs. Dresmont didn't seem to actually mind. "Um—," He tried to recover as he blushed from his own haste. "Murcey." He attempted to say thank you in French, pronouncing the word with no small amount of butchery.
"Je vous en prie." She responded to his thank you properly in French, the words sounding so beautiful on her tongue that the young boy actually looked back up at her and away from the coin.
A faint blush formed on his face as he took in her melancholy yet beautiful smile. A lump formed in his throat at the sight and he inhaled sharply before bowing his head properly. "Sorry." He whispered out shakily almost ashamed for having stared so bluntly at such a high member of society.
She giggled softly in response causing him to raise his head once more. "Do not worry." She spoke kindly, her lips curving genuinely as she resisted the urge to laugh or perhaps cry.
The young man gave her a somewhat critical look in response; maybe because of the bluntness of her words or her utter disregard for station or propriety. Regardless of his reason or even the thoughts that were going around in his head however, he eventually offered her a kind smile before ducking his head as he knew he should. "Have a wonderful journey, Mrs. Dresmont." He told her with his eyes still on the floor before he stepped to the side and closed the door of the carriage quickly running to the other side and the other door.
Mrs. Dresmont didn't give the boy another glance as her eyes moved to the ship once more, watching as the sailors went about their normal task. Her large hat of white with a pink sash and little daisies on top shaded her pale face as she tilted her chin to watch the sailors as they moved amongst the riggings. She blinked and looked away feeling utterly exposed despite the convenient and proper head covering. "Zis iz really 'appening." She thought to herself as she clutched the bag just a little tighter between her fingers.
"Mama!" A voice sounded just off her left shoulder and she jumped as she heard the scampering of her eight year olds' feet.
"Souta." She whispered as she turned her head to look at the little boy who was rounding the back of the carriage, which was filled with everything they had ever owned.
"Is that the ship?" Souta asked as he made his way over to her with large loving grey eyes focused on her person.
She smiled slightly at the sight of them, her heart only momentarily tightening in her chest as she nodded at his pleased face. "Oui," She started to reach out to touch his small plump cheek but hesitated as an air of propriety sank into her stomach: showing such affection in public just wouldn't be proper. Gulping slightly she instead reached to straighten the small collar of his new waist coat jacket. It was the first one she had ever bought him, which was proper considering he was now the man of their household and thus should wear adult and not children's fashions. "Richard." She thought, the name of her now metaphorically buried husband whispering in her mind. "It haz only been two weekz." Her fingers trembled on the little collar. "Only two." Fighting back the growing lump in her throat she forced a smile and brought her hands away from the tiny ruffled shirt. "Are you excited?" She smiled fondly at the boy. "Hm, Chéri?"
"Um hum," He nodded his head quickly and gave her a bright smile that looked ever so much like his sisters'. "I can't believe I'm finally going to meet Uncle Thorald." Souta exclaimed brightly as his big eyes turned from his mother to the ship in question. "When will we go abo—?"
"Ma'am?" A man came up behind them interrupting the boy with a kind smile. "We'll take yer things up fer ya," He bowed to her slightly as he spoke his eyes unable to meet her own; to meet the eyes of a widow. "You and yer son are free to make yer way aboard."
"Thank you." Elizabeth held her chin high at his words, trying to appear unaffected by his treatment of her. After all, she would have to get used to the pity soon or she would drown in it.
"Of 'ourse, ma'am." The young sailor bowed to her one more time looking distinctly uncomfortable before turning around and yelling out orders to load her things onto the vessel.
For a moment, Elizabeth stood stark still her eyes staring at the carriage stacked high with possessions she had collected over a life time with a man she had married at the age of sixteen. It seemed so long ago now—after all, her own daughter was seventeen, would be eighteen in less than four months. It seemed like time had somehow gotten away from her and now she was old and starting an adventure she wasn't sure she was at all ready to face. She blinked as the sun shown down and somehow caught her eyes causing her to draw in a shaky breath.
"We'll always be together, Elizabeth—," A gentle hand brushed her face and big grey eyes looked longingly into her own. "Always."
The feel of a tiny hand touching the tips of her fingers shocked her back into the present and she quickly, although with grace, turned her head to look down at the tiny boy who had reached for her. "Mama." He said in a voice that sounded young yet already growing old. "It'll be okay." His tiny fingers lined with tiny gloves encircled her own, squeezing reassuringly. "Kagome told me that you don't like to sail," He looked down away for a moment at the mention of his sister's name but quickly brushed it off and looked back to his mother bravely. "But I'll be there—so," He paused and shifted from foot to foot his new polished brown leather shoes squeaking from the motion. "Don't be scared."
She felt her lip quiver as love rushed over her whole body and, despite propriety, or her station in society, or what people might think, she knelt down in the dirt. "Souta." She said the name she had given him slowly as her skirt became dirty and wrinkled, the feel of old wooden boards catching on the fabric completely ignored. "I—." Her voice caught in her throat and she put one hand on each of his small shoulders. "Je vous remercie de tout cœur."
The boy blinked in complete surprise at his mother's words. He had never heard her sound so sincere or heard her thank anyone so completely. "From the bottom of her heart." The phrase repeated in English echoing in the back of his mind. "Why would she thank me from the bottom of her heart?" He narrowed his young eyes and watched as little tears formed on his mother's lashes. "Don't cry." He whispered as tears of his own formed in his eyes. Tears for the sister he had lost, for the father he barely knew and whom had died, but most of all for the mother who suffered far more than himself because of both. "Mama, please don't cry."
Her lip trembled at his words and without thought, she pulled him forward into a tight hug, the tears falling unbidden. "J'adore tu mon," She spoke softly and hoarsely, her words not only for her son but for his father, for his sister. For everyone she had ever loved. "Chéri."
"I love you too Mama." The boy replied automatically looking a bit surprised by not only her words but by her whole manner at the moment. After all, his mother never showed affection in public, that just wasn't right. Feeling just more than a little bit uncomfortable he shrugged out of her hug and gave her a lopsided smile as he looked at the dirt already building on her dress. "Um—Mama your skirt?"
"Oh!" She actually sounded surprised as she stood and began to dust the fabric off. Oddly enough, she didn't look at all scandalized by the dirt that framed her knees; instead, she simply looked ever so slightly put out. And that alone almost worried the poor boy to death. "We must be going." His mother said suddenly as she finished brushing the last of the dirt away. "Come, s'il vous plaît."
Souta nodded his head at his mother but didn't say a word as they started towards the ship's gang plank. The excitement bubbling in his heart was almost too much to handle at the moment and he had to contain his natural urge to jump up and down eagerly. "I've never been on a ship before." He whispered to himself as his mother surprisingly took his hand while they mounted the gang plank and started upwards, her other hand holding onto her long skirt.
"You shall enjoy it, Chéri." She whispered to him as she gave him a slight smile before they came to finally stand on the ship's deck.
Ignoring the awkward feel of his mother's hand, Souta looked around the ship eyes wide with amazement. "Wow." The small boy exclaimed as he took in sights he had never seen up close. "They're so high up!" He gasped as he watched the men hundreds of feet above them tie riggings into place while hollering back and forth in a language he didn't understand. "What are they speaking, Mama?" He questioned his mother as he tugged on her hand.
The woman glanced down at him in return and for a moment didn't respond as she too took in the new world that surrounded her. It was not that she hadn't been on a ship before, she had in fact traveled on quite a few in her day: several times between England and France on the channel, a few times on the Rhine with her husband when they had been young and childless, and of course when they had moved to Jamaica some years before. But still, this time felt so different—for the first time she didn't feel scared or apprehensive. Standing there, upon the ship's deck, her young son's hand held tightly in her own, she felt nothing but hope. The feel of the sun beating down against her back, the sound of the riggings clanking together as they were moved or adjusted, the wind nipping at her face cool despite the heat: all of it was oddly comforting.
"I—," She whispered as she stared at her son's face not even remembering what his question had been. "Souta—I—?"
"It's okay if you don't know Mama." The boy told her as he blinked slowly in confusion. "I was just curious and you know a lot of languages so-o-o—." He drew out the word more for effect than anything else. "I asked."
As if struck by lightning, Mrs. Dresmont suddenly remembered what he had been saying and giggled slightly to herself. "Oh, pardon." She laughed and looked up into the riggings taking her free hand and placing it on her head as to hold her hat in place. Closing her eyes she took just a second to delight in the feel of the sun on her face before she focused her attention on the words being thrown hastily back and forth above her. Instantly, they rang true in her ears and she smiled before looking down at Souta, a teachers air about her. "Zat iz Spanish."
"Spanish?" The boy repeated actually surprised, he had never really heard Spanish spoken in his life. He had heard French from his mother, English from the colonials, and Jamaican from the few natives he had met during his sheltered childhood but never Spanish. "This is a Spanish ship then, isn't it?"
"I am not zure," She pursed her lips, looking this way and that slowly. "Maybe—." Her voice trailed off as she straightened and looked up above them once more, hand on her head again. Squinting, she tried to make out the flag from between sails but it was to no avail. "I cannot find ze flag, Chéri." She sighed feeling slightly let down as she squeezed his hand. "Je suis désolée." She apologized softly.
"It's okay." The little boy replied with a half hearted shrug causing his mother to sigh.
Feeling disappointed herself, she raised her head and looked around once more hoping for something to excite the boy again. "Ze ocean." She realized as her eyes looked out across the distant never ending blue. "Of course." Gripping Souta's hand tightly she pulled him without a word.
Souta protested with only a slight grunt as he looked at his mother expectantly. "Mama?" He tried to question but Mrs. Dresmont merely shook her head and continued to direct him across the ship with ease.
"He iz too short to look over ze rail." She noted to herself with a quick glance towards the small boy. "What should I do for zat?" Holding his hand tightly she paused her eyes moving quickly across the deck only to stop as a solution presented itself in the form of a small wooden box sitting near the side of the ship. "Come Souta." She told the boy as she gently directed him towards the box.
"Mama," He voiced her name weakly as he looked at her slightly afraid as if he thought she had lost her mind. "What are we doing?"
"Shhh," She gently waved his worry off as they reached the box, where she finally let go of his hand. "Zep up." She commanded as she pointed at the box and waved her now free hand towards it. "Take a look."
He raised an eyebrow in apprehension but being a properly raised boy did not deny her whim. Carefully, he placed one foot on the box, wincing in actual surprise when he felt his mother's hand touch his back in support. "Mama must be going crazy." He thought with a gulp as he placed his other foot on the box. "She never lets me climb on anything, let alone help me up." Feeling distinctly uncomfortable with the entire experience, Souta took a deep breath and reached for the railing in order to steady himself further without his mother's help. "Why would she possibly want me to stand on the box anyway?" He continued to question himself just as his head managed to pull over the rail. "Oh—." The words barely left his lips as he took in the beautiful world before him.
An endless expanse of ocean rocked and waved just in front of his eyes. A surf he had never been so close to in his life, rolled in and out of his vision lapping at the side of the ship creating a soft whooshing noise as water met wood. Out in the distance, a shipping lane he had never really been able to see, shown just on the edge of his vision. Each little speck of vessel seeming to hover on a never ending breadth of frothy blue, green, and white. Little flecks of red and yellow, reflected from the sun which rested just off the horizon, caused the water to sparkle with an otherworldly radiance that made his heart stop dead in his chest. It was unreal, like a painting that moved.
"It iz beautiful, oui, Chéri?" His mother whispered from behind him suddenly.
"Yes." He agreed as he turned quickly looking up into her pale face taking in the beautiful blue of her irises as they gazed down at him with barely concealed gloom. "Mama." He thought as he resisted the urge to reach for her so as to comfort those eyes. "Mama's eyes aren't supposed to look like that." He told himself as he frowned, the ocean behind him forgotten in favor of his mother before him and her eyes. Neither he nor Kagome had inherited her twinkling sapphires but he had often heard mention of their beauty from his father.
"You're mother has the most beautiful eyes, don't you think son?" The man knelt next to him, his face foggy and hard to make out. "It's too bad you didn't inherit them from her—too bad."
Souta blinked rapidly as the voice he barely knew ran through his head. "Papa?" He thought innocently, that hazy face evaporating until it became a face he knew very well—a face he was sure he would never forget.
He could see her sitting across from him at the dinner table, no more than fourteen, maybe a little younger. Her long dark hair was tied carelessly over her shoulder as she played with her food and pouted. Little creases formed along her mouth from her pursed lips matched by small worry lines which encompassed her eyes as she narrowed them. "Just look at them Souta." His sister sighed as she leaned towards him across the table discreetly. "Mama's eyes—," She set her fork down on the side of her plate, continuing to speak softly so as not to be heard. "Why couldn't we have had Mama's eyes."
"They're just eyes." He whispered back genuinely confused as he watched his sister actually put her elbow on the table and sigh into her hand. "Kagome!" He chastised in a hushed whisper as he dared to glance at his mother but she wasn't paying any attention.
"She doesn't care." His sister huffed slightly and sure enough their mother said not a word. "We don't have company over so—." Her voice trailed off and she shrugged slightly before leaning back in her chair and staring at her plate absently. "I would love to have those eyes." She whispered more to her food than to her brother. "Who wouldn't want to have eyes that looked just like the sea."
"Chéri?" His mother whispered bringing him out of his memories not with her voice but with a gentle caress to his cheek.
Souta shook off her hand slightly in response before turning away back to the beautiful picture in front of them. "Mama," He whispered, the memory of his sister aching in his heart. "Do you think Ka—um," He cleared his throat, her name actually getting stuck in his chest. "Kago—," He closed his eyes tightly as he sniffled only once before forcing the words out. "Do you think Kagome would have liked this?"
Mrs. Dresmont breathed in her nose deeply as she pursed her lips so she wouldn't gasp. Instant tiny tears sprung in her eyes and she snapped them shut in order to contain the swell. Slowly, she brought a hand up to her mouth covering it as visions of her daughter filled her mind. She could almost see her sitting on a barrel, her stay not in place, her hoop missing, her hair a frightful mess, gloves forgotten, and tears in her eyes. "Kagome." She could almost see her talking with the two men who manned the port, see her smiling at them. She could almost see the shore vessel. She could almost see Kagome go stark still. She could almost see a lady in red; a man in navy blue. All of this, she could almost see.
With perfect control Elizabeth Dresmont opened her eyes, the world a blinding sight after having squeezed them shut so tight. "Oui." She spoke calmly and with eased perfection as she reached down and touched her young son's shoulder. "Kagome would have adored zis."
For once the boy didn't brush off her affection, instead he simply let his shoulders sag as he held back tiny tears. "I wish—," He sniffled and tapped his fingers against the wooden rail. "I wish she was here."
The middle aged woman thought to say something but when she tried to open her mouth not even one syllable emerged. After all, she unlike her son knew that it was better Kagome was not.
"I miss her—," Souta continued on as he looked out over the ocean. "I miss Papa." He gulped loud enough for his mother to hear him and thus squeeze his shoulder a little tighter. "I know he can't come back," The little boy turned his head to look up at his mother. "But Kagome—she'll come back, won't she?"
"Oh," The mother felt her heart squeeze at his words, her mind momentarily going back to the letter she had discreetly put into Hojo's care. "Souta—Chéri—."
"I don't think she will." He said suddenly cutting her off as he turned his eyes from her face to the wooden deck. "I think—," He inhaled slowly as he studied each plank. "She's somewhere and she's happy." He smiled at his own words and lifted his head offering his mother a tiny smile. "And she's gonna stay there and always be happy." He spoke as if he was begging her to agree, as if he needed her too. "I want her to always be happy, even if I do miss her."
Mrs. Dresmont felt the tears stinging her lashes once more. "Chéri."
"Mama," He turned fully away from the sea then and towards his mother. Standing on the little crate he was nearly to her chin in height, a fact that startled both him and her. "Do you think she's happy?"
A little prickle in Elizabeth's chest made her almost flinch as she looked at her young son. It was so strange, the feeling that rested in her heart then, it was as if her heart knew something she didn't or was already aware of something she shouldn't be aware of. "Kagome iz 'appy." The woman said quickly without a second thought. It was almost as if that prickle in her chest was speaking and not her. "I—I know."
"Really?" He whispered slowly as he reached one small hand towards his mother, finally wanting the comfort she had been trying to offer him all morning.
"Oui—," The proper and proud woman felt tears just barely touch her cheeks and closed her eyes. An image of her daughter smiling immediately entered her mind and she knew without having to know: "Wherever Kagome iz," She whispered as she pulled her son into a warm motherly embrace just as her tears and his own finally fell. "She iz unimaginably 'appy."
-break-
Kagome stared at Inuyasha as he kissed her hand, her eyes dazed as her mind tried to process what had just happened. "That—," She thought to herself as his moist lips taunted her skin for way longer than was appropriate. "That's a sign—even someone as dense as me couldn't miss that." She felt light headed as he pulled away, his gold eyes tense in a way she had never seen before. For lack of a better word, he looked nervous although he was trying to cover it up to the best of his abilities, which were pretty damn near perfect. "If I didn't know him as well as I do I probably wouldn't even notice."
Inuyasha gulped as he watched her almost blank expression closely for any signs of life. "Say something." Was the first thought to pop into his head as he continued to hold onto her hand, fearing that if he let her go she would awaken and slap him. "Say something, please." He pressed her mentally, trying to convey the thought with his eyes. "Please Kagome—just say something, anything!"
"I—." Her lips parted and his heart raced as he waited. "I—." She tried again but her voice was completely stuck in her throat.
"Please." Inuyasha begged silently as he straightened his back and bit his lip. "Kagome?"
"What do I say?" Kagome questioned herself as she felt his grip tighten on her slightly as if he was afraid to let her go. "What do I want?" Her heart beat picked up in her chest. "Sango said if I wanted to know what I want—if this, if he is what I want then I should—we should court but—." Panic welled in her chest and she inhaled sharply completely unaware of even her own opinion. "This isn't real—it's just a dream, it has to be." She closed her eyes expecting to wake up but even as she stood before him eyes closed she knew it was for not. Carefully, she forced herself to open her eyes, in an attempt to accept the reality before her. "The only person who ever courted me, if you can call it that, was Naraku and that—." She dared to raise her eyes and look into the paling face of the pirate Captain she had known for almost six months. "That wasn't this and this sure isn't that." She gulped, the lump in her throat tightening to the point of pain. "He's asking me, really asking me. His father isn't sitting in the chair making him—this is—real, right?"
Even though the evidence was staring her in the face, she couldn't believe it. It didn't seem possible. No man on his own free will had ever asked to court her. It felt unreal, it felt like a lie or a trick or a matter of convenience. As if he was just doing it because she was here and bore his mark so half the work had already been done. She was convenient and that was it, right? And yet—somewhere in the back of her mind a tiny voice of reason pointed out the flaw in her logic.
"His gift, that's not a gift of convenience." Kagome felt as if the whole world had frozen at that thought. "This isn't gems or houses or carriages or a horse. He's offering me a gift that no other person on this earth would have ever thought to give me." She felt her breath hitch in her throat, felt her mind slowly begin to process what that meant. "He's offering me the world." She looked down at their combined hands staring at them unsure if she was the one shaking or if he was. "He's offering me everything I ever wanted—the sea and more, what I always dreamed of having." She closed her eyes as the world seemed to speed back up again or at least her heart. "He actually listened when I told him about the sea—he listened and accepted it. He didn't ignore it, ignore me." Her eyes snapped opened as the thought fully permeated her brain. "He heard me."
The thought almost seemed so absurd that she felt the urge to laugh but didn't because she knew it was true. She had known for a long time that it was true; that he had dared to know her, had talked with her and learned her likes and dislikes on purpose not out of boredom or even necessity but instead out of true want. He had bought her a violin when she wanted to learn, hadn't chastised her for her unfeminine behavior, he let her eat with her hands, let her keep her hair short, ride on a horse, fight (although he wasn't happy about it), laugh. He had allowed her to be who she was, had encouraged it even. He would let her do anything, go anywhere, be anyone. Even herself.
Kagome felt her heart leap into her throat and then a sudden calmness that she had never felt before. "Anywhere?" She heard her voice and watched amazed as the suddenness of it made him jump.
"What?" Inuyasha cleared his throat legitimately unsure of what she had just said.
"You said—," Kagome spoke slowly more out of need than for his benefit. "My courting gift," She felt the words nearly refuse to leave her mouth, it all felt so dreamlike. "Someone wants to court me, wants to give me a gift." She felt a lump form in her throat as if her heart had leapt into place there. "This isn't Mama's parlor, this isn't a man who wants my dowry; this is—." Her mind froze unable to even contemplate the repercussions finishing that sentence might bring. Shaking her head so as if to relieve herself of such strange thoughts she licked her lips and raised her eyes to his. "My gift would be to go anywhere," She asked as he looked on intently. "Would you really," She hesitated for only a moment as that lump seemed to double in size. "Take me anywhere?"
"Anywhere." He answered without wavering as sweat began to bead on his forehead despite the morning chill.
Kagome felt her heart race in her chest; her own disbelief fueling her words now. "Anywhere, no matter how far?" She pressed, looking for any limit that might exist or any indication that this was a joke as she gazed up at him with big gray deploring eyes.
The man before her licked his lips in response and drew her hand a little closer to himself placing it against his chest where his heart was racing. "Of course." He spoke firmly as he attempted to force his hands not to shake as they pressed the side of her hand into his jacket. "She has to be able to feel it, right?" He bit the inside of his cheek as he watched her blush slightly causing his heart to beat even faster. "She has to feel it, shit she can probably hear it."
Trying to collect herself (even as the feel of his warm chest on her somewhat cold hand made her mind a little fuzzy) Kagome turned away and inhaled sharply. "India?" She posed the word as if at random biting her lip in the process. "Um—a—," She stuttered before a gentle squeeze to her now warm fingers made a wave of confidence run through her. "Would you," She turned her eyes back up to his own. "Take me to India?"
"We'll go." He told her without hesitation, a slight confusion crossing his face marked predominantly by his narrowed brows. "But I don't like curry just so you know." He added off handedly hoping that the bit of humor would make the thumping of his heart lighten.
She ventured to laugh but the sound almost came out chocked. "A-a-frica." She whispered between the chocking wheeze of her amusement, her eyes closing as the wind picked up and taunted the little churls around her head.
"Just say the word," He confirmed and forced himself to keep his free hand from reaching for one of those stray curls. "And we're crossing the Atlantic."
She felt an instinctive tugging on the corner of her mouth: the telltale signs of a smile. Quickly looking down she blinked as she took in the wood of the deck and his boots. "Is it real?" She wondered as she watched the spot where his pants met his boots, the wind was catching the fabric making if ruffle. "It feels real, doesn't it?" She slowly dared to raise her head, the sweat on his palms where their hands were still joined becoming her eyes main attraction. "Is he as nervous as I am?" She felt her stomach tighten with the very thought as she carefully raised her eyes up to look into his own once more.
They weren't as panicked or nervous as they could have been, but the familiar confidence that usually resided in them was currently replaced but a timid anxiety. Slowly, she smiled wider taking in that look of awkward nerves that rested abnormally in his gold eyes. There was a comfort in the knowledge that he was not currently his naturally confident self. She was making him nervous—he was nervous—this wasn't something easy for him or something that he wouldn't be affected by. If she said no, he would be disappointed, hurt even. Somehow, Kagome felt even more reassurance in that awareness than the sweat on his hands or his earlier squeeze to her own nervous fingers.
A warmness settled in her stomach as she watched his uneasy features and her confidence grew. "Inuyasha." His name slipped from her lips with complete and utter fondness in its pronunciation. She smiled even brighter trying to appear reassuring, knowing in all his subtle body language that he was just as afraid, nervous, and unsure as she was. Her heart fluttered when the paleness in his features grew a little warmer and his confidence began to return as he started to look more like himself. "France?" She gripped his hand as she spoke, trying to convey to him her own growing confidence.
"I'll take you when its warmer." He smiled feeling as if he was starting to float. "It's really fucking cold in winter."
"England." She spoke quickly, the smile on her face growing bigger as she watched his own lips upturn becoming boyish, charming. "So handsome; his face is so handsome."
"I know a great bookstore." He told her a pesky smirk forming where a smile had been.
Kagome felt her heart squeeze in her chest and little tears prick her eyes which she had no hope of holding back. "You—," She whispered as she stared at him and saw the little silver strands of his hair reflecting the dawn as the wind blew them, the bags underneath his eyes that were from either lack of sleep or stress, and the hope that was brimming in his golden irises. "You really—you're really asking me." She heard a small shy voice whisper in the back of her mind, her lip trembled from the words but she still smiled. "It really would be anywhere?"
He gulped visibly, his Adams apple bobbing up and down catching her eye. "You name it Kagome and we're there." He spoke softly as he heard a door open and close somewhere down below, his ear flicking towards it out of instinct but his mind completely ignoring it out of heart. "I'll take you anywhere," He promised firmly, his voice filled with conviction. "For any reason, all you have to do is say go."
Kagome shook her head in disbelief back and forth. "There's no way, there has to be a catch—there has to be a reason or a limit." She frowned, trying to think of any scenario where this would fall apart, or anywhere she could ask to go that he would say no to, or for any reason she would suggest that he would think was crazy. "So," Her mind raced with all the most bizarre possibilities she could think of. "If I want to see Panda bears in China?"
"I can get you to China no problem," His voice was husky as he spoke and deliberate. "But the panda might be hard to find." He pulled her hand even closer to his chest as if trying to reassure her further. "I'm sorry—I remember you telling me you've always wanted to see one.
Kagome gulped, her legs feeling weak underneath her. "He remembers that?" She smiled softly as her heart actually started to beat slower. "After all this time he remembers that?" She sniffled her slight crying making her nose run. "He remembered something that was important to me." She reached her free hand up to wipe at her sweaty, tear streaked face. "Not even my own mother could do that." She smiled, even though the thought made her want to cry. "That's my gift?"
Inuyasha eyes widened at the sound of her voice misinterpreting her hiccups and slight melancholy for disappointment: a reaction he had not been prepared for. "Ah shit, I thought—I'm sorry Kagome, it was my gut—fucking gut." He cursed slightly but his voice came across as apologetic as his grip went slack. "That's the last time I bloody trust it, bastard." He spoke out loud not realizing he was speaking out loud anymore. "I can get a better gift if you want me to—," He told her slightly panicked as he watched her look down at her feet, her shoulders starting to shake. "Just name it; anything—name it and it's here."
Kagome smiled as she looked down at his boots, watching as he shifted from foot to foot in his panic. "I never thought a man would be worried—if I said no." She laughed silently, her shoulders shaking even more. "I never thought a man would yell at his gut over a girl like me."
"Kagome?" Inuyasha growled low in his throat as his ears twitched on his head. The men were all pretty much down below eating breakfast or still asleep in various locales—it wouldn't be long before they were up and about on deck, however. "I don't think I could stand it if one of them saw this, fuck I'd jump off the bloody boat." He grimaced, "Shit—I want to jump off the bloody boat now." Immediately he had to resist the urge to turn around and just jump off the boat anyway. "I can't take much more of this—god Kagome just say yes or no—please!"
"You really mean it."
He blinked surprised as her words floated to his head and looked down in time to see her peeking at him from between silky bangs. He felt the slack grip they had had on each other's hands suddenly tighten, her fingers encompassing his as she looked away from him and down at the place both hands joined. Slowly she brought their joined hands up, her expression thoughtful as she carefully studied the calloused skin of his hands.
"So—," She carefully spoke running a finger over one knuckle that had taken abuse over the years it seemed from fights and taming ropes. "If I wanted to go to a bookstore in Delaware," She glanced up at him attempting to look coy or at least what she thought was coy. "You'd take me there?"
He furrowed his brow in confusion for a second. "Ye-s-s." He offered slowly feeling a little uncomfortable with the strange smirk that was forming on her face. "I don't think I've ever seen her smirk." He told himself before the demon in the back of his mind growled lightly expressing its pleasure at that haughty look. "Can't say I disagree."
"Okay." She smiled at him brightly, the look one he was more familiar with. "Take me there."
"Huh?"
Kagome gripped his hand a little tighter and lowered her eyes for all of a second before taking a deep breath. "I said," She lifted her head and looked him straight in the eye: her face timid but her words bold. "Take me there—to Delaware, the bookstore." She tried to convey her meaning through her gaze. "Take me there."
For a moment it looked as if he hadn't followed but suddenly somewhere in his mind a synapse connected and put two and two together. "Really?" His voice came across as a tiny whisper, the likes of which Kagome could honestly say she had never heard leave his mouth.
"You said you'd take me anywhere," She shrugged her shoulders appearing nonchalant even as her stomach turned violently, feeling more like a hurricane had settled in it than simply butterflies. "And that's where I want to go."
Inuyasha felt his heart leap into his throat almost in disbelief. "She said yes." The demon inside of him growled and rejoiced, even it realizing how momentous her acceptance was.
"Captain!"
Inuyasha snapped his head violently to his right looking down at the quarterdeck with eyes practically filled with the very fire of hell themselves. "I'm fucking busy!"
"Sorry sir! Most sorry—I'll um—well I'll—." The man shivered completely terrified as he practically tripped over backwards to get out of his Captain's line of vision. "I'll come back—um—later then, much much later!" He finished as he practically scurried away on all fours, a trail of terror following behind him.
Inuyasha snorted and growled low in his throat as the demon inside of him screamed for him to go kill the man that had interrupted such a vital moment. "Oh calm down." He told the demon absently just before his stomach plummeted into his feet. "Kagome—." Carefully, he turned back to Kagome absolutely horrified that he had just cussed and screamed at a seemingly innocent man. Much to his amazement however, he was met with a face contorted in silent laugher, eyes closed and mirth utterly apparent. "Um—Kagome?"
"I'm sorry." She giggled, as she brought her free hand up to her mouth trying to contain herself. "I just thought—when you yelled," She tried to look at him but failed utterly as more giggles wracked her body. "Earlier, what you said about Russia," She tried again mirth lighting in her gray eyes as she managed to open them just long enough for him to see. "I just thought no wonder you can't go back—they're probably too scared of you."
Inuyasha felt his mouth hang open and suddenly he found that he couldn't help but laugh right along with her. "Yeah—," He chuckled as he watched the little laugh lines crease along her nose and cheeks. "Beautiful." The word echoed in his head, the ultimate truth. "I gotta work on that—temper of mine."
Kagome half frowned, half smiled at his words. "Inuyasha." She reached up and much to her and his surprise touched his cheek with just the tips of her fingers. Time seemed to freeze at the gesture as both their heart's stopped dead in their chest. "Soft." She thought only absently. "I never thought his skin would be soft." Her fingers shook for a second before she deliberately pulled her hand away in embarrassment. "I know I'm against violence," She spoke hastily her voice just slightly shaky as a blush took over the brim of her nose. "It's my job to stop it or I guess it is." She cleared her throat and took one deep breath. "You're not really—well," She exhaled slowly as her embarrassment made way for something prudent. "You're violent," She admitted softly, his sharp inhale audible even to her human ears. "But," She quickly covered. "For the right reasons."
Inuyasha stared at her his eyes narrowed as he tried to understand what she was saying to him. The earlier warmth of her fingers touching his cheek became temporarily forgotten as he focused on her words, an old fear floating in the back of his mind. "She could change her mind—she might remember what I am, what I can do and change her mind—," He shook his head trying to focus on her and not on his own fears.
"You," Kagome started again unaware of his thoughts as she licked her lips slowly. "Do it to protect me," She motioned towards herself slowly as if not confident about her own assumption. "This ship, your son—you do it to protect all of it." She dropped her hand towards the ship in general. "You do it to make a living when the government won't allow you to make an honest one." She shrugged her shoulders. "You'd never kill a man in cold blood only in self defense, to protect what you love more than anything." She smiled to herself as if some great secret rested in her words. "And who," She reached for him then, her fingers brushing at his jacket sleeve timidly. "Has the right to condemn a man for that?"
Inuyasha felt his heart swell in his chest as her words consumed him. If Kagome had been amazed that Inuyasha knew her, Inuyasha was even more amazed that Kagome knew him. "Sometimes," He reached up and took the hand that had been brushing at his jacket sleeve into his own. "You downright amaze me." His voice was husky as he spoke, the sound of it causing her to look away shyly.
"Thank you." She whispered softly and smiled as a deep blush spread along the bridge of her nose, all the way to her ears.
"Otou—oh."
The sound of Miroku's voice made Inuyasha and Kagome instantly jump about five feet apart from each other. Both their faces turning bright red as they stared at the other wide eyed before slowly drawing their attention towards the new comer who stood on the top step of the helm deck's stairs.
"Well," The man cleared his throat as he looked between his father and Kagome barely concealing his own amusement, "—so this is what Henry was talking about." He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing.
"Um—." Inuyasha tried to speak but found his voice oddly compromised after having been caught so close to—well—Kagome.
"Sorry to interrupt." Miroku continued on as he glanced at Kagome who had turned her back completely on the conversation literally. "Poor thing." He mused as he watched her lean heavily against the railing as if she needed it to support her. "But—this is very interesting."
Finally coming back to himself, Inuyasha cleared his throat loudly drawing Miroku's attention off of Kagome and back towards himself. "Whatcha want Miroku?" He grunted out as he carefully moved so as to position himself between Miroku and the mortified Kagome.
"You scared the shit out of Henry." Miroku commented off handedly without bothering to answer. "He came back down to the galley practically crying." The younger man gave his father an amused look as he pointedly eyed Kagome before turning his attention back towards his father. "At least now I know why you tried to verbally dismember him."
Inuyasha smirked ever so slightly, the demon in him feeling proud to have made the intruder frightened nearly to death. At the same time however, the human inside of him frowned darkly, silently chastising the demon for not being able to control his temper. "I didn't mean to scare him to death. He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time." He shrugged his nose twitching as it picked up the scent of Kagome's utter mortification behind him. "I have to get Miroku out of here." He told himself firmly. "For her."
"Well, even if you didn't mean to you sure tried your damndest." Miroku joked as he glanced between the two slowly. "Something happened." He told himself thoughtfully as he watched Kagome over the Captain's shoulder, noting her red neck and ears. "Something good by the looks of things, at least I hope."
"Henry will be fine." Inuyasha waved off carelessly. "I assume you sent him up?"
"Yeah," Miroku nodded trying to sound as nonchalant as possible so as to help Kagome calm down as she clutched the railing for dear life. "I hope she's not thinking of jumping." He joked to himself, only half serious. "I sent him to tell you that Sango's making breakfast."
"Really?" Inuyasha's ears perked up despite himself and he felt his mouth water ever so slightly. It wasn't every day that Sango decided to cook breakfast, usually they just ate rock hard biscuits and went about their day
Miroku nodded his head, "She fried up some of the meat we got from that navy crew with the potatoes," He continued on as his stomach began to growl. "We're also giving out the fruit seeing as its gonna be bad by tomorrow." He bit his lip as he mentally tried to calculate how much fruit would still be there by the time he got back down below. "I can't tell the crew no when I see them so happy munching on 'em," He glanced at his father watching as the man closed his eyes as if in pain. "So, you better hurry if you want some." He glanced over the man's shoulder at the young woman who's natural color was slowly returning to her with each passing moment. "You too Kagome."
The girl jumped at his words having only been half listening to the conversation. "Um—," She tried to form a sentence as the color returned to her face making her feel hot and sweaty. "Okay." She managed to call out shakily and promptly heard Miroku chuckle ever so slightly. "This is humiliating." She told herself as she resisted the urge to sink down to the ground.
Miroku smiled at her back fondly and then turned to his father his eyes expectant. "We'll see you both at the table, then?" He raised an eyebrow and inflected his voice upwards at the end of his sentence almost suggestively.
Inuyasha's eyes darkened instantly as he heard Kagome squeak behind him, his protective instincts kicking in instantly. "Oh shut up." He growled out but the malice he could have put in his voice was nowhere near as deadly as it could have been.
Miroku didn't even flinch anyway, only offering his father an amused grin as he tilted his chin and whispered low enough that only Inuyasha could hear. "You're gonna tell me later, right?"
Scrunching up his face, Inuyasha turned and looked at Kagome over his shoulder double checking that she was still turned before he gave his son a curt nod accompanied by a deliberate eye roll.
"See you soon then." Miroku spoke without preamble and turned away from both Inuyasha and Kagome mounting the stairs without even a glance backwards. The sound of his boots squeaking on the surface soon dissipated as he hurriedly made his way back to the galley eager for the chance at a hot breakfast with fruit.
"Kagome." Inuyasha spoke softly without turning towards her when he was sure Miroku was completely out of ear shot.
The young woman's grip on the railing tightened as she tried to control her shaking limbs. "Ye-s-s." She managed to get out the word coming out stuttered much to her dismay. "That was—dear lord I could die." She told herself as she finally succumbed to the urge to lean forward and place her head on the railing.
Inuyasha sighed when he heard the shift of her body weight and finally turned to look at her his eyebrows raising into his hairline as he took in the sight of her bent over the railing. "Shit." He gulped, positive the sound was loud enough for her to hear as he took in the sight of her body leaned over, her slim waist at the perfect angle to grab so he might bring her back towards himself. "Bad thoughts, bad thought, bad thoughts!" He yelled at himself and slapped his hand across his face. "Calm down." He commanded the demon inside of him that growled, eagerly, the sight of her making it randy.
"Mate."
"I know," Inuyasha grumbled in his mind as he attempted to calm the beast. "Just—not now. We can't, she—we have to wait—got it?" He pressed and closed his eyes as he tried to think of anything to say that would make her move. "Um—would you—," He scrambled for a moment before Miroku's earlier words finally hit him. "Miroku said breakfast is ready." The words stumbled out and his eyes snapped open just in time to see her push away from the rail and turn to look at him. "Do you—um—want to get some breakfast?"
She blinked once then twice from his words looking a little surprised by them. "Sure." She managed to say before looking down at the ground almost disappointed in a way. "This won't just all go away, will it?" She thought as her heart clenched in her chest from the possibility. "I hope it doesn't—I don't want it to." Feeling apprehensive, she pushed herself away from the railing and stared at the ground unable to make eye contact with Inuyasha at all. "I guess we should hurry—otherwise their won't be any food, right?"
"Yeah." Inuyasha agreed as he watched her walk across the deck slowly, her whole body tense. "Does she—is she rethinking everything?" He questioned himself as he dared to take a step forward, his nose twitching as the beautiful scent of the sea and Irish water lilies hit all his senses. Instantly his feet stopped moving and he closed his eyes taking her in, the underlying scent of her own disappointment catching him nearly off guard. Hastily, his eyes snapped opened looking at her blatantly. "She's—she's disappointed." He realized as he watched her slumped shoulders as they swayed with each of step that brought her closer to the stairs. "Kagome?" He called without thought wanting her to stop, wanting her to understand, or really, needing her to.
Immediately, her steps ceased and her shoulders tensed. Her hands gripped the edges of her shirt and for a moment he thought she was going to turn around to look at him but she froze and instead hesitantly whispered: "Yes?"
"Um—," He cleared his throat feeling a bit unsure as he looked at her tight shoulder muscles under the thin fabric of her shirt. "Kagome—look at me, please?" He dared to ask unable to speak to that taunt scared frame alone.
She wavered for only a moment with indecision before slowly turning her head just enough to look at him from over her shoulder, her eyes somewhat hopeful. "Okay." She spoke in a tiny voice her cheeks still tinted red from the earlier encounter with Miroku.
Inuyasha inhaled deeply at the sight watching as her little curls waved in the breeze, seeming to dance around her ears. Her flushed cheeks a stark contrast to their delicate deep brownish black. Gulping, he watched her expression carefully as her gray eyes sparkled for a moment with anticipation and perhaps hope. "You're beautiful." He whispered softly and felt his heart skip a beat when she turned away having heard him.
"Thank you." She barely managed to whisper softly not knowing what else to say. "No one's ever called me beautiful before." She thought as a petite smile formed on her face. "He called me beautiful—me? Me, beautiful." Carefully, she brought her hands together lacing her fingers as she fidgeted unsure.
Inuyasha watched her awkwardness transfixed. "She's smiling." He thought, the voice in his head almost boyish. "I made her smile." He resisted the urge to laugh with his own happiness as he searched for anything he could say but his words came up short. "What do I say now?" He blinked several times even though he already knew the answer. "Kagome," He cleared his throat as her head sprang up to look at him. "Do you want to," He licked his lips slowly looking for the courage to finish what he was saying. "Continue this conversation later, then?"
She smiled at his words, the sparkle in her eyes making his heart tighten. "Yes," She told him even as the blush spread back across her cheeks. "I would like that very much."
He gulped and unconsciously his lips curved, his eyes lit up in that charming boyish way, which she loved so much. "Good, I'll look forward to it." He whispered and Kagome knew he really would.
-break-
Soft foot falls landed on the floor of a long hallway. Tap—tap—tap went the sound. Tap—tap—tap went the echo.
Kagura's delicate fingers, white as snow, ran over the walls feeling the smooth surface of rock as if it was not a hallway but instead a cave. A small light shown at the end of the cave like corridor suddenly, flashing as if attempting to signal the person connected to those fingers like a light house in a dark night. Carefully, her fingers fell to the side, her white kimono with little blood red flowers embroidered on it wrinkling from the motion.
"Konnichiwa?" She whispered as she tilted her head to the side, ducking down ever so slightly as if the motion would allow her to see better. Her ruby eyes glowed in the dark as she squinted but being smothered as they were by darkness she had no hope of actually seeing anything.
Drip—drip—drip. She jumped with a gasp as somewhere off to her right a faint dripping noise entered her ears. Turning quickly she looked for the source of that sound but saw nothing except utter blackness that seemed to go on and on forever. For several seconds she panted into the dark, her own voice coming back to her echoing loudly throughout the cavern. Pant—Pant—Pant.
"Nani desu ka?" Kagura whispered as her body shivered and started to ache.
Bang!
She sprang backwards instantly as the sound of a door slamming hit her ears throwing herself violently against the wall of the cave. Her eyes widened to the point of impossibility as she tried to see anything and everything all at once. Inside her chest her heart galloped faster than any horse could ever hope to move. Shaking with barely contained fear she reached into the obi of her kimono and desperately felt around for her fan but came back with nothing. "Iya." She whispered hushed into the dark, her fingers shaking so badly that even if she found the fan she scarcely would have been able to hold it.
"Kagura—."
Her breath hitched in her throat, her heart stopped beating in her chest, her lips trembled like a frightened doe, and she raised her eyes. "Shinigami." The word fell from her mouth actually taking shape in the dark. Confused, she watched the little kanji characters float away, bright white in the blackness—死神. Kagura instantly blinked as she watched the words fly away from her, towards the light that she had seen when she first found herself inside such a world.
"Miss Kagura."
"Yancha-sama." Kagura whispered into the dark as she took a step forward. Her body continued to shake but now not with fear but something else.
"I am glad you remember me, Miss Kagura." Came a whisper from deep within the darkness, low and deep yet oddly feminine.
Kagura shuddered as the unearthly voice filled her ears, a deep bass that held undeniable malice. "Why are yuu here?" She asked in English knowing the creature hidden in the shadows would not respond to any other language out of principle.
"I am here for you—," It chuckled slightly, a cold chill flowing throughout the long corridor as the sound echoed around her. "It seems you've stumbled onto something," The chill caressed her skin, as if a ghostly hand was touching her. "And I thought I might offer a hand, after all you have my eyes," The chill moved across her face and Kagura's breath hitched in her throat. "So what's a hand for me to give?"
Breathing shakily, Kagura closed her eyes to the room now wanting nothing more than to not see anything for she knew what horror laid within the darkness. "Nani—?" She started to whisper but stopped quickly as she realized the language she had just used. "Ano—I—what-o do yuu mean, Yancha-sama?"
"Oh dear one," The low bass voice distinctly laughed as the chill moved from the front of her body to her back. Both shoulders turned to ice as unseen hands caressed them slowly. "Why else do Shinigami show themselves—," It whispered right within her ear making the flesh of it instantly pucker. "Come think—you're a smart girl."
Knowing the death god expected nothing less than an answer Kagura swallowed the lump in her throat, anger welling in her chest as the creature obviously ridiculed her. "Shinigama-sama appear to share power-u." Her words were spoken with no uncertain amount of venom and sarcasm. "And when Shinigami-sama wish to mock-u."
"Oh dear child," The voice continued in here ear as the unseen hands gripped her shoulders even tighter, to the point of pain. "I do not mock." It told her in almost a hushed whisper laced with deep warning. "I simply chide."
Scrunching up her face in distaste the wind demon opened her mouth in retort before she could think. "That is not-to better."
The bass laughter the death god emitted rang throughout the cave and the ice that had lined Kagura's shoulders disappeared. "You are a funny one," It's grin could almost be felt in the air all around the wind demon. "But seriously—," The grin seemed to disappear replaced by a chill that sank all the way to Kagura's stomach. "Why would a Shinigami check in on an already won prize?" The chill caressed her cheek and Kagura felt as if she honestly was going to be sick.
"I not know." She bit out taking a step back, unable to stand the feel of that unnatural hand. "Maybe-i Shinigami-sama want-o make sure the body is still to her liking?"
"Oh Kagura—," The chill of her unseen hands traveled to Kagura's waist yanking her back forward. "Still mad at my trickery or at your own stupidity." She laughed as the wind demon stiffened. "It's not my fault you made the deal." She whined softly as he pulled her closer. "No Shinigami ever forces the deal to be made."
Kagura snorted loudly into the corridor the sound echoing all around them. "It is dishonorable to lie—," She spat out her words forgetting who she was currently talking to. "Yancha-sama."
Instantly the cavern room turned to ice, any subtle warmth that had been known to Kagura fleeing her. She gasped throwing her arms around herself as the chill touched her flesh all the way to the bone. A brightness exploded all around her blinding her as she screamed. Horrified, she jumped backwards and away from the blinding light, tilting her chin downwards and closing her eyes instantly as she brought her hands around her mid section in a tight hug. Instantly, her eyes snapped back opened as her hands came in contact with her own bare skin. She gasped in horror as her eyes were met with the sight of her own flesh, her breast and stomach and legs all exposed to the insane temperature that now encompassed the room.
"You dare to defy me!" The Shinigami yelled suddenly snapping Kagura's attention away from her naked state back upwards to a place she could now see.
Bile rose in her throat instantly as a sight she had only seen once in her life was burned into her very retina's. Standing before her, at a height of easily ten feet was a beast straight out of hell. Her flesh was green not with color but with deterioration, some parts black where dying skin cells had simply given up all hope of maintaining life. The hands that had been touching her within the dark were an unnerving shade of blue (as if their coldness had a real life manifestation) attached to which were actual talon's like a hawks except stained an unnatural shade of brown from dirt and shit, not nature. Her body was completely naked save a loincloth carelessly wrapped around her waist as if an afterthought, leaving sagging breast hanging down low swinging back and forth as she breathed in harshly.
Kagura blinked at the sight, her mind barely comprehending the disgusting shade of green let alone the gapping festering wounds that littered the corroded body. "Kami-sama." She whispered shakily as she stared at the almost maroon wounds raging with unknown infections. Squirming underneath the wound's surface caught her eye and she nearly vomited as the first small rat stuck its head outside the gaping hole and hissed. Another followed it snarling at Kagura even though its eyes just like the first ones were solid white: devoid of sight. Terrified Kagura shut her eyes as tight as possible her stomach turning over and over as the sights she had just witnessed played over and over again in her head.
"Look at me."
Kagura heard the words but shook her head quickly back and forth unable to open her eyes to such horrors any longer.
"Look at me damn it! Now!"
The roar of the voice loud and echoing all around her made her eyes open without her permission. Her neck snapping upwards as some unseen force seemed to grab her chin forcing her to look towards the creature's face.
The shinigami's face was practically melting away, flesh hanging off of exposed bones, almost dripping in a way that flesh should never drip. Her teeth were all rotten away and blackened, her nose no longer even in existence having long ago melted off her face. Only a jagged hole where cartilage should have been remained of the creature's nose, allowing Kagura to see inside it where small red eyes of unknown rodents stared back at her. And in the place where the creatures eyes should have been, the eyes that now rested on Kagura's face, were nothing more than hollowed out festering flesh rotting away around empty eye sockets filled only with a bleeding optic nerve.
Unable to stand the sight any longer, Kagura feel to her knees and vomited on the ground as her whole body shook with something beyond terror. "Tomeru!" She tried to command the creature to stop as her skin crawled with both horror and disgust.
"You dare to defy me," The voice screamed, a shrillness finally entering it as the creature stepped forward towards Kagura making the cave shake. The sound of flesh falling to the floor and splattering with her movements caused Kagura to gage and cough. "You know what I am and you still dare to defy me!"
"Onegai." Kagura felt the tears fall from her eyes as she tried desperately not to throw up again.
"Just remember, your body is mine." The Shinigami hissed as she came to stand right in front of Kagura once more, the smell of her rotted body just now hitting the wind demon's nose. "The second I gave you the gift of my sight you became mine."
"Onegai—," Kagura cried out as she tried to summon the wind around her to push the smell away but all her demon powers failed. "Onegai."
"Useless creatures demon's are—useless." Yancha spat to the side as all the rats within her body ran to the surface hissing and screaming from having been so disturbed by all the motion. "And here I was trying to help you. Bitch."
Sobbing with her fright Kagura clutched her knees to her chest burying her face into the softness of her skin.
"Now she fears me. Keh." The creature laughed loudly into the small cavern. "Look at me and remember Kagura," She hissed as she reached down and yanked Kagura off the floor holding her so that her face was closest to the hollow place where her eyes should have been but were now instead dripping with blood from unhealed wounds. "When I gave you my eyes this body became mine and soon I will take it for mine." She stroked Kagura's face with rotting finger tips, little pieces of corroded flesh being left behind with each touch. "After all, as you can see this one is almost done for and I will need yours soon." She bent forward her sagging lips a hair away from Kagura's own as the wind demon began to cry. "Good night Kagura, I'll see you in another dream."
The wind roared outside the Thunder as Kagura shot straight up in her bed panting, tears streaking down her cheeks as horror filled her whole body. She felt every limb connected to her begin to shake, adrenaline rushing through her veins at such speeds that she couldn't stop the assault if she tried. "Kami-sama." She whispered into the dark her voice coming out small and quaking into the darkness of the room.
"She visited you didn't she?"
"Nani!?" Kagura jumped throwing herself back against the wall as her heart rushed into her throat. Wild eyed she looked around the blackened room trying to find the source of the sound but coming up short as her eyes attempted to adjust to the light. "Who there?" She called out in English as terror mounted within her.
"It's alright Kagura—," The voice spoke again: old, kind and recognizable. "It's me—," The voice rasped softly into the dark as the shifting of bed sheets played in the background. "Kaede."
Kagura felt her mind try to wrap around the words as the whooshing sound of her own heart beat filled her ears. "Kaede-sama?" She whispered in disbelief her eyes wide as they finally started to adjust to the darkened room around her. Turning towards the window, which let in the soft light of the moon, she squinted making out the hazy shape of the desk that rested underneath it. "My room." She just managed to think, her own thoughts still coming across muddled from the very real dream.
"I knew this would happen."
The wind demon jumped again at the sound of Kaede's voice, snapping her head around towards the direction from which it had come. She blinked several times, forcing her pupils to dilate and take in just enough light so she could make out the figure of the old woman who was sitting on the bed opposite of her. "Kaede-sama." She whispered again as the hunched old body seemed to lean even farther forward at her words, elbows resting on skinny old knees. "Nani—what—?" She narrowed her eyes confused as her heart rate started to come back under control. "Yuu knew?"
Kaede didn't speak for several seconds as she stared down at the floor. Her one eye flickered opened and closed as it tilted downwards at the wood studying the planks as if human eyes could see that well in the dark. An air of melancholy surrounded her, filling up the room, a sad scent that only demons could smell. "Shinigami," She whispered suddenly into the darkness. "Hardly ever keep anything to themselves."
Kagura felt her breath hitch in her throat. "Kaede-sama know—I knew she knew about-to Shinigami demo—." She bit her lip as her mind tried to wrap around what the old woman was attempting to say. "Kaede-sama what-o are yuu—," Kagura shook her head quickly. "What's going on?" She tried again as she continued to breathe deeply her hands which had been shaking pretty badly until now calming just like her heart.
Slowly, a smile formed on Kaede's face, a smile Kagura would never forget because of how unbelievably sad it looked. The saddest smile she had ever seen. Countless wrinkles twisted into place as the older woman forced the smile to appear, the skin around her eyes crinkling as well as they narrowed staring down at her hands almost glaring at them. "Your dream," She spoke finally as she lifted her old hand, the skin loose with age. "I had the same dream," She whispered into the darkened night as just the tips of her fingers touched the patch that always rested over her eyes. "With a different visitor."
Kagura felt her heart stop dead in her chest as all the pieces of her confusion started to fall into place. "This is how Kaede-sama knew, why always touch-i eye patch just-to so," Immediately sympathy ran threw her whole body. "How Kaede-sama know where shard-do were, how she able to speak in Kagura's mind as only Shinigami do," Her hands fell to her lap, her shaking now completely gone replaced only with utter stillness. "—it all make-u perfect sense."
Gingerly, Kaede raised her head to look at Kagura, her one human eye blinking slowly forcing itself to see the girl in front of her with the limited light. "We call them death gods—," She rasped out, her head suddenly turning to the side, looking for something that went unseen. "Shinigami where you come from," She added with a slight nod of her head before she turned back to Kagura, staring at the woman with unnerving determination. "Where Inuyasha comes from."
Kagura could only barely nod as thought after thought raced through her head; thoughts about what this meant, about what it could mean, about where the whole of the conversation was steadily moving.
"They are evil creatures," Kaede spoke slowly sounding downright amused by her own words. A slight chuckle escaped her lips and she closed her eyes looking completely amused. "Manipulative," She added before her eyes snapped opened and utter seriousness took over her expression as she stared Kagura down. "But powerful."
"Stop." Kagura whispered as she felt herself stand up. Her body shuttered as Kaede's gaze pounded into her, pressing and pushing, forcing her to cower from its intensity. "Yuu—Kaede-sama—." Her words stuck in her throat, she heard the squeak of the floor boards as her weight shifted while she took a step forward.
Kaede didn't move as she watched the woman moving across the room as if by someone else's hand, "I wonder what she was told." The old woman thought absently before letting her thoughts deteriorate into nothing.
With a shaking hand Kagura reached forward, her eyes focused on the patch that covered the old woman's supposedly bad eye. Hesitating, she looked towards Kaede's good eye watching as the old woman watched her without a word.
"Go ahead." Kaede spoke, her voice as sad sounding as her earlier smile.
Kagura felt her heart drop to her stomach, felt that same nauseous sadness well within her. "No." She told herself not wanting to believe that another had undergone the same curse as she. Her fingertips brushed the leather without her consent and she pulled her hand back quickly as if afraid of finding out the truth. Before her however, Kaede merely closed her eye, a look of complete peace and acceptance lining all her features. "Kaede-sama." The name floated in and out of Kagura's psyche, pity lining its very being.
Her fingers reached forward, moving no longer with fear but certainty. The sound of a snap filled the air from the fabric of the patch breaking away from Kaede's face. And then silence.
Kagura's hand fell to her side, her mouth opened to speak but her voice caught in her throat. She felt her stomach drop all the way to her feet at the horrifying sight in front of her. There was no gash, no torn up flesh, or gaping wound. There was nothing but one beautiful crystal blue eye, bright with sight and life. "Shinigami." She whispered, her voice cracking as if she was about to cry.
End of Chapter
Please Review
A/N: Thank you very much for your well wishes. I had to seek an extension on my comprehensive examinations, seriously they are a lot of work. I will take them in January but I have plenty time to study for them and do this at the same time since I have finished all my course work. I will never have to sit in another class ever again until I go for the Ph.d. but I think I'll wait for that...a few years at least...I've been in school for over twenty years now and I need a break.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter!
P.S. I will obtain a M.A. in Humanities with an emphasis in Ancient and Medieval Literature for those who were curious! Also, I have not replied to many reviews from last chapter, I am behind from studying but I will try to get back to everyone in time.
Bonus Point:
In what episode do we find out Inuyasha hates curry?
Last Chapter's Bonus Point:
Homer wrote the Iliad! Congrats to the winners:
Heidi, jessiedancer, LittleMargarita, Whiteknight52, , XxSetsukoxX, Litle C, SweetHunniiBunnii, RavenShadow, couriosity, XxxXAiyden's Mommie XxxX, crowlady, Glon Morski, KyaraMarri, Ivellios, AnimeNerd1, KittyIchigo1, Black Firedragon Drake, Xanna, Suyurilrig, HentaiLemon, Laken, Bonus Point, TheRealInuyasha, 14 inu-kag, Finbastard, sharp 8394
Notes:
Yancha – means naughty. It is not a name but a verb.
Next Chapter:
Delaware
See you then!
UNEDITED
POSTED 12/15/2012