The Palace of the Moon was magnificent. It was a testament to the artistry of the architects who built it. The whole building was in the shape of the crescent moon and gold and silver lined everything. It was in the style of the traditional Japanese castle, but Kagome had never seen anything so grand. She gasped when it came into view.
The castle flew above everything else and sat on a cloud. Kagome closed her eyes for a moment and could feel the youki that permeated the base of the castle. There was probably some demonic artifact that kept the castle afloat. But it was still amazing. Kagome smiled when the two of them landed down on the terrance of one of the buildings. She smiled and let go of Inutaisho and looked around eagerly.
Men and women walked around bustling from place to place though they did pause to bow at Inutaisho. The Dog General simply nodded his in acknowledgement and Kagome smiled at the servants.
The air here was electric. It zinged across her skin and made the hairs on her arms and legs raise. She felt something from this place. She felt like she needed to be here. It finally felt like she was a puzzle piece finding its place. She belonged here and whatever it was that drew her here was here.
"Come," Inutaisho said pulling her from her thoughts. "Follow me to my study where we can speak more comfortably."
Kagome followed after the large man. He was heads taller than her. Hell, he was taller than Inuyasha and even Sesshomaru. His markings were more jagged that the soft perfection that was Sesshomaru. His hair was not the ruler straight hair of either Inuyasha or Sesshomaru but his hair was wave with kinks that made even his hair look wild. He was dressed like a general though despite the more wild appearance. Spikes were latched onto each arm and there were not one, but three weapons strapped to his waist.
Kagome looked down at the three weapons and could feel the power that emanated from them. So'unga's power was pure malice and Tenseiga's was soft and wistful almost. Tensaiga was a mixture of the two, the weapon made for protecting humans and could kill a hundred monsters in one swing was not malicious or overtly kind. The weapon that Inuyasha had used to protect her was meandering as though it was waiting for the moment that it could show who it really was.
She shook her head as they made their way into the office. In the office there were several scrolls and documents scattered about. Books lined the walls and a low table sat that was laden with book after book. Kagome was quick to sit on one of the resting pillows in front of the desk. Inutaisho sat behind the desk.
"So Kagome," Inutaisho said as he settled onto his pillow. "What manner of madness have you brought to my lands?"
Kagome sighed and rolled her shoulders. "To be honest I thought my days as an adventurer were long behind me. I didn't think that I would be back in the past. I don't even know what that thing was. Let alone where it came from."
"And that power?" Inutaisho asked.
Kagome shook her head. "I've never had white power before. And a lotus appearing on my forehead…? That has never happened to me either. This is all so new."
"Why don't we start from the beginning when did things begin to be strange to you?"
"I think it was after I complete the Shikon Jewel. After the jewel was complete and I returned home everything felt… different. I don't know how to explain it. It felt like the world was more alive and what had changed was that I was aware of it. I could feel everything. I can even feel intentions and emotions so clearly. I've had to isolate myself from big crowds in order to handle the feeling."
"So after the Jewel was completed something inside of you changed? I will tell you that you do not carry the stench od decay and death that lingers on other creatures," Inutaisho said. At his words, Kagome's eyes snapped towards him. They focused on him with a startlingly intensity and she fiddled with her hands in her lap.
"What do you mean by that?" Kagome asked.
"Everything in this world has the stench of death. Even us youkai. We cannot smell the death on youkai because it is so faint, but on humans, with their considerably shorter life spans, it is almost the only thing we can smell. But you do not carry such a stench. Your smell is completely absent of it."
Kagome sighed and pressed her head into her hands. God damn it. Just when she was used to being a reincarnation of someone else then they throw her for another loop. There always seemed to be some change in status when it came to her and she was never able to gain her footing when it came just what she was.
"What do you think this means?" Kagome said, lifting her head from her hands. "I don't know what any of this means."
"I think it would be better to consult someone with far more knowledge. I have never heard of this condition. I have a friend that we can consult about your situation."
Kagome nodded her head and then shifted. "If you don't mind, do you think that I could stay with you. I… have no where else to go."
Inutaisho laughed and Kagome flushed. Was it so crazy to ask that he offer her a place to stay. Her pride took a hit, but then those mirthful golden eyes looked down at her. Those eyes that reminded her so much of Inuyasha. She felt her heart flutter at the thought of him.
It had been so long since she had thought of Inuyasha. For a while it had hurt to even think about him. He was her first love and she had felt it with so much intensity that it halfway drove her mad. But looking into the face of his father those feelings are all brought back to the forefront. She remembered Inuyasha and the kiss that they shared in the moment that they destroyed the jewel. She flushed and looked down at her hands.
Inutaisho smiled down at her from his superior stature and let his laugh dwindle into a chuckle. He sighed.
"Did you really think that I would invite you to my home and then allow you to sleep on the streets. From what you have told me even the village that you habited has not been founded yet. You will stay with me unless you acquire accommodations of your own. Miyuki!"
A small maid opened the door to the room and Kagome jumped at the suddenness of it. It was as though the maid had been waiting behind the door for the whole time. Maybe it was with their superior speed and hearing that they were able to come so quick. Kagome stared at the maid, Miyuki, with her bent head and dark tresses. She looked young.
"Take Kagome to the guest quarters," Inutaisho said. The maid nodded her head, but still kept her head bent toward the ground. Kagome rose from the ground and then bowed politely to Inutaisho.
"Thank you for everything. I know that it must be a little daunting and confusing, but you are taking it better than most," Kagome said. "Some people would not even believe me if I told them."
"If there is one thing that I have learned throughout my life it is that with time everything changes. And this is just another change that I have to deal with," the Inutaisho said. Something about his words did not settle well in her stomach.
Change.
She hated that word and she hated everything that came with it. She was tired of the never ending maelstrom that her life had become in the time since Mistress Centipede had pulled her down into the well. She was tired of nothing being stable and consistent. And she was tired of never knowing what would happen to her next. All she wanted was for something to be consistent, something to stay the same. Kagome shook her head knowing that what she was asking for was impossible.
She bowed once more to her kind benefactor and was whisked from the room by Miyuki. She looked around the Palace of the Moon taking in all the grandeur that the castle had. There were mosaics along the walls depicting dogs standing in the forest or over cliffsides. They look majestic, but the peculiar thing was that they were all white. They all had the pale coloring of the moon.
Thinking back to the only time she had ever seen Sesshomaru transform, Kagome considered the white meaning of the dogs. Could they have something to do with the moon. There was the moon motifs throughout the palace and Sesshomaru did carry the mark of the moon on his brow. She tucked that thought away, knowing that she would keep it for later.
Miyuki opened her door to a grand room. It had a sitting area and farther into the back of the room was her futon already laid out on the bed. Kagome sighed and threw herself into the soft fabric and practically sunk into it. Miyuki said that she would call Kagome for dinner when it was ready and to rest in her room as long as she liked. Kagome heard the words, but her eyelids were already fluttering closed as she was swept off into the world of dreams.
There was a palace that stood on a reef. It was beautiful and blue and it shone like a pearl from a clam. It sparkled but something was off. Something was disturbing the peace of this blue palace. Kagome could feel it. She could feel the malcontent of the palace. The view changed and she was inside the palace.
The inside was magnificent with pearlescent whites and deep ocean blues decorated the palace. Kagome could feel the anger more clearly now — it was a deep seated anger — it bubbled up from somewhere in the palace and Kagome could hear the whispers.
Kagome went deeper into the palace. As she went deeper into the palace, she could hear the whispers. The whispers were nothing more than a sigh at first, but as she went deeper words were been spoken. Words of jealousy and anger. Words of exhaustion and ridicule.
As she went deeper and deeper into the palace the very walls and ground started to flutter away. Deep red and black cracks formed in the palace walls and flooring. Red angry light bubbled up from the cracks and they muttered angry things at Kagome. She ignored the voices and the anger that they brought.
Where was this anger coming from? Who had it infected?
Kagome did not know how she knew that it had infected someone but she knew that it was her responsibility in order to fix it. She had been gone for too long, she thought. The infection was worse than she thought.
She opened the door to where the worst of the infection was. Sitting there on a throne was a woman. Pearls decorated her marine blue hair and a trident by her side. Her dress was fishnets and silk and she looked absolutely regal. But her body…
The skin cracked open with the same black and red cracks that were infecting the palace. Here the whispers were the strongest. They were no longer whispers though they were screams. They cried out in anger and anguish and they wanted nothing more than to hurt and infect others with their own hurt.
Kagome rushed forward and grabbed the hands of the woman in front of her.
"Suijin!" she cried out. She pressed her hands to the face of woman. "Suijin you must listen to me! Don't listen to them! You cannot let the corruption reach your heart."
"I'm so tired of fighting, Yume. Please let me go. They've won," Suijin said. She sagged into her hands and the shouting around them turned into laughing. The world trembled and then Suijin gave out a loud screech.
The corruption had reached her heart. Kagome backed away as Suijin transformed before her every eyes. Gone was the beautiful woman and the grand castle. They transformed into something dark and dreary. Red and black surrounded Kagome and she could do nothing now but watch as Suijin was destroyed and something else was left in her place.
She transformed into a dragon, the water dragon that she was, but she was corrupted. Instead of blue scales she had black and red light glowed from her eyes. Tears streamed down her face and Kagome sobbed as her friend was changed wholly.
Suijin opened her maw and let out a piercing roar.
Kagome shout out of her bead. Her cheeks were wet with tears and she stopped a scream before it escaped her. She looked around her room, the unfamiliarity making her skin prickle. She calmed once she remembered where she was.
This was the Palace of the Moon. She was a guest. And a portal had sent her back.
Kagome breathed in and out to calm her still beating heart. She sighed, shucking the sheets off of her and stripping the clothing off her body. She felt sweaty and hot. Standing in the room with only a tank top and some clothing she sighed and opened a window.
What was that dream? She wanted nothing more than to forget it, but the anguish from the dream still lingered in her mind. She wanted nothing more than to think of anything else, but she could not get the imagine of Suijin from her mind. Somehow she had known that woman and knew what was going on.
The corruption… whatever it was had gotten to Suijin's heart and changed her from the inside out. The very thought pricked tears in Kagome's eyes. She wiped them and gripped the sides of the window. She took a couple more deep breaths.
Suijin was the name of the Water God, but she had never once met a god before. She sighed and then turned her back to the window, letting the night air buffet her back.
How had she known that the corruption, whatever that was, was going to ruin the mind and heart of Suijin? That was the first time that Kagome had ever even seen the corruption. But there was something still there fluttering in the back of her mind.
She knew how to cure the corruption.
But how?
Kagome looked down at her hands. It was that white power. The power that lingered somewhere inside of her body. It was the power that killed the beast before. She pressed a hand to her forehead where the lotus symbol was said to appear. She closed her eyes for a moment.
She tried to imagine it, that white power and how it felt. But… nothing. When she opened her eyes her body did not glow and when she checked in the mirror, there was no lotus symbol. She sighed.
Inutaisho's friend would hopefully have some answers. And then she would do what she needed to.
If there was one thing that she was sure of she was sure that she was brought back for a reason. There was a reason why she was brought from her time to the distant past where Inuyasha was not even born and Sesshomaru was just barely born.
She sighed and laid down on her futon, hoping that this time she would dream of nothing.