Disclaimer: As much as I'd like to own the characters they all belong to Rumiko Takahashi, not me.

A/N: R+R please! They'll keep me going. XD

I also noticed one small detail, I spelled Tetsusaiga wrong, it's correct in the English version in a sense because of a slip-up in translating. I don't want to change it to Tessaiga since I already started out with Tetsusaiga. Oh well.

A Gap Across Time

II: Curious Implications

Should I check his wounds here or take him somewhere else? I've learned in health class that sometimes it's best not to move the victim in case one will cause more injuries . . . What should I do?

Kagome frowned, Sesshoumaru was bleeding profusely while all she was doing was playing as a soliloquist to herself. Souta stood beside her, not knowing what to do either. He asked if they should move him, Kagome shook her head, telling her brother to wait until she thought of something. She knew anything was better than this, they couldn't leave him here while he was bleeding. I have no choice . . . I must remove the arrows even though they hurt like hell when I touch them, I'm sure they're causing Sesshoumaru more pain though, being lodged in his shoulder and ribcage . . . Okay! Here goes! "Souta, step back as far as you can. Stand against the well's wall, I'm going to try and pull the arrows out."

"With your bare hands!"

"Yes, we have no other choice, no matter what happens to me - do not help." Who knows what could happen to him if he were to touch one of these arrows . . . Preparing herself, Kagome knelt down beside the unconscious taiyoukai, from her lighted vision with the flashlight's help she could see that Sesshoumaru was sweating an awful lot. This alone made her want to pull out the arrows more than ever. Taking deep breaths, Kagome placed her already injured hand back onto the arrow shaft, pain immediately shot through her hand, forcing her to clench her teeth together to fight back a scream. Right now would be the worse of times to scare her brother, if he panicked, she was sure she would too. Pulling with all her strength she made it slide forcefully upward until she released it because of the overwhelming burning sensation the arrow was causing her to feel. That was close, I didn't get it out though . . .

"You okay, sis?" Souta asked.

"Yeah."

"That light . . . what was it doing to your hand? I thought I saw smoke coming out or something . . ."

"I'm fine, don't worry. I almost got this arrow out. After this one there is one more left, after that I'll be done. The hard part will be getting him out of the well." Souta sat down in the corner, watching as his sister had another go at the arrow. She gasped when she pulled it out, throwing it on the dirt floor beside her, from Souta's point of view she appeared to be extremely worn out at this point. Kagome was breathing heavily now, actually taking it out took more of her energy than she had anticipated. From her peripheral vision she could seen her brother's concerned face. Her hand was stinging with pain, if she wasn't mistaken - it was badly burned too. She gulped, looking at her other uninjured hand, contemplating if she should purposely hurt this one also . . . Sesshoumaru stirred for a moment, causing chocolate brown eyes to look down at him.

Okay, here goes the next one . . .! Deciding against it, Kagome used her injured hand again, refusing to hurt both of them. She had no idea why these arrows were hurting her, she was a miko too, and yet this purifying arrow caused her pain. Souta saw the injury when she sat down beside him, trying to calm her jumbled up nerves.

"Kagome, your hand." He reached out to get a better glance, though Kagome backed away, warning him to not touch it. Her eyes roamed back to the still form of the Demon Lord, his breathing was slightly erratic, almost raspy at most. Despite his injuries he still looked like a majestic creature, like a being that came out of a fantasy story book. "Is he okay now, sis?" Kagome nodded, never moving her gaze from the taiyoukai. Her only worry now was to get Sesshoumaru out of the dark well. Oh boy . . .

-----

Dammit, he really did go through. Who were those mikos that attacked him, if I could even call them that, but there's no mistaking it that they used purifying arrows . . . "And where the hell is Kagome, she hasn't been here for weeks! That stupid girl, always coming back and forth as she pleases, I ought to go get her." Inuyasha was disappointed when he reached the pit of the well to feel no reaction, no bright light, no nothing to indicate that he was traveling through time. "Shit! They must have sealed off the god damn well! For crying out loud! How am I supposed to find the shards without Kagome! It was her fault it shattered into a million little pieces in the first place, Kagome, get your ass into my time era! And bring Sesshoumaru back if he's with you, I have a score to settle with that bastard!" He knew it was pointless to yell, yet he felt like it, it was good release for his tightly packed anger.

Meanwhile, back in the castle, Jaken, Rin and the others waited patiently for their Master's return. Normally, Sesshoumaru never left his castle often for very long periods of time, though occasionally it did happen so no one was worried as of yet. Still, a child like Rin couldn't help but worry when he was gone, her agitated pacing in the Demon Lord's gigantic study irritated the toad youkai. "Really, Rin, you do not need to pace back and forth in here, pretty soon you'd leave permanent foot marks on the floor!"

"You're just saying that because you don't want me in here. Lord Sesshoumaru doesn't mind that I hang out in here when he's gone, he even said so himself, remember?" Jaken muttered to himself, saying that Rin made that up to allow her to stay in here. Rin didn't want to leave this lonely room, it carried the scent of her Lord everywhere since he was in here most of the time for most of the day. She stared at the parchments that were laid out on his desk, curiously reading some of the words on one of them.

"Rin, stop that! You mustn't read Lord Sesshoumaru's materials, he'd behead any youkai for trespassing into his privacy!" Jaken scurried to her side, pushing her away from the large desk centered in the room. His yellow beady toad eyes couldn't help but roam the parchments himself when he gazed towards the desk, the word 'death' caught his eye, causing him to gasp. Rin turned to him, asking him what was the matter. Shushing her, he towed her along towards the huge oak doors, emblazoned with the family crest, which was that of the cherry blossom. I didn't mean to pry my Lord, however what could the parchments on your desk be holding? What does the word death have to do with anything here? Is someone to be sentenced for some reason . . .? Yes, that must be it . . . that has to be it! Jaken found that his beguile thoughts weren't going to help him sleep fitfully tonight.

In the quiet of the night, Rin snuck out of bed to check her Lord's room in case he came back. To her dismay, his bed was not occupied, she felt like climbing into his covers to sleep, however she knew that was against the rules, even Sesshoumaru didn't allow her to do that. Lord Sesshoumaru, where can you be? You do go away for days at a time sometimes but this time . . . I feel as if you're not going to come back for a while . . . I just want you to return now! Rin hadn't realized that she started to cry until her warm tears fell on her cold feet. Rubbing at them furiously, she willed herself to be strong - Sesshoumaru had always told her that crying solved nothing.

Saiai, who had been roaming the castle all night spotted the open door to Sesshoumaru's bedroom, curious as to who opened it he went to take a peek. There, standing beside the bed was Rin, her back was to him so she didn't see him. Small, quiet sobs came from the child, causing her to hunch her shoulders to match the jerking motions her chest was making her do, as her voice rung out with sorrow. His red orbs filled up with woeful sheen, one eye seen while the other was hidden beneath his green bangs. He stood there watching her, it was as if he was a statue, unmoving and rigid, yet beautiful. He made no attempt to stop the raven haired child when she climbed atop his Lord's bed, she curled up in a ball in the center, quietly singing to herself. It was sad to see emotional turmoil thwart this girl, she was always happy, having a sunny smile on her face almost all the time. He'd rarely seen Rin get extremely angry let alone violent, she was a peaceful person.

Knowing he'd feel regretful in the morning for allowing the child to sleep there he went into the room. She opened her closed eyes immediately, alert as a hawk, thinking the Lord of the castle had returned. She looked frightened when she saw Saiai, he stood as tall as a seven foot tree. The red robes he wore enhanced the effect of the youkai looking much bigger than he actually was. Smiling down at her, he said, "you shouldn't sleep here, you know you will get in trouble in the morning. How about I escort you back to your own sleeping quarter, Rin." She nodded. "That's a good girl."

Guards who were posted around the area glanced at the duo who walked by them, one, being the human child Sesshoumaru supposedly cared for, and the other being his most trusted counselor. Rin was hesitant to enter her own room when she approached it, worry marred her pretty features. Life without Sesshoumaru was all she could think about, it wasn't that she doubted his strength, above all else she knew there were stronger youkai than her Lord. She wasn't ignorant to the truth of the world. Upon Saiai's urgings she climbed into bed, apologizing to the counselor for making him a temporary babysitter. Laughing, he said he didn't mind. That night Rin had a hard time falling asleep, she fit to match Jaken's own tension.

-----

Kagome and Souta both sighed in relief when they managed to get the Demon Lord out of the well, it was one amazing feat. Even Kagome couldn't believe they pulled it off with merely rope and a ladder, and the help of a flashlight as their only source of light. Sesshoumaru laid before them, bloodied and dirty. Bright sunlight from atop the tree's leaves filtered through them to blanche splotches here and there among the three beings beneath its enormous branches. Kagome leaned against the ancient tree's bark, trying to catch her breath. Her hand was stinging so unmercifully that she could feel tears threaten to trail down her cheeks. At this point she figured it'd take weeks before her hand could heal completely, it didn't bother her too much as long as she knew she did something right. In this instance it was saving Sesshoumaru's life.

"Now what are we going to do?" Souta asked. His eyes never left the taiyoukai's form, his gaze was transfixed to the rising and falling of his chest. His small hands dug into the grass down into the soft earth; he couldn't help but feel uncomfortably appalled. Although he didn't know much about Inuyasha's brother he knew for a fact that he wasn't someone you'd want to mess with. Inarguably, Kagome emitted a sort of fear he could sense without really trying to read her, he silently prayed this fear would pass.

"I'm not sure. I don't think we can hide him from mom and grandpa, in fact I don't see why we should. However, Sesshoumaru has never been very social, I can imagine grandpa yapping away without noticing that this fellow here was growling at him." Souta couldn't help not laughing, it wasn't supposed to be funny, yet he couldn't control the emotions he was feeling. "You about ready to drag him again?" Souta nodded. "Oh! Before we do that we should cover him up in something incase our neighbors see him. If we aren't careful people might think we're dragging around a blood-splattered corpse."

"Good idea."

The only thing the Higurashi siblings could find was a ugly, old tarp their grandpa kept in his backyard. It didn't smell all too good so Kagome and Souta were careful with how they handled it around themselves. Their only concern was for Sesshoumaru, he'd reek of the tarp's stench if they were to cover him in it. As for their trek into the house it was a lot harder than they expected it to be. Their grandpa along with the family cat Buyo stepped out the front door just as they arrived in front of it. Startled, Kagome rushed to the front of the taiyoukai, supporting him in an odd position as she tried to hide him from her grandpa. Buyo stared up at her curiously, large blue eyes unblinking.

"What have you two got there?" their grandpa asked. He made a motion to lift the tarp.

Kagome backed up a step. "Grandpa, don't touch it! It's a project I've been working on. I know it looks kind of big, but it's not a problem. As you can see, Souta is helping me carry it into my room, we've got everything under control . . ." Kagome stopped right there and then, if she kept on talking their grandpa would definitely suspect she was lying to him. Buyo continued to stare up at her, those glassy blue eyes of his sometimes gave her the creeps in certain situations. Now was one of those situations. "Ehehehe, can you move so we can haul it upstairs?"

"If I'm not mistaken that is my tarp from the shrine, no?"

Come on, grandpa, stop asking us questions!

He inspected it more closely, eyes squinting into small slits. "It is my tarp, ah, how I miss its smell!" Kagome and Souta sweat dropped, they couldn't see how he'd stand a smell as rancid as this pathetic excuse of a well kept tarp. A wrinkled hand rubbed the material before either Kagome or Souta could react. Buyo let out a lazy meow, gently rubbing his head against Kagome's stiff leg. She looked down at him for a moment as she bit her lower lip nervously. A unmistakable feeling started to rise up her chest to her throat . . . If she and her brother didn't act now their grandpa was going to find out any second now.

Think, Kagome, think! It'd only complicate matters if he were to find out right now!

"Yeah, it is your tarp, I'm really in a rush so excuse us!" Their grandpa grunted in dismay when Kagome and Souta pushed past him, he watcher their retreating figures walk along the hallway before disappearing to the side as they turned to go up the stairs.

"That was close, Kagome, grandpa almost found out," Souta huffed, wiping sweat off his damp forehead. Kagome merely smiled stupidly, she sat down on her bedroom floor. Souta followed her example. They both looked at the taiyoukai inside the tarp, Kagome frowned, if she didn't get rid of the tarp soon it'd stink up her whole room. She stood up, telling her brother that she was going to dispose of the disgusting tarp while he watched over Sesshoumaru. "Okay, sis, that isn't a problem."

Souta concentrated his stare on Sesshoumaru, he watched closely to see if he was going to open his eyes. A small tentative hand went to his face only to back away when golden yellow orbs glared at him. Sesshoumaru had awoken at last. He tried to move only to find that he couldn't even lift a hand, he was disconcerted with everything. This isn't my palace . . . where am I then? His eyes never left the boy sitting on the floor, he was trembling as he stared back at him. It wasn't hard for the taiyoukai to guess where he really was, he was in Kagome's home . . . There was no mistaking the child before him, he resembled Kagome an awful lot.

"Souta, I'm-" Kagome cut herself off short upon the sight of Sesshoumaru's yellow orbs relocating themselves onto her. "Um . . . I see you've waken up, how are you feeling . . .?" She hesitated at the doorway for a moment, suggesting what the best plan of action was going to be. Souta looked to her, gulping as he did so. She could tell that he was really afraid - she was too. With a nod of her head she signaled for her brother to leave the room, he gladly obliged, head lowered as he walked past her, closing her bedroom door behind him. Okay, I'll start over . . . "How are you feeling, Sesshoumaru?"

"Tell me, why am I in your home?" he asked suspiciously.

"Erm, how should I explain this . . . I should say I found you in the well . . . Only you were on this end instead of the other side. You had arrows piercing your body, you should be glad I took them out." Feeling self-conscious at this point Kagome hid her injured hand behind her back. This won't do . . . All he is doing is staring at me, isn't he going to say something? I'd really like to know how he had those arrows stuck to him in the first place! Aaaauuuuu . . . Sesshoumaru gave her a nondescript expression, clearly showing her that he didn't care for her aid; it wasn't like he asked for human assistance. Kagome blew out a puff of air, the awkward silence that suddenly filled the room was not to her liking . . . To her, silence was a bad thing . . . "So . . ."

"What is it?"

"Um . . . Your clothes are all dirty" . . . more like bloody and the tarp's smell, I'm sure he can smell it too . . . "mind if I take them off? I'm pretty sure you don't like wearing dirty items." Sesshoumaru grunted, Kagome looked bedazzled - she didn't know how to take that response of his. "Ehehehe, was that a yes or a no?" Sesshoumaru remained silent, his golden orbs ever so slowly moving with her every movement; he watched her like a hawk ready to swoop on its prey. "Um . . ."

"Indeed . . ." Sesshoumaru finally spoke up, ". . . I do not like dirty clothing, however I do not wish for you to remove them." Kagome sweat dropped, she wondered why Sesshoumaru was acting so uptight around her when she was only trying to help. Why is it that this girl who travels with my brother want to help me? If I recall I did try to slay her once, isn't she afraid that I might try that stunt on her again? Sesshoumaru once again tried to lift an arm, the only thing he accomplished in doing was wiggle the fingers of his right hand. Kagome didn't let it go unnoticed. She walked slowly towards him, well aware of the danger she was putting herself in even though the taiyoukai could barely move. She'd learned from past experiences in the feudal era that some people's actions were very misleading. Is she not worried for her own life . . .? I can easily kill her if I truly had the desire to do so, my restricted movements wouldn't stop me . . .

"Let me help you, I can understand why you wouldn't want my help, but we're not in the feudal era so no youkai is going to know about this!" Kagome tested Sesshoumaru's tolerance; she purposely placed a hand on his haori's sleeve. A yelp escaped her lips before she knew what was happening . . .

To be continued!