The Capture

The strip of cloth stuffed in her mouth served to muffle the scream she emitted upon waking, and turned it into a small whimper of outrage.

Kagome glanced around the room with quick, darting eyes, panting heavily and feeling completely at a loss. It was dark and the air was stale; a basement or cellar of some sort. There were figures all around her in the darkness. A few moved, but most were completely still. She was hesitant to contemplate whether or not they were alive.

The bundle nearest her opened a beautiful crimson eye, watchful and reproaching.

"Hush, child. Don't draw attention to yourself." The woman-bundle fumbled and attempted to move closer. She had chains that were keeping her down and creating noise that was louder than Kagome's had been.

Hyprocrite, she thought darkly to herself before the woman spoke up again.

"It's better when he thinks you're dead," the woman whispered, and a few of the lifeless bundles nodded in agreement. "He'll be here in a bit, anyway. No point bringing him in here sooner than he needs to be."

"Naraku!" Kagome attempted to yelp, but it didn't get past the muffler. The woman chuckled and Kagome spit the nasty stuff out with a little difficulty. Her bottom lip was bruised and swollen.

"Where are we?" she whispered to the woman, who now seemed wide-awake and staring with her large red eyes.

"Who knows? I've only been here a while, myself." She nodded at the other bundles of bodies. "I don't know about them. You're the newest," she said, and Kagome felt like crying. What about the other villagers? Mama, Souta...

Souta! Kagome jerked up and almost shrieked, but caught herself in time.

"What?" the woman asked, looking concerned but more or less had a blank expression of sheer boredom.

"Nothing," she whispered, slowly sinking down. It wouldn't be particularly smart to babble away at this stranger, whether or not they were in the same hole. The woman seemed to have almost the same idea. The gag lifted upfrom the ground and stuffed itself back into her mouth, tasting nastier than it had before. The woman smiled and rolled over.

Inuyasha,Kagome pleaded silently. Please come, please!

It was so boring! He had nothing to do now that she was gone, except worry. He could remember the feel of her body, trembling. The pain and the fear, the stench of death on that little boy. It had burned his senses, assaulting him with pain and a feeling – the knowledge – that he'd been in that situation before.

Inuyasha's fists clenched, wishing to retain the feelings so that he could tangibly rip them to shreds. He wanted to feel in control; he needed to be.

For her.

He paced, blood beginning to trickle down his palms, his eyes flashing from red to gold and back again.

Kagome blew a muffled sigh toward her newest comrade, a young man who looked to be a few years younger than herself. He sighed back, equally trussed, his eyes tiredbut mischievous.

"You'd think wind was blowing through here, the way you two are carrying on," the red-eyed woman retorted, growing tired of their shenanigans. They'd been going at it for a few minutes, each trying to outdo the other, since very little air was passing in or out of the gags.

A door squealed open, and the people in the basement dropped like flies, their heads banging with a squish on the damp mossy ground. All appeared asleep.

Naraku made his way down the steps, distant and cool. He surveyed the room with a vague interest, eyes gleaming. He made his way toward the red-eyes woman and kicked her bundle.

"Kagura, report."

"Mmm? What was that?" she mumbled, feigning sleep. He kicked her again. "Oh, that. They're good little slaves, cowering in misery and all that." She smiled without a trace of humor. "Sir."

Naraku made a noise, somewhere between amusement and exasperation. He made to kick her again, but Kagura didn't flinch. Kagome almost smiled as she peered through her eyelashes at them.

He walked around, now and then kicking or mumbling to prisoners, until he came to Kagome.

"Ahh," he said, smiling. "You." Without another word he picked her up by the arm and dragged her toward the exit. She looked back to see Kagura waving her long fingers gracefully at her with a small smile.

"Best of luck," she said softly, curling up to go back to sleep. Kagome whimpered. God, what now?

"Inuyasha!" Miroku burst through the doors, gasping with wide eyes. "Kagome is here, is she not?"

Inuyasha spared the man a glance before growling and pacing. The man stared at his master, eyebrows raising at both the fresh blood and the hanyou's shifting eye-color.

"Inuyasha?"

The hanyou whipped around, ready to snarl and kick some bouzu-ass, when a little head popped up under Miroku's armthat was holding the door open.

"Inuyasha-no-nii-san?" The boy wailed once, then flung himself at Inuyasha, sliding down his form until he was crying at his knees. Hesitantly, he knelt and held the boy gently away from him.

"You're Kagome's brother?" he asked, his eyes settling on a reddish gold as they peered at the boy. His fears rose in his chest as he smelled death and destruction on the child.

"H-hai! Please, you have to help, I – " The boy let out a hacking cough, and Inuyasha shook him, pushing gentleness aside in his eagerness.

"What is it? What's happened to Kagome?" he demanded. The boy shook with his sobs, whispering words into Inuyasha's ear when he knelt to the boy's level. When the boy was finished, Inuyasha straightened, his face blank. He picked the boy up and threw him over his shoulder, and the child clutched to him, crying into his neck.

"Inuyasha! Inuyasha, where are you going?" Miroku called out.

He stopped, bowing his head. Growling, and with one hand holding the boy, he lashed out and shattered a chair.

"To get Kagome out of the hands of that bastard," he said, and ran.

Wait for me Kagome. Wait for me!

Kagome sat stiffly on the floor, watching Naraku with wary eyes. He sat opposite her, leaning against the door frame in a lazy, relaxed fashion. She'd attempted to get answers, but all she got were frightening glares and raised hands, ready to strike. So she sat, waiting.

Naraku himself did little. Every once in a while he would stare, and smile a tiny little smile. He seemed so different to her. He'd been awkward before, yes, but now he was malicious and so completely unnerving. Apparently he liked uncomfortable silences.

"I hear you were occupying a previously abandoned castle," he said casually, as though they were at a lovely tea party. "No tenants to speak of, save for those loyal to the late master." His eyes sharpened on her. "Or did I hear wrong?"

"I..." Kagome didn't quite know what to say. Inuyasha was in hiding for some reason, something about family or... something. "There were few people there, yes." Half-truth is better than a lie.

"Is that so?" He inspected his nails. "What of the master? He had some sons, if I'm not mistaken."

"That's what I was told."

"Ahh, what you were told. Did you happen to see anything while you were there so many months? It is known that at least one of Inutaisho's sons lives. Of the other there is little information." He smiled. "Do you have something you'd like to tell me?"

Before she could say no, an invisible pressure exerted itself and constricted her movement, making her head pound and her throat tighten. She gasped for air, clawing at her throat. Feeling that she was taking her last breaths, she called out to the person whose face flashed before her blind eyes.

"Inu...yasha," she choked out, reaching out with a hand, hoping he'd be there. Instead, Naraku began to cackle as the darkness faded from her eyes and she breathed again.

"Inuyasha, precisely. Good girl."

"Damn you," she growled, hastily attempting to both breathe and sit up. He waved his hand, as though the matter weren't of the least importance.

"Do you know exactly what Inuyasha has in his possession, Kagome?"

"What?" The question startled her. It was spoken so swiftly and calmly thatit didn't registeruntil she looked into his stare. He repeated his question.

"No, no I don't," she replied, confused. "What is it you want?"

"A few things," he said, and looked away, out onto the mountainside. She sighed. So much for obtaining information.

"You know of Kikyo?" he asked a few minutes later. Hesitating, she nodded. Naraku smiled in response.

"There now, that's better. And you know exactly what she left behind, yes?" Kagome shook her head, unable to keep her eyes from widening and her heart from beating faster. What could he possibly want with that? Naraku raised his eyebrows.

"You don't? How interesting." An unseen finger raised her chin and forced her to look at him. He wasn't smiling, exactly; it looked more like a grimace, but there was some sort of humor there. "I think you do."

Kagome couldn't help it; she'd never been under so much pressure in her life. Tears began to well in her eyes and overflow as he held her gaze. But she shook her head.

Seeming rather annoyed, Naraku forced her to the ground with a flick of the wrist. The hard floor was oddly comforting. Naraku made a noise, as though to say something else, when a crash sounded and echoed through the large room.

"Hm?" Naraku looked to the side of the room farthest from them. Kagome didn't even bother lifting her head. She was too tired.

"Get your filthy hands off her!" said the intruder, and Kagome glanced up. Naraku blinked, glancing from the hands folded meekly in his own lap to the girl lying a few feet away. He let a smile hover around his mouth like a moth waiting for someplace to land.

"Kouga," he drawled. "How kind of you to drop in unannounced." He glanced meaningfully at the gaping hole in the wall.

"Shut that hole in your face!" the wolf howled. He ran towards Kagome and was lifted into the air with a startled "whoop!" only to be sent crashing to the stone floor.

"Pitiful," Naraku sighed. Kagome gasped.

"Kouga!" She attempted to lift her body and run, got a few feet and fell within arms reach of the young demon.

"I'm fine," he growled, grappling at the edges of the dent he'd made in the floor. "It'll take more than– " he stopped as another force sent him further into the floor. Kagome, furious, glared at Naraku, who smiled a tiny smile and shrugged innocently.

"Naraku!" she screamed, and drawing on the last vestiges of her strength, sent a beam of fierce pure light toward him. He actually opened his eyes a small margin before making a haphazard dodge, but he wasn't fast enough. The beam hit him with an unearthly SMACK! and enveloped him in light, flitting around his frame before shooting up and through the roof with a clap of thunder.

Kagome sighed, stumbled, and fell.

Gasp! How's that for a cliffie? You might notice a little OCC toward the end here... I'm sick of writing angst. It comes naturally and I can write dramatically, but I like a little humor. So, here you are! Read, enjoy, and please review! - Ariana