Disclaimer: He's not mine! I'm so ashamed! -cries-
Well, sorry about the wait again, but hopefully you guys aren't too mad at me. I finally got a new computer though, so I dance the dance of happy. Read and enjoy! Oh, and on a side note, I wrote a little short story based on a dream I had. So...read if you're interested.
www. deviantart. com/ deviation/ 31892313/ (remove the spaces)
Cold Kikyo - Yay! Thankya.
darkangelprincess24 - Heh...sorry about that.
Nebacanezzar - Just takes practice, Nebbers!
dArK sK8tEr - Yup, I have two kids: my son and my husband. Only difference is that my husband's toys are more expensive. :) I had a friend like that...she was on her third child last I heard from her, and she's a year younger than me. Ah well, what can you do? Thankya for reviewing again!
YuniX-2 - Nothing wrong with muchly! I'm guilty of saying it. Hope this was soon enough!
Chapter Nineteen – Behind the Masks
Kagome stood silently at the window of her room, half listening to the sounds of Sango and Ayame fussing over each other's hair in the background as she watched the newest snowstorm blowing about the school. She was almost regretting suggesting that her friends use her room as a dressing room, but she knew that it would have been worse to just sit around by herself, waiting for the great bell to ring, waiting for the masque, waiting for yet another day to come to a close, and wondering if it were her last….
A squeal of pain broke her out of her musings, and she turned sharply to where Ayame was profusely apologizing to Sango, having just burned the other girl with a curling iron. The two were soon back to giggling again, and Kagome let a slight smile appear on her face as she wandered over and sat on the edge of her bed, arranging her skirts around her.
It was a lovely dress, she admitted grudgingly, trying not to let herself think how much it must have cost her mother. The simply cut satin skimmed over her frame, shimmering in different shades of grey, pearl, and silver. The loose sleeves were cuffed with pearls, matching both the hem and the scoop-neck. Her hair was curled and pinned in a tight bunch at the back of her head, and strands of pearl beads had been threaded through the dark mass. Ayame, in all her wisdom, had brought a container of silvery powder, and had proceeded to apply it generously across Kagome's neck, chest, and face, even sprinkling a bit into her hair.
She supposed that it had the desired effect, since both girls had stopped to stare at her for a moment before smiling and getting back to work on themselves. Ayame was swiftly turning into a wood nymph, with a simple green and gold dress that hung to her feet, with plenty of little golden bells on her wrists, ankles, neck, and tying off the numerous fiery braids that hung from the wolf's head. Her lips had been painted a reddish-bronze, her eyes with sparkling emerald shadow, and her bare feet had a dusting of the same powder she had used on Kagome, causing her to leave a silver trail around the room.
Sango had surprised her, however, by going for a sleeker look. Her dress was a deep purple with light blue pin striping, form-fitted to her upper half before flaring out slightly at her waist. The dress had a high collar, which her further accented by looping a thin silver chain around her neck in various lengths. A pair of thin silver cuffs circled her bare upper arms, further accenting the lack of sleeves, along with Sango's naturally athletic build. Her hair was loose and curled how it pleased, and the look was finished off by a pair of thigh high boots.
A light knock at the door caught the girls' attention, and Kagome moved to answer it as the other two scrambled to put their finishing touches on. She pulled open the door a bit and peeked around it, her face finally lighting up as a smile forced its way past her melancholy. Inuyasha simply smiled back and nodded slightly in approval of what little he saw of her face.
"Me and the other guys are heading down to the ballroom" he whispered through the crack, studiously keeping his gaze locked with hers so that neither could see anything but each other's eyes. "We've told the other girls, so they should be grouping out here in a few minutes." He glanced behind him briefly as the sound of male voices got louder before fading away again, telling her that the group had begun moving down the stairs. But when he turned his eyes back to hers, they had turned hard and steady, and Kagome had to swallow hard at the sudden change.
"Be careful, Kagome. No one we've talked to has seen Kikyo tonight, and you'll have fewer friends watching you on the trip down there, and they can't carry their weapons." He sighed and let his head fall against the door frame for a moment, his ears lying back against his head. "Hell, it almost makes me wish that damn furball was around…" He glanced back up to her and let a small smile show again. "Just…be careful, okay?"
She let out a soft chuckle, though it sounded forced even to her own ears as she fought back a round of tears. She slipped a hand out to gently trace the hanyou's jaw line, her own lips quivering slightly. "I'll be fine, Inuyasha. I've still got Ayame and Ryfen and all the others, right? Surely…she can't get me away from all of them…" Her voice had dropped in tone as her eyes lowered, but the sound of a door opening somewhere caused her head to snap up. A head of pink hair appeared out of the door diagonal from theirs and peered around before locking in Inuyasha. Ryfen's eyes narrowed as she let out a slight hiss of warning before pulling back into her room.
Inuyasha just shook his head a bit before turning back to Kagome. "Well, I'll be going then. Come straight to me when you get down there, okay?" Kagome nodded and blew a kiss as Inuyasha turned and headed for the stairs in a jog. Kagome closed the door behind her and was instantly assaulted by Sango and Ayame, both in a frenzy of touch ups and mask adjustments. But to Kagome, it seemed like another hour had passed before she was finally allowed to put on her wings and follow her friends out into the hall to join the giggling crowd of masked females.
In the ballroom, it was a different air altogether. The boys stood in a line across the center of the room, all facing the doors with varying expectancy. Most of the teachers sat at their places at the table at the head of the room, but Vash and Kenshin stood at either side of the double doors, ready to open them at just the right time.
Inuyasha stood between Kouga and Ezekial, feeling very nervous despite being in his favorite clothes, his fire rat outfit that his father had bestowed to him when he was born. He longed to reach up and remove the scratchy, stiff fabric mask that covered the top half of his face, but the rules laid down by the teachers was that none of them could remove their masks until the end of the ball.
Anyone caught removing their own or someone else's mask would be immediately removed from the party, and confined in the headmaster's office until midnight.
A low growl rumbled its way from the hanyou's chest at the severe punishment for a removed mask. That bastard has something planned, something up his sleeves…just gotta find Kagome and stick with her the whole night. With a firm nod of his head, he turned his attention to the doors again, willing the teachers to open them, willing the crowd of females to push their way inside, willing Kagome to hunt him out….
A muted trumpet blasted from the other side of the door, causing the line of guys to jump almost in unison. Vash and Kenshin moved with practiced steps to the center of the doorway and paused for a moment before pulling and stepping back to their original places, securing the doors against the wall and standing in front of them with their hands behind their backs, smiling as the line seemed to grow more nervous.
Spike was the first to step through, looking like a mobster in his white suit and hat, and the way he was carrying the trumpet like a Tommy gun. He stopped and considered the line for a moment before moving the instrument to rest against his shoulder and stepping back to the side, bowing slightly towards the door.
As if on cue, the band overhead began playing a soft, slow waltz.
Ryfen was the first to step through, judging by the bright pink hair not completely covered by the top hat that sat tilted on her head. She paused and glanced around for a moment before a slight smile spread across her face. She strode easily over to Ezekial and curtsied before him, holding out the sides of her black and pink skirts. As she rose, Ezekial offered her a white gloved hand, and she accepted with a smile, but leaned in close to Inuyasha before Zeke could drag her off.
"Kagome wanted me to tell you she's fine." She whispered, smiling as his stance relaxed somewhat. She dipped her head to him and allowed Ezekial to lead her over to the dance floor as the next girl stepped in.
They continued in the same way as Inuyasha and Kouga both seemed to get more anxious. The wolf hadn't yet given up on the girl, and the hanyou was fast becoming panicked at the lack of Kagome. They had just begun a faint growling match when Kouga froze and stared slack jaw at the doors. Fearing the worst and nearly flying with hope in the same moment, Inuyasha turned as well, only to be highly confused as to the object of Kouga's affections.
For the lady who had just entered could have been none other than Ayame.
A faint smile appeared on Inu's face as the she-wolf walked slowly over to Kouga and curtsied before him, looking a bit shy at the sudden attention. But Kouga simply took her arm and lead her gently over to the dance floor, not even bothering to look back once. He simply chuckled and turned back to the door, only to have his own world freeze.
Kagome stood just inside the doorway, watching him almost nervously, her hands clasped tightly at her waist. The sheen of the powder across her neck and shoulders seemed to make her skin glow in the candlelight of the ballroom. She moved forward slowly, causing the light, gossamer wings on her back to flutter lightly against her shoulders.
All he could do was stand and watch as she walked over to him slowly, her eyes dancing behind the silk-covered half mask, clearly amused by his reaction. His feet seemed to move of their own accord as he took a step forward to meet her, reaching out his hand. She took it and gave it a gentle squeeze as they moved to the dance floor.
The night was passing much too quickly for Kagome's tastes. She wanted to slow down and enjoy what could very well be her last night on Earth, but time seemed to have a mind of its own. Still, the night had its surprises.
The first was when Kagome spotted a pair of people slipping into the room from one of the side doors before melding into the throng on the dance floor. The taller of the two seemed to be wrapped in bandages beneath his heavy cloak and ornate headdress that served as his mask. The smaller was decked out in Egyptian garb, complete with face-paint and a headdress of her own. Closer inspection of the couple both shocked and pleased her. Both of them had tried hard to conceal their identities, but the smaller one had let her snow white tail slip out on accident. From the lack of shock through the crowd, Kagome had been the only one to notice that Caligo and Kallos had appeared among them.
The second came when Kagome's feet simply couldn't keep her up anymore, and Inuyasha led her over to the chairs set up along the wall. After doing a throughout check of the area, her left her there to rest as he scurried off to get drinks for them both. She had slumped back against the chair, after shifting her wings out of the way, when the world suddenly went silent.
She looked up instantly, and was startled to find the room had gone black and white, like an old time movie. Actually, more like an old time photograph, as no one was moving. She stood slowly and peered around, her eyes widening with every moment. There was Cali and Kallos, in the middle of a waltz. There was Ryfen, trying to drag Ezekiel onto the dance floor. There was Inuyasha, paused in the middle of hurrying back over to her with the drinks, a few drops of punch he had spilled hung in midair.
"It's only temporary." Came a soft male voice from beside her. She whipped around and fell back a few steps, her hands coming up in a defensive pose. But her mouth fell open at what she found.
The man before her was almost too…pretty to be as old as he must. He simply towered over her. His eyes were hidden behind the mop of red hair that hung around his head, and his face was either painted or was naturally completely white. She simply stared at him, and he stared back, a small, sinister grin spreading slowly across his face.
"Who…who are you?"
"It doesn't matter."
"What do you want?"
"Not a thing."
Kagome bit down on her rising anger and chanced a glance around the room again, but when she looked back, she was staring at a chest an inch from her nose. With a surprised squeak, she tried to skitter backwards, only to have her shoulder grabbed as the man held her firmly. She craned her head back to look up at him, a shiver running through her at the look in his eyes.
"It's not what I want, little girl. It's what I need."
A sudden scream ran through her as she pushed with all her might on the man's chest. A strange warmth spread through her, and she squeezed her eyes shut at a sudden light. The pressure left her shoulder, and she felt herself sitting down again, but didn't dare to open her eyes.
The sound came back gradually, like a radio that was slowly being turned up. She had a sudden thought that if her eyes had been open, the color and motion would be returning to the room in the same way.
"Kagome! Kagome? Hey, what's wrong?" Inuyasha's voice pierced through her mind, and she let her eyes flutter open. A quick glance around confirmed that everything was back to normal, and the strange man was nowhere to be seen. She locked eyes with Inuyasha and gave him a wan smile.
"Nothing's wrong, Inu. Just a little tired." She leaned forward and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before accepting the cup he offered. He only returned the smile and sat down next to her, his gaze roving over the dancing couples.
It won't do any good to tell him… Kagome mused. He'll just fly into a panic and cause a scene. Maybe I just imagined it all anyways. But one glance down at her throbbing palms denied that. They were bright red.
Headmaster Naraku swirled the goblet in his hand idly as he watched the dancing students boredly. Kagura sat beside him with only the sound of her relentless tapping of her fan on the underside of the table to show how agitated she was.
"It didn't work, Naraku. She got away again." She hissed out of the corner of her mouth.
"I didn't expect it to work." Naraku muttered, his voice giving away just how relaxed and bored he was. "That one has always been too unpredictable, even on his best days. Must be that blasted human side of his coming out again."
Kagura snorted. "So why even chance it? Why give her a warning signal?"
Naraku only smiled as he nodded slightly towards the girl in question. "Because she thinks she imagined it, and didn't tell her dear hanyou. But the truth of the matter is that she had to expend a good bit of energy just to fend him off. Think of it…" He paused and took a sip from his glass as he thought. "…think of it like the Christmas Story. While she might not be visited by three true spirits, she'll certainly be a changed girl in the end."