A1969: I'm back and I'm ready to rock house!
Miroku: rock…house….?
Sango: er…are you okay?
A1969: never better!
Sango: okay…
A1969: thanks to the people who bothered to read and review and those who just bothered to read! Those reviews really boost the morale, you know.
Sango: yeah, we can tell.
A1969: anyway, sorry for the somewhat late update. School work has me grinding my nose against those accursed trigonometry tables –shudders-
Miroku: -rolls eyes- yeah, those sines, cosines and whatever have really given you nightmares.
A1969: anyway, enjoy the chapter!
Chapter Thirty-seven: Nightmare
XoXoXo
"Very good, Miroku."
Hearing Kagome's voice, Inuyasha could do nothing but grumble inwardly to himself. Winter was now drawing to a close, and Kagome still continued to teach them English. During the span of winter, they had made considerable progress. From memorizing and writing the alphabet to memorizing common English words and their meanings to writing those words and to stringing those words together like beads to form coherent sentences.
Miroku and Sango were already writing down sentences while Shippou was still in the progress of memorizing common adjectives, and the basics of grammar, something which Miroku and Sango easily passed with flying colors. And Inuyasha…he was still getting the gist of the alphabet.
And now, Kagome was testing their knowledge of English.
They were in Kaede's hut, sitting on the floor. Kagome handed them several pieces of paper with Japanese words and sentences which they were to translate in English, in the best way they could.
He wasn't doing well. Inuyasha frowned to himself as he watched Kagome pick up Miroku's paper, and read it. "Well, you misspelled some of the words, but that's okay, I guess," Kagome muttered, looking over Miroku's paper. She looked down at Miroku who raised his eyebrows expectantly at the miko. "Well, aside from the misspelled words, everything else seems to be in order."
"Thanks, Kagome," Miroku said, speaking in English, much to Inuyasha's annoyance.
"You're welcome," Kaogme replied in the same tongue. She switched back to Japanese. "Okay, now let's see Sango's, shall we?"
Sango handed her paper over to Kagome's without delay. Inuyasha watched as Kagome's eyes ran across the lines. Kagome herself was highly impressed at Sango's work—Sango was a quick learner…a very quick learner.
"Wow," Kagome said, her voice somewhat awed. "Only mistakes in punctuation. That's very impressive. You learned faster then me, Sango."
"Really?" Sango asked, in English. "I thought I was a bit slow!"
"Don't be silly," Kagome said. "You learned faster than I did."
Sango suddenly felt bashful. "Aw, c'mon, Kagome, I'm sure I must have an error in there somewhere…"
"Well," Kagome muttered. "If it makes you feel any better, you could try to do something about your handwriting…" Though, when writing Japanese, Sango had a nice, flowing and strong hand, her writing in English was somewhat messy, the scrawl clumsy.
Sango nodded her head. She loved challenges. Improving her handwriting would be a minor challenge to take up.
"Okay now, let's see Shippou's!" Kagome said jovially as she swooped down on Shippou and tugged his paper from his grasp.
Damn it! Inuyasha thought, now desperate. He turned his gaze back to his own paper. He had only answered one eighth of the questions, and he doubted that any of the answers to the questions he had answered were right.
What to do, what to do, what to do?
Inuyasha was just about to tear out his hair. He hastily bent down on his paper and scrawled away, not caring whether his answers were right or wrong.
"Alright, Inuyasha, now let's see yours!" Oh no. Kagome was now standing over him, her shadow falling across him, darkening his paper.
"Hand it over," Kagome said, holding out her hand to Inuyasha. She raised her eyebrows expectantly.
"I'm not done yet," the hanyou said, trying to buy himself some more time.
"Well, finished or not finished, pass," Kagome said. For a moment, she frightened herself a little when she realized that she sounded a bit like her old English teacher.
Inuyasha looked up at her and, grumbling, reluctantly handed over his paper. Kagome's eyes darted across the page and they slightly widened. "Er…" she said hesitantly. She stared at Inuyasha, who was glaring. "You…um…did a pretty good job…" Her statement sounded more like a question. Miroku and Sango knew that tone well.
"Shut it, Kagome," Inuyasha snapped, annoyed that Kagome had to lie to reassure him. "Why don't you just give it to me frankly, woman?"
Kagome narrowed her own eyes. "Fine," she said. "No need to be rude." She perused his paper again. "Well, you didn't really answer much. You misspelled most of the words. Your grammar is…horrid. But, look on the bright side, you got the alphabet right and you seem to have nailed down nouns, verbs, adverbs and adjectives."
"And…?" In truth, Inuyasha was a bit eager to earn Kagome's approval.
"And…you just have to put more of an effort in it, Inuyasha," Kagome said. She switched to English. "Don't worry; I'm sure you can get the gist of it soon. If Shippou could, then certainly you could too."
Inuyasha blinked at her. Among all the English words that Kagome had just spoken, he could only understand one word—Shippou.
XoXoXo
"Winter is drawing to a close," Lady Takeida said, sighing as she stared out at the thin sheen of falling snow. She was sitting with Helen in the pavilion in the garden. The snow had thinned out and it wasn't as cold as it used to be anymore. Spring was just around the corner.
Helen sighed as she watched Lady Takeida. The demoness was standing, looking out at the snow, a faraway look in her eyes. Helen sighed and stared, once again, at the cup of tea in front of her. It had been ages since she had last seen and talked to Sesshoumaru. Since his failed attempt to kiss her in the snow, he had been keeping his distance, not looking at her, not glancing her way, not caring…
But, really, who could blame him?
Helen could not blame him if he kept his distance, if he appeared too cold to her these days, if he appeared not to care the least about her anymore. After all, she had, miraculously, spurned him. It wasn't that she intentionally pushed him away; it wasn't that she had intentionally disappointed him. She had only—there was no other word for it—rejected his kiss, and himself, since she thought that he was only going to hurt her…
So, really, who could blame her?
She sighed. It's been ages since he's glanced my way…It's been forever since I heard his voice…
"Is something the matter, Helen?" Lady Takeida had now returned to her place in front of Helen.
Helen looked up, snapped from her thoughts. "Hm? Um…nothing. Nothing's wrong."
Lady Takeida raised her eyebrows at the young woman opposite her. She could tell that Helen was lying, that there was something bothering her. But, she knew that Helen had reasons, so she decided to let it drop.
"So, what do you plan to do when spring arrives?" Lady Takeida asked, switching the topic. "Sesshoumaru"—Helen inwardly cringed at the sound of his name—"plans to continue his search for Naraku…I presume you will accompany him?"
Helen's eyes slightly widened. Accompany him…?
"Um…I don't think I will…" she said, her voice trailing off.
Lady Takeida raised her eyebrows again. She knew that Helen and Sesshoumaru were in a bit of a rough patch at the moment and, in her opinion, getting the two of them to travel together might just smooth out those rough patches.
"Why not?" she asked. "Honestly, Helen, what is the use of asking Lord Ryou to train you if you will not make use of his teachings?"
Helen inwardly cringed. "Well…" she began. "I don't think…Se…Lord Sesshoumaru wants me to travel with him."
"Nonsense," Lady Takeida contradicted. "After all, two heads are better than one, I think."
Helen looked down at the ground. She needed something to take her mind off things, and she could only think of one thing. She looked up at Lady Takeida. "If milady will please excuse me," she began. "I have to train with Lord Ryou now."
XoXoXo
"Yield, Lord Sesshoumaru?" Once again, Ryou had struck Sesshoumaru—this time on his left shoulder. He could feel a dull ache as the bruise started forming.
Once again, Ryou had bested him.
How he hated to be bested.
"No," Sesshoumaru said, his voice close to a growl. Apart from when he was near Helen, the only other time he showed emotion was when he was sparring with Ryou. Usually, the emotion he felt when he trained with the best swordsman in all Japan was that of frustration. How many years had he been training with Ryou? Two hundred, two hundred and fifty? That long and yet he could still not defeat the more experienced dog demon. It was no wonder, then, that his late father had chosen Ryou to lead a regiment in his army.
Ryou himself assessed Sesshoumaru's stance. Sesshoumaru was close to defeating him, it was just that there was always something that held Sesshoumaru back and not even he, Ryou, could determine what it was. For the past one hundred years, he had tried to find what it was that prevented Sesshoumaru from besting him, and he had never succeeded.
"Again." Sesshoumaru's voice was firm.
Ryou nodded his head. Sesshoumaru had taken many blows already, so his perseverance impressed Ryou. A moment later, the sparring hall echoed with the sound of wooden poles clashing. The force of the clashes sent splinters of wood through the air. Both demons were so absorbed in their spar that neither noticed the tread of footsteps halting just outside the door.
XoXoXo
Helen hesitated.
From the other side of the door, she could hear the loud clashes of poles as Sesshoumaru and Ryou sparred. Should she go in? She had just wanted to train with Ryou because Ryou's exhausting sessions often made her forget her problems with Sesshoumaru…
Should she go in, go in and see him?
It had been so long since she had last seen him. She knew that he was just at the other side of this wooden door, that if she slid it open, she could see him…
Why do I love beating myself up?
She knew better than to go in, but her desire to see him was greater than her instinct for self-preservation. She rested her hand against the smooth and polished wooden door, her fingers gently caressing the wood.
She sighed and, against her better judgment, she gently slid the door open. At the sound of the door being opened, both Sesshoumaru and Ryou stopped, their heads turned in her direction. Sesshoumaru gazed at her for only a moment then, remembering that she had rejected him, he looked away.
Helen inwardly cringed. Sesshoumaru must really hate her right now.
"Lady Helen," Ryou said, dispersing the tension in the room with his respectful and friendly greeting. He gave her a slight bow which Helen returned.
"Lord Ryou," she greeted in a somewhat restrained voice. "Lord…Sesshoumaru."
Sesshoumaru's gaze snapped to her then, after a second, he looked away again. What was she doing there? He still could not forget the feeling of being rejected—and that feeling was the worst emotion he had felt in all his five hundred years of living. Despair, hurt, anger, disappointment, all rolled into one to create the feeling of rejection.
Childishly, he ignored her greeting. He had been avoiding her for the rest of winter—seeing her was like seeing something he could not have, seeing something that he desperately wanted more than anything else in his life…something that was out of his reach. And he did not like to see unobtainable things dangled in front of him.
So he ignored her.
"I am afraid you'll have to wait a few moments, milady," Ryou apologized. "I am not through with Lord Sesshoumaru yet, I fear."
Helen smiled at him. "I understand. I can wait," she said, standing in a corner. "Waiting is no biggie."
Ryou nodded then turned his attention back to Sesshoumaru. "Shall we continue, my lord?"
Helen watched as the two demons continued their spar. Could it still be called a spar? They fought each other with a kind of elegance that made Helen wonder whether or not they were sparring and not dancing. She found that her eyes strayed involuntarily to Sesshoumaru. She watched the way he fought—elegant, graceful, and at the same time, powerful. She bit her lower lip. She should leave now…now, before these temperamental emotions of hers got the better of her.
Standing up, she watched him for one more time, then turned her back on the two sparring demons and headed for the door. Just as she was about to roll it open, she became aware of a whizzing sound that cut through the air—a sound that headed towards her. She spun around just as Sesshoumaru's pole, knocked out of his grasp by Ryou, came hurtling past her, missing her face by inches and embedding itself into the wooden door, ruining the paper screen and sending splinters of wood flying around.
"Hey!" Helen cried out as she spun around. "What the heck?"
Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at her, and then looked away, an expression of cold indifference on his face. Ryou, however, looked promptly worried. "My lady!" he said, hurrying to her side. "Are you injured?"
Helen, abashed at her outburst, reddened. "Uh…no, that was nothing, really. I'm fine. I shouldn't have cried out like that."
Ryou shook his head. He eyed her from head to toe, making sure that she was alright. "I am very sorry, my lady," he said, bowing. "It was not my intention to put you in harm's way—"
"I told you, it was nothing," Helen insisted, now embarrassed.
Ryou looked up and turned to Sesshoumaru. "Forgive me, my lord," he said, bowing. "I placed her in harm's way."
Sesshoumaru turned to Ryou, his eyebrows raised coldly. "Oh? I do not see the point to your asking for my forgiveness."
"Surely, my lord, I must have caused you some distress—"
"Distress?" Sesshoumaru's voice was like cold acid. "Why should I be distressed at seeing her injured? I could care less."
A sharp pang of pain seared through Helen. Her eyes slightly widened. Sesshoumaru…how cold he truly was!
"My lord?" Ryou asked, thinking that he had misheard Sesshoumaru.
"I could care less," Sesshoumaru said again. His gaze rested on Helen for a second and then flickered elsewhere.
"My lord—"
"Really, Ryou," Helen said, snapping out of her stupor. She battled down the wave of hurt that Sesshoumaru so easily inflicted. "Lord Sesshoumaru could care less."
Ryou's stance, which had been worried and apologetic before, now became cold and analytical. He glanced at Helen and then at Sesshoumaru, a shrewd look in his eyes.
"My lady, you will have to forgive me yet again, I'm afraid." Before Helen could ask what Ryou meant, the demon put his palms together and drew them apart to reveal a scarlet ribbon that had materialized out of nowhere. It twisted in the air and, before anyone could stop it, it snaked towards Helen with lightning speed—and wound itself tightly around her throat.
"Ryou!" Helen gasped, her fingers at her throat.
At the sound of her distress, Sesshoumaru automatically turned around. "What is the meaning of this?" he snarled, flexing his claws. How could Ryou…?
"I have a little theory I would like to try," Ryou said simply, as though he was about to shrug. "Now, Lord Sesshoumaru, here's what we shall do. You must defeat me—knock the pole out of my hands—otherwise, I am afraid that I shall kill this young woman."
"Kill her, and I'll kill you," Sesshoumaru snapped.
Helen looked at him, her hands at her throat, instinctively trying to pry the ribbon from her neck. Did he…could he…care about her, after all his silence, all his indifference?
"Oh?" Ryou asked, his eye brows raised in amusement. "Kill me if you will, but all the same—I shall still kill her…That ribbon will not only choke her to death, my lord, but it will burn her in such a way that I am certain that your Tenseiga can do nothing for her." He discussed all this as though he was merely discussing the weather.
Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes, the overwhelming instinct to protect her, to save her from danger, overcoming everything else. "Release her," he said coldly.
Ryou shook his head. "Defeat me first." He glanced at Helen and the ribbon tightened around her neck. Helen's eyes widened and she gasped. "Otherwise she will die."
The ribbon was tight around her throat. She could barely breathe. She felt herself slump against the wall, panting.
"Release her!" Sesshoumaru snarled, charging towards Ryou.
Ryou merely jumped out of the way. "I told you, my lord, you must defeat me." He landed right next to the ruined door and pulled out the pole embedded in it. He threw it at Sesshoumaru, who effortlessly caught it. "Defeat me and she lives. Fail to do so, and she dies."
Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes at him, then glanced at Helen. She was looking at him with a look in her eyes—it was not fear, nor desperation to be free of the ribbon, nor was it a plea to be saved. It was…relief—relief that knowing that he, Sesshoumaru, would help her.
Sesshoumaru turned his gaze back to Ryou. Ryou could not be serious, could he? What he was doing—threatening Helen's life—already cost him his own. To kill Helen…
"You cannot be serious," Sesshoumaru said, his face loosing its fierce look and regaining its cold mask.
"But I am."
Helen gasped again as the ribbon tightened slightly.
Sesshoumaru glared at Ryou, then, wordlessly, he charged at him. Ryou easily sidestepped Sesshoumaru and struck him on the side. Sesshoumaru cringed slightly. He jumped into the air and landed behind Ryou. He was swung the wooden sword at Ryou's back, but Ryou pivoted gracefully on his feet and parried the blow. Their poles clashed, their noise echoing around the hall. Sesshoumaru pulled away from Ryou and jumped into the air, at the same time, bringing his sword down on Ryou's head. Ryou easily parried the blow in a bored manner.
"Truly, Lord Sesshoumaru, do you wish for her to die?" Ryou asked. He glanced at Helen. Helen cried out as the ribbon tightened, nearly cutting off her air. She slumped down the wall and onto the floor, her back against the wall, her breathing shallow.
Sesshoumaru did not reply. He glanced at Helen. Seeing her dying…seeing her in danger seemed to have awoken something in him. 'Protect' no longer seemed like a mere word—it had become who he was.
The youkai lord charged towards Ryou with renewed vigor. As Ryou charged towards him, he struck not Ryou's weapon, but his hand. Ryou jerked back violently and Sesshoumaru thrust the pole towards his chest. Ryou flew back and into the wall, his pole knocked out of his hand. Ryou hit the wall with a loud crash, sending wood flying everywhere. He fell to his knees, his hand on the sore spot on his chest.
Sesshoumaru looked down at him. He had done it. He had managed to defeat the greatest swordsman in all Japan…
Ryou suddenly laughed. "Well done, Lord Sesshoumaru."
Sesshoumaru, however, did not seem to care about defeating Ryou. "Release her," he commanded, his tone sharp.
Ryou glanced at Helen and the ribbon around her throat dissolved into smoke. Helen gasped as soon as she could breathe, inhaling lungfuls of air. She kept a hand on her throat, which felt bruised beneath her fingertips.
"Leave," she heard Sesshoumaru say to Ryou. "I shall deal with you later."
Ryou bowed and left the room. Sesshoumaru turned his attention to Helen, who was still sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall, a hand on her throat. He inwardly sighed. She's alright…
He approached her and knelt in front of her, his cold eyes boring into her own. "Are you injured?" he asked.
Helen, recalling his cold words earlier, did not feel grateful. Instead, she seemed incensed. "Why should you care whether or not I'm hurt?" she snapped, her hand still rubbing her throat. "You could care less, remember?"
Sesshoumaru seemed taken aback. Admittedly, he never really meant those words…
"Inu baka," she muttered, lowering her eyes to the floor.
He stared at her. "You think I could care less?" he inquired. Suddenly, he placed both his hands on the wall, on either side of her head. Her eyes widened. Great…she was trapped. "You think that I did not worry?" Strange—he was actually showing some emotion after all these days of iciness.
"Why would you worry?" Helen asked. "I was just a thorn in your side, remember? A hindrance…to your relationship with…Kagura…before. Why would you worry?" Her voice was now laced with hurt.
Sesshoumaru was silent for a moment, his gaze still on her. Helen's eyes remained glued to the floor. Sesshoumaru sighed. Really…staying away from her had done nothing to curb his feelings for her…
He was fed up. He was fed up with trying to stay away from her, fed up with hurting her in hopes of ridding himself of his feelings, fed up with lying and saying that he didn't care…
"Helen."
She ignored him and continued looking at the floor, as though enamored by it.
"Look at me."
She stared at the floor. A part of her wanted to meet his gaze, but she bravely fought it.
"Now."
There was such a note of command in his cold tone that Helen looked hesitantly up at him. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. His eyes, unlike his voice, were warm and…gentle? They were smoldering as he looked at her. She blushed at the intense look in his golden orbs; she felt her heart thud faster in her chest.
"Never think that I could care less," he murmured.
"I thought…you…didn't want me around," she muttered, her voice faint, almost like a whisper.
"You're wrong."
His eyes seemed to grow bigger and Helen realized that he was leaning in towards her again. She blushed crimson and tried backing off but, between his arms on either side of her head and the wall, she was trapped. Her heart pounded painfully against her ribs as he drew closer. She could feel the warmth of his breath against her lips; she could feel the very heat from his body.
"Helen," he murmured her name, and his lips brushed ever so lightly against her own.
"Sesshoumaru!" The door to the room unexpectedly slid open and Lady Takeida walked in. "Sesshou—oh!" She took one look at Helen and her son, her eyebrows raised in surprise. Sesshoumaru and Helen both turned to her. Sesshoumaru with annoyance written all over his face, while Helen with embarrassment all over hers.
Lady Takeida stared at them for a second. "My apologies," she said, hastily stepping back out the door. "Ryou will have to wait. Do continue." With that, she slid the door closed.
Sesshoumaru stared at Helen and she stared back at him, her face covered in red. He stared intently at her and then he stood up. He inwardly berated his mother for ruining the moment. He looked down at her. "Are you…injured?" Really, what else could he say?
Helen sweat-dropped. "No," she said flatly as she stood up. "Just…disappointed."
He raised his eyebrows at her, surprised. She smiled at him then walked past him, towards the door. "Thank you, though, for saving me," she said, still smiling as she slid the door open and walked out.
Sesshoumaru stared after her as two thoughts brushed across his mind…
One, she had, unintentionally, managed to make his heart race—something that had never happened before…
Two…he had to make her his…
Soon.
But how soon was soon?
XoXoXo
Winter had finally ceded its throne over to spring. The buds peeked shyly from the branches of the trees and snow dripped from the icicles that clung to the eaves of the roofs of the huts in Kaede's village. The little stream that ran in front of Kaede's hut would soon thaw out. Already, the men were clearing the ground of snow, impatient for it to melt of its own accord. Despite the onset of spring, it was still quite chilly.
It was the lingering cold in the air that Kagome and Inuyasha were arguing about.
"Are you crazy?!" Kagome roared at Inuyasha. Both of them were arguing just outside of Kaede's hut, on the tiny bridge that traversed the still-frozen stream. "We can't look for Naraku yet—it's still cold!"
"Winter's gone, spring's here, no more delays!" Inuyasha half-roared.
"Do you want us to get sick or something?" Kagome snapped, planting her hands firmly against her hips. "Why don't you just give it a few more weeks, or days? By then, I'm sure it'll be warm enough for us to travel!"
"We haven't got a few weeks or days!" Inuyasha now released the full power of his vocal chords. "We've wasted months waiting for winter to end!"
That much was quite true, Kagome decided. "Fine…just a few more days!"
"We don't have a few more days!" Inuyasha firmly shouted. "I'm sure Naraku's on the move now plotting something behind our back…And with us being unable to detect neither his scent nor aura, we should get a move on!"
"One more day, then!" Kagome tried desperately to reason with Inuyasha.
"No!" Inuyasha said. "Why do you think we all agreed to learn your English, hm? So we could use it against Naraku! What's the use of that if we do nothing but laze around all the time?"
"Inuyasha." Miroku came out of Kaede's hut to help Kagome. "Kagome is right…One or two more days won't hurt…If possible, a week at the most, to give the cold time to dissipate. After all, if we get sick from the cold, it'll be an even longer delay, don't you think so?"
"Bah!"
"Miroku is right." Sango had joined in. "Inuyasha, it's still quite cold. You may be able to tolerate it, since you're immortal, but as mortals we aren't as immune to it. We could get easily sick!"
"Humans…" Inuyasha muttered in a low voice. He looked up at Kagome.
"Please?" the priestess begged, placing her hands together in supplication.
"Three days!" the hanyou roared, finally caving in. "Three days! No more, no less!"
Kagome beamed at him. "Oh and…when we do travel again," she began tentatively. "Do you think…we could…see Helen?"
"Oh yeah," Inuyasha said sarcastically, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms. "We could do that…we could even visit Miroku's Master Mushin and Sango's village…why, we could even visit my old man's grave!"
Kagome inwardly sighed. Inuyasha had given more than what he normally would have. She'd ask him later then—after his temper simmered down.
XoXoXo
Kagura hesitated.
She stopped right outside the door that led to the room where Naraku would be sitting in the dark, plotting as always. She still had a chance to turn away from it all—a true chance to be free. Free of Naraku, free of the worry, free of her thirst for revenge…
She had a chance to just be free.
Would she really like to ruin that chance? She knew that once you made a deal with Naraku, Naraku would twist that deal to her disadvantage, as he had done so with many others…She could end up serving him again, she could end up being imprisoned, or worse, he could take her heart away…
Take away her freedom…
Did she really want that? Would she really risk what she had longed for just for the sake of revenge? She had wanted freedom so badly—she had wanted it even more than she had wanted Sesshoumaru…
Could she really risk it?
Before she could prolong her internal debate, the door to the room suddenly slid open to reveal Kanna standing there, looking up at her with dark, blank eyes.
"Kagura," she said, her tone emotionless. "Naraku bids you enter."
Kagura hid her hesitance as she strode into the room with what she hoped was her confident gait. The room was dim—lit only with a single brazier—and sparsely furnished. In front of her hung a bamboo screen and through the gaps in the screen, she could make out the figure of Naraku, leaning against the wall, his eyes closed. Though, in the dimness, Kagura couldn't be sure.
"Naraku," Kanna called.
The screen was suddenly blown aside as though in a breeze. "Why do you hesitate so, Kagura?" Naraku chided.
Kagura composed herself and stepped through the wooden screen, brushing it aside with her left hand while her right hand grasped her fan. Once she had crossed over, she observed that this half of the room was more richly furnished than the other half.
Naraku leaned lazily against the wall, his ruby eyes studying her. "Well, sit down."
Kagura hesitated for a second, then knelt down in front of him. "Winter has passed," she began, her eyes on the floor. "Spring has arrived—it's time for you to fulfill your promise."
"Indeed." Naraku stared at her again in way that she found disconcerting. "But, surely, you realize that you will do most of the work?"
Kagura raised her eyebrows at him, surprised. "What?"
"Surely, you do not expect me to dispatch Helen and Sesshoumaru for you?" Naraku sounded humored. "I am merely going to give you the tools you need to finish them off."
Kagura narrowed her eyes. The bastard! He wanted her to kill them both with her own hands! She could not…She could easily kill Helen without a second thought…but Sesshoumaru…? Naraku continued to stare at her, amused. How I hate him, she thought viciously. I hate him so much; it just might be possible my hatred for him can surpass my hatred for Helen!
She did not show him her warring conflicts. "What do you mean by you will give me the tools I need?"
Naraku tilted his head and looked behind her. Kagura glanced over her shoulder just as Kanna came into view, holding a slim rectangular box in her hands.
"Take it," Naraku said.
Kagura opened the box and drew out a dark colored fan by its mother of pearl handle. She flicked it open and stared at the design. On one side of the fan was depicted a black dragon, flying through white clouds; on the other side, the dragon was gone and only the pearly white clouds could be seen.
"Another fan?"
"Not just 'another fan'," Naraku said. "This one is…special. It can project barriers…and, most importantly"—a malicious look came into his eyes—"Illusory death."
Kagura's eyebrows shot up in surprise. Illusory death? What kind of power had he given her? More importantly, what did Naraku want in exchange for such a weapon?
As though he read her thoughts—which he probably did—Naraku chuckled. "Kill them. That is all."
XoXoXo
"Finally, back out in the open!" Jaken rejoiced, stretching his arms above his head.
It had been three days now since Sesshoumaru decided to leave the palace and resume his search for Naraku. Sesshoumaru was walking ahead while Helen strayed behind with Rin. It had been three days since Lady Shinsuke—who had been told by Lady Takeida about Sesshoumaru and Helen—delightedly gave Helen her permission to continue traveling with Sesshoumaru in order to find Naraku.
"You look preoccupied, Helen-san," Rin remarked. Rin was riding on Ah-Un, who was walking beside Helen.
Helen sighed and pretended to wrap her sweater tighter around her. She still refused to wear a kimono. She smiled at Rin. "I'm just…thinking." Admittedly, she couldn't stop thinking about the half-kiss Sesshoumaru had given her. She let out a sigh. Well, he certainly didn't avoid her after that, but that wasn't what she was thinking about.
Helen, in truth, was thinking why he hadn't made his move yet. Just because he kissed her (and it was barely even a kiss) didn't mean that they were together…did it? She didn't know. She was too shy to ask, too shy to be a bit more assertive.
Her gaze strayed to the trees where tiny icicles of melting ice clung to their branches. She looked at Rin. "Rin, are you cold?"
Rin shook her head. A lie. Helen gave her a knowing smile. She went closer to Ah-Un and began rummaging through her backpack that Rin kept beside her on the two-headed dragon. She drew out a fiery orange sweater.
"Here," she said, handing it to Rin. "Wear it…It should keep you warm."
Rin nodded her head in thanks. Helen smiled at her and, uncharacteristically, her gaze strayed to Sesshoumaru. The youkai lord was still walking ahead, but he was glancing slightly behind him. Staring at her, Helen realized. She blushed and bent her head.
Jaken had observed Helen's behavior and automatically linked it to his lord, whose gaze had now returned to the path they were traveling. He had served Sesshoumaru for a very long time, so he was not blind when it came to his lord's emotions. And he could tell—from the way his lord acted these days—that Sesshoumaru was…taken with the young woman traveling with them. But, unlike most young lords, he hadn't 'officially' made her his, which was good in Jaken's opinion—he didn't want his lord to be burdened or weakened in the same way as his father or half-breed half-brother.
Not that he had anything against Helen, of course. Helen was perfectly fine. It was just that, of late, she easily distracted Sesshoumaru…
And Sesshoumaru was not one who could easily be distracted.
From behind him, he heard Rin sneeze. Just great, Rin was going to catch a cold, no doubt.
"Rin?" Helen asked. She tugged on Ah-Un's reigns in order to stop him. The dragon promptly halted. "Are you alright?"
"Yes, Helen-san," Rin said. She sneezed again. "It's just a little sneeze, that's all."
Helen placed a hand on her forehead. "You feel a little hot," she said. She lowered her hand. "Sesshoumaru, do you think we could stop and rest a bit? Rin feels a little hot."
Sesshoumaru automatically stopped in his tracks and glanced behind her from over his shoulder. "Do as you wish," he said. His tone held not trace of coldness in it.
Helen smiled at him. "Thank you."
XoXoXo
"You're still a bit hot," Helen muttered, placing a hand on Rin's forehead. It had been several hours since they had decided to stop. Jaken had a fire going in the middle of the camp, Rin was lying against Ah-Un, a thick blanket wrapped snugly around her, and Helen knelt in front of Rin.
"I'm okay, Helen-san," Rin lied. "Honestly…I'm fine. We should get going now, before Lord Sesshoumaru gets mad."
"Nonsense," Helen said. "He won't get mad…and besides, he's not here."
"Eh?" Rin said. "Why, where is he?"
Helen shrugged. She, too, wondered where Sesshoumaru had vanished off to. She couldn't smell him anywhere close by and she couldn't sense him either.
"He'll be back soon enough," Rin said slyly, easily reading the look on Helen's face which was one of worry. "He won't want to be far away from you."
"Aren't you a little too young to know about such matters?" Helen raised her eyebrow at Rin who shrugged innocently up at her. Helen sighed. Rin's question had her thinking. Were she and Sesshoumaru together? Did he think they were together…? She let out another long sigh, her thoughts wondering.
Rin sneezed again, politely turning away from Helen as she did so. Helen was snapped out of her thoughts. She stood up. "Jaken, could you please stay with Rin for a bit?" she asked.
"Huh?" Jaken asked, his eyes widening.
"I'm gonna go and try to find some herbs for Rin," Helen said. "They taught me at the palace. I know it's a bit too cold for herbs, but I'll try to find some. And if I can't find some, then I'll just have to go to Kaede's."
"H-hey!" Jaken shouted as Helen ran off. "Wait! Shouldn't you ask Lord Sesshoumaru first?"
XoXoXo
Sesshoumaru sighed as he leaned his back against the cold woodiness of the tree. He had left Helen and the others behind hours ago in order to pull his thoughts together. This was strange for him. He never needed to pull his thoughts together—never. But, then again, it was also strange of him to be confused about Helen.
He closed his eyes. He didn't know how to…proceed with her anymore. He had kissed her, but you couldn't even consider it a kiss, could you? How was he going to…tell her that he…wanted her? It was this part about which he was still most confused. It was, he admitted, embarrassing for him to be confused about this. He didn't know how to tell her, didn't know how to proceed. He couldn't be…as assertive as he was with other matters. It was during times like these that he regretted his father's demise. At least the old man could've given him some advice.
-Idiot. Just tell her, won't you? So we can get this whole thing over with.
The little voice in his head was back.
I am not certain how to proceed… This time, he was not fighting the annoying voice in his head anymore.
-What do you mean that you are not certain how to proceed? Are you telling me that you, Lord Sesshoumaru, Great Demon Lord of the Western Lands, is afraid to tell a woman that you want her?
…
-You're being pathetic.
Silence.
He shut off the mental voice in his head. He was about to turn back to their camp, when a familiar scent reached his nose. He stopped in his tracks.
Helen.
She was running away from the camp. Where was she going? Was she, perhaps, looking for him? Strange, that thought actually pleased him.
But he knew that Helen was just too…shy to do that.
He darted off after her.
XoXoXo
Helen ran through the forest. The cold air rushed passed her and, to her relief, it didn't bother her. She had scoured the forest for herbs and couldn't find them, the forest floor still being covered in a thin layer of frost, so she had decided to race to Kaede's village.
Kaede's village…
Would she bump into Kagome there? If she did, would her human cousin recognize her? Or would Kagome think Helen was an enemy now that she was a demoness?
The last thought made Helen's stomach squirm. Since becoming a demoness, she hadn't really remembered Kagome. But now that she was on her way to Kaede's village, she had to think about Kagome. But not just Kagome. She also thought about what Inuyasha and the others would say. Would they still see the old Helen? Or would they see a cold-hearted killer, like Sesshoumaru?
Helen immediately banished that thought from her mind. Sesshoumaru was not a cold-hearted killer…anymore. But would Kagome and the rest see her as one? Would their friendship and trust turn to bitter hatred?
She sighed and continued to run on. Up ahead, she could make out light filtering through the gap in the trees. I guess I'll know what they think of me when I see them, she thought as she continued to run on. She burst through the gap in the trees and skidded to a halt, nearly slipping on the icy ground.
She suddenly couldn't see. Her vision had been completely hampered by a thick veil of fog. Where did this fog come from? She thought as she tried to brush it aside with her hand. She cautiously continued to walk on, afraid to run lest she might encounter a hidden obstacle.
It's so dark, she thought. The fog was just too thick, completely obscuring her vision and blocking out the light from the not-too-bright sun.
She suddenly heard laughter.
It was not a high, mocking laugh, a laugh that Naraku might possess—it was a laughter filled with joy. A child's laugh. Through the fog, she could make out a figure darting about. "Hello?" Helen called out. "Is anyone there?"
No answer, only the high, trilling laugh of the unknown child. Helen reached out with her senses and heard the patter of little feet running around her. She felt her blood freeze in her veins. She may have been a demoness, but, aside from being weaponless, she had spent most of her life as a human—fear was a life long habit.
"Is anyone there?" she called out again.
Laughter again.
Helen clenched her fists. She followed the sound of the childish laughter. Followed it through a grove of trees, followed it through clumps of bushes…
Followed it into a bright and beautiful garden.
Helen blinked and stopped in her tracks. Where was she? Wasn't she just surrounded by a thick veil of fog seconds ago? Hadn't her vision been obscured by a thick veil of white?
Now, the fog was gone. She could see the garden she was in and, with a jolt, she realized that she was in the garden in Sesshoumaru's palace. How did I get here? Helen thought as she made her way through the manicured garden, passing underneath the shade of the Sakura trees. Had she, perhaps, taken a route to the west?
Laughter again.
Helen looked ahead. There, on the path, was the little child…a little girl. The girl looked around seven or six in human years. She had bright silvery hair that cascaded down her back, all the way to her little waist. She had stunning ruby eyes and a crescent moon on her forehead. She wore a brilliant blue kimono with dragons stitched from the hem to the waist and tied with a silver obi.
The little girl was laughing, and running through the garden. Who is she? Helen thought as she followed the girl. I don't recall seeing her in the West before…
She followed the child from a distance. Perhaps this girl was the child of a visiting nobleman?
"Mother!" the child called out, running to a figure in the distance.
Helen looked ahead…and stopped in her tracks.
The figure standing under the shade of trees was a woman. She had long black hair that tumbled to her back in silken waves. She had dazzling ruby eyes and skin as white as marble. There was a smile on her roseate lips as the child—her daughter—ran to her to be enveloped lovingly in her slender arms.
The woman was Kagura.
Helen stopped in her tracks. Kagura?!
Helen was so struck with disbelief that she couldn't move. She could only continue to watch. She watched as Kagura lifted the child into her arms. The little girl gave a wild shriek of joy.
"Mother!" the little girl cried out joyfully.
Kagura kissed the top of her child's head. The little girl giggled happily, then turned her gaze behind Kagura, at another figure approaching. The smile on her face broadened even further.
"Father!" she cried out.
Helen's heart leapt as a man emerged from the grove of trees. A man to whom Kagura turned to with a smile on her face and love in her eyes…
Sesshoumaru…
"Dearest," Kagura murmured as Sesshoumaru approached her.
"Father!" the little girl in Kagura's arms cried out.
Sesshoumaru placed a hand on his daughter's head and gave her a fond smile and then he turned to Kagura and kissed her gently on her lips…
No…Helen thought as she slowly backed away from the scene. She couldn't feel anything anymore. She was too numb with disbelief and hurt and hopelessness. She took several steps back again as Seshoumaru took the child gently from Kagura's arms.
No way… Helen felt her heart being ripped apart, torn slowly, piece by piece, the pain clawing in her chest…
"I love you," Kagura murmured as Sesshoumaru kissed her again and their child giggled.
"As do I," Sesshoumaru murmured. "Forever."
NO!
XoXoXo
A1969: finally, I can update!
Miroku:-sigh-tardy as usual.
Sango: it's a trait, I'm afraid.
A1969: sorry about that…Anyway, thanks for the reviews everyone! Please review! Kay? Please? Think of it as…an early Christmas gift!
Sango:-rolls eyes-she'll do anything for reviews.
Miroku: so, please review!