Chapter Forty-Three: Doubts and Admissions

On the plains of hesitation bleach the bones of countless millions who, on the dawn of victory, stopped to rest and resting died.

-Omar Kayam

"Ow..." Kagome complained as she rubbed her arm, the part of her that had broken the short fall. It was sure to bruise later.

She blinked a little in the light as if not expecting how far into the day she had gotten, it was close to noon judging by the sun. Though in answer to her concerns one of her usual attending girls burst into her room with a worried expression.

"Lady Kagome...are you okay?" She moved right over to help the priestess untangle herself. Kagome had gotten used to her attending lady-in-waiting calling her by title. Of sorts anyway, the high school girl guessed that was the right title, it sounded better than servant. "They were getting ready to bring you breakfast in."

"It's almost noon." Kagome felt a little stupid for saying it so bluntly but she was still a bit groggy now that she'd realized the dream was just that.

"Yes." The girl agreed with a small smile, covering her lips with one of her sleeves so it wouldn't be too rude. "Lord Kuchiki asked us to let you rest when he woke for work. Because of the party yesterday evening, was it wonderful?"

"It was okay..." Kagome managed awkwardly at the starry look the girl gave her. "I was too nervous to really enjoy anything."

"Oh I guess that would be true." She jumped a little and then started moving Kagome toward the connecting room where she would be dressed by her two attendants. "Did you really meet the Prince though?"

"Yeah, he seemed um...like a stand up guy." Kagome blushed some as she was reminded of the handsome royal she'd met the night before. The kiss and what it meant also going through her mind, she suddenly wasn't as certain as she'd been the day before.

"You didn't shiver or anything? Really?" Iisha, the second of the girls that often helped her and Mitama's younger sister. "That's so neat."

Kagome couldn't help but smile a little, the two were always nice to her really, though their desire to be nobles themselves seemed a little uneducated she knew they meant well. "And what girl doesn't dream about being a princess? Except for me...I'm afraid of this whole thing. I think I'm kidding myself if I could ever be as graceful or gorgeous as Byakuya...I'll seem like such a sore next to him."

"I guess he did make her a little nervous." Mitama observed at Kagome's quiet.

"Or cause he's so beautiful." Iisha replied with a much more starry eyed expression than her older sister, it was easy to see where she'd gotten the obsession. "Even if he wasn't a royal with a face like that I don't think I could be brave enough to talk to him."

Mitama began to brush through her hair as Iisha checked over her hands and feet before beginning to get her socks on. Kagome had gotten used to it mostly in the past weeks, though it was normally lit by candles in the morning when she dressed, the time change was a little odd.

Kagome wasn't in a chatty mood though, it was a sobering experience to wake up as she had. She had never dreamed too much and usually it was so strange she couldn't remember or make sense of anything, this time it had been frighteningly clear.

"Just a nightmare." She reminded herself, closing her eyes and trying not to wince as Mitama's brush found a knot and started to fix it without much care for her pain. "That's normal before marriage right? Like a bizarre subconscious version of cold feet?"

"Kagome?" It was the second time the younger girl had repeated the name. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Kagome answered. "I had a nightmare and now Mitama is trying to pull the skin of my skull off, but other than that I'm great."

"You should roll around less in your sleep." Mitama huffed at the insult to her gentle nature, pulling a little more carefully at the tangles after that. Iisha giggled.

"The prince must like you though Kagome." Iisha continued, a glaze coming to her brown eyes whenever she mentioned the royal. "Word's already spread he's allowing the marriage to happen in the mortal world."

"Is that...odd?" Kagome asked, wishing they'd start on her make up sooner so she wouldn't turn various shades of red for them.

"Well it's never happened before." Mitama answered as Iisha moved to get the make up kit and get started. "At least not in our lifetimes, male royals don't visit the mortal world. Their powers disrupt the world around them too easily."

"Oh." She nodded a little at that. It made sense considering all the power she felt from him with him holding it in. "But, he isn't going to go...is he?"

"He needs to observe somehow." Iisha butted back in as it was her conversation first. "All noble marriages require the acceptance of one of the royal family. Even if they merely watch from a distance."

"That's...a strange tradition." Kagome commented, frowning a little as her dream nagged at her some more. "Isn't there a way to watch from here?"

"Yeah I think so." Iisha admitted as she suddenly frowned. "You are right though, that's probably what he'll do."

"You'd just fall over if you did meet him Iisha. Shivering in fear." Mitama sighed as she reminded her sibling of that fact.

"It'd be -so- worth it." The younger girl passed off the make up job and hopped away cheerily to get a kimono for the day. "I'd never shiver with more giddy dread."

Mitama rolled her eyes to Kagome and the priestess did smile a little. "Kids and their poetic hearts."

"You are only twenty years older than me Mitama!" Iisha stuck her tongue out at the girl as she returned with a long wide box. "Not my fault you are a such a stick in the mud."

Kagome blinked at them, they were both much older than she was...she closed her mouth though shortly, she had to keep composure for her make up to get applied right. "Well, I guess it makes sense, they're all spirits...but Iisha looks like she couldn't be much younger than me. What's going to happen to me once I choose to live here? Will I age and die the same as if I was still in my world?"

She was realizing there was still so much she didn't know, and she had so little time to learn things...wasting it sleeping in. She needed to speak with Byakuya, there was so much they both needed to know about each other...her butterflies were waking up even as her stomach growled.

"Byakuya was going to meet you for a late lunch. Good thing." Mitama said with a smirk, moving her to get her into the kimono and starting to tie it. "You should head over to his office. I think we're good with you for now."

"Not full make up?" Kagome blinked as they never had applied the white layer of make up that she actually liked to have for covering her blushes.

"Naw. That is usually just for formal stuff." Iisha answered this time, smiling. "Who would wanna wear that muck everyday anyway? It's icky."

"Oh, okay then." Kagome answered slowly again, the day wasn't going well. "Thanks guys."

She shuffled toward Byakuya's office, the kimono today wasn't as formal as usual so she could have taken wider steps but she wasn't even sure where to begin and without the make up she'd gotten accustomed to covering her easily embarrassed cheeks with... She felt like a soldier going into war without her war paint.

It didn't help that when she got there he was sitting at his desk. The image of a perfect noble, everything about him was just pristine, frustratingly flawless. The lack of her usual mask made her feel more mundane next to his beauty. He noticed her before she'd announced herself, catching her staring and setting off her blushing early.

"Good to see you awake." He greeted, thankfully not leaving those gorgeous ashen eyes on her for too long. "Lunch should be ready soon, I had it prepared in the gardens...it is a little chilly but very nice for a winter day. The last in a while we would be able to eat outside."

"Oh." Kagome nodded. "I um...want me to wait there then?"

"Yes." He was still quite proper, he never seemed like he would change and she did smile a little at that. She didn't want him to change.

"Okay." She nodded and bowed a little before heading back the way she'd come.

"So things might not be that bad." She admitted to herself as she moved toward the gardens. It was nice for winter and the long sleeves of the kimono kept her warm expect for her face. "At least I can blame the cold for my cheeks being red."

The gardens had lost most of the leaves they'd had when she first arrived, the autumn changing to winter. The pools had no fish she could see though the water still sparkled and flowed between the shimmering white snows to either side of it. It held a forlorn and hopeful beauty, in the spring it had to be downright amazing.

She could smell the food they were setting out at the single table and moved to the area where it was being arranged, gesturing for the people to continue when they paused to bow to her. "I don't think I'll ever get used to that." I suppose eventually I'll have to, I can't just tell them not to, Byakuya wouldn't allow it. He's too entrenched in having correct manners for people of station.

""Lady Kagome, may I?" One of the bolder of the boys had pulled her chair out and she smiled bashfully before taking the seat very carefully, it was always awkward when people did that as well. "I guess I'm in for a life of being somewhat uncomfortable all the time at this rate."

"Don't know what he did to get stuck with a girl that can't even cast a proper lighting spell. Better him than some though." Kagome blinked as she turned around, a couple of guys in uniforms were passing nearby. She recognized one as Byakuya's lieutenant and the other was an amazingly bald man with a sour expression.

Then the bald man got elbowed harshly in the ribs and she would assume the red haired guy, Renji, was hushing him. She looked back at the table and frowned again. "Here I'm worried about myself. He's right, Byakuya got the short end of the stick on this deal."

"This is a bad day. I have horrible timing." She sulked, wishing she hadn't overheard the conversation. "I wonder if they all sit and lament his sad situation? Stuck with a talentless, average, unlucky girl. I can't even use my priestess powers to any ability when I want to, they just occasionally flare and drain all my energy."

"Are you not feeling well?" Byakuya interrupted her angst fest. "We can move things inside."

"No, I'm good." Kagome answered with a smile. "Just nervous I guess."

It wasn't a complete lie.

"One week." Byakuya said, as forward as ever he was. "That is the time that the Prince has alloted to us."

"But..." Kagome blinked a little. "There's so much to do. I thought if it was in the mortal world we would have more time?"

"Yes, but the Prince is a fickle soul. I believe he finds it amusing to make people rush." Byakuya agreed. "Which will put another delay on any sort of full training. I apologize, but we will be returning to your world with a small compliment of guards tomorrow. A place has been provided but much of the rest will still need to be planned. Some of the guards will be willing to assist you in that matter."

"But...tomorrow? We can't leave...now?" Kagome's concerns were replaced instantly by the strain of time...how was she suppose to get everything ready in just 6...no really only 5 days!?

"I hate that pretty gold bastard." Kagome muttered, not noting the moment of amusement that flickered over Byakuya's face at her admission. It was cleared by the time she continued her rant. "I hate him. I can't believe he forces this on us, then tells me I only have a week to plan it! That...that!?"

End Chapter

Short, simple, pissing Kagome off. I'm good at making her angry.

-Aura

To my reviewers:

Nasuki and TH - Yes the dream has meaning, no she doesn't realize it yet.

Many - I do like my Prince char. Even if he's a little evil...I like the villainous sorts.

Engel - Heh Aizen is a slightly gayer version of Naraku but yeah I guess.

Lovelywitch - Hehe, he is a powerhouse.