Politeness dictated he waited till it was no longer an ungodly hour to visit the shrine the Higurashi's tended to. And so eight o'clock and not a minute later found Shinobu at the front door of the Higurashi household, and not for the first time he found the front door opened before he could even knock.
Only this time it wasn't Kagome, but the Higurashi matriarch.
"Shinobu! I'm so glad you're here!" Her words and the obvious relief she was feeling at seeing him were beyond unexpected. However she didn't wait for him to respond as she ushered him in. Both her tone of voice and her manner setting him on edge. "Please, something… something is wrong with Kagome, something happened during her last trip to the past. She won't speak or eat; she won't let us help her." The pain reflected in her eyes had nothing on the pain twisting his heart.
"Is she hurt?" He asked hesitantly as he followed her quick hurried pace with his long strides.
"Physically? No, a few scratches on her, but no more than usual." She replied worriedly leading him up the stairs. She stopped outside Kagome's bedroom door before turning to him. "Please maybe she'll confide in you." She sounded so pleading.