KAWAAKARI

"The river that glows amidst the darkness"

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Part I

Chapter VIII

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Kagome?

InuYasha had perceived the presence of another, one he didn't pay much attention to, given the many worthless humans he was surrounded by. Kagome observed the direction from which her name had been called. The hands that once had brushed each other, were now being separated, and InuYasha began to harbor an intense annoyance from losing her attention.

"Hojō," she replied, with a certain surprise InuYasha noted immediately. He kept a hermetic silence, as his own instinct flared hot.

"We did not know where you were," the young-man approached them, then glanced ever so briefly in InuYasha's direction, who's gaze was fixed on him.

The human was average, nor weak, nor strong, really. A hand would be enough to strangle him to death.

"Well, you have found me; here, taking some fresh air," Kagome seemed more inclined to minimize the moment, yet her features hardened in such a subtle way, only non-human eyes could note it; hence, InuYasha did. He could even perceive the change in her breathing.

"And you are in company of someone." Hojō looked at InuYasha once again, yet this time, held his gaze.

Yes, just one hand would be enough.

"Yes, I am; by Mr. Taisho," Kagome introduced, as naturally as she was able to, given she had never mentioned InuYasha to her friends.

"Mr. Taisho," Hojō repeated, giving him a small, courteous bow.

InuYasha's answer came a moment late, however, one he gave with a brief bow of his head, something that caught Kagome's attention, for the depth of one bow usually spoke of the respect one held for the other person. She let the thought go, stored somewhere inside her mind; his action could be considered normal, she presumed, given both men did not know each other.

"He is Seijitsu Hojō," Kagome finished introducing them.

"I had not seen you in the city before, Could you be related to the Taisho, residing in Agatsu palace, perhaps?" The question was made politely, yet no amount of courtesy could hide the contempt laying underneath.

InuYasha wasn't one to give answers readily, much less to a human who, aside from simple, made him feel particularly annoyed; so much, he would not find it bothersome to go out hunting one of these nights, and help him disappear. However, he kept such thoughts hidden; he wanted to earn Kagome's trust, one she may not be willing to give if he wasn't able to hold a conversation with her peers, even if superficial.

"Indeed, I have family there," his answer was simple, and just long enough to not be completely rude.

Hojō nodded, slowly, then addressed Kagome again, "Eri and Ayumi were asking about you. They wanted to know if you have filled all slots in your dance card." His words were spoken freely, skipping the usual formalities.

Kagome's attention seemed to be fully on the man, something that tempted InuYasha to attract her thoughts to him, with his own. Humans were easily influenced, usually, yet the girl seemed to have impenetrable barriers around her mind. Was she even aware of having them?

He pondered the question, for an instant.

"I did, yes," Kagome replied, "I will step inside in a moment, and speak to them."

"I did not see you during the last dance," Hojō insisted, his tone overly confident, with a certain authority that seemed to imply a right over Kagome that InuYasha found intolerable. The idea of going out hunting at night was becoming more and more appealing in his mind, as a low growl reverberated in his chest, full of frustration, just as Kagome looked at him for an instant.

"Mr. Taisho and I agreed on taking a stroll during that last dance," she spoke, her voice full of clarity and poise, as if wanting to put that man in his place.

Hojō looked into InuYasha's gaze again, whose features did not move a muscle. After that, he nodded, "Very well, I shall leave you to it then," he seemed to accept that momentary defeat, yet InuYasha had the feeling the man was about to add something, that in the end remained unsaid. He left with a bow, before turning towards the residence, movements Kagome followed a moment longer than necessary.

"He is a childhood friend of mine," Kagome seemed to want to explain. InuYasha showed no expression, filled as he was by a dark fury that threatened to bury his claws in that man.

"By the way he speaks of you, it feels as if you were his property," InuYasha voiced, not bothering to hide his true thoughts.

Kagome observed him for an instant, a long and intense one, by what he felt; her cheeks were flushed a deeper red than what he had seen until now, surprising him. There was a strength in her gaze, he noted, one which was a stark contrast to the apparent shyness on the pink of her blushing features.

"You and I have only met twice; I do not believe it proper to speak of such topics," she spoke with determination, and InuYasha perceived how the emotion in her words and voice, led him to wish to see her spirit broken, ceded, completely and willingly to him.

Fire, there was fire in that woman; a hidden fire that not even she herself knew it blazed underneath the many layers of her cordiality. InuYasha felt himself far more motivated than at the start of this.

"You are right, and I would love to invite you to take a longer stroll, in order to solve this," he proposed, his thoughts directed to shortening the distance between them as fast as possible.

"Do you mean right now?" Kagome wondered, confused and with a certain air of innocence.

"Oh, no; I would not dare to keep you from your friends a moment longer," InuYasha smiled then, an honest smile that even he was surprised of.

"Oh, of course, I understand." His gaze was captivated then, as she finished those words, when she pressed her lower lip with her teeth, ever so briefly, its color slightly redder than her lipstick, and InuYasha suddenly had the wish to drop the act, the game, and just take her with him without further thought. "Would it be agreeable to do so, some afternoon?"

InuYasha did not find it agreeable; he preferred the moment of dawn, when the light would seek to beat the darkness despite knowing that, hours later it was fated to be beaten in turn. Even so, he accepted with a soft nod.

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The jinrikisha on which Kagome would climb was ready. The man pulling the cart treated her with special deference, showing respect for her and the annoying human by her side, the same one who had interrupted their conversation a while ago. InuYasha observed the scene from up high; the rooftops were a good place to seek the comfortable subterfuge of the shadows and the dim light of the night. After leaving Kagome, his senses spread throughout the place, following her movements, and the ones from the youkai he had discerned among the humans. There, he saw Kagura, walking about with the authority only the lady of the house would have, yet with enough caution as to not be given such a role. That made him question who was the actual leader of that family.

Taijiya Tsuyoi was a keeper of the peace, one of the old samurais who had been given a rank in the new occidental structure the emperor, and the government had implanted in Japan. InuYasha would get a headache every time he had to think about all the power-plays that had taken place, to strip the feudal lords of their own power, under the premise of seeking a better life for what they called "people", just to then give it to a few leaders who finally created an oligarchy in its place. All of that, also, under a feigned cordiality that human seemed to wield better than katanas. InuYasha preferred a fight to the death, which were honest, at least; after all, to bleed out was far faster than the defenestration some leaders were put to, when those in power found them no longer useful.

He placed his attention on Kagome again, and the way she wrapped herself in the coat she had just put on. He thought about following her to the temple she lived in, noting the way his yearning for her seemed to flare like a persistent, yet tolerable pain. He furrowed his brow before that comparison. The best would be to extirpate that yearning, as soon as possible, yet in contrast to that desire, there was another of exploring more of her, and of that unconscious fire she seemed to possess. Before that thought, he knew something was forging itself inside him, something he could not name, and maybe precisely because of it, he dropped the idea, not wanting to think about it too much.

His focus shifted to the way in which that detestable human left a kiss on Kagome's glove-cladded hand, and that make him experience, once again, that dark fury that demanded that man's death. His attention was attracted, then, by a carriage that stopped behind Kagome's cart, one Kagura approached while accompanied by two other beings, which InuYasha had perceived in the dance room, and whose identity he couldn't quite discern due to their strange blend of blood. They looked like youkais, but were not, at least not entirely. He thought they could be hanyous like him, yet he wasn't sure. InuYasha knew of strange creations, ones he read about during the obligatory reading he was subjected to, in order to adapt him to the youkai world; but if he recalled correctly, such practices had been banned.

Finally, he found three possible directions he could take. One of them was a slave to the keen desire inside him, one that was occupying far more room that he should allow; Kagome. Kagura was next, for she would most probably turn into a problem in the not-so-distant future; such was the conclusion his own wild instinct spoke of, and it was rarely wrong. That same instinct, however, made him growl at the human who seemed to want to take what InuYasha already considered his.

He took a deep breath; the choice was clear, and made.

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The Higurashi residence was immersed in silence when Kagome arrived that night. The cold was tolerable, albeit lacking mercy. She extended a hand to find the one being offered by Haruka, who had gone to pick her up at the agreed time.

"Thank you, Haruka-san," she voiced, a delicate smile on her lips as she gave him a light bow.

Illuminated by a hand-lamp, she started down the road leading to the main house. In the old days, that road had been permanently under the light of stone lamps fueled by oil, yet that changed a couple of years ago, when the family decided to cut unnecessary expenses, time during which they also reduced the number of servants they had. Kagome had heard her grandfather saying the restoration had taken away far too many privileges for it to be good. She didn't know if that was true, for she had been too little at the time to know some other way to live, and so would be content with the fact that her family had been able to keep the temple, and its tradition and rituals, intact, something that would remain as is, so as long as her grandfather and mother were alive. As if to further reaffirm such a claim, Kagome's gaze found the temple dedicated to Hachiman, as she walked by it; a deity said to protect human life, and to who they would light a fire every day.

It didn't take her long to leave the prayer dedicated zone behind, and to stand before the doors to the house she shared with her family. Her mother was waiting for her by the shōji that gave way to the building, dressed in her yukata for resting and a mantle over her shoulders.

"There was no need for you to wait for me, okāsan," she said, after greeting her with a kind bow, a sign of love and respect towards her mother.

"Probably," the woman replied, giving her a soft bow in turn, before conceding her entrance.

On the way to her room, and as she helped her take off her dress, Ms. Higurashi inquired about the gathering and the dance. Who assisted? How many people were there? Did she have fun?

Kagome answered every single one, without hesitation, until her mother made a question that left her in silence for an instant.

"Did you meet someone new?"

The first image that her mind brought forth, were the golden eyes of InuYasha Taisho. She did not wish to mention him; her mother would not understand that she were making contact with someone unknown to the family, and hence would carry with it problems and prohibitions. Then, she thought that, strictly speaking, she had not met him that night; and beyond that, she recalled someone who she did meet for the first time.

"Sango's fiancé," she replied while also understanding that, no matter how her friend's compromise may end up, the news was going to reach her mother sooner rather than later.

"She is engaged?" She wondered in surprise, as she helped Kagome put on her yukata for sleeping.

"It seems so," and not happy about it, she almost added, yet even if she would often tell many things to her mother, some she would keep for herself. Her mother, who would many times say she had loved Kagome's father, but would also say how love was a luxury that sometimes one could not have. Kagome feared that notion, because even if no one had told her yet, she knew that it was expected of her to assure the family's future.

"And, how is he?" Her mother insisted, as she invited her to sit before the dressing table in the room, so to start untying her hair, and brushing it.

"Physically? Personality-wise?" Before the question, her mother only shrugged briefly.

"Both," she voiced, as she took a strand of her dark hair.

Kagome breathed in, seeking a way to describe the man.

"Young," she began, almost too simplistic. Her mother gestured her for more details, her gaze making it clear through the mirror. Kagome sighed again. "Tall, but not too much, his hair is violet-like, the same as his eyes. He is cultured, albeit quite arrogant and with a cold demeanor; I'd say almost indifferent."

"You do not seem to like him," her mother pointed out. Kagome sought and found her gaze, so much like her own.

"I do not." She conceded.

"What about Sango? Does she like him?" Her mother's voice as soft, understanding. Kagome denied with a shake of her head. "I see." Her mother nodded.

The next silence had a foreboding feeling to it; Kagome knew the question that was about to be asked, it had to.

"How was Hojō?" her mother sought to know. Kagome tried to hide how little she wanted to talk about that topic, and held the gaze looking at her through the mirror, before lowering it to her own locks of hair.

"Attentive, as always," she admitted. Kagome was aware of what was expected of her, yet she still wanted a bit more time, time to comply, and to hope to be happy in the process.

"I'm glad to hear that," the woman accepted, probably also understanding she wouldn't get more information about it.

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"Thank you, Kousei-san," Hojō expressed as he stepped down of the carriage that had brought him home.

The residence of the Seijutsu family was located at the top of a hill from where one could see the vivacious garden circling the emperor's palace. Hojō and his family had lived in the same place for at least five generations, and it was during his grandfather's that their name gained the honor it has today, through his work with the sashimono, the art of the wood, which had been greatly valued by the great families, the imperial court included. The doors giving way into the residence were a loyal representation of that art, delicate and unique, highlighting the beauty of the wood over the ornament. Hojō was practicing that work's style, while also adapting to the changes the restoration had brought to the market.

Upon entering the residence's interior garden, he was received by the lamp's lights, placed strategically along the path to illuminate the many trees, bushes and plants in a way that could show the care put into them. One of the servants received him at the door, then escorted him inside, as Kousei took care of the carriage, taking it to the next entrance.

When Hojō was but a few steps away from the entry to the main building, one of the horses got spooked, its neighs loud and cutting the silence of the night, unsettling him in the process.

"Go help Kousei-san" he asked the servant by his side.

The youth, but a couple of years younger than Hojō, nodded and started back to the path they had just gone through, disappearing through the main gate. Hojō thought about entering the building and forgetting about the matter, for he was tired of the night, and annoyed by how little attention Kagome had paid him. He clicked his tongue, as he noted how tiring it was to circle her so much, attracted as he was by her, and not take a step in the direction he wanted. As he pondered as much, he heard the hurried steps of the servant who had just gone out to help with the horses, and he turned around to face him.

"What's wrong?" Hojō asked, seeing the unsettling expression the youth wore.

"I do not know my lord. The carriage was in the middle of the street, and Kousei is not."

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To be continued.

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A/N

Buah! I want more!

I really enjoy to write these characters. The darkness that KAWAAKARI hides is part of my gothic side, and I love it. I hope you are also enjoying this story, and that you keep me company through what it has yet to tell.

Kisses,

Anyara

This text is possible thanks to the translation of: Dezart