Chapter 38: Betrayal!
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Weaving herself through the throng of people, Kagome forced her way past them, not caring if she justled a few people around as she went. Her mind had done what it would always do, it had pushed the fear that threatened to devour her, her panic, and stuffed it down into the ruins of her mind.
All that she could feel was the rage, it flowed through her veins, warming her body inside out.
Without considering the security team that were supposedly keeping vigil on her, or the upset it would cause for a student to skip out on graduation, or the ball of anger Inuyasha would be once he found out she had gone without a thought. As soon as she was out the gates, Kagome went into a dead run.
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The world faded in the background, seizing to exist to the girl whose mind was solely on the next step, the next block, the next street over. Her red maxi dress carried on behind her, the exposed skin from the dresses' V-neck opening shined with sweat as the girl ran.
No one got in her way, and when the sidewalks began filling up with crowds too thick to maneuver in, Kagome took the streets, ignoring every car headed towards her as she kept her steady pace.
By the time she reached her shrine's steps, she was out of breath, and furious.
Glaring up at the peak where her childhood home laid, Kagome wiped the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand, she decided to walk up the steps rather than run it. If Naraku awaited at the top, she didn't want to be out of sorts, for as soon as she found her mother and consequently found Naraku, Kagome knew she had to be prepared for a fight.
"I'm here to kill you, Naraku." Kagome whispered to herself, taking each step at a time, letting the rage build with each marker passed.
She conjured an image of a battered Inuyasha, the glint of fresh blood lucid in her mind's eye, her anger latched onto the image as to keep the fire inside her burning. Then she thought of herself, afraid and weak from Naraku's assault, she retracted her fear from the memory, letting herself feel only the frustration she had felt when captured.
With the last few steps, Kagome thought of her doctor, remembering his words about Naraku. Of the evil creature that had haunted and hunted till the point of extinction, or madness.
Expecting the same creature to meet her at the top of the steps, instead, the silence that she was met with seemed louder than any attack.
The shrine seemed undisturbed, no stone out of place, and finely kept.
Distrusting the peace, Kagome crept through the shrine grounds, like a thief in her own home. She peered around every corner, and paused at every blind spot, yet nothing seemed amiss as she approached her mother's house.
Testing the front door's knob, she wasn't sure if the easy give was a good thing or not, unable to remember if she had locked it last time she had been here.
"Mama? Are you here, Mama?"
The house echoed her calls, each room the same as the last, filled with dust that spoke of days without use. She could almost feel her nerves coming back down, when a jarring thought urged the girl into another fear driven run. This time Kagome raced down the stairs, going out the side, she spotted the shrine that was the real source of her fear.
Coming up on the structure, Kagome took the chained and lock for good news. With labored breath, Kagome reached up on her toes, feeling around the door frame until her fingers found what she sought. The small, rusted key didn't seem like it belonged to the massive chain and bulky lock.
But as she slid the key home, the lock gave easily, it took only a moment to tug the chains loose enough to open the door.
Light only filtered as much as the crack in the door allowed, it was enough, Kagome had no desire to go into the shrine. Just as her eyes spotted the wooden lip of the Bone-eater's well, sealed away with chains and talismans, it was enough for her, with a soft clink Kagome retied the chains around the door handle.
"Kagome-san!"
Gasping, Kagome spun around, shielding the door from whomever had called for her. Her eyes searched the yard until she spotted the girl, dressed in a jade green dress that dragged on the ground, and clung to her form.
She took two steps towards her, not understanding why she would be here, until her eyes fell on the sickle lazily swinging from a chain.
"F-Fujimotto?"
"You should call me by my first name too, we are friends now, aren't we Kagome?"
Gritting her teeth, Kagome tried not to feel like the fool she had made her into, her hands worked behind her in shutting the lock without being seen.
"What are you doing here, Fujimotto."
As she approached her, the sickle at her side began to spin, manipulated skillfully by the chain rope Fujimotto had in her hand.
"You should have listened to your instincts, Kagome. I know you felt it, the warning your body gave when I first came around, but you still chose to trust me. How very, human of you."
Kagome opened her mouth to let the rant she felt inside out, but before she could voice her thoughts, the girl had flicked her wrist. With all the work Kagome had done in keeping up with demon speed, there was little she could do but take in a sharp breath, before the sharp pain knocked it out of her.
The sickle clinked as it was yanked back by its chain, and as the world darkened around the edges, the ground tilting sideways, Kagome caught the smirk her 'friend' shot her, before the world went black.
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Conciseness never fully came back, when Kagome had managed to crack her eye lids open, the thick fog of sleep stayed an ever-present participant.
Her eyes blinked slowly, taking in the image of the room she was in, all without raising her head.
The bed she was laid in had rich-purple sheets, Kagome could feel their softness under her cheek, knew this softness to be satin. Her gaze traveled through the darkened room, taking in the long burgundy drapes, and lose candles that gave the room its dim lighting.
Moving proved difficult, Kagome had never been drunk before, but she assumed this is what it might be like.
Sitting up had the room spinning, the dull ache on the side of her temple reminded Kagome of the recent blow she withstood. Somehow this did not upset her, as upsetting as being knocked out would be, Kagome felt too calm.
Sleepily, she glanced around the room, idly wondering where she was.
The opaque room with its gothic touches should have been its own clue, yet as Kagome swung each foot to the edge of the bed, her mind failed to notice the carved mural that spread from the headboard of the bed. An intricate mural that would have spoken of dangers, the story broken into fragments as every dark wood piece of furnishing had this tale, from the wardrove to the wooden sliding doors at the entrance of the room.
Once settled over the edge of the bed, Kagome noticed the white tabi socks adorning her feet. Her eyes moved from her feet, up to the red billowy skirt she wore, no trace of anxiousness entered her, only the mild hum of confusion.
Wiggling her toes, Kagome confirmed her control over her own body, before setting her feet down.
Her first attempt to stand had Kagome crumbling down onto the stone flooring, knees first, she questioned if she was meant to wince because of pain. Only to notice that no pain was surging, clutching the red skirt, Kagome pulled it up to see the skin of her knees.
The scrapes from her less than graceful landing appeared before her, big and pink. Red prickles appeared as blood surfaced to the top, but still Kagome felt no discomfort.
Letting the red cloth fall back over her knees, Kagome tried calming herself enough to shake the fog clear, clutching at the sheets behind her when that only made the thick daze worse. Standing took the support of the bed post, and as Kagome swayed in one place, she tried to remember how she had gotten here.
It had been Fujimotto all along, just as she had first suspected, but even with this confirmed Kagome couldn't grasp the idea well enough. Every passing thought, from Inuyasha, to Sesshomaru, down to her mother's wellbeing, all of them flew through her mind but none settled.
She was sure she was angry, could remember reasons to be volatile, but with each slow blink those thoughts faded from her.
With a yawn, Kagome stretched her arms above her, gaining stability the longer she stayed upright. Rubbing some of the sleep away from her eyes, she tried walking towards the sliding doors, half expecting them to be sealed shut.
They gave with little effort, sliding noiselessly open, taking Kagome onto the next portion of the room.
The room seemed to be built directly inside a cave, the walls were of stone, and rounded at the top. Whatever light fixtures existed in the wide space created very little illumination, casting a shadow in every nook and cranny, giving the space a dark appeal.
A single violet lounge chair sat up against the wall, a small glass side table next to it, with a glass tea kettle sitting on top. For decoration or for use, Kagome hadn't a clue, but cared little about it either way.
No kitchen, no dining room, and no other seat available.
The space was empty of furnishment, but filled with dense air, and crisp winds.
A truly cavernous home, with cold air coming off the walls as one would find when exploring the mountain caves.
When she wrapped her arms around herself, Kagome noticed she also wore a white hoari, and wondered when and how she had come to be in such an outfit. Even the material felt like what her grandfather insisted she wear to one of the shrine's events, it felt as rough as the history her Jii-chan insisted she be a part of.
Once more, she waited to become agitated, sure that at the very least she would be antsy being in such a position. Placing a hand over her heart, Kagome realized she couldn't access those feelings, no matter how much she thought about the danger that she was in, her heartbeat continued its calm pace.
"I didn't want you upset."
The voice called out, a honey and glass melody that urged her to turn, but the sickly-sweet sound did not entice her. Instead of facing the man that entered the room, Kagome strolled to the nearest drape, focused on moving the thick fabric out of the way.
"There's no window, if that's what you're looking for."
He spoke quietly behind her; his proximity would have had alarm bells ringing inside her mind, at the very least her body would have shuddered at the breath she felt hitting her exposed neck. But the calmness spread further, relaxing her shoulders before she realized they had been tensing.
"There's no window..." Kagome heard the airily spoken reply, somewhat aware she had been the one to speak those words.
"No, I don't enjoy the light."
She felt a hand grace her shoulder, having enough sense in her body to flinch her arm away. Turning to finally face him, Kagome knew now he had done something to keep her from cowering.
He was just as she recalled, with a gentle face, and empathetic eyes. His full lips pulled at the corners into, what she assumed to be, a shy smile. The traditional hakama and haori he wore, were of the same midnight blue hue, the nagagi underneath of a pastel levanter. The design on the haori tied both colors together, with prominent blue as the base, and painted smoke tendrils of lavender curling in and out as a design.
This man exuded an air of refinement, but in an entirely different way than Sesshomaru, while still in the same caliber.
"Mmm. Vampire?"
His face breaking into a smile, his throaty laugh, all of it should have put Kagome off.
"No. Not a blood sucker, my dear, but I can see why you would think that. It's true I prefer the darkest corners, and I have never said no to a fine red mix in a flute, I can assure you there will be no plasma stealing tonight."
Such a thing to say, she should have been afraid, Kagome knew she feared this man perhaps more than she feared Naraku. But as she lifted a hand to her chest, she felt the steady beat of her heart and nothing else.
He took her hand away from her heart, trapping it within both of his, his thumb graced her fingers as it rubbed each knuckle with every caress.
The whole thing made her feel... sleepy.
Letting out a big yawn, Kagome didn't even bother to cover her mouth, blinking slowly to adjust to the blur in her vision.
"Excuse my poor manners, you must be waiting for me to offer a seat, please come this way."
He tugged and she gave, her feet shuffling as Kagome followed blindly, aware there was only one seat available.
This man took his time settling her down on the lounge, he pushed on her shoulders and she went without a fight. Laying down on the velvet lounge, with both feet tucked neatly beside her, he positioned her in such a way it felt as though she were being posed for a painting.
When he was done, he did not sit next to her as she thought he would but continued to stand and stare.
Wetting her lips, it took a long time for her to be able to speak, each word feeling as if it weighed ten pounds exiting her mouth.
"What did you... what... what's been done to me?" The words left her panting, a sheen of sweat covering her forehead, still the man seemed untroubled.
Instead of answering her, the man kneeled in front of her, collecting her limp hands in his own.
I've been looking for you, for so, so long. My dearest how I've scoured the world, only for you to be where I had last left you, what a fool I've been this entire time."
Confused, and very much weakened, Kagome didn't try to take her hands away. Her eyes peering into the chasm of his troubled eyes, he was squeezing her hands, tugging at them, begging her to understand without having to disclose much at all.
"I... I don't... waiting?"
"Centuries, Love." He took one hand away from hers, using it to cup her cheek in an intimate manner, "I have paid the cost of losing you, and so, you have come back to me. Just as I always knew you would."
Feeling the spinning that was her disorientation mixing with the throbbing of her head, Kagome decided to fall willingly, resting her head against his hand, there could be no missing of the shine his eyes took on with her actions.
The man in purple supported her weight, his thumb on her cheek kept its soft strokes, encouraging every slow blink as if she were a cat displaying her affections.
"I still don't... understand."
"Not now, you won't, Darling. But soon, I'll make you remember me, you'll be just as you once were before that damn dog stole you from me."
Slowly her head lulled to his side, giving Kagome a better view of the man with the serious expression, it took forth too much energy to lift her hand. His eyes widened when her hand landed softly over his own cheek, the hand over her hand squeezed the appendage, as the shine in his eyes spoke of deep emotion.
"Tell me... our story... I want to hear it."
"No, love. It will only upset you; I don't want you upset."
Snuggling into the hand that still cradled her cheek, Kagome blinked her long lashes up at him, "Please..."
"You're tired Dearest, rest now, and when you wake everything will be just as it should have been."
"Bedtime story... please."
He seemed to weigh his options, before those chasm eyes softened with a release of a near-silent sigh. The man in purple robes took his hands away, rearranging the folds of her pants so they tucked neatly into her legs, placing the lose strands of hair back where they had fallen from.
"This is a story of love and betrayal, one that is not easy to tell.
A story that tells the tale of a prince, a maiden, a thief, and a mutt.
Rotten to the core, the thief stole whatever he could get his stained hands on, and when he found the maiden, she was an impossible call to resist. The thief took the maiden from her garden, stealing her in the dead of night, with nothing but greed in his dying heart.
The maiden had the treasure he sought and treasure he did not realize he needed.
Instead of rightful anger, the maiden did not turn her heart towards hate, she brought solace to the thief when no one else would.
The thief was repenting, and the maiden didn't mind.
The mutt grew angry, for he considered the maiden his and destroyed them both for it.
Choosing to kill her rather than lose her to a thief.
And the Prince, broken hearted, promised to wait by the garden he had made for her.
Wait and be there for her to love,
For she promised to come back to him,
And he was born from the piece of the thief,
The piece that could still love and wait."
Kagome's eyelids shuttered close as he spoke in smooth well delivered lines, eyelashes fluttering as her face relaxed with the rhythm, and her breath deepened with signs of sleep. The man in purple stayed for a while longer, tracing her face with the back of his hand, petting her hair, his hands did not wonder further than this.
Just as he was leaving, he placed a gentle kiss on her lips, a whisper of his longing.
"I have you back Dearest, and I shan't let you go again" before his steps echoed in the cavernous signaling his departure.