Chapter 95
Solus ipse
"I alone"
"What fresh hell is this?"
—Jane Eyre
Kagome could only claim distant awareness when she started to wake.
Her shoulder throbbed, and it was a struggle to get a full breath as she dangled over someone's shoulder. She tried to see where she was, but the world was rolling and shifting around her as she draped down towards the earth itself.
"How much farther do we have to take her?" The man asked, shifting her weight on his shoulder. Her wrists were tied with rope, and there was no way to get them untied from the way she was hanging.
"Shouldn't be too far," another man said off to the side. "She said that we just had to meet her in the woods, drop off the girl, and then we'd get our money."
Kagome wiggled her feet a little, but it didn't feel like they'd tied her there. She'd have a chance of running away if she could just get free.
The world was starting to right itself, and Kagome turned her head to see who was with her.
She was both elated and distressed to see that she was alone. They'd only taken her, which meant that everyone else had been left behind, leaving just her to figure out how to get away from her kidnappers. Good news and bad news. No one else was here, but she was utterly and completely alone in saving herself.
She was positive that she didn't want to know who was waiting for her at the end of this trip. Nothing good would come from this.
Inuyasha was human tonight, meaning that no one would be able to find her quickly since it was still pitch black outside and there was no way to tell the time or how much was left before the sun came up. Not until the sun itself rose finally.
She just had to survive until daylight.
"I hate being this far out in the woods," the other man muttered.
"Don't tell me you believe all those old stories," her pack mule laughed.
She winced as another shift jostled her shoulder.
The one carrying her didn't feel like he was holding her too tightly. She might just be able to roll off and break free—and then what?
Maybe throw some dirt in their eyes like she was dealing with bullies on the playground?
Inuyasha would have a stroke to hear any of her thoughts and plans right now, but she didn't have any weapons, and it wasn't like she really had any sort of fighting skill like the others. Even if she did, she really wasn't in top fighting form at the moment either.
Her barriers would only hold for so long, and definitely not long enough for an entire night.
She took a slow breath feeling him start to shift her weight again, and she took her moment.
Throwing her weight to the side, she felt him try to grab her as she swung her legs up, feeling something hard contact her shin with enough force that she yelped.
Hitting the ground burned and throbbed through her back, but she grabbed a handful of dirt, shoving it into the eyes of the man that reached down to pick her up as she thrust her leg up and out towards the other man, feeling her foot connect with something that sent him sprawling to his knees with a low groan.
Good.
She hoped she'd nailed him right between the legs.
"You bitch!" One man roared as she scrabbled to get to her feet, feeling the world tilt ever so slightly as she got up.
Kagome slipped on damp soil but still managed to get her feet under her as she tried to run through the trees. It was too dark to see anything other than what was just in front of her face.
Twisting towards the direction they'd been coming from, she jogged through the trees, trying to avoid knocking herself out by running into a tree trunk. Her forehead caught a hard branch, sending her stumbling back a few steps as she tried to shake it off and keep running. There was shouting not that far behind her, and she quickly dove to the side, sliding behind a tree trunk, and ducking as far down to the ground as she could.
Her ankle was already starting to throb, and she tucked it up just a bit. The footfalls paused right beside her, and she held her breath, hand covering her mouth to muffle the sound of her breathing.
"Did you see where she went?" One of them asked.
"I swear, when we find her, I'm getting a piece of her!"
Kagome smothered the whimper that threatened to break free.
"You go that way. I'll take this side. She can't have gone far."
"Right," he said, and both of them took off into trees.
Keeping her hand over her mouth, she took a few ragged breaths before letting it drop. She just had to wait. She just had to survive until morning. That was all. Inuyasha would come for her as soon as the sun rose.
It was just a few hours. Kagome almost snorted at her own thoughts. What's a few hours hiding in the woods from men who wanted to kidnap her and take her somewhere?
Footsteps came back, and she slapped her hand over her mouth as he traipsed back towards her.
She watched as a figure moved slowly through the trees, clearly listening to the woods around him.
"Where'd you go, little girl?" He asked, keeping his voice in a lilt.
Kagome covered her mouth with both her hands, keeping what sounded like a loud rasping gasp of air each time she breathed as muted as possible.
He took a couple more steps, and she watched in terror as he stood just a few feet from her. She could see him, and if he looked at her, then he'd see her.
But she didn't dare attempt to move or shift in case that attracted his attention. She didn't want either of them to notice her; she never wanted anyone to notice her. She just wanted to get back to Inuyasha.
Something cracked off in the distance, and he turned towards it, waiting for just a moment before heading off towards the sound of the noise.
She took a shaky breath. She couldn't risk either of them coming back this spot and finding her. Pushing herself up, she leaned against the tree for just a second before turning and heading the opposite direction that the men had gone.
Her ankle ached with each step, and she moved slowly and carefully.
A twig cracked under her foot, and she froze as the sound seemed to echo in the still quiet of the woods, listening for the sound of anything that they'd heard and were coming back towards her.
When disaster didn't strike, she swallowed and continued on, stumbling around in the dark trees, listening for any sounds that her attackers were returning.
She didn't know where she was or how far from the village that might be. All she knew was that she was both alone and not.
Her heart thudded in her chest, and her hands shook as she reached out to avoid running into anything again. Not to mention her head still stung from where she'd knocked it against the branch.
She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down anyway. She could feel her heart racing, and everything was starting to blur. Her body felt like someone had stretched her out to a fine string and then strummed it loudly, and now the reverberations would rattle her to pieces.
It was dark, and there was no light, and all Kagome could remember was the feel of water around her legs as she climbed the bank right before—right before—
She shook her head.
That wasn't—none of that would happen to her again.
But she was alone in the dark wood with nothing except the sound of her own footsteps to deafen the hoarse rasp of her breathing.
Her leg ached, from the ankle up to her knee now, and she leaned her shoulder against a tree to help lessen the weight on it.
"You can do this," she whispered to herself.
She could survive until sunrise; she could do it.
But there were men here, who hadn't brought torches, because they didn't need them, and she was a stranger here. She didn't know how to get back to the others.
Footsteps came from a distance, and her head snapped towards the noise.
She shifted around to the other side of the tree, leaning her head out just to see where he was coming from. But all she could hear was the noise coming closer with no sign of anything.
It was so dark, and all she could hear were footsteps. Her hands shook in their bindings, and she clutched them close to her.
He would pass by if she just stayed quiet. No one would know that she was here.
She just had to make it to sunrise, and then Inuyasha would come for her.
"I know that you're out here," came the man's voice, and she covered her mouth with her hands. She wouldn't make a sound and give herself away. "You can't stay hidden forever."
He moved towards her spot, and she squashed the whimper that threatened to break through. Feet shuffled through the damp underbrush, and she clamped her eyes closed for a moment while she stifled the sound of her breathing that felt like it was echoing throughout the silent trees.
She wouldn't give herself away. She'd make it, and then Inuyasha would make sure that she was safe.
"Come out," he sang out into the trees. She blinked back her watering eyes. He was so close. So very, very close to her.
"Come out, you little whore," he spat, and Kagome flinched at the term and the venom in his voice. Leaning out just a little, she saw his back facing her, and her vision blurred as her eyes began to water at the familiarity of the situation.
Trapped. Alone. In the woods. She remembered the pressure of the ropes on her wrists and how badly her legs ached from standing for days on end.
No.
No, this was different.
She was beyond this. She hadn't even thought about that in—in a while. But now the bile rose up in the back of her throat and her entire body shook.
Her hands covered her mouth as she took deep rasping breaths, trying to keep any sounds silent.
"I know you're here," he continued, turning slightly so that she could see his face. She quickly ducked behind the tree, hiding herself from his view.
There was a growl from the man as he took a couple of steps from her.
She needed to give him a distraction. Something to draw his attention from where she was, but she had nothing but the clothes on her back, which amounted to not even enough to keep the cold out. There had to be something.
"I know you're out here, so just come out, and save us the headache of searching for you."
Oh, she definitely was not about to make it easier for them.
He listened for her to make a sound and give away her position. To give up. To give in.
Kagome Higurashi might not have been the same girl she once was, but that didn't mean that she was something less.
Slowly kneeling down, she let her fingers drift over the ground, searching for something to throw. If he wouldn't leave, then she'd give him a reason to think that she wasn't here.
Her fingers brushed something small, and she dug into the dirt to pull it out. It wasn't a large rock, but hopefully it would be enough to attract his attention and encourage him to go lurking about somewhere else.
She could do this.
She could save herself.
She would save herself.
No one was here to save her.
She'd just hold them off until Inuyasha came for her. Someone would come for her. They would.
This wasn't like before. This was different.
It would end differently.
Kagome reared back her arm back to throw, except she barely made it past her shoulder before stopping and stifling the whimper in her throat.
Her arms were bound together, and there was no way for her to throw the rock with her shoulder injured like it was.
"You're only making it harder on yourself," the man called, taking a few steps away from her. Shifting her wrists in the rope, and ignoring the scrape against the tender flesh, she hesitantly moved her arm, realizing that she could throw underhanded. But it wouldn't get the rock as accurate or as far as she could the other way. It would have to be enough.
Kagome dragged in a deep breath through her nose and breathed it out.
She could do this.
She pulled back her arm as far as her wound and the ropes would allow her, and then she just lobbed the rock and hoped that it reached far enough away to give her a fighting chance.
It passed silently through the trees, and for a moment, she'd thought that it'd hit the ground with barely a sound.
Except then there was a loud huff followed by the sound of something thrashing in the trees.
"I've got you now!" The man yelled, taking off after the footfalls that were running away from her.
Kagome backed away from her tree after a moment, trying to move as quickly as she could away from the man before he came looking for her. The forest seemed endless so as long as she kept moving, she'd be able to stay out of his notice.
She just had to make it through the night. Once sunrise hit, Inuyasha would find her.
He would.
Once he woke up.
He might even already be awake. It didn't seem like anything kept him down for very long, even as a human.
She could do this.
Attempting to be as quiet as she could, she maneuvered her way through the trees, still managing to knock herself against branches and roots. She moved with a definite limp now, barely able to put any weight on her leg.
She'd overdone it and probably wouldn't be putting any pressure on her ankle for a couple of days. Inuyasha would fuss at her about it, and she looked forward to it.
Looking around the trees, she tried to see anything moving in the shadows, but the new moon prevented her from being able to see much at all.
Humans were already blind at night, but at least the moonlight gave her a little bit of light to see by, but now it was so dark that she could barely see anything in front of her.
A low growl sounded beside her, and Kagome realized that she'd been so preoccupied with her human predators, she'd completely forgotten about the animal ones.
"Go away," she hissed, turning towards the noise. There was a soft padding sound around her as the wolf or dog circled her. She tried to move with the noise, taking a few steps away from whatever it was.
She'd never out run it, and she wasn't in any position to actually fight off a creature with teeth and claws. She could barely lift her arms, and her hands were still tied.
Feeble was a good word to describe her at the moment.
A loud shout came from the distance, and she ran.
Well, shambled quickly was a more accurate description.
Something brushed against her thigh, and she yelped, dodging the sound of teeth snapping together.
No! She was not going to get eaten!
She swung her arms together as she twisted away from the animal.
Her fists connected with something, and it yelped, and the shock of striking something with her injured shoulder made her entire side throb.
She twisted around again, trying to follow the sounds when she felt something smooth move under her foot, jerking and twisting and lunging amidst the bodies that were suddenly there on top of it, and there was a louder yelp and whimper from the wolf-dog as she backpedaled into a tree.
There was more snarling and snapping, but it wasn't directed at her and Kagome took that as her cue to leave.
She wandered, limping heavily as she just tried to find her way out of the woods and back towards the village.
Her body hurt, and she was so tired. She just wanted to curl up into her blankets and sleep.
But she couldn't rest. She couldn't sleep. It was too risky.
She'd been through so much worse and survived. She could deal with this.
It was just one more step. One right after the other. That was all. If she just kept moving then she'd find the way out eventually. Or the sun would rise and Inuyasha would come.
He would come.
It was just a matter of moments before the sun rose, and then Inuyasha would come running for her, and she'd be safe.
And warm.
Now that she was paying attention to it, it was a little chilly and her clothes weren't meant for her to be outside this long. Her toes and her fingers were starting to stiffen in the night air as she sniffled.
She stumbled a step as her good leg found a small hole and she hissed as she staggered into a tree.
"What was that?" A man's voice called into the trees, and Kagome froze.
She'd forgotten all about the second man, and she'd walked right towards him.
She didn't know where to go to hide from him, and she was afraid that any movement would attract his attention. So what was she supposed to do?
The silence in the woods felt like a physical pressure on her chest, and she could barely breathe.
More footsteps to the side came from her right.
Oh no.
She stooped down, trying to lower herself to keep her from their view.
"Is that you?"
"Yeah, it's me."
"You find her?" The first man asked, stomping towards her.
"Thought I had her, but she got away. You find her?"
"Nah, but I thought I heard something over here."
There was a long moment of quiet, before the sounds of someone shifting around in the underbrush drifted through the quiet.
Taking a deep breath, Kagome silently hoped that they would move their search on and away from her.
Her muscles ached, and she could feel her legs quivering from the way that she was crouching, but she was too afraid to move at all.
She could hear them whispering, but she couldn't make out what they were saying. Then the whispering stopped, and she was left waiting in the long dark.
"We know that you're out here," the second man called out to the trees. "If you come out now, we—we won't have to hurt anyone."
"Your friends are still at the inn," the other man chimed in.
"If you don't come out, one of us will go back, and we'll kill them all. Even the little cat."
Kagome's chest tightened as her heart sank.
What did she do?
They didn't sound too serious. If anything it sounded like an afterthought.
Did she risk it?
If she went out, they were going to take her wherever they were taking her, and they do—they could do anything to her.
But the others, she couldn't risk their lives either.
As long as they were both here, she'd stay put. She'd call their bluff.
Neither of them moved from their spots, and Kagome could only guess where they were based on the direction their voices came from.
"This is your last warning," one of the men warned, and Kagome hesitated. They were bluffing. They wanted her. They were just trying to get her to come out so they wouldn't have to hunt her down. They wanted her to save them the effort.
Her heart raced just underneath her skin, and the rope bit into the delicate flesh at her wrists.
She'd wait.
Morning couldn't be that far off. What few stars she could see kept their secrets of time and place, and she blinked, trying to tell if the sky was lightening up or not.
"We know you're out there!"
"You can't hide forever!"
She didn't have to hide out here forever. That was true. And maybe they did know that she was here somewhere, but they didn't know where, and they didn't have any more light than she did.
For all she know they were just as lost as she was.
"You don't come out, then I'm going back and I'll kill each and every one of your friends." He paused, waiting. "I'm counting to five. One!"
He was bluffing. They'd been bluffing this entire time.
"Two!"
They were just trying to make their work easier for them.
"Three!"
There was another pause between them, and Kagome shuddered as a light breeze blew through the trees, rustling the branches above.
They were just bluffing. That's all. They weren't going to do it. She'd stay hidden until Inuyasha could find her.
"Four!" He shouted, louder now.
What if they weren't awake though? She hadn't finished all of her tea. Thinking back, she tried to remember if Sango had. Inuyasha had finished, and he'd been human, but everyone else's drink was a mystery. Maybe Miroku had finished his? Shippo was already complaining that he didn't feel well.
They clearly had wanted her, and no one else. She didn't know why but she doubted that it was actually a good thing.
No one drugged people and then dragged them out to the woods for a surprise party.
"Five!"
The silence that echoed was painfully heavy.
"You've run out of time!"
No, she hadn't. She hadn't run out of time. She was just—just biding her time.
Waiting for the sun to rise, and then she wouldn't have to worry about her friends, because she knew that Inuyasha would make sure that they were safe.
"Gimme the knife," one said, and there was the familiar scrape of metal, and Kagome panicked.
Maybe they weren't kidding. Maybe they weren't just trying to lure her out.
"If you don't come out, you're responsible for what happens to your friends."
Footsteps started off away from her, and her eyes widened. They weren't kidding. How far off was morning? Did she risk it? If it was too long, she risked the lives of everyone. If she gave up, she risked her own.
What was she supposed to do?
But the longer she waited the farther the footsteps got.
"Wait!" She called out, hearing her voice almost echo among the trees.
The steps paused, and it was silent in the woods once again.
She'd never outrun them, and they had a good idea of where she was.
It was at that moment that Kagome realized that she'd made a grave and terrible mistake.
Her voice died off, and her chest felt tight.
She could try to make a run for it, but there was little that she could do on a bum ankle.
Her head still throbbed from where she'd whacked on a low branch.
There was a low hissing whisper, and then the sounds of footsteps advancing towards where she kneeled in the dirt.
She'd never felt a stronger connection with a rabbit being chased down by wolves than she did right now.
Pushing herself up, she wobbled on her ankle that was aching and burning.
This felt a lot like last time. Two men. She was hurt—hands bound—alone—in the woods—it was so, so dark—
No.
No. This wasn't going to be like last time.
She'd fought then, and she'd fight harder now.
Kagome Higurashi was not going to be a victim twice.
The footsteps would come closer, pause, and then continue. Kagome took careful steps backwards, slowly shifting her weight backwards, trying to keep herself as quiet as possible as she inched herself away from them.
Her shoulder and back throbbed, and standing upright was near impossible with the amount of pain that it caused.
Lying down sounded amazing. She didn't even care that there were probably worms under her feet.
It was a fifty-fifty shot on whether she cared if they were in her hair at this point.
She just wanted to curl up with blankets—
And Inuyasha—
And just sleep for the next few days.
She wanted to know that everyone was okay, and that if something did happen to her—then it wasn't for nothing.
It wasn't just her life on the line this time.
It was everyone else's too.
She glanced up at the sky. It looked like it was lighter, or was it just her eyes playing tricks on her? She really hoped that it was the former and the sun was starting to rise.
Taking a deep breath, she dredged up any remaining strength that remained in her limbs and tried to think of a very easy and fast plan, because there wasn't much left in the energy or time department.
The cold air of the early morning made her shiver, and she was sure that she'd see her breath if there was some amount of light.
A thought flickered into her head.
Distraction.
The rock thing wouldn't pass this time. They knew her general area now, but at the very least she was going to make it difficult for them to drag her wherever they wanted her.
If there was one thing that she was good at, it was being difficult.
Just ask Inuyasha.
"This is taking too fucking long!" One of the men shouted at the other.
"Just shut up! You're the one that lost her!"
"You try having her foot wedged between your legs!" There was a slight pause. "She's got some fucking brute strength behind that kick."
"You heard what she had to say, she's traveling with a demon, you know she's got something outta the deal."
There was a muffled curse and the sounds of branches rustling. Kagome took a couple wary steps backwards.
They didn't seem to notice the noise, so she kept limping backwards, taking small steps.
Taking another deep breath, she prepared herself for the pain she was about to endure.
If she played her cards right though, it would mean that they wouldn't find her, and she could wait until Inuyasha came for her.
Her hands trembled as she leaned forward and ran.
Her steps faltered immediately. Her ankle wasn't able to hold the force of her own weight and gravity. But it needed to hold, for just a few steps, just enough to get her to safety.
The shouts of the men fell behind her, and she threw her arms up to block the branches as they whipped into her face.
The footfalls gained on her, the time was upon her to make her move. She dove behind the nearest tree, swinging herself around, and ducking down to make herself as small as possible.
It was dark, and she was dirty and small and they would miss her, run by her, miss her entirely.
And then they did, the heavy slaps of booted feet flew past her, and she watched them disappear into the trees. With a sigh that sounded too close to a sob, she clapped her hands over her mouth to blend in with the sounds of the forest.
It was lighter outside—she knew it was—it wasn't her eyes just play hopeful tricks on her.
Which meant that Inuyasha would be here soon. He'd get his powers and then he'd come find her.
This was a very good thing, because she was cold and tired and her body ached something fierce.
Shivering, she leaned her shoulder against the tree to rest just for a second.
"Found her!" A voice shouted, and Kagome's eyes bolted open as she realized that hands had grabbed her arms painfully tight.
the figure looming over her hauled her up, and she cried out from the way the grab pulled on her wrists and subsequently her wounded shoulder.
"Thought you could hide from us, huh?" He shoved her back against the tree with some amount of force.
"No, ple—" Kagome's voice was cut off as he grabbed her shirt, jerking her forward and practically threw her back into the tree, knocking her head against it.
"Shut up! This was supposed to take a couple hours and it's taken all damn night. Now be a good girl and just walk!" He shoved her forward, and her ankle definitely had been pushed beyond it's limit, and she staggered a step before falling, and landing on her side with a sharp cry of pain as she rattled her entire wounded side.
"Get up, would you?" The man grumbled, reaching for her and she kicked her feet out at him, catching his leg somewhere enough that he yelped and then lunged for her again. Grabbing her arm and hauling her back to her feet as she cried out again.
"Shut up!" He yelled at her, his hand rearing back to strike her.
"What're you doing? We're not supposed to hurt her!"
"Shut up!"
His palm connected with her cheek, sending a sharp stinging through her face and snapping her head against the tree, drowning everything out with the loud ringing in her ears.
A singular voice broke through the noise.
"Get your fucking hands off her."
A/N: Heeeey! I'm back! Happy Thursday!
I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! It's gone under several edits and again, I'm not thrilled with it, but I also don't know what to do with it to make it better. It's going to be one of those.
Anyway, let me know what you think and I'll see you guys in a couple of weeks!