Kagome chuckled to herself as she followed behind the group. After their conversation, Sango and Inuyasha were much more at ease, and she was glad to have things out in the open. She was delighted something had emerged from a previous friendship, and they both had significant trust issues. A newly formed bond with a stranger would likely be impossible for them.
She smiled as she watched them. Neither of them talked much, but the little snippets of conversation were heartfelt and genuine, and no one seemed bothered that they were speaking to each other instead of anyone else.
She stifled a snort. Who did they think they were fooling?
Part of her wanted to punish them a little more, but she was worried they'd take it seriously and stop whatever they'd been doing. Considering the glances Sango kept sneaking when Inuyasha wasn't looking, it couldn't have been much, but it was enough for them to be upset about hurting her. And she was hurt. She wished they'd trusted her enough to tell her from the start, but she'd take them being open about it from this point on—especially with each other.
At least this finally answered her question about whether Inuyasha had still been hung up on her. Kagome had not been looking forward to that particular conversation and had yet to figure out how to bring it up in the first place. But her friends had been less than subtle, and the fact that they'd returned from their latest excursion with Sango on his back had spoken volumes.
A tendril of youki brushed the back of her knees, and Kagome looked up to catch Sesshoumaru's gaze. She raised an eyebrow at the contact. It wasn't sexual, and she seemed to be the intended target. She blinked in surprise. Was he trying to comfort her?
She snorted aloud at the notion, Ah-Un's heads bobbing in mimicry before pushing at her shoulders. She patted their heads, fingers tangling with their mane. "See? This is comfort." The tendril passed a second time, and she offered him a slight wave and what she hoped was a reassuring smile. Maybe it was some weird youkai game she'd never heard of.
She was tempted to return the favour, but a quick command from Kohaku had them all sprinting off the trail. Kagome threw up a barrier to conceal their scents and auras, keeping Ah-Un quiet as a cart passed. They could hear people crying, but the back of the cart was completely closed off, likely to keep whoever was inside from escaping.
Inuyasha unsheathed his sword, but Kagome caught his wrist, preventing him from attacking. He shot her a questioning look but didn't argue, letting the bandits continue down the road. They stopped at the base of the mountain, the two men arguing as they slid from their perch. "You sure this is the right place?"
"That's what the map says."
The first man took the crop he'd been using with the horses and tapped around the rockface until it disappeared. "Damn, they weren't kidding."
The second perked up. "Means we'll get paid properly." He followed his companion's lead, both men disappearing for a moment.
The image of the mountainside wavered before they reappeared, and she heard Sango whisper, "Illusion." Kagome's fingers tightened around Inuyasha's wrists as their captives were let out of their prison, dusty, dirty, and dehydrated. All of their wrists were tied together with a line of rope, allowing the men to lead them through the illusion and to wherever and whoever they were being sold to.
Kagome's heart was in her throat as she watched the woman disappear one by one. Most were dressed in miko garb, though a couple younger ones wore faded yukata, but the dark hair and dark eyes sent ice-cold dread down her spine. This was why women of spiritual power were being taken from multiple towns. This was why Rin had been taken.
They all looked like her.
Claws dug into her shoulder the moment the last of them disappeared, crimson eating away at the gold of his eyes as Sesshoumaru bore down on her. "You knew," he hissed.
"I didn't—"
"Your guilt deceives you, miko," he said, claws piercing her flesh. "It has been a constant shadow since I learned of Rin's abduction."
She shook her head. "I didn't know this, I swear!" Inuyasha and Sango looked worried, eyes questioning, and fear strangled her as she tried to keep her voice down, not wanting to give away their location. "Something's wrong with the well," she blurted.
"What does the well have to do with Rin being taken?" Kohaku asked softly.
"I don't know!" she repeated. "Miroku-sama knows about it, but neither of us could find a connection. The power has been off lately, so I asked him to look into it, but I have no idea why all those girls look like me!"
Inuyasha grabbed Sesshoumaru's wrist. "She's tellin' the truth."
"To you," he retorted.
"To all of us," he emphasized. "She ain't got anything to gain by hurting Rin—or any of those other women." Kagome silently pleaded with him, begging him to see reason. She knew nothing of what they'd shared meant anything to him, but didn't he trust her at all?
Sesshoumaru slowly retracted his claws, eyes still narrowed, and it took everything in her not to check for bloodstains. There would be time for that later. Right now, they needed to figure out where they were and what kind of barrier they would have to break through.
No human could create an illusion that convincing, which meant there were youkai at work, and she shuddered to think what fate had befallen the women taken in before the group they'd just seen. They didn't look abused, and for that, Kagome would be forever grateful, especially since she seemed to be at the centre of whatever was happening.
She expanded her aura, searching for traps or guards, but found none and slipped from their hiding spot. Walking up to the illusion, she placed her hand against the rocks, which disappeared inside. It looked like she'd lost her hand. She wished she was in the position to make a joke, but Sesshoumaru's youki had yet to recede, and she knew it wasn't the time.
Breathing deeply, reiki travelled from her chest to her hands. There were no blockages, and her power shot up, dispelling the illusion to reveal a stone staircase. It wasn't anything unusual, but the dread only worsened as she looked up at the archway, cobwebs hanging from the corners.
"They couldn't have revived her again," Inuyasha said, recognizing it instantly.
"No, but it's another connection to me," she replied, turning to the rest of the group. "A powerful miko used to live her," she explained to Sesshoumaru and Kohaku. "She was captured by Naraku and forced to fight us. To fight me." Her hands clenched into fists. "My powers were still sealed by Magatsuhi when I met her, but she knew that and tried to warn me."
Inuyasha stuffed his hands into his pockets. "She knew a lot, considerin' Naraku was controlling her," he said with a frown. "Too many people died just so he could try and taint your heart."
"You are not helping your case, miko."
Inuyasha whirled on his brother. "Oi! She ain't behind the kidnappings! This could all just be a coincidence—"
"Sesshoumaru and I found the falls where I saved Kikyou." The confession came as a shock to everyone, though not all for the same reason. "He was out patrolling, and I wasn't ready to come back to camp yet." She gave Inuyasha a meaningful look to cover up what they'd actually been doing.
"That's the third place with a connection to you, Kagome-chan," Sango said, fingers tightening around Hiraikotsu. "Are you sure it was the same place?"
"Positive," she replied. "I don't know what they want with me, especially now that the jewel is gone, but I'm not going to let anyone get hurt because of it." She ignored Sesshoumaru's glare, placing a foot on the bottom step. "Any arguments?" None of them uttered a word, and she gave a stiff nod, climbing the stairs.
She wrung her hands together, trying to keep her mind on what they would find at the top of Hitomiko's shrine, but the woman's parting words echoed within her mind. Was she mysterious? Sure, if you counted being dragged down a well by a demon centipede at fifteen. But things had been relatively normal since then.
Time travel aside, she'd fallen into a steady routine of helping Kaede and training Rin. She was only in college, so she could keep that routine going. She didn't want anything exciting or mysterious to happen. She was done with the adventures—or so she thought.
Her trysts with Sesshoumaru were unexpected, but they were both consenting adults. Who would say no to a little sexual fun? Especially with someone who was so well-trained in the field? There were still things he needed to learn, but it was all for not at this point. He now blamed her solely for Rin's disappearance; he wouldn't be touching her again.
Kagome bit back a sigh. She needed to stop thinking about it. It had been fun while it lasted, and she'd known it wouldn't last, but was it so out of the realm of possibilities that he might start to trust her a little? She'd always assumed he'd leave after they found Rin, anyway. What would be the point? Nothing was keeping him here. Once they found her, and she was safe, everything would return to how it was.
She absently rubbed her side where the jewel had been torn from her skin. She still needed to figure out what was going on with the well. She wasn't sure if it was linked to the women's disappearances, but it was still at the forefront of her mind. The magic had been taken for granted for too long.
They reached the top of the steps, their pace slowing, guards raised. Kagome peeked over the edge, power at the ready, but no one jumped out at them. The courtyard was deserted, though in oddly good repair. Hitomiko had been well-liked in life and revered in death, so Kagome had hoped someone else would take up her mantle.
She bit the inside of her cheek. If they had, it would have probably been one of the first women to be captured. A frown marred her brow. There had to be several miko confined to the grounds; why hadn't they rallied together to defeat their enemy? One would've been overwhelmed, but several? It didn't make sense.
She raised a hand, stopping Inuyasha from advancing. "Something's not right. If they're looking for me, that means they're collecting miko, right?"
Sango figured it out before he could. "Something's preventing them from using their powers."
Kagome nodded. "Watch out for barriers and charms on the wall. The last thing we want is to get caught in a net we weren't prepared for." Sesshoumaru's pinched expression told her exactly what he thought of her warning, and she pinned him with an icy stare. "We don't know what we're up against. Assume nothing and prepare for everything."
Sango handed her a gas mask just in case, and Kagome slid it into her pocket—something she'd sewn into her robes herself. Why didn't everything come with pockets? The modern era was so much more convenient when it came to women's clothing.
They crept across the courtyard, Inuyasha surprisingly quiet and focused. Maybe training with Sango had produced more than just romantic interest. Either way, she was grateful, as any wrong move could result in one of the women being hurt, Rin included, and that was the last thing they wanted.
Reiki poured out of her, coating the ground in a glittering layer of power. It slid into each corner of the courtyard, small, shimmering waves washing up against the walls before receding to her feet. "There's nothing here. Not outside, at least," she said, pointing toward the main building. They'd expanded it since Hitomiko's death, and though they could feel multiple auras inside, no single lifeform was distinguishable from the nest.
Sango tapped her shoulder, motioning silently to the back of the shrine, and the two slayers disappeared, their feet not making a sound. Kagome unhooked her bow, nocking an arrow as they approached the main doors. Releasing the air in her lungs, she slid the door open. She half expected something to jump out of her, but there was silence on the other side, and she looked at the brothers in question.
"They are concealing themselves," Sesshoumaru said, not meeting her gaze.
She nodded in agreement, then slunk inside. The whimpers were louder now, more discernable, and they edged toward the voices, instincts still on high alert. There was a distinct lack of guards. Maybe that was why the miko hadn't been able to do anything. If they'd just been captured and left there, there would be no one to team up against.
Something was still off, and as they rounded another corner, a collection of large cages came into view. Metal bars were attached to the ceiling and floor, barely an inch between each one. It made escape impossible, especially when paired with the large locks on the doors. The metal was new, not a speck of rust to be seen, and Kagome lowered her arrow as she took in the sight of the dishevelled women.
As she suspected, most of them were miko, though some barely so, their power thoroughly diminished. She couldn't be sure if it was through starvation, lack of sleep, or something more sinister, but several turned as she entered the room, eyes glistening with tears.
"Kagome-sama!"
She nearly sagged in relief, her feet taking on a mind of their own as she sprinted toward the furthest of the cages. Rin was a little worse for wear, the bottom of her robes sporting a few tears, but she was in one piece, hands reaching through the bars.
They'd found her.