Though the broadcast had stated the rain would fall later in the evening, Kagome was glad she'd thought ahead to bring an umbrella anyway in case she'd stay out for long. It had started dribbling halfway to her destination, darkening the skies and bathing the city in its gentle showers.

Kagome made her way up a flight of stairs and crossed through torii gates to arrive at temple grounds. She noted the couple of people within, the usual buzz of visitors likely scared off by the shift in weather. Kagome politely bowed her head to the elder man who'd noticed her presence and went to the temizuya, where she purified her hands and mouth.

The jingling of metal rings tapping against each other brought her attention to the same elderly man who'd been tending to a couple, now having finished whatever business he had with them.

"Welcome, miss. It brings me joy to see another visitor at this temple, even despite the weather," he said, bowing his head in greeting.

"Thank you for having me. It is a great honor to be visiting this temple." Kagome bowed low. "I am actually here on behalf of someone else. Arima-san, if you know her. She recently passed away due to health complications and her ghost asked I pay you a visit to pass on her gratitude for taking care of her."

"Her ghost..." He perked up, surprised. "You can see spirits?"

Kagome nodded.

"Judging by your words... Would it be accurate of me to presume that her spirit has finally passed on?"

She nodded again.

He sighed, one she noted was bittersweet. "I see. I am happy to hear she was finally able to pass on, though I would be lying if I said I wasn't just a little sad not to have been able to see her off."

The man gestured towards the temple, his staff rattling with the turn of his body. Kagome followed him inside, though couldn't help but stare at it. It was so strikingly similar to the one a certain monk friend of hers wielded in his past lifetime. She was tempted to ask the man about it, but perhaps that was a little rude of her. There were many other staffs with similar features as Miroku's she'd seen, and likely even more that were identical to his.

The man led her to a private sitting room and she took a seat on one of the cushions. He excused himself from the room briefly, coming back with a tray of tea and snacks. Kagome thanked him.

"Pardon my late introduction. I am Kosen Asahi. It is my pleasure to meet you," he said, bowing.

She reciprocated, introducing herself. "Higurashi Kagome, the pleasure is mine."

"I recall Arima-san had a son and grandson who she stubbornly watched over. I can't imagine her so easily letting go of them. Did someone assist her?" he asked.

She had a feeling to what he was alluding to, as the Shinigami at the scene had been impatient to send her off to wherever - even being so rude as to try to rush and threaten her to let him so he could go after whatever Hollow in the area he was muttering about. She could see why the elderly woman hid here at the temple when he was around.

Kagome assured Asahi that she'd passed on out of her own free will. She wasn't sure what had allowed it so, but Arima being visible had helped the woman pass on her final words to her son. She'd said everything she needed and hugged her son goodbye, before letting the Shinigami perform Konso to send her on her way. The only thing left was to thank Asahi, which Kagome took to do for the older woman so she could finally depart in peace.

Asahi was relieved, having feared she'd been forced into it by the Shinigami. It was no longer the duty of holy men like himself and Kagome to care for the deceased, so he could only do so much for her until she was ready to pass on.

Kagome was curious why, though.

"Most of the history regarding it has been lost, but a few centuries ago a war broke out between us and the youkai. Though we eventually won out, our numbers had severely dwindled. The Shinigami, who believed us to be nothing more than pests that meddled in their affairs, took advantage of this to instate rules that forbade us from caring for the deceased. So long we didn't overstep that boundary, they would leave us alone. However, if we do, they have no qualms about taking care of us."

"Why does it matter so much? I mean, at the end of the day aren't we both helping the deceased?" Kagome questioned.

The whole thing sounded petty and ridiculous.

"You may think so. However, they're adamant that our involvement throws off the balance of souls of the worlds," he responds.

It all just sounded like they didn't like there were others that could do their job to Kagome.

Asahi sighed into his cup. "However, it would be disingenuous to say that they are completely wrong. As the ones who care for the spiritual realm, they have more authority over such matters. The war against the youkai had left many deceased on both ends, tipping the scales of souls. That it happened only a few centuries after the war against Naraku left little time in between for recovery. I'm sure they had their hands full during that era."

Kagome perked up. "You know of Naraku?"

He was equally intrigued. "As do you, I see. That heinous spider's terror was never written in the history books. Only those like myself who descend from those involved in the war have knowledge of him. May I ask how you have come to know of Naraku?"

"My grandfather often tells stories about the Shikon no Tama and the battles over it," she responded nervously, quickly taking a sip of her now lukewarm tea. "You can actually buy charms of it at our shrine."

No need to tell him that she was a part of the group of fighters who personally took down Naraku. That might get her labeled delusion.

"Higurashi Kagome… Oh! Are you referring to the same shrine owned by the Higurashi family? Pardon me for not making the connection," he apologized. "It's been a while since I last visited the shrine. It makes sense now how you know of him. My ancestor spoke in his journals of a great and powerful miko who guarded the Shikon no Tama and traveled with him."

Okay, now she was really curious.

"I hope it's not too rude to ask, but who is this ancestor you speak of?"

"He went by the name of Miroku. This staff here in fact belonged to him," Asahi answered, picking up the staff to show off to her proudly.

She knew it!

The staff wasn't just familiar, it was actually his.

Kagome blinked her eyes rapidly, forcing herself not to lose composure. She had actually met Miroku's descendent. He was fine after the battle. She was sure he'd married Sango and had kids, which meant she was fine too. Kagome never got the chance to see them a final time before she was stuck back in the modern era, so she was grateful for this information.

All that was left was Inuyasha, Kirara, and Shippo.

Kagome was hesitant to ask. It was a question that weighed heavy on her mind, yet she wasn't sure if she would like the answer.

After all, youkai lived much longer lives than humans.

Yet they never came to visit her in this era.

He'd mentioned a war with the demons in which it ended in their exterminations. She couldn't imagine powerful demons falling victim to the slaughter - Inuyasha wielded the ridiculously powerful Tessaiga while Sesshomaru was incredibly powerful in his own right. Had there really been people so powerful to be able to stand on the same ground as them?

It was too hard to believe.

Kagome really didn't wanna believe it.

Yet the alternative was also painful to think about.

Asahi continued on, blissfully unaware of her inner turmoil, singing praises of Miroku. It was easy to see how proud he was to be descended from Miroku. Kagome knew personally just how great of a man the monk was, even if too lecherous at times.

A knock on the door sounded and a second after, it opened. Asahi looked miffed at being interrupted, but didn't scold the man on the other side. She quickly learned that this was his grandson, who was helping out at the temple while school was still out.

There was a meow at the man's feet and Kagome froze at the sight of one familiar twin-tailed cat, body covered in black and cream-colored fur. Asahi turned pale.

"Kirara, you know you're not supposed to be around guests!"

Both Asahi and his grandson scrambled to pick her up and get her out of the room. Why, Kagome didn't know. Kirara expertly avoided their grabs at her and jumped into Kagome's arms, who immediately welcomed her in an embrace.

"Kirara, you're still alive! I'm so happy to see you!" Kagome exclaimed.

The two men froze at the sight, shocked.

Both feline and priestess ignored them. Kirara mewed and purred, aggressively rubbing her face in Kagome's, who couldn't keep the tears from falling.

Kirara was alive.

She survived.

Kagome held her up and noted that the feline looked older now, though still rather youthful. There was a band around her neck now, one Kagome had a strange feeling about. She'd have to take a look at it later. Aside from that, she'd barely changed. She looked healthy.

Asahi interrupted their happy little reunion, looking lost. Kirara had been guarding the temple and the family lineage for generations, having never left the temple grounds without one family member with her as far as he was aware. Kagome knowing Kirara should have been impossible, as the feline was a tightly guarded secret only the family should know about.

Right, maybe this would be too hard to explain without revealing the truth.

She gave the lame excuse of having chanced on a meeting with Kirara, but they didn't buy it. Whether it was a smart move on her part or not was debatable, but she decided to just tell them the story of her time traveling. It was the only thing she could think of on the spot, as they weren't going to let her leave without a good reason.

To her surprise, Asahi took it rather well.

His grandson, on the other hand…

Asahi kicked his grandson out of the room and asked for a moment, before leaving as well. Kagome scratched at the back of Kirara's ear, who had made herself comfortable draped around her shoulders. Before long, Asahi returned with two books, which he set on the table for her.

"Before his passing, my ancestor left two books behind. One was a journal in which he wrote about his life. The other, a guide on spiritual training," Asahi explained.

Kagome picked up the top book and opened to the first page. This, it seemed, was the journal. She took in a shaky breath. Miroku's handwriting, as neat as ever, stared back at her.

"At the end of the journal, there was a message left behind addressed to a 'Kagome'. My family believed that it was a message for the miko who briefly traveled alongside him for a time and suddenly vanished shortly after. A message for you, Higurashi-sama."

Kagome turned the pages to the end of the book, where she saw a page titled with her name.

A message to her, just as Asahi described.

"If a person were to ever appear who knew intimate details of the fight against Naraku and who Kirara acknowledged as a friend, these two books were to be given to them."

Miroku's final words.

Hours had passed since Kagome's departure from home and Ulquiorra found himself just the tiniest bit restless. He'd rejected her offer to go with him as he hadn't wanted to draw Soul Society's attention to her with his presence, but now he wondered if perhaps he should've gone anyway. That pest had tampered with her memories, but it hadn't been so powerful that she couldn't shake the effects off on her own. So he'd assumed that so long as she didn't do something stupid, she'd be fine.

Perhaps he'd given her a little too much credit not to stay out of trouble.

She had, after all, jumped down a well for seemingly no reason other than to cry over one thing or another.

Ulquiorra stood high above the city, overlooking the streets. Her energy signature was as hard to find as always. Every time the Shinigami seemed to pick up his trail, he moved to a different section of the city. The trash was persistent.

Thankfully though, a Hollow had popped up suddenly, lured by the energy he so carelessly overused and forced his attention.

When he finally found the girl, she was walking out of some temple. He touched down on the ground a ways down the street and noticed the strange signature with her.

Muted, similarly to how Kagome's was, yet not quite as perfectly done.

A cat.

It immediately noticed his presence and hissed, alerting Kagome. She smiled upon seeing him, giving the cat what he assumed was a reassuring pat, and jogged up to him. The umbrella she held struggled not to fly off, the cloth of it threatening to invert.

"I thought you said you weren't coming?" she said.

"You were taking your time," he replied.

"Aww, were you worried?" She hummed in what sounded like amusement, though he noted the air was almost tense around her.

Something was upsetting her.

Ulquiorra scanned the area, yet neither saw nor felt signs of any kind of struggle. He'd been keeping track of the Shinigami's movements since leaving the shrine grounds, so it couldn't have been him, either.

The cat?

Kagome intertwined her arm in his, surprising him, and pulled him against her side. "Here, under my umbrella," she instructed. "It's still raining."

And pointless, he added. He was already soaked, the umbrella wouldn't suddenly change that. Ulquiorra doubted she thought otherwise. Then again, it was sometimes hard to tell with her. She was as open about herself as she was guarded.

A strange contradiction.

"What is that thing," Ulquiorra finally asked.

The cat had two tails, which he couldn't recall being a normal feature for animals in the Human World. A mutation was his original thought, though its strange energy signature begged to differ.

"This is Kirara, my friend. I'd appreciate it if you called her by her name," Kagome replied.

That didn't answer his question.

She knew it didn't.

Kagome sighed. "She's a youkai," she finally admitted.

Ah.

There it was.

The cat mewed from her spot on Kagome's shoulders, as if in greeting. He nodded minutely back. So this was a youkai. He'd never come across one before, at least that he could recall in his lifetime. They didn't exist in Hueco Mundo.

"You're upset," he noted.

He noticed her chew her lip. She couldn't hide it from him. The question was why, though.

"Have you ever…" she started, sounding hesitant. Kagome stopped, forcing him to a halt as well. She looked to the ground, her bangs covering her eyes. "Have you ever lost anyone before?"

"No."

What had brought this question on?

Kagome leaned into him, using his shoulder as a headrest. He stood stiff. Stoic. Unsure of what to say or how to react. She was acting strange. He didn't understand it. Humans were puzzling. Or perhaps it was her that was so much so. Her emotions never stayed the same for long. Orihime came to mind, though most of their interactions were tense. He spent only a small amount of time with her as the one tasked with her care by Aizen, but he'd since a glimpse or two of her more jolly nature despite her situation.

So then, perhaps it was a trait shared among human women.

"Sorry, I'm sorry. Just... let me stay like this for a bit. I'm a little overwhelmed," Kagome said.

No, he wanted to respond.

In the distance, he could feel that the Shinigami had finished off the Hollow and was back to hunting him down. Ulquiorra pulled her against his chest, a soft "hold on" her only warning before he sonido'd them out of the street and back to her home. Kagome squeaked, dropping her umbrella and the bag she had been carrying in her other hand, and held tightly to him as her legs trembled. He would have caught her when she fell, but then he'd noticed she looked queasy and instead let go of her and stepped back.

She coughed, the sound harsh against her throat.

"Would... you... warn me next time!?"

"I did."

It wasn't his fault her reaction time was lacking.

Back to the question.

"What point is there to mourning the dead when they've already passed on?" he asked.

"Huh?"

She was finally starting to recover from her hacking fit, though her faced was still flushed. She still looked ill. He didn't bother to offer her a hand as she stood, just in case she finally decided to throw up. He did not care for the hassle of cleaning his clothes of her sickness.

"You are upset over the death of a loved one, no? That is why you asked me if I'd lost anyone," he said. "Even if I had, I see no point in mourning for them. They're no longer around to witness it. Nor would it changed the outcome of their fate."

"You're not wrong but... I don't think you're right, either. Isn't that a little harsh?" she asked.

"How so?"

"Even if they aren't around anymore, that doesn't mean they're no longer a part of your life. Your memories and feelings of them still remain, which isn't something that can suddenly be turned off or ignored," she said.

He didn't understand. "Is this a result of having a 'heart'?"

She furrowed her brows, confused. "Well, yeah. I guess. The person may have passed, but their impact on your life still remains. This bond and your experiences with them stays with you even after death, helping to shape who you are. That's not something you can so easily let go of and move on from. Don't you have someone like that in your life who you'd miss if they were gone? Or someone who'd miss you?"

"I don't."

She gave him a look.

One much like Orihime had right before he'd turned to ash before her very eyes.

Pity.

He didn't like it.

On Orihime, Ulquiorra had felt a sort of relief to see. It meant she had not feared him, even after everything he'd done. She, on some level, cared for him. Something he'd never experienced before, nor had wanted or needed up until that point. It had been a peak into a world so foreign to him, yet one at his final moments he had come to take interest in. To experience for the briefest of moments.

To desire for.

With Kagome, it was different.

He was observing it from the sidelines, content not to fully commit. To do so would mean to open himself up. To explore the heart he had only just recently discovered in himself. Exploration meant change. Change meant uncertainty. Discovery was a journey he wanted to take slowly.

Her pity brought an unpleasant feeling.

What about him exactly did she pity? His lack of understanding on human nature? His lack of experience? Bonds? He was lost and she, a human, had the answers to the puzzles he couldn't even comprehend. He lived by logic. Emotions did not. 'Bonds' were conceptual, so was the 'heart'. Logic did not always apply, which made understanding such things difficult for him.

They made their way inside the house and up to Kagome's room. She grabbed a few towels on the way and gave him one, asking that he dry himself off and the wet floor after him. It seemed she had sensed a shift in the air between them, as she left him to his thoughts. Ulquiorra stripped and wrung his clothes over her trash bin, then tossed them over her desk chair to dry. He didn't bother with the floor, as it would get there on its own, and sat at her bed where he worked on drying his hair and mask.

Kirara it seemed, didn't follow Kagome. Instead, she settled on Kagome's desk, cautious of him still.

He barely spared her a glance, though kept his guard up in case she decided to attack.

Despite his annoyance, Ulquiorra felt the familiar wave of the Goshinboku's energy blanketing him. Calming him. He let out a breath, allowing himself to relax just a little.

What determined a 'bond', anyway?

His curiosity was rearing its head, despite his annoyance. Kagome talked so highly of bonds that it made him wonder, just how strong was one? If it could help shape a person, then would it not also hold true to destroying them? Was a bond only formed through positive mutual association?

He thought to Aizen, who had at some point been an important person in his life. It was nothing like love or adoration - not that he was familiar with such concepts. Just subordination to him, with some respect mixed in for his prowess and intelligence. He'd been at the top of the hierarchy and had brought order and stillness to his life, so Ulquiorra had followed him. He did not care for Aizen outside of that, however. Even knowing the man was defeated and imprisoned by Soul Society sparked no interest to help or avenge him. He was mostly indifferent.

Ulquiorra couldn't deny that the man once brought some significance to his life, though.

Did that mean they had shared a bond?

Then what of Orihime, who showed him the 'heart'? Or of Ichigo, who had been the one to have slain him in battle? Were they significant enough to him for a 'bond' to have formed?

His thoughts turned to Kagome herself.

Could it be argued that they had formed a bond between themselves?

Ulquiorra had originally decided to observe her until he found the answer to his situation. There was nothing else for him to do, anyway. Nowhere to go, even. She gave him some entertainment, though now he was realizing that he'd come to grow an actual interest in her. Like Orihime, she was emotional. He had wanted to learn more about the heart and was originally using her to get the answers. Now though, things had changed.

It wasn't just her heart, but her body as well. The mystery behind her lack of spiritual energy. The tranquility that her home, as well as she herself even, brought to him. Now that he really thought of it, the energy that did leak out of her every so often was pure. Incredibly so. He couldn't imagine such an aura being a common trait among other priestesses.

It was uniquely her.

He was tempted to push her buttons, to see if it wavered. If he cut at one of her bonds, would she lose herself? Darken her aura? On that matter, would threatening her finally release the energy she always subconsciously suppressed inside of her? He still had no idea exactly how much energy she truly had. There were still so many questions to her.

Curiosity, he was learning, was in his nature.

He wanted to challenge her, to see how she would react. If what she believed in was genuine, then it should not break under pressure. Just like the heart.

Ulquiorra glanced at her clock and his frown curved down more ever-so-slightly. It had been over an hour since she'd left, yet there was no sign of her returning still. He got up and put on his clothes, which were now pretty much dry. He left the room, Kirara following a few feet behind him. He could hear noises from downstairs, yet nothing that sounded like Kagome. Down the hall, he noticed a locked door.

The bathroom.

He knocked, yet there was no answer. When he still didn't hear anything after calling out her name, he decided to phase through. Kagome lay in the bathroom, the room still steamy from the hot water she'd used to fill the bath tub. She didn't move. Didn't notice him.

She's passed out, he realized.

Kagome stirred in her sleep, muttering something under her breath, yet did not awaken. The shift had her body slipping and he caught her before she could fully submerge in the water and drown. She'd been crying, if her slightly puffy eyes were anything to go by. From outside the door, he heard the feline restlessly pawing to be let inside.

Ulquiorra picked her up and transported her to her room, the feline running after him. He was surprised to find her engulfed one moment in blazing flames and the next transformed into a much larger version of herself - now also equipped with elongated canines. Kirara jumped onto the bed as Ulquiorra set Kagome down, purposefully taking up enough space that he'd have to rest her head and back on the feline's torso.

"She's ill," Ulquiorra muttered.

The flush to her skin that he'd originally thought was due to the water was now apparent to have been caused by something else. The girl coughed, burrowing herself into Kirara's body as her own trembled. Kirara growled when he attempted to examine her for signs of injury.

"Would you prefer we leave her like this?" he asked the feline.

The cat stood down.

Smart move.

Ulquiorra checked her over, though found only an old scar on her side marring her body. It wasn't a physical wound, at least. A human ailment, then? He couldn't be sure. He'd have to get the attention of someone in the house to tend to her. As one who'd never had to worry about injuries or illnesses, he had little knowledge of how to help her.

"I'll be back," he said.

The cat growled in response.

Ulquiorra found Kagome's mother in the kitchen, as he was coming to learn was her preferred place of station. He knocked on the counter, earning her attention. She looked around, confused. When she saw no one, she went back to her task. He knocked once more.

"Kagome's friend?" she questioned.

He knocked again.

Now she was fully facing his direction, confused but listening. He exited the kitchen and knocked on the wall of the hall right outside the room. When she didn't follow, he tried again. She was smart enough to pick up on his intentions. Ulquiorra repeated the action all the way up the stairs and down the hall until they reached Kagome's room, where he stepped aside for her. To her credit, she didn't immediately freak out, though was definitely startled by Kirara's new form.

Kirara moved her twin-tails off Kagome, revealing the still shivering girl to her mother. The woman immediately moved into action, demanding that Ulquiorra wait outside the room.

He obliged, the door closing behind him.

Cold.

Dark.

A bottomless pity of emptiness.

Kagome curled into herself, shuddering at the chills that constantly racked her body. She was back here again, where no light touched. No sounds heard. It was only herself and the fathomless space of nothingness. The jewel wasn't even here, having been wished away.

Why was she here?

She looked around, yet saw nothing outside her own body. At the absolute edge of her senses where she could barely reach, she felt the faintest of an itch. A request for her attention. Yet despite how hard she tried, she couldn't identify it. What was calling her?

No, that didn't matter right now. She had to get out of here. Out of this desolate place. Anxiety bubbled in her chest, threatening to burst out and overtake her. If she didn't get out of here, she would lose herself. Get out, she told herself.

Out, out, out.

There was no exit though. No sign of any life. It was just her.

Only her.

"Inuyasha please... where are you?"

The itch was turning obnoxious and demanding now. Uncomfortable. Kagome took a shaky breath, trying to calm herself. She wanted to scream. Or cry. Or even just punch something. Anything to get it to go away. Her senses screamed at her to hurry and find it, but she couldn't. What was she even looking for?

"Just leave me alone!"

She screamed into the void.

It didn't respond back.

Tears pricked her eyes, threatening to fall. She just wanted to get out of here. Why couldn't she get out? Please, just let her out. Her nails dug into her arms, cutting jagged lines across the flesh. The pain barely registered, the itch too overpowering. She dug deeper, drawing blood. It still wasn't enough, though.

"Please," she begged.

A prick.

Kagome startled.

It was foreign. Colder than the space engulfing her. Sharp and cutting through the density. For a moment, it cleared her mind and pushed back the itching. It gave her focus and clarity with it's pain.

And then it left.

Kagome panicked, desperately clinging to the presence. Vaguely, she felt it was familiar. Yet she wasn't in her right mind to properly place where it was from. She didn't care, though. So long as it didn't leave her. She couldn't stay here any longer. She had to escape.

The girl blinked groggily, groaning as the darkness cleared and color filtered through. The itching was finally subsiding, though now replaced by the aggressive pounding in her head. She turned her head to the side, where she heard the distinct sound of a cat's meow. Kirara popped into her line of sight, rubbing her face against Kagome's.

"You're awake."

Familiar emerald eyes caught her own cerulean ones. Ulquiorra removed the hand lightly pressed on her chest, looking as impassive as always. The cool sensation left along with him, the same one that had pulled her out of that darkness.

Oh.

That's why it was so vaguely familiar. He'd caught her and brought her back. She smiled, it was short-lived as she hacked out coughs.

"Kagome dear, you're finally awake! It's okay, honey. Just breathe," came her mother's voice.

"Where am I?" Kagome asked after a moment, regaining her breath.

"In your room. You were passed out in the bathroom and so we brought you here. Don't push yourself, okay? You're sick," her mother said.

Kagome nodded.

So it was a dream.

Her eyes were heavy, she realized. She wasn't ready to go back to sleep. To risk going back to that place. To go through that horrible itching that grated at her senses. Kagome turned back to Ulquiorra, who was watching her silently. Against her body's protest, she reached for his hand. It was as cool as always.

Grounding.

"Stay with me?"

She had to know he would be here and pull her out if she submerged back into the void. He was her anchor. Her safety net. She wouldn't let him go.

"Very well," he said.

Kagome sighed in relief. With her mother's encouragement, she finally let herself slip back into unconsciousness.

Author's Note

(Because I can never shut up, lol).

Testing out the waters of having more than one POV in a single chapter. This way it should help with getting through the story a little faster than just doing a POV per chapter.

Hyaenodon: Thank you for the suggestion. The one thing that makes me hesitant with entertaining it is that Kagome's powers are rooted in Shintoism. Changing her to a Quincy would be like changing a part of her character that makes her who she is. Or maybe Togashi's (HxH and YYH creator) style of character writing and the power system being a reflection of themselves has gotten to me. Honestly though, this story isn't gonna be super action packed, as I'm more concentrated on exploring the characters themselves. So actually, it might not be a big deal if I were to make the story. At least then she'd have more actual combat action in a story, lol.

Madara of the leaf: Yeah, I'm planning to. It was just a fun thought. Honestly I would be more likely to neglect that story over this one, because I'm enjoying writing the more leisure moments here that build upon their relationship. And yeah, you're right about drawing out the story. The original plan of the chapters would have had me way further ahead by chapter 10, but splitting the POVs and lingering on the smaller moments has extended it. I'll try to pick up the pace a little.

Yakub's weakest soldier: Lol

Edited: 20/10/24 - Reuploaded after merging a few prior chapters.