Masquerade

Chapter Fourteen- When All Are Sleeping

Kagome assumed that, when she died, she’d have gone to heaven. A place where you get wings, can talk to animals, and have a generally blithe, convivial, nonchalant outlook. It was to be paradise. Yes, her teachings spoke of reincarnation - and she believed them - but she’d lived a pretty fulfilled life. She didn’t really need to do it again. If she did, she rather hoped she’d come back – if not as a human – as a cat.

These hopes were ruthlessly slaughtered however, when Inuyasha showed up. Because obviously she. Was. In. Hell.

I wonder if the devil remembers Kikyou… Maybe he’ll go easy on me because I’m a frequent visitor.

“Sesshoumaru!” Inuyasha’s eyes stayed rooted to the demon lord, he took no notice of Kagome.

Until he happened to take notice of Kagome.

His golden eyes ran over her priestess clad, long raven hair, Kikyou-looking form with a slow, deliberate inspection. She looked so like Kikyou now, but she wasn’t. And he knew that.

No, I’m not saying he had a major character breakthrough and finally came to terms with-

Undead golem thing= Kikyou

Living, breathing future thing= Kagome

-‘Cause he didn’t. But the scent of Kagome, after she’d properly mastered her powers had strengthened and changed.

It was spicier and passionate and sorrowful and-

Mixed with Sesshoumaru.

“Bastard! What did you do to Kagome?!”

One of Sesshoumaru’s eyebrows rose, and he took a step forward, away from Kagome. “What do you think I did, half-breed?” Sesshoumaru was very intelligent. He knew his scent had mingled with Kagome’s and he knew what Inuyasha would make of it… More fun!

Inuyasha’s eyes shot from Kagome to the demon with a slightly panicked air. “Kagome… You didn’t?”

Kagome blinked slowly. What did he think-

“Oh for the love of the gods!” She shouted, smacking her forehead with one hand. “Why? Why?! Buddha, how come everybody keeps assuming that the fluff-ball of doom and I have… something? Because it’s preposterous. First of all, I’m a priestess. Second of all…” She continued shouting angrily, pacing and yelling and thrashing her arms wildly. She wasn’t really talking to anyone anymore, so it seemed.

Inuyasha watched her for a couple minutes, blinking and twitching his dog-ears silently.

“-Fourth, I wouldn’t touch Sesshoumaru! I wouldn’t. Because he’s tall and pale and demon-ish and I don’t even want to know how many stripes he has!” Her mind threw a picture of him in the pond in front of her and she froze.

Inuyasha was coughing wildly at the stripe comment, bent over and gasping for air with his eyes screwed shut.

Sesshoumaru shut his eyes and placed his hand on Tokijin. I can only hope she hasn’t thought on this before. His eyes opened and looked at her blushing form silently. Well, actually…

Eventually Kagome stopped and looked up at the two brothers timidly. “Hi, Inuyasha.” She said, waving a little.

Inuyasha stared at her, then shoved Tetsusaiga into the ground and practically trampled her, burying his nose in her hair. “Stupid wench.” He muttered brokenly.

Sesshoumaru watched the scene with narrowed eyes. Torture. First with the whip, then with the dokkassou, followed by-

“Inuyasha, please don’t fight Sesshoumaru.”

Inuyasha pulled back to look at her, blinking wildly. “Um, Kagome, have you received any recent head injuries? Should I make Kaede get some tea? ‘Cause-”

Kagome put her hand over his mouth, staring at him darkly. “Don’t. Please. There’s a lot you need to know right now.”

“About what?”

“The Shikon.”

“But the Shikon-”

“No, it didn’t. And that’s all I’m going to say out here.”

“But the asshole-”

“Yes, he is traveling with me.” She gathered the herbs and looked around at the ground, then grabbed another plant and walked up to Sesshoumaru. “Is this-?”

“Yes. Go back to the village.”

She looked back at Inuyasha, and then shrugged. “Aren’t you coming?”

Sesshoumaru kept his eyes fixed on Inuyasha, and his hand tightened on Tokijin’s sheath.

Kagome rolled her eyes and started walking, humming lightly.

Several tense minutes passed while the two waited for her to be out of earshot.

“Asshole.” Inuyasha greeted, yanking Tetsusaiga out of the ground.

“Mongrel.” Sesshoumaru returned as Tokijin slid from the sash around his waist silently.

And they were nothing but blurs.

Inuyasha swung Tetsusaiga sideways across his waist, aiming at Sesshoumaru’s leg. Sesshoumaru parried with Tokijin, his eyes never leaving Inuyasha’s. Inuyasha growled and took a leap back, then swung the great fang over his head, and dashed forward, Tetsusaiga arcing toward Sesshoumaru swiftly. Sesshoumaru shot to the right, avoiding the sharp blade by inches. He brought Tokijin up, skimming Inuyasha’s sleeve and-

The hanyou dropped into a crouch, Tokijin whizzing past his dog-ears by inches.

“You’ve improved.” Sesshoumaru said.

“You haven’t.” Inuyasha replied, Tetsusaiga shooting toward Sesshoumaru’s gut.

Sesshoumaru twisted to the side, his hold on Tokijin’s hilt shifting, “You cannot improve perfection.” The demonic sword hummed greedily as it embedded itself in Inuyasha’s shoulder. Sesshoumaru drew his arm back, Tokijin leaving the skin and muscle with a revolting sucking sound.

Inuyasha grunted and fell back, trying to stay on his feet. He panted a couple times and lifted one hand up to the bleeding flesh, then growled and raised Tetsusaiga once more. “Wind-!”

Sesshoumaru’s shoulder hit his gut, sending him flying back into a tree.

Inuyasha sat up slowly; his hand was stained red with his blood, and Tetsusaiga laid uselessly at his feet.

Sesshoumaru watched him silently then flicked his blade clean of the hanyou’s blood and turned around, walking toward the village. Tokijin hung in his sash, the dark aura twirling around the metal contemptuously as Inuyasha watched.

“Whaddya mean you still have the jewel?!””

Kagome rubbed at her temples, sighing tiredly. “We’ve explained this three times. Three! You asked that the first time!”

Kaede made a sound of agreement from her place mixing the remedy, but otherwise kept silent.

Inuyasha scowled and sat back against the wall, expertly hiding his grimace at the wound in his shoulder.

Kagome eyed him a little skeptically, but the anxiety of being operated on while being conscious made her turn back to Kaede without a word.

“Kaede?”

“Hai, child?”

“… Is it going to hurt?”

Kaede poured the steaming liquid in a cup and handed it to Kagome. “Ye are a priestess. What do you think?”

Kagome took the cup with trembling hands and stared at the light liquid, “So I’ll go partially numb?”

“Aye.”

“But not fully?”

“Aye.”

Oh, damn. Kagome sighed and downed it, her nose crinkling at the strong taste.

Almost immediately the right side of her body went dull. Slowly her left followed until she was lying back on the mat with a slightly goofy grin on her face.

“Now?”

Kaede nodded and pulled out a sharpened knife, parting Kagome’s top.

“… Did you clean the knife?”

Kaede’s hand stilled on her flesh. “Yes.” The cold metal bit into-

“You’re sure!”

Kaede sighed and looked up at Kagome’s face. “Aye!”

Kagome swallowed and steeled herself to keep quiet, her eyes twisting shut.

“…Child?”

Kagome opened her eyes and looked at Kaede, who was staring at her abdomen with a perplexed expression.

“Yes, Kaede?”

“Where is the scar of the Shikon?”

Kagome’s brow furrowed and she sat up, staring down at her uncovered flesh. It’s gone…

She shook her head and pointed to a slightly indented spot on her waist. “Cut there.” I can’t believe I just said that. She lied back down and shut her eyes, her hands clutched tightly in the cloth beneath her.

“It’ll be over in a minute, Kagome.”

“Charming, miko. You’ve figured me out.”

“The second this jewel is destroyed-”

“Destroyed? You actually think it will be so simple to be rid of it? Of me?”

“Yes, all we have to do is-”

“Throw it into the sea, cast it into a volcano, seal it away in an enchanted cave? Foolish. None of it will work.”

“But-”

“No buts, Kagome. Do you remember how it felt the first time you passed through the Bone-Eater’s well? So do I.”

“How-”

“You are not from this time, Kagome. You are from 500 years in the future. Think about it, you’re a smart girl. All of this, everything you’ve been referring to in this era as the present is really the past. Don’t you see? This cycle. Born in Tokyo, 1984. Trained in Edo, 1545. You will grow old and die here, then, you will be born once more in the future and tossed back into the well. How can you be so sure this hasn’t happened before? Perhaps you’re already on your second, maybe your third cycle. It will continue.”


Gradually sounds filtered to her. The echo of birds calling to the east, the distant call of villagers, and the low murmurs next to her. Her eyes remained shut, and a deep sorrow settled over her, weighing down her chest and making her limbs heavy.

Forever, miko.

The impression of his presence, and the knowledge of his words twined through her mind like the web of a spider he once was.

You remember how it felt when you were a little girl?

She rolled over quietly on the mat, hoping not to draw attention to herself.

Those constant senses of having done things before? What did you call it?

A deep, menacing chuckle filled her head.

Déjà vu.

She shuttered and the breath left her body. He’s gone. They’re just memories. All you have to do is destroy the jewel of four souls. Sighing she began to sit up, a painstakingly slow effort that caused shocks of ache to rocket down her spine and side.

“Child, don’t strain yourself.” Kaede’s voice sounded to the right of her.

Kagome ignored her and pulled herself up until she was leaning against the cool wood of a wall.

“Kagome?” Inuyasha ventured, plopping down in front of her.

“What?”

“Why the hell are you traveling with Sesshoumaru?!”

Uhg, headache.

Kagome opened her eyes and glared at him. She felt sick, pessimistic, angry, depressed, and bitchy. Don’t do something rash! Her conscious warned.

“Why, I’m in it for the sex Inuyasha.”

Later, after a good nights sleep and the healing of her lesion, Kagome would blame Miroku for this comment. But, right now-

“What?!”

Kagome turned to Inuyasha and grabbed the two shocks of hair lying on his shoulders, tugging his face even with her own. “He’s… assisting in a mission of mine. Originally I started on this trip with a cat-demon named Masao. I assume you’ll meet him later.”

Masao flitted through the trees without a sound, clutching his naginata and focusing solely on his path.

Kagome-san is fine, Masao. You are worrying for no reason.

He was five miles from the border of Edo; he’d be there in-

“Masao.”

Masao ground to a halt, twirling his naginata in front of him while he searched for the source of the voice. Minutes passed until finally a scent wafted over his nose.

Leiko.

His head shot straight up, and he saw the disappearing fabric of a kimono. She doesn’t want to see me.

Masao’s eyes tapered and he jumped up, landing on a branch ahead of her. She froze and stared at him, her mouth agape.

“Leiko.” He said coolly, a mocking smile on his lips.

Masao: I would totally run to Kagome first. Totally.

Sesshoumaru: No. You wouldn’t.

Masao: Why not?

Sesshoumaru: You wouldn’t have any legs to run on. *gestures to Tokijin*