Memories of Love

Chapter 2

The two demonesses continued to fill each other in on what had been happening for the past 16 years. The room had been filled with the sounds of joyous laughter, as well as words of sorrow, though both had felt a sense of fulfillment.

Eventually, ‘good night’s were exchanged, and lights were turned off. Reiko looked fondly on her child, still marveling at how 16 years in the future had changed her so much. ‘She’s a strong girl…’ she heard a voice say. Turning around, Reiko replied, ‘Yes… But I have you to thank for that. I don’t know how I will ever repay you for all that you have done, Higurashi-san…’.

‘Think nothing of it. Kagome brought lots of joy and happiness to this household, though I think she will feel more at home now that she has found her true mother…’. Reiko sighed and smiled, ‘It’s been tough, but the war is finally over, and hopefully, Kagome will be able to fit in with the rest of them. We will be leaving tomorrow, though the well will remain open… So, please do come visit… Kagome will miss you a lot’.

‘Yes… I will come… So, will you be staying for the night here, or do you have to go back?’. ‘I… will be back tomorrow morning for Kagome. For now, I think I’ll have to go back and tell Takeshi about everything. He’s still upset that the well only allows certain people in and out, so… I don’t want to keep him waiting for much longer’.

The two gave each other brief hugs before heading their separate ways.


Sesshomaru clenched his fists tightly as the scar pulsed, sending waves of pain in the process. Unable to do anything except try to distract himself from the pain, Sesshomaru looked out the window, hoping to find something interesting.

From the North, he felt the same strong orb of magic that he had felt earlier that day. It was in the lands of Lord Takeshi Takemoto and his Lady, Reiko Takemoto. They were close friends of his, though he was surprised to realize that he did not know of what was happening.

He made a mental note to remember to ask them the next time they met, which he knew would be the day of the mating ceremony. Groaning, he realized that everything that he thought of seemed to lead back to the ceremony even though he tried pushing that topic away.

In his heart, he knew there was a sense of fear, one that he did not want to admit having, but it would not subside. There was always the ‘What if’ question that haunted him, frustrating him to the point where he was unable to control anything. He knew that his ‘fate’ depended on his future mate, be it the one or not, everything was in her hands…


‘Reiko… So, how did it go?’, an elegant lord asked. There were gray hairs hidden amongst red hair that was tied up in a high ponytail. Despite that, he stood a good 7 feet from the ground, and was still as strong as ever. Reiko had grown accustomed to him, yet she wasn’t sure how Kagome would react.

‘She takes after me, being so accepting and strong’, Reiko said with a small smile and laugh. Takeshi gave her a mischievous look, ‘Ha! That has to be the biggest lie of the century. Obviously she takes after me, if she has those qualities’. Reiko rolled her eyes, but did not say anything.

‘Tomorrow… You will have to begin training her. Sesshomaru has found his mate, and will be holding his mating ceremony on the day of the full moon. It will be a fine opportunity for Kagome to learn about the demon society, and as well, present her to society’.

Reiko nodded in agreement, then got up and walked to the door. ‘I’m going to make some final preparations for her arrival tomorrow. And… Please… Try not to scare her’, she said in a teasing voice. Before he could retort, she was out of his sight.


The next morning, Kagome was up at the crack of down, and was surveying her room, trying to decide what to bring with her to the Feudal era. She was in her demon form, and somehow, everything seemed quite a bit smaller than they looked before. ‘Well… I can eliminate clothing from the list’, Kagome thought to herself.

Kagome’s eyes widened as she felt something from outside the house, and apparently, it was approaching the house quite quickly. She wasn’t sure how to describe it, but the ‘thing’ she felt was one that seemed very happy, and warm. The girl tiptoed downstairs, only to find herself face to face with her mother.

‘Oh mother! You’ve come back so soon!’, she exclaimed, holding her mother in a hug. ‘Ah yes, but let’s go up to your room so we don’t disturb the rest of the household’, Reiko said with a small smile.

When they got to her room, Kagome explained what she was trying to do, hoping that it didn’t sound too embarrassing. ‘Kagome, take whatever you WANT to take. You will be able to come back here as often as you like, so it’s okay if you forget something’.

Sighing in relief, Kagome plopped back down onto her bed, and relaxed. She soon remembered the weird feeling she had felt that morning, and questioned Reiko about it. ‘All demons have an ‘aura’ of some sort, the strength of it, depends on the strength of the demon. Back in the feudal era, the more powerful demons mask their aura to some degree, so that they can have their privacy. Here, I leave it because there is no need for me to hide it’.

‘When we arrive back to the castle, there are many things you will learn about, including fighting, the demon society, the proper dining manners, literature, and everything of the sort. It will be tiresome, but your reward will be well worth it, I assure you. Now, let us go to the feudal era, and come back for your things in the nighttime’.

Reiko opened Kagome’s bedroom window and leapt out gracefully. She looked back up at Kagome and asked her to that as well. ‘Um… Well the thing is… I don’t…’, Kagome stuttered nervously. ‘Kagome. You are a black leopard demoness. Just push off the ledge and your body will move accordingly. Trust yourself’, Reiko said in a stern voice.

Taking a deep breath, she crawled out the window, and pushed off as she was instructed. She could feel the cold air against her face, and saw that time around her seemed to slow down. Kagome could see the ground approaching her slowly, and as it got closer, her body positioned itself to be able to land properly.

When she finally felt the solid ground under her feet, her eyes widened and she could only take in a deep breath and whisper, ‘Wow’. Kagome had never been afraid of heights, but she had never thought that freefalling was that exhilarated, much less the fact she could do that.

‘Come on now then, there’s going to be plenty more time for that, especially when your father starts training you’, Reiko replied. She led Kagome to the far end of the shrine, where she had never been before. There, stood a small wooden well. ‘This, is the portal between the future and the feudal era. Only Higurashi-san, you, and I, have the ability to go through it. Not even your father is allowed to’, Reiko said with a slight chuckle.

She stepped onto the ledge of the well and peered into the darkness. Reiko merely said, ‘Follow what I do’, before jumping into the well and vanishing. Running over, Kagome peered down, only to see that Reiko was not there. She closed her eyes and sighed. ‘What have I got to lose…?’. Without thinking twice she slid into the well, never looking back.


Sesshomaru flew above his lands, making sure that there were no intruders. He looked towards the east, knowing that it was filled with rogue demons. There had been several meetings of what would happen to the Eastern Lands, though they never yielded a result.

Takeshi said that he was content having the Northern Lands, and wouldn’t mind if either Sesshomaru or Naraku took over the lands. He had always been the one to mediate between the Western Lands and the Southern Lands, considering that neither were on speaking terms with each other.

The white-haired lord clenched his fists upon remembering the Southern Lord, Naraku, who was his rival in claiming ownership over the Eastern Lands. Naraku had been after the Eastern Lands for as long as Sesshomaru could remember, though he had only announced he had plans to take over the lands when Sesshomaru had shown interest in the Lands.

Turning his attention to the North, Sesshomaru once again felt the large amount of magical force gather, but this time, there seemed to be 2 pulses. Before another thought could reach his mind, unbearable pain burst from his chest as he felt the scar spread out further on his chest. Unable to take anymore, Sesshomaru transported himself back to the castle, everything else forgotten.


‘Kagome!’, Reiko called into the well. ‘Oh, mother, where are you?’, Kagome cried from inside. Looking up, Kagome saw a clear blue sky, as well, her mother’s head looking down at her. ‘Kagome, come on! Just jump up, similar to how you pushed off the window ledge!’.

As if it were instinct, Kagome leapt up, and soon found herself up and above the ground. She landed without the slightest sound while grinning a mile a minute. ‘I can really get used to this…’, she said with a slight chuckle.

Reiko smiled at Kagome. She had never expected that Kagome would be so accepting… So… happy. Shaking that from her mind, Reiko asked her, ‘Well… Are you ready to meet your father?’.

As the Takemoto mansion came into view, Kagome could only stare in awe. There was one main building in the center, which was at least 7 stories high. It was built in the style of a temple, yet the size of the building was much larger than Kagome though a temple could be. Surrounding it, were many smaller houses, none of which were any less magnificent, the main building, each with its own unique design.

‘This… Is what you could call, ‘home’’. Seeing Kagome’s stunned expression, Reiko handed her a hand-drawn map of the grounds, ‘And… hopefully, this will help you get around for the first few days’. Kagome unrolled the parchment and gaped at the details of the map. ‘Oh, mother, this must have taken you ages to do!’.

‘Actually, your father made this. He will be teaching you how to fight, and most of the literary things you need to know, and I will be teaching you the proper demon etiquette, as well, the different rituals that demons have. By the time of the next full moon, there will be a surprise, which I’m sure you’ll love’.

Trying to absorb both the beautiful scenery and Reiko’s words at the same time, Kagome gave a small nod before letting Reiko lead her to her father. As they made their way through the winding corridors of the mansion, Kagome could feel a strong aura from the room they were approaching, and knew it to be her father’s. It was exactly the same as her mother’s, but seemed to be even stronger.

Just as Reiko reached to open the door, it burst open Kagome felt herself being enveloped by strong arms and lifted up. ‘Oh… Finally, my daughter, you have returned to me! I was afraid your awful mother had taken you somewhere and kept you all for herself!’. Kagome laughed into his chest, and hugged him. She felt tears come to her eyes as her heart swelled up with joy. Never had she felt so happy, or so welcomed in one place as she did in the arms of her family.

‘Welcome home, Kagome’.

The next few weeks were the most eventful weeks of Kagome’s life. She would wake up everyday, unable to wait and see what her parents had in store for her. Her father would spend hours training her on how to fight with a huge range of weapons, as well as showing her the different powers she had. Afterwards, they would work on history and literature, and occasionally drawing. Her mother showed her all the demon politics and proper etiquette, which Kagome was surprised to find so many differences.

Soon enough, it was the night before the full moon, and her parents had called her up to her father’s study to show her something. As she walked through the hallways, it all felt so natural now. She had fit right in and despite a few bumps along the road, Kagome could safely say she was comfortable with everything.

‘Come on Kagome! We’ve got something for you!’, her father called out. The demoness rushed up as quickly as she could and could only stare in admiration as she saw the gift.

In front of her, were her parents, holding the most beautiful kimono she had ever seen. It was a shade of cobalt blue with stunning red cranes and golden vines that lined the hems of the kimono. ‘Oh my god, it’s… amazing… Thank you so much!’. Kagome ran into the arms of her parents and hugged them as hard as she could, her face holding a smile of pure happiness.

‘Higurashi-san also told us of your love for dancing, and after a few classes with her, I can safely say that I am pretty good’, Takeshi said with a chuckle. ‘For Sesshomaru’s mating ceremony, I was wondering if you would give me the pleasure of dancing with you, as a performance for the ceremony?’.

Kagome smiled brightly, ‘I’d love to dance with you. Oh, now I hardly wait for tomorrow to start, I can just tell something special is going to happen’.


**************************************

Chapter 2 is complete ^^. Dedicated to Momo, angel 101, Lily Ann, and Katana, for the reviews that got me motivated. I am still not sure how this story will turn out, so please review and tell me what you think.

I will try my best to get another chapter up before the new year, and maybe even 2 if I'm not too tied down by work =), so, please continue to read, and don't forget to review!

Happy Holidays!

With much luff,
Endless Sorrow