Death Is Only The Beginning

Chapter 2: Life After Death

It had been almost a year since Kagome had been sent to the place she now knew as Soul Society. At first she had been incredibly depressed that she had passed up her only chance to see her mother and tell her goodbye, but that had ended when she realized that there were people here that could use her help. Because many people who came to this place came individually, the chances of actually finding a deceased relative were small. Many children came here as homeless orphans and, while some found surrogate homes, many were left to wander the streets alone. So Kagome decided to take it upon herself to give those children a safe place to sleep and the love and comfort that so many of them needed.

Her small home wasn’t in the best district of the Rukongai, but it wasn’t in the worst either. The people here often found themselves on hard times, but were fairly kind. Kagome would go to other districts and do odd jobs here and there to earn money that she needed to feed some of the children and herself. She had also learned that not everyone in Soul Society needed to eat. Only those with higher spirit energy needed food to keep their bodies going. But even though all of the children she cared for didn’t need to eat, she would try to bring treats for everyone from time to time. Just because their bodies didn’t need to be fed didn’t mean that something sweet from time to time was unwelcome.

Today Kagome had made her bi-weekly trip into the rougher districts of the Rukongai to see if there were any children that need her help. She had been worried at first, knowing that she could only take in so many children, but word of her efforts had reached some of the families in the wealthier districts and occasionally a family would want to adopt a child or two into their home. It always made her slightly uneasy coming out to the fringe villages, but she knew it was for the greater good. When she made her trips out to these parts she would look for any who were injured or sick to help heal. Being in a place made entirely of spirit particles had made it much easier for her to willingly call forth her own spirit energy. She remembered back to when she was alive and the few times that she had brought her energy into her hands as a fluke or channeled greater amounts in her arrows. From what she could figure, with as large as her soul had been and the amount of holy energy she had was being converted into one form: her spirit energy.

It had taken some practice upon her arrival, but she soon found out that if you had the power it was sink or swim because the creatures know as Hollows came to this world as well to prey on those with spirit energy. Needing to protect herself and those around her had spurred Kagome to figure out the best ways to do away with the evil spirits. The smaller ones weren’t too different from purifying demons of the feudal era, but the larger ones took a little something extra. Without thinking about it, Kagome reached down to place her hand on the hilt of the katana she had found beside her in bed one morning. She had watched Inuyasha, Sango, and Sesshoumaru for years as they fought and had the basic stances down. It wasn’t much but she was able to adapt the stances to give herself a decent offense and defense. If all else failed, her spirit energy could still be used as a shield for a short time.

She had also learned of the shinigami or Soul Reapers that were supposed to keep the Hollows in check. She remembered the man dressed in black with the crimson hair who had saved her in the living world, but she had yet to see another of his kind since coming here. She had been terrified of the beasts that came in all shapes and sizes at first, but then she had lost one of ‘her children’ to one…that had been the end of that particular fear. She wasn’t one to stand by and watch as children were hurt and killed. Or to watch that happen to anyone for that matter. Most of the districts she went to were safe for her to travel through because she would heal their injured without asking for anything in return. This gave her a sort of protection. There were occasionally the new-comers who would try to attack her, but it didn’t happen often and for that she was grateful.

It really wasn’t where she pictured herself at seventeen…or eighteen?? She wasn’t really sure what age to go by now. She had learned from talking to some of the children that the people here with no spirit energy didn’t age and those with spirit energy aged very slowly. Decades could pass and she could possibly still look seventeen when she was in her forties and fifties. But no matter what age she was, she wanted to help people. After all, if she was going to be around for that long she really needed a pass-time.

She was almost ready to turn around and start home to begin preparing supper when she heard an all too familiar cry. No matter how many times she would hear it, her blood ran cold every time. Kagome ran as quickly as she could toward the sound. She had started wearing hakamas as they were much easier to move in than the yukatas that she saw many of the other women wearing. Coming across a clearing, Kagome saw a Hollow that had two men trapped against an outcropping of large rocks. Luckily it was small enough for her to purify only using her hands. After making short work of the creature and making sure the men were okay, Kagome excused herself so she could return to her own home.

The sun was setting in the sky when Kagome was finally able to see her small house in the distance. One of the children she cared for saw her coming and ran towards her until someone she recognized as a shinigami stopped the child. “Run away, Kagome!” The little girl yelled to her. “They wanna take you away!!”

At first Kagome hesitated but remained steadfast and walked toward the shinigami with her head held high, showing no fear or any sign of being intimidated. “Let Aya go. If you came here for me, here I am.” She stated as she literally looked up at the man in front of her. Two sets of unwavering blue eyes locked, though one of his eyes was covered by some of his blond hair. ‘His eyes are so stern…yet sad at the same time.’ She thought.

“I am Third Squad Lieutenant, Izuru Kira. It has been assigned to me, Higurashi Kagome, to bring you into the Court of Pure Souls for shinigami evaluation. We are to leave immediately.”

Kagome just blinked up at the man with fair features before responding, “Huh??”

~*~*~*~

Earlier that morning a knock was heard on a set of large doors before a calm voice called, “Enter.”

Soi Fong entered the large office of Head Captain Yamamoto with her quick, precise steps before stopping in front of him and bowing as she waited for his recognition. “You have some news to report to me, Captain?”

“Yes, Captain Yamamoto. My squad has finished the investigation on the decrease in Hollow appearances throughout the Rukongai. We have determined that the numbers have not decreased as we first suspected, but instead they are being dealt with before news of their appearance can be relayed back to the Thirteen Court Guard Squad. We have discovered that the force fighting them off is a single young woman by the name of Higurashi Kagome. Our sources tell us that she came to Soul Society almost one year ago. In addition to ridding Soul Society of many of the Hollow that cross over, she has apparently been taking in orphaned children of the Rukongai and working to feed and care for them. It has also been relayed to me that every other week or so she travels into the more impoverished districts and helps to heal their sick and injured. That is all of the information I have as of now.

Yamamoto sat, taking in the information that had been reported and finally said, “Tell Lieutenant Kira to travel into the Rukongai and bring her back to me. I wish to meet this girl and see what she is capable of.”