Fragile

Chapter 3: Hello Again

‘Help me…’

Blue remained locked with gold for what seemed like hours as a silent request was met with an answer. Sesshoumaru turned away from the girl and walked up to Dr. Nakaura. “Drain it.” It was a simple sentence, but the tone held such an icy bite that the doctor actually shivered.

“Ex-excuse me, Mr. Taisho?” Nakaura stuttered. He knew that he’d just been given an order by a being much more powerful than he (in more ways than one), but he was having a hard time registering the two words.

“I said drain it. Now.” Sesshoumaru answered as he narrowed his eyes at the cowering human before him. He turned away and walked back to the woman he would have thought to never see again. ‘I will get some answers to my questions…whether she wants to answer them or not.’

Kagome watched as Sesshoumaru walked away to speak to someone else in the room. He came back to watch her yet again and looked slightly angry. Suddenly a surge of bubbles came from the bottom of her tank-like enclosure. Her view was obscured and she could no longer see Sesshoumaru but could still make out glimpses of silver. She could feel her heart beating faster in her chest and started to struggle against the wires and tubes around her. Unfortunately, doing so dislodged her breathing tubes and she got a deep breath of water. Soon the tank was empty and she was lying, naked and cold, on the bottom coughing.

Not being able to breathe, Kagome pulled the feeding tube from her throat and began coughing again. Once most of the water had been emptied from her lungs she screamed. The pain of breathing on her own and pulling the tubes from her throat was almost unbearable. Finally all she could do was lie at the bottom of her glass enclosure and cry as the glass around her was released from its seal around the top and lowered into the floor around her. She was vaguely aware of people rushing around her, covering her with blankets and detaching the electrodes and wires from her. And as she continued to lie on the floor shivering from the sudden exposure to the cold air of the laboratory, she looked up at a clearer vision of Sesshoumaru.

He looked so different and exactly the same all at the same time. He looked down at her with the same cold, emotionless eyes she had always remembered him having and said “Get her cleaned up and bring her to an interrogation room. I have questions that only she can answer.” And with that he turned on his heel and walked out the door.

After the door shut behind him, Kagome’s vision began to blur around the edges and her world was once again black as she lost consciousness again.

When Kagome awoke some time later she found herself to be back in the small room she once called her own here at…wherever she was. She was fully dressed and appeared to have been bathed. Her hair was dry and tangle-free. She didn’t particularly want to think about someone else bathing her so she thought back to seeing Sesshoumaru. ‘He’s still alive…does that mean that Inuyasha is still here? What about Koga? And Shippo?’ Her thoughts were interrupted when the familiar ‘click’ of her door signaled someone’s coming. Sesshoumaru entered.

“You’re awake. Good, I was tired of waiting on you and came to wake you myself if necessary. You will answer my questions and will not lie to me. Do you understand?”

Kagome listened to the edict and only stared at him.

With a frustrated sigh, Sesshoumaru walked to stand in front of where she sat on her bed and leaned against her dresser. “How are you here? You are a human and should have died centuries ago. Explain.”

“I…” with just a single syllable her voice cracked. After weeks of non-use except for a scream earlier, her voice was weak. Clearing her throat, Kagome tried again. “I’m from this time, not the one you remember me from,” she choked out. “I know it sounds crazy…but I used to travel through time to that era. It started when I was fifteen. I’m not sure what month it is anymore, but I’m probably twenty-one by now.”

“That is rather unbelievable, girl. How exactly did you manage to time travel?” Sesshoumaru could sense that she wasn’t lying but couldn’t help but wonder if she had dementia and merely believed some fantasy. He’d never known of anyone, human or demon, who could travel through time.

“Kagome…my name is Kagome. And it was the jewel—it allowed me to pass through time to 500 years ago…”

Sesshoumaru was slowly getting answers. The jewel was powerful but he didn’t see how it allowed this girl to jump from one era to another. “And how did the jewel allow you to do that? Did you wish it? Or was there something in particular you had to do?”

“Is anyone else alive?” Kagome asked as though she didn’t hear his question.

“It is rude to ignore a question directed towards you. Now answer me.” Sesshoumaru commanded. He’d been there far longer than he wanted to be and was ready to get his answers and leave.

“No.” Kagome answered as she looked to the floor.

“You will answer me, human. I’m sure you remember enough to know that I could kill you any second if I so wished.”

“I don’t care. If you won’t answer my questions, I won’t answer yours. And besides,” Kagome said as she looked up at him with tears in her eyes, “I didn’t tell them and they did things far worse than killing me!”

Sesshoumaru’s eyes started to bleed red. He’d had enough; it was time to get what he wanted. Reaching out his left hand he grabbed her by the throat and looked at her. “You will answer my questions, NOW. I can deliver things worse than death as well, Kagome.” He said her last name as though it were dripping with the same poison his claws created.

Kagome reached up to grab his arm with the intent of burning him like she’d done to others, but nothing happened. She looked at where her hand rested on his arm then up to look him in the eye. He was glaring at her. She looked back down and took a closer look at the arm she held and the hand attached to it that held her. She felt the skin on his hand and her eyes widened; it was synthetic. She looked back up at him to see his usual cold façade back in place as he pulled his hand away from her throat and looked at it before flexing it a few times. “That is enough for now. I will be back though, and at that time I expect the answers that I desire.”

Kagome’s eyes watched him as he reached for the door knob. “Please,” she called after him. “Please kill me. If I say I won’t give you your answers, will you kill me?” He voice was watery and was starting to crack again. “I don’t want to go through anymore experiments…I can’t tell them the rest of the story…please…” Kagome tried standing up to walk to him, but the muscles in her legs failed her and she hit the floor as soon as she stood. She sat there on the floor crying, just hoping and praying that Sesshoumaru would pity her in some way and spare her from the torture that this place seemed to offer in abundance.

Sesshoumaru turned to look at the girl in the floor. He briefly thought back to when he saw her those five centuries ago. She had either been smiling or yelling at him or his brother. Comparing that image with what he saw now…it was pathetic. He almost felt something akin to pity for the young priestess and wondered what kind of ‘experiments’ she’d gone through to cause this transformation. “Stay.” He commanded as though talking to a dog. With that he left the room and let the door shut behind him.

Sesshoumaru strode up to Dr. Nakaura and a few government officials who were talking at the end of the hallway and listened as all speech stopped when the noticed his approach. “She’s leaving with me.” He stated flatly.

“I’m sorry Mr. Taisho, but that’s just not possib-”

“I don’t care.” Sesshoumaru interrupted. “I have questions for the girl and she’s not willing to answer them while here. She leaves with me. I shall tell you of what I learn. You may fax any questions you have for me to my home, and I will answer them when I have the chance. But for now I’m leaving to make up the sleep that you gentlemen took from me, and the girl in that room is going with me.” That said, he turned around and walked back to Kagome’s room. Sliding his key card through the slot next to the frame, he heard the lock click and walked in.

Kagome was still on the floor crying where he’d left her. He walked over to her, grabbed her by the arm, and hauled her up. Once she was on wobbly legs he began to pull her out of the room. She stumbled after him silently, looking up at him with a tear-stained face and a shocked expression. Sesshoumaru could hear how rapidly her heart was beating and that her breathing was becoming labored. “Girl, if you hyperventilate due to unnecessary fear and pass out yet again I will DRAG you out to the parking lot. Do you understand?” He questioned as he gave her a pointed look.

He heard her swallow hard and saw her nod dumbly in his peripheral. When they made it to the elevator, Sesshoumaru quickly pressed the button that would take them to the ground floor. They stepped out together a few minutes later after a very quiet elevator ride and continued out across the tile floor of the lobby. They made an odd sight to the receptionist with a young, silver-haired man in a business suit dragging an even younger, weak-looking woman in a completely white outfit behind him. Sesshoumaru opened the front door of the building and kept pulling Kagome along as he made headed directly for his car.

Kagome was shocked into a state of silence as she obediently stumbled behind the tall demon. When they stepped outside she felt the cold air bite at her skin; it had to be winter. The pavement was freezing on her bare feet and she had to squint her eyes due to the rising sun. Then it all hit her at once. The odd feeling of the cold air around her with the warmth of the sun on her skin, the sounds of morning traffic, the smells of car exhaust and a lingering frost…they were all things that she had taken for granted for years. But now she couldn’t get enough of them. Her chest tightened and she wasn’t sure if she was about to laugh or cry, but either one would be done with relief and joy.

Sesshoumaru stopped her in front of a sleek, black sports car and unlocked the door only to shove her inside. While she sat up in the leather seats he walked around to the other side and stepped inside. “We are going to my home. You will stay there until you have answered all of my questions. Once that is done you will likely either return here or be permitted to go back to wherever your home is. But for now, once we arrive at my home I will have a servant show you to a room and explain the rules of the house. I will be going to bed and am not to be disturbed for any reason. We will speak when I get up.” And with those words the car was silent again as he pulled onto the highway.

Kagome spent a few minutes staring out the window wondering what kind of questions Sesshoumaru could have for her and whether or not she would be able to go back to that place. Finally Kagome couldn’t stand it and without looking away from the window she asked, “Sesshoumaru…what month is it?”

He was silent for a few moments and she thought he wasn’t going to answer when he said, “February.”

“Heh…happy late birthday to me.”

Sesshoumaru remained silent but cocked an eyebrow and glanced at her out of the corner of his eye.

Kagome saw the action in his reflection on the window and with a sad smile explained, “My birthday was December 29…two months ago. Thank you, by the way, for getting me out of there.”

Sesshoumaru didn’t answer but merely turned his gaze back to the road as they rode in silence the rest of the way to his home.

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AN: I want to thank paulymoon for your review =] I was just beginning to think that nobody liked this story when I got the email alert. I'm not gonna be a review whore and withold chapters, but as any other author I do appreciate feedback. so let me know what you think guys! I'll get the next chapter up in a little bit since it's already written.