Nightingale

Nightingale

Chapter Five – Awake

…

Kagome shivered uncontrollably as her teeth chattered, her lips cracked and bleeding. Frigid air pricked her body, made her fingers and nose painfully stiff, her movements jerky and slow. Breathing was like inhaling icicles and her throat was dry and brittle, puffs of cottony air blooming in front of her every time she exhaled. Hugging herself tighter, she tried to get some warmth back into her body but it was nearly impossible. Her legs were numb and each step further down was becoming increasingly difficult to manage.

“Ban…”

And before Kagome could catch herself, her foot caught in the thick snow and she was falling, falling down the white covered hill, the air knocked out of her and consciousness tunneling into a welcoming darkness.

…

“Her body is recovering remarkably fast for a human.”

“And the fever?”

“Not as bad as when we first found her. Her body temperature is returning to normal.”

“Inform me when she wakes up Taijiya.”

“Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama.”

…

Wake up Kagome…

Sleepy blue eyes slowly opened as she shifted on the softness that lay beneath her. Feeling the warmth next to her, she scooted closer and softly sighed into the heat.

“You’re finally awake.”

The feminine voice startled her enough to make her snap her eyes open and shoot up into a sitting position, looking warily for the source.

“It’s okay. You’re safe now.”

Kagome clutched the thick fur tighter, pulling them closer to her body as she stared at the woman sitting across the fire. Long black hair pulled into a tight ponytail and chocolate eyes lined with pink, she was very beautiful, seemed extraordinarily strong too. Pulling her eyes away from the other woman, Kagome looked curiously at her surroundings, deducing that they were in a cave and sheltered from the cold.

“Who are you?” She asked after a long moment of quiet contemplation.

“Sango Taijiya.” She gave Kagome a friendly smile. “And you?”

“Kagome.”

“Well Kagome, you made a extremely quick recovery. Most people would’ve died in the condition you were in.” Sango said, a look of marvel on her shadowed face.

Kagome looked away and absently brushed her fingers through the fur. “I’m not most people.”

Sango softly laughed. “I can see.”

An almost hesitant smile crossed her lips. Kagome had a feeling she’d get along nicely with her. “Can you tell me where we are?”

“We’re in the Western Lands and about two days away from Sesshoumaru-sama’s home.” Sango replied and saw the slight confusion marring the other woman’s brow. “In case you were wondering, you’ve been asleep for three days.”

“Sango! We need you!”

Kagome’s head shot up and she glanced towards the mouth of the cave. How did she not notice all the noise outside? All the laughter and loud talk, the crunching of snow and clang of metal. She saw Sango stand up and smile apologetically.

“Someone probably got stabbed again. Idiots.” She rolled her brown eyes and sighed. “I’ll have to leave you for a bit but Sesshoumaru-sama—”

“Tend to the monk Taijiya.”

“Speak of the devil.” Sango smirked, shaking her head at the daiyoukai as he entered. “Please don’t scare her too much. She’s such a pretty little thing.”

Always the protective older sister. Sesshoumaru ignored her though and let his gold eyes fall heavily on the mysterious woman on the other side of the crackling fire.

“I’ll see you in a little bit Kagome.” Sango grinned and stepped out of the cave, leaving her alone with a very intimidating demon.

She tried not look at him but it was difficult not to. His presence was overwhelming, demanding even and she didn’t know why but it increased the beat of her heart, caused it to play a rapid tempo. The silence between them stretched on uncomfortably before she heard him move.

Looking up from the depths of the orange fire, she saw him leaning on his shoulder against the stone wall of the cave, strong arms crossed over his armor clad chest as he appeared to get lost in his thoughts. And then she was taking in his features; the pointed ears, the magenta stripes and the blue crescent moon, the silver blue hair…her eyes suddenly widened in recognition and her voice broke through the tense silence.

“It was you…”

He looked at her then, focused the entirety of his attention on her as his citrine eyes turned deep and penetrating, the angles of his face softened by the glow of the fire. Leaning away from the wall of the cave, he soundlessly stepped closer, around the fire, and crouched beside her. He tilted his head slightly, as if assessing her and her worth before taking her chin between forefinger and thumb and raising Kagome’s apprehensive eyes to meet his.

“What are you to him?”

She shouldn’t have been surprised that this demon, this Sesshoumaru who launched an attack on her prison, who had a role in her escape knew. Kagome tried to look away, but his gentle grip held firm.

“His caged nightingale…” She relented in a whisper, slowly sinking deeper and deeper into those golden depths.

Sesshoumaru regarded her a few moments more before releasing his hold and gracefully standing up in a rustle of silk and armor. “Naraku escaped before I could kill him.”

And as the sudden weight of his words fell across her shoulders, she closed her eyes, felt her heart clench in her chest, the warmth left behind by the rough pads of his fingers. “Then he’ll come for me and won’t stop until he has me. All you have to do is wait.”


…to be continued…