For Curiosity's Sake

Inu-Yasha was once again yelling; his frustration mounting at the utter disappearance of Naraku in conjunction with the priestess having fallen ill. Sesshomaru’s jaw clenched slightly at the lack of care his sibling displayed for a pack member. Disgraceful.

The hanyo stalked out of the small hut the priestess and her friends rested in and ran into the forest. Sesshomaru moved closer to the hut currently housing the remaining members.

“...go back to your own home?” The monk’s concerns clear in his voice. “The physicians there do seem to be more knowledgeable.”

The slayer agreed, pointing out superior remedies. Kagome agreed, and wrapped herself in the blanket for the walk. Miroku offered to escort her as Sango and Shippo set to work preparing for the journey ahead.

Sesshomaru moved just far enough ahead to keep the girl’s aura in range of perception. He watched from just inside the trees as the girl entered the clearing with the monk. He walked with her halfway to the well and looked up and in Sesshomaru’s direction. The monk smiled to himself.

Again! This monk is becoming irritating. Sesshomaru fumed in the shadows of the forest.

“Er—Kagome? I just realized that with Kaede gone and Sango and Shippo out, Inu-Yasha will get confused and probably worry. I’d best go back. We’ll be thinking of you, Kagome.” He smiled at her and took her hands, holding them. “Don’t come back until you feel better, alright? None of us want you to hurt yourself.”

“Um. OK, Miroku..” She looked a little surprised at his hasty retreat. “Don’t worry too much, I’ll be fine soon. But thanks for taking care of me, I appreciate it.”

The monk turned and left. “Anytime, Kagome! See you soon!” And he was gone.

The girl, Kagome, started once more for the well. She didn’t even notice as he emerged from the trees, though neither did he until he was halfway to her. They reached the well at the same time, and she looked up at him, shock, but not fear, clear on her face.

“Inu-Yasha’s not here, Sesshomaru,” she told him, and managed to keep the waver to a minimum. This girl, this human, looked at him in the eye and addressed him as an equal and as being familiar. He mused briefly that she had never once addressed him as “Lord” or any other title; she had only used his given name.

“I am not here for the boy. I am merely passing through,” he replied in his usual tones, noting the mild confusion in her eyes. “You are unwell.”

“Um. Yeah, I caught a cold; I’ll be OK, though,” she reassured him. A faint pink stained her cheekbones and she looked down, not meeting his eyes anymore. “Um... Thanks for your concern.”

“Hn.” Sesshomaru gazed down at this strange girl. “The well; does it hold some magic? I assume this is your way of going home?”

Her eyes snapped back to his, shocked again. “Oh! Er—yeah. It’s...um...a shortcut... I don’t live near here,” she finished lamely. The girl was clearly hiding something; this fact irritated him greatly, almost as much as knowing that he could not ask after the truth and maintain any hint of good manners.

“I see. You should be careful, Kagome. It is in one’s most familiar places that one’s guard is let down, and trouble may arise.”

She gaped at him, and he briefly wondered if she would hold his rudeness against him should her pursue the question of the well. He smirked at her red face and stammered thanks, and started to turn and leave.

“H—how did you know my name?” she called after him.

This surprised him; she was calling him back? The girl was usually relieved at his departures, even the ones resulting in no bloodshed. “I know yours as you do mine: from observation and information given by others.”

“...Oh, OK then,” she said in a small voice, looking down again. His answer seemed to upset her a little. She sat on the lip of the well and gazed at him, her face held a minute sadness that it hadn’t before. She looked as if about to speak again, but doubled over with coughing.

As with leaving the trees, he didn’t realize his movements until they had taken place. He found himself kneeling at her side. “Kagome. You must go home; you must rest. If you linger, your condition will worsen.” He paused. “I should like to speak with you more about your home... If I may.” Even kneeling, he was tall enough to be at eye-level with her. He studied her rich brown eyes; most humans he had spoken with never looked at him, but the few who had had dull, lifeless looks about them. This girl had many things swirling around in hers: emotions and secrets, stories and intelligence.

Sesshomaru gave himself a mental shake. The priestess was certainly odd; she seemed to entrance all around her with nothing more complex than compassion and an extended, open hand to any who would take it.

“I... Sure, if you’d like. Um. If we’re not caught up in some battle or other, a week from now?” She looked with uncertainty into his face.

“A week, then. Now, go.”

She smiled at him and fell backwards into the well. A flash of blue-hued energy laept from the well and for a moment, Sesshomaru could smell a very different place. Strongest was the scent of trees and stone, though not by much. Mingled with the two were harsher, bitter smells that he could not place.

The magic faded as quickly as it had come, and Sesshomaru turned and left.