Searching for Shelter

A/N: Here’s another chapter for you all to enjoy. ^_^

Searching for Shelter
Chapter Eight
Shelter from Hate

Within an hour or so of each other, the detectives had returned to Genkai’s shrine to find a rather gentle aura floating over the premises. Normally, one with extraordinary spirit energy could feel the darkness of the forest behind Genkai’s temple, but that dark aura was greatly diminished in the wake of the still power that seemed to caress at each of them in an almost loving manner.

“What is this…” Yusuke voiced quietly, distrust in his voice as he took in the power and glanced around to see if he could find the source.

“Welcome back, Yusuke…Kurama.” Genkai’s voice called out, gaining their attention.

“Don’t give me that “Welcome back” shit, Grandma…what the hell happened here?!” Yusuke shouted back brashly as he faced his mentor down.

“Dimwit, can’t you even feel out who has done this? Her signature is all over this power…I taught you better than that!” she shouted back harshly, before jumping up and thwaping him upon his head.

Grabbing the growing lump, he growled lightly before looking back to Kurama, who looked, rather confused.
“She did all of this, Genkai?” he finally asked, as he got a nod of affirmation from the old energy manipulator.

“She is quite strong, and it didn’t take long for her to get a lock on this energy of hers. She is a miko, and her first instinct was to clense and purify this shrine. I’d say she’s done more than spectacular at it, wouldn’t you?” she smirked, obviously proud of the girl’s accomplishment in such a short amount of time.

“I’d say so…” he replied softly before Yusuke asked, “...are Hiei and Kuwabara back yet?”

“They arrived about an hour ago. Kuwabara is training with Yukina somewhere around here, and Hiei, well, who knows about that boy.” She replied, before moving towards one of the training buildings.

“What about Kagome? Where is she at?” The toushin asked quickly, earning another soft smirk from Genkai.

“Training. What else. She wouldn’t stop even when I advised that she should. She wants to learn more, so, she’s practicing with her power right now. I advise you stay away from training building three, if you value your life.” And with that, she disappeared into one of the other training buildings, leaving Yusuke and Kurama to stand there and contemplate this new interesting detail about the time-traveling miko.

It wasn’t three seconds and Yusuke was heading towards the building that Genkai had told him to stay away from. He involuntarily shivered as he opened the door and felt her power wash over him, and though the sensation was unusual, it wasn’t an entirely bad feeling. It was even a little…calming.

Eyes closed, Kagome continued to manipulate small portions of her power in her hands, while also sending out bursts of it all around her, keeping the area around her pure. She had no idea that she had purified the entirety of the shrine grounds, but she was acutely aware of the returning presences of the detectives.

When Yusuke came very close to her vicinity, she panicked a little as she shifted positions, to face him, though she kept in her trance state. Delicately letting her power touch him, she almost smiled. He was a hanyou. She had known before that something was different with him, but this just helped solidify it for her. She wasn’t sure what kind of demon he was, but it was a powerful breed. Her power was telling her all sorts of things about him, and he had not said a word. Frowning to herself, she pulled her power back. She didn’t want to learn things about him like this. It seemed like a huge invasion of privacy, and if she wanted to keep her own secrets intact, she wasn’t about to jeopardize that by snooping into his secrets.

Yusuke just stared at her a full minute or two, mesmerized. Her skin was a pale pink that seemed to shift with an invisible veil of power, a power he was all too familiar with from earlier this afternoon. However, he wasn’t sure what it was, but he couldn’t take his eyes from her form. If beauty needed defining, he was sure that Kagome could do that at the moment. He had recognized that there was a beauty about her, a beauty that seemed ordinary, but on second glance, it was a beauty that could pull one in slowly. He had seen that when she had first smiled. Even though it was a sad smile, it was still beautiful.

Shaking his head of these dangerous thoughts, he stepped further into the training room, assured at the gentle caress to his person that she wouldn’t hurt him, and that she had her powers under control. “Kagome?” he questioned aloud, hoping that he wasn’t startling her. That would be the last thing they needed.
She didn’t reply at first, but she noted that his tone was curious, and even relaxed. For that she was glad. At least he didn’t sound afraid of her. Allowing herself some time, she slowly pulled her power back into her body, as Genkai had instructed her. She could feel it pulsing within her, even raging a little as she got used to the feeling of so much power at her disposal.

“Yusuke…you’re back.” She said softly, before opening her eyes and giving him a gentle smile. She was nervous, it was plain to see. Her eyes quickly went over his form to check for wounds or anything to indicate that she had hurt him earlier in the afternoon, but he seemed fine. The young toushin could easily see her distress, but he wasn’t sure what it was over.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, a frown coming to his face.

“It’s…nothing. I was just…” Kagome trailed off before looking away. “…I wanted to make sure I didn’t hurt you.” She finally finished, before looking back to his chocolate brown eyes.

At that statement he couldn’t help but smile a bit. “I’m fine. You didn’t hurt anyone. If anything, you impressed us. That was an amazing blast of power.”

Blushing lightly, she looked away once more before saying, “…you don’t have to lie to me. If you’re scared of me, you can admit it. To be honest…I was really scared at that moment.” She replied softly before adding, “I didn’t want to hurt anyone. Not after you all have been so nice to me, and protecting me when you shouldn’t have to. I realize that I’m weak, but I’m trying to get stronger so I won’t need people or demons to protect me anymore. Not over the jewel, and my duty. You understand…right?”

She left that question hang in the air as Yusuke struggled to get a handle on her words. She thought she was weak, and even he could hear the dejection in her voice. What would he have to do to get to see her confident in herself? Ever since the moment he met her, he realized that she had no self confidence and was even apologetic over things that weren’t in her control. There were few that he knew that were like that naturally, so all that left him to conclude was that she was abused to the point she was at right now…and all he could think of was the hanyou, and the words that had been spoken earlier in the day. Their relationship seemed complex at best, and yet, the hanyou was confident to the point of conceited where Kagome was concerned.

Shaking his head lightly, he took a seat Indian-style in front of her on the floor. “Don’t worry about all of that. Just as long as you’re trying to do your best, and you realize that we’re here to help because we want to, everything will be fine. It wasn’t your fault that happened earlier. Grandma should have realized what she was dealing with before things went that far, so don’t let it bother you.” He explained, as if he were talking to a small child. Somehow, his feelings were starting to shift to that of an older brother to a little sister, and this particular little sister was going through some tough times at the moment.

“Not everyone is here because they want to be, Yusuke. You and I both can name a few people who are troubled by my being here. It might have been better if I had just…given up. If I didn’t come back, then Koenma could have the jewel right now and he could be taking care of it.” Kagome replied, dropping her eyes to her lap.

Yusuke almost laughed, if the seriousness hadn’t been so thick in her voice. “Koenma? Protect anything? That’s a laugh, Kagome.” He tried to smile, to lift her spirits. “Have I ever told you the story of how I met Kurama and Hiei?” he asked.

Lifting her eyes, Kagome shook her head “no”. They hadn’t talked of serious things, or of personal things often. Most of the time he just joked with her, and tried to get her to smile or laugh. It was better that way then, now however, she had a future. What her uncertain future would hold, she wasn’t sure, but right now, Yusuke was in it.

“You’ll laugh when you hear it. I met Hiei and Kurama because they stole three artifacts of darkness along with a demon named Gouki from the Spirit Realm vaults. High class security vaults too, mind you.” He smirked lightly when Kagome’s eyes widened.

“You’re serious?! How come they’re not in jail, or worse?” she asked, never before hearing this story, and wondering how it was that they all seemed like such good friends now, if two of them were thieves of the Reikai itself. Additionally, Koenma seemed to trust them quite implicitly, which added more questions to the number of them forming as the seconds passed in her mind.

“Well, back then, Hiei was on this whole ‘world domination’ kick, but I don’t think he was serious in the attempt. “He added the after thought quickly at Kagome’s frightened look. She had known far too many demons that were really serious about taking over the world, and dominating over humans. Taking her relaxing features as a sign to continue, he started again. “Kurama was looking for a way to save his human mother, who was terminally ill in the hospital, and Gouki, well, he was just a bad apple who had a fetish for eating children’s souls.” He grumbled that last bit out, earning another frightened look from the young priestess.

“C…Children’s souls?!” she exclaimed a little, her mind flashing back to that of the Feudal Era, and a child-like carnation of Naraku, named Kanna. The small girl had a mirror that sucked souls from humans, and her only saving grace had been the size of her soul.

“Yeah…but don’t worry. I put a stop to him before he could do any damage here. He wanted the Orb of Bask, which allows the holder to steal the souls of people with no effort at all. He nearly killed me, but I took care of him before he did, and rescued all the souls he had stolen. Out of the three he is the only one that I killed, which I’m glad for. Kurama and Hiei are two of my best friends now.” He explained further, noticing that she seemed calmer after his reassurances.

“That’s good! But…you didn’t explain what happened to Kurama and Hiei.” She pushed a little, interested in hearing the story.

Yusuke laughed softly before saying playfully, “I’m getting there! Sheesh...Kurama had taken the Forlorn Hope, a mirror that reflected the deepest desire of anyone who looked into it, but not without a price. The price, was life, and Kurama was willing to give up his life to save his Mom. I got there in time to stop the mirror from taking his life, and because of my own self-sacrifice, the mirror granted his wish without taking anything.” He looked away, a light flush on his face. Talking about this with her of all people hurt a little. He had “sacrificed” himself for someone else, and had ended up eluding death, she had done it and had been viciously killed. It seemed almost cruel of him to word it as he did.

“That sounds more like Kurama. Wanting to save his mother.” Kagome smiled, looking tenderly to the young toushin. “And don’t look so embarrassed! You did a really good thing, you should brag on yourself when you do something nice like that. Especially because I asked.” She smiled a bit brighter, before reaching out a hand to place over his. “Please, continue?”

At her words and soft touch, he quickly looked to her. She had misinterpreted his action, but he was glad for it. Her touch was gentle and her words sincere, something he was growing more and more accustomed to.
“Alright, well, the next person was Hiei, and boy, that wasn’t an easy battle. He had stolen the Shadow Sword, which is a sword capable of turning humans into zombies with just a single cut. Basically, he could create an army out of humans with that sword. He kidnapped Keiko and turned her into a demon to piss me off and provoke me. It worked, but with a little bit of luck, I knocked him out long enough for the Reikai to pick him up and deal with him. Back then, I was pretty weak when it came to my spirit power, but since then it’s grown a lot.” He pumped his arm lightly for emphasis.

“Keiko…who is that? And what happened to Hiei and Kurama after the Reikai took them back?” Kagome asked, missing Yusuke’s macho moment.

“Oh, uhm…Keiko has been my friend since childhood, and she’s sort of my girlfriend now. As for Hiei and Kurama, they made deals with Koenma to be spirit detectives with me as a service to the Reikai. Call it, community service for demons. Hiei was pissed at first, but he seems like it doesn’t bother him too much anymore. And Kurama never really had a problem with it. Kuwabara just kind of roped himself into it during one of our missions.” He explained, as he rubbed the back of his head lightly.

“Sort of your girlfriend?” Kagome teased, pushing away a bit of sadness that wanted to rear it’s ugly head. “…and I think it still bothers him, he just tries to be a tough guy and not show it. He’s certainly open enough about hating me.” She added quietly, letting out a soft breath.

Leaving the girlfriend comment be, he went for the more interesting bit of dialogue that Kagome had spoken. Was she talking about Hiei? “He doesn’t hate you. It just seems like that.”

“I don’t know what you’d call it, but to me, it’s hate. He doesn’t even want to be in the same room as me. And I was certain he wanted to kill me earlier today…” she trailed off, finally looking to Yusuke’s eyes.
He saw the honesty and pain within her sapphire eyes, and he just shook his head. Why did she let so many things bother her and bring her down? She was alive! She was healthy! Her family was safe! Hell, today she had been reunited with her “son” and even had seen her family…wasn’t there anything that she could latch onto to keep herself happy at all? Maybe it wasn’t a matter of what things were there to be happy about, but what kept her from being truly happy.

“He’s just confused. You’re different to him, and you’re a change from the everyday. Hiei doesn’t like change. Not at all.” A new voice chimed in, making Kagome look quickly to the doorway. Kurama walked slowly into the room, having walked up on the conversation around Yusuke’s explanation of how he helped him save his mother.
“You didn’t see the way he looked at me when I...” Kagome started to speak, but stopped, her eyes moving to her lap again. “…he hates me. I…saved him, and…”

“….WHAT?!” Yusuke voiced, his eyes turning wide. Kurama knew a little of what she was talking about, though he didn’t get the full story of what had actually happened that day in the Reikai, when she had killed hundreds in the wake of Midoriko’s holy blast of energy.

She didn’t elaborate, so Kurama took the stage as he explained. “The day Midoriko tried to purify the Shikon within Kagome’s body, she nearly took Hiei with it, but Kagome saved him somehow with her spirit energy that was locked within her spirit egg.”

Yusuke quickly looked to Kagome. “Is that true?!” he had done that too, to save Keiko from his burning house, but for her to do it for Hiei of all demons…no wonder he was so pissed off at her. Even he knew how the hiyoukai hated being protected or helped out during dangerous missions. To have someone who wasn’t a teammate, but a woman, and miko human at that, save him, was certain to have the hiyoukai in hostile spirits.
She nodded quietly, before saying, “He…was going to get purified. I couldn’t let that happen.”

“But, there were others near you, you could have saved any one of them, why Hiei?” he asked again, before the hiyoukai’s voice could be heard. “It sounds like you wanted me dead, detective.” Hiei growled out darkly, before moving into the training room. Now that Kagome’s powers had been quiet for the past few minutes, he felt it was safe to check in on her. After learning a little more about her from her mother, and about the mysterious Inuyasha, he felt the need to perhaps unearth the rest of her past. If he could learn more about her, maybe could figure out how she pushed her emotions onto him, and how she had emotionally overwhelmed him when they were in battle with one another. He had nearly forgotten that she had saved his life as well, until he overheard their last bit of conversation.

“Of course not, Hiei! I was just curious as to why she’d pick you from that roomful of demons. You’re not exactly Mr. Sunshine.” The toushin replied, looking back to his teammate.
“Hn.” He replied in kind, though mentally he was curious as well. He hadn’t thought about that. She could have saved anyone in that room, and yet, she picked him. He distinctly remembered slicing his katana through her spirit form before she did that too. With his very real threat to her person, she still chose to save him, despite that. Why?

“…appearances can be deceiving.” She replied quietly, and with that, she stood, moving to walk past all of them. She was tired of talking about this and thinking about that day. It was a huge mistake on her part, and a heavy burden on her heart. So many had been killed that day, and all of it had been because of her. Hiei was her saving grace. Even one person who could be saved because of her, instead of killed, helped ease the pain on her heart. Even if he hated her, even if he never spoke a kind word to her at all, he was alive. Just like Shippou, and Sango, and Miroku, and…Inuyasha. They were alive because of her sacrifice. Her death completed the Shikon, and helped ensure Naraku’s downfall. That was all that mattered. As long as her death meant something, it was okay. In her mind, it was alright if she were gone. No one would miss her long enough for her existence to matter, so death was trivial….a minor inconvenience to her, the “Guardian of the Shikon no Tama.” They’d just find another one. She was sure of it.

“…ah…Kagome…” Yusuke murmured quietly after her, but she didn’t hear him as she disappeared out of the dojo and to the fresh air outside. Eyes widening lightly for a moment, she took in the sight of holy energy floating over the property. Had she done this? It seemed unnatural, like a dream. Surely she wasn’t capable of something this extraordinary…? Her thoughts strayed as she wandered to the forest nearby. A calming walk would be good for her, as she tried to sort out her thoughts and feelings.

“Good going, Yusuke. You’ve got her upset again.” Kurama voiced aloud, a disapproving look on his face.

“Shut up, Kurama. I didn’t say anything except I was wondering why she picked Hiei. Not that I’m knocking it at all…” he added quickly to the hiyoukai, who seemed rather irritated with the toushin at the moment.

“Hn. Maybe its best if you leave it be, detective. After all…you weren’t involved at all.” Hiei replied, before turning to leave. He was done with this conversation. She had said something interesting, and it only made him a little more curious about her. ”…appearances can be deceiving…”

Shaking his head lightly of the words, he disappeared out of the dojo and noticed that Kagome was out of sight. Raising an eyebrow in curiosity, he let his Jagan scan the area slowly and quickly picked up her trail; she was heading for the forest. Quietly, he hopped into a nearby tree and started to follow after her. His previous thoughts of wanting to stay away from her, and wanting to feel as if he wasn’t tied to her at all had changed slightly in the wake of information learned from her mother, and from the conversation just held in the dojo. They were tied together, even if he didn’t want them to be. She had sacrificed something to save him…something that was as good as her life. Her chance to return to life had been sacrificed to protect him. Yusuke’s question was as valid as his own: Why?

~*~

Kurama, still inside the dojo, looked from his departing friend to Yusuke. ‘So…Hiei really is interested in the miko girl.’ Youko voiced mentally.

‘Interested?’

‘Yes…you saw the way he oh-so-politely told Yusuke to butt out of his business. He identifies with that situation as a personal matter. I don’t think it was just because he was rescued by a human girl. He wasn’t speaking with malice, but with curiosity. I think Yusuke has brought new questions forth that Hiei didn’t think about before. Though his point is valid. Why did she save him, when she could have picked anyone else in that room?’ Youko explained.

‘I have no idea. I never asked her and she never offers up information about herself very freely.’ Kurama voiced back. ‘You think it was personal? Or maybe it was a split-second decision…’

‘I don’t think so, Red. When Yusuke pushed at her she said that appearances can be deceiving. It seems unusual that she would talk about Hiei like that. From what I understand, they haven’t talked much at all. She barely knows him. Yet, she would make such a statement.’ Youko interjected.

Before their conversation could go further, they noticed that they were standing alone. Sometime in their mental conversation Yusuke had also exited the dojo.

Shaking his head, Kurama headed out of the dojo too, and noticed that Yusuke was headed for the shrine steps. He was going home it seemed, which left the kitsune to try and figure out what he wanted to do. To continue his investigation or not? One glance towards the forest and he decided. Tonight, he would leave this investigation be, but tomorrow, he wanted to get answers. That figured out, he left the shrine too, and made his way back to his mother’s apartment.

~*~

Kagome, alone again, finally came to a rest as she took a seat against a large tree near an expansive, translucent lake. It seemed Genkai’s property had a little bit of everything. In the distance, she could see a small mountain range, in front of her was that lake, and around this lake, was a vast forest. It reminded her of the Feudal Era and with that thought, she let a soft sigh escape her lips. She missed her friends terribly. She had never gone so long without seeing them before, even when she traveled between times. She wondered if Sango and Miroku were doing well. Was Kohaku doing alright? She couldn’t imagine the hardship that he had gone through…for him to just die would be wrong, so she decided to do what she could, and even if those memories never left him, he was alive. And she hoped that he wasn’t letting the past interfere with his chance to live. At the thought of Sango, however, a soft smile came to her lips. They would do just fine. Sango wouldn’t let him live in self-pity. They were demon slayers. They would overcome all obstacles that life decided to throw at them.
With that thought now in her mind, she pulled her knees to her chest. What was she doing with her life now? The self pity she felt wasn’t easily leaving her. She had sacrificed much in the past, but she had gained a lot too. Naraku was gone, Inuyasha was alive, the Shikon no Tama was complete and she was now back in her own time, like it was supposed to be in the first place. Some things never changed though. She was alone again. Before her travels to the well, she had lived a normal, teenage life, though she was as alone then as she was now. Sure, she had friends, but she wasn’t as close to them as she would have liked to be.

Being in the Feudal Era, surviving things that would kill normal human beings, and doing so with a small knit group of friends around her, they became like a second family to her. They made her life worth living; made it worth going through the many trials and tribulations to overcome all that was thrown at them. But now, she had only a few singular goals in mind. She had to learn to control her power, and learn to protect the jewel on her own. She had to because she wasn’t sure how long her new found protectors would stay around her. She hadn’t told them of what had happened in the past, but she knew that they were smart enough to figure things out for themselves. There were many that died by her hand, and many that died just because they tried to protect her. She wouldn’t let anything happen to them if someone else attacked them, but she wasn’t very confident that she wouldn’t hurt them by her own hands. It scared her that she had so easily lost control, and that she had almost killed someone that was innocent. Hiei had done nothing to her, and yet he was almost a victim to her uncontrolled power. She felt guilt weigh heavily in her heart, a guilt that wasn’t going to go away any time soon. In becoming strong, she wanted no causalities. However, she already had blood on her hands. All those lives in the Reikai that were taken because of her, because of the jewel, haunted her. No matter how many times everyone told her that it wasn’t her fault, she would take blame and responsibility…because it was her burden to bare. She was the protector of the Shikon.

Reaching up a hand, she wiped a single tear away, before whispering to the wind. “Why did it have to turn out this way…Midoriko.”

Hiei had watched as the young miko girl went deep into thought. Her face looked so gentle and forlorn that it pulled at his consciousness in an unusual way. Already, his Jagan was on the alert and clawed to be let free, so it could see what was in the girl’s mind. It was curious and actively seeking the secrets that lay behind her sad, sapphire eyes. Hiei had heard her softly spoken words and let them mule over in his mind a few moments. Midoriko was a name he remembered from that short time ago, where he had seen just how deadly and capable Kagome’s power was. From his own recollection of stories and fables he had heard over the years, Midoriko was the most powerful miko to ever live, and she had gone against three very powerful demons. She had fought them for days, but in the end, she had lost her life to them, but not before sealing her spirit, and theirs, in one small, pink jewel, thus creating the Shikon no Tama. The jewel was one of immense power, and even a shard fragment of it could exponentially increase ones power. He remembered hearing that it came under the guardianship of a group of demon slayers, before it fell under the care of a priestess. He learned to ignore most of the other rumors about the jewel, mainly because of the danger that also surrounded it. Rumor had it that countries and tribes fought over it, and much blood was spilt because of it, until it disappeared, and the rumors became just that, rumors. Rumors of a jewel that may or may not have existed at all. Apparently, the rumors weren’t all based in falsity.
Turning his attention back to the young priestess, he saw that she had fallen asleep against that large tree she was leaning against. Smirking at the opportunity that presented itself, he finally let the Jagan free. He would get the answers he sought, and he was sure that in her exhausted state, he wouldn’t be nearly in as much danger as he was earlier when her power was let free.

Kagome had felt someone nearby, but she was certain of who it was, and she wasn’t nearly so untrusting as to think that he would do something to her. Letting her guard down, which may or may not have been the wisest of choices, she let herself drift into a light sleep. So much energy went into the manipulation of her power that a nap sounded really good right now, and sleep helped ease the pain she felt in her heart. She wouldn’t burden anyone else with her thoughts and feelings. She never bothered her friends in the past with what she felt or thought, and she surely didn’t want to voice her thoughts here. She barely knew her new companions, and trying to change that just seemed like suicide at the moment. She had nearly lost the one person she loved the most in the world, if it had not been for her instantaneous reaction. She didn’t want something like that to happen again. Even though she was alone, she wanted to keep her distance from them. She didn’t want any of them to get hurt because of her.

It was her number one priority: to protect them….even if it was from herself.

The Jagan paused near her mind, glancing over the sleeping miko before it touched against her mental barriers. Kagome had never been one with immense mental control, and even with her powers simmering just below the surface of her skin, it was nothing to break down that thin mental veil that protected her innermost secrets and memories.

Hiei paused at how easy it was to enter her mind. He assumed that it would be much more difficult to scope out her memories than what was actually happening, but after a moment or two, he finally just shrugged it off as her weakness. Though he had saw how powerful she was, he knew she was untrained. Luck was with him on this day, as he knew that soon, Genkai would have her learn to protect herself in all aspects, starting with her mental barriers.
Focusing back on the task at hand, he glanced around her memories with barely concealed interest. There was a lot going on in her mind, and many memories that were circulating in an almost frenzied manner. ‘Starting at the beginning would be best…’ he thought mentally as he found very early memories of her childhood. She was crying, and it wasn’t hard to see why. She was at a wake, with a baby in her arms. It certainly wasn’t her child, but the resemblance was unmistakable. It was her baby brother, but where was her mother? Glancing around, he noticed that her mother was being comforted by others, and his eyes traveled back to the picture that Kagome was staring at. “What will they do without a father?” an unfamiliar female voice was heard. Two and two were put together easily. She had lost her father when she was just a child. He understood that more clearly that she probably realized. He had never known his father, or his mother, being what he was. He was outcast shortly after he was born, and he nearly died during those first couple of years of his life. He had survived though, and had become stronger. He was a demon however. He couldn’t really understand how humans moved forward after the death of someone close to them. Emotions were something he never really understood.

Moving past that memory, he noticed how closed off she had become emotionally, from her mother, brother, and grandfather. She showed nothing but a smile, but he could feel how isolated she kept herself emotionally. That changed, when she entered the Bone Eater’s Well. He could feel her growing sentiment and emotion towards an inu-hanyou named Inuyasha. ‘So…that is the hanyou she befriended.’ He thought mentally, though ‘befriended’ was a very large understatement. She had fallen in love with him, even though he saw over and over how many times the half-demon had betrayed her trust. It made him angry to see the tirades of disrespectful words that were thrown at her by him, and it almost made him lash out at her, when she stood there and took it most times. He had noticed that she had a spitfire personality however, one that made itself known as she took subjugation over him with just a simple word. She had taken more abuse that he realized in the beginning though, as he watched what she had seen. She had been overshadowed by a woman named Kikyou. Someone who was a previous protector of the jewel, and someone that Inuyasha had loved, and was loved in return. He saw the circumstances that led to her “revival”, and it nearly made him ill as he saw how much suffering Kagome went through after that, because the inu-hanyou had picked her over for the undead body that was his former love.
Who would willingly choose the dead over the living? Had he been the hanyou, he wouldn’t have half-heartedly made promises of devotion if he knew that he couldn’t keep his word. To him, trust like what Kagome had offered him was something that was more valued than life itself. From his own experiences in his life, he knew that true devotion and loyalty was rarer than the most precious stone or metal. He had only known a handful of demons and humans who actually fit that description, and they were currently in the small group of detectives that worked for the Reikai. He would trust no others outside of the small group of fighters besides a demon woman he had known almost since birth, and she had permanent residence in the Makai.

Something else that got Hiei’s attention in her mind was that of a small kitsune kit that she took in her care. He had noticed that almost suddenly, a small child kit was traveling alongside her and the inu-hanyou, and yet, it was as if nothing had really changed. Kagome had taken the child almost as her own it seemed, and cared for him like she would her own child. She scolded him when he was bad, rewarded him when he was good, and protected him fiercely when it came to battle and being in danger. She protected him more fiercely than she did herself, which was more than he ever could have imagined, seeing as how she was a human, and the kit, a demon. It was throwing everything he knew about humans and their perceptions of demons into chaos. Seeing these images, he couldn’t help but feel a little ashamed at himself at his behavior towards her. He really knew nothing about her, and yet he treated her like he would any other human. He assumed that she was like the rest of her race, and like the other miko women he had ever encountered, but he was wrong. She was nothing like anyone else he had ever met in his life, and he was slowly starting to realize that it was not necessarily her fault for her overwhelming emotions on him. Perhaps it was just because of the lack of mental barrier that allowed him, with the Jagan, and his extreme power that picked up all her thoughts and emotions. Shaking that thought away for now, he focused on other memories in her mind.

He watched as the hanyou slowly degraded the small woman’s self worth to that of nothing over the extended period of time that she was in the past, and he saw as she kept her faith and love in the hanyou, never wavering in her love or devotion, even until the last moment of her life. Standing almost in shock, he watched as she raced in front of a deadly attack by Naraku in order to protect and save Inuyasha, even after he had given up, upon seeing his former love fall at the hands of the evil hanyou. He knew that she had taken a particularly severe blow, but she had taken it to protect someone else, and that someone else didn’t seem to really care for her or respect her in any manner, even after all she had given for him. Her confidence and mental worth were cast aside as she kept her strength in him, and never forsake him. No matter how much he hurt her, she never returned the favor, though he knew it was definitely in human nature to be vengeful when they were wronged, and in his eyes, Kagome had been very wronged indeed. The hanyou, a race of demon that was despised even as much as those like him were, had been given a gift that he tossed away as if it were invaluable, like a stick in a forest or a pebble on a mountain side.

Quickly, he threw those thoughts aside. It was not his place to revenge the miko. If she wanted to be a fool and keep giving and giving when the hanyou would keep taking and taking, than that was her business. Even if he didn’t like it.

Moving away from her, he felt that he understood her a little better now, or rather, a lot better. She was kind and strong, stronger than she would show, and kinder than she would brag on. She had shown him something that he wouldn’t soon forget, and that was a level of compassion that he had never seen before in any creature, and certainly in any creature that was human.

His crimson eyes moved to her sleeping face and he reached up hand to brush a strand of hair from her cheek, never once touching her skin. She was almost like his sister, yet she was human. She had been transgressed upon far too much for his liking and yet she remained compassionate, even to the point of saving his life. His question of “why” didn’t need to be asked anymore. He had his answer as plain as day.

She protected him because she felt she had to, because her duty took so many from her, she didn’t want someone else to be hurt because of it. She protected him because it was the least she could do, because of his orders to stay near her. She knew she was dangerous to be around, but because he had put himself near her, it was in her nature to protect him…even if he would have protested that he was strong enough to take care of himself. She did it, because she saw him differently than most saw him. She was not scared of him, and she wasn’t scared to die to save him.

He had earned her respect by doing nothing, and she had earned his respect, by doing everything.
With that final thought in his mind, he moved away from her to a tree nearby, and let his thoughts rest a moment. He had learned much about her today, without her permission, but that didn’t bother him nearly as much as the events he had seen in her mind. Shaking his head lightly, he turned his eyes to her. He’d watch over while she slept. After all, it was the least he could do.

Kagome was aware of him the entire time, even though she was asleep. She let him search her mind as he would, and didn’t hide anything from him. For some reason, she felt this was the only way he would understand her at all. She knew that he was a quiet demon, and very reserved. She had heard as much from his companions and had seen as much when he was around the others briefly when she was in the Reikai. She also could feel that he no longer hated her as she had thought. He had never really hated her, he was just confused and unsure of her intentions.

She hoped this temporary truce would last.
She hoped he would keep her secrets safe from the others.
She hoped things would get a little better now.
She had a lot of things to hope for.
~*~

A/N: Wow. Long chapter. Hope you all enjoy it. :)
As always, Please Read and Review. ^_^
Kudos, Loves!
Sayuri-chan


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