Learn To Live

AUTHOR‘S NOTE: This particular fic is one of my older ones. I found it kicking around in the files on my computer while I was deleting things, and made the mistake of letting my friend read it, at which point she insisted I post it. So here it is. I apologize ahead if time for it’s likely annoyances lol. Hope you can manage to enjoy.

‘Words’ = Thoughts
“Words” = Speech

CHAPTER 1
It was the last time. The last time she’d ever allow him to violate her. The last time she she’d ever allow him to humiliate her. The last time she’d ever allow him to harm her or her son, not matter whether it was emotionally or physically. She was done with him. She would escape him. And she’d do it tonight.

Kagome lay motionless and naked next to her now sleeping husband. Naraku Onigumo, he was a handsome man, a rich man, a man with a sparkly reputation. He was tall and built, young and smart, with hair of chestnut and eyes of crimson. So what more could she want right? Wrong. Unfortunately looks and sparkly reputations could be deceiving. She’d discovered that the hard way. She was his, and she was to accept it. He owned her and that was that. He’d told her so the last time she’d tried to leave him. It hadn‘t gotten her anywhere, nothing but a black eye and a bloody lip. Later, he’d made it clear to her that if she ever tried to pull a stunt like that again, he’d hurt more than just her face. He’d hurt her Shippou, the precious little boy she had growing inside her. And damned if she’d ever let that happen, she’d never tried to leave him again.

But that black eye had been hard to cover up. She remembered.
That was how Sango, her closest friend, had first figured out what Naraku had been doing to her. Damn she’d been pissed. Chaining Sango to a chair had almost become a necessity simply to stop her from rushing out the door and off to personally castrate the bastard.

Kagome smiled faintly at the memory. Sango loved her like a sister, and vice-versa. And that love, was the only thing that had stopped Kagome from allowing her to go after Naraku. He would have had Sango killed, either by himself or one of his employees. Most likely followed by her own beating or death. Then what would her baby do? If he even made it long enough to be born, how could he stay there without his mommy? So it was clear, she had no other choice but to stay with Naraku and behave. He was a very powerful man after all. He had dozens of men working for him. Doing all his dirty work and cleaning up after him. Most of them were in it for the drugs he supplied them with, but not everyone. Some of them were just plain sick.

Kagome fought to repress the shutter that came with the thought.

As she forced the repulsive men’s faces from her mind, the memory of the last time she’d tried to escape resurfaced.

With tears in her eyes, she’d promised never to try and leave him again, never to disappoint him. She sobbed as she begged him not to hurt her unborn child but he’d simply looked down on her shaking form and smirked, proud and amused that she’d crumbled so easily.

“Of course you won’t.” He’d said it with venom.

Later that night, he’d taken her forcefully against the wall, in the same vicious manner in which her precious Shippou had been conceived four months earlier. She was ashamed of it. But never would she wish it not to have been so. It had resulted in the most wonderful part of her life. The only joy she had left inside her was for that little boy. That little boy was her life, plain and simple.

And so 7 years later, when Naraku had struck him, she’d lost it.

****FLASHBACK****
“What are you doing in here boy?!” Naraku hollered. Shippou whirled only to come face to face with the man he was forced to call father.

“Father, I-I was just looking for Mommy.” The boy stammered.

“I’ve told you many times that my office is off limits! You have no business being here!” He paused, stepped forward with malice in his eyes.

“Did that bitch tell you could come in here?!” he demanded in an almost whisper. With his words Shippou’s eyes flashed, his fear instantly forgotten in the defence of the woman who‘d birthed him.

“Mommy’s not a bitch! She’s way nicer than you are!”

It was in that moment that Kagome happened to be walking past the office door and heard the commotion. A mother’s instinct had her rushing in.

“What’s going on? I-” She stopped dead in her tracks as Naraku’s fist connected with her boy’s face. She paled, and for a split second, she stood staring at his motionless little body sprawled bleeding on the floor. But the instant Naraku began to advance, instinct completely took over.
She acted on purely on the desire to protect what was rightfully hers. Charging forward she leapt onto Naraku’s back, biting, scratching and slapping at the back of his head, neck and shoulders. She put a good few marks on him, but within seconds he had thrown her off and began pummelling her body and face with angry fists.

Hours later she’d awoke in bed. Instantly she was jumping up to find her baby, totally ignoring the throbbing pain throughout her entire body as she stumbled into his room.

“Shippou…” she murmured as she recognized his tiny sleeping form. Making her way to the bed, she noted he didn’t seem to have any wounds other than the bruised cheek. He’d left him alone. Thank Kami he’d left him alone. She slowly crawled onto his bed and lay down next to him, taking him into her arms as silent tears leaked from her eyes. It was at that moment she decided it was over. She would grab Shippou and hightail it out of there as soon as she’d made the arrangements.
****END FLASHBACK ****


She took a deep breath. Slowly she lowered her hand to Naraku’s arm, which was placed firmly across her naked chest. Gently, she began to lift it off of her and over to the side.
He stirred. She froze. His grip tightened and he let out a low growl.
Maybe the sleeping pill she’d managed to slip into his wine was wearing off? She gulped.
‘Oh Kami please help me…how the hell am I gonna pull this off?’ She thought mournfully. Then a thought occurred to her and a small smile of waning hope grazed her lips.
“Naraku? Darling? I need to use the restroom.” She whispered as she chewed her bottom lip and mentally screamed her prayers to the Gods.
He cracked an eye open, studied her. She heard him breath out an irritated sigh, then he simply let her go and rolled over.
She smiled triumphantly at his back. The pill Miroku had given her had defiantly done its job. Usually, Naraku would have bothered her about being ‘too stupid’ to have gone before going to sleep, or simply flat-out refuse to let her go. But he hadn’t done either of those things, he’d just gave her a mild glare, rolled over and went back to sleep! Standing up, she hurried towards the bedroom’s walk-in bathroom, grabbing up on her way, a pair of jeans, a green tank top, a black sweatshirt and the necklace her mother had given her. Normally, she wouldn’t be permitted to wear such casual things. But it wasn’t like he’d ever know. She was planning on never having to look into his face again anyways.

She dressed quickly and pulled her silky black hair into a messy bun. Then she decided to actually use the washroom, since she really did have to go anyway. Besides, if he heard it, it would only seem more believable. She stood there for a moment staring at her reflection in the mirror. Her skin was tanned though slightly paled due to the situation, and big chocolate brown eyes paired with some beautifully chubby pink lips stared back at her. She was slim and beautiful, a little underweight maybe, but never the less still beautiful. Problem was, she didn’t feel beautiful at all. Not right now. Right now she felt cold and absolutely terrified, but none of that mattered. She didn’t have a choice. This had to be done. The plan had been set in motion, now she was going to have to go through with it.

Slowly, she peeked her head out of the bathroom door. The sounds of his faint snoring echoed like trumpets in her ears. Her breath was coming in harsh, quick breaths. What if she was caught? Would he finally kill her, or simply beat her close to death? And if he did, would he then turn to Shippou?

No. She couldn’t allow herself to think that way. She would get through this and she wouldn’t be caught. No matter what the consequences were, she’d do it and no one was going to stop her. Not fear, not hate, not even Naraku.

She crept silently towards the bed, crouched, reached under it, and pulled out a large yellow bag from her childhood. It was the same bag she had used during high school. Naraku had called it tacky and tattered, he’d told her to get rid of it. But she loved the stupid thing and never could bring herself to do as she was told, that old yellow bag held some fond memories. So she had hidden it, and luckily he’d never found it. It had sentimental value, not many things she owned did. She wanted it. No, she needed it.

As quickly and quietly as possible, she crept out of the room and down the hall towards her son’s room.
After turning her head to make sure she was still alone, she took the last step and grabbed hold of her son’s bedroom doorknob. That’s when she noticed she was sweating. And examining her hands, she noticed they were shaking. Oh God what was she doing? Closing her eyes, she swallowed the lump in her throat, and took a deep, calming breath. Well, it was suppose to be calming anyways. Unfortunately it didn’t help much.

With her final decision made, she turned the knob. The door opened a crack and she peeked inside, silent and motionless, just as it should be. Why wouldn’t it be? It wasn’t like anyone other than Sango and her boyfriend Miroku knew what she was planning. Why should she be so shaken?
Because she thought, that was something he had instilled in her long ago. Fear. Fear of him and what he was capable of. She swallowed again and
crept closer to her son’s bed.

How could anyone be so cruel as to strike a child, much less your own child? How was it even possible? She couldn’t even begin to fathom it, nor did she figure she’d ever be able to.
Reaching down, she scooped up the sleeping 6 year old. He let out a sleepy growl before coiling his arms around her neck. He mumbled something incoherent and drifted back to sleep in her arms. Swallowing another of the grapefruit sized lumps that had taken to frequently forming in her throat, she turned around and headed out of the room.

She hurried down the stairs and grabbed her purse. Taking a moment to get a better grip on Shippou, she cursed.
How could she have been so stupid? She’d left her necklace on the bathroom counter! She had to go back for it. It was the only thing she had left of her mama. She’d given it to her just before she died. She wouldn’t leave it there, no chance in hell.
Cursing again softly, she gently set Shippou down on the sofa with her bag. Fighting back tears, she headed back up the stairs.
She counted backwards trying to calm herself at least 5 times before she reached the bedroom door. Clenching her teeth, she entered the room yet again. Still, he lay sleeping soundly, and she prayed to the Gods it would stay that way.

She slipped past the bed and into the bathroom soundlessly. Seeing with relief that her memory was still intact, the necklace was indeed still on the counter, she scooped it up and fastened it around her neck.
Swallowing again, she headed back into the bedroom.
He stirred. And again, she froze. If he caught her like this she’d be done for.

“Kagome you Whore, why do you act this way?” he muttered venomously under his breath. She stood frozen as her mouth soundlessly flapped open and closed like a fish.
She was panicking inside. How did this happen? She’d been silent hadn’t she? She didn’t deserve any of the things that had happened to her since the day she’d met him, and she damn well didn’t deserve this!

Just as she was preparing to fight violently for the life of herself and her child, she realized something.
He still wasn’t moving. Not a muscle. What the hell? She crept closer towards him and stared down at his frowning face.
He was still asleep! He was talking in his sleep! Oh, the Gods were on her side tonight.

A grin sparkled on her face. So she wasn’t dead after all.
She turned and rushed out of the room and down the stairs. She’d better hurry, Sango and Miroku were waiting in the car down the street and she didn’t want them to worry. Shoving her bag on her back, she grabbed her purse and scooped Shippou into her arms again.

She turned on her heel and came into hard contact with a chest.
She tried to scream but a hand covered her mouth.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


“Shhhh! Don’t scream! Do you wanna get caught?!” a hushed voice whispered as loudly as a whisper could possibly be.
Kagome’s eyes widened at the sound of her best friend’s voice. “SANGO!” She said it in a rather loud voice, somewhat like a prayer.

“What are you doing in here? You and Miroku were suppose to wait for me in the car down the street.”

Sango gave her a sad smile. “Yeah…well, you took so long I thought he might have caught you. I came to help…”

Kagome smiled back at her with tears threatening to blur her vision.
“Thank you…” she whispered. Sango simply gave her another weak smile and wrapped her in a tight hug. Efficiently crushing the child in her arms. Shippou stirred and mumbled something about ‘stupid grandma’s’ giving tight hugs‘. Sango pulled back and both girls had to suppress the urge to giggle, despite the circumstances.

Suddenly remembering just exactly what those circumstances were, Kagome spoke.

“Ok, we better stop blubbering and get going. We’re not safe yet.”

Sango hated her frightened tone. It just wasn’t like her to be afraid. But ever since the day she’d met that bastard, things had changed. She’d show up at her place crying and bruised, scared and shaking. The soul that was so full of life and happiness was slowly being destroyed, devastated and void of all that ti used to be.
And every time it happened, Sango wanted to rip his heart out and make him eat it. That slimy fucker didn’t deserve someone as sweet and innocent as her Kagome.

Sango forced another smile followed by her natural smirk “Don’t worry about it. We’re getting the hell out of this shit hole.”
With that she took Shippou out of Kagome’s arms and headed for the door. Kagome followed with her bag in hand.

“Sango…how did you get in here without setting off the alarm?” she asked in a low whisper.

Sango smirked arrogantly. “your forgetting the use of my sexy beast of a boyfriend”

Kagome rolled her eyes. “Right. Sorry forgot about the manly Miroku. So, how did he get in then?”

Sango shifted Shippou to rest in one of her arms, and slipped open the door with the other. “He has his ways…”

“but how-” Sango cut her off . “Don’t worry about it. We’ll talk about that some other time. Right now we have to concentrate on getting out of the country.”

Kagome nodded. “Right…”

Once they were far enough away from the mansion, Kagome spoke up.

“You don’t have to do this you know.”

“Don’t be stupid.” Sango answered calmly.

“No, really. This is my problem. It’s me he’s going to come after.”

“Exactly why I’m coming with you. My entire family’s been trained in self defence. You know what a kook my grandpa is, he still thinks there‘s demons lurking around every corner. Throw any folk lore monster at me, and I’ll be able to tell you how to kill it, I’m sure at least a few of those ways apply to humans as well, so I’m going to be there for you, both for protection and friendship.”

Kagome let out a sigh “Folk lore is hardly real life. And what about your job, your friends, your life…”

“I can get a new one. You’re my friend. And my life consists of you and Miroku and he’s coming with us. So all is well. Happy?”

“That’s not true. What about your family?”

“They know of your situation and they approve of my helping you.”

“you’ll miss them…”

“True. But they understand.”

Kagome finally gave up. Knowing that if it were Sango in her situation, she’d do the same for her. “If your sure…but I really am grateful…thanks so much…I guess I kinda need you guys…. And-” she was cut off by a clearly male voice

“Helllooo ladies!”

Sango grinned. “Miroku” She said with affection.

“My dear Sango, you didn’t think I’d wait in the car and leave you and our lovely Kagome alone in that house for that long did you?” he said grinning

“You know perfectly well I can take care of myself as well as Kagome” Sango supplied.

His face became slightly more serious. “No, you can’t. Not with Naraku and his men.”

She rolled her eyes and said slyly. “And you can?” She set Shippou down in the back seat as they reached the parked car.

“Hey, that’s a shot at my ego. Men, have a naturally built in urge to believe they can save the entire female population. It’s rather an impossible belief but we don’t enjoy having that pointed out. Especially by a woman.” He shot back, the grin returning to his face.

“Yeah, well your going to have to face it sooner or later.” Sango returned while fighting the urge to grin back at him.

Kagome stood watching her two best friends shoot sly comebacks at each other. They were always like this. And to say the least, it always made her smile. They were so good together. Now, if only she could get him to stop being so damn perverted they’d have the perfect relationship.
She smiled at the thought. That would never happen. He had a constant tendency to let his hands wander. Which usually resulted in Sango clobbering him. Kagome had the sneaking suspicion that she actually liked it, but was just too embarrassed to ever admit it.

“Come on you two. Get in the car. It’s cold out here, my butt’s freezing!” Kagome whined.

“What? Oh, right.” Miroku said as he pried his eyes off his girlfriend’s chest. It was clear Sango had noticed but she seemed to have given up on the idea of beating on him. For now.
He opened the door next to Shippou’s, let Kagome climb inside, and closed the door. He then turned and wrapped his arms around his girlfriend.

“So, where we going? Somewhere hot I hope. Like say…Hawaii?” He muttered against her neck.

“Miroku. Kagome is right there! Have you no decency?” she giggled

“None what so ever.” He grinned and brought his lips down in hers.
After a moment she pulled away. “You just wanna see my new bikini.” She accused

“Wrong. I wanna see you in said new bikini.” She gave him a dry look in response and he smiled and rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, yeah I know, pervert. Heard it all before.” he answered before he gave her a quick kiss, let her go and turned to open the door for her.

TO BE CONTINUED…