“What is it?” Kagome asked, frowning at the strangeness of the request. It wasn’t like the guard captain to barge in on her like this. An orderly man himself, he was unerringly respectful of her schedule. Knowing this, she couldn’t help but feel the beginnings of unease take root in her mind. “It would be

Kagome felt worse than wretched about locking Ikiryou away. But she didn’t know what else to do. With the way things were now, she couldn’t very well keep an eye on him every second. Deep down, she blamed herself for his aberrant behavior. She’d known this castle was no place for him, yet she’d kept

The demoness’s ruby lips curved upward. Skimming red-enameled claws through a silky forelock of her hair, she seemed to glide toward Kagome across the wilted, leaf-strewn shore. Against this backdrop of autumn, Sesshoumaru’s mother was the picture of ethereal beauty and grace. It was often said of Kagome that she was a stately lady, but

Warily, Kagome stepped back. “No way am I drinking from that.” The demoness’s eyes glinted, almost reprovingly. “Do you think one such as I would stoop so low as to poison you?” “Maybe,” Kagome said evenly, thinking of her sordid entanglements with Sesshoumaru. “I don’t know what it is about me you’ve heard.” “I don’t

“My dear!” Kagome stumbled back, breaking the light hold upon her arms. The demoness’s outstretched claws returned to her sides. Between them, the silver cup lay spilled and overturned in the grass. Fragments of moonlight glittered upon the brown leaves and blades, melting away before Kagome’s staring eyes. “You saw something,” Sesshoumaru’s mother guessed, the

Upon her throne, Kagome sat, sweet smoke curling from the stem of her long, slender pipe. Only Ikiryou shared the dais with her. It was unconventional to say the least, to have such a great beast of a dog occupying the space her husband alone might have shared—but this was her castle, and she did

There was one obstacle to conquering the mountain range that, in the time of Koshirou’s great-grandfather, had once belonged to the Tatsumi clan. A range which Kagome saw as Yahiko’s ancestral holdings by rights. It was an obstacle that had thus far prevented the range from being recaptured against the Hiromi clan who held it

On the wings of sweeping victory against the Hiromi clan, a week of celebration was held throughout the Tatsumi region. Kagome participated in these festivities only nominally. She had duties to entertain the noblest of the guests, the wealthiest and most prestigious of the vassals—both Tatsumi and Hiromi. This was difficult to do when one

If Kagome thought Marika’s tantrums would be her last trial of the day, she was sorely mistaken. Worn down to the bone, she longed for nothing more than to rest. But seeing the maids clustered, wary and whispering, on the veranda outside her rooms made her stomach sink in dread. Squaring her shoulders, she approached

Kagome’s head spun as she bolted up from the settee. On wobbling legs, she staggered outside. Her breath steamed before her in the autumn air, adding to the haze that eclipsed her. Half-dazed, she stared through it, frozen. Numb. Gravel from the garden path dug into her bare feet, but she barely felt its stab.