Fire.
She was on fire.
Kagome’s jaw wired tight, her nails carving trenches into the soft earth below. Tears streamed down her burning cheeks as she scalded from without and within, every nerve and muscle straining to withstand the blaze.
No! she screamed to herself. I won’t–I WON’T!
Reiki seared through her veins, roiled like lava beneath her skin. Again and again, the scorching tempest of her own spiritual power ripped through her, demanding an outlet–demanding to unleash itself on her demonic attacker in a torrential, purifying flood.
If she gave even an inch, she would surely kill him.
Sesshoumaru…
Low in her throat, Kagome choked on a silent sob. Sesshoumaru, why…
Her insides cooled as she reined in her power at last, and now there was only the inferno at her back–a pain so immense it consumed her completely, a dark void of torment with no beginning and no end. A black hole that sucked in her entire existence, compressing it to a singular point of absolute agony.
No more, she pleaded. No more, no more, no more…
But the pain went on and on. Had there ever been anything else? Her mind cracked as she struggled to remember, as she struggled to hold on to herself.
But pieces of her were already slipping away. Her vision dimmed. Her body went slack. Distantly, she realized she was dying. A growing part of her even wanted to die–just so that the pain would be over.
Please… she cried out from within. Please, make it stop…
Make it stop.
And then, suddenly, it did.
Kagome blinked, drawing in a shuddering breath. She could see the silvery grass now, still faintly rippling in the warm, scented breeze. Beside her temples, her stiff fingers twitched as she tested them, her heart pounding sluggishly in her chest. Slowly, she pulled her numb body forward at a crawl, out from underneath his, her stomach sliding sickeningly over the blood-slicked ground.
Her lungs heaved as she sat up, cold sweat breaking out across her shivering skin. Everything was coated red–her body, her clothes, the grass, him. Unmoving, Sesshoumaru crouched, rigid as a statue, his shadowed gaze riveted straight down before him. Turning away, Kagome haltingly stood, gripping the nearby tree for support as she stepped shakily into her hakama and pulled her haori about her, her nausea quelling slightly once she’d covered her bloodied self up.
Sesshoumaru made no move to stop her as she trudged ahead, leaving him and the grove behind.
Magic buffeted faintly at her skin as she stepped out into the surrounding wilderness. Even with the stars guiding her, she struggled to find her way. Beneath her feet, the ground was rocky and loose, and more than once, she lost her footing on the crumbling ridge and was forced to pick herself up again.
Doggedly, wretchedly, Kagome pressed on. After yet another jarring fall, she hauled herself up by the rough trunk of a fir tree, tears of anguish coursing freely down her cheeks.
Why…why did it come to this…
Her teeth pierced her lower lip as she pushed herself onward again, her sandals catching on every rock and root. Her head swam, muddled with grief. Farther and farther, she wandered through the night with no real sense of direction, with no destination even in mind. All she could think was to get away–to get as far away as she could from him.
Sesshoumaru…
Her hand clutched to her throat in despair. Keenly, she felt the violence of his rejection–gouging her far deeper than his claws ever could.
This was how abhorrent her love was to him. This was why she had tried not to tell him–why she had tried to hold herself together. She had tried to be content with what she had. She had tried, but…
Tripping, Kagome crashed to her knees again.
…I wanted too much. Her sticky hands clenched around her thighs. I pushed him too far.
Unable to stand, Kagome dragged herself up, onto a slab of stone. Her tears pattered against the smooth rock, the blood her haori was unable to wick away threading down her arm to pool at her fingertips. I must be in shock, she figured, wondering at her lack of sensation.
Then, finally, she saw it–stabbing her straight in the chest.
Trembling, her fingers rose to the Jewel shard embedded in her–pink and glowing still. As she tugged on it, her back began to flame again, a flare of such intense agony assaulting her that she doubled over with a cry.
“You seem to be in a great deal of pain, priestess.”
Swallowing, Kagome glanced blearily up at the figure striding toward her through the darkness. Silver hair, white skin–in her blurring sight, in her blurring mind, her first dazed thought was that it was Sesshoumaru, come to finish her off. As the moonlight revealed him, Kagome drew back.
“W-who are you?” she rasped.
Pale blue lips curved into a smile. “My name,” he answered, “is Magatsuhi.” The demon’s smile deepened at her unease, his vast youki smothering her as he continued to advance. “I have come for the Jewel shard which you possess.”
Kagome grit her teeth as she clapped a hand over the fragment buried in her breast. “You can’t have it.”
“Such bravery.” Red eyes glinted as he moved toward her still. “…For one so close to death.”
“S-stay back,” she warned. “One step closer, and I’ll purify you.”
“Purify me?” the demon laughed. “Foolish girl…”
A cold wave washed over her as her reiki receded, the Jewel shard within her darkening to black. As her consciousness faded, an icy finger traced along her cheek.
“…You are no threat to me.”
Inuyasha © Rumiko Takahashi
Fuck. 😭😭😭😭
yeahhhh… D:
When the first time Sesshoumaru showed Kagome his lust, in confusion and desperation, her reiki put him in a near death state.
Now after Kagome confesses her love, he nearly kills her in his denial and careless.
Karma is such a bitch. *sighs*
Despite his disastrous reaction, despite mentally cursing his idiocy, i’m not angry with Sesshoumaru. If he actually declares his love immediately, I’ll be shocked.
I’m only concerned for our poor Kagome. Inuyasha didn’t seem to be a bad choice anymore. 🙁
Does Magatsuhi seal Kagome’s reiki, like what he does in the Canon? Oh I truly worry about her safety.
“Karma is such a bitch. ” – yeah it’s so true… D:
poor Kagome…she just can’t catch a break it seems :'(
thanks for sharing your insights, Doris!! <3
HOOOOOOLY FUCK. going where no author has gone before! oh man. this has been intense.
haha thanks!! that’s a huge compliment! 🙂
hope you continue to enjoy the ride…! <3
Daaaaayuuuummm.
I’m seriously on the freaking edge of my seat here!
yayy! so glad to hear it!! <3
Sesshoumaru still views love as a weakness. For the sake of his ego and pride, he would attack his woman. Nay, not just attack but kill her. She had every reason to retaliate, but she never used her reiki against him. Now the jewel’s evil spirit is going after her.
And where is the demon lord who called her his woman? Still in his mother’s bower acting shocked that she moved after what he put her through.
Even in Stasis, I did not hate that Sesshoumaru because he stayed true to who he was – a beast focused on his dark goals.
But this Sesshoumaru turned out to be a hypocrite, a liar and someone who cannot be trusted. Why would he overreact this much when he earlier told himself he would not leave his woman in a weakened state in enemy territory? He had saved her hours ago from another youkai. He could have run away after she told him the truth. Abandoned her. Or denied he felt the same way.
Instead, he turned on her because she was his weakness. He killed the woman he claimed he would protect. He ended the life of the woman he wanted to be his consort. If not for the jewel shard, Kagome would have remained dead.
I do not see how she could forgive him after what he did.
I do not think Tessaiga would accept him anymore. He is unworthy of the sword. His father would be ashamed and disappointed.
Why didn’t Tenseiga protect Kagome like it did the last time?
Poor, poor Kagome. Everybody wants a piece of you. Many want to use you. If you ever finish your quest, may a merciful God grant you passage back to your family on the other side of the well. You have sacrificed enough. The Gods owe you that, at least.
Love the comparison between the Sesshoumaru from Stasis and this story! I can totally see where you’re coming from…there is something to be said for staying true to one’s self and principles (even if they are horribly twisted by our standards). The Sesshoumaru here is certainly a different take 🙂
There really are so many other choices he could have made 🙁 poor Kagome indeed…Forgiveness has always been an interesting concept to me. People will forgive the most egregious things and hold grudges over things that seem petty and insignificant.
Thanks so much for sharing your insights, Doug!! Absolutely love hearing your interpretation, as always! <3
Again still confused by this turn of events. I thought they were both in his mother’s bower which is a protected place. If she is in the state that you say she is in how can she even move that fast out of of the bower? Is the bower a large place how can she just all of a sudden be outside of it and in present danger?? So many questions
Sorry it’s been confusing! Since both characters are pretty out of it, I was going for a “dreamlike” narration style & trying to keep the specifics kinda vague. Thanks so much for the feedback!! 🙂 <3
Oh this is horrible. So not only did Sesshomaru actually kill her but she’s only alive because the jewel Shard container broke and the Jewel ended up wedged in her chest. What the hell? He is so afraid of his feelings and ending up dead that he would just kill her like that. How depressing… And now Magatsuhi is there to make Kagome a puppet, no doubt. Le sigh.
A horribly bad reaction on his part for sure :'(
thanks so much for all your comments!! <3