Soooo it's been a while…months actually

Soooo it's been a while…months actually! I wrote this around December…! Sorry kiddies!! But now AP & SOLs are OVERRRRRRRR!! Wooooh! so I'm basically free! But that's no excuse for me not wanting to type up this chapter and let's face it….I TYPE REALLY REALLY SLOWWWW! But I hope you guys like this chapter and thanks for the absolutely wondahful reviews!!

Chapter 7

Darkness.

So dark…

Empty…

It was the middle of the night apparently and stars were shining through the bamboo flap door.

She tried to get up, but her sore shoulder protested…very loudly. Once more she tried, more successfully this time and hobbled to the door to see if anyone was there…no one. Not a soul was in sight as she 'walked' to a clearing she was quite familiar with. She stood there looking up to the moon.

Tears.

Kagome didn't know why she was crying, but the tears just kept coming. She felt pathetic, weak, tired and crying…this wasn't her. She wiped the tears away and cleared her throat and her mind.

A gust of wind blew in her face and dizziness overtook her. Letting herself fall, Kagome took her eyes from the sky, remembering why she was in the state she was.

So tired…

Letting her lashes caress her face…

Sleep.

It seemed she ran out of things to dream about. God only knew how long she'd bee out of it. So, this night she dreamt of nothing at all.

Chilly.

The rustling of leaves.

It was morning and she was awake now, but didn't open her eyes.

Red.

The sun was out.

Another breeze blew past her, chilling her rosy cheeks and tousling her hair. The red was suddenly gone from her eyes…

"Girl," Kagome's eyes slid open the tiniest bit, the sun shining brightly behind a familiar silhouette. Her eyes shot open, her wide blue eyes meeting his golden ones.

Fear.

It tore through her system, practically bursting out in sparks. She wanted to run, but her body was numb, well…besides the part that was absolutely painful!

"S-sesshoumaru…" she whispered, his name finally reaching her lips.

He was closing in on her, her fear reaching an all time high. It was extremely unlike her to be that afraid, but in her to be so, but in her state it was only natural.

Her self preservation kicked in and she turned over to her hands and knees and scrambled to her feet.

Pain.

It coursed through her body, all of her joints wobbling from lack of support.

Run!

In the direction of Kaede's hut, she ran, knowing that it was of no use. She had never seen a demon as fast as Sesshoumaru. This did nothing to calm her fear, only making her scramble and land flat on her face in a patch of flowers. She shut her eyes as the pain struck, from what it felt like, every nerve in her body. She let out a whimper just waiting for death to come.

Shock.

Irritating.

Not only was Sesshoumaru left in the village to care for the girl, but he had lost her!

Kaede had gone to a neighboring village due to the death of their only miko and told him to stay. Of course before she left he went to check on Rin and told her to stay with Jaken. Now he knew how it felt to be the little imp. Little mischievous human females disappearing and causing trouble…not that it wasn't fun to watch, but being a part of it…sucked!

Inuyasha and his group had left a couple of days before Kaede to investigate the whereabouts of the half-demon, Naraku. Sesshoumaru was surprised to say the least. The girl's companions had left her. Maybe they wanted to give her space to heal…

Botan and the human child felt that way at least. They settled in a small hut in the opposite corner of the village. It was strange of Botan to not want to see the girl when she was asleep.

Stop.

Sniff.

Her scent hit his senses and he followed the trail to the source. He found the girl standing in the middle of a clearing.

Lovely.

But…he held no special interest. She was a human after all and no matter how pretty, he would not break his standards.

Breezy.

He looked away for a moment as his hair blew around. His attention was returned to her as she fell to the ground looking lightheaded.

Stupid girl…

This was certainly not the time to be walking around. He watched her fall asleep and waited for her to awake next before moving her back, making sure she was safe.

Bored.

She shouldn't have walked out here if she was just going to sleep, but the view was sort of relaxing…

Sitting under a tree on one of the far edges of the clearing, Sesshoumaru watched Kagome, when he finally decided to get her back.

Sunrise.

He approached her.

She was awake, but taking her time to rise.

Lazy girl…

Well, she was hurt, but she had made him wait. He stopped, looming over her form casting a tall shadow.

"Girl," he said to get her attention. Her eyes cracked open a millimeter, then widened in shock and fear. She wasn't moving though.

"S-sesshoumaru!" She stuttered.

He took a step, seeing that she wasn't going to move.

A mix between fear and surprise flashed in her eyes once more before she tossed to her hands and knees and looked as f she would pass out from the pain. He watched he hobble in the direction of the old miko's hut, trying and failing to get anywhere. He made no move to go after her, she would collapse anytime soon.

She finally fell, face first to the ground and froze. He was surprised that she had given up so quickly. It was very unlike the girl he had only met several times. Every time he met her he was outraged she had the gall to be defiant and not be afraid.

He actually thought twice about picking her up, but he feel like staying in that blasted clearing any longer than he already had.

She let out a shriek of surprise escape her as he lifted her from the ground. He carried her steadily until they reached Kaede's hut.

Why was he carrying her? She really wanted to know. Her fear had gone down a couple of quite large notches since he picked her up. He was gentle despite outward appearances. He had also taken off his armor making him soft and warm...far from his cold personality. She made sure not to get too comfortable though.

He set her down on the only futon in the hut and forced her to lie down. She sat back up- not without pain- set on asking a few questions.

"Sesshoumaru?" Kagome didn't like the look he gave her. 'I don't feel like talking,' it said, but when had he?

"Um…Where is everyone? She prodded. She absolutely would get answers from this Taiyoukai with a very bad attitude!

"A neighboring village healing the ill, hunting down Naraku…" She didn't see that coming.

"So why are you here?" she asked.

"Babysitting," he answered bitterly. She guessed Kaede and the others stuck him with the job, but why had he stayed long enough to get stuck with it? It wasn't very comforting to know that they had to force someone to take care of her. She understood he didn't like the job or her so she let the comment go.

"So…How love have I been…out of it?" He gave her a look. "Asleep…," she explained.

"Eight days," he said simply.

"Ah," no wonder her friends left, she had been asleep for so long. They must've gotten bored and resumed their journey without her. How long would they be gone though? She understood, yet she felt kind of sad and…lonely. Keeping company with the demon lord was rather quiet…and boring.

He didn't talk much, but when he did he seemed angry or got straight to the point. Why was he like that? Gosh how would he make any friends like that? He wouldn't want to be her friend though, but had he ever been nice to anyone…that was a question quickly answered.

No…but there was one…the little girl Rin. Kagome had met her fewer times than she had Sesshoumaru, so she didn't know too much about her. He did seem to enjoy her company, in his own way. He was a dog by nature after all and dogs can be pretty lonely without a pack.

A rustle brought her attention to the entrance of the hut.

"KAGOME!" Kasuke came storming in and hugging her tightly. His bright blue eyes shone with happiness and worry. "Botan and I have been waiting for you to wake up! Botan, Botan! Come in, don't be shy!" Kasuke cried, overexcited about seeing his friend awake.

Botan…the name seemed familiar…somewhat, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

He had been waiting for eight days for Kagome to wake; today was the day he would meet the girl who Hiro had chosen, the best so far he had heard. His nerves jingles and the butterflies flew when he heard his name being chirped. Excitement was what he should have felt, but it was out of place.

He slowly moved the flap of the door aside and looked the at the girl straight in the eyes.

The hesitation of Botan made Kagome very, very anxious. The name just kept itching at her. Why would this Botan want to se her? He knew Kasuke as well…

She then remembered something Hiro had told her right after he asked for his father…His father!

Movement.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw him. Her eyes met his. He looked exactly like Hiro. The only differences were the green eyes, slightly blonder hair, and a couple of laugh lines here and there. An absolutely striking resemblance…too striking.

It hit her hard.

Biting back stinging tears she mustered a half-hearted smile. She wasn't completely sad. She was very happy to see someone Hiro wanted her to meet.

Angry.

Why was she hung up on a friend she had known for less than a month? A very good friend, but she didn't think it would turn out like this.

Guilt.

My fault…

He had died for her.

Don't be sad for me…he'd say…

A smile lit her face as she thought about how they had met and his ridiculous idea of marriage. Botan's smile outshone hers ten fold as he walked toward her.

"Hello Kagome: he said sweetly, giving her a hand to help her up.

"Hello Botan," she said rising to her feet, swaying a little. He steadied her with a gentle embrace.

AWWWWWW!! I'm done with this chapter kids!! And guess what!! Tomorrow's my birthday!! June second!! Yay!! My parents are getting me another guitar!! Woooooh! Well if you don't know me, I'm absolutely obsessed with guitars!!

well I cant remember if I made her eyes brown or blue in this story. Soooo I like blue better…so it's blue from now on.