'How-how did I get here?' A soft and hesitant voice asked the eternal darkness, startling Kagome for a minute before she realized that… it was her own voice that was speaking. But how could that be? She had not once moved her lips to utter a sound nor did she recall having such a thought being so distracted by some unknown force. Oh well, not being one to dawdle on a topic too long Kagome looked around at her surroundings, however there was just one problem… There was nothing, she was trapped in pitch black shadows with no hopes of escaping as far as she knew.
'What will I do now?' There it went again!… This place was weird, not only could she not speak while her thoughts were voiced instead, but there was also nothing around her, almost as if she was in an abyss. 'I just wish I knew why I am here…' Almost as if on cue, everything around her lit up showing her the pink room she was in earlier, however, she noticed, there was a slight difference. For one, the room had a happier –more like happy period- gleam to it, and two, a little girl about the age of seven was sitting on the bed humming as she brushed her doll's long wavy black as night hair and smoothed out the fraying edges of it's white haori and red hakama…
The girl… she looked so adorable here along with that face filled with glee, the ideal picture of childish innocence. "Mommy, mommy! Doesn't she look pretty?" The little girl asked breathlessly as she held the doll up for the woman that came through the door; however the woman's face couldn't be seen. "Yes dear, she looks beautiful." A calm voice flooded the area as the woman picked up the girl into her arms as she said "Now, how about we go to the lake?" Squealing excitedly the girl bounced up and down before saying "I'll be ready in a minute, just let me get Mr. Cuddles!" Kagome watched as the little girl diverted her attention from her doll and seemed to look for this "Mr. Cuddles". However, one thing she noticed was that this must be some dream or memory or something because when she tried to sit down, her body went through the chair!
So as the mother of the girl had left the room and her footsteps were getting softer and softer the little girl turned around and looked at Kagome straight in the eye while maintaining a serious deadpan voice saying "Hello Kagome, it's a surprise seeing you here. Don't worry; we can have lots of fun together…" Wait, if this was truly a memory or something how can that girl see her? That would be defying the laws of reality because she wasn't there during the time this took place. It was then that Kagome realized the little girl in front of her was the same as the one whom had tried to kill her as the girl began to look as she had before with her long raggedy hair and limply hanging wrists. Slowly stepping forward to her, the room started taking a turn for the worse as the illusion it once held faded.
Dust flooded the room once again, the windows dirty as well, the closet mirror door shattered as if someone or something had been smashed against it, floor boards creaking underneath the girl's feather light step, and puddles of deep crimson blood stained the floor. As Kagome stumbled back falling into one of the puddles, which had splattered her with blood covering her clothes, legs, hands and several splotches on her face -basically everywhere-, half of which was someone else's and the other half was hers as she cried out in pain when her hand was deeply stabbed with a plane of shattered glass from the aforementioned shattered mirror.
Heart beating faster and faster as the little girl slowly transformed into the deathly pale and sinister one whom she had encountered before. One step at a time, the girl didn't seem to be in much of a hurry, instead perfering to take joy in her prey's fear as would any sadistic predator. Floor boards creeking under her step, a thunderstorm seemed to be brewing, the rain pounding and hammering against the window. A bolt of lightning accompanied by a deafening roar of thunder as the wind seemed to howl and holler louder and louder; the sky getting darker and gloomier leaving the room lightened only by the strange floating balls of light hovering around the girl.
"No…" Kagome whispered as she softly panted in anxiety as the girl came closer and closer to her. Her heart beating faster and faster, Kagome absently wondering if it would burst out of her chest. The girl was several feet away from her now and reaching her limply hanging wrists towards her, her eyes seemed to be dull yet with a blood-lust shimmer. Leaving Kagome feeling immobilized whether from fear or if it was the works of the girl in front of her, she didn't know and at the moment she didn't quite care. "No… no-p-please! Get away from me! No!!!" A piercing scream tore through the thickening silence of the so called peaceful forest.
Not only was he utterly confused and worried but also frightened by what was happening, wondering if there was anything he could do. Kagome was merely tossing and turning at first, but then her movements became more violent but that wasn't all, blood somehow began staining her clothing, from where he had no idea, she had no sign of a wound besides the gash –which he had no idea where it came from or how it suddenly appeared- on her palm. But how could that cut spread through and cover her entire body in splotches of blood? It couldn't, how did he know? Simple, his sensitive nose had told him so, the only blood that was hers was that which was covering her right arm. However, the question still remained… "Everyone! Come inside quickly!" Kurama shouted as he tried to re-examine the situation once again.
"What did you call us for K- Shit." Yusuke started to ask before his question died on his lips as he got a look at Kagome's situation. "What happened to her?" Yukina's frantic question pierced the air as she darted towards Kagome, kneeling besides the bed, trying to examine the girl's condition.
Suddenly, Kagome stopped in her movements, now as stiff as a board as she lay on top of the bed with the red from the blood blending in with the dark and bold pink color of the sheets. Something was wrong however, why did she all of sudden unexpectedly stop? Although, even though she stopped moving her breathing was becoming shorter and more labored, just as if she were panting. "What's wrong with her Kurama?" Kuwabara spoke up as he looked worriedly at the girl that he, along with the others, barely knew and wondered what he could do.
Hiei merely looked between Kagome and Souta with a look of disinterest before saying "Kurama, I thought you said the boy would be in a worse condition than the girl." Hiei stated more than questioned everyone turned to Kurama waiting for his answer. "I had thought so, but apparently something else is happening that I haven't predicted, unfortunately I have yet to figure out what it is…"
"She doesn't look too good Kurama." Yusuke reminded him while Yukina tried to clean up the blood on Kagome but to no avail as it either wouldn't come of very easily or more would just take it's place. So Kurama merely looked at the girl hesitantly before saying "If this isn't contained there is no question as to if she will die within the next couple hours. Unfortunately, I only know of one way in which to save her temporarily…" Hiei's head shot towards Kurama the minute he suggested such a thing, so he said "You can't be serious kitsune, even the oaf isn't that stupid. That girl will be bound to you for as long as she lives in comparison to you with an expanded life."
Yusuke was shocked and said "Wait, hold it! So you're saying that the only way you can save the girl is to bind her to you? No Kurama, we can just find her soul or something. Heck, I can even give her some of my soul; just tell me what to do." Kurama merely sighed and said "If only it were that simple Yusuke. I'm the only one capable however; Hiei is unable to due to his conflicting energies besides having no trace of human blood, Kuwabara cannot from his extreme spiritual abilities –it might just overwhelm her senses-, Yukina cannot because for the same reason as Hiei, she has no human blood as well, and finally you are unable to because your strong heritage of demon blood might try to kill her. So thus I am the only candidate left for the job." Kurama reminded them as they looked thoughtfully at one another –with Hiei as an exception-. "Hey guys, something doesn't feel right… Something's happening to her… and her life force is fading really fast." Kuwabara reminded the group as he looked as pale as a sheet, it was almost as if he saw a ghost...
So Kurama hesitantly yet smoothly grabbed Kagome's wrist and placed it near his mouth as he sunk his fangs –which were duller than an average demon's due to his human body- right to the side of her vane and pulled back after the mark had been made. However, it was no where nearly as simple as that because the minute he let go he started to feel faint and dizzy and the next thing he knew he was out cold on the floor with someone screaming "Kurama, what's wro-"
He wasn't exactly sure where he was but he knew for a fact that it most likely wasn't good. However a minute later everything began to clear up and he saw that he was in the hallway of the old house they were currently in… But, where was everyone else? 'No, I remembered blacking out; this must be a dream I will have to endure while my body is yet unconscious.' So as he was walking down the halls he heard some sort of distorted scream from inside the room they were in earlier so he ran over there and opened the door to see Kagome clearly confused, covered in blood, and screaming her head off as the look in her eye told him she was thoroughly as frightened as she could possibly be. However, a second after Kagome's screaming had started to fade and she appeared to lose her balance as she started to collapse onto the ground.
"Kagome!" He screamed as he ran towards her, catching her right before she did fall, then shaking her as urgently as he could without doing any harm to her as her head lolled back and her eyes seemed dazed. Gently tapping her cheek his efforts had went in vain for she had already passed out in his arms.
Slowly he looked around the room for any signs of her fright and saw none that seemed out the ordinary, everything seemed to be normal things a little girl would have from her stuffed animals to the dolls… So what might have frightened her so? 'However,' Kurama began, 'I still have yet to conclude as to what the rules are of this dream realm which I seem to share with Kagome most likely being the bond in effect...'
"I swear, if pacifier breath set this whole thing up…" Yusuke trailed off in his threat, letting you complete the sentence before he let out a groan of disbelief. "There are too many god damn things happening within the last two days…" Stretching his hands over his head he yawned as he said "Dammit, we're going no where in our search... Let's go back to the room Kurama and the others are in."
So as they were walking back up the stairs from outside of the chilling house where they were trying to find any objects which may hold one of the sibling's soul. Making their way up there and opening the door they were shocked to see that Kurama was awake -or rather half awake- and was trying to get up from his position on the floor. "Kurama!" They shouted as Kuwabara had hastily went up to him and helped him lean against the wall as he regained his energy.
Murmuring a quiet thank you to his friend and team mate he groaned as the side effects of being bonded became known. Not only was he feeling a fraction of the physical and mental pain happening to her but also for some reason felt as if his energy was drained from him. Turning his head to look at his companions he said "We have a problem. I believe whatever the problem may be it not only has taken their a large portion of their soul but is also attacking Kagome not only physically but mentally as well." At this Kurama received inquisitive faces staring back at him so he said in response "Due to the fact that I have bound her to me through the bond, I was thus able to see inside of her subconscious and there I found her not only screaming as loud as she could but covered in blood the same way she is now as well…"
Furrowing her eyebrows Yukina worriedly asked "Wait, so that means we are…helpless to assist her while she is dying?" Kuwabara merely hugged her response as she buried her head in his chest as she wept, never being one to stand seeing pain or suffering nonetheless death. However, even though it was a completely innocuous gesture and merely means to comfort her, Hiei couldn't help but feel a slight twinge of envy clawing at his insides at Kuwabara. He should be the one holding Yukina, the one to comfort her, he should be the one who she looks at with compassion in her eyes…
"So basically, she is dying from the inside out? Shit, how do we help her?" Yusuke asked, breaking the uncomforting noise of Yukina's tears. "Well," Slightly despondent vivid green eyes traveled from face to face of his teammates before saying, "we need to hurry and find their souls. It's the only way they will wake up, eliminating the threat of psychological suffering which will undoubtly cause just as much damage as physical… Literally…" Kurama stated as he looked at their forms lying motionlessly on the bed; Kagome's of course was so bloody that it was almost impossible to see the real color of her clothes.
However, as they discussed these new turn of events, they did not notice the gleaming pair of eyes that had unknowingly been in the room the whole time observing their every motion and expression...
How was it? Good? Not bad? Terrible? Please review and if your confused (I know most must be) then ask me any question ok? I'll try answering them as long as they don't spoil the plot.