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The Ages and Between	By : Kuronohime Category: InuYasha > Het - Male/Female > Inu no Taisho/Kagome Views: 17813 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: Done for purely non monetary pleasure. I do not own Inuyasha or the franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. All characters © Rumiko Takahashi

Chapter List
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Kagome was woken abruptly by a loud thump. She groggily rolled out of bed to see a sack of laundry next to her futon. She was the only one in the sleeping quarters even though it was hardly dawn. The young woman had been exhausting herself till the small hours last night, scrubbing down the floors on the hallways and had practically fallen unconscious once gotten herself into bed.
The lady of the mansion was, of course, asleep at this hour, Kagome knew. The bohemian little mistress usually spent her nights awake and slept during the days when Kagome would be left interacting only with the other servants, and even they hardly approached her – at least not without a task. With no-one to talk to, she simply did as she was told and tried to stay away from the radar of the demons. Fuyuki was the only one who, on occasion, engaged in short exchanges with Kagome, explaining her duties, recounting certain rules concerning the mansion or usually just bossing her around.
Kagome rubbed her wary face, wincing how sore her rugged hands felt.
Fuyuki was standing besides her futon, crossing her arms and giving the young human girl a disapproving scowl. Kagome had come to learn that the amami rabbit was the head housekeeper in the Sesshoumaru residence and supervised a massive staff. Underneath her worked at least a dozen of housemaids, few laundresses, chambermaids, scullerymaids, cooks, errand-boys and various outdoor laborers Kagome had never met.
"Everyone else has already eaten their morning portions. Get up, you have work to do." She announced and kicked the sack of dirty cloths pointingly.
Kagome knew it meant that she would have to wait until supper to get another ration of food. Since the servants only dined twice a day - unless one was fortunate enough to be working in the kitchen.
She'd have to slay yet another day, being sick to her stomach with hunger. But she knew better than to whine about her situation. There was no-one to cuddle her for her discomforts.

***

Everyone had been hustling for the past week ever since Kimiko had returned. There had been talks of a formal gathering ever since the heads of the clans had returned from the mortal realm. The service staff needed everything to be spanking clean. It was hardly any concern to Kagome other than in the form of the most unwanted and laborious tasks she was forced to do in behalf of the regular staff busy elsewhere.
Kagome was alone in the farthermost room of the mansion, the wash-house. It was archaic and bare, it had a stone floor and a small fire-pit in the corner. Above the fire-pit, there was a cauldron filled with water. Kagome waited for the water to come to a quick boil before she hauled it over to a wooden tub that was filled with cloths.
She poured the water over a bucking cloth that was draped over the mouth of the large laundry vessel. On the bucking cloth, there were piles of ash scattered. It was supposed to help whiten the fabrics when diluted by the boiling water, she had been explained. The girl sweated and struggled with the enormously heavy, steaming bucket of water. It splashed unto the bucking cloth, mixing with the ash on top until it started to seep through the layer of the bucking cloth down into the tub.
Kagome wiped her sweaty brow and put aside the bucket once the tub was filled. She'd have to wait until later before she could stir the laundry. She sighed and went over to the fire-pit to smother the fire. In stead of doing so, she sat next to it, basking in the warm glow. She knew if she didn't report back to Fuyuki when expected, she'd get yelled at. But she was too tired to care, too hungry, and even her bones ached. Kagome had become exactly what she had been opposed to in the beginning. A laundry slave. A grim smile tugged her lips.
The young woman had decided she would keep her head low and do as told until she had mapped the place out. She'd learn the exits, familiarize herself with the layout of the city and make an escape as soon as she was opportunious. She hadn't forgotten her objective. Which was to get back home. To the home where her family, her bed, her bathtub, stupid math books and a dog-eared nuisance awaited her. If she ever lost faith in reaching that goal, this world would submit her to insanity. She was sure of that.
She stared at the heart of the fire, disregarding how the intense light was gradually blinding her.
'Why did Toga just leave me here?'

***

Being finished with her earlier duties, Kagome had been ordered to continue scrubbing down the endless hallways. Why did one building need so many halls and rooms for anyway? It's not like anyone but Kimiko lived there, and even she was gone half the time.
The girl dipped the floor scrubbing brush into alkaline salted water that was perfumed with flower oils. Her hands stung every time she submerged them due to the work that had harshly dried her skin. She silently hissed as she pulled her hands out of the water.
A couple of sarugami maids were walking past Kagome, smirking at her.
The taller of the maids halted and looked at the human girl's red and cracking hands.
"Oh, what's the matter princess?" She cackled, looking at the other sarugami who walked next to Kagome's washing water.
"It looks like you are struggling there. Here, let me help you clean the floors." She offered and kicked the bucket over making the alkaline water splash all over the floor. The monkey maids laughed uproariously in unison.
Kagome furiously slammed the scrubbing brush to the floor and jumped up.
"What the hell is your deal!" The human woman exploded at them, her balled fists shaking with anger. She was getting tired of being treated like dirt. She could tolerate the sneers, the whispers and cold shoulders, but there was a line.
"I'm sorry princess, did that upset you?" The shorter and chubbier of the duo smiled, baring her sharp teeth making the expression look more predatorial than friendly.
"Not as much as this is going to upset you." Kagome gritted her teeth and focused her priestess energy. A vain and petty retaliation, she knew, but couldn't help herself.
Deep fuchsia pulsed within her and a wave of her holy energy erupted from her chest and the tip of her fingers.
The wide-eyed sarugamis tried to scatter but only managed to bump into each other. The pooling water on the floor was blasted all over the walls along with the pair of demon monkey maids. They slumped to the floor, dripping wet and groaning for their aching members.
Kagome was standing still, trying to even her breath and calm her racing heart. Her legs quivered slightly though she was too riled up to notice it. That would teach them.
It wasn't long before Fuyuki appeared from somewhere in a great hurry.
"What the hell was that?!" She fumed from afar and came to a screeching halt when she saw two of her housemaids tangled with each other on the floor, only half conscious. Her sharp eyes bounced around the scene estimating the damage. Nothing seemed to be broken, even though half of the household must've felt that surge of holy energy.
The amami rabbit nearly ran Kagome down as she made a mad dash in front of her.
"You dim-witted creature." She hissed and grabbed Kagome by her servant uniform. "Never. Ever. Use your powers here." Each word was spoken quietly and with profound contempt. For a while it looked like Fuyuki's head would spin off her shoulders like a firecracker, she looked simply so livid. But the demoness somehow managed to gather herself and the ears that had been flatted against her skull, relaxed.
"My duty is to keep you hidden. If mistress hears of this, she will have the hides of both of us."
Fuyuki sighed and her shoulders slumped in mental defeat. But she quickly shook away whatever momentary distress she had suffered.
"I'll deal with them. Go." She ordered Kagome.
The girl looked at the older demoness. Not sure if she should be grateful for walking out of her berating with all of her teeth intact or be scared of a future punishment. But she took what she could and left without uttering a word.

***

It had been insufferably long since Toga had last seen Kagome. By every passing day his anxiety of not seeing her again grew with probability. Maybe she was not in this realm, at least none of his servants had found any trace of her. They had been monitoring the Sesshoumaru mansion but hadn't heard so much as a peep of her. But they had found no trace of her in the mortal realm either. Perhaps she was in no realm Toga was able to access.
His worst fear was that she had been left in the mortal realm and something bad had happened. She may have encountered the neko youkais and taken captive. Or worse. And he was nowhere near to help her.
Toga ran his claws through his hair, gripping his hair at the back of his head, in anguished despair.
If anything had happened to her, it would be on him. He should have never agreed to his father's demands! Surely exile, being away from all of these self-important, pompous, stuck-up and stale beings of his kin, would be easier to bare than being away from her.
For the thousandth time he closed his eyes and allowed his pitiful existence fall into a sweet reverie. In there he heard her bewitchingly soft gasps as he held her. Saw her plump, rouge lips been captured playfully between her teeth. And that divine scent of hers that burrowed itself deep into his marrow. He hissed at the memory. He'd make damn sure that the next time he held her, she could not run away.
Before his daydream had furthered, Toga felt the presence of his servant nearing his room. And soon after, the ranidae announced himself.
The inu youkai's posture lightened as he was anxious to hear news about Kagome. It had to be about her. His servants knew their lives became easily worthless in his eyes dared they come and interrupt him with vapid news.
The servant kneeled infront of Toga making his proper greetings, but the impatient lord merely flicked his hand aggravatedly.
"Yes, get on with your news!"
The small toad nodded and gathered himself off of his knees.
"Yes, milord, it's about your brother." He announced. "He's returning home."
Toga stared at the toad with stupefied disbelief. It never had even occurred to him that the news would be about his brother that had been banished years earlier to the mortal realm.
"Onii-sama?"

***

A/N: This was honestly a bit boring for me to write, but I felt that for pacing, this was necessary. I'm taking enormous liberties about the historical facts, but rest assured that I actually do some fact checking. :D
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- 11
- 12
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The Ages and Between