Night yawned through the open door.

The glint of the stars seemed to mock Kagome as she glared after Ren long after he’d vanished from sight. The first step she’d taken in pursuit of him had been met with a heavy answering one from the guard behind her, and she’d grumbled, “So that’s how it’s going to be?”

She was free to leave this room, all right—and be dogged at every step.

Her jaw ached from how hard she’d been clenching it against the impulse to shout after him that Rin was no virgin. But what good would that have done, except to give Ren ammunition against his bride-to-be? And they had both set their mind to that purpose, it was brutally clear.

Pacing at the threshold, Kagome struggled now to unclench her fists as well. She had to find a way to stop this marriage. To stop Ren from snatching Edo out from under her, and taking Rin captive in the process. That she’d volunteered for him to do so was beyond exasperating.

“Damn it, Rin-chan, why?” Kagome muttered, though she knew well enough that her apprentice was only thinking along the same lines as herself, trying to wrest someone she loved from a desperate situation.

Drawing to a stop before the doorway, the miko’s sullen glare slid westward. Where was Sesshoumaru when she needed him? But this was how it was with him—youkai didn’t think of time as humans did. A few weeks might as well be a few hours to him. Once, when he’d been gone for more than a month, Kagome had laid into him saying that ‘soon’ meant soon—and he’d just stared at her like she was the one who didn’t grasp the concept.

Shaking her head, Kagome slammed the screen shut and plopped down, arms-crossed, onto the tatami floor. Rin had always accepted Sesshoumaru’s long absences, just as she had always accepted everything about him. She knew that Sesshoumaru wasn’t necessarily coming to save her, but Kagome didn’t accept it—not for a second.

And Rin needed saving from this, whether she knew it or not.

Slanting her gaze to the guard in the corner, Kagome frowned, her thoughts racing to regroup and re-center. Drawing in a deep breath, she began to meditate, but after just a short while, she felt a cold hard wrench on her upper arm—

“None of that,” the guard said, glowering down at her as he loomed.

The faint glow that had surrounded her dissipated as Kagome scowled back, jerking her arm free. “What,” she bit out, “praying?”

“Ren-heichou’s orders,” was the guard’s blunt reply.

So, Kagome thought narrowly, Ren was wary of her spiritual powers. He must not understand them then, because what harm could she do to another human being?

Rubbing her arm, she was mulling over this still, when the screen door slid open and Kanako slipped into the room. “Kagome-sama,” the waif said with a frown, “the outer door is unbarred now…”

“I know,” the miko said lowly, glancing aside. “But I can’t leave here—not yet.”

Of course, she couldn’t stay, either. But somehow leaving seemed worse—a concession Kagome just couldn’t stomach. If she left here now, it would be as good as giving Rin up to Ren altogether.

That guard wouldn’t let her anywhere near them, of this Kagome was grimly certain. And even if she could get past him somehow, the odds didn’t seem that much better. Ren had a whole army at his disposal—and what did she have here, but a waif and a prayer? And maybe not even that much…

As Kanako knelt at her side, gazing up at her imploringly, the answer to this riddle came to Kagome in a rush so sudden and strong it left her feeling light-headed in the wake of it.

“Kanako-chan,” she murmured, keeping her voice soft and steady against the adrenaline spiking through her veins, “will you draw me a bath?”

Inuyasha © Rumiko Takahashi

Happy Friday, y’all! 🙂 Just FYI the Control Chronology & Reading Guide has been updated to reflect the latest side-story. Thanks for reading & have a wonderful weekend <3