Prompt: Nigimitama- Friendship
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Kagome knocked on the door and entered Matsunaga-sensei’s office. She had been here a few days ago and had gained some insight into things regarding the youkai community. Today, she was visiting the office to share her views on Sesshomaru’s prognosis with the doctor. He was seated at his desk when she walked in and Kagome took the same seat she had last time.
“Higurashi-sama.” The doctor stated. “Come sit, I want to talk to you about Sesshomaru-sama.” Kagome nodded waiting for him to speak. She didn’t have to wait long since it seemed Matsunaga-sensei wanted to have this conversation done with as soon as possible. Which was good, Kagome did have her lunch rounds after this and she had to get back to work.
“As you know Sesshomaru’s condition will not improve but will deteriorate over time. This kind of disease isn’t known for just killing the body but also the soul." The doctor sighed as he continued. "It pains patients to see people who they don’t remember. It kills them on the inside because they know something is wrong but they can’t remember what it is.”
Kagome’s eyes narrowed with confusion. It wasn’t that she didn’t know about this- the doctor had talked about it before with her.
Licking dry lips, she spoke. “I understand what you are trying to say Matsunaga-sensei but… you never explained to me why you called me here.” The man sighed and spoke again, this time his words more succinct.
“I have already asked you to be his friend Higurashi-sama but this time I’m also asking you to be there for him when others aren’t. Beyond you and me, there is hardly anyone else at the hospital who knows who Lord Sesshomaru is or who would befriend him and talk to him. And he needs someone to tell him that they know him- that they care for him… This disease can easily kill a person’s mind- not just deteriorate it- Higurashi-sama so I want to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
A silence pervaded the room as each of the occupants thought about what was spoken. Matsunaga-sensei wanted someone to be there for Sesshomaru, to be a guiding anchor, someone that he knew he could rely on. Could she do this? Was she willing to do this? And what would she talk to him about? There wasn’t a lot that was in common in between them except for the past. At that, her eyes widened and she let out a shocked gasp.
Her voice was fragile as she asked her next question. “You want me to tell him about the past don’t you?” She played around with the hem of her skirt and looked down at the ground thinking about what she was being asked to do. She was supposed to tell Sesshomaru that she was… she was Kagome from the future?
Matsunaga-sensei refused to meet her eyes and instead moved to reach for something else. “If possible.” The doctor pushed forward a folder and she looked at it from the corner of her eyes. Lifting her gaze, she read the title closely: Memory Deterioration Chart.
Her eyes flipped back up to meet the doctors. “What is this?” The doctor was silent for a moment, gathering words and then speaking.
“A few of the other doctors who are helping research cases of H1N1 in the demon population are attempting to gather information from patients. So far, we have been keeping a close watch on the five youkai patients who are currently sick. We want to analyze the data and compare it with other things we know. For example, we would like to research and see if a version of Alzheimer’s medication will forestall the progress of the brain degeneration.”
“And I’m there to check for it?” Kagome asked her words coming out clipped. She would be there for Sesshomaru, she was going to be there for him as a friend but she wasn’t going to use him as a guinea pig. No, he’d suffered enough that he didn’t need that added to his list.
“In a way yes.” Matsunaga-sensei ran a tired hand over his face. “Look, I don’t want to do this but if we do track his progress what will happen is that there will be more information to help find a cure. And at the same time, we do help him with his sanity.”
“We do don’t we?” Kagome stated her hands fingering the folder softly. She breathed out a sigh as she realized the implications of what needed to be done. “What should I do?”
“For now, not a lot. We just want you to begin a story or two- maybe explain how you met?” He noticed her frightened expression and continued hastily. “Or you could tell him a different story. Really, just go with what seems right to you. You do know him after all.”
“I do don’t I?” Kagome stated smiling softly. She could tell him about Rin or Jaken. Maybe he’d remember Tetsaiga or Bakusaiga. And the jewel shards and that quest. Who knows- maybe he might recognize her. She cleared her throat and gathered her materials.
“I think I’ll go now Matsunaga-sensei. Fujita-san doesn’t like it when I’m late on my rounds.”
“Of course, I can’t keep you too long can I?” The doctor stood and opened the door for her. “Just keep in mind Higurashi-sama that if you ever need to… talk to someone about things you can always come to me.”
Kagome was touched by the offer because it was sincere. “Of course. Thank you.” She left the room and hurried down the hallway intent on finding Fujita-san in the nurse’s lounge and grabbing her cart to begin her lunch rounds. Hopefully, she wasn’t going to be too late getting there.
The nurse’s room was loud and messy as usual. Kagome approached Yamada-san with her hands swinging behind her back and a grin on her face. The elder lady rolled her eyes before pointing to the cart behind her. Yamada-san had been Kagome’s mentor when she had first come to the hospital and occasionally she’d help out her young mentee. For example, taking the mentee’s cart back to the break room when said girl was called to a doctor’s office.
“Is it loaded?” Kagome asked reaching for the cart.
The elderly nurse nodded as she dished out more orders. “You’re good to go Kagome-san. But don’t think I’ll be doing favors like this to you again!”
“I know! Thanks!” Taking the cart Kagome left the lounge again and made her usual rounds thinking about Sesshomaru the entire time.
Watanabe-san had teased her about it accusing her of having a crush on the man but Kagome shook his words off. She wasn’t in love with Sesshomaru and she doubted she ever would be. She’d always think more about his past shadow than the future and well that wasn’t what he needed from her. Stopping outside his door, she took a deep breath. Well, there was no going back now!
“Sesshomaru-sama!” Kagome greeted stepping into the room. “How are you today?” The man on the hospital bed turned to look at her critically forcing her to take a deep breath.
“You didn’t call me that yesterday.” The breath and worry left Kagome as she took in his words. It was odd how he still noticed the small things even when he was in the situation he was in. She opened her mouth to answer him but closed it instead as she recalled Matsunaga-sensei’s words. Maybe it was better to just tell Sesshomaru about what was happening.
“About that,” she began pushing the cart inside, “you see I wasn’t sure of just how I should refer to you so Matsunaga-sensei cleared my doubts by telling me to call you this.” So it wasn’t the truth, but it wasn’t a lie either. She took a seat next to his bed bringing her cart to a stop next to her. “And while we’re at it, I might as well let you know that he assigned me to help you with something else.”
“Something else?” Sesshomaru asked his curiosity peaked.
“Yep!” She grinned at his eagerness before feeling a brief pang of pity. Years ago, he wouldn’t have even bothered to have this conversation with her and his curiosity was attuned to different things.
She unpacked his meal tray and took out the chopsticks. “I’m gonna keep you company from today onwards. We’ll talk about all sorts of things and you can think of me as you friend of sorts.” She held out a bit of some vegetables and rice which he took dutifully and swallowed. But there was something off about his expression. “Is something wrong?” She asked reaching for the next spoonful.
“Are you doing this because you know me?”
Kagome’s fingers faltered and Sesshomaru reached out with his right arm to help steady her. It hurt him- the tightening of his jaw alerted her to that, and she smiled softly at the gesture. Her free hand enclosed his and moved it back to his side as she picked up the next bite, a little more confident now.
“In a way yes. I knew you a long time ago and in this hospital, only Matsunaga-sensei and I know that. So I’m here to help a friend and tell you stories.” He didn’t question her but ate what she fed him instead. It reminded her of little boys who would eat as long as there was a distraction. She had to stifle her laughter at that thought but decided that it wasn’t altogether a bad one. Maybe she could tell Sesshomaru stories as he ate? And if she did, then he would be less likely to interrupt.
“I suppose before we begin, I should tell you the story of how I came to know you hm?” She picked up another spoonful as she continued. “On my fifteenth birthday, my brother called me to the old abandoned well house on our shrine property. Our house cat had slipped in you see and he was too scared to get it so I had to go bring Buyo back.” Another spoonful was fed as she continued. “Well, when I went in, an old demon- Mistress Centipede- pulled me down the well and dragged me down about 500 years into the past.”
She stopped her story to unpack the soup and grab the soup spoon. “See the demon wanted the Shikon jewel that was buried in my body- a jewel that I had no idea I possessed.” She saw Sesshomaru’s eyes widen at that and smiled as she continued. “Anyway, after chasing me through the village I found myself at the base of the tree where… your half-brother Inuyasha was sealed. I unsealed him and he defeated the demon only to have me shatter the jewel a while later. Later, we would go on a quest to help restore the jewel and defeat Naraku. I met you then- we were enemies first, allies second, and the later, you helped us defeat Naraku.”
“I remember that.”
“What?” Kagome hadn’t expected her answer to be so loud and apologized instantly. “I’m sorry, I just… I’m surprised is all.”
“You wore a green skirt.” Sesshomaru stated as Kagome composed herself again and began to feed him another spoonful of food.
Of course, it would make sense that he would recognize her by that skirt. “You mean the skirt to my school uniform.” She recalled fondly, a nostalgia for the dress suddenly creeping up on her. “It was hard you know trying to juggle school and then go back to the feudal era. I remember the amount of times that I would force Inuyasha to sit so that I could go visit my family.”
She stopped her speech and looked at him closely. “Is something wrong Sesshomaru-sama?”
His eyes were shadowed and his expression told her that he was far away from her. It was obvious that her story had somehow made him feel something. Of course, it would be hard on him to hear this wouldn’t it? It would take a while before Sesshomaru was able to come to terms with the fact that she was the girl he knew who chased his half-brother everywhere. He wasn’t ready to be able to think about their shared past without feeling hurt. She held up another bite as she acquiesced to his demands to stop talking about the past. He swallowed the bite and then spoke.
“Don’t you have more patients than me? Tell me about them.”
She nodded feeling a little guilty about her previous actions but eager to leap on the distraction. “Hmm, let’s see there’s old man Watanabe and Nanami-chan. They’re my only other regular patients after you. Watanabe-san has a recurring case of pneumonia and stays in the hospital under our care since it’s easier for his family. He’s nice and offers people in the hospital gifts… in fact his mission is to create a 1000 paper cranes for Nanami-chan.”
She paused to pick up another bite realizing that his meal was coming to an end and she would have to move onto soup soon. “He always makes sure most of them are pink ones too.” She noticed his eyebrow arch in curiosity and continued.
“Nanami-chan’s favorite color is pink. She’s here because she was born with a small heart. As she grows older, her heart can’t keep up with her body’s changes. She found a donor though and her heart is getting transplanted next month.” Her eyes softened and she put the chopsticks down so that he could finish the soup filling the time by telling him of her day. Once done, she grabbed the water bottle on the tray and opened it before reaching for the bottles of medicines for him.
“Here.” She handed him the required medicines and watched as he made a face at their fishy and bitter taste before taking them as instructed. Satisfied that her job was done, she left the water bottle by him and grabbed her cart to make her way out of the room. Her duty was done and she was now ready to go home and return her cart. Sesshomaru stopped her by calling her name.
“Will you come back to see me later today?” He asked her when she turned to see him.
“No, I promised my mother that I would go visit her and help her in the shrine.” She moved her cart closer to the door and stopped. “I’ll be here tomorrow afternoon if you want to go for a walk? We could go to the garden or something?” He nodded and she smiled. The visit to Sesshomaru’s and the retelling of stories was much easier than she thought it would be when she left Matsunaga-sensei's room. She felt more confident about visiting him in the future.
“Goodbye Sesshomaru-sama.” She didn’t expect a reply in response but she did hear his hand move on the bed and she had to stifle a smile at that. With a wave behind her back she left him behind intent on visiting him again tomorrow.
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Kagome’s laughter was heard throughout the hospital’s courtyard garden as she led Sesshomaru on a walk. He was still strong enough to walk, but he did hold her arm for support needing that tiny bit of strength. She was telling him a story and he had interrupted with a small witty phrase.
“Really, you should know better than that. Jaken may be a sniveling idiot at times, but he’s Jaken. I remember during the episode with Sounga he was a grouch but still…” She turned to look up at him and paused in their walk. Something was wrong.
In the month that she had decided to tell Sesshomaru about the past not much had changed. At first, Sesshomaru had refused to talk to her about it. She had gone along with his demands because she couldn’t force him. A week after that first broach on the topic however, he had brought up the topic to her. Sesshomaru asked Kagome about her interaction with her brother. And now, three weeks on, it had become a regular occurrence to take a walk with him in the garden in the later afternoon sunshine and talk about things... things from the past.
Today though, the look on his face was pained. “Sesshomaru?” She questioned softly. His face was stoic but he sighed as he spoke.
“I don’t remember Sounga.”
Kagome knew that he would start forgetting things at an alarming rate soon. It was already month three of the six month duration of the disease. In a few more weeks, she wouldn’t be able to walk with Sesshomaru anymore because his strength would start to wane. But she shouldn’t think of that now. Instead, she had to smile for him and pretend that seeing him like this wasn’t killing her bit by bit.
“Sounga,” she began clearing her throat so that it wouldn’t falter, “was your father’s sword. It had the ability to resurrect the dead by bringing their souls back from hell.” She shuddered remembering the episode with the cursed sword. “You and Inuyasha defeated it together by using the combined powers of Tensaiga and Tetsaiga.” She sat down on a bench in the gardens and pulled him down with her.
“It was my father’s sword?” He asked blinking his eyes. “He had three- was it the third?” She didn’t know what to say. She had a vague recollection of what the Inu no Taisho looked like but she couldn’t remember if he had three swords or two.
“It might have been.” She answered. “I never knew your father after all. But you know it kind of reminds me of you. Tokijin used to be just like Sounga sometimes.”
“Yes.” A silence settled over the two of them as a breeze rustled the leaves of trees. It was slowly becoming summer and the late spring breezes that were refreshing now would slowly give way to the stifling heat of summer.
“Sesshomaru-sama,” Kagome stated after a few minutes, “it’s time we began to head back. I have to go home now.” He nodded standing and she offered him her arm as the two began their walk back to his room.
They began to slowly trek towards his room. She enjoyed these walks because it was nice and refreshing. The path was generally straight and simple with a pair of stairs at the very end that lead into the hospital building. Kagome hitched a breath as they came to the stairs. Sesshomaru had been adamant about using them instead of the ramp that was generally used for wheelchairs. She had given him an ultimatum- he could use the stairs until he fell. Still, she asked everyday if it was okay for him to take them.
“Stairs again today?” She asked guiding him towards the railing. He nodded taking the railing with his left hand and clutching her left arm with his right.
The first stair was easy to climb for him but as he made to go on to the second stair, his foot faltered. Kagome couldn’t brace his weight and the two fell in a heap on the stairs. Sesshomaru’s back hit the railing while Kagome maneuvered them so that he fell on her. The damage was done however as a shocked Sesshomaru turned his eyes to Kagome. His strength was leaving him. There was no way to counteract that now and Kagome realized with a startling gasp what it meant.
“Kagome-san!” It was Hojo who came to their rescue having seen their tumble from the doors he was walking by. “What happened are you okay?”
Kagome nodded indicating to Sesshomaru. With strong arms, Hojo pulled Sesshomaru up and supported him while Kagome stood. Soon, the two had their arms around the ailing man and supported him up the remaining two stairs into the hospital. Hojo grabbed the attetion of a nearby nurse and called for a wheelchair as Kagome assessed the situation. Sesshomaru was in pain- his breathing was heavy and his jaw was clenched tight. Something was wrong about the tumble today and she had a feeling she needed to call Matsunaga-sensei.
The nurse with the wheelchair came back and she ushered Sesshomaru into it addressing the other nurse once again. “Page Matsunanga-sensei now. Tell him he needs to go to room 302.” The nurse nodded scurrying off to do her task as she understood the urgency of the situation. Satisfied, Kagome and Hojo began wheeling the man to his room.
“Kagome-sama!” Matsunaga-sensei rushed into the room only a few moments after she came in. “What’s wrong?” He took a look at his patient and ran a frustrated hand through his hair.
“He fell on the stairs. I wasn’t sure if he needed the steroids…”
Matsunaga-sensei nodded moving to the bed where Sesshomaru lay reclining. He checked his breathing, his heartbeat, and finally assessed the pain that his patient felt before he pointed to a bottle of prescription ibuprofen on the bottom shelf. It was one of the steroid type medicines that they were going to use.
“Sesshomaru-sama,” he started, “I’m going to give you pain relief medication. After that, I’m going to have a nurse come in every hour to monitor the pain. Tomorrow, we will reassess the situation and if you feel up to it we will take a look at the strength you have in your legs.” He took a break in his speech this time addressing Kagome. “I’m going to put in a wheelchair request. Use it how you see fit.”
He left the room leaving the other two to think on his words. A wheelchair, Kagome realized, was one of the final acts of restriction that Sesshomaru would have. While he couldn’t feed himself, he could still walk and had some mobility. Now though, he’d lost that as well. All he had were his words and memories to keep him going. She reached for his hand and gave it a squeeze trying in her own way to reassure him. She had no idea if it helped but she was happy that he squeezed back.
“I have to go soon.” She stated once the reality of the doctor’s diagnosis sank in. “I’ll be back tomorrow. Do you still want to go the garden?”
“No.” The word came out clipped and he pushed it through his teeth. Kagome swallowed the choked sob threatening to escape her mouth wondering if this was a job she was cut out for.
She took a deep breath trying to calm her voice. “I see, is there anything you want to do tomorrow?” Sesshomaru didn’t say anything and Kagome panicked wondering if she breached her status as his nurse. She waited though, calmly and patiently by his side until he dismissed her.
“Visit and tell me stories.” His words startled her and she turned large questioning eyes towards him. As his words sank in she couldn’t help but let out a tiny sad smile. She could do that- tell him stories of the past and take care of him in the only way she knew how.
“Okay.” Letting go of the hand that she still held, she turned to leave the room. It was best to put some distance between them now and have the both of them think about today's developments by themselves. “I’ll see you tomorrow Sesshomaru-sama.”
Kagome didn’t look back as she left the room, knowing full well that she couldn’t. If she did, he would see her pitying glance and refuse to talk with her. If there was one thing she realized about Sesshomaru it was that even now, as he lay on that hospital bed, he was proud and refused to submit to the disease until he had to. So she left him, knowing that she had a night to stew over this new development and come to terms with the changes.
A half hour later, as she clocked out of the hospital, she heard her name begin called and curious, turned to see who it was. Matsunaga-sensei was walking toward her, a frown on his face, and a knowing look in his eyes.
“Kagome-sama,” he stated reaching her, “I was wondering, did you want to get dinner with me tonight?”
Her eyes softened as she took in the man in front of her. He knew what was happening, had seen it all before and he was offering her a shoulder to cry on. In a world where there were only a few who knew who the real Sesshomaru he was helping her bear this immense burden of caring for a man- no youkai- who had not only seen much but done much. With shaky teary eyes, she nodded, and the doctor threaded his arm through hers. She needed a friend right now and he was more than willing to be it.
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A/N: So... originally he was supposed to forget something else as well. But I decided to stop it here because it felt right. As for the tentative "happy" ending I have planned: I wonder if I foreshadowed it too much. I promise, next chapter should be the last one with all the angsty crying nonsense. I only have two more prompts after all and one of them is going to be happy.