OoO Alone and Quiet OoO
I had no idea what exactly made me decide to take a walk so late at night - or early in the morning, depending on how one looked at it. All alone, where no one had any idea where I was, with demons more than likely waiting for a stupid morsel of food such as myself to come along. But I didn't care. I went, and I'm glad.
Lately, everyone's been smothering me. Shippo, of course, wants me to be with him my every waking moment, which is perfectly understandable, given his situation. But for some strange reason, Miroku, Sango, Inuyasha, and even Kilala never seem to want to leave me alone and out of their sight. It's really weird, actually, and more than a little frustrating. I mean, what could there possibly be to fear? Naraku was dead, and so were all of his incarnations. The Shikon Jewel was completely purified and waiting for me to make the final wish; it was being protected by another high-ranking priestess with probably more power than me! I just didn't understand.
I'm surprised I was even able to get away tonight. I always slept close to the fire because I got cold real easily, but when I noticed Inuyasha come over and sleep not more than three feet away, I knew something was up and wanted to nearly scream in frustration. Not that I don't like him so near, but I don't think I've been by myself for more than two minutes at a time. It was just about to drive me crazy, which is why I'm certain my body made the decision to sneak away, if only for a little while.
It wasn't a new moon tonight, but glancing up, I saw that it might as well have been; the dense clouds covered everything, which was sort of strange for this time of year.
I stumbled then, but was able to grab hold of a bare tree branch before doing a swan dive into a rather steep ravine. Breathing out a sigh of relief, I was about to continue on to my non-destination when I heard the steady, hypnotizing rush of water. It was coming from down the ravine I'd almost fallen in. Again, I don't know why I felt I had to do it, but I made the choice of descending the steep, loose and rocky earth down to what I found to be a little pond.
Once my eyes began adjusting to the darkness, I couldn't stop myself from gasping at how beautiful it all was. The rushing water I'd heard from above was from the tiny little waterfall in the exact center of the mini-lake, surrounded by dully glowing amethyst rocks. It looked just like a nature made fountain, and it was magnificent. I deduced that there must've been a pressure mechanism within the contraption to allow the water to flow up it from the water below, as there wasn't anything technologically advanced like it in this era. The water was an unbelievably dazzling blue that was so bright. The weird stones in the center of the pond cast a glow upon the blue water, and having it disperse so magnificently like it did cast a strange blue/purple light on everything.
It was all so awe-inspiring that my knees buckled once I'd walked to the edge of the water, and I could feel the cold water seep into my sweatpants. I could hear the crickets play their mystic melodies while the toads croaked low and slow, and the mice in the tall grass were scurrying, making it rustle. The wind was light, but since we were heading into the last leg of Fall, it held a cold, almost bitter bite to it, almost as if it were grieving for the coming of the Winter season that would bring freezing temperatures, killing all the interesting, pretty flora and fauna that was now occupying the earth.
Still on my knees, my pants completely soaked by this time, I absently noticed that there were already various colored leaves on the ground; red, orange, yellow, green, purple and brown. A beautiful, natural collage that would eventually vanish, and I was - for some strange reason - hit with a sense of nostalgia. Why did they have to die, to go away and disappear? Sure, it was the way nature did things, but still... It seemed like a waste.
I stayed on my knees until they went numb from the cold, and only when I felt them begin to tingle from having the blood held off did I stiffly stand back up. Breathing out, I saw my breath, barely visible. I shuddered, rubbing my arms from within my sweatshirt. I needed to head back before they noticed I was gone. They'd probably think I'd been kidnapped or something foolish like that.
I sighed again, and slowly turned, closing my eyes when I smacked into an unyielding wall of muscle.
"Ah-!" Was all I managed to get out before I fell right on my posterior, fear making my heart skip a beat as I looked up to see what sort of demon was about to eat me.
"You look pretty dumb down there with that scared expression, Kagome."
"I-Inuyasha!" I eeped. Jeez, why the hell did he have to sneak up on me? Why couldn't he have just said, 'Hey, here I am! Don't worry, I'm not going to scare the living daylights out of you!'?
He bent down to give me a hand up, his forced frown tweaking with his withheld mirth and glee at seeing me on by dumb butt. I grudgingly took his hand.
"Why'd you take off?!" He demanded to know, crossing his arms when he'd let go of my wrist.
I scowled and fixed my eyes on his face. Immediately, I forgot what I'd been about to say. The ethereal purple light made him appear to glow, like a heavenly being that decided to grace me with its presence. And those eyes... Thick, dark, rich honey beamed at me, making my stomach churn in something that wasn't exactly unpleasant. His brilliant silver hair seemed to be dancing around his head, and when his ears gave a curious tweak, waiting for my response, I felt my cheeks heat up, and looked away. He was practically a God, and what was I? A simple little human girl, barely able to be called a woman, who was just a blank copy of the woman he'd once loved, that's what.
"Kagome?"
"Uh... What?" I couldn't even talk; what the heck was wrong with me?!
Growling, he grabbed me by the shoulders. "Why'd you take off, damn it?! I thought you'd been kidnapped or something!"
Blinking, my face now blank, I suddenly burst into laughter. "Are you serious? Why would I get kidnapped? I just needed to get away and be by myself for a while, ok? What's the big deal?"
He opened his mouth to retort, I'm sure, but closed it and looked away.
Narrowing my eyes, I shrugged out of his grasp, crossed my own arms, and glared. I watched him look away, as if guilty, and I knew he was debating on whether or not he was going to finally tell me why everyone had been staying so close to me for the past month. He knew what I wanted, and I knew that it was only a matter of time before he spilled his beans.
"Look, let's just go back to camp, alright? Shippo woke me up when he noticed you were gone, and everyone got all worried. I came to get you, so let's go."
I didn't move. I didn't even breathe. As if he'd get off that easily! I continued glaring at him, willing him with my eyes to tell me the truth. Just what, exactly, was there to be worried about?
We both stayed like that for well over five minutes, and I, being unable to take it anymore, threw my hands up in anguish. "I give, Inuyasha! What's going on, huh? Why is it such a bad thing for me to go off and be alone for a while? Everyone's been suffocating me; I can't even pee without having Kilala or Sango there with me, for crying out loud! What's the big deal? What's happened to change things? Don't you think I might just have a right to know, especially if it deals with me?"
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, contemplating. He still had his arms crossed in front of him.
"What do you want me to say?"
"The truth!" I was so angry all of a sudden; where had it all come from? Had I been holding it inside all of this time?
"The truth?" He asked, sounding resigned.
"The truth," I reiterated firmly.
He sighed. "Alright, but we tried to make it a surprise..."
I blinked. A surprise? What was he talking about?
In any case, he gently took the top layer of his kimono off and draped the blood-red robe over my shoulders. He then took my arm and began walking around the beautiful little pond. When we'd reached the edge of it, he abruptly turned and began walking towards the forest.
"What-?"
"Shh, you'll ruin the moment," he admonished without looking back at me.
Ok, if I wasn't confused before, then I definitely was now.
Baffled beyond belief, I shut my mouth, getting ready to battle the dense undergrowth of the forest when I saw a wall of ferns drape elegantly down over a portion of the forest's edge. It almost looked like it'd been put there on purpose. Inuyasha pushed it aside to reveal a little path that had concealed itself. Immediately, I could tell that the path was new; it looked well-worn and well used, and not a single leaf lay before us as we walked on it. For some strange reason, my heart began to steadily hammer away in my chest. As we walked, the path began going up with a natural hill, and my heart rate seemed to escalate with it.
"Inu...yasha..." I whispered, not knowing what I wanted to say, and had I known, I wouldn't have been able to; I was hardly breathing.
"We're almost there, Kagome," he whispered, reaching back and taking my hand in his, squeezing.
We continued walking in silence, and I fixed my eyes on the top of the path, the top of the hill, and it seemed to be getting farther and farther away. But, it must've just been my eyes playing tricks on me, because in no time at all, we were at the top. Just a few more steps and I'd be able to see what was beyond the top of the hill.
However, Inuyasha wouldn't let me go any farther. He stopped our progress and turned to face me, an unknown expression on his face. It looked like he wanted to jump up and down in ecstatic joy while shooting himself in the head!
My heart was still beating erratically within my chest, and I was sure he heard it because he gave me a tentative smile.
"I want you to close your eyes," Inuyasha told me.
Again, I blinked in confusion. That wasn't what I'd expected him to say. But then, what exactly was I waiting for?
Not knowing what else to do, I shut them, and felt Inuyasha move behind me and slowly lead me to the top of the hill. The ground beneath my feet leveled out, and we walked for less than a minute - though it seemed to last a lot longer than that - and then we stopped again.
If I thought my heart was beating hard before, then it must've been about ready to explode when Inuyasha leaned down from behind me to whisper in my ear. I kept my eyes closed while I listened to what he wanted to tell me.
"Kagome, you're about to find out why I've had the others keep you close to them. I've had a secret that I've wanted to tell you about for a long time now, but I had to prepare it and make it perfect before I could. Before I show you what it is, though, there's something I want you to know."
Oh, my God...
I felt tears well from behind my eyelids, and I bit my lip, trying to even out my breathing, even while my body picked up in trembling. I felt his warm breath tickle my ear, and I shivered from more than the cold; actually, I felt the warmest I've felt for a long time. I also could hear his breathing become ragged, like he'd run a marathon and was trying to catch his breath. There was no way he was as nervous as I was, was there?
I could almost see his smile as he began talking again. "I know you won't believe this when I tell you, but I trust you more than I've ever trusted anybody before. More than Kikyo, even more than my mother. Kagome, I want you to know that no matter how you react to your 'surprises' that I'll always be there for you whenever you need me, and even those time that you don't."
His tone changed then, and I was practically hyperventilating. No, he wasn't going to say it, there was no way!
"Kagome," he turned me around and whispered, "I love you," before sealing his declaration with a kiss.
The collected tears behind my lids broke loose, and I gasped as I felt his soft, hesitant lips touch mine. I immediately responded, pushing myself against him, and he pressed his lips harder to mine, molding my smaller frame to his.
Unfortunately, I couldn't breathe before he'd kissed me, and now that we were, there was no hope of getting oxygen to my lungs. I didn't want to break away, but he seemed to feel the same because he pulled away before I could.
I slowly opened my eyes and looked at him. He looked so adorable that I breathed a laugh. His eyes were wide and childlike, hope shining brightly behind his supposedly tough façade.
"Inuyasha, you've no idea how long I've felt the same way about you," I said, tears trailing delicately down my cheeks again in wonder and astonishment.
"You mean you..." He trailed off, waiting for me say it.
I nodded. "Yes, Inuyasha! I love you!"
Barely a second past before I was swept up into his arms and swung around.
"Kagome, you've made me so happy! I love you, I love you, I love you!"
Both laughing, he put me down after a moment, and I just held him.
"Oh, Inuyasha, I can't believe it! Oh, my God!" I still couldn't seem to catch my breath.
He said nothing, only continued to look at me with eyes I'd only dreamed of seeing, and the best part was that they were for me. Only me.
We both just sort of stayed like that, not knowing what to do now that it'd finally been said after almost three years of pointless bantering and constant fighting. We'd always skirted the subject, and now that it all out and into the open...
Suddenly, it dawned on me that we weren't done just yet. I took a step back, scowling slightly.
Seeing the change in my demeanor, Inuyasha crossed his arms, but kept his goofy grin on his face, as if he knew something I didn't. He probably knew what I was going to ask, too.
"Inuyasha?"
"Yeeeees?"
Did he just rock on his heels?
"About the others never letting me out of their sights... What exactly was that all about? I mean, if you wanted to tell me, why couldn't you have just taken me away from them and just said it? Why couldn't I be left alone?"
Still grinning, he replied, "Because you might've accidentally stumbled upon your other present."
Cocking an eyebrow, I asked, "Oh? And what other present would that be?"
He bit his lip, grabbed my shoulders, and quickly spun me around, where my mouth opened and my jaw hit the floor.
It was a house. Well, more of a cabin, but somehow, more modern than anything I'd ever seen here in the Feudal Era before. There were sliding doors, an enclosed porch with intricately ordained pillars, and a roof with no rocks on them. There were variously colored pieces of wood throughout the house, but it seemed to liven it, to give it character and substance. It was very large; a family of six or seven could've lived quite comfortably here, with room for more. It was...perfect.
"Wha-!"
"Do you like it?" Inuyasha cut me off.
I glanced at him. "Y-Yes, but..." I couldn't even think of what I wanted to say. He'd already told me he loved me, so I didn't dare believe what I was thinking.
"Kagome," Inuyasha began, and my eyes widened as he bent down on one knee while producing a small, black velvet box. He opened it, and I saw a golden band with one diamond it in. Nothing extravagant or wonderful, and certainly nothing that resembled gaudy costume jewelry. Speechless, I could only stare as he finished, "Will you do me the honor of being my mate?"
"Oh, Inuyasha..." I tried to reply, but couldn't. Then, my knees gave out and I was down beside him. Seeing that my voice was unable to work, I did the only other thing I could. Gingerly, I plucked the tiny band out from the box and put in on my left ring finger. A perfect fit. He must've gotten a little help from my mother; I'll have to get her for it later, but for now...
"Yes. Yes, Inuyasha, I'm yours!"
Standing, he took my hand into his and led me to the steps. Actually, he practically carried me because my legs had turned to Jell-O!
"So you had this all planned?" I asked once I was able to speak. "Everything?"
"Yup! I was afraid you'd accidentally come across this place if no one was with you, so I told the others what I planned to do so they could keep you busy while I worked on building our home."
My mind was spinning. Now that he said that, I was suddenly able to recall several occasions when he'd suddenly take off for hours on end. Shippo would tell me a story, or Sango would get advice about what she should do with Miroku, or Kilala would want me to pet her. If that all failed, Miroku would get me talking about the future and ask questions about how certain things worked. I'd been completely fooled, and they'd all played a part!
"Wow, I can't believe it! So all of this was your doing?"
"Yes. Actually," I noticed his scowl of disappointment, "you already found one of your surprises."
"The pond..." I whispered.
He nodded. "The beauty was already there, but I helped it along and learned a bit from your era about how fountains worked. I made the rocks in the center look as natural as possible so it'd be more authentic. I made everything from scratch, Kagome. Everything. I'm just sorry it took so long; I didn't think it'd take me over a month to build our hut; the roof was a bitch!"
I laughed, and then turned serious. "You did all of this for me?"
"I want you to know how much you mean to me, and how far I'll go to make you happy. I will do anything and everything for you, Kagome."
Touched by his words, I leaned on him, staring out at the clearing in front of our new home.
There were many problems that now had to be assessed, of course. He was still a half demon, and I, a human; what would be done about that? I lived 500 years into the future, while he lived here in the Feudal Era; what would be done about that? The Shikon Jewel was still in existence; what would be done about that?
So many things needed to be dealt with, but for now, I was content to just be with my mate. Just the two of us, alone, and in the quiet of the night.
OoO
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