[Author's Note] Hey everyone! This is my second attempt at an Inu Yasha Fanfic, so… I hope you like it! I accept reviews from everyone, so I hope to hear from you all! Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I don't own Inu Yasha.

The Second Chance of Midoriko

Chapter 1: Devastation

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It was supposed to be their last battle. They had already defeated Naraku, and had all but a few shards of the Shikon no Tama. Miroku was getting along just fine with his new kazaana-free right hand, and Sango was just coming along for the ride. After all, the gang was pretty much the only family she had left. Shippou was too young to really worry about what was going to happen when all the shards were gathered, but Kagome was beginning to get nervous about what should be done with the jewel. Inu Yasha hadn't been talking about becoming full demon that much anymore, which made her wonder what exactly he really wanted to do with it. He hadn't forgotten about it, of course, because he was still continually pestering her to find more shards- but each time they found another shard, he seemed… preoccupied. As if he was worried that they would find all the shards in no time at all.

And here they were, fighting their last demon. It appeared to be a monster made of stone; a golem, with hard spikes on the top of its head and on its back. It had a tail similar to that of a stegosaurus, with spikes at the end, only in mace-like fashion. Hard to believe, but they were actually having a more difficult time with this demon than they did with Naraku himself. None of Kagome's arrows were able to pierce his outer armor of stone, and Inu Yasha's Tetsusaiga couldn't scratch the surface of the demon. Sango and Shippou tried various Hiraikotsu and kitsune attacks, but nothing seemed to be working. Miroku was busy chanting an incantation over the golem, attempting to weaken its stone armor.

"Kagome!! Shoot it!!" Inu Yasha cried to his teammate. Kagome drew yet another arrow.

'Where is its weak spot?? Where is it???' Kagome asked herself.

"DO IT!!!" He cried, trying to hold it off for Kagome to get a clear shot.

"Here goes!" she said firmly to herself, hoping against hope that it would hit. With the demon possessing the remaining three Shikon shards, it was virtually impenetrable. But she took a shot at the neck, just where the shoulder of the monster met its unsightly head. The arrow whizzed through the air. Her shot was straight and true, and the arrow burrowed itself halfway into the golem's neck. "Gotcha!" she squealed with delight as she watched the arrow glow pink and seep magic throughout the demon. "You go, girl!" Inu Yasha jumped to the left, off of his position on the golem's back, and watched Kagome celebrate via victory dance. She was really excited. Inu Yasha's ears began to droop a bit, knowing what this meant. She would be going home. He brushed aside his sadness, however, to watch her jump up and down ecstatically. He began to smile. She was always so carefree. Maybe after the jewel was completed, he would tell her… what he had been wanting to tell her for such a long time.

And she was still celebrating. Kinda overdoing it. In fact, Kagome was so busy celebrating her shot of victory that she didn't see it coming.

The tail.

Although dying, the golem still wasn't completely purified.

Inu Yasha's ears rotated in the blink of an eye, hearing something raise itself from the ground. He looked to his right, just to see the tail levitate and with a mighty swing, lunge itself at the young miko. Inu Yasha sprang into action.

"Kagome!!" He ran as swiftly as he could toward her, but he was not quick enough to reach her before the tail. There was a sickening thud as the golem's tail embedded itself into Kagome's abdomen. Things seemed to go in slow motion. Miroku and Sango's eyes widened when they saw blood-tipped spikes emerge from Kagome's back. Shippou screamed and ran toward Kagome, but Miroku caught him before he could get too far. Kagome looked down at the tail in disbelief. Wasn't she just celebrating? Inu Yasha could only hear his heartbeat and his breath as he continued to approach his…

Just after the impact, the tail began to glow pink. Finally purified, it evaporated into thin air. It was the only thing keeping Kagome on her feet, so as soon as it was gone, she began to fall to the ground, mouth open and eyes wide. Inu Yasha caught her gently and laid her to rest on the soft grass. Not wasting any time, he removed his haori and placed it under her head. He quickly pressed his hands firmly on her abdomen where she was bleeding the most.

"I-*cough* Inu Yasha." Kagome could just hear him in her head. 'You stupid girl, why did you go and get hurt! Couldn't you get out of the way? If you weren't so busy celebrating…'

"Shh…" Inu Yasha's thoughts were as far from that as could be.

"Th- the shards… in its foreh-"

"I don't care," he said roughly. Sango, Miroku, and Shippou stood back, just inside of earshot, and watched silently. "We have to get you to Kaede." Kagome shook her head.

"It-s too late. Take care of Shippou." Inu Yasha began to shake his head.

"No, no, Kagome…"

"And tell Mama I'm sorry. And goodbye to S--" Kagome began to shiver from all of her blood loss. Inu Yasha growled, not knowing what he could do to save her. He felt so helpless. The last time he felt this way was when his mother died. Shivering to the point of convulsing, Kagome held up her hand to Inu Yasha's head. He lowered his head, allowing her to do what she would with it.

*tweak, tweak*

*giggle*

*cough* *HACK*

"Thanks. I know you hate it." Kagome lifted her other arm and drew Inu Yasha down to her in one final hug.

"No, Kagome, you can't. You can't leave," Inu Yasha told her in a hoarse whisper. "I-" a tear rolled down his cheek. But he didn't care. This was more important. Kagome was more important. "I love you, Kagome." He felt a final squeeze, almost imperceptible, around his neck before Kagome's arms loosened. As he brought himself up from her body, he ran his hands along her slender arms. One by one, tears fell from his eyes. He now held her hands in his, and rested them on her bloody stomach. "You didn't deserve this. But-" Inu Yasha raised himself from the ground, and walked in a seeming daze toward where the golem's head once was. He found three shards on the ground, and knelt down to pick them up. As he moved to stand, he heard Shippou crying. His crying was getting louder, and as Inu Yasha saw, he was running toward him. At first he thought he was running toward Kagome, but at a second glance, he was headed straight for Inu Yasha.

"I HATE YOU!" Shippou, little as he was, kicked the hanyou with all of his might. Inu Yasha was surprised; it actually hurt a little. Miroku and Sango ran towards them. "Kagome… Kagome died, and here you are, only caring about the jewel! You couldn't wait until she was dead to get the rest of the fragments!" He screamed through tears.

"Feh. Whatever," he said somewhat shakily. That was the hardest 'feh' and 'whatever' that he ever had to say. He stood up and faced Miroku and Sango, who had just arrived. They were not so blind. They saw the hanyou's glassy eyes and dampened cheeks, and knew that he was probably the saddest out of all of them. Tears running down her own cheeks, Sango stepped forward and embraced Inu Yasha. Shippou stopped his tirade and watched the adults silently. Inu Yasha's arms wrapped around Sango, and for only the second time in his life, he began to sob.

After a few minutes, Inu Yasha released Sango, and walked slowly to where Kagome lay. Sango, not completely finished crying, turned toward Miroku. Of course, he knew this was no time to be a hentai, and he too was sad, so he simply wrapped his arms around her, using one hand to rub her back, and the other to hold her steady. Sango momentarily stopped her sobs, and knelt down to look at Shippou.

"Come here, Shippou. You loved her so much." Shippou began crying anew, and jumped into her arms. Sango stood, and she, Miroku, and Shippou began to console each other on the loss of their loved one.

Inu Yasha knelt beside Kagome's form. Reaching around her neck, he removed the Shikon no Tama and the chain on which it hung. He carefully slipped the shards he retrieved from the golem into the jewel. A bright, pale pink light exploded from the Shikon no Tama as it refused itself together. The light soon faded, and the jewel was complete.

Inu Yasha Removed his haori from underneath Kagome, and wrapped it around her body. He hoisted her gently over his shoulder, as though she were asleep.

"Let's go back to the village," was all he said before taking off in a blur. It was all he could manage to say. Miroku and Sango, with Shippou in her arms, followed his fleeting form toward the village.

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[Author's Note] Eh? Did you like it so far? Don't worry, I am a rabid IY/K fan. I think this is the darkest chapter in this story, so uh, yeah. See ya soon, and please review!