Another You, an inuyasha fanfic

Disclosure: I do not own the rights to Inuyasha, nor do I own the songs "Gravity" by Wage War, or "Another You" by Of Mice and Men.

She wasn't quite sure what brought her to this particular concert. Actually, it was her friend Ayumi, recently developing a fondness for hard rock music, who'd dragged her along to see a list of bands Kagome had never heard of. Even though Ayumi practically had for force a black t-shirt with yet another unfamiliar band name printed across the bust, and she felt more than a little out of place in a pit with what seemed to be thousands (but in reality was much less, it wasn't a huge venue) of other screaming people pressing in on all sides, Kagome found herself cheering and dancing in place right along with her best friend.

It had been nearly five years since the Bone Eater's well had closed. Five years since she'd last seen Inuyasha and the rest of her feudal era friends. She missed them dearly, but three years ago she'd found herself stuck at the bottom of the well with a fractured ankle and sobbing more from the emotional pain than the physical, she'd come to the realization that the past was forever lost to her. After two years of trying to get back to the friends she'd left behind, she knew she needed to accept her fate and move on, and she'd come out of the well a changed woman.

She still studied hard to make her good marks and she made time for her friends, but as the months moved forward, she and Ayumi had found themselves the outliers of their original group of four. Eri and Yuka were ever more boy crazed and constantly pushed unwanted dates on Kagome. Finally, Kagome had given up and told them if they couldn't respect her wish to stay single they could leave her apartment. They had.

Kagome may have moved on, but that didn't mean she was comfortable dating when her heart still belonged to another. At twenty-one, Kagome had yet to have a serious boyfriend, and she was fine with that, deep down. After all, it wouldn't be fair for any other man to think he had a chance when she still had Inuyasha's honey gold eyes burning in her memory. She was grateful for Ayumi choosing to stick by her and now the two were closer than ever, even becoming roommates at their university.

Belatedly, Kagome realized she'd stopped dancing as her thoughts progressed. She gave herself a mental shake and tried to remove herself from the bad mood she was putting herself in. Noticing the band on stage giving their goodbyes, she turned to Ayumi. "Hey," she yelled over the crowd of people still chanting lyrics to the last song. "Going for a beer. Want one?" Her friend nodded in the affirmative, pushing sweaty curls out of her face to give Kagome a wide smile.

Getting out of the crowd was going to be difficult, and as she nearly tripped over another person for the fourth time, Kagome thanked whatever God there was that she'd opted for her black Converse rather than the pair of high heeled boots Ayumi had thrust at her while changing. Noting the long lines for the bar, Kagome decided to detour for the restroom, vaguely surprised at the lack of girls she would have expected to be congregating at the mirror. She ran the tap until cool water flowed over her slim fingers before she finally met her own blue eyed gaze in the mirror. Damn.

They'd been in the pit for over two hours and it definitely showed. Her eyeliner was smudged underneath her eyes, a light sheen of sweat glistening off her porcelain skin, and the hair that Ayumi had insisted she flat iron for the occasion was starting to curl again from the humidity. Kagome crinkled her nose a little at her reflection, reaching over and grabbing a paper towel, wetting it, and dabbing at her face to remove the worst of the running makeup. As for her hair… She shrugged, tossing her long, black hair back over her shoulder. The wild look kind of worked for her. She left the bathroom, seeing the drink lines had shortened up with most people heading back to their seats or the pit area. A new band must be about to start, she thought to herself. Soon, she was following them, two clear plastic cups clutched in her hands full of the foul yellow liquid this place was calling "beer."

It took her longer to find Ayumi in the crowd than it had for her to leave it, but when she did, she gladly handed off one of the cups to her friend before lifting her own to her lips and drinking about half of it as quickly as she could so she wouldn't taste it. She must have made a face of disgust because Ayumi started laughing. "You try drinking this nasty stuff," Kagome grumbled. She downed the rest of her cup, watching as Ayumi took her first sip. Both girls grimaced at each other, laughing.

"Well, that's one of the lures of places like this," Ayumi informed her. "Cheap beer." She turned at a tap on her shoulder, seeing a tall, handsome guy standing behind her. Kagome caught her friend's eye and winked, only half listening as the man complimented Ayumi on her t-shirt. As she turned away, she felt a familiar tug in her chest, pulling her gaze to the stage once more, where employees were finishing setting up instruments for the next act. What?

She kept looking, recognizing the tug as one she'd only felt with Inuyasha nearby. Her eyes jumped from person to person on the stage not lingering long on any of the unfamiliar faces when, her eyes rested on a man with his back to her, seemingly directing one of the stage-hands where to put something. He stood with his arms crossed over his chest, the red cut-off he was wearing exposing black lines of a tattoo curving down his biceps. She let herself trail her eyes down his muscular frame, taking a split second to appreciate the way his ass filled his jeans before taking in the heavy black boots on his feet and trailing back up to the short mop of tussled black hair. It couldn't be, could it?

She figured she wouldn't find out since he turned and walked backstage as the last set piece was placed. She strained her vision to catch a glimpse of him again, but he was gone. If only she'd gotten to see his face. Sighing to herself, Kagome tried to think rationally. There was no way the guy on stage was Inuyasha. For one thing, it certainly wasn't a new moon and that guy had black hair. For another, Inuyasha hated places like this, he wouldn't willingly work in a place with a crowd this large. The smell alone would have sent him running. And finally, she thought rather sadly, over five hundred years had passed since Inuyasha's time. She had no way of knowing if half-demons could even live that long. And she'd never sensed a full demon in her own time anyways.

A jostling to her left pulled Kagome out of her stupor, making her turn her head quickly to the source of the shove that nearly knocked her over. "Shit, sorry." Ayumi was holding out a full beer to her. "I though you heard me tell you I was going on another drink run. Lines are short right now since the main act is about to come on stage." Accepting the drink, Kagome decided to give her friend her full attention. She felt bad she'd spent so much time brooding over the past instead of paying attention to the world around her.

"Where did that guy who was flirting with you go?" she asked Ayumi. She glanced around and didn't see him anywhere in the sea of people behind them.

Ayumi shrugged. "He left right before I went for beer. Said something about break being up or whatever." She flapped her hand in a dismissive gesture. "I didn't have time to keep talking to him anyways. I'm a huge fan of Four Souls and I want to give them my full attention." And then, all the lights in the place went dim. Slowly, the lights focusing on the stage grew brighter, revealing three figures on stage.

Kagome squinted in the dim light to a corner of the stage that seemed darker than the rest, listening as a guitar riff started over the noise of the crowd screaming. She tugged Ayumi's arm. "Why is that guy on stage standing in the shadow?" Ayumi leaned close to shout over the music.

"That's the lead singer, Yash Takahashi" He always sits back there and sings in the dark for all but the last song. They play the same song at the end of every concert. Rumer has it he's looking for some girl he lost. You'll see him later."

Kagome nodded at the explanation, even though it made no sense to her. Then again, he was a rock star, his actions didn't need to make sense. As the first strains of lyrics reached their ears, Ayumi screeched loudly, clutching onto Kagome's arm with enough force there was sure to be a bruise in the morning. "He has the voice of an angel!" her friend cooed into her ear.

And Kagome had to agree. Even though this wasn't normally her favorite type of music, there was something to the slightly scratchy quality of the man's voice that was oddly soothing. Not to mention familiar. She continued to peer into the dark stage, trying to decipher the singer's face with no luck. Finally, she gave up and once again started cheering with Ayumi, while doing the weird bounce/jump/head-bang thing that seemed to pass for dancing at this type of festival, pausing only to drink from the cup of now lukewarm beer in her hand.

What felt like hours later, after several songs and one last trip to the bar for refreshments, Kagome noticed a shift in the concert-goers around her. It seemed as though between one minute and the next, the people were slightly quieter, more subdued. Although, when her limit was normally one, and she'd now had three full beers, maybe she was just a little drunk.

Her theory was quickly proven wrong when she saw the members of Four Souls doing some shuffling to make room for a lone microphone that now sat center-stage. Ayumi leaned into her ear once again, saying, "They're getting ready to play the song! I swear, 'Gome, you're going to just swoon."

However, when the singer (Yash, Kagome reminded herself) began the first few lines, still remaining toward the back of the stage, Kagome caught a glimpse of a frown etching into Ayumi's face. "This is the song," Ayumi said, "but he isn't coming up front yet." Kagome wasn't sure what to make of the statement, as entranced as she was listening to the voice that seemed to swirl around her from all sides.

"I'm losing hope, I'm out of touch

Too late to say 'I've had enough'

It's like every breath could be my last

My demons won't stay in the past

All alone

On my own

Pull me close, I feel the water reach around my neck

Don't let go, just show me that there's better days ahead

Make me see how I'm only half the person I should be

Pull me close, set me free from this gravity"

Kagome felt herself getting lost in the desperation in the words of the song, letting it resonate in her soul. This Yash guy really did have an amazing voice, in her opinion. She could hear the emotion in him as he sang, and unconsciously tried moving closer to the stage until the light pull of Ayumi on her arm brought her back to herself. She continued listening as the song progressed.

"I can't run forward and keep looking back

Hindsight has left me where I'm at

I tried to run but I couldn't see

That you were right beside me

All alone

On my own

Pull me close, I feel the water reach around my neck

Don't let go, just show me that there's better days ahead

Make me see how I'm only half the person I should be

Pull me close, set me free from this gravity

There is a light in the tunnel but it's distant

On my own and I don't think that I can fix this

Set me free from this gravity

Pull me close, I feel the water reach around my neck

Don't let go, just show me that there's better days ahead

Make me see how I'm only half the person I should be

Pull me close, set me free from this gravity

Pull me close, set me free from this gravity"

The song now finished, Kagome found herself as vocal as the die-hard fans around her, yelling their appreciation of the band. Although, Ayumi still seemed disappointed that Yash hadn't come out of his dark corner as he usually did, linking her arm through that of her comrade and expressing her confusion. "I just don't understand. That's his song!" Ayumi moaned. "Why didn't he come out for it?"

Kagome wished she had an answer to that question, as she would have liked to put a face to the beautiful voice she'd just heard. But, alas, it seemed as though the concert was over, if the people turning to exit the pit were any indication. The girls started to follow suit when someone spoke up from the stage behind them. "Hey, guys, sorry for the confusion." Kagome once again felt the tug in her soul, forcing her to look to the stage at the familiar voice, hearing a murmur going up through the crowd still waiting around her.

It was the guy from earlier, the one wearing the red shirt. She could see his face now, even as he talked into the mic with his eyes closed. The line of his jaw, the shape of his nose… Was it? "I know we usually end on that song," he said, "but recently we finished up a new one and we want you guys to be the first to hear it." A roar went through the venue at the announcement, but Kagome barely heard it as focused as she was on the man in front of her.

She felt her friend quivering in excitement next to her. "This is the first new song they've had in two years!" Ayumi gushed. Kagome grinned distractedly, waiting with bated breath for the song to start.

It began slowly, nearly too quiet to hear until Yash joined his voice with the guitar. Kagome found herself kind of surprised that the same man who'd been half screaming lyrics for the last hour or so could still hit the higher notes of the intro as he crooned into the microphone.

"Words wear off, nervous paces

Something's off, see it in their faces"

The lights in the venue, already dim, turned off completely. Then, as he began his next verse, they started pulsing, alternately washing the stage in white for a few seconds before going back to pitch plack. Those few seconds were all it took for Kagome to see that his eyes were open now. His golden eyes.

"Say anything, say anything

Say anything that can make this all okay

Take it away, take it away

Take away all of this emptiness I feel

'Cause I will never find another you

Another you, another you"

Kagome had begun to push her way forward again, trying to get past the people in front of her, only to be shoved back into the arms of her friend, both of them stumbling and nearly falling. "What the hell are you doing?" Ayumi questioned her with an expression that clearly said she thought Kagome was insane.

Turning a shocked eye to her partner-in-crime, Kagome felt the tears come rolling down her cheeks. "It's him, 'Yumi. I can't fucking believe it, but it's him." Ayumi's eyes grew wide at the admission, knowing exactly who Kagome meant by "him."

"I still hear you in this house (whispering)

I still feel you in my bones (in these veins)

And like the portraits in the halls (can't help but think)

I wish you were staring back at me (but you're gone)

Say anything, say anything

Say anything that can make this all okay

Take it away, take it away

Take away all of this emptiness I feel

'Cause I will never find another (I may never find myself)

I will never find another you"

"But-how- I thought..." Ayumi spluttered, tripping over her words. Regaining her composure, she grasped Kagome by the arms. "Are you sure it's him? How can he just show up after five years, 'Gome?"

Kagome shook her head. "I don't know how and I don't care. I have to get up there, Ayumi." She watched the best friend she had in the world search her face for some indication of uncertainty. Finding none, Ayumi closed her eyes, sighing, her hands growing slack on Kagome's upper arms. When she opened her eyes again, they were steely with resolve.

"Okay. Let's do this." The girls nodded at each other, just once, before turning to face the obstacle course of bodies in their way.

"So I'll carry you with me in my dreams, my memory

So I'll carry you with me (you'll always be with me) in my dreams, my memory

So I'll carry you with me, you'll always be my memory"

For once, Kagome was thankful for her small stature as she dodged and weaved into the gaps between people, Ayumi right behind her, making sure that no one tried to stop her on the way to the very front. "Inuyasha!" Kagome cried, trying to catch his eye. When he didn't even glance around at her cry, she knew she was still too far away and he couldn't hear her over the rumble of the masses. She shoved her way forward more, finally able to see that as he sang, his eyes scanned the people he was serenading.

"Say anything, say anything

Say anything that could make this all okay

Take it away, take it away

Take away all of this emptiness I feel"

She could sense the song coming to a close, and as she found herself stuck, unable to move forward any more, some angry asshole shoving her back nearly to the floor, she called out once more. "Inuyasha!" That time she saw the reaction, his head whipping around to the source of his name, his gaze passing her once, before quickly flickering back to her tearstained face, and slowly a wide smile spread across his lips. As he finished his song, he gestured for someone off stage, indicating her general direction.

All at once, there was a path in front of her, leading her directly to the stage. Kagome ran.

"Cause I will never find another (I may never find myself)

And I will never find another you"

Inuyasha reached his hand to her, easily lifting her from the floor to the stage with him, immediately pulling her in close, wrapping her in a tight hug. Kagome twined her arms around his shoulders and buried her face in his neck as he lifted her feet from the ground, hands moving down until he grasped her thighs tightly and held her to him. Then he turned away from the obviously incredulous congregation in front of him and walking backstage with her firmly in his hold. "I can't believe you're here, Inuyasha," Kagome sobbed into him. "After all this time, I never thought I'd see you again."

She felt her mouth turn up in a slight smile at the "Keh" that dropped from his lips. He opened a door that she couldn't see, closing it behind them and turning the lock to prevent interruption. She moved her face slightly from him so she could take in her surroundings, seeing he'd brought her to what must have been his room backstage, furnished with a small fridge and a black leather couch. He shifted her legs so they straddled his hips as he sat on the couch, pulling her face from where it rested on his shoulder and bringing it around so he could look her in the eyes. "Idiot," he scolded her. "You had to know I would never stop looking for you, Kagome." At the tiny sob that escaped her lips, he pulled one side of his mouth up in his trademark cocky grin. "And I finally found you."

And she couldn't take it any longer. She scooted her body forward so their chests lined up perfectly and cupped his face in her hand. Then she leaned her head in, an invitation he accepted willingly, capturing her lips in a searing kiss that both felt echo in their souls.

After a few moments, he gently pulled his lips away from hers, brushing a lock of hair out of her eyes, a serious look in his eye. "I never got a chance to tell you, Kagome. I wanted to, so bad, but you were just gone one second and I could never get back through the well." He paused, making sure she was listening to him before continuing. "I love you, Kagome. There isn't a person now or five hundred years ago that could compare to you. That's why I wrote those songs for you."

A lump was growing in Kagome's throat, making it hard for her to speak as she tried to stop a fresh flood of tears at his words. "I love you, too, Inuyasha," she finally choked out. His smile graced his face once more as he cupped the back of her head and brought their mouths together once more.

There were questions that she needed answered, and she was sure Inuyasha had questions for her, too. However, here, in this moment, she didn't care. This was what she'd waited for. She could sense the contentment coming from him, could feel the low growl vibrating in his chest that always indicated when he was happy, and knew he'd been waiting for this as well. It didn't matter that they were both slick with sweat or that they smelled like the shitty beer this place was selling. It didn't matter that there were a couple hundred people chanting his name about twenty feet from where they sat kissing in his dressing room. Nothing mattered but that they were finally back in each other's arms.

This moment was perfect.

A/N: This is just an idea that's been floating around in my head courtesy of a couple of my favorite songs. Let me know what you think!