(A/N) Hey there, people(s)!! This is chapter one of my brandy new angst fanfic, the strength of a heart. This first chappy is kinda fluffy, but it's only setting the stage for much more dramatic things to come! You all need to know: I am firmly InuxKag, and this fic was very hard to write because of it. No matter what happens, I will always remain InuxKag. I have nothing against Kikyo, but I believe that the Kikyo made of bones and grave soil is not the real Kikyo; this allows me to hate the current Kikyo. Anyway, I hope you (all?) enjoy "The Strength of a Heart."
I do not own InuYasha. The only thing I own is the story line of this FANfiction. Major emphasis on FAN!
"Where are we going, InuYasha?" Kagome asked me, confused.
I had been tracking a completely different scent, with Kagome on my back, when this one had presented itself.
"I've got Naraku's scent." I announced, but I didn't tell my friends all of it. Right next to Naraku's scent, I thought, is Kikyo's scent! I won't let him hurt her!!
"I'm going to speed up!" I called.
"How far away is he?" Miroku asked from where he sat on Kirara.
"Not far," I answered shortly. Please don't let us be too late! I pushed even harder, feeling that my feet barley touched the ground.
I skidded into the clearing, every nerve in my body electric with the need to help the woman I had given my heart to so long ago. They were both there: Kikyo and Naraku. The Naraku was not a golem; he held Kikyo with human hands, his hideous tentacles snaking up. Kikyo had her bow half-drawn, but was held in such a way that she couldn't complete the action. Her head swiveled to face me.
The glittering ferocity in her eyes almost made my heart stop. For a moment, I forgot about Naraku. I forgot about Miroku and Sango and Shippo and Kirara. I even forgot about Kagome on my back. There was nothing but her.
Naraku's chuckle broke my trance.
"Just in time to see the woman you love die again, InuYasha!" he jabbed forward with one tentacle.
"Nooo!" I howled. I barely felt Kagome slip from my back and land with a thud as I lunged forward. Kikyo released her arrow; it cut Naraku and released a cloud of miasma.
"Kikyo!" I yelled, plunging into the sickening black cloud and ripping Naraku's tentacles off her sham body. I charged out of the miasma- carrying Kikyo along –and scrambled back to the group. I set her down beside where Kagome still sat on the ground, glaring at me. I still didn't fully grasp why she was angry.
I drew Tetsusaiga and waited for the miasma to clear. When it did, Naraku was gone.
"Feh," I slid Tetsusaiga back into its scabbard and turned to face Kikyo. I was genuinely surprised to see Kagome, her face an inch away from mine, glaring daggers at me.
"Kagome…?" I asked, genuinely puzzled but increasingly apprehensive about what I might have done this time.
"You dropped me." she growled.
"Huh…? Wait… what?" memory finally dawned on me. "Oh… oh crap."
"Sit."
What I had been about to say was smothered by a mouthful of dirt as the magic beads around my neck drove me into the ground.
"Damn it, woman, I didn't mean to!" I snapped, mortified that Kikyo was watching this.
"Idiot!" yelled Kagome. "Sit! Sit sit sit sit sit!!!"
I felt smaller and smaller as I was dragged further into the ground. I pried my face out of the mud in time to see Kagome stomping off into the trees.
"You did drop her quite soundly, you know…" Miroku offered.
"Shut up." I snapped. "You're not helping."
Kikyo sat watching this. She was the priority, I decided. Kagome wouldn't listen to anything said, anyway. I peeled myself rather painfully off the ground and walked over to Kikyo. I stooped down and took her hand, and looped my arm around her waist. Having her so close was heavenly, even if her scent was heavy with bones and grave-soil.
"I thank you," she said with grace and aloofness. "I must pursue him now."
"No!" I objected. "You can't! I won't let you!"
"I must." She insisted, maintaining the same distant air. She reached up and touched my face, then swiveled away from me and began to stalk off.
"Wait!" I ran after her.
I grabbed her shoulder, forcing her to look at me. Then, I gripped her tight, holding her to my chest.
"No," I growled softly. "No, I can't let you go after him alone." I gripped her hands, though my own were trembling. "He can't have you again!"
Kikyo bowed her head.
"If you wish it so, I will accompany you, for a time, at least."
"Thank you," I whispered into her fragrant hair. "Thank you for letting me protects you."
(A/N) OK! How was it?! Please tell me by… WRITING A REVIEW!! If you do, I will give you little hints of things to come!! And here is a free-be: they are very dark and dramatic, and they are very worth reading! So please review and keep up with the story!!
