Hate

An Inuyasha fanfic by Elusion

Disclaimer:
Inuyasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, and I am just 'borrowing' it for a while, to write my mad excuse for a fanfic. No, I don't own any of the characters but I am proud to say that the fanfic idea was all mine.

Author's notes:
I have only been watching anime for a year or so now, and Inuyasha for only the past few months, and this is my first POSTED work ( I have half a dozen just sitting in my head or on
paper that just won't finish themselves...) so please be kind. Comments and helpful criticisms send to me, but all flames go to Takahashi-sama (with all due respect) for making her characters' lives so temptingly easy to destroy. Alright, I'll shut up for now.

Chapter one:

We're almost there, Kagome thought, her heart pounding so hard she thought it would leap out of her chest. They were finally on their way to the last showdown against Naraku, for the Shikon no Tama. She dug her hands into Kirara's fur, trying desperately to warm them, a useless attempt the take the chill out of herself. She noticed the silence all around them,
it hung thick in the air. Under the shadows of Naraku, even the birds didn't chirp in the forests. Kagome looked at her friends riding on Kirara's back with her. Sango was always so serious, and had such sad eyes. Kagome would like to have known Sango before tragedy had struck the exterminators life; to see her laugh carelessly, and just be happy. Miroku sat in front of Sango and had a determined set to his mouth. He was about to face his life-long enemy, and he was going to give his all. Shippo sat practically in Kagome's lap, hugging her tightly. She could feel his fear, and his faith in his friends. In her mount, Kirara, she could feel the animalistic nature to protect her master. All of them had a set purpose, a thing to stand for.

Kagome only felt jumbled inside. She felt like someone had taken all of her thoughts, had stuffed them into a box, sealed it and had smashed it on the ground a couple of times then dumped the battered thoughts back into her head. It was enough to give anyone a migraine. Her most jumbled up thoughts were about one thing - more specifically, one half-dog demon. She looked down to the object of these thoughts, Inuyasha, who, despite the seriousness of the moment, was trying to outdistance his brother Sesshoumaru as they ran through the forest.

She smiled at his childish acts. Come to think of it, why had Sesshoumaru come to join forces with them? He claimed that he was now interested in the Shikon no Tama, but never before did he ever seem to care about it. It baffled her: yet another thought to add to the muddle in her ever aching mind. She stared out into space, and she notice that the miasma hanging over the area had darkened. A shiver ran down her back: the evil was so thick that she could almost smell it. Shippo shivered and then hugged her tighter. She had wanted to leave the kitsune home safe with Kaede-baba, but he had refused, wanting to help in the fight against Naraku. Naraku has hurt us all. Kagome then looked back again at Sango and Miroku. Some, more than others. Sango was unconsciously gripping Miroku's arm. To his credit, he wasn't taking advantage of this, for once. They'd make a cute couple.

Kagome smiled to herself at that one. She so loved to play matchmaker. She glanced at Inuyasha again, and sighed. He occupied most of her thoughts of late, when she was with him, or back in her own time. It was as if, some how, he had crept his way in to her resisting heart and mind. Some of her most tangled thoughts were attributed to him, especially about their future. Kagome blushed at the thought, it implied that his future and her future went together. It was too much to hope for. After all, there would always be Kikyo in the way. And there was the matter of the Shikon no Tama. What would happen when they got it? If they got it?

NO! She was determined to keep a positive state of mind. We WILL win. We MUST win.

There is too much at stake to lose.

- - -

He was surprised that he wasn't nervous. Tense, alert, yes. Nervous, no. His entire life led up to this day, and he wasn't nervous. It would be a turning point for good or bad. If he lost, he would die. There was no doubt about that. But. If he won, he would have a fresh start, a new life.

He wasn't really perverted. When his father had died, sucked into his own air void, Miroku had seen his mother's tears. Her grief had broken her, taken her soul and left an empty shell behind. Once he had seen what happened when a loved one left, he vowed never to grow too close to someone, so when his own air void took him, he wouldn't leave behind a hurting person. However, he was still honor bound to produce a child, someone to carry on his family line. So he put on his pervert mask, and tried to keep from growing too attached. Whenever he felt someone becoming too close he would distance himself with his hentai mode. But not forever. No, once Naraku was dead he would be free...free to love.

He was startled as a hand suddenly gripped his arm. He looked back to see Sango. She was staring worriedly at the horizon, her forehead creased. Miroku suddenly had to impulse to smooth these lines away with his hand, to lift her chin and kiss her. She was so beautiful, even as she frowned. She had such pretty eyes, and he loved her long smooth hair with the
adorable little locks in front of her ears. Ah Miroku, he thought, you really are a pervert.

He slipped his hand protectively over hers.

- - -

Sesshoumaru ran through the forest, hate seeping through his every pore. I will never forgive
you Naraku...NEVER!
His mind flashed back into a painful memory seared into his brain as
permanently as if it was branded there...

"Rin?" he called, thinking she was playing her hiding game again, that she would come popping
out of the bushes giggling, and run to her Seeshoumaru-sama. He allowed himself a faint smile,
since no one could see him. He sniffed the air -wait- there it was, her scent. He followed
the direction that it came from, deeper into the forest. He was getting closer...

He could smell her more strongly...
but something was wrong...
he smelled...
blood...
he ran towards the scent...
it was of blood...
and fear...
Rin's blood and fear...
His sensitive nose picked up something else...
He recalled a man in a baboon skin...
Naraku. He smelled Naraku...
Rin's fear...
Rin's blood...
He was drawing closer. There! Rin lay unconscious, bleeding from ling scratches on her face.
He bent towards her, and picked up yet another smell...
No, he couldn't have...
no he wouldn't have...
not Rin, she was only a child...
that...
ANIMAL! I will destroy you Naraku! he vowed. Rin stirred. She was waking up. He prepared to comfort her. He was her Seeshoumaru-chan, her savior and friend. Her eyes opened and focused.
She saw Seeshoumaru and her eyes widened...
in fear...
She tensed as if he were going to attack her...
but Rin always trusted him...
He looked at her, puzzled.
"What's wrong, Rin?" he asked...
she tried to stand up, but tripped. Seeshoumaru offered his hand...
she screamed and slapped it away.
Why?...
Why was Rin crying...
she tried to run away, tripping over rocks and roots in her haste...
why...
why...
He found himself sinking to his knees. He lowered his head...
and saw...
where Rin had been laying...
white hairs...
white hairs...
long gouges on her cheek...
he looked at his fingers, tipped with claws...
Naraku's smell...
white hairs...
claw marks...
"No." he said in a hoarse whisper...
Naraku could take on many forms...
he took on Inuyasha to kill Kikyo...
he took on many forms...
took on the form of Sesshoumaru...
to hurt Rin...
"No." he said again...
Rin hated him...
Naraku's fault...
Rin, the one person...
who had ever loved him...
the one person...
he had ever cared about at all...
Naraku's fault...
He forgot that he was a youkai, that he shouldn't care about a human...
he forgot that he was untouchable...
that he didn't have feelings. He only knew this pain...
this hate...
He screamed in an unearthly roar...
and then broke down. Sesshoumaru, the powerful youkai, the emotionless demon, did something he
had never done before...
he wept.

- - -

Inuyasha could feel his brothers hate. It was stronger that anything Inuyasha had seen or felt. He hadn't known someone could hate a person so much. It made him wonder what Naraku had done to Sesshoumaru, to have produced this hate. It wasn't just the Shikon no Tama. No, there was something else, it was as if Naraku had hurt something that Sesshoumaru had cared deeply for.

Inuyasha remembered that little girl that followed his half brother around. Perhaps Sesshoumaru had learned to love a human after all... but that wasn't like Sesshoumaru! And what did that have to do with Naraku? Inuyasha was stumped. He had problems enough of his own, without adding his brothers troubles to the bunch. He looked up to where Kirara was flying, to make sure that Kagome was okay. She was, but she looked so sad. It tore him up inside; he missed her sunny smiles, and he hated her tears... the ones that he was so often
the cause of. He cared for her, more that he was willing to admit; he realized this now. He cared for her, perhaps, loved her; and he wished that he could tell her, but there was his pride. His stupid, blasted pride, that made everything that came out of his mouth an insult. He wanted to tell her that he didn't care as much for Kikyo as he did for her, that he only felt he must fulfill his old loyalties to Kikyo, to return her to a state of rest, before he could move on. He wanted to tell her that the reason that he always came back to drag her back to
the feudal age, wasn't so much for the Shikon no Tama, but because he missed her. He felt empty without her near, without having the comforting smell of her around him. He wanted to tell her, to tell her everything, but her couldn't. He just couldn't. He looked back into her sad face. The least he could do was try to make her smile. So, he put on his 'I'm a big
bad Hanyou' front , and made a big show of trying to race Sesshoumaru, trying to lighten her up. He looked back again, and saw a half hearted smile, one that didn't quite reach her eyes. He tore his eyes from her and focused on the upcoming battle.

- - -

Kagome was the first to see them, the buildings they had seen exact duplicates of throughout their travels. She pointed a shaky finger at them.

"There." her voice was hoarse. Miroku looked to where she was pointing and nodded.

"Inuyasha!" He called down. "The buildings- we're coming to them, they are dead ahead!"
Inuyasha nodded. They all prepared themselves for the upcoming battle.

Naraku smiled evilly. Things were going well, just as he had hoped and planned for.

- - -

End of chapter one.

MORE author's notes:
Hiya again! Yes, it's the annoying author again. Yes, I know what Naraku did to poor Rin was
horrible... Ack! Don't hurt me! The muse made me do it! Anyways, I had to put it in...
Why? Read on... All will be revealed... Next chapter coming very soon.