Kagome peered into the depths of that traitorous well, the tears that stung her eyes for the past two days flying easily down her face and over the brim. This well had taken him back to his time, not even giving her a chance to say thank you, I love you, or goodbye. She reached out for him, extending the hand that wanted him so badly down a few inches into the well.
She had been in her time, stuck away from what she considered home. The jewel had been wished away, leaving her with no way back. She hadn't thought that through, and now she was murderously regretting it. When she closed her eyes, all she saw was that sharp golden amber that had comforted her for so long. Now, it only made her anxious and stressed. She couldn't get back to him, and it was eating at her from the inside. She hated this regret, almost as much as she had grown to hate Naraku. It was almost as if…. She never wanted the jewel hunt to end in the first place.
She put one bare foot on the edge of the Bone-Eaters Well, ready to jump and take flight into the Feudal Era of Japan. She tried to place herself in belief mentally – if she didn't believe in the fact that the well would work, it wouldn't. At once, she slammed her eyes shut, and flung herself in. She hit the gravelly bottom, clearly still in the shrine. She tried to fight back yet another round of tears that welled up, and she succeeded until the burning was too much, and she let them fall. "No," she whispered. "Why is it doing this to me? I can't be gone from home…. I can't be away from Inuyasha!"
A flying fist landed sharply against a loose brick, and it fell to her lap. Yes, oh yes, it hurt her, but she couldn't feel it. Her mind overloaded her senses with too much pain, and her body just couldn't register it anymore. The pain her legs were feeling was numbed by her separation from her Inuyasha.
Sighing, she stood and found the weaving vine that had helped her reach the top again. She put a foot on the ground, and the other on the side of the wall. Lifting off, she had a sudden flash of dizziness, and fell to the floor. Her stomach growled in protest, for she hadn't eaten anything in awhile, even though her family wouldn't figure it out. They always assumed she was capable of pulling herself up. But, once again, they were wrong. They didn't know who she was without him.
Ayumi, Eri and Yuka hadn't seen her in months, and so they didn't call anymore to reveal that she had been lying about going to school, too. She'd just been wandering around the streets aimlessly, hoping something could spark adrenaline in her somehow, and that the feeling of being completely stranded might help. If she could get through to him, she hoped Inuyasha wouldn't find out about her behavior.
Once again, she braced herself to go up to the top. Flying up in one fluid motion, she reached the ledge of the well. She stood, and through the shrine windows, she could see the coming rise of the sun.
Turning back, she flung herself down again with no hesitation, but this time it was sloppy. She knew Souta would awaken at any moment, and come down to see her. On the way down, a protruding sharp edge caught on her bare ankle, and left a deep cut in the meat of her calf. This time she felt the staggering pain, but it didn't matter. She let the tears fall, and as she hit the ground, she crumpled. The dirt infected the open wound, and all she wanted was to fall unconscious, if only for just a little while.
She heard the door slide open, and above her she saw light streaming in from the door. Yes, most definitely Souta. Along with the light, he allowed that bitterly stale smell of a fresh morning to fill her nostrils, and she cringed. Above all, that was one of her least favorite scents. Of what she could smell, anyway. The thought of Inuyasha's heightened senses intruded into her brain, and she remembered how he always had trouble explaining them to her.
Thinking of him so familiarly let more silent tears roll. She had let herself go, and she didn't know if he could even save her anymore.
Inuyasha was prowling around the well, awaiting Kagome's return. He knew it hadn't happened in a long time, but it didn't matter. That was all he had left now. Shippo had grown and didn't want to concern himself with his foster-mother, who as far as he was concerned, was gone forever. Miroku and Sango had a family, and only needed him around for a salary and babysitting. Kaede was growing old, but she had Rin and she depended on Sesshomaru. How was it that Sesshomaru had more to do with human life than he, the half human, half demon?
That's when the scent hit him. The smell of Kagome, laced with a metallic tinge. She was bleeding. Whatever was happening to her over there, she was hurt. He raced over to the well, and glancing at the Sacred Tree, he jumped into the well without a second thought.
He thought it wasn't going to work like it hadn't been all this time, and he was about to give up when the world shocked him.
Kagome sucked in her breath when the air around her glowed the familiar indigo color that meant someone was passing through time. Was he really coming for her? Or had she gone to him? She lifted her head to see Inuyasha standing there, and Souta stick his head over the side. She paid him no mind, instead focusing on the hanyou.
Shakily, she rose to her feet, testing if he was real, or if she was hallucinating him again. Everything dangerous she had done brought him back to her. She'd hear him stop telling her to be so stupid and let him take over. Her family thought gym had become a whole lot harder.
When she stumbled forward, he caught her under the arms and pressed her to him. "Where ya been, Kagome?"
A new batch of fresh tears cascaded down, and they were more plentiful than they had been recently. This time, she did not bother to keep silent, because alongside him, she didn't have to be strong anymore; she could be weak and he would protect her from anything that tried to hurt her. She knew he couldn't save her from herself, but he would always try.
"I – I'm sorry… I – I tried to g – get back, b – but I – I just couldn't, it just w – wouldn't let me, and I didn't mean to, and–" she tried to utter between sobs.
"I know, I couldn't get through either. Stop crying. I'm here now," he ran his hand down her head, smoothing her hair under his hand.
"Yeah, I just can't believe you're here…. I'm such a mess. Ouch, I didn't realize my ankle hurt so bad…" She buried her face into his haori, filling her nose with his scent. It was as if it satisfied her deepest hunger, just the fact that he was here again.
He laid her on the ground, "Jeez, Kagome, what happened?"
"I cut myself on the well," she said, and her traitor of a stomach grumbled loudly.
"How long has it been since you've eaten?" his amber eyes held hers, warning her to tell the truth.
"Uh, maybe yesterday?" she grimaced at his dark glare.
"You idiot! You need to take care of yourself!" He growled.
"I know, Inuyasha. I'm sorry…"
He tucked her into his tight hold, "I won't leave you again. I promise."
Kagome sighed in relief as the pain that had welled up inside of her ebbed away, leaving only her relief for being close to Inuyasha.
AN: I wrote this five years ago, and I have no doubt in my mind that this is not the way this would be handled if Kagome were in character. But I was going through an angst problem in the eighth grade and I explored it through her. But honestly, anything eighth grade me wrote that didn't have Kikyo bashing is something I consider a win, so here it is. Thank you for reading!