Winds of Time - Prelude
By ValeskaRose
Inuyasha flopped to the ground, and watched numbly as Naraku's remains turned to dust and blew away. He looked around the clearing that had been the illusion of Naraku's castle. Miroku and Sango were heaped in a pile about five yards to his left. Shippo lay just a little beyond them. Kagome lay just a few feet to his right, blood dripping from a cut just above her left eye. "That's gonna leave a scar", he thought dully.
He knew they were all alive by the sounds of soft breathing his sensitive ears detected. He crawled the few feet to the burned spot where Naraku had died. Tangled in a pile of clothes was the last piece of the crystal. He squeezed it in his hand, unaware of the jagged edges that were biting into his hand. "I can be a full demon now," he thought without passion, "but is that what I really want…"
Feather light footsteps alerted him to a presence in the clearing. He spun around to face the intruder. "Who's there?" He demanded as the scent of jasmine and damp earth tickled his nose.
"You shouldn't be so jumpy Inuyasha." A cold, unsympathetic voice remarked.
"Kikyo" Inuyasha whispered as she glided across the clearing.
"I loved you, Inuyasha," she whispered, as she cupped his cheek in a too cold hand "But I wasn't ready to be loved in return and neither were you, I understand that now. There are so many things that I would do differently, if I was given a chance to do it all again."
"Kikyo, no, don't…" Inuyasha started, but was cut off.
"Listen to me, I died a long time ago." Tears were starting
to form in her eyes. "Love and cherish her, she's one of a kind."
He opened his eyes, and she was gone. All that was left was the clothes she had worn, and the last bit of dust blowing out of the clearing.
Sadly, he turned to Kagome, the crystal still clutched in his hand. Her aura flared momentarily as her borrowed soul returned. Inuyasha sat down next to her, and gathered her head gently into his lap. Her breathing was even, and her pulse steady. He found a clean corner on his shirt and tenderly wiped away the blood that was dripping into her eye.
Her eyes fluttered open, "Is it over?" she whispered.
Inuyasha just nodded. Unable to talk over the lump in his throat, he gathered Kagome into a tight hug.
"Inuyasha," Kagome's muffled voice gasped, "I can't breath."
Slowly his hold on her loosened, and she struggled into a sitting position. "Oh," she hissed, holding a hand to her head, "my head hurts."
Inuyasha just nodded, and held out the last bit of Shikon no Tama. Kagome gingerly took the piece from his palm and held it up between two fingers, while she fished for the other half that hung around her neck. Carefully she brought the halves together.
There was a flash of light when the halves met. Inuyasha winced and covered his eyes with his arm. When the light had faded, Kagome was gone.