He stood there, his white hair blowing in the wind as he looked back on the village where he spent so much of his time at.
He knew who was still there and who he was leaving behind.
In his hand, was the now complete Sacred Jewel.
He had finally made his decision to become a full-fledged demon.
As he sighed longingly, he silently turned away to be on his way when he heard a twig snap behind him.
"Inuyasha."
He didn't have to turn his head to know who it was.
"Why are you here, Kagome?"
He could feel her walk closer to him, cautiously. "Because I knew you would be here."
"And why is that?" Inuyasha asked.
Somehow he knew she was smiling. "Because I know you. Three years together doesn't leave me and you as strangers. I know you wavered from your goal of becoming full demon at times but deep down you feel like you really have to, right?"
He didn't say anything. Kagome took a few more steps.
"I'm not going to stop you."
At this, he spun around and stared incredulously at her.
She was holding back tears, but she was still smiling at him.
"I love you, Inuyasha. I always have. But, this is what you want. And with this, the jewel will be gone forever and no one is left to come after us for it. I will have no more ties to this place. I think if you take that jewel and run off to do what you will do, I can accept it and move on. I've been waiting for you to return your feelings to me for so long that I can't take it anymore. I will be happy so long as you are. And if this is what will make you happy, so be it."
Inuyasha still couldn't speak. He could only stare. He wanted to avoid a goodbye as much as possible because he knew something like this might happen. He felt tears forming in his own eyes and he had to shut them for a moment to stop them.
Kagome walked even closer and slowly wrapped her arms around his waist. Inuyasha opened his eyes and stared down at her. "Kagome…"
No matter what he chose to do, he really did care for this girl.
He hugged her back and she relaxed slightly.
"Is this what you truly want, Inuyasha?" She whispered.
He pulled back so he could look down at her face. "Yes. I'm so sorry Kagome. But I have made my decision."
She bit her lip before nodding her head.
"Well, this is going to be goodbye for us then." She said before pulling away.
Inuyasha let go of her body and he saw sadness reflecting in her eyes. "I-I could still come back you know, being a full-fledged demon doesn't mean I'm going to try and hurt you or-" Kagome shook her head and let her tears fall.
"No, it's over after this. Naraku is gone, the jewel is complete, and peace has been achieved. The only thing that is keeping me here now is you. And I knew it was only a time before that tie was broken too."
She wiped her face and took a deep breath and Inuyasha braced himself.
"Goodbye Inuyasha. I wish you the best of luck." She smiled that sad smile once more. It nearly broke his heart.
"Goodbye, Kagome. I… I hope you will be happy." He wanted to return her smile but couldn't bring himself to do it.
They looked at each other for a few more moments before Kagome turned and made her way back to the village. Inuyasha stayed to watch her go, before turning and starting the path to a new life.
Two weeks had passed since Inuyasha left. Sango and Miroku had headed off to be together and settle down. Shippo stayed in Kaede's village to help the old woman out, since she found difficulty with her age. And Kagome, she felt like she didn't belong anywhere.
She was determined to go back to her own time after the war with Naraku ended, but what was there for her now?
She was so adjusted to the lifestyle in the Feudal Era. Back in her time, she was too behind in school to ever have hopes of catching up, and most people had forgotten about her besides her family, who was quite used to not having her around by now. To spend three years in one time and then to try and go right back to the other was seemingly impossible.
So she made the decision to stay behind in Kaede's village. She wasn't of much help, there was no jewel that needed protecting, and Shippo was all the help that was usually needed. She felt left out at times, but it was better than being completely alone.
Day by day, she tried to busy herself with small tasks. Sweeping in places that didn't need sweeping, gathering more kindling when there was already plenty, making small talk with folks who didn't care about what she had to say. And all the while thinking about Inuyasha.
She was finally getting over him. But she couldn't help thinking maybe her choice wasn't the best, or things would have worked out better if she did things differently. She would shake the thoughts out of her head and tell herself she did what any other woman in love would do- letting the one you love go to be happy.
It was a day when she was sitting by the nearby lake when she was thinking about this.
'I wonder where he is right now…' She thought before hitting herself lightly upside the head. 'No! Come on Kagome. Get it together. He got what he wanted and he's out of your life now.'
She sat on the bank of the lake and was running her hands through the smooth water absentmindedly.
'It is becoming easier to think back on our times together now. This must be a sure sign I'm really getting over him.' She tried to encourage herself mentally.
While she was watching the ripples her hand made in the water, she heard a loud noise in the distance. Like a stampede.
She got up and looked curiously in the direction of where it was coming from and instinctively reached for her bow and an arrow off her back.
'What would a pack of demons be doing out here? What are they?' She thought as she felt a strong aura approaching. She readied her bow.
There was a crash through the trees before he appeared.
Kagome stood, pointing her arrow directly at a familiar face of a particular wolf tribe.
"Kouga?!" She yelled, absolutely shocked as to why he would be in the area. She could see a pack of wolves following behind him. So that's what the 'stampede' was.
"Hellooo, Kagome! I didn't mean to scare you, would you um, mind lowering your bow?"
She nearly forgot she was still ready to shoot right at him. Kagome relaxed her grip on the arrow and set the bow on the ground.
"What are you doing over here?" Kagome asked, approaching him.
He flashed a smile before taking her hands in his. "Just coming to see my woman, is that a problem?"
She rolled her eyes, but it was almost comforting to still have some normalcy.
"Are you sure that's your only reason?" She asked sarcastically.
He lowered her hands and took on a more serious tone. "Actually, I'm out here hunting."
This was not a response she expected. "Hunting?"
Kouga nodded. "A big source of food for us before I met you was humans. Letting our wolves run through villages to destroy and devour was not uncommon. But, after meeting you and fighting alongside you and your human friends, that way of life was abandoned. So we relied primarily on boars, deer, any kind of game we could get in the area. But lately…" He trailed off.
Kagome looked up at him, clearly wondering what he was going to say. He shook his head as if clearing it of other thoughts. "Well lately it's been a bit rough for finding food over there. We came a little bit of a ways out just to try and catch something. Some of my other wolves are close by too and hopefully have caught something. I probably wouldn't have come out this far if I didn't smell your scent in the air, of course." He again flashed a cocky smile, earning him a smirk from Kagome.
"So what do you think could be the cause of the lack of animals in your area?" Kagome asked. She never realized that his den was only a couple miles away from here.
Kouga frowned. "That's what I would like to know. Being a pack leader is a lot more difficult when you have to go further out each day to provide for all the wolves. We've looked around the area but there isn't any disturbance that is obvious as to why they would be disappearing so quickly."
Kagome was about to say something but was interrupted by a loud chorus of howls in the distance. Kouga's pointed ears perked up and he stood up straight, listening intently. When they stopped, he smiled. "All right! The others found plenty to eat. I'll have to go over and help them take it all back."
Kagome nodded. "Feel free to stop by any time, I'm always here now." Kouga looked back at her, confused. "You're not traveling with mutt face anymore?"
She suppressed a cringe. "No. He... He left us to do what he's been wanting to do for a long time." Kouga stared at her knowing there was much more to her words.
"I'm sorry Kagome. You're welcome to come with me!" She thought he said it jokingly but he looked pretty serious. She immediately shook her head.
"No, thank you but they need me here in the village…" Kagome chewed nervously on her bottom lip. She didn't know why but she didn't feel very convincing when she said it. Still though, Kouga respected her and only smiled. "Offer will always be on the table. I'm off now. Take care of yourself." He turned and walked to his wolves.
Kagome stared at him. He lifted his head to the sky and started sniffing the air, probably trying to find where the others in his pack were at. His ponytail of long black hair reached to his lower back. His muscles in his arms flexed as he reached down to pat one of his wolves on the head and exchange some form of communication. He turned back once and flashed a perfect smile at her and his blue eyes shone as he waved once to her. She waved back and thought to herself that this was the first time really looking at Kouga.
She always put Inuyasha first and now he's out of the picture, there was plenty of room for Kouga. He was very attractive she had to admit. And not to mention how he has treated her with the utmost kindness, without counting their rough first encounter.
And really, what was here for her anyways. The thought of another person walking past her without even noticing her presence made anger slowly rise up inside of her. She could try all she wanted to be of help, but in reality, she was totally unneeded here. She knew how to survive by eating things other than animals they hunted after spending so long traveling through the forests. Maybe she could be of help to Kouga more than here. At least that's what she was trying to convince herself of as he turned and began running with his wolves away from her.
She tossed her thoughts back and forth in her mind, trying to quickly come up with something. If she let him run off now, she would feel stuck in this village forever. Was it wrong to so desperately want change? When it came bursting out of the trees and into her face, was it wrong to believe in fate and just go with it?
Her body moved before she could come to a rational decision. She sprinted after him.
"Kouga! Wait!"
Yes! A new story here!
I apologize if this first chapter was a bit slow. Introducing the plot and whatnot.
I'm very excited to get going with this story. I have many plans for it. I will be updating with at least one new chapter every week.
Reviews are greatly encouraged! Constructive criticism or any comments on the story, please~ It's a big encouragement for me to keep writing.