"When you'd cried I'd fight away all of your tears, when you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears, and I held your hand through all of these years, but you still have all of me..."
-My Immortal~ Evanescenece
Kagome looked upwards and saw a beautiful blue sky filled with fluffy white clouds. She tossed her bag up and over the well's edge only to hear an all too familiar voice shout out in pain. "Owww! What the hell, Kagome! Watch where your throwing that damn bag!"
Kagome giggled. "Sorry, Inuyasha! Didn't know you'd be sitting by the well. Could you give me a hand?" She listened as he growled in annoyance before complying.
"Sure, whatever." Inuyasha reached his long arm into the dry well and lifted the teenager out effortlessly. Once her feet were flat on the grass, she thanked the dog-eared hanyou.
"Why the hell is in that stupid bag of yours so heavy anyway, did you pack boulders?" Kagome looked at Inuyasha, and saw where the bag had hit him for a small lump was beginning to form on the crown of his head. She knew her bag was a little heavier than usual, but it couldn't have been that heavy.
"No, its clothes, textbooks, homew-"
"Whatever, I don't care, I need to talk to you about something more important right now." Kagome frowned at him.
"Okay, but you didn't need to interrupt me ya know." Inuyasha's face was very serious at that moment. His honey colored eyes were filled with worry, but there was something off about them. They weren't looking her in the eye.
"Inuyasha, why aren't you looking me in the eye?" Nothing happened, it was as if he hadn't even heard her. 'Inuyasha...could you have gone to see...?'
"Kagome, while you were in your era, we had a run in with Naraku." Kagome's eyes widened and she pursed her lips.
"Miroku, Sango, is everyone okay?"
"It's not that, everyone's fine, but if it weren't for Kikyo, we'd probably be in a lot of trouble." Kagome looked down at her feet. 'I knew it. So he did see Kikyo...'
"I see. I'm glad everyone's alright." Inuyasha clenched his fists in a way that told Kagome there was more. That what she was about to hear wasn't information she wanted to listen to.
"Kagome, from here on out, Kikyo will be traveling with us; please don't sit me!" Kagome jerked her head up to look at him. It felt like he had just punched a large hole into the center of her chest. She wanted to scream so loud that everyone in Japan could hear her, she wanted to cry so much that she was able to drown in a pool of her own tears, but instead, she stood there silently, hoping that somehow, just maybe, she had heard him wrong.
"What...?"
"Kagome, if you're upset with me I won't hold it against you." Kagome clenched her pail fingers so tightly that you could see the white of her knuckles.
"I'm not upset." Inuyasha looked dubiously at the girl before him.
"Kagome..." She looked into his gold eyes and smiled.
"Really, I'm fine. I'm glad Kikyo will be traveling with us. Having a priestess more skilled than myself will do us all some good." 'Please don't cry, just keep smiling.' He still didn't look convinced whatsoever, but he just nodded his head. "Alright then. Let's get back to the village, it's starting to get dark." Kagome nodded her head and together, they walked back to the village in silence.
When Kagome and Inuyasha arrived at Kaede's hut, Miroku, Sango, Shippo, and Kaede were eating what looked like beef stew. It smelled wonderful, but after processing the news she had just learned, Kagome didn't feel even remotely hungry. Kagome looked around, but noticed that Kikyo was nowhere to be seen. "Where's Kikyo?" Inuyasha asked. He sounded worried, panicked even, but Kagome wasn't surprised by this. Kikyo was good at vanishing when she was needed most. Part of Kagome hoped that Kikyo had changed her mind and went off on her own, but she quickly shook the negative thoughts from her mind. "Kikyo? Oh, she just went out to pick some more medicinal herbs. Kaede was running low." Said Sango. Inuyasha smiled a relieved smile, a smile that for some reason made Kagome want to smack the shit out of him, no, not smack him, make him 'Sit'. She smiled at the thought, but instead of making him eat dirt, she decided to put her bag over by the wall of the hut. "Kagome, are yee hungry, there is plenty of stew," Kaede's called out in her kind, raspy voice. Kagome smiled, "Nah, I already ate, but thank you for asking. I actually think I'm gonna go to bed." The old women looked over at Kagome with a concerned expression. "It's very early, are yee feeling well?" Kagome looked over at her and nodded. "Yeah, I just have a small headache. It's been a long day." The elderly priestess smiled, "Alright, yee get some sleep then." She said goodnight to her friends and threw on a maroon colored tank-top with a pair of soft black sweats for pajamas. She laid out her navy blue sleeping bag and eagerly got into it. The hut was warm, and with the smell of stew it felt almost like home. She closed her eyes, and within minutes, drifted off into a deep sleep.
The air was warm, a calm breeze causing the trees to whisper their many secrets, a sun the distinct color of blood, and a sky stained with many different shades of scarlet, gold and pink. Below the warm colored sky was a large lake. The sun's light reflected against the pool causing the water to brightly shiver and shine. The sound of the water sloshing against the bank was calming, almost hypnotizing. Inuyasha helped Kikyo out of a long boat onto a little dock. When the priestess's feet were safely on the damp wood, she began to walk forward, but her sandal caught itself on a loose wooden board causing it to rip and her to go flying forward. Before Kikyo's face could make contact with the planks, Inuyasha caught her in his long arms. She looked up at him and her pale cheeks changed to a light shade of pink. Kikyo's blush caused the dog eared hanyou to smile. Slowly, Kikyo brought her lips to his in a soft, shy kiss. Inuyasha's eyes widened a great deal while his own face flushed a deep shade of red, but eagerly, he returned her kiss. Suddenly the scene changed to the two sitting on a hill near the small village. "Inuyasha, with the Shikon Notama, we could change you into a full human with a simple wish," Kikyo said. Inuyasha stared off into the distance thinking. "But Kikyo, what would happen to you and the jewel?" he finally asked after a few moments of silence. Kikyo smiled at him. "If we were to change you into a full human, the jewel would be purified and I would become an ordinary woman." Inuyasha stared at Kikyo than nodded his head, "Okay, Kikyo, I'll become human, so we can be together." Again the scene changed. This time it was just Kikyo. It looked as if it were barely sunrise; Kikyo was walking calmly with the small purple jewel in her hand. She stopped and looked around, she wore an expression painted with confusion. "He's not here, maybe he slept in," she said to herself. She dug around in her kimono for a moment until she finally grasped a small white seashell, which contained a brilliant red lip paint. The pale woman dipped her finger into the shell and was about to apply the lovely color to her full lips when the calm moment was interrupted by the sound of cloth ripping, flesh tearing, and Kikyo's cry of surprise and pain. She opened her eyes and looked at the deep wound on her right shoulder, which was bleeding a great deal. Then her eyes wandered to the jewel which lied in her limp hand. She tried to cup the jewel in her hand, but before she was able to do anything, a foot slammed onto her wrist causing the young woman to yelp. She looked up with agony at the man whom she recognized all to well. With his red kimono, long silver hair, gold eyes, and dog ears, it would be fairly difficult to get him confused with someone else. The man who had attacked her was the half-demon, Inuyasha.
"You fool. To think I would actually become human, let alone for some worthless woman such as yourself," the hanyou said with a cruel smile. His cold voice filled with disgust, his golden eyes glazed over with hate, how could this be the man whom Kikyo had fallen in love with? No, he wasn't a man, he was nothing more than a soulless half breed, a monster. Inuyasha bent down and plucked the jewel from her hand. "I will use the Shikon Jewel to destroy the village you hold so dear and become a full fledged demon." Kikyo felt tears well up in her eyes, tears from raw fury, tears from the painful betrayal, tears from the all consuming hurt that was beginning to nibble away at her heart. Inuyasha turned his back on the priestess and began to walk away. "Trader..." She said, her voice cracking slightly. Inuyasha continued to walk forward as if he hadn't heard her at all. "YOU TRADER!" she screeched furiously. This time he stopped, but instead of even looking at her, he let out a low chuckle. "You're pathetic." With that, he continued to walk away. Kikyo was silent now, instead, she let her glistening tears bubble over. Again, the scene changed. This time, it was Inuyasha dashing and leaping through the forest, jewel in hand. His expression was different from what it had been when he had hurt Kikyo. Instead of an evil, cruel smile, he wore a sad and angry expression. "Inuyasha!" called Kikyo's voice. He turned his head to acknowledge the women, but he was met face first with an arrow that violently pierced his chest and pinned him to a tree. The jewel fell from his hand and hit the ground with a small clink. He looked at Kikyo with pained eyes, and raised his arm in an attempt to reach out to her, but it fell limp at his side. "K-Kikyo..." He said quietly. After a moment, his eyes shut, and he fell silent.
Kagome shot up. Her breathing was heavy, and her face was wet with tears and cold sweat. She put her face in her hands in a failed attempt to recover from the nightmare. Her eyes wandered around the hut. All of her friends were sleeping soundly. All except Kikyo. Although Kagome knew that Kikyo was actually unable to sleep, she still thought that she would at the very least be present in the cozy little hut. Kagome unzipped the sleeping bag, and stealthily creeped across the hut, being careful not to wake the others, Inuyasha in particular. She moved through the doorway and shivered as the chilled night air made contact with her clammy skin, causing goosebumps to form. She began walking through the village towards the vast forest. The young woman was suddenly caught off guard when what looked like a silvery serpent glided past her, skimming her arm lightly. The apparition felt like ice, and radiated an unearthly glow that sent chills running up and down her spine. It was obvious that the creature was one of Kikyo's soul collectors, considering the fact that her and the specimen had crossed paths many times before. Instinctively, she ran after the creature, knowing who it would ultimately lead her to. After about ten minutes, Kagome came to a stop at the Tree of Ages, and just as she had thought, Kikyo was there to greet her at her destination.
Authors note
Heyyyy, this was my second chapter! It was a lot of fun to write, but I hope it was just as much fun to read. Please comment and review, and I hope to see you in my next chapter. Thanks! XOXO
