Disclaimer: Nope I don't own inuyasha or any of his buddies
A/N: I would've had this up sooner but FFnet was doin it's tweak out thing...I hope it doesn't eat this when i try to submit it...(shifty eyes)...this is the second installation of the Saishi visitations...and some of the last of Mrs. H's readings. To those of you who were carefully noting those interludes of story...everything is going to be okay...(nods) you'll like (I think) this one's installation...also I paint the way Inuyasha would go on treating her forever and ever b/c he's like a stubborn dog, thank you Saishi, and you know what? It's a little scary...if he never came around it's be mucho sad...anyway, and then another link realization...or two, or more...next chapter there's another one of those...or two or more...I've lost track...anyway...go on, read, review and enjoy (unless it eats this...) YAYS!
Saishi Part 2
Inuyasha woke with a jolt, thrashing out one powerful arm to grab hold of the vague shadowy form that had intruded on his sleep. He hadn't realized that he'd been so deeply asleep, hadn't wanted to be that way—one moment he'd been sifting through Kagome's thoughts, feelings, and then her dreams…and then her sleep must've invaded his mind through the link too. Now it was long after midnight—nearly dawn his inner clock immediately told him—he'd slept the whole night away deeply imbedded within Kagome's mind, seeing, sharing her dreams…
A scent assaulted him; he recognized it as Miroku's swiftly. His fist caught hold of fabric, tightened, and pulled the offender closer to him. Golden eyes blinked sleepily. "Monk?" he rasped, his voice thick with sleep still so close by.
"Inuyasha." Miroku moved against his grip, trying to disengage his clawed fingers from his robes, "The Great Master has sent for you…" even through his sleep-induced dullness Inuyasha picked out the clear disapproval in the monk's tone. Damn straight Miroku—I don't approve of being summoned by him at any time, but not especially this early.
"Tell him to piss up a tree…" he muttered, ears flickering through the dark, little white objects shifting as if nervous or confused.
"You can do that, Inuyasha." Miroku grumbled, thoroughly displeased. He tore Inuyasha's grip away and moved back toward the faint light of the door. Shadows of gray and blue leaked in from the outside world. A man's form whispered to Miroku from just outside the room.
The floorboards squeaked as Inuyasha rose from the far corner where he'd passed out and shouldered Miroku away from the small shadow of the messenger monk. "Why the hell is he calling me this early?"
The shadowy monk bowed low, "Great Master Saishi summons those whose problems have been revealed to him in his dreams as soon as the answer has come. It is only in that way that he can relate in most accuracy those sought-after answers…"
Inuyasha growled once but relented. "Fine—lead me." he stepped out into the courtyard as the short monk led the hanyou away swiftly, his sandaled feet slapping the soles of his feet.
It wasn't long before he found himself in the burgundy-colored hall again, bowing reluctantly before Saishi again. Unlike Inuyasha, Saishi looked fully refreshed, as if the monk had never suffered a bad hair day or a sleepless night even once in his life. Inuyasha hated him silently, wishing him nothing but a curse bitterly.
This time there was no pause before Saishi ventured into his speech, "Inuyasha," he nodded his head, offering the hanyou respect and acknowledgement, "I know that you do not like me…"
The hanyou blinked, "I uh…"
Saishi raised one hand, smiling gently, "It is fine. It matters not." He lowered the hand and now gazed with his deep, dark eyes, at Inuyasha, pinning him to the spot, as if with a knife. "I needed to begin with you because there is much to say and my peers are nervous about your presence here. They fear your temper, they fear for our temple, our home. But I know better than they do—as long no one threatens your woman, Lady Kagome, you will be at peace and utterly harmless."
There were too many things for Inuyasha to respond easily to Saishi's words. His mouth hung open in the air, gaping stupidly. Finally he latched onto the one that stuck out at him the most: "Kagome is not my woman!"
Saishi's head tipped to one side, comically, "Oh? She's not?" he asked, his voice gently mocking.
The hanyou scowled at Saishi's accurate although silent accusation. Yes, Inuyasha was denying what in his heart he wanted more than almost anything else—save the destruction of Naraku perhaps—but he was doing it for her own good! "Yea—damn it!—she's not my woman. She's just our Shard detector."
Saishi's face appeared to be open, listening, but his eyes gleamed with amusement, "Yes, a Shard detector…and your bitch."
Inuyasha narrowed his golden eyes at the monk, silently wishing this were a battle of swords, not words. He was wide-awake now. Saishi's emphasis on the term "bitch" left Inuyasha no room for denial—the monk understood demon customs, he understood Inuyasha's secret longing, quiet but fierce, protective desire…he had, in essence, let the "dog" out of the bag.
"So what!" he huffed, unable to properly defend himself, "Feh! What's that got to do with anything, old man?"
Saishi smiled knowingly now, "It's got to do with a lot I suspect…"
Inuyasha snarled furiously at the smug, confident monk, "It's no one's damn business—that's what it is!" his fists were clenched up into knots of outrage, the claws biting into the skin of his palms.
"May I ask a question of you, Inuyasha?" Saishi went on, ignoring the hanyou's outburst as well as his anger.
"Go ahead you bastard, I know I don't got a choice." He growled, amber eyes flashing with restrained anger, silent threats of murder.
Even more to Inuyasha's fury, Saishi was able to smile with amusement at the hanyou's name calling. He seemed to be taking great pleasure in torturing Inuyasha. "Tell me," he began, unable to control the smirking smile and the hints of laughter in his voice and face, "Why do you deny your feelings for your 'Shard detector'? All those around you can sense it, and there are none that would or even could dare to stop you. What holds you back?"
The hanyou averted the monk's eyes, fighting the feverish chills and heat that swarmed all over him. His ears turned backward, a scowl was born over his face. "I don't have to explain myself to you, damn it!"
"No, you do not." Saishi agreed, and when Inuyasha snuck a fast glance at the monk he saw that the man was still smirking, still taking great pleasure in what was being exchanged between them, "But you should explain yourself to her."
Amber eyes snapped up and narrowed dangerously at the monk. "I'll protect her forever—that's enough." He defended, his voice low and thick. Though he tried to cover it Inuyasha was filled with emotion, he cursed it all, tried to push it away, tried to deny it…his stomach did angry flip-flops and the hanyou swallowed nervously, afraid he might be sick all over the burgundy floor. Green stomach acids all over the red wood. That'd get this old bastard pissed…he smirked; now hoping that he really would get sick.
"Yes," Saishi was serious abruptly, making Inuyasha pay special attention now, "You'll protect her from other potential husbands and mates of all shapes, virtues, characters, and races. She will die alone." The black eyes were cold as steel, they tore at Inuyasha like a blade, and suddenly the hanyou felt his own eyes smart, ready to overflow, to his shame, with tears sprung from some terrible inner turmoil he hardly understood himself…
Still, despite Inuyasha's grief and distress, Saishi's tortuous—but utterly truthful—words droned onward. The black gaze was heavy and unrelenting, "She will grow old and bitter and childless. Every male—man or demon—that so much as looks at her will have your sword rammed through his throat, and yet you would go through life beside her without ever really being with her at all. You would have her die of longing for you, and suffer through her unfulfilled desires…perhaps she will be so tortured that she would end her own life when she understands that you won't give yourself up to her, and you won't allow anyone else to come after her. You would condemn her to a prison of loneliness, you would—"
"Shut up!" Inuyasha screamed, his eyes squeezed tightly shut, "None of that's true! And why the hell are you wasting my time here with this…this…" his clawed hands shook when he tried to gesture so the hanyou thought quickly and shoved them into his sleeves, trying to appear as if he were composing himself carefully, not trying to hide his emotional reaction to the monk's horrible words.
Saishi's eyes seemed more fatigued now almost saddened. "Inuyasha," he began, sighing lightly, "It has been revealed to me, in my dreams and through meditation, that you and the miko are bound to one another." He leaned forward slightly, "I know of the link that you share with her."
Inuyasha blinked, debating whether or not he should deny the monk's words and walk out on him right then. But despite himself Saishi's words held an irrefutable control over him, a fascination. Bound to one another…?
"I know that you were raised by your mortal mother," Inuyasha stiffened at that, glaring once more at Saishi, "So you know nothing of the courting habits of dog demons. Would you like me to reveal a little of what I know?" the teasing gleam had once more appeared in the black eyes.
"Do I have a choice?" muttered the hanyou reluctantly, though his ears remained forward facing. He was listening.
"They protect, first and foremost, all things and individuals that they respect or care the slightest about. They are loyal, stubbornly so, and continuously seeking a reassuring close proximity to family and friends…"
Inuyasha scowled, "That's nothing like me!"
Saishi tilted his head a little to the left, the smirk in his face and eyes clearly visible, unabashedly exposed to the hanyou. "Really? But Takoto and Ishiro told me that at the gates you growled when Takoto looked a little too long at your miko. And I also know that during your stay with us you have wandered the grounds restlessly—but always within sight distance of your companions' lodging places. Care to explain?"
"Piss off!" the amber orbs flared, willing Saishi to drop dead where he sat.
The monk had the audacity to laugh at the half-demon. "In that case, would you like to know about how a dog demon, or a half dog demon for that matter, would form a link with his desired bitch? I know that that applies to you…"
Inuyasha shifted uneasily, his ears laid backwards, distressed. His gaze roved about the room, seeking a way out. What does any of this have to do with Kagome's problems? How does the link, and discussing it, help her at all? Damn it! What she needs is for the well's magic to be restored! What she needs is to get away from me and my dysfunctional, insane, crazy…his uncertain, troubled thoughts splintered apart, seeming to fly in different directions and get lost when he sensed Kagome through the link, wakening. Without realizing it, Inuyasha settled himself, feeling himself calm a little at the schoolgirl's presence. It unified him, made him concentrate more clearly, more thoroughly.
He glared back at the monk, "I don't see how talking about the damned link will help Kagome!" he snarled, "And I didn't make this link—it just happened."
Saishi appeared unfazed, "Of course it just happened, Inuyasha." He smiled a little, as if indulging a young child, "But whether you meant to or not, you did form it." He stopped speaking to study the hanyou for a moment, black eyes narrowed, "You likely did it simply to understand her, to attempt to please her maybe…but, as it works between all inuyoukai, it began to strengthen when she accepted it."
That caught Inuyasha's attention. He could feel Kagome sleepily waking in the women's quarters some distance away, yawning and shivering against the morning chill. He almost shivered himself, gripped by the thought that he should be lying beside her, keeping her warm inside his arms…he shook his head, dispelling the distraction, "She accepted it?" he queried, blinking.
Saishi nodded, "That is why it is important. You asked how talking about this can help your Kagome…"
"Yeah, I did." Inuyasha grumbled, glowering, "And I still haven't gotten a straight answer, old man."
The monk smiled amusedly and bowed once, "My apologies, half-demon. It has been revealed to me just this night that your bond with the miko is utterly important. You are two halves of a whole. You must not fight this inevitability. If you do it will kill you both." His black eyes were grave as he stared at Inuyasha, willing him to understand.
He didn't. Scowling, Inuyasha gave his trademark grunt, "Feh! Nothing is going to kill me! And I'm not about to let anything even touch Kagome!"
It was Saishi's turn then to scowl. "Foolish pride, Inuyasha. Nothing needs to threaten you for the both of you—and more—to die." He sighed and abruptly began massaging his temples. "Amito!" he shouted, and Inuyasha flinched at the monk's sudden commanding tone.
From behind the hanyou came the scurry of small feet. The same small monk that had led Inuyasha away from the men's quarters so early in the morning, reappeared and knelt near Inuyasha, bowing. "Yes, Great Master Saishi?" he asked, his voice, although loud, held a slight tremor in it, and the hanyou scented fear on the young monk. What is he afraid of…? The answer hit him when Amito gace a short sidelong glance toward Inuyasha, and a small tremor passed through him.
He's afraid of me…Inuyasha realized, stiffening. His ears folded backward, amber eyes darkened with irritation.
Saishi nodded to the servant, "Please fetch the priestess they brought with them—she answers to the name Kagome Higurashi." In a second, before Inuyasha could protest, Amito was gone, hurrying off at a speedy but dignified pace.
The hanyou turned his angry eyes on Saishi again, frowning with his disapproval. "Kagome is barely awake, and she's been sick you bastard—leave her alone." Without realizing he was doing it, Inuyasha flared his canines in a clear threat.
Rather than be angry or surprised or worried with the hanyou's warning, Saishi sighed, as if terribly tired of the whole thing, "Inuyasha, there is no need for you to protect her at this time, at least not from us. From yourself, perhaps…"
Immediately the hanyou's face burned bright red, as he took the monk's words to be an insult aimed at a physical desire for the schoolgirl. "I'm not a pervert!" he shouted.
Saishi nodded tiredly, "I know you're not. I was not saying that you are. As usual you're missing the point—I was merely saying that you are harming her by restraining yourself. She needs your closeness, this too has been revealed to me. I know she is ill—and one of the reasons, I believe, is because you are fighting the truth." he leaned forward, boring into Inuyasha with his powerful, black-eyed gaze, "The last thought I shall leave you with is this: you, Kagome, and your friends may all die before your quest is complete if you, Inuyasha, do not start what you have finished with the young miko."
The amber orbs didn't blink, didn't move, "And what exactly will kill us all, may I ask? And what have I started with Kagome that I have to finish?" his tone was challenging, he though that Saishi was full of clever-sounding lies. The sharp, keen annoyance burning in his gaze explained that well enough.
"What will kill you?" he shook his head, "I don't know that." He leveled his eyes with the hanyou and pinned him once more with a stern, solemn look, "But as for the miko—she is your other half, your mate, your woman, your bitch, your lover…" Saishi threw his hands up in an exasperated movement. "Whatever you wish to call her, she meets the description…or she should, and will—if you allow her to."
Though he desperately tried to pretend otherwise, tried to look away, tried to scoff, Inuyasha felt an inner instinct that he both feared and cherished ripple within him. It spoke with a voice that was his own, but was from a deeper, more primitive, simpler place inside him. It might've been the remnants of his wilder, demonic form, perhaps a true form buried by his human-half whispering to him, or just the mindless urge that all creatures feel to take a mate. Whatever it was Inuyasha didn't particularly care, but he knew that when it spoke its call was powerful, sending chills through him, making his ears twitter like nervous birds atop his head.
It whispered: Your mate…
Saishi's words of farewell dimly reached him, as did the knowledge that Kagome was groggily walking the path behind Amito, coming toward the temple through the dim dawn light outside, just as he had what seemed like a lifetime ago. He was confused, frustrated, and distinctly unhappy, but seeing Saishi staring at him blankly told him that he was expected to leave—he wasn't invited to see or hear Kagome's visit with the lead monk.
He couldn't stop himself from bristling at the thought that he wouldn't be near her, wouldn't be able to comfort her from whatever Saishi had to tell her…he threw his most angry, threatening and murderous gaze yet at the monk. "I'll leave old man—but remember I'll know through the link every word. And if she cries—if she's unhappy at all—I'll come back and tear you apart." He bared his teeth once, a strange, ferocious, animalistic side of him emerging, terrible and fierce. And then he turned and walked toward the door through the burgundy hallway, gone as swiftly as he'd arrived.
Kagome blinked confusedly when she sensed Inuyasha nearby. She looked up from the small monk leading her onward and saw the hanyou just outside the temple that housed Saishi—he was glaring at her…her heart constricted painfully and she forced herself to look away. In her mind she searched the link, trying to sense what was on his mind, but it was closed off at the moment.
The small monk reached the temple and slid out of his sandals on the verandah. Kagome, however, hesitated before heading up the small front steps after him. She remained where Inuyasha was standing only a short ways off the path, arms crossed, amber eyes flashing with irritation.
"Inuyasha…?"
"Kagome—whatever that old bastard says to you don't listen! He's so full of bullshit I wanna tear him apart!" as if to demonstrate his claws flexed at his sides.
She flinched. Something must've happened between the old monk and the vehement hanyou for Inuyasha to be so openly violent and so angry. She bit her lower lip worriedly and, more on instinct than on conscious thought, she stepped off the path and reached out to him, wanting—needing?—to embrace him…but the hanyou saw this and sidestepped her advance, frowning deeply.
"If that bastard makes you cry…" he idly threatened, but he wasn't looking her in the eye, and she was no longer brave enough to try reaching for him. It was clear to her, though the link still shared with her no secrets, that Inuyasha wasn't willing to receive her comfort at this time…and likely never…she thought angrily, and abruptly she was fighting tears.
She turned and followed the small monk up onto the verandah, sliding out of her shoes before she stepped into Saishi's hall.
The monk was once again sitting on his cushion, just as he had been yesterday, but this time he wore light blue robes. "Ah, thank you Amito, you have been a wonderful help this morning." He praised the small monk that had led and summoned her to the Master monk. Amito bowed humbly and muttered quick thanks before Saishi waved him away and turned his attention to Kagome, who was still standing up and shifting uneasily.
"Sit, child!" he chuckled, gesturing downwards with one hand. As she sat he examined her, carefully, with his dark, eerie eyes. After a moment he scowled and cleared his throat, "I was wrong to have called you 'child,' you are closer to being a woman I see."
She restrained a blush and kept her eyes carefully averted. Inwardly she was searching for Inuyasha through the link, which had opened up again. She was surprised to notice that the moment she could detect him through it she was comforted; she was safe…
"You asked me yesterday," Saishi began pleasantly, "why your well would trap you here. After all, you are a native of a future era, am I not correct?" She nodded shyly so he continued easily, "I have considered this and meditated on it. I think I have discovered the answer: your future lies here, in the past."
Immediately Kagome's eyes clouded with tears, "But…my family…" she gasped, her voice thick with grief.
Saishi sighed sadly, his gaze softening, "I'm afraid I don't know about that. However, it may be possible that this is only temporary. I believe that Time needed to keep you here to accomplish something. When whatever this thing is happens to be finished, well, then why shouldn't the well let you go back to your family?" he offered a timid smile, trying to instill hope in her, though he knew, silently, that she was small, frightened, and alone at the moment. Her friends were her only comfort, and the hanyou from among them was so mixed up he was hardly anything but a worry to her. He pitied the girl.
Kagome shook, fighting the need to sob in her grief. "W-w-what d-do I need to d-do?" she stammered, her voice strained by her tears.
Saishi's hands, lying in his lap, curled into frustrated fists. "I'm afraid that is unknown to me."
Suddenly she looked up at him, a stark fear shining in her brown eyes, "What happens," she spoke in a terror-stricken whisper, "If I fail? What happens if I don't ever do what Time needs done?"
Saishi shifted uneasily and forced his gaze to his hands in his lap instead. "I am not sure of that either—though I believe that if you cannot meet the requirements Time has set out for you, if you cannot discover them, I think you will die." He didn't need above-average mortal hearing to detect the raspy gasp the young priestess made.
"How will I die, Master Saishi?" her voice was remarkably calm, despite the subject matter of such a question.
"Again I am not sure…" he met her eyes and swallowed uncomfortably, "I know that you are already ill mysteriously."
"Yes." She breathed, shaking again, "What…can I do?" she choked out, beginning to cry once more.
"I know that there are multiple reasons for your current illness…" he scowled, wishing desperately that things made more sense to him, that he could tell this poor girl better news, "One of them is caused by the forces of Time…the other," he shifted anxiously, wondering how she would take this, "is your link."
She glanced up at him, blinking her tears away in surprise. Her breathing was ragged but strong. "My…link?" she frowned lightly, "How did you…?"
"It was revealed to me in a dream." He explained with a wave of one hand, "It matters not that I know about it, Lady Kagome, but rather it matters that I can tell you to use it to your full advantage…do you know what such a link as this is exactly?"
She shook her head, sniffling, "No."
"It is the demon's equivalent to mortal man's proposal of marriage." He answered bluntly, and winced inwardly when he heard her gasp in shock. The shock buried the tears and the grief.
"You mean…Inuyasha…?" she whispered, sounding as if she scarcely believed him herself, but distinctly like she wanted to believe.
"Yes," Saishi nodded sternly, "but, Lady Kagome, he knew not what he was doing. He was raised by his mortal mother and knows nothing of dog demon courtship habits—though, interestingly enough, he instigated your link just as if he had known what he was doing." Saishi managed to chuckle at the irony of the situation. The traits of the dog demon died hard.
"What…" she murmured hesitantly "…does this mean?"
The monk focused his eyes on her again, but was silent for a time before he did finally speak again. "I'm afraid that it means you are waiting on your half-demon to wise up."
She blinked, surprise and fear darkening her expression, "I'm sick because of it…?"
Saishi averted his eyes. "Ask your mortal companions to research it during your stay. I will not speak of it here." He bowed to her once, slowly, showing her more respect than he had the servant to Kagome's surprise. "I wish you all the peace and good luck that the heavens can bestow on a mortal, Lady Kagome. You and your companions may stay another night with us before you leave if you so wish." He smiled a little, "Good day."
Unthinkingly, Kagome bowed as well and returned his parting words, "Good day." But the words were empty as they passed out of her lungs. She felt numbed inside, shocked and grief-stricken at once. Surely she would explode with all of the pent up, confusing emotions inside her, blowing like a typhoon. She was hardly aware of Amito bowing to her briefly and leading her out of the burgundy hall that belonged to the Great Master. She was lost deep inside herself as she followed him through the gardens, down the steps and the hills, and toward the women's quarters.
Sango greeted her warmly, though Kagome easily saw the curiosity, the desire to question the schoolgirl on what Saishi had revealed to her. Despite it the demon slayer restrained her curiosity and didn't ask anything of Kagome. Rather than face the world, and her grieving, bewildered thoughts, Kagome rested, pretending to be asleep, though even that she feared…nightmares waited behind her closed eyes.
Naraku's Death and Chikara's Fate
Inudoushi pursued Naraku with the Shikon Jewel's purified power, swearing to avenge Chikara's death. The dog demon easily found the weakened Naraku and the last battle began. Naraku, evil until the last breath, taunted Inudoushi's guilty heart.
"The human woman died for you, Dog, to let you kill me. Yet though you destroy me you shall feel no rest, no peace, and no victory. Your very soul is hollowed out by her loss. I die at your hands knowing that my legacy of suffering endures even within the heart of my murderer!" and so it was that even as Inudoushi tore his longtime nemesis apart and finally sent him to the bowels of the Underworld, where the beast belonged, he felt no joy, no accomplishment.
With Naraku dead Inudoushi returned to where he had left Chikara's body but refused to mourn her. He wanted nothing but to have her walking beside him once more, to have her living and breathing. Desperately he dressed the mortal woman in her best robes and took her from temple to temple, from spiritual spot to holy place. In each sacred place he begged and pleaded with the ancient gods that demons worshipped, praying that she be restored to him as a dog demon so that he could wed her. Each time he was answered with silence, and Chikara never sprung back to life.
Finally Inudoushi returned to the great and ancient tree whose roots he'd been resting on when Chikara had appeared to him. He planned to bury her beside it, and vowed never to forget her, never to give his heart to another, whether she was demon or human. But when the time came to be parted even from her corpse he found that he could not.
So it was that Inudoushi spent the night amidst the ancient tree's branches, his heart and soul troubled at the sight of the lifeless human woman at the foot of the old tree's roots. And in the deep darkness of that night a voice spoke within his dreams.
"You love this human woman called Chikara?" the soft voice whispered to Inudoushi.
The dog demon spoke to the dream-haunting presence not with his own voice but with the call of his soul: I do.
And the whispering voice responded: "You wish her to live again?"
I do.
"When you wake," the voice murmured, "You must use the Shikon Jewel to restore her life…but there will be a price to pay."
I care nothing about a price, as long as I am allowed to be with her.
The voice bid him farewell, for it was satisfied. "Live long Inudoushi, and be happy. Name your children Tetsuseiga."
When Inudoushi woke with dawn's first light after the mysterious voice had left him, he ripped the Shikon Jewel from where it hung about his neck. He prayed and pleaded that it would restore Chikara to the land of the living once again, no matter what price was needed in exchange. A spell of dizziness overtook the dog demon and he fell into a deep sleep.
The next time Inudoushi opened his eyes he found that the sun was setting. At the foot of the ancient tree Chikara was wakening as well, rubbing her eyes as if she had merely been sleeping for a long, long time. Inudoushi took the human woman in his arms in a desperate embrace, and pledged his love for her, swearing never to leave her or to let any harm befall her ever again…
Yet when Inudoushi withdrew and looked Chikara in the eye he saw her confusion. The young woman said to him, "Who are you, sir?"
Though his heart cried out with pain, Inudoushi answered her calmly, "I am Inudoushi. You are Chikara. I have brought you back from the dead. I have slain Naraku. Now I am here to make you my bride because I love you."
And Chikara laughed at him, saying, "But I know Inudoushi—he is a demon, you are only a man."
It was then that Inudoushi realized the Shikon Jewel's price: his demon heritage…
Endnote: Ha, did it surprise you? Well onto my thank yous...I think there were quite a LOT of them this time around too! YAYS! MUCHO THANKS TO EVERYONE!
THANK YOU: toxiclollipop (Nope, it makes perfect sense! You actually hit it right on the nose! The other day I was watching the anime with my sister and I asked, "How come they always call IY a stupid worthless half-demon and then he whoops their butt and accomplishes something that his father, who's supposedly so high and mighty, never dreamed of doing?" And my little sister shrugged and, being the expert that she is, answered, "It's becuase he has Kagome." So I guess that's kinda what this fic is about...) UnseenViolet (I do need to do that...I'm not sure if anything discussed this chapter makes that any clearer...I might try it again later...that goes for everyone if you don't understand the time thing paradox thingers just ask me, don't be shy!) deathsangel666 (thank you? are you new too? SQUEES! Welcome if you are!) NefCanuck (hehe, your review made me laugh! It's Inuyasha's fault! And i love that word "mucking" (snickers)...actually in the long run you're closer than you know...) Yami Chikara (WOW! thank you! See, this is why I do all this stuff, cuz posting and hearing from you makes me feel good! (BIG grins!)) SerenaClearwater (I'm glad you thought of that, you're very clever and definately the only one who's had that thought so far...I've thought of it myself, and it WOULD make a great ending...but I have yet to decide if it will go there or not yet...we shall see...) slummyreddragon (was this any better? I'm not sure what I was holding back...unless it was information...I did hold back on that...turned it into two chapters b/c I didn't want it to be one huge info spill...) Crolynx (Doesn't bother me at all! Thank you for your service in the military actually...! See, I'm a wimp when it comes to that sort of thing myself, so I hold a great amount of respect for those that can and do handle it! THANK YOU!) freelke (Oh! I'm sorry! But you're right, I AM happy! (big grins!) Tho I'm sorry you were late for class! You don't need to be late for me!) sarah, InuPhoenix, Hikaru1617 (I'd love to give them a try sometime, only problem is that it'd be like walking me through a maze...I can't tell you anything about it b/c I don't know it, a friend of mine watched rerouni kenshin or however it's spelled, but I've never seen it at all!) Tiamath (ha! You and me both...ugh!(grins painfully)) Inuadmirer (sorry it wasn't sooner...FFnet's playing games with me/us/everyone...) fanfiction1 (hehe...you'll just have to find out, sorry if it's causing you any upset...repeat after me: deep breath in...release...lol, sorry, I'm being a nerd. That the well is keeping Kagome and Inuyasha together, like they would have to pass through at the same time is actually something I hadn't considered...you're doing some serious thinking there...good ideas, keep 'em coming!) Wel that's it: Preview time(in this one Kagome is accusing Inuyasha of being a pervert)...:
Inuyasha growled deep and low, like a tiger. "You'd be wrong…bitch." Close off that link you stupid hanyou, she's trying to get you to react… he followed his own advice, grunting and turning away from her as he did so, throwing one last quip over his shoulder at the expectant schoolgirl, "And why the hell would I want to see you naked, bitch?"
As he strolled past Miroku, who was now unabashedly staring at the exchange, Inuyasha snarled, "What are you looking at, letch!"
Thank you all! Over 100 reviews now! YAYS! I'm so proud! Could never have done it without you all!