At the same time as Inuyasha's amber eyes had landed on Kagome, the young man who had been close to kissing her moved away and met Inuyasha's angry stare. Kikyo nearly moaned in frustration when she felt the anger radiating off him "Inuyasha you baka, stop glaring! You have no right to be angry."
Not breaking eye contact with the grey eyed boy, Inuyasha nodded and tried desperately to dampen his feelings of possessiveness. He knew that they were absurd and unbelievably hypocritical but that didn't stop them from swelling in his chest when he saw the young man gently grasp Kagome's arm and pull her behind him.
However all the feelings dissipated when he caught sight of the expression on Kagome's face. She looked scared.
He walked towards her, a frown marring his features. What was he going to say to her? What could he possibly say to earn an expression other than fear when she looked at him?
"Kagome I…" his voice trailed off as he reached his hand to hers. Kagome carefully retracted her arm from Kensei's grasp, shooting him a small smile. He nodded slightly and stepped back, far enough to enable her to move past him but close enough that her body was still within range of his, so he could pull her behind if necessary.
"Inuyasha," she said quietly, her eyes wide as he moved to stand in front of her.
He noted the tinge of hesitancy in her voice and winced slightly, "Kagome I'm so sorry. I'm sorry for all that I've put you through and…"
Kagome felt a weight lift off her chest as he apologized, for somewhere in the corner of her mind, she was worried that he'd simply showed up to finish what he'd started, that maybe something had gone wrong with Kikyo and he'd have to kill her to fix it. She smiled gently at him, watching in fascination as a barrage of emotions invaded his face. She'd always thought that Inuyasha was a master at keeping his true feelings to himself unless it was anger or jealousy, but in that moment she saw things she'd never expected to see him feel, especially not towards her. Relief, guilt, tenderness and a heart wrenching sadness.
She could understand why he was feeling this way. He had betrayed the first woman to truly love him for what he was. At first she'd been struggling between wanting to yell at him for what he did and crying and running away, but now she saw just how much he had suffered.
She thought back to that day when she'd first woken up after having her soul ripped from her, and how she'd walked outside to find Kensei practicing. Had Inuyasha not done what he had, she would never have found her soul mate, she would have continued trying to live with the painful feelings that came with loving the hanyou. In an ironic way he saved her from possible years of loneliness and heartbreak by doing what he did.
His normally bright amber eyes were void of the usual fiery spark that glimmered there and suddenly Kagome didn't want to do anything at all to him other than reignite the fire in his eyes and see that boyish, cocky grin again.
"I forgive you," she said
He gaped in true Inuyasha style "You what?!"
"I forgive you…however I want to know just one thing," she said carefully.
Inuyasha nodded slowly.
"Did you know what you were about to do to me?"
He looked away from her unwavering gaze and clenched his jaw "I…I think that deep down I knew, but I was just so…I missed her so much and…"
Tears were now dripping steadily down her cheeks "I just don't understand why you felt that way when I was always there for you and you knew I would do anything for you."
When he looked up again, his expression was somber and his amber eyes shiny with emotion "I know you were but sometimes there's a need for that one person…"
Kikyo looked up in surprise.
He continued on "Sometimes other people just aren't enough, no matter how much you love them," his eyes seemed to be pleading with her now, pleading with her to understand what he was trying to say, "No matter how much you love them they can't fill that need…"
Inuyasha was shocked out of what he was saying when Kagome threw her arms around him and hugged him tight "I understand," she sobbed into his chest.
For the first time in what seemed like forever, Inuyasha smiled "Thank you," he whispered into her hair "Thank you."
She pulled away and straightened up, smoothing her hair and wiping at her teary eyes before turning to Kikyo who was looking more and more guilty and depressed with each passing second.
What should she say to Kagome now? What COULD she say?
But it turned out that she didn't need to say anything because Kagome came to stand in front of her and was opening her mouth to say something.
However, a whirl wind interrupted her and in a flash Kouga was standing before them.
"Kouga!" Kagome exclaimed "What are you doing here?!"
For once, Kouga seemed to completely ignore Kagome and was approaching Kikyo with a smirk on his face, his teeth bared as he snarled viciously.
Seemingly out of nowhere a sword appeared in Kouga's hand and he'd slashed at Kikyo, hitting her in the stomach and piercing deep.
Inuyasha growled and pulled out Tetsusaiga and immediately jumped in front of Kikyo "Don't you ever touch her again!"
Kouga grinned "You don't look nearly as pitiful as you did last time we met but I can still beat you to a pulp!" With that he slashed his sword at Inuyasha, so fast…so unlike the usual Kouga that he was knocked off balance in surprise. He had no idea Kouga was actually skilled at something other than running.
Seeing the clear path to Kikyo, Kouga's eyes flashed dangerously.
"No! Kouga please stop!" Kagome screamed just before Kikyo was thrown into a tree a couple of metres away. She didn't get up.
"Try and stop me insolent pup," Kouga sneered.
Growling, Inuyasha launched at the wolf again.
The sound of clashing metal and frustrated grunts filled the air, but neither Kagome nor Kikyo heard them.
--
Kagome felt tears prick her eyes and she clutched at Kikyo and turned to Kensei who was tearing off bits off cloth to wrap around her wounds "We need to find a healer…"
"No," Kikyo whispered, putting a hand over Kensei's, stopping him from touching her wounds "I don't need them."
"What do you mean?! You're bleeding everywhere!"
Yet Kensei stopped and shot Kikyo a curious look, telling her that he knew exactly what she was doing.
A small smile on her face, Kikyo covered Kagome's hand with her own, "Kagome. It's my time to die. After all that I've done to you, I'll be happy to finally return our soul to you. I'm so sorry for what I did."
Blood seeped out from underneath their joint hands and began to rapidly spread across the front of her kimono. Kikyo jolted as another wave of pain washed through her body, a trickle of blood trailing down her chin from her mouth.
Kensei turned to see the two demons running at each other, each of them blinded by anger and apparently oblivious to the injuries they'd received.
With a sigh, he left Kagome's side and walked up to the viciously battling demons. "Stop," he said coldly, not really expecting them to listen but deciding that he may as well try.
When they ignored him, he grinned and something glinted in his eyes, making him look more dangerous than Inuyasha ever could.
Kouga was lunging at Inuyasha, sword out in front, ready to drive into the hanyou's chest when suddenly the sword disappeared from his hand.
"Wha..?" Kouga stuttered as he stared at his hand. Inuyasha looked just as confused as his opponent.
That's when they saw Kensei standing beside them, Kouga's sword in hand and a rather pleased expression on his face. Inuyasha's eyes widened as they both thought the same thing. Who was this guy?
Whoever he was he was fast as hell.
Before Kouga could blink, Kensei had jumped behind him and thrust the handle of the sword into the back of his head, sending him to the ground, unconscious.
"He was mine," Inuyasha growled, not quite sure what to make of the guy that had been standing so close to Kagome.
Kensei grinned.
Moments later Inuyasha was on the ground beside Kouga, unconscious while Kensei grinned and flicked the sword down beside them before returning to Kagome who gave him a look that thanked him for stopping them from killing each other. He nodded and laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"What you did for Inuyasha…" Kikyo whispered brokenly "Thank you. I really did love him…I still do…will you tell him that..?"
Kagome shook her head fiercely, tears flying "No! You can tell him when he wakes up…"
Kikyo's grip tightened over Kagome's "No you will have to. Please…"
Choking back more tears, Kagome nodded reluctantly "Ok. If you don't…make it I will…I promise."
Kikyo smiled tiredly "Thank you."
Kagome turned to Kensei "Kensei could you find someone to help?"
Kensei nodded, sending a wary look at Inuyasha and Kouga who were beginning to stir, groaning loudly and moved to leave but he paused when Kikyo whispered "No don't."
"Kikyo!" Inuyasha cried , hazily clutching his head as he moved to kneel beside Kagome, his eyes widening at the small pool of blood that had gathered beneath her.
"But…" Kagome whispered.
"Kagome, let me give it back to you."
"No I don't want it! We can share it! I don't need all of it, I have Kensei now!" Kagome cried, her tears running down onto their joint hands.
Kensei felt Inuyasha look at him sharply and down at where his hand rested on her shoulder, but Kensei ignored him.
"I'm sorry," Kikyo said so quietly Kagome had to strain to hear it.
A jolt seemed to run through Kikyo's body once before leaving her body still and limp with a chilling finality about it.
"Kikyo?" Kagome cried shaking Kikyo's small shoulders in an effort to rouse her.
Inuyasha quietly disengaged her hands from Kikyo's shoulders "She's gone."
His voice cracked slightly, his face hidden in shadow. Kouga was long gone by then.
Kensei wrapped his arms around Kagome's trembling body, engulfing her in the comforting warmth of his body as she huddled against him.
Then something happened.
Kagome's body stopped shaking and began to grow warm, causing Kensei to release her in shock. He immediately tried to grab her again when he noticed her eyes roll upwards, and her head loll to the side but something like a barrier was stopping him form getting to her.
"Wha..?" Inuyasha and Kensei said in unison as her unconscious body was lifted into the air by an invisible force. Inuyasha cried out and grabbed at her, recognizing the position as something similar as to how she had looked at that awful moment when Kagome had screamed and disappeared but Kensei held him back. This was something that would happen regardless as to whether either of them wanted it to.
A bright white light glowed from Kagome just like it had when her soul had been stolen from her but this time, the same thing was happening to Kikyo. The two young men watched in fascination as Kikyo's body rose up beside Kagome's, the light almost making them translucent. The white of Kagome mingled with the pale pink of Kikyo and an explosion of light occurred, temporarily blinding them all.
Gradually the bright light faded and the Kagome and Kikyo were brought back to the ground, where they lay unmoving.
Kensei ran to Kagome and nearly fainted with relief when he saw the steady rise and fall of her chest. Inuyasha had run towards Kikyo but the downturn of his face and the slump of his shoulders, told Kensei that she was truly gone.
"I'm sorry," Kensei said to the hanyou's back, his tone calm and understanding.
Inuyasha nodded briefly "Thanks."
--
One month later…
"Sango!! You're officially a legend!" Kagome cried running to embrace her blushing friend in a hug.
"The famous perverted monk is settling down! Hallelujah!" Inuyasha grinned, smacking Miroku on the back hard enough to make him stumble forward.
Kensei also gave him a 'good on ya' slap on the back and this time he fell to the ground.
Sango bent to help her new husband back onto his feet, glared at them and said in a mock angry tone "You two! Stop beating my husband."
"Yeah, I may not be able to perform tonight if you continue with that," Miroku said lecherously, grabbing Sango's butt.
She reddened and attempted to slap his hand away only to have him grin wolfishly at her and whisper huskily in her ear "This is all mine now, so I'm allowed to touch whenever I want."
Sango stared at him, eyes wide as she tried to ignore the tingle that ran down her spine "I take it back, beat him as hard as you like!"
As they all laughed, Kagome searched the crowd to see where Inuyasha and Kensei had disappeared off to only to see them sitting side by side on the cliff overhanging the beach. She was tempted to go and see what they were talking about but she stopped herself. If Inuyasha wanted to talk to her about something, he'd ask for her. However that didn't mean she was any less curious as to what they were chatting about.
--
"What about Kikyo? How are you dealing with that?" Kensei asked, falling back to lie down with his arms behind his head.
Inuyasha followed suit, staring up at the darkening sky "We couldn't have made it work, not with all that has happened between us here…"
"But…"
"But in the next life, when I meet her again…I love her and I think I always will," Inuyasha said thoughtfully if not a little morosely.
"You know that she loved you as well didn't you?"
"Yeah Kagome told me. I think she knew as well as I did that we couldn't work in this lifetime."
"Soul mates always find one another apparently," Kensei said grinning at him.
Inuyasha grinned back "We should have no problem then neh? Speaking of soul mates how are you and Kagome going?"
Kensei chuckled "How did I know that that question would come up? I love her if that's what you mean."
"Has she told you about her time?"
He nodded, his expression turning a little more serious "She'll go back to see her family every now and then and I suppose we'll take it from there."
There was a peaceful silence between them.
Inuyasha broke it by saying softly "I'm glad she found you, you know."
"So am I," Kensei said his grey eyes sparkling "But then again she does have a habit of being unbelievably nosy."
Kagome jumped down from the tree she'd been hiding in and cuddled into Kensei's arms, a sheepish smile on her face "Sorry. I just wanted to make sure everything was ok"
Inuyasha rolled his eyes "Feh you're too nosy for your own good!"
Kagome's eyes widened "Wow you sounded so much like the old Inuyasha just then! Rude and obnoxious."
Inuyasha grunted and closed his eyes, preparing to sleep, the hint of a smile appearing as Kagome huffed that he was ignoring her again.
"Come one Kensei," Kagome said leaping up and grabbing his hand "Let's leave Inuyasha to sleep and be lazy and go dance."
Kensei shot a pleading look at Inuyasha but all he got in return was a wink and a smirk.
Author's FINAL note: Anybody who has ever had to do an NCEA art folio will know why my updating has been less than satisfactory and I've learnt a couple of valuable lessons about writing stories. I made Kouga the bad guy and for that I'm really sad and the fact that I didn't even mention him in the last bit made me feel even worse. Oh well all for the sake of the story, right? Thank you all for reading my story and to all reviewers, I LOVE YOU!! If you didn't like this chapter then I'm sorry, I tried!