All I have to say right now is I'm sick. I've been sick for sooo long, and the sickness won't end. Instead of resting, though, I'm writing. Gee, maybe that's why I'm still sick. Oh well. I just have such a hard time taking care of myself. I'm fine with watching out for other people, but when it's me…oh well. Also, I have my chemistry lab in about half an hour, so at some point, I'm going to be taking a four hour break to do some weird clove thing. I don't think cloves are important enough for four hours of my day, but sure. I need to…agh! I sneezed all over the place! Mou…okay, let's start this story before I get lost in my thoughts completely.
*****
All I Needed Was You
Part 5
*****
Just when fear blinded me
You taught me to dream.
I'll give you everything I am
And still fall short of what you've done for me.
In this life that I live
I hope I can give
Love unselfishly.
I've learned the world is bigger than me
You're my daily dose of reality.
-Creed Stand Here With Me
"Stop it, brat." Inuyasha batted Shippo away as the young kitsune jumped eagerly beside where he was washing their clothes, muddying the water. "Now we have to move. This is never gonna get finished if you won't calm down."
"My mom used to wash my clothes for me all the time." Shippo told the hanyou, happiness gleaming in his green eyes. "Since I met you guys though, I usually always have to do it."
"That's good. You have to learn to be an adult some time." Inuyasha told him in a serious tone.
"But I'm just a little kid!" Shippo pouted pitifully. "I shouldn't have to grow up until…until I'm as big as Inuyasha!"
"Feh. You think I waited to be this old before I learned how to take care of myself?" Inuyasha shook his head as he vigorously scrubbed the little kitsune's vest which was literally soaked in ramen juice. "I've been watching out for myself since I was about your age."
"Since you were only five? That's a long time." Shippo's eyes widened, impressed.
"Yeah, well I was dead for most of it." Inuyasha explained. "I'm not really that old yet, since that happened." Inuyasha looked up as though adding years in his head. "About…sixteen years now, I guess."
"Only sixteen? My mom and dad were a lot older than that." Shippo told him matter-of-factly.
"Yeah, well that's because they had to deal with you. If they weren't too old to care, they probably would have just eaten you up." Inuyasha told him with a wicked grin as he worked on his red yukata.
"Eaten me?" Shippo gasped in shock before narrowing his eyes. "Inuyasha, I think you're lying. My mom and dad would never eat me."
"Oh yeah?" Inuyasha snorted. "That's what most youkai do. Eat their babies so they don't have to put up with the annoying little shits. I've had lots of babies, but I eat them all." Inuyasha lied in a very unconvincing manner.
"How many?" Shippo asked, sure Inuyasha was definitely making this up.
"Uh…ten." Inuyasha decided quickly.
"And you ate them all?" Shippo narrowed his eyes, placing tiny fists on his hips.
"Of course. I'm too young for dealing with that shit." Inuyasha told him, his smile malicious.
"Then why haven't you eaten me?" Shippo wanted to know.
"Because…youkai can only…um…can only eat their own babies." Inuyasha
nodded in satisfaction at his answer.
"Otherwise, I would've eaten you as soon as you showed up."
"And who did you get the babies from?" Shippo asked.
"What do you mean? They were mine to eat." Inuyasha bared his fangs demonstratively.
"I mean, who was the mom of the babies?" Shippo elaborated. He smiled a knowing smile, "Was it Kagome-chan?"
"What! No! Of course not, I mean, I haven't known her long enough to have ten babies, idiot! Not that I'd ever have any babies with her anyway, cause I wouldn't! I never had any babies with any women, especially not her!" Inuyasha yelped as he realized he'd just let himself be caught in his lie.
"Ha! That's what I thought! How mean, telling me that youkai eat their babies! What if I grew up and had babies and ate them all? Kagome would find out and you'd get sat so hard you couldn't move for a month!" Shippo laughed. "I'm gonna tell her now that you said that to me!" the kitsune whirled around to run back to camp, but Inuyasha caught the young yaoukai's tail in his hand and brought him up to his face.
"Shut up! You know I was just playing around! Now come on, you need a bath, Shippo. You smell like shit." Inuyasha informed the little kitsune before flinging him carelessly into the small spring.
"Agh! Ouch, Inuyasha! I hit my head on a rock in here! It's not deep enough for throwing people in like that! I'm gonna tell Kagome-chan!" Shippo tried to make his way to the shore, but when he swam, his feet kept getting tangled in his tail and the little kitsune was bobbing around in confusion. Inuyasha rolled his eyes, joining Shippo in the water.
"Feh. Idiot. That's not gonna get you anywhere. Lift your tail and keep your feet low so they don't get tangled like that." Inuyasha waded over to the struggling youkai and pulled his tail up, demonstrating what he was saying. Shippo concentrated on Inuyasha's instructions and soon made his way over to a nice ledge just shallow enough for his tiny body.
"Wow, I did it, Inuyasha! Thanks a lot! I've always been bad at swimming, but I didn't know what I was doing wrong." Shippo told the hanyou, totally forgetting the reason he'd been swimming to the shore in the first place. "You know lots of things, Inuyasha."
"Feh! Of course I do. You're still just a little kid." Inuyasha stuck his chest out slightly. "When you're my age, you'll know more stuff than you do now."
"Will you teach me?" Shippo wanted to know.
"I suppose. You aren't as clever as I was. I had to learn all this shit for myself." Inuyasha bragged.
"But I don't think you should teach me about girls. You just make them mad all the time." Shippo added. "I don't wanna get slapped and hit all the time when I'm older."
"Feh. It's not my fault they're such bitches. It doesn't matter how much you think you know, Shippo. They'll hit you just for knowing more than they want you to." Inuyasha told him.
"Really?" Shippo looked a bit worried about this idea.
"Don't listen to Inuyasha-sama. He can't even decide on one woman." A little voice spoke up. Inuyasha promptly flattened his "loyal retainer."
"Myouga-jiji, what the hell are you doing here? Weren't you with Kagome before?" Inuyasha asked angrily. Shippo gasped in fright as Inuyasha and him rushed to put their still damp clothes back on.
"Where are you going?" Myouga asked in confusion.
"If Myouga-jichan is here, Kagome must be in danger!" Shippo exclaimed in shock. Just then, Inuyasha froze so suddenly he almost fell over pulling his yukata on.
"Naraku is near. I can feel it." He growled, yanking his clothes on hurriedly. As if to confirm this, they heard Kagome yelling to warn them of Narku's presence.
"Dammit! Let's go, Shippo!" Inuyasha hauled up the half dressed youkai who barely had time to grab his clothes before he was pulled after the hanyou. Pulling on his shirt and vest was a bit difficult while Inuyasha was holding him by the tail, but Shippo managed to do it before turning around and pulling out of Inuyasha's grip so that he could take up the more comfortable position on Inuyasha's back. They were soaring through the forest, flying from treetop to treetop. Shippo wondered if Inuyasha could teach him how to do that as well. But this wasn't the time to ask. Naraku had Kagome, and they had to get her back.
"How could she be captured so easily?" Shippo spoke up suddenly. "What about Miroku? Wasn't he there to protect her?"
"He may be dead, I don't know." Inuyasha replied in a grim voice. "Naraku probably could have killed Miroku himself, but I don't know. It doesn't make sense. I would have sensed it if they were fighting and we'd have gotten back in time."
"Maybe Miroku went back for Sango?" Shippo suggested. "He's been sad that she left all day. Maybe he finally went after her."
"Maybe." Inuyasha growled in his throat dangerously. "But he should've thought about it before leaving her alone like that. He could've at least waited for us to come back."
"Yeah, I would've protected her!" Shippo exclaimed. Inuyasha smiled slightly at the anger in the young youkai's tone. He reminded him of how Inuyasha had been when he was that age, sometimes. Trying so hard to be strong enough to be taken seriously. It had been so hard.
"I know you would've." Inuyasha told him. Suddenly, the hanyou realized how foolish it had been to bring Shippo along. The kitsune would obviously want to help fight, but he was still so young that he'd only be a hindrance. He stopped then, standing on a high tree branch as Shippo hopped down and gazed up at him with a look in his eyes that Inuyasha suddenly recognized. He had a sudden memory from a time almost a month ago after Kagome snuck up on him teaching Shippo how to catch a fish with his hands in case he didn't have a pole to use.
"Feh. I just wanted him to shut up about how damn hungry he was." Inuyasha had replied when she questioned him about the incident. "He'd die if we didn't watch him so close, you know. Totally helpless little idiot."
Kagome had smiled warmly at him then. "I think you'd make a good father, Inuyasha." She'd told him.
"WHAT!" he'd yelped in shock. "Me? With annoying brats like that? I don't think so."
"Why not, it's obvious that you look at Shippo-chan that way. It's perfectly natural for you to have those kind of instincts." Kagome had told the speechless hanyou. "You know, he really looks up to you. To Shippo-chan, we're his parents now."
The thought of having a child with Kagome had made Inuyasha so embarrassed that he'd been unable to offer a smart-ass retort to her comments, so she had left him there to mull it all over in his mind.
The look on Shippo's face was one a child would give to his parent, a look of loyalty and adoration that Inuyasha must not have seen before. So Shippo really did see him as a sort of father? Him, a father? The thought had never really crossed his mind, as he would need a mate to become a father, and being a hanyou, he had a hard enough time finding people who could tolerate his presence, much less any sort of mate. Inuyasha shook his head vigorously. He didn't have time for this right now. Kagome was in trouble.
"I need you to do me a favor, Shippo." Inuyasha noted the look of disappointment on the kitsune's face as he realized he wouldn't be fighting this time. "It's really important." He added. Shippo puffed out his chest and stood as straight as he could.
"I can do it!" he assured Inuyasha.
"Good," Inuyasha barely concealed a grin. He really was gentle with the kitsune, now that he thought it over. It was almost laughable. "I may need lots of help against Naraku, and I know that you can sniff things out almost as well as I can, so I need you to go find Sango and Miroku too if he's still…around. And get Kagome's bow, if you can." He added as a second thought.
"Got it!" Shippo transformed into a ridiculous pink bubble and floated away. Inuyasha shook his head slightly before continuing to chase after Naraku.
I'll save you, Kagome. Just wait.
-----------
"Get away from me you bastard! Don't touch me!" Kagome batted at Naraku's hands angrily before just kicking him as hard as she could in the shins. Naraku hissed in anger at her.
"Would you just stop that, you ridiculous girl?" He asked her. "If you don't give me the Shikon shards, I'm going to take them away, so it's your decision."
"Neither! You can't have them!" she shouted at him. "You give me your Shikon shards! You know we've worked harder anyway."
"Girl, you're in no position to be making demands of me." Naraku hissed, narrowing his eyes angrily and pushing her against the wall with so much force she crumpled to the ground with an exclamation of pain.
"You think you're so tough? If I had my bow here, you'd be dead by now!" she yelled at him. If only she could keep him distracted long enough, he'd not be able to get the rest of the Shikon no Tama from her before Inuyasha got here. She'd have to be careful not to make him too angry, though. It would be hard to protect the Shikon shards if she was dead.
"Give me the jewel, you little witch!" he yelled at her. Lunging forward angrily. "I don't have time for your impertinence."
"I won't—" as Kagome tripped backwards, someone caught her. "Inuyasha?" she whirled around in excitement, but never expected to see the person that she did.
"Give it to him, Kagome." The woman said, her face a cold, twisted reflection of Kagome's own features.
"Kikyo…" Now what would she do? How long could she last against Kikyo and Naraku?
"Please." There was momentarily a bit of pleading in Kikyo's emotionless eyes. "Do it."
"I won't give it to him!" she stood at her guard, wondering what her chances were of stealing Kikyo's bow for herself.
"Don't try arguing with both of us. You know you stand no chance against even one of us. Give up." Naraku held out his hand as though expecting her to simply hand the shards over.
"I'll never give up to the likes of you!" she snorted at Naraku.
"Just give it to him." Kikyo was right behind her, and Kagome jumped in surprise before she felt something being placed in her hands. The miko was barely whispering loud enough for her to hear. "Trust me."
Trust…Kikyo? But how could Kagome be expected to trust this…this undead thing that had time and time again tricked and betrayed Inuyasha and herself? But then, Kikyo had been the guardian of the Shikon no Tama before, just as Kagome was now. Perhaps she had some sort of plan? Even though the other woman had always seemed cold and cruel to Kagome, this was the woman who she was reincarnated from. Although, she had already stolen shards from Kagome and given them to Naraku for no apparent reason. Somehow, though, Inuyasha had never stopped believing that she was on their side. "We can trust Kikyo, I know we can!" he had told them all, but they had not taken him seriously. Maybe…maybe he was right. After all, the only person that knew Kikyo better than him was Kaede, and she had never said to not trust her sister. Before, when she thought of it, Kagome had only grown jealous of the girl who had claimed Inuyasha's heart so long before Kagome even had a chance. But then, Inuyasha was a lot smarter than they gave him credit for. Kagome knew she trusted him, and Inuyasha definitely trusted Kikyo…so should she trust Kikyo as well? What if she was just tricking Kagome. Suddenly, Kagome realized what Kikyo had given her. A bow and arrow. That decided her. She gave Kikyo a barely noticeable nod, and the miko returned it before grasping the piece of Shikon jewel and ripping the necklace off of her roughly.
"You see! Any way it happens, I was still going to get it from you, idiotic girl." Naraku glared at Kagome as Kikyo smiled and brought him the last piece of the jewel. For a moment, the look on Kikyo's face was so frightening, Kagome was afraid she'd been mistaken, but then the priestess shot her a look that clearly told her to wait, and Kagome felt reassured. Still, she couldn't help trembling with anger as Naraku pieced the last bits of the jewel together, laughing maniacally at his achievement. "Now purify it so that I can use it!" he ordered Kikyo. She nodded submissively, taking the jewel from him and holding it to her chest, seemingly praying as she faced Kagome, her back to Naraku.
What's she doing? You don't need to pray to purify it. Kagome felt overwhelming curiosity as to what Kikyo could be planning. Suddenly, her eyes flew open, and Kagome knew that was her signal. Swiftly pulling up the bow and barely taking time to aim as she nocked the arrow, Kagome shot an arrow glowing with her power at Naraku. The aim was a bit off, since it had all been so hurried, but she still hit him in the shoulder, and Naraku was so shocked by the sudden attack, that he couldn't do anything to stop Kikyo from throwing the jewel to Kagome and locking him into a tight embrace.
"What the hell?!" Naraku growled, trying to escape from her grip, but he couldn't. She had borrowed a bit of the Shikon no Tama's power for this task, and he was completely unable of overpowering her, especially since Kagome's arrow had injured his youkai. "What are you doing to me!?" he yelled at Kikyo as an eerie blue light enveloped them, wind swirling around both of them.
"You always wanted to be with me, didn't you, Naraku?" Kikyo smiled a too-sweet smile at him. "So now we'll be together. In hell!" she laughed viciously at him as he struggled futilely as they sunk deeper and deeper into the ground that was dissolving beneath them. They were almost completely gone, when Kagome regained her thoughts enough to yell a quick thanks to the other miko.
"Kikyo-sama, you did it! I am in your debt! Thank you!" Kagome didn't really know what else to say. Kikyo had saved her from Naraku, gotten the Shikon no Tama from him, and prevented Inuyasha or the others from having to fight.
"If you owe me, than think of it every time you look at him!" Kikyo shouted over the howling wind. "He was never so much mine as he is now yours! Take care of him or I'll have to take him away from you!" she threatened before disappearing completely with Naraku. Kikyo hadn't needed to say whom she was talking about, and it made Kagome fall to her knees at the impact of it all. The Shikon no Tama was complete, Naraku was gone, and though they owed it to Kikyo, it wouldn't mean that Inuyasha and her could never be together lest it betray her memory.
"Kagome are you here!" Inuyasha burst into the room and then looked around in confusion as he let his transformed Tetsusaiga fall from it's ready position. "Kagome? Where is Naraku?" He had obviously been expecting a fight to be waiting for him when he found her.
"Inuyasha!" Kagome jumped up and ran to hug him, tears streaking her face.
"Kagome, what's wrong? You're crying!" he examined the girl in his arms for obvious signs of injury and found nothing but a small bump from when she'd hit the wall. He growled displeasure that she had come to harm, but he was still confused. Kagome would never cry over something this small. "Kagome, dammit, what is it?"
"It's over Inuyasha! It's all over and I don't know whether to be happy or sad or excited!" Kagome spoke so fast, Inuyasha could barely understand her. "I thought I'd have to hold out until you got here, but then Kikyo was here and she gave me her bow and I gave her the shards and—"
"Kikyo was here? Did she hurt you? Did Naraku hurt her? Did he hurt you?" Inuyasha asked in a panic. "Why'd you give her the shards?"
"Because, listen to me! She told me to trust her and…and I thought of how you said that we could trust her so I gave them to her." Kagome told him almost as fast as she had been speaking before. "She put them all together and tricked Naraku into letting her purify them so I could shoot him with her bow and then she gave me the jewel and took him to hell!"
"You…you gave her the shards?" he asked, trying to process the information.
"Yes! And she gave me this!" Kagome held up the complete jewel for Inuyasha to see.
"And she took him to hell?" Inuyasha sounded a bit disappointed.
"I'm sorry you won't be able to see her again." Kagome buried the twinge of jealously she felt at the idea.
"It's not that…not really. I mean, Kikyo was dead and I miss her, but she's been dead a long time." Inuyasha explained. "It's just…"
"What?" she asked, leaning forward to catch his saddened words.
"I really wanted to kick his ass for taking you!" Inuyasha stomped angrily, almost like a spoiled child. Realizing what he'd said, Inuyasha coughed slightly. "And…um, and the shards, of course."
"Of course." Kagome smiled slightly as she felt the sudden urge to kiss him. He was so adorable, trying not to blush like that. Her mind was full of the voices of Kikyo, Sango, Miroku and even Shippo. Two days after receiving the talk from Inuyasha, they had all been walking down the road when Shippo has suddenly burst out with "Inuyasha, hurry up and kiss Kagome so I can play with your babies!" before getting a sharp hit to the head from the hanyou. She remembered telling Sango how happy she was for Miroku and her. "Then hurry up and get together with Inuyasha so that you don't have to be jealous of our happiness!" the demon exterminator had teased. Just that night, Miroku had spoken to her about the situation "It's obvious that he loves you." He'd said. And then, as she was being sucked into hell with Naraku, Kikyo's voice had called out to her "Take care of him or I'll have to take him away from you!" Everyone could see that there was something between them, but both of them were too afraid to do anything about it.
"Kagome…what is it? You look so thoughtful." Inuyasha leaned toward her, examining her face with worry. "Is something wrong?"
"It's nothing…I mean, yes. Yes, something's wrong." She told him.
"Well is it yes or no?" he asked impatiently.
"Yes. I need to do something…I have to keep a promise to Kikyo." She told him, licking her lips nervously.
"What is it? Do you need my help?" Inuyasha asked, cocking his head to the side curiously.
"Yes I do." Kagome answered, but she couldn't push herself forward to close the small gap that separated them. She wouldn't lose her nerve! Not now.
"Well? What is it?" Inuyasha asked.
"It's…well I need to…I have to tell you…it's this!" Kagome stumbled over her words before suddenly going up on tiptoes and pressing her lips to his. At first he made a surprised noise, but when she continued to remain with her lips against his, Inuyasha wrapped Kagome in a tender embrace, pulling him toward her as he deepened the kiss.
"I'm telling you, something's strange. My hand itches like—" Miroku stopped mid-sentence as they entered the room and saw the intimate scene. Sango had the good grace to blush, but Shippo began dancing with excitement. The couple took a few seconds to realize they were not alone and to fly apart, blushing crimson at being caught.
"Um…excuse us." Sango was almost as red as Inuyasha and Kagome. "We were…told there was trouble?"
"It's taken care of!" Kagome held up the jewel in excitement. "Kikyo took Naraku to hell, but she gave me this before she left."
"Kikyo-sama saved us?" Miroku quirked a brow curiously as his eyes wandered to his hand covered carefully with a rosary.
"It seems Inuyasha was right about her." Sango allowed.
"Inuyasha!" Shippo's excited dance had taken him over to the hanyou, where he stood yanking at the now dry yukata impatiently. "Inuyasha!"
"Stop that, Shippo-chan." Kagome chastised the over-excited kitsune before turning to Sango with an angry scowl. "And what are you doing here?"
"I…Shippo-chan said that Naraku had you…so I was going to come and fight?" Sango said it like a question, as though wondering if that was the right answer.
"In your condition! I told you no fighting until the bab—" Kagome went bright red with embarrassment as she clapped her hands over her mouth. Everyone fell silent except for Shippo.
"Inuyasha! Inuyasha! Inuyasha!" he was trying with no success to attain the hanyou's attention. All eyes were on Kagome and Sango.
"Oops." Kagome offered. Inuyasha's eyes were wide as he looked from Miroku to Sango and back.
"Inuyasha! Inuyasha!" Shippo's excitement could not be quelled by any amount of awkward atmosphere.
"Sango…are you?" Miroku couldn't finish his question.
"I…I couldn't tell you…after you left me." Sango admitted, trying to sort out what to say, but it was extremely difficult with the hyper kitsune's insistent chanting in the background. "Could someone shut him up?" Sango growled at the oblivious youkai child.
"Inuyasha! Inuyasha!" Shippo went on and Inuyasha growled, batting the child away.
"Stop acting like a baby." He told Shippo, who just leapt to his feet, not minding that he was being scolded if it meant Inuyasha was going to listen to him.
"Okay, but can you guys make it a boy so I can pretend he's my little brother?" Shippo asked Inuyasha, his voice full of excitement. There was a long pause as Kagome and Inuyasha shrugged at each other.
"What are you talking about?" Inuyasha asked.
"You kissed, so you're gonna have a baby now!" Shippo explained as though this was all very obvious. "I want a boy!"
"Um…Shippo-chan." Kagome gave him a pained smile before exchanging glances with Inuyasha. "I think it's time to go see Kaede, okay?"
"Kirara's here, right?" Inuyasha verified before leaving with Kagome and Shippo following. "See you guys later."
"I'll see you tonight, Sango-chan, okay?" Kagome asked, Shippo held gently in her arms. The other woman nodded, glad she could get some privacy, but also angry that they were forcing Miroku and her to talk. Kagome walked off, with Shippo's voice trailing back to them.
"When we get there, I'm gonna tell Kaede-baasan all about the baby!" Shippo was practically squealing in excitement.
"Poor Kagome-chan." Sango smiled after the three figures disappearing around a corner before turning to Miroku, who was patiently waiting for an explanation. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you, Miroku, but I didn't want you to stay with me because of that. I wanted it to be because you loved me."
"But you already know I love you!" Miroku's voice was frustrated. "I loved you so much that I had to protect you from what would happen…so I pushed you away."
"That's the stupidest plan I've ever heard, Miroku." Sango told him frankly. "Do you think your death would really hurt me less if you pretended that you didn't want to be with me anymore?"
"I…had hoped." He admitted. "I didn't know what else to do! I could feel my time coming, and I didn't want you to suffer. Or worse, what if you went with me? I'd never forgive myself!"
"But, Miroku…" Sango stepped closer, taking his right hand carefully in her own, using her free hand to slowly unwind the rosary as she spoke. "Naraku's dead now. Didn't I tell you that if you believed in us, in yourself, this day would come?" With the rosary removed, the cloth fell away from where the Air Void had been, revealing nothing but a normal palm. Sango brought it to her lips, kissing the new skin softly.
"You're the first one that's touched that palm." Miroku realized.
"Well I went through enough, didn't I? I deserve it." She teased him, pulling toward him.
"Does this mean…" he began, unable to finish.
"You're forgiven? This time." Sango teased again, tilting her head up for a kiss. Miroku needed no more prompting.
*****
The End (Of Part 5, That Is)
I know, you're wondering what there's left to write, huh? A lot, actually! This was all just the prologue to something entirely different! Haha, fooled you! I know I got you too, Jade, so that makes me REALLY proud, since we always think alike and are bad at lying to each other. Anyway, stay tuned for…new stuff happening! Ja ne! And Madeleine, I know you know where this is going since I cleared it with you, but no spoiling it for the others! I will…um…I'll hide your Hana Yori Dango! Okay, that'd be way to mean. I'll do…something, though!