Chapter 10
by Nimrodel
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"What is it, Houshi-sama?" Sango asked when she saw Miroku stop.
"It's a barrier," he said, looking defeated. "...and it's incredibly strong."
"Do you think...Kagome-chan..." Sango trailed off.
"Yes, I'd say there's a good chance she's in there somewhere. I'd also bet Naraku is involved, considering the strength of the barrier..." Miroku replied.
"Do you think you can get through the barrier?" asked Sango.
"Probably not..." said Miroku dejectedly.
"Then what are we going to do?" she wondered sadly.
Miroku sighed, then sat down on the ground and began meditating, trying to open the barrier.
Inuyasha lay curled up in Kagome's bed, hugging a pillow sadly. No matter how hard he fought it, waves of sadness and shame kept overwhelming him. He had been wrong; Kagome had never loved him. Obviously she loved this Houjou guy.
Geez...now I know how she must have felt every time she saw me with Kikyo...
A quiet sniffle escaped Inuyasha. He had almost thought today would be a good day earlier. It had quickly turned terrible. Kagome didn't love him...he had finally given into his emotions, and admitted to himself that she was indeed the most important thing in the world to him, only to find she had some other lover. Not only that, but tonight was the new moon...he would turn human. He was always more emotional as a human...and he was already feeling miserable.
Curling up into a little ball, Inuyasha felt the tears he had been fighting so valiantly slip down his cheeks. He buried his face in the pillow, muffling the sounds of his grief.
A blast of energy originating from Kagome threw Naraku backwards, dissolving the vines that held her and Kikyo in place. The force of Kagome's rage threw Naraku against the opposite wall, and his body seemed to be dissolving a bit as well.
"YOU BITCH!" he shouted, but his body felt weak...this girl had more power than he had ever thought.
"Naraku..." she fumed "I swear I will kill you with my own to hands before I ever let you get your filthy hands on MY Inuyasha!" Tendrils of energy shot out from her, speeding towards Naraku.
"Stupid girl...you think you'll be able to stop me?" He laughed, turning into a cloud of smoke, and floating away.
As the target of her anger disappeared, Kagome began to feel weak...very weak. She stumbled over to Kikyo.
"We have to get out of here...you have to help us..." she said, struggling to just stay awake.
At that second, Miroku and Sango broke into the room, and Kagome slumped to the floor unconscious.
When she came to, Miroku, Sango, Kaede, and Shippou were huddled around her worriedly. They all seemed to relax when she woke up.
"Kagome! You're okay!" screamed Shippou, instantly clinging onto her.
"I'm fine, Shippou-chan," she said, sitting up a little. "Just a little tired..."
"We were so worried about you, Kagome-chan. I'm so glad you're alright..." said Sango.
"We saw Naraku leaving...how did you manage that?" asked Miroku.
"I..." said Kagome, thinking back. Everything that had happened began flooding her mind. "Where's Kikyo?" she asked urgently.
"Outside." said Kaede. "But you need to rest after your ordeal with Naraku..."
"No!" said Kagome, getting to her feet. "I need to see Inuyasha..."
And with that she ran out the door to find Kikyo.
"...and so, you want me to unseal the well so you can go back to your time and so Inuyasha can come back here?" asked Kikyo calmly.
"Yes, please...please say you'll do it..." Kagome begged.
Kikyo smiled coldly. "I will, but there's one condition."
Kagome looked up. "What?" she asked, willing to do nearly anything.
Kikyo smiled almost smugly. "Once Inuyasha comes back, I want you to stop trying to win his heart. He's mine."
"I..." Kagome started to object, but if she didn't agree she'd never see Inuyasha again. But could she live knowing that she could never love him? Her lip trembled. Could she live with herself if she never let him come back home?
"I agree." she said quietly, trying to fight off tears.
"Good." said Kikyo. She walked over to the well and pulled out the arrow. It made it seem like such a simple thing.
Kagome scrambled over to the well as soon as the arrow was out, jumping in immediately.
Kagome crept quietly up the stairs; it was night. Now that it came to it, she was a little anxious. What would Inuyasha say?
As she reached the top of the steps, she realized she heard quiet crying coming from her room. Who...? she thought, walking over to the door. It was open just a crack. Looking in, she saw a figure with long black hair wearing red curled up on her bed, crying.
Inuyasha.
Her heart nearly broke as she saw him. She never thought she'd see him crying like this...had he hated staying in this time that much? She quietly pushed open the door and walked over to him. He didn't appear to notice her, so absorbed was he sobbing into the pillow. She gently put her arms around him, hugging him.
He stiffened immediately, gasping. He turned his head slowly, as though afraid it was all a dream. When he saw it was her, his eyes went wide.
"K..Kagome?" he asked, his voice cracking with emotion.
"Hai...it's me." she said softly, sitting down on the bed next to him.
The next thing she knew, his arms were around her and he was crying softly into her shoulder.
"Kagome, I missed you so badly..I..."
"Shhhhh..." she said, stroking his hair gently. "Everything is okay, the well is working again."
"Good.." he whimpered. "Kagome...I...I'm sorry for what I said about the shards being more important that your home and family...."
Kagome hugged him gently. "It's okay, I forgave you for that already..."
Inuyasha still had his arms wrapped tightly around her. "I was being so stupid..." he mumbled. "I..." he blushed, "I got you something...to apologize..."
Kagome looked up at him, a little suprised. "You did?"
Inuyasha blushed even more. "Yeah..." he said quietly. He reached into his haori and pulled out the heart locket, handing it too her. "For you." he said, looking away.
Kagome's jaw dropped. "Inuyasha..it's beautiful..." she threw her arms around him, hugging him tightly. "I love it." She was smiling widely.
Inuyasha blushed harder. "Y-you do?" he asked, looking into her eyes hesitantly.
"Yes." she said, laying her head against his shoulder. She stayed like that, and Inuyasha clumsily wrapped his arms around her shoulders.
"Inuyasha..." she said quietly, "I missed you so badly..."
"Me too," he said, holding her possesssively.
They both fell silent. After a few minutes, Inuyasha spoke up. "Don't you want to go tell your family that you're back?" he asked quietly.
"Not yet...I just want to stay like this for awhile." She said hopefully.
"Okay." Said Inuyasha simply.
They laid down on the bed, and Inuyasha pulled the covers up over them. Inuyasha held her tightly, as though he never planned on letting go.
"Kagome..." he said nervously, "There's something I want to tell you..."
"Yes?" she asked, looking into his eyes.
His cheeks burned bright red, and he hesitantly said, "I love you."
She felt her heart melt, and hugged him so tightly he thought he would burst. "I love you too..."
Inuyasha felt an awesome surge of relief. "Y-you do? What about Houjou?"
"Houjou? No way...he's so dense, and he's incredibly boring..." she hugged him tighter. "I...I only love you..."
Inuyasha held her closer. "Kagome, you have no idea how happy you've just made me..." he said.
"Don't be so sure of that..." she said, smiling. Her eyes caught his, and they both leaned closer to each other. Seconds later they're lips met hesitantly. The kiss was long and full of love, and when they finally parted they were both smiling happily. Kagome snuggled closer to him, laying her head on his chest.
"Good night, Inuyasha..." she said, closing her eyes.
"'Night...my Kagome..." he said, smiling. Soon they were both fast asleep.
Yay! One more chapter to go, and it should have lots of fluff just like this one. Special thanks to Ally for bugging me to finish this chapter ^_^ Hope everyone enjoyed it.