"Death Squared"
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Disclaimer: Don't own 'em. If I did I could do disturbing things with Miroku's ponytail. *grins*
Chapter 8: Damn Reflexes
'Kagome. She was badly wounded. Why didn't I get there sooner?' Inuyasha sat high up in a tree deep in thought. 'It was Kikyo that prevented me from getting to her sooner. It was Kikyo who put Kagome in that position. But why?'
"Inuyasha, are you up there?" Kaede asked from the ground. Inuyasha leapt from his perch and landed gracefully on the ground below.
"What do you want?" Inuyasha asked. He knew perfectly well why she was there but wouldn't let down his guard.
"I just thought you might like to know that I have finished dressing Kagome's wounds. She's going to need rest, but other than that she'll be fine." Kaede said looking down at the ground.
"Can I see her?" Inuyasha asked before thinking.
"Well, if you'd like, I suppose you can." Kaede looked back at Inuyasha and was slightly taken aback by the look in his eyes. 'That look. It's the same look I saw in his eyes when he and Kikyo had fallen in love.'
"Never mind. I don't wanna see her." Inuyasha said and then turned away so that the old wise woman wouldn't be able to see the look on his face. He had noticed that older women, such as lady Kaede, could tell what someone was thinking by the look on their face. He didn't want to let on how much he truly cared for Kagome.
"Why would you ask, then?" Kaede inquired. She turned away and didn't wait for the answer. "I think your face might be the one she would prefer to see first when she wakes up." Kaede said before she left.
'I don't care what the old woman says, my face would be the last thing Kagome would want to see. Besides, they didn't hear what she said about me not wanting to save her, she'll probably be thinking the same thing when she wakes up.' Inuyasha jumped back into the tree and let himself slip into a peaceful slumber.
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"Is she awake yet?"
"No, not yet. We must be patient, young kitsune."
"I wish Inuyasha would stop being so stubborn and come to be the first to greet her when she awakens."
"He doesn't know how much he loves this girl. He'll come around soon enough."
Kagome heard the voices and she felt their presence, but she could not understand what or who the people were. She caught a few of the words but the one that stood out most to her was Inuyasha. Kagome tried to lift her head slightly but found that it was very heavy. As she stirred the people around her seemed to get even more excited.
"Look! She's waking up!" Shippou exclaimed excitedly.
Kagome opened her eyes slightly and saw four figures hovering over her. She reached up and rubbed her eyes and opened them again. She could just make out Shippou, Kaede, Sango, and Miroku. She smiled despite the sharp pain in her side.
"Hey, Kagome?" Shippou asked uncertainly.
"Hi, Shippou." Kagome said feebly.
"We're glad that you're awake, Kagome. We were very worried." Kaede said applying a wet cloth to Kagome's forehead.
"Where's Naraku? Who saved me? Where am I?" Kagome asked.
"One question at a time, my child. Naraku has been destroyed." Kaede said and looked up suddenly as both Sango and Miroku gasped.
"He's destroyed?" Miroku asked looked at his right hand. He stood up and turned away from the others. He took the beads off his wrist and gasped again as he saw that the wind tunnel was no longer there.
"Is the wind tunnel gone?" Sango asked.
"Yes, it's no longer there." Miroku said solemnly.
"Who saved me?" Kagome asked after she got over the initial shock of Naraku's death.
"Inuyasha did. Who else?" Sango said and smiled.
'Inuyasha saved me? I didn't think he would.' Kagome thought. Emotional tears streamed down her cheeks as she recalled what Naraku had done to her. She remembered wanting to die and wishing Inuyasha was there. And he had come; he had come and defeated Naraku. 'But where is he now?'
"Where is Inuyasha? If he did in fact save me, I'd like to thank him." Kagome asked.
They glanced at each other trying to organize what they would tell Kagome. They figured it would break her heart if she knew that Inuyasha hadn't wanted to be there when she woke up.
"Never mind. I know where he is. I know why he isn't here either." Kagome said closing her eyes hoping to stop the flow of her tears. 'I guess I'm still just a shard detector to him. He only saved me so that I could continue collecting shards for him.'
"Would you like to see him?" Sango asked sympathetically.
"That's ok. He obviously doesn't want me to see him, so I'll just stay away from him for a while." Kagome said sitting up. She looked up at her friends and smiled to reassure them that she was ok. But Kagome was far from ok, she was emotionally scarred and had been physically violated. She wished Inuyasha could have at least greeted her when she had awaken, but it was far too much for her to ask of him obviously.
"Miroku, would you mind? Kagome should get dressed." Kaede said glancing at Miroku who had noticed that when Kagome sat up, her upper body had been partially exposed.
"Hm? Right, I'll just be outside then. Come Shippou." Miroku and Shippou exited and Kagome dressed herself in some of her spare clothes that she had brought with her.
"I think I will go see Inuyasha." Kagome thought out loud. "Lady Kaede, thank you for dressing my wounds." Kagome said thankfully.
"Yes, 'twas I who dressed your wounds, but you would've been far worse if Inuyasha hadn't bathed you." Kaede stated.
"He did WHAT!?" Kagome screamed. 'I can't believe Inuyasha saw me naked! I'm so embarrassed. Why would be bathe me? He's not perverted like Miroku.'
"He bathed you." Kaede said simply again. "Do you still want to see Inuyasha?"
"Yes, now I have to thank him even more… I think." Kagome said. She didn't know what she was going to say to him, but she had to speak with him, about what she didn't know.
Kaede gave Kagome directions to where Inuyasha was perched. Kagome took a deep breath and went to go see Inuyasha.
When Kagome had gotten to the tree in which Kaede had directed her, she called up to Inuyasha, who at the time was sleeping. After calling his name a few more times and getting no reply, Kagome got impatient. It was taking her a lot of guts to confront Inuyasha after all the things she had gone through and he wasn't even giving her the courtesy of coming down to talk to her. Finally Kagome was at her breaking point.
"Fine! If you won't come down on your own, then I'll make you come down! SIT!" Kagome screamed.
Inuyasha was quickly shaken from his sleep when an invisible force came down upon him hard and he was hurled to the ground. When the spell finally wore off he looked up and saw Kagome standing before him.
"You little wench! What the hell was the for?" Inuyasha yelled.
"You weren't answering me!" Kagome retorted.
"I was asleep, bitch." Inuyasha yelled again.
"Well, I'm sorry, I didn't know, ok?" Kagome yelled herself. She was beginning to think coming to Inuyasha in the first place was a big mistake.
"What do you want?" Inuyasha said getting up and brushing himself off. 'She looks so sad. Is she crying again? Damn it, I always make her cry.' "If you're gonna cry then go away, that's the last thing I need right now."
"Not until I get this out." Kagome said through her tears.
"What is it?" Inuyasha inquired. He couldn't help but to lower his voice.
"All I wanted to do is thank you for saving me. And I wanted to ask you if you…" Kagome trailed off. She looked down at the ground, too ashamed and embarrassed to look Inuyasha in the eye.
"You wanted to ask me what?" Inuyasha asked sounding as though he was getting impatient.
"Did you bathe me?" Kagome asked, her face still downwards.
Inuyasha looked at Kagome and it was a long time before either of them moved or did anything. Inuyasha figured he had to do something quick because Kagome's tears intensified in the awkward silence. 'She's been through so much. Maybe now would be a good time to comfort her. Maybe now I can tell her how I truly feel about her.'
Inuyasha slowly made his way over to Kagome. He hesitated for a moment but continued to move in on her. She looked up at him. He looked at her. They were a few inches apart. Inuyasha reached over and took Kagome's hand and pulled her towards him. She was a bit reluctant at first but let herself be pulled in. 'It's now or never' Inuyasha thought as he felt Kagome's hand grow clammy from nervousness.
Inuyasha grabbed Kagome by the waist and pulled her into a tight hug. The two of them stayed there enjoying each other's embrace and secretly never wanting to let go. Inuyasha pulled Kagome's chin sky bound in order to look her in the eye.
"Kagome, I did bathe you. I want to know something though." Inuyasha hesitated. He saw Kagome's cheeks were turning a bright shade of crimson but she didn't say anything. "When I was bathing you, you woke up briefly and said something. You said that you didn't think I would save you. I thought that was because you think I love Kikyo more than you."
'Oh my gosh, he used the word 'love'. Wait, did he just say that he thought I think that he loves Kikyo more than me? Does that mean he loves me? Whoa, this is getting pretty weird.' Kagome thought to herself.
"Inuyasha, I can't remember what I said exactly, but what I do know is that I said it because you are always talking about Kikyo, and I know you loved her and probably still do, but what you don't get when you speak of her, is that I love you." Kagome gasped as she said her last few words. 'I can't believe I just told him that I love him!'
"Y-You love me?" Inuyasha said. He let go of Kagome and took a few steps back. She looked hurt when he let her go, but it was his reflexes that had made him react in the way that he did. He was too embarrassed to say anything to Kagome and he didn't wait for Kagome to say anything more. He turned away and sped off into the forest leaving a very hurt and confused Kagome behind.
*fin
Please let me know if you're liking this so far. I appreciate any helpful comments or ideas. At this point in time, I could use a few ideas. Thanx a bunch. Lovies ^o^!
~S saiyan Vegeta4013