Hey there!^_^ Well, I've decided to add another random sweet thing here with Inu Yasha talking to his mother.^_^ I though it would be cute, though a little ooc and still off of topic.^_~
I got a question on Saturday, one that I've been meaning to mention for a while now. I've noticed that, though the summary for my story on the main page still holds true, I am on chapter 20 now and I haven't gotten there yet. Sorry if that confused or is confusing anyone, but I promise that we're almost there.^_~ Actually, the funny thing is, I think that point is about half way through the story. It's the climax. Muahahaha! Anyway, enough of my rambling, enjoy the chapter!^_^
Update: Ahhh!!! I LOVE you guys!^_^ *gives out little Inu Yasha shaped fish stick things* mmm…fish sticks. Anyway, you guys are so awesome! Thank you sooo much for all of the kind words and comments.^-^ ß -feels all loved To everyone who's read the story so far, and especially to those who've taken time out of their busy schedules to comment, you guys are the greatest!
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or any of the characters in it. If I did I'd be rich, but I'm not... and if I had lots of money I'd probably spend it on anime anyway so pleeaasseee, don't sue me.^_^ lol
Oh, and as always,
_= thoughts *_* = sound/ italicized "_" = speech
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Memories of the Present
Chapter 20: Sweet Sentiments
It was the first peaceful night we'd had in a while. After the demon was killed, the town slowly began to vanish. All of the huts faded; the people turned into souls, disappearing to wherever souls go when it's their time. The crops blackened, withered, and died before our eyes, and there was no trace that the town had even existed, well, besides a minute amount of rubble anyway. There had been nothing left but a large burnt clearing with an occasional knoll of grass and a flower or two. It was too open to camp in, so we paid our respects to the village and continued on; I hoped they found the peace they had been searching for.
Darkness had soon fallen, leaving us with barely a few hours to find a place to stay the night. With no villages nearby, we wandered for about an hour before finding a place to settle down. Things had been quiet after leaving the village, and everything was set up in silence. It was unnerving. Sango and Miroku had attempted to start conversation from time to time, but after seeing the looks from everyone else, they kept their mouths shut. I didn't know why everyone was so quiet, but I assumed that it was probably because of the whole bite thing, which, I might add, Inu Yasha was still denying. As for me, my mind was stuck on one track; why had he kissed me? And, more importantly, why had he kissed me, and still, nothing had changed?
Of course, the silence never could last forever, uncomfortable as it was, and with our group, the best way to break the silence was with, you guessed it, a snide remark.
"Why exactly did we fight that demon again? It didn't even have a shard!"
Kouga smirked, "No, but you did my job for me. Thanks dog-turd."
"Keh." What was with him? Normally a fight would've broken out or at least an insult thrown. Something must've been bothering him.
"Well," I looked to Miroku. He was pretending to stretch, attempting to put his arm around Sango without her noticing. I didn't even know that perverted tradition went this far back through time. As expected, he got a good smack and, rubbing his sore cheek, decided to continue, "it's getting late; we should probably get some rest. We're going to have a long walk tomorrow."
Sango and I immediately scooted away from the guys. Miroku for obvious reasons, as well as Kouga, and Inu Yasha, well...
"Hmm?" Uh oh, he was looking at us, "Miroku, aren't the girls supposed to be looking at *you* like that?" (think the glare from the episode where Miroku gets his kazaana ripped, after he comes back from killing the praying mantis youkai.)
The houshi shrugged, "Hey, I'm not the one who did something dirty... " He looked away and coughed, "...yet." Yeah, like we couldn't hear him.
"I didn't DO anything!"
"Inu Yasha," Miroku's hand was on the hanyou's shoulder; that can't be good. "Yes, but it's only natural that you'd..." *WHACK!!!!* When will he ever learn?
Sango and I sighed and shook our heads. "Anyway, what about Sesshoumaru?"
Sango shrugged, "What about him?"
"Well," I began, "Why do you think he carries Rin around with him? She looks well taken care of, and after that little escapade..."
"What IS it with you guys and my brother?! Keh, forget this, I'm out of here." He stood up and jumped into the nearest tree. He was leaving?!
"Inu Yasha, where are you going? Inu Yasha!"
Shippou jumped into my lap, "Jeeze, what's his problem?"
Miroku shrugged, "Sibling rivalry?"
"Who knows? Maybe we should all get some sleep."
Sango curled up inside of her sleeping bag and buried her head; Miroku followed suit, inching jut close enough to his beloved Sango that she couldn't reach him, but that he could still watch her and maybe even grope her if he tried hard enough. "Agreed, we'll head back to Kaede's village come morning. We have at least a two day journey ahead of us."
"And I'm afraid I have to get going." All eyes turned to Kouga.
"What do you mean Kouga-kun?"
He sighed sadly and took my hands in his own, "My pack needs me; I have been gone much longer than I said I would. But don't worry, if that dog-turd even touches you, tell me and I'll kill him, okay?"
I sighed. He looked so serious, and you really had to wonder about him sometimes, "Sure Kouga. But are you really going without your shards?"
"I don't need them." Uh huh. "Besides, the problem isn't fixed yet, is it?"
With a thoughtful look I removed the pendant from around my neck. Of course, there was no change; I was still holding it. Sadly, I handed it to Sango; I really didn't want to let go of it. It was a gift from Inu Yasha after all. With the pendant no longer on my person, I began to get extremely dizzy and doubled over. Sango rushed to my side and gave me the necklace, immediately relieving me of the horrible symptoms. I smiled and thanked her, then graciously accepted when Kouga helped me up.
"See, I told you. It would do no good to go retrieve my shards now, but I'll be back for you soon and I'll collect them then." With that, he bent down, kissed my hands, and sped off with an "I'll be back for you soon Kagome!" trailing behind him in the wind.
After ten minutes everyone was asleep, well, everyone but me. I rolled over slowly, as not to cause much noise. It was so beautiful here; you could never see the stars back home. Everything around me was so perfect, so special, but, even amidst the twinkling stars and the tall grass, I couldn't lay there any longer. The boredom was killing me.
I wonder where Inu Yasha went. I didn't upset him... did I?
With a reluctant sigh I got out of bed and slowly crept across camp. I knew that I'd probably be yelled at, but it would be worth it. Besides, I couldn't sleep. What else was I supposed to do?
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Elsewhere in the forest, another inner battle was taking place.
Damnit, why in the living hell did Sesshoumaru have to go and say that anyway?! I could mark her if I wanted to.
'Then why haven't you?' A smug grin came across the hanyou's face, erasing the pout that was there a moment before. Isn't it obvious? I don't want to. Of course, it was soon replaced with his usual stubborn scowl.
' You know, you always say that. What about the bite? What about the hold?'
I didn't mark her. Besides, it's not like I knew what it meant, so how can I be held to it?
'Exactly! Your instincts overrode your stubbornness.'
Keh.
'Yeah, yeah, likely story. You know...'
Damnit, why do you ALWAYS have to pop up?! Do you have ANY idea how annoying you are?
'The truth hurts my friend.'
Quiet.
'I haven't said anything yet.'
But you were going to.
'See, ha, you know it's true! You loooove her!'
Damn you! Stop taunting me!
'I win, woohooo!'
Yes, *I* won. Now stop sounding so triumphant!
'hehe, yes, *I* did win. *raspberries at himself* Just admit it.'
Why are you so childish?
'I don't know, why are you?'
Get bent.
'Watch what you ask for.' And with that the hanyou smacked headfirst into a nearby tree branch.
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A small figure crept not-so-silently through the forest that night; no matter how hard she tried, Kagome couldn't avoid the sticks and leaves that she couldn't see. In the short time that she had been out searching, her legs had been scratched by almost every type of plant known to exist in that time period; she was thankful to the cold for convincing her to ditch her usual skirt in exchange for some comfy sweatpants, and thus, saving her legs a lifetime of lotion.
How did I EVER think I was going to find him? It's not like I have demon senses. She sighed, Well, no use now; I don't know my way back. At least if I get in trouble I know I'll find him... or really, he'll find me.
The moonlight shone hazily through the surrounding trees, tiny beams of light searching for the intruder deep within the forest depths. The twigs that snapped beneath her feet jumped up to snag in her pants, and she could have sworn that the leaves got in her way just to annoy her. No matter how hard she tried to stifle the sound, her heartbeat seemed to get louder every second, and if she had been near Inu Yasha, there's no doubt that he would have heard her coming.
He can probably hear me walking around already. What the hell do I think I'm doing?
After a long while, Kagome managed to stumble back upon camp and tried to go back to sleep, but still, she couldn't; she refused to give up. This time she opted for using a rope to trace her way back, tying it to a tree so she wouldn't have to wander so much in her search for the others. Within five minutes of the newly devised search, she finally found the hanyou lying in the grass, seemingly asleep.
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"So, how long do you think it's going to take this time?"
Miroku chuckled, "Ahhh Sango, I see you're awake as well. Hmm... I'd say about an half hour."
"That's it? Okay, I'll take that." Kagome hadn't been the only bored one, and really, it had just been a matter of time before the young miko finally found who she was searching for. Luckily for Sango, Kagome seemed to have been gone at least an hour with no luck the first time, so why should this time be any different?
"Oh *really*?" Miroku smirked, gazing upon Sango playfully.
"Yep, and if I win you have to wear a bell around your neck and carry all of Kagome's and my stuff until we get back to Kaede's hut."
" Okay, and if you lose," Sango edged away slightly as his smirk exploded into a full on grin, " you will have to give me a goodnight kiss and spend the night sleeping next to me."
"What?!" The demon huntress jumped out of bed, "ARE YOU INSANE?"
What's with everyone daring me to kiss Miroku?!
"Sorry Sango, those are the stakes, take it or leave it." She thought about it for a few minutes. "Well?"
Grinning, she lay back down in her sleeping bag and nodded, "Deal. Get ready to have a backache houshi."
He laughed, "We'll see, we'll see..."
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As she neared the area where Inu Yasha lay, she began to hear soft whispers, musings of the days gone by.
Oh Kami, so he's not asleep. Please, don't let him be talking to...
"And that's what happened mother."
Mother? Kagome leaned in softly, peeking from behind a well-concealed tree. Inu Yasha lay on his back, the only real color in a sea of dark green grass. He had his hands behind his head, and eyes closed off to the world, legs stretched out and feet wiggling ever so slightly. She knew what would happen if he caught her spying, but she had finally found him, and wasn't going to leave now that she did... not to mention that her curiosity was getting the better of her. I am *SO* dead if he catches me.
"I knew it wasn't you, but they looked so much like you... Anyway, I don't get a chance to do this often, but I really miss you. I can't tell the others, or anyone really, and I don't often get time to myself, but on the rare occasion I can come talk to you like this, under the stars. It's not like I sleep much anyway, but I have to stay and protect Kagome. Don't worry, the others are with her now; she'll be fine.
I'm confused mother; I have this annoying little voice that pops up in my head sometimes. It's the voice that makes me feel bad when I yell at her or make her cry. It's been coming around more lately and I hate it. I hate it because I know it's always right. It tempts me with happy thoughts, but I know that I can't be happy. Not for a time anyway. See, we still haven't finished our journey nor beaten Naraku. Not only that, I still haven't put Kikyo to rest.
Damnit mother, what's wrong with me?! Whenever I think about her I feel guilty. I love her but... Kagome's more important to me... and I don't want to lose her. Every time someone mentions Kikyo she acts like nothing's happened, but I know it hurts her, though I have no idea why. Women, go figure."
As if realizing what he'd said, he sat up and smiled, " Oh, sorry mom. Anyway, I should be heading back. I don't want to leave the others for too long. Besides, Kagome thinks that I don't know she's there, and if she doesn't start running I'm going to have to go after her."
With a start, Kagome dashed back into the forest towards camp, the rope leading the way.
Inu Yasha just sat there and grinned mischievously, "One, two, three, four..."