Gone Astray – An Inu-yasha Fanfic by Sammi-chan

Summary: The portal between ancient Japan and the present one has been shut, Kagome is on one side – and Inu-yasha on the other… So now there's a problem, right?

Rating: PG (PG-13 later?)

11/24/02

CHAPTER 1

Sota pulled on Kagome's hand, dragging her down. She groaned at every tug as he bounced up and down the sidewalk, and ran to the corner and back, his energy… uncontainable. The sidewalk seemed hard – coal gray – yet surprisingly beautiful, and sparkling. Kagome was reminded of Inu-yasha; he could be sweet, it was all a matter of whether or not he wanted to be.

"Hey, sis?" Sota said. Kagome sighed, and pulled one of her backpack straps back onto her shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"Look what I got!" He held up a small envelope. She didn't know what could even fit in an envelope that small. Surely nothing normal. He dumped its contents into his chubby palm, and held them up for her to see. Kagome cringed – he had lost a tooth, and was, surely enough, showing it to her as they got on the subway.

A little girl started getting teary eyed, no more than three years old. Seemingly frightened by the pearly white object in Sota's hand, her mother quickly explained that it happened to everyone. The girl only looked more shocked.

"Did'ja see?" grinned Sota toothily. "I lost it in school!" Kagome refused to be like the girl in the corner, clinging to her mother.

"Yes, I saw," she said, smiling matter-of-factly. A pause came between them, and the train jerked to a stop, throwing Kagome a bit off balance. When she regained it, she continued: "Put it away for now, the Tooth Fairy will come get it later…"

"Really?!" he gasped, eyes wide with excitement. Sota clung to her arm – again.

"Of course."

~

Inuyasha sat atop a tree, miserably irritable. As usual, he was dressed in his red outfit, a brighter red than if it were stained with blood. Around his neck, prayer beads were strung amongst white fangs. The air was peaceful, the temperature cool. Yet he noticed something wrong about it as he sniffed the breezes passing him: Kagome was nowhere to be found.

Myoga was perched on his shoulder, being the parisitely fly he was.

"L-Lord Inuyasha…" he said, shivering from the cold. "When is Kagome coming back?" Inuyasha shook his silver head sadly. Moments later, he raised it, continuing to stare into empty nothingness, no matter the beauty to anyone else. To him, it was ugly – Kagome wasn't inhaling the same oxygen he was.

"Feh," Inuyasha muttered to Myoga. "Who knows if she'd ever if I didn't make her?" Myoga sensed affection in his voice, something that he had not often heard. It was now obvious to him: Inuyasha missed her, and very badly, according to his tone. Whether it was more than affection was yet to be determined in his mind. Inuyasha jumped down from the top branch, limb by limb of the tree. Grace and agility controlled his movements, and meanwhile his balance and speed made it more delightful to watch. Lady Kaede stole a glance at his unhappy face as he walked towards the fields.

"What is the matter, Inuyasha?" she said, and despair filled her voice. "Amuse yourself, won't you? Go find some rumors of the Shikon Shards if that's all you can do!" He made no response, no movement.

"Would you mind if you left me alone, flea?" he hissed at Myoga. Myoga left his shoulder quickly, and was too afraid of what might've happened if he hadn't. Inuyasha was all too grouchy to be dealt with at the moment – he would leave the problem to Kagome.

~

Sota looked at his grandfather in curiosity. Beside him sat Kagome, fidgeting unbearably. She would never confront her grandfather on this matter; it was out of the question. Even if his "spells" never worked, she was worried about whether one did, just once.

"I'm going to go plug up that old well once and for all!" His eyes sparkled. "I have just the spell!" Sota groaned, and Kagome's mother sighed.

"Pop, I think it's time to just let it go…" Kagome's mother replied. She was tired of his wasting money on "sacramental" sake. As she saw it, it was a waste of money. Sometimes more than others, nothing less – it never worked in any case. Grandpa raised his arm in triumph.

"Look, Kagome!" he shouted, voice screeching and raspy. His throat was dry; she handed him a spare cough drop from her skirt pocket. Kagome poked her head inside the hut, into the well. He had plugged it up with a huge boulder, almost the size of a glacier. She winced – she'd never see Inuyasha again! Almost immediately, she paused.

Perhaps it was good thing; most teenagers never met anyone from the feudal ages of Japan. Except maybe the skeletons in a museum, but she never went to see them. If she had never met him, her life would've been a lot different from the present. Yes, it was for the better.

Her mind flipped again. Inuyasha would be furious at her if he ever got into the present again. Beside the point was the fact that she missed him. Her mother looked at her, a questioning countenance on her face. Kagome's eyes swelled up and her heart felt a pang of full loss. She ran to her room, tears streaming down her face.

~

For the millionth time that day, Inuyasha sat by the well. The one that connected him and Kagome, the one he wished to jump into so badly it hurt his guts. His honey-golden eyes trailed every detail: the splinters, every speck of dirt. He was glad to be alone; he didn't want anyone else drinking in his sorrow. Kagome had bid him goodbye only five days before, he was determined to be content with staying home, alone, and let her live her life, if only for a couple more days.

I don't need her. He thought to himself, biased towards his previous view of her. She's never been that important. I can deal. Just watch me. Inuyasha took a breath, surveying the ground in front of him, the drop, and the impact average. He jumped into the well, and expecting a blow to his stomach, he closed his eyes. When he opened them, he remained inside the well, still in feudal Japan, covered in dirt.

~

"Kagome?" called her mother. She rapped on Kagome's door, expecting her sweet, 18-year-old girl to answer quickly. No reaction made her knock again. Inside her room at her desk, Kagome sighed, pen to paper, scribbling everything she ever had thought of about Inuyasha. All their adventures, the demons, Shippo, Miroku, and Sango. She remembered the flesh mask vividly, little Mayu getting dragged below the earth's crust. Her mother stood in the doorway, hands on her hips.

"Don't worry me like that, Kagome," said her mother, pouting slightly. "You know I want to respect your privacy… Within limits." The silky soft palms of her hands were laid against Kagome's cheeks. She kissed Kagome's forehead, and closed the door behind her.

Kagome tilted her head up, pausing her writing. She stared at her books. Inuyasha had never given her back her math textbook! A giggle escaped her lips as she reflected on the time he had asked her what magic spells they were. Her mind decided to let Inuyasha go – for now.

~

He was worried now – why couldn't he go through?! Inuyasha pounded the ground, which only irritated his eyes, tears emerging and then trickling down his cheeks. He was flushed, terribly upset. It couldn't be his ability; that had never mattered before.

All he knew was that he hadn't been able to get to Kagome. That somewhere in the future, Kagome sat, most likely unconcerned, in her room, at her desk, doing homework. She would never return. Why would she want to?

A/N: So whatdya' think? This is my third ficcie. Please continue reading and reviewing! If anyone desires to send me a comment in private (for some reason) send it to: animeangel2007@yahoo.com. Many thanks!