A/N: WOW! Over 200+ reviews!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I am so sorry it has taken me so long to put this chapter up! Geez…it has almost taken me 2 weeks to post this! I have been really busy with school and my track coach is a psycho path who seems to think that we need to practice 6 days a week (Including Saturdays…* Sigh *) But anywho, here it is and I hope you enjoy it! R/R PLEASE!!!!!
Disclaimer: Must you remind me??
Don't Say a Word
Chapter 5: Closer to the Source
'A black eye and aBroken arm will mend,
But how do you heal
A broken spirit?'
Inuyasha sighed heavily as his eyes wandered from Kagome's troubled, sleeping face, to the now heavily bandaged arm that lay limply in his lap. Even after bandaging it himself, the hanyou was afraid to touch it any further, for fear that he would cause her even more pain that he already inflicted upon her.
'What did you do to yourself Kagome?' he wondered, deeply troubled by the fact that he did not know for sure what had happened to her arm or her eye.
Yet what disturbed him the most was the single fact that Kagome refused to tell him what happened. She didn't just flat out tell him to 'leave her alone', as she did earlier, but she had deliberately tried to hide from him the fact that she was injured. Seriously injured at that matter.
His eyes wandered back to her blackened cheekbone, noting that the color had spread and was now barely touching her eye. Before he could stop himself, his hand slowly rose to touch the bruise. But as soon as his fingers came in contact with her cold skin, Inuyasha felt Kagome's hand grasp his hakama and her face crinkled in a painful reaction.
Quickly retracting his hand, her features once again softened and her hand relaxed once again to lie loosely across his lap. Slightly disturbed by the coldness of her skin Inuyasha quickly shed his haori and gently draped it over the sleeping girl, careful not to disturb her any further.
Content at his efforts to keep her comfortable, Inuyasha scooted back to lean against the wall far enough to stretch his legs out, yet close enough to keep an eye on her.
Closing his eyes and leaning his head against the wall, Inuyasha let his thoughts wash over him.
'What's happening to you Kagome?' Inuyasha thought mournfully, pained to see Kagome in such bad physical and emotional state.
'Whatever it is…I will find out.'
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A warm breeze caressed Kagome's body as she opened her eyes to find herself lying on a grassy field, the sun shining down upon her face warming her from head to toe. The comfort Kagome felt was almost overwhelming, something that she had not felt for a long time.
Kagome sat up slowly, shading her eyes with her arm as the sun's bright rays flashed across her face. In the distance Kagome could here the faint sound of a woman's laugh, so familiar that it caused the distraught girl to stand and search for the owner of the laugh.
'Mama…' Kagome felt the words form around her mouth as her mother smiled at her, nearly causing tears to free themselves from her eyes. It was something that Kagome had not seen for a very long time.
'Kagome…' Her mother simply replied, the smile slowly fading from her mother's once jubilant face.
'Mama!' Kagome replied quickly, reaching out her arms to embrace her mother. Yet to Kagome's horror, her mother slowly frowned and backed away from Kagome, retreating from her daughter's embrace.
'Where did you go Kagome? Where did you go?' Her mother asked simply, cocking her head in a most childlike way.
'Mama…..I'm sorry….I'm sorry….' Kagome muttered, feeling the emotions that she had been trying to hold back rush forward.
'He's dying Kagome……he's going away forever.'
Kagome felt her knees go weak, not once allowing her eyes to wander from her mother's face as she sank to the grassy ground.
'Good bye Kagome…..Say good bye.' Her mother whispered quietly, her words floating away with the wind as she turned and began to retreat away from Kagome.
'Mama wait!' Kagome screamed, struggling to get to her feet. But she could not find the strength to walk. Her legs felt heavy and weighted, resembling quite closely the heaviness of her heart.
'I'm sorry mama…' Kagome sobbed, giving in to the gravity that seemed to pull her back to the ground.
'I'm sorry…'
Kagome awoke with a start, a searing pain rippling through her flesh as she sat up to support herself with her injured arm. Kagome felt the tears streaming down her face and it was then when she remembered her disturbing dream.
"Mama…." Kagome whispered, scanning the dark room for someone whom she knew would not be there. The room was dark and hollow, a foreboding lonely feeling seeming to brew in every corner.
"Kagome?" Inuyasha's voice suddenly broke the silence, as she felt his hand on her shoulder. Kagome turned to find herself staring into Inuyasha's golden eyes, bearing into her as if trying to read her soul.
Suddenly, the memories from the day before came flooding back to her in a rush and she looked down slowly at her arm, which was now fully bandaged with what looked like supplies from the first aid kit she had packed in her bag.
After realizing how crazy she must have been acting the day before, Kagome looked down at her lap, refusing to meet Inuyasha's concerned eyes.
"You were crying…" Inuyasha stated slowly, watching her face as the moonlight reflected off of her wet cheeks.
"I was not." Kagome replied quietly, turning away from him so that he would not look at her face.
Noting this gesture, Inuyasha became suddenly angered at Kagome's indifferent behavior and spun the girl around to face him.
"Dammit Kagome! What the hell's wrong with you?" Inuyasha snapped at her, slightly taken aback by the very calm yet disturbing look on Kagome's face.
Kagome just sat in a stupor; meeting his eyes with the most deadened gaze Inuyasha had ever seen.
Realizing that Kagome intended to give no response, Inuyasha let go of her shoulders roughly, retreating back to the corner in which he previously sat.
Kagome sat in the stiff silence, not daring to move for fear that her arm would give a scream of protests. Noticing how stiffly kagome sat and how reluctant to move she was he concluded that her arm was most likely giving her pains.
"It hurts…. doesn't it." Inuyasha stated dryly, breaking the abrupt silence that Kagome had been so mesmerized with.
'You have no idea…' Kagome thought, not at all referring to the wound on her arm.
Seeing that Kagome was not really connecting with his words, Inuyasha sighed and leaned his head back against the wall, closing his eyes hoping that maybe tomorrow Kagome would be in a better mood.
Kagome turned her head slightly seeing that Inuyasha had his eyes closed and laid back down on her back, holding her arm up to examine the bandage that Inuyasha had wrapped her arm in. Remembering how delusional she was acting the day before, Kagome realized that the fact that Inuyasha had helped her and actually did something that Kagome really appreciated was very surprising. Kagome began to regret snapping at him and being so set off around him, and sighed softly at her fault.
"Thank you…. Inuyasha." Kagome whispered, oblivious to the hanyou who was still awake. Kagome smiled to herself slightly before lowering her arm and closing her eyes, allowing sleep to once again overtake her.
A soft smile spread over the hanyou's face as Inuyasha also allowed sleep to return to him.
'I will always help you Kagome…..I will always be there..'
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"KAGOME!"
Kagome woke with a start as she felt a ball of fur land forcefully on her chest. Kagome gasped as she quickly sat up, sending the ball of fluff across the room.
"Watch it brat!" Inuyasha snarled as the ball of fluff landed on his head, clinging onto his long silver hair to keep from falling to the floor.
"Now, now you two…stop that before you wake Kagome." Kaede chimed at them, shaking a spoon at the two immature boys' who glared at each other with fanged teeth.
"Too late!" The small boy replied, bouncing back over to the now wide-awake girl who sat rubbing her eyes.
"Shippo…" Kagome smiled tiredly as she patted the kitsune on the head, who in turn hugged her tightly about her leg.
"Good morning Kagome." Kaede smiled calmly, furrowing her eyebrows for a moment as her eyes rested on Kagome's cheekbone.
"You should put some of this on your cheek. Inuyasha already told me what had happened and I went over to borrow it from Mrs. Sakaguchi next door, I hope you won't mind returning it to her later for me." Kaede continued, stopping to stir the pot of soup that was boiling rapidly over the fire.
Kagome suddenly felt faint. What exactly had Inuyasha told Kaede? Did Inuyasha know anything?
"H-he told you that I fell while I was climbing up the side of the well right?" Kagome asked, the nervousness showing in her voice.
Kaede just smiled slightly, and nodded her head once. Kagome sighed in relief.
Inuyasha however, cast Kagome hard look, which Kagome immediately disregarded.
"I could smell your soup a mile away!" Miroku exclaimed, pushing away the door hanging as he and Sango stepped into the hut.
"Because someone forgot to bring enough food…" Sango added, a touch of annoyance in her tone.
Miroku scratched the back of his head casting her a sort of rueful grin.
"Well we can eat now so that's all that matters!" Miroku replied quickly, dismissing the facts that Sango had pointed out. Kaede handed both him and Sango a bowl before passing around the rest to Inuyasha, Shippo, and Kagome.
By the time Inuyasha had finished, Kagome was handed her bowl.
"More." Inuyasha demanded, pushing his empty bowl back toward's Kaede.
"There is none left." Kaede replied, showing the empty pot to the disappointed hanyou.
"I'm still hungry!" Inuyasha complained, looking around the room to see who still had more soup left.
"Go catch a squirrel." Miroku replied, setting down his empty bowl with a grin.
"Shut up Lech!" Inuyasha snapped, his stomach growling loudly at the protest of not enough to eat.
"Here.." Kagome finally spoke up, pushing her untouched bowl towards the ravenous looking hanyou.
"I'm not very hungry.." Kagome finished, receiving a reprimanding look from Sango, who glared at Inuyasha for taking the bowl.
"What! She said she wasn't hungry.." Inuyasha replied, gulping down the soup in response to everyone's glares.
Sango put down her finished bowl and gave Kagome a wary look as she picked out two clean kimono's from Kaede's chest in the corner.
"Kagome, would you accompany me to the stream for a bath?" Sango asked, giving her best smile to the younger girl.
'Maybe she would be more willing to talk away from Inuyasha and Miroku..' Sango thought smartly, pushing aside the door hanging.
Kagome nodded silently before picking up the bottle of healing ointment and followed Sango out of the hut, leaving Kaede to glare at Miroku whose ears perked as soon as he heard the word "bath."
"If I see you two step outside this hut there will be heck to pay." Kaede reminded them warningly as she gathered the empty dishes.
********************
Sango and Kagome walked in silence most of the way to the stream, Sango once in a while looking back over her shoulder at the sullen girl.
After arriving at the bank, Sango quickly stripped herself of her dirty clothes and eager to enter the cooling water. Kagome however, was a little more reluctant.
"Are you coming in?" Sango asked as she swam around dunking her head under the cold water to emerge for Kagome's answer.
"I-I don't think so." Kagome asked skittishly, sitting down on the rock that Sango had put her clothes on.
"I brought you a clean kimono to wear." Sango reminded the younger girl, who began to look more and more uncomfortable as the minutes grew.
Seeing how suspicious she must seem to Sango right now, Kagome reluctantly took off her shoes and socks and walked over to the bank to stick her feet in the cold water.
Sango was beginning to become impatient, wanting very much to squeeze the truth out of Kagome, who was concealing it very well. Not well enough for Sango not to see though.
"Kagome you have to bathe! Just come in for a few minutes to wash your hair and then you can get out, Alright?" Sango exclaimed, shaking her head at the stubborn girl.
"Just for a minute or two…." Kagome muttered, seeing that she could not get out of it so easily this time.
Kagome slowly removed her sweater, revealing to Sango what only Inuyasha knew about.
"Kagome! What happened to your arm?" Sango exclaimed, swimming up to the bank to gape at Kagome's bandaged wound.
"I hurt it when I fell down the well.." Kagome replied quickly, shedding her skirt and blouse to reveal bruised and scratched torso and back.
"Quite a fall you had." Sango said, waiting to see Kagome's reaction.
Kagome just nodded silently as she entered the water, wincing as it cleansed the scratches on her back and stomach. Kagome lifted her injured arm careful not to get it wet.
Sango swam back over to the bank to retrieve a bottle of Kagome's shampoo that she had taken before leaving the hut, glad that she had remembered to bring it along.
After washing her own hair, Sango swam towards Kagome who stood stiffly in the water.
"Let me wash your hair for you." Sango offered, swimming up behind Kagome to shampoo her hair. Before Kagome could protest, Sango had applied a dollop of the flowery smelling substance to Kagome's hair, causing her neck to sting painfully.
Kagome held her breath, not wanting Sango to notice the still healing wound on her neck.
"Dunk." Sango commanded, as Kagome gladly rinsed her hair clean from the shampoo, giving immediate relief to her neck.
After they had both cleaned themselves to satisfaction, Sango stretched herself across a rock to relax. Kagome sat herself on a rock next to Sango, and hugged her legs.
"Ahh…it feels so good to be clean. Doesn't it?" Sango asked as she closed her eyes allowing the sun to kiss her face.
"Hmm." Kagome agreed, not really listening to Sango's words. Noting this, Sango sat up on her elbows to give Kagome a troubled gaze.
"Kagome…if anything's the matter…you can talk to me you know." Sango encouraged, trying to promote Kagome into telling her of her worries.
"I already told you…nothing is the matter." Kagome reassured her, feeling bad about lying to her friend. Kagome stood and slipped on the clean kimono, and tossed one back at Sango who caught her's readily.
Sango remained silent, watching Kagome as she picked up a jar of ointment and applied it to her cheek. Kagome winced as the burning concoction touched her skin.
Sango sighed in defeat, not wanting to upset her friend any longer.
"Well then…lets go back." Sango sighed as she gathered her dirty clothes into her arms in a bundle, waiting for Kagome to do the same.
Kagome gathered her clothes and the bottle in her one good arm, and followed Sango who started to head back towards the trail.
'Something's not right….whatever it is. I'll find out.' Sango concluded, turning back to wait for Kagome to catch up.
'She can't hide it forever.'
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YAY! Well I hope you enjoyed this chapter! The drama and suspense continues! Bwahaha, these stories are so much fun to write!! Yeah well anyway please look forward to the next chapter and R/R!!!!!!!!!
