A/n: 03-30-03 Sorry you guys. I have kind of been putting this off without meaning to. My birthday was last Tuesday, and then I had a concert, and now I have this cold. I'd like to, right about now, just sleep for a week. To top it all off, the new quarter starts tomorrow at my local community college. Technically I'm only a high school student, which is where I participate in choir. But there's a program where I live that lets high school kids go to the community college. The fact that I don't have classes there tomorrow is nice, but hardly helpful, because I'm not likely to get better anytime soon. I'm also running a fever, so this one might be a bit weirder than usual. LOL. Inu Yasha's POV.
Regrets Chapter 8
Disclaimer: Haven't you gotten the idea? I don't own any of the Inu Yasha group. And even if I DID, do you think I'd just be handing them out?!
I stood there staring at Suzuka. What does she mean? Kagome was alive, so obviously, she'll come back, right? My ears lay back against my head as I begin to growl.

"Why wouldn't Kagome come back?" I growl menacingly. "Is that a threat? Did you do something to her?" I can smell the fear on her, but she isn't showing it. In fact, she looks angry.

"Put. Me. Down." She demands in a quiet voice, and I realize that I am holding her a few inches off the ground, my claws digging into her arms a bit. Suprised, I toss her away into her chair. "We need to work on your manners young man," She says as she rubs her arm. "First, let me tell you how I found you two and brought you to my home." I blinked. It hadn't occurred to me that this human woman was treating me as if she saw people with fangs and claws every day. She wasn't afraid, except when I had threatened her. "It might appear strange to you that a mortal woman is used to dealing with demons, especially in days like these, when demons are regarded as fairy tales. I work at a nearby hospital. Mostly we treat humans, but the few hanyou, demons, and non-humans that there are today come to us for treatment. I am in charge of that branch of the hospital. That is why I'm not shocked to see a young man with dog ears." She raised an eyebrow at me, amused. "I was suprised however, to have my son sense a demon aura in an abandoned warehouse as he was walking me home. We went and found you two, and I had you brought to my home for treatment. Normally, I would have taken you to the hospital, but they have all sorts of forms, and you have no license, as is required by the government. I brought you here to avoid trouble. In return, I'd like to ask you a few questions. Also, I have a slight bit of uh.. spiritual training, which brought me to believe that your friend's soul is... in a battle, for lack of a better explanation."

"A battle? Why should that affect whether she wakes up or not?" The hair on the back of my neck rises, and I begin to feel threatened by a presence. I lay my ears back. I will not be intimidated by a woman!

"Your friend's soul has been split into two parts. Right now, the two parts of her soul are battling for control of the body that is sleeping in there." She takes a deep breath, about to continue, when the door opens. A young man steps in. As I catch sight of him I jump up, reaching for the tetsusaiga. A demon! The young man looks at me, a bit startled. His hair is grown long, pulled back into a tail, but it does not quite hide the points of his ears. As he pulls back his lips in a grimace of distaste, I see the fangs in his mouth, and the marks on his cheeks and wrists identify that has poison in his claws. I realize that tetsusaiga must be in the room with Kagome, and I am on my own. Then, to my suprise, he turns away. I relax just a bit, and before I realize it, he is at my throat, his claws posistioned for the killing blow.

"You shouldn't relax," He says menacingly. "Just because I turned my back. I thought you would know better." He pokes me in the gut, and I grunt a little in pain. I had forgotten my wounds. He pushes me over and walks back to Suzuka's side. "Then again," He says, grinning as I climb quickly to my feet. "You wouldn't have those wounds if you did know better, would you?" Then, as Suzuka glares at him, he shifts uncomfortably. He doesn't look in her direction, but as she lays her book down on her lap and clasps her hands, he jumps. "Sorry. I shouldn't tease you like that." Suzuka nods, and he visibly relaxes.
"This is my son, Keisuke." I jump a little. Her son? He doesn't smell human in the slightest. She clears her throat. I look at her warily, confused. "Well, aren't you going to introduce yourself?"

"I'm Inu Yasha." I look at her. Then at Keisuke. I could swear that he was a full demon.

"And you're a half dog-demon." She nods. "Well Inu Yasha, I'll explain more about your friend, but first, I need some details. One, where are you from? Two, how did your friend's soul get split, if you know? Three, Why do both halves of her soul have a deep emotional attachment to yours?"

"Kagome's soul..." Both Kikyo and Kagome had been on my mind for a while. Thoughts of the shikon jewel accomanied the thoughts of Kikyo. She had always been so lonely, I wanted to be human, and stay with her always. But Kagome seemed, happy. She never said anything about me changing, she just accepts me as I am. I explain softly where we had come from while Keisuke's eyebrows raise in disbelief. Normally, right about now, I would be at his throat but my anger seems far away, even muted. Suzuka just seems to listen though, showing no signs as to whether or not she believes my story. I reach the end of my story having told them everything from the beginning, with Kikyo. I couldn't understand one thing she had said though. Both parts of Kagome's soul had an emotional attachment? Kikyo, she hated me for what happened the day she died. She might have liked me before that, but what about Kagome? Does she care about... me? A deep sob interrupts my thoughts, and I look up to see slow tears running down Suzuka's face, Keisuke at her side with concern on his eyes.

"Mom, it's okay, I can tell him." Suzuka seems much younger, almost childlike as she sobs into her hands. Keisuke's comforting arm is wrapped around her. Suzuka nods at her son, and walks out of the room with one backward glance at me. Suddenly all my emotions seem to come rushing back. I feel kind of gulity. I didn't make her cry, did I? As Keisuke turns from the door, he looks at me uncomfortably. Don't I not like him? "You can't be mad at her." What? Be mad at Suzuka? He sighs, continuing. "She was just trying to help. And you can't ell anyone, but I suppose, where you're from, there's noone who would really know her." The speech sounds practiced. I get frustrated.

"Get to the point already." He shoots me a look, and I glare back, but close my mouth.

"The thing is, my mom has been manipulating you." I scoff, but he ignores me. "She's not human." I start to interrupt, but then I recall that she never had smelt like a human. Snow, medicine, Kagome and myself had been the major scents on her. I blink. If she wasn't human, what was she?

* * * *

Kagome's POV
Kikyo seems to have forgotten me she just stares at the scene before us with those heart wrenching eyes. The tears run down her face. I feel a need to comfort her, but the answers I need to do so haven't been given to me yet. I look at her, silently promising to come back. Then run up to the scene, and I try to stop as the crowd looms ahead, but I trip and go flying. Straight through a person and halfway through another. I stand up before I realize it. Creeped out, I dash quickly through the rest of the people. They don't seem to notice. I do though, and chills are running down my back in this stifling heat. Am I the ghost or are they? I don't think I want to know. I could just imagine Inu Yasha though. 'Do you think you could be any clumsier, wench!' I shake off thoughts of him, blinking away tears that wanted to form. As my eyes clear I see a small party of warriors, or something. They're riding swiftly down the road, causing the dust under the horses' hooves to go fliying. In the lead is a woman, in her thirties, I'd guess. It's hard to tell with the face masks. On her back though, is a huge boomerang. (A/n: It's not Sango, itd her grandmother.) Appraoching the shrine, they rein in thier horses. The woman makes an announcement, her voice slightly muffled by her mask.

"We cannot stay! A large demon horde has followed us to get the jewel." A gasp came from the crowd, and panicked cries began. "SILENCE!" Her voice carried over the noise. "We will return and fend them off. Where is the priestess?" At this, Kikyo rushed forward.

"She's too young. We're suppsed to trust her with the jewel?" A man says softly to his companion, who shrugs.

"She's supposed to be really powerful." He looked her over. "Hard to believe, though." They both snicker, which Kikyo arrives in time to hear. She blushes. The leader glares at them before turning back to Kikyo.

"You are her?" Kikyo nods, the blush fading. "Then, I will entrust you with the protection and cleansing of the Shikon Jewel." She pulls off a necklace with the jewel hanging from it. As she leans over to hand it to Kikyo, she says in a voice only for those two. "You had better do your job well little girl. My husband died retrieving that thing." Kikyo nods solemnly, all trace of embarrassment gone. She takes the jewel, but the woman catches her wrist. "If that falls back into demon hands and you live to tell the tale, I will hunt you down myself." Kikyo's face pales and she nods. The woman, her intense eyes searching Kikyo's face, drops her and turns her horse. "We go! To the hunt!" Her and her men ride off. I see Kikyo, her white knuckled hands grasping the jewel. She's muttering something under her breath.

"I can do this. I can do this. I can do this." As the crowd scatters and her sister comes up to cling at her legs, she continues staring at the road, muttering. Finally, her face hardens and she nods to herself, walking away. The scene fades and my heart continues to pound. That woman had been insanely serious. She scared me. The grey surroundings again fade away as a new scene appears. It's late evening, and I know by instinct that a year has passed. Some samurai ride into town, looking scraggly and greasy. I can feel their malicousness as they ride past me. Children are called into the houses, and the men laugh gratingly at the fear they recieve. Out the corner of my eye, I see Kikyo send little Kaede into a house as she prepares to approach the men.

"Sirs, welcome to our little village. Is there any way that we could help you?" The leader looks Kikyo up and down with a disgusting leer. She looks steadily back at him, though I can see her clench her hands to stop them shaking.

"Yeah." He responds nastily, pulling out his short sword and poining it at her. "Give us your money. A little service might be nice too." He grins wickedly as his men chuckle. "We've been traveling for a while, you see, and we're...hungry." Kikyo looks at his sword disgustedly, then glares up at him.

"I'm afraid we cannot help you then." She says through gritted teeth. The leader narrows his eyes, and raises his sword threateningly. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. Now get out before I make you." His men find that hilarious. However, the leader swings his sword, angry. Kikyo watches it's path, and as it gets about a foot away, it hits an invisible shield. The bright flash of light it makes blinds the men, startling their horses. The animals rear and dump their riders. The leader, crawling backward away from Kikyo, sheathes his sword. The men take off after thier horses, and he stands up.

"You won't get away with this, witch." He spits at her feet. "I'll be back." Then he runs into the darkness, following his men. As he dissapears her facade of strength evaporates, and she leans against a nearby wall breathing deeply. People peek out, and Kaede rushes out the door to her sister. Kikyo sweeps her up, holding her close for comfort. The village eventually settles down, and I wonder why the scene isn't over. Then I notice, in the darkness, that the samurai are back. They're creeping into the house that Kikyo had shoved Kaede into. They must think it's her house, but when she had gone to bed, her house had been a little ways up the hill. I have to warn them! I run up to Kikyo's house as fast as I can, and get there, panting.

"Kikyo! Wake up!" I try to shake her sleeping form, but my hands pass right through her. I cry out in frustration, and she seems to hear me. "Kikyo, they're in trouble! You have to help!" She opens her eyes slowly. Pushing herself up on one elbow, she looks at the slumbering Kaede. Seeing that she isn't awake, Kikyo starts to lay back down. "No! Don't go back to-" I'm interrupted by a bloodcurdling scream. Kikyo sits up, horror in her eyes. Grabbing her nearby bow and arrows, she bolts out the door. I follow, frutrated that I can't help. When we get there, the house is beginning to blaze, and we hear catcalls coming from the surrounding country.

"Die, witch!"

"Hope you can stop that!" Whoops and loud laughter follow.Kikyo stops, staring in horror at the scene before her. A young woman, probably eleven, is cradling the bloodsoaked body of her mother, crying. She looks up at Kikyo, furious and distressed.

"This is all your fault! My whole family is dead because of you!" Her words are broken by sobs, "You really are a witch!" Kikyo's face is wet with tears, and she trys to find something to say. She looks around her for support, but most of the villiagers that aren't busy putting out the fire are shifting uncomfortably, noone meeting her eyes. They believe it too? A wrenching sob is torn from her throat, and she runs into the forest nearby. I run after her, not knowing what else to do. Tears are noww running down my face as well as hers. She trips and falls, but doesn't get back up, just lays there, crying into the dirt. As I stand there unable to help I can hear the words she's saying through her sobs.

"Why couldn't I stop it? Why? Why?" She goes back to convulsive sobs as the scene fades to grey again. A dozen more scenes like those followed, always with Kikyo asking her question. As the time of memories ends, I walk over to her. We say it together, this time yelling, hoping to be heard.

"WHY?"
End regrets chapter 8
A/n: *Pulls out a tissue* Gah, that was so sad! *deep breath* I'm okay now. I know, there was no M/S in this one, but maybe next chappie will be just them. With alot of fluff? Who knows (certainly not me). Well, I'm off to the beach!