Chapter 7
::thanks to everyone who reviewed my last chapter. Please keep the reviews coming! I love hearing feedback on what I'm doing. This story is about to lose priority in my everyday life, so keep talkin'! lol::
Kagome gripped a crying Mihaku so tightly that she felt his heart beating furiously against her collar bone. He was equally as terrified as she was over this tall figure of menace. Inuyasha and Shippo, however, did not seem the slightest bit unhappy to see him. Souta came over to Kagome and she quickly shoved him protectively behind her.
"Sesshoumaru!" she snarled. "You're still alive? Wha-Who the hell do you think you are? Charging into my house like this! What do you want!"
"Inuyasha..." growled Sesshomaru in warning. Inuyasha began to open his mouth when Kagome's voice was heard once again.
"You can't have him! OR MIHAKU! I'll kill you first!" swore Kagome. With one hand she lifted her flickering power to attack.
"Kagome no!" shrieked Inuyasha.
"It's alright. I've protected Mihaku this way before, he won't be harmed."
"I'm not talking about that!"
"Inuyasha, why do you allow her to shout at me so? And silence that child, before I do it for you," Sesshoumaru spoke firmly.
"You'll what?" yelled Shippo.
"Not in this lifetime you won't!" glared Kagome.
"Sesshomaru, if you lay your only hand on that child I will rip it off in a much more painful way than when I severed the other," cautioned Inuyasha. "Now, if everyone will just calm down."
"Inuyasha?" wondered Kagome.
"Sis, what's happening?" begged Souta quietly.
"I- don't know. Run upstairs and stay with mother tonight. Do it!" instructed Kagome. Souta took off at a run and attracted the older demon's attention. Kagome moved into his sight line with a smirk on her face. Inuyasha had stood up for her, she knew she would be absolutely fine if Sesshomaru tried anything. She readjusted Mihaku in her arms and allowed the babe to bury his head under her raven locks.
"I repeat, Sesshomaru, what do you want?" she said tranquilly. Shippo shivered from the cold in her voice. Inuyasha walked toward his wife and place a hand on Mihaku's back to relax him.
"Yes, why are you here brother?" asked Inuyasha.
"When the kit--"
"I'm grown!" protested Shippo.
"When the kit brought me your letter I was reminded of something I could not place until recently, I came over once I realized what it was," he explained. Shippo went to close the front door as the man walked into the livingroom.
"Inuyasha, your wrote to him???" cried Kagome in betrayal.
"Kagome, he has been alive for much longer than I. We are brothers and over the years we discovered that. Sesshoumaru is my ally now," he assured.
"I don't trust him. He just wants to kill Mihaku for your sword! That's all he's ever wanted from you!" she whispered in return and extremely vehmently.
"Why would I kill the boy for the sword if it is Inuyasha who wields it?"
"SEE!" snapped Kagome.
"Sesshoumaru, please. You aren't helping me here. Kagome, Sesshoumaru had the chance to take Tetsaiga when I was going through my depression but he didn't. He can be trusted, to a degree. Rin did him a world of good by easing his heart."
"Dad's telling you the truth. He won't hurt you and especially not his own nephew!" laughed Shippo.
"Shippo!" snarled Inuyasha, glaring intensely at his young companion. Shippo's jaw dropped as he realized what he'd said and he backed away from the group.
"My nephew? Explain, Inuyasha," demanded Sesshoumaru. Inuyasha took a deep sigh and removed his hand from his son's back.
"Mihaku is my son. I have given the Tetsaiga to him and that's why Kagome feared for his life near you."
"So you did mate with the woman..." concluded Sesshoumaru flatly. Kagome took a step toward Inuyasha, her eyes trembling with fear.
"I did."
"You make your own choices, brother. I wish only to aid your new mate and my new nephew," he replied. Inuyasha nodded solemnly.
"You- came to help- me? Inuyasha, you told him about the voice?" murmured Kagome.
"I did, but I left out Mihaku...the story is a little bit twisted Sesshoumaru. Things have changed. It would be better for me to start over," explained Inuyasha. Sesshomaru nodded in agreement and followed his brother to a chair near the couch. Inuyasha drug a bewildered Kagome behind him by the hand and sat her next to him on the couch. "Shippo, c'mon. You are part of this as well."
"What about mother and grandpa? Should I wake them?" asked Kagome.
"No. They can't help you so there's no need in disturbing them."
"So that is my nephew..." thought Sesshomaru out loud, staring at the back of the baby's head. Kagome placed her hand there and drew her son closer to her breast.
"Yes," she answered.
"He has his father's hair and claws...what about his face?" wondered Sesshoumaru.
"He has Kagome's vivid eyes and smile, but his ears are pointed like mine," answered Inuyasha. "Now to the point. This may take awhile," he added looking to Kagome.
"I'm alright. Go ahead," she promised and swallowed hard. Inuyasha took her hand to comfort her before he began the story.
Hours later Sesshoumaru sat in the same position he'd been in when the conversation started. As Inuyasha finished the story Kagome allowed her drooping head to fall on his shoulder. Shippo lay with one hand under his head on the floor beneath them.
"It is as I suspected. The miko you once loved no longer wishes vengance upon you, Inuyasha," stated Sesshoumaru. There was a sudden wave of alertness that caught Inuyasha and Kagome in the eyes.
"She isn't?" awed Inuyasha happily.
"No, now she has her eyes set on the one that prevented her from taking you to hell, foiled her plans, and took your devotion from her." The blood drained from Inuyasha's face and his eyes went blank.
"Kagome..." as the words escaped his lips she gripped his hand fearfully.
"So Kikyo has been attacking me?"
"Yes."
"And she's a spirit?"
"Yes."
"And the reason she can attack me is because she retains a small fraction of my soul?"
"That is correct."
"How do I stop her?" growled Inuyasha, now gripping Kagome's hand in return. Shippo watched on with interested eyes.
"You said the monk's voice stopped Kikyo at the store?"
"Yeah, and the petals were glowing on her dress," answered Inuyasha.
"It seems the only person who can save her is this monk."
"But he's been dead for nearly 500 years!" yelled Inuyasha. Sesshoumaru glared.
"Do not get sharp with me, mutt, or I will cease my assistance here. I am risking my very existance by helping her," he scolded.
"What?"
"The only method by which to save Kagome is to sacrafice our lives, so that she might go back through the well," he explained. There was a long pause at this before anyone flinched.
"What has to be done?" asked Inuyasha at length and with determination in his voice.
"What? No Inuyasha! I won't lose you! I won't lose Mihaku or Shippo either! I won't! I'd rather die!" shouted Kagome. Inuyasha took the sobbing Kagome into his arms. "Besides, it's only been two days! Maybe it'll get better!"
"Are you stupid? Her attacks are getting more frequent! We have to do something!" corrected Inuyasha. Kagome sniveled loudly.
"It is not all that terrifying, miko. I will send you backward in time to the day you met Inuyasha. I will save your friends from the car and so prevent either of you crossing paths. You will pass through the well that night and upon one night in the Feudal Era the time lines with sync again and no time will have been lost."
"But, there's a couple problems with that. Can Kagome even get back through the well?" wondered Shippo. "She never came back before."
"It wouldn't let me after I came home forever," added the girl.
"That was before Inuyasha used the jewel. He has just used the jewel this day and so it has returned to it's protector."
"So the Shikon no Tama is inside Kagome?" asked Inuyasha.
"Yes, in the same place it was torn from before. The jewel will allow her to pass into the well once only, because she will be going backward in her own time and the jewel will disappear before she can return, because it will off set the warring era to just before he uses it," explained Sesshoumaru. Everyone gaped at him in confusion other than Mihaku who slept soundly in his parents' laps. Sesshoumaru took a silently sigh without changing his expression.
"In other words you will be going into the day Inuyasha used the jewel. The feudal era isn't as affected by time alertations in this world. And because Inuyasha will have the jewel it will not be inside your body until he uses it again. After he uses the jewel it will take several months before it will return to you."
"Oh...but- how will I get home?"
"Because Inuyasha is partial demon and so is your 'son' they can allow you to pass through the timeline until the jewel returns to you."
"I understand. It's very complicated though," put in Inuyasha.
"So is time. Is this what you desire?" Another moment of silence passed whilst Kagome thought of losing her love and new son. Her eyes fell upon Inuyasha's who read her thoughts clearly. He was urging her to save herself.
"I'll still be with you, only it will be the me you remember. I'll never leave you again Kagome, I swear."
"Mom, please. It's the only way. We'll be there in the past too!" agreed Shippo. Kagome looked to Sesshoumaru for an instant and then to Mihaku.
"This- is what I want," she murmured quietly. Inuyasha gripped her hand and she suddenly felt Shippo hugging her leg tightly.
"Hold out your hand, we don't have long." Kagome did as told and watched in wonder as her brother-in-law set a tiny blue ball in the palm of her hand. "That is the very last of my powers, once you use it, I will be gone, never to help you again. We will not be capable of fixing the timeline if you mess up." Kagome nodded and gripped the tiny ball in her hand. "Hold this in your hand as you sleep tonight. When you awake it will be as if none of this happened. The ball will vanish and with it, your memories. It will be like starting over." Kagome took a deep swallow and remained silent as tears slid down her cheeks.
"And Mihaku will be fine?"
"Untouched. Because he is so small he will recognize his father and Shippo, but will not remember events. No child at that age does...I will leave now. My part is finished," he added as he stood and walked toward the front door. Kagome, Inuyasha, and Shippo sat frozen as the door closed. Kagome held in her hand the answer to her problem and the doom of those that sat next to her.
"We will not say goodbye. None of us will remember this in the morning. Let's simply go to bed as if nothing happened. And SLEEP. The sooner we go to sleep the faster morning will come and the lack of pain," instructed Inuyasha. Shippo nodded solemnly.
"So after Kagome goes through the well we won't exist in these forms anymore?" asked Shippo. Inuyasha nodded. "I feel horrible...mom- hey she-she's asleep." Inuyasha looked down at his sleeping bride and tears slid down his cheeks. He wasn't really losing her, that was all he needed to tell himself.
"She couldn't take the pain. She wants the pain to be over, and so should we. Let's go to bed Shippo."
"How am I suppose to sleep knowing that in the morning everything will be different?!"
".......just imagine what you would have felt like to see Kagome come home when you were younger. To have her there while you grew up and to feel the happiness she inspires in the villagers........" answered Inuyasha quietly. Shippo said nothing. He sat quietly and watched his pained father lift his mother and son in one stroke. "Sweet dreams, Shippo...." added Inuyasha as he moved up the stairs. Shippo stood slowly and scanned the house. This would be the last time he saw it as well. No more scents of freshly cleaned linens or tasting home cooked meals. The light of Kagome's room turned on and dark shadows told the story of Inuyasha putting his family to bed. Shippo's eyes then moved right, near the stairs and he noticed a soft night light on in Mrs. Higurashi's room. Kagome had told Souta to go sleep in there....that was where he would go. He would spend the night in a warm bed with his grandmother and young uncle, for the first and last time. Tears stained his shirt as he silently followed Inuyasha's footsteps up the stairs. The light of Kagome's room went out and the door closed as Inuyasha himself headed to bed. Shippo walked quietly into the room. Without bothering to change his clothes he crawled into the bed between them and snuggled his face into his grandmother's neck while Souta hugged him fondly from behind. This was his family...
Inuyasha bounced one last time to assure a comfortable position to sleep in as he held his wife one last time. She wrapped her arms around him in her sleep and sniveled softly as she rubbed her cheek against his chest. Inuyasha put his arms around her and let the tears fall freely in mourning of what he was about to willingly lose.
::thanks to everyone who reviewed my last chapter. Please keep the reviews coming! I love hearing feedback on what I'm doing. This story is about to lose priority in my everyday life, so keep talkin'! lol::
Kagome gripped a crying Mihaku so tightly that she felt his heart beating furiously against her collar bone. He was equally as terrified as she was over this tall figure of menace. Inuyasha and Shippo, however, did not seem the slightest bit unhappy to see him. Souta came over to Kagome and she quickly shoved him protectively behind her.
"Sesshoumaru!" she snarled. "You're still alive? Wha-Who the hell do you think you are? Charging into my house like this! What do you want!"
"Inuyasha..." growled Sesshomaru in warning. Inuyasha began to open his mouth when Kagome's voice was heard once again.
"You can't have him! OR MIHAKU! I'll kill you first!" swore Kagome. With one hand she lifted her flickering power to attack.
"Kagome no!" shrieked Inuyasha.
"It's alright. I've protected Mihaku this way before, he won't be harmed."
"I'm not talking about that!"
"Inuyasha, why do you allow her to shout at me so? And silence that child, before I do it for you," Sesshoumaru spoke firmly.
"You'll what?" yelled Shippo.
"Not in this lifetime you won't!" glared Kagome.
"Sesshomaru, if you lay your only hand on that child I will rip it off in a much more painful way than when I severed the other," cautioned Inuyasha. "Now, if everyone will just calm down."
"Inuyasha?" wondered Kagome.
"Sis, what's happening?" begged Souta quietly.
"I- don't know. Run upstairs and stay with mother tonight. Do it!" instructed Kagome. Souta took off at a run and attracted the older demon's attention. Kagome moved into his sight line with a smirk on her face. Inuyasha had stood up for her, she knew she would be absolutely fine if Sesshomaru tried anything. She readjusted Mihaku in her arms and allowed the babe to bury his head under her raven locks.
"I repeat, Sesshomaru, what do you want?" she said tranquilly. Shippo shivered from the cold in her voice. Inuyasha walked toward his wife and place a hand on Mihaku's back to relax him.
"Yes, why are you here brother?" asked Inuyasha.
"When the kit--"
"I'm grown!" protested Shippo.
"When the kit brought me your letter I was reminded of something I could not place until recently, I came over once I realized what it was," he explained. Shippo went to close the front door as the man walked into the livingroom.
"Inuyasha, your wrote to him???" cried Kagome in betrayal.
"Kagome, he has been alive for much longer than I. We are brothers and over the years we discovered that. Sesshoumaru is my ally now," he assured.
"I don't trust him. He just wants to kill Mihaku for your sword! That's all he's ever wanted from you!" she whispered in return and extremely vehmently.
"Why would I kill the boy for the sword if it is Inuyasha who wields it?"
"SEE!" snapped Kagome.
"Sesshoumaru, please. You aren't helping me here. Kagome, Sesshoumaru had the chance to take Tetsaiga when I was going through my depression but he didn't. He can be trusted, to a degree. Rin did him a world of good by easing his heart."
"Dad's telling you the truth. He won't hurt you and especially not his own nephew!" laughed Shippo.
"Shippo!" snarled Inuyasha, glaring intensely at his young companion. Shippo's jaw dropped as he realized what he'd said and he backed away from the group.
"My nephew? Explain, Inuyasha," demanded Sesshoumaru. Inuyasha took a deep sigh and removed his hand from his son's back.
"Mihaku is my son. I have given the Tetsaiga to him and that's why Kagome feared for his life near you."
"So you did mate with the woman..." concluded Sesshoumaru flatly. Kagome took a step toward Inuyasha, her eyes trembling with fear.
"I did."
"You make your own choices, brother. I wish only to aid your new mate and my new nephew," he replied. Inuyasha nodded solemnly.
"You- came to help- me? Inuyasha, you told him about the voice?" murmured Kagome.
"I did, but I left out Mihaku...the story is a little bit twisted Sesshoumaru. Things have changed. It would be better for me to start over," explained Inuyasha. Sesshomaru nodded in agreement and followed his brother to a chair near the couch. Inuyasha drug a bewildered Kagome behind him by the hand and sat her next to him on the couch. "Shippo, c'mon. You are part of this as well."
"What about mother and grandpa? Should I wake them?" asked Kagome.
"No. They can't help you so there's no need in disturbing them."
"So that is my nephew..." thought Sesshomaru out loud, staring at the back of the baby's head. Kagome placed her hand there and drew her son closer to her breast.
"Yes," she answered.
"He has his father's hair and claws...what about his face?" wondered Sesshoumaru.
"He has Kagome's vivid eyes and smile, but his ears are pointed like mine," answered Inuyasha. "Now to the point. This may take awhile," he added looking to Kagome.
"I'm alright. Go ahead," she promised and swallowed hard. Inuyasha took her hand to comfort her before he began the story.
Hours later Sesshoumaru sat in the same position he'd been in when the conversation started. As Inuyasha finished the story Kagome allowed her drooping head to fall on his shoulder. Shippo lay with one hand under his head on the floor beneath them.
"It is as I suspected. The miko you once loved no longer wishes vengance upon you, Inuyasha," stated Sesshoumaru. There was a sudden wave of alertness that caught Inuyasha and Kagome in the eyes.
"She isn't?" awed Inuyasha happily.
"No, now she has her eyes set on the one that prevented her from taking you to hell, foiled her plans, and took your devotion from her." The blood drained from Inuyasha's face and his eyes went blank.
"Kagome..." as the words escaped his lips she gripped his hand fearfully.
"So Kikyo has been attacking me?"
"Yes."
"And she's a spirit?"
"Yes."
"And the reason she can attack me is because she retains a small fraction of my soul?"
"That is correct."
"How do I stop her?" growled Inuyasha, now gripping Kagome's hand in return. Shippo watched on with interested eyes.
"You said the monk's voice stopped Kikyo at the store?"
"Yeah, and the petals were glowing on her dress," answered Inuyasha.
"It seems the only person who can save her is this monk."
"But he's been dead for nearly 500 years!" yelled Inuyasha. Sesshoumaru glared.
"Do not get sharp with me, mutt, or I will cease my assistance here. I am risking my very existance by helping her," he scolded.
"What?"
"The only method by which to save Kagome is to sacrafice our lives, so that she might go back through the well," he explained. There was a long pause at this before anyone flinched.
"What has to be done?" asked Inuyasha at length and with determination in his voice.
"What? No Inuyasha! I won't lose you! I won't lose Mihaku or Shippo either! I won't! I'd rather die!" shouted Kagome. Inuyasha took the sobbing Kagome into his arms. "Besides, it's only been two days! Maybe it'll get better!"
"Are you stupid? Her attacks are getting more frequent! We have to do something!" corrected Inuyasha. Kagome sniveled loudly.
"It is not all that terrifying, miko. I will send you backward in time to the day you met Inuyasha. I will save your friends from the car and so prevent either of you crossing paths. You will pass through the well that night and upon one night in the Feudal Era the time lines with sync again and no time will have been lost."
"But, there's a couple problems with that. Can Kagome even get back through the well?" wondered Shippo. "She never came back before."
"It wouldn't let me after I came home forever," added the girl.
"That was before Inuyasha used the jewel. He has just used the jewel this day and so it has returned to it's protector."
"So the Shikon no Tama is inside Kagome?" asked Inuyasha.
"Yes, in the same place it was torn from before. The jewel will allow her to pass into the well once only, because she will be going backward in her own time and the jewel will disappear before she can return, because it will off set the warring era to just before he uses it," explained Sesshoumaru. Everyone gaped at him in confusion other than Mihaku who slept soundly in his parents' laps. Sesshoumaru took a silently sigh without changing his expression.
"In other words you will be going into the day Inuyasha used the jewel. The feudal era isn't as affected by time alertations in this world. And because Inuyasha will have the jewel it will not be inside your body until he uses it again. After he uses the jewel it will take several months before it will return to you."
"Oh...but- how will I get home?"
"Because Inuyasha is partial demon and so is your 'son' they can allow you to pass through the timeline until the jewel returns to you."
"I understand. It's very complicated though," put in Inuyasha.
"So is time. Is this what you desire?" Another moment of silence passed whilst Kagome thought of losing her love and new son. Her eyes fell upon Inuyasha's who read her thoughts clearly. He was urging her to save herself.
"I'll still be with you, only it will be the me you remember. I'll never leave you again Kagome, I swear."
"Mom, please. It's the only way. We'll be there in the past too!" agreed Shippo. Kagome looked to Sesshoumaru for an instant and then to Mihaku.
"This- is what I want," she murmured quietly. Inuyasha gripped her hand and she suddenly felt Shippo hugging her leg tightly.
"Hold out your hand, we don't have long." Kagome did as told and watched in wonder as her brother-in-law set a tiny blue ball in the palm of her hand. "That is the very last of my powers, once you use it, I will be gone, never to help you again. We will not be capable of fixing the timeline if you mess up." Kagome nodded and gripped the tiny ball in her hand. "Hold this in your hand as you sleep tonight. When you awake it will be as if none of this happened. The ball will vanish and with it, your memories. It will be like starting over." Kagome took a deep swallow and remained silent as tears slid down her cheeks.
"And Mihaku will be fine?"
"Untouched. Because he is so small he will recognize his father and Shippo, but will not remember events. No child at that age does...I will leave now. My part is finished," he added as he stood and walked toward the front door. Kagome, Inuyasha, and Shippo sat frozen as the door closed. Kagome held in her hand the answer to her problem and the doom of those that sat next to her.
"We will not say goodbye. None of us will remember this in the morning. Let's simply go to bed as if nothing happened. And SLEEP. The sooner we go to sleep the faster morning will come and the lack of pain," instructed Inuyasha. Shippo nodded solemnly.
"So after Kagome goes through the well we won't exist in these forms anymore?" asked Shippo. Inuyasha nodded. "I feel horrible...mom- hey she-she's asleep." Inuyasha looked down at his sleeping bride and tears slid down his cheeks. He wasn't really losing her, that was all he needed to tell himself.
"She couldn't take the pain. She wants the pain to be over, and so should we. Let's go to bed Shippo."
"How am I suppose to sleep knowing that in the morning everything will be different?!"
".......just imagine what you would have felt like to see Kagome come home when you were younger. To have her there while you grew up and to feel the happiness she inspires in the villagers........" answered Inuyasha quietly. Shippo said nothing. He sat quietly and watched his pained father lift his mother and son in one stroke. "Sweet dreams, Shippo...." added Inuyasha as he moved up the stairs. Shippo stood slowly and scanned the house. This would be the last time he saw it as well. No more scents of freshly cleaned linens or tasting home cooked meals. The light of Kagome's room turned on and dark shadows told the story of Inuyasha putting his family to bed. Shippo's eyes then moved right, near the stairs and he noticed a soft night light on in Mrs. Higurashi's room. Kagome had told Souta to go sleep in there....that was where he would go. He would spend the night in a warm bed with his grandmother and young uncle, for the first and last time. Tears stained his shirt as he silently followed Inuyasha's footsteps up the stairs. The light of Kagome's room went out and the door closed as Inuyasha himself headed to bed. Shippo walked quietly into the room. Without bothering to change his clothes he crawled into the bed between them and snuggled his face into his grandmother's neck while Souta hugged him fondly from behind. This was his family...
Inuyasha bounced one last time to assure a comfortable position to sleep in as he held his wife one last time. She wrapped her arms around him in her sleep and sniveled softly as she rubbed her cheek against his chest. Inuyasha put his arms around her and let the tears fall freely in mourning of what he was about to willingly lose.