Disclaimer: I wish I owned Inuyasha (or at least his ears!) but, sadly, I
don't. T.T
"words" talking
^words^ thoughts
Chapter 18: Mirror of Water
Inuyasha wandered through the trees, sulking about the
situation. ^What am I supposed to do now?^ He wondered. ^I
guess I deserve this. I let Kagome die. I promised to protect
her. . .and I let her down. Now she's gone.^ He thought, a grim
look on his face. Just the thought of Kagome all alone in the
afterworld made him cringe. It wasn't fair. She didn't deserve
that. If anything, it should be Kikyo. But it wasn't Kikyo.
Kikyo was still wandering in this fake world. It was then
Inuyasha noticed a bright light coming from ahead of him, just
past the tree line. He hadn't realized how far he'd walked, but
he now saw he was almost out of this made-up forest. The Hanyou
began to run as fast as his legs would carry him, eager to escape
his green prison and see what lie ahead. When he emerged, a
large pool of water met him. It glowed with an eerie amber
light. "What is this place?" He wondered aloud. As soon as his
words left his mouth, the pool began to glow even brighter, until
Inuyasha had to shield his eyes against the light. When it
dulled, a clear picture of Kaede's hut could be seen reflected in
the pool. Inuyasha could only stare in awe, wondering what on
earth this pool was for. It was then it struck him. ^This must
be how Kikyo kept an eye on me when she was here in this world.^
He realized. He watched as the reflection began to zoom in to
the small hut, going inside. He noticed Sango and Miroku
sleeping against one wall. That was nothing new. But there, in
the middle of the floor. . .a big lump? The reflection once
again began to zoom in to his desired point, showing him the
"lump" that he had seen from what would be Kaede's door. As it
zoomed in, Inuyasha noticed two things. First, he noticed his
silver hair and red kimono. Second, he noticed Kagome's raven
hair, and her green and white uniform. "Kagome!" He gasped.
The sudden outburst caused the reflection to ripple and
disappear. "No! Go back!" He pleaded, but the pool remained
nothing but water. He leapt in, splashing and tearing at the
water. "Show me the hut again!" He demanded. The water
splashed in big waves around him, but still remained the same.
Inuyasha sat down hard, not caring that he was still in the
middle of the small pond. It wasn't that deep anyways. The full
effect of what he had seen was just now catching up with him.
"Kagome. . .was in the hut." He murmured in disbelief. "But,
that's impossible! I saw her die!" He argued. Could it be that
she did not die at all, just return to her own body? It sounded
so weird now. "What do you care? She's alive, isn't she? And
she looked pretty darn happy to me." He grumbled. The picture
of Kagome flashed back through his mind. She was using his chest
for a pillow, and he could see tears rolling down her cheeks,
even in her sleep. Though the picture lasted only seconds in his
mind, he could still see all of this detail. "So. . .she isn't
so happy. But what does this all mean? Does she actually miss
me?" He questioned. Unanswered questions began buzzing through
his mind, faster than he could comprehend. Seconds later,
seemingly in the blink of an eye, his mind seemed to go totally
blank. The pool of water began glowing with a pure blue aura,
much more soothing than the dark aura from before. As Inuyasha
stared deeper into the pond, he could just make out the outline
of a figure emerging from the water. Gasping, he jumped back,
not sure what to expect in this foreign world. As the Hanyou
watched, eyes wide, the figure became clear, forming into the
shape of a beautiful woman. Her hair was tinted a silvery blue,
and her eyes shone like the moon's rays glinting off the water's
surface. When she spoke, her voice was calm and cool, almost
lulling. "Inuyasha, I know why you are here." She told him.
Inuyasha could only gape at the figure before him, wondering if
this was just another of the pond's illusions. "Don't worry. .
.I am very real." She reassured him, as if reading his thoughts.
"Allow me to explain myself, I am the guardian of this world.
Every time a new world is born, like this one for example, a
guardian is chosen to watch over it. I was chosen to be the
guardian of this place. My name is Lady Akina." She explained.
"I'm here to help you." Inuyasha finally gathered the courage to
speak. "How come you didn't help me before!? When I needed it!"
He asked. "Even though I am guardian of this place, my territory
is somewhat limited. You see; I cannot go any farther than the
meadow in which this pond lies. I have been sitting here
awaiting your arrival." Lady Akina replied. "How can you help
me?" Inuyasha questioned, his voice suddenly becoming very soft
and sad. His eyes had become downcast. "I have nothing to
offer." The spirit gazed down at him in disbelief. "Well,
Inuyasha, this is truly a side of you I have never seen before.
Since when do you offer anything to anyone? I was quite sure
that your attitude was simply take what you can get." She mused.
The Hanyou looked up at her. "Some things are more important
than my pride!" He yelled at her, recoiling after realizing what
he had said. Lady Akina laughed in spite of herself. "By
'things' I'm assuming you are referring to a certain human living
in another world, am I correct?" She asked. Inuyasha's silence
was enough of an answer for her. "That's what I thought. Well,
Inuyasha, I am happy to inform you I wish to take nothing away
from you. I have been watching this Kikyo woman who created this
world, and I must say that all of us are becoming quite impatient
with her actions. Now she is dragging living beings to the
World-In-Between. . ."
"Wait, you said 'us'. Who?" Inuyasha interrupted. "Did you
think I was the only guardian around? There are many other
guardians even above myself, who keep an eye on things much
bigger than this tiny world I look after. They are all becoming
very upset with Kikyo's ways. We all know that your intentions
were good when you traveled in between worlds. That is why I
have been granted permission to send you back to your own time,
if you wish." Inuyasha gazed up at the woman before him, his
eyes were glowing with pure amazement and gratitude, though he
would never admit it. "No one has ever gifted me with even half
of that. Being a half-demon, no one would ever even consider
doing such a good deed for me." He muttered. Lady Akina smiled
warmly. "Inuyasha, we are higher beings of those that are human,
and even those that are demon. Overlooking such trifle details
is not a big chore for those like us. Think of it as payment for
all the things you have been put through in your life." She told
him. "So? I can go back to Kagome?" He questioned, making sure
he understood. She nodded her head. "Yes, just say the word.
This is your reward." Inuyasha's mouth turned up into a cocky
grin, showing his fangs. "Alright, Lady Akina, let's get this
over with." He accepted.
~~~~~~~~ Yay! Another one done! And it's 5 whole pages long, too! You guys better be happy! I think it was worth the wait, don't you? Well, anyways, lemme know what you think. Next chapter will probably be the last one. But no guarantees! Maybe I'll go for 20! What do you guys think? And what're your thoughts on a sequel? I need details!!!
"words" talking
^words^ thoughts
Chapter 18: Mirror of Water
Inuyasha wandered through the trees, sulking about the
situation. ^What am I supposed to do now?^ He wondered. ^I
guess I deserve this. I let Kagome die. I promised to protect
her. . .and I let her down. Now she's gone.^ He thought, a grim
look on his face. Just the thought of Kagome all alone in the
afterworld made him cringe. It wasn't fair. She didn't deserve
that. If anything, it should be Kikyo. But it wasn't Kikyo.
Kikyo was still wandering in this fake world. It was then
Inuyasha noticed a bright light coming from ahead of him, just
past the tree line. He hadn't realized how far he'd walked, but
he now saw he was almost out of this made-up forest. The Hanyou
began to run as fast as his legs would carry him, eager to escape
his green prison and see what lie ahead. When he emerged, a
large pool of water met him. It glowed with an eerie amber
light. "What is this place?" He wondered aloud. As soon as his
words left his mouth, the pool began to glow even brighter, until
Inuyasha had to shield his eyes against the light. When it
dulled, a clear picture of Kaede's hut could be seen reflected in
the pool. Inuyasha could only stare in awe, wondering what on
earth this pool was for. It was then it struck him. ^This must
be how Kikyo kept an eye on me when she was here in this world.^
He realized. He watched as the reflection began to zoom in to
the small hut, going inside. He noticed Sango and Miroku
sleeping against one wall. That was nothing new. But there, in
the middle of the floor. . .a big lump? The reflection once
again began to zoom in to his desired point, showing him the
"lump" that he had seen from what would be Kaede's door. As it
zoomed in, Inuyasha noticed two things. First, he noticed his
silver hair and red kimono. Second, he noticed Kagome's raven
hair, and her green and white uniform. "Kagome!" He gasped.
The sudden outburst caused the reflection to ripple and
disappear. "No! Go back!" He pleaded, but the pool remained
nothing but water. He leapt in, splashing and tearing at the
water. "Show me the hut again!" He demanded. The water
splashed in big waves around him, but still remained the same.
Inuyasha sat down hard, not caring that he was still in the
middle of the small pond. It wasn't that deep anyways. The full
effect of what he had seen was just now catching up with him.
"Kagome. . .was in the hut." He murmured in disbelief. "But,
that's impossible! I saw her die!" He argued. Could it be that
she did not die at all, just return to her own body? It sounded
so weird now. "What do you care? She's alive, isn't she? And
she looked pretty darn happy to me." He grumbled. The picture
of Kagome flashed back through his mind. She was using his chest
for a pillow, and he could see tears rolling down her cheeks,
even in her sleep. Though the picture lasted only seconds in his
mind, he could still see all of this detail. "So. . .she isn't
so happy. But what does this all mean? Does she actually miss
me?" He questioned. Unanswered questions began buzzing through
his mind, faster than he could comprehend. Seconds later,
seemingly in the blink of an eye, his mind seemed to go totally
blank. The pool of water began glowing with a pure blue aura,
much more soothing than the dark aura from before. As Inuyasha
stared deeper into the pond, he could just make out the outline
of a figure emerging from the water. Gasping, he jumped back,
not sure what to expect in this foreign world. As the Hanyou
watched, eyes wide, the figure became clear, forming into the
shape of a beautiful woman. Her hair was tinted a silvery blue,
and her eyes shone like the moon's rays glinting off the water's
surface. When she spoke, her voice was calm and cool, almost
lulling. "Inuyasha, I know why you are here." She told him.
Inuyasha could only gape at the figure before him, wondering if
this was just another of the pond's illusions. "Don't worry. .
.I am very real." She reassured him, as if reading his thoughts.
"Allow me to explain myself, I am the guardian of this world.
Every time a new world is born, like this one for example, a
guardian is chosen to watch over it. I was chosen to be the
guardian of this place. My name is Lady Akina." She explained.
"I'm here to help you." Inuyasha finally gathered the courage to
speak. "How come you didn't help me before!? When I needed it!"
He asked. "Even though I am guardian of this place, my territory
is somewhat limited. You see; I cannot go any farther than the
meadow in which this pond lies. I have been sitting here
awaiting your arrival." Lady Akina replied. "How can you help
me?" Inuyasha questioned, his voice suddenly becoming very soft
and sad. His eyes had become downcast. "I have nothing to
offer." The spirit gazed down at him in disbelief. "Well,
Inuyasha, this is truly a side of you I have never seen before.
Since when do you offer anything to anyone? I was quite sure
that your attitude was simply take what you can get." She mused.
The Hanyou looked up at her. "Some things are more important
than my pride!" He yelled at her, recoiling after realizing what
he had said. Lady Akina laughed in spite of herself. "By
'things' I'm assuming you are referring to a certain human living
in another world, am I correct?" She asked. Inuyasha's silence
was enough of an answer for her. "That's what I thought. Well,
Inuyasha, I am happy to inform you I wish to take nothing away
from you. I have been watching this Kikyo woman who created this
world, and I must say that all of us are becoming quite impatient
with her actions. Now she is dragging living beings to the
World-In-Between. . ."
"Wait, you said 'us'. Who?" Inuyasha interrupted. "Did you
think I was the only guardian around? There are many other
guardians even above myself, who keep an eye on things much
bigger than this tiny world I look after. They are all becoming
very upset with Kikyo's ways. We all know that your intentions
were good when you traveled in between worlds. That is why I
have been granted permission to send you back to your own time,
if you wish." Inuyasha gazed up at the woman before him, his
eyes were glowing with pure amazement and gratitude, though he
would never admit it. "No one has ever gifted me with even half
of that. Being a half-demon, no one would ever even consider
doing such a good deed for me." He muttered. Lady Akina smiled
warmly. "Inuyasha, we are higher beings of those that are human,
and even those that are demon. Overlooking such trifle details
is not a big chore for those like us. Think of it as payment for
all the things you have been put through in your life." She told
him. "So? I can go back to Kagome?" He questioned, making sure
he understood. She nodded her head. "Yes, just say the word.
This is your reward." Inuyasha's mouth turned up into a cocky
grin, showing his fangs. "Alright, Lady Akina, let's get this
over with." He accepted.
~~~~~~~~ Yay! Another one done! And it's 5 whole pages long, too! You guys better be happy! I think it was worth the wait, don't you? Well, anyways, lemme know what you think. Next chapter will probably be the last one. But no guarantees! Maybe I'll go for 20! What do you guys think? And what're your thoughts on a sequel? I need details!!!