Disclaimer: Still, after all this time, don't own 'em. I do, however,
own this story and it's plot, so plagiarizers ~ get lost! Arrogant, I
know, but I don't want it to happen again.
Ok, a few things that need to be said: First, thank you from the bottom of my heart to all my readers who expressed their outrage at the plagiarizing of my fic Dance of Life on animespiral.com. The fic has finally been removed, but I'm not sure if it was by the administrators or by the author. She still has an account there.
Next, I got a review from Angel Expultion, pointing out some confusion in my last chapter, for which I am very grateful. I have corrected the problem, and made a few revisions as well. So, if you haven't read that chapter for awhile, you might want to do so.
Lastly, thank you to each and every one who takes the time to review. You may not know it, but reviews inspire us to want to write more. More reviews mean sooner updates. Few reviews mean a depressed, unmotivated author. Just the facts of life. I say this not so much as a plea for more reviews for myself, as I hardly have anything to complain about (though, of course I do love getting them), but for other authors who get very few. Even if you don't like what they've written, you can probably find something postitive to say, and maybe make a helpful suggestion.
Ok, off my soapbox. On with the chapter.
What Love Isn't Chapter 3
The Price of Hesitation
"You jerk! I hate you! You made her go away, and now she's never coming back!" Tears of anguish and rage began to pour down the little kitsune's face, his small body trembling and fists knotted in fury.
The hanyou folded his arms into the sleeves of his haori, and turned his back to the enraged little demon. "Keh, don't be stupid! She'll be back! She always comes back." Inuyasha said with far more certainty than he felt. He turned a worried glance back at the well, fear that the kit was right hitting him fully, and he was now fighting the overwhelming urge to retch. He had smelled her scent ~one of anger and despair. One that said that she had, indeed, finally been pushed too far. He muttered, "I didn't mean what I said. I was just trying to make her stay. So we could find the ..."
He didn't bother to finish. He couldn't even convince himself with that one, and he could tell by the look on the monk's face that he wasn't fooled either.
Instead, he commented in his usual placid manner, though there was a definite tinge of pain and loss for his friend there as well, "I have always feared that Lady Kagome would one day decide she'd had enough of being compared to Kikyo-sama. I had hoped that her leaving would not be such a heartbreaking one, though." He shot a disapproving glance toward Inuyasha, who was still standing in the same position, as if waiting for the young miko to reappear.
Shippo, who's devastation was still building along with his anger, finally snapped. He flung himself at Inuyasha's head and began to pound on it. "GO GET HER, YOU JERK!"
"Keh! Get off me brat." Inuyasha ejaculated, though with much less conviction than usual, and he made no move to remove the angry little demon. "Anyway, who said she won't come back? She'll cool down. She always does."
"NO SHE WON'T! SHE CAN'T!" Finally unclenching his little fist, he unfurled his tiny fingers to reveal resting on his palm; the fused fragments of the Shikon Jewel that Kagome had carried with her. It lay; looking innocent enough, sunlight gleaming of it's fragmented surfaces.
Inuyasha went instantly pale. He felt his head go light and his extraordinary demon balance suddenly leave him, as he sank to his knees. 'NO! She can't have left me for good. She promised to be by my side forever. She promised never to leave me.'
Miroku, taking the fused fragments from the kit's hand, said slowly, "Well, luckily for us she left in such a hurry that she forgot to remove your rosary, Inuyasha. But I wouldn't go for her just yet. She was very angry, and she probably needs a little time to cool down. Otherwise, I predict a very broken back in your near future."
"It'd be worth it. I deserve it." The hanyou muttered, before snapping his head up to see two very startled pairs of eyes staring at him. It was very true, and they were pretty sure their friend knew it, but they never expected him to admit it. 'Oh, shit! Did I say that out loud?'
Miroku recovered his surprise and advised, "Perhaps. But she deserves a little time to breath and settle down. In the meantime, I suggest you come up with some token of your remorse."
"Eh?"
The houshi sighed, "A gift of some sort. Something pretty. Flowers, jewelry, something like that. If you're holding out a gift, she's less likely to "sit" you, at least until you've given it to her. It'll buy you some time."
"Oh." It seemed like a good idea. In any case, as much as he wanted to make up with Kagome, he wasn't anxious to face her just yet. Her ire he could deal with; it was the hurt and betrayal he had seen in her eyes was what was killing him. "Ok, let's go find something. I imagine you're a pro at this."
The monk chuckled lightly, "You have no idea!"
Stealing one last concerned glance at the well, the hanyou followed after his friend. "Are you coming runt?"
"NO! I HATE YOU! And I'm staying here till you go get Kagome!" He curled his little body up on the lip of the well, tightly clutching the cookie Kagome had given him in his little arms, sobbing to himself quietly. Finally, exhaustion brought on by his emotional tirade put him into a deep sleep, with dreams of sleeping curled up next to Kagome on her sleeping bag.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Out of the same grove of bushes that Miroku had earlier emerged stepped a somber-faced miko, surrounded by several ethereal, flying eel-like creatures. She wore the traditional costume of a village priestess, and her long, obsidian hair was kept back from obscuring her face and lifeless eyes by a thin white tie. That visage held no expression, save for a small upturn of the corners of her mouth, indicating pleasure at the scene she had just witnessed.
'Finally, I can rid myself of that nuisance for good, and he won't know to blame it on me. I won't even have to kill her ~ I can just make sure she never returns."
She lifted the sleeping kit off the lip of the well, carefully so not to wake him, and set him in the grass at the edge of the clearing. Then, turning her attention back to the portal, she lifted a seemingly careless hand in its direction, and sealed it, placing a demon ward on it for good measure.
With a small backward smirk, she turned and floated off with her minions to await the outcome of her handiwork. Then she could put her plans in motion.
Ok, a few things that need to be said: First, thank you from the bottom of my heart to all my readers who expressed their outrage at the plagiarizing of my fic Dance of Life on animespiral.com. The fic has finally been removed, but I'm not sure if it was by the administrators or by the author. She still has an account there.
Next, I got a review from Angel Expultion, pointing out some confusion in my last chapter, for which I am very grateful. I have corrected the problem, and made a few revisions as well. So, if you haven't read that chapter for awhile, you might want to do so.
Lastly, thank you to each and every one who takes the time to review. You may not know it, but reviews inspire us to want to write more. More reviews mean sooner updates. Few reviews mean a depressed, unmotivated author. Just the facts of life. I say this not so much as a plea for more reviews for myself, as I hardly have anything to complain about (though, of course I do love getting them), but for other authors who get very few. Even if you don't like what they've written, you can probably find something postitive to say, and maybe make a helpful suggestion.
Ok, off my soapbox. On with the chapter.
What Love Isn't Chapter 3
The Price of Hesitation
"You jerk! I hate you! You made her go away, and now she's never coming back!" Tears of anguish and rage began to pour down the little kitsune's face, his small body trembling and fists knotted in fury.
The hanyou folded his arms into the sleeves of his haori, and turned his back to the enraged little demon. "Keh, don't be stupid! She'll be back! She always comes back." Inuyasha said with far more certainty than he felt. He turned a worried glance back at the well, fear that the kit was right hitting him fully, and he was now fighting the overwhelming urge to retch. He had smelled her scent ~one of anger and despair. One that said that she had, indeed, finally been pushed too far. He muttered, "I didn't mean what I said. I was just trying to make her stay. So we could find the ..."
He didn't bother to finish. He couldn't even convince himself with that one, and he could tell by the look on the monk's face that he wasn't fooled either.
Instead, he commented in his usual placid manner, though there was a definite tinge of pain and loss for his friend there as well, "I have always feared that Lady Kagome would one day decide she'd had enough of being compared to Kikyo-sama. I had hoped that her leaving would not be such a heartbreaking one, though." He shot a disapproving glance toward Inuyasha, who was still standing in the same position, as if waiting for the young miko to reappear.
Shippo, who's devastation was still building along with his anger, finally snapped. He flung himself at Inuyasha's head and began to pound on it. "GO GET HER, YOU JERK!"
"Keh! Get off me brat." Inuyasha ejaculated, though with much less conviction than usual, and he made no move to remove the angry little demon. "Anyway, who said she won't come back? She'll cool down. She always does."
"NO SHE WON'T! SHE CAN'T!" Finally unclenching his little fist, he unfurled his tiny fingers to reveal resting on his palm; the fused fragments of the Shikon Jewel that Kagome had carried with her. It lay; looking innocent enough, sunlight gleaming of it's fragmented surfaces.
Inuyasha went instantly pale. He felt his head go light and his extraordinary demon balance suddenly leave him, as he sank to his knees. 'NO! She can't have left me for good. She promised to be by my side forever. She promised never to leave me.'
Miroku, taking the fused fragments from the kit's hand, said slowly, "Well, luckily for us she left in such a hurry that she forgot to remove your rosary, Inuyasha. But I wouldn't go for her just yet. She was very angry, and she probably needs a little time to cool down. Otherwise, I predict a very broken back in your near future."
"It'd be worth it. I deserve it." The hanyou muttered, before snapping his head up to see two very startled pairs of eyes staring at him. It was very true, and they were pretty sure their friend knew it, but they never expected him to admit it. 'Oh, shit! Did I say that out loud?'
Miroku recovered his surprise and advised, "Perhaps. But she deserves a little time to breath and settle down. In the meantime, I suggest you come up with some token of your remorse."
"Eh?"
The houshi sighed, "A gift of some sort. Something pretty. Flowers, jewelry, something like that. If you're holding out a gift, she's less likely to "sit" you, at least until you've given it to her. It'll buy you some time."
"Oh." It seemed like a good idea. In any case, as much as he wanted to make up with Kagome, he wasn't anxious to face her just yet. Her ire he could deal with; it was the hurt and betrayal he had seen in her eyes was what was killing him. "Ok, let's go find something. I imagine you're a pro at this."
The monk chuckled lightly, "You have no idea!"
Stealing one last concerned glance at the well, the hanyou followed after his friend. "Are you coming runt?"
"NO! I HATE YOU! And I'm staying here till you go get Kagome!" He curled his little body up on the lip of the well, tightly clutching the cookie Kagome had given him in his little arms, sobbing to himself quietly. Finally, exhaustion brought on by his emotional tirade put him into a deep sleep, with dreams of sleeping curled up next to Kagome on her sleeping bag.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Out of the same grove of bushes that Miroku had earlier emerged stepped a somber-faced miko, surrounded by several ethereal, flying eel-like creatures. She wore the traditional costume of a village priestess, and her long, obsidian hair was kept back from obscuring her face and lifeless eyes by a thin white tie. That visage held no expression, save for a small upturn of the corners of her mouth, indicating pleasure at the scene she had just witnessed.
'Finally, I can rid myself of that nuisance for good, and he won't know to blame it on me. I won't even have to kill her ~ I can just make sure she never returns."
She lifted the sleeping kit off the lip of the well, carefully so not to wake him, and set him in the grass at the edge of the clearing. Then, turning her attention back to the portal, she lifted a seemingly careless hand in its direction, and sealed it, placing a demon ward on it for good measure.
With a small backward smirk, she turned and floated off with her minions to await the outcome of her handiwork. Then she could put her plans in motion.
