Too Late
"Do you wish to see why your precious jewel shard detector wished for her death? Why she wished to be free? Well, I shall gladly demonstrate for you..."
With a wicked laugh, the dead miko did just that, brutally beating the cloaked miko without mercy, and with each impact of flesh on flesh, a cry of pain tore through the air, setting Inuyasha's hair on end.
Watching Kagome's eyes flash with panic, their brown depths coming to life with fear and realization, he understood for the first time what she truly had gone through at the hands of Naraku...
And felt utter defeat knowing he hadn't been there to protect her.
Another impact, the 'thwump' of flesh meeting tender flesh, and another pain filled cry, echoing through the forest over and over...
A sick nausea filled the hanyou-demon as he was forced to watch the scene before him, holding Kagome's eyes with his own, a tearing in his gut with each cry of pain that escaped her lips.
One tear trickled down her pale cheek, followed by another...
Sobs soon followed as the blue flames around her body roared furiously, whipping about her body, and the dead miko finally stopped her beating, instead standing back to admire her work, stroking one of her ghostly white demons with a cruel smile.
"Just like before, Inuyasha, you are unable to protect her..." Kikyo whispered, sliding her gaze from the beaten miko to the devastated hanyou- human, who was now on his knees, an unknown tear slipping down his own cheek, "This was just the beginning of what Naraku put her through, resulting to many other means no thanks to her resolve not to give in, for more than three straight weeks..."
With another chilling laugh, the dead miko brushed her hands towards the softly sobbing girl, and several pink lights slashed against the cloak, tearing through cloth to cut deeply into the skin as another scream tore through the night air.
Jerking her head to the side with a cry, the cloaked miko broke eye contact with Inuyasha, the pain tearing through her body all too familiar as the flames rose higher into the sky, swirling around Kagome like a vortex.
"Yes, when Kagome went to destroy Naraku, she was more than willing to deal the same fate to herself... but one little promise held her back... one little promise stopped her power from destroying itself..."
The dead miko's eyes were shining brightly with wonder, and with another wave of her hand, pink lights slashed at the defenseless miko once again, screams of pain filling there ears before it died down to sobbing...
"But... but she's immortal..." Inuyasha whispered, in a state of shock while he sat there watching this inhumane brutality, and even Kikyo's laughter couldn't drag him from his motionless state as she replied, "Ah, but if her power had destroyed itself, it would have destroyed the demons of immortality would it not have? Yes, only that one little promise... thanks to you Inuyasha, her power will be mine!"
Swiftly walking until she stood in front of the sobbing Kagome, Kikyo glanced over her shoulder as she shouted, "Naraku's death wasn't for naught because left a mark upon her body to which I could get to her power! The one spot he had tried to extract it from... the spot you had felt pain from through the connection Inuyasha!"
"The scar..." He whispered to himself, staring wide-eyed into the dense ball of flames, but a tingling in his body pulled his attention from the scene.
Glancing up at the sky, he realized it was mere minutes away from sunrise, and then he would be back to his normal self, allowing him to save Kagome.
"Once again, Inuyasha, you failed to protect the one you cared for!!!" Kikyo shouted above the roaring, her eyes flashing with triumph as she reached a hand forward, touching the long, jagged black mark on Kagome's cheek.
Everything froze for a split second...
The wind stopped, the breath caught in each of their chests, even time seemed to hang motionless...
The only movement was a lone tear, slipping down Kagome cheek as her eyes widened...
And suddenly a scream tore the silence apart, her body jerking against the demon chains that held her, the blue flames around her body sputtering out until there was no power surrounding her.
The pain from the bruises and cuts, the throbbing in her head, they were nothing compared to the agony that tore through her body now, coming from Kikyo's finger on her cheek, but it seemed as if the life were being drained from her, being sucked from her very being.
Her entire focus was on the pain tearing her apart, thousands of sharp needles imbedding deeply into her body, but then something else caught her attention, the sound of a heartbeat, getting stronger and stronger.
Inuyasha felt like he was coming alive...
His senses were returning to normal, his hearing becoming stronger, his nose keener, his eyesight better...
Everything was as it should be, but then his eyes clashed with Kagome's pain filled ones, tears streaming down her cheeks, her brows furrowed, mouth open in a silent scream.
"How have these last six years been Inuyasha? I bet you wished you could redo everything, cherish her, as she should have been, did you not? You wished you hadn't been so rash, wished you had shown her how you cared..." Shouting like a maniac, Kikyo didn't seem to notice that Inuyasha had transformed back into his regular self, but he ignored her, instead turning to his thoughts on how to save Kagome.
Another scream tore from her lips, her face becoming paler and eyes darker, and the wind picked up around her, whipping their clothes wildly.
'Protect her...'
The thought appeared in his mind his hand going up to the rosary beads around his neck self consciously, and he wondered how he could form a connection...
How?
His golden eyes deepened in color, the hand that hung limply at his side clenching until his claws dug into his skin, and still Kagome's screams filled the air, the blue flames springing up around her once again.
His thoughts floated back to what Kaede had said so long ago, her brow creased with confusion, her eyes sad and bleak, "I don't see why ye still wear thee beads Inuyasha... with Kagome gone, thee have no use, for the only way to reactivate thee is by her doing so..."
His eyes clashed with Kagome's as she broke off a scream, her body jerking convulsively, Kikyo laughing madly, and he knew what he must do.
"Shout sit Kagome!" He shouted, walking towards the flames that surrounded the two mikos, and she stared at him, her hair and cloak damp from her sweat, eyes so depthless he feared he was too late.
Another scream tore from her throat, jerking her body again, the flames roaring to life further around her, and Kikyo turned to look at him, her eyes widening as she shouted, "You don't want to be controlled again do you? Then don't tell her to..."
"Shout sit Kagome! Now!" He interrupted, his golden eyes wild, his hair whipping around his body as he fought the wind that threatened to blow him away, his voice filled with panic and worry, and Kagome's scream ended on a cry.
'Shout sit? Why should I?' She cried to herself, fighting the pain that tore through her body, tears slipping down her cheeks as she stared into the golden eyes that seemed so familiar, and with the next shock of pain, she shouted, "NO!"
"Dammit, do it Kagome!" He shouted, his chest tight with fear, and he shuffled through his mind, trying to figure out a way to make her do it, thinking, 'I have to make her remember somehow...'
Blinking, he realized the only time she had ever used the word before was when she pissed him off, but how was he supposed to piss her off if she didn't even remember him?
How the hell could he be unable to help her when he was a fucking hanyou?
He just couldn't be too late to help her...
He couldn't be too late...
"SHOUT SIT YOU DAMN WENCH!!!" The words exploded through his lips, his heart tearing at the pain he saw in her eyes, and her scream ended on a gasp as she stared at him, just before another wave of pain washed through, forcing the words from her lips, "INUYASHA! SIT!!!"
Going down face first, Inuyasha was kissing dirt without mercy just as her pain tore him asunder, and Kagome's eyes widened when all her memories flooded back through the pain that shrouded her...
The bone eater's well, shattering the Shikon Jewel, Naraku...
A scream tore through her lips once again.
Shouting with triumph, Kikyo turned from Inuyasha as the flames around them exploded, blowing everything backwards, both miko's flying in opposite directions.
Landing painfully in toppled trees and other shrubbery, Kagome laid there, staring at the beautiful sunrise before her with wide brown eyes...
She couldn't believe it...
Here she was, still alive...
Why the hell did she have to be immortal?!?
Was life truly this unfair?
Pain racked her body, unbearable pain that brought tears to her eyes, but she ignored it, instead concentrating on the problem at hand...
Kikyo.
Damn that bitch...
Couldn't get rid of her that easily, now could she?
A soft laugh escaped her lips as she shifted the slightest, her bloody and dirt covered cloak torn beyond recognition, but her attention quickly snapped to the figure who was blocking the view of the beautiful sunrise before her...
Two fuzzy ears poking out of wildly tumbled silver hair, tanned body covered by a simple red haori, and finally...
The golden eyes that held onto her own, their depths endless, but filled with worry, fear...
And some emotion she just couldn't put her finger on.
"Ka... Kagome?" His voice shook the slightest, an ear twitching in his unease, and she blinked...
Unable to believe she was actually seeing him person...
'One last time...' The thought flashed through her mind, flushing the happiness that rushed to the surface away without mercy.
All the memories were there...
Even the ones from these last six years...
A shudder passed through her body, the screams of every single soul she had killed filling her ears...
The urge to scream was unbelievable, the filth that seemed to coat her too thick to cleanse.
Reaching a hand towards the dog demon above her, Kagome fought the pain that threatened to suffocate her, whispering, "Inuyasha..."
His heart stopped in his chest at that one word, his eyes widening as he stared down at the beaten girl before him, and his legs collapsed underneath him, sending him to his knees without a sound.
Taking her smaller hand in his, he noticed the blood and dirt that covered it, a pang of guilt striking his conscious, but he couldn't find any words that would express his feelings...
Nothing seemed to add up to all the joy, happiness, and wonder that was expanding inside of him.
Kagome was alive!
Lying here before him, dirty and beaten, but alive!
He hadn't been too late to save her!
Here she was!
He was broken from his thoughts when she slowly stood up, her face contorted in pain, though her eyes were shining the slightest with her inner light...
Nothing like they had been back when everything was perfect, but they were shining!
He felt like jumping up and down, shouting for all to hear, and saving the world all rolled into one...
He was ecstatic!
Blinking, he realized Kagome was teetering, close to falling over it seemed, so he stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her and spinning her around with a laugh...
He hadn't been too late!
"Inuyasha..." Her voice broke through his joy, hoarse from screaming, and suddenly he had so much to say and not enough breath to say it all, shouting, "Kagome! Oh my god, I can't believe it! This is simply amazing!"
Abruptly setting her on the ground, he took a gulp of air to continue shouting his joy to the forest, "I'll never demand another bowl of ramen, never call you a wench again..."
On and on he continued, shouting with joy and picking her up with another laugh, failing to notice the darkening of the cloaked miko's eyes, nor did he sense the deep sadness that settled upon her...
Of course he was happy, the Shikon Jewel was finally completed...
Feeling the prick of tears beneath her closed lids when the dog demon twirled her about, she realized once again she had been hoping for too much...
A tear slipped down her cheek as she once again tuned into what the hanyou was shouting, "...it was hell when you were gone! I wandered for years, miserable..."
Oh yes, miserable, she was sure...
Probably because he couldn't find the jewel shards without her there to search them out for him...
His words from mere seconds earlier made perfect sense...
Of course he wasn't going to demand another bowl or ramen again, nor call her wench...
Why keep her around when there was nothing left for her to do here?
He was going to send her right back through the well to her old home...
But it was too late, she had suffered too much.
"... Miroku and Sango got married! Can you believe it? And Kohaku's a man..."
Ah, yes, of course they went on with life without her...
Hell, she sacrificed herself so they could...
So why did it hurt so much?
When he once again set her on the ground, his amber eyes shining with joy, her eyes landed on the necklace around his neck, blinking and in a soft, yet scratchy, voice whispered, "You put the rosary beads back on..."
Glancing down at the beads that lie there, once again active, the hanyou grinned like a mad dog, laughing, "Hell yes! I'd be sat a thousand more times if that's what it took! Now, let's get you home..."
It felt like Naraku had just slammed one of his ragged knives into her...
Was he really that eager to rid of her?
She couldn't believe it...
Hadn't he even missed her the slightest all these years?
After all this time, even without her memory, she had felt as if a part of her was gone...
Yet all he could think about was that damn Shikon Jewel.
A couple more tears slipped down both cheeks as she raised her eyes to meet his, whispering, "It's too late..."
Every muscle in his body tensed, a little warning bell going off in his head, but he quickly shrugged it off, deciding he must have misunderstood her.
Those crystal tears rolling down her cheeks just had to be from happiness...
Right?
Of course!
She was happy that everything was all right...
Everything was going to be fine...
He hadn't been too late to save her!
But...
Something in his gut told him he was wrong, though he tried to ignore it.
"Too late..." Kagome whispered, lifting her hand to her neck, slowly pulling the Shikon Jewel from beneath the cloak, and with one swift yank on the thread, it broke, "I fulfilled my final promise... the completed Shikon Jewel is yours to do with as you wish."
She quickly switched her thoughts from what might have been to the problem at hand...
The bitch Kikyo had stolen a good-sized chunk of her power, though she still possessed the immortal demons...
Lucky her.
Even now she could feel the power Kikyo had stolen creeping up on her...
A few more seconds and the dead miko would use those powers to drag her away for the final battle...
Laying the Shikon Jewel in the dog demon's palm, Kagome closed his fingers over it, lost in the depths of his golden eyes...
Right then she decided that there was absolutely no reason at all to live...
Like that time in Naraku's clutches, the will to live drained from her...
Why would she want to suffer through thousands of years knowing the only true love of her life chose the Shikon Jewel over her?
No...
This was the easiest way to escape everything...
She would end it all today, taking that bitch Kikyo with her, to the deepest pits of hell.
Dropping his hand, she stepped back, holding his eyes as the power slowly crept closer and closer...
Inuyasha was completely confused.
That's the only way to explain the buzzing in his head, the clamminess of his hands, and the utterly lost look in his eyes, but as he stared at Kagome, he noticed one thing...
The look in her eyes.
The look he had seen too many times before, though it still managed to tug at his heart like nothing else had ever done...
The look of certain death.
Fuck, he really was starting to hate that look, but perhaps he wasn't correct?
Unconsciously fisting his hands, he felt the Shikon Jewel press into his palm...
What the hell was going on?
What was Kagome thinking?
He didn't understand...
"Too late? B-but... it's not too late... it can't be too late..." He was babbling he realized, his heart nearly tearing from his chest, his voice shaking so badly it cracked, but he didn't care, he simply wanted Kagome to assure him it wasn't too late, though she didn't take heed, instead whispering, "You're wrong Inuyasha... there's just been too much pain... too much suffering... it's all going to end today... at last. It's too late to save me..."
"But... n-no! What about Miroku, Sango? How about Sh-Shippo! You can't just... just abandon them! It's not too late..." The heart broken hanyou whispered, reaching forward to grip her shoulder, and Kagome felt another stab of pain...
Where were you in that Inuyasha?
Ah, of course...
You have your Shikon Jewel...
"They've made it these last years... they'll never even know I was here... I'm sure they'll be fine." She choked out, tears filling her eyes again...
Damn, how many times did she have to say good-bye?
Reaching a hand up to brush it against his cheek, like she had done so many times before, she whispered the one thing she had never been able to say before, "I love you Inuyasha..."
His heart literally stopped in his chest at those words, unable to believe she still loved him after all this time, but he wasn't going to let her go just like that...
No, it simply couldn't be too late...
It just couldn't be too late...
As he opened a mouth to tell her exactly what he was thinking, light blue flames burst to life around her, ripping her from the spot she had been standing, but Kagome caught a glimpse of the rosary beads around his neck, realizing he'd suffer the same fate unless she rid of them...
Her hand shot out, gripping them just as the flames tugged her away, and Inuyasha was left standing there in the middle of a destroyed forest as the rosary beads snapped without a sound, each bead falling to the ground and rolling in various directions...
Never to be activated again.
********* ********** ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* *********
Thanks to those who reviewed!!!
~Hekele Masuyo, Miztikal-Dragon, Tima, Mustard Yellow Sunshine, Little Witch, Peaches Dani, gygirl~
Hugz N Kissez,
Ali
"Do you wish to see why your precious jewel shard detector wished for her death? Why she wished to be free? Well, I shall gladly demonstrate for you..."
With a wicked laugh, the dead miko did just that, brutally beating the cloaked miko without mercy, and with each impact of flesh on flesh, a cry of pain tore through the air, setting Inuyasha's hair on end.
Watching Kagome's eyes flash with panic, their brown depths coming to life with fear and realization, he understood for the first time what she truly had gone through at the hands of Naraku...
And felt utter defeat knowing he hadn't been there to protect her.
Another impact, the 'thwump' of flesh meeting tender flesh, and another pain filled cry, echoing through the forest over and over...
A sick nausea filled the hanyou-demon as he was forced to watch the scene before him, holding Kagome's eyes with his own, a tearing in his gut with each cry of pain that escaped her lips.
One tear trickled down her pale cheek, followed by another...
Sobs soon followed as the blue flames around her body roared furiously, whipping about her body, and the dead miko finally stopped her beating, instead standing back to admire her work, stroking one of her ghostly white demons with a cruel smile.
"Just like before, Inuyasha, you are unable to protect her..." Kikyo whispered, sliding her gaze from the beaten miko to the devastated hanyou- human, who was now on his knees, an unknown tear slipping down his own cheek, "This was just the beginning of what Naraku put her through, resulting to many other means no thanks to her resolve not to give in, for more than three straight weeks..."
With another chilling laugh, the dead miko brushed her hands towards the softly sobbing girl, and several pink lights slashed against the cloak, tearing through cloth to cut deeply into the skin as another scream tore through the night air.
Jerking her head to the side with a cry, the cloaked miko broke eye contact with Inuyasha, the pain tearing through her body all too familiar as the flames rose higher into the sky, swirling around Kagome like a vortex.
"Yes, when Kagome went to destroy Naraku, she was more than willing to deal the same fate to herself... but one little promise held her back... one little promise stopped her power from destroying itself..."
The dead miko's eyes were shining brightly with wonder, and with another wave of her hand, pink lights slashed at the defenseless miko once again, screams of pain filling there ears before it died down to sobbing...
"But... but she's immortal..." Inuyasha whispered, in a state of shock while he sat there watching this inhumane brutality, and even Kikyo's laughter couldn't drag him from his motionless state as she replied, "Ah, but if her power had destroyed itself, it would have destroyed the demons of immortality would it not have? Yes, only that one little promise... thanks to you Inuyasha, her power will be mine!"
Swiftly walking until she stood in front of the sobbing Kagome, Kikyo glanced over her shoulder as she shouted, "Naraku's death wasn't for naught because left a mark upon her body to which I could get to her power! The one spot he had tried to extract it from... the spot you had felt pain from through the connection Inuyasha!"
"The scar..." He whispered to himself, staring wide-eyed into the dense ball of flames, but a tingling in his body pulled his attention from the scene.
Glancing up at the sky, he realized it was mere minutes away from sunrise, and then he would be back to his normal self, allowing him to save Kagome.
"Once again, Inuyasha, you failed to protect the one you cared for!!!" Kikyo shouted above the roaring, her eyes flashing with triumph as she reached a hand forward, touching the long, jagged black mark on Kagome's cheek.
Everything froze for a split second...
The wind stopped, the breath caught in each of their chests, even time seemed to hang motionless...
The only movement was a lone tear, slipping down Kagome cheek as her eyes widened...
And suddenly a scream tore the silence apart, her body jerking against the demon chains that held her, the blue flames around her body sputtering out until there was no power surrounding her.
The pain from the bruises and cuts, the throbbing in her head, they were nothing compared to the agony that tore through her body now, coming from Kikyo's finger on her cheek, but it seemed as if the life were being drained from her, being sucked from her very being.
Her entire focus was on the pain tearing her apart, thousands of sharp needles imbedding deeply into her body, but then something else caught her attention, the sound of a heartbeat, getting stronger and stronger.
Inuyasha felt like he was coming alive...
His senses were returning to normal, his hearing becoming stronger, his nose keener, his eyesight better...
Everything was as it should be, but then his eyes clashed with Kagome's pain filled ones, tears streaming down her cheeks, her brows furrowed, mouth open in a silent scream.
"How have these last six years been Inuyasha? I bet you wished you could redo everything, cherish her, as she should have been, did you not? You wished you hadn't been so rash, wished you had shown her how you cared..." Shouting like a maniac, Kikyo didn't seem to notice that Inuyasha had transformed back into his regular self, but he ignored her, instead turning to his thoughts on how to save Kagome.
Another scream tore from her lips, her face becoming paler and eyes darker, and the wind picked up around her, whipping their clothes wildly.
'Protect her...'
The thought appeared in his mind his hand going up to the rosary beads around his neck self consciously, and he wondered how he could form a connection...
How?
His golden eyes deepened in color, the hand that hung limply at his side clenching until his claws dug into his skin, and still Kagome's screams filled the air, the blue flames springing up around her once again.
His thoughts floated back to what Kaede had said so long ago, her brow creased with confusion, her eyes sad and bleak, "I don't see why ye still wear thee beads Inuyasha... with Kagome gone, thee have no use, for the only way to reactivate thee is by her doing so..."
His eyes clashed with Kagome's as she broke off a scream, her body jerking convulsively, Kikyo laughing madly, and he knew what he must do.
"Shout sit Kagome!" He shouted, walking towards the flames that surrounded the two mikos, and she stared at him, her hair and cloak damp from her sweat, eyes so depthless he feared he was too late.
Another scream tore from her throat, jerking her body again, the flames roaring to life further around her, and Kikyo turned to look at him, her eyes widening as she shouted, "You don't want to be controlled again do you? Then don't tell her to..."
"Shout sit Kagome! Now!" He interrupted, his golden eyes wild, his hair whipping around his body as he fought the wind that threatened to blow him away, his voice filled with panic and worry, and Kagome's scream ended on a cry.
'Shout sit? Why should I?' She cried to herself, fighting the pain that tore through her body, tears slipping down her cheeks as she stared into the golden eyes that seemed so familiar, and with the next shock of pain, she shouted, "NO!"
"Dammit, do it Kagome!" He shouted, his chest tight with fear, and he shuffled through his mind, trying to figure out a way to make her do it, thinking, 'I have to make her remember somehow...'
Blinking, he realized the only time she had ever used the word before was when she pissed him off, but how was he supposed to piss her off if she didn't even remember him?
How the hell could he be unable to help her when he was a fucking hanyou?
He just couldn't be too late to help her...
He couldn't be too late...
"SHOUT SIT YOU DAMN WENCH!!!" The words exploded through his lips, his heart tearing at the pain he saw in her eyes, and her scream ended on a gasp as she stared at him, just before another wave of pain washed through, forcing the words from her lips, "INUYASHA! SIT!!!"
Going down face first, Inuyasha was kissing dirt without mercy just as her pain tore him asunder, and Kagome's eyes widened when all her memories flooded back through the pain that shrouded her...
The bone eater's well, shattering the Shikon Jewel, Naraku...
A scream tore through her lips once again.
Shouting with triumph, Kikyo turned from Inuyasha as the flames around them exploded, blowing everything backwards, both miko's flying in opposite directions.
Landing painfully in toppled trees and other shrubbery, Kagome laid there, staring at the beautiful sunrise before her with wide brown eyes...
She couldn't believe it...
Here she was, still alive...
Why the hell did she have to be immortal?!?
Was life truly this unfair?
Pain racked her body, unbearable pain that brought tears to her eyes, but she ignored it, instead concentrating on the problem at hand...
Kikyo.
Damn that bitch...
Couldn't get rid of her that easily, now could she?
A soft laugh escaped her lips as she shifted the slightest, her bloody and dirt covered cloak torn beyond recognition, but her attention quickly snapped to the figure who was blocking the view of the beautiful sunrise before her...
Two fuzzy ears poking out of wildly tumbled silver hair, tanned body covered by a simple red haori, and finally...
The golden eyes that held onto her own, their depths endless, but filled with worry, fear...
And some emotion she just couldn't put her finger on.
"Ka... Kagome?" His voice shook the slightest, an ear twitching in his unease, and she blinked...
Unable to believe she was actually seeing him person...
'One last time...' The thought flashed through her mind, flushing the happiness that rushed to the surface away without mercy.
All the memories were there...
Even the ones from these last six years...
A shudder passed through her body, the screams of every single soul she had killed filling her ears...
The urge to scream was unbelievable, the filth that seemed to coat her too thick to cleanse.
Reaching a hand towards the dog demon above her, Kagome fought the pain that threatened to suffocate her, whispering, "Inuyasha..."
His heart stopped in his chest at that one word, his eyes widening as he stared down at the beaten girl before him, and his legs collapsed underneath him, sending him to his knees without a sound.
Taking her smaller hand in his, he noticed the blood and dirt that covered it, a pang of guilt striking his conscious, but he couldn't find any words that would express his feelings...
Nothing seemed to add up to all the joy, happiness, and wonder that was expanding inside of him.
Kagome was alive!
Lying here before him, dirty and beaten, but alive!
He hadn't been too late to save her!
Here she was!
He was broken from his thoughts when she slowly stood up, her face contorted in pain, though her eyes were shining the slightest with her inner light...
Nothing like they had been back when everything was perfect, but they were shining!
He felt like jumping up and down, shouting for all to hear, and saving the world all rolled into one...
He was ecstatic!
Blinking, he realized Kagome was teetering, close to falling over it seemed, so he stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her and spinning her around with a laugh...
He hadn't been too late!
"Inuyasha..." Her voice broke through his joy, hoarse from screaming, and suddenly he had so much to say and not enough breath to say it all, shouting, "Kagome! Oh my god, I can't believe it! This is simply amazing!"
Abruptly setting her on the ground, he took a gulp of air to continue shouting his joy to the forest, "I'll never demand another bowl of ramen, never call you a wench again..."
On and on he continued, shouting with joy and picking her up with another laugh, failing to notice the darkening of the cloaked miko's eyes, nor did he sense the deep sadness that settled upon her...
Of course he was happy, the Shikon Jewel was finally completed...
Feeling the prick of tears beneath her closed lids when the dog demon twirled her about, she realized once again she had been hoping for too much...
A tear slipped down her cheek as she once again tuned into what the hanyou was shouting, "...it was hell when you were gone! I wandered for years, miserable..."
Oh yes, miserable, she was sure...
Probably because he couldn't find the jewel shards without her there to search them out for him...
His words from mere seconds earlier made perfect sense...
Of course he wasn't going to demand another bowl or ramen again, nor call her wench...
Why keep her around when there was nothing left for her to do here?
He was going to send her right back through the well to her old home...
But it was too late, she had suffered too much.
"... Miroku and Sango got married! Can you believe it? And Kohaku's a man..."
Ah, yes, of course they went on with life without her...
Hell, she sacrificed herself so they could...
So why did it hurt so much?
When he once again set her on the ground, his amber eyes shining with joy, her eyes landed on the necklace around his neck, blinking and in a soft, yet scratchy, voice whispered, "You put the rosary beads back on..."
Glancing down at the beads that lie there, once again active, the hanyou grinned like a mad dog, laughing, "Hell yes! I'd be sat a thousand more times if that's what it took! Now, let's get you home..."
It felt like Naraku had just slammed one of his ragged knives into her...
Was he really that eager to rid of her?
She couldn't believe it...
Hadn't he even missed her the slightest all these years?
After all this time, even without her memory, she had felt as if a part of her was gone...
Yet all he could think about was that damn Shikon Jewel.
A couple more tears slipped down both cheeks as she raised her eyes to meet his, whispering, "It's too late..."
Every muscle in his body tensed, a little warning bell going off in his head, but he quickly shrugged it off, deciding he must have misunderstood her.
Those crystal tears rolling down her cheeks just had to be from happiness...
Right?
Of course!
She was happy that everything was all right...
Everything was going to be fine...
He hadn't been too late to save her!
But...
Something in his gut told him he was wrong, though he tried to ignore it.
"Too late..." Kagome whispered, lifting her hand to her neck, slowly pulling the Shikon Jewel from beneath the cloak, and with one swift yank on the thread, it broke, "I fulfilled my final promise... the completed Shikon Jewel is yours to do with as you wish."
She quickly switched her thoughts from what might have been to the problem at hand...
The bitch Kikyo had stolen a good-sized chunk of her power, though she still possessed the immortal demons...
Lucky her.
Even now she could feel the power Kikyo had stolen creeping up on her...
A few more seconds and the dead miko would use those powers to drag her away for the final battle...
Laying the Shikon Jewel in the dog demon's palm, Kagome closed his fingers over it, lost in the depths of his golden eyes...
Right then she decided that there was absolutely no reason at all to live...
Like that time in Naraku's clutches, the will to live drained from her...
Why would she want to suffer through thousands of years knowing the only true love of her life chose the Shikon Jewel over her?
No...
This was the easiest way to escape everything...
She would end it all today, taking that bitch Kikyo with her, to the deepest pits of hell.
Dropping his hand, she stepped back, holding his eyes as the power slowly crept closer and closer...
Inuyasha was completely confused.
That's the only way to explain the buzzing in his head, the clamminess of his hands, and the utterly lost look in his eyes, but as he stared at Kagome, he noticed one thing...
The look in her eyes.
The look he had seen too many times before, though it still managed to tug at his heart like nothing else had ever done...
The look of certain death.
Fuck, he really was starting to hate that look, but perhaps he wasn't correct?
Unconsciously fisting his hands, he felt the Shikon Jewel press into his palm...
What the hell was going on?
What was Kagome thinking?
He didn't understand...
"Too late? B-but... it's not too late... it can't be too late..." He was babbling he realized, his heart nearly tearing from his chest, his voice shaking so badly it cracked, but he didn't care, he simply wanted Kagome to assure him it wasn't too late, though she didn't take heed, instead whispering, "You're wrong Inuyasha... there's just been too much pain... too much suffering... it's all going to end today... at last. It's too late to save me..."
"But... n-no! What about Miroku, Sango? How about Sh-Shippo! You can't just... just abandon them! It's not too late..." The heart broken hanyou whispered, reaching forward to grip her shoulder, and Kagome felt another stab of pain...
Where were you in that Inuyasha?
Ah, of course...
You have your Shikon Jewel...
"They've made it these last years... they'll never even know I was here... I'm sure they'll be fine." She choked out, tears filling her eyes again...
Damn, how many times did she have to say good-bye?
Reaching a hand up to brush it against his cheek, like she had done so many times before, she whispered the one thing she had never been able to say before, "I love you Inuyasha..."
His heart literally stopped in his chest at those words, unable to believe she still loved him after all this time, but he wasn't going to let her go just like that...
No, it simply couldn't be too late...
It just couldn't be too late...
As he opened a mouth to tell her exactly what he was thinking, light blue flames burst to life around her, ripping her from the spot she had been standing, but Kagome caught a glimpse of the rosary beads around his neck, realizing he'd suffer the same fate unless she rid of them...
Her hand shot out, gripping them just as the flames tugged her away, and Inuyasha was left standing there in the middle of a destroyed forest as the rosary beads snapped without a sound, each bead falling to the ground and rolling in various directions...
Never to be activated again.
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Thanks to those who reviewed!!!
~Hekele Masuyo, Miztikal-Dragon, Tima, Mustard Yellow Sunshine, Little Witch, Peaches Dani, gygirl~
Hugz N Kissez,
Ali
