The Scent of Despair
Written by Catrina Winner
Author's Note: Just to reassure you all that I am, in fact, not dead, here's another chapter. Because, you know, you can never have enough Inuyasha. Kinda like me and never having too many reviews. We're almost to two hundred! C'mon! I really should be studying for English now, but, because I love my dedicated fans so much, I decided that I would write this chapter, JUST FOR YOU! You may rejoice now.
Anyway, on with the story!
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Chapter Fourteen
Kagome held tightly to Inuyasha's hand as they reappeared in the village. The festivities were dying down quickly, and many of the people had already returned to their homes, tired and prepared for sleep. They were all going to have to recover from the vast amounts of work put into their small town, and, though that work proved to have been unnecessary in the long run, each one of them took a special pride in everything that had been done for their homeland.
Masako was one of the few that had remained to assist in the massive cleanup duties following the feast. When she saw Kagome and Inuyasha, her eyes lit up and she rushed towards them, red hair bouncing wildly. Even the hanyou couldn't hide a slight smirk as the child threw herself into Kagome's arms, exclaiming her name.
"Kagome!! You're back! Did you have fun?" the child asked innocently. Kagome laughed and patted the child on the head, carefully returning her to stable ground and bending down next to her.
"Yes, Masako, we had fun. Shouldn't you be in bed now? I'm sure your parents wished you were home and not out here, waiting for some troublemakers to return to the party. It's almost dawn, and little girls should be fast asleep in bed, resting up for a new day, and not running around an empty banquet ground!" the Miko smiled down at the red-haired nymph.
Masako drew herself up, trying to appear tall and dignified. "Sango told me to deliver a message to you! That's why I've been waiting for you to come back."
At the mention of Sango's name, Kagome listened more intently, urging the child on with a warm smile. Inuyasha remained in the background, watching the exchange, dreading what the little child was going to say next with every ounce of his being.
"Sango said that they would all be waiting for you by the shrine, and to come and get them so you can all go to the well," Masako stated. She looked incredibly proud of herself for remembering all that of the verbal message she had been charged to pass on.
Kagome patted her on the head and smiled widely. "Well, thank you, Masako, but isn't it about time you went home?" The red hair bobbed up and down, and the child turned to skitter away in the direction of a small residence. She paused for a moment and looked back at the Miko and hanyou.
"Kagome, you will be coming back, won't you?" she asked. Kagome felt a sharp pang in her heart, but nodded to the little girl, who ran off without another thought of the two still standing there, watching her retreating back.
The Miko turned towards Inuyasha and smiled at him. He stepped closer to her and reached out a clawed hand. She took it, and they both started off towards the shrine.
True to the message, the rest of their small ensemble was standing near the side of the shrine, leaning casually on its wooden walls, and patiently awaiting the arrival of the last members of their group. When Sango caught sight of them, she alerted the others, and, silently, they joined together and moved slowly down towards the well.
Upon reaching the area where their
destinies would be fated to change, everyone halted in together. They all stared at the gaping hole ready to
swallow up on of their closest friends. With
a sigh, Kagome stepped forward and smiled bravely.
"C'mon, guys, it's not like I'm never coming back!" she said, trying to keep her voice light and free of doubt. Shippo immediately let out a loud wail and jumped into her arms.
"Kagome! Please don't leave us all alone!" Big tears welled up in the kitsune's eyes as he stared up at the Miko. "I don't want you to leave!" he clung tighter to her and sobbed into her t-shirt. Sango stepped over and carefully detached the fox demon from her clothing.
She gently put the kitsune on the ground, where Kirara leapt down and nuzzled up against his side. Sango embraced Kagome, then, holding her tightly.
"You had better go before we all start to cry like he is," she said, nodding towards Shippo. Kagome shook her head in agreement and moved over towards Miroku. He hugged her loosely and she stepped up to Inuyasha. He watched her carefully, taking deep breaths. It was obvious that the scent of despair had returned, but it wasn't very potent, and she had such a bright smile adorning her face he couldn't believe she was actually unhappy. With a surprising show of affection, he wrapped his arms tightly around her and held the slight form in his arms for several moments. With a quiet sigh, he pushed her away and watched as she slowly began walking to the well.
Kagome slowed down and carefully climbed over the lip of the well. She gave a cheerful wave, her eyes lingering on Inuyasha. His head was full of thoughts and scenarios. Suddenly, he realized that he couldn't just let her go like this, without having told her anything of his feelings and risk losing her forever with no way of knowing if she would have returned them. As she pushed herself over the edge of the well and down, he lunged forward.
"Kagome!!" he called, tapping into every reserve he had ever possessed. The surge of speed was not enough, even for him, because by the time he was even close, the last lock of raven hair had vanished downward. He continued closer anyway, his heart sinking every split second he couldn't hear her voice returning his calls.
As Kagome leapt into the well, she heard Inuyasha shout her name. At the same moment, a vicious twist came from inside of her, and she saw the Shikon Jewel turn a dark purple for a single second, clearing a mere instant later. The ground was rushing up towards her, and it gave no sign of opening and allowing her to pass through. With a resounding crack, her body slammed into the hardened dirt, bounced once, and lay there limply. The last sight Kagome was given was that of the cold, hard ground. Then she blacked out.
Inuyasha heard the thump that signaled something had gone wrong. He too felt the cruel tugging sensation in the deepest part of his soul and saw a colored flash erupt from the well. The entire incident, and the time it took him to process it, took no more then a few seconds. He leapt into the well after his beloved and found her stretched out on the dirt. He had to be careful when he landed of harming or falling onto her.
Slowly he gathered her up into his arms and curled up in the farthest corner of the well he could, hiding his face from any of his friends that might look down to mask the tears of uncontrollable happiness and fear. Kagome was here to stay, for the well was sealed.
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Hm… Well, I revised the entire plotline to incorporate all the changes I made to it, and… uh… well; it's gotten a lot longer, though I'm not sure how or why it did. Oh well, if you stick through to the end, I promise you that not a single person will be disappointed. So, please go off and review, and hang around for the next chapter! (Hopefully coming out soon!)