Chapter 7 revised, (2.6.04) ^-^
Disclaimer: I OWN EVERYTHING!! I own the world, I own Rumiko Takahashi!!! I own Inuyasha and Miroku and everyone else too! I also own Yuu Watase and Tasuki and Chichiri and--
::gets hit in the head by several pots and pans. From the side, Yuu Watase-sensei and Rumiko Takahashi-sensei are teaming up and throwing miscellaneous kitchenware::
Takahashi-sensei:: Oi bakayarou, mou urusai yo!!
Watase-sensei:: Oo~!! Baka no fanfikkushon-chosha~!!! Hayaku dettete!!!
Tessen:: ::running with arms over head:: Hai hai hai~~
____________________________
To Be With You Tomorrow
Part Three :: Kagome, Inuyasha and Kikyou (part one)
Chapter Seven :: Inuyasha's Heart
Tama stretched her arms, gazing at the sky. "Aaah, it's so blue today. I don't think the sky has ever been so blue. And I've been watching it for 67 years!!!"
Kagome smiled bitterly. *At least SOMEONE can find some happiness in today. Stupid Inuyasha... I'm over there getting choked to death and he decides to brood over his ex. Even while he's checking on me to make sure I'm still living he's looking at me with the eyes he had for Kikyou. Can't he ever worry about ME? He always has to worry about his connection to Kikyou INSIDE of me?*
"What the hell are you mumbling about?"
At the sudden invasion of her thoughts, Kagome jumped thirty feet into the air, squealing loudly. With her reaction to him, Inuyasha gasped, holding one hand over his heart. "Jeez, don't do that! You scared me!!"
"WHO SCARED WHO, HUH?!!" Kagome near-bellowed, and after she had calmed slightly, spat, "What do you want?!!" Inuyasha folded his arms behind his head and glanced at her. "Why are you avoiding me?"
"What?" She rolled her eyes, continuing to walk her bike. "What makes you think I'm avoiding you?" *Not that I'm not, but still... he picked up on it awfully quick.*
The hanyou looked a bit hurt. "Well you haven't spoken to me since yesterday, except for necessary stuff like 'which way' or 'hold up a minute' or whatever. I figured it was just your blood for this month but I'm not getting any scent off you, so.."
"My blood..?" Kagome repeated in confusion and Inuyasha blushed. "Yeah. Monthly blood. You know... uhm.. the time of the month where women get exceptionally bitchy for no reason? The time that signals that a female in heat is no longer in heat? Please tell you know what I'm talking about now so I can stop looking like a fucking idiot?"
Kagome was trying to stifle a laugh. "My period."
"Whatever you call it. But that's not it, so what's wrong?"
Kagome looked at him innocently. "Nothing's wrong." The hanyou snorted. "Bullshit."
"Well okay, maybe something, but it's not a big deal."
"Well what already, wench!?"
Kagome winced, looking as if her confusion pained her. "Why are you so concerned anyway? You never used to bother with me before, so why now?"
Feeling like a child caught doing something he's not supposed to do, Inuyasha blushed again and turned his eyes to the road. "Nothing! Jeez, if it's that big of a deal, I'll leave you alone!"
Kagome frowned, stamping one foot. "That's not what I meant!" He turned back to her, eyes narrowed. "Then what DID you mean?!!" Kagome glared at him before pushing past him on her bicycle. "OH~~ Nothing...!"
"Good gods woman, you're going to make my brain explode trying to fucking understand you!!" Inuyasha roared, to which Kagome kicked down her kickstand and whirled on him. "Nothing's bothering me!! Nothing of your concern, anyway! It's obvious that you're pushing yourself to worry about me so why don't you go look for Kikyou so you can stop worrying about her?!"
Inuyasha gaped, utterly confused. Kikyou's name had come out of nowhere and he wasn't sure where the hell Kagome had gotten it. "What? Look for Kikyou, what the hell for?!"
Kagome glared at him accusingly. "Isn't that why you're making sure I'm okay? So you can leave with a clean conscience? I'm fine, don't worry about me." She started to turned back to her bike. "You never do anyway..."
Inuyasha grabbed her arm and turned her to face him. "Where the HELL is all this coming from? Are you picking this shit out of the air?!"
Kagome looked up at his angry face in confusion. "What?" Her reply only seemed to make the demi-inuyoukai angrier. "I don't give a damn about Kikyou!" he yelled, "I wanted to know what was wrong with you; how the hell did Kikyou even get mentioned in this discussion?!"
He was so stupid. Just, stupid. He didn't know anything about her. Kagome yanked her arm out of his hand. "Because that's what's wrong with me you idiot! OSUWARI!"
SLAM! "Gah!"
Kagome stomped off, and behind the couple, Miroku sighed. "He doesn't get it. He'll never get it. It's been months now since all this started and he still doesn't get it-- Shippou could get it by now."
"What's that supposed to mean?!" the kitsune asked and Miroku sighed. "It means that you're too young to think about girls and yet you still understand that you have to let the woman calm down first."
"Oh, of course. I dunno why, but I do know it." Inuyasha glared at them as he struggled to stand. "Do you guys know what the hell is wrong with her?!"
WHAM! Hiraikotsu was knocked heavily onto Inuyasha's head and Sango glared at the squashed inuhanyou. "You're not only an inconsiderate jerk, but you're a stupid inconsiderate jerk! How dare you try to shrug off what you did yesterday!!"
"WHAT DID I DO YESTERDAY?!!" Inuyasha screamed so loud the whole world probably heard him and Shippou glared at then dog-demon from his place on Miroku's shoulder. "When Kagome was hurt and you started thinking about Kikyou!! It hurt her feelings you idiot!!"
"B-but..." Inuyasha frowned at this new revelation. *She misunderstood me... I wasn't thinking about Kikyou, I was worried about HER...* He turned and ran in Kagome's general direction. "Oi, Kagome, wait a minute, I have to talk to you!!"
"Go away!"
"Wait up!"
"No!"
"C'mon, at least lemme say something in my defense!"
"I said go away!"
"Will ya just wait and hear me out?!"
"LEAVE! ME! ALONE! I hate you!!" she yelled, spinning on him and yelling mere inches from his face. Inuyasha felt like he'd been slapped. Kagome, satisfied that he had gotten the point when he sagged in defeat, stomped away.
Inuyasha despondently watched Kagome go, and looked up with he felt a soft hand pat his shoulder. Tama tilted her head. "Give her some time...okay? Then you can tell her everything."
Inuyasha nodded.
~*~
Kikyou pulled on the reins of the horse, turning the mare towards the right. "Uramiko-sama said that the hanyou twins were in Kiku Forest. I'm close then."
As she rode Kikyou wondered about what she had realized earlier. She was missing at least part, if not MOST, of her memory. She knew what face was attached to the name Inuyasha, yet she could not remember why. She wondered if maybe she was just imagining it, but her feelings were so certain.
*My mind is a complete blank. The only things I can remember are the past few weeks, when I woke up in Uramiko-sama's care... Have I lost part of my memory? Perhaps I am in some way connected to this Inuyasha?*
She narrowed her gray eyes. *Maybe he knows who I am...? And yet I have been assigned to kill him, like some everyday assassin. Did he do something to me in this past which I cannot remember? Is that why I've been asked to destroy him? Or was it simply Uramiko-sama's will...?*
"There are so many things I can't yet answer... or even comprehend…" She sighed deeply and dug her heels in. The mare whinnied and began to ride faster. "I feel my past is on the other side of this forest!! The answers to my past-- and the key to my future!!"
~*~
*Stupid Inuyasha. Stupid Kikyou. Stupid everything.*
Kagome sat underneath a willow tree next to a small stream, folding her arms and burying her head in them to hide the sound of her crying. Not that it mattered. She felt like she'd been crying forever. *Am I such a horrible person to be with? That he can't even accept me as me and he always has to think of me as... as another woman!?!*
"Oi."
Kagome looked up and then twisted to look behind her. Inuyasha was sitting with his back to hers, his face turned to look at her, but his eyes hidden by his hair. Kagome gave his back a dagger-like glare before turning back and leaning on her knees. "What do you want?"
"Dinner's ready. I wanted to know if you were going to eat. You've been out here for hours now..."
At this Kagome looked up in surprise at the setting sun. She hadn't realized she'd been alone for so long. Had she really cried for three hours? And Inuyasha hadn't come for three whole hours??? Usually he was right behind her. Had he actually left her alone and given her time to think?!!
"What is the matter with you?!" she demanded, turning to face his back, "You've been acting weird for a long time now! Tell me what's bothering you!!!" Inuyasha lifted his eyes to the sky. His face was calm, though Kagome couldn't really see.
"You."
Kagome looked irked. "What?! Me??"
"Yeah... I have something I need to tell you... and it's hard. Hard because it's so strong... and I didn't think you would believe me but..." He closed his eyes, still not facing her.
"I love you."
The words seemed to roll off his tongue so smoothly. Kagome's entire body stiffened, her eyes widened. Before she could say anything at all Inuyasha smiled a little bitterly, and a little sadly. "I know that I've been confusing you... and it's my fault that you cry all the time. But I love you."
His shoulder made a subtle little shrug as he shifted. "I can't help it if I look at you the same way I looked at Kikyou. I loved her once. And when you and I first met, I thought you looked a lot like Kikyou. And it took a long time before I was able to realize that you may look like her, but you're not anything alike."
He took a deep breath. "Kikyou was always sad. She was kind, but alone. I was alone too. We needed each other to counter the loneliness we both felt. And that's why I loved her."
He finally turned to look at her then and Kagome saw the sincerity on his boyish face. With every word he spoke more and more she believed he meant every single word. "But you... you're warm, and gentle, and kind and you're always happy. And when I'm with you, you make me happy. I feel calmer and I'm always inspired. You make me want to be better. And I'm not alone anymore."
He smiled, reaching out and brushing her fingers over her dark locks. "Because of you, I have lots of friends. Because of you, the first person I ever really trusted, I have Miroku and Shippou and Sango now. Kikyou held me in my loneliness. You saved me from it. Which is why I love you, Kagome. I only see you."
For a long moment they were both silent, and Kagome just stared at him. Her entire body, tense with apprehension and surprise, relaxed, and she lowered her eyes to the grass. Inuyasha exhaled deeply, heart thumping against his chest frantically. He had finally said it. He wasn't sure if he'd ever been more nervous in his life than right now, waiting for her reaction.
After a long time she still hadn't said anything, so much to the point where he thought if she was asleep again he'd wring her neck. He growled softly, unable to bear it any longer, and he reached out, cupping her face. "Kagome...?"
His fingers found liquid on her smooth cheeks, his nose smelled the salt of fresh tears. "...D-Do you... really mean that?" Her voice quaked with emotion as she looked up.
Kagome was crying. Her entire body shook with the effort of trying to hold the tears back. Her lips quivered. Inuyasha nodded at her. "Of course I meant it!! I wouldn't say it if I--" He looked horrified as her tears doubled. "Wait a minute, don't cry~!"
Abruptly she threw her arms around his neck. "Inuyasha~!!"
He blinked, looking down at the teenage girl on his chest. He was absolutely, positively confused. "Ka.. gome?" She was laughing and crying at the same time. "Inuyasha, that makes me so happy~!!!"
The hanyou bit his lip. "What? B-but.. you told me you hated me..." She shook her head, still holding him. "I don't hate you... I just said that because I was mad... I could never hate you, Inuyasha, I love you...! I love you so much!"
Inuyasha swallowed thickly. Contradicting what he had imagined would happen when he told her, she was holding him instead of sitting him. Instead of eating dirt he was-- well, close to tasting her, anyway. She was so close to him. Her words echoed in his head. Had she just said that to him?? Had she really...?
"Really...?" he asked and she pulled away, her hands cupping his cheeks as she looked into his eyes. "Yes. I love you~! I've... always loved you!" She leaned forward then and Inuyasha's eyes widened as she pressed her lips to his.
He didn't waste an instant. He pulled her to him and kissed her back. Her arms were tight around his ribs, her small hands grasping the back of his gi. Desperately Inuyasha crushed her to him, trying the quell the passion swelling up in his chest. He had wanted this for so long. He had wanted her. He had wanted --needed-- to be wanted by her.
He felt like a huge weight had been lifted from his chest. Kagome loved him. That one thought drove him mad with euphoria inside, that Kagome loved him. His Kagome. She wasn't anyone else's, she was his.
And he was hers.
It was where he wanted to be. Home.
They parted after what seemed like hours and Inuyasha rested his head on her shoulder, just cherishing the feel of Kagome in his arms. She was stroking his hair, her cheek pressed to his. He felt like he should say something, but realized he didn't know what to say, nor did he really want to. He wanted his embrace to say everything, and he hoped she understood.
Kagome loved this place. In the warm, comfortable, safe stronghold his arms and chest created, shadowed by a veil of silver hair which had fallen over his shoulder, brushing Kagome's face. With a rough affection he rubbed his cheek against hers. She loved it, even though he was like something foreign and familiar at the same time.
She was so unaccustomed to the Inuyasha whom she was embracing, and yet he was the same as ever. She wanted to hold him for as long as she could and explore this new entity, his hair, his eyes, his skin, all looking the same as yesterday yet ever more intriguing.
How had this happened? One moment she was sure she would never have him; he was Kikyou's, and he could never be hers. It seemed like everytime she took a step closer, he took a step back, forever out of her reach. And yet his one moment of total sincerity, an emotion she had scarce seen from him, had 180'd her.
He had sounded so heartsick, so completely honest, so uncertain of her feelings. Not his, though. He spilled his heart to her, knowing his own heart, but afraid of hers. It was the first time that she could remember that he had made such a trusting display of himself. She loved it. She loved him.
In the moment they were together she had completely forgotten everything. Their fight, Kikyou, their troubles, the shards, everything that had ever happened to pull them apart. None of it mattered because they were together now.
"Are you still mad?" His voice was husky and low.
"No." She held him tighter, smiling broadly. "I'm too happy."
From the bushes, Miroku's voice demanded, "Hey can we come out now, we're dying over here!!!"
Inuyasha and Kagome both blushed a bit, and Kagome stood first, taking Inuyasha's hand in hers and pulling him up with her. "Yeah, guys, c'mon."
From the bushes Sango and Tama practically bounced over to Kagome and latched onto the girl. Both of them were crying and it started Kagome up again too. Miroku slapped Inuyasha on the back. "Way to go, dog-boy!"
"Yeah, whoda thought?" Shippou squeaked, and Inuyasha, blushing a faint shade of pink, cracked his knuckles. "You guys~~"
"Uwaa~~!!!"
"Inuyasha, cut it out!!"
"Oh, my..." Sango murmured, her eyes suddenly fixed on something on the horizon. Inuyasha was laughing, and Kagome was hanging on his arm, laughing too. Kagome turned with an innocent smile "What is it, Sango-chan?"
"Ka.. gome-chan?" Tama asked, suddenly seeing now what it was Sango was looking at and Miroku winced, at a loss for words. Inuyasha and Kagome, confused, turned to see what everyone was glaring at--
--and Inuyasha caught his breath, his eyes going wide. Kagome's hands tightened on his forearm. "Ki..."
Inuyasha's heart sank. "Kikyou..."
The dead miko was on a chestnut mare against the setting sun. She had an expression of loss, anger, hatred... and Inuyasha couldn't speak. What kind of fate was he attached to that the moment he managed to confess his feelings to the woman he truly loved that he was faced with his past love? *Someone has it out for me, I'm sure now...*
Kikyou narrowed her eyes, the gray orbs falling on Inuyasha's face. "You are... Inuyasha?" she asked and the whole group did a double take. Kikyou didn't recognize him??
"Kikyou, you don't know me?? What... what's happened to you?" Her eyes widened in a glare. "So you are, then..." Quicker than anyone could see, her bow and arrow was raised and she glared at him, preparing to fire.
"Die, Inuyasha!!"
~*~ To be continued ~*~
a/n :: ^-^
~*~ V^-^V ~*~
Tessen
Disclaimer: I OWN EVERYTHING!! I own the world, I own Rumiko Takahashi!!! I own Inuyasha and Miroku and everyone else too! I also own Yuu Watase and Tasuki and Chichiri and--
::gets hit in the head by several pots and pans. From the side, Yuu Watase-sensei and Rumiko Takahashi-sensei are teaming up and throwing miscellaneous kitchenware::
Takahashi-sensei:: Oi bakayarou, mou urusai yo!!
Watase-sensei:: Oo~!! Baka no fanfikkushon-chosha~!!! Hayaku dettete!!!
Tessen:: ::running with arms over head:: Hai hai hai~~
____________________________
To Be With You Tomorrow
Part Three :: Kagome, Inuyasha and Kikyou (part one)
Chapter Seven :: Inuyasha's Heart
Tama stretched her arms, gazing at the sky. "Aaah, it's so blue today. I don't think the sky has ever been so blue. And I've been watching it for 67 years!!!"
Kagome smiled bitterly. *At least SOMEONE can find some happiness in today. Stupid Inuyasha... I'm over there getting choked to death and he decides to brood over his ex. Even while he's checking on me to make sure I'm still living he's looking at me with the eyes he had for Kikyou. Can't he ever worry about ME? He always has to worry about his connection to Kikyou INSIDE of me?*
"What the hell are you mumbling about?"
At the sudden invasion of her thoughts, Kagome jumped thirty feet into the air, squealing loudly. With her reaction to him, Inuyasha gasped, holding one hand over his heart. "Jeez, don't do that! You scared me!!"
"WHO SCARED WHO, HUH?!!" Kagome near-bellowed, and after she had calmed slightly, spat, "What do you want?!!" Inuyasha folded his arms behind his head and glanced at her. "Why are you avoiding me?"
"What?" She rolled her eyes, continuing to walk her bike. "What makes you think I'm avoiding you?" *Not that I'm not, but still... he picked up on it awfully quick.*
The hanyou looked a bit hurt. "Well you haven't spoken to me since yesterday, except for necessary stuff like 'which way' or 'hold up a minute' or whatever. I figured it was just your blood for this month but I'm not getting any scent off you, so.."
"My blood..?" Kagome repeated in confusion and Inuyasha blushed. "Yeah. Monthly blood. You know... uhm.. the time of the month where women get exceptionally bitchy for no reason? The time that signals that a female in heat is no longer in heat? Please tell you know what I'm talking about now so I can stop looking like a fucking idiot?"
Kagome was trying to stifle a laugh. "My period."
"Whatever you call it. But that's not it, so what's wrong?"
Kagome looked at him innocently. "Nothing's wrong." The hanyou snorted. "Bullshit."
"Well okay, maybe something, but it's not a big deal."
"Well what already, wench!?"
Kagome winced, looking as if her confusion pained her. "Why are you so concerned anyway? You never used to bother with me before, so why now?"
Feeling like a child caught doing something he's not supposed to do, Inuyasha blushed again and turned his eyes to the road. "Nothing! Jeez, if it's that big of a deal, I'll leave you alone!"
Kagome frowned, stamping one foot. "That's not what I meant!" He turned back to her, eyes narrowed. "Then what DID you mean?!!" Kagome glared at him before pushing past him on her bicycle. "OH~~ Nothing...!"
"Good gods woman, you're going to make my brain explode trying to fucking understand you!!" Inuyasha roared, to which Kagome kicked down her kickstand and whirled on him. "Nothing's bothering me!! Nothing of your concern, anyway! It's obvious that you're pushing yourself to worry about me so why don't you go look for Kikyou so you can stop worrying about her?!"
Inuyasha gaped, utterly confused. Kikyou's name had come out of nowhere and he wasn't sure where the hell Kagome had gotten it. "What? Look for Kikyou, what the hell for?!"
Kagome glared at him accusingly. "Isn't that why you're making sure I'm okay? So you can leave with a clean conscience? I'm fine, don't worry about me." She started to turned back to her bike. "You never do anyway..."
Inuyasha grabbed her arm and turned her to face him. "Where the HELL is all this coming from? Are you picking this shit out of the air?!"
Kagome looked up at his angry face in confusion. "What?" Her reply only seemed to make the demi-inuyoukai angrier. "I don't give a damn about Kikyou!" he yelled, "I wanted to know what was wrong with you; how the hell did Kikyou even get mentioned in this discussion?!"
He was so stupid. Just, stupid. He didn't know anything about her. Kagome yanked her arm out of his hand. "Because that's what's wrong with me you idiot! OSUWARI!"
SLAM! "Gah!"
Kagome stomped off, and behind the couple, Miroku sighed. "He doesn't get it. He'll never get it. It's been months now since all this started and he still doesn't get it-- Shippou could get it by now."
"What's that supposed to mean?!" the kitsune asked and Miroku sighed. "It means that you're too young to think about girls and yet you still understand that you have to let the woman calm down first."
"Oh, of course. I dunno why, but I do know it." Inuyasha glared at them as he struggled to stand. "Do you guys know what the hell is wrong with her?!"
WHAM! Hiraikotsu was knocked heavily onto Inuyasha's head and Sango glared at the squashed inuhanyou. "You're not only an inconsiderate jerk, but you're a stupid inconsiderate jerk! How dare you try to shrug off what you did yesterday!!"
"WHAT DID I DO YESTERDAY?!!" Inuyasha screamed so loud the whole world probably heard him and Shippou glared at then dog-demon from his place on Miroku's shoulder. "When Kagome was hurt and you started thinking about Kikyou!! It hurt her feelings you idiot!!"
"B-but..." Inuyasha frowned at this new revelation. *She misunderstood me... I wasn't thinking about Kikyou, I was worried about HER...* He turned and ran in Kagome's general direction. "Oi, Kagome, wait a minute, I have to talk to you!!"
"Go away!"
"Wait up!"
"No!"
"C'mon, at least lemme say something in my defense!"
"I said go away!"
"Will ya just wait and hear me out?!"
"LEAVE! ME! ALONE! I hate you!!" she yelled, spinning on him and yelling mere inches from his face. Inuyasha felt like he'd been slapped. Kagome, satisfied that he had gotten the point when he sagged in defeat, stomped away.
Inuyasha despondently watched Kagome go, and looked up with he felt a soft hand pat his shoulder. Tama tilted her head. "Give her some time...okay? Then you can tell her everything."
Inuyasha nodded.
~*~
Kikyou pulled on the reins of the horse, turning the mare towards the right. "Uramiko-sama said that the hanyou twins were in Kiku Forest. I'm close then."
As she rode Kikyou wondered about what she had realized earlier. She was missing at least part, if not MOST, of her memory. She knew what face was attached to the name Inuyasha, yet she could not remember why. She wondered if maybe she was just imagining it, but her feelings were so certain.
*My mind is a complete blank. The only things I can remember are the past few weeks, when I woke up in Uramiko-sama's care... Have I lost part of my memory? Perhaps I am in some way connected to this Inuyasha?*
She narrowed her gray eyes. *Maybe he knows who I am...? And yet I have been assigned to kill him, like some everyday assassin. Did he do something to me in this past which I cannot remember? Is that why I've been asked to destroy him? Or was it simply Uramiko-sama's will...?*
"There are so many things I can't yet answer... or even comprehend…" She sighed deeply and dug her heels in. The mare whinnied and began to ride faster. "I feel my past is on the other side of this forest!! The answers to my past-- and the key to my future!!"
~*~
*Stupid Inuyasha. Stupid Kikyou. Stupid everything.*
Kagome sat underneath a willow tree next to a small stream, folding her arms and burying her head in them to hide the sound of her crying. Not that it mattered. She felt like she'd been crying forever. *Am I such a horrible person to be with? That he can't even accept me as me and he always has to think of me as... as another woman!?!*
"Oi."
Kagome looked up and then twisted to look behind her. Inuyasha was sitting with his back to hers, his face turned to look at her, but his eyes hidden by his hair. Kagome gave his back a dagger-like glare before turning back and leaning on her knees. "What do you want?"
"Dinner's ready. I wanted to know if you were going to eat. You've been out here for hours now..."
At this Kagome looked up in surprise at the setting sun. She hadn't realized she'd been alone for so long. Had she really cried for three hours? And Inuyasha hadn't come for three whole hours??? Usually he was right behind her. Had he actually left her alone and given her time to think?!!
"What is the matter with you?!" she demanded, turning to face his back, "You've been acting weird for a long time now! Tell me what's bothering you!!!" Inuyasha lifted his eyes to the sky. His face was calm, though Kagome couldn't really see.
"You."
Kagome looked irked. "What?! Me??"
"Yeah... I have something I need to tell you... and it's hard. Hard because it's so strong... and I didn't think you would believe me but..." He closed his eyes, still not facing her.
"I love you."
The words seemed to roll off his tongue so smoothly. Kagome's entire body stiffened, her eyes widened. Before she could say anything at all Inuyasha smiled a little bitterly, and a little sadly. "I know that I've been confusing you... and it's my fault that you cry all the time. But I love you."
His shoulder made a subtle little shrug as he shifted. "I can't help it if I look at you the same way I looked at Kikyou. I loved her once. And when you and I first met, I thought you looked a lot like Kikyou. And it took a long time before I was able to realize that you may look like her, but you're not anything alike."
He took a deep breath. "Kikyou was always sad. She was kind, but alone. I was alone too. We needed each other to counter the loneliness we both felt. And that's why I loved her."
He finally turned to look at her then and Kagome saw the sincerity on his boyish face. With every word he spoke more and more she believed he meant every single word. "But you... you're warm, and gentle, and kind and you're always happy. And when I'm with you, you make me happy. I feel calmer and I'm always inspired. You make me want to be better. And I'm not alone anymore."
He smiled, reaching out and brushing her fingers over her dark locks. "Because of you, I have lots of friends. Because of you, the first person I ever really trusted, I have Miroku and Shippou and Sango now. Kikyou held me in my loneliness. You saved me from it. Which is why I love you, Kagome. I only see you."
For a long moment they were both silent, and Kagome just stared at him. Her entire body, tense with apprehension and surprise, relaxed, and she lowered her eyes to the grass. Inuyasha exhaled deeply, heart thumping against his chest frantically. He had finally said it. He wasn't sure if he'd ever been more nervous in his life than right now, waiting for her reaction.
After a long time she still hadn't said anything, so much to the point where he thought if she was asleep again he'd wring her neck. He growled softly, unable to bear it any longer, and he reached out, cupping her face. "Kagome...?"
His fingers found liquid on her smooth cheeks, his nose smelled the salt of fresh tears. "...D-Do you... really mean that?" Her voice quaked with emotion as she looked up.
Kagome was crying. Her entire body shook with the effort of trying to hold the tears back. Her lips quivered. Inuyasha nodded at her. "Of course I meant it!! I wouldn't say it if I--" He looked horrified as her tears doubled. "Wait a minute, don't cry~!"
Abruptly she threw her arms around his neck. "Inuyasha~!!"
He blinked, looking down at the teenage girl on his chest. He was absolutely, positively confused. "Ka.. gome?" She was laughing and crying at the same time. "Inuyasha, that makes me so happy~!!!"
The hanyou bit his lip. "What? B-but.. you told me you hated me..." She shook her head, still holding him. "I don't hate you... I just said that because I was mad... I could never hate you, Inuyasha, I love you...! I love you so much!"
Inuyasha swallowed thickly. Contradicting what he had imagined would happen when he told her, she was holding him instead of sitting him. Instead of eating dirt he was-- well, close to tasting her, anyway. She was so close to him. Her words echoed in his head. Had she just said that to him?? Had she really...?
"Really...?" he asked and she pulled away, her hands cupping his cheeks as she looked into his eyes. "Yes. I love you~! I've... always loved you!" She leaned forward then and Inuyasha's eyes widened as she pressed her lips to his.
He didn't waste an instant. He pulled her to him and kissed her back. Her arms were tight around his ribs, her small hands grasping the back of his gi. Desperately Inuyasha crushed her to him, trying the quell the passion swelling up in his chest. He had wanted this for so long. He had wanted her. He had wanted --needed-- to be wanted by her.
He felt like a huge weight had been lifted from his chest. Kagome loved him. That one thought drove him mad with euphoria inside, that Kagome loved him. His Kagome. She wasn't anyone else's, she was his.
And he was hers.
It was where he wanted to be. Home.
They parted after what seemed like hours and Inuyasha rested his head on her shoulder, just cherishing the feel of Kagome in his arms. She was stroking his hair, her cheek pressed to his. He felt like he should say something, but realized he didn't know what to say, nor did he really want to. He wanted his embrace to say everything, and he hoped she understood.
Kagome loved this place. In the warm, comfortable, safe stronghold his arms and chest created, shadowed by a veil of silver hair which had fallen over his shoulder, brushing Kagome's face. With a rough affection he rubbed his cheek against hers. She loved it, even though he was like something foreign and familiar at the same time.
She was so unaccustomed to the Inuyasha whom she was embracing, and yet he was the same as ever. She wanted to hold him for as long as she could and explore this new entity, his hair, his eyes, his skin, all looking the same as yesterday yet ever more intriguing.
How had this happened? One moment she was sure she would never have him; he was Kikyou's, and he could never be hers. It seemed like everytime she took a step closer, he took a step back, forever out of her reach. And yet his one moment of total sincerity, an emotion she had scarce seen from him, had 180'd her.
He had sounded so heartsick, so completely honest, so uncertain of her feelings. Not his, though. He spilled his heart to her, knowing his own heart, but afraid of hers. It was the first time that she could remember that he had made such a trusting display of himself. She loved it. She loved him.
In the moment they were together she had completely forgotten everything. Their fight, Kikyou, their troubles, the shards, everything that had ever happened to pull them apart. None of it mattered because they were together now.
"Are you still mad?" His voice was husky and low.
"No." She held him tighter, smiling broadly. "I'm too happy."
From the bushes, Miroku's voice demanded, "Hey can we come out now, we're dying over here!!!"
Inuyasha and Kagome both blushed a bit, and Kagome stood first, taking Inuyasha's hand in hers and pulling him up with her. "Yeah, guys, c'mon."
From the bushes Sango and Tama practically bounced over to Kagome and latched onto the girl. Both of them were crying and it started Kagome up again too. Miroku slapped Inuyasha on the back. "Way to go, dog-boy!"
"Yeah, whoda thought?" Shippou squeaked, and Inuyasha, blushing a faint shade of pink, cracked his knuckles. "You guys~~"
"Uwaa~~!!!"
"Inuyasha, cut it out!!"
"Oh, my..." Sango murmured, her eyes suddenly fixed on something on the horizon. Inuyasha was laughing, and Kagome was hanging on his arm, laughing too. Kagome turned with an innocent smile "What is it, Sango-chan?"
"Ka.. gome-chan?" Tama asked, suddenly seeing now what it was Sango was looking at and Miroku winced, at a loss for words. Inuyasha and Kagome, confused, turned to see what everyone was glaring at--
--and Inuyasha caught his breath, his eyes going wide. Kagome's hands tightened on his forearm. "Ki..."
Inuyasha's heart sank. "Kikyou..."
The dead miko was on a chestnut mare against the setting sun. She had an expression of loss, anger, hatred... and Inuyasha couldn't speak. What kind of fate was he attached to that the moment he managed to confess his feelings to the woman he truly loved that he was faced with his past love? *Someone has it out for me, I'm sure now...*
Kikyou narrowed her eyes, the gray orbs falling on Inuyasha's face. "You are... Inuyasha?" she asked and the whole group did a double take. Kikyou didn't recognize him??
"Kikyou, you don't know me?? What... what's happened to you?" Her eyes widened in a glare. "So you are, then..." Quicker than anyone could see, her bow and arrow was raised and she glared at him, preparing to fire.
"Die, Inuyasha!!"
~*~ To be continued ~*~
a/n :: ^-^
~*~ V^-^V ~*~
Tessen