Chapter 6
For three days, the air between Kagome and Inuyasha had been uncomfortable and full of a bristling tension, but for the last day things had finally settled into an awkward normalcy. It seemed that there was an unspoken pact that Kagome's engagement would not be mentioned, but the way Inuyasha would look at her with an open mouth, very much like he were about to say something important, and then shut it again just as quickly assured Kagome that it still skimmed at the top of his thoughts.
By the fourth day, right around noon, the mountain came into sight and a sense of awe came over Kagome. There was an aura, a vibration, emanating from the mountain, and Kagome wondered if it were something anyone could sense or if her miko powers were reacting to the pulse the mountain was emitting.
"Inuyasha, do you feel that?"
"Feel what?"
Kagome frowned, "Well, I guess that answers my question. I'm getting an odd feeling from that mountain. I've ever sensed anything like it before."
"Probably just your miko powers being overly sensitive. You kinda gave me the impression that you haven't used them in a while." His tone sounded almost reproachful, as though her were disgusted that she had suppressed her power.
"There wasn't a need for it in my time," one of her eyebrows arched, a warning for him to back off. "But that's not what I'm getting at. The feeling isn't bad. It's just different from anything I've come into contact with before."
"We'll find out what it is soon enough." With that he turned around and looked as though he wanted to continue walking, but Kagome placed her hand on his arm.
"Let's rest a while. I know we're almost there, but it's going to be quite a hike up that mountain and I'd like to relax a bit before we get there."
"Fine, fine." He rolled his eyes and plopped down on the ground. "Weak human," he murmured under his breath.
Kagome sat down a few feet away and immediately flipped off the sandals Sango had lent her. Her feet were sore and bruised from the endless walking. She began to massage her feet and frowned at the pain that came from her weary bones.
"What're you doing?" Inuyasha asked with disgust written on his face.
"What does it look like I'm doing? My feet hurt. We've been walking for days, and you've got me running half of the time." There was a sliver of hurt in Kagome's voice and Inuyasha's sensitive ears did not miss it.
"I'm just trying to get there and back so you can go home. Isn't that what you wanted?"
Kagome breathed heavily, "We've already talked about that." Her eyes flashed dangerously.
"No, you talked about that," he retorted. "You didn't let me say anything."
Kagome hugged her legs to her chest and sighed. She looked at Inuyasha with wide, warm eyes, "This isn't getting us anywhere, Inuyasha. Why can't we just talk to each other like normal people? I'm tired of fighting, Inuyasha. I want to be able to talk to you like we used to."
"Things can't go back to the way they used to be. Things have changed. You've changed."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Kagome drew back and blinked several times in surprise.
"You don't smile as much." Inuyasha sighed and met Kagome's glare head on. "You used to smile all of the time and laugh. Now your eyes are sad all of the time."
She tried to shrug off the seriousness of his words, "I was a girl back then. I grew up."
Inuyasha looked down at the ground, "This isn't about growing up. You used to have such a warm heart and you had a way of making people happy just by being near them. Now. . ." Inuyasha paused for a second as though he were trying to choose the right words, "you remind me of Kikyo."
"Kikyo?" Kagome whispered.
"She had a sad soul and now I see it reflected in you." His words were hushed as though he were ashamed of saying them.
A sick feeling carved its way into Kagome's stomach, "Well, you always considered me a pale imitation of her so I guess you think I'm finally worthy of having her soul." Her words were biting and she did not care if they hurt him; she hoped they did.
Inuyasha jumped back at her words and his mouth dropped open. Surely, she did not think that he considered her a pale copy of Kikyo. Sure, at first she had reminded him so much of Kikyo, her face, the powers she held, and the similar mannerisms. But as time went on, the differences became more and more apparent.
Kikyo had been a melancholy soul, a distant goddess that had stepped off of a pedestal to love him. Even in her happiest moments, a guarded expression covered her face and there was so little she allowed herself to feel and do. She had been intelligent and had a beauty that was both intoxicating and cold, a beauty sharp enough to cut oneself upon. Kikyo was deep, powerful, and seemingly perfect, a man's dream woman. He had been stunned when he realized that she returned his love and wanted to spend forever worshipping her and proving his worth to her.
Kagome had been all too human; she laughed, she cried, she screamed. She wore her emotions on her sleeves, threw them all over the place, and always said the first thing that popped into her mind. Kagome possessed a feet of clay and tripped over them all the time, but there was something charming in her flaws and endearing about her displays of anger, passion, and kindness. She spread happiness and compassion more often than her intense flares of anger splashed to the surface. At times, he bated her on purpose, trying to bring her anger to the surface. It always brought an attractive flush to her face. He felt so comfortable with her and could not forget all the wounds she treated, all the times she softened his hard heart, and how she taught him to trust. Her looks were similar to Kikyo's, but even those were more innocent, less knowing. Her face was naïve, full of silvery warmth. Yes, Kikyo and Kagome were as different as night and day.
Inuyasha's amber gaze was wide, "I never thought anything like that."
"Sorry, Inuyasha. I shouldn't have said that. Forget I said anything." Kagome rocked onto her knees, preparing to stand up, "Let's keep moving." It was as if all their fights came to the same conclusion, and she was so tired of fighting, of walking endlessly, of being in the warring states era. The thought of Shiro and his protective arms holding her surfaced and became more appealing with each passing minute.
Inuyasha grabbed her arm before she could stand, "Kagome, you lack nothing." His voice was deep, and made all thought of Shiro disappear. "I didn't mean to make you angry. It's just that you don't seem like yourself."
"Life hasn't been easy." Kagome sighed and looked away.
Inuyasha brought his hand back to his body, "What happened? You haven't told me anything about your life. I want to know."
She could not tell him that she had been homesick for her friends of this time, for the young kitsune she considered as dear as a child of her own, and for him. She could not say that she had missed him so much that it squeezed her heart till she thought it would not have enough energy to take another beat. There were plenty of words to tell him what he had wanted to know, but she was not willing to share them.
He looked into her eyes, past her eyes, and tried to see the depth of her answer there. The large brown eyes shook with emotion, the hurt and the pain of years past brimming to the edges.
"It's just been hard. I saw a lot of things in this time, too much evil and darkness to just fit back into my world. It took a long time before I felt comfortable again." These words were the truth, but words that skirted away from the harshest truth. She had to get used to a life without him.
"I'm sorry. I wish it had been easier for you."
"I've managed. I've made a place for myself again. I'm about to be accepted into graduate school, I make good grades, and I have friends. What more could I ask for?"
Inuyasha shrugged his shoulder as though he did not know the answer. He paused a moment and looked at her with a sober face, "Did it really bother you so much that I compared you to Kikyo?"
The swift change in subject took her by surprise. She felt as though she had just suffered from whiplash, being jerked so quickly back into a sensitive subject. "Let's just say it's still a touchy subject."
"Why?"
"Why?" Kagome gave a short, bitter laugh. "She hated me, Inuyasha. Kikyo treated me as nothing more than a nuisance, something that stood in the way of you and her. She thought I was a disgrace to her name." Kagome choked on the next word, "She thought I was a disgrace to you.
"You were upset that Kikyo wasn't more accepting of you?" Inuyasha's eyes widened in surprise, he had always assumed the animosity between Kagome and Kikyo was because of him.
Kagome frowned, "That was a part of it, but there was a lot more to it than that."
Inuyasha crossed his legs and folded his arms, "Go on."
"I went through my life just being me until I came here, and then all the sudden I was a reincarnation. I wasn't myself anymore. I was Kikyo reborn. Then I had to wonder if I liked the same things she did or if my feeling were just her feelings. I lost myself the day I came here, and everyone would say how much I looked like her or how I had the same powers as her. But, I wasn't as good as she was. Never once was I as powerful, or as smart, or brave. All I could do was detect the shards or shoot an arrow every now and then." She took a breath, and let the thoughts that she had kept hidden for so long bubble up, "And then there was you. I know you never meant to, but every time she came around it was like I was invisible, like I didn't matter."
Kagome began to play with the long hem of her skirt, and Inuyasha noted that her face looked absolutely miserable. He knew how she hated to say bad things about anyone or say things that would hurt, but raised her head and looked him directly in the eye, "You were always so gentle with her, Inuyasha, and so rough with me." There were tremors in her voice from the weight of the memory, but it felt good to set all the thoughts free from her mind.
Memories came to Inuyasha, all the times he had yelled at her and insulted her, and the same guilt he felt when she had yelled for him to sit a few days ago came back. "I'm so sorry, Kagome. I know that I made things really hard for you and took you for granted. I just. . . I'm sorry." He looked away from her.
Kagome smiled gently, "I didn't say all those things to make you feel bad. You asked and I needed to get it off my chest." Inuyasha looked up, her words an encouragement, "I'm glad they've been said. It's good to know that we can still talk."
He smiled, "Me too."
Kagome broke out into a grin at his response, "Now tell me what's happened around here. I know some things from talking to Sango, but I don't know everything. Tell me why you and Miroku travel around to protect humans? That's a far cry from your old attitude concerning anything mortal." She teased him gently and hoped that the last remains of tension between them would dissipate.
"It's no big deal." He brushed her words off. "I just started thinking about my father. He had a high regard for humans from what Myoga told me and he wanted humans and demons not to fear one another. I'm just carrying on his legacy, and when it's all said and done, I'm half human."
"It's nice to see you acknowledging your human side."
Inuyasha rolled his eyes, "Feh. It's no bid deal, you sentimental wench."
Kagome smiled, "Glad to see you haven't changed too much. Now tell me about Kouga. I've always wondered what happened to him after I left.
There was a glitter in Kagome's eye and an excitement in her words he did not like. Inuyasha growled, "The wimpy wolf is still around."
"Well, what happened to him?"
"He kept snooping around the village for the first few months after you left. He wouldn't believe us when he said you were gone. He moped around for an age, but he eventually gave up and when back to his tribe right after I finally showed him who was the strongest."
"You had a fight with Kouga."
An arrogant smirk crept into Inuyasha's face, "Yep."
"Well, apparently you beat him but not enough to do any real damage." The smirk annoyed Kagome; she had hoped that the two would have put aside there differences after she was no longer in the picture.
Inuyasha's smile vanished, "Shut up."
Kagome put a hand to her mouth to stifle the giggle that came from the pit of her stomach. "I always regretted not being able to say goodbye to Kouga. He respected and cared for me more than almost anyone I can think of."
Inuyasha curled his fist up and growled, "The wolf did just fine without you. He and Ayame mated about a year ago."
Kagome smiled at the small vein that was popping out of Inuyasha's neck, "I'm glad. Kouga deserves to be happy." A wicked gleam popped into Kagome's eye, "It's just too bad that he waited four years to marry Ayame. To think that he pined for me for that long." Her tone had a musical lilt to it and went straight to Inuyasha's brain.
"Well, why don't you go get Kouga to take you the rest of the way up the mountain?"
Kagome moved closer to Inuyasha and patted his head, "Nah, I think you'll do."
She smiled, and Inuyasha looked up at her in annoyance, a colorful word dancing at the end of his tongue, but he could not help but notice the smile on her face. It was the same smile she had given him as a teenage girl, and it warmed his heart to see it.
All thoughts of Kouga went up in smoke, "It's good to see you smile and laugh again."
"It feels good," she murmured.
For an odd reason, Inuyasha's face sobered quickly. "Hey Kagome, will the man who wants to marry you make you laugh?" There was a catch in his voice, and he bent his head away, at an odd angle.
"Shiro?" she asked.
"I don't care what his name is. Will he make you happy?" His tone was raspy and harsh, as though the words had cut slices through his lungs.
Kagome tried to smile, "He makes me happy."
"And you love him?" Inuyasha looked up; his amber eyes clear with golden edges near his iris.
Kagome met his gaze, but found her tongue useless. She shook her head up and down rapidly instead, hoping that the answer would satisfy him.
"Then that's all that matter."
* * * * * * * *
It was early the next morning before she and Inuyasha made it to the base of the mountain and began to scale its heights. The gentle hum vibrated in Kagome's eardrum the higher she climbed up the mountain, and the air around her made the hairs on her arm stand on end. The atmosphere became thicker and thicker, not an unpleasant thickness, but rather a warmth and a calming that was slowly enveloping her.
She yelled towards Inuyasha, "Hey, Inuyasha! Do you hear that noise?"
He turned around for a moment and looked at her, "I don't hear anything, Kagome, but the air is changing. There an odd smell to it."
"What does it smell like?"
"Something sweet, but it's nothing I've ever smelled before." He watched Kagome take another step up the side of the mountain and saw her foot slip on some moss at the base of a tree. Inuyasha walked a few slippery steps down towards Kagome and held his hand out for her, "You're so clumsy. Take my hand."
Kagome frowned but placed her hand in his, "Thanks."
Inuyasha steadied her and then watched her feet slip a second time on the slick ground that was still wet with the morning dew. Inuyasha frowned, "Just get on my back, wench. You're slowing us down."
Kagome's breath came in sharply with the thought of being so close to him again just like she had years before. She had never told Inuyasha how intimate riding his back had been to her. In the past, he rarely offered to let anyone but Kagome ride on his back, and even though he made it seem like a burden to carry her, she knew that he liked her dependency upon him. He had liked being close to her as well. She stared at him with a sober look on her face that made his stomach tingle, "Just get on my back." He tone was sharp and demanding, but as long as she quit looking at him like that he did not care. Kagome kept making him feel nervous, and suddenly words were more difficult to string into sentences and he felt awkward. Luckily, Kagome complied with his order and hopped onto his back without any more looks that twisted his stomach into knots.
"Thank you, Inuyasha," she spoke into her ear, once again sending an electric pulse through his head.
Their pace increased dramatically and they were making their way up the mountain very quickly. Kagome soon fell asleep with her head resting on Inuyasha's shoulder, being lulled to sleep by the constant climbing and the warm air that made her feel more and more secure with every step Inuyasha took. Kagome slept soundly until her eyelids suddenly seemed to be bathed in an intense light and they snapped open of their own accord. The light did not flash, but was steady and warm, and for a split second Kagome thought she might be consumed by the light and taken into another world, another time. The light began to dim or either her eyes became accustomed to the brightness, and there was a figure standing a few feet ahead.
It was a woman with long dark hair and eyes an intense violet. She wore a dress that was plain in its design, but the color the dress, a plum, was so deep that Kagome believed that she had never seen this particular shade of purple in her entire life. There was a thin belt that rested loosely around her waist, a belt that looked to be woven together from a golden shimmering thread. She carried a white staff in her hand and it looked thinner than a wooden staff, but stronger and sturdier. The oddest thing about her was the wings that were clearly emanating from the woman. They were small, white, and seemed to have a lavender shade mixed in amongst the feathers.
She regarded Kagome and Inuyasha with an indifferent air, "You have come."
"Yeah, we're here," Inuyasha growled. "And who are you?" He flexed his claws and all the joints in his hands cracked loudly.
"I am the guardian," she answered, but looked away from Inuyasha and shifted her eyes to Kagome.
"The guardian of what?" Inuyasha snarled at the woman.
The woman continued to stare at Kagome, "The guardian of the east side of this mountain." She stepped towards Kagome, ignoring Inuyasha completely, "You are the one whose name has been whispered among my brethren." The woman reached out an open hand and touched Kagome's cheek.
In one swift movement, Inuyasha appeared next to Kagome's side and inserted himself between Kagome and the woman. "Who are you and what do you want with her?"
The woman squinted her eyes and scanned Inuyasha with a sharp violet glare, "You are the son of man and son of demon." A growl came from Inuyasha's chest and his hand gripped the hilt of the Tetsusaiga, wanting nothing more to take the sword to the woman's throat and make her give the answers he wanted. "I can see that you have received the dreams as well."
She stepped further away and it seemed to Kagome that a look of resolution was now etched upon the woman's face. Until now Kagome was in awe and could not find her voice. There was a purity that poured off of this woman and a power radiated from her; all of it seemed to drip from the woman's sides and pierced Kagome with its intensity, right to the pit of her stomach.
Kagome found her voice through the vaporous power that hung in the air, "Why am I here?" It was a desperate question, a plea for understanding.
"It is not my knowledge to impart, but follow me child and you will know the answers you are seeking." The woman turned and walked up the mountain, never once looking back to see if the strange creatures that now occupied her mountain were following.
Inuyasha's patience reached its limits, and he gave Kagome a questioning look.
Kagome sighed, "Go home, Inuyasha. You don't have to stay." She followed in the path of the woman half expecting Inuyasha to abandon her. Instead, he rushed up from behind and grabbed Kagome's hand, holding it firmly in his own.
"I'm not leaving you." He moved even closer to her side. "I don't like the feeling of this place. Don't think that I'm letting you wander around here alone, you idiot!"
Kagome could only manage a weak smile before Inuyasha moved upwards on the mountain. He tugged on her and pulled her along him, trying to keep up with the winged woman that was getting further and further ahead of them. The woman stopped for one moment and turned around, her staff beginning to glow with an eerie light now that dusk was setting itself upon the world, "Keep up."
They followed her up a mossy path until an inky darkness covered the sky and her staff glowed with a great intensity. The woman held it over her head and it lit not only the path ahead, but also the sides of the woods. The trees that surrounded them were white and twisted as though there were an old magic twisted into the wood. Kagome relaxed with the scenery around her and the warm feel of Inuyasha's hand holding hers, but Inuyasha remained tense and rigid. Something in the air was foreign and discomforting, and he sensed that once he walked up this mountain his life would change and he would not have the power to change it back.
The woman quit walking once she came to two trees that had seemed to lean and arch into one another. The trunks created a small doorway of sorts, and she lifted her staff to the wood. Her hands gripped the rod and she twisted it sideways and held it in both hands. She spoke softly in a tongue that even Inuyasha had not come across before, but when she had finished the entire staff began to radiate a sharp light. The light spread to the trees until every branch twig on them was illuminated and the light pulsed into the sky.
The woman drew the staff away from the tree and looked to Inuyasha and Kagome, "You may pass."
Kagome felt a confidence well up within her and she walked through the trees without waiting for Inuyasha to walk through with her. Inuyasha watched her walk through the two trees, shocked that she had not hesitated or at least waited for her to cross through with him. For a moment, he felt lonely standing there without her by his side, but the emotion quickly turned to shock once he realized that Kagome had disappeared behind the trees.
"Kagome!" He screamed.
The woman only looked at him without expression, "Are you going to pass through our borders with the girl or will you stay?" Inuyasha hesitated. He held no trust for this woman. "The choice is yours." Inuyasha stared at her for only a second, watching her black hair whip around her face, before he rushed through the trees.
"Kagome," he asked hesitantly, moving his head wildly looking for her.
"I'm here." She looked at him with wide eyes, "I was just waiting for you to come through."
"I want to know what in the world is going on here," he snarled. "We go on a wild goose chase, and then run into a woman who won't tell us anything, and then you disappeared after going through those trees."
Kagome looked around at her surroundings in awe, "Can't you see, Inuyasha? Can't you feel it? This is where we're supposed to be." There was only doubt in Inuyasha's face. "We've crossed the border between their land and your land." Kagome smiled sweetly at Inuyasha's confusion, "It's probably my miko powers, but I just know that the figure in our dreams is not too far off."
"Are you sure?"
"Positive. Who ever the figure is, he is here." Kagome had a look of grim resolution in her eyes and would have turned to walk if the air around her had not warped. She took several steps backwards and a man appeared behind her, a set of wings sprouting from his back.
The man grabbed Kagome's arms and twisted her around. He pulled her close to his face and his black eyes studied her carefully. "You must be someone important for the guardian to allow you to pass."
"Let her go," Inuyasha commanded. The Tetsusaiga was already transformed and waiting to slice the neck of the strange man that held Kagome. "Let her go," he repeated, "unless you have some kind of death wish."
"Stop," Kagome whispered. "He's like the figure in my dreams." She reached up and touched his face. "You're not the figure I saw in the dreams, but you are the one who will take me to him."
The man's face softened, "Your power is great, young one. That is why you have been allowed admittance to this place." He ran a hand through her hair, "You are the one we have been seeking. I will take you to Innis."
"Innis?" Kagome asked, her mouth frowning.
"She is the one you must speak with." The man swept Kagome up into his arms and stretched his wings out to their full span. His gaze moved to Inuyasha, "You shall follow me on the ground."
Inuyasha growled and watched the man's hands as they held Kagome, swearing that if he saw the slightest discomfort upon Kagome's face that he would slice the man from head to toe. The man wings flapped once and then twice, lifting him up into the air. The man held Kagome tighter as he rose through the white trees that seemed to cover the mountain.
A feeling of security washed over Kagome, much like the feeling she had when her mother would cover her with a warm blanket as a child. Up in the warm air, with this winged man made her believe that no bad thing could happen on this mountain. Whatever the cause of her calling to this mountain, the people who inhabited this place had a purpose for her, a good noble purpose that would do her no harm.
Inuyasha sped, his feet hitting the ground at an incredible pace, trying to keep up with the flying man. Kagome appeared to be safe, but he still had an ominous feeling in his gut while he dodged the number of white trees that covered the mountain.
Ten minutes had passed before the man spread out his wings, catching a small patch of air, and drifted down to the ground. Kagome looked down and saw many figures on the ground, and every figure had a pair of wings upon its back. Their faces were looking up, but the only thing Kagome could see was the brightness of their eyes, their penetrating glares.
Inuyasha had already come to a halt, a hand on the hilt of the Tetsusaiga, but he was shocked to see multiple people standing as though they were waiting for his and Kagome's arrival. He looked up as well to see the winged man land gently and release Kagome. There was a peaceful expression upon her face and her eyelids drooped just a bit over her large brown eyes. She looked content to be here among these people and for a second it seemed as though she had forgotten him all together.
He ran to her and stood next to her, his shoulder pulled back and his chest sticking out, "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." She turned to the man, "Will you take me to see Innis as you promised?
"It's the cave that is straight ahead of you." He ignored Inuyasha and placed both of his hands on Kagome's cheeks and looked down at her, "Bless you for answering the call, child. Go now."
She beamed in return and turned her back on both he and Inuyasha. Inuyasha snapped back in surprise and held his hand out to her, "Kagome, wait!" Kagome turned around, but appeared to be in a trance. She stared at him with almost no sign of recognition and for a brief moment Inuyasha thought that had no memory of him.
A young girl with wings moved to Inuyasha's side and her fingers grazed the side of his arms with a feathery touch, "No, son of man, son of demon. You are to stay. Innis's words are meant only for the girl." Her voice was magical, and Inuyasha stared down at the yellow haired girl with emerald eyes. She waved her small hand in front of his eyes. Suddenly, Inuyasha felt himself pressed to the ground in a sitting position and it felt as though two hands were pressing on his shoulders, keeping him from rising. "I mean you no harm," the girl's lyrical voice said, "but you must wait. She will return soon." Inuyasha froze, with visions and images circling in front of his eyes. He made no more fuss.
Kagome turned and walked onward about a hundred feet to the cave and she stepped inside. It was dim only for a moment, but then a glow erupted with the sweep of a hand. A woman moved her hand gracefully through the air, a long red sleeve following behind. This woman was seated, but she was clearly tall, and she lifted her chin when Kagome took a step forward. The light coming from the woman's hand formed into a golden ball that hovered in the air right above Kagome's head and finally softened to a velvety light.
"You are the girl that has been prophesied." The woman's words were direct and her voice was commanding, the voice of royalty. "Make yourself comfortable."
Kagome settled on the floor of the cave. The woman continued to stare at her. Her eyes were a smoky gray and clouded as they scanned Kagome. She wore a deep red dress with gold lacing that ribbed the dress. Her skin was a silky white and her black hair provided a stark contrast to the skin. It was worn completely down and flowed along the sides of her face. It looked more like a waterfall of ink as it fell, layered upon the cave floor. Her wings were tucked in, but they were of the same ivory as her skin.
"I have long imagined what you would look like, daughter of man. I am honored to have you within our boundaries."
Kagome's eyebrows rose up in slight fear at the presence the woman possessed, "Why am I here?"
"You are the receiver of the dreams. It was your fate to come here and learn you purpose."
"My purpose?" Kagome frowned in an intense confusion. She wished the woman would quit speaking in riddles.
"We watched you when you came to this era and sensed your power. My brethren and I have long known of your purpose and wondered when the time would come for the uniting to pass."
Kagome bit her lip, "Uniting? What are you talking about?" She felt a panic come to her throat. It unnerved her to think that she had been watched. "How could you watch me if you said you wondered what I looked like?"
The woman raised a thin hand to silence her, "I will explain." She moved her hand back to her lap, "Many eras ago my kindred segregated ourselves from the race of man and the race of the demons. We could not understand the hatred and love for power that came from the hearts of demon and man. No longer could we stomach the blood that the two races spilled amongst themselves. We retreated so we would no longer have to see it, but we have kept an eye open upon the two races to see if they would ever abandon their evil ways. They never did so we have continued to isolate ourselves."
"I still don't understand."
"Patience, daughter of man. We have regretted out abandonment of the other two races, but still we have inhabited this mountain until our memory has become merely a legend in the eyes of man and demons. However, the time has come in which there shall be a blurring of the races, a uniting if you will. In the prophecy of my kindred, there was a mentioning that the time would come when the separation of the races would be mended by a mixing of the blood. One day an angel would choose a companion whose blood was different from his, a companion that is not among the race of the angels."
"You mean that an angel will choose me to be his bride?" Kagome began to tremble. This was too much. First to be plagued with dreams for years and to only have it end in being told that you would be forced to marry a stranger.
"You have misunderstood. You are not to be the bride of the angel, but you do serve the same purpose in the uniting as I. Kagome, you will be the mother of the child that will be part of the uniting."
Kagome's became rigid, "What?"
"I have used your name as a sign of respect. We hold the same station, Kagome. You will give birth to a daughter and that child will be chosen by my son to be his beloved."
"How is that possible? I'm not even married yet? And how will your son be able to come through time to get my child?"
"Go through time?" For the first time, the woman looked confused.
"I'm from an era in the future."
"This we know, but the prophecies say that your child will be born within this era. The young man that accompanied you to this mountain will be the father for within him the blood of both man and demon runs."
All the breath came out of Kagome, "Inuyasha?"
"It must be him, for your child must have the blood of a demon and a human if my son's angel blood is to completely mix. In order for the uniting to happen, the blood of a demon, human, and angel will be mixed. Your child and my son shall give birth to the first child to contain the blood of all three races."
"But it doesn't make sense." Kagome felt her mouth run dry and she silently pleaded for some sense of reality to come back into her life. "Inuyasha is only a half demon. If we had a child it would only be a quarter demon."
"The quantity does not matter, only that it is present." The woman pushed an errant strand of hair back into place.
"But why me?"
"You are a miko. You possess a vast amount of power, power that has only been manifested completely upon one occasion, but an amazing power just the same. You have passed through time, child. Can you not see that you are no ordinary mortal?"
"But I'm just a reincarnation. Why not Kikyo? She was much more powerful than I. Why not she and Inuyasha? Kikyo was the one with Inuyasha's heart."
The woman reached out and touched Kagome's cheek and look of sympathy in her clouded eyes, "You have been hurt greatly by this knowledge, but you are mistaken. You are Kikyo's superior."
"How?" Kagome's voice shook.
"Powerful though she was, Kikyo's powers waned as her love for Inuyasha grew. Her heart could not possess both. You however, you powers grew as your love for Inuyasha expanded." The woman lips took on a faint trace of a smile, "And Kikyo never once was able to travel through time."
"But that was just the Shikon no Tama."
"No, Kagome. That was you." The woman withdrew her hand and rested it upon her other in her lap.
"But how do you know all this?"
"I told you that we had been watching you. We could not see you, but we could see your heart and soul. We have long watched both your and Inuyasha's souls."
"But I can't marry Inuyasha. I'm promised to another. I'm marrying a man that I care for very much. I've already agreed to be the mother of his children." Kagome waved her ring in front of the woman, "This is a symbol of my promise to him."
The woman shook her head, "Perhaps, I am wrong. The future is not set in stone. The choice is yours."
A salty wetness to Kagome's eyes, "I can't marry Inuyasha. I just can't." She trembled.
"Why such a firm resolve?" The corner of the woman's eyes crinkled and her dynamic eyes penetrated Kagome's insides, right down to her marrow.
"I don't have his heart." A tear fell down her cheek. "His heart in not mine to have; it was promised to another."
"Kagome, you are a wise child. You will make the decision that is correct for you. But my son has a gift for you." The woman raised her hand, and immediately diminutive woman came with a sleeping child in her arms. She placed the child in Innis's waiting arms. Innis looked at the sleeping child tenderly. He had a head full of damp brown curls. He looked to be no more than three and he had an adorable face.
The woman rested the sleeping child in her lap and closed her eyes and without warning an image cemented its way into Kagome's brain. There was a vivid image of a smiling girl, a girl that could be no more that Kagome's own age. She stood with a smile on her face, long white hair, and with a pair of lovely amber eyes. Her ears were just like a human's, but pointed at the tips as though she were an elf. She wore a white dress that covered one shoulder and the top of it came across her chest and tucked just underneath the pit of her arm. The silver hair was pulled away from her face, with half of it typed back and half of it remaining down. The girl's smile looked very soft and tender, full of emotion, and it seemed very familiar to Kagome. This girl was tall and slender. Kagome's breath caught at the sight of this girl and an understanding filled her. In this girl, Kagome could see her own smile, jaw line, and hands.
Kagome's mouth opened and she could not speak. Tears now fell from her eyes with force and she tried to blink them away. Finally the words came, "So you were the one with the power to send me the dreams through time?"
"No." The woman shook her head. "My son sent you the dreams." The child remained still, his thumb resting in his mouth. "It was his future self that you saw. It was he that called you here."
"He did all this? But he's just a child. I've been having these dreams for years."
"My brethren and I age differently, but it was indeed he that sent you the vision. After all, it will be his child that has the combined blood of the three races. It will be his child that shall be the beginning of the uniting."
With the back of her hand, Kagome wiped away the last of her tears, "Are you done?"
"Yes, the time has come for you to leave. My message is finished."
Kagome tried to smile, but she felt more tears welling up within her, "Thank you." She turned and walked out of the cave.
"Remember my words, Kagome." The woman kissed her child on the head and closed her eyes as her role as the messenger ended.
Kagome walked very quickly to where Inuyasha sat and frowned at him. He seemed to be frozen and unmoving. "Oh, stop it. Let's get out of here." She grabbed his hand and yanked him up from the ground rather forcefully. The pressure on Inuyasha's shoulders disappeared and he snapped back to life with her yank.
He blinked several times and looked around, very much confused, "What's going on?"
"We're leaving?"
"About time!" He snarled. "I'll be glad to get out of this nuthouse.
He and Kagome were alone now with the exception of the young angel that had hypnotized him; she remained looking at the both of them. Apparently the rest of the angels had drifted away during Kagome's conversation with Innis.
"What're you looking at?" Inuyasha snapped at the girl. "You're the one who froze me aren't you?" He began cracking his knuckles as an idle threat.
The young angel only continued to stare, "I hope you can make sense of what you have seen. It was my gift to you." She spread her wings and then flew up into the sky.
Kagome paid that girl little attention and began walking away from the cave. Inuyasha stared at her back, wondering why she was so intent on leaving.
"Kagome, what happened back there?" He ran to her side, bewildered by her behavior.
"Nothing," she scowled.
"Well, obviously something happened."
"I don't want to talk about it!" She continued walking.
"Well, I'd like to hear about it. It involves me too."
"SIT." The word erupted from her mouth, but she kept on walking not even bothering to acknowledge Inuyasha's shouting.
He peeled himself up from the ground once the spell wore off and ran to her. He stepped directly in front of her and held his hand out. "What happened? You've been crying I can smell it, and your eyes are all bloodshot. Did they do anything to you?" His voice tried to suppress his anger; if they had done anything to her he'd make them regret it.
"No, they didn't do anything." Kagome's shoulders slumped. It seemed like her strength had drained out of away. "Calm down, Inuyasha. Let's just go back to the village." She stepped to the side and walked slowly past him.
"Why won't you talk to me? Please, Kagome?" He was begging, all his energy invested in finding out what was wrong with her.
"Nothing that I have to worry about. Now let's go." Her last words were screeched into his sensitive ears.
He walked next to her, keeping his tongue silent but his eyes watchful, "Do you want to ride on my back to get home faster?" He hoped she would take this as a peace offering.
"Not right now." She looked out, towards the woods, hoping to get away from the mountain and away from Inuyasha. Right now all she wanted was to get back to her own time and into the waiting arms of Shiro.
* I can only apologize to all the readers for how long it has taken me to get this chapter out. I'm currently in graduate school and my time is very limited. Plus, this story is becoming more difficult to write the further along I go with it. I felt as though the last few chapters were rushed and I couldn't stand putting out another mediocre chapter. I hate when I cannot seem to write a decent sentence and it's unfair for all of you to read my random garbage that I've been spitting out lately. All that said, I hope that I haven't lost all of my faithful readers during my long hiatus. I have loved receiving your feedback and thank you for every post I have received. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate it when even one person reads my ramblings. So please enjoy this part of the story and if it so moves you to do so then review please!
For three days, the air between Kagome and Inuyasha had been uncomfortable and full of a bristling tension, but for the last day things had finally settled into an awkward normalcy. It seemed that there was an unspoken pact that Kagome's engagement would not be mentioned, but the way Inuyasha would look at her with an open mouth, very much like he were about to say something important, and then shut it again just as quickly assured Kagome that it still skimmed at the top of his thoughts.
By the fourth day, right around noon, the mountain came into sight and a sense of awe came over Kagome. There was an aura, a vibration, emanating from the mountain, and Kagome wondered if it were something anyone could sense or if her miko powers were reacting to the pulse the mountain was emitting.
"Inuyasha, do you feel that?"
"Feel what?"
Kagome frowned, "Well, I guess that answers my question. I'm getting an odd feeling from that mountain. I've ever sensed anything like it before."
"Probably just your miko powers being overly sensitive. You kinda gave me the impression that you haven't used them in a while." His tone sounded almost reproachful, as though her were disgusted that she had suppressed her power.
"There wasn't a need for it in my time," one of her eyebrows arched, a warning for him to back off. "But that's not what I'm getting at. The feeling isn't bad. It's just different from anything I've come into contact with before."
"We'll find out what it is soon enough." With that he turned around and looked as though he wanted to continue walking, but Kagome placed her hand on his arm.
"Let's rest a while. I know we're almost there, but it's going to be quite a hike up that mountain and I'd like to relax a bit before we get there."
"Fine, fine." He rolled his eyes and plopped down on the ground. "Weak human," he murmured under his breath.
Kagome sat down a few feet away and immediately flipped off the sandals Sango had lent her. Her feet were sore and bruised from the endless walking. She began to massage her feet and frowned at the pain that came from her weary bones.
"What're you doing?" Inuyasha asked with disgust written on his face.
"What does it look like I'm doing? My feet hurt. We've been walking for days, and you've got me running half of the time." There was a sliver of hurt in Kagome's voice and Inuyasha's sensitive ears did not miss it.
"I'm just trying to get there and back so you can go home. Isn't that what you wanted?"
Kagome breathed heavily, "We've already talked about that." Her eyes flashed dangerously.
"No, you talked about that," he retorted. "You didn't let me say anything."
Kagome hugged her legs to her chest and sighed. She looked at Inuyasha with wide, warm eyes, "This isn't getting us anywhere, Inuyasha. Why can't we just talk to each other like normal people? I'm tired of fighting, Inuyasha. I want to be able to talk to you like we used to."
"Things can't go back to the way they used to be. Things have changed. You've changed."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Kagome drew back and blinked several times in surprise.
"You don't smile as much." Inuyasha sighed and met Kagome's glare head on. "You used to smile all of the time and laugh. Now your eyes are sad all of the time."
She tried to shrug off the seriousness of his words, "I was a girl back then. I grew up."
Inuyasha looked down at the ground, "This isn't about growing up. You used to have such a warm heart and you had a way of making people happy just by being near them. Now. . ." Inuyasha paused for a second as though he were trying to choose the right words, "you remind me of Kikyo."
"Kikyo?" Kagome whispered.
"She had a sad soul and now I see it reflected in you." His words were hushed as though he were ashamed of saying them.
A sick feeling carved its way into Kagome's stomach, "Well, you always considered me a pale imitation of her so I guess you think I'm finally worthy of having her soul." Her words were biting and she did not care if they hurt him; she hoped they did.
Inuyasha jumped back at her words and his mouth dropped open. Surely, she did not think that he considered her a pale copy of Kikyo. Sure, at first she had reminded him so much of Kikyo, her face, the powers she held, and the similar mannerisms. But as time went on, the differences became more and more apparent.
Kikyo had been a melancholy soul, a distant goddess that had stepped off of a pedestal to love him. Even in her happiest moments, a guarded expression covered her face and there was so little she allowed herself to feel and do. She had been intelligent and had a beauty that was both intoxicating and cold, a beauty sharp enough to cut oneself upon. Kikyo was deep, powerful, and seemingly perfect, a man's dream woman. He had been stunned when he realized that she returned his love and wanted to spend forever worshipping her and proving his worth to her.
Kagome had been all too human; she laughed, she cried, she screamed. She wore her emotions on her sleeves, threw them all over the place, and always said the first thing that popped into her mind. Kagome possessed a feet of clay and tripped over them all the time, but there was something charming in her flaws and endearing about her displays of anger, passion, and kindness. She spread happiness and compassion more often than her intense flares of anger splashed to the surface. At times, he bated her on purpose, trying to bring her anger to the surface. It always brought an attractive flush to her face. He felt so comfortable with her and could not forget all the wounds she treated, all the times she softened his hard heart, and how she taught him to trust. Her looks were similar to Kikyo's, but even those were more innocent, less knowing. Her face was naïve, full of silvery warmth. Yes, Kikyo and Kagome were as different as night and day.
Inuyasha's amber gaze was wide, "I never thought anything like that."
"Sorry, Inuyasha. I shouldn't have said that. Forget I said anything." Kagome rocked onto her knees, preparing to stand up, "Let's keep moving." It was as if all their fights came to the same conclusion, and she was so tired of fighting, of walking endlessly, of being in the warring states era. The thought of Shiro and his protective arms holding her surfaced and became more appealing with each passing minute.
Inuyasha grabbed her arm before she could stand, "Kagome, you lack nothing." His voice was deep, and made all thought of Shiro disappear. "I didn't mean to make you angry. It's just that you don't seem like yourself."
"Life hasn't been easy." Kagome sighed and looked away.
Inuyasha brought his hand back to his body, "What happened? You haven't told me anything about your life. I want to know."
She could not tell him that she had been homesick for her friends of this time, for the young kitsune she considered as dear as a child of her own, and for him. She could not say that she had missed him so much that it squeezed her heart till she thought it would not have enough energy to take another beat. There were plenty of words to tell him what he had wanted to know, but she was not willing to share them.
He looked into her eyes, past her eyes, and tried to see the depth of her answer there. The large brown eyes shook with emotion, the hurt and the pain of years past brimming to the edges.
"It's just been hard. I saw a lot of things in this time, too much evil and darkness to just fit back into my world. It took a long time before I felt comfortable again." These words were the truth, but words that skirted away from the harshest truth. She had to get used to a life without him.
"I'm sorry. I wish it had been easier for you."
"I've managed. I've made a place for myself again. I'm about to be accepted into graduate school, I make good grades, and I have friends. What more could I ask for?"
Inuyasha shrugged his shoulder as though he did not know the answer. He paused a moment and looked at her with a sober face, "Did it really bother you so much that I compared you to Kikyo?"
The swift change in subject took her by surprise. She felt as though she had just suffered from whiplash, being jerked so quickly back into a sensitive subject. "Let's just say it's still a touchy subject."
"Why?"
"Why?" Kagome gave a short, bitter laugh. "She hated me, Inuyasha. Kikyo treated me as nothing more than a nuisance, something that stood in the way of you and her. She thought I was a disgrace to her name." Kagome choked on the next word, "She thought I was a disgrace to you.
"You were upset that Kikyo wasn't more accepting of you?" Inuyasha's eyes widened in surprise, he had always assumed the animosity between Kagome and Kikyo was because of him.
Kagome frowned, "That was a part of it, but there was a lot more to it than that."
Inuyasha crossed his legs and folded his arms, "Go on."
"I went through my life just being me until I came here, and then all the sudden I was a reincarnation. I wasn't myself anymore. I was Kikyo reborn. Then I had to wonder if I liked the same things she did or if my feeling were just her feelings. I lost myself the day I came here, and everyone would say how much I looked like her or how I had the same powers as her. But, I wasn't as good as she was. Never once was I as powerful, or as smart, or brave. All I could do was detect the shards or shoot an arrow every now and then." She took a breath, and let the thoughts that she had kept hidden for so long bubble up, "And then there was you. I know you never meant to, but every time she came around it was like I was invisible, like I didn't matter."
Kagome began to play with the long hem of her skirt, and Inuyasha noted that her face looked absolutely miserable. He knew how she hated to say bad things about anyone or say things that would hurt, but raised her head and looked him directly in the eye, "You were always so gentle with her, Inuyasha, and so rough with me." There were tremors in her voice from the weight of the memory, but it felt good to set all the thoughts free from her mind.
Memories came to Inuyasha, all the times he had yelled at her and insulted her, and the same guilt he felt when she had yelled for him to sit a few days ago came back. "I'm so sorry, Kagome. I know that I made things really hard for you and took you for granted. I just. . . I'm sorry." He looked away from her.
Kagome smiled gently, "I didn't say all those things to make you feel bad. You asked and I needed to get it off my chest." Inuyasha looked up, her words an encouragement, "I'm glad they've been said. It's good to know that we can still talk."
He smiled, "Me too."
Kagome broke out into a grin at his response, "Now tell me what's happened around here. I know some things from talking to Sango, but I don't know everything. Tell me why you and Miroku travel around to protect humans? That's a far cry from your old attitude concerning anything mortal." She teased him gently and hoped that the last remains of tension between them would dissipate.
"It's no big deal." He brushed her words off. "I just started thinking about my father. He had a high regard for humans from what Myoga told me and he wanted humans and demons not to fear one another. I'm just carrying on his legacy, and when it's all said and done, I'm half human."
"It's nice to see you acknowledging your human side."
Inuyasha rolled his eyes, "Feh. It's no bid deal, you sentimental wench."
Kagome smiled, "Glad to see you haven't changed too much. Now tell me about Kouga. I've always wondered what happened to him after I left.
There was a glitter in Kagome's eye and an excitement in her words he did not like. Inuyasha growled, "The wimpy wolf is still around."
"Well, what happened to him?"
"He kept snooping around the village for the first few months after you left. He wouldn't believe us when he said you were gone. He moped around for an age, but he eventually gave up and when back to his tribe right after I finally showed him who was the strongest."
"You had a fight with Kouga."
An arrogant smirk crept into Inuyasha's face, "Yep."
"Well, apparently you beat him but not enough to do any real damage." The smirk annoyed Kagome; she had hoped that the two would have put aside there differences after she was no longer in the picture.
Inuyasha's smile vanished, "Shut up."
Kagome put a hand to her mouth to stifle the giggle that came from the pit of her stomach. "I always regretted not being able to say goodbye to Kouga. He respected and cared for me more than almost anyone I can think of."
Inuyasha curled his fist up and growled, "The wolf did just fine without you. He and Ayame mated about a year ago."
Kagome smiled at the small vein that was popping out of Inuyasha's neck, "I'm glad. Kouga deserves to be happy." A wicked gleam popped into Kagome's eye, "It's just too bad that he waited four years to marry Ayame. To think that he pined for me for that long." Her tone had a musical lilt to it and went straight to Inuyasha's brain.
"Well, why don't you go get Kouga to take you the rest of the way up the mountain?"
Kagome moved closer to Inuyasha and patted his head, "Nah, I think you'll do."
She smiled, and Inuyasha looked up at her in annoyance, a colorful word dancing at the end of his tongue, but he could not help but notice the smile on her face. It was the same smile she had given him as a teenage girl, and it warmed his heart to see it.
All thoughts of Kouga went up in smoke, "It's good to see you smile and laugh again."
"It feels good," she murmured.
For an odd reason, Inuyasha's face sobered quickly. "Hey Kagome, will the man who wants to marry you make you laugh?" There was a catch in his voice, and he bent his head away, at an odd angle.
"Shiro?" she asked.
"I don't care what his name is. Will he make you happy?" His tone was raspy and harsh, as though the words had cut slices through his lungs.
Kagome tried to smile, "He makes me happy."
"And you love him?" Inuyasha looked up; his amber eyes clear with golden edges near his iris.
Kagome met his gaze, but found her tongue useless. She shook her head up and down rapidly instead, hoping that the answer would satisfy him.
"Then that's all that matter."
* * * * * * * *
It was early the next morning before she and Inuyasha made it to the base of the mountain and began to scale its heights. The gentle hum vibrated in Kagome's eardrum the higher she climbed up the mountain, and the air around her made the hairs on her arm stand on end. The atmosphere became thicker and thicker, not an unpleasant thickness, but rather a warmth and a calming that was slowly enveloping her.
She yelled towards Inuyasha, "Hey, Inuyasha! Do you hear that noise?"
He turned around for a moment and looked at her, "I don't hear anything, Kagome, but the air is changing. There an odd smell to it."
"What does it smell like?"
"Something sweet, but it's nothing I've ever smelled before." He watched Kagome take another step up the side of the mountain and saw her foot slip on some moss at the base of a tree. Inuyasha walked a few slippery steps down towards Kagome and held his hand out for her, "You're so clumsy. Take my hand."
Kagome frowned but placed her hand in his, "Thanks."
Inuyasha steadied her and then watched her feet slip a second time on the slick ground that was still wet with the morning dew. Inuyasha frowned, "Just get on my back, wench. You're slowing us down."
Kagome's breath came in sharply with the thought of being so close to him again just like she had years before. She had never told Inuyasha how intimate riding his back had been to her. In the past, he rarely offered to let anyone but Kagome ride on his back, and even though he made it seem like a burden to carry her, she knew that he liked her dependency upon him. He had liked being close to her as well. She stared at him with a sober look on her face that made his stomach tingle, "Just get on my back." He tone was sharp and demanding, but as long as she quit looking at him like that he did not care. Kagome kept making him feel nervous, and suddenly words were more difficult to string into sentences and he felt awkward. Luckily, Kagome complied with his order and hopped onto his back without any more looks that twisted his stomach into knots.
"Thank you, Inuyasha," she spoke into her ear, once again sending an electric pulse through his head.
Their pace increased dramatically and they were making their way up the mountain very quickly. Kagome soon fell asleep with her head resting on Inuyasha's shoulder, being lulled to sleep by the constant climbing and the warm air that made her feel more and more secure with every step Inuyasha took. Kagome slept soundly until her eyelids suddenly seemed to be bathed in an intense light and they snapped open of their own accord. The light did not flash, but was steady and warm, and for a split second Kagome thought she might be consumed by the light and taken into another world, another time. The light began to dim or either her eyes became accustomed to the brightness, and there was a figure standing a few feet ahead.
It was a woman with long dark hair and eyes an intense violet. She wore a dress that was plain in its design, but the color the dress, a plum, was so deep that Kagome believed that she had never seen this particular shade of purple in her entire life. There was a thin belt that rested loosely around her waist, a belt that looked to be woven together from a golden shimmering thread. She carried a white staff in her hand and it looked thinner than a wooden staff, but stronger and sturdier. The oddest thing about her was the wings that were clearly emanating from the woman. They were small, white, and seemed to have a lavender shade mixed in amongst the feathers.
She regarded Kagome and Inuyasha with an indifferent air, "You have come."
"Yeah, we're here," Inuyasha growled. "And who are you?" He flexed his claws and all the joints in his hands cracked loudly.
"I am the guardian," she answered, but looked away from Inuyasha and shifted her eyes to Kagome.
"The guardian of what?" Inuyasha snarled at the woman.
The woman continued to stare at Kagome, "The guardian of the east side of this mountain." She stepped towards Kagome, ignoring Inuyasha completely, "You are the one whose name has been whispered among my brethren." The woman reached out an open hand and touched Kagome's cheek.
In one swift movement, Inuyasha appeared next to Kagome's side and inserted himself between Kagome and the woman. "Who are you and what do you want with her?"
The woman squinted her eyes and scanned Inuyasha with a sharp violet glare, "You are the son of man and son of demon." A growl came from Inuyasha's chest and his hand gripped the hilt of the Tetsusaiga, wanting nothing more to take the sword to the woman's throat and make her give the answers he wanted. "I can see that you have received the dreams as well."
She stepped further away and it seemed to Kagome that a look of resolution was now etched upon the woman's face. Until now Kagome was in awe and could not find her voice. There was a purity that poured off of this woman and a power radiated from her; all of it seemed to drip from the woman's sides and pierced Kagome with its intensity, right to the pit of her stomach.
Kagome found her voice through the vaporous power that hung in the air, "Why am I here?" It was a desperate question, a plea for understanding.
"It is not my knowledge to impart, but follow me child and you will know the answers you are seeking." The woman turned and walked up the mountain, never once looking back to see if the strange creatures that now occupied her mountain were following.
Inuyasha's patience reached its limits, and he gave Kagome a questioning look.
Kagome sighed, "Go home, Inuyasha. You don't have to stay." She followed in the path of the woman half expecting Inuyasha to abandon her. Instead, he rushed up from behind and grabbed Kagome's hand, holding it firmly in his own.
"I'm not leaving you." He moved even closer to her side. "I don't like the feeling of this place. Don't think that I'm letting you wander around here alone, you idiot!"
Kagome could only manage a weak smile before Inuyasha moved upwards on the mountain. He tugged on her and pulled her along him, trying to keep up with the winged woman that was getting further and further ahead of them. The woman stopped for one moment and turned around, her staff beginning to glow with an eerie light now that dusk was setting itself upon the world, "Keep up."
They followed her up a mossy path until an inky darkness covered the sky and her staff glowed with a great intensity. The woman held it over her head and it lit not only the path ahead, but also the sides of the woods. The trees that surrounded them were white and twisted as though there were an old magic twisted into the wood. Kagome relaxed with the scenery around her and the warm feel of Inuyasha's hand holding hers, but Inuyasha remained tense and rigid. Something in the air was foreign and discomforting, and he sensed that once he walked up this mountain his life would change and he would not have the power to change it back.
The woman quit walking once she came to two trees that had seemed to lean and arch into one another. The trunks created a small doorway of sorts, and she lifted her staff to the wood. Her hands gripped the rod and she twisted it sideways and held it in both hands. She spoke softly in a tongue that even Inuyasha had not come across before, but when she had finished the entire staff began to radiate a sharp light. The light spread to the trees until every branch twig on them was illuminated and the light pulsed into the sky.
The woman drew the staff away from the tree and looked to Inuyasha and Kagome, "You may pass."
Kagome felt a confidence well up within her and she walked through the trees without waiting for Inuyasha to walk through with her. Inuyasha watched her walk through the two trees, shocked that she had not hesitated or at least waited for her to cross through with him. For a moment, he felt lonely standing there without her by his side, but the emotion quickly turned to shock once he realized that Kagome had disappeared behind the trees.
"Kagome!" He screamed.
The woman only looked at him without expression, "Are you going to pass through our borders with the girl or will you stay?" Inuyasha hesitated. He held no trust for this woman. "The choice is yours." Inuyasha stared at her for only a second, watching her black hair whip around her face, before he rushed through the trees.
"Kagome," he asked hesitantly, moving his head wildly looking for her.
"I'm here." She looked at him with wide eyes, "I was just waiting for you to come through."
"I want to know what in the world is going on here," he snarled. "We go on a wild goose chase, and then run into a woman who won't tell us anything, and then you disappeared after going through those trees."
Kagome looked around at her surroundings in awe, "Can't you see, Inuyasha? Can't you feel it? This is where we're supposed to be." There was only doubt in Inuyasha's face. "We've crossed the border between their land and your land." Kagome smiled sweetly at Inuyasha's confusion, "It's probably my miko powers, but I just know that the figure in our dreams is not too far off."
"Are you sure?"
"Positive. Who ever the figure is, he is here." Kagome had a look of grim resolution in her eyes and would have turned to walk if the air around her had not warped. She took several steps backwards and a man appeared behind her, a set of wings sprouting from his back.
The man grabbed Kagome's arms and twisted her around. He pulled her close to his face and his black eyes studied her carefully. "You must be someone important for the guardian to allow you to pass."
"Let her go," Inuyasha commanded. The Tetsusaiga was already transformed and waiting to slice the neck of the strange man that held Kagome. "Let her go," he repeated, "unless you have some kind of death wish."
"Stop," Kagome whispered. "He's like the figure in my dreams." She reached up and touched his face. "You're not the figure I saw in the dreams, but you are the one who will take me to him."
The man's face softened, "Your power is great, young one. That is why you have been allowed admittance to this place." He ran a hand through her hair, "You are the one we have been seeking. I will take you to Innis."
"Innis?" Kagome asked, her mouth frowning.
"She is the one you must speak with." The man swept Kagome up into his arms and stretched his wings out to their full span. His gaze moved to Inuyasha, "You shall follow me on the ground."
Inuyasha growled and watched the man's hands as they held Kagome, swearing that if he saw the slightest discomfort upon Kagome's face that he would slice the man from head to toe. The man wings flapped once and then twice, lifting him up into the air. The man held Kagome tighter as he rose through the white trees that seemed to cover the mountain.
A feeling of security washed over Kagome, much like the feeling she had when her mother would cover her with a warm blanket as a child. Up in the warm air, with this winged man made her believe that no bad thing could happen on this mountain. Whatever the cause of her calling to this mountain, the people who inhabited this place had a purpose for her, a good noble purpose that would do her no harm.
Inuyasha sped, his feet hitting the ground at an incredible pace, trying to keep up with the flying man. Kagome appeared to be safe, but he still had an ominous feeling in his gut while he dodged the number of white trees that covered the mountain.
Ten minutes had passed before the man spread out his wings, catching a small patch of air, and drifted down to the ground. Kagome looked down and saw many figures on the ground, and every figure had a pair of wings upon its back. Their faces were looking up, but the only thing Kagome could see was the brightness of their eyes, their penetrating glares.
Inuyasha had already come to a halt, a hand on the hilt of the Tetsusaiga, but he was shocked to see multiple people standing as though they were waiting for his and Kagome's arrival. He looked up as well to see the winged man land gently and release Kagome. There was a peaceful expression upon her face and her eyelids drooped just a bit over her large brown eyes. She looked content to be here among these people and for a second it seemed as though she had forgotten him all together.
He ran to her and stood next to her, his shoulder pulled back and his chest sticking out, "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." She turned to the man, "Will you take me to see Innis as you promised?
"It's the cave that is straight ahead of you." He ignored Inuyasha and placed both of his hands on Kagome's cheeks and looked down at her, "Bless you for answering the call, child. Go now."
She beamed in return and turned her back on both he and Inuyasha. Inuyasha snapped back in surprise and held his hand out to her, "Kagome, wait!" Kagome turned around, but appeared to be in a trance. She stared at him with almost no sign of recognition and for a brief moment Inuyasha thought that had no memory of him.
A young girl with wings moved to Inuyasha's side and her fingers grazed the side of his arms with a feathery touch, "No, son of man, son of demon. You are to stay. Innis's words are meant only for the girl." Her voice was magical, and Inuyasha stared down at the yellow haired girl with emerald eyes. She waved her small hand in front of his eyes. Suddenly, Inuyasha felt himself pressed to the ground in a sitting position and it felt as though two hands were pressing on his shoulders, keeping him from rising. "I mean you no harm," the girl's lyrical voice said, "but you must wait. She will return soon." Inuyasha froze, with visions and images circling in front of his eyes. He made no more fuss.
Kagome turned and walked onward about a hundred feet to the cave and she stepped inside. It was dim only for a moment, but then a glow erupted with the sweep of a hand. A woman moved her hand gracefully through the air, a long red sleeve following behind. This woman was seated, but she was clearly tall, and she lifted her chin when Kagome took a step forward. The light coming from the woman's hand formed into a golden ball that hovered in the air right above Kagome's head and finally softened to a velvety light.
"You are the girl that has been prophesied." The woman's words were direct and her voice was commanding, the voice of royalty. "Make yourself comfortable."
Kagome settled on the floor of the cave. The woman continued to stare at her. Her eyes were a smoky gray and clouded as they scanned Kagome. She wore a deep red dress with gold lacing that ribbed the dress. Her skin was a silky white and her black hair provided a stark contrast to the skin. It was worn completely down and flowed along the sides of her face. It looked more like a waterfall of ink as it fell, layered upon the cave floor. Her wings were tucked in, but they were of the same ivory as her skin.
"I have long imagined what you would look like, daughter of man. I am honored to have you within our boundaries."
Kagome's eyebrows rose up in slight fear at the presence the woman possessed, "Why am I here?"
"You are the receiver of the dreams. It was your fate to come here and learn you purpose."
"My purpose?" Kagome frowned in an intense confusion. She wished the woman would quit speaking in riddles.
"We watched you when you came to this era and sensed your power. My brethren and I have long known of your purpose and wondered when the time would come for the uniting to pass."
Kagome bit her lip, "Uniting? What are you talking about?" She felt a panic come to her throat. It unnerved her to think that she had been watched. "How could you watch me if you said you wondered what I looked like?"
The woman raised a thin hand to silence her, "I will explain." She moved her hand back to her lap, "Many eras ago my kindred segregated ourselves from the race of man and the race of the demons. We could not understand the hatred and love for power that came from the hearts of demon and man. No longer could we stomach the blood that the two races spilled amongst themselves. We retreated so we would no longer have to see it, but we have kept an eye open upon the two races to see if they would ever abandon their evil ways. They never did so we have continued to isolate ourselves."
"I still don't understand."
"Patience, daughter of man. We have regretted out abandonment of the other two races, but still we have inhabited this mountain until our memory has become merely a legend in the eyes of man and demons. However, the time has come in which there shall be a blurring of the races, a uniting if you will. In the prophecy of my kindred, there was a mentioning that the time would come when the separation of the races would be mended by a mixing of the blood. One day an angel would choose a companion whose blood was different from his, a companion that is not among the race of the angels."
"You mean that an angel will choose me to be his bride?" Kagome began to tremble. This was too much. First to be plagued with dreams for years and to only have it end in being told that you would be forced to marry a stranger.
"You have misunderstood. You are not to be the bride of the angel, but you do serve the same purpose in the uniting as I. Kagome, you will be the mother of the child that will be part of the uniting."
Kagome's became rigid, "What?"
"I have used your name as a sign of respect. We hold the same station, Kagome. You will give birth to a daughter and that child will be chosen by my son to be his beloved."
"How is that possible? I'm not even married yet? And how will your son be able to come through time to get my child?"
"Go through time?" For the first time, the woman looked confused.
"I'm from an era in the future."
"This we know, but the prophecies say that your child will be born within this era. The young man that accompanied you to this mountain will be the father for within him the blood of both man and demon runs."
All the breath came out of Kagome, "Inuyasha?"
"It must be him, for your child must have the blood of a demon and a human if my son's angel blood is to completely mix. In order for the uniting to happen, the blood of a demon, human, and angel will be mixed. Your child and my son shall give birth to the first child to contain the blood of all three races."
"But it doesn't make sense." Kagome felt her mouth run dry and she silently pleaded for some sense of reality to come back into her life. "Inuyasha is only a half demon. If we had a child it would only be a quarter demon."
"The quantity does not matter, only that it is present." The woman pushed an errant strand of hair back into place.
"But why me?"
"You are a miko. You possess a vast amount of power, power that has only been manifested completely upon one occasion, but an amazing power just the same. You have passed through time, child. Can you not see that you are no ordinary mortal?"
"But I'm just a reincarnation. Why not Kikyo? She was much more powerful than I. Why not she and Inuyasha? Kikyo was the one with Inuyasha's heart."
The woman reached out and touched Kagome's cheek and look of sympathy in her clouded eyes, "You have been hurt greatly by this knowledge, but you are mistaken. You are Kikyo's superior."
"How?" Kagome's voice shook.
"Powerful though she was, Kikyo's powers waned as her love for Inuyasha grew. Her heart could not possess both. You however, you powers grew as your love for Inuyasha expanded." The woman lips took on a faint trace of a smile, "And Kikyo never once was able to travel through time."
"But that was just the Shikon no Tama."
"No, Kagome. That was you." The woman withdrew her hand and rested it upon her other in her lap.
"But how do you know all this?"
"I told you that we had been watching you. We could not see you, but we could see your heart and soul. We have long watched both your and Inuyasha's souls."
"But I can't marry Inuyasha. I'm promised to another. I'm marrying a man that I care for very much. I've already agreed to be the mother of his children." Kagome waved her ring in front of the woman, "This is a symbol of my promise to him."
The woman shook her head, "Perhaps, I am wrong. The future is not set in stone. The choice is yours."
A salty wetness to Kagome's eyes, "I can't marry Inuyasha. I just can't." She trembled.
"Why such a firm resolve?" The corner of the woman's eyes crinkled and her dynamic eyes penetrated Kagome's insides, right down to her marrow.
"I don't have his heart." A tear fell down her cheek. "His heart in not mine to have; it was promised to another."
"Kagome, you are a wise child. You will make the decision that is correct for you. But my son has a gift for you." The woman raised her hand, and immediately diminutive woman came with a sleeping child in her arms. She placed the child in Innis's waiting arms. Innis looked at the sleeping child tenderly. He had a head full of damp brown curls. He looked to be no more than three and he had an adorable face.
The woman rested the sleeping child in her lap and closed her eyes and without warning an image cemented its way into Kagome's brain. There was a vivid image of a smiling girl, a girl that could be no more that Kagome's own age. She stood with a smile on her face, long white hair, and with a pair of lovely amber eyes. Her ears were just like a human's, but pointed at the tips as though she were an elf. She wore a white dress that covered one shoulder and the top of it came across her chest and tucked just underneath the pit of her arm. The silver hair was pulled away from her face, with half of it typed back and half of it remaining down. The girl's smile looked very soft and tender, full of emotion, and it seemed very familiar to Kagome. This girl was tall and slender. Kagome's breath caught at the sight of this girl and an understanding filled her. In this girl, Kagome could see her own smile, jaw line, and hands.
Kagome's mouth opened and she could not speak. Tears now fell from her eyes with force and she tried to blink them away. Finally the words came, "So you were the one with the power to send me the dreams through time?"
"No." The woman shook her head. "My son sent you the dreams." The child remained still, his thumb resting in his mouth. "It was his future self that you saw. It was he that called you here."
"He did all this? But he's just a child. I've been having these dreams for years."
"My brethren and I age differently, but it was indeed he that sent you the vision. After all, it will be his child that has the combined blood of the three races. It will be his child that shall be the beginning of the uniting."
With the back of her hand, Kagome wiped away the last of her tears, "Are you done?"
"Yes, the time has come for you to leave. My message is finished."
Kagome tried to smile, but she felt more tears welling up within her, "Thank you." She turned and walked out of the cave.
"Remember my words, Kagome." The woman kissed her child on the head and closed her eyes as her role as the messenger ended.
Kagome walked very quickly to where Inuyasha sat and frowned at him. He seemed to be frozen and unmoving. "Oh, stop it. Let's get out of here." She grabbed his hand and yanked him up from the ground rather forcefully. The pressure on Inuyasha's shoulders disappeared and he snapped back to life with her yank.
He blinked several times and looked around, very much confused, "What's going on?"
"We're leaving?"
"About time!" He snarled. "I'll be glad to get out of this nuthouse.
He and Kagome were alone now with the exception of the young angel that had hypnotized him; she remained looking at the both of them. Apparently the rest of the angels had drifted away during Kagome's conversation with Innis.
"What're you looking at?" Inuyasha snapped at the girl. "You're the one who froze me aren't you?" He began cracking his knuckles as an idle threat.
The young angel only continued to stare, "I hope you can make sense of what you have seen. It was my gift to you." She spread her wings and then flew up into the sky.
Kagome paid that girl little attention and began walking away from the cave. Inuyasha stared at her back, wondering why she was so intent on leaving.
"Kagome, what happened back there?" He ran to her side, bewildered by her behavior.
"Nothing," she scowled.
"Well, obviously something happened."
"I don't want to talk about it!" She continued walking.
"Well, I'd like to hear about it. It involves me too."
"SIT." The word erupted from her mouth, but she kept on walking not even bothering to acknowledge Inuyasha's shouting.
He peeled himself up from the ground once the spell wore off and ran to her. He stepped directly in front of her and held his hand out. "What happened? You've been crying I can smell it, and your eyes are all bloodshot. Did they do anything to you?" His voice tried to suppress his anger; if they had done anything to her he'd make them regret it.
"No, they didn't do anything." Kagome's shoulders slumped. It seemed like her strength had drained out of away. "Calm down, Inuyasha. Let's just go back to the village." She stepped to the side and walked slowly past him.
"Why won't you talk to me? Please, Kagome?" He was begging, all his energy invested in finding out what was wrong with her.
"Nothing that I have to worry about. Now let's go." Her last words were screeched into his sensitive ears.
He walked next to her, keeping his tongue silent but his eyes watchful, "Do you want to ride on my back to get home faster?" He hoped she would take this as a peace offering.
"Not right now." She looked out, towards the woods, hoping to get away from the mountain and away from Inuyasha. Right now all she wanted was to get back to her own time and into the waiting arms of Shiro.
* I can only apologize to all the readers for how long it has taken me to get this chapter out. I'm currently in graduate school and my time is very limited. Plus, this story is becoming more difficult to write the further along I go with it. I felt as though the last few chapters were rushed and I couldn't stand putting out another mediocre chapter. I hate when I cannot seem to write a decent sentence and it's unfair for all of you to read my random garbage that I've been spitting out lately. All that said, I hope that I haven't lost all of my faithful readers during my long hiatus. I have loved receiving your feedback and thank you for every post I have received. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate it when even one person reads my ramblings. So please enjoy this part of the story and if it so moves you to do so then review please!