Disclaimer: I don't down Inuyasha and characters in this story.

Chapter 7- You are not

He watched her expression change from that of anger to confusion, a slight frown crossing her brows. His eyes sought the depth of the dark pools of brown, for the slightest hint of recognition, the slightest evidence of her returned memory. Yet only finding a reflection of her confused mind, he sighed, no, she hadn't remembered as he had hoped she would, but that was fine.

It was only the beginning.

He felt the mattress beneath him move slightly as she shifted in her position, pushing against the bed in an attempt to increase the distance between them. His eyes followed her, showing mild hints of his amusement. "You cannot run away any more, Midoriko," he purred, his hand reached out and held onto hers. "This game you have played for centuries, I will end it now."

"My name.. is Kagome," she replied with hesitation, flinching from his touch but not fighting it as her body relaxed, her eyes fixed and seemingly hypnotized by his. Yes, he mouthed, there had been no need to fight in the first place, it didn't matter what she called herself, she would always be the same to him.

Always..

Slowly, his hand moved until their fingers intertwined, golden eyes watched the hard lines of her face soften as she exhaled deeply, her grip tightening gently in his hand. He smiled, there was just no way she could resist, despite what she had said, Midoriko was so very responsive.

He reached out and brushed a strand of hair away from her beautiful face, still the same as he had remembered it hundreds of years ago, her skin was still pale and smooth under his touch, her hair as dark as the raven's wings. "I have waited for long.." he whispered as he leaned closer, breathing in her scent, a mixture of faint lavender and.. and? He inhaled again, refusing to believe in that scent, but it was still there, the salty scent of tears, the copper scent of fear. Eyes shot up to her face, noticing that her eyes were tightly shut, and for the first time, there was a frown across her brow.

"Midoriko.." he murmured.

Her eyes flew open and he saw watched with horror as her tears threatened to fall, it was as though.. as though he was VIOLATING her. "Why?" he asked, feeling a sharp pain of anguish inside his chest as he watched her pleading eyes. "Why do you not accept me?"

Her head moved from side to side in a shaking motion, sending tears sliding down her cheek and sinking into her pillow. "Don't.. do it.." she whispered, "Inuyasha.."

Inu..yasha? At the sound of the name, he felt the other part of him stirring into wakefulness. He knew then, that he was not the one she recognized. Instead, she saw only his reincarnation, the silver haired hanyou.

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She watched his expression change on his face, saw the anguish and pain in his eyes. He was not Inuyasha, Kagome was certain now, the hanyou would never look at her like that. The mark is only a promise, it doesn't foster fondness.

"Who are you?" Kagome asked in a tiny voice as she felt his grip releasing her hand and that she could move again. He didn't answer, but instead closed his eyes.

Silence beheld the room for a moment before she heard him speak again, yet instead of sadness, she sensed a hint of worry, a hint of fear. "Run," he murmured, his eyes still tightly shut as though he was struggling with something, something that fought to surface. "Get away!" his voice rose into a yell as his hand went to her shoulders and pushed her off the mattress. "Run!"

She rolled and managed to drop onto her feet, eyes wide with puzzlement. "Inuyasha?" she inquired and saw his eyes slowly open at the name. Yet to her shock, there were no longer a bright shade of gold, but instead.. a cold purple..

"Midoriko," he said.

"I'm not Midoriko!", she had screamed at him then, the person that seemed to have dwelled beneath Inuyasha's conscience. "It's Kagome! Ka-go-me!" The Hunter stopped, why did she care what he had called her? Why had she been concerned of what she was in the eyes of the hanyou? Kagome shook herself in her mind, no, she didn't care, there was no reason why she would have given a damn what a filthy youkai thought of her.

Hand went to her dagger. A Hunter must be prepared at all times, she had been taught at a young age. A Hunter must always keep their guard up, even when they are with someone they trust. Kagome held the blade up in front of her, both of her hands gripping the hilt, attempting to steady the tremor that extended from her arm and all the way to her fingers.

Even those that they trusted.. it is always the hardest..

But she hadn't taken that advice, she had allowed her defense to drop, even against a sworn enemy. Was it because she was loosing her touch as a Hunter.. or had it been because.. she had..trusted..

Trusted..

She tasted the salty blood from the insides of her mouth. Trusted? She had hated the youkai race, hated the hanyou. She had been unable to eliminate Sango, but she had an excuse, Sango was friend, perhaps family, too. But the hanyou? There was no connection between him and her, he was a outsider, the same as any youkai she came across.. but if that had been the case..

..then why did it hurt, so deeply.. in her heart..?

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End of Chapter 7- You are not

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AN: It's been a while since I have been on ff.net, thank you everyone for the patience of waiting for the update. As I have said last time, the past few weeks was drowned in exam cramming so there was just no way I had time to write.

Jade Catseye: yes, Kagome is Midoriko's reincarnation in this fic, but I guess Kikyou would also be one of the reincarnations of Midoriko before Kagome

sashlea : how true

Nishigirl: thank you

X-with stars: Kagome and Kikyou both are Midoriko's reincarnations, just at different time periods. Miroku is human and he doesn't really know Sango's identity. I'm limiting the number of characters I use because it's easier to write (and because I', lazy), so the other characters you have mentioned may not be in this story.

Death's essence: yeah ^_^ ;; Midoriko is the mate, (well not really) of the person who reincarnated to Inuyasha. It's kind of a rip off from the original series from the part about Midoriko and how the Shikon no Tama was created. They said Midoriko had a lover, it's just that I'm not sure what his name was..

insomni-maniac: That's alright, I sneaked on ff.net a couple of times at school as well until it was banned from the school computers. When Inuyasha like a crack head, he had remembered stuff about his past.

Brie : No, Kagome doesn't have another name, she is the reincarnation of Midoriko who was a miko from the feudal Japan.

Jeanniestorm: Yes, Midoriko is the priestess that was the Shikon no Tama and Inuyasha did say that last line out aloud. (which would have freaked Kagome out)

Thank you to everyone who reviewed

RicePaper