Neither Inu-Yasha or the song belong to me, but I wish they did.
i-Pod belongs to Apple corp. and this is not a pitch for that product.
Song is denoted by { }.
&&&&&&&
His ears rung.
Passing through the dimensional portal to the modern era was always uncomfortable for him. Something about it affected his heightened aural sensitivity so he was ALWAYS in a pissed off mood when he finally climbed out in Kagome's time. Sitting on the soft earth at the well bottom, he stuck a finger into each ear and tried to shake the ringing sound out as best he could.
'Hnf. Thanks, Kagome! I gotta put up with this crap 'cause you don't know when to come home.' Never really thinking that this WAS her true home.
Satisfied that he had done the best he could in getting the discomfort down to a minor buzzing, he took one leap up and out of the well. It was still daylight in the modern era, he could tell by the shafts of light slipping through the cracks of the wellhouse walls. He looked at the patterns they made across the floor, creating almost an optical illusion that would give him a headache if he stared too long. Blinking, he made his way through the darkness to the door of the wellhouse.
He blinked again, his eyes adjusting to the daylight as he stepped outside. Stopping momentarily, he sniffed the shifting wind for any sign of that girl. The one for whom his emotions had driven him this far. He also took care that he not be observed. He absolutely didn't want to cause any trouble for Kagome or her family if visitors to the shrine started asking questions about the silver-haired, red-suited, dog-eared, vampire-fanged, golden-eyed...
(Hey, author, they get the picture. I feel like enough of a freak walking around in this era without you pouring it on extra thick, so take something for that diarrhea of the adjective you got, O.k?)
(Ahem, err, sorry Inu-Yasha. I'll try to keep that under control.)
He picked up the only evidence of her scent, and that led him inevitably to the house, and her room. Stretching his senses, he didn't pick up any other humans nearby, so he took one leap and landed on her window sill. Lifting the blinds with one hand, he poked his head inside. Kagome was not there. He knew that, the scent was too weak. He thought for a moment before he let himself into her room. He would wait here a while for her return. He would think up an excuse for his visit in the meantime.
Careful not to disturb things too much, he gave himself a tour of her furnishings. He hadn't paid much attention the last time he was here, watching her sleep. He thought wistfully back to that time, not so long ago. She had consumed all of his attention. Now his eyes moved from item to item. A twin bed, some cheerful pictures hanging on the wall, some stuffed animals...
'Knf, real girly stuff.'
'Duh, she IS a girl...' His conscience retorted.
He sat down on her bed. It was difficult, but he wanted to stay angry at her for any reason he could find, no matter how weak. It helped to keep his focus away from what was really nagging at him. Deep down he was afraid. Afraid she would leave him for good and force him to face that void once again. The void that filled him with more terror than anything Naraku could conjure. Kikyo created that void when she turned on him and pinned him to the tree. She had believed her eyes and not her heart then. Had she listened to her heart, it would have told her there was no way that Inu-Yasha could betray her.
He had held her closely.
He had whispered his feelings of love and devotion to her.
She had agreed.
They would each sacrifice the thing that defined them for the sake of their love for each other. She would renounce her life as a priestess, he would no longer be a hanyou. But sadly, it would be proven that her love was not unconditional, not strong enough, not pure enough. Naraku struck her down, and she believed her eyes and not her heart.
The void deepened when he realized her love for him was really only misguided possession. Kikyo was angry over what was taken from her, and she still felt Inu-Yasha 'belonged' to her, and that she would have him in the end. Even if it meant killing him so that he was hers and hers alone. That wasn't real love.
Real love was Kagome, bound to a tree, screaming at him to wake up as Kikyo had hypnotized him and was taking him out of this world to be with her forever. Real love was Kagome, after his demon blood had first taken possession of him when he killed Goshinki, finding the thread of his sanity and pulling him back to her by that thread, even while he threatened to kill her if she came any closer. Real love was Kagome, daring Sesshomaru to come any nearer to a stricken Inu-Yasha, protecting him with her own body. Real love was Kagome, knowing she was not as beautiful as Kikyo, yet hoping and waiting for Inu-Yasha to realize her true, inner beauty. Real love was Kagome taking the chance to admit to him her feelings, that she wanted to be with him even if he didn't love her back.
Real love was Kagome...
He thought back to that day, sitting on the river bank with her. About how much courage it took for her to admit that to him.
Gods, he loved her.
He hadn't realized that he had taken her pillow and was inhaling it for the traces of her scent that it held.
'Grrr, now I'm gettin' all mushy. I'm supposed to be MAD at her, dammit!'
He threw the pillow down and stood up. Thinking the better of it, he smoothed the pillow out and placed it carefully back the way he remembered it, smoothing out also the indentation he left on her bed. He looked at the pillow again and an idea struck him.
'What if I have to go back before she comes home? I'll need something of hers to hold on to just in case. She's gotta have something around here that she won't miss.'
He couldn't take anything too obvious. What about her dresser? Maybe something was in one of the drawers that she wouldn't miss. He carefully slid open the top drawer, finding her neatly laid out unmentionables. Although freshly laundered, her scent was still strong on them as they had the most intimate contact with her body. It was almost overwhelming to him. He shut the drawer quickly, blushing profusely. He was thankful no one was there to witness his embarrassment. He grunted. Then he tried each drawer until he reached the bottom one. There he found some older items, including gym sweats. He took a pullover and sniffed it, then carefully folded it and put it inside his haori. He patted it once to make sure it was safe, and then closed the drawer after neatly arranging the other items trying his best to hide the fact that one was missing. He stood up sharply. His senses detected someone, and they were coming up the stairs. His ears twitched, and he sniffed. Sota. He glanced at the window. He couldn't get out quickly enough without making a racket.
So he just stood there with his arms folded, like it was the most natural place for him to be, in Kagome's room, alone.
The door opened and Sota stuck his head in.
"Kagome? You back already?.. Inu-Yasha!" Sota was momentarily shocked to see the hanyou standing there. After a second or so, a huge grin appeared on his face, and he ran over to him, hugging him tightly. Since their 'man- to-man' agreement, Sota had looked up to Inu-Yasha almost as a big brother. He knew the hanyou liked his sister, he gently teased her about it whenever she was home, although she never completely believed it to be true. He always listened intently to her stories of the warring states era with great interest. He was proud of his older sister and what she had accomplished and did his best to help her whenever he could. Inu-Yasha regarded him fondly, patting him on the head.
"Whatcha doin'?" He released Inu-Yasha from the embrace.
"Waiting for that stupid girl. Where is she?"
"Oh. She and mom went to visit our sick aunt in Yokohama. Mom said they wouldn't be back for two more days, but I thought she was back early when I heard you in here."
Two more days! How could he possibly stand it? He tapped one foot nervously, reaching into his haori to feel the soft fabric of her pullover absent-mindedly. He looked back at Sota, seeing for the first time something he hadn't noticed before in the midst of his preoccupation.
"What're those things in your ears?"
"Oh, this? This is an i-Pod. It plays music that I get off the internet."
"In-ter-net? What kind of things does this net catch?"
"No. It's not a net like that. It's um..." Sota saw the confusion in Inu- Yasha's eyes and figured the only way to explain was to show him directly.
"Here. You put these pads in your ears and press this button to hear the music. You press this button to turn the sound up or down. And you press this to go to the next song."
Inu-Yasha put the pads into his ears as Sota instructed and pressed the Play button. The wave of sound came crashing into his ears and he yanked the pads out by the wires.
"Oh, I forgot, your ears are much more sensitive. Here. Turn the volume way down." Sota did so. Inu-Yasha grunted, but didn't want to seem too ignorant in front of this kid, so he put the pads back into his ears and tried again. This time the sounds came through loud and clear, but not too loud. He flipped through some of the selections.
"I think I downloaded some of mom's songs on there by mistake. She wanted me to burn a CD of her favorites. They're kinda old, so just skip past them when you get to them." Inu-Yasha nodded. A voice came from downstairs.
"Sota!"
"Yes, grandpa?"
"What are you doing? We still have chores left unfinished!"
"O.k. I'm coming down now."
Sota turned to Inu-Yasha, who was absorbed by the piece of technology he was holding. Sota tugged on his sleeve, causing Inu-Yasha to growl in apprehension. He thought Sota had noticed the bulge in his haori where the pullover was hidden.
"Hey. Don't get excited. I have to finish some things downstairs. Want to come down and say hello to grandpa?"
"Not really."
"O.k. Then stay here. I'll be back as soon as I'm finished. And whatever you do, DON'T leave with my i-Pod."
"All right! It's not like I'm gonna steal it or nuthin'." Sota sighed and left the room.
Inu-Yasha turned the unit on again and listened to the current selection. Quite a bit of drum and bass. He didn't like it.
'Hnf.' He tried the next selection. Girl band rock.
'Keh.' He pressed the advance button again. Speed-metal-rap.
'What the hell does this kid listen to?' Next selection.
The soft, melodic piano intro caught his interest before he could flip to the next track. Then the solo male vocal of the first stanza shocked him with its powerful but thinly veiled emotion and simplicity...
{Oh my love
my darling
I've hungered for your touch
A long lonely time
And time goes by so slowly
And time can do so much
Are you still mine?
I need your love
I need your love
God speed your love to me...}
"Kagome!"
As if struck by a bolt from the sky, Inu-Yasha fell to his knees. The emotive power of what he heard touched him to his core. What was this? A demon spell hidden in the words? How had they known what he felt in his soul? He pulled the earplugs out and threw the i-Pod to the floor, regarding it cautiously, suspiciously, as if it were alive. He noticed his breathing had increased and his hands were shaking.
'What the hell?'
He reached for the device, drew his hand back, and reached for it again. He tentatively touched it, and not feeling any spell envelop him, picked it up again. He turned it this way and that, trying to figure out what was in it that could affect him so profoundly. He decided that he wasn't afraid of it and would listen some more. Putting the pads back into his ears, he flexed his muscles to remind himself of how powerful a hanyou he was, yet his heart still fluttered as he resumed the track.
{Lonely rivers flow
To the sea, to the sea
To the open arms of the sea (yeah)
Lonely rivers sigh
Wait for me, wait for me
I'll be coming home
Wait for me...}
"Kagome."
He tried his best to contain his emotions. He never cried. He wouldn't now. He wouldn't.
The wave took him.
He snatched her pullover from where it was hidden and buried his face in it. The song continued as another male voice added his angst to create an even more sorrowful duet.
{Oh my love
my darling
I've hungered(hungered)for your touch
A long lonely time
And time goes by so slowly
And time can do so much
Are you still mine?
I need your love
I(I)need your love
God speed your love to me}
As the violins reached their crescendo, the sensory impact became too much to bear. All his fears, his dreams, his deep feelings for Kagome could no longer be pushed down and became unbound from his heart all at once. The feelings rushed up from his gut like a runaway locomotive.
And they came out with a fury.
"OWWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHH!"
It was more a roar than an howl.
The power of it was staggering. Sota and his grandfather looked at each other briefly, then dropped what they were doing and ran up the stairs. They flung open Kagome's bedroom door only to find the room empty, the curtains flowing in the breeze of the open window.
Many miles away, Kagome looked up from the pot of vegetables she was stirring. She gasped.
"Inu-Yasha."
&&&&&&&
&&&&&&&
His ears rung.
Passing through the dimensional portal to the modern era was always uncomfortable for him. Something about it affected his heightened aural sensitivity so he was ALWAYS in a pissed off mood when he finally climbed out in Kagome's time. Sitting on the soft earth at the well bottom, he stuck a finger into each ear and tried to shake the ringing sound out as best he could.
'Hnf. Thanks, Kagome! I gotta put up with this crap 'cause you don't know when to come home.' Never really thinking that this WAS her true home.
Satisfied that he had done the best he could in getting the discomfort down to a minor buzzing, he took one leap up and out of the well. It was still daylight in the modern era, he could tell by the shafts of light slipping through the cracks of the wellhouse walls. He looked at the patterns they made across the floor, creating almost an optical illusion that would give him a headache if he stared too long. Blinking, he made his way through the darkness to the door of the wellhouse.
He blinked again, his eyes adjusting to the daylight as he stepped outside. Stopping momentarily, he sniffed the shifting wind for any sign of that girl. The one for whom his emotions had driven him this far. He also took care that he not be observed. He absolutely didn't want to cause any trouble for Kagome or her family if visitors to the shrine started asking questions about the silver-haired, red-suited, dog-eared, vampire-fanged, golden-eyed...
(Hey, author, they get the picture. I feel like enough of a freak walking around in this era without you pouring it on extra thick, so take something for that diarrhea of the adjective you got, O.k?)
(Ahem, err, sorry Inu-Yasha. I'll try to keep that under control.)
He picked up the only evidence of her scent, and that led him inevitably to the house, and her room. Stretching his senses, he didn't pick up any other humans nearby, so he took one leap and landed on her window sill. Lifting the blinds with one hand, he poked his head inside. Kagome was not there. He knew that, the scent was too weak. He thought for a moment before he let himself into her room. He would wait here a while for her return. He would think up an excuse for his visit in the meantime.
Careful not to disturb things too much, he gave himself a tour of her furnishings. He hadn't paid much attention the last time he was here, watching her sleep. He thought wistfully back to that time, not so long ago. She had consumed all of his attention. Now his eyes moved from item to item. A twin bed, some cheerful pictures hanging on the wall, some stuffed animals...
'Knf, real girly stuff.'
'Duh, she IS a girl...' His conscience retorted.
He sat down on her bed. It was difficult, but he wanted to stay angry at her for any reason he could find, no matter how weak. It helped to keep his focus away from what was really nagging at him. Deep down he was afraid. Afraid she would leave him for good and force him to face that void once again. The void that filled him with more terror than anything Naraku could conjure. Kikyo created that void when she turned on him and pinned him to the tree. She had believed her eyes and not her heart then. Had she listened to her heart, it would have told her there was no way that Inu-Yasha could betray her.
He had held her closely.
He had whispered his feelings of love and devotion to her.
She had agreed.
They would each sacrifice the thing that defined them for the sake of their love for each other. She would renounce her life as a priestess, he would no longer be a hanyou. But sadly, it would be proven that her love was not unconditional, not strong enough, not pure enough. Naraku struck her down, and she believed her eyes and not her heart.
The void deepened when he realized her love for him was really only misguided possession. Kikyo was angry over what was taken from her, and she still felt Inu-Yasha 'belonged' to her, and that she would have him in the end. Even if it meant killing him so that he was hers and hers alone. That wasn't real love.
Real love was Kagome, bound to a tree, screaming at him to wake up as Kikyo had hypnotized him and was taking him out of this world to be with her forever. Real love was Kagome, after his demon blood had first taken possession of him when he killed Goshinki, finding the thread of his sanity and pulling him back to her by that thread, even while he threatened to kill her if she came any closer. Real love was Kagome, daring Sesshomaru to come any nearer to a stricken Inu-Yasha, protecting him with her own body. Real love was Kagome, knowing she was not as beautiful as Kikyo, yet hoping and waiting for Inu-Yasha to realize her true, inner beauty. Real love was Kagome taking the chance to admit to him her feelings, that she wanted to be with him even if he didn't love her back.
Real love was Kagome...
He thought back to that day, sitting on the river bank with her. About how much courage it took for her to admit that to him.
Gods, he loved her.
He hadn't realized that he had taken her pillow and was inhaling it for the traces of her scent that it held.
'Grrr, now I'm gettin' all mushy. I'm supposed to be MAD at her, dammit!'
He threw the pillow down and stood up. Thinking the better of it, he smoothed the pillow out and placed it carefully back the way he remembered it, smoothing out also the indentation he left on her bed. He looked at the pillow again and an idea struck him.
'What if I have to go back before she comes home? I'll need something of hers to hold on to just in case. She's gotta have something around here that she won't miss.'
He couldn't take anything too obvious. What about her dresser? Maybe something was in one of the drawers that she wouldn't miss. He carefully slid open the top drawer, finding her neatly laid out unmentionables. Although freshly laundered, her scent was still strong on them as they had the most intimate contact with her body. It was almost overwhelming to him. He shut the drawer quickly, blushing profusely. He was thankful no one was there to witness his embarrassment. He grunted. Then he tried each drawer until he reached the bottom one. There he found some older items, including gym sweats. He took a pullover and sniffed it, then carefully folded it and put it inside his haori. He patted it once to make sure it was safe, and then closed the drawer after neatly arranging the other items trying his best to hide the fact that one was missing. He stood up sharply. His senses detected someone, and they were coming up the stairs. His ears twitched, and he sniffed. Sota. He glanced at the window. He couldn't get out quickly enough without making a racket.
So he just stood there with his arms folded, like it was the most natural place for him to be, in Kagome's room, alone.
The door opened and Sota stuck his head in.
"Kagome? You back already?.. Inu-Yasha!" Sota was momentarily shocked to see the hanyou standing there. After a second or so, a huge grin appeared on his face, and he ran over to him, hugging him tightly. Since their 'man- to-man' agreement, Sota had looked up to Inu-Yasha almost as a big brother. He knew the hanyou liked his sister, he gently teased her about it whenever she was home, although she never completely believed it to be true. He always listened intently to her stories of the warring states era with great interest. He was proud of his older sister and what she had accomplished and did his best to help her whenever he could. Inu-Yasha regarded him fondly, patting him on the head.
"Whatcha doin'?" He released Inu-Yasha from the embrace.
"Waiting for that stupid girl. Where is she?"
"Oh. She and mom went to visit our sick aunt in Yokohama. Mom said they wouldn't be back for two more days, but I thought she was back early when I heard you in here."
Two more days! How could he possibly stand it? He tapped one foot nervously, reaching into his haori to feel the soft fabric of her pullover absent-mindedly. He looked back at Sota, seeing for the first time something he hadn't noticed before in the midst of his preoccupation.
"What're those things in your ears?"
"Oh, this? This is an i-Pod. It plays music that I get off the internet."
"In-ter-net? What kind of things does this net catch?"
"No. It's not a net like that. It's um..." Sota saw the confusion in Inu- Yasha's eyes and figured the only way to explain was to show him directly.
"Here. You put these pads in your ears and press this button to hear the music. You press this button to turn the sound up or down. And you press this to go to the next song."
Inu-Yasha put the pads into his ears as Sota instructed and pressed the Play button. The wave of sound came crashing into his ears and he yanked the pads out by the wires.
"Oh, I forgot, your ears are much more sensitive. Here. Turn the volume way down." Sota did so. Inu-Yasha grunted, but didn't want to seem too ignorant in front of this kid, so he put the pads back into his ears and tried again. This time the sounds came through loud and clear, but not too loud. He flipped through some of the selections.
"I think I downloaded some of mom's songs on there by mistake. She wanted me to burn a CD of her favorites. They're kinda old, so just skip past them when you get to them." Inu-Yasha nodded. A voice came from downstairs.
"Sota!"
"Yes, grandpa?"
"What are you doing? We still have chores left unfinished!"
"O.k. I'm coming down now."
Sota turned to Inu-Yasha, who was absorbed by the piece of technology he was holding. Sota tugged on his sleeve, causing Inu-Yasha to growl in apprehension. He thought Sota had noticed the bulge in his haori where the pullover was hidden.
"Hey. Don't get excited. I have to finish some things downstairs. Want to come down and say hello to grandpa?"
"Not really."
"O.k. Then stay here. I'll be back as soon as I'm finished. And whatever you do, DON'T leave with my i-Pod."
"All right! It's not like I'm gonna steal it or nuthin'." Sota sighed and left the room.
Inu-Yasha turned the unit on again and listened to the current selection. Quite a bit of drum and bass. He didn't like it.
'Hnf.' He tried the next selection. Girl band rock.
'Keh.' He pressed the advance button again. Speed-metal-rap.
'What the hell does this kid listen to?' Next selection.
The soft, melodic piano intro caught his interest before he could flip to the next track. Then the solo male vocal of the first stanza shocked him with its powerful but thinly veiled emotion and simplicity...
{Oh my love
my darling
I've hungered for your touch
A long lonely time
And time goes by so slowly
And time can do so much
Are you still mine?
I need your love
I need your love
God speed your love to me...}
"Kagome!"
As if struck by a bolt from the sky, Inu-Yasha fell to his knees. The emotive power of what he heard touched him to his core. What was this? A demon spell hidden in the words? How had they known what he felt in his soul? He pulled the earplugs out and threw the i-Pod to the floor, regarding it cautiously, suspiciously, as if it were alive. He noticed his breathing had increased and his hands were shaking.
'What the hell?'
He reached for the device, drew his hand back, and reached for it again. He tentatively touched it, and not feeling any spell envelop him, picked it up again. He turned it this way and that, trying to figure out what was in it that could affect him so profoundly. He decided that he wasn't afraid of it and would listen some more. Putting the pads back into his ears, he flexed his muscles to remind himself of how powerful a hanyou he was, yet his heart still fluttered as he resumed the track.
{Lonely rivers flow
To the sea, to the sea
To the open arms of the sea (yeah)
Lonely rivers sigh
Wait for me, wait for me
I'll be coming home
Wait for me...}
"Kagome."
He tried his best to contain his emotions. He never cried. He wouldn't now. He wouldn't.
The wave took him.
He snatched her pullover from where it was hidden and buried his face in it. The song continued as another male voice added his angst to create an even more sorrowful duet.
{Oh my love
my darling
I've hungered(hungered)for your touch
A long lonely time
And time goes by so slowly
And time can do so much
Are you still mine?
I need your love
I(I)need your love
God speed your love to me}
As the violins reached their crescendo, the sensory impact became too much to bear. All his fears, his dreams, his deep feelings for Kagome could no longer be pushed down and became unbound from his heart all at once. The feelings rushed up from his gut like a runaway locomotive.
And they came out with a fury.
"OWWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHH!"
It was more a roar than an howl.
The power of it was staggering. Sota and his grandfather looked at each other briefly, then dropped what they were doing and ran up the stairs. They flung open Kagome's bedroom door only to find the room empty, the curtains flowing in the breeze of the open window.
Many miles away, Kagome looked up from the pot of vegetables she was stirring. She gasped.
"Inu-Yasha."
&&&&&&&