AN: Hello all! I don't have much to say so... On with the story! HAPPY READING AND ENJOY!

Disclaimer: There are only so many different ways I can think of to say that I don't own it.

The One above All: Sorry for the shortness of the last chapter; it stems from me being reluctant to actually end my story.

Coyotesabre: Glad you love my story. I hope it is the good kind of busy and not the bad. Good luck handling it all either way.

VioletRose4: Kikyo is such an easy villain to choose when writing a story. I personally don't like her very much so I have no problem pitting her against the main characters.

Nathalie: Thanks for your review. I'm glad you like my story and the character development, I was a little afraid neither element was quite up to par.

Love Isn't Just a Memory

Chapter Twenty-Eight: The Truth

By: Nimerin

Everyone turned to face the owner of the cool voice in surprise. Sure, they had been expecting her to be behind the mess, but they weren't expecting her to appear behind them. Shinku blanched and looked about ready to flee if it were not for Inuyasha's sword still firmly pressed against her neck. She wasn't willing to hedge her bets and assume that he wouldn't mind too much if she tried to make a break for it. She began to shake when she considered her punishment for failing to complete her ordered task and for telling them what she knew.

Kagome looked at the woman standing at the top of the steps, her brow furrowed in confusion. She looked closely at the woman and gasped in surprise, "But you are the one that I talked to in my dream, the one that helped me." She covered her mouth.

Kikyo shifted her icy gaze that had previously been fixated on Inuyasha and looked at her incarnation, "I don't know what you are speaking of. I did not help you in any way. That would be rather counter productive."

"But you look just like her; how is that possible?"

"I'm not here to explain things to you; I'm here to make sure you are removed as an obstacle once and for all."

Inuyasha had been silent throughout the exchange, a solemn expression set on his face. He finally snapped out of his daze at the obvious threat Kikyo had made to Kagome. "Why are you attacking Kagome?"

"Inuyasha," she whispered his name almost fondly before her voice took on a mocking tone, "Come now, you can't honestly be that foolish. I want my soul back."

"It isn't your soul anymore, it belongs to me." Kagome called out angrily.

"Hai, it inhabits your body, for the time being. But really Kagome, you can't honestly say that it belongs to you. It was my soul first, and you never used it or the powers contained within it even so much as half as well as me. Besides, Inuyasha and I will finally be able to be together and he would be truly happy. Are you willing to deny him that happiness?" she smiled evilly as she watched Kagome's face crumble with each cutting remark.

Kagome stood still, her mouth open in silent shock as tears began to well up behind her eyes. Yet she refused to cry, 'Oh Kami, this hurts so bad,' she thought, 'It almost feels as though she ripped my heart out. What she said can't be true, it can't be. Why can't I remember? I want to know.'

Sango stepped up from behind Kagome, her grip on her hirakotsu tight as she yelled, "Kagome-chan has a kinder heart, has done so much good, and brings everyone in her life so much happiness that it is ridiculous for you to say that she is anything less than you. It's her soul and she definitely deserves it more than you."

"It is unfair of you to say that she does not use her powers half as well as you." Miroku added, "You had been trained your whole life to be a miko while Kagome-sama has just recently become aware of her abilities. She has done remarkably well considering, and I believe she has the potential to become even more powerful than you."

Kagome turned a grateful smile to her two friends who had defended her. They couldn't possibly know just how much what they had said meant to her. The small group of friends turned to the silent hanyou and waited to see what his reaction might be to the previous statements. Kikyo, for her part, had not even acknowledged the slayer or the houshi; she was only concerned with how her past love would respond to her reasoning.

Inuyasha's eyes had mostly stayed on Kagome as he watched her reaction to what Kikyo had told her. The emotional attack on the young girl had elicited his own little inner monologue. 'This isn't right, Kagome shouldn't have to feel so horrible. She can't honestly believe that crap Kikyo is saying can she?'

'Of course she can,' the little voice piped, 'Whether she has her memories or not, you used to tell her the same things; apparently it had a deeper affect on her than you realized.'

'Kami, I am such a baka. What am I supposed to do? This is Kikyo we are talking about.'

'I don't know, that's something you have to figure out for yourself. I can't do everything for you.'

'Gee thanks, you are so helpful.'

'You're welcome. I'll be going now. Good luck, you'll need it.'

The voice left him alone as soon as Sango and Miroku had finished their supportive speeches; Inuyasha sent them each a grateful glance before turning to look at Kikyo. He was well aware of what needed to be said, what he wanted to say, but was afraid of what her reaction might be. He swallowed thickly, "Kikyo, you had no right to say that to her."

Kikyo's eyes narrowed in anger but she remained silent and awaited the rest of his speech.

"Miroku and Sango were right to say what they did." He continued.

Unable to stand such an obvious blow to her pride, especially coming from the one she loved, she sought to turn his emotions to her favor, "Inuyasha," she faked a wounded look, "Does she really mean so much to you? Have you forgotten me and everything that we were, what we could have been? You were going to become human and I wouldn't have to guard the jewel anymore. We were going to live normal lives and be happy."

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes in irritation, "Is that all I ever was to you, a chance to be normal? Did you even care for me as I was at all?"

"Of course I cared for you Inuyasha," Kikyo frowned; things were not going as she had planned, "I would not have offered the chance to be human if I did not."

"Then why did I have to be human for us to work? We could have protected the jewel together." He challenged.

"I didn't want to have to fight any longer. I wanted an uncomplicated life; I thought that you wanted that too."

"Turning me human wouldn't have made things easier and you know it. I still would have had enemies coming after me because of who I had been and you would have too; the only difference would have been we wouldn't be strong enough to fight them off anymore."

"You don't know that." She hissed in annoyance, upset that he was challenging all the plans she had set for them. Even now, she still thought she could regain her soul, possession of the Shikon, and turn him human.

"Why wouldn't you let me use it to turn youkai? It would have disappeared and I would have been strong enough to fight off any one that wanted to kill us."

Kikyo glared at him, "When you turn youkai you lose all sense."

"That's only because I don't turn into a true youkai; if I used the jewel I would become one and I would still have my mind." Inuyasha added in his mind, 'Well, at least that's a theory of mine.'

"You are still foolishly pursuing that dream of yours?" She mocked him.

"Even now," he said softly, "you wish for me to turn human."

"Hai, I will not live my life with a youkai at my side."

"What about a hanyou?"

Kikyo sighed, "Inuyasha, we had agreed on this all so long ago; my feelings haven't changed."

Inuyasha looked at her sternly, "Then you still don't trust me do you?"

Kikyo looked slightly taken aback for a moment before recovering her cool façade, "Iie, I do not."

"That's part of why I can't be happy with you. I don't want to be with you Kikyo, I want to be with Kagome." Inuyasha responded seriously.

AN: Alright, well that's it for this chapter. It's quite serious and lacking in action, but some things just needed to be said and cleared up before the rest of the story could continue. THANK YOU FOR READING AND PLEASE REVIEW!