Disclaimer: I do not own Kagome, Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango, Rin, Shippo, Koga, Kaede, or Sesshomaru (damn) or any of the other characters of the Anime show Inuyasha. In this chapter, most of Sesshomaru's thoughts are the lyrics from the song "Written in the Stars" from the Broadway show of tragedy & love "Aida." Kagome's thoughts come from the same show, but from the song "Easy as Life." Thank you for supporting me despite the hiatus! Nev
Chapter Fourteen: Goodbye Kagome
The hanyou charged right at Kagome, never slowing. He slashed his claws across her delicate form, creating deep crimson gashes on her stomach and parts of her arms. As he raised his hand to strike her again, Sesshomaru unleashed Tetsusaiga. The sword felt alive in his hands, as if it was ready to attack its old owner.
"Kagome!" The demon exterminator came over the treetops on her large cat, dressed in her uniform. The monk came too, running out from the forest, a little kitsune at his side, crying about his surrogate mother. "Kagome!" Sango cried again, before she boiled over with anger and threw her gas bombs at Inuyasha.
Sesshomaru watched, cloaking his nose. The stench and smoke did nothing to phase his younger brother, but it gave him time to retrieve Kagome, and bring her away from danger. She was unconscious from the shock of pain and the loss of blood. Her shirt was completely soaked in it.
"Demon be gone!" Miroku shouted, pinning Inuyasha to the ground with his staff. He smacked the hanyou on the back of the head, but his friend only glared up at him with blood red eyes of hate. "Be gone!" The priest yelled again, hammering the top of his staff harder across the skull of his companion. This time, the impact made the demon still, then blink. When he opened his eyes again, Inuyasha was back to normal.
"What happened?" he asked, shoving Miroku off of him. Then his eyes turned to his older brother. "Sesshomaru!" he growled, not noticing Kagome, who his brother was hunched over, as he and Sango tried to stop the bleeding.
"Inuyasha," Miroku tried to stop him to explain.
Yanking away from the monk, the younger brother stormed forth, ready to kill his older brother. Just as he was about to hit him, he saw what his brother was protecting. "K-kagome?" he questioned, falling to his knees. He looked at Sango, who wouldn't meet his gaze. He didn't dare turn to Sesshomaru. He could feel the hate radiating off of his kin.
To make matters worse, Koga decided to show up at that moment. "What happened, mutt-face?" he demanded of Inuyasha, clearly seeing that the demon lord of the west was not one to be bothered. "What did you do to my woman?"
"What did I do?" Inuyasha cried, leaping on Koga.
Sango snapped. "Would you two stop it! If we don't get Kaede out here right now, Kagome will surely die. Stop fighting and start working together, unless you never want to see her again!" With that, both went off running for the old priestess.
"Good," Sesshomaru said to Sango, picking up Kagome, gingerly.
"Where are you taking her? Kaede is the only chance she has."
"The medicine in Kagome's time is very strong. It will do her better to go back home and receive treatment there. Besides, if anything should happen, I believe her family deserves to hear news of it," he state wisely.
Sango nodded. "Promise me you will bring her back? She is my sister. I could not bear it if she was no longer with me." The demon lord remained silent. "Promise?" Sango pleaded.
"I will do what I can," he said. "Watch over Rin in my absence," he directed, then leapt down the well, taking Kagome with him, just as Inuyasha, carrying Kaede and Koga appeared.
"Did I miss something?" the wolf leader asked the demon slayer.
"I think we all did," she smiled sadly, hoping that Kagome's life would be spared.
Meanwhile, Sesshomaru jumped out of the well, and in two great bounds, brought himself to the Higurashi household. Banging his fist on the door, he forced Kagome's mother, her grandfather, and her young brother, Sota to come out of the house. When Mrs. Higurashi saw her daughter, she kept her cool.
"Alright everyone, in the car," she ordered. She advised Sesshomaru, that though flying to the hospital would be quicker, they couldn't allow him to do that, so he would have to come with them in the car. Swallowing his pride for the sake of the girl in his arms, he nodded, and piled them inside the small metal contraption.
Fastening her seatbelt on, Kagome's mother put the car in gear, then sped toward the hospital at neck break speed. They hurried her into the emergency room, not asking what had happened, since Mrs. Higurashi broke down into tears after she had gotten her daughter safely to the hospital. Her brother sat there, staring at the floor, and her grandfather paced with Sesshomaru.
Finally, the demon lord couldn't continue to wait in the large room with strange human smells. Everyone was staring at his choice of attire, even though they wore the oddest clothing. So he decided to perch at the top of the hospital where the fresh air was until some news about Kagome's condition was available.
He sat on the stone ledge of the hospital and watched as the sun went from the highest point in the sky, to setting. Soon the stars began to dot themselves across the cobalt canvas of night. The hours had dragged on, leaving him with the option of recalling times he had spent with the girl who might now die. Sesshomaru couldn't bring himself to tell her how he felt, but now she was on her last lifeline. Could he take the chance of telling her now?
"Sesshomaru, there you are," an out of breath Mrs. Higurashi greeted him.
"Will she be alright?" he asked anxiously. He hadn't realized how much he had needed to know until that point, when he was all but ready to break into the emergency room to find out for himself.
Nodding, Kagome's mother explained. "The doctors say she will make it. She lost a lot of blood, but there was a universal donor at the hospital today, who gave her some. The transfusion went well and they were able to operate. She has several gashes that needed to be stitched shut, but in a couple months, she'll have nothing but some minor scars."
Standing behind him, she gave him a gentle hug. "How did this happen?"
He was more than glad that she didn't blame him, or even consider that he had done it, but she did know that he had been there when it had occurred. Knowing this was the closest family Kagome had, he couldn't keep it a secret.
"Inuyasha," he breathed, anger penetrating every syllable.
"What?" she gasped, surprised by the truth. "How could that be?"
"He was in his full demon stage. No one knows how it came about, by the reaction of all of her friends. He attacked her the moment he saw her. I tried to save her, but I was unable to keep her from her injuries," he admitted, ashamed.
"Sesshomaru," Kagome's mother began, "this was not your fault. You saved Kagome's life."
"Yes," he agreed, "but if it was not for me, she would never be in this situation."
"What are you saying?"
"I have to get out of her life. I do not belong here. She was a great help to me, while she was around, but now I think that I have no room for a Kagome Higurashi in my castle. Please tell her that I hope she feels better and returns to health soon," he said, getting up from his spot on the ledge.
"No," Mrs. Higurashi shook her head. "I won't say your goodbyes for you. If you are going to leave Kagome, then you're going to be the one to tell her."
"I am Sesshomaru, Lord of the Western Lands," he growled, feeling threatened by her defiance.
"Yes," she nodded, "but you are being a very childish boy right now and running away from your problems. A true lord would never leave Kagome because of one little incident."
"I am not leaving Kagome!" he roared.
"Then what are you doing?" she asked, skeptically.
"I am making sure she continues to live a normal, safe life, like she deserves," he told her seriously.
"She may deserve it, but it isn't what she truly wants. The years she has spent risking her life alongside of Sango, Miroku, and Inuyasha are the happiest times she's ever had, despite the danger. Leaving her like this won't protect her anymore than if you left her with a stick in a lion's den," she elucidated wisely.
"It is all I can do at this point," he replied, getting up.
"Fine then. Tell her. Leave, but don't think it will be that easy."
"It never is," he whispered as he descended to find Kagome.
He found her grandpa waiting outside her room. "Sota is in there right now. When he comes out-ah." The boy exited the room from a talk with his sister. He smiled at Sesshomaru, then at his grandfather.
"She's waiting for you," he told the tall demon lord.
Sesshomaru nodded, then went inside, shutting the door behind him. He found Kagome lying in a bed, clothed in ugly blue cloth in a large white bed surrounded by strange machines that beeped and clicked. He sat on the edge of a large window to her left, awaiting her to look at him. When she did, she smiled, and he inwardly cringed. How could he do this to her?
"I am here to tell you that we can never meet again," he stated firmly. Simple really, isn't it? he thought to himself.
After that, it was all a blur. He heard her protesting, questioning, and even crying, but he opened the window, and jumped out into the night below, only knowing of one purpose, to get away before he went back to her.
A word or two and then a lifetime of not knowing where or how, or why or when
Leaping down the well, he felt the rosary glow, allowing him to pass through the border of the realms, back to his time. It was the magic of Kagome's pure heart that allowed him his passage, and he had shattered it. Her heart was now broken, like her bones and skin, all because of him. How much pain could he inflict upon her in one day?
You think of me, or speak of me, and wonder what befell, that someone you once loved, so long ago, so well
He could smell the burning scent of wood nearby as he landed on the dirt ground of the well in the feudal era. Someone had made a fire. He guessed it had been the monk. They were probably all awaiting Kagome's arrival. He would have to make this quick. He wanted to answer no questions concerning the girl he had left behind.
Ever wonder what I'll feel as living shuffles by
"Where is she?" a voice asked in the dark, as he climbed out of the well, ready to retrieve his charge and return home.
He looked over her head, spotting Rin and the kitsune sleeping huddled together beside the fire. The monk was watching over them, but he also seemed to be nodding off. Inuyasha was in a tree, staring up at the stars. He did not seem to have noticed that his brother had arrived yet. The leader of the wolf tribe was present also, but he was talking to the old witch.
"She is safe," he replied seriously. But that was not what Sango wanted to hear.
You don't have to ask me and I need not reply
"Where is she?" the persistent exterminator asked again.
"Kagome will be away for a few weeks while her body mends, but we were able to get her medical attention in time to save her life. Now," he brushed past her, "if you will allow me to pass, I will be on my way."
Every moment of my life, from now until I die I will think or dream of you
He bent down over Rin's form, lifting the little girl into his arms. She was fast asleep. It would be no trouble to take her home. When she woke in the morning, he'd tell her that Kagome was on a trip and would be away for sometime. After a while, the young child would forget about her old teacher, and so would he.
And fail to understand how a perfect love can be confounded out of hand
"You will leave, just like that?" Miroku asked, staring into the fire.
"I am of no use here," Sesshomaru replied in a low voice. "Kagome is in good hands traveling with you. I trust you will all keep her safe." With that, he formed his cloud and floated up into the sky. The monk watched, as his fiancée joined him by his side.
"He is a fool, to lose such a woman such as Kagome over such a little thing," he stated.
"He feels guilty that he could not protect her and therefore caused her great pain," Sango agreed. "But guilt and fear are two very different things and both are consuming him."
Back in present day, Kagome was lying in her bed. The hospital was asleep, just like the rest of Tokyo. Her mother was sleeping in the empty patient bed aside of her, but as for Sota and Grandpa, they had gone back to the shrine. There was nothing they could do for her. Her mother was only there because seeing her daughter in such a mess had done a number on her nerves.
This is the moment when the gods expect me to beg for help, but I won't even try
Sesshomaru's actions had confused her. She had just begun thinking that things between the two of them could actually work. Suddenly, a small accident had thrown him back to square one, but she couldn't squash the feelings she now had for him as easily as he had vanquished his emotions for her. She cared too deeply for him.
I want nothing in the world, but myself to protect me
She stared out the window, thinking of him. Had she meant so little that he so easily would abandon her. All he had said was that they could never see one another again, but so few words had never broken so much of her soul all at the same time. Tears formed in her eyes as she thought of how many times Inuyasha had crushed her when he had run off with Kikyo. This was something entirely different. This pain was raw and it ate away at her with a terrible vengeance.
All I have to do is forget how much I love him. All I have to do is put my longing to one side
Sobs racked her body and she willed herself to be quiet, so as not to wake her mother, or alert any passing nurses. Would she ever be able to stroke his soft silver hair again? Would she ever play in the flower fields with an anxious Rin tagging along by her side? What would become of their business arrangement, now that he no longer worried about what became of her? She began to feel like an abandoned puppy, alone on a street corner, in a cardboard box, while the cold rain poured down on her.
Tell myself that love's an ever-changing situation
Perhaps it was better this way. After all, Inuyasha would never allow them to be together. He hated his brother with a passion and she had to remember that Inuyasha had been her friend far longer than she had been in love with Sesshomaru. Sango and Miroku were going to be married soon, she should be more occupied with their wedding arrangements then some stuck up demon lord who had just dumped her.
Passion would have cooled and all the magic would have died
Besides, Sesshomaru hated Inuyasha right back, and she had promised to be by the hanyou's side all her life. She couldn't do that if she was with the Lord of the Western Lands. Things didn't work that way with the Inu brothers. There was just too much bad blood between them. She shook her head, not knowing what to do.
All I have to do is pretend I never knew him on those very rare occasions when he steals into my heart
Now, when she was trying to think of all the pros of him leaving her, she was only burying herself deeper. She was thinking of him more and more. Fresh tears flowed from her eyes as she tried to force herself to focus her attention on anything but the man she was in love with. It was difficult, considering all of her most recent and happiest memories, included him.
Better to have lost him when the ties were barely binding
"You'll pull through this," she whispered to herself, because you are Kagome Higurashi, the one who purified the Shikon No Tama when others before you could not." Feeling a bit better, she turned off her lights, and laid down. She needed her sleep. Once she was healed, she could go back to the feudal era and then she would have to explain everything to Sango, who she realized she was missing quite dearly. She needed someone's shoulder to cry on.
In the lonesome hallways of his castle, Sesshomaru walked around aimlessly. He had put Rin to bed moments before, but could not find a suitable position to lay in, so he himself was unable to sleep, though his body was weary from all his pacing from earlier. He found that walking helped his aching heart.
Nothing can be altered, there is nothing to decide
He had done this to protect her. He would only bring her pain if he continued to have her in his service. Living with a demon was risky business. If he cared for her at all, he would let her go. She would find someone else, perhaps a good, kind hearted human, like she deserved, and all would be care free in her life, just like her simple attitude.
No escape, no change of heart, no any place to hide
The demon wolf named Koga had seemed rather keen on her. He had called Kagome "his woman" which Sesshomaru admitted that he was rather annoyed about, but he had let her go. If she choose Koga, she would face dangers, but not nearly to the same extent as she would with him, for he had to deal with the wild demons of his land and other lords, most of which weren't as gracious as he had been while she was around.
You are all I ever want, but this I am denied
He knew for a fact that he had gotten soft over the time she had been with him. Her wonderful nature and loving ways toward Rin had made him fall for her. Despite his usual cold manner and immediate dislike for the human race, he had fallen deeply in love with her, and the way her face as illustrated the shattering of her delicate heart the moment he had broken things off with her was plastered into his brain.
Sometimes in my darkest thoughts I wish I never learned what it is to be in love and have that love returned
Kagome was the first one he had ever shared such a unique bond with. He knew that to some extent she had loved his younger brother. He was not exactly happy about that, but considering at the time had had been trying to kill her, he couldn't be mad either. Now, looking back on all they had shared he wanted nothing more than to have her in his arms. Then he knew he'd be able to sleep, but such a thing could never happen again, not if he wanted her to live.
Is it written in the stars? Are we paying for some crime?
He wondered if he was being punished. Most humans believed in a god or many gods. Until now, he considered himself at a godly level, but perhaps there was something more out there. If that was the case, he had done a great deal of many horrible things. Taking in Rin was one good thing he had done. Other than that, he had a list as long as he was powerful.
Is that all that we are good for just a stretch of mortal time
To an onlooker, his reaction to his decision might seem humorous, since he had been the one to dig his hole this deep. If he had never allowed himself to feel for Kagome the way he did now, things would not have become so complicated. Maybe then she would not have gotten hurt and they would still be able to have her teaching Rin. Then again, maybe something worse would have happened.
Or some gods' experiment in which we have no say
Finding himself standing outside Kagome's room, he sighed. She was never coming back. Even if he wanted her, she would probably hate him for hurting her both physically and emotionally. She would never want to be in the same room as him, let alone become his mate, which was something he had been seriously considering. He knew in her mind, that sort of thing was called marriage, or something silly like what the monk and exterminator would be doing soon. If it had pleased her, he would have gone through it, but now, he had to put all those mindless fantasies away.
In which we're given paradise, but only for a day
Kagome was gone and he was never getting her back.
"Goodbye Kagome," he whispered, shutting the door to her room, and walking down the empty corridor.
A/N: Nice long chapter for those of you who had to wait so long because of my horrible cliffhanger. I am truly sorry, and then with the massive writer's block. I just had to put it on hold while I thought up something really worth wild, otherwise, the story would have gone to hell and become crap. Thank you for all my supporters! Love you all! Review some more and I'll have the next chapter out sooner than this one! Nev