Disclaimer: I don't own anybody.

A/N: Oh...did you find the last chapter funny? Coz my sis read it and she kept laughing...it wasn't supposed to be funny. Great...now I'm embarrassed.

Well, here's the new chapter...

Chapter 18: I Love Him

"I am very disappointed in you Kagome." Her mother said with forced calmness. They were sitting in the kitchen while the rest of the house slept.

"I love him Mama." Kagome said softly. She was angry with her mother for being so rude to Inuyasha. She knew that he was very sensitive under that hard exterior. He probably took it to heart. But then again...

"But you're seventeen...you don't know what love is." Her mother went over to Kagome and took a chair in front of her.

"I love him Mama." She repeated. No matter what, she would not lose her temper. She was the calm one and losing one's patience would only worsen the matters.

"Kagome look at me." Her mother said in a demanding voice, "Look at me when you talk to me."

Kagome looked up at her.

"Two years ago you disappeared and then came back to tell me that you went to the feudal era and were fighting demons. I trusted you to do the right thing. I allowed you to go live in such a dangerous time because I trusted you. I let you fight monsters because I trusted you. But it never stopped hurting when I let you go..."

"Mama..."

"Don't interrupt me Kagome. We should've had this talk a long time back. I never wanted this for you. You are my daughter. I want you to have a normal life where you would have a steady job and a family."

"I fight demons and I do have a family." Kagome cut in stubbornly.

"I want you to have a normal job. A job where you wake up at 7:30 every morning and then go to an office. A normal job. Not this. Never this."

"But this is the way it is. We don't always get what we want, Mama."

"You and him can never be. It's not possible. You two are not meant to be. He is not even human, for god's sake. You both belong to different worlds. There is no way..."

"But you don't understand. We are together. Who cares if it isn't 'normal'? We love each other, that's all that matters. And the time difference never stopped us before."

"I forbid you from meeting him Kagome. You have to choose. Me or him? Your family or a hoard of demons?"

"Don't ask me to make such a difficult choice." Kagome looked away.

"This isn't a choice. It should be clear to you who is more important. I love you, but you need to see the truth. You belong to this time and he belongs to the past. At this moment, he is probably dead and buried. The only way this relationship would work is if either you go live in the past forever or he comes here. And he does NOT belong here."

"I love him Mama."

"Will you stop saying that? There is no way you could love him. You are too young. This is just an infatuation. An obsession. You'll get over it. Everybody does."

"I felt like I had ceased to exist the day he died. That is one damn strong infatuation."

"Watch your language young lady. And how do you know he even loves you? If he really did love you then he would let you go. He would let you live in this era where you are safe from harm. He would let you have a family and a job."

I have heard enough. A silent shadow jumped down from the sacred tree and made it's way to the shrine where the well was situated.

If he really did love you then he would let you go.

Should I let her go? I know I love her...but can I let her go? He climbed out of the well and sat down next to it. He stared at the ground for sometime trying to figure out what the next best course of action would be.

You have to choose. Him or me? Your family or a hoard of demons?

Her family...or a hoard of demons?

He smiled even though it felt fake. Her family of course.

Is she obsessed? Infatuated? Does she really love me? His smile faltered. But I love her so much.

Can I let her go?

"You shouldn't let her go you know. It'll kill you." He looked up to see a pair of brilliant green eyes looking back at him.

"I see you are forbidden to see her again. What a pity." She cooed to him making him growl in anger. He picked up a pebble and threw it at her. She dodged it of course.

"So what are you going to do?" She turned around and sat down next to him, resting her back to the still standing side of the well.

"I'm going to let her go." He whispered. It seemed that if he said it out loud then it would become too real, even for him.

"I don't believe you. You spend two years trying to determine if she loves you or not and when you find out that she does, suddenly you are enlightened and want to sacrifice your love AND hers just so you can be a hero."

"I don't feel like a hero." He was staring at the ground between his feet.

"Look Inuyasha," She turned to face him. He didn't answer. She tried a little more forcefully this time, "Inuyasha, look at me. Now tell me, did the time difference ever stop you two before?"

He shook his head.

"Then how come one emotionally challenged mother can make you think twice about something that even the roads of time couldn't prevent?"

"But she deserves so much more. She deserves someone better. I'm just a half-dead half-demon."

"Do you see her complaining? No. You don't. Then why are you bothering about something that obviously doesn't bother her?"

"Because she is infatuated with me."

"Ah...the golden word. You know what's the surest way to determine if she's truly in love with you or she's just infatuated?"

He shook his head.

"See if she puts her life before yours in the heat of the battle. Did she ever do that?"

He shook his head again.

"Then stop wallowing in self pity and go back there and bring her back here."

Inuyasha smiled, this time for real. "You don't make any sense."

"Just as long as I get my point across." She grinned at him and then shuffled to her feet, "I guess I should be going now. And you should too."

"Rei wait...why are you doing this?"

"Why am I helping you?" He nodded, "Well, I could tell you...but then I'll have to kill myself."

"Huh?"

"Nothing comes without a price Inuyasha. Deal with it."

Inuyasha smiled as Rei extended her hand to help him up. He didn't need it but then again if he refused it would be rude. So he took it.

"Taking help from women now are we, dog-breath?" Inuyasha scowled as the familiar voice cut through the calm night.

"Its none of you business wolf." He ground out. Now was not the best time for a fight. He had to get Kagome back.

"Oh yes it is. Mind telling me why I can smell my mate all over you?" He sneered.

"Because she's NOT your mate."

"And I guess she's yours then? Eh, dog-face?"

"You catch on fast don't you?"

Inuyasha barely had any time to dodge an attack from Kouga. Naturally Rei moved in to help.

"Stay out of this Rei." He told her as he dodged another attack. Rei could read his mind and knew that if she helped then the victory will mean nothing to him. She nodded and stood back.

Kouga swung his claws at Inuyasha who jumped back to avoid the attack and unsheathed the tetsusaiga. The sword transformed and he held it in front of him threatening the wolf prince.

Kouga bared his teeth and swung his claws again just as Inuyasha swung the blade at his approaching form. Waves of light appeared from the fang as the ground beneath them was split into two. Kouga used his extraordinary speed to pull out of the way of the attack and was hence unharmed. Unfortunately, Inuyasha did not know that the wolf had survived the attack and was surprised when Kouga appeared amidst the light and punched the dog-demon hard.

Inuyasha lost his footing and he fell to the ground, the tetsusaiga falling a few feet away from him and turning back into a rusty blade.

Kouga grabbed Inuyasha by the throat and held him up high while he was still recovering from the punch. He squeezed his neck, his claws digging into the flesh as blood seeped out and darkened the half-demon's haori.

"You didn't think you could get away with touching my woman, did you?" He hissed. Inuyasha would have retorted but he was finding it hard to breath and his chest was starting to burn. He clawed at the hands on his throat but his attempts were becoming weaker with every second. Suddenly, Kouga howled and released Inuyasha who fell to the ground massaging his throat and taking deep breaths. He looked up to see Rei standing to the side with her hand held out in front of her. She had shot arrows of ice at Kouga. They had not hurt Kouga much, just surprised him.

"Taking help from women now are you, dog-turd?" He sneered. Inuyasha darted a glare at Rei that just screamed 'TOLD YOU TO STAY OUT OF IT'. Obviously Rei got it and took a few steps back.

Kouga took advantage of Inuyasha's momentary distraction and attacked him. He pulled his claws back and ran towards the half-demon. Inuyasha didn't look at Kouga and Rei started to get worried. Suddenly, his hand whipped out from under him and grabbed Kouga by the throat and hurled him into the nearest tree.

Kouga had barely enough time to register that his attack had backfired when he saw the other demon's eyes flash red before returning to the soft gold.

Rei's eyes darted from the injured wolf-demon at the base of a tree to the about-to-transform-any-minute-now demon to the sword that lay a few feet away from her. If she could get that sword to him...

Inuyasha's eyes flashed again as he tried to keep his demon-side under control. He was not about to turn his back to the wolf, but if he didn't return to get the sword then he would transform. And Kagome wasn't there either.

Rei inched closer to the sword and she moved to grab the handle. Electricity shot from the blade and into her hand and she pulled it back. She looked at the two rivals again and saw that they were in a form of a stalemate. Neither would attack but neither would accept defeat either.

She tried to hold the fang again and her palm burned in response. She grabbed the blade and held it tightly in her hand as she rushed to give it to Inuyasha. She squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to ignore the pain. Her hand had started to blister and the skin was peeling off of her hands and even her forearms were starting to look dangerously sunburnt.

"Inuyasha...p-please take the sword..." She ground out trying to keep from howling in pain. Inuyasha continued to stare at the wolf trying to keep his demon in check. He didn't hear her.

"T-take the s-sword...please..." Her hands were bleeding now and the bones of her fingers were now visible. Rei gulped in an attempt to keep from losing her dinner. Her eyes started to tear as she slammed a small piece of ice into his forehead. He turned towards her slowly, his eyes still flashing blood red to a soft gold. Suddenly, his control snapped back into place as his eyes grew wide when he saw Rei's face contorted in pain and her hands burning away.

He grabbed the tetsusaiga and Rei pulled her hands back blowing at them. They were in bad shape. Neither of them were sure if they would ever heal properly.

Rei stood to the side hugging her hands to her chest willing the pain to go away. She was sobbing quietly and Inuyasha felt guilty for being responsible for her pain. While he was watching the ice-demon's slender frame shake with each silent sob, Kouga grabbed Inuyasha's shoulders from behind and slammed him into the sacred tree.

Inuyasha had had enough with Kouga's games. With a final growl he swung his blade at his rival and paths of light cut through the dirt heading straight for the wolf prince. There was no way he could survive this attack.

As Inuyasha watched, there was a flash of light and the attack stopped. The light disappeared to reveal a badly shaken wolf and a second shadow. The second person sheathed his sword and moved towards the dog-demon.

"It is not a good idea to kill your own allies at time of battle, little brother." The cold monotonous voice cut in through the night air. There was still an hour or two before dawn.

"What are you doing here, Sesshomarou?" Inuyasha spat out. He never really liked his brother. He liked him even less when he saved his rivals by countering his attack.

"I am here to make sure that you are not the cause of your own failure. I see you have badly injured one of your most powerful sorceresses and were about to kill a potential ally. I believed it was about time for an intervention."

"What I do is my business, and this battle isn't yours to fight...so stay out of it."

Sesshomarou stole a glance at Rei and Inuyasha's eyes narrowed. There was something that was going on here and he didn't know about it.

"What is going on here?" He said in a demanding tone. It never had had any effect on his brother whatsoever, but he never failed to try.

"I am going to help in this battle. I will fight for your side...but not fight with your side."

"Are you saying you want to join our team?"

"I work alone, I do not 'join teams'. But I do battles and I believe that we need as many allies for this as we can get."

"Why do you want to kill Naraku?"

"Because a certain someone convinced me that it is the best course of action. And I also figured that without my help you are doomed. I might as well help my only brother."

"Didn't think much about helping when I was dead, did you big brother?"

Sesshomarou smiled slightly; well it could be a smile except that it looked more like a sneer.

"I am helping you now because I believe you need my help. That is all." With that he disappeared into the forest. Inuyasha stood there dumbstruck as the wolf turned around and left into the forest as well trying to look as dignified as possible.

He sheathed his sword and turned to face the ice-demon. She was still hugging her hands close to her chest and whimpering from time to time. He had meant to ask her questions but instead he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led her towards Kaede's hut. She would be feeling better in no time...or so he hoped.

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"You have to choose, Kagome." Her mother stressed again. Kagome was starting to get upset. She didn't want to choose between her family and her love. It was an impossible decision and it would eat her alive no matter who she chose.

"I can't."

"Kagome, we brought you up for seventeen years. We loved you and took care of you. Now you want to give us up for someone you met barely two years ago?"

"I don't know what to do..."

"How do you even know if he loves you? As far as I know, he has a girlfriend or something. How could you live with someone who doesn't return your feelings?"

"He does love me...he said so himself."

"Did he say the words?"

Kagome stayed quiet. It was true; even though he had told her he cared deeply for her he had never said the magic words.

Did that mean he didn't love her?

"Then how do you know he loves you? He might be infatuated with you. He'll get over you."

"I..."

"I'm telling you Kagome, this won't last. This is just a phase that you both are going through, once its over it's going to hurt. It is best if it stops now."

Kagome still didn't say anything. She believed in her feelings for him but her mother's words were stoking a buried fear. What if he really didn't love her?

"For your own good, you should not meet him ever again. I'll have people come over and fill in the well."

"Inuyasha will go nuts, he won't let you..."

"He can't come here. There is no way he can stop us."

"You can't do that..." Kagome cried out. Was her mother really planning to keep her from seeing Inuyasha ever again? There is no way she'll be able to live without him.

"It is for your own good, Kagome."

"No Mama, please don't do this..." She sobbed to her mother. Mrs. Higurashi turned away from her daughter's tears. Nothing would stop her from closing off that well. Nothing.

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"You should go get her, you know." Rei said after Kaede had finished bandaging her hands for her. She still kept staring at them wincing from time to time when they hurt.

"Why did you pick up tetsusaiga even though it hurt you?" He asked quietly. They were sitting in the hut with his back to wall next to the fireplace. Rei was sitting on the opposite end near the door.

"Because." Inuyasha narrowed his eyes at the familiar response. Now he knew why people got so annoyed when he used that response.

"Because what?" He was agitated now. Rei was lucky to still have functional hands. They had almost been burned to the point of going dead.

"Just because." Inuyasha sighed and tried to keep his anger in check.

"Rei...why did you pick up the tetsusaiga?"

"Because you needed it."

"But it was hurting you, damn it."

"So? You could have transformed and then hurt yourself."

So? What the hell is she going on about? She could have lost her hands for god's sake and she was worried about me hurting myself?

Wait...

Inuyasha looked at Rei as a memory made its way into his thoughts.

"Ah...the golden word. You know what's the surest way to determine if she's truly in love with you or she's just infatuated?

"See if she puts her life before yours in the heat of the battle..."

Is she...?

Rei's eyes widened and Inuyasha realized that Rei had been reading his mind.

"I... I..." Rei stumbled. She suddenly got up and ran outside. Inuyasha made no move to go get her.

She didn't deny it...

Is she...is she in love with me?

A/N: he he he I'm so evil. BWAHAHAHAHAHA

P.S. I have no idea if the sword still has the spell on it so if it doesn't in the show then I'm sorry but in this fic, only half demons and humans can touch the sword.

Of course demons could touch the sword if it is in its sheath so that's possible.