Understanding
Disclaimer- Well yes I am updating, despite my lack of reviews and enthusiasm for this story. Thanx so much to Suaru, who has reviewed every chapter and Dumblande83, now known as queenofthekitsunes. I think I have ur name right. If I don't sorry, Cassy its late.
Oh yeah and before I forget, no suing because I don't own Inuyasha, and I have no money.
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The azure sky was the first thing Kagome saw as she woke up. The turquoise color was undermined by the brown of the barren landscape. The color itself was a contradiction; always changing shades, and always with a subtler shade there almost invisible. Kagome's eyes wandered the landscape, blinking away small tears that clung to her eyes in a desperate struggle to be released. Kagome won, though only barely. By now her wounds had healed, and it was almost as if she had never had them before. Her spirit was hurt though because of the betrayal. It was deeper than that. 'It's like a lightning strike, and this one hit me where I'm the most weak. My heart.'
By now the urge to cry had been suppressed along with all pain and suffering. She was in some ways becoming like Kikyo, her eyes even taking on that icy cold, but her mind was stronger. It forced her to review every scene, every moment of the betrayal, like a movie playing over and over again. Possibly for personal amusement, some twisted game her psyche had come up with, or it could be for survival. She had learned something like that in school, where in extreme circumstances, events can be used to trigger adrenaline causing the body to be able to perform things it normally is unable to. 'How Ironic, the person who has torn my life in half is now responsible for making me stronger. Fate has a cruel sense of humor.'
"I guess there's no point in crying," Kagome said to herself softly. "After all, it doesn't help anything. I've got to figure out where I am." She looked around at the landscape spread out before her. To the left was the forest, and beyond it the clearing where she had been forced to fight her best friend, Inuyasha. The memories were still sharp in her mind, and she winced inwardly as the pain came flooding back, but this time tears did not come, and she regained control faster than before. 'I'm becoming like Kikyo.' The thought left her somber and unresponsive. Picking herself up off the ground, she began walking in a random direction.
About 30 seconds later, it became obvious that her feet were leading her right toward the arena. Immediately she threw herself backward, as if a jolt had gone through her body. 'I can't go there.'
'You must' The voice came out of nowhere, startling Kagome out of her reverie. Frowning, she scanned the clearing, and surrounding area. Her eyes revealed nothing, and when she closed them, her ears yielded the same answer. The voice sounded again, but in her mind. 'You must face that place, and conquer it. Only there will you become strong enough to defeat her.'
'Her who's her' Kagome asked in her mind, understanding somehow that she had to do this mentally in order to convey her message.
'You know of whom I speak. She has set the scales of good and evil out of balance. Her very existence destroys the fabric of the living and the dead. You are the one who has been chosen to right this wrong. This woman defies life and death, and this can not be allowed.'
'Why do I have to do it?' the sullen thought trailed across her mind before she could grab it back. A grimace spread on Kagome's face.
'You are the one who has been chosen, and it is you who will complete the task.' The voice was like the echoing of a thousand dog's howl, and lingered in Kagome's mind.
'I'll do it, and I'll try my best' Kagome promised inwardly.
'We can ask no more. Good luck little one.' The voice was gone almost as soon as the message was sent. Kagome nodded in agreement and thanks. Her legs wavered as she forced herself to walk through the small forest, ignoring the branches that reached out at her, leaving scratches on her arms. Finally she made it to the battlefield. The dust had settled, and there was no sign of life. She stared at a rock near the center of the field. Coming over to it, she saw the crimson stain defiling it's smooth surface. She stared for a moment, putting her hand to her heart in a gesture of sorrow and resolute. Reaching a gentle hand forward, she pressed a hand to the rock, and her body jerked involuntarily as memories ran through her head.
F.L.A.S.H.B.A.C.K.
His smile was cold and uncaring, almost like it was when he was in his demon form. The difference was that Tetsusaiga was still strapped to his hip, protecting his demon form from escaping from the confines that held it captive. He was doing it of his own accord, and each scream that uttered from her lips fed his unceasing energy. He slashed at her, leaving scratches on her unprotected skin. Her hands ached from the unmerciless ground that she had met several times within the past 10 minutes.
At the corner of her vision, she saw Kikyo's form, her mouth twisted in a sick version of a smile. Her eyes were fixed on Kagome and her lips parted in a small laugh at the pain she saw on the other girl's face. Kagome winced as razor sharp claws met her skin again in the brief second, she had been distracted looking at Kikyo. 'Oh my god, Inuyasha. What have you become?' 'What has she turned you into?'
His smile was as wicked as Kikyo's but even more so, for his gentle features had been replaced with evil images of them, his eyes taking changing from their beautiful gold/amber color to a dark ebony, lost from the light. A tear dripped from Kagome's eye at the changes in him, but she wasn't given a chance. His hands grabbed her, nails digging into her skin and he threw her into the darkness.
E.N.D. F.L.A.S.H.B.A.C.K
Kagome landed in a small clump of grass, as she threw herself away from the rock. The memories had been as horrible to remember as they had been to experience. Wetness traveled down her cheeks, and Kagome realized that she was crying. 'Guess I'm not as un-emotionless as I thought I was.' Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and poured over the memories again, trying desperately to find something that she could use against Kikyo, something to make this worthwhile.
Kagome's eyes darkened as she remembered Inuyasha's betrayal. The sight of him flying at her, both claws outstretched as he reached for her, his haori flying with him. It looked so perfect, not a single scratch on the fabric. 'Wait a minute that's not right.' She searched her memories again, and focused right on his right shoulder, the one that had been pierced by Kikyo's arrow. 'I was right. There's not a single mark on it.'
F.L.A.S.H.B.A.C.K.
"Inuyasha, are you okay?" Kagome's tone was calm, though her eyes displayed the worry she felt.
"Feh," came the usual response, "I'll be fine."
It was just after a battle with Kagura, and Inuyasha had been wounded by her Dance of the Dragon. Inuyasha's growl had sent her scurrying off as well as a well placed strike of the Tetusaiaga, though she had passed a parting insult to them before flying off. Inuyasha's shoulder had been pierced by flying debris, and Kagome was anxious to look it over.
"Please," she all but begged of him. "Just let me see your shoulder, so I can make sure your all right." Kagome could see the refusal in his eyes, but calmly met his with hers, a single tear lingering in the corner of her eye. Inuyasha turned his head away, and muttered a low ok. With a small sigh of relief, she unwrapped his haori and proceeded to wipe away the blood caked on the wound. When she was finished, she paused for a moment staring at a crescent moon shaped scar on his right shoulder.
"Inuyasha what is this?" her voice was soft and demanding at the same time. Her hand quivered visibly, though Kagome could think of no sane reason. With trembling fingers, she gingerly ran her hand over the scar, tracing along the raised edges. It wasn't very big, but it was an unusual color for a scar. Instead of pink, or a variation of the skin color it was almost opalescent, the dark turning it into almost silver, where the daylight revealed to her a slight rosy tinge. Hesitating briefly, she looked up and stared at Inuyasha. His eyes were somber reflecting inner pain, and a memory from which he had never recovered.
"It was from Kikyo," he growled trying to mask the apparent sadness in his voice, and for a moment Kagome felt his pain, and regretted asking him it. But at the same time, her curiosity needed to be satisfied, and her mind calmed. When she noticed he paused, she took a deep breath and reached for his hand, mentally supporting him. When he did not pull away from her, she relaxed visibly. He met her eyes and lowered them continuing.
"When she struck me with the arrow that bound me to the tree, it was no ordinary arrow. Her arrow was spelled to keep me imprisoned, and bind the demon inside me and myself, but it wasn't pure. As she hated me, her arrow became impure. The moment I was bound, I felt her feelings as if they were my own, and when I was bound, the powers that bound me were of hatred and vengeance."
" The gods watched us as they often do, and were horrified by the hatred that had divided the two of us. It was never to happen again, so they placed a reminder on me, in the form of a scar, to remind me of hatred, sorrow, and vengeance. In that scar lies a part of my soul, their way of ensuring that I would never forget." Inuyasha's voice was soft at this for the first time since she had met him, and Kagome's heart ached for him and the pain he had to go through.
"Will it ever go away?" she asked her voice compassionate and gentle.
"Only when hatred turns to love, and sorrow turns to joy. When the wrongs of the past can be put to rest, and memories once again lost to the flowing hands of time. Only then will it fade, and my soul be whole again." He said quoting long since forgotten words spoken to him 50 years ago.
E.N.D. F.L.A.S.H.B.A.C.K.
"No," Kagome breathed. It was as if a light-bulb had gone off in her head, revealing the secrets that had been a mystery to her. "So she lied to me." Kagome's voice was bitter as she thought of Kikyo's trick. 'Wait a minute. If she lied about Inuyasha, then that would mean that the whole scene before I got into this dimension was a trick, but who would have the power to change themselves into Inuyasha's form.'
The thought had barely crossed her mind, when the answer became apparent. "Naraku," she growled much like Inuyasha, and it almost made her smile. Her mind raced with this new revelation. 'If Naraku and Kikyo are in this together, then they must be planning something, but what. Could Kikyo still be planning to exact vengeance on Inuyasha? It wouldn't make sense though, what would she have to offer Naraku?' Before she could finish the thought, a figure appeared on the horizon. The waves of hatred radiating from her presence revealed the figure far before the light shone upon her, and Kagome looked into the face of her tormentor, manipulator, and way out.
"Kikyo."
Author's Note: Yes everyone, after many months I have updated, but the reason I took so long was because I got almost no reviews. So if you want me to wait that long again then don't review, but if you want to know what happens then REVIEW!! Thank you so much to those of you who have reviewed.
