Long Years Past
Chapter 4
No One to Hear You Scream

Inu Yasha's ears twitched. The haynou restlessly paced back and forth in Kaede's hut. The lighthearted conversation had long since died down, and everyone was getting ready for well-deserved sleep. He stopped and shot a worried glance out the window, only to reveal (for the umpteenth time that night) that no one was there. The nervous pacing resumed.

"Inu Yasha, you keep doing that and there'll be nothing left of the floor." the exterminator said.

"Yeah Inu Yasha. You shouldn't be so worried about Kagome. She can take care of herself." Miroku agreed.

"Feh! Who said I was worried about that wench?" he replied defensively. "Have you ever stopped to wonder maybe it's the Jewel she's carrying that's got me concerned?"

"Inu Yasha, you can't fool anyone. Why don't you just admit you like her?" Shippo said in mid-yawn. He was curled up on a blanket in the corner, almost half asleep. Almost.

"SHUT UP ALREADY!" the haynou screamed.

Shippo was now wide-awake and looking fearfully into Inu Yasha's eyes. The haynou was glaring at him, resisting the urge to pommel him into the ground. (If looks could kill, Shippo would have been dead and buried.) He was so close to admitting to himself how he felt about the futuristic miko, let alone everyone else. He cast one more angry glance back at his friends, and turned toward the door.

"W-Where ya going?" Shippo said, his voice shaking.

"Out." came the snarled reply. Inu Yasha got to his feet and stalked out the door.

"Was it something I said?" said the naïve kitsune to his friends.

Sango sighed heavily. "You know Inu Yasha, the most arrogant haynou on the planet. He'll never admit his feelings for Kagome..."

Their conversation drifted out the hut door and into the haynou's sensitive ears. He growled as he walked away. He was so tired of them constantly talking behind his back. Who were they to know what he did and did not feel? Inu Yasha walked in the direction of the Sacred Well. A wafting scent in the air told him Kagome was there, or at least, had been. Now was the time to talk.


Kagome stood by the Sacred Tree, staring down the arrow pointed at her heart. She made a failed attempt to hide her fear. This certainly was not the way she had pictured dying. There was no gallant, heroic last attempt to save someone from a fated enemy. There was no Inu Yasha by her side, telling her how stupid she was to have put herself in harm's way. There was no one to hear her final good-byes and I love you's.

I will not die like this!

"Any last words?" the priestess said mockingly. She smirked as she drew back the bowstring.

The chilling dusk wind whipped the future miko's hair from her face. "I will not die like this!" she yelled defiantly. The words had no sooner escaped her lips, when she turned and ran blindly through the forest, back the way she had come.

Kikyo's eyes narrowed in bone chilling anger. All patience gone, she pulled the arrow back as far as the bow would let her, aimed and shot.

Kagome heard the arrow whiz overhead. It hit a tree next to her, where her hand had been seconds before. She ran for her very life.

Kikyo cursed. She hadn't expected the girl to give her this much trouble. Anger filling her body of clay, she turned and swiftly followed her reincarnation.


The miko's breath came in ragged gasps as her flight of terror turned into a stumbling jog. Kagome wasn't sure how long she'd been running, nor which direction. Just as she was about to give up hope, when she floundered into a clearing. The Sacred Well lay there in peaceful tranquility. The young girl's hope was restored, as she realized that was the one place Kikyo couldn't get her. She ran to the well, but neglected to see the protruding tree root. Her foot caught on it and twisted, making a sickening snap as Kagome fell. She hit the ground hard, and struggled for air that evaded her lungs. She lay there beside the well, chest heaving, still not daring to look at the damaged ankle. The pain was unbearable. It was all she could do not to look, as tear streamed down her cheeks.

Kikyo laughed at the sight of her adversary lying there with a shattered ankle. Such a clumsy wench.

She emerged from the shadows, bow in hand, to face Kagome for the final time. She laughed openly, much to the dismay of her reincarnation.

"You're down on the ground, exactly where you belong." Kikyo said coldly.

Kagome closed her eyes at the sound of her rival's voice, willing her to go away. She had no such luck.

"Oh my!" she continued, "Whatever happened to your ankle?" her voice turning sickly sweet, as though she had just realized why Kagome was lying there.

"Tsk, tsk. You won't be able to run with that ankle, now will you?"

Kagome could stand it no more. She looked down at her ankle, and screamed.

"Oh, you can scream all you want, but there's no one to hear you." Kikyo whispered to no one in particular. Little did she realize how mistaken she was.


Inu Yasha stopped, frozen in his tracks. He could have sworn he'd just heard a scream. A very human scream. Was Kagome in trouble, or was one of the villagers being attacked by something? Maybe it was just an animal, and his imagination told him it was human. He looked toward the setting sun, wondering what to do. Deciding to follow through on his plan to find Kagome, he paused to sniff out her scent again, but was taken aback by the presence of a new scent in the air. The scent of blood. Kagome's blood.

KAGOME! his head screamed.

His heart lurched. His body acted on it's own and ran toward the scent that was getting stronger. If anything happened to her, he would never forgive himself.


Kagome's crimson blood shown as a silver pool reflected against the setting sun. It sat in a puddle on the ground around her ankle, spilling from a hole where a bone protruded from the skin. She retched at the sight of it. It was a bigger problem than she had first thought. If she didn't get home soon, she would loose too much blood and...Kagome didn't want to think about that. She struggled to stand, wincing and leaning heavily on the well. Kikyo's malevolent eyes followed her. Finally, with much pain and agony, she straitened up, putting all her weight on the well and the uninjured foot.

Kikyo sneered. "Since you barely have the strength to stand, why don't you just hand over the Jewel."

Kagome's hand flew once again to her neck, but the Shikon no Tama wasn't there. She gasped in horror, realizing the chain must have broken when she fell. Sure enough, the Jewel lay with the broken chain a few feet from where she had fallen.

Kikyo saw this and smiled. Without a word, she reached for another arrow and placed it on the bow.

Drawing herself up to her full height, she pulled back the bowstring and spoke to her copy one last time.

"You love him, and I love him. But in the end," she said coldly as a frigid, lifeless tear slid down her cheek, "there is only room for one of us in his heart. And that is me."

Kikyo released the arrow, heading straight for Kagome's heart. A sudden scream made Kikyo look up.

"KAGOME!" screamed the haynou, suddenly emerging from the trees.

He had no time to take in the scene. All he saw was Kagome covered in blood with an arrow headed straight for her. He ran for her, unsheathing Tetsusaiga as if to try and deflect the arrow. But he was too late.

The miko saw the arrow coming for her. She closed her eyes, reading her body for imminent death, but opened them in time to see Inu Yasha come dashing out of the trees in a blur of sliver and red. Before she could say anything, a sudden pain in her shoulder made her cry out, and she felt her body being propelled over the edge of the well.

Inu Yasha watched in horror as the arrow hit Kagome and sent her flying over the side of the well, her body illuminated for a second by the blood red sun in the sky. He saw the face of the only one he could ever truly love distort with pain, then disappear into the dismal black abyss.