Silver

Disclaimer: Don't own.

Chapter 10: Gone

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The pen scratched against the scroll as he wrote, glancing out the window. He was watching for sunrise. It was nearly time. He finished the letter and let out a sigh.

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Sango sat straight up in bed, gasping for breath. She looked over at Sesshoumaru, who still looked sound asleep. She gently got out of bed, a horrible feeling in her stomach.

"Where are you going, little one?" She stiffened but continued to the door.

"I'll be right back. Go back to sleep." She turned around and gave him a reassuring smile. It was dawn, by the looks of it. The youkai stared at her and gave no sign of moving. She then left the room and went to Kuranosukai's quarters. She felt this horrible feeling come over her. Opening the door, she let out a startled cry. She ran forward and keeled down next to him, checking his pulse but he was already gone. "No..." She didn't hear the others come, nor did she hear their comforting voices as they tried to talk to her. Tears soaked her face and she grasped his cold hand in hers. "Why...?" She reached up and pulled his sword from his corpse. Then something caught her eye in his other hand. It lay open, a rolled up scroll in it. She shook with sobs, feeling as though it was all her fault. She plunged the sword into the floor next to her and took the scroll. Did he do it himself or did someone else...?

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Sango stared at the scroll in her lap as she kneeled next to the fresh grave where they had placed him. She gripped it and stood up. Everyone left her alone to mourn, for which she was entirely grateful.

How could he do that? Did I... Did I confess it wrong? What made him do it?

Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha, and Kouga all confirmed that he was alone in that room all night. He had killed himself.

Was it all my fault? This never would have happened if he never came here, if he never knew about me and Sesshoumaru. How could I do such a horrible thing?

"Kuranosukai." She whispered, placing a few flowers on the grave. She had only wished to be his friend. She had only wished that he would understand. This was all her fault. She stood up and clutched the unopened scroll in her hands. She had yet to read it but she intended to. She walked up to the hill and sat down. Taking a deep breath, she opened it.

Sango,

I do understand that you never cared for me. I understand that you love another and will never be my wife. I offer my deepest apologies for intruding upon your relationship and adding more weight upon your shoulders. I am a weak and pathetic lord that could not handle much pain. I wish I knew what it was, though. Do I disgust you in some way? Am I too weak or are warriors your type? It does not matter for, by dawn, I will be gone. There is not much I can handle. It is merely time that you know the truth. I was hurt much as a child and I will not get into details, only going on to say that my father lost my mother to some mysterious, unknown man and that she never cared about me, leaving me and my father to be with someone she probably left already. I don't know exactly what Sesshoumaru feels for you, but I can tell that you truly care for him. In the woods, I began to doubt that you even wanted my friendship. In those six years that I had waited to see you again, I thought suicide many times. It is not your fault. I am just weak and pathetic and this was the last straw. Please, do not blame yourself for loving another.

In the woods, I heard a dark voice inside my head. Pushing me to do what I wanted for so long; laughing at my weakness. His words were like poison and I believe him. Almost every word he said ran through me like a lightning bolt. Please, forgive me for being a coward. I know not what you are feeling now, but I wish that I could see you once more before I leave. However, that is not possible. Good bye, Sango. I will carry my love for you to wherever I may go.

Kuranosukai

She crumpled it up in her shaking hands and let out a sigh. Something, however, would not leave her mind. This dark voice he mentioned... Her blood ran cold and her eyes gained a cold look.

Could it be Naraku? Did he help push Kuranosukai over the edge? Whatever that voice was, it had the intention of making him kill himself.

She closed her eyes and tried to calm down enough to think clearly and piece things together.

He doesn't want me to blame myself. He thought that I wasn't serious about our friendship. How could everything have gone so wrong?

She looked up when someone approached her and noticed that it was Kagome. The girl had an upset look on her face.

"I-I don't know what to say, Sango. I can't offer much more than comfort." Sango gestured to the girl to sit down next to her. Kagome nodded and did as she was told. As soon as she did so, Sango was hugging her, trying to find solace in the fact that Kagome was there. But she was afraid now. Afraid that someone else was going to leave her. "Sango..." The taiji-ya was one of the strongest people Kagome knew. She didn't know what to think now that her friend was having something of a nervous breakdown.

"Kagome, I can't take it much longer. I can't lose anyone else..." Kagome felt her own tears roll down her face as she wrapped her arms around her friend, the one she considered much like an older sister. "I won't let him take any more..."

"Him?" Kagome froze, feeling her heart sink.

"Naraku. It had to be him. Read this. I can think of no other who would..." She placed the scroll in the girl's hands and waited until she finished to look up.

"You mean, the dark voice?"

"Yes." They didn't have long to contemplate, considering Sango pushed Kagome down the hill and cried out in pain. Kagome screamed when she looked up. She didn't have her arrows and Sango didn't have her weapons. Kagura laughed maniacally, sending more attacks down with her fan. Sango held her bleeding shoulder and jumped quickly out of the way.

Okay, Inuyasha... You can show at any time. Please get here before Sango gets hurt worse.

Kagome didn't want to stand around idly but she had no weapons she could use and she she wasn't experienced in hand-to-hand combat. Sango clenched her teeth and jumped up before feeling the wind wrap around her and slam her against the ground. It shook and rumbled, a crack forming to her right. Her breath would not come back and she tried hard to catch it again. She couldn't move and soon realized why. Naraku was smirking wickedly at her as he stood above her, his feet on her wrists. She couldn't move her legs to kick him off because Kohaku was holding her ankles.

"Do you like defying me, taiji-ya?" She growled at him, sending him a chilling glare. "Now you know what it feels like to stand against me."

"You did it... didn't you?" He laughed cruelly.

"Of course I did. I admit to my crime of pushing that weakling over the edge. Then again, it did not take much effort." His crimson eyes glittered with thrill. "All I have to do is get rid of you, sweet taiji-ya, and then devastation will break your pathetic group apart." Kagome watched with horror. This was the real Naraku. She was paralyzed with terror, feeling his dark aura surrounding the area. "And I will not even have to break a sweat." She watched him closely, rage showing in her eyes. She felt a searing pain in her chest and looked over to see Kohaku fall to his knees.

"Not again..." He whispered. "Sister..." Naraku jumped off of her and she reached out to her brother. He pulled her into his arms and wept as a river of blood trickled from her mouth. She heaved one last shuddering breath and fell limp. Kagome cried out and ran up before realizing that Kagura was no longer there. She was distracting the others. That was why they were not there. Naraku looked down upon the taiji-ya and gave another laugh.

"Too bad." Kagome felt hot tears flowing down her face as she witnessed her friend's death for the second time. Only this time, it was Naraku's doing. She clenched her fists.

"Naraku! How dare you!" She screamed. "You selfish bastard!"

"How touching. The little miko misses her friend." He glared at her. "What are you without your precious arrows?" She realized that he was mocking her. She would never let him get away with that.

"You will pay for what you have done!" She released a huge pink blast from her hands, just like when she had the jewel inside of her body. Only, now the shards she had were reacting to her anger and grief. He got hit on the left side, not having enough time to get out of the way. A piercing scream erupted from somewhere near the village and Naraku laughed.

"It seems the houshi has also lost his life today. And, unfortunately for you, there will be nothing to bury. You-" He was cut off as one more blast hit him dead on. Barely anything was left of him. She summoned all she had left and threw it at him but she was too late. He was gone. He slipped through her fingers... She couldn't finish him off. She looked over to see Kohaku still sitting with his sister in his arms. She walked over to him.

"Kagome is your name, right?" She nodded. "Please, remove the shard from my back so that he cannot control me any longer." One look in his eyes was all it took. She nodded and removed it, watching as he fell forward, his hand still intertwined with his sister's. She fell to her knees and wept silently, watching the direction in which Inuyasha had suddenly appeared. Shippou came bounding up to them then threw himself in her arms when he saw the slain siblings. Inuyasha sighed and looked away from them.

"Miroku is dead. He sucked himself in. Nothing else went but him. Sesshoumaru and Kouga should be coming..." He turned to see the wolf limping toward them. Sesshoumaru appeared, an air of anger surrounding him. But, upon seeing his mate and lover lying limply, his anger elevated to fury and he was practically seeing red. Drawing Tenseiga, he walked over to the two in stony silence. He felt the power of the blade cool his emotions and he swept the blade through the air. Nothing happened. He felt sick suddenly. What was wrong? It was different with Kuranosukai. Kagome had pleaded with him to revive the lord's life and he had refused, saying that the lord had killed himself and that it would not work. He would only do it again after he left them. It was a force of wills, actually. Kuranosukai would believe what he wanted, therefore reviving him when he killed himself was quite useless.

"What's going on?" Kagome asked shakily.

"Naraku must die." The tai-youkai's eyes turned crimson and he raced off in the direction where he smelled Naraku's scent. Inuyasha gave them a sweeping glance before he ran after his brother. Kouga gazed at Kagome as she clutched Shippou to her chest, tears falling rapidly down both of their faces.

"Kagome, do you think Naraku figured out how to prevent his sword from working?"

"No." The miko answered quietly. "They are united in death, Kouga. Sango had wanted this for so long."

"But..." She looked up at him and shook her head.

"Remember what Sesshoumaru said? It's a force of wills. Perhaps they were both overwhelmed with grief and now they no longer feel it. What would you choose if you lost everything and then reached that point that you had once desired?"

"I thought she loved him. How could she...?"

"I don't understand it, either. All I can say is that Naraku will get no mercy from either of those two." She could not believe that Miroku's void had consumed him. She didn't want to believe it. She wanted to think that everything would be fine.

Almost everyone was gone.

Gone...

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That's all for now, minna. Wow... I can hardly believe that I wrote something like that, can you? ::sarcasm:: Please review!

See you in chapter 11!