The Mayu Flower
Disclaimer: I do not own anything from InuYasha.
Chapter 9: A Warrior's Tear
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"Hm? What?" Kagome blinked and looked up, slightly surprised she had dozed off like that. Kinuto was sitting across from her at their booth in WacDonalds. His grey eyes were full of worry. She shook her head and forced on a smile. "Yeah...I'm okay...sorry," she added.
Still the worry on his face did not go away. He took a stern look at her face and then sighed. "Maybe I should take you home. You look a little tired anyway," he said half to himself.
Feeling slightly guilty about making Kinuto worry like that, Kagome accepted his offer. The two left the fast-food restaurant and climbed into Kinuto's car. He started the engine with a roar and soon pulled it back onto the road. Kagome didn't say a word throughout the whole ride and Kinuto didn't push any conversation, knowing it would either be uncomfortable or he wouldn't even get an answer.
As Kagome stared out the window, her mind continued to tumble away. 'I shouldn't be thinking about him again! I've been neglecting Kinuto! Why does he keep getting into my mind?' she thought irritably. In the back of her mind, she thought she heard something. Realizing it was Kinuto talking, she blushed in embarrassment and asked him to repeat it.
"We're here," he said again, a worried smile on his face. He nodded to Kagome's right where the stairs leading up to the Higurashi grounds were.
"Oh, sorry. I dozed off again," she apologized with another blush. "Sorry I was kinda zoned out today, Kinuto. I have some things on my mind..."
He shook his head. "It's okay, you just go get some rest and I'm sure you'll be fine," he answered with a nod.
"Thanks," Kagome mumbled and touched his hand gently before getting out of the car. After saying goodbye, Kagome turned away and began to climb the stairs as Kinuto's car noise faded away. Once she reached the top, she realized just how tired she was. How much sleep did she get the previous night? Even she couldn't remember, partly because of fatigue and partly of annoyance for the reason she was so tried. Slowly she arrived at her door, she slid it open, cleaned her shoes, entered, and slid the door shut once more. Dumping her school backpack beside the door, she stretched and slowly made it up the stairs. No one was home at the moment. Her grandfather was in the back sweeping up, Souta was at a friend's house for a school project, and her mother was out buying groceries.
Deciding to go to sleep early, Kagome slipped into her room and changed into her pajamas before plopping down on her bed. After snuggling into a comfortable position, it was a matter of seconds before the teen melted into sleep.
In the Feudal Era...
Another day had slipped by as InuYasha avoided the village and his friends. At first he had tried to escape farther away, trying to run away from the Well, Kagome, the others, and all his problems. He wanted to run away from everything, but he knew that there would be no way to run away from his broken heart. Yet every time he tried to do this, he always found himself back at the Goshinboku staring at the scar where he had remained for 50 years. Pain always accompanied the sight, but for some reason he could not resist. Presently, he found himself at the base of the old tree once again.
'Why did she had to leave? Why!' he thought angrily. Feeling the blood rush through his veins, he felt a surge of anger and threw a heavy punch at the wood of the ancient tree. Prickling pain slowly followed and his anger drained away, but still he ignored it and sat down on the ground. There was a dent in the trunk where his fist had struck and a heavy bruise on the hanyou's knuckles, but still he ignored it.
A wave of cold and unbearible sorrow caressed him, tearing at his heart, at his soul. Because of him, his stupid mistakes, he would never see Kagome again. He had lost her, he had lost her warmth that had saved him from himself thousands upon thousands of times. He had always taken it for granted and because of that, it had been taken away from him. Even now he remembered how her black hair waved in the wind and how her warm brown eyes pulled at his heart. Those warm eyes had once belonged to him, only to him...but now...they were locked deep in the well beyond his reach.
"Kagome..." he mumbled to himself, the deep sorrow seemingly crawling up his throat and tickling his nose.
In Kagome's Time...
She was running, running towards something. But what was it? There was a figure in the distance. Darkness surrounded her, yet her steps still made pounding noises that went to the rhythm of her heart. The figure began to grow larger and clearer. Still, who was it? Running, never stop running... The figure's face was almost visible. It was a boy, his face oh so familiar, but who was it? She was panting, trying to keep her fast pace up. Sweat tickled down her sides making her feel hot and cold at the same time. There he was...there was the boy. Kinuto. 'Kinuto!' she called out, but her voice was silent. Her heart leaped with joy at the sight of this warm-eyed boy. She felt the strength to go on. She had the strength to reach the boy she loved.
Suddenly, a light appeared to her left. She faultered her run for a minute. Kinuto's expression fell slightly, but he still waited. She turned her face to look at the light. Another figure, in the bright white. Slowly the figure became bolder, but still unrecognizable. She felt her heart tense and wondered why. Glancing back at Kinuto, she almost felt as if a choice was being pushed onto her. Go to Kinuto or see who this new figure was.
The light molded into a shape. A tree. A tree taller than any and older than any she had ever seen. There was a scar on the trunk, like a circle. Its leaves waved in the unfelt wind. The figure sat at the base of the tree, crounching as if balancing on the balls of his feet. His? Why did she think that? Who was it? She felt her run stop and waited, watching the figure bold. Elegantly long silver hair...a red kimono...a black sheathed sword at his hip...who was it? She felt as if she should know who it was, the familiarity of the person screamed at her but still she could not remember.
'InuYasha...his name is InuYasha...' she thought. She took a step forward and felt the image quiver horribly. Strangely afraid that the image would vanish, she stopped. Side glancing at Kinuto, she saw he still waited. Returning her gaze to InuYasha, she looked closely at his face.
His eyes were so sad...so hopeless and cold...his usual proud stance had slackened into a depressed slouch. There was something in his hand, but she couldn't see it. It sparkled like glass and there was the faint shade of red and white. Suddenly, something sparkled, but it was not from the object in his hand. Returning her eyes to his face, she felt her heart freeze and her breath catch. His eyes sparkled with water. Slowly one single tear, shining silver and full of heart-stabbing sorrow, slid away from his golden eye. It fell down his face that had never felt tears before. Guilt, sorrow, shock were all intertwined in Kagome's heart. She could scarcely breath. Somehow she knew the reason for his first tear. Her. She had caused this proud, fearless, strong warrior to shed a tear...because of her...because of what she did.
Her own tears began to flow. She fell to her knees and closed her eyes. Weeping all her guilt out, she found herself not caring if Kinuto still waited. InuYasha...a cold stubborn hanyou who had never shown as much as a speck of affection had broken her heart with a tear. The darkness swirled around her and both figures faded away.
Opening her eyes, she felt the tears from her dream still flowing out. Immediately she sat up. 'What have I done?' she thought as her regret flowed out through her tears. 'I've hurt him...I've hurt him so much.' Looking out at her window, she almost expected InuYasha's grumpy face to be staring in at her. Instead, she saw a deep blue sparkled with silver stars. When she had fallen asleep it had been only a few hours after school had let out. Her clock glowed "10:24PM".
'I have to get to him...I have to see if he's all right...' she thought, her tears still coming out. Quickly wiping her damp cheeks with the back of her hand, she got up and quickly changed into some jeans and a t-shirt. Still fighting back the tears, she dashed out of her room and down the stairs. Her mother saw her fly by, but the sight of her tears made her decide to let Kagome go without a word. Her daughter fled out of the door and run towards the old shrine on their grounds. The night sounds surrounded her, but she paid no heed. Thrusting open the door, she didn't even bother to close it before hurrying down the stairs. Coming up to the well, she put one knee and hand on the edge before she suddenly froze.
'Will...will it work for me?' she wondered. 'I...I want to see InuYasha...I truly do...' With this last determined thought, she cleaned away the rest of her tears and leaped into the shadows of the well. As she fell, she half-expected the ground to collide with her, but it never came. She felt a certain strange vastness around her, but she dared not open her eyes in fear. Suddenly the feeling ended and she felt her feet gently touch the ground. Staying there for a moment, she hoped with all her heart that she was in the Feudal Era.
Finally summoning the courage, she opened her eyes to stare at the wooden planks of the well. Slowly rising her head, she looked up into the velvet blue night sky. She didn't even bother to allow the shaky sigh out before she began to climb out of the well. After reaching the top, she turned her head to look at the old tree.
Kagome felt her heart and mind freeze. In the future when she looked back to this moment, she would never be able to remember how she had slowly risen out of the well and begin her slow approach to the tree and the figure beneath it. 'There he is...just like my dream...' the teen thought. At the base of the Goshinboku, a crouching hanyou stared down at something in his hand. His long silvery hair draped over his back and shoulders and his red haori and hakama rustled slightly in the cool breeze. Kagomed searched his face, but there were no tears. Despite this, she continued to approach him with silent steps, surprised he had not noticed her yet.
When she was roughly fifteen feet away from him, she stopped. Her heart stopped. Her mind froze and her blood lost all warmth. From under his silvery bangs, something caught the moonlight. A lone droplet of sorrow in the form on a tear slid oh so slowly down the hanyou's cheek. Each second felt like an eternity to Kagome, as if her very soul was being pulled into a black hole with the tremendous terror and indescribable pain that tore at her heart. The boy, the man, the warrior, the friend, the breath-taking heart that she had fallen in love with a long time ago had shed his first tear...for her. Had she caused this much pain to squeeze a droplet from a rock?
"Inu...InuYasha..." Kagome mumbled unconsciously as she fought back an enormous sob.
At her mumble, InuYasha finally rose his face. Quickly he thrust back his tears and angrily dried the tear that had escaped. 'K-Kagome?' he thought surprised, but still forced himself to keep his face neutral, though it pained him.
The two remained there for a moment, wondering what would happen, if anything would come from this sudden meeting. 'Now is the time...I know what to do. Kagome...I need you to do this...' he thought. Straightening his legs, he stood, trying to make his face look hard and stoic. "Kagome...I don't know why you are here, but...I need to tell you something."
A twinge of hope betrayed Kagome's sadness and she quickly squashed it down. "Y-yes, InuYasha?"
InuYasha opened his mouth to burst it out, but his heart denied his determination. Closing it for a moment, he could no longer manage to keep the sorrow from his eyes. Looking sadly at her, he cast his gaze down. "Kagome...I want you to go home."
Kagome blinked, the tears screaming to come out. "W-what?"
He looked up at her with those beautifully golden eyes. "I want you to go home...now...and...and never come back." He paused for a moment. "You love Kinuto and I...d-don't care about y-you any more. Go home now and...and never return!" He had meant to end with his fists clenched, but instead he found himself looking away from her.
Kagome's breath was wisked away in shock. Without meaning to, she ran towards him, but stopped short when he took a step back. "No, InuYasha! You...you can't mean that!"
He lowered his eyes so his bangs hid them. "I do. Go home...Kagome."
Her tears finally made passage out. They silently flowed down her cheeks. "I c-can't...I won't! InuYasha, I won't leave you and the others! I have to stay!"
"Leave Kagome...go home," he replied in a calm tone, desiring not to argue with her.
"I can't, InuYasha...I just can't! That will be like abandoning you and the others and what we've been working on for so long! I can't just give that up!"
InuYasha sighed. "You must. If you stay, it won't be out of what you want to do, it'll be out of what you have to do. Go home and be...happy. You belong there, Kagome. Not here."
Kagome stared at him, her tears still flowing. Her breath came in strange chops as she sobbed. 'He...he really means it? But...why InuYasha? Why? Before I thought you only thought of me as a symbol of Kikyou, then you became jealous of me when you saw me with Kinuto. Why do you want me to leave now?' she thought desperately. His eyes were sad, but they were set and unwavering. His heart was truly set on this. She lowered her head, surprising herself by how she accepted his demand.
Suddenly raising her head, she choked back a sob. "At least...at least let me take off that necklace--"
"No!" he interrupted. Bringing a clawed hand to the purple beads and white fangs, he held them tightly. "No, Kagome. I will keep them." 'As a reminder of you...if I can have nothing else,' he thought. He suddenly circled around her and began walking towards the well.
Kagome felt her heart sink deeply and she was about to follow after him when he foot touched something hard. Looking down, she saw a glass pendant with a beautiful bloomed red and white flower. Was this what she had seen him holding before? What did it mean? Bringing her thoughts back, she picked up the necklace and followed after the hanyou. Once they reached the well, she tried to open her mouth to say something to try to convince him to let her stay, but nothing came to her mind.
"Go home, Kagome. Now."
"But...what about the others--?"
"I'll tell them you said goodbye." After a moment, he added. "Give me the jewel shards so...so you can't return."
Kagome's eyes fell to the shadows of the Bone Eaters Well. If she gave him her jewel shards and went through that well, she would never be able to return. A sob crawled up her throat, but she forced it back. Lowering her head, she nodded slowly. Taking the bottle from around her neck, she took out four jewel fragments. InuYasha opened his palm to her and three fragments fell into his hand. Without looking, he closed his fist and put it to his side.
Reluctantly, the miko put her knee and wrists on the edge of the well. She stared down into it and then up at InuYasha. His eyes were glittering a handsome gold, but they were stern and with a tint of sadness. "G-goodbye...InuYasha." Finally, she pushed herself down into the well and fell through the darkness.
Once he was sure Kagome had passed to her time, he looked down into the depths. "Kagome...I love you," he whispered, tears returning to his eyes. Pushing them back, he straightened and began to walk away from the well.
I hope this chapter choked out as much tears for all you readers as it did for me when I came up with the idea! -sniff- Obviously by now you know that I love these type of tragic love stories of a guy loving a girl enough to let her go. Please review!
