-lol- don't hate me...but I'm not a big fan of Kikyo- tho I don't bash her in most my stories b/c it upsets the Kikyo lovers...not that I hate her, I just don't think she's 'misunderstood' ...I really do think she is evil...I just don't think she was always that way-that's why I usually kill her off early...I mean, you really can't blame her- I'd be evil too if my reincarnation stole my man and my soul- so I feel her pain, but I still don't like her- SHE'S EVIL! -.-;;; alrighty...back to the story...
A/N: Song in here- Ashlee Simpson 'Undiscovered'
Chapter 32
Kikyo returned to the cave where Nanashi was waiting impatiently. "Come now Kikyo...are you NOW ready to show me to Shadou no Tsuki..." Nanashi smirked from the darkness of the cave as she stepped out into the rain to face Kikyo- who once again wore her stoic gaze and spoke in a monotone voice. "I intended to tell you the way- I had no intentions of showing you...but on second thought- I will take you...that way I can kill you if you do not hold up your end of the bargain..."
Nanashi growled bitterly at Kikyo's confidence in her abilities, but said nothing as she stepped away- her necklace pouring out ribbons of colored light that wrapped in two gleaming orbs before them. "Hiryuu- come forth..." When the swirling orbs where complete- their brilliant light faded to reveal large dragon-like demons, their wings stretching to the sky at first, then settling into a submissive and tame state.
Kikyo said nothing as they both mounted the large and obedient illusions, which immediately lifted off the ground and began flying in Kikyo's commanded direction, miles above the earth. Their large reptile wings stretching from their serpent-like bodies, blue-ish green in color and impressively docile, though they seemed like creatures that would break free to be wild at first chance.
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Everyone sat around a blazing fire, Miroku comforting his wife- Sango's head lay in his lap tiredly as she felt his hands stroke her hair gently, her thoughts going over Kagome's condition endlessly. Inuyasha on the other hand, was the only one missing from the room. He could be found by Kagome's side in Kaede's hut. The two had been left alone for what seemed like Kagome's final hours. The minutes dragged on into eternity as Inuyasha watched the silent rise and fall of her chest from the dark corner, wondering how long her breath would continue in this lifeless body.
The fire had long since died- a small smokey mist rising from the ashes, looming in the darkness of the room eerily, but the scent of fire and ash or the outside rains and humidity hardly competed with Kagome's scent, which Inuyasha had been tracking carefully while his honey embers-shadowed by his bangs- traced her motionless figure. Finally, after what seemed like years, Inuyasha fell asleep by her side-her scent filling his nose, but it was tainted, tainted with the lingering and faint taste of death that brought tears of realization to his eyes that he fought to control until the darkness of exhaustion overcame him.
'Dead...dead...My Kagome...dead...' He fought to get his mind around it, but even in his restless sleep he gained no peace from the echoing truth that would soon be a reality. His face harbored an painfully deep sorrow as he dreamed- sitting by Kagome with her blade's hilt gripped between his fingers, clinging to it for dear life as if it were the last piece of Kagome he had left.
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Nanashi followed patiently behind Kikyo when they began to land in a clearing, looking around at the familiar forest in confusion. "Where have you taken me?! This is your wretched village! What are we doing here?!" Kikyo slid off as soon as the dragon's feet touched the ground softly, not looking back as she began to walk off into the forest to the village, speaking coldly. "Quiet...we have to pick someone up...you know very well we cannot put Kagome's soul back if her body is miles away from us..." With that Kikyo disappeared, leaving a very impatient and suspicious Nanashi behind.
Moments later, Kikyo came to the seemingly quiet town where she once lived. A mournful silence had befallen the entire village when the news of Kagome's near demise spread like a wildfire, sending an uproar of emotion at first-but like rain to the blaze, realization soon left nothing but sulking ashes around their feet. Kikyo entered catiously- if she were to be discovered, it would be chaos- so she made her way through the dark storm, coming to the small hut that belonged to her estranged sister.
She sighed, walking in to see Inuyasha hovering over the empty shell of her reincarnation- sleeping uneasily, his bangs still shadowing his sleeping embers. She picked up the limp girl's body in her arms, Inuyasha's ears twitching slightly as she began to leave- finally exiting the hut with a regretful sigh and darting off to the clearing where Nanashi awaited her. 'Gomen ne Inuyasha...please...forgive me...I do not wish you to worry- so I hope you will not wake until Kagome is there to wake you herself...' Kikyo looked down in her arms as she entered the clearing, Kagome's pale features being drenched in rain along with her tattered clothing that had yet to be changed. Drops pouring onto her cheeks, sliding off like tears that conveyed her sorrows from the expressionless look she was forced to wear.
Nanashi looked on in annoyance as Kikyo loaded her reflection onto the large demon, then mounted herself, securing them both as they began to leave. Nanashi rolled her ocean hues-looking at Kikyo with an ungrateful stare. "Dokomade is this place Kikyo?" Kikyo, who continued to stare ahead with an unflinching and stoic glare, coldly replied with a monotone. "Not far." Nanashi huffed at the unsatisfying answer.
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After a silent, but rather short ride high above the storm clouds- Kikyo directed her beast downward to the dry depths of a valley below. She pulled Kagome's figure from the creature's back, laying her on the soft grass of the meadow gently as Nanashi called back her magic- the two demonic hiryuu dispelling into small orbs of light that returned to her necklace in a brilliant display.
Nanashi followed closely behind as Kikyo lead her away from the clearing- the sun beginning to poke through the clouds above them as they entered a dark ravine, the rock walls extending straight up to the heavens on either side- but widening out as they journeyed farther in. Nanashi looked up in amazement at the walls on either side, as if one mountain had been split in two and now the earth threatened to swallow them both. When she finally took her eyes away from the distracting rocks, she spotted Kikyo waiting ahead- stopped in front of what seemed to be the edge of a forest.
"Nanashi...welcome to Shadou no Tsuki..." Kikyo said coldly, showing no emotion as the kijo looked curiously over the towering trees that seemed to be endlessly high and the ground vegetation uninvitingly thick. She smirked-the deep shadows that extended inside the unusual and strangely beautiful forest screamed her name, verifying the claim that this was the place she had dreamed of coming upon since the day she heard its call.
Her eyes eventually wandered back to Kikyo reluctantly when she heard her speak. "Now for Kagome...It's time for you to send back her soul..." Nanashi rolled her eyes. "Of course- if that is what you truly wish..." Her hand crept up to the pendant, her fingers lacing it delicately- then her eyes flooded with a silvery hue as the necklace flared- piercing Kikyo's chest as she dropped to her knees, the soul relucantly being thrown from her body. Her eyes softened- closing quietly to embrace her death for a third time. 'Take it back....take it all back...this is yours Kagome- I cannot keep what isn't mine...so take Inuyasha and care for him-as he cares for you...' The brilliant light shot upward, crossing the skies only about half a mile until it came to the calm serenity of the meadow where Kagome's body lay, teatering on the edge of death.
Kikyo's now still body began to dissolve away into a pure light, the tiny glittering orbs made their way past an astonished Nanashi and followed the soul to Kagome's body, fading into her chest quietly as her eyes fluttered open- gasping for more than her previous shallow breathes. She pushed herself up hazily- looking around the quiet field momentarily as her shocked body clung to life.
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Nanashi was hardly worried about what had just occured- she was savoring the moments before she stepped into her new home. 'Ageku! I am here! I have made it...no more living off frivilous demons and diminishing shadows...' She smirked, but only for a moment before her eyes turned painfully shocked, her body slightly thrust forward, then jolted back unsteadily as the kogatana blade was pulled violently from her back. She turned to see Kagome, crimson tainting her from head to toe from their previous battle and the newly spilled blood, but she hadn't time to think when Kagome sent a burst of energy at her, electifying and sparking over the ground- hitting her with its blue electricity, just enough to crack her necklace which tried to hold it off.
"HOW....I was...so close-" She gasped-falling on the ground with small breathes that barely coughed out her last words raspily. "Curse you Kagome...curse your soul to the grave..." She clutched the grass, then lay limply on the ground with a shocked and saddening look on her face- that lessened & relaxed with her body- which was once sustained for centuries by the necklace, now faded out like a dimming shadow- leaving nothing behind but the drops of blood just spilled and the bitter taste of defeat.
Kagome's hands dropped the knife carelessly to the ground as she turned and walked from the ravine, her thoughts wandering around her spinning mind. 'Where....where am I....why did I kill her...Why did I kill her...who was she...' Only moments before- she had found herself in a beautiful meadow, her body aching to stay still, screaming painfully at her for every move she involuntarily made. She watched herself, her hands going down to the tattered legging of her worn outfit. Ripping back the twisted straps around her ankle to reveal a small hidden knife that she slipped out carefully- then rose to her feet and began walking to a ravine for unknown reasons- but she was much too tired to fight her own body's will.
Now she felt the blood dampening her clothes, her own blood beginning to soak the bandages from the wounds she knew nothing about. Her vision was blurred slightly, but her feet kept dragging her onward. 'Where....where are we going...' 'Haimu.' A familiar voice from her mind distantly echoed back to her. 'where is haimu...' She watched passively as the scenery around her changed gradually as a result of her constant walking. She passed through forest after forest, walking the same path steadily, occasionally stopping to let her weary body rest against a tree where she usually passed out for a few hours- then for no reason got back up and kept going.
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About 6 hours had passed since Kagome was taken- the rain in Kaede's village was still falling steadily when Inuyasha realized he was awake. He didn't dare open his eyes- since he could smell death on the hut faintly under Kagome's natural scent. Finally- he opened his eyes, his deep amber pools resting on an empty space before him with bitter pain- then a panicked regret to choke it back, confusion filling his eyes. He pulled himself up with a slow urgency- rationalizing possibilites in his mind. 'Have they....have they taken her body away from me already? ...Are they preparing it to be- ...no...Something has happened- they would never- ...'
Inuyasha's fist embraced the hilt of the Kinjai slightly, his fingers gripping it tightly as his nose traced fading scents out into the rain. He couldn't quite tell-but it must be near nightfall-since it was mid-afternoon when he fell asleep. He couldn't help it- he felt broken, ripped apart on the inside- it was hard to care about anything now that the one person he truly cared for was gone- no- he couldn't think like that, he had to cling to the slivers of hope in his hands, even if they were dying out. He walked half-heartedly to the doorway- looking out into the rain, his thoughts reminding him what the rain had given to him once.
"Kagome..." He thought back- it had begun to rain when they broke away from their kiss- the taste of her lips was overwhelmingly sweet and real- it was real. Moments before they had been arguing childishly, but somehow ended up embracing one another. 'If only- I could hear your voice...you could scream at me- yell sit as much as you wanted to...Be upset- argue...just say something...anything....' His eyes clouded with tears that he forced to control until he stepped into the cold rain-beginning to walk out into the forest in search of what he was afraid of- proof.
Take it back, Take it all back nowThe things I gave
Like the taste of my kiss on your lips
I miss that now
I can't try any harder than I do
All the reasons I gave
Excuses I made for you
I'm broken in two
All the things left undiscovered
Leave me empty and left to wonder
I need you
All the things left undiscovered
Leave me waiting and left to wonder
I need you
Yeah I need you
Don't walk away
Touch me now how I wanna feel something so real
Please remind me my love
And take me back
Cause I'm so in love with what we were
I'm not breathing I'm suffocating without you
Do you feel it too?
All the things left undiscovered
Leave me waiting and left to wonder
I need you
All the things left undiscovered
Leave me empty and left to wonder
I need you
Yeah I need you
When I'm in the dark and all alone
Dreaming that you'll walk right through my door
It's there I know my heart is whole
There's a millions reasons why I cry
Hold my covers tight and close my eyes
Cause I don't wanna be alone
All the things left undiscovered
Leave me waiting and left to wonder
I need you
All the things left undiscovered
Leave me empty and left to wonder
I need you
I need you
Cause I can't fake and I can't hate but it's my heart that's about to break
You're all I need I'm on my knees watch me bleed won't you listen please,
I give in I breathe out I want you there's no doubt I freak out
I'm left out without you I'm without I cross out I can't doubt
I cry out I reach out
Don't walk away
Don't walk away ...
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Kagome was now soaked, rain poured over her body in cool streams, but the tiny rivers didn't seem to matter- she was waiting, waiting to see something...but she couldn't tell what it was. 'I am....searching...and I will search until...I find it...until...there is nothing left of me to search...' Her breath had ceased to slow down from its ragged gasps since she had awoken, but she didn't care. She rarely even wondered about her wounds anymore- how she had gotten them or who bandaged them- who's blood it was that caked her tattered clothes.
'I don't...I don't know....I can't find the answers....It seems so blurry and uncertain- but one thing I'm sure....I'm going to find my home...' She stumbled through the wet forest, tripping in puddles and slipping slightly, usually catching herself unsteadily against a nearby tree. Finally, after the rain had slacked off and then ceased- she emerged in a clearing, the full moon shining palely on her path- shimmering off her soaked ebony strands that stuck to her face in clean laces.
She walked over, looking down at a sealed well with faint familiarity in her heart. "Is this..." Her weak body stood frail in the moonlight before the well for a moment, before her eyes lifted- looking up and continuing her walk curiously as she walked step by step to a large and familiar tree. She sighed-tilting her head-her voice coming out soft- with a naive and innocent tone it hadn't retained for sometime. "Is this home?" Her brown hues scanned the area ahead slowly.
Inuyasha sniffed the light breeze curiously. Kagome scent was becoming stronger- and in some way, it was different- it had changed from the scent he was so use to in the hut. He picked up the pace slightly- gradually coming to a run until he slowed down in the familiar portion of the woods- walking catiously in the moonlight, shaking his hair loosely to dry it. His eyes fell on the Goshimboku just ahead of him- he was lost in reoccuring memories of Kagome as he approached it, a regretful and pitiful smile touching his lips until he entered the clearing, standing there to gaze up at the large structure.
However, his thoughts were lost when he twitched his ears- hearing a light rustling as his eyes shot to see a shadowed figure burst from the trees- catching herself against the tree tiredly as she breathed heavily, her eyes shadowed by the dripping ebony bangs, her ebony hair trailing down her back in long wet strands. Inuyasha's eyes took in every illusive inch of the figure- going over the features moment after moment in slight disbelief until he finally snapped out of it. "Ka...-Kagome?" He spoke under his breath, his heart picking up speed with each new moment that passed.
Kagome lifted her deep brown hues, looking over the blurred red figure with long silver hair. "Inuyasha..." She breathed slightly, not even realizing what she had said. A small smile began to creep onto Inuyasha's lips as he ran over, picking her up gently in his embrace and spinning around in an excited twist of fate. He buried his nose deeply in her neck, tears threatening his every motion. He chuckled slightly in the silence. "I thought I lost you..." He picked her up in his arms without a second thought and began walking back to the village, happier than he ever thought he could be as his heart pounded restlessly. He wasn't sure what happened, or why- but he wasn't questioning his blessing- all he wanted now was to take in Kagome's fresh scent, now that death had been cleaned from it somehow. All he wanted was to take her home, cling to her in the hut and never let go- get lost in her scent, make her his forever- so they would never part again.
He wanted to make her laugh, see her happy and well again, but as he looked down into her brown hues, that were occupied on his red kimono-tired and content- it seemed as though something was missing... as though she was lost somewhere else behind those deep chocolate orbs. He studied it a moment, then shook it off, holding her body close to him as he walked back to the village in silence.
Kagome felt his strong arms wrapping her tightly, spinning her around and picking her up in his embrace. She felt warm, safe, and somehow- she felt as though she belonged....but she wasn't entirely sure why. She knew him, she was sure of that- but he was strange to her, as though she couldn't recognize him entirely- like an old familiar face blurred and erased so she couldn't clearly it see in her mind. She continued to stare at his red kimono- not gazing up into those ember hues that made her want to cry- she wanted to kiss him, pull him close to her...but why? 'Do I love him?' 'yes...he is yours now...' She closed her eyes, his all-too familiar scent licking at her nose, teasing her memories that all seemed too far away, yet right before her. 'He is....haimu... yes...he is my haimu...but- who am I? ...' Her fingers gripped his kimono weakly as she began to fall asleep in his arms, eventually giving into the hazed dreariness of sleep.
»-------------- ------------«Hmm....did you like it? I hope so- b/c this is the end of my story...ok just kidding! Don't kill me! -.-;;; More chappies are on the way, and things will start happening to Inuyasha and Kagome that will lead to bigger and better things ...lol ::hint hint:: -trans. at the bottom as always-
Hiryuu- flying dragon
Dokomade- how far
Ageku- Finally
Kogatana- small knife(in this case it was a small knife Kagome kept secretly strapped to her ankle for easy access- kinda like Sango's many concealed weapons in her uniform)
Haimu- home
shiisu- sword sheath
Shadou no Tsuki- (if I'm right it means "Moon's Shadow" or "Shadow of the Moon")
Matte- wait
Gomen nasai- I'm sorry; my apologies
Kijo- demoness; she-devil; witch
Un- Yeah