Kagome lay peacefully in the hospital bed, her breaths coming one by one, slow and shallow. Her brother Sota, now well into old age, held her withered hand in his own and stroked it gently. His sister had always been so strong; it hurt him to see her like this, weak and tired. He knew her time was near. After the heart attack she had never been the same and now it was only a matter of hours, or days, before she was finally at peace.
Watching as his sister slept, Sota wondered if she was dreaming of Inuyasha. He had been her first love, and the only great love, of her life. She had spent nearly ten years in the feudal era with him searching for the jewel shards. When she finally returned she was alone and would not speak of Inuyasha again. She never did say what had happened between them or why she had returned, only that she was going to remain in her own time from now on. For some time, Sota remembered that he had kept his eyes on the old well, expecting Inuyasha to pop out in search of his sister. Inuyasha never came, and Kagome never watched for him. She went on with her life as if nothing had happened, and left him behind.
She was never the same after that…she was colder somehow, more closed off. Though she married and went on to have children, she was never as open and joyful as she had been before her journey into the past. From his short experience with demons, Sota did not question this change. You could only see so many horrid things in your life before it affected you. He figured that his sister had seen many battles and much death while in the feudal era. He had always blamed her time there for shortening her life. He had read up on the period and it was rife with war and famine. Life was hard in those times and most people were lucky to live to the age of 40. Perhaps if she had remained in her own time she wouldn't be so sick now. In some way though, Sota felt proud. His sister had travelled back into such difficult times and fought to survive. She had lived and returned home looking almost the same as she had when she'd left, only older. She had been so full of life at that time, and now it was almost as if her heart had given up wanting to go on. She had suffered three major heart attacks in the past year, this was just the last one in the bunch. There would be no going home from the hospital this time.
oOo
Kagome awoke to find herself in a garden, surrounded by flowers and trees. Tiny fireflies danced through the air and lit up the grass upon which she had slept. Stretching into a yawn, she sat up and surveyed her surroundings. The garden seemed familiar but at the same time foreign. She couldn't remember where she had seen it before, but felt as if she had been there, perhaps in another time, another place. She began to walk down a path that stretched out before her between the flowers. Running her hands along the plants as she went, she enjoyed the soft waxy feel of the leaves and velvety petals beneath her finger tips.
She couldn't see to the end of the path ahead of her as it twisted and turned through the thick foliage. Though she had no idea where she was, she felt at peace following it. The whole world seemed at peace, as if nothing could harm her anymore. She felt no pain, no anxiety, just an overwhelming sense of calm. Ahead of her, the path broke into a clearing that contained one tree, standing tall and proud. The tree was old and withered, its branches drooping low towards the ground, but Kagome recognized it instantly, it was the tree where she had first met Inuyasha, the half-demon who had stolen her heart.
Walking towards it slowly, she carefully let her hands run over the rough bark. They glided up of their own accord to the worn spot where Inuyasha's body had rested for nearly 50 years and caressed it gently. A tear came to her eye and she wiped it away absentmindedly. She had cried many times over him, and wouldn't let herself do so now, not when everything else was so perfect.
Feeling inspired, she climbed up the trunk of the tree and laid across its branches. She stared out into the garden thoughtfully and waited. For what, she wasn't sure. She only had the feeling that she was meant to wait there for something or someone to tell her what to do next. It wasn't long before a figure emerged from the path she herself had walked along. Kagome held her breath as he stopped before her.
"Kagome," he whispered her name gently from where he stood. She couldn't speak nor move, her body paralyzed with shock. Could it really be him? He held out a hand to her invitingly, his face appearing both sad and joyous at the same time. He wanted to smile but wasn't sure if he should. Would she accept him now after so long? Her senses returning to her Kagome managed to breathe his name.
"Inuyasha…" A smile broke across his lips and he walked closer, stopping just below the branches she was sitting in. Reaching his arms up, she accepted them and he helped her down to the ground. Pulling her into a tender hug, he held her for what seemed like an eternity.
"I've waited so long for you Kagome. I'm so happy you're finally here," he said into her hair. She smiled genuinely for the first time in a long time as she enjoyed the touch of him once more. It had been nearly 50 years since she had seen him alive and breathing and yet he looked the same as he had the first day they'd met. Touching her face self-consciously Kagome realized that she too was young once again. She understood now where she was – her spirit was stuck in the realm between life and death. The time had come for her to make a choice. Stepping back she looked into Inuyasha's golden eyes and played with his silver hair. He was still the same hanyou, her hanyou – he hadn't changed one bit.
"Inuyasha?" she questioned. "Have you been waiting for me all this time?" He nodded and held her hands in his own.
"Do you really think I could go on without you? If I couldn't be with you in life, then I wanted to be with you in death. Will you come with me now?" His eyes were pleading and he squeezed her hands gently.
Kagome let out a shuddering breath and allowed the tears to flow freely from her eyes. So long…so long she had waited for this moment and now it was finally here. She had always wondered if he would wait for her as he'd promised. Her mind returned to a time 50 years past when she lay in Kaede's cabin, Inuyasha's head on her lap. He had been gravely injured in a battle with Naraku, and his army of demons, and was dying. There was nothing anyone could do for him. Kagome had done all she could to ease his pain but it was no use. Just before he died he had turned back into his human form. He had stared up at her, his eyes clear from the haze of pain. He had smiled and touched her face with his hand. "I'll wait for you Kagome. I love you…I'm sorry I never told you sooner," and with that he had died.
Now she understood. Though he had been difficult and stubborn up until his last moments, he had kept his promise to be with her again. For 50 years he had waited in between life and death so that he could go with her into the afterlife. With tears in her eyes she nodded her head in assent, accepting his offer. She had loved this man, this half demon, with all of her heart. She had never stopped loving him, even after he had died and was buried. Her life had felt utterly incomplete until this moment.
"Yes Inuyasha, I'm ready now." With a nod he bent down and kissed her softly on the lips. She smiled up at him, her eyes glistening with tears of happiness. Dropping her hand down, Inuyasha held on to it gently and looked upon her with loving eyes. Together the two of them walked silently down the path from which they had both come, their souls finally at peace.
Patting Kagome gently on the hand as if to reassure her, Sota whispered softly in her ear, "It's okay sister. Go to him. You don't need to hang on any longer."
As if she had been waiting for his words of reassurance, she took a final breath and let it out with a sigh. Sota watched her chest but it did not rise again. Nodding with understanding he placed her hands over top of one another on her stomach. With one last glance at her face he noticed with surprise that she was smiling even though tears ran down the creases of her withered face.
"So you found him at last. Be at peace," he said with a sad smile before leaving her side.