LB: Yay! A new chapter. Glad you all liked the last one.

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Phalon22: Who doesn't like chocolate? And I'd say poor Fluffy's nose, too…I'm sorry! But I make up for it in this chappie, huh?

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Thank you also to: blu-babe, TwistedBlackAndRedRose, Emily Snider, kitsune'sangelofflames, and all of my other faithful readers! Have fun reading!

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

Chapter Eight. Reflection of Tears

Kagome swung her backpack over her shoulder. "Okay, I'm ready!" She held onto his hand (A/N: Thinking that she had to, to get through the well and all that jazz…muahahaha!) 'Okay Tetsuka…do your stuff…' She could hear the miko in her mind laughing softly (A/N: I'm laughing too). 'Okay, Kagome. Go on.' They jumped into the well, Sesshoumaru grateful that he'd be able to breathe properly again.

:-

"YOU SAID WHAT?" Sango repeatedly smashed the hiraikotsu over Inuyasha's head, and the other three refused to stop her. Miroku and Shippou were helping, and Kiseki refused to go near him. Inuyasha had explained what had happened. Sango, Miroku, and Shippou had just sat there for about a half-an-hour, pissed at him, yet more shocked that he and Kagome were not dead. Then, Inuyasha had let slip exactly what he had said and done, hence the head-beating he'd received.

:-

Kagome watched as Sesshoumaru 'discreetly' batted at his nose, trying to rid himself of the thick, polluted fumes that had intoxicated his sense of smell. She impulsively (and slightly sympathetically) kissed him on the nose. (A/N: AAAW! Come on, say it with me! Aaaawww…Sorry, shutting up.) Sesshoumaru was debating whether to be pissed, amused, ambivalent, or happy when Kagome pressed her lips to his.
She arched toward him slightly as he deepened the kiss. He hadn't realized that he was holding his breath until he let out a sigh. Her fingers were sliding along his stripes, barely touching his skin, yet sending electric jolts through his veins. She smiled, somewhat starry-eyed, as they parted. "Shall we fly away on your cloud, now?" He was trying his best to appear offended. (A/N: It wasn't working very well.) "Yes. I believe we shall."

:-

Can we train today? He nodded. "I think that you have sufficiently recovered from your over-exertion. Retrieve your katana." She smiled. "I've already got it with me."

:-

Kagome listened closely to Tetsuka (in her mind of course) for instructions. She nodded, seemingly to herself, and concentrated on her strategy. This was something that she had never heard of a miko using. She extended Awaiseikou, channeling her power into it, and smiled proudly as wisps of rose-colored stars streamed from the end of the katana, combining to create the form of a rope. The taut bonds curled around Sesshoumaru, locking his limbs to his body. The expression of shock on his face nearly made her laugh aloud. The great Lord Sesshoumaru of the Western Lands was finally showing some sort of emotion without trying to conceal it. (A/N: About time, too. I'm thinking he was too shocked to stop himself.) He futilely tried to escape, and she snorted in soft laughter. "You find this amusing, wench?" he growled. "Actually, yup." She grinned. "Now…who wins?" she demanded in a sing-song voice. "Surely you jest."
"Nuh-uh. Who. Wins." He muttered something. "Sorry, I didn't catch that, Sesshoumaru-sama. Would you mind repeating it for me?"
"You do…"
"Much better!" The bonds disintegrated, and he immediately lunged, catching her by surprise. "You did not allow me to finish. You do…not." She scowled. "Not fair! You cheated!" He shrugged. "Would you expect a fair fight from any other demon that might attack you? Do you expect Naraku to fight fairly?"

"No," she admitted. "I am preparing you to fight a cheater, and a foul one." He released her. "The last time I checked, you were not so in control over your miko power. What happened to change this?"
"Nothing."
"You deceive me. I can smell it." She winced. "It's kind of…private."
"You are in no position to omit anything."
"You'd think I was crazy."
"I shall be the judge of that."
"Fine. I just discovered a little voice inside my head, which is actually an ancient miko named Tetsuka, and she has decided that since I am pure, she's going to grant me her power, and teach me how to use it."

"…"

"I told you."
"You assume that because I do not speak, that I doubt you."
"Yeah, seems that way."

"I assure you, it is the opposite." She sighed. "I really don't understand much more than what I told you." He nodded in acceptance. "I see. Then…you have been conversing with this Tetsuka in your mind?"
"I know it sounds crazy."

"Do you think me ignorant? I know that you no longer deceive me with omission. I smell such things, and sense them, remember? That is not to mention that you are a terrible liar."
"Oh…yeah. Right."

"Why did you not go with him?" She glanced at him in surprise. "Huh?"
"Inuyasha. Why did you not go with him?" She almost laughed, but tears were strangling her. "He chose her, Sesshoumaru. He trusted her over me."
"But is it only that? I wonder if that was merely the last infraction that you could withstand before breaking."
"…"
"Kagome."
"…"
"Answer me."
"It killed me inside, always catching him with that bitch." Her tone was cold, and she tried to keep it lifeless, so as not to become incoherent with sobs. "It ripped me apart, that he always, always compared him to his precious Kikyou. I don't think he even realized that I was not merely a replica of her until we were both on the brink of death at her hands." Tears now streamed freely down her cheeks. He reached down and swept a droplet from her skin. "I have always said that my brother was a fool." She tried to laugh, but it came out as a bitter gasp. "He is an idiot…but I suppose, in his way, he loved me, even a little bit. That was what kept me with him. I had to hold on to that last glimmer of hope. I didn't know where I belonged anymore. I still don't. My era is where I was born, it is where everyone says that I should be, and I miss Gramps, Souta, Mom, and Buyo. But, I can't just leave this era. I can't leave Shippou, Sango, Miroku, Kirara. I couldn't leave Inuyasha. I can't leave Rin…I can't leave…" 'You.'
"And what are you holding onto now? Is there truly hope for you and Inuyasha?"
"There is someone else keeping me back now."

LB: Fluffy? Good? No cliffy. R&R so that I feel special and write faster! Bribery does work! That last part made me cry inside, writing it. I think I've had too much caffeine, though...