Chapter One

"The Tragic Death of Kikyou"

As Inuyasha's eyes filled with wet tears, he felt as if part of his soul was gone; ripped away by his now mortal enemy, Naraku. "I won't let you get away with this, Naraku," he spoke slowly to himself. Rising to his feet, propping himself up with his sword. "You took her away from me once, but now you've made me truly despise you for what you have done…"

Kagome stood from afar, watching Inuyasha feel remorseful. So, Kikyou was gone, she thought. In the past, these words would have been a grateful reason for her to be happy; a reason for her to have Inuyasha all to herself. But the truth was, she felt like a part of her was gone. She was, indeed, Kikyou's reincarnation, and she knew that this would not bode well with Inuyasha. It would make him even more determined to kill Naraku. Which seemed impossible since he was even more stronger now….

"Kagome-sama, come with us. Leave him be for a little," Miroku said to Kagome, urging her with his hand.

"Y-yes," she said, looking back at Inuyasha. She wanted nothing more than to ease his pain.

- - -

"Kagome-chan, you seem upset," Sango said as she poured Kagome a cup of tea. They were in the deep forest now, and were near a fire. Inuyasha told them he would be back later, but Kagome still felt worried for his sake. Would he really be okay?

"Kagome-sama, don't worry about Inuyasha. He'll be alright," Miroku added as he sat against a tree. "He's just going through heartbreak. This is indeed the second time he has lost her, but now he knows what it feels like to almost watch her die."

Sango nodded as she held Kagome's hand. "Miroku's right, Kagome-chan. Before he didn't get to see her die, because he was put to sleep by the enchanted arrow; but now he is alive and feels remorse for her. Even though they were at war."

Kagome looked down at her teacup. She felt a pit inside of her stomach that would not go away, even as she drank her tea. She wished Inuyasha would have never had to go through all the pain he had just for Kikyou. She knew Naraku was truly a monster for making this possible….

"Kagome-sama," Miroku said. "Do you…love Inuyasha?"

Kagome looked at Miroku. Her heart raced at this. She knew the answer was very well a 'yes', but she didn't want them to know about it. It was a secret she had kept to herself for a long time…and she planned for it to stay that way.

"Houshi-sama, do not ask Kagome that question."

Miroku looked at Sango in curiosity. "And why is that?"

"Because it's true. And Kagome already has enough on her plate right now, let alone your probing questions."

Miroku sighed. "It's not like she does love him--"

Kagome shook her head. She got up from her spot on the ground and stomped off. She didn't need this right now, nor did she ever. How could her friends do this to her? Especially when they damn right knew the answer of how she felt about Inuyasha.

As she stood by a pond, her reflection shined back at her. She looked sad and remorseful, and for an instant she saw Kikyou's reflection looking directly at her. Kagome shook her head and her reflection turned back to normal. She leaned against a nearby tree and sighed. What she needed was to relax. She had a lot of pressure on her right now, especially about Inuyasha. She wondered if he was okay, and if he wasn't, would he ever be the same again? It was true that Kagome had never seen this side of him before, but even thought it was new to her, she imagined he had felt this way before but hid it so Kagome or the others didn't have to see it. Kagome wondered if he ever stopped loving Kikyou, because the reason he was feeling this way was because he loved her still. Kagome knew he would never open his heart again to love Kagome, and Kagome felt a sudden pain for this.

Because even though Kikyou loved him, Kagome's love for Inuyasha was forever….