Chapter 8

Two Hearts: One Torn, One Broken

"I'm going home!" Kagome called as she got back to the others. Koga and Elli were talking and laughing, as were Sango and Miroku, and Shippo, Kirara, and the saber demons were napping when Kagome burst on the scene, with her face bright red and tears streaking down her face.

"What's wrong?" Sango asked.

"What'd that mangy mutt do to you, Kagome!" Koga called.

"Nothing! I just wanna go home!" Kagome stormed off to the Bone Eater's Well. Elli ran after her.

"Kagome, what's wrong? Please tell me." By now, Kagome was sitting on the edge of the well, looking down.

"I don't plan to come back, so give this to... him." She took the Shikon Jewel from her neck and gave it to Elli. It was nearly complete.

"Kagome, was it really that bad?"

"You don't even know. I don't wanna talk about it, I'm leaving for good. Tell the others goodbye."

"Kagome..."

"Goodbye forever, Elli." Kagome jumped into the well and disappeared. Elli put the Shikon Jewel around her neck. 'I can't let her go... How does she go down there? I don't understand...' Elli stood on the edge of the well and looked down.

"You can't follow her, ya know?" Inuyasha said. He was standing behind her. Elli ran up to Inuyasha.

"What'd you do to her! Tell me right now!"

"It doesn't matter, she's not coming back."

"Then go get her!"

"I can't do that, I can't look at her again."

"Wha..." Inuyasha turned the other way. Elli grabbed his face and yanked it down to hers. "Go get her or I'll do it myself."

He stared at her for a moment before yanking his head back. "You can't go get her. Only me and her can go through."

"I can still try." Elli ran over to the well. "Here goes." She jumped in and disappeared. Inuyasha ran to the well in disbelief.

"How can she... I have to go get her before she makes a fool of herself!" he said as he jumped in the well after her. When he got there, Elli was just walking out of the shrine out into the street where boys and girls Kagome's age were passing her. Inuyasha grabbed the hat that Kagome kept for him by the well and put it on. "Elli! Get back here!" he ran out of the shrine as she crossed the street.

"You'll have to come get me, Inuyasha! By the way, which way is Kagome's house? Oh, there it is! I've seen pictures!" she shot off quick as lightning to the house.

"Gah!" Inuyasha bounded after her, making everyone stop and stare at them.

Elli arrived at Kagome's house and knocked on the door. Just as Kagome's mother answered, Inuyasha showed up. "Hi, are you Mrs. Higurashi?" Elli asked.

"Yes, are you one of Kagome's friends?"

"You could say that."

"Oh." She looked behind Elli and saw Inuyasha. "Hello, Inuyasha!"

"Hey, Mrs. Higurashi."

"Kagome just got back crying her heart out. Did something happen? Did you come back for her?"

"I came back after Elli, here, and I don't wanna talk about why."

"So, Elli, you're from Inuyasha's time?"

"Yes. I need to talk to Kagome, if that's okay with you."

"Of course! Follow me." Kagome's mother led Elli and Inuyasha to Kagome's room, where she knocked. "Kagome? There's someone here to see you."

"Who is it?"

"Her name is Elli."

"Elli! How'd she..., never mind. Let her in, please." Elli and Inuyasha walked into her room and her mother shut the door. Kagome looked at Elli, and then at Inuyasha who was standing behind Elli with his head hung down. "I didn't know HE was with you."

"I'm sorry, he followed me."

"How'd you get here in the first place?"

"I really don't know. I followed you! Look, I want to know what's going on with you two. Stop acting like babies and deal with it already. We're all mature here, we can handle it. What's going on?"

"I don't wanna talk about it around him."

"Fair enough." Elli picked up Inuyasha and threw him out of her window.

"Hey, what the!" he yelled as she threw him. "Thanks a lot, Elli!"

"No problem! Stay down there for a bit."

"Whatever." He jumped up into a tree and sat there, contemplating.

"Now, tell me what's going on, Kagome."

"Inuyasha... and Kikyo... they... they... when I was gone, they... I can't even say it."

"You mean..."

"Yes." Kagome was beginning to cry again. "I can't believe it, I thought he loved me more than Kikyo!"

"Oh Kagome..." Elli walked over to Kagome and hugged her. "I'm so sorry. But he does love you, don't you see? His heart is torn between the two women that he holds dearest; one he loved, and one he loves. Kagome, a part of his heart will always be with Kikyo, and another part with you. He does love you, but he doesn't want to hurt you."

"But he is, Elli. This hurts worse than anything I've ever felt. He... he broke my heart. I had hoped that we could be together, but that was foolish of me. He'd rather be with Kikyo."

"That's not true! I know Inuyasha is just as confused as you are, and what he did was his own decision. Why is what he did with her a huge problem?"

"I just thought..."

"Oh, I understand now. You thought that Inuyasha and yourself would share that moment together instead of with someone else."

Kagome blushed. "I suppose so."

"Tell him how you feel. Tell him what you just told me."

"I can't!"

"Why not? You'll feel so much better after you do."

"I guess you're right."

"I'll call him in. Inuyasha!"

"What?"

"Come in here, Kagome wants to speak with you."

Inuyasha hesitated before coming back in her window. "I'll leave you two alone." Elli walked out of the room and talked with Mrs. Higurashi.

Inuyasha and Kagome looked at each other. Inuyasha spoke first. "Kagome, I didn't realize you were listening."

"I'm glad I was. Now I know the truth about you, me, and Kikyo. And I uncovered some things about myself as well. I realized that the reason it made me so mad was because..." She blushed. "Because I wanted that to be OUR moment, I guess."

Inuyasha's eyes got huge.

"You already know that I love you, it's easy to tell. But what you didn't know was that I was ready to spend the rest of my life with you, Inuyasha. I was so in love with you that if you told me to, I'd do anything for you. At the snap of your fingers, I would have been yours. But then, I heard you talking about what you and Kikyo did, and it crushed me. I've never felt that much pain in my entire life, Inuyasha. And it's all your fault."

Inuyasha was still caught up on what she had said in the beginning. 'Our moment?' he thought. 'Was she really willing to do that with me?' "Kagome, I had no idea you felt this way. I didn't want to hurt you by telling you."

"Well this hurts more, Inuyasha."

"I realize that what I did was wrong, especially since Kikyo really doesn't love me in return. I know I shouldn't love her, but I do, and I can't deny it. But you still mean a lot to me, Kagome, and there's no way that I'd hurt you like this on purpose. She tricked me, that night. I thought she really cared. I thought she really loved me, until I woke up and she was gone. And the next time I saw her she tried to kill me, like before. I swear, I wouldn't have done this to hurt you, Kagome."

"Is that true? Did she really trick you?"

"Yes, Kagome. I'm not going to lie to you. She really tricked me."

"Do you... still care about me? Did you ever?"

"Of course! What a stupid question! I really and truly do love you, Kagome, and I always will. Don't ever doubt that for a second, ya got that?"

"Mm-hm. It's just, now I know what really happened and I feel really stupid for telling you all that."

He laughed. "Don't. It's good to know how you really feel."

"I still feel stupid."

"Women." He rolled his eyes. "So are you gonna come back or what? Because if you're not, I'll have to use Elli to find the shards, and it's not certain that she'll stay with us."

Kagome wiped her tears away and chuckled. "Yes, I'll come back."

"HURRAY!" Elli burst in the door, she had been listening the whole time.

"Elli! How long have you been there?"

"Since your little brother started telling me how pretty I was. I got creeped out. So I came and eavesdropped! And it's great that you're coming back!"

"Talk about invading our privacy!" Inuyasha yelled.

"Calm down, it's not that big a deal. Now let's go before Sango, Miroku, and my pride get worried!"

The three walked to the well and headed back, Inuyasha and Kagome's hearts finally healed.