-Sniffle- I felt so bad about doing that to Naomi! Sob I didn't even see that one coming, it just kind of happened! Just to warn you, when I wrote this chapter, I was in a really dark and depressed mood. So when the title says "deep sorrow" then that means that's what's going to be in it. Lots of sorrow. This chapter is just another trying part of Moyuru's already arduous life. -Sigh- Well, I have a few more elements of my story kick in in this chapter, I show my all grown up side. (Not that I haven't already) I also decided to update on Friday because I won't be here on Monday. R&R!

Mayu Kitsune

A Deep Sorrow

Moyuru opened her eyes when she didn't feel any pain. Wasn't there supposed to be at least a little? Death by sword couldn't really be that painless. A pair of bare feet were planted in front of her.

Her gaze slowly traveled upwards, "Inuyasha?" she questioned quietly.

The man that had handled the sword stared blankly at the broken end that he now held.

"Back off." Inuyasha growled, "It's not her fault that all of this happened so don't go blaming it on her!"

"Are you blind? Can't you see that she's covered in blood?" the man asked heatedly as Miroku and Sango both helped to free Moyuru.

"It's not human blood, it's demon blood. If you're doin' anything you should be thanking her for killing off a few youkai." Inuyasha retorted.

Moyuru got to her feet, standing there and trembling for a few moments. Her eyes traveled to Naomi before she teared up and wordlessly darted off, shoving her way through part of the small crowd and not even once looking back.

"Moyuru wait! Where are you going?" Sango called after her, she only continued to run.

"Let her go, we don't need her around here causing any more problems anyway." the man said as he threw down what was left of the sword. The crowd began to disperse after a few of the villagers had taken Naomi's body off to be buried. Mr. and Mrs. Tanaka had seemed pretty upset about Naomi's death as well. They had only taken care of the little girl for a few weeks, but already they had gotten so attached.

Mrs. Tanaka approached Inuyasha as he stared off in the direction that Moyuru had run in. "Please find her." the old woman said.

Inuyasha looked to her as she gained his attention.

"When you find her, let her know that we don't hate her. . . I know she must feel like she let Naomi down. I want her to know that she has friends. Would you do that for an old woman?" Mrs. Tanaka asked quietly.

"I'll tell her." Inuyasha said before beginning to walk towards the woods.

"You're going after her again?" Shippo asked.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Inuyasha prompted sarcastically.

Kagome didn't even hesitate before speaking, "We're coming with you."

"No, she doesn't need everyone going up to her at once, she'd probably just start running again. I'm one of the only people she trusts so I have to go get her" Inuyasha replied though he sounded a bit annoyed.

Kagome looked to him distrustfully. Why was he acting like this towards her all of a sudden? He was acting almost spiteful at times!

"He does have a point." Miroku commented.

Kagome let out a heavy sigh as she seemed to let it go.

"Besides, the least I could do is get the jewel shards back from her when she decides that she doesn't wanna come back." Inuyasha muttered as he began on his way.

"Jewel shards? Is that all he cares about?" Shippo exclaimed once he was sure Inuyasha was out of earshot.

"No, he's just making up an excuse to help her. Seems like he still doesn't want us to think he's gone soft." Sango replied.

"Typical Inuyasha behavior." Miroku agreed.

Kagome was silent, she hadn't liked the way he had regarded her earlier nor the accusation he had made. Had he really thought that she was cheating on him with Hojo? She couldn't help but to worry about what he might do.

A few hours passed and still Inuyasha was out looking for Moyuru. He hadn't started off after her at a run, he thought that she might need some time alone before he talked to her. Talking to someone who had just been through the worst time of their life, he knew, would be just like talking to a brick wall. He knew that he had to give her some time to calm down.

He continued to trace her scent which was laced with the smell of salt from her tears. Why did she just run like that? he thought as he continued on his way, sensing that he was getting closer now. Good, I'm close. . . It's about time, at this rate we're gonna be spending the night out here. he thought as he kept walking.

He was beginning to wonder how far she had gotten. He didn't particularly like the fact that it had nearly taken so long to catch up with her, but he figured that she would stop once she had calmed down enough and would take a break where he could catch up. He had been surprised that she would keep going this long.

The sound of running water could be heard up ahead as her trail approached a stream. Her scent was strong here; she must have chosen the banks of the stream as a resting point. She would have to be exhausted and even though he didn't want to admit it, he was pretty tired himself. It looked like spending the night in the forest was unavoidable.

He suddenly paused as he finally caught up with her, getting there just in time to see her shed the last of her clothing. Man, this made things awkward! A faint blush came to his cheeks as he found himself unable to do anything but stare!

Moyuru's ears twitched as she seemed to sense something. When he was approaching before he wasn't making it a point to be quiet, now he was certainly wishing he did.

Moyuru froze. Who was behind her?

Inuyasha began to panic at the small indication that she had sensed his presence. Oh no! She was going to turn around! What would she do if she saw him there? What could he do? He quickly and silently darted behind a tree just as Moyuru looked in his direction.

Moyuru looked to be confused. No one there? She could have swore that there had been something behind her. She shrugged it off and headed for the stream.

It was nearly the middle of September and the water was cold! She jerked her foot out of it twice as fast as she had put it in. She seemed hesitant yet determined.

She slowly began to ease her way into the stream to bathe. She let out a gasp as the frigid water came higher up on her body. She clenched her eyes shut and wrapped her arms around herself and she began to shiver, but she forced herself to bear it. The blood that covered her was more unbearable. She wanted it off!

The inu hanyou seemed to breathe a quiet sigh of relief when he figured that she hadn't noticed him. That was a close call. What was she doing? He chanced another look, only curious as to what she could be doing in water that cold.

She wasn't doing what he thought she was doing was she? It was too cold to bathe in a stream, Kami Sama knows how cold the water was if the temperature outside was already chilly! She was gonna make herself sick like that!

He was beginning to pull his head back around the tree trunk, figuring that there wasn't much he could do when she pulled her hair in front of her, exposing her back. It wasn't her figure he was staring at but the scars that marked her skin. So many of them, how had she gotten them all?

Dozens of scars marred the skin on her body that was normally covered by her clothes. She couldn't have gotten them all on the night they had found her! If she had gotten them all at once then she definitely wouldn't have survived! What all had she been through?

Some of them were pretty nasty looking, it made Inuyasha wonder. It was nearly as though her past experiences had been painfully etched into her skin never to be removed, constantly there to remind her of what had been done to her. No wonder she couldn't forget. No wonder she was so sad all of the time

Inuyasha jerked his head back behind the tree as she began to turn. He didn't wish for too much of a show. He probably shouldn't have seen what he had already. He could hear the sound of water sloshing around as she continued to bathe, washing away the blood that stained her.

She used what her mother had taught her about certain plants that could be used as a kind of soap to get rid of the smell. She wanted every trace of the blood gone. The color, the smell, all of it!

Moyuru was beginning to get out of the water when she noted her clothing. It was stained and splotched with blood as well. What was it that Akiko had used to get blood stains out of the cloths that she had cleaned her patient's wounds with? Moyuru looked to the water in thought. Hadn't it been cold water? She thought a bit longer before grabbing her clothes off the bank and beginning to do her best to wash them clean.

She knew she would be stuck without clothes for a while while they dried, but she didn't care. She could care less really what happened to her now. She was alone, no one would notice if she died anyway. If she didn't catch something and die then she didn't want to wear clothing that made her look like the walking dead. After a bit of soaking the blood seemed to be coming off and she looked relieved.

What was she doing? Did she wanna catch a cold and die? Inuyasha watched her in confusion from his position behind the tree. Maybe I'll come back a little later when she's not naked. he thought to himself as he got up.

He had to try and sneak away. He didn't want Moyuru to think that he was spying on her or something Miroku-ish. He made sure that she still had her back to him before beginning to move, watching her extra closely as he came into full view.

Perhaps he was watching her too cautiously and not where he was going. He froze as there was an ominous and quite noticeable snap. Damn twig! he thought as he looked down at the stick that had foiled his escape attempt.

Moyuru whirled, sure that there was something there this time! She let out a cry of surprise as she noticed Inuyasha.

Startled, he didn't think before looking to her. He blushed beat-red and his eyes went a bit wide, he was now wishing that he had thought first. He had just gotten a view he hadn't wanted and all he could do was gape! He quickly averted his gaze to the ground as Moyuru pulled her wet clothes up hastily to cover her nakedness.

There was an awkward silence between the two of them as they looked away from each other, both of them blushing. "W-what are you doing here?" Moyuru stammered timidly after a moment.

Inuyasha chanced another look at her, feeling a bit relieved when he found that she had somewhat covered herself. "I-I came to look for you." he replied sheepishly.

Moyuru was silent.

"What are you thinking anyway? You're going to catch hypothermia like that you idiot." Inuyasha said gruffly, still keeping his gaze trained on the ground.

He grew a bit more nervous as she got out of the water. He slowly looked to her.

She was violently shivering, her lips having nearly turned blue from the cold. The temperature had been a bit chilly to start with and had started plummeting after the sun sank below the horizon.

"Why should you care what happens to me?" she demanded in a shaky voice, now standing near him with her wet clothes clutched to her front. She was soaked through! Even her hair was wet!

Inuyasha again averted his gaze, beginning to take off his outer kimono.

"What are you doing?" Moyuru questioned shyly.

"Here, put this on, it's dry." he replied simply as he held it out to her, still not looking at her.

She took it with a shaking hand, "Um. . . thanks. . ." she offered quietly before heading towards the bushes.

Why did he care? She had messed up so much, why did he still care what happened to her? It had been apparent before that they had both had feelings for each other, did he still? After all of this?

When she came back out she had wrapped herself in his kimono top, having used her own sash to tie it closed at her waist. Her sash hadn't gotten too much on it and only required small parts of it to be wet, they had even already dried. She was surprised to see that in the few moments that it took for her to fix the top and squeeze all the excess water she could out of her hair, Inuyasha had already managed to set a camp fire. Moyuru hesitantly sat down near it, hugging her knees to her chest.

"Looks like we're going to be camping out here tonight." Inuyasha grumbled half-heartedly.

Moyuru didn't offer a response. The kimono had helped, but only a little bit. Moyuru still shivered, wrapping her arms around herself.

Inuyasha gave her a troubled look, "What were you thinking? Only an idiot gets in water when it's this cold without anything to change into after the fact."

Moyuru sent him a sharp look, "Why did you come look for me?" she demanded quietly, "I want to be alone."

Inuyasha crossed his arms, "I only came because I didn't want the others to bug me about it." he answered indignantly, not looking to her as he did so.

"You wouldn't have this problem if I had just died." Moyuru muttered before looking to him, hurt clearly showing in her eyes, "Why didn't you just let me die?" she asked in a pained voice. Her eyes focused on him as she waited for an answer. Her gaze was cold, almost as though she were mad at him.

He looked to her in confusion, "What are you saying?" he asked.

"You shouldn't have interfered! I wanted to die!" she cried.

Inuyasha looked visibly shocked. Was that why she hadn't fought back against the villagers when they were obviously going to have her killed?

She clenched the cloth of the sleeves in her fists and was silent as she forced herself to stay calm. Her eyes slowly seemed to travel to her weapons that sat beside her, the cold metal of them glinting in the firelight.

She began to reach for one and Inuyasha's eyes went wide. She wouldn't! "What are you doing!" he yelled as got up to take her sais from her.

She didn't hesitate to snatch one, getting to her feet and backing away, the long prong positioned over her own heart. "Don't even bother trying to stop me." she growled at him as she gripped the handle tightly. Her hands were shaking, did she even have the strength to do it?

Inuyasha didn't want to chance it, "Don't do something stupid Moyuru, put it down!" he exclaimed.

"Why should I?" she demanded, glaring at him though tears began to stream down her face.

Inuyasha stood there as his mind raced. What could he do? He did have doubts that she would actually do it, but was he entirely wrong? Judging from the situation, it looked as though she would.

"The world's better off without me." she stated quietly, "No one would miss me anyway. . ."

She took a shuddering breath and clenched her eyes shut. She was going to do it!

"No, stop you idiot!" Inuyasha yelled as he lunged for her, catching hold of her wrists and gripping them firmly.

She began to struggle with him but his grip didn't loosen. "Let go!" she protested.

"No." Inuyasha retorted, gripping her wrists even tighter.

"Why?"

"Because you're wrong!"

She looked up to him.

"Someone would miss you, that old couple told me to let you know that they're your friends and they don't want you do go off and do something stupid like this!" he stated firmly.

"That's them, what should it matter to you?" she demanded.

"Damn it Moyuru! It's because I care about you too, is it really all that hard to understand?" he shouted without a second thought, looking her in the eyes as he did so. He wasn't lying.

She paused in her struggling. Staring up to him in shock and disbelief. He cared? About her?

"Just drop it will you?" he said quietly.

She didn't look away from him as her fingers loosened their grip on the handle of her sai and it fell from her shaking hands, landing in the ground between them. She fell into him, breaking into sobs.

He let go of her wrists and gently put his arms around her, nowhere near as hesitant as he had been that night nearly a month ago when she had turned human.

Her skin was cold to the touch and her hair was still sopping wet. She shook not only from her crying but from the cold. "You're freezing!" Inuyasha exclaimed, he nearly felt like he was hugging a big block of ice!

She didn't respond as her crying began to die down and she began to weaken. Soon she was nearly limp in his arms. She was exhausted, cold, and hungry, and she was falling asleep. He couldn't let her fall asleep! Hypothermia could have set in, sleeping could be fatal!

"Moyuru, wake up." he said, shaking her a lightly.

She became a bit more conscious, her shivering starting back in full force. "I'm tired though." she protested quietly.

"You can't fall asleep." he stated firmly.

"But-"

"You can't fall asleep. You stayed in that water too long, it's your own fault. If you go to sleep now then you probably won't wake up." Inuyasha interjected indignantly. He scooped her up, moving her closer to the fire and setting her down. He then sat himself down behind her, hugging her to him in an attempt to warm her up. "You shouldn't have even gotten in that damn stream, then you wouldn't be in this mess." he grumbled.

"I had blood all over me. . . I couldn't stand it." she said in nearly a whisper.

He didn't reply, he knew how she felt.

Moyuru snuggled into him, still shivering. Inuyasha blinked, turning a bit red as he began to blush. He hadn't noticed it until now, but he had gotten himself into an awkward situation. It had felt so natural to want to help her before that he hadn't noticed the fact until now. The nervous feeling he was getting, it was the way he used to feel around Kagome.

"I'm sorry." Moyuru said quietly after a while, she was beginning to look better now that she was getting warmer.

"Sorry?" Inuyasha echoed.

"Yeah, I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused. You and your friends save me and look how I repay you. I should have died then, then none of this would have happened." she stated.

"Would ya stop talking like that!" Inuyasha said indignantly.

"Why does that old couple still care? I failed Naomi. She died because I couldn't protect her and I said that I would. How can they still care about me? The failure?" Moyuru asked in a pained voice. It confused her, she had caused them so much trouble, people died because of her yet they still cared.

Inuyasha hesitated before answering, "You can't just stop caring about someone." he replied, "Some people you care about no matter what they do."

Moyuru looked to him in question. Inuyasha loosened his hold on her, allowing her to turn, her shoulder now resting against his chest as she looked to him. His eyes stayed focused on the ground for a few moments.

He hadn't stopped caring about Kikyo, even after everything she had put him and Kagome through and now he had two people he cared about a lot. He would never stop caring about them either, no matter what happened.

"The only three people that ever really cared about me are dead." Moyuru muttered.

"Weren't you listening to a thing I said earlier?" Inuyasha questioned indignantly.

Moyuru nodded, "Yes, I heard you," she said, trying to catch his gaze, "But-"

Her words died before they had a chance to be spoken as he looked to her and their eyes met. "I wasn't lying." Inuyasha stated in answer to her unspoken question, "When I said I cared, I meant it."

Was saying that going to be enough? Speaking of which, what was he saying? Why did he feel so strongly for her all of a sudden? The question seemed to be pushed back to the back of his mind as he stared into her eyes. The sorrow that was there . . . he felt like doing anything to make it go away. "I care about you." he repeated

"So that's why you wouldn't let me die? Even when I wanted to?" she asked as they drew closer to eachother.

"Yeah." he replied quietly.

"Was that the only reason?" Moyuru questioned.

There was no more need for words as their lips came together in a passionate kiss. Moyuru's heart raced and butterflies flitted in her stomach. The cold no longer seemed to matter. Was this what love felt like?

It engulfed her in it's comforting embrace. All of her previous problems suddenly meant nothing. Her emotions went crazy, raging in a mix of affection, excitement and even fear. She had been hesitant at first, but was soon caught up in the moment. The kiss was slow and gentle, full of feeling . . . unlike anything she had ever felt before.

The butterflies in her stomach intensified as Inuyasha's hands slipped down to the small of her back, unintentionally tugging the cloth of the kimono she wore and causing it to fall off her shoulders a bit.

Moyuru's fingers played with the neck of his under kimono as she absent-mindedly began loosening it. She was getting so carried away! Inuyasha's arms around her had banished all fear that she had before and this was all so new to her.

One of his hands slipped back up to her shoulders and he delicately began tracing one of the scars she had there with his fingers. The scar ran the length of her shoulder up to her neck and his fingers followed it until he had the side of her face gently cupped in his hand.

They finally drew away, looking to one another seemingly still to be in somewhat of a trance. Moyuru suddenly faltered before looking away, her cheeks flushed bright red as she realized what had just happened. Her gaze focused on the ground and her eyebrows furrowed in thought.

What was she doing? She couldn't be with him, why did she kiss him like that? How could she allow herself to give in to her emotions like this? She was depressed and lonely, her feelings were running away with her and she couldn't let them!

But now that she had tasted a kiss, felt what it was like to be handled so gently and lovingly, it was tempting to allow herself to be carried away. No! she scolded herself, You're just messing things up! Stop this! Your emotions are making you vulnerable.

Inuyasha had seemed a bit perturbed too. Somewhere this felt so right, but when he got around Kagome again he knew he would feel guilty. He sent Moyuru a troubled look, was she just feeling the same way because of Kagome too?

"What's wrong?" Inuyasha questioned.

"I'm sorry." Moyuru said quietly, not looking to him and relinquishing her grip on his shirt as she did so, "I shouldn't have done that, you're with Kagome. I'm just messing things up."

"No you're not." Inuyasha answered after a moment.

"Oh, and how am I not?" she questioned.

"Because," he began hesitantly, "I. . . I'm not with Kagome anymore."

Moyuru looked to the inu hanyou in apparent shock, "You're not?" she asked incredulously.

"No, I'm not. At least I'm not gonna be. She's got someone in her own time she's gotten cozy with." he said indignantly though it was only half-hearted.

Moyuru looked to the ground, since she had met them she thought that Inuyasha and Kagome should be together. Besides, there were consequences for the people who got too close to her, she didn't want to risk losing someone else she loved.

"I still shouldn't have done that though. . . It would be better if you didn't. . ."

"What are you talking about? I told you to stop talking like that!" Inuyasha said indignantly.

"It's true though, everyone that gets close to me dies! My mother, Seiya, Naomi. . . they're all dead because they got close to me! I don't want the same to happen to you." Moyuru stated sadly, her voice only rising for a moment.

Inuyasha kept his indignant expression, "It won't happen to me so stop worrying about it! You're always thinking about everyone else!" he retorted in a nearly scolding tone, "You've been beat up enough trying to take care of the world." he added as he noted the scars on her exposed shoulders.

She hadn't even bothered to pull the kimono top back up having not noticed that it had fallen down a bit. Only now had she become conscious of it. She pulled the kimono top back up to where it had been, hiding the scars from Inuyasha's view, "Yeah? How many people do you think have gotten beat up or died trying to protect me?" she asked.

"Don't you remember what I said before? I told you that we travel around, you wouldn't be staying in one place." Inuyasha stated irritably, "Wouldn't ya at least consider giving it a chance?"

"I-I don't know. . ." Moyuru stated quietly.

"You would be with friends. Danger's nothing new to them anyway." Inuyasha mentioned, trying to sway her. His tactic seemed to be working.

"Okay. . . I'll give it a shot." Moyuru answered quietly, sounding sleepy now.

Inuyasha embraced her, "That's good." he said quietly.

He allowed her to fall asleep now that she was no longer in danger of dying from the cold. Soon she was out, her cheek resting against his chest where he had now just noticed that his shirt was half open. He blushed, had they really gotten that carried away?

Moyuru's breathing evened out as she went into a peaceful rest for the first time in a while. With her ear against Inuyasha's chest, she could hear his heartbeat and it had worked to lull her to sleep.

Inuyasha had never seemed to notice it until now, but she looked so fragile like this. She scarred so easily and her very body against him felt delicate and frail. She must've felt so much better with his arms wrapped around her . . . she must've felt protected.

Moyuru needed him and he wanted to protect her. He liked it so much better when she was sleeping like this instead of tossing and turning in a restless slumber as she had all the other nights. He could do it, he no longer had to worry about Kagome. . . she had found someone else.

Suzushi glanced around the forest where nearly a dozen demons lay dead, their mangled bodies littering the area. The air was thick with the scent of blood, reeked of death. Suzushi had been surprised to find that Moyuru had been the one to create the horrific scene before him though the shock hadn't shown on his face. His soldiers seemed unnerved and reluctant to enter the area.

Suzushi suddenly paused upon catching sight of his sister. Her body rested against a tree trunk, just as mangled as the rest of them. She was nearly unrecognizable if it hadn't have been for her scent.

Suzushi ventured over to her, standing near her and looking down on her before giving a hollow laugh, "Michiko, you had a lot of room to talk earlier about failure, but I'm sure you didn't see this one coming. . . Of course you didn't, your sword still rests in it's sheath. For the record sister, I pity you." he said, talking more to himself than anything. He turned and began to walk away.

"Su. . . zu. . . shi. . ." a weak voice whimpered.

Suzushi stopped dead in his tracks, only turning his head to look back at Michiko. She still lay against the tree though now her eyes were half open. She flinched in pain as she reached a hand towards her brother, using nearly all of her strength just to do so.

She's still alive? Suzushi thought.

Michiko took in a deep breath as she prepared to speak again, flinching with every little movement. "Help me. . . brother. . . please. . ." she said weakly.

Suzushi began to ignore her and continue to walk but instead he backtracked and carefully picked her up. It didn't matter how rotten she was, she was still his sister. "Leave the rest of them, let's move out." he ordered calmly, walking off with his sister in his arms.

Although he would never admit it, he felt anger towards Moyuru for what she had done to Michiko. She would pay for it and pay dearly. He realized now that there was no room for play and childish taunts. Moyuru was serious and he would be as well.

The next time he and Moyuru met, she wouldn't be so lucky. But for now he would lie low, she was obviously much stronger than they all thought. He would learn more about her before confronting her again. She was safe from him, for now.

So, how was that? Please don't kill me people! I know that my summary said that this was an Inuyasha/Kagome thing and it will be! It's just that this whole Hojo thing's gotta be resolved first. . . and then there's the matter of pairing Moyuru up with someone! Suggestions are always good!

Anyway, did I get anyone really out of character or did I keep it in check? That's my big question. I really have NEVER written anything that involves two characters kissing. This is the very first time. Honest opinions are extremely appreciated on this matter, I really want to know how I'm doing. I made it a point not to do like a lot of other fan fics have done and have the female character and male character all over each other in the first couple of chapters. Those kind of annoy me. Well, REVEIW!

PREVIEW!

Chapter 19: Changes

Now Moyuru and Inuyasha return to the village feeling a little uneasy about going back considering what's happened. The rest of the gang is happy for their return while the villagers aren't so thrilled. Will Moyuru be openly rejected again or will the villagers learn to accept her? How will Kagome act towards the two hanyou when she learns of Inuyasha's decision? Get ready for the chapter that changes everything and rocks all of the character's worlds!

Plenty of questions to be answered!

THANKS TO THOSE THAT HAVE REVIEWED ALREADY!

Mayu Kitsune