Disclaimer: Do you think I would let Kikyo die TWO times if I owned Inuyasha?

A/N. Whoopee! I finally updated! xD Sorry for the late update, folkies, but I had writer's block. T.T And spring break is almost over...T.T; Can't wait till summer! ;D Hope you like this chappie!


Chapter 11 - Aika

Inuyasha covered his nose with the sleeve of his Fire Rat cloak, choking slightly from the suffocating the smoke. Even with the thick fabric covering his sensitive nose, the smoke was strong enough to suffocate him. His lungs were having difficulty taking in fresh air, and his eyes were slightly watering in protest. The burning heat of the gas caused sweat to flood from the pores in his skin. This couldn't be a mere gas!

No, this was no ordinary gas.

It was so strong he could smell it through the fabric of his cloak. He was even suffering from the stench!

It smelled strong...harmful...disgusting...poisonous.

Miasma?

Miasma...!

The salty liquid in his eyes disappeared gradually, while his lungs were wheezing softly to take in air. His sensitive nose slowly calmed down, finally satisfied from not being overhwhelmed by the horrible smell any longer.

Inuyasha lifted his arm away from his face. The miasma had vanished, but the disgusting stench still lingered.

Just as that demon did...

Inuyasha frowned angrily, confusion and rage overcoming him. Who was that demon?

Where did he run off to?

Did he have a connection with Kikyo or himself?

Who was he...?

He recalled the demon's last words before escaping. "I have done nothing. It is what you have done."

He scowled angrily and irritatedly, wondering what that could possibly mean.

What had he, Inuyasha, done?

Had he done something wrong?

What was that demon talking about?

Inuyasha shook his head vigurously. It didn't matter. All he needed to know was that demon wasn't Kikyo.

Kikyo...

His head snapped up to whirl this way and that, his eyes darting everywhere, hoping they would catch a trace of the priestess.

Kikyo.

Where was she?

Was she okay?

Was she hurt?

Inuyasha frowned, sniffing the air. Aside from the demon's faint scent and the stench of the miasma, he could pick up her scent - barely perceptible. It seemed far off, yet somehow, it was strong...in a strange way.

Inuyasha's golden orbs widened in horror and shock. This smell was indeed Kikyo's, but it wasn't the usual fragrance of her very skin. The scent that whisked through his nostrils at that moment was a bitter yet sweet smell, so strong that his heart sank with dread and fear as realization dawned on him.

Blood...?

Blood...

There was no doubt about it. The scent of a human's blood and skin was similiar, yet slightly different. The scent of flesh was different for each human. Each human had a different scent. Kikyo's scent was sweet and fresh and piney, like honey or maple sugar. However, blood was more bitter and pungent, and much more strong.

He smelled her familiar fragrance, yet it was dipped into a bitter aura. For the first time in his life, he was frightened.

How badly was Kikyo hurt?

Would she be okay?

Will she...die?

Die!

No, she wouldn't die!

Not now.

Not ever.

He wouldn't allow her to die!

Inuyasha sniffed the air again before sprinting off in the direction of her scent. Kikyo...Please be okay...


Kikyo winced and breathed in deeply, her unsteady, loud pants for life causing her heart to sink with dread. Her fingers dug into the tree's trunk as she leaned against it weakly, using the tree to support her feeble body.

Why...?

Why was she so weak!

She was foolish. Foolish, foolish!

She lifted her head slightly up, grinding her teeth together slightly.

What a pathetic fool she was!

To think that she succumbed to Tsubaki's stupid curse...

To think that loving one who didn't love her back decreased her powers and strength...

To think that she believed Inuyasha truly loved her...

To think that her suffering...was because of her foolishness!

Foolish, foolish, foolish...!

She wanted to laugh at her misery, cry at her loss, and run away from everything all at once. This was so horrible that she just wanted to wake up from this terrible nightmare.

Perhaps this was a nightmare.

Perhaps...perhaps she could wake up if she tried hard enough...and then...she could smile and laugh and cry in Inuyasha's arms.

Kikyo's head hung again, concealing her eyes from view. Inuyasha...

How had in come to this?

Oh, what a fool she had been. Tsubaki had placed a curse on her, and she allowed her to, then permitted herself to give her heart to another, only to be broken into a million pieces.

She had been arrogant and cocky, thinking she''d never fall in love. But she never imagined that she'd meet someone like Inuyasha.

His sympathetic and loving expression was a mere mask to hide his true face, a sickening, sadistic soul.

He lied to her.

He lied!

And she believed him...and gave him what he wanted.

Inuyasha played with her emotions, as if she were a mere voodoo doll that he would have fun tormenting before tossing it in a blazing fire to burn to a crisp.

It hurt so much.

She thought she'd die alone. Wait...

She would die alone.

Alone.

No...

Alone again.

She couldn't bear it.

She had lived alone.

And now she would die alone.

A horrible death to a horrible life.

They were supposed to live together, as mortals. They were supposed to live together as husband and wife.

She gave him her heart!

And what did he do?

He crushed it. He turned it all around and stole what was hers.

Her life, her dreams, her happiness, the Jewel...

The Jewel...

Kikyo staggered forth a wobbly step, clutching onto another tree for support with one hand, her other hand grasping the wound in her shoulder tightly. The Jewel softly clattered against the bare skin of her collarbone.

Why did Inuyasha take it?

And then leave it at the shrine?

Was this another of his games?

Was he toying with her...?

Again?

She trembled in rage at the thought, unknowingly tightening her harsh grip on her bloody shoulder. So he wasn't finished toying with her yet?

He was still bent on tormenting her before she died?

That scoundrel!

After all she did for him, he still thought of the Jewel.

She was in his way.

So, he did the only thing he knew that would get him the Jewel and the satisfaction of seeing her in pain.

He lied to her and pretended to love her.

He...betrayed her...

Why?

Why did it have to end this way?

They could have been together!

They could have been lovers!

They could have had children!

They could have grown old together!

Why?

Why!

Why?

That single word pounded furiously in her head like a mantra. Kikyo wanted to cry so badly, but she wasn't sure she could if she tried. She didn't even have the strength to cry anymore...

"Kikyo!"

The priestess's head slowly lifted up as she tightened her grip on the tree and her wounded shoulder. She trembled slightly, aware that her breathing was become more louder and her heart was slowly losing life.

She narrowed her eyes, trying to clear her blurred vision. Gradually, the haze cleared away, but not completely. Her eyes widened in anger and shock as she trembled, clutching her shoulder tighter.

How dare he show his face to her after what he did...!

That scoundrel!

"Inuyasha..." she finally managed to muster through her rage. "I thought you had run away, like the coward you are..."

"Kikyo? What are you talking about?" he demanded in confusion. "Run away...?" His eyes fell upon her shoulder suddenly, only to widen in horror and fear as he watched blood flow from her wounded flesh.

"Kikyo! W-Why are you bleeding?" he questioned in concern, his heart sinking with dread. He had never seen so much blood. Sure, he had killed many demons, but...the amount of blood pouring from Kikyo's wound frightened him.

It was her blood that was being shed, after all.

Kikyo didn't respond for a while, breathing heavily as she glared at him with...hatred?

Hatred?

Kikyo's pale hand removed itself from her shoulder and she held it in front of her, staring at the crimson blood in horror and fear, as if she had just realized that her shoulder was wounded. Her eyes narrowed in remembrance, and Kikyo then glared at Inuyasha again with that raging fire in her eyes, and tears threatened to overflow.

"Why?" Kikyo demanded, her voice shaking with anger and sadness, her entire body trembling with deep sorrow. "Why did you betray me, Inuyasha?"

For a moment, he couldn't speak. What was she talking about?

Betray...?

He would never betray her!

"I don't know what you're talking about! I would never betray you, Kikyo!" He stared helplessly at the wound in Kikyo's shoulder, confusion and bewilderment marked clearly on his face.

Kikyo's knees buckled slightly, and she gasped softly in pain as she used both of her hands to grasp the tree beside her. She regained her strength gradually, and then her hand fell limply by her side. She straightened, her eyes flashing with anger and shimmering liquid.

"You told me you wanted to become human..." she whispered angrily yet sadly. "And I believed those words."

Why did he insist on lying?

She trembled in anger and pain, feeling her warm yet cold blood seep through the fabric of her kimono top. She wanted so badly to believe his words. It would be better to believe his lies than accept the horrible truth...

But she couldn't.

She had been a fool to believe him.

And she would be a fool to believe him now.

"But K-Kikyo! I do want to become human! I -"

"Liar!" she cried out angrily, grabbing the bow strapped to her back as well as an arrow from her quiver. She notched an arrow, glaring at him as the dry click of the string of her bow echoed throughout the area. "Inuyasha...I hate you..." she gritted her teeth angrily, throwing in all of her emotions to clearly emphasize 'hate.'

Inuyasha could do nothing but stare, dumbfounded and hurt.

What was she talking about?

She insisted that he lied and betrayed her!

He would never lie to her!

He woud never betray her!

So why did she believe that he did?

"I have done nothing. It is what you have done."

His eyes widened in remembrance. Of course!

That demon must have wounded Kikyo!

But Inuyasha didn't know why Kikyo thought he betrayed her.

Inuyasha recalled what happened during his encounter with the fake priestess.

That demon tried to make him believe she betrayed him...

So he must have done the same to Kikyo!

His heart rose with relief that he figured out what happened, yet his heart sank again with dread and fear.

That wound...it looked too deep.

Kikyo would...die.

Die.

"Inuyasha, I really trusted you! I really trusted you!" Kikyo cried out angrily yet sorrowfully, rousing him from his terrified thoughts. "Curse you!" she yelled at him, her eyes glistening with wetness as she trembled uncontrollably.

Her eyes flashing with the a blazing fire that seemed to burn through the half-demon, she finally released her arrow, the point of her weapon dipped in a faint, pink glow. The sealing arrow.

"Use it on a demon you cannot defeat."

"They fall into an eternal sleep."

"To wake the demon up, the person simply has to have the desire to remove the arrow."

"It's a time tree. It has the power to transcend time. If a demon is sealed upon this tree, its flesh will not decompose..."

Recalling her own words to her sister, she watched the arrow fly towards the half-demon, her heart sinking heavily as her pants grew louder and more desperate. Kikyo closed her eyes for a split second, questioning herself with confusion.

Why did she use the sealing arrow?

She could have used the purifying arrow and finished him off!

But something within her was holding her back...

What was it?

Inuyasha quickly dodged the arrow, hearing a heavy clunk as the arrow struck the tree behind him. He was thinking the same questions that Kikyo was, wondering why she didn't use her purifying arrow to kill him. His heart sank with horror and dread as he realized something terrible.

If she couldn't even strike him down...that must have meant she was weak.

Dying...

Kikyo's knees buckled again and she slowly sank to her knees, her eyes glistening with tears. Her hand fell from her shoulder, dangling limply by her side. How she had fallen. This was the end for her. She bowed her head slightly, accepting but not forgiving fate.

Why?

Why couldn't she kill him?

Was she too weak?

Was he too quick for her?

Was it that...she still loved him?

No!

Kikyo's trembling gradually slowed down as the liquid in her eyes slowly faded away.

Curse Inuyasha!

Why was he tormenting her like this!

Making her hate and love him at the same time!

She hung her head low, trying to force back the tears. She felt so cold now, so cold that she was frightened.

She didn't make him pay for his betrayal.

She would die alone.

She wouldn't find his spirit in the afterlife.

Her vision blurred quickly and her skin grew cold, as cold as death itself, as her eyelids fell slowly over her dull orbs, welcoming the cold, lonely darkness. She sadly recalled the happy memories they had shared, memories that would be forgotten when life slipped away from her.


"Inuyasha..." Kikyo murmured softly, breaking the long silence, her chocolate eyes growing soft and tender as she turned her head gracefully to look at him. The breeze blew her raven locks delicately across her pale face. "What do you see in me?"

If she could ask anyone, it'd be Inuyasha. He'd answer bluntly. Yet Kikyo didn't care how blunt and hurtful his response would seem. Kikyo needed a truthful opinion, and she could recieve one from Inuyasha.

"Eh?" Inuyasha said crossly.

"Do I seem...ordinary to you?" Kikyo questioned quietly, waiting patiently for the response she wished to hear.

"Eh! What are you talking about?" Inuyasha demanded.

"I can't show any signs of weakness to anybody. I mustn't be indecisive. Because then demons would use it against me," Kikyo explained softly. She wondered why she was revealing her weakness to him - a demon. A threat. Yet, he possessed human blood, and she could sense purity beneath that cold heart.

"That's why...that's why I couldn't kill you. You and I are alike..." He fought for his humanity, as she did. They were both outcasts, their hearts filled with longing and loneliness. They wished to walk the path of what they wished to be - him, yearning to become a demon, and her, wishing to become a woman. It was rather strange, them having more similarities than differences even though their species were clearly different.

Inuyasha turned away from her and scoffed. "Keh, quit whining! We all have our crosses to bear!"

Kikyo blinked at the vehemence with which he spoke, but rather strangely his words did not hurt her. Inuyasha expected her to rise to his bait and reveal hurtful or angry feelings. Here she was, pouring out her sadness to him, and he acted as if he didn't care and told her to stop complaining.

"You're right..." Kikyo admitted softly, her thin lips slowly curving up into a faint smile directed at Inuyasha, the sadness in her eyes never fading. "I shouldn't complain..."


Kikyo caressed the mirror gently with a damp cloth and placed the cloth on the table, turning back to smile at her reflection. She dabbed her finger in the puddle of redness and traced her lips with the lipstick, leaving behind a trail of red lines. When she was finished, she gazed at her reflection in amazement.

She couldn't believe that the maiden in the mirror was truly her.

She smiled blissfully as Inuyasha's image flashed through her mind, gazing happily at the pleased and delighted woman in the mirror.

He changed her in the most beautiful way.


"Kikyo..." Inuyasha whispered softly. He tightened his gentle hold on her again, causing oceans of warmth and comfort to sweep over the raven-haired maiden. "Kikyo..." he spoke her name again. "I will become human."

"Inuyasha..." Kikyo breathed quietly, tilting her head up to look at him. This was what it was like...to love? She had been denied this ever since she had carried the heavy burden of protecting the Shikon Jewel and her village. If she showed any emotions, the demons seeking the Jewel would use it to their advantage.

What about Inuyasha?

He was a demon.

He wanted the Jewel.

But Inuyasha...she couldn't explain it, but she knew there was no lie in his words. She could see it in his amber eyes.

"It's not a whim or anything," Inuyasha murmured quietly, his eyes gazing down sadly at Kikyo, as if thinking that this was a dream. "I will become human, and you will be an ordinary woman...my...-"

"That's all right," Kikyo replied gently, stepping out of his embrace with a reassuring smile on her face. "You don't need to say anymore," she whispered softly.

"Kikyo...I just want you to know...-" Inuyasha began, but he was cut off as Kikyo leaned over to kiss his cheek and for a split second he was stunned by her action. Finally, he tilted his head so his lips were against hers.

A lovers' first kiss.


"Kikyo...!"

She heard him call her name. For some reason, she wasn't as angry as she had been. True, she was still angry at him for betraying and lying to her. But overall, she felt...sad now.

She was only a lonely soul, an empty shell of sadness now.

She would never see him again, not even in the afterlife.

Her dreams would never come true.

She would die alone.

She would be alone.

Forever.

She whispered a silent goodbye, a cold atmosphere settling in her frail body. Even if it ended this way...Inuyasha, I still...lo -


"Kikyo!" Inuyasha called her name frantically again, his heart sinking with dread and horror as he ran to her fallen body. He quickly knelt down beside her, turning her over and placing his arm under her back to lift the upper half of her body slightly from the ground.

She felt slightly warm, even after dying...yet so cold, so cold that it frightened him.

Dead.

Kikyo was dead.

"Kikyo..." Inuyasha whispered softly, feeling a wet warmth build rapidly in his eyes. His beloved was dead. Gone. Forever.

Was it because of him?

Why couldn't he get to her before that demon did?

He gazed sorrowfully at the priestess's lifeless body, ignoring the puddles of warm wetness in his eyes. It was strange, her being so beautiful, even in death. It was as if she cast an image of something tragic…something sorrowful...something engimatic...something beautiful…

Why did it have to be this way?

Why couldn't they have been humans together?

Why couldn't they have been lovers?

Why couldn't they have children?

Why couldn't they have grown old together?

Why couldn't they die together?

Why couldn't they be together...?

Inuyasha pressed the upper half of her body against his in such a way so that her face was buried in the flesh between his collarbone and neck. Ignoring the warm wetness - her blood - that seeped into the fabric of his cloak and trying to force back the tears, he tilted his heada bit to bury his face slightly into the soft blanket of her fragrant, silky locks.

He pressed her closer to him, and as he did so, he felt a solid object compress harshly against his chest, as well as slightly sharp objects dig softly into his bare skin. He turned his head, frowning deeply as he continued to try to stop the tears from falling.

His eyes suddenly fell upon the familiar Jewel hanging around her neck, dangling limply as the sphere rested upon her chest. He blinked in bewilderment, the force of his eyelids brushing away a single tear, which dropped onto the Jewel.

He frowned in confusion as he watched the bleak darkness inside the Jewel slowly fade. Gradually, the black mist inside the sphere disappeared to be replaced with the familiar, pink and purple interior that the Jewel always had.

How strange.

The Jewel suddenly glowed a bright, radiant illuminance, so bright that it slightly hurt his sensitive eyes. The Jewel was beckoning to him...yearning to be held...and used...


A/N. Dun dun dun...does this qualify as a cliffhanger? O.o;

Anyways, I editted all of the chapters over spring break! Whooot...xD Even the titles of the chappies and the title of the story itself! O.o

Well, for the people who don't know Japanese, and are like "What the heck do the titles mean? -.-" here are the translations for the Japanese titles. The translations might not be entirely correct, so ehehe...-sweatdrops-

1. Hiun no Miko Kikyou - Fate of Shrine Maiden Kikyou

2. Hanyou Inuyasha - Half-demon Inuyasha(no kidding xD)

5. Jayou Onigumo - Onigumo's Evil Desires

6. Onigumo no Yabou - Onigumo's Treachery

7. Hakushin - Reality; True to Life

9. Makato - Faith/Trust

11. Aika - Sad Song

Does anyone realize that most of the Japanese titles are titles of theme songs from Inuyasha? xDD I'm weird like that. O.o;

Anywhos, hope you liked it! And please click that little review button over there...you know you want to. ;)