You don't have to read this chapter if you've already read it: I reposted it due to a big error about the new moon. Thanks to Strawberry Blue for pointing out the error.

Tessa

Wow! I finally finished this chapter...I sure hope you guys are satisfied by this story. I've gotta think up what story I'll try writing next.

Anyway, my extreme thanks in reading this story through to its end, to:

Sweeteen19, Alexa, Sasia (i've never really tried writing a sex scene, so don't worry, i wouldn't test it out on Inuyasha and Kagome, lol! oh dear, that sounded way too kinky), premierarchange, Sesshoumaru Minion (there will be other fanfictions, i promise. And if i can get as lovely reviews for them as i have for this one, i will always be proud.), blacksugar2023, Sayuri-chan 16 (oh wow! it sounds like an amazing life you're leading, very well done to you for managing your time so well!) and Silver Wolf Pups. Again, thank you all so much for being #1 reviewers!

Tessadragon


Chapter 10, the last chapter of Days of Our Youth

"I so needed this," Kagome moaned, sinking into the bubbling water, spreading her arms out as her nerves clamoured for this treat. "Um-hm," Sango agreed blissfully, shutting her eyes as she sank into the hot spring. They could both hear Shippo splashing away happily and they didn't mind him being around: he wasn't old enough to be a male chauvinist pig yet.

"So, how come I have a feeling something happened between you and Inuyasha?" Sango asked, her eyes still shut as the steam whispered around her shoulders.

"We kissed," Kagome admitted.

"Uh huh. And?"

"And nothing," Kagome defended.

Sango gave her a small smile, "I promise I shan't tell Miroku."

Kagome sighed and shook her head. "This once, I think I'll have to wait. I can't even get used to it. I don't even really know what happened. Maybe I was hallucinating?"

Sango's smile deepened. "Did you two at least keep your clothes on?"

"Sango!" Kagome threw a handful of water at her friend. In the evening's darkness, the arc of droplets was invisible.

Sango laughed, "Fine. So you two kept your clothes on." She sank lower into the water and then submerged her face in the steamy water for a moment before gracefully rising back up to the surface and combing her sleek wet dark hair with her fingers.

Watching her, Kagome tried to battle through her confusion. She usually told Sango everything. Partly because Sango was so sensible and mature that she was always a comfort and partly because Sango was the one friend to whom she really could confide everything: she certainly couldn't do that in her own time.

Trying to shake off the dread of how much schoolwork she must have missed by now, Kagome dived back deeper into the water, her raven-dark hair rippling around her in tendrils.

Like a challenge, she pressed her fingers briefly to the floor of the spring: solid compacted rock with several cracks running through it through which heat bubbled up, then she drifted back up, her eyes open to the beauty of the water wrapping around her like gauzy ribbons…

And through that water, the sky cast impossible shades of darkness down on her…the darkness of a moonless night…

Spluttering, she burst through the surface and began swimming for the shore with fast, hard strokes, grabbed her towel, hardly dried herself before getting dressed.

"Kagome?" Sango called in alarm, and followed her. "What's wrong?"

"I can't believe we didn't realise!" Kagome yelled back and pointed at the sky.

The night of the new moon…

"Inuyasha!" Sango gasped and hurried to get dressed, her wet hair slapping against her back, not that she noticed. Shippo was already with Kirara, who transformed to her more fierce shape as Sango and Kagome ran to them.

"Hurry, Kirara!" Kagome beseeched and the demon cat growled agreement, soaring into the sky, the demon cat's pale fur stark in the moonless sky.

The forest loomed back into view…Kagome couldn't even remember how far they'd gone to the hot spring…then suddenly Kirara bounced back with a pain-filled yowl.

"Kirara!" Sango yelled then stared at Kagome, who'd unhesitatingly stood up on Kirara's back. "It's a demon barrier," Kagome said flatly.

"You haven't got your arrows with you!" Sango remembered with a terrible feeling. She only had her polished katana with her…she'd left her hirikotsu with Miroku, being too tired to even carry it. She cursed herself, calling herself stupid for making such a mistake.

There was a frightening finality to Kagome's expression. A grim resignation, as she flung herself at the demon barrier.

"Kagome!" Sango screamed.

Kagome plunged into the barrier, then light exploded from her form. Shadow flooded out from the forest as though to combat Kagome's effort.

Kagome's lips parted, and she mouthed His name, though only one person would ever hear her… "Inuyasha."

"Kagome!" Inuyasha screamed, and ran at an unnatural speed, even in his human form, leapt up to catch her…

Dazzling light burst from Kagome's form, just like the Sacred Jewel, though that was impossible, then the barrier exploded like shards of glass…

"Kagome!" Inuyasha screamed again, everything was in slow motion as he grabbed her from the battering winds that twisted around him, his haori billowing, then with human clumsiness, he fell back to the ground, Kagome hugged tight in his arms, and hit the grass rolling again and again, until they lay there…

"Kagome, Kagome!" Inuyasha wiped a tendril of her jet black tresses from her face. Her eyes were blank and dark. Trembling, he shook her slightly, desperately, "C'mon, you idiot! Wake up! Kagome!"

Then Kagome sighed, a very soft sound, and for a moment, her voice was strange, like someone else's… "Don't call me an idiot." Then she sank back to the grass, mortally exhausted. But Inuyasha, even with his human senses, could hear her heart beating, feel the warm breath from her mouth, the faint trembling of her limbs. She's so tired, he thought faintly.

"What'd you do?" he asked quietly.

"The rest is up to you, Inuy—" she mumbled and the rest of his name was too much for her tired tongue to say.

"The rest—?" he began to say, then got up, staring intensely into the dark. "Oh damn, it's a demon," he said coldly.

There was a crackle of knuckles, then something bright red dropped from the branches.

"Oh my," Miroku said weakly, coming into the clearing to find the human Inuyasha standing opposite…Inuyasha? No. Wait, this one looked slightly younger, but with the same rebellious look in his eyes, if not more.

"Miroku, get Kagome away from here," Inuyasha ordered, indicating to where Kagome lay on the grass behind him.

"You can't fight yourself!" Miroku protested.

The human Inuyasha raised an eyebrow. "Well sure I can. Why shouldn't I?"

"What if it makes you cease to exist?" Miroku suggested.

The human Inuyasha hesitated, then recovered his attitude, "Then why isn't he turned human by the new moon? He must be a fake."

The Inuyasha flexed his claws and grinned. His eyes gleamed red, and the purple stripes on his cheeks were livid in the darkness.

"It's Tetsusaiga," Miroku said suddenly. "Tetsusaiga holds in your demon half. This other Inuyasha hasn't got a Tetsusaiga. Don't you understand?"

"It doesn't matter!" The human Inuyasha yelled, just as the other Inuyasha hurled himself at him. Human Inuyasha threw himself back, then stared harder at this Inuyasha… "I think I understand," he said quietly and used all his effort to kick back this other Inuyasha. "Miroku, find some rope, chains. Anything. To tie him up with."

Miroku stared at him.

"Thanks, Kagome," Inuyasha said softly, looking at the miko as she lay asleep on the grass. Then he grabbed hold of the demonic Inuyasha and pinned his arms behind his back, as his evil self bucked and tried to throw him off. Inuyasha gritted his teeth and grimly hung on.

"Here, Inuyasha!" Miroku yelled, stumbling back into the clearing with a bundle of ropes. Inuyasha nodded and punched the demonic Inuyasha as hard as he could in the mouth, hoping to knock him out cold, but the demonic Inuyasha just growled and raked his claws at him. Human Inuyasha narrowly threw himself back out of reach, but his stomach stung: the demonic Inuyasha's claws had got him there after all.

He shot a look up at the new moon: it seemed to be mocking him, but that thrust new energy, powered by anger, into him, and he hurled himself at his evil self again, punched him again, then kicked him, headbutted him, punched him again; evil Inuyasha caught his fist and grinned, baring blood-flecked fangs. Inuyasha growled and hurled his evil self at the tree. The evil Inuyasha twisted in mid-flight and slammed his heels against the tree trunk, landing in a crouch on the floor.

"This really doesn't look good," Miroku muttered, crouching at Kagome's side, about to pick her up, though his hand had naturally gone to her butt. Kagome jerked awake and glared at him. Damn, she felt so tired! Like she'd done a mile-long run…

"Inuyasha!" Then her voice dropped in confusion.

"Yes," Miroku nodded. "It seems we have a teenage Inuyasha to deal with."

Human Inuyasha struggled to push his demonic self against the tree…

Kagome's eyes took in the clearing. She felt helpless without her bow and arrows. "Miroku, where's my bow and arrows?" she demanded.

He jumped and tore his eyes away from Inuyasha's struggle.

"Argh!" Human Inuyasha cried out as the demonic Inuyasha stabbed his claws into his chest.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed, and Miroku was moving, back the way he'd come, his eyes searching the darkness for the dropped items…there. Sango's hirikotsu...

"Leave Inuyasha alone!" Kagome yelled at the teen Inuyasha, scraped up a handful of mud and hurled it at the demon. It hit him between the eyes and he roared, immediately turned his attention from the human Inuyasha, who had staggered back, a deep wound below his breastbone. "Kagome!" he yelled, pulled himself agonisingly to his feet and hurled himself again at his teenage self.

Kagome threw her hand up to shield her face, and cried out as demonic Inuyasha's claws raked towards her face…

"Here!" Miroku whipped his staff across the demonic Inuyasha's back, "Come and get me, you mad coward!"

"Hey! That's my teen self you're talking about!" Inuyasha yelled. "I'm not a coward!"

Miroku didn't hear him: he was too busy running for his life as demonic Inuyasha bounded after him like a rabid dog. He did manage to indicate Kagome's bow and arrows, where he'd dropped them on the ground to come to Kagome's aid.

"Inuyasha! Get my arrows!" Kagome yelled, raising her hand to her face; she dizzily saw the blood on her fingertips. The human Inuyasha snatched Kagome's bow and quiver from the ground and handed it to her, "Are you okay?" he demanded.

She nodded, meeting his eyes. "Yes," she whispered and stood up shakily. "Inuyasha…can you get him against that tree?" she pointed to the oldest tree there.

Inuyasha nodded and ran to do her bidding, his golden-tawny eyes grim, threw himself at his demonic self, his black hair vivid against the demonic Inuyasha's silver hair. Roaring, the demonic Inuyasha pushed him back easily, but human Inuyasha gritted his teeth and jammed his foot against the mud, lowering his head and then leapt back and spun, launching a high kick that slammed the demonic Inuyasha with his own momentum into the tree, then jerked his elbow around the demon's neck and pressed his knee into his chest. "C'mon!" he yelled at Kagome.

Kagome shut one eye and drew back the arrow further, the bow humming in her hand, then released the arrow…it flowed through the air, gaining the priestess's aura. At the last second, his nerves quivering with terror at that arrow, the human Inuyasha leapt away and the arrow thudded into the demonic Inuyasha's breast.

The demonic Inuyasha's eyes widened; he'd jerked his face around to the girl that had sealed him to this tree.

Kagome watched him defiantly, her bow warm in her hand.

"Ki-Kikyo," the demonic Inuyasha whispered, his hand stretched out. "I th-thought…we…" Then his head slumped, his hand fell loosely by his side.

Human Inuyasha gazed, stunned at his teenage self. "He was from the day I…" he whispered. Kagome came unsteadily to him, and on the last step, faltered then fell into his arms.

"Kagome?" Inuyasha demanded anxiously, the thought surging through him.

She died…and I never knew. He remembered thinking that, back when he'd barely woken up from the enchanted slumber. Was time repeating itself? Would he lose Kagome just like he lost Kikyo?

Kagome's heart beat strongly though against his.

He breathed a shuddering sigh of relief. "Thank goodness." He cradled her in his arms and wasn't aware when he'd fallen to the floor.

Kagome eased her exhausted eyes open, "Inuyasha, you're bleeding," she whispered.

"So're you," Inuyasha returned grumpily and didn't feel inclined to move. Kagome twisted free to look up at the new moon, where it glowed vibrantly. "I've never felt so close to it," she whispered, remembering the nights in her own time when the new moon hadn't meant anything more than the night before, never felt so important to observe the moon's tide.

"I always feel close to it," Inuyasha said darkly. "It's a pest."

Kagome snuggled up to him and he went red, "Um, I'm probably getting blood on you…cos of your weak human inability to bear injury."

She rolled her eyes. "You call me weak, and I'll say your favourite three-letter word, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha blanched and shut up, then looked up at his demonic self, sleeping pinned to the tree. "Kagome," he finally said quietly, "Go back with Miroku and Sango to the camp. I'll be there shortly."

"Will you be alright?" she pressed but he didn't answer. She just saw it in his face, that he needed this time alone. She squeezed his hand then got to her feet and limped away.

Inuyasha waited until she was out of sight and hearing, then sat cross-legged, just watching his demonic self, a perplexed expression on his face.

So she died…and I never knew.

He thought about when he'd been asleep. He didn't remember anything about it, he had no clue of time passing, of what was going on around him. Kikyo's murderer had free rein all the years he was asleep, to do whatever he wanted. He hadn't even yet managed to properly avenge Kikyo's death!

Finally he got up and went to his demonic self, laid his hand on his shoulder. "One day you'll get Naraku," he said quietly to himself as well as his demonic self. "We were all played for idiots."

He wondered if he'd ever tell Kagome about his earlier life. Did he feel he had to? "C'mon, I survived," he told his demonic self. "Well, we survived. And I wouldn't have life any different." I may have trouble deciding between Kikyo and Kagome…but they've meant so much to me, that if anything had happened different, if it'd meant anything different about Kikyo and Kagome, I'd always live my life exactly how it's been.

Then the demonic Inuyasha opened his eyes and stared straight at the human Inuyasha. But now his eyes were normal, tawny-gold irises.

Then he smiled. A grim smile, but it didn't mean battle with him. "The sun is rising," he said. Then his form dissipated in red and silver light, and Inuyasha was alone…

The sun rose over the trees, an uncertain haze against the darkness, gaining confidence…

Inuyasha's jet-black hair paled and transformed to gleaming white-silver, his fingernails changed to claws, his finger-joints crackling as muscle formed to strengthen his body, his human ears twisted back into dog-ears. He grinned more confidently and his nostrils flared with a familiar scent. "I wondered when I'd see you again," he growled, turning to face the demon that had turned him into a child. He crackled his knuckles, "I'm going to make you sorry you ever saw me!"

Then he unsheathed Tetsusaiga; its blade transformed to the magnificent fang. "Tetsusaiga!" he yelled, bringing it down upon the demon, twisting it at the last second, remembering where Kagome had said the jewel shard was in its forehead, and sliced it apart with a diagonal strike from its neck to its torso. It shrieked and exploded.

"Oh no you don't," Inuyasha's claws flashed out, cutting open its forehead and grabbing out the jewel shard. "I'm not having you re-form. This time you die!"

Panting, his eyes triumphant, he stood still for a moment, It's over. Then he sheathed Tetsusaiga and looked down at the tiny jewel shard. And this is one of the things that changed every part of my destiny. Shall I use it one day to become a full demon? Or a full human? Who would I spend my life with? The girl from the future, or the girl from the past?

He breathed a deep sigh then shook his head and walked from the clearing, his arms swinging at his sides. "Hey, Kagome!" he yelled, and caught an echo of her reply, his pace sped up.

Whatever I do, I won't regret it.

"Hey slowpoke, having a tête-à-tête with your past self?" Kagome teased, as she opened her backpack.

"A what?" he scowled, squatting to watch her taking out the pots of ramen. "C'mon! I'm starving!"

"Alright, already!" Kagome yelled.

It's not the end. It's just the end of this story.


(Note: when i say teenage Inuyasha, though i cannot say what age he was when he was dating Kikyo, I'm more referring to it that way because demons, even half demons, age slower, thus I called his alter self a 'teenage Inuyasha'.)