Yeah, like she heard you and your half-assed attempts at telling her what you've wanted to say for so long.
He sighed, turning around to pick up the plain cotton yukata she'd left for him on the table, staring at it for a moment as he held it in his hands.
Something wasn't quite right about her. Sure, she'd given him what he'd desired for so long, and as far as he could tell, she had wanted it as much as he did. She had admitted her love for him - like that had been a big secret - and he had reciprocated… sort of.
But something was wrong - she was trying too hard to be cheerful, he could sense that, but within her was a sense of uncertainty and… a bit of fear… about something that he couldn't quite place. And her reaction to his attempt at cheering her up… what was with that, anyway?
Something was wrong, and she wasn't telling him. He growled slightly in frustration.
That was when he finally caught wind of the scent.
Closing the door tight behind her, Kagome sighed as she rested her head against the wooden frame that separated her from Inuyasha.
Some of us don't have the stamina of a hanyou, y'know.
That's a pity now, isn't it?
She closed her eyes.
He didn't mean it. He doesn't know.
"I was beginning to wonder if you were ever planning on coming out of there"
Shock coursed through the girl's body as she whipped around, only to come face-to-face with the other Inuyasha, still decked out in the t-shirt and jeans he had been wearing at his apartment when the incident had occurred. The hanyou was sitting quietly in a corner next to her door, out of her immediate line of sight when she had stepped out of the room.
The girl watched as the hanyou stood up, stretching slightly as he did, before turning to face her with a knowing smile emblazoned on his face. She looked away, unable to make eye contact with the one who was so familiar, yet seemingly so far away.
"How long have you been waiting out here"
The hanyou's smile was telling, "A while. I came over almost immediately after you left my place - I had to drop by your school to pick up your bag and to explain what happened to you… and don't worry, I told them I was your cousin"
"I see"
Then… he knows, I guess.
The smile refused to budge, "Besides, someone had to keep away curious younger brothers and stop them from getting the shock of their lives"
The girl looked up at him. Despite his outwardly jovial expression, something wasn't quite right - there was a sense of something else, a hidden inflection in his tone of voice, that spoke more than mere words.
Of… envy, perhaps.
"Thank you… Inuyasha"
The hanyou nodded, looking away as he walked over to the railing overlooking the staircase leading downstairs. For a moment, silence pervaded the space around them. When he next spoke, however, all trace of mirth had left his voice, replaced by a seriousness this Inuyasha had rarely displayed.
"You realise… that something's not quite right, don't you"
Moving over to join him, the girl frowned, "What do you mean"
The hanyou shook his head, "Think, Kagome. What did I tell you this morning about us? Haven't you realised that something's not right yet"
The girl paused, moments before the realisation hit her.
"I've… I've wanted to do that for so long. I… I wish I'd had the courage to do that… before… that we'd had the chance to be closer"
She found her voice, "How"
Why didn't I realise it before?
He stifled a small laugh, "That was my reaction exactly when I came over in the afternoon and… heard… everything"
She blushed.
His smile returned as he turned to her again, "No matter. I don't quite understand it, and it's certainly a disturbing discovery, but… I'll get to the bottom of it and find out what's happening. That… that things are changing… might end up working in our favour after all"
Her eyes met his, "I… I guess. But I"
Without warning, the girl found herself interrupted as the door leading to her room flew open, moments before a yukata-clad hanyou came bounding out, tensed and ready to fight. Almost instantly, his eyes locked on to the other hanyou standing next to her, and his eyes narrowed, a low, menacing growl already forming in his throat.
"I thought I smelled something familiar. So you're the one who's been leading us around all this time"
He took one slow, purposeful stride closer toward his future self, his hands tense, his claws ready. The younger hanyou grinned.
"Not bad… you smell like me, and you look like me too. Care to tell us how you're doing it before I rip you to shreds"
The other Inuyasha sighed, his face measured with calm. He looked to the girl beside him.
Higurashi Kagome found herself sighing as well. It wasn't going to be easy to explain, but…
Crossing the space between them, she reached up, placing a restraining hand on Inuyasha's shoulder, ignoring the surprise that crossed the hanyou's face. Looking up at him, she spoke.
"Inuyasha… there's something we need to talk about"
It seemed as though the entire house shook with the force of the blow, alarm rising within the girl as she watched her Inuyasha grab hold of the other hanyou, pick him up and slam him hard against the wall. Sparing a glance down the staircase, she called down, assuring the already inquiring Souta that nothing was wrong and that he should just… stay away.
Her hanyou was roaring into the other's face, every fibre of his being screaming out in fury.
"How could you let something like that happen, you bastard! How could you let her die! How"
The other Inuyasha cut him off, his voice as calm as ever, "Do you realise how stupid this is? You're blaming me for something that you're going to have to do"
The yukata-clad hanyou glared at the other, the muscles in his arms tensing as he gripped his captive firmly, pushing him harder against the wall, causing small cracks to fan out from the point of impact. He scoffed at the other's words.
"Do you think I'd let something like that happen? Feh! I'm not that dumb! I wouldn't let her die"
Never again.
It was at that moment that the girl chose to intervene. Placing a hand on his arm, she pleaded with him softly, "Inuyasha, stop it… please"
Not in the least soothed, the hanyou whipped around angrily, yelling at her as he did, "What's wrong with you! I'm not the one who screwed up this time"
Glaring back at the other hanyou again, he growled, "I wasn't the one who sat back and let you get killed! I wasn't the one who turned you into some"
Without warning, the older hanyou lashed out with a roar, breaking free from his younger self's grip and slamming him into the floor. Pinning the younger hanyou down, he easily fought off the other's wild struggling, immobilising his arms and legs as he stared him down, his face a contorted mix of pain and anger. A deep growl forming in his throat, he spoke, all trace of the calm that had been his trademark vanishing into the night.
"Do you think I WANTED it to happen! That I wanted things to turn out this way! That I wanted to spend five centuries hunting the one thing I loved more than anything else in the world! Do you, you stupid bas"
"Stop… please"
Both hanyous turned. The girl was kneeling on the floor, her head lowered as her silken black hair covered her face.
"Please… stop this"
She looked up at them then, tears already forming in her eyes. A drop fell to the floor. Her voice wavered.
"Stop fighting… please. I'm… I'm the one who's going to die here. I'm… the one who's going to turn into… into"
She looked away, her voice catching in her throat, unable to continue.
The older hanyou released the younger, backing off and looking away, even as the younger leapt up, instantly moving to her side and cradling her as he'd done not long before. Silently, he embraced her, letting her sob into his shoulder.
The other looked on.
Silence prevailed for what seemed to be an eternity. Then, the elder hanyou found his voice.
"The… the important thing now is to find out what's going on. Maybe… maybe there's a chance that things don't have to turn out the way I remember them… hell, everything that's happened today sure isn't the same. Maybe… we can avert it all"
He stood up, speaking to the still-sobbing girl, "I'm going to go back to my place and get some research going. I'll call when I find out anything. You two… should stay here and get some rest in the meantime… go to school if you must, but let him tag along just in case. Otherwise… just stay at home and call in sick"
Glancing at her one last time, he turned around, heading down the staircase, disappearing from sight.
Cradling each other, the hanyou and human watched him go.
It took a few more minutes, but the girl's sobs soon subsided. Seated outside her door in the hallway, she looked up as her hanyou returned, taking the handkerchief he'd found in her room, smiling her thanks at him. She watched silently as he sat down, silver-white hair flowing gently before settling down.
Impassive, golden eyes gazed at her, watching as she dried the tears from her cheeks.
"Feeling better"
She nodded, trying to laugh, "Yeah… it's just"
One arm came up to wrap around her shoulder, pulling her close to him. Leaning against him, she closed her eyes, basking in the warmth of his body.
"Kagome"
She looked up, warm brown meeting pure amber, "What"
