A/N: Some of you got the wrong idea last time. That was just a head's up, I'm not leaving until tomorrow, so I have time to post this chapter. You know, its a good thing it worked out like this, because I like this chapter, and its a good place to leave off, in my opinion.

Anyway, I saw Pirates again last night! I liked it even better the second time! When it was time for the OMG! moment once again, I was shaking in excitement. I am now refreshed so I can write that oneshot, which will be in Jack's POV! Anyway, the second time around, I noticed a few things that only add to the speculation of where the plot's gonna go, and also I noticed quite a bit of innuendo that I had apparently missed the first time. But I don't care, innuendo is fun! (Especially in a series with a ton of swords/cannons/guns to use in said innuendo...he he.)

So once again to let you know, gonna be gone this week from Monday until Sunday (plans changed due to unforseen family events), and then after I get back, I'll be here for a few days unil I leave again on the 27th until the 30th. I'll miss you guys, and I hope you'll bear with me until I get back.

(OMG! Titanic reference!)


Chapter 18: Flying Free

Knowing that we could not be together just about killed us. Especially after that night when we were both ready and willing. It was hard not to just say Hell with it and jump the hanyou when he was least expecting it. Of course, for a guy that could barely handle being hugged without wishing the ground would swallow him up, doing something like that would probably have given him a heart attack.

I could tell Inuyasha was beginning to come around to my thinking as well. It had only been a week or so since we had both admitted our feelings, and in that week, we both knew it would be hard to wait until Naraku was defeated; that "someday" that had eluded us for so long.

It had been almost a year and a half since we had met, and now it was well into fall, spring and summer of that year had long since passed. And it would only be half a year until I was seventeen, and counting our journey to the two year mark. Inuyasha had changed drastically since my fifteenth birthday to my sixteenth, and now I was beginning to see how much he had changed in little over than six months.

Inuyasha had become more attentive to me, he had given up Kikyou, he had admitted his feelings for me, things that I knew were big steps in him discovering himself beneath his cold exterior. Though I had helped remove some of the barriers on his heart, there was still a long way for him to go until he was fully exposed, all ice melted and barriers laid down, but I was willing to do all I could to eventually get there, and see the man that awaited me.

Despite this, I don't think I ever achieved my goal. Now I realize that some wounds on his heart, such as losing Kikyou so long ago, were too deep to heal. Because of her death, he would always fear losing me...But at that time, I had achieved one of my goals I had set down before: opening up his heart to get a glimpse of what he was like inside.

It was just a matter of time before I could get him to open up his heart fully into ways I had not imagined before…being able to teach him, and myself, what it was like to love…


No one else, not Miroku, Sango, or Shippou, noticed the slightly ill mood of Inuyasha and Kagome the morning after the night of the new moon.

Considering how giddy (or, as giddy as a surly hanyou could get) they had been before, to see them slightly nervous and looking away from each other seemed to be a good sign, it was how they had acted for an entire year, so in comparison to the days before, it wasn't that big of a change.

But to Inuyasha and Kagome, they both noticed how the other seemed to be trying to ignore what had occurred the night before, that heart-pounding almost kiss, that if it had succeeded, would have meant they were beyond going back.

When they had admitted their feelings for each other, Kagome had known that the time they had been best friends was over, they were now moving into a new and exhilarating phase in their relationship, a place Kagome was excited, and slightly afraid, to go.

If something happens between us when we are together, then we could completely ruin our friendship…Her eyes glanced back at the hanyou, and even though he didn't respond to her gaze, she knew he felt her eyes looking at him.

We always fight…what if we get into an argument, break up, and he never wants to see me again? What do I do then?

The small, reasonable portion of her mind told her, He needs you. He won't send you away. And you always make up after you fight…

Though that sounded plausible and true, there were more worries on Kagome's mind then just that. But what if he never wants me to leave? Can I really…spend the rest of my life with him? Will I love him for that long?

If internal voices could snort, then this one did. There's no way you can fall out of love with him…and if you do, he does make up for any flaws in his personality with that body…

A red blush appeared on her face and she turned away from him once more, thinking only how true that statement was. She had noticed on the many times when she had to bandage his wounds how, well…nice Inuyasha looked with a shirt off. Of course, 'nice' was probably an understatement at that…

Despite all her worries that she had, the argumentative portion of her mind was always able to find a counter to them, but there was one that could not be countered so easily. Inuyasha wanted us to wait until Naraku was defeated, to make sure he couldn't take advantage of our feelings…

Inuyasha had said that, but the look in his human eyes the night before said otherwise. The way he had leaned close to her, and prepared to meet his lips with hers spoke of a man who didn't care about anything except themselves and their desires. It was as if cautious Inuyasha had been thrown out of the window in the wake of love.

Kagome sighed, knowing what he was feeling. It was killing him inside too. In her time, if two people wanted to be together, they didn't have to wait because some homicidal manic would be ready to use their feelings against each other. If he lived in her time, they would probably be together already, without having to worry about it.

With a sigh, she reminded herself, But he lives here, and I wouldn't change that for the world…I may not like it, but I guess I have no choice, really. We have to wait until Naraku is defeated, in order to make sure its safe…But once he is defeated, then there will be nothing holding us back…

While Kagome made up her mind easily about what the right thing was to do, Inuyasha couldn't quite dismiss it like that.

I said I wanted to wait earlier because, truthfully, I didn't think I was ready, he mused, doing everything in his power not to look back at the woman who didn't know how much she affected him. I didn't know if I could suddenly be there for her in the way she wanted because I had just learned that she wanted me the same.

But now…his heart began to race just remembering how close he had come the night before to kissing her. I didn't care at all last night. It didn't matter that these feelings are new to me. I just wanted what I wanted, and damn everybody else.

Glancing up at the slightly cloudy sky, remembering the darkness of the new moon that had been there the night before, he thought, Was it an effect of me being human? Or is it what I feel now?

Remembering the situation, Inuyasha decided that perhaps it didn't matter that he was slightly nervous about taking their relationship farther, but there was still one thing in his way.

The hanyou's face scowled. Naraku. He hated him more than ever, now that he was interfering in his relationship with Kagome. If ill thoughts could kill, then Naraku would have been reduced to tiny little bits from Inuyasha's thoughts alone.

Why is it that I have to comply to him anyway? Why should Naraku be the one who is unconsciously ruling my life?

To kill him and avenge Kikyou's death, the rational side of his mind argued, but he argued back.

So, because of this mission, I need to sacrifice what Kagome and I feel? A small growl escaped him. Damn it, I just learned about how she feels, and then we have to wait until all this is over on the off chance that Naraku would use these feelings against us.

But once again, he was giving his life in the control of Naraku. Inuyasha knew this, and it disgusted him. No more. He wouldn't let Naraku fall into decisions about his life and force him to choose a path he didn't want. If Kagome wanted to go farther, then he would, not giving a damn about what Naraku would d about it.

Before he knew it, the hanyou began to feel overconfident about his abilities again, giving an excuse for reckless behavior. If Naraku so much as lays a hand on Kagome, I'll kill him! I'll make sure that the bastard won't have time to escape.

And thus, the decision was made. No matter how dangerous it was, Inuyasha was half human, and it was known that humans were selfish in their desires. He hadn't asked for much in his life, and what he wanted now, he wouldn't let anything come between him and his goal.


They had traveled for a few hours, following a trail of the scent of Naraku's puppets they had found earlier, before Inuyasha suddenly stopped, sniffing the air. "Inuyasha? What is it?" Kagome asked, coming up beside him.

The hanyou didn't respond, and everyone crowded around as he began sniffing the ground, just to make sure. No doubt about it, his suspicions were right. "The trail splits up," he spoke, regaining his height.

"What?" Sango asked, examining the ground, but seeing nothing. "What do you mean?"

"I mean the scent goes that way—" He pointed in one direction. "And the same scent goes that way as well." His thumb indicated to another.

Miroku raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure it is the same scent, Inuyasha?"

"Positive," Inuyasha replied. "It's that damn puppet all right…it looks like it split up to confuse us."

"Could it have split into two parts?" Shippou asked.

Everyone looked to Sango, who seemed to know the answer. "Probably. The one controlling the puppet can make it do anything. But if Naraku did split it in half, would it be to hide the shard inside of it?"

"That's got to be it," the hanyou decided. "He can't have us getting the shards, now can he?"

Kagome glanced in both directions. "But which one has the shards inside of it?"

"We should split up," Miroku answered. "We've handled puppets in groups before."

"I'll go with Inuyasha," Kagome spoke at once, causing everyone to glance back at her. "Sango-chan, Miroku-sama, and Shippou-chan can go in the other group."

The exterminator raised an eyebrow. "You two will be okay by yourselves?"

Inuyasha snorted, folding his arms. "Of course. I can protect her."

"That's it then," Miroku decided. "You two take one trail, Shippou, lovely Sango, and I will take the other. If you need help, send an arrow up, Kagome-sama, and we'll see it."

"And what about you?"

"I might be able to procure some kind of signal out of these." The monk pulled out a few sutras. "In any case, we shouldn't be that far away from each other."

Nodding, Kagome agreed. "All right then. We'll see you in a bit, I guess." And with that, they parted their separate ways.

They trail Inuyasha and Kagome followed seemed to be fairly straight, leading into the forests. Yet it did not end up to any youkai puppet. It kept going on and on, the afternoon beginning to fade away.

Inuyasha and Kagome talked on the journey, but each carefully avoided the subject of the night before. Nonetheless, several times found them having to turn away in a blush, or looking into each other's eyes, wanting nothing more but then to give in to the pull of those alluring eyes. But not now. Not while they were on a mission.

Yet again Naraku was interfering with their lives.

The trail ended up being a fluke; it led them to a cliff, where they found the clay remains of the puppet. Apparently, its task was finished, and it had no further purpose. Inuyasha was not happy to see it this way.

"Damn it, he led us all this way for nothing?" he growled, kicking the clay remains. "So much for getting a shard."

"Yeah." Kagome looked down upon it, at the edge of the forest. Her head turned to see the cliff yards away, and her eyes opened wider to see the view it offered.

"Do you think it could have been a trap?" the hanyou asked, still looking down at the figure before bending down to sniff it. "That he could have been leading us away from Sango and Miroku the whole time?"

"No," she replied, walking towards the cliff. "They would have asked for help, wouldn't they?" Inuyasha didn't look back at her to see her stand near the edge, her chocolate eyes wide as she took in the view.

Kagome had never seen anything look so pretty. The golden hue of sunset bathed the lush green valley below in a wonderful golden light, the rippling river looking pink, and the forest far beyond red with the leaves of fall. She saw a few animals scatter in the grass, while the grey smoke far on the horizon indicated a village. Kagome had seen many views of nature before on their quests, but this was something she doubted she had seen before…a glimpse of the autumn sunset, a beautiful collage of golden color.

Wind rippled through her clothes and hair, sending orange leaves flying past her. Flying…Kagome remembered when she rode on Inuyasha's back that day, months ago, when the ripple of the wind made her feel like she was flying…like the birds floating across the pink sky.

A smile of contentment was on her face as she slowly closed her eyes, and flung open her arms, willing the wind to pick her up and carry her off…to let her feel what birds felt…flying and free…Something that Inuyasha felt every time he ran and jumped into the endless sky…a complete feeling of freedom.

The hanyou noticed she was gone and turned to see her standing on the edge of the cliff, her hands open, looking like she was going to hug the sinking sun. Raising an eyebrow, he walked next to her, noticing her eyes were closed as well. "What are you doing?" he asked skeptically.

"Flying," she replied, relishing in the feel of the wind rushing past her. "It feels so wonderful…and free."

"Keh. You don't look like you're flying to me, woman. You look like an idiot, standing there like that." Inuyasha folded his arms, rolling his eyes.

Her eyes opened, to see the hanyou standing next to her. He looked so beautiful in this light…his silver hair gaining a golden sheen that matched his eyes in the sunset. "Well, excuse me," she retorted. "But don't you ever wonder what its like to fly like a bird and be free of everything holding you back?"

As his gaze looked upon her, remembering their current situation, he replied honestly. "Yes."

Their eyes met, a smile appearing on Kagome's face. "But you can fly...When you run and jump into the air, its just like what they do; you have the freedom to run as fast as the wind, and jump farther than any animal I've seen…you can be free."

"And you can't?" he asked, looking back at the half-sunken sun. "Kagome…I don't think it's about what you can or can't do…you're free in ways I could never be."

"What do you mean?" she asked, stepping closer.

Sighing, he replied, "You can laugh and smile like you have no cares in the world. No matter what happens, you never give up hope. You're heart is so pure, that it never loses its purity, no matter what suffering it sees. No matter what someone does, you never stop caring for them…and you can make someone who stopped believing in love believe in it again."

Kagome's breath caught in her throat as Inuyasha finished. Could he mean…? Inuyasha turned back and gave her a warm smile that melted her heart. "Maybe wanting to be free isn't so bad."

"I told you so," she retorted, smiling back. Kagome closed her eyes once more, and resumed her "flying" position. She stiffened up when she felt a pair of strong arms around her waist, and a voice in her ear.

"Can I fly too?"

Kagome gave a small giggle, trying to imagine Inuyasha doing what she was doing now, but instead, he wasn't moving, apparently just holding her, gazing out to the sunset, enjoying the feeling of the wind in his face. Free. That's all they wanted to be.

Kagome felt his hand grazing her cheek, making her open her eyes and turn back to him. He was staring at her in way that nearly made her heart stop. The wind rushed past them once again...she lowered her arms, noticing his were tightening around her waist, pulling her closer…Kagome felt her heart race once more…flying with the wind…freedom…

Her body slightly turned, her breath catching in her chest, unable to move away from his amber eyes, just like last time…but different. There was nothing holding them back…

Inuyasha's thoughts shut down as he lowered his head towards hers, slowly pushing forward…eyes sliding shut as she tilted her head to meet his…her lips bare towards him in submission…giving in to what they both wanted…

Then their lips meet in a tender kiss…flying.

No more worries, no more cares as Kagome melted into his embrace as his arms slid around her, her own wrapping around his neck, pulling him closer as she turned to meet him…both giving in to the passion they had wanted for so long…love that they needed…this sweet, beautiful freedom…the knowledge that they were in the arms of their beloved, sharing a passionate embrace…

And they were free.

But someone else watched as they rejoiced in those moments of freedom. Someone many miles away, looked into the mirror and held a grin on their face hoping that for now, they enjoyed their embrace. For it would not last forever.