1095.73 Without You

Sota wasn't magic like his sister or InuYasha but his gut was usually right. That was why it plummeted the moment Kagome stormed out of the mini-shrine. "This is hardly the time for InuYasha to learn what patience is," she huffed.

Ever since InuYasha got pulled into the Bone Eater's Well, Kagome had been cycling through states of irritation, anxiety, and agitation. Sota thought she was anxious since she was sporting a scowl but fidgeting with the lining of her skirt.

"Honestly!" Kagome exclaimed. Sota thought wrong: Kagome was irritated. "I'm going to teach him a thing or two about timing after school."

Two days ago, Sota believed his sister was confused which made sense. A week hadn't even passed since the incident and he was still confused. What happened? Who had she and InuYasha been fighting? Where did they get stuck? Where did the well go? How did something just disappear like that? How was InuYasha able to talk to him through the ground? Nothing added up but Kagome wasn't exactly in the mood to hand out answers. She was too focused on pretending that InuYasha was coming back. And Sota knew that InuYasha was never coming back.

"Hey 'Sis," Sota said, jogging up to her side. He stared up at her like he always did. "Do you think the well's broken or something?" Another question tickled at his tongue but he didn't have the courage to let it pass through his teeth yet. Instead, he waited for her to answer, staring out at all of the skyscrapers that lay past the shrine grounds.

"It is. That's why InuYasha has to come get me."

Kagome's response wasn't what he wanted to hear, and as a matter of fact, Souta already knew how to counter it. It made his stomach feel queasy though. He knew didn't want to say it out loud. "Okay, but, what if the well's broken on InuYasha's side too...?"

His words seemed to make the bags under Kagome's eyes turn a deeper shade of purple and it stretched the scrapes on her face. Kagome didn't give her little brother the opportunity to marvel at her vulnerability because her expression metamorphosed as quickly as spilt water spreads on a table. It left Sota hastily fumbling to get a grip on the death glare usually reserved for his hero.

"InuYasha always comes for me."

The lump in Sota's throat was all but yanked into his stomach. He forgot how scary Kagome got when she was mad. "Yeah, I know, but—"

"Always."

-X-

A/N: For such a young dude, Souta has always seemed pretty clever, sharp, and smart. He is Kagome's younger brother so... Anyway, although these are short drabbles, I tend to agonize over every word I type. The good news is that I have the next chapter's skeleton, but I've got to switch gears and work on meselfanwhy and my original comic, "Pass the Yaten" (google search that ish). I'll be trying to finish the next one as soon as possible though!

Until next time,

hanmajoerin