Chapter 3: The Ultimate Goal
It's everything you wanted
It's everything you don't
It's one door swinging open
and one door swinging closed
Some prayers find an answer
Some prayers never know
We're holding on and letting go
- Holding On and Letting Go by Ross Copperman
Once Kagome gained her composure, she knew she had to leave soon or else she would be left behind. Kagome walked shakenly to the washroom to wash her face of the tears. She couldn't go downstairs looking as distraught as she appeared. Fixing up her makeup, Kagome was able to cover up her grief. There was no telling what she would do now. Inuyasha would most likely ask her what information she found that would help them in their fight against Naraku when she arrived.
She couldn't possibly tell her friends that she had died the moment before Naraku's demise. What of Midoriko's will? Would Inuyasha relinquish his dream to become a full-fledged demon after discovering he's the key to Midoriko's will? There were definitely some things that Kagome would probably have to leave out for the benefit of the cause and the success of the mission.
With one last glance at the book on her desk, she turned away with her bag in tow. There was no reason to bring that book with her. If it fell into Naraku's hands...their chance of ever defeating him would be lost forever.
'Inuyasha must not know his true destiny before it happens. He must find it for himself, but I'll help him get there and that will be my mission. He's the key after all.'
There were some loose ends that Kagome couldn't understand. How was she supposed to go about this new-found mission? The people that were all assembled in battle, they must have planned ahead of time. How far in advance was this planned? If the battle was only two and a half months away, what would she need to do before then? How would she ask Kouga, or even Sesshomaru to assist in the battle strategy? It just didn't seem like she had enough time to accomplish this task. This wasn't something that she could plan on her own. Who was the human who made the wish on the jewel? Out of everyone, it was her, Kikyo, Miroku, Sango, Kohaku, and a man named, Daisuke. While it couldn't have possibly been her friends, through the process of elimination the only people left to make a wish like that on the jewel is Kikyo and Daisuke.
Kagome opened the shed housing the bone eater's well. Her mind was flying over the details she had read from yesterday and today. Stopping at the top of the stairs inside the shed, she tried listing the things she could not, under any circumstance, reveal to her friends.
'Ok, so what are the facts I cannot reveal?
1. My death
2. Inuyasha's destiny ...
3. Kohaku's death'
"I'll have to change the past so that Kohaku and I don't die." With this in mind, Kagome reached for the hidden gun and the box of bullets she tucked away on the shelf. She was relieved to find that both items were still where she had hid them yesterday. While placing her gun in her backpack, she looked to the side of the well where she noticed her bow and arrows leaning against the old wooden frame.
While walking down the steps, Kagome's nerves were jumping at the thought of what she had to tell her friends. This would be no simple conversation and she had to tread carefully when questions were asked. After all, she had no book to prove what she was saying and they would have to trust her word on everything she said. They've known and trusted each other for two years, but she had to speak with conviction and not with the nervousness of some doey-eyed school girl. She had to forget about the emotional and disturbing awareness of her death. She had to believe that she could change her fate.
Her feet were planted softly on the ground with a grey, cloudy sky overhead. Climbing up the well she hoisted her bag over her shoulder, when she heard its thump on the ground she pulled herself over the lip and looked around at her surroundings. Nothing had changed, just the weather was noticeably colder now. Her short hair blew in her face as the wind swept by her. As she walked towards Kaede's village, she could see villagers outside wearing thicker kimonos and blankets over their bodies. This would be her third winter in the feudal era. It was always a rather quieter time as some species of demons actually hibernated. You just had to be careful, because unlike some animals, demons could be woken up rather quickly when there is an intruder.
Kagome walked into the village getting some odd looks cast at her. She waved at the villagers, and they seemed to recognize who she was with a lot of shock written on their faces at her changed appearance. Some men even stared at her, struck by her beauty. The wives and lovers of some of the ogling men looked at her in jealousy. 'Andre did too good of a job.'
When Kagome reached Kaede's door, she could hear voices inside. Before entering Kagome decided to wait before she could recognize who was presently in the hut.
"Kaede-chan, when is Kagome going to be back?" A little boy's voice had a tinge of sadness draped over the words as he spoke, "I miss her."
"I'm sure she will be returning shortly. Inuyasha can be stubborn and rash. Ye are sure ye want to stay behind while the others continue on the search?" There was the sound of water being poured into a basin. Shippo softly looked down in his lap. "Of course, it's never the same without Kagome. We keep each other safe...even though everyone does the same, it's just we have more luck with her by our sides in the fight. Inuyasha knows this too...he's just too much of a hot-head to admit it out loud." Kagome was touched when she heard the little kitsune talk about her position in the group. He was always more intuitive and compassionate than most of the human children in the villages they visited. She was sure proud of the little man he was growing up to be.
"She reminds me so much of my mama..." Kaede put a comforting hand on the little fox demon's shoulder. "Kagome is kind, brave, open-minded, fun, and protective. I think my mama would be proud of Kagome because I am in such good hands and she always makes sure I'm taken care of. I'll wait for Kagome until she returns because she would do the same for me."
Suddenly, Kagome couldn't take the distance and burst into the hut to wrap her arms around Shippo. She knew he didn't intend for her to over hear, but what he said was the sweetest thing she heard him say about her. "Shippo...thank you."
Shippo froze from the shock of the embrace. He slowly turned around and almost panicked when he didn't immediately recognize Kagome, but her scent reassured him that it was indeed his surrogate mother. Shippo returned the embrace with just as much intensity, wiping a little tear that formed in the corner of his eye. "Kagome! I've missed you, don't ever leave me again!"
"Kagome?" Kaede was bewildered with the surprising entrance. "Ye have changed, child. I almost didn't recognize ye at first."
Kagome smiled, "Hi Kaede, it's good to see you again. I suppose this new look does change my appearance substantially."
"You do look different" Shippo squinted his eyes and crawled up to Kagome's shoulder. Looking down at Kagome and then back to Kaede, he exclaimed. "I like it!" Kagome giggled at his response. Kaede chuckled as well, "Kagome, would ye like some tea?"
"Oh, that would be wonderful. Thanks, Kaede." Kagome watched as the older woman walked to the side of the hut to grab a pot full of steaming water. "Kaede, I was wondering. Would you have time to chat about something with me. I would like to talk to you about Midoriko if you don't mind." Kaede turned around and walked back to Kagome with a cup of tea in her hand.
While handing Kagome the tea, Kaede asked what Kagome would like to know about the warrior priestess.
"Well, in the future there are stories about her that go along with what I was told here in this era about her legacy. I came across some information yesterday in our library that mentioned another story. The story of her will." Kagome waited for Kaede to see if this was anything new.
"Ye know of Midoriko's will? How can that be? No one knows this except Midoriko herself, she didn't pass it on before she died." Kaede studied Kagome's face. "You know more to the story..."
Kagome glanced over at Shippo, "Hey Ship, do you mind finding Inuyasha and the others for me? We all need to talk about something." Shippo pouted, obviously wanting to stay to hear the rest of the story. Kagome giggled, "I'll fill you in when you get back. Don't rush back too soon...give me some time to talk to Kaede, ok?" Nodding his head and sucking his bottom lick back in, Shippo bounded out of the hut to find the rest of the crew before they take off.
"Everyone thinks Midoriko's will is the actual Shikon Jewel. Which it is in some respect. For the most part, everyone that's heard the story seems to believe that vanquishing evil from this world for good is the definite solution. The truth is it isn't. Any spiritual being knows this much. The extermination of evil cannot be done. We are all born with the opportunity to darken our hearts. It's our actions that make the difference in whether our hearts stay true or not. Therefore, even if all evil were destroyed. Our very nature as humans and demons says different, and evil can be reborn time and time again. There's a couple lines from a song Kikyo used to reiterate back when we were at Mount Hakurei. I have a valid reason to believe that her actual will is something larger than what we've imagined, because the song was mentioned in the book...but it wasn't quite the same song. I think it went something like this:
Pure has become impure, impure has now become pure
Good has now become bad, bad has become good
To live is to die, to die is to live
Saint Hakushin beneath the earth
Mount Hakurei will return to Hijiri
This was also in my textbook, but instead of it saying, 'Saint Hakushin beneath the earth,Mount Hakurei will return to Hijiri' it read,
Priestess Midoriko of the West
Bestows the gift of unity upon us all
"The song didn't originate from the people in the surrounding villages around Mount Hakurei, it originated earlier than that it was just remodelled slightly. This was originally Midoriko's song, it was her promise to the world."
"A promise? Isn't that something. Kagome, this book...who wrote it?" Kaede rested her cup on the floor after taking a sip. "This person would have to be as old as Midoriko herself to relay this kind of information. They would be dead by now, unless they are a demons."
"I think that's a good point. I don't think they are or were that old, but you never know. I think there were demons who are still living that relayed stories to this individual. In the beginning of the book, there was an introduction that explained how it took years to compile this information to prove what happened during the years Naraku was active, and what had led to his creation. Naturally that starts with the Jewel, and Midoriko. So there had to be some digging for information into her life."
"Aye, I see. This book, mentioned the years he was active. I can only guess that it goes on past that and dives into his demise. I believe that's why ye are here ..isn't that right, Kagome?"
Kagome looked at Kaede surprised. "Kaede, there are some things I can't reveal because you never know who is listening or how it will affect the future. I'm deeply troubled and burdened with the information. All I can say is we have very little time to defeat Naraku. He's coming to destroy us all in two and a half months. We must take precautions, and take action to defeat him. He cannot win."
Kaede's eyes were grim with the news. "Two and a half months...aye, that's not very much time. This must not spread to our enemies. We have the advantage for now, but if anyone were to learn of this.."
"Exactly." Kagome skipped to her next question, the reason she had wanted to talk to Kaede. "Kaede, what I tell you next you must promise me you won't tell or discuss it with anyone, not even to me after we're done talking."
Kaede eyed Kagome worriedly. She took a moment before responding and agreed. "I promise, child."
"I'm wondering if knowing this information is fate giving me a chance to save more lives? After learning that in this whole two years I caused so many deaths by shattering the jewel...am I worth saving? Will I be able to forgive myself after I succeeded in saving more lives or will I still be burdened by my previous mistakes?"
Kaede was floored, but felt a twinge of guilt for Kagome. "Kagome, there are many things I wish I knew or could have done when I was younger. Ye are not alone. When I had bandaged Onigumo in the cave...if I had known what he would turn into, I would have killed him on the spot. If I had known what he would have done to Inuyasha and my sister, Kikyo...I would have killed him before he had the chance to be devoured by demons. I think what ye need to do is forgive yeself first. Do what you think is right. If ye had not come back into this world, Inuyasha would still be pinned to a tree. Ye and I share a complicated story, where we could have done things differently but didn't know any better to do so. Ye and Inuyasha were meant to go on this journey, it was only natural for ye to walk down this path. Obviously, it's not a coincidence that ye came across that book. Someone is trying to help ye make the right decision."
"Aye, the guilt subsides over time, and my purpose has been to serve and protect as a priestess of this village. It has helped me get past the guilt of not being able to stop Naraku in the very beginning. I'm sure Kikyo and Inuyasha feel the same guilt as we do." Kagome felt better as Kaede tried to reason with her about her decisions. "Ye, better not dwell on these thoughts. It is better to carry on and be mindful of ye actions from this point on. Especially now that you carry a lot of important knowledge regarding the future."
"Kaede, you were too young to act on anything. Besides if it weren't for the jewel's existence there wouldn't be so much destruction by demons searching for a higher power..." Kagome put a hand to her mouth. "Oh."
"I think ye found ye answer, Kagome." Kaede added. Kagome smiled and felt some of the weight in her chest had dispersed. She could do this. She could lead a change, and forgive herself for her past mistakes. Although, first she was going to start by making sure Kaede's village was safe.
"Hypothetically...how long would it take to build a hidden village far from here?" Kaede was surprised at the sudden inquiry. "No one was in this village when it happened. There was a safe zone built further away."
Kaede shook her head, "It would take a year at best. It's winter, there's no way we would be able to build another village to accommodate that many people. We would need the power of demons to accomplish that feat."
Kagome lit up at the mention of demons. "Then we will hire demons!" She smiled at the older woman reassuringly. "Trust me, these demons will help and probably for free."
A cold air pushed through the mat covering the hut entrance, as Inuyasha stepped inside to see Kaede and Kagome deep in conversation. "Why are you hiring demons? And it's about time you got here! We are all ready to head out, then Shippo caught us and told us to come back."
Kagome held her arms and shivered slightly from the brisk wind. She looked up at the red clad figure that is Inuyasha, and her mind immediately went back to where she left off in her book. After quickly turning her face away from him, she felt a nervousness in her stomach and her palms were starting to sweat. "I'll explain everything when Sango and Miroku get here. It'll be faster for us to leave if I only have to say this once."
"Why are you acting so cryptic? You sound-" Before he could utter another word, Sango, Miroku, and Kirara made their debut with Shippo bounding in after them.
"Kagome! It's good to see you're back," Sango smiled warmly towards her friend, and then took in her appearance. "I don't know how you could get any prettier, but you did." Kagome got up to embrace the demon slayer while thanking her and returning the compliment. Kirara hopped onto Sango's shoulder to nuzzle against Kagome's head.
Miroku looked at Inuyasha only to see the hanyou's gaze fixated on the young priestess. When Inuyasha noticed Miroku caught him staring, the monk gave Inuyasha a smirk and cocked an eyebrow to suggest that he knew exactly what was going on in the hanyou's mind. Inuyasha looked away and growled in annoyance. Miroku turned to the two girls and when Kagome reached out with her fist, Miroku reciprocated and bumped his fist against hers. "Good to have you back, Kagome-chan."
"Alright let's get this over with before Inuyasha loses it," Kagome half-smiled towards the hanyou who glared at her in response to the joke.
Sango and Miroku looked at each other in confusion. Taking their outer winter-fitted blankets off their shoulders they took a seat around the fire.
...
Kagome was careful to keep the story the same, but the responses she received from her friends were a mixture of shock, anxiety, and relief. Everyone sat in a circle with a warm bowl of Kaede's famous stew in front of them.
"How reliable is this book? How do you know it states the truth?" Miroku questioned and looked at Kagome with a bit of worry.
Kagome knowingly expected this kind of question, and having already prepared for it answered quickly. "It mentioned me, my name and there were sketches of all of us in it. I didn't bring it with me in case the information inside fell into the wrong hands." Miroku nodded understanding her reasonings. "I trust you, Kagome, but what happens if this book is wrong? What would we do then after making so many preparations and gathering allies?"
"I don't think it will be wrong. It went into so much depth about our travels as if the person who wrote it was there themselves."
"We're being watched!" Shippo jumped up from his seat and peeked outside of the hut. "I'll foxfire them out of here!" Kirara hopped over to the kitsune supporting his cause but when she sensed no immediate danger she rubbed herself up against Shippo to calm him down.
"No, I think maybe it's the stories Miroku tells to the inn keepers before he performs those fake exorcisms...exciting interest in our journey, and creating avid fans as per usual." Sango spoke with a deadpan expression.
"Now, Sango. Everyone loves a good story, and we end up eating better than we normally do afterwards." Miroku argued in his own defence. Everyone rolled their eyes at his antics. "You lot, are ungrateful!"
"Anyway...so this book of the past revealed the final battle, what exactly happened? How did Naraku die?" Sango's question mirrored what everyone was thinking.
"The final battle was outside of the village on the hill. We all had a hand in his death. At the end, it was Inuyasha and I who delivered the fatal blow," Kagome treaded carefully when answering. She couldn't let them know how it truly ended, but she was still close enough to the real story. Inuyasha felt pride at the news, and that he would be the one to kill Naraku. At least he would be able to avenge Kikyo's death once and for all.
Inuyasha spoke with determination, "As long as he dies, that's all that matters." Looking at Kagome, he smirked. "So this is why you were staying longer in your era, Kagome? You should have said something I would have let you to stay longer to read the entire book."
"I wanted to make sure there was some accuracy to the book before discussing it..I didn't want to get our hopes up or spread false information." Kagome's mouth formed a small smile. She was glad everyone was at least happy with her discovery, but there was still anxiety.
"Now it all comes down to planning the strategy," Miroku placed his thumb and forefinger underneath his chin in thought. Kagome shook her head to ease his thoughts, "I believe I can help us out with that. Although I haven't found out anything about the planning or how long it took for us to have everything ready, we had a definite strategy." Kagome turned to her bag to grab a notebook so she could draw out the battle grounds.
"The other point I wanted to touch on, was the hidden village. Kaede mentioned earlier to me that it would take a year to build a village made by humans. What I suggested was that we recruit some of our demon allies to help make this process go faster. We need this to be done well before the final battle. We still need to be looking for jewel shards at this time, which means the allies in possession of jewel shards can't be involved in the construction of the hidden village...they would arouse suspicion, and create too much attention by Naraku and his incarnations."
"Who do you have in mind?" Sango asked. "The only ones I can think of are Myoga, Totosai, and Jinengi..."
"Well...I was thinking of their help, plus a certain wolf demon tribe..." Kagome fiddled with her hands in her lap expecting to hear an outburst from Inuyasha. And oh was there going to be one. Inuyasha growled at the mention of the wolf demon tribe.
"You want their help? I thought you said those with jewel shards can't help!" Kagome stared at the very prominent vein in Inuyasha's forehead. It looked like it was about to pop. Kagome scratched the back of her head and giggled nervously. "Oh well, he has a lot of demons in his tribe. I'm sure they wouldn't mind after all we are allies and we did help them with the Birds of Paradise..." Sango pulled Kagome aside while Inuyasha's glare was fixated solely on the young priestess.
"Uh, Kagome I think it best to move on to a different topic before Inuyasha has one of those aneurism-things you told us about."
Kagome sheepishly agreed. "Right!"
Clicking the top of her pen and flipping to a clean page, she began drawing the hill and the portion of the forest below it until she reached Kaede's village. While gesturing to the far left side of the page, she described that the villagers would most likely be safe in that general direction of Inuyasha's Forest where they would be re-located prior the fight. "Ok, so Naraku and his cronies..they appeared here first at the top of the hill. We had them in our sights but we were in hiding until-"
"In hiding? You gotta be joking!" Inuyasha stood up from his spot and shouted in protest. "You won't see me with my tail between my legs, that bastard will taste the wind scar before his eyes can see over the hill." Inuyasha pointed in the general direction of the hill for emphasis. Kagome shook her head in annoyance.
"Will you let me continue? I'm far from done," Kagome glared at him until he took a seat again. "As I was saying...we were waiting for our first attack to wipe out the Saimyosho and demon hoard, but it didn't get all of the wasps. The first attack is what confuses me. I'm not sure how we created a fog of purification to kill the wasps, but we did and the amount of wasps that succeeded past this were killed by the mist surrounding the village. I'm not sure where we hid, but it definitely wasn't in the forest. Inuyasha, you and Sesshomaru..." That was the straw that broke the camel's back. Inuyasha lost his composure.
"WHAT! No way am I working with that prick!" Inuyasha noticed Kagome's exasperated look. "And don't give me that look, Kagome! There's no way I'm letting you finish that sentence. There is no me and Sesshomaru. I think you better throw that book away, it's not right. You may have some silly little family reunion fantasy in your head, but that moron is more likely to skin our bodies with Tokijin than work with us. I don't know where you've been these past couple of years, but you're crazy if you think-"
"Inuyasha..." Kagome could already feel her teeth clenching together to yell her favourite subjugating command. "SIT!"
With the power of the rosary, Inuyasha was dragged down to the floor in a resounding crash. Everyone just looked on shaking their heads at the hanyou-turned pancake on the floor. Kagome closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. Miroku sighed, "he never learns."
Kagome opened her mouth to continue.
"Inuyasha and Sesshomaru kept Naraku at bay while he sent Kagura and Kanna to attack the village. Before Kagura and Kanna got to the village, Sango, Miroku, and Kouga attacked them. Kanna was able to escape via Kagura's feather and she ended dying in the same way the wasps did at the entrance of the village. This is where Kikyo, a man named Daisuke, Shippo and myself were which means we had something to do with the purification mist most likely. After the village was deemed safe our group met up with Sango's to help fight Kagura."
"Kohaku?" Sango quietly asked while Kagome paused for breath.
"I was just getting to that part. Kohaku was fighting against everyone until Kikyo caught him off his guard and purified the shard in his neck. Sango, his memories came flooding back and he was in a lot of pain remembering everything. I know it will be hard to witness that, so just be prepared to help him." Sango nodded sombrely, she only wished her brother didn't have to suffer so much anguish in his life.
"Kagura ended up fleeing back to where Naraku was still fighting Inuyasha and Sesshomaru, and this is something we can't let happen. It put us on the defence when she combined her attack with Naraku's. Naraku ended up transforming into this large spider and created a web to trap us in, and then Kagura used her wind attack to blow us on it. The web trapped us in cocoons that not even Inuyasha or Kouga could break. Sesshomaru was able to break out of his binds when he transformed and his poison worked its way over the web and allowed us all to escape. The trick is, kill Kagura and we won't have to be put in that situation." Another lie, but she had to get the attention on the kill Kagura part so that she wouldn't have to die in the end. This was actually better talking it out, she was able to think about it more clearly and work towards a better ending for everyone. Even for Kohaku.
"So we all attacked at once and were able to throw him back. When Inuyasha and I fired a joint attack, we caught him off guard and he died."
"What of the jewel?" Inuyasha interjected curiously. Kagome wasn't sure how to answer this one. She didn't think to mention the whole demon annihilation part since he was supposed to be the saviour and key to Midoriko's will. He couldn't be forced to make the decision to relinquish his dream of becoming a full fledged demon.
"Uh..I didn't get to that part yet. One step at a time, Inuyasha. First let's defeat Naraku and then we'll worry about the jewel."
"What do you mean you didn't get to that part yet? That's the whole reason we were fighting him!" Inuyasha forgetting what had happened earlier when he interrupted Kagome, didn't see the fumes coming out of her ears.
"Oh! I don't know. Maybe it's because you rushed me to get here before you left to go shard hunting without me! You have some nerve, Inuyasha! Demanding things of me left and right all the time. You're worse than a misbehaved kid."
With that Kagome grabbed her bag, and stomped out of the hut. "Oi! Kagome! Where do you think you're going?" Inuyasha shouted after her. Pushing past the entrance mat, he quipped. "Hey! You take that back, I wouldn't have to demand things of you if you didn't run home all the time. If Kikyo were here, we would have set out three days ago!" Inuyasha followed closely behind Kagome as she stormed away in a huff, but not before Kagome suddenly turned around to stop him in his tracks.
"Here we go again. Comparing me to Kikyo. Nothing I do is ever good enough for you, Inuyasha! You'll never change. Now if you'll excuse me...I have Kouga to find." This angered Inuyasha even more.
"Oh ya, run to your mangy wolf boyfriend! He won't be able to put up with you either!" The jealousy coursed through Inuyasha. Just as she arrives, she runs off to that annoying wolf, and his stinking pack.
"SIIIITTT!" Kagome tightly clenched her fists as she shouted in contempt. "I've already told you a thousand times! He's not my BOYFRIEND! If you had paid any attention at all we need to build a village and we need his pack to help." With that Kagome turned on her heel and stormed off in the direction of the Eastern Wolf Demon tribe. Shippo padded behind and when he passed the crater Inuyasha was in, he stuck out his tongue in jest at the half demon.
"Serves you right, Inuyasha." Before Shippo could get away, Inuyasha was peeling himself out of the crater and tried to grab Shippo by the tail.
"AHHH! KAGOME!" Shippo just missed Inuyasha's hand, and scurried after Kagome for protection.
Inuyasha could here the sound of footsteps and the jingling of Miroku's staff. Sango and Miroku ran past Inuyasha to quickly catch up with Kagome's retreating form along the path out of the village.
"Hey you guys can't leave me here!" Inuyasha growled at his rotten luck.
"No time to waste, Inuyasha. We got a plan to hatch, and a wolf to find." Miroku shouted over his shoulder. His friends of course take Kagome's side all the time and leave him in the dust, literally. After climbing out of the crater and dusting himself off, he began to walk from a distance behind everyone else. This day sucked already and it wasn't going to get any better once they rendezvoused with his third least favourite person in the world. 'Dammit, Kagome!'
An hour later
They were walking in the same manner as they left. Sango and Miroku were wedged in the middle of two fuming individuals who couldn't see past their argument from earlier. Kagome slowed her pace down to a relaxed walk. Shippo was on her shoulder playing a game of 'I spy' with her. Inuyasha had his arms behind his head and eyes closed as he walked behind the group. It wasn't usually his thing to walk behind, but he sure wasn't the one who wanted to go to the wolf demon tribe. It was beneath him to ask for their help after all. Also, maintaining his distance from Kagome was on the top of his list.
Sango and Miroku seemed to be on edge over the fight. Inuyasha was clearly frustrated since the mentioning of the wolf demon tribe and their prospective involvement in the building of the hidden village. Kagome was only relaying information and helping with the formation of a plan, and Inuyasha couldn't handle some of the details of the plan.
"How long do you think they are going to stay mad at each other, Miroku?" Sango broke the silence by whispering her thoughts to the only other calm person in the group.
Miroku looked left at Sango, and shrugged his shoulders. "You know them. They probably won't stop fighting until one of them apologizes. I wouldn't hold our breaths, we still have to find Kouga. You know how all three of them get caught up in their bickering. We could always make a game out of this," Miroku smiled, deviously thinking about a game of wagers.
Sango watched Miroku, as his smile got wider and wider as the seconds went by. "What are you smiling at? I don't like that look on your face."
"Sango, I bet they won't stop fighting until tomorrow early afternoon." Miroku placed his bet on the table and waited for Sango to respond.
"You're seriously betting on our friends? Miroku that's low, even for you." Sango crossed her arms and closed her eyes. Kirara mewed in agreement.
"Well then, let's make it more interesting. Sango, if I win you must take over finding us a place to sleep for a whole month, and if you fail you must admit defeat and say I'm the most wonderful guy you know at least twice a day."
"You're just getting back at me for that comment I made about the story-telling!" She huffed at his wager. "Tonight, late tonight."
"What?" Miroku was unsure what she was referring to about late tonight.
"They will stop fighting late tonight. When I win, you will stop touching my butt and asking women to bear your children for a month, and when you fail you must take over my early morning watch until I dismiss you and resume my normal duties."
Miroku pondered the idea of not asking women to bear his children for a month. The idea seemed too farfetched, and risky. His whole future depended on that one month, if he died in that one month then no one would carry on his legacy. He just couldn't lose to Sango. Plus all those cute women...and the feeling of touching Sango's nice, plump butt. Losing wasn't an option.
"Well?" Sango waited patiently for Miroku to confirm the stakes. She was very confident that Kagome and Inuyasha would make up tonight and she would win the bet. She had to make this worth it, after all she couldn't stand to watch Miroku ask another lady to bear his child. It was too much. I mean it was the poor women she was looking out for and that was it. 'There wasn't any personal benefit at all...and people think I'm jealous, HA!' Sango's attention averted when Miroku replied.
"You're on," Miroku was smiling and brimming with over-confidence. "May the best and closest bet win." Sango smirked inwardly, until she felt a hand on her bottom. "MIROKU!"
"Sango, I just couldn't resist! This cursed hand has a mind of its own." Miroku felt the sting of a slap on his cheek as soon as he finished talking.
"I spy with my little eye...something that is-" Shippo stopped when he heard Sango cry Miroku's name and the sound of a slap that followed after. "Red, very red."
Kagome turned her head back to see her friends. Miroku was holding his hand up to his now very red left cheek. "Miroku's cheek, ok my turn."
"I spy with my little eye, something that is blue." It was Shippo's turn to guess what Kagome had spied. He guessed the sky, but Kagome shook her head and asked him to guess again. Sango soon reached their little group to get away from the lecherous monk. "Ugh, men what's wrong with them these days?"
Kagome looped her arm with Sango's as they walked together away from the other two annoying males in the group. "Trust me in 500 years they don't change too much."
"Oh great, we've got lots to look forward to..." She joked lightly. "Hey, it would be a good idea to talk to Inuyasha don't you think? Maybe reassure him that this trip is for the village and not for what he seems to think it is for."
"Really? Oh I guess you're right. When we stop for a break I'll talk to him." Kagome was surprised that Sango brought up the tense situation between Inuyasha and herself, but Kagome had a feeling that things could get worse if she didn't try to correct it before the reunion with Kouga.
"Kagome, I give up. What's blue?" Shippo rubbed his eyes after looking tirelessly at every member of the group and their possessions. Nothing was blue that he could see.
"Miroku's beads." Kagome giggled when Shippo looked back and groaned because he didn't catch the monk's beads. They definitely were blue.
"You all need to wear more blue," Shippo countered. Miroku and Sango chuckled at the kitsune. Shippo sighed trying to change the topic from his blunder to something else. "It takes a day to get there right?"
"We won't be there before noon tomorrow," Sango replied casually. Sango hadn't heard a word from the hanyou since they left the village and was wondering if he had gone mute. "Inuyasha, you ok over there?"
"Keh." Was his only response. He didn't even open an eye to acknowledge her question. Sango formed a small smile while thinking, 'guess he's not mute.'
Although, Inuyasha was in his own little world. Thinking back to their conversation at Kaede's, he was imagining how the final battle would progress. Would it be slow or fast? What kind of attacks would he use? The best part he couldn't wait for was the moment he could shove his sword through that bastard and end it all. His life would be so much easier, with him out of the way and he could live his life in peace. He would wish upon the completed jewel to become a full-fledged demon and prove everyone wrong. No one would tease him for being weak or part human. He would feel complete once and for all.
It wasn't clear to him what he wanted to do after wishing upon the jewel. Maybe battle with Sesshomaru just so he could see the look on the demon's face when he notices he can't call him weak anymore. Maybe he would gain the power to transform into a large dog as well. Would he inherit more of his father's powers? Contemplating these details turned to an end quickly as he remembered his promise to Kikyo. He had promised to go to hell with her when she was resurrected two years ago. It seemed like a good idea at the time, he felt guilty for what happened between them.
Fifty years ago, she was supposed to live the life of an ordinary human and he was going to turn into a human for her. They would have lived out their lives without the worry of the jewel, but then Naraku happened and everything changed. He wish things could have been different for them, but something told him it happened for a reason. All those years ago he felt alone, even when he was with Kikyo. He didn't have Kagome, Miroku, Sango, Kirara or Shippo in his life. It was lonely, and his solitude was his only friend aside from Kikyo. Kikyo was also lonely too. Her stewardship over the jewel ruined her life. She wouldn't be able to marry, or have children as long as the jewel existed. She took a sacred oath, because there were no other priestess as strong as her in the country.
He remembered that day when they took a trip on a boat down the river. She tripped on the docks and fell into him, and they embraced each other. It was the first time they realized their feelings for one another and the first time they kissed. Things were different now, she was the living dead and the only thing keeping her in this world was Naraku. As long as Naraku is alive, she wouldn't be able to rest for an eternity. Something told him he didn't want to go to hell with Kikyo, and he wasn't too sure why that had changed. Leaving Kagome and the others wasn't something he was ready to do. He didn't know how, and for once he was kind of ok with that feeling.
