Chapter Thirty

A Little Piece of Heaven

Disclaimer: I do own InuYasha!! –Looks around- Oh … I guess it was just a dream –sigh- Well then … I don't own InuYasha but ya don't have to keep reminding me!

... … … …… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … ... … … …… … … … … … … … … … … … … …

Takara sighed a little bit as she watched Ai get fitted for her wedding kimono for the millionth time. She was really happy for her but, honestly, how many times do you really need to be fitted for the same thing? Even though it was now being made to accommodate her growing stomach.

From her sitting position on a stool, she put her chin in her hands, watching Ai blush a little as she stood on the pedestal, looking at herself in the mirror. With another bored sigh, Takara looked out the large window and let her mind wander a little bit. Soon, she found herself thinking of the very person whom she had been trying not to think about.

She kept replaying that last moment with Kyoto. How the sun was setting the last time she saw him when they were kids and how softly he kissed her hand just a few nights ago.

She had heard that he was at the castle when she was training a couple days ago but … she hadn't seen him since the night she sprained her ankle. She kept picturing his face in her mind and thinking about how much he really had grown up since she had been gone.

His features had soften but had become more defined and manly and he'd still kept his blond hair short and his eyes … oh his eyes … they'd darkened over time and seem to hold a deep wound.

She looked over at Ai again and wondered if she was the reason for such deep sadness in his gorgeous eyes. She looked out the window again, sadness filling her. She wanted to see him again. She wanted to explain. She hadn't meant not to come back but, what could she really have done? The well didn't work so there was no way of getting back to him or anything like that.

'I want you to be my bride!!' The young Kyoto's voice rang through her head and Takara sighed inwardly.

'I want to be your bride, Kyo. I'm sorry that we never got the chance.' She thought with more sadness. What chance did they have now? With her luck, he already had his little piece of heaven in the form of a beautiful wife.

Besides, she had two kids now. Who in their right mind would want someone that comes in a package? 'No one, stupid.' She thought, answering her own question.

Her eyes shifted back to Ai and she saddened more. She looked so pretty and seemed so incredibly happy. Why couldn't that happen to her? What was so wrong with her that she couldn't have her own little piece of heaven? Her brother, her twin, had found Ai. True, this had all been arranged but they were already starting to fall in love before they even knew of this.

Closing her eyes, she reflected a little. Since coming here, her life seemed like some sort of story. Not the fluffy, sweet ones that she would hear about from her mother when she was a child. So far, this one didn't have a happy ending.

The friends she had made here, outside of family had been brutally murdered by some blood-thirsty demon and left their newborn daughter orphaned at the tender age of not even an hour old. They didn't even have an hour to get to know their little Hana.

And what about Haku? His family was brutally murdered as well and they entrusted him with such a powerful trinket. Takara couldn't figure out which was worse; losing your parents after you've known them and have memories of them or losing them before you even know what parents are.

Opening her eyes, she was met with dark blue eyes. Caught completely by surprise, Takara yelped and promptly fell off her seat and slightly painfully onto the floor.

Ai giggled a little bit and held up her hands in an apology. "Sorry!! You just looked so sad!" Takara groaned a little, rubbing her sore backside and stood up with Ai's help.

"That's okay; I was just lost in thought." Ai nodded a little.

"So, what were you thinking about? A boy maybe? A special boy?" Ai gave her sister in-law and knowing grin and Takara blushed madly.

"Wh-what gave you that idea?" Ai smiled and put her hands behind her back.

"Well, normally, when a young girl looks as sad as you just did, it's usually because of a boy. So, who is it?" Takara looked down at the floor, still blushing a little.

"He's … a childhood friend I guess is what you would call him." Ai nodded a little.

"He wouldn't be that cute boy from the training day, would he?" Takara's eyes snapped to the cocky-looking wolf demon and blushed, once again, finding the floor very interesting.

"Maybe … " Ai smiled and took a seat on the loveseat that was positioned by the window and patted the spot next to her. Just as the two females were getting comfortable, Kasei walked in, knocking as he opened the door.

"Well, don't you look absolutely fabulous!" Walking over to his fiancé, he took the blushing female into his arms.

Ai giggled a little bit. "You flatter me."

Kasei grinned. "But of course. So, what were you up to just now? You two looked awfully friendly on the couch." Ai smiled and looked to where Takara was sitting and sighed, seeing as how the half demon was clearly not there anymore.

"Well, we were going to have a little girl chat. She looked so sad today, Kasei. I've never seen such sadness on her face before. I swear she was going to burst into tears any second." Kasei frowned, becoming thoughtful. He had never heard of his twin sister ever looking like that. She really never was one to let others see her emotions, especially going through elementary and middle school.

"That is certainly a problem. I've never heard of her acting or looking like that and I've never seen it myself. She's one that likes to mask what she's feeling, much like dad, I suppose." Ai nodded. That sounded almost exactly like the lord.

"I would assume that's where she gets it from." Kasei nodded again.

"Though were twins and we're similar in a lot of ways, that's where we really differ." Ai sighed and looked to the window in which the said hanyou escaped through.

"I'm worried about her."

... … … …… … … … … … … … … … … … … … ... … … …… … … … … … … … … … … … … …

Takara sighed and walked down a random path, her hands in her pockets and her eyes watching the ground. Kyoto kept flashing through her mind and it was making her rather depressed.

What she wouldn't give to just be able to explain things to him but … he made it clear that he didn't want anything to do with her when she came across him a couple days ago.

Takara's Flashback Start

Takara stood at the spot where they had met again just a few days prior and sighed, looking out at the water.

Kyoto was walking by, carrying a basket of herbs for the village when he noticed someone down the hill. Frowning a little, he set down the basket and slid down the slick grass. It wasn't until the person turned around did he realize who it was.

Golden eyes stared into blue ones and before she knew it, he was bowing to her. A little confused, she stepped back a little.

"Kyo … what are you doing? Why are you bowing? It's just me." He didn't stand up for a while and for a while, she didn't think he was going to answer her. Sure enough, though, when he straightened, an unreadable look was in his eyes.

"It is required for one such as myself to bow and show respect to one such as yourself, princess." Takara blinked a little, a little hurt by his cold tone.

"P-princess? But … why … I … " Takara trailed off, clutching her hands together to her chest as she looked to the ground. She didn't know what to say …

Looking up again, she saw he was about to leave and she quickly grabbed his wrist, making him stop.

"Just listen to me, Kyo. I'm sorry. I had every intention of coming back but – " Kyo's voice cut her off.

"You should head back to the castle, princess." Takara's eyes widened.

"But, Kyo, I – " He cut her off again.

"Just go, okay?! You shouldn't have to bother yourself with someone like me!" Tears filled her eyes at his words and she tried, once again, to get him to listen to her but failed as before.

"I said go!!" Turning around, he yanked his wrist out of her grasp and pushed her to the ground, bounding up the hill, picking up his basket and taking off.

The last words she could make out were, "Its better this way."

Takara's Flashback End

Not watching her step, she tripped over a tree root and ended up falling on her face. Slowly pushing herself up, she just sat on the ground, one hand on the ground and one clutched to her chest as her body shook with repressed sobs. Tears began streaming down her cheeks, wetting the ground beneath her.

'Kyo … ' She thought, pain filling her. 'I'm sorry … I'm so, so … sorry …'

"I'm … so … sorry …" With those quietly uttered words, she took off running as fast as she could through the thick forest, her kimono getting ripped and branches slapping her exposed face and skin, creating painful cuts but she didn't care. She just ran and ran and ran. She ran until she finally collapsed, breathing hard and shaking still.

Pushing herself to her hands and knees, her hands turned to fists and she just sobbed.

"I'M SORRY OKAY?! I'M SORRY! I ALWAYS WANTED TO COME BACK!! I NEVER FORGOT YOU!! I NEVER MEANT TO LEAVE! IT WASN'T MY FAULT!! IT WASN'T … my fault … it wasn't … it wasn't … I … I … always … loved you … Kyoto … I … I love you …" She collapsed in a crying fit and curled up into a ball, clutching her knees to her chest, squeezing her eyes, trying to shut out the unbearable pain.

Later, she was just staring off into space, not even noticing as it begun to rain. She just lay on the grassy cliff, trying to forget herself, forget her pain, and forget him. With a sigh, she picked herself up off the ground, ignoring the icy rain that pleated and beat her. Slowly, she dragged herself back towards the castle, not even caring that she had been gone all day and it was now working its way into early morning.

Who really cares, anyways? Why did it matter if she was out all night? So what if some demon attacked her? Big deal. Nothing mattered to her at that moment, all she truly wished to do was just forget.

Tripping, she again landed in the dirt but this time it had turned into mud. Pushing herself up again, her eyes came upon a sharp rock. Picking it up, she examined it and pricked her finger. Looking to her arm, she remembered her old habit and then pushed her kimono sleeve up and carved 'so alone' deep into her arm, not caring how badly it bled. She knew very well that she could die if she lost too much blood but she didn't care, in fact, she welcomed it.

Tossing the rock away, she just continued on her journey as the blood mixed with the rain and ran down her arm and dripped off her fingers.

By the time the castle came into view, Takara was feeling dizzy and really lightheaded and her vision was fading fast. Dropping to her knees, she used one hand to brace herself against the ground and she held her head with the other, gritting her teeth against crying more.

The arm bracing her shook violently and threatened to give out and soon it did, leaving her laying in the mud. Soon, she closed her eyes and drifted into welcomed peace.

Yumi and InuYasha were taking the twins out to splash in some puddles and putting the raingear Kagome had given them to good use when Yumi noticed Takara laying in the mud.

"Oh my God … InuYasha!" InuYasha looked over and instantly spotted the girl. Cursing a little, he ran over and rolled her over, not really being able to tell the extent of the damage because of all the dirt but the one thing he did notice was the certain wound on her arm.

"Damn it. What the hell is wrong with you, kid?" Yumi was crouching beside her mate, worry written all over her.

"Do you think she's okay?" InuYasha hefted the girl into his arms.

"She will be but we have to get her inside." Yumi nodded and collected the twins, ignoring their protests, following InuYasha into the castle.

... … … …… … … … … … … … … … … … … … ... … … …… … … … … … … … … … … … … …

Kagome and Sesshomaru stood outside the healing room that Takara was in, waiting to be let in. Sesshomaru had his arm around Kagome, holding her against his chest and stroking her hair with his other hand to soothe her nerves.

Soon, the door opened and the healer stepped out, patting his brow a little. Sesshomaru looked to him and the healer nodded.

"She has a lot of little cuts and she lost a lot of blood. She's probably going to have a cold and the arm will take longer to heal since it required stitching up." Sesshomaru nodded and opened the door, letting Kagome go in first.

Kagome sat on the edge of the bed, taking her daughter's hand that was closest to her and brushing her black bangs from her eyes.

"Takara, what's gotten into you?" She whispered softly. She spotted the heavily bandaged arm and could faintly make out what was on there and sighed, feeling Sesshomaru place a comforting hand on her shoulder and she placed one on top of his.

Sesshomaru gave Kagome's a gentle squeeze and she got up, following him out of the room. Kagome paused in the doorway, looking back at her daughter before stepping out, closing it behind her.

After listening to their footsteps fade away, Takara opened her eyes and sighed a little bit, Kyoto coming to her mind and once again, her eyes filled with new tears. Taking the pillow from underneath her head, she pressed it against her face, stifling the sobs that came.

Putting the pillow back, she looked up at the ceiling and then held up the hand that he had kissed the night they had been reunited. Sighing, she placed her hand on her stomach and turned to look across the room, watching the rain come down. Silently she wondered why it always seemed to rain when she was sad.

Tears swam in her eyes and she clenched her fists, looking to the ceiling again. 'Kyo … I want to see you. I want to make things right. I don't want us to be like this. I don't want this pain anymore. I want to be happy. I want my little piece of heaven.'

Sighing a little, she just closed her eyes. She was really tired and she didn't want to cry anymore. After a couple minutes, she fell into a dreamless sleep, having many visitors throughout the night.

The following morning, Takara squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to wake up. She didn't feel when she was sleeping but a twinge of pain on her arm brought her around and she looked at it. Some blood had seeped through the bandages but it was just enough to make out the words. Lightly, she traced her fingers over it but was pulled away from her thoughts when the door opened. She closed her eyes, pretending to be sleeping, not wanting to talk to anyone at the moment.

"You always were such a terrible faker." Came a familiar voice. Takara opened her eyes to her twin standing above her with a smile. She didn't smile back or say anything, just looked at him. He'd become really happy as of late, almost overly happy.

Kasei just took a seat in a chair that someone had obviously placed there sometime last night. He reached over and rubbed one of her ears like he used to do when they were kids.

"You know … everyone is really worried about you, especially mom. Hell, even Uncle InuYasha is worried about you." Takara's eyes widened a little but she just looked away from her twin.

"I hope you're not starting that up again." Kasei lightly tapped on her bandaged arm. Takara took her arm and held it against her, still not talking or making eye contact. She heard him sigh and stand from the chair.

"Well, just get better soon, alright?" With that, he left the room. She had a couple more visitors but she didn't talk to any of them, not even Haku and by the time dinner rolled around, she was sitting up in the bed, eating a specially prepared meal while she read a manga that was in her lap. A few people came by after dinner but she didn't talk to any of them again. She didn't know why she wasn't talking to anyone, it wasn't like she forgot or anything, she just didn't feel like talking to anyone.

Later that night, she was just sitting in the bed, looking at the nice view of the moon and the night sky she got from where she was. With a bit of a sigh, she just laid down and rolled to her side so her back was to the window and soon fell asleep.

That day, she was dressed and discharged from the hospital wing. Wearing a soft pink kimono, she just wandered the gardens almost lifelessly. Kasei watched his twin sister and sighed a little bit, taking off to the human village where he learned that Kyoto lived.

Upon arriving, as much as he just wanted to grab the nearest person and order them to take him to Kyoto, he figured a calmer approach would work best. He spotted a shop keeper and walked up with a smile.

"Excuse me but would you know where I could find a boy named Kyoto?" The shopkeeper looked at him and blinked a little.

"Eh? Kyoto, you say? Why, you can probably find him in the fields at this time of day." Kasei nodded and headed there. Finding him farther away from the group, he stepped up behind him.

Kyoto noticed another shadow and stood up, coming face to face with a very angry half demon. He tried to keep his calm and smiled at the person in front of him.

"Oh, hello there. Are you looking for someone?" Kasei glared at him.

"I guess you can say that." He stated right before landing a solid punch, knocking him to the ground. Kyoto winced and looked up at the half demon that was clearly restraining himself. With a growl, Kasei pointed at him, causing the boy to flinch a little.

"Does she mean nothing to you?! How could you stoop so low and just play around with her emotions?! Did you even give her a chance to explain?!" Kyo blinked a little, slightly confused.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" He yelped a little when Kasei grabbed the front of his shirt and brought him just inches away from his face.

"I'm talking about my sister, you bastard!!" Kyo blinked. Sister? Then he spotted the ears and it hit him. Takara …

Kasei saw the realization in his eyes and shook him a little. "Well? What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Kyo looked away from the angry brother, sadness filling him.

"It's for the best. For both of us." Kasei growled violently.

"That's the biggest bunch of bullshit I've ever heard." Kyo looked at him again.

"It is! She's a princess and I'm some lowly commoner. She'll be happier for it in the end." Kasei growled again and began dragging him away, ignoring his protests and eventually dragged him to a spot where they could watch Takara without being noticed.

Throwing him down on the ground, Kasei watched his sister kneel down in the garden and push her sleeve up, looking at her wound before setting her hands in her lap, just staring at the flowers in front of her.

"Does that look happy to you?" Kasei demanded, looking to the other male, feeling somewhat calmer. Kyo first noticed how beautiful she looked in the pink and white kimono and with the pink ribbon tied into her black hair and then he noticed just how miserable she looked.

Takara squeezed her hands together before bowing her head so her hair hid her face though her body rocked with barely suppressed sobs. Slowly, she lifted her face towards the sunlight, her tears sparkling as they ran down her cheeks and fell to the ground.

"I … never knew. But … she left me!" Kasei hit him over the head with a growl.

"You idiot! Do you think she'd be this miserable if she left INTENTIONALLY? In case you didn't know, she couldn't come back. There's a well that can transport us 500 years into the future and that's where our mother is from. The last day you saw her was the day before we went with our mother to her time but somehow, we weren't able to come back until just a couple months ago. She didn't leave you on purpose, you idiot." Kyo watched Takara as Kasei explained and hung his head, feeling completely guilty.

Kasei whacked him again. "Don't just sit there, feeling sorry for yourself. Go over there." Rising, he rubbed his head a little and walked over, thinking silently to himself, glaring at Kasei a little.

'Sheesh … he didn't have to be so violent. That really hurt and he's a little scary … '

He stopped and cleared his throat, watching one of Takara's black dog ears that he was always so fond of swivel to the sound and then watched as her eyes widened as she turned to look at him.

Kyo smiled a little, rubbing the back of his head, unsure of what to say. "Um, hey."

In the background, still spying on them, he smacked a hand to his face. "That's all he can say is 'hey'?! He's more of an idiot than I thought!" He whispered to himself.

Takara's eyes were fixed on him and she was clutching her hands to her chest. She could hear him, see him and smell him but … what if it was all a cruel dream?

"K-Kyo … you're … here … but … why?" Kyo chuckled nervously. Those eyes of hers were really unnerving him.

"Yeah … well … about that …" He paused and sighed a little, smiling at her softly. "You wanna go for a walk or something?" Takara nodded a little and followed him.

Soon, they were walking the path she had walked the previous day. Holding her hands together in front of her, she looked at the ground. She was so scared. What if this was just some sick joke or something? She wasn't sure if she could live through it if it was.

"Your … brother told me … you know … about the well and all that." She looked at him and then looked away again, smiling a little. She would have to remember to be extra nice to him from now on.

They soon came to the top of the hill of where everything started for them. Kyo started down the hill and stopped, turning back and then holding out a hand for Takara.

Slowly, she reached out and put her hand in his. He helped her down the hill and noticed the sun was setting. Just as he came to the bottom of the hill, Takara tripped over her kimono and Kyo turned around just in time to catch her.

Looking down, she was clutching his shirt tightly and he smiled a little, putting his arms around her.

"I'm sorry. I never knew. I'm sorry for everything. I never meant to hurt you. I hope we can start over because … I … I love you, Kara. I have for years." Takara's eyes filled with tears again and she buried her face in his chest.

"I love you, too …" Kyo smiled and pulled away a little bit, stepping back and bowing low. Takara smiled a little bit, watching him.

"Princess, will you do me the honor of becoming my bride?" Takara smiled and nodded a little and nodded.

"I will." Kyo smiled and drew her to him again, kissing her for the first time.

... … … …… … … … … … … … … … … … … …... … … …… … … … … … … … … … … … … …

A/N: So … I made this chapter extra long and I realize there wasn't a lot of humor in here but rather a lot of angst lol. I hope everyone likes it and by the way … Kasei and Ai's wedding is coming up soon! In this next chapter or the one after that. I wanted to focus on the love between Takara and Kyoto because … well … because they're my favorite couple besides Kagome and Sesshy –grin-

And, yes, I realized I put a twist on the last chapter. Bet none of ya'll were expecting to Kagura again. Though Naraku's not back, he's still dead. I'm not THAT cruel. Well … maybe I am but he's still dead so who's this mystery guy? You'll have to wait and see.

The reason for these two being one of my favorite couples is because their love started when they were just kids so what started off as childhood friends blossomed into sweet love. And plus, I just love toying with the emotions of the characters. I also love how pissed off Kasei got –laugh-

I know that he acted a lot like InuYasha but, hey, InuYasha is his uncle after all –grin- By the way … I pulled an all-nighter while writing this. Whoop! Go me!!

Anywho … I don't have any new reviews as of yet and I'm not sure whether or not I'm going to post this today or not … Hmm … sure why not!! Just don't expect another update anytime soon –grin-