Disclaimer: Once again, I don't own Inu-Yasha or any Inu-Yasha-related characters. It's called FANfiction because I am, in fact, a fan. Or else I would not even be writing this. e.e;

Author's Note: Yeah, I know the update is late, but I recently got grounded (for a month or so), so I have an excuse. Actually, I don't. I forgot this fanfic existed at all.. I only remembered it today when I was speaking to a classmate of mine about my fanfiction. I would like to thank everyone who's reviewed; it really means a lot to me. And I would like to especially thank Suaru, who has followed just about all of my fanfics and left reviews! You get a virtual cookie! Arigatou! I only still hope I have you as a supporter.

His heart stopped cold and he felt the world turn black for a moment.

"Kagome?" Shippou's voice came from his right, but he barely noticed. Instead, he only saw her slipping away again. That vacant look in her eyes.. It reminded him of how Kikyou had looked at him before she had been filled with Kagome's soul. The clay Kikyou body had only sat against the stone wall, gazing at him with no recollection of their past, just as Kagome stared at him now. She looked confused and a bit defensive, like she really did not remember any of their adventures. "Do you really not remember us?"

"I'm sorry.. Have we met before?" Her smile was apologetic, though she seemed to be racking her mind for any possible place she could have seen the group before.

Kouga seemed as quiet as Inu-Yasha, Shippou noticed, glancing to see the wolf with the same, pained expression in his eyes as the hanyou. Was the five hundred year wait for nothing? His throat felt tight, but he decided to speak on behalf of the group anyway, deeming the others useless. "Maybe.." here he cleared his throat and willed tears away. "Maybe you don't remember us because we look kinda different now. But it was a few years ago for you.."

Kagome gasped and Houjou's gaze hardened. He had seemed so passive before, but the subtle glare in his eyes mirrored the protective gaze Inu-Yasha held when he first saw Houjou.

"But I was–"

"Go away." Houjou stated calmly, though his words held a quiet venom usually unheard from in the male. And with that, he promptly slammed the door in their faces.

Inu-Yasha and Kouga snapped out of it with the sudden noise and growled. Inu-Yasha pulled back his fist, ready to smash the door down, while Mirai jumped in front of his target, arms spread wide.

"Are you crazy? Do you want to be arrested, Inu-Yasha?" The boy snapped, his head craned back to glare up at the hanyou.

"Shut up! A door isn't going to stand between me and Kagome! After all this time.. All this time.." He looked down, his bangs overshadowing his golden orbs. "I won't give up!"

"Stop your barking, Inu-koro. You know she means more to me than you. We won't give up.. We'll just come back later, to avoid a run-in with the police for disturbing the peace, or a domestic disturbance." Kouga commented, already turning to walk down the stairs again. Inu-Yasha kept his fists balled to his sides, his claws digging into his palms and producing small rivets of blood, but slowly turned and followed behind the wolf.

Shippou sighed heavily, dragging his gaze away from the door. "It's just as impossible to get through as the Bone Eater's Well was. For so long, we tried. Inu-Yasha even slept in it for a few nights.. And here we are again, at the Bone Eater's Well. Only this time, it's a door, and the only magic is how she could forget us."

Mirai stared at Shippou, not sure what to say to that, for quite some time. He had always heard stories of his ancestors; it was pretty much ingrained into his ball of thought. He knew of Miroku and Sango, of their adventures with Kagome, Inu-Yasha, and Shippou, as well as the legend of the Shikon no Tama. Of course, he would much rather forget all of that and live his own life, here in the present. But, no matter how much he wanted to leave the talk about youkai and magical jewels behind, he could not help but feel pride to know his ancestors once defeated the most powerful youkai to ever exist. And he was living with three of the youkai that fought beside them! Present or Sengoku Jidai, that was still pretty amazing to the preteen boy.

"I'm sure you'll find a way to get through, Shippou," was all Mirai could come up with. Shippou managed a half-smile and pat Mirai on the shoulder, the two starting back down the stairs.

"You're getting more and more like Miroku everyday, with all that optimism."

"Inu-Yasha.. Will you get out of there? Even if you did manage to get through, you haven't had a bath in weeks! You smell like a dog!" The rings of a staff jingled as a houshi impatiently paced in front of the Bone Eater's Well.

"Keh!" Came the only response, though it sounded pained to the monk. The staff halted for a moment and a sigh issued from the owner. Then, a large rock preceded to be tossed into the dry well. "O-oi!" Inu-Yasha yelped after the rock landed squarely on his head. "That hurt, you know!"

"Good. Perhaps it will knock some sense into that thick skull of yours. This is getting you no where, Inu-Yasha. Kagome-sama would not have wanted you to waste away in a cramped space full of dirt." He sighed again, then sat with his back resting against the wooden side of the well, his staff resting across his lap. "We all miss her dearly.. But if you die down there, you will never see her again."

"I will when I'm reincarnated," Inu-Yasha muttered softly. For a long time after that, the only sounds were the shifting of his robes as he tried to find a more comfortable spot. For a moment, he thought his houshi companion had gotten up to leave; perhaps to go make sure his wife was properly impregnated. It made him depressed further, these thoughts. The schoolgirl should have been his mate after everything was finally over..

"That is like saying Kagome is really Kikyou, Inu-Yasha. They were very different.. She is not Kikyou any longer, as you would not be Inu-Yasha any longer if you died." That seemed to be the response the hanyou was looking for, as he bound from the well with a single jump and landed silently beside the houshi. "I know you will see her again."

"How do you know, Miroku?" Inu-Yasha sighed, crouched over in his classic "dog" pose: squatting with his knees bent and his palms placed flat on the ground in front of him.

Miroku flicked the rosary around Inu-Yasha's neck, the corner of his mouth raising in a smile. "You are bound to her, remember? Just do not give up."

"I won't give up, Kagome. I promise," Inu-Yasha vowed in the cover of darkness. He looked as he did in the nights at Sengoku Jidai, when an unsuspecting youkai would come after the group's campsite, only to find an immensely protective hanyou perched in a tree, the wind sweeping his kimono and long, silver hair to the side, creating quite the frightening silhouette. The only difference now was that the hanyou was seated on the railing of Kagome's short balcony, and his clothing was too fitted to waft in the breeze with his silvery tendrils.

Inu-Yasha slowly set his feet down on the concrete of the balcony, gently tapping the toe of his shoe on it at first, as if to test the steadiness of the firm slab. Once he had his leg steady, and his plans semi-thought out, he prepared to enter through the sliding glass door and kidnap Kagome right out from under Houjou. It would be difficult, but the rag concealed in his pocket should be enough to keep her out cold.

He had so many questions about what could have possibly possessed Kagome to forget the Inu-tachi, Sengoku Jidai, and live with the pathetic excuse for a human. Hopefully, she could give him the answers he deserved.

Sighing, he pulled back the glass sliding door, surprised to find it unlocked. Of course, on the third floor, he could see how it was improbable that an intruder would be able to climb the slick surface of the apartment siding. Well, other than beings with superhuman attributes, like him. All it took was a simple leap, and he was gracefully on the balcony, after all.

Inu-Yasha stepped inside and glanced around quickly, his golden orbs seeming to glow in the darkness. The living room he was in seemed average enough; a television was against the wall, a rocker in the corner, a couch opposite the TV, and two end tables on either side, with a small coffee table in front. He stepped around all of this, then stealthily made his way down a short hall at the other corner of the room, keeping to the shadows. As he approached a bedroom, he spotted two silhouettes in the darkness, like two lumps on a bed, and his youkai blood boiled. Five hundred years had passed, however, and in those years with periods of peaceful living, he had learned to manage his anger a little better. He no longer had the urge to go through the door and quickly rip Houjou's still-beating heart right out of his chest.

Well.. Okay, so he did still have that urge.

But he was not going to act on it. Not for his plan to work..

What he did next was quite simple; a little too simple for his taste. It was something he could be arrested and jailed for, if he was ever caught. But he was confident that the Kagome he once knew would shine through, and he would be able to pretend this never happened. He just pulled the rag out, clasped it over the young woman's face, and held it there until he was sure she would not stir when he plucked her from her warm bed. Houjou was turned the other direction, sleeping on his side with the covers pulled up to his nose. The hanyou was glad for this.. He would not have liked to see Houjou with his arms around his Kagome.

With Kagome in his arms, the hanyou vacated the apartment the same way he entered, grinning as he looked down at Kagome's beautiful sleeping face. She looked so peaceful, like the many times he had carried her unconscious body close to his chest. Like the time he almost lost her to Hakudoushi when he went after a rumor about Kikyou..

Kagome smiled slightly, lying in the grass in front of Inu-Yasha, her eyes still half-closed. "That's right.. You came for me.. Inu-Yasha.." She weakly muttered, causing his ears to twitch, clearly hearing every syllable.

"Yeah.. I'm sorry.." he mumbled back, looking tired and apologetic. "Since I wasn't there.."

Kagome slowly sat up, cutting him off, "It's okay, really."

"It's not okay!" Inu-Yasha shouted, his temper flaring up, since she seemed so calm. One of them had to be angry, after all, and if she was not going to be upset that he almost let her die, he was going to be upset for her. "I put you in danger!"

Kagome still had the small smile on her face. "Well.. If you happen to hear a clue about Kikyou, you'll leave, won't you?"

"I won't go! I won't leave your side again!"

Still smiling, though her eyes turning soft and sad, Kagome replied, "Liar."

'I did lie, didn't I?' Inu-Yasha thought sadly, shifting the woman in his arms as he bound across the roof tops back to his residence. The thin fabric of her nightgown allowed him to feel the softness of her skin; something he had missed dearly. He tucked her head under his chin, the hand supporting her shoulders coming up to tangle in her ebony hair. She looked as beautiful as she always had and it made his heart ache. Why did things have to go so wrong?

The hanyou finally reached his destination and dropped to the front door, opting to not sneak inside. The lights on inside only proved that his group was still awake, probably engaged in an important video game tournament with Mirai. After half a millennium spent gathering money and supplies and selling off antiques, they had more than enough money to sit back and relax. He shifted his bundle enough to open the door, then kicked it swiftly, causing it to fly open. Stepping forward, he called out towards the living room, "Oi!"

"Nani?" Mirai called back without looking, entranced in a racing game with the other two. That is, until he noticed the other cars crashing into a wall and heard the thud of controllers being dropped.

"Kagome!" Shippou and Kouga cried out in unison, leaping over furniture to get to Inu-Yasha and his charge.

"You took her?" Mirai asked, amazed. "Do you know what's going to happen when that guy finds her missi–.."

"Who cares?" Inu-Yasha cut in, pulling her protectively to his chest, then stepping past the other two youkai to set her on the couch.

"Kagome.." Kouga breathed, leaning over the back of the couch, his voice thick with emotion. "Inu-koro.. What do we do now? She didn't even remember us.."

"I know she will. She will remember us," Inu-Yasha stubbornly stated.

"I missed her," Shippou said, sitting on the couch, next to her side. "She was always like a mother to me.."

"Uh..." a sound issued from the sleeping woman.

"She's waking up," Mirai blinked, getting up off the floor to go over to the couch. "Don't you think all this is going to weird her out?"

Kagome's hazel eyes slowly fluttered open, her face scrunching up in disgust at the overhead light. Inu-Yasha and the rest only stared down at her, watching her slow stir into the land of consciousness, like they had many times in Sengoku Jidai. "Hnn..." She looked confused for a moment, before her eyes snapped open and she jerked violently, causing her to fall from the couch. "Kyaah! What do you want from me!" she cried out, kicking at the floor in a frenzy to put distance between herself and the group. The scent of fear clung to her.

Kouga shoved Inu-Yasha out of his way, coming to crouch in front of Kagome. "It's okay; we're not going to hurt you! We just want to talk!"

Kagome, untrusting, screamed again. Mirai ran up to her and clamped a hand over her mouth, making shushing noises.

"Don't you want to know how we know your name?" Mirai inquired in her ear, shaking her slightly. Kagome quieted, her curiosity getting the better of her. "We just want to talk, I promise. If these were bad people, why would they have a kid anyway?"

"Maybe you're all sick," Kagome muttered, trying to pull her nightgown further down in a semi-state of disgust, her face rosy.

Inu-Yasha scoffed, removing his jacket and tossing it onto the woman. She quickly pulled it to her chest, eyes darting from person to person. "..You said you knew me a few years ago," she mumbled.

"Yeah, we did," Shippou replied, moving closer to look into her eyes. She did not recoil away from him, finding some sort of comfort and familiarity in his innocent emerald orbs. "Don't you remember any of it?"

"...No. I-I'd really like to go home now; I don't want to talk about it." Kagome pushed herself up and spotted the door, proceeding to sprint for it while holding Inu-Yasha's jacket to herself. Inu-Yasha beat her to it, successfully blocking off her escape route. She suddenly stopped, bumping into his chest hard. "We're done talking.. You guys said you wouldn't hurt me, so let me go home!"

"We're not done talking," Inu-Yasha simply stated, his golden eyes hard like they were with so many previous arguments. Her eyes suddenly mirrored his, and she looked exactly as she had when they traveled side-by-side throughout Japan.

"Yes, we are!" Kagome's sudden burst startled Mirai, who had just seen her cower before the group moments before.

Shippou leaned down, grinning, and whispered, "Even if she doesn't remember, they still act the same."

Inu-Yasha narrowed his eyes, uncrossing his arms from his classic pose and resting his hands on her shoulders. She was caught off-guard and shoved at his chest, futilely trying to detatch him. "H-hey!"

"Why did he close the door on us?"

"Huh?" Kagome blinked at the soft question from the silver-haired man.

"That man.. Your lover or whatever.. Why did he close the door on us?"

"He was.. trying to protect me.. I always get upset when I talk about then.."

"Why?" Kouga asked from behind her. She shook her head, dropping her gaze from the hanyou's face, to his feet.

"I can't remember.. I was always sick, he said. I was hardly at school, so the illness took my memories.. Yet, no one can fill in the blanks."

"Oh, Kagome.." Inu-Yasha breathed, releasing her shoulders.

"There's two years missing from my life.."

"But, we knew you!" Shippou interjected. "We can fill–" he was cut-off by Mirai stepping in front of him and asking, "You really don't remember?"

"No. I'm really sorry if we were good friends. The only thing I know is I had a 'jealous, two-timing, violent' boyfriend and that didn't seem that great for my health.."

"Have you been sick since then?" Mirai questioned in a contemplative state.

"Well.. no. It was the final illness that took away my memories. I just woke up by the Goshinboku and thought I was fifteen.. Look, I really want to go home.."

"Couldn't we talk some more? We were good friends back then and I'd like to know what happened.." Inu-Yasha pleaded with his eyes, still blocking her passage.. trying desperately to keep her in his life.

"It's late.. and I'd.. I'd really like to go home.."

"Will you come back tomorrow? We could go get some coffee or something."

"But, Houjou-san.."

"Please, Kagome," Inu-Yasha held her gaze for a long time, while she wondered how he could get such unique eyes.. Or why it hurt so much to see the glassy, glazed look they held.

"Alright. Come back by tomorrow afternoon."

He stepped from her path, allowing her enough room to get to the door. Glancing back, she saw the forlorn expressions of the others and knew that somehow, they were telling the truth. "Keep the jacket on," Inu-Yasha offered, noticing that the wind was rather cold. "Would you like a ride back?"

Kagome pondered for a moment how easily she was plucked from her bed and wondered if it was a good idea to go anywhere with him. By all means, she should not be so calm! She should be screaming and running from the house in a state of barely-alive shock. Afterall, Houjou will be worried sick to find her missing!

Yet.. Something just felt right. She could not place it, but knew that she was safe with this group of what was once her friends.

"How far away are we?"

"Just a couple of blocks away.." He gestured to the left, "Go that way. You should know where you are, though."

"Oh, I pass by here almost every day," Kagome nodded, though a chill went up her spine. What if these people had been stalking her.. What if that's how they knew her name?

"Uh, I can walk. It's okay, really!" A little uneasy, yet still collected, Kagome waved her hand and bound down the stairs, turning once to see the group congregated outside to watch her walk away. Once again, they looked so melancholy.. They were not stalkers.

Inu-Yasha waited until the girl was out-of-sight and then bound onto a nearby roof, proceeding to jump from roof to roof in the cover of darkness.

"Where's he going?" Mirai asked, though was already walking back inside to his video games.

"Inu-Yasha always made sure Kagome was okay.. He's probably following her home to make sure she's safe." Shippou replied.

Kouga snorted, putting an arm behind his head, and retreating to his room for the night.

"That was unproductive," Mirai commented, tossing Shippou a controller.

"Why did you cut me off anyway?"

"Because you can't fill her in on her missing memories. She would never believe you and think you're crazy!"

"I guess we have to hope she'll remember us sooner or later, then.." Shippou mused, gazing at a nearby window. And that Inu-Yasha doesn't do anything too stupid before then..