02: Half Soul

They put too much into the idea of souls.

She could only sense the shikon because of their power which resounded off each piece and called to all in the land with the promise of power. Thus she, the only miko who had a true connection with its power, was perhaps on the same wavelength, so to speak, as the shards; she could feel their call.

Kikyo on the other hand, did not broadcast her location, nor did she spread out her aura very far to detect or create a bond with Kagome. Split souls did not retain bonds towards each other magically like that. They could, but they did not automatically do so. While the pieces of their souls called to each other, neither priestess could locate the other unless they were in close range. Kikyo did not have the power to maintain such a link in her clay body and Kagome had not the training nor the will.

…

However, that is not to say that Kagome did not recognize when the other half of her, their, soul was around.
The shinidamachu were quite the proverbial neon sign.
And even had they not been around, Inuyasha's sudden focus on a single place just beyond the group's vision would be.
And even if everyone had attributed the hanyou's actions as a random need to be alert, or notice to an incoming threat, there was still…
one sure factor:

The taunting whisper sent from one half of their soul to the other. He is mine; he cannot deny me; he loves me still.
You are nothing was always unsaid, but the other half of her soul would always be sure to impress the message roughly, deeply, into her heart.

There was no way to argue it and being half of anything seemed to perpetually hurt, and when she could finally scrounge up a reply, it was always thus: He was never here; he has always been yours; I have never stood against your love.
A taunting smirk or mocking snort was always the image she received, just before Inuyasha would escape the clearing, pointless excuses or not.

Her only consolation was that when Kikyo was near, the pain from leaving her soul broken was dulled. The sharp jagged edges of her torn soul would grind less painfully against her ribcage. So while her heart throbbed in emotional pain, at least she could breathe without wanting to drop dead. Or maybe not, but at least she could relax knowing the rash hanyou was occupied and there was no one else to prey on her weaknesses. She would never explain to him that it was not the feeling of inferiority to Kikyo that had her hurting, but the fact that he left, left them in the wilds with no adequate explanation so that they would be alert for danger. After all his implied promises and double standards, the hanyou boy did not even have the decency to warn them. He would have left them clueless and open to attacks had the tachi had not been expecting his actions.
He was their protector unless there was Kikyo, and she would be important to him unless there was Kikyo.

Or he had the notion that she was Kikyo.

Sad that he never recognized that her and Kikyo had never been connected, their physical attributes were similar to half the Japanese (seriously, who doesn't have black hair?), and while they may both love the same half-demon, they have never been the same person. The emotional pain they each carried had never been the same.
And Kikyo's half of the soul had no jagged edges.
The half of the soul she had called back was probably broken only from the moment she heard Inuyasha's desperate shout and Kikyo opened her lifeless eyes.

So much into the idea of souls, and yet they missed all the important parts.
There were no more questions over her soul once she stated that she felt no connection to the Kikyo-golem. Even as she was recognized as a reincarnation and always compared, no one wanted to know if there was any pain in her soul's state of separation. As long as she saw the shards, she was useful. As long as she moved forward in their search, they felt accomplished.

And by 'they', this half soul of hers obviously meant Inuyasha.

Really, the people of this time placed too much on the idea of souls.
And it was tearing her already half soul into even more painful little pieces.