Love and War
Disclaimer: I do not own, or make any money from, the stories of Inuyasha.
All Inuyasha characters are the sole property of Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise and Viz
All original characters belong to me.
Chapter Six
Future of Uncertainty
Sango picked up Izayoi,
"Are you sure about this, Kagome?", Miroku asked.
"I have to do this.", Kagome replied, "I need to find out about my family and friends."
Kagome hugged and kissed the three children,
"Don't worry, you guys, I'll protect Kagome.", Inuyasha tried to reassure them.
"Take care, Kagome and Inuyasha.", Shippou told them, his voice full of worry.
"Hmhm.", Kagome said, before she and Inuyasha leapt into the well.
Shinta and Kai watched in fascination from the lip of the well as the bluish light enveloped their parents,
"They're gone.", whispered Shinta.
"Like magic.", said Kai.
Izayoi started to cry, "Mama. Daddy."
Sango hugged her and tried to comfort her,
"They'll be back, sweetheart. I promise.", she said, kissing the little girl's tears away.
--
Landing at the bottom of the well, Inuyasha looked up,
"Well, so far so good. The well is here at least.", he surmised.
"And it's not outside.", Kagome said, noticing the roof overhead.
"Or sealed up.", Inuyasha agreed, as he hooked his arm around Kagome's waist and jumped up.
Inuyasha opened the door to the well house and the two realized immediately that the well house was all that was similar. Kagome walked out in total shocked, Inuyasha following,
"Where is the shrine?", she said.
Where the shrine once stood was now a small piece of land. The well house was present, as was the sacred god tree, though it had no representation as such. As Kagome looked around, she saw a very small house a few feet away. It looked nothing like the house she had grown up in. She swallowed hard. Houses had been built around the shrine in the era she knew, but, the houses here were almost on top of the little house and the tree. The land was radically different,
"That's not all.", she heard Inuyasha say.
She walked over to where he stood. Looking down at the street, she gasped,
"An army? Walking the streets with guns?"
She watched the people walking. Civilians were dressed with western style clothes, just as she was used to. But, large amounts of soldiers prowled the streets, armed heavily. She grabbed Inuyasha's arm,
"Let's see if my mother or jii-chan has any answers for me.", she urged.
She walked inside the strange, little house. Nothing looked similar. Slowly examining everything, her eyes alighted on some pictures. She took a closer look at them,
"That's my mother.", she said softly, "But, she has long hair. And, that's my dad. And Souta. But,", realization hit her, "There's no pictures of me. Or Grandpa."
They searched the house slowly and quietly. Kagome's stomach felt sick,
"This isn't my home, Inuyasha.", she told him. She pulled out a scarf and wrapped it around Inuyasha's ears,
"What the hell?", he started to complain.
"We don't need people staring at your ears, Inuyasha. That gaudy outfit will be bad enough."
"Why? Where are we goin'?", he asked.
"To find some answers, that's where."
The pair left the house and headed towards what Kagome believed to be downtown Tokyo. Even with his ears covered, the pair still drew stares. They tried to remain inconspicuous, but, to no avail. A couple of soldiers stopped them,
"Who are you and why are you dressed so funny?", one soldier asked.
"Uhmmm,", Kagome tried to think fast, "We, uh, work at the Yasukuni Shrine.", she said, happy with her response.
"The ... what?", the soldier asked her, "a shrine? There aren't any shrines in this town. Hell, there aren't any shrines in this whole country.", he said, laughing with his comrades.
"Yea, the shrines were all destroyed centuries ago.", said another soldier.
Kagome shifted uneasily. She didn't like the way this was going at all. One soldier got into Inuyasha's face,
"And who the hell are you?", he said, touching a strand of Inuyasha's silver locks, "You ain't from around here, dufus."
Kagome could hear Inuyasha's growl forming low in his throat. Grabbing his arm, she responded,
"Him? Oh, he's harmless. He's from ... uhm ... the United States."
The soldiers looked at her strangely,
"Where?", one soldier queried.
Kagome looked at him like he had ten heads, "Duh ... the United States .. you know ... America?"
This caused the soldiers to bust out into rollicking fits of laughter. Finally, one managed to get his breath and talk,
"I've never heard it called the United States before.", he said to her.
She gulped again but, retained her composure, "I'm sorry. What do you call it?"
"Great Britain North America, of course, you dolt."
She smiled, "Oh, of course, how stupid of me."
"You know,", said one of the soldiers, "You're cute. And, because you're cute and,", he patted her belly, "preggers ..."
Inuyasha grabbed his hand and growled, pulling the soldier face to face to him. The other soldier quickly had his rifle in Inuyasha's face. Kagome was ready to yell the phrase to save him when Inuyasha released the soldier and raised his hands in surrender,
"I don't wanna fight, man.", Inuyasha told him, "I just don't like strange men touching my wife. Got it?"
Kagome sighed a sigh of relief at Inuyasha's demeanor,
"You know, idiot, I don't give a good goddamn what you like or don't like. But, you had better be glad I'm in a benevolent mood today, so I'll let you slide, freak.", the soldier he had attacked told him.
Kagome intervened, "Look. I'm new around here. Can you please just direct me to the closest library?"
The one soldier smiled, "I'd love too, sweetie, but, it's closed today. In honor of the Emperor's birthday."
She smiled, "Ok. Well, will it be open tomorrow?"
"Yea, I believe so. I ain't into reading and shit. But, it's down five blocks. It's across the street from the Blessed Virgin Mary church. You can't miss it."
Kagome nearly choked on her saliva, "Blessed ... Virgin ... Mary ... church?", she gulped hard again, "O-o-ok. Thanks alot."
She grabbed the sleeve of Inuyasha's hitoe and hissed, "Let's go. NOW!"
"Alright.", Inuyasha replied, quietly.
Kagome walked quickly back to the strange house,
"What's the matter, Kagome?", Inuyasha asked.
"What's NOT the matter, Inuyasha. I'll fill you in when we get back.", she told him.
They headed up the stairs towards the well house. As they reached the top, they were greeted by a gun barrel,
"Who are you and why are you on private property?", the young man asked.
Kagome blinked and stared, "Souta?"
The young man looked at her, "You know my name? How? Do I know you?"
"Souta ... it's me ... Kagome ... your big sister. And this is Inuyasha ..."
The young man clicked the rifle into position, "I don't have a sister. And I certainly don't know anybody who looks like him ...", he sneered, "Now, leave, before I shoot you both right here."
"Souta, wait ...", Kagome pleaded. Inuyasha grabbed her arm. She looked at him,
"Don't Kagome."
"But, ..."
Inuyasha studied the boy. His eyes were as cold as steel. Inuyasha wrapped his arm around Kagome's waist. He knew he had to be quick. Timing would be crucial. He could tell by the boy's eyes, he was an expert,
"NOW!", he said to Kagome, as he ran full tilt to the well house, breaking down the doors. His feet left the ground as he heard the gunblast behind him,
'SHIT!', he thought.
Kagome felt the bluish light envelope her as she hit the well. As the light faded, she fell hard on the ground,
"Ow. Hey, Inuyasha, you could've landed with a bit more grace, ya know.", she chided him. All she got for a response was a loud moan, "Inuyasha?", she grabbed the half-demon, "What's wrong?"
"I've been hit.", he moaned.
"C'mon, we gotta get outta here so I can treat it.", she urged, trying to get him to stand up. It was useless,
"Ka - go - me,", he stammered, "I can't feel my legs."
Kagome stared at him in disbelief, "Ok. I'll go and get Miroku to help.", her breathing rapid as she tried to remain calm.
--
Inuyasha lay on his stomach on the floor of the hut. Sango and Kaede assisted her as Miroku and Kohaku watched. Rin and Shippou watched the children in Miroku's hut,
"This is bad.", Kagome murmured, "The bullet shattered his spine and spinal cord. I really do not know if Inuyasha can survive this. And, if he does, I don't know if his spinal cord will regenerate like other parts of his body do."
She bandaged Inuyasha's wound and covered him. Inuyasha moaned in his drug induced stupor. Kagome stared at the bullet,
"It's a high caliber rifle. A military rifle. That's all I know of it.", she said, "And I only know that because I saw the rifle.", she sighed and sat on her buttocks, pulling her knees to her chest and burying her head in her knees.
"What happened Kagome?", Miroku asked.
Kagome lifted her head up, tears in her eyes,
"Japan ... was a military state. After World War II, Japan lost to the United States. The country was forced to dismantle its navy. The military was never used. It wass mainly for appearances. But, according to the soldiers, there is no United States. He called it, Great Britain North America. As if, the United States had never won its independence from Great Britain. And, not only that, he mentioned that the library was across from a church ... called Blessed Virgin Mary something or other. And, that no shrines existed in the country, at all."
"I don't understand much of what you are saying, Kagome, since I do not know your history.", Miroku conceded.
"A church?", Sango inquired, "Is that like a temple?"
"Yes. But, it belongs to the Christian religion. In the era I knew, Christianity wasn't a prevelant religion. And, there were no churches close to the shrine."
"From what you're saying, it sounds like this other religion now dominates and Shintoism and Buddhism are no longer practiced.", Kaede mused.
"Yes. It would seem that way.", Kagome sighed.
"And, you said, your little brother didn't know you? That he said he didn't have a sister?", Sango asked.
"Yea. And, in the pictures on the wall, I didn't see any of myself.", said Kagome.
Miroku appeared lost in thought, "Hmmm, Kagome."
"Yes?", she looked at the monk.
"Don't you think it strange that there were no pictures of you in that house? And that your little brother didn't know you?"
"Duh. I just said that, didn't I?", Kagome muttered.
"Then, Kagome, if it is like you were never born, why are you here still? If the future has changed and your history has changed to the point where your family says you do not exist ... then .. why do you exist?"
Kagome stared at Miroku, trying to comprehend what he was saying,
"Hoshi-sama?", Kohaku queried.
"Maybe because Kagome was here when the future changed?", Sango suggested.
"But,", Miroku explained, "Kagome wasn't born here. She time-traveled here. She was born 500 years into the future. Yet, her brother doesn't know her."
Kagome looked at her feet, "He's right.", she mused, "Why am I here?"
--
A/N: Fun fact ... Blessed Virgin Mary was the Catholic Church and School I attended as a child in Darby, Pennsylvania. Needed a name and chose that. Thanks for the reviews. See ya soon with Chapter 7.