Well, this fic is far from over, don't worry. But, it seems that a lot of my fics seem to have their climax really early... Or two climaxes... o.O;; That's odd. Well, time for the chapter.

Save Me From Myself

Chapter Twenty-Two: Purity

... For once... I was... I was happy.

- - -

Kagome was extremely comfortable in her spot. She felt like lying there forever. But she knew that she couldn't, and she had to get up... later. She could wake up later.

After about a half hour of lying in her cozy spot, she willed her eyes to open. She did so, slowly, and found herself looking at a tainted jewel in the middle of a mountain.

The miko pushed herself off of her spot and looked where her head was laying. She was staring at a red leg, which led up to a red chest, which led up to a sleeping face laying against Kirara.

InuYasha looked peaceful, but the lack of weight and warmth on his leg caused him to stir. His eyes opened and met Kagome's, blinking a couple times before glancing at the Shikon Jewel in the middle of the floor.

"What happened? After I transformed, I mean," Kagome said, remembering the struggle she had, and losing herself to the youkai that had found home in her body.

InuYasha sat up carefully, causing Kirara to wake up as well, but she didn't move from her spot as InuYasha's backrest. The nekomata actually seemed to enjoy it.

The hanyou crossed his legs and massaged the one that was asleep from Kagome's weight, and cleared his throat. "When I got here," InuYasha started, "you had already transformed. You tried attacking us, but I stopped you," InuYasha seemed a bit proud of himself there, "and then you escaped my grasp. For some reason, you grasped the jewel shards that you have, and you broke from Naraku's control and started to attack him, but still as a youkai. The rest of us joined in and started to attack Naraku as well, and soon, he was gone.

"He left the Shikon Jewel though, and I don't think he meant to... and then... You acted... almost human... I mean, you're acting human now, but you said that you wouldn't kill us. Like the youkai side of you was starting to accept us," InuYasha said, looking at Kagome carefully. "Or maybe you're starting to regain control."

Kagome smiled at InuYasha. "So, Naraku's almost dead."

"Yeah. But we can't touch the jewel. You're going to have to make it pure," Miroku said, sitting up from his spot where he was sitting. Kagome and InuYasha hadn't noticed the others had woken up and were listening in.

"Maybe... if I protect the jewel long enough, it will become so pure that Naraku can't touch it," Kagome said. Like Kikyou asked me to do with Kohaku's shard... Kagome added to herself, remembering the dead priestess.

"Then we can defeat Naraku!" Shippo shouted, bouncing around.

Kagome stood up and brushed off her tattered skirt and then stepped over to the Jewel that sat in the center of the dark glow. She kneeled down and the second that she touched the tainted marble it seemed to purify, but Kagome could tell that it wasn't completely void of all evil.

She held onto the jewel tightly and took out the few shards that she had. Putting them together with the Jewel she started to pray, which caused the shards and the rest of the Jewel to connect together.

"So, it's pure now?" Sango asked.

Kagome shook her head and tied the Jewel around her neck using the string from the jar that held the shards.

"Not yet. It may take a while, but it's almost pure now," Kagome told them.

InuYasha looked at the Jewel tied around her neck and said, "That's better than nothing."

"I can't believe it. We've almost got the whole Shikon Jewel," Kagome whispered to herself.

And so, they left, flying to the top of the mountain and exiting through the hole that let the light in.

- - -

The group stopped at a village that gladly let them stay at the inn there after Miroku used his 'services' to get rid of a 'youkai.' They got one of the largest rooms there, filled with beautiful wall paintings and warm colors. The beds were softer than most of the ones that they slept on, and the blankets were much warmer.

It seemed that their luck was starting to change.

Kagome sat outside on the deck that night, watching the sky and enjoying a fresh pair of clothes that they had also got from the village.

InuYasha walked outside and saw Kagome in the garbs and was reminded of Kikyou, seeing as the clothing was from the village miko. Though, that miko was suspicious of the monk traveling with them.

The hanyou did think about how similar that Kagome and Kikyou looked, but he also thought about how different they were. Kagome was nothing like Kikyou, and he was glad for that.

He walked over to her and sat down next to her, wondering if his question was dumb or not.

"Hey, InuYasha," Kagome said to the hanyou.

"I was thinking..." InuYasha started, not even replying to her greeting.

Ignoring the temptation to make a witty remark, the miko replied, "About what?"

"Well... What if you used the Shikon Jewel to wish that the Bachiatari Jewel was gone?" InuYasha asked.

Kagome's expression saddened and she sighed. "I wish it were that simple, InuYasha. But I don't think that would work. That would be a selfish wish, and the Shikon Jewel wouldn't be purified," Kagome said. Besides, Kagome thought, the only ways to get rid of the Bachiatari Jewel is killing Naraku or love... I doubt that the Shikon Jewel could even break the spell.

InuYasha looked up into the sky where the miko was looking. "What's so interesting about the sky?" he asked.

"I'm sure you've noticed how in my time you can't see any of the stars. I think it's just so amazing to see them all here. They're so beautiful," Kagome explained. "And they calm me."

InuYasha shifted his gaze to Kagome and raised an eyebrow. "They calm you?"

Kagome nodded and said to the hanyou. "Yeah. The stars calm me, just like how you make me feel safe and protected."

InuYasha blushed. "I... I do?"

"Yup," Kagome giggled, glancing at InuYasha before turning back to the sky.

They sat in a comfortable silence for a while before Kagome yawned deeply.

"You should probably go to bed," InuYasha said.

"We're going to go search for Naraku tomorrow, right?" Kagome asked.

InuYasha nodded and grunted in agreement.

Kagome's voice quieted and she added, "We'll also have to find Kohaku."

Before the miko got up to leave, she asked InuYasha, "Do you think that after we defeat Naraku, the Bachiatari Jewel will lose it's power?"

The hanyou paused. He was about to answer when Kagome yawned once more and said, "I'm going to bed. Don't stay up too late. Goodnight, InuYasha."

He stayed out for a while and then went inside, asking himself, Will the Jewel go away once Naraku is dead?

Chapter End