A Change of Heart

Chapter 15: Ending A Beginning

Three days had passed since Naraku's defeat. All had returned to normal. The birds chirped overhead and the villagers continued their daily routines. Everyone was up and about, their smiles suddenly more prominent then they had been in months.

All except for one group of strange travelers.

Miroku stood just outside of Kaede's hut, letting his eyes gaze over the village below. He held his staff in one hand and a bucket in the other. He had just returned from retrieving things for the old priestess, but she had sent him out to gather some more water for dinner. However, his thoughts took him elsewhere.

"Miroku?"

The monk stirred from his mind and focused his eyes on the slender woman approaching him. A smile reached his lips. "Well, good afternoon, dear Sango. Back from the hot springs so soon?"

She sent him a glare, but it no longer held any threat behind it. "How is she?" she asked, ignoring his question all together.

His shoulders relaxed as he turned to face her, knowing exactly what troubled the demon slayer's heart. "Nothing has changed, I'm afraid," he replied with a sullen expression. "But do not fret. Kaede said that Kagome will make a full recovery. When she released that pent up power, it gave her body a shock. It'll take some time for her to regain her strength."

Sango sighed and eyed the hut wearily. "I hope you're right. She's been through so much."

"I agree," he said, eyeing her lustfully. His hand twitched with desire and finally he gave in. It inched its way toward the green skirt that protected her bare bottom from him. A twinge of pain rang through his hand, however, when she discovered his feeble attempts and pinched him without a word. He smiled sheepishly and shook his wrist in order to soothe away the growing agony.

Kirara pranced out from the nearby forest, a happy 'meow' accompanying her. "Hey, come back, Kirara," a boyish voice called. Kohaku appeared moments later, chasing after the two-tailed cat with glee.

"Kohaku seems to be back to his old self," Miroku mused aloud, watching the boy laugh at Kirara's antics.

She crossed her arms and smiled. "I suppose so. His memories seem to have returned, but he will always live with the burden of knowing he killed our family and friends. I've tried telling him that Naraku was controlling him at the time. However, I'm afraid it did little to ease the guilt."

Miroku placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Everything is going to be okay now, Sango," he promised, his words whispering in her ear.

She nodded appreciatively and tried to ignore the stinging sensation behind her eyes. "Thank you."

Kaede continued to stir the pot of vegetable she had Shippo pick from the garden. He had been quite the little helper over the past few days. Most likely it was due to the fact that his chores would help Kagome recover faster in the long run. At the moment, the fox kit sat silently in the back corner, drawing with crayons on thick sheets of paper that the time-traveling girl had brought back from her era.

The old woman glanced across the small fire, eyeing Inuyasha wearily. He sat just next to Kagome's sleeping form. His arms and legs were crossed, Tetsusaiga was tucked in the crook of his arm, and his eyes were closed while his ears flickered every few minutes. Each time Kagome mumbled something in her sleep or her brows furrowed against a bad dream, he was immediately at her side, calling her name. But so far, all of it had been in vain.

"Inuyasha," Kaede called. He glanced up at her. "It will do ye no good to sit by and watch. Perhaps ye should find where Miroku wandered off to. I'll be needing that water soon."

The half-demon grunted in response while closing his eyes once more. "Keh, the lechers probably at the village gropin' all the women. No way in hell I'm goin' down there." He shifted slightly before resuming his watchful pose again.

Silence thickened the hut. Kaede held her tongue as she tried to keep herself from lashing out at the half-demon. It wouldn't do any good to yell at him, for it seemed he would only listen to Kagome. Besides, it would be faster if she went and fetched the water herself. With a sigh, and a few cracks from old age, Kaede rose from her seated position and shuffled to the door.

Shippo glanced up from his drawing. "Kaede!" he called, running to help her. "Let me get the water for you."

She smiled down at him. "Aye, it seems as though one was taught to respect his elders. Unlike other unfortunate souls." She sent Inuyasha a glare, but he didn't appear to have seen it. The old priestess and the kit left the hut together in search of Miroku, who was nowhere in sight.

Inuyasha was left alone with Kagome, but he still kept the same position. Suddenly, Kagome stirred and he was immediately at her bedside. "Kagome?" he called hesitantly, afraid that it would be another false alarm. For the past few days his hopes continued to be dashed.

She squinted her eyes against the invading sunlight and opened them slowly, taking in her surroundings. The first thing she saw was a pair of concerned amber spheres. "Inu ... yasha?" she whispered, her throat dry from lack of water.

The worry seeped out of his muscles and his shoulders relaxed. "Keh, its about time you woke up."

He supported her shoulders with his arm so she could sit upright. "How long was I out?" she asked, trying to clear the fogginess from her mind.

"About three days."

Her gaze traveled over the inside of the hut, noting that no one else was around. "What ... what happened?"

"Naraku," he said softly with a hint of a smile. "He's dead."

Kagome's eyes widened in realization and she whipped her head around to look at him for any signs of a lie. "He's gone? He's dead for good this time?"

The smirk on his lips answered everything she needed to know. Before they could continue the conversation, someone yelled something beyond the bamboo door. Sango stomped in moments later, her cheeks red with fury. "That damn pervert can never keep his hands to himself."

"My hands are cursed!" they heard Miroku shout from somewhere outside.

The demon slayer quickly sat on her knees and crossed her arms, silently fuming. It took her a few moments to realize that Inuyasha was not the only person in the hut. "Oh, Kagome!" she called excitably, all anger diminishing almost immediately. "You're awake!" The priestess smiled weakly in response. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better," she replied honestly.

Sango grinned. "I would hope so. After you defeated Naraku, you better have enough strength to get better."

Her words were met with a shocked expression. "I killed him?" Kagome whispered breathlessly, unable to wrap her mind around the concept.

Kaede walked in just then with Shippo and a pained Miroku in tow. "Oh, Kagome, ye are awake," she said, a bit startled to see the three of them huddled around and talking.

"Did I really finish off Naraku?" Kagome asked them, still in disbelief.

"Aye," the old priestess replied, taking a seat and setting down the water. "It seems as though Kikyo left you with something else than just your soul."

Miroku's brows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean, Lady Kaede?"

"My sister was a great and powerful priestess. With Kagome being her reincarnation, they share the same soul. When Kikyo relinquished her life in exchange for Kagome's, she gave up her spiritual powers as well. From what I can tell, it seems as though Kagome possesses not only her own abilities, but my sister's as well."

Sango turned to her, watching as the old woman poured water into the pot over the fire. "So you're saying that Kagome kind of absorbed Kikyo's powers?"

"Aye, that is correct." She poured some steaming liquid mixed with medicinal herbs into a cup and handed it to her patient. "Kagome was unable to control it, and so she was rendered unconscious once she drained herself of it."

"I see," Miroku mumbled aloud.

"What does this mean, Kaede?" Shippo piped up, leaning his hands against her knees.

The old woman sighed and turned to face Kagome. "This means that ye will have to go through training in order to control these powers."

Inuyasha shook his head. "No way, old hag. She ain't doin' no trainin'."

"Of course not," Miroku agreed. "We'll give her some time to regain her strength. I believe I'll be able to help with the training as well."

Kaede nodded. "Aye. You're spiritual guidance will be needed."

Sango stood up and ambled toward the door, pulling it aside to peer out at her brother. "Good, its settled then. We'll start training in a few days." She turned back and flashed her friends a smile.

Miroku stood up, prepared to join his beloved outside in order to give Inuyasha and Kagome some alone time, when he was stopped by Kagome's voice. "Wait!" she called, causing everyone to stop what they were doing and look at her. "Where's the Sacred Jewel?" Miroku and Sango exchanged a glance, recalling how Kagome was the last one to have it before the incident with Kikyo.

Inuyasha smirked. "I picked it up after Naraku was blown to pieces." He dug around in his robe of the fire-rat and brought out the pink jewel.

The young priestess gasped and her eyes widened. "Its complete," she stated in awe, taking the jewel delicately into her hands, as if it were glass.

"We found the shards Naraku had," Shippo stated with a smile.

"It is up to ye now, Kagome," Kaede interrupted, her expression serious. "The fate of the Shikon No Tama rests in ye hands."

The young priestess looked up at her, baffled. "The fate of the jewel rests in my hands?" she echoed, glancing down at the pink pearl once more. "But, what am I supposed to do with it?"

"Make the correct wish," her mentor explained. "And ye shall rid the jewel from existence forever."

Uncertainty crossed her eyes. "But how will I know what the right wish is?"

Miroku placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "You are a pure woman, Kagome, and have a kind heart. Follow that path."

She smiled up at him, thankful for his wisdom. Glancing around one last time at her group of friends, she allowed memories of their adventure flood her mind. So many happy thoughts coupled with evil made it all worth while. With a sigh, she closed her eyes, cupped the jewel in her hands, and made her wish.

A/N: I am so sorry it took me so long to update this. I had the last chapter written out for a while, just needing a few good edits, when my computer decided to be stupid and erased half the document. Angry and frustrated, I had to take a few days to get my muse back so I could rewrite the ending. Although its probably not as good as the first draft, I hope it will suffice. And heres a little tidbit of information: this story was actually supposed to have a sequel, but because of my lack of interest, I rewrote the last three chapters to wrap things up. Sorry if I disappointed anyone, but I hope you liked it nonetheless. I'm looking forward to seeing you guys return in the future.

As always, many thanks to:

My amazing beta, Dani: She didn't help directly with this story, but without her knowledge and amazing patience, I would never have come as far as I have. Besides, she taught me that I have to keep persuing what I want to achieve, which was the completion of this story. So overall, if it wasn't for her, this story would probably be 'discontinued' right now.

All of my reviewers: Although I lost interest in the story a while back, I'm so glad that you guys stuck by me and pushed me to help complete this story. Without your thoughts and comments on each chapter, A Change of Heart would either be discontinued or deleted. So give yourselves a pat on the back for an amazing job. I'd especially like the thank my only anonymous reviewer: BORED. They simply stated that the fanfic was way too much like the movie. I suppose some authors would take that as a flame, but I had to smile at that. I mean, isn't every Inu fanfic author's dream to have all the characters IC? Well, thanks for that comment, along with all the reviews. They really kept me going through the hard times.

All of my readers: Even though most didn't leave a review, I am glad I had those who liked the story enough to follow it from beginning to end. You should know that I appreciate everyone's interest in the story. I hope you find some of my other work worth while as well.

When a story comes to an end, I tend to be an emotional person. But I have to say for this one, I'm actually glad its over with. I had such a hard time with the last few chapters and I was eager to continue with my other stories or start new pieces. Unfortunately, I promised myself I would finish this one up before anymore updates. Thats why its taken me so long. Anyways, in the long run I suppose some readers liked this. Now I am able to dive into my over creative mind and write like there is no tomorrow. I hope you enjoyed the story from chapter one. Perhaps we shall meet again some day. Love you all!

Sassybratt