Back! I feel like responding again to here it goes! -

Kaiysha:: I agree with you totally. It would be nice if they did, instead of waiting until the second movie. ::sigh::

DemonDragon000:: True! ::huggles Inu::

Kotori Susayski:: Welcome! Yes, Inu is a little slow but, it'll all work out in the end. :D

Bubba:: Thanks, makes me feel all warm inside. Your waiting is over though . . . enjoy. ;)

Inuyasha'smistress:: You . . . you cried? Actually cried? Like . . . wow. I didn't know that section was THAT sad. Heck I cried too as I wrote it . . . XD

Dark Mistress of Demons:: I guess you kinda read my mind . . .

alejandra:: Yeah I know, Inu's a baka but we all love him for it! :D

butterfly sabre:: Okay, I'm on it. Glad that you're enjoying my ficcy :)

Getto 820:: Sorry. . .didn't mean to insult you. Anywho, your ficcy idea sounds interesting! I don't really like Serenity either, she's too. . .too. . .whiny I suppose. I just don't like her that much. I can't wait to hear more about it! ;)

shangxiang10:: I take it that's happened to you before. I won't ask what happened though since that can be a very emotional event in your life. I know what it feels like, although it wasn't over love or anything. But hey, everyone will have something tragic happen to them in their life time so you just gotta keep on living the years you've been given.

chakitattyla2h8:: Don't worry, doing something like this just makes the ending better. Inu and Kagome will get back together. I'm not the type of person to tear them apart. They're such a cute couple. I agree, how could someone not like this couple? They're made for each other! Glad you got your own login name. Have fun with it, just like I am! :D

Note: I'm going to change my pen name pplz. It'll be either Aioki Tsunami or Indigo Moonbeam. Just to let ya know! Or, you guys could tell me which one you prefer and majority rules, k?

Well, enjoy chapter 19! -

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That Unforgettable Face

A figure sat in the crook between two naked oak trees, clawing at the bark with her bare hands. Ragged sobs broke from her every now and then, accompanied by a snivel and a painful cough.

A pool of silver tears lay at the base of the intertwined trees, shining with the brilliance of the moon.

How long she had been sitting there, Kagome didn't know. All that occupied her thoughts was deep burning anger.

All she could see was that cold, emotionless face, staring down at her with disgust. Those eyes kept coming back, haunting her with their golden glare.

She could just see him now, scolding her for shedding tears on such a thing. But what else was there to do? Her heart was broken in a million places.

Shedding her precious tears was the only option.

The only bearable option.

The other one was to waste away, dwelling on only one forgotten memory that blanked out all others.

Kagome really wasn't that type of person, unlike the one who had brought this grief upon her.

That was his way, not hers.

Above the forest canopy, the clouds swirled, tumbling over each other in billowing pillars of condensed water vapour. The foul wind that whispered in and out of their wispy depths spoke of a sinister evil, unfolding in the dead of night.

------

Sango and Miroku looked up when Inuyasha walked into their view.

This time, instead of the regular cold expression, there was one of regret, and something more.

He didn't look like himself at all.

Sango almost cried at the look he wore. " Inuyasha. . .Don't–

" No," he interrupted, sitting across from them and staring into the fire. " She's right. I am a stupid half-dog, nothing more," he mumbled.

The huntress glanced at Miroku who shook his head.

" I'm so sorry Inuyasha . . .," she whispered quietly, regretting her urging for him to talk to Kagome.

" Don't be. If you hadn't done that, I wouldn't have realized the things I've done," he said, smiling sadly at her.

Still, even if he acted like it was a good thing, Sango still felt horrible.

Something warm rubbed against her leg and she looked down, staring into Kirara's large eyes.

The cat youkai cocked her head, a questioning look in her eyes.

Sango nodded, motioning over to the sullen hanyou. She didn't know anything else that could comfort him at the moment.

Kirara walked up to Inuyasha and nudged his hand, meowing softly.

He glanced at her before gently pushing her away. He wasn't in the mood for comforting.

Kirara however had other things on her mind. She jumped up on his shoulder and curled around his neck, purring loudly.

Even in the dim light, Miroku and Sango caught the small smile on his face.

------

The loud crack of a branch woke Kagome out of her tortured sleep.

She jumped down from the crook she was sitting in and dropped to a crouch, ready to pounce if she saw anything.

Her eyes glowed pale blue with the power she was getting ready to release if needed.

Another twig snapped, making Kagome whirl around, mentally slapping herself for not bringing a weapon.

What she saw almost made her faint.

A tall black stallion stood behind her, head high and proud. His ears were pricked in her direction, eyes hidden by a long forelock of black hair.

She looked up at his rider, eyeing the tangled hair that fell down to his shoulders.

Wasn't anyone she feared, yet.

Her eyes wandered up to his face and locked on his eyes, which were so much like her own.

A memory from long ago tugged at her mind. She recognized that face but, from where? He was someone from her past but, who?

With these questions came an urgency to figure out who that face belonged to. She hadn't seen this person for so long and all she wanted to do was recognize him. Remember the last time she had seen him and if he remembered that fragment of time.

Kagome looked up at him again and was struck with a scene from long ago.

" Father, why do you have to go?!"

" Kagome my flower, don't cry! I'll be back before you know it."

Kagome stood rooted to the spot, staring at the man who had been gone from her life for over eleven years.

" F-father? It can't be. . .you-you're. . ." She had to stop. It was too hard to say anything at the moment.

He climbed down from the stallion's back and took a few shaky steps toward her before stopping.

" Kagome, my dear. It's been so long. . ."

Without even knowing how she got there, Kagome was in-front of him, staring up at his all too familiar face. She recognized everything about him, except the sullen look in his eyes. They were once so bright and cheery, just like hers.

He reached up and touched her tear-stained cheek with his wrinkled hand, gently stroking her skin. A weak smile stretched across his aged face, adding more wrinkles to the already present ones. " My dear girl, you've grown so much."

A cry of joy escaped from the girl as she flung herself into his arms. " You said you would come back when the birds stopped singing."

He sighed, stroking her hair gently. " I would if I wasn't delayed on the way."

" D-delayed?" Kagome pulled back, drying her eyes. " What do you mean?"

" More like captured actually."

" Captured?", she questioned, a note of curiosity in her voice. " By whom?"

Without a word, he sank to the ground, groaning with exhaustion. " I'm not in any state to tell you right now Kagome," he mumbled.

" Right. I'll have that fixed up in no time." Although she dreaded the thought of going back to her friends at the moment, she pushed her grief away, focussing on her father. He was more important at the moment.

Wrapping an arm around his slumped shoulders, Kagome helped him stand. Now all she had to do was get him up on that stallion's high back.

When it proved too difficult, something tugged at her mind.

Tall black stallion.

She dismissed it and pondered how she could get her father up. She put her free hand against the horse's shoulder, applying slight pressure.

Kagome almost lost her balance when the large animal knelt down.

With the stallion like that, she was able to get her father on its back without much trouble.

The stallion stood back up, shifting its legs so the weight on its back felt comfortable.

With this came another tug on her memory.

His stallion was trained to do that.

She shrugged it off and made sure her father wouldn't fall off as the horse moved. That's when her eyes caught something. No saddle, no bridle. Just a halter. One thing came to mind.

" You stole Kouga's stallion?!" Kagome clapped a hand over her mouth too late.

Her father glanced down at her sadly, a troubled look coming over his features. He nodded slightly.

Her heart skipped a beat. ' Kouga was the one who captured him! That would mean, my theory about that tamashi may be correct. . .'

She shook it off and grabbed the stallion's halter, jerking him into motion. For some reason, she wanted to get back to her friends quickly.

Kagome tugged the horse into a jog. The hairs on the back of her neck were beginning to stand on end. Why, she didn't know but she also didn't want to find out.

Then something hit her. She didn't know where she was going. While running through the forest, Kagome hadn't really paid much attention to where she was going since she was blinded by her heartache. So now, she had absolutely no idea where to go.

A bead of sweat ran down her brow. This wasn't good.

Grinding her teeth, Kagome kept going in the direction she thought she had come from. ' I just hope I'm right. . .'

She pushed through the branches, getting more frantic as the minutes ticked by. With her nervousness came carelessness. Instead of treading softly, she was making more noise, snapping twigs and crunching on dry pine needles. In addition, the stallion behind her was making some noise, although not as much.

The darkness pressed in around her and all she could see was no possible way back. There where trapped. It was her own stupidity that had caused this. No, he had caused this. ' If he hadn't of. . .I will not trouble myself with that right now. What I have to focus on is getting back to where I came from.'

Even though that voice inside her head sounded so confident, Kagome was not. Also being a girl that was easily caught off guard didn't help either.

Still, despite her unease, she kept trying, stopping every now and then to change her direction depending on what she remembered. At night though, landmarks were very hard to find.

The horse suddenly stopped, raising his great black head to sniff the foul wind that had just blown in. He snorted loudly, stamping his hoof and tossing his head.

Then Kagome felt it.

Demons.

That pricking at the back of mind told her so. With that came a flow of purifying energy, swarming up into her vision like a cloud.

With this addition to her sight, Kagome saw the many evil demon aura's that surrounded them. They churned with evil and joy, blocking all possible means of escape.

Something growled and she spun around, staring into the yellow eyes of a wolf. Sharp teeth glistening in the faint light, dripping with saliva. Its lip was pulled up in a snarl, another deep growl coming from its open mouth.

That was joined by many others.

Now Kagome really wished she had brought a weapon.

Her miko powers weren't very reliable without some type of weapon to focus them through.

She felt a tap on her shoulder, causing her to take her attention away from the wolf demons and glance at her father. " Kagome," he whispered. " We should make a run for it, while they're not on the move."

She nodded slightly and turned her attention back. ' Maybe I could . . .'

It was possible. Although it would cost her most of her energy, she could do it. No one had ever taught her the art of calling on such a high standard of purifying power but Kagome was confident she was skilled enough. If the task was too much, then it would kill her. But that was the price she was willing to pay for her father's safety.

Now, all she had to do was get herself into the medium from which she could summon the power needed.

Her breathing slowed and the scene before her eyes melted away into a swarming sea of blue sparks. They danced before her, forming shapes and eddies before twisting off again.

Kagome gathered some of these sparks in her hands and began stroking and patting them together. They began to shine as her creation took shape, glistening brightly with the light of purity.

Then she was back in the forest, surrounded by snarling wolf demons. Her hand was glowing brightly, transfixing the demons with the scent of awesome power.

' Now is my chance. Go!'

Out of her opened hands exploded a blinding light, shimmering with the essence of milky sunlight. It danced up between the tree branches and around the startled demons, creeping into their fur like wispy ticks.

Then the radiance faded, along with most of Kagome's strength. She felt the tug of life on her soul but it stayed firm, sustained by only a measly amount of energy.

Even though she was alive, she felt extremely weak, barely able to keep herself upright.

She looked around through clouded eyes and groaned in exasperation; her energy release hadn't worked. It had only irritated the demons, causing them to sit on their haunches and bit at their fur.

This distraction had to be enough though. It hadn't come out as she had intended, but at least they had a few scant moments to escape.

Forcing her weak body into motion, Kagome climbed up onto the stallion's back( with some help from her father of course).

Then the horse leapt into motion, galloping into the night.

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Merry Christmas everyone! Just a present for you guys. It's a little early but I figured tomorrow you'll be spending time with your families so, here it is!

Remember, choose which pen name you like, either Aioki Tsunami or Indigo Moonbeam. Majority rules!

I look forward to reading you reviews! Have a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year! ;D