A/N: If you want to make this chapter a little bit more effective emotionally, I reccomend you play 'Inuyasha Sad & Romantic Songs' or 'Inuyasha SAD OST ~ E' (which has all the sad soundtracks) on youtube. It's a mix between all the Inuyasha/Kagome soundtracks and it helped me to place myself more emotionally into the writing of this and helps to make a deeper impact. Any mix of the soundtracks should work though, well, atleast it does for me anyway. Hopefully you enjoy. XX

...

Kagome's mind was frantic. In a single moment, the weight of everything came crashing down on her like a tsunami and she couldn't differentiate one thought from the next. Reality slowed down in a blurry haze and without realizing it, she moved to stand closer to Sesshomaru. The inudaiyokai had now risen as he waited for his brother to emerge from the trees, the Miko's distress and anxiety not going un-noticed. The scent's rippled off her form in potent powerful waves and he could hear her heartbeat vastly accelerating. The small group didn't have to wait long before Inuyasha broke through the trees into the camp, fangs bared and a violently livid expression adorning his face. Rin sensed the potential danger and took refuge with Jaken by a tree, Kagome obliviously stepping even closer to the demons Lord's side. She watched the ground intensely, unsure of what would manifest if she were to make eye contact with the hanyou. Anguish and darkness encompassed her in asphyxiating domination. Her anger and bitterness had dissipated somewhat over the time she had been away from Inuyasha, however his sudden presence now caused a palpable relapse. He had let her down so irrevocably and this time it could not be so easily dismissed.

Inuyasha had caught Sesshomaru's scent well before he hit the riverside and as per Kouga's claim, Kagome's was deeply intertwined with it. The hanyou had never felt such malevolent rage before and it only increased as he broke through the trees and took in the scene before him. Sesshomaru stood across the small clearing with his arm idly hanging by his side and his molten gaze narrowed distastefully. Kagome was standing barely two paces from his brother, intensely starring at the ground while her fingers fidgeted with the small red bow on the front of her obi.

"What the fuckSesshomaru?!" Inuyasha growled venomously with an iciness that could have dropped the temperature a few degrees. He was standing at the lining of the trees, cold yellow hues narrowed fiercely.

Kagome had never heard him so angry in all the time she had known him and she had never heard him so excruciated. Her heart faltered in her chest and her throat constricted as her eyes burned with unshed tears. Inuyasha...her mind called out despairingly, her own torment threatening to besiege her as she fought against the salty wetness that was starting to emerge from her eyes.

"I was beginning to believe you would not come, little brother. Clearly it was naïve to expect such fortune." Sesshomaru said nonchalantly. Inuyasha drew Tetsusaiga threateningly, his fangs bared as he growled savagely. There was a palpable malice behind his honey hues that was uncharacteristic of the hanyou and an unrelenting tension filled the air.

"Kagome?" Inuyasha addressed the Miko, his voice much more delicate for the first time since barging from the trees. Kagome was frozen solid. Her arctic irises held focus on the ground with such intensity that she couldn't even blink and her coral lips were pursed with determination. "Has he hurt you?" he urged, his voice slightly quivering.

Kagome in all her trepidation didn't understand the question. Did who hurt her? Against her will, her eyes shot up to meet his and she regretted it immediately. There was so much pain and anger in his features that it made her heart cripple, but what was worse, was how consuming her own anger at the hanyou was and she now understood why she had feared to meet his golden gaze. Sapphire orbs narrowed angrily, piercing like a blade but the Miko couldn't find her voice. His eyes were filled with so much apprehension it hurt her. It caused her agony because those concerned golden hues should have been with her when she had died. Furthermore she hurt due to the guilt she felt for causing him such anxiety, but why should she? He had been the one to abandon her whilst she died choking on her own blood, and now it was she who had to relive the moment frequently in her dreams.

"Hurt me…?" she barely realized that it was her speaking, the whisper sounding so weak and foreign. Nevertheless, Inuyasha's sensitive ears were able to hear her with ease. Was it just her or did he flinch? His gaze was almost excruciatingly anxious as he starred at her waiting for an answer, unable to discern her behaviour.

Inuyasha had only ever really witnessed Kagome really angry or really happy. She was rarely distraught or this unresponsive. He had known she would be mad but this...this he had not expected. If he was honest, he didn't really know what he expected. Screaming, yelling, a barrage of 'sit' commands perhaps, but he had not anticipated this complete desolation and fluctuating anger.

"Hurt me?" Kagome reiterated louder as she scowled, finally registering his question. The hanyou was shocked out of his short musings and he noticeably flinched this time in response to the coldness in the Miko's tone. "He saved me!" she spat at him lividly.

It was at that moment that Miroku, Sango and Shippo entered behind Inuyasha atop Kirara.

"Kagome!" the voices all shouted in unison as they dismounted and moved to stand by Inuyasha apprehensively. The sight of her friends sent the Miko into a state of emotional instability. She wanted so much to run to her friends but something dark in her kept her routed to the spot.

"What are you talking about?" Inuyasha ignored the fact his group had arrived. Kagome couldn't answer, something was stuck in her throat. Once again she lost any ability to speak.

"What she means little brother, is that you left her for dead and I came to her aid." Sesshomaru supplied arrogantly in lieu. When the demon Lord had taken the priestess in, he had no idea it would be this gratifying. If anything, the look on his half-brother's face made it all worth it. There was a certain pleasure that came with tormenting the hanyou. Inuyasha's demeanour softened slightly with guilt.

"I know." He sighed. "I am so sorry, Kagome! If I had known you were injured-"

"INJURED?!" Kagome snapped at her old companion, unbidden tears streaming down her pale cheeks as cerulean hues glared menacingly. "I DIED!"

The river side fell into an intense silence as the newcomers were shocked into speechlessness. A breeze shifted through the clearing causing Kagome's midnight strands to rustle aimlessly around her, accentuating her features and penetrating glare. Kagome had never felt so much anger in her life and it threatened to consume her. Never would she had ever foreseen that she could feel so much fury towards one person, least of all Inuyasha.

"Ka…gome…" the hanyou whispered, the soft sounds of despair almost lost in the wind. Realization finally dawned on him and he finally understood. The remnants of the shirt, how she got home, why she had left that damnable note for her family. Everything that had not made sense in the past several days finally collided together in one violent impact and it vowed to crush him. She had died. She had died and it was all his fault. "I…I had no idea…"

"No! You didn't!" Kagome bit venomously breaking through the barricade in her throat, her voice coming out firm yet broken. All the despair she had restrained inside was breaking free of its gilded cage and her body ached as she fought the urge to unleash. "You never do, Inuyasha! All you ever cared about was Kikyo and the jewel. I was just an imitation of Kikyo and your personal jewel detector! You never loved me!" her voice was breaking as she yelled at the hanyou, her strength and energy depleting rapidly as tears streamed down her cheeks. "You left me Inuyasha! You left me to die!"

The anger and despair was too much and her body wanted to give out but she held strong despite her excessively quaking figure. Never had the Miko felt such darkness before. Vocalising the events of that fateful day opened something up within Kagome. A fearsome rage that she didn't even realise she was capable of. A heat seared within her blood and any form of rationality had been expelled into oblivion. She had given everything to the hanyou that stood before her. Her heart, her love, her trust, and every inch of her unrelenting loyalty only to have it ripped away in one fowl swoop. Her figure was trembling uncontrollably as she starred the Inuhanyou down, releasing all the pent up aggression she had held before him.

"Kagome, that's not true. I don't..." He tried to explain. He wanted to correct her. She wasn't any of those things and he needed her to know that.

"I was dead, Inuyasha! I died for you and you were so busy with her…you never even noticed." The Miko relayed despondently, tears flowing freely leaving track marks in their wake.

Inuyasha didn't know what to say, the shock of it all rendering him temporarily speechless. He knew she had been severely injured but he never really considered her death as a possibility and now that he knew, he didn't even know where to start to make it better. He couldn't even fathom what the Miko would be feeling and he couldn't blame her for it. He had let her down. He had run off after Kikyo without a second thought to her safety and she had paid for it with her life. His heart was shattering, he had never seen her so broken and angry before and it was he who had caused it. He could sense the agony and knowing it was his fault crushed him.

"I'm so, so sorry –"

"Save it!" Kagome spat coldly, cutting him off. "I always forgave you when you went after her, waiting for you to realize I was right there. You went too far this time, Inuyasha. I died alone and scared, in a time that isn't my own, and you were so selfish you didn't even realise I was bleeding out-" her voice broke as the blockage in her throat restricted her of speech again, tears taking over as she fell to her knees. She had given so much to the hanyou only to have him turn his back so easily.

The river side was like ice. A cold darkness waved over as the weight of the situation dawned on Kagome's old companions. Sango and Miroku both had tears streaming down their faces as their empathy allowed them to feel everything Kagome was feeling. Shippo was frozen in place and crying in a deep despair while Inuyasha stood in all his crimson glory, Tetsusaiga left to hang idly in his hand at his side and tears openly displayed for all to see. His heart had been crushed violently and he was speechless. He did love her. He loved her so much. He had vowed to protect her and yet, in a single moment, he had failed and she died. How could he have made such a grave mistake? He made a new vow in that moment. He vowed to spend the rest of his life making it up to her, no matter what it took.

Sesshomaru was growing tired of the little debacle. The scent of salty tears was almost suffocating to the daiyokai, and the cold sorrow was almost overwhelming. His brother was clearly in no fit mental capacity to fight and the overall ambience was becoming morose. If the predicament didn't conclude soon, he would be forced to end it.

The demon slayer took a few cautious steps forwards.

"Oh Kagome!" Her voice cracked with the pain she felt for her friend, which only served to break the Miko further. Kagome wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around her and break in her arms. The taijiya closed the distance between them and bent down over her hunched form, placing a shaking hand onto her shoulder in an attempt to sooth the breaking girl. Kagome fell into her friends lap in uncontrollable tears, all the anger and hurt unleashing.

Inuyasha, who had been trapped in his own silent shock, began to leap towards Kagome. He had to show her how much he cared and how sorry he was. He needed to comfort her. Before he could make it even half way, Sesshomaru had moved so quickly that even his eyes missed the maneuver that successfully blocked him.

"Back off, Sesshomaru! What the hell would you want with Kagome anyway?" he demanded angrily.

"Why should my motives be of importance? After all, if it were not for me, your Miko would not be alive."

Inuyasha growled viciously. "You did this to hurt me!" he snarled through gritted canines.

"If my intentions were to hurt you, would I not have just left her dead? Your lack of intelligence astounds me little brother."

"Well if it you have no ill will then you can just fuck off and return her to me!"

"Perhaps before you start making demands, you should enquire to the Miko herself of what she desires?" There was no denying it, Sesshomaru was indeed enjoying this. The Miko's inconvenience on his life had definitely been worth it if just to see his brothers face in this moment.

Inuyasha shifted his golden gaze to Kagome's weeping form. He could see the pain in her, he could smell it and he knew it was he who had caused it. He knew that this time it was going to take more to earn back her trust and forgiveness.

"Kagome…" he whispered more to himself, but the Miko had looked up at him and he felt like he was going to crumble under her scrutiny.

All of Kagome's emotions had spilled out of her in raw, unadulterated gravity. Her azure irises met his in an undeniable pain and rage. Her gaze was all that was needed to answer his unspoken question. She wanted to stay here with his brother, just as Kouga had claimed and the knowledge threatened to tear the hanyou apart.

Kagome pried her gaze from Inuyasha's and returned it to Sango.

"Please…understand…" She begged through sobs, Sango tearfully nodding in response. Despite the taijiya's desires for the Miko to return to them, she understood.

"I understand Kagome. We will always be here when you are willing to return." Sango reassured her, more tears escaping her chocolate eyes.

The admission only made Kagome want to cry more but she didn't. It made her want to change her mind and return to the group where she felt she once belonged but she couldn't. Not yet.

"But I don't want you to leave, Kagome!" Shippo had raced over to Kagome now and was on her shoulder, little arms around her neck and crying. Kagome reached for the little Kitsune and her heart split in two. Having the little fox demon in her arms again only made the decision all the more difficult. She couldn't imagine being apart from him again.

"Shippo," she began to try to explain.

"Please Kagome!" he begged and it shattered Kagome's heart.

"Shippo, you cannot understand how much I have missed you, and how much I will miss you still. But I promise, we will be together again. I will come back for you. Right now though, I need to distance myself. I need to come to terms with what has happened. Please understand."

Shippo was crying and it made Kagome's heart bleed. She wanted nothing more than for Shippo to come with her. Maybe, the next time they met, as she was sure it would happen again, she might be able to convince Sesshomaru to allow Shippo to join them.

"We will be together again soon, Shippo. I promise." She gathered the Kitsune in a tight embrace that he returned. "Remember that I love you okay?

Shippo nodded in her neck. "I love you too, Kagome."

Inuyasha was frozen in his spot. Trying to mull over the events that were taking place. He wanted to force Kagome to go with him, he wanted to prove his love for her and wanted to prove how sorry he was.

Sango and Kagome hugged and the Miko placed Shippo in the demon slayers arms.

"Until we meet again Kagome." The taijiya smiled sadly before returning to stand by Miroku who nodded his head, signifying he understood her decision.

"As much as it would please me to revel in this moment longer little brother, I have prior engagements to tend to. I suggest you return to your own endeavours"

Sesshomaru turned his back on his half-brother and began to retreat.

"You bastard!" Inuyasha spat harshly through gritted canines, his voice full of darkness and pain. Sesshomaru would roll his eyes if he were that way inclined. "I won't let you get away with this!"

Sesshomaru turned his head to face his brother, golden eyes glaring as he growled viciously. The daiyokai's tolerance had reached its peak.

"Get away with what Inuyasha? Resurrecting your Miko? Do not blame me for your failures half-breed. It was not I who killed her."

"I won't let you-"

"Inuyasha…" Kagome's voice cut him off. She now stood on her feet, fists clenched tightly to her sides and she glared intensely at him. His golden hues met hers. He knew what was coming. He knew that look in her eyes and the way she had said his name. "Sit boy." She finished. The subjugation beads glowed brightly and Inuyasha was pulled into the ground beneath him with so much force that he just about saw stars.

The release was too seductive and Kagome couldn't hold back anymore. The intensity of her emotions were too strong and she didn't have the strength to fight anymore. She needed to unleash.

"Sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, SIT!"

The onslaught of commands sent the hanyou deep into the layers of the earth, so much so, that you could no longer see him. Kagome was panting heavily, the released energy draining her almost completely. She could no longer handle any more, she needed to get out and get away. She spun on her heels and ran from the camp, summoning up any access energy from every corner of her being to keep her moving. To keep her running away from the hanyou that had betrayed her. It didn't take long before the Miko was burned-out and she found herself collapsing into the ground with only her tears and misery for company. The miko collapsed on a raised tree trunk in the ground and burried her head in her arms realeasing any held back tears that needed to escape.

Meanwhile back at the camp, there was complete silence amongst the remaining occupants. Inuyasha was still buried in the earth's crust while his companions waited patiently for him to arise. Sesshomaru was silently proud of the Miko's ruthlessness in dealing with his brother. He honestly never would have believed her capable.

It was Jaken who broke the silence. "She can be scary."

A/N: Ahhh! So here it is. Finally! Inuyasha and Kagome reunite. I have been strugglingSOmuch on this chapter it's ridiculous! Although I originally wrote it months ago, I have altered itso many times in the last week. Istill don't even know if I got it right lol. I tried to have itreally emotional, yet not overwhlemingly so and honestly I still don't know if it's the right balance. Alas, here it is! :D

Thanks again to all of you who have commented and messaged me and even just simply read my story. You honestly haveno idea what it means to me! You guys have been blowing me away!

IREALLY hope you guys enjoy this chapter and I hope it was what you expected.

XX