InuYasha Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Commitments Made In Blood ❯ Chapter 2

Commitments Made In Blood

 

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or YYH no matter how much I wish otherwise.

 

 

Chapter 2

 

 

Kagome often wondered how much different she would have turned out if she hadn't fallen down the well when on her fifteenth birthday. Certainly her outlook on life had become jaded because of all the heartache she had seen these past few years. Still, it wasn't something that she could dwell on for long. She was supposed to be the upbeat one. That was the role that had been dictated to her so she couldn't let everyone down right?

 

 

Still, it was very tiring to keep up the façade of always being happy. Her heart was just are worn as the others. Perhaps she hadn't been through as much as everyone else but that did not mean she was left unaffected by it all. She just refused to show it. There was no sense in everyone else realizing exactly how unhappy she was on occasion.

 

 

It was moments of reflections like this that Inuyasha happened to walk in on. She actually didn't realize he was there. He thought about drawing her attention to him but changed his mind as he looked at her. Truthfully he had never seen the expression on her face that she now wore. She looked extremely tired, her eyes haunted. What could possibly trouble her so much that she would look like that? He wasn't sure if he wanted to know, he was too used to her always being happy. Unless of course he had done something to set her off. But lately that had been a rare occurance, the group had been working together amazingly well with very little fighting.

 

 

He hadn't intended on coming to her time so soon but the simple truth of the matter was that he had missed her. He had grown accustomed to her constant presence by his side. He wondered what would happen once the final battle took place. Would she want to stay with him? He wasn't blind to the affection that she bequeathed to him. He was very well aware of her love for him, just as he knew how deeply his feelings for her ran.

 

 

But at the same time he knew how attached she was to her family. She would never want to leave them behind, even if it was for him. And he would never put her in a position where she had to make a choice. Assuming they made it through all of the trials that lay ahead of them he would ask her what she would like to do. If she wanted to have a serious relationship with him then he would break down and move to the future. It would be extremely difficult to do but for her he would attempt it.

 

 

His mind drifted back to the first time that he had met her. He laughed about it now, his foolishness at mistaking her for Kikyo. Sure, they were a lot alike but there was also telling differences. Her sheer joy at being alive was one of the greatest of them. Kikyo had always been so serious, bound to her duty and obviously unhappy about what fate had dealt to her. He had seen a carefree side to her on occasion when she was able to forget that she was the guardian of the jewel but those instances were few and far between.

 

 

It was that side of her that he had fallen in love with so many years ago. Funny how it didn't seem that long ago to him but then of course he had been asleep, pinned to the Goshinboku for nearly fifty years. Of course it would almost seem like yesterday to him. The same could be said for Kikyo since she had died the same day she sealed him to the tree. It went a long way to explain the hate that she carried for him in her heart. To her, his apparent betrayal was still fresh in her memory. Damn Naraku for his mind games he so loved to play.

 

 

Did he still love Kikyo? He was certain that there would always be a part to him that would. You cannot forget your first love that easily. The tragedy of it all was heartbreaking. Naraku had doomed their love for each other. No matter how many times Inuyasha had apologized to Kikyo she couldn't let go of the hate in her heart, even knowing that it was not Inuyasha who had betrayed her. No, now there was another reason for her to hate him. And that reason was the girl he was quietly watching. Kikyo was jealous of the love that had hesitantly grown in his heart for her reincarnation.

 

 

Oh he had fought it for a long time, refusing to acknowledge the growing feelings he had for the girl. He had opened his heart once and he had been pinned to a tree for it. And now that Kikyo was revived, she was occasionally coming to try to take him to hell. She had almost succeeded on more than one occasion too. Kagome had stopped her; it was just one more reason for her to hate the girl.

 

 

He brushed these thoughts aside. He suspected how deeply the hatred ran for Kagome. He was even suspicious about the time that Kikyo had stolen Kagome's jewel shards. Now Kagome had never said exactly what had happened, but he had seen the fear in her eyes. There wasn't much that could instill that much terror in the young woman but he had seen it that day. He had promised Kikyo that he would always protect her, but he had also promised Kagome the same thing. If it came down to it he knew whom he would choose between the two of them.

 

 

His love for Kikyo while strong was not enough that he would willingly turn on Kagome. Kikyo had died, and with it the promise that he had made was broken. He was unable to protect her from Naraku. Once she was brought back to life he had made the promise again but he was no longer honor bound to uphold it now that she was working for Naraku. That betrayal from her had hurt but he was not going to turn a blind eye to what she had done. No, If Kikyo ever threatened Kagome's life he would take her down and send her to hell as she wished to go. He just would not be going with her as she had hoped.

 

 

He silently made his way over to where Kagome was sitting underneath the Goshinboku. Her thoughts were still clearly turned inward on whatever it was that she was thinking. He could swear he smelt the traces of tears although there were no tell tale signs of them on her face. The thought that something was upsetting her enough that she was on the verge of tears bothered him greatly.

 

 

Strong arms wrapped themselves around her waist, startling her out of her thoughts on everything that had happened to their group. She almost jumped; ready to strike out at the person who touched her so familiarly until she saw the strong hands of the man she loved. She relaxed then against his chest, taking comfort in the fact that he was there.

 

 

It was rare that Inuyasha ever touched her in such a way. It was almost as if he were holding himself aloof from her, so that made any embraces he gave her that much more special. A breeze kicked up and blew some of his long silver hair over her shoulder. She loved his hair; she would spend hours with her hands buried in it if he would allow her to. She reached up and ran her fingers through the silky mass.

 

 

“Are you alright Kagome?”

 

 

The concern was evident in his voice, how long had he been there watching her? And why was it that she hadn't noticed him there? She once more reflected how unreliable her power was. She should have been able to feel him there but hadn't. It only served as a reminder that she was a hindrance to the group. Instances like this could easily get her killed and then where would that leave the others? Without anyone to see the shards they would be looking blindly and it would seriously hurt their chances with Naraku. She almost started crying again but tears would not do any good. She shoved them down and fell back into her false cheer.

 

 

“I'm just fine Inuyasha, what brings you here today?”

 

 

That smell again assaulted his nose. Tears, but again none were present. But he knew better now, something was obviously bothering the girl even if she didn't want to tell him what it was. When he saw the smile she now wore he knew that she wasn't going to give him the reason why she was sad. If he were to push her for an answer it would only drive the girl away. So he did the one thing that he could. He held onto her, giving her the silent comfort she needed. Perhaps later she would let him know what her thoughts were.

 

 

“Eh, I was bored so I came to see if there was anything interesting going on here. What have you been up to today?”

 

 

She was surprised at his answer. He was bored? Whenever he was bored before he was always found asleep so she had to wonder what made today any different. She wouldn't push him though. He was leaving her well enough alone so she would extend him the same courtesy.

 

 

“Nothing much, I went shopping with Mom today. We're fully stocked and ready to go again. I finally picked up some clothes that are more suited to traveling so I can ditch the school uniforms.”

 

 

 

She had received more crap than she would have thought possible over those uniforms. They were highly inappropriate for the time frame and she knew it but still. You would have thought that people would have had better manners than to speak to her like some had done. Inuyasha had gotten into several fights defending her honor from men who made assumptions based on the way she dressed. Inuyasha and the rest of her companions had grown accustomed to her way of dressing. She really wasn't sure why she had stuck to the uniforms for the passed two years, perhaps it was because they were sturdy enough to take the beating that the Feudal Era was determined to give to them.

 

 

“It's about time. As much as I enjoy beating the crap out of other guys who look at you it wastes valuable time. So what did you get?”

 

 

Kagome could have sworn by that statement that Inuyasha was jealous although she knew if she were to ask him about it his answer would have been along the lines of `Feh, I don't know what you're talking about'. She resisted the urge to tease him. She knew that he was. If he wasn't then Kouga's presence around her certainly wouldn't bother him a bit. But they fought tooth and nail every chance they got.

 

 

“Oh, just some sturdy pants and shirts. As well as a pair of hiking boots, they'll be a lot better than my slip-ons I normally wear. I'm sure my mother will be happy for the change. She's spent a small fortune replacing those uniforms.”

 

 

Inuyasha refrained from commenting on that. It was true; there had been several uniforms that had been destroyed in the course of their travels. And it hadn't been done by normal wear and tear that you would expect in hiking. It only served to remind him of how many times he had failed in his job to protect the Priestess in his arms. She had been injured several times and he had been unable to prevent it. But she never once complained about his lack, she stood firm beside him. He was surprised on more than one occasion that she hadn't given up on him. If the roles were reversed he was not so certain he would be able to maintain the level of trust that she held for him.

 

 

Kagome felt his arms tighten around her and wondered what it possibly was that would upset him enough to do that. She looked over her shoulder at him and saw the sadness in his face. She half turned and wrapped her arms around him in a comforting hug, which surprised him. He relaxed into her embrace before moving to stand, pulling her to her feet at the same time.

 

 

“Going back already Inuyasha?”

 

 

He thought about it, the sun was setting but then there wasn't a pressing reason for him to go back to the past either. He didn't exactly relish the idea of going back alone, to be left only to his thoughts. Of course he would have company if he wished it but he needed a break from the others the same as Kagome had. She seemed to sense his inner turmoil and made an offer.

 

 

“How about you stay for dinner? Unless you have other plans of course.”

 

 

Dinner was an appealing thought. Her mother was an excellent cook and he didn't impose on them too often. Unless you counted the fact that her mother was the one that supported his ramen addiction. It was best not to think on that one though, the grocery bill every month was probably staggering.

 

 

“Sure, what's for dinner?”

 

Kagome shrugged, her mother hadn't made any particular comments as to what it would be. Whatever it was though was bound to be good.

 

 

“One way to find out. Let's go in!”

 

 

Kagome took his hand and led him into the house. It was rare that they got to spend any quality alone time together. She wasn't about to overlook this opportunity.

 

 

Author's Notes:

 

It has been mentioned that the only stories I write are crossovers. This is indeed true and highly unlikely to change. As much as I love Inuyasha (And in particular Lord Fluffy) I have never had any desire to write a strictly Inuyasha story. Call me weird; I don't know why the bug just never bit me. It wasn't until I read a crossover story with a Kag/Kurama pairing that the writing bug bit me. I had never written anything resembling a story or poetry in my life until I started working on A Circle of Souls. That's why it surprised me when so many people liked it. So if you see a story coming from me it's guaranteed to be a crossover. I'm still contemplating the idea of a Kag/Kurama/Kenshin crossover. Maybe someday.

 

Currently I have up to Chapter 4 typed up. All within a twelve hour time frame. Honestly I wish the writing bug would get a kick in the ass for my other three stories but as of yet their next chapters sit empty. I'm pulling my hair out here.