InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Across Time ❯ Time Decontinuum ( Chapter 5 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Across Time

Did it occur to anyone that I made a mistake? The problem is that in the prelude to this fic...Ryu was 16. Which means in this fic, he should already be 17, nearing 18, but I stated in the previous chapter that he was only 15. What? Confusing...but that's what happened.

This chapter is mostly dialogue, so I'm calling it Dialogue for Everyone...okay, not really.

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"Wait, something's wrong."

Everyone turned their attention to Ryu, who was now awake, and watched as he began making his way over to Jaeger.

"What's wrong?" Jaeger asked, folding his arms.

"You told me everyone in your pack died. Everyone. And if these two are supposedly who you think they are, then what are they doing still alive?

Hakaku and Ginta looked at each other, then to Jaeger, then at the tired-looking Ryu. They were confused at first, but now they began to look a little scared. Ginta's eyes veered away from Jaeger, and now his attention was on the child Kagome held in her arms. The child that looked very much like Inuyasha's hlaf-brother Sesshomaru. He then noted that this older child speaking to Jaeger looked just like the child in Kagome's arms.

"Ryu!" It was Matoko. "You're forgetting that we're in the past. The war hasn't happened yet; they haven't died."

Ryu turned to his sister, his eyes wide with surprise. "Right. I'm sorry," he said, rubbing his temples. Matoko watched as her brother made his way back over to his tree, sat down, and buried his head into his knees.

"So, what are you guys doing here?" Jaeger asked his fellow wolves.

"We already told you! We're out looking for food to bring back to Ayame."

"You should come back to the den with us," Hakaku said. "Ayame will be glad to see you again."

"Yeah, you should go, Jaegar," said a voice from behind him. It was Matoko who had spoken. She was smiling sweetly at him. "You said it's been a while since you'd seen anyone in your pack."

"Okay," Jaeger said, smiling back at her. "I'll go tomorrow then."

+ + + + +

"So, you're telling me you're from the other side of the well?"

"That's right. Why?"

"Why didn't you say anything earlier? No wonder Ryu was on your case!"

That night, Jaeger requested some time alone with his friends. And, not being able to find anything suspicious in his request, the time he needed was granted. So, together the three of them made camp near the others, but far enough away that they wouldn't be distrubed.

"Jaeger, what's going on?"

"We altered history," he whispered, more to himself than the other two. "You two are supposed to be dead! And didn't you say Koga died?"

"Yeah, he did," Ginta said, bowing his head.

"...How?"

"How what?"

"How did he die? Tell me how he died!"

"He got sick," Hakaku answered.

"Sick? What kind of illness?"

"We don't know. No one knew."

"It attacked his mind. He started complaining about bad migraines...," Ginta replied, lowering his voice some.

"Then he become delusional," Hakaku supplied. "After that he got a high fever."

"He was like that for about a month. The fever was on and off, but he remained delusional most of the time."

"And he died from this?" Jaeger asked, finding this all just a little too much.

"One night, his fever returned and he had bad chills. After about a month of this with nothing serious happening, we didn't do anything but take care of the fever. When we woke up in the morning...he was already gone."

"That can't be."

"Why not? Don't you remember? You were there with us," Ginta said, starting to look a little surprised himself.

"No, no, that's not right. My brother died in the war, not by some stupid disease!"

"Jaeger, what are you talking about? The war never happened! There were a few attacks, but never a full-blown war!"

"There were always talks and rumors about a war starting, but it never actually happened," Hakaku finished.

Jaeger rocked back and forth in his seat. Somehow, when they crossed through the well, they altered certain events that he knew had already happened. His brother, dying from some stupid illness? No, Koga was stronger than that. And the war; he'd met Matoko as a result of that. But if it never happened, did that mean he would never meet her? Would she even exist?

"Hey, are you all right?" Hakaku asked.

"Yeah, you don't look so good," Ginta said, nodding.

"I'm fine," Jaeger snapped. He wasn't mad, just confused. He needed to find Matoko and Ryu and tell them what he learned. "I'll be back later. Don't wait up."

+ + + + +

When Jaeger had told Hakaku and Ginta not to wait up for him, they had fallen asleep after an hour had passed since the time he'd left. But when morning came, and he still wasn't back, they began to get worried. They had had no problem with leaving Ayame in the den by herself for a night, but Jaeger had said he would go back there with them.

"D'you think we should see if he's with Inuyasha?"

"Yeah, c'mon."

As they neared the clearing where Inuyasha and his friends had set up camp, they realized that the surrounding area was quieter than usual. Almost too quiet, like something was wrong. They broke into a run.

At the campsite, all was still. They noticed that Kagome's sleeping bag was still there, and that their fire from last night was still lit. It had died down to mere embers by now, but the wolves knew that they wouldn't have purposely left the fire ablaze. There was a single tent to the right of the fire, and it was the only place that could be occupied, so together, Ginta and Hakaku made their way over.

"Hey, is anyone--?"

The two wolves peeked inside the tent, and found everyone inside the tent together. Upon closer inspection, they saw Matoko snuggled against Kagome, asleep, with everyone else gathered around a still form lying in the dirt. Jaeger was there too, and he looked upset. When he saw his comrades, he looked up at them with glassy eyes; they couldn't tell if he had been crying or if it was from lack of sleep.

"It's Ryu," Jaeger said, just above a whisper. "When I came by last night, he was delirious, and today...he's got a high fever."

Hakaku and Ginta said nothing. They knew nothing about this Ryu kid, but he was obviously a friend of Jaeger's and it looked like he was experiencing the same symptoms as Koga had before he died.

"Have you told them about Koga?" Ginta asked, kneeling down beside Jaeger.

"I can't," Jaeger answered, almost inaudibly. "Because if I tell them, then that means it could be true.... But I still need to talk to Matoko."

On his knees, he crawled over to Kagome and Matoko; he began to gently shake her sleeping form. The young hanyou opened her eyes, bleakly looking at Jaeger.

"What is it?" she asked sleepily.

"I need to talk to you, privately," Jaeger added, after looking up at Kagome.

Once outside the tent a far enough away, Matoko asked what was so urgent and secret that Jaeger needed to speak with her alone.

"We need to go back, now."

"Back where?"

"The other side of the well!"

"No, we can't!" Matoko objected. "Didn't you see? Ryu's really sick; we can't leave him here and he definately can't travel!"

"You don't get it," Jaeger said, grabbing the girl's shoulders. "Somehow, by all of us coming here, we've changed our futures! Hakaku and Ginta--the two demons from my pack--they're supposed to be dead. They should have died when my brother did during the war. But these two are from the other side of the well. When we crossed through it, our futures were changed instantly. The world we're used to seeing isn't going to be the same on the other side. That's why we have to go back, or we'll risk changing everything!"

"I understand...," Matoko said quietly. "But what about my brother? We don't know what's wrong with him; Jaeger, he's really sick."

There was a short paused before Jaeger continued. He was deciding whether or not he should tell Matoko what he thought was really wrong with Ryu. He prayed to God that when they crossed back into their time that Jaeger's illness would disappear.

"Matoko, I think I know what's wrong with him."

"What? How? You have to tell me!"

"Since we came through the sacred well, we altered history, and Hakaku and Ginta told me that instead of my brother dying in the war, he was taken by a mysterious illness. They don't know what it was, but Ryu has the same symptoms as my brother."

"But Koga didn't die, right? He got better?"

"No, he still died. His last symptom was a high fever, and in the morning, he was dead."

Matoko reached for her friend's hand and squeezed it tight. "I'm sorry," she said. When realization hit her, tears began leaking from her eyes. She wasn't sobbing, but the flow of tears was unstoppable.

"Hey, hey, it's all right," Jaeger cooed, pulling her close and craddling her head. "I think that if we get ourselves and Ryu back home, then I think he'll be cured."

"But what if you're wrong?"

The voice wasn't Matoko's, but when they turned, they saw that it was Kagome. She was standing on the outskirts of the tent, craddling the sleeping infant Ryu in her arms. Tears were spilling from her eyes too.

"I'm trying not to think about that outcome," Jaeger said, releasing Matoko from his embrace. "If there was never a war, then that means demons and humans should be getting along, at least...better than if there was a war. But if my plan fails, then I'm hoping that someone--demon or human--will have a cure."

"I want to come with you," Kagome said, stepping forward.

"You can't. We've already messed things up as it is. Having you come back with us, could really screw things up."

"He's m-my son. I'm worried, that's all."

"So am I," Matoko said, walking up and stroking the infant hanyou's cheek. "But if what Jaeger says is true, then you could end up changing our entire lifestyles."

Kagome hung her head. "Then I'll stay, but please promise to take care of him."

"Sure thing."

Together, the three of them walked back into the tent. If anything, Ryu's condition looked to have slightly gotten worse. He was awake now, but looked extremely terrified of being in the cramped space with who he thought were strangers. Kagome, with the help of Jaeger and Matoko explained to the group about the time alterations. After everyone fully understood, Jaeger walked over to Ryu and knelt beside him.

"Come on, big guy," he said, lifting Ryu onto his back. At first, he was startled at how warm the hanyou felt, and it was weird, but Ryu seemed to trust him.

With an escort of eight, Matoko led her fellow time-skippers back to the sacred well. When Ryu had fallen asleep on their trek, everyone's worry began to grow. After Jaeger reassurred everyone, including himself, they seemed to quiet down.

When they reached the well, Hakaku and Ginta were the first to jump through. Jaeger volunteered to go next so that he could check on Ryu's condition once he got there. Kagome held them up though. They all watched as she transferred the babe in her arms to those of Inuyasha. At first, he tensed, unsure of what to do, but then, he followed behind Kagome as she went up to Jaeger. Once there, she bent forward, kissing her ailing son on the cheek.

As Inuyasha handed the child back over to it's mother, she said, "You promised me."

Jaeger smiled. He knew what she meant and he was going to do everything in his power to keep her happy. For some reason, he felt a nagging at his heart that insisted that he help Kagome in every way possible. His smile widdened as he remembered that that's the way his brother had been.

With a final wave and goodbye, Jaeger stepped into the well, Ryu still on his back.

Matoko was about to followed suit, when she felt someone grab her arm. The hand was rough and calloused, and when she turned, she met the silent gaze of her father. Unsure of what to do, she smiled weakly. To her surprise, he returned the gesture, if only barely.

"So, I uhh...guess I'll be seeing you in a few years," Inuyasha said, his cheeks turning a bright pink.

By now, Matoko was absolutely beaming and glowing with pride. She knew how her father had been before he met her mother, and this was the first time he had ever actually acknowledged her. When he released his grip on her skinny arm, she turned and hugged his waist tightly.

She thanked them all one last time, and said she'd visit them in the future. Then, she hopped down the well, and was gone.

+ + + + +

"I was wondering when you were planning on coming back," Jaeger greeted as she climbed out of the well.

"Sorry, I just had to thank them."

Matoko took in her surroundings, finally glad to be in the time period she called home. Since they'd changed history, she found the forest to be extremely peaceful. She hoped it would stay that way. But then, she noticed something.

"The blood stain, it's gone!" Before she had passed through the well, her brother had been badly injured, and the blood from his wounds had begun to stain the grass. "That means we did change time!"

"That's right."

Matoko turned and saw her brother, lying in the grass, propped up on his elbows. "Ryuuuuuuuuuu!" The little hanyou was on him in seconds, her arms wrapped tightly around his neck.

"Whoa, easy there," Ryu said, wincing. "I've just recovered from an almost fatal disease."

She turned towards Jaeger, then back to her brother, a smile that showed both excitement and wonder covering most of her face. "You mean it worked? You're better?"

"No," Ryu said, his face faltering. "I still feel...weak." And with that, he dropped his elbows, falling to the earth, his eyes closed.

Matoko started. Jaeger had been wrong; her brother was still going to die. She leaned into his chest, desperately calling out his name, but still he was silent. Again, tears began to spill, falling onto Ryu's face.

Startled, he opened his eyes. "Hey, sport, don't cry! I'm kidding. See, I'm fine," he said, sitting up and patting her back as she sobbed into his stomach.

"That was cruel," Matoko choked in between sobs, her words muffled against her brother's body. "I was afraid you died."

"I know, I know. I'm sorry," Ryu said sweetly, stroking his sister's hair.

"That's very touching," Jaeger said, towering over them. "But I need to be going. Those two idiots already left me, so I need to track them down to the den."

"Sure, you go ahead. I guess we'll be seeing you around then," Ryu said.

"I guess. What are you going to do in the meantime?"

"I think we'll look around some; see how much has changed since we left."

"Well, feel free to track me done if, you know, nothing's changed. You're welcome to stay with me."

"Thanks," Ryu said, looking up at Jaeger who had already begun to walk off. "It's been...nice, having you with us, I mean."

"Yeah."

And Jaeger was gone, leaving the children of the infamous Inuyasha sitting on the forest floor.

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Yah know, ever since I updated "Drinking Baby", I've been wanting to update and finish this fic. I'm just glad I finally got around to doing it. I hope it was long enough.

Well, it's been a wonderful ride having you guys read what I write, and I look forward to what y'all have to say about my next fic. So uhh...keep it real. ;D