InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ After-effects ❯ For Inuyasha ( Chapter 11 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
Disclaimer: Is it even necessary to repeat myself he he he?
Author's note: Well, since the last chapter was a cliffy, I decided not to let you all hang for too long ;). So there you have it, the face-off you've all been waiting for.
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Chapter 10: For Inuyasha
"Kikyo, what the hell are you doing here!?" asked the hanyou, dread filling his whole being.
"So you really have forgotten," the undead miko answered, somewhat sadly.
"Forgotten? Kikyo what are you talking about?" he inquired again, suddenly fearful of what was coming.
"Your promise Inuyasha. Your promise to come with me to hell once Naraku was defeated. Or have you even forgotten giving me your word?" she asked, anger flashing in her eyes.
Upon hearing those words, the hanyou's blood already cold brutally solidified in his veins. His heart stopped beating in his chest and his breath caught in his throat. He stood there, unable to move, unable to breathe, unable to get so much as a word out of his constricted throat.
Seeing his expression, Kikyo smirked slightly, though it did nothing to soften her cold features. "So you do remember," she said, strolling casually closer to the hanyou.
When she reached him, she gently cupped his face with her hands and he couldn't help but wince slightly at the coldness of the contact. "What happened to you Inuyasha, do you resent my touch now?" she asked, eyes narrowing in anger and suspicion.
"Kikyo..." he finally managed to utter in a hoarse whisper. But the undead miko didn't give him the chance to continue.
"It's her isn't it? That barely clothed wench from the future, she swayed your heart away from me!" she exclaimed in disdain.
She realized she had made a mistake when she saw anger flash in the hanyou's eyes. Abruptly, he grabbed her by the throat and lifted her so that she was eye-level with him. "Don't you dare insult her, you hear me?" he growled menacingly.
At that moment, a blood-curdling scream shattered the silence of the clearing. It lasted a few seconds before it was cut short abruptly. "Fine," she agreed. "I'll leave her out of this if it is what you wish for, now release me," she ordered with a strange gleam in her eyes.
The hanyou complied, though he couldn't help but feel suspicious about Kikyo's sudden compliance. "What are you up to? And what was that scream?" he asked with narrowed eyes.
"This is beside the point, I came here for one purpose only and that is to make you honor your word. You will come to hell with me," she shot fiercely.
The undertone "whether you want to or not" was obvious enough that the hanyou easily caught it. He felt confused at that, why was the woman so intent on making him keep his word? Why was she behaving like this? And what about that gleam in her eyes when the scream had been heard, had it been... satisfaction?
"Kikyo..." he started but trailed off as a scent suddenly tickled his nostrils. Fear once again filled his being as he recognized it and immediately associated it with the scream he had just heard: "Kagome's blood!" he exclaimed in horror.
Turning his head to the undead miko, he shot her an accusatory glance. "You knew didn't you?" he rasped, trying desperately to keep his rage under control.
"It doesn't matter anymore," replied Kikyo coldly. "The girl is most likely dead or dying by now," she added in an emotionless tone.
"Why?!" screamed the hanyou in agony. "Why did you do something like this?" he yelled again.
"I did nothing!" she shot back equally angry now. "I needed to get to you and the youkai merely provided me with a way to do it," she answered with not even a touch of regret in her voice.
"But... you did not... exactly try to... stop him... did you?" said the panting voice of Kagome from behind them.
Swirling around, the hanyou immediately spotted her at the edge of the clearing. She was holding on to a branch, trying desperately to remain standing despite her obvious exhaustion. As he noted all this though, there was a sharp cracking sound and her support suddenly gave way under her weight, making her lose her balance.
"Kagome!" cried the hanyou, immediately bounding toward the falling girl. He reached her just in time to catch her in his arms.
"God Kagome, are you alright? You're bleeding!" exclaimed the hanyou as he shifted her in a more comfortable position.
"I'm ok, it's just a scratch," she answered, squeezing his arm reassuringly. "I was so afraid that I would never see you again," she said softly, wrapping her arms around him and holding on tightly.
"Don't worry Kagome, I'm not going anywhere," he whispered tenderly, hugging her back.
Behind the pair, Kikyo looked with growing anger at the intimate scene currently unfolding before her. "Damn that girl, she has no right to hold Inuyasha that way! He belongs to me and no one else!" she seethed inwardly.
"Yes you are Inuyasha. You're coming to hell with me," she spat in a cold and venomous tone that would have made even Naraku flinch.
"Kikyo..." began the hanyou, unable to find the right words to convey what he was feeling right now. He still cared for the undead miko, he couldn't deny that, but he cared even more about Kagome. How was he to ever get out of this situation?
As it turned out, he was saved from having to answer by Kagome who actually did it for him. "So he doesn't even have a say in this matter? You're going to strip him of his very right to live?" asked the girl accusingly.
"He already made his choice when he gave me his word," answered the Kikyo cooly.
Pushing away from the hanyou, Kagome struggled to her feet. It was difficult as her legs were wobbly and threatened to give way, but she would not back away from this. It was time to make her stand, to settle things with the undead miko once and for all.
"Why Kikyo, why on earth are you so intent on making him stay true to his word?" she asked suspiciously.
"This does not concern you," answered Kikyo flatly, eyes narrowing in a scowl, effectively hiding the confusion she felt right now.
"I think it does Kikyo, because if Inuyasha keeps his promise, I'll be the one left behind, I'll be the one to left to cry over his dead body," shot Kagome firmly.
"And if he chooses not to keep his word, I'll be the one left behind, I'll be the one to cry as I see him move away from me," the undead miko shot back and immediately regretted it.
In a moment of anger, she let slip a lot more than she had intended and from the surprised look Kagome was giving her, it was plain that the hidden meaning behind her words had definitively not gone unnoticed.
"You're... jealous?!" exclaimed the girl in a tone halfway between a question and an affirmation.
Angry. That's what Kikyo felt right now. Angry at Kagome for trying to take Inuyasha away from her. Angry at herself for having revealed more than she had intended. And finally, angry at Inuyasha for having been so hesitant, if he had not stalled for so long, they would both be happy in hell right now. Thinking of the hanyou, the miko couldn't help but shift her gaze slightly to look at him. That was not a good idea. She was confronted with a look so filled with hurt and betrayal that it made her take an involuntary step back. However, what really made this gaze so unbearable was the incredulity swimming in it, telling her that despite everything, Inuyasha refused to believe that Kagome was telling the truth.
Unable to stand it any longer, she tore her eyes away from the hanyou, feeling something break within her in the process. She had lost, utterly and simply. By looking away, she had admitted to the truth and had thus wasted her last chance of ever winning back Inuyasha's heart. He would never agree to come to hell with her now, not now that he knew how low she had stooped. Ice seemed to envelop her heart, thankfully numbing the agony she felt right now. She may have looked cold and uncaring. She may have been jealous of the couple in front of her. She may have tried everything she could to break them apart, but she had loved the hanyou with all her heart and to lose him like this... No words could describe the sensation.
"Kikyo?" asked Kagome in confusion when the undead miko turned around without a word and started walking away.
The miko stopped and turned to look at her. "If you ever break Inuyasha's heart, I will personally kill you," she spoke in a tone so cold that the very air around her seemed to solidify.
So that was it? Kikyo was actually going to leave Inuyasha in her care without so much as a word in edgewise? This didn't feel right, something had happened that she had missed. Something that had made Kikyo simply give up. Something that had hurt her beyond belief, because she hadn't missed the pain in her eyes as she had spoken her last words. Quickly coming to a decision, she turned to Inuyasha and spoke urgently to him.
"Inuyasha... you can't just let her leave like this, you have to do something!" she demanded.
The hanyou shot Kagome an incredulous look before he spoke up. "But..." he said uncertainly.
"No 'buts' didn't you see how hurt she was? Dammit, she loves you with all her heart, no matter what she did and I know you still love her. There has to be a way to let her see that and the only person who can do this is you. So go before it's too late!" and with that she shoved him toward the retreating miko.
He took a hesitant step forward and looked at Kagome who merely nodded firmly in encouragement. Finally, squaring his shoulders, he leaped forward and landed in front of Kikyo, who took a step back in surprise.
"What do you want now Inuyasha? Haven't I done enough already?" asked Kikyo angrily.
"Do you honestly think that I would let you leave like this?" questioned back the hanyou, equally hotly.
The miko looked up at the hanyou in surprise. Surely he couldn't be that heartless!
"How can I possibly be happy when it's plain to see that you're agonizing inside! Dammit I still love you Kikyo and nothing's ever going to change that! I may not want to go to hell with you, but I can't just discard you like nothing ever happened!" he snapped again.
"Stop trying to be a hero Inuyasha," hissed the miko as she started to brush past him. Well at least, he wasn't that heartless, but it made walking away all the more difficult.
The hanyou grabbed her by the arm and promptly pulled her back in her original position. "And stop trying to be a goddamn martyr! There's no right way to solve this situation, but I'll be damned if I let you walk away from me with tears in your eyes," he snapped back.
With that said, he wrapped her in his arms and kissed her. She immediately tried to break free from his iron grip, she twisted, she pushed, she punched, she trashed as much as she could, but he wouldn't budge. His lips remained pressed against her own, firmly but tenderly conveying his feelings like no words ever could.
Her struggle increased as she started to feel the ice around her heart rapidly melt away along with her resolve. She had to get out of here! This was all wrong! Inuyasha was supposed to hate her and yet he was kissing her. This was all Kagome's fault! She had put him up to this! She felt the burning flame of anger start to rise within her at the thought of her rival and was grateful for the distraction, but even this died down under the hanyou's unwavering kiss.
In one last desperate attempt to break free, she placed her hands against his chest with the intention of pushing as hard as she could, but her body betrayed her. Instead of stopping at the intended position, her hands continued upward until they met the firm muscles of his shoulders and then, they wrapped around his neck tightly, bringing her in closer to him instead of away from him. So, in the space of a few minutes, Kikyo once again admitted defeat, though this time, she had to admit that it felt rather good to surrender.
After a blissful eternity, the two finally broke their embrace to look in each other's eyes. "Why Inuyasha... why did I ever fall in love with you in the first place?" asked Kikyo as she buried herself in the folds of his haori.
"I don't know... I really don't know," answered the hanyou in kind.
From his point of view, Inuyasha was able to see Kagome plainly. He could see that she had an understanding smile on her face. He felt his heart constrict in his chest at the sight. He knew he had hurt her by doing what he did. That had been the price to pay for healing Kikyo's heart. Yet... she understood his feelings, she understood his heart so well it was almost disconcerting at times. And that was why she wouldn't allow her sadness to show right now even if it was plain obvious that she was suffering.
"No matter what I do, one of them always gets hurt," he reflected sadly.
This had been meant to be a personal thought never to be heard by anyone but himself and yet, in his pain, he had unknowingly spoken aloud. The tone had been very soft, hardly above a murmur, but Kikyo, being as close as she was, did not miss it. This caused the undead miko to realize something important, something her mind, too clouded by hatred and jealousy, had not been able to realize until now.
"The one who is really suffering through all of this is neither me nor Kagome. It's... Inuyasha," she thought in sudden illumination.
And from that, there was only one small step to take to reach yet another realization. He was suffering because she and Kagome were apart from each other, because their souls, originally one, were now two. This left but a single course of action, a course she wasn't sure she liked, but a course that had to be taken nonetheless... for the hanyou's sake.
"Inuyasha..." she said, pulling slightly away to look at him in the eyes. "Thank you... for everything," she finished with a shaky smile.
Had she still been human, she would have cried then, but her fake body did not allow such luxury. And so, with one last look at the hanyou's confused face, she broke free of his embrace and headed straight for Kagome. By the time she reached the girl, the pain in her features was replaced by determination.
"Let us put an end to all of this," she spoke in a level tone of voice.
"Huh?" blinked Kagome, not understanding in the least what the woman in front of her meant.
"It is time for my soul to go back where it belongs," she explained.
"But Kikyo... if you do that you'll..." Kagome stuttered as her eyes widened in understanding.
"What? Die?" asked the undead miko wryly. "Rejoining your soul does not exactly match my own definition of this term."
"And besides, as long as there's two of us, Inuyasha will never be able to move on. Guilt and remorse will eat at him until he dies. That is why we must become one again. Not for me, not for you, but for Inuyasha," she continued more seriously.
If Kagome had had any reservation about the course of action proposed by Kikyo, they all vanished when her eyes met the undead miko's. There was more emotions dancing in there than she could count, but what really captured her attention was that burning desire overpowering everything else. The same desire that burned brightly inside of her. The desire to make Inuyasha happy. When she saw that, Kagome's doubts vanished and, with a look that mirrored the woman in front of her, she extended her hand.
"For Inuyasha," she said firmly.
"For Inuyasha," repeated Kikyo while taking hold of the extended hand.
As soon as their body touched, a pulse of energy emanated from the two of them, quickly followed by a bright light as the lost souls contained inside the undead miko's body escaped to the heavens. After an undetermined time, the flow stopped and Kikyo collapsed to her knees. With great difficulty, she managed to raise her head to look at her reincarnation.
"I know that you will succeed where I failed Kagome. I know you will make Inuyasha happy," she whispered with a smile before one last soul exited her body.
This one however did not ascend to the heavens, it instead started slowly swirling around Kagome's body, almost lazily before finally moving slightly away and plunging directly into her chest. This caused Kagome to jerk violently backward as if she had been shoved by someone. Her eyes widened and her mouth opened in a silent scream before she too collapsed on the ground.
"KAGOME!!!" exclaimed Inuyasha and in a flash, he had bounded beside her and gathered her in his arms.
"Kagome, are you all right? Answer me please!" he begged.
He heaved a sigh of relief when the girl looked up at him dizzily and smiled. "I'm okay Inuyasha..." she murmured. "...And so is Kikyo," she added unexpectedly.
The hanyou blinked in surprise and confusion at that last addition, causing the smile on Kagome's face to widen a little. "She's right here Inuyasha," explained the miko while putting her hand to her heart. "I can feel her soul pulsing beside my own."
"You mean that you two haven't merged completely?" he asked in surprise and confusion.
"We are one... but at the same time we aren't. I can't really explain it," finished the girl, causing Inuyasha to feel even more confused than before.
He cast the girl in his arms a searching glance before giving up trying to understand altogether. "And is she... happy where she is?" he asked, his features creased with something very close to guilt.
Kagome's eyes glazed over for a few seconds before they once again focused on him. Instead of answering, the girl pushed herself up from his lap and encircled his neck with her arms. She then tenderly pressed her lips against his, answering his question with actions instead of words. It wasn't long before the hanyou got the message and started kissing back. It felt really strange. It was like he was kissing both Kikyo and Kagome at the same time and yet... despite the oddity, it felt… right, it felt like this was how things had been meant to be from the very beginning.
"What do you think Inuyasha? Is she happy or sad?" asked Kagome once the two had broken their embrace.
The hanyou smirked a little at that before answering. "I think she's happy Kagome, I think she's happy."
Before the two could get another word out, a clapping sound suddenly erupted from the side of the clearing. "Bravo!" exclaimed a voice they would have rather not heard at this moment. "Nicely done! Encore!" praised Mattemaru, as if what he had just witnessed had been a show of some sort.
"You!" growled Inuyasha, jumping on his feet and unsheathing the Tessaiga in the same movement.
For the first time, the couple was able to take in his appearance, his cloak having masked most of his features during their first encounter. His hair was a very dark color that looked something between red and brown. The traditional pointed ears and fangs were coupled with a pair of dark blue eyes that shimmered in the light of the fire.
"Oh! As aggressive as ever I see," mocked the youkai.
"I should have known. You're the only one capable of coming up with such a twisted situation and actually enjoy it," accused Kagome as she also struggled to her feet.
"Well, you were right on one thing: I did enjoy it, quite a lot I may say. But I'm afraid that I can't take credit for the arrangements," admitted Mattemaru with a shrug.
"Nice try bastard! Who else would know where to find us beside you… and come to think of it, how did you manage to catch up to us?" asked the hanyou, eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"Well I am a kitsune and kitsune are full of surprises," he said as if that answered everything. At that moment the air around him shimmered and he disappeared, only to reappear behind the baffled pair.
"Keh! Just what we need, a kitsune who can actually teleport," snorted the hanyou in annoyance once the shock had worn off.
"I'm impressed, you actually know about this talent, not many have actually heard of it," mocked the youkai.
"Oh spear me the compliment! This can explain a lot of things, but it doesn't prove that you weren't behind that little encounter we just had," snapped the hanyou angrily.
Ever since she had spoken her one reply, Kagome had remained silent as something tugged at her. For some reason, she just knew that Mattemaru was speaking the truth, though she couldn't explain why. It was an indistinct sensation, something about…
"Well, due to some annoying interference, the hanyou and your reincarnation left early this morning so you won't find him here Kikyo-sama," he answered with a hint of mockery at the title.
Kagome blinked as the vision dissipated as suddenly as it had come, leaving her a little disoriented. This had been one of Kikyo's memory, one about her meeting with the youkai that had attacked her. But what did it mean? Why did Kikyo…
"Annoying interference!!!" the words resonated in her mind like a gong, making her dizzy with comprehension.
They had left because of Mattemaru so if the youkai had actually worked with the kitsune he would never have said something like that. Her heart froze in her chest as she realized something else. This conversation had happened beside the bone-eater's well, very near Kaede's village meaning that they had actually managed to catch up to them, meaning that they not only knew exactly where they were going, but also that they could move very fast.
"Mattemaru… tell me that youkai was working alone," said Kagome with a haunted look on her face.
"Well looks like someone finally realized the truth," mocked the kitsune flippantly. "As for working alone, I think you already know the answer to that question."
"What's all this shit about working alone?" asked Inuyasha, visibly angry at being left out of something so important.
"You can always ask your woman there, I'm sure she'd be happy to explain. As for me, I have some other matters to attend to," replied the kitsune with a small bow.
Before the hanyou could even think of something to reply, the air around Mattemaru shimmered and he disappeared. "Dammit!" exclaimed a very pissed Inuyasha.
He then turned to Kagome in the hope of getting an explanation but met only empty air as the girl was in the process of furiously rummaging through her backpack for god knows what. "Goddammit will someone please explain to me what the hell's going on?" he screamed in frustration.
Instead of the awaited answer, the hanyou only got a satisfied "ah ha!" as Kagome finally found what she was looking for: Her blanket. Still without a word, the girl headed toward Kikyo's body, which had not moved from its kneeling position and carefully laid the fabric on the ground right next to it. And then she went to the other side of the statue and tipped it over so that it fell on top of the blanket. The impact of the fall was too much for the clay to endure and it shattered, making a nice pile of dust. All that was left for the girl to do was pull the four corners together in a knot to make sure nothing would fall out of the makeshift pouch and put the thing back in her yellow backpack.
Only then did she noticed that Inuyasha had not moved an inch since Mattemaru had left. "For crying out loud Inuyasha! Are you going to stand there all night or are you going to help me gather our things together?" she asked frustratedly.
"Well I would probably be more enclined to help you if I had any idea of what the hell's going on," the hanyou snapped back, visibly shaking with the effort of holding his temper in check.
Sighing impatiently, Kagome started explaining her reasoning. "Okay. First of all, Mattemaru was not lying. He didn't plan our 'little encounter' as you named it," she began but was interrupted by the hanyou.
"Look, I'm not stupid wench. If Mattemaru wasn't behind all of this, then somebody else was. Somebody who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. And that probably means that they're going to try and kidnap one of our friends in order to exchange him for the jewel," he shot back with a scowl.
"If you already figured this much out, why on earth are you still standing there?" questioned Kagome incredulously.
"Well, why do you think we left Kagura behind?" asked the hanyou.
"Okay mister dense, let me start things from the beginning," said the miko in a voice that was too calm to be natural.
"First of all, the youkai I killed brought Kikyo with him, meaning that he knew about our past relationship," she began, ticking down one finger.
"Second of all, he waited for the specific moment when the two of us became separated to strike, knowing full well that a head-on attack would lead to failure," she continued, ticking one more finger down.
"And last but not least, when the youkai finally did attack, he went straight for me. He tried to kill me before I had a chance to summon my powers and he sent you Kikyo to prevent any form of interference on your part," she finished.
"Now tell me Inuyasha. If one single youkai was able to get within an inch of stealing the jewel. Do you honestly think that Kagura will be able to stand up to the rest of the group?" she asked angrily.
The haunted expression on the hanyou's face told Kagome in no uncertain terms that he had finally understood her point. He remained frozen for about a second, reality sinking in, before he suddenly exploded, becoming a flurry of movement. Only one word ever escaped his mouth during this whole process. A word that the hanyou had spoken countless times in the past but that ironically described the current situation with disconcerting accuracy.
"SHIT!"