InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Every Last Word ❯ Chapter 1

Every Last Word

It didn't start out the way I thought it would. I didn't even think it would ever happen, but it did. It crept up on me like a silent assassin in the night: unexpected and unwanted.

I have always been close to Kagome. She's been my companion for quite some time now, ever since Naraku destroyed my village. Along with Miroku, InuYasha, Kirara, and Shippo, Kagome has stood by me through good times and bad; she comforted me when Kohaku took his last breath in my arms after the Shikon shard in his back exploded, taking him with it. She egged me on to go after Miroku when I was scared to approach him, and I in turn helped her with InuYasha. All in all, Kagome is like the younger sister I never had, looking up to me, telling me I can do it, always eager to please others, hungry for attention. That's why I never expected this.

“Come on in, Sango!” Kagome shouted at me from the hot spring, her strange modern clothing pooled on the ground where she had abandoned them.

I nodded to let her know I had heard, then shed my own garments into a neat pile next to hers.

The steam felt good against my face, billowing upwards to the sky. I glanced at Kagome, who seemed in ecstasy also. Her eyes shone like two rays of sunshine in the dark, reflecting the passage of a shooting star. Her skin was a healthy pink in stark contrast to her ebony tresses. All was quiet.

“What are you thinking about, Kagome?”

”I was thinking about Kohaku. You know, he had a beautiful ending.”

Her image blurred as my eyes filled up with tears at the mention of my brother. I could still feel his limp form in my arms, growing steadily colder with each labored breath, rain dotting his skin and mixing with my tears. His emerald green eyes had sparkled up at me with the same brilliance they had had before this all started, before everything went wrong. The few minutes I had spent with him before he died were too short.

“But he was such a good boy! He didn't deserve to be killed!” Kagome was silent at my outburst.

“The Shikon no Tama gives life, and it takes life. That's simply all there is to it, Sango.” Kagome stated. “Kohaku was a good boy, I agree with you. But remember Sango, all living things must come to an end. The only thing that lives forever is love. Love broke the spell on Kohaku. Your love for him took your brother by the hand and led him out of the darkness, into the light. It was only because of this that he would have left Naraku.”

“But the shard in his back killed him! Don't you think I could have stopped that?”

“Again, Sango, it was your love. The Shikon shard embedded in your brother's back was tainted with malice. Love for Kohaku purified the shard, but because it was so impure, your feelings caused it to shatter, and Kohaku died.”

I let this sink in, and the hot tears that had been building up behind my eyeballs spilled out onto my cheeks.

“Sango, in the end, he was with you.”

“You don't know what it feels like!” I spat, surprised at my anger. “To lose the only family you had! The only hope you had! You don't know what it feels like to be alone in the world!”

Kagome laid her hand on my arm. “Don't you know, you silly girl?” she whispered softly, her breath against my skin. “You don't have to be alone anymore. I'll be by your side everyday, until the angels take us away into Heaven.” She paused for a moment. “I donÕt know what it feels like to lose your brother, your best friend for life. I know I will never share the same pain you do. But for now, just forget about it. You're with friends, and people who love you. We'll always be by your side, Sango, no matter what.”

I smiled weakly at her. “Thank you, Kagome.”I whispered.

I still don't know if she ever heard me, but if I could, I'd tell her I'd meant it.

Every last word.