InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Finding Kagome ❯ Chapter Sixteen ( Chapter 16 )

DISCLAIMER: I do not own InuYasha and company. I just get a little obsessive from time to time, and have to put it down on paper... this I share with you.

Chapter Sixteen

The drive back to the retreat from the hospital had been a quiet one, each one of the riders caught up in their own thoughts as the sun slowly set behind the hills to the west. Each of them had their sunglasses on which effectively hid their individual contemplations, as it protected their eyes. Kagome had given Ouna the honored 'shotgun' seat, opting to sit in the backseat, as Michael drove. The jewel tucked away in her over sized handbag, Ouna had not yet shown it to Kagome. She had asked Michael to please not say anything about it.

Michael had only stared at Kagome with wide eyed wonder, when she rejoined them after the procedure, which prompted her to blush, and demand to know what his problem was. He had covered by simply saying that she was braver than he, to allow someone to cut her open while she was still awake. At that she had grimaced, just wanting to forget it ever happened. On arrival to the retreat, Kagome excused herself to go take a nap, citing that she was exhausted. Ouna told her she would come and wake her to eat, and then motioned to Michael to join her in the kitchen.

“Why haven't you said anything to her yet??” Michael demanded in a hushed whisper, as they entered the room which was the hub of the house. Conversations over tea, meals, it just seemed natural to congregate there. Ouna removed her sunglasses, and looked the young psychologist over.

“I want her to be rested before I explain this.” She looked away as she removed her sweater and placed it on the back of a chair. “ Kami, Michael... I am still trying to fully understand the implications myself,” then a quick change of subject, “what shall we have for dinner...” as she set her bag on the back of the counter, pausing for a moment in thought.

“Oden??” He asked hopefully.

“Hn,” she replied, “not a bad idea, I think I have everything I need.” She went to the refrigerator and opened it to peruse the contents. As she pulled a few things out, Michael pulled out a chair to sit and watch, hoping she might share some of her thoughts. “No you don't, mister,” she scolded good naturedly. “If you want oden... then you will have to help, come clean these vegetables and cut them up,” and as he rose she handed him a large butcher knife.

* * *

Kagome closed the door to her childhood bedroom, removing her sunglasses and setting them down on the dresser. Taking in a deep breath , she looked around at all the memories it contained. Her stuffed animals adorned the corner, sitting piled on an overstuffed chair, which made her smile. On one wall were posters of her once favorite musical groups, which brought a hint of nostalgia, as she made her way across the room to the closet. She chose a light weight red yakama, and began changing for her nap. Looking down at the band aid on her abdomen, she reached to touch it lightly. There was a little feeling there, so she decided it was good thing she was changing. It might start hurting while she was sleeping.

As she was hanging up her skirt and blouse, her eyes caught the arrangement of family photographs on the right wall. She moved closer, knowing that some of these she had copies of at her apartment, but some she did not. There was the one of her standing in front of Goshinboku, and one of her Ji-chan in his formal kimono standing by the shrine that had been built for her great grand aunt Kagome. This brought her to a picture of a pretty young girl, perhaps middle school aged, wearing a traditional Japanese school uniform. This is what her namesake had looked like when she was young. So normal. There didn't appear to be anything out of the ordinary about the girl, and yet she had become a legend. A snapshot was next to it, framed in an antique frame, of a much older Kagome, in traditional miko garb, standing next to Great Grandfather Souta. There was someone else there, but only a small piece of them was in the picture. All she could see was the arm of a red haori reaching out to Kagome, who's smile was bright, as she appeared to be laughing.

I think she was a happy woman, thought Kagome. Her life had to have been very exciting, she must have been very... brave... to do all those things she did, traveling wild lands, hunting demons, hunting for pieces of the sacred jewel. Though... she did dress kind of funny.” Her eyes went back and forth between the school photo and the snapshot. She had never really thought about it, but something didn't seem to fit. The school uniform was 20th century, but the miko garb... was from an era much earlier. And she had been told that that particular outfit was what Kagome had worn in her travels.... a white haori over red hakama. She would have to ask her mother about it, later.

Pulling down only the bedspread, she slipped into the bed, and felt a wash of exhaustion, as she closed her eyes and brought up her vision of Goshinboku. And again there were the golden eyes, this time burning with an uncanny intensity, as though vigilant in the watch over her. This brought comfort, and she drifted off.

And she was flying through the air, just above the treetops, wind blowing her hair. Her arms wrapped from the back around the neck of the man who smelled of the forest, as he held her legs close to his sides. Free as the wind itself, they were flying over wild lands, dipping down occasionally for him to push off again from a tree limb, or a high boulder. It felt so safe here, with him... but no... something was wrong... they weren't flying anymore, he was injured.

Now she sees the cause of his pain, he growls at her while she moves cloth aside, soft red cloth... and she holds out her hands, invoking a bright pink light, which she holds to the source of his pain, and watches it mend before her very eyes. A golden gaze... gratitude... and then the warm arms surrounding her in an embrace...

“we are so lucky to have you,” it was Michael.... no it just seemed like him... no... it was him and he had a tiny fox sitting on his shoulder...
“Kagome, do you have a treat for me?” asks the fox...
“You will spoil your appetite,” it was being chastised by a woman... was that Sally?... wearing her police uniform, only ... different... the colors were wrong... and Michael's hand was wrapped, was he injured? A kitten mewled beside Sally, and she picked it up to pet it fondly then set it on her shoulder.
“We still have light, we should keep going,” said the man in red who smelled of the forest, as he pulled his warmth away from her... back in the air... flying... they were all flying, like the wind...
“Kagome...” he speaks to her... “Kagome...”
“Yes?” she says, “I am here”
“Kagome, where are you??” he is worried...
“I am here!”
“Kagome, I need you!”
“I am right here!!”she couldn't understand why he couldn't hear her...
“Kagome... I have to find you... the wolves... they can't have you!!” he sounded desperate...
“But I am right here!!”
“Kagome!! Kagome...”

“Kagome...” the wind was gone... the voice had changed.

“Kagome, it's time to eat... Kagome...” It was her mother. “I think you were having a dream, little one.”

“Uhng,”she groaned, and stretched as she opened one eye in the dimly lit room. She looked at her mother, barely coherent. “Mmmm momma,” her mouth was dry, and she tried to wet her tongue, “I was flying, momma... and the fox wanted a treat...”

“Michael and I made oden, come and eat...” whispered her mother as she ran her fingers through her bangs then kissed her brow. This took a minute to sink in.

“Michael... COOKED??” She was amazed, as she jumped from the bed, to feel the catch of her fresh stitches. “Ugh.”

“Well, he helped, that's for certain... and it's quite good! Come, you need to eat,” Ouna directed, as she slipped out the door. Kagome turned on the bedside lamp, then quickly grabbed her skirt and blouse from the closet to change.

* * *

“I think I might try to make this for Sally, now that I know your secret recipe!” chirped Michael as he filled his bowl for the third time.

“What secret??” asked Kagome, “I didn't know your recipe was secret, momma...”

“Oh not really,” Ouna sat back a moment, before rising to start clearing the used dishes. “I suppose you could say it has a secret ingredient. This batch especially...” and she smiled. “Anything made with love is special... am I not right, Michael?”

“Never has there been a truer statement, Ouna-sama,” and he took another bite. “Oh, by the way Kagome... I called Sally, and she says that she gets Thursday and Friday off, and will be coming up Wednesday night! Isn't that great?”

“Oh! Then we can play for Momma! Oh Momma,” and she turned to where Ouna was at the sink, “you just have to hear it, it's so beautiful!”

“Dreamy, you might say,” added Michael, winking at Kagome, who blushed profusely.

“Speaking of dreams, that one you were having when I woke you... sounded interesting, little one,” Ouna commented off handedly, hands in the water, but eying her bag still sitting on the back of the counter.

“You had another dream, Kagome?” asked Michael as he rose to take his bowl to Ouna. “Was it anything like the one last night?” He sported a bit of a smirk as he returned to the table.

“You are having vivid dreams, Kagome?” asked her mother before she could respond. Wiping her hands, she took her bag and brought it with her to the table, setting it on the floor beside her.

“Well, yeah... they are pretty vivid.” Kagome glanced at her mother, then at Michael, before leaning forward and looking at her hands on the table. “They don't make much sense, Momma, but it's like I am really there, in the dream. Very vivid...”

“You said something about flying, when I woke you...” Ouna prompted.

“Oh flying dreams are very common, and perfectly normal,” Michael interjected helpfully.

“Can you be a little more specific, little one? You also mentioned a fox...” prodded her mother.

“He asked for a treat, and Sally told him he would ruin his appetite... and Michael... you told me how lucky you were to have me with you... I mean the group... after I healed the guy in red. Oh Momma!! I could heal!! I had the glow in my hands just like you get, only really bright!!”

“Wait a minute...”Michael interrupted. “The fox ... talked?”

“Ah-huh,” Kagome nodded. “He was sitting on your shoulder.”

“Huh... talking kitsune...” he mused.

Ouna sat silently, watching her daughter for a moment. She then looked at Michael who had an eager expression on his face. She knew he was anxious to see Kagome's reaction to the contents of the specimen jar, and gave him a hooded look of warning. There was a lot more to this than met the eye, and she didn't care to speculate as to what it all meant.

“Is something wrong Momma?” Kagome had a worried look on her face, as she watched her mother trying to formulate her words.

“I don't know that 'wrong' is the right word... Frankly I am not sure about anything right now.”

“They are only dreams, Momma,” Kagome's voice softened and she reached to touch her mother's arm. “Nothing to get worried about, surely...” and she looked at Michael for agreement, but she found an expression of speculative concern marring his features. “What is it that you two aren't telling me??”

“Ouna, just show her...” he nodded, face set in an unreadable mask. “What ever it means, we can worry about later, but she needs to know.”

“What is it??” Kagome demanded, as she watched her mother reach into her purse.

“We never knew for certain what happened to it, after Kagome passed... the hanyou disappeared I was told... and it was assumed that he used it to become a full youkai. Apparently, that wasn't what happened...” and she placed the jar onto the table.

Kagome gasped, as her eyes fell on the most beautiful object she had ever seen in her life. “What is it, Momma??” she asked in awe. “Where did you get it??”

“Kagome, this is what Horace found today, when he removed that lump,” and she pushed the jar toward her daughter. It was going to be a long night, so much to explain. So much to try to understand.

“The way he described it, it was like a marble...” she picked up the jar, and turned it around. The thing pulsed, like it was alive with a soft pink light. The glow lit up the table, like a candle. “This is no marble... Momma...”

“Little one, this is the Sacred Jewel. The Shikon no Tama.” She saw the questions forming on her daughter's lips. “No, I don't know how it got there, yes I am sure it is the Jewel... and there is so more to this that I can only speculate about.”

“What is it that you are thinking Ouna?” asked Micheal.

“Momma, Kagome found the Jewel and then accidentally shattered it, right? So they had to find the shards, and that's the legend...”

“The story of the jewel is so much more than just that, little one. The story you know, is only a part of the real story. She was my Aunt Kagome, and though I only met her once, my Ji-chan shared things with me that aren't part of the legend. Things she had told him, in confidence.”

“Like what, Momma??” Kagome set the jar down carefully.

“She didn't find the Jewel... it was inside of her,” she spoke slowly to allow the meaning of what she was saying to sink in. She saw Kagome's expression change from confusion, to wide eyes, open mouthed speechlessness.

“You didn't tell me that part, Ouna-sama... what does that mean??” with a raised brow, Michael's fascinated gaze was bouncing back and forth between the two women.

“I think it means, that I am Kagome,” she said in a hush, jaw still wide.

“Of course you are Kagome! Who else would you be?? You two aren't making any sense!” The two women seemed to be communicating without words, and he so very badly wanted to understand.

“Michael, the jewel is bound to the soul of it's protector. My aunt Kagome was not the first, there was another before her. The one who was first entrusted with it. She also was a priestess... a miko, in a small village that eventually became part of Tokyo. When she died, the jewel was thought destroyed since it was cremated with her body. But it appeared again in my Aunt's body, just like... Kagome.”

Ouna went still... as she contemplated the cycles of the soul. “That time I met her... she told me she knew me. She said we had once been sisters...” Her focus was in the past, remembering that meeting with the strange, mysterious woman. “I have no idea how she knew that, maybe one of her more advanced powers... She said that we would meet again...” and she brought her attention back to the table. “I was always disappointed that I never got to see her again, she was quite old then.”

“So what I am hearing you say, is...” Michael regarded each of the them in turn, “You are Kagome's sister, and Kagome is your aunt...”

“Very good Mikey, you have it in a nutshell,” and Ouna beamed.

“I don't think I have anything... I am very confused, actually,” and he sat back in his chair and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“So now, little one... tell me more about your dreams...” and she watched her daughter's eyes grow wide once again.

“I could heal, with a touch... and we were flying...” She thought for a moment, “and the guy in the red haori couldn't hear me... even though I was right there.”

“Your lover?” asked Michael, leaning forward. “Same guy?”

“Yeah, same guy,” she answered absently, gazing at the jewel again.

“You didn't mention a lover... who was it, Kagome?” Ouna waited, glancing at Michael, a realization coming to her.

“Um... I don't know, Momma,” sputtered Kagome, blushing brightly as she realized that they were talking about her risque dream. “In the dream last night, he was the only one I could understand. Everyone else was speaking too quickly in Japanese... or something like it...”

“But tonight you understood the other people?”

“Yeah, just fine...” and she thought a moment. “Mikey, let me see your right hand.”

“Huh?” he responded dumbly, uncertain how it had come back to him, when he wanted to hear more about that lover.

“Your right hand...” as Kagome took his hand, her look was far away as she remembered the dream, and the wrapping on his palm, “Look at this.” She pointed to a darkening of the skin which she had never noticed before in the center of Michael's palm. “How did you get this scar?”

“It's a birthmark, not a scar. It has always been there,” came his response.

“I never noticed it before... so why would I dream about it?” she mused.

“Perhaps, little one,” speculated Ouna, “because they aren't exactly dreams... perhaps... they are memories...”

“You mean that I knew Michael before? And Sally too?” she gasped.

“I think that is very likely,” her mother nodded sagely.

“Then just who is that guy with the gold eyes?” she wondered.

“You must mean Inuyasha,” came her mother's reply. “He's the hanyou of your stories.”

Kagome gasped, and stared at her mother. Michael's jaw was slack, uncertain if he was dreaming this conversation or if it was really happening. Ouna sat serenely, with a vague smile.

“Well...” and Kagome took in a breath, sitting back in her chair, “That would explain the claws...” and her mother and her best friend just looked at her.

* * *