InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ For Such a Time As This ❯ In the End ( Chapter 1 )

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

Disclaimer: All of this belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, who is a GODDESS! As I am not a goddess, I don't even get in the running.

Warnings: In order to truly understand some of this, you need to at least know who Kagura and Kanna are. Also there are parts in this fic that are a little...bloody, so be forewarned.

For Such a Time as This

Chapter 1 In the End

In a small village sometime in the feudal era, the sun was just about to set. For most in the village, it had been a glorious day. Summer's heat had faded, but winter was still far enough away that the villagers did not have to worry about it. In fact, this village did not worry about winter shortage at all, because they had a resident miko that could help them out. Not that that miko hadn't been the cause of considerable damage in the past, but she could go to the future, where there was a seemingly endless supply of food. Besides, the jewel that the miko guarded had been completed, so there hadn't been a youkai attack in at least a week.

Speaking of the miko, she and her party apparently were the only blight on the day. They had returned a week ago, but little movement had been seen from Kaede's hut since. The villagers had spotted the exterminator and the monk, but the miko had retreated to the hut and was not seen again. A general air of sadness seemed to pervade the hut, so the villagers did not go near.

Sango stepped out into the late afternoon sun. Kaede was approaching, having just come from a hut where there was a minor injury. "How is he?" The younger asked as a way of greeting.

"A lot better than you could tell from the noise he was making," the elder said disdainfully. "The little monkey will survive yet again, though I am not sure he has learned his lesson. There are some trees you just don't climb."

The two women shared a brief smile before turning serious once more. "How is she?" Kaede asked.

Sango considered her answer. "Better," she said finally. "She got up today, though she still refuses to go outside. She is in there making dinner."

Almost if on cue, there was a loud clatter from inside. Both women quickly ran inside, to find Kagome sitting next to the stew pot with her head in her hands. She was softly weeping. The clatter had come from the spoon falling into the stew pot. Kaede went to rescue dinner, while Sango gave a comforting hug to Kagome. She stiffened in the embrace. Glancing up for a brief moment to ascertain who the giver was, she collapsed full onto Sango. The exterminator grunted a little at the sudden weight, but gamely held on.

"I'm sorry," Kagome said finally. "I held them back for nearly an hour, but then I thought of how hungry he would be, and what I would need to get next. I actually had planned out what I would bring him from home when I remembered." She began to cry again.

The door flap opened again, and Kagome and Sango were suddenly joined by a third body. Kagome looked down to find Kohaku almost burrowing into her on her other side. The position was comfortable, familiar. The tears quickened when she realized just why it was comforting to have something burrowing into her.

Kohaku looked up into the young miko's face. "Why did you get sad again?" he asked. "You were almost happy this afternoon."

Kagome looked straight into the eyes of Sango's brother. She closed her eyes and, with a visible effort, stopped her tears. When she was sure that she had control, she pasted on her patented "I-am-perfectly-alright-why-do-you-ask" smile, the one that usually caused her friends to step back in fear. It barely fazed Kohaku. "I am happy, Kohaku," she insisted.

"Liar," Sango muttered under her breath. Even Kagome's freaky smile was sad.

Kagome's mind worked frantically to come up with a different topic of conversation. "How's Miroku-sama?" she asked with forced cheer, then blanched and looked down.

Sango understood her hesitation and handed her a bowl of the stew that Kaede was passing around. "He's still not talking to you, is he?"

Kagome heaved a big sigh, "Not today."

"He will," Sango said cheerfully. "You know him. He can't stay quiet forever. He has to give his opinion on everything."

"You don't understand," Kagome said bleakly. "I killed them all. Me. I knew the potential of that power, and I released it anyway. I wasn't under Naraku's influence. It was completely my fault. Inuyasha-"

"Isn't coming back." The cold voice came from the door. Miroku had come in without anyone noticing. "They are never coming back, so stop sniveling."

Kagome flinched and paled. She stared down at her bowl and slowly pushed it aside. Getting up, she shoved her bowl to the side. "I think I'll go to bed now." She had barely touched her food.

Sango watched as Kagome got out her bedding, setting it up as far as the little hut would allow from the disturbingly empty spot by the door, where a hanyou used to lay. Sango turned sharply to Miroku and said in a clipped tone, "Houshi-sama, may I speak to you, alone?"

The monk nodded and stepped outside. Sango followed, but caught him just outside the door. "What the hell was that for? You know how vulnerable she is!"

"Yes," Miroku said, sounding truly apologetic. "But I also know how she works. If we act like we don't care how she feels, she will work herself out of this faster. It would be better if Inuyasha were yelling at her, but that's not going to happen. I was trying to make her go home. She heals better there."

Sango stared at him for a long moment. "Just when I think I have overestimated you," she said, "you prove me wrong."

She turned to go back into the hut, but Miroku had decided to thank her. It wasn't his fault that she had turned just as his hand rose up to cover his heart. The resultant collision with parts of her anatomy wasn't his fault either. Honestly. It wasn't his fault until his hand decided to take advantage.

Sango stiffened. "Houshi-sama," she said softly so as to not disturb Kagome. "You wouldn't want to lose that hand right after the curse was removed, would you?"

Miroku laughed weakly and let Sango lead the way into the hut. He was greeted by an angry Kaede, who handed him a bowl, making sure to slop at least some of the contents over onto him He thanked her graciously and ate quickly, under the glares of the others. The sun had set already, so there was little else to do but go to bed.

Kohaku staked out a claim next to Kagome. "I understand what you are going through," he said, "even if some insensitive blockheads, who shall remain nameless, are too dense to realize it."

There was no response from the supposedly sleeping girl. Kagome waited until she was sure everyone else was asleep before sighing and sitting up. Having slept for most of the past week, she did not feel really tired now. Miroku shifted in his sleep, and she actually smiled at him.

"Thanks for trying to help," she whispered softly, having heard the entire conversation outside. "I'll go home in the morning, but there's something I must do tonight."

Quietly she got up and made her way across the hut to the outside. Standing still for just a moment, she allowed herself to breathe in the night air. There was no moon, but that didn't matter anymore. She sighed, and walked to the base of the shrine.

"I'm sorry," she called up to the two newest residents of the little graveyard, to at least one set of ears she was sure could not hear her. "I wasn't strong enough. I am so sorry."

She sat on the steps, but there were no tears left.

* * *

Sango woke the next day to find Kagome already up. As if that wasn't enough of a shock, the young miko appeared to be packing her bag. She wasn't her normal cheerful self, but she wasn't crying constantly either. She was just calmly packing up her things, as if-

"Kagome-chan?" The exterminator asked curiously. "Are you going home?"

"Yes," the girl replied softly. "We need some more supplies, and I could bring some medicine for the boy that fell out of a tree yesterday."

By this time she had finished her packing. She checked quickly to be sure that the shikon jewel was in its sealed pouch that Kaede had made and firmly in the pocket of her bag. The pocket had originally been designed for cell phones, but as she spent most of her time in the feudal era, it served to hold the jewel within easy grabbing range.

She carefully shouldered the bag, and turned to Sango. "Tell them thank you," she said softly, "especially Miroku-sama. I'll be back by tomorrow, I think."

Sango nodded and walked her to the well. Right before she jumped in, Kagome turned and smiled at Sango. It looked like a true smile to Sango. "I'll be fine," she said.

As Sango hugged her, her smile slid off her face. Kagome was still trying to put on as brave a front as possible. As long as she didn't go over the top Sango would believe her, she thought. The conversation from last night proved how worried they all were. If she would relieve some of their worries, she would. The embrace broke, and Kagome turned quickly before her newest tears could be spotted. Taking a deep breath, she jumped.

She had always loved going through the well. From the first heartrending jump to when she landed safely on the other side, she loved that feeling. Other than when Inuyasha carried her, it was the closest she had ever gotten to flight. No matter what her mood was, she always felt cheered up when she went through the well.

It held no joy for her now.

She arrived on the other side and just sat there. The energy required to lift herself and her pack out of there suddenly seemed too much. She pulled her knees up and rested her head on them, staring into nothing. She had no idea how long she sat there, but it must have been a long time, because suddenly her mom was kneeling in front of her.

"Kagome," she asked, concerned about her daughter, "What's wrong? I saw the light from the well house when I was walking in earlier, but that was at least half an hour ago. I called, but you didn't answer."

Slowly Kagome's eyes traveled up to meet her mom's. She stared at her as if she didn't recognize her for the longest moment. All of a sudden her eyes cleared and she launched herself at this source of comfort.

"Oh, Mama! It's Inuyasha!" Kagome sobbed. "And...everyone. They were going to die, so I killed him! But I killed them, too. I killed them all!"

"Whoa," her mother wrapped her arm's around Kagome. "Slow down. Relax and start at the beginning."

And so Kagome did. She started from the very beginning. Soon the whole story was pouring from her, the true story. Every youkai she had protected her mother from knowing about, every dangerous situation she had ever been in, it all came pouring out. The dangers of Naraku, Kagura, and Kanna, the complications of Kikyo, the challenges of Sesshomaru, the reluctant partnership of Kouga. Shippo's parents, Miroku's hand, Sango's village, Inuyasha's transformations. After a few gasps her mother remained silent. Fairly soon, Kagome's voice ground to a halt. She could not continue any longer.

Her mom continued to stroke her back for a while, then softly suggested, "Let's go inside, and I'll make you some tea. You can tell me the rest later."

Kagome nodded and rose to leave the well. Suddenly their position struck her. "Mama," she said, a little dumbfounded. "You climbed into the well? Voluntarily?"

Her mother chuckled a little. "I called, and you didn't answer. I knew you were down there, and it scared me when you didn't respond."

Kagome reached out to hug her again, but simultaneously both of them realized how dirty they were. Giggling, they agreed that a bath was in order before any tea could be drunk. Kagome got to use the bath first, while her mother attempted to repack the bag. After soaking for about fifteen minutes, there was a knock at the door.

"Kagome?" her mother called. "I knew to put ramen in, but what kind of sweets would you like to send Shippo this time?"

There was a long pause, then her daughter's voice came back, sounding extremely muffled, "Don't bother, Mama. There's no one to give it to."

She digested that statement, then said, "Why don't you get out of the bath, I'll make up some tea, and you can tell me the rest of the story."

She went down and prepared the tea, along with some oden. It may not have been a correct breakfast food, but in these cases comfort food is best.

"Mama," Kagome said as she walked in, "I know this will sound crazy, but could I have some o...den." She smiled at the already steaming plate sitting at her place on the table. "You know me too well."

She sat at her place and took a few moments to compose herself. "When Inuyasha's sword broke," she began, "I came to a decision. I would no longer be entirely helpless in a fight. I spoke to Kaede-sama, and she spoke to Miroku-sama, and they agreed to start teaching me the basics of miko spell casting. It was hard, but fun. About one week into the training, however, I started having visions. They weren't mine. My powers weren't mature yet, so I shouldn't have been having them, at least not with the clarity they were shown. Naraku was sending them to me. Horrible visions of all of my friends getting slaughtered, and me powerless to do anything. They would always end with the same message. 'Give yourself and your shards up to me, girl, and I will spare them. If I can reach you here, who says that I cannot make these visions true?'

"Except for these, life continued much the same as normal. We won some, we lost some, and we never seemed to get closer to Naraku. Then he kidnapped me." Kagome shuddered in remembered pain and fear. She decided that her mom still didn't need to know some things, so she edited the last parts of her story. "There was a young girl there, who had apparently been kidnapped as well. I protected her, and it turns out she was the ward of Sesshomaru. Naraku should not have messed with her. We had a new ally. Kikyo was finally able to put her plan of attack into action, but whatever it was, it failed, rather spectacularly. She was able to drag herself to Inuyasha and tell him Naraku's location before she died. We had to act quickly. I used one of the few spells I could produce to call Kouga and Sesshomaru to us, and we set out to fight.

"It was a disaster. Sango was brought down early, because she tried to protect Kohaku. Miroku-sama was protecting her, and Inuyasha and Sesshomaru were attacking from opposite sides. Kagura, in the greatest degree of open defiance I had ever seen from her, had refused to fight, and Kouga was busy guarding Shippo and me. Three months of training and I still felt useless in the actual battle. I was more accurate with my arrows, though. I was aiming at a youkai sneaking up on Miroku-sama, and failed to notice the one sneaking up on me. Just after I released my arrow, Kouga slammed into me, knocking me out of the way and taking the brunt of the blow himself. He was dying at my feet. I looked over the battlefield, but there was no one to help. Sesshomaru was trying to free Inuyasha, who was caught up Naraku's tentacles. Miroku-sama was busy defending Sango, but then the rosary snapped off of his hand. He actually took the fact that he was going to be swallowed fairly calmly. He just started walking directly to Naraku. Apparently he thought that if he was going to die he should take Naraku with him.

"I got mad. Miroku-sama's curse was more effective in this battle than I was, and it was going to kill everybody. I felt an all encompassing rage fill me. With it came the power. I was so mad at that point that I just let it go. It felt good to actually be doing some harm."

She paused and took a sip of the tea. This was the hardest part to tell. "Miroku-sama and Kaede-sama had warned me about my maturing powers. They had told me that miko powers made no difference in 'good' or 'bad' youkai, they only hurt youkai. I knew the potential of the powers, yet I still released them. The only youkai to survive was Myoga-jisan, who fled to the safest place, me. He got as close to me as possible, and was spared."

"And Inuyasha?" her mother asked, fearing the response.

"Much worse," Kagome said weakly. "My powers killed all the youkai within him. He's completely human, and hates me for it. He won't leave Kikyo's grave, and refuses to speak to me. I don't blame him. Miroku-sama keeps him company mostly, forcing him to eat, to survive. So, you see," she smiled bleakly, "there is no need for ramen or sweets."

Her mother blinked at the sudden subject change. She moved to hug Kagome again, but Souta chose that moment to walk in, blearily rubbing his eyes.

"'Neesan?" he asked. "What are you doing home on a Sunday? Where's Inu-nisan?"

Kagome stiffened. "I'm going to my room," she said as she bolted from the room.

She ran and continued running until she had reached her sanctuary. There she paused, wondering what she could do. Schoolwork seemed so trivial now, but it would keep her mind occupied and her hands busy. Nodding to herself, she brought out her book bag and looked at her assignments. As she was rummaging through her bag for the right book, her hand came across a journal. A pink one. A pink and fuzzy one that Ayame had given her for her birthday. She stared at it for the longest time, thinking how incongruent it looked among her textbooks.

'Shippo would have liked it,' she thought. 'Not the color. Never the color, but he would have liked the feel of it.' She buried her head on her desk and cried once again for the lost boy. When the latest batch of tears had subsided she found herself staring at the journal again. Finally she grabbed a pen, opened up the journal, and began to write.

She wrote about a funny little fox youkai child who had lost one family only to find another. She wrote of blue foxfire and illusions with tails, of big pink bubbles and little screaming mushrooms, of Thunder Brothers and a challenge from a grieving sister, and of a small girl with a shard of rose quartz and his impassioned defense of her. She wrote in no particular order, merely taking down memories and impressions of a bright spark that had changed her life in so many ways.

When she had written everything she could remember, she moved on. To a fiercely protective wolf that had lost a pack to protect. To a tiny fire cat that did not seem so tiny when her mistress was in danger. To an enemy youkai lord-turned-ally, his faithful servant and even more faithful ward. And finally, to a dangerous silver-haired hanyou that, by reluctantly saving her, started the whole quest. She filled the journal completely, mechanically eating when food was put in front of her, and barely acknowledging her brother's apology when he discovered the truth. She wrote far into the night and fell asleep at her desk, only to wake up early in the morning to reread what she had written.

She had barely gotten through Kouga's section when her mother poked her head in the doorway. "Kagome?" she said softly. "You did say that you wanted to leave in the morning, and it's almost ten o'clock."

"What!" Kagome screeched. She launched herself out of bed. The next few moments were a whirlwind of packing and hurried instructions. Finally she was ready, and she ran down to the well, waving a hurried goodbye over her shoulder. She was in such a hurry that she nearly tripped as she entered the well, causing her bag to crash against the side. Unbeknownst to her, the cell phone pocket had opened and the Shikon jewel fell out in the transition. She fell roughly on the other side.

"Ouch." She rubbed a couple of particularly bruised spots, then looked up to the top of the well. "Is anybody there to help me out?" she called.

Sango's head appeared in the opening. "Hey," she called down cheerfully. "Inuyasha's still sulking, and Houshi-sama's gone to 'help' some of the village women, so I decided to help you up."

Kagome sighed a hoisted her bag up, climbing up soon thereafter. Once she got to the top, she rested for a bit and turned to Sango. "I thought," she said, "that if Miroku-sama had left off guarding Inuyasha to have some fun in the village, you would be guarding Miroku-sama."

She was reaching down to pick up her bag when she said this, so she missed Sango's look of confusion. The look cleared quickly, however, and Sango said good-naturedly, "Let him have some fun for now, and I'll just give him one big concussion later."

Kagome actually giggled a little. "You'd think that the women would have learned by now that he's not serious," she said, "or that if he ever was serious you would punish him appropriately for it."

They both shared a laugh over that, but Kagome soon grew serious again. "He should slow down, you know," she said thoughtfully, "now that things aren't so urgent."

Again a look of confusion appeared on Sango's face, but this time she voiced it as well. "Kagome," she said, "what are you talking about?"

They were about halfway to the village by now, and Kagome turned to face Sango. "He shouldn't have to worry so much about an heir," she explained slowly, "now that the curse is gone."

"Kagome," Sango said, sounding even more confused, "Houshi-sama's curse isn't-"

But Kagome was beyond hearing by this point. She could no longer see Sango standing in front of her, alive at least. She was staring at the remains of a ruined battlefield. The sights, sounds, and smells of the scene overwhelmed her. Bodies lay in pieces, only recognizable by the scraps of clothing still clinging to them. A clothed hand, still covered with a rosary. A knee, with the pink of the knee guard still attached. A torso, with the red cloth stained even darker by the red of blood. Worst was the tail, the orange fur blowing in the breeze. All of this did not horrify her; she had seen it all before. What horrified her were the words that she knew were coming.

"Give yourself and your shards up to me, girl, and I will spare them. If I can reach you here, who says that I cannot make these visions true?"

She didn't know how long she stood there, but after what seemed like hours, Kagome blinked and was able to see Sango again. The Sango that was standing in front of her, alive. Her face was pasty white, and she swallowed convulsively several times before she seemed to take control of herself.

"Sango," she said, her voice wavering, "Go to the village and get Miroku-sama, now. Meet me at Kaede-sama's hut."

"Wait," Sango stopped her before she could run off. "What happened?"

"It doesn't matter," she said. "Just run, now. He's back. Oh, Gods, he's back."

With that she took her own advice and ran towards Kaede's hut. If she was still having visions, then he still must be alive. And she had single-handedly killed all of their most powerful allies. She forced it out of her mind. She could think about that later.

Meanwhile, she had arrived at Kaede's hut. She ran inside and threw down her bag. Grabbing her bow and arrows she hurried back outside, sparing no explanation for a startled Kaede.

When she got back outside, Sango and Miroku were just arriving. Out of breath, Miroku raised a hand in greeting. His right hand...the one that was covered in cloth and a rosary. She would have asked questions, but she was interrupted by an entirely unexpected source.

"Kaaaaagoooomeeeee!!!!!" The orange ball of fluff hurtled at her at unimagined speeds. "Save meeeeee!!!"

If it was possible that Kagome could get any whiter, she would have. It was a miracle that she was able to catch Shippo, for her arms had gone numb. Following closely on Shippo's path was Inuyasha; a silver-haired, golden-eyed, dog-eared hanyou.

She looked down at the fox youkai in her arms. He seemed to be expecting something. "Oh, yeah," she said faintly. Her eyes slowly traveled back up to the hanyou. "Inuyasha," she whispered, barely audible. "Ouswari."

She joined him on the ground shortly thereafter.

* * *

Hmmmm...so this fic was spawned off of a dream. I woke up one day with the quote from the summary pounding in my ears, and it got me thinking. I have read a lot of fics in which Kagome defeats Naraku through her miko powers, but somehow manages to spare all of the good guys. Given my dream, I started to wonder what would happen if the opposite happened, and she killed everybody.

Many thanks to my beta reader, Lori, who is also doing some illustrations for this fic. Go Lori! Her website is www. angelfire .com/wizard /fiction0/art/main.html (Cut and paste and take out spaces.

WS