InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Inexcusable Nature ❯ Ways to kill time ( Chapter 23 )

Inexcusable Nature
Just A Starving Writer

Disclaimer: nope, not mine.

Author's Plea: Please forgive the delay. And please excuse this sorry chapter. Next chapter should be full of Happy Happy Joy Joy. Maybe one more chapter and then epilogue...maybe. The only thing certain is that I'm not done yet. But soon.
K. Me thinks thats all the damage I can do.
Mucho Mucho love to all my readers and reviewers.
Enjoy if you can.


Part 23: Ways to kill time

The girl was gone and he simply could not get to her by the same method. It only took half an hour of jumping in and out of the well to figure that much out.

And so it was that soon Inuyasha found himself with sore feet from being unceremoniously brought by force to the well and thrown into it.

Much to the hanyou's luck, he went through with the familiar blue swish. Unfortunately, when he returned early the next morning, he had a few new bruises that were only multiplied when his half-brother required an explanation.

And so it was that Sesshoumaru, Lord of the Western Lands, finally discovered the origins of one small miko. Needless to say, he wasn't too pleased about it.

However, he quickly came to grips with the concept…until he discovered two important facts. First, according to Inuyasha's message from Kagome, she was unable to cross over back to the past. Second, throwing the hanyou back into the well no longer seemed to work. As the cold truth settled into his unforgiving heart, the mighty lord broke and for the following three days, he killed anything and everything he could find.

Of course, when he finally came to his senses, he quickly discovered Tenseiga's ultimate ability and brought back to life all those he had so foolishly dismembered. Some of his victims, namely his brother, did not take too kindly to the infraction. For the following three days, the two fought relentlessly, without stop, until finally all the steam and aggression that needed to be released was forced out.

If anyone had to be pitied, it was not the supposedly star crossed lovers. It was achingly obvious that Inuyasha had more than his fair share of pain in this situation. He had been taken from a rather interesting `discussion' with Kagura to be thrown into a well, beat up by a distraught miko, brutally interrogated by a distraught brother, viciously murdered by the same brother, brought back to life once he was finally getting comfortable, and now, due to his brother's inability to release his emotions in any productive, non-violent way, was forced into fighting him both by the demon himself, and the strong feelings projected into his tired mind that would not be dismissed. It was all rather irritating.

"ENOUGH!" the hanyou shouted as he lifted his battered body from a tree. However, the lord didn't seem to hear him and continued to attack. Angry and more than a little upset, the hanyou gathered the strength to somehow manage to knock his brother back and for the first time in their entire lives, Inuyasha had the upper hand. Quickly leaping to the fallen elder brother, the hanyou made sure the demon would listen by keeping the business end of his blade against his neck.

It was almost not enough. The demon's eyes were still blood red as they had been since the lord had realized the girl would not be returning. Scary as it was, the hanyou knew his proud brother was only behaving like this to ease some of the pain that had settled on his unaccustomed heart and that realization made it easier.

"That's enough Sesshoumaru. She's not dead, you bastard! Just gone for a while. Shit, you should be thankful!"

"THANKFUL?! HOW STUPID ARE YOU?"

"NOT AS STUPID AS YOU!" Rightfully sensing that yelling would not solve anything, the hanyou took a moment to catch his breath, calm his rage, and arrange his words.

"Think about it, ya idiot. Kagome is human. Had she stayed, she would have eventually grown older and died while you stayed all young and shit." No one had ever proclaimed the half-demon a poet, but even his brother had to admit he had a point. Slowly, the red began to fade from his eyes.

"You've been given a chance here, brother. You've been given time to find a way to keep her forever. You've been given 500 years to discover immortality. 500 years is nothing to you, stupid! You'll only age, what? Ten years? Shit, if only I was that lucky!"

It was difficult to tell if the lord was more surprised by the idea presented to him or the hanyou's sudden use of his brain. Either way, it was enough to bring sanity back into his mind. Pushing his brother off of him, he looked around at the destruction he had caused.

He sighed. It was a mess, really. But at least he hadn't killed anyone this time. Though Kikyou was waiting on the sidelines, and he swore that was disappointment on her face.

"Well, what the hell are you waiting for?" the hanyou huffed in annoyance.

"You would do this for her."

"Of course, she's my best friend. And for some stupid reason, you make her happy. She must be an idiot to see something in you. But I know she loves you and I know you love her in your own way. I know you'll make her happy," Inuyasha stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, and maybe it was.

"Hn."

"Now get your ass together and start looking for a cure for humanity. You only have 500 years."

The brothers exchanged silent stares for an indeterminable amount of time before they finally walked side by side out of the scene of their battle. A silent pact had been made, all in the name of one small, young miko.

*

She sighed.

She looked at her math homework.

She sighed again.

She looked away from the horrific equations, only to find her gaze resting on a white hilted katana that her grandfather had proudly displayed on her wall.

She broke into tears. Again. It was not unusual.

However, before she could continue the routine, her lonely thoughts were interrupted by her mother calling her downstairs. Apparently she had visitors.

She sighed. Would they ever get the idea that she was no longer like them?

"Kagome! We've missed you! We heard you had hurt your ankles."

"Yeah! Crutches and everything!"

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she stated even as she limped on her crutches. Her mother had finally broken down and just bought a pair. With the number of times she sprained her ankles, it was becoming necessary to have some on hand. This latest time had been caused when she had jumped in and out of the well for a good half a day, ignoring the first sprained ankle and only giving up when she had sprained the formerly good one. Climbing the ladder out of the well and subsequently making it back to her house had been quite the chore.

"I fell and sprained my ankles. It's nothing," she insisted as she took a seat, carefully arranging her kimono.

Ever since returning to the future, she had taken to wearing the traditional style, if only because it reminded her of an arrogant demon lord. All of her recent clothing purchases consisted of blue silk kimonos. She wasn't obsessed at all.

"Do you think you are well enough to go shopping with us? We're meeting Hojo and he's been asking about you."

"Yeah, you need to get out of this house. Some air will be great for your lungs after that last bout of pneumonia."

She frowned. So it was both a Hojo and Grandpa's Illness situation, was it? Well that could be easily fixed. Maybe.

"I'll go if one of you drives. I don't wanna take the train with crutches. And no pushing me on Hojo. I'm swearing off men for a while." Those were the conditions and they were out of luck if they disagreed.

"I can drive!"

Kagome cussed under her breath.

"What do you mean `swearing off men'? Did you have an argument with your bad boyfriend?"

"No," she stated wearily, even as she pinched the bridge of her nose. Maybe if she pressed hard enough, she could force the headache out? Not likely, but worth a try. "I've met the only guy I want to spend the rest of my life with and he's gone."

The three girls shared a Look and then all stared sympathetically at the unsuspecting miko.

"You were dumped," they stated in unison.

Kagome could only look at them, dumbfounded. It would take some time to get used to this. Lucky enough for her, school would be over in a month or two and then they would all go off to University and hopefully grow apart. It was something to think about.

"Yeah, sure, just don't push Hojo on me. I really don't feel like dating right now."

They nodded in agreement a bit too quickly. Though she was certain they were planning something, she decided it wasn't worth the ensuing argument. So without further ado, they all piled into a car borrowed from some older brother, and took off for the nearest shopping district.

The driver turned on the radio to pass the time.

"OH!!! Turn it up! I LOVE this song!!" stated the other two girls in unison. Kagome could only sigh. The song was too poppy for her tastes, a Japanese version of those cheesy American boy band songs. It was practically dripping sweetness. She grimaced from the overdone lyrics, but was a bit shocked when the chorus resounded.

"Hey, it's your name, Kagome! This song is about a girl with your name!"

"That's so cool!"

"Maybe it's Fate!"

Kagome non-verbally expressed her emotions on the subject, borrowing an arrogant half-snort from a certain demon lord. What wonderful luck she had! To share the name of a girl in a crappy, sappy love song! Yippee!

She was totally screwed.

It was quite possibly the longest day in history. Hopping through the crowded shopping center on crutches wasn't very fun, she couldn't find any blue kimonos that were up to her high standards, her friends had lied about not pushing her on Hojo, and, worst of all, she had that damn song stuck in her head ALL DAY.

She was so very, completely, totally screwed.

And if that wasn't bad enough, anyone who heard her name just had to comment on the damned song. Apparently it was a very popular tune, though the reason was beyond her. What was it with people her age being so easily duped into believing that crappy strings of sentimental words were poetry? It was truly bothersome.

She just knew she would be haunted by the damn song all her difficult existence. Every man that wanted to woo her would use it. She just knew it. Hell, Hojo had already given it a try.

She sighed.

She tuned out her friend's giggles and chattering for the rest of the trip and decided then and there to devote herself to schoolwork for the rest of the year. It was necessary in order to graduate on time anyways, so why not?

The song came on the radio again on the way back to the shrine. They sang along.

She sighed yet again and resisted the urge to break the window and jump into traffic to end her suffering. It was harder than she ever imagined.

*

"MOM! SOUTA IS BOTHERING ME AGAIN!"

Sango sighed. She should have known better than to marry Miroku. The pair already had four kids and she was almost positive another was on the way. If the symptoms continued for another week, she'd pay a visit to Kikyou to confirm it.

"Souta, leave your sister alone. Why aren't you helping your uncle?"

The oldest of her children looked down sheepishly.

"He kicked me out of his laboratory. Said he needed to concentrate."

Sango recognized the shame in her son's stance and called the boy over. He had been looking forward to helping his uncles in the lab since he could walk and they had finally agreed to apprentice him once he turned 15. However, more often than not, he was kicked out due to his exuberance.

"It's okay Souta. Sesshoumaru-sama is just frustrated because he hasn't discovered the cure for death yet. It's very important to him."

"I know, I know. I wish I knew why it's so important to him. He rarely leaves the lab anymore and makes Uncle Inuyasha patrol the borders. He's not even human, so why does he care?"

"Because he's in love."

"In love? Uncle Sesshoumaru is in love?"

She smiled softly at her son's incredulous expression.

"I know, amazing, isn't it? Sit down and let me tell you a story and maybe you'll understand."

*

Inuyasha smiled as he entered the parlor to find Sango explaining to her oldest the unlikely story of Sesshoumaru's obsession. Even after sixteen years, it was still quite amazing.

"Hey," whispered Kagura from the curtains where she was watching the scene as well. "How were the borders?"

"Fine. How's the kid?"

"Sleeping finally. He's grouchy, just like his dad."

The pair smirked. It was a long running joke that their first child was an exact replica of his father. The five year old had all the energy in the world along with Inuyasha's trademark hair and impertinence. He was a born troublemaker.

"I'll look in on him once I check in with Sesshoumaru," the hanyou said quietly, his eyes glued on the human boy who's eyes were widening as Sango wove the tale of miko and demon lord.

"Good luck."

"Feh."

He silently left the small parlor and snuck into the dim laboratory, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the scant lighting before continuing into the packed room. Originally the space had been a spare dining room, but the first thing the older Inu brother had done after settling into the life of a researcher was transform it into a working lab, complete with all the most advanced machinery of the time, which was not much to say. It had the most thorough selection of herbs and essences in the country and its library was not to be rivaled. There was even a worn science book that Kagome had left on one of her previous expeditions.

The lord himself was settled on a cushion, industriously crushing a recently acquired herb into a paste to be used for his latest experiment.

Looking over the appearance of his brother, Inuyasha frowned with concern. The lord looked paler than usual and his features were even sharper than usual. He was going without eating again. While part of him was overjoyed with the proof that the demon really did love miko, he was still bothered.

"The Northern Lord sent word of some meeting or something," he finally stated solemnly to gain his brother's attention.

"You shall go in my place."

"No, I won't."

The lord stopped what he was doing and stared at his insubordinate brother.

"You will."

"No. I'll take care of things here. You need to get out. Eat something and get some sleep. What has it been, two months?"

"It is nothing."

"You'll never last if you don't take care of yourself."

"Hn."

"She would want you to."

They stared each other down. However, Inuyasha was not willing to lose this battle.

"Fine."

A moment of silence ensued.

"I'm gonna check on dinner," the hanyou began awkwardly. "Eat with us. The kids miss you. And Rin should be in tonight."

The lord nodded almost imperceptibly.

"Okay then."

Without another word, the hanyou left and the lord returned to his work. Looking from the herb he was crushing to the assorted caged animals that were currently being treated with one of his possible remedies, he smiled slightly. Sixteen years…only four hundred and eighty five to go.

*

Kagome struggled to set up the dummy she had made out of spare clothing and smelly pillows against the pole. Now that her good ankle was well enough to walk on, she needed to cut something. It was the only form of stress relief that seemed to have any affect on her mood. Obliterating the poor dummy always left her feeling rather exhilarated. While pouring herself into her schoolwork had solved the problem of her spare time, it left her frustrated and that frustration often led to random outbursts.

Drawing the sword from its makeshift sheath, she focused on the dummy and began the dance. A few of the shrine visitors wandered over to watch her work her magic.

The spectators didn't bother her much. Usually she was content to wait until nightfall when there were no watchers but today she simply had to begin early or she would explode. Swiping effectively at the poor dummy, she ignored the applause and instead put all of her energy into the mock battle. Imagining her opponent was a certain demon lord, she aimed for the dummy's sleeves and the socks that consisted of `his' hair.

When her ankles finally protested loudly enough to take her out of her reverie, there was a decent pile of clothing scraps surrounding the distraught dummy. However, she noticed it little as the dozen or so watchers began clapping and complimenting her abilities.

"Um…thanks?" she said shyly as she limped her way back to her crutches. Her injury apparently only made the show all the more impressive.

As it turned out, one of her spectators happened to be a columnist for a local entertainment magazine. She sighed as it became obvious that she was more than cursed. The annoying little man began his rant on the story this would make before he enquired her name. She answered hesitantly, just waiting for the axe to fall.

"Wait…Kagome like the song?"

She bit back a scream. Maybe homework was better after all.

*

Rin escaped from the children with some difficulty and snuck into the quiet lab. After all these years and he was still there, huddled around the latest machine he had invented to test his experiments.

But something was different. That noise was definitely not from the equipment. It almost sounded like humming…but surely that was not possible. In all her 52 years of knowing the Lord, he had never once done something as inane as hum.

"Sesshoumaru-sama?"

Immediately the demon looked up from his work and the noise suspiciously ceased. Though his face was schooled into the traditional nonchalance, Rin could almost swear he looked guilty.

"Any progress?" she questioned instead, setting aside this interesting tidbit for discussion later.

"The latest results are promising. But nothing is certain until it is tested on human subjects."

She gulped.

"Where's Souta?" she asked quickly, effectively changing subjects.

"With his daughter. She's expecting soon."

"Hmm….Maybe you should try taking a day off?"

"There will be no rest until she is safe."

"You have time."

"You don't know that."

She sighed. Even after all this time, he could still out logic her. Even her lessons with the late Kikyou weren't enough.

"One day, my lord. Take one day to see your family - outside of the lab."

He stared at her silently but she refused to back down. All her years in his presence had fortified her backbone and now that she was practically his senior, she also had the inherent grandmother quality. It was a well matched duel and one she was going to win.

"Tomorrow," he finally relented. She smiled.

"Thank you, my lord. I will inform the others."

She left the room but paused just as she was about to close the door. The humming had started again. Glancing at the preoccupied lord, she smiled again.

Pulling the door shut, she wondered if he knew how much he had changed.

Further thought into the subject was cut off by the cacophony of the parlor. Miroku was busy trying to watch his grandchildren but was vastly unsuccessful. Three partial demons were interspersed amongst the humans and were wreaking havoc.

Rin shook her head in dismay. Though more often than not she regretted never settling down and having a family, times like these made her remember why. It was enough trouble having to take care of an obsessed demon lord, babysitting all the children, and taking over Kikyou's position of healer in the village without the added worries of a family.

She smiled as she scooped up the youngest of Inuyasha's children. The red eyed little girl grinned widely.

"Where're your parents?" Rin asked sweetly as she swung the child around.

"Ummm…fightin'?"

Rin laughed as she began to tickle the girl. Some things never changed.

*

The article had been written and encouraged many new visitors to the shrine. While it pleased her grandfather as he was able to sell more tourist junk, it made Kagome uncomfortable to know they were there to watch her practice.

It was odd, really. All the praise in the world was nothing if it was not His.

Frowning, she sliced through the sock bangs on her dummy, revealing the blue crescent moon she had painted on his t-shirt face. The audience applauded. Kagome sighed. There would be no reprieve tonight.

"Miss Higurashi?" a girl only a few years younger than her asked as she slammed the katana back into its replacement sheath. "Can you sign my CD?"

Looking down, Kagome grimaced. Sure enough, it was the damn goofy album that had the ridiculous song containing her unwilling name.

Signing it resignedly, she limped her way back to the house.

She was able to bath and change into a fresh blue kimono before she broke into tears, sobbing the name of her beloved.

*

He was grinning.

That alone was enough to put everyone on edge. As if that wasn't plenty, the entire clan had been called to dinner.

While the "family" regularly stayed in the palace, it had been years since they had gathered together for a formal meal. Thus it should have come as no surprise when it was necessary for tables from the various smaller dining rooms to be moved to the courtyard to make room for everyone.

Miroku and Sango, looking well considering their old age, were sitting between their 6 children and their spouses. At least some of the 14 grandchildren, and 2 great grandchildren spilled over onto the other side of the table. It was quite impressive.

Across from them sat Inuyasha and Kagura along with their 4 children. All six of them wouldn't stop arguing. Shippou was attempting to keep the peace. Rin, the so-called grandmother of the whole brood, sat at one end of the long multi-pieced table with her lord heading up the other end.

"Quiet," the lord demanded and immediately every single being became silent. The demon smirked. He still had the power.

"Fifty years," he began and the mood became somber. "Fifty years without her. But only four hundred and fifty until I find her again."

He lifted his cup and motioned for everyone else to do the same.

"Eventually, I will discover the cure to humanity. It is this Sesshoumaru's hope that we can all someday see her, some for the first time."

Everyone smiled though only the very young took the idea seriously. What a preposterous notion.

"I propose a toast. To Kagome." He took a sip as did the others among loud cheers.

"…And to immortality."

Everyone took another sip but without the same gusto as before. However, the drink was good and by the end of the meal, several hours later, every goblet and cup was empty.

The demon lord smiled. Now all he had to do was wait.

*