InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ New Moon; New You ❯ Around a Corner ( Chapter 2 )

New Moon; New You

Chapter 2: Around a Corner

Disclaimer: Yada yada, don't own, yada yada, don't sue.

Sorry the update took so long! ^^; School has been uncommonly harsh, and then the story plot line decided to change on me. Seems like my one shot has grown! I hope to have the third chapter out within about 2 weeks, so bear with me… Many thanx to all my page views! I wish I had more reviews though… *wink wink, nudge nudge*

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Inu-Yasha…Inu… help me!"

"Kikyo?! But where? "

"It hurts so bad Inu..Ya…"

"KIKYO!"

His animal ears swiveled to catch the fear and panic pushed into that last gasp. He kept running, hopefully towards the sound that seemed to come from a hundred directions.

"KIKYO!"

Nothing but unforgiving darkness. No light, no warmth. No answer.

"IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!!!!"

A sobbing girl with a patch was suddenly before him, still clutching her dead sister's arrows.

"You killed her….."

"No…"

He tried to back away, but the figure was ominous and looming. Everywhere he turned there she was.

"She loved you!"

He sprang off the ground and tried to sprint away from the horrid accusations.

"And you let her die!!!!"

"Your claws raked her body!"

"No!"

He couldn't get away. She was everywhere! Anywhere he ran, crawled, sprang, and scurried to, she was right there.

"Inu-Yasha, she gave up everything that made her a Priestess… in hopes of your love… It was your claws, Hanyou."

Now the child was an old hag, wrinkled and all knowing. She smirked down upon him with her cool logic.

"My…claws?"

He looked down at his bloodied hands, the blood that smelled of his beloved Miko.

"I…I did it?"

He shook and fell to his knees. Nothing would hold still, the entire blackness vibrated with laughter at his weakness. And then it exploded in flames. Inu-Yasha looked up in panic. Up and out of the hole he was now in, to see faces surrounded by a square of white light. Villagers he had never met, but had deeply wronged. And Kaede was there, leering down on him. He felt something hard and round in his palm; the jewel, the Shikon no Tama. But it meant nothing now. The fire was burning all around him, devouring him, melting the fire-rat garments…

"Good-bye, Inu-Yasha…"

"NOOOOOOO!"

He woke up drenched in sweat and panting. So many times… similar nightmares…

"Fifty years," he muttered pensively, "Fifty fucking years!"

The thing he omitted from his confessions to Kagome the other night was what had happened while he was pinned to the tree. At least now it wasn't an all-day affair. It only plagued his dreams. It was why he hardly slept with everyone else if he could avoid it. Sure he liked sleeping in the trees, they were much more comforting and natural to him, but it was also a safeguard in case he woke up in the night, like he just had. He hardly screamed anymore, and when he did only Shippo had heard, and the little kitsune wisely decided, or rather was threatened, not to mention it.

Inu Yasha hadn't spoken to Kagome about the visions; he didn't want her to pity him. Pity was such an emasculating emotion. And seeming weak was something he couldn't stand. He would rather be sucked into Miroku's Air Void. Absently toying with the jacket Kagome had bound his leg with, he thumbed the sky blue fabric, feeling its smooth, even surface, and that weird shape seemingly buried in it… wait a minute…

Pulling the article of clothing into his lap he sought out the lump he had felt. At first he poked around, trying to be careful because he wanted to return the windbreaker to Kagome, but eventually his impatience drove him mad. Making out the rectangular object, he delicately cut through the cloth with his claw, causing, what he hoped, to be minimal damage. Besides, it could be fixed, right? Right?! He snorted aloud. Keh, if it can't be its her fault anyway for leaving it here with him and not coming back to him…err… to get it back yet. So there.

After confirming with himself that he wasn't at fault, ever, he pulled out the… what did she call it? `Book'? Yeah, that's what it was. One of those things she lugged around with all those complicated spells in them. Opening the cover, however, he quickly discovered that this wasn't like the other books Kagome normally carried. Not only was this about half a regular one's size, no larger than a ward spell paper, but also it had no words in it. Only pictures. Not that he understood the concept of a camera. He remembered Kagome bringing a little box with a light attached that when she pushed a button on top of the little thing it would cast a spell at the person it was pointed at. Not a strong spell, just enough to blind someone temporarily.

But anyway, he was looking at a picture of Shippo sleeping, and was wondering when Kagome got so good at art. It looked really life-like. He would have to remember to ask later. Maybe it was something she took `tests' on, or whatever that school-thing was.

Turning the page, he saw two more. One that was on the reverse side of the Shippo drawing, and another one on the opposite page. He looked at them and grinned. One was of Miroku about to get smashed with the hirokitsu rapidly driving towards his skull. In the next shot there was Miroku again, except this time he was lying sprawled out unconscious on the forest floor with a massive lump jutting out of his head.

The next two were of her family. Sota and Buyo, both flopped down upon the couch, and then her mother and grandfather waving, sitting at the kitchen table. But it was the next set he found rather interesting. The first was with his face in a single-serve bowl of ramen, the other one was of him sitting up in a tree, Tetsuiaga locked in the crook of his arm, his gaze far away and thoughtful. It looked rather amazing; the lighting of the sunset playing of the sword's hilt and his hair, and his profile wasn't bad either. Yet that wasn't what caught his attention. It was this little yellow-ish square attached to the picture. He tugged on it and was somewhat surprised when it came off; and after feeling the back of it with his fingers, he found that the top ridge was sticky, so he could tack the little piece of paper anywhere. Instead of being creative, though, he just put it back where it was and admired it. On the little sticky thing there was a mini-drawing. His brain worked overtime, trying to understand what it could mean, but not wanting to quite believe the obvious answer. What if he got his hopes up and it turns out she hadn't meant it that way? Covering the little doodle of a heart with his palm, he closed his eyes and tried to decide on what was to be done, because if this was any indication of how Kagome felt, then maybe he needed to do something. And the other night, maybe it wasn't just a fluke? Sure, it seemed like Kagome hadn't minded, and possibly even initiated, some of the… occurrences that had, well, occurred that night. But it wasn't like she loved him, right? And it's not like he loved her... His nightmares were just reminders of whom he really belonged to. He didn't really have a choice.

Not that he needed to chose. … … … Damnit! Now it's all confusing! He growled in frustration. What was he supposed to do? He couldn't just leave Kikyo! It was his fault… who was he trying to kid? Everything is his fault. He killed Kikyo… yeah he heard it when Kaede said it was really Naraku, but after so long of hearing the accusations it was engraved into his very being that he was the sole cause of the Miko's demise. So now he had to pay. He wasn't allowed to be happy. Besides, he didn't want to end up killing Kagome too.

A sudden vision of the future girl, lying cold and motionless with gory claw marks torn across her body made Inu Yasha convulse. He wouldn't let that happen. He couldn't let Kagome get close to him; he might hurt her. Gathering up the book and the slightly damaged jacket, Inu Yasha sprung from Kaede's rooftop to a neighboring tree, and then leapt away again until he found a suitable perch. Of course it was stationed near the well. It was over three days. She was past due for coming back. A mocking voice in the back of his mind was shunning him, saying that, once again, it was his fault. That since the night he wounded his leg Kagome hadn't returned; for the windbreaker or for him. That he had scared her away for good. Cringing, he determined that maybe confronting her about the picture book wasn't the best idea. He would just have to hope that she would come back on her own accord. And that he wasn't the only one that had feelings that extended above and beyond friendship boundaries.

Not that he could act on those again, anyway, he reprimanded himself. If he was to keep her safe, he would have to keep her away. But still…

As he leaned against the trunk of the tree, clutching the book and jacket, he couldn't help but smile in memory of the little heart hidden deep inside.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"MS. HIGURASHI!"

Kagome's head snapped up as her eyes grew wide in shock as she stared blankly at her teacher. Shifting nervously in her desk, she readjusted her skirt, trying to justify her dozing off. The count was now a week. A full week since she saw him last. And she couldn't remember sleeping at night during that time. At least, not a real rest. Every time her eyes closed she was taunted by ideas of abandonment and self-deprecation. But there had been a few dreamless naps she had managed; but it was nothing compared to what she needed.

Deciding not even to give a response, she simply bowed her head in shame and refused to look up at either her class or her teacher. Even when her friends leaned over and whispered her name she continued to ignore any interruption of thought until the bell rang.

With a grateful sigh she jumped from her seat and grabbed her backpack before bolting for the door. Twisting the knob and dashing out, her ears were full of the concerned questions of her friends and the confused whisperings of others. Her dark hair whipped about her face as she pressed on, nearly running down the halls before bursting out of the building. She felt like screaming, or crying. Perhaps both. She didn't know what to do, or even what was wrong, which only perpetuated the feeling of helplessness. She just didn't understand. Inu Yasha hadn't come back for her yet. Every time she was even an hour past the time she promised to return to the past he would come and drag her back. So why was now any different?

Tears pricked behind her eyes, threatening to spill as she sprinted down the street. Had her first assumptions about that night been correct? What if all Yasha saw when he looked at her was a `temporary Kikyo replacement'? But the thought of his gentle caress and the strength in his arms as he held her; the longing in his kiss…

Her frayed emotions couldn't take anymore as the overbearing depression consumed her. The idea of rejection smothered her will to breathe as she went on autopilot; charging down the familiar streets, blinded by tears. Turning a corner, all she could hope for was just being home.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Jumping up to grasp the crumbling lip of the well, a certain hanyou heaved himself over its side into a foreign era. His dirtied features told of endless days camped out in the elements, without care for his health. The red of his hakama was now a shade more russet and shabby. Blood dripped from his tightly clenched fists. Smudges of soil painted his face and there was a deadly gleam in his amber eyes. Inu Yasha walked up the stairs and out of the well house. And he was pissed.

Even the anti-dieting Buyo sprang into action to get as far from the furious demon that trudged his way towards the house.

"Kag-O-ME!!!!!"

Birds that had been perched within the surrounding trees and upon the roof took flight in fear. Nearby people turned their heads at the distant roar, being as the Higurashi residence was quite a ways from any other residential area. The point is, it was loud. But he didn't receive the answer he wanted, quite the opposite. There was no apologetic girl in front of him, no worried mother. Not even an upset and angry Kagome. Silence. There was no one in the house at the moment. Sota was at school, their mother at work, and even Grandpa was tending his little shop. (Author's note: At least, I think it's a shop. At the very beginning of book (manga) one Kagome is talking to her grandpa in his shop) As if the pulsating vein jutting from his forehead wasn't indicator enough of his vexation, he clenched his teeth upon his lower lip with a single fang poking out as he brandished the old shrine while screaming her name yet again.

When nothing presented itself before him he decided to do it the hard way, leaping forward and up a tree until he was directly in front of her window. Unfortunately he found it to be dark and empty. Grumbling, he sprang off the branch heading for the only other building her had ever known her to be in; that blasted school. Using rooftops to his advantage, he ran along barefoot in the modern Japan. The hard concrete and shingles of the roofs bit into the bottom of his feet; not that he noticed. He was a half-breed with a mission. Coming to rest in the top parts of a tree planted within a circular cutout of the sidewalk, he watched on as he saw the flying obsidian silk that was Kagome's hair as she rounded a bend. He scowled as he grumbled, making himself appear like a poorly misplaced lawn gnome. (A/N: Though the cutest gnome there could ever possibly be) He wasn't sure but he could've sworn that he had heard a sob. Was she always crying?! The resonating echo of a thud coming just around the corner made his ears perk. Bounding from his perch to another, he could smell something a tad familiar. A scent he had caught whiff of once or twice on Kagome that always sent him into possessive mode. Landing in the nook of a lamppost, he was able to make out the image of his Kagome…

His hands stretched, flexing his claws, as he snarled. She was tucked securely in the embrace of what appeared to that damn boy! She had her fucking arms wrapped around his neck!! As he prepared to launch himself at the assailant, however, his mind exploded. Hojo gently lifted Kagome's head by way of using his hand to guide her chin. While drops glided down her cheeks she looked at him a split second before his lips were pressed upon hers.

Yasha's jaw went slack as his ears flopped, hanging loosely at the sides of his head whilst his eyes grew wide. It was as if he was stabbed through the chest with his brother's poison-clawed fist. Everything in him seemed to sink into his feet as he watched, entirely helpless. Hardly able to keep himself on the post, he blinked, wondering if he was observing someone that wasn't Kagome. But that delicious aroma… there was no denying her identity. Unable to choose what his next course of action should be, Inu Yasha opted to turn around and leave the way he once came. But with every agonizing step there came a new awareness of what exactly had transpired. No longer in a hurry, he spent a good deal of time making his way back to the well.

The gears in his mind were near breaking point with the speed at which they churned, but they might as well have been still for how little was actually produced. He found himself doubting every move, questioning his logics. There was just no way that he had witnessed such an act of treason. Finding himself before the stairs to the Higurashi Shrine he simply stopped moving and stood, glaring blankly at the gray structure as if it were an impossible hurdle.

The image of that ass kissing his Kagome was burned into his very being. And what's worse is that unwillingly he would overlap the idea of his lips brushing hers on that fateful night. What the fuck?! Had that meant nothing to her? He had fucking put his heart in the fricking open by exposing himself like that, and now she goes and flings herself all over that DAMN FUCKER!!! He snapped as a primitive howl thundered from his opened mouth. The corner of his mouth was stained crimson from the self-inflicted cuts in his lip. His hands were also stained the same hue as the liquid dribbled between the fingers that were tightly burrowed into his palm. Raging to the sky, he bellowed, releasing all the frustration and confusion he couldn't contain.

If only it ended there.

In a blind fury he searched for something to destroy; anything to release this suppressed wrath. With ire he charged at the closest construction. Tearing into the walls of the abused well house, splinters were sent flying. He bit and slashed like a wild animal at whatever he got near; needing to kill something he couldn't touch. Splatters of blood were scattered across his once white yukata. Everything was tainted with his hatred. Parts of the house laid in ruin and a vast amount of the foliage would defiantly not be growing back. The thick smell of blood and timber coated everything thickly. Inu Yasha was leaning against the old go-shinboku tree, talons still dug deep into its rough bark where the gashes ended. He was slumped over, heaving with the occasional choking gasp of his withheld tears. Emotionally drained, if not physically, he used it for support as all the previous thoughts before the mad slaughter of Kagome's property came crashing down around him. It was just too much. He couldn't handle it. Fleeing, he turned his back to the place where they had met, just the futuristic version, and lowered himself into what was left of the well.

~*~*~*~*~

A few seconds after the initial shock, a startled and wide-eyed girl shoved away the young man that had been trying to comfort her with a kiss. She stared at him with broad blue eyes brimming with confusion. He returned a mirrored version of her expression.

"Kagome... I thought…" he stammered, trying to regain a train of thought.

It took her quite awhile before reacting. Slowly she turned around and began to walk away, but his hand grasping her arm stopped her.

"Hojo. I'm sorry, but, well, there's someone else. I-I didn't mean to hurt you… gomen."

She pulled free from his grip before continuing her deliberate slow steps. Kagome was shaking badly but continued her desperate march onward, ignoring Hojo's pleading calls. She would have to take the long way home, but that gave her more time to sort out her dilemmas.

So intent upon her thoughts, it took people running past and shoving her out of their way to startle her from the confusing problems she found herself to be in. But little did she know her problems had just began. Halting quickly, her arms hung lifelessly by her side as she stared up the block towards her house; where there was a crowd forming. Already believed to be somewhat jinxed, people were anxious for any reason to spin a tale for gossip's sake about the old shrine. And Inu Yasha had fed them what they wanted.

Finding a sudden spurt of energy, Kagome dashed forward. Closing her eyes momentarily she silently prayed that her family wasn't hurt. She could see Sota lying burned in the hospital, doctors wheeling around him. Or perhaps her mother had…

She hadn't the time to finish her worst case scenario plots before reaching the horde of humans standing before her stairs. Being rather rude for once, Kagome jostled through the crowd, being elbowed more than once before emerging. Seeing the beginnings of destruction that had laid parts of her house to the wayside, she hurried up the stairs only to find her mother embracing the shoulders of Sota as they both stared at their home helplessly.

Kagome gasped and breathed out heavily, "What happened?"

Being a rather level-headed woman, Kagome's mother simply turned around and pointed towards the well, where claw marks were rather evident. Her bag falling from her shoulders to land with a soft thud, Kagome dropped her books to stride over to the well house, shaking her head in disbelief. Hearing the whispered theories of hearing a previous roar of a lion floating through the still goggling throng, yet not really aware of them, she continued to walk in front of them before kneeling in front of the much abused old wood walls. Tracing the splintering beams and gasping holes with searching hands, she came in contact with dried blood. Finding a still wet spot, she withdrew as if it had bitten her. Kagome cradled her finger, daring only a glance at the red stain. Rocking back and forth on her heels, she silently crooned to herself while silent silver teardrops slid along her cheeks.

"No… why? Why…. … Yasha…"

She couldn't see it. The fabrication that the same hanyou that had cradled her so sweetly not so long ago destroyed a fair amount of her home just couldn't seem real. But his over-bearing aura was everywhere, and anywhere she turned there were his slashes in stone and woodwork done by supernatural hands. And blood… his blood…

For a moment an image of Inu fighting a demon in her time came to mind. The idea of the damage being something else's fault was comforting however when it was paired with the knowledge if his Inu Yasha's injuries. But there was just one problem…

No other creature could've come through the well…