InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Of Gods and Monsters ❯ Chapter 44: Faith, Trust, and Other Unreasonable Requests ( Chapter 44 )

A/N: OMFG! An update! Writer's block is t3h suck, isn't it? This bout was probably worse than the others -- no, absolutely worse. This is just a very difficult section to write, and it makes the muses temperamental. My advice? Never, ever tell Inuyasha that you don't want to allow him a temper-rant in a chapter. I tried doing that, and he just glared at me, folded his arms in his sleeves, and sat there, not talking to anyone. (I caved, of course.) So, anyway -- the long awaited, oft-procrastinated update. Whee!

Thanks to my wonderful crack team of beta readers -- Ithilwen, Nanda-chan, and Kat Morning. You ladies are invaluable! And much thanks, jasmine tea, and Kyou plushies to Everstar for her patience with me and my cranky Inuyasha.

Ah! And one last thing! THANK YOU to EVERYONE who voted for "Of Gods and Monsters" -- I was informed yesterday that the story won for "Best Continuing Fiction" and placed second for "Best Drama" in the IY Fanguild Contest. Thankyouthankyouthankyou!!!

All right. Enough with the mushy stuff -- let's get on with the show. ;)

Chapter 44: Faith, Trust, and Other Unreasonable Requests

Don't leave me in all this pain,
Don't leave me out in the rain;
Come back and bring back my smile,
Come and take these tears away.
I need your arms to hold me now,
The nights are so unkind;
Bring back those nights when I held you beside me.
~Toni Braxton, "Unbreak My Heart"


Miroku sighed. Inuyasha hadn't moved from his spot in the Goshinboku all morning. He knew this -- of course -- because he'd been watching him for... well, half the morning, at least. The hanyou continued to stare at the well as if he expected a dark head to pop out at any moment. It was the young houshi's opinion that Inuyasha was slightly disappointed that Kagome-sama hadn't come through the well of her own volition, which, of course, would have given the hanyou more than enough reason to yell, inciting Kagome-sama to yell back, the entire altercation possibly ending with a Sit.

If Inuyasha went through to fetch her, all of that -- well, Miroku supposed it was "fun" -- was circumvented. The monk shook his head. Something had to be done, whether it was Kagome-sama who returned or Inuyasha who went through to bring her back. Sesshoumaru hadn't shown himself in seven days -- eight, counting today. Privately, Miroku thought that the youkai lord would not be coming at all, but Inuyasha seemed to think otherwise. Perhaps his hanyou friend was mildly surprised that his youkai brother seemed to put up less of a fight for his mate than he had for the Tetsusaiga.

He does not seem to realize what Sesshoumaru has already figured out - a sword cannot decide where to go and to whom it may belong the same way a person can. If Teles is gone because she chooses to be, Sesshoumaru cannot change her mind - particularly not from here.

Standing up, Miroku brushed the brown blades of dead grass from his robes and strode out to the clearing. He lifted his hand to shield his eyes from the sun as he looked up at Inuyasha. The monk was positive the hanyou knew he was standing at the base of the Goshinboku - Inuyasha was just ignoring him.

The cold breeze that foretold a frigid winter rustled Inuyasha's hair as well as the vast sleeves of his haori, but other than that, the hanyou did not move. "What do you want, bouzu?" he drawled.

Ah, so perhaps he's not ignoring me - anymore. Miroku cleared his throat. "Inuyasha, don't you think it is past time to go to Kagome-sama's realm and retrieve her?"

Inuyasha's gaze remained fixed. "I'll go and get her when it's safe, monk."

"It's been over a week since you saw Sesshoumaru last," the monk reasoned. "If he was going to return, he would have done so before now."

Inuyasha arched one thick, dark eyebrow as he finally looked down at the houshi. "And what the hell would you know about it? You think you know the way Sesshoumaru works? Just because you talked to him once after he nearly fuckin' broke your neck?"

Miroku suppressed a sigh. "Did he give you any reason to believe he was returning?"

"I know the bastard," the hanyou muttered, folding his arms firmly across his chest. "I don't need reasons."

Planting the shakujou in the grass, the monk glared up at the hanyou. "Then how long do you plan to wait? Suppose he's not planning on returning, Inuyasha. What then? You're waiting for something that might not happen. For the love of the gods - and our sanity - go get Kagome-sama so we can resume our search. The more time that passes-"

There was a blur of red and silver as Inuyasha dropped from the tree. "You think I don't know that, bouzu? You don't think I know that every damn day that passes might be one more shard we don't get? I'm not bringin' Kagome back until I'm sure it's safe."

"And when will that be?" the monk asked, his tone sensible. "Inuyasha, the peril is no greater now than it was..." he shrugged "...than it was a month ago, or three months, or six months. Kagome-sama knows this is a dangerous place. Please do not fool yourself into believing that you're protecting her by deserting her in her world."

Indignation sparked in the hanyou's eyes. "Deserting? You think I'm leavin' her there on purpose?"

Miroku met his friend's glare with a level, unwavering gaze. "I think you are an individual who will protect the one he cares about at all costs. I think you intend to bring her back. But, Inuyasha, intending to do something is not the same thing as doing it."

"It's not safe," he insisted stubbornly, folding his arms in his sleeves and jerking his chin upwards.

"How do you know it's not safe?" Miroku countered, his patience wearing thin.

"How do you know it is?" the hanyou snapped back.

The monk opened his mouth the reply, but bit back the words that had formed. He closed his eyes, gathering what was left of his dwindling serenity. "Inuyasha," he began quietly.

"I'm goin' through today."

Miroku blinked at him. "You're... what?" He thought for a moment before nodding slowly. The new moon. "Ah, yes. Tonight. A good idea."
"So you and Sango are gonna have to protect the well."

The monk bit back a sigh. There wasn't any use arguing with him on this. "Fine, then." Although I doubt very much we'll see Sesshoumaru again anytime soon. "And will you be bringing Kagome-sama back with you?" he asked lightly.

"Keh. Maybe."

Miroku pursed his lips in thought. It was a better answer than he'd expected, and yet still quite noncommittal. Of course, with Inuyasha, anything was better than "no." Or, in the hanyou's case, "fuck no," "hell no," or any other variation of emphatic negative. He nodded once. "Very well. When do you plan on going through?"

Inuyasha gave a quick jerk of his shoulders and shifted his gaze back to the well. "Soon. Before dark."

Again Miroku nodded, when a sly twinkle manifested itself in his eyes. "And is your visit going to be... unsupervised?"

A furious blush colored Inuyasha's cheeks. "The hell's that supposed to mean, fuckin' lech?" he asked defensively.

Immediately, Miroku stepped back, closed his eyes, and slipped on a mask of pious patience. "I'm sure I haven't the slightest idea what you mean, Inuyasha. I was merely inquiring as to whether your visit would extend to the mother of your newest relative - say hello for me, by the way. Of course, I would understand completely if you intended to spend as much time as possible with Kagome-sama, since I do not believe you've been separated this long for quite some time - if ever."

But Inuyasha was already discomfited. "I'm only goin' through 'cause it's-"

"Safer for you - of course," Miroku interjected soothingly. "And it would only make sense that you'd want to be with your mate, after all..."

Inuyasha's blush deepened to a shade Miroku hadn't previously thought possible. "HOW THE HELL'D YOU KNOW THAT?"

The monk waved a hand airily. "Everyone knows, Inuyasha." This part wasn't entirely true - he'd heard it from Sango, who'd been told by Kagome. And while a tiny part of the monk almost felt bad about teasing his friend, another, larger part of him did not. Besides, when Miroku had promised to be a better servant to Buddha, he was fairly sure that teasing Inuyasha was still permitted. He had to be allowed some entertainment, after all.

Inuyasha sputtered, his discomfiture increasing tenfold, before his voice dropped to a growling whisper. "Everybody'd better not know, you fuckin' lying bouzu."

Miroku tsked lightly. "Inuyasha, do not tell me you're ashamed of Kagome-sa-"

"OF COURSE NOT!" Silver ears flattened against his head, lost in his hair. "It's just... it's not everyone's business. That's all."

"Hmm. Right - of course not." I should not enjoy this as much as I do.

"It ain't like I went around tellin' everyone about you and Sango..."

"No, no, you're ri- what?" The shakujou nearly dropped from his grasp, and Miroku was more than a little put out to see that now it was Inuyasha who now wore the smug, superior, and exceedingly annoying grin.

The hanyou just tapped his nose with the end of one clawed finger. Miroku scowled, but said nothing.

"You're not denyin' it?" Inuyasha asked, tilting his head slightly.

"There isn't anything to deny," the monk replied calmly, after he'd taken a second to overcome the initial shock. And indeed there wasn't. He and Sango had spoken very little about what had transpired during the time spent at her village. In fact, since their return, things had grown increasingly awkward between him and the taiji-ya. "Inuyasha," he began smoothly, "Sango and I traveled together; we stayed in very close quarters, and worked side by side for as long as we were at her village. It should be no surprise that our scents were... intermingled." And why did that sound so indecent?

Inuyasha shook his head. "Keh. Keep tellin' yourself that, monk." He turned, striding toward the well.

Miroku frowned and set his jaw, watching his friend's red back. "It's not" - cheap, tawdry, crude, meaningless - "like that," he replied quietly.

Inuyasha's steps stopped as he reached the well and leaned over, bracing his hands on the lip. "You're right. It's not like that," the hanyou said in a musing tone. He looked over his shoulder and regarded Miroku for a long moment. "It's somethin' completely different."

Before Miroku could reply, Inuyasha had leapt over the well's edge and disappeared. Left alone in the clearing, the young monk could only shake his head.

When in all the gods' names did he get to be perceptive?

***

The dirt floor materialized beneath his feet and the late afternoon sunshine that had followed him into the well was gone, replaced by a wooden roof. Inuyasha swallowed hard, willing away the nervousness that seemed intent on tightening his chest and throat. This wasn't any different from any of the other times he'd come through to Kagome's time.

Except that... it was.

No. No. I'm still me, and she's still her. It's not different.

Inuyasha tried not to think about the last words he'd said before leaving her, but he was having only limited success. He'd been worried, obviously, though the hanyou would have preferred being drawn and quartered to admitting that he'd been worried.

Did he regret saying them? Hell no.

As much as he wanted to deny it, things were different now. Kagome was his mate, for starters, and while they were both only beginning to explore what that word - what that bond meant, they both knew that they had passed the point of no return. They could not go back now, and good or bad, they were going to have to see their way through this change in their relationship.

The realization scared him almost as much as that bone-chilling moment when he'd realized that Sesshoumaru intended to destroy the well.

He shook off the sudden twinge and leapt upwards, out of the well, landing lightly on the balls of his feet. A faint smile tilted at his lips as he caught Kagome's scent in the well-house - it was fresh; she'd been here recently. In truth, he had been vaguely disappointed when she hadn't come through on her own. Past experience had taught him to expect it of her. He was half tempted to simply wait until she came through on her own, even if he had already planned on bringing her back not too long after the new moon.

But, as much as he hated to admit it, the monk was right. They'd put off their quest for too long already. Teles was probably settled, and Kagome would most likely be all right with leaving her by now. Inuyasha slid the shed door open and strode across the courtyard, pausing only a moment to glance upward. Kagome's window was bathed with light, and he could see her sitting at her desk, studying her books diligently. A tiny half-smile lit his lips; for as much grief as he gave her about all that "school" stuff, he admired the fact that she seemed to take it seriously. Kagome didn't make light of anything - everything was important to her. Sometimes it astounded him just how much she could take seriously, particularly given her occasionally flighty exterior.

He took another leap and landed silently outside her window. It was open only a fraction - it was a colder day here than it was on the other side of the well. Her head jerked up at the faint sound, and the smile that spread across her face at the sight of him made something in Inuyasha's chest grow warm. That smile - that joy - was for him.

He couldn't believe he'd managed to stay away for this long.

Kagome's heart thrummed wildly in her chest at the sight of Inuyasha's silver hair, shimmering in the orange glow of late afternoon sunlight, his red haori billowing in the cold wind. She opened the window quickly, pulling him in by the sleeves, her fingers tightening in the soft fire rat's fur as she did. Soon he was inside, standing in front of her, against her, his arms around her in a sudden, clumsy hug. Kagome closed her eyes and buried her face in his shoulder, inhaling the scent of him. She knew quite well that her sense of smell was nowhere near as acute as his, but she could still smell him. The brisk air clung to him, mingling with the scent of clean sweat and burning leaves as well as a certain something that she could not identify, but knew nonetheless.

"I was beginning to think you weren't coming for me," she said quietly, her voice muffled by his shoulder.

"Keh," he replied, his arms tightening around her. "You think I'd let you get away with not puttin' that jewel back together?"

Teasing. He was teasing her. This meant that he was in a good mood - on the night of a new moon, no less. So maybe he would take the news better than under normal circumstances. After all, she was convinced that Teles was perfectly safe - after the baby blanket, after the explanation behind Sesshoumaru's behavior... and particularly after Teles had phoned Kagome every night since she'd left. By now, Kagome was completely at ease with the knowledge that the former goddess was with the youkai lord. So if I'm not worried about it, he shouldn't be either - right? Right.

The lie fell flat within her. She had a distinct feeling that this wasn't going to go well. Kagome scrambled for something -- anything that would make the news easier for Inuyasha to take without having a major meltdown.

Inspiration struck and her lips almost curved into a triumphant grin. I know! I'll wait until he's human to tell him! He'd never go after Sesshoumaru when he's... Oh, wait. Yes, he would. She heaved a mental sigh. Best to tell him now.

"So," she began hopefully, "is there anything you... need? A bath? Something to eat? Something warm to drink?" she asked, smiling up at him, letting one of her hands wander into his hair, brushing his bangs back.

He looked somewhat sheepish for a moment. "Kinda wanted to say hi to the kid."

Kagome chuckled. "Souta's downstairs playing a video game." She nodded at the door. "Go on and say hi if you want to."

"Ah, no. Not Souta - the pup." He looked away briefly before adding in a mutter, "An' Miroku wanted me to tell Teles hello for him."

Ah well. I guess it couldn't last. "Teles?" she replied, waving a hand. "Oh, um, Teles isn't here, exactly."

A frown formed instantly. "Not here? The hell is she?"

"Oh, she's, um." Kagome cleared her throat. "She's with Sesshoumaru," she answered with a sort of forced brightness, smiling sweetly at Inuyasha and hoping that if she didn't appear worried, he'd take his cue from her.

The silence that followed was immeasurable.

Okay, so maybe the idea wasn't exactly flawless.

"...Sesshoumaru."

Kagome nodded. "She went-"

Inuyasha had already pulled away from her and was heading for the window.

"Inuyasha!" she cried, but the hanyou was already gone, bounding back to the well-house. Standing at her bedroom window, she watched as he jerked the door open and disappeared inside. She closed her eyes and shook her head slowly. Five... four... three... two...

In an instant, he was back at her window, climbing into her room. "What the hell are you talkin' about? Her scent's fainter than it'd normally be, but she hasn't been through there recently, and what the hell do you mean she's with Sesshoumaru?"

Kagome took a deep breath. She would make him understand. She would. "Sesshoumaru's alive in this time. He waited for Teles-"

"WHAT?"

Patient. Be patient, she thought. Typically a new moon meant that Inuyasha's temper was less volatile than it normally was, though you wouldn't have known it by looking at him now. "I know it's strange," Kagome replied reasonably. "And I'm just as surprised as you are. Who knew he'd live this long? But the fact is, Inuyasha, that he felt really bad about-"

"Keh," he snorted. "I can't believe you let her run straight to him. You were supposed to be keeping an eye on her, Kagome!"

That did it. Narrowing her eyes, Kagome folded her arms over her chest. "Do you really think I would have just let her walk out if I thought she was in a dangerous situation?"

Inuyasha blinked. "Well..."

Fire blazed in Kagome's dark irises. "You did, didn't you? You thought I'd just stand by while Teles wandered off into danger!"

"Come on, Kagome!" His voice rose. "She's with SESSHOUMARU!"

She planted her hands on her hips. "He's not a DANGER TO HER!" He sputtered, staring at her, disbelief widening his eyes. Kagome realized what she had just said and shook her head briskly. "This Sesshoumaru - he waited five hundred years for her, Inuyasha. He... he misses her." Inuyasha opened his mouth to object, but Kagome slammed a hand over his mouth. "He sent a baby blanket for the pup."

Golden eyes blinked once and Inuyasha pulled Kagome's hand away from his mouth. "A baby blanket. You let her go to that asshole because of a-"

"He apologized, Inuyasha!"

"So what?"

Kagome folded her arms over her chest. "So, when have you ever known Sesshoumaru to apologize about anything? You can call her yourself and talk to her if you want!"

"I don't want to call her," Inuyasha growled, his hands curling into fists as his anger mounted. How could this have happened? How was he supposed to protect the pup from Sesshoumaru when he needed to be in two different places -- two different times to do it?

"No. You know what I wanna do? I want to find my good-for-nothing, piece of shit HALF-brother and kick his ass! Do you know what it's been like? I've been watching that fucking village non-stop! And now I find out that she's not even here!?" He turned and paced the length of the room, never catching Kagome's guilty wince. "Typical!" he yelled, fuming. Fucking TYPICAL! "The bastard had to figure out a way to go BEHIND MY BACK!"

Kagome gnawed on her upper lip for a moment. "...Does waiting five hundred years count as going behind your back?"

"YES!" he growled, never ceasing in his pacing. What the hell was he supposed to do now? Every instinct was screaming at him to go through the well and flay Sesshoumaru; if he died 500 years before Kagome's time, he wouldn't be around to screw things up so completely.

"Ah... why?" Kagome ventured.

He whirled on the ball of his foot and glared, amber eyes blazing. "'Cause it means he was too much of a gods damned chicken to FACE ME."

"Oh," Kagome replied, trying to figure out the most effective way to deal with Inuyasha in a snit. Getting angry wasn't going to help the situation at all. Calm down. Reasonable. Be reasonable, Kagome. He's angry -- you knew he was going to be angry. You've dealt with him angry before. Okay, so maybe you shouldn't deal with it in your preferred fashion. She frowned. Sitting him when on a new moon night was something she typically refrained from doing. There had to be a better way.

She just wished she could think of one.

After a second or two, Inuyasha's words finally filtered through Kagome's thoughts and she tilted her head slightly. "He didn't show up?" she asked, surprised. She wouldn't have thought Sesshoumaru would have given up so easily.

No, he wouldn't have. He wouldn't have stayed away. Especially not the Sesshoumaru who waited five hundred years for his mate to pass through the well.

But Inuyasha waved a hand dismissively at her question. "He showed, and then he ran off."

She blinked once. "He left?"

"After I beat his ass, yeah."

"...Oh." Kagome watched Inuyasha for a moment; his posture radiated tension, and she could tell that, though he was clearly furious, he was also worried. She had known he would be both angry and concerned, but seeing it firsthand made something tighten in Kagome's chest. "I'm really sorry, Inuyasha."

"Stupid," he growled -- though his growl sounded less animalistic and more like what he was slowly becoming: a frustrated human. "Stupid, stupid fuckin' youkai!" He turned and strode to the window, looking out for a moment. "And Teles! What the hell? Kagome, you weren't there when I found her! She was afraid of him! What kind of idiot goes BACK after something like that?"

"I asked her about that," she said. "But she said--"

Inuyasha turned his head, regarding her over his shoulder; his eyes were darkening from amber to violet, the color spreading from the center of the iris outward, giving the illusion of his slit pupils dilating. "She's not staying with him," he said, setting his jaw. "She's comin' back here where I know that pup's safe."

Kagome pushed her hands through her hair, gritting her teeth. She knew that tone. And she knew that no amount of reasoning would work on Inuyasha. She drew a breath, suppressing the urge to sigh. "I did try to stop her, you know. I kept asking her. After the things she'd said, I couldn't imagine she wanted to see him. But..." Here, she blew out a breath. "I just feel..." she sighed, "guilty. You've been so vigilant, and I got here and three days later I let her go running off." But... no, it wasn't anything like that, was it? Kagome hadn't let the goddess waltz out the door without giving any consideration to the potential danger looming beyond the walls of the shrine. It was, in fact, quite the opposite.

Teles had simply been determined -- as determined as Kagome would have been in the same situation, she was sure.

Looking down at her hands, Kagome turned the situation over in her mind, examining it from all angles. The fact was that she had simply trusted Teles' judgment, much in the same way she would have wanted -- no, expected someone else to trust her judgment regarding Inuyasha. If it was true what she'd been told about being mated, then Kagome had to believe that Teles knew what she was doing. After all, Teles didn't want her child to come to any harm either.

There had to be some way to convince him...

Her head snapped up. Of course. Biting her lip, she looked at Inuyasha for a moment; he was still standing at the window, gazing out at the courtyard. His hands were curled into fists, but she could see that his thumbclaw was neither as sharp nor as long as it typically was. The sun was dipping lower and lower in the sky; before long, his hair would be as dark as her own, and the soft, snowy canine ears would be gone completely.

Pursing her lips, Kagome nodded once to herself. "Okay. I've got an idea." Without waiting for a reply, she turned on her heel and went downstairs. After a short search, she found the letter Sesshoumaru had sent her mother. Kagome took a moment to copy the return address from the envelope and then ran back upstairs.

"Want to go for a walk?" she asked lightly.

Her temporary absence and sudden presence jarred Inuyasha, who hadn't realized she was gone. His sense of smell and hearing had faded like his claws were. He turned with a jerk. "Eh?"

"Sesshoumaru sent Mama a letter. It was waiting for Teles when we got here." She gave a small shrug of the shoulders. "He put his address on it."

Inuyasha's dark brows drew together in puzzlement. "He left you his..." he blinked once. "You mean he told you where he lives?"

"Well... yes," she replied.

He took a step closer. "You knew? You knew all along where she was?"

Uh oh. She braced herself for the inevitable outburst before tilting her chin up and riposting archly, "Of course I knew where he was! Even if he hadn't given me his address, I knew she was somewhere in Tokyo. I have his phone number, too. It isn't like he just swooped down and plucked her up the instant we got out of the well. She called and talked to him before she went over there." She folded her arms. "I even gave him a few death threats, just to make sure he'd behave."

Now-violet eyes widened. "SO WHY THE HELL DIDN'T YOU GET HER?"

"BECAUSE SHE WOULDN'T HAVE COME WITH ME!

"SO?"

"I CAN'T CARRY HER!"

Inuyasha had opened his mouth to spit out a retort when he was interrupted by a soft, polite knock on Kagome's door. In a moment, her mother poked her head inside.

"Kagome? I know Inuyasha is worried about Teles-san, but Jii-chan is trying to take a nap."

The girl's apologetic wince was immediate. "Sorry, Mama."

Mrs. Higurashi nodded once, giving them a mildly amused smile before turning and heading back downstairs.

Kagome turned back to Inuyasha, who was still glowering, only much more quietly. "I can't carry her!" she hissed in a whisper. "She's taller than me! And with the pup... And Sesshoumaru is there!" She blew out a heavy breath and raked her hands through her hair in an almost desperate gesture. "I talked to him before she left and I've called her every day since then, and..."

Inuyasha stared at her, blinking once, then twice. "...You have?"

Several beats of silence passed as Kagome stared at Inuyasha, incredulity burning steadily in her eyes. "Of course I have. He's my nephew too -- or niece. Whatever." Inuyasha blew out a breath and she sighed as he turned slightly, dropping his gaze to the floor. "Listen, I told him -- I told him if he hurt either of them, I'd come get you and we'd chop him up into tiny pieces. And then--"

Kagome grew silent, tilting her head in puzzlement as she stared at Inuyasha, who was trying very hard to keep his face impassive. But... Kagome could see...

There. Right there. A twitch.

He was trying not to laugh.

Indignation flared up in the girl until she realized something very important. He wasn't laughing at her. He was laughing at the very idea that she'd said such a thing to Sesshoumaru. She allowed herself a small, wry smile. "So, do you want to go?"

"Go?" he echoed, staring at her. "Whaddaya mean, 'go'?"

"Go for a walk -- to visit Teles and the pup."

Inuyasha blinked once, then twice, and then a third time. "Ohh no," he said, shaking his head. "Hell no. I'm not doin' anything that's even gonna hint to Sesshoumaru when my human night is."

Folding her arms, Kagome gave him a wry expression. "I thought you wanted to 'say hi to the kid.'"

He opened his mouth to snap back a retort, but nothing came.

"And," she added pointedly, "I thought you were worried about Teles -- and the pup." Normally she wouldn't have goaded him into doing this on his human night, but Kagome was convinced that it was safe.

"I'm not worried," he barked defensively. "I could care less what that stupid..." As if realizing his contradiction, Inuyasha folded his arms tightly over his chest and scowled.

"Do you want to visit the pup?" she asked gently.

His reply was a fluid shrug, but it came quickly, Inuyasha's expression too bland, his eyes trained too completely on an imaginary spot on the wall.

That was a yes.

Kagome's lips curved in an apologetic smile. "You're going to have to change."

"It'll be done in a minute," the hanyou huffed. After a moment, he frowned, looking up at her. "Oh... you mean my clothes."

She retrieved a small pile of neatly folded clothes from the top shelf of her closet and handed them to him. "If we're taking a walk? It's probably not a bad idea."

Inuyasha made a face, but took the clothes from her before vanishing into her bathroom, closing the door firmly behind him.

A faint smile warmed Kagome's lips. There had been a few occasions when they'd found themselves in the village on a night when the sky was moonless. On one night, not long after Inuyasha had learned of the pup's eventual arrival, he'd gone through the well with her, spending that evening on her side.

Later, after the night had passed -- after she and Inuyasha had returned to the Sengoku Jidai, Kagome had returned home yet again to restock supplies. There she found a neatly folded change of clothes. Boys' clothes -- in what she estimated to be Inuyasha's size.

When Kagome asked, her mother had looked up from her gardening to smile enigmatically before giving a small shrug of her shoulders and turning her attention back to the weeds she'd been pulling.

When Inuyasha returned a few moments later, his hair had darkened to a curtain of black, and the furry white triangles atop his head had vanished. Clad in a pair of loose fitting jeans and a gray pullover, he looked nothing at all like the boy she'd released from the Goshinboku. But despite this difference in appearance, he was still Inuyasha. Her Inuyasha. Changing the surface did not change his soul.

Although at the moment, the surface was looking pretty darned good. She looked at him for a moment, tilting her head. Something wasn't quite right...

Inuyasha could feel her gaze and shifted his weight slightly. "What?" he said, that familiar testiness never quite escaping his tone.

"Inuyasha... I think..." Kagome frowned. "I think you have your shirt on inside-out."

"Keh!" But he looked down at himself, trying to see what Kagome saw. "These things don't make any damned sense. And how the hell can you tell, anyway?"

A small smile tugged at her lips as she drew closer and put her hand on his shoulder. "Normally the seams wouldn't be showing like this." From his shoulder her hand went to the back of his neck. "And the tag should be on the inside."

The warmth under her hand made Kagome's cheeks glow with a blush; Inuyasha was looking down at her, a faint hint of color spreading out across the bridge of his nose. They were close, they were touching, they were more or less alone...

And then Inuyasha's hand was cupping her face, his thumb stroking slowly across her cheek. Her eyes fluttered shut at the sensation. "Inuyasha," she breathed, the hand at his neck slowly threading into his hair. "I missed you."

"I..." but the words died away. He swallowed once and leaned down, brushing her lips in a chaste kiss flavored with nervousness and relief. He pulled away, clearing his throat softly. "Me too."

Kagome smiled up at him, brushing his bangs away from his forehead. "You're going to need to take your shirt off, you know."

A beat of perfect silence followed.

Inuyasha went completely pink, the flush rushing from his neck to the tips of his ears. "Wh-what?" he stammered, eyes widening sharply.

Upon realizing the implications of her words, Kagome blushed as well, chuckling ruefully. "I, ah... I meant your... um, shirt. It's still inside out. You need to... take it off so I can fix it."

"...Oh."

More silence passed.

"Or... you know... not."

"No, you can... um, fix it. If it's wrong."

"Ah. Okay."

They stared at each other like that for several seconds, neither moving.

"Yeah, so I'll just take this off."

Kagome nodded. "Right." She gave a light, nervous laugh. "Because... it isn't like I've never seen you without your shirt on."

He nodded, bringing his hands to the hem of the shirt and looking down at it for a moment. Kagome could see his discomfiture for a moment, but it disappeared under a determined expression. The shirt came off in an instant and was thrust into Kagome's hands. She recognized the absurdity of the situation, but did not let her lips crack a smile as she turned the pullover right-side in and handed it back to Inuyasha, who put it back on.
"Remember, the tag goes in the back."

"I know, I know," he grumbled, sticking his head through the neck of the shirt. "It's a stupid, itchy thing, anyway."

Her lips quirked in a grin as she watched him tug the shirt on, sticking his arms into the sleeves and finally pulling the material down around his torso. All right, then. No more half-naked hanyou.

"There," she smiled. "You're ready. Let's go."

"What, you're not even taking any arrows?"

She sighed and resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose. "Inuyasha..."

"Kagome, it's Sesshoumaru."

Kagome gave a brisk shake of the head and held out her hand. "Come on," she said, tugging him out of her room and down the stairs. "Trust me. Have I ever steered you wrong?"

"You really want me to answer that?" he asked, a sardonic smile flitting across his lips, the smile widening when she huffed in annoyance and gave him a light swat. "Fine. Have it your way." Inuyasha frowned slightly. "Hell, at five hundred years old, he's prob'ly not as spry as he used to be."

They paused in the kitchen long enough to say good-bye to Mrs. Higurashi before leaving. Inuyasha complained about having to wear shoes, but not as heartily as Kagome would have expected him to on any other night of the month.

They left the house in silence, holding hands as they walked down the shrine stairs to the sidewalk. For his part, Inuyasha found himself distracted by the claustrophobia that always seemed to come with visiting Kagome's era. The buildings were too tall, and no matter how late it was, the stars were never clear in the sky. The air stunk of too many scents to name, and for once Inuyasha was glad for his dulled sense of smell.

With a place like this to come back to, Inuyasha never ceased to be amazed that she continued to return. A thought niggled at the back of his mind -- what would happen after it was all over? After they defeated Naraku? She was his mate, dammit. She couldn't come back here for good.

Could she?

No. No, it simply wasn't possible. He gave the errant thought a brutal mental shove and concentrated on Kagome's hand in his. It was warm -- a pleasant contrast to the cool, brisk twilight.

After a moment, she looked up, turning her eyes to the sky. "Inuyasha, do you think..."

He looked at her, his mind jerked away from the walls of buildings closing in on them and the acrid scent in the air. "Eh?"

Kagome kept her eyes trained upward, and though she tried not to let him, Inuyasha heard the wistful tone in her voice. "Do you think that I could go back with you tomorrow?"

A long silence followed as the hanyou turned this over in his head. He'd been giving it serious consideration -- even before Miroku said anything. Of course, that was before he'd found out that Teles had gone to Sesshoumaru. He still wasn't sure what this meant as far as what would happen back at the village. He only knew that Sesshoumaru wouldn't quit after making a single attempt to reclaim his mate. Hell, after waiting five centuries, Inuyasha was confident his half brother must have made another attempt.

He pursed his lips, brow furrowing. "We'll see." Kagome's droop was slight, but immediate and he gave a hard internal wince; she had to know that this was no easier on him -- she had to understand that much. It wasn't as if he enjoyed being over there without her. It wasn't as if he enjoyed Shippou's constant nagging. It wasn't as if he enjoyed Miroku's "subtle" suggestions.

'And is your visit going to be... unsupervised?'

He cringed at the monk's words as they replayed themselves through his memory. It wasn't like that. It was... well, whatever it was like, it wasn't like that. Not that Inuyasha didn't want to. It wasn't as if he'd never thought about it. It was just that--

Kagome's voice, soft and hesitant, interrupted his thoughts. "It's just that..."

It's just that there are things more important than that. Like having you where you belong -- having you home. You're not home, Kagome. This? This land isn't your home -- not anymore, at least. You don't belong here anymore. Hell, I don't know if you ever did.

He blew out a sigh. "I know," he replied quietly. Kagome nodded once, and they continued on in silence.

The walk was a long one, and it was already dark by the time they reached the address Kagome held scribbled in her hand. They both stopped before the towering structure, staring up... and up. Kagome blinked once; she'd assumed that it was nice, but this was... well, more than she'd expected. She glanced again at the address, quickly gauging which floor the taiyoukai probably lived on.

Inuyasha's voice pulled her out of her hasty counting. "He lives... here?" he asked, sounding more than a bit boggled. "The hell's he need all that room for?"

"No," Kagome answered absently. "He doesn't live in the whole thing. It's an apartment building. It's... sort of like a beehive, made up of smaller living spaces."

"...Oh."

"People live in a set of rooms. They're called apartments. So, Sesshoumaru only lives in one of the apartments." Although, in a place like this? Probably not a small one.

"So... how do we get in?"

Kagome looked at the address again. "There's probably an intercom in the lobby," she murmured to herself.

Inuyasha looked at her, dark brows quirking together. "Inter-what?"

"Intercom. It's..." she frowned, trying to think of an adequate analogy. "It's a way for people outside to talk to the people inside so the people inside can decide whether or not to let the people outside in."

There was a short pause. "You mean he can decide not to let us in?"

"Well... yeah. But I'm sure he'll let us in," she added quickly. "I mean, like I said, I've talked with Teles just about every night since she left." But Inuyasha did not look convinced. Kagome heaved a silent sigh and turned smiling -- hopefully convincing -- eyes on him. "Just... trust me, okay?" she asked, leading him into the lobby.

Many floors up, Sesshoumaru sat in silence, a book open on his lap. He was trying to force his attention away from the rush of water that came from the other end of the penthouse. His mate may have been upstairs and separated from him by tile, wood, and plaster, but he could hear the gentle splashing as if she were right next to him, covered in soap, her skin warm and slick.

And that was a mental image he simply didn't need at the moment.

Letting out a breath, the youkai rubbed at his face, pressing the pads of his fingers against his eyes. It had been harder on him than he'd anticipated, bringing her here. Her scent plagued him, sending desire ricocheting up and down his spine. Every nuance haunted him, and he wanted her with a desire and ferocity that almost startled him. But he hadn't acted on that urge -- or any other. He could tell she was perplexed -- hell, so was he, for that matter. But something... didn't seem right about it -- making love to her now only to send her back to his younger self, reeking of his own scent. It felt almost... traitorous.

So he'd told her that it wasn't healthy for the pup this close to delivery. Not entirely true, and a part of Sesshoumaru ached at the lie, but at least it put an end to... well, some of her seduction attempts.

The phone rang sharply, its muted trill harsh and discordant to his ears. Blinking in puzzlement for a moment, the youkai then stood gracefully and strode to the phone, lifting it from its cradle. "...Yes?"

There was a faint hesitation on the line. "Sesshoumaru? It's Kagome. I came to see Teles."

Sesshoumaru's eyes darted to the wide picture windows; there was no moon in the sky. His puzzlement increased; Inuyasha had already told him the events that had unfolded when he'd come through on this night in his youth. "Alone?"

"...No."

He nodded once, to himself. Things were changing already. He closed his eyes and offered up the closest thing to a prayer the inuyoukai could manage. I hope you know what it is you're doing, Aphrodite.

Kagome's voice filtered through the line again. "... Sesshoumaru?"

"Very well," he replied, pressing a button that released the remote lock on the lobby's security door. He hung up without a goodbye and promptly dialed his brother's line.

Across the hall, a much older Inuyasha sat ensconced in his study, his eyes aching miserably as he pored over lines upon lines of numbers. The years had given him ample time to educate himself, and he'd found -- much to his surprise -- that he had a gift for numbers. He held degrees in math, finance, economics, and business law. Anytime he'd ever complained about being bored, Sesshoumaru had always made the same suggestion: go back to school. The challenge had eased his ennui, but never his loneliness.

Typically, Inuyasha found comfort in numbers. They made sense -- follow the formula, and you come up with an answer -- no shades of gray, no ambiguity, no blurred lines. He appreciated the straightforwardness of math in its various forms.

But tonight... it was always more difficult to concentrate on his human nights. Perhaps it was because he felt more in tune with his mortality on these nights. Or, perhaps it was because he'd spent so many of them with Kagome that any moonless night not spent in her soothing company left him tired, restless, and irritable.

Or, as Sesshoumaru would probably say, more irritable.

With a stretch, he leaned back in his chair, rolling his neck and shoulders to relieve the tightness that had settled there. His back gave a series of audible cracks as he twisted, lifting his arms above his head and lacing his fingers, stretching further.

When the phone rang, he gave an annoyed groan and answered it, bringing a hand to his face and rubbing tiredly at his eyes. "What?"

"Inuyasha."

The hanyou made a face. It was Sesshoumaru -- it was always Sesshoumaru. No one else ever fucking called him. "What do you want?" he asked irritably, leaning back in his chair and closing his eyes.

"I need you to stay in your apartment."

Inuyasha was quiet for a moment, his dark brows contracting. He hadn't been to Sesshoumaru's since Teles arrived; the brothers had both agreed that it was better to keep the former goddess as uninformed as possible regarding future events. For Sesshoumaru to phone him and tell him this... Inuyasha shook his head, his tone making his annoyance clear. "And you're telling me this because I'm gone so frequently, out carousing through Tokyo, painting the town red and living the high life?"

There was only the briefest hesitation on the line. "I'm telling you this because Kagome is here."

The words almost seemed to scald Inuyasha, leaving a hot trail through his chest, making his heart throb and ache like an abscessed tooth. He went numb, sure -- absolutely sure -- that his youkai half-brother hadn't said the same words Inuyasha had heard. Swallowing once and adjusting his grip on the telephone, he found his voice lost somewhere in the dry wasteland that had become his throat. His words were a parchment-thin whisper. "What... what did you say?"

He listened as Sesshoumaru broke the news as gently as he could. "The Kagome of this era is here. She's traveling upstairs as we speak."

Inuyasha's mouth opened, working silently for several seconds. It wasn't possible. No -- no, this wasn't how tonight happened. He remembered this new moon, even though it was five centuries ago. He remembered, because he'd gone through to Kagome's time, spending the evening at her house, with her family, being a part of her life. He'd passed through -- his younger self should have already been at the Higurashi shrine by now. What had happened? "I don't... but--" Closing his eyes, Inuyasha shook his head briskly. "What for?"

"I believe because her Inuyasha came through the well and discovered Teles had left," Sesshoumaru replied. His tone was mild, and Inuyasha could not help but wonder how his brother could maintain his calm even under such circumstances.

"That's impossible," the hanyou managed, shaking his head numbly. "I never--" He remembered that night vividly. He'd gone through the well, jumped up to Kagome's window after spying her sitting at her desk, working diligently on her homework. He clearly remembered finding Teles in the spare bedroom and pressing his ear impatiently against her rounded stomach, eager to hear the pup before his canine ears shifted.

"Teles didn't come here before."

"Fuck."

"Precisely." There was a brief pause as Sesshoumaru sighed. "But it's the new moon, so... he -- you -- went to see her."

"It's starting to change already, then. When I went through on the new moon -- the first time I went through in a week... Teles was there. Kagome taught us a card game. We stayed up all night playing cards-- the four of us played cards. Me, Kagome, her kid brother, and Teles. The pup was bothering her -- Kagome was worried. We..." he sighed hard, shaking his head. "Sesshoumaru, are you sure this is right, what you're doing?"

The silence on the other end of the line was immeasurable. When the youkai finally spoke, it occurred to Inuyasha that he sounded every one of his five hundred, some-odd years. He sounded... tired. Regret had weighed down on him for centuries. "Inuyasha... it was the only thing I ever failed to do for Rin. She never forgave me."

Swallowing hard, Inuyasha nodded once. "Fair enough," he replied, his tone low.

"I just thought I would warn you."

Inuyasha closed his eyes, raking his fingers through his bangs. "Thanks. It's just that... I'm worried, that's all. Too many years of watching Star Trek, I guess. Manipulating timelines never goes well."

There was a brief pause on the line. "What about that... what was it called? That Quantum Leap thing you were so obsessed with?"

"Oh yeah..."

"That's what you get for rotting your brain with science fiction," Sesshoumaru riposted dryly. Inuyasha allowed himself a small, wry smile. Emergency averted, back to business as usual.

He gave a snort. "The BBC ain't for everybody."

"It's left for those of us who can still think."

Inuyasha uttered a short bark of dry laughter, preparing to return his brother's volley with a comment about Dr. Who when the sound of an exhale filled the line with static.

"I feel as if I should contrive to get her to leave an item of clothing behind or something like that."

The ache returned again with a vengeance. It was always there, lurking just beneath his skin, just on the other side of his thoughts. "No, don't."

"...Very well."

"It would only make her suspicious," he explained, leaning back in the chair and closing his eyes. "And me, since I assume I'm with her."

"Yes."

"I thought as much." He sat up and cast an eye over the work he'd taken home. "Don't worry about me. I'll stay in. I've got... plenty to keep me occupied. And I'll probably go to bed early, besides."

"I'm sorry, Inuyasha."

He exhaled a short, dry, humorless chuckle. "It isn't your fault." Pausing for a moment, Inuyasha frowned, reconsidering that statement. "Okay, well maybe this part is. But it doesn't matter. I'm not as young as I used to be."

"Or as foolhardy, reckless, shortsighted, temperamental..."

"Knock it off with the mush, Sesshoumaru. You're going to make me cry."

"Very funny." There was a soft click before the dial tone buzzed in his ear. Inuyasha blew out a breath and placed the receiver in its cradle before rubbing at his eyes with the heels of his hands. Gods, he was tired.

Meanwhile, downstairs in the ornate lobby, a raven-haired boy with dark violet eyes -- one who could have passed for the son of one of the building's occupants -- was being coaxed into something called an "elevator."

Inuyasha stepped inside, loath for Kagome to see how completely uncomfortable he was with the situation. The room was tiny, the walls lined with mirrors, and no matter what he did, Inuyasha could not shake the nauseous, claustrophobic feeling that was clawing its way up through his chest. In fact, the sensation worsened when the room began moving upwards. He swallowed against it and brought his arms up, stopping only when he realized that he couldn't fold his arms in his sleeves; he crossed them over his chest instead.

Suddenly, Kagome's hand was at his shoulder, her fingers melting away a small fraction of the tension winding through him. "This shouldn't take long," she said reassuringly.

Her presence, the reminder that she was there with him, calmed Inuyasha -- but then it always did. He closed his eyes and let her touch soothe him, but when he spoke, his words were light and disinterested. "Keh. I don't care how long it takes."

Kagome nodded, but said nothing. Instead, she placed her hand on his arm in what she hoped was a familiar, casual gesture, but she could still feel Inuyasha's apprehension radiate through him like heat. The elevator ride seemed to be taking forever, and even she found herself wishing they'd been able to take the stairs.

Inuyasha's peeved tone broke the silence that had settled over them. "Why the hell would anyone wanna live here, anyway?"

Kagome shrugged, looking at him; she was unable to hide the wistfulness in her words. "Because things are so crowded now."

Snorting, a scowl darkened Inuyasha's features. "Stupid humans," he muttered darkly. "Had to go and screw up their own lands."

Looking down, Kagome's lips slipped into a mirthless smile. "Human beings aren't very good at thinking ahead, I guess," she replied, a small, sad chuckle forming.

After what seemed like an eternity, time slowed down by apprehension and uncertainty, the elevator slowed to a stop. A chime sounded as the doors slid noiselessly open. Inuyasha stepped out quickly and Kagome followed.

"The hell is this?" he muttered, casting an eye around the vestibule and jerking his chin at the doors on either side of them.

But Kagome didn't hear him. A frown pulled at her features as a strange, yet inexplicably familiar sensation tugged around her heart. "The..." her words trailed off and she closed her eyes, shaking herself. "I guess there are only two apartments on this floor." A penthouse. Of course. Like she would have expected a Sesshoumaru of this era to live in anything less.

Pulling the folded scrap of paper from her pocket, Kagome examined the address again. "The one on the right."

"So let's go."

Nodding, Kagome strode forward and lifted her hand, knocking lightly on the large white door.

On the other side of the other door, another hanyou watched through the peephole. He saw and acknowledged his younger self, but he wasn't interested in that self. He acknowledged the surface differences -- the long hair, the stiff discomfort in modern clothes, and the innate wariness with the situation. But Inuyasha's full attention was focused on the girl whose face matched the one frozen in his memory.

After sixty years with her, Inuyasha had many memories of Kagome. And over five centuries, he'd managed to preserve them. He could close his eyes and see her as a confident, vibrant woman in her twenties and thirties, or as the mature, more maternal woman of her forties and fifties. Even in her later years, she'd managed to retain that spark, that indescribable something he'd fallen completely in love with -- even as she grew frail and weak, the light in her eyes fading as she took to her bed, occasionally asking him where Buyo was hiding or if he thought Sango could ever make an honest man of Miroku.

When her eyes closed for the last time, he kissed their lids.

Midori -- Midi-chan, who had Miroku's eyes and Sango's face -- helped him prepare his mate's body for the pyre.

But to see her now, like this, in the bloom of health, awakened an old, familiar ache. She was within reach -- closer than he'd ever allowed himself to get in this era. She was there, and even through the peephole's distorting gaze, he could see the bond that had already existed between them, even then.

Inuyasha's hands curled into fists, the words to his younger self dying in his throat. Don't screw this up, baka!

When he couldn't take anymore, he closed his eyes, resting his forehead against the cool wood of the door. He could barely make out the light tap that came when Kagome knocked on Sesshoumaru's door. Instead his mind taunted him with the fact that if this had been any other night, he would have been able to smell her.

A soft, feminine voice came from behind Inuyasha, startling him slightly.

"I'm sorry."

He turned to see Aphrodite in the living room, perched on the arm of his armchair. Her legs were crossed and her hands were folded neatly in her lap. The goddess who had always been seemed irritatingly positive now appeared somber and melancholy. Her expressive grey eyes were fixed on him, and Inuyasha could see the empathy in their depths. She knew why he hurt.

But Inuyasha didn't want empathy at the moment. He wanted to be left alone with his grief to wallow in it. A small part of him wanted to drown his loneliness in something fermented and very, very potent.

"Godammit," he said without any heat. "What have I told you?"

"You've quite frequently told me to knock," she replied, one eyebrow arching gracefully. "However, I couldn't very well appear out there right now."

He blew out a deep sigh and walked away from the door, hating the tightness in his chest and the stinging in his eyes. It increased with every step he took, instinct screaming at him to go back. Back to the door, back somewhere, anywhere that brought him closer to his mate.

Without a word, the goddess slid off the chair and crossed the room. She could see in his preternaturally youthful face that Inuyasha felt every one of his five hundred years. His shoulders slumped under the weight of his grief, and while to the untrained eye he looked no more than thirty or thirty-five, to Aphrodite in that moment, he looked ancient. She placed a warm hand on his arm in an attempt to soothe him -- to absorb some of the pain that seemed to seep from him like a wound.

Inuyasha's eyes were drawn to the hand on his forearm, the goddess' pale skin standing out in stark contrast to his own. A soft, golden glow emanated from her hand, the warmth of the touch alleviating the keen prick of loneliness.

"Don't," he said quietly, pulling away from her grasp.

Aphrodite tilted her head slightly. "Why not?"

"It feels... wrong." Inuyasha looked down for a moment, his brows contracting. "If pain is all I have left... If you take the pain away... if I lose that, then I lose her."

Sighing, the goddess shook her head slowly. "Inuyasha, allowing yourself to suffer doesn't prove your devotion to Kagome. No one questions that. You would do far more justice to her memory if--"

"That's the thing!" he replied hotly. "It's not her memory that's tearing at me. It's the fact that she's right there." He jerked a thumb at the door. "Right there, on the other side of that door, in my brother's apartment -- living, breathing, smiling... all of the things I'll never get to see her do again! She's in there, Aphrodite, and I'm just supposed to sit here and stay away. Hell, it's hard enough keeping my distance from the shrine. How in all the gods' names am I supposed to deal with it when she comes here?"

Aphrodite opened her mouth to speak, but Inuyasha cut her off. "I know -- I know what you're going to say. You're going to remind me that Sesshoumaru lived without Teles for years -- centuries, even. You're gonna remind me that at least I got a lifetime with Kagome. And, you know, you're right. I did. I acknowledge that. But the thing is, I'm selfish, greedy -- call it whatever you like. I want more. I want another life with her. I want to have children with her -- we never got that chance. It was always one thing or another -- Kikyou, Naraku, and then helping raise..." he trailed off and gave a short, dry bark of laughter, "...hell, everyone else's kids. The chance had slipped past us before we even realized it."

The goddess was silent as long seconds ticked by. She inhaled deeply and blew out the breath. "Inuyasha," she said, her voice low -- a soothing tone that somehow managed to keep from being placating or patronizing -- "I do realize what you're going through. I give you my word on that. What you live with daily, I would have inflicted as punishment. I understand that this is your hell."

"Hell's only the tip of the iceberg, Aphrodite. This is worse than hell." He turned then, rubbing at his forehead; a headache was burgeoning around his temples. "And though I wouldn't have thought it could actually get worse, it's starting to look like this little stunt of Sesshoumaru's is changing the fucking past. I don't know how worried he is about it, but maybe he doesn't realize how worried he should be. Hell, I'm worried." Turning to face her, he gestured in frustration. "Do you have any idea what ramifications could come from this? So far it's just little things -- things that I don't remember happening are happening now. What about if something big changes? What if, through some twist of fate, we don't-- I mean, didn't defeat Naraku? What if--"

Aphrodite's voice was firm. "Inuyasha."

"What?" he snapped.

"Please, have an iota of faith in me."

One eyebrow arched incredulously. "...Faith."

"In me -- yes. Believe it or not, I know what I'm doing. And I know well the effects it's having. You're right -- the past is changing. And, yes, your memories are staying the same. But, Inuyasha, the events as you lived them... those were not the events that were meant to occur. You had to live your life to get to this point so that your younger self could now do what it is he's doing. The way things are playing out now -- in the past -- are the way they were supposed to occur."

The silence that followed was vast, and when Inuyasha managed to find his voice, it sounded nothing like his usual brash, cocky self. "Are you saying that... the life I led... didn't matter?"

Grey eyes went wide. "Don't be absurd, child. All that you did in your life mattered. It got you where you are today -- and you are where you need to be for your younger self to do what he needs to do." Aphrodite pursed her lips in thought. "There is a... a branch, if you will -- a split of sorts in the timeline. Sesshoumaru was given an opportunity -- a rare one, I might add -- for a second chance, the ability to change his past. The branch is not permanent -- once Teles returns to her original era, the split will be sealed. But Sesshoumaru must return her -- he has no option in that. If he does not return her, a loop will occur."

Dark eyes blinked once, then twice. "And after he sends her back?"

"Time will have been rewritten. Neither you nor your brother will have any recollection of the events as they occurred in this age. Teles will return to the younger Sesshoumaru, the split will be sealed, and you all... will live your lives as you were meant to have lived them. Changing one thing -- no matter how small and seemingly insignificant -- has a variety of effects, some of them quite wide-reaching. So, yes, a Sesshoumaru who is not forced to live centuries without his mate will... change certain things."

"Change them, how?" Inuyasha asked, suddenly wary.

Rose tinted lips turned upwards into an enigmatic smile. "Some things will change for the better, and some may change for the worse. But no matter how the past will unfold--"

"Again," he supplied, dryly.

Aphrodite chuckled. "Yes, again. No matter how the past will unfold a second time, I assure you now that it will be the way it was fated to be. This?" she said, looking around the cavernous apartment, its austerity making it appear even larger than it was. "This is not your future, Inuyasha. Oh, some things may turn out the same -- your gift with numbers, for instance, or the lasting alliance formed between you and your brother. But some things will be very, very different."

Inuyasha regarded the goddess for several moments. "Different in what way?"

The enigmatic smile never wavered. "Oh, but Inuyasha -- that would be telling."