InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Play Me a Memory ❯ And he fell ( Chapter 1 )

Title: Play Me a Memory

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha -- though, I've got a couple of bucks if the price is right.

Summary: The moment Naraku fell, Kagome felt as if her soul had been ripped into two. Now, as she and Inuyasha try to maintain their fragile relationship, Kagome is fighting her own battle -- for her sanity.

I.0. And he fell.

It had been three days since Naraku was defeated and the two had yet to share a word. She, so fragile yet determined, refused to move, instead continuing a silent vigil beside the once violated gravesite. He remained out of her line of vision, choosing to perch in a nearby tree, ever watching without being watched in turn.

It had been three days but, to Inuyasha and Kagome, it seemed like mere moments.

The time had finally come. Whether by fate or even by Naraku's own orchestrations, the Inu-tachi had chanced upon his hideaway, followed closely by Inuyasha's half-brother, Sesshomaru, and his followers. The wolf prince, Kouga, arrived soon after, bringing with him the remains of his wolf demon tribe.

The battle was going as best as could be expected, if not better. Whereas the three groups had all failed against Naraku individually, when they pooled their collective strengths, Naraku was considerably weakened.

However, as Naraku still held a near complete Shikon no Tama in his possession, he was still a formidable foe.

Shippo was the first among them to fall. It seemed to be Naraku's intent to destroy the weakest first as the human girl, Rin, was struck down next. Jaken, who was given the task of guarding Rin while his lord was in battle, rushed forward and was slaughtered.

Though the others were visibly shaken as the smallest and weakest of their comrades perished, it was Kagome who paused in her attacks and, lowering the bow she held in right hand to her side, rushed forward. She reached Shippo's side and lifted the fallen form of the kitsune with her left arm, cuddling it to her body as if hoping to revive him. Then, still clutching Shippo, she made her way to Rin and crouched protectively over the girl.

Sesshomaru, who had been attacking Naraku in the form of a giant phantom dog, caught scent of Rin's blood. He sniffed once more and, when he knew where it was that Rin lay, turned his head to see his half-brother's woman watching over his ward. His red demonic eyes glazed over at the sight and he expelled a wave of demonic aura that caused even Naraku to diminish.

But not to weaken so much as to lose sight of an opportunity.He had spied Kagome, now cradling Shippo's lifeless body as she held Rin, sprawled in her lap. Naraku, regardless of the fact that he was using much of his energy in warding of a demon lord, a hanyou, a clan wolf-demons, a demon slayer and a cursed monk, decided to take advantage of the situation. He sent out a tentacle-like appendage from his own demon form, intending to take Kikyo's reincarnation down.

Naraku was not the only one to notice Kagome's precarious position; the hanyou had also noticed her vulnerability.

"Kagome," he had yelled before sticking his sword, the great Tetsusaiga, into the earth. He jumped in the air, touching down right at Kagome's side. Sango, also aware of Naraku's devious attempt, threw her hiraikotsu at his appendage. The giant boomerang broke the tentacle in two just as Inuyasha scooped Kagome, no longer holding onto Rin but still clutching Shippo, into his arms before moving her to safety.

As he placed her down gently, he looked at her with something near indescribable in his amber eyes. One might call it grief. "Kagome,” he had whispered. "Be strong. I need you."

She trembled, the tears threatening to spill down her already damp cheeks. She nodded and placed Shippo on the grass, the blood covering the blades in moments. Kagome refused to look down, trying to ignore her own blood-soaked shirt. Instead, she raised her bow up in defense. "Okay."

Inuyasha gave her shoulder a slight squeeze but the tender moment, amidst the battle, was broken when the wolf prince had spied the couple. "Hey, muttface, watch out!"

The pair whirled around in time to see Sango on the ground, knocked down by her own weapon. Miroku was standing over her fallen body, preparing to unleash his wind tunnel, despite the swarm of poisonous insects, the last of Naraku's allies, buzzing nearby. While Kouga's clan and Sesshomaru each attacked a flank of Naraku's demonic form, it still left a rather large blind spot where Inuyasha had been aiming moments ago. Just then, Naraku lashed out at the two.

Right before the hit, Inuyasha tore off the coat of his fire-rat haori, tossed it over Kagome and braced himself over her. When the force of the blow made contact, they were both knocked into the air.

Kagome landed first, then Inuyasha.However, when Kagome struggled to her feet, Inuyasha remained unmoving, a trickle of blood running down his face.

She was unprepared for such a sight. As heart-wrenching as it was to see Shippo fall, she understood the loss. But Inuyasha? It couldn't be possible. She loved him, he couldn't be dead from a demon the likes of Naraku.

So as not to face her worst fears confirmed, Kagome stepped back and turned. There was Naraku, smirking in her direction. He was relishing the moment of Inuyasha's demise.

Slowly, as she felt her inexpressible grief and anger well up inside of her, Kagome removed the coat from her shoulders. She reached down and placed it across Inuyasha's body, ignoring Kouga's anguished calls of her name.

It was then that the emotions inside of her began to transform into power -- great spiritual power. It started at her fingertips and spread quickly across her body. Before anyone had realized it, Kagome had created an enormous hazy purple shield surrounding herself and Inuyasha.

The pulse of the shield seemed to bring Inuyasha around. "Kagome," he had whimpered, struggling to sit up, his coat falling into his lap.

Kagome, who had turned her back to him while staring down Naraku, spun around. "Inu...Inuyasha?" It had come out as a whisper. She couldn't believe it. Could he truly have survived such a blow?

He wiped the blood from his head as he pulled himself to his feet. Once standing, he bent down and picked up his coat. Pulling it on, he gestured to the shield surrounding the two of them. "It might have helped if you could have done this earlier." he said in annoyance, though he barely hid the impressive note that crept into his voice.

So relieved that he was still alive, Kagome chose to ignore his remark. Instead, with a steely look of determination in her large brown eyes, she faced Naraku. "Let's take him down."

Inuyasha nodded and smirked, baring his fangs as he did, before taking a step out of her barrier. Instantly, she reached for him -- she wanted him to stay near her. He paused and shook his head before pointing at his sword, where it had been left, the other's oblivious to its presence.

He ran for it, his own determination to defeat Naraku doubling as he made his way across the clearing. It was his own desire, coupled with Naraku and Sesshomaru's immense demonic aura and Kagome's spiritual presence, that brought Kikyo to the battle.

No expression crossed the dead miko's face as she surveyed the scene. Miroku had moved Sango out of the direct vicinity of the battle, taking swipes at the saimyosho with his staff. Sesshomaru, as a giant demon dog, was matching Naraku's miasma with his own poison. Kouga and his tribe continued to attack Naraku, regardless of the significant number of wolves and wolf-demons that had already succumbed to the fight. Inuyasha was clutching his Tetsusaiga, prepared to send his own attack. Kagome, enveloped in a cloud of ghostly purple, was drawing an arrow for her bow.

It was in the moment following Naraku's surprise at Kikyo's appearance that everything seemed to fall in place. He stumbled and inhaled much of Sesshomaru's poison. Weakened, Kouga and his wolves each leapt forward and attacked his appendages, destroying a few of them. As Naraku fell to that side, Inuyasha took the opportunity to attack with his backlash wave.

But it was the pair of sacred arrows, one aimed at the demon's heart, the other at the near perfect sacred jewel embedded in his back, which brought him down and caused his defeat.

With the synchronous hit of the arrows, Naraku let out an indescribable howl before dissolving away. The only remains of their once indestructible enemy was the tainted orb lying amidst mere ash.

The dead miko and the reincarnation had an instant to relish the long awaited defeat of Naraku. The moment after he fell, Kikyo smiled before crumbling into a small pile of bone and dirt. For her, the pain was welcomed.

But, for Kagome, the pain was unexpected. She was vaulted into the air, pain racking her small frame; it was as if she felt her soul being split in two. When her body hit the pinnacle of its small flight, she froze as her soul became whole again, the piece Kikyo harbored, stolen from Kagome so long ago, finding its rightful place within the young girl. Kagome saw flashes before her eyes, snippets of memories she couldn't quite place. Then, as her body began the descent back to Earth, her vision blurred, the pain overwhelming all of her other senses. She had a moment to see Miroku holding Sango to his chest, Sesshomaru returning to his human form and both Inuyasha and Kouga sprinting towards her before she closed her eyes and lost consciousness.

She had awoken later that night, curled on her side on the floor of Kaede's hut, alongside a sleeping Sango and slumbering Shippo. When they saw that she had opened her eyes, Miroku and Kaede explained to her that the battle was over -- Naraku was dead. Miroku even showed her his wind tunnel-free hand as proof. He then went on to explain that, after the battle, Sesshomaru had revived both Rin and Jaken using his Tenseiga. Then, taking pity on Shippo, he had brought him back to life as well, before taking his leave, Rin and Jaken at his heels.

While Miroku had helped Sango to her feet, amidst Shippo's questions of what had happened, Inuyasha and Kouga had rushed to Kagome's fallen form. Kouga, Miroku explained, had wanted to carry Kagome off to his den to care for her, but Inuyasha would not allow it. Growling towards an invisible enemy, who Miroku supposed was just the wolf prince, Inuyasha carefully gathered Kagome into his arms before running off to Kaede.

"Where is Inuyasha now?" Kagome had asked, slightly shaken, but strong enough to reach out and stroke Shippo's tail lovingly. He was alright.

The monk and the elderly priestess shared a look before Kaede answered. "He went back to the site of the battle to collect Kikyo's remains. He, no doubt, desired to return them to her gravesite."

Kagome drew her hand back and placed both of them by her side. Kikyo. Even then, when Kikyo was bone and ash once more, Inuyasha still chose her.

It was then, despite Miroku and Kaede's warnings, that Kagome had made her way out of the hut and down to Kikyo's gravesite. Though there were definite signs that Inuyasha had been there, such as the freshly dug earth that indicated that Kikyo's remains were back in their final resting place, the hanyou was no longer there. However, she decided to sit down beside the site to work out her own emotions.

Guilt. She did not understand what exactly had occurred at the battle, but what happened to Kikyo? She had seen the priestess fall before she had been tossed into the air. Did she strike Kikyo down? It was no wonder that Inuyasha was not by her side. He must blame her for Kikyo's second demise.

Anger. How dare he think that it was her fault! True, she did not like how Inuyasha always seemed to choose Kikyo over her, but she had long since learned to accept it. She had to -- she loved him too much to lose him.

Love. Was he aware how much she truly cared for him? She had felt as her heart was ripped from her chest when she had seen him fall during the battle. Now that both Naraku and Kikyo were gone, was it time to elaborate to him how she felt?

Relief. Kikyo was gone -- and both she and Inuyasha remain. Surely that meant something, didn't it?

Worry. If the battle had had inadvertently succeeded in killing Kikyo for a second time after the arrows were shot, what had it done to Kagome? And where was Inuyasha? She wasn't too sure if she wanted to see him. What would he say? Would he blame her for Kikyo's death? Would he laugh at her when she told him how she felt?

She knew he would return eventually. She knew that, even if someone had recovered the jewel that was in Naraku's possession, the jewel was not whole. Even though their greatest enemy was defeated, she knew their initial task was not yet complete.

Kagome held onto that thought that Inuyasha would return to her, for the next two days as she kept vigil over Kikyo's grave. For some reason, she could not find the strength to move herself away from the sacred place. She felt as if there was something keeping her at the site. Maybe, she mused with a small smile, I’m trying to draw Inuyasha here to face the fact that I'm still alive and that Kikyo is gone.

Or, maybe, I know that this is the one place that he can't stand to be around at the moment.