InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Red Sunset, Golden Sunrise ❯ Red Sunset, Golden Sunrise ( One-Shot )

Enter standard disclaimer here. Nope, not mine, not at all…damn…

A/N: This is my first ever IY fanfiction for the M/K challenge at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/InuyashaEcchiFanFics/ I always thought my first IY fic would be a juicy IY/K lemon, but instead I have an angst filled Miroku/Kagome oneshot. What can I say? I'm a sucker for a challenge ^_^ Forgive me if I butcher the IY storyline too much, I've only watched up to episode 57. Also, a warning of sorts, lotsa angst, it was the only plausible scenario my demented mind could conjure up.

Special thanks to dbz obsessedfor beta-ing ^_^ I really, really appreciate your help

Red Sunset, Golden Sunrise

By: Ember Maxximus

The dark yellow sun blazed fiercely, bathing the sky in crimson hues that filtered through the clouds in lavender luminosity as it drifted leisurely behind the backdrop of the dense woodlands of the Inuyasha Forest. She tried with all her resolve to focus on its rare beauty, but it was an impossible task. The red sunset was tainted; a harbinger of the carnage and bloodshed that stained the grasslands scarlet and soaked through the earth all around her.

Her heart pounded madly, threatening to burst from her chest. Her breaths came in short, erratic gasps as her pale throat constricted tightly. Tears brimmed in her chocolate colored eyes, spilling down the alabaster apples of her cheeks to mix with the dirt and grime that soiled her smooth ivory skin. She clutched the complete Shikon no Tama firmly, her fingernails biting into the flesh of her palm as pinpricks of blood, shaped in tiny crescent moons surfaced. She was coming undone, unraveling at the seams. Her normally steadfast strength and determination was vanishing.

But, what did it matter anymore?

It was over.

She possessed the whole, purified Shikon no Tama and Naraku along with his detachments were no longer. The finale had arrived at a terrible price though; the slain bodies of her comrades were a testament to the fact.

Sango fell first; that bastard Naraku exploited her only brother and decapitated the beautiful Taijyia with his kusarikama.

Shippo, her adopted kitsune son, fell second. In an act of utter fearlessness, he used his cunning and trickery to pilfer the satchel of Shikon Shards from Naruku's wicked clutches and deliver them to Kagome only to have every iota of Naraku's wrath focused upon him. Naraku unleashed his plethora of youkai minions on the fox boy; they devoured him completely.

With the Shikon no Tama in Kagome's custody, Naraku and the his detachments were upon her, Inuyasha at her side fighting tooth and nail to protect his chosen mate. Wielding Tetsusaiga, Inuyasha defended Kagome against the onslaught of countless attackers. Miroku and Kouga joined his side; the three formed a protective circle around the time traveling Miko, guarding her with their very lives.

Without the Shikon shards in his legs and arms, Kouga's defenses were not sufficient; he needed the shards in order to fight at his full potential. Lacking them, he was no longer in their league and Kagura saw through to this weakness. She used her pristine control of the wind to cut and carve at his muscular wolf youkai body, leaving him a crumpled bloodied pile on the ground. Kagura murdered him. She slashed Kouga's major veins and arteries; he bled to death at his unrequited love's feet.

Inuyasha and the Miroku fought hard, fatigue getting the better of the monk. Seeing the hopelessness of the situation, the houshi let the rosary glove fall from his hand and released the Kazaana. The black vortex inhaled nearly all the youkai attackers into the tunnel-like abyss. So close, but it wasn't enough. Poison bees appeared and were sucked into the miniature black hole. Miroku fell to ground as the deadly toxins coursed through his system. His very existence teetering on a thin thread between life and death.

Kagome frantically searched the immediate area for her weapon; she saw her discarded bow and arrow lying 25 yards away. It was her last hope. She made a mad dash, running as fast as her toned legs would carry her. Stumbling once, she regained her footing and raced to the bow and arrow. Breathless, Kagome dove onto the weapon. With trembling hands, she removed an arrow. Kagome glanced over her shoulder, seeing Inuyasha was hot on her heels, slaying all those who dared follow.

"Return what is mine, Miko." His voice was cold and emotionless. Kagome looked to see the imposing figure Naraku. The white fur cloak hung over his broad shoulders and pooled around his feet like the raging white water at the base of Niagara Falls.

"Over my dead body." She growled, the rage over her fallen comrades fueling her hatred for the anomalistic youkai man.

"As you wish," he bowed, before lunging at Kagome; intent on ripping her throat out and reclaiming what she stole from him.

Inuyasha was there, putting himself between his love and the monstrosity that dared to threaten her. "Get back, Kagome!" Inuyasha ordered, slamming the hilt of Tetsusaiga against Naraku's chin. But there was nowhere to run; they were completely surrounded by Naraku, youkai and his detachments. Kagome readied an arrow, cocking back the taunt bowstring with her trembling fingers and fired the arrow of purity into the throat of Kagura, killing the detachment.

Sweat and blood dripped in rivulets from the hanyou's face and mixed with his thick silver hair, making the tresses cling to his face in pink clumps. He was fighting for their survival. He was fighting for their future. Inuyasha battled youkai, detachment, and Naraku alike. Even with Kagome at his side, firing off her hama no ya, it was more than the pair could handle.

"Stand back, Kagome!" Inuyasha growled over his shoulder, once again. In a last effort attack, he raised Tetsusaiga high over his head, summoning the power to kill one hundred youkai with one swing. He swung Tetsusaiga hard, the youkai killing power rushing from the blade like a massive tsunami wave. One by one, the assaulting youkai were incinerated by the might of the Tetsusaiga wielding hanyou.

Kagome's brown eyes grew wide like saucers as she witnessed the last battle's conclusion. "You did it," she whispered in amazement, running to Inuyasha to wrap her arms around his neck. "Kami…It's over, it's finally over." She buried her face into his neck, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Hai, Kagome. It is finally over." He held her in his arms, clinging to her.

The pair looked around, trying to absorb the events of the past hour. "Kagome, the well…" The Bone Eater's Well had buckled and caved in under the force of Tetsusaiga's attack. "The well, Kagome, I'm sor-" His words were cut short by the sound of a loud thud, followed by the wet sound of something snapping. Blood trickled from the corner of Inuyasha's mouth as his face contorted in pain. Breaking through the front of his chest was a blood-coated hand, clutching the dying hanyou's heart.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed as the imposing figure of Naraku stood behind him.

"Return what is mine Miko," Naraku demanded, removing his arm from the gaping hole he had tore through Inuyasha, entering through his back and exiting via his chest.

Inuyasha fell to knees, the life quickly slipping from his demi youkai body. "Run." He mouthed to Kagome, his last words to her, his last words ever. Inuyasha, her hanyou protector, her friend, and had fate been on their side…maybe more. He loved her and he died to for her; he was gone.

Kagome fell to ground beside him; she pulled his lifeless body into her arms, cradling his limp head in her lap. "Inuyasha," she smoothed her hand over his brow, hoping in heart that this was all a sick dream and she'd awaken from this heinous nightmare at any moment.

"Child." Inuyasha's murderer growled, "Return my Shikon Jewel."

"You killed him." She half shriek, half sobbed.

"One of many, he did prove entertaining, while he lasted," a cruel grin touched the corner's of his mouth.

"You killed him," she repeated. She held the ball tightly in her palm and pulled an arrow from the leather quiver.

"My Jewel, now." Naruku grew impatient. He stood over the Miko girl, snickering as she held onto the lifeless hanyou boy.

"You killed them all," As Kagome's anger grew, the tiny jewel began to glow hot white. "Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango, Shippo, Kouga…You beast! I cannot forgive this." The jewel grew brighter, pulsating its radiance in the Miko's palm. Unknowingly, Kagome was drawing strength from the jewel, using the purified tama as a youkai would to multiply her Miko powers a thousand fold. An iridescent light began to engulf Kagome, making her look ethereal, angelic, her long onyx tresses floated haphazardly around her face, evocative of mermaid underwater.

Kagome held the single white-feathered arrow, slid the nock into the nocking, cocked the bowstring as tightly as she could and closed one eye. She was breathtaking, a beautiful avenging Valkyrie in the heat of battle, aiming her sites on the cold heart of the bastard Naraku.

"You think you could harm one as great as myself with that stick," he laughed, not realizing the severity of the situation.

Kagome fearlessly gripped the bow's red handle securely and released the single magical arrow. Naraku attempted to swat the shot away, but it came at him with the velocity of a bullet, piercing through the altered flesh and bone of his hand and running through his heart. He staggered, clawing futilely at the arrow impaled through his chest. The arrow's magic weaved its purity through his being. Undergoing a drastic metamorphosis, his flesh paled to bone white, and then his entire body became rigid like a statue. Suddenly, he simply exploded into a million granules of ashes and dust, and scattered away by the four winds.

Instantly with her bow and arrow, she wielded the wraithlike power of a goddess, delivering the sentence to the devil himself--death and an eternity in hell.

Kaede-bachan and several of the men from the village emerged from the forest in a small group. Some possessed katanas, but most carried farming tools as weapons. "Search for survivors," the old priestess ordered. She walked toward Kagome, kneeled beside the reincarnation of her long dead sister, and gawked at awe at her. "We've come to help…but we've arrived to late. Forgive us, child." Kagome stood still, absorbing everything that had transpired and what it meant for her now; the deaths of her friends, the destroyed well, and the unified shards of the Shikon no Tama…it was overwhelming. "They died with honor. Let's bury them together, Kagome-sama." Kaede smoothed her aging hand over Inuyasha's face, closing his sightless amber eyes.

"Kaede-sama," a villager called from across the field, "the houshi lives." The elderly woman rose to her feet, moving as fast as she could to aid the ailing monk.

"Good-bye Inuyasha, I'll never forget you." Kagome removed the rosary from around his neck and kissed his cool lips farewell.

Miroku's breath came in shallow hitches; he was slipping fast. The youkai bees' deadly poison was racing through his system. Kaede-bachan reached into the satchel she kept at the belt of her hakama and retrieved her medicines. Kagome sat beside Kaede, holding Miroku's clammy hand. "Hurry Kaede, the medicine," Kagome urgently spoke, he had to pull through this, he had to.

"That won't be necessary," the rich, smooth voice calmly spoke.

Sesshoumaru stood before them, stoic and regal, his handsome face an unreadable mask. Jakken and Rin accompanied him' the girl child hiding coyly behind his snow-white kimono. Upon closer inspection, the adolescent held firmly onto the sheathed untransformed Tetsusaiga. Sesshoumaru pulled Tenseiga from the blade's sheath at his hip, swinging the Heavenly Life Fang at the dying houshi.

"He will live." Sesshoumaru replaced the blade, his golden gaze locking with Kagome's.

"Doumo Arigato Gozimasu, Sesshoumaru," She appreciatively bowed to the powerful dog youkai, "but what about the Inuyasha, and the others?"

"I can do nothing for them. Death's pallbearers have already retrieved their souls." His stoic gaze faltered, betraying the hidden sorrow he felt at the loss of his only sibling. He too, had been on his way to aid in the fierce battle, but had arrived minutes too late. Although Sesshoumaru constantly voiced his resentment towards his half-breed brother, they had developed a type of understanding and growing respect for another. The report was still in its infancy, but given nourishment and time it could have evolved into a brotherly camaraderie, a bond only siblings share.

"Tetesus-" Kagome began, but was cut off by Sesshoumaru's interruption.

"Is my father's legacy to Inuyasha and shall remain at my side." he pointed Tenseiga at Miroku, "His life is my payment to my brother for his blade."

Kagome nodded. Miroku slowly sat up; the sword's healing powers had cured him completely.

"Kagome no Miko, bequeathed bride of my slain kinsman," Sesshoumaru began, his golden eyes drifting to the useless time traveling well, "you may come with me and I'll keep safe, as Inuyasha did."

"Thank you Sesshoumaru, but I'm going to stay with Kaede and Miroku in the village." She smiled weekly.

"Should you change your mind, my offer stands," Sesshoumaru turned towards Miroku, "Houshi, my brother needs a proper burial." And with that, Sesshoumaru was gone. He left in hastened steps, retreating into the coverage of the thick forest. Rin and Jakken trotted behind him trying to keep pace. Kagome and others began preparations for the funeral of their friends.

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

"Kagome-sama," he called to the girl. She behaved as if she did not hear him. Kagome continued to stare at the fresh graves besides the collapsed Bone Eater's Well. Miroku carried her yellow bag over his shoulder. Without the food and schoolbooks, the backpack was actually pretty light and easy to carry. "Kagome-sama," he repeated, only this time slightly louder.

"Don't," came her soft reply as she turned to glance at him. She looked as if she had been through hell and back; her clothing was bloodied and torn beyond repair. "We've been through enough already. Wouldn't you agree, Miroku?"

He nodded, his dark azure gaze locked onto her melancholic visage. The normal fire that always blazed behind her fiery cinnamon eyes was barely a flickering ember of what normally lay within those sparkling orbs. Even unclean and cheerless, she was still a beautiful young woman.

"Don't what, Kagome-sama?" He asked, coming to stand beside her.

"Call me that, Kagome-sama, just Kagome is fine."

"Alright Kagome," She gave him a feeble smile as he gestured to the backpack, "I have your things. You should bathe and get some rest."

They walked through the darkening forest in silence. The only sounds were their soft footfalls; no animals, youkai, or insects dared so much as to peep.

"It wasn't supposed to end like this." Kagome thought aloud.

"Hai," he agreed.

"I was suppose to ride off into the sunset with my Prince Charming, waving goodbye to my closest friends. This was my Alice in Wonderland; I was suppose to be the undefeatable heroine of my very own feudal fairy tale."

He nodded.

"He asked me to be his mate, y'know. I told him he'd have his answer once the Shikon Jewel was whole again…Oh Kami, Miroku…Inuyasha's gone," she sobbed, "they're all gone."

"I know Kagome, I know."

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

The houshi kept his back to the brook the entire time Kagome bathed. The normally lecherous monk's thoughts were instead of his lost surrogate family and Sango, the one-of-a-kind Taijyia. Gods, he missed her. That one…she, was something special. She was the sweetest woman in the world and threw a mean Hiraikotsu, now she was lost to him forever. He smiled to himself reminiscing the few not so incidental touches and invasions of her personal space. A tear slid down his face. Now the woman that had promised to give him the family he so desperately wanted was no more. She was gone…Sango, Inuyasha, Shippo, and Kouga...gone.

He startled as a hand settled on his shoulder, "Are you alright, Miroku?" Tiny droplets of water covered her creamy porcelain skin. Her long black locks hung wet around her shoulders as she held loosely onto the towel the she casually wrapped around her torso.

"Hai, I'm fine. I was just thinking."

"You have my bag and my clothes." Kagome gestured to the canary yellow backpack he held.

"Gomen," he apologized, pushing the yellow satchel to her. She accepted the bag, smiling weakly. Her brown eyes red and puffy, she had been weeping again.

"I can't believe they're dead," Kagome eyes welled up with tears as she flung her arms around the houshi's neck, his encircled her waist while, the royal blue towel slid to fall at their feet. "Why, Miroku, why?" she sobbed into his neck, her breath hot against his throat. He could feel every curve of her naked, youthful body; clinging to him as if he might leave her forever as well.

"Onegai, Kagome," he placed his hands atop her shoulders, pushing her away as he purposely stared off yonder to the left, focusing on the nearby stream. "Onegai, Kagome…take your bag and dress."

She took his chin between her thumb and index finger, turning his face to meet his deep blue eyes. He kept his eyes averted from hers; rose hues stained his creamy almond complexion. "I feel so numb Miroku," Kagome whispered against his pale coral mouth. She rose on her tiptoes, running her tongue over his full lips, kissing them. "I don't want to feel numb anymore," her sienna orbs pleaded to him, begging him to take what he asked for during their first meeting over two years before.

"This isn't what you want, Kagome. Don't ask this of me," his voice wavered as he tried to not to think about what this youthful, stunning woman was offering.

"This is what I want, something tangible, something real," she placed his gloved hand on her breast. Cupping his face in both of her palms, she pulled his head to hers, sliding her mouth over his and swirling her tongue around his in a passionate kiss. "Onegai…Miroku, touch me." Her hands were untying the knot on his deep plum kesa.

"Kago-" she slipped her tongue into his mouth once more as he attempted to protest, marauding his kisses, daring him to deny her. The hand she had placed on her chest was slowly beginning to respond, cupping and kneading her pert breast in slow deliberate movements. His determination was languidly melting away into nothing. Miroku needed this as much as she did; the act so real, tangible and wholly symbolic of life after all the death they witnessed this day.

He descended with Kagome in his arms down onto the carpet of lush green grass. She was soft and feminine beneath his calloused hands.

Kagome tugged at his inner robes, pulling the thin black linen up and over his head. With anxious and needy desire, her fingertips scorched hot paths as they danced down his shoulder blades resting in the center of his lower back.

"Kago-" he began, but she detoured him of any possible protests by claiming his soft lips again with her own. He pulled away from the seductive miko, his chest heaving as he struggled to catch his breath. Gods, she was beautiful…long toned legs, round hips suitable for child bearing, soft flat belly, and supple bosom.

"Miroku," she looked at him with pleading brown eyes, chewing apprehensively on her lower lip as her body was shook nervously like a leaf in the breeze. "I need you, Miroku." She blushed as she parted her thighs revealing the soft orifice of her femininity.

"Kagome," he sat back on his heals. Did she realize what she was saying? She was offering him a tiny piece of heaven, something he told her he had wanted once so long ago.

"Touch me," she took his hand by the wrist guiding his touch toward her virgin entrance. He opened the petals of her flower, sliding two digits into the core of her heat. She closed her eyes focusing on the new heady sensation. The delicious feel of his hand exploring her maidenhood.

She was like an angel as she laid there, a sweet vulnerable goddess in the fields of Elysian, basking in soft glow of the grinning moonlight. Her firm breasts rising and falling faster as her pleasure increased. He dipped his head capturing one perfect rosy nipple into his hot mouth, suckling her. She tasted like rain water and sweet honey wine. Her fingers weaved through his short black hair; her small gasps intensifying to heavy pants.

"Miroku," she mewled his name like a small kitten as he pulled away to remove his fundoshi then repositioned himself at the apex of her thighs.

"Kagome," he called to her. She opened her lust filled eyes, meeting his dark indigo gaze. She could feel the tip of his length hesitantly poised at her entrance. Tiny beads of perspirations were forming on his brow, a deep look of concentration etched over his sharp features.

"I want this, Miroku. Give me your child," That was the most beautiful thing any woman had ever said to him. He plunged into her sweet abyss, claiming her innocence. Gods, she felt so good. She flinched as he pushed through her virtue, burying himself to the hilt in her engulfing warmth.

"Kagome?" he paused; concern etching his features as he fought the instinctual need to grind his hips.

"Don't stop," she lifted up, pushing her hips against his, "I need to feel you." He obliged thrusting his thick length into her hungry tightness. She wrapped her arms around lean back, her body molded to his athletic body; the muscular form he'd always kept hidden beneath his layers of robes.

"Kagome," his voice husky with passion, tracing her fuchsia lips with his tongue. She gazed up into the twin oceans of his fathomless indigo orbs; she was drowning, drowning in those deep pools of blue, and loosing herself in the sanctuary of his embrace. He held his goddess made flesh, never wanting to let go, allowing her angelic sweetness to perforate every pore of his being, forgetting all the anguish of the day's events in the security of her warmth.

Miroku increased his pace, hooking her knees over his shoulders; he seized her hips pistoning repeatedly into her engulfing heat. The lovers felt wonderful together, the friction of their bodies moving harmonically as one. The act was pure bliss; finally, he spilt himself deep in her womanhood, sowing his seed in the shelter of her fertile womb.

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

The golden sun was rising in the eastern horizon as the young Miko left her modest home in village. The wind was a gentle breeze, carrying the scent of pine and jasmine as it weaved through the grasslands and forest. It was still early morning as she trekked down the worn pathway that led to the old Bone Eater's Well, but she found solace on her morning walks. Her mind would wander over the events of the past two years that led her to this point in her life. Never in a thousand years would she had believed she would become a legendary priestess of the past, never. She sighed, tucking a loose lock of glossy obsidian hair behind her ear and pulling the red fire rat coat tighter around her petite form. She was almost there; she could see the sea of wild flowers that continuously bloomed over the graves of her fallen friends. Perhaps, it was Kami's way of showing his appreciation to their heroic deeds.

She left the path and walked through the tall grasses and flora towards the resting places of her comrades with the morning dew seeping through her sandaled feet and dampening her toes. She let her fingertips graze over the tops of the greenery. She was nearly there. She could make out the names etched into the head stones of her lost family; Sango, Kouga, Shippo, and…Inuyasha.

"Hello," she spoke softly, lowering to sit on the new grass that blanketed the old caved in Bone Eater's well. She brought her fingers to her ivory throat, wrapping them around the Shikon Jewel that hung from the gold necklace beside Inuyasha's rosary beads. Nervously, she fidgeted with the precious orb. "I've missed you all, so much…I wish…I wish…" her voice cracked as melancholy laced through her speech. "I could have kept you as safe as you all kept me…Gomen." The tears slid down her face, splashing onto her round swollen belly.

"Kagome." She looked up into the concerned deep indigo gaze of her new husband. He must have followed her this morning. But then again, there weren't many places she wandered to. He sat behind his new bride, his legs on either side of hers; he pulled her backwards to rest against his lean chest. "Talk to me," he asked, his warm breath soft against the outside of her ear. He wrapped his arms around her growing midsection, stroking her roundness, the sanctuary of their first child, the baby he had wanted for what seemed like an eternity.

"Miroku?" She leaned her head back against the crook of his neck; she could feel the steady rhythm of his heart beating beneath his black and deep violet robes.

"Hai…" his fingers danced over her white haori tucked into the red hakama. He smiled as the unborn child quickened beneath his loving touch. Soon, he and Kagome would welcome their firstborn into the world.

"If our child is a boy, I want to call him Inuyasha and Sango for a girl," she awkwardly twisted around to look into the handsome visage of her new spouse.

He cupped her face, smoothing his thumb softly over her rose-colored cheek, "I wouldn't have it any other way, Kagome." He pressed his lips tenderly to hers, allowing them linger a moment. "Ai Shiteru, Kagome. Ai shiteru."

~end

Translations -

Haori: a wide-sleeved shirt-like Japanese garment.

Kusarikama: Kouhaku's 'Chain and Blade' weapon

Hiraikotsu: Sango's Boomerang

Kazaana: Miroku's Air Void

Ai Shiteru: "I love you"

Gomen: I'm sorry
Hai: Yes/Right

Kitsune: Fox

Miko: Priestess

Fundoshi: Japanese loincloth worn in pre-modern Japan as underwear by men and boys.

Hakama: Wide skirt-pants

hama no ya: "arrow of purity".

taijiya: exterminator

houshi: Buddhist monk

Onegai: Please

Kesa: outer robe

Doumo Arigatou Gozimasu: "Thank you very much."

More A/N: Also, I've decided to set up shop at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CompulsiveOtaku/ since I totally lack any `puter saviness and the web page is entirely too much work, ff.net's rating restrictions, and mm.org's access problems. It's is pretty much a user friendly version of 'Anime Anonymous' with fanfics, fanart, complete IY and DBZ doujinshi, mb, images, links, early updates and whatnot, so come have a look-see ^_^ And as always, reviews are appreciated, they inspire my muses (Eva, Conchita, & Bob…yep, they have names) more than imaginable. Ja!

~EM