InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Reliving the Past ❯ Chapter 10 ( Chapter 10 )

Reliving the Past

by kmf

An Inuyasha fanfic

Rating: R

Warnings: Language

Disclaimer: I only wish I did own Inuyasha *fondles his ears*

Chapter 10

"Are you alright sis?"

Souta's words made Kagome blink, the dryness of her eyes making her realise that she had been staring mouth open at Kaminari for some time. She nodded, not taking her eyes off Kaminari who was staring back at her, the smug look gone from his face and replaced with a strange expression that she was unsure of.

He reached out a hand to touch her forehead.

"Are you sure? Perhaps you should rest," he said quietly.

Hell no! Kagome thought, grabbing onto his wrist. Not after he casually mentioned the Shikon no Tama. Not after mentioning Inuyasha's eternal love for a resurrected Miko. Not after not mentioning her at all.

"Tell me about the legend," she said quietly, but firmly.

Kaminari raised an eyebrow and nodded.

"I don't have all the details I would like, hence my visit to this shrine. But what I do know is there is mention of a beautiful Miko who guarded a rare jewel with great spiritual power called the Shikon no Tama. She was killed whilst guarding it and because there were no others who had the purity or wisdom for her to entrust it to, she instructed that she be cremated with it in the hope that it she could take it into the afterlife and guard it there.

"However, such was the power of the jewel that she was soon reincarnated and born holding the jewel tightly in her hands. Details of this are a little sketchy. I don't know who guarded her in her infant years, who instructed her and such like. However, it appears whoever it was they did a lousy job because she ended up shattering it."

Kagome felt her eyebrow twitch.

"Really," she said coldly.

Kaminari nodded before continuing. "Now the Miko had been loved by a demon in her previous life. He had been unable to save her and had disappeared for the years that she was dead, but once she was reincarnated and grew up to shatter the jewel he reappeared again. He and she undertook a quest to recover the pieces and recreate the jewel.

"But, the demon was sad because although the Miko had been reincarnated, she was not the same as she had been before and he did not love her."

Kagome felt her heart skip a beat. He did not love her.

He did not love her.

The words echoed in her mind, welling up, blacking out everything else around her. She closed her eyes willing herself to be strong. After all, this wasn't exactly news to her. She knew that Inuyasha loved Kikyou, and she knew that she could not compare to the un-dead Miko. First loves were always special.

Kaminari continued, apparently oblivious to Kagome's inner turmoil.

"Then, an old witch who also wanted the Shikon no Tama for herself stole the ash and bone shards of the dead Miko and used a spell to resurrect her, stealing a little of the reincarnated Miko's soul to animate her. The demon killed the witch for daring to touch the remains of his lost love, but could not bring himself to destroy the woman she had resurrected. Which was a good thing, because in the end it was she who found all the shards of the jewel and defeated the enemies who so desired it. And the demon and the miko found peace together."

...silence...

"Kagome?" Kaminari knelt beside her bed, his face close to hers, "Are you alright?"

Kagome could hear the words, but could not answer. It was as if she was in a deep hole, black and lonely. She could hear Kaminari comment to her brother about her paleness, and her brother ask aloud whether he should call a doctor. She wanted to scream at them to be quiet, to leave her alone but she couldn't make a noise. It was as if her throat was paralysed.

...the demon and the miko found peace together...

No further mention was made of the reincarnated Miko after the original one was brought back to life. No mention of what had become of her. Only the fact that the demon and the Miko were happy together. Only the fact that Inuyasha and Kikyou found peace together.

Her fists closed over the white sheet that covered her, clenching so tightly that she was sure her soft fingernails would rip the material. She stared past Kaminari, out into the pale light of dusk. Was it possible that she was not mentioned because she was no longer there to be mentioned? Was it because Inuyasha had claimed Kikyou as his own and had told Kagome to not return to his era?

A flash of red and silver caught her eye. Instantly she threw herself out of bed towards the window, ignoring Kaminari's exclaim of surprise and pushing off his restraining hands. Throwing open the window, she peered out and to see some of the leaves torn from their branches floating to the ground. Looking toward the well house she could see no trace of Inuyasha.

But she knew he had been there. She knew that he had heard. And she knew that he had returned to the past. Probably delighting in the knowledge that Kikyou was the one that would secure him the jewel. And that he would never have to trouble himself with Kagome again.

A tear welled up and ran down her cheek. Another, then another followed it. Before she knew it, her face was wet and her body racked with half suppressed sobs. Souta was hovering beside her, his face an anxious blur, whilst Kaminari had put his arms around her and was trying to encourage her to lie down again.

She didn't care what they thought of her behaviour, she didn't mind that Kaminari probably thought that she was mad. Her only thought was that finally, Inuyasha had chosen. With the encouragement of a half-known legend, he had left her to return to Kikyou and his own future.

And her heart felt shredded like the leaf that were fluttering softly to the ground.

* * * *

Inuyasha sat by the well, his heart racing with the shock of what he had heard. He had only listened to the conversation so that he would know when Kagome had been left on her own. His intention had been to sneak into her room, wake her if necessary and offer his body to her as a substitute to the man who had sat beside her.

But instead he had found himself listening keenly to the tale the man was telling. A tale of himself, of Kagome and of Kikyou. And instead of the ending being one of Kikyou being put to rest and him offering himself to Kagome which he had always assumed it would be, the ending was a little harder to understand.

The demon lived in peace with his first love.

And just what the fuck did that mean?

Inuyasha scratched his nose irritably. Did he really want to live in peace with Kikyou for the rest of his life? At the moment that was a definite no. She smelt strange. Neither living nor dead, she had lost the wonderful scent of life she once possessed. It wasn't that she smelt of death, she wasn't grave dirt and crumbling bones. She just didn't smell of anything. And it was unsettling. Kikyou smelled empty and sterile as if there was nothing to her. He hated that.

And if Kikyou regained her humanity, by what ever means, what then? Inuyasha growled, his head hurting a little by the thought. He wanted her to return to the woman she was before, but that didn't mean that he wanted to be with her always. He had changed in the years since her death, almost as much as she had. He had friends now, friends that accepted and supported him. No longer did he feel the desperate loneliness that he had all those years ago. If Kikyou became Kikyou again, he could not return to the Inuyasha that he had been. Too much had happened in his life for that to happen.

The demon lived in peace with his first love...

Shit!

And what happened to Kagome in the tale? There was no mention as to her fate at the end of the story. Did that mean that she gave up on hunting shards before the end of the quest? Was it because she had decided that she wanted to remain in her time with that man? Was that why he ended up with Kikyou? Because Kagome no longer gave a stuff about him and the jewel?

Inuyasha growled at the thought. She was always pulling away from him, he knew that. But he was also certain that she would not give up on him or the others or the quest for personal reasons. She would see it to the end, and then she would go. Not a moment earlier. So then why wasn't she there at the end of the tale?

Sitting still, he thought of Kagome. Kagome smelt as Kikyou once did, a scent of vitality, warmth, and love. Blended into that was the smell that was uniquely Kagome; a scent that Inuyasha had always felt comfort from breathing in. She accepted him for who he was, and had even asked him not to become human and not to become a full demon, just to stay as he was now. Kikyou had never been that accepting even before she had become animated and twisted by her need for revenge.

He flung himself backwards so that he could look up at the evening sky, focusing his keen eyesight on the starts that shone so brightly. It was so fucking confusing. He liked things to be simple. He was a fighter, not a thinker, and trying to get his head around what he had heard was just bloody painful.

Perhaps it was time to seek the advice of someone else.

Miroku and Sango? He shook his head a little. They were too close to Kagome to be objective. He knew that both would immediately get angry with him as if it was his fault that he was apparently destined to be with Kikyou. And they would be alarmed as to Kagome's fate, as he himself was.

Kaede was a wise old woman. True, she was Kikyou's little sister, but she saw Kikyou for what she was and was unaffected by favouritism for her dead sister. And she was knowledgeable about old tales and legends. If he could remember what he had heard word for word, then perhaps the old hag would be able to find a hidden meaning.

Decision made, he sat up and took one last glance at the well. He hated leaving Kagome alone in her time with that man. His hackles rose at the thought of her sharing her room with someone other than himself, but now was not the time for him to allow his human emotions to get in the way. He needed to resolve this puzzle that left him feeling so uneasy. And it wasn't as if she was not chaperoned. Souta was there with her, and even if he wasn't she didn't look like she was in a fit state to fuck anyone tonight.

He just hoped that he would figure this out before she was.

TBC