InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Reminisce ❯ Promise Me ( Chapter 7 )

Disclaimer I don't own the wonderful cast of Takahashi Rumiko's Inuyasha... so.. bleh... ><;;; Wish I did though. lol XD;

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Aki staggered down the road, her tired legs carrying her as best they could through all of this as her eyes stayed on the road, blankly staring ahead as her thoughts began to drift about. Passing travelers merely looked at her, shook their head sympathetically, and continued on their way.

... Through all of this..., she thought warily to herself. What IS all of this...? Everything that's happened is all so strange to me... So foreign... Inuyasha lives... He's alive... He can speak... But I remember that day so many years ago... That day he died... Aki closed her eyes, forcing back the tears welling up in the corners of her eyes. The memory was so hazy... so foggy in her mind... She could barely see it, but it was there... as if locked away and piled under all of the other thoughts... It was there though... It was definitely there...

{Flashback}

Aki stood on the edge of the cliff, overlooking the hell-bent land below her, everything there obliterated... Nothing stood unscathed from it.... Nothing... except her... She continued to stare, her eyes glazed over with lost instability as she gripped to the burned bark of the charred tree trunk beside her. Her body, covered in fresh blood and cuts, shook violently as she used her remaining energy to remain standing, her breath leaving her lungs in heavy pants.

"I'm here... I'm alive...", she stated in a low vacant tone, staring down at her trembling feet, the cow-skin sandals usually there now gone, leaving them bare and cold. "I'm alive...", she repeated to herself, her eyes still glazed and emotionless as she shot her dull gaze to her right hand, still gripping the bark of the stump. Without moving, Aki felt around for a sharp area on the sides and squeezed tightly, squinting her eyes slightly before bringing her hand to her eyesight... and watching the blood pool from her new wound... Blood... she was living... Flopping on the ground and reclining on the burnt stump to catch her breath, Aki closed her eyes, a small tear forming from under its attempted prison. Reaching inside the folds of her torn kimono pockets, she quietly pulled out a small bundled cloth and clutched it, carelessly soaking it with her leaking blood.

"Inuyasha nii-chan... I... I kept it... for you... just as I promised..." She was crying now, the tears falling from her eyes freely... tears she didn't bother to wipe away...

Ignoring this new substance, Aki looked down at the now destroyed village one last time before turning away and walking back. This was definitely it... She drew in a quick breath, savoring the last smell of this town she called home... Even if its usual smell was all but gone, she at least wanted to know the contrast of which it had changed...

She turned, not looking back, and walked away, her steps slow and unsteady. The smoke blurred her vision slightly as she tried her best to ignore the tingling sensation in her nose from all the ash and sender about her. She continued walking regardless, leaving behind her the now completely demolished town...

{End Flashback}

Aki narrowed her eyes down at the road, fiddling unconsciously with her green skirt. Since when did that memory die...? She remembered Inuyasha dead... Dead... but... where was the body...? When did she remember that anyway...? She stopped and looked up at the sky, her questioning and confused gaze laying upon the drifting clouds above her. Just what was she trying to remember anyway...?

"This isn't right...", Aki mumbled to herself as her gaze fell back to the way she came. Inuyasha... "None of this is right..."

'What exactly is going on here...? Inuyasha is dead... and yet alive... I'm back with him... but that's impossible... That's just impossible... How can I go back with him and he's older... yet it's before he died...? How is that possible at all!? Nothing is adding up anymore...'

'Like it ever did', a voice in her head chimed. Simply sighing, Aki turned back down the road and began staggering tiredly. The sky was bright, the sign of mid-morning lingering with each ray the sun gave off in heat waves. Not that it was hot this time of year... just that it wasn't cold...

Scenery slowly passed her as the sun overhead began to gradually recede behind the treetops. By this time, the now raven headed girl walked in a sluggish trek, her intentions gone along with her purpose. A groan was her cursed reply as she continued to trudge along. "I have no idea where I'm going, and just when I had the chance to see Inuyasha again, I left... How much more stupid could I be...?" Stopping, Aki took a brief gaze to the sky, hugging herself tightly to reclaim what peace of mind she had left. In this era, things definitely would be different... Definitely... A gentle breeze billowed lightly in the evening air, gently taking with it the folds of the girl's new cloths as they flapped carelessly.

In this era...

Why did that sound so peculiar...?

Then again...

Not everything was expected to be normal here...

"Inuyasha... How are you alive...? There has to be something wrong here... But... what...?"

*~<>~*

The trees rustled restlessly as two quick feet bound effortless through the treetops, each push increasing into inhuman speed. Stopping on one particular branch, the owner of these two feet squatted quietly, observing the figure below. In all his years, Inuyasha had never seen someone as confusing as this girl! Of all things, Kagome had to go weird on him today! No scent was being picked up... Nothing... That at least meant it was either a mood swing, or something he couldn't detect by smell... He was hoping it to be the former... At least if it was a mood swing, that would wear off with whatever mood she was in... The latter on the other hand... He didn't even want to think of the possibilities of that one. Tilting a little over the edge to see over the leaves, Inuyasha could see her silhouette figure peacefully leaning on the tree trunk as she sorted through her thoughts.

The girl shifted below him slightly, seemingly lost in thought as she gazed at the sky. Inuyasha paused, his back still arched over the branch slightly.

"Kuso...", his curse came a silent mumble to himself. Sure, Kagome wasn't your average girl... but this...? No. Hell no. Something was wrong with the girl... and he wanted to know... The question remained, however... should he confront her about it or leave her there...? He stumbled through his mind for the answer to that for a moment. Truthfully, he didn't like to see her upset like this, but at the same time, he knew there was really nothing he could do when she was talking and acting the way she was... In all honesty, in the very beginning of their journey, he knew she was different from others... That was more than a little obvious... But... something about her made her normal... like an everyday girl of her time... Why did it seem that she was both the same as the others and different at the same time? That had baffled the inu hanyou from the very start of their journey to now.

Below, Inuyasha could see the small frame of the girl tremble, the cool air from the sun's absence chilling her bare arms and legs. "Inuyasha, come down..." Her small rasp voice called him, no shock, aggravation, relief, or pain in her tone... Nothing... She was simply calling the hanyou she knew to be watching her...

Inuyasha's body froze, the shock evident on his face as his perked ears twitched at the timidity of her voice, straining to even hear her. She knew he was there? Well... she was the descendant of another great miko... Prudently, he began to climb down, every muscle in his body tensed for anything, his ears perked for any snap of a twig... anything... What was he so scared of? Even he didn't know... Something about this girl just made him... different...

Taking a silent leap, the soft thud of Inuyasha's feet on the grass could be heard a little ways behind Aki. He watched her back as she sat underneath the tree, her arms holding one another, her legs tucked under the forest green fabric that covered her legs, slightly hiked up to reveal a bit of her thighs. Without a word, he stepped up, relaxing his muscles as he came to sit next to her, plopping down on the opposite side of the tree.

Silence...

Inuyasha's ears folded shyly back on his slick white mane as he turned over his shoulder to see her, his hands rested in his lap under his sagging sleeves. The light sound of her breathing was the only thing he could hear... but the feeling as if she knew he was there was present... She was remaining quiet...? For what reason...?

"Inuyasha..."

He looked back at her, blinking once as if to see if she had actually spoken... Certainly, that was Kagome's voice... Soft, innocent, melodically tuned to fit her very being. He spoke back to her with a tone matching her quiet one. "Hai Kagome?"

A pause. Aki pulled her legs up to her chest, her gaze dropping to the ground as her shoulders drooped. Kagome... She frowned. I'm still Kagome to him...

"Kagome?", he spoke up, his tone a bit louder incase she hadn't heard him the first time. Her gaze remained ahead, her legs curling up into her chest as she hugged them close, returning her gaze to the dark orange sky. Her eyes traced the specks of pink remaining on the flat horizon ahead as she spoke to him quietly, resting her head in her hands. "Is it okay... if I stay just a little longer...?"

Inuyasha blinked, confused at her question, and trying his best to shape an understandable adaptation of that. "Nani...?"

"I said... Would it be okay if I could stay a little longer? By your side, I mean... I... I wanna make up for all that time we lost without each other..."

"K... Kagome..." Leaning over the side of the tree, Inuyasha looked at her the best her could, his eyes saddened to that of a helpless puppy... She wanted to stay by him...?

Aki shook her head, casting her now burning vision to the ground below her. "Iie Inu-san... I want you... I want you to know me... I want you to... know me..."

Silence befell him as he could do nothing more but stare at her. In his mind, he knew she was trying to say something to him... But that one statement could compensate for so many things... "Kagome I--"

"No."

He blinked. "Na... ni...?"

"No, Inuyasha..." Her voice now held power, that defenseless tone dying down into nothing as she reclaimed the self known as Aki. You can call me Kagome, but... "Who am I to you? Do you see me for me...? Or do you just see me for what I look like?"

Now he was baffled beyond recognition. Furrowing his brow, the only answer he could give her was a simple, "What do you mean?" ... But all that got him was a long tired sigh from her. Slouching her back, Aki fiddled with her ebony hair, twirling the strands in her fingers... an action all but too well known for Aki. She was Aki... Yes... Nothing could change that... Nothing...

"What I mean, Inuyasha..." The self confidence in her voice now increased. She knew she was Aki no matter what. A name was just a name... but she was Aki. That, she was certain of. "What I mean is..." She turned her gaze to him, her blue-gray eyes boring into his amber orbs. "... I want you to help me, comfort me, be there for me... because of what you feel... not for what you see... Inuyasha... I want you to be there for me..." Aki slipped her small hand into his, grasping it gently and bringing it to touch the place of her beating heart. He merely stared at her in fascination, his own heart speeding its pace drastically. "I am who I am... I am me... not Kagome... I want you to be there for me... Onegai..." ... If those words were true...

The image remained in her head, engraved there, as the words stayed fresh to her thoughts. ~"I love you, Aki..."~

Inuyasha's mouth went agape as he stared into her eyes for a moment, searching them for the meaning behind her words... He found everything hidden in her eyes...

"Onegai...", she whispered to him again, tears now on the brim of her eyes, as her voice pleaded with him. His stare remained clear and focused, the seriousness reflected in his hanyou eyes.

"Kagome..."

"Promise me that! Onegai Inuyasha!" The tears began to stream down her face. "... Don't make your words a lie..."

".... I.... I promise then..." He gripped her hand reassuringly, earning a faint smile from her, her tear-stained face beaming with utter happiness. Satisfied with that, she leaned in and rested her head on his chest, sighing comfortably. Inuyasha let out a gruff sigh and leaned back against the tree, wrapping one arm around her as his thoughts began to drift again... She had said so much that barely made since to him... And, yet... it made so much sense...

His gaze went to the sky lazily as the faint stars overhead cast down upon them, tearing through the cracks of the leaves and branches to their small huddled forms. Aki lay comfortably on his chest, her breathing evening out as she gripped the fabric of his haori tightly, her legs curled up slightly. She sighed happily as he wrapped another arm around her, resting his chin on her head. She was worn out... That much was certain... Perhaps it would be better to wait for dawn before heading back to the village... She needed some fresh air...

... If I couldn't be with him as Aki...

Inuyasha's arms protectively pulled Aki in as he, too, closed his eyes to rest.

... I'll be with him as Kagome...

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A/N: Oi minna-san! Happy Easter to everyone ^___^ I have to give a BIG thanks to my friend Chibi_Bubz (or Bubblez XP) for why I got this chappie done FINALLY. About every ten minutes, she would say "you writin'? X>" and, lo and behold, I wasn't writing XP;; So I would return to my lovely seventh chappie and write X) She's a good friend too ^.^ I was REALLY waiting for her to update her stupid fic so I could get inspiration... but I guess she was waiting for ME to update MINE so SHE could get some XP;; Strange friends we are, yes indeed... and, yes, I am unusually hyper for some unknown reason XD;; Btw, I actually started this chappie a LONG (as in about three months) ago, but I never really finished it XP;; that writing-before-you-get-any-inspiration crap again X>;; But dun worry XP As long as I have Bubz to remind me every five seconds, I'll update more often... *notes that she sounds like a broken record* XP;; And, yesh, Aki looks like Kagome now. In short, she's sort of in her body... but she still has Aki's mind.... just if anyone was wondering >_>;; X)