InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Settle the Score ❯ Back in Time ( Chapter 6 )

Author rantings :

Here's the next chapter. I changed the Genre from Romance to Mystery, because I think that there isn't enough fluffy stuff happening to call this a Romance, and Drama/Mystery definitely is fitting in my opinion. If someone thinks that another Genre should be better, please tell me! (I think it's not dark enough for Angst, is it?)

Last but not least I want to thank everyone who put me onto their favorite authors list :
Chris-san, AnimeAngel, nEw moDeL nO.15, Merith, angel-flame and Alandrem.
Thanks a lot! Your reviews will get extra attention ;)

Disclaimer : Ask some lawyer who exactly owns Inuyasha, 'cause I don't know, neither do I own him.

Special thanks to :
Kat Morning for her awesome beta skills. Thanks for the tip!

The intention's here, this was how I planned to be.
But reality shows the weaker part of me.Back in Time

Inuyasha got permission to play outside after he had finished his history lesson with his mother. He walked to the field outside the village, where the kids gathered in the afternoon when they had nothing to do. When he arrived he saw that there were nine children, most of them about his age or a bit older, playing with a ball. Some were already sitting outside the field, waiting for the game to begin anew. He went over to them as usual. "Hello!" he greeted them. "Can I join?"

The rules for the game they were playing were simple : stay in your half of the field, and don't let yourself be shot by the ball without catching it. What brought a small element of teamwork into the game was that one wasn't allowed to move if he had taken hold off the ball. So, usually, people hid in the back if the enemy had the ball, and when the ball was caught the teammates advanced to the front and the ball was passed on. The better the teamwork functioned, the better were the chances to get an enemy shooter before he was able to retreat to the rear of his own field.

The boundaries of the field were two trees at the respective ends. The two halves were separated by a rope half way between the two trees; if one stepped over it would to mean being expelled until the game started anew.

The eldest of the playing children, a boy of twelve years named Eiji, looked almost relieved that Inuyasha showed up. "'bout time you showed up, dog-ear! The others already started complaining that the game is unfair."

Inuyasha grinned at the five years elder boy. Eiji was physically well-developed for his age, surpassing the other children in size and strength. He was also an excellent shot, everything together led to him being the most wanted player when teams were formed. Inuyasha was the only one who came near being as good as Eiji, so they usually ended up in different teams. This had led to an intense competition between the two. Both boys respected each other, though neither one would ever admit it.

Eiji always called him dog-ear instead of his name, but Inuyasha was used to the semi-friendly insult, having one of his own too. "Can't wait to be defeated, Ei-Jiji?""In your dreams, Chibi."

The waiting children went into their halves of the field again, while Inuyasha joined the team opposing Eiji, forcing one of his team to join Eiji's, to even the score. Each team now had five members.

The game began with Eiji making a warm-up shot at Shiori, an eight year old girl. She caught the ball and passed it to Genjo, who tried to shoot at the retreating Eiji. But the older boy caught the shot of Genjo, immediately returning the ball. Genjo had laid all of his strength into his shot and now was off balance. Unable to catch or evade, the ball hit his upper leg full force with a loud splash. "Got ya!" Eiji cheered. Genjo growled out in pain, making the others laugh at him. Everyone knew how much a shot from Eiji could hurt, but it was always funny if the victim was someone else.

The ball jumped back into Eiji's half, who picked it up and made another attempt for Shiori. The ball aimed for her head and she threw up her arms in reflex. The ball bounced of her forearm in a wide bow. Inuyasha ran after and jumped for it, catching the ball sliding on his back before it hit the ground, saving Shiori's 'life'. This was what made Inuyasha a formidable opponent, he was not only a good shot but able to catch almost every ball with inhuman reflexes, making him very difficult to 'kill'. This was what gave him a chance against Eiji, being able to catch many of his fierce shots.

Inuyasha gave Shiori a thumbs-up, before he passed the ball to another of his fellow players. She gave him a small, relieved smile. Inuyasha got up and watched as Eiji caught the ball aimed at him. Then it was Inuyasha's turn to catch the ball, he was chosen as target because he was standing very near the front from his slide to save the girl. He caught the ball with both arms and chose to shoot at one of Eiji's teammates instead the boy himself. Scoring a hit, the teams were now even again.

Eiji picked up the ball and was about to shoot again, when the town-bell suddenly rang. "Not now!" Eiji growled. The children started to run for the village, knowing that this always meant serious trouble. Inuyasha ran back to his home as fast as he could, looking back only once to make sure the others were ok. His mother was already waiting in the door. "Haha-ue, what's going on?"

"I don't know, Inuyasha!" his mother replied hastily, nervousness showing hon her face. "Come in quickly!" She pulled him inside the house and closed the door. If help was needed somewhere, a villager would come and tell them what to do. Until then she would stay here with her son, like the other women who were hiding in their homes, too.

Inuyasha could make out fighting sounds, men screaming and shouting, and a somewhat deeper voice. It seemed to be coming from the jade mine. "I can hear a battle at the cliff," he told his mother worried. In the three years he had been here there hadn't been any battles. Fires were the most common reason to ring the town bell, and once there had been an accident at the cliff, though Inuyasha couldn't really remember it. It had been at the beginning of his time in the village.

After some time the battle ended and the town bell was rung again, indicating that everyone should gather in the village tavern. Mother and son left immediately, seeing that everyone else was heading for the tavern, too. When they arrived, they could see six dead bodies lying on the ground in front of the tavern. One of them was an old widower, but each of the others had a wailing wife sitting in front of him. The dead bodies had deep gashes, which seemed to be made by claws, in either the chest or the stomach.

Seeing the dead bodies, many started to ask what happened. Ryobe, one of the town elders, gestured the people to be quiet. "There was an ambush", the old man began, "at the mines. The workers were attacked by a youkai, and the results of two weeks work were stolen. These men here tried to stop him, but weren't successful." He tried to silence the crowd after the revelation, but it took some time until the rantings died down to an acceptable level.

"But there haven't been any youkai attacks for centuries!" a woman cried.

Ryobe responded with a grim face. "I think this has to do with the death of Lord Seibunishi. Since his death, youkai attacks in this region have increased, but maybe Lady Ayako can tell us more?" he addressed Inuyasha's mother.

She looked up from the dead bodies with a sad expression on her face. "It has to do with his son, Sesshoumaru. He doesn't care for the treaties his father made with the humans of this region. Since he followed in his father's footsteps as the Lord of the Western Lands, he hasn't shown any interest in keeping humans safe." She could count herself lucky that he let her live with her son at the outskirts of his territory.

Inuyasha felt bad when he heard that his brother was responsible for the deaths of the men. Four men left children behind, the body lying outmost right had been Shiori's father. He looked around, but could see the little girl nowhere. He felt sorry for her, he knew what it meant to grow up without a father.

Shiori's mother stood up and cried at Ayako, "That's all your fault, youkai whore! My brother Isoshi took part in the fight and told me! The youkai said this is the punishment for giving shelter to your offspring," The woman broke down and continued to sob, mumbling to herself. "If it weren't for you, this wouldn't have happened. My Kiyosato would still be alive."

Inuyasha looked up to his mother, who seemed to be about to say something, but then kept silent. She put her hand on his shoulder, squeezing it lightly. Then she finally responded to the insult. "I'm sorry, but this is the fault of the one who killed your husband, and indirectly of Sesshoumaru, who doesn't happen to be my son." With that she turned around, walking back to her home with her son.

"Is it really our fault, Haha-ue?" Inuyasha asked his mother on the way back. The thought that because of him six men were dead, because of him children had lost their father, made him feel guilty.

His mother gave him a reassuring smile, but he thought it somehow looked forced. "No, Inuyasha. This youkai just used that as an excuse to ransack the village. But some people will believe, some want to believe it. Please be cautious for the next few days, and don't get into fights. Whatever happens, you mustn't fight with others, so the situation can calm down."

She knew that, if someone insulted him, Inuyasha sometimes ended up in a fight. Most often it wasn't even his fault, but especially in the beginning when the other children hadn't known him, he often had been involved in brawls. The last year had been fairly quiet, maybe the competition with Eiji also had to do with it. They had had a terrible fight a year ago, Inuyasha had even lost one of his teeth. He hadn't told her any details, so at first she wanted to complain to the child's parents, but Inuyasha had told her not to because the problem was already 'solved'. Eiji wasn't the brightest, but since then he had somewhat accepted Inuyasha.

"I'll try my best," Inuyasha assured her. He was always cautious, especially around adults, some of them just seemed to despise him, no matter what he did. Being around with other children was easier, they seemed to be more open to new experiences. Then he asked another question that had kept bugging him. "Why did Shiori's mother call you a whore?" He knew a young woman who was also called a whore, and she always smelled of different men. He didn't know why, but many villagers didn't seem to like that. He couldn't notice any different smell on his mother.

"Don't worry about me, Inuyasha. People in grief often lash out without thinking," his mother answered, not really wanting to go into detail. It had become evening, so when they arrived at home she put Inuyasha to sleep.

The next day Inuyasha was taught writing new words. The lessons lasted till the late afternoon and were only interrupted by lunch. When they were finally over, his mother didn't want him to go out and play. Inuyasha kept bugging her, until she gave in.

He went over to the field and saw several kids gathered there. They seemed to be in a bad mood, as everyone was just standing around and talking. When he greeted them he only received glares in response. "Speak of the devil," Eiji said.

"What do you mean?" Inuyasha asked.

"We were just talking about you," the older boy continued. "Father said that yesterday's attack happened because you are living in this village. That it is dangerous to keep you here."

"That's not true!" the young hanyou countered. "I have been living in this village for three years and nothing has ever happened. What the youkai said was just a lame excuse."

Shiori glared at him. "Just a lame excuse? Because of this lame excuse, my father is dead!" Her eyes looked like she had been crying all day, and they got wet again.

"Shiori," Inuyasha told her, "I'm sorry for your father. I know how you feel."

"You know nothing!" she shouted at him. "Your father was just a damn youkai. A demon, a monster."

Inuyasha got angry. "Chichi-ue was as much my parent as your father was yours!"

"How would you know?" another child asked him. "I heard that he left you here years ago and you can't even remember him."

"Haha-ue told me!" the hanyou said confidently.

"As if the word of the whore counts anything." Shiori snorted.

"Don't call her a whore!" Inuyasha shouted.

"But she is," Eiji told him. "Why else would she have a child from a youkai?"

Inuyasha glared at him. "Take that back!" he demanded. He didn't really understand what the boy meant, but he did understand that it was an insult for his mother.

"Or you'll do what?" Eiji mocked him.

Inuyasha launched himself at Eiji. The older boy punched Inuyasha in the face. He laughed when he saw blood running down the hanyou's lip. Inuyasha just got more angry and punched Eiji in the stomach. With a grunt the older boy collapsed to the ground. Suddenly an adult was between the two. "What's going on here?" the man asked. He glared down at Inuyasha. "Are you attacking our children now?"

"It's his fault!" Inuyasha told the adult. He recognized him as Eiji's father.

"No, it's his!" Shiori shouted, pointing at Inuyasha. "Everything is his fault!"

"I think you better leave now, hanyou." Eiji's father told Inuyasha.

The word hanyou was too much for Inuyasha. He turned and ran home to his mother, crying. He saw that the villagers all looked after him. ´They too think it is my fault.´

When he arrived at home, his mother took him in her arms. "What happened, Inuyasha?"

He told his mother what had happened and how he got into a fight with Eiji. She looked at his lip, but the injury didn't seem too bad. "I told you not to brawl! Everyone is easily angered now, and you have to be cleverer and not lose your head like everyone else." She started patting his head to soothe him.

"But they said it was my fault! I didn't do anything wrong! You said so yourself!" Inuyasha shouted.

"They are just parroting what their parents say," his mother explained, still patting his head. "Everything will calm down after a while. You just have to keep a low profile until then." She stood up. "Come on, let's have dinner now. Everyone gets aggressive on an empty stomach."

When Inuyasha had finished with the meal, he went to bed, exhausted. It took him quite some time until he could find sleep, remembering how life had been before he was accepted by the children. He didn't want to live through that again. "Please", he prayed to no god in particular, "make everyone friendly again!" Not knowing what else to say, he fell silent again, hoping that someone was up there, willing to help him.

The next day Inuyasha didn't go to the field to play with the others. He stayed in his room, afraid to go out. When the night had come, he finally had enough of sitting in the house. As soon as his mother was asleep, he ventured out into the night. Without a definite goal, he wandered around in the village. He got bored, because there was nothing going on and in most houses the light was already dimmed. He noticed that the tavern seemed to be the only place that was still filled with life.

Curious Inuyasha went to the building. He pressed his ear against the wall, listening to what was going on inside. He was so absorbed in trying to distinguish the myriad of voices, that he failed to notice the two men who exited the tavern behind him, until one them grabbed him by the hair and hauled him up. "See what we have here..." the man laughed. Inuyasha could smell alcohol from his breath. His scalp hurt from his whole body hanging on it. Wanting to escape, he tried to pry his hair free, but the man was a sturdy miner and his grip was like iron.

"Oh no you don't, fucking bastard!" The man got angry from one second to the other and threw Inuyasha against the wall. For a short moment, everything went black when Inuyasha's head hit the wall. When he regained consciousness, he felt the man gripping his throat, lifting him up again.

"Come on, that's enough, Junichi," the other man told his friend, putting his hand on his shoulder. "He isn't worth it."

"Because of this freak, Keizo is dead!" Junichi snarled, slamming Inuyasha against the wall. The child wanted to gasp, but couldn't because of the grip around his throat. He tried to get the hand away, but the grip only tightened. Unable to breathe, he began to see stars dancing before his eyes. His attempts to free himself got weaker and more desperate.

"This is for Keizo!" he heard the man shout before suddenly a fist exploded in his face. "This is for Kiyosato!" Out of instinct Inuyasha grabbed the arm when the man wanted to hit him again and bit his fangs into the flesh.

Junichi screamed in pain and released Inuyasha, who crumbled to the floor and took the longest breath he had ever taken in his life. The hanyou stumbled backwards, his vision slowly returning. He could see a black form closing in. Without a second thought he turned around and ran.

He passed the first trees, not fully noticing them as his sight was still affected. Panicking, Inuyasha continued to run, not realizing that he was already way out into the forest. Ignoring the burning pain in his lungs and the sore feeling in his throat, he channeled the stress into running faster and faster. Forcing his legs to carry him as fast as he could, feeling the wind in his face, he slowly regained his senses. He could smell a few animals in the vicinity, he could smell the odor of the forest, which was soothing his mind. Out in the dark, the isolation let him regain his sanity.

He sprinted until he reached a lake deep in the forest. Only then he stopped and fell to his knees at the shore of the huge lake. Letting his burning lungs recover, he looked into the water. Because it was almost full moon it was bright enough for him to see that his eye had taken an unhealthy dark shade in the reflection. He stared at the face that was staring back at him, seeing the ears on the head, the fangs in the mouth, the slight glow in the eyes. Compared to the other children, he did indeed look like a monster. "Hanyou," he muttered to his twin in the water. He hit the water with his fist, dissolving his mirror image.

Not wanting his mother to know that he had gotten into a fight again, he didn't return home that night, hoping that the black eye would be gone the next day. He climbed up a tree, until he found a comfortable branch where he could rest. With the effect of the adrenaline dying away, he soon felt tired. He still had the somewhat comforting taste of Junichi's blood in his mouth when he finally fell asleep.

Inuyasha sat on the edge of the cliff, one leg hanging down lazily while the other was pulled to his chest with his arm, staring down at the village he had once called home. Everything had changed much since he had left as a child, and it almost felt like it really was almost sixty years, though he usually didn't count the years he spent at the Goshinboku. He hadn't even recognized the village until Miroku had told him about the jade mine.

The house where he had used to live was replaced by another one, and the field where he usually had played with the other children now also had a hut standing on it. Most of the houses were built solely with wood, because the forest was plentiful around the village. And wood burned well... He took a stone and threw it down the cliff, watching with childish fascination how it descended with increasing speed, until it shattered at the ground. He remembered doing the same thing when he was still a child, not just behaving like one.

Again, his life took a turn for the worse here. He had wanted to leave everything behind at first. When he had reached the top of the cliff he had seriously contemplated abandoning his group. But he still had to kill Naraku, and his chances were a lot better with them than alone. And it wasn't like he had anywhere to go, as he didn't want to return to the solitude of his forest, so he had decided that he might as well trail along with them.

This was the only place he ever had called home. Not even his forest, which he had thought of home at first, had been the same. One place had come near, Kikyou's village. He had never really thought of it as his home, but the feel had been akin. But home was where people loved him unconditionally, and the only person who had ever done that was his mother.

She had to be dead by now, even if Sesshoumaru's puppet hadn't been his real mother. And he also craved for the love of another woman, not just that of his mother. He still remembered the day when he had suggested to Kikyou that they could sleep together. Being a couple for almost a month, he had thought that it was time to deepen their relationship. He had been terribly nervous, and it had taken him two days until he had gathered up the courage to tell her, though he had been very excited when he had finally asked her.

The answer had left him devastated. Kikyou had told him that she wouldn't sleep with a hanyou. She had explained that the children would be part youkai like him, and that her reputation as priestess would be tainted if she had sex before they married. The problem was that marriage was only possible between humans, especially for her as miko. Since then he hadn't liked the ritual, a ritual that excluded him from taking a part in.

He had been speechless, it had been like a punch straight in his face. It seemed there was only one thing that ever happened to his hopes, they were shattered. One after the other, without exception. The whole affair still affected his self-confidence. It had been around that time when Kikyou had come up with the idea of using the Shikon no Tama to turn him human, and he had been desperate enough to agree back then. Maybe it would have been better, ending his lifelong struggle.

It wasn't easy for him to find a potential partner, he could count all of them on one hand, without any problem : Kagome and Kikyou, and maybe Sango too, considering how much time he spent around her. But she didn't really count, as she seemed to be drawn to Miroku.

Kikyou also could hardly be called a partner now that her body was more dead than alive. Her mind had changed too, being taken over by the hate she felt in the moment of her death. It was still very confusing, having to decide between the two incarnations. He wasn't over his old feelings for Kikyou, what also had made things worse between him and Kagome.

Kikyou no longer was who she had once been, and she also preferred to leave Inuyasha alone except for some surprise visits. Kagome, on the other hand, spent most of her time with him, unless she had something important to do at her school. Maybe she had a boy waiting for her in her glorious future? He growled when he thought of how many 'tests' she had had lately.

But what did he growl for? Kagome too had made it quite clear that she wasn't interested in him. It was his greatest fear since Kikyou's refusal, that people liked him but were repelled by his body. Unlike Kagome, Kikyou had at least been a bit tactful explaining him her reasons. Maybe she would also have changed her decision if they had had more time. With Kikyou he had been involved, while Kagome probably saw him as her pet or something, boasting how he followed her every step.

He looked down at the prayer beads around his neck. Remembering how Jiro had mistaken him for Kagome's slave, he hid the necklace under his clothing as well as he could. He didn't want to repeat that incident, he had been very embarrassed when the old man said that he was surprised that the hanyou was eating with them, as if he was something filthy.

"Hehehe", he laughed a humorless laugh at the sudden thought that he could lose both arms, not just one like Sesshoumaru, and could still count his potential mates. The number was easily reduced to zero.

It would be fairly easy for him to find a youkai bitch who would sleep with him, because he had the blood of his father, a taiyoukai, flowing through his veins. But she would be gone the next morning. He wanted more than just excitement, unless he was really aroused and the primal instincts took over. His human side wanted a more permanent relationship, maybe even the youkai side. After all, his father had only had one mate at the time, as far as he knew. Maybe Chichi-ue had wanted a real relationship too, finding it only with a human.

But maybe he should think of this option, as he didn't exactly lead a very quiet lifestyle. At least he would have an offspring, one that might have an easier life with only being one-quarter human. Still, it would be a child he would never know, and he didn't want to repeat his own parent's error and let his child grow up without a father.

"Inuyasha!" he heard Miroku shout. Inuyasha looked to his left, seeing the monk approaching. Sango was walking next to Miroku and gave the hanyou a curious stare.

" 'bout time you showed up! My ass is already sleeping from sitting too long." Inuyasha shouted at them. He picked up Tetsusaiga, which he had laid next to him to sit more comfortable, and put it through his sash. Then he stepped away from the cliff and waited for Sango and Miroku.

"Where's the rest?" he asked when they reached him.

"Kagome and Shippou should be here any minute." Miroku told him. "It seems that you are not in a good mood today."

"None of your business, monk. What took you so long?"

Miroku, pointing at Sango's boomerang, answered his question. "We went to retrieve Hiraikotsu and Aiko-sama was friendly enough to serve us some tea. She also told us that there will be a market in three weeks, and we will most likely attend."

Inuyasha's face fell for a moment. ´Great, now it looks like we will even return to this fucking village,´ he thought while regaining his annoyed look. "Does Kagome want to buy some girlie stuff?"

Inuyasha noticed that Sango still was looking at him. "Do you have a problem?" he barked at her.

Sango wasn't intimidated. "What were you doing with Miroku?"

"What do you mean?" Inuyasha asked back. He hoped that Kagome and Shippou showed up soon, so he could put some distance between himself and the nosy girl in front of him.

"You know exactly what I mean!" Sango insisted. She had always thought that there was more to Inuyasha. The first time they had met he had taken her out without even having to fall back on hurting her. When she had stabbed his arm he hadn't even flinched. Without being priggish about her abilities, she thought of herself as an excellent fighter. She might not have been in her best health back then, but the Shikon shard had kept her pushing at almost her top. Still, he had stopped her quite easily.

Inuyasha gave her a bored look. "Whatcha talking about, wench?"

Sango grabbed his wrist, hinting at the throw the hanyou had done with Miroku. "Beginning to remember?" she asked dryly.

"Oh, you mean that?" Inuyasha asked her.

"Yes, I mean that! What were you doing with Miroku?" Sango asked again.

Inuyasha broke the grip she still had on his wrist by simply yanking it free with brute strength. "Well, I threw him. And I always thought you of all people could recognize a throw."

Miroku put his hand on Sango's shoulder, who looked like she was about to throw the hanyou for real, down the cliff. "We were merely wondering when you developed such surprising grace?" the monk asked.

Inuyasha looked offended. "Are you trying to tell me I'm clumsy?" He put his hand at the hilt of Tetsusaiga, trying to look intimidating.

That moment Kagome made it over the last vault and saw Inuyasha standing there with the hand at his sword. "Inuyasha!" she shouted, trying to get his attention. She ran faster even with Shippou on her shoulder, wanting to reach them before he would take out his anger on the two. When she arrived, she saw that Inuyasha wasn't about to attack anyone. Being out of air from the run, she made a few deep intakes of breaths.

"You could have gotten here a little faster. I have better things to do than waiting for you with these two idiots here." Inuyasha said, pointing at Miroku and Sango. "We still have a long way to go the next week," he finished, putting the flesh in his haori over his shoulder again, and walked back to where the path to the village split off from the main road. When he passed Kagome's bike, he shouldered it, too.

Shippou, who was still sitting on Kagome's shoulder, wanted to jump off, but Kagome stopped him. "Don't tell them," she nodded at Miroku and Sango, "why Inuyasha is angry. I don't think it would help if they knew."

Shippou thought for a while, coming to the conclusion that she was right. "Promise!" With that, he jumped off and ran after Inuyasha. He looked back, seeing that the others were walking after them too. Just Kirara was nowhere to be seen, possibly the cat youkai was hunting in the woods. "Hey, Inuyasha, when are we going to train today?"

Inuyasha looked down to the fox child. He hadn't even thought of that because of all the ruckus. Maybe teaching the brat would also distract him a bit. "After dinner. We still have some distance to make before then." He couldn't suppress a small smile, when he noticed the relieved look on Shippou's face.

"Thank you, Inuyasha!" When Shippou saw that Inuyasha did not look like he was going to make conversation, he fell back to the rest of the group. He thought that the best opportunity to talk to the hanyou would be while or after the training. Inuyasha was never that talkative while they were traveling, usually keeping ahead of the group a bit. The fact that there were only seven days left till his transformation didn't help either.

When the fox child had left, Inuyasha's thoughts wandered back to the attack he had made against the monk earlier that day. It had to be everything together, this village, Kagome. Being as unbalanced as he had been, Miroku could count himself lucky that Inuyasha hadn't crushed the monk's skull.

He had dropped to get his haori because he hadn't been able to stand looking at Kagome any longer. Trying to distract himself and also his friends, he had asked Miroku if he also wanted some meat. He had just about regained his composure, when someone suddenly attacked him. Being rather surprised that he hadn't noticed anyone approach, he threw the attacker. He had realized a bit too late that it was only Miroku, and then the monk was already lying on the ground.

Inuyasha had kept this secret quite well until this day. By now Sango seemed to have realized that he was a more trained fighter than he let on. He didn't like to fight that way, it somehow made him feel ... bad, cold inside. He couldn't exactly describe it, but he disliked the feeling very much, and he also didn't wanted to disgust Kagome.

When Kagome had freed him from the seal, he had dismembered the centipede. Not having much time because she had already swallowed the Shikon no Tama, he had attacked with full force, claws and fangs. Kagome's scent, which he had mistaken for Kikyou's, and being pinned to the tree with an arrow through his heart, unable to do anything, everything together had driven his mind almost over the edge. He still remembered how he had relished the violence. Even powered up, the centipede had not stood a chance against the onslaught of his claws, her remains had been distributed over the whole glade.

He could still remember how disgusted Kagome had looked at the carnage, only her duty to find the Shikon no Tama to prevent a resurrection of the youkai had distracted her. Because of these two reasons, he had almost never used his full capabilities in his fights. Only when fighting against Sesshoumaru he had lost control and attacked with all his might, the first time when he had thought Kagome dead in his father's grave and managed to destroy Sesshoumaru's armor, and the second time when Sesshoumaru had stolen Tetsusaiga and Inuyasha was forced to protect Kagome, slicing his brother's cheek in the process.

His half-brother was still a tad faster and stronger, especially since he had acquired Toukijin. The sword had enough power to be a worthy opponent for Tetsusaiga. And Kagome had told him that Tenseiga protected Sesshoumaru from the Kaze no Kizu, while Inuyasha hadn't any added protection against all the destructive energy of Toukijin. Maybe the scabbard could work, like with the lighting brothers?

Inuyasha was sure that Sesshoumaru did away the times he had managed to hurt him as rage for the girl; it wasn't completely wrong. That way he could hope that Sesshoumaru would maybe underestimate him again in their next fights, giving him a small advantage. It worked with almost any opponent, his young age and some insults were enough to let them think he was a fool. Not many lived to regret their fault.

He noticed steps coming nearer from behind him. He turned around and saw Kagome trying to catch up to him. He waited until she reached him. "Trying to stalk me again, wench?" he asked her sarcastically.

Kagome looked at him. He appeared to be unaffected, behaving like always, but his voice was just a tad colder. His posture was as confident as ever, both his haori and the bike swung casually over a shoulder. Still, she thought that he seemed to be gripping the jacket tighter than needed. "Hi, Inuyasha." Not knowing what to say, she just greeted him.

"Is it just my imagination", Inuyasha answered her, "or didn't we already see each other this morning?" He tried as hard as he could to keep the anger, which was growing inside of him again, out of his voice. "Well, hi again." He turned and continued on his way.

Kagome noticed that he forced out the greeting. Remembering how Shippou had taken her words, she could only guess that Inuyasha had interpreted the same meaning into them. "Inuyasha, I'm sorry," she said, running beside him.

"What for?" Inuyasha asked her, sounding totally uninterested.

"For what I said to you this morning. I -" she was interrupted by the hanyou.

"Don't be. It is nothing." Inuyasha looked down at her, giving the miko a bored look. ´Thought you can cleave my heart out, eh?´ he thought when he saw the disappointed expression on Kagome's face. ´Sorry, but it needs more than you to break me.´

When Kagome heard his reply, her spirits sank even lower. She knew he had been affected by it, so why did he act so casual? "It was not nothing. I didn't think when I said ... that. I meant something totally different!" she told Inuyasha sincerely, looking at him almost pleading.

"That's fine. Now go bug someone else. Shippou should be interested in your opinions," the hanyou commented, uninterested. Kagome was getting desperate now. She had expected him to be angry, that he would shout at her, but this indifference was even worse. "Inuyasha, I just was angry that you kept teasing me. You can trust me!"

The hanyou stopped and turned to look at her. He didn't say a thing for a while, just stared at Kagome. She couldn't decipher the blank look he gave her. "I do trust you," he finally said to Kagome. She looked at him surprised. ´He still trusts me!´

"What choice do I have?" The smile that had been forming on her face froze at Inuyasha's statement. He turned again and walked away from her. Kagome stood riveted to the spot, looking after him.

´What was that now?´ This conversation had just been plain weird. What did he mean with what choice he had? She felt Shippou hop on her shoulder. And he had said that she should talk to the kid. Did he mean she should tell the fox, like she had already done?

"Kagome?" Shippou said, knocking at her head. "Snap out of it!" He had run forward to her when he saw her standing frozen on the spot. Thinking that Inuyasha had said something nasty, he had come to comfort her. But she had just been standing there, not even registering that he was talking to her. She finally turned her head in his direction.

"What did you say, Shippou?" Kagome asked him.

He looked at her again to make sure he had her attention. "I asked you what happened. Was he angry with you?"

Kagome shook her head. "That's the problem, he wasn't angry."

"What's bad with him not being angry? I think that's a progress," the fox child commented.

"No, you don't understand. He wasn't angry, he wasn't sad, he wasn't anything. He was just totally indifferent, like it had nothing to do with him. He talked to me like he was talking about the weather," Kagome said. She took a deep breath to calm herself down. "I apologize and explain that I didn't mean what he thinks, and he looks me straight in the eye and tells me that it is nothing!"

Shippou noticed that she had started to gesture with her hands. "Kagome, calm down." He thought over what the miko had told him. "Maybe he wasn't as angry as you thought."

Kagome didn't agree. "You have seen him. Normally, he keeps grumbling if something angers him, but this time he just stormed out of the room. I think it is the complete contrary, he was even more affected than I thought. And now he is distancing himself, like he was in the beginning." She thought back to how Inuyasha had acted before they met Sesshoumaru the first time, how he had squished Myouga for talking about his mother, how he had kept sitting in a tree outside the village.

"But I won't let him creep into his shell again!" Kagome almost shouted with newfound conviction. "I will drag him out if I have to." Her hanyou had opened up too much to let all her work be in vain now.

Shippou interrupted her, "I don't think that it will be that easy. I mean, you cannot simply sit him until he gives up." When he saw that Kagome looked like she was contemplating that thought, he added, "Every time you sit him, he only gets grumpy." Inuyasha never really gave in when Kagome sat him, he often even kept going until the miko would say the word again. It was something he would have to ask Inuyasha too, why he did things that would earn him a sit for sure.

"I think the best will be if you let him cool down." Shippou continued. "I will speak with him in the evening. He promised to train with me after dinner, maybe I can talk some sense into him. You can still try your ideas afterwards."

Kagome looked at him. "He wants to train with you again?"

"Yes, I had a talk with him yesterday evening. He told me that he will continue to train with me!" Shippou blurted out, obviously very proud.

"Really?" Kagome didn't understand the enthusiasm, but was glad for the fox nonetheless. "I'm glad that at least you are doing things right ..."

Shippou noticed that the miko trailed off. "Don't worry Kagome, Inuyasha might be stubborn, but you are even more so!"

"I will take that as a compliment," Kagome told the fox child. "And I hope you are right."

The two fell silent, joining Miroku and Sango. Kagome looked forward, seeing Inuyasha striding confidently as always in front of their group. He still wasn't as closed off as he had been in the beginning, she thought, or he wouldn't carry both her dinner and her bike.

Almost the whole chapter was about Inuyasha's past and my interpretations of the events in the manga, I hope it isn't boring. The next chapter will have the plot advancing a bit, so please do not get impatient. Most things from Inuyasha's past will have some kind of impact on the future I have waiting for him in my mind, but I hope I'm not overdoing the past-is-important thing.

Rage - Back in time not only provides a fitting title, but also has a fitting atmosphere.

Again, the next chapter might take some time, but I'm happy to tell you that I succeeded in the first three tests. Four more to go... I hope you appreciate this chapter, I'm risking my neck writing this for you. The next test is tomorrow :)

January 20th, 2003 : Chapter 6 finished.

June 6th, 2003 : Edited the Chapter with Kat's help.