InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Soul Therapy ❯ Chapter Eleven ( Chapter 11 )

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Author's Notes: Sorry for the long intermission everyone, but it has been a crazy week for me. I've been sick, and then had the dreaded make-up homework that comes with missing school. Blah, I don't recommend missing.

Anyway, thank you all for being so patient. Several of you have been telling me in your reviews to my other stories that I had better not abandon this one, and I want to assure you that I am not. I love it, and I love the way it is developing, so I'm not letting it go.

Several of you also made the comment that the last chapter was boring. It was, I realize that, but it was necessary. And you will probably find this one boring as well, but again, I need chapters like this to develop the plot and characters. Don't worry, we'll get back to Inu/Kag fluff in the next few chapters as things heat up, so to speak, between our favorite pair, as well as inflation of the issue of the marriage between Kikyou and Inuyasha. So, stay tuned, and thanks for all your wonderful reviews! Enjoy!

FrameofMind: See, I told you I'd have an update out by the end of the weekend (you are the one I said that too, right?)! Oh well, if not, then I've just got a horrible memory. Thank you for your constant reviewing, I really appreciate it. Hope you like the chapter!

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Title: Soul Therapy

Author: dolphingirl0113

Chapter: Eleven

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.

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Kagome felt herself go cold at her cousin's words, but took a deep breath and sipped the warm tea to calm her nerves. "What about Inuyasha?"

Kikyou sighed. "Look Kagome, I know you like him, and I know that you've developed a, well, a bond with him since he started therapy. So, I feel like I need to talk to you about Naraku, in regards to Inuyasha."

Kagome couldn't stop the sigh that escaped her lips, relief cascading through her body. Good, at least SHE wasn't on the hot seat for anything. "Naraku? Why? You explained that to me."

"Yes, I did, sort of." Kikyou looked away. "I just don't know what to think any more."

Kagome looked at her cousin for several minutes in silence, trying to remember the happy woman who was so confident while they were growing up. That had always been one aspect of Kikyou that Kagome admired: her endless supply of confidence. People were always drawn to her because of it and yet, today, it just wasn't there.

"You really have changed," Kagome said suddenly, and Kikyou looked at her with a surprised expression.

"What do you mean?" Kagome shrugged.

"You just seem to have a lot more worries then you used to, that's all." Kikyou smiled sadly.

"Isn't that the truth." She looked up at Kagome. "I'm sorry we haven't talked more."

Kagome looked away. "I am too." And, to her surprise, she meant it. She really missed having that best friend she had enjoyed growing up. "But what did you want to tell me?"

"You know, I am honestly not sure. I just have wanted to talk to someone close to me."

"So why did you call me?" the comment escaped her lips before she could stop it, and Kagome wanted to slap herself for being so careless with her words.

"Because, even though we haven't been all that close these last few years, I still consider you the closest friend I have ever had. And I know that if I tell you something, you won't go and tell the world about it."

What she said made Kagome feel better then any other compliment she had received in a long time. She smiled at her cousin, and nodded, giving the woman the signal to continue.

Kikyou seemed suddenly tired. "While Inuyasha and I were in high school, he was the love of my life. And when he asked me to marry him, I said yes without a second thought." She looked away, as though seeing into the past through some window. "Everyone told us we were being foolish to marry so young, but we didn't listen. Does anyone every listen when they're in love?"

"I wouldn't know," Kagome sipped her tea, "I've never been in love like that."

Kikyou smiled and looked back at her cousin. "Well, anyway, things were going great until Inuyasha started medical school and I went to study law. It was like, he was changing before my eyes, though I think I was changing as well. But neither of us paid attention to that, thinking it was normal for married couples to grow distant at times. It wasn't until the accident that things really changed."

Kagome looked at Kikyou steadily. "What caused the accident exactly? Inuyasha's never told me."

"He was on his way home from doing a shift at the hospital as an intern when he was hit by a drunk driver." Kikyou blinked several times. "The funny thing is, I knew something was wrong. I could feel it the moment he didn't walk through the door at six like he always did. So I wasn't shocked when I got a phone call from the hospital."

The conversation had quickly become about much more then Naraku, but Kagome didn't mind. She had the feeling that Kikyou needed to talk to someone, and so just remained silent.

"I had never seen Inuyasha look so helpless in all the years I'd known him. He was always so strong, you know? One of those macho men who wanted to do everything himself and damn anyone who tries to help." Kikyou chuckled, again looking through that window that Kagome couldn't see. "But there he was, laying flat on his back, his face unrecognizable, his long hair red with his own blood, and the doctors saying something about his legs and possible paralysis."

Kagome was listening attentively, finally hearing what she had wanted to know for some time, but never having quite gathered the courage to ask Inuyasha.

"In the end they told me that he had a mild concussion, shattered both of his legs and ruptured his spleen, so he had to go into dual surgery. His legs were set, the spleen was removed, and he had to remain in the hospital for three months to recover." Kikyou went silent, and Kagome felt like she should try and start the conversation again, ending the uncomfortable quiet in the room.

"So that's when you met Naraku?"

"Naraku?" Kikyou seemed to be coming back from a haze as her eyes cleared. "Yes, I met him during those three months." She looked at Kagome like someone who had committed a crime and now felt guilty about it.

"I couldn't stay by his side for twenty-four hours every day, could I? I had to keep going to school. So I would leave every day in the morning, and then come visit him at night before going home, because he insisted that I not sleep at the hospital." Kikyou looked away again.

"Those three months changed me. They reminded me of what it felt like to be a single woman. I would meet people who didn't know Inuyasha, and would assume I was single because my husband was not currently living at home, and I would not tell them otherwise." Tears came to her eyes as she spoke, and her lip trembled slightly. "I enjoyed it. I enjoyed being single, with endless opportunities again."

Kagome sucked in a breath, not sure what to say. Honestly, she couldn't say that Kikyou had done anything wrong in the strict sense, as far as she knew, but then was it wrong to pretend you weren't married?

Leaning back in the plush recliner, Kagome thought long and hard about her own parent's marriage, and how when she spoke to her mother about love, the older woman had always replied that it was beautiful. She recalled a conversation they had once when Kagome was about ten, and still young enough to ask bold questions that made most adults blush.

"Mama, what if when you're married you love someone else?" Mrs. Higurashi had looked up from where she was rolling dough, flower on her cheeks.

"What do you mean Kagome?"

"I mean, what happens if you marry one person, but then fall in love with someone else?"

"Well, if you marry the right person, you won't fall in love with someone else."

"But how do you know if it's the right person?"

"You just know."

"Is that how you are with daddy?" Her mother had smiled then in that way that she only did when her husband was mentioned.

"Yes."

Kagome had looked away for a moment before staring at her mother again. "But don't you ever get tired of being married to daddy?"

"Tired? What do you mean, Kagome?"

"I mean, doesn't it get old seeing him come home every day?"

Mrs. Higurashi had laughed. "You're awfully young to be asking these questions, sweetheart."

Kagome had crossed her little arms and balled her hands into fists at the comment. "Grandpa says being married to the same person for a long time can get boring sometimes. So I'm asking: do you ever get tired of being married to daddy?"

Her mother had truly seemed to think about it, but finally smiled and shook her head. "No, I'm never tired of being married to your father, Kagome. It's the same as with love. If it's the right man, you don't mind spending the rest of your life with him. You don't care that he is the only man you'll ever look at in that special way."

Kagome shook her head free of the memory as she heard a silent sob, looking over to see Kikyou obviously trying to hold back tears. Was her mother right? Had Kikyou married the wrong man, so now deep down she was still looking for her soul mate?

"When did you meet Naraku?" she asked finally, thinking that maybe getting back on topic would help.

"At a hearing where I was observing as an intern. He was prosecuting and, frankly, I couldn't take my eyes off of him. I thought he was brilliant in the way he presented his case, and in the end when he won, I was as happy as any person who knew him personally. He came up to me after the trial, smiled, and said he'd noticed me watching him and asked if I would like to go out for some coffee." She swallowed. "I said yes."

Kagome looked away, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. For some reason, she didn't want to hear about anything that Inuyasha's wife was doing that might hurt him. But Kikyou continued on, as though now that she had started talking, she had to finish.

"We had a good time, and for some reason only the gods can understand, I gave him my phone number. Later that week, he called and asked if I wanted to go dancing at one of the clubs downtown. And again, I said yes. Before I knew it, I was practically dating Naraku, and enjoying every minute of it, only feeling guilty when I would go and visit Inuyasha.

"It wasn't until Sesshoumaru saw us walking down the street that I was forced to come clean with my new beau. I told him everything, breaking down and crying like a fool, and expected him to storm out and leave. But he didn't. He stayed and hugged me and told me everything would be okay."

Smiling slightly, Kikyou rose to her feet and took Kagome's now empty mug, walking back into the kitchen and returning a few minutes later, staring out one of the white-trim windows facing her modest backyard of a small lawn and garden.

Kagome sucked in a deep breath. "So, are you two still seeing each other? Were you two on a date when Sango and I saw you that afternoon?"

Blushing, Kikyou shook her head. "No, that was completely a coincidence. He was working, and I was over talking with one of the lawyers in his firm. I wasn't expecting to see him at all."

"But are you two still, um, seeing each other?"

"Sort of." Kikyou seemed hesitant with her answer.

"What do you mean, sort of?" For whatever reason, Kagome was feeling almost panicky now, wanting to understand just what exactly was going on between Kikyou and this other man Naraku. If it was bad, then Kagome didn't want to know because she would have to keep it from Inuyasha, but if it was something that would help her cousin, she wanted to listen.

"I mean, he still calls me and asks how I'm doing, and that night at the fundraiser he danced with me almost the whole evening."

"I know," Kagome commented without thinking, recalling how Kikyou's husband had been with HER almost the whole evening. This was turning into a soap opera problem, and she didn't like it one bit. "Answer this for me: is he seeing anyone else?"

Kikyou seemed surprised by the question. "No, at least I don't think so."

Kagome frowned. "Then he's still interested in you." She rose from her chair and walked over to stand in front of her cousin, crossing her arms over her chest and planting her feet solidly against the floor. "Are you wanting to stay with Inuyasha, or go with him?"

"What?" Kikyou seemed shocked by the direct question, and looked away with a blush. "I-I don't know."

"It's not like you to not have an answer Kikyou," Kagome stated gently, a small smile on her lips. Her cousin sighed.

"I love Inuyasha. I don't want to see him get hurt. But at the same time, I feel for Naraku too. I don't know what, but I feel something." She looked at Kagome again. "I just need some time."

Kagome backed up and shook her head. "If you think I'm going to help you run around behind Inuyasha's back, you've got another thing coming."

"No, I don't want you to do that. I don't want to go behind his back either."

"Then what are you going to do Kikyou?"

"I don't know." She sighed again. She seemed to do that a lot, Kagome thought absentmindedly as she moved away and over to run her fingers along one of the smooth bookshelves lining the far wall.

Suddenly, the sound of a door opening caught their attention, followed by a very familiar voice. "Kikyou, have we got company? Whose beat up car is that in the driveway?"

Kagome felt her eyebrow twitch slightly at the insult, and stepped around the corner to see Inuyasha slowly making his way down the hallway on his crutches. He stopped when he saw her.

"That would be my beat up car," she stated simply, and leaned against one of the walls of the hallway as she raised an eyebrow. "We physical therapists can't afford limousines, after all."

"Kagome! What, um, what are you doing here?" He glanced over her shoulder at his wife, who was walking toward him with a smile.

"I invited her over to chat," Kikyo said kindly, pecking her husband lightly on the cheek. Kagome looked away, for some reason the simple act of affection tugging at her heart. At that moment, she wanted to be the woman walking down the hall to greet him.

Inuyasha formed a silent `o' and looked back at Kagome while Kikyou took his shoulder pack and hung it up on one of the pegs in the hall. He smiled, and she tried to smile back, but after what she had just heard, it was only half-genuine.

"Are you okay?"

"What?" Kagome blinked herself back to reality, and wanted to smack her mind for being so careless. "Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"You just seem to be thinking about something important, that's all."

"Is there something wrong with that?"

"No, I was just saying that usually you are a little more relaxed."

"What is that supposed to mean? I can be serious when I want to be!" Kagome felt her temper rise, and since she didn't have the heart to yell at Kikyou, she snapped at Inuyasha instead. He frowned and took the bait, snapping back.

"I never said you couldn't be, wench! What's your problem? I was just trying to be considerate!"

The image of Inuyasha moving in to kiss her, framed by the light of the stars and surrounded by the scent of roses, flared up before her eyes, and suddenly Kagome felt her anger deflate into guilt. He didn't deserve that. He cared about her, after all, and she was just using him as a punching bag.

"Sorry," she mumbled dejectedly, and headed for the door, pulling her keys from her purse. "I'd better get going."

Inuyasha watched her walk away with a confused look on his face. What was up? She never acted like that. In fact, after that night at the fundraiser, she hadn't once snapped at him, instead being extra sweet.

Glancing back at his wife, who was currently on the phone with someone, he wondered if she had said something. After all, Kagome only got this touchy when he brought up her past life with Kikyou.

"Kagome, wait," he called, and hobbled in her direction, damning his stupid legs for moving so slow, and finally reached her as she stood, poised to turn the door knob. "What's wrong? And be honest."

"Nothing that concerns you, Inuyasha," she said finally, getting that sad look again.

"You're lying," he stated simply, and watched as she tensed. He prepared himself for another fight, but when it didn't come was surprised.

"Just drop it, okay?" Her voice was tired as she opened the door and started to walk toward her car, but then turned with a small smile on her face, her eyes somewhat more alive like the Kagome he knew. "I'll see you tomorrow at therapy."

He watched her step into her car and start the engine, pulling out of the driveway, before glancing at his wife, still on the phone. What had happened between the two of them?

Shutting the door, he hobbled toward the living room, collapsing on one of the recliners to watch some television, only to notice that the seat smelled like Kagome's perfume. He warmed at the idea that she had been sitting in that chair.

Grabbing the remote, he made a resolution. Whatever was going on between Kagome and Kikyou, he was sick and tired of being in the dark. He was going to find out what the issue was all about.