InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Speaking Through Dreams ❯ Questionable Rejection ( Chapter 1 )

Speaking Through Dreams

 

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha; that right belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. No profit is being made off of this story, so please don't sue me; I have no money.

 

Japanese Words in this Chapter:

Hentai: pervert/perverted

Youkai: Demon

Hanyou: half-demon

Kitsune: fox/fox demon

Arigato: Thank you

Jii-chan: grandpa

Nee-chan: older sister

Inu nee-chan: dog-eared older brother (or just dog brother)

Miko: Shinto (Religion in Japan) priestess

Kami: Japanese god, deity, or a spirit of nature

Ofuda: strips of paper inscribed with Buddhist scriptures, used by monks in exorcism or to ward away evil.

Onegai: Please, I beg you!

Obaa-chan- a familiar way of saying "grandmother" or "old woman"; something like "grandma"

 

Name suffixes: This is something I'm only posting once so that nobody gets confused. Kind of a FYI thing.

-chan: literally means "little" or "cute"; a diminutive name suffix used to address children, female relatives and (close) friends. Also a common endearment. Adding this to a relative's appellation (such as obaachan, "grandma") gives the appellation a familiar tone.

-kun: a name suffix used to address people of equal/lower social standing and/or age; more casual than -san, this is applied almost excessively to males. Can also be diminutive, like a male version of -chan.

-san: a name suffix indicating respect; translates to Mr., Miss or Mrs. Using a plain name is a quite casual way of addressing a person, and unless you know them well it is considered somewhat rude.

-dono: an archaic, outdated name suffix indicating respect; slightly more polite than -san; used to address people of higher rank

-sama: a very respectful, even reverent name suffix; may be translated as sir, lady, lord etc.

 

Chapter 1: Questionable Rejection

 

The walk back to Kaede's village was a long and weary one. Everyone was exhausted from the battle with Naraku and still shaken up over Inuyasha's death. Miroku walked in front and was very solemn and quiet; he didn't once try to grope Sango or act like a hentai. Sango was walking next to Miroku. Neither of them were in the mood for talking, so Sango just tried to comfort Miroku with her presence and at the same time draw comfort from his. But neither of them had much comfort to give, so in the end there was just an uneasy silence between the two of them. Directly behind them, Shippo riding on Kirara's back and was resting. He had worn himself out with grief, anger and despair when he found out about Inuyasha.

 

~~~~~~~Flashback~~~~~~~

 

Shippo recovered from the shock of seeing Naraku killing Inuyasha and Kagome, and was overjoyed to see her alive.

 

“Kagome! I'm so glad you're alright. Where's Inuyasha?”

 

Shippo, in his excitement about Kagome's life, realized that he had overlooked few things. First of all, Kagome now was a hanyou, but that was ok. After all, now she would be able to relate to him better because she was part youkai, which meant that she would be able to love him even more than she already did. The next thing he noticed was that Kagome's hands were covered in dirt like she had just been digging, and also she wasn't smiling nor did she look happy to see him. In fact, when he mentioned Inuyasha, she looked like she would either cry or hit him for mentioning his name. Also she had the smell of death all over her, but it wasn't her death, it belonged to someone else.

 

Shippo put all this information together and came to a conclusion: Inuyasha was dead. But he couldn't be dead. He promised Shippo when they met that they would always be together and protect one another.

 

“Inuyasha you, you, you stupid jerk! How could you die on me when you promised that we would always be there for one another?” Shippo yelled out of frustration and sadness. “You stupid stupid jerk! I can't believe you would die on me! How could you abandon me like this? How…could…you…abandon…me…like…this?R 21;

 

Shippo could no longer just yell to vent his sadness, so he started to cry and beat at the dead ground with his fists. Kagome had been standing there watching the poor kitsune pup express his anguish as he lost control over his emotions. And when Shippo started to cry, Kagome bent down and simply given him an understanding hug.

 

Shippo spent the next hour yelling, crying, and beating, until he simply collapsed under the weight of his emotions and fell asleep.

 

~~~~~~~End of Flashback~~~~~~~

 

As Shippo rested on Kirara's back, Kagome slowly walked at the end of the group. She hadn't said a word since Inuyasha died. Out of everyone in the small depressed group, Kagome was the worst off. Not only was she drowning in grief and guilt, but also her body was having a hard time adjusting to being a hanyou. In one foul swoop Kagome had changed half a species, and along with it came drastic anatomical changes. All at once Kagome was having to adjust to increased strength, having claws and fangs, a drastically and painfully heightened sense of smell and hearing, a new sense of balance because of the physical changes in her body, and worst of all, controlling her youkai blood. Kagome's mind was overwhelmed by the instincts that naturally came with her youkai blood, and a lot of them were scarring her. Like the incredible urge to use her new claws and slaughter Miroku and Sango and the need to taste blood. What scarred her the most though, was that she knew she couldn't totally ignore this new voice in her mind, because these new instincts were the only things that were helping her adjust to her new body.

 

The youkai blood, as scary as it was, was (amazingly) assisting her mind in sorting out all the new scents and sounds that were overwhelming her weak human mind. Where the problem came in was when her youkai blood disagreed with her human mind over what her body should do; like killing the two humans that it saw as a threat. It was mostly just emotions and feelings that they portrayed, but they were capable of suggesting more too, like ideas of killing. Especially since her blood wasn't sealed.

 

How did Inuyasha deal with this? Kagome thought sadly to herself.

 

These instincts are practically taking over my mind! Heh. No wonder he was always so rough. He was trying to control his instincts.

 

Kagome sighed mentally. She really didn't want to think about Inuyasha right now. The painful pressure she kept feeling in her chest and arms was making it hard enough for her to keep her balance, without the distraction of guilt and sorrow running rampant through her mind. But no matter how hard she tried she couldn't get him out of her thoughts.

 

After all she thought to herself, it is your fault he died Kagome. If you had just moved out of danger, like he told you to, then Naraku wouldn't have attacked you. And then Inuyasha wouldn't have had to, to… Kagome let a fresh set of tears run down her face as she remembered the selfless act that Inuyasha had committed for her sake.

 

Kagome could smell the salt from her tears as her youkai blood identified the smell and stored it into memory. She frowned at the smell because it was yet another reminder of Inuyasha.

 

That was the first time Inuyasha ever cried openly. He must have really cared for you to be that open with his emotions.

 

Once again Kagome fell over because she lost her concentration, but nobody moved to help her. She had already expressed her desire not to be helped, and Miroku and Sango didn't want to argue with her. So they waited patiently for Kagome to get herself up and regain her balance before moving on. At least she was falling less frequently now.

 

*******~~~~~~scene change~~~~~~*******

 

By the time they reached Kaede's village it was already night outside, so most of the villagers were asleep. The group was glad, because this way they wouldn't have to deal with unnecessary explanations and the glares that would surely come with Kagome's transformation.

 

When Miroku, Sango, Shippo, Kirara, and Kagome walked into Kaede's hut with downcast eyes, Kaede could immediately tell that something was amiss. The two things that stood out the most where that Inuyasha was missing and that Kagome was now a hanyou.

 

“Kagome, what happened to ye, and where is Inuyasha?” Kaede could see Kagome wince when she spoke. Miroku also noticed this and, wanting to spare Kagome the pain of talking about it, decided to answer the question for her.

 

“We ran into Naraku” Miroku started.

 

Oh, no. This is not going to be good thought Kaede when she heard this.

 

When Miroku finished recapping everything that had happened in the last two days, Kaede moved her eyes from Miroku to Kagome, to see that she was crying.

 

“Kagome, child, I am indeed sorry to hear of your loss. If it is of any comfort to you, Inuyasha is still alive, in a sense. From what I hear, all of Inuyasha's youkai blood was transferred into your body, meaning that his demon conciseness that resided in that blood still exists inside of you. Inuyasha will always be with ye now, for better or worse.”

 

Kagome let a small smile creep across her face for the first time in what seemed an eternity. It was almost like being married; for better or worse.

 

“Arigato, Kaede-obaa-chan. You don't know how much that means to me.”

 

Kaede just smiled and nodded. The rest of the group smiled as well. It was nice to see Kagome smiling and talking again, even if it was only a little bit.

 

“Kagome, I think it would be best for you return to your time tomorrow. Being with your family might help comfort you and help to heal your heart.” Kagome just nodded at the suggestion. Her family was very understanding. They would make her feel better, wouldn't they?

 

`Doubt, fear, danger. Not if you're a hanyou' her demon blood told her.

 

Shut up! That's not like you family. They would never discriminate against someone for the way they are, especially if that someone was you.

 

`Feh, you just keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel better, but I'm telling you, humans aren't very understanding of hanyous. You'll see what I mean eventually'

 

Oh shut up. You don't know what you're talking about, I hope. Kagome finally suppressed her instincts and hoped with all her being that they were wrong about her family. Frowning, Kagome unrolled her futon next to the others. They had already gotten ready for bed and started falling asleep while Kagome was having her little “discussion” with her self. Climbing inside of her sleeping bag, Kagome sighed. She still wasn't used to having instincts with a mind of their own.

 

*******~~~~~~scene change~~~~~~*******

 

Kagome woke up the next morning to the screeching sound of birds chirping. Damn birds Kagome thought as she sat up in her sleeping bag and looked outside to see that it was barely dawn. This new hearing of hers was going to get real annoying, real fast. Flattening her ears against her head and burying them into her sleeping bag, Kagome tried to get at least a few more hours of sleep. She was still tired from the fight against Naraku, and the wound in her neck and her internal wounds were still tender. Sure, the skin on her neck had healed fast enough, but her innards were going much slower. When the miasma was injected into her neck, it wasted no time in seeking out and dissolving her nerve endings, throat, the outermost part of her lungs and heart, her stomach, the bones around her shoulders and chest, and various other internal organs. If it weren't for her miko powers and Inuyasha's youkai blood, she would have quickly died from internal bleeding or, if she hadn't expelled the miasma, simple lack of internal organs. But she was healing now, slowly, and so she needed her rest.

 

Besides, she told herself, you still need to say goodbye to the others.

 

A few hours later, Miroku, Sango, and Shippo were awake and saying goodbye to Kagome and one another. Last night the three of them had decided that they would all spend some time away from each other to figure out their thoughts and feelings and, hopefully, find atonement over the loss of Inuyasha. After all, even though they weren't as affected by Inuyasha's death as Kagome, they were still extremely shaken up by it. For Shippo, it marked the loss of the closest thing he had to a father, and for Sango and Miroku it was a cold reminder that they weren't immortal and one of them could die. Over the three years they had traveled, and after all the times they had cheated death, their mortality had become a forgotten factor. Until now.

 

All goodbyes having been said, Kagome climbed down the sacred well and felt the familiar feeling of weightlessness as the time slip opened up and engulfed her. A few seconds later she felt solid ground beneath her feet. Looking up, Kagome saw the roof of the well house above her head and sighed mentally. She was home.

 

Kagome walked out of the well house and was greeted by the smell of pollution and the sound of traffic and yelling. No wonder Inuyasha doesn't like it here; it's a putrid sensual overload. Kagome thought as she crossed the shrine grounds to her house. From inside she could hear Jii-chan's snoring, her mother cooking breakfast, and Sota watching cartoons.

 

Must be Saturday Kagome thought idly as she approached the front door. I wonder how they will react to my transformation. Kagome could feel beads of sweat gathering on her forehead and she could smell her own nervousness. I guess I should show myself to Sota first; he will take it the easiest. I just hope he doesn't ask about Inuyasha. Kagome shoved that last thought away as quickly as it appeared. Although Kaede's words had helped her immensely, Kagome still wasn't over the fact that Inuyasha, her recently discovered first love, was dead.

 

Taking in a deep breath, Kagome opened the door, being careful not to break or scratch the doorknob with her claws of course, and walked into her family room.

 

“Hi Sota, I'm back.” Kagome said with a weary voice.

 

“NEE-CHAN!” Sota exclaimed a little too loudly “You're ba—what happened to you?!” Sota had just realized Kagome's transformation and looked at her with a mix of aw, excitement, and a hint of jealousy. “You look like Inu nii-chan! Does this mean that you and Inuyasha have mated?” Sota asked looking hopeful; he would love to have his hero Inuyasha be his brother.

 

“YOU AND INUYASHA WHAT!?!?!?” Kagome's mother was standing in the doorway with a look on her face that would send shivers down Naraku's spine. She had walked into the room to tell Sota that breakfast was ready when she heard him say that Kagome and Inuyasha had “mated”.

 

“No mother, Sota was asking a question because of how I look. And would you please not scream so loud, it really hurts my ears.”

 

“Why, what happened to you?” Jii-chan was awaken by Kagome's mother's screams and was standing the top of the stairs with a look of curiosity and dread on his face. If anything has happened to her that will bring dishonor to our family…

 

This isn't looking good. You'd better calm them down and start explaining.

 

`Or kill them before they kill you.'

 

NO! That's your family you're talking about Kagome, and you refuse to do anything to harm them.' Kagome practically screamed to herself.

 

“Mom, Jii-chan, you might want to sit down.” They nodded and moved to get a chair to sit in. It was a good thing Jii-chan and Kagome's mom were in shock over Kagome's metamorphosis or they would be yelling their heads off at her. While they sat themselves down Kagome braced herself emotionally before starting.

 

“Well, about three days ago, me and Inuyasha and our other friends ran into Naraku.” Kagome paused for a breath and everyone shifted in their seats nervously at the mention of Kagome's most powerful enemy. The tension in the air was so thick you could cut it with a knife.

 

“During the fight, Inuyasha and I, were both badly wounded by Naraku and injected by miasma. I was able to drive the miasma out with my miko powers, but was still mortally wounded from it.” Kagome's voice started to tremble at this point as she mentally relived the horrific events that changed her life.

 

“I-I was a-about to, die, w-w-when Inuyasha c-came and saved me. H-He told me that, he w-would give me, his y-youk-kai blood, so that m-m-y body could heal, e-even though it m-meant, that h-he would, he would…” Kagome couldn't bring herself to say what happened to Inuyasha. She let the stream of tears that she had been desperately trying to hold back come pouring out of her, and she cried for two minutes before she was able to continue, at which time she started feeling a sharp pain in her neck.

 

“Inuyasha's youkai blood, saved my life. It sped up my bodies natural healing by turning me into a hanyou, but…”

 

“THAT IS ENOUGH!!!” Jii-chan yelled at Kagome as he stood up. Kagome looked shocked and afraid at Jii-chan's sudden outburst and started to tremble as he towered over her while he continued talking.

 

“Kagome I am utterly disappointed in your lack of half a brain. It was bad enough when you started associating with a demon, but to actually become one??!! Girl, you have brought shame upon yourself and shame upon this family. I forbid you to return to that time before you do some other air-headed thing and bring shame to us in the eyes of the Kami's.” Jii-chan practically spat his demand on Kagome. Disgust was written all over his face and he looked like he was about to try and seal her to a tree. (A/N: no pun intended)

 

Kagome looked to her mother for support, but she didn't look any more pleased than Jii-chan.

 

“I'm sorry Kagome, but I agree with Jii-chan on this one. You have put your life in danger one too many times. I have always told you to be careful, and I actually thought you were listening to my request. But now I see that I was wrong. You didn't honor my request and now look what happened: somebody died. Next time it could be you that dies; it almost was this time! I won't allow you to put yourself in these types of situations any more.”

 

“But mother, I have to go back! Onegai, just…”

 

“Kagome, NO!!! I'm putting my foot down on this. End of discussion.” Kagome's mother gave Kagome a stern angry look as Kagome started to cry again. A knock on the door followed by the sound of it opening and a familiar voice got everyone's attention.

 

“Hello?” Yuka could be seen walking into the room followed by Eri, Ayumi, and Hojo. “Is every thing alright? Sorry, we heard shouting and thought…OH MY KAMI! KAGOME IS THAT YOU!!??” All four of Kagome's friends had mixed looks of shock and horror on their faces. They saw their best friend sitting in front of them crying, but she looked like she was part dog.

 

“Kagome, what happened to you? Is this some sort of sickness or something?”

 

Sota sent an evil glare at Kagome before standing up and addressing Kagome's friends. He knew exactly how he would get revenge on his sister for letting Inuyasha die.

 

“Guess what Yuka, Eri, Ayumi, and Hojo, Kagome has been lying to you for three years!”

 

At hearing this, the now very distraught Kagome started to panic. “Sota, please,” Kagome begged “don't tell them about…” Kagome stopped when everyone in the room, including her friends, glared at her.

 

“Kagome, you keep out of this. You have been living in a fairy-tale long enough. It's time your “friends” found out why you've really been missing school for three years.” Kagome's mother glared at Kagome as she said this. It would hurt Kagome, but it was for her own good.

 

“Thank you mother.” Sota smiled evilly, as he whispered “I hate you” to Kagome. “Anyways, remember when Kagome turned fifteen…”

 

Kagome sat and watched in horror as three years of secrets were spilled out in front of her friends. All she was allowed to do was look at the shocked and hurt faces of her friends as they learned that all their efforts to help her were for nothing, because Kagome had been dishonest. When Sota got to the part where Kagome turned into a hanyou, her friends looked to her frightened, and Yuka even took a step back.

 

“Yuka, Eri, Ayumi, Hojo, please let me explain.” Kagome started to move towards them but they took a step back.

 

“S-Stay away from us demon.” Yumi said unsurely as she continued to slowly retreat. “I'm sorry Kagome, but we don't know you.”

 

Kagome, who was still emotionally shook up over Inuyasha's death and her family's reaction to her, was loosing control of her demon instinct. The more hurt a youkai or hanyou get, the stronger the hold their instincts have on their body. And here was Kagome, who was currently emotionally mutilated and had little control over her instinct to begin with. Her eyes were starting to flash red as the demon blood in her body fought for control so that it could defend her.

 

“Please, listen to me,” Kagome begged as she cried, “you guys are my best friends. You have to understand,”

 

“What we understand, Kagome,” Hojo cut in, “is that you have been lying to us for three years now. You have tricked us into caring about you, you made us worry for you, and you didn't even have the courtesy to tell us the truth about yourself. No friend I know, would act that way. But then again, what can you expect from a demon?” Hojo spat the last word out as he walked forward and slapped her across the face.

 

“Consider our friendship over.” Hojo turned to walk away when he heard a growl from behind him. Kagome's eyes were now blood red, there were two jagged purple stripes on each cheek, and her claws and fangs had grown longer. She had snapped. Hojo, Yuka, Eri, and Ayumi screamed and ran out of the room as Kagome lifted the couch they had been sitting on and threw it after them, growling in fury. The couch hit the doorway and crashed through it before falling to the ground, almost hitting her former friends in the back. She was about to chase after them when she felt something hit her in the back and emit a slight shock. Not enough to hurt, but still noticeable.

 

“Kagome, you have brought dishonor to the Higurashi name and to yourself. You have stooped to the level of a demon and attacked a human being. I hereby banish you from this family and hope to never see you again. DEMON BEGONE!!!” Jii-chan yelled this at Kagome as he threw another ofuda at her in hopes of either sealing her or driving her way.

 

Kagome growled as the small man and tore the ofudas off before leaping at him and gabbing him by the neck. She knew him from somewhere, but that didn't matter; he had attacked her and that was unforgivable. The older woman let out an annoying shriek and the little boy looked at her with a look of horror on his face. She could smell thick fear pouring out of them and she liked it. She raised her claws towards the old man's neck, about to draw blood, when form deep inside of her, something made her stop just as she was about to get her reward and atonement. The feeling was so strong that and instead of attacking the old human, Kagome dropped him roughly on the floor and smashed through a wall.

 

Kagome's demon instincts, like every other beings instincts, were hardwired with two basic commands: fight or flight. And while youkai usually chose to fight, Kagome had forced hers to choose flight instead. So Kagome's demon blood took her to the safest place it knew of. Kagome smashed through the door of the well house, and in a flash, disappeared down the sacred well.

 

A/N: Well, there it is: the first chapter. I hope you all have enjoyed it as much as I have: ) Just to let you all know, I don't start posting a fic until it is finished (personally I hate having to wait 3 months for authors to get up their next chapter). But I don't want to post it all at once because that would ruin the suspense. So the deal that I'm making with you is this: as soon as you want the next chapter, submit a review saying so. As soon as I have enough reviews (probably three or four per chapter) I will submit the next chapter the following day. That way we're all happy; you get another chapter in a timely basis, and I get reviews. Deal? Deal. And as added incentive, I'll even give you a sneak preview of the next chapter, Messages From Beyond

 

Her [Kagome's] relief was short lived however, because as soon as she was 100 meters from the village she saw and heard that she wasn't exactly welcome there. The children that had been playing outside ran to their mothers who quickly sheltered them and took them inside while glaring daggers at Kagome.

 

The other villagers would stop what they were doing when they saw her, and whisper insults as she past by. Although it wasn't immediately their intention, they said things loud enough for her hanyou hearing to pick up. “Hanyou, filthy half-breed.” “Why doesn't she go back to hell where she belongs?” “We should drive that abomination out of the village before it attacks us.” “What is that freak doing here? It's not like anyone wants it around here.” “I don't think that piece of filth is wanted anywhere.” Someone threw a rock at her when she passed and Kagome had to fight to keep the tears in her eyes from spilling out. She knew that if the villagers saw her cry, it would only encourage them to act out more and more harshly.

 

“Hey half-breed! Why don't you crawl back to the filth that spawned you? We don't want our village tainted by your presence, so do yourself a favor, be a good bitch, and go back to hell where you belong!” Kagome could hear the murmurs of agreement echo through the villagers. Fearing for her life and dodging rocks and sticks, Kagome fled the village.