InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The End of Innocence ❯ Rebuke ( Chapter 8 )

A/N: Sooooo sorry I haven't written forever! All right, where was I? You're probably wondering if this fic can get any more depressing - and the answer is: It can! And it will! But only for a bit longer. Maybe one or two chapters. Then something good will happen. I promise (wink). But hey, whoever said that life was supposed to be happy all the time? Anyway, here's the latest! Thanks, Panther Fire, for telling me what I already know! Just Kidding. I love you anyway, PF. Thanks to all of you wonderful regular reviewers - there are now too many of you to thank individually at the beginning of each chapter!

 

Disclaimer: Nope. I honestly don't own them. You don't believe me? Would I spend as much money on related merchandise (i.e. books, DVDs, calendars, posters) if I OWNED these awesome characters? I don't think so. If you take pleasure in buying things from yourself, then you probably have multiple personality disorder (wait, did I tell you this or did Me? They are two VERY different people, you know . . . heh heh).

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The other occupants of the house stared at InuYasha wide-eyed. InuYasha, the half-demon, the strongest of them all, giving in to weakness, emotion? It was as though the axis of the earth had shifted slightly, and gravity was suddenly slightly stronger. They all sat there for a couple of heartbeats, frozen in shock.

 

Then, with the inborn swiftness of a tigress, Sango reached out and swatted InuYasha across the head, hard enough to bowl him over from his crouch so that he sprawled across the floor. “What are you DOING??? Kagome's not DEAD!! She's alive, and she's hurt! Stop sitting there, DO something!!!,” she yelled, pouring it all out in one breath and slamming her Hiraikotsu into the ground for emphasis.

 

InuYasha made a noise in his throat that was halfway between a sigh and a growl, but said nothing. He did not raise his head, which was pressed into the ground. “InuYasha, I agree with Sango,” said Miroku, rising to his feet and striking a sagely pose. “Whatever your feelings are right now, we don't have the time to waste. Kagome is at risk, and so is our mission. This is no time to give in to your grief.”

 

The half-demon did not respond, and Sango drove her weapon deeper into the ground, letting out a short, frustrated grunting noise. “I can't believe this! If InuYasha won't do anything, then I will!,” she said, wiping her hand abruptly across her sweat-streaked forehead. She strode over to the pallet where her friend lay, and reached out to pick her up.

 

Instantly InuYasha sprang into action. Before Sango's hand touched the edge of the blanket, she found his wild eyes staring into her own and his hands gripping her shoulders. “Don't - touch - her,” he growled, spitting out each word like it burned in his throat.

 

He roughly released her and flopped to his knees, scooping Kagome up in one smooth motion. She did not stir, but lay like death in his arms. InuYasha's face was turned down and effectively obscured by his bangs as he spoke, his voice raw.

 

“Dammit, Kagome. I really fucked up this time. There's nothing I can do to change that. I failed ya. But don't you DARE die on me!,” he roared, and sprang through the doorway.

 

“That's the InuYasha I know,” said Miroku, and ran off in hot persuit. Sango said nothing, but set her lips determinedly, as if bracing herself. “Kirara!”

 

The demon slayer grabbed Shippo, who was still staring wide-eyed at the place where InuYasha had been standing. “Is he really okay again?,” he asked as Sango grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and swung herself onto Kirara's back outside the door, adjusting her Hiraikotsu with a brisk, automatic motion. The firecat yowled as her legs and tail began to give off sparks, then rose rapidly into the air.

 

Kaede had moved out of the hut and was standing in the doorway, waving. Shippo half-heartedly returned the gesture, but Sango was too absorbed in scanning the terrain for InuYasha and Miroku to notice.

 

After they'd leveled out in altitude, Sango spoke, still staring ahead. “I don't know, Shippo. He may be about to do something stupid. That's why we're following him.”

 

“Does he know that Kagome should be brought through the well?,” asked the little fox demon, a tinge of doubt showing in his voice.

 

“Yes. I told him that when I found him . . . but I'm not sure that he even heard me.” Sango thought back to her meeting with InuYasha, and shuddered. He'd been holed up in a thicket, not in the top of a tree, as usual, but slumped against a trunk on the ground. She had been able to walk up to him without him even grabbing his Tetsaiga - and she had NEVER known him to leave his defenses open like that. InuYasha even slept sitting up with his sword in hand!

 

She'd called his name, and he hadn't even looked up. But as soon as she mentioned Kagome, he stood up. Taking this as agreement, Sango had turned and begun running back to the hut, and realized something was wrong when InuYasha didn't overtake her - it was impossible! He could easily run five times as fast as her! - but hadn't turned around. It was too important to get back to Kagome.

 

And now he'd picked the girl up and was off to do SOMETHING - but in his current state, Sango wasn't entirely sure that that something would be better than jumping off a cliff. She'd never seen InuYasha so emotionally unstable before, and, much as she hated to admit it, it frightened her.

 

Of course, she'd seen him in his demon state before, when his blood was not restrained by the Tetsaiga, and she remembered his madness and ability to fight to the death without feeling pain. But this was something entirely different - instead of being numb to pain, InuYasha was allowing himself to be consumed by it.

 

She urged Kirara on, pulling her knees in very slightly and then releasing them. The firecat could read Sango's subtle signals as well as any spoken command, and immediately leapt forward, her tail flaming briefly brighter. Sango scanned the landscape below once again, the sun in her eyes hampering her vision.

 

Where was Miroku? Had they passed him without noticing it? She snorted in annoyance and looked down again.

 

Finally, she saw him just ahead, and signaled to Kirara to descend. As they came beside the monk, Sango was surprised to see that he appeared genuinely out of breath. Miroku was generally incredibly fit, and could keep up with Kirara when she flew just above the ground, but even he was panting slightly as she reached out her hand and swung him onto Kirara's back behind Shippo. She liked to keep a good distance between her rear and his lecherous hands, even in a crisis like this!

 

“You must have really pushed yourself. It took us more than ten minutes to catch up to you,” said Sango, impressed in spite of herself.

 

“InuYasha is being very reckless. He shouldn't have moved Kagome so quickly considering the condition she's in,” said Miroku, a frown pressing his expressive eyebrows into sharp curves. “I hope that he doesn't do anything stupid.”

 

Shippo looked at him skeptically. “Since when has InuYasha been known for thinking things over? We'd better catch him before he makes Kagome worse!,” he said, his voice turning into a high-pitched squeal with the last words. “Kagome - she - if she - InuYasha is such an idiot!,” he managed, and buried his little face in his hands.

 

Sango and Miroku shared a look over Shippo's head, then Sango nodded decidedly and turned around. Miroku rubbed his hand along the back of his neck, realizing that the unspoken duty had fallen on him. He began to speak, choosing his words carefully. “Shippp . . . it may be better if you just try to stay quiet when we find InuYasha. If you bother him, he may get mad. It might be better for Kagome if you let Sango and I do the talking, okay?”

 

Shippo looked defiantly up at the monk. “I'm not gonna shut up and sit there if InuYasha does anything to hurt Kagome!”

 

“Of course, Shippo. We're not asking you to. But please try not to aggravate InuYasha. We don't what he's doing, or how he'll react when we find him,” replied Miroku, his tone calmly serious.

 

Sango, listening with one ear as she continued to scan the terrain, was, as always, slightly envious of his ability to remain calm under stress - or at least pretend convincingly. She'd trained her reflexes and tracking skills intensively - but her strict physical training had done nothing towards helping control her emotions, especially her temper. Speaking of which, Shippo should stop whining NOW, she thought, and whipped her head around before the fox demon could respond to Miroku's placating statement.

 

Shippo, feeling the Tajiya's gaze on him, shifted to meet her eyes, and made a small noise that sounded like ulp before nodding his head and shutting his mouth.

 

They rode in silence for a minute, which was broken by a statement Miroku. “InuYasha's trail is leading us towards the Bone Eater's Well.”

 

Sango cursed herself mentally for failing to notice their path earlier. “Kaede told us that she should be taken to her time, but I hope InuYasha doesn't leave before we catch up to him,” she said, trying not to think of the possibility that she might miss Kagome's last time on this side of the well, that Kagome might - she cut her thoughts abruptly short and pointed her face directly into the wind, forcing her eyes to water until there was no moisture left to create tears. This is NOT the time to be crying like a child. There is work to be done.

 

She looked down again, and saw InuYasha, rapidly growing larger as they gained on him. She called out his name and raised her arm.

 

But he didn't even turn his head. If anything, his frantic jumps appeared to accelerate in speed, and Sango did not need to urge Kirara to speed up to match him. They had already pulled downward and were a mere dozen yards from InuYasha when the well came into sight.

 

“InuYasha! Stop!,” yelled Miroku, his voice strained but commanding. “Don't leave just yet!”

 

Kirara swung expertly around to place her body between InuYasha and the well, touching down as she did so. Sango and Miroku were off her back in an instant, weapons at the ready.

 

InuYasha finally appeared to notice them, and his face twisted into a mask of rage. “Get OUTTA my way!,” he snarled, and sidestepped Kirara almost faster than the eye could follow his movements. Before Sango could do more than gasp and throw out a helpless hand, he had jumped into the well, Kagome's hair lifting slightly into the air with the speed of the motion for an instant before they disappeared.

 

Shippo hopped straight off Kirara's back and onto the edge of the well. “InuYasha! Come baaaaack!,” he cried, and stared down into the darkened well.

 

The little fox demon gasped in shock, then, without a word suddenly leapt into the well. Sango and Miroku exchanged a look before approaching the edge. Sango began hesitantly,”Shippo . . . only InuYasha and Kagome can go through - “ but was interrupted by a cry.

 

“She's here!,” said Shippo, his voice sounding small and far away in the darkness. The monk and the demon slayer leaned over the edge. “InuYasha left her!,” he added, his quavering voice touched with indignance. Peering down, Sango could just make out the lighter color of Shippo's hair among the shadows of the well. She could not see Kagome.

 

Flicking her head to the side, she glanced quickly at Miroku. “But - why would he - ,” she stopped, her sentence ending in a strangled gasp of frustration. “I'm going down there,” she said, and flipped one leg over the edge. “Sango, please!,” began Miroku - but he was never able the finish his sentence.

 

A rushing sound filled the air, and leaves swirled up to surround the opening. Before Sango could move away, InuYasha shot from the well like a bullet, moving so quickly that he appeared to be merely a flash of red against the woods. He rose above the treetops, flying across the noonday sun, which blinded Miroku and Sango as they attempted to follow his flight.

 

Finally he arced downwards, landing with a thud a few paces away, his back to the others. Sango noted with relief Kagome's hair hanging over his shoulder and pale feet barely visible at his other side. Shippo clambered over the edge of the well, breathing heavily as he tumbled onto the forest floor.

 

“InuYasha, what happened?,” asked Miroku, his voice level, as he carefully took a step towards the half-demon. Sango followed, fearing what she might see: the red, crazed eyes of a creature who would not hesitate to tear them all to pieces. Sango took another step closer, then another. InuYasha did not move. Very slowly, she reached out a hand towards his shoulder.

 

Taking a deep breath, she attempted to steady her voice and try again. “InuYasha, please speak to us.” She placed her hand gingerly on his shoulder.

 

Slowly, InuYasha turned his head. His eyes were red . . . but not with the glow of his demon state. Bloodshot and crusted, InuYasha's eyes appeared tired and worn. His was pale as he opened his mouth to speak.

 

“She didn't go through. I jumped . . . she left my arms when I reached to bottom. We couldn't go back,” he said.

 

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