InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ To Nowhere ❯ The Rain ( Chapter 14 )

Disclaimer: do I really have to do this every chapter or is that just something people started doing just because? I think you all know by now that I don't own Inuyasha. I mean, I am calling fanfiction, right?

A/N: Wow! I got so many reviews since my last update. Thank you to JigglyPuff25, AutumnFire, Mija aka Maryann , shirahime, essie, MIztikal_Dragon, and Kagome14. A lot of you asked me to go read your stories and I will as soon as I get the chance. Thank so much for letting me know what you thought about my story. Please keep letting me hear from you! I'm looking for a beta reader right now, so hopefully I can fix some of my really irritating typo problems.

Oh, and whoever recommended me on the yahoo list… THANK YOU & I LOVE YOU! ^_^

Please enjoy!

**

A cool breeze rubbed against Kagome's sensitive skin. Her cheeks were red and puffy from hours of crying and the cold air refreshed her worn out body. For a moment she snuggled against her blanket and basked in the cool breeze comforting her sore muscles. Then, she remembered why her eyes were sore. She groaned and buried herself under the blanket as she recalled the words she had said to Inu Yasha. Ever since she had said them she wanted to take them back. She should have just accepted that he loved her instead of fixating on every detail of their relationship.

But the damage was done. She breathed loudly, listening to the empty cave as small drops of water echoed against the stone walls. She curled up in the semi-darkness and wished she were not alone. She knew Inu Yasha was just outside, but the sheer fact that he refused to stay inside with her caused more pain than if he would have up and left. After their argument, she had walked on back to the cave and he did not follow. She had hoped that he would chase after her and apologize for everything he had done. She had hoped he would nag on her until she forgave him. It didn't happen.

Kagome knew she had overstepped some boundary. She had rebuilt the wall between them that she had spent so much effort tearing down. She had pushed his thoughts back to Kikyou and he was sad again. She sat up in the cold morning air and pulled her knees up to her chest. It seemed that her life was in a downward spiral. She should have known how he would react if she brought up the past. She should have known the answer before she asked. She only hoped she had been wrong. In her heart she had believed that he would dedicate himself to her and only her. She had believed that he would give her his whole heart like she did him. But she should have known it was all too much to ask.

She sat alone, staring at the blank wall in front of her. There had been so many times when she had admitted to herself that she could never come between him and Kikyou. She had acknowledged out loud that their bond was much too strong. Yet, in the end she still expected him to walk away. She still expected him to belong to her indefinitely. Now she had to deal with the pain that she had caused on her own. She had to be alone while the man she loved was outside alone as well. She had caused him unnecessary pain and she hated herself for it.

She turned her head and stared out the mouth of the cave from where she sat in the corner. She leaned her head on the cool stone and frowned at the weather. Only dim light filtered into the cave and outside the sky was dark and bland. Kagome felt the moisture lying heavy on the air and she observed the stillness outside as the trees stood motionless against the dark sky. A rainy day was not what she had hoped for but she felt it definitely fit her mood. She pulled her blanket tighter around her body and crawled to the front of the cave, hoping it would somehow bring her closer to Inu Yasha. She poked her head out into the stale air and searched for him, thinking up how she would get him inside away from the weather.

Her face scrunched up in disapproval when she saw him nowhere in sight. She mumbled to herself and backed under the cover of the cavern. She decided that he was still nearby, just avoiding her. He was probably angry… not that she really blamed him. Her quest for the truth seemed reasonable enough at first, but it now just seemed downright invasive to Inu Yasha's privacy. She was much happier before she went asking the questions that had no easy answer. She could not even remember what she wanted to him to say when she asked. If she had put more thought into it, she might have seen the consequences beforehand. But the damage was done. The words she said and his response were only left as a blur in her mind. The only thing she really felt was the hurt and emptiness that had been left. She sighed and slammed her back against the wall. Her luck only seemed to get worse.

She watched the wind pick up in the gray morning light as it rustled through the treetops. When some of the air ripped into the opening of the cave she smelled the freshness of the forest. It reminded her of the first time she met Inu Yasha. Her teeth gritted as she tried to desperately think of something happy to occupy her mind. Things like shopping, ice cream, and fast food. Yet, it only made her more depressed. She wasn't sure if she would ever be able to experience any of those things again. Her stomach turned at the thought. If she could not go home and if things never improved between her and Inu Yasha, she would be completely lost. Forever.

**

The heavy blanket of clouds that loomed overhead shadowed the horizon as Sango and Miroku neared what they believed to be the village where Kagome was first infected. Kirara smoothly brought them to the ground and they stepped off, staring at the empty village intensely before they moved. From where they stood, just outside the cluster of houses, the village looked completely deserted. Doors were left opened and others were ripped apart. The pathways between the homes appeared as though they had been undisturbed for days. Sango squinted her eyes, trying to catch any movement in the poor lighting and she turned her head back to Miroku to see if he noticed anything.

"There is a lot of Jyaki present here so I have no doubt we found the right village. However, we must be careful upon entering. This level of evil energy is a little disturbing." He said in response to her unspoken question.

She nodded and turned back to face the village. She pulled her mask over her face and replied back "I'll go in first since I have more protection. I'll see if there is anything alive." Her voice was firm, hiding any nervousness that may have existed.

Miroku's voice, on the other hand, betrayed him ever so slightly. "You shouldn't go in alone though…"

"I have Kirara." She said, already climbing on the fire cat's back. "I'll be fast. We can't risk you getting infected."

Sooner than her last words exited her mouth, she was off. Miroku stood and sighed, hoping he did not appear too worried.

Kirara first circled above the village and Sango looked down below her. The entire place was quiet. Eerily quiet. No people. No animals. Nothing. She used all the concentration she could as they circled a second time while she tried her best to keep hiraikotsu balanced while she leaned over Kirara's back. She understood she would have to land on the ground and inspect the village by foot. When they landed, she slowly removed herself from Kirara and walked carefully, listening to the sound around her. She could hear the rustling of the wind against nearby trees and heard the shifting of her armor as she walked between the empty houses. The wind came in scattered gusts that tore between the villages making high-pitched noises. She couldn't help but think it sounded oddly like screaming in the dead silence.

She walked up to the largest building and slowly stepped on the wood paneled flooring. She cringed as it creaked but continued walking slowly down the corridor. The day was suddenly much darker than she remembered. The clouds were growing thicker and light was barely able to penetrate the deep gray sky. She was surprised at how quiet it suddenly grew. The wind stopped and she could hear nothing but her own heart beating heavily in her chest. She tried to remind herself she had nothing to fear but she remained tense and alert. She felt a strange feeling and it told her something deeply threatening waited nearby and it made her hair stand on end. She heard Kirara breathing behind her and she felt relieved knowing she was still in her larger form in case they had to defend themselves.

Sango shook her head. She reminded herself that they were battling a sickness and not an actual demon. It wasn't like a disease was going to come out and attack them. They were only looking to see if anyone found a cure. It was as simple as that. She sighed and her lips felt warm beneath the mask. She also knew something destroyed the village before they arrived. She had to be ready to fight just in case. They knew nothing of what they were dealing with so anything was possible.

As she neared the open doorway to the main room she flinched. She thought she saw movement in front of her but realized it was only a shadow. Her fears returned ten fold when she saw the shadow move. She bit her lip and paused, waiting to see if whatever it was would emerge from the room. For a long moment nothing happened. She almost decided that she imagined the movement, but before her eyes the shadow suddenly seemed to lift from the ground. She instinctively stepped backward as the dark area on the wood in front of her started to below up from the wood. She gripped hiraikotsu firmly and waited for her moment to attack. Kirara moved beside her and started a low growl.

The shadowy object in front of them began to grow and transform. It drifted upwards like black smoke and it slowly started to form an opaque but solid figure. The figure seemed more human than it did anything else by its shape but it had no features or other distinguishable qualities. It was solid black and slightly obscured by the cloud of smoky substance that surrounded it, slowly combining with the figure itself. The figure had clear arms and legs but it was slightly distorted. The ends of the appendages would disintegrate then reform as if they were having trouble trying to hold their shape. At the top of the torso was what appeared to be a head though there were no eyes or mouth. All the same, the `head' turned in Sango's direction and kept its position as though it could truly see her.

Sango held her breath. She was unsure of what her next move would be. She had not anticipated anything like what she saw standing before her. She did not even know what it was or how it was related to any of the things that had been happening. The only thing she really did know was that she was frightened. Her only defense was hiraikotsu and her sword. Neither seemed very reliable when the figure appeared to be very effective at regeneration. Her mind screamed at her. The longer she waited the larger it seemed to become as more smoke rolled into the form.

She stepped back slowly, watching its movements carefully. It stayed where it was. She felt a chill run down her spine as she inched further. She did not expect it to let her escape without a fight so she concluded there might have been another one. They might have her cornered. She tightened her grip, preparing her body for whatever was going to come. The figure stayed immobile for a while longer and then moved back into the room. Sango felt a temporary surge of relief until she saw the black smoke seeping out from under the sliding door right beside her. She leapt out of the way as quick as she could and spun around to face the building from the dirt walkway in between the houses. Kirara stayed partly in front of her, ready to defend her at all costs.

The figure started to form again right before her eyes. This time it formed much more rapidly. She waited until the form was clear in front of her and she pulled hiraikotsu back, ready to try her luck. When the smoke diminished enough that she could clearly see the outline of the dark figure she spun her weapon in its direction. Hiraikotsu hit its target perfectly and tore open the paper doorway on its journey, sending wood chips violently into the air. She watched her theory proven as the figure was sawed in half and immediately reformed in front of her. It only took a matter of seconds.

The form appeared as though it was about to charge her when a sudden clasp of thunder stopped it in its tracks. Sango kept her eyes glued on the shadowy shape but it started to disintegrate and reform repeatedly as though it was panicking. Sango relaxed slightly as the object finally turned to smoke and went back inside the room. She stood outside for a few more minutes after she felt heavy raindrops. She turned to Kirara and quickly left the village, looking for Miroku. She saw him heading into the village below her.

"No! Wait!" She called from above his head.

He looked up and appeared extremely happy to see her. Sango took Kirara down and she picked him up and they flew deep into the cover of the forest. Once they arrived at a comfortable distance, Sango threw off her masked and turned to Miroku.

"Did you see it?!" she asked breathlessly.

"See what?" he questioned, covering his head from the rain falling through the tree limbs.

"IT!" she yelled. "I don't know what it was!"

"Well…" he said, becoming confused.

Sango paused and tried to catch her breath though she lost it again when she started talking. "It, it was a thing… I don't know. It looked like it was made out of smoke. I tried to hit it with hiraikotsu but it didn't work. I don't know what it was."

"Was it a demon?" Miroku asked, trying to understand what she was telling him but it wasn't making much sense.

"Yes… it had to be. But I couldn't kill it. It just went back into one of the houses."

Miroku looked thoughtful for a moment and Sango's eyes lit up, hoping he knew how to solve the mystery. She was severely disappointed. "I have no idea what that is."

**

Kagome paced in front of the cave. Outside, the rain was pouring down like a blanket. She could no longer see the trees or the hot springs below. Inu Yasha had not returned and she was hungry and worried. She chewed on her lip as her speed increased while she walked back and forth. She refused to believe that he had just left her, but there was little other explanation for his absence. The only thing worse than him leaving her was that something had happened to him. She did not want to believe either one. She could not imagine he would be that angry with her just because of what she had said the previous night. He did say that he loved her, after all. She did not see what right he had to leave her because he was still in love with his ex-girlfriend. Kagome grimaced to herself.

She pulled her arms tightly around her body and stared into the falling water. Cold droplets hit her face as the wind pushed the water in the cavern and her hair glittered with the tiny raindrops scattered through her long hair. Her clothes were damp and she was getting cold. She expected Inu Yasha to bring her something to eat but he never showed. The more she thought about it, the more upset she became. She scanned the invisible horizon in search of him. She saw nothing but the endless rain and occasional flash of lightening.

She began walking back and forth from the back of the cave to the front. Sure, logically speaking, changing her direction of pacing would not bring him home any quicker but she was willing to try anything. At the back of the cave, she turned around and as she looked out into the downpour she thought she saw a flash of red. It was brief and her mind told her it was probably just her imagination but she was too upset to care. Her hopes seared up and she ran onto the awning outside the cover of the cavern. She put her left hand on the wall by the entrance of the cave and kept her hakui pulled tightly over her body as she squinted through the blinding rain. She no longer saw what she hoped was Inu Yasha and she inched forward to get a better look. Just in case.

When she did, however, her sandal slipped on the wet stone and her ankle twisted below her. She lost her footing and slid down the steep stone slope. She tensed as she hit the ground at the ground. Pain surged through her body and she took a moment to gather her bearings. The spot she landed in was surrounded by tall rock that would be impossible for her to climb. She was drenched in water and her ankle was throbbing in pain. She looked up to the cavern above and the rain hit her face violently, stinging her eyes. She backed against one of the stones and curled herself into a ball, trying to conserve as much heat as she could. She called for Inu Yasha but he didn't come. She continued to whimper his name after she was tired of yelling, but she knew she was alone.

**'

A/N: Ch. 14… yay! I'm really happy with this chapter… not sure why really, but I hope you liked it too. Please review!