InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ When Love and Death Embrace ❯ We are so young our lives have just begun ( Chapter 1 )

7 months earlier

 

 

A yellow backpack appeared before raven coloured hair slowly made its appearance. With a very unfeminine grunt, Kagome shoved the heavy bag over before hauling herself out of the well.

 

She stretched and took in her surroundings, noticing that not much had changed over the years. The trees were a little taller and fuller, new saplings were growing in the shade of their forefathers, the Hanyou was still beating on the Kitsune.

 

“Wait a minute.” Kagome's eyes flew back.

 

Sure enough, Inuyasha was standing, glowering at Shippou, his fist poised to strike.

 

“Inuyasha, sit!”

 

She winced as the subjugation beads slammed him to the ground. Shippou's eyes lit up and the little fox threw himself at her.

 

“You're back early!” He cried.

 

Kagome felt all the air rush from her lungs as the kit knocked her on her rear. Shippou had grown a lot in the four years she had been travelling through the well.

 

Four, very, long years.

 

Just after her fifteenth birthday she had been dragged into the well by a demon seeking the power of the Shikon Jewel that was housed inside her body. It was then that she met Inuyasha. He had been pinned to the tree by his former lover, who looked a lot like Kagome. Inuyasha didn't trust Kagome, and it took her a long time to break down the walls he had carefully built around his heart.

 

Of course that was after he tried to kill her and the subjugation beads were placed around his neck by Kaede, the old miko who lived in the village and was the sister to the woman Kagome resembled.

 

Along the way they met Shippou. He had been orphaned not long before their paths crossed and he had originally tried to steal the jewel shard that Kagome carried in her possession. Kagome and Inuyasha took him into their protection, becoming the parents he had lost. Kagome cared for him the way any mother would. She fed him, provided him with presents and sweets, mended his clothes, kissed away his tears and the pain of his bumps and bruises. Lately she had taken on the task of teaching him to read and write. And as much as Inuyasha refused to admit it, he had taken the kit on as his son. He had taught him to track and hunt, allowed the kit to practice his magic tricks on him, disciplined him when he was bad. He cared for the kit, whether or not he voiced it verbally.

 

Not long after, they met Miroku, a monk with a curse in his right hand. Granted he was a lecher, constantly proposing to women while grabbing one part of their anatomy or another, but he was also as close to an older brother either of them had. Granted Inuyasha had an older brother, but they didn't exactly see eye to eye. More than once Inuyasha had threatened to remove valuable parts of Miroku's anatomy when he touched Kagome, but Miroku would always blame it on the curse in his palm. It was a shame that he was usually using his opposite hand to grab her.

 

The threats stopped when they met Sango. She was the final survivor of a village that survived on hunting and exterminating rouge Youkai. She had witnessed her family being slaughtered by her possessed brother and was then told that Inuyasha was to blame for the death of the rest of her village. Once they were able to convince her that Inuyasha had nothing to do with the deaths, she joined them in their quest. She was a sister to Kagome, someone that she could gossip with and ask for advice. To Inuyasha she was practically his beta. She was the one in charge of protection when he wasn't around to do it himself. He sparred with her constantly, both teaching her and learning from her. She was a second surrogate mother to Shippou, and she definitely had Miroku's attention since he spent most of his time bruised or unconscious from grabbing her rear.

 

It was the relationship between Inuyasha and Kagome that was probably the most complicated. Granted they were best friends, but there was also an unspoken agreement with regards to their true feelings toward one another. Kagome told him openly that she loved him and wanted to be with him always and he showed her in his own way that he reciprocated the feelings. Of course when they were alone, he would often tell her out loud.

 

There was only one time when he has said it aloud in front of their friends. It also happened to be the first time he told her as well.

 

Kikyo's soul collectors had been circling their campsite for a good hour at the time, much to everyone's irritation. Kagome had watched Inuyasha's ears rotate and flick nervously, making her assume he wanted to run to the dead priestess.

 

“Would you just go?!” Kagome snapped at him.

 

“No.” Inuyasha said, crossing his arms stubbornly.

 

“Kikyo's waiting for you and those creepy worms won't leave until you do!” Kagome yelled, glaring at him.

 

“I'm not going. I told her to send those damn things all she wants, but I ain't following them.” Inuyasha yelled back, sending her a glare of his own.

 

“Just go!”

 

Inuyasha growled and jumped to his feet. He ignored Sango's gasp when he stomped over to Kagome and hauled her up by her arms. “Why do you want me to go so bad?”

 

“Because you love her!”

 

“I don't love her you idiot.” He yelled in her face. “I love you!”

 

Kagome gasped, Sango's jaw dropped, Shippou dropped the pocky he had been happily munching on and Miroku's eyes widened in shock. “What?”

 

“I haven't loved her for a very long time, I don't even know if I really did!” Inuyasha told her. “All I know is that when you're not with me I feel like I'm dying!”

 

Inuyasha had realized what he had said, and who he had said it in front and immediately took off running for the trees. Kagome had noticed happily that it was in the direct opposite of Kikyo's soul collectors.

 

Kagome smiled at her memories as she hugged Shippou tightly and sent him running ahead to the village to tell the others that she had arrived back home. She climbed to her feet and moved closer to Inuyasha. She could hear him muttering about silly wenches who seemed to be a little to sadistic sometimes.

 

“You know, talking to yourself in the first sign of insanity.” Kagome told him, gently flicking one of his ears.

 

Inuyasha raised his head, and cupped his chin in one hand. “So how come you're back so early?”

 

“What, am I not allowed to come back early?” Kagome asked him.

 

Inuyasha pushed himself into a sitting position. “Keh, you say three days, I come for you on day break of the third day, you sit me, you go to school, I follow you, you sit me again and then we argue all the way back to the shrine and through the well.” Inuyasha told her. “You can't just break tradition wench.”

 

Kagome was caught off guard by his teasing, but decided to go with it. “I could always go home.”

 

She climbed to her feet and made it all of two steps before Inuyasha's weight barrelled into her from behind. He turned before they crashed to the ground, taking the brunt of the fall.

 

Kagome grinned down at him, her fingers instantly going to his sides. She had discovered a few months ago that Inuyasha was ticklish when she could catch him in a moment of complete relaxation.

 

“Oi!” Inuyasha yelped as he tried to squirm away from Kagome's twitching fingers. “Two can play that game wench.”

 

Kagome squealed as he sat up and tipped them so that Kagome lay sprawled out beneath him. She rolled away when he pounced, jumping to her feet and running away from him. She giggled as he jumped up and chased her around the clearing. He had become more playful over the past few months, a side that she was quickly learning to enjoy as much as possible.

 

Kagome laughed loudly when Inuyasha's arms caught her around the middle and pulled her against his chest. “Caught you wench.” He breathed into her ear, sending shivers up and down her spine.

 

Kagome sighed playfully and turned in his arms. She reached up and scratched one of his ears. “Yeah, yeah dog boy, I let you catch me.”

 

Inuyasha smirked at her before quickly turning red and leaping as far away from her as he could manage. Kagome gave him a questioning look before glancing over her shoulder to see what had made him freak out so suddenly.

 

Sango stood in the clearing, her arms crossed and an amused smile gracing her lips. Kagome shrugged and passed Inuyasha to retrieve her backpack.

 

“It could be worse, it could have been Miroku.” Kagome told him.

 

“Keh,” Inuyasha muttered, his cheeks turning pinker as he held out his hand. “Give it here wench, you always pack too much.”

 

Kagome handed him the bag and watched him run off towards the village, obviously deciding that she was safe enough with Sango. Kagome sighed and approached her friend; link her arm through Sango's. The two of them set a slow pace for their walk back to the village, enjoying the time away from their respective other halves.

 

“You're back early.” Sango commented. “Is everything alright in your home?”

 

Kagome shrugged. “I just missed everyone that's all.”

 

Sango stopped walking and studied Kagome's face. “Kagome, what's wrong?”

 

Kagome sighed and rubbed her temples, thinking of how to answer that question. “Sango, when you go home to the slayers village, do you ever feel like you don't belong there?”

 

Sango studied Kagome's face quietly. “I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean.”

 

“When I was at home, it was like visiting a friend. I enjoyed my time, had a nice shower and bath, and enjoyed sleeping in my own bed, but it felt strange to think of spending more then one or two nights there.”

 

Sango nodded slowly. “I think I understand. I've felt that way about my village for a long time but I always assumed it was because there is nothing there except graves.” Sango said. “Maybe we feel this way because we know that we have loved ones waiting for us here as well.”

 

Kagome sighed. “I suppose this is how we're supposed to feel. We've struck out on to live our own lives and now our childhood homes just don't feel the same.”

 

Sango nodded her agreement before changing the subject. “You and Inuyasha seem have been having fun.”

 

Kagome blushed and played with a loose thread on her shirt. “I don't understand him; he's been acting strange lately.”

 

Sango smiled softly at her. “I don't think he's acting strange at all.”

 

Kagome made a face that clearly showed her disbelief. “Oh come on! When has Inuyasha ever acted this way before? He's being playful and affectionate!”

 

“He's growing up.” Sango said simply. “None of us really know how old Inuyasha is. His human form appears to be roughly the same age as Miroku, but who knows how old he truly is.”

 

Kagome studied her friend carefully. “Why do I think there's more to this then you're telling me?”

 

Sango looked around as if to make sure that no one could hear her and leaned closer to Kagome. “I think he's courting you, whether he realizes it or not.”

 

Before Kagome could answer, Inuyasha's bellow filled the air. “Oi! You two wenches coming or not?”

 

Kagome rolled her eyes as Sango giggled. “He has such a way with words.”

 

Sango stopped Kagome, well aware of Inuyasha's watchful eye. “Don't forget what I told you Kagome.”

 

Kagome frowned, before glancing at Inuyasha, wondering if maybe Sango was right after all.

 

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or the characters of Rumiko Takahashi. I do own the plot of this story along with any original characters that may make an appearance.