Other Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Kagome's Trial ❯ Chapter 11

My summer's end is coming up far too quickly for my liking. I have just two days left, and then it's over. This is one of the few disadvantages of being a band officer. Oh, well. Hope y'all enjoy the chapter.

 

Kagome4Hiei: You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear that you liked it. I posted this story knowing that it wouldn't get a lot of reviews because not many people who watch Inuyasha will know about Golden Sun too, and if they don't know about it then they won't read stories about it. That's why your reviews mean that much more to me! Hopefully you'll like this chapter, too.

 

~*~

 

In the months that Felix and Kagome stayed with Saturos, they grew accustomed to him and he to them. He taught them the Proxians' way of thinking and demonstrated why they thought that way. Every week he would take them to the edge of Gaia Falls to measure how much of their world was being taken away. It didn't seem like much, but when he told them how little was lost in earlier years and in how much time, they quickly became believers. He even took them on a trip to Hesperia to examine the Lighthouse. The Valean adults weren't thrilled when they heard about that, but they didn't know until they came back. And of course, Saturos took them to Mars Lighthouse. They couldn't find their way to the top, but the part they did examine was fascinating.

 

Kagome and Felix were trying their luck at deciphering some of Saturos' precious scrolls while he was out in the practice ring with Menardi. “You know, I never would've thought Saturos could be so nice,” Kagome commented.

 

“Why is that?” Felix asked distractedly.

 

“When we first saw him, he looked so strange, and he threatened the elders. Then he took us in when Puelle said we needed someone to show us why the Lighthouses needed to be lit. Now he's like our brother.”

 

Felix looked up from his scroll. “He's come a long way. He didn't know the first thing about caring for younger people, remember?”

 

She laughed, recalling the look on his face when Puelle left them alone. “He's such a nice person. He wasn't kidding when he said he was the scholarly type, though. He's still stronger than we are, and he does train, but he literally does read every chance he gets. Not that it's a bad thing.”

 

Kagome stood and set her scroll aside. “I need to stretch a bit,” she announced. “If I don't come back before Saturos, will you tell him I've gone out?”

 

“Sure,” he replied. “When do you plan on coming back? It's cold outside.”

 

“It's always cold outside,” she retorted. “I don't know how long I'll be out. Not too long, I think.”

 

She grabbed her fur coat and walked out into the snow. Waving to some of the people who were familiar to her, she turned her feet to the track that would lead her to Gaia Falls. She knew it was dangerous to go there by herself, but she didn't plan on going into the water; she would just watch the endless waterfall at the edge of this world.

 

Thoughts of her old life came unbidden to her mind. She had basically given up hope that she would be taken back to her own world. Do they miss me? Do they even know I'm missing? Is Inuyasha worried about me? No, he probably convinced Kikyo to travel with them and be his shard detector. I'm only a copy of her, after all.

 

It was cold enough for water to freeze; actually, it was well below that level, but Gaia Falls still kept moving. The water must be moving too fast to freeze solid. Kagome watched it tumble over the edge into…nothing. This was the danger that threatened all of Weyard. So far only the Proxians were interested in stopping this menace. The Valeans should help; everyone should help. Saturos showed us so much; if only everyone else knew what we know and see what we see.

 

“Kagome,” a voice said behind her.

 

She spun around. “Who's there?” she demanded, holding her coat close.

 

“You know me, child,” the voice said. “Come toward me.”

 

Feeling compelled to obey, she did as she was told and quite suddenly came face to face with the floating eye that first brought her to Weyard. “What are you doing here?” she asked nervously, afraid she knew the answer.

 

“There is no more threat to the Elemental Stars for now,” the thing answered her. “There may never be again.”

 

“What about Saturos and the other Proxians? They will never stop looking for them.”

 

“They will be punished in due time. For now, it's time for you to go home.”

 

“Wait, I haven't said good-bye or anything. Please can I tell them?” she pleaded desperately.

 

“I'm afraid not. You are leaving now.”

 

Everything faded together is swirling bright colors. She felt like she was being suspended in nothing. NOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I didn't get to say good-bye to them! I'm sorry, everyone.

 

When she came to, she was in the exact spot where the eye had taken her to Weyard. I'm home, she thought numbly. I'm finally home.

 

~Three Years Later~

 

“Inuyasha, look out!” Kagome shouted at the hanyou when she saw Naraku's tentacles about to pierce his back.

 

He leaped out of the way and severed them from the rest of Naraku. “Thanks,” he called over his shoulder.

 

She didn't answer, focusing instead on the demons coming at her and Shippo and exterminating them. It had been three years since she left Weyard. Only a few hours had passed in her world the entire time she was gone, and after a while, she thought it was a dream. Later, she forgot about it entirely. Now she and her friends were in the final battle with Naraku. They knew they would probably die in battle, but they would stop the half-demon; this had been their goal for over three years now.

 

“Die, Naraku!” she heard Inuyasha yell. Glancing over, she saw him take on Naraku himself.

 

Be careful, Inuyasha, she thought.

 

“Miroku!” she heard Sango scream. Kagome looked over just in time to see the monk fall, his staff split in two, and tentacles going completely through his body. Sango went berserk, swinging her Hiraikotsu left and right. Recklessly going into the thick of things, the demon slayer was taking out twice as many demons as before, but she also left herself open to attack.

 

“Sango, no!” Kagome shrieked, trying to make a path through the demons with her arrows, but it was too late; one demon got in a lucky shot and put a clawed hand completely through her stomach. She took that one out, but another demon sliced her back open. She went down next to her beloved monk.

 

“No.” Kagome denied what had just happened. “We lost them both.” With rage fueling her power, she shot into the demon horde again, her arrows going farther and destroying more demons than before. However, there were too many of them to defeat by herself. Whenever she purified a row of them, more came to take the places of the fallen.

 

Then Shippo started throwing his fire into the demons' midst. Koga and his wolf demons ravaged them on the other side, and Sesshomaru sliced through more with the re-forged Tenseiga. Everyone was doing their part to take down Naraku. With their help, the demon horde dwindled.

 

A demon crept up behind Shippo, but he was too busy to notice, and Kagome was now too far to warn him. She watched with horror as the demon reared back and struck at her son. Right before the demon swallowed the young fox demon, Kirara leaped down and sank her jaws into the demon's neck. The demon shrieked and swung its head violently around, trying to dislodge the kaneko. After one particularly hard swing, Kirara went flying into the ground, stunned. The demon's head whipped down and snapped the valiant kaneko in two.

 

Shippo watched the whole thing and went nuts when he saw what happened to Kirara. He started hurling fire in a frenzy. Kagome tried to make her way back over to him, afraid he would tire and have no protection against the attacking demons. She didn't make it in time. She was about a quarter of the way to where he was when she saw a crow demon come at him from above and snatch him right off the ground. In the air, it ripped him into pieces.

 

“Shippo!” she cried. Tears filling her eyes, she turned and saw Koga get picked up by one of the Birds of Paradise, the mortal enemies of the wolf demons. She aimed and fired an arrow at it and managed to incinerate it. As Koga dropped, a snake demon shot up from the throng and swallowed him.

 

Kagome watched, horrified, as the snake demon absorbed the Jewel Shards in his legs. Koga… Burning with anger, she fired her arrows once again into the demons and watched them disappear. She shot a path to the snake demon and used her hands to purify it, not bothering with arrows. Once it disappeared, she took its Jewel Shards and put it in one of her pockets.

 

Now she could clearly see Inuyasha and Naraku. Both looked like they'd taken a beating, but neither of them was ready to give up. Looking at the fighters still fighting on their side, Kagome figured they didn't need her as much and ran towards Inuyasha. As she ran, she saw one of Naraku's tentacles get behind the other hanyou and wrapped itself around his neck. Breaking off his attack, Inuyasha's hands went to his neck, but were unable to loosen its grasp. Kagome fired one of her few remaining arrows and broke off the tentacle. Gasping, Inuyasha quickly got back on his feet and brought the Tetsusaiga back to an attack position. “Stay back, Kagome,” he ordered, not taking his eyes off Naraku.

 

“You don't want the woman in danger?” Naraku asked condescendingly. “You really are weak.”

 

“We'll see who's weak!” the hanyou retorted. “Now die!”

 

They exchanged blows again. Inuyasha used his Kongo Souha and got lucky; the flying crystals distracted Naraku when he fired off his miasma, so he didn't see Inuyasha use the Backlash Wave until it was too late. There was a surprised look on his face as well as disbelief when Inuyasha slammed into him. The resulting light was so intense that Kagome had to shield her eyes and turn away.

 

Looking back, she saw no Naraku, but no Inuyasha, either. Scanning the surrounding area, she located the downed hanyou a few yards away. She ran to him and knelt by his head. “Inuyasha?” she whispered.

 

He opened his eyes and gave her a small smile. “Did I do it?” he asked weakly.

 

She nodded, tears running down her face. “Yes, you did it; Naraku is finally defeated.”

 

“That's good to know.” He closed his eyes and his breathing became shallow.

 

“Inuyasha, what's wrong? Please tell me, and I'll heal you.” Kagome's voice became desperate as his face grew very pale.

 

“I'm sorry, Kagome, but I think this is it for me,” he said hoarsely.

 

She shook her head. “No, I can heal you,” she declared. “Please don't leave me, Inuyasha. I love you!”

 

“I love you, too, Kagome,” he said, his eyes growing glassy. “I'll always love you, and I'll always be there for you in spirit. But please keep living; don't waste away. Find someone else who can return your love. If things had gone differently, I could've done that, but it's too late now. Good bye.” He closed his eyes and breath left his lungs.

 

“Inuyasha. NO!!!!!!!!!” She screamed and sobbed bitterly, holding his still body close to her, unaware that the battle had ended with Naraku's death, and the demons had drifted away. She didn't care. Everyone close to her was dead, as was the person she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

 

How long she stayed there, sobbing, she didn't know. When she finally realized where she was, it was already dark. It was too late to find the bodies of her friends, so she lay down beside her dead love and waited for sleep to claim her. She knew it was dangerous, but it didn't matter if she died now; that way she could be with her friends.

 

In the morning, she woke, hoping that yesterday was a dream. That hope was dashed the moment she saw Inuyasha. Fresh tears filled her eyes, and she let them fall, not having the strength to stop them. That didn't stop her mind from functioning completely, though. Haltingly walking to where Naraku had been killed, she picked up the almost complete Shikon Jewel. Taking out the bottle containing her shards and the two from Koga, she added them to Naraku's piece and they all melded together, forming the complete jewel. A thought struck her. I can wish them back to life!

 

“It would not be wise to wish them back,” a cold voice said behind her. It was Sesshomaru.

 

“What do you mean?” she demanded.

 

“I know what you are thinking, and it would not be wise,” Inuyasha's older brother repeated. “That wish is not a pure one.”

 

“Are you saying that wishing them back to life is selfish?” Kagome asked incredulously.

 

He nodded. “The dead should stay dead.”

 

“Look who's talking,” she shot back, throwing caution to the wind. “You brought back people with the Tenseiga, and you're lecturing me about how it's selfish?”

 

“You want them back more than anything, don't you?” She nodded. “You are doing this purely for yourself. Others won't die because my brother and his friends are dead. Therefore, it would be a selfish wish, and the Jewel would be tainted.”

 

Reluctantly, she saw his point. “What do you suggest I do?” she asked desolately.

“Bury the dead and let them rest,” he answered, turning on his heel. She watched him walk away with Rin and Jaken on his heels, presumably going back to the Western Lands.

 

She felt the Shikon no Tama pulsing. Looking down, she saw that it was glowing. It sank into her skin, rejoining her once again. She didn't think much about it, as she had something else she needed to do. Resigning herself to her task, she searched through the dead to find her friends. Of all of them, she could only find Sango and Miroku. Kirara, Shippo, and Koga were demons; their bodies disappeared once they died. Along with the bodies of Sango and Miroku, she took their favored weapons, Hiraikotsu and the shakujo.

 

It took most of the day to dig their graves, but she did, right under the Goshinboku. She even made graves for the unfound bodies; those graves would remain empty. Once buried, she leaned the weapons against the tree and gave in to her sorrow again. This was how Kaede found her.

 

The old woman understood what had happened at once. “They accomplished their goals,” she comforted the distraught girl. “Naraku was defeated.”

 

“I need to go home,” Kagome said numbly. “I can't stay here. I'm sorry.” She buried the locket she had given Inuyasha next to his gravestone.

 

Once again, the old priestess understood and hugged her good-bye, knowing it wasn't likely that she'd ever see the girl again. She walked with her back to the village where its residents were trickling in a little at a time. They entered Kaede's home, and Kagome got her bag. Taking one last look around, she left for the Bone Eater's Well in Inuyasha's Forest. Right before she jumped in, she silently said her final good-bye.

 

On the other side of the well, she could barely find the strength to get out. She struggled to open the doors that led to the outside. What she saw surprised her so much that she stopped dead in her tracks. Her house wasn't there!

 

Closing her eyes, she shook her head and looked again. It was still the same; her home simply wasn't there. This isn't right. Leaving her bag in the well house, she ran down the stairs to the street. “Excuse me,” she said to a stranger, knowing she must look strange to him since she was dressed in the traditional attire of a Shinto priestess, “do you know what happened up there?” She pointed to where the Sunset Shrine had once stood.

 

“Yes, I do,” he said. “Very tragic. There was a fire a few days ago, and it destroyed every building except the old well house. I suppose that's bad enough, but the entire family perished in the flames; no one could get them out in time.”

 

She stumbled up the steps, leaving the man looking after her. They're dead. I'm alone now. What am I going to do? By her bag, she sank down and put her head in her arms. What can I do now? I guess I could always go back to Kaede and help in the village as another priestess.

 

The unsettling feeling of being watched caused her to look up. And stare. Right in front of her was a rocky, floating eye. For some reason it seemed strangely familiar. “It's time to return, Kagome,” the thing said.

 

“How do you know my name?” she asked.

 

“Have you forgotten the last time we met?” It answered her question with another.

 

“I think I would remember meeting a floating eye,” she responded, too lost in her own grief to care about manners.

 

“The Elemental Stars have been taken, and now the Lighthouses are being lit,” it explained. For some reason this triggered something in her memory. She remembered hearing about Elemental Stars and Lighthouses before, but it was long ago, and could only remember that she had heard of those things before, but not where or why. “You must come with me,” the thing continued.

 

“Very well,” she sighed, picking up her bag. It'll get me away from here, at least, and it's something to do. Who knows? Maybe this will let me rejoin my family and friends.