Other Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Kagome's Trial ❯ Chapter 22

Hello! It's been too long since I've updated this story. I've been gone, and then I had to study without a computer because my Internet was down. However, I have free time right now, so I thought I'd get this up while I could. I know people read this, but no one's been telling me anything. Is it good? Bad? You're not sure? If you like something, tell me! If you don't like something, I'll try to fix it. I can take criticism. Even if it's harsh, I'll still take it in because that's how I'll get better.

 

~*~

 

“Do you think she'll go with this one?” Jasmine asked Robin and Tristan, watching Aunt Kagome tend to the newest patient.

 

“Not likely,” Tristan replied. “She's never taken up anyone who's put the moves on her.”

 

“Maybe it's time she did, though,” Jasmine said. “It's been ten years since our parents, Uncle Piers, and Uncle Felix disappeared. If they haven't come back by now, then it's very unlikely that they'll ever come back.”

 

“Well, Aunt Kagome seems to think they will,” Robin said. “You do have a point, though. She keeps saying how strong our parents are, but if they haven't come back yet, then I guess they won't.”

 

“Are you saying we should try to make her remarry?” Tristan asked skeptically. He was younger than his companions by only a few days, but at times he seemed to have more wisdom than both Jasmine and Robin combined. “She seems perfectly happy to wait for Uncle Felix and the others to come back.”

 

“But wouldn't she be happier being with someone now?” Jasmine countered. “She could have someone real who would love her, not the phantom of a memory, an insubstantial thing. I think we should try to find someone for her.”

 

“Tristan! Jasmine! Robin!” Fiona's voice called to them.

 

Robin watched Tristan turn and shout back to his twelve-year-old sister. “What do you want?”

 

“Gaven and Sana are stuck,” she explained, running up to them. “We can't get them out.”

 

“What's wrong?” Jasmine asked, already moving in the direction Fiona came from.

 

“Sana was looking for her necklace, and Gaven was helping. Sana found it, but the ground collapsed under her. Gaven tried to get her out, but he got caught, too. No one knows how to get them out.”

 

“What does it look like?” Jasmine asked. “The hole, I mean.”

 

“It's big and round. Pretty deep, too. It looks like a poacher made it.”

 

The three eldest exchanged glances. Poachers weren't allowed in the forest; Kagome had made that quite clear not long after they were born. It was too easy for a hunter to mistake a child for an animal, so she put that rule into effect. It didn't stop her, but she knew the difference between an animal and one of her children. For their own protection she also taught them how to hunt using a bow and arrows; they weren't allowed to touch Hiraikotsu or her shakujo.

 

“There it is,” Fiona announced, pointing to the gaping pit in the center of a clearing.

 

“Fiona, did you get someone?” Gaven's voice floated up to them.

 

“We're here, Gaven,” Jasmine yelled.

 

Robin could tell she was worried about her younger brother and sister. “We'll get you two out,” he shouted down to them. “Just hang on.” Glancing around the area, he saw some long branches on the ground. “Let's lower these and see if they can grab `em,” he said to his companions.

 

They nodded and dropped one into the pit while holding onto the other end. “Okay, pull,” Gaven called up to them.

 

They pulled it back up, and found that they'd hooked a Sana. “Okay, let's get Gaven out,” Robin commanded, and they put the branch back down into the pit. Once Gaven gave the okay, they heaved the fifteen-year-old out of his prison.

 

“Now we have to tell Aunt Kagome about this,” Tristan panted, lying flat on the ground; lifting up people bigger than you was hard work!

 

“Right,” Jasmine affirmed, hauling herself to her feet. “Let's go!”

 

“Are you serious?” Tristan asked, looking at her disbelievingly.

 

“Come on, Tristan, it won't kill you,” Robin said, helping his friend to his feet. Tristan was more slight than his friends; both his parents were skinny and on the small side, so it wasn't a surprise that he and his siblings were built the way they were.

 

They walked back to their home, not hurrying. When they came up, they saw their aunt kneeling in front of the gravestones again. “I don't understand why she keeps doing that,” Fiona said.

 

“It doesn't matter, Fiona,” Tristan shushed her.

 

“Aunt Kagome,” Robin called out.

 

She looked up at them and smiled. “What can I do for you?” she asked, rising.

 

She's still beautiful, Robin thought silently. I can see why so many people want to marry her. I wonder how she did it? Isn't she forty now? “We found a poacher trap in the forest,” he informed her.

 

Her pleasant demeanor vanished. “Where?” she asked, her expression very serious.

 

They led her to the spot where Gaven and Sana had been trapped. She looked down into it. “It was meant to catch a herd of something,” she observed. “Step back, children.”

 

They obeyed immediately, and Aunt Kagome was left standing by the pit by herself. She backed up a few paces, then looked at it again, moving her right hand slightly forward. The earth trembled, and the hole began to disappear. The tremors grew worse, and the children had to hold onto something or have their feet knocked out from under them. It only lasted a few seconds, but when they were able to stand on their own again, the hole was filled, and Aunt Kagome was leaving. “Thank you for telling me about this,” she said, moving gracefully away. “I will look for the hunter and tell him not to do it again.”

 

“It's a guy?” Jasmine asked rhetorically. “Who here votes that he'll do whatever she says?” They raised their hands unanimously. “By the way, where's everyone else?”

 

“Jeremy took Kimi to Vale,” Fiona answered. Before she could continue, Tristan cut her off.

 

“He did WHAT?” he shouted. “He knows that we aren't supposed to go to Vale without Aunt Kagome.”

 

“Kimi needed something,” Fiona explained to her enraged brother. “And he did ask Aunt Kagome first. She was distracted, so she said yes without realizing what she was saying yes to. Anyway, Kari's out by the hot spring we found a few days ago with Brett. I think they're checking to see if the water's safe to swim in.”

 

“Thanks, Fiona,” Robin thanked her.

 

“Not a problem,” she chirped, skipping away, probably to find Kari and Brett.

 

“Well, now what do we do?” Tristan asked.

 

“Let's go talk to that patient,” Jasmine suggested. “Unless there's something else you guys would like to do?”

 

They didn't, so they went inside and found the patient sitting on the sickroom bed, which they were told used to be Uncle Felix's until he married Aunt Kagome. “How are you feeling?” she asked the young man politely.

 

He looked up, startled. “Oh, hello, who are you?” he asked, a little sharply. This wasn't surprising; the children didn't normally interact with Aunt Kagome's patients.

 

“We live here,” she answered cheerfully. “Aunt Kagome had to leave for something, and wanted us to see if you were okay.”

 

“Aunt Kagome?” he repeated. “She's your_where are your parents?”

 

“They're gone. Aunt Kagome's taken care of us for the past ten years,” Tristan told him.

 

“Ten years!? She doesn't look any older than you!” The man looked very shocked.

 

“Well, she is now…forty, I believe.”

 

“So the rumors were true,” he murmured. “She is a witch.”

 

All three of them burst out laughing. “No, she's no witch,” Tristan chuckled. “She's just our aunt. A bit more well-preserved than most, but still much older than we are.”

 

The man leaned in closer to them. “You kids know her better than anyone else, then?”

 

“Why?” Robin asked somewhat warily, stung by being called a “kid” by someone who looked to be no more than a few years older than them.

 

“Why does a beautiful woman like her stay in a forest by herself. Except for you kids,” he added.

 

“That's for her to tell you,” Tristan said smoothly before either of his companions could retaliate. “This has been her home since before we were born, even you. A word of advice, though. Don't ask her. It's still a very touchy subject, and it wouldn't do to raise the wrath of your healer.”

 

He frowned. “I suppose you're right,” he sighed, slumping back. “Still, do you think it's possible to convince her to leave?”

 

“No,” the three of them chorused.

 

“Jasmine, Aunt Kagome needs you,” Kimi's voice rang through the house.

 

The man jumped. “Who was that?” he asked.

 

“That was my younger sister, Kimi,” Jasmine answered, running out the door.

 

Kimi's smiling face appeared in the door Jasmine just blew through. “I'm back,” she said unnecessarily. “I got things for you guys, too.”

 

“Can you give them to us later?” Robin asked.

 

“Okay,” she nodded energetically and hopped away.

 

“How many of you are there?” the man asked weakly.

 

“Ten,” Tristan replied before Robin could even start counting. “Plus Aunt Kagome.”

 

“And she's taken care of you this entire time?”

 

“Ever since we were born, then we came to live with her once our parents disappeared.”

 

“Wow.” He was silent, then doubled over in a fit of coughing.

 

“I'll get him some water,” Robin said over his shoulder, already on his way out the door. When he returned, he gave it to the man, who looked at him gratefully before sipping the liquid. Gradually his coughing stopped. “Are you okay?” Robin asked.

 

“Yeah,” the man responded, still a little flushed.

 

“Is everything okay in here?” Aunt Kagome's voice rang out.

 

They two boys whirled around and saw their aunt in the doorway, hands on hips. “Yes, ma'am,” they replied. “The man just had a coughing fit, that's all,” Tristan told her. “We fixed it.”

 

“Are you alright, Justin?” she addressed the man, gliding over.

 

“Yes,” he assured her. “These boys helped me.”

 

She smiled. “Okay, boys, I need you to leave us for now.”

 

“Yes, Aunt Kagome,” they said simultaneously.

 

As they were leaving, they heard her ask, “Does your leg still feel sore?”

 

Jasmine was waiting for them outside. “Well, how did things go while I was gone?” she inquired when they appeared in the doorway.

 

“Not bad,” Robin answered. “He had a coughing fit, but we took care of it.”

 

“He seems nice enough,” Tristan commented idly. “Do you think she'll go with him?”

 

“You mean take her for his wife?” Jasmine asked. “Not likely, but you never know. We'll just have to wait and see.”

 

~*~

 

“You may now kiss the bride.”

 

A kiss. Applause from the congregation, then they were married. Kagome smiled along with the rest of the onlookers as the youngest of this generation married his wife. He was from Kimi's line, bless her poor soul. The original children of her friends have long been dead, but she didn't expect them to have as long a life as she did. She didn't know why her life had been prolonged and the children's hadn't, but there wasn't anything she could do about it.

 

“Aunt Kagome! You came!” Gary's joyful voice brought her out of her thoughts.

 

She smiled, not surprised. She rarely left Inuyasha's Forest, not since her children died, almost one thousand years ago. “And miss you wedding? Perish the thought. Congratulation, sweetheart,” she said, hugging and kissing him. “I haven't missed any of your family's weddings; why would I miss yours?”

 

He smiled ruefully. “I suppose you're right,” he agreed. “Enjoy yourself.”

 

Kagome watched him run back to his wife, remembering her own wedding, all those years ago. Not much had changed since then; there were no technological advances. Except for the people, this could have been the same Vale she came upon over a thousand years ago. She smiled and turned herself to the food; she was tired of doing her own cooking and wanted to see how these Valean women made their food.

 

As she approached the food table, one of the older ladies walked up to her and said, “I don't recall seeing you around these parts before. Are you new?”

 

“I'm just here to see my relative get married,” she replied.

 

“I didn't know Gary had any relatives outside of Vale,” the woman said, sounding puzzled.

 

“I'm from Lalivero,” Kagome offered. “I'm related to his mother's side of the family.”

 

“Oh, you're one of Shana's cousins,” the woman stated, referring to Gary's mother, a descendent of Ivan and Sheba.

 

“Yes.” The woman left to chat with some of the other ladies, and Kagome focused on her food. This is good stuff. I'll have to find out how to make this. It tastes somewhat familiar, but I can't quite place it.

 

“Aunt Kagome!” young voices squealed.

 

Before she knew it, she was attacked by a horde of small children ranging from two to twelve. “Hi,” she greeted them, carefully holding her plate above them. “How've you all been?”

 

They all started talking at the same time, creating a jumble of sounds that made no sense to her. Thankfully, their parents rescued her. “Kids, let Aunt Kagome go,” a deep voice said.

 

The children obeyed, and the owner of the voice and his wife joined her. “You're looking well, Aunt Kagome,” the man, Jeff, said.

 

He looks so much like Isaac, she thought internally. Out loud, she said, “It's good to see you. I couldn't believe that Gary fell for your daughter. I mean, what were the odds of him even meeting her? You live in Imil, and his family chose to stay here in Vale.”

 

Jeff and his wife laughed. “Yes, that was coincidence,” he agreed. “I didn't know you'd have company, or we'd have visited at a different time.”

 

“It's not like we had a choice,” his wife, Marley, argued. “I was going to have a baby, and Aunt Kagome has delivered all the babies in this family for who knows how long.”

 

Since the time the eight Adepts who unleashed Psynergy into Weyard had their children. “Your wife has a point. All the women in this family have come to me to have their babies brought into Weyard, and babies don't wait for convenient times; they have timetables of their own, and we have to follow them.”

 

“That's not something I would know about,” Jeff confessed, putting a hand behind his head and grinning. “I'll just leave that to you ladies.”

 

“Thank you oh so kindly,” Marley said sarcastically. “Anyway, we're going to stay here for awhile, so we were wondering if you could take us in again.”

 

“Of course,” Kagome assured her. “You don't even need to ask. We're family.”

 

“So, now we're all related?” Jeff asked his aunt.

 

“Yes. Now the families of Ivan and Sheba, Isaac and Mia, and Garet and Jenna are all connected. Their blood will run through Gary and Mina's children.”

 

“Mommy, can we stay with Aunt Kagome?” Jeff's eight-year-old asked, pulling on Marley's dress.

 

“Yes, dear,” she answered. “We'll stay here for a little while, then we'll go to Inuyasha's Forest.” She had a little trouble saying “Inuyasha's Forest” since it was in Japanese, and these people didn't speak that language.

 

Kagome looked around. Everyone was talking and having a good time. Gary and Mina were mingling, though never far from the other's side. “I think it's time I took a hike,” she told her nephew. “I will take some of this food with me, though.” Deftly she swiped bits of this and pieces of that off the table, Jeff and Marley not far behind, doing the exact same thing. “Okay, I think we can sneak off now.”

 

She meandered over to the edge of the crowd, her family following behind. Once the family was outside the boundaries of Vale, she picked up the pace, her followers mimicking her every move. Before they were on the path marking the edge of the forgetfulness border she was carrying the two-year-old while Jeff had the six-year-old, and Marley the four-year-old.

 

“Here we are,” she announced cheerfully ten minutes later. Her arms weren't sore from the baby, but she could put that down to the muscles she gained from dragging Hiraikotsu around for over a thousand years.

 

Judging from the groans behind her, the adults were tired of dragging their children through the forest, and the children still walking were glad to finally arrive at their destination. “Are we staying in the same place?” Hannah asked her father.

 

He looked to Kagome, who nodded. “Yes, sweetie,” he answered. The twelve-year-old squealed and ran into the house. “I can't believe that Isaac and Mia used to live in this very house,” he murmured in awe. “It looks like it's new.”

 

“I can guarantee that it's the same house,” Kagome assured him. “After all, I am one of the ones who built it.”

 

“If I didn't know you, I'd say that was impossible.”

 

“But I was still here when you were young, just like your mother, and her mother, and so on. They've all told you that I was still there when they were young, and I delivered them, though they don't remember that part.”

 

“Would you mind if I look at the pictures again?”

 

“You've looked at them ever time you've come here.” It was true; he couldn't get enough of her scrapbooks of her friends, both the ones in Japan and here in Weyard. Even when he was a child, whenever he came here he would ask to look at the books.

 

“I know, but it's amazing how similar things looked back then, and how different things were where you were from. Besides, the newer kids haven't seen it yet.”

 

“I'll get them for you.”

 

“Wait, I'll help. I want to see all of them this time, not just yours and Isaac's.”

 

“Very well. I'll just tell Marley what we're doing.”

 

Arriving at Kagome's home, she went straight to her living room and took out the large books. “Here, you take these,” she said, handing him Ivan and Isaac's books. “I'll get the rest of them.”

 

When his back was turned, she slipped in pictures of Gary's wedding in one of her blank books. When the bloodlines of her friends started crossing with one another's, she made a new book and labeled it as such. She had Garet-Jenna and Ivan-Sheba already made, and it was quite full, but now she could start on a new one. Now the six friends would be made into one family. Only Piers had no legacy left behind; Felix had his sister's children.

 

They staggered back to Mia's old home and dropped the books onto the table. “Ooooh, what is that?” Marty asked, his eyes wide.

 

“These are pictures from Aunt Kagome's past, as well as ours,” Jeff explained to his eight-year-old son. “Be careful with them; they're very old, and will break very easily.”

 

“How did you make these?” Hannah asked. “They don't look painted.”

 

“They're not,” her aunt explained. “A long time ago, a scholar named Kraden helped me to make these special boxes, and when they flashed or clicked, a picture would come out.” Basically, he helped me recreate a camera.

 

“Do you have any of us?” she asked, her cerulean eyes shining.

 

“Yes, I do. They're in this book.” She opened the Isaac-Mia book and flipped towards the back. “There you are.”

 

The child leaned forward to get a closer look. There she was, laughing and eating a bunch of Kagome's berries with her brother Marty. Both had blue stains on their clothes, teeth, and around their mouths.

 

“I didn't know you had a picture of them,” Jeff said, his tone accusatory.

 

“I put them in just after you left. If you want to look through them, I think I added a picture to every book. Just please be careful with them.”

 

She left the entire family looking through the books. Outside she could see the stars through the trees, shining a light on the path to her home. Before entering her home, she turned to look down the path, just as she did at least once every day. “I hope trusting you was a good idea, Inuyasha,” she said to the open air. “Don't let my heart get broken because of it.” She went inside.

 

~*~