Other Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Kagome's Trial ❯ Chapter 25

The final chapter! I finally made it! If anyone's interested,

 

It was weird being around so many other people. All her life, it had just been her, Aunt Kagome, and whatever stranger happened to get lost in the forest. Then Aunt Kagome left, and she was alone. Now there were eleven people living under one roof, and it was overwhelming. There was very little privacy and almost no time alone since she had to look after Hamma.

 

“Kikyo,” called Icy, the tall blonde with piercing blue eyes.

 

“Yes,” she answered.

 

“You're running low on those herbs you've been giving Hamma. Did you want someone to go get more from Vale?”

 

“That would be great,” she replied. “Do you know how to get there?”

 

“Yeah, don't worry. I'll be back in a little while.”

 

“Wait, there's a point in the forest where you lose your way.”

 

“I know. I'll just find the path and come back here.”

 

“How did he know that?” she muttered.

 

“He's had occasion to use it,” Shadow, a silent, brown-eyed boy answered from her elbow.

 

She yelped and almost dropped her load of logs. “Don't do that!” she scolded him. “What do you mean, he's had occasion to use it?”

 

“He's had to leave the boundary and come back with dead timber, so he knows which path to use.”

 

“Well, I guess I don't have to worry about him, then,” she chuckled. “Okay, I'll just finish stacking these, then go check on Hamma.”

 

Shadow turned back to his own task.

 

~*~

 

Four weeks. She'd been gone for four weeks. And all because of those darned spices! Kagome was rushing home, her bag filled almost to bursting with her spices. At least I got some extra stuff, too. Kikyo and I will have fun experimenting with these. I hope she's okay. I would've been home sooner, but I forgot that Imil is eternally winterlocked, so I didn't count on the snow being there.

 

Inuyasha's Forest came into view. I'm almost home. I'm sorry I've been away for so long. She pushed her way through the underbrush until she came to her path. Like a horse that knows it's almost home, she unconsciously picked up the pace to a run. Please let everything be alright, she prayed.

 

When she could see her house, she breathed a small sigh of relief. It looked like it had been kept tidy, so that must mean that someone was keeping it clean. Hopefully that someone was Kikyo.

 

Kagome wiped sweat from her brow. After being in Imil, this heat was almost unbearable. “Kikyo,” she called, entering the house. “I'm back.”

 

The sound of a door being opened caused her to look at the sickroom, where a violet-haired girl came out. “Kikyo, you're back,” the girl said, smiling. “I wasn't expecting you to be back so soon.”

 

“Oh, I'm not Kikyo,” Kagome said, putting her bag down on the table. “I'm her aunt. Who are you?”

 

“I am Hamma. You look exactly like her.”

 

“Yes, you can tell we're related. Anyway, what seems to be the problem?”

 

Hamma told her of her problem, and Kagome immediately made her some soup. She sat down and watched Hamma eat. “So, how long have you been here?”

 

They talked of things going on in the outside world, like how the drought in Xian devastated their silk trade. “Where is Kikyo? I would have thought that she'd stay here.”

 

“Oh, she's helping the others find their way to a hot spring.”

 

“Others?”

 

“Yes, my companions. They left, which leaves me and my baby.” As if it could sense that it was being talked about, a wail started in the sickroom. Hamma sighed. “I'm coming, Kagome,” she called.

 

“Kagome?” Kagome inquired as Hamma rose.

 

“Yes, my baby. You've heard of Kagome, haven't you?”

 

“I'll have to say yes to that one.” So, my name passes on to someone else. Again.

 

Hamma returned, carrying a baby who was now as quiet as a hummingbird. “This is Kagome.”

 

Kagome the baby looked at Kagome the miko. The miko was startled to see almost an exact replica of Kikyo when she was an infant, eighteen years ago. “It's good to meet you,” she told the baby, who giggled.

 

“Hamma! We're home,” Kikyo's voice called from the hallway.

 

“Welcome back,” Hamma answered. “Oh, you're aunt's back.”

 

Footsteps charged through the hall, and Kikyo was in the doorway. “Aunt Kagome,” she cried, running to her aunt and embracing her. “You're back!”

 

“Yes. I'm sorry I was gone for so long, though I see you weren't lacking in company.”

 

“They came a few weeks after you left. Hamma's coming along very well; her cough is almost gone.”

 

They both looked at Hamma, who was looking at them strangely. “I guess she doesn't speak Japanese,” Kikyo giggled.

 

“I bought some other spices while I was there, so now I need to find a place for them,” Kagome said in the common tongue.

 

“I'll help,” Kikyo volunteered. “Hamma, do you need anything?”

 

“No, but I can help you two if you'd like me to.”

 

“Great! Maybe you've had some of these spices before, and you can tell us what they're good for.”

 

“You mentioned others,” Kagome said casually to Hamma as they put the spices in order.

 

“Yes, my husband, brother, and their companions. Where are they, Kikyo?”

 

“Oh, I took them to the hot springs. They had been doing some tough work, so I thought they'd like to soak away their aches. They should be coming back in a little while.”

 

“Oh, these are good on roasted chicken,” Hamma exclaimed, holding up one of the spices.

 

“Looks like we'll have to get some chicken, then,” Kikyo told her aunt, grinning.

 

Kagome sighed. “If you insist,” she said, “but you'll be the one getting it.”

 

“Sugoi!” Kikyo squealed.

 

“She's just excited about having chicken,” Kagome said at Hamma's blank look. Turning back to her niece, she said mock-sternly, “If you want it tonight, then I suggest you hurry to Vale and go get one.”

 

“Okay.” Hamma and Kagome watched the young miko in training run out the door. Silently Kagome counted to three, which was when Kikyo reappeared in the doorway, grabbed the bag of coins she had forgotten, and ran out the door again.

 

Kagome shook her head. “So young,” she murmured. “She'll outgrow it. I hope.”

 

“Now that I've seen the two of you together, I can't tell the difference between you,” Hamma noted. “You don't appear to be any older than she is, yet you call her young.”

 

“I raised her when her family died; that was eighteen years ago. I may look like I'm eighteen, but I'm much older. I prefer not to think of my age.”

 

Kagome put the last spice in the pantry and exited. “I think I'll go see how well she's kept the graves,” she informed her companion. “Would you like to come?”

 

“No, I'd better feed Kagome,” she said, bouncing the restless baby. “Kikyo has done a very good job with tending to the graves. I've seen them, and she's been out there every day. I'd be surprised if those headstones aren't sparkling in the moonlight.”

 

“I'm glad they've been kept up. Those graves were here before this house was even made, and I'd hate to see them weathered away.”

 

Just as Hamma said, the graves were well kept, the words written on the stones bright and clear. She knelt by Inuyasha's grave. “I'm sorry for being gone so long,” she told the silent stones. “It's hard for me to leave this place, but I did it. Maybe whatever's holding me here is weakening. Does that mean that Felix is dead? Should I give up waiting and travel to another continent to find someone else?”

 

She didn't hear footsteps until a masculine voice spoke from behind her. “Kikyo, is something wrong?”

 

Kagome whirled and stood to face a man about Kikyo's age, looking at her in concern. Longish brown hair, pulled back in a low ponytail, brown eyes, kind face. “Felix?”

 

Shock and hope warred on his face. “Kagome?”

 

She nodded slowly, then was caught up in his embrace. “Kagome, Kagome, Kagome,” he repeated her name like a mantra, squeezing her.

 

She was little better. “Felix, you've come back to me,” she murmured. “What took you so long? I missed you.”

 

“Not as much as I missed you. We all missed you.”

 

“You found the others?” She pulled back slightly so she could look at his face. Oh, how she missed him! Her waiting had paid off; after two thousand years of patience, he was back with her.

 

“There's so much to tell you, and so little time to do it.”

 

“Where are the others?”

 

“They'll be coming along shortly. Why did you say your name was Kikyo?”

 

“I didn't. Kikyo is my niece. She went to Vale to get a chicken for dinner tonight.”

 

He laughed. “Still afraid of leaving Inuyasha's Forest for too long?”

 

Kagome pulled back, her hands on her hips. “I just traveled for four weeks to Imil, I'll have you know,” she huffed. “That's why I wasn't here when you all showed up.”

 

“I'm impressed,” he said. “Come, let's go see how Hamma's doing.”

 

“By the way, she mentioned a brother and a husband,” Kagome brought up as the entered the house. “Do you know who they are?”

 

“Yeah, Ivan and Piers.”

 

“What?!”

 

“Hamma is Ivan's older sister, and while we were…gone, she married Piers.”

 

Hamma looked up as they entered. “Oh, I see you met Felix,” she said to Kagome.

 

Felix cleared his throat. “Hamma, I would like you to meet my wife, Kagome.”

 

At that statement, Hamma rose. “So this is the woman you wanted to get back to for so long,” she stated, smiling. “I've heard so much about you.”

 

“I see,” Kagome replied, not sure how to react.

 

Kikyo chose that moment to return with the chicken. “I got it,” she announced, then looked at the scene before her. “Did I miss something?”

 

“Kikyo, this is your Uncle Felix, my husband,” Kagome informed her niece. She could tell that Kikyo didn't comprehend what she had just told her. “He and your family have returned.”

 

“Uh-huh. Well, um, nice to meet you. I, uh, guess I'll make the chicken now.”

 

“I'll help,” Kagome said. “Felix, can you keep Hamma company?” When it looked like he was going to protest, she continued. “I need to talk to Kikyo. I think this shocked her.” He nodded and sat back down.

 

“Kikyo,” she called outside.

 

Her niece was plucking the feathers off the bird. “So, I guess this means we'll have permanent house guests, ne?” Her voice sounded cheery enough, but her eyes said something entirely different.

 

“I know things will change, but we'll be okay,” she assured Kikyo. “We'll have more company, at any rate.”

 

“Aunt Kagome, it's always been just the two of us, and now these people are moving in.”

 

“Not all of them,” Kagome laughed. “Just Felix. The others have homes of their own. Now, I know that it'll be strange at first, but things will work out.”

 

~*~

 

At first he thought she was a ghost, haunting the area. Then, when she stood up and called him by name, he felt compelled to touch her, just to be sure if she was alive or dead. She was alive. He couldn't believe his luck; she was still alive and she hadn't remarried. When he first saw Kikyo, he was worried. They looked exactly alike. He had mistaken her for his wife, but she quickly showed that she most definitely wasn't.

 

“What's on your mind, Felix?” Hamma asked.

 

“A lot of things,” he answered. “I can't believe I'm home again, and it's been at least eighteen years since we've been gone.”

 

“It was hard keeping track of time where we were,” Hamma agreed. “It's been much longer than eighteen years since she's seen you.”

 

“How do you know that?” Felix asked.

 

“Well, Kikyo calls Kagome `Aunt Kagome', which means she must be descended from one of the children you left behind. The children had to grow up, then have Kikyo, then die, and that all takes time.”

 

“They were so young when we left,” he murmured. “Kimi wasn't even speaking yet.”

 

“Maybe you could ask Kagome what happened to them, but I think they died in the plague.”

 

“I hope they can take it.” They both knew to whom he was referring.

 

At that moment, the front door opened. “Hey, Felix, you here?” they heard Isaac call.

 

“Yes, I'm in the living room with Hamma.”

 

They all trooped in, hair dripping wet, but thoroughly happy. “So, is Kikyo back yet?” Ivan asked, trying to towel his hair dry, but failing because of Sheba grabbing the towel away from him.

 

“Yeah. She's plucking a chicken for dinner.” He stood up. “I just found out that my wife is still alive.”

 

They all looked at him. “That's great,” Mia cried. “Where is she?”

 

“She still lives here. She's been taking care of Kikyo, and right now she's--”

 

“Walking in the door,” Kagome finished, standing in the doorway with Kikyo and the dead chicken behind her.

 

Within moments her friends surrounded her, all seeming to want to talk at once. Felix and Hamma stayed where they were and watched the scene before them. It didn't escape Felix's notice that Kikyo hung back from the crowd. Their eyes caught one another's, and he saw that she was very frightened of this. They represented change in her former life, and she didn't like it one bit.

 

She edged past the reunion happening in the center of the room and passed into the kitchen. Felix followed. “Why aren't you joining the rest of them?” she asked coolly without looking up.

 

“I can understand why you're upset,” Felix stated, resting his elbows on the counter. “But we aren't here to steal Kagome's affection from you.”

 

“It's always been just the two of us,” she muttered, shoving a wooden stake through the chicken.

 

“Do you wish we'd never come?”

 

She hesitated. “No,” she admitted. “I want Aunt Kagome to be happy, and I know that she's not been this happy in my entire life. It's just…strange.”

 

“It will be strange for all of us. Kagome probably isn't used to near neighbors anymore, and here a near-stranger will be staying in the same room as her. I'm not used to being around others, either, except for my friends in the other room. I'll make you a deal. If you'll give us a shot, then I'll do my best to see that you are as comfortable with this as I can make it. I can't offer any more than that.”

 

“I will do the same.”

 

“Thank you.” He really meant it. “Here, I'll cook it.”

 

“Thanks, Shadow,” she whispered. It was so soft he probably wasn't meant to hear it, so he didn't comment on the nickname.

 

Dinner was noisy. They were all trying to catch up on what had been happening for the time they were gone, but the question of what had happened to their children was carefully skirted. As it progressed late into the night, Hamma and the baby retired, as did Kikyo. Now only the nine original friends were at the table; it was time for the questions that no one could ask in the presence of Kikyo or Hamma.

 

“Kagome, what happened to our children?” Jenna asked.

 

“They didn't inherit our long life,” Kagome answered quietly, her head bowed. “Once they were grown, they moved out of the forest, led their own lives, and died.”

 

“The plague,” Jenna murmured.

 

Kagome's head jerked up. “No, they died of old age,” she corrected her, sounding puzzled. “They weren't around when any of the plagues hit Vale.”

 

“I thought there was a plague in Vale eighteen years ago,” Isaac said.

 

“There was. That's what killed Kikyo's parents, your descendants.”

 

“I don't understand,” Garet butted in.

 

Kagome looked at all of them in disbelief. “Do any of you know how long you've been gone?” she asked.

 

They all shook their heads. “We were kept in a place where we couldn't tell how much time passed,” Ivan explained. “We could see the changing of the seasons, but we lost track of the years.”

 

“You've been missing for over two thousand years.”

 

Even Felix started at this. Two thousand years? We knew we were gone for more than ten, but two thousand? How is that possible?

 

“So, none of our line still lives,” Sheba said sadly.

 

“No, Kikyo is blood to one of us,” Ivan corrected her. “Whose family is she from? Not that it matters, but I'd still like to know.”

 

Everyone leaned towards Kagome. “Well,” Felix's wife started, “she's blood to everyone here, except for me. I'm related by marriage, but that's it.”

 

They stared at her blankly. “Your children married each other, so she's descended from all of you.”

 

Comprehension dawned on them. “I see,” Ivan murmured. He started to say something else, but a yawn stopped him. “Sorry, guys,” he apologized. “I think I need to hit the sack. Um, Kagome?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“Are our houses still standing?”

 

“They are, surprisingly. Kikyo and I have kept them clean for the past eighteen years, and before that, whoever happened to be staying there cleaned them. When your children left, they still visited, as did their children, so the houses have been lived in and cleaned. If you want to go back, feel free. I know you all must miss them.”

 

The majority agreed; Piers decided to stay since his wife and child were already asleep, and he didn't want to leave or wake them. When Piers had joined his wife and the others had left, Kagome turned to Felix. “So, why is it that only Piers has a child?” she asked.

 

“The others didn't want to drag a family back here once we escaped,” he responded, drinking in the sight of her. Two thousand years, and she was still as young and beautiful as when he met her in Contigo. She had gained more knowledge and sorrow; the deaths of their friends' children, and then their children, and so on had changed her. Still, she could smile and laugh. “Have we really been gone for two thousand years?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“If I'd known that we'd be gone for that long, I wouldn't have left you.”

 

She shook her head. “I know you, Felix. If you thought your friends were in danger, you would go save them, even if it meant leaving me alone. I accept that; I did the same for my friends who are now buried, and I'll do the same for the living ones. It's not fair to ask you not to.”

 

“Do you forgive me?”

 

She closed the distance between them. “I do,” she replied, embracing him. “Just…try not to do it again.”

 

Laughing, he returned her embrace. “I'll try not to.”

 

“Things will be hard, getting used to you all living here again after everyone trying to convince me you were all dead and telling me I should move on. And then there's Kikyo.”

 

“We've come to a sort of truce. We'll try not to step on each other's toes.”

 

“I'm glad you're back.”

 

“I'm glad to be back. Thank you for waiting. I'll try to make the wait worthwhile.”

 

~*~

 

End Kagome's Trial