Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Guardian ❯ Chapter 1 ( Chapter 1 )

Disclaimer:  I don’t own either YYH or Inuyasha, and never will.  If I did, Sesshoumaru would be dressed like Sephiroth from Final Fantasy, and Hiei would be my little snuggle bunny. Oh, a fair warning: there will be a little shounan-ai in this fic (which means emotional love shared between men). It will be minor, but if that kind of thing bothers you, turn back now. 

Updates for this fic will be slow until the other fic I am currently working on (The Sins of The Father)  is complete.  Thanks.

"God does not ask about our ability, but our availability." - Unknown

~*~

It was the night before the battle that he had approached her.  The night sky had been particularly dark; the moon absent from the sky and the only light available was from the scant stars that were visible through the clouds overhead and the rapidly dwindling fire.  Most of the others had already retired for the night; only Kagome and Inuyasha remained awake.  Of course, on this night of each month the hanyou never slept, and wouldn't now - even though he knew all too well what the morning would bring.

Kagome had tried to convince him to allow one of the others to keep watch for a time, and to get some rest, but to no avail.  Even the wolf prince had offered to make camp with them and keep watch -- of course, by doing so, he undid all the progress Kagome had made in changing the stubborn hanyou’s mind.

"Keh, I don't need your help wimpy wolf.  I'll be fine tomorrow.  Go play watchdog over your own pack."

"Suit yourself," Kouga snorted in response, and then turned his bright blue eyes on Kagome.  "Kagome my love, you just call my name if inu-koro here gets in over his head."

Inuyasha let out a rather impressive growl, given his human vocal cords.

Kouga had only winked at her and smiled before disappearing in a cloud of wind, leaving the two of them essentially alone.

"Well, finally.  I thought he’d never leave," Kagome joked, and then turned to look at Inuyasha.  Even in his human form, he was breathtakingly beautiful.  Kagome felt a strong surge of desire as she admired him and his strong, muscled thighs and lean build that she knew all too well.  How she longed to feel those muscles quiver under her touch.  Her eyes slowly made their way up to his face where she took in his strong jaw, sharp nose, and violet eyes.  His black hair framed his face elegantly, and she thought he looked like a dark angel sent to earth only for her.  

She smiled at him, and he returned her smile with a look of such intense longing it took her breath away.

"Inu- Inuyasha?" she asked, suddenly feeling very unsteady as her knees threatened to buckle. 

He approached her, cautiously, and raised one human hand to her cheek.  He was so close, so very close, and she inhaled his deep, masculine scent of forest and wind. 

"Kagome?"

For a moment, she thought he would kiss her; something she had wanted from him forever. 

‘Oh, please, Inuyasha- see me- love me- want only me’

He leaned forward, touching his forehead against hers, and stared deeply into her eyes.

‘This is it, he’s going to kiss me.  Aishiteru, Inuyasha - Aishiteru.’

Kagome stood there, her heart pounding a mile a minute, with her cheeks flushed, her eyes lidded and her lips parted, waiting for his kiss.  It never came.  Her disappointment was tangible -- almost painful, and she regretfully clenched her chest as she warily opened her eyes.

Inuyasha had turned from her, and was now facing a tree.  He punched the trunk of the tree, hard enough to draw blood from his human fist, and sighed.

"Go home, Kagome.  You’re not strong enough to face him.  Staying here will only get you killed," he said, before snorting and stalking off into the woods.

Kagome stared after him in shock, her lips trembling from the pain of the harsh words and the oh so casual way he ripped her heart in half just as she was on the verge of giving it to him and so much more. 

She didn’t know how long she stood there, watching the spot where he had disappeared into the forest, but when the ghostly white Shinidama-chuu flew past her and into the forest after Inuyasha, she fell to her knees in pain.

"Forget it, Kagome.  He will never see you," she said aloud, mentally adding ‘not when he has her’, as a single tear fell from her right eye.  She raised her hand in order to wipe it away, and gasped when it was caught by another mid-journey. 

The hand that had grasped hers was slender and graceful, adorned by two decorative stripes around the wrist.  Kagome sucked in a breath; half in fear and half in wonder as she slowly rose to her feet, making no effort to reclaim her hand from the one who currently possessed it.

"The half breed is a fool, Miko, and not worth your tears.  For only a fool chases the dead."

She turned and faced the Tai-youkai, her sadness replaced by confusion.  He met her eyes without a trace of emotion, and gave her hand an almost imperceptible squeeze before he let it drop.

"Hai," she agreed numbly, now extremely curious as to what Sesshoumaru wanted from her.

He simply turned and walked away from the camp, glancing briefly over his shoulder at her.  It was the only indication he gave that he wanted her to come along.

She swallowed her nervousness and followed him; too bemused by his actions to feel real fear.  He led her deep in the forest and stopped abruptly, indicating for her to precede him. 

She shot him a strange look and shrugged her shoulders before stepping ahead of him. She sucked in a breath as she abruptly felt it --- the strange barrier, closely related to the magic of the forest itself.  Realization hit almost immediately -- 'he needs me to open the barrier' -- and Kagome raised her hand. Focusing her miko powers, she coaxed the gentle magic into allowing them to pass. 

A few soft steps led them into a clearing, and she could feel the gentle magic snap back into place as she took in her surroundings and gasped with wonder.

She found herself surrounded by rose bushes and exotic flowers; some of which she knew weren’t native to Japan.  The clearing was colorful, peaceful and immensely private, and she questioned whether she was worthy enough to be there. 

In the midst of the roses stood a small, sturdy tree. The tree was covered in delicate, pink blossoms and small, green fruit that seemed to be a type of pear.  The grass underneath the tree was sparse and well maintained, and the whole area seemed to radiate peace and gentle plant magic.

"Sesshoumaru-sama," she asked softly, entranced by the beauty of her surroundings.  "Where are we?"

The tall inu-youkai breathed deeply of the sweet scent of flowers, and sighed in contentment.  Even he was affected by the calming vibes surrounding this sacred place.

"We are in a Youko’s clearing -- a sacred part of the forest that is tended by a spirit fox."

"Won’t this fox be upset that we are here?"

"Perhaps, but we will not be here long enough for it to matter," he said, his eyes filled with a strange longing as he settled himself against the tree.

Kagome felt utterly content as she sat by his side, and waited patiently for the Tai-youkai to continue.

"This Sesshoumaru brought you to this place so that we could talk freely without the threat of Naraku’s spies.  For the magic that allowed us to enter denies access to those who do not have pure intentions."  

She nodded and found herself believing him.  It was also reassuring to her, knowing that he had not led her out into the forest merely to kill her. 

Not that she thought he would -- the Inu brothers had recently forged a temporary alliance, and had solemnly promised that neither would be harmed by the other, nor would any of their companions be harmed until Naraku was dead.  Sesshoumaru was dangerous and deadly, but he never went back on his word once given.  Still, his telling her that his intentions were completely benign allowed her to release a breath she wasn’t even aware she had been holding.

"Why have you brought me here?"  Kagome asked after a few minutes of comfortable peace.

"I need to ask.  What is it that you intend to do with the jewel, once it is complete?"

At this, Kagome snickered somewhat dryly.  

‘You mean in the event that we manage to win against Naraku.  The chances of that happening are slim to none,’ she thought to herself.

She received a harsh look from the Tai-youkai, and her eyes widened as she realized he knew what she was thinking.

"The magic of this place allows me to know your thoughts, Miko.  It is the main reason this Sesshoumaru has brought you to this place.  I ask you again, Miko.  What are your intentions with the jewel?"

"I was going to give the jewel to Inuyasha, so that he could make his wish and become a full demon," she blurted out, and quickly clamped her hand over her mouth in shock.  She had not meant to tell him that.  No one was supposed to know that; especially not Sesshoumaru.  

Sesshoumaru offered a small triumphant grin. 

"The magic of this place also ensures that anything said will be the truth."

He regarded her for a moment, before his expression changed to one of- disappointment?

"Inuyasha was never meant to have the jewel.  It would be foolish for you to give it to him, Miko.  If you do so, you will fail your duty as the jewel’s guardian, like the priestess before you."

"What --what do you mean?"

Sesshoumaru sighed.

"Tell me, Kagome," he began, and Kagome shifted in surprise at his casual use of her first name.  She wasn’t even aware that he knew it.  "What is your world like?  Your time?  Do youkai and humans live amongst each other, as they do now?" 

Kagome stared at him in shock. 

"What?  How- "

"This Sesshoumaru has seen you disappear beyond the well many times, Miko -- only to return with items that are too advanced to be crafted by any of the ningens of this world as it is now.  There were many other small clues -- your indecent, yet colorful kimonos; the books that you carry; the fact that you can read at all."  He paused as a corner of his mouth turned up in a small smirk.  "Not to mention my dear brother’s  inordinately large mouth.  This Sesshoumaru is quite adept at solving mysteries, and has long known of your origins." 

Kagome twisted the end of her hair in her fingers as she contemplated what he said.  Had she really been all that obvious?

‘If Sesshoumaru knows where -- er, when I’m from, what about the others?  What about --‘

"I do not believe the half breed knows," Sesshoumaru said, answering her unvoiced question. 

Kagome nodded in relief and took a deep breath, before responding.

"To answer your question, Sesshoumaru-sama, No -- There are no youkai in my time.  At least, none that I have been aware of -- well, no that’s not entirely true; there was the Noh mask  -- oh, and the freeze dried youkai at the festival, but they were all low class and had been dormant for centuries," she responded, half babbling to herself.  "Oh, and the soul piper -- does he count as a youkai?"

"Iie.  He is a creature of the Reikai, and exists on the same plane as that of the dead."

"Well, then no -- there are no youkai in my time, which is about 500 years in the future," she said finally.

"I see.  Have you ever wondered why that is so?"

She did, but she really didn’t want to tell him what she thought.  He stared at her, silently demanding an answer, and she knew that he wouldn’t just let it go. 

"I- I thought the youkai had died out, or perhaps were killed in one of the many wars -- perhaps the Meiji era?" she said eventually with a sigh.

Sesshoumaru snorted.

"As if mere mortals could so easily bring us to extinction.  Iie, Miko.  That is not what happened --  what WILL happen," he said.  Sesshoumaru searched his haori, and from its depths,  he produced an old and ancient scroll and handed it to Kagome.

"I know that you are educated, and know how to read," he said, his expression neutral.

She glared at him briefly before unrolling the scroll.  She quickly realized that the scroll was written by none other than the late Inutaisho himself, and was signed in blood by not only the former taiyoukai, but the legendary Midoriko -- creator of the Shikon No Tama.  

It was a binding agreement that together, they would use their powers and separate the world of demons from the world of humans for all eternity.  Kagome was confused; if this was Midoriko’s original intent, then why was the Shikon No Tama created?   

Sesshoumaru once again answered her unvoiced question.

"This agreement was made in private, and it was meant to benefit ningen and youkai both.  It was the belief of my father and the Miko that if the two races were split, then both races could live in peace.  We are very different creatures, youkai and ningen, and while there are some that can relate to each other, they are few and far between."

Kagome immediately thought of all her friends, Kouga, and the little girl who traveled with Sesshoumaru.  What was her name?  Oh, yeah.  Rin.

"There were spies amongst my father’s advisors; spies that informed the other youkai lords, many of whom were accustomed to living in superiority over the vastly inferior ningens."

She shot him a dirty look, but he ignored it.  She really wasn’t surprised; she had long known that Sesshoumaru shared that view.  Why he allowed young Rin to travel with him was a mystery to all.

"Word of their intentions got out, and Midoriko was attacked by a conglomerate of lower level youkai before she could complete her part of the spell.  She held them off for as long as she could, with the assistance of her neko youkai companion, but when she realized that she would lose, she used the last of her energy along with the energy of the youkai attacking her and created the Shikon, with the hopes that one of her descendants would be pure of heart and able to use the jewel to complete their goal of separation."  

He turned and looked at her directly, his eyes for once showing the tiniest bit of hope.

"That is why you are here, Kagome.  You need to use the jewel to complete the barrier, and separate the two races.  You are the miko fated to complete Midoriko’s task."

She looked at him in disbelief; does he really expect her to do that?

"What about Rin?  You know that this would affect her too," she said spitefully, wanting to hurt the Taiyoukai who was putting her on the spot.

"She will soon come of age to take a mate, and this Sesshoumaru cannot provide for that," he said, the merest note of sadness in his tone. "She would be better off with her own kind," he continued.  "I will leave her in the care of the taijiya and the houshi.  Rin has proven to have both great strength as well as some holy powers, and she would do well under their tutelage."   

"What of Shippo?" Kagome asked quietly, all traces of irritation at the Taiyoukai having left her when he inadvertently confirmed that he did indeed care for his young human charge.  She wondered how much it would hurt the normally cold and stoic dog demon when the little human girl that had followed him so faithfully over the past five years was no longer within his reach. 

"In return for providing for my ward, This Sesshoumaru will accept the young kitsune into my home and ensure that he is provided for and trained."

"...and Inuyasha?" she continued with a sad smile.

"Assuming the baka chooses not to follow the dead miko to the underworld, this Sesshoumaru will provide for him as well," he answered with a small frown, illustrating his distaste of the idea.  

Kagome considered his words carefully.  She knew he was telling the truth -- the magic of the clearing ensured it, so those were no idle promises the Taiyoukai made.  Her friends would be taken care of. 

She would most likely be returned to her own time -- a time without youkai.

Was she really the cause of that?  Kagome had a lot to think about before morning.

"I will consider your words carefully, Sesshoumaru-sama."

The taiyoukai nodded, and gracefully rose to his feet.   Kagome stood up as well, and looked at him.  They stood there for a moment, before he sighed.

"Miko.  You must lower the shield, so I can return you to your camp," he said, a hint of irritation in his voice.

‘What?  Am I supposed to be a mind reader?’ she thought to herself, a little peeved at his tone.

"In here, hai," he answered, and Kagome had to stop herself from rolling her eyes in exasperation. 

She used her magic to gently coax the barrier open, and found herself being pulled against a hard chest.  Sesshoumaru raised one perfect eyebrow, before taking to the skies with her in his grasp. 

Neither of them noticed the golden eyes that followed their ascent into the sky, as the curious youko thief came out of hiding to contemplate the strange pair and the new knowledge he had obtained.

"Tonight will be a busy night," he said to himself, as he thought of the many treasures among human strongholds that he had yet to acquire.

~*~

The air was heavy with the metallic scent of blood and thick with the last few wisps of miasma.  The ground was littered with the severed limbs of the spider hanyou, and the once green grass that had graced the field was burned and blackened from the last vestiges of Naraku's blood. 

Kagome stood amongst the carnage with a shivering kitsune perched upon her shoulder.  Her lips were set in a thin line as she surveyed the landscape, taking in all the faces of the injured and dead scattered across the blood spattered field.  She prayed to whatever kami was listening that her friends were of the former group and not the latter.  She was badly injured herself; her left shoulder had been pierced straight through and her face had been clawed, leaving a long gash which began just under her right ear and trailed almost down to her chin.  It was bleeding profusely, and yet she could not afford to attend to it - she needed to reserve whatever energy she had left to heal those who were injured the worst.   

She heard a sharp intake of breath from Shippo, and turned her head in the direction of the kit's gaze.  There, amongst what could have been a part of Naraku's torso, was the almost complete Shikon No Tama in all its glory.  Its aura was calling to her, singing for its mistress, and without a second thought she reached down and retrieved the jewel, ignoring the blood and gore that had surrounded it.   

In her hands the tainted fragment changed from black as night to a pale pink, and she stared at it with a mixture of wonder, grief and anger.  So many lives destroyed over such a thing.  Not for the first time, she cursed Midoriko.  Because of her failure, Kagome had been put in the position to determine the fate of the jewel and the wish it would grant, and the tremendous weight of the responsibility was causing her to tremble.

She, however, would not fail.

A groan to her left brought her back to the present, and she all but ran toward the sound, the young kitsune on her shoulder holding on desperately.

"Okaa-san... is it... could it be...?" Shippo said softly on her shoulder, bouncing from one foot to the other with excitement.

"In - Inuyasha?" she whispered, not daring to believe that he was still alive.  One of Naraku's appendages had pierced him straight through the chest as he had launched himself in front of an attack originally meant for Kagome.  She bent down to her knees and turned his body, so that she could see his face.  His normally pure-white hair was matted and stained with blood.  Naraku had missed his heart by mere centimeters, and his shallow breathing was steadily growing in strength.  A strangled sob escaped her as she pushed his matted and bloody hair away from his face.  His eyes opened slowly as consciousness returned.   

"Kagome?"

His voice was cracked and throaty, and he blinked several times in an attempt to bring his sight into focus.  A sigh of relief escaped the hanyou as he looked at her, his golden eyes full of wonder.  Kagome's mouth fell open slightly, and the tears she had been holding back so successfully started running down her cheeks in twin rivulets, clearing a salty path along the grime and blood that had crusted there.

"Don't cry koishii.  We did it.  We won," he said as he raised his right hand to her cheek, his left hand curved around the hilt of his Tetsusaiga.  His eyes were alight with some strange emotion that made her breath hitch.

Could it be that he felt as she did?  Oh, how she wanted him to see her, and only her.  In the turbulent sea of emotions that belonged to Kagome, hope and wonder were cresting with every moment he spent looking at her like that.

Kagome leaned into the touch and closed her eyes.  She was overwhelmed with hope and love from both his heated gaze, and the endearment he had bestowed upon her.  She wanted to forget the battle, forget the Shikon, and forget everything but his touch as she lost herself in the moment.  His hand worked it's way around to the back of her head and carefully brought her face down to his, giving her ample opportunity to pull away if she so desired.    

It would never happen.  She wanted his kiss.  She wanted it so badly that she shut out everything else and focused only on him and the feel of him and the unspoken promise he was giving her with his touch and his lips and his eyes.  Nothing, not even their surroundings and the aftermath of such a devastating battle could have pulled her away from him in that moment.  She barely registered Shippo jumping off her shoulder in haste, as the kitsune had realized with wide eyes what the hanyou's intentions were for his okaa-san.

"Uh... I'll just go and ... er... find the others......."

Her lips were just a hair's breadth away from his, and their noses brushed before she felt that first, feather light, almost there pressure of his lips against hers.  It was a chaste meeting of lips, and he pulled back from it quickly, but not without leaving Kagome slightly dazed from the unexpected act of tenderness.  His eyes were bright with love and want and need, and she lost herself in them.

After a few precious moments, his eyes flickered and darkened and he turned his head away, wincing from the pain of his wounds.  When he finally met her eyes again all traces of his emotions had been carefully withdrawn, and his promise shattered. 

"Kagome..." he said, his voice raspy. 

And just like that, the hope and wonder were sent back out to sea, replaced by pain and despair.  Feeling her heart plummet, and not wanting to stay around to hear his forthcoming rejection of her, she plastered a fake smile across her face and hopped to her feet.

"Well, I'll - I'm going to go help Shippo.  Don't move until I can come back and bandage that wound, Inuyasha," she said with false cheerfulness as she turned, only to be confronted by a mirror image of herself garbed in a red and white hakama with a bow slung over her shoulder. 

'Kikyo'.

Well, now she knew why Inuyasha pulled back.  Her heart suddenly felt like it was being squeezed by a vice.  She could feel the tears starting to form and mentally shook her head.

'No.  We will not go down this road.  Again.'

Her former incarnation was just looking at her with eyes devoid of any emotion.

"It is done," Kikyo said, and then dropped her gaze to the injured hanyou. 

Kagome chanced a look back at Inuyasha and wish she hadn't -- his eyes were filled with apology and regret. 

No.  She would not cry.  She forced herself to calm and to bury her emotions as she held his gaze once more.  When his eyes fell and his ears flattened against his head, she turned from him, intentionally ignoring the undead miko who was now kneeling next to the injured Inuyasha, and headed towards Shippo who was standing over a pair of still bodies with the Lord of the Western Lands by his side. 

At the sight of her two friends lying dead at the feet of the Tai-youkai, all thoughts of Inuyasha and Kikyo went out of her head, the jealousy and pain she felt moments before replaced by a sense of urgency and despair.

Shippo was attempting to comfort the injured fire neko, who had reverted to her kitten form.  The neko youkai was emitting mewling sounds heavily drenched with sorrow at the loss of her mistress.  Kagome fell to her knees at the sight of the monk and the exterminator together on the ground.  By their positioning and the trail of blood leading up to them, she could see that they crawled to be by each other's side in their last few conscious minutes, and had both received their mortal wounds elsewhere.

Her eyes followed the trail of blood from Sango to its source, where Kagome met the haunted eyes of Kohaku; a lone tear trailing down the boy's face.  He was no longer under Naraku's influence, and the boy was shaking with the knowledge that it was by his had that his ane-ue had fallen.  The pained look in his normally deadened eyes showed all too well that with Naraku's death, the wall in his fragile mind that had blocked the memories of his crimes against his kin had crumbled, and he was now completely and utterly alone.

Miroku had been pierced through the back by one of Naraku's tentacles, and by the position of the wound and the bloody foam still upon his lips, she had no doubt that a lung had been punctured.  Never one to be taken by surprise, she could only assume that he had lost his concentration when he heard Sango’s scream and turned to her.  Kagome had heard it as well, but could not afford to drop her defenses at the time to check on her friend as she had been engaged in a vicious battle with the wind youkai, Kagura.

Still, she had not expected either of them to fall, and she somehow knew that these two were meant to live.  She turned to the Taiyoukai and raised her eyebrow slightly in inquiry.  There was no need to vocalize what she was asking of him, and a slight flash of his golden eyes was all the indication he gave her that he understood her request.

"Do you agree to my proposition, Miko?" he questioned as he unsheathed Tensiega.

Kagome drew in a sharp breath and let her eyelids flutter closed, considering the price of the Taiyoukai's aid.  After a long moment she opened her eyes, and briefly looked toward Inuyasha.  The hanyou now held the undead miko in a gentle embrace.

Kagome sighed, and nodded her ascent.  She tried desperately to keep the tears from falling, as the Taiyoukai swung his sword and her friends were enveloped in a soft blue light.

~*~

Japanese Words:

Hanyou -- half demon
Inu-koro -- dog crap; appropriate for Inuyasha, ne?
Aishiteru -- I love you
Shinidama-chuu -- Kikyo’s soul stealers
Hai -- yes
Miko -- shrine maiden
Inu-youkai -- dog demon
Youko -- spirit fox
Taiyoukai -- great demon 
Iie -- no
Ningens -- humans
Reikai -- the spirit world
haori -- shirt
Shikon no Tama -- jewel of four souls
Neko youkai -- cat demon (in this case, Kirara)
Taijiya -- demon slayer
Houshi -- monk
Kitsune -- fox
Baka -- fool; idiot
Kami -- gods
Okaa-san -- mother
Koishii -- beloved
Hakama -- pants
Ane-ue -- older sister

**Midoriko -- A very powerful miko, and creator of the Shikon No Tama
**Inutaisho -- A popular fanon name for Sesshy and Inu’s daddy.  I don’t think he has a name in canon.