Summary: After a troubling visit to a village far away, strange and mysterious things begin to happen to Inuyasha and the others. When the disturbing truth is discovered, the group begins a dangerous journey in order to save the life of their friend. Can they escape the sickness?

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any other related titles or logos.

Hey guys! I just want to start out by saying that this is the REWRITTEN version of 'The Sickness'. I left this story untouched for a very long time, and my writing improved, so I decided to revise this story and repost it. Thanks for all the returning readers and all the reviews and support this story got, and to all you new readers: I hope you enjoy my story 'The Sickness'! Please review!

The Sickness

Chapter One: Reminiscing and a Strange Smell

Kagome sighed for the seventh time that morning, causing Inuyasha's ears to twitch in annoyance atop his head. The raven-haired girl knew she was practically asking to be chewed out by the irritable half-demon for her less-than-perfect mood, but it just wasn't her day. The sun beat mercilessly on her back, causing her to sweat uncomfortably, her large yellow backpack was slung over her shoulder weighing her down like a ton of bricks, and her feet were aching from hauling around all of their supplies. Surprisingly, Kagome wasn't irritable with the cranky half-demon. She was just having some minor pains and wishing more than anything that she could be at home in her air-conditioned, comfortable, familiar room, instead of treading the dusty old path back to Kaede's village.

Their last mission had taken them far to the east to a village resting at the base of a lush, misty mountain. It had taken four days of constant travel to arrive and even longer to get back, considering all the demons they'd encountered. Although the demons they had come across had indeed been troublesome, nothing was more disturbing than what had awaited them at the village. Kagome cringed to even imagine it. They'd originally gone to the village to hunt down several jewel shards under the protection of a priest. Unfortunately, they'd arrived too late.

The pungent stench of blood had washed over them before they'd ever even reached the village gates. Even the humans in the group could smell its coppery scent polluting the clean forest air. They'd approached cautiously, carefully, caught off guard by the carnage lying beyond the doors. They had never expected there to be blood or death or the horrible demonic aura that had been thick in the air like smoke, choking them. They had stood before the gates for a moment, readying themselves for whatever they would find. Inuyasha had put a clawed hand to the wooden door, pushing it open with a chilling creaking noise.

That's when they saw it. The wreckage. The bodies. The source of the sickening stench of blood in the air. An entire village of people had lain at their feet, their bodies unnaturally contorted and bent, their faces frozen in a mask of horror and despair. Strangely enough, the villagers had no cuts or markings on them of any kind, no external wounds. Their blood had been simply leaking from their eyes and noses and mouths, as if forced out. They had appeared emaciated, their faces gaunt, their hands bone thin, their hair falling out, almost as if they'd been rotting there for weeks, but the bloodshed had been fresh. After the shock and revulsion had worn off, they'd decided to give the villagers a proper burial, but the ground had been stained a deep red, making Inuyasha cringe every time he pushed his shovel into the blood-soaked earth.

It seemed like a disgrace to bury them beneath the tainted ground, but they hadn't had much of a choice. Inuyasha wondered briefly what kind of monster could have made them bleed like that, but he already knew the answer. It was one of Naraku's damned incarnations, it had to be. No ordinary demon could have accomplished such a thing, and the foul smell of him had been on the wind. Kagome had sensed the familiar presence of jewel shards as well; leading all of them to believe their greatest foe had something to do with the whole situation.

Ever since that day Kagome had become introverted and contemplative. She knew her silence was probably annoying Inuyasha, but it couldn't be helped. There were many things on her mind. For example, how she realized how naïve she'd been. Before, she'd been a carefree girl, happy to travel the countryside of the past with her half-dog-demon crush. But she'd only been fooling herself. She was now looking at things as they really were, and she found herself suffocated by the pain that surrounded her everywhere.

Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and Inuyasha had all suffered great tragedies in their lifetimes. Kagome was the only one who had thus far been spared. All she could do was try to be strong for them, but at the same time she felt like she had no right to even pretend like she knew what they were going through. She had always felt this way in the feudal era. She was a trespasser, an anomaly of time. She lived her cushy lifestyle on the other side of the well, while others starved and froze to death. And looking upon that massacred village…well, she couldn't even begin to fathom what had been going through those villagers' minds as their bodies were brutally and unnaturally destroyed.

She'd always been able to find the bright side of things, but for now, they eluded her. She just couldn't take it anymore. War, famine, starvation, death. In the feudal era, it was an everyday part of life. But things like that didn't happen in Kagome's time, at least not to the extent she'd witnessed in the past. It was one thing learning about it in history class, and another watching it happen first hand. Kagome, who possessed a naturally gentle heart and mild manner, was crumbling under the pressure.

The teenager glanced over at the demon-slayer, Sango, and frowned. The suffering in her eyes was becoming unbearable. Kagome didn't think she'd seen her friend smile a real smile in weeks. She missed her brother. Kagome knew it in her heart, and many times Sango had confessed this to her. When they were alone in the hot springs at night, Sango's strong and proud façade melted into the vulnerable and hurting woman she really was underneath. Kagome would stroke the slayer's back as she sobbed, reaching out for an invisible dream and then curling inward at the pain. And what could she do, or say? Her brother was safe in the modern day era. It would be an insult to tell Sango that she understands how she feels. But at the same time, she could not just sit by idly while her friend slowly broke apart, bit by bit.

Even Miroku's usually lecherous thoughts seemed to be gone, replaced by long hours staring at his cursed hand. He, who had for so long been the voice of calm reason and logic in their group, was now as silent as the trees. She never realized how much hearing his words of assurance helped her, and now that they were gone a fine mist of utter despair hung in the air. Kagome took a quick look around the members of their group. They all looked so…tired, so beaten down.

Shippo and Kilala were both asleep, curled up in the basket attached to Kagome's pink bike. Looking at the fox kit's peaceful face, Kagome wondered what it must be like for someone as young as him to witness something like the massacre they'd seen only a few short days before. It made her heart heavy with sadness. Maybe, being a demon, Shippo wouldn't be affected as negatively as she feared, but demon or not, Shippo was a kind and sensitive young boy. And what could she even do for him? She realized that Shippo had taken a keen liking to her, and perhaps he even thought of her as a sort of replacement mother. But Kagome could no more replace Shippo's real mother than she could replace Kikyo. She had no idea how to meet the needs of a growing fox demon, and she was just as ill equipped to heal the wounds in Inuyasha's heart.

Pushing through the underbrush, the group finally found themselves in the meadow of the Bone Eater's Well. It was like a beacon of happiness, normalcy, and rest for the weary travelers, and a small sense of relief seemed to flood over the group, easing some of their troubled minds. Kagome's mind reeled with thoughts of home, of seeing her brother and grandfather and, most of all, her mother. Kagome jogged lightly over to the half-demon's side.

"Inuyasha," she paused for a yawn, "I think I'm going to head home now…you know, to get some rest and restock our food and supplies and stuff. Is that okay?" she asked tentatively, afraid of his answer. She had become accustomed to Inuyasha's reluctance to let her go back to her own era, but he barely even noticed her question. He appeared lost in his thoughts, just like the rest of them had been.

He grunted, coming to a halt. "I'll take you. Miroku, Sango, you guys head on back to the village." The way he said it was final, so Kagome didn't bother telling him she didn't need him to escort her.

"Come back to us soon, Kagome," Sango called as her and Miroku retreated to the village, wheeling Kagome's bicycle along with them.

The half-demon and the priestess watched their friend's backs as they walked away. When they were out of sight, they approached the well together, before pausing beside it.

Inuyasha's golden gaze was fixated on Kagome's face longingly. He knew she needed to go home and see her family and such, but it was hard to send her over to her time. Whenever she was there, she felt so far away. Strangely, her scent never lingered. The second she vanished down the well, all traces of her presence disappeared. He felt as though he would wake up one day and she would never return, like a dream you can't quite remember. It unsettled him. Kagome shifted uneasily under his scrutiny, feeling unsure of what to do or say. The absolute sorrow that had captured her and her friends was unmoving, and trying to speak was impossible.

"I'll be going now," she said, clearing her throat. "Take care."

Inuyasha nodded and took her hand, helping her over the lip of the well. Her hand slid gently from his as the blue light engulfed her. Before the warm, peaceful feeling of time traveling washed over her, she felt a strange sadness inside at the lost look in the half-demon's eyes as he watched her go. Is that the look that would permanently grace the faces of her friends forever? Would saving the world and defeating Naraku, in the end destroy them like an ultimate sacrifice?

Kagome climbed the ladder and pulled herself out of the well. Stepping into the brilliant sunshine and hearing the noise that permeated the modern day era shook her a bit. There were cars here, and computers, and malls, and elevators, and millions of people talking on cell phones and living their lives normally. Kagome paused, sadness gripping her heart as she suddenly realized: she felt like a trespasser here, too. She could no more relate to the people of her time and her country than she could to the people of the past. Was she nothing more than a bridge between time, destined to die destroying history's ultimate villain?

She entered the house, calling a quick greeting, and dragged herself up the stairs. Weariness was overwhelming her, and she collapsed on her bed without bothering to change her clothes or even take off her shoes.

Her eyes drifted shut, opening the gateway to dreams of lush green forests flooded with crimson water.

XXX

Inuyasha walked away from the well with a troubled heart. He had not wanted Kagome to go, not when he was feeling so forlorn. What they had witnessed in the mountain village had been sickening. It wasn't like he'd never seen carnage or bloodshed before, but the mess of bodies and blood that had lain at his feet was enough to make him vomit. It wasn't natural. It was even worse than careless murder. It was darker than even that. He couldn't explain it, but the whole situation gave him an ominous feeling. Warning bells had been going off in his head ever since they'd stepped foot inside that dark place, but he couldn't tell what they were warning him of. He only felt this gripping fear and this desperate kind of panic whenever he looked at Kagome. What could his instincts be telling him? He'd allowed her to go home, because he knew at least there she could be safe.

He also knew that she needed a break. She'd been silent, besides basic communication, since their field trip to the mountains. The hike through the forests had been pleasant enough, but the moment he smelled the copious amounts of blood, he had known that their mission was not going to go as planned. He had tried to prevent Kagome from looking upon the disgraceful scene that awaited them, but she had drunk in the sight like a man dying of thirst. Her soft brown eyes had gone wide with shock and revulsion as she looked over the massacre, before they filled with tears. Inuyasha had come to understand that things like that didn't happen in Kagome's time. Sure, she had seen plenty of bloody battlefields and slaughtered villages since she'd been traveling with him, but nothing of that magnitude. The whole group had been affected by it. It was just so unnatural, unholy. He'd never seen a human's body look like that before. He never wanted to see it again. For any creature, human or demon, to suffer such a fate was inexcusable.

It only angered him more to think that it was all Naraku's doing. That vile bastard had caused more pain and suffering in Inuyasha's life than anyone else. He ripped away Inuyasha's first love and dearest friend, Kikyo. Kikyo, whom he'd been so infatuated with. Kikyo, whom he trusted and who trusted him. Kikyo, who lost her life because Naraku was a sick bastard. No longer anything but a dead body kept alive by her burning hatred for him, Kikyo wandered the land alone and sad. And he'd been trying so very hard to avenge her, and avenge Miroku, and avenge Sango, and avenge the whole damned world, but he always came up short. It was infuriating, and the carnage and bloodshed was only getting worse and worse. He felt weak and useless as he stood by and watched as the lives of everyone around him were ruined to nothing.

Inuyasha ran a hand through his hair roughly in frustration and climbed Goshinboku so he could think. Ever since his last encounter with the dead priestess, he had learned something. He wasn't in love with Kikyo, but she had been his first and closest friend, and he missed her company sorely at times. As strained as their relationship was now, he could never deny that he did care about her. He cared about her in her life, and he cared about her soul in death. He wanted her to find rest and be at peace. They used to sit together in the meadow and talk, and he told her things about himself that nobody knew. She didn't judge him. She understood him. Although he once mistook those things for love, he knew that her friendship had meant a great deal to him, and it had been torn away violently one night.

He still clung to the hope that there might be some of his beloved friend still inside that hollow shell of a body, but no matter what, she was dead. And that's the way it would remain. Inuyasha sighed. Sometimes late at night, when Kagome's presence was gone from his era, he would fleetingly wish that him and Kikyo could've been in love. He wished that they'd never met Onigumo and that they'd gotten married and lived a normal life, even if it meant living a human life. That had been his one and only wish back then, just to be with her. But it had been more than that…he had wanted to be with someone, anyone. He wanted someone to belong to him. Being a half-demon he never had something that really belonged to him, and he yearned for it.

But here he was, no longer in love with Kikyo, hunting down Naraku to avenge himself and her, falling in love with her reincarnation. It was all so crazy, but he supposed it was just fate. Although fate had decided to take Kikyo away from him, fate had also delivered Kagome to him. Kagome was warm and kind and strong. She had adopted the members of their group and she cared for each one of them in her special loving way. She had become a friend and sister to Sango, a mother and caregiver to Shippo, a companion and spiritual ally to Miroku, and to Inuyasha…well, she was his entire world. She was always giving to them and their group, but what about her?

When would they be able to give something back to Kagome? She sacrificed so much for them. Every day she missed school to be with them, strained her human body to keep up with them, witnessed sights that weren't fit for a young girl to witness, especially not someone as pure as Kagome. So when would they stop accepting her self-sacrificing love, taking advantage of her kind and considerate nature, and start giving her something for a change? He could offer her the jewel. Without her, he would never have found it, and he would never have gotten strong enough to take it anyways.

And even if he did possess the jewel…well, could he really turn himself into a monster? After all the friends he'd made and challenges he'd gone through with Tetsusaiga, could he really throw all that away? After all, a full-demon couldn't even wield his beloved sword.

And if he gave up his mortality, that would mean losing Kagome or even worse, putting her in danger of him.

And as for Kagome…well, she lived five hundred years into the future. She had a family, friends, and responsibilities like school to attend to. He couldn't very well stay in the future with her. He'd stand out like a sore thumb. He would never ask her to stay in the past, either. She would have to give up every luxury, face more long years of wars, suffering, and hardship. She'd have to endure more sights like the one they'd seen the other day and never see her family again.

Everything was so confusing to him. Whenever Kagome was around, she made things so much clearer. She brought his true desires to the front. He wanted, above anything else, to at least be able to see her when all of the jewel business was over and done with. That was what he wanted at the very, very least.

Inuyasha gazed at the sky which was slowly turning purple as nighttime fought its way over the horizon.

He closed his eyes, willing the jumbled thoughts of his mind away. He needed to rest himself so they could prepare for their next attempt at locating Naraku and taking his jewel shards. There was a feeling like a time-bomb inside him, telling him to hurry, hurry, hurry or he was going to explode. He had to find Naraku and make him experience the most exquisite suffering before utterly annihilating him. But before that, he needed sleep. He was just beginning to doze off when the strangest smell hit his nose. It was so foreign to him, so alien, that it physically jarred him from his restful state.

Taking a deep breath of the air around him, he was almost knocked over by the overwhelming stench in the forest. 'What is that?' he thought, slightly irritated. The stench caused an uneasy feeling in his stomach, although it was impossible to place what it was. Grumbling to himself he said, "Keh. Better go check it out."

XXX

Miroku and Sango finally finished preparing dinner around sunset. The sky was so alive with color it seemed to set the very treetops ablaze with brilliant reds, golds, and corals. The slayer stood outside the hut they stayed in whenever they returned to Kaede's village, watching the sun sink as ethereal night was victorious over the vibrant day. Her mind was lost in a cloud of sorrow. There was nothing good in this life for her, nothing worthwhile. The only thing keeping her going was her dedication to saving her brother from the prison of his mind and setting his spirit free. After that Sango didn't know what she would do. To continue on and live a normal life seemed so anticlimactic, for lack of a better word. It seemed like an insult to her brother's memory to trudge her way through the years of her life, pretending that one as unworthy as she could ever find peace in this world. No, Sango knew that the she would only find the solace she sought in the next world, with Kohaku by her side.

Nothing mattered to her now. Food was just a means to survive, sleep was just a means to survive. She wouldn't allow herself anymore luxuries, not when her brother was naught but an animated corpse, mindlessly doing the bidding of his murderer. She spent her days either traveling with Inuyasha and the others on a hunt for the jewel, or training with her weapons until her muscles screamed in protest. That's all she had anymore, all she knew. Train harder until you are strong enough to protect what you should have protected so long ago. Her mind was like a dark tunnel, everything surrounding her was lost in a sea of indifference as she ran blindly forward to her goal.

However…there was one thing left in this world that she cared about. Something forbidden. She cast a sidelong glance at her dark-haired friend, watching as he stoked the fire. He had offered himself to her once, presented her with the life she had always wanted, always dreamed of. But that life had ended before it ever begun. She was a broken woman, unable to love and unable to feel. Or rather, she was unwilling to. She was slowly learning how to cut off her emotions, so that she would never have to suffer the same feeling of loss that she suffered now. And more importantly, when she finally met Kohaku in battle she would be able to kill him, efficiently and without hesitation. And the same went for herself.

Until then…she would slowly distance herself from all that she loved: Kagome and the others….and Miroku. She didn't deserve friends like them, and she would no longer burden them with her despair. She shoved away the knot of longing that had formed in her chest and tore her eyes from Miroku's face. It was painful to look at him, a living reminder of the future she wanted more than anything. But this business with Naraku would spoil many futures, and hers was no different. She had already accepted that her duty in life was to help destroy that vile creature, and send her spirit and her brother's spirit to the other world, so they could finally be at peace.

She could not ever forget this duty, as long as she was still breathing.

'Miroku…I'm sorry,'

Hey everyone. I hope you guys enjoyed this new and improved first chapter of 'The Sickness'. I am really happy to be working on this story again, because it's one of my favorites and it really deserves some touch up writing. Please review and let me know if you like it! I will be posting all of the chapters AFTER I finish revising all of them, so this is going to take a while, but it's worth it to me! Thanks for reading and be looking forward to Chapter Two: Ethereal Night and Bitter Dawn.