Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story (and Hikari) belongs to me.

Hikari Tales:

The Pretty Miko Lady

And So It Ends

Kikyo screamed as the demons poured out of the tear in what separated this world from the other world. However, her grip remained tight on Hikari's throat. The little girl threw the box she was holding at her friend, Ban.

The throw was not strong enough. Luckily, before a hungry looking demon could land on the box and crush it, Inuyasha dove for it. Then he leapt towards the wolf demon cub.

"Talk!"

"Red on mama white on zombie!"

Inuyasha picked up the kid and gave him a little shake. "Again."

"T...the red ribbon... it goes on Kagome's mama... the white one on..." he gulped and looked at the woman holding Hikari. "Kaede... she said red on..."

"I got it kid." He slapped the red ribbon in Ban's hands. "Give this to Kagome. MY Kagome. Tell her to pin it on herself." The he picked up the child and threw him at Kagome.

Kagome was solid. For the moment. But Kikyo needed to be solid for the ribbon to stick. He hoped his plan worked, or Kaede's plan, or both their plans... And he hoped that Kagome would forgive him.

Kagome, HIS Kagome, was holding on the wolf cub and crouching down to cover him. He breathed a sigh of relief when she took the ribbon.

"I can push them back into the hole," Inuyasha told Kikyo. "I can seal it."

Kikyo looked at him suspiciously, holding Hikari closer to her chest. Then she looked at the demons coming towards her. They only had eyes for her. There was only a moment of hesitation.

"Do it!"

Inuyasha took a breath. "You were my first love." Then he looked at Kagome, who was gasping in shock from his words. "Only those with..." he waved his hand through her body, "...this. This ghost thing. Only those will go in."

Kikyo looked at Kagome, then she looked at him. Then she smiled.

"Cast your spell first," she demanded.

Inuyasha looked at Kagome. Then he nodded and spoke the words that started the spell. His sword began to create great winds, and he prayed for help and guidance. The ghostly demons began drawing backwards through the tear between the world of the living and the world beyond.

Then he saw Kagome let go of the child.

Kikyo 'pulled' instead of 'pushed' and took solid form. She smiled in relief as Kagome's ghostly form was being pulled back through the tear.

"Mama!"

Kagome smiled and shook her head, then she let herself be drawn backwards. When she reaches the tear, she gave Inuyasha a nod.

The slap on the back was probably harder than it needed to be, and Kikyo stumbled slightly, confused. Though she could not see the ribbon Inuyasha pinned to her, she could feel its presence. Hikari took the opportunity to escape and race for her mother.

"No! Hikari no! Stop her!" Inuyasha yelled.

Ban tackled his friend and she screamed in anger and frustration. Then she saw the light.

Both Kagome and Kikyo stopped moving as light was drawn from each of their bodies. Inuyasha raced to the children and stood protectively in front of them.

The two women were pulled towards each other.

Then they were pulled backwards.

"Kagome! NO!"

And then they were gone.

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"You are a fool."

"Well, I have been told that on occasion."

"What have you done?"

"I'm pretty sure I just sealed the tear and saved all of humanity from demons galore."

Kikyo glared at Kagome. "Do not be so flippant, child."

"Child..." Kagome snorted in amusement.

Kikyo stared at the horde of demons surrounding them.

"You were free. Now you share my fate."

Kagome shook her head.

Kikyo hissed in frustration. "Bring out your weapons, foolish girl! We must fight."

Kagome shook her head again, but this time she put her hand over Kikyo's, startling the miko into dropping her bow.

"No. We don't."

"I will not allow them to simply slaughter us without a fight!"

Kagome sighed.

"They are your demons, Kikyo."

That earned her a glare of disgust. "Coward. I will fight alone."

"No... I didn't mean... look... You don't need to fight them. They are demons you created. Not real demons, but memories. Illusions. They can't hurt you."

Kikyo's eyes narrowed.

Kagome shrugged, then she walked in front of Kikyo and went up to a demon.

"Do not be a fool!"

Then Kagome waved her hand through the spike protruding from its arms. Then she walked through it. Then she did a cartwheel through the next. Then fell... she was never that great at cartwheels. So she sat on the ground and grinned up at her rival.

Slowly the demons disappeared, Naraku was last to go. Then the ground disappeared, causing Kagome a moment of panic. Then the sky was gone. Soon they were standing in a vast dark emptiness. It was perhaps even scarier than the demons. Kagome stood up, feeling very strange as she walked with no ground beneath her feet.

"What am I to do?"

"Kikyo..."

"I am lost."

Kagome was silent, then she took Kikyo's hands in her own. "I was taught that your afterlife can be your reward or your punishment. And I truly think that after all you have done for your village, after all you sacrificed, that your afterlife will be a reward. You might have lost your way... but you are not lost."

Slowly a light appeared in the distance. Both women looked towards it.

"I am... afraid."

"You will be fine. You'll be better than fine!"

"Why are you being kind to me? Only moments ago you were quite intent on destroying me."

Kagome shrugged. "Well… yeah… sorry about that. But you WERE holding my baby girl and threatening my family, so… yeah."

Kikyo's face softened. Then she smiled. It was the first real smile Kagome could remember seeing on the woman's face. But the smile was short lived.

"You sacrificed all to help me on my path. You are indeed a foolish woman. You are alive, so you cannot enter the light where I go. Yet you cannot return to your home and the family you fought so hard for."

Kagome shrugged. "Inuyasha will find me."

"So certain."

"Yes."

Kikyo turned to leave. Then she stopped and turned around. Her smile was wistful. "I wish you luck in your life, Kagome."

"I wish you luck in yo... I wish you luck, too."

"I wish my life had been different."

"I know."

"I wanted children. A husband. A life of my own."

"I'm sorry..."

"Perhaps in my next life."

Kagome bit her lip to keep from saying more. She watched as Kikyo raised her hand in farewell and left her. Only when the light disappeared and she was swallowed by darkness did she voice her thoughts."

"You did find happiness in your next life."

Then she waited for her mate to find her.

...it didn't take long.

...and he was not a happy dog demon that she had gone through the tear.

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"I told you, Inuyasha, I had to show her to the light!"

"YOU WENT TO THE LAND OF THE DEAD!"

"No I didn't, just the 'Almost the Land of the Dead'." This was said complete with finger quotation marks. Something she knew irritated her mate.

"KAGOME!"

Hikari giggled as she listened to her parents argue. She had shown Ban video games and his eyes had not left the television set since. Her parents had been cleaning up the mess that was made, even attempting some repairs to the roof, before the rest of the family got home in two days.

A shadow caught her eye and she went to go inspect what it was. She heard giggling, and her step slowed.

Warily she peeked into the kitchen.

"Hello?" she called out. "You aren't supposed to come back, miko lady. Mama said you weren't coming back."

"Honey?" Kagome called out as Inuyasha darted towards the kitchen.

Hikari smiled at her parents from the chair at the kitchen table.

"It's okay," Hikari assured her parents as she turned her smile to the empty chair beside her, "It's not the pretty miko lady."

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Author's Note:

Thank you all for reading all the way to the end! Hikari's adventures aren't ending just yet, so hopefully I can post something soonish. But before I start working on another Inuyasha story I need to finish editing and posting a couple more chapters of my original story.

Thank you all for your kind reviews, I enjoy reading them very much. It makes my day and encourages me to keep writing. If not for your kindness I probably would have stopped submitting stories after One Arrow.