Inuyasha ears twitched as he smelled the night air, her scent was fading. He opened his eyes slowly, his amber eyes glowing in the moonlight as he looked up at the leaves rustling in the trees, the fresh grass against his back. He sighed as he turned on his side, watching the Bone Eater's Well, his ears folding against his head, digging his claws into the dirt. They had been stuck at Kaede's village for about two weeks now, waiting for Kagome to come back if she came back at all. They didn't part on good terms; he tried to comfort her too soon and ended up pushing her away. He let out a long sigh, his eyes half-lidded as he thought back at the memory.

They were stuck in a moth demons cocoon, forcing them all to experience some of their worst fears. Sango's illusion forced her to choose between saving her brother's life by murdering the monk or saving the monk's life by killing her brother; she decided to commit suicide, thus breaking the spell over her. She had to rub the blood out of her eyes until she found Miroku thrashing around, holding his arm against the ground; he had the same tears of blood as her. In Miroku's illusion he was forced to see Sango and everyone he loved sucked into his Kazaana when it finally ripped free. Still, for some reason, it never sucked him in, forcing him to face the reality that he just murdered everyone with his hand. Once he was free he kept his distance from everyone, hesitation in his eyes that at any moment his Kazaana could kill them all. Shippō's illusion caused him to witness a false memory of his father's murder and skinned by the thunder brother, Manten. The poor kid did not do well after it was over; he just clung to Kagome and refused to let go, not saying anything.

Inuyasha dug his nails into the dirt more, closing his eyes as he thought back to the illusion he was stuck in. He found himself dragged into nowhere; just darkness, there was no noise except for a dripping sound. The smell of blood punching him in the gut; it was so strong and overpowering. He looked around, trying to find the source of the scent until he looked down at his hand; blood.

"Huh? I can smell Kagome's blood! Did I…kill her?" He asked out with panic in his voice as he stared at his claws.

"That's right, you certainly did." He heard a too familiar voice echoing through the darkness. Naraku.

"Huh?" Inuyasha jerked his body around to see nothing. It was nothing but more darkness. Where was that bastard! He kept looking around until he saw a body lying in a pool of blood in the middle of the clearing, not moving. He ran up to it, the smell just getting stronger as he got closer. He felt his heart go in his throat and felt the tears well up in his eyes as he dropped to his knees. It was Kagome.

"Inuyasha, you changed into your demon form. You lost your human heart and tore the girl apart. You killed your beloved with your very own hands." Naraku purred in his ear as Inuyasha scanned his eyes over her body, her hair was sticky with blood, her face cold and pale, she wasn't breathing.

"What!" Inuyasha shook his head, closing his eyes tight as he tried to get rid of Naraku's voice; it was sickening. He had to be lying! It was impossible!

"It happened again, didn't it? Instead of protecting your woman, you made her the victim of your weak heart." Kagome had been cut down; she had five claw wounds running down her right shoulder. Did he really do this to her? He gathered her in his arms; someone had carved the words; substitute, stand-in, tool, fake priestess, jealous cunt, wolf bitch, whore, jewel detector, in her skin all over her body. Who would do this? He couldn't have possibly done this to her!

"T-This can't be happening!" He choked out as he felt the tears spill over, he brought her closer to him, burying his face in her neck as he hugged her tighter to his body, she was so cold. His ears twitched as he heard footsteps approached them; he lifted his head a bit but didn't take his eyes off Kagome's face.

"Why are you so sad, Inuyasha? I thought you said that girl didn't mean anything to you. Isn't that what you told me?" It was a different voice this time. Naraku must have had his fun.

"Kikyō…you're here too…" He whispered, looking up at her and the moment their eyes locked, the wound that was inflicted on her 50 years ago reappear with a vengeance, causing her to grip at her shoulder in pain, soaking her Hakui with blood as it dripped down her arm into a pool at her feet.

"You liar… you said you wanted to be with me…why did you betray me, Inuyasha!" Kikyō yelled at him as she saw the blood on her hand, hatred burning in her eyes as she glared at him, picking up her bow and arrow.

"Inuyasha, you are the one that shall die!" She pulled her bow back, aiming her arrow at him, no hesitation as she let it fly. Inuyasha eyes widen as he saw the arrow coming fast, there was no way he could get out of the way in time unless he abandoned Kagome. He couldn't do that to her, not again! He closed his eyes tight as he pulled her tighter against him. At that moment, he heard a pulse go through Kagome's heart as her body jerked, a pinkish light surrounding her as her eyes snapped open. The arrow was vanishing just as it was about to pierce his chest.

"Ka-Kagome?" He looked down at her; his eyes widened with shock as he saw that her eyes had as much hatred as Kikyō's, there was no love behind them, just bitter hatred. His ears tucked against his head as he felt the shame seep through his body. These couldn't be her eyes; they resembled Kikyō's too much. He buried his face into her neck again. He could feel her resisting against him, trying with all her might to push him away. He could feel her blood soaking his suikan with every push she made against him. No, this can't be happening, he thought as he felt the tears run down his cheeks again. It really can't be Kagome. He can't stand the thought of her hating him.

"You are such a failure!" He heard Kikyō whispered as she took a step closer to them, he could smell the tears coming from her; hear the hatred growing in her voice. The smell of both Kagome and Kikyō's blood was overwhelming as he tried to comprehend what she was saying to him.

"What is wrong with you!" Kagome yelled at him as she pushed against his chest, trying to free herself from his grip. He refused to let her go, his body shaking. She took a handful of his suikan, pushing her spiritual powers into her hands sending at a shock of purification energy through him, electrocuting him. This energy caused the suikan at his shoulders to deteriorate like an acid burn as the fabric ripped away from his body as the power sent him flying. His head hit the ground hard as his body slid against the dirt. He rubbed his eyes; his vision was starting to get blurry. His eyes widen as he saw Kagome struggle to stand, gripping a piece of his suikan in her hands. With every movement she made, more blood-soaked her uniform, dripping down her hands, pooling at her feet just like Kikyō. His heart ached as he watched her, she was dying in front of him, and he couldn't do anything, he froze from her stare; she was looking at him with so much hatred.

"Kagome…Why?" He pushed himself up, struggling to stand; his body was starting to go numb. He looked at his shoulder; he could smell burnt flesh and the suikan there was destroyed. His heart sank as she glared at him. His body began to shake again as he was starting to become overwhelmed with the feeling of betrayal. Why was this happening, why had Kagome attacked him? How was it even possible for her to be alive? She was losing so much blood, just to stare at him with hatred.

"You are worthless!" Kikyō pulled back another arrow, releasing it as she screamed at him. He was barely able to dodge it, leaping to her as he grabbed the bow and arrow out of her hand.

"Stop it, Kikyō!" He threw the bow and arrow away; Kikyō pushed her body against his trying to get a hold of him so she could send her purification energy through him. He forced her to the ground as he leaped away from her, he couldn't afford to take a direct attack from Kikyō, he just got a taste from Kagome, and that was enough to knock him off his feet.

"You can't do anything, right!" He snapped his head towards Kagome as she screamed at him, reaching for the discarded bow on the floor, her handshaking. Panic filled his eyes as he saw that she was reaching for the same bow and arrow that he threw away. Can't it be real? She wouldn't let that arrow fly, would she? He watched her slowly stand up, her legs wobbly as she pulled the arrow back, aiming it at him. There were tears in her eyes, with hatred, betrayal, and overwhelming sadness. Kagome.

"You killed me, Inuyasha!" Both Kikyō and Kagome yelled out in unison, but it was Kagome's arrow that was the loudest as she let it fly. His eyes widen as he watched the arrow fly fast towards him. He killed Kagome. No! It can't be! It's not possible! He unsheathed Tessaiga at the last minute as the arrow collided with it. The metal rang in his ears as the arrow pushed him back, the spiritual power growing with each resistant he gave it. Tessaiga shook violently in his hand as he could hear the demonic and purified energy fight each other, like a lightning storm. There was no way that he could keep this up; it only seemed that Kagome's arrow was stronger, more determined to hit its target. It overcame Tessaiga, purifying the demonic energy, forcing the fang to return to its katana form, there was no way he could get away in time. It felt like slow motion as he realized that the arrow shot past Tessaiga, the purified energy around it ripped through his suikan, the head licking at the skin of his chest. He screamed out in pain; his eyes shut tight as he felt the energy explode with more power as it pierced his chest; it was so painful. Did Kagome hate him this much?

"Inuyasha!" He opened his eyes; they burned. He looked up to the sky; it wasn't night anymore. Did that happen? He looked to his left; there he saw her, Kagome. His eyes widened as he saw that she had blood stain tears on her cheek. He sat up quickly, too quickly, as his head was still dizzy.

"Don't get up too fast, Inuyasha. It's rough when you get pulled out of the illusion during the worst of it." Miroku stated as he pushed him back down, he looked to his face; he had the same bloodstain tears as Kagome. He took a moment and looked around to everyone; they all had blood stain tears. They all looked rough; Shippō was clinging to Kagome, who was leaning against Sango as she rubbed her back.

"Sango was the one who was able to break free of the illusion. If it wasn't for her, we all might not be here…" Kagome whispered as she leaned into Sango's touch, her voice hoarse.

"Kagome…" he whispered as he reached out for her, his hand covering hers, but only for a moment before she pulled her hand away, her eyes averting his. He felt a too familiar ping of sadness shoot through his body as she looked away. What had she seen in her illusion, he wondered…?

"Inuyasha." He opened his eyes to his name, the memory fading with Kagome's sad face. Instead, he was greeted with Kaede's feet next to his head as she stood between him and the Well. He turned to lean back on his back as he looked up at the old woman.

"What do you want old woman, if you stay out here you will get cold." He stated as he started to stand up, putting his arms into his suikan, it was even a bit chilly for him, but he would never admit it to her.

"I will not make ye tell me what happened to ye Inuyasha. I know that it might have been difficult for ye because I know ye has a troubled heart." She stated as she looked at the Well, then back at Inuyasha.

"Keh! I'm not like you, weak humans. There was nothing there that scared me." He bragged as he started walking towards the village, hoping that the old woman would follow him so that he could make sure she goes back to her warm hut. He slowed his pace as he heard her following behind him, his ear twitched with every step she took. He knew he was worrying the old woman, but he was glad that she knew when to ask questions and when to not. It gave him peace of mind, knowing that he wouldn't be bombarded with questions, making him express his "feelings."

"So, where have the slayer and the Monk gone?" She asked as she watched both his ears twitched at her question. Of course, that doesn't mean she couldn't get more information out of him by not exactly asking him what he saw.

"They said that they needed to go back home. Sango wanted to try to fix up her Hiraikotsu since it got pretty damaged in the fight." Inuyasha thought back, he remembered that Sango was trying to be strong for everyone. She was the only one that was able to break free of the spell, maybe because she had been put in that situation before. If she had to choose to sacrifice her life for the ones she loved, she wouldn't hesitate. However, even though she broke free, it wasn't before the illusion fucked up her soul.

"And the Monk?" She asked noticing him get lost in thought at her questions. It might not have been the best way to help him think through what had happened, but it should help him understand that he wasn't the only one that was suffering.

"He went back to Mushin's temple; he wanted to pay a visit to his father's grave and reflect over what had happened." Miroku had kept his distance from everyone after he woke up Inuyasha. He could sense nervousness and fear coming from his body. He also noticed that he wrapped his prayer beads extra tight around his Kazaana, a precaution maybe.

Inuyasha looked over his shoulder towards the Bone Eater's Well; Shippō did not take Kagome, leaving very well. The kid's eyes haven't been the same since his illusion; the innocent that was once there was stripped away, locked behind a hard-cold door. He truly believed that it was one of the times that Shippō resented Inuyasha for having the ability to cross over to Kagome's era anytime he wanted but refused to do so. It took him a whole week to stop hanging out around the Well waiting for Kagome to come back, it took even longer for him to stop blaming Inuyasha for the reason that she left.

Inuyasha figured that Kagome wanted to leave so much because she must've seen something horrible, maybe even painful in her illusion that she couldn't stay here anymore, but she didn't tell anyone, not even him. Kagome had seen something that had damaged her soul. She didn't look at him the whole way back to Kaede's; she also refused to ride on his back, opting to ride with Sango as she snuggled Shippō in her arms. What had she seen? Miroku, Sango, and even Shippō told them about some of the things they saw in the illusion after it happened, but Kagome…she just listened. No one asked they figured when she was ready; she would tell them since the dream felt so real, it could make someone have trouble determining what was real or not. However, after what Inuyasha went through, he refused to let her suffer alone. He remembered how he felt during his illusion, the dread, the sadness, the betrayal, and he would be damned if he let that happened to her. Inuyasha stopped walking as he sighed, looking up to the moon. He could still hear his name on her lips.

Kagome panted out as she ran through the woods in the middle of the night; she had silently said her goodbyes to her friends, but she couldn't bring herself to see Inuyasha. She couldn't show them that she was letting this damn illusion win, but it just felt too real. She didn't know what else to do. She made her legs carry her until she found herself in front of the Bone Eater's Well. She panted out as she brought her hand to her chest as she looked at it, everything hurt, her heart, her lungs, her mind. She was so overwhelmed that she gasped out when she saw the light shine from the bottle around her neck. The jewel shards… she brought the bottle to her face, looking at the four shards inside of it. If she threw them away…she wouldn't be able to see… No! How could she even think that?

Kagome climbed onto the edge of the Well, looking down the black abyss, gripping the bottle with the shards against her chest. She felt her heart drop, clenching her fist around the bottle as she felt the tears welled up in her eyes. What was she doing? Was she running away? Everyone was suffering just like her, and she was going to abandon them just because she got scared. Was she going to let an illusion beat her? But it felt so real… Inuyasha was…his words…

"What are you doing, Kagome…? Everyone else isn't going to let that damn illusion stop them…so why are you…? It's because you're weak…just like the voice said, you were…." She whispered to herself as the tears ran down her cheeks. She shook her head, tightening her grip on the bottle. That's right, …she was weak. Look at herself now, letting an illusion break her soul.

Just as she was about to jump in, she felt the wind shift; someone had jumped down behind her, causing the wind to move her hair towards her face as she felt a hand-pulled the back of her collar of her uniform, forcing her to fall backward. She felt a hand grip her arm, pulling her into them. She pushed her face into their chest, hiding it from them, she didn't need to look up; there was only one person in the world that could find her no matter how hard she tried to hide. Inuyasha.

She felt her blood boiling as she clenched against his suikan, her tears threatening to spill over as she felt her body shake. How could he do this to her! Didn't he see that him being around her was painful! She felt his arms wrap around her. She couldn't stop the tears as the memory of the illusion flooded her mind. No! She shook her head, trying to push out the nightmare, shoving against him.

"Stupid! Why did you pull me off-"Her shout caught in her throat as she looked up at him, he crushed his body against hers, burying his face into her neck. He was shaking just as much as her.

"Kagome…" He whispered against her skin, his arms tightening around her as he felt her resist him. She was hurting, and he was the cause of her pain…wasn't he…

"Stop. Don't. Do not call out my name." She felt his body jerk at her whisper; her body was shaking uncontrollably as she pushed against him. She couldn't hear it, not again. It would destroy her.

"What did you see in the illusion?" He pulled his face from her neck, grabbing ahold of one her hands as he placed his other hand on her cheek, looking into her hurt eyes.

"Nothing." She whispered as she averted her eyes. How could she possibly tell him the truth… that he…that she saw…

"Liar! You had just as much blood in your tears as me!" He yelled as she tore her hand from his, causing his claws to scratch her as she fell to the ground. When she opened her eyes, she saw the bottle next to her, grabbing it and noticed the blood on her hand; she didn't even notice that Inuyasha had scratched her. She looked up at him; his eyes were wide.

"Kagome, I didn't mean-," He whimpered as he reached out to her, only to have her slap his hand away. She looked up at him, her eyes filled with anger and sadness as the tears welled up there again. This was painful for her. Her heart was breaking into a million pieces every time he looked at her. She just needed some time to get her mind straight. She wasn't right in the head right now. Stupid Inuyasha!

"It's okay. No one needs to hear your words…let it go!" She screamed at him, standing up fast, the back of her legs knocking against the Well, causing them to buckle. She reached out to him instinctively as she felt gravity take control as she fell back.

"Inuyasha!" She cried out, but before he could grab her, she was gone. He looked at his outstretched hand, bring it to his face, seeing the smear of red at the tips of his claws.

"Have ye tried visiting her, Inuyasha?" Kaede's voice snatched him from memory, causing him to return to reality. That's right; after that night, he couldn't face Kagome. He had jumped through the Well a million times during the last two weeks, only to stop in his tracks at the shrine door as he saw his claws against the wood.

"No." He lied as he jumped into the trees, forcing the conversation to end. He leaned his back against the trunk as his legs hung off the branch, raising his hand to his face, the moon shining through his fingers. He had hurt her… How could he be so confident that one day he wouldn't come after her with these claws?

"Kagome..." he whispered as he closed his eyes.