What Love May Bring, an inuyasha fanfic

Inuyasha watched as the arrow blazed across a hazy sky. He watched it race flying from its bow to her heart, symbolically speaking, it might as well have been headed towards his own heart. The entire event, for him, was in slow motion and he could hear the arrow slicing through the wind, he could hear it as it ragged against the obstacle of air and onto its impending target zooming on with only one goal-to end her life. It flew by them all unnoticed-or so it seemed- for he saw it. What good was his view of the show? He could not stop it.

This arrow was no ordinary arrow; this arrow was drenched in death. It shot from the unholy ghost, a clay shell of death incarnate, a former life aiming to steal a new life. The price of a past lover's revenge, to be paid in full, to be paid in blood a new lover had to die; Kikyou's satisfaction for Kagome's demise.

In the mist of battle events and images are heated and specific details become hazy to the nonobservant, valiant warrior: Sango's arms are slung over her head as she spins her mighty Hiraikotsu, her ultimate defense against those who would harm not only herself, but her companions. Miroku's arm extended in front of him, wrist forced to palm as he releases the awesome force of Kazaana, and Kirara soaring high above the earth spitting searing fire from her tongue towards her doomed targets hauling one very overly eager Shippou on her shoulders doing what he can to help. Despite all their efforts however he in his mind held the most important job of all.

Do you know what that job was? It wasn't to secure more shards, it wasn't to defend the lives of his human companions, it wasn't even to unleash the Gods fearing power of his Tetsusaiga. In the face of grave danger, when all was at risk, even his own life, the job which surpassed all others, the singular task he would gladly trade his life for, was to protect the one life he valued out of all. It was to ensure that no force in heaven or hell touched her soul, tainted her heart, or stole her life. At this, he had failed. That word rang out in his heart and in the outer reaches of his mind.

FAILURE

Failure To become a full youkai.

Failure To have faith in the bonds of Love.

Failure To gather the Shikon shards.

FAILURE!

He was weak! He was a failure! He was pathetic! Most of all failure -to save the ones you love.

With a distinctive

'PLUNK' the arrow - KIKYOU'S ARROW - pierced Kagome's heart. Through her shirt, past her skin, into her veins, and into her most priced possession- his most valued asset, Kagome's heart...

Without feeling, thought or a shred of remorse Inuyasha raced towards Kikyou and her smug look, he raced towards her set body her toned muscles in a pose showing she'd just fired an arrow. Some sort of tiny forgotten voice told him this was Kikyou he was heading towards, Kikyou his former lover, formally his. However, one look at her face, she bore no remorse for this wicked deed, she embraced it, something was on her face, something Inuyasha couldn't make out in his blind rage, he had to identify it … he knew that face, he'd worn it before in moments of happiness.

Then with a cold shiver of fear snaking up his spine he knew. He knew what face she wore right after murdering one of the most precious people in his life. The closer he got the more he realized, she reeked of it; pride! She was fucking proud! She had just fired her arrow at an unexpected Kagome, such a pure innocence, who had willingly given herself up to the battle against Naraku, and without a second thought Kikyou had killed her, smiling the whole time. For Inuyasha, it was too much to bear.

His heart pounding, blood ragging, coursing through his veins, drums in his ear, the fresh smell of clay suffocating him, dirt in his nostrils, this was all Inuyasha heard as he gave the Tetsusaiga a mighty swing, and unleashed a fearsome cry from the inner most bowels of his soul. Erupting from him like lava shooting fourth from a roaring volcano, the wind scar unleashed it's full fatal furry slashing through Kikyou's neck lightning fast, a quick death. Her head remained there for a split second before falling down to the side, her body stood directly in front of it.

His breathing came in hard, rough gusts, producing unfamiliar gasping noises as he struggled to fill his lungs with air, pushing against his own disgust. He was drowning in shame, sweat dripped down his brow, his mouth was dry, hands to shaky to even lift the mighty weapon he had just used, was this what murders felt like? His whole form shook and his actions, his mind still stuck in a singular shocked moment, had not yet began to comprehend his actions, or the consequences of them. He eyes starred forward emotionless, yet at the same time filled with such pitiful sorrow he seemed almost heavy with defeat. This was the devastated look of love lost- be it to unrequited circumstances, or to this instances, love lost to the enemy death- Inuyasha's face bore such evidence of his pain. A painful loss of love that has died and taken the heart, and soul with it leaving nothing but a hatred filled bitter shell. He did not move. His sword was still clutched tightly between his claws, resting tiredly at his side, Kikyou's blood was not on the blade. She had no flesh or sinew to offer, only the crisp hard sound of brittle clay breaking, and the smell of dirt on the wind, the dusty edge of his sword the only proof. His eyes stared on golden pools dead to the world now filled with a frantic nothingness. His mouth parted allowing the air to escape as his heart rate slowed.

Miroku, Sango, Kirara, and Shippou all came up behind him. Their enemies killed off they rushed to look up the love worn hanyou with pity emerging as the only offering they could give, there were no words to speak, no condolences to offer, from any of them. They had all watched as Kikyou's body turned to dust, disintegrating from the neck stub down. When they looked to her head it as well was nothing but dust in the wind. A silent plea flew from Inuyasha's mouth. A hushed whisper escaping, mingling with Kikyou's ashes in the sky.

"Kagome."

A small glimmer of recognition flickered in his eyes, if only for a moment.

"KAGOME!"

A frantic plea cried out from the heart of his soul.

In movements quicker than the eye could catch he sheathed his now rusty old Katana, moved from his spot and ran to her slumped over still form in the tall grass. He was at her side with a newly acquired speed, having moved faster than even a full youkai could. Landing softly at her side he ever so gently turned her prone form over and watched as her eyes barely focused on him, the blindness of death settling over her.

Inuyasha looked down at this small, frail human girl who meant everything to him and then some. Here he was, such a powerful, pitiful creature. For his power, for all his glory, for all the enemies he had faced and brought down, the demon that had killed his father, the countless demons that had threatened his friends, the demons that Naraku had thrown at him, all these he had slain and never been changed for anything else but the better. Never been given anything more than ruthless power, and what good was all that wretched power, when this girl in front of fell, she brought Inuyasha to his knees as well. He thought wryly to himself, bitterly even, that while Kikyou's arrow may have pierced Kagome's body physically, by killing her heart, Kikyou had slain his own heart as well. Killing him in a way that no other demon, evil, or hell bound creature ever could have. He was defeated. He would not think of that now, all that mattered was the precious weight of the girl in his arms. She smiled up at him with what would be her very last happy face.

"Inu…yasha?... "

It took every ounce of strength she had, but she managed to rasp out his name.

"Shhhhhhh," he muttered into her face, "don't speak Kagome, save your strength."

She ignored his request and talked on. She could feel her life force draining, she could feel the wind whistling through her, the arrow had gone straight through, the only thing stopping her from bleeding to death was the wooden shaft protruding out of her chest. She was drowning, she could feel her lungs filling with her blood, she assumed, correctly so, that the pain she felt in her chest, was not only the fatal wound that had been inflicted, but her body's wasted effort of forcing her bruised heart, damaged organ, to beat.

"I was afraid I wouldn't get a chance to tell you before I -"

He put a clawed finger to her mouth and shook his head, little tears forming for the second time in his life. He only cried once before at the death of his mother.

"I SAID don't talk," his intentions were spoken with force, but his voice itself was weak all in the same breath, "we need to get you to Kaede's hut and have her take a look at you wound."

Even as he uttered these words he knew it was futile. She'd lost too much blood by now, she was lying in a puddle of it, and the arrow had penetrated a quarter of an inch away from her heart. The arrow had nicked her heart, causing intensive damage to her heart, bruising the organ and narrowing her life span down to mere minutes.

"Inuyasha I want you to know..." tears welled up in her eyes and took the place of her words.

"I know Kagome- I know."

He cradled her in his arms, no tears had fallen but his eyes were clearly watery. He scolded himself he couldn't even cry for her, he was such a fucking disaster he couldn't even mourn correctly. He would weep for her all the rest of his days.

"I love you Inuyasha, I always will and I know you! And you need to not blame yourself for this EVER it wasn't your fault! My death was inevitable and I want you to be happy, I want-"

Kagome's words were cut off as she started cough un-controllably and a thin stream of blood leaked out of her croaked lips to trace the outline of her mouth and run down her chin.

He could feel her life slipping away beneath his fingers and he couldn't catch it. It was like a leaf on the breeze flying away before his very eyes and it was blowing away rapidly before he'd even get a chance to tell her. His thoughts were cut off abruptly as she spoke once more:

"I want you to be with Kikyou if you truly desire it, I relinquish any guilt you may feel," she said brokenly.

"Kikyou's dead Kagome," he said slowly.

Kagome already knew that Kikyou had killed her but how had... she... ...died?

"Dead?... but ho-

"Isn't it obvious?"

Inuyasha had that rare wry smile back on his face. Kagome looked at him with confusion but the pain behind her eyes reminded him he had no time for dramatics and continued.

"I killed her, Kagome," he traced her face with a gentle claw, "I killed her for taking you away from me."

This time the tears almost came but he blinked them back, he would not blur this his last vision of her.

"Oh Inuyasha," Fresh tears welled up in her own eyes falling freely down her face.

She didn't want to die. She had love she had life she still had to live. SHE WANTED TO LIVE! She had to finish the Shikon no Tama, she had to be here, SHE had Inuyasha and she needed to be there for him! She didn't want to leave him. Her wound had stopped hurting a while ago and she knew she was dying. She almost welcomed it; this would end the pain in her heart that swelled in every fiber of her being. She couldn't take the pain of leaving. A part of her didn't want to.

"Kagome you know I-"

"Good-bye Inuyasha," she said. She hadn't even heard him talking.

She felt a heavy, thick blanket of darkness descend upon her and she felt her own heart start to stop ticking. She felt it make its decline into death. Its last few beats coming out slow and shallow, Inuyasha could hear every beat.

"THUMP"

"Thump"

"Thum..."

"thump..."

"KAGOME! KAGOME NO! PLEASE COME BACK!"

He shook her body with such violence the arrow almost fell out, but remained because it was thickly embedded in her body. Once he stilled his tantrum all he could do was sob into her dead body.

The others all bore tears in their eyes and stood a little ways back, Shippo crying un-controllably at the lose of his segregate mother.

A single salty tear snaked its way down her chest and onto the blood stained Shikon no Tama's fragment. It sparkled for a single moment and then merged with the stone itself.

The wind carried a whispering voice on it. It spoke to Inuyasha.

Wish!

He looked up bewildered eyes darting wildly about looking for the source. Slowly they fell upon the jewel and this time it said it again more urgently.

WISH!!

"I WISH TO BE WITH HER! ALWAYS!"

An anguished voice cried out over the urgent whispers.

The others looked on at him with pity heart felt gaze's. Then in wonder as a bright light engulfed the two emendating from the jewel fragment. It was too bright for the others too look at an all turned away with shielded eyes, and didn't turn back until the light source had vanished. When they did look back it was hesitantly, frightened and to an empty field. Kagome's body, and Inuyasha were both gone. The only thing that was there was the jewel. All felt an eerie feeling settle over them as they saw the jewel pass an unnatural sheen over itself as if it had just accomplished some great secret feat that only it knew.

Far away and off the path of life in-between the world of the Living and the realm of the Dead Inuyasha nuzzled his lover's neck breathing in her scent. Their love and the power of the Shikon no Tama had created this place and they shared a kiss that would last a life time, in a world that would out last eternity, in a realm that was just out of deaths grip. In this their imaginary euphoria.