Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or any of his cohorts. Or Hearst Castle
or anything else of worth. So, really, suing me wouldn't make much sense,
now would it?
Darling readers: I have not forgotten or abandoned "A Hanyou's ToDo List," or "The Day After Happily Ever After" either for that matter (Not an IY story, so don't worry if you haven't heard of it). I just CANNOT FIND THE #$*&@$ disc I saved them on. Anyway, hope you enjoy this one. It'll probably be a fairly short one ~ maybe 4-5 chapters. IY/Kag, and enough fluff to rot your teeth and cause extreme nausea. You have been warned.
What Love Isn't
"This is my mom, and Jii-san, and that's my little brother, Sota." Kagome pointed to a photograph in her album as Shippo looked on from his perch on her shoulder. "You two would get along great, Shippo! He loves to run and kick soccer balls and climb trees. And..." she paused, poking his tummy gently with her finger, "he also loves sweets!"
Shippo, his little face dappled with chocolate smears, giggled from the assault and hopped down into her lap to point to a picture. In it, Kagome and three other dark haired girls all mugged for the camera and held their fingers out in a V. "You're the prettiest of all them, Kagome! Who are they?"
"Hmmm. I must agree. Your friends certainly are lovely, but you are most assuredly the loveliest, Lady Kagome." Miroku, who was sitting on Kagome's right, seconded the opinion of the kit before helping himself to a stick of Pocky that Kagome brought to share. Sango, already munching on a piece herself, made it unanimous with several nods of her dark head and an, "Mmm- hmm."
Kagome blushed at the compliments of her friends, but answered them by pointing to each girl and pronouncing their names, "This is Ayume, and this is Yuka, and this is Eri. I've known them since I was even younger than Shippo. In my time, they're my best friends."
It was a divine, uneventful evening; the skies painted with great swathes of brilliant gold, orange, red and cobalt blue, and a warm breeze drifted through the village. The small group was currently staying in Kaede's village, and had chosen to spend the tranquil evening outside, enjoying the calm and the pleasant weather. They knew all too well that moments like that were few and far between, and should be savored and enjoyed.
Absent from the group was Kaede, who, having served a delicious, (though as noted by one member of the party, Ramen-free) evening meal, was now making rounds to tend to the ailing of the village. And Inuyasha, who had retreated to the treetops to brood over some thoughts that weighted heavily on his mind.
The jewel shards and nearly all been collected, and thanks to Kikyo, most of them were now in the possession of Naraku. Every day, he seemed to gain power, and while he didn't attack personally, his demons were becoming more and more difficult to defeat. So far, they had managed to kill his minions, or at least survive and drive away their attacks, but the time was quickly approaching that they would come fact to face with the demon that was Naraku either defeat him and complete the Shikon Jewel, or would join the thousands of others who had lost their lives to him. That COULD NOT happen. There was too much at stake.
And her...what to do about her... All logic and common sense said that they would defeat Naraku, complete the jewel... And then she would go back to her time and get on with her life in the modern word with its conveniences, it's huge buildings, it's giant steel monsters that transported people from place to place. And that other guy...that Ho...Hobo? Hoto? Homo? As far away from him as she could get, if not in space, in time. This train of thought always caused him extreme physical pain, though. Just the idea of her not being near, of never seeing her smile again, of her scent being far away, or worse, tinged with the odor of another male ~ it made his entire body ache with dread, fury, anxiety. Every night as he watched her sleep, he had these same laments, and he would resolve to get her alone and make her understand his feelings for her. Over and over he would rehearse his speech in his head as they traveled from place to place. Finally, he would manage to get a few moments alone with her, as they set up camp or gathered firewood. He would clear his throat to get her attention and...
Completely lose his nerve. And say something stupid. And get sat. A lot!
If only she knew what he had really meant to say... that he loved her, needed her, would rather be sealed to the tree again than live without her. But what if she did? What if she rejected him? What if she didn't return his love, or didn't want to bother with a relationship that would involve so many complications? The unknown preserved hope ~ undeclared feelings held the possibility that she might return them. But if he told her and she refused him, it would be final and he wouldn't be able to take it back. Hope would vanish, and be replaced with hopelessness.
And then there was Kikyo... Always there was Kikyo....
As he ruminated, the words of his companions drifted up to his ears, but he only half heard them. He registered that Miroku, the pervert monk, had made some comment about lovely women in Kagome's "Footoo al-boom," but that was nothing unusual. When was he not ogling some unsuspecting woman?" Then Kagome's voice lilted on the breeze, "...they're my best friends...."
'Wait? Did she say ...her best friends? BEST friends?!????' He felt an instant stab of pain ... jealousy toward some girls he had never met. In a life that she lived without him. In a place he didn't belong. 'Keh! When was the last time they threw themselves in front of some slavering demon to save her butt? Or carried her on their backs, or hauled around that ridiculously heavy pack of hers?' he fumed. 'Or called her bitch, or useless, or pathetic? Or left her to go chase off some shadow of a first love?' added that annoying little voice in the back of his conscience. "Shut up!" he bellowed to the voice, frustrated not only that it was right, but that he couldn't beat the hell out of it.
He was still brooding the next morning, making him even more bad tempered than usual. "Look, Bitch! You ain't going, and that's final! You've got a job to do here!"
Sighing wearily, "Inuyasha, do we really have to do this every time I have to go home? I have to study for finals, and I have a project due on Monday. A project, I might add, that I should have been working on for a month now, but have very little done because I have been here with you!" Kagome was, as per usual, trying to get around the stubborn hanyou who blocked her path so she could get through the portal back to her time. She really didn't want to make him kiss the ground AGAIN to do it, but he usually left her little choice.
"Look, Wench, we don't have time for you to go traipsing 'back to the future' when we have to get those shards." (Inuyasha never said "back home" anymore. Home was somewhere you belonged, and to his way of thinking, her home was there, with him.) "We have to get them before Naraku does, remember?" He spoke the last part very slowly, as if she were a child who was too simple to understand anything more complicated than naptime
Kagome stood with her hands on her hips, right eyebrow raised, looking hard at him. "I haven't heard any rumors of any shards anywhere lately, have you? We've been sitting around for three days now, and there has been nothing that I know of happening. Do you know something I don't?"
"We...well, no, not as such! But if we do hear something, we have to act fast! And how are we supposed to do that if your weak, useless human butt isn't here? How are we supposed to find the shards then, huh?" He was on a rant now. Not thinking about what he was saying ~ just blurting out anything to keep from yelling that he hated it when she was gone. That it left him feeling lonely and empty, and anxious for her safety. That he was scared to death that that damned well might stop working someday, and she wouldn't be able to get back to him. "Where is your miko sense of duty? Kikyo would never..."
Oops! He clamped his mouth shut when he realized what he was about to say, but of course it was too late. He knew he'd be getting intimate with the dirt at any moment, but what was much worse was having to witness the myriad of expressions that crossed Kagome's pretty features in the space of a few seconds: hurt, anger, and finally sadness.
The sadness remained when she finally spoke, but her voice was calm. Much too calm. "And as we know, I'm not Kikyo. Just a weak, useless copy. But luckily, the original is available. After you've picked yourself up off the ground, you can go find her. I'm sure she's not too far away."
"Kagome... I didn't mean..."
A single tear slid down the young girl's cheek. "Sit!"
With that, she stepped around his prone, slightly buried figure and vaulted into the well.
Darling readers: I have not forgotten or abandoned "A Hanyou's ToDo List," or "The Day After Happily Ever After" either for that matter (Not an IY story, so don't worry if you haven't heard of it). I just CANNOT FIND THE #$*&@$ disc I saved them on. Anyway, hope you enjoy this one. It'll probably be a fairly short one ~ maybe 4-5 chapters. IY/Kag, and enough fluff to rot your teeth and cause extreme nausea. You have been warned.
What Love Isn't
"This is my mom, and Jii-san, and that's my little brother, Sota." Kagome pointed to a photograph in her album as Shippo looked on from his perch on her shoulder. "You two would get along great, Shippo! He loves to run and kick soccer balls and climb trees. And..." she paused, poking his tummy gently with her finger, "he also loves sweets!"
Shippo, his little face dappled with chocolate smears, giggled from the assault and hopped down into her lap to point to a picture. In it, Kagome and three other dark haired girls all mugged for the camera and held their fingers out in a V. "You're the prettiest of all them, Kagome! Who are they?"
"Hmmm. I must agree. Your friends certainly are lovely, but you are most assuredly the loveliest, Lady Kagome." Miroku, who was sitting on Kagome's right, seconded the opinion of the kit before helping himself to a stick of Pocky that Kagome brought to share. Sango, already munching on a piece herself, made it unanimous with several nods of her dark head and an, "Mmm- hmm."
Kagome blushed at the compliments of her friends, but answered them by pointing to each girl and pronouncing their names, "This is Ayume, and this is Yuka, and this is Eri. I've known them since I was even younger than Shippo. In my time, they're my best friends."
It was a divine, uneventful evening; the skies painted with great swathes of brilliant gold, orange, red and cobalt blue, and a warm breeze drifted through the village. The small group was currently staying in Kaede's village, and had chosen to spend the tranquil evening outside, enjoying the calm and the pleasant weather. They knew all too well that moments like that were few and far between, and should be savored and enjoyed.
Absent from the group was Kaede, who, having served a delicious, (though as noted by one member of the party, Ramen-free) evening meal, was now making rounds to tend to the ailing of the village. And Inuyasha, who had retreated to the treetops to brood over some thoughts that weighted heavily on his mind.
The jewel shards and nearly all been collected, and thanks to Kikyo, most of them were now in the possession of Naraku. Every day, he seemed to gain power, and while he didn't attack personally, his demons were becoming more and more difficult to defeat. So far, they had managed to kill his minions, or at least survive and drive away their attacks, but the time was quickly approaching that they would come fact to face with the demon that was Naraku either defeat him and complete the Shikon Jewel, or would join the thousands of others who had lost their lives to him. That COULD NOT happen. There was too much at stake.
And her...what to do about her... All logic and common sense said that they would defeat Naraku, complete the jewel... And then she would go back to her time and get on with her life in the modern word with its conveniences, it's huge buildings, it's giant steel monsters that transported people from place to place. And that other guy...that Ho...Hobo? Hoto? Homo? As far away from him as she could get, if not in space, in time. This train of thought always caused him extreme physical pain, though. Just the idea of her not being near, of never seeing her smile again, of her scent being far away, or worse, tinged with the odor of another male ~ it made his entire body ache with dread, fury, anxiety. Every night as he watched her sleep, he had these same laments, and he would resolve to get her alone and make her understand his feelings for her. Over and over he would rehearse his speech in his head as they traveled from place to place. Finally, he would manage to get a few moments alone with her, as they set up camp or gathered firewood. He would clear his throat to get her attention and...
Completely lose his nerve. And say something stupid. And get sat. A lot!
If only she knew what he had really meant to say... that he loved her, needed her, would rather be sealed to the tree again than live without her. But what if she did? What if she rejected him? What if she didn't return his love, or didn't want to bother with a relationship that would involve so many complications? The unknown preserved hope ~ undeclared feelings held the possibility that she might return them. But if he told her and she refused him, it would be final and he wouldn't be able to take it back. Hope would vanish, and be replaced with hopelessness.
And then there was Kikyo... Always there was Kikyo....
As he ruminated, the words of his companions drifted up to his ears, but he only half heard them. He registered that Miroku, the pervert monk, had made some comment about lovely women in Kagome's "Footoo al-boom," but that was nothing unusual. When was he not ogling some unsuspecting woman?" Then Kagome's voice lilted on the breeze, "...they're my best friends...."
'Wait? Did she say ...her best friends? BEST friends?!????' He felt an instant stab of pain ... jealousy toward some girls he had never met. In a life that she lived without him. In a place he didn't belong. 'Keh! When was the last time they threw themselves in front of some slavering demon to save her butt? Or carried her on their backs, or hauled around that ridiculously heavy pack of hers?' he fumed. 'Or called her bitch, or useless, or pathetic? Or left her to go chase off some shadow of a first love?' added that annoying little voice in the back of his conscience. "Shut up!" he bellowed to the voice, frustrated not only that it was right, but that he couldn't beat the hell out of it.
He was still brooding the next morning, making him even more bad tempered than usual. "Look, Bitch! You ain't going, and that's final! You've got a job to do here!"
Sighing wearily, "Inuyasha, do we really have to do this every time I have to go home? I have to study for finals, and I have a project due on Monday. A project, I might add, that I should have been working on for a month now, but have very little done because I have been here with you!" Kagome was, as per usual, trying to get around the stubborn hanyou who blocked her path so she could get through the portal back to her time. She really didn't want to make him kiss the ground AGAIN to do it, but he usually left her little choice.
"Look, Wench, we don't have time for you to go traipsing 'back to the future' when we have to get those shards." (Inuyasha never said "back home" anymore. Home was somewhere you belonged, and to his way of thinking, her home was there, with him.) "We have to get them before Naraku does, remember?" He spoke the last part very slowly, as if she were a child who was too simple to understand anything more complicated than naptime
Kagome stood with her hands on her hips, right eyebrow raised, looking hard at him. "I haven't heard any rumors of any shards anywhere lately, have you? We've been sitting around for three days now, and there has been nothing that I know of happening. Do you know something I don't?"
"We...well, no, not as such! But if we do hear something, we have to act fast! And how are we supposed to do that if your weak, useless human butt isn't here? How are we supposed to find the shards then, huh?" He was on a rant now. Not thinking about what he was saying ~ just blurting out anything to keep from yelling that he hated it when she was gone. That it left him feeling lonely and empty, and anxious for her safety. That he was scared to death that that damned well might stop working someday, and she wouldn't be able to get back to him. "Where is your miko sense of duty? Kikyo would never..."
Oops! He clamped his mouth shut when he realized what he was about to say, but of course it was too late. He knew he'd be getting intimate with the dirt at any moment, but what was much worse was having to witness the myriad of expressions that crossed Kagome's pretty features in the space of a few seconds: hurt, anger, and finally sadness.
The sadness remained when she finally spoke, but her voice was calm. Much too calm. "And as we know, I'm not Kikyo. Just a weak, useless copy. But luckily, the original is available. After you've picked yourself up off the ground, you can go find her. I'm sure she's not too far away."
"Kagome... I didn't mean..."
A single tear slid down the young girl's cheek. "Sit!"
With that, she stepped around his prone, slightly buried figure and vaulted into the well.