The distance in a breath if not felt against my cheek is too far...

"What a beautiful day!" The young miko called out, falling back into the lush, green grass surrounding her. Days like these made her thankful that the Sengoku Jidai was only a well leap away. The raven-haired schoolgirl ran her fingertips along the blades of grass, focusing intently on the noises surrounding her while her eyes remained closed. School would just have to wait. She wanted to enjoy this weather while it lasted. She wanted to enjoy it in the company of her friends. Her friends...

Rising with a careless sigh, she shielded her eyes from the sun, squinting to see past its rays to her companions. Sango, the expert demon exterminator, was positioned by a small creek, polishing Hiraikotsu while throwing dirty looks at a certain monk. Miroku sat on a nearby rock, shaking his head and silently berating himself, the punishment for his earlier actions still visibly red on his cheek. He would never learn.

"Kagome! Kagome!"

The high-pitched squeal could only mean Shippo, the clever kitsune, was nearby. Sure enough, within seconds, he pounced onto her lap, showing her the bouquet of wildflowers he had picked for her. Smiling gently, she patted him on the head and sent him on his way with the fire cat Kirara hot on his heels. Only one left...

Standing from her perch, she found him easily, lying up against a tree with his arms folded behind his head and his sword at his side. With each step she took, his ears twitched, signaling he was wide awake, although his eyes remain closed in rest. Rest was not something they were privileged enough to encounter much anymore, being the good guys in an all out war against the undeniably sinister Naraku. The hanyou opened one golden eye as she took a seat next to him, the shadows from the above branches slowly covering her small form. She said nothing, simply smiling before turning to watch the others in their activities. One eyebrow skeptically raised, he sat up, leaning slightly forward to snatch her attention. "What's with you?" He asked with his usual gruffness, sliding one knee up to rest his arm across it. The young miko again did nothing but smile, only casting him a momentary sideways glance. "Hey, I asked you a question!"

"And I gave you an answer." She said with a sigh, turning her full attention to the hanyou. He reeled back, obviously confused. Kagome giggled, drawing her knees to her chest. "Nothing," she giggled, "nothing's wrong."

"Whatever." He sneered, returning to his previous reclining position. Kagome's smile faded as the all too familiar distant look glazed his beautiful eyes. The only time he looked like that was when she was around. Kikyo. How could he love her so much after everything she had put him through? The answer would never be known to her. "Kagome, do you think I've changed?" The question caught her off guard, and she gasped before she could stop herself.

"Ch...changed? What do you mean by that?" She asked, suddenly very interested in what he had to say.

"I mean, since you've known me." He tore his gaze away from the clouds and returned it to her, seriousness evident in his expression. "Have I changed since you first came here?" Why would he ask such a serious question with such an obvious answer?

"If you're talking about since you hated the very air I breathed or when you tried to kill me, yes, you've changed a lot."

"Scare you."

"What?" She asked, tilting her head as she looked at him.

"I was trying to scare you." He sat up, grabbing the old sword and laying it across his lap. Kagome grinned, laying her head over on his shoulder.

"Yeah, sure."

"I was!"

"Okay, I believe you." Her smile faded when she realized he would go. Kikyo was not far away. She could sense her incarnate. She could sense the piece of her soul that she never got back. "InuYasha?"

"What?" He asked, pushing his shoulder forward to force her to look up.

"Would...would you ever hurt me?" She asked, biting her lip. The hanyou's brow furrowed, and he rolled his eyes, getting to his feet to thrust the sheath into is belt.

"Why would you ask a stupid question like that? Of course, not!" He turned away, instantly realizing what he had done. 'I can't promise her that.' The young miko stood beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder before lowering her head and walking past. One day, they both knew, when he would go to see Kikyo...he would never come back.

The dust finally settled, leaving a clear view for each snarling demon. She stood for as long as her wounded body would allow, falling ungracefully to her knees to splash the puddle of her own blood below her. Never before had she fought someone with such power, all the while using all of her own in mere defense. Did she truly deserve such a fate? It was true that she had fled. She had been warned of it, but she still attempted. Now, she would pay the ultimate price for betrayal.

"Kagura." The bone chilling tone of his voice was enough to make her cringe, but still, she refused to look at him. This angered him all the more. "Pitiful fool!" His arm extended into a pointed vine, striking her in the left cheek. She fell back, unable to move any longer. He stepped above her broken form, laughing cruelly. "Go! Join InuYasha and his worthless companions!" His smile faded as he kneeled beside the wind sorceress, gripping a fistful of her dark hair to force her gaze upon him. She opened her scarlett eyes, still unseeing, and winced from the pain of being moved. "Only know that you will die along with all of them...as a traitorous mortal!" A dark energy engulfed them, and she could feel herself weaken even more. His grip slacked, and she fell back to the ground, her eyes closing tightly in agony. "Goodbye, Kagura." The wind she used to control carried his voice away, and she knew she was alone, injured, and...human. He had done it. The powers that had made her everything she was were stripped from her in an instant. What was left for her now?

What started a quiet chuckle soon erupted into a fit of racking laughter. What was left? Revenge. The best kind of revenge. InuYasha. The hanyou she had sought so hard to kill would be her vengeance. Mortal or not, she was now free. She would see him die. Pushing herself onto all fours, she brought her head up to glare into the direction of his retreat, a wicked smile on her face.

"Naraku...you have no idea what you've done...."