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Flowers for Kagome:
Arigato Domo, Miko Kagome
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Drizzle fell down from the sky, whipping around his body and cloaking the old yokai in a hazy spray. Still, he refused to allow it to deter him from his yearly pilgrimage.
These days he shopped at a street market for her flowers, the field of her favorite flowers that he discovered by following the hanyou turned human, had long since been plowed over and was now home to yet another ugly skyscraper. Then walked to Higurashi shrine to pay his respects to them, the hanyou turned human and the miko, his personal heroes.
For years the old yokai had carefully watched and avoided running into the former hanyou turned human. It wasn't that he didn't think he would be welcomed, but he felt like he had made the former hanyou suffer enough with her loss, he had no right to make his pain worse by being there as a further reminder. He had never understood why the hanyou hadn't torn him to shreds the night his miko died.
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Her bow broken, she had allowed herself to be encircled by his tentacles and pulled to the evil hanyou with one final arrow concealed, tied to the back of her torn shirt. When she was close enough she ripped the arrow free and plunged it into him, in his distraction he freed her and she snatched the Shikon no Tama and ran free of him.
She was almost safely to the protective embrace of her hanyou when she suddenly saw the yokai that they had all thought was dead, waking and trying to get clear. Instead of continuing to safety she turned and ran for the yokai to help him, met with an impaling tentacle that tore apart her chest.
To this day the old yokai could still hear the hanyou screaming out her name.
The yokai had stood frozen to the spot, watching while the hanyou fell to his knees, sinking into the bloody mud around her. He picked her up and cradled her in his arms, wiping the blood from her face.
They joined hands, the Shikon no Tama between them, clutched to her bloody chest and she wished the evil hanyou into hell for all eternity. In a flash of light Naraku was gone and the strangest peace fell over the countryside. All was quiet for a moment, and then the quiet was shattered by the hanyou's screams as the miko passed from life to death.
The yokai turned away embarrassed, ashamed, disgusted that she had died for him. He heard voices behind him and he glanced back just in time to see the last of the hanyou become human.
The new human looked up and saw the yokai's eyes on him and the yokai flinched at the pain in the mans eyes, it was somehow scary that the rage was absent. The yokai understood rage and anger. But pain and sadness, this was something almost totally new.
The yokai asked silently for permission to approach and the human nodded once. The yokai hesitantly approached, gently brushed his fingers over the girls lifeless cheek, sniffing his own tears away.
Then the yokai turned and walked away silently into the black night.
The yokai had watched silently while the human buried her ashes under Goshinboku and placed a small grave marker that he had carved out with a chisel. It read
…Kioshii Tenshi
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Eventually the yokai left the village to return to his own life. Every year he returned on the anniversary of her death, the day she saved his life, to pay his respects. He was always careful to avoid the former hanyou, not wishing to cause him more pain than he already had.
The old miko passed within five years of the great battle, thirty years later both the slayer and houshi died within months of one another, she of pneumonia and he of a broken heart.
Five years later when he woke to leave town after paying tribute the previous day, the yokai found the Kitsune burying the former hanyou. He had overtaxed himself in his journey to the field of wildflowers, then fell asleep on her grave and had not woken.
The next year a marker had been placed next to hers, it read
….. Kioshii Hanyou
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The yokai reached the shrine and climbed the long flight of stairs. He quickly ducked behind a tree when he saw the kitsune knelt before the graves. He cursed silently, after six hundred years you would have thought that darn kitsune would set himself on a normal time for coming and going.
"I already saw you. You may as well come out." Shippo quipped
The yokai sighed and stepped from behind the tree, saying a hesitant hello.
"You know, we've been doing this hide and seek for six hundred years now, don't you think it's time to give it up?"
"Yes, I… suppose it is."
"InuYasha never understood why you insisted on hiding your visits."
"He knew?"
"We all knew." Shippo smiled and nodded at the ground, inviting Jaken to join him.
Jaken sat, then looked at Kagome's grave marker, unable to do more than whisper. "Why…"
He cleared his throat.
"Why did she do it? I was always so rotten to her, to everyone. My lord says she was out of her mind not to let me lay on the ground and rot, and I must say I agree one hundred percent."
"Because she was Kagome. That's just how she was."
"I've never understood why InuYasha didn't tear me from limb to limb."
"Because if he had, Kagome would have died for nothing."
Happy shouts burst from the house and came running towards them.
"Grandpa! Grandpa!"
"Grandpa! Grandpa!"
"Grandpa! Grandpa!"
"You have grandchildren?"
"Many. Do you not?"
"I never mated. Who would mate a mean stupid little toad like me?" Jaken grinned, remembering the angry teenage girl that had first called him that. What spirit she had.
Shippo laughed "Kagome called you that a lot didn't she?"
The old yokai laughed a little "I deserved it a lot."
"Ho!" He exclaimed as he was jumped on by the excited trio.
"Grammy says the tea is ready and to bring your friend." the little girl giggled.
"Children, this is Mister Jaken."
"Hello Mr. Jaken."
"Hello Mr. Jaken."
"Hello Mr. Jaken."
They smiled and bowed, the picture of breeding and manners, yet in the dancing emerald eyes were the tell tale signs of something stirring deeper, a trouble lurking, a penchant for raising hell.
"This is InuYasha, this is Miroku. And this little angel is Kagome." Shippo smiled, tickling the cheeks of the little girl.
"InuYasha, Miroku and Kagome?" Jaken mused, a small smile played about his two hundred year old lips that had replaced his once beak. Judging by the eyes, the names fit. "I'm pleased to meet you."
"Come, meet the rest of my family." Shippo nodded towards the house.
"Certainly." Jaken rose to his knees, then stopped a minute, looking down at the grave markers once again. He brushed his fingers over Kagome's marker as he had her cheek that night six hundred years before, laying the flowers that he had brought.
"Arigato Domo, Miko Kagome."
"Hurry Mr. Jaken!" Little InuYasha had run back to him and now stood near waving his hand. "Grammy makes the best cookies you ever tasted."
Jaken smiled and glanced at the grave stones a final time. He rose and followed the boy cub inside.
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Translation Glossary-
Arigato Domo, Miko Kagome--Thank you much Preistess Kagome
Kioshii Tenshi -- Beloved Angel
Kioshii Hanyou --Beloved Half-breed
ANotes: I got so many requests for a sequel to "Flowers For Kagome" , so, here ya be. This is the exact secenario I had in mind for how Kagome died when I wrote the original story, though I originally had Sesshomaru in mind as the one she saved, but, like that isnt done to death. Thought having Jaken be the one might give it a nice little "Holy Shit" moment. Kagome would do it, that's the point, she would risk herself for anyone who was fighting on the side of the right thing to do.
Please don't ask for another sequel though, I wont write more on this. I originally left the story vague because the point was suppose to be the tragedy of InuYasha and Kagome finally admitting their love for one another the day they battled Naraku, only to lose one another in the end. The message was to not put anything off! Tell those you care about how much you care NOW, CARPE DEIM.. GRAB THE MOMENT!
Anyway, Hope you liked "Arigato Domo, Miko."
Don't forget to review on your way out of the theater. LOL
Disclaimer: InuYasha is the property of Rumiko Takahashi
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