Adult-FanFiction.org : Inuyasha / Yashahime

Strength	By : inufan625 Category: InuYasha > Het - Male/Female > InuYasha/Kagome Views: 9998 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha and will make no money from this work of fiction. This will apply to all chapters contained within.

Chapter List
- 5
- 6
- 7
As InuYasha exited the well he was tempted to jump back in and see if it still worked, but he stopped himself. It would either work or it wouldn't, and there was no sense in tempting fate by making an extra trip through time.

He gathered his thoughts as he hurried towards the village. He wanted to make sure that he didn't forget anything that he needed to say, since he didn't know if he would ever be coming back. He certainly wasn't going to risk being separated from Kagome just to deliver a message that he should have remembered in the first place.
It seemed that luck was on his side, at least temporarily, when he found everyone gathered at the elderly Miko's hut. It would have taken time he didn't want to waste to have to go find everyone and get them all together.
"InuYasha," Shippou cried bouncing up and down. "Where is Kagome? You didn't make her mad again, did you?"
"Now, now, Shippou," Miroku chided gently. "InuYasha just arrived, and I am sure there are other matters more pressing that need to be addressed considering the state of the area around the well and what we found there upon our return. Once that has been cleared up then we will discuss whatever fool thing he did to upset Kagome this time."
"I didn't do nothing to upset Kagome," InuYasha snorted. "But you are right about one thing, there is more important shit to worry about right now, and I don't have a lot of time to explain it all."
"InuYasha," Kaede began quietly, "there was a broken bow by the well. It appears to be that of my sister..."
InuYasha lowered his head. "Naraku showed up. He was going to kill me... He almost succeeded, but then Kikyou showed up. Somehow she managed to purify the bastard or send him to hell, I ain't sure which, but Kikyou, she didn't make it. She gave me the jewel and pushed me into the well. I felt her... I felt her go..."
Kaede nodded her head and said a quiet prayer. "May she finally rest in peace. Thank you for telling me what became of my sister, InuYasha. It gives me comfort to know that whatever she had become, in the end she was still my Onee- sama."
"It doesn't seem right to ask after.... but you said that Kikyou gave you the jewel," Miroku prompted.
InuYasha shook his head to force away the memory of what had happened to Kikyou. "Yeah. I was in pretty bad shape when she sent me through the well with the jewel, but I knew I had to get it to Kagome. Luckily it was nearly sunrise and so I became hanyou again as I climbed out of the well. Kagome was pretty shaken up by the whole thing. Turns out she was dreaming about what was happening on this side of the well as Naraku came after me. Then after... Can't say I blame her for being surprised to find out her dream wasn't a dream and to wake up to find me bleeding on her bedroom floor. But she managed to patch me up, and here I am."
Miroku frowned. For InuYasha to admit he had been seriously injured must have meant that it was very bad indeed. "The new moon was several nights ago... What are you not telling us?"
"That's right," Sango added. "Surely you would have wanted to come back at once and tell us what happened with Naraku and Kikyou. At the very least Kagome would have wanted to come."
"Keh, what do you want me to say," InuYasha replied. "You want to hear that I probably would have died if it had taken me a few minutes longer to get to Kagome and that it wasn't until today that I was finally healed up enough to come back? Or you would you rather hear that Kagome can't come through the well anymore and that's why she ain't here with me right now."
All of the hut's occupants gasped. "What do you mean Kagome can't come back?" Shippou asked.
"I mean the well don't work for her anymore. Hell, I don't know if it will work for me when I try to go back," InuYasha said. "I only risked coming because it wouldn't have been right to leave you all here wondering what had happened."
"So we are to assume that you have chosen to stay with Kagome in her home on the other side of the well?" Miroku asked.
InuYasha blushed but nodded. "That is unless you all got any ideas as to why I can come through the well, and she can't."
"Perhaps she can no longer return because her purpose here is done," Kaede offered. "I have always believed that she was sent here to right the wrong committed by my sister when she pinned you to that tree all those years ago. Had the jewel not shattered and extended the need for Kagome to remain in this world I believe the well would have ceased to work long ago."
"But that don't explain why I can still go through," InuYasha said.
"I may have an explanation," Miroku offered. "The beads you wear, while created with Kikyou's power, are bound to Kagome's since she is the one who activated them with her command. As long as you wear them, a small portion of Kagome's power remains in this era, thus the well remains open to allow that power to return to where it belongs. However, you, InuYasha, belong to this time, and so when you are on the other side of the well it remains open for you to return here."
From her place by the fire Kaede was nodding. "That is definitely a plausible explanation."
"But if that is true then how come the beads do not simply come off when InuYasha passes from Kagome's time to this one?" Sango asked. "Shouldn't they be kept from coming with him so that the well can close?"
Kaede considered this for a moment and then said, "As with all creatures of this world each of us is surrounded by an aura, an aura that radiates from us and can be sensed by those of us with the gift to do so. I believe that InuYasha's youki may be blanketing over that small amount of Kagome's power as he passes through the well because they are lying against his body, thus concealing it, but not changing the fact that it has come with him and in turn necessitated that the well remain open."
"So what you're saying is that as long as I have the beads on, I should be able to go back and forth through the well," InuYasha asked.
"It would seem so," Miroku replied, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Of course this is all supposition, and we have no way to know for certain. And now if my assumptions are correct, it is time to make our goodbyes..."
"But it's not fair," Shippou cried. "How come I can't go and be with Kagome too?"
"Remember, Shippou, youkai live a long time," Miroku said gently. "You should look at this as an opportunity. Now you can go train with the other kitsune without having to leave Kagome behind, and when you are older you will be able to see her again and show her all that you have learned."
Shippou sat down and his brow furrowed. "I guess you're right. I'm still going to miss her though, and pocky."
"That reminds me," InuYasha said holding out the bag in his hand. "This stuff is for you guys. Kagome wanted you all to know that she was thinking of you even though she couldn't come herself."
Sango sniffled quietly as she took the bag from InuYasha. "Please tell her that she's been like a sister to me and that I will never forget her."
The hanyou nodded. "Well, I should probably get back. Kagome's waiting for me in the well. After she realized she couldn't get through... Sango, I guess it's up to you to keep that perverted bouzo out of trouble, and Shippou, I'm leaving it to you to watch out for everybody. I'll make sure Kagome knows what she should."
InuYasha turned to leave, only to be halted by Miroku as he added, "We'll miss you too, InuYasha."
Without looking back he nodded and then stepped out of the elderly miko's hut for the last time. InuYasha was surprised by the persistent ache in his chest as he ran for the well. He hadn't expected that saying goodbye would be so hard or that he would miss them so much. It took him by surprise when he realized that it was because they really were his friends too, as much as Kagome's, no matter how hard he had tried to deny it. In the end he decided that leaving his forest and everything he had ever known behind was well worth it when he had her waiting for him on the other side.
He halted as he reached the well and looked down. "I‘ve never expected much from life and I've never asked for much either, but now I'm asking - let it work, just one more time."
With a deep breath InuYasha closed his eyes and jumped.
~ * ~
Kagome waited.
She waited and reminded herself that it was much more her style to hope for the best rather than prepare for the worst. Of course that didn't stop her from biting her nails and chewing on her hair and indulging in almost every other bad habit she could think of to keep herself from going crazy thinking about the what ifs.
InuYasha would come back. He had to come back.
It was her mantra, her only truth. He had promised, and she was going to believe in that promise and that was that.
She didn't even notice that her mother had entered the well house until she spoke. "Kagome, dear, are you still out here?"
Kagome stood up in the bottom of the well and looked up. "Mama?"
Her mother peered down at her from above. "Darling, what are you doing down there? I thought you were going to come back in and study."
"I am... I was," Kagome replied lowering her head. "The well doesn't work for me anymore, Mama. InuYasha went through to tell everyone that I can't come back and see them anymore..."
"Ah," Asami said with understanding. "So then I can expect you inside when he returns."
Again Kagome looked up. "You really think it will let him come back again?"
Her mother smiled down at her. "Of course I do. I don't think there is anything in this world or his that could keep him from coming back to you. You just have to have faith. Now, I guess I should get inside and start dinner, but don't be afraid to call if you need anything."
Have faith in InuYasha? Well, she could definitely do that.
Kagome sat back down as she heard the well house door slide closed. As she continued to wait she found that she was much less apprehensive than she had been before. Her mother's quiet confidence had done wonders towards easing her troubled heart.
However, in spite of her renewed sense of hope, she still found herself surprised when her faith was rewarded in a wash of soft blue light.
Kagome scrambled to her feet as InuYasha appeared before her, ignoring the ache in her ankle from her earlier fall. When the light faded and his eyes opened she noticed the stark relief on his face and was sure that it mirrored her own. She didn't wait to throw herself into his arms, seeking assurance that he really was there and not just something she imagined.
"You're really here," she said breathlessly.
He ran his fingers through her hair and took a deep breath, reveling in her scent and the way she felt in his arms. "Keh, told you I'd be back, didn't I?"
Kagome smiled against his chest. He might be playing it cool, but she could tell that he was just as happy to have made it though as she was to have him back. For several long moments they were both content simply to hold each other and appreciate the fact that they weren't now separated by five hundred years.
"You know, we should probably head inside soon," Kagome said quietly. "Mama's making dinner. She found me out here and will be worried if we take too long in coming."
In reply the hanyou lifted Kagome into his arms and leapt out of the well. He landed on the rim of the structure with practiced ease and then stepped down onto the floor.
As they headed for the house Kagome sighed and with no real annoyance in her tone said, "I can walk you know."
InuYasha snorted. "Not on that ankle you can't. At least not until I've checked it out."
Kagome's mother frowned as they entered the kitchen and she got a good look at her daughter. "What happened?"
"It's nothing, Mama," Kagome replied. "I just twisted my ankle when I jumped into the well and it didn't work is all."
"Well, if you're certain that it's nothing serious," Asami said. "You should have just enough time to clean up and to let InuYasha check out that ankle before dinner is ready."
Kagome looked at herself and realized that she was indeed in need of a shower and a change of clothes. Her hands were filthy from digging in the well and most of her body was covered in a thin coating of dust from her time spent at the bottom of the well waiting for InuYasha. She didn't have to say a word before her hanyou headed out of the kitchen towards the stairs.
He set her down gently just outside the bathroom door. "I'll be right here if you need something."
Kagome nodded and slipped inside the restroom, closing the door behind her. Inside and undressed, she found it impossible to step into the tub and leave her weight on her injured ankle for any amount of time, so she was forced to sit on the side of the bath and swing her feet around. From there she was able to stand on her good leg while she rinsed the dirt from her body. After using the same procedure to leave the shower, she was quite pleased with herself and how well she had managed to accomplish her goal without an ill timed bout of clumsiness.
For the most part she was as coordinated as anyone - well, anyone human, but it did seem that she was always at her worst when it was most inconvenient - like now for instance. It would have been just her luck to have slipped and fallen, which would have had InuYasha bursting in to save her. She probably would have died of embarrassment if he had come in and found her sprawled out naked on the bathroom floor. But none of that mattered now that she was out of the shower, dried off, and wrapped in her bathrobe.
InuYasha was waiting for her as she exited the bathroom and offered her his arms and his shoulder to steady her as she walked to her room. Again he left her at the door.
As soon as she was dressed she called out to him, "InuYasha, you can come in now."
The first thing he did was grab the bag of medical supplies off of her desk, before kneeling at her feet. She winced as he examined her ankle and sucked in a hissing breath.
He looked up at her. "Sorry."
Kagome just shook her head. "It's all right."
"Well, it ain't broken," InuYasha announced. "But you should probably stay off of it and let it heal as much as you can for the next couple of days."
Kagome watched him with a warm heart as he held her leg tenderly in one hand and wrapped her ankle with the other. "Well, I have to go to school tomorrow and the next day to take my final tests, but that's it. Now, from the smell of things I would say dinner is ready, and I‘m starved."
In front of her InuYasha came to his feet and offered her his hand. She took it with a smile and let him help her to stand. Of course her recent luck not withstanding, she found herself falling against him after having accidentally put her weight down onto her sore ankle.
"Careful," InuYasha breathed against her ear as he held her against him. "Clumsy wench, always falling down."
Kagome was warm all over from their close contact. She lifted her head to look into his eyes. "I'm really glad you're here to catch me."
"Keh, me too," he admitted.
Kagome licked her lips unconsciously as InuYasha leaned his head down to cover her lips with his own. She sighed and melted into him as he kissed her, and couldn't help but to think that being clumsy might not be such a bad thing after all.
- 5
- 6
- 7
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Strength