InuYasha Fan Fiction / Trigun Fan Fiction ❯ Miko ❯ Dearest ( Chapter 7 )

MIKO

By L.O. a.k.a. azn_otaku

Crossover: InuYasha and Trigun

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A/N: Huh, okay so this chapter is sort of a song fic type thingie. You know, "Dearest" by Ayumi Hamasaki? The third ending to the InuYasha anime? It's gonna be a little fragmented, but that's on purpose. Each section is fairly short, it's going to be jumping around a lot. But I think that's all I've got to say for this chapter!

Reader Responses:

HANDHELD Uber Rei Model 05: Is this soon enough? It's tradgical a word? I'm not sure. ^__^

Kurama-Kagome12: Sad stories are the best! It's the sad ones that you remember the most.

Dunbarbalooie2: Hey, you should tell your friends to read this and should they review, they should mention that they're your friend! I dunno, just a thought. I like the compliments, they make me feel like I'm doing something right. Sometimes, I don't feel that way. But I still really love this fic! And this chapter is going to be doing a lot of jumping around, specifically between two different groups. Stay alert!

RC: Don't worry, Kagome will be set free! What do you like about the fic?

bluesky7: Wow, I almost made you cry? I must be doing something good right? Hopefully it stays that way!

kronos: I'm getting a lot of good reviews, I'm taking it as a good sign. What do you think?

Cinderelly: I'm updating! What do you think of this chapter?

Miss_Marilyn69: Thanks for the compliments! Are you sure there are no better crossovers out there? Try the Juuban Incident if you like Ranma/SM xovers. That's so sad, it made me cry!

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"......" Dialogue

[......] Thoughts

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Chapter Seven: Dearest

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He watched as Natsuko carefully screwed a little chip into the back of the locket. She had altered the original necklace a bit, using skills she had learned in high school to add a sound bit that played a song she knew Kagome liked. It had a nice melody, a little hopeful, a little sad. His amber eyes squinted and he examined the locket as it was being wrapped in rose colored tissue paper.

"When will the party be?" Natsuko didn't look up as she tied the pale yellow satin ribbon around the crinkled paper. Her thin fingers nimbly danced around the knot in the center and soon a dainty little bow appeared. She smiled at the perfectly wrapped package, gently placing the gift in InuYasha's hesitant fingers. He stared at her, as if not knowing what to do with what was in his hands.

"Kagome's coming back tomorrow, we're decorating Kaede's hut with some ornaments today."

Natsuko smiled and clasped her hands together in front of her sweater, "I'm sure it will be a lot of fun for Kagome-chan."

"Un..." InuYasha shifted awkwardly where he was standing, "Listen, if you need anything or...well...." He scratched his nose with his free hand.

"I'm sure you will be willing to help. Arigatou, InuYasha."

"Yeah."

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"Are they...gone?" Meryl's voice cracked in the back of her throat, she desperately needed water. After what she had just witnessed, her entire face was dry of any emotion.

"I think so."

She watched as Vash slowly looked around, and crept up into the cement room, his eyes fixated upon the glowing green column in the center. The bloodstains had not yet been cleaned, and the pair sidestepped each spot warily, inching their way towards the girl.

She floated slowly, up and down. Her hair drifted lazily about her face, taking upon a life of its own. Her misty gaze turned to Meryl and the woman smiled hesitantly. But it did not seem as if the girl recognized her, or if she was even recognizing her surroundings. It was as if she were drugged, her eyes glazed over in a stupor.

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[It would be nice if we could put away and throw out]

[Everything except what really mattered, but]

[Reality is just cruel.]

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"This is for you. I hope you like...it."

"For...me? You got something...for me...InuYasha?"

Kagome looked up at the young man in front of her, her cheeks still flushed with the surprise of the party. Her eyes were bright, shining like twin stars in the midst of a pitch black sky. He felt his face heating up as she smiled up at him with happiness.

"Arigatou, InuYasha!"

Her voice was so sweet, like tiny little silver bells tingling a welcome. She laughed and set about opening the small package of tissue paper, biting her lip in concentration. He watched her with an intense look, hoping beyond hope that she'd like her gift. His nose twitched when the locket came into being upon her lap.

"Ohh....."

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[In such times,]

[I see you laughing]

[Whenever I close my eyes.]

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The image kept getting stronger, his heartbeat growing faster. He could almost feel a form solidifying, and he could almost smile.

[Onegai....InuYasha...]

[Help me...]

[Let me out....]

He would save the one calling to him. And he would be set free. His wings would soar over the heavens, reveling in the freedom that was his own. He would laugh with the angels, and sing with the birds.

He would rescue his chibi tenshi. The one calling to him.

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As his hand touched the smooth glass, he could feel the pulsating power within every drop of liquid. It was as if the girl was resonating with such a power that it was all the tank could do to restrain her. She blinked and stared on, still not comprehending the man and woman before her. Her head dropped in a restless slumber, and he could feel images sweeping through his head like a wildfire.

Unknowing to himself, his body began to glow the pure white of miko magic, connecting his form with the tank. His eyes closed automatically and a tear fell from his eyelash.

[I want out.]

[Nowhere to go.]

He could sense Meryl come up beside him, her fingers suddenly connected with his arm. As if he were one with the insurance girl, they heard each other's heartbeats. And they heard the crying within the tank.

[Help me.]

[Golden eyes...help me.]

She was immensely sad, and the images were just too painful. They were so much more devastating than the beating from the present. Vash and Meryl could not move while the girl was taken from her home. They could not cry out as she was beaten over and over again. They could not feel a tear as her family had been torched to death. They could not even whimper as they saw the looks upon everyone's face, as they realized that the girl was taken away.

[Golden eyes...help me.]

The young man with the golden eyes was being put to sleep by a young miko who looked very much alike the girl in the tank. He tried to cry out towards the fallen girl who had been put in the arms of a man with long black hair and slitted eyes. His golden stare screamed with terror as the sleep overcame him, and the miko let her hand rest on his forehead in quiet regret. She had saved him from death.

[Please help me.]

[I do not like it here.]

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[Until the day I reach eternal sleep,]

[That smiling face will]

[Have to stay with me without fail.]

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"It's a beautiful gift InuYasha."

The party was over, most everyone asleep. The inu hanyou jerked in surprise when he felt Kagome's presence on the ground, under his sleeping tree. He looked down to see her smiling up at him with a calm reassurance.

He hopped down, "Can't sleep?"

"Uhn." Kagome let her back rest against the rough bark of the trunk and patted the ground beside her. He sat next to her hesitantly, watching her out of the corner of his eye. She smiled, letting her raven black hair fall over her shoulders. He could almost smell the lovely scent that always surrounded her, and his claws itched with the need to touch her.

The two looked out, smelling the wood and the faint breeze. There was hardly a sound besides the two's breath, their souls at peace with one another. For a moment, neither dared to move for fear of breaking the spell cast upon the forest. As if like magic, fireflies danced about in the blackness like tiny stars come to tease their witnesses with splendor and delight. The grass was soft underneath their legs, a sweet dewy smell coming from each blade. The earth never felt so good to rest upon. It wasn't but a few more long moments when Kagome spoke up softly.

"Arigatou."

"For what?"

She let herself look up at the crescent moon in the night sky before turning to him, clasping her hands over her knees. His breath caught in his throat at her beautiful smile.

"I really like the locket. It means a lot to me."

"I-I'm glad."

There was no sound coming from the forest as the two sat there. They watched the stars come peeking out of their blankets, ready for another night's work of lighting the sky up with brilliance.

"And I mean that too. I will always remember our friendship InuYasha. You were the first person I traveled with. The first one I..." She blushed and shook her head.

"Arigatou, InuYasha."

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As if waking from another dreamless sleep, the young woman's eyes flashed with intelligence, and she noticed the two newcomers fearfully. Meryl tried to communicate with her own gaze, to let the girl know that she was not an enemy. The prisoner merely swept back fitfully, pressing her back to the far wall of the tank. Her blood lashed out in little streams of red.

"It's okay. It's okay...." Vash could not say anything, so Meryl took her arm off of his own to press her fingers up against the glass with as much warmth as she could muster up. She smiled up at the young woman with reassurance and began to hum, letting the tune resonate with her very being. She felt her own strength transfer into the tank, as if the girl were pulling out whatever love she could get to fill the emptiness that was her being.

They let her approach them slowly, trying not to look excited as she pressed her own slim hand against Meryl's through the glass. She spread her fingers out in wonderment, like a little baby. Her eyes were wide and she experimented with the touch, unable to comprehend the gentleness of such a feeling.

"It will be okay."

[Everything will be alright from now on, we will take care of you."

Meryl looked up at Vash, letting her rosy lips turn upwards in a brilliant beam. Her cheeks flushed red, feeling as if she were communicating with a small child. Vash grinned down at her as well and he put his hand on top of Meryl's upon the glass. The two focused upon getting their thoughts across to the young girl, whose name they did not know.

[We will save you.]

[It will be okay from now on.]

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Was it him? Was it the man with the golden eyes? Did he come to save her and take her away from her living hell?

[It's not him.]

Yet she could not deny the happiness that shot through her bones and down to the tips of her toes. Having never felt this emotion before, she almost cried out in surprise and she had leapt back. Perhaps her heart did not know what was good for her. Perhaps these new people were coming to laugh at her and mock her presence. She would not have been surprised, her master's servants ridiculed her with every passing turn. It had been at those times that she had let her emotion shut off completely, to detach her soul from her body.

[But they are happy.]

They were happy.

They did not look at anyone else but her with that smile. That angelic smile and that angelic voice. The woman wrapped her soul around her own in a motherly embrace, protective and comforting. She wanted to touch them. Did she imagine this? Was this nothing more than the hallucinations of a mindless slave?

[Their hands are warm.]

She could feel nothing but the glass. And yet she could feel everything about the two. She let her gaze wander from the woman to the man and then back to the woman. Her hands spread out on their own, as if grasping at the love and attempting to reel it back in to her bosom.

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[People are all sad, so]

[They go and forget, but--]

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His angel was calling out to him. He must go to her. If only he knew how to get out of the darkness and into the light...

He didn't want to forget these memories coming back. He knew they were memories because the instant he saw each image, he felt a sense of déjà vu. It was as if his soul were remembering the very touch of his chibi tenshi, the very sound of her voice and the very smell of her long black hair. She had looked up at him with such care that he had felt his heart break into pieces every time she smiled.

Her smile was so special.

[My tenshi...]

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[That scent...]

Naraku looked up from his thoughts to realize that he had completely missed the smell of the outsiders. How could he have made such a mistake, their scent was unmistakable! He had been so angry with his Kagome, so bent on beating her until she could no longer breath, that his mind did not comprehend the smells of the outsiders until he had gotten back to his main office.

They were with HIS Kagome. That was not right.

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"Oy! You! What do you think you're doing here?!"

"Crap..."

Vash looked up sharply at the group of guards barging in to the cold room. He grabbed at Meryl's hand harshly, looking back at the young woman with regret.

[I'm sorry, we can not help you at this moment.]

As if she understood his thoughts, she looked away dejectedly. Her eyes snapped back at Vash's and she pressed her face up against the glass with despair.

[I am sorry.]

He turned away hurriedly to rush past the guards, feeling the sadness emanating from Meryl and the young girl combined. They had let her down.

[I am sorry. I will save you.]

They rushed past the entrance to the underground building and Meryl looked back with a longing glance, "Will we come back, Vash?"

They could feel her cries resonating within their breasts and they tried to resist her mournful calls. She connected to them mentally, and they could understand the dark black that had enveloped her. She had dared to hope that one time. One time out of hundreds of years.

And they had let her down.

Vash looked towards the great dusk of growing nightfall and his gaze hardened.

"We'll be back."

[Of course we will.]

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They had taken a walk around the forest, letting the light of the moon through the treetops guide their paths. He snuck glances to the side, watching the young woman with a small blush on his cheeks.

[I want to be more than just friends.]

He didn't want to be hurt. Much of his life had been like that. Even Kikyou had wanted him to change fully into a human, had not accepted his demon half. He didn't think he could handle it if Kagome was the same way.

But somehow, he got the feeling that she liked him just as he was.

She hummed a little tune to herself, letting her feet guide her to where she wanted to go. Every now and then she would stop to smell the earth's scent, patting her short green skirt before moving on. He liked how her feet were quiet on the ground, and how she would smile at him when they stopped. It was as if there was a no fighting rule hovering in the air, letting the two walk as friends.

[I want you Kagome. You are so special to me.]

He could not imagine life without her now. When she wasn't there, he would fret over her safety until she was at his side. Of course, he hid his anxiety from the others with angry and impatient noises, but his fixation never left the opening of the well. When she was not there, life did not seem so good.

They stopped for the twentieth time and InuYasha let Kagome pick out their direction silently. He thought of his feelings.

Should he tell her? All his life, he had been afraid of what people would say. Afraid of getting himself hurt. He was so used to protecting his own feelings, that he could hardly feel the feelings of others.

[But...that's not what love is. Is it?]

Isn't love....the exact opposite? Should he care more for her feelings than his own? Isn't that what this was all about?

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[They did not come to rescue me.]

The warmth was gone, in its place was the cold fury of her master. She had let herself be beaten once more, feeling as if nothing mattered. Nothing could have been worse than the feeling of loss. She could sense the regret in the man's eyes and the pain in the woman's heart. But they could not save her.

They told her to wait. They would come back. They told her it was going to be okay.

[When?]

How long would she have to wait? When would she be let out to live like the people she had killed? Did someone have a reason for keeping her locked in her little tank, being let out only for training and killing?

[Come back....onegai.]

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It was decided.

"Kagome...."

"...Yes?"

She stopped her decision making to look up at him curiously. They had been traveling for about an hour in silence, this was the first time he had spoken. He looked at her seriously before letting out a breath. His silver hair lit up with the moonlight, and his amber eyes gained a special gleam.

[Here goes nothing.]

Taking her shoulders gently, he pulled her into an embrace and closed his own eyes. He could feel the racing of her heart, and the quickening of her breath. She shifted in his hold with a nervous air.

"...InuYasha? What are you...doing?"

"....."

He didn't let go before speaking. He had mouthed his words in his mind in the past, over and over. He would not let this chance slip.

"Aishiteru...Kagome."

[Aishiteru.]

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She would wait for them to save her. As the years passed, time no longer seemed important. She could wait for centuries if need be.

They had promised that they would come back.

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[For that which I should love,]

[For that which gives me love, I will do what I can.]

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A/N: Well folks, chapter seven is officially done! Approximately eight more chapters to go! I've never actually finished an entire fic, you know that? But now that this story's more than halfway over, I keep feeling the need to write more and actually accomplish something!

What did you think of the song? I advise everyone to download "Dearest" as soon as possible and listen to it! It's the best song ever. I love Ayumi Hamasaki!

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JAPANESE DICTIONARY

-Chan - Suffix used for someone you're familiar with or someone younger than you.

Arigatou - Thank you

Onegai - Please

Chibi - Small, Little

Tenshi - Angel

Miko - Priestess

Inu - Dog

Hanyou - Half Demon

Aishiteru - I love you