InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Desperation ❯ Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

 

When the group reached the house they were greeted at the door by a smiling Rin.

“I've prepare a snack, so everyone in the kitchen. Hurry before the Ramen gets cold.”

“Ramen?” Inuyasha was pleased.

“Yes we remembered that you liked it. I've had the pantry well stocked with it since spring. We weren't quite sure when you'd be coming through for the last time.” She led them into a spacious kitchen. There was a variety of fruit, vegetables, and Ramen on a long counter.

As everyone headed towards the food Rin pulled Kagome aside.

“I'm sorry,” she spoke softly.

“Sorry for what?” Kagome was confused.

“For how badly it went when you found out about the well.” She shook her head. “Sess said he could handle everything. He asked to let him take care of it. I agreed, I shouldn't have,” she sighed. “I thought that he would explain about Miroku and Sango before he told you two about the well. I should have known better.” She frowned. “I had a feeling that he was going to do something wrong. When you were so upset I insisted we bring you here. It was our fault you were grieving. I knew that if we brought you to see them you would be alright again. I'm so sorry about this.” Her voice was strained and her eyes were filled with tears.

Kagome wrapped her arms around the shorter woman.

“You have nothing to be sorry about Rin. I agree that Sesshoumaru could have handled things better, but it's alright now. We're back together that's what matters. Are you going to eat with us?” Rin shook her head.

“No I need to check on Sess. He came in and locked himself in his study, he's pouting about something.”

Inuyasha looked up from his noodles.

“Tell him I didn't leave him out. That it's something we need to talk about.”

“What do you mean?” Rin asked.

“He'll understand.” He dug into the noodles again.

Giving Kagome another hug Rin left the kitchen. As Kagome walked toward the others Inuyasha put down a rather large empty bowl.

“Alright monk spill.”

“Spill what Inuyasha? Rin really hates it when I make a mess in her kitchen.” Inuyasha growled at Miroku's attempt at humor. He calmed when Kagome laid her hand on his arm.

“Miroku don't aggravate him right now. We've had a hell of a day. Just start when we went through the well.”

“As soon as Shippo went through we knew that you wouldn't be back. I had Keade look at it as well. The well was dead we could both feel it. Those first several days were very hard.”

“I think I cried for a week.” Sango said, Shippo was sitting in her lap eating an apple.

“After awhile we realized that with the shards that Shippo had taken with him there was one maybe two unaccounted for. Also that we still needed to kill Naraku. We didn't look forward to trying that without you two.” He took a deep breath. “The only thing that gave us hope was knowing that he no longer had the jewel. With Kagome having it in this time he couldn't get it. He wasn't strong enough.

“Any way after about a month we left the village again. As we traveled I was careful not to use the Kazaana much. Even though it had gotten smaller when we weakened Naraku I didn't want to chance it. With not knowing how long it would take to finally kill him and get rid of it I was taking nothing for granted.”

“Sess said you three killed the bastard. So why do you still have the damned thing?”

“Patience Inuyasha, I'm getting there. We had been traveling for about six months when we came across an old woman.”

“She had tumbled down a very steep hill,” Sango said. “Kirara saw her and alerted us. When we got down to her it was easy to see that she was pretty badly bruised and had broken her leg in the fall.”

“It was also easy to see that she wasn't human. Her aura wasn't evil in the least though. So we got her onto Kirara as gently as we could. She directed us to her house which was a little over a mile away. Once we had her settled into bed she explained that she had been gathering herbs and had stumbled. Not being able to right herself in time she tumbled down the hill.

“When she asked to see my hand I was a bit shocked. I asked her why. She wanted to inspect the Kazaana. That she knew about it was a bit surprising, she said she could sense it. So I held my hand out to her. She carefully inspected the edges of it and nodded knowingly.

“Then she placed her hands on my face and looked into my eyes. It felt like she did forever. Sango later told me that it was a minute at the most.” He paused and took a drink of water.

Sango set Shippo down, stood, and came over to stand behind Miroku. With a smile she placed her hands on his shoulders. Taking one of her hands in his own he kissed her palm then continued his story.

“The old woman waved Sango over and took her hand. When she was holding each of our hands in hers they began to glow, at first we were startled. Not just from the glow but from the powerful youki we felt from her. Seconds later we felt warm and safe. Like we did out there with what you did Inuyasha.”

“Keh,” he blushed.

“I'm glad you bound us together.” Kagome hugged him.

“Feh, I'm not losing any of our pack again.” He held her tightly.

“What did she do when she was glowing?” Ayumi asked.

“She bound our souls.” Sango said.

“So you're mates like Kagome and I.” Inuyasha stated. “Thought I smelled it on you.”

Sango and Miroku both blushed.

“We had a wedding a couple of weeks later when we went back through the village.” Sango replied.

“Anyway, back to my explanation.” Miroku kept a hold of his wife's hand. “She said that she saw that we loved each other and that we wanted to be together. Then she told me something that totally floored both of us.

“You remember when we fought Kaguya?”

“Hell yes! That bitch tried to make me kill Kagome. She wanted to eat her.”

The girls' eyes widened and Ayumi covered her mouth trying to smother her gasp. Kagome turned to them with a smile.

“It's alright he didn't hurt me.”

Inuyasha pinned his ears.

“Wench I did to.” There was true sadness and pain in his voice. He pulled up the sleeve of her t-shirt and looked at the small marks on the back of her arm. “You have scars from my claws.” He whispered his voice tight. She put her hands on his face and made him look at her.

“She had pulled your heart into her mirror. You didn't know what you were doing.” She looked into his guilt filled eyes. “I knew what I was risking when I went to you. You came back to me that's all that's important.”

“You saved me, that time and when you stood in the acid in that ogre youkai's belly, and every time you sat me when I was like that. You've always saved me from my demons.” He touched her face, and she smiled brilliantly at his whispered words.

“I love you how could I not save you. And you always save me.” He pulled her into his arms and buried his face in her hair. He mumbled something no one else heard clearly.

“I know you do.” She hugged him and ran her hand down his hair. After nearly a minute of clutching her he growled.

“Get on with it monk.” Miroku chuckled at his friends' embarrassed gruffness.

“The point I was trying to make was that since Kaguya was immortal from consuming the celestial being we couldn't really kill her.”

“I did kill her.”

“You destroyed her body Inuyasha. What happened to her immortal spirit?”

“You sucked her into your hand because she tried to possess Kagome.”

“Correct, now how could that have possibly affected me?”

“Keh, don't know.”

“To come to the point, the old youkai told me that my Kazaana doesn't just sift things into a nebulous void.”

“What do you mean?” Kagome asked.

“Did you ever notice that I wasn't quite normal for a human?”

“Well you always were strong and pretty fast.”

“Yeah, he could even keep up with me for a couple of miles.” Inuyasha added.

“Well it turns out that when I pull things in I'm compacting them and taking them into my body. Because my spiritual powers are strong I reject and purify any evil or hurtful elements and keep the rest. So with each new youkai I pulled in I got stronger, faster, and gained more endurance.” He took a deep breath and looked at them.

“I also kept Kaguya's immortality.”

“What!” Inuyasha nearly yelled.

“Son of a bitch.” Ayumi was so shocked she didn't stop Eri this time.

“So when the old woman bound your souls,” Kagome said. “She gave Sango your life span.”

“Yes.”

“That still doesn't explain the Kazaana.”

“After she explained all of that she said that she could seal it so that it would never get any larger. That she could make it just a bit smaller first and then do it. I asked her why she would do such a thing. She said that she was grateful for all that we had done. I tried to say it wasn't very much.

“Then she said she wanted the last thing she did to be of meaning. She wanted to pass with a purpose. At first I said no. I didn't want her to use the last of her strength and life to help me. She said she didn't like seeing me crippled the way that I was. She laughed when I said I wasn't crippled. She told me I was, by fear. The fear that we wouldn't kill Naraku and lift the curse before it got me. The fear that I would have it open too long or pull something in that would damage it again.

“She said that if she did this that I would have it forever, even after we killed Naraku. But it wouldn't be passed down to any children we would have. So would I be willing to keep my curse if there was no fear it would kill me, and with no chance to pass it down. She also said she wouldn't like to see me crippled by the loss of my best weapon.

“Sango and I looked at each other, as we did the old woman spoke again. `I wish to be with my mate and my son again.' She had whispered. `Let me do this for you. Make my death one of honor.' So I agreed to let her do it.

“She held my hand between hers' and there was a flash and a surge of power. When it was over she had a peaceful look on her face, and she touched my cheek. With her last breath she said. `Tell Inuyasha that his Grandmother loved him. I was simply too old to be of any help to him. And thank you for being his friend, you will see him again.' Then she died. We buried her under a tree in her garden.”

“M-my Grandmother!”