InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Say Goodbye ❯ Chapter 11 Anything ( Chapter 11 )

Chapter 11 Anything

 

Sometimes I've got to wonder

How does this world truly exist

I walk through life, without a doubt,

Thinking there's nothing I will miss

 

But then the day comes

The rain, it's falling

And the time that I've spent

Reaching out and calling

Is lost to the past

Everything else outlasts

My hopes and my dreams

Making me truly seem

Weak and meaningless

My feelings were suppressed

 

But as I realize,

Looking through your eyes,

I'm not so lonely

Because you hold me

 

I can do anything

Because you are here

I can spread my wings

And fly from despair

As long as I have you

There's nothing I can't do

For me and you, anything's possible

 

 

“Oh…where is he? Ugh…” Shippou groaned as he kept pacing back and forth across the hut. He was practically pulling his hair out and bashing his head with his tiny fists.

 

“Shippou, calm ye self down. Fretting over Kagome will not make anything better,” Kaede stated calmly.

 

“Calm myself? CALM myself?! How can I when Kagome is getting worse is every minute and Inuyasha hasn't come back yet?! There's no time to be calm! Kagome…she…she might…”

 

“Do not worry so much, young one. All will be well soon enough. We all trust Inuyasha to return to us in time, especially Kagome. Perhaps no one has as much faith as Kagome does.” Kaede replaced the cloth on Kagome's head with a cool one.

 

“I know…but…”

 

Kaede placed her hand on Shippou's head endearingly. “Shippou, ye must have faith. Believe, as Kagome believes.”

 

Shippou studied Kagome as Kaede resumed to her tasks. Kagome's skin had paled a great deal since she helped to restore the barrier around the village. Spending much of her miko energy, she fatigued much faster. The very little she ate when she could wasn't enough to sustain her, he knew it. The worst of the matter was that Kagome kept coughing up her own blood excessively. Shippou was losing the little hope he had with each passing moment as he watched her suffer.

 

“Hurry, Inuyasha. Kagome can't hold on forever…” he whispered as he looked out to see the rain falling.

 

 

`Pain…It hurts…so much…'

 

Kagome felt nothing but white, hot pain in her chest and abdomen. Every time she woke, it flashed throughout her body. Every breath she took, her chest would get heavier, almost choking her at times. Even the slightest movement gave her anguish. It became so hot and heavy within her that she fell unconscious at various points. Her fever was longer plaguing her, not like what she was feeling now. Every second of consciousness was another eternity of grief and stabbing pain. She could taste the blood on her lips, her own blood. She could feel the massive trembling of her body. Even though she felt the sticky sweat roll down her skin, she could feel herself getting colder and colder. Time was running out.

 

`Why…does it hurt so much?'

 

Trapped in darkness, she couldn't see anything. On numerous occasions, she could feel Kaede's cool and soothing touch. She could hear less often Shippou speaking, trying to comfort both her and him. She could both taste and smell the blood she coughed up. But there was nothing but blackness to see.

 

`Am I really…dying?'

 

Trapped and dying, there was nothing more that she could do. All that was left to do was to wait. Wait until her spirit finally left her cold body. Perhaps she could find relief and release in death. Maybe she could find peace once more in the afterlife. This was what she hoped for if it was her death that awaited her. But something kept pulling at her, kept her from straying away from life. It was intangible, but she could feel warmth within it. If only she knew what it was…

 

`Why won't you let me go?' she asked it.

 

“Is that what you really wish for? To be released from this world?”

 

`I…I don't know…'

 

“You do know. You just have not realized it yet.”

 

`Not…realized it…?'

 

“Is there nothing precious to you here? Nothing that you cherish?”

 

`I don't remember. Precious? Maybe…'

 

“Is there not someone that you hold close to you? Someone who means more than anything?”

 

`A person? I…I'm not sure…'

 

“Think, Kagome. Think hard. You will know.”

 

`But…I can't. It hurts too much.'

 

“Pain is only a small thing. Hurting means nothing when you have someone to love and to trust and to believe in. It is easier than you think to overcome physical pain. Think and believe. You will come to know the answer soon enough.”

 

`…You mean…'

 

“Yes, exactly. Believe, and he will come.”

 

The darkness dissipated as the warmth returned to her. She numbed the pain in her mind as she came to consciousness. She felt so weak and tired. Her energy drained, she tried to open her eyes, but fatigue was overpowering her. She could hear someone speaking. It sounded like Shippou. He spoke a name in surprise and perhaps in delight. The name was so familiar to her, but she couldn't place it at that moment.

 

She heard Kaede and Shippou rustle about and some low whispering that she could make out. Her head was too foggy for her to try. Again, she felt Kaede moving about beside her for a few moments. Then, someone spoke her name. Something fluttered inside her, like her body knew who it was but her mind couldn't place the person. He spoke her name again, and she couldn't help but respond. Who was it that was calling her?

 

She heard Kaede speak her name while trying to help her sit up. She could also feel Shippou by her side, but, as soon as she moved, she felt sharp pain in her chest again, and Shippou flinched away. Once upright, Kagome tried to open her eyes once more. She managed to open them slightly. The first thing she saw was the window. She saw the rain falling through the bamboo blinds. Next, she looked to the side to see Kaede with a cup of something warm. Slowly and carefully, Kaede allowed Kagome to sip as much as she could. When Kagome drank all that she could, Kagome began looking around slowly.

 

Her vision was blurry, so she could barely make out anything. She managed to recognize Shippou. Before she could say anything to him, she began to cough hoarsely, her body shaking with each gasp for air. Finally, she felt her body succumb to her fatigue again. Kaede caught her and slowly laid her down again. Before Kagome closed her eyes to sleep again, she saw a blur of red and silver. She could hardly make anything out, but one detail was quite clear to her despite the blurriness of everything. She saw piercing gold eyes staring straight at her. Suddenly, she spoke a name, the name she almost forgot, before blacking out once more.

 

 

“Inuyasha!” Shippou yelled in surprise when the hanyou stumbled into the hut. Soaked and covered in blood and dirt, Inuyasha dropped to his knees with Tetsusaiga in its sheath in one hand and Kirara in the other.

 

“Inuyasha, ye have arrived! And ye are wounded as well. Come, we must bandage those wounds,” Kaede spoke as both she and Shippou went to help Inuyasha rest against the wall.

 

Inuyasha brushed them off as he handed Kirara to Kaede. Then, setting down Tetsusaiga, he pulled from his haori the flowers. “Here. These are it, right?”

 

Kaede gasped slightly in surprise. “The Hitorishizuka? You have obtained it.”

 

“It'll…help Kagome, right?”

 

“Aye, if we are not too late.”

 

“Then you should hurry. Let me alone and give it to Kagome. She needs your attention more than I do. Besides, these wounds are nothing. I ain't gonna die from measly wounds like these.”

 

“Aye.” Kaede nodded and set to work.

 

He looked over at Kagome. She looked so sickly. Her breathing came in short, irregular breaths. “Kagome…” he whispered. She stirred almost unnoticeably. Again, he spoke. “Kagome…forgive me…if I failed you…” He couldn't tell if anyone heard him or if Kagome felt the message. He felt so distant from her, now that she was close. All he could do was wait, and he did.

 

Adjusting himself again the wall, he watched Kaede give the medicine to Kagome. As she drank, he noticed that she was gruesomely pale in the firelight and her hands were shaking, trying to summon enough strength to hold the cup herself. Kagura was right. She wouldn't have survived another night, that is, if he wasn't too late.

 

When Kagome was finished, he watched as she idly began to look around. Before her eyes laid on him, she began a series of coughing and hacking up blood. Inuyasha tried to go to her, but his body went numb on him. His legs wouldn't move, so he could only try to reach out for her.

 

“Kagome…”

 

Kagome fell forward, but Kaede caught her. Slowly, Kaede laid her back down. For an instant, Inuyasha caught Kagome's gaze, and a feeble smile came across her lips.

 

“You came back, Inuyasha. I'm glad…” she managed before she closed her eyes and went under again.

 

“Will she be alright, Kaede?” Shippou asked.

 

“I…am not sure. We must wait to tell.”

 

“She…She's alright.”

 

“Inuyasha?” Kaede asked.

 

“I know it. She will be okay…” Inuyasha suddenly collapsed on the floor.

 

 

The light crackling of a nearby fire was the first thing she noticed. Soothing and warm, she could feel its heat beam against her cheek. The air around her stabled itself, balancing the atmosphere, as she opened her eyes. No longer suffocating, she could breathe easily without the pain, without the heaviness of the poison pushing down on her chest. The room glowed, the shadows danced. She could see clearly. The poison had left as if she was never sick in the first place. She sat up slowly, still waiting for her energy to return to her. As she noticed that her body no longer ached, no longer quaked under the strain of death, something was probing at the back of her mind. How long had she slept? How long had she felt this well? These questions went unanswered as she took in all who were in the small hut.

 

Kaede slept peacefully under a woven coverlet. Kirara was curled at Kagome's feet, mewing calmly in her dreams. Shippou was leaning against the nearby wall, nodding his head every so often. Kagome's eyes stopped on what was in Shippou's hands. There, wrapped within the kitsune's arms, lay Tetsusaiga within its sheath. If Tetsusaiga was here, then…

 

Kagome looked across the fire to see Inuyasha resting. At first, she felt a happiness beyond description burst from heart. Her heart almost jumped out her chest, however, when she saw the bandages across his chest and abdomen. A whelp escaped her throat when she heard him groan lowly. Carefully trying to keep from waking anyone else up, she crawled across the room and leaned over Inuyasha. The tears flowed down her face as she shook her head vigorously.

 

“Inuyasha…” she spoke hoarsely. She leaned on his chest, muffling her cries. “Baka…baka…bakayarou! Why did you push yourself like this, baka?”

 

“Ka…”

 

“You're always like this…Always getting yourself hurt…Always trying to die…”

 

“Kago…me…”

 

“You always make me so mad…bakayarou…” Kagome trembled, barely holding on to her resolve, to her sanity.

 

“Matte…Kagome…”

 

“Iyada! I won't stop until you get it through that thick skull of yours.” Kagome grabbed handfuls of his silver locks. “Did you not listen to what I said? Were you not there when I said not to die, even for my sake? And what did you do? Tell me, what almost happened because you did not listen?”

 

“Kagome…I heard you, but…”

 

“Hai, you heard what I said, but you weren't listening. You never listen to what I tell you…”

 

“Demo…”

 

“See what I mean! You never listen because you refuse to know the truth.” Kagome calmed some, burying her face into Inuyasha's chest. “Hearing and listening are two different things. Just because you hear something does not mean you are listening to it. To listen, you must understand and accept what is being said. You do neither; you only say you do. I told you not to die, not to get yourself so hurt. I accept that you could not have gone through all of this unscathed, but that does not mean you have to get yourself so nearly killed. Even though you saved me, you could have died. What would be the point of my living when you're not there? What would I live for if the only thing I desire is to be with you? Take you away, and I would be totally barren. Don't you understand? Don't you see what I mean?”

 

Kagome looked up into Inuyasha's eyes. The molten gold pooled with boundless emotions, so many that Kagome wasn't sure what to call each one. The rivers of tears had slowed, becoming almost nonexistent.

 

Inuyasha wasn't sure what to say. All he could think of was, “Gomen nasai, Kagome.”

 

He received a deadly glare from the miko as she tugged at his hair. “Is that all you have to say? Apologizing? I said all of that to you and all you can say is a measly sorry? Kami-sama, you're so insensitive, baka. You make me so mad, I wish I could hate you. I don't even know why I love you so much if all you do is-”

 

Inuyasha grabbed her wrists and pulled her into a kiss. Kagome was surprised but then relaxed against him. He held her close as she snuggled against her favorite hanyou. “What was it that you were saying?”

 

“That's so unfair. You cheated.”

 

“I don't know what you're talking about.”

 

“Hmph. I'll let you off easy this time, dog-boy. Just know that next time I'll get you back.”

 

“Hai, koishii.”

 

A/N

 

Baka - idiot

Bakayarou - idiot (stronger meaning)

Matte - wait, stop

Iyada - no, no way

Demo - but

Gomen nasai - I'm sorry (formal)

Koishii - dear, beloved, loved one

 

Because I've been sitting around for the past month and a half watching BLEACH and Full Metal Panic: The Second Raid in their original uncut versions with English subtitles, I've been in the mood of picking up random Japanese words and phrases. That and the Japanese dictionary I received for Christmas has me flipping through it looking up random words, but that's not the point.

 

I know that more than half of you are ready to hunt me down and smite me for not updating in so long. Lately, I've been cramming and working on ass loads of homework, it's not even funny. Finally, we got a break for St. Patrick's Day, so I finally finished this chapter. I started it a month ago as well as another chapter for Flailing Dreams, but my original disk that everything was saved on won't show up on the computer anymore, so I kinda lost my inspiration and want for typing. That is why I've been MIA for so long. I have to retype FD soon because I keep getting reviews and their making me feel kinda guilty. I'll try updating more often!

 

I'm so happy! My birthday is on the 26, and there's so much I want to get, especially Kingdom Hearts 2 which comes out on the 28! Sugoi! (awesome) I can't wait!

 

Well, that's all for now. Hopefully I'll get another chapter up soon, if I'm motivated enough.

 

Review, onegai!

 

Final Words

 

Shippou: (sneaking out of hut, snickering)

 

Sango: Shippou-chan!

 

Shippou: Sango-chan, Miroku-san! You're back!

 

Miroku: Hai. How's Kagome?

 

Shippou: (snickering maniacally) (whisper)

 

Miroku: (chortling)

 

Sango: (blushing) Oh my!

 

Mir, San, and Ship: (peering into hut)

 

Inu, Kag: (sleeping, both half naked)

 

Mir: (major nosebleed)

 

San: (major blush)

 

Ship: (major snickering)

 

Mir: (cloth up nose, clears throat) Sango, I think it's time we skipped second and third base and head straight home, like Inuyasha and Kagome-sama have done.

 

San: (screams) NANI?!

 

Ship: (maniacal laughter)

 

Inu: (twitch)

 

Kag: (rubs eye) Nani…?

 

Ship: (maniacal cackle)

 

Inu, San: (weapons at ready) DIE!!

 

Mir: Why is it always me?!