Immortal Beloved by Lore

Remembering

Kagome heaved a heavy sigh as she settled herself on the banks of the hot spring just outside of where her friends were setting up camp. It was finally over. Naraku was dead; the final jewel fragments had been collected and the completed jewel sat lightly in her hand, its light dancing in the sun's rays. Where would she go from here? For the past six years she'd had a justified reason in journeying to the feudal era from her own time; she was the Guardian of the Shikon Jewel and after she'd unwittingly shattered it, she'd become immersed in locating all the pieces until it was once again whole. And now it was. So now what?

The friends that she'd made over the years, Shippo, Miroku, Sango, Kyrara...they'd all been pulled into this quest unwillingly. All had lost something or someone to Naraku and his desire for the jewel. And Inuyasha.....Inuyasha. Just thinking of him made her heart ache. Inuyasha's desire to be a full blooded demon had led him to recover the jewel, but his relationship to it had been more than that. His lost love, Kikyo, whom Kagome was reincarnated after, was once the Guardian of the Jewel. A powerful Miko, Kikyo had been tricked by Naraku into binding Inuyasha's body to the god tree....the very tree that now stood tall and strong in Kagome's own yard in the future.

But Kagome had ventured into it all willingly, her sense of honor, justice, and duty calling to her to finish this quest. It had never been expected of her, never been something she couldn't simply escape by returning through the well and never looking back. It had been her purpose for so long now, her friends her strongest links to the world, that now that the reason for their alliance was finished, she couldn't fathom what she should do.

There was one more thing left, of course, before the Jewel itself was completely purified. A wish. A pure, unselfish wish had to be made upon the jewel to cleanse the last of Naraku's taint from its being. That, too, was something Kagome struggled with. An unselfish wish? What could she possibly wish for? She knew Inuyasha no longer yearned to be made a full blood demon, but even if he had she couldn't see herself wishing it to be so. She loved him, with her whole heart, the way he was now. She knew he was powerful enough to take whatever life threw at him, be he hanyou or youkai. She could wish for Kohaku, Sango's brother that was lost to Naraku, to return as he once was before the battles with Naraku. But how could she make things right for Sango, when Shippo longed for his lost father, and Miroku his lost family? She could not give one friend happiness at the expense of the others, and she knew they would not ask it of her.

But what then? What could she wish?

Her eyes rose to the sky as she sighed again. Her senses prickled as she detected the approach of her beloved hanyou. Willing herself to appear more jubilant than she actually felt so as not to distress her friend, she turned bright blue eyes to the approaching Inuyasha.

"What have you been doing out here all this time, Kagome?" Inuyasha asked impatiently, plopping down beside her on the bank. She turned her head back towards the sky.

"Inuyasha," she began "Have you thought at all about what will happen to all of us now that the jewel is complete?" she kept her eyes glued to a particularly fluffy white cloud above. Inuyasha started at the question, the shrugged.

"Keh, how should I know?" he sneered "I guess we'll all just go back to the way we were before."

Kagome felt her eyes prick with tears. "I suppose you're right." she said lowly. "Sango has spoken often of rebuilding her fallen village, and I'm sure now that his curse has been lifted, Miroku would be happy to join her. Shippo will undoubtedly be eager to return to his kind, now that his father's death is avenged. And you....." she trailed off. Inuyasha, she was sure, would like nothing better than to go back to what he was doing before the jewel affected their lives. Back to Kikyo, his lover and his betrayer. Even as the walking dead she'd managed to hold onto his affection to a point that not even Kagome's selfless devotion to him could shake it. But the dead miko was gone now, returned to hell where she belonged. Did Inuyasha mean to follow her there, now?

"What are you planning on doing?" Inuyasha asked suddenly, jerking her from her thoughts. Kagome willed the tears in her eyes to recede, and after a few moments of controlled breathing, they did.

"I suppose I will return to my time. My work here is done." She said it softly, the words almost catching in her throat. Inuyasha's eyes widened at her before narrowing in irritation.

"Feh," he said, shoving his arms into his sleeves. "Better off that way, anyways," he declared. "If you were to stick around you'd only end up getting yourself into trouble, and I'm getting sick and tired of saving your sorry ass."

At that, Kagome turned outraged eyes to him, piercing his own golden orbs with her own of icy blue. "And when was the last time you had to save me, Inuyasha?" she asked haughtily, her sorrow of mere moments before temporarily forgotten. "I'm not the trembling teenager that stumbled through that well and freed you from your bindings; I'm a grown woman now. A powerful Miko. I can protect myself just fine."

Inuyasha drew back, his eyes betraying nothing. She was right; long gone were the days when she stood helplessly, crying out for his aid, when some demon attacked her. He knew exactly when the change had occurred, too. After Kanna, Naraku's soul stealer, and taken her soul and she'd nearly become Naraku's mate, Kagome decided that enough was enough. She'd enlisted the aid of Kaede, Kikyo's miko sister, and began training and honing her miko powers. It hadn't taken long; she'd always been a quick study in school, and it seemed as if this powerful magic she possessed was just second nature to her. She'd learned to harness it, to wield it. Inuyasha had seen her go from light-hearted and laughing to trembling with static energy, glowing pink in her rage as her powers rose to lash out at whoever threatened her or hers. She'd been the one who, after Naraku lay defeated and Sesshomaru turned his cold eyes towards his brother, prevented what could have been a very deadly fight indeed. He'd been overcome with bloodlust, his brother overcome with hatred as they glared each other down.

Dimly, he recalled Sesshomaru raising Tokijin as he, Inuyasha, drew Tesseiga. The friction in the air had been nearly unbearable as they bore down on each other, the two mighty swords clashing in a thunderous light and fury and power. Everyone around them cringed at the deadly force the blows were taking, and Kagome made a decision.

Unnoticed by the brothers, the now glowing miko had approached, the air fairly crackling with her power as she grew closer and closer to the battle. In a mighty burst of energy she'd throw them apart, sealing them inside identical pink barriers to glare back at her in anger.

"I am tired of the two of you constantly going at it," she declared loudly. "Today is a good day. We've defeated Naraku. Inuyasha, we have the last shard. Don't ruin everything by rushing headlong in to get yourself killed!" she cried, then whirled to Sesshomaru. "And you," she said accusingly "You are the most powerful demon in the world now. The Western Lands await your return. Forget this foolish fight, for once, and return to them." And with that, she'd let out another burst of energy and Sesshomaru was gone. Later, she said she'd merely sent him back to his home, but refused to speak anymore on it. Inuyasha and their friends were all over-awed by her power, but they let it go. Kagome didn't seek power, she didn't lust and crave for it as Inuyasha and Sesshomaru did. She simply had it.

He was proud of her, but there was a part of him that secretly resented her newfound independence as well. No longer was he her knight in shining armor, her hero. She could take care of herself now, she didn't need him.

At the thought, his eyes narrowed and his frame stiffened in anger as he abruptly stood. "Hurry up, would you? Everyone is waiting for you." And with that, he turned and left.

Kagome glared after him, but after a few moments her eyes softened. Same old Inuyasha, she thought with an inward chuckle. So afraid of his feelings. Heaving her third heavy sigh in the past half hour, she slowly drew herself up and headed back to camp. Inuyasha was right; everyone was waiting on her. It was time for her decision.

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Sesshomaru growled low as his thoughts once again turned towards his brother's Miko. How dare she use her powers against him?! Even now, he could hear her words clearly in his head.

"Forgive me, Sesshomaru, but I cannot allow you to hurt Inuyasha. I'm sending you back to your Kingdom. Our work here is done, Naraku is dead. I hope that perhaps in time you and your brother can resolve your differences. But for now, I warn you to stay away."

Warn him? Warn him?!?!? Who did that bitch think she was dealing with?! He was Sesshomaru, son of Inu Taiso, Lord of the Western Lands. How dare she speak to him in such a way!

His eyes glinted dangerously, remembering that day. Naraku lay in a pile of heated flesh before them, dead at long last. His eyes turned to his brother, the power radiating off of him pulsing with un-restrained power. He'd seen it in the hanyou's eyes, the blood lust that he couldn't control. He was losing himself to his demon side again now that the battle was over. The blood had called forth his beast and his hanyou body couldn't control it. Hatred for his brother's weakness leaked into his eyes; how could such a pathetic creature share his blood?

He would have ended it, then and there, if not for the Miko. He would have rid the world of Inuyasha's filth and in so doing, cleansed his family's tarnished name of his memory. But she had robbed him of that task and sent him barreling back over the hills to the west like a bad pup. He would make her pay.

"Jaken," he said, his voice remarkably normal for someone in the grips of such remembered fury.

"Yes, My Lord?" his toady retainer answered from his Lord's feet.

"Keep watch over Rin. I am going back to my brother's forest." Once again composed, he summoned his energy sphere and flew off towards his destination, ignoring Jaken's desperate please and indignant squawks. Once in the air, it didn't take long for him to reach the lands known as Inuyasha's Forest. The scent of his brother assaulted his senses immediately, forcing a grimace from the stoic youkai. He and his pack were nearby; with a small smile of satisfaction, Sesshomaru began closing in on them.

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