Blood Stained

Thank Eve for Beta-Reading!

Blood Stained

Chapter 22: Painful Journey to the Well

Three days.

That was how many days had passed since Miroku and Sango had last seen Inuyasha. They had scanned the area on foot and even sent Kirara to fly overhead trying to catch his scent, but nothing. The more time passed, the more Sango's worries increased, because there weren't many destinations he could be heading. If she followed her instincts she knew he was heading for Sesshomaru's lands.

They could follow him there, but there were a few problems. First of all, they were in the same situation as a couple of months ago; they could not defeat Sesshomaru. They also didn't know how far ahead of them Inuyasha was. He might actually be there already by now. Sango had a strong feeling that if Sesshomaru was to find Inuyasha, his life would not be spared this time. Not only had the hanyou been warned, but Sango also didn't think Kagome would throw herself into harms way to save Inuyasha again.

Obviously, every instinct of the taijiya was screaming at her to go, perhaps see Kagome at the same time, but she couldn't make up her mind. Sango was the first one up to rescue Kagome, but she didn't want any harm to happen to her friend. After all, it had been a long time since she had obtained any news from Kagome, meaning she was under a tight surveillance. Since Sesshomaru had a fine nose and many guards, it was obvious he would be warned of their presence before they ever reached the castle. Then, he would make sure they came nowhere near Kagome.

Sango had thought about using Miroku's wind tunnel as a defense to perhaps get Kagome, but there were too many variables. What if Sesshomaru used Kagome as a shield? If she was anywhere near him there was too many risks of her getting sucked in right along with him. They couldn't take that chance. The same went for Inuyasha, if he used his sword basically all of his attacks would harm Kagome too, leaving him helpless. Although there was the problem, would Inuyasha have been calm enough to have thought things through?

"Do you think we should go after him?" asked Miroku, breaking Sango away from her thoughts.

After a few seconds she nodded. "But we can't get too close."

If Sesshomaru could detect their presence they would be screwed. Sango sighed heavily, cursing Inuyasha in her mind. He was causing them more trouble than he was worth. To cover more ground faster Miroku, Sango, and Shippo all hopped on a transformed Kirara and began to head in the direction of the Western Lands. Shippo was on Sango's shoulder, his new traveling spot ever since Kagome had left and Miroku had his arms wrapped around the taijiya's waist.

All of them were carefully looking down, waiting for Kirara to let them know she had caught Inuyasha's scent.

Little did they know that Inuyasha was just hours away from reaching his goal. The hanyou was currently running as fast as he could towards Sesshomaru's castle. Ever since his last conversation with Sesshomaru, Inuyasha hadn't been able to get Kagome out of his mind, especially not the news about the pregnancy. He still stood by his words and promise, he would raise it as his own once he freed Kagome from Sesshomaru, but it made his stomach twist. Perhaps because it reminded him of Sesshomaru violating her body.

Inuyasha didn't really have a plan as of how he would defeat Sesshomaru, but he knew he had to make sure Kagome would be nowhere near his half brother. He intended to go all out on the Dayoukai, and he didn't want her to get hurt in the process. Yes, it sounded absolutely ridiculous that he came on his own, ready to defeat Sesshomaru on his own grounds, but he had to do it. It wasn't as if Sesshomaru was invincible since Inuyasha had managed to cut his arm in the past. All he had to do was not attack carelessly; he had to plan every blow.

He now had many more attacks and knowledge of his sword compared to before, which would work to his advantage. There was only one other thing to worry about; Kagome's forgiveness. But, Inuyasha was willing to work hard to obtain her trust once more. After all, he had tried to kill her or at least harm her during their first encounter and she had forgiven him and gotten over that.

Surely Kagome was able to stop being mad at him forever! He could understand if he had gone all the way, but it hadn't happened which meant there was less damage to repair. Plus even Kagome would be able to realize she was better off with him than she was with Sesshomaru.

Yes, Kagome would be his once more in due time.

***

A few days had passed since Kagome had announced to Sesshomaru her plan to leave for Kaede's village. At this point there was still uncertainty as to if it would work, but neither had given up. They had spent a few more awkward days together, spending nearly ever moment together. She tried to have some type of conversation with him. Sometimes Rin would join them, making them both a little more comfortable. At the moment Rin was not with them thou, since it would be night in less than half an hour and Kagome was simply waiting for the beast to take control.

Instead of lying down in the bed she was near the window, looking through at the forest. In a few days she would hopefully be free and back home with her family. For once, her hopes were so high she could nearly taste her freedom. Kagome could only hope everything would go smoothly and nothing would disrupt the calm that Sesshomaru and herself had managed to create.

Kagome couldn't stop herself from glancing in Sesshomaru's direction, even though she knew the change had not occur yet. If it had, the beast would have been by her side in a flash. Sesshomaru was lying on the bed staring straight ahead, and she couldn't help but wonder what was going through his mind. After all, he could only wait for the beast to take over, what else was he supposed to do? Maybe sometimes he conversed with his beast, or even argued?

Before he could catch her staring Kagome turned her head back to the window, the minutes ticking away. She was about to sit down on the chair nearby when Sesshomaru made a brusque movement, catching her attention. Once again her grey eyes were on him, as he was up on his feet and moving closer to her. Confused, Kagome slightly backed away not wanting to be in his way.

Then Sesshomaru stared through the window before his features seemed to harden. "Inuyasha."

As soon as he pronounced his name, Kagome felt as if her heart was caught in her throat, she found herself unable to react. Inuyasha was here? The first thought running through her mind was to wonder if her friends were with him. Hadn't they understood last time when she asked them to leave?

"He's alone," said Sesshomaru, as if he had guessed her thoughts.

Kagome seemed to be breathing a little easier, but it didn't stop the feeling of fury stirring up inside of her. What was Inuyasha doing on Sesshomaru's lands? Last time, he had left in one piece and only because of Kagome, this time… Kagome felt herself torn apart. Inuyasha brash actions could ruin everything she had done so far to obtain her freedom.

Obviously, if he was here he had every intention to challenging Sesshomaru. Which, very likely would lead to his death. That was where it got tricky. Kagome could no longer throw herself in front of him to protect him, since the cost would be too high. The beast finally trusted her and if she defended Inuyasha, everything would be for nothing. Would she fight for Inuyasha's life or fight for her freedom?

No longer could she claim she love him, because those feelings had died out for the most part. Some remains lingered, but it could no longer be called love. It was simply memories of a love that had once existed and nothing more. It was true that Inuyasha's actions hadn't gone as far as Sesshomaru's but it was only because he was stopped. Kagome knew very well in her heart that Inuyasha might just have gone all the way if it hadn't been from Sesshomaru's interruption.

Although she felt such a strong rage towards Inuyasha, could she really sit there and watch him die? Kagome knew she couldn't do that. At that moment, she felt like banging her head against the wall and screaming why me, over and over again. She was but a few days away from starting her journey to Edo and now he had shown up. She was beginning to believe someone high up there probably hated her very badly.

She closed her eyes for a second before looking at Sesshomaru who had been intensively staring at the window. Both of them knew Sesshomaru could control himself and saw absolutely no threat in Inuyasha. He was also aware this could sabotage the work they had done. Unfortunately for them the beast might not see things that way. Their only hope was to be able to deal with Inuyasha before the beast took over.

"Miko, you will remain here," ordered Sesshomaru as he prepared himself to face Inuyasha outside.

"No way," she said following him. "Inuyasha will not listen to you. The only chance we've got is me." Inuyasha wouldn't care less about Sesshomaru's orders and only she might be able to influence him.

Sesshomaru didn't seem happy about it but he could not deny that she was right. "Very well."

Satisfied, Kagome followed behind him, knowing she would probably have to stay fairly close to him during the entire encounter. Inuyasha would try and take a shot at Sesshomaru if he had a chance, but if Kagome was near, he might not. In no way was she doing this to protect Sesshomaru's life, but because of the wretched bracelet.

"I hope you're good at pretending in front of an audience," she mumbled under her breath.

He turned his head in her direction and she knew he had heard her. He did not say a word and simply kept moving forward. Quickly enough they had reached the garden, but Inuyasha was nowhere in sight. Obviously, Sesshomaru knew where he was but Kagome could not detect his presence, so she simply stood behind Sesshomaru. Kagome was expecting Sesshomaru to say something that would cause Inuyasha to reveal himself, but he remained completely silent. Just standing there waiting.

They waited and waited, the minutes passing by, but no sign of Inuyasha. Kagome was growing impatient, especially since time wasn't a luxury they possessed. Deciding to take matters into her own hand she resulted to a little trick the hanyou was very familiar with.

"INUYASHA SIT!" she yelled, to make sure it would be heard since she had no idea how far from them he actually was.

It wasn't too long until the familiar thud was heard, revealing to Kagome his presence. She couldn't detach her eyes from the point of impact. She slowly watched him come out from the trees, obviously pissed off, though his anger wasn't directed toward her. Inuyasha's amber eyes were locked with Sesshomaru's eyes as he tried to challenge him.

It was very pointless since Sesshomaru could easily defeat him, and at the moment he had to be careful with all of his actions. From what he had gathered, the miko didn't wish for the hanyou's death, even though she harbored rage towards him, meaning Sesshomaru could not end his life. If he did attempt to, she might foolishly stop him causing their plans to be ruined.

"Kagome get away from him," said Inuyasha, his hand on his sword ready to pull it out.

The young miko closed her eyes knowing what was coming. There was absolutely no way she could let Inuyasha harm Sesshomaru, so instead she came forward and wrapped her tiny arms around Sesshomaru's, leaving both the hanyou and the Dayoukai surprised.

"No," she said, her voice nearly a whisper.

For a second a flash of pain could be seen in Inuyasha's eyes, but Kagome maintained her position. After all, he had shamelessly hurt her many times in the past. Sesshomaru had nearly been shocked for a moment as he quickly kept his composure. The miko was trying to make the hanyou flee by hurting his feelings? Intriguing.

At first Inuyasha didn't know what to make of her actions, or how to react. "Kagome… It's Sesshomaru!" he said, as if that it explained it all.

Kagome pinched together her perfect pink lips, bringing her body closer to Sesshomaru. Why couldn't he just leave?

"I am very well aware of that fact Inuyasha," she said, her tone nearly sending chills down his spine. "Why are you here?"

Inuyasha dropped his hands to his side, his ears flat against the top of his head. "I miss you," he murmured, his voice almost breaking. "I – I never meant to hurt you Kag."

Didn't she know he hated himself every day for what he had done to her? Didn't she know how he wished he could take it all back? If it was that simple he would have done it a long time ago, but it didn't work that way. Instead he was haunted by his actions every second and he had to make amends to her. Freeing her from that monster was the beginning of it.

"I won't leave you in the hands of that monster!" he screamed before pointing at Sesshomaru, his body nearly shaking because of his intense rage.

Kagome's heart was beating extremely fast as she licked her dry lips, thinking of her next move. At the moment, she was the only one doing anything since Sesshomaru was remaining as still as a statue. She certainly hoped that at one point he would move or say something, because she couldn't do this all on her own. Kagome would try to spare Inuyasha's life, but she couldn't endanger her own for his. It was true she had done it many on many occasions in the past, but as she could clearly see now it hadn't gotten her anywhere.

"He's not a monster," she said releasing her hold on Sesshomaru's arm. If she applied her statement to Sesshomaru rather than to his beast, it wasn't a complete lie. Heartless perhaps, but he was not as much of a monster.

Inuyasha took a few steps closer to them. "Kagome do you hear yourself right now?"

Something had to have happened. She wouldn't willingly stand up for Sesshomaru! Last time she had tried to lie to them, but had quickly broken down! This time, there was no sign of tears in her eyes and the tone of her voice was firm. This could not be happening! He refused to believe she had fallen for Sesshomaru!

"Yes Inuyasha, I can hear myself very clearly. This is none of your business. It stopped being of your concern the moment you betrayed me." Inuyasha opened his mouth ready to say something, but she didn't let him.

"I'm tired of your excuses, they don't mean anything anymore. This is my life Inuyasha."

For years she had kept emotions bottled up inside, holding it all in for his sake but not anymore.

"You two-timed me, you picked Kikyo at first, yet you dared to get upset if someone showed interest in me. You were selfish and you preferred to have me suffer than make a choice." Kagome could feel tears burning her eyes, but she would not let them fall. Not in front of them.

"You and I, we were never meant to be."

Kagome could swear she had heard his heart broke as she said these words. It was true that no matter what they had shared, this was not how things were supposed to be. Perhaps it had been in front of her the whole time, but she had refused to see it.

"I don't love you anymore, Inuyasha," she said, this time her voice was soft. She hoped it would make him leave, make him understand he had to go.

Inuyasha looked clearly upset, it wasn't anger he felt, it was pain. How could she say this? All these years she had been so devoted to him, and now she would turn her back on him?

"You don't mean that," he begged, his voice very quiet. "You love me Kagome."

No matter what had happened between them, Inuyasha knew he could count on her love, she couldn't take that away from him!

"DON'T tell me what I don't mean!"

Sesshomaru had been watching the whole interaction, completely silent. He could have gotten involved but from the look of things, he decided it was better not to do so. Not only did the miko look like she had things to express, but she was handling the situation well enough. The Dayoukai had to admit, it brought him quite a bit of satisfaction to watch the hanyou suffer, as he lost his most precious prize.

A fresh cool breeze picked up as the sun was nearly gone, the moon shining high in the dark blue sky, a darkness enveloping them all.

Kagome took a deep breath before backing away slightly, her back making contact with Sesshomaru's chest. "Inuyasha, I want you to leave, because I swear this time I won't stop him."

The hanyou stared at the pair in front of him, his heart breaking to pieces with every word she said. Would she really watch as Sesshomaru killed him? Had she really forgotten all the moments they had shared together? No, it could not be true. There was no way Kagome had erased her love for him, it was impossible.

Not caring what she had said, Inuyasha drew out his sword.

"I won't leave you here Kagome," he said, pointing his weapon towards Sesshomaru.

"She's mine," said Inuyasha, addressing himself to Sesshomaru. "I will fight for her."

Without fear, Inuyasha approached Sesshomaru, his hand tightly wrapped around the handle of his sword. No matter what, he wouldn't let Sesshomaru take her away from him. He had already made that mistake once and he would not be repeating it.

His Kagome.

Kagome's grey eyes widen slightly as she watched the hanyou get ready for battle. She couldn't stop herself from turning around and looking into Sesshomaru's amber eyes.

"Will you?" she softly asked.

Sesshomaru looked down at her and nodded.

"The hanyou is playing with fire. This Sesshomaru will not back down from the challenge, nor will the beast. You are the prize after all."

The young miko glued her lips together, her eyes shinning from the tears. This whole situation was slipping away from her control and she felt so powerless to stop it. If she didn't stop him there would be a good chance he would kill Inuyasha. If she did attempt to stop him she would pay the price and he would most probably still kill Inuyasha. As Sesshomaru put it, she was the prize.

Even if trying to prevent him from killing Inuyasha was pointless, it was hard for Kagome to simply stand there and watch.

"He's your brother," she whispered.

"Half," said Sesshomaru before pushing her out of the way, his hand on his own sword.

If it was a fight the hanyou wanted, he would give him just that. Often he had pushed away Inuyasha, ignoring him but not this time, he was challenging his honor and he desired Kagome. Granted Sesshomaru didn't want her, but the beast did. Also, fighting for her would only increase their chances to fool the beast. As far as Sesshomaru was concerned, Inuyasha was a necessary sacrifice. On top of that the hanyou had brought this upon himself by showing up on his lands.

Kagome watched as the two brothers closed the distance between each other. Her heart beating like a drum as she watched. She prayed Sesshomaru would find it in him to spare Inuyasha's life, but then the expected happened. Sesshomaru stopped in his tracks before closing his eyes, a growl escaping his throat. She held her breath in knowing what was coming, as predicted, once he opened his eyes they were bleeding red. His beast was now in control.

She knew Inuyasha would be shown no mercy.

The beast removed his hand from the handle of the sword; he did not even need that to defeat Inuyasha. He turned his head in the direction of his mate who was watching, her lips slightly parted, and she was clearly upset. He blamed it on the hanyou for upsetting her feelings and without thinking he charged.

Inuyasha had been slightly surprise by the unexpected change in his brother, that he had stopped his own movement for a second. Once he noticed his brother moving he realized he had to attack, he began to get ready for his wind scar attack. Unfortunately for Inuyasha, he was not fast enough and before he could even bring the sword down he felt something wrapping itself around his neck, squeezing tightly, nearly cutting all of his oxygen while it slowly burned his skin.

His eyes slowly moved to where Kagome was standing and he could see her running in his direction, a panicked look on her face. His sword was snatched away from his hands before he could recover from the strangling. His eyes were still locked on Kagome as she closed the distance. Before he could say anything, he felt something sharp go through his whole chest, and his eyes enlarged.

A cry of horror escaped Kagome's mouth, as tears poured down her cheeks. In his left hand, Sesshomaru was holding Inuyasha's still beating heart, blood pouring down his arm from Inuyasha's wound. Sesshomaru was baring his fangs at the dying hanyou, before he gently dropped the heart to the ground. Then, he released the hold he had around Inuyasha's neck, before backing away from him.

Kagome had a silent scream escape her, as she found herself frozen in place. She could feel warm blood on her face, probably due to the fact she had been so close when Sesshomaru had ripped the heart out. Slowly, Inuyasha dropped to the ground, his body limp as he looked lifeless. Without thinking, Kagome went down on her knees, extending her hands to grab on to his clothes. He was dead. She couldn't even bring herself to look at Sesshomaru, she grabbed her chest as pain started coming from her heart.

She wanted to scream, she wanted to beat someone senseless, but instead, she remained on the ground. Slowly, Kagome began choking on her sobs, she felt a presence beside her. She did not need to turn to know it was Sesshomaru, who gently bent down before wrapping his powerful arms around her, burying her face in his chest.

He was the reason Inuyasha was dead, yet Kagome still clinched on to him with her tiny fist, she let the tears fall, her small body slightly shaking. Without saying a word Sesshomaru caressed her hair trying to soothe his mate's pain away. He pulled her body closer as if to shield her from the pain, but it did not work.

Inuyasha's blood was still dripping down his claws, his perfect white clothes stained from the murder. He did not feel guilt for what he had done, since it was meant to be this way. The hanyou should have known better than to provoke him into a fight. He had been the foolish one to believe he could have won against Sesshomaru.

He kissed the top of Kagome's head, as if he felt her pain through his own body.

***

Kagome had been silent for a very long time and had remained that way even when Sesshomaru had carried her back to the room. She watched him as he removed his blood stained clothes, dropping them to the ground carelessly. Sesshomaru turned around casting a glance in direction of his mate, who was sitting on the edge of the bed.

"You need to wash the blood off," he said, walking towards her.

His words caused Kagome to raise her head, once she processed what he had said. She looked down at herself. Before she could inspect herself he brushed his thumb across her forehead, showing her the blood on his thumb. Kagome gasped slightly as she remembered being splashed as Inuyasha was killed.

"If I had not killed him, he would have killed me," he said, as if he was trying to justify his actions to her.

Technically his words were true. Inuyasha had come by himself, had challenged Sesshomaru to fight, even after Kagome warned him he might die. He knew what he was getting into, but it didn't make the pain go away. She had known already that Inuyasha would most likely end up dead the moment he had shown up, yet until now, it hadn't felt real.

Sesshomaru tilted his head slightly.

"Are you upset because you still had feelings for the hanyou?"

"No." She knew she had to make sure Sesshomaru did not think she did, or things would be even worst.

"I traveled with him for a very long time. I used to have feelings for him. I believe it is perfectly normal for me to be feeling this way." She tried not to be rude, but her tone did come out a little harsh.

The beast didn't seem upset by it since he simply nodded.

"We have to wash you," he said, dropping the subject completely.

She didn't want Inuyasha's blood on her anymore. Slowly, Kagome got up from the bed and walked in the direction of the bath. Without even looking if Sesshomaru was there she dropped her clothes from her body before entering the water. Even though the water was meant to wash her body, she did not feel clean.

Kagome raised her head when she heard Sesshomaru's footsteps coming her way and looked at his face, while he joined her in the water. Obviously she had been upset with his actions earlier, but he wished for her to understand that at the end of the fight, one of them would have died. Surely she preferred he was alive instead of the hanyou.

But, he was willing to understand why she felt the way she did. After all, she had not pushed him away or yelled, she was simply crying, meaning she held no grudge against him. He kept a certain distance from her not wanting to push her. It pained him to see her in such a state, and it was worse knowing he was responsible for her pain.

"I want to go to Edo," she blurted out, staring at the water.

Sesshomaru did not seem to understand and closed some distance between them.

"Why?" He didn't want his mate to leave the castle, was she not happy here anymore?

Kagome bit her bottom lip, ironically she wouldn't have had a good reason to go until about an hour ago, but now.

"Inuyasha should be buried there."

After all, all the important events of his life had been there. Kagome was pretty sure it was the only place he had ever been close to calling home. She also knew exactly where his body should be put to rest, right by the Goshinboku. There could be no better place.

He remained silent for a few seconds as he considered what she was asking. Clearly she was upset about all of this, and this would probably make her feel better, but it would be taking a risk to go there, outside of the protective barrier. Obviously it wouldn't be too long until enemies like Naraku realized where she was and with whom. Although, it would be possible for him to make the trip fairly quickly and could very likely prevent some unwanted encounters.

"Very well. But it is dangerous to travel at night."

Fortunately she had no intention of traveling with him.

"He can take me during the day." This would only work if Sesshomaru was there once they reached their destination. To her surprise, the beast didn't seem displeased by her suggestion.

"Can I trust him with you?"

Kagome hurriedly nodded.

"He's different," she said, when what she truly meant was no.

Sesshomaru seemed to agree with her, after all, he was now able to constantly feel her presence during the day. Meaning they were near her at all times. There should be no risk in not being the one to accompany her, especially since he could take back control at any time.

"You will leave tomorrow at dawn."

He wanted to get the whole deal with the hanyou over with and bring her back as soon as possible. At the moment her health was good enough to allow her to leave the castle, but later things might change.

Kagome nodded, finally feeling some light coming through the darkness. Yes, Inuyasha had been a good excuse for her to leave the castle, but it wasn't why she used him. She did believe he should have a proper burial, since he did not meet the proper death. She did feel hatred from his actions, but for him to be killed right in front of her eyes… Why did he have to go and be so foolish! She had warned him!

"Thank you," she murmured, before sinking lower in the water, covering half of her face, which washed away some of the blood.

The water also hid the tears, which were threatening to fall. A few hours ago she had been happy, filled with hope, but now it was hard to chase away the sadness that filled her heart. She was getting her wish and perhaps her freedom, yet her heart felt heavy.

***

It was a very quiet morning and neither of them had slept. Sesshomaru had remained awake during his transformation while the miko lay by his side, with his arm over her waist. The tears had stopped hours ago, but the pain didn't seem to have eased away. Once she felt him shifting around in the bed she turned around to face him.

"Are we leaving?" she asked, surprisingly looking up into his eyes.

Sesshomaru moved to the edge of the bed before answering her.

"You will get dress, eat and then we will leave," he said, his voice emotionless.

Just like his beast, Sesshomaru knew either Inuyasha or himself would have perished at the end of the fight and he couldn't help but think about the hanyou's foolishness. Obviously Sesshomaru didn't have second thoughts about what he did, but he could clearly remember the useless attempts to preserve the hanyou's life. Once he had learned that the sword was sealing his youkai blood away, he had given up on it.

It was not because Inuyasha's life had mattered to him, but because obviously this sword had been given to him to preserve his life. Sesshomaru did not need such a trick to keep his own powers under control. The hanyou was weak and required more support to maintain his meaningless life in one piece. Perhaps it had made Sesshomaru realize how even more superior to Inuyasha he was.

Nonetheless, the being he had just killed was his own blood, half-brother. It made his father's death seem insignificant. Inutaisho had died to help Izayoi and Inuyasha, yet both of them had not survived very long. Such a waste of power and stature. Because of them, Sesshomaru had been the one to not have a father and had been stuck with his mother with whom he did not share the best relationship with.

A knock on the door interrupted him from his thoughts. He walked in the direction of the door and opened it. One of the servants was holding a tray which had a cup of tea and a bowl of rice on it, Sesshomaru took it from her. Without a word he closed the door in her face before turning his attention to the miko. She looked miserable.

He put down the food on the bed before walking in the direction of the closet. There he picked out a silk kimono for her. It was a pale blue, nearly white fabric that was embellished with damask diamonds that framed bouquets of flowers. Above that were ribbons of pink drifting with floral rings and peonies along the swinging sleeves. Sesshomaru laid it down on the bed before exiting the room, leaving her by herself.

Kagome sighed when he left and sat on the edge of the bed. The simple sight of the food was making her stomach turn but she knew she had to eat something. After all, she wasn't exactly sure how long the trip would take and she couldn't remain without food for too long. Not for herself but for the child. She forced herself to pick up the rice bowl and began to nibble at it, not taking any mouth full of it.

Not quickly enough for her, she finished it. After putting it down on the tray she picked up the tea, which she nearly drank in one gulp. She was surprised at how thirsty she had been. Once the whole meal was done she pushed it away before beginning to get dress. It took her only a few second to put the kimono on and wrap the obi around her waist.

In the corner of the room her yellow bag caught her attention. She wondered if she should bring it with. That's when Rin crossed her mind and she sadly looked away. She would be leaving it here with the little girl. Kagome knew she wouldn't be able to tell Rin she was leaving for good. Afraid it would break her heart and perhaps it would be better if she never knew.

Without casting another glance around Kagome exited the bedroom, hoping this would be the last time she would ever see it. She didn't look at anyone she passed as she walked down the hall on her way to the main entrance, where she assumed Sesshomaru was waiting for her. As she had expected he was there waiting in the hall, but someone else was with him, Rin.

"Kagome!" said Rin excitedly as she watched the miko approach.

Kagome offered her a smile. "Rin, what are you doing here?"

"Rin came to wish you a good trip!"

Sesshomaru had explained to her that Kagome and himself would be to traveling to Edo because of Inuyasha. He had not however mentioned the reason as to why. Rin had not asked since if he had wanted to share, he would have told her. She felt a little sad since she could not go with them but she knew Kagome and Sesshomaru would be back soon enough.

Kagome bent down slightly before wrapping her arms tightly around the little girl, knowing this was their last hug. Tears from Inuyasha's death were still fresh and this was only helping to bring them back. Rin felt something wet hit her shoulder and she slowly backed away from Kagome wondering why the young woman was crying.

"Kagome?"

The miko offered her a weak smile.

"I'm sorry Rin, I'll just- I'll miss you."

Yesterday had been an extremely emotional day for her and her emotions were a whirlpool. At first, she had wanted Inuyasha to leave because she was mad, but now he was gone forever. She had never wanted to see him again but she hadn't meant for that to happen. Because now he was dead.

Before Rin could ask any more questions Kagome stood up fully and moved towards Sesshomaru who was closed to the door. Rin watched them both leave, waving at them as she would remain in the castle with Jaken. Quickly enough they disappeared from her sight and the door closed behind them.

As soon as they stepped outside Kagome saw Ah-un and he had something –rather someone- wrapped in a white blanket strapped to his back, Kagome knew it was Inuyasha. She felt a pinch in her heart as she could not take her eyes away from his body.

"Miko, you will travel with me. We will cover more ground faster. If we do not stop we should make it before night fall."

Without giving her a chance to speak he wrapped his arm around her. Pressing her body against his side and began to lift up into the air. Kagome had no other choice but to wrap her arms around his waist so she would keep herself balanced. It was in that uncomfortable position that they began to travel with Ah-Un following closely behind them.

All Kagome could do was close her eyes and hope that for once everything would be alright.

***

Sesshomaru had been right, with the extra speed he was using they had managed to make it to the forest near Edo before nightfall. But they did not have much time left. The whole trip had been completely silent and uncomfortable for the both of them. Sesshomaru was not used to having someone travel directly with him like this. Even Rin had never traveled for extended periods like this. Since Ah-Un was already carrying Inuyasha's body there was no other way to travel. If they had done it on foot it would have been too long. Which had been clearly proven when he had brought her to the castle for the first time.

They were near landing and he could feel her heart beating faster and faster the closer they got. Her grey eyes were focused on the well as if she thought it would disappear. Finally they landed and he released his hold on her, it took Kagome a few seconds before she did the same. They were currently standing in front of the well, but she could see the tree from where she was.

"I want to bury Inuyasha over there," she said, pointing at the tree.

Sesshomaru nodded before he began to walk with Ah-un following him. It didn't take long to reach it, as Kagome looked around she noticed she did not have anything to dig a hole with.

"We need a hole," she said out loud to no one in particular.

She didn't exactly carry a shovel around with her, but apparently Sesshomaru didn't need one. She saw him pull out his sword and before she knew it a cloud of smoke surrounded him, a green aura still present. It took a few seconds before she could see the hole he had created and she nodded.

Gently she walked over to Ah-Un where she unstrapped Inuyasha's body, causing it to drop to the ground. Kagome wasn't strong enough to lift it, but she refused to ask Sesshomaru for help, so instead, she dragged his body along the distance between Ah-Un and the hole before carefully rolling him inside the hole.

Her heart heavy as she began to cover the hole using her hand to scoop. Sesshomaru watched her from afar as she took minutes to finish her task, he remained silent. He had nothing to share or to say to his brother and would simply wait until the miko was done.

Her white-blue kimono was dirty as Kagome rose up, casting glances around she was looking for something specific. That was when a patch of flowers caught her attention and she hurried towards them. She picked up a few before rushing back to his grave where she deposited them on the fresh earth. I'm sorry, she thought, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Miko it's time," said Sesshomaru, bringing her attention back to him.

Not without a sigh Kagome backed away from his grave, her sobs caught in her throat. He was gone. She felt Sesshomaru grab her wrist as he began to drag her towards the well. Kagome looked back behind her at Inuyasha's resting place.

A few seconds later they were right beside the well. All Kagome could hear was her own heartbeat echoing in her head. She found herself staring at Sesshomaru as he took a hold of her arms. It was at that moment that she felt him slide something heavy around her wrist and in surprise, she tried to look down to see what it was. Unfortunately for her he didn't allow her to do so. He distracted her as he pressed his cold, emotionless lips against hers. Kagome gasped against his mouth not knowing how to react to this. Then, she felt it. Gently Sesshomaru removed her silver bracelet in one swift motion and before she knew it he had pushed her down the well.

A scream nearly escaped her throat as she felt herself falling. All she could see was Sesshomaru looking down at her. Her heart was beating like crazy as she could not believe this was finally happening. Sadly for her, all her hopes were broken when she hit the bottom of the well still in the feudal era. A panic took over Kagome as more tears appeared in her eyes.

She couldn't help but look up where she saw Sesshomaru holding his head, growls coming out of him. The beast. Out of desperation Kagome began to hit the ground with her tiny fists as if that it would make it work.

"COME ON!" she screamed, her desperation rising. "WORK YOU STUPID PIECE OF CRAP!"

Not now, not when she was so close. She had always thought the bracelet was the reason why she could not travel. Now that it was off why did it still refuse to work? There was no other reason that could stop it from working! Then it hit her, the child, could it be her child? She looked down at her stomach, a panic overtaking her. Perhaps the child could not travel through time like she could?

Would she be stuck there until it was born? But then that would mean leaving her child behind when she would try to leave again and that was something she simply could not bring herself to do. Quiet sobs escaped her throat as she refused to give up.

Once again, she glanced towards Sesshomaru and noticed his eyes were now fully red, he had his sight set on her. More panic and stress took over her body as she kept hitting the ground. "PLEASE!" she begged, tears pouring down her face.

Suddenly, a pink light emanated from her body, causing her to glow brightly, her eyelids began to feel heavier by the second. Before she knew it Kagome closed her eyes and lost complete consciousness.

Only one word remained in her mind as she slipped into the darkness, please.

***