How All Came to Be

DISCLAIMER: Somewhere in an alternate reality I own Inuyasha and am currently sitting on a beach drinking mojitos. But, I’m not in that reality, thus, I don’t own it.


Chapter 4:
The Shadowed Side of Fate


Sesshomaru peered into the bottom of the well as the glow from the magic faded. There was nothing in there but the old bones of a dead youkai. He had seen it before. Had even witnessed the girl and his half-brother jump into it, but never up close.

He lingered, not quite wanting to return to the village and its smells. His nostrils flared delicately. Bare traces of the miko’s scent remained. Magenta lids slid closed and he allowed a small sigh to slip passed his lips. ‘This will not do.’ The sun dipped below the horizon.

Silver hair swaying behind him, he turned and headed back toward the village. It was ridiculous. To think he, Sesshomaru, Lord of the Western Lands, could miss the presence of a petite human miko from the future. Preposterous.

Yet, as he entered the edge of the village where the cooking fires flickering brightly and the blue hues of dusk covered the sky, Sesshomaru had to admit that he did.

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‘Run.’ It was the only word that pounded through her mind. ‘Run.’ That is what she did.

The door banged open and socks slapped the cobblestone courtyard. Behind her she could hear him growl as he leapt after her. She had to get him through the well...and then what? Sit him until he was unconscious? That reminded her, “sit!” There was the heavy thud of a body hitting the ground and then a bone rattling snarl. Kagome whimpered.

The Tessaiga. She shivered. It had been the second thing her eyes landed on when she had entered her bedroom. The first had been his scarlet eyes. How had he transformed when the blade meant to seal his demon blood was attached securely to his hip?

She jammed her sweaty palms up against the well house doors, roughly pushing them open. The bottom half of the broken bat was still clutched tightly in her fist.

He was up already, she could feel it. “Sit!” She needed time to climb out once she reached the otherside. Just as her foot touched the lip of the well to launch herself over the side she yelled one more “Sit!” and prayed it would hold him long enough.

The blue light she had traveled through less than ten minutes before engulfed her. This trip was vastly different than the previous. No longer did she feel loose and languid, instead her body hummed. The energy pulling at her edges. ‘He has a jewel shard. Why? Why does he have a jewel shard?’

She touched down in the soft dirt and dove for the vines hanging along the well wall. Halfway up the magic flared again and she knew he had crossed behind her.

“Sit!” A slightly more muffled snarl came from the pit. Kagome threw her leg over the wooden beams at the top and tumbled out onto her butt, the handle of the bat rolling from her hand. The grass caught under her fingernails when she heaved herself up to her feet.

Autumn had cooled the ground once the sun had set and a fine sheen of dew covered the land. Within moments her socks were soaked and she slid unsteadily down the hill toward the village.

A thought hit her then. She couldn’t take a feral Inuyasha into a human village. The miko groaned as she pulled a sharp left toward the forest. Behind her dirt flew up, the hanyou impacting a scant few inches from where she had turned. A muffled shriek escaped her, bits of grass and soil pelting her back.

“Sit!” Another thud behind her. Kagome was faced with the reality of her human limitations. She couldn’t run forever and she had no weapon to fight him off. There was nothing for it. She would have to hope he answered. ‘Oh please Kami let him answer.’ Kagome sucked in a deep lung full of air and bellowed into the void of night. “Sesshomaru!!”

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A boom sounded overhead, the bass reverberating through the room. It was followed rapidly by the blue flicker of lightning. Tsuki squeaked and jumped, burrowing herself deeper into the comforter.

“This isn’t too scary for you is it?”

Her ears twitched anxiously. “No,” she said in a small voice.

Kagome’s son let out snort.

“Don’t tease,” the miko waggled a reprimanding finger at him. “Now, where was I?”

The young male immediately perked up. “The demon Lord’s half-brother had transformed. He was chasing the miko through the forest and she called out for the Lord’s help.”

Kagome nodded her head. “Ah, yes. Well...”

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He pushed aside the bamboo flap to reveal the elder miko looking over the slayers wound. They looked up as he entered, both nodding their heads in greeting. In one corner the monk sat stirring a pot of stew. Every so often he shot covert glances at the slayer’s exposed calf.

The demon Lord resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Instead he relished the scent of the slowly bubbling evening meal, even if it was just a bit over spiced. His gaze ghosted over Jaken, snoring in the corner. Finally he locked on his ward. The two children were busy with what Rin had told him were ‘crayons.’ Apparently she was learning quiet a lot from the kitsune.

Sesshomaru folded himself into the corner of the hut nearest the door and closed his eyes, intent on meditating away his more disturbing thoughts. He did not pine for the miko. He did NOT yearn for her scent. And he certainly DID NOT miss her inane babble. Traveling companion or not, he was aware of the dangerous edge of attachment he was peering over. It would not be allowed. While she was away he would meticulously stomp out every instinct driven impulse that concerned her. He was an inu, but he was not her inu.

However, only a moment after he closed his eyes he clearly heard the younger miko cry out his name. The Kamis, he was sure, were against him. In a flash of white he was gone. The only testament to his movement the slapping of the door against its frame.

Miroku locked eyes with Sango. “Was that Kagome I just heard?”

His voice drew the attention of the children. “Kagome?” Shippo scratched the back of his head in confusion. “It sounded like Kagome.”

“That was definitely Kagome,” Sango‘s tone was low. Worry creased her brow. “Should we go see?”

The monk stood. “I think we should.”

Kaede hurriedly rewrapped the slayer’s bandages and both humans exited the hut to jump onto a transformed Kirara.

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Her lungs burned. Every breath was fire. The muscles in her legs protested her movements, but to slow down was to die.

The rosary was weakening. Each time she subdued him he was able to stand up faster. How long would it hold? Would it break? The distance she gained while he was pressed into the ground was paltry in the face of his demonic speed. He was catching up to her. Like a wounded rabbit before the wolf the end of her chase was inevitable unless the most unlikely of heroes saw fit to save her. Kagome was sure she was doomed.

Still, she prayed to every Kami she knew that Sesshomaru had heard her, that he was on his way. It seemed like the deities were on her side that night.

The white form of the demon Lord flew between her and Inuyasha. His hand closed around his half-brother’s throat without a sound. Kagome ran an extra thirty yards before her panic fogged brain registered the snarling behind her was now stationary. She spun on her heel to find Sesshomaru had Inuyasha two feet off the ground with his back against a tree.

Her breath came out in ragged pants, and she was forced to prop her hands on her knees to help her quivering thighs support her. Fear curdled in her stomach when she realized that Inuyasha was doing his best to tear into every bit of flesh in reach. His scarlet eyes blazed, claws dragging rivulets of blood from his half-brother’s arms and shoulders. The droplets pattered the ground like rain.

Sesshomaru glanced down noting the glint of the Tessaiga’s hilt. ‘Impossible!’ He shook the rabid hanyou roughly, smacking the back of the whelps head against the tree. White puppy ears folded back, but it did not deter him. Inuyasha merely snapped his fangs in challenge. A growl rattled through his chest as his lips pulled away from his fangs. Eventually the demon lord was forced to drop him. Sesshomaru leapt back nimbly, unsheathing his Bakusaiga.

Kagome expected to see a repeat of a battle from three years before when Sesshomaru had shown up to ‘test Inuyasha's strength transformed as such.’ Instead when the sword left its scabbard Inuyasha leapt away, disappearing into the forest canopy as if pulled backward by strings. His fire-rat haori flapped around him like wings.

The inu hanyou had never backed down from a battle while transformed. The way she understood it, his demon blood would not allow him to retreat. Instead he would fight until he died. Kagome was baffled, and through their connection, she could feel that Sesshomaru was shocked as well.

With her last bit of focus the miko allowed her energies to sweep the area. Inuyasha was most definitely gone. There was no trace of his aura. What she could feel was Sango, Miroku and Kirara approaching from the air. Kagome sank to her knees in the wet grass, trembling.

Golden eyes trained on the miko, the sound of a blade being sheathed cut through the sudden silence of the forest. He swept her for injuries and was relieved when he found none. The feeling surprised him. When had he begun to care whether or not the girl was injured? He promptly blamed it on her similarity to his ward and dismissed it. There were more important matters to consider, such as how Inuyasha had transformed, and why he had left.

“Kagome!” Sango’s voice floated down from above them as Kirara circled once and landed. Ignoring her wound she slid down from the fire-cat, hissing when she put weight on her injured leg. Miroku swiftly wrapped his arm around her waist and the two hobbled toward the miko and the demon Lord.

Their companions’ forms materialized from the darkness of the woods slowly. Miroku’s brow furrowed at the sight. Kagome was wet, grass stained, and shaking uncontrollably. Her arms wrapped protectively around her midsection, and her bangs falling into her eyes. He kneeled down, bringing the slayer with him. “Lady Kagome?” His voice was a whisper.

The miko’s head snapped up. Her expression one of a trapped wild animal. She was deathly pale and her pupils were dilated wide. “He...he...” she stuttered incoherently. Under any other circumstance the monk would have been entranced by the way her chest heaved with her ragged pants, but the hentai section of his brain had apparently shut off for the night.

Sango cautiously reached forward, slowly gathering up the trembling girl and running a hand through her tangled hair. “It’s alright Kagome.” Her fingers deftly removed a twig from the mass. “You’re safe now. We’re here. It’s okay.” She crooned. Sango’s gaze turned toward the monk hoping he would have some way to calm the younger girl down. His attention, however, was fixed on the demon Lord

“She is in shock.” The baritone of the measured words rolled through the stillness.

“Lord Sesshomaru, may I inquire as to what has caused this?” Miroku’s face was held carefully blank.

A whisper floated up from Sango’s embrace. “Inuyasha.”

The taijiya’s jaw dropped. “Inuyasha?” At Sesshomaru’s nod she launched into her questions. “He was here? Is he hurt? What happened?” Her voice trailed off when the miko in her arms began to struggle.

Kagome had fought off her tears for as long as she could. They cascaded down her cheeks and dripped from her chin as she spoke. “I have to go back. He was there and I couldn’t find them.”

Miroku had to help restrain the suddenly unnaturally strong girl. He and Sango exchanged glances as their friend continued to thrash about.

“I have to see them...make sure they’re all right. He might have hurt them! And then I have to...and then I have to...” A choked sob escaped her, “seal the well. He can’t go back through. I can’t let him!” Her words became indecipherable through her sniffling.

The two shard hunters held their younger friend as she cried uncontrollably, doing their best to soothe her.

Sesshomaru blinked down at the scene. The smell of her fear and despair caught high in his nose. It wasn’t difficult to figure out what happened from her frantic ramblings. His half-brother had apparently passed through the well and been close to her family in his feral state. In all probability the girl’s loved ones were dead, if the reek of human blood on the whelp‘s claws was any indication. Inuyasha must have met her on the other side and given chase, following her back through the portal.

It was true. The hanyou could not be allowed to pass through the well again. Swiftly sorting through his options Sesshomaru came to a decision. He would destroy the well. Now.

The soft whisper of silk alerted Miroku to the demon Lord’s movement. A quick inventory of the inu youkai’s body language told him all he needed to know about Sesshomaru’s intentions. He stood quickly, gathering his courage like a shield.

“Lord Sesshomaru, please. Allow Kagome to pass through the well once more to ascertain the fate of her family.” Considering golden orbs met beseeching violet. “She will be unable to live with herself if she does not know.”

The demon lord looked down once more upon the quivering and crying female. She had protected his ward, cared for her as her own. Inwardly he sighed. It may not be prudent, but he owed her. A dip of his chin conveyed his consent.

Miroku let out a relieved sigh, knowing full well what kind of mental trauma could have occurred had Kagome found out later her way home was gone. “Sango and I will stay with her tonight. We will camp by the well to make sure Inuyasha does not attempt to pass through again.”

Sesshomaru acknowledged his words with a curt nod and then watched the monk help the two women to the fire-cat. As the small group disappeared into the trees he walked off, melting into the shadows.

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She had calmed down considerably in the hour since Inuyasha had vanished. The gripping fear faded into the background of her determination. Sango had built a small fire and Miroku’s ever patient nature had succeeded in dragging the whole story out of her.

Kagome closed her eyes. She could still remember the expression on his face as he had tackled her in her bedroom. Her brain had just seemed to click off, and she had barely registered the splintering of the bat she had brought down on her once love’s head. A shout of her name alerted her a second before a small ball of fluff collided with her midsection.

“Shippo,” she greeted softly, doing her best to fold herself in half and bury her nose in his orange hair. Peaches. Such a strange smell for a male child.

“We brought you some stew Kagome-nee-chan.”

Kagome lifted her head to take in the very improbable sight of Jaken trailing after Rin while holding a medium sized pot of stew. She felt one of her eyebrows raise when she caught his grumbled remarks about human girl’s and how much trouble they caused. The little girl in question was happily carrying a stack of bowls. Sesshomaru and Kaede seemed to be having a discussion a short distance behind them. Strange how civil the demon Lord could be when he felt it benefited him.

The miko allowed Shippo to scurry up to her shoulder. She stood. “Thank you so much Rin.” Kagome bent down to take the bowls from her and planted a soft kiss on the girl’s forehead. “And thank you too Jaken,” she finished, relieving the poor toad of a pot about half his size. In the low light the little retainer appeared to blush.

The group settled around the fire and Kagome ladled out the stew. She sipped hers quietly, letting herself drift deep into thought.

The well. It was so close. Desperately she wanted to know how her family was. When they had first entered the clearing she had almost jumped back in, but found herself conceding to the logic of her friends, for the time being. They wanted her to wait until morning, but she just couldn’t do that.

Kaede lowered herself to sit with the group. The rustle of her hakama against the foreign nylon of the sleeping bag drawing Kagome’s attention. A wizened eye caught the younger miko, giving her a look that said, in no uncertain terms, that she was aware of what the girl planned to do once her companions were asleep. Kaede always had the ability to make her feel like a misbehaving child. Thankfully the elder woman held her piece. The demon Lord had filled her in on the pertinent information when he had attempted to determine if there was a way to seal the well.

“I do know of a way to seal the well child. However, it will require the assistance of your friend the monk.” Kaede nodded her head toward Miroku.

“I would be happy to assist you Lady Kaede,” he answered.

The crackling of the fire fell between the group, staving off a bit of the chill in the air. Kagome ran her fingers through Rin and Shippo’s hair absently and the children dropped off to sleep less than an hour after the meal. She moved them over against A-Un, tucking a blanket under their chins.

Kaede stood and bid them good night, saying that the dampness was too much for her worn joints. After the elder miko left Sango and Miroku attempted to convince their friend that she needed rest, but she would not budge. She had a plan. Common sense be damned. This was about her family.

Soon the soft breath of her sleeping companions filled the clearing. The low burning fire popped and cracked at odd intervals. Kagome stared into the embers for a bit before glancing at her watch. It was one in the morning.

She rose and began to walk toward the well in her still bare feet. It was as she peered over the wooden ledge that a deep voice spoke from near her shoulder.

“You will return alone?”

Without turning to look she answered. “I don’t think you can cross through the well, Sesshomaru. Even if you could I wouldn’t leave the group unguarded.”

A soft whistle stirred the hair on her crown and she turned to see A-Un’s heads rise.

“They will not be unguarded.” Without another word he vaulted into the well.

She was half-surprised when she peered down into the pit after him only to spy his silvery head in the moonlight. He looked up at her and the miko’s breath caught. His golden eyes verily glowed. The magenta of his markings faded to black, giving his complexion the color of fresh snow. Tendons in his neck stood out creating a small hollow below his Adam’s apple. He was beautiful, and undeniably deadly. Regaining her senses, Kagome pulled back. The demon Lord sprung silently from the depths.

“I guess this is something I have to do on my own,” she murmured.

A non-committal grunt sounded from the youkai beside her. Kagome turned to him then, gazing upon his form as if she could draw strength from his.

Sesshomaru watched the little miko steel herself. Her back straightened and that hard look came into her eyes. It was plain to him. Whatever she found on the other side she would not allow it to break her. Never before had she looked so... he couldn’t finish the thought.

In that moment her soul was bared; a mortal, who carried both the fragile edge of her race and a strength that could make a youkai tremble. She was more than simply a being that shared traits with Rin. She was more than a miko or his brother’s wench. She was Kagome.

“I’ll be back,” she whispered.

He nodded, and the human miko from the future leapt down a dry well to face the shadowed side of fate.

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AN: ...let the games begin.