Love Lost

Author’s Note: Hello once again everyone! I hope you are enjoying the story thus far. Pardon the bad grammar, I’m not to good with it.

As always, your reviews are appreciated greatly! I need to know If I’m doing something wrong of if I made something confusing so I can go back and fix it or explain it to you.

I would like to give special thanks to InuluvKag and Lindsay for the reviews, its appreciated a lot more then you would think.

Thanks much, now on with the story…

---------~~~~-------~~~~-------BEGIN STORY------~~~~~-------~~~~~------
------~~~~~~Chapter 3- The Return of Kagome Higurashi~~~~~~------

The light faded and she felt the hard ground beneath her as her mind began to regain consciousness. She attempted to roll to her side and found the action to be rather difficult.

She clenched her eyes shut tight and forced herself to roll. She opened her eyes and her line of vision fell on the hard dirt ground beneath her.

There was a root from a large tree under her preventing her from making her previous attempt at rising.

‘So THAT’S why it was so hard to roll over… uhg… my head…’ Kagome thought.

She reached over with her left arm and placed her palm firmly on the dirt ground beneath her. She pushed herself up to find that she had been lying in the shadow of the great Goshinboku.

The God tree.

The very tree that started it all. She looked around to see a snow covered ground. She shuddered at the cold wind that licked at her exposed flesh and glanced around her.

The ground beneath her and all around where she lay was void of the moist white substance surrounding her.

‘Strange…’ she thought. ‘I wonder why it would fall like that…’ her mind continued.

She gasped, ‘Midoriko!!!’ Kagome thought suddenly.

She looked around her again and saw that the older woman was no longer around her aura could no longer be sensed. She looked up to the sky above her.

The sky was murky and grey.

Using the arm she still had planted firmly to the ground she pushed off just enough for her to plant the other palm flat on the ground next to the first.

Kagome used the built up strength of her arms she had gained from continued use of bow and arrow to push herself to her knees.

She rose to her feet and began to walk to the old well, she wanted to say good bye to the well, and by doing so, say good bye to her old life.

As she walked up the path out of the forest known as InuYasha’s forest, she approached the top of the hill and was shocked at what she saw.

The old valley, the valley that had held so many happy memories, so many smiles, so much laughter; was destroyed. No more colorful flowers, no more green grass, no more tall graceful flowing trees.

Nothing.

Nothing but mud, piles of old rotting wood and a heavy cloud of miasma. The old well had been destroyed as well, leaving nothing but a pile of ash and rubble.

‘What happened here? Have I been gone that long…?’

‘The well… so much for my chance of ever returning home,’ Kagome though

‘InuYasha…’ her train of thought shifted.

She turned swiftly on her heal and began to run as quick as she could back toward Edo. The home she had grown to know and love on this side of the well. She slowed to a stop on the path half way down the hill entering the old town.

Kaede’s hut came into view as she slowly began to approach.

She stopped again. The snow started to fall lightly. She held out her hand to catch a few snow flakes in her hand.

Her smile faded as she realized that she had been gone for years. She didn’t know what she would be interrupting if she ran into the hut.

--------~~~~~~Inside the Hut~~~~~~--------

“Houshi?” Sango’s quiet voice asked.

InuYasha tilted his head downward, his line of site falling on the small gem in his hand.

‘The jewel…’

InuYasha jumped to his feet and stood as still as he could. He turned his face to the sky and began to sniff the air slightly. His brow furrowed in confusion and he narrowed his eyes slightly.

“What is it InuYasha?” Miroku asked the hanyou. He had noticed his sudden bout of strange behavior.

‘Ka… gome…?’

“InuYasha? What’s wrong?” Sango asked, trying to get him to speak.

“Kagome.” he said.

“What?” Miroku asked.

“KAGOME!!!” InuYasha shouted as he took off through the hut and up the path.

He stopped when he reached the bottom of the hill right at the exit of the village.

There, standing in the center of the path leading back up to where the bone eater’s well once stood, was Kagome. She looked just as she had the day she died. Just as she had right before the battle had begun.

Her long blue-black hair blew lightly behind her in the gentle breeze. Her head was turned downward and her hair fell into her face. She was wearing the same traditional high school uniform she always wore.

The small green skirt fluttered around her tiny waist as she stood there. Her arms were bent at the elbow held firmly to her chest. Her shirt tossed lightly in the breeze with the rest of her clothes.

“Kagome…” InuYasha whispered lightly to the breeze, hardly able to believe she was there standing in front of him as if she had never been gone.

Kagome lifted her head and stared right at him, her eyes glazed over with unshed tears.

“Inu…Yasha…?” she whispered. It was strange, having him look at her like this.

“Kagome… is it… really you?” he asked. He couldn’t move, couldn’t blink, couldn’t breathe for fear that she would vanish from his sight as she had done so many times before.

“Yes InuYasha… its me. I’m back InuYasha, I’m back!” Kagome shouted.

In the blink of an eye she was rushing towards him at full speed. He opened his arms and she drove herself into him, latching onto his waist. He held her just as tightly.

“Kagome… how…?” He couldn’t even finish his sentence.

“Midoriko… she gave me one more chance… I cant explain right now I don’t want to tell the story 4 times so I’ll just wait and tell you all together!” she said happily.

Neither of the two noticed their friends and family approach. Sango, Miroku, and Kaede all stood at the bottom of the hill watching the two. Each of them showing their own signs of shock at seeing their dead friend alive once again.

“K-Kagome…” Sango said.

The young miko glanced over InuYasha’s shoulder at the sound of her name being call to see everyone standing there, staring at her.

“Sango!” Kagome yelled as she released InuYasha and ran to older woman who had become a sister to her over the years.

“Miroku, Kaede!” she ran to hug the two of them next. “Where are Shippou and Kirara?” she asked.

“Shippou is inside sleeping, Kirara is keeping watch over him.” Miroku said. They were all curios but no one wanted to ask the question they were all thinking. How. How was their dear friend alive?

“Mama…” Came a low sleepy voice from behind them. Sango turned around to see the young Kitsune cub exiting the small hut.

His tiny left fist rose to rub his left eye lazily, the other dragged a blue fleece blanket Kagome had brought him from her time just before she had died.

Sango walked over to the young kit and lifted him off the ground. She turned to walk back with Kirara close on her heal.

“Shippou did we wake you?” she asked him.

“I heard… InuYasha mama’s name… stupid InuYasha!” he yelled as a side thought “and then I could smell her…” he trailed off.

“What’s going o-” he began as he turned his head to where everyone was standing and his eyes widened and sentenced stopped short as his eyes took in the sight of the woman he had grown to know as his mother.

“MAMA!!!!” he shouted as he jumped form Sango’s arms and took off toward Kagome. He jumped into her arms panting from the exertion it took him to get to her at such speeds.

He latched onto the woman tightly and tears began to fall hysterically down his flushed cheeks.

“Shippou!” Kagome said, tears in her eyes.

“I missed you mama. Why did you leave?!” Shippou asked her.

“I didn’t mean to leave you Shippou, but I’m back now. I‘m back and I‘ll never leave you again.” she said as she hugged him close to her.

Tears fell as she was temporarily lost in her own world with just her and her son as the occupants. She had grown to love the child more then she had ever thought she could love someone.

It was a family type of love however, not a sensual type of love.

She looked up to the faces of the people around her and was jarred harshly back to reality. She wasn’t used to everyone looking at her like this.

They all stood with a look of disbelief imprinted clearly on their faces. The looked at her as if she were a strange apparatus, a ghost of a spirit of sorts. It made her feel like they were seeing her as a stranger. She didn’t like it.

“Uh… guys… could you… not look at me like that?” she asked quietly, lowering her gaze to rest on the bundle in her arms.

Her voice seemed to snap everyone else out of their trance like state. Sango attempted a smile but failed miserably. Miroku attempted to speak, but like his wife, he also failed, unable to find the words.

InuYasha looked around him as the awkward silence left tension in the air so think he could cut it with his claws. He looked to Kagome again, as if seeing her for the first time. He saw her as Kagome, not Kikyou.

Beautiful Kagome...

Strong Kagome…

Independent Kagome…

Brave Kagome…

Loyal Kagome…

His Kagome.

She was his Kagome. She was back now, and that’s all that really mattered. His gaze continued to linger on her slender form as her bangs hid her face from his view. He stepped up to her slowly.

“Kagome?” he said softly. She did not raise her head to meet his steady gaze.

Sango and Miroku looked on knowingly. Kagome and InuYasha needed to talk. It was time for them to go back inside. Kagome would explain everything in time.

“Come on Shippou, lets go back inside.” Sango called.

“But I don’t wanna!” he whined.

“Go Shippou, its ok, I’ll be there in a little while.” Kagome said.

He looked up at his mother’s sad eyes, still downcast, and nodded his head. She bent down and let him out of her arms to the ground below.

He hopped out and ran towards the small building, stopping half way to look back at his now revived mother.

Turning forward once again he rushed forward into the door Miroku held open for him. Kagome watched him run back and a small sad smile graced her troubled features. She turned her gaze to the ground once again.

“Kagome…?” InuYasha tried once again.

She still refused to meet his gaze.

“I’m like a stranger to you guys now… I should have never come back…” She whispered, tears falling from her eyes.

“Kagome don’t you say that! Don’t you ever say that!” InuYasha shouted.

Her tears fell harder.

“Oh no Kagome I didn’t… I wasn’t…” he couldn’t find the words so he stuck to using actions… he was so much better at that anyway.

He reached out with a clawed hand and gently lifted her face to meet his. Their eyes locked, molted gold clashing and mixing with gentle tear filled brown. She looked at him with longing in her eyes.

He continued to study her face, her eyes, her lips, everything that was uniquely Kagome. Never removing his hand.

He slowly brought his other hand up to cup her moist cheek and she leaned eagerly into his touch.

“Kagome…” he whispered as he slowly moved closer to her. He was so close that she could feel the heat of his breath as he whispered her name. It seemed to almost caress her cold skin.

Slowly, inch by inch he made his way lower. He stopped a breaths length away and she licked her cherry lips. Gently, carefully, he brought his lips to hers in a gentle kiss. She didn’t respond at first, being to shocked that he had kissed her.

“Inu… Yasha…?” she whispered, her small voice sounding confused. He kissed her again, more firmly this time. He pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her midsection. He released her lips and looked down into her eyes.

Her eyes were glazed over, a small smile rested on her lips as she gazed into his eyes with as much fervor as he. She reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck crossing then at the forearm behind his neck.

It was her turn.

She stood on her tip toes and pressed her lips to his as firmly as he had done to her. The world seemed to spin as they stood there locked in each others embrace. Nothing else mattered, nothing else existed.

Everything around then was a blur as her memories and mind danced with bright lights behind her eyelids, that had drifted closed sometime during their passion.

The pulled away again for some much needed air.

“InuYasha?” she questioned again.

“Kagome… I…” he began, unsure of how to start.

“When you died… I never… I couldn’t…” he tried again, “I didn’t know what I would do, I could save you! Do you know what it was like to have to tell your mother I couldn’t keep my promise? I had to tell her I let her only daughter die…” he continued.

“It wasn’t your fault InuYasha, you did what you could.” she said quietly.

“Damn it Kagome that’s not the point! Look, you left us all so quick no one knew what had happened till it was to late… Dad I’d known you were going to… I would have…” he was getting frustrated know, unsure of how he should continue.

She searched his scorching gaze, silently asking him to continue.

“I never got the chance to tell you…” he froze.

Could he really say it?

Could he really tell her after all this time?

“Tell me what InuYasha?” she asked, her gaze pleading.

“I LOVE YOU!!! there I said it!” he said. His gaze falling to the ground.

“I’ve always loved you, I was just to stubborn to admit it. Kikyou… she’s not the same person, you’re not here, I know you’re not, you never have been…” he started again.

“I… I’m sorry for all the things I said that hurt you, I’m sorry for all the times I ran off to her… but… you should know… nothing ever happened between us… I guess, I just couldn’t let go, you know?” he began, slowly starting to ramble.

His gaze never left the ground as he continued to speak, “I never meant to hurt… ever… I love you Kagome… I love you…” he ending in a wavering whisper.

She smiled again, this time it was her that lifted his eyes to hers. His eyes scanned her face for an answer.

“InuYasha… I never thought I would hear you say that… I knew, I always knew, but I didn’t know if you had chosen between me and Kikyou. We are different InuYasha, we don’t share the same soul.” she began.

“I know… Kikyou told me…” he said, “I love you… not her.” he finished

“I’m so glad to hear you say that… I… I love you too.” she replied, the smile on her face echoing in her voice and reaching her eyes. Tears reached her eyes, her smile never wavered.

“Oh no Kagome, don’t cry, am I really that bad!? Kagome?” he said urgently.

Kagome giggled lightly, bringing a slender finger up to gently wope her tears away.

“No InuYasha, not at all, I’m crying because I’m happy!” she almost sung.

“You cry when your happy too!? Geez! You women are so confusing! If its not one thing its another with you!” InuYasha grunted. He humphed lightly and cast her a small, playful smirk and she giggled again.

Her laughter danced in the wind around them causing InuYasha to smile a genuine smile.

“Silly InuYasha.” she said through her giggles.

“Come on. Let’s go back, I’m sure the others are wondering what’s going on.” he said, his smile still on his face.

“You’re right, let’s go.” she said happily.

He grabbed her hand and they walked back to the village together, never letting go of the others hand.