I always hated the times I went human.  One night a month, when there was no moon, I would lose all youkai power and energy.  I couldn’t fight, I couldn’t protect those that I cared about.  I couldn’t do much of anything.  I felt weak.   Oh, I hated those nights with a passion.  But when the sun came up on the next day, it would all come back and I felt strong again.  Then I wouldn’t have to worry about it until the next month. Never again. Never again would I feel that strength, that power.  I would never be able to tell how someone felt just by their scent, or hear someone sneaking up on me from ten or more feet away.  It’s all gone.  And it’s all Naraku’s fault. Keh.  I can’t even say that.  I was the one who wished on the jewel.  But Naraku was going to use it, and I couldn’t let him have it.  Who knows what he’d have done with it?  Nothing good, that’s for sure. Kikyou had once told me that if I were to wish on the jewel to become human, the Shikon no Tama would be purified and disappear.  So I did the only thing I could think of to rid the world of the cursed jewel.  I somehow wrestled the jewel away from Naraku and made a wish.  To be human.  And now I am… ~*~*~*~ I knew he hated those nights on the new moon.  He was always so sensitive about his ‘time of the month’.  He always said he wanted to become a full youkai.  So that’s why I never thought he would actually wish to be human.  I wonder if he regrets his decision.  I hope he doesn’t.  I’ll miss the ears, but I like him this way, too.  And he won’t have to worry about losing Tessaiga and transforming anymore.  That’s kind of a relief. I wonder what will happen now that the jewel’s gone and Naraku’s dead.  Sango and Miroku will get married.  That much I know.  They keep talking about when the wedding is going to be and all the other details.  I’m so happy for them. But as far as me and Inuyasha, I have no clue what will happen.  I wouldn’t mind staying here with him.  Actually, I’d like it a lot.  Except that I wouldn’t see my family anymore.  I wonder if the well will still work. The sounds of the forest and my friends’ chatter faded away.  I didn’t notice it at first, but then I heard an airplane fly overhead.  Then a car honked somewhere.  I looked around, startled.  Those sounds shouldn’t be here, I thought.  This is Sengoku Jidai.  There are no airplanes or cars in this time period. Suddenly, I could hear my friends again.  I sighed in relief, but couldn’t help but worry about what had just happened… ~*~*~*~ I vaguely listened to Sango and Miroku’s conversation.  Something about a wedding.  I was too busy watching Kagome to pay any real attention to them.  She seemed to be lost in thought.  She suddenly stopped and looked around like she’d heard something.  I looked around, too, but I didn’t see anything.  I hadn’t heard anything, either.   But that’s not saying much since I can’t hear like I used to. She started walking again.  But from the expression on her face, she was worried.  Which made me worried.  I pulled her off to the side. “Oi, Kagome.  What’s wrong?” She didn’t say anything, just stared at my chest, tears in her eyes.  Without a word, she reached up and removed the rosary I’d worn for the past… who knows how long.  Since I met her.  Or at least a little after.  She dropped it into my hands and slowly walked off, leaving me standing there speechless… ~*~*~*~ When Inuyasha pulled me off to the side and asked me what was wrong, my throat tightened up so bad I couldn’t speak.  I just stood there dumbly, staring at his chest.  My eye caught on the rosary that Kaede had put on him so I could control him.  It felt like it was just yesterday, but it also felt like a hundred years had passed since I fell in the well and met all of my friends.  I choked up even more.  I wanted to cry, but I couldn’t.  The tears in my eyes would not fall.  And besides, Inuyasha can’t stand it when I cry.  He gets scared and annoyed all at the same time when I do.   Sometimes it’s funny, but other times, his reaction is just plain aggravating. I decided that he didn’t need the rosary anymore.  Really and truly, I hadn’t needed to use it for quite some time.  So I took it off.  I stared at it for a moment, then dropped it into Inuyasha’s hands.  He stood there, stunned.  I turned and walked off in agony, not wanting him to see the tears that were now flowing freely down my cheeks. ~*~*~*~ We settled for the night in an abandoned hut way out in the middle of nowhere.  Sango and Miroku were still talking, with Kagome making comments here and there.  I watched her carefully, memorizing everything about her.  I wondered if she would stay with me or go back to her own time.  I hoped she would stay, but if going back would make her happy, then I’d let her go.  I wouldn’t want Kagome to stay and be sad for the rest of her life.  I think it would kill me if she was sad for the rest of her life. She seemed to have zoned out again.  I watched her for a moment, but when she started to panic, I started shaking her, trying to snap her out of it. She finally came back from wherever she’d gone.  But instead of her usual reassurances and smile, she looked around wide-eyed, then ran outside.  Of course I followed… ~*~*~*~ Sango and Miroku talked animatedly about their upcoming wedding.  I listened, adding suggestions occasionally.   Then, as they were talking, their voices faded out like they had in the forest earlier today.  The walls of the hut became transparent, but instead of the view outside the hut, I saw a park from my time. What was happening?  Why?  Was my time calling me back because the Shikon no Tama no longer existed?  Was everything being undone? I could feel my heart pounding in my chest and my breaths become fast and shallow as adrenaline kicked in in the classic ‘fight or flight’ syndrome.  I didn’t want to leave!  My friends were here in this time period!  Yes, I had friends in my time, but they weren’t as close to me as our small group was.  Sango, Miroku, Shippou, Kirara, and InuYasha were as close to me as my own family was.  They had become an extension of my family, but in a different era. The walls snapped back into existence and I felt someone shaking me. “Kagome!”  Inuyasha was looking at me with genuine concern in his now-violet eyes.  Sango and Miroku looked worried as well, and asked me if I was all right. I had no words of reassurance for them.  I couldn’t even bring myself to smile.  All I could do was look around wildly, as if searching for a reason for the madness. I couldn’t take my friends’ stares and questions anymore.  I jumped up and ran outside to be alone and to think about what was happening… ~*~*~*~ The rest of the night passed without incident.  I was almost afraid to wake up in the morning.  I didn’t want to find myself back in my time without saying goodbye.  I lay there, pretending to sleep, until I heard Inuyasha’s voice calling me. “Oi, Kagome!  You gonna sleep all day?” I grinned and opened my eyes, the roof of the hut firmly in place above me.  I looked around and breathed a sigh of relief.  Everything was still there and I could hear my friends’ voices.  Whatever it was that was happening seemed to have passed. After breakfast, Inuyasha and I went for a walk.  I was kind of surprised by his invitation, but of course I accepted.  We walked through a small woods and stopped between two large trees.  A little grove of cherry trees stood behind them, and a few falling blossoms caught my attention.  I stared at them, entranced. “Kagome.” I turned to look at Inuyasha.  His voice seemed to be coming from far away.  Then I couldn’t hear him at all.  I looked at him, confused, then remembered my epiphany from the previous night. “Inuyasha,” I said, tears in my eyes.  I knew he probably wouldn’t hear me.  “I’m being sent home.  The jewel doesn’t exist anymore, so there’s no magic to keep me here…” ~*~*~*~ She looked at me, confused, then started to say something.  I just barely caught my name, but I couldn’t hear the rest of what she said.  I saw her lips moving, forming words, but I couldn’t hear.  I wondered if that was what had been happening to her.  She seemed to be saying something about the jewel. Then it hit me.   The jewel was what brought her here.  It and its magic had disappeared, so she couldn’t stay here.  She was leaving Sango and Miroku, Shippou, and… and…me.  She was leaving me.  I had to tell her.  I had to tell her how I felt before her time took her back.  If I didn’t, I knew I would regret it for the rest of my life. I pulled her close.  I mouthed the words “I love you, Kagome.”  Then I kissed her… ~*~*~*~ I saw realization dawn in his deep violet eyes.  He looked scared, then sad.  He pulled me close to him while his mouth formed the four words I never thought I’d hear from him. “I love you, Kagome.” When he kissed me, my heart ripped into tiny shreds.  He loved me, I loved him, yet we would never see each other again.  I kissed him back for all I was worth, pouring all my love for him into the kiss, wishing that the moment would never end. But end it did, and all too soon.  Inuyasha faded away, leaving me clutching at thin air.  The last thing I felt was his warm lips against mine.  I fell to my knees in a little grove of cherry trees in a modern-day park. “Inuyasha!!”  I screamed, unable to see for my tears.  I didn’t even get to say goodbye… ~*~*~*~ I wonder if she’ll remember me.  It’s been a few years.  I’m still not sure how, but I managed to get to her time.  I tried everything to get back to her, all kinds of spells.  I even got so desperate once that I tried the well again, hoping it would work, all the while knowing it wouldn’t.  I think it might have been a combination of a spell my brother gave me and something Kaede came up with that finally got me here, but I can’t remember.  Anyway, I’m here in her time, and that’s all that matters.  And I’m here for good. I’ve got some schooling now- although by ‘some’ I mean the equivalent of a high school diploma and some college courses, which I’m still taking- and I’m well set for money.  Museums and collectors tend to pay pretty well for ancient artifacts. Now all I have to do is find her. Her mom told me that she’d been accepted into a university in America.  I’m proud of her.  Even after all of her absences, she still managed to do well.  Absences that I caused.  I felt a twinge of guilt. Her mom said she would be home soon for the summer break.  I can’t wait.  But then again, I’m dreading it, too.  What if she doesn’t remember me?  What if she’s with someone else? Of course, none of her letters have hinted at her having a boyfriend.  And her mother says Kagome’s never forgotten me.  I just hope she’s right… ~*~*~*~ I’m finally home.  The past semester was hectic.  I’m looking forward to a nice, relaxing summer vacation with my family.  I still wish I could go see my friends.  I miss them so much.  Sesshoumaru and Shippou are still around.  Being youkai, they live a lot longer.  I see them every so often.  Sesshoumaru’s mellowed out a lot; I think it had a lot to do with Rin.  I’d never seen anyone who could give orders to the taiyoukai and live, but she did.  And he would obey, more often than not. Shippou has grown into a very good-looking young man.  Of course, I say that as a mother.  Not too long after he found me, he told me that Inuyasha kind of went crazy, obsessed with finding a way to my time, and nobody had seen him for years, so they all thought he’d died.  I cried (bawled my eyes out, actually) when Shippou told me, but I knew that all of my friends would pass eventually.  Inuyasha was no different than any other human in that respect. As soon as I stepped onto the grounds of my family’s shrine, I felt something was different.  Mom came out of the house to help me with my suitcases.  She had a funny little smile on her face like she gets when she’s hiding a secret.  I asked her what was going on, but she just smiled more and said I’d find out for myself soon enough. We walked into the living room where Souta and- I assumed- a friend of his were playing video games.  My not-so- little-anymore brother jumped up and scrambled to give me a hug. His ‘friend’ turned around and I think I almost had a heart attack and died.  The backpack I carried fell to the floor with a thud.  His hair was shorter and pulled back into a low ponytail, and he was in blue jeans and a black shirt, but it was him. “Inuyasha?” I whispered, tentatively reaching out my right hand towards him.  I was afraid I was dreaming.  Then I thought I had died, because only the dead can see the dead, right?  But then I thought, why would he be in modern clothes if he was dead?  Don’t ghosts wear the clothes they died in? “Welcome home, Kagome,” he said, then pulled me into a tight embrace.  Definitely not dead or dreaming. “My love,” he whispered, then kissed me…
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