A/N: Inuyasha's not mine, it's all Rumiko Takahashi's...Well, u knew I was going to say that already! Anyway, why are you still reading this part? READ my story! LOL Thanks All! R + R! plz... ^_^

Chapter 5: Repercussions

Kagome's brown eyes widened as Kikyo slowly approached her. She felt like darting out of there, but didn't know where to go and fear had frozen her. She squeezed her eyes shut and prayed, "please, don't take my soul!" She felt Kikyo's cold grasp on her clenched fist. "Huh?" Kagome softly expressed. She gazed down at her hand, which Kikyo had unexpectedly placed the Shikon no tama in. She looked at Kikyo quizzically. "I give you the responsibility." Kikyo simply answered.

"But, why, Kikyo?"

"I cannot be free as long as I have to guard the Shikon no tama."

"But, you'll still wander the earth?"

"I wish to be among the living. This is the closest I will ever come to that realization."

"The jewel isn't fully complete though..."

"That is because Naraku got away with the rest. You must defeat him to complete the jewel. I have but one request: don't let Inuyasha use it to become a full demon."

There was a long pause. Kagome stared down at the sacred item in the palm of her hand. 'How can I insure that? I'll have to try my best...' She looked up at Kikyo and promised, "It'll be difficult, but, yes I'll do it." Kikyo nodded, partly smiled and said, "see that you do." Kagome couldn't help but still wonder why Kikyo had entrusted custody of the jewel to her. "What compelled you to do it this way?" She asked Kikyo. The tragic miko's sad eyes pierced her soul as she spoke, "Inuyasha has changed. I believe you're the reason for that. If you could make him trust, then maybe you can accomplish this."

Inuyasha paused in the center of the woods. Miroku, Sango, Shippo and Kirara caught up to him. "At least wait for us before you go after them!" Miroku called. A passing faint glow from above caught Inuyasha's attention. "It's the soul stealing demons," he thought aloud, "Kikyo!" He dashed off and followed them. "It's no use." Shippo sighed. "Follow him!" Sango commanded to Kirara. "Do you really think it best?" Miroku asked. "Why not?" She questioned. "Well this is something personal with Inuyasha...I think you and I should not interfere. Instead, we should get involved with each other." Miroku suggested and caressed Sango's shoulders. His hand traveled down her back ...*BAM!* Sango softly giggled to herself as Miroku now lay unconscious on the floor. A rather red hand mark was imprinted on the front of his face.

Inuyasha burst out from the thick trees. He glanced around, expecting to see Kikyo. Instead, he found Kagome. She was staring downward and tightly held the Shikon jewel close to her chest. "Kagome..."He whispered. Her head shot up and she exclaimed, "INUYASHA!" She sprung toward him and leaped into his arms. Her arms wrapped around him, locking him in her embrace. He lightly hugged her back.

Kagome stepped away from him and peered up into his golden eyes. "You were expecting to find Kikyo, weren't you? That's why you came here." She said in a soft, shaky voice. He had completely forgot he was on the trail of one of her demons. When he had caught her in his arms, he was also caught off guard.

"Kagome...how did you get here? What happened?"

"I think I should be asking YOU that! Why were you with Kikyo?"

"She offered to help us find you, but then she turned on us. You have the jewel, but where's Narkau? What happened?"

Kagome remained silent for a little bit. She reflected on the hurtful things Naraku had told her. Seeing Inuyasha with Kikyo awakened a fear deep within her heart. "Kagome, I'm going to ask you again, what the HELL happened? Did Kikyo try to-" He was interrupted, "she did nothing! Naraku was behind it all. It was all part of his scheme, okay! Are you happy? Kikyo did NOTHING to me!" "Hey, don't yell at me! I just asked you what happened. What's your problem?" He barked. "Humph!" Kagome huffed. She crossed her arms over her chest and scowled. 'Why is he asking me about Kikyo? Why doesn't he just go off and find her if he cares so much?' She thought to herself.

"Kagome! Oh good! You're okay!" Shippo cried, hopping over to her. She scooped him up in her arms. "Care to fill us in on the details?" Miroku asked her. "At least you have the jewel back, too." Sango noted. "Yeah," Kagome softly said. She looked down at it. It was about two thirds completed. "well we're kinda back to where we started. We have to find Naraku still." She briefly explained how Naraku kidnapped Kikyo and took on her form and all the rest that went on. Kagome walked toward the well. Suddenly, Inuyasha dropped down from a tree in front of her. "Aahh! You startled me!" She gasped. "Feh!" He snorted. "I'm going back home for now." She stated, then, proceeded to leave. He placed a hand on her shoulder. She turned around. "Kagome, I...I did have fun at the festival." He admitted, partially looking down. She took a few steps then sat down. He sat beside her. "Good that you had fun. That's what I wanted." She replied and smiled. She leaned against him and closed her eyes. "I'm glad you're okay," he told her, "I was afraid that Naraku had taken you from me, too." He felt her nuzzle against his shoulder. He looked down at her. "What the hell? She fell asleep! Argghh! I said all that for nothing! Dammit! this exactly why I save sentimentality!" He grumbled, folding his arms angrily. He scowled and sat there as Kagome rested. After all she'd been through, she needed a break.

As she slept, she thought about what Kikyo had requested. She had kept it to herself since she was unsure of how she could keep her promise. Miroku already thought Inuyasha shouldn't use the jewel to become a full demon, so that might somewhat help her prevent Inuyasha from using it for that purpose. Their main goal was to defeat Naraku. Just how they were going to pull it off was the problem.

o0o0Endo0o0

a/n: Well hoped u liked this! hehe thanks all for reading! :-)