Disclaimer Part I: The characters of Inuyasha belong to Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me. The song Broken Road by Rascal Flatts doesn’t belong to me either.

Chapter Four

Broken Road

"So... the road isn't really a road?"

"That's correct, Inuyasha. The road is symbolic. It simply represents another topic."

"Why couldn't they just say what they mean?"

"Sometimes it is easier to understand a difficult topic when you simplify it, give it another form. Especially with something that has no physical form to begin with."

Mrs. Higurashi watched as the young man courting her daughter (in his own fashion) thoughtfully chewed on the ramen noodles. For days he had been popping up out of the well frantically searching for her daughter, muttering lyrics to an odd assortment of songs. This last song, however, didn't have him rushing to Kagome's room demanding to see the girl. This one had him sitting in her kitchen staring at his food. Eventually he asked her if she had ever heard the song about the broken road. After a little digging, she gently pried some of the lyrics from him. Eventually they were able to locate the song and play it.

Over and over again.

And over and over again.

It reminded her of when Souta was little and had his one favorite song that he would listen to and that was it. The song was played nearly non-stop all day. Thankfully he grew out of it. But it was different than with Inuyasha. The young man seemed to be trying to figure something out. And if it helped the two along the path to one day providing her with adorable grandchildren with soft fuzzy ears, she was more than happy to let him listen to the song as long as he'd like.

"So... the getting lost part, that doesn't actually mean getting lost." He puffed up his chest. "I don't get lost. Keh, as if dog demons could get lost. I always know where I'm going."

She smiled gently. He was such a proud man. It was so cute!

"No. Getting lost is also symbolic. It means that though you may have been walking along a path in life, it may not have been leading you to where you ultimately were destined to go. Sometimes fate pushes us in directions we didn't think we wanted to go, but because it did, we ended up where we are now. With the people we now know and love."

When Inuyasha continued to study his noodles, she decided to tell him a little story.

"When I was a girl Kagome's age, there was a boy that I was in love with. His name was Rei. Oh, he was very handsome. And very smart. Gifted and talented, too. I was thrilled and flattered when he asked me on a date. I knew that he would be the man that I would one day marry. He was the first boy I truly fell in love with. I didn't so much as look at another boy. He was older than me by a year or two. I was still in school when he graduated. Then Rei went away to college."

"What was he like? Rei." The silver haired boy paused for a moment, looking a little uncomfortable. "She... doesn't really talk about her dad."

"Rei grew from a handsome teenager, to an even more handsome man. Some would even call him beautiful. When he got to college, he found that there were plenty of women there who were more than happy to show him just how beautiful they thought he was. I found this out when I went to visit him one day, bringing him cookies I had baked in my Home Economics class. A girl answered the door wearing Rei's favorite shirt. It was very apparent that they had been... well... intimate. I was crushed."

When she noticed Inuyasha's expression go from shocked to murderous, she decided it would be a good idea to hurry the story along. "But Rei was not Kagome's father, Inuyasha. I changed which schools I was applying for, unable to face going to the same college where I might run into Rei and his girlfriend. I wanted to go far away, and so I did. It was there that I met Kagome's father. The love I felt for him made my feelings for Rei pale in comparison. Not that my feelings for Rei hadn't been real. I did love him. But it wasn't the same kind of love I felt for Kagome's father. I may have once loved Rei... but my husband was my life." She wiped at the tears threatening to fall. "He was my everything."

Inuyasha looked scared. Apparently dealing with weepy women was not his forte. It caused her to giggle lightly, which only served to frighten him a little more. Strange how emotions made him so nervous and uncomfortable when he had no problem facing a horde of demons intent on killing him.

"Rei was my narrow path. But if I hadn't met him and loved him, I would never have switched to a different college. I would never have met my beloved husband. In an odd sort of way, that heartbreak guided me towards my true love." She couldn't help but add, "And I never would have had Kagome or Souta."

"...a broken road..." Inuyasha mumbled to himself as he swirled the cup of noodles. The mother in her wished he would eat something more nutritious. Now, however, was not a time to lecture on proper nutrition.

In her heart she knew the answer to the question she was about to ask. But she needed to hear the words.

"Do you love my daughter, Inuyasha?"

She half expected him to bolt, like he had on many occasions when it looked like feelings might be discussed. His body jerked, but he remained in his seat. Though he was unable to look directly at her.

"Keh."

"Inuyasha."

He looked towards her, but not at her. It took a few minutes of looking at him unwaveringly before he began to speak. "What if... How do you know I'm not... You were Kagome's age when you fell in love with Rei. When she's older she might..." He swallowed hard, then looked back at his cup. "I could just be part of the broken road. One of them northern stars. Her destiny... it might... might not be..."

"How do you know she is not your destiny?" She interrupted before he worked himself up to heading back through the well to his own time. "And you hers?"

"Feh. I don't believe in destiny."

No. She supposed he wouldn't. Not after his life. From what information she had been able to glean, he had lived a very rough and solitary life. Fate would seem cruel if that is the life he had been meant to lead. Though it shaped him. Made him into the man, or hanyou, that he is. And without that pain, without that terrible past, he may never have met Kagome. Whether he could see it or not, Kagome had been a big influence in his life. He had changed over the time he knew her. But he needed time to figure these things on his own.

Glancing at the clock on the wall, she realized it was getting late.

"Kagome and Souta will be home from school soon. I should go shopping for tonight's dinner. Would you like to come along, or would you like to wait here?"

A faint blush tinted his cheeks. He turned his head so quick she almost didn't notice.

"I'll... wait."

"Okay. Let them know I will be back soon."

"Sure."

Slipping on her shoes and grabbing her purse, Mrs. Higurashi headed for the door. Her hand was on the door when his quiet voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Could... I listen to the song... one more time?"

With a light heart, she showed him how to work the CD player. She could almost see her grandchildren playing out in the yard. Hopefully they'd have their father's ears. And their mother's eyes. Their grandfather's smoky eyes of dark blue gray that Kagome inherited. Maybe 

she could take a little longer and indulge in a little daydream window shopping at the children's clothing store on her way to the market.

"Of course!"

She watched as the dog demon poked at the buttons on the CD player. And which button was the Repeat button. She watched his face closely. The emotion she saw there made her heart soar.

Hope.

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Author's Note:

The next chapter will be the last chapter. And in the next chapter Kagome FINALLY makes an appearance. The color of her eyes, by the way, is based on the color covers of the manga, not the anime.

Thank you guys for your wonderful reviews! It means a lot to me. :O)