RINSE

By Taberah Blanc
Series: InuYasha
Credit to: Rumiko Takahashi
Rating: PG

she'd do anything to sparkle in his eye
she would suffer, she would fight, and compromise
she's been wishin' on the stars that shine so bright
for answers to the questions that will haunt her tonight

........Kagome scaled the Go’shinbuku, her hands digging into the crevices as she groped for the first branch high above the ground. Grab that branch, and the rest of the way up was easy. Her hand wavered...almost had it...there! Just in time, as her bare toes slid out from the minuscule nook that had held them. A deep breath, then the other hand moved, leaving her hanging four feet above the ground by one arm. The hand moved to firmly grasp the branch next to the other. Now up, up, one hand moved to the next branch. Up one foot, until Kagome was sitting on the branch.

she must rinse this all away
she can't hold him this way
she must rinse this all away
she can't love him this way

........She breathed a long sigh. She was strong, and she would prove it. Scaling the Go’shinbuku was tough, but it was mind-numbing, and helped her prove something, most of all to herself. Right now, she needed to occupy her brain. If she started to think, she wouldn’t be able to stop crying.
........Kagome moved into a crouch. Quickly, before she had time to think, she jumped and grabbed the next branch. Up, up, she climbed, until it seemed she could touch the moon. Kagome simply sat, staring at the pearly orb. There was a reason she tried not to think, and she preferred not to dwell on it. Although, if she was going to sort things out, like she told him she would, she had to

how she'd be soothed, how she'd be saved if he could see
she needs to be held in his arms to be free
but everything happens for reasons that she will never understand
'til she knows the heart of a woman will never be found in the arms of a man

*Flashback*

........ “Kagome, can we talk?” His rich voice sent shivers down her spine.
........“Sure, Inuyasha,” she replied. The tachi was just settling down for the night, and the moon was just rising.
........“Kagome, there’s something important I need to tell you.” Ignoring the tone of his voice, Kagome let her heart rise. This was it! Would he tell her? “I can’t keep leading you on like this. It would be wrong.”
........ “What are you talking about?”, she asked. “How are you leading me on? Do you love someone else?” He did, but it wasn’t who she expected.
........ “Kagome, I love Kouga, and he loves me. We agreed to tell you and Ayame tonight, and we would tell the tachi together tomorrow.” He stopped to examine her facial expression, which was frozen in a look of bewilderment. “Kagome, are you ok? Does this bother you?”
........It took a few moments for all he had said to register with her. “Yes, I’m fine, Inuyasha. And I’m glad you told me on your own. It would have been awful to find out otherwise. I just need a little time to myself, to...sort all this out.” Inuyasha nodded, and Kagome started towards the well clearing. Inside her head was spinning. ‘Am I too weak for him?’, she thought. ‘What did I do wrong?’.

*End Flashback*

she must rinse this all away
she can't hold him this way
she must rinse this all away
she can't love him this way

........When all else fails, Kagome reasoned, you looked through the facts. Fact 1: She loved Inuyasha. Fact 2: Inuyasha loved Kouga. Fact 3: Kouga loved Inuyasha. Fact 4: Ayame loved Kouga. Conclusion? Happy Kouga. Happy Inuyasha. Sad Ayame. Positively depressed almost to the point of suicide Kagome.
........Kagome shook her head. Begone with such thoughts! What happened to being strong? Maybe just banishing all thoughts would clear her head. So Kagome simply sat, not thinking, barely moving, hardly breathing, almost in a trance. Until a soft sound broke through her thoughts.
........She leaned over the edge of the branch, trying to see what was going on below. All she could see was a flash of red hair. In her eagerness to see, she leaned over too far, and went tumbling out into space.

and if she runs away she fears she won't be followed
what could be the worse than leaving something behind
and as the depth of oceans slowly become shallow
it's loneliness she finds...
if only he was mine

........Ayame was hurt. Broken-hearted, in fact. What had become of what she and Kouga had? First there was that girl, the shard detector. But she had written that off to Kouga’s desire to defeat the Birds of Paradise, and later, for more power. Now it was another person, not even a female this time. Well, if he wasn’t going to be loyal, she decided, he didn’t deserve her. But he was her first love, and it hurt.
........She sat at the roots of a tree, crying. It was a large tree, and the branches started about 10 feet off the ground. Suddenly, there was a crash. Ayame jumped up, the mother instinct in her ready to catch anything that fell.
........Her brain recognized the figure. It was that girl! Her mind started to lurch into debate mode. Should she catch her? She had never been anything but nice. On the other hand, she had introduced Kouga to that awful dog. What should she do?
........Thankfully for Ayame, the girl took the choice away, catching the last branch with her hands, and the next one up with her knees.. The girl, Kagome, Ayame remembered, winced. Ayame sympathized. She had done that at least 3 times when learning to climb trees.
........Then, as Ayame watched, Kagome clenched her knees and let go of the bottom branch, bringing her hands up to the top. When her hands met the top branch, she grasped it hard, and let her legs slip down to touch the bottom branch. Very nice legs, Ayame noted. The girl was strong, in a lean sort of way. She didn’t have the muscles of a swordsman, perhaps, but those of a climber, a runner, an archer.(Yes, I know, kinda OoC, but I believe that demons are unashamed of their affections, no matter what gender. They’re just those kind of people. Or creatures. This is confusing!! But whatever. It’s a FANFIC. And if you’re wondering why I just made these sections longer, I’m running out of verses. It’s frustrating, I know the exact last paragraph, but I can’t get there. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!)
........Kagome wobbled again, and she crouched. Just as suddenly as she had caught herself before, she again fell out of the tree.
........Ayame reacted without thought. She sped to the (1)putative point of impact, arms out to catch Kagome, and body braced. She was surprisingly light, about 110 pounds, if Ayame had to guess. (Just a note: That’s really light for a 15-year-old. It’s bordering on anorexic. It’s that whole Mary-Kate thing).
........Kagome stared at her breathlessly. “Thanks,” she managed to murmur. Ayame smiled at her and absently sat down, placing Kagome across her lap, supporting her back with an arm. Kagome stiffened slightly as a claw reached across her face, then relaxed as it brushed a strand of onyx hair out of her face. “You look nice like that,” Ayame whispered. Kagome stared, shock written over her face as Ayame leaned toward her, then claimed her lips with a gentle kiss.

she'd do anything to sparkle in his eye
she would suffer, she would fight, and compromise
she's been wishin' on the stars that shine so bright
for answers to the questions that will haunt her tonight

........As Ayame pulled back, Kagome was suddenly very aware of her state. She was being supported by the other woman, and the contact between them was almost...intimate. Ayame’s face suddenly blushed a deep red. “I-I’m sorry,” she stammered out as she pulled back.
........Kagome reached up a hand to cup the back of the other woman’s head. Her hair was silky, Kagome noted, and a pretty shade. She often grew tired of her own locks. How common they were. “No, it’s all right,” she whispered. A soft smile graced her face. “In fact, that was quite nice.” Ayame smiled back.
........“So would you mind if I did it again?”, she purred.
........Kagome shivered at the chills that went down her spine. “No, I don’t believe I would mind it at all,” she murmured.
........Ayame kissed her again, more fiercely this time. Kagome couldn’t suppress a moan. Against her mouth, Ayame smiled.

she must rinse him
she must rinse him
she can't rinse him
she can't rinse him
she can't, she won't, she must rinse him
she can't, she won't, she must rinse him
she must rinse this all away
she can't hold him this way
she must rinse this all away
she can't love him this way

........As the sun rose, Kagome shifted her head on Ayame’s chest in the cave. Her eyes lazily fluttered open. As she sat up and stretched, she looked around the cave and drowsily noticed she would have to borrow some clothes from Ayame-chan. Her blouse was ripped down the middle, and the clasp of her bra was completely broken. They were in no state to be worn back to the tachi.
........The tachi...Kagome smiled faintly. As she fingered the mark on her neck and licked the last of the blood off her teeth, it occurred to her Inuyasha and Kouga wouldn’t be the only ones with something to tell.