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Inuyasha said it best himself, “I promise I’ll protect you with my life.”

And he had proved it time and time again. He never faltered from the moment he had first blurted it out when they were fighting a losing battle in his father’s grave to the final battle with Naraku through four years of marriage. It was his mantra anytime he drew his sword against an enemy. Keep Kagome safe no matter the cost.

But what could he do when existence itself was in danger because of her? When he had to make the choice: her or all of humanity.

Logic said the good of the many outweighs the good of the few, but Kagome was everything that was good in the world. She had opened up her heart to everyone she met, even if they could give her nothing in return. She gave Shippo a mother, Miroku a friend, Sango a sister, and Inuyasha a home. Everything they had now was because she was the glue that held their group together. That had made them a family. 

Then the well had closed and she was gone. Inuyasha was forced to watch as life carried on around him while he remained the same, unable to move past the girl who overcame time when he had been so irrevocably overcome by her. Three years, he had waited next to that well. And he would have waited five hundred more if he could only just see her one last time.

But fate had been kind, or so he thought. She came back and everything fell back into place as it should have been. He wasted no time in making her his wife and in the four years since that perfect day underneath the Goshinboku, he found a new way to fall in love with her all over again. After everything they had been through, didn’t they finally deserve their happy ending?

It seemed their trials had not yet finished. 

The first incident happened so quickly, they hadn’t even realized something was wrong. A blink-and-you-might-miss-it freeze in time that occurred in the middle of battle against a nameless oni. But as Inuyasha was swinging down his sword to unleash his Wind Scar, they all felt the pause, as if the world dropped out around them for a single instant. It was brushed off. A simple moment of dizziness or maybe they were just tired and needed to rest.

Until it happened again a few days later. One minute they were gathered around the fire in Kaede’s hut, enjoying their dinner as usual, the next they were consumed by darkness and a pins and needles sensation throughout their bodies, the roaring in their ears so loud they could still hear the ringing minutes after the world returned to normal. 

Sango and Miroku had scooped up their crying children, Inuyasha tended to a gasping Kagome who in turn clung to a frightened Shippo, and Kaede hurried from the hut to check on the other villagers. And when she returned, she confirmed what they had all guessed. That every person had felt the world disappear. Kagome described the incident as a glitch. The feeling that burned throughout their bodies as static, though Inuyasha had no clue what either thing meant. The problem was no one knew what was causing it or why. 

So Inuyasha did the one thing he could. He stayed by Kagome’s side, always there to wrap his arms around her and comfort her as the glitches grew longer and more painful. Until enough was enough and Inuyasha declared that he couldn’t wait around for someone else to fix the problem. He would find who was causing this and bring a quick end to their life with the Tessaiga.

“I’m coming with you,” was all Kagome needed to say and it was settled. She was a fully trained miko now. Inuyasha needed her skills just as much as he needed her company. 

With the others too tied down with their responsibilities to join them, the two set off on their own, much like the beginnings of their travels in the search for the Shikon Jewel. Yet everything was different now. Before, Inuyasha had nothing to lose, a lone hanyou with a broken heart and desperation for revenge. Now, he was a husband and a guardian, sworn to protect his family and the place he loved. There was too much at stake for him to fail now.

It hadn’t taken long before Sesshomaru found them. Kagome greeted him as a brother, but Inuyasha still preferred him at a distance, too many past transgressions to ever welcome him with open arms.

“I trust you are seeking answers,” the daiyokai told them. “It is in your best interest that you follow me to someone who can provide them.”

“You’re going to help us?” Kagome asked, already taking a step forward until Inuyasha blocked the way with an arm outreached in front of her, fangs bared.

“I don’t trust this, Kagome. Sesshomaru never just lends a hand unless there’s something in it for him.”

“Inuyasha!” Kagome started to chide but was interrupted by her brother-in-law merely turning his back on them, unbothered by Inuyasha’s attitude. 

“I know it goes against your nature, Inuyasha, but do not be a fool. If you do not come with me then time itself will collapse and destroy us all. The fate of the world rests in Kagome’s hands.”

“Me?” Kagome asked, completely taken aback.

“What the hell does Kagome have to do with any of this!?” Inuyasha yelled, but Sesshomaru was already in flight to his destination. He was ready to argue some more, but one worried look from his wife and she was on his back as he chased behind.

Neither of them anticipated being led to Sesshomaru’s mother’s mansion in the sky, a place neither had ever been welcomed before, yet upon seeing who was waiting for their arrival, they both instantly knew who she was. Sitting before them now was Inukimi, her gaze just as piercing as her son’s, who now stood to her right. The family resemblance was undeniable and just seeing the two of them together, Inuyasha tried to deny the jealousy in the pit of his stomach that Sesshomaru still had a mother when he had lost his own far too young.

“Inuyasha,” Inukimi spoke in a rich tone, the authority in her voice all too prominent, “I suppose it was only a matter of time before we met. Though I never thought there would come a time when a half-demon and his human wife would encroach upon my lands upon my own invitation. How far we have fallen.”

“Keh, we don’t exactly want to be here either so let’s make this quick. Why did you have Sesshomaru bring us here?”

The corner of her painted lips turned up into a smile, but there was little kindness in her eyes as they turned upon Kagome. Inuyasha could feel her body tense next to him, but she didn’t back away.

“You, girl,” Inukimi started. “My son has informed me that you were not born of this world. Did he speak the truth?”

“I don’t see how that’s any of your business,” Inuyasha brashly interrupted before Kagome could have a chance to speak.

“Inuyasha,” Kagome scolded him with a single utterance of his name. He didn’t like it, but he backed down with only a low growl in his throat as she stepped forward to address the woman directly. “I was, but I chose this era as my home years ago. Does this have something to do with the freezes in time that have been occurring? Please, if you know something, tell us. We only want to fix this.”

Without acknowledging her question, Inukimi’s eyes, the same color as Inuyasha’s but so much colder, turned onto him instead. “As much as I do not want to admit it, you are so like your father. Perhaps even more so than my own son.”

Inuyasha could see his half-brother bristle out of the corner of his eye, but he said nothing. She continued, “He held such an affinity for humans that it eventually killed him and your mother, Izayoi, not long after. Did you know that I watched her as she journeyed on the path to the underworld? I had expected to see you there with her, but it seems that time has yet to come.”

Inuyasha’s fangs bared at the mere mention of his mother, but Inukimi was unperturbed by his anger. In fact, her smirk only grew as her head cocked to the side.

“And when the priestess that was rumored to have feelings for you appeared there all those years ago, I almost felt sorry for you. Especially when you allowed it to happen a second time,” she sneered.

“What’s your fucking point?” Inuyasha’s growl was only growing louder until it was more of a snarl.

“The point is, Inuyasha, that demons and humans were never meant to intertwine. All the human women you love are doomed to meet the same tragic end. Just like your father.” Her eyes shifted back to where Kagome stood, fingers tapping on the amulet that hung around her neck.

“That’s not true!” she shouted, but it was drowned out by Inuyasha’s guttural snarl as he put himself between his wife and the daiyoukai. He could feel her hands immediately grip the back of his sleeve and, even now, he found a small comfort in her touch. 

“I don’t care who you were to my father. You lay a finger on Kagome and I’ll kill you. Got that?”

Sesshomaru, in response to Inuyasha’s claws flexing at his own mother, gripped the hilt of his sword and took a step forward, but was stopped by a wave of Inukimi’s hand. 

“Don’t be absurd, Inuyasha. I have no intention of harming the girl. However, if no action is taken, then it will not only be her life on the line but time and space itself will collapse, killing us all. I simply cannot allow that to happen.”

“Dammit, I’m getting real sick of you talking in riddles so just tell us why the hell you’ve brought us here so we can get out of this creepy place and-”

But he never was able to finish his sentence as at that moment, the time glitch returned and the world vanished. It took everything in his power to blindly grab Kagome from behind him and pull her to him before they collapsed to their knees from what felt like the weight of the universe collapsing in on them. He wanted to scream, but there was no air, just a void in his burning lungs as the deafening crackle in his ears took over all of his senses. The only thing keeping him sane was the pull of Kagome’s hands as she fisted them in his fire rat and he clung on impossibly tighter as if he could somehow take away her pain just by covering her body with his own. 

He had to get her out of this. Had to save her. But what could he do when the enemy was not one that could be cut down by a sword? What could anyone do when time could no longer stand on its own? They would die if this wasn’t fixed. Already he could feel his body being simultaneously crushed and pulled apart with this force that couldn’t even be touched. What the hell was he supposed to do? 

But just as quickly as it started, the world returned to normal. They were again at Inukimi’s mansion, everything exactly as it had been.  Pulling Kagome away from him enough so he could see her, Inuyasha ran his hands over her arms and back to assess the damage.

“Kagome, are you alright?” he was definitely yelling over the lingering ringing in his ears, but that was the last thing on his mind at the moment. 

“Yes, I am now!” she nodded, though he was more reading her lips than hearing what she was saying. “What about you?”

“Fine!”

And though they weren’t harmed, that didn’t stop the tears from forming in the corners of Kagome’s eyes until they overflowed down her cheeks. 

“Is this all my fault?” she cried.

Inuyasha could feel her shaking under his grip so he did the only thing he knew how to do and wrapped his arms around her, feeling relief of his own when he buried his face into her hair just to breathe in her scent that always brought him comfort.

He couldn’t blame her for still reacting this way though they had experienced the glitch many times. Together, they had fought countless demons and hardly broke a sweat but this, this was terrifying. This was beyond them, beyond Naraku. But, Inuyasha thought, maybe not beyond a powerful enough inu youkai. 

He raised his head enough to see Inukimi’s painted lips had curved into a slight frown as she watched them from her throne. Sesshomaru, on the other hand, had turned his head away entirely, his usually unreadable expression now a grimace. So even someone as powerful as him was feeling the effects of the time glitch?

“What do you know about this?” Inuyasha yelled through gritted teeth, hating the fact that he was about to have to rely on his father’s first wife and her son for a solution when he had nothing to offer.

Inukimi did not reply but simply rose from her throne. As she began to approach where they still sat, Inuyasha braced for an attack, but none came even as she strode right past them to stand before a towering wooden structure that lay just beyond the pathway, constructed as a giant circle at its center carved in intricate loops that seemed to interlock with wheels surrounding it Despite its size, it looked to merely be sitting among the clouds itself, and only because the ringing in his ears was beginning to fade did he realize that the object was emitting a low creaking sound as if it was straining under its own weight. 

“Time is not a fragile thing, Inuyasha. It bends and shapes itself around us as it needs. Why do you think setting a hand over an open flame for just a minute seems like an hour, but sitting with your lover for an hour feels only as if it lasts a minute? You are no stranger to the flexibility of time, but even it has a breaking point.”

Inukimi looked back at them before following through with her body as she turned to face them, eyes bearing into Kagome’s so hard that Inuyasha’s protective instincts were on high alert again. He kept an arm around his wife, ready to cover her or scoop her up at a moment’s notice. 

“Your presence here is causing time to collapse,” she continued. “I’m sure you are aware that with each of these occurrences, they have been growing longer. It won’t be long now before we are reduced to nothing, forever trapped in the void where we will break apart if we do not suffocate first.”

“I’m—I’m so sorry. I didn’t know…” Kagome whimpered, and Inuyasha’s arm pulled her closer, a simple gesture to reassure her that he didn’t blame her even one bit.

“Why would we believe you?” Inuyasha cut in before Inukimi could respond. “You’ve seemed all too keen to make threats at Kagome since we’ve been here. How do we know this isn’t just some elaborate scheme to get back at my father for leaving you for a human?”

If he had gotten under her skin with his accusation, she didn’t show it to her credit. “My power is far greater than you could comprehend, but if you believe that I am capable of this, let alone that I would just to seek revenge on a mere hanyou that is hardly worth the effort, then you are a greater fool than I believed. I hold my time to much greater value. What I do not take lightly is the threat this makes to my own life as well as my son’s or how many innocents have suffered just for your selfishness.”

“What do you suggest we do?” Kagome asked, ignoring the growl tearing through Inuyasha’s throat. 

Inukimi gestured her hand to the side as if presenting her first solution. “Well, if the girl were to die, I suppose that would solve our problem.”

“Not happening,” Inuyasha nearly snarled through gritted teeth, his hold on Kagome automatically tightening even more when he heard her gasp.

“No, I would not think you would allow that Inuyasha, as thoughtlessly protective as you are. You are part inu youkai after all. So I offer you another possibility.” Her hand gestured to the towering wooden structure behind her. “This is the Windmill of Time, entrusted to me long ago so that I might guard its power that even the most powerful youkai cannot obtain. It is a portal to any time that is desired, past…or future.”

Kagome gasped beside him, understanding her insinuation immediately, and shot up to her feet. Inuyasha was not far behind her, hating how easily she slipped from his hold of her own free will.

“The future...” Kagome repeated.

Inuyasha turned to Sesshomaru, “This was here the entire time you knew Kagome was trapped in her era after the Jewel was destroyed and you didn’t think to tell me?” He would have used this in a heartbeat to get back to her, even if it had meant giving up his life here.

His brother’s eyes narrowed. “As glad as I would have been to finally be rid of your presence, even I did not know.”

Inuyasha scoffed and crossed his arms, turning his sight back to his wife whose gaze had still not left the woman in front of her. She was fully focused on the solution, no doubt driven by her own guilt. “You mean you have a way for me to go back to my time?”

The corners of Inukimi’s lips turned up, but her smile was too devilish to call it that. “I do, but once you pass through, there can be no return. You must stay in the era you were born in and live out the rest of your life there as you were always meant to.”

“But—” Kagome turned back to Inuyasha and he saw the panic that had replaced her usual cheery expression, her hand reaching out to him. “I can’t leave without Inuyasha.”

He didn’t hesitate to take her hand in his, intertwining their fingers to show he wasn’t about to let her separate from him again. They were in this together. “If you want to go, I’ll go with you.”

Inukimi sighed loudly, obviously tired of having them in her presence any longer than she needed them to be. “As heartwarming as this is, no Inuyasha, you cannot go too. Or did you forget that you belong to this time? The same thing will happen again in their era only you will not have any means to stop it other than your death. Kagome must go alone.”

“No!” Kagome cried, her grip on his hand tightening. “I won’t leave him again! I can’t do it…”

“You must. You will either leave this mansion through the portal to the future or you will leave through the underworld. Neither option is of any consequence to me so the choice is yours.”

Inuyasha felt trapped. Assuming Inukimi was right, Kagome would either have to return to her world or die, both only leading her to be ripped away from him to a place beyond his reach. He had already lived like that. He couldn’t go back.

“Come on, Kagome,” he said firmly, tugging on her hand, “Let’s get the hell out of here. We’ll find a solution from someone who actually has half a thought in their brain.”

He tried to drag her back the way he came, but as he turned, the path was already blocked by his half-brother. 

“Get out of the way, Sesshomaru. We’ve wasted enough time here.”

“You have your answer, Inuyasha. Do not allow your feelings for the girl to blind you to reality.”

“Sesshomaru, please. We don’t want any trouble, but there has to be another way,” Kagome tried to reason with him, but he only drew the Bakusaiga in response. Inuyasha was quick to pull Kagome behind him and unleash the Tessaiga from its sheath, bearing his fangs at his new opponent.

“I knew you were still a piece of shit, Sesshomaru, but I at least thought you had the decency to leave Kagome alone. You always liked her more than me, you know she doesn’t deserve this. None of us would be where we are without her.”

A twinge of regret, so quick if you blinked you would miss it, flashed across Sesshomaru’s face, yet he did not lower his sword. “She is far above your level of intelligence, but be that as it may, you will be scarce to find someone as understanding to allow her the chance to still live. If she does not go through that portal, the world will be destroyed, including her with it. Then this will all be for nothing. Which would you prefer, Inuyasha?”

As if to answer for him, the world suddenly fell away again, much sooner than he had anticipated. A scream tore the air from his lungs but he couldn’t hear it over the roaring that made his head pound like it was under intense pressure. The Tessaiga slipped from his fingers as he doubled over, the pain of it all almost taking over him entirely until a tug at his sleeve reminded him that he was not alone in this. 

Inuyasha practically stumbled into Kagome, pulling her into him without a second thought and covering as much of her as he could, though he knew she was trapped like this just as much as he was. He considered running with her now, Sesshomaru likely unable to find them or even fight back if he was in the same condition that they were. But he could hardly take a single step without exerting every ounce of his power, let alone carry his wife. And with his vision gone, he could only make a guess where the exit even was, his other senses unreliable to help. 

No, all he could do was wait. But every second that passed he could only think of the others. Of Sango, Miroku, Shippo, Kaede. God, how could the twins and Hisui continue surviving if they took any longer to find a different way to end this suffering? How many had already perished because they couldn’t last through the pain and suffocation? As much as he hated to admit it, Sesshomaru was right. If they failed to find another solution, Kagome would die, too. 

That was the one thing he could never allow to happen.

It was the rush of air in his lungs that made him realize that everything had returned to normal for now. He hadn’t realized that he has squeezed his eyes shut when he buried his face into Kagome’s hair, but he opened them to confirm. And sure enough, the only sign that anything had gone awry was Inukimi’s downturned face as she clutched at her chest. As she lifted her gaze to meet his own, he knew what had to be done.

“Godammit,” Inuyasha ground out. 

Delicate hands moved from their vice grip on the fabric of the fire rat at his back to rest on his chest, pushing at him until he released her enough to see she was looking up at him, her reassuring eyes shining with the onset of new tears.

“Inuyasha,” her voice soft and comforting, “I think he’s right. This is the best solution. For everyone.”

“Not for us—” Inuyasha countered, but those clingy hands of hers moved to rest against his cheek, cupping his face as if he was a delicate piece of glass instead of a weak hanyou that had utterly failed to protect her. 

“No, but I can’t let everyone continue suffering because of my selfish desire to stay with you. I’ve put everyone in danger for long enough.”

“We’re just giving up?”

“No. We’re doing what we have to in order to save our friends. To save everyone, including you. Don’t you see, if my leaving means that you can continue living, then how could I stay?”

“Because you promised.” He knew he sounded like a child, but he was still in denial. He hadn't been ready for this. Maybe if he argued long enough then someone else could fix the problem for once and he could live in peace with his wife.

“I know. I know and I’m so sorry. But you know a part of me will always be with you right?” She raised the hand that still held hers and placed it directly over her heart. He could hear it thumping wildly underneath his fingers, fluttering so fast like a bird’s wings. “I can’t just let you die when there’s something I can do. I'll do whatever it takes.”

He hated this. Hated that they had no other option than to willingly give up everything that they had grown together over the last four years. That he was going to return home without his wife, his best friend, his soulmate, and see the faces of the others who loved her as they realized that they would never see her again. That this was all just a temporary happiness and he should have known it was too good to last.

“Keh, I’m supposed to be the one protecting you,” he had meant for it to be a lighthearted joke to ease the tension of the situation, but it felt too real as the words fell from his lips. 

“Oh, Inuyasha, you have protected me. In more ways than you’ll ever know.”

She placed a quick kiss to his lips before wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head on his chest. This was it, Inuyasha realized as he embraced her in return. She was saying goodbye.

“Tell the others I’m sorry and I’ll miss them?”

He nodded against her, the lump growing in his throat making it impossible to speak. But she seemed to understand and he could smell the salt of her tears as they started to wet the front of his fire rat. He held her then as she sobbed, uncaring that there was an audience of people who had hated him his whole life simply for existing watching them, but at least they gave them the decency now of remaining silent.

“It’s funny. I didn’t get the chance to tell you how I felt before the well closed, and now that I have the time now, I still don’t know what else to say,” she spoke, her breaking voice muffled.

“You don’t have to say anything,” he comforted, knowing exactly how she felt. How could he ever come up with the words on the spot to tell her everything that she has given him? How deeply he loved and cared for him? How thankful he was every morning when she woke up beside him? But he knew that she knew without ever him ever having to vocalize it.

“I just wish we could have more time. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you.”

“You, too. Kagome, I-”

He had to at least try. But he paused, the words in his head all jumbled around so he couldn't put them together.

“I know.”

And that was enough.

She pulled away from his hold, letting her hands catch his before he fully released her and gave them a squeeze of final reassurance as if everything was going to be ok. And despite everything, she was smiling. This was how Inuyasha wanted to always remember her. The last memory he would have of her would be of that smile that he fought for, lived for. But he understood how it felt to be willing to do anything to protect the ones you love.

So he let her go.

Kagome turned to Inukimi, her back now to him, and he could only watch as she took the steps forward to approach the woman.

“I’m ready,” was all she needed to say and with a sweep of Inukimi’s hand, the windmill creaked to life. Its wheels span faster and faster as they gained momentum, the wind blowing back everyone’s hair, until a rainbow portal formed in the center. Though it was different than the time slip in the well, Inuyasha knew exactly where this would lead. Kagome took a deep breath, the walked a few steps forward. 

However, just as she was about to cross the threshold, she paused. He couldn’t see her face, but he could hear the gasps of breath that escaped her lips. He knew something was wrong before she looked back at him and saw the fear in her eyes.

“Kagome? What’s wrong?”

He was by her side in an instant and she scrambled for him, completely turning her back to the portal that would save her.

“I can’t,” she cried. “I can’t do it again.”

“Do what?” he had to yell over the hum of the windmill, but he could hear every word she spoke.

“Go back and live without you! I can’t live in a world where you don’t exist. I’ve done it before and I can’t!”

“You have to! You’ll die if you don’t.”

“And what if I would prefer that?”

“You can’t be serious!”

“I am. Please, Inuyasha,” she took one of his hands and placed it directly on her neck, his claws at her jugular. “You have to do it. I want it to be you!”

She had absolutely lost her mind.

“If you don’t, then Sesshomaru will.” She turned to her brother-in-law as he ripped his hand away from her throat and grasped the outside of her arms. “Please, before the next glitch starts!”

But though he had made many attempts on Kagome’s life in the past, now he did not move. Did not even raise a hand to draw his sword again. 

Inuyasha looked beyond her to the rainbow corridor that still spun, the path seemingly going on forever. And that’s when it hit him. The solution to their problem.

“Do you trust me?” he asked her.

“Yes, more than anything. What kind of question is that?”

“Then wait for me.”

And he pushed, watching the terror on her face as Kagome was pulled into the portal, a hand desperately reaching out for him. The last thing he could hear was his name echoing through the air before she disappeared from sight, the windmill slowing to a crawl.

“So you aren’t as idiotic as you seem, Inuyasha. I’m shocked,” Inukimi sneered as she practically glided back to her place on the throne. Inuyasha looked up at the contraption, fighting back the urge to rip it to pieces.

But instead, he simply walked away, offering Sesshomaru a single glance of thanks as he picked up his discarded sword. The road back home was long and lonely, but there was only one thought he clung to.

He would see Kagome again.

It took Kagome several minutes to process what just happened. One second, she was standing before her husband begging him to not let her live in a world without him, the next she was hurtling through time and space itself. When she hit the pavement and rolled until she was lying on her back on a familiar pavement, she didn’t want to move. 

Without even opening her eyes, she knew where she had ended up. The honking of cars and general sounds of the bustling city could vaguely be heard in the distance. Even the smell was noticeably different, having gotten so used to the clean, pure air from long before it had become tainted by pollution.

She creaked her eyes open and for a moment, was met with only a clear blue sky that was beginning to fade to orange, the sun making its way below the horizon. She could have been back home in the Feudal Era from just this sight alone, having laid out in the grass with Inuyasha just to watch this same sky turn magnificent colors so many times she had lost count. But she heard the roar of the airplane first before it invaded her view, breaking her delusion that maybe this was all a bad dream and she would simply be able to sit up and make the journey back to her hut where her husband would be waiting for her with open arms.

Instead, when she sat up, she saw her old house looking exactly as it did the day that she left to find her happiness. She should have been relieved, overjoyed that her family was just inside, but now she only felt numb. Because a part of her was now missing. In an instant, Inuyasha had made the choice to send her back to her era the same way as the first time he had pushed her down the well and for almost exactly the same reason. To save her.

She should have known he would never have agreed to kill her or raise a finger against her, even if she wanted him to. But to sentence her to a life without him, without the life that they had made together was infinitely crueler. 

Kagome rose from the pavement of the shrine grounds and she let her feet carry her to the one place that could still connect her back to her true home. The sight of the Goshinboku welcomed her immediately, its branches seeming to shelter her from the outside world. The scar on the face of the trunk where Inuyasha had once been sealed used to sadden her, a reminder of the pain that he had endured at no fault of his own. But now it spoke of all that he had overcome and without it, they would not have the wonderful life that they have.

Had.

The past tense broke her, the crushing wave of sorrow coursing over her all at once. Kagome fell to her knees as choking sobs racked her body. Though she wrapped her arms around her torso as if to keep herself together, she was falling apart, the reality that Inuyasha would never come for her again, never roll his eyes or scowl at her again, never hold her again, shattering her completely. 

She mourned him, for he was as good as dead if he was beyond her reach in the past. He had lived an entire life in the span of time that she traveled through the portal. Did he grieve for her the way she was now for him? He had Miroku, Sango, and the others, but was he lonely? Did he move on and find someone else who could love and accept him the way that he deserved? Maybe she would never find out, but still, she already knew that he would spend the rest of his days trying to get back to her. And this knowledge only made her sob even harder.

It was only a matter of time before someone came to check on the sound of a crying woman, but the approaching footsteps didn’t even register in her mind until she heard the voice they belonged to.

“Hey, are you ok?”

It was deeper than she remembered, but without a doubt familiar. And when she lifted her head with a gasp and turned to face that voice, she saw her little brother looking back at her, an expression of genuine shock on his face.

“Sota!” she cried.

“Kagome? Is that really you?!” 

“Yes!” she rose to her feet and should not have been surprised that he had already grown taller than her in the few years she had been away. “I—I’ve come back.”

“No way, you really are here,” he mused, still obviously in complete disbelief that his sister was now standing before him. He tilted his head back to the direction of the house. “Mom! Gramps! Come here, you’re gonna want to see this!”

And before he could even face her again, Kagome had him in a vice grip, letting her tears continue to fall but feeling less alone now that she had someone who had treasured Inuyasha almost as much as she did.

“Long time, no see, huh?” he chuckled as he returned her hug. “It’s good to see you again, sis.”

“Since when did you get so tall?” She no longer had to bend down to put her arms around him the way she had her entire life. Had that much time really passed in a blink of an eye?

“I’m not that tall. You’re just short.”

“Watch it. You’re still my little brother and this won’t stop me from giving you a noogie when you deserve one.” 

It wasn’t an empty threat, but they still laughed anyway despite the ache in Kagome’s heart. She had always known how lucky she was, but having someone bringing her laughter through her tears so easily like they had never been apart made her all the more fond of her sibling. A part of her thanked Inuyasha for giving this back to her even when she had been blinded by her fear of losing him.

“Sota? Is something wrong?” a warm, feminine voice called.

“What’s happening, boy?” spoke a man, his tone gravelly with age.

Kagome knew them instantly, pulling away from Sota to take in the sight of her mom and grandfather making their way towards them from the house. But they also paused in shock when they saw who Sota had been talking to.

“Mama! Ji-chan!”

“Kagome!” they both cried and it wasn’t long before the gap between them all was closed and she was once again surrounded completely by her family’s embrace. 

“I missed you all so much!” Kagome told them, overwhelmed by the swirling emotions of grief and the joy of seeing her family again. 

“We missed you too, Kagome. So so much,” her mother’s sweet voice was always like a calming stream, but now it only made her cry that much harder. 

“He’s gone, Mama. Inuyasha’s gone but he brought me back,” her words came out only in whimpers as she clung to her mother and she was held in return, feeling like a child again as her head was cradled against her mother’s chest while she wept.

“I know, dear. I know,” she cooed, a hand rubbing soothing circles over Kagome’s back. “Sota, go call him, would you?”

“Sure thing, Mom!” Kagome heard her brother say before he ran back to the house, muttering, “Man, it’s finally happening…”

She had no idea what they were talking about but before she could ask, her mom pulled away just enough to wipe away the tears that had fallen endlessly down her cheeks. 

“There, there. Everything is going to be ok now, Kagome. We promise. Why don’t we rest over here a bit and you can tell us what happened.”

She was led over to the very same curb that she and her mother had sad upon when Kagome had first realized that she was in love with Inuyasha. Her mother’s words had brought her so much clarity then, maybe she could do the same for her now. So much had changed since that time, yet here she was again, crying over the same boy, though now he had grown into a man. A kind, wonderful, brave, selfless man. 

Her grandfather paced back and forth as they sat, a hand lightly stroking his beard in deep contemplation as she told them all the events leading up to her return. How she and Inuyasha had married immediately, how they had seemingly lived in peace for years until the time glitches began, how they had found their answer with Inuyasha’s brother’s mother, and finally, how he had pushed her through the portal that led her back to her home in the modern era. 

Eventually, Sota joined them again and sat to her right, looking all too excited as he practically bounced with a smug look that kept distracting her from her tale. Until her mom threw him a single look and he stilled, but the absolute glee on his face remained.

“Ok, what is that look for?” Kagome finally asked him, having just caught up to real-time in her story. “I know you’re happy to see me but it looks like you’re hiding something.”

“What? No I’m not…” 

Kagome narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re such a bad liar.”

“Are not!”

“Are too!”

“Not!”

“Too!”

“My, you two have not changed at all even after all this time,” their mom giggled at them while they playfully argued, stifling her laugh by covering her lips with her fingers. 

“Not!”

“Too!”

“Not!”

“Kagome!” 

Her heart nearly jumped out of her throat when out of the corner of her eye, she saw a figure dash onto the scene with inhuman grace, skidding to a stop when he spotted them. Immediately, Sota quieted and her retort died as it was leaving her pursed lips. After an intake of breath, she shot to her feet and the world narrowed to just her and the man a few feet away.

He was clad in a black t-shirt and jeans ripped at the knees, worn sneakers on his feet. A baseball cap turned backward covered his ears, making a tuft of his bangs adorably stick out through the hole in the front. That silver hair still shone brightly against the orange glow of the sun though much shorter, the length falling only to his shoulders. He looked the same, if not slightly more weathered. But those beautiful amber eyes were undeniably his even while they were open wide as he looked at her in awe. Her heart thundered in her chest, making her hands shake even as she clutched them to her chest. 

It was him. This wasn’t a dream.

“I—Inuyasha?!” she could only gape at him, never before having seen him wearing a full modern outfit. “Is that really you?”

“Kagome…” he said her name like a prayer and it was the most beautiful sound she had ever heard.

Her feet were running towards him before she even registered them to move. And he met her halfway, their bodies crashing into each other before her legs could give out. His arms, warm and strong, surrounded her as they always did, fingers threading through the hair that fell down her back. Home. She was home.

“I thought you were gone forever. How did you even get here without the portal?”

A brief chuckle escaped his lips. “I took the long way.”

“You—” Kagome pulled back just enough to really take in the clothes that he was wearing, his shorter hair, the way there were a few more lines on his face than she had remembered there being just a few minutes ago. “You didn’t.”

“I told you to wait for me. Don’t tell me you already forgot!” And there it was. The flustered scowl that had so often donned his face that he just wasn’t himself without it. It was the look she had fallen in love with and wanted to see every single day. She vaguely remembered hearing him yelling for her as she was falling forwards through time, but she had been so panicked that his true meaning hadn’t even registered. Until now.

“But I just saw you a few minutes ago at the mansion. That was—”

“447 years ago. And 5 months. But who’s counting?”

His scowl transformed into that boyish smirk and somehow Kagome only loved him deeper. And she showed it by grabbing the beads that still hung around his neck and pulled him down to crush her lips to his. She could feel his body tense initially, but once he recovered from the shock, he was melting into her, his arms around her waist tightening as if making a promise that he would never let her go again. 

Though she hadn’t thought she could cry any more than she already had today, fresh tears leaked out from the corners of her eyes. But these she didn’t mind. For her happiness now only compared to the day that she and Inuyasha had been bound together in name and spirit in front of the entire village before they began the rest of their lives together. And the promises he had made that day to always protect her and stay by her side still had not been broken, even as they transcended time and space to finally have the peace that they had literally fought for.

Kagome could have spent the rest of the night kissing Inuyasha to make up for all the years he had spent without her, but the sound of a throat clearing brought her back to the reality that they weren’t alone. She didn’t let go, but when she forced herself to draw back from his lips, she could see that Inuyasha also had the same realization and sure enough, the rest of the Higurashi family still hadn’t taken their leave. The only one who was watching though was her mother, giggling to herself, while Ji-chan and Sota found other areas around the shrine that they would rather look at. But what stuck Kagome as truly odd was that none of them looked shocked that her hanyou husband had appeared out of nowhere and had claimed he had waited almost five hundred years to be with her again.

“Mama, did you all know about this?”

“Oh, yes dear,” she answered, that warm smile brightening her face despite the years it had aged since Kagome saw her last. “It was only a few days after you went down the well for the last time that he showed up here and told us everything. Inuyasha has been such a help to us the last four years, especially to dad.”

Ji-chan harrumphed. “It has gotten hard to maintain the shrine in my old age, and the boy does good work when you aren’t around to distract him.”

“Keh, I told you I’m no cheap labor and you owe me! Nearly threw my back out last week making me lift all those damn boxes,” Inuyasha scoffed, but the light smile on his lips gave away just how happy he felt. Kagome gripped his shirt tighter and when his eyes met hers and she unabashedly beamed at him, there was a silent understanding of just how grateful she was to him. For everything.

“Maybe now you’ll actually move in with us, Inuyasha!” Sota cut in, obviously eager to spend even more time with his brother-in-law now that his sister was back in the picture.

“Now, now Sota,” Mama Higurashi replied for hi. “I’m sure Inuyasha and Kagome will want some time to spend alone just the two of them. They are married after all and have plenty of catching up to do!” Kagome felt her cheeks burn at her mother’s insinuation and Inuyasha began stammering, but she was unphased. “And Inuyasha’s apartment is really so lovely, Kagome, I’m sure you will love it.”

Her heart warmed at the image of Inuyasha welcoming her family into his home even without her there. They were his family too now she supposed. But that thought only reminded her of the family that she had left behind in the Feudal Era.

“What about Sango? Miroku? Shippo? Everyone?”

Part of her hoped he would tell her that everybody was alive and well and ready to welcome with open arms, but when Inuyasha’s face fell and confirmed what she had already known, she knew it had been foolish.

“Kaede passed first a few years after you left and Miroku took over as the village monk. He and Sango wanted to see you again more than anything, but they were human. They lived long, happy lives. Even had more kids. After the eighth though, Sango said she practically swore off the monk but he got the big family he wanted in the end. Their line actually still continues to this day. I’ll introduce you to them sometime.”

“And the others?”

“The runt’s still kicking. I promised I’d let him know when you came back but I think he can wait a few days otherwise you’re never gonna have any peace and quiet since he’ll insist on hanging around.”

“And Sesshomaru? Koga?”

“Keh, I don’t know why you’d want to know about them but yeah. They’re alive, too. But don’t expect me to throw some huge welcoming party and invite those assholes—”

Whatever else he had to complain about, he never got to say because she pulled him closer to bury her face into his chest. A swirl of emotions was crashing inside her: happiness, grief, relief. It was almost too much to process so quickly but with a little help, she would adjust to this new life in her old home.

Her mother spoke up, always knowing just what was needed to comfort her the most. “Well, it’s starting to get dark out so why don’t we all go inside and have some dinner. Inuyasha, you know there’s always a spot for you, but I’m afraid I wasn’t expecting company so I’ll have to make a little bit more. Kagome, how does some udon sound?”

“That sounds wonderful, Mama.”

And their family, finally complete, made their way inside. But just before they crossed the threshold, Kagome threw one last look to the Goshinboku that had kept watch over her family for generations, silently wondering what it would witness in the future. In their future.

“Kagome? Everything ok?” Inuyasha asked when he felt her pause, a hand still around her shoulder.

“Yeah, sorry. Don’t wanna keep you waiting anymore.”

“Keh, took you long enough.”