The Living One by Jittai

Prelude: The Epiphany

You're not strong enough.

That wasn't a sentence Kagome had never heard before. In fact, she had heard it much more often than most girls her age she knew, and it surely beat „I approve of your help and the general way you're interacting with our group“ by far.

However, this time it was no one of their little group who had said this, nor the giant oni that was standing in the middle of the clearing. In fact, it was the first time Kagome realized it herself, and the strength of her sudden epiphany hurt more than the bleeding wound on her left side.

For a moment, Kagome was so completely lost in this revelation that the noises of battle faded, the dark presence of Kikyo standing next to her faded, even the bloodthirsty and heavily wounded oni faded, and that just when he was about to perform a mortal blow in the mikos very direction.

Kagome didn't know that that moment would change her life, and she surely wouldn't have appreciated the thought when she came to herself, facing one of the biggest claws she'd ever seen. She covered her face with her arms and sent out a prayer. However it wasn't Inuyasha who saved her this time.

She felt his presence behind her but before she had the time to be relieved he was already gone, taking Kikyo with him.

The young miko closed her eyes and reached out with her hands, as if a fragile 17-year-old girl could stop a 500-year-old oni by arm wrestling. But she didn't really care, all that crossed her mind was I don't want to die, not here, not alone, please, please, I don't want to-

But nothing happened. No pain, no stroke hit her. She opened her eyes and closed them again because she was looking into the brightest light she had ever seen, and it was coming right out of her hand. Even now, blinded, she could feel it, leaving her body and warming her at the same time.

When it stopped and she opened her eyes again, there was nothing left of the oni. The only thing to prove she had not been dreaming was a pile of dust.

As soon her heartbeats where to fancy a normal frequency, she turned around and stared at her wide eyed companions, Kikyo being supported by Inuyasha.

And somehow she knew that her real struggle had just begun.

~~~~~~

Beginning of a story I wanted to doujinshi but then changed my lazy mind. Hope you'll enjoy what will be coming. Updates (at least) weekly. Yay!