Somewhere in Time

Unanticipated Anticipation

One week. That was all she could manage to stay away from her friends, from... him.

She knew Inuyasha and Kikyo shared an unbreakable bond that she will never understand, but it still... hurt. Sometimes she felt Inuyasha still saw the remnants of the woman he loved—still loves, she corrected herself—in her. Of course he did. After all, she was just a reincarnation of the great Kikyo, and she paled in comparison to the priestess who had incredible spiritual powers. She was just... nothing.

Sighing, Kagome heaved her bright yellow backpack to the mouth of the well and peered inside. Was Inuyasha waiting for her on the other side? It made her uneasy. What would she tell him? Suddenly, the return didn't seem as appealing as before. But she missed her friends... Sango, Shippo, even Miroku and his perverse humors. She had to go back. She had a duty to fulfill, a responsibility to the Shikon no Tama shards that, despite the centuries of time difference, reached out to her from the well.

She took a deep, shaking breath, then she plunged into the well and into the magical abyss beyond the reach of her time.

###

As Sesshomaru finished his lengthy patrol around his pack's temporary camp, he let himself relax. There was no imminent threat. At first, when it was but a few days after taking Rin under his protection, circling the perimeters displeased him greatly. A daiyoukai of his caliber needed no caution. He was feared. He was respected both in the human and youkai world.

He had no weakness. He had nothing to protect. And yet...

He dismissed the thought, silently reproaching himself for allowing such pathetic reveries. He passed near the towering Goshinboku and prepared to finish his rounds when his head snapped towards the direction of the Bone Eater's Well.

A scent he never realized he knew wafted from the bottom shaft, accompanied by a flickering spiritual presence. He paused.

She is back.