Memories of the Bell Flower
  
  Chapter One: The Night of Snow
  
  by Sephira jo (contact at: sephirajo@yahoo.com)
  
  Disclaimer: I don't own Inu Yasha
  
  Rating R: For limey and lemony goodness, tons of angst and other lovely
  fluffy things.
  
  Authors Note: This story may piss of those of you who hate Kikyou.  Yep,
  this story is an Inu Yasha/Kikyou fic.  Those of you who don't like it,
  well you get the idea.  Don't read.  For your sanity and mine however
  please remember that this fic is set 50 years in the past before Naraku
  and endorses the PRE-ZOMBIEFIED Kikyou ONLY.  Remember that this is
  before she became the star of "Night of the undead Miko."  Please
  remember that and don't send the Spanish Inquisition after me. (Oh no,
  not the horror of the comfy chair!!! NOOOOOOO.)
  
  Notes to the REVISED edition: Hey guys, I've revised!  Some things
  changed, some things added, and some things taken away.  I hope you
  enjoy it!  I've also tried to fix all the dumb ass errors I managed to
  make at 3 o'clock in the morning. *grins sheepishly* So I hope you
  enjoy, remember reviews are always welcome!
  
  Disclaimer: I don't own Inu Yasha, I never have!! *sniffle sniffle* and
  If I did, he'd be mine!  All mine. . . .          
  
  * * ^-^ * * 
  
  The snow fell, leaving a freshly created blanket of white lightly
  covering the ground.  Kikyou walked briskly through the fallen powder
  smiling to herself about the one that followed her from the trees above. 
  Inu Yasha insisted that it was easier to see oncoming threats from the
  trees and followed her from above ground instead of walking with her. 
  She just wished, even if only for a moment, that he would leave his
  wooden posts to walk beside her.  She knew that such a thing shouldn't,
  no couldn't be allowed to happen.  A relationship between a Miko and a
  hanyou was something ludicrous, something that could be seen as a
  weakness on both their parts.  And as the protector of the Shikon no
  Tama, weakness were something that she could not afford.
  
  Night was coming on, darkening the shadows on the snow to a pale blue. 
  Kikyou looked up at the sky and felt the falling flakes brush past her
  face.  She wished, if only for one night, that she could be a normal
  woman.  Seventeen years untouched; childhood friends of her had long ago
  married and started families, leaving her single and alone.      
       
  
  Kikyou looked up at her arboreal follower and smiled sadly, admiring the
  strong form of the hanyou that moved from tree to tree with his unique,
  inhuman grace.  How handsome he was, with his long silver hair and red
  robes.  Inu Yasha looked down at her then.  Although she couldn't see
  his face very well from her vantage point she was sure he smiled down at
  her.  Kikyou felt her face flush and she looked away quickly.
  
  She heard the branches above her rustle and she smiled softly to herself
  as Inu Yasha flew to the ground beside her.  He looked at Kikyou and the
  shy smile she had begun to coax out of him pulled at the corners of his
  lips.  As Kikyou smiled back she admired the golden eyes, the silver
  hair and his inhuman ears.
  
  "Um, did you hear me Kikyou?" Inu Yasha's voice broke through her stare. 
  Kikyou flushed, shook her head and chided herself.  Such lapses in
  concentration were not called for.  They could be deadly.  Inu Yasha
  chuckled slightly, the sound adding to Kikyou's ire at herself, she
  didn't need to be reminded of her tendency to get lost in thought around
  him.
  
  "I said that there's an abandoned cabin ahead.  With night coming on, I
  thought you might need some rest."
  
  Kikyou smiled and nodded.  Inu Yasha grinned back, pleased that he was
  able to do something for her.  In so many ways, she found herself caring
  for the dog demon.  Little things like this always managed to remind her
  how much she cared.  Normally she would not have stopped for the night,
  had it been just her, preferring to instead head back to the village as
  soon as possible.  A night in an abandoned cabin was something that she
  would only consider when accompanied.  It also helped that her companion
  was as handsome as he was, making the notion of spending the night in
  the cabin much more appealing.
  
  Kikyou smiled with an enthusiasm that she thought long lost.  Yes, a
  night alone with Inu Yasha was more then appealing.
  
  * * *
  
  The interior of the small cabin was sparse.  It showed signs of having
  been furnished: a large square where a futon had been laid and evidence
  of a table and other things but these comforts had gone long ago,
  leaving only dusty traces of evidence visible in their wake. Kikyou
  walked into the old cabin, breathing out in relief for getting out of
  the cold.  Inu Yasha followed her in, his light foot falls barely
  audible on the dusty floor boards.  Kikyou could hear him get a fire
  going in what was left of a fire pit.  Still not facing him, nor saying
  anything, Kikyou set down her bow and quiver in the corner then felt her
  hand stray to the Shikon no Tama fixed on the necklace she had made for
  it.
  
  Kikyou always wore the jewel while traveling, if for no other reason
  then a moving target was harder to hit.  Having it in the village for
  extended periods of time led youkai, oni and dark hearted men to her
  home.  Traveling made it easier to avoid the risk of an attack on the
  village that could cost her the lives of her sister and neighbors.  Even
  Inu Yasha had been seeking the jewel for his own reasons.  Kikyou stole
  a quick glance back at him.
  
  He was down on one knee stoking the small fire with a stick.  The light
  reflected of his silver hair, making it glow in the dim, dancing light. 
  Kikyou sighed, not only did she care for him deeply, but she also found
  him very attractive.  Ridiculous! She thought to herself angrily as she
  flushed and quickly looked away when his gaze met hers.  She tried to
  stop the thoughts that raced through her mind; however, images of his
  body pressed against her, low pants and moans, broken whispers and half-
  heard promises ran through her mind.  He was a hanyou, she a miko.  Just
  for once she wanted to be with him, like a normal woman would be with a
  lover.
  
  Taking care not to look at Inu Yasha's face she walked over to the fire
  and sat down close to him, hoping that he would attribute the flush in
  her cheeks to warmth of the fire.  Kikyou let the warmth from the fire
  soak into her body, warming her.  Her hand absently moved to the Shikon
  jewel hanging from her neck, she moved it idly through her fingers as
  she watched Inu Yasha sit next to her.  Her eyes moved over every part
  of him, but out of a combination of embarrassment and nervousness of
  getting caught, avoided his eyes.
  
  Kikyou smiled softly, it seemed to her that fate had brought them
  together.  In their own ways, they were so alike.  Both of them lived
  lives that separated them from others.  His mixed blood made him an
  outcast to both humans and youkai, her inborn power and responsibilities
  as a miko set her apart from humans, and made her a foe to all others. 
  At least when together, they would never be alone.
  
  "Kikyou?" The whispered question shocked her out of her train of thought
  and she lifted her eyes to Inu Yasha's.  She could feel a blush in her
  cheeks and quickly looked away.
  
  Damn it! She thought vehemently, he's a dog demon.  He can SMELL these
  kind of things for sure.  Kikyou tried to fight down the desire that
  arose within her, but she could still fell the blood rush to her face
  and cause her to blush even more.
  
  "Kikyou?"  Again he spoke her name as a question and this time he gently
  took her face in his hand and turned it to face his.  The look in his
  golden eyes was questioning and confused, but tinged with something
  else.  It was something darker and dangerous.  Something that, despite
  her better judgment excited and enticed her.
  
  "Uh, what's wrong, Kikyou?" Inu Yasha's voice was husky, like a man
  caught surprised.
  
  "Inu Yasha?" Kikyou whispered, letting her eyes stay locked with his,
  those golden pools shifting and changing With the light of the fire.
  
  "Yes?" The questioning reply was barely above a whisper.  Kikyou watched
  him answer, fascinated by the movement of his lips and she imagined them
  in other places, occupied with other things.
  
  "How do you see me?"  Kikyou asked softly, the question calling on
  courage she didn't know she had.
  
  "What?"  Inu Yasha asked, apparently confused and shocked by her
  question.  His fingers starting to slowly stroke the soft skin of her
  cheek.
  
  "What am I to you?"  She asked, trying to find the words to clarify her
  question.  She shifted, moving closer to the hanyou, feeling the heat of
  his body move over hers.  "Do you see me as a woman?"  She asked,
  glancing downward, afraid to see his face as she gave voice to the last
  question.
  
  "Eh?  What's that supposed to mean?"  He answered, his hands dropping
  away from her face and down to his side as he looked away from her and
  stared into the fire.  His face flushed and he looked embarrassed.
  
  Kikyou sighed.  No, of course he wouldn't see her as a woman.  She was
  an idol kept on a pedestal, far away from even the thought of the touch
  of another.  Inu Yasha's answer reflected this.
  
  "I mean, you're a miko, you. . . I . . . we . . . can't think about
  things like that."  His face was red and he shook his head as if trying
  to dispel unwanted thoughts.
  
  "It would make me happy . . . if you could . . ."  Kikyou said quietly
  wrapping her arms around herself.  Trying to give herself some small
  comfort, "If you could see me as a woman."
  
  Damn this jewel! Kikyou thought, damn it, damn this THING that keeps us
  from being together.
  
  Kikyou looked over at him and smiled sadly.  She felt tears in her eyes
  as she looked back at Inu Yasha, his eyes conflicted, stared back at
  her.
  
  "You won't taint me.  You never could . . ."
  
  The next thing she said, she couldn't believe as the words slid out of
  her mouth of their own volition, "I love you, Inu Yasha."  When she
  realized what she had said, she clapped a small hand over her mouth as
  if she could take the words she spoke back.
  
  Inu Yasha's hand gently took hers from her mouth and held it in his own,
  Kikyou could tell he was being gentle With her; he avoided touching her
  With his claws.  His smile was one that was half arrogant triumph and
  half shared compassion.  It was something human and inhuman at the same
  time and it entranced Kikyou, and drew her in.
  
  "I love you too, Kikyou.  But that doesn't change anything.  The 'love'
  of a hanyou would taint you."  Kikyou felt the tears that had been
  welling up behind her eyes spill on to her cheek.
  
  "So, I can never be a woman to you. . ."  Kikyou sighed, closing her
  eyes as the feelings of loneliness and isolation were nothing new to the
  young woman, but she wished that they weren't.  She wished that for one
  night at least she could be a normal woman alone with the man she wanted
  so deeply.
  
  "Damnit, Kikyou, that's not what I meant."  Inu Yasha's voice was harsh,
  the reprimand clear.  Kikyou opened her eyes to find his face a
  hairbreadth away from her own.  Her breath caught as his eyes locked
  with hers, their deep amber color tinged with an animalistic need that
  stole her heart, heated her body and fired her emotions.
  
  Kikyou felt the needs and wants she had thought long buried began to
  rise with the look that he gave her.  She wanted, no needed to be with
  him.
  
  "I can smell you, you know.  And when we're alone like this, its very,
  very hard for me to control myself.  But I don't want to hurt you. 
  Damnit Kikyou, I don't want to taint you!"
  
  Inu Yasha's voice was cut off as Kikyou pressed her lips to his,
  silencing him with an unpracticed kiss.  Kikyou hadn't been sure what
  type of reaction to expect from him, so when his lips moved against hers
  with a passion and force that she hadn't expected, she gasped, only to
  find that he took the opportunity her open mouth presented to slide his
  tongue inside her mouth in a deep, passionate kiss that laid claim to
  her in a way she had never expected.
  
  Shyly, she answered back With her own tongue, tasting him.  She heard
  him growl as he took her action as an invitation to deepen their kiss
  even further.  She felt a fang brush against her tongue, bite at her
  lip.  Kikyou heard herself moan, but she was so removed from the sound
  that for a moment, she wasn't even sure that it had come from her at
  all.
  
  Inu Yasha pushed Kikyou back and she grunted when she hit the floor, the
  force of the blow something unexpected.  She opened her eyes to find Inu
  Yasha over her, his legs straddled over her waist, pinning her to the
  floor with his weight.  He was looking down at her, his eyes alight with
  dark fire.
  
  "Well, Kikyou, you do know what happens next, don't you?"  Inu Yasha
  asked, his voice dark as he ground his body against hers, trying to
  convey without words what he wanted.  Kikyou nodded, assent and love
  tinged with fear coloring her eyes.  Inu Yasha snarled and leaned down
  to bite her on the neck, the last strains of his control snapping.  He
  needed to be sure.
  
  "I don't want to taint you, Kikyou."  He said, one last time, giving her
  a chance to back out.
  
  "You could never taint me."  The answer was simple and heartfelt, with
  that the last of his control snapped.