Over The Edge

Chapter One

"It's all your fault." The sheer amount of anger and disgust that flashed in usually warm golden eyes made her blood run cold. Reaching out to him she could only flinch as he snarled at her, his hands balling into fists that shook as blood leaked from the clenched fingers.

She licked her lips trying to remember how to speak. "I-I didn't..it was an accident." She whimpered at the snort that came from her left, her gaze swirling to the source only to jerk as if hit by the glare leveled on her by her best friend.

Her eyes were pools of rage, unshed tears clinging to her eyelashes as she trembled with boiling rage. Next to her stood Miroku, his hand on her shoulder, his face grim as he gazed at her with cold indifference.

"You really shouldn't have interfered...you let him get away." His voice was a low hiss, not at all like the calming and normal drawl that he spoke with.

"I was just trying to help." Her voice raised with her panic, she was just trying to get them to understand, she was only trying to help!

"You're always trying to help! That's what got us into this mess in the first place! If only you were more like Kikyo then none of this would have happened!" Her tears bubbled over at Inuyasha's snarl, it was so primal and unhinged that it made her take a step back in fear.

A sob pulled free from her lips as she trembled, whimpering as a bitter laugh fell from Sango's lips. Her shoulders shaking as it conitured to spill forth as if she was told a joke that none of them knew the punch line to.

"There she goes! Crying like always! You're always the victim right?! It's always poor Kagome! Well guess what? We're not going to come to your rescue! It's all your fault that Naraku got away, again! It's your fault! It's all your fault!" Sango kept repeating the words even as Miroku pulled her into his arms, shooting Kagome a dark glare.

It was a glare she had only seen him level at Naraku and now it was turned on her as if she was the bad guy. Her knees gave out, she fell to the ground, dirt and rocks digging into them. She relished the pain, it was a small distraction from the absolute heartache that was tearing through her.

"I-I-" She was cut off by Inuyasha who glared down at her like she was the most disgusting thing he had ever seen. Bending over her grabbed her by the front of her shirt pulling her up as he stared into her eyes before letting out a snort.

"Save it Kagome, this is the last straw. You're nothing but dead weight, we don't need you. Just go home." With that he let her go making her wince as the chain that held the jewel shards was yanked off. She fell into a heap on the ground, her chest heaving as her sobs grew uncontrollable.
Burying her face in her arms she sobbed as her friends began to walk away from her.

Shippo could only gaze between the adults, tears gathering in his eyes. His tail was between his legs as he let out a low pained whine. How he wanted to run to Kagome, to stick up for her and comfort her.

Yet it all boiled down to survival and as much as he loathed to admit it if he stayed with Kagome...there was no way they would make it. So it was with one last glance back at the sobbing girl that meant the world to him that he vowed to get stronger so that he would never have to choose between survival and a person he loved again.

Head down in shame he ran after the others, praying to anyone that would listen that his friend would be okay.

X-x-x-

Kagome bit her lip as she sat on the edge of the well, her eyes dull and red from crying. She had made it back after a day of almost constantly walking. She didn't want to go home, but she knew she wasn't strong enough to try to obtain the jewel sharks by herself. She only knew how to shoot her bow, and sometimes that wasn't one hundred percent accurate with the shots.

She had only tried to help in battles, no one had tried to teach her to fight, even when she had asked. Everyone is too busy to take the time to train her.

They didn't have time to stop and do that when they were looking for shards and Naraku.

Kagome didn't understand why they couldn't take a few hours a day to so maybe she would be able to have helped and Naraku wouldn't have been able to escape if they had.

But...maybe she could have tried to train on her own...

She shook her bread, looking down at the well. Soon she would just have to worry about school again. Like a normal girl her age should be...but the thought of going back to a normal life when the jewel shards were still around, made her heart hurt.

It had been her fault the jewel broke...and she thought she should be the one to put it back together...but it looks like that won't happen...

"Well Well Well....what do we have here..." A deep voice chuckled, as a figure that got her into this mess in the first place appeared.

"Naraku..."