Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. All characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

Summary: Kagome stumbles across Kikyou in the forest, and they both unexpectedly find themselves talking about their beloved hanyou.

A/N: First oneshot. Written this like weeks ago, but only now I have the time to finish writing and editing it. I know that Kikyou and Kagome don't really mix well, but trust me with this. There's no drama.

Who He Chooses

Kagome had no idea what brought her here.

It was noon as she walked through the row of trees. She wandered aimlessly—not knowing what she was looking for—but was sure that she was searching for something. That something, however, was vague in her mind. She had no idea what that something was. Or maybe it was merely her own curiosity that led her here. Nonetheless, she was still determined to find this something. She knew that Inuyasha would be looking for her once he found out that she's late—since she was suppose to return by now—but she had faith in him that he would be able to find her by her scent.

All of a sudden, she caught a moving shadow. She looked up and found Kikyou's Soul Collectors flying towards the direction where she was currently heading. She faltered between her steps. This wasn't a good idea. The last thing she needed was to see Kikyou. Kikyou hated her, and much to her own selfishness, she didn't want Inuyasha finding her with Kikyou. If he spotted the dead priestess, there was no doubt that he would leave her. Still, she felt herself being dragged to where the priestess was at. Though, she made sure that her footsteps were light and silent. She didn't want to draw any attention towards herself.

Hiding behind a bush, she watched as one of the Soul Collectors landed on top of Kikyou's index finger. Kikyou nodded as if she was talking to it, and the demon on her hand flew away.

Kagome felt her body froze when Kikyou turned her head—to exactly where she was hiding.

"Kagome, I know you're over there."

Inwardly telling herself not to panic, Kagome slowly stood up from her crouching position. She emerged from the trees and awkwardly scratched the back of her neck. "So... uh, I was just wandering around and... um..."

A rare smile took over the dead priestess' lips, which made Kagome instantly stop talking altogether. A smile she was unfamiliar with was never a good sign. It could secretly mean that Kikyou was forming some sort of plan to kill her. But she found her feet stuck to the ground, and couldn't move. She was just too nervous.

She shifted uncomfortably as Kikyou motioned to a tree. She watched as the priestess lay her bow, before leaning at the bark of the tree. She flinched when Kikyou patted the ground beside her; as an offer to sit. On impulse, she wanted to turn around and make a run for it, but decided to squash down the instinct, and sat beside her previous incarnation.

It was silent at first, until Kikyou decided to start a conversation.

"How's Inuyasha?"

Kagome fidgeted with her fingers, her voice wavering as she spoke, "He's... doing alright."

"I see," Kikyou said, staring at nothing in particular. "What brings you here?"

"I honestly have no idea..."

More silence.

The silence slowly became unbearable.

"Do you hate me?"

Kagome whipped her head to the side—facing the dead priestess. "Wh-What?"

Kikyou met her gaze. "Do you hate me?"

The look in Kikyou's eyes wasn't something that could be called intense, but Kagome found herself trapped within it. "I don't... I don't hate you."

"But that doesn't mean you like me either."

Kagome didn't know what to say. Maybe because it was true.

Kikyou's facial expression changed, and Kagome realised that it was something that expressed sadness. She wanted to ask if Kikyou was okay, but something else was bothering her. She noticed that this wasn't like Kikyou at all. The dead priestess was acting different, and Kagome found herself wanting to know why she was acting different.

"Why haven't you attacked me yet?" Kagome asked slowly, not wanting to sound impolite. "I mean... you always do..."

Kikyou surprisingly gave her a small smile. "Forgive me for my previous actions. It was childish of me, but I only did it because I was jealous of you."

"W-What? Why would you be jealous of me?" Kagome asked, her eyes widening.

"Why wouldn't I be jealous of you?" Kikyou asked back.

"Well, you're pretty. You're strong. And Inuyasha..." She couldn't say it.

He loves you.

"Inuyasha?" Kikyou asked in confusion as her brows furrowed. Kagome didn't want to hear the question, but it came out anyway. "Why is Inuyasha being dragged into this?"

"He often... visits you?" Kagome muttered quietly, uncertainly, as she bowed her head.

She could see through the corner of her eye that Kikyou was looking at her. She suddenly felt like crawling under a rock. Why did she say that? It was none of her business. What Inuyasha and Kikyou does should be kept between them. She was just an outsider. She shouldn't interfere with their relationship. But it was too late to take the words back now. She had already said them.

Kikyou replied with a soft, "Do you want to hear why I'm jealous of you?"

It felt like a sudden change of topic, but Kagome still asked, "Why?"

"You're alive. Your powers do not weaken when you're in love. And about Inuyasha..." Kikyou trailed off, before continuing with, "He chose you."

Kagome shook her head, her eyes widening into large saucers. Much to her own horror, she accidentally blurted out, "That's not true! He chose you."

"If he did, he would've been travelling with me instead of you."

Kagome felt confused. What Kikyou said wasn't wrong. But doesn't Inuyasha...?

A soft chuckle escaped Kikyou's lips. "How silly you are for not realising that sooner. I am unsure whether Inuyasha still loves me or not, but it is obvious that he chooses you. He only visits me from time to time. And as far as I'm concerned, he always comes back to you," Her pale finger idly poked into the dirt beneath her, tracing it. "If he had chosen me, do you really think he'll come back to you?"

Kagome felt like her mind was slowly grasping on what Kikyou was trying to tell her, but the thing still felt out of reach.

"But he always comes back to you?" Kagome asked, tilting her head to the side, and making it obvious that she was very baffled.

"Coming back to visit me isn't the same as him returning to stay with you, Kagome," Kikyou said, her voice so gentle, that Kagome couldn't believe that this was something the dead priestess was capable of.

"Kikyou, I..."

Kagome didn't know what to say. No matter how much her vision told her that Inuyasha kept returning to Kikyou, Kikyou's words rang in her head as clear as a bell. Inuyasha returns to her. He comes back to her. And just like Kikyou had said, he didn't stay with her. He only visits her, then leaves. Kagome felt stupid all of a sudden. If Kikyou was right—and she was sure that the priestess couldn't be wrong—then that would mean her jealousy towards Inuyasha visiting Kikyou was all for nothing.

It was childish of me, but I only did it because I was jealous of you, Kikyou's words appeared in her head.

Apparently, the priestess' sentence applied to her too. She sometimes ignore Inuyasha only because she was jealous, and it was childish.

I guess it's because we have the same soul, Kagome thought, and a smile made its way to her lips.

"Kikyou," Kagome called, which made said priestess inclined her head. "I just want to say... thank you."

"Why are you thanking me?"

"For explaining a lot of things to me," Kagome explained, and a faint blush dusted her cheeks. "Usually, Inuyasha and I got into arguments because of... misunderstandings."

"I see," Kikyou said, a heartwarming smile sent to her way. She stood up all of a sudden, and brushed her hands against her hakama. "It seems he's here to get you."

Just as Kikyou had said the words, the two of them heard a familiar voice shouting, "Kagome!" The both of them could tell that the voice belonged to a very certain hanyou.

Kagome beamed, and turned her head, only to find Kikyou walking away. She blinked, then frown. "Don't you want to see him?"

Kikyou paused between her steps, but didn't look at her. "That's for him to decide."

"But—"

"Kagome!"

Kagome whipped her head to where the voice was at, and found an annoyed Inuyasha standing in front of her. His arms were crossed and his foot was tapping impatiently, a silent question to where she had been.

Abruptly, he sniffed the air and stiffened. His eyes roamed around, and Kagome knew what he was searching for. She turned her head to find Kikyou already gone. She faced Inuyasha again, and was surprised when he spun on his heel, and started heading back to Kaede's village.

She caught up to him, and took a moment to study his face. His expression was unreadable, but she could tell that he was thinking of her—of Kikyou.

He always comes back to you.

"Aren't you going to see her?" Kagome asked quietly, her hands placed behind her back. "She was with me, you know."

"I know."

"Then... aren't you going to see her?"

"I'll visit her some other time," Inuyasha said, which caught Kagome off guard. "I came here to find you anyway."

That's for him to decide.

Kagome inwardly thanked Kikyou. The dead priestess could've waited and allowed Inuyasha to meet her, but she had given Inuyasha the option whether or not to see her. Kagome knew that she shouldn't envy if Inuyasha had seen Kikyou, but she couldn't help it. The discussion she had with Kikyou was only recently starting to absorb into her mind, and it would take a while before she starts reminding herself of what the dead priestess said to her. At one point, she knows, that she wouldn't mind at all if Inuyasha visited Kikyou again. But for now...

Slowly, her fingers made her way to Inuyasha's clawed ones. She could feel Inuyasha tensed as she intertwined her fingers with his, but soon, he relaxed and they were both walking with their hands locked together. Kagome found herself giving him a full-blown smile.

He chose you.

So yes, he may return to Kikyou, but he always comes back.

End.

A/N: This idea popped into my head, and since I love both, Kagome and Kikyou, I decided to write it. If my memory serves correctly, I know that Kikyou was a bit colder in the earlier episodes—so she might be a little out of character here. But yeah, I still wrote this because I love to see Kikyou and Kagome as friends.