I know, I know, I should complete my other fanfictions before submitting another. However, this one has been sitting around for a while now, so I thought i 'd add it up. Toodles, and remember to review!
Inuyasha watched, through tear-fille eyes, as Sesshmaru slowly approached him. He made no move to flee, to speak out harsh words against the full demon, or even to draw his sword. Instead he simply stood there, waiting to see what his half-brother would choose to do.
Sesshomaru stared into the golden eyes of his half-broher -- eyes bright with unshed tears that had yet to be allowed to fall. It was not the tears, however, that concerned him the most, but the look that lay beyond them. The pure hatred, the defeat ... and the betrayal.
He'd seen that look before -- but only once before. And then, it had almost cost the half-demon his life.
"You don't haveto tell this Sesshomaru what happened. But you do have to understand that nothing has changed. If you return home with me, things will be exactly as they were when you left. Do you understand?"
Inuyasha merely nodded, closing his eyes and squeesing them tightly shut against the fresh onslaught of tears that threatened to overwhelm him.
Sesshomaru allowed a small smile to grace his lips, reaching forward to tuck a wayward strand of white hair back over his half-brother's broad shoulder.
Stepping back, away from the half-demon, Sesshomaru held out his hand, murmuring a soft "Come," and waiting to see if Inuyasha was actually serious about this; about returning home with him.
Inuyasha never even opened his eyes, merely reached out blindly to where he could sense his brother's hand rested, taking it in his own, broader one.
Sesshomaru watched as his younger brother slept, a frown marring his usually perfect features. His mind kept playing over the previous night, and still he couldn't make any sense of it.
Inuyasha had come home -- to the place where he had been born and raised, knowing fully well that his place here had not changed. He was a half-breed, bastard son of a great and noble demon line. He was to be seen and not heard by other demons that came to call, for his opinion mattered naught to them.
But he commanded power, even as those demons were loath to admit it. If Sesshomaru ever became unable to rule, Inuyasha would do so in his place, for however long was necessary. In human terms, he was the prince whom nobody liked to think about, much less talk about.
While no disrespect had ever been shown to him, Inuyasha had known what was thought -- he was seen as a weak and coddled half-breed, undeserving of the position he held. And so he had left.
So why had he suddenly returned? Why had he suddenly, radically changed his mind? What could POSSIBLY have done that? He had renounced his heritage, sworn never again to return to his home, or to ever show his brother and the rest of his kin any kind of love or gratitude. He had dishonored his entire family, and for that, Sesshomaru had sworn that he could never forgive him.
Biting back the sigh that rose to his lips, Sesshomaru rose to his feet, grazing his hand over Inuyasha's pure white hair once last time, befor exiting the toom.
Inuyasha was instantly awake, going from deep sleep to wide awake in a matter of seconds, all manner of grogginess gone.
He was doing that a lot lately -- not allowing himself the luxury of safe sleep, instead always on high alert, instantly aware of his surroundings the moment that he awoke.
Sighing softly, Inuyasha pushed himself into a sitting position, corssing his legs so that he was sitting in a position that Kagome had once labelled "indian style".
Pushing away the pain that the very thought of her name invoked, Inuyasha glanced around the room, and couldn't help the smile that spread across his lips as he recognised his surroundings for what they were. His old room.
Everything was exactly as he remembered it, down to the blood stain on the far wall, when his training with Sesshomaru had gotten a bit ... rough, to say the last.
Chuckling softly to himself, Inuyasha slid off the be and onto his feet, stretching his arms wide out away from his body, arching his back in a vain attept to ease out all of the kinks and tighness that always seemed to exist in his body. All of the tension.
Heaving another sight, this time of frustration, Inuyasha quickly strode to the door, only to stop several feet shy of it, as the door suddenly swung violently open to reveal a red-faced human child. A girl, to be exact.
Inuyasha blinked, staring down at the surprised face of the little girl, before shrugging his shoulders and stepping around her, out of the room. She obviously belonged here, or she never would have made it this deep into the castle. What Sesshomaru was doing with a human child in his care, he didn't know. And he didn't much care either, really.
If Kagome were here, she would most likely be going on and on about they had to "save that poor child" from his "evil brother". But Kagome wasn't here, and she wasn't GOING to be here any time soon, either.
It was nice, finially being able to let go, and be himself. Yes, he couldn't condone the useless slaughter of innocents ... but what was a human child or two, as long as there was just cause?
Inuyasha stared at himself in the bathing room mirror, tracing his fingers along one nasty scar that traaced across his stomach, tilting his head to the side.
Similar scars were littered at random places across his body, always carefully concealed with a small amount of demonic energy. He'd learned how to make small changes to his appearance as a child, to hide his injuries from his relatives. Were he ever to be harmed, they would take immediate action -- but it had only served to worsen the situation, causing more bruises to be littered across his body from the various beatings he'd recieve from the humans of not only the villiage surrounding the castle, but also the servants of the castle itself.
So he'd learned how to conceal them, and had carried that lesson over to his dealing with Kagome.
Not that it really mattered anymore. Sesshomaru couldn't do anything to retaliate against those who had inflicted these injuries, and he really didn't care to hide them anymore. It didn't seem important anymore.
Sighing heavily, Inuyasha reached for the deep blue outfit that Sesshomaru had left out for him, fingering the fabric with a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips. He'd missed this -- missed the finer things that he'd always taken for granted as a child.
Quickly shrugging into the outfit -- simple as all his previous ones to get into -- Inuyasha quickly made his way toward the dining hall, pointedly ignoring the glare he recieved from Jaken. While he actually could treach the little toad a lesson or two about respecting him, for some reason even that, too, seemed to be off little importance anymore..
Who cared if the toad respected him or not? He woud do was he was told and not talk back -- that he knew from experience. Did any of it really matter anymore? It had once, not too long ago. It had once seemed to be one of the most important things int he world to him. Now, however ...
Biting back the sigh that rose to his lips, Inuyasha continued in the direction of the Dining Hall, knowing fully well that Sesshomaru would be waiting for him, waiting for an explanation about his actions. Thse conflicting thoughts and emotions wouldn't do anything to help him -- it would only make his stay here all the more painful.
This was the only place that he had left. Kagome, Sango, Mirouku, even little Shippou -- they had all turned their backs on him, so eager to believe the lies that they had been fed. Oh, he had no doubt that Naraku's illusion had been quite believable in every shape and form ... but surely they shoul dhave known him better than that? surely theyshould have known that he would never betray them in such a way.
Naraku. It always came down to Naraku. The damned half-breed was the source of nearly all of his misery, first taking away his first love, and now turning the only true friends he had ever had against him.
But what could he do against such awesome power? Did he even have a chance when put up against ... that? Oh, he had no doubt that it was the right thing to do ... but had it all really been worth it? Worth losing Sango, Mirouku, Shipphou ... and Kagome. ?Especially Kagome.
She was the first person outside of his family who had truly seen him in a very, very long time. Kikyou had come close, but she'd never been able to break past the mask he showed to the world. They just hadn't had enough time togeather.
But Kagome ... theold fear that he always been so used to just wasn't here, with her. She would yell at him, scream at him, reprimand him, "sit" him, and never fear about what he would do her in return. She had trust him, not only with her life but with that of her family, as well. And in return, he had found himself trusting her, as well. Depending on her, almost needing her.
She was the one thing that he had always known he couldn't stand losing. Kagome's death haed always been in the forefront of his mind, haunting both his waking and sleeping hours. And now, those nightmares had finially come true.
Had any of it really been worth it?