Chapter 1- Dreams

Aara woke up in her own bed, alone, her face wet with tears. Vash! She had been dreaming of Vash and she woke to find her arms around a pillow instead of his warm body.

"Oh, Vash!"

She couldn't stand to be alone any longer! Throwing the covers back, she quickly made her way across the floor and out the door. The mornings were chilly and the marble floor was like ice on her bare feet. Padding silently through the hall, she went into his room and slipped into his warm bed, snuggling into his arms. InuYasha automatically wrapped them around her, and then her sorrow triggered inside and he woke up.

"Princess? What is wrong?" Concern was in his golden eyes and his brow furrowed.

She shook her head, afraid that if she opened her mouth, all the sadness would pour out and she would never be able stop it. Instead it poured out of her eyes, and a fresh flood of tears wet her face. He whimpered slightly, feeling her pain, and kissed her tears, tasting their salt.

"Princess," he whispered, holding her tightly. She sobbed helplessly in his arms, unable to stop the flow of her tears. Vash! How she missed him!

The bedroom door opened and Aniki padded into the room, his hair free from its usual braid. "What is wrong?"

InuYasha turned to his brother-in-binding, now a young man of 27, and shook his head. Aniki stood there for a moment, his heart aching with his Princess' pain, and then went to the other side of the bed and slid under the covers, pressing himself against her back, his arms wrapping around her. Surrounded by their love and warmth, Aara finally got control of herself and the tears slowed, then stopped. She said nothing; just let their love heal the pain. It wasn't very often that she lost control like that, but sometimes the dreams would come and the emptiness of the morning would overwhelm her. Like this morning. Finally she found the strength to lift her face, looking into the golden eyes of her Dog Demon. "Thank you," she whispered, and then touched Aniki's arm, "Thank you both."

"You are not alone. You are never alone." Aniki said. InuYasha nodded in agreement.

"I know, but..."

"You miss him." InuYasha finished for her. "We understand. He was your mate, a part of you like none of us could ever be."

"I'm sorry." Aara said, her voice choking again.

"No, Princess. We truly do understand and we accept it. We just don't want you to be sad. That's what hurts; not that you loved him more." Aniki said quickly.

Aara sighed but made no attempt to get up. She wanted, she needed their love and warmth. All three of them drifted back to sleep until late morning when Kurama walked into the room looking for Aniki and found them in bed together, wrapped in each others' arms.

"Are we starting something new here?" Kurama said, raising an eyebrow.

Aniki blushed bright red, jumped out of bed and fumbled with the sash of his robe. "No! It wasn't anything like that!"

Kurama laughed at the embarrassed Thunder Demon, "I was only kidding!"

Suddenly his red hair began to stand up with static electricity. Oh oh!

"Not funny!" Aniki growled as he walked out of the room.

Kurama grabbed at his wild hair, receiving tiny shocks whenever he touched an errant strand. That demon had no sense of humor!

"You deserved that. Teasing him like that." Aara said, sitting up.

"Yeah, I probably did." Kurama agreed with a smile. Finally the static stopped and his hair fell back into place.

InuYasha stretched and yawned. "Who were you looking for?"

"Well, Aniki, but I think I'll let him cool down before I approach him."

"Is there a problem?" Aara asked, standing up and then realizing that she had no slippers and the floor was still cold. She sat back on the bed, drawing her feet up.

"One of the villages near the border of Suzaku was attacked by some kind of demon. A whole herd of cattle were slaughtered and partially eaten. I wanted Aniki to go investigate."

"I'll go." InuYasha offered, sitting up. "I can travel almost as fast as Aniki. And I have a better nose."

A beginning of a smile started to form on Kurama's face, and InuYasha quickly interjected, "Don't you dare say anything about dog noses or you will be feeling dog fangs!" But his eyes were still friendly, and for once he was not taking the teasing to heart. Waking up next to his Princess did wonders for his temper.

"Okay, you can go. Come down when you are dressed and I'll show you on the map where the village is located." Kurama said and then went to Aara, picking her up in his arms. "Where are your slippers, my Princess?"

"In my room." As Kurama carried her out, she called to InuYasha, "Thank you!"

"Were you dreaming?" Kurama asked once they were in the hall.

"Yes. It's been 27 years since he died, I still miss him so much." Aara looked up at the thousand-year-old Fox in a teenage boy's body. She laid her head on his shoulder. "Will the pain ever stop?"

"I don't think it ever will. Vash was your soul mate; you made each other complete." Kurama said, bending to kiss her forehead. He opened the door and walked into the room, setting her on her rumpled bed. "I envy you," he added, looking for her slippers.

"You envy me?"

Kurama found the slippers and returned to her, bending to one knee so that he could put them on her small feet. "Yes. I think it would have been wonderful to feel a love like that even for a short time." He looked at her, his eyes misted.

She reached out a hand and caressed his cheek. "It was wonderful. It was magic! And maybe you will know what it feels like someday."

"Perhaps in another life. It won't be in this one." Kurama stood up, straightening his shoulders, and Aara watched as his green eyes veiled, hiding his feelings once more. "Well, I've got to go downstairs. InuYasha will be down soon." And then he quickly left.

Aara sat there. The morning sun was beginning to warm up the day, but her males, her beloved males, had already warmed up her heart. She smiled and then jumped off the bed, it was the start of a bright new day!