How many years has it been? How many years have gone by since that strange girl stepped through time?
Traveling through a well to accompany her friends on a adventurous journey, clothed in a scandalously short skirt, bringing back her weird inventions and nutritious foods, it was quite abnormal, ne?
"I'm not this Kykyo person. My name is Kagome. Ka-go-me!"
It seemed like it was just yesterday she pulled the arrow out of his chest, or Naraku's satisfying defeat, even. Now it was only a fleeting memory, fading in the wind.
...
Inuyasha didn't think he was capable of longing, missing people he hadn't known for long, albeit the only people he had ever known. Even so, Miroku and Sango's deaths had struck him hard. It had left a stinging feeling in his chest, rendering his heart even emptier than before. Old Kaede had left, years before, and he had shed many tears, for she had known him the longest, knowing, understanding, and listening to him from the inside and out, wherever, whenever. But now that his two best friends were gone as well, he didn't know what he'd do. Their children and grandchildren still remained alive and healthy, but he hadn't been as close with them as he had been with the dead couple in question.
There was still Shippo, even though training with the highest ranking Fox demons, still visited from time to time. He had to admit, the runt had grown both physically and mentally over the past decades, but he was still the young kit he was back then, to Inuyasha. Although, at one point he seemingly fell in love and started courting a female fox demon, which impressed the Inuhanyou a lot. He remembers when he himself fell in and out of love, with both Kikyo and Kagome.
He chooses to ignore the bitter feeling at the pit of his stomach.
...
Inuyasha was getting too old for this. He wasn't some kind of 'fun' uncle, so why did children always insist on wanting to play with him, or pull on his sensitive ears? Yes, he truly was too old for this. The only one who really was gentle with his delicate appendages, was his mother and that human girl, Rin. Ah yes, after she had finished her training in the village she had originally wanted to go back and live with Sesshomaru. However, Kohaku, Sango's younger brother, had asked to court her. She said yes, and eventually they had started a family. He still remembers the day she had caught the fatal disease that killed her. At her funeral, he wasn't surprised to see his half-brother there, albeit he was surprised to see him cry. He had never seen him shed a tear, not for their late father, not for Jaken who had returned to his home world, and especially not for him. He might have felt jealousy in the past towards Rin, who wormed herself in his brother's heart almost seamlessly, but now he only felt sorrow. She didn't deserve to die, especially at such a young age.
He didn't stick around after the end of the ceremony.
...
There was nothing left for him, not Kagome, not Kaede, not Miroku or Sango, not even Rin. Kohaku was getting old, still being visited by his children and grandchildren who didn't live very far. Inuyasha's didn't want to intrude. He was getting bored, pushed to the border of depression. Heck, there wasn't even a green imp to annoy or step on anymore. Inuyasha now spent his days roaming the forests in an endless journey. Was this how his brother felt before Naraku's whole fiasco? Perhaps. But his brother, on the other hand, would always have a castle to return to, power to take hold of once more, a population of Youkai to reign, and...and a human girl to return to. Now that last one wasn't valid anymore, but he still had a title attached to his name, that held much importance. Inuyasha however, had nothing. Nobody would miss him when he left.
Before setting out on his journey towards a new life, he had tried going through the well once more. He didn't try to hide his disappointment when It didn't work.
He left his forest without looking back.
...
He ran, not knowing where, not knowing how long he would continue. On his way to nowhere in particular, he pondered on the best ways to die. He could let himself be taken, tortured, eaten by other youkai. Or maybe he could starve himself to death. Making up his mind, he decided for a quick and painless death. He would jump off a cliff, surely that was his best option. There was one tiny flaw in his plan, however, a fall would only injure him, not rid him of himself. And he would know, since he's had the experience of nearing death from when he was but a pup, scared and alone and half-human. But if the cliff wasn't fatal enough, then how would he accomplish his purpose in life? Was it his purpose in life?
Yes. Hanyous were never meant to be born.
...
Good news, he found a cliff. Bad news, it would not indeed kill him. He stared deeply into the abyss, contemplating whether to do it this way, or not. Maybe he could mix plan A and plan C together. Perhaps. For a while he just sat at the edge, enjoying, one last time, the smell of pine, the breeze pushing his silver locks from left to right, the blue sky and cotton candy (something from Kagome's time) clouds. He would greatly miss all these things and more. His dead friends, his lost friends, that mangy wolf Kouga, and dare he say Jaken? Nah, that was pushing the limit. What about Sesshomaru? Sure, he would miss their sparring, but other than that, they didn't have much of a brotherly relationship. After Naraku's demise, he had hoped that they could, at best, become...tolerant with each other. Apparently his brother had wanted nothing to do with him, but hey, what was new? He was used to being lonely.
He suddenly got up, sensing a familiar youkai approaching. A strong demon, a strong demon indeed.
"Hanyou, why are you here?"
Heh. Speaking of the devil himself.
"Sesshomaru. Why are you here?"
What has it been, fourty years, or so? It didn't matter. None of this mattered. His brother shouldn't have come.
"I am asking the questions, Inuyasha."
He rolled his eyes. Even on the day of his death, he was still a pompous ass.
"Well, you'll be happy to hear that your wish will finally come true, after..." he counted the long suffering years he's been through, "three centuries."
His brother looked at him with a curious glint in his eyes. "Would you be so kind as to elaborate to this Sesshomaru exactly what you are about to do?"
"Well for starters, I'll be doing us both a favor."
"And how, pray tell, will you accomplish such a thing?"
Inuyasha smiled dryly, "I'll tell Father you said hello."
And he jumped off the cliff, free falling with no intent of stopping.
...
He wasn't afraid of death, instead welcoming it with open arms. Maybe he'd see his parents again, now that'd be a real treat. He can already imagine how their conversations would go...
...
Inuyasha woke with a start. First he saw the blue sky, then he heard the insects. Was this heaven?
"Inuyasha."
Said half-demon turned his head towards the voice, only to find who he least expected.
"Sesshomaru? Are you dead too?"
The Daiyoukai looked uncharacteristically in thought.
"No."
"No? Then I am still in Japan?" At this, his brother's face contorted into anger.
"Stupid hanyou! I was left with an idiotic half-brother. Why would you attempt to take your own life?!"
Inuyasha blinked at his brother's sudden outburst, "You, you saved me?"
The other sneered, "How else do you think you survived, you foolish half-breed? Does your memory fail you, little brother? Do you not remember my promise to you?"
"Promise?" Now Inuyasha was really puzzled. Bamboozled, even.
"I have claimed your death, Inuyasha. You are mine to kill, Outouto."
He thought he saw a look of concern flash in his brother's eyes, but it was gone and quickly replaced with rage. Knowing Sesshomaru, it was most likely disgust. And then it hit him. The answer was right in front of him all along. His brother was the answer to end his suffering.
And Sesshomaru was indeed the answer, just in a different way than Inuyasha deemed him to be.
...
"Sesshomaru...Aniki, I have nothing left to live for. My friends are all gone, my friends' children are all grown up, my foes all destroyed, I have no purpose anymore. But I agree with you, you deserve to kill me. Purify this world of disgraces like me." He smirked sadistically, which perplexed his brother even more, but quickly pulled out his father's fang, Tessaiga, and got into a defensive stance. His brother got the memo, unsheathing his own sword, and going in for the attack.
At the last moment, before Sesshomaru had made contact with his brother, Inuyasha dropped his weapon and greeted death like an old friend. His brother, who noticed this, retracted his blade from the fight as well, and not a moment too late.
Inuyasha was expecting a blade through his heart, a hole through his chest, or just something, anything fatal. But when he opened his eyes, he found something was tickling his nose. Was that..Mokomoko, his brother's /fluffy/ tail? No, it couldn't be. But if so, that meant...
Sesshomaru was hugging him?!
"Inuyasha."
The latter grunted in apprehension, too weak and confused to properly answer.
"Inuyasha please don't do this."
Was he begging?! Sesshomaru never said 'please', that was a well known fact.
"And why not? You've always wanted to kill me, ne? In fact, if I cast my memory back to when I was but a pup, that was the sole reason we've ever talked. It still is. So please, you tell me why I shouldn't do us all a favor?"
His brother didn't say anything at first. It wasn't until a few minutes later, when Inuyasha felt something wet on his ear, did he realize Sesshomaru was crying. His passive, cold-hearted, stick in the mud brother, was crying.
"Please, I've already lost somebody I love, I can't bear to see another one go."
.
.
.
"Okay."