Chapter 4

Night came faster than it ever had before, but it was a different kind of night. InuYasha and Kagome said nothing to each other and the children were silent as well. They ate dinner in silence and went strait to bed. InuYasha and Kagome stayed downstairs a while before going to bed themselves. They had to break the silent tension.

"InuYasha are you really going to leave me again?" Kagome asked as she sat next to him at the table.

"You know I have no choice." He answered looking down at her hands. They were clasped together and shaking. InuYasha sighed and put his hands over hers; they were so warm and hers were so cold. "I don't want to leave you again; that's the last thing I want to do after just coming home, but I have to or you could be killed."

"I know that InuYasha but I," she stopped to fight back her tears, "all I wanted for three years was to see you again. Now after all this time you've finally come back and you have to leave me again. I just wish it wasn't true, I wish it was all a dream! Why? Why did you come back to me if you were just going to leave again?" she sobbed as she fell into his arms and cried. InuYasha hugged her and held her close.

"I wish I didn't have to leave you again Kagome." He answered stilling hugging her as she cried. "I wish it didn't have to be this way, I wish I could stay with you and never have to leave again, but I can't."

"InuYasha please, please don't leave me again. I can't take this anymore." Kagome sobbed as she came out of his arms and looked at him. InuYasha wiped her tears and looked at her. He saw the sadness in her eyes and he wished it wasn't there. She saw the troubled look in his eyes and she wished it wasn't there. InuYasha took her in his arms again and held her close. Kagome hugged him back and tried to stop crying.

"I love you Kagome. I want you to promise me that you'll never forget."

"I promise."

Kagome waited in her room while InuYasha went to say goodnight to the children. He opened the door to Naoto's room first and peeked inside. Naoto was laying on his side staring out his window. He turned his head when the door opened and then he looked back out the window. InuYasha sighed and sat next to Naoto. He immediately sat up and turned to his father.

"Do you really have to go?" he asked.

"Yes Naoto, I have to go. You know what will happen if I don't."

"So what if the demons come, you can fight them off here can't you?" he said looking back out the window. "There's plenty of space to kick their butts out there." He said pointing to the field in front of the house. InuYasha smiled and shook his head.

"Naoto that wouldn't be a very good idea."

"Why not?" Naoto asked turning around to face his father again.

"Because you could get eaten that's why." InuYasha answered as he took his son into his arms and tickled him. Naoto laughed and kicked his feet in the air as InuYasha growled pretending to be a demon.

"Oh no the demon's gonna eat me!" Naoto yelled as he got away from his father and went towards his pillow.

"You can't escape the demon!" InuYasha said as he followed his son and tickled him again. Naoto laughed as they fell off the bed and InuYasha put the blanket over his head.

"You've blinded me! I can't see!"

"Ha ha now I've got you demon!" Naoto yelled jumping on top of the blanket growling.

"What's going on in here?" Kagome asked as she came into the room. "I can hear you two from all the way down the hall."

"He started it!" Naoto explained pointing at InuYasha.

"I started it? Now you're gonna get it." He warned as he pulled Naoto under the blanket and ticked him again.

"Oh no the demon's got me again!" Naoto yelled as he kicked his feet and the blanket went up in the air. Kagome smiled as she watched them laughing together. She was about to run into the room when she felt a tug on her dress.

"Mommy what's going on?" Akiko asked rubbing her eyes. She had woken up because of the noise. Reiko was behind her for the same reason.

"We're just having a little fun." She smiled. Then she picked up Akiko and ran into the room. Reiko stood in the doorway with her arms folded and watched as Akiko went under the blanket and InuYasha tickled her while Kagome came from behind him and tickled him. They all laughed as Naoto, Akiko, and Kagome ganged up on InuYasha and ticked him altogether.

"How could they all be so blind?" Reiko mumbled to her self as she turned around and went back to her room. InuYasha saw her leave.

"Hang on guys I'll be right back, you can gang up on Mommy while I'm gone okay?" he said as he got up and went after Reiko.

"Oh aren't you funny." Kagome said sarcastically as Naoto and Akiko cheered and got ready to tickle her. InuYasha went down the hall and stopped at Reiko's door. He took a deep breath and opened it to find her lying in bed and under the covers; she was crying.

"Reiko are you okay?" InuYasha asked walking over to her bed and sitting down next to her.

"No I'm not and you know perfectly well why." She answered pulling the covers up higher over her head. InuYasha sighed and pulled the covers off her head.

"Come on Reiko don't make this any harder than it already is." He said. She didn't answer. "Look, you know I don't want to leave you guys again but I have to. If I don't go back-"

"Then what? Some demons will come to our house? Why is that such a big deal? Can't you just fight them off here?" she asked sitting up, but facing the wall with her arms folded.

"No I can't fight them off here and you know why. Reiko, please try to understand."

"Understand what? I know you have to leave and I know you don't want to, but why did you have to come back in the first place if you were just gonna leave again?" she asked turning to face her father with tears in her eyes. He wiped them away as he spoke to her.

"Reiko, all I wanted for three years was to see you all again. The thought of coming home to you all is what kept me going through every battle we faced. Never once did I stop dreaming of the day I would finally come home. I had no idea this would happen, no one did. If I had known ahead of time that I would've had to leave again so soon then I wouldn't have come home. I wouldn't want to do this to any of you, but I didn't know, I couldn't have known. Do you understand?" he asked. Reiko looked up at her father, more tears dripping down her cheeks. She suddenly burst into tears and blurted everything out as she fell into his arms.

"Oh Father I waited every day and every night since you left for you to come home! I never stopped dreaming of the day you'd come home and the war would be over! All I wanted was for you to come back and for everything to go back to the way it was when I was little. Why did this stupid war have to happen in the first place?" she sobbed hugging her father tight. InuYasha hugged her back and wiped her tears away again.

"It's alright at least I'm here now," he coaxed, "I don't want you be upset like this or think of what might happen after I leave again. I just want you all to be happy no matter what happens to me. That's why I'm going back and fighting this war. Because I know I have something worth fighting for and that's you and your brother and sister and your mother, all of you. Without you guys I'm nothing, so when you're upset I'm upset too. Do you understand why I have to go now?" he asked as his daughter looked up at him and he wiped away her final tears. Reiko nodded and hugged her father even tighter.

"Just promise me that you'll come back to see us happy Father." She said as she looked up at him again.

"I promise." He answered. Reiko smiled and got up out of bed, taking her father's hand.

"Come on we don't wanna miss out on the fun before you have to leave again do we?" she asked smiling.

"That's my girl." InuYasha said to himself as he nodded and followed his daughter to her brother's room.