AN: Thanks, y'all, for being patient with these chapters. Enjoy.

"Did it work?" I whispered, not wanting to spoil the silent air that seemed to settle into the walls of the bedroom. Sesshomaru let his eyes open to the sound of my voice and stare back to the ceiling above us, "No." he stated, his stance still and unmoving upon the bed he rested on while I studied the length of him, averting my golden irises to bent knees seated below me only when I'd gotten an eye's full. His body held its trademark position as he lay on his back, rosy lips parted and motionless as they allowed each and every breath to enter and release. His frame was drowning in long tendrils of silver hair that ran in rivers while the stripes that were painted upon his cheeks and wrists sat bright and luminous amidst the nights waning fall moon. The entire scene was entirely too breathtaking for me to take whiteness to, for my senses to even fully except. I couldn't do this anymore; I was breaking – and fast. You ever seen somebody crack an egg across the counter until it shattered? Yeah, I was the egg and this whole 'Keep Sesshomaru Company All Night Every Night' thing was the counter.

Staying up with Sesshomaru had really taken its toll upon me and, even as a hanyou, I had my limits when concerning proper rest. Not to mention keeping a habitually stiff crotch from view has to be listed as the most uncomfortable task ever. It was in the midst of my geology class that I figured I'd ought to do something to try and help my weary older sibling, if not for his benefit then for whatever was left of my sanity. After searching my exceptional hanyou brain for sleeping rituals, I came up with, what I thought, was the golden idea. Sesshomarus existing consciousness showed otherwise.

I sighed dejectedly, my face downcast while my hands lay bunched in my lap. It took forever to convince him to even put his lips to the steamy substance and for what? No reaction. "Warm milk always worked when I was a kid." I mumbled, glancing to my elder for but a moment before returning my gaze to its original placement. "To even consider my current state comparable to your childhood troubles is laughable." He voiced, his derisive tone only serving to rouse resentment, "Well, don't hesitate to speak up if you ever come up with any ideas!" I grumbled with a tone low and harsh, "How often does this shit happen anyway?" Sesshomaru remained as he was, not giving my query any signs of response. He kept his sights on the ceiling as if only it held answers to the ridicule consciousness served him these past nights. "It is annual." He informed, remaining as he was while he spoke. I let a small gap fill the conversation as I sat, indecisive on whether or not to probe deeper, "…Do you know why?" I prodded, watching his stance intently for signs not otherwise given.

My gaze switched to the curling of his fingertips and the slight downturn of otherwise petal smooth lips and I sighed, mimicking my brothers' stance above me with tiresome bones and abstaining any further plans of getting him to sleep – this night. I let the fuzzy fibers of the carpet run against the skin of my back as I too got comfortable sprawled out and looking to the ivory colored ceiling that enclosed us both, hoping to discover the same answers Sesshomaru seemed to be searching for himself.

However, answers eluded us both because two nights later, I was back again.


Sesshomaru gave my glowingly animate look a blank counterpart as I proposed a brand new idea to him. He placed a well fluffed pillow under his stomach and looked to me, at attention, "Do what you must." He drawled out, exponentially more willing to participate in the proposal then previously. Whether intended or not, Sesshomaru had began to place the smallest fractions of hope into my sleep based schemes; he had begun to find some semblance of light strong enough to filter through the yearly restlessness that plagued him since before even his earliest memories as a toddler. What he had found in me is someone that was willing to help with something that was never told to anyone else before, a weakness never exposed but to his libidinous little brother and only by chance. The sole reason I had even the smallest bit of insight into the issue was because the year I happened to be caught with my pants around my ankles was the year he seemed to grow sick of bearing through numerous sleepless nights alone.

I opened the storybook with confidence, almost too certain the fairytale would work as intended. How I forgot that nothing actually ever works as intended when dealing my thorny brother is beyond me, "Once upon a time—"

"In what period is this storyline?" Sesshomaru interrupted, yellow irises hooded and set on gold, "You're, like… not supposed to ask questions." I informed, not even bothering to look to the fair Inu before continuing, "In a far away—"

"How am I to understand if unallowed to question?" he proposed, blinking long elegant lashes against the sensitive flesh under his eyes, "You don't need to understand." I began, "The story is to relax you and shit so you can go to bed." I slid black-rimmed reading glasses from my nose as I finished, looking to the full blood dead on. "Storytelling holds no correlation to sleep." He stated, letting his chin burrow further into the pillow that supported his upper-body. I spoke with a tense jaw, "Because clearly you're the expert on sleep!" I hissed, annoyance sewn into my features and sarcasm buried into my tone while Sesshomaru lay unaffected, staring down to my disgruntled appearance with indifference, "No need to become upset, Inuyasha."

I let my teeth grind against each other, closing my eyes against the irritation before beginning again, "Let's just fucking pretend that everything takes place in the feudal era, okay?" Sesshomaru gave a single nod before falling silent again and leaving my voice room to build the tale of beautiful princesses alongside scaly dragons that ignited fire with a solitary breath.

I was towards the middle of the fiction when needles seemed to scurry across the skin of my foot. I ignored the uncomfortable touches, shaking my foot in attempt to free myself of it before stilling my lips and glancing down my nose at the itching limb. My entire body tensed in discomfort when sighting the nickel sized arachnid that sat loosely on my heel, "Ew." I expressed, reaching a clawed hand down in hopes of capturing the insect and jumping when it paced a few steps back, avoiding its end by mere centimeters. I crinkled my nose at the six legged creature, reaching for it yet again and hopping to my full height when it jumped to my ankle, climbing steadily up onto a cotton clad knee in its pursuit to avoid a premature death.

My shoulders trembled tensely as I swatted at the insect once more, missing it yet again and watching it circle the strip of fabric it was seated upon before attempting to climb higher ahead my body. I yelped, hopping onto the nearest surface in hopes of shaking the nuisance from my thigh and onto the floor from which it came. My eyes scanned my figure once I'd landed atop the soft cushion of Sesshomarus bed and I breathed a sigh of relief, releasing the tension that had wound into my body from the scare. I ran a hand through my hair in paranoia before twisting my neck so that my sight could reach my back and find it to be just as I'd left it. However, the relief was short-lived because as soon as my head was repositioned to its proper placing, the point of my nose nearly bumped with Sesshomarus and my eyes widened, recognizing my placement upon his mattress and willing every fiber in my body to remove itself. Every limb I owned held a disconnect to my brain as they sat, immobile and uncooperative. All I could do was stare to the glowing set of eyes that bore into mine, making my heart thud faster the longer I remained. I was close enough to him for his scent to surround us both, blanketing its fume in a thick wave while I looked to his faultlessly sculpted features that blazed just that much more beautiful the closer you got to it.

Sesshomarus skin seemed to have never bore a scratch or blemish for it appeared so flawlessly smooth and even more so from the lack of distance I sat. I could nearly count the lashes upon his eyes and the strands across his hairline as I crouched, spellbound and practically chest to chest with my elder. "What difference proximity makes." He observed, "You cannot seem to still your lips when laid across the floor but at eye level you fall silent." I watched absolutely frozen as his vision switched to the lips in question, his eyes roaming over the entrance shamelessly. Everything was too much for me; Sesshomaru was simply too close for my raging hormones to handle and I could feel the warmth his body threw out against the skin of my midsection and the flesh of my knees. Had Sesshomaru lost his mind? Maybe I wasn't the only one affected by lack of sleep, clearly he too grew fuzzy when up through the night. Either that or I must truly be losing it.

Sesshomarus stare lay unwavering as he gave the impression of contemplation, speaking only after a considerable silence, "You think I'm 'pretty'." he informed, his eyes returning to my widened gaze with an accusatory light within them. I gave him no response, leaving the mortified expression my face was contorted into give enough information itself, "These are your words, baby brother." He clarified, recognizing the confusion wading from my tense shoulders and quavering canines at my crown. I let my mind comb through memories, old and new, but couldn't remember a single incident where that confession left the confines of my mind, "Kay, as if." I started, "You must be going through some kind of sleep deprivation… thing." My statement ended unsteadily, the lies told obvious. Sesshomaru looked to me attentively as he used a tone that was entirely too relaxed when considering the tension I practically felt grading against my skin, "Even if my words were anything but truth, your actions are assurance enough."

I let my eyes fall to my lap, humiliated beyond belief and disbelieving of how obvious my approbation had become. "So, what of it?" I grumbled, trying my best to disappear from the very spot I inhabited. Sesshomaru stayed silent aside me, looking to the crown of my head with wondering eyes before running a clawed hand though my hair with little hesitance and stopping at flickering puppy ears, his digits fiddling with fine white fur grown there and gingerly running a satiny triangle through a finger and thumb. My breath stilled, my bones created a sudden chill throughout my body, and my hand clutched the bed-sheet it laid atop of. Sesshomarus graceful fingers created an exceptional pleasure throughout my being and all I could do was let them, my lips parted and my own hands gripping his sheets at either side of my thighs. I let my eyes close against the foreign touch until its presence disappeared completely. "Your admiration does not go unreciprocated." Sesshomaru voiced, his hands returned to rest left and right of him and his eyes set upon me.

My breath stopped at his profession and my head snapped up to greet him, the purest of shock plastered across my features. I scanned his gaze suspiciously but found nothing but a softness; a trust even, grown from a tons worth of faithful companionship that ran through an entire night and, though forced, was a learning experience for both involved. I let a fraction of the shock melt from my expression as realization hit me: he was serious. My bluntly expressive and stunningly attractive older brother actually held some liking to me as well? Was this even possible? Was this even Earth?

Left to me, Sesshomaru sat studying the emotions crossing my features with little interest, not at all distressed by his own declaration and quickly growing bored of the silence clogging the steadily brightening bedroom, "Finish your story, Inuyasha." he commanded, his voice wrenching me from my cluttered thoughts and back to the real world. I removed myself from his mattress with a quickness, never being happier to be seated upon the floor in all my days. I picked up the paper-back with shaky fingers before putting the pages to my line of sight without complaint and starting up on the tale once again.

Sometimes, I think back on that damn spider, still creeping along the floors of this world and deserving of my gratitude. Not that it'll ever get it.