Arrgg, so many good places to stop in this one, but I wanted you guys to have a decent sized chapter.^_^; So... tempting! Ahh!! Oh, and by the way...
ROFL oh man that'd be great! *gets up from rolling everywhere laughing her ass off* Okay, I was reading the latest chapter, chapter 5, of Utter Destruction of the holidays due to Anime and I got an idea. Basically, they take the Yu-Yu Hakusho cast and mix it with the Inu Yasha cast to ruin holidays and have fun and stuff. Anyway, Inu Yasha and Kei were telling a huge group of little kids about how the Easter Bunny didn't exist because they killed him! LOLOLOLOL They were all crying while the two told dead Easter Bunny jokes; oh man, it was HILLARIOUS! Those poor, poor kids! *clutches her sides and then falls over* Anyway, I was wondering what holiday they'd do next and I got a perfect idea, Halloween. What is the most commonly made fun of character to dress other anime characters as? In my opinion, I'd say Sailor Moon. So, picture this, Inu Yasha as Sailor Moon and Shippou as Sailor Chibi-moon! *snickers and falls over laughing again* Oh, I should write a fic with that sometime.^_^ *snickers* Anyone else think so?^_^ Hey, send me some funny cast costume ideas and I probably will!^_^ lol
Venus Aeternus- Yeah, I know, but you think he would really be in his right mind? I mean, even just enough to take advantage of the situation? He has too much pride.^_^; lol As for the future Inu, normally I'd say, "You'll seee...", but since it's this chapter after all, yeah, it is the future Inu. Heh, yeah, Inu in modern clothes= dreamy. =^-^= Oh, and sorry, there should be one more interruption of the moment type thing before the actual lemony chapter, but don't worry, it won't be long now.^_~ *giggles* They have to work for it damnit! Muahahaha! Oh, another comment, woohoo! Yeah, you got most of it right, but I bet you can't guess the history part. Ahahaha! *does the knowing dance* Yeah, um hmm, um hmm. Oh, and no worries about the update thing.^_^ You asked and you're sweet so I let ya know.^_~* Enjoy the chapter!
Solus Nox- You are so sweet!=^-^= *squeals happily* Yeah, the time thing would get a little confusing...if I had decided not to put in a history chapter.^_~ Muahaha! Inu has to explain what happened after she left right?^_~* Yeah, anyway, there'll be a little bit of info split between two chapters to make it a bit easier.^_^ Hope it'll help! Thanks for the virtual flower by the way.^_~*
Ember- *giggles like a schoolgirl (and hangs head for it)* Yeah, pretty much.^_^ I tend to have a lot of foreshadowing and confusion and then one day, it all clicks. *snickers* This is so much fun! I'm going to have to write another fic after this.^-^ Oh, but don't worry, this is the climax, not the end.^_~ There should still be another... oh, maybe 10 or 11 chapters left at least.
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or any of the characters in it. If I did I'd be rich, but I'm not... and if I had lots of money I'd probably spend it on anime anyway so pleeaasseee, don't sue me.^_^ lol
Oh, and as always,
_= thoughts *_* = sound/ italicized "_" = speech
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Memories of the Present
Chapter 23: Sweet Dreams
So, that's how it happened... A tired hanyou stared downwards at his crestfallen love. Her eyes were swollen, puffy from crying, and her hands were covered in blood and filth. Her clothes were soiled and hair tousled, but to him, she was more beautiful than the heavens. She was his heaven. He dropped down into the well gracefully, being very careful to avoid landing on his sleeping beauty. Tenderly, he bent down, picking her up as one arm slipped beneath her knees, and the other beneath her arms. He then turned in a half circle, towards the opening, and jumped out. Opening the shrine doors, he headed to the only room he had ever known of true comfort, her bedroom.
Tenderly setting her down on the bed, he whisked a stray bunch of her glistening, raven hair, as it fell across her face. Sighing, he sat down next to her bed, head in hand, and simply watched her sleep with drooping eyes.
And to think... I had always thought that she had left me for another. Kind of ironic how I *was* that other. He sighed sadly, remembering days long since past. It barely seems all that long ago, and yet...
He moved towards where she lay, head rested on her lower arm, and looked her over once more. It had been so long, and she as still has beautiful as he remembered. Gently, he ran his fingers through her hair, feeling it's texture, longing to take in every part of her as he once had the chance to do.
... and I let it slip by me.
"I didn't understand...," he whispered, as if she could feel his every word as he could, "how much I cared... until it was too late." With a heart broken sigh, he brushed the rest of her ebony locks from her face, exposing her neck and the necklace that lye there. He had almost forgotten about the necklace and fingered it almost wonderingly. That's right... I made this for her...
Kagome stirred slightly in her sleep, unconsciously touching where Inu Yasha had nipped at her earlier that week. Oh, how he remembered that. He had spent months thinking about that night, what it meant, why it happened. He inhaled deeply and smiled with remembrance; those were the days. He closed his eyes and rested his forehead against the edge of her bed, but moved until he found a comfortable spot. His nose had hit his hand, still fingering the pendant's band around her neck. Inu Yasha nuzzled a little more closely to Kagome's sleeping form and draped a protective arm over her torso. He wanted to be near her... no, he *needed* to be near her. Drawing her body closer, he nuzzled her neck gently with the bridge of his nose and inhaled again; gods she smelled good. Had it really been so long? Frankly, at this moment, he didn't understand how he had survived for so long without her. At this moment, he really was complete.
Shaking his head to rouse himself, he rose and began his way out of the door and into the hall. He stopped, turning abruptly, and entered a nearby room, leaving with a moistened cloth. He set the cloth on Kagome's forehead and journeyed downstairs, returning with a clay bowl full of water. Slowly, carefully, he cleaned the wounds on Kagome's body. He didn't want to wake her, so he strayed from the more sensitive regions and settled for cleaning her hands, which, by far, were the bloodiest. When all of the blood was gone, he went to work wiping the mud and dirt away. After her hands were clean, he began to look at where she had touched her skin, spreading the filth. Inu Yasha decided that the worst place was now her cheeks, as she had tried to wipe away her tears. From the cheeks came the neck, and from there, well, he didn't know; he never got any further.
He breathed in Kagome's scent, affecting him as if it were a drug, a wonderful, wonderful drug. He began to relax and stretched his muscles as far as he could manage; he yawned, baring his teeth and curling his tongue in the process. How could she do this to him? How could she always relax him so easily? She stirred in her sleep, mumbling dejectedly and rolling a little closer to him. Kagome would've fallen off of the bed if he hadn't been there; but she knocked right into him instead, burying his face in the crook of her neck.
Ooooooohhhh Kami... His eyes shot open as realization sunk in. She was right there; *he* was right there. Oh, he could almost taste her, something that his senses demanded now that he'd thought about it. Unlike the time before, he was now wide awake and could feel his heartbeat quicken as she murmured into her pillow, his lips as his tongue grazed across them, unconsciously at first, but then nervously. Damned Kagome! He hadn't felt like this in centuries and he certainly had no damned clue what to do about it! Any blockade he had once built to push her away, to prevent things like this, all of it was gone... well, most of it anyway. The only thing keeping him from her now was a conscience, something he seemed to grow over time, among a few other cultivated emotions. As he licked her, he wondered if he had changed at all. I mean, sure, he knew that he had. He had become a bit more sensitive, a bit nicer, and a *hell* of a lot more knowledgeable... in certain areas, or at least that's what he was wont to believe. But still, was change really a good thing? What if she liked him better before?
He moaned softly and realized that he had been nibbling at her again; Damned Kagome..., his mind groaned huskily. Taking a deep breath, he figure now was not the time for him to be getting nervous, and much less so for him to be having second thoughts. When she woke up, she'd need him there more than ever, and he wasn't going to run away now, not this time at least.
"Mreow"
Pulled abruptly form his thoughts, the hanyou jumped and stared in shock at the obese cat sitting to his right. "Yeah, you're right." He sighed. "I wonder why I had never noticed you letting me play with you so easily back then. I mean now I understand, but I hadn't even considered it before." With another sigh and a slight shake of the head, he stood and mumbled, "idiot..."
He went downstairs to get a drink of water, needing to leave before doing something he probably wouldn't regret after all.
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"Kagome!" Miroku, Sango, Shippou, and Kaede came running long the path towards the well. They had been on their way to see Kagome off, but Sango urged Kirara to move faster after they had heard the screaming. Upon reaching the clearing, the only signs of struggle had to do with one figure, crouched near the well with his head in his lap and Kagome's bag wrapped in his arms.
As they approached, Shippou rushed up to yell at him and demand he tell where Kagome was, but seeing the state the hanyou was in, he became more afraid than demanding. He had never, ever seen him like this before. "I...Inu Yasha?"
There was no sound, no movement, and if not for the beating of his heart, Shippou may have believed him dead. Suddenly, soft laughter spooled from the hanyou, dark, anguish filled chuckles that left them all chilled to the bone. "She's not coming Shippou."
"Wh... what?" The kit took a step back, startled, but was stopped before he could say any more.
"She fell into the well and it sealed. She took part of the jewel with her. She's not coming back Shippou, and we can't bring her back." Inu Yasha's shoulders began to shake, but not with laughter now. Shippou gawked unbelievingly at him while everyone else in the clearing simply stared, slowly closing their mouths, as they had not realized they had been hanging open. The hanyou's shaking became slightly more violent and he looked up as footsteps approached him. Sango gave him a big hug, cradled him, and cried with him. Miroku held Sango and lay his hand on Inu Yasha's shoulder. Shippou slowly walked over, about to ask him to say it wasn't true, to take it back, but he couldn't; he had no voice left to ask with.
Silent tears spilled forth from the kit's eyes as he rushed into Inu Yasha's arms, quickly beginning to sob as hard as his little kitsune heart could take. Kaede simply walked over to the mourning group, lay a comforting hand on Inu Yasha's other shoulder, and left, silently walking back to the hut from which she had emerged only a little while before.
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"Inu Yasha!!!" Kagome had woken with a start to find herself laying, well, now sitting in her bedroom... alone. "A... a dream?" She frantically scanned every inch of her hands and, finding no blood, flexed them, cringing as her sensitive fingered bombarded her every nerve in searing pain. What had happened? Had someone found her? By the cloth and the bowl of water, that would probably be a 'yes'. What was the last thing she remembered? The well! That's right; she and Inu Yasha had a fight and she tripped and... oh no... the light... was it just a dream? What happened to the well?! Fearing the worst, she threw her covers off of her, dashing towards the door. She had to know, dream or not she had to make sure!
Kagome jumped out of bed and grabbed for the door, almost being hit as Inu Yasha came barreling in, glass of water in hand. He took a step back as she stopped, looked at him, face full of fright and sorrow, and lunged at him, almost knocking him over with the exerted force. She sobbed brokenly into his chest, arms wrapped around his waist, and clung to him while he jut stood there; he was shocked to say the least.
Coming out of it, he gently wrapped his arms around her and gave her a soft squeeze before releasing her and taking a step back, pushing her away slightly at the same time. He could see the uncertainty in her eyes, the pain, the confusion, and surprisingly, he smiled. Tears highlighted her broken heat as she gaped at him; here she was, in pain and needing him, and he just SMILES at her?! Was he... was he really enjoying...
Before she could get any further, his smile grew a little wider and he put a delicate finger to her lips. Hushing her and asking her in a silent plea to be patient, he turned, looking around, and put the glass of water he had on her desk. Chuckling softly at her bewildered expression, he simply walked over, picked her up, and sat on the bed. Since his legs were crossed, he gently sat her in his lap and held her tightly, relishing in the feel of her against him and the relaxed state he always seemed to be in when she was near.
"Inu... Inu Yasha?"
"Hmmm?," he mumbled softly.
Eyes ablaze with new tears, she threw her arms around him and began sobbing anew; "Oh Inu Yasha! I thought I'd never see you again!" She began to cry even harder and he embraced her gently; "I thought the well had sealed and I'd have to..."
"It did."
"What?" She looked up, stunned at his bluntness. He had said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"It did seal Kagome. You can't go back."
"But... you... how..." She began to pull away from him subtly. Sensing her fear, Inu Yasha let her lean just so far away from him, while he rubbed her back soothingly.
He chuckled softly, "Don't worry, it's me... just not exactly the me you might remember."
"You mean..." Her eyes watered, "you..."
He just nodded and held her close, "Yes Kagome. It's been a long time."
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Sure he was a bit shocked when she fainted, but he couldn't really blame her now could he? I mean, how would he feel if he were in the same position? Sure, he had gotten used to the way things were long ago, but Kagome, to her, she had been with everyone only that morning, and now she'd never see them again. She never even got to say goodbye.
Inu Yasha dabbed at the cloth at her forehead. Deciding that it was too dry, he rewet it and placed it back where it had rested for the last thirty minutes or so. Kagome woke up with Inu Yasha sitting over her, cloth in hand, and a drip in her eye. She bolted up and swiped at her eye, fruitlessly trying to get it out, and only calmed when he held under her chin and wiped the drop with a dry cloth. Kagome's lip trembled and she fought wither herself not to breakdown again. She was slightly ashamed that she had fainted, but really, she thought it was probably better than her crying again. She had, after all, been doing that MUCH too often lately. She didn't want him to see her as weak.
She realized that she'd been staring and looked away, only to find him still watching her when she turned back. "What?"
He blinked as if startled and looked away, cheeks slightly pink; "Sorry.," he mumbled and was suddenly very interested in his task of putting the cloth back in the bowl.
She rubbed her upper arms nervously, "So..." He looked at her, eyes begging for her to ask something, anything, "you really are Inu Yasha?"
He laughed softly and nodded, "Is it that hard to tell?"
She blinked at him and blushed, looking down guiltily, "N...no, it's just that... well..."
He smiled and nuzzled her head upward with his forehead, looking deeply into her eyes; "Relax, I was just teasing." She smiled and laughed softly. Quickly suppressing her giggles, she looked up at him, almost waiting for something. "Was I really *that* bad? Don't worry, nothing mean nor rude is coming out of this mouth today."
Kagome cocked her head slightly and grinned, "Oh yeah?" She ran her finger thoughtfully across her lower lip, "Well, this is different."
To hide the sudden color rising to his cheeks, he chuckled nervously and pulled her against him. "That's not the only thing that's going to be different this time." She curled against his chest happily and he closed his eyes, concentrating on his quickening pulse, "We have a lot to talk about Kagome, but for now, it's time for you to rest."
"Where is everyone?"
"Hmm?" He looked down on her quizzically. "Oh, they're gone until tomorrow."
"How do you know?" She snuggled a little more and sighed contentedly.
"They knew what would happen today, and figured you'd want some time to adjust." Getting a confused look from her, he whispered, "Kagome, had you ever found it odd that everyone took to me so quickly when you had first come through the well? I was immediately Souta's hero, your mom played with my ears and had no fear at all, and Buyo let me torture him while we 'played'. Didn't that strike you as odd?"
An inaudible mumble was heard from the body in his arms and he stood up, laying her in bed and crawling in behind her, though over the covers which she was under. "I hope you don't mind me napping here." He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer, "I'm not really used to the floor anymore."
Nuzzling gently into her soft, thick mane, he closed his eyes and whispered a sweet goodnight before joining her in the first peaceful slumber he'd had in five centuries.