************

Awakening

************

They once again jumped in the car and headed down yet more streets. To a small building with a red roof.

"Yippee~ we're here!" Sota yelled like an eight year old boy usually did upon finding out that he was going to get food (fast food non the less).

Once inside Inu-Yasha's eyes widened at the many people that were there, the sounds, and the smells being emitted from every corner of the place.

"I guess it is safe to say that you have never had a hamburger, am I right?" inquired Gramps.

Inu-Yasha nodded dumbly a 'yes', still wondering how the walls could light up like that. He had herd of lights but they were different colors, and everywhere!

"Sota what do you want?" Gramps asked.

"A hamburger happy meal!" replied the boy.

"I'll just get you a regular old hamburger. Is that okay?"

"Uh- what's a hamburger?"

"Never mind- Just take Sota and go find a table."

Sota jumped up at the commanded, "But there are not tables, Grandfather."

"Well, then we'll just have to go eat in the car."

"Next." The woman behind the counter stated. With that all other conversation between the three stopped as Gramps order the food. Not ten minutes later they were sitting in the car eating the fattening foods. Inu- Yasha found that these 'hamburgers' were almost as good as the ramen Kagome would bring and make for him.

That's right--Kagome. 'How is she? Is she all right? Are the 'doctors' helping her like the old crone and Kagome's mother said that they would? I don't like them.' He thought and with that thought Gramps began to speak up.

"Now I think that we better get back to the hospital and see how Kagome is doing, ne?" He put the key in the ignition and began to back out the parking space. "You know you really gave the nurses and doctors a scare?"

"Ya, even the security guards were freaking out!"

"See, we have these things called cameras and they take pictures and display them on a screen in a separate room to make sure nothing goes wrong. Well, you jumping in threw the window, and magically appearing in the middle of everything, they thought that you were some kind of ghost from the past."

"But they were only half right, huh?" Sota would have been rolling on the ground with laughter if he weren't held down by a seatbelt. Wipping tears away from his eyes he was able to say. "They even had to send in a new-be doctor to go check what was happening." And with that he was off again. But Inu-Yasha wasn't paying any attention to him he was looking out of the window at the dark clouds rolling in.

A half an hour later they were standing outside the hospital. Even though it was only a little past noon, the windows were lit up with the lights of every room on, preparing for the storm to hit. Inu-Yasha could smell the oncoming storm approach it filled his lungs with a musky and cold smell. Then he caught it- a smell he'd been longing to smell for the past three hours since he had left the hospital room, it was faint, but it was still there for him to behold.

Inu-Yasha lost it at this point. He was running across the parking lot following Kagome's fragrance as it constantly tried to evade his grasp. He was sprinting at top speed almost to fast for anyone to see. Then he stopped-right n front of Kagome's mother. She had her face in her hands and her back up against the wall opposite of what he preserved to be Kagome's room. She was slowly sliding down the wall, threatening to hit the floor. Inu-Yasha placed his arm out to grab her shoulder as an old man screamed out, "What's happened?"

"I don't know!!!" Came the muffled reply, sending a fresh stream of water into her hands.

Inu-Yasha didn't need any more incentive. He pushed open the door to see about five people in white standing around Kagome with frantic looks on their faces. They had placed two square blocks on her chest as one of the doctors screamed, "Now!"

There was jolting sound and Kagome jumped into the air. The buzzing sound of the monitor next to him stopped and began a steady *bleeping* sound. All the doctors let out a sigh of relief and now turned to see Inu-Yasha standing in the door way, eyes wide open starring at them. As they looked passed him, they saw Mrs. Higurashi grabbing onto Grandfather Higurashi who was at this point trying his best to comfort her and stop her bawling.

"Excuse me, sir." One of the doctors spoke up attempting to leave.

"What the hell happened?!" he screamed into the doctor's face.

"She lost her pulse for a moment, sir. But she will be fine now." With that the doctor pushed around Inu-Yasha he was soon followed by a machine being pushed by two other 'healer-people'. Two other women stayed behind one checking up one Kagome's condition and the other talking to Mrs. Higurashi and Gramps. Sota was standing on chair leaning over Kagome's bed.

Inu-Yasha took that fateful step forward, looking down over Kagome's, seemingly, a sleeping body. He reached out and touched her hand. With no response he grasped her hand fully, lifting it slightly off the crisp sheets that had been placed over her.

The only people in the room now are Inu-Yasha, Sota, and Kagome. Muffled noises could be heard outside the door in the sterilized hallway; however, Inu-Yasha wasn't listening. The hanyu was staring intently at Kagome almost willing her to awaken. 'Kagome, wake up!' was repeated so many times in his head that he lost count after the first minute of the repeated statement.

All poor Sota could do was stand there, on his chair, and watch as Inu- Yasha stared at his sister. The unmoving mass under a pair of sterile sheets, lying in a bed he didn't know if his sister would ever see.

~~Meanwhile~~in the past~~

"Will, Kagome be all right, Kaede?" The small bundle of fir was sitting in the old miko's lap staring at her like the small child he was.

Kaede was truly speechless. But none the less she answered him with a soft smile, "I am sure Inu-Yasha is doing everything he can to make sure that she is."

Though this didn't at all answer Shippo's question, it still gave him a small relief to know that Inu-Yasha wouldn't let any harm pass Kagome-chan. He nuzzled his face into the old woman for a moment before jumping out of her lap and out the door. He ran as fast as his little feet could carry him strait to the well. Upon meeting it he leapt down it landing safely at the bottom. "You better not let her die, Inu-Yasha!" He screamed to get out all of his emotions. Then in a quieter voice he added, "Or don't you dare come back." The kitsune sat down there. To him, Kagome was so close, yet so far away when he sat there.

Miroku and Sango could be found not to far off from the well. They were sitting near a river, in between the village and the portal. Although it was not the warmest of weathers, Sango still found some comfort sitting there with her feet hanging in the water. She had reluctantly allowed the 'monk' the come along and so far his hands had stayed to himself and she was glade about that. Unbeknownst to her; Miroku had every intention to not grope her that day. He just didn't feel up to it. (Not like he was ever up to getting slapped in the face or hit with that over sized boomerang of hers any day to begin with.) But it was to much of a depressing day to really do anything but wait for Inu-Yasha to return from the future with Kagome.

"Miroku-? Do you think Kagome will be coming back?" Sango asked barely above a whisper.

"What makes you ask a question like that?" He looked at her with wide eyes. 'All though I must have asked myself that same question about ten times today.' "Of course she's coming back. You know Inu-Yasha won't let anything bad happen to her."

"I hope you're right."

*******

".and you say that they just disappeared down a-what was it? A well--?"

"Yes, Lord Iyo, sir. He jumped right down the Bone Eaters Well with the girly." Obi explained to his master.

"And why did you not follow them?" He said with straining patience, the Shikon Jewel grasped tightly in his right hand.

"Me tried but was unable to get through. It's magiced to only let them pass, me thinks, sire." Obi replied, trembling from the looks his 'master' was giving him.

Lord Iyo turned to look out across a dead tree landscape. "Is doesn't matter as soon as the bastard hanyu comes back I'll kill him-and the girl- the girl is all ready as good as dead. Obi! Rah! Go to the well and don't you dare comeback until Inu-Yasha is dead!

It was now 11:34pm, the sun had set and nothing could be seen of the sky above, do to the vast spans of rain clouds that had yet to let any water fall from them. Inu-Yasha's transformation had been completed but, it wasn't like anyone there either cared or noticed that his hair had changed color. The Higurashis had left a while ago. Gramps took Sota home because he had school tomorrow and for all he knew Mrs. Higurashi was still pacing the waiting room. Kagome was still asleep- passed out- in a coma. . . whatever you would like to call it. However, she was steadily getting warmer, and her skin was becoming tinted with a hint of pink. All of this was good in the doctors 'books'. Or at least that was what they kept telling him.

Now Inu-Yasha was sleeping in the chair he had taken from Sota right after he left. His left hand was now enclosed around Kagome's right one, while his right arm was thrown over her stomach. His head was beside her and he would have been looking strait at her if his eyes had been open. His sunglasses were askew on his face still threatening to fall off, and his baseball cap lay discarded at the end of her bed.

'Where am I?' She asked herself. Kagome opened her eyes slightly as a hospital room fell into place. 'How did I get here?' She turned her head to look at a human Inu-Yasha lying asleep beside her. 'Why is Inu-Yasha in clothes from my time and lying next to me?' She tried to move her arms and fond that it was near impossible. She felt pain all over her body and did her best to try and not scream, by biting her lower lip, but never the less some sound still escaped her.

Inu-Yasha rolled his head a little and then noticed that Kagome was awake and in pain. He stood up knocking over his chair in the process.

"Kagome-Kagome what's wrong?" He asked in a hurry. He still had her hand in his. "Just relax. It'll be okay. Just. . . you have to calm down."

Kagome took three deep breathes and tried to relax her shocked muscles. Which for the most part worked but, her body still felt sore in some places. Inu-Yasha just looked at her.

'She's finally awake. . .'He thought, and then sighed in relief.

All Kagome could do was just stare at him in disbelief. 'He brought me home? And stayed with me through out the whole time? Is he sick, too? But that dream. . . really freaked me out. What happened to me?'

"Inu-Yasha. . . " she said with tears beginning to fill her eyes. "I had the scariest dream. . . and I thought I was going to die." She swallowed hard to try and clear her throat.

Inu-Yasha silently moved forward and placed his free arm over her once more and pulled her into a gentle hug. ". . .and that's all that it is. . . " He whispered to her. "A dream."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~^^*^^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"This is where he disappeared, huh?"

"Aye, me lord."

"And it was only him and Kagome?"

Obi nodded once in agreement. "If I may ask, sire, why are you so interested in the girl? Ye all ready have the tama {jewel}."

"It is not necessarily the girl, Obi, but the rules." With that he turned and walked into Inu-Yasha's forest.

As he walked he turned the Shikon no Tama in his hands. Holding it before him memorizing its every curve, every cut, and every swirl of color on and in it. His eyes had turned a dark blood red and there was not a sign of life in them. Then out of no where he began to speak in a soft, dark voice, "The worlds a game Inu-Yasha. . . And in games there are rules. . . And from those rules come loop-pulls and clever ways of cheating. Ye, may have found one (a clever one I must admit) but, when a player is caught cheating. . . there is always a penalty."

Obi stared up into the trees watching Rah look at their lord. Rah turned his head back and gave a slight shrug of his shoulders to show that he had no idea of what was going on. Then followed their master into the forest heading to a village that was not to far off.