AN: Since quite a few people suddenly asked how long this story will be – it should be around 21 chapters long altogether. I worked out the ending and I thought, yep, that'll do me.

And also, since another person asked, Ambidextrous just means you can fluently work with both hands, like write neatly with both hands without being just left handed or right handed, instead you're both. Something a friend of mine at school can do, and frequently shows off about it too.

Life Exchange

Chapter 15

A Dream Come True

The moment he stepped through the gates of the palace, pure hell and chaos erupted. It wasn't every day a supposedly dead King came into view though…

The guards at the gates just stared blankly as Inuyasha passed through, obviously trying to determine, who or just what he was, because their old King was dead and lying in an urn in the secret garden. Workers and soldiers drew to a stop around the courtyard to watch him as he moved towards the palace doors, making no move to stop him or ask questions.

What the hell was going on?

Inuyasha had just reached the main doors themselves when some brainspark of a guard stepped up, sword levelled to Inuyasha's chest. "Halt! State your name and status!"

"Lord Inuyasha. King of you and this country."

"Our King is dead." The guard pointed out with narrowed eyes, around them, everyone silently listened, trying to figure out just who he was… he sure looked like Inuyasha…

"Really?" Inuyasha frowned a moment before that tick went off, somewhere deep in his brain again. This guy was annoying him, he didn't want to stand around outside all day, he wanted a bath already? So he solved the problem.

He grabbed the sword in the man's hand and knocked him clean flying out of the way with a mere brush of his arm.

This was precisely the point when chaos broke loose. Obviously whoever had just walked up to the castle was some kind of shape shifter, or a vengeful spirit of their former King. Whatever it was, it had to be stopped.

A large uproar started as soldiers and guards raced towards Inuyasha, weapons at the ready to subdue him. Inuyasha flicked a somewhat uninterested glance up at the fifteen or so men coming at him with swords. Too easy.

Five powerful sweeps of the blunted sword he'd taken from the first guard, an uppercut, a kick, and two successful blows of the elbows, and all fifteen were unconscious in a matter of seconds.

"You dream you can defeat me…?" Inuyasha sneered and threw the sword down on top of the heap. "Nighty night."

He threw open the doors to the palace and swept inside. Almost at once, the headache from before came back, stronger than ever. It staggered him slightly and he had to pause to press his fists against his head with a groan. Around him, workers had done pretty much the same thing as everyone else outside the palace. They just stared in dumb surprise.

"Isn't he dead…?" one maid ventured slowly.

Bankotsu chose that moment to arrive in the entrance hall, evidently having heard the commotion outside already. He stopped short when he saw the bloody and bedraggled looking Hanyou standing just inside the doors. If he was surprised, he didn't show it. He just looked slightly irritated as he folded his arms slowly and glowered at Inuyasha. "So you didn't die after all."

Inuyasha raised his gaze to meet Bankotsu's steadily, a slow snarl working its way into his throat. "You…"

Hurried footsteps drew nearer from outside the palace, and a flood of soldiers entered, saw Inuyasha, and subdued him at once. They grabbed his arms, his hair, his clothing, or anything they could get their hands on, and forced him to his knees. In truth, they didn't need so many people… Inuyasha could barely stand anyway now that the headache was beginning to blot his vision with white spots.

"Usurper…" Inuyasha hissed despite the fact that he was fighting to stay conscious. The position the guards held him in was only increasing his dizziness.

"Still insane it appears." Bankotsu moved forward a few steps with a look of complete pity. "Such a shame."

Kagome appeared.

Sango arrived alongside her at the top of the stairs. They both pinpointed the focus of the scene below, and Sango gasped… Kagome just stared. Their arrival didn't escape Bankotsu's notice and he glanced towards the two human women and a slow, secretive smile graced his expression. "Kagome dear?"

She jerked her startled gaze to her husband before jerking it back to a rather hazy looking Inuyasha. Her mouth worked for a moment, but no words came out. But soon her feet were flying without her knowledge and she was racing towards Inuyasha, something in her chest was squeezing almost painfully, and it wasn't from fear… "Inuyasha!"

Bankotsu's arm snapped out to prevent her from reaching the subdued King. "He's dangerous…" he warned her quietly.

She looked up at his pleadingly, but realised that he was only telling the truth. She looked back at Inuyasha and drank in the sight of him at last… he was alive – he was breathing, in short pants more like, but still breathing. He looked like he'd seen better times… but he was still alive and kneeling a few metres away. She had just known he was alive.

She just wanted to hold him… "Inuyasha… you're ok…"

Ever so slowly his head lifted just enough to see her. His gaze unfocused and clouded with pain, but sharp with recognition. But he didn't move or say anything more. He seemed paralysed.

"Inuyasha. I think we all need to get reacquainted." Bankotsu did well in hiding the slightly smug tone in his voice. "Allow me to introduce, my wife, Kagome."

For once Kagome felt like hitting her husband. What kind of greeting was that to throw in his face?! Didn't he understand how dangerously jealous Inuyasha could get… and at a time like this of all things…

Inuyasha hadn't taken his eyes off Kagome, he hadn't given any indication he'd heard Bankotsu's introduction either. But ever so slightly his eyes narrowed and his body strained against the hold the guards had on him. "You… are… dead!" he yelled the last word out in a harsh sound, making poor Kagome start and flinch back.

Bankotsu unsheathed his sword and started towards Inuyasha who ignored him in his valiant attempts to throw off the many hands on his person. Kagome saw this and cried out. "Don't hurt him!"

Bankotsu ignored her too, and turned the sword, to bash the hilt against Inuyasha's head. Already the headache seemed too much of the Hanyou, and when the hilt connected, he slumped, limp and peacefully unconscious, much to everyone's relief…

Except Kagome's.

"He's dangerous and insane." Bankotsu announced, sheathing his enormous sword in the scabbard across his back again like it was as light as a normal staff. "Call the monk Miroku, have him detained in a spell bound prison, for his own safety and for ours as well."

He fell into a contemplative silence as the guards started dragging Inuyasha's body. He looked back at Kagome who was frozen stiff in shock. "We'll do all the best we can for him… but…" he let the warning hang in the air with a sad smile. He turned without her and headed after the men, calling to them. "Don't underestimate the will of madness. Make sure that prison is secure!"

Kagome stared after them, still in dumb shock, much like everyone else. A light hand touched her shoulder and she pulled herself out of her stupor to turn to Sango.

"Kagome…?" Sango frowned uncertainly. "What am I seeing here?"

"He's not dead." Kagome whispered, almost to herself. "I knew he'd be back…"

Sango stared at her a moment. "You know what this means… don't you…?"

"He knows I married Bankotsu… he's going to go on an insane jealousy trip and kill me?"

"Actually… I was thinking he'd now have to kill Bankotsu and marry you if he ever wanted to be King again." Sango bit her lip.

"Somehow… I don't think that's on the top of his priority list right now." Kagome stared off into space.

Sango stared as well, as if looking at the same thing, before shaking herself and gently taking Kagome's hand. "Let's go find Miroku, shall we?"

^_^

There was a faint stuffy smell of healing herbs present in the room when he woke up. He sniffed before he even opened his eyes and grimaced. Smelt like puke…

Finally he stirred and opened his eyes, and found himself staring at the high ceiling of his bedroom. He knew it was his room from the stupid smiley face he'd drawn up there on the tiles when he was five. But there was something different now…

He sat up quickly and looked around. His furniture was gone, all the objects and possessions he'd had were gone and now, the only thing left in the room was four barred walls that enclosed around him in a box, stretching from ceiling to floor…

"Like Dad's cage…" Inuyasha snickered when he realised they were made out of wood. Bars of wood would never hold him. Immediately he walked over to one side of the cage and tugged on two of the bars, expecting them to come free at once or at least shatter.

They didn't budge.

He tried again. But they were like wrought iron to a human… he still couldn't move them. He started getting frustrated, and hammered angrily at the bars, anger coursing through him… how dare they cage him like an animal! How dare they take his strength away!

His gaze fell on a slip of paper pasted around the bottom of each bar in the cage. His anger evaporated and he slapped his forehead with a laugh. Of course! Ofuda charms. That was ok then. Not one demon alive could break through charms like these laid by Miroku.

"Treacherous little ass…" Inuyasha suddenly darkened considerably. "Seal me in a cage like a prisoner… like a pet fish!"

He growled and started prowling back and forth around the cage like a tiger, assessing his old room critically. They'd mended the walls he'd broken, replaced the window and replaced the wooden floorboards that he'd wrecked.

He also noted that ofuda charms had been placed along the floor of the cage, as well as along the roof. There was only six sides to this box and he was getting out no way.

Light spilled in through the windows, casting around the empty room with that happy, summer feeling. Inuyasha pulled a face and slapped the bars one last time just for good measure. But eventually he grew bored, and, having nothing else to do around there, rested against the bars closest to the window and closed his eyes, basking in the direct light cast through the opening.

He was pondering on an age old question when he heard the door slide open quietly behind him. What would Miroku do if he were pregnant…?

The footsteps stopped just beyond the cage and he smiled slowly as a familiar scent seemed to enter the room like an aura. "Lavender… the sweet smell of…" he turned slowly to lean back against the bars again. "Perfection."

Kagome met his gaze steadily with all the calm and grace of a fearless woman. A pity he noticed her hands were trembling ever so slightly where they were clasped in front of her.

"You know I think there's a reason as to why I'm here…" Inuyasha cocked his head and pushed away from the bars, moving towards her. "Damned if I can remember it though."

"You were gone for a month… where?" Kagome asked softly.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" he smirked.

"Yes, I would like to know ." she nodded with a determined look.

"Don't know, don't care." He shrugged and returned the pacing again.

Kagome cast a sideways look at the two sword he'd been relieved off that were now leaning against the wall. Tessaiga… and Toukijin. She shivered as she remembered her dream. Inuyasha seemed to notice her shiver and turned back to face her. "You found your brother."

Inuyasha laughed. "That's a funny story. I should tell it to you some time."

"Tell me now."

"He kicked the living shit out of me. And then this gay guy took advantage of me. I turned human twice and nearly died both times I seem to recall, and this annoying tick thing has returned to my brain and I'm as amazingly mad as ever." He grinned. "My life's fucked up. So how's yours? I hear you've been having it off with local Kings… I always knew you were that type Kagome. It's always the quiet ones… you naughty thing…"

Kagome shifted uncomfortably. "We all thought you were dead…"

"Same here." He smiled and moved over to grip the bars before her. "And yet here I am, alive, my heart beating… and here you are… alive and your heart beating a hundred times a minute. Nervous? Or are you afraid? Or is it something else?"

Kagome's fingers tightened together in anxiety. "I'm not afraid of you."

"Apparently." He watched her face intently. "In which case you're probably just incredibly aroused by the mere sight and presence of me. Isn't Bankotsu doing enough for you? You want a little extra on the side maybe?"

Kagome glared at him. "Knock that off – it isn't funny!"

"You're only getting defensive because I struck the truth now haven't I?" he snickered. "You want me. You always have wanted me, even though you've had so many good little boys offering for your hand. And you know why? Because deep down all women want the bad boy."

"You're not a bad boy." She stumbled over her words.

"No I'm just an ass, I know." He shrugged and rolled his eyes, turning away to pace the prison again. "All that ever spews from my mouth is insulting and garbage. I treat you like shit and you still crawl back to me. That's what I like about you, Kagome… you're totally boneless."

"That's what happens when you love a moron." Kagome told him quietly.

"Oh!" Inuyasha clapped his hands over his ears and collapsed to the floor. "You said it! You said that word! Oh the pain of my defiled ears from the purity of the word 'love'!"

He wasn't crying… he was laughing.

"Don't mock my feelings!" Kagome hovered between staying where she was and throwing open the door of the cage to choke him.

"Why, because you'll start crying again?" He snorted and gave up on his pain act. He looked up at her from his position on the floor and smirked. "Go ahead. You look good when you cry. Good enough to eat… mm… gives you a nice tangy salt flavour."

"Why do you do this?" she frowned at him. "Why do you taunt only me?"

"I don't see anyone else in here to taunt, do you?" he looked to the side. "Well, apart from that guy over there, but he isn't real so I can't really upset him."

Kagome followed his gaze but saw nothing. "You don't harass Sango… or any other girl… and you ignore the men. Why do you get a kick out of trying to scare me?"

He pressed a hand to his mouth to squash a laugh, before composing himself and dropping the hand to sit up. "Because you're so responsive, girl. Sango is too smart to let herself get upset over words and actions. Miroku wouldn't feel a thing – but you – all squishy and human inside. Push just the right buttons and you get all kinds of reactions. Am I right, girl?"

"So why all of a sudden are you calling me 'girl' instead of 'Kagome' like you did a minute ago?" Kagome remained determined to ignore his barbs. "Your managing to distance yourself from me all of a sudden because I'm unnerving you, aren't I? Really the only anxious one here is you. You're scared… of me… of your feelings for me… you only taunt me because I'm the only one who interests you. Am I right, boy?"

He stared at her before narrowing his eyes. "Your mind tricks won't work on me, witch. You can try and confuse me all you like but you are nothing. You flatter yourself thinking I like you. You want to hear the truth about how I feel about you? How I used to feel about you?"

Would his madness speak with honesty? She had no idea… she wasn't sure she wanted to know his feelings…

"I liked you. I liked you a lot." He rose slowly to his feet to glare down at her. "Not quite love, but nearly at that level."

"There is no level to love." Kagome said, a little waver in her voice as she spoke. "It's not a measurement, it's just a feeling. Like hate is a feeling. Like companionship is a feeling. Love is a different feeling from those."

"And you believe in love?" he smirked. "You're stupid."

"Why?" she snapped.

"Because believing in love is being a hypocrite." He stared her down, almost as if waiting for her to drop her gaze… to submit. "People like you get all starry eyed when they think they find their one true love, and demand them to say and show how much we all 'love' each other. It's like it's a condition. Your true love would have to say 'I love you' like a password or… or some kind of… something… and only then do you think the relationship is whole. It's like you think love is some highly sought after level of ascension or higher emotion when in fact it's just liking someone in friendship and in the romantic way."

Kagome narrowed her eyes at him.

"In which case maybe it's possible to be in love with six people at once." He leaned against the bars. "Or never at all. But then your type goes around exclaiming that you 'love' this dress, that you 'love' this particularly food with this particular sauce. You love sunsets and sunshine and little fluffy bunnies that hop around in fields all day. Would you want to 'make love' to a bunny because you love it?"

"Don't be disgusting." Kagome looked to the side, wishing she'd never come.

"Oh… the truth hurts…" he gripped his hand over his heart. "Tears you up just here, doesn't it?" he jabbed a thumb at his own head. "Tears me up in here too."

"This isn't the truth." Kagome looked up at him defiantly. "You're not yourself right now, what you say could be the opposite of how you normally feel."

"You'd like to believe that. But I'm the same person as I ever was… I just feel a little… loose-lipped right now." He laughed quietly. "You may not like what I say, but you listen because you do so love me very much… and you set yourself up for a knock down every time."

"What?"

His hand flashed out of the bars and grabbed the sash about her waist. She squeaked as she was suddenly tugged forward and pulled against the bars of the cage, finding herself paralleled to his body.

"Remember, I did this last time." He said calmly as she struggled to push away, using the bars as leverage. "You're so stupid. I'm obviously trying to hurt you, and you step willingly into my range like a moth to the flame every time."

Kagome stopped struggling and looked up at him. "You won't upset me."

"But you're shaking." They both looked down at her hands that held the bars tightly.

"True… because I missed breakfast downstairs and I feel a little faint. Sorry to disappoint you."

"Downstairs…?" Inuyasha suddenly frowned and he released her sash. Kagome stepped back slowly, moving out of range of his arms this time. "What else is downstairs, Kagome?"

"Uh…" she looked at him strangely. "The throne room…"

"What else?"

"The kitchens… the pantries, the servants quarters, the dining hall, the meeting room, the dungeons, the-"

"The cellars…" his gaze fell to the floor like he was looking through it. "Yes… that's where it's coming from."

"What…?" she frowned. "What's coming from where?"

"Wouldn't you like to know."

Kagome sighed. "I feel if I continue we'll just have the same conversation all over again."

He regarded her in an eerie silence until suddenly his gaze snapped to the door, moments before it slid open and Bankotsu stepped in. "Kagome, what are you doing in here?" he asked at once with a frown.

"Just… talking."

"She's planning to have an extra-marital affair with me." Inuyasha smirked at Bankotsu. "Isn't that exciting?"

"Thrilling." Bankotsu glanced at Kagome. "You should leave now."

Kagome seemed to hesitate before obeying and moving to the door with one last backwards glance at Inuyasha. He grinned at her. "Take care, Kagome."

Bankotsu didn't speak again until Kagome had closed the door after her. He stepped closer to the cage and smiled slowly. "How much do you know?"

"I know everything. I see everything. I talked to a woodsprite. She endowed all the knowledge of the universe on me – I know how the stars were born, I know that the world is actually rectangular, not square, and I know why your fingers always prune in the bath."

"All fascinating facts, I'm sure, but don't play games with me, Inuyasha." Bankotsu started to circle the cage. "I had Renkotsu lower the intensity of the talisman which is offsetting your mind. You're no longer of the raving, violent lunatic variety. More on the laid-back, what do I care side of insane now. You can understand me perfectly and answer me perfectly. So don't give me crap about the stars."

"What crap do you want then?" Inuyasha asked mildly, flopping onto the floor to watch the window again.

"Whatever crap you know about the Shichinin-tai."

"I know there are only three of you alive. Tops." Inuyasha squinted his eyes and identified patterns in the leaves of the trees.

"Wrong. Four."

"Wrong. Three." Inuyasha flashed him a brief look. "You, Suikotsu and the Renkotsu you just mentioned."

"And Jakotsu."

"Jakotsu is nothing more than a pile of dust and bones now." Inuyasha smiled slowly as he watched the window again. "I have to give it to him, he nearly delayed me coming back. But now he's about as dead as Kagome."

"Who isn't very dead." Bankotsu tapped one of the bars with a tight expression.

"Yeah, I noticed that. Strange…" Inuyasha shrugged it off. "I also know that there is something in this palace that is making me insane."

"Maybe because I just told you."

"I know where it is." Inuyasha smiled slowly. "The cellars, right?"

Bankotsu smirked back. "Perceptive little bastard aren't you?" he folded his arms. "Well, pity we'll probably kill you by nightfall. We'll make it look like suicide so Kagome won't panic."

Inuyasha grunted indifferently and turned his gaze to his hands, examining them as though he'd never seen them before.

"By the way, how do you feel about Kagome's marriage?" Bankotsu carried on smirking.

Inuyasha glanced at him disdainfully. "I suppose she could do better. I'm a little disappointed."

That brought a laugh from the Shichinin-tai's leader. "Disappointed? Hey, maybe I'll get Renkotsu to lift that curse just before we kill you so we can see your real reaction. That should be fun… you're a little too out of it to really understand, aren't you?"

Inuyasha shrugged again.

Bankotsu made his way to the door. "I'll see you again tonight… and slit your wrists and throat with your own claws."

"That's nice." Inuyasha called after him breezily and waited until the door was closed.

When he was confident that Bankotsu was definitely gone he shuffled over to the bars and ran his finger along one of the ofuda charms wrapped around a bar. There was no way he was going to peel it off with his own fair paws and so began looking around for something that wasn't made out of his body.

There was hardly anything in that room… apart from the two swords and they were out of reach. He sat pondering for a while, rapping his claws against the wooden floor as he tried to come up with some amazing genius plan.

Maybe if he could get a beaver to come along and chew the bars…?

His gaze fell to the floor and he counted the number of boards beneath him in the cage, and the number of ofuda pasted onto each. Sixteen boards… fourteen charms. He stopped and recounted, before realising that two of the boards weren't spellbound. There was no way he would fit through the gap, should he shatter them both… but the pieces of the board would be useful.

With that positive thought he slammed a hand through one of the unprotected boards and felt it shatter around his fist. He picked up one of the more pointy, large splinters of wood and started picking at the ofuda charms on the bars with its tip. As long as it wasn't actually Inuyasha who was touching the charms, they would come off easily. The wood had no youki… so ripping it off like a human would was a piece of cake.

Two bars was all he needed, and when the charms came off, he didn't waste any time knocking them out of the way and stepping out of the cage.

"Ah… freedom!" he sighed deeply and immediately went over to the wall to pick up the two swords. He half thought about leaving Toukijin… it wasn't a very useful sword compared to Tessaiga because of its evil properties. But it looked cool so he took it with him anyway.

It was a simple case of hopping out the window, off the balcony and over the palace wall without anyone seeing him. He had no idea where he was going, but he kept going until the headache had passed and he stood at the edge of the ravine that practically split the island into two halves. The one he was supposed to have fallen in and died. He was as far away from the palace as possible whilst still being in the Southern lands.

His mind gained clarity, and returned to normal functioning levels slowly but surely. And with it, good old anger returned with viscous realisation.

The nearest village with half a mile away from the gorge, and even several villages there heard the scream and looked up.

"I can't believe she married that asshole!!"

This scream was shortly followed by a loud boom that shook the ground like an earthquake.

There were now two small canyons running parallel to one another down the middle of the island. A permanent feature that no one ever understood how it came to be there.

^_^

"Hey Captain."

Mikato raised his eyes to look across the small throne room to where the King sat on the throne. King Suikotsu. What a joke. "Yes… your highness?"

"Don't give me that tone, bastard. Come here now." Suikotsu beckoned him forward. Mikato just sighed inwardly and obeyed.

"What is it?"

"This spy business… Inuyasha may have sent some before he was… dethroned." Suikotsu said with a scowl. "There may be a few in this palace that are loyal to him and not me or Bankotsu."

"You want me to find them and kill them for you?" Mikato guessed dryly.

"How many would you say there is?"

"Right now… about a hundred and seventy six?" Mikato suggested. A total lie. There were all of twenty two spies, Mikato included.

"Find them and kill them all." Suikotsu told him. "I don't want any lingering loyalties to dead royalty."

Mikato wasn't listening anymore. His eyes were on the person who had just thrown the doors open and was entering the throne room. The doors were behind Suikotsu, so he didn't immediately see who it was, but he heard the rude arrival and steady, unhurried footsteps coming forward. No one but the fourteen year old messenger boy had the gall to move like that in his presence.

"Ah, the fleet foot boy. What news have you brought from Bankotsu this time?" he asked without turning.

A blade flashed through the air with a hiss and Suikotsu's head rolled off his neck and onto the floor.

"He's a bone head, but I'm sure you already knew that." Inuyasha sheathed Tessaiga and carried on towards the throne through a room now filled with stock-still patrons. He pushed the dissolving corpse off the old stone chair and sat down. "Ah that's better… been on my feet all day…"

He leant his head back and closed his eyes for a moment as if resting, Toukijin hanging loosely from his left hand in a new scabbard, whilst Tessaiga remained at his left side. But then he blinked and lifted his head again. "Well? Aren't you going to welcome your new King?"

It was a dream come true… Kagome's dream come true.

AN: Might not be able to update this for a while, sorry about that. But when I do the next chapter is – 'Coming Clean'