Chapter 5
"INUYASHA!" I scream. I'm in a dream, I'm in a dream, I tell myself, but it doesn't work. The massive black cloud comes near me, laughing evilly.
Suddenly Inuyasha appears, sailing through the air and toward the cloud, Tetsaiga drawn and on the attack. He disappears into the mass, and I see him fall to the ground beneath it. I run to him, totally unheeding of the fact that he is beneath the very thing I am terrified of. When Inuyasha is hurt, I fear nothing except his death.
I fall to my knees beside him. "Inuyasha?" I whisper, pulling a strand of hair away from his cheek. One of his amber eyes cracks open.
"Kagome?"
"I'm here, Inuyasha."
"I knew he was attacking you, Kagome. I had to interfere. I couldn't watch you battle him on your own."
"I know."
"I know how you have to defeat him, Kagome."
I place my hand on his soft cheek. "How?"
"You have to release your fears."
"But, Inuyasha, that means you'll die!"
"Your fear's not keeping me alive, Kagome. It's your fear that's killing me."
I look up at the swirling, cackling mass above us. "But-"
"No buts, Kagome. Do it. I need you to. I need you. I love you." Inuyasha passes into unconsciousness and I stand, knowing that I needed to work quickly.
He loved me. The knowledge filled me with enough strength to defeat twenty thousand demons. I'm no longer afraid of his death. I relive my father's death, and in the closure I find courage.
The black cloud recedes some. I think of my grandfather's death which will come in the future, and know he'll be happy.
The cloud shrinks to a tiny spot above us. The cackling fades away. I look at it now and wonder why I was ever afraid of it. The little black dot pops and a Shikon Jewel shard falls into my open palm.
Inuyasha wakes up from his unconsciousness. He wraps me in his arms and kisses me. Kisses me until I feel as though I am deaf, blind, and utterly stupid.