Author's note : Thanks again for reading my fic ! Just one thing : you probably noticed that most of the story is Sesshomaru's POV. He's kind of the main character, but InuYasha will have a very important role too. Now let's read...

Chapter seven : We're ready for the burial

Unknown's POV

No lights. Dark. Everything black. No air. No up. No down. Nothing. Just black.

Hurt ? No. Well ? No. Nothing. No consciousness. No lights. No hope. No pain. Alone. Emptiness. Outside. Inside. No voice. No sight. Just black. Everywhere.

Scared ? No. Not feeling. Just waiting. For what ? Don't know. Just waiting. How long ? Don't care. Nothing else to do. Waiting...

No scent. Not like before. Many scents, before. Not now. Nothing. Don't care. Not feeling. Just waiting. In the dark. Alone.

Dead.

A noise. What is it ? Closer. Closer... Worried. Not normal. Scared... Feeling again. Closer... Scared. No lights. Just black. Everywhere. Alone. Closer... Waiting. Scared. Not normal. No more noise. Still scared. What is it ? Don't know... Fear. Feeling again. And pain. So much pain... Wanting to scream. No voice. Help...

"Help, big brother !"

Nothing. Just black...

Sesshomaru's POV

There it was. A village. The one he had been searching for. His brother was there. Well, his brother's body...

Sesshomaru was feeling nervous. Not that he would show it, of course. What would these humans think, seeing him at Inu-Yasha's burial ? Would they be scared ? Maybe he shouldn't go... "No way in Hell !" he thought. He didn't cared what others would think. He never had. He would be there, that they liked it or not. For Inu-Yasha. He had promised him he would come back to say goodbye.

Now he was feeling sad. He had never thought that goodbye could be such a sad word. He begun to walk toward the village. It was a bit late in the afternoon, but not evening yet. He was three hours earlier than what he had predicted. He could already pick up his brother's scent. Cloaked with death... He winced. There was many other scents, though, and it luckily appeased the feeling.

Rin was waiting for him, safely back at the camp with Jaken and Ah-Un. Saving her hadn't been that big of a deal for him. He had, just like Inu-Yasha had said, fell upon a strange dragon, its wings made of black and red feathers... and a spider-mark on its back. Roaring and spitting poison and fire, the creature had attacked him the moment he had come in sight. But one powerful swip of the Tokijin and Naraku's reincarnation had turned into dust. Like they say, the bigger they are, the hardest they fall... Or something like that...

Rin had run to him with teary brown eyes, gripping his pant leg with her little hands. His expression had not changed, but inside, he was relieved to see that she was alive and well. Afraid, but well. If he had lost her too...

Sesshomaru shook himself up. There was no need to think about that anymore. The past was the past...

He entered the village. Many villagers watched him pass. Some of them with curiosity, some others with suspicion, and a big bunch of them with fear. He didn't intend to kill them, but he didn't want to have anything to do with them either, so he just shot them a glare that said « annoy me and that's the last thing you'll ever do ». They apparently got the message, and quickly turned their heads away. Sesshomaru smirked.

But when he entered the small hut where his brother laid, the smirk vanished. Many eyes gazed at him : all of his brother's pack was there, plus an old miko he had never seen before. But he paid no attention to them ; the only thing he could see was the deceased hanyou lying on a couch just a few feet away. Inu-Yasha was... beautiful. There was truly no other words. He looked like... a sleeping angel. Sesshomaru was so sure that he would just wake up and smile at him like only angels could. When it didn't happen, he felt like all the air had been drained from his lungs. It was burning, hurting like Hell, clenching his throat, lacerating his heart... On the outside, his cold barrier was still holding, but it was crackling. "I will not break before these humans !" he decided. With pure force of will, he controlled himself. He gave a more general glance around him ; the miko was kneeled beside his brother, while the others were sitting all around them. The monk was the first to speak :

- We were waiting for you, Sesshomaru-sama. We're... ready for the burial.

His voice had trembled a little, the dog demon noticed. Not like he cared, anyway... But then what the monk had just said registered in his mind ; ready... for the burial. Of his brother. Inu-Yasha's burial. "NO !" something in his soul yelled, "Don't bury him ! If you do, it'll be really over ! He'll never come back, never !" Sesshomaru knew it. He couldn't... he couldn't... not so soon... they had just made up... he didn't want to lose him a second time... Time... Sesshomaru tried to calm down. That was exactly what he needed : time. Just a little bit more...

The emotionless mask still on, he said firmly :

- I wish to have some time alone with him. Get out.

It wasn't a demand, but an order. The young miko looked angrily at him, offended, and was about to give him a flat refusal when suddenly, the taijya interrupted her :

- Fine. Take your time. We'll be outside, so come and tell us when you're done.

He curtly nodded. The woman then put a friendly and soothing hand on Kagome's shoulder and calmly dragged her outside. The others followed just behind without a word.

Sesshomaru walked toward Inu-Yasha's body, feeling unnaturally heavy. He practically collapsed beside the hanyou. He observed him for a moment, then he looked around the room ; there was no one now, they were alone... He could remove his mask... and he did. His face relaxed, and so as his entire body. But the second after that, he started to tremble uncontrollably. Too much... this was too much... Too many emotions were rumbling inside him, demanding to break free... They were choking him... He had to hold them, he couldn't break... couldn't break... Not him... But when he looked at his little brother again, his golden eyes closed forever... Sesshomaru's barrier finally shattered.

He felt warmth on his cheeks. Tears. He was... crying. He didn't know he could cry. He had thought it impossible. Demons don't cry. He dug his claws in his palm, little droplets of blood falling to the ground. Trying to make the tears stop. It didn't worked. Now that the flood had been released, it would not stop until it was dried up. Sesshomaru then found out that it was a lot easier to just let the tears fall... so he did it. He bent down and brung Inu-Yasha to his chest, like when the hanyou was dying. He held on to him tightly and silently cried until he had no more tears to shed. Then, he put his forehead on Inu-Yasha's and whispered :

- I love you, little brother.

He laid him down again. Closing his eyes, he added :

- Sleep peacefully, Inu-Yasha. I think... I'm ready to bury you, now.

- Oh I don't think so, a voice suddenly said behind him.

Sesshomaru whirled round to see who had spoke and nearly had a seizure.

For behind him, in a halo of ligth, transparent (!), was standing... his father.

A/N : Well now we got a development ! The next chapter will be a little more interesting...