InuYasha sat by Kagome's head. He couldn't tell what was wrong with her. Sango had said she'd be all right, but she was feverish and restless. He adjusted her blanket for the hundredth time that night, hoping to the gods that she'd be fine. He couldn't bear to see her like this. She muttered and groaned in her sleep, and she was only awake long enough the have bitter medicines poured down her throat. Tonight was another sleepless night for him, as well. He watched her while she slept, and only rested when Sango came to care for the girl, which was less and less often. She was approaching her due date.
She knew someone was caring for her, but she didn't know who. She heard familiar voices, but she couldn't remember who they belonged to. She was trapped in the muddle of forever sleep, and she wanted out. But deep down in her cottony thoughts, she knew it was going to be a long while before she got better. Deep inside herself, she was crying. It was a terrible sadness, a terrible longing that she'd held closed for as long as she could. All she wanted to do was see him one more time…
He replaced the cloth on her forehead with a cool one from the basin on the table. She fretted and turned, causing the cloth to slip off again. He fixed it, and resumed his position by her head. Almost unconsciously, the hanyou began to run his hand through her hair in a single, smooth movement. She relaxed a bit, and then, for the first time in at least a fortnight, she mumbled something that wasn't totally incoherent.
"Can't- can't forget…"
He wondered what was going through her head, what she'd meant about not forgetting. He didn't dare hope it was him, because of course, she'd have forgotten him by now. He continued stroking her hair, until she fell into a deeper, more relaxed sleep. He was tired, too, for he'd been awake for a full six days and nights. Even a half-demon could not spend that long without sleep. Lacking the energy to give it a second thought, he moved to the entrance of the hut and dropped on the dirt floor like a sack of rice. He fell asleep almost before he hit the ground.
It was all a dream, a beautiful dream, one that she could not distinguish from reality. In it, she was in love, and it was a wonderful feeling. Time went by in a blur, days, weeks, months, years, and her lover's face began to vanish from her memory. She struggled to remember; it was someone she knew well. But it escaped her like water escapes through open fingers. "Can't- can't forget…" But she could not bring it back. A sharp stab of pain came to her, and she realized that it was because he wasn't close to her. But who was he? Why did she feel a profound sense of loss, a sense longing for the one she… loved? She became frustrated, but that feeling was a frequent visitor and she paid it no mind.
He stirred slightly when he felt the girl wake up. But as he stood and stretched, he realized that she was not really waking up; she was coming into the semi-conscious state during which he was able to give her medicine. He sighed and fed her a bright red paste that Sango said would bring her back from her sleep. It was only after he was done that his mind wandered back to the old days. Back when they had fought together, back when she had needed protecting, back when he could see her more often than not, and back when she was in love with him. He hadn't known it at the time; it was after she left that he was able to interpret her anger when he was with Kikyo, her deep, heart-shattering sighs, and her lonely, silent nighttime tears. He lay back at the entrance to the hut, with his own soul feeling like it was going to shrivel and die.
If she wasn't all right, he wouldn't be, either.