A/N: For those who were wondering, I have solved my Final Fantasy problem with a simple solution—die. Die horribly. So, what do I do? Set the game's level to hard, of course. Since I can't stand losing, I threw the controller down and decided to quit for a while.

(I'll probably be back within the day, though.)

Chapter 28: Nightmare of the Heart

Kagome shook in her sleep with the fright of her nightmare. Sweat rolled off her forehead as she clenched her fists, giving a soft moan as the dream raged on. Kagome bit her lip, trying not to scream out, as her eyes flickered back and forth beneath her eyelids, her heart pounding in her chest.

"No…please…" she moaned. "Not like this…" she gave a small cry, like she was in pain, and then rolled over in sleep, giving another sharp gasp as her back pained her.

Yet she did not wake, the dream kept on, the horror kept playing before her in her mind, the worst nightmare she had ever had. Tears misted in her eyes and fell on to her cheeks, as Kagome let out a soft whimper. "No…I don't want…can't be…"

The hanyou's ears perked up at that, and he groggily opened one amber eye. Kagome? They were all asleep in Kaede's hut, everyone silent with slumber, except for Kagome, who was lost deep within her mind.

Another tear fell from Kagome's closed eyelids. "Not Inuyasha…please don't…I want to save you…"

Inuyasha opened both of his eyes and perked up, watching Kagome as she cried within her sleep. She's dreaming…

Kagome gripped her sleeping bag tighter as she murmured, "Inuyasha…I love you…I'm sorry…" More tears escaped her eyes as she whimpered.

Inuyasha crawled next to her, intent on waking her up. He couldn't stand to see her dreaming like this anymore; his ears had dropped all the way on his head. Placing a hand on his shoulder, he murmured, "Come on Kagome, I'm right here, wake up."

Suddenly, Kagome let out a sharp scream, "Inuyasha!"

Everyone jerked awake at that, Miroku and Sango especially, whom had been sleeping next to each other, Miroku's hand very close to her rear end. "Kagome-chan!" Sango asked, as everyone crowded around her, to find her awake and panting with fear.

Kagome only paid attention to Inuyasha, who's face in the moonlight was as pale as death. "Kagome," assured Inuyasha in a calm voice. "It's all right, I'm here. Are you okay?"

Seeing him there only made more tears sprout from her eyes. "Inuyasha…" she cried, sitting up enough to crumple in his arms. "It was…I had to…you were…" she whimpered, unable to finish any sentence through the wave of tears.

The others in the room drew back as Inuyasha held her close, running his fingers through her hair as he hugged her. "Kagome, it's all right, I'm right here. It was just a dream. It's over now."

He held her closer, resting his chin on top of her head, enveloping her in his protecting embrace. "Don't ever leave me." She whimpered, burying her face in his haori.

"I won't. I promise." He whispered,trying to calm her downbut he knew, in his heart, that he was lying.

"Kagome?" Asked Inuyasha, the next day. They were eating their midday meal in Kaede's hut, after Kagome was pronounced fit to get out of bed, and Kagome had suddenly seemed lost in thought. She didn't even answer Inuyasha when he called her name. "Kagome?" he asked again, placing a hand on her shoulder, which suddenly woke her from her thoughts.

She blinked for a second, and then seemed to notice him. "Inuyasha? What do you want?" she asked innocently.

Inuyasha sighed, his ears drooping. He knew she had been thinking of the dream the night before. She hadn't said a word as to what happened within it, only that he knew it had frightened her more than anything he had seen before. He wanted to ask her about it, but he knew he couldn't now, not in front of everyone else.

"Kagome, can I talk to you for a moment?" he asked, his amber eyes full of concern.

She paused for a moment, curious as to the look in Inuyasha's eyes. "Sure." Kagome replied, still cautious. "What is it?"

Inuyasha glanced back at Miroku and Sango. "No, not here." He said sharply. "I mean, outside."

That got the monk's attention. "Oh, you have something to say to her outside, eh, Inuyasha?" Miroku had his lecherous grin once again. "Sometimes I envy you—"

Though the hanyou was fuming, he was spared beating the monk thoroughly when there was a loud smack! "Houshi-sama!" roared Sango. "You should be ashamed of yourself!"

The monk attempted to save himself from his grisly fate by saying, "N-now Sango dear, it was only a joke, I didn't really mean it, I know Inuyasha wouldn't be that blunt—"

There was another loud thwack! as his betrothed smacked him upside the head once again. Shippou the kitsune shook his head as Miroku nursed the two bumps on his head and tried to make it up to an angry Sango. "Baka."

Kagome and Inuyasha had escaped when Miroku and Sango were fighting. He led her away from the village, onto a hill overlooking it. He motioned for her to sit down next to him. "Kagome," he asked, his face still holding that look of concern. "What happened in that dream you had the night before?"

That question caught her by surprise. Her eyes looked away from him, turning sad with the memory. It didn't escape his notice that she absent-mindedly touched the mating scar on her left hand. "It was terrible." She finally replied, her voice low. Kagome took a shaky breath as she said, "Inuyasha…you were…" Her brown eyes, misting up with unshed tears, looked into his. "You were a youkai again. A-and you hurt me. Then you," she gulped, blinking away tears. "You left me, never coming back."

Inuyasha's heart sunk a little at seeing her inner torment. He had never seen how much pain she had been in because of his transformation. She was still terrified of the idea of him returning to that state. His ears drooped slightly as he wrapped one arm around her, pulling her into his embrace. "Kagome…" he said softly, holding her close.

"I'm sorry, Inuyasha." Kagome cried. "I've tried to be strong, I tried to hide it from you, but...that time, I was afraid that you wouldn't ever come back to me. I couldn't reach your heart anymore...and that scared me."

Inuyasha nuzzled his nose into her black hair, inhaling her sweet scent. Her scent was always able to calm him; to make him feel at ease. He wondered how he could have gone for that long without her beautiful scent beside him. But with her scent, came a layer of his from when he had marked her as his mate. That caused a slight pang within his heart when he remembered that everything had happened because he had mated with her in the first place.

"Kagome," he replied, "I told you I won't leave you. I'd rather die than become a youkai again, but—" He stopped himself abruptly. He had almost done it; he had almost told her that the youkai was still inside of him. But he couldn't tell her, not now, not ever. Not when he knew it would frighten her away from him. His brain fought furiously over the matter.

I should tell her, I should tell her right away, but I can't…It'll upset her. But if I don't tell her, there's a possibility that I could—He glanced down at the girl in his arms. I don't want that to happen either. What am I going to do about this?

Inuyasha made up his mind. I'll keep on fighting it, harder than I ever have before…for Kagome.

Kagome glanced up at Inuyasha, wiping the tears out of her eyes. Inuyasha caressed her cheek, a small smile on his face. "Kagome, you know I could never leave you willingly…I always want to be with you."

She nodded, looking down. "I know, Inuyasha. I know you don't want to leave me, but I'm always afraid…I can't help it, but I'm always afraid that you will. You were gone for so long—" with that, she took a deep breath, memories flocking to her. "I just never got over it."

"Baka." Inuyasha said suddenly, unable to keep from a snort.

"Baka!" Kagome yelled, grabbing on to his hair. "How am I a baka?"

The silver haired hanyou kept laughing, not at all to Kagome's amusement. "You're a baka if you'd think I'd ever consider leaving you! Kagome, I told you before how much I can't live without you. I told you how I want to spend the rest of my life with you," He gripped her by the shoulders, drawing her closer. "Kagome, don't you think I want to live with you in our own little hut and raise children too?"

Kagome's eye's sparkled as she couldn't believe what she was hearing. The sadness was gone, and with his proclimation, her heart did a complete turn in her emotions. She only knew his amber eyes, those eyes that she drowned in whenever he looked at her like that, those deep, beautiful golden eyes that she fell in love with. "Inuyasha…"

"I need you, Kagome." Inuyasha told her. "I've said it so many times, and each time it's true. I need you around me more than anyone else."

She could only nod once more, as she fell into the spell of his eyes. "Promise me you'll never leave."

A grin caught the hanyou's face. "If you promise to never 'sit' me again."

"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled, annoyed, yet her smile was brighter than the sun shining down upon them. "You stubborn baka."

They drew closer, unable to stop. "Keh, you stupid, emotional woman." Inuyasha muttered, drawing her into his arms, and finally kissing her.

Kagome kissed him back, one hand on his chest, and the other reaching up to sneakily rub his ear. Instead of Inuyasha pulling away, this only served to intensify their passions, Inuyasha deepening the kiss as Kagome gave a slight gasp. For both of them, this was heaven, being back in each other's arms, being loved, after having been apart for so long. It seemed like ages since the last time they had kissed without having to worry about anything; ages since all they could think about was the unending depth of love they had for one another.

Kagome felt Inuyasha wrap his arms around her back, forgetting her scar, and she winced in a slight pain, but didn't jerk away as he pulled her closer. Her arms snaked around his neck, making them even closer, so close that they could feel the rise and fall of each other's chest against their own. Their heats pounded as one, beating to the tune of their passion.

Kagome, his mate, was back in his arms again. And Inuyasha felt the same desire he had for her start to unfold within him. He felt the urge to touch her, to stroke her, wanting to feel her soft skin, and at the height of their kiss, his hands pushed up her shirt to feel the small of her back.

But the second his fingertip grazed over the scar he had given her as a youkai, everything changed.

The red eyes flashed in his mind, and at the same time, he heard a deep growl, but he didn't know if it had been him or the vision he was having. He pushed Kagome away, hearing her gasp as she landed hard on the grass, and he shrank away from her, his ears flattening against the mad growling he heard in his mind.

Kagome ran up to him, "Inuyasha? Inuyasha, what's wrong?"

He gritted his teeth and closed his eyes, trying to control the youkai within him, but it was no use, it was stronger than before, pushing his hanyou aside with ease. He heard his heart pound louder in his chest, he felt a lust for blood swirl inside of him, and he became more and more aware that Kagome was beside him, in the line of danger. "Ka...gome…get…away…"

Kagome only knelt next to him, a hand on his back as he had fallen to the ground on all fours, trying to keep his sanity. Her brown eyes looked at him in concern. "Inuyasha, what's wrong, what's happening?"

Inuyasha bit his lip, feeling it start to bleed with growing fangs, but they suddenly shrunk. He was fighting it harder than he ever had. Kagome…stay a hanyou for Kagome!

"Inuyasha?" she asked once more, when he turned to look at her. She gasped when she saw his youkai eyes, staggering backward with shock. "Inuyasha, the youkai! It's still—"

He turned his head away, once again clenching his eyes shut. Think of Kagome! When he looked back at her, his eyes were their normal hue. "Kagome…sorry." He said, his face strained with his internal battle. "I should have told you…but I couldn't bear—" He cut off, nearly collapsing on to the ground, his hands formed into fists, growling in pain.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked, coming closer, but then gasping when she didn't hear a reply. "Inuyasha!"

Inuyasha didn't look back at her, but his voice was normal when he said, full of worry, "Ka…gome! Get back!"

"No!" she said, determinedly, running up to him. "I won't leave you!" she gripped on to him, hoping it would keep him as a hanyou.

Inuyasha growled again, his claws growing long, and then shrinking, as he stood between his youkai and hanyou sides His voice changed from the soft one he had as a hanyou, and the low, deep one he had as a youkai. "If you don't get out of here…you'll get hurt!"

Tears formed in Kagome's eyes, as she shook her head, still holding on to him. "I don't care! I won't leave! Not when I can stop you!"

Inuyasha looked at her once more, his eyes flashing from red to gold and back again "Kagome, don't—" He begged.

He was cut off as she begged, desperately, hugging him despite the danger. "Inuyasha, don't do this! Please don't!"

Inuyasha felt his heart sink as his hanyou was being pushed aside. The youkai was stronger. It was winning. He felt himself want for her blood, every time he wanted to stay a hanyou for her; it pushed him further towards being a youkai "I…can't…" He shook her off him, Kagome falling back.

"No, please—" She cried, though her heart was sinking. Inuyasha was leaving. Forever.

Inuyasha fought to keep his voice at the same level. He gave one last look at her, with his amber eyes, looking at her with love. "I'm…sorry…" He collapsed on to the grass, handsclutching his head,hearing the growling escalate inside of him, seeing the youkai eyes. He saw everything, the people he had killed, himself hurting Kagome. And the blood, the endless amount of blood. Dripping off of dead men, pooling on the ground, smiling at it as it was on his fingers, the taste of it on his lips. With that, he felt himself fall into darkness. But he gave a final plea. No...please…don't kill Kagome…

Inuyasha gave one last cry of pain, one last struggle, and then there was silence. He lay still.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked, timidly. But he didn't move. She came closer, only to see a motionless body. A gasp caught in her throat, only to be replaced by tears. Inuyasha… She reached out a hand to touch him, just to see if he was still alive— Please, Inuyasha, be all right…please be okay…

Suddenly, Inuyasha jumped up, snarling at her. His eyes were red, there were purple streaks on his face—he had transformed back into a youkai, with insanity swirling in those crimson depths. "Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed.

A/N: Sharp, pointy objects may be thrown at this time.

I actually can think of nothing to say that wouldn't get more pointy objects thrown at me…just read the next two chapters…