I do not own Inuyasha or anyone else…they belong to Rumiko Takahashi. I own everything else . Read On! PS: thanks for the support.

Sweet Dreams

Ch. 9

Sesshoumaru watched as Yume limped back out of his office. He was strangely interested in the question she had asked. Perhaps too much. He shrugged it off and went back to his paperwork.

Well, at least he tried to. He stood up and walked over to the wall, moved the coo coo clock out of the way and opened up a little safe. (bright idea, huh) He pulled out a really old book with it's binding breaking on the sides. He replaced the coo coo clock and sat in his chair again. His big leather one. Somehow it felt like he was still in control, just like his dad.

The book wasn't just a book. It was an album. Because his father was so well known, Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha never wanted for anything and always got the things that wouldn't be in existence for years to come. He opened the album and flipped through the pages.

There was a picture of his father, tall and regal in his armor. The next page was his father in his true demonic form. Who had taken these pictures? He flipped to the next page and got his answer. His father was in a mirror image as the one who was holding the camera took a picture from behind him. Smiling, it was Inuyasha's mother. His father looked peaceful and had actually smiled warmly. He never saw his father let down his guard to anyone. Had he really loved Inuyasha's mother?

He just didn't understand it. How could, in all these years of hating Inuyasha and his mother have no reason? He felt lower than low when he began to think even more. Inuyasha was never in the wrong. All those fights, verbal and physical had been Sesshoumaru's wrongdoing. No wonder Inuyasha never asked for his help, even if he would give it.

He frowned and flipped to the next page, wondering what the other pictures held. He never once looked at the album, it was his father's. He was so angry at his father for taking a human and breeding with her to even care about anything else but his hate. He looked at the next few pages to know more about what his life was or could have been like.

One picture was his father and Inuyasha's mother in the park. He figured Inuyasha must have taken the picture because of the crookedness. His brow arched as he saw his father sit at a bench and watched the birds in the trees. Inuyasha's mother was standing and feeding them with crumbs and seed. Such bliss made his stomach knot. Would he ever know what his father knew?

His father had been wise. Strong and deviant against any rules, and made up his own. Sesshoumaru went by the law…most of the time. Today was an exception. He just didn't know why he would blow the low profile over Yume. He shook his head and flipped more.

The next picture was strange. Yume was in it. But how? Taking the picture off the page, he studied it. Inuyasha had fallen and Yume was helping him up. Sesshoumaru flipped the picture around and read it.

"Yume and Inuyasha, 1834"

Inuyasha KNEW who she was! He had to find him and ask why he didn't say anything.

Sesshoumaru bolted out of the room quickly, not looking at the next few pictures that had shown Yume in a floral printed casket, looking as heavenly as she did back then. Or the piece of parchment that said she was killed by saving a man. He would have never thought it was him even if he had seen it.

Sesshoumaru found Inuyasha in the training room, beating up a figure that looked vaguely like Sesshoumaru. He frowned. "Inuyasha." he said calmly, forgetting the straw dummy.

Inuyasha stopped and looked at his brother, "What? Got someone else for me to throw?"

Sesshoumaru shook his head, "No. I have a question and you know what the answer is."

Inuyasha's brows furrowed. What was this all about? "Well, spit it out so I can fight you more." he nodded to the dummy.

Sesshoumaru flicked the picture at him and Inuyasha caught it, looking at it strangely. His eyes showed knowing and understanding. He knew what Sesshoumaru would ask. "Yes, I know who she is." he said and flipped the picture around. "Yume and Inuyasha, 1834." he read, "That's a year before she died." he said and handed it back to him. "Didn't you recognize her?" Inuyasha asked and Sesshoumaru looked at him like he was mad.

"No, should I have?"

"Hell yea you should have!" Inuyasha blanched and then neared Sesshoumaru, "Where did you find that picture, anyway?"

"In an album father had." Sesshoumaru answered, looking down at his brother.

"Show me. And I'll show you what happened." Inuyasha said after a brief silence.

Sesshoumaru led him to his office and pointed to the desk. Inuyasha took the album in his hands and flipped another page, pointing at the pictures. "She died, Sesshoumaru."

Sesshoumaru didn't know Yume had limped in and was sitting down in the corner, shaking. He wasn't aware of her scent or energy since he was too bent on finding out who she was.

Sesshoumaru flipped open the obituary and read it aloud:

"Yume Ittoshi is deceased now after saving a 16 year old boy from demons. Throwing herself in front of the deadly blasts, she sacrificed herself in his place. Little Sesshoumaru was found shortly afterwards, shaking her to get up. His father and stepmother have made a service available to be at the Shrine in Nuyio at dusk, in the candlelight." he paused and looked at the picture. The candles shown off her pale face in the floral designed casket. "Yume…" his breath caught, "The girl! The girl that made me laugh when I had nothing to laugh about!"

Inuyasha lifted a brow and caught sight of Yume, not telling Sesshoumaru and pointed at the paper in his brother's hands. "Read."

Sesshoumaru nodded and looked back at the paper, "Yume left no known relatives and no one knew who to call for to have her buried in her own place of comfort. However, the Dog Lord has taken care of her burial grounds near the Shrine near his home. Blessings to the Dog Lord and his kin. April 15, 1935."

Sesshoumaru frowned, "The dog lord?" he looked to Inuyasha.

"Dad, Sesshoumaru. They didn't want anyone to look at him badly because of the name. They called him the dog lord to try to soothe over his kindness." Inuyasha answered and flipped to the back of the album, "You didn't remember her?"

"I did. But, she was gone. I never smiled again after that. I was…I thought that if I had smiled again, the reason would die. So I forgot to smile." Sesshoumaru answered, almost in a trance.

Inuyasha was floored. Sesshoumaru never told him about his personal feelings. "Hey, calm down. I'm sure Yume knew you'd find out sooner or later. Well, sooner rather than later." he said and pointed to the book, "Yume when we first found her in 1832."

Sesshoumaru looked down at the girl in the picture. Frail and tiny, Yume had a dress with ribbons and strings of silk flaring around her body as she lay motionless. He remembered the colors again. The periwinkle of the overlap and the lilac of her dress. The ribbons were salmon while the strings of silk were transparent, almost white. He sighed and shook his head, "Why didn't I know her when I saw her?" he picked up the picture and looked at it more. Her hair was disheveled and her feet were worn. She had been running, fast it seemed. Why?

Then he caught it. The scent of her. Turning abruptly, he saw her catch her eyes as she looked up quickly. "Yume…" he breathed and she shot up to her feet and ran, her cast breaking in the sprint as she neared the door. She looked at him as he ran for her. "Wait a second!" he called but she ran out the door before he got to her.

He burst open the door and didn't see her. But he smelt her. And with her scent, he would find her. He followed her scent and went to the garden. The weeds were all gone and it was as his mother had left the garden so long ago. She was running down the steps to the river when he saw her. With his demonic traits and markings appearing again, he let out his speed to full blast. He just had to catch her. Skidding past her and stopping in front of her quickly, she didn't stop. She just couldn't.

She smacked right into him and they tumbled down the steps to the bottom, Sesshoumaru trying his best not to hurt her, wrapping his arms around her quickly as they hit the bottom. Her body battered and bruised under him. He looked at her quickly and felt her pulse. The beat was so fast, he thought her heart would pop out, smack him and run off without her. Ok, so maybe not that fast but still pretty fast.

He picked her up and in a moment, her dress appeared again. Only, instead of periwinkle, it was midnight blue. Instead of lilac, it was a soft baby blue. Instead of salmon, it was a navy blue and instead of transparent it was black. What was happening? "Yume?" when she started to fade away, he held her tighter. "Yume!"

Her eyes bolted open, no longer the soft color but a distant dark blue, midnight like her dress and it seemed she held the stars in them with a glossy look. He never saw anything more beautiful. "Yume…" he said in a hushed whisper.

She looked at him strangely, "Sesshoumaru." she answered.

He knelt down and held her closer, afraid that if he let go, she'd vanish. She was no longer fading but he didn't want to take the chance.

She looked at him. "You…remember." it was a statement, not a question. "Now I must go."

"Why?" he looked up, his face in utter terror. She never saw Sesshoumaru lose his cool before. But it was scary when he did.

"You must never know that I am alive, never. I must die again." she looked away as his eyes widened.

"I won't let you." he ground out and she looked at him, quickly.

"But you must. Angels and demons should never know that they can work harmoniously. It is against the will of the Mother."

"No, I am not going to go through another hell because I found a bit more of heaven. It's not happening, Yume. You are not going to die and I am going to smile a lot more because of that fact." he said, almost as an oracle would.

She smiled, warmly. Touching his cheek with her hand, "It was nice to be friends with you again." she kissed him gently and stepped away.

"Yume…" he choked, nearing her again.

A dark aura came from behind her as she looked at him, smiling and yet he knew she was afraid. Damn! He wouldn't let another being hurt her!

"Sesshoumaru, before I go, I must tell you a story." she said quietly and he stopped closing in to her.

"A story?"

She nodded, "It is one of great triumph. Of great loyalty and of friendship." she answered softly.

He stood there, waiting for her to continue.

"When I was tossed before your father and Inuyasha's mother, I was unconscious to an extent." he looked at her strangely, "I heard them. As they say, when you are unconscious, you can hear the ones around you. Know what they say, good or bad. Hopefully good. Your father knew what I was, Sesshoumaru. A fallen angel."

"Why? What did you do?"

"I told the Mother that I did not want to be angelic, I wanted to love. I wanted to be loved and have friends and not just because we had to be nice and caring. I wanted to know what it was like to be a normal being." she laughed a bit, "Normal, it's far from what I would describe." she shook her head, "But abnormalities make you normal." she said and continued, folding her hands in front of her, "He took me in, taught me to be a bit more open, have a heart of pure gold and yet fight for what I felt was right. It was a rule your father always lived by."

He nodded, knowing what she meant. "He loved your mother, and yet he loved Inuyasha's mother, Sesshoumaru. Just because you love one, doesn't mean you can't love another. I love Inuyasha as a brother but you…you are much more." she confided and he felt her pain ooze from her, "Your father loved both of your mothers equally and knew that you would hate Inuyasha for years to come and one day, perhaps you would accept him by knowing the real him. Half is just a part of you. Half is just a part of Inuyasha. You are half of the man your brother is." she said affirmatively and Sesshoumaru knew she was right.

"Your brother has been ridiculed, by demons and humans alike. Even his own brother." she looked away, "I could not feel but his pain. Did you know…" she looked back at him, "He'd ask his mother what a half breed is? Did you know she would cry and he didn't understand when he was younger. She knew what he'd be going through and yet, he didn't. And you…" her face softened to pity, "You of all beings, a demon, shunned him. Your own brother. You're younger brother." she emphasized "younger."

He looked down in shame, "He looked up to you and you brushed him away. He may be a half demon but it isn't anyone's fault because your father and his mother fell in love. The only reason he's your half brother is because you make it that way. He is your brother no matter what and that's never going to change, Sesshoumaru. It never has, never will. You must let go of the hate for his mother and him if you ever want a life where you can love and be loved by another, produce young and everything else that you could possibly want. The important things are not what your brother is, but -who- you and him are." she frowned, "He knows the difference between right and wrong. He knows he loves Kagome. He knows, one day, he'll mate her. But he doesn't want to hurt her. He wants her to come to him one day and tell him that she loves him. Tell him that there is not another that she'd rather be with." she said quietly.

"I do not have that choice. From the day I was cast out of the heavens, I didn't have that choice. I could never fall in love with a demon. And because I did, I will die. But just a simple smile from you and that's all worth it. I know I'll come back." she said affirmatively.

He looked at her strangely, "But…"

"Why?" she ended his speaking by cutting in, "The story is this. A demon cannot know that an angel can help them and die in the process. You must find happiness, you must find love and then if you find out what we are, we die. Demons and angels cannot live in harmony if the demon knows what we are. It is not the will of the Gods."

"I don't give a damn about the will of the Gods." they both looked up to Inuyasha who was overhearing this all. He walked down the steps and glared at the both of them, "You love him, he loves you, yippee for you two. The will of the Gods doesn't make sense. Why can an angel know but a demon not?"

She looked away, "I cannot tell you that."

"Because the angel is pure." Kagome said, overhearing Inuyasha's question. "An angel can distinguish between love and hate, jealousy and lust, killing and living." she said and then looked to Sesshoumaru, "She can stay if someone knew what to say."

"What do you mean?"

Miroku hit him on the head gently with his staff, in full monk attire. "You must say what she needs to hear before she dies off."

"He will not know what to say." Yume said sadly. "He wouldn't. I cannot tell him. No one can. It's a lost cause."

Then he remembered something. The song she sang. Not the one when she was cleaning, but the one that she sang when she died for him.

Flashback

She hadn't died quickly, she suffered in his arms as tears had streamed his face. "Yume, please don't go." he choked on his words.

She had smiled warmly, the smile he'd never forget as she wiped his tears away with one hand, the other severely burnt from the fire magic against her, "Dear Sesshoumaru, do not cry. Remember I will always be around. I will never leave you."

He tried to gain his cool back and held her to him. His friend. His comrade. His love. He couldn't believe it. The revelation had just occurred as she was dying in his arms. "Oh Yume…" he breathed in her hair, "Please don't leave."

"I won't." she said weakly, "I'll stay by your side forever…" she began to sing. He loved when she sang. Her voice was of the heavens…

"Eternity will live on and I'll never leave you ever…" she coughed some, closing her eyes, "I'll care for you and these promises, I'll make come true…" she was fading fast. She tried to shush her to gain her energy a bit more, but she had refused. "I'll be yours forever, and I'll hold you in my heart, protecting you…I'll be sure to make your dreams come true." her eyes fluttered one last time at him as he felt her go limp in his arms.

"YUME!" he refused to leave her side when his father and stepmother found him. He wouldn't let her go. He was distraught and hated everything after her death.

End

That's where he heard the song. Not the exact words but…it's the song of the fallen angels. He knew it! It had to be! He had to think of the song, there is something he missed. It had to be the song.

"Goodbye for a little while, Sesshoumaru. I will return again." she promised as she started to fade.

"No! Yume!" he ran for her and grabbed her arms, "I'll be sure to make your dreams come true." he whispered and her eyes widened as he took possession of her lips.

Sango ran down and tripped, "EEEEEE!" Miroku caught her and looked at her strangely.

"What?" he asked.

"You aren't…groping me?"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes and then looked at the look Kagome gave him. "What? you're not going to go all Kikyo on me again, are you? You aren't gonna shoot me?"

She smiled and hugged him. "No."

The black aura covered Yume and Sesshoumaru and he refused to let her go. She looked up at him after he ended the kiss, "How…did you know?"

"I didn't." he said truthfully and she looked skeptical, "I winged it."

She laughed as the aura disappeared, throwing her arms around his shoulders. "I love you Sesshoumaru." she whispered.

He took her into his arms, squeezing her tightly, "I'll never let you go again."

"It is the promise you kept." she said silently and he looked at her strangely, "You promised to keep me safe and not let me go when you were young. Since you couldn't protect me back then, you did so now."

"Protect you?" he blinked and tried to remember. "How…"

Flashback

Yume and Sesshoumaru were walking in the forest, talking. "Sesshoumaru, what flower do you like the most?" she asked as the trees were in full bloom.

He loved her smile. It was pure bliss and he had to think of her question a bit. "I suppose the willow." he shrugged.

She laughed, "The willow is not a flower, it is a tree."

Smooth, Sesshoumaru, smooth. He felt like an idiot. "Well it's a nice tree." he said, feeling like an idiot.

She smiled, "Yes it is. Why do you like it so much?"

He stopped by the river and pointed to the branches on one a few feet away, "It looks as if it's crying over one they've lost. I guess, since my mother passed on, the willow has opened my eyes to show me that I'm not the only one that loses whom they love."

She smiled at his words, "You are very wise, Sesshoumaru." she said softly and he looked at her. His eyes weren't cold or harsh as they usually were when anyone else was around. When he was with her, they softened like buttermilk pancakes. Soft and home warming.

"I am only wise because of my experiences." he said.

"And you have had many." she smiled and took his hand. "Come with me. I will show you my world." she said softly.

He nodded, trusting her with everything he was. Everything he never was. Just everything. She started to sing softly as she took him to the water, stepping on it, not in it, on it. He was bewildered.

"When you trust the one you love, you understand there is nothing to be afraid of…" she sang quietly, but he heard the words. He knew what she was doing. She was making sure he knew what she meant.

He walked out on the water with her, a bit unaware that he was walking on it. He looked down and only ripples shown. "Yume?"

She smiled at him, "When you understand there is nothing to fear, you can walk on water…you can fly to new heights, you know your together, even if not tonight…" she sang and wings formed out of her back, through her dress. "Come to me…"

"I am to you." he said, not understanding what she meant.

She let go and he remained on top of the water. She stepped away. "Come to me." it was a test to see if her feelings were returned. In a way, she wished they were because she'd have what she most desired but in a way she didn't because she was afraid of what would happen.

He walked upon the water to her and took her hand. The feeling, mutual. Her heart melted as he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles.

She smiled and walked behind him, holding his arms at the biceps. Her wings started to beat as she flew a bit above the water. His eyes widened. He never knew what it was like to fly. It was unbelievable! How could she do this to him? Make him forget what it was to be noble and unlovable.

They skimmed the water as he started to smile, she neared the waterfall. "Yume…" he said warningly.

"Trust me." she whispered, raising up a bit from him.

"Yume…" he said again "There's a waterfall."

"Isn't it beautiful." she smiled against his ear and dropped him into it.

"Yume!" he had yelled out as she flew down the waterfall. She grabbed his hand and lifted him up into her arms. Laughing, he was still a bit uneasy but she had told him to trust her. He would never doubt her again.

She smiled, "Hearing your laugh is the sweetest bliss of all, Sesshoumaru." she smiled against his cheek and landed on the beach, lowering him down gently.

He was totally lost in the nobility, "That was unbelievable! How did you know you could carry me!" he asked, oblivious to the demons around them.

She knew it, her heart collapsed at it. She smiled though, to not show him her fear, "Your heart is heavy but you are light." she smiled, "You lifted yourself for me when I told you to come to me. I didn't have to worry about carrying you." she smiled and brushed a hand against his face.

He sobered instantly. She knew he knew. He looked around and saw a gang of misfit demons. All with different abilities. He stood in front of her. "Yume, trust me."

She nodded and his face started to change, she grabbed his shirt. "Sesshoumaru?" she asked, a bit terrified.

He transformed into a giant dog, lifting her into the air by his fur. "Sesshoumaru!" she cried and hang on to him.

He growled at the others and drooled on them, the poison seeping into their skin, killing them instantly. He jumped away from the beach, over the waterfall and transformed back into his humanlike self, catching her with ease.

She looked at him, trembling a bit. He took her into her arms, "I will always protect you, Yume."

"They…were going to kill us…" she said, disbelievingly, afraid that she was right.

"Yes. They do not like the fact that I have found happiness and they have not." he answered, "They are my enemies."

"You have so many." she looked at him.

"But if I only have one ally, I will always be stronger." he brushed his hand against her face and she smiled.

End

"You see, you have protected me, you've kept your promise." she knew he was remembering the past.

He smiled at her, "You were the only one that made me laugh. And it was the simplest of all."

"Back then…you didn't know you were in love, did you?" she asked.

"No. I didn't realize it until you were dying." he frowned, "I couldn't help you and it killed me inside."

"It only buried you, Sesshoumaru, you are still the same man I fell in love with."

He relaxed at her sincerity. "Let's go to the Tokyo Tavern." he said after a few moments of silence. "Come on, you guys too." he nodded at Miroku, Sango, Kagome, and even Inuyasha. "Bring Kohaku and Souta, Shippou and I'll grab Rin."

They all cheered and Inuyasha looked at him strangely, "What's with the change of plans?"

Sesshoumaru placed a hand on his brother's shoulder, "It is time I set down my pride and accepted you as a true brother." he said and Inuyasha's eyes widened as Sesshoumaru embraced him.

"Ok, enough already!" Inuyasha pushed him back, "Let's just go to dinner and we'll talk about it some other time when the posse ain't looking at me, 'awing' and shit." Inuyasha muttered.

And for his hate, they all awed. He stormed off. "He'll be at the dinner." Kagome said affirmatively. She walked behind him as Miroku and Sango walked side by side up the stairs.

"By the way…" Sesshoumaru looked to Yume.

"Yes?"

"Thanks for the gardening." he said softly and she smiled. "My mother would have been proud. I found a green thumb."

She laughed and they walked up the steps to get ready for dinner.

Reviews please

Kage1586

Sheesh, next chappy, dinner, and don't you worry, the story ain't over yet! Promise:-D