Author notes:Here's chapter 14, I'm sorry for the last cliffhanger ^^U but I'm sure you'll be happy with this one ;D thanks for your readings, alerts and reviews ^^

Disclaimer: Besides the plot line, I don't own anything. Inuyasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi and Yomiuri TV Corporation. I'm not getting any profit from this story; this was just made for fun.

Warning: Maybe there is bad language? I'm not so sure what you consider bad language... ^^U

Thanks to: Thanks to my beta reader, PandaStarz, for her wonderful work on this chapter.

Slavery.
Author: MikoAucarod

Chapter 14: Awakening.

"Well, this was fun Higurashi but I think that I should leave now."

"Wait Hojou, aren't you going to stay for dinner?"

"Don't you think that'll bother your friends?"

"Who cares, Hojou? Stay, you're my guest."

Inuyasha watched the scene in front of him with disbelief. Kagome was walking from one side to another in the kitchen, tending Hojou and being gentle with him. And she was completely ignoring the hanyou standing at the door.

What had he done? He couldn't remember having been bad with her since his awakening.

"The noodles are OK? Or does it need anything?"

"It's perfect like this, Higurashi, thank you very much."

No one could see that he was right there, watching her, listening to her, noticing how she was acting? It looked like… like she was flirting with Hojou.

"Kagome, oi…" Inuyasha approached the girl but she turned her back to him and kept chatting with Hojou. Both of them were ignoring him.

'What's happening?'

Inuyasha felt awful when he saw Kagome take Hojou's hands and the shy smile of that boy. Was he a fool or something?

"I feel bad, Higurashi. You're spending all this time with me and I-"

"Don't say anything, Hojou, it's all right. I'm the one who wants to spend these moments with you."

"But, what about your friends?"

"I told you already that they don't matter."

"What about me, Kagome!" Inuyasha exclaimed, desperate. None of them seemed to notice his yell and he was standing right in front of them.

"What about Inuyasha?" Hojou asked after a few seconds in silence.

It was then that Kagome finally lifted up her gaze and stared at the half-demon for a couple of seconds. Inuyasha felt a stab in his heart. Kagome's eyes were giving him a completely indifferent look. They weren't shining as they used to whenever she looked at him… why?

"Why should I care about him?"

Everything went black, as if a huge tornado had appeared and washed away everything around him. It couldn't be. Why was she saying those things?

Inuyasha looked around, desperately, searching for an exit of that dark place. He was searching for Kagome. She appeared a few steps from him, after a few and interminable seconds but every time he tried to reach her she was moving away from him, always keeping her back towards him, with an aura of hatred around her.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha lifted up his arm, trying to reach the girl in front of him, but she just kept getting away from him. "Kagome, please…!"

And then his vision stared to blur.

"Sango, please hurry up!"

"I'm doing what I can, Kagome!" She heard her best friend yell from the lower floor.

"Kagome! Kagome, please…!"

"Easy, Inuyasha. I'm here. Calm down, it's just a nightmare, Inuyasha."

The girl took Inuyasha's right hand tightly with her left one and with her other hand gently caressed his cheek. The half-demon was churning and moaning in his sleep, desperately calling for the girl beside him.

A whole day had passed before Inuyasha began to react to the outside world, besides his ears twitching, but he wasn't able to wake up yet. He was now in a deep slumber from which he couldn't react and had started to sweat cold because of the nightmare that didn't stop repeating inside his head.

Finally, Sango entered the room, with Miroku following her close and carrying a bucket with fresh water and more cloths. Inuyasha's fever had gone up again and, in the middle of his dreams, was becoming more and more aggressive, moving his claws as if he were attacking something, trying to escape from those nightmares.

"Damn, if only the others could be here…" Sango stared, helpless, as Kagome placed a new cool cloth in Inuyasha's forehead. He couldn't have chosen a worse moment to have delusions because precisely that day was the death's anniversary of Sesshomaru and Kouga.

Inuyasha had being lucky to die at night. Since both of the warriors had died during a battle near the middle afternoon, their 'agony' was more extended and because of all the battle wounds they had – and the over protectiveness that their owners demonstrated to had – they were being attended in another room of the house, being helped by Kikyo.

Shippo and Kanna had being sent back home with Ms. Higurashi. Since that unexpected visit from Hojou the earlier day and Inuyasha's state they hadn't been able to be calm at all, that's why everyone had decided that it was best for them to be back with Kagome's mom and spent time in the woods and having fun, away from all that tension.

"I'm impressed by this place," spoke Miroku finally, changing the subject when they saw that Inuyasha had calmed down again thanks to Kagome's words and her constant caressing over his hand and forehead.

"Why do you say that, Miroku?" Sango was confused by the sudden comment.

"This house… I thought that this was just a summerhouse or something like that, but from what I heard from Hojou… this is where you used to live before, right Miss Kagome?"

She just nodded, not getting her attention from Inuyasha and keeping the soft caress over his hand with her thumb. Just like she remembered he had done the day of his resurrection.

"I was born here, Miroku. This is where I grew up… when my father died my mother got scared that the people who turned him into a Slave would come for us. He was turned into a Slave and as you may have already guessed he was kept captive in the city. During one of those times that they ordered him to steal from the house they forgot to tell him to remain silent so while he was placing money, jewels and other stuff inside a trash bag he told us what had happened."

Kagome calmed down when she noticed that Inuyasha's breathing had regulated and then she observed Miroku.

"It's not a lie that ours is a rich family, Miroku. Truth being told, 300,000 yen is pocket change for us. We had a lot of money invested in the stock market, finance and bank accounts. That's why they were after my father.

Miroku looked at her, surprised. When Kagome had began to speak, Inuyasha's left ear had twitched a bit, as usual, as if telling them that he was there but couldn't react.

"When my dad told us what had happened he also promised to find a way to escape… he even gave us some information about his captors, more physical traits than anything, and it was then when we told the police. In this town - and in many other places – just for being a Slave you don't have any right to do anything or get help but we were lucky that they wanted to help us to find him. The idea was to catch those criminals in the act but…" Her voice trailed off for a moment, remembering those days. "The next day of that was when Inuyasha found him. I don't know what my father did that made him end that way… probably his owners found out the truth, I don't know."

Kagome observed Inuyasha's face again. He moved his head a bit to his left, in his sleep, and the cloth fell from his forehead. The girl placed it again in its place, not ever letting go of his hand.

"My mom had a panic attack back then and we just moved from this place. She decided that we should have a humble life and, with the money we had we can have a comfortable life, even my grandchildren could have it." Miroku and Sango felt their jaws fall open when she said that. "But despite what Kikyou could have ever thought, we don't care for a reputation or even less… Higurashi's name isn't the same without dad and I don't care to have a name that brings reputation if it also brings problems."

When she finished her explanation, Miroku couldn't help but feel more admiration towards the woman sitting in front of him. Kagome was, indeed, unique.

At that moment he felt envious towards Inuyasha for have that wonderful girl with him.

It wasn't until3 A.M. that Inuyasha finally had strength enough to open his eyes and be aware of his surroundings. He felt extremely refreshed and didn't want to spend another second lying on that bed. On the other hand he felt so good being there, with Kagome laying on his chest and keeping a firm hold of his hand even when she was sleeping.

The images of those horrible nightmares returned to Inuyasha's mind and he quickly discarded them. It was impossible for Kagome to treat him like that. Why had his own subconscious believed that when she had stayed with him the whole time? He could tell since her scent had faded from the entrance of the room. He had heard every single one of her words and could remember them all but his body had been so drained because of that stupid shackle that he hadn't been able to even look at her.

Now he finally did it.

And the scene would be eternally engraved in his memory.

Inuyasha lifted his left hand and started gently stroking Kagome's cheek. She smiled, still half asleep and finally opened her eyes to look at Inuyasha. She felt immense joy when she saw he had awakened and at the same time a strong blush covered her face because of the intensity of the gaze of the hanyou. It was so difficult to behave now knowing that she had feelings for him…

How could she love him so much and not have noticed it before?

"Hi," he spoke quietly.

"H-hi…" Kagome leaned towards Inuyasha's caressing and closed her eyes, enjoying the moment. How come she hadn't realized before?

"I'm sorry for what happened, you probably hate me for attacking a good friend of yo-"

"Inuyasha, don't apologize. I shouldn't have ordered…" Kagome interrupted the hanyou and then she let down her face, with her eyes still closed. "It was my fault you almost fell into a coma. Sesshomaru himself said that had it not been for your strength you wouldn't be here… I couldn't bear the thought of…"

"I can't die, Kagome."

"But what if you hadn't woken up?" Kagome opened her eyes and stared at him, intensely. "You could have ended in a vegetative state. Maybe the shackle doesn't let you die, but your body could have just not resisted anymore… you could have been dead in life, Inuyasha… I- I wouldn't have been able to endure that."

Inuyasha felt a bit scared for the possible scenario but at the same time he was touched by Kagome's words. Having her there between his arms, so small, fragile and showing her feelings, was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. That blush in her cheeks was adorable.

"But here I am and I'm fine. Calm do-"

"You could have not been!" She finally spat, closing her eyes again when she felt that characteristic sting of tears. She didn't want to cry anymore, she was tired of it. She was strong. She wouldn't cry anymore. "What if I have to lose you too, Inuyasha?"

The hanyou widened his eyes in surprise when he noticed Kagome's aura change. For a few seconds it had showed relief, then nervousness. Then it became sad and later on scared. Now was a combination of all that plus hope and… could it be possible?

"If I had never seen you again, Inuyasha… to hear you, to call me, to see your eyes… I-" She fell silent when she noticed the intense stare that he was giving her.

"You what, Kagome?" He asked softly, straightening up without releasing her face. He could feel it, her aura and her scent. They were losing the fear and sadness, giving more space to hope and… he couldn't be wrong, it had to be…

"I- I…" Kagome lost her trail of thoughts in his gaze at the same time he let go their interlaced hands to caress the other side of Kagome's face, tenderly. His thumbs began to move so slow and so tenderly, caressing her blushing cheeks.

Inuyasha was sure, that scent was unique. But he needed to know…

"Tell me Kagome, you what?" he asked again, in a grave whisper, at the same time he got near her face, leaving only a couple of millimeters of distance between their mouths. He could feel the nervousness of the girl in his arms and she opened and closed her mouth trying to speak. That made their lips nearly touch each other.

"I-I… Inuyasha…" she managed to whisper and he closed his eyes. Hearing her say his name had made him feel special. "I lo- I lov-" She was interrupted by the sudden and so desired touch of their lips. Inuyasha had finally closed that tiny space between them to seal his lips with Kagome's.

The caressing was slow, tender and delicate. They wanted to fully feel every single movement. At the instant Inuyasha had kissed Kagome, she had returned it.

How could it feel like this? It was so wonderful. Inuyasha had no words to describe it. He hugged tightly the girl against him, once the kiss ended, and buried his face in her shoulders, not afraid of her rejection since Kagome herself was returning the embrace with the same vehemence and her face was hidden in his chest.

"I love you." Was the single breath that flowed from Inuyasha's lips and those two simple words made him feel pretty good, comforted and relieved for no longer have to carry that weight on his shoulders, that truth that he didn't dare to say.

Kagome sobbed slightly and hugged him strongly. Finally she lifted up her face and searched for his mouth. He was already waiting for her. They kissed again, always with tenderness, with tranquility, with no hurry or outbursts.

Two single tears fell that night, two tears that symbolized the end of solitude in different scale for each other. Two single tears that marked the end of those years of suffering and that promised a brand new future. A future in which they'll have each other.

Inuyasha once had said that it was valid to cry, not because doing so stopped one from being a man, on the contrary, that only proved his infinite bliss in different ways. What mattered if he was a Slave? That wouldn't prevent him from enjoy at maximum the days that he could be allowed to be with Kagome, with no more doubts. Without regretting anything anymore.

Kagome was said to be stronger, but she had never felt with so much strength that she felt at that moment, between Inuyasha's arms, expressing her love and truth feelings with all her heart and without fear. This was the real strength, she could be herself in front of him without fear and she knew that he would always be there for her. And for that she would be eternally grateful.

Maybe Kagome had saved him from a life of suffering as a Slave, but Inuyasha had also saver her own life, allowing her to remember that despite the bad experiences in life, despite having shells around herself, despite ignoring the entire world – all of it was nothing once you found out your loved one. Inuyasha was that loved one.

Finally the two of them separated and Kagome sighed sweetly, while keeping her eyes closed and her forehead pressed against his. Inuyasha observed her, spellbound. All of her was beautiful. There was not a single trace of Kagome that didn't seem perfect to him, even her anger and their fights – which he knew they would still have for the smallest things – all of it made Kagome, Kagome. That was the way he adored her. That's the way he loved her.

"I love you too, Inuyasha." The girl finally answered, opening her eyes and looking at him with her chocolate orbs. He smirked when he noticed that characteristic brightness in her eyes, the brightness that she always carried whenever she looked at him. He finally kissed her once again, conveying in it all what he felt for her. Kagome returned it the same way.

There were no more doubts, no more pain. There wasn't any other person besides both of them at that place, that's all they needed. They were no more fool nightmares and suffering in vain. There was no more loneliness.

He had been born for her… and she had been born for him.

Author Notes: And I don't care that the last sentence had been a 'cliché' phrase XP – And I hope not had been sooo corny XD at first I had decided to make 'suffer' a bit more to Kagome, but then I was like: Naaaaah they deserve happiness ^^ on the other hand I don't write lemon, or suggest it so no, before any of you want to ask, there will not be lemon or anything like that in this fic. ^^ I'll wait for your reviews, take care!