Chapter Sixteen: Dark Love

How was it that vampires exist? How about all the other creatures we hear from stories… are they real to? They had to start from somewhere don't they? Otherwise people wouldn't know about them. And wouldn't create such awful horror movies about them.

Deep in a forest, what laid dead for nearly 500 years—was a great tree. Or at least… it was once a great tree. It had turned to a charcoal-black color and grew to be sharp and twisted, the roots bulging and burying deep into the broken ground for none-existing water. Their dead leaves scattered the forest floor as a reminder of the better days where the tree had once thrived. It was a barren wasteland where not even the simplest life form could live.

And yet at the base of this dead tree sat a familiar silver-haired vampire.

Inuyasha had his back against the trunk of the tree; he had been sitting there for so long that the leaves that had been blown in the wind built up around his body and were outlining his shape. He was so lost in his thoughts that he was unaware of his surroundings; if it wasn't for the fact that he was breathing most would think that he had died.

There was a small whisper that echoed through the forest, a gentle wind picked up and carried the voice with it, the leaves rustled but gladly moved to where the wind told it to go. And once it reached Inuyasha's sensitive ears he became alert once more and the golden eyes opened.

Sighing, he pulled himself up, feeling the wind and leaves brush past him as he got his bearings back. He stood himself up and brushed his clothes to get rid of any loose dirt or leaves, knowing that he couldn't pull it off any longer.

He glanced up at the darkening sky… knowing that the voice of nature was telling him that a storm was coming. It was the time to face Kagome again… he had been denying his thirst for a long time now and he didn't think that he would be able to stop himself tonight.

*Kagome*

Kagome was sitting at her desk as she read through one of her favorite fantasy books. It happened to be a story she loved, and no matter how many times she read it, she never got bored of it. Twilight: a story of a vampire and a human girl falling in love. How appropriate or should she say ironic?

Kagome had just finished reading one of her favorite lines, "It was ridiculous, and egotistical, to think that I could affect anyone that strongly. It was impossible. And yet I couldn't stop worrying that it was true." Bella Swan, Twilight, Chapter 2, p.31.

Kagome was only beginning to realize just how much she sympathized with Bella. Bella felt like she was nothing more than an ordinary human woman who had fallen head-over-heels in love with the immortal hottie Edward. Were the feelings Kagome was having now the exact ones that Bella was feeling when she realized that she was in love with a vampire?

"I can do this, I lied to myself feebly. No one was going to bite me," Kagome read out loud. She rolled her eyes… "Isabella you don't know how wrong you are."

She got up so that she could fall onto her bed and get some sleep for tomorrow. She rested her head in her hands while staring up at her ceiling lost in thought.

"What did I do to deserve this?" Kagome said to herself, "Of all the people it had to be… why it had to be a vampire?" Kagome sighed before she turned back to the book and turned the page over casually, "For an instant, I felt a thrill of genuine fear, raising the hair on my arms. The look only lasted a second, but it chilled me more than the freezing wind."

Yes, Bella seemed to be the only person who could describe her feelings perfectly. She wished that she could talk to her get some advice.

There was a loud bang and a flash of light that made Kagome squeak and turn to her window, seeing a sudden heavy downpour bash against her window while thunder and lightning attacked the dark sky. Kagome stood up from her bed and walked over to her window to gaze at the terrible night.

'Aww man…I'm never going to get to sleep now,' Kagome thought as she pulled her light pink pajama top closer around her, 'It came down so quickly though… I didn't even notice it.'

Kagome then squeaked again at another loud noise, though this time it was from a knock on her bedroom door and Kagome turned round to face it.

"Kagome, your light is still on so I know you're awake," her grandfather called through the door, "Get to bed already, you have school tomorrow."

"Yes, grandpa," Kagome called back, then creeping to the door she listened as her grandfather returned to his own room and shut it behind her. Kagome rolled her eyes, "Even though I'm seventeen he treats me like a grade-schooler," Kagome pouted, hating anything that made people think she was a child.

Kagome turned her desk lamp off and closed her book. She glanced at the storm outside once more before climbing into her bed with a sigh and pulling the covers tightly around her, hoping that somehow she'd fall asleep with the loud rain next to her.

Surprisingly, it didn't take long for the teen to fall asleep. After a few hours she was in a deep slumber in her small bundle of covers while the storm still raged on, not feeling disturbed by the roar of the rain or the clap of thunder and lightning meeting each other in the sky, to her, her room was a small island in a raging storm where she was safe. Nothing could touch her.

Kagome then gave a small shiver in her sleep as a harsh cold air floated through her room and made her pull the covers tighter around her body and turn over so she laid on her back instead. The rain splattered in Kagome's room through the now open window, taking in all opportunity it could have to wet everything within 5 feet. Someone then walked in through the window, gently touching the floor and looking around the darkened room. A flash of lightning conveniently lit up Kagome's room, so Kagome could be seen in her bed by Inuyasha.

Inuyasha walked closer to the teen, quietly and leaving wet footprints behind him as he was sopping wet by the rain. He came to the bed and stared at the sleeping girl, observing her peaceful face while water drops ran down her own face. He then sat down on the covers, being gentle as he leaned over her and stroked her cheek softly. As he began tracing his thumb over Kagome's lips she mumbled something unintelligent in her sleep, making him chuckle.

Then slowly and gently he leant closer to her and let his wet lips grace Kagome's lips in a small kiss.

Kagome didn't wake at first; despite the wet cold touch to her lips she remained asleep and unaware of Inuyasha stealing a kiss from her. Kagome then began to groan in her sleep when she started to feel the wet hair fall onto her face, Kagome then slowly started waking up; blinking eyes slightly she saw Inuyasha leaning over her and their lips touching.

After getting her head round it, she blushed to a crimson color and sat up breaking their kiss. She stared at Inuyasha who stared back, just sitting in silence and staring deep into each others eyes.

When a flash of lightning broke the darkness and their fixed gaze and brought Kagome back to her senses, she quickly turned to her light and flicked it on. Inuyasha was sitting there besides her, dripping wet, looking as though he had just climbed out of a swimming pool. Just then another bang of thunder made Kagome realize the window was open and the rain was drenching her room.

"Inu-Inuyasha?" Kagome croaked.

He grinned at her. "Miss me?"

Kagome blushed again, before she asked, "Why were you kissing me when I was asleep?"

He shrugged, "Couldn't help myself. Why? Didn't you like it?"

She raised her eyebrows at him. "I'm not even going to answer that." She pulled her quilt off her and flung her feet over the side of the bed before asking a little more urgently, "Why are you here? And why are you dripping wet?"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, "In case you haven't noticed, there's a storm going on."

Kagome smacked him with her pillow, "I know that! I mean, why are you here? Is there something wrong?"

"What? Can't your friendly neighborhood vampire drop in for a visit?" Inuyasha asked in an offended tone.

Kagome sighed, "Not that I'm not glad to see you Inuyasha, but it's been awhile since you 'dropped' in and now you show up soaking wet during a storm…"

"You always hated storms right?" Inuyasha cut in. "Just wanted to make sure that you were alright."

Kagome went even redder than before if that was possible. She turned her head away with a small smile gracing her lips as he said, "Want me to help you get over that fear?"

Kagome blinked at him in surprise, "What are you talking about?"

Grinning in a way that she didn't like; he merely stood up, walked over to the open window, and held out his hand to her. Kagome blinked in confusion for a moment before it finally clicked.

"Oh, no. No you can't expect me to go out in a storm in the middle of the night!" Kagome cried.

"Don't you want to get over your fear of storms?" he asked as if she was dim.

"I'll get wet!"

"Yeah, you usually do when you're out during a storm. What are you a woman or a cat?"

Kagome opened her mouth again to argue but then he said, "I promise that you'll be fine."

She stopped suddenly. She didn't know what to do, her more reasonable side was telling her to stay where she was and tell Inuyasha that he should just leave. This side was telling her all sorts of things that could happen if she went. Like she could get sick, her family might come in and find her missing, she could end up being seen by someone and get Inuyasha exposed…

But her more adventurous, more playful side was telling her to go. To forget about being good for once in her life and to let him take her out.

She let her two sides continue to argue with each other as she sat there wondering what to do… That's when Inuyasha came back to her side and asked, "Do you trust me?"

"What?" Kagome asked through numbs lips

"Do you trust me?" he asked as he held out her hand.

Kagome looked from his hand to his face before looking back down at his hand and whispered so quietly that she couldn't hear her own voice, "Yes."

Not knowing why she did it, she put her hand into his stronger one and allowed him to pull her to her feet. "Don't worry," he said as they approached her window. "I promise that you're fear of storms ends tonight."

And suddenly, Kagome was swept off her feet and onto Inuyasha's back as he leapt out into the storm. Her scream of fear couldn't be heard over another roar of thunder. She felt the first shock of cold water hit her face almost like shards of glass cutting her skin. She was quickly drenched to the bone before Inuyasha even hit the ground.

But as soon as his feet hit earth he suddenly launched them into the sky. Kagome kept her eyes tightly shut, trying to ignore the feeling of the rain, she couldn't remember being wetter in her life.

"Kagome?" Inuyasha called above the sounds of the rain and the thunder, "You might want to open your eyes.

Kagome wanted to tell him to shut up but she did what she was told… and she was glad that she did.

When she looked, Kagome's fingers clenched and she uttered a soft cry.

The air outside sparkled, shimmering like a snow globe full of glitter.

Kagome blinked and rubbed the water out of her eyes, she was softly falling in midair, looking at the city beneath her. She could see the light of every single raindrop…

There were thousands of them, each in a freefall. They seemed to glow, filling the streets with strange silver light. Falling so hard and fast that they seemed to blur everything and distorted Kagome's vision. But at the same time she could see them, perfect spheres no bigger than the smallest pearl, translucent as beads of crystal.

Once they hit the ground they shattered as if they were made of glass, creating the image of a foamy mist on the ground beneath them.

"This is a dream," she said aloud, and then wished she hadn't. It didn't seem right saying that. Wondering if she were dreaming made her feel more… awake somehow.

And this was already too real: no unexplained panic, no watching herself from above, no feeling as if she were in a play and didn't know her lines—just lost in a waking daydream.

She pinched herself, it hurt which meant that this was no dream… besides, this was too beautiful for any dream she could come up with.

The millions of beautiful diamonds filled the air, floating over the wet, shiny asphalt. Only a few inches apart as they fell, they stretched as far as Kagome could see, down the street and up into the sky. Little white gems no bigger than tears.

No moon was visible. Thick clouds still hung over them as lighting began to flash, shrouding everything in a blinding white light for a fraction of a second before fading. The light seemed to be reflecting from the diamond raindrops, as if an invasion of Christmas lights had been racing each other to the ground.

Kagome's eyes widened. It was so beautiful, so still and wondrous, that her worry was instantly gone.

In a daze, she raised her head higher and the wind began to whip through her wet hair. The drops kissed her face coolly, turning into water as she collided with them. They melted instantly, wetting her with water no colder than the wind. She could smell the fresh scent of the shower; feel the electricity of recent lightning, the life of the storm all around her. Her hairs tingled, laughter bubbling up inside her.

But they were losing altitude rapidly. Kagome noticed that Inuyasha was falling to the ground again, she braced herself and he then sprang them both up as if he was launched from a cannon. Splashes of water dotted the concrete, where raindrops hit the ground. The whole street shimmered with the shapes of splashes, like a garden of ice flowers.

A raindrop got catch on one of her eyelashes and hovered right in front of her eye. The houses on the street, the arrested sky, the whole world was there inside, upside down and warped into a circle, like looking through a crystal ball. The water droplet got heavy and then shivered as it jumped into motion, falling onto her cheek and running down it like a cold tear.

Kagome smiled as she soared through the sky, looking around her for more wonders.

All the houses on the street seemed to be glowing, their windows filled with silver light. She looked back at her own house, surprised by the distance already. The roof was aglitter with splashes, and a river of water gushed from the meeting of two gutters at one corner. The windows glowed dully, but there hadn't been any lights on inside. Maybe it wasn't just the raindrops. The houses, the still clouds above, everything seemed to be incandescent with light.

'Where did that cold light come from?' she wondered.

But at that moment in time she couldn't care less. She laughed and held out her arms, reaching out to grab handfuls of raindrops from the air, in a world of diamonds.

*Later*

She didn't know how long she was out in the rain with Inuyasha, an hour at least? She had seen the city in a way that she never dreamt possible—she always thought that storms where destructive forces of nature—but now she saw that it was more than that. It was alive in its own way… rain soaking into the earth, filling it with life-giving water, thunder roaring in the heavens as pure noise but generating power… and finally the lighting flashing bright, before fading away in a blink of an eye.

How could she ever have been afraid of storms?

But finally, Inuyasha seemed to feel as if she had enough and they soon arrived at her house. She had expected him to take her back to her bedroom window, but to her surprise they landed in the backyard. He carried her over to the pagoda before he gently set her on her feet again.

She swayed slightly, holding onto him for support until she got the feeling back in her legs. She looked up at him and smiled, glad to see that he was smiling as well.

"So…" he began, "Are you still afraid of storms?"

Full of too much vigor to speak she could only shake her head. She sat down on the small bench and finally looked down at herself to see what kind of mess she was in. Her pajamas were holding so much water that they looked like they were made from a sponge. She skin was so wet that her hands and feet were starting to look like raisins, her hair was probably the worst of it though; it looked and felt like a wet mop.

Nevertheless, she was smiling broadly and after a while she finally found her voice. "That-that was—amazing."

Amazing was the only word that she could think off, but even it didn't seem to fit her mood. There was just—there were no words to describe it.

"Thank you," she said to Inuyasha standing up. They both got very close to each other and looked into each other's faces, trying to read it's others feelings. Inuyasha was as much of a mess as she was, in waterlogged clothes, and his hair looking like it was a nest of white silly string.

But he was full of as much of energy that she was.

He moved even closer to her so that she could feel his strong body against hers, and knowing what was coming, she shut her eyes. She raised her head and he met her halfway like she expected.

She moved her lips against his as if she had been doing it for years, her tongue dancing with his, breathing in his husky, spice scent. As they were lip-locked, she realized something. When the world is full of trouble and struggle, what was the one thing that moves us through this crazy game called life?

Emotions… it was our emotions that kept us going. They were stronger than any forms of magic that she had ever read about in any fairytale. Emotions were what make us behave as we do even if we realize it or not. We can't escape them no matter how hard we try, and the more that we try to run from them, the more they pull you in.

Like a great well, the more that you try to force your way out, the more that you get dragged in.

And it was Kagome's feelings for Inuyasha that were pulling her even deeper into that pit. She finally ran out of air and broke away for so that she could breathe. That didn't stop Inuyasha however. He kissed her jaw line and down her cheek until he found her neck.

As soon as his lips touched her neck, Kagome could practically feel the struggle inside his head. He was fighting to bite—or not to bite.

"It's ok," she whispered. Inuyasha had down something so wonderful for her, and she wanted to help him in turn. "I don't mind. But please, don't take so much that I can't get up to go to school tomorrow."

"You sure?" he whispered back.

Kagome hesitated for a moment… but then nodded. "This won't hurt will it?"

She felt Inuyasha's tongue on her neck before he said softly, "Don't worry."

And then she felt it.

She felt his fangs sink themselves into her neck. It was both pain and pure bliss. It was like she was given two shots of Novocain and they began to pump through her body. Soon she felt herself growing dizzy and if it weren't for Inuyasha's arms holding her, she knew that she would've falling to the ground. Just when she was beginning to think that Inuyasha couldn't stop himself—he stopped.

She felt his fangs being pulled from her neck and she was suddenly being held. One of his arms was wrapped around her chest, the other underneath her knees; holding her close to him. "Inu-Inuyasha?" she whispered as darkness flooded her eyes.

"Don't worry," she heard his voice answer her. "I'll take you back now."

She felt the rain hitting her face, and the wind once again, but only for a moment. The next thing that she knew was that she was inside again and was being carried over to a soft mattress. She felt Inuyasha's arms leave her as soon as she was placed onto the bed and she heard the sound of a window closing.

Inuyasha was.

She shut her eyes, and almost immediately drifted off into a deep sleep. The last thing that came to her mind were the words that Bella had used:

'About three things I was absolutely positive. First, Edward (Inuyasha) was a vampire. Second, there was part of him — and I didn't know how potent that part might be — that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.'