Chapter 109
Tuebor
"I will protect"
"There was something magic
in their large and perfect eyes,
something that made you want
to pay attention to whatever they said,
to protect them from any danger,
to make them happy.
They were so . . . pretty."
—Uglies
Inuyasha could do nothing but lay there and watch her struggle.
Fucking hell, this was his fight. Not hers.
When Kikyo drew out the knife, he felt like he was watching the end of the world.
His chest thudded hard beneath his ribs, and he could feel the fear running rampant through his veins so fast and hard that he wasn't sure if there was any blood left in him. Only fear remained. It was the only thing that fueled him.
It was the only thing that gave him strength enough to fight the paralysis. He could feel his body shifting and he didn't care.
He watched Kikyo slam the blade into her throat, and the last gasp of air she'd ever take whispered past her lips.
And he wasn't there to catch it, hold it close to him. He wasn't there to force her soul back into her. Tell her that she couldn't leave him. That she could never leave him behind. They were supposed to have more time—all the time the world had to offer—he didn't know how, but he'd find a way to live with her and leave with her, because he never wanted to see the day that didn't have Kagome in it.
I could save her, something whispered, asking to be let go, released. Something deep down and dark, and everything he'd tried to avoid.
But maybe this time, he should've let it go. Let it handle the problem, and he'd still have her.
And if he did something that she couldn't forgive?
Well, at least she'd still be alive to hate him for it.
It would kill him, but she'd still be here. She'd still be with him.
He'd promised her that he would protect her, keep her safe, keep her alive, and he'd failed her over and over, and now all his failures had piled up, and he would be left with nothing once again.
When her hand came up to grab Kikyo's wrist, the relief was a tangible thing, and if he'd been able to, he would've cried as he basked in the sight of it.
For now, all he could do was watch in horror as she continued to fight.
He could see how weak she was when she emerged, crawling through the trees. How much the fight had taken out of her. She felt thin. Almost wispy to him. His heart pounded in his chest. She was only human, and she'd fought an inhuman battle against Kikyo while completely and utterly alone and unarmed. He just needed to touch her, hold her, reassure her that she'd done the impossible and that he was so proud of her.
The moment her hand wrapped around the arrow and the ofuda, snapping the hold the barrier had, she collapsed to her knees, limbs quaking from exhaustion and exertion. Miroku was the first one to reach him, and he tore the arrow out of his chest, freeing him.
Inuyasha didn't hesitate the moment he was freed from the spell. He bolted for her, shouting her name, only just catching Kagome before she face planted into the dirt.
"Kagome?" He called out to her, but she could barely lift her eyes to look at him. Looking at him almost like he was a dream, something she could only imagine as being real. She looked at him like she didn't believe that he was there.
So he did the only thing he could think of, he gave her proof.
In front of their friends, Kikyo and the god that she thought herself to be, Inuyasha kissed Kagome.
Just so there would be no doubts about who he wanted to be with. No more doubts about who he had chosen for months now.
Her body fell slack against his, and he held her close, arms circling her and pulling her against him.
Her skin was cool and clammy, and he buried his face into her hair. Eyes shifting over to look at Kikyo as she moved to sit up.
A low growl rumbled through his chest as Sango skidded to a stop in front of him, sword drawn.
Miroku joined her a second later, staff at the ready. Inuyasha clutched Kagome a little tighter against him, that dark beast pacing around inside his chest, waiting for the moment that anyone dared to hurt what belonged to him.
But Kikyo made no move to fight them, she only stared at her hands as if seeing them for the first time.
And after a long moment, she looked up at them, blinking like she was surprised that they would show such aggression towards her.
"You have nothing to fear from me," she said, finally. "I will not harm any of you."
Sango let out a scoff of clear disbelief.
"Your past actions do not give us much faith in your word."
Kikyo visibly flinched and winced at Miroku's statement.
"I can understand why," she said quietly, staring at Inuyasha and at Kagome. Her eyes flickered between the two of them, and it set his hackles on end.
Snarling at her, Inuyasha shifted Kagome so that she was resting against his shoulder as he kept his teeth bared. He wanted to be able to run with her the moment danger presented itself.
She was completely slack against him, but she was breathing.
Kikyo just stared wide-eyed at them.
"I—I have much to think about. I will find you when I am ready."
Inuyasha almost told her to not bother, that he had no interest in anything she had to say, but he kept his words to himself. No need for words when claw and fang could convey the same message.
He just wanted to take care of Kagome, hold her close, make sure he was there to be the first thing that she saw when she returned to him.
Kikyo rose to her feet, picking up her bow and walking away without looking over her shoulder at any of them. The serpentine swirl of her followers drifted behind her as she left.
After a long moment, Sango slid her sword back into the scabbard before turning around to face him.
"Is she okay?" She asked, reaching for Kagome. "Are you okay?"
"She did too much," he said, shifting her again, tucking her against him. He needed to hold her as close as he could get, feel her skin touching his. He'd almost lost her again, and he wasn't going to let go of her any time soon. "She doesn't feel right."
He didn't feel right either, but that was for another day.
"We should find somewhere defensible," Miroku interrupted. "I have a feeling that we should expect a visit sooner rather than later."
The notion that Kikyo would return and attempt anything made his youki snarl in revulsion. He could feel something within him pacing in agitation and fear.
He didn't want a visit. He wanted quiet. He wanted to curl around her and keep her warm and safe.
He wanted to let her rest and have a day where she wasn't afraid.
He just wanted to hold her and care for her and be with her always.
Don't let her go.
"Is she hurt?" Sango asked, fingers lightly touching Kagome's cheek. He resisted the urge to swat her fingers away.
Inuyasha looked at Kagome, pulling her away just a little. There were just a few small nicks and scratches. He lifted her arm and saw the shallow cuts that Kikyo had made with her knife.
"Nothing serious."
"She's clammy," Sango said with a frown, pressing her hands firmly all over Kagome's face.
"You're clammy!" He snapped out, clutching Kagome close again and knocking Sango's hands away.
Sango started to say something and then stopped.
"I was going to say something mean, but I'm going to refrain because I am not a child."
Inuyasha gave her a look before shifting to stand, holding Kagome close against his chest.
"I'm afraid wherever we go, it should be in walking distance. Kirara is not in any shape to carry the three of us," Miroku stated as he started walking off into the woods.
Inuyasha followed the monk with Sango walking beside him.
"You good?" He asked in a low voice. "You fell through that tree for a bit."
"I've had worse," the slayer stated, her gaze shifting over to Miroku. "Miroku took a few good blows from an oni before he took it down." She didn't say anything else for a beat. "Let's just find a place to camp and then we'll worry about everything else."
He didn't like this. Kikyo had just left, and while he didn't want to follow her, he also wanted to know that there was nothing dangerous on the horizon from her. He only wanted to follow her to make sure that she wasn't planning anything malicious or insidious
Kagome continued to sleep on his shoulder, and he made sure to hold her close to him. The dampness of her skin concerning him more and more the longer that they walked.
If that wasn't enough a shudder ran through her, sending his anxiety even higher. He was not going to let her get sick again after all this. He would not lose her like he lost his mother.
She didn't feel hot when he pressed his cheek to her, if anything she felt cool to the touch, but he made sure to shift her up just a bit more so that she could gather up some of his warmth. He'd strip his haori and wrap it around her once they found Kirara and Shippo.
She couldn't get sick again. He didn't think that he had it in him to handle it. He was already a ball full of nerves at this point.
His breathing was quick and shallow, and he felt like he'd run to the sea and back and strangely out of breath. Something was wrong.
Fuck. When did he become such a worry wart?
Miroku stopped at a tree and leaned down slowly. It was clear that those blows from the oni were painful enough to slow him down a bit.
"Shippo? Kirara?" He asked, and Kirara limped out in front of Shippo, who shook himself.
"Kagome?" He asked, eyes looking for her.
"Kagome is fine. She just needs to rest for a little bit." Miroku picked up Kirara, and stood, leaning heavily on his staff.
"You gonna be good to walk, Miroku?" Inuyasha asked, and Miroku nodded.
"Finding somewhere to rest sooner rather than later would be ideal."
Sango grunted as she hefted Hiraikotsu up. He should probably carry it, but he didn't want to give up Kagome.
He'd wanted to wrap Kagome up as it was, and so he knelt down, balancing Kagome on his leg as he slowly worked his haori off one side at a time, carefully wrapping her inside of it. She was too cool to the touch, and maybe she could leech some body heat from him. It wasn't like he wasn't freely willing to give it.
"Gimme," he said, motioning to the giant weapon.
"What?"
"Give it. I'll carry it, and you can help keep Miroku upright."
"I can—"
"You're going to fucking hurt yourself worse, so just let me have it. I've done fucking jack shit. I can do this one thing."
Sango leveled a glare at him, fingers tightening around the strap.
"We both know he's going to annoy us all the rest of the day if you don't give in," Miroku stated, leaning on his staff as he held onto Kirara, who pathetically lay stretched over his arm, giving off an equally sad mewl.
There was an audible growl as Sango shifted so that she could slip out from under the boomerang. Inuyasha slipped in under the strap, shifting his hold on Kagome just a bit so that the strap could slide between them.
Once he was situated with Kagome and the boomerang, Inuyasha righted himself as Sango moved next to Miroku, wrapping her arm around his waist. Kirara was placed carefully into the fold in Miroku's robes where she mewed, curling up just a little bit.
"I think I may have ended up in her good graces after all this."
Sango tucked his arm around her shoulders as he used the staff to help him walk.
"Look, Inuyasha, I have my two favorite ladies here." There was a strained chuckle as Miroku started walking with a very definite limp. "I believe it is safe to say that I'm definitely feeling those hits now."
"Shippo," Inuyasha said, eyes shifting to the kit, who turned towards him with clear concern in his gaze. He was afraid, and to be honest, so was Inuyasha. "Go up and see if there's anywhere worth staying nearby."
Shippo gave a short nod before darting up the tree and into the branches. Inuyasha saw the pink balloon appear over them and float up above the trees, disappearing over the canopy.
"Let's keep moving while he looks."
Sango and Miroku limped on ahead of him as he followed.
Everything was quiet, and he strained to hear any sounds from Shippo.
But there was nothing but the quick shallow breathing of the girl in his arms and himself.
After a long and slow traipse through the woods towards nowhere in particular, Inuyasha was honestly starting to get a little worried.
What if Kikyo wasn't done? What if she'd just lied to get out of danger and then decided to purify Shippo? He wasn't half-demon who would just be human for a time; he'd be fried to a crisp.
Soft footfalls scurried towards them, and Inuyasha stiffened at the noise.
"Inuyasha!" Shippo called, and he felt the tension slip out of his shoulders.
"Over here, Shippo," he called, and both Sango and Miroku stopped, looking in the direction that Inuyasha had shouted.
The soft scurrying grew louder, and a few moments later, Shippo appeared, sliding in the leaves just a bit.
"I found something. I think it'll work. There's a hot spring nearby too!"
"Ugh, that sounds amazing," Sango groaned.
"It's not that big, but it's a cave that I think will fit all of us."
"Good work, Shippo. Lead the way," Inuyasha said, "slowly," he added when Shippo looked ready to take off at a bolt.
"Right, the humans," Shippo said, before taking off at a more casual pace.
"This human could still subdue you," Miroku reminded him.
Shippo looked over his shoulder and stuck his tongue out before bounding over a small log and waiting for them to reach him.
It took a bit to reach the small cave. It was honestly just big enough for them to rest, if they slept close together. Whatever fire they built would have to be outside, and the sleeping quarters would be tighter than normal, but Inuyasha didn't think that he'd be getting that much sleep tonight anyway.
And he wasn't intending on letting Kagome go either.
Sango helped Miroku into the cave, lowering him down as he grimaced.
It was then that Inuyasha realized, with utter dismay, that they were missing Kagome's bag.
"Where's Kagome's bag?"
"Kirara had it until the fight at the barrier," Shippo said, "but I don't know what happened to it."
"Shit," he muttered, cursing himself for not realizing it sooner.
He should go get it. He was the only one not really injured by the fight.
But he didn't want to drag Kagome out anymore than he already had. She was already so fragile, and he didn't want to make it worse. He couldn't afford to make it worse. She couldn't afford it.
He should leave her here. He should.
But he didn't want to.
But they really needed that bag. It had her blankets and her medicine. Her bandages.
It had food for them.
And her bandages.
He needed to go get it. Kagome would need it more than she could do without it.
And it would help him keep her safe—healthy.
"I'll go," Sango started, and Inuyasha shook his head, taking in a breath and letting it out slowly.
"I'll go. I can find it faster and make it back here." He took in another breath, fingers tensing as he tried to force his body to do what it didn't want to. "I just—"
"I'll watch her," Sango said softly. "We'll keep her safe."
He nodded, ears flattening back against his head as he lowered her body to the stone floor, and carefully let his arms slide out from under her.
"I'll be right back," he told them—and her, even though he wasn't sure if she could hear him. But he wanted her to know that he wasn't leaving for good. He wasn't leaving to find Kikyo. He was leaving because Kagome needed him to. Kagome needed her bag, and he couldn't provide her much, but he could do this after all she'd done for him and the rest. "I'll be right back with her bag."
"Inuyasha, you clearly don't want to go," Miroku pointed out as he shifted Kirara into his lap.
"What of it?" He snapped back, pulling Hiraikotsu off his back as he stood. "I've always had to do shit I didn't want to do, and it ain't like I can send you out to go find it, gimpy."
"I have Kirara," Miroku said, gesturing to the cream ball of fluff in his lap.
"Whatever," he muttered, taking a breath before stepping away.
And before he could stop himself or convince himself to stay, he darted off the direction they'd come, in hopes that he'd find it and be on the way back before she woke.
He landed in the clearing where he could still smell Kikyo and faint traces where Kagome had bled.
The sight of that knife coming down into her throat made his stomach twist and turn. He remembered the voice speaking to him, not so much in direct words but in a clear feeling that being a hanyou wasn't enough. That he should let go—do what needed to be done to keep what he loved safe.
He wasn't enough as it was to take care of her, but that voice—he knew he didn't want to have any part of it. He knew that he didn't want to let it out, because it would destroy everything else in its path as long as Kagome was safe and his.
It was too much of a risk—too much of a gamble.
That piece of him—it would bleed the world dry to keep her safe. It was already telling him to go back, to hold her, and he nearly trembled with the effort it took to continue forward.
Shaking himself, he started to search the area, looking for anything and everything that might lead him to her bag.
This was taking far too long, and he was staying gone longer than he'd intended or hoped for.
If they didn't need it so bad, he'd tell them that they'd find it in the morning. But there were necessities that Kagome would need and his haori only did so much.
"Come on," he muttered under his breath. "Where the fuck did you go?"
A small breeze of wind blew through the trees, just a little, barely enough to move any of the hairs around his ears.
But it did carry a very familiar smell that he'd recognize always, even if it had been years after the source had faded away.
Turning in the direction of the wind, he stepped through another section of trees and saw the familiar yellow backpack laying on its side.
"Finally," he breathed, walking towards it and picking it up by the straps. It looked mostly unscathed, and not that dirty all things considered. Throwing it over his shoulder, he made a beeline for the small cave.
Bursting through the bushes, he skidded to a stop in the small clearing.
Shippo was piling a series of branches into a pile around inside a rock circle.
"Foxfire!" Shippo shouted, throwing a ball of blue flames at him. Inuyasha knocked it away, ignoring the sharp twinge as it burned his hand. "Oh, it's just you, Inuyasha."
Shippo refocused on the tiny campfire in front of the cave as Inuyasha past him, dropping the bag to the ground in front of Sango.
"How is she?" He asked, pressing a hand to Kagome's forehead.
Still cool and clammy to the touch, and he fought back a whine at it.
"She's the same as when you left," Sango said, sounding almost annoyed at his hovering. "Miroku thinks she just overdid her reiki, and hopefully, she's just be a little worn out for the next couple of days."
"Hopefully?" Inuyasha asked, swallowing back the bile in his throat. Because ultimately, he was the cause of her suffering. He'd done nothing to help. He'd been the one needing protecting while she was fighting for her fucking life, and he was just laying there like a damn newborn.
Miroku sighed.
"Reiki is a funny thing and it affects everyone differently. Kagome's never pushed herself so hard before, so we don't know what it's going to do. More than likely, she just needs a good nap."
Inuyasha would be perfectly happy to just have her sleep and rest and be perfectly fine the next day, but he also wanted her attention right now.
Because he knew that she wasn't going to be perfectly fine after fighting Kikyo like that.
Hell, he wasn't fine, and he'd done fuck all about it.
Sango was already pulling out the box of medicine, and opening it.
"It is probably good for us to go back, we're running low on bandages it is." She gave a little sigh before shifting—much slower than usual—towards where Kagome was laying. "Where is she hurt?"
Inuyasha picked her up, cradling her in his lap as he motioned to her neck and arm for Sango to bandage.
A warm wetness slowly reached his skin and once Sango was done, she shifted her up a bit more, seeing blood on his wrist.
Looking at her back, he saw the growing dark stain and pulled her shirt back from her skin.
"She's popped her stitches." He held the shirt and his haori open so Sango could see.
"I can redo them, but they're not going to be as clean as a healer's."
"What about those beetle bandages?" Inuyasha asked. "You know, the bug ones? The ones she uses to hold stuff closed."
"Oh yeah," she said. "It may help keep the rest of the stitches in place. Did she pop all of them?"
Inuyasha pulled his haori off and letting her rest against his chest, he pulled Kagome's shirt up to reveal her back.
"She popped a few, but it looks like it was just starting to heal over. Hopefully, there's not too much damage done."
Sango dug around for the bandages as Inuyasha let a limp Kagome rest her head against his shoulder, breathing lightly into his neck.
She was alive, and he could deal with a hell of a lot as long as that stayed the case.
He could handle most anything as long as she was alive.
"There," Sango said, tugging her shirt back down and Inuyasha quickly tugged his haori back over her.
"How's Kirara?" Inuyasha asked.
"I think she may have forgiven me," Miroku said. A small mew came from inside his robes. "See? Totally forgiven." A sharp wince crossed his face as he flinched a bit. "Ah, maybe not totally forgiven."
"Forgiven enough," Sango corrected. "She's a little beat up, but I think that she'll be better in a day or two."
That was good news. Definitely good news. The sooner that they could get to Kaede's the better. But they couldn't do that without Kirara.
Shippo came up to them once he had a good pile of sticks and wood, tail flicking behind him.
"Do you want me to light it or wait?"
"I think we should wait for just a little bit," Miroku told him, and Shippo gave an enthusiastic nod.
"Okay, then I'm going to find more wood."
Shippo darted off, and Inuyasha sat in the quiet for a long while.
He let his hand rest against Kagome's back, and he exhaled.
Tired didn't begin to describe the bone-deep exhaustion that lingered on his limbs. He hadn't realized it, but he was tired; however, now was not the time to sleep. The entire group relied on him to keep them safe. Sango and Miroku looked two hits away from being down for the count. Kagome was in no shape to do anything, and Shippo wasn't up to the task of beating the shit out of anyone.
Not for a while anyway.
And he didn't want to rest with Kikyo out there practically haunting him like a fucking specter.
"You're thinking really loud," Miroku said, and Inuyasha glared at him from the corner of his eyes. "I can hear it from all the way over here."
"Keh, it's not like you're used to doing it."
"You're stressing us out is what Miroku is getting at."
Inuyasha scoffed, but didn't reply, shifting Kagome into his lap and still holding onto her firmly.
He didn't know what to do.
This place felt too open, too exposed. Everyone was injured, and they were just sitting ducks out here like this. There was nothing to hide behind if there was an attack.
They should move. Find somewhere safer, more protected.
Looking over at Sango to say something, he saw Miroku with his head resting back against the stone, and Sango stretching her legs out in front of her with a grimace.
That growing ball of panic in his gut rose into his throat.
They couldn't move. Kirara wasn't able to do anything, and Sango and Miroku weren't in any position to do any walking, not with the way that Miroku was leaning on his staff earlier.
They were effectually trapped here, and there wasn't a way to make it better. There were no loose boulders to move or anything, just forest.
His hands lightly rubbed along Kagome's spine, shifting her that much closer to him as he buried his nose in her hair and pressed a kiss to her crown as he cradled her head and her body against him.
Shippo reappeared with another armful of limbs, dumping them into a pile.
Inuyasha inhaled deeply, watching the kit stack the branches, flicking his tail before darting back off into the trees.
Fuck.
He'd have to be the one to make dinner, wouldn't he?
He didn't know what to do. Did they even have enough water to cook ramen?
Shit, he was going to have to go find a stream and get them water for the evening. There was too many for Shippo to carry there and back. It would take too long.
Fucking hell.
Tightening his grip on Kagome, he quietly pressed her against his chest.
"Care to explain why you look like you're trying to start the campfire with your eyes?" Miroku asked, shifting with a soft groan of pain.
"I am not," Inuyasha hissed back.
"Then why were you growling?"
He started to deny it, but Sango was giving him a look, and he shut his mouth, sagging back against the wall and glaring at the earth.
He scoffed quietly as Shippo returned with another armful of branches.
"Oi, Shippo," Inuyasha called and the kit looked up at him, tailing swishing behind him. "You see a stream or something while you were running around?"
"No, but I smelled one that way, and it's pretty close. Want me to get some water?"
Inuyasha wanted to say yes, he wanted someone else to go get it, but Shippo wasn't coordinated enough and he was the only one that could move without being in pain, so that meant it was on him. He should be the one to go get it.
And normally, not an issue, but now? There were no defenses, and there was little fight left in his friends.
Not to mention that he couldn't exactly drag Kagome along for this one.
"I'll get it," he sighed. "Pull out the empty bottles and the cooking pot."
Shippo started rooting through the pack, digging out the few empty bottles of water.
"You're going to go?" Sango asked, eyes drifting towards Kagome before settling back on him.
"I'm faster and the only one not injured." He said, shifting to kneel and lay Kagome back onto the cold stone floor that surely wouldn't help her warm up any before picking up the few empty bottles and the cooking pot that Shippo had pulled out. "Just—" He grimaced at the words coming out of his mouth for the second time that day. "Just keep her safe, okay?"
"Hurry back soon," Miroku said in a sing-song voice. "We miss you already."
Inuyasha turned to give Sango a look that expressly asked her to murder her fiancé while he was out.
"I'll throw Miroku at anything that comes our way."
"Good," Inuyasha said with a nod, hearing Miroku moan about the unfairness of his life fade back into the distance.
The stream wasn't that far off and Inuyasha used both hands to hold the bottles under the water before filling up the cooking pot.
The woods were quiet. Soft chirps and rustles from the birds and other little critters that ran around.
Nothing sounded ominous, and yet, every part of him felt like it was strung tight enough to snap a rope. Everything was a threat, a danger. Anything could take everything from him at a moment's notice.
The moment the pot filled, he snapped the lid on it, grabbing the bottles and ran carefully back to camp.
When he returned, he'd spilled little of the water, and it was more than enough to make ramen for all of them.
Shippo had gathered a decent amount of twigs and brush, allowing them to have a fire well after nightfall.
Kagome remained asleep—a dreamless sleep at that.
"How is she?" Sango asked as he pressed his palm to Kagome's cheek.
"Still clammy and cooler than she should be, but she's breathing." Inuyasha looked up at Miroku hoping that he would have some answers, but even Miroku looked concerned.
Something was wrong, wasn't it?
That wasn't a good face that Miroku was making.
Something was always wrong. Nothing ever went smoothly for him.
"Perhaps," Miroku started, and Inuyasha's ears pricked forward. "It's that she's not producing enough body heat. She's just—uh—stagnating is the best word I can come up with."
"You think she just needs to be warmed up?" Inuyasha asked, looking down at Kagome. He had no idea how close to a hot spring they were, but that would be the only way that he could think of.
Well,—his face blushed at the thought and he was infinitely glad that it was dark so no one else could see—there was another way, but he didn't want anyone else watching.
Maybe if he just laid next to her it would be enough. Drape his arm and leg over her to help cut the wind. He could keep his back against the stone wall and watch the trees, spot any danger that would come close.
No, he couldn't do that. Not here and not now.
He needed to be alert and awake and ready. He was their first and only line of defense.
He could already feel his body drooping at the notion of laying down next to her, curling around her, letting his warmth leech into her.
Miroku stretched out next to Sango with an obvious lump on his gut. Sango draped a blanket over the both of them and curled up against his side. Inuyasha could see her arm cradling the lump that was Kirara, with her head resting on Miroku's chest.
His heart twinged in longing.
He wanted that.
He wanted exactly that.
But with Kagome and Kagome alone.
No one else. Just her and a dim fire and the soft weight of her on his chest reminding him that she was real and safe and alive.
Inuyasha looked at the unconscious girl and very carefully smoothed her hair, resettling her in his lap.
He might not be able to lay down beside her, but he could hold her, and that was the next best thing.
Another quick glance at the sleeping couple made him realize how cavernous his desire for companionship really was and how much he longed to just have her.
It felt endless, like all the love he held for her would never become stagnant; it would always be new and pouring into a bottomless pit.
His hands held her close and he let his cheek rest on the crown of her head as he stared out into the wide expanse of night.
The night was soft and quiet and dark.
Which made the glow of the white shinidamachu all that more fearful.
A/N: Happy Thursday!
I hate to say it but I think that I may need to postpone my posting for the next chapter. Life has been overly real at the moment, and I'm not enjoying it. To give you an idea of my past week.
Found out my cat has dropped 4 pounds over the last year, has severe kidney disease, and needs meds for all of this. He also needs an ultrasound to determine if he has IBS and possibly lymphoma.
My fridge has been dying, but I've just been hoping that it'll keep puttering along, knowing that it could go out at any moment and avoiding buying any substantial groceries, because if it does bad, so do they. Thankfully, my parents agreed to help me out with the fridge, and are purchasing the fridge as long as I paid for the removal, delivery, and warranty of the new one.
On the way home to take my cat back to another vet visit, a tire broke off a trailer and ran straight into my car destroying the radiator, transmission, and other critical components and deployed every air bag in my car, consequently totaling it in one fail swoop. I got to experience my first ambulance ride because I couldn't breathe from the air bags and the gas and dust of the airbags, and thankfully, no broken bones, but my ankle has been giving me the fits, and I'm hoping it's just bruised and not fractured.
Meanwhile, a coworker has decided to rear up and be a giant bitch and is apparently out to get someone fired, probably me, but who knows at this point? What set her off? ️ No clue. All I know is that she's just freaking out and acting like I'm a dictator over everything, and causing problems on a whole separate team, and I have to nice about it.
The other bit of good news is that my mother decided that she wanted a new car, so she's giving me her old one on the contingency that she gets that insurance payout for my car, which is fair since we pretty much had the same vehicle to begin with. Hers was actually a little nicer than mine and had less mileage, so I might get the better end of the deal.
Anyway, that's been like my last entire week, so just bear with me while I attempt to recoup. If I can post, I will, but there's like so much that's happening and I just could really use a break.
So I hope a 5k+ chapter makes up for it.
