InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Clarity ❯ Sunrise ( Chapter 1 )

Chapter 1

 

The warm spring breeze made its way across Higurashi shrine, carrying tiny green leaves and blossoms with it. They mingled with his hair, dancing with his shimmering silver locks, illuminated by the sunrise. His ears twitched slightly, picking up the faint chirping of sparrows in nearby trees. Cracking his eyes open, he appreciated the view of the rising sun, the deep pinks and oranges reflecting off his golden skin. He stared across the grounds, took in the serenity of it all, the peace that her world offered. He had to admit to himself that taking a breather here now and then wasn't all that bad. At least he didn't have to worry about youkai attacking left and right.

 

Inhaling the sweet breeze that encompassed him, he noticed her scent immediately. Bending his gaze to the base of Goshinboku, his eyes settled upon Kagome, peacefully resting beneath him. He'd forgotten that she had fallen asleep there, soon after he himself, had settled into the branches of the sacred tree. The undersized blanket that covered her legs gently flapped in the wind that also caused her hair to brush across her shoulders and extend in the air behind her. A stronger gust blew over them both, causing her blanket to abandon the limbs that were now left prey to the chilly wave of air. Noticing the tiny spasms taking over her body, the sign of her body's distaste to the climate change, he shifted slightly, debating whether or not to leave the peaceful sanctuary of Goshinboku's branches.

 

Against his body's plea to stay put, he dropped out of the strong confines of the tree's limbs and crouched before her. While sliding his haori off his shoulders, a completely uneasy look took up residence on Kagome's features, and he debated whether or not it was worth worrying about. Gently draping the haori over her shoulders, her features suddenly softened again, the tension drained from her body, and the corners of her lips turned up as she quietly uttered his name.

 

`So, the wench is dreaming about me, is she? I wonder what could be going on in that head of hers…' But then he remembered the look of discomfort that had adorned her soft face before she had muttered his name, and the slight smirk that he'd worn slowly melted away.

 

`Did I do something to her? She knows I'd never hurt her, doesn't she? I thought I'd made that obvious to her a long time ago…

 

He sat down beside her, his back against the rough bark of the magnolia tree that, had she not chanced upon falling down the well nearly two years ago, he may still have been bound to. Slightly hesitant, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her in closer to his chest. He rested his chin atop her head, inhaling the intoxicating fragrance of her silky hair, the kind of smell you never forget - especially with a hanyou's nose. Unconsciously, she nestled her head into the crook of his neck, and he smiled, squeezing her shoulder gently in his hand.

 

Her scent shifted, along with her body, and he could tell that she was slowly drifting back into a state of consciousness. As she twisted in his embrace, her hand landed roughly on his chest, causing him to inwardly wince in pain. As uncomfortable as it may have been, however, it was nothing compared to the look of guilt that popped onto her face once she opened her eyes and realized what she'd done to him.

 

“Inuyasha, I'm so sorry,” she apologized repeatedly as she cursed herself for causing him any unnecessary pain. “I should probably get new bandages on that, shouldn't I?”

 

He rolled his eyes and grabbed her wrist before she retreated into the house to get her medical supplies that, over the last few years, had proven themselves to be invaluable. “Think you can hurt me that easily, do ya wench?” She couldn't help but smile at the fact that he was only joking around with her. Obviously, he wasn't too damaged by the accidental misplacement of her hand.

 

“Not quite, dog-boy. I know that you're made of tougher stuff than that.” She giggled as she pounded on his chest once again, a small groan escaping his lips as she settled down on the ground beside him. Concern entering her eyes again, she couldn't help but wonder if she'd really hurt him.

 

“Are you sure you're alright?”

 

“Keh.”

 

The wound from where Naraku had impaled him with a tentacle was healing, but not as quickly as he'd hoped. That was to be expected though, because the damage had been dealt within a cloud of Naraku's miasma, and the poison had definitely taken a toll on the injury. That determining battle was four days past now, and some of the scabs would still break open from time to time. Kagome also still fussed over him like a dying puppy, but he didn't mind so much anymore. He actually rather enjoyed it. Taking extreme caution tending to his wounds, she was always sure to cause him the least amount of pain. Her delicate fingers would brush over the marred skin, but the soft touch didn't much mask the burn of her modern medicines.

 

He focused his attention on the hand that now toyed with the tattered edge of his bandage, partially hidden by his kosode. He retreated backwards as her other hand began pushing aside the off-white undershirt. “Sorry…” was the word that escaped her, barely whispered.

 

“Keh'” was all he could mutter as a pink flush crept up his cheeks. With one hand, he thrust himself off the ground and turned to head inside. Inhaling a deep breath, he glanced back over his shoulder, and he took in the sight of another flushed face, his golden gaze settling upon her rosy cheeks. “Your mother made eggs for breakfast, you coming?”

 

Slowly rising from the ground herself, she fell into step beside him, and they silently strolled towards the house.

 

 

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“You two have been pretty quiet this morning… how're you holding up Inuyasha?” Kagome's mother had always been nosy, but he never resisted her questions.

 

“Keh, I should be ready to go back tomorrow. One more night of rest here will have to do… we've gotta get back and complete the jewel. That mangy wolf is gonna regret it if he doesn't hand over those shards.”

 

At that statement, the corners of Kagome's lips turned skyward and she fumbled with the jewel hanging around her neck, almost complete. The only shards left for them to collect were the one in Kohaku's back and the pair in Kouga's legs. There was an obvious rivalry between those two from the day they'd met, and it was all over her. She couldn't help but feel a bit of pride at that fact. Although he'd never come out and say it, Inuyasha made it painfully obvious that he was jealous of Kouga's forwardness with his feelings.

 

“Your arch enemy is gone, right? So what are you gonna do once you complete the jewel, sis?”

 

“Well… I guess we've got to purify it, and then… well…”

 

“Keh, lets not get ahead of ourselves. I think we should just take things as they come.”

 

She got his meaning. He wasn't sure what was going to happen between them and the others once the jewel was gone, either. There was no right answer to Souta's question.

 

She'd tried to block it out of her mind, fearing the actual answer that was quickly approaching, eager to reveal itself. Over the past two years, traveling back and forth between past and present, she'd never really thought about what would happen if their adventure came to a close. Now that the end was basically nipping at their heels, a rabid dog, she was afraid of being bitten by it. Would she stay with Inuyasha? Would he want her to stay? What about Sango and Miroku? After all, they'd agreed to be married once all the `buts' and `what ifs' were removed from their life. Now that the kazaana was gone, there was nothing holding them back.

 

A loud sigh escaped her lips as she closed her eyes tight and pushed those thoughts into the dark recesses of her mind. Silently standing, excusing herself from the table, four pairs of eyes watched as she left the room without a word.

 

“What was that about?” Souta questioned, looking from his grandfather to his mother, and allowing his stare to rest on a certain hanyou, who was rudely slurping up the remnants in his bowl.

 

Noticing the questioning eyes pointed his direction, Inuyasha also stood, his ears twitching from time to time, picking up the miniscule noises from all their modern conveniences. As he walked toward the doorway, he dragged his claws across the tabletop, wrinkling the emerald tablecloth that sat atop it. He casually strolled out, stretching his arms above his head and opening his mouth in a fang-bearing yawn.

 

Once Inuyasha was out of hearing range, Kagome's grandfather made his complaints known.

 

“Those two should just learn to spit out whatever's eating at them, if you ask me.

 

Mrs. Higurashi turned to look at her father, and then glanced back to the doorway. Disregarding Inuyasha's actual age, she spoke up in their defense.

 

“They're teenagers… you can't expect much more than that.”

 

 

0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0

 

 

The stairs creaked, and his claws clicked against the handrail as Inuyasha drawled up the stairs and turned towards Kagome's bedroom. Senses well attuned to everything Kagome; he didn't even have to open the door to know that she was crying. Tapping a single claw on her door, he asked a wordless request to enter the room.

 

He heard a sniffle, and then a stifled cry. “Come on in…”

 

He turned the cool doorknob and pushed the door open, only to find Kagome sitting in front of her window, a box of tissues on the short nightstand beside her. As his gaze roamed across her face, he noticed a single tear streaming from the corner of her cobalt- blue eyes. With another sniff, she sighed aloud.

 

“What do you want?”

 

Inuyasha walked forward to the window. Standing stiffly beside her, he put his clawed hand on her shoulder but kept his gaze averted, staring anywhere but at Kagome. He crouched down, but still didn't look at her. After clearing his throat and an audible gulp, he tipped his head back, his golden eyes boring holes into her heart, sending all of her stomach's butterflies aflutter.

 

“What's bothering you, Kagome?”

 

She was unprepared for his question, but hesitantly answered anyway; giving away the secrets she'd held in for so long.

 

“I don't want to leave you, Inuyasha…”

 

Moments passed, and then he blinked a few times before responding. “What makes you think you'll have to?”

 

Her mouth had been open, prepared to retort to whatever it was he had to say, ready to defend her emotions, ready to scream in frustration if he didn't feel the same way. She snapped it closed, however, thrust her eyelids closed tightly, and shook her head in disbelief.

 

“What?”

 

“Do you really think I would want to leave you?”

 

Another tear fell as she quietly choked out her answer.

 

“I wasn't sure.”

 

“Keh.”

 

He squeezed her shoulder before he slid his hand down to her waist, pulling her closer, her curves molding perfectly to his chiseled frame.

 

The corners of his mouth erected, and he parted his lips, barely allowing his fangs to be seen out a narrow smile. “After everything we've been through, did you really think you could get away from me that easily?”

 

Another wave of tears began flowing freely down her cheeks, but she smiled brightly nonetheless.

 

“Thank you,” she whimpered, gently placing her hands upon his chest and burying her face in the copious folds of his haori.

 

He smiled proudly, and snuggly wrapped his arms around the girl sitting in his lap, clinging to him as if her life depended on it. It did.

 

“You want to go back down and finish your breakfast,” he asked, a new glint in his eye, “now that we've cleared that up?”

 

She only looked back up at him, a small tweak to her lips, before taking his hand in hers and softly tugging him out of the room, back down the stairs.

 

 

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She sat silently in his warm embrace, watching the hues of the setting sun change slowly from yellow to orange, to deep pinks, and finally to a deathly shade of red. The death of the day - such a beautiful sight.

 

They watched the silhouettes of birds retreating into the distance… into the expanse of the seemingly endless sky. She felt his chest rising and falling gently with his breathing, his arms draped loosely around her waist, holding her back flush with his chest. The day had gone by slowly but surely, and was now surrendering to the night. Kagome reached over to her nightstand and turned on the lamp, illuminating the room with a dark golden glow. Craning her neck to stare back at Inuyasha, she became lost in the amber pools that were his eyes.

 

“Are you sure you want to go back tomorrow?” she asked, her gaze once again focused on the final moments of the setting sun. Her voice was hopeful.

 

He smirked, tightening his hold on her waist.

 

“You know we have to go back, Kagome. We've been here for four days already. We've got to complete the jewel. After that, we can stay like this forever if you want to.”

 

She smiled back at him, pasting a mischievous smirk on her face. “Okay.”

 

His ears twitched then, turning towards the closed door, focusing past it - to the noises that sounded from the hallway. He leaned forward to whisper into her ear.

 

“Your brother is listening to us.”

 

Without a word or a glance back, she vacated Inuyasha's lap and marched to her door, surprising the young boy when she swung the door open wide.

 

“H-Hey sis… what's up?”

 

Trying to play innocent with me, is he? I'll show him…

 

“Oh nothing, Souta. Why are you outside of my bedroom? You weren't listening in on Inuyasha and I, were you?” She asked in her most authoritative voice.

 

“What?! No, of course not!” He replied with a frightened giggle, crawling away from her and into his bedroom, closing the door with a `wham' behind him.

 

Closing her eyes, she sighed, slumping her shoulders and turning back toward her bedroom.

 

“You shouldn't scare the kid like that.”

 

“Oh! Inuyasha! How long have you been standing there?”

 

“Only long enough to see you scare the wits out of your little brother.”

 

“Did you want him listening to us?” she asked, beginning to let her frustration be heard in her voice.

 

“Not particularly.”

 

“Exactly! So why are you defending him and not our privacy?”

 

She put her hand on his chest and tried with all her might to push him back int6o her bedroom, but he tightly gripped the doorframe.

 

“Inuyasha, I'm just going to get ready for bed. Go back and wait for me, okay?” she asked, defeat resonating from every syllable of her sentence.

 

“Whatever, wench.” He said, the hint of a laugh in his voice. He backed into the room and she closed the door, the quiet clicks of the doorknob locking into place.

 

She proceeded to wash her face, brush her teeth, and change into her pajamas - a baby blue tank-top and some green plaid flannel shorts - before returning to her bedroom. She was surprised at the sight that greeted her, so she stepped inside without bothering to shut her door.

 

Inuyasha lay on her bed above the covers, his arms and legs sprawled in opposite directions. Taking a step forward, the floor creaked and his ear twitched.

 

There's no way he could've fallen asleep that fast… I wasn't gone for ten minutes.

 

The seemingly sleeping Inuyasha then flipped over onto his side, and she thought again to herself.

 

He is still injured. I'm sure I'd be the same way if I were in his condition. I shouldn't wake him.

 

She flicked off the lamp and then sat down on the floor in front of the bed. She closed her eyes, allowing the darkness to lull her to sleep as it had for Inuyasha.

 

But it wasn't meant to be. While trying to sink into a peaceful sleep, she began to hear a soft whimper from behind her. As the volume increased, she twisted around, meeting the face of her hanyou contorted in pain, twisting in agony. Immediately, she stood up and sat on the edge of the bed, the creaking of springs the only noise in the room now, his pained cries having already stopped. She let out her held breath and looked back at him, all the pain erased from his face, replaced with comfort.

 

Come on wench, just lay down with me…

 

He let out one more desperate whimper, and she sighed in exhaustion.

 

You'd almost think he was begging. What could cause him so much pain? What's happening in that dream of yours, Inuyasha?

 

She rested her head on her pillow, which the `sleeping' hanyou had so conveniently left unoccupied. She lifted her legs onto the bed, and rested beside him, closing her eyes, her back towards Inuyasha.

 

`Now I can rest comfortably…' he thought as he unconsciously shifted behind her, letting his hand rest in the junction of her waist. He smiled as she released another breath, and her breathing evened.

 

“Goodnight, Kagome” he whispered to the sleeping angel in front of him… this girl who had saved his life on countless occasions, and who had also needed saving… this girl who had given him a new reason to live.

 

 

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The light shining through the blinds left a dappled pattern across her floor, up the walls, across their skin. Their skin. Inuyasha's warm hand rested underneath her tank-top, heating the flesh of her stomach. She blinked a couple of times, fully allowing consciousness to flood her mind and prepare her for the day ahead.

 

As she realized just where she was… and just where his hand was, she blushed, but didn't move. Why ruin the moment? As her eyes fluttered closed again, he squeezed her flesh in his hand, sending tingles throughout her body, his claws adding to the sensation.

 

Now she was wide awake and everything came back to her.

 

`He wants me to stay. To stay with him.'

 

His hand gripped her again, and she felt movement from behind her.

 

“Good morning!” Kagome's mother greeted as she cheerily entered the room, exuding her child-like happiness like always. “So how did you two sleep last night?”

 

“Never better,” came a groggy voice from behind her. She snapped her neck as she turned to look back at Inuyasha, now sitting up. Pulling his hand away from her waist, dragging his claws across the tender skin as he did so, Inuyasha opened his mouth in a toothy yawn and stretched his arms above his head. His tawny skin almost shimmered in the light of the sunrise, and it cast shadows upon his well defined muscles when he reached back to scratch his sleep-flattened ear, nestled beneath his unruly silver mane.

 

Kagome blushed furiously, glancing from her mother to Inuyasha. She bolted up, like she'd been shocked in the rear, and headed for her door - after grabbing a handful of clothes. Storming out, she couldn't hide the amount of blood that rushed to her face.

 

“Take it easy, Kagome, the rest of your body needs blood, too.” He joked after her, finding it quite amusing how embarrassed Kagome was.

 

`Oh well,' he thought, taking a deep breath, her scent filling his nostrils. `She'll get used to it eventually.'

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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