InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Halves ❯ Yes or No? ( Chapter 7 )

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What was wrong to him? Why'd he snap at Kikyou like that? It was surely the pressure, yes, it had to be the pressure. Having his two important women so close to him was playing with his mind. He couldn't think, couldn't sleep, he wanted Kagome so much. It was a distraction during the day and a nightmare at night. Why couldn't he get rid of this fever? Ever since the kiss…

 

Kami-sama, even his body was reacting to the stimulating memory. The way she felt in his arms, how her lips felt against his, her unique taste… he'd never tasted anything more delicious. But it was supposed to be so, wasn't it? One's Half was always a person created to please the other, to be exactly to his taste. That was the only reason why he wanted her. He told himself that much.

 

I only want her for her body. Yes, that's it. Her taste has been driving me crazy with lust, and I feel like an idiot for not being able to control something like this. Never has it happened to me before… I've never been so… distracted. Why can't things be easier?

 

Still, her fragrance, her skin, the soft skin he wanted to touch again. Vaguely, he realized he'd become hard again just by thinking of her, but he couldn't help it. He couldn't help continuing to fantasize about what lay hidden behind those clothes of her, did she have a beautiful body? He supposed she did.

 

Kami-sama.

 

He groaned, stopping dead in his tracks and hearing the soldiers behind him do the same. There was a clatter of armors, but he paid no attention. They were demons, how embarrassing. Some of them were dog demons, too. Which only meant they could smell his reason for stopping so abruptly. He tried, really, he did try to stifle his desire, to put an end to his thoughts, but thinking about not thinking about Kagome only made it worse. Much, much worse and it was suddenly ridiculous. There was only so much he could do to prevent from falling to his knees, how absurd was this?

 

His blood felt on fire, that much was evident. Color drained from his face, it all went downwards. Why didn't the Gods let him regain his dignity? This had to stop.

 

Unfortunately, his heart was beating so loudly that he could hear it resound in his head. Another distraction. Her eyes, Kagome's eyes were so beautiful, but they'd been closed during the kiss, when her tongue had stroked his so sensually, so timidly, yet so passionately.

 

He groaned again.

 

It was just so hard to stop doing this to himself. But he had to. Biting his lower lip, Inuyasha started walking again, thus wordlessly commanding the others to do the same. They didn't say a word, of course, but he could already hear it, the gossip.

 

“This never happened,” he stated firmly, he didn't have to look behind to know they all bowed, even while walking. He was safe now. If anyone found out, he'd seriously punish these men. They surely knew it. They surely wouldn't dare say a word.

 

Soon they arrived at their destination. Hosenki was, as always, at home, so they only needed to announce the Prince's presence for the much, much older demon to show himself in his own garden.

 

It was such a sunny day, such a bright sky. Yet Inuyasha's mind was dark, he was struggling with himself. An inner battle was always the worst. Partly, he was scared about what might happen now that he saw Hosenki. The man was always so odd, no one ever knew what to expect from him.

 

“Inuyasha-sama,” Hosenki said with a bow, “What brings you here?” The demon's eye twitched, it was a sign that he already knew. Who'd told him? The Emperor? Inuyasha scowled.

 

“You know what. I have one question about the Halves thing.”

 

“Have you spoken with your father?” the demon interrupted, Inuyasha supposed that was only natural.

 

“Yes,” he said quickly, “of course, of course, I talked to him.”

 

Hosenki looked like he had some suspicions things weren't quite as white as Inuyasha painted them. “And?” the oyster demon insisted.

 

“He knows I'm here. Look, Hosenki, I don't have much time, so can you tell me how to break a bond? You know… a bond with a Half?”

 

There was a stretched silence that felt so long that it could easily be mistaken for forever. Would the older demon tell him? He was the only one he could ask, so… but what if his father had ordered him not to say anything? Somehow, he doubted Hosenki would follow that order.

 

“First of all, do you know everything there is to know about this bond?” Hosenki asked seriously. Inuyasha flinched a bit, why did he have the feeling that he wouldn't like it?

 

“Yes, I guess I do.”

 

“There is no `I guess' when you are determined to annul a Halves bond. You don't know what it entails, do you?”

 

Inuyasha gulped. When had Hosenki got so close to him? He was now only a hair's breath away from him. He looked so, so imposing, was he trying to intimidate him? No, he wouldn't fall for his tricks.

 

“Tell me, but I won't change my mind,” Inuyasha said.

 

“Very well.” The demon smiled, turned away. Why did Inuyasha suddenly dread this? “You've started to feel something for her, haven't you?”

 

The sudden question caught him off guard. What did that have to do with anything? Of course he had, it was the stupid bond that caused it!

 

“Higurashi Kagome,” the older demon murmured contemplatively. How did he know? Inuyasha was fairly certain Inu no Taishou hadn't divulged the girl's name, but Hosenki probably had some influence, too. He shouldn't be surprised.

 

“You've probably already fallen in love with her free spirit, with how selfless she is, haven't you?”

 

What? No, it was the bond! The bond made him love her. Yet, Inuyasha stopped to think for a moment. Loved her? A mere bond couldn't just do that, could it? What if there was more to it? Why was everything so damn complicated?

 

“Why don't you tell me more about the bond, huh?” Inuyasha challenged, his brows furrowed. Now he wanted to know more. What if there was something else, something his father had never told him?

 

“I suppose your father has never told you why your mother wasn't his Half,” the oyster demon commented aloud. What… did he mean, exactly?

 

“What are you saying? My mother was his Half, he said so himself,” Inuyasha protested. What Hosenki was saying was outrageous. If he didn't want to hear more about this whole deal, he'd gut him on the spot.

 

“Has the Emperor ever used the words `my Half' or just `I was her Half'?”

 

What did that have to do with anything?

 

The full demon approached the other, it seemed like a game and Inuyasha was the prey. Hosenki loved toying with him, with his confusion, he was that way. Then he spat the venom, “Your father destroyed his bond with your mother.”

 

Inuyasha couldn't move, he couldn't breathe. That couldn't be true, how? He'd always known how much his father loved his mother, the Emperor had always said how he was… Izayoi's Half. What did that mean? How come he was her Half yet he wasn't hers?

 

“Explain,” Inuyasha demanded, harsher than he'd intended. His words were strained, it hurt. His mother… had she died unloved, disappointed? Was everything a lie?

 

“Long, long before the marriage, Inu no Taishou was forced into a marriage with Masami-Hime. Because he was to become Emperor, in order to prevent complications from arising, they were sent to me to terminate their bonds. At that time they didn't know what it truly meant to have a Half, neither of them. I was ordered not to fully explain. However, there is a catch to all this. When one terminates a bond, he only destroys his share of the bond.”

 

For some reason, Hosenki sat down on the grass. Without saying anything, he closed his eyes, as if knowing Inuyasha's reaction would be slow.

 

And it was.

 

First, there was a blink. A blink and another one. `Only his share of the bond' That could only mean one thing, could it? That meant… even if he no longer felt anything, Kagome would still feel it. Kagome would still suffer. That didn't sit well with his stomach. She was the one who'd been through the greater agony of the two, he was married, he had Kikyou. What did she have? Was it selfish of him to want to destroy the bond? It was… would he do it?

 

His father… hadn't known. That was probably the reason why he was always so gloomy, so dejected. He always looked so guilty. How had everything happened? After many, many years of being married to Masami-Hime, how had his mother appeared? Had he loved her on the spot? Still, he could imagine the torture, the agony his mother had gone through, knowing that her Half had rejected her even before knowing her.

 

Somehow, rejecting Kagome now seemed much, much worse. He'd kissed her, he'd been so… two-faced. Why? What drew him to her? The bond, but…

 

“Do you understand, young prince?” Hosenki asked all of a sudden as Inuyasha languidly moved his gaze to watch him. “You'd probably get rid of the urge to be with her, to have her, but how will your consciousness be? Will you be able to sleep at night? You know what happens to two mates that do not consume their bond, don't you? They slowly, slowly fade away. Your mother was so weak, so defenseless when she died.”

 

These words stung, they hurt so much. To do something like that to Kagome… no, he couldn't do it. But he wanted to, so, so much. He wanted to be free, to get back to Kikyou, to stop hurting his wife so much. What did she think of him now? He'd behaved so badly in front of her… he had no excuse. Why weren't things different?

 

“Will you still do it?”

 

It was a natural question, he'd expected that. Yet… why was it so hard to give an answer?

 

“I… have to think about it,” Inuyasha whispered. In all truth, he didn't want to think about it. He didn't want to do that at all.

 

“Think of your mother,” Hosenki suggested, the sly, devious demon. The bastard.

 

He wouldn't, would he? In the end, he could never do such a thing to Kagome, it was clear.

 

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