InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ His Little Girl ❯ In the dark of the night ( Chapter 27 )

 

 

He and Maika were new mates, not even a month had they been mated and he was already without her. But for once, with honesty unquestioned and surely undoubted, he could say to himself that he was truly glad that she wasn't here at this moment. Inuyoukai were very possessive, especially with their mates and he doubted that she, even as understanding as she could be, would understand this.

 

Shippou had not woken once since he had pinched the nerve in the kit's neck sending him to sleep. He looked down at the tiny kit that lay in Kagome's arms. It was late, very late, two am by the glowing red numbers on Kagome's bedside clock. He and Sesshoumaru lay curled up tight against Kagome, the miko snuggled tightly but comfortably in between their bodies, her arms wrapped around her pup, and he and his brother's wrapped around her.

 

They lay in her bed like this, had since ever after dinner, and even in her sleep she was mindful of Shippou's broken leg. He knew Maika wouldn't understand this, wouldn't understand the closeness, why he slept so intimately with his brother and his mate. She didn't truly understand and there was no true way to explain to the inuyoukai just how their family worked.

 

Kagome was Sesshoumaru's mate yes, but she was Inuyasha's heart. The strange miko from the future had taught the inu hanyou how to love, how to care for others, how to rely on others, but most importantly, she had taught him how to trust. He had never done that before he had met her. She had somehow slipped past every single one of his defenses and had shattered the hard wall around his heart. How she did he still wasn't sure, but he knew, somehow he knew, that if his own mate were to perish, he would survive, he move on and heal. But if Kagome were to die, he would die as well. He didn't want to mate with her, he didn't see her in that light anymore - he wasn't certain if he ever truly had. But she had brought him to life, and without her he would die. It was as simple as that.

 

His attention once again focused on the sleeping kit. He sighed sadly as he remembered what had led to all of this. It was the result of a spell yes, but it was a spell that had broken the child's spirit more than anything else ever could. He'd never seen Shippou as truly terrified as he was earlier that day, not even on the day they had met him when his father had been killed. Not even when facing Naraku himself. The kit had always remained strong, and he knew that it was because of Kagome. It was her heart, her love, that gave others strength, that allowed people to see past their differences to see the good in each other, to see what they could be if only they forgot their differences.

 

She had become Shippou's mother over time, and then after the mating ceremonies had completed, she had made Shippou her son in blood, adopted him in the youkai way. So soon after that, the day after in fact, the spell had taken effect, and everyone had forgotten Shippou. The kit he thought of as his own pup had been taken from him, from his memories. He could still clearly remember the first time Shippou had called him `Daddy', sure Kagome had been in danger and he had been frightened, but in that moment he felt his heart swell. Shippou thought of him as his father - no as his `daddy'. He remembered vaguely Kagome telling him that there was a difference between a father and a daddy, but he couldn't remember what that difference was, he'd have to ask her to tell him again later.

 

He looked at his brother who was sound asleep and purring in his sleep, his face buried in his mate's raven tresses, her own face buried in Shippou's copper hair. His hair had been loose since they had arrived and although she had been handed hair ties, Kagome had refused to put the kit's hair back up in its usual ponytail, preferring instead to run her fingers through the child's hair. It seemed to be a source of comfort for her, as was stroking the kit's bushy tail; it was as though those actions alone told her that the kit was truly there in her arms.

 

The scent of Shippou's fear once again permeated the air and he looked down to find the kit shaking and trembling in his sleep, every now and then whimpering soft `no's' and `it's not true's'. He lightly shook the kit's shoulder trying not to wake Kagome, but that didn't work at all. He looked sadly down at his pup and a lone tear slipped from his eye unchecked. He knew it was wrong but he needed to see.

 

Carefully, so as not to wake her, Inuyasha slipped the bottle containing the jewel shards out from beneath Kagome's nightshirt and carefully, using his long sharp claws like tweezers, removed one of the shards and replaced the cork. Pinching the tips of the shard between his fingers he made it pierce the kin of his finger as it stood on his thumb. Once the small shard was coated in his blood, he used his hand to still Shippou's head and placed the bloodied shard upon the kit's brow. He rested his own brow on top of the jewel and wished to see into Shippou's dreams. What he saw was nothing short of heartbreaking.

 

 

 

 

Kikyou stood in front of a trembling Shippou who was huddled in the far corner of a dark room, the only light seemed to come from out of nowhere and illuminated him just slightly, as though it were a whisper of light, although Kikyou was bathed in a red glow. Tears were flowing freely from Shippou's eyes as he cried brokenly unable to turn away from the unbearable mental and emotional torture the dead miko was inflicting upon him.

 

“Do you truly think they ever cared for you youkai?” Kikyou spoke, her voice calm and cold as though she were speaking nothing but the truth and had no reason to be questioned at all. “You are nothing to them; you've never been more than dirt under their feet. How many times have you been left behind or forgotten, even before this? They have never wanted anything to do with you. That girl only cared for you out of pity, do you truly think that if given the chance she would ever have kept you this long?”

 

“Please stop,” Shippou whimpered as he covered his head with his arms, burying his face in the knees he had pulled so tightly to his chest, his tail shaking in fear and despair.

 

“Stop? Stop what? It is only the truth I speak child. A truth you need to realize and accept, running from it will do you no good.”

 

Inuyasha looked on in horror, his sorrow for the kit nearly tangible and his anger growing by the second. How dare she say these things to his pup! At first he had thought her to be nothing more than the voice to Shippou's inner fears, that was until he realized he could smell her. Not the scent of clay and bones and grave dirt, but the scent of spring flowers and summer rain, the scent Kikyou held when she was alive.

 

“You are a kitsune youkai. Did you truly think Inuyasha, a inuhanyou, would want anything to do with you, other than a meal? You will no sooner be forgotten again than rain will fall. Tricksters are not wanted, not by other youkai, and certainly not by humans. Whatever made you think that my reincarnation could be your mother was foolish and idiotic. You are nothing more than a blemish to her, an ugly stain on her clothes, something that will only be too easy to wipe away.”

 

Shippou was sobbing hard his whole body shaking violently with his tears, and in that moment, Inuyasha wished that he could no longer simply see his dreams, but also be a part of them. Oh how he wished to take that trembling little kit in his arms and hold him and soothe away all of his worries and fears, and how desperately he wished to kill Kikyou - again.

 

“There is a way youkai, a way to end all of this pain. A way to make the hurt go away.”

 

Shippou's sobs became hiccups and he looked up at her slowly. “How?”

 

“Take this,” she tossed a dagger at the kit that he easily caught. “If you stab your heart you will make the pain go away.”

 

“K-k-kill m-myself?”

 

“There is no one to miss you, no one to mourn your loss. Who would care if you were gone?”

 

“I would,” Inuyasha's voice sounded from the darkness and both heads snapped to him. It was then Inuyasha realized his wish had been granted and that he was no longer formless eyes witnessing a dream, but that he was given his body and voice and was part of the dream itself now, interacting in whatever way he wished.

 

“Oh how pathetic.” She turned cold eyes back to Shippou who was still staring at Inuyasha - this never happened before the kit thought. “You are so frightened you had to dream him up to protect you? He would never come to your aid in life, why would he in your dreams?”

 

“Shut up Kikyou!” Inuyasha growled as he stormed over and knocked the dead miko away from his pup, lifting Shippou into his arms and holding him close to his chest. He tucked the kit inside his haori in an attempt to comfort and warm the trembling child. “How dare you do this to my pup! How dare you tell him to take his own life! And how dare you, you fucking bitch, tell my son that he ISN”T LOVED! He is MY SON! MINE! And I love him more than anything! You think I don't love him, I would die for him! He has more people waiting to love him than you have known.”

 

He looked down when he felt fur against his skin to see that Shippou had burrowed between the folds of his white under kimono to cuddle against his bare chest and was holding onto him around neck. Shippou buried his nose in Inuyasha's neck and breathed deeply in his scent.

 

“You're really here, it's really you.”

 

“You bet it is pup.” Inuyasha kissed Shippou's head and then turned his attention back to Kikyou.

 

Inuyasha stalked toward his old love looking for all the world like a hungry animal on the prowl. Circling around Kikyou slowly he began sniffing at her, “I wonder what would happen if I were to kill you in here. Would you die and be truly gone?”

 

“It will make no difference if you kill me or not Inuyasha,” she answered quickly, a little too quickly.

 

“You just gave me my answer bitch. “ His claws lashed out quicker than the eye could see and he slashed down her body killing her. She screamed and her blood turned to dust as her body turned to clay and fell apart, the broken pieces turning into dust and blowing away. Inuyasha wrapped his arms around the kit buried in his clothing and hugged him tight saying, “let's go home pup.”

 

 

 

Inuyasha awoke to find Shippou sleeping inside his under kimono just as he had been in the dreamscape. Smiling he held onto the discarded jewel shard until Kagome could purify it again. For now though he would sleep with his pup and family in his arms. Shippou would need a lot of comfort and reassurance, but he had a feeling that everything would be smoother going from now on. Yawning he hugged himself closer to Kagome, tucking the kit inside his clothes, between their bodies and yawning, he fell asleep.