InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Life's Menagerie ❯ One Cold Autumn Day... ( Chapter 4 )

Life's Menagerie

A/N ~ Just so you all know, I don't believe in the typical "happily-ever-after" scenario. Besides, it gets boring after a while, you need something new to spice things up. Hint. Big, obvious hint.

Also, to the infallible LilacRose23, The Xenocide, and Naimh St. George, much appreciation and wishes for many reviews upon your stories.

Oops… I let the authors note get away from me. Onto the story.

Nicole's Disclaimer ~ Please sir, can't I have some work? I want to go to college to get some hot Asian ass.

Chapter Four- One Cold Autumn Day…

~~~~~~

You walked away

into a sunset painted gold.

Frost rimmed kiss

of sweet burgundy lips,

whipped by an icy wind

into colors of a wintry bend.

Saccharine indulgence

dying on your breath,

fading to a dim farewell.

~~~~~~

Inuyasha stood in the dank darkness of the shrine's well house. His heart was beating loudly in his ears as he automatically moved forward. The steps facing him seemed to stretch for an eternity, yet climbing them would have taken no more than a blink of an eye. Advancing, he began to ascend them, careful not to shift the precious girl cradled in his arms.

He stepped into the cold autumn air, and paused to take in his surroundings. The wide, sprawling courtyard had been meticulously swept, but a few stray leaves had drifted down to litter its stone surface. The shrine itself stood strong and solid, a bastion of warmth in the chilly air. A cold breeze ruffled the leaves of the Goshinboku and played with Inuyasha's hair. He shivered and pulled Kagome closer.

It didn't matter that she would never feel the cold again, nor suffer from the harsh sun, or shiver from a sudden rainstorm. He had protected her for so long… Even with her death, he could not stop. Inuyasha began to pace slowly across the icy stones, his bare feet slapping lightly onto the rock. The sky was gray above him, and the air carried the promise of a killing frost. It was fitting; he did not know if he would have been able to stand a cheerful sunny day. Not with the tasks before him. The numbness within him lay untouched by the bitter cut of the wind.

As he stepped before the door of the house, Inuyasha sent a final, searching prayer upwards.

'Please, don't let the little kid be here. I don't know if I can take that… Not another little one…'

Breathing deeply, his face set itself into a determined mask. There was no room for feeling; to feel meant suffering, and he had done plenty of that. Shifting Kagome so he could hold her with one arm, Inuyasha raised his hand to knock on the door. As his fist met the wood, he felt the strangest sensation of déjà vu, even though he had never before entered the house in the common manner. Always, he had hopped in through Kagome's window. Shaking it off, he bleakly rapped again. Inuyasha hated feeling. It was better to be empty inside…

Inuyasha's ears flicked forward at the sound of pattering footsteps. His eyes narrowed.

'Please…'

The door was eased open. Kagome's mother's smiling gaze met his own despairing eyes. Immediately her cheery manner fell. Stepping forward, she opened her mouth as if to question him. Wordlessly, he stopped her, holding out Kagome's still form. Her shocked gasp, followed by her cry of desperate denial were mere background noises to Inuyasha. Events happened with a strange feeling of fantasy. Nothing was real to him.

Inuyasha moved mechanically into the house, still carrying Kagome. Her mother had collapsed against the wall. She sat there, eyes wide and unseeing, shaking her head in a desperate refusal of the truth. He moved towards the back of the house, the wooden halls fading into the backdrop of his grief. As if in a dream, the stairs melted away before him, and he arrived at the entrance of Kagome's room. Stepping into this bastion of femininity, he paused. Kagome's presence was everywhere and if he closed his eyes, he could hear her laughter.

Suddenly he was standing before the bed. Inuyasha didn't know when he had moved. He felt like he was losing his mind. Ever so slowly, he bent over, gently placing Kagome on the bed. He arranged her so that she lay straight, with her arms loosely placed across her waist. Inuyasha lingered there a moment, drinking in the sight of her face. He placed his trembling, clawed hand on one of hers. Her slight, cool hand folded easily into his. For a brief second, in her warm and welcoming room, it seemed as though she would awaken. Closing his eyes, he could see her. Her eyelids would flutter, then slide slowly upwards. Seeing him there, she would smile weakly, then give his hand the smallest squeeze.

Inuyasha was brought back to himself at the sound of weeping. He rose and turned to face Mrs. Higurashi. Standing there, his hands hanging loose at his sides, he awaited her judgment. No matter what excuses, what explanations, he had failed. She had entrusted Kagome to him, the entire family had. He had failed…

Mrs. Higurashi, her eyes overflowing with tears, looked to the hanyou before her. His face was so empty, so blank. Those strong broad shoulders that had always seem to carry the burden of life so effortlessly, now sagged beneath the tremendous load. Golden eyes, usually so full of energy and overconfidence, were tormented pools of molten bronze. He stared into nothing, seemingly awaiting condemnation from above.

Soft steps across the carpet were muffled, but sounded like the drumming of an executioner to Inuyasha. He did not know if he could bear Kagome's mother's righteous anger. The gods knew he was weak enough to break before this slight woman, so formidable in her grief. He tensed as she stopped before him, waiting for the inevitable explosion of rage and questions.

Instead, he felt two strong arms slide around him, then pull him into a comforting hug. He stood, eyes wide, arms lax at his sides. Mrs. Higurashi made comforting noises in the back of her throat, and patted his back soothingly. She smiled up into his staring golden eyes, a watery smile that even in its grief was warm.

"It's all right, little one. It'll be okay."

At the sound of those words, Inuyasha's restraint broke. His arms came up to enfold her in an intense hug. He held onto the delicate woman as though she were all that held him to this existence. A keening howl of grief sprang free, filling the house with its mournful echoes. She grasped him just as strongly, tears leaking down her face, engraving themselves on her soul. Kagome lay upon her pink coverlet, the oblivious cause of such misery.

It was to this scene that Souta entered to. His large brown eyes widened, backpack slipping from nerveless fingers. He stared, almost wonderingly, at the sight of Inuyasha grieving into his mother's shoulder. His shocked gaze drifted until it settled on Kagome. Moving so silently that neither of the inconsolable pair noticed him, he went to her. Dropping to his knees, he reached out a gentle hand. Souta touched her face, noting the lack of movement.

"She's dead, isn't she?"

Both Mrs. Higurashi and Inuyasha whipped around. They stared, dumbstruck, at the eerily calm face of the child. Pushing himself up slowly, he straightened, still looking down at her.

"It was that demon you were fighting. Naraku," Souta stated with utter certainty. Inuyasha nodded dumbly. Mrs. Higarashi made as if to move to her son, but he shook his head. His eyes looked much too wise for his young face. "It's okay, Mom. Kagome and I talked about this. She always said she might not make it back. She said that if she didn't, I had to be try to be strong, 'cause someday we'd meet again." Here a small smile crept onto his face. "I always laughed and made fun of her. I never believed in all that reincarnation stuff."

He moved then, like an old man. Stooping, he gathered up his backpack and walked out of the room, presumably to his own. Inuyasha and Mrs. Higurashi stood, silent and stunned. She clutched her hand to her cheek, fighting back even more tears.

"My poor, poor babies. How could I let this happen to them?"

Inuyasha turned immediately towards her. The fog surrounding his mind was dulling his reactions. He couldn't think straight. It hurt so much… He stepped towards he again and tentatively raised a hand towards her, then hesitated. The outstretched hand hovered, then slid back to his side.

"Don't think you weren't there for Kagome. She thought about you all the time. You kept her going, through all the tough shi- stuff we had to face." He had barely caught himself on the language. Kagome had constantly berated him, saying someday he would need to know how to speak well. Now he wished he had listened. How could he comfort another when he could not even express his empathy? "I… I was the one who let this happen. I brought her home so I could explain…" Inuyasha trailed off. He couldn't say it.

'Oi! You gonna be a weakling, here? You gonna let Kagome down? Spit out the facts, then take your damn unwanted ass out of here!'

Inuyasha drew himself up, forcing himself to respond, to properly recount the occurrences to Kagome's mother. He still had responsibilities...

"We were fightin', and winnin'. We did win, but Kagome was injured." Inuyasha turned his head aside, shielding himself from her grief stricken face. "You know Kagome," he smiled gently at the thought of her, then the smile faded as he returned to the present. "She wouldn't say nothin' to make everyone worry, not when they were so damn happy."

Inuyasha then faced her fully. "I… She told me… She said…" He was lost for words. How could he explain that moment, Kagome's declaration, her tremulous smile. Her instructions not to make the wish. How?

The moment was lost as Kagome's grandfather came charging into the room. "Souta said something had happened to Kagome, what's-" His breathless exclamation was cut off by the sight of Kagome's pale form arranged on the bed. She was still dressed in her school uniform, and she seemed small and fragile in her large pink bed, as though she had shrunk with the loss of her life. His creased face blanched an ashen white, and he seemed to diminish. All of his hot air whooshed out of him as he approached his granddaughter's still form.

"Kagome…" A brown, wrinkled hand tenderly caressed her hair. "Oh, honey..." He stood there for a moment, stroking her hair lovingly. Suddenly he whirled, and pointed accusingly at Inuyasha. "My granddaughter trusted you, demon! We trusted you, trusted you to bring her back. How could you let something happen to her?! You worthless hell-spawn!" Spittle flew from his lips as a crazed light filled his despairing eyes. Inuyasha visibly winced, but did not move as the apoplectic old man began to beat his fists off his chest. He did nothing, standing there with ears folded back upon his head. Mrs. Higarashi begged her father to stop, but he didn't listen, continuing to spout obscenities and pound upon the immovable wall of the hanyou's chest.

Abruptly the elder Higurashi went from bright red to pasty yellow. He faltered, and stumbled back. Inuyasha made as if to grasp his shoulder, but he sputtered and violently waved him off. Faltering, he fell against the wall, clutching his chest.

"Father! Didn't you take your medication?" Mrs. Higurashi rushed to his side and struggled to support him. Inuyasha stood by, feeling useless. There was nothing he could do or say that could help. He had "helped" their family enough. He watched as Mrs. Higarashi ushered the suffering old man out of the room, holding him up as they moved towards the stairs. She sent a warning look back at Inuyasha, and a faint comment reached his sensitive ears.

"Don't you go anywhere…"

Inuyasha closed his eyes, his brows furrowed in self-loathing. He deserved this, all of this. Those who became close to him died, so it was better that none ever touched him. All the pain that was inflicted on him was nothing less than his karma finally catching up with him. The misery he had put others through was being returned to him tenfold, and it was as it should be. If Kagome could not live, there was no reason for him to exist happily. Not when someone as beautiful and full of vitality had died, all because of him.

He moved sluggishly to her side, and slumped beside her bed. The tears began to fall again, and he trembled, angrily wiping them away. After the death of his father, Inuyasha had never cried. Never, not even at the loss of his mother. Pain was nothing; there was nothing that could break him. Until Kagome. She was all that was good and bad in his life. Everything in his world revolved around her, and without her… He was lost.

"When did I fuckin' let you get so damn close? Mean so damn much? Fuck, little girl, what did you do to me?"

Footsteps moved behind him, but he remained oblivious. A small hand cautiously touched his shoulder, and he jerked in response. Powerful muscles bunched as he pulled in on himself, but the little hand remained. His voice emerged, harsher than usual, coarse with grief.

"What… what do you want… I can't leave yet, your ma said-" The little hand tugged insistently, and he reluctantly turned to face the one person he most dreaded.

Souta's soulful brown eyes met his desolate gaze. What he saw contained there upset him more than any protest or damnation he had yet to be subjected to. Reproach dwelled deep within those eyes, eyes that looked so much like those of his sister. They were wide and innocent, full of the life that characterized her grey-blue orbs. Facing any sort of condemnation from them was almost more than he could bear.

"Inuyasha… Don't cry in front of Kagome."

Inuyasha immediately stiffened, his pride flaring. It was the only thing left to him…

"Fuck, kid, I ain't crying."

He bared his teeth at the child, but Souta only regarded him steadily. After a time with no response, Inuyasha turned away from him.

"I take it ya' want me out. Fine. Once your mother says her piece, I'm go-" He was stopped once again by a hand on his shoulder.

"No, I don't want you out. Kagome, she wouldn't want you pushed away for any reason. I know you did all you could to help her… I know… I always talked to her when she came home. She'd spend hours talking about the adventures she went on. I know she told you she was worried about school, but really she came home to see her family." Souta twitched uncomfortably. Inuyasha listened intently, wondering. There was so much he didn't understand, so much Kagome had never shared. What else had she felt that he never heard about?

Inuyasha shifted so that he could observe Souta out of the corner of his eye. The boy struggled with the words. For all of his earlier calm, inside he was struggling desperately to keep the tears at bay.

"You were my hero, especially when I saw how much she cared about you. Kagome had never liked anyone like that. Seeing her so happy as when she came back from being with you... Even though you always made her mad when you kept her from coming home, or dragged her away. There was this big sappy grin on her face once she got over it." Souta twisted his small hands, the sheen of tears in his luminous brown eyes threatening to overflow. He kept glancing to where his sister lay, then flicking his gaze away as though burned.

"Remember that one boy? The one whose sister died in a fire, and she came back to haunt him? It was because she thought her mama didn't love her. So, I don't want that to happen to Kagome, okay?" Souta was growing louder, and tears had finally begun to overflow down his flushed cheeks. His boyish tenor grew higher and higher, and Inuyasha flattened back his sensitive ears. What was the kid trying to tell him?

"I don't want Kagome to come back and haunt me 'cause I chased you away! Don't leave without making it all right with everyone, 'cause I can't live if she hates me, I just can't!" Souta was shouting now, and his eyes were so swollen with tears that he could barely see out of them.

"An' Mama and Gramps have to make up with you too, 'cause Kagome didn't like them to talk about you. She'd always defend you when Mama worried, or when Gramps would whine about you being untrustworthy and stuff!" He became incoherent, his words swallowed up by his sobs.

Inuyasha felt as though his emotions were being mercilessly scrubbed, forcefully wrung out, then subjected once again to another tumultuous and painful scouring. His head hurt from crying, and his wits were muddled. Nothing made sense anymore. Up was down, happy was sad, and he was helpless. Floating in this sea of confusion and anger, tainted by grief and bitterness.

"Look kid… Your mama ain't mad at me… Though why the hell not, I ain't got the slightest fuckin' clue." He couldn't bring himself to look at the kid, instead staring intently down at Kagome's peaceful face. "Your grandpa is just upset. Nobody is going to be haunting anyone. 'Sides, Kagome isn't like that." Inuyasha glanced up and gave the trembling child a weak grin. "She's too soft to beat up on anyone…"

Souta gave a tremulous laugh. "Yeah, big sis could never be a bully." He twisted his hands together, then looked at Inuyasha again. Abruptly, he burst into rapid-fire questions.

"What happened to her? Why didn't she use the jewel, and how come no one used Tensaiga?" Inuyasha's ears flickered rapidly, as did the many expressions running rampant across his haggard face.

"Kagome was mortally wounded by that-" Inuyasha barely contained the expletive, "Naraku." Here he ground his jaw together, baring his impressive canines. "She didn't use the jewel… I don't know why… And Tensaiga couldn't help her the way we needed it to." Inuyasha trailed off, his eyes darkening with grief and revulsion, directed at himself.

"She told me not to use the wish…An' so I didn't. I can't!" He looked up at the boy before him, begging silently for understanding. "I can't do that again. Kikyou… She was returned by a command, a wish she didn't want…" Souta surprisingly nodded.

"Kagome told me about how she heard this voice, crying out, 'Don't say my name, Inuyasha!' An' then she felt her soul spring out of her body." Inuyasha had recovered himself, placing the mask of distance over his unbearable pain. Looking up, Souta regarded him thoughtfully. "I bet Kagome knew that you would try anything to bring her back… But she didn't want to come back all bitter and full of hate. My big sister always had to be the hero." His face grew shuttered with renewed grief.

Inuyasha mentally shuddered. Emotions were boiling within all of them, and the changes were mercurial. One moment, there was happy reminiscence, the next deep-seated mourning.

"Kid, go check on the old geezer. I don't wanna go down there and upset him all over again. This time, he just might bust a blood vessel or sumthin'." Souta nodded in agreement, and moved slowly out of the room, casting numerous glances back the bed and its red-clad protector. When Inuyasha gave him an encouraging growl, he hurried out the doorway.

Inuyasha sat there, alone in a room full of the very essence of Kagome. Books and silly stuffed animals littered the room, and various utensils lay scattered about, never picked up after Kagome's last hasty departure to the past. He winced and turned to stare out the window. As he gazed blankly into the cold grey sky, his hand instinctively reached out to find Kagome's.

That was how Mrs. Higurashi found him. His tan features were illuminated with a silvery light, and a grimace of sorrow creased his face.

He broke the silence with a whispered comment, never turning away from the window.

"He okay?"

She nodded, and moved to his side. Seating herself, she arranged her skirt primly, then looked out the window with him. They sat there, by the frilly pink bed and the still girl upon it, for an interminable time. Inuyasha began to speak, slowly. They were broken sentences with long pregnant pauses, where his expressive face would reveal his inner turmoil.

"I'm gonna say this now… Tell you… then leave. Caused enough trouble here, there's no reason to stay and start more." Inuyasha turned his head to face her. "As she… passed… Kagome told me… She said… She loved me." He drew in a deep, shuddering breath. "She had a final request. It was that I would not wish. Never told me what not to wish for, so to honor it, I ain't gonna bring her back. I could be even more wrong than I already am… Shit, she died because of me. Can't be much more wrong than that…"

Mrs. Higurashi patted his back gently, rubbing in soothing circles. If he closed his eyes and reached deep for the memory of his mother's scent, he could just barely imagine she was seated beside him, comforting him in this moment of need. Opening them, he gazed intently into the maternal face of Kagome's mother. She was still young and pretty, her face untouched by the ravages of life. When she offered up a small smile, the tiniest of crow's feet emerged at the corners of her eyes, and small dimples appeared about her mouth. If he pictured Kagome, he could just see the tiny, cute little quirk of her mouth.

Breathing through his nose, Inuyasha gathered his courage again and continued. "I brought Kagome home so that you could decide on a proper burial for her. It wouldn't have been right to commit her to her rest without your knowledge an' consent." Mrs. Higurashi nodded silently, regarding him through eyes that were strangely calm.

"Let me tell you a little story." He started at the words, then inclined his head quizzically. She smiled and continued. " My husband was an archeologist. Always had to be off on some adventure or seeing some new place. After we were married, I went with him, but when Kagome came along, we settled back at the shrine with my father. But Reiji couldn't stay in one place for very long, so he returned to his traveling." Her eyes clouded over as she recalled moments from a long-ago past.

"Kagome and Souta saw very little of him, but when ever he was here, he spent almost every second at their sides. Kagome's love of the past came from him, and Souta's obsession with fighting monster video games." The cold light streaming in through the window illuminated her wistful expression. She sighed and tucked her short hair behind her ear, and continued. "Reiji would always tell stories of old legends and past happenings, and the kids were captivated. Kagome would go around outside with a magnifying glass, examining rocks and trees for symbols and whatnot, while Souta would fight battles with imaginary monsters."

"Now one day, my silly husband came home and fell down at my feet, unconscious. He had caught malaria, a very deadly disease, in one of the more exotic areas." Mrs. Higurashi blinked, returning to herself. She turned and gave Inuyasha a gentle, understanding smile.

"My husband died that night, but he did wake up once before he slipped off. He made me promise to cremate him, so that he could travel the earth on the winds, and eventually return to those beautiful sites he so loved." Her eyes darkened, and her hands, which lay gently folded in her lap, clenched with remembered pain. "Then he called Kagome in. Reiji told her that he was dying. Even then Kagome was too quick to be sheltered. He instructed her that she needed to be the opposite of him. Instead of searching out far and distant places, she needed to find her roots." Mrs. Higurashi glanced up at the bed, at the slight view of Kagome's profile. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, seeming to seek some fount of inner calm.

"After he died, Kagome made a decision. She told me that when she died, she wanted to be buried under the Goshinboku." She gave that gentle smile that seemed to characterize the love she held within for the world, a love Kagome had always radiated. " Kagome said that since Daddy traveled so far away when he died, she wanted to stay home. Even years later, when she first began to go down the well with you, she told me that she still wanted to be buried there."

A burning sensation settled in Inuyasha's gut. The Goshinboku… The God tree, where he had slept imprisoned for fifty years. She had wanted to be buried there, of all places. The burning sensation rose, filling him. He needed to run, be free…

'Kagome…'

He bowed his head and made as if to rise, speaking slowly and formally. "I thank you for that. It's good that she'll rest there. If anything can weather the trial of time, it's the Goshinboku."

He was stilled as Mrs. Higarashi caught his hand.

"Dear, you never let me finish…" Inuyasha stared down at her, straining to keep from breaking away. He just wanted to go, wanted to run away and keep running forever. Now he knew where Kagome would lie, and he felt an intense need to flee from that knowledge. It would be real, and he couldn't take that.

"Inuyasha…" Her voice had a coaxing quality, as though she knew that he was still here by the barest strand of will-power. "That wasn't all she told me. Once she realized just how dangerous everything would be… She told me what else she wanted. Kagome still wanted to be put to rest beneath the Goshinboku, but she needed something more." Mrs. Higurashi paused, taking a moment to gather herself. "She wanted to be buried in the past. I suppose she still felt the need to learn about it, to discover its mysteries and unearth its secrets. But most of all, she wanted to be with you, as the centuries passed by."

Stunned, Inuyasha stood there. He was frozen, paralyzed with racing emotions. 'To be with me…' Bewildered by this revelation, he dropped slowly back down to his knees.

"I don't understand… Why? Why would she…" Inuyasha trailed off, and Mrs. Higurashi considered him, then awarded him with a look that spoke of much experience.

"She loved you. Why else?" He stared at her, his eyes blank. Ever since Kagome had fallen unconscious, Inuyasha had shied away from the memory of her last declaration. He had convinced himself that it was because he did not want to recall her final, tearing breaths, but the truth lay deeper than that. His absolute truth.

'Face the facts, boy. If things had ended differently, you would have had to choose between Kikyou and Kagome.' Inuyasha winced mentally. 'The gods know you wanted Kagome, but you and your fool honor made that promise to Kikyou. Worst of all, Kagome would have let you go.'

What hurt most was the fact that in the recesses of his heart, he knew he would have gone to Kikyou. He had always thought he was nothing if he did not have his pride, his honor. 'What a fool. And now that you know Kagome returned your feelings, you can't face the fact you would have walked away. Who needs pride or honor when you're offered something as great and beautiful as what Kagome felt for you. You idiot! Damn FOOL!'

Breaking away from those painful thoughts, Inuyasha looked to Mrs. Higurashi. He hesitated, then spoke quietly.

"Souta, he doesn't want me to leave until the old gaffer and I make up. He's convinced himself that Kagome will come back to haunt him."

Mrs. Higurashi blinked at the sudden change in the conversation, but she did not comment. "I'm sure that I can convince him that nothing bad will happen. It wouldn't be wise to agitate Father any more tonight." She regarded him steadily, her wise eyes judging him, weighing his worth. Nodding slowly, she looked as though she had reached a decision. "Yes, it's better if we say our goodbyes now, then have a ceremony here for her. Better not to put this off." Nodding again, she stood, dusting off her skirt. She moved past Inuyasha's kneeling form and sat on the edge of the bed. Reaching out, she tenderly touched her daughter's cheek.

"It might be better if you waited by the Goshinboku while we make our goodbyes."

Inuyasha flinched, but nodded. Mrs. Higurashi caught the slight recoil, and addressed him without turning from her contemplation of Kagome.

"Inuyasha, you're welcome in my home. Always. But for now, we are preparing for the mourning. I know that it will not help things to have the man who Father believes is responsible, grieving here beside him. Wait a while, then I'll fetch you." Her voice cracked on the last word, and he began to truly see the grief she had hidden so well. For all her wisdom, gentle smiles, and understanding talk, Mrs. Higurashi remained a mother who had had her only daughter wrenched from her forever.

Bowing his head in respect, Inuyasha opened Kagome's window and slid out onto the tree beside it. In a few bounds, he moved through the icy air, landing before the Goshinboku. Gazing up into its bare branches, at the last, tenacious leaves clinging to hope, he felt his heart clench again. Rubbing his chest, he wondered if perhaps he had an illness similar to what the elder Higurashi suffered from. But no, the palpitations of his heart sprang from his soul, not some disease.

He knelt on the hard, packed ground before the tree. This tree was all that remained of the Forest of Inuyasha, and the age and dignity of the stately plant humbled him. Kagome would be placed in this soil in just one day's time. Placed there by a dream of misty romanticism. In truth, he would lay her to slumber through the centuries, and never rest himself. He could feel the uneasy energy building already. It sprang from the knowledge that the one who ruled his heart would be gone, lost to the progression of time.

Strong claws dug deep into the compact earth. 'No way around it. The bitch is gone, and she just had to take my heart with her!'

Inuyasha sighed, and after a moment, the tension poured out of his shoulders. He leapt into the well-worn branches of his favorite perch. Settling himself, he gazed into the gray distance, a strange bubble of silence protecting him from the modern world and its pollutions. The weathered bark cradled his body gently as he awaited the return of Mrs. Higurashi. No, that wasn't quite right. He wasn't waiting for the older woman; he was waiting for someone to tell him this was all real, that Kagome had truly died.

Resting his head against the strong side of his tree, he surveyed the shrine through heavy golden eyes. Yes, he was awaiting the end… The end of all his hopes, his dreams, and the beginning of the rest of his life…

~Dedicated to a fading dreamer.