InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Scars - Alternate Ending ❯ What Time Won't Heal... ( Chapter 3 )

A/N: Hey everyone!

First off, before I get too deeply into ranting or anything, I’d like to give a great big thanks to Snowfall, who gave me the main plot-idea and inspiration for this chapter! I think this may be just what I needed to balance out the WAFF from the end of the other chapter, so THANKS SO MUCH FOR THAT! ^_^

Okay, now I’d just like to point out that I was watching the movie “Hannibal” throughout most of the writing of this, so, needless to say (if you’ve seen that movie) it’s come out fairly dark and rather graphic. I added quite a bit more gore than I intended. Still, if you handled the other ones, chances are you can handle this one... but have a paper bag handy, just in case. ^_~ (I actually don’t know how bad it is, but I do know that it’s more graphic on the gore and disgusting scale in some places than in most of my other stories, so...)

Okay, well that’s about all I’ve got to say right now... Looks like this story has finally come to a close...

DISCLAIMER - Okay, in case you’ve forgotten, I DON’T OWN INUYASHA! I’m not sure what crazy medication you’re taking that made you think I did, but you should really get off of it... ^_^   ~*~   Chapter 3 - What Time Won’t Heal...

Inuyasha jolted violently as the door slammed violently against the wall, hard enough to bounce back a little ways and send some dust settling from the eaves.

The hanyou felt panic flood through him as the scents of blood and death filled the air, and he turned his eyes slowly toward the intruder.

Inu Taisho stood in the doorway, blood and dirt covering every inch of his body, his hair hanging in a bloody curtain around his face, and his eyes wide and tinted with red, the pupils all but gone within their crimson depths.

Despair flooded through the hanyou at the sight, and he shuddered violently as thoughts of what his father would do to him in this state flooded through his mind. He felt Sesshomaru’s arm tighten around his body, indicating his brother was awake though he gave no other sign, trying to offer comfort and reassurance, but Inuyasha knew it would do no good. It was already too late.

His father’s gaze landed on him, the red tint increasing slightly as his youki pulsed noticeably, sending more shudders up Inuyasha’s spine.

‘Inuyasha.’ The Taiyoukai growled out, his voice a low rasp that seemed to fight him all the way up and along his throat. ‘Come here.’

Inuyasha’s breathing quickened as panic coursed through him, his claws digging tightly into the stripped wrist they had wrapped around, drawing blood, but, in his panicked state, he didn’t notice that he was hurting his brother. No, No, No, No, NO! This wasn’t right! He wasn’t supposed to come back!

Inuyasha could’ve killed himself for allowing himself to make this fake reality to live in-- for allowing himself to believe Sesshomaru’s soothing words and gentle touch and be played for the fool that he so obviously was. Dammit! He knew better than this! Why did he have to let Sesshomaru sucker him into believe he would be okay?!

‘Come now, Inuyasha!” The demon lord growled out in a tone that clearly stated he would not ask again.

Trembling, Inuyasha slowly began to pull himself free of Sesshomaru, sliding up to sit on the bed, still naked, preparing to rise and make the horrid journey to his father’s embrace-- his bones feeling as weak as water within him and just as heavy as he made a move to get up, only to be stopped when someone grabbed his wrist.

Inuyasha turned wide, confused and fear-filled eyes on Sesshomaru, giving his brother a look that suggested he thought he was quite mad.

‘What are you doing, Sess?! Do you want him to kill me?’ He silently demanded of his brother, tugging painfully on his arm, only to have the grip about his wrist tighten further.

Inuyasha stared at him, then looked fearfully back at his father, watching as the red-glazed eyes narrowed, scanning over his lithe frame, taking the hand clasped about his wrist, the fear in his eyes, the quickness of his breathing... the mark on his neck.

And Inuyasha literally stopped breathing altogether when his father’s eyes locked in on that, the pupils flickering and vanishing altogether for a moment. And, while all of this happened, Inuyasha only had one thought journeying at rapid-fire pace through his head.

‘Oh shit, Oh shit, Oh shit, Oh Shi, Oh shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!’

In a flash too quick to see, Inu Taisho was upon them, wrenching him free of his brother’s grip, grabbing his hair in a vicious hold and sniffing at the mark on his neck.

A loud growl that made Inuyasha quake in fear was emitted from the Taiyoukai, and the next second he found himself dangling from his throat, his father’s claws wrapped tightly around it, suffocating him, the claws leaving puncture wounds as the dug into the tender flesh and let loose the crimson rivers buried below.

‘So you thought you could escape me by mating?’ Inu Taisho sneered into his son’s face.

Inuyasha choked and wheezed against the tight grip as Sesshomaru rose swiftly from the bed, standing a few feet away from them.

‘Put. Him. Down father.’ He ground out each word as smoothly as he could as fury etched through him. ‘This has nothing to do with him.’ His tone was glacier-cold and laced with venom and warning.

It was then that Inuyasha decided that all of the males in his familiar had completely lost their minds.

Inu Taisho turned slowly, his eyes burning with rage as they fell upon his eldest son.

‘It has everything to do with him, Sesshomaru.’ He said, spitting the last word out with disdain. ‘But even more to do with you, doesn’t it?’ He asked, suddenly deciding that releasing Inuyasha was a good idea, which the hanyou almost agreed with whole-heartedly, if it had not resulted in the pain that followed as his father tossed him roughly behind him, leaving him to smack his head against the hard floor. Sesshomaru tensed slightly but did not take his eyes off of his enemy. He knew Inuyasha would not be too seriously hurt from that. And besides, he had more important things to deal with, watching his father carefully as his eyes gazed accusingly at him, and knowing he was probably in way over his head.

But there was nothing for it.

He had to protect his mate, and this was the only way to do it.

Inu Taisho, oblivious to his son’s thoughts, cocked his head slightly to the side, still gazing at him with hard and accusing eyes. ‘I’m almost certain Inuyasha would not have initiated the claiming-- I’ve trained him better than that... which would mean...’ And here he gave Sesshomaru a particularly long and thoughtful gaze. ‘You’ve been taking things that don’t belong to you again, haven’t you boy?’

Sesshomaru did not react to the mild and completely useless taunt, simply responded with one of his own.

‘But Inuyasha is mine. To any and all who see or smell him. And none of your associates will dare to touch him now.’ Well, okay, maybe it wasn’t exactly a taunt, but it was still a response, and one he was certain would anger his father to no end.

He was wrong.

Inu Taisho did not get angry.

Instead he blinked once in surprise, and then snorted in disbelieving amusement. ‘Do you really think they’ll care?’ He demanded in disbelief. ‘He’s a half-breed whore, not suited for anything else. No one will care if he reeks of you or not. In fact... that might only excite them more.’

Sesshomaru’s face darkened slightly and his eyes flickered to red and back.

Inuyasha, who had been all but forgotten where he lay on the floor (which was strange considering the conversation taking place above him was about him) did not like where this was going, and quickly got to his feet, coming up a few feet behind Inu Taisho.

‘Father please--’ He started, only to be cut off rather violently as he was backhanded savagely by the youkai he was speaking too, who did not so much as bother to look at him, keeping his eyes focused instead on his eldest son’s face.

Inuyasha fell back with a dull thud, his head connecting once again with the ground, and he heard his mate growl, felt it rumbling through him as well as Sesshomaru took a threatening step toward the one who had hurt his mate.

Inuyasha watched in horror as the two assumed battle stances, and he quickly jumped up once again. He had to stop this! He had to try again, or Sesshomaru was dead. And If Sesshomaru was dead... so was he. He needed Sesshomaru. And he wouldn’t be able to live without him.

‘Father please!’ He said, his tone desperate but low and submissive as well as he moved around to stand in front of the Taiyoukai, dropping immediately to his knees and staring pleadingly up at his father, though not meeting his eyes. He could feel the shock go through Sesshomaru, followed immediately by horror and rage, but he ignored it. He needed to stop this. Their lives depended upon it. And if he had to beg to do it, then so be it. After all, he had begged for much worse things before and not always of his own will. In a sense, this was much better than those other times.

‘Please, let him go. Please.’ He quietly implored, flattening his ears to either side in another sign of submission. ‘I... I’ll do whatever you want.’ He said, his voice a low whisper that barely reached his own ears as he, in a final and ultimate display of submission, tilted his head to the side, exposing the side of his throat that was free of the mating mark.

Inu Taisho regarded his youngest son coldly for a moment.

‘Oh, I think you’ll do that anyway.’ The dog lord said, revelling in the noticeable shudder that ran through the boy’s body, though he remained in the position he was.

He stared in consideration at his youngest son for a moment, before, deciding he was not in the mood for another fight and would much rather take what he had come here in the first place for, he began speaking.

‘Leave us now, Sesshomaru, and I may overlook your digression.’ He said, not even bothering to raise his eyes to Sesshomaru.

Sesshomaru felt another growl rising up, but it was quickly stifled as Inuyasha threw him a desperate and imploring look, beginning him to take the chance offered and leave before something really bad happened.

Sesshomaru stared coldly at his mate, feeling his stomach begin to twist slightly as Inu Taisho began removing his battle armour and swords, letting them fall to the ground with dull thuds, slowly working his way down to the smoother and more delicate cloth.

Inuyasha swallowed loudly at this, but did not move.

Sesshomaru did, however, moved slowly toward the door, Inuyasha’s eyes following him every step of the way until they were blocked off by Inu Taisho’s body, the dog lord not bothering to give his son a backward glance.

And that was where he faltered.

The last of Inu Taisho’s armour slid to the ground just as Sesshomaru opened the door, and the Inu Youkai took full advantage.

Turning with lightening speed, Sesshomaru quickly shot out his whip, slicing through the silky material and the soft flesh beneath on his father’s back, right across his shoulders, just as the man was reaching toward Inuyasha.

A yelp of surprise escaped the hanyou’s lips as Inu Taisho let out a roar of anger and pain, the air smoking with the smell of smouldering flesh as blood spurted out from the fresh wound on the Taiyoukai’s shoulders, and the man whirled around to face Sesshomaru, who was looking at his two extended fingers with a slight frown.

‘That was a disappointment.’ He said, turning his eyes coldly upon his father and eyeing him. ‘I was aiming for your head!’ The whip shot out again, but this time Inu Taisho managed to deflect it, snarling angrily at his son, his fangs bearing to the root.

‘I should have known you would have tried something as foolish as this.’ He hissed and Sesshomaru inclined his head.

‘You should have, and yet you did not. Once again you underestimate us father.’

‘“Us?”’ Inu Taisho asked incredulously. In the blink of an eye he had hold of Inuyasha again, dragging him forward by the hair. ‘You think I underestimate this wretch?’ He demanded, laughing cruelly. Sesshomaru’s expression did not change.

‘You’re a fool if you think you do not.’ Sesshomaru said calmly, carefully avoiding Inuyasha’s pleading eyes.

Inu Taisho looked at him incredulously. ‘Spare me the dramatics, Sesshomaru. I know what he’s capable of. I made him after all. And I know what his uses are.’ That said, he dragged Inuyasha up to him, and roughly slammed his lips against his youngest son’s, forcing his tongue inside the gasping and resisting figure in his grip and savagely raping his mouth in a mock display of what he soon planned to be doing to his body. He shoved his tongue in and out of that hot orifice, delighting in the small whimpers of protest Inuyasha was making, the gentle and futile pushes against his chest, which he rewarded only with reprimand, using his fangs and tearing roughly into the soft lips beneath his own, making them bleed.

Inuyasha’s ears shot straight up at first, before pinning tightly back against his head, and he whimpered helplessly, weakly trying to turn his head away and push the demon before him away as his youki screamed protest at this betrayal of his mate, only to have Inu Taisho growl, biting his lips, and roughly hold him still, further reminding him of just how helpless he truly was.

He was forced to stand there helplessly, keenly aware of Sesshomaru’s eyes upon him as his father plundered and devoured his mouth over and over again.

A low growl was heard, and Inuyasha could feel it within himself once again as his mate’s youki shifted, pulsing and growing as a demonic wind rose up to surround him.

His father roughly shoved the Inuyasha away, and he turned to see his brother, surrounded by swirling wind, his eyes painted crimson. And Inuyasha realised with some horror that Sesshomaru was about to transform.

Fur rippled just beneath the surface of his skin, breaking through the flesh and painting his skin in silver hair as Sesshomaru’s face began to lengthen, stretching out into a great long snout, his fangs flashing and lengthening to hang over his lips as his own clothes, hair and armour seemed to melt and disappear into his body as his bones snapped, arched and twisted to accommodate this change.

He was dimly aware of his father beginning to duplicate this action, but he was too enraptured in the creature before him to notice much. That is, until the walls started collapsing.

Beams and stone and wood and rice panels and whatever else made up the walls began falling in and crashing down around them, little (or large, depending on whose view you saw it from) bits of them flying and getting caught in moonlight and cloud-grey silver as the two youkai continued to destroy the building around them without so much as lifting a paw.

The roof, now left with nothing to support it, began to collapse upon them, as well as the rooms above it, and Inuyasha let out a small cry of panic before his vision was suddenly cut off by the moonlight-silk that made up the fur on Sesshomaru’s belly as his brother stood over him, taking no notice of the building falling upon and sliding off of him, crashing into the grounds below as the ground trembled slightly from the movement and weight of the two fully-transformed demon-dogs.

When the chaos of the castle falling apart finally ceased, Sesshomaru and Inu Taisho raised their heads, crimson eyes meeting crimson as they faced off, hackles raising as they each dared the other to make the first move.

Sesshomaru let out a soft growl that Inuyasha could somehow tell was directed at him, and then a gigantic paw came up, sweeping him with almost brutal force back and out of harms way.

Inuyasha stumbled and tripped over some of the rubble, abruptly sitting up again as the two dogs began growling, hunching their shoulders, making the fur their stand up in a defensive manner, and they looked for all the world like two wild dogs about to have it out over the mating rights of some bitch. Or maybe just over a scrap of food-- it all depended when you caught them.

Inuyasha shook himself out of that train of thought and watched in fascinated horror as his father hunched down suddenly, growling low, and Sesshomaru responded by bracing his legs, gnashing his teeth, and waiting.

A moment later the great dog demon sprung, leaping with claws extended at his eldest son, causing Sesshomaru to jump off to the side in a great bound that lead him clear out into the grounds, drawing the fight to the unrestrained freedom of the outside domains of the Western Lands as Inu Taisho followed him a moment later, landing a few feet before him and beginning to circle slowly.

Inuyasha ran to the edge of the room-made-balcony and watched as his father circled around his mate, Inu Taisho taking occasional nips at Sesshomaru, who would slash violently at him whenever he did that, always aiming for the eyes and throat-- sharp claws and fangs in soft places-- a never ending chorus of growling rising up to reach his ears.

A mix of awe and terror filled Inuyasha, who had never seen either transform (nor could he transform in such a way himself) as the two youkai continued to face off.

Footsteps running frantically down the collapsed hallway, and then a moment later what was left of the door flew open (fighting against bits of the broken room the entire time) and Izayoi came rushing in.

She took one look at the chaos around the room, the two dogs fighting outside, and then her eyes fixed fearfully and accusingly upon her only son.

‘Inuyasha what have you done?!’ She demanded in a quiet and accusing tone as her son turned to face her, and immediately his face blanched, his mouth opening slightly as his gut twisted at her words.

He stood there silently, watching as she spun around and rushed off out of the room to some unknown destination, though her words still hung heavily in the air behind her, echoing hollowly in Inuyasha’s ears.

What had... he done?

What had he done?

He’d tried to break up the fight before it could start.

He’d tried to please his father and keep him from hurting them.

He’d lived and silently endured his torture for so long without ever asking for help, and receiving it only from Sesshomaru anyway.

He’s tried to protect her in every way he could.

He’s taken the beatings for her when his father was angry or drunk on Sake.

He’d given up everything to protect her, just so she could be safe and happy...

And that still wasn’t enough.

Somehow, even after all of that, it was still his fault.

Inuyasha fell slowly to his knees as the reality of it all sunk in and hit home.

His mother... truly blamed him for this.

She blamed him for stealing her husband’s attention away, for his father’s abuse and anger that he heaped upon all of them... his years of silent agony... she truly blamed him for it...

A high-pitched scream came from the battle below, though, because Inuyasha’s mind did not recognise it as being his mate’s, he did not pay much attention, and he let out a low snort. ‘Dog’s aren’t supposed to scream.’ His mind muttered in a bland and bitter attempt at humour.

It was only a minute later that he realised what he had just said. And the truth behind it.

Dogs didn’t scream.

They whined, whimpered, howled, barked, growled and a myriad of other things, but they most certainly did not scream.

That immediately set of a warning bell in his mind, and he quickly jumped up and ran over toward the edge of the “room” again to look down at the battle below him, his eyes searching for and finding the source of the scream.

His mother, who had seemingly ran out in an attempt to stop the fight, was now lying pinned beneath her own mate’s paw, her eyes closed as she was crushed into the earth, while Inu Taisho growled at her, seemingly not recognising or not caring who she was.

Sesshomaru was circling around him slowly now, his breathing ragged, and his left arm did not seem to be functioning entirely properly-- a large gash torn through just beneath the shoulder, making him limp heavily.

The Inu paid it no mind, however, and continued to circle the other demon, lashing out as him and taking a good chunk from his side and tale, and Inu Taisho, already worse for the wear it seemed from his battle with Ryukotsusei, looked a little less than able to fight him now.

Inuyasha felt a small bubble of hope swell within him.

Maybe Sesshomaru did stand a chance.

The Dog Lord gnashed his teeth at Sesshomaru, his paws digging further into the ground, effectively crushing Izayoi, the presence of whom he did not seem to be entirely aware of anymore as he lunged snarling at Sesshomaru, his paws leaving large craters in their wake, one of which might very well end up being his mother’s grave if he did not do something.

Quickly he sorted through his father’s fallen armour, carefully avoiding the sword Sounga knowing he could not control it, before his hand came to wrap about the hilt of the other blade-- the one he had been searching for. Tetsusaiga.

The sword seemed to hum to life in his grip, and Inuyasha quickly wrenched it out of it’s sheath, swinging it through the air to make it transform into the giant glittering fang that was it’s true form of power.

Quickly he leapt down to where the two were fighting (wincing slightly as the great fall strained his legs slightly), and rushed over to stand before the giant paw print that was his mother was in, uncertain if he was defending her, or just choosing that area because it was currently the safest place to be, before turning to face the demons before him, focusing his mind on the blade in his hands.

‘Tetsusaiga, I know your power. Only those with kindness to humans can embrace it. Well I am part human. Please, just let me wield your power this one time...’

The blade pulsed in his hand as a loud yelp of pain reached his ears, and Inuyasha did not have to open his eyes to know what that meant.

Sesshomaru was hurt!

His mate was in trouble!

Wrenching his golden eyes up, he focused in on his mate, and was aghast at the scene that greeted his eyes.

Sesshomaru lay on his side, blood staining his silver fur crimson, as their father loomed over him, his bleeding tail high in the air in victory, his gigantic fangs clenched tightly upon the severed appendage in his grip, ready to deliver the final blow.

He raised his gigantic paw, aiming for the throat, and slashed his claws down.

‘NO!’ Inuyasha’s mind screamed in agony, his youki thrashing about in panic within him, demanding his body move and defend his fallen mate. But it couldn’t. It had frozen up, his very blood turning to ice at the sight before him, and he did not even realise he had actually screamed aloud until Inu Taisho’s paw stopped just short of his brother’s throat, the dog turning enraged red eyes upon him.

Inuyasha was numb with relief and terror, and he could do nothing as the dog bounded toward him, slashing the blade from his hands, and cutting the skin on his own paw in the process, as he slashed his teeth down before Inuyasha, causing the hanyou to fall back with a cry, his body immediately pinned to the ground by his father’s large paw, the dog-demon’s voice somehow reaching his ears despite him being transformed and having his eldest son’s arm clamped inside of his mouth.

“Filthy Half-Breed! You dare to wield my own fang against me?” The dog’s voice seemed to snarl in his mind, though whether this was another hallucination his mind had conjured up, or if Inu Taisho could actually speak to him telepathically was beyond the suffocating boy.

The dog put more weight on his foreleg, crushing Inuyasha into the ground, while Sesshomaru tried desperately to pull himself to his feet in the background, trying to get to his defenceless mate.

But the shock and pain of loosing his arm was still to great, and he fell back to the ground, a whine of desperation and helplessness escaping his lips as he watched his mate being forced to become one with the earth.

Oblivious to or simply choosing to ignore this, Inu Taisho continued with his rant.

“I should have killed you at birth like all the other half-demons! Heaven knows why I kept you alive.” He snarled, saliva mixed with blood leaking down to drip into Inuyasha’s face in a disgusting mixture and in such great amounts that Inuyasha was all but drowning in it, and he couldn’t help but think what a horrible way that would be to go. Death by the blood and spit of his brother and father.

“Luckily there is still time to right this error!” Inu Taisho said, pressing nearly all his weight upon the hanyou.

Inuyasha screamed as he felt his bones attempting to snap, all the air forcing itself from his lungs as his vision narrowed down to a small, claustrophobic black voice from which there was no escape. ~*~  

Inuyasha let out a low groan as he felt consciousness returning to him.

No.

Not consciousness.

Or not just consciousness anyway, but life as well.

One moment he was trapped in the swirling inferno of darkness that was dragging him ever deeper down toward hell, and then... a pulse of energy... a strange ethereal green-blue light... and suddenly he could feel his body again...

And it didn’t make sense.

He felt breath rushing through him again, as blood once more began to pound through his body, sweeping through and refreshing his hollow and chilled body, bringing with it waves of sensation and pain as his body immediately moved to use this new found life and try and heal the fatal wounds that would undoubtedly kill him again if it did not.

His crushed ribs creaked and snapped together in vague protest with every breath, and his whole body was faintly shaking. He felt very cold, though whether that was from his formerly frozen blood bringing no warmth to his flesh or because of the temperature of the room, he couldn’t be certain. He could smell his father all around him.

Taking a shallow, shaky breath, Inuyasha willed his eyes to open. Which they did. Grudgingly.

Crusted sleep and dried blood clung to his lashes, trying to hold them shut, but he forced them open nonetheless. He had to see. He needed to see. He needed to understand... to know what had happened...

He could smell his brother nearby and he needed to make sure that he was okay...

The sight that greeted him when his eyes finally opened was enough to make them snap shut again as his stomach gave a rather unpleasant lurch within him.

The room around them, clearly a dungeon of some kind, was dark-- barely bright enough for him to see across-- and it was incredibly dank and cold... the dark walls of stone looming up on all sides, trapping them in. And, leaning against one of these walls directly opposite him was Sesshomaru...

The elder demon was slumped slightly, clearly not having enough strength at the moment to hold himself up properly, his hair handing around his face in a limp and matted curtain, it’s silver colour dyed deep crimson and dripping with some unknown substance that existed in random puddles on the stone floor.

His head was tilted down so Inuyasha couldn’t see his face... his legs drawn up toward his chest, but slumped slightly from his obvious lack of energy. The one good arm he still had was resting on one of his barely-bent knees, a cruel metal shackle biting into the flesh there, infecting the cut with it’s own filth and holding his brother prisoner with it’s chain attached to the wall.

The other arm... wasn’t there.

Where Sesshomaru’s left arm had once been, now there existed little more than a maimed and bloody stump, a bit of bone visible through the severed edge as blood dripped in a never-ending flow from muscles and sinews that hung limply from the abused flesh... his body was clearly trying to close the wound, but... Sesshomaru wasn’t allowing it... he was saving his energy up for something...

And Inuyasha could hear the weak, barely-there breathing from his brother-- see the ever-so-faint rise and fall of his chest-- and if it hadn’t been for that, he would have thought his brother was dead for certain.

He looked dead.

And Inuyasha couldn’t trust his sense of smell at the moment, because it was so swamped with his father’s own scent...

So lost in his study of his brother was Inuyasha that he did not even notice the figure slowly coming up beside him from the shadowy depths that made up the rest of the dungeon... Not until they were right next to him, their breath hissing across his ear and making the hair on his neck rise.

‘So you’re finally awake.’ A voice said, dangerously close and terrifyingly familiar next to his ear, and Inuyasha’s eyes flew open as he scrambled away from that voice... only to be stopped short as his wrists were unexpectedly yanked-- the dull, mockingly musical sound of chains rattling their links against each other as they pulled taut on his wrists, staying him.

Inuyasha jolted slightly as he was pulled to a stop, and then slammed back to the floor as his father, taking each of the chains on his wrist in one hand, gave them a cruel jerk and pulled Inuyasha’s wrists and support from beneath him.

The hanyou, trying to catch his breath from the winding his father had just given him, looked up, terrified, at the man before him.

And Inu Taisho stared back, his eyes dark and filled with malcontent.

‘Were you going somewhere, Inuyasha?’ He asked, pausing a moment to reseath Tenseiga at his side, before moving to crouch down in front of the boy-- the air rank with the smell of his fear.

Inuyasha, who had ended up on his back when the chains had been yanked from under him, still had his knees bent in the position to scramble away... but he couldn’t use them anymore because his father had placed a hand on either leg, his claws digging into the pale flesh and fingers pressing with bruising force, making the hanyou whimper in negation as his father forced his legs apart, and he noticed for the first time that both he and Sesshomaru were naked.

Inuyasha squeezed his eyes shut as he felt his father move between his legs-- position himself at his entrance-- and cramped up all the muscles in his legs to avoid striking out at the man above him. It would have been a futile attempt, and one that would have surely shredded either appendage beyond use or recognition.

His claws scraped against the stone as he waited for the pain to come...

A low growl, barely audible (that he was certain he was only aware of because of their bond) came from across the room-- from Sesshomaru-- as the sound of his elder brother’s chain rattling faintly reached his ears. He silently begged his brother to stop.

‘Please Sesshomaru... Don’t.... Don’t draw attention to yourself... please stay safe... as long as you’re okay... I can make it through this...’

That was the last thought he had before his father pushed into him.

Inuyasha’s back arched violently off the floor, a ragged moan tearing from his lips, causing pain to rush through his broken chest as his insides struggled against the penetration.

His father didn’t give him a moment’s time to adjust, just began thrusting erratically into him, aiming each thrust in the way that he thought would cause the hanyou the most pain.

‘Say it, Inuyasha.’ He growled menacingly, if for no other reason than to further torture and humiliate the boy beneath him. Inuyasha, whose ears were still faintly ringing from the pain, looked up at the man in confusion. Confusion turned to pain as strong hands dug into his hips, grinding his pelvis against the hard stone.

Driven by pain, Inuaysha’s mouth open to comply with his father’s order but... he hesitated.

Big mistake.

Huge fucking mistake!

With a low growl, Inu Taisho dug his claws into Inuyasha’s hips, and wrenched violently, twisted Inuyasha around and flipping him over, still fully sheathed within him so that he now rested on his stomach.

Inuyasha screamed as his insides were all but shredded from this action, his arms and legs trembling violently as he was forced to all fours.

“All fours” being knees and elbows.

‘Say it!’ Inu Taisho growled out again, never slowing his painful thrusting.

Inuyasha was so confused. Why did his father want him to say it now? After all that had happened, what did he want to prove? What would it do? Beside hurt him...

Inuyasha decided that that must be the reason. Not that that really mattered.

‘A...’

He grunted sharply in pain, hearing his father make a similar noise behind him.

‘Aishit--’

A whimper this time as his father’s claws dug into his bag, leaving deep trails of crimson in their wake.

A loud rattle from across the room and the faint sound of metal battling against rust as Sesshomaru jerked roughly against the chain holding him.

Inuyasha paused a moment, then, after gathering what little strength he had, he turned his head, silver strands of hair clinging like spiders-silk to his sweat-slick face and body as his pain-filled golden eyes locked with Sesshomaru’s own enraged and clearly hurt ones.

And he finally found his voice.

Found the strength to say the words his father wanted to hear.

But they weren’t for him.

They had never been for him.

And they would never be for him.

‘Aishiteru.’ He said, making certain Sesshomaru’s eyes were still locked with his own.

The demon’s struggled against his bonds ceased momentarily as they stared at one another, Inuyasha not even noticing the evil creature that was still moving against and within his body.

He didn’t matter.

Nothing mattered.

The world had narrowed down-- zoned into one area in which there was no room for anything else-- allowing Sesshomaru to eclipse everything and anything else.

And there was nothing else left that mattered to him anymore.

And when the demon behind him finally finished-- grunting low and releasing himself inside Inuyasha’s body-- the half-demon somehow managed to hold his brother’s gaze, ignored the sickening sensations this action always caused-- suppressed the urge to vomit or look away-- even as his body slumped to the ground. Because, just as his gaze held Sesshomaru’s, so did Sesshomaru’s hold his.

Inu Taisho yanked violently out of him, wrenching a small whimper from his mouth as he was slowly brought back into reality and away from Sesshomaru.

It was strange, because in that moment it was as if there truly was nothing else that existed... nothing that had ever existed... except them...

Slowly Inuyasha allowed his body to sag down to the ground, thankful that it was finally over.

Now their father would leave them alone, and Inuyasha could come up with some sort of plan to get Sesshomaru free...

If he could get Sesshomaru out, then his brother could escape, and he wouldn’t have to worry about his father ever harming him again... Inu Taisho wasn’t ever going to let him go... he knew that now. And he wouldn’t let that stand in the way of Sesshomaru.

He would not hold his brother down... drag him into this hell when he could escape...

Inuyasha was dragged out of his thoughts when the sound of footsteps moved, not toward the door like he had expected, but rather toward the other side of the room... toward Sesshomaru...

His eyes, which had formerly drifted closed of their own accord, snapped open again as he forced them to focus in on the two figures on the other side of the room.

His father was standing with his back to Inuyasha, and moving threateningly slowly toward Sesshomaru.

Blood trickled faintly down his legs even as Inuysha felt more of that same blood slipping down his own thighs in larger amounts, mixing foully with his father’s semen.

He forced himself not to concentrate on that lest he vomit all over everything, and instead work on focusing on what was happening between his father and brother.

‘Well Sesshomaru.’ Inu Taisho said softly, crouching down in front of his eldest son, who fixed him with an icy glare that would have the ceilings of hell freezing over and adorned with icicles.

And if looks could kill, Inuyasha was certain his father would be dead, buried, and halfway to hell by now.

‘Did this work out the way you planned?’ The taiyoukai asked. Sesshomaru snarled angrily at his mate’s rapist, snapping his teeth at his father with the full intention of tearing his face from his skull. Inu Taisho held up a hand as one would in defence, and then, in a complete turnabout of that action, swung it savagely down across his brother’s jaw, snapping his head to the side.

‘Don’t make me muzzle you, Sesshomary.’ The taiyoukai said in an almost taunting way that sent the younger demon’s eyes blazing. ‘Kami knows how many times I’ve had to do it to Inuyasha.’

Inuyasha shuddered faintly at remembrance of all the “times” his father had gagged him as Sesshomaru’s eyes became, if possible, even more enraged and icy.

The demon opened his mouth to respond, but nothing managed to escape his lips before their father moved and crashed their mouths together.

Inuyasha gasped loudly as a faint but unexpected pain scorched across his heart, his lips tingling faintly as he watched with helpless and horrified eyes as he father continued to rape and plunder his brother’s mouth.

And for several more seconds, Sesshomaru seemed too stunned to do anything.

Then his sensed kicked back in and a growl rose up in his throat-- the only warning he gave before snapping his teeth harshly together-- a mere hairsbreadth separating him from his father’s tongue and slicing off the wayward appendage.

Inu Taisho pulled back, away from him (making Inuyasha let out a small sound of relief that the monster was no longer touching his mate) and glared darkly down at him.

‘Looks like you do need a muzzle after all.’ He said, before rising swiftly (offering a small but savage kick to Sesshomaru’s stomach on the way) and moving over to collect a couple of thick straps of leather from his pile of discarded clothing.

He then moved over and fastened it around Sesshomaru’s lips, looking incredibly smug as his son’s snarls and growls were cut off by the gag, and then moving to reciprocate the action on Inuyasha with the second piece of leather.

The hanyou’s mouth instantly began to salivate on the gag-- trying to either force it out or wash it down-- as the thick taste and smoky smell of the leather surrounded his senses, his fangs creating little punctures through it as he heard his brother give a muffled growl.

Inu Taisho snorted and moved to grab the other demon by the hair, yanking it back so that the younger youkai was forced to meet his gaze.

‘Just remember that, Sesshomaru. Anything you force upon yourself, you force upon Inuyasha as well. I suggest you try and keep the list short if you value his life at all.’

That said, he licked the side of Sesshomaru’s cheek, tracing the birthmarks with his tongue, before moving along the shell of his ear. His hand began to trail down his son’s torso, pausing a moment to circle his nipples, before dipping lower-- his eyes never leaving Sesshomaru’s.

When his hand touched Sesshomaru’s abdomen, Sesshomaru let out a loud growl, and yanked violently against his chain.

Inu Taisho sneered at him.

‘Wondering why you cannot break these chains?’ He asked, tugging on the one around his son’s wrist, forcing Sesshomaru’s hand to follow his movements. ‘They are under a special seal placed by a monk. They cannot be broken by any powers of youkai origin. You will not be able to escape by mere force of will alone, Sesshomaru.’ He said, before going back to his slow exploration of his eldest’s body, which Sesshomaru endured silently, staring blankly at a spot somewhere above Inuyasha’s head, knowing that any struggles would likely get them both punished.

And the hanyou couldn’t get him to meet his eyes no matter how hard he tried.

He could practically feel every touch his father was placing on his mate’s body. At first it had confused him, since he hadn’t felt anything when his mate lost his arm-- which undoubtedly cause him a great deal of pain.

He then came to the conclusion that it must only feel like this when his mate was being touched... inappropriately.

And somehow that knowledge made it seem all the worse...

And when his father reached Sesshomaru’s manhood... Inuyasha’s heart all but stopped from the blinding pain he felt.

He wondered if this was what his brother had experienced when his father had raped him moments before...

Inu Taisho began to molest Sesshomaru in slow stokes, and Inuyasha felt every single one of them as if it was being placed upon his own flesh..

Only there was no pleasure.

He knew that, willingly or not, Sesshomaru would feel some sort of pleasure from being touched there, like that, but to him... there was none. It was incredibly difficult to describe... the pain he felt... it hurt, but it was... detached.

Like he was experiencing it from somewhere outside his body and wasn’t really aware that it truly did hurt. At least, not in any place except his heart.

And it ached.

But, even the pain that came with that couldn’t have prepared him for the pain that came from when his father forced Sesshomaru to his stomach, and then forced his way inside his brother.

A loud cry escaped the hanyou, muffled by the gag as he jerked he weak body as far as the chains would allow him to go-- straining to get to his brother... to his mate.

Sesshomaru heard Inuyasha’s cry and he grit his teeth against the pain that washed through him, though he didn’t let it show. He would never let it show. Because if he did... he knew he would break.

His one working arm quivered under the strain as the chain continued to pull upon it, his other “arm” starting to bleed once again, the crimson fluid dripping in thick rivers toward the harsh, stone floor-- trying desperately to wash out the dirt that was just as desperately trying to remain within and infect the wound.

His breathing came out ragged as his claws dug harsh welts into the stone and he struggled not to give into the pain.

This is what his brother had been living silently with all these years? This?

Sesshomaru’s back arched as his father thrust in again, tearing him, and a small ache rose up in his chest, getting bigger with every move or sound his father made. How? How? How could Inuyasha have endured anything like this for so long... without any help... without anything...

A harsh whine rose up in his throat, but it was unable to go any further as it clashed and mixed in with the despair, bile and shame that had currently taken up residence. All in all it was a very vile combination, and had he been any less trained as a warrior or anything he may very well have vomited right then and there.

But he wasn’t so he didn’t... he couldn’t... he had to be strong... he had to remain strong... Inuyasha had been more strong then he had ever even begun to guess after enduring this so long... he could remain strong for him now... he hoped.

Letting his eyes fall closed, he forced himself to remain silent. He wouldn’t give in. Not now. No matter how difficult it was.

Inuyasha could feel tears cascade down his blood and dirt stained face as he watched the scene before him unfold.

He felt every thrust in that same, horrible detached way, and it hurt him more than if it was actually happening to him. Because it wasn’t happening to him. It was happening to his mate.

He couldn’t believe how unaffected Sesshomaru seemed to be at first... like he truly didn’t care what was happening... like it truly didn’t hurt him... But Inuyasha knew better. He could tell how disgusted and hurt Sesshomaru was, despite how well he hid it.

And, when he “felt” his father come within Sesshomaru, he couldn’t help it. He needed some sort of release from this... horrifying situation... and his body gave it the only way it knew how...

He threw up.

Bile and blood and shame and despair and kami knows what else rose in his throat, all racing each other as they struggled to try and escape, flooding up into his mouth. And staying there.

The foul, vile mixture hit the barrier of leather, and that was just about as far as it got. The liquid swirled around in confusion, making Inuyasha’s tastebuds cringe away in disgust as it searched for a way out-- some of it leaking out to drip over his chin and stain his chest while the rest slid back and began to choke him as it demanded an escape.

He gagged violently, his shoulders heaving the way it would they would if he were sobbing, and he struggled to take in breath.

Inu Taisho pulled away from Sesshomaru, who, with nothing left to support him, slumped back to the uncaring stone floor as Inuyasha had, his vision going blurry as he tried to focus on something other than the pain.

‘What do you think, Sesshomaru?’ Inu Taisho asked as he moved to stand over the slowly suffocating Inuyasha. ‘Should I let him die?’

Sesshomaru blinked hazily at the question, trying to lift his head and failing miserably. That encounter with his father had drained all his energy... he had held out until the end but...

‘Inuyasha... please... don’t die on me mate... I cannot loose you... not again...’

‘I should let you die.’ Inu Taisho muttered as Inuyasha’s eyes began to glaze and darken with signs of impending death. The Taiyoukai leaned closer to his son, his breath tickling Inuyasha’s ear and making the skin it touched crawl bitterly. ‘But I think I’d miss your screams too much.’

The leather loosened and then fell from Inuyasha’s mouth, landing with a sickening splat in the hanyou’s lap, long ropey strings of vomit trailing from lips to leather before abruptly breaking off as the hanyou’s head lurched and he coughed violently.

His head slumped against his chest as his breathing started to even out to harsh and ragged, and he was certain he had very nearly coughed up a lung in trying to clear his air passage. The bile had burned his throat, and the coughing had torn it open and made it bleed... he had never felt so sore and hurt and helpless in all his life...

The shackles around his wrists were loosened and opened, and then the horrifyingly familiar arms of his father came to lift him up-- bridal-style-- from the floor.

Something... he was saying something... but Inuyasha couldn’t focus in on what...

His head lolled back on his shoulders as his father carried him slowly toward the door.

All he could think about was Sesshomaru.

In a last burst of strength, he managed to crack his eyes open and attempted to twist his neck around to catch a glance of his brother... but it was too late... Sesshomaru was out of his line of sight now... and... he couldn’t focus anymore... he couldn’t... he was too tired... and he needed to... do... something...

Letting out a soft whine, Inuyasha curled in on himself, curled into the darkness of his mind.

He was still vaguely aware of being touched-- of being moved around-- but, in all other aspects, he was unconscious.

Time seemed to drip by like water from stalactite as Inuyasha drifted on uneasy waves of darkness.

When he finally managed to come back from... his mind, his body was sore all over.

He could feel the softness beneath him and could recognise the disgusting scent of days old blood and semen and vomit and knew that he must be in his bed... the scent of his father and Sesshomaru was everywhere.

And Inuyasha mentally blinked in confusion.

Had it... all been a dream?

It was possible... wasn’t it?

He felt no pain in his chest anymore like he should have... and there was no longer vomit and blood and all that other shit covering him... but... it all still felt... so... incredibly... real.

And he could still see the look on Sesshomaru’s face when his father had taken him... smell the shame... feel the pain... and that hurt worse than any time his father had committed an act like that upon him. Even when he had been a child...

Blinking back tears, Inuyasha struggled to get up, only to flop back down after a moment as pain shot through his spine.

He lay there for a moment, gasping against the pain, and then realised that he must been feeling Sesshomaru’s pain still too... it had never hurt him this badly before. Not when he had been younger, or when he had been fucked by more than five demons in one night... so there was no other explanation.

Gritting his teeth, his slowly forced himself up-- first to his elbows, then slowly onto his hands, his arms trembling weakly in protest, and he mentally glared that he was practically panting just from this small effort.

This small victory was short lived as the door suddenly opened.

In the instant it took Inuyasha to lift his head and look up, he suddenly found himself pinned to the bed again, his father on top of him, straddling his waist... and... he could smell Sesshomaru’s scent... Sesshomaru’s blood... all over him... too much and too fresh to be from before...

Inuyasha’s eyes narrowed as he felt rage course through him.

Rage and fear.

‘Where is Sesshomaru?’ He asked of his father, heedless of the consequences. He didn’t care anymore. He had to know that Sesshomaru was alright... He needed to know...

Inu Taisho’s hand connected savagely with the side of his face.

‘You’ve gotten a bit above yourself, haven’t you boy?’ The Inuyoukai said with a sneer.

Inuyasha drew his lips back and turned to glare at the elder demon. ‘What did you do to him?!’ He demanded.

This earned him several harsh backhands, which Inuyasha took in stride.

His head snapped violently to the side, his ears ringing from the force of the blows as blood went flying to spatter against the wall from his broken lips.

‘I should have left that muzzle on you.’ His fathered muttered, then leaned down, his teeth grazing Inuyasha’s ear as he whispered into it. ‘You want to know what happened to your beloved mate?’ He asked, his voice laced with sadistic malevolence.

Inuyasha swallowed thickly.

‘Please, don’t let him be dead, please, please, please...’ He silently prayed to any god who would listen. Not that they had ever listened to him in the past, but he was hoping against hope that this time they would make an exception.

All the bites, kisses, scratches and other things inflicted upon his body... he didn’t feel. He was too caught up in the words that they were being used to punctuate.

‘You missed a lot while you were unconscious, Inuyasha. Me and Sesshomaru had plenty of time to get better... acquainted.’

Inuyasha’s claws dug into the futon as he felt his father slide back up his body, dragging his tongue along Inuyasha’s torso and leaving a slimy trail of saliva behind, stopping just before the mating mark on his shoulder.

‘And you know what, Inuyasha?’ He hissed, licking the inside of his son’s ear, making it compress back into his hair to avoid the snake-like appendage. ‘After I fucked him you know what I did?’ He licked his way back down to the mating mark again. ‘I told him you were dead. And you know what he did?’ He positioned himself at Inuyasha’s entrance as the hanyou trembled beneath him in foreboding of what his father would say next. ‘He slit his own stomach in despair.’

All the things that followed this statement created a multitude of pain so great, it should never have been able to be contained in a single body, let alone that of a hanyou teen.

His father thrust forward into Inuyasha (who, because he was still in shock from his father’s words, didn’t notice all that much at first), hard, tearing his battered body even further as he scraped his claws down Inuyasha’s sides in rough gouges of crimson and then, worst of all, sunk his fangs into the mating mark on Inuyasha’s shoulder.

Now, this wouldn’t necessarily have any effect on Inuyasha and Sesshomaru’s bond with one another, but it still hurt like all hell...

And Inuyasha was so completely filled with agony at these different actions and words that he thought he might just burst open from it, and fall to the floor like the shattered soul he was.

His entire body tensed up in confusion and wretched agony as all these things compiled to mix into the despair and darkness in his mind, and Inuyasha opened his mouth to let out an earth-shattering scream.

But a scream isn’t what came out.

Not really anyway.

The sound that tore free from Inuyasha... the wailing, tortured cry of absolute agony... of years of pent up abuse and hat and loneliness and confusion and despair... the kind of sound that puts the tortured songs of even the most despairing spirit to shame and hollows everyone who hears it-- changing them irreversibly as that sound imprints itself on their minds and echoes there for the rest of their lives... that was the sort of cry that Inuyasha emitted.

An indescribably bone-chilling sound not of this world as he finally fell over the edge and into the oblivion that had been waiting for so long to swallow him up.

He had nothing left.

What little he had gained over the years was gone... Sesshomaru had been the only reason he was still alive... his only anchor to this world... and now he was gone... and Inuyasha was... completely hollow inside. Nothing but an empty husk that had finally been broken open...

But he wasn’t dead yet.

He couldn’t die, because this vile creature above him would deny him even that...

And that meant that he couldn’t go and join his mate...

Not until...

Inuyasha’s eyes drifted closed at that as his body prepared for something it would never have been able to do in the past... something that fear and hate and weakness and lonliness and confusion and despair and everything else mixed with what little common sense he had had kept him from doing for the past years...

And, in this current state, he looked... almost peaceful... waiting...

And, when his father gave his last thrust deep within him-- spilling his seed into his torn and abused insides, and finally withdrew his fangs from Sesshomaru’s mark... that was when Inuyasha struck.

His eyes wrenched open again, and his fangs pulled back in a snarl that was so filled with hate and despair no creature of this world should have been able to make it, his eyes bleed tears tainted with blood of hate and indescribable agony-- all of which was directed at the creature above him.

And, as his claws came up and tore into the gut of the creature above him, ripping through flesh, blood, bone and whatever else it encountered, his demon-golden eyes flashed for a moment, the irises and pupils fading and disappearing into white oblivion, before being shadowed over by a hollow, emotionless onyx colour that was complete devoid of soul. And they reflected neither light nor shadows as he gave his hand a cruel yank within his father.

Because he wasn’t alive anymore.

He was only still here because he had something left to do. He needed to go to his mate.

That was it.

Wasting no time, Inuyasha wrenched his hand (along with some of his father’s intenstines) out of the demon above him, throwing the leftovers of his kill to splat against the floor in a bloody mess.

He did not pause to revel in the shocked and pained expression on his father’s face, but rather to rip said face off, tearing flesh away from the bone it clung so desperately to, and then shoving up, heaving the disgusting corpse above him off and sending it flying into the far wall with a heavy crash and a sickening crack as something within the lifeless form snapped.

By the time the corpse hit the ground, Inuyasha was already out the door and halfway down toward the dungeons.

Inuyasha didn’t bother tracking his brother’s scent.

His instincts were screaming within him, telling him where to go, and, at the moment, he trusted them far more than his senses.

Wrenching the door to the dungeon he knew Sesshomaru to be in hard so hard he pulled it right out of the wall, Inuyasha all but leapt down the ladder, immediately rushing over to the side of his fallen mate.

There was blood everywhere on Sesshomaru-- staining his pale skin in an armour of crimson, and his thighs were slick with semen.

At some point in time the gag had been removed, adding the vile smell of vomit to the cruel and nauseating mixture as well.

However, these were all things Inuyasha was used to smelling (having been covered and slept in them more times than he could remember) and they one effected him because this time they weren’t covering him.

This time they were covering his mate.

Inuyasha fell to his knees next to his mate, small whines escaping his throat without him even realising it as he moved about his mate’s body-- desperately trying to clean it off with the only tool currently available to him. His tongue. Because he knew that, when Sesshomaru woke up, he would want to be clean.

‘He’s not going to wake up.’ Some part of his brain reminded him, and Inuyasha squeezed his eyes shut tightly as he cleaned between Sesshomaru’s thighs, along his back, over his chest... it wasn’t all that effective, really, but it was the best he could do with what he had... and he wasn’t about to leave his mate’s side now.

Pulling back, Inuyasha stared down with his reflectionless black eyes at his unmoving mate, trying to fight back despair.

‘Sesshomaru.’ He said softly, shaking his mate’s shoulder. No response.

He shook a little harder.

‘Sesshomaru, wake up. It’s okay. It’s over now.’ He said, feeling tears begin to rise behind his eyes. ‘I killed him.’ He whispered. ‘I killed him, Sesshomaru.’

No response.

‘Sesshomaru...?’ Inuyasha asked softly.

Inuyasha sat there for what could’ve been hours, just waiting for his mate to respond to him, before finally giving in to the truth... he wasn’t going to...

Looking around and frantically wiping at his eyes, Inuyasha felt relief flood through him as he spotted Tenseiga lying a few feet away. His father hadn’t taken the sword.

Quickly rushing over, Inuyasha grabbed the hilt of the blade, and wrenched it from it’s sheath, before turning to point it at Sesshomaru, feeling a strange twinge of guilt for pointing a blade of any kind at his mate.

He waited for something to happen.

He knew that the sword was supposed to give some sort of signal... show him something... give him something to cut... pulse... anything... but nothing happened.

Inuyasha bit his lip and swung the sword through the air, as though that would make a difference.

It didn’t.

He repeated the action over and over again as tears began to fall freely from his pupiless eyes, until he was just cutting through the air in a vain attempt at relieving some of the pressure that had built within him... trying to stake some of the air out on the room around him.

Finally, with a cry of rage and despair, he flung the sword with enough force to send it flying into one of the walls, it’s blade shattering on impact and raining to the ground in small, broken and useless bit as what remained whole of the sword clattered down with a loud crash that Inuyasha, in his near-psychotic state, found to be a strangely taunting sound.

Collapsing to the ground with his shoulders heaving, Inuyasha did nothing for several moments but breathe, his eyes wide and staring unseeingly at the floor.

Tears that he couldn’t feel in his numb body anymore rolled down his cheeks as he slowly looked up, his numb hands wrapping around the chain that held Sesshomaru’s wrist and, defying all laws that had allowed the seal to be placed in the first place, wrenching it from the wall, shattering the metal links in his hands.

He then moved over, laying the elder youkai down on his back, and crawling in to curl up next to him, resting his head on Sesshomaru’s chest in that way that they always did... only this time in was different... the body beneath him was cold and stank of blood and semen... and no arms lifted to come and wrap around him... no soft words of endearment were exchanged... because, in reality... he was the only one there.

He ran his hand slowly up the familar expanse of Sesshomaru’s torso, memorizing his body to the pads of his fingers-- the tips of his claws-- before, slowly, he brought those claws up to position them at his throat.

He was vaguely aware that there was no gash across Sesshomaru’s stomach where he had supposedly slit himself. He didn’t really care much.

The way he saw it, either his father was lying and had killed him another way, or Sesshomaru’s youkai powers had healed him before he died...

Either way it didn’t matter.

Bringing his free hand up, he brushed the blood-ridden locks of hair away from Sesshomaru’s face, gently stroking his cheek as he leaned in to whisper in his ear.

‘I’m sorry Sesshomaru.’ He said softly. ‘I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to save you.’ He offered his mate a weak smile. ‘Don’t worry though. I’ll be joining you soon, aniki.’

That said, he leaned up and placed a small kiss on Sesshomaru’s lips before, resting his head back against his mate’s chest, he dugs his claws sharply into his throat.

His whole body went ridgid in shock and pain a moment as he let out a soundless gasp from the penetration.

Then he pulled back, wrenching his hand away with a weak cry-- one of the last sounds he would ever make-- as his body began to spasm and liquid poured down into and from his torn and badly abused throat.

Shuddering, Inuyasha struggled weakly to breathe... or stop breathing, he was no longer sure which... as he nuzzled his pained face against his brother’s neck, allowing his eyes to fall shut again as he felt peace finally begin to overcome him.

He had finally found freedom.

He had finally found death.

Death that no one would ever steal from him again.

~Owari~ ~*~   ~*~  

Glossary

Hanyou - Half-Demon

Inu Taisho - Inuyasha and Sesshomaru’s father. It means either Lord of the Dogs or Dog General. Oh, and I probably should mention that in the little we see of him in the series/movie, he’s not nearly as big as bastard as I make him out to be.

Youki - In a nut shell it is a demon’s aura or spiritual presence-- the thing that makes them transform. ^_^

Taiyoukai - Either this or Daiyoukai means great Demon...

Youkai - Demon

Ryukotsusei - This is the dragon that Inu Taisho sealed with one of his claws. In the series Inuyasha uses Tetsusaiga to defeat him and unlocks the backlash wave with it. Apparently Inu Taisho’s fight with this dragon, that mixed in with Takemaru (3rd movie) are inevitably what lead to his death.

Sounga - Kay, this sword is from the third movie. I’m not gonna say much about it incase you haven’t seen the third movie, but it’s incredibly strong, and has the ability to posses people (in a way similar to but undeniably different from Tokijin). The only demons strong enough to wield it (apparently) are Inu Taisho and Sesshomaru.

Izayoi - Inuyasha’s mother and the human side of his heritage. She was a princess and that’s just about all we know of her.

Tetsusaiga - Okay, in the series I know that this sword has a barrier around it from demons, but that really didn’t seem all that smart to me here, cause then Inu Taisho wouldn’t be able to wield it. I figured I’d better explain that to people... Because that’s why Sesshomaru can hold it here without getting burned.

Tenseiga - The sword Sesshomaru’s father left him-- it can bring people back to life.

Aishiteru - I’m fairly certain this means “I love you.” But i have been wrong before... Hopefully I used it in the right context... ^_^

Kami - In a nutshell this means God

Inuyoukai - Dog-Demon

Aniki - Elder Brother (though this isn’t used exclusively for family, as we see with the Band of Seven)

Owari - The End (This is the final “The End” for this story! ... Unless I write an epilogue that is... ^_^) ~*~  

A/N: Well, I’m depressed, how bout you?

Oh, the title might not make a lot of sense, but it’s part of a saying that one of my friends used to say whenever something particularly sad or painful happened “what time won’t heal, death will...” It’s really rather depressing when you think about it, but...

Anyway, can’t think of anything else to say... guess that’s it...

Please don’t be scared to let me know what you think of it! Email or review! ^_^

--Oh, the first of the two prequels to this story “Someone to hear you scream” can be found here: http://www.mediaminer.org/fanfic/view_st.php/114103/

And the second one, “Darkness and Light”, can be found here: http://www.mediaminer.org/fanfic/view_st.php/114184/

And the original ending for this fic can be found here: http://www.mediaminer.org/fanfic/view_st.php/115221/

Ciao!

~Avarwen~