InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Torn ❯ Aftermath ( Chapter 1 )

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Chapter One

 

Aftermath

 

 

(This fic is in response to ayame hiwatari's challenge. Special thanks to DemonGoddess for helping me to fix this up for mm.org. Another round of applause for the help of Koga's Hentai Luver when this was first posted and now to Hellfyrre who has done an awesome job cleaning up the last vestiges of gremlin destruction.)

 

 

 

“Kaze no Kizu!” yelled the red clad figure as his sword came crashing to the ground, flinging angry walls of flames, the ground cracking and groaning as it split from the force. The burning winds created by the firestorm scorched the young hanyou's face and singed his billowing waist length white hair. Once the flames died down, Inuyasha searched with keen amber eyes for the target of his deadly blast. The triangular puppy dog ears atop his head strained in an effort to confirm his victory.

 

“Ha, ha, ha, ha.” the disembodied voice of his arch nemesis boomed across the miasma ridden ruins of the battlefield.

 

“Where the fuck is he, Sesshoumaru?” Inuyasha nearly screamed, his chest heaving in frustration. “Why aren't you dead, Naraku? Show yourself, you bastard!”

 

“Inuyasha. Calm yourself,” admonished the great Lord of the Western Lands, always in control, always calculating, never surprised. Well, rarely. The flat monotone of his voice belied the fierce desire for revenge. Naraku had had the gall to kidnap his Rin. His Rin! No one touched what belonged to him. Sesshoumaru's reputation as the perfect assassin had been besmirched by his inability to destroy Naraku. But at least Rin was safe. Now to destroy the sonofabitch that did it.

 

Sesshoumaru scanned the area with golden eyes as intense as Inuyasha's. They were, after all, half brothers. But whereas Inuyasha was average height, Sesshoumaru was at least six foot five. Silver satin tresses flowed to his ankles. In contrast to Inuyasha's plain red garments, Sesshoumaru wore gleaming white, trimmed in intricate patterns of gold and red. Strong metal armor protected his chest and what was left of his left arm. His face bore the markings of his family, a crescent moon on his forehead and two lavender stripes on his cheeks. He didn't have Inuyasha's ears. He had the ears of a full demon, nicely proportioned and pointy against the side of his head. None of that dog eared crap his hanyou brother was cursed with.

 

The brothers stood, several yards between them, both searching for some sign of their enemy. The fire neko circled overhead with the demon exterminator, Sango, astride her back. Her dark brown ponytail flew behind her as her dark piercing eyes viewed the carnage. Kagome, a highschool girl from the future, stood clothed in a green skirt and white sailor top. Her bow was drawn as her soul poured purifying energy into an arrow. But her target had disappeared.

 

Saimyoshou invaded the skies. Kilala, the fire neko, dodged the poisonous wasps. Sango's boomerang, hiraikotzu, swept through the throng taking out dozens. But it wasn't enough. They headed straight for Kagome and the jewel shards hanging around her neck in a small glass bottle. Sesshoumaru ignored them, sniffing out Naraku, unaffected by the miasma.

 

Inuyasha's sword was useless against the insects because his friends might get fried by the wide range of destruction. With their safety in mind, he took a clawed finger, using it to slit a gash his arm. Blood flowed freely while he dipped his fingers in the blood, flinging it in sweeping arcs.

 

“Blades of Blood!” Swathes of bloody blades cut through the swarm and still it wasn't enough.

 

It was time for the monk to take his turn. Purple and black robes wrestled with the wind while he unwrapped the prayer beads from his right hand. Deep, violet eyes set in a masculine, handsome face concentrated on the evil before him. This was a risk that could kill him, but he would always protect those he loved

 

“Wind tunnel!”

 

“No, Miroku!” screamed Kagome, running toward him, her short green skirt nearly giving away her undergarments as she sprinted to the monk.

 

The black hole in Miroku's hand drew the saimyoshou to him.

 

“The poison will kill you, idiot!” yelled Inuyasha as he took off behind Kagome.

 

Screaming ensued as wasps swarmed the group. Sesshoumaru sighed upon hearing their frantic attempts to stop the monk.

 

“You will not escape so easily, Naraku,” he muttered underneath his breath before heading in the direction of the group of misfits.

 

“Get down!” commanded the elegant assassin. He didn't even wait to see if they had obeyed.

 

Luminescent green energy ribbons flew from the palm of his hand as his body became a whirl of silver and white. Bloody bits of organs and wasp husks rained from the sky while the wasps of lesser intelligence were caught in the blender of Sesshoumaru's making. A very few raced away saving themselves from a gruesome fate. The ribbons retracted as Sesshoumaru slowed into a graceful dance of color and landed in front of the group.

 

Kagome lay on the ground in Inuyasha's protective embrace. The monk lay safely beneath the exterminator, his hand carefully making its way up her thigh to her buttocks.

 

“Pervert! How can you even think of that right now!?” Sango screamed as Miroku was dealt a near deadly blow to his face.

 

“Ah, it was worth the pain,” he sighed with satisfaction while closing his eyes and caressing his swollen cheek.

 

It was all Naraku needed. The distraction he had so carefully choreographed days in advance had come to fruition. It was the monk's keen senses that first picked up the vibration along his back. He rolled away from the area, calling out to Inuyasha. Sesshoumaru picked up Inuyasha by his haori and flung both Inuyasha and Kagome toward Sango and Miroku.

 

For some unexplainable reason, Sesshoumaru had been more concerned about his brother's welfare than his own well-being. He simply acted without thought, not bothering to lift himself from the ground as hardened tentacles pierced the earth and ran him through. A shoulder blade exploded. Before he had time to even attempt to dislodge it, he watched in horror as another branch of the evil hanyou shot out from his gut. The perfect assassin would not have fallen from these wounds. However, they were joined by another injury to the inner thigh of his left leg.

 

Naraku burst from the ground while, with a sickening slurp, his tentacles withdrew from the taiyoukai's flesh. Sesshoumaru fell as their wicked enemy raced toward the misfits who were gaping at Inuyasha's brother. He had saved them, those that he openly appeared to despise. As Sesshoumaru fell, he managed to make a sweeping swing of Tokijin, taking out several of Naraku's spider legs, slowing down the demon's attempt to reach the small band of misfits.

 

Kagome, the reluctant priestess, had already nocked an arrow, pouring her purifying power into it. Inuyasha's amber eyes glowed with anger as he lifted his father's fang, his sword, Tetsusaiga.

 

“Where's the jewel, Kagome?” Inuyasha yelled.

 

“In the center of his back,” Kagome hissed between gritted teeth.

 

Inuyasha grabbed her and leapt high into a tree above the beast.

 

“You aim for the jewel and let the arrow loose after I send out the wind scar. You'll be able the see the jewel. Can you handle that?”

 

“No prob, Inuyasha. Just do it.”

 

Inuyasha never lost his grip on Kagome as he let loose the power of his sword.

 

“Kaze no Kizu!”

 

Through the center of the backlash, Kagome could see the jewel and let loose her arrow.

 

“Do it, do it, do it,” she chanted in a near whisper as the arrow sought its target.

 

The world exploded in a blinding white light only to rain brown goo on the exhausted warriors. Inuyasha jumped to the ground, losing his footing in the slime. Kagome ended up on sitting on top of his hips as he attempted to suck in breath.

 

“Get off me, wench. We need to find the jewel before that asshole decides to come back to life again!” demanded Inuyasha.

 

“Humph, idiot,” she muttered under her breath, though she knew he had a valid point.

 

“Where is it, Kagome?” asked Inuyasha as he stood up and pulled a clump of wriggling something from his hair.

 

“There,” she said, pointing to the center of the mess they had made.

 

Inuyasha grabbed her by the waist, again, and hopped on what solid patches there were. He dug his sword into what appeared to be the center of Naraku's back, working the nearly completed jewel loose. The deep purple color confirmed the vile taint of the evil Naraku. Inuyasha was almost afraid to touch it for fear it would bring out his demon side, though becoming full demon had originally been his purpose for seeking the jewel. But now he knew what being a full demon meant and killing everything in his path, including his friends, was not a pleasant thought.

 

Kagome noticed his reluctance to retrieve the jewel and bent down, instantly purifying the evil as her fingers wrapped around it. The bulk beneath them turned to ash, never to be reborn. Naraku was finally dead. But, only Miroku could verify that fact. Kagome turned from Inuyasha as she slipped the jewel into her bra.

 

`This is what Inuyasha has wanted all this time. Now he will have it,' she thought, sighing as she realized that her mission was over and she would be going home, for good. Never to see her friends again. Never to see Inuyasha again. It hurt. It seemed that she had spent the better part of three years in the feudal era, trying to piece together the jewel she had accidentally shattered. Fighting for their lives together had forged tight bonds that would never be broken. Her heart was silently breaking. It wasn't just her friends; she loved Inuyasha with all that was in her.

 

“Wake up! We need to check on the others,” grumbled Inuyasha, his own heart breaking. `I'll never see her again.'

 

“Yeah, well…just don't grab me again!” Kagome hid her grief behind harsh words and trudged after the man that she loved.

 

“Pervert!”

 

Whap!

 

“But, Sango dear, the battle is over,” groaned the perverted monk.

 

“It doesn't matter. Can't you think of anything else!? We have injured people to attend to,” shouted the angry demon slayer.

 

“You know, you are quite beautiful when you are angry, my dear Sango. Would you do me the honor of bearing my children?” rasped Miroku from his prone position, sprawled out flat on his back.

 

Sango's jaw dropped and the crimson of her anger turned to the deepest blush Miroku had ever seen.

 

“Well?”

 

“But…but, you've never asked me before. Why now, houshi?” she stammered.

 

“Naraku is gone, our children will be safe. I would not curse a child with my wind tunnel. Now that I can truly have a child… would you bear my child?” Miroku almost seemed to plead.

 

“You were never serious when you asked all those other women?”

 

“How could I be when I already have the most beautiful woman in the world by my side? Marry me; have my children.”

 

“Hou…Houshi!”

 

“I love you,” he whispered.

 

“You're just a pervert,” declared Inuyasha as he and Kagome strode up to the couple.

 

Kagome elbowed Inuyasha in the side and glared at him, giving him the `I'll sit you into the ground five feet deep' stare. Inuyasha certainly didn't want the bewitched beads around his neck to yank his face down into the dirt. He'd be spitting dirt from his nose and mouth for a week.

 

“Humph,” he grumbled half-heartedly. `I wonder if the beads will disappear once she is gone.'

 

“Is your wind tunnel gone, monk?” scowled Inuyasha.

 

Miroku stared at his right hand, almost afraid to loose his prayer beads, afraid to take that final peek. The black hole had been there since he had been a teenager. He had almost resigned himself to the fact that one day it would draw him in and he would be forever lost to the world of the living. He shifted nervously in his black and purple robes, the sound of fabric sliding together almost too loud in his anticipation.

 

`Well, there's nothing for it but to do it,' he thought. Carefully removing the string of white beads from his hand and wrist, Miroku hesitantly pulled back the purple cloth. Nothing happened. He just stared at his hand. It was whole. He flexed his fingers and, for the first time since he was a child, marveled at the feel of his hand in its normal state.

 

“It's gone,” he whispered. `Gone!'

 

Suddenly there were cheers and Miroku was being drawn to his feet as everyone danced around, hugging him.

 

Sango wasn't about to be deterred from the conversation with Miroku though. She had longed for this day and wouldn't let it slip away. She grabbed him from the front of his robe, holding him firmly in place. Miroku's deep violet eyes held her in thrall as she answered.

 

“It would be an honor and a pleasure,” she announced, loud enough that all the others could hear.

 

It took Miroku a moment to realize where this seemingly strange declaration had originated. Suddenly, his eyebrows flew up and he crushed her against his body.

 

“Oh, Sango, Sango,” he whispered into her ear as relief flooded him. “We will rebuild your village and you will bear many children, I promise.”

 

“Finally!” A small fox demon hopped out from behind a tree and jumped onto Kagome's shoulder.

 

“Shippou! You're not supposed to be here! How could you disobey me?” Kagome complained, her stomach rising to her throat at the thought that her adopted child could have been killed.

 

“I couldn't leave you, mama. I just couldn't,” he pouted.

 

She would have admonished him, but remembered that she would be leaving him and didn't want him to remember her with a scowl on her face.

 

“Well, you kept yourself from getting hurt, so I guess it's okay.”

 

Inuyasha left the group, wandering over to his half-brother who had managed to crawl to a large old tree. He lay propped on his white fluffy pelt against the trunk beneath wide spreading branches, devoid of leaves because of the poisonous miasma. His head lay to the right, half buried in the fur. Inuyasha knelt beside him, noting that his once white regal attire was soaked in blood. He studied Sesshoumaru's face, looking for some sign of life. The blue crescent moon in the center of Sesshoumaru's forehead seemed to have faded, as well as the two maroon stripes on each cheek.

 

`His markings are so pale and he looks so pasty. Could he really be dead? He doesn't smell like it.' Inuyasha was unsure of whether or not he wanted the half brother, who had always seemed to be trying to kill him and take Tetsusaiga, to actually die.

 

`He did save my life and he didn't have to. Damn it.' Furrowing his brow, Inuyasha felt the large vein that protruded from Sesshoumaru's neck. There was a pulse, but it was weak, and getting weaker by the moment.

 

Inuyasha looked up to find his friends standing behind him.

 

“Kagome, get that backpack thing of yours. Sesshoumaru needs help if we're gonna save him.”

 

Kagome looked at Inuyasha quizzically. “But why, Inuyasha?”

 

“He saved us, remember?”

 

Kagome nodded and ran off to retrieve the overstuffed, yellow backpack that held her first aid kit.

 

“Do you think this is wise, Inuyasha?” asked Miroku.

 

“Who knows? But I can't let him die after helping us defeat Naraku and saving our lives now, can I?” Inuyasha sighed

 

“I guess not. But he will probably try to kill you again. You know that,” said Sango.

 

“Yeah, I know,” mumbled Inuyasha, disheartened that he would once again be on opposite sides of the fence with his brother.

 

'Why can't he accept me? I can't help it that father gave me this sword and that he made a barrier so Sesshoumaru couldn't use it. It's not my fault that I'm hanyou. He's such a fucking bastard. That's all there is to it.'

 

Inuyasha was startled out of his thoughts when Kagome dropped the backpack while flopping onto the ground in order to dig through it.

 

“I don't know how much help these bandages will be. But, it will have to do `til we can get him to Kaede. We are going to take him to Kaede, right?” she asked.

 

“I guess we'll have to. I don't know how to help him,” said Inuyasha as he removed Sesshoumaru's clothing. He searched about for something to wipe away the blood. The wounds weren't very visible beneath all the blood.

 

“Here, Inuyasha,” said Miroku.

 

A swath of purple cloth fell into view as Miroku held his outer robe in front of him.

 

“Thanks.”

 

“You're more than welcome, my friend.”

 

Inuyasha found he needed help. Miroku held Sesshoumaru up from under the shoulders while Sango held her hands against the small of his back. While Inuyasha kept entrails from falling out of the exit wounds, Kagome ran bandages around Sesshoumaru's torso. The maneuvers required to keep the bandages tight while being applied was no easy feat. But they managed it, amazed that the most powerful demon in the land never once showed any sign of leaving his state of unconsciousness.

 

With the most serious injuries treated, Inuyasha stared at the tear in the fabric at his brother's thigh and considered his options.

 

'I can't believe I'm going to have to do this. He's going to be royally pissed.'

 

He took the small pair of scissors from the first aid kit and began carefully cutting away at Sesshoumaru's hakama just above the wound. Kagome pulled the pant leg free while Inuyasha made a quick study and used the last of the bandages to wrap the leg.

 

“I think we can go now,” said Inuyasha, receiving nods all around. “Sango, do you think Kilala could carry him? I'm strong enough, but the balance would be off and wouldn't be the most gentle on him.”

 

“Consider it done, Inuyasha,” replied Sango. “Kilala,” she called to her fire neko.

 

The little, blonde, two-tailed kitten transformed into her full size cat demon form, saber teeth growing long from her jaws, fire spitting from her paws. Though she was the epitome of ferocity, she was a sweet and brave creature, often flying into battle with Sango astride her back. It was a small thing for her to carry three or even four people and she was always happy to help her friends. However, Sesshoumaru wasn't really a friend at all, perhaps even an enemy.

 

“Kilala, would you mind carrying Sesshoumaru to Kaede's?” Sango asked.

 

Kilala looked from Sango to the fallen demon lord then back to Sango as though contemplating the risks.

 

“I'll go with you, Kilala, just to make sure the bastard doesn't wake up and get out of hand,” assured Inuyasha.

 

Nodding, Kilala gave her consent.

 

“I don't want anyone going with us. Sesshoumaru is too dangerous,” warned Inuyasha.

 

“You don't have to tell me twice,” said Miroku, raising his brows and waving his hands in front of his chest as though warding off imminent danger.

 

“You're going to have to help me get him onto Kilala's back though, monk,” said Inuyasha, narrowing his eyes at Miroku.

 

“We'll all help,” interjected Kagome.

 

Sango nodded. “I'll get on Kilala with you. Miroku and Kagome can lift up his legs.”

 

“Alright. Let's get going,” grumbled Inuyasha as he slid his right arm behind Sesshoumaru's bare back and under his right arm.

 

Kilala lay down on the ground and waited. Sango hopped up as Inuyasha and Miroku brought Sesshoumaru up beside Kilala, lifting him up to her. Sango slid her arms under Sesshoumaru's arms and locked her hands, holding him in place as Inuyasha jumped up beside her and hauled Sesshoumaru onto Kilala's back. Kagome and Miroku lifted his legs while Inuyasha wrapped his left arm around Sesshoumaru's waist and hauled him the rest of the way up.

 

Sesshoumaru was just so tall that his legs hung from Kilala's side and Inuyasha would have to be content with holding his half brother the entire journey just to make sure neither one of them slid off. He couldn't very well have Sesshoumaru straddling Kilala as that would aggravate his injuries. Instead, Sesshoumaru would have to ride side-saddle, as it were.

 

“You are such a pain in the ass, Sesshoumaru,” mumbled Inuyasha as he tried to get comfortable, adjusting Sesshoumaru this way and that. Holding his brother would never be comfortable no matter how hard he tried, so he just gave up and did what he needed to do.

 

`This is so embarrassing.' The best he could do was wrap his right arm around Sesshoumaru's shoulders and clutch Sesshoumaru's upper thigh with his left hand. `You better appreciate this, you…Damn it. Why would it even occur to me that the bastard would ever appreciate anything anyone ever did for him? God, I hate him.'

 

At least, that is what Inuyasha believed.

 

“Off you go, Inuyasha. You know it would take us forever to catch up, so send Kilala back to us when you get there. And…be careful,” said Kagome, smiling up at him, though she worried about the danger this situation presented for Inuyasha.

 

“Keh! I can take care of myself just fine,” Inuyasha snorted, sticking his nose up in the air.

 

As soon as Kilala had taken flight, Inuyasha studied his brother, making sure there were still life signs. He had never seen Sesshoumaru look vulnerable, almost ordinary. Almost. Sesshoumaru would never be ordinary. Even in his unconscious half dressed state, his face and body spoke of high breeding. It was amazing how his clothes and armor made him appear thin, almost small, except for his height. Gazing at him, Inuyasha marveled at his well muscled build, everything well defined, not skin and bone. He exuded strength and power from beneath his skin, just as his stance and demeanor did when he was on his feet. There was nothing weak about him. Inuyasha sighed.

 

'I wish I could be like him. He's so fucking strong and sure of himself. So full of shit. All that “I am better you” attitude, I would do without. But, I could sure use some of his confidence.'

 

Inuyasha felt the smooth satin of Sesshoumaru's clothing. Of course, he was not fondling Sesshoumaru. Not in the least.

 

`It looks so…princely. Not like my fire rat robe. The screaming red thing has saved my life more times than I can count, but it sure isn't refined like his. It serves its purpose though. Protect the weak hanyou. But you don't need anything like that, do you?'

 

His eyes moved back to make sure that Sesshoumaru's chest was rising and falling as it should. It wasn't, of course. He had to put his ear to the skin to actually feel the small movement. There was rattling inside and he checked Sesshoumaru's face. Blood was trickling in a thin line from the right side of Sesshoumaru's mouth.

 

“Fuck, Sesshoumaru! Don't you die on me! You're not supposed to be able to die, you bastard!”

 

Panic rose from his chest to settle into his throat and he didn't even question why. He looped his left leg under Sesshoumaru's thighs so he could free his left hand.

 

“Sess, wake up!” he demanded, grabbing Sesshoumaru's chin and giving it a hard shake. “Wake up, you bastard!”

 

Somewhere, under pitch black skies and standing precariously on the precipice of death, muffled words floated on a silent breeze.

 

`Sess…no one has called me that since...'

 

Images of a small hanyou child with white hair and puppy ears racing toward him with a big smile on his face seeped through his mind.

 

”Do not touch me, half-breed.”

 

“But, Sesshie,” pouted the small boy. Even the large golden eyes seemed to pout.

 

“Have I not told you? Never call me by that name again, hanyou. Never speak to me again.”

 

Wide eyes filled with tears as the entire being before him seemed to droop. If it weren't for the fact that the child had replaced him in his father's heart, he would have comforted the endearing creature, been the brother he should have been.

 

Then the images started to fade, drifting back into the cloying darkness.

 

”Sesshoumaru!” That voice, so annoying, and so damn loud. “Wake up, you bastard! WAKE UP!”

 

` Wake up? But I'm not asleep. Why is it so dark?'

 

Something warm was pressed up against him, holding him down. At least that's what it felt like. Sesshoumaru tried to move, but his limbs would not obey and there was something strange about his left arm. Even his eyes did not want to open, as though they were leaden weights. Perhaps they weren't closed and he was blind.

 

'What's wrong with my arm? Why can't I feel my fingers? Oh, not there anymore.'

 

More images. Tetsusaiga sliced through his left arm, wielded by the adult version of that small child. The arm was gone. It would grow back, with time, much time.

 

`How long will it take? A decade? A century?'

 

It didn't occur to him to be angry. The lack of his arm was simply a fact of life. Something shook his face, rattling his brain it seemed, as he regained some feeling. He tried harder and through slits encountered large amber eyes, full of concern and…

 

`Why does he look so panicked? Inuyasha never shows fear. It's just not his style. Wait a minute... What the hell is going on!?'

 

“Damn it, Sesshoumaru. Don't do that.”

 

Sesshoumaru's throat wouldn't work, not that it mattered since his chest wasn't up the task of drawing enough breath to vibrate his vocal cords.

 

`Do what, you ignorant half-breed?'

 

As though reading his thoughts, Inuyasha answered in barely a whisper. “Don't you die, Sess. Don't die, okay?”

 

'Sess…Sess…'

 

Darkness crept in, erasing those amber eyes, taking the images with it.

 

Inuyasha froze as his brother's eyes glazed over then drifted shut. When they didn't fall open in a dead stare, he sighed in relief.

 

“At least you're not dead yet,” he muttered, hugging Sesshoumaru to his chest and nestling his cheek into the silky silver bangs covering his brother's forehead.

 

`He would've never let me do this to him under any circumstances. Why do you hate me so much, Sesshoumaru? What did I ever do to you? You hated me before we found the Tetsusaiga. Well, I'm not gonna let you die as long as you still hate me. You're not getting away from me that easy. Oh yeah. You deserve to stay here and let me piss you off. If you can't accept me, I'll make sure you stay miserable, you ass.'

 

Inuyasha watched the landscape fly by while Kilala streaked toward Edo. The old priestess would fix up his brother. He was sure of that. He had to be sure. And after that? What would Sesshoumaru do?

 

`Leave, with some snide remark of course. That is if the bastard doesn't try killing me first.'

 

“Asshole,” Inuyasha smirked.

 

Seeping through the darkness, Sesshoumaru thought he could hear the voice of Inuyasha.

 

”You know, I think you're just a spoiled rotten brat. Your mama probably did everything for you and you're just pissed that you have to take care of yourself now.”

 

Chuckling whispered through the inky fog of his semi-consciousness.

 

“I know, it's stupid. Just kidding. I wish I did know why you hate me so much, Sess…Sesshoumaru. I really do. You don't despise me like you do humans. You reeeeally hate me, like I've killed your favorite pet or something. What did I do to make you hate me? I guess it doesn't really matter, does it, Sess?” Fingers brushed his hair back and tucked it behind his ear. “You'll get better and then we'll keep trying to kill each other. Well, I'm not going to try to kill you, just keep you from killing me. Life will go on just like always…won't it, Sess. Just like always…”

 

`He's babbling. Naraku's miasma must have addled his brain. Why do I hate him so much? It's a reasonable question. Mmm. Why…Because he's an idiot, human? No, father gave him what should have been mine. But, like he said, I hated him before that. Father, yes it was father. He took that human wench and I wouldn't see him for days. Then he had that brat and never even knew when I was in the same room. I hate you, Inuyasha. I've hated you since the day you were born, since before you were born. And I'm tired, so tired. Is it really worth the effort to hate you this much? Like you said, you never did anything to hurt me personally.'

 

Sesshoumaru sank back into the comforting darkness where neither sight, sound nor smell, could disturb his rest.

 

Sometimes we fight most fiercely when we know we are about to lose the battle.

 

 

 

~*~*~*~*~*~

 

 

Thank you to all ofmy readers and reviewers, past and present, and to those who nominated and voted for `Torn' in awards contests.

 

 

 

*Disclaimer*

 

Inuyasha and all associated characters are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan, Yomiuri TV, Sunrise, and Viz. I make no profit from this story, nor do I intend to. My only goal is to occupy my demented mind with delusions of actually owning a life-sized, anatomically correct Sesshoumaru.

 

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