InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Fragment of Eternity ❯ While You Are Sleeping ( Chapter 18 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Disclaimer: If I own Inu-Yasha, I didn't realize it. ^_^;;

Author's Note: Hello, my friends. ^_^ I'm back from vacation! Didja miss me? I missed you guys! XD

One: Who was Anniella?

Anniella, for those of you who didn't know, was an "authoress" who stole- word for word- four of my stories and tried to post them as her own. Thankfully, she was caught by some of my loyal readers and kicked off ff.net. ^_^_^_^_^_^_^

Two: In chapter 16, someone commented Inu-Yasha was OOC. How so? He always does stuff like that when Kagome cries.

Three: My sketches- as much as I'd adore sharing them with you all, I do not own a scanner. Maybe some day I could post them on a website or something and tell you where to see them, but as of now I can't. T_T Gomen.

Four: Some reviewers tell me this story reminds them of the movie Ghost. I have never seen that movie, so I guess I'll just have to take your word for it. ^_^;;;

Five: ~Speaking of the end line, did you see episodes 125 and 126...~

Hm? No, I don't think I have. . . I don't get to see a lot of the anime. Is it dubbed yet? What are the names of the eps? Please tell me!

Six: ~Okay, so I just read what you said about the story having a happy ending (in your opinion). So, question: do you find the ending to Peter Pan a happy ending? Because, quite honestly, I have always hated the way it and many other stories/movies end- you know, what with all the lost boys getting a home, but then Peter and Wendy's relationship just comes to a screeching halt.

So will this story have an ending that satisfies some people, is overall happy, but leaves the two main characters of the story separated for the rest of (either of) their lives? Because I'll have you know that if I read one more story or see one more movie like that, I think I'll spontaneously combust.~


@_@ Goodness gracious! All right, uh, let's see- I am 99.9% positive that everyone will like the end of the story. It is fluffy and sweet in a sad sort of happy/angsty way. ^_^;;;;; Okay? As for Peter Pan- I don't know! I haven't seen that movie for years and years! @_@_@_@_@_@

^_^;;

Seven: I'm sure that I've answered this question before, but it's come up a lot recently so I'll answer it again: There is going to be 23 chapters. No epilogue, no sequel.

Eight: -^_^- Wow, I'm so embarrassed and flattered shippo12312-kun! First you flatter me extensively and then you ask me out! ::laughs and blushes:: Anyway, I doubt we could actually go out on a date (considering I don't even know where you live and vice versa) but hey! You could always e-mail me. ^_^ I'd like that. ^_~

On that note, I always love to hear from my readers! If you want to e-mail, don't hesitate to do so! I'll try my best to reply soon after I receive it. And for those who haven't seen it on my bio, my e-mail address is digidragon36@juno.com!


Nine: EvilRyuA13- as for your crucial question (^_~ Lol), I don't think you need electricity to work stoves. And if you do- well- uh- they have a wooden stove, then. ^_~

And FINALLY-

Ten: Why won't Shippo appear in this story?

Well, where would I put him? He might play a tiny role later on- like a short appearance for some reason or another- but for the most part I really don't see a point or purpose for him to be in it. ^_^;;;

Whew! Sorry that was so long. ^_^; It happens when you've been gone for over a week. ^_^;;;;;;;;; Please enjoy and R&R!

~*~

*

*

*


~Fragment of Eternity~

Chapter Eighteen: While You Are Sleeping

*

*

*

Inu-Yasha sat silently in the attic- legs pulled up to his chin and his arms across his knees- staring intently through the darkness at the frayed, dangling rope before him.

. . . If he watched it long enough he could almost feel it. . . feel the fear and the anger return to him. . .

. . .

He shook his head, resting his chin on the back of his hands and sighing as his eyes fluttered down to a half-lidded state. "Keh. . ." he murmured listlessly into the surrounding blackness. "Foolish. Pointless. No need to dwell in the past." Tearing his gaze away from the noose, he instead examined the creaky wooden floor- tracing the knots and strained lines upon the boards with his eyes. From downstairs, the sound of Kagome, Sango, and Miroku chatting drifted up to his ears, but passed through as white noise. He couldn't really listen when his mind was wandering like it was. . .

He couldn't believe he had told her.

He couldn't believe he had actually looked her in the eye and whispered his inner most secret. . . His guilty desire. . . The temptation to touch her. . . To feel her young skin against his hand. . . To be alive once more.

He frowned at these thoughts, trying fruitlessly to push them away. `No need to dwell in the past,' he reminded himself for the second time in less than five minutes. But the words were meaningless to him- never quite making sense as the face of the one who had first told him that phrase invaded his mind.

Kikyo.

"No need to dwell in the past, Inu-Yasha," she had laughed, tweaking his ear affectionately as she watered the plants in the front garden. He remembered feeling relief wash over him like a refreshing summer rain as she smiled shyly, kissing his cheek in forgiveness. What he was being forgiven for he no longer remembered- but the phrase he had never forgotten. For that phrase. . . It seemed to fit his whole life so well.

`No need to dwell in the past,' he repeated, trying to find comfort in the command. But he couldn't. He couldn't concentrate. He needed to- if *anything* he needed to concentrate- but he couldn't. All he could do was bang his head against his knees as confusion and irritation battled within him.

Kagome. . .

Kikyo. . .

More confusion.

When did all this happen? When had everything gone so wrong? Was it when Kikyo had gotten in that car? When he had hung himself? When Kagome had moved in? When had everything he'd ever known been turned into a lie?

And why did he feel this way? Why? Why did he still love Kikyo, after everything she'd done to him? Why did he still feel like a fool for committing suicide? And why. . . Why did he have to feel so warm. . . so happy when was with Kagome? Why did her stormy eyes haunt him? What was going on? Since when had he become such a confused wreck?

`No need to dwell in the past. . . Keh. My ass there's no reason!'

How could he not dwell in the past when his past was all he had?

"Inu-Yasha. . . ?"

The boy gave a start, head snapping up so suddenly he might have given himself whiplash if he hadn't already been dead.

"K- Kikyo. . . ?" he blinked, somewhat startled to see the deceased miko standing at the entrance way to the small room. "What the hell are you doing here? How did you get inside?"

She answered neither question as she slowly sidled in, turning to take in all their was to see- which wasn't much. Nothing about the enclosure seemed to effect her- until she noticed the rope. Then she froze for a moment, staring at the silent hanyou with wide eyes and an `o' shaped mouth.

"You. . . you killed yourself?" she asked breathlessly, sliding down to kneel next to a stony-faced Inu-Yasha. "But- but why?" She suddenly clamped a hand over her mouth. "You didn't do it because I died, did you?"

"Feh. Of course not," Inu-Yasha mumbled darkly, deliberately glaring anywhere but at the girl beside him. "What I did may have been stupid, but I'm not an idiot."

Kikyo blinked, hands slowly lowering back down to her sides as a hurt look crossed her face. "Why do you snap at me so?" she inquired, brow slowly crinkling in bewildered annoyance. "Are you still angered over the other day. . . ?"

Was he?

YES.


But he did not say this- instead gripping his knees with his hands as he bit the inside of his cheek. New words were floating through his mind now, Kikyo's phrase about the past suddenly put in the past itself.

~ "Why. . . ?!"

Inu stopped, looking down at her from over his shoulder. "Huh?"

"Why?!" Kagome whispered harshly, choking on her waterlogged words. Maybe she *was* a crybaby. . . "Why do you still chase her?!" ~

`Why. . . ?

Why *do* I still chase her. . . ? Why do I still love her. . . ? Defend her and chase her?' Inu-Yasha wondered, all but oblivious to Kikyo's presence. `I shouldn't. . . Unless I really AM in love with her and, as Sango said, I'm willing to forgive her no matter what she does. . .' He swallowed quietly. `Yes. . . that makes sense. I must love Kikyo.

But. . .'

He shook his head, returning his attention to the miko. "Kikyo," he licked his dry lips, not missing the fact that the girl was watching him very intently- eyeing his mouth as if a hungry animal.

"Yes?" she asked breathlessly, scooting a bit closer as a dreamy look crossed her pretty face. "What is it, Inu-chan?"

"Kikyo. . . tell me of your relationship with Naraku."

The girl, to his slight amusement, suddenly paled- a nervous glint appearing in her blue-gray orbs. "Na- Naraku?" she echoed slowly, moving an inch or two away- as if now afraid of the hanyou who was arching an eyebrow in her direction. "What about him? He was simply a friend of mine and a brother to one of Kaede's playmates."

"I know that's not all," Inu-Yasha informed her in monotone, his eyes slowly narrowing. "I know that you're lying to me, Kikyo."

She visibly winced. He could almost see the cogs in her head whirling into life- trying to form a plan to save her hide and reputation.

"Inu-Yasha," she eventually whispered, looking up at him with tear filled eyes. Dramatic. "I know what you're talking about, now. The day I died. . . You saw Naraku and I, didn't you?"

He graced her with a curt nod.

"Oh, Inu-darling," she half choked, half murmured, "that was a misunderstanding. . ."

. . .

"A misunderstanding. . .?" he repeated, an exasperated tone leaking into his once emotionless voice. "How could seeing the two of you kiss be a misunderstanding?"

She sighed dramatically, lacing her arms around the hanyou's neck. He didn't respond to the embrace-

But he couldn't bring himself to pull away.

"Inu-Yasha. . . Naraku. . . he was a past boyfriend as well. We had a history, and for a long time he wanted us to get back together. I didn't want to, but he was very insistent and wild. When you proposed to me, though, I knew it was time to make a complete, clean break. So I was going out with him to tell him I was now your fiancé."

"But why did you kiss him?" Inu-Yasha managed to ground out without sounding as strained as he felt.

"Oh Inu-Yasha, it was simply one of those `hello' kisses- like they do in other countries, you know? It meant nothing," the girl replied flippantly, waving it off with a light toss of her head as she tightened her grip around him. "Why would it have? I was kissing *him*- not you. You are the only person I have ever truly loved. Who I've ever really cared about and was cared for in return. Do you see how much *Naraku* cared about me? He went off with me and got us in a car crash when I told him of our upcoming marriage- and then we both died." She gently pulled away, looking him straight in the eyes. "Don't you believe me?"

Inu-Yasha said nothing for a moment- - -

Before slowly wrapping his arms around the miko; closing his eyes, ears, and heart. He wanted to believe her- he wanted to ignore the fact that he had seen them together many times before that. He wanted to ignore the fact that he had known Kikyo longer than Naraku- that he knew they had no `history'. He wanted to ignore the fact that, if she had truly been going out with him to tell him they were engaged, she would have worn her ring. He wanted to ignore the fact that, when she had died, she hadn't become a ghost- thus meaning she had perished with no regrets.

Most of all, though- he wanted to ignore the confusion and emptiness that was taking over his heart- the longing he felt to have someone *else* in his arms.

But. . . No matter how hard he tried. . .

He couldn't.

*


"Kagome, I can't take this."

Inu-Yasha floated cross-legged beside the sleeping girl's face, oblivious to the world around him. He couldn't hear Miroku's snores, or the howling wind, or the incessant ticking of Kagome's alarm clock. He couldn't see the shadowy darkness, or the swaying curtains, or the plush carpet below him. All his sense were focused in on Kagome and Kagome alone, watching her chest rise and fall as her steady breathing filled his ears, her pale skin glowing in the moon light.

"I can't, I swear I can't," the hanyou continued in a low whisper, yanking his hair in frustration. "I'm too confused! I'm too torn. I love her, Kagome! I love Kikyo! How can I not, after all we've shared? Despite all the shit she's put me through- I just can't erase what we had. We were engaged, dammit- even if only for a day!" He released an odd sound that seemed to be a cross between a growl and a sigh as he reached inside his haori, pulling out a transparent, spirit-like ring.


He smiled thinly down at it as he weighed it in his palm, fingering the smooth roughness that was the braided silver band. "Ironic, isn't it. . . ?" he muttered as he exhaled, putting the ring back in his inside pocket. "That I took it with me in death. The band of broken promises." An empty laugh tumbled from his lips as he floated a little closer to the girl, examining her peaceful, slumbering face. That same strand of disobedient hair had fallen across her nose again, glistening heavenly sheen of ebony. A familiar, subconscious, urging tug pulled his hand towards her skin; his fingers reaching out to brush the lock away. "I'm sure I still love Kikyo, Kagome. . ." he whispered, clawed digits inching closer. "But. . . at the same time I have to wonder. . ."

He cut himself off with a pained swallow, watching with sick horror as his hand disappeared inside her body- as ghostly as ever. He yanked himself away so quickly that he all but toppled to the floor, feeling so cold inside that he thought he might be dying again.

"If. . ." he breathed, slowly taking a step away from Kagome. ". . . If I truly loved her. . . Wouldn't I hate you?" After a moment of silence he sighed, turning his back to the teen. "It may be pointless to tell you this while you are sleeping but- though I may care about Kikyo- I. . . care about you, too. . ."

The boy grew silent for a moment before suddenly snapping: "I don't know when it happened- when I noticed! Perhaps the first time I watched you in slumber, maybe before! But. . . ! But. . . But I've grown to. . . to. . ."

His voice trailed off as he shook his head. "Keh. What am I saying? How could you ever care for a *ghost*?

. . .

At least, while you are sleeping. . . I can pretend. . ."

Biting the inside of his cheek to silence himself, the hanyou made to glide away- - -

When a sudden disturbance stopped him dead in his tracks.

"You know. . ." a soft, sleepy voice drifted from Kagome's bed, "When I was little. . . I used to be terrified of ghosts."

!!!

She was awake. . . ?!

Oh shit. . . what was he supposed to do?!

The only thing that occurred to him- was talk. So that's what he did.


". . . And. . ." Inu-Yasha swallowed, turning slowly to face her after a long beat of silence. "And now. . . ?"

. . .


The girl on the mattress smiled up at him- nightdress wrinkled, hair tousled, limbs and blankets every which way- and looking more beautiful than the spirit had ever seen.

"And now. . ." she whispered, eyelashes fluttering, ". . . I care *deeply* for one. I'm. . .

I'm in love with one."

!

If he still had a heart, he knew it would have stopped. Shock coursed through his dry veins like an untamed fire as her ocean eyes bored into his, fatigue and honesty shining in their depths.

"Kagome. . ." he choked out, but she silenced him with a soft shake of her head.

"I understand," she told him quietly, almost as if trying to defend herself or comfort him. "I understand that you and Kikyo. . . you have a bond that I can't break. I understand that you still harbor feelings for her. And I understand that it makes more sense for you to be with her. After all. . . I'm alive." She released a sad, tired giggle. "Yes. . . time goes on for me. But for you and Kikyo. . . it's stopped. She. . . and you. . . You may `live' forever. . . while I grow up. . .

And grow old. . .

And then die." She swallowed, forcing another tiny giggle from her lips. "But Inu-Yasha. . . though I may only be a fragment of your eternity . . ." She locked gazes with him for a moment, and then closed her eyes.

"Though I may be nothing more than a fragment. . ."

She yawned, allowing sleep to take over her once more- the spirit incapable of doing anything but watching her and listening.

"I want to be. . . Oh, Inu-Yasha, I want. . . to be. . . an important fragment."

And with that, she was asleep once more- her energy completely spent.

. . .

Inu-Yasha watched her for a moment- before all but running to her bedside and falling to his knees beside her head. "Kagome- - -," he began, but then shook his head with the softest of chuckles. "Oh, Kag you idiot.

You already are."

~*~

^_^ Woo, chapter 18's done! I hope you all liked it. XD

As I said before, please R&R! Oh! And someone told me they saw me on a fanfiction elimination contest thingy! If you have a chance and you want to, could you vote for me? Please? ^_^ Well, even if you don't, that's okay. It's an honor just to be on it.


Ja ne!