InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Traumatized ❯ Traumatized ( One-Shot )

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He was huddled in the closet. He could barely hear his parents arguing in the main hall of the castle. It was the night of the new moon and he was human. Being only 3 at the time, he was afraid and alone. His loving mother suggested that if they were gone and he was in the castle with the servants and demons who wanted to harm him, he should stow away in a closet to hide his secret night. He figured that was why they argued this time, he was a demon with a weakness. `No, I'm not even a real demon', he thought, `not like my father and brother.'

His older brother was never fazed by the fights that erupted between his father and the woman he effectively called the human wench. At least outwardly he never showed any pain, but he was cold hearted and distant to everyone except their father. Lord Inutaiso taught Shesshomaru how to fight, with graceful and powerful moves, but Lord Inu favored his youngest son, Inuyasha.

The older demons could sense that “the human wench” was with child again and as result Shesshomaru became even colder and distant, even to his full-blooded- demon father, for allowing her to have another Halfling. With anger and jealousy and resentment and to a small sadistic degree, Shesshomaru reveled in the fun of causing both his father and the wench great pains. He was 13 and old enough to know better, he was old enough to know that he didn't want this human around any longer, stealing his father's love, affection, security and most importantly, having another one of his half-bred pups.

Inuyasha huddled closer to his knees and buried his face in them when he heard his parents arguing in the main hall, again. Lately, they have been arguing more and more. But a 3 year old didn't understand and couldn't understand that it wasn't his fault, but he figured so since every time he and Shesshomaru did things together, his parents would start to argue about him. All he knew was that they walked into the room and he and his older brother shared and were playing a game when things went amiss.

 

“Sessy, please, I don't want to climb out the window, I'll fall!” Proclaimed the little white haired hanyou. Shesshomaru only glared at him harder.

“If you don't, then I'll tell papa that you are afraid and he won't like any son of his to be a weakling. Are you a weakling, Inuyasha?” Inuyasha was silent for a moment.

“No, I'm stronger than anything;” he said “I'm not afraid.” Shesshomaru smirked.

“Then climb out onto the rope and get me the shiny rock that is on the base of this wall, I want to give it to `mother' for her birthday and she'll love it knowing you got it for her.”

Inuyasha fidgeted. Why his older brother wanted the rock from all the way down there, he couldn't understand, but not wanting to look like a weak hanyou in the eyes of his father, and he wanted to make his mother happy, so he slowly made his way to the window and began to crawl over the pane. The height was dizzying for the 3 year old, but he managed to slide down the rope about half way. He paused trying to catch his breath and reason with his half-brother. There was no answer.

“Sessy?” Inuyasha called out to him, there was no verbal answer. The rope started sliding on its own from the window.

“SESSY, HELP ME!” The rope stopped its movements and another white haired being poked its head out the window. With tears clouding his vision, he looked up to see someone standing the very window. “SESSY PLEASE!” Afraid to let go of the rope to clear his eyes Inuyasha clung tighter to the rope that was now, moving towards the window.

Once the rope and Inuyasha were pulled back through the window into the room, he relaxed just enough to let go of the rope. His mother scooped him up and hugged him tightly.

“Honey, what on earth were you thinking?” His frantic mother questioned. “Are you alright?” She pulled his face into her hands and checked him over; he just looked down at the floor of his room, unwilling to look at the Lord Inu, his rescuer. His father stood behind him and looked at Shesshomaru, who was now sitting on the mat used for sleeping.

“Inuyasha,” Lord Inu spoke his younger sons name with a stern, commanding voice, but it was caressed with love for the small child, Inuyasha didn't move, in fear of his father turning his back on him in disgust for having such a weak little hanyou son. He knelt down and put a hand on little Inuyasha's shoulder.

“Look at me. What were you thinking? Why would you want to run away like that?” Inuyasha turned to see the sadness in his father's eyes, `run away?' Inuyasha shot a look at Shesshomaru, who just smirked at him. Now he understood.

“I wasn't running away.” He stated simply.

Lady looked at her son and then at her loving husband, “Darling, then what were you doing on the rope outside your bedroom window?” Inuyasha looked back to the floor, stung with embarrassment for having to been rescued by his father, the strongest demon for thousands of miles.

“I was trying to get something for your birthday.” Well it was the truth, according to Sessy. He looked at Shesshomaru who shook his head, and mouthed `don't say a word' and a death glare to seal his point. Inuyasha's voice failed him. “Th . . . that's all.”

Being the wise and the parents after all, they put 2 and 2 together, to get 5. Lord Inu rose and told Shesshomaru to come with him. He did so. He looked at Inuyasha to make sure he remembered not to say anything then left the room with his father.

When they left, Inuyasha looked at his mother and jumped into her arms, he cried as hard as he could but very quietly, knowing that his father and half-brother had superb hearing. His mother cooed and stroked his hair gently rocking side to side to comfort him. He swallowed hard and pulled back from his mother's tender and loving embrace.

Inuyasha snapped back into reality when he heard his mother scream at his father. He wasn't sure what was happening now, but he knew it had something to do with him and Shesshomaru. That's what they always argued about. Or maybe it was because mother smelled funny lately, her scent was mixed with something, but he didn't have a clue to what it was in his human state and he just pushed it to the back of his mind. She was his mother and he loved her no matter how she smelled. He became tired and curled up with the image of his mother holding him and stroking his hair. He closed his eyes and heard her singing the melody that would send him straight to sleep.

 

10 months later, and 1 week before Inuyasha's fourth birthday, he walked into his mother's room and climbed into the bed with her, as he had for many mornings since she no longer could get out of bed. He looked at her pale face and his heart sank. She had been sick since she went to deliver the baby, but the baby died during the birth and she still hadn't recovered from her illness. It was a moment before she awoke and saw her only son sitting next to her. She raised her hand and gently stroked his hair; he leaned into her touch and faintly purred. She tittered at his actions and pulled him closer to her. He willingly went into her embrace and hugged her.

“Happy birthday, my little one.” He pulled back and she smiled at him.

“But mama, I don't turn 4 for another week.” He lowered his eyes and gripped the sheets tighter, pushing the words that he has so desperately wanted to know the answer to; the words that he half dreaded to hear the response, to the front of his tongue. He wanted the answer to the reason that for the last 4 months, why his mother is unable to get out of bed. Her scent had gotten worse, and he realized that it was sickness that had entered her body, making him slightly nauseous. But living with demons, this smell had never reached his nose before.

“Mama, when are you going to get better?” His face unchanging from the pain he felt in his heart for the woman that was always with him and loved like only a son could. He could still smell the change in her scent as he had 10 months ago, only it had gotten worse and now she couldn't even get out of bed. She couldn't eat much other than broth and never went outside. The resident miko said that she might not recover from such a case as this, because the illness had long spread throughout her body and not much could be done to cure it now. No one told Inuyasha, that his mother was slowly and painfully dying.

One week later, on Inuyasha's birthday, he walked into her room as he had done for so long and climbed into the bed with her. She was having trouble breathing and could barely recognize that Inuyasha was there with her. He touched her hand and she drew in a raspy breath, “Inu . . . ya . . . yasha?” He could smell death and it was coming from his mother. “I . . . I . . . love . . . .yo . . . you” His eyes grew wide in fear and he called to her. She remained motionless for a moment and then turned her head slightly to her son, she could barely squeeze the tiny hands that were grasping hers. He put her hands on his head and moved into her touch, he wasn't sure what was going on with her but he didn't like it and he wanted it to stop. She smiled weakly but she had to do it for her son, she forced her already weak body to smile for the love of her life; she forced her already beaten body to give the one thing she knew would bring her peace of mind for as much as she was dreading the next moments. For Inuyasha, she would smile and hold her son one last time. She drew him closer to her, with the knowledge that this might be the last time her precious angel would see his mother alive, she held onto him as tight as she possibly could releasing her unchecked tears.

“Be strong, my little one. I wish I could be there always for you. I love you so very much.” Inuyasha closed his eyes, willing the tears back, so he could be strong for his mother, as she whispered her last wish to him. “Please don't hate me, honey, I'm sorry.”

She released her final breath into the white flowing mass of hair that was around her and her body went limp against her son. His eyes went wide with panic and he jerked back to come face to face with his mother. “M. . . a . . . ma. . ?” He picked up her hand and put it to his head, leaning into the touch as he had when he walked into the room earlier, she didn't respond. He nuzzled her neck and face and licked her like he used to when he was just a pup, she didn't stir. At first the scared hanyou thought she was sleeping, but when he tried to rouse her and she failed to move his triangulated ears drooped as he frantically called out to her. He tried to curl up next to her in the crook of her arm and rest his head on her chest, when he realized that he could not hear the faint beating of her heart as he could only moments before. Her eyes were closed and her mouth parted, then he lost it.

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