Assassination

A/N: Ooh, this chapter is kinda sad. Keep the Kleenex handy.
Um, to the reviewer who asked, nope, Kikyo doesn't get reincarnated. I like her dead, too. But she'll still be a major character in the story.

Disclaimer: I do not Own Inuyasha, or anyone connected with him. Much to my dismay.


Chapter 4: Confrontation Pt. 1


Inuyasha sat on the edge of his big, white bed, eyes trained on the sharp dagger lying loosely in his palm. He was finally alone; having barricaded himself in his room not long after all the non-family mourners had finally left. His room, usually so soothing and calming, seemed instead to close in on him. He didn’t delude himself into believing otherwise. He felt as though the walls were moving in on him simply because this had been the last place he’d been alone with Kikyo. The memory pressed down on him, and he was too tired to fight them.

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“What do you think, Yash?” Kikyo asked, twirling around for him to see her dress. The white silk flowed over her, hugging her curves and emphasizing her slenderness. Her long, black hair was tied up in an artful twist on her head, and Inuyasha wanted to run his fingers through the loops until it fell down her back in the straight fall that he loved.

“You look perfect, as usual, so stop fishing for compliments.” He admonished, grinning.

“Get used to it. I expect compliments every day for the rest of our lives.” She mock-threatened, wiggling her left hand at him. The diamond he had placed on her finger caught the light, bouncing prisms of light all over his room. His heart expanded at the physical symbol of their bond, of their connection.

“And you’ll get them.” He promised, drawing her into his arms, planting a kiss on her forehead.
She smiled at him, before looking at his crumpled red dress shirt and black pants, and wrinkled her nose.

“You are going to iron that, aren’t you?”

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Inuyasha laughed hollowly, bringing the dagger up to eye level and turning it slightly, so the dim light of his bedside lamp, one of the many gifts from Kikyo, reflected off it, rolling down the sharp edges like blood.
He unbuttoned the top of his white shirt, placing the dagger to his throat.
He opened his other hand, clenched into a fist, and stared despondently at the diamond winking up at him innocently.

The police had given it back to him after Kikyo’s autopsy, the officer who actually handed it to him looking sincerely sorry for his loss.

Inuyasha had walked out wordlessly, fist closed around the bag in a death grip.

Now, as he stared at the flawless, pure stone, he wanted to crush it into nothingness, and to banish the yawning ache left by Kikyo’s murder. He pressed slightly on the dagger, feeling it pushing against his skin.
He knew that he was taking the coward’s way out, but he truly didn’t care. He just wanted to be with Kikyo. If that meant he would die in disgrace, so be it. Once he was with Kikyo.

Once he was with her, all would be well.

He took a deep breath, and slashed at his throat.

*********************

Kagome paced the hallway outside of Inuyasha’s room, shooting glances at his closed door every time she passed it. Again, she felt the need to burst in and enfold him into her arms, and try her damnedest to soothe away all his pain.
Her rational side again reminded her that perhaps he needed some time alone.

She would give him his space. She had already decided. But she couldn’t walk away from his door yet.

She was the only one keeping watch over him. She had sent Souta and Shippo with Kaede and Rin, telling them sternly to keep an eye on Kaede especially. She knew Kaede was avoiding her, and she understood. She herself carefully looked away from any reflective surface she passed, not wanting to see Kikyo looking back at her. But for the colour and shape of their eyes, they were identical.

It was the other reason she stayed away from Inuyasha. She didn’t want to torture him with the image of his dead fiancée, which he was sure to get if he looked at her.
Periodically, Sango, Miroku and Sesshomaru looked in on her, but they all eventually disappeared. Sango and Miroku to check on Kaede and the others, and Sesshomaru to keep an eye out for his father, who was due any time now.

She didn’t really mind keeping watch by herself. It gave her time to sort through her muddled thoughts. How could she help Inuyasha? With her face, he would only see Kikyo, and she didn't want to put him through more pain. She loved Inuyasha deeply, and she only wanted his happiness.

How could she secure it, if her presence was guaranteed to bring him only pain?

Questions littered her mind, and she couldn’t find an answer for any of them. She recognized the very real possibility that she might never regain her relationship with Inuyasha.

Accepting it was another matter entirely.

She again looked at Inuyasha’s closed door, greeted by nothing but utmost silence.
A few paces ago, she heard a short, harsh laugh, but silence soon followed it. Looking up and down the corridor, she stepped forward and placed both her hands flat on the door. Feeling slightly guilty, she extended her miko powers to beyond the door.
She saw Inuyasha lying down on his bed, back to her. His legs dangled over the edge of the bed, the red collar of his shirt contrasting sharply with his white hair and bed.
Sighing in relief that he was just sleeping, she started to pull her hands away, when her brain relayed a memory that had her gasping in horror.

Inuyasha had been wearing a white shirt.

She looked again, and noticed that the part of the bed on which he was lying was also red.

He had-

***************

Sesshomaru looked up from his self-appointed post at the front doors when he heard a loud, terrified scream, followed by an even louder crash.

It came from Inuyasha’s quarters. The scream was Kagome’s.

Abandoning his watch, he sped up to his brother’s room, stopping short in shock when he saw that Inuyasha’s doors were blasted open. In his room, large splinters from the door littered the plush white carpeting.
Kagome sat on the bed, Inuyasha’s head cradled in her lap, tears in her eyes.

One of her hands was glowing pink over Inuyasha’s neck.

Sango, Miroku, Kaede, Rin, Shippo and Souta, all obviously having heard the commotion, crowded behind him, faces set in expressions of dread.
Sesshomaru strode forward, face set, but heart beating wildly.

“Kagome. What happened?” he asked calmly, while wanting to grab her by her shoulders and shake.

She didn’t look up, didn't answer him immediately, instead gesturing towards something near his feet.
Sesshomaru looked down, and his heart jumped into his throat.

A ceremonial dagger lay on the white carpet, blade wet with blood.

Next to the dagger two rings glittered in the bright light. The diamonds of the delicate, smaller ring were spattered with droplets of blood, and the plain gold ring lay in a small pool of red.

He tugged at Kagome’s hand, biting back a vicious curse when he saw a slowly healing slash on Inuyasha’s neck.

He had tried to kill himself.


**********************

Sango, summing up the situation after a few seconds, herded the teenagers back to Rin’s room, overriding all their protests with one, stern look. She hustled them into the huge room, closing the door behind her with a final snap.

“Kagome and Sesshomaru will take care of it.” She said simply.

“But what if he dies?” Kaede asked tearfully.

“He will not. Don’t think that. You all know Inuyasha is too stubborn to let a little paper cut stop him.” Sango said firmly, folding her arms over her chest.

"That was no paper cut!" Kaede said hysterically, collapsing into Shippo's arms, crying. As the kitsune stared at the sobbing girl with shocked green eyes, Rin and Souta sat heavily on a bed, hands clasped tightly.

"He can't die." Rin said tonelessly, quietly, looking into Souta's eyes. He nodded automatically, gathering the eerily still girl into a tight hug.

"He won't die. Kagome will heal him, don't worry." Souta said confidently, secure in his sister's skill.

Rin looked up at him, desperate. "Are you sure?" she asked urgently.

Souta just nodded once, decisively, and Rin nodded, before letting her tears of fright loose, sobbing into his shirt.

As Sango and Miroku calmed the teens, she couldn’t help but pray fervently that Souta was right and Inuyasha survived.

****************

Kagome refused to think about anything other than saving Inuyasha’s life. She didn’t care about the blood, or just how serious the wound was. She just poured her heart into healing him, almost crying with relief when the jagged skin started to knit together slowly, closing up the slash. Sesshomaru stood tensely over her, the dagger clasped in his hand, blood dripping steadily onto the carpet. She dug deep into her spirit and poured her soul into his healing, begging, pleading, threatening and cajoling, asking the gods to give her the power to save this man that she loved.

When the wound finally closed completely, she murmured deeply heartfelt prayers, gently rested Inuyasha down onto the bed, stood, and cried.

In between her sobs, she dimly realized that someone was holding her close, strong arms surrounding her tightly in a gesture of comfort. That caused her to cry even harder as her brain finally convinced her heart as to just how close she came to losing Inuyasha.

She cried for what seemed like forever, before her eyes suddenly stopped flooding over, her breath suddenly evened out, and she stopped crying, sniffling slightly.

Looking up, she realized that it was Sesshomaru who was holding her so tightly, his face a mask of fear and pain.
She also saw that he was still holding the dagger, knuckles red with stress.

“Is he going to be alright?” he asked her.

“Physically.” She answered. She stood in his loose embrace, drawing comfort and giving comfort, and she rested her forehead briefly against his chest, feeling the comforting thud of his heart beating, his lungs expanding...physical proof of life.

Surrounded by death as she had been, she grasped Sesshomaru's vitality like the lifeline it truly was.

They both turned to look at the now unconscious Inuyasha, and both decided, to hell with him needing space. Both Sesshomaru and Kagome drew up chairs, and sat resolutely at his bedside, keeping eagle eyes on his prone body.

**********************

Inuyasha woke in a bright, white space that looked remarkably like his own room. He’d always imagined heaven to be a nice, blue place, soothing and soft. Perhaps a flowering meadow. Kikyo had always had a thing for wide open natural spaces, and seeing as she was the closest thing he had ever met to an angel, he had long ago decided to take her word for it.

He sat up, rubbing at his very sore throat. Funny, no one had ever said anything about residual pain in the afterlife. Death was shaping up to be rather strange...nothing like he expected.

Movement behind him had him turning.

“Kikyo?” he breathed.

She sat behind him, sleeping in a chair next to an angel that looked like Sesshomaru.

Inuyasha snorted at that one. He couldn’t believe that angels looked like that idiot.
He looked again at Kikyo, realizing that she was dressed in black. A funny color for an angel to wear, but what did he know?

He crawled over to her, trailing his fingers over her soft cheek.

At the touch, she shifted, before opening her sapphire eyes.

He smiled gently at her, rubbing his hand against her cheek.

Wait. Kikyo had brown eyes. Like chocolate. Not like sapphire.

Kagome had blue eyes.

“Kikyo?” he asked, confused.

“No, Inuyasha. It’s me, Kagome.” The girl said softly, tears welling up in her eyes.

Inuyasha drew back, confused. Awareness slowly crept into his mind. He wasn’t in heaven, he was in his room. And the angel sitting next to Kagome was Sesshomaru, who was drooling slightly. That meant, he realized, rubbing his hand against his sore throat, that he wasn’t dead.

He wasn’t with Kikyo.

He dropped down onto his back, crying.

He wasn’t with Kikyo.

Kikyo was…dead, and she was never coming back to him.

******************

Sesshomaru woke with a start at hearing crying. Kagome still sat next to him, eyes fixed on Inuyasha’s bed, so Sesshomaru followed in her example. He saw Inuyasha curled up into a ball, crying silently, fists pressed against his chest.

Sesshomaru surged up in blinding fury.

The ass tried to kill himself and now he was crying?

He reached for his brother, perfectly ready to rip off his head and feed it to him, but Kagome’s small hand on his arm stopped him.

“I think he’s finally accepting it.” She told him softly.

Sesshomaru climbed down from his fear induced-rage to see that she was right. Inuyasha was crying, which could only mean he realized that his fiancée was well and truly dead.
Sesshomaru sat heavily, rubbing a blood-streaked hand over his face, leaving a thin trail of blood on his chin.

Gods, but this was a mess. Sesshomaru truly was lost. He was more of a physical, political person. You need to take over a country, he was your man. But with the emotions rampant in this, he was lost and he hated it.

What was he to do? How could he heal his brother?

Could he even help?


********************


Kagome looked at Inuyasha, holding back tears. When Inuyasha had called her Kikyo, with such a tender, loving expression, she desperately wanted to be Kikyo, if just for him to look at her like that always. When he realized he was alive, and without Kikyo, and started to cry, Kagome sat, unable to move, unable to breathe.

What good was she here? Her very face sent the man she loved into pain and grief.

How could she put him through this hell daily?

But she was too selfish to leave. She had to stay. She would die without him.


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A/N: This is the last rewritten chapter for now. The rest is decent enough, and I'm really tired. I'll tweak and fiddle with the rest, then post an all-new chappy.

Yes, Sesshomaru is a little OC. He's much more fun thataway.
Reviews, comments, and flames are all welcome. Well, maybe not flames...


NEXT CHAPTER: Dad's Home! (Confrontation Pt. 2)