Assassination

A/N: Oh, my gosh. I forgot to update. I am so very sorry. Anyways, a lot of yelling at Inuyasha will occur in this chapter. On with the chapter!!!!


Disclaimer: Is you is, or is you ain't my Inuyasha?
No, I is not.
Still not owning Inuyasha and the gang here people.


CHAPTER 5: Dad's Home!!!

Shippo Higurashi looked at his sleeping girlfriend out of bright green eyes, thoughts swirling through his confused mind. He had noticed that Kaede was avoiding his mother, and he knew exactly why. He also knew that his mom knew that Kaede was avoiding her. Shippo was torn between the two women he loved; even when his mother told him that she understood why Kaede was steering clear of her. If he had to choose between staying with Kaede and staying with his mother, he would choose his mom. But he wouldn’t like it.
He hoped by all the gods above that he never had to choose.

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Souta Higurashi lay next to his dozing girlfriend, one of whose arms was slung over his stomach. He knew he would have to dive off the bed as soon as her father came anywhere near the room, but for the moment, he lay, staring up at the ceiling. Kaede slept on a twin bed set up in the corner of Rin’s room, Shippo sitting at her feet, eyes trained on her.
Souta wasn’t as invested in the whole Kikyo murder thing as everyone else. Sure, he had really liked Kikyo, and she was his sister’s friend and everything. And he was angry that some idiot murdered her in cold blood. But he didn’t feel the grief of Kaede, the guilt of everyone else, the pain and sorrow of them too, especially Inuyasha. When he had told Rin this, far from anyone else’s ears, she had smiled sadly and told him she knew exactly what he meant.
Souta didn’t know what to do. He wanted to help his friends and family, but he didn’t know how. It seemed to him that no one knew how to handle anything that had happened.
How were you supposed to?

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Sesshomaru sat in the kitchens, sipping green tea from a delicate china teacup, a plate of breakfast before him lying untouched. He had left Kagome to the bedside vigil, Inuyasha having sank down into fitful sleep long before. His father had called about five minutes ago, telling him he was on his was from the airport and would be there shortly.
Sesshomaru was glad, as someone had to shake Inuyasha from the deep depression he seemed to be sinking in, even while asleep. If anyone could get that mule-headed hanyou to see reason, it would be Inutaisho. And if he couldn’t reason with Inuyasha, he would pound it into his rock-head.
The image of his father, furious and frustrated, beating Inuyasha about the head had Sesshomaru cracking the tiniest smile, followed up by the barest laugh.
His eyes fell to the table, where the blood-encrusted dagger from Inuyasha’s suicide attempt gleamed up at him in the dim sunlight. Sesshomaru didn’t know why he kept it, why he was being so unbelievably morbid. All he knew was he wasn’t letting the damned thing get anywhere near Inuyasha again. It was his way of protecting Inuyasha, by keeping the physical pain away from him. It was pathetic, he acknowledged.
But it was all he could do.
Besides pray.

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Kagome looked up from her watch over Inuyasha at the knock on what was left of the doors. Sango stuck her head in, looking almost apologetic, before hesitantly walking in; skirting the debris from Kagome’s burst to gain entry.
“How is he?” she asked softly, tipping her head towards the sleeping hanyou.
“I don’t know, Sango. He hasn’t woken since he first regained consciousness.” Kagome sighed, turning her gaze to him and willing him to wake up.
“And his…attempt?” Sango asked timidly, looking at the angry raised scar running along Inuyasha’s neck.
“He failed. This time. What’s to stop him from doing it again?” Kagome cried, all her fears bursting out at Sango’s question.
Sango stared at her, shocked, before dropping to her knees and pulling Kagome forward into a hug. She held her, while Kagome cried again, holding back on her own tears.
She wanted to beat Inuyasha upside his head for the pain he was putting them all through, but she knew he also was hurting, and not thinking straight. That alone was what saved him from not only her wrath, but that of Sesshomaru, whose eyes flashed in anger every time he looked at Inuyasha. Sesshomaru’s anger was always replaced by pain, and Sango knew exactly how he felt.
How was she to deal with this? One of her best friends was murdered for absolutely no reason, and now another tries to kill himself. There were just too many emotions clouding everyone’s better judgment, and it made the already crappy situation volatile.
Sango didn’t want to be a source of comfort and strength. She wanted to curl up into a ball and disappear.
But she couldn’t. So here she knelt, absorbing the tears of her remaining friend.

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Inutaisho Kingreaves sat, nose pressed to the glass of his window in impatience as his mansion loomed before him. All the money he paid for this hunk of tin, and it couldn’t get him to his sons faster? What use was it?
The limousine screeched to a halt in front of the doors, and Inutaisho leapt out of the limo, not waiting for his chauffeur to open the door. He strode for the house, ignoring the terrified squeak of the servants who saw him, his entire body screaming of determination.
His elder son, Sesshomaru, came out of the doors leading to the kitchen, face drawn and worried.
Something else had gone wrong.
“What is it, Sesshomaru?” he asked gruffly.
Sesshomaru did not immediately answer him, which only served to increase the feeling of unease that had been eating away at him ever since he had gotten the call of Kikyo’s murder.
“Inuyasha…tried to kill himself last night.” Sesshomaru said quietly, slowly.
“WHAT?” Inutaisho bellowed, fear amplifying his response.
“Kagome healed him, but it was…pretty bad.” Sesshomaru hastened to assure him.
“Why didn’t you call me immediately?” he demanded, bounding up the stairs, headed for Inuyasha’s room.
“I didn’t want to worry you unduly. And I didn’t want to leave him.” Sesshomaru explained without remorse.
“Hmm.” Inutaisho hummed, his anger gone, to be replaced by fear.
The smashed doorway that greeted him in Inuyasha’s quarters did nothing to quell the dread.
He walked in, noticing his son curled up on his bed, twitching fitfully. He also noticed the long, red scar that ran parallel on his neck.
He finally took in the two girls embracing next to the big white bed, one crying, and the other comforting.
“Kagome, are you alright?” he asked softly.
The crying one looked up, before wiping at her tears and smiling weakly.
“Yes, just a bit…shook up. Inuyasha’s fine. He’s sleeping.” She said, eyes flicking to his sleeping son.
“And you, Sango?”
“Yes, Mr. Kingreaves.” She replied quietly, obviously anything but.
Inutaisho sat next to his son, placing a cool hand on his hot forehead.
Inuyasha immediately stopped twitching, relaxing and settling down into the bed, his fists still pressed against his chest.
He trailed one finger against the harsh scar, eyes downcast.
His son had tried to take his own life, and he hadn’t been there to stop him.
He looked up at Kagome, who was staring fretfully at Inuyasha, and he smiled genuinely.
“Kagome, thank you for saving my son.” He told her quietly.
Kagome looked up at him with wet eyes.
“I didn’t. I just healed him. Only he can save himself.”

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Inuyasha woke up to the intense gaze of an entire mob.
Flinching at the brightness of his room, his hand went to his scratchy throat as he tried to figure out who was staring at him.
The figures around him sharpened into clarity, and he gasped.
“Dad?”
Inutaisho smiled at him, nodding. He was sitting directly in front of him, the centre of a semicircle of chairs surrounding Inuyasha’s bed.
He looked around, to see Sesshomaru and Kagome flanking his father. He immediately looked away from Kagome, missing her stricken look, taking in Sango and Miroku sitting next to Sesshomaru. To Kagome’s side sat the teenagers, a little behind the adults, obviously allowed into the meeting, but not permitted to participate.
He looked at his father, slightly confused and not a little angry.
“What the hell is going on?” he asked belligerently.
“You tried to kill yourself yesterday. Did you forget?” Inuyasha hung his head, ashamed at his father’s gentle, caring tone.
“No, I didn’t. Why didn’t it work?” he asked in a slightly less hostile tone.
Total silence greeted his words.
He took in the shocked expressions surrounding him, and he suddenly found himself wanting to smile.
“What do you mean, why didn’t it work?” Sesshomaru asked, voice low and dangerous.
“I can’t heal myself fast enough to replace all the blood I should’ve lost. So why am I still alive?” Inuyasha asked with clinical detachment.
“Because Kagome healed you.” Inutaisho answered him with the same coolness.
“You shouldn’t have.” He told Kagome flatly.
Kagome looked up at him, eyes wide with shock.
“As much as we loved Kikyo, we are not going to let you follow her so soon into the afterlife.” Inutaisho told him firmly, drawing his attention away from Kagome.
“Well, thanks, but no thanks. That’s where I want to be.” Inuyasha told him quietly.
“Tough. You are not going to go.” Sesshomaru told him angrily.
“We all have to die sometime.” Inuyasha replied, shrugging.
“But your time is not now!” Sango exclaimed.
“How do you know that? How do any of you know that? What if it’s my destiny to follow Kikyo? Anyone ever think about that?” Inuyasha burst out.
He really didn’t want to talk about this now. He wanted to lie back down and go to sleep. And maybe even never wake up.
The idea had appeal.
“Would you listen to yourself, you idiot? What gives you that dumb idea? And besides, do you really think Kikyo would want you to kill yourself on her account? You dishonour her memory.” Sesshomaru sneered, sitting forward.
Inuyasha growled at Sesshomaru, baring his teeth.
“Don’t. You know he’s right. What do you think Kikyo was, to wish for your death?” Inutaisho reprimanded Inuyasha.
“Maybe it isn’t about her! Maybe it’s about me!” Inuyasha shouted.
When everyone looked at him in silent distress, he sighed, a deep, heartbreaking sigh.
“Maybe I’m nothing without her. Maybe I don’t want to live without her. Maybe… a part of me died on that stupid red carpet.” He said softly, staring down at his palms, refusing to meet anyone’s eyes.
“Losing someone you love is a part of you dying. But that doesn’t mean you are nothing, or that you have to die too. The pain never goes away, but it gets easier to deal with. And suicide is not the answer.” Sango told him softly, putting a hand on his arm.
“How do you know that?” he demanded, tears filming over his eyes.
“Because I’m in a position to know.” She shot back testily, rolling down her long collar to show a thin, faint scar on her neck.
“When my little brother Kohaku was murdered, I felt the same damned way. I even tried a hand at the whole suicide deal. It isn’t worth it; trying to kill yourself. You’ll just feel foolish and small for years after.” Sango told him fiercely, tears of her own falling from her brown eyes.
“You never said anything about a brother.” Inuyasha breathed, eyes locked on her scar.
“Well, it isn’t something you brag about.” She replied softly, all the fight gone at Inuyasha’s quiet sentence.
“Inuyasha?”
They all looked behind them at the trembling, small voice.
Kaede stood unsteadily, brown eyes rimmed in red from obvious crying. She gently shook off Shippo’s steadying hand, and carefully made her way to the bed, where she crawled up onto it and stared Inuyasha straight in the eye.
“I lost all my biological family three days ago. I’m an orphan. But you’re all-” she waved at the people in the room, including everyone, “my family too. I can’t handle another death. Could you…um…stay alive? For me? I don’t want to lose you, too.” She pleaded, crying now.
Inuyasha stared at her, eyes wide and expression inscrutable.
He sighed, cracked a small, wan smile, and drew the crying teenager into his arms, resting his chin on her dark hair, so like Kikyo’s.
“Ssh, little bit. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll stay.” He soothed, stroking her hair, eyes locked with his father’s.
Inutaisho nodded slightly, before rising and drawing both Inuyasha and Kaede into his embrace.
“We’re all going to stay. You’re no orphan. You’re family. You have all of us.” Inutaisho told the crying teenager, who was staring at him, wide-eyed. She sniffed, rubbing at her wet eyes, before nodding shakily, even smiling unsteadily.
The remaining group sat, smiling slightly, Sesshomaru still looking a little bit peeved.
No one noticed when Kagome slipped out of the room like an errant shadow.

A/N: *again with the slow, slow waltz* So? what are your thoughts?
Reviews, ratings and all manner of reader contact is appreciated.

NEXT CHAPTER: It's Cleaning Day!!!