Dearly Beloved by Aviel
Madness
Disclaimer: Though it saddens me to say it, I don’t own anything relating to Takahashi-sensei’s Inuyasha. However, the plot and/or ideas of this drabble series do belong to me.
A/N: He’s still very much in a coma in the present time, so don’t be fooled by this next part! Update 2 of 3.
Chapter 19: Madness
A hand found its way onto Sesshoumaru’s shoulder, jolting him awake from his fitful rest. Momentarily forgetting his place, his eyes were bloodshot as he turned to bare his teeth at the one that had dared to touch him.
In his mind’s eye, he could still see the pair of dull, sapphire orbs staring back at him, accusing him of his incompetence. In his nightmare, there had also been a gushing river of red, but even that hadn’t been as disturbing as the sight of Kagome’s lifeless body cradling a dead infant to her chest.
He’d killed them both.
The love of his life and their baby…
Their innocent child.
All because he hadn’t been there to protect them.
He’d failed.
He was–
“Oi!”
A thunderous clap echoed about the room, and Sesshoumaru briefly registered the stinging pain of his cheek. His head had whipped to the side from the force of the unexpected blow, and his hair cascaded over his shoulders. A threatening rumble sounded in his chest.
Glaring at the one that had hit him, he growled, “Did you just slap me?”
His half-brother stood before him with a fierce scowl, his upper lip curled into a snarl. Inuyasha’s black locks swayed as he shook his head vehemently.
“No, moron! I backhanded ya!” At Sesshoumaru’s dark look, he added, “There’s a difference!”
“And where, pray tell, did you get the nerve to assault me, brother?”
Inuyasha grimaced, a frustrated sigh escaping him. “You zoned out again,” he answered shortly.
“Your point?”
“Son of a– You need to get a grip on reality, Sesshoumaru! Becoming a mental case ain’t gonna help anybody!”
The younger Taishou male watched in abject horror as Sesshoumaru slumped forward in his chair with his head in his hands–an uncharacteristic display of weakness.
“What… are you doing?” Inuyasha asked, mouth suddenly dry.
This hollow shell of a man was not his brother. An unemotional jackass he could handle, a sickeningly depressed person he could not. Things were really screwed up as far as he was concerned.
He strained to hear Sesshoumaru’s muted response.
“Leave me.”
“Why the hell for?”
“I wish to mourn in peace.”
Violet eyes narrowed in suspicion. “What?”
“I have no one left.”
Inuyasha really could not control the rage he felt at that moment. Cursing, he grabbed a fistful of Sesshoumaru’s shirt and shook him, demanding to know what possessed him to utter such a thing.
“Now listen here, you goddamn idiot! If you ever say something like that again, I’ll kill ya!”
“I–”
“Shut up!” the irate man bellowed, uncomfortably close to his brother’s face. But at the blankness of his expression, Inuyasha abruptly let go of him, eyes wide. “You don’t even…” He palmed his forehead and began pacing around the room, muttering obscenities under his breath. “I can’t believe this!”
Sesshoumaru stared. “Believe what, Inuyasha?”
Inuyasha stopped in his tracks. “You forgot where we are, didn’t you?” he stated angrily.
Slowly, as if a veil had lifted from his eyes, a lucid sheen reflected in Sesshoumaru’s citrine hues.
Inuyasha watched warily as his nostrils flared and he turned pointedly toward one direction, his body trembling in hopeful disbelief.
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Original Posting Date: January 6, 2013
Prompt: For KYN’s Weekly Word Prompt, Alarm
Words: 550