The Visitation

An Inu-Yasha Oneshot Silly fic
by Cat Who
Crossed, more or less, with the Aspects of the Universe.
Why? Because Shi asked me to.

Disclaimer: Inu-Yasha ain't mine. The Aspects of the Universe rightfully belong to ourselves. Please don't use this particular Shi-chan without asking him first, onegai. And don't use Time-chan without asking me ^_~

* * *

"I'm going home for two days," Kagome announced to the group as they were nearing the village. The path beneath their feet had been damped by a recent rain, and so the barefoot youkai was not in a happy mood.

Miroku, Sango, and Shippou all held their breath for the few moments that it took Inu-Yasha to object.

"No way in hell. We're setting out again tomorrow." The hanyou leapt lightly in front of her, his arms crossed, his eyes flashing angrily at the human. "Every time we come to the village you try to spring this on me. 'I'm just going home for a few days, I have the most important test of my life to study for!' Feh!"

Kagome jabbed her finger at Inu-Yasha's chest. "This IS the most important test of my life! Well, one of them. It's the mock high school entrance exam! I need to take it to find out what subject I need to study the most before the real ones."

Miroku, Sango, and Shippou all sat down on the ground and waited for the argument to play itself out as usual. Shippou produced a bag of popcorn out of nowhere and passed it to the two humans, who munched on it absently.

"You mean to tell me you have to take a test to tell you how bad you're going to do on another test?" Inu-Yasha asked incredulously. "That has got to be the stupidest thing I've ever heard."

"It's not stupid! I just have to get into a good high school. If I don't, my life is over." Kagome had started crying again.

"Happens every single time," Sango muttered to Miroku.

"You'd think they'd both learn by now. It's as if it's scripted," he agreed.

"Pretty soon she's gonna say sit, just watch . . ." Shippou said sadly.

"Wuh-wait, Kagome, damn, don't cry . . . ah hell. What did I do this time?"

"I can't believe you're so selfish! I just want to go home," Kagome yelled through her tears.

"Me? I'm not the selfish one! I'm the one who's been dragged all over Nihon with you, getting involved in fights I'd never bother with, getting stabbed through the stomach every time we fight a damn monster, just to keep the Shikon from falling into the wrong hands."

Kagome immediately stopped crying. "I thought you were only gathering them so you could become a full youkai," she said with a sniffle, even though she had long ago suspected that Inu-Yasha no longer wanted to become a full youkai -- especially after he'd learned what price he would have to pay.

"Well, of course!" He turned around in that oh-so-familiar gesture, and repeated the mantra he'd been reciting since the whole adventure had started. "What happens when I turn to a full youkai naturally is fucking NOT going to happen when I use the Shikon no Tama to become one. I'm going to be a taiyoukai just like chichi-hue." He stuck his nose in the air, completely oblivious to the steam coming out of Kagome's ears.

"Inu-Yasha, have you learned NOTHING over the past four months? And here I thought you were growing up! ARGH!"

"Here it comes . . ." Shippou said with a knowing grin.

"SIT!"

The rosary glowed with power and the hanyou slammed, face first, onto the ground. But instead of Inu-Yasha's usual swearing after being 'sat', there was only silence in the air. Everyone waited for a heartbeat . . . and then a heartbeat more . . . and still Inu-Yasha said nothing.

"Oh my kami-sama," Kagome said, her face draining of color. "I've gone and killed him."

* * *

On another plane of reality, Inu-Yasha was trying to figure out what happened as well. His ghostly form sat up, and he shook his head, trying to get his bearings. Then he looked down and saw his body, and looked up to see Kagome weeping.

"Oh, hell no," he cursed, and stepped away from his body.

"Oh, hell yes," a sickeningly familiar voice answered. "We meet again, Inu-Yasha."

The hanyou whirled around to see the Avatar of Death standing before him. Kagome, Sango, and Miroku were examining his empty body for injuries, and discovered a large rock practically lodged in his forehead.

"I better not be dead again, Death-boy. I'm NOT fucking ready to DIE!"

"Whoa, whoa, time-out," Shinigami said. The Avatar of Death was in his normal outfit -- black cowl, scythe, and inky cloak. "You're not dead this time. You just got knocked out solidly and you're having an out-of-body experience."

Inu-Yasha was inwardly relieved, but he did not show it. "Well, get me back in my body then, Death-boy." He pointed angrily to his prone form. Miroku was chanting some incantation while Kagome frantically searched in her backpack for smelling salts.

The Avatar of Death was slightly miffed at the hanyou's words. Just because he chose the body of a teenager (in order to take advantage of its raging hormones), that did NOT by any means make him a 'boy.'

"I came to apologize, dog-breath," Shi answered tone for tone. "Your case has gotten out of the control of the Aspects. Time-chan's really pissed that we let things get so out of hand, but there's one element we haven't got control of that's been playing around with you."

Inu-Yasha barely remembered the rest of Death's "family" from when he was sealed on the tree, and he could care less if they were unhappy about his life. Yet, the avatar of Death did seem genuinely contrite about it, as if it were personally his fault.

"What haven't you got control over?" Inu-Yasha asked, rising to the bait.

"Destiny," Shi said simply. "She's the 'wild card' Aspect, if you will. She's unbalanced, and therefore, unchecked. Once she decides that she wants to play around with someone's life, not even we -- the consciousness of the very universe -- can make up for it." Shi sighed heavily. "What we can do is offer you guidance."

Inu-Yasha's eyes narrowed. "What sort of guidance?"

Shi's eyes glittered in response. "Guidance from . . . an unusual source. This is all highly irregular, mind you, and we wouldn't have done it if Destiny hadn't stuck her hand into your situation, but . . ." behind Shinigami a being clothed all in white appeared, his silver hair billowing in an invisible wind, "Inu-Yasha, your father wanted to see you again."

Inu-Yasha's eyes widened in disbelief. Shinigami stepped away, and the being in white -- the great taiyoukai Inu-Taisho -- reached out and clapped a ghostly hand onto his son's shoulder.

"Inu-Yasha," he said softly in a warm, deep voice. "My youngest heir. My beloved Tomiko's son."

"Ottou-san," Inu-Yasha managed to croak out as his father embraced him. He hadn't seen chichi-hue since that fateful day when he was four . . . when Inu-Taisho had failed to return from a battle. He hadn't really remembered him much, but now the memories of the great taiyoukai returned. Inu-Taisho smelled of the forests of Kyushuu, of his mother's sweet scent, and of the purest youkai blood in Nihon.

"Inu-Yasha, my time here is brief. Your mother sends her love -- she wanted to see you too, but they would only allow one of us to come." Inu-Taisho gently pushed his son out to arm's length, and looked him squarely in the eye. Inu-Taisho's own eyes were a warm golden yellow, like Inu-Yasha's own. "We have been watching you, Inu-Yasha. I've heard you want to become a taiyoukai." Something like humor appeared in the ancient demon's eyes.

"Yes," Inu-Yasha whispered, then found his voice and spoke up a bit louder. "Yes. I want to be a full youkai. I want to be . . . great . . . like you, Father."

Inu-Taisho nodded in understanding. "That is a noble goal. A very noble, very fine goal. However . . . a human loves you. Keep in mind that a taiyoukai and a human in love can only lead a life of tragedy. I died protecting your mother. And she died of a broken heart."

"But that's why I want to become a taiyoukai! So I can protect myself . . . and Kagome!" Inu-Yasha said insistently.

"You've protected her pretty well as yourself," Inu-Taisho pointed out. "Even I couldn't defeat Ryuu-Kossei. Someone once told you that just because you're a hanyou, that doesn't make you less than a human, or a youkai. Inu-Yasha, your birth was not an accident. We both wanted you, knowing full well you'd be a halfling. My greatest regret was not living long enough to tell you that."

Inu-Yasha had never felt like crying since he was a child, but tears were slipping unbidden down his cheeks at his father's words.

"We cannot make your decisions for you, Inu-Yasha."

"I wouldn't want you to," the hanyou said. Inu-Taisho smiled.

"That's my son. Now, there are those who love you waiting for you to return. Your mother will want me back as well."

"How . . . how is she?"

"Apart from the fact that we're both dead, we're quite well. She loves you from afar. And so do I." Inu-Taisho hugged his youngest son once more, then stepped away. Shi cleared his throat and wiped an uncharacteristic tear away.

"Well. I think that was worth breaking regulations for. Inu-Taisho?"

The ghost of a taiyoukai nodded sadly, and slowly faded into the ether. "Keep her safe, for she loves you dearly," he called, and his words lingered in the air for a moment before drifting away on the wind.

Inu-Yasha sighed heavily, and looked behind him to his body. Miroku, Sango, and Kagome had dragged it off to the side of the road, and were still attempting to revive it.

"Don't you dare leave me, Inu-Yasha!" Kagome cried, sobbing onto his unmoving chest. "All those monsters didn't kill you so a stupid rock better not . . . kill . . ." She broke down wailing, and Sango patted her back soothingly while looking at Miroku with pleading eyes.

"Houshi-sama, isn't there anything that you with your Buddhist powers can do?"

"I don't know," Miroku answered with a frown of concentration. "He appears as though he has been sealed. Perhaps if I try to exorcise him . . ."

"Well, that's my cue to depart," Shinigami said with a final sniffle. "Now that I'm cute and crying, maybe my sister will comfort me." The Avatar of Death grinned a VERY lecherous grin.

"You're sick," Inu-Yasha growled as Miroku slapped a demon ward on his body, as if to seal it. A thin blue line appeared out of nowhere connecting his body to his soul.

"And you're a jerk. Go on, your soul mate is waiting. And we're also sorry about the whole Kikyo mess. Kaos should have known that the instant he said it, it was going to happen." Shi stamped his scythe on the ground and winked out of existence.

Miroku removed the ward, and Inu-Yasha's soul was abruptly slammed back into his body.

"Fucking five hells," he muttered, although his eyes stayed closed. Damn, that had hurt. His head was throbbing from where the rock had almost pierced his skull. He hated dying. He really, REALLY hated dying. He hoped that the next time it happened it was the last, and that it wasn't for a long time.

"INU-YASHA! You're alive!" Kagome cried joyously, although she still kept sobbing onto his chest.

"It worked," Miroku said in shock. Sango looked at him with glint of admiration in her eyes.

"Of course it worked," Inu-Yasha grumbled, and wrapped one arm around Kagome as he sat up. His shirt was rather damp from her tears, but she seemed so relieved that he didn't mind. "My soul got knocked loose from the shock, that's all."

Miroku, Sango, and Shippou blinked, and decided not to pursue that explanation.

"Oy, Kagome, stop crying for a second," Inu-Yasha said softly, and the sobbing girl managed to lift her head to look at home, although she was still weeping in happiness. "I'm sorry I yelled at you before. Maybe I should keep my priorities in line. Whatever happens after we defeat Naraku is secondary to keeping you safe. If you need to go back to your world for a few days, at least I can know you're pretty safe there."

Miroku, Sango, and Shippou blinked again. This time Miroku spoke up. "Did the real Inu-Yasha reposes the body, or are you some impostor?"

"Yeah, Miroku, it's me. I just . . . had a . . . reunion of sorts." Inu-Yasha looked up at the overcast sky, and the corners of his mouth lifted into the tiniest of smiles. "And a good, stern talking to, you might say."

* * *

The end! Well, almost.

* * *

Shinigami grinned privately to himself as well, and went off to seek that comfort from Time-chan. She was always so helpless before a crying bishounen . . .

"My sister! I am angst filled and sorrowful! Let me cry in your lap and -- OUCH."

Time lowered her mallet and looked at the squashed aspect of Death.

"Hentai," she muttered, before returning to her Fruits Basket manga.