A/N : Don't kill me ! Don't kill me ! I beg for mercy !

Hum... yeah, so please don't be too mad at me for not having updated for so long. I know I'd promised you an epilogue and yes now it's here but I left you waiting an unforgivable amount of time ! The thing is, I lost the first epiloque I'd started to write (don't ask me how it happened, me and all the computers on this planet are in constant war...), then I started writing another fanfiction, then another one, etc... Right now, if you put "Til you wake up" aside, I'm working on 5 other stories at the time !

Anyway, to be honest as things went by and as I was writing those other fics, I kinda lost interest in this one for a while...It wasn't on purpose, I swear, things like that happen all the time... I'm in no way more immune to it than other people. For what it's worth, I'm REALLY sorry. I'll understand if you flame me for it. Although I don't have to like it... come on, who likes flames anyway ? But I'll understand.

Nonetheless, and if we forget about the wait I put you through for a second, could you tell me if you think the epilogue is good ? Be honest, I'd really like to know.

Important note: I'd like to say a HUGE thank you to all of those who've read and reviewed this story. Thanks for bearing with me for so long, someone should give you a medal or something ! I really appreciated your comments, and you taking some time out of your busy schedule to read my fic ! Thank you everyone !

Once again, I'm very sorry for the wait. But now that the epilogue is finally here...

Let's go on with the fic !

Epilogue

"I feel like a frickin circus clown !" growled Inu-Yasha while walking through the school's halls with his friends.

"And why is that Inu-Yasha ?" asked Miroku.

"Because everyone is staring and smiling at me like if I had a big stupid red nose on my face !" retorted the hanyou with an angry frown.

Sango laughed and said :

"Don't make such a fuss about it, they're just happy to see you, that's all"

Inu-Yasha grunted and mumbled something under his breath about "annoying stalkers...".

Kagome smiled softly. Inu-Yasha had been allowed to leave the hospital five days ago, to his own relief, after having passed a 'whole endless week' (from Inu-Yasha's own words) under observation. The two first days after his 'liberation' had been rather funny, seeing as Sesshomaru had been acting totally over-protective (and quite out of character) with his little brother, going as far as to take a break from his work and stay at home with him. It had ended when Inu-Yasha had finally snapped and practically kicked his older sibling out of the house, saying that he was «in perfect shape» and that Sesshomaru could «stop acting like a mother hen 24/7 !». Of course a heated argument had followed but Sesshomaru had quickly gotten the message and returned to his old self. Nonetheless, the fact remained that the two brothers were now even closer than they'd been before, and that a strong bond had grown between them. Inwardly, Inu-Yasha was feeling very grateful toward Sesshomaru for all he'd ever done for him, while Sesshomaru was thanking all the gods he could think of for giving him back his little brother. To other people it seemed as if their relation was back to what it had always been, but to Kagome and her friends it was obvious that a lot had changed, and for the better.

But back to the matters at hand, it was now Inu-Yasha's first day at school since the accident that had put him in a coma ten months ago, and thanks to Sesshomaru's connections he'd been allowed to come back in the same grade as his friends, despite having missed practically a whole year. After all it wasn't as if it had been intentional, and to compensate Sesshomaru had gotten some teachers to give Inu-Yasha a couple of private courses to help him get back on the same level as his fellow students. Obviously Inu-Yasha hadn't been very pleased by the idea of having more courses added to his regular ones, but it was that or coming back one grade lower... And considering that Inu-Yasha really didn't want to end up with the younger students, and that he wanted to stay with Kagome, Sango and Miroku, he had finally accepted the compromise.

Kagome took another glance toward her boyfriend and couldn't help but smile at his expression ; Inu-Yasha was walking between her and Miroku, holding his books tightly against his chest while a small but very visible blush was colouring his cheeks. It was a well-known fact that the hanyou didn't like to be stared at, as it was always making him blush and according to him that was destroying his «rebellious and bad-boy image». Kagome had to agree with him on the latter : right now, Inu-Yasha looked plainly and simply adorable. But of course she wasn't about to let him know that...

They passed beside another group of students, who (like the twenty or twenty-five other groups they'd passed before) immediately turned their gazes toward them and smiled brightly at Inu-Yasha, waving at him enthusiastically. Inu-Yasha grunted but waved back, offering them the beginning of a smile.

"See ?" he told his friends afterwards. "That's exactly what I meant ! You'd think someone told them I would do all their homework for the month with the way they keep grinning at me !"

"It's like Sango said" Kagome said with a smile. "They're just happy to see you're back and in good health"

"But why ? I've never done anything to please any of them, so why would they care ?"

"Don't be so cynical about it Inu-Yasha" Miroku retorted. "They don't need a reason like that, you know ? Believe it or not, you're quite popular in this school, and there's a lot of people who like you, not just the three of us"

"That's true" confirmed Sango. "You should've seen the place when everyone learned what had happened to you. I'd never seen so much depressed faces here, you would've thought the entire school had suffered a family loss. The only students that weren't acting like that were the ones that had never met you, didn't know you or held a grudge against you. And believe me, that made quite a tiny number... The first week was totally unreal, the classes were so calm and even the teachers didn't seem in the mood to teach. After that it started coming back to normal, but even then it didn't feel quite like before. It was like... I don't know... like something was amiss, like the whole usual atmosphere was forced. Add to that, your absence was recalled more than once, like for example when a teacher forgot to skip your name during the call. If nothing else, that served to silence every last person in the room in less than a second. When that happened, the teacher wouldn't even finish the list and would start class right away, as if ashamed of their little slip. I'd never seen anything like it, really"

"Me neither" pursued Miroku. "And when the news came that you had awakened, the general reaction was just amazing. I can still see Mr. Katagai entering our class first course in the morning and announcing it to the students ; let me tell you that he wasn't able to teach us anything that day, seeing as everybody was talking about you and barely giving him any attention. And you know what ? He didn't even try to stop us or bring us back to order ! In fact he seemed very happy himself, which surprised me since I always ever saw him in a grumpy mood. Anyway, all day your recovery was the only subject of conversation, and I think I haven't crossed one single student who didn't have a big grin on their face. They were also very excited when they learned that you would come back today. I don't know about you Inu-Yasha, but personally I would really be honoured to have so much people caring about me"

The three of them turned to Inu-Yasha to see his reaction about all this, only to realize that he had stopped in the middle of the hallway without a word, a strange expression dancing on his features. He had far away look in his eyes and didn't even glance at them when they walked back to his sides, which worried them a little.

"Inu-Yasha...?" Kagome asked hesitantly.

"I... I didn't know..." he said with a very low voice, before repeating a bit more loudly : "I didn't know..."

It didn't take time for them to understand what he meant, and they quietly smiled at each other. Then Sango put a hand on Inu-Yasha's shoulder and told him softly :

"Well, now you do. Keep it in mind, OK ?"

He looked up at her and nodded, visibly in a lighter mood than he'd been earlier. He smirked slightly at them and resumed his march, the three others fast on his heels. Kagome approached him and took his hand ; he smiled at her and she smiled back before saying :

"And you know, what you said earlier, it wasn't true. You did help a lot more people here than you seem to think, even if it was just small services. And although that isn't the only reason why they like you, it sure proves what a great person you are. Nobody can be insensible to that"

"Feh, nonsense..." Inu-Yasha retorted (although his blush had just reached a darker shade).

They laughed at his embarrassment and Kagome gave him a peck on the cheek, making him blush even more. Some students whistled around them and Inu-Yasha was almost as red as his shirt when he suddenly felt someone pass an arm around his shoulders and tell him :

"Hey dog durt, glad to see you're back on your feet !"

Inu-Yasha freed himself and turned around to face Kouga, a wolf demon that had once been his arch-enemy. The reason for that was that at the beginning, Kouga had been courting Kagome openly just because he knew it would make Inu-Yasha angry and most of all, jealous. But when Kagome had agreed to become Inu-Yasha's girlfriend, Kouga had dropped the matter without further problems. He didn't really mean any harm, he just liked to get under Inu-Yasha's skin. He'd started going out with a wolf demoness named Ayame a few days after, and him and Inu-Yasha had stopped being hostile toward each other. Sure they still had fights and all, but it was nothing serious. Just some bickering between friends.

Inu-Yasha didn't know it, but Kagome, Sango and Miroku did : Kouga had been one of the most affected when he'd learned about Inu-Yasha's accident, he'd even went to see him at the hospital a couple of times. The next day he would come at school with that sad expression on his face, well hidden but not invisible for those who knew how to look. Luckily, Ayame had been there to cheer him up a little.

"What do you want, flea-bag ?" Inu-Yasha asked with an arrogant smirk.

"Just to annoy you, as usual" Kouga answered with a smirk of his own. "I really missed doing that"

Inu-Yasha was about to give him another smart-ass retort when suddenly, he caught something in the wolf's gaze, something he couldn't quite define... All he knew was that it was warm and sincere, a small flicker that told him Kouga really was happy to see him well again, no pun intended. And somehow, it made Inu-Yasha feel... good. He swallowed back his original answer and instead, he fixed Kouga in the eyes and said calmly :

"Yeah... I missed it too"

They stayed silent for a while, then Kagome exclaimed :

"Come on now everybody, we'll be late for our gym class !"

She grabbed Inu-Yasha's hand and dragged him along, the others following close behind.

"Really Kagome, I don't see what's the big rush" the hanyou said, in no hurry whatsoever.

"Oh, you'll change your mind when you get there" Kagome answered with an enigmatic smile.

He raised a brow at her but she pretended not to see it. Inu-Yasha turned to the others but they just gave him the same weird grin, which didn't really help to reassure him. What were they all plotting anyway ?

Finally they reached the gymnasium, at least ten minutes in advance.

"See ? There was no need to hurry" Inu-Yasha said.

"Oh, stop whining and go inside !" Sango told him while giving him a slight push.

Inu-Yasha grumbled but stepped forward, sliding open the shôji door...

"SURPRISE !"

Inu-Yasha did a double take and stumbled backward, a stunned and very comical look on his face. Frozen on the spot, he stared unbelievingly at the dozens of students and teachers gathered in the room. The entire gym was decorated with multi-coloured balloons and garlands, and there were even some tables full of food standing against two of the walls, making the place ready for a party. Then, Inu-Yasha saw it, hanging from the ceiling : a huge yellow banner with red letters that read « WELCOME BACK, INU-YASHA ! ».

But to his astonishment, it wasn't all...

"Close your mouth, little brother, you look ridiculous"

Inu-Yasha turned his head to the left to see Sesshomaru casually leaning against the wall, a little smirk on his lips. The hanyou stared at him dumbly, then at the crowded gym, then at the big yellow banner, then back at his brother again, the stunned look never leaving his face. Sesshomaru's smirk softened into a smile and he walked toward his younger sibling. He stopped right before him and slowly raised his hand, putting one finger under Inu-Yasha's chin and giving it a little push to close the hanyou's mouth. Then he said calmly :

"Really Inu-Yasha, you could make a small effort and try to look presentable at your own party"

Inu-Yasha didn't even took the bait, still too much dumbfounded to make a smart reply. He stared at Sesshomaru then turned toward his friends that were still waiting silently behind him and he asked slowly :

"Did... did you... did you do all that for me ?"

"No" answered Miroku with a smile. "The whole school did that for you. It was a collective decision"

"Yeah, we didn't even have to give them a hint !" added Kouga.

"Now you know that we weren't exaggerating about what we said earlier" Sango said with an amused grin.

Inu-Yasha shook his head, still unable to believe it. He turned back to the bunch of people standing in the gym... Students and teachers alike... Could it be ? Could all those persons really be there... just for him ?

He was even more taken aback when he saw Mr. Asakura, the principal, walk to him with a gentle smile on his face. Inu-Yasha had never been an enemy to the principal and never caused major troubles, but he wasn't a perfect student either. He'd skipped courses and picked fights a couple of times (although surprisingly he'd never been the one to start them), and he was fairly sure that it wasn't the school's idea of a good student. That's why he was more than a little astounded when Mr. Asakura stopped before him and put a hand on his shoulder, before saying in a fatherly tone :

"Glad to have you back among us, Mr. Takahashi. You've been greatly missed"

Inu-Yasha blinked and watched as every gazes fell on him, everyone waiting for his reaction. He stayed silent for a few more seconds, then everything finally started to sink in and he said :

"Well I'll be damned..."

The students all burst out laughing and the teachers rolled their eyes playfully.

"Yep, that's Inu-Yasha for you !" someone exclaimed loudly, causing some more laughter to erupt among the crowd.

Then, a girl from first grade came to Inu-Yasha and gave him a large card that had seemingly been signed by everybody in the school. She smiled at him and said :

"Welcome back, Inu-Yasha"

He smiled back at her, feeling happy and grateful toward each person present. A lot more confident now, he just looked up at everyone, smiled and said :

"Thank you for all of this. I sure didn't see it coming and I really appreciate"

"It was nothing boy" Mr. Asakura answered, voicing everybody's thoughts. "And it was worth the effort"

Then the principal turned around and declared with a smile :

"Well people, no class for today ! We do have something to celebrate !"

Everyone cheered and suddenly some music started to play, officially announcing the beginning of the party. People scattered in the room and started chatting happily, glad to have a free day. Meanwhile, Inu-Yasha turned back to his friends and asked with a grin :

"You knew about this, didn't you ?"

"Of course we did" answered Sango with a matching grin of her own.

"And of course you couldn't tell me in advance and spare me a heart attack ?"

"And spoil the surprise ?" said Kouga. "Now what kind of friends would we make if we'd do that ?"

"Yeah right, you just like seeing me make a fool of myself"

"There's a bit of that too" said Kouga, grinning.

Inu-Yasha snorted but kept on smiling. Then he turned to his brother and asked :

"And what do you have to do with all of this ? Aren't you supposed to be working right now ?"

"I'm sure you recall me being the president of the firm, Inu-Yasha" answered Sesshomaru. "I can take a vacation whenever I like. As for your other question... I just helped paying for some of the material. Oh, and for the DJ"

"The DJ ?"

Sesshomaru just pointed at the back of the gym and sure enough, Inu-Yasha spotted a high-tech stereo system with a DJ standing behind it, creating the music he was hearing. The hanyou sighed then smirked at his brother before telling him :

"Jeez Sessh, you really don't do anything halfway !"

Sesshomaru merely smirked and kept silent. Inu-Yasha sniggered than took a cautious look around ; when he saw that no one was presently looking his way except his friends (which was OK, he supposed), he stepped closer to his brother and gave him a quick hug, whispering so that only he would hear :

"Thanks a lot, bro"

Sesshomaru gave him a quick squeeze himself then let go. A small blush appeared on both their cheeks but it was gone before anyone could notice. A moment later Sesshomaru had walked away with the principal, talking about whatever random subject.

The party went by for another couple of hours, other students joining in. The music was very good and the DJ really knew his job well (but since he'd been hired by Sesshomaru it wasn't that much of a surprise). Many came to talk to Inu-Yasha, saying they were glad he was back and asking him questions about his accident. The hanyou personally didn't mind talking about it, but after a while of repeating the same story over and over again, he got a bit annoyed, so he skillfully escaped the gym toward the hallway. He caught a glance of Miroku dancing with Sango and another one of Kouga kissing Ayame in a corner. He smirked at that and then wondered where was Kagome ; he'd lost her an hour ago when one of her friends had showed up and dragged her away to another group of girls.

Inu-Yasha sighed in relief when he succeeded to reach the empty hallway without anybody seeing him. He leaned against the lockers and closed his eyes for a moment, relaxing... He still was amazed that the whole school had put up a party for him, and that even the principal had agreed to give them a free day in order to celebrate it. And although some students were annoying with their questions, Inu-Yasha could see in their eyes that they had sincerely missed him, and it gave him a very pleasant feeling. Miroku was right, it was an honour to be cared about so much and Inu-Yasha felt grateful for it. It sure was a nice way to start your first day back at school !

He felt someone tap him on the shoulder and opened his eyes to see Kagome standing before him.

"Kagome ! Where were you ?"

"With my friend Ayumi and the others" she answered with a smile. "They wanted me to sing so I quickly sneaked away before they could force me to !"

Inu-Yasha laughed then said :

"Well, I sneaked away too. Those people are nice but their questions were starting to drive me crazy !"

"Yeah, I was wondering how long you would last" Kagome said with a little grin.

Inu-Yasha rolled his eyes then asked :

"So, how did you found me ?"

"I couldn't, so I went to ask Sesshomaru and he told me you were hiding in the hallway"

The hanyou grumbled something under his breath, and Kagome thought she caught the words "stupid prick" and "Sesshomaru". She smiled at Inu-Yasha's antics and asked :

"So, what do you think of your party so far ?"

Inu-Yasha raised his eyes to meet hers and said :

"It's great. I still can't believe you people did all that for me. Keh, even the teachers ! I'm... It really makes me happy"

"Good. That was the point of the operation"

Inu-Yasha smiled then passed his arms around Kagome's waist and brought her close to him. Kagome passed her own arms around him too and rested her head against his chest. She sighed contentedly then said :

"Inu-Yasha, I know I've told you that hundreds of times already, but I'm so glad to have you back..."

"I know..." the hanyou whispered gently, tightening his hold.

"I was so afraid you would never wake up... I mean, Miroku and Sango were too... And Sesshomaru as well... But me... I... I was just..."

"It's OK Kagome, I understand" Inu-Yasha interrupted her calmly. "And... I'm very glad you waited for me"

She tilted her head to look up at him. She smiled warmly and whispered :

"I would've waited all my life if needed..."

Inu-Yasha smiled too and closed the space between them, softly brushing his lips against Kagome's. She raised on her tiptoes and kissed him back, slowly passing her arms around his neck...

They were at it for a few minutes when Inu-Yasha's keen hearing suddenly picked up a beautiful slow song beginning to play back in the gym. He moved backward a little and asked Kagome with a loving smile :

"Wanna dance ?"

She smiled too and said :

"You lead the way"

And they went back in the gymnasium holding hands.

o0 End Epilogue 0o

« Hardship can be a bridge to happiness » - japanese proverb

A/N : So yeah, I made the epilogue long to amend myself a little... Now the story's really over (sorry !), so no more waiting. That must surely be good news !

Anyway, I just had to end it with a sweet Inuyasha/Kagome moment ! I couldn't help myself ! Those are the best endings !

So, did you like it ? Please review one last time and tell me !

Thanks again everyone ! Take care !

: Cherry fantasy :