Positivity

What a belly flop that was.

The slap of water onto his bones, was unexpected, and he actually flinched, floating face down into the water for a moment, still, before he sat up, gasping and wincing.

"OOOOOOW!"

He whined and rubbed his face, cringing lightly. A familiar voice made him pause and he looked up from where he was in the water, at Inuyasha.

"Hey there." Dream answered, with a wave of his hand. He stood, making his way to the edge, water sloshing around him until he found his footing on solid ground.

Water dripped from his body, clothes clinging to his bones uncomfortably.

Great.

"How have you been?" He inquired, grabbing part of his cloak and wringing msot of the water he could out of it.

"...That was sad." It may have come out more harsh than he meant it to. Maybe it was an easier way to avoid the question. "You can't pick and choose where ya end up?" That was worrisome by itself. This was a creek, but would a magical skeleton survive in a volcano? Maaaaaybe assuming that was a bit of a stretch, but when it came to the unknown, a man could never be too prepared.

So he'd claim. Inuyasha rarely prepared for the unknown. He was an in the now kinda guy.

That was why he gave a dismissive shrug. "Keh. Nothin' really happens around here, you know that. Y'fight a yōkai here and there, help out in the fields," He turned folding his arms and closing his eyes. "Same ol' stuff." Things really had changed since it had become a more peaceful area to live.

But it made him restless, evident in his slow exhale.

"I kinda wish somethin' exciting would happen. Peace is nice and all, but I get restless easily." Golden eyes opened, turning back towards Dream. "Why, what're you up to these days?"

Yeah. It was pretty sad, actually. He agreed with Inuyasha completely on that level. "Well, it's a little more convoluted then that." He said, thinking it over.

"If it's in a world adjacent to my own, then I don't have a problem picking and choosing where I end up, because the layout is almost always the same, with some variations." He said, looking up.

"If it's in a world completely different from the others, then picking and choosing is different. I don't have enough knowledge of this world to properly get a safe landing spot. I should find a place where I can easily enter, from now own."

Dream listened to the hanyo and hummed softly. He could understand. In his world, peace was usually before the storm. Maybe it was different here, however. True peace...

Dream hummed softly, thinking. "We could go on an adventure? Go somewhere new.. that could be fun, right?" He suggested.

@dreamsofpositivity Said: It was a normal day.

Nothing different.

Until a portal opened up. The familiar spike of energy from the golden skeleton wafting from it.

Except the placement was wrong.

Dream came tumbling from said portal right from the sky, flailing.

Humans needed rest, but all that left him was restless. Staying in one place for such long periods of time, while he knew the most dangerous hanyō in Japan was doing as he pleased... it didn't sit very well with Inuyasha. If he could do it alone, he would have, for the safety of his companions. He couldn't though, no matter how strong he became. Inuyasha could recognize that.

It left him staring at his own reflection in a small, shallow creek. He'd already finished washing his face. Cold water did wonders to wake up the eyes, given that he hadn't slept in days. Too dangerous around these woods. Eyes, ears, and especially his nose were on alert. The pace of his heart quickened the second Inuyasha saw a portal, only to see...

"...Dream?" He spoke in a hushed whisper.

S P L A S H !

...

"Oi. Y'havin' fun down there?"

What a belly flop that was.

The slap of water onto his bones, was unexpected, and he actually flinched, floating face down into the water for a moment, still, before he sat up, gasping and wincing.

"OOOOOOW!"

He whined and rubbed his face, cringing lightly. A familiar voice made him pause and he looked up from where he was in the water, at Inuyasha.

"Hey there." Dream answered, with a wave of his hand. He stood, making his way to the edge, water sloshing around him until he found his footing on solid ground.

Water dripped from his body, clothes clinging to his bones uncomfortably.

Great.

"How have you been?" He inquired, grabbing part of his cloak and wringing msot of the water he could out of it.

Happy Birthday to me

Look at him, preening when his height difference was noticed. "It is, as you say, a magic thing. A monster's body will adapt to their magic. Since I've grown in strenght, my body had to change with it."

He hadn't meant to be gone for so long, truly.

"Training has been more... intense then I expected." He added, blinking.

"Like... I was bedridden for days, and couldn't even move. Wasn't very fun, but I got used to it." He wiggled lightly and looked up at Inuyasha.

"I don't know if the training would help you grow though, I think it's magic related." He added. The short skeleton peered up at the hanyō for a moment, before squinting.

"Besides.. aren't you already really tall? Why do you want to be taller?"

The thought made his right ear flick.

He didn't like it. He knew that was how things worked, but that didn't mean he had to like the image of Dream being bedridden from being in pain from overexertion. Golden eyes furrowed, the hanyō's focus set on glimmering snow. Just taking all this in left a pang of emptiness. No matter what happened, no matter how much time passed, he was going to be the only one who never changed, wasn't he?

"I train every day, I'm pretty sure my body's done growing. Hanyō age so slow when they become adults, it's gonna take centuries before I look any older than I do now. It's gonna take forever for me to show anything like what people call old age."

Nothing about me changes. That feels like a problem, and I don't know how to fix it.

"Growing a few inches wouldn't be so bad. Maybe I'd come close to a real yōkai's height. I'm only tall compared to humans. Most yōkai are taller than I am, unless they take a human looking form." Even now, Inuyasha wasn't sure what else to say. It would have sounded stupid, if expressing how much he'd missed the skeleton's presence came from his voice.

"Wish I had somethin' to offer ya." Fingers curled, mindful of his claws. Some kind of movement, if just to distract himself from his own thoughts.

What am I supposed to say?

Dream observed Inuyasha curiously, head tilting to the side lightly. It appeared, if he was reading his expression right, that he wasn't that happy in hearing he had been bed ridden from his training.

Which, granted, he understood. The skeleton hadn't expected the training to be so intense, and chaotic, that it had left him wiped out the first few days.

"And an even longer time to look like me, am I right?" He joked, of course. He.. wasn't sure if he would change, actually. Growing a couple of inches was a very small change, but this actually left him pondering if he would ever show actual signs of aging.

Something he would mull over later.

"How much taller?" He asked, genuinely curious. Dream had seen some humans that were pretty tall themselves too. And Monsters in his world came in all different shapes and size too. Some were huge too. Could he be as big and tall as Onionsan? Or maybe as tall as Asgore.

That'd be ridiculously tall, actually.

The shorter skeleton moved a step closer to Inuyasha and reached out to take one of his hands into his own, giving it a gentle squeeze. He smiled, gold dusting his cheekbones.

"You've grown. And here I thought people stop growing taller when they're adults. Must be a magic thing."

Familiar greetings never had been very simple. You needed someone who was there long enough, gave you reason to care on a deeper level. When that person left, even if they said they'd see you again, it wasn't something he'd ever expect. In fact, this was a first. The only one gone from this time that he'd formed any deeper connection with was Kagome.

She hadn't left by choice. Dream had, and it felt like too much to expect that he'd actually come back, even if just for a short while.

How did people usually greet someone who wasn't a stranger, or acquaintance, after such a long period of time?

"Six months is a long time, but nothin's really changed here. The same stuff it always is." Eyebrow quirking, the hanyō's gaze shifted for only moments, before settling back on the other. "Just with a winter coat of snow." Among other 'winter coats'. "What've you been doing? If there's some kinda training that makes ya grow taller, I want in on it."

Look at him, preening when his height difference was noticed. "It is, as you say, a magic thing. A monster's body will adapt to their magic. Since I've grown in strenght, my body had to change with it."

He hadn't meant to be gone for so long, truly.

"Training has been more... intense then I expected." He added, blinking.

"Like... I was bedridden for days, and couldn't even move. Wasn't very fun, but I got used to it." He wiggled lightly and looked up at Inuyasha.

"I don't know if the training would help you grow though, I think it's magic related." He added. The short skeleton peered up at the hanyō for a moment, before squinting.

"Besides.. aren't you already really tall? Why do you want to be taller?"

Late but their halloween costumes.

Epic by @/yugogeer12 - Dragon

"It'd be nice if I could catch some of these."

Maybe his ears were one of his weaker senses (and they weren't even a weak sense), that didn't change the peace in them. Scents were hard to track in autumn, only identifying them was the simple matter. From the grass, to the trees, to mushrooms, to foliage, so many other things. Silver hair tugging in the gusts of the season, the hanyou had his back turned to Dream, and there was a reason for that.

The smell most appealing to him right now was the one right next to them. This was the season of salmon. The only problem that came with it was how autumn affected rivers, especially those so close to the mouth of the ocean. If just to confirm for himself a second time, Inuyasha dipped one of his arms into the water.

"Current's too fast today. It'd screw me up, I ain't about to risk being dragged out in the ocean. Then I really would be dead."

These words didn't mean Inuyasha wanted to sink his fangs into fresh salmon any less. The option just wasn't really there, not with the speed of the current. It'd either drag him, or mess with his jumping ability. The open ocean meant helplessness.

"Learned the hard way a few times. The ocean's got a real heavy current, even more than a river. That's the kinda risk even I ain't stupid enough to take."

Dream watched the silver-haired hanyou with a calm, thoughtful expression, the breeze tugging faintly at the edges of his cloak. He could sense the frustration hidden beneath Inuyasha’s casual words, the restless energy of someone who was both capable and caged by circumstance.

“Then you’ve learned wisely,” he said softly, his voice carrying a quiet warmth. “It isn’t weakness to wait for the right moment.”

His gaze drifted to the rushing water, sunlight flashing against its surface. “Still… it must be hard, seeing what you want so close, and knowing it’d be foolish to reach for it now.”

Dream didn’t take the tray right away.

The woman before him wasn’t alive in the way most were, but she wasn’t gone, either. Her presence shimmered faintly in the air, soft and steady like a candle that refused to go out. He felt it more than saw it, the resonance of a spirit held together by prayer, by remembrance, by sheer will to keep walking.

Not dangerous. Just… otherworldly.

“You’re not what I expected,” he said quietly. His tone wasn’t fearful, only cautious, respectful. “Your magic feels like a song still echoing after the music’s ended.”

Kikyō regarded him calmly, her expression unreadable in the moonlight.

“You’re the priestess,” he murmured, recognition dawning. “The one who guarded the Jewel.”

She didn’t confirm it, but her silence spoke volumes.

Dream’s gaze lowered to the tray between them, to the thin wisp of steam curling into the cool night air. “If you meant him harm, you wouldn’t bring this,” he said softly. “But why wait for me? You could’ve gone to him yourself.”

Her composure didn’t falter, but he caught something in her eyes, a weight of memory, of choices that still lingered.

Dream hesitated, then reached out. The wood was warm, faintly humming with the remnants of her magic. “I’ll make sure he gets it,” he promised. “If it truly eases his pain, he’ll know who it came from.”

The air stilled between them. Her aura pressed gently against his, not hostile, but layered with grief and resolve.

“You care for him still,” Dream said after a moment, voice low. “It’s in your magic. It’s… steady, even now.”

"So he told you about that."

That spoke volumes.

"And here I wondered if you were just a trusted friend of his. Yet you refer to me by what I once was, I wonder if speaking my name is still painful for him."

She had no way of knowing the details or lack of details. What inuyasha chose to tell people about her was his decision. She knew her own feelings, and she'd accepted a long time ago that they couldn't be together. Not like the chance they had when she was alive. She may not have accomplished her goal, but she'd been naive.

Kikyō had wanted him to live a life that didn't require any fighting. But that would have taken away a part of him, she knew that now. It just... hurt so much, to see him get injured, no matter how fast he healed. Focusing on those things, it wouldn't do her any good, so they were thoughts put to rest. The very reason why nothing in her expression changed, other than a smile of acknowledgement at his statement.

"Thank you. My name is Kikyō. He doesn't know yet, that he's the reason I'm here at all. It was many, but none offered ritualistic prayer for my spirit like he did. Not even my little sister."

A light tilt of the head.

"I still love him. He still loves me, I couldn't have become a true spirit if he didn't. It's just... the nature of that love, it's not what it was when I was alive. I think we both accept that. I worry how badly it may hurt him to find out I have a permanent form."

A softening of the eyes.

"They say the longer something takes, the greater the reward. Inuyasha's protection is not a difficult thing to earn. His love is something else entirely. No one ever made me feel more loved than he did. That's why I can't let him know I'm here. Given the nature of our feelings now, it would be like seeing a best friend that should no longer exist."

Dream was silent for a long while after she spoke.

The kind of silence that wasn’t empty, but listening — the air seemed to hold its breath around her. There was something sacred in her honesty, and he didn’t want to disturb it too soon. He’d heard stories of her, yes, but no story could have prepared him for the reality of her presence — the quiet strength of someone who had made peace with tragedy, yet still loved fiercely from beyond its reach.

When he finally spoke, his voice was soft, almost reverent.

“Love like that doesn’t vanish,” he said. “It just... changes shape. Sometimes it becomes something gentler, something that asks for nothing in return.”

His gaze lowered for a moment, as though he were searching for the right words among the ripples of memory. “When you care that deeply, it leaves a trace in the soul. Even if the world forgets, even if you try to move on — the heart remembers what it once promised.”

Kikyō’s faint smile stayed, but it trembled, just barely, as though she hadn’t expected understanding from a stranger.

Dream looked up again, the gold of his eyes softening. “I think he’d rather hurt knowing you’ve found peace than believe you were gone for good. But… I understand why you can’t face him. There’s a kind of mercy in staying unseen.”

He adjusted the tray in his hands, careful not to spill the cup. The herbs’ warmth curled through the night air, grounding the moment in something gentle, human.

“I can’t imagine what it’s like for you,” Dream continued, “to see him again and not speak. To exist in the same world, but not the same life. That must take incredible strength.”

The flicker of his aura brightened faintly — golden light pulsing through the seams of his gloves. “But what you’re doing now,” he said, “it matters. You’re still helping him, still protecting him in your own way. That’s love too — the kind that doesn’t ask to be seen, only to heal what it can.”

He drew a quiet breath, the night air brushing through his cloak. “I’ll keep your secret,” he promised, his voice steady and sincere. “He won’t know the medicine came from you. Not unless you decide he should.”

For a heartbeat, the world felt very still. The moonlight and Dream’s glow met in a soft shimmer, blending gold and silver — hope and remembrance touching, neither trying to outshine the other.

After a moment, Dream added in a gentler tone, “It’s rare to meet someone whose love endures without bitterness. I’m grateful I did tonight.”

@dreamsofpositivity

"Is he still sick?"

She'd give off the impression she didn't know. She was nothing more than a spirit now, her greatest strengths were treating illness, and injury. She hadn't overheard anything, only knew what the night had been. No one knew Inuyasha as well as she did, including how prone he was to illness on the night of the new moon. Kikyō knew that even once turned hanyō again, he'd still be sick.

But no reason to give everything away.

"That half demon," Words that flowed easily from her mouth, no matter how bitter it felt to say them. She'd promised never to call him that if he told her his name. She had no choice right now. "He wasn't very quiet, I could hear how deeply he was coughing. I can't help him myself, so I waited for you. You didn't kill him, so I feel I can trust you with this medicine I prepared."

A small wooden tray is offered, with a warm, medicinal drink.

"The night a half demon turns human, it's the greatest weakness they have. I was worried about his cough, so I watched, and when his features changed, I knew what he is. If he's still sick, I ask that you give him this. It'll ease his pain. What I couldn't do in life, I'd like to do now. Treat the ill."

Dream didn’t take the tray right away.

The woman before him wasn’t alive in the way most were, but she wasn’t gone, either. Her presence shimmered faintly in the air, soft and steady like a candle that refused to go out. He felt it more than saw it, the resonance of a spirit held together by prayer, by remembrance, by sheer will to keep walking.

Not dangerous. Just… otherworldly.

“You’re not what I expected,” he said quietly. His tone wasn’t fearful, only cautious, respectful. “Your magic feels like a song still echoing after the music’s ended.”

Kikyō regarded him calmly, her expression unreadable in the moonlight.

“You’re the priestess,” he murmured, recognition dawning. “The one who guarded the Jewel.”

She didn’t confirm it, but her silence spoke volumes.

Dream’s gaze lowered to the tray between them, to the thin wisp of steam curling into the cool night air. “If you meant him harm, you wouldn’t bring this,” he said softly. “But why wait for me? You could’ve gone to him yourself.”

Her composure didn’t falter, but he caught something in her eyes, a weight of memory, of choices that still lingered.

Dream hesitated, then reached out. The wood was warm, faintly humming with the remnants of her magic. “I’ll make sure he gets it,” he promised. “If it truly eases his pain, he’ll know who it came from.”

The air stilled between them. Her aura pressed gently against his, not hostile, but layered with grief and resolve.

“You care for him still,” Dream said after a moment, voice low. “It’s in your magic. It’s… steady, even now.”

Dream’s sockets softened, their golden glow steady as he watched Inuyasha with quiet patience.

“Herbs aren’t only for healing,” he said, his tone calm but assured. “They carry flavors too; flavors that can draw out what’s already in the meat or fish. Alone, they won’t fill your belly. But together, they can make every bite feel more satisfying.”

He reached out, brushing his gloved fingers lightly over a sprig of green lying nearby, as though demonstrating the point.

“Think of it this way: a fish has its own taste, yes, strong and plain. But when you add herbs, they lift that taste higher, like sunlight making water shine brighter. The fish doesn’t stop being fish, but it becomes something more than it was.”

His smile was gentle, almost encouraging, as he glanced back to Inuyasha.

"You've got a poetic way of looking at food."

He understood seasoning, things like salt did... something. As long as there wasn't a ton of it, things tasted better with it. A little went a long way for Inuyasha's sensitive taste. All that mattered to him was feeling full. Fuller you were, longer you could go without. No matter how much time passed, he'd likely never grow out of that survivalist mindset. Those were his most formative years, that was why he ate as much as he could whenever he needed to, out in the wilds like this.

Living near a village that didn't hate his presence, he could be more relaxed. The cruelty was so muted, everyone knew Kaede would give the most stern of scoldings to any who dared show that cruelty to his face. He got things free, often, sort of as an exchange for his protective services. Not something he needed, just as he didn't need money.

But it was nice to eat well cooked food every now and again. The comfort that came with it couldn't be described. His physique may have changed over the years, but his fighting capabilities were greater than ever. If any thought for one second he relented on strict routine of strengthening himself, and his swordsmanship, they'd be dead wrong.

Sniff sniff.

"I don't have to look at anything to smell--"

Ears on alert, the light in his golden eyes turns dark.

"--The stink of a disgusting bastard who doesn't belong around here. If you think you're hiding, you're doing a pathetic job, Sesshōmau."

The silence stretched. Then—crack. A twig gave underfoot, sharp in the still air. Another noise followed, the faint rasp of bark where claws had brushed. Overhead, a crow burst from the branches with a startled caw, flapping hard into the sky.

Dream stiffened immediately, Inuyasha’s ears already twitching at the sound. He had caught the scent long before, but now the carelessness confirmed it.

“I don’t have to look at anything to smell,” Inuyasha growled, golden eyes narrowing, “the stink of a disgusting bastard who doesn’t belong around here. If you think you’re hiding, you’re doing a pathetic job, Sesshōmaru.”

Dream’s sockets widened, golden glow brightening with caution. He glanced sharply at the tree line, his posture shifting, bow not yet summoned but his hands flexing as though ready. His voice was low, warning: “Inuyasha…”

The name was spoken gently, but edged with concern. Dream could feel the tension in the air as thick as fog, prickling along his bones like static.

Sesshōmaru stepped into view then, white silk gleaming against the shadows, his expression as placid as stone. As though the noise, the crow, the half-breed’s words, none of it touched him. His golden gaze slid first to Dream, cool and measuring, before locking on Inuyasha.

“You presume much.” The daiyōkai’s tone was smooth, unhurried, disdain curling under every syllable. He gave no hint that his arrival had been anything but intentional. “Pathetic as ever.”

And so the dragon befriends the phoenix

2 comic panels fanart for the fic