InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Royal Birth: Sequel to His Little Girl ❯ Toga has returned? ( Chapter 6 )

 

Maika turned around in her mate's arms, the snowflakes dancing in the air around them creating a magical feeling of peace and love. She smiled at Inuyasha and wrapped her arms around him as she hugged him, her head falling to his shoulder as she watched the snow fall to the ground below.

 

“I'm ok you know,” Maika said softly to Inuyasha as he stroked her glossy midnight tresses.

 

“Yeah I know,” Inuyasha smiled as he kissed her shoulder. “…Maika?” he asked after a long silent moment.

 

“Mmhmm,” she answered simply content to be in his arms and watch the snow fall.

 

“If…if the pup…if it hadn't been mine…would you be ok?”

 

Maika pulled back from his embrace, a thoughtful frown on her face as she looked at the snow falling around them. She held out her hand, snowflakes falling and collecting in her palm.

 

“I don't know,” she said slowly. “I wonder about that too you know. I wonder…if this pup inside me, if she had been anyone else's…I was really afraid that it wouldn't be yours…I was afraid of it being a living reminder…Kagome said that a baby is just a baby, that they can't choose how or why they're brought into the world. I know she's right, but…Inuyasha,” she turned to face him and took his hand leading him to a stone bench just outside the east garden and wiped the light dusting of snow off of it before sitting down, waiting for Inuyasha to do the same before she continued. “I um,” she leaned forward in her seat, her elbows resting on her legs as she propped her head in her hands and looked into the snow dusted garden. “I was afraid…really afraid.”

 

“Of the pup?” Inuyasha asked as he watched her face.

 

Maika shook her head slightly. “Of you.”

 

“Me? Why were you afraid of me?” he asked slowly fearing what her answer would be.

 

“I was really scared that…that after what happened…that you wouldn't want me anymore. I was so scared,” she said as tears filled her eyes and ran silently down her cheeks, the salty droplets turning cold and the wet tracks freezing in the cool air. “I was…I was…I felt dirty…and I thought…I thought maybe I brought it on…”

 

“Brought what on?” he asked his face a mask of concern and confusion.

 

“I thought maybe what happened…that it was my fault…I thought maybe I deserved what happened, that I was being punished.”

 

“For what?” he asked incredibly. What could she have possibly done to think that she deserved what those bastards did to her?

 

“I thought I was being punished for…for not dying…I mean why did I survive when he killed my mother and sisters, when he killed every other mate and child he'd ever had? What made me so special? What right did I have to survive? I mean, if I hadn't chased that cricket under the loose floorboards he would've killed me too. Why didn't I die?” she asked turning her head to stare at him, needing him to have an answer.

 

Inuyasha stared at her, questions in his own eyes, muting the normally bright sun gold to a dull wheat color as he looked at her. He shook his head slowly and dragged her into his arms, lifting her and sitting her on his lap. His arms wrapped around her, held her back against his chest as her left arm wrapped around his waist and her right hand fiddled with his haori.

 

“I don't know how to answer that,” Inuyasha finally said after a long moment of silence. “I don't know why you survived, but I'm glad you did. Maika…maybe I don't always show it…and maybe I don't say it a lot, but…but I love you. I really love you, and I don't want to loose you, not even if it's to yourself. You mean so much to me Maika, and yeah maybe there's a part of me that Kagome will always have, something only we can share. But Maika…you…you have so much of me that Kagome will never have, pieces of me that she can't even touch. Without you, I don't…without you I'm lost. I need you like I need the air I breathe. Maybe I'm not good with words, but I love you…and I need you.”

 

Maika sniffled and kissed his cheek as she wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his chest. She hadn't realized just how much she meant to him, part of her had always been afraid that maybe he was just settling for her because Kagome was mated to his brother. Now she knew though, now she knew that he felt the same way she did.

 

“Inuyasha,” she said gaining his attention.

 

“Mmm?”

 

“What do you want to name her?”

 

“The pup?”

 

“Mmhmm.”

 

“I don't know. We don't have to decide now do we?”

 

“No I guess not. We still have time.” She giggled as a thought struck her. “Besides you still have your nephew puppy, and your niece baby girl to look after.”

 

“Feh.” Inuyasha chuckled as well. “I wonder how long it'll take her to name those two. It's not like finding a name is a hard thing to do.”

 

“Oh really?” she asked with a smile as she pulled back enough to look into his eyes, her own violet grey eyes sparkling with amusement. “And what would you name them?”

 

“Well…Uh…”

 

“Mmhmm,” she muttered highly amused her smile bright as she tried to keep herself from giggling at the look on his face.

 

“Oi, wench!”

 

“You can't wench me!” she giggled.

 

“I'm your mate aren't I? I can wench you any damn time I feel like it!” He grinned and nodded proud of himself.

 

Maika's mouth fell open in amused surprise. She quickly slipped from his hold and jogged through the snow.

 

“Hey! Where are you going?” Inuyasha called out as he stood and watched her, hearing her giggle.

 

“You can't wench me if you can't catch me!” she hollered back and jogged down the way into the snow covered meadow that lay just south of the garden they had been sitting near.

 

Maika shrieked a giggle as Inuyasha chased after her and her jog turned into a run as she made her way around trees and plants. She looked back behind her and stopped. He wasn't there. A confused frown marred her face as she looked around. Where did he go? Just as she was about to open her senses and search for him, she was grasped in strong arms and taken high in a tree in one sweep.

 

She shrieked at the sudden move and giggled when she found herself secured in her mate's arms.

 

“Wench!” he growled playfully at her and nipped the tip of her pointed ear knowing that it would tickle her.

 

Maika shrieked another giggle and retaliated by grabbing his puppy ear and tickling the fine hairs inside the fuzzy triangle. Inuyasha growled and chuckled as he tried to pull away, though enjoying the game they had going. The sun began its descent and Maika's eyes widened.

 

She watched in fascination, never tiring of the sight of her mate's transformation for hanyou to human. The way his puppy ears slowly sank into his head as they were doing now, the beautiful way that his hair slowly lost the white shine and darkened to a light stone grey, then to a darker grey and finally to black. The way his eyes turned almost violet. He was beautiful in either form.

 

“Fuck,” Inuyasha said once the transformation was complete, the entire change only taking seconds to happen.

 

“Don't worry, Inuyasha, I'll take you down,” Maika soothed.

 

“No you won't!” he fairly barked back.

 

“I'm youkai Inuyasha; you won't be too heavy-”

 

“I ain't concerned about my damn weight and are you calling me fat?!”

 

“Inuyasha come on,” she said and moved to take him in her arms and jump down.

 

“Stay!” he commanded and her eyes widened in outrage.

 

“I'm not a dog Inuyasha! Well, ok technically I am a dog, but I'm an inuyoukai! So don't try and command me like I'm your faithful puppy and just what are you laughing at baka?!”

 

Inuyasha fairly howled with laughter as he held tightly to the branch he was straddling, nearly falling a couple of times due to his amusement. Her now human mate looked at her as he calmed and fell into a fit of `manly' giggles.

 

“What?” she asked not seeing the amusement.

 

“You're um,” he giggled. “You're growling.”

 

“And this is funny why?” she asked, hands on hips as she stood next to him on the thick branch high above the ground.

 

“Cause you said you're a dog!” he fell into laughter.

 

“I'm gonna have to talk to that damn monk about giving you sake aren't I?” she said finally smiling and giving a light giggle. “Come on, I'll get us down.”

 

Inuyasha's amusement faded and he was back to being gruff and surly again.

 

“Oh no you won't!”

 

“Why not?” she asked her arms falling to her sides in frustration.

 

“You're pregnant damnit!”

 

“Yes I know that, I've had the morning sickness thank you, pretty obvious after that.”

 

“And you're going to wait for someone to take us both down cause you're not jumping down, with me or not!”

 

“Oh and I suppose we're just suppose to wait here until someone wanders out to find us?” she asked gruffly, sitting down on the branch in front of him.

 

“You two alright up there?” Keiko called up as she giggled at them.

 

Inuyasha gave Maika a haughty look that made her hard pressed not to knock him off the branch. Had he been hanyou she just might have, but he was human now and fragile, her eyes widened as a smile lit her face, and he was ticklish. Inuyasha was preoccupied with talking with Keiko and Maika took the advantage, her hands moving to his side, her fingers bent so as not to scratch him with her claws and tickled his sides.

 

Inuyasha yipped and pulled back, slamming his back up against the trunk of the tree as he tried to evade her torturous hands. Maika giggled at the look on his face and burst out laughing when he yelped in surprise when his aunt and brother lit on the branches on either side of him.

 

The two newcomers chuckled and giggled as well, and Sesshoumaru lifted Maika into his arms as Keiko took Inuyasha in a big hug and the four of them were on the snow covered ground in seconds. Sesshoumaru lowered Maika's legs to the ground and held her against his side as she regained her equilibrium, not having thought during her argument with her mate that the pregnancy would unbalance her if she made sudden movements.

 

Sesshoumaru raised a delicate silver brow at his brother's mate when he found her studying him.

 

“I'm sorry,” Maika said with a soft smile, “I guess it's just still a little weird to think of you as my brother.”

 

“Why?” Sesshoumaru asked intrigued.

 

“For so long you've just been Sesshoumaru, son of Toga, taiyoukai of the Western Lands,” she said as she walked next to him as the four of them walked inside. “Not to be questioned, completely unapproachable. You're so different now, and not just because you treat me as family. Kagome's changed you, softened you. I mean I'm sure you still just as ruthless as you were before, but now…I don't know…now it's like you're real, just like the rest of us.”

 

Sesshoumaru smiled softly. “The powers of a woman's love.”

 

 

 

“Oh Toga,” Kagome said softly, sadly as she touched the one painting of him in his humanoid form. “I wish you were here. Your sons need you; your brother's waging war. If only you were here now maybe you could help us, help Inuyasha mainly. He's changing; his youkai blood is changing and he doesn't understand, neither does Sesshoumaru so he can't really help him…”

 

“Miko,” a deep voice somewhat similar to Inuyasha but as smooth as Sesshoumaru's called from behind her.

 

Kagome turned her head to look back at him and did a double take. There stood the man in the painting, there behind her stood Toga.

 

“H-how?” she asked as she turned around completely and stared at him in wonder.

 

“I know not miko,” he said as he smiled warmly at her. “I heard you call for me, and here I appeared.”

 

Kagome smiled at him as she looked at him. He had long silver hair like Sesshoumaru, though instead of it hanging down and free it was pulled up tight into a top knot, the length of it hanging down his back. He had blue crests where Sesshoumaru's were magenta and his face was nearly a carbon copy of Inuyasha's.

 

“I'm sorry,” Kagome said as she snapped out of her daze and Toga laughed gently at her.

 

“No need miko, I don't mind.”

 

A blush stole across Kagome's cheeks as she realized she hadn't even introduced herself.

 

“I'm Kagome…ummm, do you want to see your sons?” she asked softly and he nodded and offered his arm to her.

 

Kagome giggled softly and tucked her hand into the crook of his elbow. She let Toga lead her down the halls of his old home and smiled up at him. Toga found himself completely entranced by the girl - woman at his side. She smelled of his son in such a way that he knew her to be Sesshoumaru's mate, she reminded him so much of Izayoi that his heart clenched at the thought.

 

“Mamma,” a young voice cried from down the hall as Shippou came running towards her.

 

Kagome smiled brightly and held out her arms to the kitsune youkai pup, catching him against her chest when he launched himself at her.

 

“Hello Shippou,” she greeted warmly as she nuzzled his cheeks with her own.

 

“Hi mamma…Who are you?” Shippou asked Toga curiously.

 

“I'm Toga,” the inuyoukai answered gently as he smiled upon the kit.

 

“That's daddy's dad's name,” he said as he studied the youkai next to his mother.

 

“That's right Shippou. This is Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru's father.”

 

“But isn't he dead? Isn't that why Inuyasha had to grow up alone?” he asked softly to his mother.

 

“It's complicated sweetie.”

 

“He is your pup mi-Kagome?” Toga asked as they continued their trek down the hall.

 

“Mmhmm. Inuyasha and I came upon Shippou after his father was killed. I took him in,” she said with a shrug as though it was nothing special.

 

Toga was amazed at her. “You have quite a heart Kagome. Not many humans would take in youkai pup, orphaned or not.”

 

“He needed someone, I couldn't leave him alone. Besides,” she giggled. “Who would bring him his pocky?”

 

“Pocky?” Toga asked.

 

“Here,” Shippou said taking some from inside his haori. “It's really good.”

 

Toga watched as the child nibbled on the stick and raised the one he held to his nose and sniffed at it before biting into it. It was good; he munched on the sweet chocolate treat as they walked down the hall only to be intercepted by Rin. The giggling girl was holding a tiny baby rabbit as her three young and rapidly growing fox kits followed her happily down the hall.

 

“Mamma, look what I found!” Rin said excitedly as she showed the rabbit to Kagome and the inuyoukai next to her.

 

“Where did you find that baby bunny sweetheart?” Kagome asked as she petted the small animal's head.

 

“It was all alone mamma, and I'm taking good care of Miroku and Sango and Tada, so I can take care of bunny too?” she asked her eyes wide with hope.

 

“Come on; let's go ask your father.”

 

Rin followed them down the hall and skipped between Toga and Kagome as she held her mother's hand the baby bunny clutched against her chest, much like she had held Shippou in his true form earlier that day.

 

Rin looked up and let go of her mother's hand and raced down the hall with a giddy giggle.

 

“Daddy!” Rin shouted as she ran towards Sesshoumaru and sprang up from the ground and into her father's arms. “Daddy look at my new baby!” she said excitedly as she opened her arms revealing the trembling baby rabbit in her arms.

 

“Rin,” Sesshoumaru said as he looked into his daughter's brightly shinning eyes. “Did the rabbit have a mother?”

 

“No,” Rin said shaking her head, her little hanyou ears drooping. “She was all alone Daddy. She needs a mother, I will be her mother?” she asked with a hopeful smile.

 

Damnit she learned that look far too well, he thought as she looked at him with the puppy face that he was never able to say no to.

 

“Yes you may be it's mother. Take her to Shinta to make sure she is alright.”

 

He set Rin on the floor and she bounded over to her mother and Toga and smiled happily. “Rin is its mother!” she said and Toga smiled upon the treasure that was Rin.

 

Rin ran down the hall and turned making her way to Shinta's chambers, her fox kits following as the yipped and barked at her, racing at her heels.

 

“Kagome, who is this?” Sesshoumaru asked.

 

“Don't you know?” she asked and watched as her mate studied his father.

 

“This is not possible,” he said as he looked at Toga. “Who are you?”

 

“Can't you tell baka?” Inuyasha said gruffly as he came forward his brother grasping him and shoving the human behind him. “You gotta enough damn paints around here to tell. It's the old man.”

 

“Inuyasha stay back,” Sesshoumaru commanded his brother, protecting him.

 

“Sesshoumaru,” his father said as he looked upon his son, Inuyasha behind him. “Pup I know that you don't want to believe that I am your father, but I promise you, this is no trick.”

 

“Toga!” Keiko gasped as she came in beside Maika.

 

“K-bird, it's been quite awhile,” Toga opened his arms to his sister and Keiko ran into them in almost a full body tackle, hugging Toga tightly.

 

“Sesshoumaru stop growling it really is your father, and I should know.” Keiko had tears streaming down her cheeks as she held onto her brother. “How?”

 

“I don't know,” he said as he looked at Kagome. “One moment I heard her voice and the next I was standing beside her.”

 

“Kagome you did this?” Inuyasha asked as he escaped his brother and came to stand next to his father who studied Inuyasha in his human form.

 

“Yeah well don't ask me how; nobody gave me the owner's manual.”

 

Inuyasha laughed knowing in what she was referring to and looked back at Toga who seemed unable to look anywhere else than on his youngest son.

 

“What?” Inuyasha asked gruffly.

 

“You look so much like your mother.”

 

“You should see him when he's hanyou,” Keiko said as she looked at her nephew. “He looks just like you then.”

 

Sesshoumaru spun on his heel and walked away from them all, moving quickly down the hall to his study and closing the door behind him. Seeing his father again, with the ease that everyone took to him. It angered him and he didn't know why. Moments later the door to his study opened and his father stepped in, closing the door behind him softly.

 

“Sesshoumaru?” Toga asked his son as he watched him pace.

 

Toga could smell and see the anger and tenseness in his son, not understanding why it was there. Sesshoumaru grew angrier the more his father stood there so calm and quiet. The fact that his father didn't understand why he was upset seemed to enrage him more, even though Sesshoumaru himself didn't fully understand.

 

Blood red seeped into the edges of Sesshoumaru's golden eyes and he attacked his father, Toga catching his son's thrashing arms and turning Sesshoumaru around, holding his back against his chest as he wrapped his arms around his son. Toga restrained his son and held him tightly as he tried to calm him.

 

“What is wrong Sesshoumaru? Why are you so upset?” Toga asked his son worriedly.

 

Sesshoumaru snarled as he tried to escape his father's iron grip.

 

“Sesshoumaru stop this,” Toga commanded as Sesshoumaru continued to fight against his hold. Toga turned his head seeing Kagome standing in the doorway her eyes wide. “Please leave us miko.”

 

Kagome nodded and then left the room, closing the door softly behind her. What was going on? She thought as she left to go check on her pups.

 

“Sesshoumaru what is wrong?” Toga asked again, the fight slowly seeping out of his struggling son.

 

“You,” Sesshoumaru growled softly, a hitch in his breath as he still struggled, though not as fiercely as before.

 

“What about me son? What did I do?” Toga asked gently as he lowered them both to the floor and sat with Sesshoumaru between his legs as he kept his hold on his son.

 

“You left me!” Sesshoumaru shouted angrily as he stopped fighting. He was panting with the force he had used to fight his unyielding father and now sat in his father's embrace as tears welled up in his golden eyes. “You left me! You promised you'd come back and you didn't! You left me,” Sesshoumaru said brokenly, his voice nearly a whisper as the tears in his eyes fell upon his cheeks.

 

Toga turned Sesshoumaru in his arms so that he could hold his son and see his face as well.

 

“I didn't know that I wouldn't come back Sessh. I never meant to leave you alone. I never meant for you to have to deal with all of this so young. I'm sorry son.”

 

Sesshoumaru was suddenly the lost little boy who lost his father again, pulling his legs up so he was seated in a fetal position and leaned against his father's chest as Toga held him in a warm embrace and stroked Sesshoumaru's long silvery white hair.

 

“It's not fair. You died and Inuyasha and Izayoi had to go away and then uncle tried to kill me and -”

 

“Your uncle did what?!” Toga snarled out. “Which of my brothers tried to kill you?”

 

“Maito. He also tried to kill my brother,” he yawned, “Keiko knows.”

 

Toga growled and stood with Sesshoumaru in his arms, the current taiyoukai a little embarrassed to be held like a pup in his father's arms. Toga carried his drowsy son over to the large round pillow in the far side of the room near the dark fireplace. He knelt down and laid his son upon the pillow, stroking Sesshoumaru's hair and face until he fell asleep.

 

Perhaps this is why I was sent back, Toga thought as he watched his son sleeping for a few moments before rising and leaving the room. He went in search of Keiko and followed her scent to Kagome and Sesshoumaru's chambers. He tapped lightly on the door and was bid to enter by his sister.

 

“I will leave if you wish,” he said when he stepped inside to see Kagome breast feeding her daughter.

 

“No, it's quite alright. I'm sure you watched both your mates do this a time or two,” Kagome said as she smiled gently at her father in law.

 

“Yes, I did,” Toga agreed and lifted the tiny male pup into his arms looking upon the pup in his arms. “What is his name?” he asked as the tiny pup yawned and moved in his arms.

 

“We haven't exactly found names for either of them yet,” Kagome said as a light blush stole across her face. “For now I'm calling him puppy, and this little one,” she said as she looked down at her nursing daughter. “I'm calling her baby girl until we find proper names.”

 

“Careful Kagome,” Toga said with a chuckle and a soft smile, “or they may grow up believing those to be their names.”

 

“Yeah I know,” Kagome said.

 

“Keiko I would speak with you,” Toga said as he turned to the door.

 

“Um Toga before you go,” Kagome said as she burped her daughter, “Trade with me.”

 

Toga smiled and walked to his son's mate. He handed her the male pup as he took the female hanyou and looked at her little black ears swiveling on her head and listened to her sniff at him.

 

Keiko followed him out of the room as he cradled the female pup against his breast, over his heart.

 

“Toga?” Keiko asked as he led her away from the room.

 

“Is what my son said true? Did Maito war against Sesshoumaru after I died? Did he try to kill Inuyasha?”

 

Keiko looked at the floor and then up at her brother sadly. “Yes. There were many uprisings against Sesshoumaru; the one that Maito led was by far the worst. Maito put a price on Inuyasha's head, whoever brought his body back would be Maito's second in command.”

 

Toga snarled at this bit of news and rocked side to side on his feet when the sound upset the tiny girl in his arms.

 

“Do you know where our brother is?” he asked his face hard and unforgiving, promising his brother pain when he found him.

 

“I don't know where is he now, but he's planning another uprising. He intends to kill Sesshoumaru and the family he's made. Rin used to be human before Sesshoumaru adopted her in the youkai way, she's hanyou now. It was done publicly to let the others know that she was under his protection and part of his pack. I think that's what set Maito off again. That and the fact that Inuyasha is once again in his ancestral home and that Sesshoumaru's mated to Kagome, a human and a miko.”

 

“My brother will be dealing with me should he try to over throw my son,” Toga growled and looked down at the tiny pup in his arms that began to cry. “What's wrong little one?” he asked as he did the jiggle-rock known by all parents.

 

“I think she wants her mother,” Keiko said as she and Toga returned to the room to see Kagome putting the male down for a nap.

 

“They are beautiful miko,” Toga said as he handed her daughter back to her. “Their coloring is quite startling, her with dark hair and golden eyes and her brother with silver hair and your stormy eyes.”

 

“Thank you,” Kagome smiled and yawned behind her hand.

 

“You should rest.”

 

“Mmm,” Kagome nodded, motherhood was quite tiring.

 

“Come on little one,” Toga said and led Kagome to the bed. He watched as she climbed into the bed and then he tucked the covers around her as her eyes blinked tiredly. “Sleep well my daughter,” he said and kissed her forehead before leaving the room, Keiko in tow.