InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Bound to Tomorrow ❯ Return to Edo ( Chapter 12 )

Sorry for the delay but life has been throwing me for several loops as of late. Namely: One car broke down twice in two weeks eighty miles from home, our A/C died in 88 degree weather and the people took a week to replace it. All the stress made my migraines go out of control (despite all the preventative medications I'm on) which has led to me missing school. School's been very demanding of me because of the days I missed and a slave-driving fiber arts teacher… etc. Long story short, I got into a mess and it took me a long time to get out of it. The good news is that I might finally graduate this semester! If I can manage it then I won't have any more art classes murdering my creativity! Yay!

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This chapter is supposed to be longer but I decided to chop it into two chapters just so I could at least get this little bit posted for everyone. I'd also like to send out a big thank you to MusicGoddess3 who so helpfully supplied me with some excellent names for Sango's and Miroku's younger son and daughter. This is what she had to say: “Akahanna- Red rose, I just think that is so pretty. Haruto- Cleared one, brave, That just sounds so cute.” Ha! So very true! Akahanna goes perfectly with the flower names I picked out for Yuriko and Kimiko. Haruto sounds like a name Miroku might give his son, especially when I think about how his curse won't be passed down to him; like it's been cleared away. The “brave” part of it sounds like something strong Sango would like to have in a son; with her hunter background and all. So again, thank you so much for the suggestion! You're my hero!

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“Aw hell no!” Inu Yasha's furious voice sounded for what the miko assumed was the millionth time that afternoon. It had been less than a day since they had arrived back in Edo after the most perplexing “battle” she had ever witnessed. Inu Yasha had grumbled the same phrase almost every hour since Noboru had left them inside the cave.

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The hanyou had used his excellent sense of direction and night vision to bring his human friends together in one place so that he could lead them outside and back into the open. From there it had only been a matter of time before Inu Yasha had picked up on Kohaku's scent and rejoined him and the other rescued women.

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The trip back to Edo proved to be a tense one. Almost everyone walked silently; fearful that any sound might attract unwanted company or put Noboru's gang back on their trail. That did not stop Inu Yasha from muttering and grumbling the whole way there. He could not stop thinking about what the ruby-eyed brat had said. Were there not enough men who wanted his wife? Now he had yet another fool asking for a beating!

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Meanwhile, Kagome could see her husband silently fuming. As always, he was ever the type to try and keep his irritations secret; however little he could contain it. Had it been just she and her friends traveling she would have engaged his building argument the first time she'd overheard his muttering. However, with all those scared and jumpy women in tow, she thought it best to keep her own urge to fight at bay until they could reach the seclusion of home. It could only provoke their already-too-tense traveling companions into doing something rash; something that drew a predator's attention.

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Fortunately, the gang met surprisingly little resistance. In fact, the woods seemed fairly empty of life for the rest of their trip. A single slug demon was encountered along the way but the slow, cat-sized thing turned out to be completely disinterested in them. Kagome assumed it was a lucky break and ignored it.

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Days later the rag-tag group finally made it to Edo without the slightest hint of incident. Kagome was thrilled to see that the village seemed to be in the process of rebuilding itself. Several surviving men could be seen patching holes in thatched roofs while young girls sat nearby re-papering sliding doors.

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The silhouette of a young boy darted into view just in time for Kagome to splay her arms wide to accept him into a fierce embrace. Shippo buried his face in her kimono and filled his lungs with her lovely scent.

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“I knew you'd come back.” He mumbled happily.

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A small pang of guilt pierced the miko's heart when he spoke; reminded again that her three year absence had not only affected Inu Yasha but all of her friends.

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“Of course she came back! I was with her after all…” Inu Yasha grunted as gruffly as he could muster.

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The dog demon had always felt the little whelp was somewhat spoiled by the miko and so he tried hard to balance out her sweetness with a little tough love whenever possible. Still, he could not blame the kid for worrying. He would have, too.

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Golden eyes scanned the village a few more times before settling back on the fox child appraisingly. “…Did you have any trouble while we were out?”

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Shippo shook his coppery head as he slipped out of Kagome's grasp to address him properly. “…Not a thing…The village hasn't been attacked since you left. I left some of Miroku's wards around for good measure but I haven't even caught a whiff of them.”

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The hanyou nodded with his arms crossed and his eyes closed. “Well, don't take it easy just yet. You never know what might happen.”

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The fox youkai nodded and forced his smile down. In Inu Yasha's backwards way, he had just been handed a small compliment. The half demon had quietly acknowledged that the boy had worked hard. It was his way of saying “Well done.”

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A strangled cry from one of the women caught everyone's attention. They all stared as a woman bolted from the rest of the group towards town. A sobbing little girl was running towards her from the village. Seconds later the woman had scooped the child up into her arms and peppered her face with kisses.

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Shippo breathed a sigh of relief, “Ah, Kiyo's mom. I'm glad she made it out okay… she was really worried about her. I told the kids to wait for the all-clear whistle, though…”

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The intimate moment was all it took for other Edo women to break from the group and dash towards their homes. It was a mad race of mothers looking for their children. Sango held back. Part of her wondered if she even deserved to come home without her daughters. As if reading her mind, Miroku took her hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. Shippo looked back at the couple, then towards the emerging children. Apparently, two children had, in fact, listened. He grinned and pressed two fingers to his lips and whistled.

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A young boy emerged from one of the huts just then, hefting a little girl in his arms. The demons could see he was trying to hurry as carefully as he could with the toddler in tow. Sango quickly spotted the two figures and bolted for them.

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“Haruto! Akahanna!” She exclaimed as she rushed up to them and captured them in a fierce embrace.

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Haruto snuggled into his mothers embrace and sniffled softly into her shoulder while Akahanna made a face and squirmed; sandwiched between the two and none too happy about it. Shippo knew the boy had put up a brave front for his baby sister; always very quiet and stoic. It was a relief to see the mental barriers he had put up to protect what had been left of his family fall in his mother's presence. Miroku was only steps behind her, one hand on his wife's shoulder, the other ruffling his son's hair.

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Inu Yasha's acute sense of hearing picked up on Haruto's voice, despite trying to ignore it so they could have their private family moment in peace, “Where's Yuri and Kimi?”

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Kagome saw her husband blanch and looked in the direction he did. When she saw the somber looks on her friends' faces she knew what had happened.

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“I should have known better. If we hadn't gone off to check on the village…”

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The miko's dark eyes settled on her husband as he spoke. His gaze practically burned a hole into the ground near his feet; his hands balled into tight fists.

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“Oi, how the hell were you supposed to know this was `gonna happen?” Shippo snorted indignantly, his arms crossed over his chest. Kagome could not help but notice he sported a very Inu Yasha-like pose at the moment.

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The dog demon shot the boy a glare, some self-depreciating retort already beginning to form on his lips until Kagome piped up.

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“He's right. How could we have known it was a set-up?”

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“I-I don't know!” Frustrated, the hanyou raked a claw through his silver-white hair. “We should have stayed behind. We could have stopped this from happening!”

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“…and ignored a defenseless village?” She added; her voice rose in volume to match his. “If there had been anyone there to save it would have been worth it but we just didn't know.”

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“Yuriko and Kimiko should be with their family, Kagome! They should be safe.” He emphasized his point by jerking a claw in the direction of their huddled friends.

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“I know and I understand but it doesn't change what happened. We can't go back and change things now. I wish we could… but… at least, there's something we can do now.”

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Shippo looked between the two of them, completely lost. “Um… I think I missed something here. You couldn't find Yuriko and Kimiko?”

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Growing more furious by the second the hanyou snapped out, “The little bastard that caused all this to happen is “interested” in Kagome. He wants to talk to her.”

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The kitsune scratched the back of his head, not quite sure what his statement meant but also aware he was in dangerous territory with the volatile half demon, “…So?”

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“So? What do you mean “so”? It's obviously some sort of trap to snatch her away!”

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“Now wait just a second we don't know if it's a trap!” Kagome shouted back, shifting into a stance that implied she was readying a `sit'. Shippo took a step away from Inu Yasha in response.

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A polite cough from behind caused them to turn their attention to the sound, evidently from Miroku standing just a few steps away.

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“Let's not argue about this here in front of the entire village… Everyone's tired and edgy and you're starting to make a scene.” He motioned towards a small crowd of onlookers casting worried looks in their direction before continuing. “Lady Kagome, with Lady Kaede…” The monk hesitated a moment “…gone... Edo will need another miko to lead the village. Someone needs to explain to the villagers what has happened and about our new guests.”

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Kagome sighed; then took several deep, calming breaths to regain her composure. Miroku was right. The discussion would have to wait for the moment. The villagers needed someone to guide them and ease their minds and the women from the other attacked villages had to be dealt with as well.

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“He's right,” She said it mostly to Inu Yasha, eyeing him carefully, “Let me see to everyone and then we'll all sit down and talk about this. Shippo, Miroku, gather everyone at the shrine.”

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They nodded an affirmative and trotted off in opposite directions. The miko sighed again and looked down at her feet. Were it not for his great hearing he might have missed her whispered request.

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“Will you… stand up there with me? I know you don't like the attention but… I'm not sure I'll be able to look as calm as Kaede without you there…”

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His indignation was quickly pushed aside. In that moment he realized she had been shouldered with a heavy burden he had never wished upon her: She had a village to see to. He could stay back and guard her from afar, like he had with Kikyo, or he could man-up and stand with her and openly support her.

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This time, the decision came easy. In a swift move he wrapped her up in a tight bear-hug and kissed the side of her head. “Idiot, you didn't need to ask. Of course I'll stand with you.”

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She was initially surprised by his sudden embrace, and it took her a few more seconds to realize he had agreed to stand with her. When his words finally fell into place in her head she smiled and buried her face in warm spot between his neck and shoulder. She could hear his voice rumbling in his chest when he added, “Just don't expect me to give any fancy speeches. That ain't my thing.”

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Her soft laugh came out muffled through the folds of his haori, “I won't. I promise.”

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