InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Hagakure ❯ Homecoming ( Chapter 6 )

Disclaimer: I don't own Inu-Yasha or any of its characters. I simply abuse them for my own twisted means of amusement.

Just to let you know, my OCs for this chapter don't really play an important role. The only one I think might make another appearance is Aki… Even then, she won't be very important.

Netiri: I've decided to keep Kouga! [smiles toothily] I like the bath part…

Kouga: [growl] I'll kill you in your sleep…

Netiri: n__n

Raven: …the girl is obsessed with yaoi-like situations…¬ .¬ V;;;

Netiri: this is more of a filler chappy…just to let ya know…

- - - - - -

Homecoming

- - - - - -

Kouga eyed the now cleaned up Shiro after he came from the springs with his mate. The dog looked very familiar to him somehow…

"Who are you?" Kouga asked with a slight growl.

"I am Shiro, Lord of the Eastern Lands. Who might you be, wolf?"

"I am Kouga, Prince of the wolves."

"I thought I recognized your scent." Shiro said with a smirk. "You inhabit my lands with that mangy pack of yours."

"I'll give you mangy…" Kouga threatened as he flexed his claws.

"Shiro!" Hagakure scolded her mate. "He helped me and this is how you repay him?!"

Shiro looked at her with mild shock as did Kouga.

"And you," she growled, turning to the prince, "you dare to challenge my mate?! An indirect challenge to me?!"

"N-no!" Kouga stuttered, withering under the demoness's gaze.

Inu-Yasha watched the scene highly amused. It was pretty damn near exactly what Kagome, Kouga, and Inu-Yasha went through every time they met; only there was the noticeable absence of someone being 'sat'. Hagakure seemed to be filling in as Kagome as of now and Shiro was filling in for Inu-Yasha.

"Kure is right…" Shiro grunted. "You have helped her and I must repay you. You and your pack are permitted to stay on my lands."

"Like I need permission to stay in my home!" Kouga huffed.

Shiro ignored Kouga because of the pointed glare Hagakure gave him and walked over to her in order to avoid trouble. She handed him his pups; he now held his son and daughter for the first time.

"They're so small…" he said quietly to his mate and he took a clawed finger and delicately traced Misoka's velvety soft ear.

Hagakure scoffed.

"They sure didn't feel that way coming out!"

Kagome and Sango chuckled at this statement, leaving Shippo and Hakaki looking very confused.

"Kagome," Shippo began.

"Where do babies come from?" Hakaki asked.

"And why does it hurt?" Shippo finished.

Both kits looked at her with dewy, innocent eyes.

Sango had a very twisted expression, looking like she could cross the very thin, almost non-existent line between highly amused and extremely embarrassed at any time. Shiro and Hagakure held blank expressions and were looking at each other with innocent eyes. Inu-Yasha and Kouga looked like they were going to laugh themselves a hole in the ground at the expression on Kagome's face (Inu-Yasha really could have if he pissed Kagome off enough). Then both Kouga and Inu-Yasha realized they were laughing and enjoying the same thing, stopped, looked at each other growling, and turned away with a huff crossing their arms.

"A fine question indeed!" Miroku announced, looking very excited to be giving a follow-up lesson to the kits.

"You shut up!" Sango shouted at Miroku; the threat of the Hiriakotsu loomed in the air.

"I just wished to enlighten the children further on the- " Miroku started.

"You shouldn't be enlightening ANYONE; especially children, Miroku!" Sango shouted at him.

"But I- "

"NO!" both Sango and Kagome shouted finally.

Miroku pouted.

Kouga and Inu-Yasha couldn't help it any more. It didn't matter that they hated each other and the thought of enjoying the same thing disgusted them; everybody's face was just so damn funny! The wolf and dog were rolling on the ground, clutching their sides in laughter.

Kagome saw this as a way out.

"Oh, so YOU TWO want to explain it to them!" she shrieked.

Inu-Yasha and Kouga stopped their seemingly endless bout of laughter instantly; it was like Kagome had pushed a button.

"Well? You two think it's so funny so you wouldn't be embarrassed to explain it, now would you?!"

Kouga gulped and looked at Inu-Yasha. Inu-Yasha returned the gesture.

"Kagome…" they both started to plead.

"No!" Kagome interrupted abruptly.

Kouga looked frantically at Miroku for some help; the monk just smirked and took a position beside Sango to watch. Inu-Yasha implored for the monk's help but got the same smirk as a response.

"Go ahead." Sango prodded.

Hagakure and Shiro gave each other a look before turning back to their pups, but not before Shiro snuck a smirk at Kouga as if to say 'better you than me'.

- - - -

"That was fairly painless." Miroku joked to Kouga and Inu-Yasha.

Kouga and Inu-Yasha had just bumbled over where babies came from to Shippo and Hakaki. The others had been extremely amused, especially when the kits had asked how the babies got into the mother in the first place. Kagome had been in tears of mirth during the entire thing, just like everybody else- except Shiro, who just smirked in a Lordly way.

"Speak for yourself." Kouga grunted.

"Feh!"

"Its your fault, Inu-Yasha." Kouga growled.

"My fault?!" Inu-Yasha shouted. "Its your fault! And why the hell are you still following us?! Shouldn't you be leading your wimpy pack, or something like that?"

Kouga snorted.

"My pack will be fine for a few days without me. Besides, I want to make sure you don't try anything with my woman."

"I don't recall Kagome saying yes to anything, wolf cub." Inu-Yasha growled.

"And he says he doesn't think of her as his mate…" Hagakure muttered to her son, shaking her head; she was referring to the way Inu-Yasha was so obviously jealous of Kouga.

Miroku shoved the two feuding canines apart and walked between them.

"If you're going to walk with us Kouga, you have to get along better with Inu-Yasha."

Shiro shook his head as his daughter sucked on his finger.

"You two are pathetic; fighting like pups..."

Kouga and Inu-Yasha snorted and looked away from each other. Kagome sighed and shook her head.

"Where are we going?" she asked to change the subject.

"To my castle." Shiro replied. "I must acquire some new clothing. You are all welcome to stay for the night." He bit his tongue against the urge to say "except you, mangy wolf" for fear of his mate's wrath, which she would have brought upon him without a second thought.

Kagome smiled at the prospect of having a nice bed to sleep in.

"Wait…" Sango mused. "I thought you said that you lived near Kyoto, Hagakure."

"We do." Hagakure confirmed as she shifted the napping Nozomu in her arms.

"How are we going to get there so fast?" Miroku asked. "Only Kouga and maybe Inu-Yasha could run all the way there. And Kirara can't carry us all."

"I will transport us once we enter my lands." Shiro answered, cutting off Inu-Yasha's indignant comment about why it was only 'maybe' he could run all the way.

- - - -

As he said, Shiro transported them to the gates of his massive castle once he entered his domain.

"Wow." Shippo said with big eyes. "I've never been to a castle before!"

"You mean a castle where we're not getting attacked, Shippo," Miroku reminded the kit that sat on his shoulder.

Sango growled at the memory of Naraku's castle.

The elaborate gates opened and a very obedient looking demon with ocean blue eyes, dressed in Shiro's black and white livery stood there.

"Hello, Master. Mistress." he greeted extremely politely with a low bow. His braided blue hair fell down to the ground.

"Thank you, Tsunami." Shiro said with an air of 'I don't really need to do this, but I feel like it.'

A giggling demoness- a neko, Kouga observed- came to the gates. She had midnight black hair and smoky gray eyes and was also dressed in Shiro's livery.

"Hello, Lady Hagakure!" she greeted enthusiastically; without a bow. "Hi there, Lord Shiro!"

Shiro resisted the undeniably strong urge to roll his eyes at the neko as did Tsunami.

"Aki-san!" Hakaki greeted joyfully as he jumped from his perch on one of Miroku's shoulders to the neko in question.

"Hakaki-chan!" the neko known as Aki replied joyously as she caught Hakaki. "You have been well- OH! You've had your pups, Milady!" she cut herself off, spying the additions. "And you have brought friends! Hello, I'm Aki, Hakaki's attendant and general overseer of the servants."

"Hello." Kagome and Sango greeted politely.

"Hello, Lady Aki." Miroku greeted, taking Aki's hands in his. "Would you do me the honor of bearing my- "

"Don't touch me!" Aki growled as she sent Miroku flying.

Sango watched in amusement as Miroku landed with an audible thud inside the palace gates.

"Wow…" Kouga said, looking over Hagakure's shoulder to see better and ignoring the barely there warning growl Shiro gave.

"He didn't even finish…" Inu-Yasha observed.

Kagome nodded in agreement.

"Good job." Sango congratulated the neko.

"She doesn't like men very much…" Hagakure said in startled exasperation.

"Aki, a suggestion," Tsunami stated, putting his hand on the fuming neko's shoulder. "Why don't you let the master and mistress inside? They have had a rough journey, by the looks of it."

"Stupid me!" Aki exclaimed, smacking her forehead and shrugging Tsunami's hand away. "Please hurry inside! I'll have the maids draw baths for everyone and we'll start dinner. Would you like to help me, Hakaki-chan?"

Hakaki smiled. "If Shippo-chan can too!"

Aki smiled down at Hakaki.

"Would Shippo-chan like to come as well?" she asked, looking at Kagome.

Kagome looked at Shippo, who had jumped to her shoulder shortly before Miroku went flying for safety reasons.

"Can I?" he asked with dewy eyes.

"Go ahead, Shippo." Kagome said with a smile.

Shippo smiled and squealed just about every happy noise a baby kitsune could make before joining Hakaki with Aki and leading the way inside.

- - - -

The boys were waiting in a separate room from the girls; Hagakure had taken them somewhere with her. Shiro had gone off to his chambers, presumably to get ready for his own bath.

"Your baths are ready," a demoness announced to Miroku, Inu-Yasha, and Kouga after she slid open the door. "I will lead you there, my Lords."

- -

"Did anybody else hear her say 'baths'?" Inu-Yasha asked after the demoness led them to one large communal bath and left them. "You know, the plural?"

"I did." Miroku squeaked, staring at the single pool of warm water as if it was going to eat him alive.

"What?" Kouga asked as he began undressing, "You boys scared? You ain't got nothing I haven't seen before. Not like I'm gonna look, anyway…I'd much rather see Kagome, thank you very much…"

"I'm not scared!" Inu-Yasha growled, while beginning to untie his haori just to prove his point.

"We simply prefer to bathe alone." Miroku added as he fumbled around with his own robes.

"Whatever you say…" Kouga muttered as he finished undressing and stepped into the pool. He sighed contently as he sank in. "Its warm…"

Miroku and Inu-Yasha exchanged glances before blushing madly and turning away from each other to finish undressing. Miroku finished first and hurriedly got into the water.

"It is warm…" he said, sinking to his ears.

Inu-Yasha grumbled incoherent phrases and just finished untying his hakama's belt and dropping it to the floor when the door opened. A demoness stepped inside and gathered up their clothes, not even blinking at Inu-Yasha's naked form as she lifted each of his legs to gather his hakama that was still gathered around his feet. She laid out three separate sets of clothes before retreating with the boys'- presumably taking them to be washed.

Inu-Yasha stood, in all his naked glory, with his mouth wide open. Kouga swam to the edge nearest Inu-Yasha.

"You know," he mocked, "I heard that's a really good way to catch flies."

Inu-Yasha snapped out of his stupor. He turned to face the smirking wolf before his brain went to action. As a result, Kouga got a view he really didn't want that left very little to the imagination before his brain kicked in and made him close his eyes. Very tightly, I might add.

"My eyes!" Kouga wailed. "My poor, poor eyes!"

Inu-Yasha smirked.

- - - -

"Did you hear that?" Sango asked; she was referring to Kouga's wail that was currently echoing off the halls of the palace.

"Yupp…" Kagome sighed.

"Do you think it has to do with Inu-Yasha and Kouga?"

"Yupp…"

"Aren't you the least bit worried?"

"Nope…"

Hagakure laughed. "Faith in her mate…"

"My/her what?!" both girls shouted at the same time.

"I fear I have said too much…" Hagakure said with a nervous giggle.

- - - -

"That was truly cruel, Inu-Yasha." Miroku told him while glancing at the permanently emotionally scarred Kouga that was scrubbing away at his eyes. "Utterly and undeniably wrong."

Inu-Yasha smirked and sank lower into the water.

"Paybacks are hell." he stated simply.

Kouga whimpered quietly but pathetically as he splashed his eyes with water in renewed vigor as if trying to wash the permanently inscribed image of the naked Inu-Yasha standing before him away.

"Well, I don't know about you two," Miroku said as he moved himself over towards the edge of the bath, "but I'm quite finished here."

Miroku got out and dried himself with a towel before eyeing the clothing left to them by the demoness that had come in earlier. It had the crest of Lord Shiro on it- a sleeping white dog- and it appeared to be made of very fine cloth. He ran an appreciative hand over the livery and found the black and white material comfortably soft.

"Miroku," Inu-Yasha grunted, "while you may be perfectly content to stand there nude all day, I- and I'm sure Kouga- are not willing to sit here and wait for your sorry ass to get dressed."

Miroku shook his head and got dressed then waited as the others did the same thing, careful not to give a repeat performance of earlier.

"What do we do now?" Kouga asked as he shifted uncomfortably in the unfamiliar clothing. "I mean, we can't exactly wander around the palace…"

Suddenly, Aki came in the bath doors with Shippo and Hakaki riding on her shoulders.

"Gah! Haven't you people heard of knocking?!" Kouga shouted exasperatedly as he took a few surprised steps back, nearly landing himself in the water.

"I thought you'd be done by now." she stated with a sly smile at the wolf.

Kouga saw the smile that was directed at him solely. His instincts were instantly telling him that something would go dreadfully wrong if he were left alone with her for more than three minutes. There was just something about the way her eyes glittered at him and her fangs poked out that made him uneasy. No one else seemed to notice it though, so he ignored it for the moment.

"Why are Kouga's eyes so puffy?" Shippo asked innocently.

Before Inu-Yasha could proverbially 'kill' the emotionally damaged wolf with further embarrassment, Miroku cut in.

"He was washing his face and some soap got in his eyes."

Kouga gave a gruff nod and gave himself a mental note to thank the monk later.

"Soap in your eye hurts," Hakaki said with a grimace. "I know."

"Well," Aki interrupted brightly, "unless one of you boys wants to be drowned by your female companions for sticking around while they take their baths, I suggest that we disappear for the time being."

Aki turned and began to lead the way out; she shortly noticed that one of the boys wasn't following her. She turned on her heal to retrieve the straggler.

"I wasn't giving you the option, man whore," she purred viciously while she yanked Miroku's ear to get him to follow. "Understand?"

"Yes, Ma'am!" Miroku yiped as he was dragged.

The others shook their heads in disgust as they began to follow again.

- - - -

Sango and Kagome slipped into the bath. Unlike their male friends, they really didn't have a problem with bathing together; they thought of it as 'girl time' that was- supposed to be, at least- uninterrupted by the boys.

"I wonder what had Kouga wailing so much…" Sango said absently as she washed herself.

"He was saying something about his eyes," Kagome mused.

"His 'poor, poor eyes'!" both girls mocked as they dissolved into a fit of giggles.

"I'll bet anything it had to do with him seeing more than he wanted to." Sango laughed. "Like Inu-Yasha."

"Or Miroku!" Kagome added, a slight blush gracing her cheeks as she thought of the meaning of that.

Sango visibly stiffened as a powerful blush made its presence known on her face.

"Um…I think I'm done, Kagome," Sango said, rising out of the water. "I'm getting too warm."

"Me too," Kagome agreed, getting out as well.

- - - -

Kouga watched the neko watching him while she babysat the kits. Her smoky eyes were following his every move, right down to the last tail twitch. She was incredibly unnerving.

"She's watching me…" Kouga commented to Miroku out of the corner of his mouth.

If he was looking for sympathy on this particular situation, than that wasn't exactly the best place to go…

"She is…" Miroku sighed as he observed what the wolf was talking about. "Why do none of the women we come across like me?"

"Its because you try too hard, you letch," Inu-Yasha grunted as he flopped down next to Miroku, having heard the entire conversation with his keen youkai ears. "Shiro said he'd send somebody to get us when the food was ready. I guess he wants to have some big meal so he can explain what's going on."

"Milord does tend to get elaborate when it comes to explaining things." Aki commented as her eyes continued to hungrily watch the wolf prince.

Kouga shifted uncomfortably under her gaze. He was in a strange house, in strange clothes, and a strange neko was watching him like he was the most splendid thing in the world (not to say that he wasn't, but he was trying to make a point to himself).

A demon entered the room where Aki was currently watching the boys.

"Gentlemen, the food is ready."

- - - -

The boys eyed the elaborate spread of various traditional and exotic foods that made their presence known on the dining table.

"Hi, boys," Kagome greeted enthusiastically from her spot next to Hagakure.

Shiro, being Lord of the household, sat at the respected head of the table. Hagakure, being his mate, sat on his right. Sango sat next to Kagome. There were empty spaces on Shiro's left for the boys to fill.

"Please," Shiro beckoned them, "sit down."

Aki bowed respectfully after she returned Shippo and Hakaki to their adoptive mothers. Then she left.

"Its really, really, big in here, Kagome!" Shippo told her from her lap as he made an expansive gesture with his hands.

"I know, Shippo," Kagome smiled.

"Aki-san showed us lots of things before we went and got them from the bath." Shippo stated, motioning towards the boys.

"We had lots of fun!" Hakaki smiled.

Hagakure patted him on the head.

"Where are Misoka and Nozomu?" Miroku asked after noting the infants' absence.

"They are in the care of one of my most trusted servants," Hagakure assured everybody. "Now, before this food gets cold let's eat!"

After eating an amount of food, Kouga decided to see if he could get a reaction out of Shiro by mentioning Aki.

"You know," he drawled, "I noticed Aki watching me very intently. Does she normally do that to your guests?"

Shiro chuckled lightly.

"Aki is a very selective neko and it's very hard to get her to trust you. If you didn't notice at the gates, she didn't bow to either of us and she recognized Hagakure first, rather than me." Shiro explained. "While she respects me, she doesn't care for me in the least; she much prefers Kure and Hakaki and normally despises men."

"She just has a dominance problem." Hagakure defended.

"If you call nearly biting your cousin on the hand when he tried to get a look at her, then yes, I'd have to agree." Shiro scoffed.

"She's wining points from me…" Inu-Yasha said under his breath, earning a nudge from Miroku. "Its true…"

"Sesshomaru had no right to handle her face in such a manor. I'd have done the same thing." Hagakure argued.

"She neither likes or respects him; she shows that openly and that is dangerous." Shiro said in a low tone.

"I neither like or respect him, and you've said nothing to me, love." Hagakure added the endearment with a hint of a challenge.

"Any matter," Shiro continued, giving up on the challenge his mate had issued him, "if she's been watching you as you claim, I'd say she's acquired a sudden taste in men. A questionable taste, but at least it keeps me from wondering what she does with those females she's always around at night."

"Shiro!" Hagakure yelped as she flung a piece of sushi at his head.

- - - - - - - -

[A/N:] In the beginning [God said: "let there be light!"…Okay...bad joke…] when I was first thinking about Shiro's character, I had him not liking Inu-Yasha much. I thought Inu would be the only one that could manage not being liked with me still having to keep Shiro and Kure around because of Inu's connection to her. Then, when I started working with Shiro, I decided that I didn't need somebody else barking at poor Inu; here enters Kouga. He does a good deed and is repaid with…getting disliked. But its okay, cause I love you, Kouga!

Kouga: yahoo…I'm so lucky…

Next Chapter: The Demon's Mind

"Smart little brat." Inu-Yasha commented as the foreseen screaming erupted. "She already knows how to get her way."

Hagakure laughed and left, going in the direction of the house and her screaming infant.

"It's a good thing she's a Lord's daughter." Kouga said seriously. "Otherwise, she'd have attracted all kinds of predators. Only quiet pups survive."

Shiro sent him a warning glare.

"Are you insinuating that my pup wouldn't survive?" he growled.

Raven: ¬ .¬ Review…

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