InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ In Deep Woods ❯ Chapter 13

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

In Deep Woods, 13:


Shippo ran into Koga accidentally on purpose, and mentioned Megumi’s new boyfriend.  Koga, naturally, mentioned it to his wife when he got home, and Ayame told Mayumi.

Mayumi immediately hopped a plane for the States.  She and her husband had been staying up in northern Canada with Koga’s wolves, but Dai had left a week ago on business.  Koga just happened to be in Quebec when Shippo stumbled upon him, while supposedly on vacation.  For some reason, he cut his vacation short after he talked to Koga, and was back on Inuyasha’s mountain by the time Mayumi arrived.

“Where are they?” Mayumi asked, as Shippo carried her bags into the guest room, her old bedroom.

Shippo rolled his eyes.  “They’re always off somewhere—together.  Tarec doesn’t stay at the house very often, and Megumi caters to him.  They’ll be back.  Your brother was here recently with Misty.  They all took off for a run, except poor Misty.  When they came back, they didn’t stay long.  That’s what I mean—I don’t trust the guy.  Something’s going on.”

“Tarec?  That’s his name?  He’s wolf youkai?”  Megumi sifted through the residual smells in the house, but she couldn’t pinpoint anything in particular.  No one had been home in a couple of days, it seemed.

“So he says,” replied Shippo.

“But Megumi likes him.”  Inwardly, Mayumi breathed a sigh of relief.  Megumi was so fragile.  If she had finally found someone she truly loved, then Mayumi would be happy for her daughter, no matter how much Shippo or anyone else disliked the youkai.  “He hasn’t hurt her in any way, has he?”

“No, no of course not,” Shippo said.  “I’m probably just being overprotective.  Kazuki obviously got along with him.”

“Maybe I should give Kazuki a call,” Mayumi said.  She flipped open her holo-phone and said ‘Kazuki’ into it.  A tiny image of her brother, with his distinctive cropped white hair, appeared in the air above the phone.

‘What’s up?’ he asked.  ‘Mayumi?  Where are you?  Are you at Dad’s house?’

“Yes, I was looking for Megumi and her new boyfriend, but they’re not here.  Kazuki, should I be worried?  Shippo seems to think he’s not right for our Megumi.”

‘Wait a sec.  I’ll be right there.’

The holo winked out, and before Mayumi had time to put her phone away, Kazuki stood in front of her, in the flesh.

“You’re traveling in between again,” Mayumi said, looking at him in confusion.  “Why?”  She got a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.  What was so wrong that Kazuki would use the method of travel he had sworn never to use again after Sachi died?

“You’d better sit down.  I have a lot to tell you.”  Kazuki glared at Shippo, who made no move to leave the room.  “You might as well listen, too.  I didn’t want to tell you this until later, but someone jumped the gun.  First of all, Megumi is fine.  She really loves this guy, and he seems to really care for her too.  But he comes with some baggage you’re not going to like.”

“What do you mean ‘baggage?’  Mayumi’s eyes narrowed.

“I can’t explain it better.  Fenn said to give him a week before we make any rash judgments.”

Shippo snorted derisively.  “Yeah, that’s a stellar reference if Fenn is vouching for the guy.”

Kazuki sighed.  “You’re going to find out sooner or later.   Fenn let Trace out of his prison.  Trace came to find Megumi.  She remembers everything.  They say they love each other.”

“What!”  Megumi came to her feet with Shippo right beside her, both exuding outrage.

“I knew there was something wrong with that guy!” Shippo said.  “And I’m not surprised Fenn is at the bottom of it.  I never trusted him, never!”

“Mom knows,” Kazuki said quietly, anticipating Mayumi’s next question.  “She’s waiting the week too to see what he does with his freedom.”

“And in the meantime, if he harms Megumi, or anyone else for that matter, what will Mother say?  What will you tell yourself when it’s too late?”  Mayumi covered her face with her hands.  “Kazuki, how could you?  You know what he did to us.”

“I’m not making any excuses for him.  I’ve agreed to give him time, for Megumi’s sake and because Fenn asked it.  Fenn has always been straight with us.  Mom called me after she figured it out, and we had a long talk.  Fenn’s there, with Mom, taking Trace’s place.  Nobody else except us knows about it yet.”

“I want to see Fenn.”  Megumi folded her arms.  “And then I want to see Megumi.  I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready to see Trace again.”

“Go.  You know where he is.  He’s weak.  He won’t be able to harm you.”

Mayumi’s eyes widened at the thought of Fenn harming her.  Fenn was one of the good guys.  It was Trace she needed to worry about.  Wasn’t it?  Shaking her head, she disappeared, leaving Kazuki and Shippo behind.

“I really wish you hadn’t done that,” Kazuki remarked to Shippo.  “I was going to give Trace to the end of the week before I decided whether or not to kill him.  Now, you put me in the position of having to defend him.  I don’t like being in that position.”

“Then why don’t you just kill him and be done with it?” Shippo asked.

“Because what if we’re wrong?  What if he really has changed?  How can I justify taking away the only person who can make Megumi happy?”

Shippo didn’t reply.  In his lifetime, he’d seen too many people change due to circumstances, not always for the better.  But sometimes, sometimes it happened.  “I’m sorry I didn’t ask you first before I contacted the wolves,” he muttered.  “Where is Megumi anyway?”

“Here.”

Shippo’s ears rang as Megumi, along with Trace, popped in.

“What are you doing here, Uncle Shippo?  Uncle Kazuki?”  Megumi sniffed.  “Was Mama here?”

“She just left, but she’ll be back.”  Kazuki looked at Trace.  “I told her about you.”

“Uncle, Trace didn’t kill Sachi.  He brought me back.  He showed me.  He didn’t do it!”

Trace winced at the sincerity in Megumi’s voice, and looked away as Kazuki stared at him.  “You saw her?” Kazuki whispered.  “Before she—died?”

“Just before.”  Trace spoke quietly.

“She was asking for you,” Megumi added.  “She didn’t see us.  We left right before you got there, but before we did, I was able to see.  Trace wasn’t there—the first time—you have to believe me.  Trace did not drain Sachi’s life force.”

“I believe you.”  Kazuki blinked back tears, and Trace finally met his gaze.  “Thank you, for telling me the truth.”

“We don’t have much time.  Are you sure you want to do this?”  Trace turned his purple eyes on Megumi.  “I can leave.”

Shippo blurted out, “You’re Tarec!  I mean Trace!”

Trace smiled unpleasantly.  “Took you long enough, kitsune.  I thought you were supposed to be the master of disguises.”

Shippo clenched his fists just as Megumi laid her palm on Trace’s chest.  “Enough,” she said.  “I want you to stay.  We can do this together.”

Just then Mayumi popped back in.  “I saw Fenn,” she began, trailing off as she saw Megumi and Trace.  “You, get away from my daughter.”

Trace threw his hands up in the air and stepped back.

“No, Mama.”  Megumi grabbed Trace’s arm and pulled him back beside her.  “Where Trace goes, I go.”

“Megumi, you don’t know what you’re saying.  You don’t know what he’s done!”

“I have a pretty good idea.  Trace told me.  All of it.”

“And still you want to stay with him?”

“Yes.”  Megumi put her arm around Trace’s waist, and he wrapped his over her shoulders, still not saying anything.  He watched Mayumi warily.

“You.  You tell me why you think you deserve to be anywhere near my daughter.  I know what Fenn told me.  I want to hear what you have to say?”

“How is Fenn?” asked Trace, his voice dripping with honey.  “I don’t know what he told you, and I don’t care.  He’s a fool for trapping himself in that cave.  I’m free now and I’ll never go back there.  As to whether or not I deserve Megumi, it doesn’t matter.  She wants me anyway.  I plan to let her have what she wants.  So there it is.”

“Mama, I remember all of it now.  Fenn took away the block on my memories and I remember what you did to me, what you all did to me.  Didn’t you think I had a mind of my own?  Did you really think I was that stupid, that I wouldn’t understand?  You should have given me the chance to talk to Trace.  Maybe we could have avoided all those centuries of unhappiness.”

She meant Trace’s unhappiness, but Mayumi realized she was really talking about her own.  “I was trying to protect you,” she said in her own defense.  “I wanted you to be happy.”

“Trace makes me happy,” Megumi said simply, but her eyes blazed with a passion that had been missing for the last five hundred years.

Mayumi swallowed, her throat tight.  She moved towards her daughter, but stopped as Trace’s arms tightened around her.  “So what’s next?” she asked, her voice rough.  “We just go on, one big happy family?”

“Why can’t we?” Megumi asked.  “Trace is willing to try, if you are.”

Trace’s mocking expression said otherwise, but Mayumi had learned long ago not to believe anything the energy-drinking youkai said.   It made sense that the same held true now.  He wore his anger like a cloak to protect himself from harm.  She remembered, shortly after his captivity, a very subdued Trace in his prison cave holding holos of her family, especially Megumi, and playing them over and over again until they no longer functioned.

“Don’t think you know me,” Trace warned.

Mayumi started.  She’d forgotten that aspect of his power.  Fenn had it too, but he didn’t flaunt it like Trace did.  Trace gave her a sardonic smile.

“Kazuki?”  Mayumi turned to her brother.  “You’re okay with all this?”

Kazuki flicked his ears, which were very apparent on top of his head.  “I have a very smart wife,” he said, “who told me that it’s very human to feel angry, or jealous, or unhappy.  She said we’re lucky to be able to experience those emotions.  Trace pretty obviously displays those emotions, so yeah, I’m okay with it.”

Trace slowly straightened up, his face blanking out in startlement.  Megumi smiled widely and hugged him.  “See?  I told you things would work out.”

Mayumi bit her lip, and didn’t say what she had been about to say, that Trace had picked the worst of human emotions and made them his own, to the detriment of all those around him.  If Megumi was this happy, she would force herself to look the other way.  But just let Trace slip up one time, just once, and she’d . . . .

The front door burst open and a whirlwind of wolf youkai launched itself at Trace, ripping him away from Megumi.  Dai growled, jaws on his enemy’s throat, while Megumi let out one despairing scream.  Trace made no attempt to move away from Dai’s punishing jaws.  It took Kazuki, Mayumi and Megumi together to pull the vengeful wolf off of him.

“Why did you stop me?” Dai questioned, staring balefully at his prey across the room.  Trace sat on the floor, bleeding from the wound on his neck, while Megumi hesitated, halfway between her father and her lover.  “This—creature—tried to kill me when I was a baby, and again, several times, when I was older.  He hurt Mayumi, he hurt you, Megumi.  He tore us apart and nearly cost us our baby.  Why are you protecting him?”

Trace, on the floor with blood which he didn’t even try to staunch, although he could have, easily, chuckled.  Of all the youkai he had thought would come after him, Daichi of the wolf clan was one he had never even considered.  “I didn’t try to kill you,” he said, still chuckling softly.  “I used you, to get to Inuyasha or Mayumi later on, but I never actually tried to kill you.  Or you would be dead.”

Mayumi came to Trace’s defense.  “Dai, Trace was the one who told me there was something wrong with my baby.  He didn’t cause it.  If he had never told me, I would never have come back and Asuka would have died.  We can’t blame him for that.”  In her mind, Mayumi did blame Trace for telling her only to hurt her.  Trace caught the thought, and flushed.  Of that, he was truly guilty.  Saving the babe had been a side effect.

Daichi, never a hot-headed youkai to begin with, slumped down.  “You can let go of me now,” he said to Kazuki and Mayumi, who each held on to one of his arms.  “I won’t kill him just yet.”

“Then we’re all agreed,” Kazuki said.  “Trace gets to live a little longer, until we’re sure we can trust him.”  He eyed the bleeding youkai.  “If you think we gave you a hard time, just wait.  We’re easy.  It’s my father you’ll have to convince, if you want to stay alive.”

Trace mumbled beneath his breath, knowing very well that each youkai in the room could hear him perfectly.  “I told you, I can’t die.”  But even he didn’t completely believe it anymore.




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