InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Purity 2: Defiance ❯ Truth and Illusions ( Chapter 15 )

~~Chapter 15~~

~Truth and Illusions~

 

~*~

 

 

Sierra turned off the hair dryer and frowned as she tilted her head to listen. The soft knock came again, and she grinned as she yanked open the bathroom door and ran to admit her visitor. `Toga . . . you're early . . .'

 

Swinging open the door with a bright smile, Sierra's greeting died on her lips as her smile faded, and she stepped back in retreat.

 

“Crawford-san . . . may I?”

 

Unable to find her voice, she nodded and held the door open wider to admit Sesshoumaru Inutaisho. Dressed in normal attire—a very expensive looking suit—Sierra still didn't find him any less intimidating than she had the first time they'd met. She tried not to show her reluctance as she closed the door but couldn't hide her trembling hands, and she just knew that he saw them, too.

 

“Thank you for letting me attend the wedding. It was really lovely,” Sierra commented, unsure what else she could say. `Why is he . . . here . . .?'

 

“I did not come here to exchange pleasantries, Crawford-san,” he stated as he passed her. She couldn't help but notice the way his eyes darted around the room though he never turned his head. She'd seen Toga do that before, hadn't she? “I will not waste your time.”

 

Swallowing down a swell of trepidation so thick that it threatened to choke her, Sierra nodded once and concentrated on hiding the hesitation that she couldn't help but feel. “All right . . .”

 

The man's presence seemed to envelop the modest hotel room, and she had to wonder if he'd learned the art of intimidation somewhere or if it just came naturally . . . “It has come to my attention that my son has been a bit . . . lax . . . in explaining certain things that you ought to . . . know,” Sesshoumaru remarked as he slowly crossed the floor and turned to pin her with his cold gaze.

 

“Then maybe he should be telling me whatever it is you're going to say,” she managed though her voice wasn't nearly as strong as she would have liked. Mustering her waning bravado, she checked her watch before crossing her arms over her stomach. “He is coming to go with me to dinner, and he said he had some things he wanted to tell me then.”

 

“Toga will not be coming,” Sesshoumaru assured her, flicking a nonexistent bit of fuzz off his immaculate suit sleeve. “He's having dinner with an old friend. I believe you saw her? His fiancée, Fujiko-san.”

 

She shook her head slowly as her mouth went dry, as her hands broke out in a cold sweat. A crazy feeling, as though the floor had opened up beneath her, made her stomach lurch unpleasantly as a bitter stabbing pain erupted in her chest. “His . . . what? But . . . but he said they only dated—that they weren't together anymore . . .”

 

Sesshoumaru flicked his wrist as though her words meant nothing to him. “It matters little what he says to the likes of you, just as what he wants matters not. He will mate her, and you will be nothing to him.”

 

Stubbornly clinging to the denial, to the abject disbelief of Sesshoumaru's claims, Sierra swallowed hard, shook her head adamantly. “You can't tell him what to do . . . you can't make him marry someone he doesn't want to be with . . .”

 

Sesshoumaru's cold chuckle made her wince inwardly, grating on her frayed nerves like ice breaking apart on the waters of Lake Michigan in the winter. “I am the tai-youkai—the Inu no Taisho. Toga will inherit the duties and responsibilities of the tai-youkai after me. I assure you, he will do what is expected of him.”

 

Gripping her temples between her fingertips and rubbing furiously, Sierra could feel her belief faltering. “What kind of archaic nonsense is that? People don't marry someone they don't love . . . and you can't honestly expect Toga to do that, either.”

 

She could feel his eyes boring into her head, could sense him as he sought to invade her mind. A pain erupted behind her temples—a dull ache that made her chest constrict, that drew a hotness to her eyes that she willed back with a vengeance. Sesshoumaru uttered a terse sound—not quite a growl. “What I can expect is for him to do what is required. He may not mate your kind, and he knows this.”

 

His statement caught her off guard, and she blinked then narrowed her eyes as she stared at him in a sick kind of warped fascination. “My kind? What does that mean?”

 

His eyes widened in mock surprise before narrowing again as he sized her up. “What, indeed? I mean humans, you naïve girl. Did my son forget to mention this? He is youkai. He will mate a youkai.”

 

Sierra shook her head slowly as her expression registered her confusion. “Youkai? I don't know what you're talking about.”

 

Instead of answering, Sesshoumaru slowly, deliberately lifted his hand before his face. As he brought his hand down, Sierra gasped, shaking her head at the smudges of color that traversed his cheeks, at the deep blue crescent moon on his forehead. Before her eyes, his hair grew long and thick, his fingertips stretching, extending into thick, sharp claws, both elegant and repugnant to her. His pupils elongated into feline-like slits, and Sierra took an involuntary step back as images of Toga's face on Halloween pressed against her head, made her feel weak, dizzy . . . Sesshoumaru grinned just a little—a nasty sort of expression, and she saw his fangs. As his hand fell away, the fierce markings on the backs of his hands as a numb coldness seeped into her bones.

 

“Oh, my God,” she mumbled as she stepped back, stepped away. Stumbling as she pushed herself against the wall, eyes wide in fear, she stared at him as she felt the blood being siphoned from her skin. “What are you?”

 

She was almost surprised when he answered. She hadn't realized that she'd whispered her question out loud. Sesshoumaru's voice was quiet when he spoke: barely more than a rumble but possessing more authority than she could credit. “Some call us demons. Some call us magic. Mononoke—creature spirits . . . youkai . . . Now do you understand?”

 

Sierra's mind rebelled at what she saw, at what she'd been told. Unable to believe Sesshoumaru's claims . . . it had to be a trick of light, a slight of hand . . . She choked out a harsh laugh before jamming the back of her hand against her dry lips. “There's no such thing . . . there can't be . . .”

 

“That is the trouble with humans,” he remarked in a toneless voice. “You only believe what you think you know when the reality remains that you choose to ignore what you cannot begin to comprehend.” With a heavy sigh, Sesshoumaru swung around in a circle as a long, thin flash of green light shot out of his fingertips. He snapped the string through the air and cracked it against the mirror over the bureau, shattering it as she yelped and shied away even further. The string sucked back into his fingers and disappeared. Only then did he bother to look at her again. “Do you believe me now?”

 

Sierra didn't answer.

 

Slowly, purposefully, he strode over to her, stopped before her, tilted her chin to force her to look at him. Trapped against the wall, Sierra had no escape even if she could have moved. She bit back a sob. “Go home, Crawford-san, and for your own sake, stay away from my son.”

 

He let his hand drop from her face as he turned his back on her. Strolling to the door, he stopped with his hand on the knob and looked back at her, his expression darkened by a hint of emotion that she could not discern. “My private plane is waiting for you at the airport. I shall tell them to expect you within the hour.”

 

He slipped out quietly as Sierra's knees buckled. She sank to the floor with a stifled moan. Tears stung the back of her eyelids, tingled in her nose, and yet they wouldn't come. Shaking, heart hammering, she couldn't control the violent tremors that ran through her body as she fought to find the reason behind Sesshoumaru's statements.

 

`There's no such thing as mythical beings . . . youkai or whatever . . . they aren't real . . .'

 

Eyes rising to stare at the shattered remnants of the mirror, she winced and drew back as the echo of the energy whip rattled through her head again and again. Even if he hadn't done that, even if she didn't want to believe, too many images shot through her head, a million thoughts that remained just out of her grasp. Toga, moving so quickly that he had looked like a blur . . . the vivid markings on his face, on his hands . . . the knowledge that she'd half-forgotten: Toga leaping much too high to have been normal . . . to save her, to protect her, but . . . but was that truly what he'd been trying to do?

 

`Toga . . . I . . . why didn't you tell me . . . ?'

 

Nothing made sense. Nothing seemed real. The only thing she could think of were the words Toga had said to her . . . `I'll tell you later . . .'

 

The things that she hadn't ever understood about him suddenly seemed to fall into place. The quiet questions that he never had answered . . . now she knew. He was . . . he was . . . shaking her head as another surge of panic welled up inside her, Sierra couldn't reconcile the image of the father with that of the son.

 

`He may not mate your kind, and he knows this.'

 

“God!” Sierra gasped as she leaned forward, wrapped her arms around her raised knees. “Toga . . .”

 

`Fiancée,' she thought with a strangled laugh—bitter, hysterical, it sounded like a screech in her ears. `But he said . . . he said . . . he . . .'

 

The image of his face, his shy smile, his bashful demeanor as he jammed his hands deep into his pockets . . . Sierra willed the images away, tried to ignore the hurt that came with them.

 

`Why didn't you tell me all this, Toga . . . ? Why did you . . . lie?'

 

Was that the reason he'd been able to rescue her from that tree? Was that the reason he'd moved so fast the night in the park? Feeling like a fool, like a complete and utter dupe, Sierra couldn't cry. Her mind wouldn't let her.

 

How stupid had she been? Gullible, wasn't she? He'd looked at her with that sad expression in the depths of his eyes, and on that night, she should have gotten into that cab . . . If she had . . . If she'd done that . . .

 

Or did that even matter at all? Why had she been so willing to believe him? Why had she felt as though he was being earnest with her when, in truth, she hadn't known a thing about him; not really . . .? The memory of watching Toga dance with her—his fiancée—cut through the haze of Sierra's mind, and she winced, hugging her knees tighter, wishing that she hadn't noticed how perfect the two had looked together.

 

How pathetic had it seemed to his family? Sierra had showed up on their doorstep, thinking—believing—that she could be there simply because Toga had made token mention of her going with him.

 

The strange look that had filtered over Toga's face as he'd answered came back to haunt her. She'd asked if he wanted her to see if she could swing the time off, and what had he said?

 

“No . . . all things considered, it's probably better if you don't . . .”

 

Was this why he'd said that? Was he ultimately afraid that she'd find out his secrets? A sharp ache exploded behind her temples, and with a moan, she rubbed furiously as she tried in vain to dispel it.

 

`Don't think, Sierra . . . don't think about it . . . the plane . . . get on the plane and go home, where everything makes sense . . .'

 

“Home,” she whispered as she pushed herself to her feet, a sudden, fierce need for the things, the places, she knew goading her. “Home . . .”

 

 

-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-

 

 

Toga loped down the stairs, two at a time and whistling a song under his breath. He couldn't remember the name of the song to save his life, but it was a new one: a silly, sappy love song that Sierra adored. “I suppose I don't have to ask where you're going,” Kagura said as he descended down the last few steps.

 

Toga smiled then grimaced. “Yeah . . . I, uh . . . I need to talk to her . . .”

 

Kagura nodded. “If you're serious about her and she you, then yes, I would suppose you should.”

 

Toga dropped his gaze and shook his head as a hint of color filled his cheeks. “Mother . . . I promised her that I'd protect her.”

 

She didn't look at all surprised by his admission. “I see . . .”

 

“Do you?”

 

Kagura nodded as she smoothed his hair out of his eyes, her gaze searching his for some sort of truth. She must have found it. She smiled sadly, as though whatever it was she saw in her son was undeniable, and she cupped his face in her hands. “Toga . . . you know I want you to be happy, and I believe your father does, too.” When he opened his mouth to protest, Kagura silenced him with a finger to his lips, just as she had when he was small. “I know it's hard for you to see it. “You are his son—his only son. He's always demanded more of you, always demanded perfection . . . but in this . . . this one time . . . I think he might be wrong.”

 

Staring at her for several moments, he nodded slightly, willing her to understand. “Mother . . . I've never felt the way I feel about her before . . . I . . . when I'm not with her, I . . .”

 

Kagura smiled when he trailed off. “She is a very beautiful girl.”

 

“She's more than that,” he said slowly, lifting his hands in an all-encompassing sort of gesture. “She's . . . she . . . she makes me want to smile.”

 

She shook her head slowly, the conflict rising in her expression. Trapped between husband and son in a battle of wills . . . Toga winced. He didn't want her to have to be there, ever. “I wish you and your father could come to terms on this, but if you cannot, then don't you dare back down. If you love her, you fight for her, even if that means you must fight your father,” she said with a sad little smile.

 

Toga sighed and shook his head. “Can I . . . can I do that?”

 

Kagura stroked his cheek, her eyes clouded with unmasked concern. “Toga, you may have to . . . if Sierra is the woman you want.” She stepped back and gave him the once over before fussing with his collar tabs and finally nodded her approval. “You'd better get moving if you're supposed to meet her for dinner. Darling . . . be careful when you tell her your secret. It isn't quite like telling her that you're lying about your age.”

 

He made a face. “She's not going to take this well, is she?”

 

Kagura lifted her eyebrows. “Probably not, but if she truly cares about you . . .”

 

Leaning down to kiss his mother's cheek, Toga grinned as Kagura yanked his hair. “Get out of here, boy . . . and don't you dare tell her that your mother was the reason you kept her waiting.”

 

Toga nodded and headed toward the door. He barely stepped back in time to avoid colliding with his father as Sesshoumaru stalked inside with his cell phone plastered against his ear. Toga inclined his head in a barely civil greeting as he reached for the handle. Sesshoumaru's voice stopped him. “Toga . . . if you're going to see that girl, she is gone.” He flipped his phone closed and stuck it in his pocket as he turned to regard his son.

 

“What?” Toga demanded sharply.

 

“She is gone. That was my pilot. She's on her way home. She, at least, could see reason.” That said, Sesshoumaru wheeled around to head toward his study. Without slowing in his gait, he called back over his shoulder, “By the way, you have a change in dinner plans. Pick up Fujiko-san. You'll be joining her for dinner.”

 

“What the hell did you do, Father?” Toga growled, his anger breaking free as he dug his claws into his palms in a concerted effort to control his temper.

 

Sesshoumaru had already reached the doorway. He stopped and glanced back over his shoulder. “I saved you from making a terrible mistake, Toga. Now leave it alone. Fujiko-san is waiting for you.”

 

“Damn you . . .” Toga said quietly as he strode after Sesshoumaru. Eyes cold, expression blank, Toga didn't give an inch as he stared at his father. “Get it through your head: I don't want Fujiko! I don't want any youkai. Sierra's the one I've chosen. She is the one I want. You can take your demands and your ideas of what's best for me and shove them up your ass because I'm not doing what you want, not now, not in this!”

 

“Toga!” Sesshoumaru hollered after him as the younger youkai stalked away, heading back up the stairs to his room.

 

`This is the last time,' Toga thought as he snatched the suitcase and haphazardly threw in the few things he'd brought with him. `The last time you fuck in my life; the last time I roll over and submit to your whims . . . No more . . .' He paused long enough to grab his passport and cell phone before heading back downstairs again.

 

Kagura's voice stopped him. They had moved from the study to the living room. Toga's frown darkened. He'd never heard that tone from his mother before, had never heard her openly challenge his authority, not like this. Something about it unsettled Toga just a little more. “Of all the underhanded, sneaky things to have done! Sesshoumaru, he's your son!”

 

“Yes, my son!” Sesshoumaru hissed back. “My son, and the future tai-youkai! He must do what he must do!”

 

Kagura wasn't impressed. “How can you be so stubborn? How can you say that he must do something that will not make him happy? What would you have said if Aiko had brought home a human?”

 

“I would have told her to be happy!”

 

“Then why not Toga?”

 

The heavy clink of a glass being thumped on a table echoed out of the living room. “Do you think I desire this for him? Do you believe I wish to see him unhappy? If he takes a human to mate, Kagura . . . you know as well as I that he will be challenged, and he may be killed.”

 

Kagura heaved a heavy sigh. Toga didn't have to see them to know that she had her arms crossed over her chest with the obstinate scowl on her pretty face that he knew well enough, having seen it a thousand times over the years. “You don't trust that Toga is strong enough to handle that, too? I thought you said that he is your son!”

 

The abrasive sound of the glass being slammed down on a solid surface resounded in the quiet, punctuated by the rattle of the ice cubes within it. “And so he is! He's also been sheltered. You cannot name one time he's had to fight, formal instruction aside.”

 

Kagura's voice dropped to a throaty rasping timbre full of emotion. “You will cost us our son, Sesshoumaru, and if you do, may kami protect you because there won't be a place on this earth where you will be able to hide from me.”

 

He'd heard enough. Sickened at the thought of what he'd caused, disgusted and angry at his father yet unable to thank his mother for her obvious support, he shook his head slowly, the light of finality punctuating his every movement. Toga stomped down the stairs, purposefully making more noise than was necessary. He didn't acknowledge either of his parents as he jerked the door open and stepped out into the falling night.

 

Throwing his suitcase into the car before getting in and starting the engine, he didn't look back at the mansion until he was making his way down the driveway. Glancing into his rearview mirror, Toga nearly stopped.

 

Kagura stood in the open doorway, arms crossed over her chest as she watched him go. Something in her stance struck him. Such a sad air in her youki, like she truly believed it was the last time she'd ever see him. He winced as a thousand images—a million memories—assailed him. How many times had she smiled at him or ruffled his hair? In his mother's own way, she had shown him what love really was, hadn't she? Somehow the feeling that he was losing her . . . It just didn't seem fair. `I'm sorry, Mother . . . So sorry . . .'

 

As though she could sense his gaze on her, she raised a thin hand and waved. Gritting his teeth so hard that his jaw twitched and bulged, Toga tightened his grip on the steering wheel and kept the car moving.

 

She was still in the doorway when he turned out onto the street.

 

Fumbling with his cell phone, Toga tried to call Sierra. Whether she was out of range or just wasn't answering, he didn't know. Clenching his jaw in abject frustration, Toga hung up and dialed the airport. At least something was working in his favor. Ten minutes later, he was booked on the next flight out, providing he could make it to the airport within the next hour.

 

Mumbling every curse-word that Uncle Yasha had ever taught him, Toga grimaced as he was caught behind yet another red light.

 

`Baka . . . I should have told her sooner . . . I've known she was the one I wanted, and yet . . .' Toga ground his teeth together as he waited for traffic to move again. `There wasn't a good time, maybe . . . would there have ever been a good time for that?'

 

Traffic finally started moving again. Toga stifled a sigh, leaning his elbow against the window and letting his forehead fall into his raised hand. `Sierra . . . just listen to me . . .'

 

 

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A/N:

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Final Thought from Sierra:

What a strange family …

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Blanket disclaimer for this fanfic (will apply to this and all other chapters in Defiance): I do not claim any rights to InuYasha or the characters associated with the anime/manga. Those rights belong to Rumiko Takahashi, et al. I do offer my thanks to her for creating such vivid characters for me to terrorize.

 

~Sue~