InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Settle the Score ❯ Twist of Fate ( Chapter 8 )

Author rantings :
Here's the next chapter. Unfortunately it's one day too late, or I would have been able to laugh at you for already knowing Alandrem's next chapter of "Present Time". Now it's already out... So just imagine me laughing evilly into your face a week ago :)

The reason behind all this is that Alandrem and myself made a joint venture with correcting the newest chapters of our fics. If you read her story you will see an "Thanks to Chri" (harhar) in the beginning, like you will read an "Thanks to Alandrem" here. I hope this will work for the next chapters, too.

The main effect of this is that there are now no commas after direct speeches and thoughts, but I can assure you that there were some more subtle changes as well thanks to her corrections. So the already incredibly high (heh) quality of my chapters was heightened again, and I believe it should be a good read.

I also want to advertise the upcoming "Rurouni Kenshin Fanfiction Readers Choice Award" (long term...), you can post your nominations from now on (for those who know RK)
http://rkawards.gloriousforest.net/

Does something similar exist for Inuyasha? I have to give the RK-authors one thing, they are much better organized. They date back before FF.net, so I think they had to do more work to post their fics... I should talk with Alandrem, she's one of the few with her own site.

Oh, one more thing, I'm really glad it looks like Shippou's daydream was well received. I accidentally read one of those really bad romances, and that was when I had the idea for it :)

Disclaimer : Still not mine.

Special thanks to :

Alandrem for beta-reading, and also letting me beta-read :) I didn't realize it would be such a huge help to have someone read it before you post it. I hope I could return the favor.

And also to MeghanK for giving me a small inspiration and rubbing my nose into something I should have seen myself.

You hate when you start to think about
things in life that could have been,
Too late, it's not gonna turn around,
can't escape the mess you're in.Twist of Fate

The next morning, Kagome awoke first. She looked up to see that Inuyasha was still sleeping. ´Strange, he's oversleeping again.´ Then she saw that the sun was just beginning to rise, providing her with the sight of a beautiful dawn. ´Or maybe I'm starting to develop irregular sleeping habits...´ She stood up, careful not to awake Shippou, hoping that she would be able to sleep after a small walk.

"Morning..." she heard from behind her. She quickly spun around to find Inuyasha standing there. "Don't scare me like that in the morning!" she muttered, releasing the breath she had been holding.

"Keh! It's not my problem if you are scared so easily!" Inuyasha shot back, but seemed to contemplate after that. "Why are you awake?"

"I don't know. I just woke up early, I guess..." Kagome trailed off. "Why are you up already?"

"I just wanted to see if everything is okay. Got a problem with that?" Inuyasha mentally smacked himself after his reply. Not even six hours ago he had told himself to be polite to Kagome, and now he was doing his best in pissing her off. ´Think of something nice...´ "Do you want to go for a small walk?" he asked while checking out Miroku, Sango and the fox brat with his ears and, although they were asleep for real this time, he didn't want to take any chances. He also found it more comforting to talk while doing something, even if it was only going in a circle.

Kagome nodded, and they set out. Inuyasha swung his haori over his shoulder, although he had cleaned it with grass early that morning, it still smelled a bit, even if it was much better and Kagome maybe didn't even notice it. He thought of something to break the silence, and came up with a "Are you tired?" after some time.

Kagome gave him a small smile. "No, at least not after you scared me awake."

Inuyasha grinned back. "Well, I think we are even then."

"Did I scare you awake?" she teased him.

"Keh. Of course not. You were just making too much noise!" the hanyou clarified. There was an uneasy silence afterwards, both not knowing what to say, avoiding what was obviously between them: Kikyou. "So, you couldn't sleep?" he asked after a while.

Kagome felt a bit uneasy. "Ummm, what do you mean?"

"You were shifting around all night," Inuyasha told her. He had had a sleepless night thanks to her. He also knew that she had awoken a few times, having problems with falling asleep each time. "Did you have nightmares?"

She waited for a while before she answered. "No, I didn't. I just kept ... thinking." She paused, but unlike Inuyasha she didn't keep things to herself. "You know, about me and Kikyou. If I am just her reincarnation; if I am like her. If I should be more like her."

The hanyou kept silent for a while. "I meant what I said yesterday," he told her finally, finding the ground in front of him very interesting.

Kagome looked at him, shocked. ´At least I don't tell you to be more like Kikyou!´ Inuyasha's words repeated themselves in her mind. "What do you mean?"

"That I don't want you to be like Kikyou." Inuyasha kept staring at the ground while he walked, his arms folded in front of him. He hated this moments, he never knew what to say. "I also told you before that you are not Kikyou."

The girl was partially relieved. "What do you want to say with I'm not Kikyou?"

"I mean that you are two different people, you both have your good and your bad sides," the hanyou answered. "You shouldn't compare yourself with her." He turned around, indicating that they would be walking back. This discussing was becoming far too disturbing for his liking.

Kagome was surprised when she turned to follow him. This was the first time that Inuyasha told her that he didn't want her to be like Kikyou. Until now all he ever told her was that she wasn't like Kikyou, that Kikyou looked better, that Kikyou was better with the bow. "I also like you how you are, Inuyasha. You just could be a bit more considerate sometimes."

"I won't run around like some weakling just because you want me to!" the hanyou burst out.

The miko sighed. ´Do I hope for wonders?´ she thought wistfully. "Being considerate doesn't make you weak."

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted, not knowing how to answer. ´Nonsense,´ he thought, but was sly enough to keep that to himself. ´Of course it makes you weak.´ He was glad when they reached the camp, and jumped up his tree. "Try to sleep some more!"

Kagome crawled into her sleeping bag, again watching out not to awake Shippou. She looked around to make sure everything was okay. After some time in a demon infested age you learn to watch your surroundings. "Don't worry," she heard from up the tree, "I'm on the lookout." She looked up, seeing Inuyasha settling himself against the trunk in a sitting position. "You can't have your eyes everywhere!" Kagome told him.

Inuyasha grinned down at her. "Doesn't matter," he said, tapping his nose. "Now go to sleep! I'll keep an eye on the surroundings."

Kagome smiled. "Thank you, Inuyasha."

He turned away. "Keh! Better get some sleep, I'll wake you soon enough!"

Kagome rolled her eyes. Trust Inuyasha to spoil the moment. She closed her eyes, feeling protected in his presence, and also relieved, now that she had some reassurance concerning Kikyou.

She sighed when she realized that Inuyasha had once again avoided telling her whom he preferred, saying that they both had their good and bad sides. She wondered if she would ever get an explicit compliment from Inuyasha.

Miroku awoke two hours later. He turned around, finding Sango still asleep, lying a few meters away from him, out of the reach of his hand. ´Old habits die hard.´

The last day had begun really well; when he had tried out Shippou's advice, Sango had let him put his arm around her waist. Although she had elbowed him the second time he tried, she had only told him that the timing was bad.

But then, in all the chaos around Inuyasha and Kagome, he hadn't had any chance to proceed with his pursuit. Sango had been much more worried about her friend, leaving him to carry around Shippou. At least at dinner they had had a bit time for themselves, but after Inuyasha and Shippou had left, Sango had joined Kagome again.

If Inuyasha and Kagome continued acting the way they were, his cute youkai huntress would be distracted all the time. Or maybe she had just wanted some time to think? Many women spent insane amounts of time contemplating if they should enter a relationship or not.

He wondered if Sango was one of them, realizing that she had to be because she had only talked about unimportant things with him. Therefore, Miroku combined, if she didn't talk about a relationship, she had to think about one. And if she was thinking about a relationship, some sake would help her to talk about one. Again he was pleased with his immense knowledge of the female mind. He touched the stolen bottle hidden in his robe, he would have to be attentive not to break it.

He watched Sango sleeping there, breathing regularly. He should be damned if he failed, Sango would be the best catch he had ever made. She was not only a beautiful, but also a strong willed and intelligent woman. He also liked that she had gotten some education, although propably not as much as he had. But that was only logical, as her craft was more concentrated on the physical world.

However, this intelligence was what made her hard to get. She could see through most of his pick-up lines. He sighed, intelligence was indeed a curse and a blessing. Still, he couldn't say that he didn't enjoy their arguments, it was really refreshing to be able to discuss with someone who was able to outwit him sometimes. She was just perfect, with a sharp mind behind that beautiful body.

´Oh, the body!´ he thought. From what he had been able to feel until then, it was really promising. He never could decide if she looked better in her kimono or her battle dress. The kimono fitted her really well, but she looked really cute when clothed for a fight. And, her battle gear was more revealing.

"Oi monk, what are you smiling about?" Inuyasha spoke from his tree. He had watched Miroku some time, and now the monk was grinning. ´If he is laughing at me, I will give him a piece of my mind.´ Though it looked more like the monk's mind had wandered off while he had been watching Sango.

"It's better to begin a day with a smile, don't you think, Inuyasha?" Miroku asked a counter-question.

"Depends on who you are grinning at," the hanyou retorted.

"Do you have the impression that I'm laughing at you?" Miroku asked, giving Inuyasha his most innocent look. He didn't want the hanyou to catch that he had been watching Sango, so he thought it would be better to distract him by teasing.

"Bah. How should I know? I don't have the perverted mind of a thievish monk. I wonder what Sango would think about your grin." Inuyasha snorted.

´Looks like I shouldn't grin at Sango like that if even Inuyasha thinks I'm looking like a pervert,´ Miroku thought. But the hanyou was the wrong one to instruct him. "At least I know how to compliment a woman. Your manners leave a lot to be desired," the monk critizised.

"Keh. At least I don't grab the ass of every woman that runs along my way."

"Could you two stop?" Shippou cut in, looking out from Kagome's sleeping bag. "I'm trying to sleep."

"I only grab Sango," Miroku told Inuyasha, ignoring the kid. "But don't tell her I said that."

Inuyasha checked Sango, she was still asleep. Too bad. It would have been much fun to see how the youkai hunter would have responded to that comment. Most possibly with Hiraikotsu. "I won't meddle in your affairs if you don't meddle in mine," the hanyou offered with a smirk.

Miroku grinned back. "Deal. So, have you reconciled with Kagome?" From what he had heard yesterday, Inuyasha had been sulking because Kagome told him the boys in her time were better. In the end, they had returned to something resembling peaceful terms, even if the uneasy truce could easily shatter, in Miroku's opinion. He hoped they would not make any problems, also because he would have Sango for himself.

"Why do you ask?" the hanyou replied. "Think I didn't notice your eavesdropping?"

Miroku was a bit surprised, but not too much. ´Figures that I didn't fool the attentive hanyou.´ He quickly thought of an excuse, "I merely didn't want to disturb your discussion yesterday, as it seemed important to me." He gave the dog demon a curious stare. "So, how is it going between you and Kagome?"

Inuyasha turned red. "There is nothing going on between Kagome and me!"

"That's not what I heard yesterday," the monk kept teasing. "It sounded like a lovers quarrel to me."

"Keh! Mind your own business. Sango is waking up," Inuyasha informed Miroku. They fell silent, the two demons intently watching the monk.

When Sango opened her eyes, she found Miroku's staring into hers. "Good morning, Sango," he greeted her, not averting his intense gaze. She felt very self-conscious, had he been watching her in her sleep? She settled for a neutral "Good morning, Miroku-sama."

The monk grinned, hiding his disappointment. "Just Miroku."

Inuyasha had enough and jumped down his tree. "Now that everyone is up and about, we can finally continue." Then he remembered that one member of their group didn't include to that statement. He went over to Kagome, kneeled down and shook her shoulders.

When she finally decided that ignoring him wouldn't work, she saw the impatient hanyou leaning over her. "Come on, Kagome, everyone is waiting for you."

"Not true," Shippou said from beside her, and got a hit on the head for it.

"Don't mess with me," Inuyasha threatened, although with a slightly playful tone. "But really, we have to get going," he said, earning curious looks for his serious tone.

"I'm hungry."

Kagome sighed. "Can't you think of something different than food?" His eating manners reminded her more of a dog digging into his bowl than a human. In the beginning he had even eaten a rabbit he had just caught without preparing it in any way, ending with blood smeared all over his face. Not a very pretty sight.

"Keh! If I was as careless as you, we would have starved to death long ago. And 'Fish-are-not-animals'-sama doesn't look like he will eat out here." Inuyasha snorted, pointing at Miroku.

"What happened to the deer?" Kagome asked before the monk could respond to the insult. "There was plenty left yesterday."

"I was hungry," was all the explanation Inuyasha offered.

Kagome sat up. "You ate it all?!?" There had been enough left to fill all of their stomachs this morning.

"Shippou helped," the hanyou defended himself.

"That's not true, Kagome," the fox whined, pulling at her sleeve. "I only ate a little piece. Only one, very small piece!"

"Keh! The deer was mine anyway!" Inuyasha told them confidently. "You can be glad I shared with you!"

Miroku watched Sango watching the argument. If the hanyou didn't stop that soon, her attention would keep being diverted. Standing up, he said, "Now that Inuyasha has been kind enough to wake everyone, we can as well get going."

That seemed to please Inuyasha. He leaned against a tree and impatiently tapped his foot against the ground, while the rest was packing their bags. If he noticed the annoyed looks his companions were giving him, he didn't show it. The hanyou gave a grunt when everyone was finally ready. "You finished?"

"If we weren't fast enough for you," Miroku answered, "you could have lent us a hand."

"Quit dreaming!" Inuyasha said, grinning at the monk. "So, any objections if we try to find the next village?"

They set out at last, staying together as a group. Kagome was on her bike, offering Shippou a ride after a while. Although it had to be quite obvious to the hanyou and there probably wasn't much the kid could tell her, she still wanted to talk to the youkai child in private. She brought some distance between herself and her friends, with Shippou sitting in the basket of the bike.

At the beginning he was reluctant to tell her, but she quickly changed his opinion with the promise of chocolate. As expected, most things the fox told her she already knew, like Inuyasha not wanting to behave differently, or that he didn't miss his father. The hanyou hadn't shown any signs of discomfort while fighting in his father's corpse with his half brother.

The only thing that really interested her she couldn't bring the fox to tell, how he had explained the misunderstanding. He kept saying that he had given a word of honor. And that she wouldn't be there when the hanyou took his revenge for breaking it.

The description of Shippou's training sounded like Inuyasha was taking it seriously. She wasn't sure if she liked Shippou learning to use his claws as deadly weapons - in her eyes he was just a child - but the rational part of her mind told her that it was something the youkai child had to do and, moreover, he seemed to like it.

While he described what he had learned his voice was so excited that it was clear Shippou was having fun. He almost seemed too excited, as if he was venting something that had boiled in him for a long time. She guessed that, like many animals, youkai learned to fight through play. It wasn't that different with humans, she remembered that especially boys seemed to have great fun playing, like ball games or battling with imaginary weapons.

Meanwhile, Inuyasha was grilled by Miroku and Sango again. They had taken him into their midst, and kept asking him, about the mysterious talk he had had with Kagome two days ago, why he had thrown Miroku, where he had learned that. The hanyou's throat was becoming sore from "Keh!"s and growling.

He was especially embarrassed when he was questioned why he got that offended when Kagome compared him to the guys from the future. The only good thing was that they had only heard about his outburst, so he was doing relatively well with denying.

"You know what, Inuyasha?" Miroku said, throwing a companionable arm around the hanyou, who obviously found it very uncomfortable but refrained from batting it away. "If you want to avoid such situations in the future, you should try to understand Kagome better."

"Keh! How could anyone possibly understand her?" Inuyasha asked.

"You know, Inuyasha, the mind of a woman is ..." Miroku became aware of Sango beside Inuyasha, the youkai hunteress was giving him an interested look. "But that's not the point. What is important is that you have to know her better, and that she will get to know you better in the process."

´That pretty much sums it up,´ Inuyasha thought. It all depended on if he - and Kagome too - if they were willing to allow the other into their privacy. He guessed that also was something his relationship with Kikyou had lacked, they both had kept their secrets to themselves. In the long run, he didn't think that a relationship could last without being able to trust each other. He didn't know how deep his trust was or could become, or how far Kagome trusted him either. The prayer beads were a painful reminder of how far her trust really went.

Miroku watched the hanyou fall silent, not the reaction he had expected. He gave Sango a questioning glance, but she just shrugged, not guessing either what was going on in the dog demon's head.

"I think I can give you a tip," she offered. "I know for sure that Kagome is very unsure what your feelings towards Kikyou are. Whatever they are, I think you should tell her the whole truth." That actually was something she had wanted to tell the hanyou for quite some time. She hurt with her friend every time she saw Inuyasha with the undead priestess, and it was high time that the hiding game ended.

That only served to send Inuyasha deeper into his thoughts. From what the miko had told him early this morning, he guessed that Sango was right. The uncertainty he had felt last afternoon, after Kagome had told him that she had meant something different, maybe she felt this uncertainty all the time. ´Definitely not a nice feeling.´ Still, he was somewhat uneasy with sharing his thoughts with the miko, especially about such a delicate subject. He wondered what would have happened if Kikyou hadn't been resurrected. Maybe he and Kagome would be a couple by this time. If she would not have refused him, of course.

"I think you are right," the hanyou admitted. He fell silent again. Sango felt sorry for him and gave him a reassuring pat on the back. "Whatever you tell her, please don't hurt her." How that was possible if he still loved Kikyou was beyond her comprehension, but she had to tell him nonetheless.

Inuyasha nodded, silently promising her to do his best. He thought he owed her that much. Sango seemed to be pretty confident that Kagome would not refuse him, maybe he really had a chance? The last day's occurrences still left him feeling a bit unsure, even if Kagome had said that she liked him how he was. ´She likes me how I am!´ Did everything have to be that complicated? "You don't have anything better to do than sticking your nose in other's affairs, do you?" he accused, trying to ease the mood.

"Do you have any suggestions?" Miroku asked back. Inuyasha had to admit silently that there wasn't much else to do than prying into relationships. Maybe he should turn the tables and query his two interrogators about their own, but the two wouldn't leave him much chance when teamed up against him.

To tell the truth, he would have really appreciated another youkai wanting to take his shards instead of this peaceful gossip. A really stupid one at the best, with a large shard of the Shikon jewel, so he provided some challenge. And a nice neck to cut through with Tetsusaiga. A good fight was long overdue after all the stress he had had the last day.

"Oi Inuyasha, will you stop spacing out?" Miroku tapped his staff against the hanyou's head, being much more careful after having been thrown the last time he tried that. Inuyasha focused on reality once more, scowling at the monk.

"Will you stop that?" the hanyou threatened.

"That's our Inuyasha!" Miroku laughed at him.

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted. He was degenerating from the feared demon to a joke character. Just a year ago, nobody would have dared to laugh him into his face. Well, the time at the Goshinboku not counted. But he had to admit, companionship was worth one joke or another at his expense.

They found the village Aiko had told them about in the late afternoon. Especially Miroku and Sango looked really relieved, as they hadn't had much for dinner the last evening, but the others were also hungry, as neither of them had had anything for breakfast.

It was a great surprise when Miroku suddenly sensed an evil spirit in the house whose inhabitants very obviously the richest in the village. With trained ease the monk knocked at the door, but paused after the second knock. He turned his head back to his fellows, a surprised expression on his face. "Believe it or not, but it looks like we will have to earn our meal this time. There really is something in this house."

Toshiaki was just enjoying some sake, drinking directly from the jug because his wife wasn't watching, when he heard someone knocking. He got up a bit grumpy, walking towards the entrance. When Toshiaki slid open the door, he found the strangest group standing outside. There was a man directly in front of him with a rosary around his arm. Two girls were standing behind the houshi, one of them was wearing something he had definitely never seen before. The cat sitting on the shoulder of the normal girl had two tails, while the boy sitting on the shoulder of the other girl had feet that looked like some animal's. Both girls had a really annoyed look on their faces. On the other hand, the boy standing next to them was grinning from one ear to the other with ... anticipation? Weren't those teeth his smile revealed a bit longer than usual? And were those ears on the top of his head?

Toshiaki threw the bottle over his shoulder, hearing it break when it hit the floor. "Damn sake," he grumbled, closing the door again. He was going to complain to Iwane, right after he had slept out his intoxication. You weren't supposed to have hallucinations after a few sips of sake.

Outside, the group was looking completely dumbfound. A man had opened with a sake jug in the hand, looked around, thrown the bottle behind him, and finally closed the door again.

"Was that the youkai?" Sango asked.

"I didn't sense anything strange from him," Miroku answered.

Inuyasha was wrinkling up his nose. "Beside the smell of his breath, you mean."

The monk nodded with a smirk, knocking again. After nobody opened he continued to bang against the door in a steady rhythm, until the man finally opened again.

"You still there?"

"Hai." Miroku bowed. It would be ridiculous if he couldn't get a deal if there was really a youkai in the house. "Good man, we come to warn you of a vengeful spirit in your house. I am Miroku", he bowed again, "and these are my friends. We offer help in return for shelter this night."

The man seemed more interested with the rest of the group, finally convinced that he wasn't imagining things. A great pity to lose good sake that way. "Toshiaki, pleased to meet you. What's with them?" he asked, waving at Miroku's friends, almost losing his balance in the process.

"These are very strong demon hunters, some of them having youkai blood themselves," Miroku went on. "I can assure you that you will find no better youkai exterminators than us."

"Damn right!" Inuyasha commented. Only because he was in the group, of course.

Toshiaki gestured them to come inside, where the splinters of the jug were still lying on the floor in a large pool formed by the sake that had been inside the bottle. They were greeted by his wife, whom Toshiaki introduced them as Madoka. The group noticed that she was spotting a fading bruise in her face. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes, he would bet that she had been hit by her drunken husband a day, maybe two ago.

Miroku bowed to her, pretending not to notice the bruise. "Madoka-sama, a vengeful spirit is haunting your home. We offer to exorcise it, we merely want a meal and a place to sleep for the night in return."

Toshiaki and his wife discussed the matter, and decided that there was more to be gained than lost. They told them that they would be honored to offer shelter to tired wanderers for a night.

Miroku took the lead, entering what seemed to be a living room. It was arranged with expensive furniture, and even a few paintings. On a cupboard were some figurines, the monk went to expect them. ´Hmmm, nothing of real worth,´ he thought, judging the statues with an exercised eye. On the other side, one figurine was quite interesting.

He was startled by Inuyasha. "Which one is it? I'll smash it apart!" the hanyou shouted impatiently, drawing Tetsusaiga. Toshiaki wondered how such a huge sword could fit in the scabbard. Maybe it wasn't such a shame that the sake was lost.

Miroku griped the figurine of a crow, smashing its head against the edge of the cupboard. The figurine suddenly made a pained shriek, scaring Kagome crouch slightly, prepared to jump back. The figurine was growing, forcing Miroku to throw it in the corner of the room.

The figurine continued to transform, until there was a strange mix between bird and man standing before them. He had the head of a crow with a really big beak, and wings unfolding at his back. But the whole body was that of a human, although the skin was completely black, and the feet had claws. He was clothed in a red kimono, and had a staff like Miroku's in his hands, although there were fewer rings.

Inuyasha wanted to attack, but Miroku blocked the hanyou with his staff. "This fight is mine! Do not interfere," the monk said, turning towards his adversary. "Tengu."

"Damn you, houshi!" the tengu screamed. "Just when I had the fool where I wanted to have him!" With that he attacked, swinging at Miroku, who blocked with his identical weapon. The two attacked each other, both evenly matched.

Kagome was astonished. A real tengu! She took off her rucksack, opening the side pocket where she had her camera. She had placed it easy to reach, because sometimes she had to be quick to get a picture. If she got one of the tengu, she bet Jii-chan would do anything just to look at it. She hoped that Miroku didn't kill him outright, so she could get a group picture.

Inuyasha watched with a bored, yet disappointed expression. "Showoff." He ran Miroku down, while he sheathed Tetsusaiga. He saw Kagome taking a picture. "What's so special about a bird?" he asked, somewhat jealous.

Kagome looked at the hanyou. "It's a tengu!" she said, as if that would explain everything.

"And?"

"And it's very popular in my time," the miko explained. "Actually finding one is like a lottery jackpot!"

Inuyasha nodded as if he understood, though he had no clue what she was talking about. ´Damn her with her terms. What the hell's a lottery?´

Meanwhile, Miroku had the tengu cornered. He was taking rather long because he still had the sake bottle on himself and had to be careful not to break it. The tengu was breathing hard, and decided that a trick was in order. Not unlike Shippou's illusion, suddenly the room was filled with a dozen tengus. The married couple jumped back frightened, after having watched rather interested the whole time. Kagome gave a delighted squeal, able to take pictures of multiple tengus now.

The monk got a spell scroll out. "Houriki!" He threw the scroll at a tengu, seemingly at random, but got the real one. When the spell unleashed its power, the illusions disappeared. The tengu concentrated through the pain, disabling the scroll with a surge of power. It fell off; the letters had vanished. That seemed to cost the bird man a lot strength though, as he had to support himself with the staff.

Kagome took another picture, getting the attention of the tengu. "Will you stop this clicking?" he threatened. What was this thing doing anyway?

Miroku used that moment of distraction to behead his enemy with a quick swipe. The body started to dissolve before the head hit the ground. "Useful," Inuyasha said, nodding appreciatively. That way, nobody had to clean up.

Kagome sighed. ´Seems like there will be no group pictures.´ Well, at least she had nice ones of Miroku fighting with the tengu. She stowed the camera away in her rucksack, and turned towards the owners of the house.

"Could we have something for dinner?" she asked the stunned couple.

They both nodded stupefied, at least for them it hadn't been an everyday ordeal. Toshiaki heard Inuyasha complaining why he had had to watch, while the 'normal' girl teased the monk how long he had taken defeating the tengu. ´Weird people.´

Madoka dished them a nice meal, even Inuyasha was pleased, although there was no meat, again, there was at least fish. That was interesting, there had to be a river nearby, where he could finally wash his haori. Madoka told him that it could be found ten minutes walk from the village.

Miroku explained that tengu were forest spirits known for causing mischief. Over time they had developed a deep hostility towards Buddhist monks, and vice versa. Inuyasha still was angry that Miroku had gotten the fight, and was eating accordingly.

During the conversation it became clear that Toshiaki had developed a drinking habit recently, obviously because of the influence of the tengu, and the group could guess from the bruise what was left unsaid. The relief of Toshiaki's wife spoke more than thousand words, while the man himself seemed embarrassed for having fallen for the tricks of the creature. Kagome hoped that Madoka would read him the riot act once their group was on the way again, what was unfortunately rather unlikely. Most women in ancient Japan were almost completely subdued by their husbands, she guessed finding a nice one was great luck. She hoped that the tengu hadn't just intensified the bad habits of Toshiaki.

"I also have a question," Sango began. When Toshiaki nodded, she continued, "We are coming from the mining village, where we heard that they had been attacked by a werewolf many years ago. I am hunting for this beast, and want to ask if you might know something helpful." Here was the best place to begin the search for her prey, as this was the settlement nearest to the mining village.

"That happened long before our time," Toshiaki answered. "There is a man living at the edge of the town who escaped back then. I heard that there were only a handful survivors, and I guess most of them are buried under the earth by now, scattered all over the country. That man might be the only living witness left."

"There is a problem though," Madoka took up. "He has always been a rather quirky individual, and age only made it worse. I don't think you will hear much useful from him." She remembered when she had first met him as a child, how he kept mumbling to himself. "I guess the mayhem in his home village left him on the edge of sanity, he was still young man back then after all."

Sango bowed, this still was a better lead than she had hoped for. It was very unlikely to find a witness after more than fifty years. They finished the meal, and the group excused themselves, saying that they would look for the man now. Before they left, Madoka showed them their sleeping room, excusing that they had only one for all of them. Kagome assured that it was no problem.

They headed for the direction Toshiaki had described to them. Inuyasha seemed rather uneasy. "I'll go training with Shippou," he said. The fox child looked up anxiously at him, but Kagome scolded the hanyou. "This is very important for Sango. She's our friend, and we will help her through this."

"Isn't that what your girl talks are for? I'd rather go training with Shippou," Inuyasha tried to talk himself out.

"That doesn't matter! She has helped us out many times, and now we help her," the miko said, beginning to get angry.

"Keh! When would I have needed her help?" the hanyou shot back.

"Inuyasha, we are going. That is my last word," Kagome answered. It was clear that this was an important matter for Sango, so why did he have to be that tactless?

Inuyasha gave Shippou a small push, but the fox just shook his head, indicating that he would not interfere. Inuyasha growled at the fox, frustrated. What if that man recognized him?

"Inuyashaaaaa...", Kagome warned.

"Fine! I hope you make it quick. I don't want to waste time for stupid werewolves. They can join Kouga's pack for all I care," the hanyou answered. ´Looks like the stubborn miko has set her mind...´ The chances were good that it was someone who wasn't even born when he had left the village.

They reached the hut, Sango entered first, Kagome and Miroku behind her. Inuyasha stayed outside with Shippou and Kirara, saying that they would just scare the man. From there he would be able to listen, without being seen.

Inside was a man seated on the floor, eating soup for dinner. He looked up, surprised. "I have no sandals left."

Sango looked at the man, he was really old, not a single hair left on his head, but a snow-white beard was on his face. The hut had almost no furnishing, she was sure if the man didn't have a really good constitution he would have died in this hole long ago.

"Good day, Ojii-san. I am not here for footwear," Sango answered, not really caring what he meant with he had no sandals. "I heard that you survived the attack of the werewolf," she told him. She didn't know how to approach the subject otherwise, trying to sound as reassuring as possible.

The old man hummed to himself, rocking back and forward. After Sango didn't get an answer, she continued. "I am hunting for it, and thought that you might be able to help me."

The man looked up, eyeing her. "Hmmm", he said, stopping the unnerving shaking. "Hehehehe." The laughter was even more enervating. "You want to kill it?"

"Yes, that's my intent," Sango told him seriously.

He started to giggle again. "And you think you can do that?" he asked when he finally caught himself. "It has killed men by the dozen, so how do you think a woman could defeat it?"

"I'll have you know that I was the best youkai exterminator of my village!" Sango was angered by the chauvinist attitude. "And my friends here are really good, too." She heard Inuyasha chuckle at her outburst outside, but chose to ignore him.

The old man was not impressed. "Youkai exterminator, eh? Well, the man they sent after the wolf was one too." He giggled again. "Was never seen again."

"He was my great grandfather," Sango gritted out. She clenched her fists, forcing herself to calm down. "Can you tell me something or not?"

"If you insist." the old man answered. "There isn't really much to tell. I was wakened by something crying like mad in the middle of the night. When my father looked outside, he saw that a fire was spreading in the village. My parents left to help extinguishing the fire." He paused, thinking about something. "Was the last time is saw them. When the fire reached my house, I ran outside and saw some children gathered there, and then an old man ran towards us and led us out of the village. I actually never saw the beast."

Suddenly he started to shout. "But he said that he only had one eye! Only one eye!" He started to giggle again. "Like an evil eye."

Sango shook her head. Nothing useful. "Do you know which direction the wolf fled?"

"Flee? Hehehe." The enervating giggle again. "Flee! Hahahaha." He needed some time to catch himself, finally looking quite proud. "No youkai ever fled our village, not even the hanyou."

"Hanyou?" Kagome asked. "Was there a hanyou attacking you?"

"Attacking. Hehehehe."

"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked. "Come in, Ojii-san says there was a hanyou attacking their village." This would interest the dog demon, as he was a hanyou himself, even if he didn't seem to be interested in the wolfhunt.

"And why should I care?" Inuyasha asked in a bored voice from outside the hut.

Meanwhile, the old man looked up, curious. "I knew an Inuyasha once."

"Inuyasha, come inside." Kagome said again. Did the old man know the hanyou?

Inuyasha was in a dilemma. If he went inside, he would most likely be recognized. But what choices did he have, it would be suspicious if he didn't react to that. Maybe he could make the old man look like a fool, so his friends wouldn't hear that story. He entered, knowing there was no way around this. He positioned himself in the door, hoping that he wouldn't be recognized against the light. "What is it?" he snorted, trying to sound unconcerned.

The old man started to laugh again. "Hahahaa! Inuyasha! Hahahaha!"

"Would you stop that, Jiji?" Inuyasha gritted out, but inwardly he cheered. This way they wouldn't even believe the old man that he knew him.

"Jiji? Hahahahahahaha." The old man almost toppled over. "HAHAHA! JIJI!"

Inuyasha turned around, intending to go outside again. He wouldn't waste his time with some lunatic.

"Don't you recognize me, dog-ear?" the old man asked behind him.

Inuyasha turned around slowly, dangerously slow. "Eiji." It was a statement, not a question. Kagome and the rest were watching dumbfounded, even Shippou who had slipped into the hut didn't catch the situation.

"Hehehe. What happened to you, did hell spit you out again?" the old man asked in false sweet voice.

"What happened to you?" Inuyasha asked back, advancing at the old man, a predatory smile growing on his lips. "Did the wolf spit you out again?"

Eiji slid backwards in his sitting position, hitting the wall with his back. "You can't hurt me!" he shouted frightened, then started giggling again. "Hehehe. Only the wolf can kill me!"

Inuyasha bent down. "Is that so?" he asked, unnerving gentle. The old man began to sweat under his gaze. When the hanyou grabbed Eiji's throat, Kagome snapped out of her stupor. "Inuyasha, leave Ojii-san alone!"

The dog demon ignored her, lifting Eiji up. "I wouldn't have dreamed of seeing your ugly face again," he said, squeezing the old man's throat shut, stopping any reply.

"Inuyasha! Stop it!" Kagome tried to reason with the hanyou, but got no answer. The hanyou just continued to insult the old man, who looked like he would pass out every moment from fear alone.

"Osuwari!" she shouted when Inuyasha started to smash the old man against the wall, not knowing what else to do to stop Inuyasha from strangling this Eiji. The situation had turned from unnerving to weird in a matter of seconds. ´These two know each other? What is going on here?´

Predictably, Inuyasha slammed to the floor, losing his grip on Eiji's throat. The old man got a laughing fit more violent than even before. "HAHAHA!" he laughed while kicking the subdued hanyou against the head. "Osuwari! HAHAHAAHAA! Like the DOG you are!"

When the spell lost its effect, Inuyasha got up. He had clenched his fists that hard that his nails had dug deep into the flesh of his palm, blood trickling down his knuckles.

Do you wish there was a way to stop the fickle hand of fate,
or do you give in to the urge and kill the very thing you hate?
Twist of Fate

From what I gathered in the internet, tengu are quite popular mythical creatures in Japan. I just found it looked funny (same kind of strange like Jaken), so I decided to put it into this chapter.

This time the title-song is from my favorite punk band, Pennywise. I like them even better than Bad Religion, and a hundred times better than MTV-punk. The song is from their newest CD, Land of the Free. I think some of you could know this band, they are relatively popular. And they are really good!

E-Mail Notification :
I began to send E-Mails to some of my readers (actually only two by now), and although I was against this in the beginning I found out it is absolutely no work. So if you want to receive a short notification when a new chapter is out, please tell me and leave an E-Mail-address in your review.

February 10th, 2003 : Chapter 8 finished.

July 16th, 2003 :
Big thanks to Kat. Especially for your comment on Sango's uniform. ;) I think I forgot to upload a corrected version earlier...
And to Daniel for his insightful review.