InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Shadowed Nights ❯ Winter Woes ( Chapter 4 )

Shadowed Nights

By The Black Dragon Queen…I’m Back! Hordes of readers run away in terror Co Authored by Kallipso

Pairings, Summary, Disc---- Well you all know them by now… no use beating a dead Hanyou… Inuyasha: “HEY!” er… horse.

Apologies: I’M SORRY! I’M SORRY! I’M SORRY! GOMEN NASASI! Honto ni gomen nasai! I know I’m REALLY late but my court case is still in the works and I really have NO idea what’s going on! .

If there is anyone who has more artistic talent then I have in other words, anyone who can draw a straight line… mine go all squiggly and would like to create some fan art for this story, please send them to me directly at under the subject “Squiggly Art.” Thank you

Dedications: This part is dedicated to Puppy Chan! Who bravely e-mailed me to ask if I was dead and poked my twitching corpse to see if I had the next chapter yet; also dedicated to Kallipso who walked right past our dear Puppy and kicked said corpse in the ass shouting at it to get off it’s lazy butt and write! No! Really! She was poking me while I was writing chapter 22... Quite viciously actually… it hurt.

Kallipso: Meanwhile she just turns around and glares until I threaten to keep the Ed plushie I am dangling in front of BDQ. Now onward HO!

Fonts: “Speaking”… ‘Thinking’… ‘Mind Speak!’ NOW (finally) ON TO THE STORY! Shadowed Nights Winter Woes: Chapters 19-24 Chapter Nineteen: Horrid Happenings

Life in the village was no longer pleasant; in fact it had become downright horrid.

The small figure did not need to look around at the multitude of puzzled and unhappy faces of the inhabitances to know that. It was actually quite sad that everything had come to this but such was life. ‘Well, life around here anyhow,’ the figure chuckled as dark eyes watched the activities of village continue around here.

The string of occurrences that seemed to center around the small village or rather around the hanyou who had lived here were all in all very amusing, however even the figure had to admit that life was now becoming difficult, even unbearable in the village.

The others felt it as well. The Lady Kaede had tried every healing potion she could in order to find a way to sooth the enraged miko, but alas to no avail.

Kagome was getting worse.

It had been no wonder that the koinu hanyou had left the village those few weeks before. It was never odd that the silver haired creature left for days and weeks at a time, no one ever questioned it. It was actually expected seeing as how it was hard for him to interact with others on a consistent daily bases.

So it was no surprise to anyone on the day before the new moon, they had awoken to an empty bed and the hanyou gone.

The figure, however, doubted anyone else realized that Inuyasha had absolutely no intentions of even returning. Though the figure certainly knew and worried how Kagome would react when she found out her prized “possession” had fled by his own free will.

For some disturbing reason, Kagome saw Inuyasha as just that. Her property; though many saw it as Kagome just having a small girlish crush on the half youkai, the figure knew that it was some twisted way for Kagome to show she had power over the boy.

The subjugation beads were of no help either.

It was as if Kagome had become completely obsessed over Inuyasha and the girl resented anyone who would even think to suggest otherwise. The fact that she had on numerous occasions tried to convince Inuyasha to travel down the well to her time had been suspicious as well.

She had begged and pleaded with him for the past few weeks to travel with her to the future. While before, Inuyasha would have jumped at the chance to go to the city where his beloved “Instant Raman” was, he flat out refused after the past few fights. The figure couldn’t blame him however.

Shuddered in remembrance of the last fight and the large bruise that had formed on Inuyasha’s chin from connecting with the hard ground the figure truly could not blame the boy for leaving. That had not been pretty.

It was almost as if Kagome was trying to keep the hanyou separate from the others. As if she was ensuring that the somewhat tentative bond that he had with the others were as strained as possible.

Perhaps the figure was just being paranoid, but the fact that Kagome wanted to take Inuyasha back to her own time without a solid explanation somehow was disturbing.

What had surprised the figure however was that Inuyasha had gained a suspicious mentality as well and had voiced that very thought on many occasions in the past few months.

‘I should have know that he was becoming even more miserable than he usually was,’ the figure chastised as it thought back to all the little things that it had missed at the time but now stood out in vivid detail. ‘That boy has had to many centuries cultivation that arrogant persona of unfeeling indifference.’

Feeling ashamed and a little guilt ridden, the figure turned and started to walk in a random direction absently acknowledging the few calls of greeting that were called out on the way.

‘Why did I not see it before?’ the thoughts continued. ‘I can honestly say that I am the one person who knows him best and yet even I could not see how troubled he was…’

The figure knew from scrutinizing how people reacted to Inuyasha that people almost always assumed that the boy was stupid and a little slow upon first meeting the hanyou but the figure also knew that the truth was far from what it seemed. That Inuyasha had survived all these years when the odds for a young child, especially a young hanyou, were so stacked against him, showed how strong and cunning he really was.

That’s why it was so surprising to see suspicion in those golden eyes whenever they looked at the young Miko.

Usually Inuyasha was so careful to maintain his outward appearance of being a dim hanyou but if there was actually doubt in his gaze then the figure should have realized that there was something truly wrong in what was going on in the village… and with Kagome.

Shaking its head at Inuyasha’s deceptive persona the figure sighed and sat back down by the local butcher. ‘He’s so much like his kinfolk that it’s actually quite scary,’ the figure mused as the generous man hander over some leftover venison and then continued on.

The figure had felt terrible about the hanyou’s situation but in truth, there had been nothing that could be done to help. The situation had occurred before the figure had even met the two.

It was why there was the feeling of anger about the current problem.

The figure should have been able to tell something was wrong with the girl but it had started out so subtlety that it was not until it was almost completely too late when the figure did realize what was happening to help the child. As it stood, the figure could not think of a way to help Kagome return to her kinder self.

It was regretful when someone fell into the darkness but there was little that the figure could do.

The power that the figure possessed was not strong enough.

The only thing that the figure could do was to ensure that the child that was part of their group was well taken care of.

It was odd that Inuyasha had left and not taken the kit with him, an oversight that he probably did not even realize at the time. However with Kagome returning to her time less and less, the figure’s fear for the child’s safety grew more and more.

Moving out of the way of an oncoming cart the figure started towards the small hut that was the current home of the group and wondered if it was going to be a somewhat peaceful evening. Doubtful, but one could still hope. It would be interesting to see if anyone was there at the moment and the small stream of smoke told that at least Kaede would more likely than not be home.

It should not be very difficult to get Shippo out of the small village undetected. Though the figure was instead more worried on how hard it would be to keep Shippo from trying to return to the village.

It was unknown on just how far Inuyasha had actually run but knowing the full strength of a youkai, even when they only possessed half the blood, a youkai could run as far as he wanted as fast as he wanted without breaking a sweat.

It wouldn’t be at all surprising if Inuyasha had run to the ends of the earth.

Anything to get away from Kagome.

Sighing, the small figure soon reached the top of the small hill and smiled as well as the creature could smile at the sight of the small form that sat on the hut’s front stoop.

Letting out a small yip of hello, the small animal darted up to the youkai child.

Shippo looked up at Kirara’s greeting and smiled down at the small twin tailed Neko.

“Hello Kirara,” the small kitsune greeted halfheartedly.

The small youkai looked up at the sad child and yipped again as she pushed her head under his small hand, begging for a pet.

Smiling a little, the kit obliged stroking her behind the ear, “are you lonely too?”

Kirara whined softly and gave the child a quick lick for comfort. Shippo smiled at the little animal and gave her a firm scratch on the head.

A voice called out and Shippo looked up to see Miroku returning from his now daily search for Inuyasha. The monk had decided that if there was anyone who could figure out what was wrong with Kagome it had to be the hanyou. The problem was that said hanyou had disappeared and the adults were starting to get worried that it wasn’t so much a case of him leaving as possibly being captured by Naraku.

Kirara nearly shook her head. ‘Humans can be so obtuse sometimes,’ she mused as she watched the human trudge up the hill. ‘It is clear that the child dose not want to be found and when he doesn’t want to be found there’s no hide nor hair of him to be seen.’

Miroku came over to them, obviously weary but still smiling.

“What’s going on Shippo?” he asked.

The kit smiled up at him but still turned to frown at the empty road behind him. “Still nowhere to be seen?” he asked.

Miroku’s face fell and he shook his head somberly.

“Well good riddance!” Shippo huffed. “We don’t need that baka anyhow…”

Miroku frowned and knelt down and gave the small kit a hug.

“We’ll find him,” the monk whispered.

Shippo said nothing but leaned into the embrace before Miroku stood and giving the child a small smile went into the hut.

‘Brave human,’ Kirara thought as she turned an ear towards the building.

There was a sudden shout and the sound of something breaking from within the cottage followed by the humans trying to calm down the raging miko. ‘Brave, but stupid.’

Shippo actually cringed and hunched his shoulders in an attempt to look even smaller than his already diminutive form.

“Why can’t things just go back to normal?” Shippo asked sullenly as he pulled the small neko into his lap and buried his face in her soft fur. “Thing’s just haven’t been the same since the baka left,” he continued.

Kirara silently agreed.

‘Things really are terrible,’ the small neko youkai thought as she purred in an attempt to sooth the small kit. The sound of the fighting in the house grew worse and Kirara knew she had to make her move now.

The humans would be able to take care of themselves but she knew that Shippo, without an adult’s guidance, was in a very bad situation that could lead to a world of hurt.

For whatever reasons, Inuyasha had left the only other person in his party with youkai blood behind and it very well may had been good reasons. However, Kirara knew that without Inuyasha’s very presence, that when she finally did realize that Inuyasha was not going to return, that all hell would break loose.

She did not want the child there when it happened. And she knew that the only one who could protect him, not only from the prowling demons that followed Naraku but from Kagome herself, was Inuyasha.

Now all she had to do was find the runaway pup.

Her mind made up, Kirara whined again before standing and jumping out of the small kit’s lap.

Shippo looked up in curiosity as Kirara yipped at him and started jumping impatiently.

“What’s wrong Kirara?” he asked as he jumped up from the stoop. “Is it Inuyasha? Do you know where he is?”

The little neko yipped again and turned to run down the hill.

Glancing back at the little hut anxiously, Shippo hesitated a moment before turning and following the small youkai down the hill.

Kirara occasionally slowed down to ensure that the kitsune was following her before she turned and darted into the woods.

Shippo huffed in annoyance and ran faster to catch up to small animal. “Kirara! Wait…” he huffed as he struggled over a fallen branch.

The cat paused and waited for the kit to catch up before shifting to her full form. Waiting for him to reach her, she knelt down to allow him to climb upon her back before she took off once more through the woods.

Shippo yelped in surprise as he grabbed the scruff of her neck as he dodged branches and tried to just hang on.

“Kirara! Where are we going?” he cried.

She huffed as she continued with her breakneck pace through the forest. It would be hard for her to track Inuyasha from the air; she had to stay on the ground if she would be able to track after his scent.

But it would be hard, even for her.

Kirara huffed as she tied find the lingering scent of Inuyasha as she searched the woods. The problem was, there were too many of his scent trails. It was only natural for a creature that spent almost every day in the solitude of the woods.

‘Couldn’t he just walk a straight line…’ she huffed as she sniffed every small trace of the hanyou’s scent. Finding one that led to a large tree she snorted in annoyance. ‘Better yet, couldn’t he just stay on the ground?’

Growling in annoyance, she soon found a trail that led away from all the others and better still- led away from the village. Taking a chance that she had found the right one she turned and followed the lingering scent of the inu. With luck, it would be the right one and hopefully she could get the kit there before all hell broke loose.

Shippo just tied to hang on as she darted sporadically throughout the forest before determining a somewhat straight path and following it. He couldn’t understand why it was that Kirara was determined to go looking for Inuyasha now. They had been searching for weeks now and with no results.

But he could not give up hope that they would find him- after all; Inuyasha wasn’t at all very bright, how far could he have gone?

Shippo dug his little claws deeper into Kirara’s pelt and held on as they ran through the woods. They would find Inuyasha. They had to.

He was the closest Shippo had to a friend.

To say that he saw the baka hanyou as a father figure or even a brother, however, was just simply pushing it. Chapter Twenty: Ghastly Habits

The silver figure sighed as he looked about the disorganized chaos of the cave.

Stuff had been strewed about everywhere.

There were abandoned dishware set aside at the oddest places, cloths had been dropped haphazardly around the “sleeping quarters” and there was that odd little puzzle known as a rubric cube half finished on the futon.

Scowling, he starting grabbing random items and managing to collect an arm full of bits and pieces he set out to find the culprits.

The little girl was actually very well organized, well as organized as a small child could be, but him! He scowled as he thought about his reluctant cave mate.

‘One would think someone his age would have better housekeeping skills…’ he thought in annoyance while he grabbed a random undershirt and frowned at the scent that radiated from the material.

Mentally making a note about laundry, he soon found one of the ne’er-do-wells and glared at the little girl.

Chastising her firmly and obtaining a regretful apology he handed her the few items she had disregarded and reminded her to start cleaning up after herself before moving on to find the mastermind behind the mess.

It took some time before he came upon the second silver creature that lived in the cave and with a dark look he threw the heap of cloths in the youkai’s face.

Sesshoumaru glared as the offensive ball of fabric firmly slammed into his nose before sliding down to land in a silvery puddle at his feet.

“Do I look like one of your stupid servants?” Inuyasha demanded as he waved the foul smelling shirt about in the air. “What the hell do you think you’re doing leaving all this crap around?”

Sesshoumaru stared at the hyperventilating hanyou and deftly removed the obi that hung randomly on his shoulder. “What are you ranting about now?” he sneered.

Inuyasha just about decked him. “YOU KNOW VERY WELL WHAT I’M ‘RANTING ABOUT’ YOU PAMPERED BASTARD!” The shirt soon followed the fate of the others as it too smacked against Sesshoumaru’s smirking visage following Inuyasha’s tirade. “THIS MESS!” and he waved his hand in the general direction of the main cave. “This irritating clutter that just seems to trail after you everywhere! And will you stop racking out the rushes! It’s going to get even harder to replace them when the snow comes!”

Sesshoumaru scowled. “Why can’t you just get mats?”

“The rushes work just fine!” Inuyasha hissed. “Always have, always will. I’m sorry if this cave is not to your liking, but if you hate it so YOU CAN VERY WELL MOVE OUT!”

Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow and leaned against one of the small crates of food where he had been napping/meditating when Inuyasha had stormed the back tunnel. “And leave you all by your lonesome?” he asked sarcastically.

“I would take ANYONE’S company over you!” Inuyasha snapped. “I can take care of myself! I’ve been doing it for centuries.”

Sesshoumaru looked at the hanyou from toes to ear tips, never missing the scattering of twigs and leaves in the silver locks. “Yes, I can see how well you took care of yourself.”

Inuyasha bristled. “I’m still alive, ain’t I?”

“Hmm,” Sesshoumaru hummed as he dropped the dirty shirt onto of the small pile. “That remains to be seen.”

Inuyasha blushed under Sesshoumaru’s unwavering gaze. He should have know that having Sesshoumaru there on a daily bases would be trouble.

It had almost been as if the cave had shrunk five times it’s size since his elder brother had moved in and to say that it had been nerve wracking would have been a gross understatement.

The feeling of those piercing golden eyes on him almost every second of the day had nearly destroyed his nerves and Inuyasha had never been more grateful that Sesshoumaru had allowed the little girl to remain instead of sending her off with the toad imp.

Gathering food had never been quite such a chore either since the taller figure moved in.

For some strange reason, Sesshoumaru rarely-if ever- left the cave. Another strike against him in Inuyasha’s opinion that proved just how lofty his royal highness could get. Sesshoumaru had been a royal pain in the ass since he had arrived.

However there was one question he needed answered. “Why are you so insistent about all this?” he asked. “Why did you move in? Why are you so stubborn about this whole…” he waved his hand’s in a vague gesture, “this whole protecting me when I’m human, after years of completely denying my very existence? I’ve been wondering about it since you brought up this whole ‘truce’ thing after that rainy night!”

Inuyasha turned to look Sesshoumaru, one of his greatest enemy’s in the eye as he asked, “What exactly do you want with me?”

There was a growl and Inuyasha’s breath was knocked out of him as he was suddenly slammed against the wall. He gapped for any bit of air as he clawed at the wrist that Sesshoumaru pressed against his throat.

“Do not even think of questioning me, hanyou.” Sesshoumaru leaned forward, his nose inches away from Inuyasha’s own. “You want to know what I want with you?”

Any thought about regaining his breath left him as Inuyasha’s eyes widened in shock and they stared into the narrowed ones of Sesshoumaru. He could feel the youkai’s hot breath brush gently against his cheek.

That feeling was back. That stupid little feeling that came up from his toes and slammed into his gut as Sesshoumaru leaned those last few inches to whisper in a triangle ear…

“That is for me to know…”

Inuyasha felt all the tension just drain out of his body as he stared at Sesshoumaru’s smirking face in complete disbelief. Narrowing his eyes, he struggled for a while until Sesshoumaru finally dropped him, his point made and the hanyou took deep lungful of air rubbing his sore neck in an attempt to sooth his injured throat.

He turned hate filled eyes upward and glared at the regal figure that towered above him

Sesshoumaru watched as Inuyasha chest heaved with the force of his gasps for breath and the smooth curve of the hanyou’s shoulders shook with the exertion. For some damn reason the youkai couldn’t turn his eyes away.

“Are you finished with your questions?” he asked casually as he once more leaned against the crates.

Inuyasha huffed and blew his bangs out of his eyes. “Not really, but for the moment it’s all I can think of,” he growled as he turned to leave the small storage tunnel where Sesshoumaru had been meditating… or rather hiding. “If you’re going to kill me then do it,” he called over his shoulder, “as it stands- I have better things to do.”

If this was how it was going to be on day five, Inuyasha shuddered to think how the rest of the winter season was going to go.

He had to get Sesshoumaru out of his hair and more importantly, out of the cave!

Inuyasha had demanded multiple times for an explanation of Sesshoumaru’s sudden announcement that he would be moving in and as yet Sesshoumaru had refused to divulge any information on the subject.

‘Irritating prick!’ Inuyasha thought angrily. ‘What in the world was he talking about his “instincts”? He probably made that up, the jerk.’

Inuyasha growled as he entered the main cavern his eyes immediately going to the small corner where Kuufuku was gnawing on yet another piece of elaborate silk. A small smile came to his lips before he wandered over and gently tried to pull the obi from the rat.

“Come on. You already have three whole outfits and I have to do wash soon,” Inuyasha huffed as he gave a short tug.

Kuufuku actually let out a small rat growl and pulled back at the cloth. Sighing, Inuyasha pulled back and soon there was a comical little fight of tug-of-war over the obi. “Will you let go already?” he whispered. “His royal highness…” and he rolled his eyes at this, “is already in a cranky mood…”

“Youkai are never ‘cranky’,” the smooth voice came flowed over him. “We are ‘avid’.”

Letting out an exasperated breath, Inuyasha finally managed to claim the obi as the rat scuttled into his own hole. Without turning around, he started gathering different articles of clothing and set them into a pile in one corner before starting to collect dishes and setting them in on the table.

Glancing around he then begin to collect the small toys and other knick-knacks and set them on top of the futon next to the colorful cube.

Never once looking at the taller man.

He did not speak a single word.

He could practically feel the anger radiating off the youkai.

Inuyasha couldn’t help but smirk as he moved about cleaning the cave as best he could while living with two slobs. Hell, they couldn’t even keep their garbage in sensible clutter.

There was a soft rustle as Sesshoumaru made his way into the cave and Inuyasha immediately tensed, his ears swiveling automatically to follow the soft sound of the youkai’s footsteps.

Forcing himself to relax, he continued to separate the different messes and pointedly ignored his brother.

So when there was a soft thud, Inuyasha turned in surprise to see Sesshoumaru dropping the armful of cloths onto the small pile.

Inuyasha watched as Sesshoumaru jerked up his nose, turned, and marched back into the tunnel.

The hanyou stared at the retreating form in shock. Sesshoumaru hadn’t said anything back. That was not what he had been expecting. A huff, a sneer, and insulting word or two to be sure… but for Sesshoumaru to say nothing and to just calmly leave. ‘Perhaps I was too hard on him,’ he wondered briefly before quickly quashing any such notion.

‘Like hell I am,’ he argued with himself as he furiously started grabbing all the clothing and shoving them in the wicker basket he had obtained. ‘It was his choice to live out here in the wilderness as appose to his plushy castle. Why the hell should I feel sorry for the bastard?’

Quickly double checking that there was nothing left, Inuyasha strode out of the cave and into the bright afternoon sunshine.

“Konichiwa, Inuyasha-Sama!” Rin called from where she was playing with some pebbles making odd designs in the sand.

Inuyasha nodded at her as he made his way into the woods. Turning south, he made his way to the small pond that he had found on his now daily food gathering hunts. Slowly making his way down the embankment he neared the waters edge and unceremoniously dumped the clothing into the water.

Removing his outer robe, Inuyasha rolled up his sleeves and set to work doing laundry. It was a nice, mindless task…

…If only his brain would cooperate and stop thinking.

For some reason, his brother’s attitude the past few days had been nothing short of irritating. He had been either ignoring his half brother completely or driving him to the point of insanity with his constant bickering.

‘Honestly, it’s not like I wantedhim to live with me,’ Inuyasha huffed as he methodically beat the clothing against a nearby bolder and scrubbed them together with the small amount of soap he had snitched from the human village.

‘And I wish he would stop STARING at me!’ he quickly finished rinsing the cloths and started to lay them out on the scattered rocks to dry. ‘I mean it’s not like I’m in my human form or anything.’

He leaned back against the grass and watched as the darkening clouds rolled by. “Rain soon…” he muttered as he watched the sky allowing his mind to simply slow down for the better part of an hour.

‘It’s not like he’s never seen me before.’ Inuyasha continued his mental evaluation as he took a lock of his hair and held it in front of his eyes, ‘I’m nothing special. It’s not as if I look completelydifferent…’

A squirrel darted out of the trees and Inuyasha swiveled and ear to track its movements. ‘Well, with a few minor differences,’ he chuckled as he started to gather up the laundry and headed back to the cave.

Placing the clothing in the small trunk by the futons, Inuyasha handed Rin her own clean clothing to put away in her own small basket and started separating his own clothing from his brothers, frowning at the cloths as he immediately saw the difference between Sesshoumaru’s finer material and his own dilapidated attire.

A pale arm entered his line of vision from behind as Sesshoumaru snatched up his robes from Inuyasha’s sight.

“INUYASHA!” the enraged bellow soon came from behind him. “What did you do to my things?”

Inuyasha turned to see Sesshoumaru holing up his still damp robes (kimonos? Yukatas?) and rolled his eyes. “I washed them, obviously,” Inuyasha announced as he continued putting away the last few articles of clothing.

There was a growl. “Washed them, where?” Sesshoumaru snarled out the question.

Inuyasha turned with a puzzled look at the fuss the youkai was making, all over some stupid clothes. “Does it matter where?” he asked tiredly. He still had dinner to make and there was the cleaning to finish.

“Just answer the question…” Sesshoumaru barked.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow as he closed the lid of the trunk and set the basket aside. “There’s a small pond not far from here,” he announced. “Where did you think I was fetching the water from? Thin air?” He asked sarcastically.

“A pond?” Sesshoumaru gapped disbelieving. “You washed my silk clothes in cold water?” he screeched. “You didn’t heat it or anything?” Rin giggled slightly but quickly clamped a hand over her mouth as she watched the two, demon brothers argue. “They’re ruined!” Sesshoumaru continued as he slammed the clothing to the ground. “Completely destroyed!”

The hanyou sighed and looked at the raging demon. “You have to be exaggerating. They can’t be completely un-useable.”

Sesshoumaru bent down and with an exaggerated flick of the wrist held out one of the robes from shoulder height. Inuyasha suppressed a smirk as he saw the hem now a good half a foot shorter than it had been. Sesshoumaru scowled, “and what, may I ask, can I do with them?”

Inuyasha shrugged as he made his way towards the back of the cave to gather ingredients for dinner.

“Give them to the rat,” he suggested as he slipped into the tunnel, leaving an enraged bellow and a grateful squeak behind him.

Chapter Twenty-One: Now What?

Sesshoumaru was agitated.

This feeling only moved to infuriate the Youkai Lord even more as Inu Youkai were never agitated. ‘It all comes down to the irritating hanyou!’ Sesshoumaru thought as he stared at the figure in red as Inuyasha moved about the cave while he made dinner.

Sesshoumaru suppressed a growl. ‘Irritating hanyou,’ he thought again as he sat down at the table and proceeded to meditate…

Or at least, he tried to meditate.

Every time he managed to clear his mind, he heard Inuyasha move and before he could even think about it, his eyes would snap open and immediately move to the smaller youkai.

It was really starting to piss him off. Inuyasha only had to do the slightest twitches; the smallest of movement and Sesshoumaru was immediately compelled to watch it. To follow it. To file the small motion away for later reference in the now growing file that was Inuyasha.

Sesshoumaru finally did growl softly. ‘Fucking hanyou!’

Rin, playing in the corner, with her human hearing could not hear the soft noise that emitted from his throat but Inuyasha did.

The right koinu ear swiveled towards him and Inuyasha turned to look questioningly at his older brother over his shoulder, the right eyebrow lifting displaying Inuyasha’s inquisitive look number three; the one where he was simply curious but not overly so.

In Sesshoumaru’s opinion, “inquisitive look number three” was much better than number four. The inquisitive but hostile “what the fuck’s wrong with you?” look.

Sesshoumaru had never wanted to bang his head against a table so hard in his life.

For the past five days all he could think about was his brother and the odd feeling accompanying the thoughts of his brother. He wondered once more why it was that there was this stupid feeling. That odd little notion that told him, no, demanded that he had to protect the hanyou.

From what, he had no idea but he knew he had to protect him.

Sesshoumaru wrinkled his nose as a pungent smell reached his nose. ‘If only from himself,’ he concluded as Inuyasha made his way over and called Rin to dinner.

If it could be said that Sesshoumaru was agitated, then it could be said that Inuyasha was anxious. And the cause of the feeling was right across the cave staring at him as he did the dishes.

Sesshoumaru had said nothing when Inuyasha returned from the back of the cave and began making dinner. He said nothing when dinner was finished and everyone settled down to start eating. He didn’t even utter one word when dinner was finished and Inuyasha teasingly said that it was his turn to do the dishes… although he did send his brother a withering glare.

Sesshoumaru had not said one word since the argument about the laundry. After the meal, he had moved to one side of the cave and sat down with all the grace and arrogance of the lord he was all with out uttering a single word.

And the silence was really starting to freak Inuyasha out. It didn’t help that Sesshoumaru was staring at him- again. Everywhere he went, he could feel the golden eyes staring at his back as he moved about.

Inuyasha was they type of person who could barely sit still as it was but with the added tension he was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet.

He was tempted to snap at the taller youkai, yell at him for being an idiot or perhaps try and provoke a good fight. It was a very pleasing idea but one Inuyasha regretfully set aside. ‘If we fight in here it’s more than likely everything would get trashed,’ Inuyasha thought as he looked about the cave.

However, this thought did nothing to quell his anxiety nor did it solve the problem of Sesshoumaru staring at him. Huffing in annoyance, Inuyasha moved towards the sleeping area and started messing about with the blankets.

‘I blame the new moon…’ Inuyasha thought irritably as he unmade and remade Rin’s futons several times. ‘It’s nearly a week away,’ he thought as he tucked in a corner, ‘I’ll blame that.’

Sighing, he sat back at stared at the perfectly made bed before moving a few feet down towards his own and undertook the task of remaking that one. He didn’t dare go near Sesshoumaru’s, which was on the other side of Rin. For one thing, he was unsure that the small black bugs he saw there were fleas or not. For another, Sesshoumaru would kill him.

He groaned as he finished his third round of making the bed, ‘I hate my life.’

Glancing at the entrance to the cave to gage the lateness of the evening, he called to Rin and spent the next hour trying to distract himself with the task of putting the little girl to sleep. Three stories and a still very perky girl later, Inuyasha had almost forgotten about Sesshoumaru’s staring… almost.

For his part Sesshoumaru was actually slightly amused at Inuyasha’s attempt to put the child to sleep.

It was actually a rather peaceful moment.

Looking about the cave, one would almost think that it was a serene picture with your typical family. The master of the … er … cave… was relaxing after dinner while the “wife”, being a overaggressive hanyou, was settling down the child. The “child” being a once killed now resurrected… ‘is she a zombie now or what?’ Sesshoumaru wondered absently.

There was even a… pet… sort of… in the rat Kuufuku. Sesshoumaru snorted as he glanced around for the small fur ball of doom…

…And eyes widened in complete and utter shock and disgust at the sight of the diseased ridden ball of fuzz curled up on his pillow!

The teacup had never before flown with such frightening accuracy across the cave as Sesshoumaru hurled the cup at his own bed. With a rather loud squeak (that sounded to the youkai like a taunting laugh) the rat quickly scuttled away from the deadly ceramic and quickly made his way to the other side where both Inuyasha and Rin were watching him with rather amused looks.

Sesshoumaru scowled and narrowed his eyes at them before they turned their attention back to… well, whatever the hell it was that they were doing.

‘Oh god, I’m actually losing it,’ Sesshoumaru moaned quietly. ‘The hanyou had done it. He has actually gone and done it. He’s driven me insane. Any and all rational thought has actually gotten up and flew away for the year…’

Sesshoumaru huffed as he rose to his feet and made his way to the back of the cave and the solitude of the tunnel. ‘One can only hope it returns in the spring…’

Growling in utter disgust, he stomped back to Inuyasha’s storage cave and hefted himself up on the crate he had been sitting on earlier. The entire week has been driving him crazy. He actually wondered what it was that possessed him to actually even suggest staying with his brother for the whole of the winter season.

‘This is insane,’ he mentally cursed at himself. ‘Jaken was right. This whole thing with Inuyasha is unhealthy.’

Sesshoumaru huffed and closed his eyes as he tried to get his jumbled thoughts into some semblance of order.

To start with, there was the discovery of Inuyasha as a human. Right there he should have been thrilled with the knowledge of the cursed hanyou’s weakness. Instead, he suddenly felt the compelling urge to ensure the hanyou’s safety. In doing so, he forced his brother into a truce where ever month, he would protect his now human brother during the nights of the new moon.

Sesshoumaru rationalized this argument with the re-enforced notion that it was because he did not want anyone else to kill his half brother, instead holding onto that privilege for himself. However, the simple fact that Sesshoumaru wanted the privilege of killing Inuyasha himself did not explain the current situation. The discovery that Inuyasha was living on his own and no longer with the dratted humans should have had absolutely no effect on Sesshoumaru one-way or the other.

As Inuyasha had argued more than once in a very determined tone, he had survived by himself for decades and he was not yet even a full grown hanyou! But when he realized that Inuyasha had once again taken to the wilds by himself, some part deep inside Sesshoumaru practically shot up in alarm at the mere notion. ‘Why did this ridicules urge to watch over Inuyasha increase almost a hundred fold when I found out that he was by himself?’ Sesshoumaru wondered in annoyance. ‘The last thing I need is some fraternal feelings creeping up on me.’

“Sesshoumaru?”

‘Oh Kami, now what.’ Sesshoumaru cracked an eye open and glared at the intruder. “What do you want?”

Inuyasha visibly bristled. “Well excuse me for wondering what the fuck’s wrong with you. I have to live with you, ya know. It could help if I knew what the fuck went on in that ‘regal’ brain of yours.”

‘You and me both,’ Sesshoumaru huffed. “Why do you insist on bothering my solitude today? Is it not enough that you practically destroyed my cloths today? Is there anything more of mine that you can annihilate with your incompetence?”

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. “You destroyed my life. Can you blame me for wanting to get something back?” he asked sarcastically.

Sesshoumaru scowled. “I did not ‘destroy’ you life hanyou. You’re still breathing, are you not?”

“What the fuck is that suppose to mean?” Inuyasha shouted as he stormed towards the seated youkai. “Here I am actually somewhat worried about your huffy ass and for once, it’s you who just wants to start a fight!”

Sesshoumaru growled low in his throat as he surged forward and grabbed the hanyou by the color of his fire rat robe, slamming him against the wall as he glared at the snarling koinu.

“Sesshoumaru! Kisama! What is with you and walls? Put me down you bastard!” Inuyasha yelped as he immediately started struggling against the iron grip.

“Shut up!” Sesshoumaru snapped. He shook Inuyasha as he tired to push the raging emotions down in to a tiny lockbox in the back of his mind. “Just,” he growled. “Just shut up.”

And wonder or wonders, Inuyasha did.

They stood there, both their chests heaving as they fought for breath.

Inuyasha’s eyes watching as Sesshoumaru sucked in air through clenched jaws. His brother’s face was almost directly next to him. He could actually see a small bead of sweat as it rolled down the youkai’s temple down the slender jaw line. His silver hair was frazzled and small strands were plastered to his perspiring brow.

Inuyasha’s breathing hitched slightly. Was it possible that there was something more going on than what he had originally thought? Sesshoumaru seemed very upset.

And if Sesshoumaru was upset, then in normal speak Inuyasha should be absolutely terrified.

Inuyasha swallowed heavily and tried to calm his breathing but the very thought of something that frightened the lord of the west to this level of panic only succeeded in causing his short gasps to speed up rapidly, until he was near hyperventilating. His shoulders were trembling with the force and he knew his eyes were as wide as they could go as they stared up at Sesshoumaru.

Sesshoumaru to one look at the distressed hanyou and nearly groaned at the picture his brother presented.

It was a desperate, wild look as he stared up at the taller youkai above him. It was a look of almost fearful helplessness that surge the need to protect this creature to the forefront of Sesshoumaru’s mind.

The glassy sheen to Inuyasha’s golden eyes, the flush across his cheeks…Hell even his ears were shaking and Sesshoumaru found that he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the sight.

The two points were trembling on top of the hanyou’s head, swiveling sporadically as Inuyasha tried to calm down. Sesshoumaru’s eyes remained riveted on the two fuzzy triangles and he leaned forward those extra few inches towards the odd appendages.

He gently exhaled against the closest one and the reaction was immediate.

Inuyasha had completely stopped trembling, his body instead going ramrod straight as his eyelids fluttered closed. The ears that had been the youkai’s sole focus twisted to lay parallel against the floor away from the attacking air.

This time, Sesshoumaru couldn’t even hold back the moan that rose to his throat.

Inuyasha’s eyes instantly opened as he looked up at Sesshomaru with a puzzled frown. Sesshoumaru’s own wide, shocked eyes looked back down at the confused hanyou as he practically dropped the younger youkai. ‘Oh god! Oh Kami-Sama NO!’ Sesshoumaru’s mind wailed as his brain finally caught up with what it was that his youki had been telling him- had been screaming at him, for the last few months.

The grand Youkai Lord stared at the smaller figure in complete and utter amazement. Sesshoumaru knew that there had to be something wrong. There was no possible way that his notion was right. There had to have been something wrong! The conclusion he had arrived at was the result of a wrong turn somewhere in his frazzled mind.

Inuyasha stared up as Sesshoumaru shook his head as if to disagree with something and the hanyou could almost hear the small word “no” repeating over and over under the youkai’s breath. He frowned as some part of him suddenly felt the urge to comfort the distressed youkai and he tentatively took a step forward toward the other male, one arm stretched out as if to lay a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Sesshoumaru actually reared back at the offered hand, shaking his head in disbelief.

“Oh God…” he groaned as he stared at the now very worried and anxious visage of his brother.

“Sesshoumaru?” Inuyasha finally asked. “What is-”

He got no further than that as the Great Inu Youkai; the Lord of the West and all around levelheaded youkai turned and completely fled the small antechamber.

Staring in complete shock, Inuyasha gapped at where Sesshoumaru had been standing before he finally managed to gain enough awareness to actually follow the youkai out of the antechamber.

One way or the other, Inuyasha was determined to get some answers but he was too late. When he arrived at the main cave he discovered only the still sleeping girl and one small rat staring out at the entrance to the cave with a perplexing look.

Sesshoumaru was gone.

Inuyasha had to wonder if he would ever bother coming back.

Chapter Twenty-Two: A Mislaid Miscreant

‘Oh fuck! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No!’

This was the ongoing mantra of one very shocked and very confused youkai as he ran through the forest as if the minions of Naraku were on his tail.

‘What the HELL is wrong with me…’ Sesshoumaru thought frantically as he dodged around a tree. ‘Better yet, what the fuck’s wrong with my damn youki?’

In his hysterical state, Sesshoumaru continued on his path and jumped a bush that blocked him. It was not a very large bush. More like overgrown underbrush that wasn’t even very wide. He could have just as easily gone around the bush, but in Sesshoumaru’s frazzled mind, to actually take the time to go around the bush would require too much thought and so Sesshoumaru continued in his straight line towards the horizon and jumped the bush.

Much to the annoyance of the family of rabbits who lived there.

‘There has got to be a better explanation!’ Sesshoumaru thought desperately. ‘There could be no possible way that my youki is… is… oh Kami, I can’t even think it!’

Sesshoumaru shook his head as he continued onward, dodging trees, jumping bushes and the occasional animal the couldn’t get out of the way fast enough.

Even the herd of deer that had tortured Inuyasha all those weeks ago looked on in complete confusion as the white blur speed past the feeding ground.

The last of Sesshoumaru’s un-chewed robes were torn as he ran through the forest; branches tearing at his clothing. There was a trail of torn silver hairs followed in Sesshoumaru’s wake as the outreaching branches caught his long silver hair and torn from his body.

All in all, Sesshoumaru was a complete and total mess. It was a state that the youkai lord would never allow anyone to see him in, let alone allow his appearance to become so disheveled as it was now.

None of it mattered. The only thing that mattered was the absurd conclusion he had arrived at when he was staring at those ridiculous, little triangle ears that sat upon his brothers head.

‘I have gone insane,’ Sesshoumaru thought as he ran. ‘There is no other possible explanation other than that I have gone completely and utterly crazy…’

Sesshoumaru ran.

It was the only think he could think of doing in his confused state. The little corner of his mind that was a creatures thought of self preservation chanted at him, “run away. Run away.”

And so Sesshoumaru did.

He ran thought the forest away from the cave and it’s homey like feeling. Away from the damn rat that was a constant curse to his life, not that Sesshoumaru regretted running away from the rat, the thing was fucking scary but still it was a blow to his pride.

But most importantly, he ran from Inuyasha. From the damn feelings that the hanyou was invoking deep within the little cobwebbed corner of his mind. From the damned urges to protect the exasperating koinu and most importantly from the frightening conclusions, or more specifically delusions, that the Taiyoukai had reached.

Sesshoumaru ran until he could run no more.

The end to the youkai’s flight was not that his had reached his limit. It was not the panting, gasping breath that told Sesshoumaru that he had reached the end, nor was it his aching feet that compelled him to stop.

It was more the fact that there was simply nowhere else for him to go.

Sesshoumaru coughed and sputtered as he tried to climb somewhat upright and glared at the fish that had dared to come investigated the creature that had invaded their home. Growling, Sesshoumaru gathered as much dignity that he could muster, pulled the piece of seaweed out of his hair, turned and trudged out of the lake that he had … found.

Collapsing onto the small beach, Sesshoumaru allowed himself to finally catch his breath as he watched the stars shined above him.

‘It couldn’t be possible,’ Sesshoumaru thought. ‘It’s a completely and utterly insane notion that my youki is considering that brat of a hanyou as a… as a…’

Sesshoumaru huffed as he sat up and started to wring out as much water as he could from his cloths, scowling at the multitude of tears in the fabric. ‘He’s still a damn koinu!’ he rationalized. ‘Not even five hundred years old. A fucking baby!’

Standing, he removed the outer layer of his robe and setting it out to dry he sat back down on the soft sand and continued his internal monologue. ‘There’s no possible reason for my youki to be reacting in this fashion,’ he thought as he stared at the waning moon.

‘The moon!’ Sesshoumaru stared at the large glowing orb with a start. ‘Fuck! When the hell do humans mature again? Does that even make a difference with Inuyasha?’

“Fuck,” Sesshoumaru growled as he rubbed his temples. “I hate my life.”

Sighing, he sat back and allowed his thought to try and convey into some semblance of order. The stars were actually quite nice in the winter months. Sesshoumaru wondered if it had to do with the tilt of the earth or if was just a fact that the sky was clearer in winter.

‘And now I’m just ignoring the subject,’ Sesshoumaru criticized himself as he thought back to the situation at hand. ‘There is no possible way that my youki sees Inuyasha as a…’ Sesshoumaru swallowed heavily before plunging on, ‘as a…mate…’

Sesshoumaru immediately shook his head and felt his face contorted into a rather putrid look. “Oh Kami, what the hell is happening?”

The stars had no reply.

‘Okay, calm down Sesshoumaru- you can look at this rationally… ’ He told himself.

Doing some quick meditating breathing before continuing, Sesshoumaru went thought the facts. ‘My youki is reacting to Inuyasha. It is responding as if it has declared him as a mate.’ Sesshoumaru could not help but roll his eyes at the thought. ‘However, Inuyasha is still too young to have come into his first heat. Therefore, what the fuck is my youki thinking?’

He frowned. ‘Then there is the fact that my youki has never before reacted to the hanyou until the day when I first came across Inuyasha as a human. Oh hell, when do Humans mate?’ Sesshoumaru thought frantically. ‘I have no interest in humans, how the hell should I know when they mature?’

Sesshoumaru idly wondered if he could obtain the information from Jaken or if he would have to find another source.

Growling again Sesshoumaru continued his furious denial between bouts of dozing and stargazing.

It was a few hours later when the sun was just coming over the horizon that it finally hit him. The surrounding finally made their way into the youkai’s confused mind and registered there.

“Oh crap!” he shouted as he sat bolt upright at stared at the forest and gleaming lake before him.

Jumping to his feet he turned a complete one hundred and eighty degrees as he searched for anything familiar. “I left the cave!”

Sesshoumaru gapped a few moments before falling backwards onto the sand.

“I am so dead.”

And a few miles away, a fuming hanyou agreed with him.

Inuyasha’s scowled as he looked about the cave for one very absent youkai. ‘Okay, one crazy rat…’ he looked at the small bundle of Sesshoumaru’s discarded clothes and the sleeping rat therein. ‘Check. One tiny human girl…’ a rather loud snore penetrated the cool morning air. ‘…With very powerful lungs; check. One cranky youkai who thinks he’s God…’ He looked about the cave for any sign of silver.

“Hello…” he called out softly, “calling for one cranky youkai lord who insists on disrupting my life…” he listened for a moment. “Come out, come out where ever you are…”

Only the loud snores now accompanied by some soft wheezing answered him.

“Where the hell is he?” he muttered as he moved about the main cave silently as to not awake the snoring girl and the snoozing rat.

Ensuring that Sesshoumaru was nowhere about the cavern, Inuyasha turned to inspect the long tunnel and the antechambers there. “Didn’t that prick come back last night?” he huffed as he made his way outside and glanced about the forest as if his brother would suddenly jump out from behind a bush and shout “boo”.

Sighing, he moved away from the cave to a small clearing that hosted a makeshift paddock where Sesshoumaru’s flying … thing was patiently waiting for food.

Smiling, Inuyasha got some food for the two headed dragon from a small shed he managed to create with some appropriated timber. After ensuring that the creature was satisfied with his meal and there was enough water, Inuyasha once more scanned the tree line for the missing youkai before huffing.

“Keh, irritating prick.” Inuyasha rolled his eyes as he made his way back into the cave. ‘There was defiantly something wrong with that jerk last night,’ he thought as he went about starting the fire. ‘He was acting so strange…” He paused, ‘well stranger.’

Checking on the sleeping occupants of the cave once more, the hanyou sat back and just enjoyed the quiet of the morning as he thought things over.

‘Okay,’ he thought. ‘Let’s start at the beginning. Sesshoumaru saves my hide- correction!’ he amended the thought, ‘my human hide from a group of Lesser Demons.’ Inuyasha shook his head. ‘Right there, we are descending into that “Twilight” place.’

‘Point two, he saves my butt and doesn’t leave me… Hell he took CARE of me…’

Inuyasha bolted upright as a tiny thought crossed his mind. “Of course, it’s an imposter!” The sound of his shout echoed off the walls and Inuyasha froze as Rin mumbled gently. Not daring to make a sound, Inuyasha held his breath until the girl rolled over and promptly went back to sleep.

‘Okay, stupid idea,’ he thought as he allowed himself to exhale the breath he was holding. ‘Jaken would have noticed something wrong.’ Then he thought about it. ‘Or not…Moving on,’ he threw another log onto the building fire. ‘Next morning he insists we form a truce,’ he shuddered. ‘Even scarier is I agreed.’

Inuyasha paused and thought about it in a little more detail.

‘Well, times are most defiantly more dangerous than before my time on the tree what with Naraku involved now. So the fact that I would be in even more danger when I’m in human form is a given, but why the hell would Sesshoumaru care?’

Sighing, he shifted a little away from the fire as the cave gradually became warmer.

‘Next is the very odd cave that is warded against youkai’s. Only I can get through it and only then when I’m human.’

Inuyasha glanced at the sleeping girl. ‘Mental note, see if Rin can get through the wards,’ he thought absently.

‘Continuing on; after discovering that I had moved away from the human village, instead of applauding me for finally severing any and all ties with the humans, he completely freaks out and forces his way into moving in with me.’

He looked over at the extra futon and the vacancy there. ‘And then does absolutely nothing!’ he growled. ‘He just sits around the cave and … stares.’

Inuyasha shuddered. ‘What is up with the damn staring?’ he questioned. ‘He’s been doing it since he saw me as a human.’ He puzzled for a moment.

‘What made yesterday so different though?’ he wondered. ‘Nothing really out of the ordinary happened.’

He mentally went over the day’s events. ‘Made breakfast, Sesshoumaru ignored me. Fed the flying lizard, Sesshoumaru ignored me. Cleaned the cave, Sesshoumaru ignored me. Made lunch, Sesshoumaru ignored me. All in all, except for the fight about him actually cleaning up after himself he generally ignored me.’

“Feh, right…” he sighed. “So what the hell set him off?”

He thought of the few heated words shared before Sesshoumaru ran out of the cave.

‘He was uptight about something, even more than normal. So what the hell could get him so nervous?’

Inuyasha briefly thought back to the moments before Sesshoumaru’s “great escape” as he thought of it.

‘It has to do with me, but what the fuck did Ido?’ he wondered. ‘I haven’t done anything to him lately. In fact,’ he thought, ‘it’s mostly been him acting all odd and picking fights.’

Inuyasha frowned as the image of Sesshoumaru’s look of absolute horror while looking down at him came to the forefront of his thoughts. Inuyasha had never seen such a look on his brother’s face in all his life. It made the hanyou immediately want to reach out for the youkai, to console him, to comfort him and ensure that the regal visage never held such a look again.

It was another infuriating feeling that Sesshoumaru created with in him that Inuyasha had never before felt in his life. It was so odd.

Ever since Inuyasha stumbled across his brother while he was human, the most bizarre feelings had been creeping up with in him. Feelings that he had no names for but for some reason made him embarrassed and, feh nervous around Sesshoumaru.

It was getting rather irritating.

Groaning, he leaned back and gently banged his head against the wall, “I hate thinking,” he moaned aloud before finally rising to his feet. Glancing out the entrance Inuyasha decided that it was about time to begin breakfast since the second person in the cave would be waking soon.

Plucking two eggs from a small basket, Inuyasha went about making something called an “omelet”. He smirked as he shifted the skillet over the fire, “the one thing Kagome got right.”

“Got what right?” a soft voice called from across the cave.

Inuyasha turned and smiled at the blearily eyed girl as she made her way over towards the table.

“Good morning,” Inuyasha smiled as she sat down and dished out a plate of the warm yellow fluff.

“Good morning,” she smiled back as she began eating, but her eyes were darting around the cave obviously looking for something… or someone.

Inuyasha sighed as he turned to look at the girl head on. “Um, Rin…” the girl turned huge eyes on him and Inuyasha sweat dropped. He cleared his throat and started again. “Rin, I’m sorry but it seems that Sesshoumaru has gone out for… a while.”

He shifted uncomfortably as the girl never took her eyes off him. “Um, I’m not sure when he’ll come back or…”

“It will be a while,” Rin announced and went back to her eggs.

Inuyasha face vaulted. “Nani?”

Rin swallowed politely before continuing. “Sesshoumaru-sama sometimes leaves for a while before coming back,” she announced in a matter of fact voice. “Rin asked Sesshoumaru-sama once and Sesshoumaru-sama said he goes to clear his head.”

And with that rather pointed announcement, Rin finished her eggs, cleaned her pate and asked Inuyasha if she could go out to play.

Inuyasha gave her a rather dazed nod before coming back to himself. “Don’t wander far from the cave!” he called after her.

Sighing, he turned to the rat who had gone on to his own breakfast. “I don’t suppose you’re all that upset that Sesshoumaru’s gone.”

Kuufuku actually gave a mournful squeak he continued to slowly devour one of the pilfered robes.

Inuyasha smiled softly as he started cleaning up after breakfast and started his own.

“You and me both.”

Chapter Twenty-Three: Finding Friends

Kirara was completely exhausted.

Tracking had never before been so difficult in her life. Who knew that hunting down one hanyou would be so complicated? It was almost as if she was going in circles!

She couldn’t blame the hanyou for leaving but her nose felt as if it would fall off.

She had to hand it to Inuyasha though; he certainly knew what he was doing to ensure his survival. There were so many false trails that there were moments that even her nose got confused. And so it was without a doubt that if she were having problems, then anyone else who dared try hunting down the half inu would definitely have it worse off that she did.

“Kirara, are we there yet?”

‘Of course, any one else who would be tracking Inuyasha would probably not be caring for a young youko,’ she thought indignantly.

The neko rolled her eyes as she sniffed at another promising trail. ‘Two days… two days of nothing but circling and crisscrossing and back tracking…’ she growled to herself. ‘Just where the hell did he run too?’

“Kirara. I’m hungry…” Shippo wined softly.

The neko cooed in reply and firmed her resolve. She had to find Inuyasha and it had to be today. Any longer and she would be forced to take the little youkai back to the village.

She was actually surprised that the kit had lasted as long as he had. Not so much complaining and his youki sustained him but Shippo was still just a baby so lasting two days was an accomplishment for him.

Following the smells as best she could, Kirara continued forward praying that she would find Inuyasha soon, if only for the kit’s sake.

Shippo, for his part, was all for turning back around to the village.

They had been searching for Inuyasha for days now and there had been no sign of the baka. He could understand that the neko youkai was missing the hanyou, but perhaps they should have gone with the others during their searches, rather than going out on their own.

They had to hide on a few different occasions when they came across some youkai’s but other than that, there had been almost no one in the whole of the forest.

“Kirara, can we go back now?” he asked softly as he wrung his hands to try and obtain some feeling back into them.

Riding Kirara when she was in her larger form was always fun before but at that moment in time all Shippo wanted was off!

Kirara once again made a soothing noise before taking off at full tilt causing Shippo to lunge for her scruff and hold on for dear life. “Kirara!” the kit shouted. “Warn me before you do that!”

The large neko youkai yelped once in acknowledgement but never once slowed down her speed.

“Kirara!” he shouted but gave it up for a loss. Kirara was certainly determined to find Inuyasha. Though why anyone would be worried for that stupid jerk of a youkai was anyone’s guess.

Kirara knew that he hectic run was upsetting the kitsune, but at that moment she was too happy to really care what the child thought. She had found it! She had finally; finally found a main scent that had to be at least a week old and re-enforced with Inuyasha’s repetitive use of the path.

She had just come to a small pond when she was forced to slam herself into a halt, her paws dragging through the dirt leaving skid trails in her wake. Shippo took a breath to ask what it was when she whirled and managing to get the kit by the scruff of his shirt, she threw him into a small bush before shifting to her smaller form and joined him.

Shippo cast her a confused look but thankfully said nothing. Kirara licked the boy’s small hand approvingly as she lifted her nose to the air. It was actually surprising that the child could not smell the scent that was drifting on the winds.

‘Perhaps the boy is spending to much time with humans,’ she thought briefly before turning her attention to the problem at hand.

They watched, turning their gazes towards the other side of the pond as a soft rustle sounded and a head of silver suddenly emerged from the thick foliage.

Shippo’s face lit up in a smile and he rose as if to run and greet the figure.

It was only Kirara’s little razor sharp teeth digging into his tail that held him back and Shippo turned to glare at the little cat before once more turning towards the figure.

He promptly dropped back down and burrowed himself as deep in the foliage underbrush as he could as the figure came completely into view.

There stood the Great Taiyoukai of the West in all his glory glaring at the pond as if it were his greatest enemy.

“Damn it!” Sesshoumaru muttered. “What the hell is with me and water this week?”

The two hidden beings dared not make a sound as they watched the tall form of Inuyasha’s brother move around the lake; each step brining him closer to their position.

Kirara sent the gods a prayer that the wind stayed true and kept their sent from reaching the youkai lord.

It was with bated breath and tense moments before the other youkai finally left the small pond area and continued on his way through the forest.

Shippo let out a sigh of relief as the figure disappeared but Kirara did not let her guard down until she was completely sure that Sesshoumaru was well and truly gone.

‘Well,’ she thought in surprise. ‘That explains the other scent that I was continually coming across.’

Shaking her head, she quickly moved out of the impromptu hiding spot and shifted back inter her full form quickly knelt down for Shippo to climb aboard. For once, Shippo didn’t stop to complain as he scrambled up onto her back and clung for dear life.

Kirara turned around purposefully in the opposite direction that Sesshoumaru had gone and quickly made her way as far from the creature as she could.

It was about half an hour before they finally came across another living creature, and one with a very odd scent. Even Shippo stopped to stare at the creature.

“Kirara, is it me…” Shippo started speaking very slowly, “or does that rat smell like Inuyasha?”

Kirara, meanwhile, was in shock. Aside from the hanyou, she could also almost smell the fait scent of the very youkai that they had left at the pond. ‘What the?’ she stared at the rat.

The rat darted around for a time before turning and started to walk away from the bewildered duo. Kirara paused to wonder if she should follow the creature or if it was just an odd coincidence.

The rat continued for a moment before the turning back around and squeaked at them. Kirara blinked in confusion as she stared at the rat in complete shock as the rat squeaked again as it turned and continued on his way.

Kirara and Shippo glanced at each other before the older youkai decided to take a chance and followed the small rodent.

‘This could very well be something more to this rat than meets the eye,’ Kirara thought as she watched the animal.

The rat stopped suddenly and began to run around in circles as he chased his tail.

Kirara sweat dropped.

‘Then again.’

Shippo stared at the crazy rat as it ran in circles for a full minute before heading off again. ‘What’s his problem?’ he thought as he eyes the rat curiously, ‘and why does he smell of Inuyasha? What would that baka be doing with a rat?’

Both kept their thoughts to themselves as they followed the small creature for a ways until they finally saw the trees thin out and the bright sun filtered through the tree line. Blinking, the two made their way out of the woods and found themselves facing a rather large cliff

Kirara glanced back towards the direction of the rat only to snort in annoyance to discover the dratted creature was gone. ‘Great. Now what’s next?’ she wondered in frustration. ‘Naraku appearing out of thin air to declare war on us?’

“HELLO!” Kirara jumped at the sudden sound of Shippo’s voice as he cupped his hands around his mouth to strengthen the call. “Is anyone here?”

The child’s voice echoed off the rock face and both youkai tilted their head to listen for any response. Kirara did not expect anyone to be in the area since the last human village they had seen had been at least ten miles away, but she listed anyway. There was still a tiny grain of hope that lingered in her heart, waiting for any sign that their journey was over.

Shippo sighed after a long moment and no answer to his call.

Kirara let out a comforting whine as she slowly turned to continue on her hunt, putting her nose to the air to once more try and find the missing hanyou’s scent.

Shippo refused to admit that tears were beginning to weld in his eyes and the sudden weight of despair that descended into his chest. “We knew that we wouldn’t find the jerk, right Kirara?” Shippo asked in a small voice as he furiously rubbed at his moist eyes. “So why does it hurt so much?”

Kirara had no reply as she turned at the odd smell that wafted on the air. ‘A human?’ she wondered. ‘But where?’

Shippo, in his distraught state, did not notice Kirara’s sudden pause as he continued to try and bring his building tears under control.

“You know Kirara,” he said under a bitter sob, “this is almost like that water game that Kagome taught us.”

With a small bitter smile Shippo took a deep breath and called out, “Marco!”

So when a young female voice replied the small youko was so surprised that he completely fell off the large youkai he was riding when the answering “polo!” reached him.

Kirara whirled around, moving so she was standing protectively over the small kitsune and stared down at the little human girl that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. ‘Why do I know her?’ she thought absently before relaxing her stance as Shippo jumped to his feet and ran to the young girl.

“Do you know Inuyasha?” he blurted out as he stared at the small human girl with hopeful eyes.

The girl smiled. “Rin knows Inuyasha-Sama!” she said brightly. “Does Fox-Kun know him too?”

Shippo let out a whoop of joy and Kirara felt her shoulders sag as her focus waned long enough for her to shift into her smaller neko form. They had finally found him.

Or at least would get a better idea on where he was if the small girl had any knowledge of the hanyou’s whereabouts.

‘Now if only Shippo would ask the right questions,’ she thought hopefully.

“Did Inuyasha-Sama teach you this game as well?” the little girl, Rin, asked.

Shippo shook his head as the tears finally fell free from his eyes and a joyful laugh burst from the small boy.

“Do you know where he is?” Shippo asked instead. “Have you seen Inuyasha? Do you know where he was going?”

The questions poured from Shippo’s lips as he bounced up and down in front of the girl, completely enthusiastic with his idea of possibly finding the hanyou.

Rin smiled, seeming to have no problem keeping up with the hyper kit. “Inuyasha went hunting this morning! He said since the snows are almost here we needed some more food.”

Kirara puzzled at the small girl’s answers. ‘Hunting?’ she wondered at the cryptic statement.

Shippo, however, seemed to have no problem with it. “Where will he go when he’s done?” he asked.

Kirara sniffed in annoyance. ‘Must be the age level,’ she concluded as she listened to the two children.

The human smiled as she reached out and picked up the now small neko youkai. “Back here of course,” she answered with a giggle as she turned and started walking along the wall of the cliff. Shippo jumped and followed after her as they went around a small bend and the little makeshift paddock with An and Un came into view.

‘Ah, the odd smell,’ Kirara determined as she watched the creature munch on a patch of grass. The girl was just pointing out the mouth of a cave when they heard someone call the Kitsune’s name.

The voice was full of surprise as the owner made his way towards the small group standing in front of the cave. “Shippo!” he called. “Kirara! What in the world are you doing here?” Inuyasha demanded as he stomped up to them, glaring down at the pair.

“INUYASHA!” Shippo cried out as the small kit launched himself at the other youkai and buried his face in the bewildered hanyou’s chest, completely ignoring Inuyasha’s attempt to look angry. Letting out heaving sobs he rubbed his face back and forth against the red fabric all the while muttering Inuyasha’s name as if he couldn’t believe that they had actually found him.

Inuyasha held the child awkwardly and looked down at him with a small smile as he stroked the boy’s head in a comforting manner. “Honestly you brat, I already did the wash,” he complained to the child.

Shippo actually snorted in annoyance but didn’t raise his head as he continued to cling to Inuyasha’s red Fire Rat Robe.

Inuyasha looked up at the small girl who was still holding Kirara in her arms. Sending a small glare at the tiny youkai Inuyasha tilted his head in the direction of the cave’s entrance. “We have a lot of talking to do,” he said as he made his way inside. “Best get comfortable.”

Kirara drooped her ears as she wiggled into a more comfortable position in the girl’s arms as they followed him and the still sobbing youko.

Finally she could rest. They had found him and Kirara was sure that Shippo would be taken care of. She’d worry about returning to the village and the problem of Kagome later. For now, all she wanted was to relax… and maybe chase a rat.

The rest would just have to wait.

Chapter Twenty-Four: Increasing Vermin Inuyasha sighed as he sat down at the small table, shifting into a more comfortable position with the still wailing kit on his lap. ‘Keh, the kid can certainly turn on the water works,’ he thought with some mock annoyance. In truth, he was completely worried at the sudden child’s appearance.

He glanced over at the other pair in the room and he could see Kirara take in all the little details of the cave. He saw Kirara noticing the third pallet and tell tale silver robes that told all who knew him who it was that was also living in the cave.

Inuyasha knew that Kirara was a whole lot smarter than a lot of people gave her credit for. Even Sango couldn’t possibly know just how intelligent her pet two tail was. He knew that he was also going to have to explain to her later the whole situation but at that moment, it was Shippo who needed his attention.

Starting with what the hell he was doing there in the first place.

He knew that there was no possible way that the small kitsune was skilled enough to hunt him down and knew that the culprit had to be the creature currently lounging in the Rin’s small arms enjoying having her chin scratched.

Inuyasha frowned as he shifted the child again and gave the boy a final pat on the back.

“Okay, enough is enough,” he announced as he firmly pried the small kit’s claws out of his cloths and set the child down on the floor.

Looking directly into the watery eyes Inuyasha put on his most stern face. “Why are you here Shippo?” he asked.

“Me?” Shippo squeaked. “Me? What about you?”

Inuyasha jerked upright. “What about me?” he asked sharply.

“Why did you leave?” Shippo whined again, more tears threatening to erupt from the large, pleading eyes.

Inuyasha couldn’t help but wince at the child’s question and letting out a long sigh he looked down at the scratched surface of the little table and tried to bring his thought together. ‘How the hell do I answer that?’ he thought quickly to himself.

“Shippo, it was just… well… oh hell!” he ran his hands thought his hair quickly as he tried to bring the words together. “It’s adult stuff, kid. You wouldn’t get it yet.”

“I would too!” Shippo shouted indignantly.

“Would not!” Inuyasha returned.

“Would too!”

Inuyasha bit down on a scathing reply as he glared at the kit. “What I do is my life, kid is not your problem. I’m a hell of a lot older that you and I can most defiantly take care of myself. You on the other hand, should still be living in your parents den-”

Shippo huffed as he crossed his arms and pointedly turned away from the growling hanyou. “Kinda hard when you don’t have parents,” he muttered angrily.

Inuyasha sighed at the small huff but he knew exactly what it was that the small kit was going through.

After all, he had gone through it himself all those years ago.

“Shippo,” Inuyasha said gently, allowing some of the concern he felt creep into his voice. “My point is that you are still a very young youkai and coming after me on you own was a very, very, very stupid thing to do.”

“But I wasn’t alone!” Shippo complained as he turned back to look Inuyasha in the eye. “Kirara was with me!” Inuyasha turned angry eyes to glare at the now cowering neko. “And, and we’ve all been looking for you!” Shippo continued. “Miroku’s been searching for you every day and we all miss you and it’s just not the same without you!”

Inuyasha sighed as looked upward towards the top of the cave in order to keep the pained look that filtered across his face from the kitsune.

“Shippo, I had my reasons for leaving. I’m sure that the others understand that.”

“But… but… why did you not tell me?” Shippo cried out in anguish. “You could have told me. I’m old enough! Really!”

Inuyasha shook his head and heaved out yet another sigh. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately. “Shippo, it’s not that simple.”

“And what about the Jewel shards? And Naraku? You have to come back! We need you!”

Inuyasha shook his head. “No kid, they don’t need me. Ah!” he raised a finger as Shippo’s mouth opened to argue. “That don’t mean that I’m not going to do anything. I will still search for the shards and fight Naraku every chance I get.”

Shippo looked at him hopefully and Inuyasha felt devastated that he had to crush that look. “But I’ll no longer be with the gang.”

Shippo’s gapped at him before a look of steeled resolve passed over him and Shippo crossed his arms, turning as if the conversation no longer held any meaning to him. “Well if you want to go off and get yourself killed, that’s your problem.”

Inuyasha bristled. “What’s that suppose to mean?”

“It mean’s that without Kagome and the others you’d probably be dead somewhere! Kagome’s saved your sorry hide more that a dozen times now! You owe it to her to stay! You’re the only one who can protect her and the jewel shards!”

“Oh Kagome can very well take care of herself; and I’m speaking from personal experience here,” Inuyasha scoffed under his breath.

“Why don’t you come back? You have to come back!” Shippo demanded.

Inuyasha shook his head and pulled the kit to sit directly to across form him. “Listen kid,” he said in his most strict tone ever. “I know this is hard for you, but I can’t go back. I’m not wanted there.”

“But I want you there!” Shippo burst out. The kit gasped as his hands immediately clamped over his mouth. “Didn’t mean to say that,” he mumbled.

Inuyasha actually smiled. “I actually missed you too kid, but the village is not longer the best place for me. Believe me kid,” Inuyasha’s smiled turned bitter. “I know when it’s time to go and it was time for me to bail.”

He gently placed his hand on the child’s head. “Can you understand that, chibi?”

Shippo sniffed and shook his head, “I just don’t get why you don’t want to be with us anymore.”

Inuyasha sighed, “It has nothing to do with you Shippo. It’s just other stuff that basically forced me to go.”

“But you’re living in a cave!” Shippo burst out. “The village has to be better than this!”

Inuyasha scowled, “And what about you?” he asked. “Shippo, we’re youkai. Cave’s are the least of our problems.”

Shippo scowled and looked around the cave once again, eyes roaming over the walls and the small furnishings that Inuyasha had. “It is kinda… homey,” Shippo said slowly. In fact, it was really nice.

Shippo frowned as an old memory started to surface. He could remember a he was in cave. It wasn’t as big as this one. In fact it was more of a small hole in the ground. Shippo frowned as he grabbed onto the memory and hung on to it.

He almost started crying as he remembered his parents and him all snuggled in that small space. ‘Our den…’ Shippo remembered as fresh tears started to run down his cheeks. ‘How could I forget?’

“Shippo,” Inuyasha asked gently. “I think I kind of know why it was you were looking for me, but right now you have a choice.” Shippo sniffed as he looked back up at the older youkai. “Shippo, if you want you can stay here with me if only for a few day or,” and Inuyasha took a deep breath, “or I could take you back to the village.”

Shippo frowned as he thought about it, knowing that if he went back to the village it would be possible that he would never see the hanyou again, but what about Kagome and the others? He knew that in a fight against Naraku he was more hinder than help, but he could help with what little power he had. But how would he be able to gain more power if he didn’t have another youkai to show him how to use his youki?

He was still deep in thought when a sudden yip resonated in the room.

The two youkai turned to see Kirara wriggle out of Rin’s arms, now supporting a few brightly colored bows, and made her way to the small kit. She climbed into the boy’s lap and stayed there, looking at Inuyasha with pleading eyes.

Inuyasha looked solemnly at the animal before turning to the children. “Shippo, why don’t you think about it for a while,” he told him. “For now, why don’t you and Rin go play outside? Rin can show you all her favorite places.”

Rin nodded as if she knew exactly what Inuyasha was trying to do and jumped to her feet, grabbing Shippo’s hand and tugging him out the cave babbling about riding An and Un and other stuff, leaving Inuyasha and Kirara staring down at each other.

As Kirara struggled to figure out a way to try and make Inuyasha understand why it was that she brought Shippo to him Inuyasha sighed as he decided to make the first move.

“Kirara, I think I understand why it was that you brought him here, but I honestly didn’t thing that it was that bad.” Inuyasha’s expression turned worried. “Is it really that bad?”

Kirara sighed and nodded her slight head.

“Damn,” Inuyasha burst out as he banged his fist on the table. “I thought that if I left Kagome might get better or at least less violent.”

Kirara whined, ‘If anything, she’s worse now.’

Inuyasha nodded. “I figured it had to be something like that for you of all people to bring the boy to me.”

Kirara cooed softly as she moved to push her head under Inuyasha’s hand gently pawed at the hanyou’s leg. ‘You’re the only one who can protect him.’

He glanced down at the small youkai and shook his head. “He was just as safe at the village as he would be with me. Sango and Miroku could at least protect him.

Kirara snorted in annoyance. ‘But they’re human’s,’ she insisted.

Inuyasha shook his head, “you know that they’re not ordinary humans. They should have at least been able to keep him from serious harm.”

Kirara shook her head. ‘A human can not care for a youkai,’ she argued. ‘Trust me.’

Inuyasha chuckled and held up his hands, “Okay, okay! I’ll trust you.” Kirara preened with the win. “You know,” Inuyasha mused, “I think I missed our conversations the most.”

Kirara smiled a vulpine grin, ‘You really are smarter that most people believe,’ she said. ‘I don’t know why you never let anyone else know it.’

Inuyasha chuckled as he reached forward and taking down a small bowl he filled it with water and placed it in front of the neko. “Years of experience,” he admitted before turning serious once more as he started collecting different pots and pans. “I still don’t think that Shippo is safest with me though.”

Kirara looked pointedly at the third futon and the multitude of silver clothing’s piled on top. ‘So I wasn’t imagining things when I thought I smelled Sesshoumaru,’

Inuyasha laughed gently, as he followed the neko’s gaze to the other pallet. “Er, yeah, I should probably mention Sesshoumaru’s presence to Shippo, but this is my home.” Kirara looked at Inuyasha with a curious gaze, the question clear in her eyes. “Well, he kinda bullied himself in,” the hanyou admitted as he scratched the back of his head nervously.

Kirara gave him a skeptical look but continued to lap at the water gratefully. ‘Best get it over with,’ she told him seriously.

Inuyasha smiled, “what are you? My mother?”

Kirara said nothing but the smug feeling she sent over the mental link was more than enough.

“What about you?” he asked as he went about making dinner. “Are you going to stay with us?”

Kirara shook her head. ‘I owe my life to Sango’s clan,’ she told him. ‘And she’s my best friend, I can’t leave her alone, I could never forgive myself.’

“I suppose I can respect that,” Inuyasha stated before calling the kids in for food. “But are you sure you’re not just going back to make Miroku’s life a living hell?”

Kirara smirked but said nothing as the kids made their way into the cave.

Rin came flouncing in with all smiles but Shippo moved at a slower pace, his eyes immediately moving to the tell tale futon. “Inuyasha,” he said very slowly. “Rin told me something odd.”

Inuyasha groaned as Kirara sent him an “I told you so,” and looked at the angry child.

“Well, she’s right,” Inuyasha admitted slowly.

“YOU’RE LIVING WITH SESSHOUMARU?” Shippo burst out. “What’s wrong with you? Did you hit your head or something? He want’s you dead and you’re making house with him?”

“Shippo, that’s enough!” Inuyasha snapped. “There’s a lot going on that you don’t understand. Sesshoumaru has no say over whether or not you stay here so don’t worry about him.”

Shippo sulked as he turned away from the hanyou.

Inuyasha felt like tearing his hair out at the boy’s antics. ‘Who knew dealing with kids could be so friggin difficult?’

‘You want me to help?’

‘You stay out of this!’ he snapped at Kirara’s smug offering. He could hear her soft laughter in the back of her mind and vowed to get back at her later. “Shippo, if you want, I can take you back to the village right now.”

The fight seemed to just drain out of Shippo as he shook his head. “I want to stay with you,” he announced.

Inuyasha’s breath caught as he felt the stirrings of hope rise in his chest, but he just had to make sure. “Shippo, you know that if you stay with me, you may not ever see the others again.”

Shippo nodded. “I thought about it, and I made my decision,” he said firmly. Inuyasha smiled and gave the boy a small hug before the kit wriggled his way free. “No mushy stuff!” he shouted and the two boys grinned at each other.

“We’ll talk about arrangements later,” Inuyasha set the pot down on the table. “Eat first.”

Shippo looked at the four plates in confusion as both Rin and Kirara sat down at the table. Well, Kirara was actually on the table but that was beside the point. “But, what about Sesshoumaru?” Shippo asked nervously as he sat down next to Rin. “He’s going to come back, right?”

“Oh, I’m sure he’ll show up any day now,” Inuyasha said cheerfully as he started dishing out dinner to the very hungry group. “Now eat your food.”

Shippo took a very caution sniff of the food placed before him and gave Inuyasha a dubious stare. “This is edible?” he asked sarcastically.

Inuyasha scowled down at the smirking kitsune. “Oh shut up and eat,” he ordered as he slapped down a huge helping of stew into his own bowl and sat down to eat.

However, Inuyasha was proven wrong as it wasn’t until two days later that the missing occupant of the mismatched group finally returned.

It had been hard goings. Very hard goings, but he had made it finally.

He had arrived at his intended destination and was now staring in front of the very refuge that he had been searching for, for five days. He had endured many perils.

Including the terror he had faced when confronting the herd of Shika. It had been a frightening ordeal but he had over come… and managed to bring the lead buck back with him as souvenir. He wondered absently if the other would enjoy deer meat.

However, none of these thought’s mattered anymore. In fact at that moment, nothing mattered but the sudden situation that the Taiyoukai suddenly found himself in.

Sesshoumaru found himself unwillingly engaged in a staring contest.

He shifted to the right, the small figure shifted with him.

He took a step forward; the figure took a small step back.

Sesshoumaru was almost tempted to raise his hand to see if the small child would mimic his actions, but managed to refrain himself from the interesting notion, Almost.

Raising his hand, he frowned as the child narrowed his eyes even more as he backed away from the confused youkai. Sesshoumaru looked over the small Kitsune’s head to the amused hanyou standing in the cave entrance and told him, in a very bland tone-

“The rats are multiplying.”

OO Next up: Learning to Get Along! Hopefully I’ll get it up much faster than this one! 142 pages… I think I’ve broken my writing record! Go me!

OMAKE:

Inuyasha wanders on stage attempting to assassinate BDQ but being interrupted by a horde of crying Kuufuku fan girl demanding more time for their star.

Next scene flashes to Sesshoumaru attempting to kill said fan girls for running over his mate.

“Now Now Sesshoumaru you can’t kill your fan base.” BDQ says.

“Watch me,” he replies.

“Need help?” Kallipso-chan says while trying to smuggle the Ed plushy down the hallway from BDQ.

“Find me some rope. I need rope.” Sesshoumaru replies. ‘ I don’t want to get lost looking for it my self.’

“Sesshoumaru you will leave Kuufuku and his fans alone. I don’t know what has gotten into you stupid dog.” The now revived Inuyasha replies as he grabs Sesshoumaru and runs of stage. “ We have to get away before she makes the rats multiply even more.” Inuyasha says as he drags Sesshoumaru off.

BDQ looks at Kallipso-chan “ Now look what you have done. Give me back my ED.”

“ Nope, sorry. ED is mine!!” evil laughter followed as Kallipso-chan used her magical escape portal to get away.

BDQ, “ HEY NO STAR GATES.”

BDQ looks around somberly “why did everybody leave me?”

BDQ cries.

Puppy-chan “ Don’t worry. We are here for you.”

BDQ turns around and goggles at the masses. “Oh SHIT”

Puppy-chan smiles innocently completely ignoring the rabid horde of angry fans waving all manors of blunt and pointy objects. “We will make sure that your are never lonely again. NOW WRITE.”

BDQ “Yes Master.”

Brought to you by: Flying Lizards INC in association with rat productions.

Japanese Index:

Arigato (gozaimasu)-Thank you

Baka-Idiot/stupid

Hanyou-Half Demon Hakuchoo-Swan Inu-Dog

Kitsune-Fox

Kisama-Bastard (roughly)

Koinu-Puppy Kumo-Spider

Miko-Priestess

Nani?- What?

Neko-Cat

Ningen-Human

< b>Ookami-Wolf

Osuwari-Sit

Shika-Deer

Taisho- General

Tokage-Lizard

Youkai-Demon

Youko- Fox-spirit (Kurama from YYH)

Youki-Demon Spirit