InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Shattered ❯ Unsightly Child Part 1 ( Chapter 1 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

In the third Inuyasha movie, it appears that there was a hundred and fifty year gap between Inuyasha’s birth and his sealing at the hand of Kikyo. I started wondering, what did Inuyasha do in all this time? And so, this was born. It's a series of short speculations, stories of his life before meeting Kikyo.
Disclaimer: Inuyasha and all characters therein belong to Rumiko Takahashi and Viz Video.
A small flock of birds pecked away at the scattered rotten fruit at the bottom of a plum tree, glutting themselves on this treat. Hungry from their annual long flight, they ate eagerly, paying little attention to anything else. A quiet rustle in the nearby bushes caused several to look up, preparing for flight, but after a few moments of silence, the more immediate issue of the fruit drew their attention once more.
Suddenly an explosion of white and red came from the bushes, leaping upon them. Confused, the birds flight reaction was slowed, costing several of them their lives from the snarling fury ripping through them.
Inuyasha snatched at another bird, grabbing only feathers, and growled in irritation as he watched the rest of the flock fly away. He stared at the three carcasses on the ground, snatching them up and holding them close to his small body, as if afraid they’d be taken from him. Without hesitation, he ripped into the first, the still warm blood running over his hands and face. Part of him recoiled in disgust, but hunger kept his jaws moving, swallowing the chunk of raw meat.
His ears suddenly perked up as he heard footsteps. Clutching his food in one arm, he scrambled into the plum tree, peering down to see the one who approached.
A woman with a walking stick slowly came forward, walking very carefully and deliberately towards him. His first thought was that she was elderly, but as she came closer he saw that was not the case, for she looked to be middle aged at most. She paused, calling something he could not hear, before stumbling on her way. Suddenly he realized she was blind, her blank forward gaze and careful constant tapping with the stick she carried giving her away. He sighed in relief- he was unlikely to be noticed. He returned to chewing on his bird, but with less urgence than before. He watched the woman continue to tap and call, wondering idly what exactly a blind woman was doing alone. It suddenly occurred to him that she wasn’t alone- but might be calling for a hidden companion. On the alert again, he watched her warily as she passed underneath him. Her stick landed on the soft flesh of a rotting plum and she stopped, waving her stick around until it hit the trunk of the tree with a soft thud. She smiled and sighed in relief, her features lightening slightly.
“The plum tree,” she murmured. “At least I know where I am now. Now if I could only find Nana...” she trailed off. “I wonder if there are any plums left this season?” She set her stick down and ran her hands up the tree trunk, tracing it up to the lowest branch, and followed it. Inuyasha jerked his feet out of the way of her hands, causing him to lose his balance slightly. He grabbed the branch to steady himself, but one of the dead birds fell to the ground with a thump. He involuntarily gasped, and then realizing it, held his breath, afraid she might have heard.
“Who’s there?” she said with a frown. Inuyasha was silent. She reached down and grabbed her stick, and poked wildly into the branches, catching Inuyasha’s leg.
“Ow!” he exclaimed.
“A child?” she said in surprise. “Well, come down from there. Come on.” She reached up again into the branches.
Inuyasha scrambled away in panic, suppressing a low growl. He looked at the woman- middle aged, on the heavy side, and blind to boot. He could escape her easily, but she was standing right over the dead bird he had dropped. Game was getting rarer, and he hadn’t been able to catch anything for days. He was reluctant to leave the bird behind. They were small and he was hungry, and he knew two wouldn’t be enough for him. He crouched for a moment, and then slid down the trunk.
“There we go. Now come here, child. Where did you come from?”
Inuyasha was silent. He walked slowly towards her, eying her nervously, glancing back down to the bird between her feet.
“Gimme back my bird,” he finally growled, his voice surprising even himself. He hadn’t spoken to anyone in a long time.
“What bird?” she asked blankly.
“By your feet,” he growled again, impatience growing.
She leaned down and felt around with her hand until her fingers brushed against the feathers. She grabbed it, and stood again, holding it close.
“I’ll give it to you, but I need to ask you a favor.”
This surprised Inuyasha greatly. No one had asked him this before. “What?” he asked, out of slight curiosity.
“I’ve lost my goat, Nana, and my way as well. If you could help me find her, and show me the way back to my house, I’ll give you your bird, and even cook it for you.”
“No. Give it to me now.” Inuyasha protested. He glared up at her, annoyed.
“Hmph. Don’t be such a rude child. The goat will probably come home eventually, but at least help me back home, and I’ll even make you some rice to go with it.”
More food? He looked up at her suspiciously, but his stomach had already made up it’s mind.
“I have two more birds. Will you cook them too?”
“You strike a hard bargain, don’t you?” she asked, slightly amused. “Yes, I’ll cook them too.”
“If you’re lying, I’ll kill you,” he warned her.
The woman roared with laughter.
“What a pest you are! What makes you think you could kill me anyways?”
“I killed those birds. With just my hands.”
The woman fought a smile. “I think you’ll find me a bit harder to kill than a bird.”
Inuyasha was annoyed. “Not hardly. You’re old and blind. I could tear you apart in minutes with my claws,” he stated matter-of-factly.
“With your claws, eh?” she smirked, obviously believing it to be a game of his. “What is your name, you murderous child?”
He paused. “Inuyasha,” he finally muttered.
She appeared thoughtful for a moment, her blank gaze set on him, making him uncomfortable.
“My name is Fumiko. Will you guide me home then?” she offered her hand.
He just stared at it. “My hands are bloody,” he said.
“Then lead me with your voice.” She dropped her hand, unfazed. “Now to the north of here you should be able to see smoke from my fire. Just lead me towards it...”
When they reached the house, they found the lost goat- standing outside its pen, bleating for its dinner. Fumiko laughed at herself for chasing after a goat who was headed back home, and fed Nana before heading inside to feed her small companion. Inuyasha was slightly impressed by the way she moved skillfully in her home, quickly plucking and cleaning the birds, preparing them for roasting. She set the rice to boil, and cut some vegetables of her own to cook, making what was once a few dead birds into a large and tasty meal. Inuyasha began to wonder to himself if she was actually blind, and to half believe she had tricked him, waiting for him to let his guard down so she could attack him. Maybe her eyes had simply transferred their sight to her hands, as she seemed to “see” everything she touched. He watched her warily, tense from suspicion and hunger.
When she plucked the bird that Inuyasha had attempted to eat raw, she felt the torn flesh in surprise, and frowned contemplatively. In silence she continued to cook, but looked troubled.
Inuyasha had almost forgotten the taste of cooked meat, and the smell of the roasting birds was driving him mad. He clenched his hands, the points of his claws digging into his palms. At long last, Fumiko sat back and declared the food to be done. He crouched in impatience as she scooped rice into a bowl, and placed it before him. She then lay out vegetables and the birds onto a serving plate. He grabbed a bird and began eating ferociously. Fumiko frowned, and saying nothing, only served herself.
As he finished the first, the sharp sting of hunger had been dulled slightly. He looked at the disapproving face Fumiko wore, and picked up the bowl of rice, looking a little guilty. She wordlessly proffered a pair of chopsticks. He stared at them, puzzled, for a moment, as if trying to remember what exactly they were. He gingerly took them from her, and fumbled with them. He looked back at her, and silently set them down, scooping the rice with his fingers instead.
“Where are you from, Inuyasha?”
He looked up in surprise at this question, but just chewed silently.
“Where are your parents?” she tried again.
Inuyasha swallowed. “Dead.”
Fumiko was silent then, and returned to her vegetables and rice, leaving Inuyasha’s birds alone.
“Where are you living then?” she asked after several moments of silence.
“The forest.”
“By yourself?” she asked in surprise.
“I can take care of myself,” Inuyasha growled.
“You tried to eat that bird raw,” she said. “Were you that hungry? I don’t think that’s taking care of yourself very well.”
He said nothing, but glared at her.
“Maybe I just wanted it raw,” he pouted.
She laughed again, loudly. He grew angry, and set the now-empty bowl down loudly. He reached for another bird and ate it as messily as he had the other.
She sighed then, growing more serious.
“I’m alone here. My husband died of sickness many years ago, the same sickness that left me blind. My only son was killed six months ago, and shortly after, his wife, my daughter-in-law and last companion, died in childbirth. The babe was stillborn.” Her sightless eyes grew moist with tears, grief in her face. She wiped her eyes and composed herself. “The point it, Inuyasha, I too cannot take care of myself well. I’ve been managing by myself so far, but today I saw that something as easy as looking in my backyard for my goat could end up in me lost, disoriented, and wandering within yards of my house without being able to find it,” she turned her face up. “Inuyasha... would you like to stay here for a while? I just need someone with eyes- someone to help me, just a little.” She laughed slightly, almost sadly. “Several people from the nearby village offered to help me after the death of my daughter-in-law, but I was too proud. I thought I could handle everything myself. And now I’m asking... no, begging, a child to help me. Please stay, Inuyasha, you could help me, and I think I could help you.”
Inuyasha was confused by her pleading, unwilling to trust her. “No,” he muttered. “I’m leaving,” he stood, grabbing the last cooked bird.
“Wait!” she lifted her arm as if to stop him. Thinking she was trying to hit him, he lashed out in fear, his claws catching her arm. She cried out in pain, clutching her arm, and he froze, realizing what he had done. She felt the bleeding scratches on her arm, wincing as she ran her fingers along them.
“You really do have claws. You’re a demon, aren’t you?” she asked with a look of disbelief.
Inuyasha bolted. He ran from her house as fast as his small legs would go, clutching his bird tightly.
“Inuyasha, wait!” he heard her call, but her voice was growing fainter and fainter as he ran in fear back to the forest.
He only stopped when he felt the branches of familiar trees whipping past his face, scratching his skin and snagging on his clothes. Breathless he panted in the midst of the forest, eyes searching wildly for signs of danger, his fingers digging into the food he clutched, grease dripping down his arm. Knowing the smell would attract scavengers, he wolfed down the meat and headed towards the river to wash the scent from him. Twigs in his hair, blood and feathers on his clothes, his eyes wild and searching, he was a creature of the forest once more.