InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Spring fertility festival ❯ the next day part 3 ( Chapter 8 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

spring 6c

This is turning into a huge chapter . . . So, I'm going to alter my posting schedule. I'm going to post 2,000/3,000 word sub-chapters when I finish them, instead of posting a huge chapter next Sunday. (Oddly enough, while I've succeeded in most of the goals I sent for myself when starting this story, the one goal that I did not keep was limiting my word count per chapter to below 3000. Shakes head, so I'll see if I could do it on this last chapter.)

There will be 5 sub-chapters, (I hope). They'll probably go up every 2/3 days.

Please note: some very serious thoughts/conversions in this chapter. Some of the comments and ideas expressed will offend. This is the low point of the story. Beginning in next sub-chapter, I start fixing some of the messes I've made. Also . . . For the readers that were disturbed by the last sub-chapter, this is worse. You are warned.
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"Well Monk . . . Do I put you out of your misery?" Inu-yasha mumbles as looks down upon Miroku's unconscious body. His foot pushes the monk in the side.

"Ughhh." Miroku mumbles as wakes up. He sits up and holds his head in his hands. "Remind me, Inu-yasha, do not let Sango hit you when you have a hangover. My head . . . " He mumbles.

"Hah! That's what you get, perverted monk. Be grateful you even woke up." Inu-yasha says in a harsh voice.

"So . . . You did like last night, Inu-yasha?" Miroku says as he twists his head to get the kinks out.

"Grrr . . . " Inu-yasha bends down and he picks Miroku up by the throat with one hand and holds him face to face. "She made me promise not to kill you for watching last night, perverted monk."

"I'll t'ank 'er the ne't time ' s'e he'." Miroku tries to speak through his tightened throat.

"Next time, monk . . . you die." Inu-yasha growls into Miroku's face and then he throws the monk on the ground.

Miroku sits up and rubs his throat. "Are you going to do this to everyone in the village, Inu-yasha?"

"Hell yes! I'm just going to wait until she's on her side of the well." He says grinning in anticipation.

"That is stupid, Inu-yasha." He says speaking like he's talking to a child.

"It is not." Inu-yasha puts his arms across his chest in his classic pose.

"She's going to find out, you know." Miroku rolls his eyes as he speaks.

"Grr. Like I care." He sneers.

"How many sit, boys do you think she'll give you?" Inu-yasha face twitches. He hadn't thought about that, he had just been fantasying about terrifying the villagers into never looking at Kagome again. "Or, she may do even worse than that, Inu-yasha."

"Feh! Nothing is worse then that word."

"Or really, what if she says no to you next time, or worse, to you, she says yes to me or..." Miroku stops talking there. It's really hard to talk when Inu-yasha is crushing your windpipe.

"She'll never." he growls out and then throws Miroku to the ground again.

"She will." Miroku is rubbing his throat as he speaks.

"Never." Inu-yasha says with confidence.

"Do you want to ask her and find out?"

Inu-yasha turns white. He knows Kagome has never liked his intimidation tactics, but would she... But, he's never tried to intimidate the village since she woke him up either.... "She would not do that." He says, but his voice lacks the confidence it had before.

"Inu-yasha, how about a compromise. I'll talk to the villagers and tell them about your desires and you don't hurt them, Ok?" Miroku says with a small measure of pleading in his voice.

"..." Inu-yasha is thinking . . .

"Inu-yasha?" Miroku raises his left eyebrow in question.

"IF they look at her the wrong way . . . " he grits out, but Inu-yasha nods his head yes.

Miroku nods his head in thanks, and says, "Thank you, Inu-yasha. I'm sure the villagers will appreciate it." After a pause, "Inu-yasha, I really dislike having to ask you a favor, but . . . "

Inu-yasha raises an eyebrow. He can't remember Miroku asking him for a favor before. "Go ahead."

"Could I borrow your shirt? I'm freezing." Inu-yasha blinks and looks down, he had forgotten that the monk is nude and it is cold.

Inu-yasha's face twists into a thin smile. "IF you catch a cold, or worse, we can't go hunting the shards, so." He takes off his red shirt and hands it to the monk. He still has on his white undershirt and red pants.

"Thank you, Inu-yasha." Miroku says as he stands up and wraps himself up in the shirt. "You never did answer the question, Inu-yasha. Did you like last night?"

"Monk . . . I promised her. I wouldn't kill you for last night. I said nothing about today." He growls out.

"Sigh, Sango enjoyed herself and Kagome . . . " Stars appear in Miroku's eyes.

"Grr . . . " Inu-yasha growls as he flexes his claws.

In a reflective tone, Miroku says, "I've never seen a woman enjoy herself more. Inu-yasha, you should be proud of yourself."

"Grr . . . What?" Inu-yasha is surprised at that last statement.

"Oh, yes, Inu-yasha, Kagome loved you last night." A smile appears on Miroku's face as he speaks.

"Hell yes! She did!" Inu-yasha says in a triumphant tone of voice.

"Do you think we can get them to do it again?" Miroku asks in a hopeful voice.

"Monk . . . you really enjoy pain don't you?" Inu-yasha asks through tightened jaws.

He answers quickly, "Hmmm. No really, although some of the scratches I saw her give you, do make me wonder about you . . . "

"Monk . . . " Inu-yasha fists are forming.

"I'll stop, Inu-yasha." Miroku says as starts to walk back to the village. 'Sigh, I told Sango, that I wouldn't use last night, I had hoped that I could get Inu-yasha to. Oh, well, perhaps, Shippo?'

He sighs and thinks, 'Though . . . Until Naraku is destroyed, I really shouldn't try to get serious with Sango. Once Naraku is dead and the curse is gone, then . . . then . . . I'll ask her for real. But before then,' He thinks, and then he smiles. "I wonder if I can convince her that since it's only for one night, we can do it again the next night, using the same excuse. A series of one-night stands, as it were . . . '

'Perverted monk wanted my help in getting into Sango again' Inu-yasha growls deep in the chest, 'or worse, Kagome . . . ' Inu-yasha thinks as he watches Miroku walk away.


"Hmmm, now that I'm not going to do my plan to teach the village a lesson. It's time for the that damned tree." Inu-yasha speaks to himself as he grins, his fangs showing as he walks toward the god tree. 'I know it's a cat thing, but, my claws do need sharping.' He looks at and flexes his claws as he walks.


*************

Back to the Village . . .


Keade, with Shippo and Kirara sitting next to her, is sitting on her porch. Kagome and Sango are walking up.

"Good Morning!" Kagome waves. Keade nods back.

"Kagome, wait until I've got my clothes on, before beginning the serious talk with Keade, ok?" Sango says in a low voice. 'I want to get out of Miroku's robes as soon as possible. I'm sure he's going to make a big deal out of me wearing them.' She thinks.

Kagome nods. Sango goes into the hut. She also has Kagome's bath gear. Kagome sits down on the porch. "Lady Keade, could you find out who gave these to me and return them." Kagome hands Keade the man's clothes Inu-yasha gave her when they woke up.


Keade accepts the clothes and nods. Then she asks, "How is thy back, Lady Kagome."

"That is the second time you've addressed me like that, Lady Keade. Could you please explain?" Kagome asks.

"Certainly, Thy, for a short time, were Uzume. A goddess. I must show my respect to her." Keade says with a raised eyebrow

"Well, she's not here, now. So, please don't do that again, Ok." Kagome asks. 'I'm not going to tell her that Uzume said I was her daughter. Who knows how she'd react.'

"As you wish, Kagome."

"My back is hurting, even though we did bandage it . . . could you look at it, Lady Keade?" Kagome loosens her shirt and shows her back to Keade.

Keade says, "of course." She starts to look at her.

"Hmm, It looks like Sango bandaged them well. Hmmm, I'll make a lotion for you to apply tonight." Keade says. Keade prods the bite mark at the base of her neck and looks closely at it. 'Susano-O . . . sighs . . . Inu-yasha must have insulted him, and this is his revenge . . . Why I am I not surprised' she thinks.

"My dear, there is a bite mark that Inu-yasha is going to need to see." Keade says with concern in her voice.

"Is it?" Kagome whispers. 'He'd better not have marked me. I do not want him bound to me with more magic.' She thinks.

"It's different from normal . . . I cannot really explain more. I'm sorry, child. But . . . I will say, I believe it's more a message to Inu-yasha, than it's something that you need to worry about."

"Thank you, Keade . . . " Kagome says with relief.

"I could be wrong, my dear." Keade says. Kagome takes a deep breath and nods.

"Thank you, Lade Keade." Kagome says as she picks up Shippo and places him in her lap. "Now. Where were you earlier, Shippo? You weren't here when I got my bath supplies."

Shippo in a somewhat innocent voice says, "Oh, I was playing in the fields, Kagome."

"Shippo, let's try that one again." She says in a serious voice.

"Ok. I was trying out a couple of spells." Shippo quickly spits out.

"Which spells?" She says flatly.

"Spells that manipulate clothes, Kagome." Shippo says in his most innocent voice.

Kagome eyes Shippo with suspicion and says, "Clothes, hmmm. You know, Shippo, if Miroku ever learns that spell, I can't save you from Sango."

"I'd never, Kagome." He says in a huff. "Besides it's a kitsune only spell."

"OH, and Shippo. Don't do anything stupid with Inu-yasha. He's not in a good mood right now." Kagome says as she waves a finger in Shippo's face.

"He did not like everyone watching thee last night." Keade says.

"That's about the most polite way to say it. When we woke up, I had to squeeze a promise from him that he would not to kill the village."

"Hmmm, I didn't think about that . . . " Keade says in a low voice.

"Think about what Lady Keade?" Sango says as she sits down next to Kagome. She is wearing her normal kimono. Kirara jumps into her lap.

"She didn't plan on Inu-yasha's reaction to me stripping in front of the village, Sango." Kagome says in a hard voice.

"You weren't supposed to do that." Keade tries to speak, but . . .

"And having sex in front of the village like Sango did, is better, Keade?" Kagome says in a tight voice.

"Sigh. I do owe thee girls an apology and explanation." Keade says in a low voice.

"Good."
"Start talking."

"I do wish to apologize for tricking you two." Keade speaks in the most contrite voice that the two girls can ever remember her use.

"Thank you for the apology, but I do want to hear the explanation, please." Sango says in a tight voice. Kagome, pauses, then she nods in agreement with Sango.

"The god tree came to me a couple of months ago, and he requested that I arrange for thee to be in the spring fertility festival."

"Did he tell you why?" Kagome asks.

"No. All he said was to do it."

"And you did?" Sango asks in a disbelieving voice.

"He is my husband."

"Ohhh,"
"OooKkk."

Sango and Kagome look at each other.

"What's next, Keade?" Kagome asks.

"I arranged the rain with some of Susano-O's children and passed on to him a note that said the Uzume might be here. The god of storms was most appreciative."

"And Izanami and Izanagi, Keade." Sango asks with suspicion in her voice.

"I have no idea about them. Most of the time, my husband will possess the male on the stage, but this time they showed up. I have no knowledge of why they appeared last night."

"Uzume showed my memories to her father, last night. Does that mean anything?" Kagome asks.

Keade's eyes widen in surprise as she shakes her head, no, and shrugs. Sango looks surprised as well.

"It sounds like you had a real conversation with Uzume, Kagome." Sango asks in a tight voice. 'Not the horror-filled dream I had.' She thinks.

"Oh, somewhat, unfortunately, she left before I could really ask any major questions." Kagome face twists into a semi-smile. "I even forgot to ask if she could fix my back."


"Lady Keade, I need to talk about something else." Sango speaks in a low voice and she is staring at her hands as they shakily pet Kirara. 'To gain revenge for my family. That demands I have her remove the child inside me. But . . . it's hard . . . hard to say the words . . . '

"Yes, Sango." Keade asks.

"Please, Sango, don't. Please, I'm sure somehow everything will work out." Kagome begs.

"I'm sorry, Kagome. I know you are always sure everything will work out in the end, but . . . I've got to make this request." Sango says.

"A request? And a serious one?" Keade asks. Sango nods. "After last night, there is only one request this serious, child." Sango nods. "Very well, once thee are sure, I will use my long reed hooks."

Sango eyes fill with tears and she bows her head to hide them. 'Thank the gods, I didn't even have to say the words . . . ' she thinks. Kirara stands up and licks off her tears. "Thank you, Kirara."

Kagome mouth falls open and she closes it as she tries to speak, "But. But . . . last night . . . "

"Last night, dear, was a fertility festival. It was a very successful one, at that." Keade begins. She looks over the village and waves her hand. "I'm sure most, if not all, of the women last night will be pregnant. I'm sure that most, if not all, of the fields will have more rice and weeds growing in them this year then any year before."

"Keade?" Kagome begins.

"Let me speak, child. The rice fields are very fertile and will become overcrowded and all the rice will suffer. The fields will grow too much rice and many weeds. The farmers will have to remove the weeds and the extra rice from the fields to make sure that the remaining rice grows to its full potential. You do understand this?" She is looking at Kagome as she finishes. Kagome nods.

"Good. The village is the same way. The village women are too fertile this time." In a low voice to herself, mainly, but everyone can hear, "Much better than being not fertile enough, by the way." Then in a normal tone of voice she continues, "Too many children are as harmful, in a different way, to the village as too few are."

She looks at Kagome and Sango and speaking in a light voice, "Do thee wish to learn to be midwives? The village midwife and I will need the extra help in nine months."

Both girls blush and shake their heads no. "Pity. I think, thee, Kagome, would make a great midwife."

"No, Lady Keade. I'm not going to volunteer this time." Kagome croaks out.

Keade looks at Kagome and thinks, "Do I force the issue? Hmm . . . not now, after last night, they'll refuse no matter what I say. In a couple of months, though, I may try again. The midwife and I will need help.'

She sighs and says, "Hmmm, I suppose it would probably be best if I do recruit a woman of the village. You two do travel and may not be here when needed."

Keade thinks, 'Without some additional help, we will lose some of the women in child bed.' She grimaces, 'even with the help, we will probably still lose some. Men may think that they have the dangerous jobs, but men do not put their lives in danger the way women do.'

Sango and Kagome, seeing Keade busying her thoughts, don't interrupt her, they just look at each other.

Keade's mouth twitches into a semi-smile. 'When men put their lives in danger during war, the best they can do is come home alive. At best, when women put their lives in danger in child bed, two people get off the bed, not one.'

"Sigh," she pauses, then continues, "as I was saying, in nine months the village will have too many children. Too many women will be rearing children to do all the work the village needs to get done. So, I am going to have to remove some of the children as the year passes."

Keade says as she is looking at Sango and Kagome horrified expressions, "The village can only support so many people. And we're near that limit now. Adding more children . . . Everyone will suffer trying to keep everyone alive. So, some of the children cannot be allowed to be born."

"What are you going to do?" Kagome asks in a shocked tone of voice.

"Oh, some of the village families do need children, so I'll make sure they get them. By adoption if necessary. There will be some deaths this year. Children, especially young ones, die so easily, that will help."

Kagome shudders and Sango goes pale at that statement.

Keade eyes the shards on Kagome's necklace and she thinks, 'the demons that it attracts will also kill some villagers. But I'm not going to tell Kagome that, she's got enough to worry about as it is.'

After a pause Keade continues to speak, "One of the nearby villages had a cholera outbreak a couple of years ago and they still have very few children. So I'll see how many families in that village will adopt."

"Good." Kagome says forcefully.

Keade nods and she says, "but, that is only because the cholera killed that village's children a couple of years ago."

Kagome pales again.

"But. Festival this year was too powerful. I will need my long reed hooks this year." Keade's has a very sad expression on by the time she finishes.

'The midwife has already been by this morning. She and I will have a lot of very painful conversions this year. A couple of the young women are still so small, I'll probably use the hooks on them. It's better to let them grow a couple more years and then have children, then lose them this year.' She thinks.

"Lady Keade, please there has to be someway . . . " Kagome begins to plead.

"Kagome, If all the women in the village have children, then in nine months, I will be placing some of those children at the edge of the forest. And the animals in the forest will feed. I really do not like doing that. Which would thee prefer, the reed hooks or leaving the children to die?"

Kagome and Sango shudders this time. Kagome whispers, "I don't know . . . "

"Kagome and Sango, do not get the wrong idea. I hate using those hooks, but this year, I see no choice but to use them. If I don't . . . then next year . . . there will not be enough people in the village to care for all the young ones and do the normal work that has to be done. It is best to that those children are not born. So, they will not suffer through those tough times. I will pray, the entire village will pray, that the children lost this year will be reborn into better times."

Sango and Kagome nod. "Tell me when you are planning those prayers, Lady Keade. I'll make sure we're here." Kagome says in a nonsense voice.
Keade nods. "I was planning to."

Sango turns to Kagome, "Are. Are?" she starts to say, but she can't get the words out.


"It would be for the best, child. Thy responsibilities . . . " Keade starts to say.

"NO! I not going to do that!" Kagome cries in a hard voice. She drops Shippo on the porch and runs into the woods, passing Miroku as he walks into the village.

"What happened?" he says to Kagome, but she ignores him and continues to run. He looks after her, even takes a couple steps to follow, but he goes into the village. 'I need my robe. Once I stop freezing from the wind keeps blowing under his shirt, then I find her. In addition Sango and Keade will know what caused her to run like that.'

End ch6c

Abortion . . . it was done. Yes, women died from it. Women died in child bed as well. Which way was safer? Shrug, that depends on to many factors to say.

And exposing young children to the elements was done. But adoption was widely practiced, which helped, but . . . (on the positive side . . . the Chinese habit of killing newborn female infants never really caught on in Japan. It did happen, but never to the degree it happened in China.)

Something to think about... (this is from the wrong time period 1650-1850, but medical treatment was the same, so I'm going to assume these percentages hold true. Oh, there was probably some variation between villages, but probably not much.) In one village 20% of children died before their fifth birthday, and only 64% survived to maturity.

Properly speaking abortions would have been done by an Eta family. But I went with Keade, since the readers will know her and I don't have to introduce a new character. I'll assume that the old abortionist is dead and Keade is filling in, until a new family arrives.

Also, please note. Nobody is going to say a thing publically about this. Any conversions about abortions will be in private. And the miscarriage excuse will be heard a lot this year.

FYI: Japan's population held steady at about 25,000,000 for approximately 200 years 1650 to 1850. Given human reproduction patterns, there were a lot of birth control and/or population control going on. All the means given about were done, and more (warfare, disease, etc. also checks human pop., but not to the degree needed to hold a population to zero growth.). There are even stories of old folk being abandoned on mountain tops, etc.


Thank you for reading
jeff shelton