InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Tears of Blood ❯ Mysteries Unraveled ( Chapter 6 )

Demoness: Ok I'm sorry for how long this took to get out and for me to write…Damn writer's block, but Oh well! It's here and for you to enjoy. It hasn't been beta read yet, but I didn't want it sitting on my computer for too much longer…Now let's get down to the real story…

Disclaimer: *Demoness jumps trying to grab the rights out of Sesshoumaru's hand* Awwwww…come on! Give me it!

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Chapter Six: Mysteries Unraveled

Haily woke that morning to the sun hanging low in the sky, beginning its ascent into the sky. She expected to be in constant pain from her broken ribs, but was pleasantly surprised to find that only a dull ache remained. She shifted a hand over her ribs, eyes flashing open from the shock of feeling the soft cloth bandages covering her skin. Her eyes burned from the bright light that shone in her eyes in her haste to open them. Haily reflexively shut them again and after a few moments, tentatively opened them. She couldn't help squinting, but as she let her eyes adjust she discovered that she was not out side, but rather in a large room.

She carefully propped herself up on her elbows, causing her to hiss as the action placed unwanted strain on her healing ribs.

"And where do you think you're going girl?"

The stern voice caught her completely by surprise, shattering what ever calm she had found. She instantly bolted upright, and succeeded in falling out of the healing bed. Landing on the hard floor, she regretted letting her guard down. The old pain returned from her previously broken ribs. So there she sat on the floor with one arm wrapped around her abdomen, leaning against some type of cabinet behind her. In her shock and confusion she even forgot to look for the owner of the voice.

She was quickly brought back to reality by a soft hand touching her arm to gain her attention. Haily's eyes shot to the owner of the hand, who turned out to be a young woman. She looked at Haily with forgiving eyes and a kind smile. "You'll have to forgive my mother," she apologized as she helped Haily to her feet. "She likes scaring her patients."

The young woman frowned at the older woman, whom Haily assumed was the girl's mother, who was standing a few feet away with her arms crossed, mirroring the expression. "As much as you would like to believe that Namida, I do not find joy in scaring the patients under my care. Though, I do wish they would stop running around and trying to get up. They need to heal and rest."

"Well, how do you expect them to rest when you startle them so," Namida said jokingly.

Haily had to smile at the girl's last comment and took a good look at her. She stood slightly shorter than Haily. Her hair held the softest shade of pink that Haily had seen in her life. It was woven into two identical braids that were twisted around each other and pulled over her right shoulder. She wore a simple kimono of a rich crème color, embroidered with an intricate pattern of rich blue lines along the hem and sleeves that reflected the deep sapphire color of her eyes.

Haily found herself hard-pressed to disguise her mirth when she noticed the two fox-like ears twitch on top of Namida's head. However, she lost her resolve when she saw the pair on top of her mother's head twitch as well. She had to giggle and quickly covered her mouth with the sleeve of her robe.

Iyasu and Namida looked at her with questioning and amused expressions, respectively. "And what pray tell is so amusing child?" the old woman asked.

She immediately dropped her arm and cleared her throat. "I'm sorry. I was just admiring your ears. I have never seen a kitsune youkai up close before, let alone spoken to one," she responded with all the innocence she could muster.

The old healer looked her over carefully and turned away to busy herself with tending to a small herb garden that was growing in the light of the window. Namida came over to Haily and opened the top of her robe, checking the tightly wrapped bandages around her ribs. When she spoke, her voice was soft and held a warmth that Haily had known few to possess. "She tends to be a bit stern and likes things done her way, but she's really a very kind person once you get to know her," she bemusedly thought out loud.

Haily smiled as she closed the robe again silently thanking her for tending to her wounds. "Namida, what is your mother's name? I cannot simply keep calling her `your mother' while I am here," she giggled.

Namida smirked at the curiousness of the element demoness and was more than happy to answer her questions. "Oh, you mean my mother, who will only wear yellow and white, and who is often found talking to her plants? If that is who you mean, then her name is Iyasu. She's been the healer here at the palace since our Lord's father was the Taiyoukai of the Western Lands. She's so old that if you were to touch her, she would crumble into dust," she said loudly so Iyasu could hear.

Iyasu muttered her reply to her plants and ignored the two girls' incessant chattering from that point on. Namida smiled at her handy work and mouthed "It always works."

Haily shook her head smiling and figured that this was a daily occurrence in the ward that was located in the…She really didn't have any clue where she was, or for that matter, where Chitenshi was. She had neither seen nor heard her from the time she woke up and became concerned for her well being. "Namida, have you treated another demoness…a blood demoness to be exact?"

Though the end of her question was barely audible, Namida heard every word clearly. Her eyes held a sadness as she remembered the treatment of the blood demons. It darkened her soul to think of what had, is, and will continue to be done through the ignorance of others. She took Haily's hand in hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze as she began speaking. "It is alright for you to speak out loud about the blood demons here. All of the servants, myself included, the soldiers, and our Lord refuse to let ourselves become like the others who have done nothing but torture and kill them. So you do not have to worry Inochiki."

Haily was visibly relieved to hear the words spoken by Namida. However her question had not been answered and every moment another was added to her long list. "Namida," she began. "How do you know my name? I'm quite sure I haven't said it."

"Chitenshi informed me of it earlier this morning when I passed her in the hallway," she said and paused, looking out the window to study the height of the sun, "They should be back soon."

Haily looked at her with confusion marring her face. "What do you mean `they,' Namida? Wasn't Chitenshi alone when you spoke to her?"

Namida was about to answer her latest questions when light laughter was heard on the other side of the wooden doors leading out of the healing ward. One door slowly opened to reveal Chitenshi smiling as she walked in followed by another person matching her expression. Haily turned around smiling brightly, but her jaw dropped in awe and surprise when she saw the newcomer.

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Chitenshi had woken only hours after her encounter with the Demon Lord. The last thing she remembered was lying on the ground with a blurred white light coming towards her. She didn't know who had brought her back or how, but one person stood out in her mind.

She did not expect to find anyone other than Haily in the room, but she was shocked to open her eyes and see a man sitting in a chair beside her. She closed her eyes, viewing him through her eyelashes and found him to have an unrolled scroll sitting in his lap.

`Well if he was here to kill me, I doubt that he would be just sitting there…and apparently reading.' She opened her eyes fully in order to gage him better from her prone position. She found her voice and was prepared to defend herself if the need arose. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

His head snapped up to look at her with surprise clearly shown in his eyes. His stunned expression melted into one of amusement at seeing her awake and asking the questions she did. "In response to your first question, I am Hakunetsu, High General of the Western Army."

He placed his scroll on the table next to him and answered the latter question. "And in repose the second, I came to see how you were healing. I was quite surprised to learn of your midnight adventure through the castle which included finding your way from the southern wing to the western wing, meeting Rin, and almost getting killed by Lord Sesshoumaru."

He leaned forward in the chair, resting his forearms on the armrests. "Managing to accomplish all that in the span of an hour is a feat that even I have yet to try and achieve," he said, his eyes dancing with laughter.

Chitenshi couldn't hide the cunning smile that colored her lips at his remark. She let herself relax knowing that he held no intent to do her harm, but her curiosity still held firm. Her emerald eyes studied the calm aura flowing around him. `So, he's an Inu youkai and quite powerful it seems. He is young for one of his standing and level.'

His hair flowed to the middle of his back and held a color of blue that a clear summer sky would envy. His skin was a light crème hue that glowed softly in the light emitted from a candle placed by her bed. His face, oddly enough, held no markings one would normally find on a youkai and Chitenshi could not find any on his wrists, peeking from beneath his sleeves.

His style of clothing drew her eye and caused her do a double take. To Chitenshi, it appeared to be like something humans and demons would wear back in Sengoku Jidai in Japan. He wore a white hakama with a matching kimono, with the except that both his sleeves were red, with two thin blue stripes near the hem. `Ok, either this guy likes to play dress up or I'm having one very weird dream'

Her eyes traveled over his body noticing, even under the clothing, that his body was lean and toned; more than likely from years of constant training. Her gaze swept up his chest, to his throat, and finally to his face; only to be lost in the coloring of his eyes. She had not taken the time before to truly look into them, but now she felt as though she was looking into irises made from freshly poured honey.

Chitenshi heard a distant voice in her head telling her that she was rude to stare, and finally after a minute decided to listen to it. She shook her slightly to clear it of all unnecessary thoughts and wasn't surprised to see the General sitting there grinning at her. "Sorry about that. My mind went wandering without my permission," she muttered, her cheeks tinted with a light blush.

Hakunetsu leaned back in his chair and rested his chin in his palm. "I hope your mind has returned to you with everything intact, my Lady," he said bemusedly. "Though I know it is hard for youkai and human alike, especially females not to find me pleasing to the eye."

Chitenshi just stared at him, her mind questioning if he really just said that. "You are certainly sure of yourself, aren't you? And for your information, I could care less about what you look like since I can see your ego is bigger than the rest of you," she retorted, pushing herself into a sitting position and motioning downwards with her hand.

His hackles rose at that statement and the General sat up straight in the chair glaring daggers at Chitenshi. "I would advise you to watch your tongue demoness, unless you would like to lose it." Hakunetsu's voice dropped in tone to one that was low and serious about the threat he had just given.

Chitenshi just smirked back at him, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. She made her power spike as she pointed a deadly clawed finger towards him. "I think it is you, General, who should watch your tongue…and other body parts before you find them missing," she said calmly, glancing at various parts of his lower body. Though her voice said that she meant to carry out the threat if it was necessary, her eyes held amusement feeling his mind mull over the exchange of words between them.

Moments were spent in absolute silence, before smiles slowly crept onto each of their faces, acknowledging that the confrontation was over and forgotten. "Well, now that that little discussion is over," Chitenshi began, starting to remove the bandages from both of her wrists with her claws. "I'm not one for just laying around doing nothing and since you have said that this is the southern wing and I have seen a part of the western wing; that leaves two whole other wings to discover and cause mayhem in."

Chitenshi went to rise to her feet, but was stopped by a strong hand on her shoulder that gently, but firmly pushed her back down. "That would not be wise considering that you are still healing from serious wounds…my Lady," he ended, not knowing what else to call her since she had not spoken her name.

She looked up at him asking is he was for real. "First, my injuries have already healed which was the reason I was removing the bandages. Second, what's with this `my Lady' nonsense? The last time I checked, I wasn't royalty and it makes me feel old. Chitenshi will do just fine, General."

He gave a low chuckle at her reply and stood up offering her his hand. "You do not have to address me as `General,' Chitenshi. I have spoken my name and that gives you the permission to use it."

When she made no move to take his hand he let out an impatient sigh. "Normally, when a gentleman offers you his hand, he means for you to take it."

"And normally a lady would take it, but you, Hakunetsu, are no gentleman. A prime example of arrogance, yes…a gentleman, no."

He withdrew his hand and tucked it in his sleeve, folding his arms. "If you do not want my company then I will just leave."

When he started to turn around, Chitenshi pushed herself up and felt the muscles in her legs protest before they adjusted to holding up her weight again. She playfully swatted his arm, letting him know her comment was meant in jest. "If you cannot take a simple joke then our friendship will be short lived, Hakunetsu."

The General spared her a glance from the corner of his eye acknowledging her presence. "Oh, so it's a friendship now? I'm not sure if I'm up to that task."

Chitenshi brushed past him, and headed for the doors that granted her an exit. She paused long enough to stick her tongue out at him; then continued on her way, leaving Hakunetsu to catch up with her. The pair walked the various hallways and corridors for the rest of the night and through the early part of the morning. Hakunetsu was happy to show her around and explain various things to her, like where they were, the location of the castle, the various occupants, and he even disclosed a few details about the mysterious Lord Sesshoumaru she had heard mentioned.

Hakunetsu introduced her to a few of the people they had met on their little venture. All of them were happy to have finally seen and talked to one of the patients Iyasu had been taking care of. One of the youkai was Namida, Iyasu's daughter and assistant healer under her mother. She was quite shocked to see Chitenshi up and about this soon, but did not try to stop her from moving about the castle knowing that the healing powers of blood demons far exceeded the healing abilities of other youkai.

Chitenshi had enjoyed the light conversation with Hakunetsu and Namida was delighted to have had the pleasure of meeting a few others, who were not even remotely interested in enslaving her or taking her life. Though, she disclosed very few details about herself, they did not seem to mind. Her trust was something others would have to earn even though it might take them years to attain it.

Namida left them after a few minutes to go check on Haily and once again left Chitenshi alone with Hakunetsu. She had found the General to be a quite enjoyable companion when he was not boasting about something that he had done or his status in the army. She at least determined that she was in the Western Territories that we under the rule of Lord Sesshoumaru, the Western Taiyoukai. Hakunetsu explained that each section had its own set of rulers or ruler depending on if the current ruler had a mate.

Hoku, or the Northern Territories, are controlled by the Taka youkai. Their Taiyoukai, Lord Masahiro, had been governing the land for over a century and a half, and was one of the few that could be considered a personal friend of Lord Sesshoumaru.

Hagashi, or the Eastern Territories, are controlled by the Kitsune youkai. Their rulers, Lord Rikou and Lady Surai, had been governing the longest of the four territories; for over three hundred years. They were respected for their kindness and their wisdom in difficult matters.

The last territory he spoke of was Nan, or the Southern Territories, controlled by the Dokuhebi youkai. The Southern Taiyoukai is Lord Kaimei, who had ruled for just under two hundred years, had brought turmoil and chaos to his lands since ascending to the throne.

She saw the malice and sorrow cloud Hakunetsu's aura as he spoke of the Southern Lord and knew there were things he was hiding from her, but she did not press the matter. Chitenshi knew how delicate these matters could be, especially if it brought about this much emotion. She let the silence flow between them for the rest of their walk, which soon ended when she sensed the aura of Haily become stronger, showing that she had woken.

Chitenshi took Hakunetsu's hand and practically drug him through the castle, not even bothering with trying to remember the way she had been shown, and just followed her senses. When he would not increase his speed she dropped his hand and raced ahead and looked at him over her shoulder. "What's the matter Hakunetsu? Can't run this fast or are you just afraid that I will beat you?"

She certainly had a knack for egging on the wrong people, but it did get Hakunetsu moving. He was doing well in keeping up with her until she released her wing from the confines of the bandages. The gentle flapping of the black and red appendages boosted her speed to an unimaginable level and let her reach the healing ward a good minute ahead of him.

Hakunetsu looked at her completely astonished, as the sheer speed she had used muddled his already strained brain and started muttering to himself, trying to comprehend it. Chitenshi laughed at him and pushed open the heavy wooden door, granting her access to the ward. The smile on her face from her previous victory increased when she saw her friend up and about. The smaller girl turned to her and she could see that she had missed her, even though she was gone for only a short period of time.

Chitenshi observed the change in her friend's expression and had a feeling it was because of the attractive piece of youkai that had followed her into the room. Haily soon realized she was gaping when she heard the low snickers from her friend, and snapped her jaw shut as she hugged her friend. "Don't you ever do that to me again! You nearly gave me a heart attack when I found you after the battle and then when I wake up you're not anywhere to be found! And another thing, how could you hide being a youkai from me for all these years you baka?!" Haily's voice shook with a cross between anger and joy.

Chitenshi peeled herself away from Haily and just shook her head at her friend's brazen remarks. "Ok, ok Haily! There will be plenty of time to berate me later," she said holding up her hands in defense.

"I don't feel like waiting till later and you deserve this Chitenshi! I've told you all of my secrets and it turns out you're the one that's been hiding something throughout our whole friendship. Not only that, but you put a sleeping spell on me before eight o'clock! And now you've been gallivanting through…," she paused in her ranting to try to think of where they were and gave up. "I don't know where, with a complete stranger who is an Inu youkai and, not to mention, beyond handsome! You didn't even have the curtsey to wake me!"

Haily stood back, her fists clenched and her breathing coming in short puffs after her outburst that was, to say the least…interesting. Chitenshi just stood there and blinked her eyes once at Haily, trying to digest everything that her friend had so graciously said. Luckily she was saved by Hakunetsu who has come up behind Haily, leaned down close to her ear, and whispered, "Yes, I know I'm handsome, but thank you for commenting on my looks."

Haily spun around with her eyes widened in shock. Her mouth formed words, but no sound came out. Chitenshi laughed silently to herself seeing her friend totally flabbergasted, and covered her mouth in order to hide her mocking smile. She made her way over to stand by Hakunetsu's side and dropped her hand smiling genuinely.

"Haily, this is General Hakunetsu. General, this is my friend Haily…" Chitenshi's voice trailed off towards the end realizing that `Haily' wasn't her friend's true name. "Haily, what do you want me to call you?"

The element demoness stared at the other with a bemused look; then it struck her as to what Chitenshi has really asked. She bit her bottom lip for a moment as she thought about it and then let out a sigh. "I used Haily because it was easier for me to fit in and for others to think that I was a human instead of a youkai, but I think it's time for me to stop pretending and use my real name."

Haily turned to Hakunetsu and smiled, extending her hand for a hand shake. "My name is Inochiki and it's a pleasure to meet you Hakunetsu."

Instead of shaking her hand like she had thought he would, he gently held it, turned the small appendage over, and placed a respectful kiss on it in greeting. Inochiki felt her face grow warm at the gesture and not knowing what to do, pulled her hand from his and absentmindedly wiped the back of it on her robe. "Uhhh…thanks?"

Chitenshi giggled as her two friends started to bicker about Hakunetsu's so called `greeting' and Inochiki's dismissing it. She observed the spark of attraction flare in their auras. `And those two are too stubborn to ever admit it, but hopefully they'll admit defeat and hold a normal conversation.' She mentally gave a snort at that thought `Oh yeah, they'll hold a normal conversation…after I'm dead and gone.'

The two new acquaintances kept yelling at one another, oblivious to Chitenshi who stood back and simply watched shaking her head slightly at some of the things that had come out of Inochiki's mouth. She placed her hands on her hips and decided that their little name-calling session had gone on long enough. She started to say something when she felt a lurking presence behind her. Rapidly spinning around, she grabbed the intruder's throat and slammed the person down on the ground with her claws poised above. Amazingly, that gained the attention of Inochiki and Hakunetsu.

Chitenshi stared down at the woman before her and was surprised to see a hanyou aura instead of a full youkai one. The woman had a small frame and from what Chitenshi could estimate, she was around five feet tall. A black body suit with blue along the edges, hugged her form showing off the subtle outlines and curves of her body and no doubt offered her a great deal of unrestricted movement. Black gloves covered her hands and blended into the midnight of the body suit. Chitenshi's emerald gaze bore into the crimson depths of the hanyou and found dismay shown in her eyes.

Chitenshi's hand tightened around the hanyou's neck in warning, daring her to make a move. She heard Hakunetsu's voice pierce her concentration, and pulled back a bit. "Chitenshi let her go. Nezumi's a spy for the army and does not mean us any harm."

Chitenshi let go fully and stood up, still wary of the newcomer. The black clad spy pushed herself off the ground and fixed her uniform and adjusted the high ponytail that held her jet-black hair away from her face. Nezumi bowed to Hakunetsu to show respect to her superior, all the while glancing at Chitenshi.

Hakunetsu nodded his head in greeting and smirked as he saw the expression on his best spy. "I believe you have rattled her Chitenshi, and trust me, that is most certainly a hard feat to achieve. Normally no one is able to sense or detect her unless she wants to be known."

Chitenshi's expression softened when looking at Nezumi. "I'm sorry for reacting that way, but it's become a reflex of mine when feeling a strange aura close to me."

Nezumi shook her head once and settled her crimson eyes on Chitenshi. "I should apologize for my habit of sneaking up on people, but General Hakunetsu is right. You are the first person to ever catch me other than Lord Sesshoumaru."

Chitenshi smiled looking over the rest of the spy's appearance. Nezumi's skin was lightly tanned from the sun and she noticed her hair was tipped with red, standing out in sharp contrast with the black. The only marking she found was a red stripe down the center of her bottom lip that added a mysterious air about her.

The spy turned away from Chitenshi, looked to Hakunetsu whispering her findings on her reconnaissance mission, bowed once more, and then moved to the open door before turning around again. "There is one more thing," she paused and looked at Chitenshi.

"Lord Sesshoumaru has requested your presence, Chitenshi."

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Demoness: IMPORTANT NOTICE!!! READ!!! Ok I've been working on this story for a really long time, and I've gotten some reactions to it, but it seems that people really don't like it. I'm THINKING OF DISCONTINUING this to see what else my brain can come up with. Just tell me if I should or shouldn't.

Sesshoumaru: You better not stop this when I'm about to come it!

Demoness: Oh hush up you…*sigh*

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