InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Bastard's Gift ❯ Chapter 5

A/N and Disclaimer: Inuyasha and the canon characters of the show do not belong to me. This work of fiction is for entertainment only and no money is being made.

Bastard's Gift

Chapter 5

Seven Years and Three Months Ago

Inuyasha caught a glimpse of a satisfied smirk on Kouga's face when he was practically pounced on by the wolves and clan members of Kouga.

Some of the elders circled and sniffed him, eyeing both of them in suspicion.

Some of the females kept touching Inuyasha's stomach and asking if he was really a bearer. Inuyasha felt irritated at that point. One of the elders looked at Kouga.

"Lord Kouga?" he asked, in a wary tone.

Kouga's satisfied look changed into one of feral determination.

"His condition does not deter the fact that I am still looking at courting him. You can smell it. I've claimed both him and the pup as my intended and ward."

The elders still looked suspicious but nodded. "As you say, Lord Kouga."

It wasn't until they were in the privacy of Kouga's den that Inuyasha felt brave enough to ask what trouble he was bringing to the pack leader.

Kouga rolled his eyes. "No trouble at all. At least for me. For the elders it's a different thing. They wanted me to mate with one of the females from the other tribes." Kouga grabbed some of the fur throws that made his bed area. "But some were too prissy and others were too obnoxious. They thought way too highly of themselves. I couldn't stand them!" He huffed and looked over to where Inuyasha stood.

Inuyasha couldn't help but snort at the hypocrisy of that statement.

"Not a word, Puppy," Kouga warned, his threatening tone lacking the bite it usually had. In some ways, it made Inuyasha feel better, being treated almost normally.

"To be honest, that was the main reason why I chased... well, you know."

Inuyasha's ears lowered and his shoulders drooped in weariness.

Kagome.

Gods, he missed her terribly.

Kouga stood in front of him, forcing Inuyasha to shake away those thoughts.

"They only got their tails in a twist because even though you are a hanyou and a bearer… weeeeellll, I did do one wrong thing."

"What's that?" Inuyasha asked.

"Regardless of the relationship between you and Sesshomaru, he's a lord, making you of noble rank. I am suppose to officially ask for his permission to court you."

Inuyasha growled and turned away, to keep Kouga from seeing the tears in his eyes. "Him walking away was permission enough by my book," he said, trying to sound like his old self.

It had hurt, yes. But what more could he expect from a half brother that was always trying to kill him and who only paid attention when it came to light that he was bearer?

"Same by my book, but not in the eyes of the elders. I will have to send an official declaration to Lord Sesshomaru. But regardless of his response, you will stay here, Inu. I'll fight whoever it takes to keep you safe."

"Only until the pup is born," Inuyasha stated.

Kouga gave a start.

"What?"

Inuyasha turned to look at him.

"Only until the pup is born," he repeated, determination showing clear in his eyes. "After that, I will train. I won't be taken care of all my life." He then realized what Kouga must have thought. "And I won't be a useless burden to your clan," he added. "I want to be able to contribute in all ways possible."

Kouga looked relieved. "I'll gladly train with you," he said.

Present Day

Inuyasha stopped walking and sniffed into the air. There was a town up ahead, probably two days away.

He glanced down and saw that Katsutoshi was trying to do the same. Judging by his confused look, the young demon had no idea what he was trying to smell.

Inuyasha smiled and patted Katsu's head.

"It's a village," he said.

"Another one?"

"Yeah. But… but it's my history."

Katsutoshi looked up at him. "What do you mean?"

Inuyasha grabbed his hand and continued forward. "I met a girl there once. And then, fifty years later, met her reincarnation. Do you want to hear the stories?"

Katsutoshi nodded. X

Inuyasha could sense that nothing dangerous was around them. So he built a fire and cooked some fish that had been caught from a nearby stream. Katsutoshi, being a full demon, preferred his food raw, but he had developed a taste for it being crispy on the outside. So Inuyasha seared the outside of his fish long enough to toast the outside but still leave it raw enough inside and passed it off to his son.

Katsu bit into the fish with great pleasure.

Inuyasha couldn't help but chuckle as Katsutoshi made a mess of things. Juices dripped down his chin and he was trying to lick it off with his tongue. Inuyasha used one of the cloths that wrapped their belonging to wipe Katsu's face.

"Papa!" the young demon cried out, sounding offended.

"Hey, not my fault you're a messy eater."

The struggling youth was then pinned and tickled, his cried of protests became shrieks of giggles.

Later on in the night, when the fire died down, Inuyasha moved them both up into a nearby tree.

He glanced out towards where the village was, wondering what Rin must look like by now. She was probably near marrying age by a couple years.

He wondered if Sesshomaru took the time to visit her, or send for her, now that she was living in Kaede's old village.

Inuyasha brushed the hair from Katsutoshi's forehead as he listened to the sounds of the forest. He briefly wondered why he could only sense animals around, and very little demon activity.

Could it be that Kohaku patrolled this area?

A bit of anxiety went through him as he thought about meeting up with Sango's brother. Would they recognize each other? What if Kohaku attacked him under the guise of not recognizing him? What kind of young man did Kohaku grow into?

Inuyasha glanced down at his sleeping son.

He briefly wondered what type of demon Katsu would turn out to be.

Inuyasha tried to shake the fears away as he leaned his head back against the tree. With no immediate danger, he tried to let himself fall asleep. He would worry about meeting Sango's brother when he reached the village.

When he finally did fall asleep, Inuyasha found himself dreaming about Kouga again. And Katsutoshi.

Six Years and eleven months ago

Kouga grunted as he released himself in Inuyasha.

"Cutting it a bit close, weren't you?" Inuyasha spat out in obvious annoyance as he pulled away.

Kouga watched as Inuyasha pulled on his kimono.

Despite how large Inuyasha's stomach has swelled, Kouga struggled to ease his desire for the hanyou. His size had gotten too big for his fire rat robe, and it currently was folded and placed in the corner of the den.

The kimono Inuyasha wore was one that was made by some benign spider weavers, apparently hired by Rin to dress Inuyasha in more suitable clothes for someone in his condition.

They had weaved the material into a gradient of aqua to midnight blue, with a pack of wolves running in the moonlight along the bottom. The trimming was done in gold to match the specks that resembled stars in the material.

The only payment Rin had asked was a painting of Inuyasha dressed in the outfit. A nervous human had been sent to complete that task, and it had come out beautifully. While Inuyasha acted like he didn't care, Kouga lamented that the human did not make two copies.

"Hey!" Inuyasha barked out, snapping Kouga from his small daydream.

"Sorry, Puppy," he responded sheepishly. "The demon was a bit more of a problem than I thought it would be. But I made it before the night!"

Inuyasha grabbed a one of the fur throws and threw it over his head in the form of a hood.

"Now will you get out?"

Kouga couldn't help but grin at how gruff Inuyasha sounded. These past few months had done wonders. As Inuyasha's stomach grew more round at each passing week, his focus had been on how well he'd be able to nurture the pup. They had already located who would be a wet nurse, and they had prepared an adjacent cave to be the nursery where his omegas would watch over the cub when Inuyasha and he began their training.

He had also noticed that little by little Inuyasha was acting a bit more receptive to his talks and touches. The first couple of months they were like young demons experimenting with one another. While Kouga was as gentle with Inuyasha as the first time, the dog demon was barely receptive. But as the next few months wore on, Kouga couldn't help but wonder if the hanyou was actually looking forward to the scenting ritual and was just too prideful to admit it.

His gruffness right now was the closest thing to worry that Inuyasha had expressed. After all, he was due back two nights ago.

The only thing that bothered Kouga was that Inuyasha still refused to show him his human side, hence the furs that were covering him.

There was also the fact that they had two separate dens. He had not been able to convince Inuyasha into sharing just one area.

"Well?" Inuyasha prompted, pulling the hood even further over his face.

Kouga sighed.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm leaving. I'll stand guard. But you know… I could always guard you better in my den."

"Yeah, right."

The response wasn't as biting as they had been before.

"Just saying." Kouga stepped out. As he saw the wolves coming in, he knew that the sun was setting. In a few minutes, he would have a human in his den. The wolves had already caught on a while ago, but they didn't understand the need for secrecy. Standing guard no longer meant protecting Inuyasha's human form, but more like protecting his privacy.

His wolves were a curious bunch after all.

Six Years and Ten Months Ago

Wailing sounds filled the cave as Kouga stopped pacing and looked at the direction of the healer's den. One of the Omegas came out, looking pleased. "It's male," he said. "And apparently not happy at all at being introduced to the world," he added with a chuckle.

Kouga couldn't help but grin at how loud the infant's wails were. Seemed he had some of Inuyasha's temper in him.

He rushed into the den, knowing that he only had a short time to mark him as ward now that he had a physical form. He paused as he spotted a tired Inuyasha holding the babe swaddled in pelts. Inuyasha gave him a small grin. "He's so tiny," he croaked out, his throat sore from his screams.

"May I?" Kouga asked, holding out his arms.

Inuyasha faltered a bit, and then nodded. Kouga had explained what the final mark was going to be. He briefly wondered if Sesshomaru had done anything similar to Rin, or did he not care because he had no one to answer to like Kouga had. One thing he had learned was that although Kouga was pack leader, the council still held some decision making.

Kouga held the babe closer and took a good look at him. He could see the markings on his face and eyelids, marking him as being part Inu. He could also see traces of dark hair, and for one moment felt both sadness and joy. The joy was because in some ways, the pup would look like an offspring of him and Inuyasha. The sadness was because he knew the dark hair came from Naraku.

The fact was also cemented when the babe opened its red eyes for the first time. The pup became quiet and stared at Kouga, nose twitching, as if smelling.

Kouga grinned.

While he was not the father, it was apparent that instincts had the pup recognize him as his guardian. Kouga bit his thumb and ran a streak of blood across the little demon's head.

"With my blood I seal my oath. I hereby announce Katsutoshi as my ward."

"Hey! Who gave you permission to name my kid?" Inuyasha growled.

Kouga just gave him a look. "He's technically mine now, too, isn't he? You could always name the next one."

"Keh. A bit presumptuous there, aren't you, Wolf?" Inuyasha settled back down. "Katsutoshi… 'to win cleverly.' It's a good name," he added, grudgingly.

Kouga grinned and then placed his bleeding thumb by the babe's mouth so that a few drops touched the tip of the tongue. The pup grimaced and began to cry.

Kouga knelt by Inuyasha and took one of his hands. He raised it to his mouth and bit Inu's thumb as well.

Inuyasha flinched and watched as Kouga guided his finger to Katsutoshi's mouth and let a few drops spill into the babe's mouth. Katsutoshi's crying reduced to a mild whimper.

"There," said Kouga. "He will always recognize us as his guardian and bearer."

The wolf demons and their brethren who entered the den to see the newest addition to their pack were treated to the site of what looked like a family, and many of them hoped that Inuyasha would someday fully accept their leader's advances as an intended mate.

Present Day

Katsutoshi stared up at the massive tree. He watched as his father gently brushed his hand on a bare spot.

"It was about here that Kikyo pinned me to the tree," Inuyasha said.

"Did you really sleep 50 years?" asked his son.

Inuyasha nodded. "When Kagome woke me up, I really thought it was Kikyo. It wasn't until I met Kaede did I realize that a lot of time really did pass."

"Were you sad when you learned about Kikyo's death?"

Inuyasha nodded. "I didn't let Kagome know at the time, but, yes. I was sad to hear the news."

Katsutoshi looked upset.

"Do you wish you were able to be with Kikyo or Kagome?"

Inuyasha looked at his red eyed child and knelt down beside him. "I miss them, Katsutoshi. But I can't say I wish I was able to be with them. Wishing for that means not having you by my side."

Katsutoshi looked relieved.

"Let's go visit the well."

"Does it really eat bones?"

Inuyasha laughed. "More like it strips the flesh leaving nothing but bones from the carcasses of demons that have been thrown inside," he said, doing his best impression of a spooky voice.

Katsutoshi laughed at his father's poor acting skills.

The two continued walking for some time when Inuyasha paused.

"What is it?" he asked.

Inuyasha remained still. "It's nothing," he murmured, looking anxious. "Let's go."

Katsutoshi held on to his father's hand as he looked around, observing the scenery around him. He really didn't smell any demons, so he knew his father's anxiety wasn't because of sensing something dangerous. Maybe it was someone he knew? There was an abundant smell of humans around.

Could there still be a human of his stories that lived here? The old lady? No. He distinctly remembered his father staring at the moon one night. When he asked what was wrong, his father had mentioned that an old friend had passed on.

Lady Kaede was the only old friend Inuyasha mentioned in his stories.

As he struggled to identify the smells, one familiar one came through.

It was the same smell that was on the scrolls that arrived every now and then, the ones in which he would sometimes get to hear what was written on them.

If he remembered correctly, it was from some human girl named Rin.

In a way he felt a bit relieved, but it was strange. After all, he never met the girl and only knew her by scent. So did that still make her a stranger?

It was late past noon when Inuyasha and Katsutoshi stepped into the path leading into the village. While Inuyasha studied the surroundings, noticing the small differences that seven years brought, Katsutoshi tried keeping himself feeling calm.

It felt extremely strange walking into this village that he knew nothing about. And he wondered what this Rin person looked like. Was she an old lady too? Or was she a young girl? Was she as loud and brass as Kouga and his Papa were, or was she like the healers and omegas and calm?

"Lord Inuyasha!" The name of his Papa startled him, and he felt his father pause by his side.

"Rin?"

Katsutoshi struggled not to grimace as some peasant girl came running up towards them. He had expected someone to be dressed a bit more nicely than what he saw. After all, wasn't she a ward of Lord Sesshomaru? Or was Rin merely a servant and just made herself out to be more in the letters she sent.

She looked rather plain, but Katsutoshi had to admit that he liked her smile.

The girl stopped in front of them. "Oh, Lord Inuyasha, I was hoping you would stop by!" She looked down at Katsutoshi.

"And this is your son! He looks so beautiful!"

Katsutoshi blanched as he was swept into the arms of this human and hugged tightly. He fought against his instinct to unleash his newfound claws and just gave his Papa a pleading look.

Sadly, his father was giving him a sympathetic, yet highly amused look.

"Papa," he whined.

Rin let him go and he quickly brushed off the dust from his clothes and ran his fingers through his hair, trying to get himself back in order.

"You must come to our hut and eat!"

"Our? So you're still with Kohaku?" Inuyasha asked, hoping the wariness stayed out of his voice.

Rin nodded. "Yes! Lord Sesshomaru sent us here so I can learn to be more human. And we decided since I was near marrying age, and Kohaku was the only human Sesshomaru approved of, we live as if we were husband and wife!"

Inuyasha's eyes almost bulged out as he looked at her in alarm. "Living as husband and wife?"

Katsu frowned. Wasn't that human terms for mates? Rin still looked awfully young to be someone's mate. She barely looked twice his age.

Rin beamed at them. "I cook and take care of the house, he hunts and works." Then she frowned. "The only thing we don't do is share a room together like all the other husbands and wives. Kohaku just turns red when I bring it up and he says not until we're actually married. I don't know what the big deal is."

Inuyasha was relieved to hear what Rin meant by living as 'husband and wife.' He also felt sorry for Kohaku and couldn't help but grin at the thought of what Kohaku must go through on a daily basis.

"Well, sharing a room gets loud," Katsutoshi suddenly blurted out. "I don't know how Papa and Kouga slept with all the noise coming from their den."

"Katsu!"

"What?" The demon child looked at his bright red father, not understanding what he said so wrong.

"Oh." Rin looked puzzled. "Do married people make a lot of noise too when they share a room?"

Inuyasha wished the ground would swallow him up. "Sesshomaru, as your caretaker, should be explaining that to you." A moment of mischievous inclinations struck and he gave Rin an innocent grin. "You should ask him next time you see him. It's probably time he told you everything so you're better prepared to be Kohaku's wife."

"I will do that!" Rin declared. X

Sesshomaru paused in mid stride.

There was a strange chill that went up his spine as he fought against the urge to sneeze. As the painful feeling in his nose faded away, he continued his trek into in study. It was one of the few rooms in which no one disturbed him, and he was allowed to look upon the painting Rin commissioned a few months ago.

It was done beautifully, and Sesshomaru struggled to understand why he allowed her to use his study as its exhibit.

Inuyasha looked stunning, stomach obviously heavy with child, the kimono draping his form as he sat down on something. The ends of it had been extended so that part of the pattern could be seen.

He wondered how the kimono looked in real life.

Sesshomaru lightly touched the painting.

His face was void of expression, but inside his mind, emotions collided with one another as he recalled when he had received the official scrolls from the wolf tribe.

When he saw the gold ink spelling out Kouga's request to officially court the "young Lord Inuyasha," he seethed in anger and destroyed the parchment. To his annoyance, a second one had been sent along with the first, including a personal note.

LORD SESSHOMARU,
REGARDLESS OF YOUR RESPONSE, I FULLY INTEND TO COURT AND CLAIM INUYASHA. MY CLAN IS PREPARED TO DEFEND HIM AT THE COST OF OUR LIVES. BEING THAT OUR TRIBES HAVE COEXISTED WITH YOUR KINGDOM PEACEFULLY, WE WISH TO CONTINUE THAT ALLIANCE AS AMICABLY AS POSSIBLE. ACCEPTING MY REQUEST WILL ONLY STRENGTHEN OUR TIES AS NARAKU IS A COMMON THREAT AND IT WOULD BE DETRIMENTAL TO THE BOTH OF US SHOULD WE ALIENATE OURSELVES FROM ONE ANOTHER.
KOUGA, ALPHA

Sesshomaru's annoyance was mostly because that cunning wolf how correctly guessed that the first scroll would have been destroyed and was already prepared with a copy and that note. A subtle threat of becoming enemies.

For an undignified species that lived in caves year round, Sesshomaru had to admit that Kouga knew the political game well enough to cover himself.

In angry strokes, he had sent his reply.

DO WHAT YOU WILL.

And now the wolf was dead. And Inuyasha has left the tribe.

The clan had swore to protect Inuyasha, and Sesshomaru could guess as to why Inuyasha refused to be under their care anymore. To stay protected, he would have to mate with the newest Alpha. He supposed that maybe there was some dignity and pride in the hanyou for not accepting some other demon as a mate just to be protected.

It had also been confirmed that the hanyou was heading in his direction. But he still didn't understand why his half brother would come to him. Surely he wouldn't ask for Sesshomaru to accept his brats as wards, especially since he had asked him to do away with Naraku's spawn.

"Jakken."

"Yes, my Lord?"

Sesshomaru's toad like servant entered the room, alert as always.

"Prepare a carriage and send it out to Rin's village."

"Sir?"

"My brother will most likely be there. Bring him here." X

Inuyasha woke with a start.

He could hear Rin humming as she cooked something as they waited for Kohaku to return. But something was amiss and he wasn't sure what it was. Looking around, his eyes finally landed on the window.

A samiyoshi was hovering, watching him. It began to fly away.

Heart in his throat, Inuyasha grabbed his Tetsusaiga and leapt out of the window.

There was no way he could let Naraku's wasps relay information about his whereabouts!

He caught up with the wasp and sliced it in two.

Panting for air, Inuyasha placed his hand on his stomach. Considering it was barely two weeks old, he could feel the energy now that he knew the differences. And the first few weeks were so critical according to the healers. It was a miracle that Katsutoshi took and survived the treatment Naraku put him through.

Inuyasha began to head back when a shadow flittered over him.

Inuyasha whirled around and froze.

Naraku stood in front of him.

Tentacles shot out and pierced his stomach.

"NO!"

Inuyasha sat up, desperately touching his abdomen to make sure it was okay. His heart raced and his breath came out in short pants. A soft whine caught his attention and he turned to his left.

Katsutoshi was sitting up, rubbing his eyes.

"Papa, what's wrong?" he asked sleepily.

Inuyasha grabbed his son and pulled him close. "Just a bad dream," he said, trembling slightly. "But it's okay. I've got you here with me."

Katsutoshi snuggled into his father's embrace. "You'll always have me," he said.

A slight tapping sound alerted them to someone's presence. Looking up, Inuyasha and Katsutoshi were greeted with the sight of a young man.

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes in confusion, recognizing the scent but not the appearance. Dark hair was tied back into a shoulder length pony tail, and a scar ran down the left side of the youth's face, splitting his eyebrow but leaving his brown eye intact. A gentle smile decorated his face.

"Kohaku," Inuyasha breathed in surprise.

"Glad you made it, Inuyasha."

The anxiety Inuyasha had been feeling at the prospect of meeting Sango's brother faded.

The demon slayer made his way in and glanced at Katsutoshi who was staring at him warily.

A bemused look crossed his face. "Amazing how similar, yet different, he looks."

Inuyasha glanced at his son, knowing who Kohaku was referring to. "He'll be nothing like him."

Kohaku knelt down in front of Katsutoshi. "Hello," he said, pleasantly.

"You're not going to hug me like that girl did, are you?" he asked.

Kohaku laughed. "I see Rin already got you. Don't worry. She won't do it again unless you do something really cute."

Katsu pouted.

Kohaku looked up at Inuyasha. "Dinner is ready. Why don't you join us? There is a lot we have to catch up on."

Inuyasha nodded. X

Naraku made his way through his castle, heading out into the open air. While he was still in a bit of pain, he didn't want to delay the search any longer. A month had passed since the battle and he was certain that Inuyasha would most likely be heading to his brother.

It would take a while to reach Sesshomaru's kingdom on foot, and there was a chance that the dog lord hadn't received news of Kouga yet. But time was running out.

Sesshomaru had more resources than Naraku to respond as soon as news that Inuyasha was vulnerable to attack came to light.

Of course there was no guarantee that he would be protected by Sesshomaru, but just as equally there was no guarantee that he wouldn't. He could not afford to let Inuyasha slip through his grasp again.

Naraku summoned his samiyoshi.

"Find him," he ordered.

His horde of wasps spread out into different directions.

TBC…