InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Tomaru's Story 2: Prejudice ❯ Chapter 11

Dragonfly: Ooooo! -nudges Tomaru- Did you see that? You got Haruko blushing like mad!

 

Tomaru: What can I say? I'm irresistible.

 

Dragonfly: -shakes head- Not this again…

 

Tomaru: -flushes slightly- Well, what I mean is… I only want to be irresistible to one inu-tenchi…

 

Keiji: And what about my sister?

 

Tomaru: -shrug- And one ookami-hime…

 

Dragonfly: Osuwari!

 

Tomaru: -flinch/panic-

 

Dragonfly: Damn… where's that blasted rosary when I really need it? Oi, Kagome!!

 

Kagome: Gomen. Sesshoumaru says it vanished with Inuyasha's body.

 

Dragonfly: -grumbles under her breath- It's a bloody conspiracy…

 

Chapter 11

 

Tomaru landed gracefully on his feet, his long hair drifting down around him like silver rain. Haruko noticed that his temple was bleeding from the blow. She took several steps toward him, her ears slightly perked in concern. “Tomaru, you're hurt!”

 

The rock youkai swung at her and shot a barrage of rocks from its tail, taking advantage of her preoccupation with the other hanyou. Tomaru saw the attack and ran toward her. “Haruko! Look out!” he yelled as he wrapped his arms around her and tried to block the blow with his body.

 

The rocks slammed into him painfully and the force of their attack knocked him forward. He somehow twisted as they fell, hoping to prevent falling on top of Haruko and crushing her with his greater weight.

 

A soft pink glow surrounded the entwined hanyous as they fell into the well.

 

Tomaru squeezed his eyes shut as he braced himself for the jarring impact of hitting the well bottom, unaware of the pink glow around him. When no “thud” was forthcoming, he cracked open an eye to see himself drifting in what seemed to be an endless sea of stars and swirls of light. What in all the hells is THIS?

 

Inuyasha, for all that he was merely a voice inside Tomaru's head, seemed to stare in stupefied shock. Impossible… no fucking way…

 

What? What's going on? And where's Haruko?

 

Tomaru didn't get an answer right away because, abruptly, he was on his butt in the hard-packed dirt of the bottom of the old well. Grunting slightly at the awkward landing, he stood up slowly, brushing dirt off his snow-white hakama.

 

Look up.

 

The hanyou lifted his chin and stared uncomprehendingly at the dark brown scenery above the edge of the well. Where'd the sky go? And you didn't answer me! Where is Haruko??

 

Inuyasha seemed to take a deep breath. I'm not sure yet. Get us out of this well and I'll be able to tell you more.

 

You'd better be right, old dog. He agilely jumped up and out of the well, landing next to the ancient wooden structure. Goldenrod eyes blinked, regarding the building now surrounding the well. There wasn't a hut around this thing a minute ago…

 

In the past, no. If we are where I THINK we are…

 

THEN WHERE THE HELL ARE WE??

 

Open the doors, pup. I have to know…

 

Tomaru kept a tight rein on his temper, only because his curiosity seemed to be just as strong right now. He slid open the door and stepped out into another world.

 

He stared in fascinated wonder at the stone-hard ground, where moments ago he had sworn was all grass and trees. Buildings, stranger than he had ever seen, surrounded him, bigger than the huts he had seen in the ningen villages but nowhere near as large as his father's palace. The trees seemed to be few and far between, except for an extremely large one across the stone yard.

 

Tomaru.

 

The hanyou paused in his perusal of his new surroundings, extremely surprised. Uncle Yasha?

 

Onegai… would you… let me… take over?

 

Tomaru was convinced he was dreaming. One: the old dog never called him by name- it was always “whelp” or “pup.” Two: he had said please. When in all of history had Inuyasha ever said please (except maybe to Kagome)?

 

Confused as all hell, Tomaru decided that he might as well try it. All right, old dog. But don't get us killed.

 

I know where we are, pup.

 

Where? And why didn't Haruko come with us?

 

Inuyasha didn't answer as his reincarnation “moved” his consciousness aside and let the older hanyou take over. It was a strange phenomenon, but it seemed to work. Inuyasha blinked several times, trying to get used to being, well… alive again. After all, it had been twenty years- not counting the brief takeovers when Tomaru was feeling particularly pissed.

 

He sniffed lightly, walking achingly slowly towards the house that seemed like he had seen it only yesterday, and yet it looked older, more worn. Old, familiar scents were faded… but not completely gone.

 

-----------------------------

 

Haruko looked around the bottom of the well, her sapphire eyes wide in the near-pitch blackness. “Tomaru?” she whispered as softly as she could, confused. “Tomaru, where are you?”

 

“Damn it,” the rock youkai grumbled as it turned around and began walking away. “I thought the well no longer worked…”

 

Worked?

 

This must be the old Bone Eater's Well, her youkai said thoughtfully. Rumor had it that the local ningens would throw youkai remains into the well and they would disappear, but that had not happened for over two decades.

 

How do you know all this?

 

I'm your youkai. I didn't just sit around doing nothing while waiting for you to be born. I've learned a thing or two.

 

Haruko was silent, listening with her keen hearing for any trace of the rock youkai. For long, tense moments, there was nothing. She jumped silently to the top of the well and peered around. Sure enough, the youkai was gone.

 

We need to get back to Sesshoumaru's palace.

 

Agreed. I need to tell his parents what happened. What did you say the name of this well was?

 

Bone Eater's Well. In Inuyasha's Forest.

 

Right. Let's go.

 

-----------------------------

 

Moving somewhat faster, Inuyasha headed for the back door- déjà vu washing over him strongly. He half-expected Kagome, dressed in her green and white school clothes, to come running out with that over-packed backpack in her arms and that ever-present smile on her face.

 

What's wrong with you? I'm getting all sorts of odd feelings and thoughts from you. Quit thinking about my mother, will ya? It's creepy.

 

Inuyasha lowered his head, his ears drooping. “Sorry, pup,” he said quietly. “Old memories die hard.”

 

The back door slid open and a middle-aged man stood there, a look of sheer disbelief on his vaguely familiar face. His scent… no, it couldn't be. “What the…? Inu… Inuyasha?”

 

The hanyou's ears perked slightly. “Souta?”

 

“Inu-no-niichan!” the man exclaimed, stepping out of the house and pulling Inuyasha into a strong embrace. “Kami,” he muttered, releasing the uncomfortable hanyou and looking him over. “How long has it been? Twenty years?”

 

“Give or take.”

 

“And you still look the same!” Souta chuckled.

 

Inuyasha looked away, his ears twitching uneasily. “This… this body… technically… isn't mine.”

 

Souta blinked a few times. “Well, come in, come in! Mom's still here- my wife and I are caretakers of the shrine now, but…” He led the hanyou inside to the kitchen and paused. “Where… where's my sister?” he asked hesitantly.

 

“She is well,” Inuyasha answered honestly.

 

“She is alive?” an older, female voice asked brokenly. “My Kagome… she's… alive?”

 

Inuyasha looked over to see Kagome's mother huddled in the doorway, looking much older than he thought she would after twenty years. Losing her daughter had aged her much faster than he had guessed. Yet at his words, she seemed to brighten and come alive. “Yes, Mrs. Higurashi. Kagome is alive and well- she… um…”

 

“Sit, sit,” she told him, making her way over to the cupboard. She pulled out a familiar-looking cup and started heating some water. “I'll make you some ramen while you tell me what happened.”

 

Tomaru, silent all this time, finally pieced things together. She's… my grandmother, isn't she.

 

Yeah. And Souta- he's your uncle. Your mother's younger brother.

 

So… we're in the future? This is the era Mother came from?

 

Yeah. Let me tell them my story, then you can tell them yours.

 

Inuyasha tried not to focus on the thought of actual ramen after twenty years of living off Kagome's homemade stuff and started telling Souta and Kagome's mother about Naraku's defeat and his own stupid lust for power. He blushed furiously at retelling his past mistakes, but he realized that there was a reason that he had to die- so that Tomaru would be born.

 

After Inuyasha paused to inhale some ramen, Souta spoke up. “So you died? And then my sister saved you with the Shikon no Tama?”

 

“Pretty much. And then my brother killed me.” Slurrrrrp.

 

Kagome's mother shook her head. “I remember Kagome telling me how evil your brother was…”

 

“He was actually doing a good thing,” Inuyasha said around a mouthful of noodles. “I had gone completely berserk. He had to kill me- because my main goal was to kill Kagome. I was pretty much death walking- a threat to anything living, ningen or youkai.”

 

They were silent a moment. “So why are you here if you're supposed to be dead?” Souta asked.

 

Putting aside his now-empty ramen cup, Inuyasha sat up a little straighter. “That story isn't for me to tell.” He looked at Souta. “Remember I told you that this wasn't really my body?”

 

Kagome's mom looked startled. “Don't tell me you possessed someone!”

 

Inuyasha looked uncomfortable again. “Not really. I was… reincarnated. This is actually my reincarnation's body and he… allowed me… to take over when we got here. We thought the well had closed up after Kagome had used the Shikon no Tama to save my life- that's why she stayed in Sengoku Jidai. On a mission of stupidity-“

 

Quiet, old dog…

 

“-He happened to wander by the old well and he ended up falling in. I'm not sure why the well opened up again, but… maybe I should just have him tell his story.”

 

“Him who?” Kagome's mother asked. “What is his name?”

 

Inuyasha closed his eyes and the two ningens watched, fascinated, as a pale green crescent mark appeared on his forehead color. He blinked several times and they noticed his eyes had faded from amber-gold to a goldenrod color. His cheeks reddened as he bowed his head. His ears flattened somewhat in awkwardness.

 

“Um… konnichiwa. My… my name is Tomaru. I am… Kagome's eldest son.”