InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Tomorrow ❯ Chapter 10 ( Chapter 10 )

Chapter Ten

 

Kazeko was bored again. Somehow, since the bandit attack, normal village life was lacking in keeping her attention. Her thoughts kept wandering to the south, to the fleeing and persecuted youkai, to SesshoMaru-sama.

 

She actually had to physically shake her whole head to dislodge thoughts of that particular youkai. It generally didn't work, however, and lead to her sitting on the cliff-edge until her mother tracked her down and bawled her out. She sighed at the thought of the row she would get for doing it, but slipped away from the fields and down the track to the cliff anyway.

 

She stopped short and rubbed her eyes. Okay, so she wasn't over-obsessing. SesshoMaru-sama actually was standing on the cliff, although he wasn't facing her. He seemed to be staring at something in his hand. She moved a little closer and saw what looked to be a feather and a small hairpin decorated with a pale blue flower. It looked like a child's. Suddenly he looked up at her and, in that same instant, tucked the items out of sight into his armor.

 

“Kazeko. I should have smelled you coming before now.”

 

“I don't blame you, SesshoMaru-sama,” she replied. “It looked like you were a million miles away…” she decided it was no use pretending that she didn't see the items, and added, “What were those, anyway?” To her shock, something flashed through his eyes- sadness? Grief? But a second later it was gone, replaced by the cold gold façade, and she couldn't tell if she had imagined it or not.

 

“Reminders,” he said eventually, after she was starting to get worried that she was being too nosy in asking, “Of what the price can be of stubborn pride.”

 

There it was again, some enigmatic sentence that got her curious, wondering what on earth could have happened to this solitary youkai in his past, yet she felt it wasn't her place to ask. It was such questions that kept creeping into her thoughts, however, as she dwelled on what the answers might be.

 

“I saw your friend,” he said eventually, changing the subject. “Mitsuko. The tigress. She and her brother made it quite safely. She has been worried about what will happen when your father finds that you have met youkai and not tried to kill them.” He sounded slightly mocking now, although she could hear the contempt for her father's `work' as well, a contempt that she shared. She snorted derisively.

 

“Otou-san won't be back for some time,” she said, “and since as far as anyone knows I've only met you once, they'll probably have forgotten it by the time Otou-san returns in the spring…” she trailed off when he shook his head slightly.

 

“That is the problem,” he said quietly. “With no killing to do, your father's armies are moving faster. They will be here by midwinter.” Kazeko paled. They were moving faster? But if they got here in midwinter…

 

“But your friends,” she said. “The ones in the village? Do they know…?”

 

“Of course they know,” SesshoMaru said, “And the main problem presented is that whenever they flee, they are fleeing into winter. Winter is not the time to run and fight, but I doubt your father will end his campaign then. And there is no point in running now when they do not know where to run to. They need somewhere safe to work towards, they cannot flee blindly into the blizzard.”

 

Kazeko balled her fists in frustration. “I wish they didn't have to flee!” she burst out, consumed with concern for these people that she had never met. “If only they could fight!”

 

“We could,” SesshoMaru said, “but that would ultimately end with the extinction of humankind. It would not help people's perception of us. Our only choice is to fade from sight and then, with any luck, memory.”

 

Kazeko walked past him and sat on the cliff-edge, dropping her chin onto her knees. They were both silent for a while. Finally, SesshoMaru-sama spoke.

 

“I must return to the north,” he said eventually. “We are awaiting a messenger with news of safe places where we can resume our lives peacefully.”

 

Kazeko nodded and stood once more. “Then Sayonara, SesshoMaru-sama,” she said, bowing in farewell. “And please, tell Mitsuko not to worry about me. I'll be fine.”

 

SesshoMaru bowed his head to her. “Sayonara, Kazeko.” And once more, he disappeared.

 

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Isamu hissed as he rolled to avoid the rapidly descending bokken his father was wielding, then jumped back onto his feet and raised his own wooden sword to block the next blow, then leapt out of reach.

 

“Good move, pup,” InuYasha said, before leaping forward again. Isamu gritted his teeth as he span his sword to block the next onslaught. Then, without really thinking about it, he span his sword in the opposite direction, smacking into his father's wrist and nearly disarming him. InuYasha backed up again, examining the blackening bruise on his wrist.

 

“Nice,” he said approvingly. “When did you come up with that?”

 

“I-“ Isamu said, then faltered. Then he shrugged his shoulders and admitted, “I didn't really think about it.”

 

InuYasha smiled and bowed his head slightly. “If you can come up with moves like those on the fly, then it's nearly time to take you to see the crazy old geezer,” InuYasha said, walking away to put away his bokken. Isamu perked up. “Crazy Old Geezer” meant Totosai, and that meant Isamu would get his own sword. He'd gotten to practice with Tessaiga a few times, but with little result; his father had always said that youkai blades only work for who they want to work for.

 

He grinned, and followed his father. It seemed practice was over early. Afterwards, he had to find Kazuki and tell him the news.

 

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“Watch it!”

 

Kazuki quickly grabbed Akira away from the water's edge. Mitsuko ran over and picked up her little brother.

 

“Arigatou Gozaimasu,” she said, before putting Akira down turning her attention on him. “Nii-chan,” she admonished, “Stay away from the water, okay? It's dangerous. Are we going to stay away from the water?” The little boy nodded solemnly. “Good. Now stay in sight or we're going back inside.” Akira nodded again before wandering off, following a couple of butterflies that kept fluttering around the clearing.

 

“I remember when Imoto-chan was that age,” Kazuki said. “She could walk, but she thought that meant she could swim and fly. Don't know how many times chichi-ue pulled her away from rivers and out of trees. She had to be tied down, practically.” He was very gratified to hear the beautiful tigress giggle.

 

“Hitomi-chan?” she asked with a smile. “But she's so quiet now.”

 

“Yeah, she and Kiki-chan got the idea that “proper ladies” don't go digging through the mud and climbing trees,” Kazuki said. “Instead, they steal their mothers' hair ornaments.” Mitsuko started laughing again. Kazuki smiled. The girl had been so solemn, so sad, ever since she arrived. Of course, he thought, You'd have to be a pretty bent sicko to spend all your time laughing right after your family was brutally murdered. He thought of Isamu's family again, and the dangers they were facing, and his smile faded. Mitsuko noticed and leaned closer to him.

 

“Kazuki-kun?” she asked worriedly. “What's wrong?”

 

Kazuki opened his mouth, but couldn't bring himself to worry her. Instead, through some genetic instinct, his hand made for the triangular gap at the top of her kimono.

 

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“Note to self: youkai girls have claws,” Kazuki said while Haruka rubbed a little ointment into the five parallel scratches on his cheeks. Yuki and Isamu weren't helping because they were doubled up laughing. InuYasha had walked past, taken one look at Kazuki's cheek and wandered off, muttering something along the lines of “like father, like son”.

 

“Can't say you didn't deserve that,” said Haruka, who herself was giggling constantly as she dug around for some cloth for a bandage. Isamu eventually straightened up, still clutching at his stomach and gasping.

 

“Should we rename you hentai-kun?” he said. “Let's face it, when Mitsuko stomped into our hut with her face that deep red, we all knew who the culprit was.”

 

“A literal case of adding insult to injury,” Kazuki muttered as he pasted his bandage into place on his cheek, Haruka having been to overcome by the giggles to help any more. Isamu reached down to help her stand up as Yuki wiped her eyes. The two of them, still chuckling, left the hut, presumably to find something more sobering. Kazuki frowned, watching Yuki.

 

“Want a rag?” he said, picking up a bit of cloth. She came to grab it, wiping her eyes again.

 

“Were you really laughing that hard?” he said quietly. Yuki's laughter instantly dispelled as she finished wiping her eyes.

 

“It's okay,” she said. “We have more important things to worry about just now.”

 

“You're hurting,” Kazuki said unusually serious. “You should at least tell-“

 

“No,” Yuki said sharply. “I told you, there are more important things to worry about just now than me. Besides, I'm fine.” Kazuki looked skeptical. She sighed and admitted “Okay, so I'm not right now. But I will be. I'm a youkai-taijiya. I'll be strong.”

 

“Ane-ue, this requires an entirely different kind of strength to killing youkai. Are you sure you-“

 

“I'll be fine, Kazuki,” Yuki said. Then she smiled dangerously. “Just remember what'll happen if you tell anyone…”

 

Kazuki, for once, did not surrender, but looked her straight in the eye and said, “I remember. That's how I'll know when it'll be worth it.”

 

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Kagome always liked sitting in Goshinboku, because it calmed her worries and nerves. That sitting in Goshinboku also meant that she was wrapped in InuYasha's arms was probably coincidence. She smiled as she stared up at the paling sky, one of InuYasha's arms wrapped around her shoulders and the other gently massaging her stomach. Still, she could feel a tenseness in her mate, a worry that mirrored her own.

 

“I'm sure Myoga-jii-san will be back soon,” she said gently, finally voicing her own worries. InuYasha sighed, a defeated sound that Kagome knew he would only let her hear.

 

“He'd better,” InuYasha said. “The sooner he finds a safe place, the sooner we can run.” He made a frustrated little growling noise.

 

“You hate running,” Kagome said. He gave a jerky nod.

 

“But I'm not chancing you or the pups,” he said, his hand stilling over her stomach. “And fighting, or travelling in the middle of winter, would do just that.”

 

“I wish we didn't have to put the others in danger,” Kagome admitted. “They'll be more vulnerable to attack, and if they get seen with us-“

 

“I know,” InuYasha said, cutting her off quietly. “But you know they won't leave us. Stubborn humans. You should know.”

 

Kagome smiled and turned to face him. “Am I a stubborn human?” she asked teasingly. InuYasha grinned and kissed her.

 

“The absolute worst,” he proclaimed. Then he looked down to the lake's edge, where Mitsuko- claws drawn, apparently- was stalking a fast-talking Kazuki. “I take that back,” he said, nodding towards the teenagers. “Like bouzo, like son. That one's clearly met his match.”

 

“Yes, and remember when that happened to Miroku?” Kagome said with a smile, and they both heard, in their memories, the ringing echo of a million well-deserved slaps.

 

“If that pup ever utters the words `bear my child,'” InuYasha growled, watching the `pup' in question break into full flight, “I'm gonna ask Sango if she really gave birth to him or if she just lost it with Miroku and cut him in half with Hiraikotsu.”

 

“You think he multiplied like a Zushi Nezumi?” Kagome asked, laughing. InuYasha held her closer.

 

“Wouldn't put it past him,” he muttered. “That bouzo used to be more of a dog than me.”

 

Kagome's laughter rang out over the treetops, but still, as she watched the unparalleled view of the forest from the treetop, both of them couldn't help wondering how many more times that view would hear their laughter.

 

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Yamazaki smiled coldly as the fire took hold all around the hidden cave. There were screams and howls inside as the hidden creatures felt the heat. He raised he arms as a signal to the lines of gunmen around him and the more old-fashioned archers stationed on the cliff-tops. As the first mononoke appeared at the cave entrance, he dropped his arms. The bangs and twangs from the guns and bows were immediately followed by more screams and howls as the creatures fell, and vision was obscured by the thick haze of smoke from the guns and the unnatural flashes of light as each of the human-shaped youkai died. The dead wolves lay thick upon the ground.

 

One wolf-youkai dodged the bullets and arrows with unnatural speed. Black ponytail flying, it leapt into the air with a piercing howl, focusing its rage upon Yamazaki, who raised his own gun a fired, the tiny ball of steel death embedding it between the eyes of the leader of the Yourouzoku.

 

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Just in case I never mentioned, “Bouzo” means something along the lines of “perverted/twisted holy man”, and is apparently how InuYasha refers to Miroku in the original Japanese manga. Or the anime, can't remember which. “Mononoke” Means “animal spirit”, and can be used to refer to animal-type youkai (Including InuYasha, SesshoMaru and Koga). Lastly, “Yourouzoku” means, literally, “Magical wolf tribe” and is the Japanese name for the wolf-demon clan- which Koga is an important leader of.

 

And thanks to MilenaLupin for your lovely comments! It's when people say that they like a particular character that makes them feel “real” to me, so it was wonderful to read your review.

 

InuYasha is the property of Takahashi Rumiko-Sensei, and I claim no ownership of any of it. All couples not involving original characters will be strictly canon. Aside from Haruka, Yuki and Kazuki, I made up all of the kids, though since birthdates other than Kazuki's were never really stated in the manga, nor names, I've made these up as well. This fanfic will make little sense if you have not read the entire manga, and I'm afraid that to read the last twenty or so volumes you will have to (at the time of writing) venture into the internet, but I strongly suggest that you do buy the Tankoban volumes for yourself, so that Takahashi-sensei can afford to continue gracing us with her imagination. Anyway, hope you enjoy the fic. ^_-