InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ When We Awaken ❯ Relations: Part I ( Chapter 6 )

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

Chapter Six: Relations, Part One

The first sensation that he could recall was something gentle petting his erstwhile ears. He might have purred, but he was quite sure that sound was not coming from him. He was a dog demon. There was no way in hell he’d ever be caught purring. Still, it was a deep reverberating vibration that seemed to be emanating from his chest, but he dismissed it. Inuyasha turned his head in the direction of the strokes, doing his best to get closer to the wonderful sensation.

He might have heard a giggle; there could have also been a sigh. Whether the sigh came from him or another person he did not know.

The next sensation that he became dimly aware of was that his head was resting on something soft, something human. He took in a deep sniff. It smelled nice. Whatever it was, it was a gentle, soothing scent that quieted his soul.

An errant smile formed on his lips. He could stay in this in-between state, the place where you were neither asleep nor awake, indefinitely.

Soft rays of the morning sun warmed his body, falling quietly around him.

Still there was something that was irritating him, something that was making his conscious mind come to the forefront. Something was itching him. There was some sort of annoying fabric across his chest and it was pulled tightly. It also smelled of something that disquieted him.

He took another sniff and the scent was cloying. He wrinkled his nose in agitation. There was a lingering scent of old, stale blood. It was coming from the tight fabric across his chest. He couldn’t help but to scratch his chest, his clawed fingers catching themselves on a wrapped bandage and his bare skin.

His eyebrows drew together in confusion. Why was his chest bandaged? Why was he smelling blood mixed with a wonderful scent that he had come to associate with…?

His eyes flew open in a panic, “Kagome!”

Looking up he saw the same face that he had just imagined facing him with a look of perplexity. Her hands that had just been stroking his ears stilled. A faint blush shimmered across her cheeks at being caught in the act of touching him, while he had slept in her lap.

Her hands quickly moved away from his face. She quickly bit her lip.

Inuyasha ignored his bandages and the black-red blood that had dried on them. He didn’t even seem to notice that his necklace was discarded on the floor, his silvered hair, dog-like ears and golden eyes on full display to the waking world. His chest was bare, save for the dressings. The only thing he was wearing were a pair of red hakama pants.

He didn’t care. He was worried about her.

He scrambled next to the miko, taking her hands in his as he peered intently at her face. He didn’t notice how her blush intensified into a deep crimson around her cheeks and nose.

He didn’t mean for his voice to sound husky, but he had been sleeping and his vocal cords seemed to protest his early morning speech.

“Kagome, are you alright? Did anything…?” He paused as he took in Kagome and her room. There seemed to be nothing amiss other then her yellow curtains that danced in the morning’s breeze and the faint trail of blood from her window to where he was now sitting on the floor. He paused again and tried to reformulate his words. “Nothing showed up and tried to hurt you, did it?”

The girl blinked and looked down at their conjoined hands. She tried to say a few words, her mouth opening and closing a few times before she hastily pulled her hands away from his, tucking a piece of raven hair behind her ear. Though she was sitting on the floor next to him, she shuffled back, as if to keep her distance.

She looked away from him briefly as she spoke. “No, Ash. Except for you showing up, bloody…in my room. No one else has been here.”

Perplexity suffused his features. “Bloody? Oh…”

Inuyasha looked down and saw that he was wrapped up in something that looked like an ace bandage. It was probably meant for a sprained ankle, but it had done its job.

Something inside of him was annoyed that she had chosen to call him ‘Ash,’ but he quickly dismissed the thought. It wasn’t his real name, but it was the one people were supposed to call him. Calling him ‘Inuyasha’ or ‘Dog Demon’ was something that could only be said in private and among only a select few who knew who he really was. But for some reason, he longed for her to call him ‘Inuyasha’ again.

“You,” the miko paused and looked at the window with fluttering yellow curtains and then looked at Inuyasha again. “You were really hurt last night. What happened?”

Inuyasha sat up and scratched his ear. He resisted the urge to have his feet do the scratching instead of his hand. “I…I was attacked in my apartment.”

“Your abode that you took me to?”

“Yes, and that thing said that you were next. So after I fought it off, I came over here.” Inuyasha’s ears swiveled on their own accord, taking in the sounds of the surrounding area. There was nothing other than the typical sounds you would hear at a shrine that was close to a major street in Tokyo. He relaxed infinitesimally and then he took a hard look at Kagome.

“It was…it looked like you, Kagome…”

A shuddered breath caught in the miko’s throat. Her eyes seemed to widen in terror. Without a thought she moved back next to him, looking into his eyes. Words scattered in quick succession. “What do you mean it looked like me? How did you know it wasn’t me? And it hurt you?” Disbelieving eyes looked at him with both sympathy and terror.

It took a little self-control to keep himself from moving away from her, now that the memory of another vengeful Kagome writhed in his mind. But he took a deep breath, telling himself it was a demon, not Kagome who had attacked him.

He resumed. “It looked like you and it smelled like you. But it didn’t act like you. In fact, it was a dream that saved me…” He paused, unsure of how he was going to continue.

The girl just looked at him confused.

“A dream?” she prompted.

He shook his head as he looked at her, wondering what to say. Words just spewed from his mouth. He was never one to censor himself. “Yeah, I had this bizarre dream the first night you stayed at my apartment. I was living in the past and so were you.” He chuckled to himself. “It was like we were living in the Feudal Era or something.”

“Feudal Era?”

When the girl looked at him in confusion he tried to explain. “You know...the Feudal Era… almost 500 years ago.” He tried to laugh at his apparent joke, but the girl’s tight lips kept him from doing so. She seemed on edge.

“Anyway, I don’t remember all of it, but you were a miko in a small village and I was trying to get a necklace from you. I don’t know why, apparently it was something I wanted very badly…”

The girl pulled a necklace out that was tucked into her robes. She was wearing a necklace with a large pearl-like object in the center of some pink beads. “Was this it?” she asked as she looked at him with questioning eyes.

Inuyasha peered at the object and almost reached to grab it, but something inside of him pulled away. He looked at it for a few moments, his head cocking left as he examined it. “Yeah, but in the dream it kept on calling to me… But that doesn’t make any sense, now does it?”

Color drained from Kagome’s face, but Inuyasha really didn’t notice. He was too adrift in his story.

“So I was this half-demon ninja or something. I had all of the right fight moves. And you had two people with you in the village.”

She looked at him warily. “Do you remember the names?”

He scratched his head. “I dunno. A young boy I didn’t like and an old miko. Anyway, all I remember was seeing this girl who looked like you and she…”

She interrupted. “What did she do Inuyasha?”

He grimaced as he rubbed his neck. “She uh…she tried to hug me. I knew something was off about her, but I didn’t know what. Then her arms tightened around my neck, I felt like she was somehow cutting into my throat. But then I woke up.” He shrugged. “It was just a dream…” Inuyasha tried to laugh off his discomfort. But the miko in front of him was only looking at him in shock. Her face was ashen white.

“Hey, nothing happened! I’m fine.” Inuyasha protested as he looked at the serious girl. She looked like she was on the verge of crying. Tears were starting to well up in her eyes. Then the dam burst and he had a blubbering girl on his hands.

Tears were streaming down her cheeks and her eyes looked at him imploringly. For a few seconds she seemed to war with herself before she flung herself at his bare chest, sobbing inconsolably.

“You died…you died in front of me. You died, Inuyasha!”

He patted her back before awkwardly putting his arms around her, her wet warm tears running down his chest. He was utterly confused at her behavior. It was, after all, only a dream. Why was she reacting so strongly?

“Hey, sister! I mean Kagome!” A child’s voice boomed in the hallway, filled with vigor and happiness. The door to Kagome’s room quickly flung open and a small boy was beaming at the door.

However, it took a second for Souta’s eyes to widen and his mouth to go slack jawed. Within the room he was looking at a teenaged boy with long silver hair, golden eyes, claws and two dog-like ears on top of his head. This person was obviously not human.

Inuyasha wanted to grab his necklace and to hide himself before the boy drew any attention to them. But Kagome was still in his arms; he was trapped.

“You!” The boy exclaimed. “It’s you, the demon from the legend.”

Kagome wiped her eyes and managed to move away from Inuyasha. She seemed to be trying to compose herself in front of the young boy. However, Souta wasn’t really aware of the miko, he was staring unabashedly at Inuyasha.

The hanyou scoffed. “Me? I’m not from any legend.” He moved to put his necklace back on, but was stopped by the young boy who held his arm.

“But you are…” The twitching ears on top of Inuyasha’s head quickly distracted the boy. “Hey, could I touch your ears?”

“Souta!” murmured Kagome in astonishment. “That is not how you address a stranger.”

“But he’s not a stranger. He’s with you right? Is he your boyfriend, Kagome?”

Kagome blushed and Inuyasha sat up a little bit straighter. The idea did have some merit in Inuyasha’s eyes.

The glow of the welcome idea quickly faded as young hands grabbed onto his ears. They were not nearly as gentle as Kagome’s.

“Wow! They’re real!” The boy exclaimed. “You are the dog demon of legend!”

“Hey, watch the ears, kid.” He should have been irritated at the boy, but being called a legend somehow put him in a mood where he could tolerate some minor annoyances.

It was then that his cell phone started to buzz in his pocket. He had entirely forgotten that he even had it. After blowing up his apartment the last thing on his mind was his cell phone.

His eyes widened as he started to remember the aftermath of his fight the night before. “Shit! My apartment!”

Kagome looked at him quizzically. “Your abode?”

“Yes, it’s demolished. Mom has got to be shitting bricks right now.”

“Shitting bricks...?” questioned Kagome.

Inuyasha waved his arm as if to silence her as he took the phone call. Kagome only looked at him in abject concern as he started to talk into a very small piece of plastic.

Souta only smiled and started to explain to Kagome what he thought ‘shitting bricks’ meant.

“Miroku!” Inuyasha was glad that it was his friend on the line and not his mother. If his mother was calling there would be no end to the phone conversation after what had happened last night.

He heard the monk take a deep breath of relief before he started to talk. “Well, at least we know you’re alive. What in the hell happened to your apartment last night, Ash? The Taijiya have been working over time trying to explain the ruins of your apartment as a gas explosion.”

Inuyasha closed his eyes and tried to recount what had happened last night to his friend. Kagome looked askance while the phone conversation was taking place. She seemed a bit concerned that he was holding a one sided conversation with himself.

“Does everyone talk into these small boxes now?” inquired Kagome as she looked at Souta. The young boy only smiled as he proudly went to get his own kid’s version of a cell phone and tried to show her how it worked. Kagome was very engrossed in the small piece of plastic that made noises and changed colors by the time Inuyasha was done with his phone call.

The hanyou was getting dressed and had thrown his ripped bandages in the trash as he addressed Kagome. “I have to meet Miroku at what is left of my apartment. Unfortunately, the Taijiya need an eye witness report and then I need to talk to…” Inuyasha winced. “…my Mom.”

Kagome only nodded and strapped her quiver and bow to her back. She stood regally and in command of the situation, despite crying just minutes before. “Then I will follow you.” The girl turned to address the young boy. She fell to her knees so that she would be eye to eye with him. “Souta, can you tell Higurashi-san that I will be back by the time the shrine opens and that I need to help a friend?”

The young boy only nodded enthusiastically. Kagome ruffled his hair before turning back to Inuyasha. “Please kneel.”

Inuyasha eyed her suspiciously. “What for, Wench?”

“So that you can give me a piggy back ride?”

“What the fuck? Can’t you just walk?”

She stamped her feet. “Just do it. You can get there quicker than me and you’re going to need my expertise. I’ve seen this demon before I woke up.”

Inuyasha complied. But the girl only complained loudly when he took to the streets and the subway, instead of leaping from building to building like he had done last night. She also seemed less than enthusiastic about his quick change from hanyou to human with his necklace. Why she would ever prefer his hanyou form confused him, though deep down inside it did make him feel warm to know that she actually preferred him as he really was, rather than the illusion that so many people saw.

However, despite the oddity of the situation, having Kagome on his back seemed entirely natural to him. It was as if he had been doing this for years. He did catch a few smiles and snickers as he carried the girl through downtown Tokyo. But most people only commented on ‘young love’ and how cute they looked together. ‘As if…,’ he thought.

Once he arrived at his building he winced when he looked at the damage. It looked a lot worse during the day than it did during the black of the night. What was once a three-story building, was now only two stories. An entire floor was ripped asunder, like a large ogre had torn the top floor off the building.

Inuyasha could see metal pipes broken, wood splintered, electrical wiring strewn about and lots of black charring. The entire third floor looked like it had caught on fire, leaving a charcoal husk behind.

He sighed and held out his hand to Kagome. She had already dismounted and was now following along behind him dutifully. By the time they reached what remained of the top floor, yellow tape had cordoned off the area and a few police officers were rummaging through the remains.

Inuyasha was glad that Miroku and Sango were there and that the police officer in charge was Sango’s father, Detective Toshinori Sureiyâ. The man had a high-level job in the Tokyo police department. It helped him to keep track of crimes committed by demons, which were then covered up by Detective Sureiyâ and his Taijiya associates.

Inuyasha hated to think what a regular police officer would discover, but the Taijiya were good at what they did and had members in all levels of society. Miroku waved Inuyasha and Kagome through the taped barrier.

Inuyasha paused at the remnants of the front door. The explosion had blasted the wooden door backwards. The once solid door was now pieces of plywood and jagged splinters. It all rested on top of something. He moved a few pieces of wood aside and found the duffel bag he had packed for Kagome last night. It sported some blackened soot, but it managed to stay in one piece.

He threw the object a Kagome. “Here! Your clothes.”

“What?” Kagome looked at the bag suspiciously before she managed to rip the zipper open and peered inside. A smile of gratitude rose from her lips.

Inuyasha scratched his ear as he spoke. “I packed that all up for you and put it outside before all of this…” He gestured to the remains of his apartment. “…happened.”

The miko only nodded before shouldering the duffel with her quiver and bow.

Detective Sureiyâ walked over to where Inuyasha was standing. Miroku and Sango quickly followed.

The tall man stood before him, his middle age apparent from his weathered face. Despite his age, the man had stayed in shape; he had a lean, muscular form. His hair was short and he sported a small black mustache and goatee. He crossed his arms in front of him and leaned back. His brown eyes focused on Inuyasha, a frown on his face.

The man whispered harshly to the boy. “Care to explain this, Inuyasha?” Then his voice raised a few decibels as he continued. “How in the hell did your entire apartment get blown up last night?  And…hell, I’m glad that you came through this unscathed. But you need to explain this. The entire building had to be evacuated and then we had to plant some evidence to make it look like a gas explosion. The Taijiya are not pleased.”

Inuyasha only groaned before he retold his tale for the third time.

Once the tale was done the older man furrowed his brow. “Shit! Now we’re dealing with a shape shifting demon? Those damned things are hard to catch. You never know what form they’re going to take.”

Inuyasha paused for a second as he let those words sink in. Kagome seemed to nod at the conclusion that the detective had taken, no surprise evident on her features.

Detective Sureiyâ beckoned with his hand. “Show me this magical sword of yours.”

The Tessaiga was sheathed at his side and he could have easily shown it to the man. Sango’s dad was a man that he trusted without question. But the sword was his alone and he really didn’t want anyone else touching it.

Inuyasha hesitated as he fingered the sword at his belt. His body warred with his mind.

“Ash!” Commanded Detective Sureiyâ as he held out his hand.

Inuyasha glanced at the man and noticed that his brown eyes had hardened. There was little patience left in the man.

Reluctantly he handed over the artifact.

Kagome only seemed amused at the confrontation, while Miroku and Sango seemed as puzzled as the leader of the Taijiya.

The detective turned the old, pot marked blade over in his hands. “I see nothing astounding about this sword, but I am not sensitive to the magical arts.” The man paused before he reluctantly handed the sword over to Miroku.

Inuyasha’s hands twitched during the exchange. It was hard enough for him to pass his sword to the commander of the Taijiya, but to have his blade passed around and out of his hands unnerved him.

Miroku balanced the thin blade with the frayed hilt between his two open palms. He seemed to be studying the artifact. He hummed to himself as he weighed the sword between his hands.

“Demonic,” Miroku answered with complete assuredness.

“Are you sure?” Sango questioned. “This blade looks like nothing…”

Miroku interrupted. “My dear Sango, you know as a demon hunter to give little credence to appearances. This sword is not what it seems. It is packed with power, but all I can ascertain is that it is resting or perhaps hiding.” The monk pivoted to Inuyasha and then presented the open sword back to the hanyou.

Inuyasha quickly snatched it from his friend’s hands. He kept himself from cursing, just seeing someone else handle his blade made him extremely agitated. The sword was then quickly sheathed.

Detective Sureiyâ seemed deep in thought before he spoke to Inuyasha. “I don’t want you to make the sword do what you did last night, but I feel that it is time that you train with the Taijiya.”

Inuyasha tried to protest. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to train; it was just that he hated taking orders from anyone and he really didn’t want to be part of a larger group or to have to report to a higher authority. “I can do this on my own!”

The older man sighed. “And how many more apartment buildings will you be destroying accidentally, Ash?” The older man then gestured to the miko behind him. “And what if someone you know is the one who gets hurt next time?”

Inuyasha grimaced. He fingered his sword again at the hilt. Then the thought of Kagome ending up like the demon he fought last night suddenly ran across his mind. Seeing her form wither and char in his mind like the demon made his blood freeze in his veins. “Shit!”

He turned his face away from the detective. He knew now that all he wanted to do was to protect the girl he had only meet a few days prior. The call was strong. In fact, it was so strong he was willing to admit he wasn’t as powerful as he made himself out to be and that he really needed to be trained. Otherwise, how would he ever protect her? The last thing he ever wanted was for a chick to protect and save him. It was bad enough that she had already saved his life from the first demon attack. There was no way he would ever let that happen again. She was his to protect, not the other way around!

“Fine!” he acquiesced. “What do you want me to do?”

The detective only wore a smile that hinted at laughter. “Report at our headquarters tomorrow morning at 8AM. I think I know just the person to train you.”

Ill-ease washed over Inuyasha, but he tried to dismiss the feeling. It was only training. How bad could it be?

An aide interrupted their conversation. “Boss, there’s something you need to see.”

The group made their way over to what was left of Inuyasha’s kitchen. Within a pile of blackened dust and detritus, a man with blue latex gloves was handling something that looked like a burnt wooden doll. He showed it to Detective Sureiyâ. “What do you make of this?”

The detective put on some gloves as well before he held the charred remains in his hands. He noticed that wiry, black hair was wrapped around the object. “I’ve never seen something like this before. But this is obviously hair. Run a DNA analysis of it. Tell me what you find.” He was about to hand the evidence back to the other police officer working on the case when Kagome intervened.

“If I may,” she added before she motioned to the object. The detective sighed and handed her a pair gloves. She looked at the plastic gloves oddly before she put them on her hands, just as she had seen the detective do.

“Don’t contaminate it!” the lead detective ordered as he handed the object gingerly to her.

The miko only peered at the object with growing apprehension as she turned it over in her hands. “I think I have seen something like this before,” she stated to the attentive audience.

The detective handed it back to the other officer. “Bag it!” he ordered before he turned to Kagome. “So, Miss Miko...how is this familiar?”

Kagome only looked questioningly at Inuyasha before she continued. “Only a very powerful demon can use these. They are called golems. A demon uses them to create ‘duplicates’ of themselves that they can control. And if the ‘duplicate golem’ is destroyed, it does not hurt the creator. The hair on the object is used as a conduit to power it. A part of the owner must be on the golem, otherwise it simply changes back into a wooden doll.”

The detective looked at the miko drolly. “And how do you know all of this, Miko?”

Kagome only looked at the man quizzically. “I’ve been fighting demons all of my life. Golems are rare, but something I have seen on occasion.”

The man looked at her oddly. “Sango dear, can you vouch for this girl?”

Sango was about to answer when Inuyasha stepped in. “I can vouch for her. I will put my honor on it!” he vowed.

Miroku only looked amused while the detective seemed uncertain. “Then she needs to visit our headquarters as well. Bring her with you tomorrow, Ash.” The detective waved them away as he stepped back

“But!” the young miko intervened. “I have a job to do. In fact, I need to get back now. I work at a shrine.” She turned to look at Inuyasha, her eyes pleading. “They’ve been so kind to me, Ash. I need to give them my best effort.”

The older detective watched the duo exchange words with a solemn look on his face. “Miko-san, what is your name?”

The girl turned to look at the detective. “Kagome.”

“No family name?” asked the detective.

The miko looked down at her sandals as she replied. “I was adopted, sir. I have no surname.”

For the briefest of seconds, Inuyasha felt like he should be putting his hands on her shoulders, in an attempt to show her some support. Even in this day, to be without a family would be akin to calling you an outcast.

The detective’s face softened before he continued. “This shape shifter…you say that you have fought something like this before?”

The girl only nodded.

“Then we are also in need of your expertise. I have fought shape shifters before, but I have never heard of these golems. This thing is really powerful and it seems to have…” The older man gestured to Inuyasha. “…your friend in its sights. And from what Inuyasha has told me, it is also after you.”

The man paused before looking into her eyes and continuing. “Most of our members have day jobs, like myself. Please come in with Inuyasha during your time off work. I think we are going to need some of your help.” The man paused again. “If you don’t, it’ll only attack one of you again.” He looked at Inuyasha before he turned to face Kagome again. “Let us help each other.”

The young miko looked questioningly at Inuyasha, who sighed and then nodded in her direction.

Kagome bowed briefly to the detective. “Then I will do what I can to help.”

The detective nodded with a curt smile before his cell phone went off. “Kami! Damned phone. Now how in the hell could be calling me…” He brought the phone to his ear. “Moshi, moshi. Sureiyâ speaking.” Then the man started to bow as he was talking. “Oh yes, Taishô-sama. Of course ma’am. I’ll get him on the phone.”

Detective Sureiyâ held out his cell phone to Inuyasha. “Your Mom, son.”

Inuyasha winced. He had turned off his cell phone after Miroku’s call. He should have known that his mother would be calling. He was just trying to put off the inevitable while he was with Kagome.

He grimaced as he took the call that he had been avoiding and then he felt even more guilty as his mother spoke in terrified tones. By the time the phone call was done, he had been ordered to wait for a limo that would be picking him up from his former apartment.

Now what was he going to do about Kagome? She didn’t seem to understand how the Tokyo Metro worked, had no cell phone and had no Yen. Further, he couldn’t leave her without a protector.

“Sango?” he asked. “I can’t leave Kagome alone and she needs to get back to work. Can you watch her?”

Inuyasha knew that the Taijiya would certainly have someone watching both of them, now that a demonic threat had been established, but there was no way that he could leave Kagome with just anyone. Only a trusted friend would do.

She nodded in assurance and then bent her arm to a 90-degree angle. She made a fist with her hand and a large, curved blade quickly popped out of the elbow of the leather jacket she was wearing. She smiled in satisfaction at Inuyasha, while Kagome blinked in surprise.

“I’m always armed and ready. Are you ready, Kagome? I think I’m helping out at your shrine today.”

The miko only shook her head, a glimmer of a smile tugging at her lips. “Until later, Ash.” She bowed formally and Inuyasha again felt an internal ache as she walked away, Sango chattering behind her.

He tried to dismiss the feeling as she left. It was crazy for his emotions to be so scattered. He felt like following Kagome, in fact his own feet seemed to start toward the direction they had just left. Miroku quickly grabbed his friend by the arm and turned him around. “I think you have a limo to catch and perhaps a few items to scavenge from this mess.”

The pair managed to find a few items worth saving. Inuyasha was mainly disappointed that his entire PlayStation system and games were demolished. But his laptop actually survived, as well as some clothing items that he managed to throw into a dirty duffel bag.

They bowed formally to Sango’s father before making their way back downstairs.

Miroku only had a funny smile on his face as they made their way--past the soot and yellow plastic tape.

“So, Ash.” His friend started as he wiggled his brows. “Did anything happen while that hot miko spent the night in your apartment?”

“What? No!” Inuyasha sputtered.

Miroku only shook his head, like a parent about to chastise an errant toddler. “Why, I am surprised at you, Ash. A hot chick like that, in your bed again and you didn’t…”

Inuyasha made a fist and shoved it precariously close to the boy’s face. “Shut the fuck up, Miroku.” For some reason he was steaming mad at the implications. Perhaps, because for the first time in his life, the monk’s jokes hit too close to home. For once, he really felt like he wanted more from a girl than a simple kiss. Something was no longer holding him back. But he wasn’t a womanizer. He didn’t just chase any girl within his sights, like Miroku did before he had met Sango.

He snorted. He had higher standards than that--standards that he felt Kagome more than met.

Inuyasha took in a deep breath and kept his eyes straight ahead, avoiding Miroku’s questioning stare. All he could think about now was Kagome and how damned difficult it was now going to be to protect her now that she was living at the Higurashi’s shrine, instead of his apartment.

He knew that Hojo had only been attempting to help Kagome, but deep inside he hated the implications. Even if Hojo was an old friend, he really didn’t want anyone else around her on a regular basis. Especially someone who looked at her the way that boy did.

He pondered his thoughts while Miroku looked on, seemingly amused at his friend’s behavior.

It might have been moments or minutes, but soon Inuyasha noticed a black sleek limousine pulling up to the side of his abandoned apartment.

“Want to join me?” asked Inuyasha.

Miroku just laughed. “And face your Mom and Dad at the same time? No thanks, Ash. Good luck!”

Inuyasha sighed and just got into the vehicle. The remains of what he could salvage from his apartment in the seat beside him.

He tried to think of the proper response to what was certainly going to be a grilling session from his parents. But his mind was adrift. Instead of trying to formulate responses, he just kept on thinking about Kagome and worrying about how safe she was. He knew Sango was competent, but the girl was human. Kagome needed someone with superhuman abilities to protect her. All he could feel was disquiet along the road.

Eventually he pulled up into a walled home on the outskirts of Tokyo. Among the hills and nested within pine trees, stone statues and ponds was his family’s estate. His human mother and demon father had lived here for about 300 years, though he knew that his father was over 600 years old. Some of his brothers and sisters still lived within the premises, but he was the youngest of the brood of seven children.

Once he pulled in front of his home he briefly looked at its confines. The lumbering estate was only one story in height, but it had a gently slopping, blue tiled roof. The house itself was made of brightly painted red and green wood. Large stone statues stood guard at every entrance and pebbled walkways meandered about the ponds and bridges surrounding the home.

The driver took his belongings as he stepped out of the car. A servant was already at the entrance, beckoning him to enter.

He supposed that if he was going to face the music, he would hold his head proudly. He walked into his parents’ home with broad strides and a straight back.

After taking off his shoes at the genken, he walked forward was gestured by the servant into his father’s office.

The ornate office had a low, broad black lacquer table with cushions on the floor surrounding it. His father was sitting formally at the table and gestured for him to join. The man had long, silver hair, golden eyes and almost elfin-like features, like his progeny. His mother was already seated at the table, a cup of tea steaming in her hands. His mother was the complete opposite of his father and he had often wondered how the two of them had ever managed to become husband and wife. Despite her age, she wore the semblance of youth. Her face was round; her brown eyes always were always alight with humor or mischief. Her long hair was closer to brown than black and swept down past her shoulders in waves.

The servant turned to exit the room and to close the rice paper doors to give a semblance of privacy.

He had been expecting a stern warning from his father and guilty admonitions from his mother, so he was surprised to see them looking at him in shock.

His mother nearly dropped her cup and his father’s normally unflappable visage became momentarily astounded. He noticed his parents exchanging a meaningful glance, his mother’s face adrift in worry before she smoothed her features.

She paused for a moment. It was almost as if she needed to catch her breath before she spoke. “Inuyasha, my son. Why are you wearing the robe of the firerat?”

Inuyasha’s eyes widened. “How did you…?”

His father continued with a clipped tone that spoke of concealed anger. “And why do you have the Tessaiga at your side?”

The Next Chapter: To be continued in ‘Relations, Part 2.’ Sorry the chapter got away from me. There is much more to this chapter. Part two will be posted within a month and I have already started on it.
Author's Notes:
#1: Answers to questions I have been getting… Only people who know that Inuyasha is a hanyou call him ‘Inuyasha’ and only if they are not in public. Most people call him ‘Ash’ since calling him ‘Dog Demon’ in public might get a few stares. Why did Kagome sleep so long? It’ll eventually be revealed, but again, it is not a big secret. Read chapter one and notice what happens with the jewel. You might also want to re-read the end of the dream sequence in chapter four.Is Hojo a little different than the original? Well, yeah he’s a hanyou—so he’s not quite as calm as the human one in the series. I find it funny that no one has asked what his hanyou abilities are, though I will not be answering that question…sorry…In regard to comments about why did the Higurashi’s take in Kagome after their daughter died three days ago… Hummm… yes, that does seem rather odd, doesn’t it? Evil grin… I wonder why… And sorry, I can’t tell you why right now. You won’t find out until the end.Some people thought that Kagome was melodramatic? Well, re-read Chapter four. What if you were Kagome, saw your beloved’s head being chopped off in front of you and then woke up to see him with you and thinking it was all a nightmare? Then to find out it was not a nightmare and that you are 500 years away from anything you ever knew or loved…? Ouch!Who is the demon with the tentacles? Oh come on, you guys know that answer don’t you? It’s supposed to be very obvious. :-) Unfortunately, our poor main characters have no idea right now.
#2: The two Inuyasha’s… I wanted to explain why things are working the way they are. I actually had a wonderful boss who went through past life regression and he went on to explain his past lives to me. He had been a Nazi in his past life and one of the things that stuck with him in this life was that you were never supposed to do what everyone else did. You need to do what is right, even if you have to go against the masses. This was something he always felt strongly about, but he could never pinpoint why he felt that way, until he went through a past life regression and found out that is what he had learned in his past life. I am characterizing Inuyasha in the same way. His subconscious remembers, even if his conscious mind does not. Only when he sleeps can he truly remember who he was.
#3: When a Japanese person vows their honor to vouch for another person, it is a very serious matter. For Inuyasha to do this for Kagome says a lot about how he feels about her.
#4: The ‘Tetsusaiga/Tessaiga’ debate… I use ‘Tessaiga,’ since that is actually how it is pronounced in the Japanese anime series and I find it much easier on the tongue. As far as how it is spelled, well it is spelled with Kanji characters, not the English language--so the standard English spellings don’t really apply. Some translators go for ‘Tetsusaiga’ when they Romanize the name and some go for ‘Tessaiga.’ So I guess you can say that I am going with the phonetic version. I find it to be less confusing. (Remember Koga/Kouga, Kirara/Kilala are all correct spellings.)