Betrayal in the Blood
Prologue
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story expect Ikue, Nobutada, Shin, Hiroyuki, and Shichinosuke. They all belong to Rumiko Takahashi, I just borrowed them.
SPECIAL NOTE: This is a prequel to my story Family Obligations, but it can stand on its on as a seperate story.
As a child, Ikue had never pictured her life ending the way it was. She hadn't thought she'd be dying in her only son's arms. The former Lady of the Western Lands couldn't have imagined dying for a human female, one that had taken her place, nor could she have pictured herself dying for a hanyou.
Her son, Sesshoumaru, cradled her closer to him. They both knew she was dying and while she had accepted her fate, the stubbornness he had inherited from his father refused to let him accept it. He whispered words of comfort and ran his long fingers into her hair.
She wanted to tell him that she would see him again, but the words could not be spoken. Lady Ikue had already changed the future and doing anymore might wreck what she had created. She knew her son was going to have great pains in his life, but in the end it would be worth it. There was no way she could let this be known.
"Sesshoumaru," she had a few things she could say though. "Sesshoumaru, you must promise you will protect your brother and stepmother for me. You must not allow any harm come to them."
His amber eyes were tinted with red, snarling as he thought of the worthless human and her offspring. "They are the cause of your death and you still ask me to protect that woman and that hanyou." He spat the last word out, showing that it disgusted him to say it.
Ikue hissed in pain, as she fisted her hand in her son's clothes. "I raised you better than that. He will be your brother and you will treat him as nothing less." Her son's light looks were becoming dark to her. "S-S-Swear it ... swear they are under yo-your protection...."
"I swear it."
Her blue eyes lost its light, signaling to the heir of the Western Lands that his mother was no longer there with him. A second later his father's human bitch screamed and a wailing cry informed the kingdom that a new pup was born to Lord Toga. The demons in front of the heir cringed and then snarled, angry that a hanyou was born. Sesshoumaru snarled as well, he needed to kill, he needed to smell another's blood to block out his mother's, and he needed to hear their screams of agony to block out his Father's happy voice over his new son.
The battle, if you could call it that, was short. He had transformed and had either gobbled the demons or stepped on them, grinding their bodies into the ground. The blood of his enemies caused his father's servants to gag but his nose still held the stench of his mother's blood. He growled and hatefully swiped at the ground with his claws. He wanted more blood, anything to make him forget.
Jaken prayed to any higher being that he knew of as he waddled closer his grief stricken lord. He gulped and held his staff close to his tiny body. "L-Lord Sesshoumaru...."
A terrible growl was given to him and the small toad felt his heart jump painfully to his throat as blood red eyes stared at him. The other servants backed away, slowly as to not anger the young lord any more. Sesshoumaru stared at his personal servant and somewhere in his confused thoughts, he recognized the imp as Jaken.
When the said toad saw that his master made no move to attack he gently explained that they needed his permission to clean up his mother for her burial. Pain flickered in the heirs eyes and stayed there for several painful moments. His transformation to his more human looking form was slow and he hide his eyes from everyone. A small nod was given and he then walked to the castle, following the cries he heard from outside.
Several human females stood outside his father's door, his stepmother's ladies in waiting. All were weak weepy women and proved to be nothing more than he thought when they caught sight of him. They were scared of him to begin with but he was sure the blood on his clothes caused them to be even more frightened as well. He ignored their bows to him and walked inside his father's chambers.
Toga, Lord of the Western Lands, sat on the edge of his bed with his newborn pup in his arms as he smiled gently to his exhausted mate. The smell of blood and his oldest son's scent caused him alarm, something the pup noticed too, he quickly gave his newborn to his perplexed mate and ran to his heir. He looked over at his expressionless son and was relieved to see that the blood was not his sons, but then felt sadness when he realized that the blood was from his former mate.
Ikue was a sore subject between the two but something needed to be said. "She was a good woman Sesshoumaru, as well as a good mother and warrior. You should be proud of her."
The heir's posture was stiff but his cold amber eyes glanced at his father. "Funny, many would have added good mate to that list..."
He wished he didn't love Sesshoumaru as much as he did. It would be easier to hear his son's calm hateful responses if he didn't love him, but he did and each time he made snide remarks about Izayoi, himself, and his betrayal to Ikue. His love for his son and Ikue's final wish as his mate made him hold back the rage he wanted to unleash on his insolent pup.
When he saw that Toga had nothing to say, Sesshoumaru walked closer to Izayoi causing her to cry out in alarm. Hearing his mate frightened cry, the lord suddenly appeared in front of his son and moved him back a little. For the briefest of seconds, hurt flashed in the heir's eyes but was quickly replaced by indifference.
He stared his father's protective stance over his mate and newborn son. "He is my brother."
"Yes, he is, I'm sorry Sesshoumaru ... you scare Izayoi and you know how most feel about hanyous. Many of them are killed before they are fully developed in their mother's wombs."
"He is my brother, I wish to see what my mother died for." He left no room for argument.
"Toga..... please no...," The human female was weeping, causing her pup to wail. "Please don't..."
The two inu youkai started at each other and Toga turned his back. The eldest carefully took the wailing pup out of his arms and brought it to Sesshoumaru. The pup's mother cried and continued to beg her mate to make her stepson leave but he seemed deaf to her pleas. The eldest son of Toga looked down at the pup, somewhat amazed that he had almost no trace of his mother's looks.
Toga gently rubbed the two little dog ears on top of his youngest son's head. "We named him Inuyasha."
A nod was given, "If not for his scent one would mistaken him for a full blooded inu youkai." He reached out a hand slowly, not wanting to alarm his father, and allowed the pup to catch his finger. The pup was much more active than a human child would have been, and actually smiled up at Sesshoumaru.
He probably would have smiled back, but the human bitch's cries were getting on his nerves. He carefully undid his baby brother's hold on his finger and look at his father. "My mother is to be buried today. I want my brother and your human bitch there to see what died so that they lived."
He refused to hear anything else, he knew his father would force his mate to go, she had no choice.
Chapter 1- Wedding Day
Nobutada stood outside his only daughter's room and sighed. She was marrying Toga, the Lord of the Western Lands today, and the old lord felt his heart breaking. He loved his sons dearly, but Ikue was his little girl, the last thing he had that linked him to his mate.
He could never say no to her, probably would never be able to, and there was also the matter that he never wanted to say no. He sighed deeply and half wished that he never betrothed his daughter to his old friend Masato's son. Toga was still a pup, only 400 when Ikue had first seen him, she was a young pup of 125. She had adored him and followed him around the entire time the two had visited them.
Masato had noticed this and he seemed to see something in Ikue that he was sure only he had seen in her. It was the Lord of the Western Lands that had approached him about the betrothing their children and Nobutada's small daughter had been very eager when questioned about it. She loved Toga from the moment she saw him and her father agreed to it.
Now here they were, Ikue was now almost 500 and was allowing her ladies in waiting to finish doing last minute things to her hair. Her door slowly opened and Nobutada felt his heart tightened. She was beautiful and looked exactly like her mother. If he didn't care about his daughter's feelings, he would have kept her locked up and refused to let her mate to anyone, she was too special for any male.
"Daddy, are you ok?"
He looked at his daughter and nodded, not trusting his voice. He offered his arm and walked her to his throne room. Toga stood there, looking as powerful and dapper as he always did. There were rumors about the lord, mostly concerning his love for humans...particularly female humans. Ikue dismissed them as jealous remarks that the other female inu youkai wouldn't say to her face. Everyone knew that she was to marry Toga and while they were jealous, no one would dare say anything mean spirited to kind, sweet Ikue, the daughter of the Lord of the Northern Lands.
All too soon, Nobutada reached the place where Toga stood and he felt his little girl's eyes light up when she looked up at her future mate. He stepped aside and took his place next to his three sons, all of them glaring at Toga. Shin, Hiroyuki, and Shichinosuke were all fiercely protective of their little sister and like their father, they didn't want her mating to a man that they all heard terrible rumors about.
The ceremony went by quickly, mostly because there was no need to have one. Most inu youkai ceremonies were private matters between the two people but because Toga was a lord, it was a show for the nobles. Once it was over Ikue hugged her father tightly as he ran his clawed hands through her long hair.
"You can always return here for any reason, I will not turn out my daughter."
He felt her soft sweet laugh tickle his neck, "I will be fine Daddy but thank you. I could never have asked for a better father than you have been to me."
Ikue let go of him and grinned at her still glaring brothers. "Do not look at me like that! We'll still see each other and I will always be your baby sister, mating to Toga will not stop that."
The second son, Hiroyuki, hugged his sister and kissed her forehead before sighing, "I'll kill him if he does anything to you. Send Jaken back and I'll be there as fast as my legs can carry me."
"I'll slit his throat and hang his insides along his castle," Shichinosuke was always one to perform brutal disgusting kills.
Her oldest brother, the only one somewhat willing to give Toga a chance, stared into her eyes, "This is what you truly want? This is what your heart cries out for?"
"Yes, Shin. My heart wanted this when I was a pup, it wanted it yesterday, and it wants it today. You are not losing me, please do not mourn my mating as you would mourn my death."
The three brothers had already made threats to their new brother in-law but still didn't feel comfortable giving their sister to the Lord of the Western Lands. To them it was if they were giving her to the wolves. They had argued with their father about the mating between their sister and Toga, but Nobutada always gave into Ikue.
"Lady Ikue, your mate is waiting for you."
She smiled down at her faithful little servant Jaken and hugged her brothers and father one more time. A smile, that could only be described as beautiful, appeared on her graceful face as she walked closer to the waiting Toga. He quietly asked her if she was ready. Her answer was quick and eager, causing her to blush slightly. Her mate gave a little smirk and led her out of her childhood home.
Nobutada had to remind himself that he was a fierce taiyoukai, and that taiyoukai did not cry when their only daughters left home to start a family. This was the way of life, even the humans knew that. His sons knew this as well, and Hiroyuki and Shichinosuke would most likely not live with their father when they took on their own mates. Shin would be the only one that would stay with him, and he knew his sons leaving would also break his heart.
"This will end in tears and death, Father. I see nothing good coming from this union and I actually feel fear for my little sister."
Shin was his wise one, the one that never rushed to fight. Hearing those words tore at his heart and he sighed. "I could not deny her Shin, you of all people know how hard it is to look into those eyes and say no."
"This is one thing you should have denied her."
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well here it is, the prequel to Family Obligations. If anyone thinks the first chapter kind of keeps saying the same thing over and over (like Ikue's family not being able to say no to her) there is a very good reason for that and anyone that read FO might be able to figure it out right now. Thank you and please review.
Masako
Prologue
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story expect Ikue, Nobutada, Shin, Hiroyuki, and Shichinosuke. They all belong to Rumiko Takahashi, I just borrowed them.
SPECIAL NOTE: This is a prequel to my story Family Obligations, but it can stand on its on as a seperate story.
As a child, Ikue had never pictured her life ending the way it was. She hadn't thought she'd be dying in her only son's arms. The former Lady of the Western Lands couldn't have imagined dying for a human female, one that had taken her place, nor could she have pictured herself dying for a hanyou.
Her son, Sesshoumaru, cradled her closer to him. They both knew she was dying and while she had accepted her fate, the stubbornness he had inherited from his father refused to let him accept it. He whispered words of comfort and ran his long fingers into her hair.
She wanted to tell him that she would see him again, but the words could not be spoken. Lady Ikue had already changed the future and doing anymore might wreck what she had created. She knew her son was going to have great pains in his life, but in the end it would be worth it. There was no way she could let this be known.
"Sesshoumaru," she had a few things she could say though. "Sesshoumaru, you must promise you will protect your brother and stepmother for me. You must not allow any harm come to them."
His amber eyes were tinted with red, snarling as he thought of the worthless human and her offspring. "They are the cause of your death and you still ask me to protect that woman and that hanyou." He spat the last word out, showing that it disgusted him to say it.
Ikue hissed in pain, as she fisted her hand in her son's clothes. "I raised you better than that. He will be your brother and you will treat him as nothing less." Her son's light looks were becoming dark to her. "S-S-Swear it ... swear they are under yo-your protection...."
"I swear it."
Her blue eyes lost its light, signaling to the heir of the Western Lands that his mother was no longer there with him. A second later his father's human bitch screamed and a wailing cry informed the kingdom that a new pup was born to Lord Toga. The demons in front of the heir cringed and then snarled, angry that a hanyou was born. Sesshoumaru snarled as well, he needed to kill, he needed to smell another's blood to block out his mother's, and he needed to hear their screams of agony to block out his Father's happy voice over his new son.
The battle, if you could call it that, was short. He had transformed and had either gobbled the demons or stepped on them, grinding their bodies into the ground. The blood of his enemies caused his father's servants to gag but his nose still held the stench of his mother's blood. He growled and hatefully swiped at the ground with his claws. He wanted more blood, anything to make him forget.
Jaken prayed to any higher being that he knew of as he waddled closer his grief stricken lord. He gulped and held his staff close to his tiny body. "L-Lord Sesshoumaru...."
A terrible growl was given to him and the small toad felt his heart jump painfully to his throat as blood red eyes stared at him. The other servants backed away, slowly as to not anger the young lord any more. Sesshoumaru stared at his personal servant and somewhere in his confused thoughts, he recognized the imp as Jaken.
When the said toad saw that his master made no move to attack he gently explained that they needed his permission to clean up his mother for her burial. Pain flickered in the heirs eyes and stayed there for several painful moments. His transformation to his more human looking form was slow and he hide his eyes from everyone. A small nod was given and he then walked to the castle, following the cries he heard from outside.
Several human females stood outside his father's door, his stepmother's ladies in waiting. All were weak weepy women and proved to be nothing more than he thought when they caught sight of him. They were scared of him to begin with but he was sure the blood on his clothes caused them to be even more frightened as well. He ignored their bows to him and walked inside his father's chambers.
Toga, Lord of the Western Lands, sat on the edge of his bed with his newborn pup in his arms as he smiled gently to his exhausted mate. The smell of blood and his oldest son's scent caused him alarm, something the pup noticed too, he quickly gave his newborn to his perplexed mate and ran to his heir. He looked over at his expressionless son and was relieved to see that the blood was not his sons, but then felt sadness when he realized that the blood was from his former mate.
Ikue was a sore subject between the two but something needed to be said. "She was a good woman Sesshoumaru, as well as a good mother and warrior. You should be proud of her."
The heir's posture was stiff but his cold amber eyes glanced at his father. "Funny, many would have added good mate to that list..."
He wished he didn't love Sesshoumaru as much as he did. It would be easier to hear his son's calm hateful responses if he didn't love him, but he did and each time he made snide remarks about Izayoi, himself, and his betrayal to Ikue. His love for his son and Ikue's final wish as his mate made him hold back the rage he wanted to unleash on his insolent pup.
When he saw that Toga had nothing to say, Sesshoumaru walked closer to Izayoi causing her to cry out in alarm. Hearing his mate frightened cry, the lord suddenly appeared in front of his son and moved him back a little. For the briefest of seconds, hurt flashed in the heir's eyes but was quickly replaced by indifference.
He stared his father's protective stance over his mate and newborn son. "He is my brother."
"Yes, he is, I'm sorry Sesshoumaru ... you scare Izayoi and you know how most feel about hanyous. Many of them are killed before they are fully developed in their mother's wombs."
"He is my brother, I wish to see what my mother died for." He left no room for argument.
"Toga..... please no...," The human female was weeping, causing her pup to wail. "Please don't..."
The two inu youkai started at each other and Toga turned his back. The eldest carefully took the wailing pup out of his arms and brought it to Sesshoumaru. The pup's mother cried and continued to beg her mate to make her stepson leave but he seemed deaf to her pleas. The eldest son of Toga looked down at the pup, somewhat amazed that he had almost no trace of his mother's looks.
Toga gently rubbed the two little dog ears on top of his youngest son's head. "We named him Inuyasha."
A nod was given, "If not for his scent one would mistaken him for a full blooded inu youkai." He reached out a hand slowly, not wanting to alarm his father, and allowed the pup to catch his finger. The pup was much more active than a human child would have been, and actually smiled up at Sesshoumaru.
He probably would have smiled back, but the human bitch's cries were getting on his nerves. He carefully undid his baby brother's hold on his finger and look at his father. "My mother is to be buried today. I want my brother and your human bitch there to see what died so that they lived."
He refused to hear anything else, he knew his father would force his mate to go, she had no choice.
Chapter 1- Wedding Day
Nobutada stood outside his only daughter's room and sighed. She was marrying Toga, the Lord of the Western Lands today, and the old lord felt his heart breaking. He loved his sons dearly, but Ikue was his little girl, the last thing he had that linked him to his mate.
He could never say no to her, probably would never be able to, and there was also the matter that he never wanted to say no. He sighed deeply and half wished that he never betrothed his daughter to his old friend Masato's son. Toga was still a pup, only 400 when Ikue had first seen him, she was a young pup of 125. She had adored him and followed him around the entire time the two had visited them.
Masato had noticed this and he seemed to see something in Ikue that he was sure only he had seen in her. It was the Lord of the Western Lands that had approached him about the betrothing their children and Nobutada's small daughter had been very eager when questioned about it. She loved Toga from the moment she saw him and her father agreed to it.
Now here they were, Ikue was now almost 500 and was allowing her ladies in waiting to finish doing last minute things to her hair. Her door slowly opened and Nobutada felt his heart tightened. She was beautiful and looked exactly like her mother. If he didn't care about his daughter's feelings, he would have kept her locked up and refused to let her mate to anyone, she was too special for any male.
"Daddy, are you ok?"
He looked at his daughter and nodded, not trusting his voice. He offered his arm and walked her to his throne room. Toga stood there, looking as powerful and dapper as he always did. There were rumors about the lord, mostly concerning his love for humans...particularly female humans. Ikue dismissed them as jealous remarks that the other female inu youkai wouldn't say to her face. Everyone knew that she was to marry Toga and while they were jealous, no one would dare say anything mean spirited to kind, sweet Ikue, the daughter of the Lord of the Northern Lands.
All too soon, Nobutada reached the place where Toga stood and he felt his little girl's eyes light up when she looked up at her future mate. He stepped aside and took his place next to his three sons, all of them glaring at Toga. Shin, Hiroyuki, and Shichinosuke were all fiercely protective of their little sister and like their father, they didn't want her mating to a man that they all heard terrible rumors about.
The ceremony went by quickly, mostly because there was no need to have one. Most inu youkai ceremonies were private matters between the two people but because Toga was a lord, it was a show for the nobles. Once it was over Ikue hugged her father tightly as he ran his clawed hands through her long hair.
"You can always return here for any reason, I will not turn out my daughter."
He felt her soft sweet laugh tickle his neck, "I will be fine Daddy but thank you. I could never have asked for a better father than you have been to me."
Ikue let go of him and grinned at her still glaring brothers. "Do not look at me like that! We'll still see each other and I will always be your baby sister, mating to Toga will not stop that."
The second son, Hiroyuki, hugged his sister and kissed her forehead before sighing, "I'll kill him if he does anything to you. Send Jaken back and I'll be there as fast as my legs can carry me."
"I'll slit his throat and hang his insides along his castle," Shichinosuke was always one to perform brutal disgusting kills.
Her oldest brother, the only one somewhat willing to give Toga a chance, stared into her eyes, "This is what you truly want? This is what your heart cries out for?"
"Yes, Shin. My heart wanted this when I was a pup, it wanted it yesterday, and it wants it today. You are not losing me, please do not mourn my mating as you would mourn my death."
The three brothers had already made threats to their new brother in-law but still didn't feel comfortable giving their sister to the Lord of the Western Lands. To them it was if they were giving her to the wolves. They had argued with their father about the mating between their sister and Toga, but Nobutada always gave into Ikue.
"Lady Ikue, your mate is waiting for you."
She smiled down at her faithful little servant Jaken and hugged her brothers and father one more time. A smile, that could only be described as beautiful, appeared on her graceful face as she walked closer to the waiting Toga. He quietly asked her if she was ready. Her answer was quick and eager, causing her to blush slightly. Her mate gave a little smirk and led her out of her childhood home.
Nobutada had to remind himself that he was a fierce taiyoukai, and that taiyoukai did not cry when their only daughters left home to start a family. This was the way of life, even the humans knew that. His sons knew this as well, and Hiroyuki and Shichinosuke would most likely not live with their father when they took on their own mates. Shin would be the only one that would stay with him, and he knew his sons leaving would also break his heart.
"This will end in tears and death, Father. I see nothing good coming from this union and I actually feel fear for my little sister."
Shin was his wise one, the one that never rushed to fight. Hearing those words tore at his heart and he sighed. "I could not deny her Shin, you of all people know how hard it is to look into those eyes and say no."
"This is one thing you should have denied her."
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well here it is, the prequel to Family Obligations. If anyone thinks the first chapter kind of keeps saying the same thing over and over (like Ikue's family not being able to say no to her) there is a very good reason for that and anyone that read FO might be able to figure it out right now. Thank you and please review.
Masako