Disclaimer: I own nothing Inuyasha.

Author's Note: Time to jump on the Inuvember bandwagon! I will try to keep these relatively short drabbles, but I know I can get carried away at times. ^^" Week 1 is Characters! First up: Inuyasha!

Enjoy!


The Protector

It felt strange to no longer have to depend on his claws in battle. Though they were certainly still utilized, Tetsusaiga ultimately dominated every battle since he inherited it from his father's tomb. Before Tetsusaiga, Inuyasha had to only worry about protecting himself. Before Tetsusaiga, there was no threat of Naraku and no collecting shards of the Shikon Jewel. Life was rough, downright dangerous at times, but it was merely a game of survival. If he didn't provoke any demons and steered clear of humans, for the most part, Inuyasha could hunt in peace and only deal with danger if he accidentally wandered into a demon's territory or ran across his asshole older brother.

But then, his father's tomb was revealed to have been hidden in his eye (a fact that Inuyasha still finds weirder than almost anything else in his life), and Sesshomaru tried to possess the infamous sword. Inuyasha proved to be the rightful owner because he could hold it and transform it, once he felt the desire to protect Kagome.

Tetsusaiga not only made him stronger and more formidable in battle, it gave him a reason for living. Indirectly, it brought him closer to Kagome, Shippo, and the others, and even made him appreciate humans a little bit more. Despite the cruelty he'd face in his childhood, somehow, all those months battling demons while wielding Tetsusaiga, all the ups and downs of the sword's abilities and weaknesses, all those times protecting his friends, Inuyasha had finally come to understand why his father wanted him to inherit his famed sword.

Because humanity, as well as his humanity, in spite of its flaws, deserved to be protected. And his loved ones, the first ones to accept him since his mother's death, would always need to stay safe.

Only Tetsusaiga and Inuyasha, its rightful wielder, could ensure that.