DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN INUYASHA OR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS FROM THE MANGA/ANIME!! Once the names of Sesshoumaru's mom and the Inu no Taishou have been revealed, I will change them in this fic. However, at the time I am writing this, the names HAVE NOT BEEN RELEASED THAT I HAVE SEEN, so SesshMom is called Tsukita and InuPapa is Rikoumaru. I do claim Katsumi and her parents, as well as Katsumi's respective companions/family and such. This means that I do not know who the real Lord of the Northern Lands is, nor do I particularly care. Also, I realize that Sesshoumaru will be OOC on several occasions, but then again this is a FAN-fiction…I will try my best to adhere to Sesshoumaru's real personality, but you must accept that sometimes this will be very hard to do: you will probably understand what I mean later in the fic, but for now there it is. I wrote this because I like it and I thought others might enjoy it, too.
Now, on a separate note: DO NOT STEAL THIS FANFICTION! THE PLOT AND CHARACTERS CONTAINED HEREIN ARE THE PROPERTY of Storm Wolf…. That is to say, ME. I will not reply to flames, though I will read them. Please, if you are going to criticize me, at least make it constructive criticism or don't criticize me at all. I love getting comments and reviews, even if it is just to point out what you don't like or things that could be better. So, having said that: readers please R&R, while DA readers please comment. This will be posted at the top of every chapter of this fic, including the final chapter.
Author's Note: The prologue here begins roughly 507 years before the actual Inuyasha Manga starts and progresses accordingly with an approximate timeline mapped out. I repeat, all ages and timelines for the actual Inuyasha characters is approximate!
Comments and reviews will be baked into doggy-treats(for whom is up to you lol)!
Beautiful Roses Have Thorns: Prologue
A lone gray wolf, though obviously not a normal wolf judging from its massive size, passively watched the group of ningen as they passed him while they went to and from the rice fields. The ningen understood the wolf, you see. They knew that this monstrous creature, who bore a small silvery mark on it's forehead that was similar to an eight-point star, would not harm them. In the same fashion, the wolf, who was roughly the size of a house, knew that none of the ningen would have the nerve to so much as look at him if they thought it would displease him. For he was certainly no ordinary wolf, be it by ningen or youkai standards.
He was Katsuhito, the proud wolf-taiyoukai of the Northern Lands, and he had never seen any reason to injure ningen unnecessarily: he would not bother them if they did not bother him. Quite the contrary, he had offered to protect any ningen within his territory from other youkai if they would refrain from harming any local youkai without due cause. That understanding had been commonly accepted nearly a century ago. So it was that the taiyoukai now lay on the edge of the rice fields of one of the larger ningen villages within his territory, calmly observing the ningen on whose account he often received insults and injuries. Naturally, he had other business in the village as well. Katsuhito was waiting for Noburo, the leader of the local kitsune tribe, to discuss a rumor that he'd heard about his old friend. As if on cue, Noburo appeared at Katsuhito's side, in his humanoid form and looking quite smug at having gone undetected by the wolf.
"Katsuhito-sama! How have you been these past decades since you last graced this forest? Of course, there was no ningen den here then…now, is it just me or have your senses dulled a bit? I managed to sneak up beside you and you were completely oblivious to my presence!" The kitsune lord's eyes were dancing with suppressed mirth and cunning wit.
"Please forgive me for disappointing you Noburo-sama, but I could smell you when you were still two leagues away. I merely allowed you to think that you bested me for a change of pace. More importantly, I came to discuss something of great import with you…." Katsuhito stared down the kitsune who, despite being several decades the taiyoukai's senior, visibly flinched. The taiyoukai had taken his humanoid form and was stunningly handsome yet inexorably terrifying all at once: Noburo had a gnawing suspicion that he KNEW what Katsuhito was getting at… "It has been said that you took a ningen female as your mate…a miko no less. It must be true, since I can smell a ningen female on you. I wonder if it is also true that you have a cub with her, which I have also heard. I know your sons, but they are full youkai both." Noburo inwardly cursed: he'd hit the bull's eye on his suspicions of the taiyoukai's thoughts.
"My, aren't we the informed one? Hmph…well, since I doubt you'll leave me in peace unless I tell you…." Katsuhito gave him a smirk as if to say the same thing, which irked the kitsune even more. Even so, Noburo deigned to answer the wolf's nonverbal inquiry. "Yes, I have taken a ningen mate and yes, she is a strong miko. As for the other rumor, it is not quite accurate."
"And that means what, precisely?" Katsuhito's tone was one of bemused sarcasm.
"It means that I do not have any kits with her yet, but that she IS currently carrying my kit. Does that satisfy your curiosity, Katsuhito-sama?" It was apparent to many that the two males held a high level of mutual respect for each other, despite the minor rivalry fueled by their pride.
"That was all I wished to know: I can now tell the others that I will kill anyone who bothers your female with a smile and confidence in the knowledge of what exactly I am swearing myself into. Now, I bid you farewell Noburo-sama." Katsuhito reverted to his true form and vanished into the forest even as he spoke, Noburo watching his large form as he went. :That Katsuhito truly is an unusual sort…but I can't help admiring him for it.: Noburo thought as he made himself scarce as well. After all, his ningen mate would be delivering the kit she carried before the day was out.
~Two hundred and forty-eight years later, outside the same village~
Katsuhito was patrolling through his territory, as was his usual custom since his son had left on his journey to the Eastern Lands to train under the Eastern taiyoukai. And Katsumoto would remain there for however long it took for him to earn his title as heir to the Northern Lands. Although, Katsuhito had to admit that he missed his son's sharp wit and their long discussions concerning any number of topics. Yes, Katsumoto was much like his father, in both body and mind. Katsuhito found this annoying at times, but it was heartening more often than not to know that his son took after him more than his mother. Katsumoto's mother had been a cruel woman, killing anyone and anything she pleased: Katsuhito had been forced to mate her by his own father and the two had NEVER gotten along about anything.
Katsuhito was slightly ashamed to realize that he had not felt anything when he had been told that she was killed by Ryuukotsusei for angering the dragon. Katsumoto had cried of course, but what small child had ever refrained from crying when told their mother had died? Naturally, he had comforted his son, but he had often threatened to kill the woman himself when they were alone. And so, Katsuhito could not bring himself to feel remorse for her.
Now, over a hundred years later, he was considering taking another mate. He had not yet found a female that appealed to him, but the idea held a certain level of merit: even Katsumoto had told him it was a notable idea. :Which is to say my son thinks I spend too much time wandering around the territory and not enough time in the castle. Heh…he is probably hoping that I will have another cub, taking some of my focus off of him and his reckless mischief.: Katsuhito chuckled as he remembered a few of his own escapades from his much younger days. :Perhaps Rikoumaru knows a suitable female…I should go see him, since he has a son two or three decades younger than Katsumoto. The two of them might enjoy meeting a daiyoukai their own age….:
Katsuhito's thoughts were disrupted however, by a scream that was undeniably feminine. Since he WAS the Northern taiyoukai and had sworn to protect anyone within his territory, he felt compelled to investigate the source. With a single bound of his enormous wolf-form, Katsuhito found himself on the edge of a river the fell away as a waterfall. He knew the river well: not too far down the mountain, it flowed into an onsen, which seemed to be where the screams were originating from. His mind noted that he was drawing unnervingly close to the edges of Noburo's den…and sure enough, within moments he came upon a group of adolescent male kitsune. With a single sweep of his piercing glare, he took in the scene. The adolescent males appeared to be making sport of a ningen female, forcing her onto the ground while stripping away her kimono.
The young woman was obviously of noble birth, judging off of her expensive and elaborately fine kimono. He could see where another girl was being forced to watch while gagged and bound to a tree nearby. Katsuhito came to the conclusion that Noburo's was away from the den and had been for some time, judging from the reduced potency of the kitsune lord's scent. The young males must have seized the opportunity to intimidate the neighboring ningen by kidnapping a ningen girl to assault. With a ferocious snarl that bordered on a howl of pure rage, Katsuhito lunged in all his wolf-form's glory, despite being only a quarter his true size at the size of a four room hut. His gray pelt looked silver in the light of the rising full moon and his fangs were hardly forgiving as he grabbed the scruff of one boy's haori and shook him forcefully.
After a thorough shake, Katsuhito dropped the boy in the same fashion a dog scolded a naughty pup: shake it by the scruff of its neck while growling. The warning made all of the kitsune adolescents cringe away in fear of the massive wolf, standing protectively above the ningen girl while growling menacingly, "Try anything and I won't just scold you!"Though the ningen did not understand the wolf's growled threat, the kitsune boys got it loud and clear. The adolescent males quickly fled from him, several of them having recognized him as the taiyoukai of the Northern Lands by the silvery eight-point star on his forehead. Within seconds of the kitsune boys taking off, Katsuhito reverted to his humanoid form and gave the ningen girl at his feet the kindest and most reassuring smile he could manage through his anger.
He then quickly undid the ropes that bound the younger of the girls, whose name was Kiyomi if he recalled correctly. She was the only daughter of the leader of the ningen village and as such had been introduced to him during a meeting with the said ningen lord. Kiyomi cowered away from his touch, which made Katsuhito's blood boil with suppressed rage: no ningen had ever had any reason to fear him, particularly no ningen girl. The other girl, whom Katsuhito had never seen before in any of the ningen dens, gave a dry sob and, when he gently touched her cheek to look at her bruised face, clung to his chest. Startled and concerned that she might be injured worse than he had previously suspected, Katsuhito lifted her into his arms.
"Little one…Kiyomi is your name, isn't it?" The younger girl, who had been tied to the tree, nodded her head while trying to stop her uncontrolled sobs: she couldn't be more than ten years old and had been forced to witness gods knew what before he'd arrived. Katsuhito would have MUCH to tell Noburo indeed. "Kiyomi-chan, would you like me to take you back to your father? I will make sure those young men never set foot in the village again." Kiyomi said nothing, only nodded and tangled her fingers into his sleeve with the tiniest of smiles. As they walked, Katsuhito realized that the older girl, who looked to be maybe nineteen, had fallen asleep as he carried her. He felt a pang of sadness for her because, thanks to his keen wolf senses, he knew that she had been sexually assaulted at the least, if not raped outright. "Kiyomi-chan, do you know who this girl is, maybe her name?" Perhaps Kiyomi could tell her where this unfortunate girl lived, and if he was lucky, then her parents would believe him when he told them what had happened. Unfortunately, Kiyomi did not know her name or where she lived.
Later, after he had taken Kiyomi home, Katsuhito returned to his castle with the other girl still safe in his arms. He arranged for a room, clean clothes, and a nice soak in his own private onsen for her, as well as anything else she might want. He also asked for one of his older female servants to care for her and help her cope with what had happened to her. Sighing and unable to sleep, though the night was half over and the moon was beginning to set, Katsuhito growled at himself as his thoughts continuously returned to the ningen girl. Finally, he gave up and busied himself with a sending a messenger to locate Noburo. His own father had heard of the whole affair and promptly came storming into his study unannounced.
"What the devil are you thinking bringing it home?!?! She's a miko and she will purify you when she wakes as sure as the sun will rise!" Katsuhide ranted at his son, who tried his best to ignore his positively ancient father. If anyone thought of Katsuhito, at only eight hundred odd winters, to be an old geezer…well, then they had never met Katsuhide. "You get rid of her now, you hear? Send her back if you won't kill her, but DO NOT KEEP HER HERE!!" Katsuhito rubbed at his left temple, feeling a headache begin to throb there, and turned to meet his father's glare.
"Chichi-ue, that girl has had several opportunities to purify me tonight and she has not done so yet. I highly doubt that she intends to do anything of the sort. She was attacked by a group of adolescent males from Noburo's tribe." Katsuhide gave him a sharp look, to which he responded with, "I warned them off but did not harm any of them beyond a bit of rough handling and potential bruises: they are Noburo's kin and he is the only one allowed to punish them, though I am going to STRONGLY suggest that they be banished from the Northern lands."
"No, you're going to order Noburo to banish them or chase them out yourself. I know you Katsuhito, and you are smitten with this ningen cub! I forbid it! No cub of mine will take a ningen mate!" Again, a silent groan from Katsuhito: he really should have expected this…. He could just imagine what his son, Katsumoto, would have to say about this as well.
Katsuhito and his father argued right up until dawn, when the woman who had been put in charge of the girl came in with another female youkai…no wait, the girl was a kitsune hanyou judging from the tail and ears she sported. Suddenly it hit Katsuhito where he had seen her face: it was Kimiko, Noburo's hanyou daughter and the girl he had rescued from the young males. Both wolf daiyoukai could only gape, for she was a true beauty. Apparently, the one time a month that she lost her powers was on the full moon: all hanyou lost their powers and became ningen from time to time; it was a mark of their ningen heritage.
"Take her as your mate and I'll be forced not to forgive you until I die!" Katsuhide said as he left in a rush, which probably meant that he was lying about not forgiving his only heir's taste in women. It was actually as close as Katsuhito would ever get to a word of approval towards the girl. Katsuhito snapped his mouth shut, having realized that it was hanging slightly open, and could only think of four words: "Will you be my mate?" Almost as soon as he'd said it, Katsuhito wanted very much to slap himself. Kimiko smiled sadly but said yes all the same: he had been the one to rescue her after all, and yet he still wanted her even knowing what he did. How could she refuse such a man? They were mated two months later, after gaining Noburo's approval.
Four years later they had a daughter, Katsumi, who bore the same silvery eight-point star on her forehead as her father and had black hair that faded out to silver and finally white at the tips. It was suspected that her unique hair and golden-green eyes were markers of her equally unique heritage. There were no others like her known to either the ningen or youkai populations. She was feared by many, for every three months when night fell on the new moon Katsumi became a ningen miko until the rise of the full moon immediately following her ningen transformation. This meant that every three months, for just about a fortnight, she was able to purify youkai and their powers.
Fifty years after Katsumi was born, Katsuhito was killed by Ryuukotsusei, who thought to be rid of the potential threat of Katsumi by killing her entire family. Kimiko was killed shortly afterwards, while protecting her young daughter, by a group of youkai who were servants of Ryuukotsusei. Katsumi escaped from the carnage with the help of a very old and gravely injured Katsuhide, who had always doted on his only granddaughter. The same youkai who killed Kimiko later came across Katsumoto, whom they were also supposed to kill. However, Katsumoto proved to be his father's son in more ways than one by effortlessly dispatching of the rabble of semi-strong fools. When he arrived back at his father's castle, he found his father's and Kimiko's corpses.
"Katsumi, where are you? KATSUMI!" In desperation, he searched for his half-sister but to no avail: Katsumi had vanished. Unable to find his sister, who had already been designated as the heiress to the Northern Lands, Katsumoto was forced to assume his father's position as the Lord of the Northern Lands and the Wolf General. News of the massacre was quick to reach Noburo, who was devastated to learn of the death of his youngest child and only daughter. Nobusuke and Nobuyoshi, Noburo's two sons, were enraged by the murder of their sister and her husband: the two attempted to slay Ryuukotsusei and Nobusuke, the elder of Noburo's sons, was slain. Katsumoto held no blood ties to the kitsune tribe himself, but he had viewed Kimiko as something of a mother-figure and was equally upset by her death as he was by the death of his father. He had been away in the Eastern Lands for several decades, returning sporadically to visit with his father and sister.
For reasons that did not make sense to his friend Sesshoumaru of the Western Lands, Katsumoto had always seen his only sibling as an equal, despite telling Sesshoumaru that her mother was a hanyou. Such an idea was ludicrous to Sesshoumaru, since he believed that no hanyou or anyone of ningen descent could possibly be an equal to a daiyoukai, no matter how great or little the amount of ningen blood they held. As time passed, Katsumoto rebuilt his father's territory and made a valued alliance with Rikoumaru and Sesshoumaru, earning him their assistance should he need it. Unfortunately, Katsumoto was never able to locate his sister, no matter how hard or long he searched. The young wolf taiyoukai was the strongest of his clan, which had been well over five hundred strong before Ryuukotsusei's slaughter of the clan, leaving little more than a scant one hundred living members of the proud clan to recoup from the devastation.
~Ten years after Katsuhito's death, at the castle of Rikoumaru~
Rikoumaru paced furiously: he would never admit it, but he was anxious beyond belief. His son had been missing for nearly a fortnight and many of his servants had been searching nonstop for half of that time. Said servants took turns reporting to him every four hours and the most recent one due to report was going on an hour late. Finally one of the servants came scurrying into the room, slightly out of breath and flushed. The great youkai Lord looked her over before rumbling the question most on his mind. "Well? Have they found my son?" The woman, flustered by her Lord's sudden question and horrified at her own stupidity for losing her head, stammered an apology and hastily bowed even lower.
"Y-yes, my Lord! Young Sesshoumaru-sama has been located…however...he has taken on…an unusual pet." Rikoumaru briefly wondered what the woman meant and if she would become part of the floor, as close as her body was to it. His attention instantly reverted back to his son, however, as the teenaged boy was led into his father's study with a terrified young girl clinging to his sleeve…a ningen girl as far as Rikoumaru could tell. So the woman thought that Sesshoumaru had taken the girl to be his pet, eh? She clearly did not know much about ningen, as they did not qualify as pets and, despite a capacity for acting as marvelous servants and slaves, did not take to captivity well AT ALL. This was especially true of ningen with strong spirits and high intellects, which seemed to be the case with this girl, for even though her eyes were brimming with pure terror, the girl was rigidly composed with an air of high nobility clinging to her.
Rikoumaru felt all of his pent up frustration ease away as he looked upon his son: Sesshoumaru bore a blue crescent moon on his forehead and two red stripes on each cheek, while his silvery hair shone faintly in the candlelight. In short, he was very handsome… and there was no evidence of injuries present on Sesshoumaru. The girl, on the other hand, smelled faintly of blood…though it could very well just be that she was in season. Sighing, Rikoumaru prepared to ask his son why he, who detested ningen, had brought a ningen girl back to the castle.
"Sesshoumaru, I must say I am both surprised and curious: isn't that a ningen girl?" Sesshoumaru met his father's gaze with an even stare of his own.
"This Sesshoumaru came across her near the edge of our territory...she was being chased by the ningen from her own village. They said that she is youkai and had taken on the guise of a miko. They were then foolish enough to try to slay this Sesshoumaru, so this Sesshoumaru killed them. The girl has refused to let go of this Sesshoumaru's arm since. This Sesshoumaru did not kill her because she does smell strongly of wolf and says that her father was Katsuhito-sama." Without another word, Sesshoumaru attempted once more to remove the girl from his person. At long last, he succeeded as the girl pulled away out of concern that she might accidentally purify him.
"Well, I suppose I should ask you to prove that you are Katsuhito-sama's daughter, but for now I shall not pursue the matter. What is your name young one?" Rikoumaru asked, trying to sound as friendly as possible.
"Katsumi of the Northern Lands, Rikoumaru-sama…." The girl was undoubtedly of noble birth, now that Rikoumaru had heard her speak. No, this was no girl…young woman was far more applicable, as she seemed to be suitably fleshed out in all the right places. The Western taiyoukai suddenly remembered an old agreement that he had made with Katsuhito…an agreement that greatly concerned Katsumi and Sesshoumaru. As he processed these thoughts, he came to a conclusion.
"Well, if you are indeed Katsumi, then you should have a specific time when you lose your youkai powers and a specific time when you regain them. Can you tell me if you will be ningen when the morning comes?" Rikoumaru asked, carefully laying out his phrasing and choice of words.
"When the full moon rises tomorrow night, I will become youkai again, Rikoumaru-sama." The girl seemed to be dead-serious, so Rikoumaru decided to wait and see, keeping her under constant observation. There was no one better suited for that than Unmeiko, a female servant in his employ that virtually never slept. He quickly sent for the woman and told Sesshoumaru that he could go if he wished.
"Are you going to send her away, Chichi-ue?" Sesshoumaru was obviously trying to hide his interest in the girl. "This Sesshoumaru would like for her to stay. She is…amusing to watch." Rikoumaru was only half-certain that he had heard his only son correctly…had Sesshoumaru just said that he -enjoyed- the company of a ningen girl who may or may not be ¾ daiyoukai? Rikoumaru hid the smile that danced across his lips and smoldered in his eyes: in the course of one fortnight, one girl had changed something in Sesshoumaru, be it for better or for worse was still unseen. That same girl had now fallen asleep, curled up like a kitten, as close to Sesshoumaru as she dared.
"No, I am not going to send her away, Sesshoumaru. If she really is Katsumi-hime, then she will one day become your mate." Sesshoumaru blinked emotionlessly at his father. This could either be good or bad…Rikoumaru decided that he had better explain it in more depth. "For that was what was agreed upon between me and Katsuhito before he died: should Katsumi accept you and you should accept her, once you are both old enough you are to be mated. Now, I think it is only fair that we determine whether or not she is truly who she claims, so that we might inform Katsumoto." Sesshoumaru made no reply, but it was obvious to Rikoumaru that he did understand.
The following night, Katsumi regained all of her youkai powers and appearances. The silvery marker denoting her as Katsuhito's child became visible. Perhaps the most notable change, however, was her hair. Reaching down to her thighs, it had been the blackest of blacks, but now faded out to silver and finally the purest of whites at the tip of each strand. Her eyes, which had been a lovely shade of blue-green, were now a perfect green dusted with gold. Despite still being relatively young for a daiyoukai, Katsumi was already a stunning sight and could easily compete with Sesshoumaru's mother, Lady Tsukita, as being a true beauty. Lady Tsukita had taken a single look at Katsumi and taken it upon herself to teach the girl what it meant to be the future mate of Sesshoumaru, and future daughter to Rikoumaru and herself.
Katsumoto was extremely relieved to learn that his sister was alive and well. However, the siblings agreed that it might be best for him to continue ruling the Northern Lands with Katsumi ruling at his side from the shadows. Rikoumaru told them that this was a smart move, keeping the true ruler's identity hidden, especially in cases like theirs' where the real ruler was an extraordinarily unique female whose clan had already been decimated by the efforts of other youkai to assassinate her. So, Katsumoto kept acting as sole ruler of the Northern Lands, though in reality he and Katsumi ran and controlled the territory together while consulting on every major detail, and many minor ones. All the while, Katsumi would reside in the Western Lands, constantly under the tutelage and companionship of Rikoumaru and his family.