Inuyasha © Rumiko Takahashi
Ever After
"You look like something is bothering you." Sesshōmaru stated. Rin was not hard to read. And besides, he was aware of a fact she practically wore her heart on her sleeves in front of him. In the back of his mind he wondered if she did it on purpose, knowing he was concerned enough to address the issue himself instead of waiting for her to confide in him. This time as always, her subtle had been just as obvious.
Rin instantly adopted that sheepish look, one indicated she got caught doing something he was not entirely pleased with.
He didn't do much after raising a perfect elegant eyebrow of his.
Sitting a little straighter, Rin took a deep breath and opened her mouth, and closed it before any word could make itself audible.
Feeling she needed a little encouragement, Sesshōmaru reached for Bakusaiga resting peacefully beside him and made to stand up, even if it was still early to leave. "You don't have to tell me if you are not ready."
That did it. He almost lost his balance when she threw herself at his leg and wrapped her arms tightly around it, her mouth fluttered a mile a minute, "PleasewaitSesshōmarusamaIreallyhavesomethingtotellyoubutitwasInuyashasamaandhewasactingstrangebecausehehadlookedatmeforreallylongandthenhelookedateveryoneandevenafterthenhewentsomewhereallaloneandhewouldnttellanyoneandIamworrypleasecanyoutalktohim!"
Mentally thanking his genetic for his superior daiyoukai's hearing because he doubted any average demon out there could catch up with her torrent of gibberish, Sesshōmaru lowered his sword back to the floor before settling himself to his previous position after she released him. However, by now she was reaching the first stage of her young adulthood and still behaving like a child was unbecoming. He gave her a water-downed version of his disapproval gaze (contrary to popular belief, she was not an exception to his evil eyes), firstly to reprimand her unladylike behaviors, secondly, for mentioning Inuyasha. And not just mentioning, she requested him to talk to Inuyasha.
But he had asked her first, so it was his responsibility to hear her out even if he started regretting this already. Sesshōmaru stilled and closed his eyes, hoping she wouldn't push his patience and dragged her Inuyasha topic on for longer than he could endure.
"Umm…"
Rin, with all your importance to me, don't do this to me. Sesshōmaru fought the urge to just leave for real. He heard a shuffling sound of clothes, needless to open his eyes to know she was fidgeting with the sleeve of her kimono, feeling unnerved with this situation as much as him, knowing Inuyasha was a very sensitive topic he'd rather not getting himself involve with.
For a long while, there were just his increasing irritation and her mounting anxiousness filling the heavy silence and awkward air in this small hut of the old priestess.
"Sesshōmaru-sama…" Rin tested hesitantly.
At last he looked at her, inwardly sighing in resignation. "Very well."
Her expression brightened up a little too fast for his liking. Now he was entirely certain she had set him up for this, whatever this was he had gotten himself into.
"Could you stoop any lower than this, having a child worry about your pathetic self?" Sesshōmaru antagonized as soon as he spotted Inuyasha sitting on a branch of the Goshinboku Tree.
He expected the usual dramatic reaction, one consisted of Inuyasha getting in his personal space to showcase a new set of nonsensical but still colorful vocabulary that would lead to both of them drawing their respective swords and clashed until he left Inuyasha half-death somewhere his noisy companions could spot him and see to his injuries.
"Go bother someone else, Sesshōmaru."
That caught Sesshōmaru off-guard, which was in itself an understatement. Inuyasha did several things with those little words he managed to drone out. Ignored his insult. Brushed off his presence. And dismissed him at the same time. Some nerves. Sesshōmaru grabbed the loose part of Mokomoko and whipped it upward, when his fur successfully seized the half-demon's upper body, he yanked it down with full intention to see if the hanyou would have his head met the ground first. Inuyasha did, and Sesshōmaru watched, unimpressed.
Inuyasha looked at him as he stared down. Something most astonishing to him happened then. The hanyou rolled his eyes and stood, dusted his fire rat robe before turning to leave in the direction of the Bone-Eater's Well. He didn't let Inuyasha finish the second step. His whip lashed out, curled around one exposing ankle before it was severed by Tessaiga jamming on the ground just when he was about to give a tug that would unbalance Inuyasha where he was and caused him to fall on his face again.
"Are you done yet?" Inuyasha drawled again with that same flat tone, sheathed Tessaiga, not turning to look at his half-sibling. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you." The next step he made get his face full of Sesshōmaru's neckline.
Inuyasha pulled away and exhaled heavily, fingers combed his fringe as if to detangle some imaginary fuzzy locks with a scowl. "What do you want now?"
Sesshōmaru narrowed his eyes. If he hadn't really listened to Rin earlier, now he could start seeing what she tried to say. His hand almost grabbed Inuyasha's chin when the hanyou slapped it away, but that got Inuyasha looked at him nonetheless so he let the bold act slide for now. "What ails you, hanyou."
There was an uncharacteristic curl on the corner of Inuyasha's mouth to form a sneer at his demanding question before he was given the reply, "What makes you lower yourself to the level of a disgusting ugly filthy abomination hanyou and talk to it like you are doing now?"
He had his fair share of saying 'filthy hanyou' over the course of Inuyasha's life, but 'disgusting', 'ugly' and 'abomination' were never part of it even when he did make Inuyasha feel them depended on the occasion. Sesshōmaru used the next while to truly look at the younger one from point blank where they were almost flattened against each other. Inuyasha didn't take any step back after bumping into him since he had taken the liberty to evaporate their distance earlier. He paid careful attention to the way Inuyasha tensed up at his prolong silence, even more so when the hanyou caught the slight movement of his slit irises when he was scrutinizing the other's frame. There was something—
Inuyasha huffed and stepped back to move around him, gathering demonic aura to his legs in preparing to leap away.
Despite the brave act, he caught a nervous swallow before Inuyasha could hide it. Sesshōmaru was the kind of creature that only believed in what his eyes saw, not what others usually brushed off as their imagination due to some tricks of light.
"Inuyasha."
At the sound of his name, no matter how much he wanted to run, Inuyasha couldn't. He stood rooted to the spot, but didn't turn to look at his brother.
As much as Sesshōmaru hated to admit it, Inuyasha's silence unsettling him to a certain degree. A year of hunting Naraku together could only do so much to improve a previously nonexistence brotherhood. But he found himself caring for Inuyasha more than he should nevertheless. All he needed to stop denying it was the little push Rin had given him, as if she knew what he was waiting for but at the same time, wishing it would never come. An excuse.
But even now that he had it, he was still at a loss of how to go about it himself. He could already guess what happened to Inuyasha, but was such a trivial matter really bother the other that much? It couldn't be. He had said worse to Inuyasha, as the only family and half-sibling who refused to acknowledge him, to make sure no living being out there could hurt the younger more than him by words, to the point of pushing Inuyasha to soak his hands in the blood of his offenders each time they opened their mouth to utter the first syllable of 'hanyou'. His excuse for that had been to ensure Inuyasha grow up into something worthy of a kill for his own satisfaction and not dropped dead somewhere to further insult his noble blood. What kind of fool would call those adorable little triangle shape ears ugly and abomination? Sesshōmaru believed the heat of early winter had gotten to him after all. He didn't just think about anything adorable. No. There was no 'adorable' word in his dictionary. He said no!
"What do you want, really? I seriously doubt I want to stand here like a complete idiot no matter how gorgeous you think you are!" Inuyasha blurted impatiently, threw his hands in the air before flopping down to sit on the ground and crossed his arms grumpily.
Sesshōmaru's train of thought was snapped in half, rendered him temporarily speechless.
Inuyasha was rigid himself, mentally clawing his tongue out for spilling something he shouldn't. But before he could bolt, Sesshōmaru already grabbed the back of his neckline to haul him up until he was properly staring into his brother's… slightly wide eyes?
"Gorgeous?" Sesshōmaru echoed.
Inuyasha immediately looked defensive. "What? Have you never looked at yourself in a mirror? Or your vanity loves to hear people spell it out for you?!"
Sesshōmaru blinked, the majority of his bewildered state he allowed himself to put on display.
So… it was not about words, but self-consciousness?
He could hear Rin coo in the back of his mind, urging him to say something relatively on the line of 'You are the most beautiful creature have graced my mortal eyes, my little Inuyasha!' complete with a dazzling smile, floral background, pigeons and bells. Maybe he should cut his visits to Rin, she was doing something with his head.
"You think I am gorgeous." Sesshōmaru repeated, staring blankly at Inuyasha, who shrank under his penetrating stare.
"Well, of course I—"
Sesshōmaru didn't bother to hear the rest as he dropped Inuyasha unceremoniously on the ground on his bum this time. He wouldn't want that pretty head suffered any more deranged damage before he could fix it.
Inuyasha jumped backward, away from the deadly range of Bakusaiga just slicing where his throat had been and rolled further away, putting enough safe distance for him to unsheathe Tessaiga and took on a defensive stance. He opened his mouth to demand what his brother was doing only to close it and swallow a gasp almost escape at the intense murderous aura from Sesshōmaru.
"I am truly surprised you have been alive long enough while allowing such useless perception to come to your attention." Sesshōmaru raised Bakusaiga and pointed at Inuyasha's face, channeling his aura to enforce his next attack.
"What are—!" Inuyasha had to stop short in his yelling to swing Tessaiga up when Sesshōmaru appeared before him with his sword striking down.
"Have you forgotten what I said, Inuyasha, that I am the one will kill you." Sesshōmaru reminded calmly, belied the crimson flashes in his narrow golden eyes piercing the younger pair with real killing intention.
Momentarily, Inuyasha's eyes widened before being shadowed behind thick silver fringe. In a burst of his own enraged aura, he broke their stalemate and forced them both to leap backward.
Sesshōmaru observed the change in Inuyasha's demeanor. There was something darker raising, more negative than the former.
"Yeah, you've said it many times I wonder if you finally grow bored of it and about to get it over with now." Inuyasha hissed through his fangs, Tessaiga's blade change to a certain diamond shape as he held the sword hilt horizontal with his eyes, "But I have many things to lose to give up my life without a fight!" Tessaiga thrust through the pressure of their demonic auras combine, released Kongōsōha at his half-sibling.
Sesshōmaru fired a blast at the center of the coming attack directly toward Inuyasha. They had fought many times enough to be aware of Bakusaiga's unique offensive pattern couldn't completely stop Kongōsōha, simply because the diamond spears were not attached to each other that would have resulted in the chain destruction following one broken shard otherwise. Instead of giving Inuyasha time to deflect his counterattack and planned his own next move like he often did, Sesshōmaru took advantage of the opening he had created and followed it to maneuver closer to his sibling, preparing to cut open Inuyasha's throat.
Tessaiga gave a pulse before its entire blade turned black.
Inuyasha watched the nearing Sesshoumaru, eyes flickered as if they were filled with unshed tears. The crescent shape of his Meidō Zangetsuha engulfed Sesshōmaru until he couldn't see any glimpse of his last family.
I thought something had changed… Inuyasha looked at the black Tessaiga in his hand, "I finally become disgusting as they said, you know. I rely on the Meidō Zangetsuha he had completed to kill him. At least I can always blame you and his power are two things that got his life instead of me, the one use you to do it. Kagome left. Sesshōmaru is no more. Soon the village will see me like they did 50 years ago and I am back to nothing, wandering around like the abomination born from a mistake of my parents, searching for somewhere to belong."
A painful poke on his forehead by two claw fingers threw him backward and crashed into the nearest tree behind.
"Pitiful fool," Sesshōmaru stated, flicked a silver lock over his shoulder, turning to regard the gaping Inuyasha, "You think this Sesshōmaru can be killed like that?"
"Se—you! How?! I saw—!" Inuyasha stumbled over his words, unable to comprehend how could this demon was still standing in this world instead of getting lost in that dark void of Hell, until his eyes fell on Tenseiga in Sesshōmaru's other hand, "Oh…"
"While it had lost what it used to carry, Tenseiga can still cut something that does not belong to the living. Or have you forgotten how you got out of a Dark Path the first time?" Sesshōmaru raised an eyebrow.
"I'm sorry because my head is not as good as yours!" Inuyasha snapped and looked to the side, hoping Sesshoumaru wouldn't notice the way his shoulders sagging in relief.
"That didn't come to my attention until it was almost too late. Something beautiful distracted me." Sesshōmaru remarked offhandedly, sheathing his swords and walked toward Inuyasha.
Inuyasha snorted disbelievingly. "Yeah, right." Maybe the landscape they had trashed very attractive.
"Even I do find something beautiful in its own right, Inuyasha." Sesshōmaru curled his forefinger under Inuyasha's chin to lift his face until they looked right into each other's eyes. "Something that is full of the will to live, even when others trampled it, finding satisfaction in watching it wither. Standing strong and proud even when being all by itself. Accepting but not submitting to what is coming. Struggling but not begging for mercy. All to keep living on. What else could be more beautiful than that?"
Something constricted in Inuyasha's throat but he couldn't turn his head away to escape Sesshōmaru's tightening grip. He pressed his lips more firmly shut in fear of the first noise he would let loose when given the chance, staring at his brother with all defiance within himself.
Not releasing Inuyasha's chin, Sesshōmaru crouched to level his gaze with the younger one's. He could see the doubts shattering, giving way for wariness and… hope? He sighed for the first time since this entire situation dropped on his head. "I am his heir. And I have seen with my own eyes that you are a worthy owner of his heirloom because I wouldn't allow any abomination have it. Can't you figure it out for yourself what is the meaning of this?"
Inuyasha averted his eyes, making a sour face in obvious confusion. Surprisingly enough, Sesshōmaru released his chin. Before he could move his neck so much, he went rigid when hot breath tickling one of his ears as Sesshōmaru whispered in an almost inaudible tone that was uncharacteristically soft on contrary to how the demon was pulling his head down painfully by his hair.
"That I have recognized you are no longer a mistake Father had brought upon our blood and acknowledged you as my equal, Sibling."
Inuyasha couldn't do much after a gasp at the admission before Sesshōmaru continued.
"But if you make me say this again in the future, I will not hesitate to kill you for real."
Inuyasha closed his eyes tightly as his body trembled near violently to hold in the tears threatened to pour out. His hands made a grab for Sesshōmaru's sleeves to steady himself. He needed to hold on to something in order to take in the sense Sesshōmaru had spoken into him, to feel the sincerity in those words came forth from whose voice hurt him more than anything else he had encountered ever since his life as a stray began.
As if hearing his thought, Sesshōmaru questioned, "What is the use in lying to you about this?"
Inuyasha chortled, "I don't know," He found himself composed enough to look up at his brother without appearing like the misery mess he was feeling, "Maybe the old man still left another heirloom somewhere and I am unknowingly hiding again that you are after?"
Sesshōmaru smiled faintly, and much to Inuyasha's humorous dismay, he went along, "Maybe."
Inuyasha sat on the tree branch with Sesshōmaru stood beside him. Both hidden from view as the children ran below to search for Inuyasha and missed them completely.
"Behind that maskless innocence is a cruelty without boundary. Cruel, because they know not of the consequence follow their action, and have yet developed their humanity enough to burden themselves with acknowledging the existence of it. They could have run a sword through your heart and aware not of a fact you would die by that."
The half-demon turned his eyes from the children to look at his sibling with something akin to awe disbelief. "To think someone like you had taken Rin in and still can say thing like that."
"I have experienced more than one exception to agree that point of view couldn't be always right. But those exceptions only happened in ideal situations where they were not part of a mass in which common sense lies in numbers, unadulterated by others' standard of what is right and wrong." Sesshōmaru moved his piercing gaze to Inuyasha, "Even as a child, they don't know why they are calling you a 'hanyou' and must hate you because of it. All stemmed from the contempt of their parents and the generations before them having against you despite you did nothing to upset them so. To the rest of your life possibly, you will have to live and grow in the midst of hatred for what you are and stop wondering why they hate you. Because to protect themselves, they have to deny finding answers in the unknown that make you different from them, for fear of seeing the same humanity in yourself that they too own it, which makes them human."
"How about you?" Inuyasha asked, not in the least perturbed by the revelation.
Sesshōmaru smirked, "I am not a man, of course I didn't follow their petty reason to hate you."
Inuyasha noticed the past tense and let a small smile stay on his face. "You didn't?"
"Naraku had poured his miasma directly on me, and you would for real believe Father lose his life fighting a human in the fire?"
This could be the first time in his life Sesshōmaru mentioned about their Sire's death in a civil manner. Inuyasha didn't know if he should push his luck. "Why…"
"I had known he didn't have long after sealing Ryuukotsusei. I was only in denial that thing could have been different if he had chosen to recuperate instead of saving you and your mother. It was easy to blame a living materialization of grief than to extract my anger on an inanimate object even if it was the true cause. Besides, it was more humiliated for that cursed Black Dragon being sealed where all could ridicule him than ending his pathetic life too soon. But, he did prove to be of use. I wouldn't want to be a test subject to teach you Bakuryuha after that incident with Kaze no Kizu. You keep proving to be a worthy opponent every time I see you."
Inuyasha ducked his head, feeling heat crawled up his face. Those words made him feel strangely giddy that he had to bite his bottom lip to stop himself from grinning like an idiot.
The thin line of Sesshōmaru's mouth drew downward. Inuyasha had become strong enough to live without guidance and protection now. This moment forever marked his duty to his stray sibling complete. The hanyou had found a place where he could live peacefully with faithful companions by his side. He had done what he could to ensure mundane things wouldn't endanger what life Inuyasha would choose to lead from now on. The rest was up to Inuyasha now. He sat down on the branch facing Inuyasha, taking in his profile, from the twitching puppy ears always alert to danger, to the wide golden eyes expressively broadcasting his curiosity about what the world was about to throw at him, that loud mouth always spoke bluntly of what he truly felt no matter how embarrassing it sounded in the ears without reservation… how long could the fire rat robe protect Inuyasha before it failed him, would Inuyasha continue walking on the rough surface of earth with his bare feet…
"Sesshoooomaruuuuu! Let go! What are you doing! Seeeesshoooooomaruuu! Hellooooooooo?!" Inuyasha yowled in mortified, struggling halfheartedly in the bone-crushing embrace his older sibling was giving him.
He used to be as small as Rin that I could have encased him easily with one hand. Sesshōmaru mused to himself, ignored the fuss Inuyasha was throwing at his action. I wonder if Father and Mother had felt the same when I left. He put his chin atop Inuyasha's head and sighed for the second time that day, "You are just another wildflower this world is toying with, little brother."
Inuyasha relaxed, nuzzled Sesshōmaru's neck before laying his head on the strong shoulder. "As long rain still comes and sunlight is bright enough, I think the wildflower can manage to stay alive. The meaning of immortal is what death refuses to claim, right?"
Sesshōmaru closed his eyes. "Come find me at the same moment you feel like giving up,"
Inuyasha smiled slightly, "So you can put me out of my mise—"
"I will take you from your world and guide you into mine so we will start all over again."
Realization dawned onto Inuyasha's widened eyes. "You can't mean…"
"I am." Sesshōmaru confirmed, "I have voluntarily involved with human's affairs for too long. It is time to leave."
Inuyasha searched his brother's gaze, "But you called me sibling…"
"Father must have his reason to create you as what you are. I have done my part in preparing you to the best I can, for you to walk among humans and hopefully one day, to live like one. Live this half-life until you have had enough, until when you find it in yourself to embrace the demon-half that is related to me and our Father. Only then, come to me. You will know, from somewhere within your blood, of how to reach me when I am the only thing in your mind."
"But… wait! Sessho—!" Inuyasha cut himself off to grab his brother's sleeve before Sesshōmaru could take off. "What's about Rin? Are you going to abandon her?"
"No," Sesshōmaru gave him an unreadable smile, "She is the one going to abandon."
"Sesshōmaru!" Inuyasha leaped after his disappeared sibling only to lose his balance and fell off the branch. Righting himself midair on reflex and landed soundlessly on the ground, Inuyasha ran in the direction of Kaede's hut, where he was certain the girl would be inside, reading through the medication scrolls Kikyo left behind.
"Rin!" Inuyasha barged into the small dwelling, looked around almost in panic until he spotted the girl.
Rin stared, startled by his entrance. "Inuyasha-sama?"
"Where is Sesshōmaru?" Inuyasha walked in, half of his jumpy mind expected Sesshōmaru to suddenly pop out of nowhere and attack them.
"Ses…sho…u…maru?" Rin tested the name on her tongue as if it was a foreign language and frowned, tilted her head slightly in confusion. A reaction that made Inuyasha's blood run cold. "Who is that, Inuyasha-sama?"
Inuyasha stared at her blankly.
"What's happened?" Miroku peaked in along with Sango, Shippō and Kohaku, obviously disrupted in their routine by the commotion Inuyasha caused when he got here.
"I don't know," Answered Rin, looking from Inuyasha to the others, "He seems to be searching for someone names Se-Se-Sessho—ah, wait! Inuyasha-sama!" She called after him when Inuyasha turned and ran outside.
She forgets… Inuyasha repeated in his mind like a mantra.
"What's with you, Inuyasha?" Kaede asked from his side as she walked in his direction.
"Kaede…" He managed after a strangle swallow, "Kaede, do you remember how Rin came here?"
The old priestess looked at him as if he had grown another pair of puppy ears on his head. She huffed moodily. "You think I'm too old to remember something like that?! You unruly brat! Of course I remember you saved her from the wolves and brought her here!"
It took all his might to stop himself from yelling "Yes! You are!" As it was, Inuyasha ran away from the village until the Bone-Eater's Well was in sight. He sat leaning against the wooden edge and looked up at the sky. Night had fallen before he knew it. The only source of light was from the waning moon with crescent shape, the shape that was familiar to Sesshōmaru's…
"Sesshōmaru…"
Inuyasha looked at his hands, flexed his claws and caressed the hilt of Tessaiga. There was still part of him and Tessaiga to prove Sesshōmaru's existence in this half-life he had to continue walking through.
Until we meet again.
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