Chapter 2: Scent of Autumn


The sense of smell, like a faithful counsellor, foretells its character. - Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin


He had heard his father's roar, spurring him to the top of the hill overlooking the burning mansion and velvet red snow.

His eyes told him of an altercation, his nose however told the story as it was and no matter how much the smell of smoke and burning wood clogged his nose, it could never hide the unmistakable scent of his father's blood.

The thunderous cries of vengeance in the name of a human snapped him out of his thoughts. Some humans still remained, some stayed rooted confused, others deserted the area. Some chased the trail of the woman who had bedded his father.

He snarled, viciously unleashing his poisonous whip on to the human pursuers. What was so great about humans. They were unrefined, they died in a blink of an eye and they mated early in order to leave some sort of pointless legacy...they were no better than cattle.

Sesshomaru watched as the woman fled, his father's fire rat robe covering her in that glaring red, making her easy to spot even in the shadows of the night. She was oblivious to anything but the bundle in her arms, she had not even bothered to cover her snowy tracks.

The new Lord, flared his demonic aura, warning any predator with half a mind to stay far away from the pair. Those who did try to attack the screeching hybrid and the clumsy human were swiftly killed with a flick of his wrist.

He watched from a distance as the woman found a cave and settled for the night, too tired to continue much farther. As her breath evened out, his curiosity grew. He wished to see what his father had thrown away his life for. He wanted to gaze at the thing that will forever tarnish his blood.

Sesshomaru leaned closer examining its face. Despite the close proximity the hybrid did not twitch his abnormal puppy ears, nor did he open his eyes. It did however, sniff and upon recognizing his smell as something familiar, it wriggled in its mother's hold, trying desperately to nuzzle the face near him.

At the abrupt movement, the human stirred and open her eyes groggily, shushing her baby and looking around the empty cave for signs of danger before falling asleep once again.

Golden eyes narrowed at his discovery.

The hybrid's smelled far more like a demon than he did a human.

Sesshomaru closed his eyes and recalled the fragrance. The combination was unsettling and made for a rather unique smell. It smelled strongly of fresh air, of family, and of earthy tones he associated with its mother.

Even if it smelled like family, it could never attain such a status. It was a half-breed, a travesty of both species. It was something that should not be, yet was. It had silver hair much like he did, perhaps it would have golden eyes, but the similarities would end there.

He consoled himself by thinking that it would die soon for the world was harsh, more so to one that belonged in neither world. Should it, by miracle, live through childhood unto adulthood, it would never be able to procreate in that form

The demon sat, stretching his legs before him, and leaned on the stone wall adjacent to the mouth of the cave. He respected his father enough to stay here and silently protect them through the night but he would do no more once they reached a human village.


He had initiated his usual greeting and he was confused at the lack of emotions in his brother's eye. His little brother had half-heartedly complied to his reminder and soon turned away from him, a clear dismissal. He had watched his brother turn away from him, leaving him perplexed.

The behaviour was soon pushed out of his mind, as his attention was grabbed by the child he regularly visited. As the little girl chatted about all the different colours on the trees and of how many yellow and red leaves she could find to make a crown, he found himself puzzling over Inuyasha.

Sesshomaru frowned, tuning out the sounds of childish laughter and the sounds of a pile of leaves crunching and cushioning a little girl's body weight.

Inuyasha's scent was unusually watered down, he clearly need comfort, which he had denied by leaving and ignoring his pack's concerned gaze.

His brother usually wore his heart on his sleeves. It was pathetically easy to understand what he was feeling if one looked at his eyes and body posture.

He did however have his moments where he seemed like he was carved out of stone. His human pack could not, in those instance, get him to confide in them, no matter how much they pried.

Inuyasha's behaviour plagued his mind all morning and loathe though he was to admit it, his curiosity often had a mind of its own. Decision made, he dropped Rin to the village before the sun would set and picked through the various smells composing the forest until he found the half-demon's trademark aroma.

He followed the scent into the forest, focusing only on the trail thus ignoring the path it let too. He eventually stopped to an imposing tree, feeling a sense of purity coming out of it. It stood proud still bearing healthy green leaves, despite the season.

The half-breed stared at an indentation on its bark, his clawed finger was touching the mark gently. He picked at the spot for a moment longer before letting his arm down, palm brushing over the rough bark in its descent.

Inuyasha leaned his forehead on the tree. He stayed that way, his eyes clenched shut, fangs peeking out and biting his lips, until a harsh exhale wrenched out of his mouth.

The sharp sound was deafening in the silent forest. It felt inexplicably wrong to have heard and seen that moment of weakness. Sesshomaru glared, as another shuttering breath broke free from the younger man, and never heard the deeper rumbling sound that followed.

White ears suddenly twitched around surprised and keenly aware of every rustle and every foreign sound even as a strong wind blew leeward.

"I can smell and hear ya, you know..." Inuyasha's voice said brusquely, trying to mask his embarrassment with annoyance.

Small sounds of crushed twigs and leaves were deliberately made to warn his little brother that he had no intention of heeding him and that he would leave only once his curiosity was satisfied.

"Leave me alone Sesshomaru," he growled as the steps grew closer and stopped to his right, shy of an arm's length away.

Sesshomaru turned his gaze skyward, giving the other the simple courtesy of composing himself, which the other gladly took to roughly wipe his burning eyes with his thumb and index finger on each eyelid.

The eerie silence stretched on, as no animal wished to be near the mounting tension between the two powerful beings.

Another gust of breeze whirled down, carrying the scent of burning embers from Inuyasha. Sesshomaru frown and waited for the outburst.

"What the hell do ya want now!? Is it too much to ask for some peace and quiet around here?"

Golden eyes narrowed and stared down at the young man baring his teeth, silently irritated for having to be the recipient of Inuyasha's tantrum.

He looked past white erect dog ears, to the protruded roots that had shaped itself oddly around the tree, hanging in the air, missing an item that it perhaps held once.

He sharply turned towards his little brother, finally recalling the history of this tree.

Just as easily as it came, the embers died and turned into the soft smell of burning incent tinged with a sweet yet spicy aroma. It permeated the air and was all but shouting what his half-brother desperately wanted to hide: shame.

Silver bangs cloaked his eyes as he bent his head, hiding.

"Why?" He allowed himself to ask for why would anyone look upon the place where a human had manage to best him so easily.

"Because that's where I met her alright!" The scent grew stronger and gained a hint of saltwater, though his voice was loud and full of anger.

The elder brother pressed his lips into a thin line, knowing clearly where this would lead.

He briefly considered turning back, his curiosity satisfied but something held him back. Perhaps it was the simple fact that Inuyasha was too tired to even deflect his question. He growled softly at his explanation, feeling at odds with his instinct and logic.

Instead of retracing his steps, he moved forward and brushed past his brother, his long fingers stretching towards the tiny hole he now knew to be where the arrow had pierce Inuyasha.

Just as Inuyasha worked his shame into anger once again, Sesshomaru steeled himself glaring at tree for its existence.

"Do you remember anything of the time you were sealed?"

The sudden and sharp citrus smell informed him he had caught his brother off guard. It soon turned into a soft orange blossom and sweet spices.

"I don't remember much after that, only ..." He trailed off still bemused by the sudden question.

"Only?" he prompted as the half-breed hesitated, falling silent and thankfully steering away from any thoughts about what was troubling him.

His brother's eyebrows shot up and his mouth open in astonishment. He truly couldn't believe the effort the other was putting in to pursue the conversation.

Sesshomaru met the gaze evenly and slowly sat down glaring at the other until he followed suit. The younger shuffled awkwardly, trying to distant himself from the other, yet unwilling to go too far.

"I remember the sound of the forest...and the smell of the seasons..."

As time passed they were unaware of the relaxed position they both adopted: Inuyasha leaned on the bark, his hands tucked into his sleeves and his legs folded under him. To his right his brother had stretched one of his legs, and folded another. His magenta striped arm leaning on his knee and hand tangling freely. Both looked up at what little they could see of the sky.

They stayed like that, the younger explaining and giving a detailed yet thoughtful account of what he felt during those fifty years, and the eldest listening quietly. The conversation eventual died down and they settle into a comfortable silence, neither wishing to disturb the night and neither truly feeling the need to settle back to their usual routine.

Come morning they would both deny they had done more than stare balefully at each other.

As he watched Inuyasha go, fatigued yet more relaxed then he had previously been, he caught the tail winds fresh air, mossy woods and of earthy flower tones and recalled the face of a newborn.

Air, was wild and free. The earthy tones he carried, much like woods these days, reminded him of strength and growth,

The scent had always fit it - no not it, him- he growled correcting himself.

Sesshomaru shook his head, his lips pulling down lightly, his version of a grimace.

He would never admit that the scent was something he grew used to being near him and he would never understand when he could not conceive calling it anything other but Inuyasha...


A/N

The beginning of this fic will be drabbles. They will be stepping-stones, a sort of foundation I'm building on to make the brothers less frosty and less awkward compared to the end of the series. That foundation will help the original scene I thought for this fanfic to be included and subsequently make it a continuous story (as it was meant to be).

Anyways, about this chapter, first, I'm going to go ahead and say I tried to give a scent to emotions and failed miserable, but I tried and I learned we had a fragrance wheel of sorts for perfume, so at least I got a fun fact out of it.

Second of all, I know it's a supernatural/ fantasy story, but even if two species actually managed to make a progeny , I have a hard time believing said progeny would be fertile. The only way I can see Inuyasha having kids is by reproducing while in human form, since his genetic makeup changes to that of a full human. Maybe it could also work if he were in his full-demon form, but then it's only stated that he smelled like one, so I'm not sure if it's implied that he becomes one genetically speaking too...

Thanks for reading and make my day by leave a comment or two!

Oh and if someone is interested in beta-in this fic let me know, I could really use the help!