Forsaken: For Nothing Ever Changes

Chapter: The New Family

Date: January 16, 2012

Kuraiko did not want to talk to them at the moment, any of them. He had just found out terrible, horrible news and they were just making it worse because they were part of it. Kuraiko had been taken from the only parents that he had ever known, despite the fact that they did not really tend to him as parents should; they had been the only parents he had ever had. He knew that they were not directly responsible for it, but it did not make the feeling of resentment towards them go away or lessen. Do not get him wrong, he liked Inuyasha and Mozinth, but he had just met them and did not really know them on any reasonable level. This scared him and only reinforced his negative feelings towards the couple when he knew, intellectually, that it was not their fault. Kuraiko was also smarting over the fact that his parents had forgotten him and would not have remembered, for some time, that they were even missing him had they not been summoned back for their trial. It hurt to know that he meant so little to them despite the fact that it was their choice to have him in the first place. Perhaps, once he dealt with their betrayal he could appreciate the care and affection that Inuyasha was attempting to shower him with. At the moment, though, it was just too much for him to receive the one the thing he wanted from his parents from demons that were essentially complete strangers to him.

Inuyasha could only watch the child with painful empathy and sympathy of what the younger hanyou was being made to endure. Inuyasha had been forsaken by his friends and he knew the pain that accompanied that betrayal. He could only empathize with the pain of having a parent betray a trust so far, as his parents had died while he was still very young, much younger than Kuraiko. He also empathized with the boy's confusion and lashing out at everyone else for giving him what should have been given to him by his parents. It was a natural response, but Inuyasha also knew that no matter how much the child lashed out, he would stand right there and take it until the little one tired himself out and began to cry out his hurt while asking for a comforting embrace. He would make sure that Kuraiko had everything he needed from him and he would help the little hanyou heal from the deep emotional wounds that his parents had just inflicted upon him.

Zinny watched his mate closely, keeping an eye on Inuyasha's health as they had found out that their coupling from the Rut had indeed left Inuyasha with child. While they were overjoyed that they were expecting another child into their family, the excitement was also overshadowed by little Kuraiko's situation. They had also opted not to tell the children until Kuraiko managed to settle in a bit and they were all on better terms with the backlash that Kouga's and Kagome's actions had caused. Zinny knew that they would be traveling a hard path for the next several days, but with Sesshoumaru's permission, they had more than enough time to accomplish everything they needed to before heading back home to Sanctuary.

It was Shippou, the oldest of Inuyasha's children that helped Kuraiko to move on to the next stage of his grieving. Shippou, of his own initiative, entered Kuraiko's room and sat down next to the lump that marked the center of the raised futon. Shippou did not say a word, but waited until the wolf hanyou deemed him worthy of acknowledgement. If there was one thing that the fox had learned from his father, it was the patience to deal with almost anything. It was a patience that Shippou exercised faithfully until almost two hours later when the cub got tired of waiting for him to leave and made an appearance from beneath the blanket.

"Are you ready to talk, now?" Shippou asked softly. He would not force Kuraiko to do anything that he did not want to do, but he would encourage the younger demon softly, like his mom would do when he had had a bad dream that he was afraid to recall. Kuraiko glared at the fox.

"Go away!"

"When you are ready to talk, we'll talk and then I will leave you be. However, it helps to talk to someone even if you just want them to listen and nothing else. It will help you to hear yourself talk aloud and can help you muddle through all those emotions you're keeping bottled up." Shippou spoke from experience. During his initial time with Inuyasha and the group, only Inuyasha was the one to notice that not all was right with the fox kit. Shippou had resented his parents for going out and dying and leaving him all alone, but it had been Inuyasha just willing to listen that had made him see just how backward those feelings were. The hanyou had also begun to take care of Shippou in his parents place at the moment when he had allowed the fox kit to release all his pent up and once hidden emotions on his shoulders. So, Shippou would wait and encourage gently until the young one felt strong enough to let go.

Shippou did not have to wait long before the young one made his appearance and settled himself next to the fox demon on his bed. However, Kuraiko still did not take the initiative to speak, so the fox demon took it upon himself to begin their conversation.

"How 'bout this, I tell you a bit of my story and you just talk to me about why you are so upset, okay?" Kuraiko took a moment to think long and hard about Shippou's proposition before nodding his head in acceptance of the conditions. Shippou smiled and began to tell the story of how his parents had died at the hands of the Thunder Brothers and how Inuyasha had saved Shippou from a fate like that of his parents by the same set of brothers. He also shared his anger at his parents because they had chosen to leave him all alone so that they could attend to a crisis that had occurred with the Thunder Brother's ruination of a nearby fox demon village. Kuraiko could only stare in awe of Shippou as he told him the story and then that awe turned to empathy for Shippou and gratitude for Inuyasha. Shippou looked at the little wolf cub expectantly.

"I'm not mad at Inuyasha-san or Mozinth-san, but they did not tell me the truth either. They knew that my parents left me behind and they did not say anything. I hate that! My mother and father do the same thing. They don't tell me anything because they forget that I even exist until someone happens to mention my name! I don't like feeling like I'm unimportant. I want to be important!" The little wolf hanyou began to sob and that was when Inuyasha appeared as if summoned by the young one's pain. In fact, Inuyasha had been eavesdropping at the door, but that hardly mattered as he took the sobbing pup into his arms to comfort him and to reassure him that they believed him to be important. After an hour of crying, little Kuraiko had finally cried himself to sleep and refused to let go of Inuyasha clothing, a Chinese Changshan for the day, so the older hanyou lay down with the still distraught pup. Shippou left the room and went to find his father so that the Alpha would know where to find his Beta should he need Inuyasha for something.

Since Kuraiko's breakthrough with Shippou and subsequent emotional fallout which Inuyasha handled, the young cub stayed almost permanently attached to one or the other. Much to the Inuyasha's chagrin as Chiboshi and Aiya were both displaying traits of jealousy that their mother was paying so much attention to a pup that was not even related to them. While Aiya was indeed jealous, she was also confused because the wolf hanyou smelled a bit like her, but that should not be possible. As soon as her mother got rid of the distraction for a while, she would have to ask or she could ask her papa. He would have to know about why Kuraiko reminded her of her own scent.

Inuyasha was exhausted. Ever since he and Mozinth had sat down with Kuraiko and explained exactly why they had kept the truth for them and how they would have done that for any of their own children, it was like Inuyasha had an infant all over again. That was not what exhausted him. What did have him wishing for a day of peace and silence was the fact that he was pregnant therefore, his moods were all over the place, his belly was beginning to swell, and with this pregnancy he was not holding his food down that well. It was a recipe for an exhausted Inuyasha who was ready to collapse at any moment and he did, right in middle of a meal that his brother was hosting for his visitors from across the seas.

Sesshoumaru was nearly in a panic as his brother slumped slightly before fainting at the table. Worst of all, Inuyasha's head landed in the lap of the Chinese dog lord, whose face showed first shock, then irritation, before finally settling on concern. Sesshoumaru was out of his seat and making his apologies as he lifted his brother into his arms and made his excuses. His mate remained behind to continue to entertain their guests, but also made sure that a servant was sent to inform Mozinth who had taken up guard duty as a way to thank his Nii-sama for allowing them to stay as long as they had.

By the time Mozinth arrived at the healer's chambers, Inuyasha had already awakened from his fainting and was receiving some important instructions from the palace healer in regards to his health and the pup's. Inuyasha nodded tiredly and promised to follow the directions strictly before the healer finally gave him respite from the lecture. It was then that Zinny let himself be known by stepping into the room from behind the door. Inuyasha gave him a weak smile and patted the empty bed space beside him. Zinny quickly made the journey across the room and fiercely hugged his fatigued Beta.

"Are you alright? Is the pup okay? What did the healer say? Do we need to ask Sesshoumaru if he can spare some help to help you with the children until everything becomes more settled?" Inuyasha laughed softly.

"No, I do not need any help, but yours. I am fine but tired and the pups are as healthy as they can be. The healer said that I need to rest and eat more and I should start to feel better. And…if you really want to help me, then you can start with helping Aiya and Chiboshi get past their jealousy of Kuraiko as well as seeing if you cannot get them to spend a bit of time together to get to know each other better." Inuyasha pleaded the request with his eyes and Zinny had no will power to tell his sweet, pregnant, little mate no. He nodded his affirmation and kissed Inuyasha's forehead with whispers of encouragement to get better, missing the mischievous twinkle that had entered his little mate's eyes. Inuyasha knew that he had just set Mozinth with a monumental task, but he was just not up to taking it and it would be funny to watch Mozinth try.

Kuraiko, Chiboshi, and Aiya just looked at each other silently. Their expressions were frighteningly blank for children and they were all unnaturally still. It unnerved their father to no end and he was not afraid to admit that he was at a loss as to what to do to get the kids to open up to one another and resolve the tensions that ran between them. Thankfully, it was not him who had to come up with the solution as Shippou had apparently already found one. The little fox demon was clever in his approach of the tension between his younger siblings and the new addition to their family.

"You guys are being mean to one another and Okaa-san does not like it when we are mean to one another. If he finds out, you all are going to have to eat that icky stuff again." The little ones at Shippou with horror, except for Kuraiko who looked on in curiosity as they could not believe that he would do such a thing to them or that he would tattle on them for the wolf cub.

"You wouldn't," Aiya accused loudly. Shippou smirked. If there was one thing that Aiya and Chiboshi could not stand, it was disappointing or making their mother angry.

"Not only are you guys being mean to Kuraiko, you are being boring too. I want to play a game! Do you want to play with me?" Shippou smiled as all of his younger siblings, Kuraiko included, clambered up and began asking what they were going to play while trying to shepherd him outside for whatever game Shippou had in mind to play. Mozinth could only sit back in stupefied awe as Shippou took care of the children's rising tensions in a very Inuyasha-like manner. After a moment, the demon just smiled before following the group out to watch over them while Shippou brought them together through happiness and fun. Inuyasha had raised truly amazing children and he was carrying yet another of Zinny's children. The Alpha felt content and truly at peace with everything that was happening in his life. He did not believe that there was anything more that he could possible want to ask for.

A/N: I made small changes here to make it more gramatically correct as well as adding or subtracting a few minor and possibly confusing things. I will also being remodeling the end of the story so that I can continue. YES! I just said that I am adding more to this sequel which never felt quite finished. I am really going to finish it this time.

Cheers!

Nama