Chapter 4: Forgotten Memories

"Kagome…" The older inu-youkai turned to face our brave mesuinu-hanyou. The resemblance was amazing. Anyone could tell right away that the man standing before her was none other than Yuudai himself. Well…anyone could tell but Kagome.

"H-how do you know my name? Look, I'm just trying to find oof-" Yuudai charged his otome and held her tight in a death grip. Tears now lit in his eyes.

"I knew at least one of you would come back. Oh god my little koinu, how I missed you and your Haha!" To say Kagome wasn't shocked, just thrown off a bit.

"You're my chichi? You're Yuudai?" Now that Kagome had gotten a good look at him, he had the same eyes as her, that strange mesmerizing amethyst, a kuroi hoshi on his left cheek, a blue-black tail and blue-black hair tied in a pony in the center of the back of his head. Taking a small whiff, she vaguely remembers that scent of vanilla and pine. Tears sprung in her eyes. She had found him, after not knowing him for sixteen years of her life; she had found her chichi with the help of Inuyasha. Speaking of which…

"Oh my KAMI!"

"What, what is it Kagome?" Her father was indeed confused. One minute she was shocked, then crying of happiness, now freaking out. She must have inherited that trait from Yuri.

"Inuyasha!"

"Dare ga?"

"The shuroi inu-hanyou I was travelling with! Your guards were patrolling and took him away and brought me here! We have to find him!"

"Calm yourself young one. There is no need to find him."

"But!"

"Kurotaro!" The kuroi youkai yelled for the nearest guard.

"Hai Yuudai-sama?"

"Go fetch me Inuyasha. He is one of the prisoners being held captive. Now!"

"Hai!" The guard fled for the prisoner holding hut. In a few moments, three guards could be seen dragging a silver haired, red lump over to Yuudai's hut.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome rushed to him and growled at the guards. "How dare you do this to him! He didn't deserve it! He was just helping me out!" Flexing her clawed hands, she lept to swipe at the offending youkai.

"Woah. Just because you think you're the kunshu's new mesuinu doesn't mean you get to order us around wench." One of the guards slapped Kagome in the face, claws extended. Upon hearing Kagome gasp in pain, both Inuyasha and Yuudai growled.

"Kagome!" Ripping his arms free of their grasp, Inuyasha punched the guard who had hit her, and knocked him unconscious. "Don't EVER touch Kagome or I'll make sure you don't live to see tomorrow." Turning to face Kagome, he went up to her and started licking her face, cleaning the scratches left by the youkai's hit. Kagome gasped, he wasn't in his hanyou state anymore, sure he looked like his normal self, but his scent had altered slightly and purple jagged slashes appeared on either side of his face. Once he was done licking her cheek, he sniffed her, making sure she was still unmated. During this time, Yuudai had whacked both of the guards.

"Don't EVER hit my otome, you know the rules! I should have you both beheaded for this!"

"G-gomen, Yuudai-sama. Onegai, onegai, what will my mate and own otome think if they found out. Onegai Yuudai-sama, would you really let them live alone, knowing my pup could be killed and my mate taken by another?" One of the two youkai cried. The other youkai nodding his head in agreement.

"Iie. You are right. But this outbreak shall not go unpunished. You are both to aid Kagome and-" Yuudai turned around to face the silver haired hanyou. Recognition dawned on his face and with another small gasp he whispered "Inukai…" Hearing his own chichi's name, Inuyasha turned to face the kunshu of the kuroi inu clan.

"Keh. My oyaji's dead. Been dead for a long time. I'm gonna take a wild guess and say you're Yuudai?" Yuudai nodded.

"You're his son, Sesshomaru?"

"Keh. No! How did you think that one up! I ain't no cold bastard like him!"

"Chichi, this is Inukai-sama's other musuko, Inuyasha." Kagome smiled sweetly and gazed at the said hanyou. What she saw in her eyes, one could only describe as relief and…what was that other look? "Inuyasha…"

"I-I thought I lost you. Kagome…" Inuyasha embraced Kagome for the second time, hot wetness climbing to the front of his eyes.

"Inuyasha…I can't breathe." Blushing, Inuyasha let go of her just as the jagged stripes left his face. Kagome smiled, Inuyasha was safe and unharmed…well…unharmed enough to still be able to move.

"Oh! Inuyasha, this is Yuudai, my chichi, as you had guessed." Inuyasha nodded his head, as did Yuudai.

"Inuyasha, Kagome, I insist you both stay in the village, at least for tonight. I am truly sorry for what my men have done, but I must ask Inuyasha, what is your relation to my otome?" Once again, Inuyasha and Kagome's face light up in a brilliant shade of red.

"Umm…hehe…chichi, we haven't really discussed that ourselves…heh…" Inuyasha just nodded. Really, they hadn't talked about it yet, but he knew it would come up sooner or later, especially sooner now that he had told Kouga that Kagome was his mate. Geez, a simple little bad timing with wording and it starts THIS. No doubt Yuudai would talk to him about Kagome now too.

"Well if you are not mated, at the least intended, I have suitors that would be delighted to be your mate." Yuudai said happily. Inuyasha growled.

"No fucking way. She's not mating someone she doesn't know.I won't allow her to do that to herself! Kagome can decide who she wants to mate and obviously, it wouldn't be a stranger! She even turned down Kouga, who she's known for three years! What makes you think she would choose some random youkai?"

"I see…so you have laid claim on my otome, Inuyasha?"

"Keh, none of your business."

"Inuyasha…don't be so rude to Tousan."

"At least you have some manners otome. Inuyasha and myself will be taking a walk before supper. You may wander around the village and get to know your people. After all, you are the heir to this tribe, we wouldn't want the new kunshu to not know her own people she commands, do we?" Kagome shook her head no and smiled.

"Umm, kunshu-sama?"

"Oh, you're still here…what do you want?"

"This mesuinu is your otome, sir?" Yuudai nodded. The guard turned to Kagome and bowed deeply.

"Gomen nasai for disobeying and striking you my lady, I hope you will forgive both myself and my friend here for our rude behaviour to both you and your intended." Once again, the two hanyou were haori-red.

"Umm…we accept your apology, but please, don't refer to Inuyasha as my intended, he has a name."

"Hai, my lady."

"Onegai, Kagome desu." Inuyasha was hurt by Kagome's words. Did she not want him as a mate? He knew he was indeed unworthy of her, but to hear it out loud broke his heart. Inuyasha looked down at the ground as if in shame.

"Inuyasha? What's the matter?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing…nothing important to worry yourself over, wench." Kagome eyed him suspiciously. She wondered what was bugging him about what she had said. She rethought what she had told the guard and gasp when she figured it out.

"Oh Inuyasha." Kagome smiled and hugged her beloved hanyou. "I didn't mean it that way, I just thought he should have given you more respect by calling you by your name, not what your status is with me. Baka-yasha." She gave him a quick peck on the cheek, causing both hanyou to turn bright red, and ran farther into the village.

"It seems she has already chosen her mate." Inuyasha jumped, having forgotten that the elder youkai was standing right behind him. Inuyasha turned around to face Yuudai suspiciously.

"Alright cough it up. I know you knew who I was when they first brought me here. How?"

Yuudai chuckled. "It is more of a question of when and where I knew you and why you and Kagome don't remember, pup."

"Keh. I ain't no fucking pup."

"Of course, but to me you will always be that little pup that Inukai and Izayoi dragged along with them to come play with my otome every once in a while."

"Nani!"

"Hai. I knew you when you were a pup Inuyasha, or should I say, Mori-chan?" The name rang familiar in Inuyasha's mind. His friend, Rira, before the accident that ultimately caused her demise, called him that. She was only three at the time of the attack, he, four.

"Rira-chan…" ultimate depression hit him. He had forgotten about her after that day, the pain too hard on the young hanyou at the time. It was the first time he had ever witnessed a death, and it had hurt him a little more than everyone else because he had thought that Rira was going to be his mate when they grew older. Why would Yuudai bring up these memories he obviously didn't want.

"Yes, Rira-chan, that was the name you gave her. Your parents miss you, you know?"

"Nani? They're both dead! How could they miss me?"

"So I see, he altered your memories, so you would forget them and Kagome…"

"What do you mean!" Inuyasha was panicking; he didn't like being left out of the loop, at all. Yuudai sighed; it was going to be a long time before dinner was served tonight.

"It started just after I had put Kagome in the well. Both you and her were begging me not to, and believe me when I say I didn't want to do it, but I had to follow youkai law or we would have all been killed. Needless to say, after she was gone you ran. A wicked spider demon named Naraku kidnapped you and that was the last time your parents or myself ever saw you, Inuyasha." Inuyasha took all of this new information in. Naraku had kidnapped him as a pup and altered his memories so that he would believe his parents were dead. He also knew Kagome as a pup…no wonder he always felt a strong connection to her, even without the kotodama around his neck.

"Kagome…is Rira-chan…" A smile grew on Yuudai's face. The young pup finally remembered. "Kagome…I had claimed her when we were just pups, didn't I? That's why I feel like I have to protect her as if she was my mate." That little information shocked Yuudai. He had forgotten that day, when Kagome had come home happier than usual, telling him of the shuroi-hanyou's claim. He was livid. She was only three years old for kami's sake! A pup being claimed, he had certainly never heard of it! The old memory had brought up his anger towards the hanyou, but he wouldn't confront Inuyasha about it after 63 years.

"Hai. You did. You had felt that connected to her since the first day you met, if I recall correctly." Inuyasha gave one of his rare smiles at the mention of this. So he already had an intended, and of his choice too, his parents were still alive and here, he was accepted. Maybe Kagome and him weren't going to go back to the group…maybe being the important part. "Now…about my otome…" Inuyasha blushed, knowing what this topic would bring.

End Chapter Four

A/N

Yay! Another chapter done. Well, before I post the next chapter, I want at least ten reviews!

Ja!

Adina-chan