A/N: Hey everyone! Today is my 21st birthday, so here is a present for you : D Enjoy!

Disclaimer: All characters and titles are the sole property of Rumiko Takahashi; All Hail.

It really wasn't very often that life in the feudal era came to a stand still. After all, the fields were not going to tend to themselves, and the food was not going to appear out of thin air. To live with any semblance of comfort meant work, and lots of it. Days and nights, season and years would pass by the regular interval of rising with the sun to work, and then retiring when it had set. So when it came to be that there was no longer any sun to be seen, and the people in the village were greeted day in and day out by the ceaseless grey clouds now tinged with heavy black, most simply tried to just go about their lives as if nothing was happening above them. And, for a time that worked. But as this day began drawing to a close and the latest meteorological event came sweeping in upon the winds, it became quickly obvious that regular life could not go on any longer.

As the curtain of night drew over the heavens, the empty streets of the village were submerged a deathly silence; any interrupting noise quickly ending without delay. Residents were either tucked away inside their houses or just beneath the overhangs of their tile roofs; No lowing from the laboring oxen, no grinding of the ploughs against the earth. Not even any straining cart wheels traveling down the uneven streets. From out of doorways and behind curtains, shining eyes stared out at the scene with an even mix of curiosity and terror. If the ceaselessly swarming grey clouds hadn't been enough, then what had now moved in over the land certainly was.

Thin, moisture laden mist was hanging in the air, seemingly unaffected by the sweeping winds that now blew in from the west at a near constant pace. Neither warm nor cold, blinding nor availing. The mists had consumed everything in their path in less than a day, then lingered upon the air as if waiting for a sign. It was immediately apparent that this was no ordinary mist- since ordinary mist would have easily succumbed to the slightest breath of wind anyway- in the way that it felt. This sinuous sheer substance seemed to seep right down into a persons' soul; filling them with the quaking dread of an unnamed fear. Whispering within them that they should stay out of sight, out of the way of whatever was coming.

Over at old Kaede's hut, small hints of a glowing fire within were peeping out of the drawn doorway curtain. Though the strange weather outside was certainly known to them, it didn't actually seem to have any place in the heated conversation. Sitting inside around the warm crackling fire, Inuyasha held his sword over his shoulder and his hands buried in the deep sleeves of his fire red Kimono. Next to him, Kagome was listening intently with one arm around a very anxious Rin and the other resting over Shippo's young shoulders. On the other side of the flames Miroku and Sango matched one another with serious expressions, their thighs just barely brushing as they rested close. Finally the silent Hatchi and Kaede completed the loose circle, both vaguely wondering exactly how long they were going to simply sit back and debate the issue.

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" Huh! Whoever said we were going to help the bastard, Miroku?!"

Bathed in the substantial light of the cooking fire, Inuyasha gave his ears a backwards flick while he affixed the monk with his most ferocious stare. The young monk answered the gaze with his own sober expression, turning the calming force of his fathomless oceanic eyes upon his friend. To say that the half demon was irritated may have been far too much of an understatement, but then again to say that he had no right to be would have been far too much of an overstatement. " Be reasonable," Miroku answered patiently " If we interfere in this battle, then you know that that is how Sesshoumaru will see it."

"He's right Inuyasha," Sango chimed in, running her eyes lightly over her fair face. "Sesshoumaru is too proud to ever accept our interference." Turning his seething eyes onto the demon slayer, Inuyasha spat " Well I don't give a damn what he'll think about my interference!"

Looking up from her vigorous stirring of the bubbling stew hanging over the fire, Kaede fixed the petulant Hanyou with her wizened eyes. " Then exactly what d'ye mean by traveling to the lands of the west with all haste Inuyasha?"

" I mean to find my idiot of a brother and jump in on the action! Why should that bastard get to have all the fun?!" A collective series of groans and sighs erupted around the fire. "Inuyasha this isn't some kind of side show attraction! It's a serious battle!" Kagome scolded, her furious eyes boring into the hanyou's turned face. "Feh! What're you all so afraid of?!" He demanded. "My Tetsusaiga would waste that Demigod no problem!"

" But it's not that simple Inuyasha," Sango offered, looking around the circle carefully and settling her eyes on Rin as she continued. " My father once told me that Demigods command immense elemental powers, and are charged by the gods with using them to the betterment of mankind." Drawing in a slow breath, the crackling of the fire was the only noise that could be heard in her brief pause. "This means that their abilities are not like those of a demon; And therefore, unlike anything we have ever faced before. Our attacks may not even work!"

Tossing his head in defiance, the Hanyou quickly jumped back on his defense. "Huh- well I don't give a damn who this bitch is! I'm an heir to my old man too, and I'm not about to let Sesshoumaru have the good fight all to himself!" Shippo, who had been busying himself with a fresh cherry lollipop until this point pulled the red orb from between his fangs, commenting "what an idiot." Immediately venting his annoyance on the Kitsune with a swift whack on the head, the pair began their familiar squabbling back and forth while Kagome voiced her opinion. "Well I don't know about Inuyasha's reasons, but I don't think we should just sit back and let Sesshoumaru get his head ripped off! Remember, he helped us all during the final battle with Naraku."

The others around the circle nodded in begrudging agreement, muttering under their breath all the while. " Even so," Miroku finally spoke, throwing a pointed glance over at Inuyasha- who was childishly stretching poor Shippos' cheeks into a clownish grin- to make sure that he heard him. " We are not even sure that we will be able to do anything against this Demigod; and I for one do not feel like foolishly casting my life away." Taking a deep breath, Miroku closed his eyes, and then finished.

"This is not our fight."

Rin burst in, her voice shrill with panic " No! We must help him!" Nothing answered her plea save for the howling of the wind outside. Momentarily the circle lapsed into complete silence again, the eight companions aglow in the firelight; lost in thought. The prospect of fighting an angry Demigod had them nervously divided, with the prospect of helping the stoic Daiyokai Sessshoumaru only serving to drive the wedge deeper. Inuyasha was the first one to speak, his voice taking on a rare serious tone that reverberated into his honey eyes.

" Well I'm going. You all can stay here if you don't think it's your fight; but I'm not about to let that bastard get his head ripped off. If she's gonna to kill him, then she's gonna have to get through me first."

"But she's a Demigod, Inuyasha." Miroku replied gently. "what can you do against her?…… what can any of us d-"

"MASTER INUYASHA!"

All eight heads whipped around in surprise as a familiar steady bouncing sound entered through the doorway. Silhouetted against the brilliant light of the flames, a tiny speck hopped from between the cracks in the door covering and quickly over towards Inuyasha. Making a great leap from the floor and onto the Hanyou's wrinkled nose, Myoga the ancient flea lost no time in drawing out a satisfying taste of rich blood. " Master Inuyasha- tasty as always!" Issuing a growl from down in his throat, he reached up and quickly smashed the little pest flat against his palm. " Myoga you old parasite, what are you doin' here?"

"Probably running away from the Daiyoukai just as fast as he can go" Kagome giggled peevishly, eliciting a similar response from all the others. Puffing himself back into his original form, Myoga huffed " I am doing no such thing! But how do you all already know of the approaching Demigod?" Rin jumped in, informing him of the incident with the Kappas down at the river. " And now we're trying to figure how to help Lord Sesshoumaru, Master Flea!"

Sitting in the softest part of Inuyasha's wide palm, the tiny flea listened carefully and then shook his head. " You needn't bother; Sesshoumaru is as good as dead. Even with his fearsome Bakusaiga and his Daiyoukai status, there is no way that he can stand up against a Demigod. I actually only came here to warn Master Inuyasha to stay away, so-" Suddenly pinching the little demon between thumb and index finger, Inuyasha furiously glared down at him. " Feh! Don't gimme that crap Myoga. There's gotta be a way to stop this thing. Even Naraku wasn't invincible!"

Considering his master for a moment, the little flea hesitated slightly when answering "…. well, there might be a small chance…."

Looking around to see that he had everyone's rapt attention, Myoga cleared his throat before speaking in a stronger tone. " As you probably already know, the approaching Demigod is the Lady of the Liquid Mists. Both the constant heavy clouds and the never-ending mists outside are her doing, and both are quite indicative of her capabilities."

" Inuyasha's father, The Dog General, had a chance encounter with her just before Sesshoumaru's birth; but managed to repel her with a legendary item that he once had in his possession." Inuyasha leaned forward eagerly at these words, asking " so if we have this thing, we can defeat her!?" Myoga scratched his balding head, and then gave it a slow shake. " It is possible to defeat her with the item, though still unlikely. However without it, her powers make her nearly invincible."

"Then lets go find it!" Rin gasped, hope shining out of her youthful face. " If it can help Lord Sesshoumaru, then I can go wherever it takes!" Kagome tightened her hold on the young girl's shoulder, saying sharply " Hold on Rin, you're still injured! You cant be going anywhere!" To prove her point, Kagome gestured at the petite ankles that were tightly wrapped against their earlier sprain, and the hideous black and purple bruises that were splattered across her fair skin. " But my lord is in trouble!" Rin retorted, completely ignoring her injuries " I have to go!"

Miroku looked over a the girl with a thoughtful expression, saying slowly " If we split up into two groups, we may have a chance at helping Sesshoumaru…. This might just work….." Looking up from his musing, he stopped talking as he found eight pairs of incredulous eyes staring directly at him. "What?" He asked unabashedly. Looking at her husband with an arch in her thin brow, Sango gave him playful push. "Hey monk, weren't you just the one who was saying that this wasn't our fight?!" "Yeah Miroku, what the hell are you up too?" Inuyasha chimed in.

" What?! I wanted to help Sesshoumaru the whole time- you people have absolutely no faith in me!" A general rolling of the eyes ensued, and the conversation turned back to Myoga as he launched into the tale of the Legendary Item in question. The Mirror in the Mists.

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Shifting her weight from one hip to the other, Rin simply could not find even the tiniest shred of patience with which to listen to the tiny flea's tale. Since the very moment she had heard him say that there was a way to help her lord, she was overcome by the boiling mix of emotions that were now jumbling around within her. It was actually all she could do to twist her lips into a puzzled frown at the sensation. Much like different spices in the stew of her soul, she began carefully sorting out each of the distinctive feelings were searing themselves into her fragile heart. She could strongly taste sweet relief at the idea that she was going to see Lord Sesshoumaru very soon. There was also a counter flavor of chilly anxiety that a very dangerous woman was attempting to harm him. A hint of peppery nervousness presented itself at the thought of going on her first adventure; what if she really wasn't the adventuring type? The subtle taste of heady pride finally caught her attention, finding herself glad that for once, she was gong to help her Lord instead of the other way around. And…… there was one more. There, behind all the others, it remained to linger unpleasantly in her mouth…. bitter doubt. The months of waiting and the question it had come to back down in the river had not boiled away. Somehow, she the uncomfortable feeling that it was not going to go away so easily; whether she wanted it to….. Or not.

Flicking her glazed eyes upwards to the see the creamy stew that Kaede was now ladling out into bowls for the company, a fleeting giggle bubbled up to her resolutely sealed lips. All of this soul searching wasn't usually a habit of hers, though she seemed to be getting kind of good at it lately. 'I wonder what Lord Sesshoumaru would think of that…' She wondered, accepting her steaming bowl silently. 'He always looked like he was thinking about something….maybe he would like it if did too?' Drawing a small draught of the piping hot soup between her lips she reveled at the well balanced, zesty broth. If there was one thing that the old Miko could do well besides healing, it was cooking.

"Rin, are you alright?"

Choking on a bit of her stew at the unexpected attention, she glanced up to find the attention of the now silent room trained on her. Blushing heavily, she stammered out "O-of course Lady Kagome. Why?" Finding the young priestess's soulful eyes trained onto her own, Kagome said quietly "well, it just that we were discussing our unexpected problem and you had the strangest smile on your face." A flutter of nervousness darted through her. "Unexpected problem?"

"Yes," Lady Sango answered with a similar analytical look. " You see, in order to help Lord Sesshoumaru within the remaining four days we are going to have to split up and then regroup in the Western Lands. One group will go to alert Seshoumaru, and the other to find the mirror." Rin nodded to show that she was paying attention, painfully aware of the liquid heat still adorning her cheeks. "However, since horses aren't fast enough, and Kohaku still has Kilala with him, Only Hatchi here has the speed to get one group to where they need to be by the end of the four days."

Setting the half finished bowl of stew on the floor, a quick sweep of the expressions in the room told her that this was a very serious problem. Racking her brains for an answer, she tasted the chilly anxiety again. If they didn't find another means of swift transportation, they would never retrieve the mirror in time…… As the brilliant rays of sunlight strike the land at dawn, an equally impressive idea broke over her searching mind. She did know a way to travel that was fast, strong, and reliable! One that had been her ride, companion, and occasional pillow for over a year. 'He's far away, but maybe if get to the top of somewhere really tall….' It just had to work, it just had to! Not even bothering to study the bewildering logistics of her childish plan, Rin whipped her head around to set her the idea into motion.

"Lord Inuyasha!" She said in urgency, locking the Hanyou's curious eyes into her own.

"Yeah?" he answered. Ignoring the confused looks that the rest of her companions were giving her, she ignited the protest of her injured ankles by standing up gingerly. " I need you to take me outside, please. To the top of the sacred tree!" For a moment, the stumped half demon only blinked at her. Taking a hesitant step forward, she swallowed back her pain as best she could. "Please, I think I can help us, but we have to hurry!" Dropping the poor little flea unceremoniously on the floor, ("Ouch! Master you are so cruel to this poor old flea!") he stood up quickly to tower over her with new understanding in his face. " You sure kid?" Rin nodded quickly, and in a flash she was in his arms and speeding through the hazy night air.

Biting back a cry of pain at his hand supporting her bruised ribs, she tried her best to focus on the steady thrumming of his unshod feet against the earth. It was dark now, the air and the sky still ceaselessly in motion with swirling vapor. Impenetrable grey clouds above, gently obscuring mist below. Tucked against his warm red robes, they were out of the village in seconds as he pelted through the blur of living green forest. Closed her stinging eyes for a moment, Rin turned into the hanyou's chest to breathe in his scent. It was so different than Lord Sesshoumaru's, even though they were brothers; Inuyasha smelled of the living earth, Sesshoumaru of the eternal sky. She wondered what that could possibly mean…..

Slowing down his pell-mell run through the forest, Rin opened her eyes when the footsteps slid to a reckless stop in the dew laden grass. There in the dark clearing before her was the their goal.

A thick, unyielding trunk wound its way out of the protective earth and toward the sky, its braches exploding outwards into perfect teardrops of emerald green waving in the midnight winds. Inuyasha held her loosely as he approached the massive tree, the light from his golden eyes burning with unnamed memories. Rin had heard the stories of the God's Tree during her time in Kaede's Village; And she knew that it held a silent, mysterious magic. 'If ever there was a time for the stories to come true' she pleaded inwardly, 'just let it be now!' Interrupting her thoughts, Inuyasha asked "Well we're here kid, so what next?" Pointing upwards, she answered " we have to get to the very top. As high as you can go!"

"Right!" A coiled spring of his strong legs sent them rocketing upwards, leaving her stomach somewhere behind her in a giddily unpleasant jolt. Landing lithely on a sturdy branch, the Hanyou was immediately up the air again; sending a shower of leaves fluttering downwards in his wake. It was only a for moment that they were enveloped by the dark, leafy canopy before Inuyasha burst outwards into the wild winds and back down onto the top branch. Helping her to find her footing against the butter smooth bark, Rin felt him move lower onto another branch to let her have the highest point possible. " Alright, this is it!" he called to her, words dying quickly against the howl of the wind.

Curling her tingling toes over the cold branch beneath her, she securely wrapped her thin arm around the swaying tip of the trunk next to her before looking around. Gasping against the quiet thrill of vertigo that rampaged through her body, Rin witnessed the vast forest canopy beneath her wrestling with the wild winds in an beautifully violent struggle. The wind wrapped its forceful fingers around the limbs and leaves of the forest in an earnest attempt to send them skyward; The trees dug their roots deep into the protective earth, passionately hold fast to themselves. All the while a deafening symphony filled her ears as the tempests recklessly trilled through the melody; the forest grinding out a deep, mournful treble. And amidst the music there was darkness, the stout curtain above the heavens resolutely denying the rippling light of the moon and the stars. Steeling herself from the beauty all around herself, she quickly remembered Lord Sesshoumaru and what was coming towards him every moment. It had to be now or never.

Closing her eyes, she focused on the image of the two headed dragon Ah-Uhn in her mind. She poured all of her strength into the picture, willing herself to remember the way his leathery skin felt and the conversational tone of his growls when she would talk to him. Squeezing her fingers against the frigid bark of the God's Tree until her every muscle deeply ached, she asked first in her mind. "Please Ah-uhn, if you can hear me then come! Lord Sesshoumaru's in trouble! Please, please hear me…."

Throwing her head back, she suddenly shouted to the winds as loud as her lungs would let her; Flaying her throat with the sudden demand. Ringing out into the night sky, the words pierced through the gusts with an arresting force. So much so that she didn't feel the winds die down slightly, or the forest fall still to listen to her words. She didn't even feel the gentle heat that was now pulsing up through the branches of the God's Tree and up into the bark beneath her feet. It was all she could do to say the words, and feel their power reverberating back across her battered body.

"AH-UHN!!! COME BACK!!!!"

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Standing against the raging winds in a resolute posture, Sesshoumaru became aware of the fact that the dusk had long ago faded into the unearthly darkness of night. Once again there was no moonlight to illuminate the slumbering lands, leaving only a deep sense of unease in its absence. The western facing porch just outside of his chambers allowed him a clear view of the troubled, inky heavens beyond the teeming forests; the very sight that his fathomless eyes had been lost in for most of the day. Dressed only in a thin uwagi and hakama that barely whispered of the color blue, his fine silver hair twisting out behind him in a profusion of ethereal brilliance. Until just a moment ago he had been utterly lost in his contemplation of the gusts rushing over his face, bringing him fell news from every corner of the troubled land. News of a strange arrival on the northeastern shores, and the rippling panic it had sent out in its wake……

'This weather and that arrival are undoubtedly connected,' he concluded. 'Yet do these darkening clouds merely hold a warning, or a premonition?'

Drawing a long, deep breath into his lungs he gently slid his eyes closed to bring himself back to the present. Quitting his mind of the strange tidings that the wind had brought him, an image of the mischievously grinning Rin easily replacing them. It had been his full intention to travel back to the old Miko's village today, and the fact that this bizarre arrival from the Northeast had dared to interrupt his schedule made him want to grind his teeth. And when a sudden, thunderous explosion rent the air on the far corner of his estate he chose not to reopen them lest they bleed red out of pure annoyance. What in the hellfire was that sound!?

Extending his hearing towards the source of the explosion, the air rang with the terrified squeals of his servants while they fled from the plummeting debris. Well lacquered wood hit the earth with a dull thud as the flickering sound of radiating flames sprang into life. Amidst the confusion, the unmitigated fury of two earsplitting roars tore ruthlessly into the racing winds. One in deep bass wove into the other rumbling treble. A brief scraping of ironclad claws tore into the well manicured earth of the gardens before a heavy body threw itself into the air.

'Ah-Uhn has released itself from the stables,' he noted, feeling a dull flicker of curiosity and puzzlement. Drawing his attention, the expected footsteps of Jaken came racing towards his chambers.

"Mi'Lord!" Gasped the little youkai, sliding to a stop at the entrance. Leaning heavily on his two-headed staff, his vassal quickly launched himself into wheezing speech. " Mi'lord! Ah-Uhn has broken free of the stables with a tremendous blast of its blue flames!"

Turning slowly on the spot, Sesshoumaru turned from the view of his swaying gardens to stare blankly down at the terrified expression on Jaken's face. "why."

Trembled slightly under his gaze, Jaken began to speak again without delay. " I do not know mi'lord, but it has taken to the sky with all haste towards the southeast! It would listen to no reason milord, there was no stopping its flight!!" Staring at the quivering Yokai for a moment longer, Sesshoumaru turned again to scan the troubled skies. Narrowing his eyes an infinitesimal margin, he located the wayward dragon already miles away from his estate. Both heads working in unison, it flew amongst the shivering, otherworldly blue flames erupting from its heels, racing as if the very chasms of hell were yawning just behind it.

Sesshoumaru walked forward evenly, down the three steps that placed his boots in the lush grass of his private garden. Extending his hearing outwards again, he noted the chaos that was still in full swing down at the stables. "Jaken." He commanded, not bothering to turn his head or break his train of thought. " Order the servants to douse the flames and clean up the wreckage. Repairs are to begin in the morning."

"Eh, right away milord!" Jaken bowed eagerly. "May I ask then, are we planning to delay our journey by another day?" Sesshoumaru did not reply, suppressing a steady flame of annoyance that was growing against his icy resolve. Lingering for a few moments longer, Jaken finally departed and left Sesshoumaru to his preferred solitude. Looking back upwards at the now tiny speck that was his faithful companion against the sky, the stoic frown and glazed eyes on his face slightly betrayed his inner turmoil. He did not take to the sky to follow it; the actions had been a clear choice made by the creature itself.

Ah-Uhn was the escort of the Daiyokai of the Western Lands, and answered to no one but those of the Western House. The two-headed dragon had been his unwavering companion throughout his life, and had been his fathers' before him. A singularly bizarre creature in appearance to be sure, but with formidable abilities and an even more impressive lifespan. 'Someone called to it, though it could not have been called by my mother,' he surmised. 'Her estate is in the other direction.' Since they were the only members of his house left, he felt an irritating sense of puzzlement at the dragon's actions. 'Perhaps Inuyasha….' quickly dismissing the idea with a blink, he recalled that the dragon had never shown any recognition to the Hanyou as a member of the Western House.

But then who? Where could the creature be traveling to at this time of night, without any thought or consideration to its current master? It recognized no one else…..

Returning his eyes to closed in annoyed confusion, Sesshoumaru could hardly believe the chaos that was going on around him. The forests around his estate were being evacuated by the second as the beasts and demons of all caliber fled from the west in mindless terror. The air was being choked by these damnable mists that refused to obey the rightful forces of nature and reason. His stables were burning to a charred crisp by roaring blue flames, and his oldest companion had now taken off into the sky in some unbidden, urgent pursuit. Growing stronger with every second was the strange presence from the northeastern shores, bearing down upon western lands with stifling malice that seemed to drip down out of the clouds themselves. And on top of it all, he had to delay his journey to see his Rin by yet another day.

Opening his eyes again, he hefted a louder sigh this time at the return of the persistant throb in his temples. His life truly had erupted into the most intolerable sort of madness, and it did not sit well with him by any conceivable means in imagination.

A/N: So! Next time the adventure springs into action as the two teams race off to find the mysterious Mirror and locate the annoyed Sesshoumaru. Until then, thanks for reading and please leave me a review on your way out! : D