I do not own InuYasha or the characters created by Rumiko Takahashi.
Rebuilding
"I watched the whole thing Kagura."
"Ey, I bet you did," Kagura teased.
"Why did you interfere?" Naraku said, ignoring her snide remark.
"I thought you needed her alive," she answered, her hand on her hip as she leaned against the doorway.
"I think if you would've waited, I could've had what I wanted by now," he said, shooting her a sharp look.
He was definitely after something, "And what is that exactly?"
But Naraku only glanced at her with his typical, 'you don't get to ask questions look' and went on.
"I'm sending Kanna this time," he said before turning his back on her.
Kagura walked out, thankful for the dismissal. She herself, wasn't exactly sure why she had helped Airi. Perhaps, the wind sorceress found the girl's situation relatable. Kagura wasn't free like she wanted to be. But in order for her to escape Naraku, it would take a lot more than just cutting down a couple of bandits. Kagura scowled as she walked down the deserted hallway, thinking about how she would change places with her in a second. In a her eyes, Airi had it easy.
"Genzo-sama! Genzo-sama! Where are you?" A voice called in the distance. Airi struggled to open her eyes, her lids so heavy. She thought perhaps whoever it was, might pass by without noticing her.
"Quiet down Ken, I'm not far," a voice much too close to her answered.
Clearly alarmed by the close proximity of the man's voice, she forced her eyes open and saw sandaled feet and the bottom of dark robes before her. She sat up, pain shooting through her side, but nonetheless tightened her grip on her weapons. Somehow, she felt that he had been standing there for a while. The man was bald with the bushiest set of eyebrows she'd ever seen, almost like wings trying to take off from his grey eyes. His round stature suggested that he wasn't fast nor did he look dangerous, but she didn't care. After yesterday's degrading display of what men were capable of, she was by no means ready to start trusting random strangers.
One more step and she would smash his legs.
The man seemed to sense her aggressiveness and unease, but didn't withdraw. "Shh, child. I'm not going to hurt you. I want to help you," he said calmly extending a hand out to her.
Airi didn't respond, but took the opportunity to study his body language. He wasn't blushing, which meant that either her inappropriate apparel didn't bother him or he had already taken in a good view. But somewhere deep inside she knew it was the first. In fact, he looked at her with a gentleness, a genuine care for her well-being, as a father would look concerned for his child. But before she came to a decision, a rustling of the bushes reminded her of the second person. She cautiously took her eyes off the man in front of her to search for the other stranger drawing near. In spite of the pain, she craned her neck and spotted a young boy, maybe 10 years of age, fighting against the bushes as he made his way towards them. He was also dressed like the man, but unlike him, the boy had a full head of dark, short hair and brown eyes. He had a small chin giving his face a distinct boyish charm.
"Oh Genzo-sama, there you are." He ran towards them once he was free of the last clinging shrub and was completely oblivious to Airi until he was practically standing a foot in front of her.
His mouth fell open and the words of his next sentence stuttered out of his mouth in a string of consonants. Airi observed his reaction to her. He blushed uncontrollably at her scantily clad figure and provocative clothing. He noticed how her eyes were exhausted yet alert. But what he lingered over was her badly cut up feet and the dark bruises that stretched across her face and neck. Airi's annoyance showed clearly on her face as he stared at her for much longer than what would be considered polite. When he finally took the hint, he lowered his eyes, but his face remained red, "Sh..Shouldn't we be he..heading back to the sh..shrine?" he sputtered.
The older man ignored the boy's reaction to Airi and addressed her again with the same genuine smile and extended hair. "Yes, we should, would you like to come with us?" he offered again, "It's not far."
Her green eyes rested on the young boy a moment longer before she made up her mind. Hesitantly, she reached out and took the monk's hand. She knew she needed help or at the very least food and if they tried anything funny, she'd kill them. She stood up, her height seeming to impress the boy further, but the old man just continued to smile.
"Now then. I'm Monk Genzo and this is Ken. And what lovely name have you been graced with?"
Airi couldn't help but smile back at his kind and gentle manner. "My name is Airi," she answered shyly.
"Airi, it's a pleasure to meet you my dear," Genzo beamed, bowing to her respectfully, with Ken following suit. A little surprised by their greeting, she bowed quickly in return as to not appear rude. "It's this way," the monk gestured.
Ken reached down to retrieve her axes, but she beat him to it, wincing as she did. He looked at her surprised.
"I'll carry them," she said in a threatening tone.
Any random person could take a quick look at Airi and know that she had just gone through quite an ordeal and wouldn't be likely to trust anyone so easily. Ken looked to the monk for guidance, but he only smiled.
The boy cast his eyes away from her gaze as he thought. In his mind, resurfaced a proverb that the monk often said to him: 'Even the smallest kindness shall not be forgotten.' And much to the monk's approval, Ken knelt down, removed his sandals and offered them to her. "If you will not allow me to help carry your burden, please wear these sandals to help you carry them instead."
Airi's mouth fell open for a second, his generosity incomprehensible at first. He interpreted her silence as permission and gently slipped the sandals on for her.
"So, shall we?" The monk gestured again and the three of them made their way through the woods to a hidden shrine.
When they arrived at the shrine, Airi was persistent about carrying at least one ax around with her at all times. She wasn't going to make the same mistake she made yesterday.
The monk appeared understanding, while Ken immediately protested how disrespectful it was, "You can't just carry weapons around…" But the monk interrupted him, "Ken can you go get the garments and meet us in the guest wing?"
"Oh sure, no problem," he mouthed off, walking backwards away from them. "I have no problem walking around our super safe home without weapons!"
Airi, out of spite, stuck her tongue out at him and ignored his complaints, because she could care less about how it made him feel. Ken grew even more aggravated by her childish behavior and rolled his eyes before turning his back on them.
One entered the shrine into a large room with a buddha and other ceremonial items within it. And opposite the front door was a back door. To the left in the center of the shrine was a small room for preparing meals. On both sides of the small kitchen were short hallways leading to sleeping rooms. The one in the front of the house was where Monk Genzo and Ken slept and the other in the back of the house was for guests.
"I know it's not much, but I hope you will feel at home while you're here. If you'd like to bathe, there is a pond not far from here, which happens to be warmer than the average pond. I think you might like it. Ken can show you where it is." The monk noticed Airi's quick glance at her attire, or lack there of. "If it is to your liking, I had Ken retrieve some clothes for you. And if you're up to it you would honor us greatly if you would join us for dinner tonight."
She noticed how he worded everything in a way that allowed her to choose rather than being ordered around. It was such a small gesture to help her feel more comfortable, but she appreciated it. "Thank you, I would be happy to join you," she bowed, showing her gratitude for the first time.
Airi followed Ken out the rear of the building and down a winding, terraced path. She noticed that he had retrieved a pair of sandals for himself. She assumed that meant that she could keep the ones he gave her. Perhaps he wasn't so bad after all. When they reached the water she could see that a stream flowed in from the opposite side of where they stood and ran out on the other end. And even though there were trees surrounding the pond, it still managed to get a good amount of sunlight.
Ken didn't say anything as she took in her surroundings and as usual his eyes watched her for too long.
"Eh hem," she coughed, bringing him out of whatever fantasy he was having.
"I..I'll leave you then," the boy bowed, placing her garments and a towel on a nearby stone before returning the way they came.
Airi absentmindedly slipped off the sandals and laid her ax on the ground reluctantly. Bathing during her imprisonment had happened rarely and was often cold and unpleasant. She removed the obi and hakama and stepped into the pool of water. The monk was right, it was warmer than normal.
It had been far too long since she had daydreamed about anything. But the warm water reminded her of stories about hot springs that she'd heard of as a child and wondered if that was something she would be able to experience now that she was free. The thought alone made her smile. And although she had taken her steps towards freedom a few days ago, she finally felt like she could choose her own fate. The monk had said to feel at home while she was there, but that also meant that she would have to decide where to go from there, and when. That was a decision she hadn't thought about in years or at least not alone. But Tsuyoshi was dead, she had to make it on her own, so she asked herself a string of questions that she never thought to ask herself before.
What am I going to do now that I'm free?
Maybe I could try to find my village, my home, but what will my father think?
Will he even accept me?
The only thing I can offer him is shame. His first daughter ruined and defiled by a group of bandits.
She shivered at the thought and undeniable disappointment that would clearly be engraved upon her father's face. Any man who would take her now would undoubtedly have questionable morals, resulting in her as a burden to her father. "Maybe it's best to forget," she sighed, the pressure of making a decision, weighing on her.
Before climbing out of the water she caught her reflection on the water's surface. Swollen, dark bruises ran around her neck and cheeks. She raised her hand up to press against the puffy skin under her eyes. It didn't hurt as bad anymore, but her ribs and feet still ached. A darkness flashed across her eyes as she thought about how she received those bruises. But then she quickly buried those feelings and stepped out of the water.
Airi used the small handmade towel to dry off and squeeze out the water from her hair. She unfolded the first item of clothing, which was a cream colored kosode with bordeaux colored flowers on it. She thought it was quite pretty and elegant for a kosode. The second item was a bordeaux colored wrap skirt, matching the flowers on her kosode. Neatly dressed and clean, she smiled to herself, as she slipped on the sandals Ken gave her. He really was a sweet kid, she thought. Her smile brightened even more when she stooped down to retrieve her ax and started walking back up to the shrine. Somehow being around the two of them had healed some part of her soul.