Chapter 8: The Two Sided Coin

Author's Note: I am so very sorry about the lapse in postings. I hit a major writer's block. More like a wall, a very solid wall, but thankfully after more weeks than I wanted of swinging a sledgehammer at it, I finally knocked it down! So, *fingers crossed* you hopefully will be getting updates a little more regularly. I do appreciate the reviews and favorites. If you think I'm taking too long updating, feel free to threaten me with a pitchfork or a whip to write faster. Again, this is a free flowing, unstructured story, if you really want to see something happen, even if it is something super small, I'd be more than happy to write it in for you.


The path to the northern kingdom was short and bleak. Sesshomaru made it to the northern kingdom in just one full day's travel. He traveled at a leisurely pace since he wasn't particularly enthused about the proposed alliance between the north and the west. The north did not have much to offer in skills or trade. They were a people who lived in extravagance, placing emphasis on luxuries and pleasures over skills or training. The north bought much of the products from the eastern and southern kingdoms and protection from the west, but without a contractual alliance, the north was left open to any attacks if the west withdrew its support. The north did not supply the west with any supplies except luxury items that could be bartered with the other kingdoms for any necessary supplements. However, if the west allowed violence to break out in the northern kingdom, it would soon spread to other kingdoms, causing annoying disturbances for his troops to handle.

Walking into the main court, bypassing the unmanned gates and empty towers, Sesshomaru was greeted with bows from all of the dressed nobles leisurely strolling around the immaculate garden. A child, one of the Lord's personal servants no doubt, came sliding to a halt in front of Sesshomaru, bowing low to the ground and saying in a formal tone, "Lord Ryota is awaiting your presence in the main chambers. If you will follow me." With that, he headed back towards the palace, not even ensuring that Sesshomaru was following him.

Although Sesshomaru was well equipped and prepared to deal with the politics that ruled the Northern kingdom, he abhorred the emphasis on birth ranks with no measurable credit or skill. Lord Ryota was older than Sesshomaru but had not been Lord of his lands as long as Sesshomaru. Ryota had the most irritating and condescending manner, even with Sesshomaru. He only tolerated it because his father had been close allies with Ryota's father.

Entering the grand hall, Sesshomaru noticed Ryota sitting at the head of the long table. He was wearing extravagant clothes and surrounded by servants, laughing at something that one of his noblemen said. Something remarkably trivial, no doubt. Sesshomaru simply stood at the end of the table while the young servant that had led him whispered in his lord's ear. Ryota looked up quickly and a sly grin washed across his face.

"Sesshomaru!" his voiced echoed across the hall. "We've been waiting for you to accept our invitation. Come, come join us!" Sesshomaru was displeased with his effusive greeting. He could barely manage to be civil to the other lord. Well, just a few days; he could manage for a few days…


Just two days. Just two had passed and without Sesshomaru's exhausting training she wouldn't be tired enough to not dream. The first night she spent up discussing the different kingdoms and their main exports and imports. She was slightly surprised at how sophisticated the arrangement was. The east was mostly farming land, heavily populated with humans. The south produced many of the textiles and hand crafted goods that needed a highly skilled craftsman. The west was predominately military, which explained much about Sesshomaru's fighting abilities and warrior personality. The north was for the nobles. They didn't produce anything except a few fine art items, but they purchased much of the goods from the east and south. She fell asleep while they were discussing the implications of an alliance between the north and west, which was currently proposed.

On the next day, she tried to push herself harder with Inuyasha's training to ensure that she would be tired enough to sleep. He commented on her enthusiasm, but kept her from pushing herself too hard. Not nearly tired enough, she disappeared to the cherry blossom tree and practiced the moves that Sesshomaru had given her before he left. She tried to imitate the graceful and flowing movement that Sesshomaru seemed to achieve effortlessly. Her movements gradually became more fluid, not quite achieving Sesshomaru's grace, but coming much closer. She kept practicing until her arms were too tired to lift her sword into position.

She slowly climbed up into the tree, sitting on the same branch that she had two days ago when she had hidden from Sesshomaru. The sun had set and the air was warm. Leaning against the trunk, she closed her eyes, letting the smell of cherry blossoms help relax her exhausted body. Just a hint of almond mixed in with the flowers, reminding her of Sesshomaru.

"I wonder how it is going. It must have been important, but he didn't seem too anxious about it. Well, I don't think that he gets anxious about anything, really. He's just so damn calm all the time!" Ren gave a sigh of exasperation. People used to say that she was always calm and that nothing perturbed her, but Sesshomaru showed even her up. People...but she still couldn't remember anyone other than Sota, the one in the future. "Why can't I remember anyone?" she pondered, putting her head in her hands. "I can remember all of the places, all the classes, just not the people." Every time she tried to recall them, all that she could get was blurry images. She shook her head, leaning back against the tree.

"I'll just rest for a bit before going back to the village," she thought, but soon the combination of warm air and the flowery fragrance lulled her to sleep, right there in the tree.


Inuyasha had followed her to the tree, just to calm his mind about her "all-in" attitude today. Something hadn't been right, she was trying too hard; she would have easily worn herself out. Kagome used to throw herself into work when she was upset about something, but he wasn't sure what might be bothering Ren and he didn't want to pressure her into talking if she wasn't ready. He stayed long enough to realize that she was practicing sword movements, before returning to relate his observations to Kagome. She'd have a better idea about what might be bothering the girl.


Kagome was just setting the table for dinner when Inuyasha walked in. He came up behind her giving her a tight hug, before helping set the rest of the food on the table. It was just them tonight, everyone else having other business to attend to. It wasn't often that they shared a meal between just the two of them, and Kagome treasured the times they did.

The meal was eaten peacefully and in comfortable silence. When they finished, he helped her wash all of the dishes, putting them away before he grabbed her hand, leading her to the porch. He got into the hammock, pulling her in with him. Kagome had made it soon after they had finished building the house and had him hang it in the corner to catch most of the breezes. They had often spent nights lying together before Kagome had had Jiro. After that, they had used it mostly to rock the children to sleep when they were fussy. He slowly started it swinging, cradling Kagome into his side. She snuggled into him, relaxing in his embrace.

"I think something may be bothering Ren," Inuyasha said quietly. Kagome looked up for more explanation. "She was trying too hard today. Pushing herself past her limits. I toned down the exercises so she wouldn't hurt herself, but she seemed like she was trying to focus on the fighting to avoid thinking about something else. Do you know what?"

Kagome thought about it for a moment then said "I think that she is still trying to adjust to being here. It's a lot to handle. When I got here, I didn't have much time to think about anything between dealing with you," she gave him a loving smile, "and anything and everything trying to kill me. I think that we've been keeping her so busy that she hasn't had to process through her thoughts, but now that Sesshomaru is gone, I think that she is finding herself with time and is trying to avoid confronting her fears."

"What can we do?" Inuyasha asked. Kagome gave a small shrug. "Well, Sesshomaru sent word that he will be gone at least two more days. The Northern Lord wanted an answer to the proposed alliance with the West."

"I wonder how that's going," Kagome said. It was Inuyasha's turn to shrug as he proceeded to swing contently in silence, enjoying the solitude.


"I have already told you that I will not agree to a proposal of marriage as the basis for an alliance. Lord Ryota, I am the only remaining eligible male of the Inu family. Therefore, it is my heirs that will be in line for ruling the Western kingdom. I will not allow the Panther tribe to rule two kingdoms by virtue of mating. We must find some other method of alliance," Sesshomaru declared. "I have explained the options. Choose one. I will return at the end of Autumn to receive your answer." Sesshomaru left Ryota open-mouthed and staring while he made his exit to the gardens.

"That imbecilic fool! He dared summon me to try to force an alliance of marriage so that he could rule two kingdoms," Sesshomaru thought as he paced outside. "I would never allow the Panther tribe to have a foothold in the Western kingdom. And that daughter of his! Weak willed and incessantly whining." After spending several meals with her, it was becoming difficult to resist the urge to strangle her. Moving back into the castle towards his own room, a breeze swept through the windows, swirling around and fluttering his clothes. It carried the distinct scent of Ren...no, not Ren, just cherry blossoms. "How unusual that I would think of her first when I smell that flower," Sesshomaru thought, but quickly put it out of his mind as he entered his room. One more night, then he would head back.


Resting fitfully in the tree, rustling leaves woke her. Slowly opening her eyes, she examined her surroundings, feeling like something was coming. Another rustle caught her attention and she glanced down, peering through the branches, searching the ground below for signs of the disturbance. Limbs on the far side of the copse swayed as a young girl, maybe ten years old came out. Even from her position in the tree, Ren could see that she looked terrified, trying to move forward even when she looked like she would pass out from exhaustion. The girl looked around frantically, searching for a hiding place, Ren guessed. She didn't know what was chasing the girl, but she couldn't leave her to face it on her own. She climbed down a few branches until the girl would be able to see her and gave a soft whistle to get her attention. She spun around quickly, jumping at the sound, preparing to flee.

"I won't hurt you. You can hide up here," Ren whispered. The girl gave one desperate look behind her then ran forward, leaping up to grab Ren's extended hand. She quickly hauled her up, helping her climb farther up, positioning her on her lap on her earlier perch. The younger girl clung to her, shaking periodically, burying her face into her chest. Ren wrapped her arms around her, trying to give as much comfort as she could. Ren rocked softly side to side, and then began a very low hum to try to calm her down more. The young girl gradually began to still, her breathing slowing down into a sleeping rhythm, her eyelids closing over her haunted eyes. Ren watched over her until the sun rose, constantly on guard, waiting for the little girl's pursuer, but it never showed.


The young girl began thrashing around, almost throwing both herself and Ren out of the tree before Ren was able to wake her. She began sobbing, intermittently telling her story. Once she began to calm down, Ren started to piece together her story.

Two demons came upon her family while they were traveling. Her mother never had a chance, and the large demon quickly overcame her father while the smaller one captured her brother. In all the commotion the young girl was able to escape. She knew that neither of her parent's had survived, but she was positive that the demons had taken her brother. He was all the family that she had left and she was determined to find him.

Flashbacks of her own parent's murder momentarily paralyzed Ren, until she felt small hands shaking her. "Shh, shh, it'll be alright now. My name is Ren, what's your name?"

She looked startled but slowly answered, "Kasumi."

"That's a lovely name. Well, Kasumi, if you want to find your brother, I know someone that can help you. Can I take you to him?"

Kasumi warily nodded her head. Ren helped her get down from the tree and began to lead her towards the village, Kasumi following with a vice grip on her hand. Ren babbled on about the village and her newfound friends, but mostly about Sesshomaru – never mentioning his name, just his personality, their training.

They had almost reached the village when Ren thought, "I just wish that he'd be there to help her."


The village was just waking up when Ren brought Kasumi back. They received greetings from the men heading to tend the livestock or work in the fields, the women carrying their youngest children to help harvest in the fields alongside their men or down to the river to doing the laundry. The older children ran ahead towards the river to fish upstream of the women. A few women stayed behind as caretakers to the youngest children that couldn't accompany their mothers. Kasumi held tightly to Ren's hand as she led her through to Kagome's house. Ren could see Inuyasha and Kagome cuddled together in the hammock on the porch, but both got up as she reached the steps.

"Good morning Kagome, Inuyasha," Ren greeted them. Kagome gave her a big grin then looked down at Kasumi who was hiding behind Ren's legs. "Kagome this is Kasumi." Ren kneeled down and coaxed the young girl to her side. "Kasumi, this is my good friend Kagome. She's going to take you inside and get cleaned up and then you can eat. Is that alright?" Kasumi slowly nodded her head and took Kagome's outstretched hand. With one quick wink towards Ren, Kagome led her into the house while Ren spoke to Inuyasha.

"I fell asleep in the forest and woke up when she came running through. She looked like death itself was chasing her so I got her up in the tree with me. I stayed up the rest of the night, but nothing else came out after her. She's lost both her parents and she thinks that they took her brother."

Inuyasha thought for a moment, then asked Ren to take him to where she had meet Kasumi. It was about a half hour walk, at Ren's speed, but he could still smell the young girl's path. "Hop on my back, I can track her much better if we go at my speed," Inuyasha said. Ren's cheeks colored slightly in chagrin before he helped her onto his back. She was pretty tall for a girl, around five foot seven, even slightly taller than Inuyasha, but she felt like a little kid when she was riding piggy-back. Before she really had time to contemplate her situation, she became engrossed in the scenery blur. She knew that he could move faster than a human, as she had seen him do in their training sometimes, but to actually go that fast herself was a thrilling experience. The world was reduced to a roaring wind and all of the colors were shades of blue and green. She was almost disappointed when she was able to make out individual trees from the blur as he slowed down. When he sat her down, she turned in a slow circle. They were on the shore of a beautiful lake that was crystal clear and sparkling in the rising sun. It was ideal for a picnic, so picturesque. As she finished her circle, she saw what had been blocked by Inuyasha when he had first set her down. A woman, throat slit - nearly beheaded, body thrown like trash to the side, another body that was almost too mangled to identify, except for a long, cat-like tail lying limp at the side. Her mind overlaid images of her own parents, their lifeless eyes, staring at her. She dropped to her knees, and crumpled into a ball, crying so hard that she had to gasp for air. She closed her eyes to the scene, but the images were still there, unrelenting, forcing the memories that she had tried so hard to push away, to forget, to come crashing back.


Inuyasha was intent on the scents that floated around the clearing. The steady breeze blowing off the lake cleared away the heaviest scents, leaving only a trace of the individual smells. He could identify all of them, the mother, father, Kasumi, and another closely related male - the missing brother. But he couldn't find a single scent to attach to the attackers. He started to search around the clearing for footprints and claw marks when he heard a thud followed by sobbing, not loud but the kind that nearly tears your heart apart just hearing it. He turned to find Serenity curled into a ball, gasping for air between the sobs. He slowly approached her, calling her name, but she was dead to the world, stuck in her mind. He cradled her, slowly rocking her, whispering condolences to her, unsure of how to handle this woman. Picking her up, he ran at top speed back to Kagome.


Kagome got the young girl washed up, all the while examining her. She looked scared, her eyes shifting constantly, but she didn't appear to be underfed, so she must have had a decent life before the attack. Her hair was coming loose from its braiding, so Kagome quickly undid it and washed it, then re-braided it. Fixing her a bowl of porridge, she sat her down at the table to eat. Watching as she slowly sniffed before taking a small spoonful, Kagome began preparing breakfast for the others. She knew Inuyasha would have wanted to check out the scene first but he'd be back soon, hungry as ever. She smiled as she set two more bowls plus her own on the table next to Kasumi.

"What is this?" Kasumi asked shyly. She'd been examining something in her hand and held it out for Kagome to see. It was the coin that had been found with Ren.

"It's Ren's, the girl who brought you here. We found it with her when she got here," Kagome explained. "I guess she must have dropped it on the table sometime. May it see it?"

Kasumi slid the coin across the table to Kagome. "I don't remember there being markings on this before," Kagome thought to herself. But there they were, on one side was the crescent moon of the West with the symbol for protector and on the other a cherry blossom with the symbol for savior. Kasumi set her bowl to the side and gave a big yawn, so Kagome suggested that she take a nap. She knew things were bound to get hectic later so the girl might as well get all the sleep she could when she could. Kagome led Kasumi into a spare room at the far end of the house so that conversations in the kitchen wouldn't wake her and tucked her in just like she did with Jiro and Kikyo when they decided to sleep inside instead of in the forest.


By the time Inuyasha reached the house, Ren's sobs were a little softer and her breathing was less ragged, but he couldn't tell if she was awake or not. As soon as he entered the house, he went directly to Ren's room and laid her gently on the bed, covering her with the blanket. Kagome came in shortly from the garden where she'd been tending, immediately throwing a look at Inuyasha which meant "Explain this, now" and began checking for fever or physical ailments.

"I don't know what happened. She was fine until we go to the attack site. Kasumi's parents' bodies were still there. Then she just broke down. I don't know what caused it, maybe it is a side effect of the head injury. She was fine and then she just started crying. She hasn't said a word since. Kagome could see her eyes moving restlessly under her eyelids, but she didn't respond to her name or even shaking. Periodically, she would twitch or jump a little, but no sound. Inuyasha looked to Kagome as she stood up, but she trembled slightly and her face was pale. He was cradling her against him in a second, telling her that she was going to be fine, she just needed some time, she'd pull through. Kagome gave a weak smile and patted Inuyasha's arm lovingly.

"I know sweetheart. I'm just at a loss as to what is causing it. I'd better call Masami in to help, and Mana. She might be able to calm her mind." Kagome gave Inuyasha one more tight squeeze before getting up and straightening the blankets around Ren, getting her into a more comfortable position. She was just laying Ren's hands on the blanket when she noticed something on her wrist that she hadn't seen before. Just underneath the slightly yellow skin from the bruises that Sesshomaru had given her when she first arrived was a blue crescent moon, identical to Sesshomaru's. She opened her mouth to mention it to Inuyasha, but thought the better. More mysteries right now would only cause more confusion. "Let's solve one at a time," she thought to herself as she pulled the screen shut, leaving Ren in silence.


Sesshomaru was making his way swiftly to his own kingdom. Just that morning he had received urgent news of a bandit group that had eluded all capture and was killing his citizens and kidnapping the sons. He had heard rumors about a group that had killed a family at the border of his lands and had sent five of his best trackers to capture them. The letter had been written by his second-in-command and his best tracker that there were no traces of the group to be found but that there had been three more killings, all families with the oldest son taken while the rest of the family was slaughtered. A group of demons that his best trackers could not locate did not bode well, portending a dangerous evil that he wanted to deal with as efficiently as possible. If he had not been completely focused on his task, he might have noticed the small marking that had appeared on his left wrist: a cherry blossom in magenta.