Anime/Manga » Inuyasha » Where All Roads Meet
Author: Whimsicalscrawls
1. Prelude 2. Glance 3. Diablerie 4. Apparition 5. Argentate 6. Petrichor 7. Malus 8. Espionage 9. Heart 10. Crescent 11. Enclosure 12. Memory 13. Shattered
Rated: K - English - Romance/Supernatural - Reviews: 24 - Published: 01-04-14 - Updated: 01-29-17
id:9991711
Disclaimer: Me no own Inuyasha. Jajaja.
What I do own is the plot of this story and any oc that pops up. Enjoy reading!
...Where all roads meet...
Crescent
If there's a God, thought Yukiyo , cursing her stupid curiosity, cringing as the realisation of who the voice belonged to suddenly hit her,
If there's a God, please let the ground split and swallow me whole now, please save me from this embarrassment...
Suddenly, a couple of things that had failed to make sense earlier fell into place in her brain.
The half- brother Inuyasha had loathed so much was none other than the arrogant, prissy bastard behind her, whose glare, she was acutely aware of, was boring through her back.
And it was this guy, Sesshomaru.
The light of this newfound revelation would surely have made her go, 'ah', had it not been for the rather awkward position she found herself in.
She turned around, trying to train her features frozen in shock to a somewhat normal appearance. Yukiyo cringed, staring at his impossibly perfect face that was radiating sheer hostility.
Boy that is an intimidating stare...thought she, valiantly trying not to drop her gaze to her fidgety feet.
But I am supposed to be angry, she told herself, he is an arrogant prick who doesn't even care to remember my name! And calls me mortal like it is the most derogatory term on earth!
Yukiyo tried to summon righteous anger, failing spectacularly.
"I...uh, was just...I can explain..."she ventured pathetically instead.
"What are you doing in my home, human?" He demanded, his voice even, the undertone chilly.
She cringed at the emphasis on the last word.
"I...well, I was just exploring, and...I...came across your room...and...it is beautiful by the way", Ugh, stop kissing ass, "...and...", she trailed off at the look of animosity in his eyes. "Actually" She cried, "I-Inuyasha invited me! And Kagome! Assignment!" Damn, should've began from there! "I'm sure Inuyasha must have told you, maybe you forgot or it just skipped your mind or-", Stop talking! For god's sake!
"Inuyasha", he breathed. Of course. Who else could it be but the bane on his existence? He focused his attention on the girl in front of him, who seemed, pathetically so, to be fighting the urge to flee from his presence. "My idiotic half- brother had failed to mention he would be entertaining visitors, and your presence is an surprise", Yukiyo almost heard the words before he spoke them, "a rather unpleasant one, I might add."
Tears pricked at the back of her eyes at the unfairness of it all, of how she was being treated just because of her human heritage, but Yukiyo resolutely held them in. Don't give this man your tears, she told herself.
"Listen here girl", said he, as Yukiyo tried to compose herself, "never go into my room, understand? "
Yukiyo nodded, mentally scolding the part of her brain which was thinking that the transition from 'mortal' to 'girl' was an improvement.
"Lord Sesshomaru!" said a singsong voice. Yukiyo looked past him to the little girl skipping jauntily towards them.
"Look at what-!" Rin's eyes darted towards her and she immediately hid behind Sesshomaru's back.
Yukiyo stared at her with unblinking eyes.
This little girl is...human?
She looked up at Sesshomaru, whose narrowed eyes were daring her to question him.
A pair of chocolate orbs peered at her from behind Sesshomaru's legs.
"Who's she, Lord Sesshomaru? " she asked warily.
"Nobody", he said sternly, slightly puzzled by Rin, who usually was never one to shy before strangers.
Yukiyo glared at him for a fraction of a second before she bent down to the level of the kid's face. "Hi... my name is Yukiyo. I am a friend of Inuyasha's. Nice to meet you." She held out her hand. A tiny hand emerged to shake hers.
"Taisho Rin", she said solemnly. "Nice to meet you too."
"Sesshomaru!" Yelled Inuyasha's voice. "Leave her alone! She's with me!" Yukiyo stared gratefully at Inuyasha, rushing towards them with Kagome by his side.
"Indeed", Sesshomaru uttered, staring at the trio distastefully. "I suggest your friends leave as soon as your business is done, I do not tolerate strangers snooping around my home."
He turned to leave, Rin flashed her a smile and a wave and followed.
"What a disagreeable guy!" said Kagome in his wake.
"That is an underestimation ", said Inuyasha. "Come on then, let's finish this stupid assignment once and for all."
*********....**********
"Oh my God, it's done!" said Yukiyo in relief, staring at the final copy of the assignment they had worked so hard on. Inuyasha scoffed.
"What a drama queen..."
"Ah, it feels so good to have it off our backs!" Sighed Kagome, letting herself fall back to the part of Inuyasha's bed she had nagged him mercilessly to clean. Yukiyo tried to suppress a smile as Inuyasha watched Kagome dazedly for a moment, before he violently shook his head to snap himself out of it.
"Well, it's good to have you both out of my life for good!" He said gruffly, at which Kagome abruptly shot up from the bed and glared at him.
"And what does that mean, mister?" She demanded.
Inuyasha succeeded in hiding a cringe at the last moment.
"Well, I like not havin' anyone to nag me to clean my room, or the way I dress or the-!"
"Give it a rest you two", said Yukiyo. "The fact that you like each other is as clear as daylight, y'know." She closed her eyes and smirked as her two very red faced friends spluttered defenses as to how they absolutely couldn't stand each other.
Yukiyo opened her eyes as something registered in her mind. She turned to the hanyou ,"Say Inuyasha, I thought your brother hated humans, so what is that little girl doing here?"
"Oh, Rin. He found her at a train station or somethin'." Inuyasha said flatly, running a absent minded hand through his hair.
"What?" piped Yukiyo.
"What?" Inuyasha repeated dispassionately. Kagome reached up and yanked at one of his fluffy ears.
"Hey! Ow!"
"Elaborate, stupid!"
"Ow, cut it out you crazy woman!" Inuyasha yanked out of her grasp. "What the hell do you wanna know?"
"Start with the train station story", said Yukiyo.
"Well, I don't know much about it, cuz as you can see, Sesshomaru and I aren't exactly, well…y'know, we hate each other. All I know is that he found her at a train station, she was all alone and decided to tag along with the jerkface for reasons unknown", Inuyasha said. "The runt did pretty well for herself, if ya ask me."
"And he just...lets her stay with him?" Asked Kagome.
"Couldn't believe it myself- Sesshomaru takin' in a human..."
"And he cares for her so well", breathed Yukiyo. "Maybe he isn't as bad as he seems to be."
"Says the chick whose knees were knockin' just talkin' to him!" The hanyou chided.
"He...is a very intimidating guy, y'know... ", countered Yukiyo pathetically "Why didn't you tell him we were coming over?"
"Didn't think it was important enough..."
"That brother of yours practically called the cops on me for breaking and entering", said Yukiyo.
"He was just messing with ya, dumbass", said the hanyou dismissively. "I could've come to your rescue earlier, but Kaggy here kept nagging and naggin..."
"Oh so now it's all my fault!" Scoffed Kagome, "interesting how you worked that out, you pervert!"
"H-hey!" Inuyasha spluttered, turning crimson. "You promised you wouldn't ever talk about it!"
"Talk about what?" Yukiyo said.
"About the dirty magazines he's stashed under the bed!" Kagome declared, earning a gasp from Yukiyo. "A kid lives here you moron! What if she finds them?"
"You, you!" Hollered Inuyasha, a telltale vein throbbing in his brilliantly red face. "You're a piece of work, y'know that?"
"That's for saying we're not important", Kagome smirked triumphantly. "You should learn to respect others, you know."
"I've got better things to do than to sit around and respect ya all day", Inuyasha said derisively.
"What?"
This swiftly progressed onto another one of their catfights, and at one point, objects were being thrown around. Yukiyo decided she had seen enough after a table lamp narrowly missed her face and smashed into the wall behind her.
"I'll just leave you guys to it, then", she said and turned back, as an alarm clock hit the floor right next to her feet.
Yukiyo stepped out and closed the door behind her with a sigh.
Now where will I go?
She walked to the balcony at the rear end of the apartment, stretching her limbs lazily, to be met with the sight of Rin carefully watering a couple of saplings in a pot.
"Hey", she said softly. "Watc'ha doing?" The little girl turned back to look at her, a smile blooming in her face.
"Hi, Miss Yukiyo", she said brightly. "Look, I planted these some days back!" She beamed, pointing at the tiny plants.
Yukiyo smiled and caressed the soft cotyledon of a plant.
"They sure are coming along well", she remarked, bending down to examine the tiny plants.
"You think so Miss Yukiyo? One day, they are going to reach up to the sky, and I can climb up and go to the castle, and..." she gasped, looking at her neck, "Whoa, it's so beautiful!"
"What?"
"This!" Rin's hands gently held the crescent moon pendant that hung down her neck.
"Oh, you like it?" She smiled. "Someone gave it to me when I was little."
"It's so gorgeous", the little girl traced the intricate pattern carved on the pendant. "Who gave it to you?"
"I don't really remember", she said with a smile.
"Your mommy?"
"I don't think so", she said, her brow creasing,"It was... someone else..."Yukiyo winced as a stab of pain in her temple distracted her from remembering.
"Maybe you could ask your parents…", Yukiyo watched realization slowly blooming in Rin's eyes. "I'm so sorry Miss Yukiyo", she said, grasping her hands.
"No…Don't worry about it", said Yukiyo, wondering how Rin was able to figure out that her parents were deceased too. Do I look so miserable, or is she just a really perceptive little girl? "And Yuki is fine, by the way".
Yukiyo almost sensed him before his cold voice was heard.
"Rin, " spoke Sesshomaru, staring pointedly at the duo.
"Yes my lord!" She turned to face him with a salute that was very well- executed for a little girl. "I shall change right away", she said, as if reading the meaning behind his gaze. Yukiyo couldn't help but smile at her antics as she gave her a quick wave before dashing for her room.
"She's such a sweetheart", she murmured to herself. It was strange; Rin reminded her so much of how she was when she was a child. So happy, so trusting and carefree, before life had changed her...
She was suddenly acutely aware of Sesshomaru's gaze on her. Slowly, she turned her head to stare at his glaring visage.
What did I do now?
"Erm, yes?" She squeaked.
"Where did you get that from?" He demanded in a bored voice.
"Uhhhh...?"
Sesshomaru 'tch'ed and extended one clawed finger towards her neck. She stared down at the pendant she was wearing.
Why such interest?
She wanted to be hoity- toity and wanted to say it was none of his business, but Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes threateningly at the exact same moment.
Don't even think about it human, his glare seemed to say.
"S-someone gave it to me a long time ago", she stammered, marveling at his ability to make even the smallest of gestures look murderous.
Sesshomaru was trying to keep his emotions in check.
Father...
The last time he saw the pendant, it was in his father's hands as he spoke about the Taisho clan.
"Everyone has a role to play, Sesshomaru", he had said while Sesshomaru studied the intricate patterns adorning the pendant, "And the role that the Taisho clan plays is one that of protection." He gave the pendant to his son, who turned it over and over, examining it as if it held some intangible secret hidden within. "This little crescent is our family's talisman. Anyone in possession of it is held in very high esteem by our family."
"Who", Sesshomaru couldn't help the quiver that crept into his voice, "who was this person?"
"I, I don't remember", she piped, thoroughly confused by the hint of urgency in his normally calm, even voice," It was a man..." She trailed off, catching the brief flicker of pain that flitted across his stoic visage, "someone I used to know when I was little..."
Yuki, isn't it?
"Ah!" She gasped and clutched at forehead, soothing the burning pain that shot through, temporarily darkening her vision. And at that moment, the silhouette of a man flashed in her mind. "I think he...had silver hair..."
The swish of long hair gathered in a high ponytail. Ethereal eyes glowing amber.
She clutched her temples in pain.
My son is the same age as you, Yuki-chan.
"His name…" She felt her consciousness slip away for a brief moment.
Sesshomaru caught her as she fell, seeing her lips move in a whisper.
...Toga...
She woke up a second later in his arms, her hand soothing her forehead, face twisted into a grimace of pain.
"Ow", She mouthed, and seemed to suddenly realize where she was. She gasped, blushed violently, stepped away from him and launched into a string of apologies.
Sesshomaru, to her intense surprise, just turned back and walked away, leaving her stunned and staring after him.
*********....**********
Totosai stared at his office door, bracing himself for the impending encounter.
Gyo Morizuki, one of the most powerful youkai in all of Japan, wanted to meet.
This can't be good for my retirement plans, he stroked his grey beard thoughtfully.
The wizened old demon placed his hands, calloused from so many years of smithing, on the knob of his desk drawer and pulled it open. He gazed at the old framed photograph inside, his eyes softening as he gazed at his old friends, many of them no longer in this world.
His gaze fell on a silver haired man, their leader, beloved friend, grinning with youthful charm, one arm around a younger version of himself and another arm around Myouga, who went missing, believed to be dead.
Next to them was a silver haired woman, the illustrious Hayomi, the dog demon's first wife. And then his gaze fell on Gyo, eyes soft and kind despite his aristocratic background.
And around them, their comrades, the members of the Silver Shield.
Totosai sighed and closed his eyes, reminiscing those days.
"Nice to know I am done with all the fighting", he said to himself, even though all he really did was run away and hide when the real action started.
There was a knock on the door and his secretary, a three eyed demon girl poked her horned head through the door.
"Mr. Morizuki is here to see you, sir."
Totosai nodded, gulped and prepared himself. The door opened and in came a demon, a middle aged man with lavender hair pulled back to the nape of his neck and turquoise eyes, donning a tan suit and carrying a cane in his hands.
"Good to see you, old friend", he smiled amiably.
"Good to see you too, Gyo", said Totosai. One look at him and Totosai knew something was up. "Sit down my friend, and tell me, to what do I owe this pleasure?"
Gyo lowered himself to a chair with some difficulty, placed his cane against the mahogany desk and sighed.
"Time has been very unkind to both of us", he said sagely.
"To you more than to me", said Totosai with a good natured, gap toothed smile.
"It seems just yesterday that I saw Toga..."
"Eh?" Totosai scratched his bald head, "that can't be right; he's been dead for over ten years!"
"I..." Gyo sighed. "It was just an expression on how fast time has passed", he explained patiently.
"Oh hoho...", laughed Totosai. "Forgive me Gyo, senelity's setting in very fast; my brain is duller than it used to be... "
Gyo Morizuki closed his eyes.
"Totosai", said Gyo, "There's something I need to tell you." He paused, as if to prepare Totosai for the news, fixed his tie, took a deep breath…
"Well, spit it out already!" Totosai said, suddenly feeling jittery, "My old nerves can't take all this suspense!"
"Totosai…", Gyo sighed and ran a drawn hand over his face that took on a tired, pained expression."Ryuukotsusei is alive."
An uncomfortable silence settled in.
"You've always been horrible at jokes, Gyo", Totosai said with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.
"This is not a joke, Totosai."
"Gyo",said Totosai evenly, "We know for a fact that Toga had finished him off before he died, if the boy's words are to be believed. "
"Yes, exactly", said Gyo, "all we have to vouch on this matter are the words of a boy who was barely ten, a child who was clearly in shock after witnessing his entire family being murdered..."
"Are you telling me that you don't believe what Sesshomaru said? That boy has a better hold on reality than either of us."
"Do you think I will come tell you this if I wasn't a hundred percent sure? Ryyukotsusei is alive! Barely, but alive all the same." Gyo's eyes hardened. "Do you really think I would jest about a matter as grave as this?!"
"Gyo", Totosai breathed, eyes wide, his heartbeat quickening."This…Oh dear…Does anyone else…?"
"No", said Gyo, "I came to you first."
"Oh heavens…I'm too old for this to happen again…"
"Totosai, I believe he will want to start again where he left off last time." Totosai gave him a blank stare.
"Eh?"
"The Shikon-no- tama. He will start his search again."
"The shikkon- na-what?" Said Totosai, scratching his head again. "Doesn't ring a bell..."
"The sacred jewel, Totosai!" Gyo's voice was laced with exasperation.
"Ohhh!" Exclaimed Totosai, "the Shikon jewel! How could I forget?"
"Yes, and I believe he may be after it this time as well."
"I see", said Totosai gravely. "That makes sense, yes."
"Totosai", said Gyo. "We need to find the jewel. Immediately."
"Hmm...", Totosai sighed. "Toga had kept the location of the jewel a secret from all of us. I never knew if he had even found the heir back then; had he told anything to you?"
"Yes", said Gyo. "I know who the last heir was; I came to know very late." Gyo closed his eyes. "She was married, murdered a day before Toga's demise."
"The heirs all seem to have such dreadful ends...", Totosai said, "but marriage? I've never known one who got married... "
"The last one was", said Gyo, leaning forward in urgency."But that is the least of our worries. What we need is the whereabouts of the jewel."
"I believe what we need is to find the new heir", said Totosai, "If the jewel has resurfaced, that means an heir has awakened as well."
"Hmph", Gyo scoffed impatiently, "What can one woman do against Ryuukotsusei?"
"They are the ones who are to guard the jewel, you know it. Neither you nor I can be entrusted with such a treacherous thing."
Gyo took a deep breath and smiled, "I suppose you are right; only someone with great power would be able to resist the corruption of the jewel."
Totosai smiled. "Indeed. That is what Toga used to say." Totosai buried his face in his hands. "We can't face a repeat of ten years ago. Our forces are in shambles, and even with Hayomi running it, the organization is nothing like how it used to be…" He sighed and stared at the ceiling. "And nobody knows if the heir has awakened, or if there's even one…If a battle is due, I'm afraid…", Totosai left the sentence hanging and shook his head.
"Well, I must leave now…", said Gyo, picking up his cane. "I hope you won't hesitate to inform me of any news regarding the jewel." Gyo rose up from his seat with some difficulty. "I will keep in touch."
"Why would you keep in touch?"
"To keep you updated regarding the whereabouts of the Shikon..." Gyo's brow creased in confusion at the clueless expression in his face.
"That's nice", Totosai smiled benignly, "Who are you again?"
"Totosai..."
"Wait!" The wizened old demon gasped, as if remembering something crucial, "Who am I?"
This was followed by him starting into space with an open mouth and a blank expression.
"You exasperate me, my friend", Gyo murmured. "Goodbye for now. Hope you return to your senses soon, God knows we need it", said Gyo, before he nodded and closed the door behind him.
"Bye-bye", waved Totosai. "And bring some roast pork next time!"
Totosai stared into space for another thirty seconds with a blank smile. He then suddenly started.
"Oh right!" Totosai picked the phone up and began to dial. He sighed.
"I'm gettin' too old for this..."
*********....**********
"So it's okay with you?" Kagome said, as they returned from Inuyasha's home on her pink bicycle through the peaceful streets.
"Uh, Earth to Yuki? Hello?", Kagome ventured, not getting a response from the girl sitting behind her. Yukiyo started.
"Huh?! Yeah?"
"You sure seem preoccupied."
"Hehe...sorry, I just spaced out...", said she, thinking about the strange look in Sesshomaru's eyes back then.
"I was asking if you were alright with me staying over?"
"Sure", beamed Yuki, "I've never had anyone over before, come on, it'll be fun!"
"I mean, they just drop this bomb on me out of the blue! I don't know why mom even likes aunt Mikan so much, she's such a pain!"
"What happened to her again?"
"Broke her arm", said Kagome, "and everyone's packed up and have gone to visit her." She scoffed. "That ogre hates my guts; good thing the feeling is mutual."
"Why doesn't she like you?"
"Well", Kagome smiled, "I might have told her that her breath smells of onions when she was about to kiss me once, when I was little."
"Oh", Yuki giggled.
"Well, thanks for letting me crash at your place anyway", said Kagome.
"It's no biggie", said Yukiyo. "And I just cleaned it up recently, so the house is not as messy as it usually is", she added cheerfully. "I'll introduce you to granny, she's kinda worried that I am some sort of a loner with no friends", she stopped for a moment, contemplating, "which I am."
"Come on, Yuki, you are such a sweetheart", said Kagome. "You have to let people get to know you better."
Yukiyo smiled sheepishly, saying nothing. They cycled back in a comfortable silence till they reached her place.
*********....**********
"When I thought of having a sleepover, this was not what I had in mind", Yukiyo groaned, halfheartedly plucking at the pages of her algebra textbook.
"Come on Yuki, focus!" Kagome chimed , taking a break from furiously scribbling equations in her notebook. "We have GOT to ace the test this Friday!"
"I'll be happy with just passing."
"Come on Yuki, be competitive!"
Yukiyo groaned again as she laid her chin flat on the table and stared at the mind- boggling collection of formulas.
"I don't get any of this!" She lamented a second later.
"You're not trying,Yuki!"
"I'm feeling so sleepy", Yukiyo yawned. "What time is it?" She checked the clock and gasped. "One thirty!" She stared at Kagome, "You have deprived me of sleep for math?!"
"Fine, let's stop if you're not interested at all", Kagome huffed. "Just so you know, no one's gonna just drop that medical degree onto your lap you lazy bum, you have to work for it!"
Yukiyo yawned again, her head still lying flat on the table. "I don't want it if it's so much work... I'm not sure if I even want to be a doctor."
"You're impossible...",sighed Kagome.
Yukiyo giggled and looked out the window. The moon was a bright silver disc on the inky blue sky.
His arms were so warm...,she snuggled into her sleeve with a smile, sighing contentedly.
Wait, what? Did I hit my head or something?
Before she could ponder upon the implications of that thought, a shadow flitted across the night sky, silhouetted against the moon- a very familiar shadow.
"Kagome, come here!" She wasted no time in bolting up to the window.
"What?!" Said Kagome as she came to a halt beside her, her gaze traveling to the direction Yukiyo's finger pointed to. She gasped and stared after the silhouette of the girl atop the flying four legged creature.
"See, I told you!" Yukiyo grinned triumphantly. "Now you see, I was right! You didn't believe me, but now you- erm, Kagome?"
Kagome was already at the bedroom door, yanking it open.
"What are you...?"
"Well don't just stand there!" Kagome said with a twinkle in her eye, " Let's follow her!"
Please don't hesitate to leave a review, despite my very delayed updating :(