Chapter 10

"Hello?"

The man's voice ran out in the dark recesses of the shrine. He stepped further into the shrine cautiously, well aware that though he wore the robes of a monk he was treading on cautious ground. Tetsuya brushed his dark hair, smoothing the thick strands back into place with nervous efficiency. "Hello? Priestess? Are you here?"

Arashi came out from around the corner, her hair still damp. Her usually stoic face had the slightest hint of a smile when she saw it was the monk. "What are you doing here, Houshi-sama?" Arashi felt that it was odd to be using the endearment her mother had used, but Arashi had inherited her mother's polite nature. It was not, for her, an endearment. Despite that both of them were are of that fact, his dark green eyes sharpened with pleasure.

"I wanted to come and thank you for helping our midwife with the birth. It was greatly appreciated by both of us."

She eyed him wearily, with heavily lashed eyes that belied the way she studied him intently. He had left his sandals at the door, and the tips of his robes brushed the hardwood floors, but he still held his wooden staff. He was not unnarmed—like many others of his kind, he had learned that it was unwise to travel the road without some means of protection. For a moment the thought stung, and she was reminded of her father. Her voice became clipped.

"You didn't have to come yourself. You could have just sent a letter to thank me."

"I know." He nodded gently, his black hair falling to rest against his forehead. "I also came to express my condolences. I just heard about your father. I'm sorry for your loss, Arashi-sama."

Tetsuya meant every word. Arashi knew it. He was an honest, sensitive person—completely unlike the way she thought of herself. She felt his words slide through her thick defenses as if they did not exist. For a moment it wrangled her, but when he reached out to touch her shoulder she was thankful for it. He looked down at her with such expression! His eyes were soft and inviting, his strong jaw set loosely so that he didn't look quite as withdrawn as normal. He was easily one of the best looking men Arashi had ever seen.

"How are you, Arashi-sama?"

"Accepting, as I ever was."

He lifted his rough hand from her chin to brush her face, trying away tears Arashi didn't realize she was shedding. "Poor little priestess… you're not alone, you know. You have Shippo, and your cousin, and a whole herd of little sheep to watch over and tame. Your parents would good people, and the world will miss them, but they left behind two wonderful children to take their place. And, until you feel ready to bear the full weight of that responsibility again, I am here for you to lean on, Priestess."

She managed to actually smile and her hand covered his with the briefest of touches. "Thank you, Houshi-sama. I am pleased for your company." Her smile began a little more sturdy, the corners of her wrinkling with the strength of it. "If you were the type of monk my father was, I would have had to worry, though."

Tetsuya laughed as well. He was glad that she was making jokes. Arashi-sama preserved over all, it seemed. He felt a little silly for having thinking that she might need his support. Arashi would not let herself fall apart over the death of Miroku. She was stronger than that. Yet his trip was not wasted entirely, for those few tears she had shed in front of him.

"It hasn't returned to me yet, Houshi-sama," she admitted. She lowered her head and turned from him, ashamed to be near him or look at him. "My powers. Since I killed those men that murdered my father before me, my powers still have not returned to me in their normal strength. I know that I used a great deal of my energy sealing the bone-eater's well for the townsfolk, but more of it should have returned since then! I've tried every purification ritual I can try, but I still feel their blood upon my hands… I haven't been able to draw my sword, Houshi-sama!

Her voice was still steady, but not her usual tone. For Arashi, Tetsuya thought, it sounded like she was panicking. He reached out and took her shoulders. "Arashi-sama, we will find a way. I promise you we will."

He meant that as well.

Much to my amazement, Hatsuhana tilted back his head and laughed at the comment I had made. It made something deep inside of me shiver in delight. I felt like I had power over in him now—and I rather liked it. I could make Hatsuhana laugh—not just laugh, but laugh from the belly, with a wide mouth, and his eyes half-closed, with little crow's feet just stepping into the corner.

"Oh, I wish I could have met Inuyasha. It seems that he possessed an ability to annoy Sesshy just by being close to him. We would have run Sesshoumaru ragged, he and I. I was told that he has left for someplace so far away that no one will be able to speak to him again. Is this true, Rin?"

"Yes, he and his wife. Sesshoumaru-sama must be happy to know that, I think, but sad too. For so many years his quest for the throne had been overshadowed by his hunt to prove himself better than his brother—like Inuyasha might want to take the throne himself or something. He established himself on the throne, and I sometimes imagine that he must have been lonely for the years that Inuyasha was tied to that tree. Then all of a sudden Inuyasha was back and walking around and causing trouble," I sighed. "Lord Sesshoumaru must have been happy to suddenly have an opponent again, even as he was furious that Inuyasha was a threat to his family image again. This time Inuyasha won't be showing up again."

Hatsuhana was nodding his head slowly. "Wise words, Rin. Wise words."

I blushed shyly. "Thank you, Hatsuhana…"

I was beginning to consider marrying him; I really was. Did I already say that? I knew, logically, that Sesshoumaru-sama was beyond my grasp, but I was still holding out for him. Now that I knew I could make him laugh, Hatsuhana seemed even more appealing. I glanced up at him, about to speak, when I realized he sensed something I couldn't yet. If could sense it too, then the dragon-horse wasn't agitated by it the way Hatsuhana was. His face was taught, his hazel eyes flashing with a golden sheen. The air around him was hot and humid with restrained power.

I focused all my attention on trying to figure out what was wrong. I did have some ability to sense demonic presences, thanks to the decades of being around Sesshoumaru-sama, and surely if some angry, powerful demon were on his way towards us I would know!

But instead of sensing anything, I first heard it. In the still quiet the sound of the feet of a dozen children reached my ears first. I wasn't concerned about it. The village was full of training demon slayers, and they used the woods as their training grounds when they learned how to track. I stole a quick glance at Hatsuhana, wondering if perhaps they were fully grown adults who had sensed a powerful demon approaching and had come to investigate, but no. I could hear their voices.

"There he is!"

"Get him!"

"Don't let him get away!"

Bursting from the underbrush came Shippo. He was running on all fours, his bushy tail lifted high in the air. He skidded to a stop when realized that his way was blocked. He may not have noticed that the demon standing beside me had his hand on his weapon, but I did. Immediately Shippo changed directions towards me.

"Shippo-kun!" I knelt down to make it easier for him to reach my shoulders. Shippo still enjoyed being carried there, possibly because he gave him a height he would not know for maybe a century yet. Hatsushana's hand twitched and he seemed ready to draw his sword, but for my yell. By that he knew that Shippo was a friend, and the fact that I hugged him in greeting only made it more obvious.

His childish green eyes—impossibly large in his chubby face and full of wisdom already—stared past me to Hatsuhana. He clambered to my shoulder, standing between us. "New friend, Rin?"

Hatsuhana nodded to him quickly and cordially. "Any friend of Rin's is a friend of mine. I will stop the humans from chasing you." He stepped in front of us and drew his sword just as the children came through the forest, still hot on Shippo's trail.

There was a collective gasp when they saw the demon standing in front of them, weapon drawn. I don't know who was the more surprised: the children, or Hatsuhana discovering that Shippo had been chased by a group of taijiyas composed of demons, hanyous, and humans. He held his strike, and so did they. It was a small human child in the front who broke the silence, glancing past Hatsuhana to spot Shippo on my shoulder. The fox demon had his smile covered to stifle his laughter, so I suppose that there wasn't that much silence.

"Shippo-kun… who is this?"

"I haven't the foggiest," he said proudly, straightening up proudly and balancing on my slim shoulder with perfect balance. "But this here is Lady Rin, so if she's with him, I can only guess that it's with Lord Sesshoumaru's approval. Please be courteous to our new guests, and return to camp. You should all be ashamed of yourselves. A deaf man could have heard you tromping through the forest, yelling after me and all of that. What did Kissaki tell you? When you track a demon, you must be as quiet as the wind. Any louder, and they will hear you."

"Hai, Shippo-kun." With a bow, the children all turned and began heading through the woods back to the village. Hearing his words wisely, they returned in perfect silence.

Shippo sat back down on my shoulder, staring up at Hatsuhana, was sheathing his sword and chuckling. His eyes were dark green, his expression far too adult for my liking. He rested his elbow on his knee and his chin on his palm. "It's been many years since I saw one of your kind of demons. The last time I saw one was the last time I saw Sesshoumaru-sama, back before Naraku died. Where did you find him, Rin? Why is he travelling with you?"

"He found me, Shippo-kun. This is Lord Hatsuhana, Sesshoumaru-sama's cousin."

Hatsuhana smiled kindly at Shippo. "You seem suspicious of me, sir. Any particular reason why?"

"You laughed when you found out that they were children—and you were laughing at your own mistake at that! If I couldn't smell you, that fact would have made me doubt that you were a real demon. You act too human for it. Even Inuyasha, as human and grumpy as he may have been, wasn't human enough to laugh and take amusement in his own mistakes. You do."

"You seem fairly human yourself, sir," was Hatsuhana's reply.

"Me?" Shippo smiled broadly—he was taking comments like that as compliments now. "My father died several decades ago, killed by the thunder brothers. Since then, a group of three humans and a hanyou raised me. So why did you come, Rin?" He was ignoring Hatsuhana to look at me, his tail shaking with excitement. I had nearly forgotten that Shippo knew about my secret quest. The fox demon was looking for some sign that I had finished it.

"I am showing Hatsuhana around all of Lord Sesshoumaru's lands. I did not think that a tour would be quite complete without a stop at the taijiya village."

"Taijiya?" Hatsuhana's beautifully composed face paled slightly in shock, looking almost like one the lilies after which he might have been named. He glanced over his shoulder in the direction of the children, amasement on his face. "Those children were training demon slayers?"

Shippo shrugged, but he was grinning proudly. "Not all of them. Some of them were just neighborhood children who wanted to play. I run, and they chase me. It's a simple game, but it gives them exercise, and it gives the training demon slayers a chance to practice tracking skills. One of the women who raised me, Sango, she was a demon slayer, and her daughter is now the leader of the village. I suppose, Rin, that you should go and see her first. Arashi will be upset otherwise if she finds out there's a powerful demon walking around."

"Of course I will, Shippo-kun. Will you run ahead and find Kissaki-sama for me? I need to talk to her afterwards." With a salute he jumped off my shoulder and scampered into the woods. I turned with a pleasant smile to Hatsuhana only to find him looking shocked. "What is it, Hatsuhana?"

"My… my cousin… he actually knows of this? He knows that the demon slayers are here? I admit I've never met one, but I have heard of the legends. They say that they can kill nearly any demon, even one like my cousin, and that they use the parts of the demons they kill against other demons by fashioning them into weapons and armor."

I began walking towards the village again, my path slightly altered to take us to the temple where Arashi-sama lived. I nodded. "They do precisely that. Sango once explained it to me as a way of honoring the demons they kill. The demon slayers aren't fighters because they hate demons—as Shippo proves, as do some of the children in the crowd, they get along with them perfectly well and even live with them. But every once in a while, a demon will go rogue and become crazed, or mindlessly attack demons. They simply take care of the demons before more people can be hurt. Sesshoumaru-sama knows of their existence, and when some of his human subordinates complain of rogue or wild demons, Sesshoumaru-sama has even authorized the demon slayers to take care of them and pays them for it."

"Astonishing!" His hazel eyes were full of respect for his cousin. "The Sesshoumaru I knew never would have done something like this. He certainly has changed, and clearly for the better. Even the other demons seem to have changed their opinions! Kitsunes have always been around humans, but to be a teacher to them, and a playmate, even for a child!"

He seemed so surprised that he could scarcely put together a proper sentence. I giggled, and then I was ashamed at myself for giggling like a maiden with a crush. I was no young child that should giggle so! But… when Hatsuhana was around… I felt like a young girl again.

After we finished climbing the long stairs to the shrine that overlooked the village, we found Arashi-sama waiting for us. I can only assume that the priestess could feel Hatsuhana coming, and I was not surprised. What did surprise me was that she had a monk there with her. I didn't think that Arashi-sama interacted with men, except for perhaps Shippo. I knew Tetsuya, having visited his village before.

She bowed her head courteously and so did the monk. Hatsuhana greeted her stoic face with a smile and bowed to her, deeper than she did to him. His smile was not the broad grin he flashed with me, but more like Sesshoumaru's smile—patient, ghostly, and approving. Arashi-sama was stoic, but that was demons had a tendency to like her. She could interact with them on a level that other humans couldn't because she acted like them. They respected her, and they feared her.

"Rin-sama," she greeted, in her alto voice. She was soft-spoken, but her voice was deep for a woman's. "To what do we owe the pleasure of your company?"

"I am showing around Sesshoumaru-sama's cousin. Arashi-sama, this is Hatsuhana-sama." I introduced them with a genteel wave of my hand. "I am not interrupting something, am I, Arashi-sama?"

She gave me the same ghostly, patient smile Hatsuhana wore. The wind stirred her long hair for a second, and caused the sword she wore by her side to move, drawing attention to herself. The monk came to stand beside her as her equal when she introduced him. "As you know, Rin-sama, my father passed away recently. Houshi-sama is here from the nearby village to help me with some of my duties until I feel well enough to resume full responsibility again."

"I thought that priestesses tended to cut all connections to their previous life to avoid situations such as this," Hatsuhana remarked dryly.

Her blue eyes flashed with anger, unleashing the full potential of the reproachful glare she gave him. Added to that was the audible snapping of her power in a controlled release to remind him of whom he was talking to. Hatsuhana's neck straightened; he was impressed. "After my mother died, my father had nothing to do in the village but to help me in the shrine. It is to him I owe my powers, and it is he who taught me how to use them. If you cannot accept, lord, in your short sightedness, that I could not sever myself completely from familial bonds, accept that I am in mourning for the loss of my mentor and friend."

"Yes, priestess," he said almost meekly.

I hated to leave on such an unfriendly note, but I had other business to which to attend. Arashi-sama, despite her angry display, would not harm Hatsuhana. I was more than confident that, on the contrary, Arashi-sama would win his respect. She may have had her mother's anger, and now it was set into a slow and steady burn from the death of her father, but she had her father's wit and silver tongue. She would, no doubt, soon have Hatsuhana eating out of her hand.

"Arashi-sama, I need to go and see your cousin. I bring a message for her from her mother. May I leave you to entertain Hatsushana while I am gone?"

Her blue eyes searched my face, looking for some clue. She, like Shippo, wondered if I brought a message regarding Kaede-chan. I could have let her in on it, but I could feel Hatsushana watching me as well. No doubt he was surprised that I was going to leave him, and with an angry priestess and a monk at that! I did not give any sign that the message I had was about Kaede-chan.

She nodded when she saw I was maintaining the patient smile. "I will be more than happy to show Hatsuhana around. Houshi-sama can take over my responsibilities at the shrine for now. I expect that you, Lord Hatsuhana, have never seen a taijiya village."

As they were beginning to discuss what they wanted to do, I slipped away. Shippo had located for Kissaki-sama and they, along with Kaede, were waiting for me in Kissaki's hut. I didn't even get a chance to sit down before Kissaki leapt up from where she was sitting.

"Do you have it? Can we do it?" Her voice was excited, but her freckles were obscured by the look of worry on her face. I think that she wanted Kaede-chan to be back with her family, and safe, but at the same time she didn't want her time with Kaede to end. Kissaki and Kaede had grown up together, and now Kissaki was going to have to say goodbye to her—forever.

With that thought in mind I was almost relieved to shake my head no. "Your mother says hello, Kissaki, and promises to see you soon. I would draw attention to myself buying the things that you need, especially know that I am showing around Sesshoumaru's cousin the western lands…"

"What?" Kaede leapt up this time, her hand tight around the Tetsusaiga. "Sesshoumaru's cousin? Here?" I could see the panic in her gold-washed eyes.

"Relax, Kaede-chan. I already took your heritage into consideration. Unless he sees you and recognizes you, or gets close enough to smell you specifically, he won't be able to sense you. With all the other half-demons in the village—and full demons like Shippo-kun," I said with a kind smile, "that he won't be able to feel you out any other way." She sat back down with a sigh of relief.

"You got my mother involved?" Kissaki growled.

I nodded. "Yes. I gave her the money, and she will be bringing them to you in a few weeks. That leaves me about two weeks to try and figure out how I can get a hold of some of Sesshoumaru-sama's blood. That is proving to be difficult—but I knew it would be when I offered my help."

Kissaki looked ready to argue with me over something, but Kaede pulled her down and gave her the same reproachful look that I had seen Arashi-sama shoot Hatsuhana. On Kaede's face, I recognized the expression as Kagome's. Kaede had no doubt learned it from her mother after all the times her mother would use it on Inuyasha. Kissaki crossed her arms grumpily, and Kaede smiled at me. "Thank you for your help, Rin-sama."

I smiled at her brightly. "You're welcome, Kaede-chan."

We spoke a little more after that. They told me some of the things that they had been doing while I was gone, and spoke highly of the success of the school, as well as the worries they had over Arashi-sama. She was still stoic and reserved as normal, but even around them she had not returned to herself. I tried to ease over their worries, as best I could. Shippo cuddled on my lap throughout the conversation, but finally it was time for me to take my leave.

They escorted my outside. Everything seemed to move in slow motion when I stepped outside and looked up the dirt road. Arashi-sama and Hatsuhana were walking down the street towards us, on their way back to the shrine from the dojo where the slayers were trained. Kissaki stood beside me, and behind her, Kaede. Hatsuhana smelled me and looked up to greet me, a smile in his eyes. But then his gaze slipped past me to land on Kaede.

I don't know if he could smell her or not. I don't really think that it mattered. Hough it had been long ago, he had seen Inuyasha. Kaede-sama looked like him, and thus, to Seeshoumaru-sama, so I supposed that it wouldn't have mattered if he had ever seen Inuyasha. More importantly, he recognized the sword strapped to Kaede's side. Tetsusaiga.

It was like the woods. I could feel the power gathering. It lifted the hair from the back of my neck. More frightening was the effect it had on Hatsuhana. His hair lifted away from his back and shoulders, a streaming braid behind him. His white teeth were visible, but they were fangs that were frightening. His hazel eyes were wide—had he been Sesshoumaru-sama, they would have been changing to deep crimson. He had forgotten about his sword. His hands were clawed, ready for attack. His growl was audible, cutting through the sounds of the city.

Beside him, to my horror, Arashi-sama was reaching for her own weapon, ready to strike him down for intending to harm her family. I was already running for him, trying to stop him and calm him, when I heard Kissaki dive for her Kaede. Kaede had her hand wrapped around the hilt of Tetsusaiga, ready to draw it to defend herself, while Kissaki was trying to stop her. Everything was coming down—everything was falling apart. Hatsuhana was ready to kill Kaede, Arashi-sama was ready to kill to protect Kaede, and Kaede was ready to use Tetsusaiga, alerting Lord Sesshoumaru.

I didn't understand it. I could feel that his killing edge was rising. This wasn't self-defense or protection, like in the forest. This was aggressive. This was the intent to kill and to destroy.

Where had my smiling demon gone? Where was his laughter and his charming wit?

It was my mistake. I had started thinking of him as being human. I had stopped thinking of him as a being that could easily kill me. I had stopped thinking of him as a demon. That mistake almost cost me the life of Kaede-chan and Hatsuhana. I would not make that mistake again.

With Kissaki-sama taking care of Kaede, I dove for Hatsuhana before Arashi-sama could strike him down. I grabbed his arm. The feeling of his rising chi was warm against my skin, and my face became flushed. "You will not hurt her, Hatsuhana," I ordered with all of my authority. He may have been Sesshoumaru-sama's cousin, but I was the woman Sesshoumaru-sama had placed in charge of humans. This was my domain. "I promised I would protect her!"

"Why?" he growled between clenched teeth. "She's a quarter-demon! She's a threat to Sesshoumaru's crown!"

So, that was it. He was not upset at her heritage. He did not see her as an abomination. He was reacting to the basic desire to protect his cousin's thrown. This was something with which I could work. I do not know what I would have done if Hatsuhana was motivated because he thought that Kaede was some kind of a… freak. I reached out and touched his hand. I heard Arashi-sama gasp a little in surprise. She had never seen someone, especially a human, use touch to try and stop a demon from becoming bestial. I touched his hand briefly, and I felt something like a shot go through him.

"Please, let us talk about it. We're trying to send her home, where she won't be a threat to Sesshoumaru-sama's thrown. She's all alone here, Hatsuhana! Her family can't reach her, and if I don't help her, she'll never see them again! I won't make her an orphan while it's in my power to stop it!"

With barely restrained anger and ferocity, Hatsuhana agreed to listen. We explained everything—the truth. We explained where Kagome came from and why it was so hard to send Kaede back. We didn't mention my quest. It was a tough enough situation, between a furious freckled Kissaki, a barely restrained priestess, Kaede staring at Hatsuhana intently, and Hatsuhana himself, whose voice when he asked questions was a rumble in his throat.

What a motley crew we made.

Finally, Hatushana calmed down. He stared at me with wide, hazel eyes. "What can I do to help?"

"Help?" I squeaked.

His hand gently touched mine. "This was your burden. Now I know it too, therefore it is also mine to bear." He smiled at me. "We will be traitors together."

Traitors together. And so it came to be that Hatsuhana knew the secret of Kaede too.

To be continued...
THE AN: So, it took me awhile to post this because I wrote the chapter and then lost it. So, I had to rewrite it. It was slow going at first. All I could recall was that I introduced Tetsuya and that Hatsuhana found out about Kaede-chan. But, as I worked with it, I peiced it back together. I hope you enjoyed it! For anyone wondering where Sesshoumaru-sama is, he will be back in 2 more chapters.

And because it took so long to get chapter 10 for you, I will post 11 right away--but it'll be another long wait for chapter 12. I need to make a bunch of lesson plans. Coming two weeks from now, I'll be teaching about Ancient Greek civilizations. Whee!

Love,

the PoF