Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.
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Chapter 09
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Isao closed the window, so as not to let the heavy rain inside his modest, but solid shack. He glanced over his shoulder and a fond smile appeared on his face, as he was looking at his beloved girls. The three children were squealing from joy and chasing each other around the wooden table, their long bare tails swishing behind them and nearly overturning the dishes.
"Carefully!" Isao's wife exclaimed, her laughter like silver bells. She was rocking the youngest of the girls in her arms – the infant made its very first steps just yesterday. The child let go of the rattle, but its mother swiftly snatched it with her agile tail and flashed a smile at her husband, exposing her front teeth, that were a little bit too long. Isao's lips couldn't refrain from smiling back to Shizuka, his wife.
He never regretted his sudden decision to marry this unusual woman, much to his parents' dismay, for his wife was a youkai. Not a dangerous one, as she was only a harmless mouse demon with a gentle and friendly attitude. Thankfully the villagers accepted her as the new inhabitant of the village, as well as the hanyou children.
"Girls! It's time to sleep!" Isao tried to pacify the lively children, but they fled with their inhuman speed and shook their heads, laughing and taunting their father to catch them. The man sighed heavily and decided to go along and play with the girls. "Here I come!"
KNOCK
The little girls fell silent. Isao and his wife exchanged looks, as the energetic knocking sounded again. Shizuka furrowed her brows, bringing the infant closer to her chest.
"Who could that be at such late hour?" she asked with a tint of nervousness in her voice. Isao shrugged his shoulders and gestured his family to go into another room – better not to endanger his girls.
The man hesitantly opened the door, as the knocking repeated, this time louder and more impatient. He slid the door just a little bit aside, to look, who was disturbing the peace of his family. Seeing the newcomers, he instinctively attempted to shut the door, but a foot blocked it.
"My family is poor. We have nothing valuable." Isao said quickly, assuming, that the guests were robbers. He had every right to take them as ones – the two figures were dressed in brownish torn cloaks, their faces carefully hidden beneath the hoods. The mere sight of the two screamed: suspicious.
"We are humble travelers. It is not our intention to rob you." The taller one said, putting his hand on the edge of the door, as though he wanted to open them more. Isao noticed, that the palm lacked a finger. The man reached with his other hand to the hood and took it off, exposing his face – it turned out, that he was merely an old man. "I hoped, that you could let me and my apprentice stay in your house till the rain stops."
Isao's attention turned to the other traveler. It seemed, that it was just a boy at the age of about eleven, even though he looked older and much more mature. The villager shook his head, berating himself for fearing an old man and a child.
"Come inside, we have some warm stew left." He said, opening the door wiser and ushering the guests inside. The two travelers went inside and took their water-soaked cloaks off. The sat be the fire, stretching their tired legs. Isao noticed, that the child was armed, what was strange and slightly alarming. The villager filled the bowls with his wife's stew and passed them to the hungry guests. Both the boy and the old man swallowed everything nearly at once.
Then, a ball made of rags rolled from the other room and one of the small girls run inside the main chamber, gaining the wary looks of the travelers. Isao panicked, afraid, that there could be some trouble.
"She's your child?" the boy asked, surprisingly calm, showing neither fear nor anger. "She looks a lot like you. Except the tail, of course."
Isao stiffened at the comment and wrinkled his forehead in confusion, as he expected another reaction to seeing a hanyou. Hesitantly, he nodded. The old man sighed.
"Don't be afraid, good man. We're used to the sight of youkai. You don't have to hide your family from us." He said, as Shizuka and the other girls shyly peeked from behind the door. The mouse demoness hesitantly stepped into the room and the children followed her.
A while later the atmosphere in Isao's shack became unexpectedly friendly. The travelers showed no sign of uneasiness around his youkai wife and the hanyou daughters. The old man was telling the girls stories about imaginary adventures, making both the children and adults burst in laughter. In the middle of fun, the villager saw, that the boy stood up and made his way towards the window. He opened it just a little bit and narrowed his eyes, peeking through the crevice.
"Master Sekiguchi, I think, that it's the time for us to leave." The boy said, closing the window and making sure, that the sword on his back could be drawn without any hindrance. The elderly man abruptly stopped entertaining the children and stood up, grabbing a cloak. Both of the travelers exchanged tense looks.
"Back door." The scholar muttered. The unnerving sound of hooves splashing the mud was coming from all directions. Isao motioned himself closer to his wife and daughters, ushering them to the corner of the chamber.
"In the name of the lord, open up!" a man's voice yelled, as someone kept banging on the door. Suddenly the bolted door flew inside, kicked in by a samurai. Simultaneously the soldiers got inside, using the back door, so the group found themselves surrounded. The boy named Akira narrowed his eyes, counting the opponents – four in the front, three in the back and gods know, how many outside. The situation was looking rather nasty.
The samurais, who barged in, were looking a little bit strange, as they were dressed in white, with an emblem, picturing a black sun. Neither Akira nor Sekiguchi recognized the sign, but one was sure – it wasn't a family crest of the local feudal lord or any of his vassals. The gazes of the soldiers slid from the two travelers, as though they weren't the ones, who they were after.
"The demons are going with us." The one, who looked like a leader decided, pointing at the trembling Shizuka and her daughters. Isao came forwards, shielding his family with his own body.
"Leave my wife and children alone! They never did anything wrong to humans!" he protested firmly, showing quite a courage.
However, the act of defiance didn't impress the leader in the slightest. He took a step aside, making place for a figure clad in long black robes. The person had the face covered with a veil, but it was clear, that it was a woman. The only distinctive thing about her was a sparkling stone on her chest, the black gem in the shape of the sun. She was carrying a cage, filled with buzzing insects, huge as a fist.
"All your resistance is futile." She said, her voice raspy, as though she wasn't using it frequently. She opened the cage and the insects flew out of it, right in the direction of Isao and his family.
"Run!" Akira shouted to the villagers, ripping out the sword, which was still a little too big for him. He darted towards the man and slashed a couple of insects in midair. In the meantime master Sekiguchi yanked the victims-to-be up and ushered them to crawl outside through the window. The samurais weren't watching idly, but ripped out their blades and rushed to finish the boy off. However, the element of surprise worked in Akira's favor – the soldiers weren't expecting the child to be that skillful. The boy made use of his better speed and flexibility, moving effortlessly in the small room. Without batting an eyelid, he delivered fatal blows to the two grown men. Even the old scholar managed to make himself useful in the battle – he covered the family's escape by swinging with his staff like a true berserk. Suddenly, the boy pushed Sekiguchi out of the window and dived after him, landing atop the old man. Fluently, he rolled off him, jumping to his feet, never losing the grip on the sword. He looked at Isao and his family, who were standing in place, frozen from fear.
"What are you waiting for?! Run!" Akira yelled at them in the precise moment, when the rest of the soldiers ran out of the shack. The boy snatched one of his hidden knifes and threw it at the youngster, who was watching over the horses. The blade smoothly went into his neck, cutting the artery. Master Sekiguchi ushered Isao, his wife and daughters on the horses and gave Akira a hand. The boy hopped onto the back and took one of the hanyou girls.
"Hya!" he shouted, kicking the horses sides and grabbing the reins of Shizuka's horse. The steeds galloped into the night, the sound of the hooves splashing the mud accompanied by the noise of wind and rain.
Akira was looking over his shoulder nervously, waiting for the pursuers to come. The rain was stopping, what was a bad sign, as it would get more difficult to track them. Then, his nightmares came true – he spotted riders, rather far away, but the distance would lessen, as the horses of the boy's companions were overburdened.
Then, he heard buzz right behind his ear.
"Shizuka!" Isao called his wife's name, as the mouse demoness suddenly turned her horse and rode back, straight in the hands of the enemy. The villager wanted to chase his wife, who took one of their older daughters and the baby along, but master Sekiguchi was firmly holding the reins of his horse.
"What…" Akira began, stopping his horse as well, when the girl, he was holding, punched him squarely in the nose all of a sudden and slipped off the saddle, following her mother.
"No!" Isao cried, as the another daughter was struggling with him, kicking and shouting, while the pursuers were approaching. Akira jumped off his horse and helped Isao hold the little girl down. The boy narrowed his eyes, when he noticed something weird about the child – her eyes were blank, as though she wasn't conscious, the moves were awkward. She was thrashing wildly, not listening to her father at all.
"Something is controlling her." He muttered and clenched his fingers. Without any warning, he delivered a blow in the girl's head.
"My daughter!" Isao yelled, as the girl stopped struggling and became limp, as she lost her consciousness. Akira glared at the man harshly.
"Take her into safety." He said. Isao opened his mouth, ready to protest – he didn't want to leave his wife and other daughters. However, Akira insisted, ushering the villager onto the horse. "Ride east, then turn northwards. We'll be covering your tracks."
Before spanking the horse's rear, master Sekiguchi told Isao:
"Save your daughter." The old man whacked the steed with his staff and mounted his own horse. He sighed heavily, looking at his young apprentice, who lightly jumped onto the horseback, as though he was born in the saddle. Sekiguchi shook his head. "Boy, I'm too old for such adventures. You should stop attracting danger."
Akira only laughed and kicked his steed's sides.
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Mai snuggled closer to Sesshomaru, wrapping her spare kimono tighter around her frame, as the nights were still chilly like in winter. The dog demon put his arm around her and leaned down to kiss her fondly on the forehead, as all their companions were already asleep. The girl tugged her husband's long silver strands and forced him to bend lower. He obliged and she pressed her lips against his. They were kissing for a while. When Sesshomaru's other hand slowly wandered to Mai's thigh, the girl snatched his wrist and gave it a warning squeeze. The demon tore his lips from hers and furrowed his brows.
"Not tonight." His wife whispered. The inu-youkai frowned, showing his dissatisfaction. Mai sighed, seeing the disappointed look on his face and gently patted Sesshomaru's cheek. "I don't feel like it. Maybe tomorrow."
The dog demon's frown was slowly turning into a full-fledged scowl.
"You keep saying it for a month." He hissed out, not happy about the celibacy. "I am a man. I have my needs."
Mai narrowed her eyes at her husband, who was back with his male bullshit. She smiled at him innocently.
"Keep your needs in your pants." She retorted, earning a glare from her dear husband. Ignoring his angered look, she nested herself near him, assuming a comfortable position, what was rather difficult, considering, that Sesshomaru had his armor on.
Suddenly the demon pushed Mai away, just when she was an inch from finding a good sleeping position. The girl opened her mouth, about to question him, but didn't say anything, for she saw the inu-youkai resting his hand on Bakusaiga's hilt. Sesshomaru furrowed his brows, looking westwards.
The young woman recognized the signs of the approaching danger right away and untangled herself from the kimono, which served her as cover. Not wasting any time, she jumped onto her legs and rushed to wake Rin, Jaken and Ah-Un up.
"Hey, get up, everyone! Something's coming!" she said to the companions, poking them to wake them up. She lifted Rin, with certain effort, and laid the confused child on the dragon's back. The little girl yawned, while rubbing her half-closed eyes.
"Sesshomaru-sama… what's happening?" Rin asked in a sleepy voice. Mai glanced over her shoulder at her husband too, eager to know, what had alarmed him.
The dog demon didn't answer and kept waiting, ready to fight if necessary.
The bushes rustled and an exhausted horse jumped over the bushed, landing in the range of the campfire. The animal was swaying on its legs and finally fell to the ground, breathing heavily from the excessive strain. A man slid off the saddle, bewildered look in his eyes. He looked around, taking in the sight of the travelers. Surprisingly, he seemed to be relieved, when he saw Sesshomaru.
"You're a demon!" he exclaimed, the tears streaming down his face, as he brought the limp body of a child closer to his chest. "A demon. Thank gods. Please, help me. My daughter…"
Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes, observing the man. He did not seem to be a threat.
"You are being chased." The dog demon more stated than asked. The man eagerly nodded.
"Yes, please, I need your help. Save my family. My wife… my girls… taken." He was blabbering, his words barely making any sense. The man was looking at Sesshomaru with plea in his eyes.
However, the demon's face was expressionless and his eyes cold. The man's pleas seemed to have absolutely no effect on him.
"Leave. Your problems are not of my concern." He said harshly.
"Sesshomaru!" Mai's scolding voice instantly resounded in the camp, as the young woman straightened her back and stomped towards her husband, frowning. She glanced at the man with his unconscious daughter in his arms and glared at the dog demon. "Seriously, have you no heart?"
She huffed and approached the villager.
"What happened?" she asked the man gently, looking at his child with worry. Sesshomaru was clearly pouting at her for scolding him, but she didn't care about his antics at the moment.
The newcomer's eyes wandered from the dog demon to the human woman and back, as realization came to him – the two were behaving like a couple, so getting the girl on his side could be decisive.
"My lady!" he bowed with respect, trying to control his body's trembling. "My name's Isao. Some soldiers came to my house for my wife and daughters. We tried to escape, but something strange happened to Shizuka and girls…"
Sesshomaru furrowed his brows.
"Strange?" he asked.
"Yes." Isao nodded, taking a calming breath. "Suddenly they wanted to go to the soldiers. I don't know why, it doesn't make any sense. Please help me get my wife and daughter back! I beg you!"
Mai and Sesshomaru exchanged glances and Jaken came closer, intrigued by the story. The imp sniffed the air.
"The girl is a hanyou." He said. Isao shrugged his shoulders.
"Shizuka, my wife, is a demoness." He explained, before looking at the inu-youkai with hope glistening in his eyes, expecting help. He gasped, when the girl in his arms began stirring and moaning, slowly regaining consciousness.
"Sumiko!" he called his daughter's name, but the child began hissing and thrashing, trying to escape her father's embrace. Isao's face became grim, as he saw his child behaving like some wild animal. The man tightened his grip, not letting the kid run away.
Mai wrinkled her forehead.
"It's really strange." She muttered. Sesshomaru was also warily observing the unusual behavior of the little girl. Suddenly, the hairless tail swished and smacked Isao squarely in his face. Startled, the man let go off the child and she darted into the forest, following her mother and sisters. Her father managed to let out a cry, when a green lightning whip sprouted from the tips of Sesshomaru's fingers and cut through the trees, that stood in the way between their group and the little escapee. The whip entwined the girl's ankle and the inu-youkai jerked his arm, sending the hanyou girl flying towards him. The whip dissolved and Sesshomaru deftly caught the child in midair, holding the back of her neck, as though he was holding a puppy. Mai yelped, when she saw the characteristic green gleam, when the dog demon let the acid out of his claws. However, the child was untouched. The inu-youkai lowered the girl onto the ground.
The child looked around in confusion, as though she was surprised to be here. When her eyes met her father, she darted towards him, closing her little arms around his waist.
"Daddy!" she exclaimed and began sobbing. Isao fell to his knees and started crying too, holding his beloved daughter close.
Mai looked at her husband, not knowing, what had just happened. Seeing her staring at him, Sesshomaru offer her an explanation.
"It was a parasite. Yadori Sanagi. It controlled the child's behavior." He said, deep in thought. The inu-youkai was considering Isao's words. "It seems, that it is linked with the soldiers, who took this human's family."
Mai and Jaken came closer. The imp scratched his chin, his eyes never leaving the hanyou girl.
"It could explain, why my kin didn't put up much of a fight. Once those things attach themselves to weak youkai or hanyous, the free will vanishes." He shared his suspicion. Mai nodded, agreeing with the direction of his thoughts.
"Something else worries me." She said quietly. "Isao said, that the soldiers came for his family. So… humans are behind this?
Sesshomaru put his hand on the Bakusaiga's hilt.
"There is one way to find out." He said and turned to his servant. "The human and his child stay. Jaken, keep distance from me."
With that words he leapt into the air, following the scent. Mai and Jaken ran to Ah-Un and once they climbed on its back, they went after the dog demon, leaving Isao and his daughter behind.
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Author Note:
Ha! This time I wasn't slacking with the update. Your comments motivated me to be quicker this time.
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Please review. There are two chapters left.