Disclaimer: Inuyasha does not belong to me.

The Gatherer of Souls

Chapter 10

Zairin walked down the forest path, deep in thought.

They had arrived at the appointed valley, deep in the western mountains, just as the sun had begun to set. Nearly a full day after encountering the human bandits.

Zairin felt a sigh trying to climb out of his throat and determinedly swallowed it back down. He didn't feel especially guilty about killing those men. They had been betrayers, murderers, and thieves. They had not been worthy of life, despite him having given them a chance to flee. More than they'd deserved, certainly. But still, that the task would fall to him had been . . . regrettable. He disliked displaying his power so blatantly in front of others. And the way Inuyasha and his companions had looked at him afterwards . . .

Zairin gave himself a mental shake, annoyed with his own nostalgia. What did it matter if they feared him? All living creatures feared death. Every person, demon or human, learned to fear the Gyazaseishou eventually.

Save one.

Zairin felt a rare smile grace his features as a familiar demonic aura reached him. Lengthening his stride, he followed the path, knowing that the Inu no Taisho would sense him and come.

"Zairin."

The Gatherer stopped as the Inutaisho came out the trees to his left.

"Nii-chan."

"You have returned," the Inutaisho continued. Zairin noted that dog demon looked a little rumpled. He must have found Sesshomaru and begun training already. "Did you locate Inuyasha?"

Zairin nodded. "I did. In fact, he had been searching for me already, and had departed from Totosai's within days of my arrival. He and his companions await us."

A quizzical frown flickered across the Inutaisho's face. "His companions?" he echoed.

Zairin nodded, watching his friend's expression closely. "Inuyasha's friends. A strange group, to be sure. They refused to be left behind, despite my best efforts to be rid of them. Alas, all I could manage was to extract a promise from each of them not to interfere."

Unabashed curiosity filled the dog demon's face. "Indeed," he murmured, his eyes sliding past Zairin to peer into the trees in the direction where Inuyasha waited. He did not, however, make any move to head towards his waiting son.

"Nii-chan," Zairin said softly, grasping his friend's shoulder, "have courage."

He could see the hesitation in the demon lord's eyes. The Inu no Taisho would face hordes of demons, would leap into battle after battle without a moment's indecision, yet the prospect of meeting his son for the first time filled him with uncertainly and foreboding.

Zairin gave the Inutaisho's shoulder a sympathetic squeeze. "His heart is not bitter, Nii-chan. I do not believe he will resent you."

The dog demon took a deep breath and squared his broad shoulders, his expression filling with determination. "There is only one way to find out."

The Inutaisho strode forward, the Gyazaseishou falling into step behind him. They followed the path Zairin had just walked, heading back towards where Inuyasha and his friends waited.

"When I first found Inuyasha, I challenged him to battle," Zairin remarked calmly after a moment.

The Inutaisho stopped abruptly and turned to face his friend. His look was considering. "Did he recognize you?"

"No," Zairin replied. "The battle was . . . interesting." He started walking again, forcing the Inutaisho to follow.

"Inuyasha is slow and ungainly, but he is also determined and a fast learner. He even managed to cut me with the Tetsusaiga."

"Did he?" The Inutaisho sounded equally surprised, amused, and proud all at the same time.

"Indeed. However, the moment Inuyasha's life appeared to be in danger, his companions leaped to his defense."

"They interfered even after you challenged Inuyasha alone?"

"Yes. I had not expected it, though that was foolish of me. Humans do not know the laws of dueling as do we."

"Very true," the Inutaisho replied knowingly. "But the question is, does Inuyasha?"

"He seemed to have some vague notions about it. Instinctive, I would guess."

They continued walking, and, as they approached the clearing where Inuyasha and the others waited, voices carried to them.

". . . terrain is very hospitable," a female voice Zairin knew to be Sango was saying with approval. "This is an excellent place for hardcore training."

"A demon slayer," Zairin supplied. "She nearly decapitated me when I wounded Inuyasha in our battle."

The Inutaisho expression was one of surprise. "A demon slayer," he repeated in a disbelieving murmur.

"I agree," said a male voice. "I wonder where the other members of this prophecy are. The demonic auras around here are astounding."

"A Buddhist monk," Zairin informed his friend. "He has a strange weapon of black magic in the palm of his hand. I was almost forced to kill him when he turned it on me."

"Yeah," said the other female. "And I thought Lord Zairin's aura was strong."

"A young mortal girl," the Gatherer said, his voice shifting slightly. The Inutaisho paused and looked at him. Zairin looked back at the demon lord, his gaze intense. "She has enormous spiritual powers. She shot me with a sacred arrow and almost killed me." He reached out a hand to touch the other's shoulder. "It completely destroyed my shoulder, right there. Had I been anyone else, I would have been maimed."

The two demons stared at one another for a moment longer, then both started walking, once again tuning into the distant conversation.

". . . Inuyasha, do you know who the other demons here are?"

"A young kitsune child," Zairin said shortly.

There was a rude snort. "I can smell Sesshomaru already," replied a gruff male voice dripping with annoyance. "I should have known that bastard would be here."

"And that would be Inuyasha," Zairin said softly, watching the Inutaisho's face as indecision flickered across his features again. But his steps did not falter.

They were approaching the clearing now. The Gatherer could see the flashes of red passing back and forth through the trees. Inuyasha, it seemed, was pacing.

"I recognize Sesshomaru for sure," Inuyasha continued.

They reached the edge of the clearing.

"But the other scent, it seems familiar, but I—"

Zairin and the Inutaisho stepped into the clearing, side by side, as Inuyasha broke off both his sentence and his pacing and turned towards them.

The Gatherer kept his face impassive as he watched Inuyasha's eyes widen in surprise, his gaze locking on the Inutaisho, studying his face, his clothes, his hair. The half-demon's eye grew larger, his mouth opened then closed, and his face paled drastically.

Zairin wondered silently if Inuyasha was merely surprised to see another dog demon besides Sesshomaru, or if he truly recognized his father on some deeper level. The Gatherer was almost positive that Inuyasha didn't consciously remember the Inutaisho.

The humans and kitsune hadn't noticed Inuyasha's reaction; they, too, were staring at the dog demon lord.

"So this is the last demon of your prophecy?" the monk asked when the silence began to stretch uncomfortably. Neither Inuyasha nor the Inutaisho had moved.

"He looks strong," Shippo said in a loud whisper to the demon slayer.

No one answered.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome, finally noticing the hanyou's distress, was taking a step towards him. "Inuyasha, are you okay?"

The other humans turned to look at Inuyasha at the same moment the Inutaisho whirled on Zairin, his expression livid. The Gyazaseishou calmly held his ground.

"You didn't tell him."

Zairin was aware of the humans turning back at the sound of the dog lord's voice, but he kept his attention on the Inutaisho.

"What was I to say? There was no way for him to be prepared."

"And this is so much better?" the dog lord demanded sarcastically, his voice thundering with anger. The humans all took an involuntary step back.

"I couldn't have him all in a fret traveling here. I needed his attention focused on what must be done before the full moon."

"You could have given him some warning! This kind of shock is not going to help him stay focused!"

Zairin felt anger fill him, and his own voice rose, filled with deadly power. "You forget your place, Inu no Taisho. This is not a reunion between you and Inuyasha. This is a battle for the fate of the living world. What goes on between you and your children is secondary to our first and main task."

The two demons stared one another down for a long moment, the clearing filled with a dangerous silence.

"I am sorry, Nii-chan," Zairin said softly, "but that is the way it is. Our task must come first, or it is all for nothing."

There was another long moment of silence before the Inutaisho gave a terse nod, though his jaw was still tight with anger.

Zairin glanced at the others, then looked back at the Inutaisho. "Perhaps," he said quietly, "I could have told him when we arrived. However, I believe this was the better way. He did not have time to think about it, to worry himself, or get worked up. This way, you get a clean start."

The Inutaisho nodded again, this time without anger.

"We will begin training at sunrise," Zairin said. "Go to him, Nii-chan."

The Inutaisho looked back at the clearing. Zairin already knew what he'd see.

Inuyasha had fled.

. : [x] : [x] : [x] : .

A/N:

Sorry about the long wait for this chapter. On a side note, if anyone is interested I have a new Bleach fanfiction on the go right now as well. You can find it via my profile page. Has anyone heard anything about the brand new Inuyasha series that's supposed to be coming out this year? I don't know much about it, and I'm really not sure what to think at this point.