A/N: Yay! By time you guys are reading this, finals are over!

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. If I did, Inuyasha, Sesshomaru and Miroku would both have their asses strapped to a bus for sensitivity training so fast they wouldn't know what hit them.

The group continued on the next morning in silence. It had been a peaceful night, the group retiring early and leaving before dawn to avoid any more uncomfortable questions. Still, it had angered Sesshomaru to know that Tsukiko would be looked down upon for being in his company.

On the horizon, less than a mile away, was the dark tree line of one of the oldest forests in the Western Lands. It was called, he believed, by the local humans "Inuyasha's Forest". How odd it was to have his hanyou brother leave a mark on his territory. Had Inuyasha been birthed by a demoness, he would have had rightful claim to the throne (even though he was a bastard) and they would have fought tooth and nail over the countryside until it was ripped nearly in two.

Sesshomaru would have been happy to completely bypass the area, moving to the eastern border of the Western Lands, but it seemed wrong. As if not protecting his deceased half-brother's little patch of unofficial land was dishonorable. Sesshomaru could be called many things, but no one could ever question his honor.

They entered the shade of the forest, Sesshomaru now wished that he had indeed forgone Bishamon's village. They had entered from the wrong side of the forest; if he wanted to see Inuyasha's village and be out of the forest in the same day, he would have to leave Rin behind, something he was not willing to do ever since the idea of demon hormones had been put into his head. Even now, with Tsukiko there to make sure Rin was safe, Sesshomaru loathed the thought of leaving.

Tsukiko surreptitiously pulled her cloak tighter about herself. That's right. Sesshomaru suddenly remembered. She is part dragon, so she's also cold-blooded. Or at least a bit. It's winter and she'll be colder than either Rin or I. So settle down and start a fire. Why would I do that? He could feel his feral side growling slightly. She's uncomfortable, make her comfortable. Why? Sesshomaru asked himself stubbornly.

"Sesshomaru?" Sesshomaru had not noticed that Tsukiko had been walking next to him for awhile. "Are you all right?" she asked, true concern lacing her voice.

Sesshomaru did not look at her, still wondering what had caused his demon's change of mind. "I am fin…" Sesshomaru's nose caught a scent. "Dragon, move back." He commanded.

Tsukiko looked slightly hurt, but did as he ordered. Sesshomaru took in a long whiff of the air, hoping (for sanity's sake) that he had been wrong. No, it was still there, the scent, and stronger than ever.

Sesshomaru immediately felt his adrenaline pumping. Without warning, he began running in the direction, following his nose. He ignored the pomegranate scent behind him as well as Tsukiko's angry cry. He knew he would probably regret that later, but he had to know if this was true; if he smelled right.

He slowed down as he came upon the scent's owner, determined to seem as calm as ever, while in reality he felt as if he was no longer in his body, as if he were in one of the bad stories that his mother had loved to listen to when she was still welcome in the Western Land's palace.

He turned a corner (or, tree, as it were) and came to a full halt. For a moment, it felt as if the world stopped. He froze and glared, his hand naturally going to his swords.



Tsukiko glared in the direction that Sesshomaru had gone. She did not realize that a growl of annoyance had risen in her throat. Ah- Un pushed one of its muzzles into her hand.

Young one, our Master is preoccupied.

More than he should be. Tsukiko answered shortly. She was not even sure why she was annoyed with him, but she felt she had justification for it. Did this have to do with the kiss? No, surely he should be more cautious of the safety of those that followed him.

Please, young one. We sense that our Master will need something more. We sense his frustration and that he may need you.

Tsukiko's mind nearly froze. Sesshomaru doesn't need anyone.

Nay, young moon child, our Master likes to believe that he needs no one. His past has hardened his heart to those around him, but those that are close to him can calm him like no one else. Young Rin will not know what to do with him, but you are sensible. Find him young one, and help our Master.

Ah-Un withdrew from her. Tsukiko bit her lip, drawing blood, in indecision. After a second, Tsukiko took hold of Ah-Un's reins and muttered to Jaken and Rin, who were riding atop the dragon, that they were going after Sesshomaru.

They trekked through the forest, Tsukiko following her instincts. Every once and awhile, she would pause to ask Rin is she could smell the Lord. Eventually, they came close enough that Tsukiko could determine herself where Sesshomaru was.

Sesshomaru was standing in front of a tree, glaring (or what passed for glaring) at a young demon standing on the tree, his hand grasping the Tokijin. The unknown demon had a rather large sword held at the ready, and looked irritated. Tsukiko extended her senses and found that, though the demon was powerful, he was no where near either Sesshomaru's or her own level. In fact, she doubted very much if he could defeat the respected general Soha.

Immediately, Tsukiko felt annoyance. How dare Sesshomaru run off like that when real danger could be about? Although she was confident in her abilities, Tsukiko could not cause any real damage if they were to be swarmed by more than a score of enemies without calling upon her fire, and that could have been more dangerous than the foe in the first place. She resisted the urge to put her hands on her hips as she stepped forward, in between the pair.

"Sesshomaru and you," she pointed at the other demon, who lowered his sword slightly in confusion, "stop this foolishness now. What is the meaning of all of this?"

Both were quiet and Tsukiko was reminded oddly of the times when she would get in trouble with her mother and would not answer questions directly.

"All right," she growled. "Sesshomaru, why don't we start with who is this demon?"

Sesshomaru gave slight pause before he answer. He never took his eyes off the other demon as he spoke.

"My brother, Inuyasha."

A/N: Twisty! Review!

Also, I have a story I'm writing on deviantart that isn't a fanfic, so if you want to check that out, I'll put up the info next chapter or you can just look for the user 'elpmip'. Anyone interested?