Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters in this fan fiction are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. The original characters and plot are the property of Chiaztolite, who is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Summary of Previous Chapter: Ryoshin, the Lord of the Northern Lands, was invited to meet with Lord Shogo and the other inuyokai lords to learn about the secrets of the Southern clan that has been hidden for hundreds of years.

Author's Notes:
I can't believe it has been 10 years (or has it been over 10 years?) since I last updated this story. Though it's been (or close to) a decade, I still can't get it out of my mind. It bugs me that I have something unfinished, and in my effort to be a bit more conclusive person, I really want to finish this story. I am not sure if any of the old readers are still on FF, and hopefully there are new readers reading this. If you are new to this story, I hope you will drop me a line or two, I would love to "meet" you! When I first thought of this story, I had no way of knowing Rumiko Takahashi would release Yashahime, so this story is really a continuation of Inuyasha, without any events in Yashahime taken into account. I hope you will enjoy it :)

Rulers of Four Directions

Chapter 25: The Strange Lands yet Unseen

As soon as the doors to Lord Shogo's study closed behind him, Sesshoumaru went after his cousin.

"You must have known about all this for a long time," he said, for once unable to keep the accusing tone out of his voice. This made Yuusou stop and turn. He spared Sesshoumaru a glance but said nothing before he continued on his path along the corridors.

"When one has a baby thrusted upon him and was told to not ask questions, the first thing he would do is indeed... ask questions," Yuusou murmured, not slowing his pace.

With the speed a lesser man would not comprehend, Sesshoumaru moved to stand in front of Yuusou, blocking his cousin's way.

"What is that supposed to mean?" He enunciated clearly, his tone brook no argument.

Yuusou sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. "Zoichi was just a newly born pup when he was brought here. No more than two days old," he said. "It was clear he was not of our clan, since he bore no mark of the crescent moon on his forehead. Naturally, I was curious. Neither my parents nor my grandfather were willing to tell me who he was, but there were others who were eager enough to talk when they were in their cups. I learned who Zoichi was at a very young age."

"And it did not bother you to have the son of your clan's nemesis living under the same roof?" Sesshoumaru asked, his eyes narrowing as he felt his ire rose at Yuusou's carefully neutral expression.

"I have heard some whisperings that Lord Shogo might appoint Zoichi as the next Ruler of the Eastern Lands instead of his own grandson, his own blood," he taunted. "What do you think of that?"

When still Yuusou did not respond, Sesshoumaru decided to push further, driving the dagger down to the hilt. He grasped Yuusou by the collar, nearly lifting the other yokai bodily.

"Your grandfather himself said you are not fit to rule," Sesshoumaru hissed. "Why is that? And why do you let an usurper come and freely take what is rightly yours?"

Yuusou's eyes widened infinitesimally and he appeared to be considering the question carefully. Their eyes locked, but Sesshoumaru saw no emotion that would have indicated the other yokai had taken a bite of the bait.

"Lord Shogo will choose whoever he deemed is the best to rule this clan," Yuusou said softly." He pushed Sesshoumaru's hands away and released himself from the grasp. He gave Sesshoumaru one last look before he turned away and said:

"I do as my lord and grandfather command me."

Sesshoumaru let his cousin go and watched him walked away until his retreating form disappeared from sight. The wheels of his mind churned, turning each pieces of the puzzle round and around in his mind. A rightful lord reluctant to take his place as heir. A foreigner eager to lead. A lost lord returned, full of vengeance. A young princess, innocent in all ways. And then... a ruler with unknown agenda. As Sesshoumaru walked away to the direction of his own rooms, he could not help but wonder.

What was his role in all this?

Guided by pure curiosity, Shouri returned to the woods, to that place amongst the trees where her visitors had camped for the night. Their leader was absent, of course, for she had escorted him to meet her grandfather. It had been many hours since the doors to her grandfather's study closed, and the sun had long set in the west and given way to night. Still, there had been no sign that the meeting of the lords would soon adjourn.

Kishi and the pups welcomed her with open arms. The old servant's face lit up when he saw her, and the pups were eager to share stories of their visit to the Nursery and their playtime with the other yokai children. But as younglings, their attention span was too short to hold a conversation for more than mere minutes. Soon, they set off on their own adventure, laughing at Kishi barking orders that they should stay near the camp.

After the twins left, Kishi invited her to sit on a sturdy log just before the fire. Their flames licked the air, dancing and writhing and casting moving shadows around them. A small iron cauldron was set above the fire, its content steaming and filling the air with heady aroma of sweetness and spice. They sat in silence for a few moment. She was content with just watching the fire, and he seemed to be in deep contemplation as he gently stirred the concoction.

"Tell me about him." She broke the silence, smiling when Kishi snapped his head to look at her with mild surprise on his face. "Your master," she clarified softly. "Tell me about Lord Ryoshin."

His lips curved into a gentle smile. He bent down to retrieve a wide fur blanket, handed it over, and watched her wrapping it tightly around her shoulder before he sat back down on the log across from hers.

"What would you like to know, my Lady?" he asked as he returned to stir the fragrant brew inside the cauldron.

"He was not raised in the North, I gather...? He had been missing all these years and from his speech and mannerisms, I cannot help but notice he is from a faraway place."

Kishi nodded. He pour some of the dark, steaming liquid into a wooden bowl and handed it to her. She sniffed it curiously, letting the steam warmed her face, finding its fragrance sweet and unfamiliar, yet comforting. She took a sip. Warmth and sweetness burst on her tongue. Like warmed up honey and other spicy concoctions. Delicious.

"He was born in the Northlands, of course," Kishi said. "At Khuiten Palace, like his forefathers and all the Northern Lords before him. When he was thirty-years old, the palace was attacked and..." Kishi sighed. "Circumstances made us flee our home."

Shouri nodded in understanding. A thirty-year old yokai was perhaps equal to a four or five year-old human child. An incredibly young and tender age for anyone to lose a home.

"Only the two of us managed to escape. With great sacrifices." Kishi had a deep frown as he stared at the content of his own bowl. An expression that was akin to great sorrow passed over his face. "I carried him on my back all the way to Europa..."

"Europa?"

Kishi reached for a stick and started to sketch out a map on the ground. "It is a continent... A large mass of land. Think of it as a massive island." He pointed to where Khuiten Palace was in his little map, and dragged his stick all the way to the place he called Europe. "But our lands and theirs are connected by a stretch of plains and mountains as vast as the sky itself. If one keeps running, one would eventually get there."

"There are many nations in Europe," he explained. "Different groups of people that command states, certain portions of the lands. The first we encountered was called Kievan Rus, the land of Rus people. They know it now as Russia." When he looked up, the grim expression on his face told Shouri that their time there was far from enjoyable.

"It was a cold, grueling place," Kishi murmured. "We spent a few years there... A period in our lives that I do not regard with fondness. We had no food, no money, no language. It's quite a miracle that we managed to survive for some years. But one day, during a particularly harsh winter, we encountered a group of Lykanth who were traveling..."

"Lykanth?"

"Werewolves."

"Impossible," Shouri gasped with disbelief. "Even in these lands, there are no more werewolves. The full blooded wolf clans slaughtered nearly all, and chased the rest out. I haven't seen a werewolf since I was but a small pup."

"Oh, believe me, my Lady. They still exist." Kishi chuckled briefly and moved to ladle more brew into Shouri's bowl. "Perhaps not in these lands but in other parts of the world... Oh yes, they exist. Now... where were we? Ah... the traveling Lykanth. You see, they found us nearly dead, buried deep beneath the snow. And their king who happened to be traveling with them, Gods bless his soul, recognized what we were: full-blooded demons. And since werewolves by nature possess less demon blood, they have great respect us for the purity of blood coursing through our veins. The king, his name was Lyall, took us into his pack and to his home in Scotland."

"Is that where he was raised?" Shouri asked, wide-eyed, as she cradled the warm bowl between her palms. "In this place called... Scotland, amongst the werewolves?"

Kishi nodded. "He spent the majority of his youth there. King Lyall has only one son, named Loch, who is about the same age as my master. They grew up together, as close as any blood-related brothers could be. Till this day, they call each other as such."

Adding more logs to the fire, Kishi continued, "King Lyall loved my master like a son, and gave him as much education as he gave his own pup: language, literature, science, politics, music, martial arts, and any other subjects under the sun. When my lord Ryoshin reached maturity, he was already fluent in eleven languages. A master of fencing, pugilism, and archery. An avid and well-versed student of mathematics, literature, and geography. Through some twisted fate, though he was forced to abandon his privileged life, my master received education befitting his station anyway." He paused to give Shouri a small smile. "Of course, I taught him everything I know about our lands, our people, our ways... And when he was old enough to travel out of Scotland, we went around the continent, visiting places we have only ever heard of before, yet never seen: England, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Macedonia, and Greece..."

Shouri's eyes widened at the mention of so many foreign places, each name was stranger to her tongue than the one before. How vast was the world of the Northern Lord, especially compared to hers that was limited to the confine of the Forest of No Return and the mountain ring surrounding her lands. And the place where he grew up... Scotland. What was it like? How far did she have to travel to visit such lands? For now, it might as well be millions of miles away, for she saw no possibility that she would ever see it.

"Scotland is a beautiful place, my lady," Kishi suddenly said. Shouri lifted her head, realizing she had spoken the questions in her head aloud. Kishi was looking at her with a gentle smile on his lips that made the corners of his eyes crinkled.

"Rolling hills as green as new leaves... Crystal blue lakes as far as the eyes could see. Great stone bridges over the moat, leading to castles with tall towers older than even myself. The air was always crisp and fresh... The water tasted like the melting of the snow that capped the faraway mountains." His smile widened. "My lord Ryoshin loves those lands, the seat of his brother's, as much as he loves his own."

Shouri's fingers tightened around the wooden bowl as images of the faraway lands she had never seen flitted through her mind. Curiosity and longing pulsed within her.

"I hope I can see them for myself one day," she said, her voice carried a certain something in it that sounded strangely like an oath.

Kishi looked at her and smiled before he returned his attention back to kindling the fire, that gentle – yet mysterious smile still on his lips.

"I hope so too, my lady," he replied gently. "I hope so too."

To be Continued

A/N:

As I rummaged through my old files, I found a document that contained my rough draft for this story, enough for at least 4 chapters and even more. Knowing that, how can I abandon this story now? The least thing I could do is give it another shot and promise myself to not leave it for so long. In any case, if there are readers out there reading this, please know that future chapters are coming soon (as they are already written and require just a bit of editing work). If you are reading, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. There is no greater reward than knowing there are those of you reading my work and enjoying it. See you in the next chapter!