"Please, please don't tell Sesshomaru." Tatsuhana was barely able to speak as the pain reshot through her body.
"Drink your tea, dearie," said Mrs. Koma.
"Tatsuhana, why don't you want Sesshomaru to know?" Asked Izayoi.
With that, Tatsuhana's face turned beet red. She cast her eyes down and drank her tea in silence. She continued to hold her lower abdomen while still doubled over in pain. Sweat beaded down the side of her face.
"Would you mind if I talked to her about it, or would you?" Mrs. Koma had her arms folded across her chest.
Tatsuhana continued to look down and away. Izayoi turned to Mrs. Koma for answers.
"When Ms. Hana over her was a child, her parents brought her to me once she hit puberty. They'd used that necklace to bind her powers, but it wasn't going to do anything about…well, this. They tried to insist on taking her to an actual doctor, but she refused, and she still refuses to do so out of fear of what would happen to the inn if anyone found out that she's actually a demon. A full-blooded demon, to be precise."
Izayoi sat at Tatsuhana's table. She took the young woman's hand and held it gently.
"There's no shame in being who you are. You don't have anything to be embarrassed or ashamed of, you know that, right?"
Tatsuhana's hand slipped from her grasp.
"Maybe for someone like Sesshomaru and your husband, but I spent most of my childhood watching my peers be bullied and harassed for being what they are. Those who have money and prestige don't have to worry about such things. I couldn't say or do anything unless I wanted to out myself as a demon. Not to mention I would further ruin the reputation of my family's business if word got around that the haunted inn employed a demon."
Tears trickled down Tatsuhana's cheeks. They rolled down her face unprovoked. Try as she might, Tatsuhana couldn't stop them once the flow started. Izayoi pulled Tatsuhana's face to her shoulder and let her cry there. They stayed like this for some time until Tatsuhana had no more tears to shed. Tatsuhana drank her tea at the urging of Mrs. Koma until she swallowed even the dregs and bitter herbs.
Sesshomaru checked his watch for the hour. His stomach grumbled in protest as he made his way to the parking garage on his way to a lunch break. He briefly wondered where he should eat. Jaken ran to keep up with him.
"Lord Sesshomaru, wait for me!"
A couple of heads turned towards them. Lordwas so formal, a little too formal for a modern business setting. Still, Sesshomaru had given up hope of Jaken dropping the centuries-old habit. He did not slow down. What he wanted was to stop the headache throbbing against his temples and the gurgling of his stomach so he could get back to work. His focus was all over the place today, and how Sesshomaru hated it. Just a few more feet, and he would be out the front doors. A band of suited men and women passed them by, except for one. A straggler paused when she saw Sesshomaru walk by without noticing anything about her. But it seemed she knew who he was. Her eyes went wide for a moment, then they suddenly narrowed. The woman broke away from her group and went after him.
"Excuse me, excuse me. You're Sesshomaru Taisho, aren't you?" She tapped his shoulder.
It took everything within him not to turn around and snarl in the woman's face. Today was not the day. Instead, Sesshomaru turned his head to look over his shoulder towards her. He eyed her up and down. There was nothing about her appearance that reminded him of anyone. She was well put together for a human. Her black hair was pulled into a stylish bun. She wore a pale blue skirt and matching blazer on top of a crisp white blouse. Her shoes were black pumps.
"Do I know you?" He asked.
"No, but I believe I know you. You're Sesshomaru Taisho, correct?" She repeated.
"Yes," said Sesshomaru.
"Then I have one thing to say to you." The woman took two steps forward until she was less than a hairbreadth from his face. She had to stand on her tiptoes to glare into his eyes. "If you hurt my friend again, I will make it my personal mission to ruin you."
"I take it you're Maiko, Tatsuhana's friend."
"You're damn right I am. And if you think you can use Tatsuhana and drop her like a hot dumpling, you've got another thing coming. She deserves better than you," said Maiko.
"Probably," said Sesshomaru with a shrug.
Maiko balked for a moment, trying to decipher his meaning. That wasn't what she expected him to say. Sesshomaru didn't bother carrying the conversation any further. He quickly made a break for the door, barely letting Jaken catch up with him. Once he was in his car, his phone began to ring. His stepmother was calling; he hesitated in answering. Sesshomaru did anyway, not knowing what he was doing.
"Hello?"
"Sesshomaru, I'm glad you picked up. It's going to be a few minutes before I drop Rin off at your apartment. Something came up, and it'll be a little bit longer than I expected," said Izayoi.
"Is everything alright? Is Rin hurt?"
"Oh no! No, no. It's nothing like that. We're out shopping, and I lost track of time. Unfortunately, you'll be home before we will. Is that okay?"
"If she's with you, I don't mind. Just don't have her stay out too late. She has school in the morning." Sesshomaru answered.
"Of course, of course. We'll see you later tonight then!" Izayoi hung up abruptly.
Sesshomaru furrowed his brows for a moment. Why would his stepmother feel the need to call about something as banal as being a few minutes late? If Rin was with her, he had nothing to worry about. Izayoi loved spending time with her only grandchild and knew how to keep her safe. The call wasn't necessary. Somehow, he knew Tatsuhana was behind it. As irrational as it sounded, Sesshomaru couldn't help but think that way. It would be the only logical explanation why Izayoi called and talked in a roundabout way. The thought settled deep in his brain, but Sesshomaru admitted to himself that there was nothing he could do about it.
"Lord Sesshomaru, is something the matter?" Asked Jaken.
Sesshomaru said nothing as he pulled into traffic.
Izayoi put her phone away. Despite Tatsuhana's protests, she paid for the tea meant for her. Upon further insisting, she helped her home. Instead of letting her walk up all the stairs by herself, Izayoi pulled Tatsuhana's arm around her neck and held onto her waist to help her walk up the several flights. Hanzo was waiting in the open-air courtyard.
"Tatsuhana!" He ran to her side and lifted her other arm around his shoulder.
Together Hanzo and Izayoi half-carried her to her room on the third floor. It was a lot easier said than done because she was much taller than both of them. She was sweating buckets despite not being the one doing most of the work. The female staff volunteered to help make Tatsuhana more comfortable. When it was clear that she would be well taken care of, Izayoi gave Tatsuhana her best wishes. Hanzo escorted her to the bottom of the hill, where her car waited with Rin inside. The little girl poked her head out from the rear passenger seat window.
"Is Miss Hana going to be okay?" Asked Rin.
"You shouldn't worry yourself, kiddo. Tatsuhana is very resilient and strong, even if she gets sick like this once in a while. I promise, with some rest and peace and quiet, she'll be better in no time," said Hanzo. Then, he turned to Izayoi.
"Thank you very much for bringing her home safely. I was going to help her myself, but she insisted on going alone. She's stubborn like that." Hanzo briefly bowed from his waist.
"There's no need to thank me. I wanted to make sure Tatsuhana was going to be alright, but I appreciate the gesture all the same."
Izayoi pulled out into the street while Rin waved at Hanzo. They'd only been driving for a few minutes before Rin asked a question. She'd been uncharacteristically silent during the whole ordeal. Rin hadn't said a word since the moment Tatsuhana stumbled into the herbal shop.
"Grandma, is it a bad thing to be a demon?"
"Why would you ask something like that, sweetie?"
Rin looked down at her shoes. "I don't know. Miss Hana doesn't like being a demon, and it makes her sick. Does Daddy or Grandpa or Uncle Inuyasha feel like that?"
"No, I can't say that they do. They're much different than Miss Hana, and she has her reasons to keep things secret. Not everyone likes demons, and try as we might, we can't change everyone's prejudice."
"Is that why Miss Hana doesn't talk to Daddy anymore? Does she hate him too?" Asked Rin.
Izayoi stopped at a red light. She inhaled and exhaled slowly while mulling over her following answer.
"I don't think it has anything to do with the fact that your father is a demon. I think she gets along with all sorts of people. Miss Hana has a lot to struggle with, and some of her feelings about being a demon are valid. We're not the ones to help heal those scars. She has to deal with them on her own. The best we can do is show her that she doesn't have to be ashamed of who she is and wishing her health."
"Okay," said Rin.
"Also, please don't tell your father about Miss Hana. She'll tell him when she feels ready to. So, let's keep this a secret between us three, okay?"
"Okay."
The rain and thunder came out of nowhere, and Tatsuhana lay awake listening to it. Rain pelted the roof while wind buffeted the inn. Her window rattled with the storm's violence. After being layered in a few blankets, her fever broke. Despite all the odds against it, Tatsuhana somehow fell asleep for most of the night. She lay in bed staring at the ceiling and listening to the rain pitter-patter on the windowpane. Sleep crept upon her again as she slowly drifted back, eyes drawing to a close when she didn't have a reason or the energy to move out of bed.
Tatsuhana had slept again for a few minutes, or what felt like a short while. Her eyes snapped open to the sound of a crash somewhere in the inn. It was too distant for her to know where it came from. It didn't matter what it was; she wasn't getting out of bed any time soon to investigate it. Her lower abdomen hurt too much for her to move. She turned her head on the pillow and closed her eyes. Whatever happened could wait until the morning.
That's when the footsteps started pounding against the floors.
She heard them from all the way up on the third floor. Tatsuhana screwed her eyes tighter. Living in a haunted inn came with a few forgotten perks. One was no longer frightened by all the bumps, creaks, or even groans in the night. She thought it could be any one of the resident spirits who suddenly didn't take a liking to the renovations and decided to throw a hissy fit about it. It wasn't the new moon, so it couldn't be that one ghost throwing a tantrum down the hall. She only showed up once a month, and Tatsuhana was sure it wasn't that time yet. Whatever restless dead had to say to her would wait until morning.
The footsteps grew louder. Tatsuhana heard them march up the stairs. Her heart was startled inside of her chest by the noise, but she was wise enough to know that the ghosts, no matter how scary they might seem, never hurt anyone in the inn. Frighten nearly to death or cause minor inconveniences, sure. But nobody had ever been killed by a ghost before.
She turned over onto her side, even though it increased the pressure of her cramps on one side. If the petulant ghost saw that she wasn't in the mood to be spooked, Tatsuhana hoped that it would go away. The footsteps became more evident as they approached. It wasn't just any old footsteps; they sounded more like heavy wet feet slapping against the wood floors. Tatsuhana internally groaned. Wood and water didn't mix well, which meant more cleaning for her to do. It was most likely the hot spring ghost who wanted a word with her in the dead of night. Oh well.
Tatsuhana listened a while longer. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end. The footsteps approaching her floor didn't sound like that ghost. The ghost dwelling in the hot spring had once been a petite young woman who drowned. She seldom left her "room" unless it was a holiday or she was asked. The feet climbing up the steps weren't those of a young lady. They were heavy by the sound of it and followed by heavy, ragged breathing.
The sound wasn't that of a woman, that's for sure.
Tatsuhana rolled back over. She pulled the blankets off and attempted to get up, only to have her body thrown back down by an invisible force. The shoji door to her room flung open. Tongues of blue flames flickered around the room, illuminating the spirit that deigned to present itself to her.
Tatsuhana was only able to lift her head to see who or what it was. Soaked to the bone and dripping wet, Mukotsu stood in her bedroom. He sent daggers as she lay in bed, pinned down. Blood drained from her face as he stomped over to her. His face was more gruesome to behold in death than in life. His large, bug-like eyes appeared like veiny red and white lamps glaring at her while a thin film covered them. Mukotsu's cheekbones had sunken in, giving him a more skeletal appearance. Tatsuhana could see by the tongues of blue flame how his clothes glued to him. Foam appeared in the corner of his mouth as he began to talk.
"This is all your fault!" He wheezed. "You're the reason why I'm stuck here!"
Water dripped off his form and puddled around his feet. Mukotsu didn't stay in one spot for long and stalked over to Tatsuhana's bed, leering over her.
"You're the reason why I'm dead!"
Tatushana opened her mouth. To do what, she didn't know. Reason with him? He was glaring at her with the way, so logic would reach him in his undead rage. It didn't matter what she wanted, though, as her tongue cleaved to the roof of her mouth. She opened it but could do no more than a silent scream.
Water dripped over her face as he climbed on top of her and straddled her stomach. Pudgy fingers stroked the sides of her face. Her kimono was soaked through to her skin with him sitting on top of her. Mukotsu stuck a calloused thumb in her mouth and shoved it down until she gagged on it.
His other hand came down her neck. At first, it was just a touch. A cold, clammy, rough touch that made Tatsuhana's skin crawl. Looking into his eyes, Mukotsu had other things on his mind. The hand on her neck squeezed and squeezed hard.
"I'll let you have some fight. It would be boring otherwise."
With that, Tatsuhana felt her arms be freed like weights had been removed. She could lift but felt nothing below her stomach. Tatsuhana scratched and yanked at his hand on her neck. Mukotsu's other hand joined the one on her neck and crushed her windpipe.
"You can join the rest of us in this hell hole!" Mukotsu shouted.