Chapter 8

Shingetsu (Japanese for "new moon")

Note: THERE'S GONNA BE A SEQUEL!!!!!! More about that at the end of the story.

Disclaimer: I HAVE MANGA VOLUMES 2 AND 12, AND SOME EPISODES ON TAPE!!!! But that's as close as I will ever come to owning Inu-Yasha. I do own Aiko and the plot, so nyeah!!!!! : P

OMR!!!! I made a big mistake!!!!!!! I corrected it, though, dun worry. ^_^ This was brought to my attention by shadowspinner. Good catch, shadowspinner!!!

Mojobubbles: *to Inuyasha* You are so damn lucky!

Inuyasha: Doushite!?

Mojobubbles: Because you don't get sick, that's why!

Inuyasha: But I thought you weren't sick either!

Mojobubbles: Well I have a cold, remember?

Kamilah: You finally got to see "Showdown! Inuyasha vs. Sesshomaru" or whatever it's called, huh?

Mojobubbles: YEAH! WHAT A KICK ASS BATTLE!!!! But Inu, did you really have to chop his arm off?

Inuyasha: Yes. : P

Kagome: Hey, isn't Sesshomaru here? I thought you kidnapped him.

Sesshomaru: *in the corner* Flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies flowers and bunnies..........@_@

Mojobubbles: Uh, yeah....Fluffy's having trouble "adjusting".

Inuyasha: In other words, after you kidnapped him and dragged him here, he went insane.

Mojobubbles: Pretty much, yeah.

Kamilah: So now we've got to work on Sango......

Kagome: Oh Kami........what are you planning to do to Sango-chan?

Mojobubbles: Nothing that involves Miroku and bikinis.....I mean......erm.......

Kagome: O_O!!!

Review responses:

Higurashi Kagome: Do itashi mashite! (You're welcome!) Just curious, but where do you get your Japanese?

Airen: Well, Rin doesn't exactly know what his plan is yet, she just thinks she does.....so......she doesn't really talk him out of it, but she does influence him, which influences the outcome of the story.

kagome 152000: Yeah, I think I'm a great author too. ^_^ Nah, just kidding. Anyway, glad you like it that much!

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Symbol thingies:

(me popping to either annoy you or explain something)

'thoughts'

"dialogue"

*~*Flashback*~* or *~*End flashback*~* Kinda self-explanatory, right?

~~song lyrics~~ (No these are not set to songs like the other chapters, but at random times I may stick random song lyrics where I think they fit.)

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(Myoga's in this chapter.....he is soooooooo cool!)

Aiko woke up late that morning, and saw it was just her and Kaede in the hut, the others were gone.

"Kaede-sama.........does my father hate me now because I'm like his half- brother?" Aiko said suddenly.

"Where would ye get a notion like that?" Kaede asked, startled. Aiko shrugged. Just then, she felt something itchy on the back of her head. She reached around and scratched, then heard a muffled squeak. Puzzled, she felt around and pulled her hand from behind her neck, only to find a small bug-type creature.

"Who the heck are you?" Aiko asked flatly.

"Ah, Lady Aiko," said the bug, bowing. "My name is-"

"Myoga," Inuyasha finished, entering the hut. "Long time no see, huh?"

"Lord Inuyasha!" Myoga hyperventilated, jumping on Aiko's hand, who sweatdropped.

"Um, Inuyasha, are you mad at me?" Aiko asked, embarrassed that she still didn't know what to call her dad.

He reacted the same way Kaede did. "Why the hell would I be mad at you?" Aiko shrugged. "Oh, this is about that demon fight yesterday, right?" Inuyasha guessed. Aiko nodded. Inuyasha sighed impatiently. "Look, I already told you, I'm not mad, ok? I don't give a damn what powers you have." He realized at once he should've worded it differently.

"Oh, ok," Aiko said quietly, shuffling out of the hut, head bowed, but Inuyasha could smell she was about to cry. As soon as she left, he slammed his fist into the floor.

"Dammit dammit DAMMIT! I made her cry!!"

Kaede said nothing, just busied herself with the kettle. (Uh, yeah.......let's pretend she's been cooking this whole time.) Myoga jumped on Inuyasha's shoulder.

"Lord Inuyasha, if I could make a suggestion-"

"What?!"

"You have never been very patient with anyone, but I believe you have to try harder with this girl."

"That girl......is my daughter."

"Which is exactly why you should try to be more patient with her, my lord. She goes nearly her whole life not knowing you, and now she finds out she has demon blood." Myoga shook his head. "Not an easy thing to adjust to."

Inuyasha looked down at the nomi-youkai on his shoulder. (Nomi-youkai means "flea-demon", btw.) "You know, Myoga, for such an idiot, you do have something useful to say once in a while," Inuyasha smirked.

"Thank y-hey!"

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"SIT!"

*THUMP* "Kagome, lemme explain-!"

"SIT!"

*THUMP* "Ow, stoppit!!!"

"SIT!"

*THUMP* "QUIT IT, WENCH!!!!!!"

Miroku, Sango, Shippo, and Kaede nearly laughed; they hadn't seen that in a long time. True, they were worried about Aiko, who had been missing the whole day, but Kagome sitting the shit out of Inuyasha was always funny.

He had just told her about the incident that morning, and Kagome was not too happy.

"SI-"

"Kagome!" Sango said, grabbing her friend's arm. "I think that's enough!" Kagome took a deep breath, marched over to Inuyasha, who lay twitching on the ground, and yanked him upward by his ears.

"WHAT HAPPENED?!"

"OWWW!!!!!! OFF THE EARS!!!!"

That continued for a while, and finally, after Kagome heard Inuyasha's explanation, he went to go get Aiko, as the sun was going down.

He hurtled through the forest with amazing grace, sniffing for Aiko. There she was, leaning against a tree.

He sat next to her. She didn't acknowledge his presence. "Aiko......I'm really sorry about this morning. I didn't mean it like that, I swear." She turned to him, and to his surprise, smiled.

"Yeah, I figured you didn't. Mom said you never really had a way with words."

"And she's right," Inuyasha sighed. "I'm so inarticulate it's not even funny." He looked up to the sky, and his eyes widened when he saw there was no moon. "Aiko, we have to go."

"Doushite-?"

"NOW."

He got up and began walking as fast as he could.

"What's the rush?" Aiko panted, nearly running to keep up with him. Inuyasha grabbed her hand and yanked her along. And suddenly, he stopped. Aiko stepped backwards, her mouth wide open in terror. Something was happening.........his eyes were glowing blood-red.......just then, she felt an odd prickling sensation on her ears, but when she reached up to them, they weren't there.

"What's happening?!" Aiko screamed, as her claws shortened and her eyes changed color.

She felt someone's arms wrap around her, and she realized it was Inuyasha.

"Daddy," she whimpered. "I'm scared......what's happening to me?"

If Inuyasha was startled by the familiarity, he didn't show it. "It's ok," he said soothingly. "It happens every new moon. I thought it didn't happen to you, but apparently it does when you're on my side of the well. You and me, we're full humans for the night."

"Just one night?"

"Just one night," Inuyasha assured, putting his arm around her. They turned back to Kaede's hut, unaware of the demon hurtling toward them in the darkness.

In a flash of claws, Aiko had been snatched out of his arms.

"GIVE ME BACK MY DAUGHTER!!" Inuyasha roared, reaching for Tetsusaiga, realizing too late he wouldn't be able to use it. He frantically looked around, but it was too late.

Aiko was gone.

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Rin paced through her chambers, wondering what to do, watching as the sun sank beyond the horizon. She still felt uncomfortable about killing Inuyasha and his family. She didn't know why, and it was extremely annoying. Rin had changed from the shy but kind-hearted girl she had been when she first met Sesshomaru. Sure, she was still nice to most, but she wasn't afraid to speak her mind, or stand up to those who were bugging her, and she was more extroverted.

Which meant she beat up Jaken on a regular basis. (YAH GO RIN!!!!! KICK HIS FAGGOT-Y ASS!!!)

But lately, things had been a bit different. She found it harder to talk to Sesshomaru, the youkai who she had been living with for more than a decade.

'Alright, Rin, get a grip,' she thought, slumping onto her bed to think. 'I'll just talk to him, and ask him about what his plans are, and maybe try and see if Sesshomaru-sama will agree to not kill them......' She shook her head, smiling ruefully. Like he'd really pass up a chance to kill Inuyasha, even for her. But it was worth a shot.

Rin had made up her mind and was walking to her door when she heard screaming from her window. She saw a winged demon, a hatazao, with a human girl in its grip. ("Hatazao" is Japanese for flagpole......I was randomly flipping through my English-Japanese dictionary and it kinda popped out at me.......so basically it's a flagpole demon. ^_^U)

Rin was confused. She knew this girl had to be Inuyasha's daughter, in human form, but why hadn't the hatazao brought Inuyasha or his human mate? And she had thought that she, Jaken, and Sesshomaru would come to them, not the other way around. Had he already had Inuyasha and his human killed?

She left her chamber and headed to the dungeon, which was probably where the hatazao was taking the girl. She was right; Sesshomaru stood outside, next to the doorway leading to the dungeon.

He must have noticed Rin's puzzled expression, because he said, "The girl is our 'guest'. If her parents want to see her alive again, then they will hand over the Tetsusaiga."

Of course. Tetsusaiga. But Rin had thought he couldn't use it, because of his hatred towards humans. But then it hit her.

'Me.'

She, Rin, was the only human Sesshomaru cared about. Because of her, he would be able to wield Tetsusaiga. In a paradoxical sort of way, Rin would be responsible for the deaths of Inuyasha, Kagome, Aiko, their friends.....and she did NOT like that. (Aw, poor Rin.)

Just then, the hatazao landed in front of him, startling Rin, who had been off in la-la land.

"GET OFF ME!!!!" the girl screamed. The demon ignored her, dumped her on the ground, nodded deeply towards Sesshomaru, and then took off again.

The girl was looking around, fear evident on her face. Then she saw Sesshomaru, and looked very pissed off. She charged at him, screaming obscenities.

"Jaken," Sesshomaru nodded, and Jaken knew what to do.

Aiko screamed and jumped backwards as a jet of flame shot at her from the freaky staff thing. (I know it has a name, I just don't feel like looking it up.) She stumbled backwards and stared at them all with a look of such terror Rin could've cried.

"Wh-who are you?" Aiko asked, her voice trembling. Rin noticed that Sesshomaru's expression softened very slightly.

"Sesshomaru-sama to moshi-masu." (He just said, "I am Sesshomaru" and the -sama shows that he's of a really high rank.)

"Are-are you my father's half-brother?" Aiko asked hesitantly.

"Ah, you have heard of me," Sesshomaru nodded. "I do not wish to harm you, but if you try anything foolish, I will be forced to kill you."

"What about my parents? And my friends?" Aiko asked.

"I have no interest in them," Sesshomaru said, waving his hand.

'Liar,' Rin thought to herself. 'Doesn't he know she'll figure it out? She'll know he wouldn't have that hatazao kidnap her just for the hell of it.'

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"AIKO'S GONE!!!!!"

"Nani?!" everyone shouted at the same time. Inuyasha told them what had happened, then sank onto the ground.

"This is all my fault!" he shouted angrily, slamming his fist into the floor. "If I had paid more attention....."

They didn't know whether he means he should've paid more attention to Aiko's feelings, the moon, or the demon coming.

"Sounds like the demon that took her was a hatazao," Sango remarked. "They're not much more dangerous than you, Inuyasha-"

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

Sango ignored him. "-but they usually are hired by some other demon, or a human, to do errands or whatever."

"So.....you're saying this hatazao thing kidnapped Aiko for someone else?" Shippo asked, scratching his head.

"Sesshomaru," Inuyasha said hoarsely. "It must be him."

"Oh Kami........." Kagome buried her head in her hands. The last time they had seen Sesshomaru, he was raiding the village with a whole bunch of other youkai in tow, and Kagome and Aiko had to flee for the well. And it sealed behind them, separating them from Inuyasha and the others for nearly 9 years.

"Don't worry, Kagome," Inuyasha said softly, crouching down and pulling her into his arms. "No one will get hurt, I'm sure of it."

Boy, was he WRONG!

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It was about midnight, and Aiko had fallen into a disturbed sleep. Under Rin's persuasion, Sesshomaru had selected one of the not so foul cells.

The last things that Aiko had thought before dozing off was, 'they're all going to die. Kaede will never heal anyone again, Sango and Miroku will never live happily ever after, Shippo will never get to annoy anyone anymore, and I'll never get to stay up late with mom watching movies, and Inuyasha.......I'll never get to do anything with my father again. Hell, I barely even know him, and now he's going to be gone forever.' With those morbid thoughts, Aiko closed her eyes.

But crying out in her sleep wasn't unusual for Aiko. Because when Sesshomaru walked past the cells, he heard her yelling. He backed away, alarmed. What was wrong with her?

Rin. Rin was human, she would know. He hurried to her chamber and shook her awake.

"Pick me a green flower, Naraku," she mumbled in her sleep. What the hell?! Rin was doing it too?! He shook her again, and this time she woke up. "Nani- ?" she asked sleepily. Sesshomaru didn't explain just grabbed her hand and pulled her back to the dungeons.

"What is that?" he asked simply, gesturing toward Aiko, who was still calling out. Rin said nothing, just stepped forward.

"Listen," she said, and he did.

"Please........stop making fun of me," Aiko muttered. "Dad.....don't leave me!"

"Does she speak of......Inuyasha?" Sesshomaru asked, amazed. Rin said nothing, just asked to go in. Sesshomaru gave her a questioning look, but stroked the wall near the door and it melted away. (Think "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone", when Griphook strokes the vault door and it opens.)

Rin hurried to Aiko, and to Sesshomaru's surprise, drew the girl into her arms. She quieted instantly, and slept peacefully once more.

"How-?" But Sesshomaru didn't have time to say anything else, because a guard came up to them.

"Milord," he said, bowing. "Inuyasha and the others have arrived."

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Preview of Taiketsu (Showdown)

Inuyasha didn't see the demon hurtling toward him. But everyone else did. But Aiko was the only one to react.

"NOO!" she screamed, shoving her still-human father out of the way, as the demon's inazuma (lightning) attack hit her.

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Mojobubbles: *monotone* Ooo......suspense. *falls over* @_@

Inuyasha: *picks her up* What happened to her?

Kamilah: *shrugs* I dunno, she's just really tired.

Mojobubbles: Z_Z *is asleep*

Kagome: *whispers* If you review, she'll be really happy when she wakes up!