Present Time.
Inuyasha Fanfiction
By alandrem
Disclaimer: Blah, Blah, Blah. Same as chapter one.
Author Note: As I said, no note here.
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Kojiro and Seijuro arrived at Tokyo tower office complex buildings*, a group of several elegant buildings on the neighboring area of the huge structure. They were on time, just a little before 4 o'clock, the hour accorded for the meeting. Both cops went into the main building, registered at the front desk, and then waited until someone from the company came down for them. A very elegant woman in her early forties came down from the elevator and they immediately moved their ways. Her countenance was striking and both police officers doubted she was just a secretary.
"Good afternoon gentlemen." The woman had a nice throaty voice that made her appear even more interesting. Kojiro noticed she smelled strongly of dog demon, but was human. She was probably mated to one of the Lord's people. "We were expecting you, please follow me." They followed to the elevator and it was only after the doors closed that she introduced herself "I am Rin Shirosenshi."
'The Demon Lord of the Western Land's mate? Kami-sama! What the heck is going on?' A small barely audible gasp escaped Kojiro's mouth as he thought. He was a very simple hanyou neko being escorted by the Lord's own mate. Kojiro could not hide his surprise, his mask cracked a bit, enough for Seijuro to notice.
'Kojiro knows more to this than he is willing to tell. I wonder what he is hiding and why. It's not about a 10 year old unsolved case.'
"Detective Nomura, I'm afraid my husband wants to talk to Lieutenant Watanabe alone. You are still welcomed in our offices; perhaps while you wait we can interest you in investing with us?" Rin said pleasantly.
"Thank you for offering Shirosenshi-san, but I am just a police officer, not a good candidate for investing. Perhaps you can tell me why your husband wants to talk to my partner?"
"Oh you'll be surprised at all the investment options we offer Detective. A good investment is not just for the rich and mighty." She said with a charming smile. "Unfortunately Sessho, my husband, has not informed me of his reasons to speak to Lieutenant Watanabe."
They had reached their floor and as soon as the doors opened, they noticed the whole floor belonged to the company. The reception area spoke of taste and ancient elegance. Behind and to sides of the desk, where two elegant doors with top-notch security locks, and both cops noticed the strategically placed surveillance cameras. Kojiro also noticed the heavy magical wards at the doors and saw that the receptionist was a raven-haired female inu-youkai. He could tell she was deadly as well as beautiful. Without a word, the Lord's mate walked to the door on the right and it opened to let them pass.
Rin led the police officers to one of the comfortable small meeting rooms. It had its own state of the art computer, phone extension, and television, besides the round table and high backed chairs. She indicated that Nomura should stay there while he waited for his partner, and told him he could make use of the equipment there. She also offered something to drink and said she would appoint an assistant to check if he needed anything else.
"Well, perhaps you can help me. You see, my father is a collector of old legends, and he is very interested in the Legend of Inuyasha and the Jewel of Four Souls." The mention of this got him a very surprised look from his partner and the woman seemed nervous, but she recovered rather quickly.
'The legend of Inuyasha and the Jewel of Four Souls? What the heck is Seijuro after? The name is too much to be a coincidence, or something his father asked for.' Kojiro gave his partner a look that clearly said you-better-explain-that-later. He also noticed the Lord's mate became a little nervous, even if she looked calm.
'Hmm… now, that is an interesting response, must check with Kojiro later.' Seijuro thought.
"He owns one of the scrolls and knows the other two belonged to Ryoutou Shirosenshi and probably are in your husband's hands now." Nomura went on saying.
'Now that explains a bit, if Inuyasha is indeed Lord Ryoutou's son and he had that legend, he could have named his son after it. Still… never heard of that legend before, though somehow I get the feeling it is demon lore.' The neko hanyou mussed.
"He is at the moment working on a translation to English of the scroll he owns for a book on ancient Japanese legends." The look on the woman's face passed very fast but he noticed she had not liked that part. And he wondered why. "Perhaps you know if they'll be sold or made available for research."
'Sess is not going to like this at all.' Rin thought, knowing her mate's temper. 'Someone didn't do their research well… there'll probably be hell to pay if that book is published. And to top that, this detective knows about it. I just hope he has never read it. It'll make things difficult for all of us.'
"The Legend scrolls have been in my husband's family for some time Detective." She said after a long silence, as if she was measuring her words. "I don't think he'll be interested in selling, on the contrary, he has wanted to acquire the missing scroll. Perhaps your father would be interested in selling it instead."
"I don't think he would. That is, I think, his favorite legend. What about letting him work on them for his research?"
"I'll have to consult with my husband before I can give you an answer Detective. Now if you'll excuse us I'll lead the Lieutenant to my husband's office. I don't know how long the meeting is going to take, but please feel free to ask for anything you might need."
"If it takes long I'll have to leave Shirosenshi-san. There are some pending matters I have to attend." She just nodded before leaving, Kojiro on her heels. Nomura noticed that his partner looked ill at ease and again wondered why.
The Lord's mate led him to an office on the far corner of the building, he could see it was huge and as he entered, he felt the magic wards around and inside it. The place was a small fortress, as should be the office of one of the most important demons of the world. Kojiro felt extremely nervous, he did not remember the etiquette needed for a meeting with the hierarchy of demon government. Being in this kind of situation had seemed so farfetched when he was a kitten that he really did not pay enough attention to learn it.
On the far corner, watching through the tinted floor to ceiling windows, stood a very tall demon; his stance elegant as well as his human clothes. Once he heard the office door close, he turned to face him. At that moment, his human guise was down and instead he clearly saw the Lord's distinctive markings; a crescent moon on the forehead and two stripes on both cheeks. His eyes were golden behind his very expensive looking glasses. To his utter surprise, he did bear a striking resemblance to Inuyasha. His hair was short, cropped to the latest fashion among executives, and his incredibly long and fluffy tail went over one shoulder.
"Please, be seated Lieutenant Watanabe." The lord said in a soft voice that nonetheless was filled with authority. He pointed to a plush leather couch, as he walked over to sit beside his mate in the one before it. "I am certain you want to know why I called you here, but first I need to warn you that the nature of this conversation and the themes it will deal with can not leave this room." Kojiro could not hide his surprise and apprehension at these remarks, but the Lady Rin smiled reassuringly at him. "Through no fault of your own you have run across some highly sensitive matters and you need the information I can provide in order for you to be able to deal with them correctly."
"Sessho-sama" He addressed the demon in a voice he hoped sounded respectful. "What have I gotten myself into that I'm not supposed to know about and what do you want me to do about it my Lord?" He was nervous and was sure the Lord could smell it. Kojiro hoped he had not breached demon etiquette and be destroyed there for offending him by his bluntness.
"It's alright, like my mate said, it isn't your fault." Rin said in a reassuring voice. Through her long centuries mated to Sesshomaru, she had acquired some of his senses, so she could smell and hear the hanyou's nervousness.
"The police chief told me you are assigned to the 'Park Killer' serial murder case." To this, the neko nodded his eyes wide that the great Lord had talked to the Captain. "The fact they assigned you to work with the human Seijuro Nomura; who is highly respected by his skills; already says a lot about what they think of your competence and discretion."
'I was not aware the demons outside the police thought that highly of Seijuro.' Kojiro thought.
"This is the reason the chief gave the case to you and your partner." The flattery worked a bit to ease the neko. "I am going to have to trust their judgment." Sesshomaru made a pause to let that sink in. He was depositing his trust on a mere neko hanyou.
"I'm honored My Lord." Kojiro managed to mutter, as the Lord's tone denoted it was an honor he rarely bestowed on anyone.
"I am assuming that Higurashi Kagome was the girl that got away on Friday?" The praise the demon lord gave him had been reassuring. However, the question completely took him aback.
"How did you know Sir? We are trying to keep that completely under wraps." He asked, mildly suspicious that the chief had told the demon before him. Lord or no Lord they had promised to keep Kagome-chan safe and that meant not connecting her name to the case.
"If any woman could fight him off and get away, it would be her." Rin explained in a tone of voice that held slight admiration and something akin to affection.
"That Miko is very feisty; she has killed more demons with her mate than I even want to think about." Sesshomaru went on. "Besides which, Inuyasha would not be working with you if she was not the one who was assaulted. He is very protective of her." The Demon Lord told the neko, stressing the last sentence.
"But they are too young! And they don't smell mated!" Watanabe just looked like he had eaten something rotten, his nose could not be wrong. The pup had just proclaimed his intention; Higurashi-san had confirmed they had not mated yet.
"Well, they might not be mated yet, but they will be soon. Don't interfere on that count; they were made for each other." The Lord said and his tone made it clear it was an order and that he sanctioned the match even if they were young.
"And how on earth could they have killed anyone? She is a slender 15 year old girl same as the pup. She doesn't seem to have a mean bone in her body and she was frightened of me." Both Rin and Sesshomaru looked very surprised at that. Kojiro got the notion they thought she was very brave and that being afraid of a hanyou was not a common thing for the young woman.
"She was frightened of you? Are you sure?" He could not help the incredulity from showing on his voice and face. Watanabe just nodded and said.
"Yes, she looked like she was about ready to bolt. I think she would have if the pup had not been right behind her Sir."
'She must be more shaken by this than I would have thought.' Sesshomaru reasoned.
"Perhaps it is the fact that you are a modern demon and she has not really been around a lot of those… hrm…" He explained thoughtfully. Kojiro oddly enough did not catch that reference to being a modern demon. "I think you might have been right Rin." He told his mate. "I might have overdone the spell…" He admitted looking at her. "But it is working there though."
"As it should, but if my memory doesn't fail me it should be wearing off by now." She agreed.
"Do not take her frightened response to you as normal for her." Sessho said turning to face the neko hanyou. "Higurashi Kagome has faced me down before, and I would not put it past her to do it again."
'That skinny girl has faced the most powerful demon around? And she is still alive!' Kojiro's brain screamed. 'That can't be right! But… she did feel powerful.'
"Odd that an attack by humans could do that to her…" The lord went musing. "I guess it would have something to do with the fact a human would be harder for her to kill… or… maybe it has something to do with the fact that Yushiro was killed by thugs." His face for a slight moment denoted regret. He concealed it quickly, but Kojiro noticed Lady Rin's hand patted her mate's in something that could only be called a reassuring gesture.
According to the information Nomura had been able to gather from the Captain, Higurashi Yushiro was murdered three years ago, after leaving his office for a walk. The incident was deemed an attempted robbery gone bad, as one of the Shirosenshi's security guards had been passing by on his way to work. Unfortunately, he had not been in time to save the man. One of the thugs died by the guard's hand and the other faced a life without parole sentence.
"She faced you down? How?" Kojiro finally recovered his voice enough to ask.
"Some time ago, when I was fighting with Inuyasha over his katana. I had attempted to kill her the last time I tried to take it from him and she still got in my way." Sesshomaru looked amused, but Watanabe just looked at him absolutely shocked. "Inuyasha cut off my arm the first time I tried to kill her." Kojiro's eyes fixed on the Lord's arms, he had both, and he knew that it would take at least a century for a member to re-grow.
"But my Lord… you… you have both arms and…" He blurted out interrupting Sesshomaru, who just ignored it and went on talking.
"The second time he just tore off the borrowed limb while I was paying more attention to impaling him through the back with my venomous claws." Kojiro gasped and looked about to swoon, his head was having trouble registering what he was hearing. "I do not think I ever had an encounter with him that I can truly claim to have won. He either beat me soundly or forced a retreat on my part." Sesshomaru would have gone on with his story if Rin had not placed a delicate hand on his arm.
"There was that time when he…" Rin began saying, only to be interrupted by her mate.
"That was not him Rin. I beat him senseless, but that enraged, mindless, killing 'thing' was not him." Sesshomaru said shaking his head. "You know? That is when I finally began to understand why Chichi hue gave him that katana."
'Kami tell me that what I'm hearing is not right. Inuyasha is just a 15 year old pup, I can't believe this!' It just could not be right, what had the pup done to deserve the wrath of the demon before him. 'Good Kami!' He thought shocked as he began to put together what Higurashi-san told him about the kid and what the demon before him was saying. 'Lord Sessho is the evil inu youkai she was talking about!' His mind was reeling.
"Sess, darling, do wait a moment. This is just too much to assimilate for the poor demon." She had noticed the neko was not taking this well. "I think you could use a stiff drink…" Rin suggested. "What would you like dear?" She asked with a reassuring smile, as she stood and walked to the opposite corner from the window.
"Scotch, if you please, my Lady." He said in her direction then looked at Sesshomaru. "Please my Lord, tell me you are messing with me. I cannot imagine a 15 year old hanyou being able to take you on, let alone take you on and win."
"I was young and dumb at the time, but yes, we did fight and he did win. He may be a very young hanyou, but he is exceptionally powerful, stubborn, and determined. I was a fool to try to take on my little brother. I realized that too late, and now the damage is done." He said and there was regret on his tone, even if he maintained his expressionless face. "I may have been the full demon of the two. I might have the better techniques, but he was the more experienced and more determined fighter in the final analysis. Inuyasha began fighting for his life since Chichi hue died." He made a pause before going on. "I let those courtiers hunt them out of our lands… should have taken care of him when his mother died. He was only five, but as I said I was young, dumb, and full of useless ideas." Kojiro's mouth dropped open.
"Your… little… brother? But… your father died a little more than 500 years ago!" He exclaimed, for once thankful that he could remember some demon lore. "And I thought… I thought Inuyasha was Lord Ryoutou's and Lady Itami's son."
"Ah, now that is where things get complicated…" Sessho commented in matter of fact tone.
"Excuse me Sir for my bluntness, but more? They are already complicated enough." The poor neko sounded a bit frantic.
Rin returned carrying a small tray, with two bottles and glasses. She handed him the scotch, gave her mate a glass of something that smelled like brandy and took another glass of the same for herself. Kojiro drained the glass contents, and was promptly served another by Rin; he thanked her and took only a sip.
"Well… yes Lieutenant." Sesshomaru said with the trace of a smirk on his face, he was enjoying the hanyou's confusion, but he knew Rin would probably stop him if he went too far, thus spoiling his amusement. "Things do get a bit more complicated than what I have already told you."
"We understand this is hard for you to take." Rin said in a tone full of sympathy and understanding. "We, Sess and I, lived through that and believe us, it was very hard to understand even though we were part of it."
"As I was saying…" He began saying dismissing Rin's explanation with a shrug. "Ryoutou was born as my cousin about 200 years after Chichi hue died. He had great ability as a leader and resembled my father, Lord Inutashio, in a way you can almost describe as uncanny. It was not until 10 years ago that we finally confirmed that he was indeed Chichi hue's reincarnation. There was the suspicion of course, but no proof until then." Sesshomaru explained after he took a sip from his drink.
"Itami was the reincarnation of his second wife the Miko Junrei." Rin went on, she knew her father in law's story by heart, even if he was already dead by the time she was born. "The fate and time Kamis worked together to give them a second chance at being a family. They had died so brutally the last time around." She paused to let the hanyou grasp her explanation. "In the present, they had a son who disappeared, but that isn't exactly true." Watanabe could do nothing but ogle at the couple before him. Things were sounding too farfetched but he had no other choice than to believe it, coming, as they were from the most important demon around and his mate.
"Their son was my little brother's reincarnation." Sesshomaru went explaining while Rin sipped her drink. "I smelled it at the time and thought that something had gone dreadfully wrong. Inuyasha should not have been reincarnated yet." Kojiro downed the scotch, and Rin refilled it for him from the bottle she had brought on the tray. "It took me a very long time to at least have a theory of what had happened… I know that after he disappeared both Itami and Ryoutou began remembering their past lives, and she could always see glimpses of the future." He paused and took another sip of his drink as he observed the neko.
The Lieutenant still looked like he was having a very hard time believing what he was being told. But there was no way around it, if he was going to hang around Inuyasha and keep him out of trouble he had to know some of the truth. No matter how hard it was to believe. His little brother and his mate were sure to cause disruption to demon lifestyles. Also, too much was at stake in both the past and the present if Inuyasha learned more than he should about demon history, although he had come to realize that his little brother needed to learn a bit of it, just not enough to affect the Shikon no Tama quest. That was why he kept the legend scrolls from becoming part of the demon lore. It had been such an unfortunate problem that his eldest pup had lost two of the three versions, while playing unattended. Ryoutou thankfully had been able to recover one a few years ago, even though the one made by the Buddhist monk was still missing.
"They confirmed a few things, even though I know they didn't tell me everything they knew. I wound up joining the search parties to confirm some of my suspicions. I cannot tell you how sorry I felt for Ryoutou and Itami. Their son should have been born with a different soul...."
"My Lord I don't understand." Kojiro said messing his hair and scratching one of his ears while the other was flattened against his skull in confusion. "I get the part about Lord Ryoutou and Lady Itami being your reincarnated father and stepmother, but not about your little brother. Demon lore says he died over 500 years ago."
"No, Inuyasha did not die." Sesshomaru allowed himself the glimpse of a smile. "He, his mate, and his pack disappeared down a well never to be seen or heard from again as far as the official record goes." He turned to look at his mate who wore a secretive smile.
"As far as the official record goes?" Kojiro echoed, that sounded too much like the Demon Lord of the Western Lands had tampered with the records on purpose. Some how after hearing as much as he had, it did not surprise him as it should have.
"He was seen a few times afterward, but it was never made public." Lady Rin stated. "Inuyasha was there to bear witness to the birth of our first born as inu youkai tradition required."
"And he did give me some bit of advice before going the first time…"
"To which you never paid any attention darling." Rin added with a mischievous smile that got her a raised eyebrow from her mate.
"But he is certainly not dead." Sesshomaru went on refusing to remark on her comment. He knew now he should have listened to his brother, but at the time, it had seemed like he was a bit crazy, even if he had some things to prove he was not.
"Sessho's little brother was sealed for about fifty years. A Miko shot an arrow through his heart, pinning him to a tree. Therefore, he died, and his soul was sealed. That seal was not supposed to break, but another Miko in distress managed to awaken him and later removed the arrow. I am sure that you'd remember that part of history." Rin explained, trying to find a way to make all that she was telling more believable for the hanyou.
"Yes I remember that much, but his name was almost never mentioned. I thought it was because of the feud between you."
"Sess made it appear that way, although that is not the real reason. We think that he was reincarnated some time during those fifty years. So… Itami gave birth to the baby carrying his soul in the modern era." She made a pause and allowed herself a small grin. "The time Kamis must have had a hell of a headache over all of this. When he was brought back to life by the Miko the modern hanyou had to cease to exist in order for time to flow correctly."
"Hmpgh" Sesshomaru snorted. "I still think one of them messed up but they would of course never admit it."
"He got to live five years as a child in the modern world with a basically happy normal life for the fifty years that he was technically dead." The woman went explaining ignoring her mate's comment.
"Um, I still don't get it…" Kojiro's hand ran through his short orange hair. "How could the reincarnation of a hanyou affect the flow of time?"
"Inuyasha time travels between the modern era and the Warring States period." Sesshomaru explained slowly, he knew this would throw the hanyou in a loop. After hearing that the poor demon looked about to pass out. "The potential for paradox is incredible. It would not even be magically possible for him to do so IF his soul was present in both places. At least, that was what one of the time Kamis told me after he was born, and I realized that probably one of their kind had messed things up. He suggested that we leave his hanyou looks as unchanged as possible."
'So that, answers the question as to why the pup was left with his white hair and golden eyes.' Kojiro managed to grasp at least that much although the rest of the Demon Lord's words were not making much sense.
"I am barred from doing anything overt, lest I change this time's history, but I can do things indirectly. Like tell you what is actually going on and keep the Higurashi family as safe as possible, though I failed in keeping Yushiro alive. He was a good human."
"Sessho we agreed that had to happen too in order for things to flow; besides she never talked about it. There was no way to know." Rin said with a sigh. To the neko, it was clear the demon had held Kagome Higurashi's father in high esteem, which was odd for a demon so high up and born in the times before the treaties, even if said demon was the one to fight for them.
"I thought time travel was impossible." Disbelief was apparent in Kojiro's face and whole countenance.
"It is supposed to be, but exceptions can be made for a good enough reason." Rin answered.
"If I asked for the reason, would you be willing or even able to tell me?" Kojiro asked cautiously.
"He is a catalyst for change in the past. His pack is vitally important to show the world that humans and demons can get along, and not just humans and one type of demon. They had to teach me and many other demons a lesson about tolerance, and it would not have been possible if they did not travel through time." Watanabe's eyes were about to burst out of their sockets, that comment made him remember his history lessons and he did not want to allow his thoughts to wander in that direction. "He and his mate have another vitally important mission to accomplish as well, but we won't go into details about that. She is from modern times and it allows her to have the perspective necessary to accomplish both with him." Sessho gave him a moment for his words to sink in.
They both could watch the gears turn in the poor neko's head. The kitten knew that Sessho was responsible for many of the original alliances that brokered the peace and all demons were taught the story of the first mixed pack. The story of his little brother was highly edited. Most demons did not even remember that Inuyasha was actually his little half brother's name. In addition, the fact that he was pack leader was never mentioned.
They were taught that the first mixed pack consisted of an inu youkai hanyou as leader, his mate a human Miko, three other humans and three full demons. The pack went off to fight an evil hanyou made out of the fusion of a number of evil demons and an evil human's soul. No mention of the Shikon No Tama was ever made and the members of the first pack were never named. Many of the lessons of the first pack were taught, but little was spoken about its true origin or real intentions.
Kojiro's mind was finally overloaded and he just crumpled on the couch, leaving a very amused Sesshomaru and a concerned Rin, who promptly moved to assist the poor demon. He recovered consciousness just a few moments later, a bit disoriented and when he finally realized he had fainted, the poor neko hanyou was extremely embarrassed. Rin tried to reassure him that it had been a normal reaction to all the things he was hearing, but it was no comfort for Watanabe.
"I'm sorry my Lord, it's just that… that I can't believe what… what you're implying." He managed to stammer, his mind dizzy as the demon's word sunk in.
"I know it is very hard to believe. When Inuyasha first explained some of this, I had a hard time believing it too." Sesshomaru agreed
"So this young pup is to whom all modern demons owe the idea of joining with humans? I…" Kojiro shook his head still too dazed to fully comprehend the situation. "He… he doesn't seem the type to have accomplished all those deeds… Inuyasha is I think…" He paused not really sure about voicing his thoughts.
"You can speak what's on your mind Lieutenant." Rin told him, her reassuring and warm smile still in place.
"Well… the pup seems a bit immature… and well… he is not even very heavy, how can he be that strong?"
"Inuyasha is very strong. He is every bit as strong as my mate." Rin assured the dumfounded kitten. "He might not be as fast… but then Sessho is the fastest youkai there's been. Still he is pretty fast for a hanyou."
"That he is," Sessho agreed with his mate. "The looks are very deceptive, Watanabe. Most of our clan are all very slender… it is, as modern science would describe it, genetic."
"I can see that my lord, but what is more incredible though is how is he here? Wasn't' that supposed to happen 500 years ago?" Kojiro passed his hand through his hair, his ears laid a bit back, although not flattened anymore. He then took a sip from his whiskey.
"Well, the alternative to having him pass through the gateway with his mate was to have all of us ruled by Naraku. That damn bastard was incredibly vile." Sesshomaru made a face of disgust at the sole mention of him. He hated that evil hanyou with all his might. "I can tell you that when the fate Kami's were given a choice between allowing Naraku to rule unchallenged for 500 years and a nuclear war, they chose the nuclear war for a reason." Kojiro eyes were wide open and his jaw dropped.
'Dear Kami!' He mentally exclaimed. 'I've been thinking that too much lately, but damn! This is…' His thoughts faltered, as he could not find the right words to describe what he was hearing and he guessed that some more was still coming. 'The fate Kami's preferred the nuclear war to that guy's rule? I was just a little kitten then, but the elders of my clan still remember that. They say it was terrible.'
"You would not be alive today if it were not for the changes that were brought about because of the mixed pack." Sesshomaru went on, ignoring the kitten's gaping expression. "Hanyous would still be killed indiscriminately along with their parents…" He made a pause for effect. He also wanted to confirm if the neko was still listening. "Every story, no matter how horrid, you have ever heard about the untamed lands is probably true to at least some degree."
"I had forgotten that part of our history sir, but I was reminded of it just today." Kojiro said with a saddened sigh. Deep inside he had wanted to believe Higurashi-san had been exaggerating. It appeared she was not. "So he was indeed persecuted for being a hanyou?"
"Oh yes, he was, since he was three when Chichi hue died." Sesshomaru confirmed it. "I tried to kill him three times, but that was really more because I was being a selfish bastard over his katana than because he was a hanyou. Before he was sealed, he had quite a reputation for being able to defend himself against larger demons."
"Take a moment to collect yourself. I am sure this is all very hard for you to take and quite a shock to your system. And there is still more that you have to know"
After saying that Rin left the office to check if detective Nomura was still there, she suspected that her mate might want to talk to him once she had the chance to tell him about the legend. However, the detective had already left, she had not been aware of the time but they had been in Sessho's office for more than three hours. As it was most of the office's personnel had already left. Only her daughter Chie, who was a workaholic known to sleep at the office from time to time, and her son Nouru, who loved to tinker with the office's computer network much to his father's dismay, and of course their security guards remained there. After her small round the woman decided to go back to the office, and as she expected, her mate had already given the police officer some documents that would help him remember all he learned and a few extra instructions.
"I thought Higurashi-san was exaggerating when she spoke about him having a horrible childhood. But you have just confirmed it my Lord." He commented once Rin had taken her seat.
"I wish she was." Rin said with a sad sigh. "I really didn't understand it at the time. Actually, I don't think Sess did either until after our first son, Inukeichi, was born." He mate agreed with an almost unnoticeable nod.
"Your first pup was born before the treaties I gather." Kojiro commented, getting a bit of an insight as to one of the reasons for those treaties that saved the lives of many hanyous. Both the demon and the human before him nodded.
"Yes, two of our pups were actually born before the treaties. The likeness between Keichi and his uncle is incredible. They could have passed as twins when Keichi was his age. But the one that inherited his temper and stubbornness is Nouro." Rin commented proudly, as any mother, to be able to talk about her sons.
'How right you are Rin.' The great demon mentally agreed, knowing that his mate could sense his feelings enough to understand the gist of his thoughts. 'Not until other demons tried to kill Inukeichi and you, was I able to understand, both Chichi hue and Inuyasha.' Sesshomaru thought, remembering his fights to protect his new family. It was what made him become the most powerful demon of his time, if he had not, his mate and pups would have died.
"Would you mind my asking why you wanted the pup's katana my Lord? My partner says it's a very old battered sword."
"The Tetsusaiga is a katana made from one of our father's fangs, although I think that by now it also has one of Inuyasha's." Sesshomaru began explaining. He was not sure if Inuyasha had mastered Tetsusaiga by that time, but he decided to take a good guess. "It can slay over a hundred youkai with a single blow. It is a wind effect using the youkai's youki against them." Kojiro had wide eyed disbelieving look on his face again. If he kept going, he would probably have that look permanently affixed to his face. "When transformed it is somewhere between 4 feet and 7 feet long, and it is also incredibly heavy."
"Good Kami! That is a mighty weapon for a pup." Kojiro exclaimed interrupting him and Sesshomaru nodded in agreement. He had expected that reaction from the kitten.
"The Tetsusaiga, or the fang, is a guardian katana. Its main purpose is that of protecting humans. It works for him to protect his mate and his pack. I was jealous. I could not understand why he got that sword and I got the Tenseiga, which was made from the other fang. My sword could not cut or kill anyone…"
"I'm not well versed on those weapons sir, but aren't guardian katanas rare? What does your sword do? Aren't all swords meant to kill?" The neko blurted out in a rush. His natural curiosity was being picked and since Lady Rin had given him permission to speak his mind, he was doing it.
"Guardian swords are indeed very rare. And, well, not all katanas are meant to take life. Mine only cuts the pallbearers to the next world restoring the corpse to life. Tenseiga resurrects the dead… But it was not until I saw Inuyasha transform that I finally understood why he got Tetsusaiga." He said gravely.
"Transform? My Lord, hanyou's can't transform."
"If placed under enough stress and if the hanyou is from a powerful enough bloodline they can, but you never ever want to see that happen." Rin explained, her whole body language telling him that it was something that scared her.
"What would happen?" Kojiro asked more than a bit curious being a hanyou too.
"The hanyou looses his mind. He is lost to the bloodlust." She said her voice deadly serious and looking at him straight in the eyes, it made Kojiro feel glad that he was not of a great bloodline.
"His eyes will turn red with blue pupils and he will get stripes down either cheek. The claws become longer and sharper and he is even faster and harder to hit." The great Lord described the more noticeable aspects of Inuyasha's transformation so the neko would recognize it if it happened.
"So… he will look like a true youkai." It was not a question.
"Yes." The Lord's mate took a sip from her drink.
"The sword is the only thing that can stop that from happening. But if it did, the only recourse is to kill them." The Lord's voice was low and he was deadly serious.
"What? The pup will become a killing machine?" He asked rather worried. Both Sessho and his mate nodded. Inuyasha was going to work closely with him and many humans it might get dangerous. He needed to get more information about the transformation.
"So his sword is also used to keep him from going crazy…" He said thoughtfully. "He was not carrying it yesterday, although he did Saturday when he met Nomura."
"That is not good." Sesshomaru said with a pensive look on his face. "He must have been very trusting of you… However, that does not sound like Inuyasha at all. Normally he goes so far as to sleep with it on his person."
"Ah… I don't think he trust us my Lord." That got him a raised eyebrow from him. "I'm not sure but perhaps Higurashi-san had something to do with it."
"She probably did." He said with a sigh, if there was one person that might actually win his little brother's trust quite easily it would probably be her. "Asami is a wonderful woman. She must have told him not to take it with him and that he would not need it here, I suspect she does not know what Tetsusaiga does. I will have to correct that as soon as possible."
"You want him to carry it everywhere?"
"Yes…"
'That is going to be one hell of task.' Kojiro thought scratching his head.
"Otherwise you may be forced to kill him. And, that sure as hell is not easy even when he is not transformed, if he does convert, aim for his head and do not let him see you do it. It is about the only way to get him. He must not know that you are going to attack or your attack will fail. I had to knock him out once when he was transformed so his mate could get his sword back to him."
"I wouldn't like to have to kill him sir. But, I don't think even he can deal with modern day weapons. A few of our best youkai in the force have been killed by them."
"Lieutenant, I have impaled him and pumped enough venom into him to have killed a half dozen youkai and that only kept him down for a week. He has been so badly mistreated it is almost impossible to actually kill him. Now if by a bad twist of fate you are forced to kill him or… something or someone else does it, it is IMPERATIVE," Sesshomaru stressed that last word, "that you inform me immediately, so I can reach both of you as fast as I can to bring him back to life with Tenseiga. We cannot afford to let him die here or it will change history. Do you understand that?" Kojiro just nodded. "My private phones, both cellular and the one at my home are among the information on the documents I handed you. Use it wisely Lieutenant."
"Oh I will my Lord, be assure that I won't abuse your trust." Kojiro said humbly and rather worried at having so much confidence deposited on him by the Demon Lord, what if he failed? "So as long as he has it there won't be a problem… I'll see what I can do sir. Nevertheless... I think a word from you might be required." Kojiro looked completely astounded.
"Among the documents I handed you, there is a small sheet with my seal on it. It has all of the more important instructions on it."
"I'm grateful for that sir." Kojiro told him and finally started to understand how severe the headache must have been the day before for the pup to mention it.
"I have a feeling you are going to need it Lieutenant."
"If you need to confirm that it is real, call me and I will assure whoever is giving you a hard time that it is." Rin added.
"Thank you my Lady. As much as I would hate to bother you, I think it might be necessary with some youkai, I can even name a few right now." He shook his head, some of those youkai were higher ranked, and older than he was and Kojiro could almost bet they would make some trouble. "I also have to point out that his being mated would also cause some trouble, at least with the youkai in the force."
"We know." Rin agreed. "There isn't much we can do about it. The feudal period was a very lawless time for the most part and it was especially so for the youkai. Inuyasha looks at our world from that perspective and may choose to remain in that time… if he lives"
"But… that is history! You surely know the end result to his quest."
"Not really. It is a paradox. We can alter history through our current actions, as the quest has not ended for him yet." Sesshomaru explained. "I carried his broken body from the battle field. I did not think he would live. It was a hairs breadth either way. He took a few blows meant for me, his back was broken and no other demon throughout history would have lived through it, but he may have."
"So if something happens to either of them now then the world as we know it might change?" The hanyou asked perplexed.
"Yes. That is the problem." He agreed.
"Is there... is there something I can do to help? Or that I shouldn't do?"
"The best thing you can do is teach him every single combat technique you can think off, and then work on new ones."
"You shouldn't tell him anything of the outcome. Inuyasha has the youthful tendency of being over confident, so…" The Lady added. "It is better if he doesn't know so that he will be careful."
"I see, well at least I'm no amateur in the fighting department, so I guess I can teach him something."
"I hope so; still, don't be surprised if he can toss you around like a kitten." She told him with a slight smile, it made Kojiro raise an eyebrow. He was aware that he was nowhere near as good as Lord Sessho was, so he decided to take that comment as something possible.
"He crippled me for a while after our third fight over his sword. I am a little better now than I was then, but he still could probably put me in the hospital." He added.
"That… is still a bit hard to believe my lord, but I'll take your word, as your reputation as a fighter surpasses any of the demons alive now."
"You better; he might not have had much real training. But he is still very good."
"He would make a very good cop. I think that given his personality, he'd enjoy it. Even if he grew up by himself, Inuyasha has a lot of integrity, and Kagome is doing a good job of teaching him about human relations. You might get him interested, and show him that hanyous on this time are not reviled." Rin said changing the subject. "Since he will come so close to death and so will his mate, we want to give them as much reason to live through the battle as possible."
"That is why we want them to be mated." Sesshomaru explained.
"I can see that now my Lord. It makes sense; one will fight to remain alive for the other."
"Exactly. His will to live is powerful with the right motivation. Kagome-chan is no slouch either in that department. She had massive internal injuries and a broken rib cage and pelvis from the impact."
"And she survived? Those are terrible injuries for a human." He cringed at the sound of that description. His experience as an EMT told him most humans would have died.
"Believe it. Inuyasha is a lot tougher than he looks, Kagome survived because she was bonded so deeply with her mate. She had enough of his blood to make that survivable, but she did have to have a lot of modern medical care to be put back together. Kagome was the one that killed Naraku, but it caused that explosion."
"I will do my best then, to keep the mating from being contested, although they are not yet mated." The neko assured them.
"There is a special dispensation for the mating in the file my mate gave you." Kojiro scanned through the docs, and found two copies of the dispensation. "You might want to keep a copy, it should make things easier."
"Thanks my lady, it will help me aid the pup. I suppose you want me to give the original to him."
"Yes, please do… if not to him then give it to Asami." At the neko's puzzled expression, she explained. "Higurashi-san, I plan to have a word with her later about all this. There are things she needs to know." He just nodded then pointed out to Sessho.
"I see that your relationship with him was not a good one my Lord. So… what should I tell him when I give him the documents? The pup is going to notice who signs it."
"Tell him who my mate is and what my kids are. He should also know a bit about the treaties, and what I did for hanyous, he might not believe it at first. However, he will hear about it the longer he stays on this side of the well. I am sure that will diffuse a lot of it, especially the part about my mate and pups. Also convey my regrets over my past actions and give him my word that I will not approach him, his family, his in-laws, or the shrine grounds uninvited."
"I actually got along with him quite well. He has a soft spot for little kids, though he rarely shows it." She said with a bright smile. "Our children really want to meet him and they already know Kagome-chan."
"I will tell him my Lord, my Lady." Kojiro promised and with that, he left toward his small apartment. His head too full of thing to analyze that he knew he would probably have another sleepless night.
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It was already dark when they reached the next town; an autumnal storm was raging leaving the small group drenched and cold. Miroku walked ahead, carrying a shivering Shippou hidden under his outer robes. Sango walked only a few steps behind, carrying Kirara in a similar way, the furrier cat youkai faring better than the little kitsune.
So far, they had not been able to find shelter. The inns were crowded and Miroku's usual tactic of housing in the local Lord's house did not work, as there were already two traveling monks lodging there. They continued their search until Sango walked to his side and signaled the last inn. There was only one available in the small boarding house, ran by an elderly woman and her daughter.
"We do have a room houshi-sama. It's a small one, but I'm sure your lovely wife won't mind. At least you will be out of the rain." The old woman said kindly inviting them in. Shippou's head peeked from under Miroku's robes. He looked flushed and his hair was plastered against his head hiding his youkai ears. "Besides I think your son is ill."
"I'm not…" Sango wanted very much to deny she was his wife, more to keep the lecherous monk from getting ideas than because she did not like the idea.
"You're not married?" The woman looked a bit scandalized. "I will have to deny the room, this is a decent house!"
"What my wife wanted to say kind lady is that the kid is not our son. His parents are friends of ours and we are bringing him to them." Miroku said politely sending a warning glance over his shoulders to Sango. She nodded; they could not spend the night in the rain.
"Oh I see… poor little thing must miss them terribly!"
"He does, we would like to get him warm and dry. Would you be so kind as to show us to our room?"
"Yes, yes. Come this way. I'll have my daughter fix a hot bath for you and leave some dry robes. You are all wet."
"We greatly appreciate you hospitality, hostess-sama."
"About dinner, your wife will have to fix something for you or heat some leftovers. We served dinner an hour ago. You can use the kitchen."
"I will. Thank you Obaa-chan." Sango said simply.
Some time later after bathing, changing into warm dry clothes, and extending their stuff in the room to dry. Both tajiiya and houshi looked for the kitchen. The hearth still glowed with coals and it did not take the priest much time to bring it back to life. Meanwhile, the demon exterminator bustled about searching for food. She found some rice balls and a good amount of chicken soup with a few vegetables still there.
That would have to do until morning, so she went on setting the trays and heating the food, while Miroku watched silently. Sango seemed to be falling into the role of playing 'wife', not letting him do anything. He knew she was just as tired as he was.
"I have not seen you act like this before, Sango." He finally commented.
"What do you mean houshi-sama? You've seen me cook before." She asked while heating some sake she found. It would help them warm up. She was still cold and the bath had not gotten rid of it.
"Yes, but you don't bustle about Kaede-sama's place like it's your domain."
"Kaede obaa-chan doesn't have a kitchen in her hut, houshi-sama." She said with a small smile stating the obvious.
"That's not what I meant Sango." He said observing her while she waited for the soup to heat.
"I am a woman. It was expected of me to perform womanly tasks at the village." She explained, understanding what he meant.
"But you were one of your village exterminators"
"That doesn't change the fact that I'm female." She said serving him the food and some sake first, then serving herself. Sango was indeed acting as a wife was expected to. It was proper not to eat until the man started. He raised an eyebrow in inquiry, the tajiiya never acted like that before when they traveled, not even at Kaede-sama's place. But then Kagome-sama did not seem to observe that custom might be different in her time.
"Sango, please eat I know you're hungry." He gestured toward her untouched food.
"It' wouldn't be proper houshi-sama if our hostess happened to appear right now."
"Then call me Miroku. It doesn't sound right if you call me houshi-sama."
"I don't think…" She started saying.
"Come on Sango." Miroku interrupted her. "It's not that hard, say Miroku." He said with a soft endearing smile. His violet eyes fixed on her.
"I really think I shouldn't…" She could not hold his gaze and blushed before lowering her eyes. She hoped he had not seen that blush.
"Come on, say Miroku."
"Houshi-sa…"
"Miroku" He corrected her.
"Miroku-sama." She conceded, and he gave her a warm smile. He could clearly see her turning redder and was sure it was not the fire's heat.
"Just Miroku, Sango. We are equals, members of the same 'family'." He insisted.
"We are not equals! You're a man and I'm a woman!" She responded a bit heatedly. This difference bothered her through out her life. It did not matter how good a demon exterminator she was. She was still expected to perform the womanly tasks.
"Do you think that makes a difference when we fight demons?" The monk asked a bit surprised by her vehemence. He had not thought it would bother her, as she had never let it show. He took a sip of his soup and she immediately did the same. "Or to Inuyasha?"
"I…" She was at a loss of words, in a way the young tajiiya had never thought what the half demon made of her.
"You are a strong and capable fighter Sango. Perhaps the strongest woman I know." He said giving her a look of slight admiration and she turned beet red unused to the compliments. "Inuyasha does not give you especial treatment when we fight, like he does Kagome."
"He loves Kagome, that's why." She retorted. "Even if he is too stubborn to admit it."
"You have a point there. I think that sometimes he is incredibly stupid or just plain confused. But it was not what I meant." She gave him a curious look. "When we fight he treats you like an equal, he lets you fight. Sometimes, he does give you a hand, but he does the same for me too. Do you think he'll let you protect Kagome if he thought of you as a mere weak woman?" The young woman was silent for a moment.
"No." She admitted. "He's far too protective of her. But Kagome is strong too, and is getting better with those arrows of hers."
"According to Shippou and Kaede-sama, that was not always the case Sango." He made a small pause. "What I want to say is that Inuyasha considers us members of his pack. And even if I don't know much about it, I believe that you and I would have equal rank."
"Perhaps Myoga-san can clarify that." She paused for only a bare moment before saying. "Miroku." That got her the widest yet pleased smile from him. She had not thought that it bothered him to be called houshi-sama.
"Yes, he'll probably be sleeping on Kirara or Shippou."
"Hmm… I don't think so." She said with a frown, as she served more sake for the both of them.
"I'm sure he did not stay at Kaede-sama's. I remember hearing him talking to Shippou before the rain started." Miroku said thinking hard.
"Well… He's been awfully quiet since the rain started… I don't like it." Sango said and took a sip from her warm sake.
"We'll look for him after we're done." The monk said. He did not want to worry Sango, but a disappearance from that cowardly Myoga gave him a bad feeling. He moved to serve himself more soup, but she beat him to it and spooned more of the hot liquid into his bowl. "Thank you."
A thorough search later revealed that indeed the flea had scampered somewhere, and that got them worried. It bore no good. Of course, the flea was known to go away on his own from time to time. However, he was also known for his cowardly retreats whenever danger was around. They had to push those thoughts aside when Miroku searched for him on Shippou. The little kitsune kit was burning with a high fever.
"I thought youkai didn't get sick." He commented a bit worried.
Miroku had dried him and changed the kid into the warm rags their hostess offered before going to take a bath and eat dinner. He had tried to wake him up to join them, but the kit had protested and curled into a tight ball arguing that he was cold and tired. Now he realized he should have paid more attention, but the fact that he believed youkai could not get sick made him blind to the fact that Shippou had a fever.
"They do." Sango told him. It was common knowledge at her village. "They have a few illnesses that affect them, especially the young, and the very old. That's one of the ways we ended having pet youkai at the village, someone took care of a sick youkai, and they stayed." She sighed. "I just wish I knew more about it."
"I see. But… how should we treat this?" Miroku asked her, still looking at the shivering youngster.
"He seems to have some kind of cold. Why don't you treat him the same way you would a human? I have some of Kaede obaa-chan's herbs. They are probably soaked, but I think they'll work."
Shippou finally slept peacefully in Sango's arms by daybreak. He had been delirious most of the night calling his parents, Kagome and to their utter surprise Inuyasha. Neither human had been able to sleep and since the storm raged outside Miroku decided they should stay at least until it was not raining again. Once it was not raining, they would hurry on Kirara to Kaede's village. The old Miko might know how to treat the kit.
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A/N: * This is mostly for your information, Tokyo Tower is a building much like the Eiffel Tower in France, mostly a steel structure and the tallest building in the area, so I just created a fictitious office building as unfortunately I've never been to Japan. One day I will though.