YAAAAAYYY!!! School is done, and I am FREEEEEE!!!!
On another note, thank you all for the new reviews (I GREATLY appreciate them all)! You've made me sooo happy!
Anyways, enough of me, on with the chappie!!
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Chapter 13, Part 1: Teikai okeru Seishi(Lingering in Limbo)
His soft, furry paws tapped lowly against the wood floor where the mats ended as Shippou wondered idly along. His stare was upturned, his turquoise irises sparkling as their colour was captured and lit by the sun streaming through the open doorway to his right in the hall. He appeared luminous in that quality, but in all others, he was depressed. His back was slouched as he padded on, his shoulders slung downward, and his arms hung limply at his sides, inept of purpose. He had been left behind again, but he couldn't blame them. After all, he WAS still a child, and a battlefield was no place for him yet. His time would come when he grew older!
He let out a groan and blinked twice to rid his eyes of the brightness of the sunshine as he stepped out through the doorway, into the gardens. Well, young he may be, but that, too, had its own individual perks at times! For instance, he could get away with things, and he had a excuse to make people – well, mostly young yashas that felt affectionate – fuss over him, if that was what he wanted at the time. Speaking of fussing, where was Kagome?
As the name popped into his head, the young kitsune dashed through the flowerbeds, and along the dirt paths, scanning the garden for the lovely hime. He was disappointed to assess that she was not there. So, he decided to make his way to the library and her chamber: the two most likely places to find her, seeing as they were her favourites for being alone, which seemed increasingly often, now that Shippou thought about it.
As he made his rounds of checking, he had time to think back to how he had first met Kagome, at the celebration when Sesshoumaru-osama introduced he himes to his court. Shippou had never found out the reason for the event, though he had been planning on asking one of these days. It was most odd because Sesshoumaru had never before really cared what his nobles thought of the guests in his house, or the decisions he made – unless they were unwise, which was completely the opposite of Sesshoumaru; he was precise and cruel at times, but always right-headed and logical.
On that first night, Shippou remembered sitting with Kagome under the beauty of the stars, and speaking of many things. Many personal things that, to anyone but she, he would have hidden and never told. But, something about Kagome made him want to tell, and when he did, it made him feel the weight of the problem lifted from his shoulders. He was able to breathe a well-deserved sigh of relief for the first time in years!
She was a lovely young woman, caring and passionate; that, Shippou knew. And one day, she would become a fine mate for the oji! Even if she had no concept of it yet, she would be an ideal mother, and would bear him many healthy, happy, and vigorous pups! It was only a matter of time before she would become both the daughter of kings, and the mother and mate to princes! That is, IF he ever got the willpower to speak with her!
Truthfully, Shippou was very much annoyed with his prince, for it was extremely obvious that he felt deeply for the princess, but was just too SHY to say anything! Every single time Kagome came to see Inuyasha before, he had always come away with such a soft look on his face; one that made Shippou rather disgusted, since he was unaccustomed to seeing men in such light-hearted moods.
The most insightful glimpse he had ever had into this world of adult sappiness was when Kagome's older sister caught him spying on Kagome and Inuyasha when they were walking in the forest near the castle. That had been shortly before the talk of war preparations had started. She had told him to come away and help her find a certain herb for a concoction of one sort or another. And when he had protested, and pouted, she had smiled and chuckled lightly, and told him that one day, when he was older, he would understand.
But he wanted to understand now! After all, Kagome was his good friend! She loved him, and played with him, and comforted him whenever he was scared or lonely! She was what he imagined a mother was supposed to be like... To him, she WAS his mother... in a very new and special way.
Seeing his search was at a dead end yet again, he snapped from his thoughts and began scuttling about the castle, looking for his 'mother.' Each place he looked, he was set with another failure, and every corner he turned revealed only bare hall or wooden walls of abandoned rooms. Almost everyone, save the women (who were in the forest harvesting fruits from the vines and branches), was gone.
As he entered Kagome's room for what seemed the hundredth time, he slowed his pace and just barely caught a small piece of parchment lying soundly on the futon, tucked halfway under the covers. He reached out and snatched it with his tiny hands, and rushed to unfold it, greedily reading the contents!
His eyes shot open, looking almost blood-gorged and as the veins bulged and the irises and pupils shrank to dots! His face went pale as death, and felt just as cold! His mouth hung open helplessly, and he dropped straight down, not feeling the pain of his face colliding with the floor, for it was numb with fear and shock! So, he simply lay there, his mouth now moving silently, retelling the words of the letter in his long-forgotten, dead hand.
When he found a scrap of his voice, he squeaked it passed his thick tongue and heavy jaws. Betrayal and hurt seeped into his eyes, and he barely felt the tears that fell. "Kagome...? You promised she would stay with me, Inuyasha-oji...!"
The grotesque stench of dead shrubbery and demon sweat permeated the air sickeningly! Though one should think he was used to it by now, having lived among them his whole life, his human half was crying out in protest at the putridness surrounding him! Not that he was any better off then the others, of course: he smelled like wet dog hair coated in mud! Exactly what he was. A glimmer appeared in his eye as he mused. If only his mother could see him now, he chuckled morbidly. She would be rolling in her grave!
Inuyasha looked around him again, at the small regiments of guards about, leaning over the small campfires used only for light, and feasting disgustingly on mutton. Fierce teeth, mostly yellow with grime and neglect, ripped and snapped at the raw meat, tearing and slicing it off the bone! The reality of it was too much to bear, and he separated himself from it by moving back a few feet, and shuffling himself into a higher branch in the tree he occupied.
Reaching up, he attempted to smooth out his long, lank hair as best he could. The effort was pathetic, and useless because it was still raining, but it made him feel better to know that at least he was trying! His mother, ever the one for cleanliness and propriety, would have given him such a scolding to see him this way! Oh, how he MISSED her...!
His ears twitched again, trying to shake away the awkwardness and discomfort of the fur being matted. They caught the faint laughter of a woman not far away, and his head turned in that direction. It was that woman he had met. The one with Toutousai. She was sitting among the feline ninjas, who were mostly female themselves, for the males of their kind were very lazy when it came to fighting of any kind! Apparently one of the nekos had spoken something of great amusement, for her giggles continued to ring for a good few minutes. He was aggravated as he watched: she still wore her ninja mask, obstructing his view of the face beneath!
Something about her just didn't sit right with him, and he sniffed the air again to try and catch the scent he had picked up before. The one that smelled so wonderfully like Kagome! He moaned in disappointment when he found that its presence was absent, or at least drowned out by the rain still.
Seeing as his feeble attempt was shattered into hopeless pieces, Inuyasha turned his attention to the other situation at hand. The superiority of their demon speed allowed the guard to travel much faster than any ningen caravan, such as the one that first brought Kagome and Kikyo-hime to his brother's doorstep. Traveling at top speed, their company had arrived just on the Eastern side of the jagged, storm-torn Druid range in the matter of a day. Currently, they were resting on ningen soil, two and a half miles out from the long wheat and rye fields circumscribing the Capital.
His train of thought was interrupted by a squat, haggard demon standing below the sturdy boughs of his tree. His eyes were bloodshot, and veins popped out from his neck and forehead. Sickly brown skin looked leathered from the sheen of sweat and less recognizable fluids dripping from bulbous pustules around his eyes, nose and chin. His arms, reaching up to signal for the prince to come down, were gnarled and looked like swooping hoops of sloppy flesh hanging from fragile, lean bone. And his legs were no better, seeming more like lumps of mutton the men ate then limbs used to hold himself up.
Inuyasha obeyed absently, and leapt down to sit discontentedly on the ground, glaring at the youkai whose sunken, blood-gorged eyes stared back at him from under wildly swooping eyebrows. Sensing his oji's growing irritation, the demon spoke in such an ill, raspy voice that the sound could fester ailment in the mind itself!
"Sesshoumaru-osama wishes to speak with you, Inuyasha-oji."
Inuyasha had to force his innards to keep hold of his supper from the foulness erupting from the mouth of the creature as it spoke, smelling of raw carcass and bacterial infection that gnawed relentlessly at the teeth within. "I see. And, where is my brother?"
The demon smiled, seeing his discomfort at the smell. And so, he pointed off into the forest. "Not far in that direction, lord."
With that, Inuyasha bounded off, trying to carry himself as far from the horrid creature as possible. A moment passed before he disappeared into the darkness of the trees, and the demon returned to his company.
Kagome watched curiously as the demon returned to his own campfire and Inuyasha spurred away into the treetops northward. What had they been saying? Most likely orders from Sesshoumaru of one kind or another. She sighed, and knowing full well that she would hear of the plans soon enough, she returned to her meal, and pushed her mask (which had concealed her from Inuyasha's probing eyes) up halfway on her face so as to be able to bite her meat. She was in no hurry to know of battle tactics. After all, she wasn't planning on making such a slaughter her profession, even if she hadn't been born a princess!
She looked up and saw Sango sitting not so far away, chatting away with a group of the nekos. She seemed both anxious and somewhat happy, as a smile spread on her lips from something the nekos had said.
As she it into her food, the hime's eyes returned to the tree where Inuyasha had been, and she sighed in yearning. If ONLY she could show him she was with him...! Little did Kagome realize that her gaze did not go unnoticed.
"What's the matter, nee-san?"
Kagome looked back across the campfire she and a group of five nekos huddled round, eating. Her lips curled into a playful smile, and the ninja's eyes grew narrower with a cumulation of suspicion and confusion. Kagome giggled lightly, "I was simply wondering why it is that a hanyou such as the prince is so perturbed by demons like that one," she point over to the squat youkai who had acted as messenger to Inuyasha minutes before.
The neko to whom Kagome addressed, quirked a brow up delicately, and smirked. "I suspect he is still uncomfortable with scents as pungent as that." She paused and tore more meat off the bone into her mouth, and chewed. "Or physiques as uncleanly. His human side tells him to detest such things, and to see them as ill."
"But, aren't they?" Kagome asked. "Ill, I mean."
"Only to those unaccustomed." the neko replied squarely, and continued to swallow another mouthful. "Youkai, by nature, have less need for being sanitary. Some of us are born looking lovely, with natures dictating we clean ourselves – such as us nekos. Other times, demons grow up without need for cleanliness, for their ugliness prevails either way, clean or not clean.
"The thing is, our oji is only half youkai, and you are ningen. That means, the two of you have natural prejudices against youkai, as odd as that sounds in Inuyasha's case, being half-demon anyway. Lord Sesshoumaru is another example. While he stands the putridity of some youkai, he, like Inuyasha, has his father's canine preference to be clean whenever possible. Even full demons are not safe from their opinions of other youkai."
"That makes sense," Kagome nodded, feeling suddenly full, "but what about the attitude of youkai? I mean, they take delight in killing, most of them, don't they?"
"Not all," her feline companion replied. "The important thing to remember with youkai is that we fight because of instinct, not malice, generally. We are not the servants of hell, with hearts so black as to hate freely and murder at will. We are beings of the real world, separate from hell, and are subject to the same fear of the underworld as humans. Like you, we know our actions dictate where we go after death.
"We WILL fight, that is a given, but most of us recognize the appropriate time to fight is when our lives are in jeopardy, or we must feed. We fight to preserve ourselves, not to enjoy the bloodshed. However, there will always be certain exceptions, and THEY are what strike fear into your kind's hearts when it comes to youkai. You hear all the worst, most fantasical stories, and never the ordinary ones, because they would be too tame to entertain a ningen audience. It is the humans who are sick creatures, not us.
"Your race thrives on tales of war and blood, and then they deny their lust for such things. Humans push for war to create change and excitement, and you feast on it because it brings you more than what you had. Humans are never content to just BE, and live in the world around them. They must ruin what is natural, for they love complete dominance. Youkai, at least, realize their nature as predators and victims of nature, and accept it."
Kagome's jaw hung open in shock. Could that be true? Was this war all about dominance and malcontent? Perhaps the evil she had seen in the West was all the product of a human thirst for control and gore... What kind of race had she been born into, if that were true? She couldn't believe it! She could not afford to, for her own sanity!
Shaking her head vigorously, she banished the thoughts from her head, and continued to finish her meal in a disturbing silence, as the night wore on.
The moonlight crept sparsely through the treetops overhead where Sesshoumaru stood, tall and silent, as Inuyasha sprinted towards him from the engulfing darkness of the forest around them. The pale gleam in his eyes told the hanyou that the reason for his summoning was purely dictatorial – not a moment of pre-battle consolation. Of course, Inuyasha was not expecting that from his brother anyways. Sesshoumaru and he were too cold to one another for such sentimentality. Their relationship was to simply be political, and nothing more.
But deep down, in a place within himself that not even his beloved hime could reach without extensive coaxing, Inuyasha longed for his older brother to accept him. After all, Sesshoumaru was the only real flesh and blood family he had left...
But, of course, the look in Sesshoumaru's eyes was also what tore Inuyasha from his thoughts, for it said he had no time to tarry with such frivolousness.
"What did you want?" asked the hanyou.
Sesshoumaru nodded acknowledgment to his query. "I need you to go ahead to the city. It must be done as soon as you are able to gather the ninjas. Gather what information you can, and have them back and ready to report to me before dawn, at the edge of the forest to the fields."
"You want me to take the ninjas?"
"Hai."
Inuyasha shrugged, and fiddled with Tetsusaiga's hilt in the uncomfortable silence that followed.
After a few moments of silent pondering and examination, Sesshoumaru's eyes became a bit softer than they had been. "Inuyasha, how long we known one another? How long has it been?"
Inuyasha was stunned! Never had his brother EVER asked questions relating to their personal relationship! Still, once he found his voice, he tried to answer in as ordinary a reply as possible, with as gruff a voice as to maintain their respectfully distant coldness. "Baka! Since the day I was BORN! You know that!"
Immediately, Inuyasha's final words faltered as Sesshoumaru's gaze became frighteningly meaningful. The dull glass that was his demonic defense against emotion peeled back fully, and left a man whose heart ached with unrelenting feeling! There was pain in his eyes. Pain that Inuyasha shared with his osama's words that followed.
"I mean, us... as brothers, Inuyasha."
Inuasha did not reply, fearing that if he spoke, the moment of peaceful understanding would vanish all the quicker. This was the first time they had been so comfortable with one another, and he was in no rush to ruin it. Little did he know that neither of them were.
But, a moment is a fragile thing, and time is master of all things. So, like all others before and after it, the moment had to end. Inuyasha felt the loss most deeply, but noticed Sesshoumaru's eyes remained peeled back to him, still shining a sparkle of the wondrous glimpse of the man beneath the demon. Something was different about his brother...
"What is it?" Inuyasha asked, his irritated, matted ears perking up in interest and concern.
Before answering, Sesshoumaru took a deep sigh. Now was the time. If he didn't say it now, he may never get the chance to again. "I do not hate you, Inuyasha."
Inuyasha's mouth went dry. "You don't?" he rasped.
"No," was the soft reply as Sesshoumaru moved forward a pace. "While you are not a full breed, your skills are incredible. And you have the advantage of human courage and honour, that which I don't. A demon mind with a human heart."
By the end, Sesshoumaru's voice had become so soft and gentle it was all but a whisper.
"Why are you saying this?" Inuyasha replied, a cold sweat pooling at the nape of his neck. Was Sesshoumaru planning on dying in this battle? Was this his goodbye? If so, what would they do without him?! He was a stem to which their land was rooted: a rock to anchor them.
"Because, you are a fragile mixture; one that I would ache to see broken. Kagome-hime would miss you. Shippou-san as well. And Sango. ... And I.
"No," he continued, cutting off his sibling as Inuyasha was about to speak, "Don't. My demon blood rages to hate you, and my mind agrees. But my heart, whatever kind it be, bids me care. It will not be satisfied until I do, when my mind finally confirms with the affection... The same heart that binds me so fiercely to my people."
"And to Kikyo," Inuyasha added, smiling as Sesshoumaru stared at him in bemused mirth.
"And to Kikyo," Sesshoumaru agreed.
The trances of a smile, genuine and untainted, spread on the demon's lips as he moved before his young companion. He raised his arm up, and his hand came to rest calmly on Inuyasha's left shoulder as the two men gazed at one another.
"If there is only one thing you can promise me," Sesshoumaru said, his brows lifted up high – for the first time not stoically, "promise me that you will take care out there. Promise me that I won't lose my brother."
A feeling of bubbling warmth burst into Inuyasha's veins from his heart. He couldn't stop the heavy, overwhelming rush – even if he wanted to! He let it slide over him smoothly. However, knowing the rules of both propriety and demon nature, both he and his brother held back the embrace that was threatening to foam forth. Theirs would be a familiar love that would be honouring and unspoken save in reassuring whispers in the most critical of times. A mental connection and mutual understanding.
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Translations:
Nee-san - an alteration of sister (in this case, I used it as a respectful way of connecting Kagome with her 'sisters in battle,' as it were)
Hai - (duh!) yes
I'm so glad this chappie's done!!! I'm going to start on the next one soon, but please continue to be patient. These last chapters are kinda hard core in their design, seeing as they contain all the action, and I'm really trying to get it right, so I'm having to write slow and be careful. I don't want to rush these, okay, otherwise it'll end up coming out really crappy!
I've been pushing myself to write recently, to get the juices going in a rush, and to finish. It's helped me progress the story, but I have to write in small chunks, otherwise I'll get overwhelmed with how much I have to convey in each chapter. So, go easy on me, kay?
Much Love,
Firefrost
On another note, thank you all for the new reviews (I GREATLY appreciate them all)! You've made me sooo happy!
Anyways, enough of me, on with the chappie!!
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Chapter 13, Part 1: Teikai okeru Seishi(Lingering in Limbo)
His soft, furry paws tapped lowly against the wood floor where the mats ended as Shippou wondered idly along. His stare was upturned, his turquoise irises sparkling as their colour was captured and lit by the sun streaming through the open doorway to his right in the hall. He appeared luminous in that quality, but in all others, he was depressed. His back was slouched as he padded on, his shoulders slung downward, and his arms hung limply at his sides, inept of purpose. He had been left behind again, but he couldn't blame them. After all, he WAS still a child, and a battlefield was no place for him yet. His time would come when he grew older!
He let out a groan and blinked twice to rid his eyes of the brightness of the sunshine as he stepped out through the doorway, into the gardens. Well, young he may be, but that, too, had its own individual perks at times! For instance, he could get away with things, and he had a excuse to make people – well, mostly young yashas that felt affectionate – fuss over him, if that was what he wanted at the time. Speaking of fussing, where was Kagome?
As the name popped into his head, the young kitsune dashed through the flowerbeds, and along the dirt paths, scanning the garden for the lovely hime. He was disappointed to assess that she was not there. So, he decided to make his way to the library and her chamber: the two most likely places to find her, seeing as they were her favourites for being alone, which seemed increasingly often, now that Shippou thought about it.
As he made his rounds of checking, he had time to think back to how he had first met Kagome, at the celebration when Sesshoumaru-osama introduced he himes to his court. Shippou had never found out the reason for the event, though he had been planning on asking one of these days. It was most odd because Sesshoumaru had never before really cared what his nobles thought of the guests in his house, or the decisions he made – unless they were unwise, which was completely the opposite of Sesshoumaru; he was precise and cruel at times, but always right-headed and logical.
On that first night, Shippou remembered sitting with Kagome under the beauty of the stars, and speaking of many things. Many personal things that, to anyone but she, he would have hidden and never told. But, something about Kagome made him want to tell, and when he did, it made him feel the weight of the problem lifted from his shoulders. He was able to breathe a well-deserved sigh of relief for the first time in years!
She was a lovely young woman, caring and passionate; that, Shippou knew. And one day, she would become a fine mate for the oji! Even if she had no concept of it yet, she would be an ideal mother, and would bear him many healthy, happy, and vigorous pups! It was only a matter of time before she would become both the daughter of kings, and the mother and mate to princes! That is, IF he ever got the willpower to speak with her!
Truthfully, Shippou was very much annoyed with his prince, for it was extremely obvious that he felt deeply for the princess, but was just too SHY to say anything! Every single time Kagome came to see Inuyasha before, he had always come away with such a soft look on his face; one that made Shippou rather disgusted, since he was unaccustomed to seeing men in such light-hearted moods.
The most insightful glimpse he had ever had into this world of adult sappiness was when Kagome's older sister caught him spying on Kagome and Inuyasha when they were walking in the forest near the castle. That had been shortly before the talk of war preparations had started. She had told him to come away and help her find a certain herb for a concoction of one sort or another. And when he had protested, and pouted, she had smiled and chuckled lightly, and told him that one day, when he was older, he would understand.
But he wanted to understand now! After all, Kagome was his good friend! She loved him, and played with him, and comforted him whenever he was scared or lonely! She was what he imagined a mother was supposed to be like... To him, she WAS his mother... in a very new and special way.
Seeing his search was at a dead end yet again, he snapped from his thoughts and began scuttling about the castle, looking for his 'mother.' Each place he looked, he was set with another failure, and every corner he turned revealed only bare hall or wooden walls of abandoned rooms. Almost everyone, save the women (who were in the forest harvesting fruits from the vines and branches), was gone.
As he entered Kagome's room for what seemed the hundredth time, he slowed his pace and just barely caught a small piece of parchment lying soundly on the futon, tucked halfway under the covers. He reached out and snatched it with his tiny hands, and rushed to unfold it, greedily reading the contents!
His eyes shot open, looking almost blood-gorged and as the veins bulged and the irises and pupils shrank to dots! His face went pale as death, and felt just as cold! His mouth hung open helplessly, and he dropped straight down, not feeling the pain of his face colliding with the floor, for it was numb with fear and shock! So, he simply lay there, his mouth now moving silently, retelling the words of the letter in his long-forgotten, dead hand.
When he found a scrap of his voice, he squeaked it passed his thick tongue and heavy jaws. Betrayal and hurt seeped into his eyes, and he barely felt the tears that fell. "Kagome...? You promised she would stay with me, Inuyasha-oji...!"
The grotesque stench of dead shrubbery and demon sweat permeated the air sickeningly! Though one should think he was used to it by now, having lived among them his whole life, his human half was crying out in protest at the putridness surrounding him! Not that he was any better off then the others, of course: he smelled like wet dog hair coated in mud! Exactly what he was. A glimmer appeared in his eye as he mused. If only his mother could see him now, he chuckled morbidly. She would be rolling in her grave!
Inuyasha looked around him again, at the small regiments of guards about, leaning over the small campfires used only for light, and feasting disgustingly on mutton. Fierce teeth, mostly yellow with grime and neglect, ripped and snapped at the raw meat, tearing and slicing it off the bone! The reality of it was too much to bear, and he separated himself from it by moving back a few feet, and shuffling himself into a higher branch in the tree he occupied.
Reaching up, he attempted to smooth out his long, lank hair as best he could. The effort was pathetic, and useless because it was still raining, but it made him feel better to know that at least he was trying! His mother, ever the one for cleanliness and propriety, would have given him such a scolding to see him this way! Oh, how he MISSED her...!
His ears twitched again, trying to shake away the awkwardness and discomfort of the fur being matted. They caught the faint laughter of a woman not far away, and his head turned in that direction. It was that woman he had met. The one with Toutousai. She was sitting among the feline ninjas, who were mostly female themselves, for the males of their kind were very lazy when it came to fighting of any kind! Apparently one of the nekos had spoken something of great amusement, for her giggles continued to ring for a good few minutes. He was aggravated as he watched: she still wore her ninja mask, obstructing his view of the face beneath!
Something about her just didn't sit right with him, and he sniffed the air again to try and catch the scent he had picked up before. The one that smelled so wonderfully like Kagome! He moaned in disappointment when he found that its presence was absent, or at least drowned out by the rain still.
Seeing as his feeble attempt was shattered into hopeless pieces, Inuyasha turned his attention to the other situation at hand. The superiority of their demon speed allowed the guard to travel much faster than any ningen caravan, such as the one that first brought Kagome and Kikyo-hime to his brother's doorstep. Traveling at top speed, their company had arrived just on the Eastern side of the jagged, storm-torn Druid range in the matter of a day. Currently, they were resting on ningen soil, two and a half miles out from the long wheat and rye fields circumscribing the Capital.
His train of thought was interrupted by a squat, haggard demon standing below the sturdy boughs of his tree. His eyes were bloodshot, and veins popped out from his neck and forehead. Sickly brown skin looked leathered from the sheen of sweat and less recognizable fluids dripping from bulbous pustules around his eyes, nose and chin. His arms, reaching up to signal for the prince to come down, were gnarled and looked like swooping hoops of sloppy flesh hanging from fragile, lean bone. And his legs were no better, seeming more like lumps of mutton the men ate then limbs used to hold himself up.
Inuyasha obeyed absently, and leapt down to sit discontentedly on the ground, glaring at the youkai whose sunken, blood-gorged eyes stared back at him from under wildly swooping eyebrows. Sensing his oji's growing irritation, the demon spoke in such an ill, raspy voice that the sound could fester ailment in the mind itself!
"Sesshoumaru-osama wishes to speak with you, Inuyasha-oji."
Inuyasha had to force his innards to keep hold of his supper from the foulness erupting from the mouth of the creature as it spoke, smelling of raw carcass and bacterial infection that gnawed relentlessly at the teeth within. "I see. And, where is my brother?"
The demon smiled, seeing his discomfort at the smell. And so, he pointed off into the forest. "Not far in that direction, lord."
With that, Inuyasha bounded off, trying to carry himself as far from the horrid creature as possible. A moment passed before he disappeared into the darkness of the trees, and the demon returned to his company.
Kagome watched curiously as the demon returned to his own campfire and Inuyasha spurred away into the treetops northward. What had they been saying? Most likely orders from Sesshoumaru of one kind or another. She sighed, and knowing full well that she would hear of the plans soon enough, she returned to her meal, and pushed her mask (which had concealed her from Inuyasha's probing eyes) up halfway on her face so as to be able to bite her meat. She was in no hurry to know of battle tactics. After all, she wasn't planning on making such a slaughter her profession, even if she hadn't been born a princess!
She looked up and saw Sango sitting not so far away, chatting away with a group of the nekos. She seemed both anxious and somewhat happy, as a smile spread on her lips from something the nekos had said.
As she it into her food, the hime's eyes returned to the tree where Inuyasha had been, and she sighed in yearning. If ONLY she could show him she was with him...! Little did Kagome realize that her gaze did not go unnoticed.
"What's the matter, nee-san?"
Kagome looked back across the campfire she and a group of five nekos huddled round, eating. Her lips curled into a playful smile, and the ninja's eyes grew narrower with a cumulation of suspicion and confusion. Kagome giggled lightly, "I was simply wondering why it is that a hanyou such as the prince is so perturbed by demons like that one," she point over to the squat youkai who had acted as messenger to Inuyasha minutes before.
The neko to whom Kagome addressed, quirked a brow up delicately, and smirked. "I suspect he is still uncomfortable with scents as pungent as that." She paused and tore more meat off the bone into her mouth, and chewed. "Or physiques as uncleanly. His human side tells him to detest such things, and to see them as ill."
"But, aren't they?" Kagome asked. "Ill, I mean."
"Only to those unaccustomed." the neko replied squarely, and continued to swallow another mouthful. "Youkai, by nature, have less need for being sanitary. Some of us are born looking lovely, with natures dictating we clean ourselves – such as us nekos. Other times, demons grow up without need for cleanliness, for their ugliness prevails either way, clean or not clean.
"The thing is, our oji is only half youkai, and you are ningen. That means, the two of you have natural prejudices against youkai, as odd as that sounds in Inuyasha's case, being half-demon anyway. Lord Sesshoumaru is another example. While he stands the putridity of some youkai, he, like Inuyasha, has his father's canine preference to be clean whenever possible. Even full demons are not safe from their opinions of other youkai."
"That makes sense," Kagome nodded, feeling suddenly full, "but what about the attitude of youkai? I mean, they take delight in killing, most of them, don't they?"
"Not all," her feline companion replied. "The important thing to remember with youkai is that we fight because of instinct, not malice, generally. We are not the servants of hell, with hearts so black as to hate freely and murder at will. We are beings of the real world, separate from hell, and are subject to the same fear of the underworld as humans. Like you, we know our actions dictate where we go after death.
"We WILL fight, that is a given, but most of us recognize the appropriate time to fight is when our lives are in jeopardy, or we must feed. We fight to preserve ourselves, not to enjoy the bloodshed. However, there will always be certain exceptions, and THEY are what strike fear into your kind's hearts when it comes to youkai. You hear all the worst, most fantasical stories, and never the ordinary ones, because they would be too tame to entertain a ningen audience. It is the humans who are sick creatures, not us.
"Your race thrives on tales of war and blood, and then they deny their lust for such things. Humans push for war to create change and excitement, and you feast on it because it brings you more than what you had. Humans are never content to just BE, and live in the world around them. They must ruin what is natural, for they love complete dominance. Youkai, at least, realize their nature as predators and victims of nature, and accept it."
Kagome's jaw hung open in shock. Could that be true? Was this war all about dominance and malcontent? Perhaps the evil she had seen in the West was all the product of a human thirst for control and gore... What kind of race had she been born into, if that were true? She couldn't believe it! She could not afford to, for her own sanity!
Shaking her head vigorously, she banished the thoughts from her head, and continued to finish her meal in a disturbing silence, as the night wore on.
The moonlight crept sparsely through the treetops overhead where Sesshoumaru stood, tall and silent, as Inuyasha sprinted towards him from the engulfing darkness of the forest around them. The pale gleam in his eyes told the hanyou that the reason for his summoning was purely dictatorial – not a moment of pre-battle consolation. Of course, Inuyasha was not expecting that from his brother anyways. Sesshoumaru and he were too cold to one another for such sentimentality. Their relationship was to simply be political, and nothing more.
But deep down, in a place within himself that not even his beloved hime could reach without extensive coaxing, Inuyasha longed for his older brother to accept him. After all, Sesshoumaru was the only real flesh and blood family he had left...
But, of course, the look in Sesshoumaru's eyes was also what tore Inuyasha from his thoughts, for it said he had no time to tarry with such frivolousness.
"What did you want?" asked the hanyou.
Sesshoumaru nodded acknowledgment to his query. "I need you to go ahead to the city. It must be done as soon as you are able to gather the ninjas. Gather what information you can, and have them back and ready to report to me before dawn, at the edge of the forest to the fields."
"You want me to take the ninjas?"
"Hai."
Inuyasha shrugged, and fiddled with Tetsusaiga's hilt in the uncomfortable silence that followed.
After a few moments of silent pondering and examination, Sesshoumaru's eyes became a bit softer than they had been. "Inuyasha, how long we known one another? How long has it been?"
Inuyasha was stunned! Never had his brother EVER asked questions relating to their personal relationship! Still, once he found his voice, he tried to answer in as ordinary a reply as possible, with as gruff a voice as to maintain their respectfully distant coldness. "Baka! Since the day I was BORN! You know that!"
Immediately, Inuyasha's final words faltered as Sesshoumaru's gaze became frighteningly meaningful. The dull glass that was his demonic defense against emotion peeled back fully, and left a man whose heart ached with unrelenting feeling! There was pain in his eyes. Pain that Inuyasha shared with his osama's words that followed.
"I mean, us... as brothers, Inuyasha."
Inuasha did not reply, fearing that if he spoke, the moment of peaceful understanding would vanish all the quicker. This was the first time they had been so comfortable with one another, and he was in no rush to ruin it. Little did he know that neither of them were.
But, a moment is a fragile thing, and time is master of all things. So, like all others before and after it, the moment had to end. Inuyasha felt the loss most deeply, but noticed Sesshoumaru's eyes remained peeled back to him, still shining a sparkle of the wondrous glimpse of the man beneath the demon. Something was different about his brother...
"What is it?" Inuyasha asked, his irritated, matted ears perking up in interest and concern.
Before answering, Sesshoumaru took a deep sigh. Now was the time. If he didn't say it now, he may never get the chance to again. "I do not hate you, Inuyasha."
Inuyasha's mouth went dry. "You don't?" he rasped.
"No," was the soft reply as Sesshoumaru moved forward a pace. "While you are not a full breed, your skills are incredible. And you have the advantage of human courage and honour, that which I don't. A demon mind with a human heart."
By the end, Sesshoumaru's voice had become so soft and gentle it was all but a whisper.
"Why are you saying this?" Inuyasha replied, a cold sweat pooling at the nape of his neck. Was Sesshoumaru planning on dying in this battle? Was this his goodbye? If so, what would they do without him?! He was a stem to which their land was rooted: a rock to anchor them.
"Because, you are a fragile mixture; one that I would ache to see broken. Kagome-hime would miss you. Shippou-san as well. And Sango. ... And I.
"No," he continued, cutting off his sibling as Inuyasha was about to speak, "Don't. My demon blood rages to hate you, and my mind agrees. But my heart, whatever kind it be, bids me care. It will not be satisfied until I do, when my mind finally confirms with the affection... The same heart that binds me so fiercely to my people."
"And to Kikyo," Inuyasha added, smiling as Sesshoumaru stared at him in bemused mirth.
"And to Kikyo," Sesshoumaru agreed.
The trances of a smile, genuine and untainted, spread on the demon's lips as he moved before his young companion. He raised his arm up, and his hand came to rest calmly on Inuyasha's left shoulder as the two men gazed at one another.
"If there is only one thing you can promise me," Sesshoumaru said, his brows lifted up high – for the first time not stoically, "promise me that you will take care out there. Promise me that I won't lose my brother."
A feeling of bubbling warmth burst into Inuyasha's veins from his heart. He couldn't stop the heavy, overwhelming rush – even if he wanted to! He let it slide over him smoothly. However, knowing the rules of both propriety and demon nature, both he and his brother held back the embrace that was threatening to foam forth. Theirs would be a familiar love that would be honouring and unspoken save in reassuring whispers in the most critical of times. A mental connection and mutual understanding.
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Translations:
Nee-san - an alteration of sister (in this case, I used it as a respectful way of connecting Kagome with her 'sisters in battle,' as it were)
Hai - (duh!) yes
I'm so glad this chappie's done!!! I'm going to start on the next one soon, but please continue to be patient. These last chapters are kinda hard core in their design, seeing as they contain all the action, and I'm really trying to get it right, so I'm having to write slow and be careful. I don't want to rush these, okay, otherwise it'll end up coming out really crappy!
I've been pushing myself to write recently, to get the juices going in a rush, and to finish. It's helped me progress the story, but I have to write in small chunks, otherwise I'll get overwhelmed with how much I have to convey in each chapter. So, go easy on me, kay?
Much Love,
Firefrost