Author: O.o...ummmm well, thank you "me" for your...kind review...um...heh heh. I'm writing this chapter in order to save my eyes, even though I really do want to write this one anyway. Glad you guys...like Kan-ryu so far, I really tried hard to make him an ass...heh heh, he gets even better...just you wait and see.
Chapter 21:
Kouga muttered a few curses to himself as he started back towards the village from a small patch of forest near the outskirts. He had retreated there as soon as Inuyasha came to relieve him, hoping to gather some ideas of how to approach Lilian. In the process of trying (and failing) to do so, he lost a few precious hours when his body demanded sleep and drug him kicking and screaming into blissful unconsciousness.
As he reached the edge of the forest area, he made a slight note of the sun's position, he judged that he had been sleeping for maybe 5 or 6 hours. Muttering another curse, he headed in the direction of Lilian's scent, still able to recognize it amongst the many other humans in the village.
It wasn't long before he made his way back into the streets, purposefully taking his time, he still hadn't come up with a plan and was getting slightly more nervous by the second. Avoiding the pedestrians in the streets he walked, his speed ever decreasing as the fidgeting of his hands continued.
It took him longer than he expected to reach the place where he had stood the night before. He had circled the house using the streets around it to keep fair distance for a while before he finally forced himself to head down the street. He could see the house, not in the best condition, yet certainly better than a lot of the others. It seemed a bit cozy to be housing as many as he could smell inside.
Sifting through the scents he recognized last night, and one that he assumed was probably Lilian's mother, Kouga was able to make out the fact that Lilian was still at home. His heart rose a bit when he realized how close she was, then sunk again when he recognized the now stomach wrenching odor of the one that he actually would have to call a rival.
He breathed a heavy sigh and was about to go to the door when it opened and Lilian's brother stepped out into the street. The boy stretched for a moment, a smile on his face as he took the warming air into his lungs. It was a moment of silence before Kenji turned to see Kouga just standing in the road, a bit of a smirk crossed his face.
"Hey!" He called out. "Kouga right?"
Kouga grunted lightly in response to the question.
"Hey, come with me to the training area my dad scouted out earlier. I want to talk to you."
Kouga was, to say the least, a bit confused by the boy's sudden comfort being around him. He quelled it quickly when he heard the boy's nest words.
"It's about my sister."
Kouga's eyes considerably brightened.
"Oh, okay then. Let's go see this training area."
A mischievous grin crossed Kenji's face as he turned to lead down the street, opposite to the way Kouga came. Kouga noted that the boy was still dragging in what looked to be the same outfit as before except it might have been a different shade.
They had barely turned the first corner when Kenji spoke up.
"You like my sister don't you?"
Kouga did a slight double take as he registered what the boy proposed, then paused, and ran the information over again before settling in a slightly confused mood.
"Yeah...thought so..."
The childish grin on his face effectively masked the fact that he was around 15 years old or so.
"W-what? H-how did you...?"
Kouga sputtered as he found his voice, which was about the same time all his blood found his face.
"Either from the way you looked like your world collapsed when you found out she was married to that asshole, or from the fact that you looked like you would kill him in a heartbeat. Take your pick."
Kouga stared in disbelief for a moment before he noticed the grin on the young boy's face. In a moment, he collected himself, fighting off the blush as best he could before he spoke.
"And...what if I do? What does that matter to you?"
"I figured I may be able to help you out a bit with winning her over."
Kouga nearly did another double take, still continuing on behind the lad who looked as if this was the most casual conversation he ever had.
"Wait a second...what?"
Kouga was to say the least confused at the sudden change of events, no longer bothered with the fact that he was talking to a complete stranger.
"Simply put...Kan-ryu is an ass, Lilian hates him, I hate him...as a matter of fact...I don't think I've ever met anyone who liked him..."
His voice trailed off in thought before he was brought back to reality by a very confused and slightly hopeful wolf youkai.
"Wait a second...I thought humans mated for love, if she hates him, why is she mated to him?"
Kouga was calming down as the words flowed out of his mind through his mouth, but he wasn't quite sure he had figured everything out.
"That's got to be the cheesiest thing I've heard in a while, you know that?"
He laughed a bit to himself as he mused further in his own thoughts.
"What do you mean?"
"Never mind. Anyway, do you want the help or not?"
"Well yeah, sure."
"You seem like there's something bothering you about me helping you."
Kouga thought for a minute about whether he wanted to truly voice his still wavering feelings about stepping in the middle of the marriage. It was possible that he may love Lilian...and even though she hated the man she was with, he had thought for so long that doing such a thing was wrong...it wasn't easy ignoring countless years of tradition.
"Kouga?"
A look from the boy who had just stopped made a comforting feeling rush through Kouga. It was odd, he could sense an innate camaraderie between him and the boy, maybe it was the cool atmosphere the human seemed to carry with him, maybe it was his carefree nature that was reminiscent of his pack at home. Whatever it was, Kouga found that he was pretty certain that he could trust the boy with the truth at the very least, after all, it might've ended up being the key to winning Lilian's heart in the end.
"Sorry about that, I just still can't imagine why she is with him, that's all. Normally I'm opposed to even thinking about another person's mate...but, well I dunno."
Kenji quirked a smile before turning to continue on.
"Maybe because you don't know how they got together in the first place."
Kenji's voice lost a bit of the humor in it as the sentence continued on, effectively pricking at the youkai's interest.
"What do you mean?"
The boy heaved a sigh and placed both his hands behind his head, clasping each elbow with the opposite head, relaxing as they walked.
"My family has a style of Ninjutsu that we use that was passed down by generations. We have taught it to those not in our family in the past, but they hardly ever passed it on, so it stays mostly within the family. The style we use is a branch of the original Ninjutsus used by the original Shinobi of this land many years ago. The original styles were much more powerful and much more deadly, even though it was never truly documented because all those who saw it were killed before they could tell of it. The Shinobi from before were some of the most feared warriors, lending their swords to whoever would hire them, caring not about the targets they were paid to dispose of. As time passed, the Shinobi tended to die off a bit, no one really knows why, but they just became scarcer and scarcer. Eventually, people lost contact with them all together and the Shinobi just faded out of existence. They styles they used are now referred to as Greater Ninjutsus."
He paused for a second without looking back.
"Some time after that, I guess a few ex-shinobi decided to sell what they knew in order to support themselves, teaching their skills to whoever would pay for them. In turn, their students did the same, as did their students and so on. Eventually the Ninjutsu styles formed into many different branches, none as powerful as the Greater Ninjutsus, but some of them were still powerful nonetheless. These styles are what you see today, they became known as Lesser Ninjutsus."
He turned to see if Kouga was still paying attention, he smirked a bit to see that the wolf was actually focusing on what was being said. The buildings began to become fewer and further in between before the black haired youth continued with his tale.
"Our style is thought to be a very powerful form among the Lesser Ninjutsus when truly mastered. My sister still has a long way to go, but my father says that both she and I have shown incredible growth and potential and may surpass him before he dies. She is the heir to the family dojo, and it will be her responsibility to run it when my father passes away."
Kouga continued to listen, carefully taking in all the information, yet not sure if all of it was important.
"My father kept telling my sister that running the dojo was an impossible task for one person and he hoped to see her get married before the end of his life. The problem was that Lilian was showing no interest in anyone because she was so focused on her training that she didn't seem to have time for it. After a long time of playful arguments and long discussions, they reached a compromise: If anyone could beat her in one-on-one combat, then she would marry them. My sister agreed only so that my father wouldn't have to worry about the succession of the dojo."
Kouga's curiosity began to grow as he felt the answers to his questions coming steadily closer.
"At first, it was just the village boys who knew they had no chance, but thought that it was worth the try. After that came those who had studied a bit and wanted to test themselves. Soon, it became the more experienced warriors that happened to be crossing through the village and thought they could seize an opportunity. Eventually, people from other Lesser Ninjutsu styles started to come, hoping to fuse together the two styles in hopes of creating a new style that may have even been as strong as a Greater Ninjutsu style."
He paused for a moment, when his voice continued, it was much lower, much quieter, and much angrier.
"Kan-ryu was one of the ninja from the other styles. Misoko Kan-ryu is his full name, and he appeared in the village suddenly one day. He challenged Lilian over her hand in marriage like everyone else, except he requested that the match be held in a few days in oppose to as soon as the challenge was issued, like everyone else had. He spent the next few days boasting about how he would win the fight and take my sisters hand in marriage...and when the day for the fight came around, he actually beat her."
Fresh shock hit Kouga at the thought of Kan-ryu being a warrior as bony as he was, especially one to best Lilian. He suppressed a growl as the boy started to continue.
"It was weird though, when she fought him, she seemed...hesitant to do so. I'm not sure why...but I don't think she gave it her all. Since then, she's been pretending to like him in front of the family, trying hard to follow through with her word. She's been living in a cage that she was forced into, and she can't do anything but suffer through it. My father doesn't know she hates Kan-ryu, and she makes a constant effort to keep him from finding out...but she hates that man so much that its annoying to watch her try to deal with him."
He sighed before turning to Kouga who was recapping the tale in his mind again.
"That's why I want to help you, anyone is better than that asshole she's stuck with now."
Kouga stopped along with Kenji without noticing it, he turned his attention to the youth to see that mischievous grin on his face again.
"Anyway, we're here."
Kouga looked around him for the first time to see them in an open expanse of grass and soft dirt, a bit of forest a short walk away, and the village no more than 3 minutes journey at a leisurely pace. There was a fresh gust, disturbing the still air, the slight winds caressing the two for a moment before it died down.
"This is a nice place..."
"Eh...my dad picked it out."
Kenji's voice had a playfully bored tinge to it.
"K-Kouga? W-what are you doing here?"
Kouga turned to see none other than Lilian walking from the direction of the forestry. He mentally kicked himself for not picking up on her scent, even though he was a bit distracted. He shut his eyes and smiled, missing the guilty look on Lilian's face.
"Kenji brought me here so that we could just talk."
He opened his eyes in time to see the boy rapidly increasing the distance between them, setting off for a place to train and leave the two alone. He turned to Lilian again, this time noticing the heavy look of her eyes and her deep even breathing. He took a step forward without paying much attention, shocked a bit when she stepped back.
He hung his head a bit as the shame he held off before began to attack him again.
"Lilian..."
He muttered, she hardly heard him even though she didn't react.
A short breeze cut the silence, then returned the area to the lack of volume it had previously had.
"Kouga...I-I'm sorry...I should have told you..."
Neither could bring themselves to look into each other's eyes. The air was disturbingly heavy, and suddenly Kouga wished that Kenji or Inuyasha, or anyone for that matter could be here to lighten up the tension of the area.
"...It wouldn't have changed anything..."
It was a while before Kouga found the words to say, but saying them didn't help ease the situation as the section of the clearing became quiet once again, interrupted lightly ever so often by the grunting sounds of Kenji's practice.
"...What do you mean...?"
"I mean...it still wouldn't change the way...the way..."
Kouga abandoned that train of speech, seeing it was going no where.
"Any other woman that I found was mated could never once me even think for a moment about being close to them...but...but..."
"...Kouga...I have a husband though...I-I'm..."
She tried to hide the pause in her voice as she forced herself to lie, blessing silently the fact that she was not looking into those sometimes childish eyes. Even without looking, she found herself able to picture his ears drooping a bit with his eyes unfocused, his tail hanging limply by his side.
"...I'm happy Kouga..."
Kouga shuddered visibly before bringing his gaze up, she wouldn't look at him, her eyes still focused on the ground.
"...I'm sorry that I made you feel otherwise...but really...I'm happy with..."
She paused a bit, but interrupted before she could continue.
"Lilian"
His voice was stern as his eyes narrowed a bit, his voice deepened a bit causing the kunoichi to unconsciously look up to him, meeting his solid gaze.
"Do you love him?"
Both were a bit shocked by the words, Kouga was still wary of using that one word, Lilian began to start looking like a caged animal little by little. Her eyes widened a bit at the sudden nature of the question, her jaw quivered a bit under his stare.
She couldn't speak.
"Answer me Lilian...Do you love him?"
Slowly, she regained herself, it took a few moments before she mustered enough strength to stare back at him almost defiantly, gritting her teeth as she prepared to lie again.
"Kenji already told me about the deal you made with your father. So I'll ask you truthfully Lilian...do you love him?"
Inside, Kouga was dying over and over again, only to be resurrected and killed again, on the outside, he held his breath, and worked hard to maintain his firm stance.
"...Kouga...You and I...we could never..."
"I'm not asking about us Lilian, I'm not asking for us, I'm not asking for even myself. Lilian, I'm asking this for you. Do you really love him...yes or no?"
She shut her eyes tightly and clenched her fists at her sides as his last request for information. This was too complicated, none of it made sense to her, sure she hated Kan-ryu, sure she would kill him herself if not for her father...but why was it so hard for her to lie to the youkai in front of her about that same man?
Why was it so hard to lie about this to the man who had first looked at her like she was the most beautiful thing on earth? To be completely stricken with awe at just her presence. To tell her that she was beautiful, and mean it out of the warm, family sense. To kiss her without her fighting back.
She couldn't understand why...but she just couldn't lie to him...not about that.
"No...no I don't love him. But I have to stay with him, I am bound by my word Kouga."
"If you were offered a way out...would you take it?"
'A way out?' Lilian thought to herself. 'A way out of my word? What could he be talking about? I'm trapped with that man, there is nothing I can do about it...there is nothing he can do either...is there?'
"If such a way existed...I-I would gladly take it."
"If I could...Lilian...will you let me provide that way out?"
"Lilian Darling!!! There you are! I was wondering where you took off too so early this morning."
Kouga saw Lilian shudder when they both heard Kan-ryu coming from the downwind village. He suppressed a growl at the sight and found her eyes once more. Resolute determination on his face, causing a bit of confusion to well up in hers. Without a word he turned towards the approaching man.
"Misoko Kan-ryu...I challenge you to a one-on-one combat competition. If I win, then you will let Lilian free of the bind you have on her and let her walk free as if she never met you."
Kan-ryu looked a bit surprised at first, a faint grin lit up his sickly features a bit as he passed a glance at Lilian, who was in utter shock, before turning back to the wolf.
"And if I win?"
"I shall serve you personally all the days of your life and the life of your first born child."
He heard Lilian gasp behind him as he made the announcement, he also noticed the stop in Kenji's practice too. Kan-ryu smiled devilishly at the turn of events, holding back a chuckle.
"And why do you want to do this?"
"Because, there are certain things that can be decided by fight between two people...land, power, money...but something like love or marriage should not be left up to the fists of two people..."
Lilian felt her breath stop for a moment as Kouga's most recent sagacious saying passed over her.
Kan-ryu did something akin to a cackle.
"Wouldn't we be deciding such a thing if we were to fight?"
"Maybe so, but I will do this only if she agrees to allow me to."
His fist clenched at his sides.
...If I could...Lilian...would you let me provide that way out?...
'Kouga...' her voice was silent as her mind rang with a single thought. 'Why would you do something like this for me?'
Lost in her thoughts, she didn't hear Kan-ryu goad her on saying something about always wanted a youkai for a servant.
"I-I don't have a problem with that match..."
Kan-ryu laughed out loud, nearly causing Kouga to wince. He thought that Lilian had agreed simply because he had "persuaded" her to...Lilian knew it was otherwise...Kouga hoped for the best.
"Very well then Kouga...We will have the match in three days."
Kan-ryu cackled wildly as he returned to the village, already fanaticizing about the joys of having a youkai slave. It was a painfully long time before his voice disappeared from their ears, leaving the two alone.
"W-why are you doing this for me?"
Lilian was the one to break the silence.
"I would willingly risk anything for a member of my pack Lilian, how much more would I risk for one I held closer?"
He turned to her, grinning innocently again. A slight blush crept up her face as the words registered in her mind.
"I guess I'll leave you hear to your training. I'm pretty sure you know where to find me tonight, hope to see you then at the latest."
He was about to go when he heard something faint and inaudible pass her lips.
"What?"
"Thank you Kouga...that you so much."
Her voice was still hushed, but this time he heard it clearly enough. He sent another grin back and then took off towards the village, no real destination in mind, just running now because it felt nice. He ran off, enjoying the feeling of his reddening cheeks.
The dust from where he stood hit the ground and settled what seemed like eons after the youkai left, the maiden merely stood there reflecting on his last words when she felt a familiar voice at her side.
"So, you think he can set you free from that asshole finally?"
She was about to answer when something clicked in her mind, a slight smile crossed her face.
"You know, father would kill you if he heard you talking like that."
She playfully punched his shoulder, causing an exaggerated whimper from the younger sibling.
"Yeah, but what dad doesn't know, can't hurt him."
"You really bad, you know that?"
"I learned everything I know from you so, it must be your fault."
"If I've taught you so much, then I guess you won't mind if skip out on that shuriken lesson I promised you for when I get back."
"Hey, you promised!"
"Fine then, let's go train kid."
"I told you to stop calling me that."
"Huh?"
She passed him a mocking look to show that she "didn't understand."
His expression turned sarcastic as he began to grumble something incoherent.
Silently both siblings rejoiced at the fact that nothing between them had changed, and both hoped that the addition of a certain wolf could change their environment for the better.
Author: [pants] [looks at watch] OH NO!!!!!! I-I-It's already 2 am!?!??!!? My poor eyes are doomed T.T it's not fair...
Chapter 21:
Kouga muttered a few curses to himself as he started back towards the village from a small patch of forest near the outskirts. He had retreated there as soon as Inuyasha came to relieve him, hoping to gather some ideas of how to approach Lilian. In the process of trying (and failing) to do so, he lost a few precious hours when his body demanded sleep and drug him kicking and screaming into blissful unconsciousness.
As he reached the edge of the forest area, he made a slight note of the sun's position, he judged that he had been sleeping for maybe 5 or 6 hours. Muttering another curse, he headed in the direction of Lilian's scent, still able to recognize it amongst the many other humans in the village.
It wasn't long before he made his way back into the streets, purposefully taking his time, he still hadn't come up with a plan and was getting slightly more nervous by the second. Avoiding the pedestrians in the streets he walked, his speed ever decreasing as the fidgeting of his hands continued.
It took him longer than he expected to reach the place where he had stood the night before. He had circled the house using the streets around it to keep fair distance for a while before he finally forced himself to head down the street. He could see the house, not in the best condition, yet certainly better than a lot of the others. It seemed a bit cozy to be housing as many as he could smell inside.
Sifting through the scents he recognized last night, and one that he assumed was probably Lilian's mother, Kouga was able to make out the fact that Lilian was still at home. His heart rose a bit when he realized how close she was, then sunk again when he recognized the now stomach wrenching odor of the one that he actually would have to call a rival.
He breathed a heavy sigh and was about to go to the door when it opened and Lilian's brother stepped out into the street. The boy stretched for a moment, a smile on his face as he took the warming air into his lungs. It was a moment of silence before Kenji turned to see Kouga just standing in the road, a bit of a smirk crossed his face.
"Hey!" He called out. "Kouga right?"
Kouga grunted lightly in response to the question.
"Hey, come with me to the training area my dad scouted out earlier. I want to talk to you."
Kouga was, to say the least, a bit confused by the boy's sudden comfort being around him. He quelled it quickly when he heard the boy's nest words.
"It's about my sister."
Kouga's eyes considerably brightened.
"Oh, okay then. Let's go see this training area."
A mischievous grin crossed Kenji's face as he turned to lead down the street, opposite to the way Kouga came. Kouga noted that the boy was still dragging in what looked to be the same outfit as before except it might have been a different shade.
They had barely turned the first corner when Kenji spoke up.
"You like my sister don't you?"
Kouga did a slight double take as he registered what the boy proposed, then paused, and ran the information over again before settling in a slightly confused mood.
"Yeah...thought so..."
The childish grin on his face effectively masked the fact that he was around 15 years old or so.
"W-what? H-how did you...?"
Kouga sputtered as he found his voice, which was about the same time all his blood found his face.
"Either from the way you looked like your world collapsed when you found out she was married to that asshole, or from the fact that you looked like you would kill him in a heartbeat. Take your pick."
Kouga stared in disbelief for a moment before he noticed the grin on the young boy's face. In a moment, he collected himself, fighting off the blush as best he could before he spoke.
"And...what if I do? What does that matter to you?"
"I figured I may be able to help you out a bit with winning her over."
Kouga nearly did another double take, still continuing on behind the lad who looked as if this was the most casual conversation he ever had.
"Wait a second...what?"
Kouga was to say the least confused at the sudden change of events, no longer bothered with the fact that he was talking to a complete stranger.
"Simply put...Kan-ryu is an ass, Lilian hates him, I hate him...as a matter of fact...I don't think I've ever met anyone who liked him..."
His voice trailed off in thought before he was brought back to reality by a very confused and slightly hopeful wolf youkai.
"Wait a second...I thought humans mated for love, if she hates him, why is she mated to him?"
Kouga was calming down as the words flowed out of his mind through his mouth, but he wasn't quite sure he had figured everything out.
"That's got to be the cheesiest thing I've heard in a while, you know that?"
He laughed a bit to himself as he mused further in his own thoughts.
"What do you mean?"
"Never mind. Anyway, do you want the help or not?"
"Well yeah, sure."
"You seem like there's something bothering you about me helping you."
Kouga thought for a minute about whether he wanted to truly voice his still wavering feelings about stepping in the middle of the marriage. It was possible that he may love Lilian...and even though she hated the man she was with, he had thought for so long that doing such a thing was wrong...it wasn't easy ignoring countless years of tradition.
"Kouga?"
A look from the boy who had just stopped made a comforting feeling rush through Kouga. It was odd, he could sense an innate camaraderie between him and the boy, maybe it was the cool atmosphere the human seemed to carry with him, maybe it was his carefree nature that was reminiscent of his pack at home. Whatever it was, Kouga found that he was pretty certain that he could trust the boy with the truth at the very least, after all, it might've ended up being the key to winning Lilian's heart in the end.
"Sorry about that, I just still can't imagine why she is with him, that's all. Normally I'm opposed to even thinking about another person's mate...but, well I dunno."
Kenji quirked a smile before turning to continue on.
"Maybe because you don't know how they got together in the first place."
Kenji's voice lost a bit of the humor in it as the sentence continued on, effectively pricking at the youkai's interest.
"What do you mean?"
The boy heaved a sigh and placed both his hands behind his head, clasping each elbow with the opposite head, relaxing as they walked.
"My family has a style of Ninjutsu that we use that was passed down by generations. We have taught it to those not in our family in the past, but they hardly ever passed it on, so it stays mostly within the family. The style we use is a branch of the original Ninjutsus used by the original Shinobi of this land many years ago. The original styles were much more powerful and much more deadly, even though it was never truly documented because all those who saw it were killed before they could tell of it. The Shinobi from before were some of the most feared warriors, lending their swords to whoever would hire them, caring not about the targets they were paid to dispose of. As time passed, the Shinobi tended to die off a bit, no one really knows why, but they just became scarcer and scarcer. Eventually, people lost contact with them all together and the Shinobi just faded out of existence. They styles they used are now referred to as Greater Ninjutsus."
He paused for a second without looking back.
"Some time after that, I guess a few ex-shinobi decided to sell what they knew in order to support themselves, teaching their skills to whoever would pay for them. In turn, their students did the same, as did their students and so on. Eventually the Ninjutsu styles formed into many different branches, none as powerful as the Greater Ninjutsus, but some of them were still powerful nonetheless. These styles are what you see today, they became known as Lesser Ninjutsus."
He turned to see if Kouga was still paying attention, he smirked a bit to see that the wolf was actually focusing on what was being said. The buildings began to become fewer and further in between before the black haired youth continued with his tale.
"Our style is thought to be a very powerful form among the Lesser Ninjutsus when truly mastered. My sister still has a long way to go, but my father says that both she and I have shown incredible growth and potential and may surpass him before he dies. She is the heir to the family dojo, and it will be her responsibility to run it when my father passes away."
Kouga continued to listen, carefully taking in all the information, yet not sure if all of it was important.
"My father kept telling my sister that running the dojo was an impossible task for one person and he hoped to see her get married before the end of his life. The problem was that Lilian was showing no interest in anyone because she was so focused on her training that she didn't seem to have time for it. After a long time of playful arguments and long discussions, they reached a compromise: If anyone could beat her in one-on-one combat, then she would marry them. My sister agreed only so that my father wouldn't have to worry about the succession of the dojo."
Kouga's curiosity began to grow as he felt the answers to his questions coming steadily closer.
"At first, it was just the village boys who knew they had no chance, but thought that it was worth the try. After that came those who had studied a bit and wanted to test themselves. Soon, it became the more experienced warriors that happened to be crossing through the village and thought they could seize an opportunity. Eventually, people from other Lesser Ninjutsu styles started to come, hoping to fuse together the two styles in hopes of creating a new style that may have even been as strong as a Greater Ninjutsu style."
He paused for a moment, when his voice continued, it was much lower, much quieter, and much angrier.
"Kan-ryu was one of the ninja from the other styles. Misoko Kan-ryu is his full name, and he appeared in the village suddenly one day. He challenged Lilian over her hand in marriage like everyone else, except he requested that the match be held in a few days in oppose to as soon as the challenge was issued, like everyone else had. He spent the next few days boasting about how he would win the fight and take my sisters hand in marriage...and when the day for the fight came around, he actually beat her."
Fresh shock hit Kouga at the thought of Kan-ryu being a warrior as bony as he was, especially one to best Lilian. He suppressed a growl as the boy started to continue.
"It was weird though, when she fought him, she seemed...hesitant to do so. I'm not sure why...but I don't think she gave it her all. Since then, she's been pretending to like him in front of the family, trying hard to follow through with her word. She's been living in a cage that she was forced into, and she can't do anything but suffer through it. My father doesn't know she hates Kan-ryu, and she makes a constant effort to keep him from finding out...but she hates that man so much that its annoying to watch her try to deal with him."
He sighed before turning to Kouga who was recapping the tale in his mind again.
"That's why I want to help you, anyone is better than that asshole she's stuck with now."
Kouga stopped along with Kenji without noticing it, he turned his attention to the youth to see that mischievous grin on his face again.
"Anyway, we're here."
Kouga looked around him for the first time to see them in an open expanse of grass and soft dirt, a bit of forest a short walk away, and the village no more than 3 minutes journey at a leisurely pace. There was a fresh gust, disturbing the still air, the slight winds caressing the two for a moment before it died down.
"This is a nice place..."
"Eh...my dad picked it out."
Kenji's voice had a playfully bored tinge to it.
"K-Kouga? W-what are you doing here?"
Kouga turned to see none other than Lilian walking from the direction of the forestry. He mentally kicked himself for not picking up on her scent, even though he was a bit distracted. He shut his eyes and smiled, missing the guilty look on Lilian's face.
"Kenji brought me here so that we could just talk."
He opened his eyes in time to see the boy rapidly increasing the distance between them, setting off for a place to train and leave the two alone. He turned to Lilian again, this time noticing the heavy look of her eyes and her deep even breathing. He took a step forward without paying much attention, shocked a bit when she stepped back.
He hung his head a bit as the shame he held off before began to attack him again.
"Lilian..."
He muttered, she hardly heard him even though she didn't react.
A short breeze cut the silence, then returned the area to the lack of volume it had previously had.
"Kouga...I-I'm sorry...I should have told you..."
Neither could bring themselves to look into each other's eyes. The air was disturbingly heavy, and suddenly Kouga wished that Kenji or Inuyasha, or anyone for that matter could be here to lighten up the tension of the area.
"...It wouldn't have changed anything..."
It was a while before Kouga found the words to say, but saying them didn't help ease the situation as the section of the clearing became quiet once again, interrupted lightly ever so often by the grunting sounds of Kenji's practice.
"...What do you mean...?"
"I mean...it still wouldn't change the way...the way..."
Kouga abandoned that train of speech, seeing it was going no where.
"Any other woman that I found was mated could never once me even think for a moment about being close to them...but...but..."
"...Kouga...I have a husband though...I-I'm..."
She tried to hide the pause in her voice as she forced herself to lie, blessing silently the fact that she was not looking into those sometimes childish eyes. Even without looking, she found herself able to picture his ears drooping a bit with his eyes unfocused, his tail hanging limply by his side.
"...I'm happy Kouga..."
Kouga shuddered visibly before bringing his gaze up, she wouldn't look at him, her eyes still focused on the ground.
"...I'm sorry that I made you feel otherwise...but really...I'm happy with..."
She paused a bit, but interrupted before she could continue.
"Lilian"
His voice was stern as his eyes narrowed a bit, his voice deepened a bit causing the kunoichi to unconsciously look up to him, meeting his solid gaze.
"Do you love him?"
Both were a bit shocked by the words, Kouga was still wary of using that one word, Lilian began to start looking like a caged animal little by little. Her eyes widened a bit at the sudden nature of the question, her jaw quivered a bit under his stare.
She couldn't speak.
"Answer me Lilian...Do you love him?"
Slowly, she regained herself, it took a few moments before she mustered enough strength to stare back at him almost defiantly, gritting her teeth as she prepared to lie again.
"Kenji already told me about the deal you made with your father. So I'll ask you truthfully Lilian...do you love him?"
Inside, Kouga was dying over and over again, only to be resurrected and killed again, on the outside, he held his breath, and worked hard to maintain his firm stance.
"...Kouga...You and I...we could never..."
"I'm not asking about us Lilian, I'm not asking for us, I'm not asking for even myself. Lilian, I'm asking this for you. Do you really love him...yes or no?"
She shut her eyes tightly and clenched her fists at her sides as his last request for information. This was too complicated, none of it made sense to her, sure she hated Kan-ryu, sure she would kill him herself if not for her father...but why was it so hard for her to lie to the youkai in front of her about that same man?
Why was it so hard to lie about this to the man who had first looked at her like she was the most beautiful thing on earth? To be completely stricken with awe at just her presence. To tell her that she was beautiful, and mean it out of the warm, family sense. To kiss her without her fighting back.
She couldn't understand why...but she just couldn't lie to him...not about that.
"No...no I don't love him. But I have to stay with him, I am bound by my word Kouga."
"If you were offered a way out...would you take it?"
'A way out?' Lilian thought to herself. 'A way out of my word? What could he be talking about? I'm trapped with that man, there is nothing I can do about it...there is nothing he can do either...is there?'
"If such a way existed...I-I would gladly take it."
"If I could...Lilian...will you let me provide that way out?"
"Lilian Darling!!! There you are! I was wondering where you took off too so early this morning."
Kouga saw Lilian shudder when they both heard Kan-ryu coming from the downwind village. He suppressed a growl at the sight and found her eyes once more. Resolute determination on his face, causing a bit of confusion to well up in hers. Without a word he turned towards the approaching man.
"Misoko Kan-ryu...I challenge you to a one-on-one combat competition. If I win, then you will let Lilian free of the bind you have on her and let her walk free as if she never met you."
Kan-ryu looked a bit surprised at first, a faint grin lit up his sickly features a bit as he passed a glance at Lilian, who was in utter shock, before turning back to the wolf.
"And if I win?"
"I shall serve you personally all the days of your life and the life of your first born child."
He heard Lilian gasp behind him as he made the announcement, he also noticed the stop in Kenji's practice too. Kan-ryu smiled devilishly at the turn of events, holding back a chuckle.
"And why do you want to do this?"
"Because, there are certain things that can be decided by fight between two people...land, power, money...but something like love or marriage should not be left up to the fists of two people..."
Lilian felt her breath stop for a moment as Kouga's most recent sagacious saying passed over her.
Kan-ryu did something akin to a cackle.
"Wouldn't we be deciding such a thing if we were to fight?"
"Maybe so, but I will do this only if she agrees to allow me to."
His fist clenched at his sides.
...If I could...Lilian...would you let me provide that way out?...
'Kouga...' her voice was silent as her mind rang with a single thought. 'Why would you do something like this for me?'
Lost in her thoughts, she didn't hear Kan-ryu goad her on saying something about always wanted a youkai for a servant.
"I-I don't have a problem with that match..."
Kan-ryu laughed out loud, nearly causing Kouga to wince. He thought that Lilian had agreed simply because he had "persuaded" her to...Lilian knew it was otherwise...Kouga hoped for the best.
"Very well then Kouga...We will have the match in three days."
Kan-ryu cackled wildly as he returned to the village, already fanaticizing about the joys of having a youkai slave. It was a painfully long time before his voice disappeared from their ears, leaving the two alone.
"W-why are you doing this for me?"
Lilian was the one to break the silence.
"I would willingly risk anything for a member of my pack Lilian, how much more would I risk for one I held closer?"
He turned to her, grinning innocently again. A slight blush crept up her face as the words registered in her mind.
"I guess I'll leave you hear to your training. I'm pretty sure you know where to find me tonight, hope to see you then at the latest."
He was about to go when he heard something faint and inaudible pass her lips.
"What?"
"Thank you Kouga...that you so much."
Her voice was still hushed, but this time he heard it clearly enough. He sent another grin back and then took off towards the village, no real destination in mind, just running now because it felt nice. He ran off, enjoying the feeling of his reddening cheeks.
The dust from where he stood hit the ground and settled what seemed like eons after the youkai left, the maiden merely stood there reflecting on his last words when she felt a familiar voice at her side.
"So, you think he can set you free from that asshole finally?"
She was about to answer when something clicked in her mind, a slight smile crossed her face.
"You know, father would kill you if he heard you talking like that."
She playfully punched his shoulder, causing an exaggerated whimper from the younger sibling.
"Yeah, but what dad doesn't know, can't hurt him."
"You really bad, you know that?"
"I learned everything I know from you so, it must be your fault."
"If I've taught you so much, then I guess you won't mind if skip out on that shuriken lesson I promised you for when I get back."
"Hey, you promised!"
"Fine then, let's go train kid."
"I told you to stop calling me that."
"Huh?"
She passed him a mocking look to show that she "didn't understand."
His expression turned sarcastic as he began to grumble something incoherent.
Silently both siblings rejoiced at the fact that nothing between them had changed, and both hoped that the addition of a certain wolf could change their environment for the better.
Author: [pants] [looks at watch] OH NO!!!!!! I-I-It's already 2 am!?!??!!? My poor eyes are doomed T.T it's not fair...