When one waits for something and marks off the days on his calendar and wishes every day for it to arrive, time has a steadfast way of slowing down. It was in that way that the festival came to me. I watched every day up until the glorious day of carnival as the field outside of out castle was transformed into a fairground. Booths were erected to house the many different types of food and games. Colorful banners were posted everywhere to keep up an absolute air of cheeriness. A stage was set up with a backdrop of golden silk for plays and performances, and actors and actresses from across the land pulled up their wagons behind it; the pedestal of all things magical. I watched from my apartment in the castle, sitting in front of my mother as she brushed out my long silver hair; a favorite hobby of hers. She ran the brush from root to tip, being as careful as could be of my ears. It was a girlish pastime, but I loved it all the same. Any time I spent with my mother was welcome. And it was in this way that I watched the fair come to life. On the night before it opened, father came to our apartment and took mother's hand, saying that he wanted her to see the grounds. He told me to go to sleep and then he left with her. I waited up, though, not being able to shut my eyes until she was back with me. They didn't return until close to midnight, disheveled and exhausted, their clothing tied much looser than before.
I awoke my mother early with the smell of soft bread and steaming tea. She smiled at me as she opened her eyes and slowly sat up on her futon, "Inuyasha? What is this for?" I grinned at her, proud of my thoughts, "I brought you breakfast so that we can get to the festival earlier!" Mother laughed at this, then nodded, gratefully accepting the meager meal I had given her. Then, as she ate, I scurried over to the room where she kept her kimono's and picked out my favorite; a many layered robe consisting of many colors and many flowers. Carefully, I picked it up and brought it in to her, "Mother! You should wear this today! It is a happy outfit!" She smiled, clapping her hands, "Oh, of course! That is a fine outfit for today." And then, she patted me between the ears and told me to go tell her handmaidens she was awake. Mother needed much help every morning to get into each of her elaborate kimono and, of course, the one I had chosen required the most help of all.
After finding Suya and alerting her to my mother's being awake, I began to haunt the fairgrounds. Since it was still early, there weren't many people around. The majority of the inhabitants were demons setting up shop in booths. There were also, oddly enough, a few humans walking around. Some of the actors were old samurai that my father had known, and a few human women were working food booths. Otherwise, the vast majority of the fair population, I knew, would be demon. However, it was odd. As I walked among the demon and human inhabitants of the carnival, I felt strangely repelled from both sides. It were as though every demon and human I passed were magnets and I the odd pole between. No one spoke to me or looked at me. It were as though I didn't exist. But really? How could one clad in bright red go so unnoticed?
A female scream awoke me from my question. Apparently, a male demon actor had chanced upon a human woman in a booth, asking her for food. Upon her telling him that the food was not yet ready, he had decided, in his hunger, to eat her. This, apparently, did not set well with the woman, who began carrying on in the worst way as he advanced. I cannot stand seeing humans treated as such by demons. Similarly, I cannot stand good-natured demons to be feared by humans. I suppose it is the half-demon in me. I feel, I suppose, for both sides; the demon and the human. But, by neither side would I have ever, or will I ever, be accepted. I growled, feeling the hairs on the back of my neck begin to rise. My dog-ears pressed flat against my skull and, in my rage, I sprung. I attacked that bastardly demon with all my might, my sharp claws barely breaching his rock-hard skin, my pointed fangs scarcely making an indentation, my kicks barely fazing.
The demon merely laughed at me and wheeled, drawing back his own clawed hand to strike me. Unflinching, I watched as it came. But then, the demon was gone. My father stood in its place, a gigantic white dog, what was left of the demon cracking in his mouth like a toothpick. For a moment, my amber eyes met his red ones, and I could feel what he was saying, 'That was foolish, my son.' Then, in a blue white blaze, he shrunk down to his human-like form, still staring at me. I was speechless. The contempt with which he gazed at me was frightening and strange. My father loved me. Why that face?
I never got to ask for, at that moment, a carriage drawn by winged dragons flew from the sky and landed in front of my father. The door of it opened, and that green frog, Jaken, jumped from it and helped Sesshomoaru and his mother from the interior. My mother was behind him, and she was left to help herself. She looked pale, and I suspected that even that short amount of time that she had spent in the carriage with Sesshomoaru and his mother must have been dreadful. All the same, she gave me a smile, and I rushed forward to greet her.
My father stepped into my way. Once again, that look. Quickly, I got down on my knees and kowtowed as far as I dared, though not knowing what to say. "Father, please forgive me for whatever I have done." But he didn't seem to listen. Instead, he suddenly glanced far off, as if contemplating. Then, he looked back at me, "Inuyasha-chan. Come with me." And so, he began to walk off. I could feel Sesshomoaru's eyes bore into my back as I followed him, and I gave one fleeting glance at my mother. By she didn't return my gaze. Instead, she stood palely within the crowd of human-hating demons.
My father led me a little bit outside of the fairgrounds and, for a long time, didn't speak. I patiently waited, though I was getting a bit distressed at standing for such a long time in my heavy red outfit. And then, he slowly turned. His skin was getting gray. He looked at me seriously, but his gaze also contained some other aspects; love, humor, pity. All these things sent a chill down my spine and I felt as though I could never be warm again. Never again secure, safe. His teeth flashed as he spoke haunting words to me, "Inuyasha, I am getting old. I am getting tired. I am getting weak. These things I shall not hide from you. They cannot be hidden from Sesshomoaru. Or from my wife. But from your mother, Inuyasha, I have hidden it well, and she expects much more of me, especially now, than I could ever possibly provide for her. She does not see the fatigue. She does not sense it. Your mother is mortal… human. I love her with all my heart, and yet the protection that I've given her all these years is waning. I anticipate that my death draws nearer." At these words, I was shocked. My father? How could one so strong and mighty as him be getting weak? It made no sense, and I thought that he was about to smile and inform me that he was joking. But he wasn't. I knew it because he had called me Inuyasha. This was what he called me when he was serious. Otherwise, I was Inuyasha-chan.
I did not speak, but merely listened, "Inuyasha, what I just saw now… you were a fool. You know that you're not yet strong enough to take on a full-grown demon. I always ask you to test your limits, not push them. What if I had not gotten there in time? What if you had been killed?" I looked down at my feet, "I would be dead, father, and there would be one less half-breed in the world." I felt the smack upon my face before I heard it, and I toppled over at the shock. My father had struck me? He practically yelled, "How can you say such things?! Do you know what would happen to your mother if you died? The only reason she feels a need to live is to provide for you!" I drew in a breath. Was this true? "You are most likely the only reason she hasn't given up the will to live yet. Otherwise she, too, is very weak. Inuyasha, don't you understand? Your parents are dying." I covered my mouth with my clawed hand and my eyes went wide. What a horrible thing to hear at such a young age! My father must have realized my shock because his tone suddenly became lighter, "Inuyasha, that is why you need to live. In my absence, when that day will come, you must protect your mother. Sesshomoaru and Kirinu-kun would most likely jump at the chance to destroy her. That is why you need to live. To follow out my wishes of, one day, helping to unite demons and humans. Your mother was the one that helped me mentally create the bridge between the two worlds; you. You must help your mother live."
I drew in a breath, "But father, I am too weak. I couldn't even save one human from one demon. Never mind many humans from many demons. My mother from many demons." I was getting very scared and confused. A cold breeze swept through the clearing in which we stood and, once again, I saw my father. He was old. How long had my father been around? Hundreds and hundreds of years, I told myself. And he's not going to get any younger. What he had said to me, 'Your parents are dying' haunted me to the core. Slowly, I met his gaze and the wind died down. The world became deathly silent, and all he did was stare at me. For a moment, actually, I had the fleeting thought that he was staring at one of my eyes. Just one, as though it fascinated him. But then, he refocused on me as a whole, "Inuyasha… chan." I smiled a bit. "Don't let the fact that we are weakening worry you. We will both be around to see you grow into an adult. I promise. I will train you to protect…" But at that moment, he abruptly stopped.
Father stared past me from where we had come from the clearing, and I saw his nose twitch. He was smelling something. "Father? What is it?" But all I heard was his horrible, deep-throated growl. And then, he took off, running terrible fast and leaving me in the clearing by myself. Something in his tone of growl made me panic, and I took off after him like a bolt. 'Father? Father, what's going on? What's happening? Is it mother?' And then, I smelled it too; blood.
The sickening scent of human blood and the sound of murderous screams erupted from the fairgrounds, and all I could do was run faster, hopping from patch of dirt to patch of dirt, practically flying. 'No, please let mother be ok!' I had this horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. Something was wrong. I shouldn't go on. Whatever's happening at that fairground, I shouldn't see. But I had to look. And when I did, I felt like dying.