"You ready, Yahna-chan?" Shippo inquired. Yahna nodded with a gleeful grin.

Tracking down Inuyasha had taken them the better part of two hours, but they had done it. Now, the children were huddled in a bush down wind from the pouting inu hanyou somewhere in the middle of the woods. Shippo placed the leaf on his head. He gave her one last smile before a small puff of smoke surrounded him. A small pop later, the smoke cleared and in the kitsune's place stood an exact copy of the 'tree pup,' as Inuyasha called her.

"How do I look?" Yahna blinked curiously and walked a circle around him. Then she smiled brightly. He smirked. "Good. Ready?" She nodded with a matching smile. The two went toddling in to plain sight just under bitter hanyou's chosen tree. Inuyasha showed no sign of noticing them, so they flopped down at the base of the tree and stared up at him with matching azure eyes.

"Otoo-sama! Otoo-sama! Otoo-sama!"

Inuyasha grunted as he was pulled out of slumber. Damn it! And I was having such a nice dream too... One where that filthy tree pup didn't exist. "Go away!" he barked with out looking down.

"Otoo-sama?"

The hanyou looked down. A low growl escaped his throat. "I said go away!" He jerked his eyes back up, then they widened in horror. Inuyasha did a double take. He jerked in a crouch on the branch, nearly falling off in the process. He couldn't believe his eyes. It multiplied? he mentally whimpered. How...? When...? What...? But...? "What the hell!?!"

"Otoo-sama?" the first Yahna asked.

"Otoo-sama?" the second Yahna inquired.

"Since when are there two of you!?!"

"Otoo-sama!" The first held her arms up to him. The second crouched next to her and looked ready to jump up.

"No no no!" the hanyou cried. The second girl leaped and latched her claws in to the tree. "You keep away, you evil tree pups!"

The pup slid off the trunk and plopped on the ground. The second toddled up next to her curiously and helped her stand.

Oh yeah, the brat can't climb, Inuyasha remembered.

The pup crouched again but it set it's aim a little higher this time. The first pup watched the second and mimicked her. Yahna two grinned and leaped. Inuyasha glared at it. The pup had latched on to the tree again, but this time was holding on to a branch. She pulled herself up and made ready to leap for the branch he was on. The hanyou instantly bolted higher up the tree.

"Don't come near me!" Inuyasha snarled.

The child seemed unfazed and leaped after him. He climbed higher and higher with her right at his heals. The branches creaked and moaned as they struggled to hold his weight. One of the branches started snapping and he knew he couldn't go any higher. Golden eyes glared down at the child. He growled in an attempt to keep her back and cover up his growing fear of the brat. How the hell can it climb!?! It couldn't last night!?!

Yahna two leaped straight for his chest. Instinctually, he grabbed the child by her haori, stopping her mid flight. The child was held at arm's length. A small whimper he couldn't suppress escaped him as she held out her arms to him with a gleeful expression.

"Otoo-sama!"

"Otoo-sama!" the one below mimicked, making him cringe.

Shippo's scent suddenly caught his attention. The illusion stated to fade. The pup's hair turned orange. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes dangerously. All of his fear suddenly turned to anger as he scowled at the child.

~~~~~

Back in the village, Sango and Miroku sat peacefully enjoying their lunch. It had been a rather uneventful day, as it usually was when Kagome was gone. Aside from a few groping attempts and Shippo crying about losing his precious imoot, nothing had really happened.

The sun was shinning, giving the land a pleasant warmth. A few fluffy clouds dotted the sky. Spring birds sang as the danced about collecting food for their newly hatched chicks. The villagers were working in the fields, caring for the new sprouts. A few butterflies danced here and there. Everything was peaceful and calm. All and all, it was an absolutely perfect day.

"YOU'RE DEAD, BRAT!!!!!!!!!"

And the calm was shattered.

The two froze mid bite. "Was that Inuyasha?" Miroku inquired.

"Sounded like," Sango replied. "Didn't he go somewhere in the forest?"

"I was under the impression that he had." They glanced at each other nervously. "You haven't seen Shippo or Yahna recently, have you?"

"No," Sango replied slightly fearful. "He wouldn't...?"

"He sounded mad enough to."

The two had just started to stand when Shippo came screaming back in to the village. Hot on his heals was Inuyasha looking extremely furious. He made a leap from the kit but Shippo was more agile. He dashed aside and bolted in to Sango's arms. Without any hesitation, he squirmed down the front of her kimono. The taijiya's eyes grew to five times their normal size.

"Come out of there brat!! Face death like a man!!" Inuyasha snarled as he stared at the quivering bundle on Sango's chest.

"I'm not a man! I'm just a helpless little kid!" Shippo sobbed back.

Inuyasha growled and started advancing on the woman.

Sensing she might just get the front of her kimono ripped open, Sango blushed and quickly decided to change the subject. "Um, Inuyasha, where's Yahna?"

"Who cares! Give him over!"

Alright, she could deal with Shippo later, she decided. Inuyasha had to be calmed down first. He was more of a threat than the kitsune. "In a moment. First, where is Yahna? She isn't...?" The taijiya glanced over at the trees. Inuyasha grunted in response. Sango suddenly felt her blood boil. "Inuyasha! You didn't!"

"Keh!"

"Go get her!" she ordered as she pointed towards the woods.

"No! Hand over the damn brat!"

"She is too little to be left alone! Go get her!"

"I said no! Watching pups is women's work!"

"If I have to go get her, your not going to be happy," Sango hissed.

Inuyasha ignored her threat. When she reached for Hiraikotsu, he hesitated. After a moment, he turned up his nose, shoved his hands in his sleeves, and grunted, "Fine! Keep the brat! I'll get him later!" He leaped in to a tree and then off towards the woods.

"Is that the direction Yahna's in?" Sango quickly asked Shippo.

The kitsune peeked his head out. "No."

Sango scowled. "Figures." Her eyes fluttered down to Shippo. "Shippo-chan, next time you decide to hide somewhere, don't run down my kimono."

"Huh?" He peeked around him, his eyes pausing over the chuckling Miroku, and realized where he was. "Oh, ah, sorry," he replied sheepishly and climbed out without moving it enough to show anything. The kit climbed on to her shoulder as she straightened the top back in place. "We're going after her, right."

"Of course," Sango sighed. "Someone has to. Do you want to come, Houshi-sama?"

"Hm, take a walk in the forest alone with..."

"On second thought, I can go without you," she snorted. She pulled her boomerang on and started for the woods. "Which way, Shippo-chan?"

"That way," he said as he pointed. "I think that's it, anyway. I didn't really pay attention to where I was running."

Sango's dark eyes glanced over a tattered bush. "Somehow, I think following your trail isn't going to be all that hard."

They made their way through the forest, following a trail of destruction. It didn't take long for them to come right back to the spot where Inuyasha had been sleeping. There was no sign of Yahna.

"Great," Sango sighed as she rubbed a hand over her eyes. "Where did she go?"

Shippo sniffed the wind, trying to find her but not catching her scent anywhere. "We could try calling for her."

"While she even respond?"

"She might...Yahna-chan!" the kit yelled as loud as he could, causing Sango to flinch. She pulled the kit from her shoulder and placed him on the ground. "Yahna-chan!"

"Yahna-chan!" Sango joined in.

"Yahna-chan! Yahna-chan!" They started walking back the way they came. "Yahna-chan! Yahna-chan!"

"Shippo-chan!" A squeaky voice whimpered.

Sango and Shippo stopped abruptly and gazed at each other. When they were certain that the other had heard it as well, they both called out, "Yahna-chan!"

"Shippo-chan!" A slimy 'sulp' caught their attention. The jogged a few feet ahead and glanced off the side of the makeshift path. Down at the bottom of a rather steep, muddy hill was Yahna... covered in mud. Her eyes were full of tears as she made an attempt to run up the muddy hill. Sulp. She slipped back down.

"Ah! Yahna-chan! Stay right there! I'll get you!" Shippo cried. He leaped towards the girl only to be grabbed by his tail and yanked back. He scowled at Sango. "Let go! I have to take care of my imoot!"

"imoot?" Sango questioned.

Yahna tried to leap up the hill. Sulp. She sat again at the bottom with huge, tearful eyes.

"Yes, imoot! She's my imoot!"

"You're not going to start calling Inuyasha otoo as well, are you?" the woman asked dryly.

"Of course not! I'd rather have my tail bitten off! She's just my imoot! Kagome said so! Now let go! I have to take care of her!"

Yet again, the girl tried to run up the hill. Sulp...

"There's a better way to do this, you know."

"There is?"

Sango nodded. She set Shippo back down and took Hiraikotsu off her back. Carefully, she laid it down the side of the hill while holding on to one end.

"Yahna-chan, climb up Hiraikotsu."

Yahna blinked, then grinned from ear to ear. She easily trotted up the bone boomerang. The girl made a dash straight for Sango to hug her but was held back.

"Uh ah, no Yahna-chan. Your covered in mud and I don't want to have to wash these," the woman explained gently. The child blinked back at her in confusion. "You need a bath first." Brown eyes shifted to Shippo as a smirk appeared on Sango's lips. "And I think we know exactly who should take her for a bath."

"We do?" Shippo inquired. Sango nodded. He stared at her in confusion. Then his eyes widened. "No! He'll hurt her!"

"It's his fault she's covered in all that in the first place. It seems only fair that he should be the one to bathe her."

"But Kaede said he already thought of killing her! ..."

The taijiya got up and stared to walk away, ignoring Shippo's protests. "Come on, Shippo-chan, Yahna-chan. Let's go find him."

"But... but..."

Yahna toddled after Sango. Shippo sighed and gave in, hoping Sango knew what she was doing.

~~~~~

"Inuyasha!"

The hanyou flinched at the sound of Sango's voice. He had finally found some peace and quiet in the tree out side Kaede's and she had to come along and ruin it. Why couldn't they all just leave him alone.

"What?" he barked without looking down.

"Come down here."

"Keh."

"Told you he wouldn't listen," Shippo snorted.

Inuyasha sat up and glared at the kit. "Oh, so you finally decided to hand over the brat." Shippo squeaked and hid behind her. "Peh, you better run, brat. When I get my claws on you, I'm ripping your tail out and feeding it to you."

"Otoo-sama!"

Inuyasha flinched again as he spotted the tree pup peeking out from behind Sango. Mud covered most of the front of her body. Damn it! Why'd she bring it back!? It's not mine! It's just some... tree... thing! "I see you found the other brat."

"No thanks to you, but yes," the human woman sighed. "Inuyasha, come down."

"No."

"Shame Kagome isn't here. She could just sit him," Shippo grunted from his hiding place.

Inuyasha smirked as he caught the child's remark. Well she's not here. So what are you going to do about it, runt?

Sango sighed and rubbed a hand over her eyes. "True. I guess it doesn't matter. You're probably right, Shippo. He wouldn't be able to do it anyway."

"Do what?" the hanyou damned.

"Nothing. Come on Shippo-chan, Yahna-chan. We'll take care of it ourselves." The three started to walk away.

"Take care of what?"

"Nothing your smart enough to help us with," the kitsune snorted.

Inuyasha leaped out of the tree and made a grab for the youkai boy. Shippo was faster and deftly avoided the claws. Yahna bounded into Inuyasha before he could stop her and latched on to his chest again. He cringed as she slid down a little, smearing the mud on to his haori. Somehow, despite her hands being covered in the muck, she managed to hang on.

"Damn it!" Inuyasha growled. "Brat! Get off!"

"Otoo-sama!" Yahna yelled back with as fierce a glare as she could manage. "Otoo-sama! Otoo-sama!"

"Worthless whelp!"

"Hm, well, since your both dirty now," Sango broke in, "You should probably go wash her."

"What!?!"

"Go give her a bath," Shippo clarified. Inuyasha glared at him and the kit ducked back behind Sango.

"You need to wash anyway," the taijiya stated mater-of-factly. "Just take her with you."

"No!"

"Why not?"

"Washing pups is women's work!"

"Then count yourself a woman for the day," Shippo retorted.

"Brat! ..."

"Just do it, Inuyasha. The sooner it gets done, the sooner it'll be over. She's your child," Sango sighed as she started walking away again.

The hanyou growled. "It's not my child..." "If you wash her, Shippo and I will take care of dinner. If we have to wash her, we might not be able to make enough food for everyone."

"Keh! Take it!"

"And I'll tell Kagome not to bring you any more ramen!" Shippo threatened. Inuyasha glared at him. "I will, and hitting me on the head wont stop me!"

"Hm, I'm sure Kagome-chan would be quite angry if she found out Inuyasha was being mean to her," Sango agreed. "Especially when she hears about how he just abandoned her in the woods where there could be dangerous youkai..."

In his mind, Inuyasha could already hear the sits. Damn it! "Keh! Fine! But your food had better be damn good!" He snagged the child by her collar and yanked her off him. "And if you tell anyone, I'll kill you!" He stomped off down the path towards the river.

When he was out of sight and hearing range, Shippo leaped on to Sango's shoulder. The kit smiled devilishly and Sango winked. "See, Shippo-chan. Brains over brawn always wins."

_______________________________________________________________

Japanese words I've used in this chapter

Houshi = priest

Inu = dog

Kimono = clothes. It use to refer to all clothes. Now it often used to talk about old clothes (or old patterned clothes). Kimonos are still worn today in Japan, but generally for formal occasions like weddings or a tea ceremony.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bad Shippo. Bad bad Shippo.

Sorry for the lack of a post last week. My internet was down all week and only came back Monday afternoon. Really sucks when you're trying to do a report and need the internet to do part of it. Grrrrrrr...

If you watch some of Yahna's behavior, LeaMarie F. Rocket, you'll notice something interesting. It's something I've just recently noticed too. The more you reject her, the more clingy she becomes. Thanks Alana Hikari-Chan. That does help. FranceGamble, originals are cool. I write original stuff all the time. The trouble is getting people to read it. I've given up posting original stuff on-line since I almost never get any feedback on it. I'll be happy to read some of your stuff soon as I have a chance over winter break.

I have a question for everyone. Does anyone know what that string Inuyasha wears across his chest is? Kikyo and Kaede wear them too, except their's are red And does anyone know if it can be removed?

Well, can't think of anything else to say. As always, if I've translated something wrong or misspelled something, please let me know so I can fix it. Thanks for reading.