Disclaimer: I do not hold any rights to Inuyasha in any form or way, nor do I make any profit out of writing this fic.
Reviews: Thank you all amazingly wonderful people who decided to review, and in so much detail! Those were my first reviews ever, so I'm extremely grateful and excited, and also very glad that you found the fic to your liking! :D
And about the specifics of the reviews: This fic is actually a part of a greater story, which starts off with Inu-tachi's disappearance and will lead to a story about the Shikon no Tama and beyond. However, the newly assembled Sesshou-tachi's story has to happen first, and since it's quite a long one, Inu-tachi will not reappear for quite a while. I have thought about writing the overall story from Inu-tachi's point of view, retelling this story in flashbacks and such, but it was too confusing and difficult to structure. Plus, Sesshoumaru and Rin's story is not only a theme I'm quite fond of, but it will also influence the overall story greatly, so please pardon the abrupt beginning and rest assured that our favourite hanyou will make a come-back and that in time, all will become clear.
As for what happened to Inu-tachi – I have hinted at it, a bit, and if you're an avid fanfic reader you can probably guess where this might be headed, but if it's not in any way guessable, I can write some chapter that will foreshadow the overall direction, although I'm not sure whether it would add appeal to the story, or to the contrary.
And finally, Shippou and Rin – I do have some mischief planned for them, but there's only so much I can think of, so if you have any suggestions, or something you'd like to see at any point of the fic, please feel free to point it out!
Note: This chapter is a bit long and although the first part of it was necessary (even if it might be confusing at times), the second serves only to show that Rin or no Rin, Sesshoumaru's feelings about humans in general have not changed greatly, as I doubt they would. Also, it's another bit of an introduction on Sesshoumaru's past with his father, which is something that will keep reappearing, since I found it interesting how he is both respectful and fond of his father, and yet at the same time often detached and almost derisive.
Since I watch only the Japanese version and prefer to use the Japanese terminology, there are language notes at the end of the chapter.
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Chapter 3
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They stopped for the night in yet another clearing, this time in one close to an onsen. Rin and Shippou run off to soak in the warm waters and strangely enough, Jakken followed them. Sesshoumaru could only hope that the toad would bathe too. Although he had gotten used to his follower's natural stench throughout the years, the fact that Jakken actually preferred to be dirty, something that came with being a marsh toad, he supposed, did little to improve his image in his master's eyes.
Sesshoumaru had little need for bathing, himself. His body was a very efficient mechanism that needed little conservation. He was old enough to require food and sleep only occasionally, he didn't sweat, at least not often, and that oily, greasy substance that covered the skin of most humans was unknown to him. Naturally, he would bathe when he was dirty, but any dirt on him was due to the external world. If he sat down and did nothing, it would probably be years before he was in need of a bath.
Looking around the clearing, he noticed Myouga was still there, sipping tea from his tiny cup, in front of a tiny fire.
"Myouga," the flea was visibly startled by his voice, "what do you know about the miko that used to travel with Inuyasha?"
Myouga answered promptly. "Why, Kagome was a very good-natured young lady, and a very nicely shaped one, if I might add. I remember that one time, she was bathing in..."
"Myouga," Sesshoumaru cut him off dryly, he was not in the least interested in the miko's shapes, nice or otherwise, "What I'm asking about is, was she from the future?" Although he tried to conceal it, there was an obvious hint of curiosity in his voice.
"Oh," Myouga had a feeling he knew where this was going, "Yes, I believe she was."
Sesshoumaru fell silent for a moment. He knew enough about the old flea to know that when he believed something to be true, it most likely was true. Then that was one matter solved.
"And did you hear her say that there were no youkai in her time?" That was the crux of things.
"Yes, and Inuyasha-sama said the same thing." Myouga wasn't sure if he was doing the right thing in telling Sesshoumaru-sama about it. He himself had always been aware of the implications of such a simple fact. It didn't matter much to him though. Whatever happened to the youkai to make them disappear was indeed intriguing, but he was content to just wait and see it happen for himself. But Sesshoumaru-sama... what if Sesshoumaru-sama decided it was the humans' fault? Would his disregard for those he believed to be 'lowly creatures' develop into an outright hatred? Would he try to change the future and wage war on them, slaughtering every human being in sight...?
"However from what I heard, it is not that no youkai exist there, or rather, then." After battling with his thoughts, Myouga finally decided that coming clean about all he knew was worth the risk. Sesshoumaru-sama could force him to spill out everything anyway, and he was not particularly looking forward to such an option. "After all, Sou'unga awakened in Kagome-sama's times, Saya-dono was there and I recall a story about a mononoke concealed in a Noh mask, brought to life by a Shikon shard."
Sesshoumaru-sama cast him an inquiring glance and Myouga proceeded to tell him everything he could remember about those issues.
Once he was done, Sesshoumaru-sama fell silent for good and Myouga felt a slight pang of worry again, eyeing his new master thoughtfully. He had known Sesshoumaru-sama for centuries, seen him grow up, and never truly believed that he was as 'evil' as he was generally thought to be. Yes, he was cold, uninviting and often ruthless, but... Myouga shook his head. He just had to hope it was for the best.
Sesshoumaru spent the reminder of the evening and the following night thinking about the matter. He hardly even noticed when the others came back from the onsen or when they fell asleep. The issue in question was too important to get distracted. He kept mulling it over in his mind and every time came with only one answer. Youkai just... died out, killing one another and being killed by humans. After all, looking back he had to admit that the process was already in motion, there were less and less youkai and humans kept reaching for more and more land, all the time devising new ways to kill youkai, and each other as well. Usually, humans kept their population in check by constant warfare but... they bred so quickly. If they were to stop fighting each other, their numbers would multiply rapidly. Sesshoumaru had no doubts he could defeat even an army of humans, but a youkai such as the fox child would surely fall under their mere numbers, if not anything else.
To say that he was displeased by the prospect of the future was a major understatement. He didn't hate humans, he perceived them as something akin to insects and it would be absurd to hate insects. Yet they were annoying, vile and repugnant, and he preferred to avoid them as much as possible, or kill them, should they be in his way. The idea that they were to take over the world was... infuriating. But the question was, could it be changed? If the youkai stopped fighting each other too, both individually and in packs, could they last longer? And could they ever stop fighting each other in the first place...? Human domination was to be the natural development of time, but since he knew about it in advance, was it possible for him to alter it...?
But when he came to that point, he felt there was something nudging at his brain, something important that he knew he had missed in his considerations, but no matter how hard he tried and how many times he thought the matter over in his mind, he could not recall what it was. When the night turned to day, he had gone over the whole story a hundred times at least, and still couldn't shake off the feeling that he was missing the most important part.
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The next day, when they were continuing to walk on through the forests, Rin once again came to the conclusion that she was very pleased with her new companions, especially Shippou-chan. It was so nice to have somebody to talk to whenever she wanted, somebody who would play with her without grumbling about it and without being forced to. It's not that she liked her usual companions any less because of it, but... it was just nice.
Today, they spent the morning talking about Shippou-chan's friends again, and all the things that they have done and Rin decided that they must have been as nice as they seemed to be when she had met them, so long ago. She remembered that Inuyasha-sama was very scary then, but it was because of that evil sword, and Shippou-chan assured her many times that although Inuyasha was often grumpy, stubborn and hot-headed, he was overall a nice person and a good friend. Rin surmised that he must've been a lot like Jakken-sama then, only stronger, less cowardly and much better looking. Not as good looking as Sesshoumaru-sama though, she decided, watching her most important caretaker as he was walking in front of her.
But... there was something different about Sesshoumaru-sama today. Earlier on, she run up to him to show him the strange hairy caterpillar she and Shippou-chan found, and he didn't even look at her. Usually when he wouldn't notice her it meant that he was thinking about something important. But that wasn't all. He was also walking a little faster than normally and that usually meant that he was either in a hurry or angry. Since she knew they were not in a hurry, then he must've been angry. So, she finally decided, he must be thinking about something important and it was making him angry. Acting in anger was most often useless, and – as she had learnt from the story of Inuyasha and Kikyou – it could also be dangerous, not only to others, but to oneself too.
Having reached her conclusion, she run up to him and tugged on his empty sleeve.
"Sesshoumaru-sama, don't be angry!" She announced, flashing him a smile, when he finally looked down to her.
Sesshoumaru glanced down at the child with mild surprise. Yes, he was angry, angry at himself for not being able to recall that important thing that he knew he had missed, even though he had spent the whole night and morning thinking about it, but how did she know that...?
"When people are angry, bad things happen," Rin continued in the childish authoritative voice she often employed when stating some obvious truth of her 7 year old world, "you might end up like Inuyasha-sama, pinned to a tree!"
"Stupid child!" Jakken squealed in from behind, "Don't compare Sesshoumaru-sama to that wretched hanyou! And don't title him either!"
But Sesshoumaru just stared at her, eyes wide open in surprise. He knew now what he had missed and was so relieved and so glad to finally be over with it that he felt he could easily hug the child out of his own initiative, or at least let her hug him for as long as she wanted. Instead, he settled on patting her hazily on the head – she was delighted just the same – and turned back to the others.
"Myouga!" he called, but there was no response.
Seeing it was urgent, Shippou looked down at his chest, and slapped it lightly. And soon enough the still sleepy flea emerged from within his clothes, and quickly realizing who exactly was demanding his presence, jumped on Shippou's shoulder.
"Yes Sesshoumaru-sama?"
"The miko released Inuyasha from his binding when she came to this time, yes?" Sesshoumaru had no time for introductions.
"Yes..." Unlike on the previous evening, Myouga had no idea where this was going.
"And in her time, before she came here, was there a hanyou pinned to that tree?"
"I don't think so... Kagome would've probably noticed if there was..." Myouga was starting to feel confused and anxious, especially since Sesshoumaru-sama seemed unusually animated and there was a strange gleam in his eyes.
"Of course there wasn't," Shippou cut in. Unlike Myouga at the moment, he was beginning to feel much more confident in Sesshoumaru's presence, especially with Rin around. "She did release him after all."
Sesshoumaru looked at him in surprise and laughed lightly, neither evilly nor darkly, just in amusement. The fox child was right, she did release him. As much as he doubted the boy realized the full implications of what he just said, in his childish way of perceiving the world he hit the nail on the head. Inuyasha hadn't been still pinned to the tree, because Kagome had released him.
The others were staring on him, transfixed by the sight of his laughter. Rin was positively ecstatic, and very sure she wanted to hear more of it, while the others were wondering in terrified petrification whether it was the 'Time to die, any last words?" kind of laughter, or whether they still had a chance to see another day. Myouga was the first one to collect himself, as it finally hit him what Sesshoumaru-sama was thinking about.
"Well observed, Sesshoumaru-sama!" He exclaimed, amazed that he had missed it himself. "Inuyasha wasn't there, even before Kagome went back in time, so she didn't change anything by her actions in the past!"
"Yes, the consequence was there even before the action took place." Sesshoumaru was still feeling very satisfied with disentangling his mind form the problem.
"But," having comprehended the issue, Myouga quickly analyzed it, "isn't it possible that somebody else had released him later on and Kagome-sama changed that?"
Sesshoumaru run it over in his mind. Yes, that could've been true but... There was another important thought in the back of his head and he grabbed it quickly, before it too started eluding him. The Noh mask. It had a Shikon shard in it.
"And what about the Noh mask?" Myouga was obviously thinking along the same lines, "There was a Shikon shard in it even though the Shikon no Tama had been completed in the past."
"So the cause was there, yet neither the action nor the consequence were." Sesshoumaru had to admit, it was rather confusing.
Myouga was ahead of him on that one, though. "Still, it is strange that actions of such magnitude as reassembling the Shikon no Tama and defeating Naraku had no effect on the future whatsoever." He said thoughtfully.
"Did the miko ever say anything implying that her world changed, in any way, because of her actions in the past?" This time Sesshoumaru was addressing Shippou.
For most of the conversation, Shippou was just being used as a standing place for Myouga. He didn't really understand what they were talking about. What did it matter if anything changed in Kagome's world...? Still, he replied the best he could, sensing that it was important to the two youkai.
"No, Kagome never said anything like that. And I'm pretty sure she would've mentioned it if there was something strange going on in her world, she always told us about many things from there."
"So all in all," said Myouga, still deep in thought, "whether the things Kagome-sama did here happened even before she did them or not, and whether she did do them or not, it had no effect on the future."
"Moreover," added Sesshoumaru looking off into a distance, "since I know of the future only because the miko came here, and if the future was to be altered she would've probably never come here at all, then most likely there is no way for me to affect it in any way."
"So the youkai will cease to exist after all!" Myouga exclaimed, predominantly out of relief that Sesshoumaru-sama wouldn't be doing anything rash and... bloody.
"What?!" Shippou and Jakken cried out in unison. They might've been lost during the conversation but they definitely understood that! Even Aun's heads looked somewhat shocked, although that was probably due to the unexpected shout, rather than some astounding comprehension.
Sesshoumaru refrained from rolling his eyes, even though he felt tempted to. The fact that he and Myouga knew about it didn't mean that the others had to. It would take hours to explain the matter to them. And that, he decided, turning around and continuing on his way again, was going to be Myouga's punishment for his lack of self-restraint.
Myouga did indeed spend rest of the day explaining it to Shippou and Rin, and to Jakken who was trailing closely behind them and keeping a keen ear on everything Myouga said. In the end, they managed to get the gist of things, namely that in the time between now and Kagome's time the world as they knew it would change greatly and the youkai will disappear from it, just like Inuyasha-tachi, although probably in a different way.
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When the evening came, they finally arrived in the area where Chushihou's caves were and Sesshoumaru felt grimly satisfied that he had indeed solved the matter of the disappearing youkai before then. But solving it was one thing while coping with it was something different altogether. Youkai were bound to disappear from the world and there was nothing he could do to change it. Every time his thoughts returned to it, he felt so outright helpless and frustrated. And angry, furious actually. He felt like finding the nearest human settlement and tearing it down to the ground, obliterating it from the face of the earth only because it was a sign of the future, and he was already of the past. But it would've been... childish, not to mention utterly pointless. Even if he killed every human in every village he found, it wouldn't have changed anything.
"Rin, come with me." He announced when the group had made themselves comfortable in a small grassy clearing near the rocky hills of Chushihou. No matter how he felt, they came here for a reason, and no matter what exactly was to happen to the youkai, the girl wasn't going anywhere and still needed proper clothes.
Rin looked up to him, surprised. It wasn't often that Sesshoumaru-sama told her to do something other than stay put. In fact, this was the first time he ever told her to come while the others were to stay, usually it was the other way around. Nevertheless, she run up to him, and followed him through the forest.
Myouga looked after them briefly. He knew where they were going and why, he had been to Chushihou's caves a few times before, with Touga-sama. He had even been here when Touga-sama brought Sesshoumaru-sama there for the first time. Sesshoumaru-sama had been but a little boy then, around the same height Rin was now, and Myouga couldn't help but wonder about how mischievous of the fate it was that now Sesshoumaru-sama was bringing a child here himself, Rin no less.
Sesshoumaru was just thinking about the same memory, of the first time he had come here. He thought about it every time he visited the place, which was every decade or two, when he was in need of new clothes. He must've been around 50 – or was it 60? – the first time Chichi-ue had taken him to see the old spider youkai, after he decided that his son was old enough to be properly educated in the way of battle, and thus was in need of proper clothing, of the kind that only Chushihou could produce. Sesshoumaru still remembered clearly how large the hills seemed to him then, as they loomed above them against the starry sky. How long the steps to the caves were in his childish eyes and how vast and sinister the caves themselves appeared to him as he and Chichi-ue were making their way through the winding corridors and the shadows cast by distant torches were dancing around them. And now he was here with a child himself, although she wasn't his in any way, nor was she in need of battle clothes.
He didn't need to glance behind him to know that Rin was still there, trudging through the tall grass using his trail, nor to know that she was probably just as awed as he had been, centuries ago. They had just reached the steps to the caves, carved into the cold stone of the rocky formation that contained the caves, and she let out a small gasp of surprise. He wondered briefly what the child was thinking. He hadn't told her where they were going, she was just following him in blind trust, as she always did. Was she imagining there was some foul monster inside?
If she was, then she was right, he thought as they climbed the stairs and entered the caves. Chushihou was a spider taiyoukai, master of her craft, and of some other crafts he preferred not to think about. She was a foul old hag who usually chose to stay in her true form, smelled worse than Jakken and had a creaky, shrill voice, naturally associated with old hags.
Rin wasn't sure what to think about the situation. Why were they here? Why were the others left behind? There was nothing she could think of that would require only Sesshoumaru-sama's and her own presence, except... Maybe, she pondered, Sesshoumaru-sama was just going to speak with some youkai, like he often did, and he took her along because she always wanted to go with him everywhere and it wasn't dangerous for her here, and since the last few times she had to stay behind, Sesshoumaru-sama wanted to make it up to her. It didn't seem like a very convincing explanation to her, but it was the only one she could come up with. If that was the case, then it was awfully nice of Sesshoumaru-sama.
They walked through the long, dark corridors for a while and finally emerged into a large, well-lit cave. Rin gasped again. On the wall opposite from the entrance there was an enormous spider web, stretching to the full width and height of the cave, and in the middle of it sat suspended a hairy spider, twice the size as the entrance they just passed through. It had many red, beady eyes, round, fat body covered in thin dark hair, and long black legs, protruding in every direction, as it seemed. Rin instinctively moved closer to Sesshoumaru-sama, grasping his hakama lightly. Usually she didn't fear youkai, especially not with Sesshoumaru-sama nearby, but there was something so... wicked about this spider.
Sesshoumaru glanced down at the child grasping his clothes. Smart girl, he thought, Chushihou was not some harmless, 'nice' youkai, like Myouga or Jakken. She was one of the creatures that made him feel as if he was covered in filth, and he did not enjoy the sensation in the slightest. However, she was also the only seamstress he knew about who could produce self-repairable clothes, an invaluable asset. There were many spider youkai capable of making good quality youkai clothes, some also living in those caves, some in different parts of the land, but only Chushihou could produce threads that regenerated when filled with youki, although the ability would wear off after a number of years, the exact number depending on the batch, and on the quality of the owner's youki.
"Ah, Sesshoumaru-sama," the spider croaked in her squeaky voice, her red eyes flashing, "what a surprise, I haven't been expecting you."
There was a flare of light, and the large spider turned into a young looking woman. Rin suppressed another gasp. The spider was so... revolting and yet the woman was so pretty. She had reddish eyes, black, smooth hair, and a well-shaped body in a dark blue kimono. Her face was sharply featured, but good-looking. Rin wasn't sure what to think. One moment it was a spider and then it was a woman. She recalled that Jakken told her once that most of the higher class youkai had many forms, and only one of them was human. Then, she frowned, thinking intensively and looking up to her caretaker, did Sesshoumaru-sama have another form too...?
"Chushihou," Sesshoumaru acknowledged her greeting, "why such vanity?" He asked, referring to her taking a human form, since it was a rare sight.
The woman laughed leisurely. "It's not out of vanity. I just didn't want to further scare your..." her eyes fell on Rin, "payment."
"She's not a payment." Sesshoumaru replied coldly. "This is," he said raising his hand and flexing his claws, "as always."
Although most youkai usually didn't use money, not in the sense that the humans did, service was service and payment was required. Some youkai used gold pieces or precious stones, while others simply exchanged services. Chushihou was well aware of her uniqueness and she knew she could ask for much in return. Usually, she established the payment depending on the customer and in Sesshoumaru's case her preferred payment was some of his poison. He had no idea what she did with it, and it mattered to him little. Chushihou also had an appetite for human flesh, especially for children's flesh, and apparently many youkai paid her in such a fashion. The idea revolted Sesshoumaru. Feeding on humans was even more despicable than mating a human, since it made one dependant on them.
"Ah," cooed the woman, "then what brings you here in such company?"
"I want you to make clothes for the girl. A yukata, youki-absorbent and large enough for her to grow some into it." Sesshoumaru wanted to be done with it as quickly as possible, as always.
Chushihou regarded him for a moment pensively. "Very well," she said finally, keeping any comments about Sesshoumaru making such an odd request to herself, "what color do you want it to be?"
Sesshoumaru didn't reply, but looked down at Rin questioningly.
Rin wasn't sure what to make of the situation. Was that why they came here? To get her some youki-...something clothes? And what was it about a payment...? She frowned, deciding to think about it later and trying to focus since Sesshoumaru-sama was still looking at her. In the end she said she wanted it to be like the one she was wearing. It was very similar to the first one she got from Sesshoumaru-sama, the yellow and brown checkered one, and she liked it very much.
That matter settled, they left the caves. The yukata was to be ready on the next day and Rin wasn't exactly looking forward to going back to get it. There was something strange about the woman who was a spider and she didn't like it. That brought her back to her previous question. Did Sesshoumaru-sama have another form? She pondered the thought while following him along the gloomy corridors and down the long stairs. He was a high level youkai, she was somehow sure he was, then he probably did have some other form. So what was it...? She frowned, trying to remember everything she had ever heard about Sesshoumaru-sama.
By the time they returned to the clearing, she remembered. Jakken once said that Sesshoumaru-sama was an inu youkai. So, was his other form that of a dog...? That wasn't so bad. She had been worried he might've been something like that woman. It's not that she would've liked him any less if he was, but... she just couldn't imagine Sesshoumaru-sama as some fat, ugly spider.
Rin knew Sesshoumaru-sama wasn't a nice, caring youkai who spent his days doing good deeds. If there even were such youkai. When she had once asked him about it, he did admit openly that he sometimes killed humans, just like he sometimes killed youkai. Even in her limited experience she knew enough of the world to know that that's just the way it was. Humans killed each other constantly, and killed youkai too. And there was always some war going on, she remembered the people in the village she used to live in often talked about wars. But... to her Sesshoumaru-sama had always been nothing but good and she knew that he would always be so. She was glad that he wasn't a disgusting spider, but a dog. Yet, she wondered, eying him secretly, what kind of a dog was he...?
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The next morning Sesshoumaru went back to Chushihou's caves for the yukata. He didn't take Rin with him, there was no need for it now. The clothes were indeed ready, and he was satisfied with them. However, Chushihou was not as reserved as she had been on the previous night. She was once again in her spider form, suspended on her web and bent on voicing her opinions while he was fulfilling his end of the deal in dripping some of his poison into the vial she used to store it. The vial was actually resistant enough to hold his poison in, instead of melting like most things did, and he suspected it was imbued with some protective spell.
"So," the spider screeched in something that was supposed to be a casual tone, "what do you intend to do with your little human?"
Nothing, he thought flatly. What was she expecting him to say, 'Eat her'?
"Finally deciding to test how... nutritious humans can be?" Apparently she had been expecting him to say that. "Or do you keep her also for more... personal reasons?"
Was she actually implying that he kept Rin around to either eat her or mate her...? Or both...? He blinked, realizing that the spider woman probably did do both to humans. It somehow seemed even more wrong to him than doing just one of the actions. Humans were... Well, he suspected that to him humans were like animals were to humans. Some foul, filthy animals. He knew they ate animals, even some rather disgusting ones, but even humans didn't mate with animals, or at least didn't do both to the same animal.
Disgusted with those thoughts, he shook his head lightly, to rid himself of them, and turning to Chushihou, eyed her skeptically.
There she hung, so self-absorbed, so secure in her uniqueness, and so oblivious to the fact that her time, the time of the youkai, was already running short. He wondered briefly how would the fat old spider die. Would the creatures she both fed on and mated with flood into her caves, burning and slaughtering both her and her offspring?
He winced. He hadn't thought about it before, but he too was going to die within those few centuries. He was probably already in the middle of his life and the concept was unexpectedly and rather unpleasantly novel to him. He had somehow missed that realization in his previous considerations, perhaps being too engrossed in being angry. So how would he die...? Also killed by humans? He could kill an almost unlimited number of unarmed humans, but he did remember the fox child mentioning that the humans in the miko's time, in the future, had many rather effective weapons. Was that how he was going to die? Killed by some human invention? He frowned, displeased with the idea. If he was to die so soon, he'd rather it was by the hand of a youkai, not a human.
Picking up the yukata, Sesshoumaru left the caves, hardly even hearing Chushihou's chuckle behind him.
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Language notes:
onsen – hot spring, they really are abundant in Japan, even though not every single one has to feature some interesting encounter...
mononoke – "evil spirit/ghost/apparition"; all in all it's pretty similar to 'youkai' and in Inuyasha the both terms are often used interchangeably;
–dono – just a polite form of address; unlike –sama, which implies no specific stature, -dono is often used in relation to lords, or generally guardians;
Inuyasha-tachi/Inu-tachi – '-tachi' is one of the ways to indicate plurality of people in Japanese, and used like this means "Inuyasha's group";
hakama – something like trousers in English; literally it means 'man's formal divided skirt'. In modern Japanese 'hakama' is used for old-fashioned type of trousers, usually pretty loose, while 'zubon' (written with the same character) is used for Western type of trousers;
kimono – literally kimono means "a thing to wear"; kimono as we know it now did not appear until few centuries later but since I don't feel all that confident on the types of clothes worn in feudal Japan, I used this term (like most people do) to mean something more feminine and formal than a simple yukata;
General notes:
Sesshoumaru laughing – although the image might seem far-fetched, he does laugh in the anime, albeit pretty disdainfully, so I don't think he would have some particular dislike of the action, it's just not in his habit. Here I found it fitting for expressing the contrast of Shippou's words to Sesshoumaru's thoughts and just for general humor.
Chushihou and the youkai clothes – it's just a bit of a fan's creativity used to explain how come both Inuyasha's and Sesshoumaru's clothes always seem to repair themselves ;)
Disappearing youkai – it doesn't seem to be ever mentioned in the anime, and I doubt Inuyasha-tachi (except maybe Kagome) would ever think about it, simply because it didn't have much relation to them, but it seems to me that any older youkai, such as Myouga or Sesshoumaru, would notice the consequence of the fact easily.
I know that the whole issue of Inuyasha being released by Kagome and of the Noh mask can be confusing, and there's no clear answer no matter how long you think about it, but the important thing is what conclusion Sesshoumaru and Myouga would reach so I tried to cut down on any unnecessary observations.
