Update: Chapter Edited
Disclaimer: Inu and co are not mine…sniff…sniff…
A/N: Thanks for the reviews and the compliments. I'm glad your all are enjoying the writing style so far as well as my portrayal of the characters. I am sure there will be moments where they won't feel like the originals anymore, but just think of it as character growth ;D
As for Julia, yes she is my impression of a typical American woman, being one myself I guess I have some authority on the subject :D
Also, per a request I will try and double space …maybe 1.5 space the chapters for easier reading, and hopefully go back and fix the past chapters. However, it all depends on if Word can do that in the formatting when it changes it to html code.
Also, I don't know if readers are aware of this, but in the upper right corner of the screen there are and – signs…these will increase or decrease the font size. This can make reading easier too...though I think when I imported mine I already had the font fairly large so I don't know if it will work for this story, but just in case you ever needed to know that…now you do.
Oh Oh, one more thing. I actually do have illustrations for this story, and I will try to post them with the chapter they belong with, however I forgot to include the link for this one. It goes with 'Enter the Wolf'. So here it is, though I think you will have to copy and paste it into the browser, sorry, I don't really know html and Word refuses to make it work…silly Word…
Hopefully I don't need to point out when this was.
Okay, I think that is all, enjoy Chapter Seven.
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Chapter Seven: Strange Discoveries
She was aware of the sunlight on her face, but she just didn't want to open her eyes. She was somewhere warm and comfortable and she was afraid the moment she opened her eyes the feeling would vanish. But, open them she knew she must, so very slowly she fluttered her eyes open. She was in a room, that was for sure. The warmth she felt was the futon and blanket she'd been encased in. Pushing back the covers she slowly sat up to get a better look around the room.
It was about the size of her current bedroom in the future but, unlike her current bedroom, there were sliding doors on both sides of her bed. They looked to be covered in rice paper, which made sense as they were now entering the summer months. The paper was decorated with gorgeous paintings of the mountains and forests.
Looking behind her she saw a small bureau that had a mirror standing on it. Catching her reflection in it she ran her hand through her hair and momentarily thought about how badly she'd like to wash it.
At the foot of the bed she saw her small backpack and what looked to be a set of clothing. Looking down she realized that she was still fully dressed in the clothes she'd been wearing for the last five days. Guess I could do with some clean clothes she thought. Glancing at her watch she was surprised to see it was so early. Granted, she wasn't so sure the watch was still correct, but she figured it couldn't be too far off.
She crawled to the end of her futon and knelt in front of the pile of clothes. Picking up one rather large piece of cloth she discovered that it was a fairly decorative kimono. She rarely wore dresses. She had no idea what she was going to do with this. Well I guess it can't be too hard to figure out…it is more of a robe, really she thought to herself as she stood and got a feel for how long the garment was. But first, I really need a bath.
She carefully refolded the kimono and picked it and her pack up in her arms. She had no idea where she was going to find any kind of a bathroom, but there had to be something.
"Okay," Julia said to herself as she stared at the two doors in the room, "do I take the outside or the inside?"
"Oh, you are awake!" came a voice from the inside doorway. Julia turned to see an elderly-looking woman standing just inside the room, sliding the door closed behind her. "I thought I heard some rustling around in here, but I wasn't sure. Ears aren't what they used to be," she said with a smile, pointing up to her ears. They were pointed just like Sesshoumaru's, which meant this woman was a demon – apparently, a very old demon. "I am Wakana. Lord Sesshoumaru asked that I take care of you."
"I'm Julia," she smiled. "Nice to meet you."
"You must be famished, Lady Julia. I will show you to the dining room, but first, let's get you dressed properly." The old demoness started to advance towards her, but Julia had something else in mind.
"Actually, I could really use a bath," she said with a grin, "so if you could just point me in the right direction I think I can handle the rest." Wakana eyed her for a moment, and then, as if making an internal decision, she nodded.
"If that is what you wish, my Lady," the older woman smiled and led the way out of the room through the inside door. "But, I will stay and assist you in dressing as I have been ordered." Julia only smiled and nodded. Wakana obviously did not want to disobey her Lord, regardless of whatever Julia said.
Julia followed Wakana through the interior of the castle. It was really nothing like the typical European castles that frequented the pages of typical fairytales. Nor, was it like the Imperial Palace in Kyoto. It appeared to be a single story with hardwood floors and lanterns hanging from the ceiling every few feet. However, if what Kagome said about them being 500 years in the past was true, this made sense.
They passed more doors, similar to her own, lining both sides of the hallway. As they reached an intersection, to the right and left Julia could see day light, as it looked like the hall turned into a covered porch after a few feet. Straight ahead it still looked like part of an indoor hall. Following Wakana to this area she saw that on her right was a rather large room that appeared to be the kitchen, Wakana chose the door on her left.
Inside Julia saw a small wash room. There was a shelf on her left, which she assumed was there for fresh clothes to be put on, and it also had a small pile of dry towels sitting on it. To the right was a rock basin which contained water, hot water apparently, with a couple of small wooden buckets sitting next to it. Two stools sat close by a drain next to the basin. The back of the room was open, except for a couple of semi-transparent screens, and beyond looked to be an enclosed hot spring.
Julia placed her clothes and pack on the shelf and walked to the back of the room to look out at the spring. It was beautiful! There was a smooth stone path leading up to the water's edge where there appeared to be a step leading down into its depths. Eager to explore it more, Julia turned to her guide.
"Thank you, Wakana. I should be okay from here." She began taking off her jacket and realized that the woman was still standing there. "Was there something else?"
"I am here to assist you Lady Julia, so as soon as you are undressed I will help you bathe," she said with a bow.
"Huh?" Julia hadn't had help bathing since she was three or four, as was normal for most of the children of her time. "Wakana, I appreciate the offer, but I think I can handle this." Wakana only stared at her as though she was saying something unheard of. "Sesshoumaru asked you to help me, right?" The woman nodded. "Okay, so I will ask you to help me only when I need it, like with putting on that kimono," she said with a gesture to the foreign garment. "It is not something I am used to and would be most grateful for the help, but please I don't want to make you do anything that I am capable of doing on my own."
"If that is what the lady wishes," replied Wakana with another bow. "And if I may?" Julia nodded for her to continue. "You are an interesting human." Wakana smiled, and Julia only stared back at her. "When you are finished please ring this bell and I will come assist you in dressing. But, please do not take too long, I'm sure the morning meal is already being served." Julia nodded and Wakana left the room.
Julia finished undressing and filled a couple of the buckets with water. She washed up as best she could with the first and then dumped the second over her head. As she did she suddenly missed Kagome and her backpack with Shampoo. She looked out past the screen and considered venturing out for a soak, but she knew that Wakana was waiting. She'd explore the hot spring later. Standing she squeezed some of the water out of her hair and then walked over to get a towel and her travel brush out of her pack.
Upon reaching the shelf she could faintly hear voices on the other side of the door. Curious, she wrapped a towel around herself and then moved closer to the door.
"What do you mean she wanted a bath?" said a fairly agitated male voice, one she thought sounded familiar, but that she could not place.
"Just that," replied a voice she knew was Wakana's. "The Lady wished for a bath, so I brought her to the wash room."
"But she is human," the male voice hissed.
"The old Lord allowed his mistress use of the washroom," replied Wakana very matter of factly.
"Yes, but you know the current Lord loathes humans!" he responded.
"And what of little Rin?" countered Wakana. There was a pause.
"That is an entirely different situation," he replied lamely, frustration obvious in his voice.
"I don't see how. Now, the Lord bid me take care of the lady and I intend to do just that." Wakana's voice had taken on a 'no arguments will be listened to' tone of voice. "While she is in this house, or until the Lord asks us to do differently, you will show her the same respect you would to any guest." There was another poignant pause, but Wakana must have gotten the response she had wanted since she continued a moment later. "Good. Now see to it that a meal is set out for Lady Julia, I will be bringing her shortly."
Footsteps could be heard retreating, and Julia quickly realized that she was still standing next to the door. Moving quickly back to her pack she began to paw through it to find her brush. A moment later the door opened and Wakana stepped through. Julia looked up to see her smiling.
"Now, don't you worry about him, Lady Julia."
"Oh, I don't care what they…wait, how did you know I was listening?" She realized it was a bit late to cover her blunder.
"They are not as good as they used to be, but they still function." Wakana said, pointing to her ears. "Now, lets get you dressed." Julia just nodded and allowed Wakana to dress her like a living doll.
After what seemed like an eternity later, Julia followed Wakana down the hall to another room where she was told she could eat her morning meal. Inside she found a small table set with a bowl of rice and other traditional Japanese foods. It appeared she would be eating alone.
"Enjoy your meal, and leave the dishes when you are done. Afterwards, feel free to look around. I'll see to it that your clothes are washed and put in your room along with your bag." With that Wakana slid the door closed behind her and left Julia alone in the room.
Julia found that the only way to sit comfortable in her new clothes was to kneel, so kneel she did. It looked like this room was partitioned off from a much larger room with a connecting entrance at the other end. She had just picked up her rice bowl and chopsticks when she heard footsteps coming towards the section of the room she was in. She was relieved to see that they belonged to Kouga.
"Morning," he called down the room, "just thought I'd keep you company while you ate. Unless you're having a late meal cause you wanted to be alone?"
"No!" she replied, "Please stay, I just really needed a bath, that's all." He smiled and then plopped down across from her. "When did we get here? The last thing I remember was flying with Sesshoumaru and then I must have fallen asleep."
"Late last night." Kouga replied. "Sesshoumaru handed you to me and directed one of his servants to show me to a guestroom where I left you. I was going to check on you this morning, but Sesshoumaru said he'd already sent someone to see to you. Did they treat you alright?" His question seemed innocent enough, but she could tell there was some concern laced in it.
"Yes, Wakana was very sweet," she answered honestly.
"Good, 'cause I was getting the feeling that humans aren't exactly welcome here," he replied. "Some of the things I overheard from the staff weren't that friendly."
"Thanks for the heads up, but I kind of already got that feeling. Sesshoumaru's people seemed to be very loose with their tongues," she smiled at him. Kouga really was proving to be very sweet. "So, what are we doing today?"
"Not sure," he answered as he shook his head. "Other than that brief answer from Sesshoumaru, he hasn't said a thing."
"Oh," she said around a huge mouthful of rice. She had hoped that Kouga would talk a little more so that she would have time to chew, but no such luck. "Well, Wakana suggested I take a look around, so maybe I'll do that. You want to come?" She said as she finished swallowing.
"Don't see why not, I've got nothing better to do," she could almost take offense to his offhanded tone about coming with her, but she caught the glimmer in his eye that meant he was joking.
"Good. Why don't you tell me more about the adventures you've had with the others while I finish stuffing my face?" He smiled and began another tale.
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Wakana had reported back to Sesshoumaru when she was finished helping Julia. He had assigned Wakana to assist Julia for the same reason he had her help Rin - she did not loathe humans. She had served Inu Yasha's mother under his father's reign and had a mild respect for humans. His other servants had embraced his hatred for humans, and some had always felt that way. He knew that they were surprised when he showed up with Rin, and he had in fact considered housing her elsewhere, but it just did not seem practical. So, he had Jaken spread the rumor that Rin was there due to 'special circumstances' because he was not about to give an explanation to his servants, but he knew they had to be appeased in some way or Rin would be treated unkindly.
Now, not only would he have another human under his roof, but his half-brother and the rest of Inu Yasha's human friends would come as well as soon as he had rescued Rin. His servants would definitely start to wonder at that. He paused in his pacing and looked into the full-length mirror he had in his room. I'm starting to wonder he thought.
"Bah, it's Naraku," he said to himself. "As soon as he is destroyed I can go back to my life. But…" He stared at his reflection, almost as if he was daring himself to finish that thought, but he knew it could not be helped. There is Rin, and there will always be Rin. He knew now that the little girl was a part of his life, as much as he hated to admit it. She had become more than a pitiful human to him. And now this woman, this Julia, had somehow worked her way into his thoughts. She was different and a complete mystery.
It was then that he thought of his opportunity to investigate Julia. Wakana had in her possession the woman's strange bag and would surely bring it back to the woman's room. While he considered himself above snooping, he reasoned that this was his home and anything in it was open to his inspection - with or without the owner's knowledge. Sesshoumaru smiled to himself as he left his room for Julia's.
Wakana had already rolled up the futon, and tidied the room when he arrived. He found what he was looking for sitting on the small bureau. Kneeling in front of it he carefully picked it up and examined it. The material resembled leather, but it was much smoother in texture. He found a small metal loop that looked like it was what was keeping the bag closed and began to play with it. It only took him a moment to manipulate the strap through the loop and flip the top of the bag open. He began to pull the contents out one by one.
First he found a rather crumpled up piece of parchment. Unfolding it he discovered it was a map of some sort, but he could not read it, nor understand what land it was depicting. Refolding and placing it aside, he continued.
Next he pulled out a small stick that had a mass of thorns protruding from it on one end. The thorns were not sharp and would bend in any direction he moved them. The material the object was made out of was entirely unknown to him, as was the purpose of the item. This too, he set aside.
This trend continued every time he removed an object from the bag. A small, solid box-like thing, that looked to made of the same material as the thorned object, with smaller pieces of a softer material some how attached to it in a pattern that made no sense. A metal ring of other metal items that had odd shapes cut in them, and so on. When he reached the final item, however, it was a bit more interesting.
He now held an object made of the same material as the bag, but much smaller. He pulled it open to discover a small picture of Julia inside. It was like no portrait he had ever seen, so small and yet with so much detail. Next to the picture was what must have been writing of some kind, but what it said he could not tell. Examining further he discovered that he could remove it. It was hard and yet still flexible. Even more amazing was that the portrait had no texture to it…it was completely flat. How is that possible? He noticed something on the back as he brushed his finger over it. Flipping it, he saw another piece of parchment attached to it, somehow, that also had that strange writing on it.
He was about to continue his search through the smaller bag when he heard footsteps coming down the hall. Quickly deciding that he'd rather keep his newfound knowledge to himself, Sesshoumaru replaced the items in the order he found them and stood to exit the room through the outside door. As he opened it, he glanced back once more and noticed he'd left the small picture on the floor. Realizing that he did not have enough time to replace it in the smaller bag he scooped it up and slid the door closed behind him as he heard the inner door open.
"I'll just be a second, Kouga," he heard Julia call. She was headed for the bureau and probably for her bag. Sesshoumaru hoped that she would not think anything was out of place. "Wow, Wakana really did a number on my hair!" she exclaimed.
"Whatever you say." Sesshoumaru heard the wolf reply. "I don't really care much about that girly stuff."
"Gee, thanks Kouga, I appreciate the support," she responded, but he could hear the sarcasm in her voice.
"What!?" Sesshoumaru could just picture the wolf spreading his arms in a questioning manner as he replied. "If you don't like it, take it out."
"No, it's just that I'm not used to it," Julia replied. "Besides, Wakana looked so happy when she was done, I'd hate to hurt her feelings by taking it down." She paused a moment. "I'll be glad to have my own clothes back, too. These are nice, but they are just too nice for me."
"Well, this is normal compared to what you and Kagome usually wear," smirked the wolf. "I don't know why you guys don't get shunned at every village you walk into."
"Must be our sparkling personalities," she laughed as she replied. "C'mon, lets go check out that garden that I got a glimpse of when we were by the kitchen."
Curious about the woman's new appearance Sesshoumaru decided that he would return the small picture later and for now tucked it into his sash. He made his way to the garden Julia had spoken of by using the outside porch. As he came to the front of his home, a place that overlooked part of the garden, he went to a part of the porch where he would be obscured by his blooming cherry trees, but where he could still survey the majority of the garden.
Not long after he was situated he heard footfalls coming down one of the paths, accompanied by occasional laughter. Then the pair rounded a corner and she came into view. She was wearing a dark blue kimono with a deep red obi. Though he could not see the knot tied in the back, if Wakana had done it he was sure it was elaborate. The blue fabric was dotted with cherry blossoms, and the long sleeves each had a single tree in bloom embroidered in silver thread. Moving his gaze towards her head he could see the hair style that Wakana had fashioned for her. It was no different from what any respectable lady would wear, and yet on her it seemed…out of place. He was not sure why. Some tendrils of her strange golden locks had worked lose and now framed her face. Her face…she was smiling as she walked with Kouga, wearing a look of complete trust. She never had that look when she was with him. He was brought out of his thoughts by her suddenly leaving his line of sight.
"Whoa," cried Kouga as he reached to catch her, "that's the third time."
"I know, I know," she laughed as he helped her right herself, "I'm just not used to this thing. I want to keep up with you, but I have to take the tiniest steps, and every now and then I forget and take too big of a step."
"You're right," he laughed back. "You definitely need your old clothes back. You are a hazard to yourself wearing this." He motioned to the kimono. He still had a hand on her shoulder as she straightened out the fabric. Sesshoumaru found their physical contact somewhat unsettling, but he pushed the thought away. It did not matter.
"Lord Sesshoumaru!" a voice called from behind him. Jaken "My Lord, there have been many messages sent to you while we were away." He could hear Jaken waiting behind him and knew that what the little demon was saying was that he should get to work, but Jaken knew better than to give him an order. However, the little demon was right. He needed to read and, more than likely, respond to those letters. Many were probably from the other cardinal Lords concerning Naraku. No doubt they had heard of him by now. Turning, he walked past Jaken to his study where there was probably a rather large pile waiting for him.
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They had left the valley the following morning and traveled south as Sesshoumaru had instructed. They'd set a leisurely pace as they really didn't have anywhere that they were supposed to go. Inu Yasha grumbled a few times, but Kagome knew that he would continue to go along with his brother's plan. While he pretended not to care, Inu Yasha really would not want anything to happen to the little girl.
The day had passed rather uneventfully so they stopped early by a river to catch some dinner and rest. Miroku made a crack about their forced vacation with the possibility of an attack at any moment. Inu Yasha had only snorted and hopped into a tree. The others had dismissed it as Inu Yasha being in one of his moods, but Kagome knew something was troubling him, something more than just working with his brother.
Inu Yasha was still up in his tree where he'd been the entire evening. The rest of the camp had gone to sleep under the pretense that Inu Yasha would insist on standing watch. Kagome lay in her sleeping bag with Shippou curled up beside her. She stared up at the tree Inu Yasha was in and wondered.
The other night in the cave she wasn't sure what he was going to do. He looked as though he was going to say, or do, something that she had wanted him to say for a long time. She was spellbound by him and couldn't think of what to say. But…he just walked away. He had shared his past with her, and so much more, but he was still guarding what was in his heart. He cared for her, she knew that, but did he care for her more than he did his memory of Kikyou? She'd wanted to ask, but she couldn't. If only she had half of Julia's nerve when it came to telling it how it is. Reluctantly, Kagome closed her eyes. She needed to get some sleep, she knew that. The next couple of days would be a test of nerves and patience as they waited for Naraku to make his move.
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Julia walked along the garden path in the evening light. Wakana had been true to her word, so she now wore her own clothes. The evening was warm enough to remove her jacket, which was now tied around her waist. She and Kouga had spent the previous day getting acquainted with the grounds of Sesshoumaru's estate. However, not once during the day had they ever seen Sesshoumaru. He was absent at both meals and none of the servants ever mentioned him.
This day had gone more or less the same as the other. She and Kouga ate meals together and explored more of the grounds, which were quite extensive. However, after dinner one of the servants had come to Kouga to ask him to go with him. Kouga only shrugged at her and said he'd see her later. Julia assumed that Sesshoumaru must have wanted to talk to him. She was beginning to feel as though he was going out of his way to ignore her.
She'd discovered that the servant Wakana had been speaking to the previous morning had been Jaken. She had seen him on more occasions than she would have liked. The little toad seemed to pop up anytime it sounded like she was having fun. If Kouga made her laugh, Jaken would appear and tell her that 'her noise' was 'bothering Lord Sesshoumaru.' Then he'd scurry off before she could respond. Thankfully, he was not the servant that had come and gotten Kouga earlier. He would have eyed her and probably made some snide comment. She could see why it was that Rin did not like him, though Rin was still enough of a child not to understand or care why it was that Jaken acted the way he did.
Julia crossed the little bridge in the garden but, instead of staying on the path, she veered in the opposite direction, away from the manner. She and Kouga had found a really beautiful section of the garden that overlooked a valley below. She had missed the last half of their trek here so she'd had no idea that the manor rested on a hillside. She had dubbed it a manor because the word just seemed to fit better than 'castle'. It was a fairly sizable home, but it just didn't resemble a castle as she knew one.
She sat on the hillside and stared out at the valley below. It seemed to be nothing but darkness. There were no fires burning to indicate a village or any other signs of human life. She hugged her legs and rested her head on her knees. Sesshoumaru must love the fact that there are no humans around here she thought. Though Jaken was the only one who treated her with open hostility, Julia could see that some of the other servants were wary of her.
She and Wakana had spoken a little the previous night as she was preparing for bed. Getting out of the kimono was as complicated as getting into it. Wakana asked if Julia had really been traveling with Inu Yasha and if he was well. Julia had responded as best she could. Yes, she had been traveling with him for a short time and, as near as she could tell, he was fine. Wakana had spoken of him as a child. How sweet he was and how his father had doted on him. He had really loved Inu Yasha's mother, and she him. After he'd died, Inu Yasha's mother seemed to lose the will to live. She'd become ill and just couldn't recover. Inu Yasha was treated with some kindness, but after Sesshoumaru took over ruling the castle attitudes changed.
Julia tried to get some information about Sesshoumaru, but Wakana seemed reluctant to discuss him. She would only say that Sesshoumaru had not taken kindly to his father remarrying. Especially to a, and Wakana had to pardon herself here, to a human. That was where the animosity towards humans had come from. It almost sounded as though Wakana had been making excuses for her young lord's behavior. Julia had hoped to learn more about him, but Wakana had excused herself after that and Julia had not been able to speak to the woman in private since.
Julia untied her jacket from around her waist and laid it out behind her. Lying back on it she gazed up at the stars, again marveling at their beauty. She had really gotten herself into quite an adventure that was for sure. She admitted that she really had no idea what it was she was getting her self involved in, and that a wise person would have probably just have handed over the jewel and gone home, but…Julia smiled to herself…she had never really considered herself very wise. Picking up the shard from around her neck she smiled. Her mother had said it was a piece of a falling star and that it would make her dreams come true.
"What more could I wish for than this, Mom?" Julia mused to herself. "This is the adventure of a lifetime."
"Talking to yourself? And in a private language," came a voice from behind her. "If you wish your conversation to be secret, perhaps simply thinking it would be better?" Julia sat up and turned to see Sesshoumaru standing behind her. She frowned at him initially for sneaking up on her, but her expression changed as she really took him in.
He was wearing the same white outfit, but he no longer wore the armor, swords, or the fur boa. Somehow it made him look softer, almost approachable. She smiled.
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The frown he had expected, but why on earth was she now smiling at him? He'd followed her out to this spot in hopes of questioning her about her origins, but as he watched her get comfortable he was having second thoughts about interrupting her solace. It was only after she had spoken in that incomprehensible language of hers that he had regained his resolve to interrogate her.
"Just thinking about something my mom told me," the woman replied. "I guess you could say it's our private language." She smiled again and mumbled something about 'us and a billion other people,' but he had no idea what that meant. "Have a seat, stranger, I think this hill is big enough for the both of us." She patted the ground next to her. Sesshoumaru was momentarily offended by the notion of being 'told' to sit, but realized that this woman had never shown him any kind of respect in the first place. Nor did she respond to his commands. No, he would need to try a different tactic to get what he wanted out of her.
"I have been busy with the affairs of my land," he replied stoically as he seated himself next to her.
"Right, I guess you would have lord-type stuff to deal with," she responded rather off-handedly, while gazing at the sky.
"How is it that you have never heard of me?" he asked, somewhat irritated by her blasé attitude. "Nor, at least, of my father? Surely you could show his title some kind of respect." She turned her face away from the sky to look at him.
"I," she began, but halted as she stared at him a moment more, "I can't tell you that." She then turned her face back towards the sky. "They are beautiful aren't they?" He followed her gaze, but he would not be deterred.
"Do not change the subject. Why can't you tell me?" he asked, trying not to let the demanding tone, that she seemed to get angry at, in his voice show through.
"I made a promise," she said simply, her eyes still gazing skyward, "and I always keep my promises." Her tone was final. He could tell she was not going to budge on the issue. "I am sorry, though," she added after a moment.
"For what?" he asked, truly curious.
"For not knowing who your dad was," she explained as she looked over at him, "He sounds like he was quite a guy." Sesshoumaru only nodded. He had not really spoken to anyone about his father, nor really come to terms with his father's decision to give Inu Yasha the Tetsusaiga. "Wakana had nothing but good things to say about him."
"He was a good leader." Sesshoumaru said simply. "He kept his people safe and his lands in order."
"But?" she asked, causing him to look over at her.
"But what?" he asked.
"It just sounds like you agree with the standard, but that there is something else. That's all," she replied, shrugging her shoulders. He looked back out across the valley below them, for the first time in his life at a loss for what to say. He did not need to tell this woman anything of course, but…
"He was the envy of all of the other Cardinal Lords." Sesshoumaru began. "He was powerful, intelligent, respected…everything was perfect. I was being raised to follow in his footsteps. But, when my mother died that all seemed to change." He paused and looked over at her. She bore no emotion on her face other than genuine interest in what he was saying.
"My father seemed to be lost without her. He would walk around his lands year after year without much care for anything. The other Lords started to think something should be done, and then when he brought that woman home they thought he had lost his mind. I knew he missed my mother, but to replace her with someone who was not even worthy of being a servant in our halls…" He paused as he realized who he was speaking to, but her expression had not changed, so he continued. "I was mortified. The other Lords began to question outright my father's role as Lord of the Western Lands, and mine."
"But, he did not care. He had his new bride, and new son, and then…," his voice tapered off and became solemn. "He died. He'd become weak." Sesshoumaru continued, picking his voice up again. "That woman and her emotions were the cause of his weakness. However, before he died, while he lay mortally wounded he called me to his side and spoke of the two swords he had commissioned." He shook his head. "I still do not understand his decision."
"So, now you know who the Great Dog Demon of the West really was…a weakling." He looked up at her again, still trying to understand why he had told her so much. It could have been that she was a completely blank slate, no opinion either way…or so she claimed.
"I don't see how he was weak," she replied, causing him to raise his head. Surely she could see the weakness? "He carried on as best he could after your mother died and then, against all the opposition, he dared to find love again in someone who was obviously not accepted. He remained brave until the end and … made the right choice in giving you Tenseiga." What was he hearing?
"I suppose I never should have expected a human to understand?" he remarked offhandedly.
"You're right," she replied, rather more coolly than he had expected her to. "I am human. That is why I am not blind to what your father's real power was." She stood then and brushed the grass off of her clothes. "Goodnight, Sesshoumaru," she said softly as she walked back towards the castle.
Sesshoumaru stayed where he was. What had that woman been talking about? Of course he knew what his father's true power was…didn't he? He did not need a human telling him that he was in some way blind, especially not this human. She was still a mystery to him. He had hoped that by speaking with her he would learn something of her, and her origins, but he realized that he had actually done most of the speaking. And, even though this had not been his plan, he somehow felt more at ease with his father's memory than he had in these past long years. Still…what had that woman meant by her words?
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A/N: Okay, so what exactly was in Julia's pack?
1) The map, 2) her hair brush, 3) was her cell phone, 4) her keys, and 5) was her wallet. It is hard to explain these things from a perspective of someone who has no clue what plastic or electronics are…
Also, for those of you who insist that the soft fluffy thing Sesshoumaru always has is his tail…I apologize for not depicting it as such, but honestly I don't think it is his tail. If you recall the episode where he almost gets dusted by Inu Yasha, and Rin finds him, he is lying on it and you can see both ends clearly…so yeah, that is my reasoning. Besides, it is one less thing for me to keep track of ;D
Next chapter coming soon…. Review…very soon….
