Author's Note: Um... gomen? ; That was a long wait... but... um.. I kinda didn't have much time to get this up or even type it. I was stuck with two pages and had to come up with something else for this chap. would be uberly short.

"Otou-san!" The girl protested, throwing her hands into fists at her side as she stood arguing with her father in the front room. "It wasn't my fault and you know that!"

"I don't care, and if you're going to yell and argue with me then maybe you should go to your room and think about it!" The hanyou was mad, more like worried for his ten-year-old daughter. Even though she looked youkai, she was more ningen than anything else. She didn't know how to fight, and it was likely that she would never be strong seeing that InuYasha had only trained her enough so that she may be able to protect herself from weak youkai.

The girl growled, glaring at her father. She had never argued with him before, especially when it came to her own safety. If they ever did "fight" it was over her bedtime or who got the last bowl of instant ramen before the house was empty of it. "Fine! It's better than listening to you yell at me!"

During the whole time Kagome stood helplessly near the door to the bedroom, watching her husband and daughter argue. It reminded her of how she and InuYasha used to fight at the beginning of their journey.

Hanaharu ran into her room, eye brimmed with tears. Her father had never been this strict or mean to her, she was a spoiled little girl that got what she wanted from him, most of the time. It made her feel worthless. She fell down onto the futon, burying her head in the pillow. "Why is Otou-san mad? It's not my fault I fell into that hole." She sobbed quietly, not sure how to take this newfound anger from her father, She had never seen InuYasha's rage, and it sacred her.

The hanyou let out a sigh, sitting down on one of the mats next to the table; a sulky mood had once again taken over. "What am I doing wrong?"

Kagome sat down next to her husband, wrapping her arms around him and letting her head rest against his shoulder. "For one, you're yelling at her. She didn't do anything wrong."

The woman's consoling didn't do much good for the hanyou; he still looked upset. Doing this to his daughter made him feel bad. "I guess… it's because I see you in her."

The former miko chuckled, Hanaharu was her daughter, but that was just ludicrous. "I think it's because she's like you. I can handle one InuYasha, but two?" Kagome stood up, laughing slightly as she moved from her husband towards the part of that room that was the kitchen.

"And what's THAT supposed to mean?"

"You know, InuYasha. You can be hard to get along with." She dug into the small cabinet, pulling out one of the cherished cups of instant noodles that were worshiped in the household. She walked over to the fire pit, a boiling pot already made.

"Keh!" The hanyou crossed his arms, wanting to look away but keeping them on the cup of ramen.

"See what I mean?" The miko dipped the wooden ladle into the water, pouring two spoonfuls into the cup. "Once it's done, I want you to take this to Hanaharu."

"What! Why me?" The hanyou snarled, looking at his mate with disbelieving and angered eyes. He wanted the ramen for himself.

"Because," she shoved it into his hand, "she's your daughter."

He just sat there staring into the ramen juices swirl in the cup. "So? She's your daughter, too."

The former miko sat down in front of her husband, "If you couldn't take care of her, why did you help me make her?" She kissed his cheek, a flush on her countenance.

The hanyou went red; not sure whether to smile, frown, or feel embarrassed. "Fine." He stood up, looking down to Kagome. He wasn't doing this for her, he was doing this for his depressed daughter. He walked over to the young girl's bedroom, knocking on the carved door. He brought his knuckles into a first, knocking on it before walking in. He didn't even wait for an answer. He didn't need to wait for an answer. She was decent and it was his house. "Sit up, onegai, aka-chan."

"Otou-san!" The girl cried, sitting up just so that she could glare at him with a red face and wet tears. "Stop calling me that!"

"Gomen ne, Hanaharu." He walked in and closed the door behind him, sitting down next to her and placing the ramen on the floor. "Here."

"Have you eaten yet?" She only glared towards her father.

"Iie."

"Keep it!" She yelled, burying her face in the pillow again and trying to ignore him. "Okaa-san made you bring it to me!"

InuYasha's ears fell flat, "Hai, she did." He paused, listening to his daughter's sobs and growling. "Stop moping!"

The girl shot up, clutching her pillow in her claws as her anger only worsened. "Why! Because I annoy you?"

"Yeah!" He slammed a curled fist on the wooden floor. He hadn't been worked up in an argument of fight like this since before Hanaharu was born, even with Kagome.

The girl gasped, turning away from her father. There was a short period of silence before she spoke. "Get out." She said calmly, closing her eyes.

The hanyou didn't move, just sitting there glaring at his daughter.

"Get out!" She was fed up, standing up and threatening to throw her chair at him. She grabbed it and hurled it towards him. "I hate you!"

InuYasha stood up quickly, blocking the impact with his arm and kimono sleeve.

In a blind rage Hanaharu continued throwing things at her father, not caring what the consequences would be as long as he left.

He finally caught her hands as she was reaching for a burning lantern. "Hanaharu…"

Wrenching her wrist away from him, the sliver-haired girl was panting, her head facing the ground. She couldn't even look at him. "Let go of me."

The hanyou pulled her back up against him, holding her so that her ear was against his chest. This was one of the easiest ways to calm her down: his heart beat.

"I hate you," she muttered to her father, pounding her fist on his chest. Each impact became more delayed and softer until it stopped. She buried her head in his chest, sobbing the words loudly over and over. She then almost fell to her knees, bringing InuYasha down with her.

Throughout the entire escapade the hanyou listened to her willingly, her words hurt him, dearly. She had never in her ten years tell him that she hated him or rejected him. "Hanaharu…" He placed a hand over her back. "You may say that but, ai shiteru."

She sobbed again, refusing that he did. "No you don't!" She hit his chest once again as she moved away. "You hate me, you yelled and lied to me!"

"Hanaharu, he let her have her space, moving away. "I'll let you think for a while." Soberly InuYasha left his daughter's room, closing the door as he left.

Kagome was waiting in the front room, tears filling her eyes as she reached out for him. She knew that Hanaharu's word hurt him more than they her. And she was the one who was crying.

InuYasha shook his head, and without saying a word, the hanyou left into the bedroom to contemplate.

The girl continued to sob, cursing against the kami and her father in the pillow. She hated her father, at least for the moment. He was a monster, a demon bent on making her life miserable. Most things in this world were. Right now, to her, there was nothing good. All she could do was sit there and take in the bad. Hanaharu looked up, the window. The always partially opened window.

He clutched her fist at her side, glaring back at the closed door. 'He won't miss me. No one will.'

A tear ran down the young girl's cheek. She came up to the window, opening it fully before looking outside. The coast was clear. She climbed onto the windowsill and jumped out on to the ground, almost tripping as she did so. She landed on her feet, crouching down as to catch herself.

With a small pant, the fourth demon girl stood up, walking off towards the forest.

He sat curled up in the darkness of his room, hands falling limp over his legs, knees close to his chest as his head lay against them. It was almost as if he were sleeping; he wasn't. InuYasha was wide-awake, golden eyes piercing the darkness as he glared at the floor. He felt bad, listening to those things come from Hanaharu, but it couldn't be helped. He felt as if this were his entire fault, which he was a bad parent and had failed at the job. Losing her like this was as bad, maybe worse than, losing her to a demon.

"InuYasha?"

"Hai?"

Kagome stepped in through the door, seeing him in the corner like that made her feel bad, too. But she was the optimist. Kagome smiled, sitting down next to her husband and placing a hand over his. "Don't blame yourself."

"Why? You're the one who said I was too hard on her." He sat up and looked out their window towards the moon. One day until the first quarter; it would come the next night.

Kagome also looked up at it, then back down at him. "I did, but she'll get over it. All girls say they hate their parents, but that doesn't mean anything."

"She's ten." He continued looking out towards the moon.

"And almost a teenager." Kagome leant up against him. "When I was her age I'm sure I did thing against my mother as well, maybe not as violent or hateful, but she's your daughter. I can't expect anything else."

He looked down to Kagome, letting out a snort. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

Kagome laughed. "She's a lot like you." The former miko laid her head against InuYasha's shoulder and closed her eyes. She knew they were both tired from what had happened earlier, Hanaharu the most due to stress. Sleep was the best thing, and they could all talk it out in the morning. "Besides, tomorrow night I want to take her back to see her grandmother."

"Fine." He closed his eyes, listening to what went on outside, but also to Kagome's breathing as she fell asleep. It wasn't long before he drifted off into the darkness, either; unknowing that his daughter had wandered off into the black of the forest.

Author's Note: Um... yeah.. shocking to me too. ; Um... Hanaharu's a little mad right now... and I'm TRYING to calm her down so I can write the next chapter.

Hanaharu: Shut up and leave me alone!

Me: -sweatdrop- Moody ten-year-olds... not fun..