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A Father's Embrace

Chapter Twenty-seven

Determination

Maiki marched at least a good twenty feet in front of the group. A determined expression seemed to have permanently etched itself onto her face. The four humans behind her were becoming increasingly exhausted. The group had left Takeshi's estate early that morning, taking the road north. Maiki had barely said anything to them that morning, or for most of the day, for that matter. The only topic that came out of her mouth was the extent of the two-day delay that had held them up and that they needed to resume their travels to catch up on lost time. She had barely even said 'Goodbye' to Hiroshi before they left.

Unknown to the shibunyo, Sango and Miroku had silently agreed that the girl was sounding a bit too much like her father. If she had discovered the secret comparison, Maiki probably would have blown a head gasket.

The teenage girl had pushed the group for the entire day, only allowing them to rest for lunch. And that break had been very short. She hadn't even given the group a chance to clean up before she was barking orders at them to 'hurry up and get moving'. It had been nearly five hours since their mealtime break, and the sun was approaching the horizon. By Miroku's estimation, they had left Musashi territory a little over an hour ago. But because of the primitive mapping of the land in Feudal Japan, it was hard to tell when and where exactly they had done so.

Currently, the group was traveling through an open countryside of gently rolling hills. The mountains to the north and east were clearly visible on the horizon. To the west, the red-orange sun kissed the canopy of a thick forest blanketed in dark green shadows. The humans of the group knew that the fiery orb in the sky would be departing this world for the day at any moment. After that, they'd only have about a half an hour of visible light remaining at best. They would have to stop and break camp very shortly.

The problem was, everyone was hesitant to tell the over-exuberant and determined shibunyo to stop for the night. Occasionally asking for a quick break throughout the day had caused her to nearly bite their heads off.

Kagome took a deep breath. Being the girl's mother, she figured that she'd have the best luck convincing the teenage girl to allow them to rest. Unfortunately, there seemed to be a growing rift between the mother and daughter, especially after the events that had occurred that morning. To Kagome's dismay, Maiki refused to talk about the incident, and she had no idea why. The teenage girl had bottled herself up, and seemed only to care about reaching the mountains to the far northeast. Up until now, her daughter had been open with her with almost everything and anything. So why the sudden change?

'With the way you reacted towards her this morning, what makes you think she wouldn't be withdrawn from you now?' the voice inside her head scolded. I certainly wouldn't be talking to my mother if she accused me of trying to kill her...'

'But I didn't accuse her of anything,' she fought back.

'You didn't have to. Based on your actions, she made the accusation for you.'

Kagome couldn't refute that. How on earth was she going to patch things up with her daughter? She was instantly pulled from her thoughts when she nearly ran into Maiki's back, having not noticed that the girl had stopped. Sango, Miroku and Kazuki had paused when they all came within five feet behind Maiki, and quietly waited. The shibunyo slowly scanned the area, her head starting from her left and rotating towards her right. Kagome wasn't exactly sure what her daughter was doing. Was she sensing something? A hostile yokai perhaps?

Finally, Maiki's gaze seemed to stop, her head pointed towards two o'clock. With a jerk of her head, she stated, "We'll set up camp over there, under that group of trees."

Her human companions looked in the direction she indicated, squinting in the dimming light. About one hundred feet away stood a cluster of tall, bushy, trees jutting up from the ground. Silently agreeing, the group headed towards the little bit of shelter the coniferous structures provided.

A fire was started and tents were set up just as darkness completely obscured their surroundings. With the chores of setting up camp complete, most everyone took the time to enjoy a good rest, relaxing on the soft, thick grasses. Maiki was the exception, choosing to sit against one of the five pine trees in such a way that she was facing away from the fire. As they waited for the water in the kettle to boil, Kazuki, Sango and Miroku all noticed the worried glances Kagome shot in her daughter's direction.

The junior exterminator rolled his eyes. "I thought I told her to stop pouting about that whole yokai incident. Apparently her ears are useless since she obviously didn't hear a word I said."

"I heard you then, just as I can hear you now," came the emotionless response from beyond the fire's glow.

At that moment, the kettle started to whistle, and Sango pulled it off of the pile of hot coals located next to the main fire. Kagome fished some ramen cups from her bag and handed them out. The monk and older exterminator instantly recognized the instant meal that they had not seen for seventeen years, while the younger exterminator gave the Styrofoam package an incredulous look.

"We're supposed to eat these?" the boy questioned.

Kagome shrugged sheepishly as she peeled back the lid on one container and held it as Sango poured the piping hot water into it. "Sorry it isn't much. Breakfast tomorrow will be a little better."

"That is, if someone gives us a chance to even have breakfast tomorrow," grumbled Kazuki as he fumbled with the lid of his meal.

After digging a pair of chopsticks from her bag, Kagome rose to her feet and headed away from the fire towards her daughter. She stopped when she arrived next to Maiki. "Aren't you hungry?

"Not particularly."

"Well, you should still eat something."

The shibunyo finally looked up towards her mother, noticing the ramen cup in her hands. Not that she couldn't smell it before seeing what it was. She turned her gaze back out towards the open fields. "That stuff is crap. You know I don't like it."

Kagome sighed. "It's better than eating nothing..."

Maiki didn't respond immediately. When she did, she inquired, "What about you? Where's yours? You have to eat too."

"Don't worry about it. Mine's by the fire. I made this one for you. It's beef flavored..." she tried to coax her daughter.

A sigh escaped the teenager's lips. "Fine. I guess I can choke it down." She accepted the cup of noodles and chopsticks from her mother, who took a seat beside her. Maiki's gaze fell to her lap. "Mama?" The irritation of her voice had quickly changed into one of worry and doubt.

"Hn?"

"Why... Why are you doing this?"

A troubled look crossed Kagome's eyes. "Doing what?"

"Doing this. Coming here, back to the feudal times. I can tell that you don't want to be here, yet you are."

The miko sighed despondently. "You're right. I really didn't want to come back here. But I did it for you. And that's why I'm still here. To help find the mamori-ishi, so that you could have the normal life I didn't have."

"But why?"

"Why what?"

"Why... Why are you doing this... for me?"

"Because Maiki, you're my daughter."

"But..." The shibunyo paused, trying to gather her thoughts and feelings. "But why would you do this for me... when I look like him."

A combined look of confusion, shock, and fear etched Kagome's face. "Him?" she repeated, though she had a very good guess who the him in question was.

"Yes. Him You know who I'm talking about... My father... Inuyasha. He... He hurt you... didn't he?"

Kagome stifled a gasp, her eyes widening in further shock. "Maiki... Why...? How...? What makes you say that?"

The teenager finally rose her golden eyes to meet those of her mother's. "I can see the pain in your eyes, mama. There are times, when you look at me... I can tell you're actually looking through me... and you see him there instead. And when you do, you look hurt, sad, depressed... and then this morning... you were terrified of him... of me."

"No, Maiki. I'm not afraid of you. This morning..." She paused. "This morning I was... just a little disorientated. That's all."

"You... had a dream again. Didn't you?"

"Why do you say that?"

"You've been having them every night ever since we left. Mama, is there something wrong? Something that's been giving you these nightmares?"

Kagome sighed and looked out upon the dark valley. "I don't really know. I don't even remember these dreams you say I keep having. So, I can't really answer that."

"You didn't answer my question about him though. Did he... hurt you... in anyway?"

"Well," Kagome started, thinking back to days of her teenage years. "There was a long time that he did hurt me, emotionally, but he was quite oblivious to it for a long time..."

"Did he treat you the way Nanashi does?"

Kagome released a short laugh, but it was an empty one, void of the typical mirth of a true laugh. "Not really. Not like Nanashi. The worst Inuyasha ever called me was 'wench' or 'stupid girl', but that was all."

"Then, how did he hurt you so much?"

"Because of Kikyo."

"Kikyo?" Maiki repeated curiously.

"Yes, Kikyo. You've heard the stories about her. She was the priestess whom your father first fell in love with."

"The one who later pinned him to the Goshinboku?"

Kagome nodded. "Shortly after I met your father, a witch by the name of Urasue stole Kikyo's ashes and soil from her grave, and used them to create a new body for her. But because Kikyo's soul had already been reincarnated into me, Urasue was forced to steal my soul from me and give it to Kikyo, thus resurrecting her. When she saw Inuyasha, she was furious, believing that he had killed her. He was taken by surprise at this, because he had believed it to be the other way around.

"She tried to attack your father, but before she could succeed, I was somehow able to get most of my soul back. Eventually, we discovered that Kikyo and Inuyasha had been deceived. Because of this, your father could no longer be angry with Kikyo and his lingering affections for her surfaced."

"But you had started to like him by then, huh?"

Kagome's cheeks tinted a slight pink, but in the dark, it was unnoticeable. "Yeah, I suppose you could say that. But no matter how many times Inuyasha would run to Kikyo whenever she appeared, I just couldn't ignore my feelings for him. Even when I went on dates with other boys, I found myself thinking of Inuyasha."

"But what about him? Didn't he have any feelings for you?"

"Well, that's the part that hurt. Though he was loathe to admit his true feelings... about anything... there were times when he and I would be alone, and I could just see in his eyes that he truly cared about me."

"So... what happened?"

Kagome turned her head to face her daughter. "Hn? What do you mean?"

It was now Maiki's turn to slightly blush. "Well, obviously you two got together... I'm proof enough of that... But, what happened to make things turn sour? Why did you two split up?"

The mother averted her gaze from her daughter once more, a look of concentration appearing on her face. Her brows furrowed as she thought back to that night, but she came up blank. "I... I don't know. It's weird. I suddenly can't remember..." 'It's like, a memory block or something. I know I should remember what happened. I can feel it deep inside my gut that whatever happened that night isn't the sort of thing you'd just forget. Why can't I remember?'

Maiki gave her a skeptical glance. "You can't recall anything?"

Kagome thought harder. Fear. Something following-- no, chasing­-- her. Exhaustion. Eyes that were red... or were they burgundy? Pain. Something glowing but becoming darker.

"It's all fuzzy." She winced, bringing her left hand to her temple, and rubbed at the sudden pain.

"Are you okay, mama?" Maiki asked with a concerned look.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Kagome answered, lowering her hand away from her head. "Don't worry about it. Now eat your ramen before it gets cold, okay?"

Maiki nodded as Kagome rose to her feet and returned to the fire. The girl picked at her noodles with her chopsticks before bringing a nibble to her mouth. She grimaced only slightly. Beef was the only flavor she could tolerate. However, her meal was now barely warm. She choked down the few noodles in her mouth and then released a sigh. If she didn't finish her meal, her mother would just make her eat another one.

Her thoughts lingered on the subject of her mother. First, the odd nightmares, which she forgot as soon as she woke. Now, she was starting to suffer memory loss of real events. Could the two be connected? Was her mind trying to suppress her memories while she was awake to protect herself from some unknown trauma? Were her nightmares really flashbacks of said trauma?

The shibunyo looked to the sky, her golden eyes reflecting the light from the almost half-lit moon. There was something happening to her mother. Something strange. Something unexplainable. Something... not right. But whatever that something was, Maiki felt completely helpless to do anything about it. The only thing she could do was find that mamori-ishi so that she would no longer be a shadow of that repressed memory.

Inuyasha and Kagome: Kagome does not hate Inuyasha, in fact no one does.(Maiki is probably the only one who feels a little bit of resentment towards him.)Inuyasha and Kagome still love each other, but mysterious circumstances forced them apart.Inuyasha is tracking down Kagome, but an unseen force is preventing him from going to her. However, at this point in time, since Inuyasha's yokai blood has taken over, he is acting more on his instincts; eating, sleeping, and protecting his mate. Because he smelled Kagome's blood on Nibori, Inuyasha did what his instincts told him to do; kill the one who hurt his mate.

Maiki's ability to sense other yokai's feelings/emotions/thoughts may or may not be explained in the actual story line so I'll explain it here.Her abilities are inherited, to a degree.She is the daughter of a very powerful miko.Many believe that mikos have the ability to sense feelings and emotions from other people, especially when they are distressed. Maiki has inherited this ability of empathy. But because she is also the daughter of a powerful hanyo (with yokai blood coursing through her), she can only sense these things from those with yokai blood. And she can only do this while she is in her shibunyo form.