AN: This has taken longer than I intended... Chapter 14 is just... annoyingly difficult to write. And it's taking me forever and ever amen to do it. Ugh. (throws apologies and cookies out to lunaflower323 and whoever else might care) Anywho, I've kind of almost got 14 halfway done... maybe... and it's been over a week since I posted the last chapter, so I'm just going ahead and throwing this one out there. Maybe I'll actually finish 14 by next week, who knows. Friggin' writer's block.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of the characters from Inuyasha, even if I do use them. That's kinda the entire point of fanfiction, right? But starting this chapter I own some extra people, w00t. I own not only Maina but also Miharu and Mai (and everything concerning them... except the fluffy one, unfortunately). And, just a note, I really didn't make all their names start with 'm' on purpose (well.. I did in one instance.. but that's not the point.) Really. It actually annoys me, I'm just not gonna bother to change it.
So, don't sue me over my borrowed characters, and don't steal my OC's. Ki?
Chapter Thirteen - A Sad Smile
She was awoken by the jubilant howls of her messenger wolves. As her visitors approached, the wolves that had been lying around her jumped up to greet them, yelping as ecstatically as young pups. She smiled, but remained where she was, her back resting against the trunk of a large tree as she sat nestled between two of its above-ground roots. Without opening her eyes, she knew who her visitors must be. A woman's laughter rang through the small clearing as the wolves continued their excited greetings.
Slowly, Maina opened her eyes upon the little scene. A female inuyoukai stood in the center, surrounded by the happily leaping black wolves, donning a fine kimono of deep blue, adorned as always with a white silken scarf that hung simply around her shoulders and passed under her obi with the ends, decorated with the red floral design that signified her tribe, swaying freely just above her knees. In her arms she held a bundle wrapped in white, which the goddess could not quite see, but could easily guess at. Her pure white hair floated around her in the light breeze like a billowing silk curtain. Going against the style of the day, her hair was kept all the same length, with no bangs to hide the fine lines of her porcelain face or her deep eyes of molten gold, perpetually outlined in a magenta eye shadow that mimicked the twin youkai markings on her slender cheeks. Her carefree laughter, something which had become all too rare in recent years, flowed from her at the wolves' affectionate greetings.
Beside her, also surrounded by wolves, was her son of fourteen, wearing the exquisite white silks appropriate to an heir, which were touched at the neck and sleeves with the tribe's design. His hair almost rivaled his mother's - in fact, he came as close as one could imagine to a male clone of her, aside from the crescent moon on his forehead, a mark which appeared only on males, and then, only on those destined to become the taiyoukai of the tribe.
Once she thought her wolves had had ample time to greet them, Maina rose from her seat at the base of the tree and moved to embrace her friend.
"Miharu, it's been nearly a month since I've seen you!" the goddess told her, the grin that involuntarily spread across her face invalidating her intended accusation.
"Believe me, Maina, youkai births are not the easiest events. I was in bed for two whole days before the actual birth! I think I might have preferred to be ripped apart!" the inu queen exclaimed.
"Oh, you said the same thing when Sesshoumaru was born," Maina replied with a laugh and a quick glance towards Miharu's silent son. "I've been worried sick here, you know. You said you'd send someone to tell me about your condition!"
"I know, I'm sorry, but I really have been laid up. Inutaishou insisted I stay in the den and get as much rest as possible, which isn't much with a hungry little pup to take care of, let me tell you. Everyone else has been buzzing about the dens trying to help me as well as the other new mothers.."
"Other ones?"
"Yes, four new pups have been born since we last spoke."
"If only I could find some way to fix the barrier so that I can come visit the dens once in a while - I get so behind in the news, you know?" Miharu laughed.
"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll figure it out soon enough."
"Alright, enough of this, I want to see… um..," Maina began, idly scratching her chin. Miharu laughed again.
"It's a girl," she told her with a wide smile. She held out the bundle in her arms and pushed aside its white wrap. The sleeping child's mouth hung open just the slightest bit, allowing an insignificant trail of drool to escape, but through that opening Maina could see a tiny fang. Her head was already covered in wispy, downy white hair, and on each cheek was a single magenta stripe.
"Oh! She's beautiful, Miharu!" Maina gasped. "Have you named her yet?" She smiled again in response.
"I have a name in mind."
"Well, out with it!" Maina told her with a lighthearted laugh.
"I want to name her Mai, in your honor." Maina's eyes grew wide.
"I.. I don't know what to say," she stuttered. "I really don't deserve it.."
"You are my truest friend," Miharu interrupted, her expression becoming somber. "The only person besides my son that ever believed me. Everyone else… they have such a perfect picture of him in their minds - they all but shun me if I speak ill of him," she continued quietly. Maina watched her in silence, feeling utterly helpless, as she always had, in her abilities to comfort her friend. Sesshoumaru only stood by, unmoving, with his arms crossed over his chest and his gaze fixed on some faraway object.
"Really, Miharu, I.. I only listen. It's not as if I could ever help you..," she began. A sad smile graced the inu queen's face.
"You support me, even just by listening. You have no idea how stifling it can be at the dens, unable to really talk to anyone. The others have been a bit nicer during the latter part of my pregnancy and after the birth, though.."
"Well, it's a start, at least..," Maina mumbled, not knowing quite what she should say.
"A false one," Miharu said, bitterness entering her melodic voice.
"What do you mean?"
"Inutaishou came to me purposely that night. He had not lain with me for many weeks before that, and has not done so since. I believe I've told you that much."
"Yes…"
"I've become quite convinced that the only reason he came was to impregnate me so the rest of the tribe might show more respect for me. A sort of reminder to them that I am, after all, their leader's mate, or perhaps to dispel any doubts I may have given them about his loyalty to me."
"That's not a good way to think," Maina said with a frown. "She is a child. No matter his motives, she is an innocent child, you cannot forget that."
"I know. I didn't mean to make it seem as if I do not care for her," she replied, her voice barely above a whisper as she stared into the infant's small face. "I really do love her. I may have been depressed during the pregnancy, but just looking at her.."
"I understand," Maina said with a true smile. "I've fallen in love with her myself from just a single look." She carefully stroked the baby's hair, making sure not to wake her.
"I would be immensely honored if she were named for me," she began after some moments of silence, "even though I am still not convinced that I am worthy of it." Miharu smiled happily now.
"I'm glad, though to tell you the truth, I haven't discussed her naming with Inutaishou yet. I don't think he will easily accept having his child given such a simple name."
"It's only fair, I think, since he chose your first child's name," Maina told her with a goodhearted laugh. As if on cue, Sesshoumaru chose this moment to finally speak.
"Mother," he began, his voice assertive and even, no doubt a tone he had been practicing in attempt to sound more mature and responsible to his father, "I believe it is time we took our leave."
Miharu turned lovingly toward her son, smiling pleasantly, if not falsely.
"Yes, you're probably right," she replied. She turned back to Maina and spoke softly. "It amazes me sometimes the way he keeps track of time, and other things as well. I still don't understand how he came to be such a natural planner with someone as rash as Inutaishou for a father." Maina laughed.
"Perhaps he's been training him idealistically, rather than having him model his own ways. He may indeed be rash, but he is no fool. I believe he knows his own faults and is trying not to pass them on." Miharu chuckled at this assessment, but Sesshoumaru seemed to be ignoring their continued conversation.
"Let us hope so," she told the goddess. "I will return as soon as I can, hopefully for a longer visit than this one. It will be easier to travel here when Mai is a bit older, after all."
"My forest is always open to you, never forget." Miharu smiled again and gracefully turned to leave, three of Maina's wolves walking protectively alongside her. Before her son could join her, Maina quietly called him aside. He stepped up to her, bowing respectfully.
"Yes, Lady Maina?" She chuckled.
"Such formality is hardly befitting to one so young, despite what adults may have told you," she observed. She placed a friendly hand on his shoulder and bent slightly to look into his eyes. "Do take good care of your mother, Sesshoumaru."
"Of course," he replied impassively.
"What I mean is, she needs more than just help taking care of the household and the baby. She needs your love and support, even if it's only in small doses," Maina continued. "Take five or ten minutes away from your training or your studies each day and instead spend it talking with her, or even just sitting with her. Little gestures like that go a lot farther than you might think."
Sesshoumaru's expression softened ever slightly, and he nodded. The goddess smiled and released his shoulder, and he left by his mother's path. Maina remained for a moment, simply staring in the direction the inuyoukai had taken, until a wet nose nudged her hand, interrupting her reverie. She smiled down at the gentle creature standing beside her, his thick black fur shining in the sunlight that had penetrated the little clearing.
"They'll be just fine, won't they?" she asked the wolf, stroking the soft fur at the base of his ear. He whined, looking up at her with what could only be described as a smile. He seemed to be convinced that her statement was true, even if she herself was not.
"At any rate, she certainly seems happier than when she last visited.."
Maina awoke in old Kaede's hut, lying in her bedding on the floor. As her mind emerged completely from its hazy sleep state, she realized that the other women, Kagome, Sango, and Kaede, were still sleeping. Even the young kitsune, Shippo, had not moved from his place at Kagome's side, nor had the neko youkai, Kirara, stirred from her sleeping place at Sango's feet. She must have woken quite early, she reasoned, if everyone else was still asleep. Her suspicions were confirmed when she finally noticed just how bright it was in the room - in fact, there was a patch of sunlight on Kagome's bedding. The room was always dark if no lamps were lit, as the sun had to come through the door flap in the main room at just the right angle to light Kaede's windowless bedroom in the least. Maina had never been awake in the hut while the sun was in its early morning position, and she briefly wondered if it was the rare sunlight in this room that awoke the others at such early hours.
She gently pushed aside her blanket and stood up, deciding that she would come back later to put away her bedding. As long as everyone else was sleeping, she thought, she might as well go for a walk. The sleepy village and the cool morning air would provide a peaceful start to her day.
She stepped silently into the main room, now well practiced at moving about the hut without disturbing the sensitive ears of the resident youkai and hanyou. She kept her eyes on the peacefully sleeping Miroku and Inuyasha until she reached the central fire pit, and, satisfied that they were not waking, turned toward Sesshoumaru's bedding.
The pelt sat alongside the bed, allowing only the last foot or two of the blankets to be seen from where she stood, and sitting high enough to hide the sleeping lord as well. Maina was a bit surprised to see that the foot of the bedding lay flat, as if Sesshoumaru had curled his legs up as he slept, which was simply preposterous. Even in sleep the youkai lord was full of grace, always remaining on his back, his legs never bent, with his single arm resting across his stomach. She stepped around the fire pit to get a better look and paled.
Sesshoumaru was gone.
AN: Starting this chapter, I've got a new policy going. Instead of the regular R & R, I'm instituting a Triple R - read, review, and recommend - because, let's face it, that's the only way to get any more readers, since I'm basically a newbie here and don't know anyone or have any connections on ff net. As of now I have a grand total of one reader, unless there are some others that are being reeeeeeeally sneaky about it. And sneaky non-reviewers get no cookies from ze author person. And ze author person has a lot of imaginary cookies to tempt readers with (waves them around in the air)
So, whether you love it, like it, tolerate it, hate it, wish to print it out and burn it, whatever.. Review it anyway. And then tell other people to read it... unless you're one of the hating readers. Then it might be better if you kept it hush-hush. Kapiche? Or however you spell that..