Disclaimer: If I owned Inuyasha, no one would like it.

Author's Note: Thank you so much for the pleasant, constructive reviews! I didn't mean to sound like a brat! :-( I just need feedback, you know?

Anyway, because there was some confusion expressed with my original characters, I've decided to create an easy-to-use character chart. And I had a name wrong in my disclaimer: Takara Tansho was supposed to be Kawate Tansho! -

Kawate Shigeki (Sango's Father) – m. – Kawate Tansho ----- Naraku (from being raped by a youkai) Then

Kawate Shigeki – m. – Kawate Kinuko, (the youngest of the three maidens)----- Sango and Kohaku. (Kinuko died giving birth to Kohaku).

Asahi Mayuko, (the second oldest (or second youngest) of the three maidens) ----- no children.

Takara Bairei – m. – Takara Kahori, (the oldest of the three maidens) ----- Kyoden, then Miroku. (She fell ill after giving birth to Miroku).

Tomomi is Sango's best friend. Domeki is her grandfather, who is also a houshi.

Scarlet is a mysterious young woman (with loyalties only to herself).

Ginmaru (is the silver-scaled lizard-like youkai who) serves Naraku.

This is just a short chapter for the sake of expanding Kyoden and Mirokus' characters. I think it's a really sweet brother moment, and I hope you all like it. I promise the next chapter will be longer, but it's hard to write long chapters when you're spending so much time stressing about midterms and not enough actually studying for them!

Translations:

Hahaue- (hah-hah-weh) an honorific term for one's mother.

Ne- (neh) Right? ; Isn't it so?

Chapter 12, Sakura Blossoms and the Mountain Lake

It was silent but for the gentle mantra of the lark. Miroku opened his eyes slowly. He was on his futon in the middle of his room. In the next room over, he could now hear Kyoden stirring. Smiling lightly to himself, Miroku rose to his feet and rolled up his futon. Today was his fifteenth birthday.

He secured his hakama around his waist, and then exited his room in utter silence. With a finger gesture, he dismissed his two guards, and then moved to Kyoden's room. Kyoden's guards bowed low to him, and Miroku tipped his head in return.

"Miroku-sama," One of the guards muttered.

Miroku turned to him. "Yes?"

"Oji-sama is waiting for you inside."

Miroku nodded. "Thank you." With that, the guard reached out and pulled open the shoji. Miroku entered.

His brother's room was open to the balcony, and his room was filled with the white light of dawn. Miroku stood blinking in the doorway for a few moments before he spied his older brother sitting by the window. He signaled to Kyoden's guards, and they swiftly moved to shut the shoji behind him. When he was sure they could not be heard from without, Miroku crossed the room to sit beside his brother.

Kyoden was resting in lotus position, his sword lying across his lap. Miroku eyed it suspiciously while he sat, but Kyoden made no movement. After a few moments like this, Miroku turned his gaze to the world sprawled out before him. The sun had just risen, and its rays pierced the earth boldly, throwing their father's kingdom into sharp detail. The hills of their land folded neatly across the landscape, crested by villages. The waterfall that ran from the mountains behind their castle plunged into a swift river, which proceeded to meander through the hills, stretching as far as the eye could see. Sakura blossoms were in bloom, and the air was filled with their soft petals.

One landed lightly in the center of Miroku's palm.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Kyoden said suddenly, causing Miroku to jump.

Miroku ran a hand through his jet-black hair to calm himself as he turned to his brother. "Yeah, I guess it is," he fumbled, looking at the tiny pink petal in his hand.

A smile tugged at the corner of Kyoden's mouth. He opened his dark eyes and turned to his brother. "You know, Miroku, I was just thinking. It's funny but—" His voice trailed off, and his face became reflective. He turned to look out across the kingdom that was his birthright.

Miroku leaned closer. He let the wind brush the sakura blossom from his palm, and then watched its descent. "But?" he questioned.

Kyoden shook his head. "It's probably me just being pessimistic, but, I've never felt that I would actually inherit father's kingdom."

Miroku blinked in surprise and turned to his brother. "What do you mean?! Kyoden, you were born to inherit father's kingdom!"

Kyoden waved his hand in front of his face. "I know, I know, Miroku. It's just a feeling that I have." He paused and suddenly his face became very grave. "No, Miroku, it's more than a feeling it's"

There was a timid knocking on the door. Miroku and Kyoden looked up apprehensively. "Oji-sama," one of the guards called from outside. "Your father is here to see you."

The brother's exchanged a glance. It was forbidden for the princes to meet one another in their rooms without their father's knowledge. "Tell my lord that I'll be there in a moment!" Kyoden ordered the man. He nodded swiftly to Miroku, and the young man leapt to his feet.

"The closet," Kyoden muttered. Immediately, Miroku was there. He slid the door open and leapt inside. Through the thin rice paper, he could still see the room and Kyoden as he crossed it to greet their father.

The Great Lord of the Eastern Land entered slowly, his head held high. Kyoden lowered himself to the ground in a low bow and the guards slid the door shut. Takara Bairei turned to his older son. "Kyoden, Miroku is not in his room. Do you know where he is?" Discreetly, Takara Bairei eyed the corners of the room. Miroku held his breath.

Kyoden shook his head. He was still on the ground. "No my lord, perhaps he has gone for a walk?"

Miroku bit his lip. Takara Bairei was a living, breathing lie detector. By lying to their father, Kyoden was risking the very love of his father. But perhaps with Kyoden's face buried in the ground, it would be harder for their father to discover Kyoden's lie.

"Now, why would he do that?" Takara Bairei asked, moving toward the balcony.

"Perhaps he wanted to get some fresh air? After all, if my most gracious lord has not forgotten, it is his birthday," Kyoden reminded his father gently.

Miroku gasped as Takara Bairei's whip hit the wall. Kyoden did not flinch. Miroku found his pool of admiration for his brother overflowing. "I never forget, Kyoden. And some day when you have inherited all the land that is mine, you will understand this."

Kyoden bowed deeper. "Of course, my lord, I am unworthy of your mercy." His voice did not falter. Miroku hated to see his brother groveling so. If he could, he would storm into the room and rise to his brother's defense. But the mere thought of standing up to his father made the fifteen-year-old's knees weak.

Takara Bairei nodded to his son and then crossed the room. He knocked on the door and it slid open to allow him to pass. He paused in the door and turned back to his still-bowing eldest son. "And Kyoden?"

"Yes, my lord?"

"If you do see Miroku, tell him his mother wishes him a happy birthday."

Miroku's heart jerked in his chest. His mother wished him a happy birthday? The very day that had caused her to spend the last fifteen years of her life in intolerable agony, barely clinging to the threads of lifehis birthday. Tears formed in Miroku's eyes, eyes that mirrored those of the mother he hadn't been allowed to see in seven years.

Takara Bairei's eyes lifted to the closet where Miroku lay paralyzed with emotion. His countenance darkened considerably, and Miroku looked at his feet. He had known the whole time that Miroku was there, but had appeared oblivious so as to not humiliate his eldest son. It was clear who bore their father's love, but Miroku did not envy his brother. If that was the love his father had to offer, he could do without. Smacking his whip on the wall once more, Takara Bairei exited the room. The door snapped shut behind him.

Kyoden rose from the floor and looked over at the closet. "You can come out now, Miroku. He's gone."

Miroku wiped the tears from his eyes hurriedly; he would not let his brother see how weak he was. Then, he slid the door open and stumbled out. Slowly, he met Kyoden's gaze. "Thank you," he muttered.

Kyoden shook his head. "No, no, it was nothing."

"It was something," Miroku protested softly.

The brothers stood in silence for a time. Then, Miroku whispered. "You're going to see hahaue today, ne?"

Kyoden nodded.

A smile fluttered across Miroku's face. "Tell her I said thank you." With that, he turned and retreated to the grounds to take the walk Kyoden had risked their father's love to prove he was taking.

--

"Houshi-sama?"

Miroku turned to look at the small woman at his elbow. He smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry, Sango, I just got a little side-tracked." The princess smiled softly and began to walk again, stepping lightly on the snow-covered road. Miroku watched her go, and then looked at the small sakura bud in his hand. "You're early, my friend." Miroku paused, his eyes shutting tightly against the build up of emotions within him. "Far too early."

He let the bud slip off his palm and back into the snow, then hurried to catch up to Sango.

--

The sky was the color of ash, and not so much as a ray of sunlight pierced the heavy rain clouds. The clouds, low as they were today, wove in and out of the great northern peaks like a garland. In the muddy light, the mountains' barren landscape was cast into harsh detail. Nothing moved along them. A small valley lay cradled in the bosom of its mother mountains. A lake yawned out across the valley, deep and impenetrably black. Here, mist swirled along the still surface on lacy tendrils.

A small procession of carriages eased along the edge of the lake, draped in shadows. All at once, a pale hand slipped out from the black curtains of the largest carriage. It singled a stop. Immediately, the procession halted.

Then, the hand extended to an arm, and from there, a whole torso. Finally, the whole dark body was free. Two sapphire eyes surveyed the lake slowly.

"My lord."

The sapphire eyes darted to the left to acknowledge the new speaker, a silver-scaled lizard-like youkai. "Ginmaru," the owner of the sapphires hissed steadily.

The youkai bowed his head at the acknowledgement. "My lord Naraku, forgive me for asking, but why have we stopped?"

The sapphire eyes sharpened with excitement, and harsh laughter broke free from Naraku's throat. "For the same reason we have come, Ginmaru: I have business with the magic nestled deep in this lake." With that, Naraku turned his back to the youkai, disregarding him.

He proceeded to lift his hands in the air, looking hard at the lake with his icy eyes. Suddenly, two long whips exploded from the flesh of his palm. They thrust their sharpened ends into the lake, their base still joined to Naraku's palm.

Naraku remained like this for a long time, and the mist grew thick around him with the coming of night. Then, so slowly that at first even Ginmaru's keen black eyes didn't catch it, the water began to move. Then, it began to boil. Ginmaru called out sharply in surprise.

A light began to shine forth from the depths. A frenzied smile appeared on Naraku's face.

Then, the water's surface exploded. Ginmaru shielded his eyes with his tail, and when he looked again, a ragged gasp filled his lungs with the cold mountain air. The sight that met his eyes froze his very blood.

- Ichimu

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