Author's Note: Thanks to everyone for reading, and please read n' review!
Disclaimer: me no own inuyasha...
Inutaisho felt the cold night wind bite into his skin as he approached his former wife's home. Here in the north, the lands were still steeped in winter. Spring wouldn't come here for at least another month, maybe more. An ache of nostalgia and a kind of remorse washed over him as he realized this may be the last time he saw this place.
He entered swiftly and went directly to Kagetsu's chambers. He did not have the time for decorum, and rather than even introduce himself he opened the door to where she sat.
"Inutaisho?" she asked in shock. He looked tired and weatherbeaten, but she could tell something much worse was wrong with him.
"I have to give you something." he said breathlessly. He pulled the black jewel her brother had given him from under his armor and handed it to her. "Your brother gave me this." he said.
"A resurrection jewel?" she asked in confusion.
"Yes, it is a companion piece to one of the swords I had made, Tenseiga." "It will allow the sword to become fully mature should it need to be wielded as an instrument of war." "However, Hokutouki instructed me that the person who should use it must not have fear or sorrow when the time comes, even though they may face great danger." "Give it to Sesshoumaru if he comes to you asking about the sword." "Tenseiga is the one I will leave him, it is the only way I can atone for my mistakes now." "Hopefully through it he will finally learn compassion for those he cares for, as well as those he must kill." "He must come to realize the weight of the lives he cherishes and those he takes." he finished.
Kagetsu stared at him, unsure of what to say or ask. Of course, she knew that her son had become uneasy and restless in his heart, and she too wished for him to be at peace, though she would hardly show it. She looked at Inutaisho again. She had heard the rumors too, but she wasn't sure what they meant or how much of it was true. The way he was speaking, his situation must have become dire indeed.
"Rumors tell of you having a sordid affair with a human, and that Ryuukossei has lost his mind and is after your life." she said, her air of detachment returning. "By the looks of things, something appears to be threatening you." "Are things truly as grim as they seem by the look on your face?" she asked.
"My relationship with Izayoi is certainly not something I would call sordid, but yes, I will freely admit that I have found the love I have always sought in her." he said rather candidly. "Even now, she carries my child." "But it is also true that Ryuukossei is seeking to kill me, and I must dispatch him before any harm can befall her or her family." he told her.
Kagetsu felt her eyes widen at his admission. She had always known that he had a compassionate nature, but she had never expected him to do so something so rash as this. Of course she found it distasteful and ridiculous, but as she had told her son, she was not to be the judge of these things if he was truly happy.
"Also, I must return to the east as quickly as I can to prevent the calamity that will occur once her father finds out she is with child." he said ruefully. "I have been a fool to let these things blind side me." he told her.
"I must agree." she said. "But I will not begrudge you your happiness, if you have truly found it, as I have told you before." "So much trouble over a mere mortal. . ." she trailed off. She had promised she wouldn't berate him.
"Thank you." he said, stifling a chuckle at the irony of the situation.
"Does Sesshoumaru know the truth of this?" Kagetsu suddenly asked, as if the thought had just occurred to her. She knew how he had reacted at the mere rumor, and if he had found his father and heard his acknowledgment, he must be livid at this point, especially if he knew he was going to be a brother to a half-demon.
Inutaisho sighed heavily, he certainly seemed to be forming a habit of it lately. "Yes, he sought me out at my home and asked me if the things he had heard were true." "I kept nothing from him, and told him everything." he continued . "He is quite upset, and seems to feel that I have betrayed him through what he believes is the defiling our noble bloodline." he said, leaving out part of the true reason he thought his son felt betrayed. "He left my halls in an ill mood." "I do not know where he has gone." he said.
"Well, it is to be expected of course." she replied. "Surely you must know of his disgust toward humans, and indeed the opinion of most demons on taking a human to mate." she said. "It is to say the least, not well received." she told him.
Inutaisho stood up and turned to leave the room. He opened the door and stepped out into the hall, and Kagestu joined him. "I must leave now and find Ryuukossei before any more damage is incurred." "I have a dark feeling in my heart, that my days may be growing short." he said gravely.
Kagetsu stiffened suddenly, her eyes flashing with emotion as he had never seen them. "You truly do not expect to survive this." she said, more as a statement than a question.
He smiled warmly. Only when faced with the thought of his death she finally showed some kind of feeling. "No, I have to say that I do not." "But if I can protect Izayoi and eliminate any threat to her and enable her to live a long life with our child, then I will not die with regret." he said.
Kagetsu steeled herself at his words. She knew Inutaisho well, and if he felt no regret than neither would she. She had never had any complaint on him, as she had said before, and respected him for the man he was. She would trust that this decision was the right one for him.
"Farewell, Kagetsu." he said with a smile. "Take care and keep safe." he told her. "Remind Sesshoumaru of my words, he will need them one day." he finished, and turned and hurried down the hall.
Kagetsu watched him go, and felt something that she had seldom encountered in her long life. Her eyes stung suddenly, and an ache welled within her chest. She did not wish him to go to his death, but she knew that the path he had chosen was the path he must walk. She would hold no grudge and no bitterness if she indeed lost the man that had become the closest thing she had to a true friend. She had at least felt that for him, if she was unable to feel anything further. She heard the main door to the castle entrance close, and returned to her chamber deep in thought.
Inutaisho marched once again into the howling north wind as he left. He was exhausted, but he didn't have the luxury of time in which to rest. His thoughts strayed to Izayoi; he had sent Myouga to the east when he began his journey to watch after things. If Izayoi's situation became threatening, Myouga had been instructed to come and find him at once and inform him. For now, his main purpose was finding and exterminating Ryuukossei. He hunted day and night for the old dragon, but weeks passed with no trace of him. A fear was beginning to rise in him that Ryuukossei may be eluding him on purpose, but he couldn't think what that purpose might be. Myouga hadn't returned to him, so he had to believe for now that things went well in the east.
Izayoi was becoming frantic, and hardly slept. Summer had just begun, and Inutaisho had not returned and sent no word. Her only comfort was that he had sent his old vassal Myouga to watch over her, the only sign she had that he would return. Her wedding to Takemaru was scheduled in barely more than a week, and nobody but Myouga knew the secret she held. She was lucky that her heavy clothing still managed to conceal her condition. She was terrified that she would have to reveal all to her father and face his wrath.
"My lady Izayoi, are you sure you are well?" Myouga asked from her sleeve. "The time grows near for your supposed wedding." "Should I leave and search for Lord Inutaisho?" he asked nervously.
"I. . .am not sure." she said shakily. She knew she only had days left before her world fell apart. "Just wait for now, Myouga." she said after a moment. Perhaps Inutaisho would return before then. She had to have hope and faith in him, but she didn't know just how serious things had become.
The days passed, and the dreaded time came with no sign of Inutaisho. On the eve of her wedding to Takemaru of Setsuna, Izayoi confessed all to her father in a fit of tears. As she feared, he was quite enraged and bellowed at length about her betrayal of everyone she was supposed to hold dear.
"I knew the first time I saw that damned demon that he was a sign of ill fortune!" he shouted. "Even if he did rescue you from harm, it would be better now if you had died at the hands of those ruffians rather than to have disgraced our family in this way!" "My only daughter, how could you have done this thing!" "What kind of evil spell has that monster placed you under!" he roared. His tirade carried on for quite some time, before he stormed out of her chambers leaving her with her tears. As she had expected, he had been willing to hear none of her praises of Inutaisho and her expressions of love and respect for him. She knew there was nothing she could say that would change his mind.
"Please my lady, you must calm yourself." Myouga said after she was left alone. "Should I try and find Lord Inutaisho now?" he asked. She was too upset to answer him, and since her father hadn't tried to harm her in anyway nor made any threat of it, Myouga supposed he may as well wait it out. He admired Lady Izayoi, she was very kind and beautiful; quite tolerable for a human. Though he wouldn't admit it, he was also reluctant to leave the comfortable life he had acquired while staying undercover at her home. If things became threatening, he would leave straightaway. He leapt down from the lady's shoulder and hopped over to where her doors stood open to the garden. He looked out into the evening, listening to the cicadas as they droned in the summer heat. The sun was setting, and there was no sign of his lord on the horizon.
