51

Nagira stared at the screensaver on his computer monitor. He'd been sitting there in his dark office thinking so deeply that it surprised him when the screen went black and little white dots began to fly across it. His thoughts were swirling around the DNA test results like bees around a broken hive. How long had he been sure of what they would find at the end? How long had he sensed the truth before it was confirmed? Maybe he had known from the beginning. Maybe there had never even been a question. Had Travisian known too? Was that why the old witch had given the scroll to him?

Nagira's eyes scanned the desk in front of him until they found the new cylindrical container. He'd received it by courier just after coming back from Raven's Flat that afternoon. Travisian had sent it, he was sure. But the note attached to it was as enigmatic as the fugitive himself.

"I need to give you these," it read. "It was not safe to send them via regular mail. They have not ceased pursuing me. The documents within contain the answers to many questions."

Travisian must have already known about the Dog Demon's bloodline, Nagira decided. But how was that possible? How could a total stranger know that he was a dog demon when Nagira himself had not known for sure until today? Had Travisian been watching them before making contact? Nagira thought about telling Amon, but that probably wouldn't do any good. Amon wouldn't be bothered by it. In fact, the whole thing didn't seem to bother Amon as much as Nagira had expected. It was like he had been even more sure than Nagira was from the beginning. That wouldn't be all that surprising. After all, Amon already thought he was a monster. A demon was not such a big leap for him.

And then there was Integra. She seemed to be having the hardest time of all. Despite her bold declaration to Paladin Anderson the day before, she was the slowest to accept the proof. Nagira wished he could say something to make her feel better. He also wished that she hadn't clammed up when he invited her to his office. He hadn't even meant anything by it. No, that was a lie. But what had he meant by it? Robin's question from the other day recurred to him suddenly. "Are you in love with her?" Nagira honestly didn't know. He had only known her for less than a week. He couldn't make a call based on just that.

A knock on the door stopped his thoughts dead in their tracks. He couldn't imagine who would be calling on him this late but he got up to answer it anyway. The moment he opened the door, the silvery hair caught his eye, as it always did.

"Buffy?" he said.

Integra had been standing with her back to the door. She seemed about to be swallowed by the darkness outside. But now she turned around.

"I decided to accept your invitation," she said. "That isn't a problem, is it?"

"Of course not," Nagira said.

He moved aside from the door and she came inside.

52

The next morning, Robin sat on the couch on the side of the office, waiting for Amon to finish up some paperwork. They had left a few loose ends when they ran off to chase the fang swords. She looked up toward the windows on the other side of the office and caught sight of the Tenseiga. It sat firmly in it's new steel rack above the doorway leading to the elevator. It looked like a perfectly ordinary sword up there. But of course, it wasn't. Robin knew that better than anybody. She couldn't decide whether to believe she had been dead or not. She didn't remember a tunnel or any white light like the stories said. In fact, she didn't remember anything from the few brief moments between her eyes closing and opening again. It was as if she had simply fallen asleep. But when she woke up, she wasn't wounded. And she knew she had been before. The blood proved that. She had finally thrown the dress away after spending the whole previous morning trying to wash the stickiness out. It had been a relief to get rid of it. It saved her the trouble of stitching up the hole left by the paladin's knife, as well as the humiliation of being reminded of it.

"Robin, let's go," Amon said.

She got up from the couch. He was putting his papers away.

"What time is Integra's flight leaving?" she asked.

"In two hours," Amon replied. "We're unwrapping the other thing next week, so get some rest this weekend."

"Where did you put it?" Robin asked nervously. She always got a bad feeling when she looked at the mass of spirit wards that had ridden back from the cove in Amon's trunk.

"It's locked in the Chief's office," Amon said.

Robin felt better. But only slightly. As they rode down to the garage in the elevator, she turned her thoughts elsewhere.

"Don't you ever get tired of saving me?" she asked.

"All the time," Amon answered with a tiny smirk.

"Why did you save me? This time, I mean."

"Because I don't want you to disappear," Amon said.

53

Seras hurriedly climbed the stairs to the doorway of Integra's jet. She turned and waved a gloved hand back at Robin. Robin waved back through the open window of Amon's car. Even through tinted lenses, it wasn't hard for Seras to see that she was smiling. Not the same smile she'd gotten from Michael after the goodbye kiss she gave him earlier that day. But still nice. Walter was already leaning back in his seat with his eyes closed when Seras turned into the plane's cabin. She collapsed into the seat beside Walter and let her gaze drift out the window. Sir Integra was standing at the bottom of the stairs with Amon and Nagira. Seras was sure that Walter couldn't hear what they were saying, but she could.

"So you'll come back next summer?" Nagira was saying.

"Of course," Integra replied.

"You suppose that's what Doggie Daddy would have wanted?" Nagira asked, grinning.

"I don't particularly care," Integra said. "And when precisely did he gain that posthumous nickname?"

Nagira gave a snorting laugh and didn't answer.

"You will take care of the Tetsusaiga, won't you?" Amon changed the subject.

"Why wouldn't I? It's mine now," Integra said.

Amon nodded approvingly but Integra only shook her head, a smirk spreading across her face. Amon turned around and went over to his car. Integra started climbing the stairs into her plane. She was halfway up when Nagira called after her.

"Hey, Buffy," he said. "You're a good dog, you know."

She looked back at him with the same smirk.

"Don't call me that," she said.

Epilogue

Dear Dojima,

I'm sorry it's been so long since I've written back to you. I was trying to process everything you said in your last letter. It sounds like you live in interesting times. Allegiances do appear to be forming. Yes, you should keep an eye on everyone. It's useful to have one person who sees all the angles. Tell Michael not to worry about the space-time continuum. I will be sure not to reveal this information about the future to anyone.

Please tell Amon and the others to exercise extreme caution. I understand the need to understand the nature of the thing. But an object wrapped in spirit wards may be dangerous and it should not be handled without taking all necessary safety measures.

Meanwhile, we've all been quite busy over here. Between tracking Naraku, collecting jewel shards, and slaying wayward demons, there's plenty of work for us to do. It seems we'll be staying in this general vicinity for a while. So I will be able to write more often.

I'm enclosing a package of a new herbal remedy I'm designing that might help with your problem. Let me know how effective it is. This is my first chance to test this particular combination, so the feedback will be invaluable to me. Thanks.

Passionately yours, Miroku.

PS. Shall we go again?

Date: July 27
From: Integra
Subject: Re: Yo Buffy
You mustn't let opposing council walk all over you like that. You're far too passive. It's no wonder your clientele is drying up. You might do better business by charging for your services in the witch underground. And don't accuse me of being cruel when you know very well that I'm right.

Date: July 27
From: Nagira
Subject: Re: Yo Buffy
Telling me how to run my business now, huh? Well, I'll have you know that I have one of the best success rates in town with this type of case. I can't lose.

Date: July 27
From: Integra
Subject: Re: Yo Buffy
"One of the best success rates in town?" You sound like you're advertising a fertility clinic. You wouldn't be telling me about your work if you didn't want my opinion. So I'm giving it.

Date: July 28
From: Nagira
Subject: Re: Yo Buffy
It's not that I need your opinion exactly, though I'm always happy to hear it. I'm just venting. That's not weird, is it? I mean, I know I can handle it on my own. But it's nice to have someone to pour it out to. No one around here wants to listen to me griping. It's either you or the Pachinko machines. It's cheaper and more convenient to talk to you. I don't even have to leave my desk. And Hana doesn't scold me when I talk to you either.

Date: July 28
From: Integra
Subject: Re: Yo Buffy
It's not weird to want to talk to someone. But it's difficult to hear you complain without trying to offer advice. That secretary of yours must earn her wages if she scolds you for every bad habit in your arsenal.

Date: July 29
Blackdog: Are you rebuilding your army yet?
Whitedog: I will not be rebuilding my army at all.
Blackdog: That's a surprise. What made you decide that?
Whitedog: I had forgotten how good it felt to do my own fighting. I think it's time for me to step out of the shadows and do what I'm bred for.
Blackdog: That would be a nice change. Each mission will be an adventure in itself.
Whitedog: I hope so. Sitting in my office has gotten a bit old for me.
Blackdog: Do you plan to carry the Tetsusaiga with you?
Whitedog: Indeed I do. I always carry a sword and a gun with me when I expect to fight. I've already replaced my regular sword with the fang sword.
Blackdog: You always carry a sword around? You're so old fashioned.
Whitedog: Don't tease. It comes in handy. And I have one more piece of news.
Blackdog: What might that be?
Whitedog: I've decided to quit smoking.
Blackdog: ...
Whitedog: I'm not kidding.
Blackdog: Are you sure about this?
Whitedog: Yes. I've given it a lot of thought. If I want to travel and fight more often then I should take better care of my health.
Blackdog: So I won't have to pay you back for that cigar then?
Whitedog: You wish...

The End... or is it...

Story Notes:

"The documents within…" - The full text of these other scrolls is already written and I promise I will include some of it in a later story.

"...posthumous..." - This word refers to something that's given to a dead person, like an award. Or in this case a nickname.

I will NOT reveal what happened between Nagira and Integra (if anything did happen) on the night in question. At least, not yet.

Well, that's the end. Thank you to all the reviewers. I'll be starting work on HD5 soon. It'll be shorter, thank goodness. Maybe even shorter than HD2. But I'll be going back to my habit of finishing the story before I start posting it. So it might take a little while to get it out. Anyway, here's a teaser.

What is that mysterious package wrapped in spirit wards? What clues are contained in Travisian's scrolls? What other secrets is the old witch hiding? How much of Sesshomaru's demon power lies dormant in Amon's blood? And how far would Robin go to save her partner's soul? All this and more will be revealed in Hunting Dogs 5: Pedigree Papers.