AN: The one good thing about having to drive for six-plus hours was that it gave me a LOT of time to think up scenes for this story. I definitely needed it! So, sorry I'm now a day behind, but hopefully it's worth it!
Prompt: Yashahimes
Chapter 2: Camp Half-Demon
To pass beyond is what I seek.
I fear that I may be too weak.
And those are few who've seen it through
To glimpse the other side.
The promised land is waiting
Like a maiden that is soon to be a bride.
— Kansas, "The Wall," verse 3
The border official returned to Setsuna her government-issued ID, and another officer escorted her back to one of the two coach busses ferrying about a hundred half-demons from across the country to the Western Gate. As she walked, she craned her neck to stare up at the massive cliff of stone that was the Wall. The morning sun was burning off the fog shrouding its upper reaches, and the splay of light made the stone gleam like a beacon.
The Western Gate was like the eye of a needle in comparison, although it was wide enough for a two-lane road to pass through the tunnel to the other side.
She clambered back into the bus, planning to return to her seat with her friends Futa and Raita, when her uncle asked from his spot in the front, "All set?"
Setsuna found it a strange question, as she wouldn't have been allowed back on the bus if everything was not all set, but she nodded.
"Good. Good," Uncle Inuyasha murmured in a subdued voice that made her pause. She had found his mellow demeanor strange ever since she saw him this morning, taking attendance of the half-demon campers as they boarded the busses. He had left home a few days earlier than she had for a counselor's orientation, but Setsuna hadn't had a chance yet to ask him how it went. Maybe this was the time. They still had to wait for several other campers to be go through border control, after all.
She slipped into the seat next to him. "Is something the matter, Uncle? You didn't try to mess up my hair today."
Inuyasha let out a brief chuckle at that. "Yeah, I'm okay, kiddo. It's just…being back on the other side brought up a lot of old memories."
Setsuna hadn't thought about how this camp might affect him—she had been more concerned with her own fears. She knew she had been born in the Zone of Neutrality, but since she had been too young to remember it, it did not mean much to her besides being a historical talking point.
But her uncle was a different story.
"How long did you live there?" she asked.
He shrugged. "I dunno. After my mom died, I didn't really call any fixed place home. I just went where my feet took me. And the border was always in flux. One day in human hands and the next day in demons'. It wasn't until I met your aunt that I really stuck to one place. We met when she was…gosh, probably your age."
"That was when she found you napping under a tree and went to fondle your ears. Is that right?" Setsuna asked. Aunt Kagome had mentioned as much about a million times—usually every time she went to stroke her husband's ears and remind him that they had been the first thing to attract her to him.
Her uncle laughed, and inwardly, Setsuna patted herself on the back. Uncle Inuyasha looked much better with his usual grin than he did moping. "Yeah. I don't remember what I did to be so tired, but I must have been really out of it, because I didn't even smell or hear her coming. All I knew was something was touching my ears, and then I woke up to your aunt's chest in my face. Not really a bad view to wake up to, but there wasn't much to see at the time, so it could have been better."
Setsuna yanked off his counselor's cap and pulled on his ear. Inuyasha yelped, batting her hand away.
"That was from Aunt Kagome," she said. Then, like a viper, she reached over and tweaked his other ear, and he hissed. "And that was from me."
"Give me that," her uncle said, swiping the hat back from her and affixing it to his head. "You better start showing me the respect I deserve here, kiddo. I'm a camp counselor, after all."
Setsuna regarded him with a wry look. "When you say something respectful, I will consider it."
"Meh. Sounding like your old man more and more every day," he grumbled. Setsuna's eyes widened, and she was about to press him more about that when he cleared his throat and said, "Anyway, obviously, I got mad at her for touching my person without permission, but she didn't care. Thought they were too cute to ignore. She flounced home after that, but she seemed like trouble, so I stuck around to keep an eye on her."
"Sure you did," Setsuna answered dryly.
Just then, another counselor boarded and said to Inuyasha, "I think that's the last one on this bus. Care to do a recount?"
"Yeah, alright," he said, getting up and calling role again. The camp—and government—were taking no chances with security. Only those marked on a very specific list were being granted permission to pass into the Zone.
"We're good," her uncle said after finishing.
Setsuna considered returning to her original seat, but she wanted to learn more from her uncle.
Several minutes later, the Western Gate finally rolled up, and the busses pulled through into a dark tunnel lit only intermittently with dim, orange bulbs. Setsuna shuddered, practically feeling the millions of tons of stone pressing down around them. She couldn't wait to get to the other side.
When the bus finally pulled free of the stone, the world around them remained blanketed in shadow. Nevertheless, Setsuna looked over her uncle's shoulder to try to get a better view through the window.
Left largely untouched for fourteen years, nature had reclaimed the Zone of Neutrality. Long grasses rippled in the wind, braided with patches of wildflowers. Butterflies swooped from petal to petal.
For a land that had seen so much bloodshed and war, it seemed so idyllic and peaceful.
Setsuna tried to get a different view by peering down the aisle and through the windshield. Even from five kilometers away, the demon side of the Wall dominated the horizon. The sun had broached some bend in the Southern Wall by now, casting the valley between half in cold shadow and half in warm light.
The bus trundled down the old road, moving slowly through ruts and potholes from years of neglect. After a few minutes, it crossed into the sunlit part of the valley and turned off the main road onto a single-lane one that curved alongside a small river. This road was in far better shape; in fact, it looked recently repaved. In the distance, Setsuna spotted a group of buildings, almost like a little village.
"Is that it?" she asked.
"Yeah," her uncle answered, that same strange tone back in his voice.
Setsuna looked over at him. "What is it?"
Sad gold eyes met curious indigo ones. "Ironic, huh? That's the village where we lived. The one where you were born."
"It is?" she gasped, leaning forward to get a better look.
As they passed the first building, painted teal blue, Uncle Inuyasha said, "That's where your aunt and I lived." Unspoken was Moroha, who had only lived there for a week. But Setsuna knew he had not forgotten his daughter. Moroha was just a touchy topic that she and her mother tried to avoid talking about around Kagome and Inuyasha. Secretly, though, Setsuna had wondered: if her father had been responsible for helping to set up this camp and if he had indeed found the missing Moroha when she was a baby…would he send her here today? Miss Shiori's announcement had indicated Northerners were welcome.
She supposed she'd find out if any were coming soon enough.
The bus came to a stop just inside the camp, and her uncle pointed to another house a couple buildings down. It was painted sunshine yellow. "And that's where you and your mom lived. See? They didn't even tear out her garden."
Setsuna gripped the back of the seat in front of her. Even from here, she could tell the garden was overgrown, but it still popped with beautiful riots of color. She vowed then that she would try her best to bring home a flower from it for her mother.
Uncle Inuyasha stood up and turned around to address the raucous bus. He put his taloned fingers between his teeth and gave a sharp whistle, stopping the chatter almost instantly. "Alright, I'm only gonna say this once, so shut yer yaps and listen up. Whatever you have in your seat, take it with you. Do not leave anything on the bus. Otherwise, it's finders keepers, and I'll enjoy all my new stuff, thank you very much." That earned a few snickers from the audience.
"Once you get off, go down to the white building in the center of the camp. It's the only one not painted to burn your eyes, so you can't miss it." More giggles erupted. "Once you're inside, you'll get your cabin assignment, your map, your weekly itinerary, and your camp T-shirt. Hold onto that last one, because you're going to need to wear it for orientation later this morning. And if you forgot everything I just said, they're going to tell you again there, so don't ask me to repeat it.
"Now, once you've got all that, come back to the bus. We'll be unloading your luggage in the meantime. You can grab it then and head for your cabin to unpack. I repeat, do not get off and stand around like a gaggle of murderous geese waiting for your luggage. We'll all like each other much better if you just follow the directions. Am I forgetting anything?" he asked the other counselor.
She shook her head. "Sounds good to me."
"Alright then. Are we clear?" he asked the campers.
"Clear!" the bus answered back.
Setsuna had been concentrating so much on paying attention to her uncle that she failed to notice the disturbance happening outside until she got off the bus. Then, the murmurs of other campers drew her attention, and she looked up to find a film and camera crew settled in the middle of the road, pointing their equipment at them.
"What are they doing?" several campers whispered.
"They never said anything about being filmed," others said.
"Didn't you have to sign the consent form for using our likenesses?" another asked.
"I thought that was just for, like, brochure photos and stuff."
"Who says it's not for a promotional video?"
Setsuna had heard enough. She plowed through the gapers' block of campers trying to get their ten seconds on camera and strode towards the white house. She was one of the few. In mere minutes, she had her cabin assignment: the sunflower cabin. When she got back outside, she consulted her new map and looked around; her eyes immediately snagged on the yellow house that had been her mother's. The name hung above the brown door, and Setsuna suddenly appreciated how the cabin had been painted to mimic the look of a sunflower.
A little smile crept onto her face. Somehow, fate had led her back to her erstwhile home. Would she feel a sense of connection once inside it? She had to find out.
She dashed back to the bus to grab her duffel bag, but there was still a throng of people clotting the road. Her uncle and a couple other counselors were physically hauling or prodding campers towards the office at this point.
Now I understand why Uncle didn't sound thrilled at first to do this job. No one follows directions! Herding half-demons was apparently going to be the same as herding cats. In fact, some of them appeared to have cat-demon heritage, which likely didn't help.
But as she drew closer, the whispers floating amongst the campers suddenly changed, and the cameras swiveled to focus on the main road.
"Could that be them?"
"Are those carriages?"
"Do you think they'll look like us or look more like demons?"
"What do you mean, look more like demons? Lots of demons look human."
"You know what I mean. Like…non-humanoid demons."
Unable to help herself, Setsuna joined the crowd of onlookers, standing on her tiptoes for a better view. The rumble and squeak of wooden wheels grated on her ears, but it created an interesting musical pattern with the clatter of hooves and talons clacking against the worn pavement. She wondered if she could compose a piece to capture that sound—and this moment of anticipation—on the violin.
It seemed to take ages for the carriages to reach the camp, but once they did, the whispers started up again. Each two-wheeled carriage looked only large enough to cart a single person, and each cart was drawn by a different beast, each more magnificent and exotic than the next: a three-eyed cow, a horse with a flaming tail and mane, and a two-headed dragon, for instance. A slow-moving car brought up the rear, and after the carriages and vehicle pulled to a stop, a counselor got out of the car and went to open the carriage doors.
As the six half-demons stepped out of their own carriages, the crowd went silent.
"Well, that was anti-climactic. They look…pretty normal," one camper said near her.
Setsuna hadn't quite been sure what to expect. Half-demons varied in appearance, after all, but she did wonder what would drive a half-demon to stay in the demon's war-ridden land than in the peaceful human ones. These ones did appear mostly human, although one girl with raspberry-red hair boasted little brown ears on her head like her uncle did silver ones.
What was perhaps most shocking about the group's appearance was their attire. On this warm, summer day, when everyone else was in T-shirts and shorts, these campers—with one exception—were dressed in full, traditional garb. Kimonos, hakama, furisode, haori—how were they not sweating, especially in carriages with no air conditioning? The only one who was wearing shorts was a petite girl with a black ponytail, but even so, she still wore a stitched-up red cape.
The other half-demon that caught her eye—Setsuna couldn't tell from this distance if it was a boy or a girl—was clothed from head to toe in white; coupled with the half-demon's short, bright, silver hair and pale skin, the Northerner could have passed for a ghost.
The girl in the red shorts and cape was the first to speak—in an accent that drew out her vowels and used informal language. She pointed at the buses with wide eyes. "Whoa, what the heck are those? They're huge!"
The camp counselor said, "I understand this is all very new and exciting, and I promise all your questions will be answered in due time, but for now, let's get you checked in, and then we'll come back for your belongings."
But even as the counselor tried to herd the half-dozen Northerners towards the white office, the film crew descended.
"Tell us, what are your first thoughts as you step into camp?"
"What is the current political situation in the demon lands?"
"How old are you? Have you ever met any Southerners before?"
"Why did you decide to join this camp?"
"H-Hey, what's going on?" the red-haired girl asked, backing into the white-haired one.
"Excuse me!" the counselor shouted, trying to block the cameras. "Please let them through. You're all supposed to stay in the background—not accost our campers."
"What does this thing even do?" cape girl asked, tapping a camera lens with a sharp claw. A cameraman quickly brushed her off, checking that she hadn't cracked the lens with her talon.
"Come on, move along!" the counselor snapped, pushing them away from the cameras.
Seeing the show was over, Setsuna calmly found her duffel and went to her cabin. Before she stepped inside, however, she dropped the duffel by the front steps and went over to the garden.
Knowing now that her mother had planted it, Setsuna recognized her hand in the work. Growing up in her mother's flower shop, she had learned to distinguish all types of plants, whether they were in bloom or not.
A row of rising sunflowers, their giant heads growing but not yet ready to bloom, towered in the back along the wall of an old fence. They would surely open before the end of camp. Sunflowers were her mother's favorite, and it seemed fitting that her house had been named after them. A bevy of vegetables grew in thick bunches in the center, and herbs blankets the ground. Morning glories grew untamed over the fence, and they likely wouldn't have been original to the design, given that they were a weed, but Setsuna knew that when their blossoms opened in August, they would add another mark of beauty to the garden. Overall, it was a practical one—even the sunflowers would provide tons of seeds to eat—but there were enough flowers dotted here and there to have given her mother something beautiful to look at just for the sake of it.
Setsuna then went inside. Upon entering, she was certain that it had been renovated beyond recognition. Aside from the bathroom and what was once probably the kitchen but was now a little laundry room, there were no other separate rooms. Likely, they had knocked out the walls of any spare rooms to make room for the four bunk beds crammed into the little house.
Being on the tall side, Setsuna didn't feel like hitting her head on the ceiling, so she claimed a bottom bunk for herself near a window that showed a view of her mother's garden. Then she started putting her clothes in the chest of drawers near it. Her itinerary said that orientation started at 11:00, and lunch would be served afterwards at noon, so she went ahead and changed into her camp T-shirt while no one else was around.
Soon after, other girls started trickling in, some already buddied up claiming bunks as near to each other as possible. In the end, Setsuna was the only one left without a bunk mate. She introduced herself as others asked around, but she didn't go out of her way to speak with them, since they seemed intent on talking to each other or getting to know their bunkmates. She was never the sort to butt into a conversation like she belonged there.
Guess I'll just go ahead and nab a seat for orientation, she thought, grabbing her itinerary, map, and phone. She didn't know how grabbing her phone had become so instinctual in just a few months, but it had—even if it wasn't useful right now. Through successive documents, the camp organizers had warned them there would be no cell service or Wi-Fi. Apparently, there was a single computer with a Wi-Fi connection in the main office, where there was also a phone line that connected straight to the agents at the Western Gate for emergencies, but otherwise, they were on their own.
Setsuna opened the front door and froze, coming face-to-face with the end of a very large trunk.
"Oh, excuse me!" a soft voice said, and when Setsuna peeked around the massive trunk, she found the red-head with the little brown ears hoisting the whole thing on her shoulder. Setsuna quietly stepped aside to let her through.
Apparently, this was her bunkmate.
The cabin went silent as the red-headed girl stepped inside, and the Southerners stared at this Northerner, unsure of how to act.
"Um, hello. How do you do? My name is Rion," the Northerner said, bowing her head since she couldn't bow her body without dropping the trunk.
In Setsuna's mind, her mother's voice harped, Why are you just standing there? Be polite and help her!
Setsuna sighed. "Do you need help with that?" she asked.
"Oh, um, sure! Thank you!"
"You're over here, with me," Setsuna added, leading her towards their bunk. Then she took one edge of the trunk while Rion shimmied herself back towards the other, and they set it gently on the ground.
Setsuna's eyes widened. It was heavy. Not that she had trouble lifting it, but who wanted to carry such heavy things when you didn't have to? She was so glad humans had created lighter baggage materials.
"M-May I have the pleasure of knowing your name?" Rion asked.
"Setsuna."
Rion clasped her hands before her and bowed low. "'Tis a pleasure to meet you, Setsuna." Setsuna's eyes widened at the formal, accent-less speech. Then Rion proceeded to go around the room, formally introducing herself to each of their cabinmates.
"You're, like…really polite," a blue-haired girl named Asagi said. She sounded like she had been expecting this petite, Northern girl to be a monster.
But Rion apparently didn't take it that way. "Oh, um, thank you, but 'tis the only way I know how to behave."
"Are all Northerners this formal?" a girl with webbed ears named Ai asked.
"W-Well, I-I am not sure. I do not, um…get out much. But my father is insistent upon proper manners."
"Your father? So you live with him? That's kind of rare, isn't it?" Asagi said. "I mean, I live with my mom, and a couple of the other half-demons I already know do too. How about you guys?" There were general nods of assent from all around the room, Setsuna included.
"I-Is it?" Rion asked.
The poor girl was starting to look uncomfortable, and Setsuna could only imagine how she felt. The other girls were treating her like she was an exotic animal in a zoo—crowding around and caging her. There had only been six half-demons who got off the Northern carriages. She wondered why the counselors hadn't grouped all of them together to make them feel more comfortable.
"Hey, don't we have orientation in a few minutes? We should get ready," Setsuna announced. That successfully broke apart the gaggle of girls, who raced to finish putting their stuff away and change into their T-shirts.
As the girls started pulling off their shirts right then and there, Rion blushed and turned her back to the girls. She focused her gaze instead on the bunk bed.
"Fascinating," she said as she poked Setsuna's mattress. "What is this called? I thought for certain we would be using futons."
Setsuna's eyes widened. She knew the demon lands were behind the times, but now she was starting to understand just how behind they were. "It's called a bed. Specifically, this is a bunk bed, since it has two beds stacked on top of each other. You're on top," she said, pointing to it.
"Oh!" Rion immediately raced to the ladder and climbed up to sit on the top bunk. Setsuna was glad she had taken the bottom—Rion's head easily cleared the ceiling.
The red-head smiled, waving her bare feet. Wait…why isn't she wearing shoes? "How exciting! I will imagine I am sleeping in the clouds, for surely they are as soft and high as this!"
Setsuna's lips twitched. She couldn't help it. Rion was just so cute in her naiveté. She then pointed to the open door of the bathroom. "We have to leave in a few minutes. You can go change in there if it makes you more comfortable."
"I see." Rion jumped down from the top bunk and grabbed the T-shirt lying on top of her trunk. She unfolded it and looked at it curiously. "The sleeves are so short! It seems most improper. But if it is a camp rule…." She paused and then looked over at Setsuna. "And I just…slide it over my head?"
Goodness, even that much was new? Setsuna couldn't imagine just what sort of culture shock these Northerners were going through. She nodded.
"Great, thank you!" She took her shirt and went to the bathroom, examining the swing of the door and the door knob before closing it. Setsuna never heard the lock click, so she took up a stance beside it to make sure none of the other girls, who weren't really paying attention to the two of them, walked in on Rion changing.
However, before Rion got out, the other girls started leaving to go to orientation. Setsuna wanted to leave with them, having a personal motto that five minutes early was on time and on time was late, but she was starting to feel obligated to help Rion acclimate, since the other girls only seemed interested in learning about her rather than helping her.
From behind the door, Setsuna heard the faucet turn on, then the shower…and then the toilet flushed. But as one minute turned to three and the water was still running, she started tapping her foot in impatience. Honestly, she knew the T-shirt was a new design, but it only took two seconds to put on.
She sighed and knocked on the door. "Rion, may I come in?"
"Yes!"
Setsuna opened the door to find Rion twisting the knobs on the faucet back and forth, watching as the flow of water changed. She poked her finger through it.
"Ow, that is hot!"
"What are you doing?"
Rion shut off the faucet with a guilty look and then stood up and faced Setsuna. Her shirt was on backwards, and it looked so at odds with the hakama tied over it. "My apologies—were you waiting? I was just so fascinated. I did not understand what all of the gadgets in here did. To think water can come so easily—both hot and cold! Will you tell me what the purpose is for each of these things?"
Inwardly, Setsuna groaned. They only had a few minutes to make it to orientation, and she had only barely studied the map to know where she was going. "Can I show you later? We need to go."
"Oh!" Rion said, her cheeks coloring to match her hair. "Of course! I am ready."
"Hang on. Pull your arms back through the sleeves."
"What?"
Setsuna demonstrated, and Rion did as instructed. Setsuna then turned Rion's shirt around and helped her pull her arms back out. "There. Now it's on the right way."
"Oh, I did not realize it had a proper orientation!"
Setsuna fingered the back collar of the shirt. "The tag means it goes in back."
"I see. I wondered, but the shirt appeared reversible. The other side just had such a pretty design that I wanted to see it on the front. Thank you," Rion said, bowing again.
"Come on, or we'll be late."
"That would be simply unacceptable!" she said with such seriousness that Setsuna had to bite back a smile. Rion tagged after her like a lost puppy.
It might be a little tedious at first, but maybe hanging out with these Northerners wouldn't be so bad.
"Moroha, you've got the map upside down!" Towa huffed in frustration. "The Community Center is the other way."
"Is it?" Moroha asked, turning the map around and squinting at it. "Ah, so it is! About face!" They turned around and started running towards the other end of camp.
"Ugh, I swear, if we're late because of you—"
"Hey, I wasn't the one asking everyone in your cabin and my cabin for names. Geez, I didn't think you were this friendly."
She had only done that to see if any of the girls were Setsuna. She wanted to find her as soon as possible. But she couldn't tell Moroha that—not yet. "What, you don't want to try to make new friends?"
Moroha shrugged. "I mean, sure, I guess, but also…what's the point? After six weeks, we'll go home, and we're probably never going to see them again. Why put all the emotional effort into it?"
"Moroha, the point of this camp is to foster relations between the human and demon nations—that's exactly why you need to put in some effort!"
"Whatever you say. Honestly, I'm more interested in that contraption they call a shower. Did you see how it creates rain whenever you want? I can't wait to try that out!"
"Oh, I hadn't seen that yet!" Truly, it did sound interesting, but Towa was a little more concerned with finding her sister.
Part of her hoped that as soon as she laid eyes on her, there would be this instant connection—like, bam, I knew you in the womb! So far though, even without introducing herself to all these other half-demons, she hadn't felt that connection yet.
All she really had to go on her search was Setsuna's name. In her baby picture, she had blackish-brown hair (and it was honestly a little hard to tell whether it was black or brown), so she had thought she'd be able to weed out any girls who didn't have those hair colors. But then she overheard some of her roommates comparing something called "hair dye," and when she found out that one could, in fact, dye hair in all shades of colors and not just clothes, Towa realized she would have to talk to every single girl here at camp anyway, because what if her sister also dyed her hair? Southern fashion was so strange. In the North, you played with the hand of cards you were dealt, appearance-wise. Unless you could change your appearance, but only the trickster demons or those with special items could do that.
Towa and Moroha were the last ones to slip into the Community Center, which appeared to have been remodeled from a barn. They took the seats nearest to the door. Towa looked around for the other four Northerners. As she and Moroha had basically recruited them, she felt responsible for making sure they were adapting alright. She spotted Izumo, a half-bull-demon, sitting serenely a few rows down. A spot of bright red highlighted Rion sitting next to a girl with red streaks in her hair. Rion appeared to be trying to chat her up, but the girl only responded in short sentences. Still, Towa was happy to see the girl opening up. She needed to meet more people. It had been something of a battle to convince Lord Kirinmaru to let Rion out of the palace to attend. In fact, it had come down to an actual battle, where he would only allow it if Towa managed to put a scratch on him—which she did. Doing so had convinced him that, if Towa would promise to look after Rion, he could trust her to keep his daughter safe.
As Towa was looking for the other two Northerners, she spotted a counselor on stage and had to do a double-take. That silvery-white hair was such a familiar color—even though the texture did not seem quite as sleek—and she would know those golden eyes anywhere. The counselor wore a scowl that very much showed he would rather be anywhere else than onstage with the other counselors, but even the turn of those lips was hauntingly familiar.
Could that possibly be Uncle Inuyasha? Towa wondered. She glanced over at Moroha, but her cousin was disinterestedly picking her talons.
Towa had been so concerned with finding Setsuna, she had never even dreamed her uncle might also come to the camp. She was about to prod Moroha and point him out when she stopped herself, her father's words coming back to her: how will you take responsibility?
It would be irresponsible, wouldn't it?
After all, maybe she was just getting her hopes up. Lots of demons and half-demons had silver hair or golden eyes. And at second glance, he didn't really look much like her father. He was darker, for one, with much thicker brows, wider eyes, and a fuller face.
Well, the only way they would know is if she found him later and asked his name, so that's what she would do before talking to Moroha.
Moroha acted like she didn't care about not knowing her birth parents. She loved her life in the mountains among the wolf demons as well as her adoptive parents, Kouga and Ayame. The two also treated her as if they had borne her instead of adopting her.
But Towa knew—because Moroha had secretly confessed as much just to her on a couple occasions—that she did hope to meet her real parents one day. She was curious to see whether she was like them at all or if growing up with wolves had completely altered her personality from what it could have been.
Towa came out of her thoughts when a beautiful woman with dark skin; silver hair—ah and there was proof, Towa told herself, that silver hair wasn't any special indicator at all—and piercing, lilac eyes stepped onstage. The room burst into applause. Towa and Moroha looked at each other in confusion before slowly clapping, wondering who this was to gain such immediate praise.
The woman went to a stand on the stage where a strange, black device hovered in front of her mouth. When she spoke, her voice pierced Towa's ears, and she winced at the volume. The device must have amplified it somehow.
"Good morning, everyone, and welcome to Camp Half-Demon! Some of you may already know me as Councilor Shiori, but while we are here at camp, please just call me Shiori, because like the rest of you, I too am a half-demon. Also, like many of you, my family was torn apart by the war. And because of that, let me say what an absolute pleasure it is to see all of your beautiful and varied faces, from South and North alike, coming together for this historical moment!
"While this camp would certainly not be possible without our various government benefactors on both sides of the border, I would also say with equal ardor that it would not be possible without you. All of you have taken a chance in coming to this summer camp—a chance to find out more about yourselves. A chance to connect with others like yourselves. A chance to show our torn nation that it is possible for our two worlds to coexist if we but make the effort."
There was a smattering of applause after she said those words, and Towa joined in this time on purpose, because she too believed in that goal.
"Now, this is orientation, so we need to go over a few housekeeping items. First, regarding your accommodations. By now, I hope you've had a chance to meet your cabin mates. You may have noticed that we've tried to keep you grouped by age—but if you remember those personality tests you took, we've taken those into account too, because we want you to foster close friendships while here. Why age, you ask, when half-demons take a long time to age physically and mentally post puberty? Well, many of you under twenty years old, for instance, will or may not remember life before the border was closed. You're going to have a different outlook on life than those of you up to a century old, who will have seen the world develop faster than ever as waves of new technology mark each decade. And for those of you who are even older—yes, we do have a group of distinguished elders here," she laughed, causing a ripple of chuckles throughout the audience, "we have much to learn from you and would love if you could share both your wisdom and stories from the centuries past.
"Now, I'd like to return to a brief point I mentioned earlier. As you may have heard by now, we have six distinguished guests from the North joining us for camp this year. Though their number is small compared to our Southern campers, they are no less welcome, and truly, I am overjoyed by this turnout! I will not ask you to stand, as I hear you have already been subjected to many curious eyes today, but I just wanted to acknowledge the extremely brave step the six of you took today. You each hail from different demon tribes, spanning the entire geography of the Northern lands, and yet you each undertook a long journey to be with us here today.
"I understand that you might be feeling shocked and overwhelmed by some of the Southern amenities we are using here at camp. Please do not hesitate to ask if there is something you do not understand. And to that end, my fellow Southerners, if you see one of these fine campers struggling with something, please do not hesitate to assist them. Remember, this camp is in part meant to show how we can foster understanding and teamwork between our nations. The first step starts here with just these little interactions."
Towa blushed as some of the heads around them turned to look at her and Moroha—scanning their clothes and memorizing their faces. As if they didn't already stand out enough in their mis-matched clothing—now Shiori was calling them out for their lack of knowledge.
I know she means to be nice about offering help…but that doesn't stop me from feeling like an ignorant child. Ignorance was tantamount to a sin in her household.
"Next, you all have probably spotted the camera crews by now, and those of you who have been extra studious probably noticed some slots on your itineraries that mention interviews. The crew will be filming our activities to create a documentary that will air in the South. At the very least, it will serve to show who half-demons are and how we can get along with both our human and demon halves.
"Of course, many of you know that I have championed half-demon rights and causes in recent years, so this is also a chance to showcase the plight many of you have faced. So, over the course of the next couple weeks, the crew will be conducting a short interview with every camper to find out a little about your stories. If you did not sign the likeness consent waiver, you will not participate, but if you did and are not comfortable with the idea, you are, of course, welcome to decline the interview if you so wish. For those that do consent, the crew does reserve the right to decide whether or not to use the footage in the final film. All that to say: except for the formal interviews, if you see them around camp, just ignore them and go about your regular business. The crew wants to capture you naturally, not posing for the camera. That said, once we are finished in here, we will be going outside to take a group photo before lunch. That is why we've asked you to wear your T-shirts, by the way—as a show of unity."
Towa had no idea what any of that meant. It was like Shiori was speaking a different language—her head spun trying to keep up with the new terms. The only one she recognized was "camera"—the thing her father had said made those realistic pictures. Photographs.
Oh, "photo." Now I understand. It will be like the ones of our family.
Now that she had figured it out, she got excited. She couldn't wait to see what she looked like in a photo. She wondered if they would get copies of them to bring home. She wanted to show her father.
And if I'm lucky, Setsuna will be in there too, even if I don't know it yet! And if that man on stage is Uncle Inuyasha….
So much of her family would be in the photo, they would have to add it to her mother's old album.
"Finally, I would like to introduce you to our camp counselors. Each counselor has been assigned a couple cabins. If you have questions, troubles, or any other matter you would like to discuss, please seek out your camp counselor. This counselor will also be accompanying you on your group activities. But don't fret—you'll still have a chance to meet our other counselors over the summer as the different groups mingle. And don't forget: our counselors are half-demons, just like you, and they will also be participating in many of our activities! So, counselors, as I call your name, please stand, so that our campers can get a good look at you."
Towa's heart started pounding as Shiori began naming off counselors. She couldn't believe it—she hadn't expected to be able to find out so soon if the man on stage was her uncle or not! In fact, she was so anxious, she almost forgot she was supposed to be listening for her own counselor—who turned out to be a giant, doe-eyed man named Jinenji.
Moroha leaned over. "What the heck is wrong with you? Your heart's like a freakin' drum in my ears. Why are you so nervous?"
"Just wait. I'll tell you why in a minute," Towa whispered back.
"Whatever," Moroha mumbled, not really paying attention anymore. Her counselor had already been called too.
"Next, overseeing the Cherry Blossom and Forget-Me-Not cabins, Counselor Inuyasha."
Towa gasped, and her hands flew to her mouth in shock. It is him! She turned to Moroha in excitement and froze.
Her cousin looked as if she had smacked her face right into a low tree branch (it had happened before—multiple times).
Towa grabbed her cousin's hand and squeezed it. "Can you believe it, Moroha?" she hissed, not able to contain her excitement to a quiet whisper. "It's your dad! You can finally meet your dad!"
"I…my…." For once, Moroha appeared to be at a loss for words.
The rest of the orientation was a bit of a blur for Towa. Moroha's eyes remained locked on her dad the whole time, and Towa was distracted imaging the various reunions that would follow the orientation, because how could Moroha not run to her dad the second it was over?
As soon as Shiori and some select counselors finished the orientation meeting, they called everyone to the stage. Towa had to grab Moroha and drag her. She tried to get to the side with her uncle on it, but it was too crowded, so they got shoved to the other end.
It took several minutes for the film crew to get everyone in place. At one point, they told the group to smile, and then a light flashed, and Towa had to blink spots out of her eyes. A glance at Moroha showed the same, blank expression on her face.
Why isn't she smiling? She should be so happy about this! Towa was starting to feel like she was happier over the thought of meeting her uncle than Moroha was at meeting him.
As soon as they finished and announced lunch, Towa took Moroha's wrist again, intending to go introduce themselves to Inuyasha, but then Moroha tore out of her grip and pelted out of the Community Center. Towa scrambled to follow.
What is she doing? Towa wondered. I know she likes to eat, but meeting your dad for the first time has to trump eating lunch!
She tracked Moroha back to her cousin's cabin, where she lay sprawled on her top bunk, face buried in a pillow.
"Hey, Moroha, what's wrong? Don't you want to go meet your dad?"
Moroha shook her head.
"But why?" Towa honestly couldn't understand. If Setsuna had been announced on that stage, she would have been after her like a fox demon after the ladies.
Moroha finally surfaced from her pillow, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "I'm just not ready, okay? Imagine suddenly coming face to face with your mom. Wouldn't you panic?"
Towa didn't think so, but since she wasn't in that situation, she couldn't be sure.
"Besides…I…I don't know what to say to him."
Towa climbed up to Moroha's bunk and sat next to her, patting her thigh. "You don't need to say anything special. Just say hi, if that's all you can manage."
"What if he's forgotten all about me?"
"Nonsense. He wouldn't forget his own child."
"But I was only a week old when the Wall went up. He barely knew me."
"What does that matter? You're his daughter."
"What if he and my mom had another kid to replace me? What if I don't matter to them anymore?"
Towa screwed up her face in frustration. "Okay, that's enough. I know you're scared, but now you're just being stupid. So what if they had another kid? That just means you have a sibling to look forward to meeting one day too—not that you've been replaced. You're scaring yourself out of talking to him before you've even met him. You'll never get anywhere this way."
"What if he doesn't like me?"
Well, that at least was a more legitimate fear, but Towa still felt it was unnecessary. "I'm sure he'll love you. I mean, Papa loves you, and if Papa can love you, anyone can love you."
Moroha sniffed and looked over at her. "Uncle Sessh loves me?"
"Of course! Can't you tell?" He paid for her living expenses; gave her her sword, Kurikaramaru; and had even acknowledged her skills, in a way, by letting Towa train with her and Yawaragi.
Moroha snorted. "If you say so. I guess you know him best." She chuckled wetly. "I mean, I guess if Uncle Sessh can love me, anyone can, because he's the one with the biggest wall around his heart."
"No, that would be my grandmother," Towa answered. Her father's walls were made of flimsy paper compared to her stone.
"Ha! Okay, that's true. Still, I think I'll rub off on her eventually. I'm too cute to hate," Moroha said with a smirk.
Towa smiled. There was the cousin she knew and loved. "You see? If you think you can get my grandmother to love you, you can definitely bet you'll get your father to like you—if he doesn't like you on sight already."
"Yeah…I guess maybe you're right. I'm probably being silly. But…I still don't know what to say. I mean, what do I even call him? It feels weird to call him, 'Dad,' when that's what I call…you know, my other dad."
That was a conundrum. "I'm sure something will come to you in the moment. You never seem to have a problem bestowing nicknames on people, whether they like them or not." Moroha just grinned cheekily at her. "So…are you ready to go meet him?"
Moroha's little fangs bit into her bottom lip as she chewed it. "I don't know. I just…don't feel ready yet."
"I mean…there is still time if you need to work up to it…but I feel like you should take advantage of what time you have, you know? As you said earlier, we only have six weeks…and then we have to go back home. Who knows when you might get to see him again?"
Moroha sighed. "Yeah, you're right, as always. Why are you always so damn persuasive?" Moroha grumbled.
"Hey, somebody had to talk us out of all the trouble you got us into as kids," Towa answered, attacking her cousin with tickles.
"Ah, stop, stop! You know I can't stand this!" Moroha laughed.
After Towa had tickled some happiness back into her cousin, they went to the dining hall, but they had taken so long to get there that most of the food was picked over, and several of the campers had already eaten and cleared out, going to explore the camp before the first activities started. Towa and Moroha looked around for Inuyasha.
"I don't see him," Towa said.
Moroha's shoulders slumped. "Here I went and got all hyped up for nothing."
"Don't fret. We're bound to run into him soon," Towa said. "The camp's not that big."
And maybe with him, they would run into Setsuna. Because if her uncle was here, she had no doubt her sister was.
AN: Well, this chapter took a different turn at the end than I expected, but I'm rolling with it. It also ended earlier than I meant it to, plot-wise, but it was getting long and I wanted to get you guys SOMETHING tonight. (I honestly don't know how I'm going to keep this story to just seven chapters at this rate, lol. It was a stretch to assume I could even do so from the beginning, haha.) Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it regardless, and see you next update!