AN: Okay, it's the part you've all been waiting for: the switch!
Prompt: Mommy's/Daddy's Girl
Chapter 5: Homecoming
Gold and diamonds cast a spell.
It's not for me, I know it well.
The riches that I seek are waiting on the other side.
There's more that I can measure
In the treasure of the love that I can find.
— Kansas, "The Wall," verse 5
Moroha held out her dad's cell phone without trying to look at him. "Here. I recorded a couple messages—one each for you and Ma. But don't even think of watching it before you get home!" she chided, blinking rapidly to try to hide the tears filling her eyes.
Inuyasha slowly reached out and claimed his phone, but he trapped Moroha's hand with it. He clutched both so tightly, Moroha wondered which would break first—the phone or her bones. "Dammit, how am I supposed to do this? How am I supposed to willingly walk away from you once again?"
The tremor in his voice broke Moroha's willpower, and she glanced over at him. "Pops…."
Inuyasha lunged forward and enveloped her in another bone-crushing hug. This time, though, she didn't mind. It only squeezed the tears out of her eyes faster. She wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his shoulder and wetting it silently.
"You should be coming with me to see your mom," he continued, growling. "Not going back to a damn country where I can't even contact you."
Moroha sniffed hard to pull the snot back up into her nose. "Pops…you know I can't just…leave without saying a word to my mom and dad."
"You really care about that mangy wolf, huh?" Inuyasha asked in a tight voice.
"Well, yeah. I mean…he did raise me," Moroha muttered.
"Heh. The one thing in his life he actually did right." Inuyasha pulled away from his daughter and knelt down, cupping her face and wiping away the tears from her eyes, although his own golden ones glimmered with unshed tears. "Don't you worry, kiddo. We're going to figure this out. I'm going to work with Shiori to get you back on our side, where you belong. I mean, your mom and I have your birth certificate, so that's a start. Shiori can send some official nonsense to your uncle and Kouga, asking for witness statements—and they damn well better provide them! You have my full permission to let them have it if they don't."
Moroha chuckled wetly, wiping her eyes. "They're not that bad, Pops. I'm…I'm sure the only reason they wouldn't is because they couldn't bear to see this cute little face go," she said, trying to smile, although the too-tight muscles in her cheeks twitched with the effort.
Her father snorted out a single, soft laugh. "I swear it won't take fourteen years this time. But damn if it still isn't the hardest thing to let you go."
A tear pulsed out of his eyes, and he pulled Moroha closer, burying his face in her hair and kissing the crown of her head. Moroha sobbed again, and even though the clicks of nearby cameras told her that their tearful goodbye had an audience, she didn't care.
Moroha wanted to have faith—faith that Shiori's camp would be such a big success, the human and demons lands could reestablish faster, easier communications. Faith that her father would indeed find a way to get her to the other side one day.
But she also knew how slow communication moved through her land, and Setsuna had tried to explain the horrors of "bureaucracy," whatever that was. So even with this tiny flicker of hope, she tried to tell herself that it would be months—likely years—before she saw her old man again or even met her real mom.
Her mom, who didn't even know that she and her dad had met yet and spent all summer together.
Moroha wished with all her heart that she could see her mom's face in person when she watched the video she had left her. But she had yet to see an instance of wishes actually making a difference.
"Here's my…your ID," Setsuna said, handing the card over to Towa, who was now disguised as her. She accepted the ID with a shaking hand.
She couldn't believe it. She was actually going to pass on the other side of the wall. She was going to meet her mother.
She had never sweated so badly, even before an important duel. A breeze swept through the valley just then, and Towa shivered, rubbing her legs together, still unaccustomed to wearing shorts and feeling the air kiss her bare skin there. Her entire body was clammy with nerves.
"And be sure not to eat these sunflower seeds," Setsuna stressed, handing her a baggie full of them. "You're to give them to Mother and tell her they're from her garden. Unfortunately, Miss Shiori said customs won't let you take an actual plant across the border, so at least these can pass as food."
Towa nodded absently, accepting the seeds. She didn't know what else to say. Their departure hurtled toward her like a rampaging bull demon, and she wasn't ready.
I don't want to say goodbye to Setsuna.
Setsuna, for her part, seemed unaffected by their impending separation, still giving her instructions. "I'm sure Mother and Aunt Kagome will be at the train station to pick you and Uncle up. Try not to make a scene. You will be in public, after all."
Towa screwed up her face as tears sprang to her eyes. She shoved Setsuna's shoulder. "You're so mean! How can you tell me to not make a scene when you know I'm going to see my Mama for the first time?"
"That's precisely why I said it. Now, what do I need to know?"
Towa sniffed, waving at her eyes to try to dry them out. Setsuna, after all, wouldn't be crying. Luckily, most of the camera crew seemed to be focused on Uncle Inuyasha and Moroha, who were in the midst of a lovely yet heartbreaking goodbye of their own. I hope Setsuna lets me have that much with her.
"Okay. Here are your travel documents," Towa said, handing an accordion-fold paper to her. "A-Un will take you straight home. He knows the way. Because this is our territory, it will only take a day to get there. Moroha will stay the night before she goes back to the Northern Mountains. She knows her way around the palace, so you can just follow her around. She won't find it weird."
Setsuna stared at her hard, and it was strange for Towa to see her own face look so serious. "For the last time, are you positive about doing this, Towa? After all, we won't even be able to communicate with each other once we leave."
Despite her fears, Towa nodded emphatically. "I'm sure. Besides, it's not that long. You said that if I haven't been discovered after a month, I should contact Shiori—"
"Miss Shiori," Setsuna corrected.
"—Miss Shiori for assistance then, right?" Setsuna nodded. Towa took a deep breath and let it out. "Okay then. Let's do this."
She darted forward and wrapped her arms around Setsuna, clutching her tightly. She knew it was unbecoming of Setsuna to initiate such contact, but Towa couldn't help it as the tears that sprang to her eyes. Through blurry vision, she watched a couple filmographers turn their attention from Moroha and Uncle to them. The cameras started clicking again.
Hopefully she could be forgiven for one instance of ruining Setsuna's calm and collected image. As far as everyone knew, they were being separated indefinitely once again, after all.
"I know we're going to see each other soon," Towa murmured, "but I'm still going to miss you so much."
Setsuna's arms slowly came around her back. "Me too. Good luck…sis."
The term of endearment only caused Towa to break into actual tears, and the cameras captured it all.
Suddenly, someone else crashed into them, and Towa looked over to find Moroha hugging her.
"Setsuuuu! I'm going to miss you so much!" Moroha whined, her face a mess of tears and snot.
"Morohaaaa," Towa answered as she always did when Moroha used that tone of voice. She wrapped an arm around her cousin. She wished she could have had her best friend at her side, navigating the unknown with her these next few weeks. But at least she knew Setsuna would have someone to rely on.
When the three finally pulled apart, Moroha wiped her eyes with her fists. "I'm gonna talk to Uncle Sessh, okay? We're gonna figure something out. This whole separation thing just ain't gonna to work for me anymore."
Towa glanced over at her sister with a sad smile and grabbed both her and Moroha's hands. "Yeah, it's not going to work for me either."
Just then, Uncle Inuyasha came over, his eyes still red. "Hey kiddo," he said to Towa. "We're the only ones not on the bus. We've got to go."
Towa nodded miserably, but she still couldn't let go of her sister's or cousin's hands. Her uncle then turned to Setsuna and put a hand on her kimono-clad shoulder. "You take care, Towa. And tell your old man to get to work on calming those damn demons down or something so we can get rid of this stupid Wall."
Setsuna nodded. "I will, Uncle." Then she enveloped him in a hug, which would have surprised Towa except for the fact that she knew Uncle Inuyasha was like a father to Setsuna, and she was saying goodbye to him for at least a month, if they were lucky.
When they finally pulled apart, Uncle Inuyasha gently guided Towa towards the bus. Towa kept looking back over her shoulder at Setsuna and Moroha until she climbed into the bus. She froze as she stared down the aisle and the rows and rows of seats, uncertain where to sit.
"Up here with me, kid," her uncle said, pushing her into the empty front seat. "We need to have a talk."
Towa's heart started pounding. He doesn't know, does he? She had even sniffed herself again this morning to make sure she smelled like Setsuna. Don't be silly, Towa. If he knew, he would have mentioned it before now. She sat down and peered out the window, watching as Moroha and Setsuna waved. She waved back.
Then the door to the bus closed, and it pulled out. Towa turned to ask her uncle what he wanted to talk about but stopped. He was hunched over the bar in front of their seat, a white-knuckled hand clasped tightly over his eyes. The muscles of his jaw stood out in relief with the need to cry, but he didn't.
Not now then. They had time to talk later.
Towa's heart sat like a stone in her chest as the bus turned onto the beat-up road leading toward the Southern Wall. It was still morning, so they soon passed into the Wall's shadow, crawling towards the tiny opening in the massive cliff.
Passing through the tunnel was a similar experience to when she had come through the Northern Wall, except that electric lights burned overhead instead of foxfire. As the bright light of day approached at the end of the tunnel, her heart ricocheted in her chest.
This is it. I'm officially the first Northerner to cross into the South in over fourteen years.
The gate rose and the bus passed underneath. It quickly came to a stop near a little office, and an official came out.
Another counselor sitting on the other side of the aisle stood up and said, "Alright everyone, grab your IDs and get off the bus in an orderly fashion. Remember, don't get back on until the officials have done their sweep."
Towa grabbed Setsuna's ID and followed the others, making sure she was a few people back in line so that she could see how this was done. Luckily, it wasn't that different from going through the Northern border, except that here, the official took Setsuna's ID and typed into a computer instead of analyzing the official papers.
"Did you enjoy your time?" he asked in a neutral tone.
"Oh, yes! So much so, I was sad to leave," Towa said.
He nodded, then handed back her ID. "You're clear. Welcome home."
Home. Except this wasn't home. Six weeks at camp and Setsuna's lessons had given her an idea of what to expect, but at the same time, Towa felt so unprepared.
How was she going to face living in a world where she knew so little about the technology?
Once everyone had been cleared and the busses had been thoroughly checked, they departed. When the bus pulled onto a larger road and started speeding up, Towa watched in amazement as the scenery whizzed by, even faster than it did when she was on A-Un's or Papa's backs as they flew. Soon, dozens of cars weaved around them in a dance, and Towa watched in wonder, amazed at how they could move so seamlessly.
Does anyone ever crash? she wondered as a few cars zoomed by to their left while they passed others on their right.
"Setsuna," Uncle Inuyasha said, and it took Towa a couple seconds to react to the name that wasn't hers.
"Uh, yeah?"
He was looking a little more composed now. "We need to talk about what we're going to say to your mom and aunt about Towa and Moroha."
Oh, right. Setsuna hadn't had a clue about her existence. This was bound to be awkward.
"What do you think we should do?" Towa asked.
"We're not going to hide a thing from them, you got that? We're going to tell them the whole story. But…we should wait until we get home first. I know they'll be excited to hear about camp on the way back, but if I know them, they're both going to burst into tears as soon as we tell them the story, and I'd rather not have to pull us all from a burning wreck because someone veered off the road in a waterfall of tears."
Towa nodded. "Okay. So…keep it vague until we get home." Her uncle nodded. "Are you going to show Aunt Kagome Moroha's videos right away?"
"You've got some pictures of the three of you on your phone, right?" Towa nodded. Watching Setsuna play with her phone over the last several weeks had been useful, but Setsuna had also given her a very in-depth tutorial on how to use the device. "I think you need to be the one to bring this up. I mean…you're the one who didn't know about Towa, after all."
Towa nodded. She could do that. After all, she had already confronted Papa about Mama and Setsuna before. At least this time, it would be easier—for her, at least. She wondered what Mama would think of her when she saw the photo.
Suddenly, the swarm of butterflies that had settled in to hibernate in Towa's stomach earlier took off. What will she think of me when she sees the photos? Will she want to know about me? Will she still love me, even though she hasn't seen me since I was a baby?
A few hours later, Towa stared in awe as they came upon the fabled Southern capital. Glass buildings rose like pillars of crystal into the sky, shining bright and welcoming in the summer sun. The bus slowed considerably as the roads became congested with cars, but Towa didn't care. She preferred the slower pace. She wanted to absorb everything.
Even the modern wonders of camp hadn't prepared her for the sheer magnitude of the city. Setsuna had shown her images, of course, but she couldn't tell the scope from just a picture. They passed parts of the city both beautifully colored and drably ugly.
This is the world in which Setsuna grew up. She couldn't wait to experience it for herself.
The bus eventually pulled up to a building where lengthier buses—no, trains, Towa corrected herself—sped on suspended bridges over the roads. A crowd of people hung out in the parking lot, but Towa couldn't make out her mom or aunt from here.
When the bus finally pulled to a stop, Uncle Inuyasha stood up. "Alright guys, keep your butts seated a little longer. We're going to unload the luggage first, so we don't have you all crowding around and getting' in the way. We'll let you know when you can come off." His face softened then. "And after that, you're free to go. On behalf of Camp Half-Demon, we hope you enjoyed your time at camp. And you've all got your camper directories, so don't be strangers, alright?"
The bus erupted into applause as the counselors waved and got off the bus, going to unload. Towa couldn't stop her foot from bouncing on the floor as she watched one suitcase and duffel after another come out. She wasn't sure whether she wanted them to hurry up or slow down. On the one hand, she was dying to meet her mother. On the other, anxiety had her blood racing.
Finally, the counselors let them off the bus, and she slipped out as the first one. She quickly located Setsuna's duffel and then looked around at the waiting crowd, searching for a face she had only seen in photos.
"Setsuna! Over here, Setsuna!" Towa turned towards the voice, spying a hand waving behind two incredibly tall humans. A dark head bobbed up and down between their shoulders, trying to make eye contact.
Towa's heart lurched as she started in the direction of the waving hand.
And then finally, her mother slipped around the other waiting families and smiled at her.
Towa swore her heart stopped just then. Her feet froze, and she sucked in a breath as she looked at her mother for the first time. She was a little more mature than the young woman in the photograph—her features having filled out a little—but not old by any means.
Towa's throat tightened, and tears made it impossible to make out her mother's face anymore, but nevertheless she dropped her bag and ran. "Mama!" She slammed into her mother's chest, wrapping her arms around her and crying.
"Oh, hello, my sweet baby girl!" Rin exclaimed, twisting them in place as she embraced her. She kissed her forehead. "I have missed you so, so much!"
"M-Me too, Ma-…Mother," Towa answered, trying to get her head back in the game. She had already slipped up once, but hopefully her mother would only blame that on emotions. She took a deep breath, inhaling her mother's scent—one of sunshine, freshly-tilled earth, and some sort of confection. She committed it to memory.
Rin pulled back and looked at her. "Oh, sweetie, what's wrong? You hardly ever cry," she said, digging into her purse and producing a tissue. Towa took it and blew into it, then dabbed her cheeks.
"It's just…been too long," Towa answered. Understatement of the century.
"Oh, I know. These six weeks were so hard without you. Come here," her mother said, embracing her and kissing her again.
Towa burst out laughing. She had never been shown so much affection in her entire life. Getting Papa to embrace her usually required tears, and her Grandmother never returned her one-sided hugs. Moroha was the only one who instigated them, but…it just felt different coming from a parent.
"Hey, when do I get some of the love?" another voice asked, and Towa opened her wet eyes to see Aunt Kagome standing behind them with her hands on her hips and a playful pout on her face.
"Aunt Kagome!" Towa exclaimed. There really was no mistaking Moroha's mother—they looked so much alike. She left her mother's embrace and went to her aunt's, sniffing her as well.
"You're being so affectionate today!" Aunt Kagome laughed, placing a kiss on her cheek. "You really must have missed us."
"I did," Towa answered.
"Well, come on, come on, let's move so we're not in the way as we wait for your uncle," Aunt Kagome said, pulling her to the side. Her mother grabbed her duffel and brought it over. "So, tell us: how was camp? Are you glad you went?"
"Absolutely. It changed my life," Towa answered. In more ways than I ever could have imagined.
Various goodbyes from fellow camp-mates kept her mother and aunt from asking too many questions in the parking lot, but an hour later, they were finally in the car and on the way home. Towa stared out the window, drinking in the sights of the capital, while her mom and aunt peppered her with questions that she couldn't always give full answers too—at least not until they were home.
This is where Setsuna's reserved personality does me a favor.
"So, what kinds of activities did you get to do?"
Towa regaled them with everything from sparring to canoeing to crafts.
"And did you make any friends?"
"Yeah, I made a couple really close ones," Towa answered.
"That's great!" her mom replied. "Do they live nearby?"
"Not exactly."
"Oh, that's a shame. Well, hopefully you can still keep in contact so you can meet up sometime."
"I hope so too." She was counting on it, in fact—or else she was never going home.
When they finally made it to the house, Towa tried not to stare like a tourist at the flower shop and the two apartments above. Uncle Inuyasha brought hauled their bags as they trudged up to the second floor. Even before they opened the door, Towa caught of whiff of something sugary sweet, and it smacked her in the face when they stepped inside. "What's that?"
"I made melon bread to celebrate your return!" Rin answered.
"Nice! Thanks a bunch, Rin!" Inuyasha said, plowing into the kitchen, dumping the duffels, and sniffing out the sweets. He found the covered plate and brought it straight to the table.
Aunt Kagome smacked his hands as soon as they removed the cover. "Let Setsuna have one first before you eat them all."
"Hey, you're actin' like she's the only one that's been gone for six weeks. All she had to do was participate in camp activities. I, on the other hand, had to manage over a hundred rowdy half-demons."
"Yes, but this isn't your first homecoming. Come on, Setsuna. Eat up!" her aunt said, shoving the plate towards her.
Towa tentatively took one of the turtle-shell-shaped pastries, gently squeezing it between her fingers. It had some of the give of bread, but the crust was harder and flakier than usual. She bit into it, getting a taste of sugar cookie—which she had had at camp for the first time and loved—over the bread. Her face lit up. "Mother, it's delicious!"
"You say that every time, but I never get tired of hearing it. Thank you, dear," Rin answered, hanging up her purse.
"So, sit down and tell us more. I'm sure you took pictures. Why don't you show us?" Aunt Kagome said, taking a seat herself and patting the spot at the table next to her. The rest of the family sat down as well.
Towa took a deep breath. She met her uncle's eyes and he nodded. This was it. Time to tell them.
Towa took out the phone and went to the beginning of the photos. Setsuna had taken some of the camp before they met. This was as good a place to start as any. "Mother, does this place look familiar?"
"What do you mean? Why would I…?" Her voice trailed off as she leaned over and stared at the photo of the Sunflower Cabin. "Oh my goodness. Is that…my old house?"
"That's what Uncle Inuyasha said."
The two women looked over at him for confirmation, and he nodded. "They turned the whole village into a camp. They used the houses as cabins and even the old barn for an auditorium."
"Did you see our house?" Aunt Kagome asked.
Towa scrolled ahead. "Here it is." As Aunt Kagome remarked over the changes, Towa pulled the sunflower seeds out of her pocket and placed them in front of Mama. "These are from your garden, Mother. I wanted you to have a little piece of it." She then swiped to the photo so her mother could see what had become of her garden.
Rin gasped, looking at all the photos Setsuna had taken of the different plants. "It's still there?"
"Yes. I'm pretty sure they named the cabin after it. Se…I was in that cabin—the Sunflower Cabin."
Rin placed her hand on Towa's. "Oh, baby. You were born in that house, you know?"
"I know. It was neat to be there again knowing that." Towa was so glad these words, at least, weren't a lie, because she had been born there too—right before Setsuna. She had also spent plenty of time hanging out in Setsuna's cabin.
"It looks like they did wonders with the village. It looks so much livelier now than it did when we were last there," Aunt Kagome sighed. "I'm glad it could be repurposed for this sort of occasion. Better than letting it rot after we were forced out." She swiped ahead. "Oh look, this was Kaede's house!" She had landed on a photo of the white office.
"Kaede?" Towa asked.
"You know—the woman who raised me," Rin answered.
Oh. Right. I think Papa mentioned that. I can't believe I forgot.
"Of course! I'm so tired, it must have slipped my mind," Towa said in an effort to cover up her mistake.
Aunt Kagome prepared to swipe the next picture, but Towa darted out and covered the phone with her hand. Aunt Kagome frowned. "Setsuna, what's up?"
"Um, so…remember those friends I was telling you about?"
"Yes. What about them?"
Towa swallowed. "So, we got close. Like, really, really close."
Aunt Kagome nodded slowly. "Yes, and that's wonderful. But you said they didn't live around here, right? How far away are they?"
"Well, that's the thing. They're from the North."
Her mother and aunt groaned in sympathy. "Oh, I see," Mama said. She pet Towa's arm. "I'm sorry, baby. It must have been tough befriending them while knowing you wouldn't be able to see them again."
Towa nodded. "It was—more than you can imagine. Well…maybe not, actually. I think you can imagine it pretty well, Mother."
Rin's brow creased just the slightest. Towa swiped to the next photo, which was a shot Uncle Inuyasha had taken of her, Setsuna, and Moroha with their arms slung over each other's shoulders in front of the Solitary Cabin.
"It's hard to say goodbye to your family," Towa added in a murmur.
"Family?" Aunt Kagome echoed, looking down at the phone. But Towa's attention was focused wholly on her mother.
She saw shock and recognition light Rin's eyes when they landed on the image of her. Towa wanted to cry in relief.
She recognizes me. She hasn't seen me in fourteen years, but she knows me.
"Setsuna…" Rin asked with a breath as shaky as the hand reaching for the phone. "Is this…? You met…? You know about…?"
"Towa? Yes, Mother. I met my twin sister." Aunt Kagome's mouth fell open, and Towa turned to her, adding, "And Moroha too."
Now it was Aunt Kagome's turn to gasp. "Moroha? My Moroha?" Towa nodded, and her aunt looked over to Uncle Inuyasha. He leaned hunched on the table, hands clasped tightly and elbows propping him up as if they were the only things supporting him. "Inuyasha, did you…?"
"Yeah. I found our little girl, Kagome. And she's beautiful."
Aunt Kagome's hands flew to her mouth as she tried to suppress a cry, but then she burst out of her seat and flew to her husband's arms. "You're telling me our baby's alive? He did it? Sesshoumaru found her?"
Her uncle nodded. "He did, and she grew up just fine."
Aunt Kagome burst into a fit of sobs against his shoulder. "T-Tell me everything about her!"
Inuyasha picked her up. "Tell you what. Why don't you let her tell you herself?"
Kagome pulled back in shock. "W-What do you mean?"
He pulled out his phone and wiggled it at her. "She recorded a couple videos just for us. Wanna go watch them?"
Kagome grabbed his phone like it was a lifeline and started tapping through it as he brought her upstairs to their apartment, leaving Towa alone with her mother.
She turned to find that Rin had zoomed in on Towa's face in the photo, staring at it with reverence and glassy eyes. She looked up at Towa. "How did you find out?" she asked on a whisper.
"I…Towa knew. She came to camp specifically to find me. It's kind of a long story how we met each other, but—"
"She knew?" For a second, a flicker of annoyance crossed her mother's features, and Towa froze. Why is she angry? Then Rin set down the phone and took both of Towa's hand in hers. "Setsuna, sweetie, you have to know—I never wanted to hide her from you. But your father asked me to do this, saying he wanted to spare you two the pain of not knowing each other, and…I agreed with him. But to think that all this time, he ended up telling Towa after all—"
"No, Mother!" Towa protested. "He didn't tell m…her, I swear! Towa told me she found out accidentally when she was a kid. She didn't even ask him about it until last year, when he brought up the idea of the camp. He didn't realize she knew all this time."
"Still…you must be so angry with me," Mama said.
Towa squeezed her mother's hands, and Rin stared at them in surprise. Towa wanted to reassure her that she wasn't angry, but she had to think of this from Setsuna's perspective.
Just…remember how you felt when you first found out.
"I admit, I was…hurt that you kept this from me. But I understood. I've seen how much this separation has hurt you over the years…and I didn't even realize you were missing another child too. You must have been feeling even more pain than I was—and I don't even know my father."
Rin brought a hand to her mouth, trying to suppress a sob and failing. "Yes. There were so many times I wanted to tell you, because…baby, it's been so hard. I love them both so much." Towa's heart soared at the words.
"And Towa loves you, Ma…Mother. She wanted me to tell you that. And she wanted me to tell you that P…Father still loves you too."
Rin got up then and came over to wrap her daughter in yet another hug, and though the contact warmed Towa's heart, she wished then she could drop her disguise and reveal herself to her mother.
One day soon, Mama, I will hug you as me and not as Setsuna. And then I'm going to bring you and Papa back together again.
Later that night, after everyone had had their crying spells and Kagome and Rin had interrogated both Towa and Inuyasha with questions about the girls, Towa trudged to Setsuna's room, both her bones and soul aching with exhaustion. When she entered the bedroom, she groaned at the sight of the fluffy bed.
Thank goodness…no futon on a hard floor. She dropped her duffel at the foot of the bed and flopped straight onto it, moaning in relief. She buried her nose in the comforter, smelling Setsuna all over it.
As she lay on the bed, she looked around at the room her sister had grown up in. It couldn't have been more different from her own. The walls were painted lilac. A violin case sat in the corner alongside a tall bookshelf filled with both music books and literature. Little knick-knacks crowded the shelves and furniture tops.
Towa's room was Spartan in comparison. It contained a futon and some swords on the walls as well as a couple paintings—one of a dog demon flying against the moon and another that was a family portrait her father had commissioned to commemorate her tenth birthday and the first decade of her life. She stood between her father and grandmother in it.
There was a singular book under Setsuna's nightstand—one that looked more like a photo album than anything else. Curious, Towa reached down and plucked it out, wondering if she could see more of her sister growing up in it. She sat up and opened the cover.
The formal portrait of Papa holding baby Setsuna met her, along with a paper filled with a familiar script.
Papa's handwriting. She read the letter, and although it was addressed to Setsuna, her eyes misted over again. Even without the handwriting and the signature, she would have known it was her father who wrote it. He had given Setsuna the same commands her had given her when she first started training all those years ago.
Cut the wind. Cut the water.
Of course, Setsuna had probably never thought he meant it literally. Certainly, her father had made it out to be metaphorical in this case.
He really does love her. Papa must miss her so much.
She turned the page and found an article about Papa from before she was born—one pertaining to a battle during the war. She quickly flipped through the rest of the book, finding a few more articles.
She smiled. Her father had mentioned some of his battles to her as examples during her strategic warfare lessons, but he never told her any tales for fun. Reading these would be a new look into the man she had always known—even if they were written from the enemy's point of view.
Thank you for this, Setsuna. I just hope by now that you've had as lovely a reunion with Papa as I've had with Mama.
When the carriage finally came to a stop, Setsuna tried to un-stick herself from the seat and couldn't. Her garments felt glued to both her sticky skin and the wood, her butt was numb, her back ached, and her legs were stiffer than a billy goat.
I have never been so thankful for the invention of cars before, she thought. She couldn't believe her sister had been living in this backwater territory for her entire life. Towa was always so upbeat and cheerful, one would never imagine all the daily discomforts she suffered.
The carriage rattled as something hooked to it outside, and then the doors swung open, and an armored guard held out a hand without looking directly at her. "Welcome home, Lady Towa."
Stunned, Setsuna reached out and took his hand, only because her legs weren't working properly yet, and he helped her down a wooden ladder now connected to the back of the cart.
"Would you like to see to A-Un, milady, or shall we take care of him?" the guard asked.
"See that he's washed down and well-fed," Setsuna answered. Towa had shown her how to take care of A-Un's tack, but she couldn't imagine doing so right then in her condition. Besides, she was far too curious about her new home.
And her heart thrummed at the thought of finally meeting her father.
"Ahhhh, finally. That ride took forever! I am definitely making use of Takechiyo for the rest of the way back. No way in hell am I going to suffer days of being cramped in there again," Moroha groused as she walked over from the carriage parked beside Setsuna's, cracking her back. "Those damn carriages are just a wooden box on wheels. Did you see those fancy-ass buses the Southerners get to ride back in? Now, I wouldn't mind travelling in one of those."
Setsuna glanced over at Moroha. Her cousin had been so quiet going into the carriage, she feared Moroha would be depressed the entire trip home. Had she already gotten over her tearful goodbye with Uncle Inuyasha?
"Well, let's go crash in your room. I don't know about you, but I need to lay down and stretch out," Moroha said, turning around and walking the other direction between the carriages. Setsuna followed after her, and when she emerged from between the two carts, she finally saw her sister's home for the first time. She had to keep her mouth from dropping open.
The satellite view hadn't done this place justice. Although she had seen the stairs leading up to the palace, looking from above just didn't give her a sense of height. A traditional, red palace the size of her entire school sat atop a massive pyramid of stone. A wide staircase built of blocks as tall as her and twice as wide led up to it, with two sets of smaller stairs overlaid like ramps upon it, and Setsuna wondered why the palace needed a staircase so large. Is this just a classic case of the wealthy showing off?
But then a new scent caught her nose—like the air before a rainstorm overlaid with a perfume that just screamed ancient—and a shadow crossed over the sun. Setsuna looked up and yelped as a giant, four-legged beast descended from the sky.
Moroha spun around. "Hey, what's wrong?"
Setsuna just stared in shock as the massive animal—a dog—landed on the steps of the palace. Moroha followed her gaze and laughed. "Okay, I mean, I know your grandma can be scary, but she's not that bad. What's got you so jumpy, Towa?"
Grandmother?
Either Towa's drawing skills were far worse than Setsuna had imagined or Towa had failed to mention a pretty significant detail about their grandmother.
The dog with a large, fluffy ruff looked towards them and barked once before padding up the steps. Setsuna blinked. Instinctively, she knew that that bark meant, "Come here." Once her supposed grandmother reached the top of the stairway, she disappeared in a ball of light.
"Well, we'd better not keep her waiting. You know how your grandma gets when she has to wait," Moroha said. In a lower voice, she stage-whispered, "But heavens forbid she care about making anyone else wait for her, you know?" She grinned and elbowed Setsuna, who chuckled weakly, not sure what the joke was but knowing she was supposed to laugh about it.
But one look at all those stairs had her legs shaking like jelly. Did they really have to climb them all? She could barely walk after that carriage ride.
And I thought hauling groceries up one flight of stairs was annoying.
"Hey, let's stretch our legs, huh? Race you up!" Moroha said, and without waiting for an agreement, she took off towards the steps.
Although her muscles protested at first, Setsuna could never turn down a challenge, so she ran after her cousin, soon relishing the stretch and burn in her muscles as they eased out of their cramps. Moroha bounded up the steps like a cricket, hopping up them a good seven or eight at a time, and Setsuna smiled, letting herself leap with abandon like she had at camp, putting her full demonic abilities on display. She would have loved to jump up to her door like this at home, but in the middle of the city with so many people watching, her family liked for her to play it safe and not draw unnecessary attention to herself as a half-demon.
Still, she didn't have nearly the amount of practice running/jumping up these steps that Moroha did, so she was several seconds behind her when she finally landed at the top.
"I see that that camp did nothing to teach you about proper decorum," a woman's rich, velvety voice said, and Setsuna could only stare in shock at the young demoness reclining on her throne with long, silky white hair, rich purple lips, and subtle markings edging the corners of her eyes.
She's our grandmother?
Granted she looked much more like the woman Towa had drawn for her. A large, familiar-looking fur wove through her elbows like a boa, and Setsuna's heart clenched. So is the fur some sort of family standard or heirloom? she wondered. She had let Towa take Mokomoko back home, because her mother would never believe Towa was her if she didn't take it. But Setsuna already didn't know how she would sleep that night without its familiar musk in her nose.
The woman raised her brows in Setsuna's direction. "Well, perhaps I was mistaken. You're being so…reserved, Towa."
Reserved?
Oh, right. She was Towa. Towa probably would have attacked her with a hug by now.
But her grandmother practically screamed, Hug me and you die. What was the right course of action to take?
Well, Towa's still alive, so….
Though her entire body protested every move, Setsuna forced herself to walk over and calmly wrap her arms around the woman. "I'm home, Grandmother."
Her Grandmother did not return the hug, and Setsuna was surprised that she felt…hurt by that. She could almost feel the phantom touches of her mother's and aunt's hands on her back where her grandmother's should be.
"Hmph, well, you didn't run at me and attack me like a puppy, so it's an improvement, I suppose," Inukimi said as Setsuna pulled away.
Oops.
Her grandmother's golden eyes flicked over to Moroha. In a tired tone, she added, "And I see you have decided to grace us with your presence as well."
Moroha clasped her hands beneath and her chin and grinned, batting her eyes. "You wouldn't mind me staying the night here, would you Granny? Let me break up the trip back to the Northern Mountains?"
"If you must," her grandmother said, waving her off.
"Where is Fa…Papa?" Setsuna asked.
Inukimi sighed and leaned against her armrest. "He's gone to take care of another border dispute."
When no more information was forthcoming, Setsuna added, "And when will he be back?"
Her grandmother waved noncommittally. "He left yesterday. It could be hours or days. You know how it is. He will return when he sees fit."
Setsuna's heart fell. How strange this sort of homecoming was. She knew she herself was not the most affectionate of people, but she couldn't help but imagine how her mother and aunt would likely be waiting at the train station for her—how they would attack her with hugs and kisses when she arrived, even as she tried to protest all the love. Mother had probably baked something special, or they would get her favorite meal for dinner to celebrate her return home.
But…her father hadn't even bothered to stay home to welcome her—or Towa, rather—back after a six-week absence.
Well…a border dispute does sound pretty important, so I suppose I understand.
But logic couldn't erase the bruise on her heart.
Her grandmother waved over a nearby servant. "Have someone prepare baths for these two. The odor of travel offends my nose."
Moroha lifted her shirt and smelled it. "Do we stink that bad?"
Inukimi's only reply was to lift a single, thin eyebrow.
Setsuna, for one, relished the idea of a bath. A-Un's charbroiled smell was better than the rear end of a horse, but it still filled Setsuna's nose and had seeped into her clothes. Not to mention, since air conditioning did not exist on this side of the border, she had crouched in a pool of her own sweat for hours, and she felt absolutely disgusting.
"Well, I won't say no to that! I love the baths here," Moroha answered with a grin. "Come on! Let's head back down."
"Back…down?" Setsuna echoed, staring at the flight of steps she had only just managed to climb.
"Uh, yeah, how else are we gonna get to the baths?" Moroha asked. "And a dip in the hot springs afterwards awaits!" She bounded down the steps like a herd of demons was on her tail.
With a barely controlled groan, Setsuna ran down after her.
Setsuna hadn't been in a public bath since she was a child. Granted, she couldn't really call these hot springs public, since everyone had been shooed away to "make way for Lady Towa and Lady Moroha." When she asked Moroha about grabbing a new change of clothes, Moroha just brushed her off and said, "They'll take care of it."
Still, Setsuna quickly came to realize there was one aspect to switching appearances with her sister than she hadn't considered. They were going to see each other's bodies. Naked.
They were both girls, of course, so she knew it shouldn't really matter, but she still hesitated in taking off the juban that she wore—the last bit of privacy covering Towa's body. She would have just removed the gold pearl from her eye—a strange place it had decided to settle on its own, she and Towa found out, after they had practiced transformations at camp (and during which Rion helpd them figure out how to remove said pearls from their eyes at will)— and bathed in her own body had Moroha not been around, but she couldn't reveal her ruse quite yet.
She kept her chin high and dropped the robe, kneeling beside a basin of warm water and a cloth. But once she started scrubbing, she realized she had no choice but to look. For being twins, their bodies differed substantially. Towa was so much paler, after all, that her nipples and veins stood out much more boldly against her fair skin. Setsuna couldn't help measuring the size of her sister's boobs. Were they bigger than hers? How? They certainly didn't look it underneath her clothes!
Ugh, and how lucky Towa is to have white hair. Dark hair anywhere except the top of her head was the bane of Setsuna's teenage existence. Puberty had made swimsuit shopping such a nightmare for her.
"You're being awfully quiet," Moroha said from the basin next door.
Setsuna looked up automatically and then snapped her gaze away. Moroha had absolutely no qualms about walking around in the nude. She strutted about like Towa had already seen everything—which she probably had—and didn't even pay her cousin any extra mind as she scrubbed her body down.
But Setsuna couldn't help but notice one thing: Moroha was flat as a pancake. So at least Setsuna one-upped someone in the breast department.
After they scrubbed down, they made their way over to the hot springs.
"Ahh, that helps loosen the muscles for sure," Moroha sighed, practically melting into the water. "Definitely needed this after that carriage ride."
Setsuna didn't say anything, but a satisfied smile crept over her lips. Warm water easing into her aching muscles and silence, save for the ambience of lapping water? It seemed like the perfect way to relax after that hellish carriage ride.
But Moroha, apparently, had other plans.
"So…you doin' alright, Towa?"
"Why wouldn't I be?" Setsuna answered, keeping her eyes shut and hoping Moroha would get the hint.
"Well, I dunno. You just said goodbye to your twin sister, right?"
Setsuna cracked open an eye and glared. "Shh. That's a secret. Don't go announcing it to the world."
"But why does it have to be such a big secret now? You know, right? If that was the point of keeping the secret, well, cat's out of the bag now."
"But Grandmother still doesn't know. I will let my fa—Papa have the pleasure of revealing to her the fact that she has another grandchild he never told her about."
Moroha pointed two finger guns at her. "Smart move. Let her bite his head off. It's his problem, after all. Still…it had to be hard, leaving her."
Setsuna sighed. "It was…not easy." She hadn't known Towa long, but she couldn't deny the connection she already felt with her. Still, there was no use crying over their separation—especially when they were going to see each other again sooner or later.
"To be honest, I thought you'd be a mess right now," Moroha added. "You know you can talk to me if you need to get anything off your chest before Uncle Sessh comes back."
Setsuna's brow twitched. She felt fine. Moroha, on the other hand…. I suppose Towa would be empathetic, in this case. Against her better judgment, she asked, "Are you sure you don't need to get something off your chest?"
Moroha looked down at the water, swirling it with her finger. "Do you think Uncle Sessh can really find a way to bring down the Wall?"
"Well…he holds significant influence here, doesn't he? And he did help sponsor the camp."
"Yeah, but it took how many years to do that? I mean…how long do you think it'll be before the next big interaction between North and South happens? Like…is my mom gonna die before I ever even get to see her?" Moroha's voice cracked, and Setsuna finally opened her eyes. "I mean…if that's the case, I guess it's good I never met her, 'cause…I'd only just miss her, you know?"
Setsuna sat frozen, unsure of what to do to comfort her. They were naked, after all. It felt strange to initiate any sort of contact. "I…I don't think it will take that long," she answered softly.
"But we don't know," Moroha countered. "I mean…fourteen years is just a drop in the bucket for Uncle, right? Do you think that's why he's moving so slowly with this? Is it his skewed perception of time?"
Setsuna was inclined to believe the issue was more political than personal. After all, if her father missed her mother as much as Towa claimed he did, he had to be aware of the ticking clock for her as well.
Unfortunately, Setsuna didn't know the political landscape of the demon territory well enough to argue that fact, and if anything, Moroha should know it better than she did. So if Moroha was worried, did Setsuna have reason to be as well?
Stop doubting yourself. You haven't even met Father yet. Remember, Towa and I will have to switch again. The more contact that can be established between the nations, the quicker things will move towards change. It just needs to be kept fresh in people's minds.
"Then perhaps it is good that Uncle says he'll work on a way to get you down South."
"True, but then…would I even be allowed back here? I mean, I know Inuyasha and Kagome are my parents, but I still have, you know, my other parents up here. And I love them…. Do I really have to choose between seeing one or the other for the rest of my life?"
Moroha then burst into tears, and Setsuna's skin crawled with unease. She knew Towa would console their cousin with a hug. But would she even do that in the bath, skin to skin?
This is what they call skinship, isn't it? Setsuna wondered, carefully scooting over and putting a hand on her cousin's back, gently rubbing it. Moroha apparently took that as invitation and wrapped her arms around her. Setsuna sat petrified, hyperaware of even point of skin contact between them and trying to keep her one hand casually moving across Moroha's back even though all she wanted to do was shove her cousin away in embarassment. How do I get her to stop?
"I…I'll talk to Papa," Setsuna offered. "Who knows? Maybe he's come up with a solution since we've been gone."
The next day, Moroha left with her tanuki friend, Takechiyo, who flew her back to the Northern Mountains. Sesshoumaru still had not shown up.
As Setsuna stood at the top of the front steps, watching her friend fly away, her grandmother approached her from behind. "Well, now that you've had your rest, you can demonstrate what you've learned at this camp of yours. Let's see if it was worth all that time you spent there."
Setsuna blinked. "What is it that you want to see?"
"Did you have sparring lessons?"
"Yes…."
"Then we will begin there."
Setsuna's heart jerked. Would she be able to put on a convincing show? With Towa's guidance, she had grown a lot during her time at camp, but she didn't know if she was yet at her sister's level.
Nevertheless, her grandmother all but marched her down to the lists. Inukimi took her seat on a raised platform that acted like a box seat at a sports stadium.
"You forgot your sword, Lady Towa," a servant said, presenting it to her.
My sword? Setsuna accepted it and tried not to let her heart drop with her hands and the weight. She had never practiced with a real sword before. Didn't sparring mean using wooden swords so they didn't accidentally hack each other apart?
Keeping up this ruse might actually be the death of me. Nevertheless, as she drew the sword, her blood sang. She had never been so happy as she had at camp when learning how to fight and use her abilities. Now, she didn't have to hide them anymore.
She weighed the sword in her hands. It felt pretty balanced—or at least, more balanced than her uncle's Tessaiga. His massive sword was the only one she had ever wielded before, and it had always been enormous in her child's hands. Not to mention, he only ever allowed her hold it when they went on their summer camping trips. Still, she was thankful her uncle had taught her a thing or two about sword handling with it, even though she was better suited to a knife.
She took the beginning stance with the sword, facing off against a guard who had apparently pulled the short straw. He smiled at her. "Please don't go too hard on me, Lady Towa."
Setsuna frowned. Her grandmother was watching. She could not afford to have any mercy. "Prepare yourself."
The guard's eyes widened in surprise. "O-Of course, milady."
"Begin," Inukimi announced in a bored tone.
Setsuna took the initiative and sprang at the guard with an overhead slash—her uncle's favorite opening move. His words rang in her head as she did: Always try to get a leg up on them. Use gravity to your advantage.
"Attacking first with no hesitation? This is a nice change," Inukimi remarked, laying her temple against her fist. "Perhaps it was worth sending you to camp after all."
As much as the words filled Setsuna's heart with pride, she quickly realized that while her opponent had been asking her to go easy on him, he had asked it of her sister—not her.
He easily brought up his sword to block her strike and repelled her with formidable strength. Setsuna flipped back through the air and landed on her feet, once again resuming her pose. Towa's sword still felt weighty and somewhat clumsy in her hands, and as the soldier ran at her with a horizontal slash, it took every ounce of her concentration to raise her sword in time to block it.
They exchanged a flurry of blows, but the guard kept pushing her back towards the edge of the lists. Setsuna's arms burned under the unfamiliar weight of the metal sword. If she was going to win this and not shame her sister or herself, she needed to use a prominent attack on him and take him by surprise.
But I can't use my demonic energy, she thought with frustration. Mine and Towa's take completely different forms. It will out me in a second.
However, with her focus so divided between the battle and planning ahead, the soldier suddenly slipped past her guard and sliced the edge of her ribs, even as she tried to dodge.
"Gah!" Setsuna grunted, whirling away from the exchange and jumping back to give herself a chance to recover her composure. Blood leached across the white fabric of her kimono and into the top of her hakama.
"Now don't go too easy on me, Lady Towa!" the soldier cried out, whipping his sword around and creating a whirlwind. Setsuna's eyes widened. How was she going to dodge that?
Then, the scent of cosmic ozone tickled her nose—the approach of lightning just before it strikes—and it brought back another old memory from her training with Uncle Inuyasha.
Wanna see what this sword can really do, Setsuna?
Her uncle had perfected this technique so that he could use it anytime, anywhere, but he said that to use it in its most basic form, she had to sniff out the seam where demonic energies clashed.
And now she could smell it.
Just as the soldier let loose a tornado in her direction, Setsuna saw the spark of lightning filling the space between her and his demonic energies. She swung her sword at it.
"Wind Scar!"
The blast that erupted from the end of her sword was smaller than what her uncle could create, but it still managed to cut clean through the cyclone and catch the guard right in the chest, flinging him out of the ring and into the nearby forest, felling a tree.
Setsuna heaved from the effort, grinning despite the stinging ache in her side from where the guard had sliced her. But that was bound to heal soon enough, so she wasn't worried about it.
She had done it. She won and kept Towa's pride. Had she impressed her grandmother?
But before she could look up at Inukimi, a deep, cold voice tore through the arena like a bitter winter wind.
"Where did you learn that?"
Setsuna whirled around, and her eyes widened when they landed on a figure as pale and ethereal as a ghost. Even if she hadn't recognized him from the photo, his scent—the one on Mokomoko that had put her to sleep for years—was unmistakable.
"Fa—Papa."
AN: LOL, don't hate me for leaving you hanging there. Now that I'm not obligated to finish this story in seven chapters, I have free reign to use my ol' cliffhanger tricks. 😝 Also, given the fact that Setsuna and Towa were able to sniff out the Wind Scar in Konton's trap, I have deemed that it gave me free license for Setsuna to be able to use it without the Tessaiga. Okay? Okay. Thanks for rolling with it. 😉