It was a nice evening. The setting sunlight made everything glow in a red haze. The farmers were returning home from the fields - and today they did it with more haste than usual since there was a festival taking place in the village. Some food stalls were already set up and soon the marketplace began swarming with humans.
Sesshōmaru watched them, uninterested, as if they were ants. Sesshōmaru himself was an adolescent, but he had been alive for more than two centuries. According to Kikō's Theory on Demonic Nature, which was written before he had been born, this would have made him equally mature to a 15 year old human child. It's important to note however, that at this time Kikō was widely criticized (mostly by demons) for his dabbling in demonic sciences, despite not being a yōkai himself. Some claimed he oversimplified certain demonic traits, while exaggerating others, painting a false picture.
Worst of all, the scholar didn't make an effort to present demons as superior to other creatures, as it was tradition at the time. Kikō would've been shunned for this, but to his credit, he was already dead. Not many remembered his calculations on aging, but demons didn't keep track of time as meticulously as humans did.
Therefore, the exact age of the Inu progeny was a mystery, perhaps only known to him.
He would've been offended of course, had someone compared him to humans. He couldn't relate to the human way of living: doing different kinds of menial work during daylight hours, resting for an unreasonably long time then repeating the same thing again the next day. One would assume nature would compensate humans for their hard work, but they didn't have a long lifespan, either.
Sesshōmaru never had to do anything that had a deadline. Or consequences for that matter. He couldn't even imagine having to work to survive - he didn't need to consume energy the same way most creatures did, and he didn't need to sleep regularly, either. And as he was too young to be preoccupied with the one instinct that humans and youkai shared, there was nothing left that would bridge the gap between him and them. At least, that's what he believed.
Yet he knew perfectly well that soon he would have to put his misgivings aside and at least pretend to get on well with the humans, considering what was about to come. He suppressed a shudder that almost came over him.
A minute after this, his friend arrived. She was in her full demon form, only transforming back when she was hidden from plain sight - it's not like the humans could see them from that far, but it was better to be cautious. The peace between the two races were recently established and fragile, and tonight they would have to conceal themselves to avoid attention.
Hanaerō did not sense Sesshōmaru's discomfort.
'Are you ready?' she asked, magic already swirling around her. When Sesshōmaru nodded, the girl murmured a few incantations. Her features slowly morphed into those of an old woman, and Sesshōmaru almost winced when she repeated the spell on him. He looked at his own hands: they developed deep wrinkles and imperfections. While previously, his skin was an even color with poisonous markings, now it looked thick and hardened, with no indications of demonic heritage.
In other words, they looked like human hands.
Sesshōmaru sighed. Hanaerō's skills were impressive, but he couldn't appreciate them now. Yet, he promised he would accompany her, and he was not going back on his word.
The two disguised yōkai descended from the cliff they were watching the festival from. Soon, they would join the humans celebrating in the center of the village. Their participation was supposed to be a clandestine affair, but if someone were to take a closer look they would've noticed the mystical aura that surrounded the two. Thankfully, no one seemed to have figured it out, or if they did, they didn't react to it. Ever since the pact between humans and the great Inu no Taishō, who brought peace to the land a few decades before, the two species quietly tolerated each other. The Inu clan and its allies provided protection, in exchange for their inclusion in politics and human affairs. Some youkai believed this to be a useless arrangement, but it served its purpose, for the most part. Such was the state of things in the Western Lands in the fourteenth year of the Kamakura era, on the sixth day of the seventh month.
Sesshōmaru kept bumping into people who didn't get out of his way in time, but strangely, he didn't mind much. Hanaerō really wanted to take part in the celebrations, in fact, she had been talking about it for days. She bought an orange from a vendor and had great fun trying to eat it, something that she had never done before. Sesshōmaru tried to block out the scents emanating from the other stalls, which were an unfortunate mixture of human food, smoke and sweat. The shouting of the vendors and the festivalgoers were almost overwhelming for his sensitive ears. This was not a good place for a being equipped with supernatural senses.
But as curiosity is contagious, soon Sesshōmaru found himself genuinely enjoying the experience. Following tradition, Hanaerō wished for an improvement in her illusion spells and wrote a poem about it on a piece of paper. She tied it to a stalk of bamboo which was later set afloat on the river. Sesshōmaru made a wish concerning never having to do anything again and burned it at midnight.
Oo•✦•oO
The next day, Sesshōmaru found Hanaerō sitting under the lone cherry blossom tree next to her family's residence. It was her favorite spot, as she liked to work on her art not too far from her room. Today, she was working with charcoal, but Sesshōmaru couldn't see what she was drawing, as she hid her paper as soon as he arrived.
Sesshōmaru sat down next to her without saying anything. There was an unspoken arrangement between them: on quiet days, they would seek each other's company and then laze around together.
The boy leaned back against the tree and closed his eyes. There was only one thing overshadowing the tranquility of this moment: he was supposed to be somewhere else. When Hanaerō asked, he claimed it would be fine.
'I already know more than my peers' he claimed, rather arrogantly. 'There's no use of the lessons father arranged for me. I think he knows this, he's just trying to annoy me.'
Hanaerō knew better than to voice her disagreement. She knew about the conflict between the two prideful demons and the games they played with each other. She didn't want to get involved. And if Sesshōmaru wanted to spend time with her instead of his tutors, she wasn't going to complain.
Sesshōmaru noticed her constantly looking in his direction.
'You're not drawing me again, are you?' he asked.
'No' lied Hanaerō, not even trying to sound innocent. Sesshōmaru gave her a glare, then flexed his muscles and put on a heroic expression. Hanaerō giggled in response.
Sesshōmaru was mistaken, though. Everything was not fine. They were interrupted by a small cough. A servant approached them, bringing news from the palace.
'My deepest apologies for interrupting you' he started while bowing deeply.
He's one of those groveling types, Sesshōmaru thought.
'Your presence is requested by your father.'
The boy's expressions darkened.
'I'm afraid it's urgent,' the servant added quickly.
There was no way out, he had to go. He gave Hanaerō a wave, then reluctantly headed for the palace.
It was already midday. He hadn't noticed the passage of time. As he entered the gates, he was met with judgemental glances from the servants loitering around the entrance. They did not like Sesshōmaru. Compared to the cordial and empathetic nature of the Inu chief, his son was much colder and his demeanor unforgiving.
Sesshōmaru briefly hesitated before entering his father's study. A part of him wanted to ignore the orders and stay away from the room as far away as possible. But his father has for certain already sensed his presence, and running away now wouldn't help his cause. So he entered.
His father was seated in the middle of the sparsely furnished room, surrounded by documents. He seemed to be working on something. Sesshōmaru assumed he would be ignored for a few minutes at least. His father liked to prey on his insecurities to assert dominance, and he knew Sesshōmaru hated feeling confused, so he made sure to perplex the boy every chance he got.
But not this time. This time, he cut straight to the point.
'This is the third time you've missed your lesson' he started emotionlessly. 'Are you aware of the shame you bring to the family?'
'Yes' answered the boy.
'It was a rhetorical question!' The leader of the Western provinces exploded. Apparently the calm demeanor was just a facade which he couldn't keep up for long. 'I've asked the best strategists I could find to come and teach you, and most of the time, you don't even show up! I was hoping you'd learn some… some values different from what you insist on, to gain a different perspective…'
He almost murmured the last part, as if he was contemplating giving up. That had to have hurt, but if it did, Sesshōmaru didn't show it.
'What should I do with you?' Tōga asked after a long pause. His anger was already dissipating, he sounded defeated now.
Was this a rhetorical question, too? Sesshōmaru wasn't sure, but he couldn't have told him the truth, anyway. The truth being that if his father taught those same lessons Sesshōmaru would've participated without hesitation. His enthusiasm faltered when Tōga became too preoccupied with other matters to personally look after his upbringing.
'Having noble ancestry will not be enough to gain the respect of our society, my son' Tōga continued thoughtfully. 'I might not be around for long…'
"Especially if you spend your time with humans," thought Sesshōmaru.
'...and the time will come when you'll have to rely on yourself. This isn't just about conquering your enemies, it's about the cultivation of the soul. If you give in to your laziness now you'll see the results later. I will try to make you see reason, but I tire of your defiance. I will discipline you at another time. For the time being, you're forbidden to skip any more lessons.'
Sesshōmaru took a mental note to break this rule as soon as possible.
'You also missed my briefing on state affairs this morning, so now I have to repeat myself because this is important' Tōga sighed. 'I have decided to accept the Norang clan into the alliance. They have a long history of peaceful existence and a rich culture.'
Sesshōmaru had never heard of them, but he remembered when the emissaries first arrived to the Western Lands. They were foreigners and they carried themselves with a certain pride.
'I'm sure I don't have to remind you that if you see one of them you have to show respect' continued Tōga. 'And engage in other courtesies, if you can. We might require their assistance in the future, but their customs and traditions are different from ours. Respectful behaviour is crucial at this stage. I know you've lost your interest in politics recently…'
That was an understatement. The once ambitious Sesshōmaru had given up on ruling the Western Lands as soon as it became apparent that his father would delegate this responsibility to… someone else he refused to talk about, but Sesshōmaru had a hunch.
Not a long time ago, the boy was dreaming of surpassing his father and becoming a strict, but just ruler who would evoke respect as well as fear. Perhaps he would have even fixed what his father had messed up. But now, even as he was supposed to listen to his elder, his thoughts were somewhere else.
He was thinking of making a name for himself. He longed for something different, something that would set him apart from his father - and he already had something planned, sort of. It wasn't his idea in the beginning, but it didn't matter. It was a good plan.
'...what were you doing yesterday, anyway?' his father's voice dragged him back to reality. 'I sent for you but you were nowhere to be found.'
'I was on a date' answered Sesshōmaru and watched his father's expressions carefully. The older man didn't say anything. Perhaps he knew it was a lie. Sesshōmaru counted on him asking questions - he would've told his father he found a pure blooded yōkai lady who enjoyed his company, and that they were planning on settling down and bringing as many little demons to the world as they could.
But the questions didn't come and Sesshōmaru didn't have a chance to execute his plan. Even worse, Tōga just waved him away, muttering something about being preoccupied. So Sesshōmaru left without another word.