A/N : I do not own Inuyasha.

Chapter 11

Several days had passed before Sesshoumaru could think of collecting Yuutsuki. He would have done it sooner if not for minor issues with his vassals that had been piling up in the past and a few visits his mother had recommended him to attend to improve relations with other powerful demon and human families. Sesshoumaru took no pleasure in doing any of these time-wasting tasks, especially when some of these involved punishing unruly servants or out of line demons in his lands. Even though he was undoubtedly known as the strongest being of the west and its surroundings, he could not afford to give signs of feebleness or disobedience in order to keep away any demon foolish enough to attempt to take his place as the master of those lands. Now, free of his lord duties, he was on his way to provide the girl with a proper training, like he had assured before, and lord Sesshoumaru would never break his vow.

The intense scent of his half-brother filled up his nostrils and he smirked slightly. She should be somewhere nearby. Catching her subtle scent, he redirected himself towards it. How surprised was he to discover that the trace ends up in a dry well not far from a village where Inuyasha and the group usually met.

"She's not in here." He heard his brother's voice approaching his location.

"Neither is your wench. Where did they go?" Sesshoumaru was annoyed at his half-brother's obvious conclusion.

"Home." Inuyasha simply answered, walking away to his original location.

Sesshoumaru was not pleased with the situation, the human girl should have informed him of her intentions before doing anything, nevertheless, the demon futilely waited for a day, but there were no signs of Yuutsuki's eminent return. He took out the Rens' sword the belonged to that era, bared a claw and carved a word on the upper part of the blade, hoping that it would appear on the sword Yuutsuki held in her time:

"Return."

The demon put the sword next to him, and stared at the well waiting for the girl's return.

/

Yuutsuki's hand was shaking a bit, before she pushed the door of an antique shop in an attended part of the city. The interior dumbfounded her, one would imagine an antique shop to be a dusty, murky, grimy place with an unpleasant smell settling around. Yet this particular shop was nothing like that. For instance, the walls were painted white, free of pattern, making one deem the place bigger. Each and every corner was thoroughly illuminated, exposing the amazing products the shop was offering. Shining armours, richly patterned swords, royal apparel and other impressive objects were placed on black platforms, underneath prices, that made the girl's head swirl. Yuutsuki had not expected it to be such a luxurious place. As soon as she closed the door, a young attendant in a neat uniform greeted her.

"Welcome to the shop, is there anything I can help you with?" Yuutsuki nodded politely, folding her hands together.

"I am looking for the owner." The attendant threw a dubious look at her, but she did not look away, letting her eyes carefully study the person's face.

"The owner isn't here right now. Do you have an appointment?"

"No, I am afraid. If you are so kind as to call him and ask when I should come…" Yuutsuki sighted slightly, directing her gaze at the window. It had started raining.

"That should be fine, please, wait a minute." The attendant quickly dialled a number, after three signals the call went through.

"This is Mio speaking. There is somebody requesting a meeting with you…"

"No… No appointment…A young miss…"

"Excuse me, miss, what is your surname?"

Yuutsuki hesitated for a moment, the whole situation was awkward, she was about to meet probably totally different Sesshoumaru, who now was an owner of an exclusive antique shop, surely wasn't the same person as before, on the other hand, he had invited her himself.

"Ren, Yuutsuki Ren."

"She's called Ren Yuut... Y…yes, yes sir, of course." The call finished and the attendant spoke:

"He is heading this way, would you like to drink something?"

"No, I am going to take a look around."

Ten minutes passed and the door opened again, Yuutsuki was too tense to turn around and realize who had come in.

"Good morning! The miss is waiting in there." The attendant´s voice cleared her doubts.

"Thank you Mio, prepare two coffees." Yuutsuki felt a belt tightening on her chest upon hearing his voice. The same tone and manner of speaking, how was that possible.

"Right away."

She heard footsteps approaching, causing her heart to pound faster. The girl turned around and saw the familiar face of the lord of the west. The magenta markings and crescent moon were gone, the long, once silver hair was now black, loosely falling on his neck. Golden eyes, the only thing left from his demon features were looking straight at her face, making her lip tremble. Looking so different, yet so familiar he caused extreme feelings.

"I am really sorry for your loss. Let us speak in my office." He didn't even blink once, constantly observing her reactions.

The girl nodded and she was led to his office, wherein the lack of ornamentation was even more expressive than in the rest of shop's décor. They sat down, facing each other. Sesshoumaru, despite the modification of his appearance, managed to keep his habitual, apathetic expression.

"How… I…I have so many questions…" The vastness of her questions didn't enable her to decide what to inquire first. She looked him in the eyes daringly, hoping he would initiate the conversation.

The attendant first knocked, then opened the door and delivered two cups of steaming coffee. When the door closed, and they were alone again, he spoke slowly.

"I did not invite you to answer your questions, I promised to tell you about Ren Hanako, to tell you how I used to know her."

Yuutsuki blinked, slightly stirred.

"Of course I want to know, but obviously you had expected it. Just few days ago I spoke to silvered hair demon Sesshoumaru. It was more than five hundred years ago. Today I meet you in modern times. It would be ignorant of me to just listen, lose such an opportunity to …"

"Ignorance is bliss." He interrupted abruptly. "Either you listen, or you will not have a chance again. I might look different, but I still can kill properly, if annoyed. First YOU answer my questions." Sesshoumaru took a sip of the coffee, piercing her eyes with his. Yuutsuki didn't have a choice, his mighty presence wouldn't forgive objections.

"Demystify the events before you left the past. I want to know at what point we stand."

She was getting tired of his unduly bossy tone.

"We… It was after Tarou injured you. Using your absence I returned home. I hope the damage wasn't too severe." He closed his eyes for a minute or two and then spoke.

"I recovered rather fast. I've met Hanako in the past, she had travelled through time, just like you did. Unlike yours, her travel was a fruit of sheer coincidence." Sesshoumaru loosened his black tie a bit and continued. "She stayed in the Rens' house, wherein I often indwelled due to military plans and commands. She had no talent for either sword or spiritual powers and most importantly, no idea how to return home. Eventually the Rens began to see her as a fifth wheel, degrading her status to a mere servant. One of my companions felt sorry for her, possibly got enchanted with her unusual beauty, so he decided to help her by taking her to a powerful witch to ask for an advice. Hanako received the help, she did manage to return home, but in return, she agreed to pay a price without realising the true meaning of it."

The demon observed how variable the girl's expression was. Previously muddled, later gradually trying to conceal her confusion, and finally, entirely heeding his words. He would have been better off remaining in the shadows, just perceiving her human life, not meddling in her matters. Nonetheless he sought to shelter her existence, to sustain the brittle flame of a candle for longer. To fulfil his plans he was prepared to blot his honour and lie in her eyes, if that was required for her to live. Sesshoumaru quaffed the coffee and continued speaking, disguising his real emotions under the mask of indifference.

"The next time we met was already in the future. She noticed me by chance, after several short talks I decided to pass the Rens' sword and ring to her, for safekeeping in favour of her family. Regrettably, misfortune fell upon her. Few days before her wedding, the fiancé died in an accident. Hanako quickly discovered she was pregnant, and was left with no husband and a child, all by herself. The child was named after Rens and Hanako never tried to find another man. Her son grew up to be a very bright, talented boy. Everyone complimented his sword abilities. And before you ask me, yes it was your father."

Yuutsuki swallowed and took a deep breath. She had never known of grandmother's past, neither about grandfather. Sesshoumaru's information had come as a mild shock to her. She had never imagined that such rough events had happened in her grandmother's life.

"Seems like Hanako decided to send her son to the past. It was several months after you were born. The man never came back, leaving his young wife and child behind. I never spoke to Hanako again. Speaking briefly, that's all I know."

"So what was the true meaning of accepting the help of the witch?"

"Misfortune. Losing everyone close to her, remaining in solitude."

Several silent minutes passed before Sesshoumaru got up, turned his back at her, observing the scenery behind the window.

"You are going to stay in the future, I presume."

The girl drank her coffee, thinking about her grandma's story.

"I've thought about it. But then again, I urge to go back."

"There is nothing in there for you!" The angry voice startled her, a shiver went down through her spine when his now red, burning eyes locked on hers.

"Your mission is finished, there is no need to risk your life any further. I would like you to hand over the sword, without unsheathing it ever again. You do not want to share your father's fate do you?"

The demon stood behind the sitting girl and placed his hand on her thin shoulder. Various memories stroke him, causing a sharp heart ache, but he managed to keep a straight face, only his hand shook a bit.

"Can we go and collect the sword right now?" He tried to say it as smoothly and naturally as he could, but a tone of roughness still remained in his voice. Yuutsuki faced him, placing her big, staggered dark eyes on his.

"You have no reason to return. Trust me." His hand squeezed her shoulder a bit harder as the girl shook her head in disagreement.

"Am I not to draw it ever again, because of what you have carved in it?"

He hadn't expected her to have seen it. He swore silently, releasing his grip, observing the long, curvy hair as the girl got up from her place and ventured several steps in the direction of the door.

She turned around, her eyes pointed at the floor. She looked like a small, abandoned girl, desperately looking for a way home. However Sesshoumaru knew that despite the appearance, that tiny body of hers was a host to a large personality.

"You cannot return. The return means…"

Yuutsuki shook over his hand, got up and hit her fists on the door.

"The only way to keep me away from it is to kill me!"

Sesshoumaru beheld the rosy colour of her cheeks and tightened fists, the determined, dark eyes were intensively battling all his efforts to keep her harmless, alive and close to him. Regrettably, admonishing her was not a solution. Barely holding his emotions and desires when sighting, he said:

"I oughtn't to tell you. Nevertheless it's my last resort to keep you alive. Listen carefully, for I will not repeat myself. You MUST make me want to kill you."

The wind howled savagely, rippling through the grasses growing over the village, rustling in the hawthorn bushes and tall nettles. All villagers had been sleeping for many hours already. The moon was high in the sky and only one, flickering light was illuminating a small hut.

"That's why I am telling you! Ugh… I will PAY! A lot of gold!" Oka screamed out, tightening her fists strongly.

"It's just a human wench, why do ya need us two to kill her? Huh?" A female demon kept circling around Oka, trying to judge her real reasons. Her long, blue hair was loosely falling on heavy armour wielded on her shoulders. Her bright, but unnaturally sunken eyes were jumping back and forth, whilst her long flexed claws were twitching.

"Haha it's not like she's strong, no no, just I thought maybe you and your sister prefer to go together…Ehehe…" Under the harsh glare of the creature Oka suddenly began to feel threatened, experiencing that not all demons were so refined and mannerly like Sesshoumaru-sama.

"And you have the gold with you?" Oka could feel a burning breath on her neck, the other sister had joined them.

"Only a small amount. If I did you would kill me for money…"

"Naka, she is not as stupid as she appears. And she is not telling us the truth. The girl is not alone."

The other demon had short, silver hair, she was wearing a lengthy, white dress with no ornaments, her face was covered by a grey mask, making her seem like a faint spectre. Naka exposed her long fangs and spoke:

"My sister, Kona is not a warrior type. She has other, useful abilities. For example, she distinguishes when one is lying… Sometimes can read minds and use magic. So you better speak the truth." The blue haired demon's talons reached for the human, yet her movement ceased as Kona's melancholic voice broke through.

"Don't be so naïve. Of course she is not alone."

"So… Now! Tell the truth!"

Naka hissed at Oka, pushing her on the floor. The demon snatched Oka's tiny hair and tossed her against a wall.

"Fine!" Wobbly hands of Oka bent in pleading gesture. "She's travelling with lord Sesshoumaru, I bet you know who he is. Other times she travels with a priestess, a monk, a demon exterminator and a half demon, Inuyasha – he is lord Sesshoumaru's half-brother and he wields Tessaiga. So the task isn't easy. But I believe the payment is motivating enough for you to go and try! If you kill me here there will not be any reward…"

The human cried with low, plaintive, broken sounds as Naka made another sudden movement towards her direction.

"You little human, you annoy me! She is guarded by SUCH a party and you wanna pay only THIS much of gold? You will have to multiply it by the number of people the wench is with. Let's see. That would be five times more than proposed."

Naka's armour made a loud sound as she lowered her position gradually, until her eyes reached the same level as Oka's.

"I don't want you to kill the rest! Just kill Yuutsuki Ren and bring her ring and sword."

"Ah yes, a ring and a sword. That will be six times more."

Oka tightened her lips in trepidation, the demon was undoubtedly truly desirous, thus opposing could cause unpleasant, crucial actions, in worst case resultant in losing her life. Agreeing for their condition was the last part of Oka's plot to destroy Yuutsuki's life in the west. The Rens family was indeed, a very powerful and impactful clan, hence her, as a royal daughter of it, hadn't had any troubles in convincing the people around, that Yuutsuki, in fact, was a shady witch, who had enchanted Lord Sesshoumaru with her dark spells, making him forget about his obligations and promises towards the Rens family, thereby helping the enemy she had pledged her services to. A vision of the human-demon alliance breaking apart and undoubtedly, a granted, tempting reward for the witches head had encouraged the people to take action, causing the words to spread around instantly.

"Six times, that will be."

/

Sesshoumaru had spent two days awaiting the imprudent girl, telling himself that he would wait no more, however, another day had passed and the lord of the west remained in his place until he finally sensed the girl's presence. To his displeasure, Inuyasha and his support group had been drawing closer, almost reaching the location.

The demon observed as first, a bag and later the sword had been thrown out from the inside of the well. A smooth alleviation tickled his mood, as Yuutsuki's face appeared in front of him. Her eyes were saddened, yet determined, she was wearing light armour, her hair tied high up, alike his. She grabbed the sword, lifted it up and pointed at him.

"Lord of the west! Fight me!"

Sesshoumaru smirked, finding her sense of humour quite contrary.

"Very haughty of you. Who gave you permission to leave without my consent?"

"If I win, I will no longer need any consent of yours."

"What of my victory?"

"Today I do not plan to yield. Either I reach my goal, or I die."

"Do you urge for freedom that much?"

Yuutsuki sheathed her sword and lowering her body, she put her left foot back just to set off towards Sesshoumaru. The demon's eyes exposed disbelief when she decisively and swiftly took off the sword, aiming a blow straight at his stomach level. A human would certainly get injured, however he avoided it effortlessly, but he did not expect her to make a half-spin, attacking again. The girl's eyes widened when he grabbed her arms, drawing her closer. The sword fell on the ground, and she was immobilised.

"You cannot fight me, you are too weak."

"I am also stubborn." Yuutsuki spoke through her teeth as the dog demon let her go. The girl bent down to pick up her sword.

"I also know there are no rules in surviving." She almost inaudibly spoke as she attempted another attack in a piercing movement from the ground.

"Insolent! You tempt your luck." The demon barely evaded the attack. The human's impudence had annoyed him.

"Very well…" he said while drawing his sword "…you shall realise the level of your delusions." The great demon thrust to attack, aiming for girl. She swallowed loudly, fearing the aftermath of her reckless actions.

Inuyasha jumped between them, hoarding Yuutsuki with his body. The half demon warded off the blow, but the impact of it pushed him to the ground.

"Sesshoumaru! Are you out of your mind?" Inuyasha screamed, breathing heavily.

"Out of the way, mutt!" Sesshoumaru bared his glowing, poisonous claws. Yuutsuki had noticed him aiming it at her throat and for a moment, her heart skipped a bit, for she felt the familiar feeling coming out from the ring. But it was not given for her to use the power, Sesshoumaru's attack was too overwhelming. A beam of green light swathed tightly around her, chocking her, the force of it compressing her ribs. She desperately tried to use purifying powers, but she felt nothing besides the remaining warmth of the ring. Yuutsuki beheld Inuyasha trying to attack Sesshoumaru and struggling, she managed to say:

"Inuyasha, stay out of this, please…"

She grabbed the hilt tighter, not being sure if the tingling of the arm was caused by lack of air or incoming demon power sent by the sword. Her body got thrown up in the air, consequently it violently fell on the ground and she did not move anymore.

"Imprudent." Sesshoumaru hissed, yet he hesitated before turning away. He had never wanted to hurt the girl in such a way. He saw her small fists tightening and observed how she slowly lifted herself and spoke, wiping blood form her mouth:

"Not yet…"

Yuutsuki really hoped that what Sesshoumaru had said in the future would turn out to be true, it was the only thing providing her bravery. Her body ached and the only thing she wished for was the damned sword to work, regardless of the consequences. She wasn't peculiarly staggered when she sensed the demon's aura growing bigger, angrier, sowing a fear of death in her mind. He identified her dread and sneered in delight, there was nothing more daunting for Yuutsuki at this point. Grabbing her throat, he wrapped his other hand around her waist and tilted her head down, making her even more terrified. Yuutsuki felt like a prey, about to be devoured. The tingling grew stronger and suddenly the arm became lighter, as if a feather in the air. Yuutsuki swung it incredibly fast, freeing herself from Sesshoumaru's oppression. Joyfulness entered her heart; she had managed to summon the sword's demon energy at whim. Sesshoumaru's words spoken in his office had turned out to be true, without them she wouldn't have had the courage to even try fighting his past self.

~flasback~

"When it happens, try to lock it with spiritual powers. Try to close it in your arm only. If you allow it to spread, you might die. You must learn how to pull it out and push it in."

~the end of the flashback~

These words still rang in her head, nonetheless it was really hard to use spiritual powers when angry Sesshoumaru was about to attack her again. She fell to her knees, sweat dripping from her forehead. The retched demon energy had been burning her veins, and was progressing rapidly, already reaching her elbow. The cognizance of being inept to dodge Sesshoumaru's attack made her heart race like crazy, closing her eyes in effort to stop the energy from spreading, she screamed in fear and pain.

Miroku and Sango arrived at the place, observing in terror, how the demon lord rapidly approached Yuutsuki, his eyes red in fury. Now he seemed even madder than beforehand, as if something inside of him had been triggered, producing even greater rage. But there was no blow, no attack whatsoever. He knelt beside her, hastily and violently grabbed her right arm, releasing his enormous energy. The girl shouted in pain, but she comprehended what he had been trying to do. Sesshoumaru had become aware of the situation and her real motives, and now was trying to prevent the sword's energy to take over her body. Through his teeth he declared:

"Your act is insane! You are the most asinine human I have even seen. You must resist! Push it in!"

Miroku approached them, sensing the swords energy overpowering Yuutsuki's body. Sesshoumaru barked out:

"Do not. She must do it herself."

The monk hesitated a bit, but he made no move, just witnessed how Sesshoumaru's and the sword's energies were fighting. He felt as well a small sparkle just in between them, Yuutsuki's spiritual power. A startling thing happened, the sparkle turned to a flame, which still could not relate its power to the other two existent energies, but amazingly it began to push away the evil energy back to the sword.

/

Kona and Naka stood next to a cowering, dirty man. He was yelping quietly, embracing his thin body with his attenuated arms.

"Please, please…"

"I am going to ask you a few questions and you are going to answer them quickly, fluently and compressively. If you stammer to hesitate even for a moment, if you give me the slightest reason to doubt the truth of your words, then…"

The warrior demon contorted her pale lips, spat vehemently on the ground and crossed her chainmail-clad arms with a crunch.

"Anyway, I advise you to weight each word with care, you piece of scum." Naka tightened her harsh hand on the man's throat and continued.

"Have you seen a lass with a sword and a ring, travelling with a great demon Sesshoumaru or half demon Inuyasha and his pack?"

"I do not know her… I have nothing to do with her…"

Kona made a hand gesture, which gagged the man's chaotic words. Naka laughed and spoke:

"I wanna you to speak precisely… Have you seen any of these demons?"

The man nodded eagerly, his eyes turned glossy.

"Good… Now talk…" Kona's low, calm voice encouraged the man to speak, for now he was freed from her spell.

"I have heard… That the lord of the west is in the village… waiting for somebody… as for Inuyasha, he always returns in here, he is lady Kaede's friend…"

Kona smiled and questioned more. Her wicked eyes opened wider, piercing the man who seemed fascinated, enchanted by her look.

"Could it be that lady Kaede would provide us with more information about Yuutsuki Ren?"

The man's eyes began to bleed; however he appeared to disregard it, as if oblivious of the fact.

"Oh yes, I bet she would…"

"Good…You are a good man…" He fell on the floor. Upon losing his breath he smiled and died in silence, unable to take his eyes away from the paralyzing eyes of Kona, who only huffed and turned away, putting her grey mask on.

"I love the way you kill them. They don't even know they are dying…Are you urging to put your eyes on the famous lord of the west?" Naka kicked the corpse and followed her sister.

"Let's meet the priestess of this village, the lady Kaede…" Kona smirked and Naka's mind clouded. Kona had never smiled before; it only meant that the quest should be interesting.

A/N : Thank you for reading.

It took me some time to write. Lack of motivation, I guess ;)