Chapter Forty-Five: Totousai's Legacy
The morning sun filtered in through old, rice paper windows, turning its light a soft gold. Its glow warmed Kagome's cheeks and sent her stirring from the kind of blissful sleep that only a plush futon and the dead quiet of the mountain could afford. Her eyelashes fluttered open and a satisfied yawn escaped from her lips. Languidly, she stretched, luxuriating in the seemingly endless bedding beneath her. She'd been so tired from hiking and cleaning that she hadn't even rolled in her sleep.
Another yawn came and she rubbed the bleariness from her eyes. After a few blinks, the beautiful wood ceiling overhead came into focus and she smiled. Tree knots and swirling woodgrain flowed together across the beams, creating lively patterns. It reminded her of cloud watching, where the longer she stared, the more she saw until the whole ceiling transformed into a tapestry of surreal beasts across an endless landscape.
A muffled laugh erupted from downstairs.
She blinked and the ceiling was just wood again.
After one last stretch, she sat up. While impeccably constructed, the room embodied a bareness that came with disuse. Though it had a lovely, antique dresser and desk, there was nothing else to fill the ample floor space, leaving it to feel like a room that once had a purpose but had been forgotten and lost to dust.
Another laugh echoed.
Throwing off her covers, she climbed to her feet and walked over to the dresser. The lacquered surface shined after the good dusting she gave it the night before, and she opened the drawers to pull out her clothes for the day. As she changed from her pajamas, she tapped the screen on her smartphone and it lit up, its background an old picture she'd taken of her friends from the Sengoku Jidai.
She frowned. No new message notifications cluttered the screen.
After running a brush through her hair, she slipped her phone into her pocket and headed for the door. As she slid it open, the refreshing mountain air welcomed her, nipping at her cheeks, and she breathed it in as she made her way along the walkway and down the stairs. The front door was open, cooling the shrine in preparation for the warm, summer day ahead. But it was the savory aroma of bacon in the kitchen that drew her in.
"Aw, c'mon," Tora chided lightheartedly, "Don't give me that look. This is me being curious, all right? I just have some questions that might benefit from some answers."
"Somehow I doubt your sincerity," Sesshoumaru remarked dryly.
A string of offended noises bubbled from him. "I'm being completely sincere. I can't believe that you're claiming that I'm being anything other than sincere. Souta-chan, did you hear what he's accusing me of? I'm just asking questions here."
"Don't drag me into this," Souta sighed.
"Look, I'm only trying to understand how this youkai transformation thing works."
Kagome entered through the doorway. "Do you mean when he turns into a giant dog?"
With its floor tiled in slate and its oak counters capped in granite, the kitchen continued the mountain motif that flowed throughout the shrine, an aesthetic that was amplified by the forest peeking through the open screen door at the end of the room. At a table crafted from knotted wood, Tora and Souta sat, their empty bowls waiting and a teapot between them. Standing beside the stove, Sesshoumaru tended to a pan sizzling with strips of pork belly.
"Yes!" Tora half-shouted and he reached over to pull out a chair out for her, "The giant dog thing! How does that work?"
"I don't know," she shrugged and took a seat. "He used to turn into a giant dog. That was pretty much it."
"So, was that like his true form or something?"
She glanced towards Sesshoumaru and he turned away to check on the rice cooker, confirming his input on the matter. Or lack thereof.
"Well?" Tora asked.
"I guess, it might be," she replied noncommittally as she leaned forward to grab the teapot and a cup. "I've only seen him do it twice."
"Seen him do it?! Does that mean you've seen him transform? That's so %$ing badass. What did it look like?"
"Let me think…" she pondered aloud. "Well, his eyes would turn all red and his youki would whip around him like a tornado." Then she made a pulling motion away from her face. "Ooh, and his nose and mouth would grow long like a muzzle."
"Awesome," Tora cooed, "Just like a werewolf."
"Yeah! Like a werewolf!" she agreed as she poured some tea into her cup. "And then poof, he was a giant dog. The first time he was dramatic about it, but the second time, he transformed quick."
He hummed thoughtfully, tapping his finger against his lips.
She took a sip from her cup.
"So, what happened to his clothes? Was his junk just out there swaying in the breeze for everyone to see?"
Tea sputtered from her mouth, swiftly followed by a coughing fit.
"This is why your sincerity is in doubt," Souta mentioned absently as he played a colorful game on his tablet.
"What?" Tora asked. "That was a perfectly logical question."
He set the tablet down and rolled his eyes. "Dogs don't wear clothes, so why would you ask if he was naked or not? Of course, he was naked. He was even naked in the mural we found."
"Fine," he acquiesced before doubling down, "But what happened to his clothes? Did he destroy them every time he transformed? Or did he get naked beforehand to avoid shredding them?"
Kagome wiped the tea from her chin with back of her hand and rasped, "No, they just disappeared and when he transformed back, they would reappear on his body."
"Really? Like magic?"
"His armor and swords, too."
"How the &%$# did that work?"
She shrugged, and then frowned thoughtfully. "He used to also have this big, fluffy boa thing that he wore, too. Sometimes he'd use it as a weapon to throw things or carry people. I never could figure out if it was a part of his body or something else altogether." She glanced towards the stove. "Sesshoumaru?"
Carrying plates loaded with crispy pork belly and pickled vegetables, he approached the table and set the dishes down.
"Sesshoumaru, about your fluffy—"
He flashed her a glare.
She hissed softly under her breath, "Never mind."
Returning to the counter, he retrieved the rice cooker and brought it to the table.
"Your meal is served," he announced coolly, "Though I'm debating about whether Tora should forage for his own breakfast this morning. The forest will provide if you know where to look." He looked at Tora and dripped with disdain. "And even if you're not a giant, naked dog."
"You're taking this way too seriously," Tora said, his hand inching towards a piece of pork belly while he still had a chance.
"And all of you have the strangest arguments," Bikini Girl piped up from the hallway. Wearing a sarong wrapped around her waist, she entered the kitchen arm-in-arm with Grandpa, their bearing one of companionable comfort.
Scowling, Grandpa added, "We could hear you debating about naked daiyoukai lords on what was meant to be a peaceful nature walk."
Together, they eyed Tora.
He looked away sheepishly, his cheeks pink. "Just random thoughts, okay?"
They continued to stare at him.
He sighed. "Look, it's so quiet up here and my mind wants to fill in the void, especially since there's no reception and I can't check up on their mom."
"Oh, you're not getting a signal either?" Kagome asked, breaking the tide of judgment. She pulled out her own phone to check it in vain once again.
"I think it's the mountains," he deduced as he retrieved his phone as well and then frowned in expected disappointment. "Maybe there's no coverage up here yet."
"It's more than that," Bikini Girl interjected. After giving Grandpa a gentle pat on his forearm, she unwound her arm from his care and took a seat at the head of the table. There she gathered up the bowls and began to fill the first one with rice. "You're all the perceptive type, I'm sure that you can put together why your fancy devices aren't getting a signal up here. And no, it's not related to cell towers or satellites. Or any other technology like that."
"The barrier," Sesshoumaru said as he helped Grandpa to his chair before sitting down on his own.
"Ah, the prize goes to the disciple," she announced brightly and with a wink, she sent the bowl of rice sliding across the table to him.
He caught it neatly.
"But I thought the barrier just kept out sound," Kagome said.
"Well, except for sight and touch, it was designed to dampen sensory information. Keep it from escaping," she explained as she filled the next bowl before passing it to her. "Its purpose was to hide this shrine in plain sight."
"So, that's why it was easy to pass through? I've never encountered a barrier that wasn't designed to deflect intruders physically."
She nodded, piling rice into another bowl. "A physical barrier radiates power. Even one that casts visual illusions has a certain thrum to it. When this place was built, such constructs worked like beacons to the supernaturally inclined." She gave her a toothy grin. "This barrier is just clever camouflage. Like quiet static on the radio. Hard to hear when music is always playing."
Kagome returned her smile and watched as she distributed more rice down the line until everyone had a bowl.
"Shall we eat?" Bikini Girl asked.
After a word of thanks, chopsticks darted towards the dishes like herons snatching up fish.
"Satisfactory work, disciple," she commended as she took a bite of pork belly. "It strikes just the right balance between tenderness and crispiness. At this rate, I think you'll be proving your way to receiving my final guidebook before the end of the day."
Sesshoumaru nodded a bow, his nearly imperceptible smile hinting at his pride.
Her words garbled by a mouthful of rice, Kagome asked, "If you don't mind sharing, I'd like to know who built this place and the barrier. Why go through this much trouble? What was here that needed to be protected by something like that?"
"Well, it's this shrine's namesake, of course," Bikini Girl replied with an eyebrow raised.
"Totousai?" she asked incredulously. "Our Totousai?"
"Does that surprise you?"
"I don't know…" she half-mumbled back, her face flushing with unexpected embarrassment. "He just seemed kind of absent-minded. He certainly knew how to make a good sword, but otherwise there wasn't much to him. And he definitely didn't strike me as someone who had anything to protect. I mean, other than his life." She shook her head in defeat. "I always thought of him as a sly but harmless loner who rode a weird cow."
She grinned. "Fascinating. I would have never imagined that I'd have a chance to meet someone who knew my most distant ancestor on my father's side."
Kagome nodded and then her brow furrowed. "Wait… What?"
Bikini Girl shrugged, her grin sharpening into a smirk. "Sixteen generations ago, this was Totousai's family home."
Her chopsticks clattered onto the table. "What?!"
Sesshoumaru snorted, reverence in his tone. "…That crafty bastard."
Bikini Girl laughed heartily. "Well, he is the root of that particular trait in the family line."
"I… I don't understand," Kagome sputtered as her memory clashed with this new reality. "He never mentioned having a family or a home in the mountains. Whenever he'd show up, it was always about the brothers and their swords. And dodging the pointy ends when necessary."
"He had one home that I was aware of," Sesshoumaru commented and gestured with his chopsticks, "But it was a pathetic hovel compared to this castle."
"It was likely the decoy," Bikini Girl remarked and began to chew thoughtfully on a piece of pork belly. "It was this place, that he built himself, that was his real home."
"Wow," Kagome sighed. "I can't believe he kept his actual home hidden from us. I thought we were friends."
She gave her a reassuring smile. "To my knowledge, Totousai wasn't a trickster for the sake of amusement or malice. His decision to hide his real home and family was an act of necessity. An effort made in a time when those with power stole the riches of others. Even those who would have been considered allies."
"Why would an ally steal from him?" she asked.
"Because they felt entitled to do it. That he owed it to them as a master weaponsmith and armorer. That they deserved tribute."
Kagome turned to Sesshoumaru.
He looked away.
Bikini Girl eyed them both.
"All right. Moving on," Kagome said, shaking her head to clear her thoughts. "If Totousai is your ancestor on your father's side and all youkai died out, then how are you here?"
"Ah," she sighed and leaned forward to pour herself a cup of tea, "That's because his greatest secret wasn't that he had a different home or even a family. It was that he had a human wife and little hanyou children."
She gasped.
"Perhaps you now understand why keeping them hidden was necessary. Essential to their survival. It wasn't simply a matter of them being perceived as a weakness to be exploited by those who wanted something from him…"
"…They were in danger for just existing. For being considered abominations."
Bikini Girl's eyes settled on Sesshoumaru.
He met her look, his expression inscrutable.
Kagome nodded thoughtfully. "But that also means that when the plague killed the youkai, his hanyou children were able to survive in their human forms."
Bikini Girl broke her gaze and took a sip of tea. "Yes. While Totousai fell to the plague, his children survived, carrying on his lineage and in many ways, his legacy as a weaponsmith. But it was more than that. There's a raw talent for craft in our family and from our meticulously kept records, I was able to capitalize on that knowledge and produce the first few guidebooks. However, for the more modern technology, I applied my own gifts and experience."
"Yeah, I don't think there were a lot of air conditioners in Feudal Japan," Tora joked.
Kagome blinked. "Records?"
Bikini girl nodded. "We have an extensive library here dating back through the Sengoku Jidai. Given your specific purpose in journeying here, I expected that you'd appreciate a tour of it after breakfast. And perhaps you'll find the answers you seek within its texts and scrolls."
She smiled. "I hope so."
"But before that," she said as she plucked a folded piece of paper from her bikini top, "I have an assignment for my disciple."
Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow.
With it pinned between her fingers, she held it out to him. "On this paper, you'll find a comprehensive list of tasks that need attention. They will test your skills across a range of disciplines. But given your nature and abilities, I anticipate that you'll be no more than pleasantly challenged."
He took the paper and unfolded it. His eyes moved up and down as he read through the list.
"When you complete every task to my exceptionally high standards, then you'll have proven your worthiness and earned your apprenticeship. And at that point, I will share with you the final guidebook, so that you may make the tool that you need to protect your people."
He nodded. "It would be my honor."
"Good," she replied with a smirk.
"Let me see!" Souta insisted, reaching towards him and the paper.
He let him have it.
"Solar panel repair?" the boy blurted out.
Bikini Girl chuckled. "This deep in the mountains, the electric power has to come from somewhere, child."
"Is it okay if I help?" he asked.
"If my disciple doesn't mind, then I don't see why not."
With hope brightening his face, he looked at Sesshoumaru.
"If it will please you," he replied.
"Yes!"
"In that case," Tora spoke up, setting his chopsticks across his empty bowl, "I'm going to hike back down the mountain and see if I can get a signal on my phone. Maybe I can find out what's happening at home base."
Kagome nodded. "Sounds good."
"Well, everyone has their assignments then," Bikini Girl remarked as she rose to her feet and picked up her bowl.
"Wait," Grandpa interjected, "What's my assignment."
"Me," she replied with a wink.
He cooed.
And Kagome groaned.