A/N I have done a bit more research on weapons, but I am not sure if I entirely trust my sources, and will be using only what I know. I understand these characters have more weapons and abilities then I will be using, but I am only comfortable writing the ones I have seen in use. I love Inuyasha but I don't get to watch it very often. If people could help me out on spelling and usage I can write in the attacks better. Thank you for reading and reviewing.

Chapter Seven

Returning

It took three more days of nearly constant fighting before Inuyasha had control over his youkai form. It wasn't perfect but time was running out on them.

"Inuyasha we have to head back to the others, we need to regroup and plan. We can spend one day recovering while we plan then we must move. Rin can't last much longer, he will be using her soon, if he hasn't already. Whatever Naraku is planning needs to be stopped before it is too late." Sesshomaru called to his brother, who was currently still in his Inu form.

Inuyasha sat down on his haunches then slowly morphed back into his normal hanyou body. "Let's go then," He answered in human tongue.

The two Inus followed the same path back up the canyon that they had taken on their original trip up. They hadn't brought many supplies so there was little time wasted packing up camp.

"I wonder just how much trouble the others got into during our absence, although it did appear that they would be occupied enough to not cause trouble." Inuyasha observed as they walked.

"I just hope they have enough control that they spent some time actually training." Sesshomaru said gruffly. If sentimental fools too wrapped up in each other to train caused him to loose Rin, heads would roll.

"You are just going to have to trust them." Inuyasha responded.

"Why should I trust those who don't trust me?" Sesshomaru pointed out in an even voice.

Inuyasha just raised an eyebrow, "What makes you think they don't trust you? I trust you, you know that right?" He asked.

"You understand my reasons, your humans will never comprehend just what compels me to do this." Sesshomaru answered, "If they do not understand why I have come they will never trust my presence will not cause them harm." His words stuck the core of the matter in their stoic delivery.

"They do not understand a great deal of things involving youkais, but that is not their fault. They are human's after all, not youkais, just like we do not understand them they do not understand us." Inuyasha explained surprising his brother with his insight. "Plus what reason do you have to hate humans, if either of us has a right to it's me. Despite being part human they have hurt me the most." Inuyasha pointed out.

"I had to watch my father go off to his death to save your human mother." Sesshomaru answered emotionlessly.

"And I had to watch him die at the claws of a YOUKAI, not a human. Then I had to watch my mother get sick and die which would never have happened if father hadn't died. I was driven out of my home by humans and left for dead in the forests. Brother do not think you are the only one who is haunted by father's death." Inuyasha said some of his temper showing through.

"You actually saw Father die?" Sesshomaru asked, with absolutely no hint towards his feelings on the matter.

"Yes, my mother had hidden me from Ryukotsusei at the edge of the village. I watched the battle and as far as I know Father never knew I was there." Inuyasha explained the memories hitting him hard.

Sesshomaru had no words for his brother, sentimentality was not his strong point, all he did was lay one clawed hand on Inuyasha's shoulder for a second before moving on. Inuyasha understood the gesture and was grateful, he knew that was the closest he would ever come to being forgiven by his brother. Sesshomaru was about action more then words and in a way Inuyasha preferred that. Actions could not be mistaken as easily as words and they meant so much more then wasted breath.

Shaking his head to clear it of his thoughts, he brought his attention back to the path they were traveling. He did not need to think about the battle that was lost, they had their own battle to fight and they must win it.

It took Inuyasha a little longer then normal to scent the others, mainly because Sesshomaru's scent was so heavy thanks to the heat currently ravaging his body. It didn't smell too strongly of mating, so the brothers were left to assume they had been training as well. One scent however was missing. It took a moment for the Inu brothers to realize what was missing.

"Kouga, come here." Sesshomaru commanded.

The wolf got up from his spot next to the fire and followed the elder youkai away from the others, but not completely out of Inuyasha's hearing range.

"Your heat is gone." It wasn't a question it was a statement.

"Yes, I don't know why though." Kouga answered carefully, trying not to meet the Daiyoukai's eyes.

"I do, and you shouldn't lie, it is unbecoming of a pack leader." Sesshomaru called him on the lie.

"Ok, so I do know why, I am just not ready to admit it okay," Kouga spat out confirming Sesshomaru's conclusion.

"Have you told the monk?" Sesshomaru asked.

"No, the only ones aware of the change are the neko and the kitsune. Though I doubt Shippo knows what the change in my scent means." Kouga confessed.

"Why haven't you told him?" Sesshomaru wasn't accusing the ookami, he just wanted to know.

"I didn't want to distract him too much. The upcoming battle will be hard enough on them without me adding to the worries." Kouga said with a sigh.

"At least your heat scent won't draw Naraku to us too soon. If anyone is going to give us away it will be me." Sesshomaru said seeing the advantage in the situation.

Sesshomaru was turning to head back to the others and start planning when he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. Turning slightly to see what the wolf wanted he saw Kouga's eyes fixed on the silvery scar on his throat.

"You let him mark you." Again, that was not a question.

"My choice wasn't as obvious as yours but in the end yes I let him." Sesshomaru answered evenly. Kouga had trusted him with his fears, it was time a little of that trust was returned.

"You mean he actually beat you?" Kouga asked eyes widening, he was able to read between the lines of the proud youkai's speech. "I knew it was a possibly from watching the two of you before, but I didn't expect it this soon." Kouga explained evenly recovering from his shock smoothly.

"I could have defended myself but I would have had to use my poison, and at the moment I need his help too much to kill him." Sesshomaru explained emotionlessly.

"Riight, look I know you're never going to admit it, but you care for him. I see it in the way you act and the way you are working so hard to turn him into the alpha you need to rule the West with you. Any pups born from you two would be incredibly strong despite being quarter human. Inuyasha's human blood does not seem to affect him like most Hanyous, to put it simply your brother is far more youkai then human and I have never seen it before, only heard about it. He might just be the only one still alive." Kouga said crossing his arms and giving Sesshomaru a knowing look. They both heard the gasp from Inuyasha but the hanyou got closer to them and spoke before they had a chance to do anything about what he overheard.

"I am not the only Hanyou that is more youkai then human, Shiori a little girl we helped along the way with a human mother and youkai father, is also like me." Inuyasha explained. Kouga didn't see it but Sesshomaru understood that Inuyasha was actually trying to distract Kouga from the prior topic. Inuyasha was protecting him from Kouga's questions.

"Inuyasha if out of everything you have seen in your life and you have only run across one other hanyou like yourself then you should know you are unusual." Kouga explained falling into Inuyasha's scheme.

"What does it matter anyway my blood is the same whether I take after a youkai or not." Inuyasha asked genuinely curious about that.

"Inuyasha remember me telling you that human and youkai blood really shouldn't be able to mix?" Sesshomaru asked taking over the explanations from Kouga.

"Yeah," Inuyasha answered vaguely recalling it, he had taken in a lot of information that day and it was starting to blend together.

"The reason we know this is because most of the time it doesn't mix. This means that there are three I geuss you could say classes of hanyous that we have seen. I just want to say no form of Hanyou is accepted more then the others. The most common type is the one where the blood doesn't mix at all and the hanyou is left weak and sickly because their bodies are fighting their own blood just to survive.

The two least common are the ones where the blood mixes thoroughly leaving the hanyou with a dominant side and a lesser side. This means the hanyou will either appear mostly human or mostly youkai. The nature of the two blood types means that human blood often wins out over youkai.

I would imagine you and this girl Shiori took after your youkai blood because of your fathers. I can only assume Shiori's father was a Lord as well. It could be that your youkai heritage was stronger then your human side." Sesshomaru explained.

"What would have happened if my blood had gone one of the other ways?" Inuyasha asked curiously half dreading the answer.

"You wouldn't be as strong, nor could you have wielded Father's fang. You definitely wouldn't have been an alpha, and it is quite possible you could have died from old age by now. The human type hanyous have a shorter life span and the other kind barely lasts a century." Sesshomaru answered clinically.

"So that is why all youkais think Hanyou's are weak, because most of us are. Since you say my kind is rare it means that any other youkai's that encounter Hanyou's have met either a slightly youkai human, or a vegetable. Why do they treat me the same though? I mean do I look like the other kinds or do I just attract trouble?" Inuyasha asked.

"You're right for the most part. No you do not look like any of the other hanyous I have met. I just don't think other youkais care to see the difference, to them you've seen one hanyou you have seen them all. In the end I believe this gave you an advantage. They do not expect you to be able to fight as strongly and as hard as a full youkai. You beat them with the element of surprise, luck, and skill." Sesshomaru answered.

"The others are starting to get fidgety we had better get back or they will be curious." Kouga said getting the attention of the Inu brothers.

"I agree," Sesshomaru replied and lead them back to the others.

This time it was Kouga halted by a hand on his shoulders. Inuyasha pitched his voice lower then humans could hear and told him, "Congratulations on your pups."

Kouga just nodded in acceptance. He didn't want to prolong the conversation.

Then it hit him, that was the first time it had been said out loud.

Pups, his pups, and he found he didn't mind the thought as much as he once did.

A/N well what do you think? Hopefully we will get to some fighting in the next chapter but I don't want to make a promise I am not sure I can keep.

Please review