Chapter 6

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Author's Notes: Of course, just when I say I won't be doing much writing of fanfic in the near future, I get depressed over the volume of rewriting that the (bleeped) original novel needs before it's fit for public consumption. I don't even know where to start ... oi. It's been a year since I looked at it and it hasn't aged well.

And on the web dev side of things, PHPbb hates me, and that's all there is to it. It's personal.

So, in frustration and depression, I wrote a chapter of Unseelie.

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Shippou had been reasonably sure that things were going to go for crap as soon as Kagome had called him early that morning to ask for his help. Slayers plus Kagome plus Inuyasha plus a youkai type Big Bad had given him an unpleasant premonition of trouble. He didn't need to have precognition to know he was likely in for a bad fight.

Still, he'd held out hope that it wouldn't be an unutterable disaster until he'd stepped into the hotel and felt building evil. Faint but unmistakable, he'd known this was going to be a really awful day. Trickster's instinct -- he could tell the difference between illusion of bad and really bad. This was going to be the latter.

Then he'd saw her.

And he'd known this was going to be an unmitigated fuckup of unprecedented proportions. Because it always was.

Inuyasha thought he had bad luck. He was convinced the soul standing before him and gazing at him with reasonably calm brown eyes was cursed by the ages.

"You're a kitsune, aren't you?" Hanako asked, in Japanese. She was calm. Unafraid of him -- perhaps she had some knowledge of kitsune, or perhaps she subconsciously knew him from buried memories from past lives. Either way, he was relieved he wasn't going to need to earn her trust. Depending on just how bad things were for her, that wasn't always a given.

Damnit ... he was not happy to see her. No, that wasn't true ... he was and would always be happy to see her. Because it was Sango on some level; they'd shared a past history where she had survived the bad guys and had lived to be old and grey and happy, with children of her own.

"Yeah," he said, answering her question about his species. "I am."

"How long have you known Kagome?" Hanako's casual acceptance of him was a bit of a relief. And a bit disturbing; he needed to have a few stern words with her about not assuming that demons were friendly based on their species or the behavior of the humans around them. But for now, at least, he wasn't dealing with, 'Eeek! It's a fox demon!' from her.

She watched as Buffy opened the glass door, stuck her head out, then recoiled as Buffy apparently sensed the barrier. She hastily shut the barrier and said something witty that made those who were close enough to her to hear chuckle.

Not as long as I've known you, Shippou thought, with some very black amusement. "Years."

"She seems nice."

"Aa, she is. She's like a sister to me," Shippou said. Once, that would have been like a mother, but he was both physically and biologically older than Kagome now. Weirdness lay there, but he was resolutely ignoring it. Like a sister worked, implying deep feelings without any hormonal attraction there. Because she really wasn't his type, and even if she was, Inuyasha would have his 'nads ...

A grown man who still worships the ground she walks on, Shippou thought. Because he did. And he always would.

"I don't think I've seen any kitsune this side of the ocean." Hanako said.

"You won't, either. There aren't many of us left, and fewer still who ever leave Japan." Shippou sighed. "Over a century ago, Inuyasha and Amelia left Japan because the situation there had simply become untenable. I followed." He lifted one shoulder up in a shrug, "Life was boring without the two of them around. And I, I just missed them."

"Amelia?"

"Inuyasha's late wife. She was quite something." Shippou answered a bit distracted as he watched Willow open the glass doors and step through it. Concerned that Willow might try to take the barrier down herself, raised his voice and said, "Be careful. That barrier's generating large amounts of static electricity. It'll hurt if you touch it."

Willow glanced over her shoulder; Buffy's flashlight picked out her features and made them look otherworldly. Her eyes narrowed at him; Shippou flared a bit of demonic power out, just for kicks, and watched her eyes widen. She said tersely -- and perhaps with a bit of warning at him, "I know what I'm doing."

Kagome next to him had caught the flash of youki too; she swatted him with the back of her hand and said, "Don't do that."

"Mmm." Shippou strode over to Willow, ignored the wary look she gave him, and peered past her into that roiling black fog. It stank of decay and decomposition, but wasn't actually toxic. He thanked the gods for small blessings. "I'm voting that we let Inuyasha take care of the barrier."

"How's he going to help?" Willow said, a bit dismissively. "He's not much of a magic user, unless there's something about him my books don't mention."

"Tessaiga," Kagome said, simply. "It can take barriers out."

"That sword," Willow responded, after a moment's silence, and with a bit of sarcasm in her voice, "Is impressive. What can't it do?"

"Plenty. It's a useful tool for Inuyasha, but it's not what makes him who he is these days. It's why he only carries it when he's expecting a fight," Shippou explained, with a shrug. Kagome shot him a look; Shippou wondered if she realized that leaving Tessaiga behind was a deliberate choice for Inuyasha, and one not motivated by his desire to blend in among humas. Because, really, putting a glamour on the sword would not have been difficult. They had, a few times, in the past, when it had become necessary -- it was a very simple illusion for Shippou to do.

Once, things had been very different for Inuyasha. Shippou had rather strong memories of an Inuyasha long ago who didn't dare be separated from the blade for fear he'd lose his humanity. Bad memories. Not until he'd actually lost it in a fight and not regained it for years had Inuyasha learned to stand on his own, without it ... and that had been a near disaster. Both Shippou and Amelia had worried he'd lose his soul in an uncontrolled transformation.

He hadn't, though. And eventually he'd learned to control his demon half, with Amelia's help. Inuyasha had proven stronger than anyone had ever guessed -- not even Inuyasha's father, or Inuyasha himself, had thought the hanyou would be able to master his inhuman blood. He had, and when he'd regained Tessaiga, he'd never again worn it unless he expected to be fighting.

Shippou added, "Anyway, if Inuyasha didn't have Tessaiga, he'd come through that barrier using brute force and claws."

"Because of her?" Buffy flicked her flashlight at Kagome.

"Both of us, actually," Kagome said, squinting into the light. "Don't underestimate how Inuyasha feels about Shippou."

Shippou grinned at her, knowing full well it was true. And mutual. Sometimes, Inuyasha left him wondering and second guessing, but ... well, he knew, in the depths of his heart that Inuyasha considered him the only son he'd ever have.

"Miss Summers," a smooth, oddly accented voice said behind Shippou. "May I offer my assistance in the coming fight? Because we will have to fight, I fear."

"Yeah, sure," Buffy said. "Join the party."

"Shippou, this is Kavan. He's Seelie." Kagome said.

Shippou glanced at the man. In the dim light his blond hair shone like a pale halo, and his eyes were weirdly familiar. Shippou couldn't place them. The elf met his gaze and lifted an eyebrow in polite inquiry. "You're short a few tails with that look, m'lad."

Shippou was impressed by that; the man had power if he could see through the potent illusions that concealed Shippou's truest form. "I don't need to show off."

"Most Kitsune I've known are much vainer than that," Kavan said, sounding approving.

"I'm old." Shippou brushed his red hair back from his eyes. "I don't need to show off. Most of my people bluster and bluff because there's bigger and nastier things out there that want us for lunch. We've a reputation for being a weak race, and that's at least partly because we do not often survive past our first few centuries." He grinned, suddenly. "It's fun to take the bad guys by surprise, ne? They think I'm a little one-tailed kitsune boy until they find out otherwise."

"I can see the appeal there," Kavan said, with a grin that lit mischief in his eyes.

"If they survive, they rarely pick on kitsune again. Not that there's many of us on this side of the ocean. But ..."

Angel had briefly disappeared into his office; he returned with a sheathed sword, and asked, "Can you handle steel? We noted your sword was cracked earlier."

Kavan grimaced. "Yes. All I've done for the past several weeks is fight, and my blade's in need of repairs ... steel won't kill me, at least not right away. Long unbroken exposure causes severe anemia, and can lead to cancers. Many of our lesser court have significantly more health issues stemming from iron exposure, and other problems with the modern world, though."

He pulled broadsword out from the sheath and inspected it. "Nice. Thank you."

Kavan added, as he put the sword away again. "Exposure to cold iron, and to toxic elements in the atmosphere, are why there are so few Seelie left. And Unseelie, too."

"And possibly youkai," Shippou said. "You'll note that our swords are made from fangs."

"Perhaps." Kavan acknowledged. "I would certainly not turn down a youkai-tooth sword, but there isn't anyone left who can make them."

"Yeah. That's a bit of a problem."

Kavan slung the sword across his back and buckled the harness over his shirt. He was moving very stiffly; Shippou figured he'd been injured recently. "So." Kavan said, "I'm going to assume this barrier extends completely over the building, but do we want to verify that and sweep the building for intruders? And maybe find a more defensible location? You're the boss, but I'm getting creepy-crawly feelings between my shoulderblades not knowing what's going on in the rest of the building."

Buffy nodded agreement. "Yeah, planned on it."

Efficiently, she divided the group up into sets of three and four, each comprised of one 'heavy hitter' plus the new Slayers. Shippou found himself paired with Kagome and Hanako, as well as Andrew -- he supposed that made sense, since Andrew's Japanese, while heavily influenced by the shonen anime the guy loved, was at least understandable. They could all speak Japanese and not have to translate for Hanako.

Though he'd have lumped Kagome in with the other heavy-hitters like Willow and Spike ... but Buffy didn't know either Shippou or Kagome very well. He realized with amusement that Buffy might be considering him an unknown factor and correctly assuming that Kagome, as a rather experienced Slayer, could hold her own against most average threats.

Hanako was still preternaturally calm. Old soul, he thought. And a natural inclination towards competence in the face of danger.

"I'm amazed Inuyasha doesn't have that barrier down yet," Kagome said, "It's not all that powerful."

"He may have met with other trouble," Shippou said, a bit unwillingly. And 'not all that powerful' was relative -- both of them knew Inuyasha could handle it; it was definitely weaker than some of the shield-spells that Naraku had put in their way.

Kagome gave him a dark look. They didn't know what was going on outside that barrier. For all they knew, Inuyasha could be in the midst of a pitched battle. Both of them also knew that.

"It's Inuyasha, Kagome. He'll be fine." Shippou shrugged. "He hasn't survived seven centuries ..."

"Don't say it. Don't jinx him," Kagome said, shortly.

"Here," Buffy handed Kagome a single flashlight. "We don't have many. You take the basement. Andrew knows where the entrances to the storm sewers are. Make sure they're secure. See if you can get past the barrier there while you're at it."

Escaping via the drains would be altogether too easy, Shippou thought. He seriously doubted it would work.

"We'll meet back here in twenty minutes," Buffy said. "Go!"

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Inuyasha impatiently revved his engine at a stoplight. He knew the hotel was around here somewhere. Where the fuck was it, anyway?

Teeth bared, he gunned the engine as soon as the light changed green. Narrowly, he missed the back end of a pickup that was a bit tardy in making a left at the intersection, and then rocketed down the street. The hotel should be right ... there ...!

He blinked, confused. For the fourth time, it seemed as if he'd made a left instead of going straight at that intersection. He knew he'd gone straight, but the only way he could have gotten to the corner of Elm and Caballo was to have made a left and then a right. Was he losing his mind?

Fuck. Fuck it all. No. He wasn't losing his mind. If he was prone to actual insanity he'd have gone bugfuck centuries ago. Someone was screwing with the folds of space and time.

He parked crookedly at the curb, snagged Tessaiga up, and launched himself into the night sky. This was a puzzle best solved with some altitude.

There was no hotel.

There was, however, one very large traffic jam in the area, with cars behaving markedly erratically. Drivers were flipping "U" turns, weaving through traffic, darting up and down roads, and variously behaving in ways that indicated they were just as confused as he was by some topographical impossibilities.

Grimly, he landed on a rooftop of a nearby skyscraper. He knew where the hotel was supposed to be, but he couldn't seem to see it. There wasn't a hole there, or a void. Just an ... absence. His eyes slid over the location like it didn't exist.

"Unseelie work," a low, smooth voice said next to him.

Inuyasha shot sideways, hand landing on the hilt of Tessaiga, lips lifting in a snarl of warning. It was pure reflex; he wasn't thinking, just reacting.

Sesshomaru lifted a cool eyebrow. "Nice to see you're aware of what's sneaking up behind you, little brother."

Inuyasha straightened up, folded his arms, and regarded Sesshomaru with some incredulity. It was his brother, sure, but he'd never seen Sesshomaru in ... civvies ... before. "What happened, decide to go human?"

Sesshomaru snorted. "Don't think for a moment what I chose to wear matters to who I am."

"Feh. That's right, it doesn't change the fact that you're a bastard ..." Inuyasha shook his head. He wasn't actually in a mood to beat up Sesshomaru at the moment unless it turned out that Sesshomaru was behind the problem at the hotel -- which Inuyasha doubted. Not his brother's style; if Sesshomaru had a problem with you, he generally just said so and then killed you.

Impatiently, Inuyasha demanded, "Okay, now that we've got the snarling at each other out of the way, what are you doing here?

The other eyebrow rose. Sesshomaru gave his brother a rather startled look; Inuyasha figured that Sesshomaru had expected him to snap and growl a bit longer. Well, the guy had brought Kagome back to life, and Inuyasha was grudgingly grateful. And Sesshomaru might actually know something useful right now, too. "And more to the point, do you know where the hotel is?"

Sesshomaru shrugged. In a tone that implied he was speaking to someone who was a bit slow and simple, he said, "It's not there anymore."

"That's obvious enough." Inuyasha snapped. "Do you know where it is?"

"No." A bland, golden-eyed look.

Inuyasha regarded him in silence for a long moment. While he was indisputably Sesshomaru, he was dressed remarkably humanly. He was wearing jeans, a sweater (with one arm hanging loose and empty), sandals, and he had his hair pulled back with a rubber band. He had Tenseiga in one hand, but no belt to hang the blade's scabbard on.

And his clothes looked a bit rumpled, like he'd just woken up and hastily thrown them on. He was far, far from the dignified daiyoukai lord that Inuyasha normally saw that Inuyasha was, in truth, a little amused. Inuyasha's lips quirked up in a bit of a smirk. "Not in uniform, are we now?"

"No," Sesshomaru said. One lip twisted up in a smile that almost mirrored Inuyasha's. "My robes are at the dry cleaner's."

"Always wondered if you ever let your hair down," Inuyasha snorted. "Figuratively speaking. Shippou and I have a bet on that, you know -- Shippou, it appears, won."

"A bet?"

"That you owned a pair of blue jeans. Shippou said yes. Because I figured you were such a stick in the mud that you wore that damned kimono and fur thing from the time you got up in the morning until the time you went to bed. If you even slept. Which we have another bet on."

Sesshomaru eyed his younger brother with a completely expressionless look. "I hope you didn't bet much money because I do sleep."

"Feh. I bet you did, Shippou bet not."

"Are any other biological functions of mine a subject of wagers by you and the kitsune?"

Inuyasha gave him another smirk. This one was downright evil. "You don't want me to answer that question."

"Perhaps I am not that curious. At any rate, when I sensed the presence of Unseelie in this city I concluded that haste was preferable over sending Jaken to retrieve my clothing from the cleaner's, so you will simply have to endure me dressed as this." Sesshomaru indicated his jeans with a contemptuous wave of his hand.

"Why would I care what you wear? Looks more comfortable than that silk crap you dress in all the time, anyway. And you hardly need the armor."

"Mm. Perhaps. It is not how I wish to present myself to the world, however." Sesshomaru's eyes slide over Inuyasha's much more battered blue jeans and his faded t-shirt. The expression on his face wasn't quite contemptuous, but it was close. Inuyasha hadn't failed to notice that Sesshomaru was wearing designer blue jeans -- Inuyasha had on a pair of old Wranglers. Sesshomaru said calmly, "Judgments are made of you based on your appearance."

"Yeah. Remind me some day to enlighten you on what people in this day and age thing of men who wear fluffy boas and kimonos," Inuyasha said, then before Sesshomaru could respond to that, he added, "Do you have any idea how deal with this problem? Because Shippou and Kagome were both in that hotel. And I'm out of ideas."

"Yes, I note that your ideas generally do not extend past hitting things, then striking them harder if the first instance of violence did not produce satisfactory results. As there is nothing here to apply brute force to, I would imagine you are a bit frustrated," Sesshomaru observed.

"Oh, fuck you." Inuyasha dropped his hand back to Tessaiga's hilt.

"You realize drawing Tessaiga would prove my point," Sesshomaru said, coolly.

Inuyasha lifted his hand off the sword and presented Sesshomaru with a raised middle digit.

Sesshomaru simply stared at the finger, a smile playing around his mouth.

Inuyasha wiped his hand off on his jeans. "So. I assume you are here to help with the Unseelie?"

"Yes. And as much as it pains me to admit it, this is perhaps an enemy that I cannot handle by myself." Sesshomaru sounded remarkably bland as he spoke. "I do not wish to die, and Federic Torin is more than my match in battle. He is too strong, with too many allies. I was quite impressed that Buffy managed to wound him; she may be mortal, but she is a phenomenal fighter."

"Feh. Slayers."

"Do not discount her, Inuyasha."

"I don't. And I am not surprised by her effectiveness in battle." Inuyasha glanced sideways at Sesshomaru. "You do realize that I've teamed with a Slayer before, on multiple occasions. I know what they're capable of and how they react and think. Not just Kagome, but ... before. In the past."

And, Inuyasha thought grimly, I know how to kill them if I have to.

"The girl. Sango."

"Yes. And others."

"She lived to be quite old. Most don't," Sesshomaru said, calmly.

"The first time, yes." Inuyasha sighed. "Not after."

"After?" Sesshomaru sounded genuinely curious.

"Sango crosses out path about three or four times a century," Inuyasha said, somewhat unwillingly. His heart clenched at bad memories of the past. "Shippou and I seem fated to encounter her soul over and over again. She is not always a Slayer, but often, she is. Always, she is someone important to the fight we're in. Her soul is repeatedly reborn, forever destined to fight against evil. We don't know why she can't rest."

"This bothers you."

"We see a friend die, again and again, Sesshomaru. It ... hurts." Inuyasha gritted his teeth.

"But she will come back, if what you say is true."

"Feh. And not remember us. And ... it just hurts, okay?" Inuyasha said, defensively. "You wouldn't understand."

Sesshomaru said, unwillingly, "Rin came back. Once. I found her by pure accident. It ... was not the same."

"It never is. You can't go back to what was." Inuyasha grunted. "So. Are we working together? Because much as I think you're a complete bastard, I'm not going to turn down any help in saving Kagome and Shippou. Ne?"

"Very well, we'll work together," Sesshomaru said, sounding impatient.

"Great. It'll be just like old times." Inuyasha snorted. "Let's try the sewers. Maybe we can find a way to the hotel that way."

"That's the best idea you can come up with?" Sesshomaru sighed. Clearly, he didn't have a better one.

"Yeah. Stinks, doesn't it?" Inuyasha said, with a smirk for Sesshomaru's benefit.

"Very funny, little brother."

"Hey, at least you don't have to dry-clean jeans."