Daitan sat in the grass a few hours after the group had found shelter, eyes closed and relishing in the sun on her face. After Naraku's castle had vanished, the landscape had been revealed, as if a heavy curtain had been drawn back from it.
Rolling hills of lush, green grass stretched into the distance, where a line of trees could be seen, indicating the edge of a forest. Wildflowers danced in the warm gentle breeze, and butterflies fluttered around them to sip at their nectar. It was a rare peaceful moment within the chaos of the Feudal Era, and Daitan could not sense any nearby youkai. At least, not any that were dangerous. The only other youkai around were Shippo, Kirara, and the flea Myoga, who had mysteriously appeared on Inuyasha's shoulder just when the danger had gone…
The only evidence of Naraku's castle was the lingering scent of miasma coming from the small hut that Sango and Kirara were resting in, having been poisoned by it. Daitan remembered the acrid taste of it, and the sour smell of sulfur. Sango and Kirara weren't getting any better, and Naraku did tell them that no one had survived direct exposure to his miasma. Daitan guessed that the only reason it didn't have any effect on her was because she inherited a strong resistance to poison from her father. The pain in her muscles from Kagome's sacred arrow however, was taking its time working itself out, though Daitan had yet to feel as sick as she had a few days before.
Daitan's ears twitched as Kagome's voice was carried to her on the wind.
"An herbal antidote? You mean there's a cure for Sango and Kirara's illness?" she asked. Daitan got to her feet and stretched her aching muscles, gingerly making her way over to where Kagome, Inuyasha, and Shippo sat, listening to Myoga.
"Hmm… I have heard rumors of an herb garden not far from here. Unfortunately for us, there's also a rumor about a youkai." said the flea, who had perched himself on Inuyasha's shoulder. Daitan sat down carefully next to Kagome, feeling as though her joints were creaking.
"I don't think that's too worrying, we've dealt with youkai before, after all." she said.
"Yeah!" Shippo piped up. "And that's a perfect job for Inuyasha – after he beats the youkai, we can take whatever we need!"
Inuyasha nodded.
"If it helps Kirara, then I'm happy to do it. She actually helps in battle – unlike Myoga!" he teased.
"We can actually count on Kirara," said Shippo, joining in. "unlike some people! Without her strength, we could really be in trouble." Myoga started to tremble, a flush coming to his tiny cheeks as he puffed up with anger.
"Now now," Daitan chastised. "To be fair, there's not much Myoga can do in battle, being so small." Unfortunately, her words seemed to have the opposite effect as Myoga started furiously hopping up and down.
"And besides, he's helped us out in other ways! Don't you remember that one time he… um…" Kagome trailed off, as if she had forgotten what she was going to say, but the mischievous twinkle in her eye gave her away.
"Alright, alright, enough with this already! What's a flea got to do to catch a break around here?!" fumed Myoga. "You act like size is everything – well it isn't! Brains count too, you know!"
—-
After Inuyasha, Kagome, and Shippo had their fun, they decided that Kagome, Inuyasha, and Daitan would go to look for the herbs that Sango and Kirara needed to heal. At first, Kagome tried to convince Daitan to rest, since she still hadn't healed from the sacred arrow, but Daitan waved her off, saying that she would only get stiff if she kept still for too long.
"And besides," said Daitan as the three walked down the road to the nearby village. "I didn't sense anything that would cause the others any harm back there, other than some weaker youkai, which Miroku would definitely be able to handle on his own. Sango and Kirara will be just fine."
"Hmm… you're not usually so lenient about that kind of thing." commented Inuyasha. Daitan shrugged.
"Yeah, but if I'm being honest… I'm more concerned about the fact that you two tend to attract trouble the most." Inuyasha immediately took offense, of course.
"I don't need a babysitter, I can take care of myself! In fact, I could get there a lot faster if I just went by myself!" Daitan's eyebrow twitched, and she opened her mouth, intending on shooting back a retort, but Kagome spoke first.
"Let's say you could get there faster, what would you do once you got there? Could you tell the good herbs from the bad ones? After all, it was me that Lady Kaede taught how to recognize them, and it'll be really nice to all spend time together." she said cheerfully. Inuyasha deflated a little, and if he had pockets, Daitan knew he would have shoved his hands in them.
"Yeah, okay, whatever. But that doesn't explain why I need you." he said, the last part directed at Daitan.
"Is it so hard to believe that I care about your safety?"
"When you're always hitting me? Yes!"
—-
The three walked for another ten minutes or so, and Inuyasha had sped up his pace to walk next to Kagome, leaving Daitan in the back.
I don't mind, though, Thought Daitan, watching Inuyasha and Kagome. It's just nice to have some peace and quiet for once.
The breeze, which had previously smelled only of earth and sunbathed trees, shifted slightly, and the new direction carried a scent of death on it. Daitan snapped to attention, looking ahead at the thick, shady forest. Kagome and Inuyasha had stopped as well.
"What's that…?" murmured Kagome, hand ready to grasp at her bow.
Five men appeared out of the trees, carrying a makeshift stretcher between them. The sour smell of death wafted from the body laying on it, underneath a straw mat. They were speaking so loud that even Kagome could undoubtedly hear them.
"...Third one this week…"
"I'm telling you, it's Jinenji!"
"Of course it is, who else would it be but that youkai!"
Inuyasha stepped up in front of them as they approached, getting straight to the point.
"So who's Jinenji? Some kind of youkai?" he asked, disregarding the fearful looks he was getting from the villagers. Kagome and Daitan stepped up as well, and the villagers all took a step back, recognizing Daitan's pointed ears and claws. The fearful looks turned to anger.
"And why should we tell you? Who are you, more youkai?" said one brave soul.
"Not quite." said Daitan, letting no concern at all show in her expression. Kagome smiled politely, patting Inuyasha on the shoulder.
"He's not really a youkai youkai, if you know what I mean!" she said congenially. The villagers didn't look convinced, backing away farther. "Oh wait, that didn't come out right! Listen, we're just trying to find a farm with a medicinal herb for our friend!"
"She's been poisoned, and she might die if we don't get any medicine to her soon." explained Daitan. The men still looked suspicious, but one of them still answered anyway.
"...You must mean Jinenji, but Jinenji is the one who killed this poor woman! He's a big monster, who lives on the village outskirts with his mother."
"Those plants of his work, sure enough, but lately he's gotten himself a taste for human flesh!" piped up another.
"Could you show us where Jinenji lives? Perhaps we could still reason with him." asked Daitan.
—-
After laying the dead woman to rest and giving her a proper burial, the group of villagers reluctantly agreed to lead the three to where Jinenji lived. They had only walked for a short while before coming to a halt, beckoning Kagome, Inuyasha, and Daitan to crouch behind a large boulder. The scent of earth, sunshine, and most peculiarly, an unfamiliar hanyou drifted in their direction, and Daitan's eyebrows furrowed.
"That's him, there!" whispered one of the men. The great pounding of heavy, slow footsteps could be heard from behind the boulder, and, peeking around it, Daitan spotted Jinenji, the source of the hanyou scent.
Jinenji had to be at least twelve feet tall, with a muscular build and large hands and feet. In fact, he was so large that upon closer inspection, it seemed that multiple pieces of clothing had been stitched together to make his ragged kimono. His face was elongated, looking not unlike a horse or donkey, with large flat teeth, and his small human ears looked rather disproportionate to his head. His most noticeable feature, however, were his enormous watery blue eyes. They were perfectly round, and showed no whites at all.
Daitan tilted her head, her eyebrows still furrowed. He didn't seem like a flesh-eater, judging from the shape of his teeth, and despite his size, he stepped very delicately through his field, careful not to crush even a single stalk or leaf. Even more was that she couldn't smell any human blood on him, and there were numerous scars littering his arms and legs.
"Huh, he ain't so big…" muttered Inuyasha. One of the men scowled at him.
"Don't go making any promises you can't keep." he grumbled.
"Oh shut up, I'm doing it for the herb, not you," growled Inuyasha, beginning to stand. He looked back at Kagome and Daitan. "You two can stay back here, I don't need your help taking this guy down." And with that, Inuyasha vaulted over the rock to go and confront Jinenji.
The human men immediately began to whisper to each other.
"Reckon he's strong enough?"
"Don't matter now, does it?"
"If we're lucky, maybe they'll kill each other-" the conversation was quickly cut short by Daitan, who gave all of them a withering scowl. They stepped back into the brush, cowering. When she looked back at Inuyasha, who was now approaching Jinenji, Kagome giggled a little bit.
"What?" asked Daitan.
"Oh, it's just," started Kagome, still giggling. "When you make that face I can really see Sesshomaru in you, is all!" Daitan grinned.
"What can I say? I learned from the best." she shrugged, grinning. Inuyasha's loud voice then echoed through the air.
"What's the matter? Didn't your mother ever tell you not to eat anyone smaller than you?" he taunted, immediately drawing Tessaiga. Jinenji, who had his back turned, looked around at Inuyasha in confusion. The giant looked like he was about to speak, but any words that he may have uttered were cut off by a shower of stones being thrown at him. The group of men, who had run away from Daitan's threatening glare, had reappeared at the edge of the field, and were taking turns throwing rocks at Jinenji's back. Jinenji did nothing to retaliate, only covering his head protectively.
"Go on, get! Get out of here!" shouted the men, continuing to pick up stones from the road and hurl them at Jinenji.
The giant trembled, turning to face the villagers, and his eyes flashed crimson as his youki rose to the surface. Inuyasha readied Tessaiga, prepared for action, but…
Fat tears welled up in Jinenji's round blue eyes, and he began to bawl loudly, running back toward a small house set up at the other end of the field and calling for his mother in a deep, booming voice. The villagers jeered at Jinenji's retreating back, and Daitan had had enough. A low growl rumbled in her chest and she stepped out from behind the boulder, pinning them with another ice cold stare. One brave idiot decided to try and throw the rock in his hand at her head, but she caught it effortlessly with her whip and slung it right back at him at high speed. It impacted his left wrist, and a sick crack rang through the air as the bone broke.
The man she had hit, one of the younger ones, cried out in pain, clutching his arm.
"Be grateful I didn't aim for your head." was all Daitan said before turning her back. She heard the villagers' footsteps quickly retreating, and looked back at Inuyasha just in time to see an old woman crack a wooden post over his head. Kagome had since stepped out from behind the boulder as well, now standing in the middle of the field, and Jinenji cowered next to the small house, curled into a ball and trembling. Heaving sobs still wracked his body.
Daitan made her way over to Inuyasha, making sure not to step on any of the herbs. As She got closer, she saw that he now sported a sizable lump on the top of his head. The old woman breathed heavily, one of the broken halves of the post still clutched in her bony, wrinkled hands.
"I don't know who put you up to this, or what you've been told, but this boy would never eat someone, you got that?! Who he is don't matter, whether hanyou or not!"
—-
After explaining the situation, the old woman, who had introduced herself as Mana, invited the three inside so that Jinenji could prepare the antidote they needed for Sango and Kirara. They all sat by the fire, except for Jinenji, who sat with his back turned to all of them to grind up herbs. His large frame easily filled up almost half of the small house.
"So you two are both hanyou as well, though you don't look it, huh?" asked Mana, stoking the fire.
"So you can tell, can you?" Inuyasha replied.
"Um, I'm a full youkai, actually, not a hanyou." said Daitan, smiling politely. Mana squinted at her and Inuyasha.
"Eh? I thought you were siblings, you look somewhat alike – you've got the same eyebrows." she said, pointing with a crooked finger. Daitan and Inuyasha looked at each other.
"Really?" they asked in unison. Kagome leaned to the side to get a closer look at both of them.
"Oh yeah," she murmured. "I guess I've never really noticed before…"
"Must be from Grandfather," said Daitan, shrugging. "Since Inuyasha is technically my uncle and all. My father takes more after Grandmother, so it must have skipped a generation."
While Inuyasha balked at the reminder of being Daitan's uncle, Mana spoke again.
"Huh… well whatever the case, half breeds are funny. For every one born cute like you, there's another born who ain't." she said, clearly referring to Jinenji.
"Oh, he's cute alright," teased Kagome. "But only if you're into dogs." she tugged playfully on one of Inuyasha's fluffy dog ears, making him grunt in annoyance.
"Just imagine what it's like for my Jinenji," said Mana in a low voice. "Being a hanyou like him shouldn't matter, but the villagers… they treat him like he's some kind of monster!" Daitan had noticed that Jinenji's movements had stopped, and he had inclined his head slightly to listen in to the conversation.
"I saw that earlier, outside. Those men were throwing rocks at him." Daitan's expression had turned serious.
"They bully him?" asked Kagome, sympathy in her warm brown eyes.
"Bully him?" Mana scoffed. "Try to kill him, more like!"
Jinenji bowed his head, attempting to make himself smaller as he spoke in a deep, soft voice.
"I'm sorry, Mom… If I weren't like this, I…"
"You stop that right now!" scolded Mana, her eyes watering. "Don't you apologize for being different! Your father, he was different… but that never made no difference to me," she closed her eyes in remembrance, and the look of joy that swept across her face suddenly seemed to lift years from her skin.
"I'll never forget how I hurt my ankle and couldn't walk, and how it was your father who saved me! Oh, the man I saw, he was glowing, but I knew he weren't real. No man is that perfect… I loved him anyway. Him, and his youkai nature…" she trailed off, smiling. Daitan found herself smiling too. Despite her father never once speaking of her mother, she had overheard some of the youkai that had worked at the estate the longest saying that she was certainly something, to have caught the heart of her father. That is, before she had vanished without a trace a few days after Daitan's birth, leaving Sesshomaru to take care of her…
Inuyasha's voice snapped Daitan out of her musings.
"Wait, if you're saying the father was a youkai, then the human parent was you?" he asked, disbelieving and pointing a clawed finger at Mana. The old woman's blushing face immediately turned to one of irritation.
"What did you think I was?"
"She's clearly human, Inuyasha, she doesn't smell like a youkai at all." said Daitan. Inuyasha opened his mouth to yell at her, but Jinenji took that moment to extend his hand to Kagome, holding a pouch of herbal medicine.
"For your friend. It's medicine for the poison." he said softly, looking away when Kagome took the pouch.
"Oh, thank you. How much?"
"Nothing!" Mana waved off Kagome. "It's the least I could do to make up for the clubbing I gave earlier. Now leave, before I grind your bones to make our bread."
—-
As the three walked away from the farm, Daitan couldn't help but feel like she had to stay. It clearly wasn't Jinenji who was eating the humans in the village, so the youkai responsible was still at large… As if she had read her mind, Kagome spoke.
"Um, Inuyasha, shouldn't we stay?" she asked. Inuyasha stopped, but didn't look at Kagome.
"And why should we?"
"The villagers, they think Jinenji's been eating people, you know they do. Maybe he is different, but that doesn't mean that he's guilty!" said Kagome, looking back at Jinenji and Mana's farm.
"But that's what it means when you're different," Inuyasha spat. "Nobody trusts you, you're always the first to be blamed, and it is always, always your fault!" he started walking again, head bowed and clearly done with the conversation. Daitan leaned down to mutter into Kagome's ear.
"And it also means that the youkai who's been eating the villagers is still out there, and will more than likely strike again if we don't do anything." she said, and Kagome nodded.
"I know, but I don't know if he's going to listen right now… I think he knows exactly what Jinenji is going through because he went through it himself…"
"Unfortunately, things aren't that different in the future." said Daitan grimly. Kagome looked confused.
"I would have thought that our time would be more accepting of hanyou, is it still bad?" she asked. Daitan tilted her head, thinking.
"Well, your assumption is somewhat correct. For a while, hanyou did become a more accepted part of the youkai community. Youkai went into hiding from the mundane world sometime before I was born, and there wasn't much else that hanyou could do but try to integrate with youkai, the alternative being to be persecuted and killed by humans. Relations improved over time, and there was a point where hardly anyone cared if someone was a hanyou or not, unless they were part of a noble family."
"But…?" prompted Kagome. Daitan sighed.
"What you have to understand, Kagome, is that we kept ourselves completely out of the affairs of humans until very, very recently. Until they actually affected us. Humans waged their petty wars, and we stayed hidden from them until a little over fifty years ago."
Kagome gasped.
"You mean-?" Daitan nodded.
"Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The atomic bombs, they-" Daitan's throat constricted, and she took a deep shuddering breath, standing still. Kagome immediately stopped walking and tried to put a comforting hand on Daitan's shoulder, but Daitan smacked it away. Inuyasha paused up ahead, looking back with a confused expression. Kagome looked a little hurt.
"Daitan, are you-?"
"I'm okay," she said, straightening up. The ground still felt like it was trying to suck her in. After a few more deep breaths, she started walking again, clenching her hands tight to keep them from shaking. "...A lot of youkai felt angry at humanity, and that anger bled over to resident hanyou, including the children and their families. Some of the great houses, like mine, are doing what they can to keep order, but we're still experiencing a relapse when it comes to relations between youkai and hanyou, and even the humans that we've accepted into our fold."
"You've got humans in your community?" Kagome asked gently, attempting to change the subject. Daitan smiled.
"Yeah, we- Inuyasha? What's going on?" Inuyasha had stopped up ahead, and when the girls caught up, they saw what he was staring at. The village men from before were gathering a large pile of weapons, swords and polearms making up most of it.
"Tonight's gotta be the night! It's kill, or be killed!" said one of the older men, and the others nodded in agreement, taking up their own weapons. Kagome rushed forward.
"But it's not!" she shouted, stopping right next to them. "You're not attacking Jinenji, are you?"
"Of course we are!" spat another villager.
"But you don't have any proof that he was the one who-"
"How can you be so naive?" grumbled a middle-aged farmer, his hands clenching into fists. "They hate us, the witch and her monster son!"
"Have you ever stopped to consider that they hate you because you've been tormenting Jinenji all this time?" argued Daitan, stepping forward. "And as for him eating people - I haven't smelt a single drop of human blood on him, and there are plenty of other flesh-eating youkai in the world."
"Why should we trust the word of a youkai like you, especially the one who broke Ichigo's wrist? Jinenji and the witch are cowards, is what they are!" now they weren't even listening to reason. It was Inuyasha's turn to speak, but surprisingly, he wasn't yelling like he normally would. Instead, his voice was uncharacteristically low, with only an undercurrent of his anger showing underneath.
"Interesting," he spoke with derision, looking down on the villagers. "Because it seems to me that it's the other way around. But right now, we've got more important business. Like catching the real flesh-eater."
"What do you mean by that? You planning on catching it?"
Did you not hear what I just said a minute ago…? Thought Daitan, eyebrow twitching. Kagome turned to Inuyasha and Daitan.
"I'm going back." she said. "I'm going to be over at Jinenji's farm, so don't even think about attacking there, okay? If you hurt me, you'll all have to die, because Inuyasha and Daitan will have to avenge me!" her tone didn't leave any room for argument, but Inuyasha did what he did best and made room anyway.
"I will? Since when?!"
"You'd better avenge me! What am I supposed to do if you don't?!"
"Fine, I'll avenge you already…" Inuyasha conceded, a light blush on his cheeks.
I think it's also a decent idea, since I've already shown those guys a fraction of what I can do by breaking that man's wrist.
"No argument here." Daitan shrugged with a grin.
—-
Inuyasha and Daitan raced through the forest, following the scent of a flesh-eating youkai. It had been all over the dead woman, and now it was just a matter of tracking it down and slaying the source. As they ran, Daitan could smell it getting stronger by the minute. They were very close.
The sky was steadily darkening into a deep red tinged purple, and Inuyasha and Daitan slowed down to take in the surroundings. Inuyasha crouched down to the ground to sniff at the soil, while Daitan raised her nose into the air.
"I don't think it's a tree-dwelling youkai… the scent seems weaker in the air." she said. Inuyasha grunted, not looking up from the ground.
"Yeah, you're right. The scent's stronger down here, and this soil has been turned over recently. In fact…" he trailed off as he started to dig with his hands, sending dirt flying.
"Hey, be careful when-" Daitan didn't get to finish as the ground suddenly collapsed, and she and Inuyasha fell twenty feet down a hole. They landed heavily in a large underground burrow, clearly having been carved out by a burrowing youkai.
Daitan got to her feet carefully, examining her surroundings. Dust and dirt had been disturbed from their fall, but it quickly settled once again, revealing a plethora of human bones littering the ground, picked completely clean.
"Well, I think we found our flesh-eater…" muttered Daitan, toeing a discarded femur.
"You don't say." replied Inuyasha, voice dripping with sarcasm. Daitan just rolled her eyes at him. The two made their way down the tunnel, following a faint green light at the end and keeping their hands on their blades, ready for a fight at a moment's notice.
The tunnel eventually opened up into a larger cavern, and they spotted the cause of the green light, which was attached securely to the far wall.
Dozens of large green eggs were adhered to the wall, most of them already hatched and dripping viscous fluid from their shells. The few unhatched eggs that remained were still, and Daitan couldn't hear any heartbeats inside of them. They all glowed with an eerie green light, and the smell of rot and soil got stronger as Daitan and Inuyasha got closer. Daitan didn't realize until it was too late that Inuyasha had crouched down to touch the fluid dripping from the hatched eggs.
"This must be the nest, and these eggs have just hatched." he said, rubbing his fingers together. Daitan grimaced, but didn't comment. She instead listened for the sounds of any other creatures in the tunnels, but she couldn't sense anything.
"I don't think the mother is here, she probably would have come after us right when we crashed through the ceiling… and since the babies aren't here either, that means they must be with her." mused Daitan. Inuyasha nodded, standing up and wiping his hand off on his hakama.
"If they aren't here, the mother must have taken them out for their first taste of human flesh – Kagome's in danger!" he concluded, and without another word, started to rush back to the hole they had fallen down. Daitan followed close behind as he leapt up through the hole to the surface, where the forest had fully darkened into night. They immediately began to run at top speed back to the village.
"The flesh-eater must have left just before we arrived - if we hurry, we might be able to head it off before it kills any more humans!" shouted Daitan over the wind in her ears. Inuyasha only nodded, Kagome's safety clearly taking up most of his focus.
Unfortunately, as Inuyasha and Daitan neared Jinenji's farm, the sound of screaming and the crackling of a large fire got louder and louder. When the two cleared the forest, they could see that Jinenji's house had been set on fire. Small centipede youkai swarmed a group of villagers, and a giant centipede youkai reared over Kagome's prone body. Kagome's bow had been knocked from her hand, and her eyes were closed.
Inuyasha and Daitan quickly dispatched some of the smaller centipedes with ease, slashing them to bits with their claws. Daitan turned around, hand on her sword and ready to deal with the mother centipede, when Jinenji, who had previously been cowering in fear, ran forward, round eyes flashing scarlet.
He charged straight at the mother centipede, his fist raised, and he threw it forward with such force that his fist pierced straight through the centipede's mouth and out the back of its neck. That hadn't been enough, however, as the centipede's tail writhed and curled around his throat, attempting to suffocate him.
With the centipede distracted, Daitan rushed forward and knelt by Kagome's side, shaking her shoulder. Kagome's eyelids fluttered as she regained consciousness, immediately looking over to where Jinenji was wrestling with the giant centipede.
"Kagome! We need to get out of here!" urged Daitan, ready to scoop the girl into her arms. Kagome suddenly sat straight up, now fully conscious.
"Jinenji-!" she cried.
"Hurry, get away!" Jinenji forced out. The centipede's tail tightened around his throat. "Only you… ever treated me like a real person! If… If I let you die here, I wouldn't deserve to be half human!"
Kagome scrambled to her feet, eyes searching the ground for her bow, and Daitan followed after her, eyebrows furrowed with worry.
"Kagome, are you sure you're-"
"I'm fine," she said, locating her bow. "You have to help Jinenji!" Daitan nodded, prepared to draw her sword.
"Don't you do it!" ordered Mana, who stood just a few feet away. She was watching her son very carefully. "You mustn't help him. Jinenji has to learn to fight for himself." she said.
Daitan felt somewhat conflicted. Jinenji still hadn't managed to free himself from the centipede's clutches, and would surely die if he didn't do so soon. However, Thought Daitan, eyes narrowing. He needs a taste of success after all the abuse he's put up with all these years, and he may find it suits him. She removed her hand from the hilt of her sword.
"Daitan, what are you doing?!"
"He needs this opportunity. I'll step in if he falls, but he has to learn this now." Daitan said. Inuyasha approached from behind, having finished off the baby centipedes.
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but she's right. It has to be now."
Daitan would have said something very smug about him agreeing with her, but the sound of the panicking village men gathering up their weapons and trying to sneak off stole her attention. Inuyasha had heard them as well, because he then used his superior speed to cut off their path. He flexed his clawed hand, baring his fangs.
"Don't tell me you're leaving – and here the fun was just getting started! Who's the big coward now?" he sneered.
The men dropped their weapons from their shaking hands, backing away from Inuyasha.
"We are, okay?! Just don't hurt us! We're begging you!" said the man in front. Inuyasha smirked.
"Oh, I get it – whoever's the strongest is the leader of your pack, huh?" the hanyou raised his voice, making sure it carried over to Jinenji, who was still locked with the centipede. "Jinenji! Show these cowards, teach 'em who's boss!"
Jinenji's eyes flashed red once again at Inuyasha's words. With a new burst of strength, he reached up and tore the centipede's tail away from his throat. He wrapped his long arms around the centipede's neck, and began to squeeze. The tighter he squeezed, the more youki Daitan could sense from him, and his entire body began to glow blue. The giant centipede's tail thrashed, and Daitan moved in front of Kagome and Mana, in case it swept in their direction. This was unnecessary, however, as the creature's tail went rigid, twitching. Its upper body swelled suddenly, and then Jinenji's grip made its head burst like a balloon with a flash of bright blue light. For good measure, Jinenji landed one last punch on what was left of its snarling head, obliterating it.
"Amazing…" breathed Kagome, wide-eyed. Daitan smiled, body fully relaxing now.
Jinenji turned to approach the village men, who all immediately fell to their knees, praying and begging for their lives to be spared. Daitan scoffed, deciding to approach Mana. The old woman looked like she was about ready to pass out, but her face had relaxed into a relieved expression.
"I'm sorry about your home Mana, we didn't get here in time to help." Mana waved her off.
"Forget about it. Wasn't your fault. Those men are some real pieces of work…" she said gruffly. Daitan bristled, looking back at the village men and Jinenji, who had given them a handful of healing herbs.
"It's a miracle I still think as fondly as I do of humanity… after everything I've seen." she muttered. A beam gave way in Mana's house and the roof finally caved in, sending sparks flying into the night sky.
—-
The sun had just barely risen over the horizon when Jinenji got to work sifting through his and his mother's home, searching for any surviving belongings. The fire had died down a few hours prior with Daitan, Kagome, and a begrudging Inuyasha helping to fetch buckets of water from the stream. Daitan stood and observed the blackened remains, a knot reappearing in her throat at the sight of the wreckage. She turned quickly away, focusing on the sound of birds and wind, the smell of overturned earth, and the greenery of the trees and the surrounding landscape. The field itself had miraculously remained untouched from the fire, if a bit roughed up from the battle with the centipedes.
"You're sure you'll be okay?" Daitan heard Kagome ask Mana. The inu youkai approached them, fully turning her back on the ruined house.
"Oh, we'll be fine," Mana said, leaning on a walking stick. "You hurry and take that medicine to your friend, alright?" Kagome nodded, straightening up, and Jinenji stood to see them all off.
"We will. See you later, Jinenji!" she said. "Thank you for everything." Kagome smiled.
Jinenji's eyes shimmered, looking more watery than usual.
"...You're welcome." he said softly. A light blush appeared on his cheeks.
—-
"So, Inuyasha…" started Kagome, breaking the silence that the group had been walking in. Inuyasha grunted. "Did that kind of thing happen to you too?" Daitan, who had taken her usual spot in the back, tried not to be obvious in her curiosity.
"Did what happen?"
"Bullying—were you picked on?" Kagome pressed. Inuyasha just scoffed.
"Yeah right! I don't roll over for anybody." he stated.
"No, of course not!" Even though she could only see the back of Kagome's head, Daitan could almost sense her eyebrow twitching. A giant grin spread across the inu youkai's face.
"You're pretty good at 'sit' though, huh?" she blurted out. Inuyasha immediately stopped in his tracks, turned around, and marched straight toward Daitan to get in her face.
"What did you just say?" he growled, and Daitan struggled to keep in her giggles.
"I said you're good at 'sit'! Know any other tricks?"
It took fifteen minutes for Kagome to break up the impromptu tussling match that occurred immediately after Daitan had opened her mouth. By the end, both Inuyasha and Daitan were covered in numerous grass stains with a few bruises and teeth marks here and there. Inuyasha remained irritated, but had ultimately cooled down, and Daitan had a content smile on her face. She could see Kagome occasionally glancing back to make sure she wouldn't make any more trouble, but Daitan had decided that she had poked at the hanyou enough. I think just one friendly rough and tumble is enough for now. She thought. They all walked in silence for a while longer until Inuyasha decided to break it this time.
"I'm not one or the other," he said quietly. "Not really a youkai, not really human. I'm not either. That's all. There was no place for me, so I had to make one for myself." Inuyasha stopped walking, and Kagome and Daitan stopped too, listening quietly. "And then I realized, I had a place, but I was the only one in it. I didn't know any other way to live."
"I'm happy to hear it." said Kagome softly, giving Inuyasha a small smile. Inuyasha's eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"Happy how?"
"It's just that you've never opened up and talked to me or Daitan like that before. I'm glad you did, I've always wondered about your past, you know? I told myself you were all bark and no bite, but I wasn't sure. I'm happy you can talk so seriously, is all." Kagome replied.
"And that makes you happy?" Inuyasha didn't sound convinced, and he looked over at Daitan, as if he expected her to disagree. Daitan said nothing, and only nodded, her own smile playing across her face. Kagome filled the silence.
"That's right. So don't worry about showing your soft side, okay?"
"Feh, you make it sound like I'm some pet who needs company." grumbled Inuyasha.
"What's wrong with that? It's nice not to be alone." and with that, Kagome started walking down the road again. Daitan stood with Inuyasha for a few moments.
"We're not meant to be completely isolated, Inuyasha. Just remember, you'll always be part of this pack now."
Daitan started walking after Kagome, and she felt a pleasant contentment when Inuyasha joined her. They walked side by side in silence, following Kagome back to where the rest of their pack was waiting.
A/N: We got some worldbuilding in here, folks. It will become very relevant within the next couple of chapters... I'm super tired, I need to go to sleep, but I hope you enjoyed! I've been busy with classes and designing a literal entire book for my university and people are counting on me to not screw up, but writing this in the evenings gives me some reprieve from the day. A huge thank you to everyone who's sticking with this story and reviewing, they give me the warm fuzzies :)