Auther's note: I'm so sorry this took so long. I was debating for the longest time over how to write it. I hope it sounds okay.
HyperFerret
Chapter 32
"mmmm….where am I?" Shura's half dazed mumble sounded quietly in the air. Though her eyes were still squeezed shut she knew almost instinctively that her question wouldn't go unanswered.
"We're in the silverwing witches nest," came Matyeo's equally lowered reply. "But don't worry. Your father was quick to guarantee our safety with Queen Sityra."
"And Uncle? What about Kagome?"
"All safe and mended," Matyeo assured.
The she-demon let out a sigh of relief and slowly worked to open her eyes. The pain in her head had subsided to a dull reminder but it still took an unusual effort before her vision would clear. "What about you?" Shura heard the dragon question just as his face came into focus.
"I've been better," Shura admitted. "Everything seems like one big blur inside my head." The she-demon felt a reassuring clawed hand rest gently atop her forehead.
"Just try and rest. You're memories will sort themselves out in their own time." The dragon's words were comforting, and despite the nagging intuition that something within her was amiss, Shura felt compelled to believe them. Matyeo, after all, was one demon she knew would never lead her astray.
The sound of clashing blades and war-growls from outside made both demons raise their heads.
"Now what?" Shura groaned. Matyeo stood and poked his head outside the cavern entrance. The flashing of fang-swords and the acrobatics of the dog brothers they belonged to made the dragon snort in annoyance.
"Looks like another disagreement between your father and uncle," was all he said. Despite his deliberate effort to leave out the upsetting details, Shura already knew better and her expression showed it.
"They're fighting again? damnit! I'm not in the mood for this!" Growled the she-demon in a half sorrowful half angry fit. A few stray tears squeaked past her defenses, but she quickly brushed them away.
"Just give them some time…I'm sure they'll come around eventually…" Matyeo offered. But Shura saw through his optimistic lie.
"No. Pappa's too proud, and Inuyasha would sooner have his arm ripped out then put up with it." Shura sat up then stood, taking a second to catch her balance. "The only logic they understand is battle. Until one wins, they'll never stop."
"So what are you going to do?" Matyeo asked, almost hesitant. Shura joined him at the mouth of the cave on shaky paws.
"The only thing I can. Beat them at their own stupid game," Matyeo's jaw slackened a little. Charging blindly into battle against her warring kin wasn't exactly the answer he wanted to hear.
"Maybe…you should wait…" the dragon tried to intervene "until they've exhausted themselves at least…" A stern glare from Shura stopped Matyeo cold.
"No," she growled, "this ends now."
Sesshomaru dogged to the right and swiftly countered his half brother's attack. Tokijin and Tetsusaiga cried heavily in protest as their surfaces collided. Inuyasha was leaning with all his weight, driving his sword downward from over his head. But Sesshomaru stood firm. Even with only one arm as an anchor his demon strength proved enough of a match. With a burst of energy the dog lord pressed forward and both fighters were quick to feel the effect. Inuyasha soared upwards for a few seconds before landing nimbly on his bare soles. Sesshomaru meanwhile, was driven backwards, his rigid stance never wavering, not even to the rocky earth.
The recoil left a sizable gap between the dogs, but neither took much notice. Inuyasha had already hoisted up his sword again and this time the blade swirled with the wind-scar's energy.
"Sesshomaru! Time for you to die!" The half demon roared as he prepared to swing down his weapon and unleash its building energy. Sesshomaru braced, himself just as ready to dodge, as his sibling was to attack. Then suddenly there was movement from the left. Out of the corner of his eye Sesshomaru saw a familiar female silhouette dart strait into his brother's path.
Inuyasha recognized he figure too and in a panicked effort to stop his attack he lurched to the left with such force that he practically spun in a circle.
"Shura! Are you nuts!" yelled an enraged Inuyasha after he finally regained his balance. "I could have killed you!" The half demon released one hand from his sword just long enough to motion at the figure standing in his way. Sesshomaru, though seemingly more composed on the outside, was quick to reveal his inner ire as well.
"Shuramaru…" he sneered in a tone that practically demanded obedience "Do not interfere!"
Immediately Shura's golden eyes shifted to her father. Then with slow, intense movements she turned towards him.
"Try and stop me!" Shura rumbled angrily deep in her throat. Her defiance clearly caught Sesshomaru off guard for his face hardened drastically.
"I beg your pardon," the dog lord snarled, his voice even more threatening then before. It was a tone that many a demon carried to their grave, but still, Shura seemed unaffected. The harder Sesshomaru tried to intimidate her, the more insolent she became.
"It will take more then words to dissuade me this time," she replied coldly. The implications in Shura's voice were anything but subtle and it made both dog brothers snort.
"Don't be stupid," objected Inuyasha bluntly "you can't seriously expect us to fight you…"
"Why? Because I'm you're family?" snapped Shura with a sarcastic edge. "I don't see why that would make a difference!"
"Enough of this nonsense Shura!" Sesshomaru interrupted impatiently. "Now stand aside! I won't have you getting hurt!" Rage erupted across Shura's face and the intensity in her voice heightened.
"Knowing that you'd kill your own kin over some stupid grudge, you think that doesn't hurt me? And what happens when these battles finally turn deadly? You think it won't hurt when I have to bury whoever is killed!"
Shura's hands clenched tightly into fists and a tremor of rage rippled through her muscles. When she spoke again her voice resonated with the same chill and authority of her father's. "For the sake of our clan, this grudge has to stop. And if you two won't end it…" Shura narrowed her eyes and glared accusingly at each of her kin, "then I will."
Sesshomaru blinked. Was his own daughter actually threatening him? For a long while the dog lord stared, his gaze shifting between Shura and his equally startled brother just beyond her. Part of him wanted to chastise; roar at the girl for daring to act that way. But something held him back. The image of Shura shrinking away in submission, the cowardice that would forever linger in her heart if he set loose his parental anger. That fear, the last string of childhood that bound her to him, would never be cut.
Keeping a firm grip on Tokijin Sesshomaru approached his daughter with slow, confident steps. Punishment was not the solution, however, Shura would need to do more then just warn for him to back down. Trying to let go of the bitterness, the contempt for his younger, was a fair sacrifice only if his daughter had the resolve to back up her threat. In moments he had come within a sword's length of Shura but the she-demon still didn't waver.
"An interesting proposal," Sesshomaru at last spoke in the coldest voice he could manage. Flexing his wrist slightly Sesshomaru let Tokijin's pointed edge come to rest delicately against Shura's neck where the life-giving jugular throbbed beneath her flesh. "But what I if I refuse your demands. Do you really think you can defeat me?"
To Sesshomaru's surprise, his daughter didn't flinch or even flatten her ears in alarm. In fact, the only movement he saw in her supple demon flesh was the slow tensing of muscle as she physically and mentally prepared to lunge at the slightest hint of aggression. Shura could strike him down if necessary, and not only did she know it, she believed it. Staring calmly into his child's piercing eyes, the dog lord saw no trace of the caution that had resized there for so long.
"I see," Sesshomaru confirmed, his voice lowered and no longer cold. Drawing Tokijin away from Shura's neck Sesshomaru replaced the sword to his belt before turning from her. "Very well then."
As the dog lord started to walk away Shura followed him with her eyes. For an instant she seemed amazed, even surprised, but it was a moment short lived. The gradual relaxing of her muscles was a clear indication that the conflict between her and her father was over, and that she was the victor.
Inuyasha's temper flared a little as the message of Shura's body language reached him. The demoness may have intervened but he still had a score to settle with his brother.
"Hey! Wait! We're not finished!" the half-demon snapped in his brother's direction. But his words didn't reach Sesshomaru. Instead of his sibling's fierce gold eyes Inuyasha found himself snared in his niece's piercing glare.
"Actually you are. Forever." Shura's harsh tone made even Inuyasha give pause before attempting to reply.
"What do you mean?" he tried to play dumb, even though deep inside Inuyasha knew exactly what his niece was demanding.
"Father won't bother you any more Inuyasha," Shura answered. Her voice had subsided slightly making her sound more approachable, but her tone hardened again when she made it a clear point to add "and I expect you will show him the same courtesy."
The half demon wrinkled his nose and after a moment of deliberation huffed and sheathed his sword. It would be an adjustment…a major adjustment…to look at his brother and not get the urge to cut him in half. But by the same token, knowing his sibling would have to make even more of an effort to endure the same adjustment was almost worth the aggravation.
"Fine," he snorted, "I've got more important things to worry about anyway." It was a true enough statement and it seemed to satisfy Shura for she nodded slightly. Huffing again, Inuyasha turned and started walking in the direction of his friends. The entire lot of them were staring awkwardly, unsure of weather to be relieved or afraid by Inuyasha's unusual behavior.
Matyeo and Jaken both carried similar expressions of uncertainty as they hurried to greet their respective parties. Where Inuyasha's comrades remained at a loss for words, Jaken made up the deficit with a shrill interrogation of his master's choice, which of course was ignored. Matyeo meanwhile managed to reach Shura just in time to catch her as she collapsed backwards from exhaustion.
"Shura…Shura…" a soft voice and a gentle psychic push roused the she-demon into alertness. "You need to wake up." Shura groaned something incoherent and rolled over onto her other side.
"Five more minutes…" she mumbled insistently, all the while snuggling herself back into the pile of furs she had been set on once again. Familiar voices reverberated in the background but only bits and pieces registered in the she-demon's semi-alert mind.
"She still seems really tired Matyeo," sounded from Kagome.
"Yeah, just grab her and lets go." came an impatient remark from her uncle. Shura felt a pair of hands slide beneath her shoulders and thighs. A familiar scent loomed above her. Then she felt her body leave the soft furs and come to rest against a wall of warm muscle outlined in silk. The same, reassuring scent of before now surrounded her and for a moment Shura wanted to bury her face in the sweet-smelling silk that carried it. But at the last instant her father's scent along with countless others' overwhelmed her olfactory center and she lost the opportunity.
"What's going on?" mumbled the she-demon to the array of scents as she cracked open her eyes. The morning light she had awoken to before had shifted into a fading sunset making the observing audience difficult to see.
"We're leaving." Shura recognized the voice of her father. It was followed closely afterwards by the unexpected grunts of Ah-Un. Forcing her eyes open a little further the she demon eventually found the group of familiar faces that belonged to her kin and their companions. Beyond them, waiting patiently was a gathering of travel mounts. Ah-Un stood furthest to the left. Beside him was Ebony, Matyeo's royal mount, and next to him Kirara stood, transformed for flight. But the figure that most gained Shura's interest was furriest to the far right. It was a dragon with a large, serpentile frame but the profile of a wolf.
"Ukuri?" Shura's eyes snapped open and went wide with disbelief "You're alive!"
The wolf-dragon approached a few paces and extended an eager snout until his twitching gray nose reached Shura's outstretched hands. The she-demon returned the gesture, scratching the beast's muzzle affectionately. "I'm so glad you're okay." Shura cooed, to which the dragon responded with a soft purr. Then Ukuri shifted his eyes to Matyeo and offered a chortle of acknowledgement.
"Think nothing of it, my friend," Matyeo replied to the animal's thanks as he approached the wolf-dragon's torso. Taking the cue Ukuri dipped to the ground to accept Shura into her customary place just in front of his shoulder blades. Though still only half-awake and very wobbly, Shura managed to take hold of Ukuri's scale-feather mane and keep herself reasonably balanced. She half hoped Matyeo would opt to ride behind her, but to her disappointment the dragon lord had already departed and was busy relaying instructions to Inuyasha, Kagome and Shippo about how to command and maneuver Ebony, whom they would be riding during the remainder of the journey to his palace.
When all seemed ready Matyeo himself took flight and one by one the four animal mounts followed suit. As they departed into the gradually darkening sky Shura cast a glance over her shoulder. The queen of the silverwings was watching her with particular interest, and it was only after studying her face closely that Shura realized why.
"Good luck my dear," came a gentle telepathic message almost on cue. Shura turned her head away and after a moment of deliberation she thought a response loud enough for the witch to pick up.
"Thank you Aunt Sityra. I'm sure we'll meet again."