Chapter Three: Awakenings

Inuyasha sat slumped carelessly in a corner, his eyes fixed on the little hanyou cocooned in his bed. His Youki was pressing at his mind urgently, calling his more feral side out as he strove to calm himself. One of Mafuyu's... whilst the two clans weren't joined by blood, the very idea of the code being violated by someone so close to his own family had enraged him to the point of losing control. He was glad that Otou had agreed to let the little one adjust first before calling Mafuyu, even if he was one of the most respected Daiyoukai in Japan, he didn't want any interferences before Kagome had recovered – at least in part. He knew from long experience that whilst her body would recover easily even from this state, her mind would be fragile for quite some time to come. A small shift in air currents alerted him to his charge's waking. He quickly flared his Youki, bringing his Otou to the door as he moved to sit on the bed, unsurprised at the girl curling into his form, instinctually asking for his protection from the unfamiliar Youkai.

"Hey there 'Gome, you feelin' better today?" He smiled as the quaking form peeked up at him before the tiniest of nods butted his chin. "Good, don't worry 'bout the other Inu – It's only my Otou. I got worried when you fell asleep on me and called him." Another nervous peek, this time directed at the doorway, before his tiny onna uncurled a bit and bowed as deeply as she could whilst sitting in a tightly woven cavern of blankets and hanyou. InuYasha blinked, startled, as a deep chuckle came from the door.

"Ah, I wish my sons had your manners my dear. My name is Tougaou. It is a pleasure to meet you."

"The honour is mine Tougaou-sama. I am very grateful to you and InuYasha-sama for helping me". The reply was faint, but just audible and InuYasha struggled to contain his amusement at his Otou's expression... failing, he laughed until his ribs hurt, to the obvious consternation of the little onna in his lap.

"No titles kay 'Gome? Else I'm gonna die laughin'. I ent ever been a lord, an' I can't cope with any fancy rubbish like that... 'cept to annoy aniki" At this, the deep rumble of Tougaou's laughter joined his, jolting a wondering smile from Kagome. InuYasha's breath caught in his throat suddenly – thin as she was, damned if the onna wasn't the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He flushed as Togaou glanced at him, obviously having realised what had just stunned him. Mercifully, he said nothing, merely entering the room to seat himself beside the bed, inspecting the onna minutely as she sat, melted into his son as if her bones had been entirely removed.

Eventually, he decided that the little Inu was accustomed to his presence, and gently called her attention.

"Kagome, wasn't it?" A shy nod, accompanied by madly twitching ears completely melted him, as he found his Youki reaching to comfort her, protect her as a daughter of his pack. Catching himself in time, he continued warmly, "Would you like to tell us a little about yourself? It is curious to find a fellow Inu who is not tied to a pack..." he trailed off, sensing the fear and pain in the girl's aura, allowing her time to settle before asking anything else.

Many minutes passed, as the little onna curled tightly into her new protector, his hand rubbing soothing circles on her back as he rumbled, calming her as her aura flickered wildly between a million types of fear, shame, despair, sorrow... eventually her head rose, eyes showing nothing but determination as a tiny "Hai" ghosted through the air. She began to speak, softly but clearly... her tale unravelling, each word laced with centuries of sorrow.

"I cannot remember exactly when or where I was born. I remember a dark room, with a nice lady who came and sang to me. She was always sad, and always hushing me for being noisy, saying I mustn't be found. I remember an Inu as well, he came once, pushing past her. He looked at me with such anger, then dragged me out of the room. He flew, so far into the mountains, then spat at me, called me filthy, a monster, and dropped me. I...I don't remember much then, I spent many winters in a cave, hiding, before humans came. They were kind, at first, so I followed them until they reached a town. They beat me, cut me... I ran and hid in the woods, but there was no food... I remember more people... villages, towns... I learned to hide. I didn't understand why I was different, why they hated me so. There was one town... I remember hiding on a roof, hearing a man shouting 'Tokugawa Yoshinobu is overthrown! Long life to the Emporer!', I think I was maybe 30 winters then. My life was the same for so long... running, hiding, stealing discarded clothing and foraging for what little food I could find... but as the towns grew larger, it became harder and harder to hide. Then one day... The Inu found me. He said he could 'smell my stench a hundred miles away'. He beat me, left me for dead. I don't know how I survived... but I ran again, found this city and hid, hoping the smell of humans would hide me. It was fine for a while, but it is getting harder to find food – even the rats are fewer than there were. Then InuYasha found me. I'm sorry Tougaou-san but that is all I can remember."

A few moments passed in silence as the two males fought fiercely to subdue their Youki. Tougaou was the first to re-establish his control, and he sighed heavily.

"Thank you, Kagome-chan, that is all I could ask of you. It seems that the code has indeed been violated. I must call Mafuyu. If neither of you protest, I shall leave it to InuYasha to explain. Kagome-chan, there are many things you do not know about Youkai society, and adjusting will be a challenge, however know that you may call on any in my pack for help, should you so need it."

Unabashed gratitude flooded the room, and Tougaou smiled softly before leaving. That the child could still be so innocent... his Youki raged against his iron control. Whoever cast the onna out would find that they could ill afford the punishment, he was determined of that.

InuYasha stared into chocolate eyes, entranced by the complete openness that seemed to bare her soul to the world. As he watched, he could see the curiously luminous gaze cloud a little as confusion began to overpower the overwhelming gratitude she had felt moments before. Kagome shifted slightly, settling even deeper into his hold as her mind gradually caught up with the Alpha's statement.

"InuYasha?"

"Hmm? What is it onna?"

"What did Tougaou-sama mean, that the code had been violated?"

InuYasha sighed, settling back against the headboard as he collected his thoughts...Kami, there was just so much to explain.

"Around 300 years ago, it became obvious that the human population was growing at such a rate that they would quickly gain control of Japan, whether the Youkai opposed them or not. A council of the most powerful DaiYoukai decided the only way for Youkai to survive was to integrate – co-exist with humans peacefully. They layed down laws by which all Youkai must live, or face the council's wrath, usually in hand to hand combat. Those laws included certain...protections... for hanyou like us. The penalty for abandoning a Hanyou child, or a human mate is the same now as if the pup was full Youkai - death, and unwarranted abuse of a Hanyou is punishable by loss of half the offenders Youki. Those laws have gradually changed the attitudes of most Youkai, so now there is mostly no distinction made between Hanyou and Youkai. When you mentioned that you were around 30 winters at the time of the Meiji restoration – that was what the man you heard was shouting about – It meant that you were born at least a century after the passing of those laws. Whichever Youkai sired you broke our law, and forfeited his own life."

He watched as the little onna flicked rapidly from interest to astonishment, to shock, horror... and finally an overwhelming sorrow and... guilt?

"My father... will be killed? Because of me?"

InuYasha scowled, struggling to keep his voice level as he realised the problem. Of course she would feel loyalty to her pack, even if they had cast her out... This onna was too kind for her own good.

"No, little ijirashii,he will die in combat because he has broken the law, and because in doing so he caused suffering not only to you, but to your mother, and the rest of your pack who were denied a chance to watch their pup grow. Do not ever think that it is your fault."

"Hai, InuYasha. I will try."

An unsteady smile graced her lips, and InuYasha struggled once more to control himself.

Kami...so beautiful, and she doesn't even know...

A/N: I will use Japanese where I feel it is appropriate. Any terms will be listed here, with the meanings that apply. In this case, ijirashii means innocent, lovable, sweet and pitiful. The multiple meanings convey exactly the sentiment needed, and there is no satisfactory english equivalent.