The trip to Sango's village was quiet and peaceful. Miroku, Kagome, Shippo, and Sango flew atop Kirara, while InuYasha, as usual, preferred to run along the ground below.
"I haven't seen it since you clan started repairing it," Kagome said.
"It's quite impressive," Miroku said, "Although I, personally, can't say if it's different now or not. Unfortunately, the only time we saw it, Sango, was shortly after it had been destroyed by Naraku."
"It's come together quite well," Sango said, proudly, "We've made it bigger, elongating the wall that runs around it. We have a larger area for the horses now. And we made our central pond larger by digging it out a bit and damming up the river for a while."
Miroku remembered the pond - a small lake, really - remembered Sango being thrown hard into the middle of it, knocked unconscious by her opponant. That was when that terrible man had arrived, claiming the village - and Sango - now belonged to him, as stated by her father in his will.
A forged will.
Kagome glanced down at the crimson and silver blur keeping pace with thme below, wondering what was going through the hanyou's mind at the moment.

**********************************
What the hell have I gotten myself into?
It felt good to run, to really stretch his legs, but his mind was running faster than his feet.
What was he going to be expected to do at this...ceremony thing?
Sango knew he hated big, flashy ceremonies and things. He didn't know what he was supposed to do or say. He always felt so damned awkward!
Well, she said it was going to be a private thing, so it would just be me, her and Kohaku. I can do that.
He ran on.
He still felt weird thinking about being adopted. He wasn't a kid, so he really didn't need to be adopted. He was more than capable of looking after himself. And while he knew that sometimes adults were adopted in times when a family needed to be enlarged...like if a family needed a son to carry on a title, but the son died in a war. Or if a daughter was needed to make a wedding arrangement. In those cases, adults would be adopted into a family.
But this wasn't either of those situations. This was...
This was Sango and Kohaku wanting to be able to legally call InuYasha "brother". To give him, legally, a place that could never be taken away from him. To always have a physical place he could go to rest, or heal.
That made him feel so strange.
He cleared a large boulder, easily soaring from one spot to another, and he glanced up at Kirara, flying overhead.
From here he could just make her out, leaning back to talk to Miroku and Kagome, a smile on her face, laughing.
He faintly smiled.
Good. Sango needed to smile more.

************************************************** *******
Back at Kaede's village, Izumi finished washing the vegetables she had pulled from the old Priestess' garden, and laid them out on a piece of cloth. She was considering making a nice soup this evening, after purchasing a chicken from a travelling merchant. Such meat was rare around here, and she had decided on making a nice treat for herself and Kaede this evening.
Izumi enjoyed talking to the old Priestess. Kaede had great knowledge about things, things that Izumi herself didn't know. Mostly knowledge about people, who lived where, what they did. She also knew a great deal about healing.
No longer Senmin, Izumi couldn't just call on her powers to heal anyone should they need it. She found the process of the human body healing itself, with a little help from various herbs and foods, fascinating. Not just interested in learning what food healed, she would ask why and how it worked.
For her part, Kaede was enjoying talking to Izumi. Although she would never admit it, the old Priestess became lonely sometimes, but it could be difficult to find someone in the village who had more than a basic, rudimentary knowledge. They were kindly people, but Kaede couldn't truly talk to a lot of the women there. So both women enjoyed each other's company.
Izumi gazed out the doorway of Kaede's hut, where she knelt, gazing out over the village. It was small, and not very rich. Yet she was starting to enjoy it there. No demands were made on her, her time was her own.
Although that could be boring...
She smiled to herself. To think that she, Handmaiden of Amaterasu, would be kneeling inside a small hut washing and peeling vegetables. That she would have the time to enjoy such simple things...
A flash in the forest caught her attention; a small silvery flash, there, and gone, within seconds.
Izumi paused, frowning. What on earth was that? There were no silver animals about that she knew of...
Suddenly, an image popped into her head, of the Demon Lord. The color she had seen in amongst the brush was very alike his clothing.
What would Lord Sesshomaru be doing, hanging around the village? Was Rin going to visit again?
Suddenly, Izumi was overwhelmed to see the Demon Lord again, just to... see him.
She leaned back slightly, laying down the knife she had been using to peel the vegetables, looking down at her hands.
What was moving her so?
Any other time, Izumi would have taken such a strong emotion to mean the Demon Lord might have been in trouble, or that something momentus was about to happen. She would have put it to her abilities.
But now she had none. She was simply a human.
She remembered his last words to her, in that cold, acidic tone he had: "There is nothing you can offer her now. You are less than useless to her."
Izumi also remembered what she had said in return, hurting from his words.."You might as well be blind. Or deaf. Your father was the strongest person I ever knew, Lord Sesshomaru of the Western Reaches. And yet you were never able to overpower him. Which of you is weaker?"
There had been anger in his eyes, such anger. The glint of fury had been cold as ice, and in truth, Izumi had fully expected to be struck for that. And was more than a little surprised she hadn't been.
She had walked away from him, and had expected to be struck...and had grieved inside, that her and the son of her dearest friend had said such cruel things to each other...and grieved that she had fought with someone she considered a friend.
I should not leave here, she thought, It would most likely not be a good meeting, now, after having said such things. Surely whatever friendsheip we had shared is now gone.
Another image coming to her, startling and vivid in her memory; of standing on the beach, at night, the smell of the sea in her nose. Stars overhead. The Demon Lord standing before her, like a tall silver flame, his eyes taking on a cool luminosity in the low light, like some strange animal, feral and dangerous. She had no memory of who she was, at that time, and he had spoken to her, asking if she did not remember him. And he had...
She paused, going still, thinking.
He had stepped towards her, and had said something to the effect of seeing if there wasn't some memory of him within her after all, and he had...he had...
What had he been going to do?
He had moved towards her, effectively pinning her against that pillar, and had walked towards her, and had...leaned forward...
His breath on her face...
Subconsciously, Izumi raised her hand, lightly touching her lips.
Surely...surely the Demon Lord hadn't been about to kiss her?
Why on earth...?
Before she knew what she was doing, Izumi rose, picking up her sword - the one she recieved from the small fishing village - and started walking towards the forest, where she had last seen the silvery glint.
What on earth are you doing, you silly fool? she asked herself, shocked at her actions.
I don't know, she answered herself, I guess I shall have to see.

*************************************************

Sango's village came into view, and Kagome blinked. She gazed out and down in wonder at the size of the village, the houses and buildings, and the people.
"Sango, this is...so big! It looks wonderful!"
Sango smiled back at Kagome, "Thank you! They worked so hard to restore it, I'm so proud of them."
Kirara roared a greeting as she passed overhead - startling the horses into rearing up and whinnying.
Sango patted Kirara, "Behave, you goose."
The giant feline landed down in the courtyard, and Sango, Kagome, and Miroku slid off. InuYasha easily leapt the fence surrounding the village, and walked up to stand beside them.
Mutaki, the elder woman approached, a huge smile on her face. Her greying hair was tied up in a red scarf, simple pants and blouse a pleasant blue. She enfolded Sango in her arms, hugging her tight, "Sango!"
"Mutaki, it's so good to see you again."
"And it is always good to see you again, Sango." Mutaki held Sango out at arm's length, looking her over, "You've lost weight, child! Tsk. I'll have to take care of that right away."
Sango laughed.
Mutaki then turned her attention to the monk, "Miroku! It is good to see you again as well!"
"And good day to you, Mutaki."
"I see you're filling out quite nicely!"
"Er..." Miroku wasn't entirely sure how to answer that, but the old woman turned her attention to the three newcomers.
"And these are your friends, then? Kagome, InuYasha, and the little one must be Shippo! I have heard all about your bravery, Kitsune!"
"You have!?" Shippo blinked, then puffed out his little chest, "I mean, it's nice to hear Sango's been telling you all about me!"
"Welcome to our village. Please, consider it yours."
"Thank you," Kagome smiled sweetly at the older woman.
"Where is Kohaku?" Sango asked, looking around.
"Ah. Kohaku and some of the other demon hunters are out on a job. There was small group of people came looking for help. It has been a long time since our village saw work again. It is a good job."
"And Kohaku is leading them?" Sango asked, eagerly.
"Nooo," Mutaki said slowly, "Not exactly. That is to say, Tatsuo is leading, but he is helping Kohaku become a good leader. Kohaku is still nervous about leading anyone, and wishes for Tatsuo to lead. But Tatsuo advises Kohaku. In this way, Kohaku is leading with a season hunter's experience."
"Good," Sango smiled, "Kohaku will make an excellent leader, once he gets a little older, and becomes more confident in himself."
"I will make sure there is enough food for all of us this evening. Not that I am complaining, but why have you decided to come visit?"
"Ah, well..." Sango pointedly did not look at InuYasha, "There are a few things Kohaku and I need to see to, concerning family. Plus, I wanted to see him again."
"Yes, of course," Mutaku smiled, and turned, "I'll go talk to the cooks. Kohaku and the others should be here soon."
"Thank you."
Several more people from the village approached, and warmly greeted Sango and Miroku, remembering the monk from his last few visits there. They talked to them about things and people neither Kagome, Shippo, or InuYasha knew.
InuYasha watched as people approached Sango, glad to see her again, eager to talk to her. It was very apparent to the hanyou that she was loved very much, and that they would be pleased if she decided to stay and lead the village, the way her father did.
I don't know anyone here...I can't just...interrupt things here like this. They'll all think I want to lead this place, or something. I'm older than Sango, wouldn't that basically mean that I'm supposed to be in charge or something?
Kagome glanced over at him, frowning slightly at the look on his face.
"InuYasha, are you ok?"
"What? Oh...yeah...fine."
"You sure? You look kinda...nervous."
"Why would I be nervous?" he asked, a little snappily, "everything's fine. I'm fine."
"O...k then."
Sango turned to them, eyes sparkling, "Come on, I want to show you my favourite places here."

***************************************
"...and that over there is where I would go to practice using my Hiraikotsu. There's a lot of space to learn how to throw it so it would curve and come back to me."
"It must have been a hard weapon to master, Sango," Kagome said.
"It was," Sango laughed, blushing prettily, "I can't tell you how many times I hit myself in the head trying to catch it again. Of course, it was just a little one, very light. But still."
"Sister!"
They turned to see Kohaku running towards them, grinning.
"Kohaku!"
Brother and sister ran to each other, and threw their arms around each other, hugging tightly, laughing. Kagome noticed right away that Kohaku's eyes were on a level with Sango's shoulders now. He was growing, and was quickly catching up to his sister.
"I heard from the others that you're back. And you all came this time!" he laughed.
"I thought I'd show everyone our village, now that it's back up and rebuilt the way it was."
"That's great!" Kohaku exclaimed, and suddenly, his voice let out a resounding squeak mid-word.
Everyone stopped.
The young boy's face blossomed brilliantly, and looked miserable.
"Ah," Miroku said, kindly, "The voice-demons have gotten a hold on you then?"
"Something like that," Kohaku mumbled, looking down at his feet, scratching at the back of his head.
Sango smiled fondly at her little brother, and slung an arm around him, "How did the hunting go?"
"Pretty good," he said, looking up at her, keeping his voice level, "We killed two that were scaring some farmers."
"Great. You can tell us all about it over supper, then. Tomorrow, InuYasha and I will visit the cave."
Kohaku blinked, then looked over at the hanyou, a smile on his face, "Alright."
InuYasha looked at Sango, "A cave?"
She nodded, "It's where one of our ancestors had himself interred when he died. He asked that every new member of the family be brought to the cave and introduced."
InuYasha blinked at her, "Introduced to a dead guy?"
"InuYasha," Kagome chided.
"No! I mean...yeah, that...that's..."
Sango and Kohaku smiled, "I know it must sound strange to you, InuYasha, but it's been a family tradition now for many generations. Both my father, myself, and Kohaku were brought to that cavern when we were born. You're not a child, but it still holds."
"Ok then. If that's how it's done, then, yeah, ok."
"Until then, make yourself at home, all of you. Look around, don't be shy."
Sango and Kohaku turned, walking back towards the center of the village, arm in arm. Miroku spoke to Kagome, "I swear Kohaku's grown almost a complete foot since I saw him last."
"He's hitting his growth spurt," Kagome smiled fondly.
"And now his voice is changing," Miroku smiled, "I don't envy him. It can be a very embarassing time for a young man."
Kagome suddenly got a mental image of both Miroku and InuYasha, younger than they are now, squeaking and cracking as they spoke. She giggled.
"What's so funny?" InuYasha asked, curious.
"Nothing, nothing," Kagome lied, "Just remembered something funny."
Miroku, however, grinned at her, knowing what she had probably imagined, "I remember I spent a great deal of time keeping to the back rooms as often as I could. There's nothing quite as embarassing as trying to appear as an apprentice monk, very serious, in the middle of some ritual, and suddenly sound as if there is a mouse living in your chest."
Kagome burst out laughing again, putting a hand over her mouth, "I'm sorry, Miroku."
"Nonsense," Miroku said, smiling, "It's really nothing to be embarassed about, as every young man goes through it. Still, when you are that age, so desperate for people around you to take you seriously, having your own voice betray you can be rather humiliating, as I'm sure InuYasha can attest to."
InuYasha looked at Miroku, confused, "What do you mean?"
The monk smiled, "Come come now, InuYasha. You haven't the voice of a maiden, you must have gone through it as well, your voice changing as you became a man."
InuYasha shrugged, "I guess so, I never really noticed." He watched Sango and Kohaku walk away, watching them weave through the people in the village. Was he honestly ready for this?
Miroku caught Kagome's eye, and winked, "Oh? Never noticed? Did you just wake up one day, then, with the voice you have now?"
Still watching Sango and Kohaku dissapear into the crowd, he shrugged, "No, it probably changed. But I didn't have anyone to talk to, so I didn't speak much."
The smile dropped from the monk's face as if shattered glass, and he looked stricken. He opened his mouth to say something - what he didn't know - but InuYasha took off towards Sango, "I gotta talk to Sango for a second, be right back."
Kagome and Miroku watched the hanyou dart into the crowd, a crimson kits swallowed up by more mundane browns, greys and blues.
Miroku raised a hand, and lightly bopped himself on the forehead, "Curse my tongue, sometimes I speak without thinking."
"It's ok," Kagome said gently, patting the monk on the shoulder.
"Sometimes I forget what his life was like. Must have been like. He seems so...well adjusted now. Well...perhaps that's a bit too much, but...you'd never think he had been alone for so long, on his own. I wish I hadn't said anything. You don't think I hurt him, do you?"
Kagome smiled, "To be honest, I don't think he even really heard what you asked him. He's really nervous about this ceremony."
"It must be a big deal for him."
"It is. And you know InuYasha. Anything that makes him feel something he's not used to feeling makes him feel awkward and uneasy, and that makes him blustery and grouchy."
"Well, it is a big deal. It's a new page in his life, after all."
Kagome nodded.

************************************************** ***********************

In the forest, Izumi walked, looking up at the trees overhead. The leaves were trying to turn green again, thinking that summer had returned. It was almost early winter now, and they should be settling down. But the heat wave was still not breaking, and the trees were confused.
We could use more rain again, she thought, holding her sword in her hand, loosely.
Birds called in the canopy overhead, and she gazed up towards them, feeling melancholy. The birds always used to gather around her, singing, talking, gathering about her.
Once she became human, they avoided her, the way they would any human. Izumi was a little startled that she missed them as well. They were always such sweet company.
Her eyes travelled over the ground before her, as if searching for some tell-tale signs. It was a little while before she admitted to herself that she was looking for very specific animal prints - the prints Ah and Un left behind when he walked.
You're acting quite silly, she chided herself, Like a little girl. You're a grown woman. You can't be just out running around because you thought you saw someone.
Once again, as she had done many, many times before, she cast out with her mind, trying desperately to find her connection with Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess. As before, there was nothing out there, just her own mind. Often, a part of her wondered if she would be able to reach her Goddess if she held her symbol of office, the amulet she always wore before. The amulet was a sunburst shape, and it was both a symbol of her title, and a symbol of the love she carried for Amaterasu. Now she felt naked without it.
No, that is silly. My powers did not stem from the amulet, they came because I was Senmin, a power given to me by Amaterasu. No pendant will return to me what I have lost.
A wave of grief and despair swept over her, but she pushed it back. She would not grieve. She would continue working as to her abilities, and keep the faith, as Miroku said, and hope that soon she would be reunited with her Goddess.
"Handmaiden?"
Startled, Izumi turned, looking behind her.
A tall man stood there, watching her calmly. He was half in shadow, his features obscured. He stood in the middle of the path.
"H-Hello?" Izumi hesitantly greeted the other. She hadn't heard him approach...had she been that far out of it?
"Handmaiden Izumi," the man said again, and walked towards her.
As she had noticed before, he was tall, a little taller than she herself was. He was slender, and his skin was fair. He wore dark blue pants, similar to hakama, and a paler blue shirt. It was similar to a haori, but the sleeves were not nearly as full as InuYasha's. His haori was decorated with navy blue pinwheels.
His hair was midnight black, as black as her own, although his came only to just beyond his shoulders. It was worn loose.
Izumi started to get a strange sensation from this man, a sense of alarm. He seemed to know her, but she did not recognise his face at all.
"Can I help you?"
The man stopped several feet away from her. His eyes seemed to be very black, and it was then Izumi suddenly realized he was not human after all, but a demon. His pointed ears gave that away. That, and the fact there was what looked like tiny nubs of horns, just barely protruding from the hair at his temples.
"Do you not recognise me, Handmaiden?"
"I...I'm sorry," Izumi casually took her sword sheath in her other hand, as if merely adjusting it for comfort. In fact, she was getting ready to pull it should the need arise. The way the demon was looking at her, no emotion on his face, was starting to make her feel more and more uneasy.
"You are sorry?"
"I don't recognise you, no. Although you clearly have me at a disadvantage, because you seem to know me. Or knew me, at any rate."
"Knew you?"
Izumi said nothing else, not sure how much to give away.
This is a demon, she said to herself, There's no reason to lie, I'm sure he can tell that I am now just a human. Lying will get me nowhere.
"I'm afraid I am no longer a Handmaiden. Perhaps if you gave me your name, I would be able to help you...?"
Silence.
Growing more and more uneasy, Izumi took a single step backwards, "Your name, please."
"You are merely a human, now."
"I...yes."
"I see."
With that, the demon took a single step forward. Before Izumi's shocked eyes, in one blurring motion, the demon drew a sword from his back, and lunged forward on one leg.
A horrible burning, stabbing pain shot through her leg, and she staggered, unable to move fast enough to even draw her own blade, let alone try to block his attack. Her right leg flared agony, and she gasped, staggering backwards to fall over onto her bottom.
Izumi grasped her upper thigh where the pain radiated, shocked to see red seeping through the clothing in a large splotch on the front.
In pain, she looked up as the demon approached slowly.
Gasping in pain again, Izumi half crawled backwards, grabbing up her sword as she went. She hobbled up onto her feet, favoring her injured leg. She drew her sword, holding it out before her.
"Who are you? Why do you attack!?"
"Amazing," the demon said, walking towards her again, "You truly do not remember, do you?"
Izumi slowly staggered backwards, trying to put some space between the demon and herself. Every time she put weight on her right foot, pain shot up her leg.
"No, I do not..." she stumbled, almost fell, but somehow kept her balance, "I do not know you!"
"My name is Kenpeki. Does that not tell you what you wish to know?"
Izumi's mind swirled, trying to place the name. She fought to remember. Kenpeki...Kenpeki...she knew that name from somewhere...
"I..."
"You still do not remember."
A lightning fast move again. Izumi tried to bring up her sword to block his, but she was slow, far too slow. Her sword tip merely clanged off his blade as it flew forward, the tip sinking deep into the space between her right collarbone and shoulder. The force of his strike knocked her backwards, against a tree.
Izumi shrieked, bringing up her sword. She battered uselessly at his blade for a second before her right arm went numb, and the blade fell from her hand. She knew it was useless to grab at the blade - that would only result in lost fingers.
Kenpeki slowly turned the blade, still in Izumi's shoulder, "Are you truly certain you cannot remember me, Handmaiden Izumi?"
"Yes!" Izumi cried, shuddering, shrieking once, "Yes, I am certain! Please! I do not know why you are attacking me!"
Kenpeki left the blade in her shoulder for a moment longer, before yanking it back out.
Izumi cried out, falling to her knees. She grabbed her right shoulder with her left hand, hunched over, shuddering. Tears of pain filled her eyes, dropping down onto her chest.
She gasped in shuddering breaths, gathering her strength for a moment, before lifting her head and looking up, "I swear to you. I do not know why you are attacking me."
Anger crossed the handsome demon's face, and he lifted his blade.
"That, does not improve my mood."
Izumi cried out, raising her arms to try and defend herself as best she was able.