Disclaimer: This story is based on "Inuyasha," copyrighted by Rumiko Takahashi. No infringement of copyright intended or implied.
Blood Debt
Noticing Kirara's crouched posture and concentrated stare, Kohaku gave the two nervous-looking youkai an apologetic smile. "Don't mind Kirara," he said, "She's just—playing a game with you."
They did not look convinced. "Some game," muttered Hakkaku.
"She looks as though she wants to eat us," grumbled Ginta, as he examined his bandaged arm.
"Kirara prefers fish," said Kohaku, forcing a smile. "Oh. And let me thank-you, for the help you gave us, when Kirara was hurt. I really appreciated your help."
"Eh." The two looked at each other, discomfited. "We figured Kirara's part of Inuyasha's pack," said Hakkaku.
"Kagome-sister would want us to help."
"She's not pack—"
"But without Inuyasha's pack, we'd've lost a lot more to the birds,"
"Maybe everyone,"
"So we figured it was the right thing to do."
Kohaku nodded. "I am still grateful. And thank-you."
They gave him puzzled stares. "Is that why you're looking for us? Just to say 'thank-you'?"
Kohaku shook his head. "I wanted to ask for something." As their expressions tightened, Kohaku took a deep breath, and then said, "I want to stay with you for a while, to train. To learn how you fight other youkai."
"What?" "Huh?"
They looked ill at ease, but Kohaku hurried on. "Sango and I: our tribe was wiped out by Naraku. Sango's marrying Miroku and settling down, but I—I couldn't stay. I—Naraku took me over, last summer. He made me—he made me kill people. Innocent people. Even my-my—" His throat locked; he could not say it. "I—eventually, I regained control, and he didn't know. I-I wanted to die, at first, but, I realized, I had to try to make up for what I'd done. If I could just take Naraku with me, then-then I could at least say 'I'm sorry.' So I—I pretended that I was still under his control. I—I even stood by, and didn't do anything, and, and more people—died. Because I had to wait for a chance—"
Pain and revulsion suddenly shook him. Kohaku clenched his fists, fighting the overwhelming shame. Shaking, he strove to regain control, determined not to cry, not to retch, not to grab his scythe—
A warm, furry body bumped against him, resonating with a loud purr. Kohaku found his hands clenching thick fur, and a sandpaper tongue licking his face.
He gasped; managed to pull out of that emotional storm. Panting, cheeks wet with tears, he looked up at the two unnerved youkai.
"Kikyo-sama saved me," he said. "She purified the shard keeping me alive. She—helped me. At the end, when Naraku stole the shard, she—her spirit saved me."
He drew a calmer breath. "I owe blood-debt to all those people. It wasn't my will, but it was my hand. I can't pay back the dead: the only way to pay back even a bit for what I've done, is to protect the living. I want—I have to become the best taijiya possible. And I can't do it on my own. I need training, in how to fight. I need to learn more about youkai. I—I was hoping you might … help."
... ... ...
Hakkaku and Ginta looked at each other for a very long moment, when the adolescent boy stopped talking, astonished and dismayedIt was Ginta who, for once, spoke first. carefully rubbing his wounded arm.
"Um, would you mind, if we discussed this, um, by ourselves?"
The human boy nodded, looking a bit relieved himself. "Oh, sure! I'll fish with Kirara—once she's had enough fish, she won't be interested in pretending you're a meal." He flashed a rather uncertain grin, and then turned away, calling to the fire-cat. She rose to her feet with alacrity, ears pitching forward, and barely waited long enough for the human to fling himself onto her back, before leaping off the ground.
The two youkai watched her disappear into the sky, and then mutually retreated to the nearest trees. The two four-footed wolves joined them, whining, seeking reassurance from their own apprehension over the more powerful youkai's appearance. Greetings and reassurances given, the two-legged youkai mutually collapsed to the ground, and stared at each other.
"He wants us to teach him?" Hakkaku raked his fingers through his mohawk. "Teach him what?"
"How to fight, he said." Ginta examined his wounded arm. "But, why does he need to know how to fight, when he's got that neko to fight for him?"
"Well, she did get hurt fighting that bird of paradise," pointed out Hakkaku. "And, you said yourself, he was clearly involved in the fight."
"Oh, yeah."
"But, why choose us?"
"Because we helped with the cat?"
They gave each other dismayed looks. This was not how their 'good deed' was supposed to turn out!
"Why can't he ask Inuyasha, or his sister?" wondered Ginta.
"And what could we teach him?"
"And what would Koga think?"
That was the crux of the problem, right there, they both recognized. "This isn't our decision," said Hakkaku, with a nod. "It's Koga's."
"Ayame's," amended Ginta. They grinned at each other, knowing full well that while Koga led the pack, Ayame led Koga.
"But, we can't send the boy to Koga."
"Yeah. He'd have a fit, letting a human know where the cave is. And we can't go—we're supposed to be patrolling."
"Because he's mad at us."
"And he's probably going to be mad at us some more, for helping the cat."
Gloom.
"But, Kirara is part of Inuyasha's pack," countered Hakkaku. "And she helped defeat the birds of paradise, in the war against them."
"And his pack destroyed Naraku, when Koga had to leave the hunt."
"Naraku." Ginta shuddered. "What he and that Kagura woman did to our pack..."
"What Naraku tried to do Koga..."
"And that boy said he was controlled by Naraku..."
"That's awful."
"Yeah. Awful."
They eyed each other, and nodded.
"We should let Koga know. But, we have to patrol—"
"And we can't just send Kohaku to the caves—"
"And we can't leave—"
"Heh!" Ginta brightened. "If Kohaku patrolled with one of us, the other could go ask Koga!"
"Kohaku and Kirara together could patrol," agreed Hakkaku. He frowned. "So who goes and tells Koga?"
"You can go," suggested Ginta. "You're senior."
"I'm senior, so I should stay on patrol," countered Hakkaku. "You can go."
"Hey, I can't!" exclaimed Ginta, holding up his bandaged arm. "The scars won't have begun to fade—I'd have to explain how I got them! To the whole pack!"
"That's your fault! You're the one that cheated!"
"Did not! I was just cleverer than you!"
"Then, you should be the one that goes."
"But, Ayame likes you better."
"No, she doesn't. You're the one that's always claiming he's cuter."
"And you're smarter. You're the one that should go."
"No, I shouldn't. You should go—Koga likes you better."
"No, he doesn't."
"Yes, he does."
"No, he doesn't."
... ... ...
They were still arguing when Kohaku came back. A sated Kirara took one look, shrank, and sat down for an extended grooming session. The four-footed wolves work up from their naps, and hastily retreated from the cat.
"Um, guys?" Kohaku spoke up as they paused for breath. They whipped around, looking startled, as if they hadn't noticed his arrival. He held up an impressive string of fish. "We could finish talking over a meal?"
"Oh, we decided: we have to ask Koga," said Hakkaku. "This could affect the pack: pack leader has to decide."
That made sense to Kohaku, so he nodded.
"We just can't decide who should go," Ginta added. "We figured, if you wanted training, you could help one of us patrol, while the other goes back to the pack."
"Sounds fair."
"But, we can't both go, and we can't agree on who goes and who stays."
"Yeah, it's important who talks to Koga."
"Real important."
"Real, real important."
"But, it can't be you. You're not pack."
Well that was reasonable, too.
"But—" he prompted.
"We're still deciding who goes."
"Yeah. And he wants to go—"
"And he wants to go—"
"And we can't agree on who should go."
A small 'mrph' drew Kohaku's attention to tiny Kirara. One hind leg still up in the air, she gave him a long-suffering look, put all paws back on the ground, stood up and shook herself. He stepped back a pace, and she grew to her big form. Tails twitching, she strolled towards the two youkai. Approaching Ginta first, she noisily snuffled his injured arm, then drew her lips up and her ears back.
"Um, what does that mean?" asked a nervous Ginta.
"She doesn't like your smell. It's probably the blood."
Kirara gave Hakkaku another snuffling go-over, but did not make a similar expression of distaste. Instead, she turned, thwacked him with the nearer tail, then strolled back to Kohaku, shrinking. Jumping up to his shoulder, she turned around, and mewed.
"What was that?" asked Hakkaku. "Was that the cat version, of what we wolves do, in greeting?"
"She was deciding who she thinks should go talk with Koga," said Kohaku.
"Oh. Who?"
"You."
Hakakku's hair visibly wilted.
"Oh."
Author's Note: This was written for the prompt "Adolescent" for the LiveJournal community IYFic Contest. It was originally posted on February 21, 2012. (6/10/2012)