Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha

CHAPTER TEN - Sharing Memories

Karanosuke had been living with Inuyasha and his family for several months now and still he had not learned anything of particular use about the whereabouts of his father. He was laying in bed, staring up at the ceiling when he decided that it was time for him to leave. Despite the fact that he was happier with his 'family' than he'd been since the death of his mother the boy couldn't help but feel out of place.

"I shouldn't be here," Karanosuke muttered, making his decision.

Karanosuke quietly got up and pulled on his kimono shirt. He tucked the shirt into his pants, tied his sash, and grabbed his sword. He stuck the sheathed Taiketsu in his sash and quietly left the room, being careful not to awaken the two boys with whom he shared a room. He knew that Kyo at least would try to stop him and he was determined that this would not happen.

Karanosuke slipped out of the hut, glancing around occasionally to make sure that no one had noticed his departure. The boy left the village and, after one last look toward the village, he began his journey.

Kyo had been awakened by the subtle noise made by Karanosuke as he prepared to leave and he leaped to his feet as soon as he was sure that the younger boy was gone. Kyo hurriedly pulled on his kimono shirt, grabbed his sword and left the hut in pursuit of his cousin.

Once outside Kyo used his sensitive nose to detect the scent of Karanosuke and, when he picked up the scent, he followed it from the village and into the forest..

"Where is he going?" Kyo muttered to himself as he pursued Karanosuke. "Not that I'm really one to talk, but he's gonna end up getting us both in trouble."

Kyo followed Karanosuke's trail into the forest, toward the clearing where the well was located. When he arrived at the clearing, Kyo spotted Karanosuke sitting in front of the well.

Kyo walked up to the younger boy and sat down beside him. "What are you doing out here Karan?"

"I'm leaving the village," Karanosuke said.

"Why would you want to go and do something like that?" Kyo wanted to know.

"I don't belong here," Karanosuke said.

"Sure you do," Kyo said. "You fit in great with the rest of us."

Karanosuke shook his head. "No, I don't think so. Besides, I promised my mother that I would find my father. That's the only reason I remained in your village when I first arrived instead of leaving the first chance I got, which was my intention at first. I thought since Inuyasha was father's brother he might know where I might find him. Unfortunately he didn't so it's time for me to continue my journey."

"Your mother meant a great deal to you, didn't she?" Kyo said softly.

Karanosuke nodded, a strange look in his eyes.

Kyo stared at his friend. "Life in the village of your birth was not pleasant for you was it?"

"No," Karanosuke said bitterly. "That place was a hell hole. The only reason I didn't leave sooner was Mother. She made life there bearable, if not pleasant."

Kyo nodded. "I knew that you and your mother had to have been very close. Even though you never speak of her I knew. But she was the only one wasn't she? The villagers where you came from didn't like you very much did they?"

"Feh," Karanosuke growled in a low voice, contempt plainly evident in his tone. "That's an understatement. Those idiots hated me with every fiber of their collective beings. But that was okay because the feeling was mutual. I would have killed them all if Mother hadn't cared for them for years. The villagers didn't like Mother very much either, however for some reason beyond my comprehension she still cared for them. And they're lucky that she did because her feelings for them was the only thing that stopped me from killing every single one of those idiots."

"I understand," Kyo said.

"How can you possibly understand?" Karanosuke demanded, glaring at the older boy.

"The people of my village don't all accept me," Kyo said. "I've been called half breed by several people but apparently I handled it better than you did. I never wanted to kill anyone over it."

"Name calling wasn't the reason I wanted to kill them," Karanosuke said. "I wanted to kill them because of the way they treated my mother. Plus they sentenced me to death before I was even born purely on the basis of what I was. I was the child of a demon and therefore a threat to them. In their eyes that fact alone was enough to warrant a death sentence."

"Hmm," Kyo said. "I think you should remain in the village for awhile longer."

"And why exactly would I do something like that?" Karanosuke asked.

"You already know that Sesshomaru has visited this area a number of times throughout the years," Kyo explained. "So this is the logical place to be."

"And since when are you the logical one of the family?" Karanosuke demanded.

"Since a few minutes ago apparently," Kyo said, with a chuckle. "But that's not the point. The point is if you remain in the village your bound to eventually find your father."

Karanosuke shook his head. "I don't think so."

"Come on Karan," Kyo said. "Sesshomaru's been in this region many times in the past and he'll surely come back again in the future. All you have to do is be patient for awhile."

"Can't do it," Karanosuke said. "I had patience, however it's already been exhausted during the time I've already spent here. I have no more patience left."

"Not surprising," Kyo said. "Apparently that runs rampant in this family. However I know Sesshomaru and he will be back. He and Father don't get along at all well and inevitably the two of them will have something else to fight about and Sesshomaru will return to this place."

"What do you mean you know him?" Karanosuke wanted to know.

"I've met your father," Kyo said. "Twice, actually. He saved my life when I was a young child."

Karanosuke stared at Kyo, doubt evident in his gaze. He couldn't fathom his father doing anything so noble after having abandoned him and his mother before he was even born.

"I can tell you don't believe me," Kyo said. "But I speak the truth. When I was young I wandered away from the village, chasing a wolf cub. I followed the animal deep into the forest and there I was attacked by the demon. I don't remember how exactly it happened but Sesshomaru saved me from certain death at the hands of the demon. And after he saved my life he took me to his camp, where his human companion Rin tended to my wounds. I stayed with them for over a week, healing, and then Sesshomaru brought me back to the village."

Karanosuke stared at Kyo. "You said you saw Father twice. What happened the second time?"

"It happened about a year ago," Kyo said. "Suichi and I were wandering through the forest when I picked up the scent of a demon. The scent seemed familiar to me but I couldn't remember who it belonged to so the two of us decided to track down the demon. When we found the demon and his two companions my memory of the incident was restored. I remembered being saved by Sesshomaru. And he told me and Suichi why it was that I had the traits of our half demon father while he did not."

"I see," Karanosuke said thinking about what Kyo had told him about his father. So his father had actually saved the life of a half breed child? This revelation completely and utterly confused Karanosuke. He had always envisioned his father as cold and heartless, yet the story that Kyo had just told him shook the foundation of what he thought he knew about the father he'd never met.

Kyo stared at his friend's transfixed expression. "Are you okay Karan?"

"What?" Karanosuke said, jarred from his thoughts. He turned toward Kyo. "Yea I'm fine. There's something I've been curious about since I arrived in this village. And since you just brought it up, I'll ask. So tell me, why doesn't Suichi have any of the demonic characteristics of Inuyasha?"

"Well," Kyo said. "The way Sesshomaru explained it was this: when half breeds have twins the different bloods separate and the demon blood chooses which of the babies will be the strongest and gravitates toward that child. I was apparently destined to be the stronger of the two of us so the demon blood chose me."

Hmm," Karanosuke said. "Does Suichi know about this theory?"

Kyo nodded.

"I'm surprised that he doesn't have an inferiority complex because of it."

"Can I ask you something Karan?"

"Obviously," Karanosuke said. "Seeing as you just did."

"I'm being serious," Kyo said.

"There's a shocker," Karanosuke said.

Kyo glared at his friend.

"Alright, alright. What do you want to know?"

"Do you like it here in our village?" Kyo asked.

Karanosuke thought about the question for a few minutes. He'd never given much thought to his new life in the village yet for the first time he realized that he was indeed enjoying himself. "I'm happier here than I've been since my Mother died. However I don't think I'm meant to be happy."

"Is that why you think you should leave the village?" Kyo wanted to know.

Karanosuke nodded.

"Stop being stupid!" Kyo burst out, angry over his friend's apparent lack of common sense. "You deserve to be happy just like everyone else. Possibly even more so because you've suffered more than most people."

Karanosuke stared at his friend. "Thanks Kyo. You're a good friend."

"What did you call me?"

"Friend," Karanosuke said.

"And you thought you didn't need any friends," Kyo said. "Guess I proved you wrong."

"Don't rub it in Kyo-Kyo," Karanosuke warned.

"I told you not to call me that!"

"And I didn't listen," Karanosuke said. "What are friends for."

"You're a bastard," Kyo said.

"Feh," Karanosuke said.

Kyo stood up. "Come on Karan. Let's go back to the village before Father discovers that we're gone."

Karanosuke nodded and stood up. He and Kyo walked back to the village of Kaede and over to the hut they shared with Kyo's family. The two boys pulled the door flap back and came face to face with Inuyasha.

"Where have the two of you been?" Inuyasha demanded. "Kagome was worried sick when she went to check on you and found that you weren't in your beds."

"We went to the well," Kyo replied.

"The well?" Inuyasha said. "What were you doing at the well?"

"Just talking," Karanosuke said.

"It doesn't matter what you were doing there," Inuyasha said. "You shouldn't have left the hut without my permission."

"Calm down Inuyasha," Kagome said. "The boys are safe so no harm done."

"What?" Inuyasha exclaimed. "So you're just gonna let them off the hook, just like that? How can you be so stupid?!"

A vein bulged out in Kagome's forehead. "Inuyasha. Sit boy!"

The beads that Inuyasha wore around his neck began to glow and Karanosuke stared in wonder as an invisible force seemed to pull Inuyasha to the ground, face first.

"Wow," Karanosuke said in a breathless tone, staring at Inuyasha's limp form. His uncle lay motionless on the ground, smoke coming from the beads he wore around his neck. "How did you do that?"

"The beads around his neck are enchanted," Kagome explained. "My word has power over him because of the enchanted beads."

Karanosuke stared at Inuyasha, who still lay face down on the ground and then he glanced up at Kyo who also wore a string of the prayer beads around his neck.

"So did Kagome give you your beads as well Kyo?"

"No," Kyo said, a note of bitterness in his voice. "Kisa gave me mine. And that's not even the bad part. The bad part is, she doesn't know how she did it and she can't take them off. So be careful not to make her angry or this shall be your fate as well."

"Hmm," Karanosuke said. "I didn't know the beads had significant meaning. I just thought they were a family thing."

"In a way they are," Kyo said. "So watch your back around Kisa and my mother if you know what's good for you."

"So noted," Karanosuke said.

"Alright boys," Kagome said. "Back to bed. You're getting up just as early as always so you'd better try to salvage what sleeping time you can."

"Aw come on Mother," Kyo said. "You mean you won't let us sleep in?"

Kagome shook her head. "Nope. You should have thought about that when you were off in the forest. You chose adventure over sleep and you'll have to deal with the consequences of that choice."

"Very well," Kyo said. "Come on Karanosuke. Let's go."

Karanosuke nodded and the two boys headed off to the room that they shared with Suichi.

Kagome and Inuyasha, who had gotten up off the ground by this point, watched as the two boys walked away. "They really have became good friends, haven't they Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha nodded. "Who would have ever thought. A child of mine and a child of Sesshomaru's, friends."

Kagome smiled. "And who knows. There may be hope for the two of you yet."

"I think not," Inuyasha said.

Kagome smiled. "You never know. Don't count out the possibility just yet Inuyasha."

"Feh, whatever."

Kagome smiled at her husband but chose not to further pursue the subject. "Come on. Let's go back to bed. I told the boys that they had to get up early in the morning and that means that we have to as well."

"Damn," Inuyasha muttered. "They're the ones who misbehaved and I'm forced to suffer the punishment as well. That's not fair."

"That's parenthood," Kagome told him

A/N- and thus ends another chapter. Hope you enjoyed it.