Disclaimer - I do not own Inuyasha

A/N- And here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for.

CHAPTER ELEVEN - A Meeting Between Father and Son

Karanosuke, Kyo and Suichi were standing in front of the village entrance, discussing their plans for the day when Inuyasha walked up to them. There was a somber look on the face of the half-demon as he came to stand a few feet from the spot where the three boys had assembled.

"Boys," Inuyasha said. "Don't wander to far away from the village. And make sure that if you leave that you remain together in a group. I've heard that a powerful demon is wandering around the forest and I don't want you boys wandering off until something is done about it."

Kyo and Suichi nodded but Karanosuke just scowled.

Having given his orders, Inuyasha walked back toward the hut he shared with his family.

"Who the hell does he think he is?" Karanosuke fumed, inexplicably angered by Inuyasha's words. It was true that this wasn't the first time that the man had issued orders to all three children however for some reason it angered Karanosuke more than usual on this particular day. "Giving me orders like he's in charge of me."

"Come on Karanosuke," Suichi said in a placating tone of voice. "We should probably listen to him. Father has moods when you don't wanna disobey him and I could tell by the way he gave his orders that he's in one of those moods now."

"Feh," Karanosuke said, not even the slightest bit concerned by his cousin's warning. "I don't care what kind of mood he's in. He's still not in charge of me."

With that, Karanosuke began walking toward the forest.

"Karanosuke don't," Kyo called out, realizing that his cousin was about to deliberately disobey Inuyasha and knowing that nothing good could possibly come from it.

Karanosuke turned his head. "You guys don't have to come. I know you're under obligation to obey the orders of your father, however I feel the urge to travel and I'm under no such obligations. So I'm going for a walk. I'll be back. . . eventually."

Kyo and Suichi stared in shock as Karanosuke walked off into the forest.

"I can't believe he just did that," Suichi said. "He disobeyed a direct order, willingly."

"More than willingly," Kyo said, shaking his head as he thought back on the defiant expression that Karanosuke had held in his amber eyes as he'd turned to walk away from them. "I think he disobeyed it because it was a direct order. He has a definite rebellious streak."

Karanosuke was wandering through the forest when he was approached by a very large demon. The demon had the physical characteristics of a lizard, scaly green skin, a forked tongue and a long tail, although he walked on his hind legs, like a human. The lizard demon walked toward Karanosuke, an evil glint in his eyes.

"Boy," the demon hissed. "You seem familiar to me."

"Highly unlikely," Karanosuke said calmly. "I think that I would remember a meeting with something as ugly as you."

The lizard demon did not react to the insult. He was to busy staring intently at Karanosuke. "You are the son of the great dog demon, are you not?"

"Possibly," Karanosuke said, his tone completely indifferent. "I honestly cannot say."

"You are his son, there is no doubt," the lizard demon said. "Now I can finally exact my revenge."

Karanosuke stared at the demon, confused.

"I am Warui," the lizard demon informed him. "And my clan was all but annihilated by that wretched mutt."

"That's not my fault," Karanosuke pointed out, inwardly wondering how many demons bore grudges against his father. So far he had personally encountered three such demons. "Exactly how many people has Father pissed off in his life time?" the boy thought to himself. Then his attention shifted back to his opponent. "I had nothing to do with the demise of your clan."

"That may be," Warui said. "But since I have been unable to locate your father, I will have to take my revenge on you and thus get your father in that way."

"Brilliant plan," Karanosuke said with a smirk. "But no, wait. I've discovered a major flaw in your plan. My father will not care that you killed me, in fact it may actually make him happy."

"What?!"

"Disappointed?" Karanosuke asked, thoroughly enjoying the look on the demon's face.

Warui smiled. "You had me going there for a minute boy, but I know that you're lying."

"I wouldn't do such a thing," Karanosuke said. "I'm not in the habit of lying to save my own skin. I speak the truth. My father won't suffer in the slightest if you kill me. In fact you could probably kill me before his very eyes and he wouldn't even flinch."

Warui glared at the boy. "You really are a self assured little bastard, aren't you? I don't like it."

"Oh well," Karanosuke said. "Hate it for you. I'm not here to please you."

"I'm gonna kill you!"

"Feel free to try," Karanosuke said. "However I feel compelled to tell you that you do so at great risk to life and limb."

Warui snarled and ran toward the boy. "Die!"

Karanosuke was preparing his counter attack when an arrow flew through the air, past the approaching demon, and struck a nearby tree. He whirled around and saw Kagome and Inuyasha standing on a slope, over looking the battle site.

"Back away from the boy or the next one's going in your heart," Kagome called out.

Warui jumped back and growled at the newcomers.

Inuyasha and Kagome ran down the slope and came to stand beside Karanosuke. Inuyasha grabbed the boy by the collar of his kimono shirt, glaring at Karanosuke in fury. "I told you not to leave the village alone you stupid boy! What the hell did you think you were doing?"

Karanosuke glared at Inuyasha. "I'm under no obligation to obey you. You're not my father."

"This is true," Inuyasha said, catching a new scent in the wind and turning toward the west. "He is."

Karanosuke whirled around and stared at a tall figure standing beneath a large willow tree. The boy gasped in surprise as his gaze fell upon his father for the first time in his life.

"Hello Sesshomaru," Inuyasha called out.

Sesshomaru stood beneath the trees, staring at the assembly of people before him. None of these people were the one he sought and therefore not worth his time. He turned to leave.

Warui stared at the new arrival and knew that this was the demon he had long sought revenge against. The attention of the human that had interfered with his attack earlier was focused on the dog demon and Warui knew that this may be his only chance. He leapt through the air, grabbed Karanosuke around the neck, and jumped backward a few feet, safely away from the group.

Kagome gasped as Karanosuke was captured by the lizard demon and she made a move to rush to his rescue however Inuyasha grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back. Kagome gazed up into her husband's eyes and Inuyasha shook his head ever so slightly.

Kagome reluctantly nodded and turned her attention back to Karanosuke.

"Dog demon," Warui called out to Sesshomaru. "I had not even dared to hope that I would ever see you again however fate has smiled upon me and here you are."

Sesshomaru stared at Warui, his expression devoid of any evidence that he recognized the lizard demon.

"You don't remember me," Warui raged, glaring over at his enemy with a look of pure hatred in his eyes. "However I remember you and I remember how you slaughtered my clan and as revenge for that act I will take the life of your son, right in front of your eyes."

"Son?" Sesshomaru said calmly, his icy gaze focused on the demon. "I have no son."

Karanosuke glared at the man who had to be his father. "So not only didn't he want me, he also denies me."

"Sesshomaru, the boy IS your son," Kagome called out.

"Impossible," Sesshomaru said. He looked at the boy and noticed his dog ears. "Look at his ears. He looks more like a child of Inuyasha's."

"Enough of this," Warui yelled. "The boy dies."

Warui tightened his grip around the boy's neck.

"Damn you," Karanosuke growled, his eyes turning red and a demonic wind beginning to swirl around the spot where he and the lizard demon stood. "I will not die this way. Not before I confront my father." The demonic wind increased in severity and swirled around the boy, lifting his silver hair and causing it to swirl around his body.

"What the hell?!" Warui yelled, as he was forced to release the expanding neck of the boy. Jumping back a couple of yards he watched in horror as the boy transformed into a huge demon dog.

The white demon dog stood growling at the lizard demon, a glint in his red eyes.

"You see that Sesshomaru? Have you ever, in the entire time you've known me, seen me do that?" Inuyasha yelled. "Now tell me he's not your son."

Kagome smiled at her husband, who not too long ago had been the one with doubts about Karanosuke's parentage. Now he was trying to convince Sesshomaru who the boy was.

Sesshomaru stared at the transformed boy. In demon form the boy looked like him, he even had the crescent moon on his forehead. He gasped. "That's the transformation I sensed," he thought to himself. Then he turned to Inuyasha. "That proves nothing."

"You're so dense," Inuyasha said, clenching his hands into fists and glaring at Sesshomaru. "I'm telling you, he's your son. You can't deny him. He has your personality and everything."

In his transformed state Karanosuke was far more violent and, as there was no one to stop him this time, he used his enormous teeth to tear the demon's head off. Seconds after destroying Warui, Karanosuke transformed back into his human-ish form. He was exhausted from his brief stint as the demon dog, yet he did not allow himself to sink to the ground, as he did last time. He forced himself to approach the man he knew to be his father.

"You," Karanosuke growled under his breath, walking toward Sesshomaru.

Inuyasha rushed over and grabbed the boy by the arm before he effectively committed suicide by attacking Sesshomaru. "Hold it kid. You don't want to do that."

"The hell I don't!" Karanosuke growled, his narrow eyed gaze focused on the man he knew to be his father. "He abandoned my mother and left her to be tormented by a bunch of mortal fools."

"You are wrong boy," Sesshomaru spoke up, his calm voice carrying over to the spot where Inuyasha held Karanosuke restrained despite how quietly he spoke. "Your mother chose to leave and return to the humans of her own free will. If she suffered it was her own doing."

"How dare you," Karanosuke growled.

Inuyasha held the boy's arm, preventing his attack.

Karanosuke struggled against Inuyasha's hold. "Let go of me!"

"Can't do that kid," Inuyasha said through gritted teeth, tightening his grip on the boy's arm. He couldn't believe how strong this boy was. It was taking a large amount of his energy to maintain his grip on the kid's arm however he was determined not to allow the kid to commit suicide. "Cause as soon as I do, you'll go and do something stupid like attacking Sesshomaru."

Sesshomaru stood calmly in the shade of the tree, watching Inuyasha struggle with the young boy. The boy's eyes glowed red again and he threatened to transform into the demon dog once more. "Careful little brother," Sesshomaru taunted. "The boy's about to transform again and in that form he might hurt you."

Inuyasha glared at his older brother and shook his head. "He won't hurt me. If he transforms, I plan on releasing my hold on the boy. At that point, he'll be all yours Sesshomaru."

Sesshomaru stared calmly at Inuyasha and Karanosuke. He did not seem the slightest bit concerned with the thought of fighting the boy in his demon form. "He's no match for me even in his transformed state."

That comment further fueled the boy's anger and he fought harder against Inuyasha.

"Knock it off kid," Inuyasha ordered, then directed his words to Sesshomaru. "And you. If you don't shut up Sesshomaru, I'm gonna let him go and we'll see how much of a match he is for you."

Sesshomaru shrugged.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome gasped. "Don't you dare."

Inuyasha glared at his wife. "Stay out of this Kagome."

Kagome returned the glare two fold. She muttered, "He'd better be glad Sesshomaru's here or I'd make him "sit" in a heartbeat."

"Well, I've had enough of this," Sesshomaru said. With that he turned around and began to walk away.

"Dammit," Karanosuke yelled, wrenching his arm free from Inuyasha's grasp. He ran after Sesshomaru, quickly catching up with his father.

"Oh no," Kagome gasped, running over to stand beside Inuyasha. "Go after him Inuyasha. The boy will get himself killed by Sesshomaru."

"I don't think so," Inuyasha said, pointing in the direction that Sesshomaru was walking. "Look."

Karanosuke had caught up with his father by this time and instead of attacking, he simply fell in step behind Sesshomaru. The boy followed his father into the forest and out of sight.

"I don't believe it," Kagome said. "I thought the boy wanted revenge against Sesshomaru." She thought for a moment and then smiled. "Ahhh, they're bonding."

Inuyasha made a face. "I wouldn't go that far."

"Why not?" Kagome wanted to know. "The two of them are going off together and Karanosuke didn't attack Sesshomaru. Plus Sesshomaru didn't try to prevent the boy from following him. Besides, Karanosuke is Sesshomaru's son. He has to know that. The similarities between them are simply too obvious to ignore."

"Sesshomaru may have fathered the child however I don't think he'll suddenly develop feelings for him," Inuyasha said. "My brother's simply not like that."

"People change," Kagome said. "You used to be a lot rougher around the edges, you know."

Inuyasha glared at his wife. "I was never like Sesshomaru!"

"Not exactly," Kagome said. "However you've never been a boy scout either."

"I've never been a what?" Inuyasha demanded.

"Oh nothing," Kagome said.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes but decided to let the subject drop.

"What's the matter Inuyasha?" Kagome asked. "Don't you have anything more to say?

Inuyasha shook his head.

"See? Like I told you, people change," Kagome said. "You choosing not to speak is all the proof I need of that."

Inuyasha glared at Kagome. "And just what do you mean by that?"

"When we first met you never would have let me win an argument," Kagome told him. "We could have stood outside all night arguing and you still wouldn't have given up. You changed. Now, when you know you're going to lose an argument you give up. That's why you don't get in trouble as much now as you used to."

A/N - Hope you enjoyed this enstallment of Karan's story. The boy finally managed to track down his father (or more accurately Sesshomaru tracked him down). Wondering what will happen next? We'll you'll just have to stay tuned to find out. Til next time this is Hitsu-taichou signing out.