He lay lazily on the grass under the hot summer sun, his arms folded behind his head. His hair rested lifelessly against his form and the ground beneath, its dark ebony colour absorbing the heat from the rays of sunlight shining down on him. Shadows from tree leaves danced across his face as the wind blew by.

"How boring," he said, his voice dull, barely any interest present.

"What?" A woman asked, as if she had not heard the first time. She turned to him in a puzzled manner, though she knew what he meant.

"This place, it's boring. We have been here for four days now and nothing has happened. Can't we just move on?" asked the black haired man as he anxiously tapped his index finger against the soil.

"You know that we can't," she replied, sighing and rubbing her forehead in an attempt to stop the migraine that would soon ensue. This man was childish when bored, as though he had not matured in his adult years. Whenever he was bored, he let her know.

"But why? It's not like if we wait here something's going to happen. We should move on."

"But-"

"There is nothing here. It's best to continue," he declared, hopping to his feet and trotting forward, leaving his female companion to try to catch up. She grabbed tightly to his arm in an attempt to stop him but his strength was too much and she, too, was dragged along.

Shirou sluggishly walked outside in the open air. He yawned, stretched and opened his eyes to the blinding light of the sun. Its beams were hard on his eyes, which had spent the last three days in the darkness of the cave as he recuperated. That time he spent to recover made his body feel stiff, heavy. He wanted no more then to bolt through the forest and feel the wind against his skin. However, his caretaker would not allow it.

"Shirou," she called from within the cave's stone walls, "where are you going?" She was suspicious of his intentions, as he had a personality not unlike his father.

"Nowhere," he replied in disappointment. At least, not while you're around.

Rin glared at him with distrust, but brushed it off and forgot about it. If he were to leave, it's not like she could stop him. He was too rambunctious for his own good. Still, it was a relief to see him so spirited. Only days ago he was on the verge of death, unable to even sit up properly. She knew it wouldn't kill him though. His blood was part demonic, no matter how muddled it may have been.

She could not help but realize the length in which it was taking him to recover. If Master InuYasha or Lord Sesshomaru were the ones injured, their wounds would have already been sealed. In fact, if it were her Lord, he would not have been in such bad state from an injury such as that; it is a meager surface wound to demons belonging to the inuyoukai bloodline. Perhaps it was because he carried so much human decent; however, he was still healing at an amazing rate in comparison to what any human could. Is this what being quarter youkai was like?

"Is something wrong?" Shirou asked, puzzled by her silence and blank expression.

"No, it is nothing," Rin reassured him, bringing her thoughts back to reality. The two sat, one in front of the other, as she applied clean bandages to his chest and arm. Already he was almost healed and ready to be taken as Lord Sesshomaru's apprentice, though there was no guarantee he would really train Shirou, the son of his rather impulsive younger brother. Of course, she would never tell him of his recovery; he would simply take off and reopen the gouges in his back. He was easy to read, but not as easy as Master InuYasha. True, they were similar, but still he was not the same. Something about him made her feel different when he spoke to her.

"Hey," interrupted the albino, "where are the others? You know, that imp thing and the girl."

"Ah," began the woman, wrapping the last of the bandages, "you are referring to Master Jaken and Sae. They are accompanying my Lord at the moment." She wondered why he had asked.

"Is that so?" He stared off into space and thought about the mess of a woman he had previously met. She was intimidating and, to him, far more annoying than even his sibling. Already he had forgotten her name, taking no note of it. She was a boorish girl with a sour expression not unlike her Lord. Still, he couldn't help but wonder, "Who is that girl anyway?"

"Sae? Well, she is…" she fingered her lip, not exactly sure as to how she should explain it, "…she is like myself, I suppose."

"What do you mean?"

"Well…" Rin's voice trailed off, finding the proper words. Before giving a proper answer the woman jumped to her feet and ran to the entrance of the cave, leaping longingly into the arms of her beloved. "Lord Sesshomaru," she said, tightly wrapping her arms around his waist, receiving little response, "I have missed you, my Lord!"

It was only momentary but, for an instance, Shirou swore he saw an upward curve on Sesshomaru's face. He brushed it off as him being irrational and stood to his feet as the inuyokai's followers trailed in behind him. The silver youkai turned his gaze from the woman in his arms to the hanyou a few meters away, glowering. "Hey," Shirou waved laxly, approaching him, "been a while."

He had forgotten about the pest that was waiting with Rin. It annoyed him that the boy hadn't already left, though he was partially at fault for agreeing to train him. What a tiresome task.

Sae appeared from behind the youkai, blood dripping from her shoulder. Her armor was cracked and broken. Hair disheveled, she dragged herself into the caved, placed her back against a wall and slid down it to rest.

Shirou watched her from the edge of his vision, only a little curious. "The hell happened to you?" He watched her just as she had done before she left. Their situations had somehow reversed.

"Shut up, half breed," she barked, embarrassed and enraged by the boy standing before her, "it is no concern of yours."

"Keh, fine by me."

Rin quickly rushed to the girl and tended to her shoulder just as she had for Shirou. Her injuries were far less severe but hurt just the same. After analyzing the gouge in her shoulder, she eyed Sesshomaru angrily. He had put her in danger once more, and that was not acceptable. Sesshomaru saw this and narrowed his eyes. Rarely did she stare at him like that – rarely, but when she did, she could stand up to even the greatest of demons, and that included the inuyoukai Sesshomaru himself.

"My Lord, you have done something unforgivable."

The silver youkai simply stood there seemingly unaffected, though worry crept beneath his poker face. "Is that so?"

She clenched her teeth before beginning her outburst. "You put young Sae in danger! Do you not see the blood that she has lost? If she were human, she would have been mortally wounded! This is how you plan to raise our child, Milord?"

Sesshomaru turned away, unwilling to face the wrath of his mate. Likewise, Shirou's ears twitched at this, his face turning a bright red. She had said child, right? Were these so very different beings really…?

"Leave, Milord. I do not wish to see your face right now." Her words were sharp. It had been a very long time since she had spoken to him like that and he knew that she was more than just a little angry. Much to his nephew's surprise, he obeyed the order given to him by the human woman and left the cave. Jaken followed shortly after.

She began applying ointment to the gouges in Sae's shoulder and arm, exhaling noisily while doing so. "Really, that man has no paternal sense whatsoever," Rin stated, still fuming over his irresponsibility.

"Lady Rin, are you sure this is alright?" To Shirou's surprise, Sae spoke politely and with obvious concern. He did not think it was possible for her to have manners, or to be worried, for that matter, though he wasn't one to talk. They were similar, he had to admit, but he refused to delve deeper than that.

"It is fine, Sae. It is due to his own foolishness that this happened to you. I cannot so easily forgive that."

Shirou was impressed with Rin's courage; it's not easy to stand up to someone as obviously strong as Sesshomaru. That man was seeping demonic aura from every inch of his body. Yet, in some shocking, seemingly impossible way, he was defeated by a human girl. How ironic.

While the girls continued with their medical treatment, Shirou decided to step outside. Perhaps he would finally be able to exercise his over-rested legs. As he exited the cave he spotted his uncle sitting very still on the grass, simply staring into the sky. Curious and intimidated, he approached the man with cautiousness. He stopped before getting too close, sensing his irritability. Something interested him about Sesshomaru, but what it was he did not know. It wasn't his strength or stature, he ascertained.

"What is it, boy?" asked Sesshomaru sharply, not bothering to turn and face him.

"Rin," Sesshomaru turned, though unnoticeably, "she's pretty amazing, isn't she?" He didn't grace him with a reply. Shirou, assuming this meant he wasn't angered by what he had said, continued. "That…about the thing she mentioned…is she…?"

"What concern is it of yours?"

"None, I suppose."

"You needn't know, then."

"…"

Suddenly the two caught a strange, unfamiliar scent. Though they did not recognize it, something about it seemed wrong. The silver youkai rose to his feet and flexed his claws, readying himself for whatever was near, be it friend or foe. After only moments, Jaken came bursting from within the forest, a panicked mess. He shrieked for his Lord in his usual frantic manner, only more frightened than he was during previous endeavors. Shirou, not use to this, clenched his fists in fear.

"Milord! Milord!" shouted the shaken imp as he approach Sesshomaru. "T-there is a man there in the trees! He is not safe, Milord!"

"Is that so?" His interest was piqued. This was a perfect way to release his agitation.

"Master!" screamed Sae as she rushed out of the cave, spear in hand, much to the protests of Rin. "I sense something, Master."

"You too?" asked Shirou, more amazed then unsure. For every one of them to sense the danger from one man was no coincidence and it wasn't something that would happen normally. He hated to admit it, but compared to the other three his senses were dull, yet even he could sense the frightening aura seeping from this one individual.

Their heads shot forward. A figure began to exit the shadows of forest. From that shadowy character appeared a man with long, tied back inky hair in a tan haori, a woman at his side with ash brown hair draped across her back. They took quick notice of the youkai and hanyou but showed little concern. In fact, the man smiled.

Something wasn't right. Despite all of the fear they felt over the approaching being, no doubt both were human. Not only did they show no demonic features, they smelled just like humans. No human could give off an aura that powerful, reminiscent only of Naraku.

"Well, well," spoke the man, stretching his arms laxly as he neared, "what do we have here? A hanyou and three youkai?"

Shirou growled low in his voice, crouching in preparation for attack. This seemed to amuse him.

"Oh and what's this? A human, too? My, what a diverse group you are."

Sesshomaru scowled at him with a look that said he was ready kill. He gripped tightly to Tenseiga knowing that if anyone were to die he could revive them…all except Rin.

"Beat it unless you want to die!" threatened Sae as she entered a fighting stance.

"Moron, you're still injured!" Shirou pointed to her bandages which were already starting to stain with blood.

"Do you want to die, too, half-breed?"

"Keh," pouted Shirou as he crossed his arms, "those looks are wasted on you."

"What did you say?"

"Nothing at all."

Through all of this the pair stayed silent, the man's grin grown ever the wider. "What a lively bunch."

"It would appear so," replied the woman, pushing her dark strands away from her eyes. They stopped casually and the man crossed his arms, overconfidence dripping from his face. The two teens took note of this and stopped fighting, instead directing their anger at the pair.

"Have you children finished your quarreling?"

"Shut up, asshole!" barked Shirou, ready to sharpen his claws on the man. "Who the hell are you and when are you going to attack? I'm gettin' sick of waiting."

"Let's say I'm a friend."

"Bullshit."

"Cheeky aren't you?" he mumbled, though not audible to the others. "I did not come to fight, but I wouldn't mind taking you up on your offer."

"Oh yeah?" Shirou charged at him, claws flexing in preparation. Sesshomaru grabbed him by the collar and threw him to the ground before he could take more than a few steps. He looked up, both stocked and confused, met with his uncle's glower. Chills ran down his back when he saw that.

"So you want to fight me? Alright then, let's see what you've got." The ebony-haired man stretched and entered a fighting stance. About to start the fight, his companion grabbed hold of his ear and pulled him back. She thrust him to the ground, leaving the opposing side dumbfounded. He rubbed his ear and looked up at her with more annoyance than shock.

"Ayano!" He shouted while trying to rid himself of the throbbing of his ear.

"You know we're not supposed to fight. We should not have even left our post, but you just had to go exploring. Well I've had enough. I will not allow you to cause trouble by fighting this group."

He glared at her, pouted and soon rose to his feet again. He turned to Sesshomaru once more and waved. "Sorry, she's right. I'm not supposed to be fighting."

"And you expect us to believe that?" asked Shirou, disdain in his voice.

The man sighed. "As I stated, I'm a friend. Or, at least, I'm not an enemy. Let's just say that we're neutral." He turned to Ayano for reassurance that what he was saying was correct. He didn't seem to fully understand his own situation.

"Oh, sure, someone with your power is just wandering around after the demon attack a few days ago for no reason whatsoever." You could hear the sarcasm oozing from Shirou's voice.

"While I thank you for acknowledging my strength, it's not exactly like that."

"Oh?"

"We're looking for something," began Ayano, stepping in, "a jewel by the name Shikon no Tama."

"Foolish," stated Sesshomaru, the tension he felt settling.

"Why do you say that, demon?" asked the brunette, concern showing in her tone. She listened intently for his reply, which he at first was not going to give.

"The jewel of which you speak is no more."

"What?" The pair asked in unison. They did not want to believe his words.

"It was destroyed many years ago by a priestess," Rin began, retelling the story as she remembered it. "The jewel held a cursed existence. To end the cycle of suffering, she made a wish for it to disappear and since then it has not resurfaced."

Shirou recognised this story well. Every once in a while his mother told this story to him when he was young. He knew it was from their past. He knew so much about the jewel which had brought his parents together. He never learned what it was despite that. Suddenly he took interest in these unusual and powerful strangers.

"It's still out there." Everyone turned to the man. "Something that powerful cannot be destroyed."

An awkward silence rose. The sun was high in the sky as noon approached. No one really knew what to say to that. Most knew it to be gone. Some thought otherwise.

"Takai, we should return. There's no point in staying here."

"Yeah." The dark-haired man turned to leave with Ayano but first stopped to point at Sesshomaru. "We'll continue this if we meet again, alright demon?"

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes. Sae's raised her guard at this, unwilling for a hand to be laid on her Lord. The two vanished into the forest the way they came. Noon arrived.

A/N: Sorry for such a long wait! I had most of this done after exams but never got around to finish it. As for the title, Takai and Ayano are "Love" and "Death" if you were wondering. What do you guys think? Who do you think they are? I'm interested in hearing your opinions. This story has A LOT of characters involved (there are still more members of the main cast, some who will be revealed as soon as the next chapter and some that won't be revealed for a long time) so I'm hoping no one gets confused as people are added. Yes, these two are important. Yes, more will be revealed about them shortly. And yes, the next chapter will be about Kikyou's group and their parents. Please tell me what you thought of it. I'd appreciate the feedback.