Disclaimer: I no own Inuyasha :3

For those who are still reading this story, I will say that this will be a very long story. Really. There may be twenty chapters left to write. So may run away immediatly if you already think this is not very interesting and if you hate long stories.

And also, thank you for your reviews! I know it really isn't much for 22 chapters... But whatever. I won't try to force anyone to review (though I will insist you to do so :3).

And a very special thanks to Tempest78 who kept me going ever since the very begining! :)

~Stars Of The Moon~

Chapter 21

"How have you all been while I was gone?" Hikari asked her old friends when they entered the small house.

Sango and Kagome ran to hug her and squezeed her. Shippo tried to find a place of his own to hug, but the two girls were taking the whole space. Rin and Kohaku watched the reunion with a smile on their faces, and Jaken looked outside, staring at something else to hide his expression.

Hikari could brealy breathe under their grasp. "Guys... Can't breathe... My... wounds..."

They let her go, and she took a deep breath. The two girls were worried and wondered if her wounds opened again. But Hikari laughed. "Yeah, I missed you too."

"How's everything been on your side?" the words rushed out of Shippo's mouth before he could think about them.

She shrugged. "First few days were bad because of the food. Then, I guess I got used to them all, and I had my own fun from time to time..."

Shippo and Kohaku's eyes widened in shock at what she said. "She enjoyed herself? With a buch of undead mercenaries?" But then again, she did say that the men were treating her well. Perhaps she really meant every word she said.

"It's nice to see you again," Sango said to change the subject a little.

"Yeah," Hikari replied. "After a long while without women around, it really does feel nice, doesn't it?"

The three girls giggled, and Hikari spotted Rin behind Kohaku. She smiled to the small girl. "Oh, hello, Rin. What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be with Sesshomaru?"

Jaken was about to say something to protect the little girl, or to somehow try to insult the healer, but he kept his tiny green beek shut. There aren't anything to say since Rin was the one who wanted to come in the first place.

The little girl seemed very nervous all of a sudden. "Oh... Um... well... you see... I..."

Kohaku elbowed her gently, and urged her to say it with a smile. Rin nodded to him, and took a deep breath. "Thank you for saving me earlier. I never got to say it to you, so..."

"Oh, no, it's fine!" Hikari insisted, her cheeks slightly pink. "Really, I you don't need to thank me..."

"But you have to thank someone whenever they do something nice for you, right?" Rin said. "You can't just go away without saying anything."

The healer giggled lightly, and nodded. "Yes. I guess you're right." Rin smiled back when she saw her happy.

Shippo spoke a little later, "Say, Hikari. What do you think we're going to do now? Now that we're together again..."

She looked deep in thought, and when she opened her mouth to speak, Miroku spoke for her. "That's a very good question, Shippo. In fact, I think I have the answer to that."

Sango blinked when the monk came in. "Miroku. That took you a while."

Shippo jumped on his shoulder and asked in alarm, "Did Renkotsu hurt you? Did he do anything bad? Did you have to fight him?"

"No, no, and Shippo, if we really did fight, you would have heard something," Miroku said teasingly. "And nothing bad happened. In fact, I got some good news."

Hikari looked at him. "He told you everything?"

He nodded. "And I must say, Hikari, you've come up with very good arguments."

"As always," she said with a smirk.

"Whoa, whoa," Kagome said as she streatched her arms out to stop any of them from going any further. "What are we talking about here? What is going on? And where were you, Miroku?"

Miroku pointed at the door with his thumb. "When all of you ran inside, I stayed out with Renkotsu to talk."

Sango looked worried. "He didn't do anything to you, did he? He didn't say anything that might affect you...?"

He smiled gently. "No, don't worry, we only spoke about what we should do... now that both of our groups are together..." He sat next to Sango. And what came next was to be expected. "And if we really did fight, I would certainly want to win, otherwise, I wouldn't be able to..."

Sango slapped him. Her face red, she growled, "Keep your hands to yourself, monk."

He laughed lightly, trying to keep his maliciousness hidden. "Ahaha... Of course, of course."

"Miroku, what happened?" Kagome urged on.

His serious face was back on. He cleared his throat and said, "We'll definetly work with the Band Of Seven." This made little Shippo gasp. "However, since we know very well neither of us can stand each other, Renkotsu suggested we seperate into two groups."

"And I'm telling you, that's not going to be very helpful," Hikari mumbled loud enough for everyone to hear. She said a little louder, "It may seem like the right decision to you, but it just doesn't seem right to me."

"Same here," Sango said. "It's true, we can't stand each other, but now that the demons are stronger, we're going to get attacked, and we won't know who's going to live out of it."

"And Hikari's going to be torn between Bankotsu and us when we seperate," Kagome thought sadly as she glanced at the friend she hadn't seen for a long time. "She can't be in two places at once."

"We must seperate!" Jaken suddenly pipped in. "Let me tell you, those savages abducted Rin when they were still alive, and they caused much trouble. Lord Sesshomaru will not accept walking along with them."

"They abducted me?" Rin asked.

"That's right!" Jaken said. "Remember, back when we were at Mt. Hakurei. When two of those horrible men attacked us on a bridge, and you almost fell to your death!"

The little girl seemed to remember everything in a second. That kind looking doctor... And when he killed that poor old man... But he was still kind, wasn't he? She took a step back and looked at Kagome, and everyone around. "You... you mean those men?" her voice trembled.

When her eyes fell on the kind woman who saved her, she couldn't see her face. Hikari was avoiding her gaze. In shame? Guilt? "She knew about them? That they were killers...?"

"That's another problem," Hikari said quietly. "Sesshomaru wouldn't mind working with us. But travelling together is a whole other thing."

Sango and Kagome felt a stab at their hearts when she said 'us'. She even considered herself as a member of the Shichinintai. Miroku sighed and looked at the three girls. "I shoud've known they'd try to stick together."

"We can't make any decisions now," Miroku announced. "Inuyasha is nowhere to be found, and who knows where Sesshomaru went. On top of that, Hikari's injured, so it seems we're going to stay for a little longer."

The healer groaned and slumped back with a 'thud'. Kagome smiled. "We know you hate to keep us waiting, but really, it isn't that bad... We needed to get some things anyway."

"That's right!" Sango chimmed in. "Kohaku and I have to... sharpen our weapons. There has to be a blacksmith here if we search well enough..."

"We'll stay at an inn," Miroku said. "This small place is already full with you, the children and Lady Akari. We'll visit you too, of course."

"I suppose that's fine," Hikari said with a sigh. "Although, there is only one inn here in this village."

"That's great!" Shippo exclaimed. "That'll save us the problem to find it! Where is it?"

"Hold on, this isn't good news I'm telling you," she warned. "Renkotsu and Jakotsu are also staying there. Sometimes, Bankotsu does too." She could see some depressed emotion in her friends' eyes.

"So now we won't even be able to keep distance from them." Kagome sighed inwardly.

"Please," the healer continued, "Don't cause any trouble. I don't want you guys kicked out of there because one of you or Jakotsu did something stupid."

She gazed at Miroku for a long time. So did the others, except for Rin and Jaken.

"What?"

"There's a reason I'm looking at you, monk," she said as she looked at him suspiciously.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he replied innocently.

She glared at him with that famous woman glare, and for some odd reason, he felt very small. "You know Jakotsu can't stand women. And if he sees you flirting, there will be trouble. And if you're the only one to be kicked out because of your own lecherous hand, I will not feel sorry, and you will certainly not find any hospitality here."

Miroku swallowed down hard. "U... Understood!"

"So where's the inn?" Kohaku asked.

"Oh. For that..." She thought for a while, until she replied, "You'll have to ask Renkotsu or Lady Akari."

"Lady Akari it is," Miroku said as he stood up. "I don't think I'll be capable of talking to Renkotsu some other day." He still remembered the man's piercing eyes, pupils barely visible. The monk shivered.

Hikari's eyes were amused. She looked out the door and saw trees colored in a light orange. Sunset. "You're going to have to ask Lady Akari now if you want to arrive at the inn by dusk. She's somewhere in the forest, and you'll have to search for her."

Her friend's felt hurt when she said it was time to go. Like the feeling you had when you were young when a birthday party finished. The reunion was already over.

"Hey, cheer up, we'll see each other tomorrow," the healer reassured. "It's not like we're miles away from each other like before." Turning to Sango and Kagome, she whispered to them, "And I'll tell you everything that's happened to me. Every single detail of it."

"Now I think that's going to keep me up all night," Kagome giggled.

"What are those three whispering about?" Shippo asked Miroku as they watched the girls mumbling and giggling. "And they were always like this before too."

Miroku smiled. "Some things never change, Shippo."

*O*~*O*~*O*

Hikari watched her friends leave at the door and waved with a smile. "It's so great to see them again..."

"Lady Hikari?"

She looked down and saw Rin and Jaken. "Oh my gosh! I've completly forgotten about them!"

Rin seemed worried. "What... do you think we should do? Lord Sesshomaru isn't back yet... And we won't be able to find Ah-Un either."

The healer looked at Jaken, and the little imp lowered his gaze. "And no matter how much he doesn't want to admit it, he can't protect Rin in the forest. It'll get dark soon."

She smiled at the child. "Don't worry. I guess you can stay with me for a while until he comes back." She saw Jaken's tiny ears perk up. "Don't worry, the same goes for you, midget," she said, the warmth gone from her tone.

"How rude!" Jaken hollerd. "I am a demon! Do not compare me to what you humans call a 'midget'!"

She rolled her eyes, and Rin giggled. "Whatever you say... tiny."

Jaken jumped up and down in anger. "That's the same thing!"

Hikari shook her finger in front of the demon's face. "Ah, ah, ah. You said I couldn't call you a 'midget'."

"Then don't call me anything which refers to something small!"

"Oh? Why is that?" She looked down on him. "Yet you're so small it's almost adorable... Ah! I've got it!" A sly smile came across her face. "How about... Miniature-Demon? Or Mini-Demon? Yes, I like Mini-Demon a lot more."

Jaken was getting red. "No, no, no! I have a name I was born with! Jaken! How would you like it if-"

Hikari ignored him and turned around. She sighed and sounded like she was whining. "Oh... Finding nicknames for demons are hard... especially when they're ugly, tiny, weird-looking and annoying..."

Every single insult was like an arrow piercing Jaken's body. (A/N: Like in animes :3)

"Which is exactly the case here."

And that made Jaken fall to the ground, his beak mumbling an unknwon language. "Master Jaken?" Rin waved her hand in his face. "Master Jaken? Are you awake?"

Hikari smiled. "Looks like traveling with them may not be so bad after all..." She stopped thinking that when she felt something. Someone's aura. For just a small moment, she felt glad that she didn't lose her powers completly. But the feeling was replaced by uneasiness when she realized Sesshomaru was coming closer.

Soon, the dog demon arrived with Ah-Un right behind him.

Her facial expression was serious. They were lucky the children left somewhere with Lady Akari. "This isn't going to be pretty."

Rin noticed that her smile had disappeared, and turned around to look at whatever troubled her. And when she saw Sesshomaru she jumped up in happiness and ran to her master. "Lord Sesshomaru! You're back!"

Jaken also looked up with hope in his big bulgy eyes. "Oh, Lord Sesshomaru!"

Hikari watched the small demon pull himself off the ground and run to the dog demon. However, Sesshomaru's emotionless gaze never left Hikari. And hers never left him.

There would have been complete silence if it weren't for Jaken's useless yelling. "Oh, My Lord, how good it is to see you again! No worries, I have taken care of Rin very well! But this woman here continued to speak nonsense! She thinks that demons are-"

"Be quiet," Sesshomaru scolded.

Jaken bowed his head and hunched his shoulders in embarassment and shame. "Oh, of course, My Lord."

Sesshomaru's eyes were cold. After another moment of staring at the healer, he finally spoke. "So I hear you're the woman with the Band Of Seven. They took you away from Inuyasha and his group."

"You've got the wrong idea. They didn't take me away," she thought bitterly. But she decided to keep that to herself and confirmed what he said, "Yes, that's right."

"And it would appear that you have some... affection for them."

She was on her guard, but her eyes showed no hostility. "Yes... So what?"

"So what?" He frowned. "Is that really your reply?"

"It is," she said firmly. "There is nothing wrong with showing affection to others, even though they have killed many times."

He seemed more and more disturbed. "Judging by your demonic swords, you are a L. Healer, are you not? You of all people should understand killers like them should not be forgiven."

"In that case, there wouldn't be as many humans as there are today," she replied, her eyes cold. "Among us human, there are murderers who have changed their ways, killers who have decided to live peacefully and to start a family. They are forgiven not because of what they did, but because of who they are."

"Then you are a fool," he said curtly. "People do not change as easily as you think."

Hikari calmed down slightly. "You're right. It takes a long while for people to change." "Hell, it took a huge accident for Jakotsu to feel more comfortabe around me."

"Sometimes, it takes something big for someone to change completly. But there are also small things that can turn you into a completly different person. Understanding someone, for example. Giving them our trust.

She turned her gaze to the trees, in the forest. "The first time I met Bankotsu, I didn't believe I could change into what he is now," she almost whispered. "He was resurrected with a shard of the Shikon Jewel, and his aura was so dark I could barely see what was in his mind. But in every person, there is always a small light. A light leading to a second chance if ever needed. I decided to take that chance.

"All thier lives, the only people they could rely on were themselves." She could picture the Shichinintai, compeltly rejected from society, known only for their strength. Not for their personnalities. "They needed someone to show them that... there is more to life than a simple occupation, than an old hobby." The words came out of her mouth just like that night she spoke with Renkotsu.

She didn't try to convince Sesshomaru of anything. It was more like she was speaking to herself. "It may have taken some time, but they really have changed. The bloodthirst in their eyes have started to disappear a long time ago. Instead of mercenaries, they look more like a family of brothers. And..."

Hikari looked back at the dog demon, smiling. "I've gladly accepted to take part of their family. Though some of them don't trust me completly yet, I've decided to stay by their side."

"So you'd prefer staying with them than with Inuyasha," Sesshomaru challenged. She didn't answer. "I don't understand why someone like you, the last of the L. healers would want to go on and help mercenaries instead of doing what you do best. You are strong and wise from what I've heard. However, it doesn't seem like it."

Hikari flinched. "So you know that I'm the last?" And he didn't answer. She sighed. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm not as smart or wise as any other healer. I should hate them for what they've done. They've tried to kill my friends in the past. Who knows, maybe one of them even killed a L. Healer long ago. They don't deserve to be loved or even taken cared of.

"But that's how other people would think. I may not forgive people very easily, especially when it comes to killing. But everytime I try to think about hating them, I can't do it. Those men each have something unique that makes them great comrades. Though dim-witted, Jakotsu's very loyal. Though very ambicious, Renkotsu has the brains to get us out of any mess. And even though Bankotsu's a pervert who wants more power, there are many things that make him wonderful," she said with a soft smile.

"Once you put aside the fact that they've killed, you can see who they really are. Not the killers they were, but what's been hiding inside of them for so long." She glanced at Sesshomaru. "You may not understand because they've abducted Rin before, and they intended to kill her, but they're different now. And I don't have any problem with being with the Band Of Seven."

Sesshomaru was impassive. If Hikari weren't able to read minds, she wouldn't have had a clue of what he was thinking. And even then, his thoughts weren't clear. He suddenly sifted his head to his right. She followed his gaze and saw Jakotsu, Renkotsu, and Bankotsu.

"Hikari," Bankotsu said as he came next to her. He placed a protective hand on her shoulder and held Banryuu with the other. He stared at Sesshomaru, and so did his brothers. "Is everything fine?"

"It's nothing," she replied. "He came here to get Rin and the little demon back, that's all."

"And now you're welcome to leave," Renkotsu said coldly to the dog demon.

"I didn't need your permission," Sesshomaru said with just as much hate.

He turned heels and started walking away. Rin hesitated, shifting her gaze from Hikari to her master, wondering if she should say something to the kind woman. But when Jaken ran after Sesshomaru, she hopped onto Ah-Un and took off.

As soon as they left, Bankotsu grabbed Hikari's shoulders and looked over her. "You sure he didn't do anything?"

She rolled her eyes. "No. Now let me go."

Jakotsu shivered. "Damn. Inuyasha's older brother is sexy, but... He's just so cold." "And dangerous," he reminded himself as he remembered the last time he encountered the demon. "I'm glad we didn't bring Suikotsu here."

Renkotsu nodded in agreement. "If we really did bring him here, there would have been a lot more trouble."

"What? Were you planning on bringing him?" Hikari asked. It was clear that the doctor couldn't come because of the children. But why were they thinking about it now?

"You see, Suikotsu has some good news," Bankotsu explained. "He said something about the doctor helping him and stuff... But since we didn't understand much, he wanted to come here to tell you about it himself. We were considering it, but we still needed someone to look over Mukotsu and Ginkotsu. So there."

Hikari was confused. "The doctor helping him?" The brief description Bankotsu explained was indeed very confusing. "Maybe I'll go see him over there myself..." She looked at the setting sun and smiled to the men. "But that's going to need to wait. I'll go see him tomorow."

Renkotsu stretched his arms. "I suppose we'll be sleeping at the inn again."

"What a pain," Jakotsu mumbled. "Surrounded by so many people... And not a man that interests me."

"It's going to be an even bigger pain now." Hikari sighed. "How can I say this... Inuyasha and his friends are staying there. And I guess there's going to leave as soon as we leave..."

"Inuyasha?" Jakotsu asked, his eyes shining with hope.

"And his friends," Hikari added. "And since you're both in the same building, I can imagine there will be problems." She turned to Renkotsu and begged, "Please, try to keep him out of trouble."

The bald man sighed. "You know it's hard when it comes to Jakotsu and other men. But I'll see what I can do."

"Alright, you two, off you go," Bankotsu said as he started shoving away. "It's going to get dark soon and Lady Akari's going to be here soon with the kids. I know that you want to explain everything to her, Renkotsu, but that'll have to wait."

The second in command was about to protest, but seeing as Bankotsu wanted to spend some alone time with Hikari for a while, he nodded. "Okay."

"Bye Bankotsu!" Jakotsu yelled as he waved to his best friend.

"Make sure you don't kill Inuyasha, okay? That's my job!" Bankotsu replied.

Hikari shot him a dirty look.

"What? It was a joke!"

"Not much of a funny joke if you ask me," she grumbled. She went inside the hut, and Bankotsu followed.

She suddenly yawned when she was at the door, and he smiled. "Looks like someone needs some sleep."

"I've always hated medicine that puts you to sleep," she mumbled. She sat down on her 'bed' and sighed. "What are we going to do?"

Bankotsu shook his head. "I still think Renkotsu's idea is better. We should slip up."

"But it has more risks," she pointed out.

"I know. Renkotsu told us. After visiting the village for a while, he joined us in the forest. Apparently, we'll have other things to worry about..." He answered Hikari's questioning gaze. "This Resurrector guy can go through time, or at least foretell what'll happen."

"... What?" she asked, disbelief all over her face. "That's..."

"I don't understand it very well either." He passed his free hand through his hair in frustration. "Renkotsu said it's because they were attacked by an old enemy right when they entered a village. Seems to make sense. But how it's possible, I can't tell."

"It's either they really were attacked when they entered a village, or... Kagome was attacked in her time," she thought with worry. "This is bad. If the bad guy really has that type of ability... We're in trouble."

"So," Bankotsu said, "Renkotsu thinks that it's a problem because the Resurrector - that's what we're calling him from now on - can..."

Hikari finished for him. "He can be looking at us this very instant. Now that he knows that we're going to be allies with Inuyasha, he has no use for the Band Of Seven... And when we seperate, he's going to use the very instant we're apart to kill us all."

He blinked. "I was only going to say the first part, but sure, the full explanation works too."

"And this gives us more reason to stick together," she said. "He can send a group of demons like the one we faced! There's no way everyone's going to make it out without any injuries!"

He sighed. "Hikari..."

"I know it's hard," she said, her eyes pleading. "But Bankotsu, don't you see how much danger this puts us in? Working with the enemy may not be easy - and it will be a lot worse to travel with them - but think about it! All of our lives are at stake! And Kagome-"

She stopped right there. She couldn't tell him about Kagome's wonderful medicines. That wouldn't make sense. A legendary healer who had less skill in herbs than a simple priestess. No, it was Kagome's job to tell them.

Bankotsu seemed to have ignored the last part. "Why did it have to happen so soon?"

Hikari shook her head. "Sometimes, life really isn't fair."

She yawned, and Bankotsu said as he passed a blanket over her chest, "Get some sleep." He lied down next to her, and grinned when he saw her blush. He smirked. "Don't worry, I'll be right here when you wake up."

She rolled her eyes, though her cheeks were still a light pink. "Yeah, as if I'm worried about that."

He kissed her forehead. "'Night."

She only nodded, and closed her eyes. In took a minute for to fall asleep.

Bankotsu smiled as he watched her face. He watched her chest rise and fall gently. And he realized how much he'd miss her if she left. He wasn't going to lose her. Not to Inuyasha. If the two groups really were going to seperate, Hikari was going to stay with him, not with them.

He sighed. "What the hell am I going to do?"

As leader of a band of mercenaries, making decisions for the whole group was hard. And this was the hardest decision he had to make. Becoming allies with the other group was absolute. No matter how much he wanted to kill Inuyasha, if he wanted to survive, he was going to have to team up with the enemy.

For a long time now, everyone knew that the problem was the traveling. Would they travel together, or seperatly?

He had to admit, it really was risky to go seperate ways, and nothing guaranteed they'd meet each other again alive. However... He thought about Sesshomaru, and Jakotsu's obsession over Inuyasha.

Sure, Jakotsu seemed to have matured a little, but you never knew what he could have in mind. Same went for the strong dog demon. Sesshomaru... Would he tolerate a single killer's presence? A killer would tried to murder little Rin in the past?

He frowned. He didn't like that demon one bit. He has never met him before - he's only seen him in a mirror -, but he didn't like how cold Sesshomaru's eyes were. He didn't like how serious he was in almost every situation. How he barely joked around, how he could even think of bringing another weak demon along with him...

Bankotsu snorted. "Wow. That sounds a lot like my opposite."

But Sesshomaru wouldn't be the only problem; his half-demon brother was a pain. Fun to make fun of, but a pain anyways. That was how Bankotsu saw him, at least. He could be wrong.

He snapped back to reality when he felt Hikari snuggling closer to him. She mumbled something incomprehensible, and he chuckled. "It's odd how she can be such a wise woman one second, and a kid the next."

Then again, perhaps that was what caught his interest.

FLASHBACK

He watched her talk to the villagers with a beautiful, bright smile on her face. He wondered why she never looked at him that way. Alright, so he annoyed her a few times. Big deal. First day they met, everything was fine. And the second time... Let's just say peeping on her wasn't the wisest thing he did.

He glared at everything surrounding him. He didn't like being in a village. Apparently, if Hikari wanted to give him everything he wanted, she was going to have to get it from the closest village she could find. And yes, she found it. And just to make sure she wasn't running away, he followed her. Without her knowing. And he regretted his choice.

Young men gazed in wonder as she walked by, accompanied by woman and children who wanted to show her around. Everytime she smiled, it seemed like heaven was gazing on those men. And when she smiled at them, it was even worse. He didn't know why, but Bankotsu hated it. He hated how they looked at her, those ugly eyes of theirs roaming her body, each wondering how she would feel in bed...

"Dammit!" he yelled to himself as he thought of it. "I'm not even supposed to think about it! I'm only spying to make sure that she gives me what I want..."

"Food, a place to sleep, and maybe a little extra... martial arts training, maybe." It's been two days since they've made the deal. Apparently, after the first day, he kept sticking to her. So he tagged along and decided that he'd stay with her just until he heard news from Naraku. And also, since he didn't have his Banryuu, a little martial arts couldn't hurt. He remembered training with his blood brothers a long time ago. A very long time ago.

This feeling he felt was something he's only felt towards his long-probably-dead blood brothers. Jealousy. "What the hell? What am I jealous of? Nothing! I don't see what 's so special about all this..."

But inside, he knew why. He wanted to be the one to be by her side. He wanted to see her shine a smile at him. She's only done it once, and that was in the dark. He didn't want those men to look at her. Who knows, someone can try to kill her at that very moment. She didn't belong to him... So why did he feel like he had to be the one to protect her?

"She's wonderful, isn't she?" An old man suddenly asked as he came up behind him.

Bankotsu wasn't in the mood to talk. Especially not with an old man. He may lose his temper and end up killing him. "Yeah," he replied dully.

The old man smiled an almost-toothless-grin. "Not only is she beautiful, but she is also very wise, kind-hearted, caring, and always doing the best for others..."

The leader of the Shichinintai tried to remember the last time she ever showed so much compassion to him. "Ah yes. The first day we met. But after I peeped on her, that was the end of it."

What the old fart said afterwards surprised him. "... She is carying her tradition out very well."

"Tradition...?" And he remembered. "Oh, yeah. The legendary healer's one, right?"

The elder seemed surprised for some reason. "Why do you say that so casually?" He explained mroe clearly, "You speak about... them as if everything's... normal."

Bankotsu was starting to get annoyed. "What are you talking about? Legendary healers are rare to see, but it's not like they're gone."

He grew pale, and the young teenager wondered what would have gotten him so traumatized. He sighed. "I see... So it appears that you haven't heard of it somehow... And yet, the word spread so fast..."

"What the hell? You think there's a problem with me?" Bankotsu was about to grab the small man and kill him.

But his next sentence made him freeze. "The legendary healer's village was destroyed... and all the healers annialated with it."

"What...?" Bankotsu looked at Hikari. She was laughing with a few young women. "Then how...?"

"You see... Lady Hikari is the only survivor of the massacre of six years ago."

"The last of her..." He couldn't believe they were all gone. They were some of the strongest beings to live, he fought one a long time ago himself. And yet they were annialated... and Hikari was the last of them?

"It's unbelievable how she can smile like the sun's light after her family's death," the old man continued with a sad smile. "Here she is, still alive and strong... We are lucky to even meet a true legend like her."

"I was with a legend all this time," Bankotsu thought. But that wasn't what he saw in her. She wasn't the only L. Healer left on the planet. She was just some ordinary woman, but special at the same time. She was wise and kind with villagers, and yet it wasn't the real her. Her real feelings would only be shown in the wild, when she was alone. Like when she was with him.

So what was that smile she showed the villagers, really...?

"It's odd," he commented. The elder looked at him questioningly. "Her smile... It hides something."

The old man smiled. "Maybe you can ask her yourself."

"What?"

He looked at Hikari who started playing with little children. "Perhaps Lady Hikari needs to tell someone about what she feels. She thinks so much of others that she doesn't think about herself. Perhaps if someone asks her of what she truly feels, that smile can finally reveal what it's hiding, as you say." The old man winked at the teen.

And for the first time, Bankotsu smirked at the old man. "Maybe."

Next chapter: we continue the flashback! :D

I know I haven't updated quick enough, but see, I'm busy with another story... Please be patient! :)

~FoxRain7~