A/N: As per usual, I want to give a HUGE thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited, and reviewed my story so far. I can't believe it already has 53 reviews! I never thought so many people would enjoy it. I'm sorry it took me so long to update. Senior year has been rough. I planned to update it before Christmas, but I got so caught up in recovering from school that I forgot. Anyways, I've been thinking a lot about this story and outlining some future plot points, so we have a lot in store for us! I'm definitely not gonna lose inspiration any time soon!

Let's begin.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Inuyasha: A Feudal Fairytale. This story is only for fun and practice.

Edit: 01/13/21 – Edited for a MAJOR plot error (I had no idea what high school me was thinking when I first wrote this). Also edited for grammar, flow, and consistency of titles.

SONG OF THE WEST

an Inuyasha fanfic

iv.

Lord Takeshige Tokudaiji was a busy man, Sesshōmaru knew. He kept the peace in the land, traveling back and forth from region to region settling disputes between merchants and lord alike.

As a boy, the young Lord had often asked his father why he was so often away from his seat at Inugawa.

I love to roam. His father replied. Some men were not born to lead from a chair.

Though he performed his duties well, Imperial Lord Tokudaiji was never quite able to disregard his humble upbringing. Quite accordingly, he was known throughout Japan as a 'defender of the people,' revered by the nobility and glorified by the commoners like a folk hero.

Sesshōmaru had thought little of Lord Kusakabe's letter when it arrived. To him, it seemed like a small border dispute that Northern Imperial Lord Katsushika had failed to do anything about. These incidents were annual occurrences that earned Inujima castle many allies beyond its demesne but kept its Imperial Lord away for months on end.

So when his father requested he accompany him to Yobetsu, Sesshōmaru had been caught unaware. Tōga, who had returned only two days prior, detected an urgency in Kusakabe's written words and desired to discuss the matter in person. He had not told him much else about the issue.

Now, even after eleven days of travel and the dubious death of the Lord they were meant to meet, Sesshōmaru still felt as if his father was hiding something. As future Imperial Lord of the West, the young man who had served in Imperial Lord Tokudaiji's stead during his crusades as the "Inu no Taisho," this vexed him.

Seeing the wench standing so close to his father when he came to address this irritated him even more.

It hadn't taken long for him and his father to secure another room. Though not as grand as the Ishida Inn, it was a decent place to unwind for a few hours. The courtyard was rich with verdancy and the shrill whir of cicadas, but Sesshōmaru cared little for aesthetics at that moment.

He had heard the pair before he made it to the room, his long strides forcing the nameless maidservant to jog to keep up with him. The shōji was halfway open for every prying eye to peer inside. Lord Tōga was teaching the girl how to change a bandage, using the wound he had sustained from the explosion as practice. On a low table next to them, rolls of gauze and a black kettle rested at arm's length. The girl moved slowly, still clothed in horrid rags and the smell of animals, her diminutive fingers dressed in gauze too, hindering her progress and making the folds awkward. Seemingly ignorant of her stench, his father coaxed her with utmost patience as if she were a little child learning to walk. Sesshōmaru crossed the engawa and, after telling the maidservant to wait where she stood, entered the room.

"Leave," Sesshōmaru's voice was half-full of venom. Rin turned to him, startled.

"Not until I have a fresh bandage," Tōga said, swiveling on his zabuton. "Sesshōmaru, you wouldn't want your father to succumb to a festering wound, would you?"

"I have matters to discuss with you alone."

"Speak freely, then; she doesn't bite. Besides, she's almost finished."

Rin shuffled as she rushed to finishing the dressing, her fingers stumbling as she worked. When she was done, Tōga glanced at his son and began to fix his robes. "Has her bath been prepared?"

"A maid waits outside for her," Sesshōmaru replied.

"Excellent." The older man nodded and turned to her. "Enjoy."

Rin eyed Sesshōmaru warily before slipping past him, her frail body like a wisp of smoke. When her footsteps vanished, he proceeded.

"You have not been truthful with me." The Young Lord spoke low to avoid potential eavesdroppers. He moved closer to his father, the footfalls of his boots soft against the tatami flooring.

"How perceptive of you, Sesshōmaru." Tōga smiled. He grasped the iron kettle from the table and poured two cups of tea for him and his son.

Sesshōmaru narrowed his eyes as his father began to speak. There was a slight scowl on the older man's face and a touch of resentment in his furrowed brows. "You were right to redirect the conversation when you did. It was maddening how easily they could slander one of their own. Lord Kusakabe and I fought side by side to unite the realm all those years ago! What reason would he have to kill me?"

"What reason would anyone have to kill you, Chichi-ue?" Sesshōmaru drawled deeply.

Tōga sat silent for a moment, fiddling with the hair he had not bothered to bind up again. "I cannot tell if that was an authentic call for reflection or outright sarcasm. Moreover, you sounded like your mother when you said that."

Sesshōmaru nearly rolled his eyes and finally took a seat across the table from his father.

"Our eyes saw the same thing, Sesshōmaru," Tōga said. "What do you make of this?"

The young man contemplated the fresh bodies lying in the courtyard of the Ishida inn, the dark rivers of blood gleaming white in the moonlight. "Those wounds were not indicative of self-trauma. And Lord Kusakabe's body was still intact."

"Precisely. He was a warrior, and his men fiercely loyal. He would have slit open his belly, not his throat. Then, his men would have cut his head off to end his suffering." Irritated, Lord Tōga played with his tea, forcing the hot liquid to swirl round and round in his cup. Hara-kiri was a frightful, gruesome thing, yet a more respectable end for someone of Kusakabe's stature than simply ordering his men to kill him. "These Northerners were so hasty to go on with their garish festivities that they drank that story up like baby suckling from their wet-nurse's tit."

"So you still believe this was Imperial Lord Ryūkotsusei's doing?" Sesshōmaru inquired.

"It is a suspicion," Tōga admitted, "but it's no secret that he is not content with the size of his holdings. It's been this way since you were a babe. With His Majesty's new bout of illness and Crown Prince Toshiharu's inefficiency, this is the perfect time for him to take advantage and satisfy those needs."

There was a slight pause, and Sesshōmaru could hear the cicadas whirring again. Tōga seemed to wait for their silence before continuing.

"Lord Kusakabe has known Ryūkotsusei since his boyhood. He probably suspected the same thing. I wonder if Lord Asano knew anything about this. If Ryūkotsusei told Onigumo to infringe upon the North, he'd certainly want a piece of the West as well."

There were three small lords appointed to the area where the Northern, Eastern, and Western lands met: Lord Kusakabe, Lord Onigumo, and Lord Asano. The Asanos were a small but old family with more symbolic power than anything else. If any border conflict were to occur, Lord Asano would notify Tōga right away.

"If he did, he died before saying anything." Sesshōmaru said wryly. He had attended Lord Asano's funeral in his father's stead. The border lord had died over a fortnight ago, a mere week before the Western Lords set out for Yobetsu. According to his men, the old man expired peacefully from senescence in his bed around midnight, leaving behind his unwed daughter Lady Sara. The air of the burial ceremonies had been fraught with tension as his closest advisors planned how to go on without a male heir.

"What are the odds that the two men who could provide evidence of Ryūkotsusei's plans so early on would die within the span of a few weeks?" Tōga chuckled darkly. "We must leave for Asano castle right after the execution. There's no need to send a letter; it's better we surprise them. But you'll have to escort Rin back to her village to retrieve her belongings."

Sesshōmaru frowned and furrowed his brows. "What?"

"How surprising. Usually, nothing escapes your keen ears." Tōga jested.

The young Lord ignored that comment. "You don't mean to bring her with us."

"Of course I do!" His father almost looked offended. "She is all skin and bones and not long for this world—I doubt she'll make it to winter without proper care. Besides, once the villagers find out she was involved in the trial of that boy, they'll skin her alive."

Sesshōmaru scoffed. "So you desire to nurse the girl back to health? She's far too weak for travel, and I doubt she knows how to ride."

"A chance is better than nothing."

"She will slow us down."

Tōga's thick brows knit together. "Sesshōmaru," he reproached lowly, "it would do you good to learn some kindness. And don't you dare roll your eyes at me."

Sesshōmaru clenched his jaw. "This is a foolhardy attempt at goodwill."

Ignoring the criticism, Tōga took another sip of his tea.

The warmth of the water, though wholly unfamiliar, was gentle on her sore muscles and aching bones. Rin could not remember her last bath. The river was the only accessible water source near the village, and it was too dangerous for a girl like herself to cleanse there for all to see.

The room that had been prepared for her was small and private. Though it could not have been more than a cast-off storage room for the belongings of the inn residents, it still maintained a luxurious atmosphere the likes of which she had never felt before. When they arrived, the maidservant had crinkled her nose and all but thrown Rin into the wooden ofuro in the center of the room. She stripped the gamine of her threadbare yukata and koshihimo, and the foul-smelling things were cast to the other side of the room. Then, the maid prodded her into the tub.

Another maid, a girl around her age, had also been waiting inside the room when they arrived, testing the temperature of the water with her hand. Curiosity filled her dark brown eyes to the brim.

Rin watched the nameless women pour sweet smelling oils into her tub. The droplets formed ripples in the steaming water. There was a floral smell to it now, like the exotic flowers she saw during the Summerfest. It was bright and mixed well with the scent of the mineral-rich bath water.

As they began to touch her body with the clean rag, Rin grew more and more uncomfortable. They weren't like the contemptible brutes in her village; they were only fulfilling the duties asked of them. Still, she could not help the shiver the crawled up her spine.

"You were with the Inu no Taisho and his son earlier," the younger maid awed, breaking the silence. "I don't think I've ever seen you around before; how did you meet them? Are they really as handsome as everyone says?"

"Koharu." The other maid hissed. Koharu pouted her lip but stayed silent.

The older maid gathered some bathwater in a small vessel and poured it over Rin's head as Koharu began to work away several weeks' worth of grease and smut from her scalp. Whenever they would come upon a particularly insistent snarl of hair, Rin would grunt at the sudden rough tug. The maids also made sure to wipe away any grime that besmirched her face.

The bath soon came to an end, and Rin felt as light as a feather from head to toe. The maid handed her a light towel to dry and cover herself with before unfolding a yukata-like fabric. Rin felt ashamed; she had not worn a proper undergarment for so long that she had not immediately recognized it. The hadajuban had a crisp newness to it, its glistening white silk thin enough to keep her from burning up under the hot summer sun.

After the hadajuban was on and secured around her waist, Koharu started on Rin's yukata. It was a pale persimmon color with light yellow blossoms of various sizes scattered around the hem and the end of the sleeves, secured in the back by a simple dark green koshihimo. This was another significant change from her typical dress—she usually fastened hers in the front. She thought the loose but lovely yukata was much too elegant for her.

She was so distracted by the simple beauty of her new clothes that she had not noticed when the maidservant finished. Her daydreaming was broken by the quickness with which the maid had shoved a mirror into her face.

The young girl shied away from the maid's sudden gesture. The hand mirror was simple iron that gave a dull glow in the sunlight. It had been many years since Rin had seen her reflection in something other than a murky pool of water. With hesitation, she accepted the mirror in her small hands and peered into it.

What peered back at her was mortifying.

Her face was haggard and dull, and her complexion had long since been allowed by hunger. The soft, hopeful glow of the past had disappeared from years of constant abuse. The maidservant had fashioned her wispy, lackluster hair into a half-up, half-down style that did very little to beautify her moribund bearing.

"Rin," Tōga called from the opposite side of the shoji, "are you modest?"

Rin looked towards the older maid, who was already making her way towards the entrance. The Western Lord donned his heavy armor and looked more fearsome than he did when she last saw him. He had found another ribbon to tie up his long cascade of white hair.

He gave Koharu and the older maid a nod as he walked by, and the two girls promptly took their leave. He took some time to observe Rin's fresh appearance, which caused her to stiffen instinctually, though she knew he was not there to harm her. "You look lovely."

After seeing her reflection in the mirror, she knew that was a bit of a stretch. Still, she accepted the compliment and began to finger at the sleeves of her bright new yukata absentmindedly.

"Sesshōmaru chose it," Tōga clarified, "he has a much better eye for aesthetics than I."

That made some sense. Lord Sesshōmaru, though frightening, was very well put-together himself, with his neat robes and lovely hair. "Where is Lord Sesshōmaru?"

The warrior shrugged. "Perhaps somewhere brooding again. I proposed something he did not quite like earlier. I want to hear your opinion on it."

Rin could not think of anything that a great man like him would want her lowly speculation on. Still, she nodded obediently and turned her whole body to face him.

"After the execution," he began as he sat down next to her, the metal of his armor clanging against the floor, "Sesshōmaru and I will depart for the Western lands."

"Oh," Rin frowned, and a great sadness boiled up within her. She had known that this would not last forever, but she had not been expecting him to leave so soon.

Her disenchantment did not go unnoticed by the Western lord. "You must give me time to finish. I think it would be wise of you to join us."

There was a long, long pause as she took the time to grasp that notion. Travel to the Western lands? The small, pitiful village across the river had been her home for so long that this opportunity felt like a dream. Under Lord Tōga's charge, she would no longer be maltreated by vicious boys or lecherous men, nor have to suffer the righteous fury of their mothers and wives. However, the puerile girl within her still yearned for her brother's return. What if he finally came back, only to find that Rin had forsaken him? Would he stay in the village like Rin had done all these years?

Tōga gazed at her with the eyes of a benign old king.

She hesitated. "I…don't know."

This surprised him. "What?"

"I have to stay, Lord Tōga."

The older man furrowed his brows and leaned closer to her. He had known Sesshōmaru would object to the idea, but he had not expected this from her, as well. "You mean to say you want to stay in this village? A place where you are debased by men and women alike?"

Rin grew antsy, intimidated by his looming figure.

"I am no physician, but even I can see that you are sick." He scolded. "You are malnourished and exhausted, and I am certain you will die if you stay here just a week longer."

His words were frank and frightening, but she could not waver. "There's someone I have to wait for."

They gazed at each other for a few more seconds before Tōga finally sighed and stood from his seat. "Very well, then. The execution takes place in a few minutes. We'll take my horse to the clearing. Have you ridden before?"

Rin blinked at how quickly he let the conversation end. She had almost forgotten about the execution. "Do I have to go?"

"Unless you'd like to stay here by yourself." Lord Tōga replied, extending his hand. "But, as I said before, Sesshōmaru and I will depart after the execution. I cannot guarantee that they won't kick you out as soon as I go."

Of course, Rin thought. She was still just a common whore, an orphan with not even enough money for a simple bowl of rice. She let out a sigh of defeat and took his hand, pulling herself up.

A few minutes after noon when the sun was finally at its zenith, a crowd of people met in the grassless dell outside of the hilltop city to witness what they thought was justice.

Gōjō's death was would be a spectacle, in order to make up for lost time at the festival, it seemed. The clean, simple wooden rostrum had been set up in the middle of the clearing so that the boy could lose his head for all to see. Towards the edge of the clearing was a large, raised wooden grandstand for the city officials to view from. Around this elaborate structure, merchants and other patricians set up their palanquins and carriages for a first class-look at the carnage. Servants flitted about them, serving tea and other delicacies. Everyone else—city peasants and rustic villagers—could do nothing but the crowd around the clearing on foot, the hot summer sun bearing down mercilessly on their weary backs.

Rin had never seen an execution before. The only deaths she had witnessed before the previous night were from illness or old age. She knew very little of cold steel and severed heads. Nervously, she tightened her grasp around the Inu no Taisho's armored torso. She and Lord Tōga had made their entrance on Sai Hu, the Lord's great steed that had tried to eat her hair that morning. As they approached, she saw many familiar faces. In the crowd was the shopkeeper's wife and daughter, who had refused to serve her just the day before. She could faintly see the farmer, his wife, and his eldest sons, all sad and solemn.

Five elaborate seats had been prepared for the city officials under the cool shade of the awning. The Ishida brothers took the two places on the far left while Lord Sesshōmaru and Lord Yukinaga took the right side. The seat in the middle, presumably for Lord Tōga, was empty. Lord Yukinaga and the Ishida brothers were still dressed in their fine fabrics from that morning. None noticed their entrance save for Sesshōmaru, his hair tinged gold in the light of the sun, his eyes filled with a chill. Rin also noticed that Lady Karan, for all her talk during the trial, was missing.

When they were close enough to that platform, Lord Tōga helped her dismount from Sai Hu. A stable boy rushed to relieve him of the reins.

"Lord Yukinaga will probably give some histrionic speech before the boy's death. It is best you stay behind the crowd if you don't want to see the bloodletting. I'll be a few steps away, up on the dais." Tōga nodded towards the chair between Sesshōmaru and the Ishida brothers. "We shall escort you back to your village when this is over."

Rin nodded. Then, Lord Tōga slipped into the crowd and towards the platform. The audience slowly began to part for him as they realized who he was. When he was finally seated, Lord Yukinaga moved to start the event.

Lord Yukinaga's voice boomed for all the crowd to her: "We, the good citizens of Yobetsu, have gathered here to witness the justice of the gods and the emperor."

Lord Tōga was right. Rin could see him roll his eyes in his seat.

The crowd fell silent. Yukinaga continued to speak. "This year, our beautiful summer festival was tainted by tragedy. One of the most beautiful structures in our city, the Ishida Inn, has all but been destroyed after yesterday's explosion. In this act of terrorism, Lord Kusakabe of Tsurui, among other guests, perished. The highly esteemed Imperial Lord Tokudaiji of the West was nearly killed by the blast as well."

The crowd of nobility grumbled at this, but Rin could not tell if it was for their dead acquaintances.

"There is no way to recover the lives of those lost; however, there is a way to avenge them. Death can only be forgiven through death. Bring him!"

The voices of the crowd cried out in rage as two guards roughly pushed Gōjō towards the rostrum. A plainclothesman donning a mask followed close behind them, a small sliver of metal from his sword glinting in the afternoon light. Rin's heart caught in her chest. When the quartet finally made it to the dais, the guards pushed Gōjō to his knees with a thud, facing the crowd. He stared down at the dusty earth, ignoring the crowd's rage with an impassive expression on his face. His mother let out a sad cry at the sight.

"This boy stands before you convicted of the crimes of attempted assassination against the Emperor's own appointed Imperial Sovereign, the assassination of a Lord, the murder of many more innocent townsmen, and the devastation of property. He will be executed accordingly." Lord Yukinaga paused to nod at the masked man, who looked to him for instruction. "May the gods show him mercy."

The harsh ring of steel cut through the crowd, who by now had fallen to a low murmur as they watched the masked man unsheathe his sword. Gōjō, resigned to his fate, remained dignified on the scaffold, keeping his eyes on the ground even his mother's cries grew louder, and he felt the cold metal against the back of his neck.

Rin covered her eyes at that point. It was only after she heard the shuddering gasp of the crowd and the harsh thud of a something heavy on the platform did she feel brave enough to look up again.

The scene was as gory as Lord Tōga had said it would be. They had not yet bothered to pick up the boy's headless body, and the thick, dark blood that was still flowing from the stump of a neck had begun to pool around his torso and settle into the light wood of the platform. Despite this horror, the sounds of approval from the noblemen had started to drown out the cries of the farmer's wife.

Rin was so startled by this lurid scene that she had barely noticed when Lord Yukinaga began to speak. "I encourage you all to remember this moment," he said sternly as two servants slowly climbed the platform to retrieve the headless corpse. "Let this be a warning to all who dare to plot against the crown."

And with those imperious words, the crowd was dismissed.

a/n: Gosh, this took forever for finish! I'm sorry this is so short compared to chapters two and three, but this is mostly just filler, as well as the conclusion for what I call the 'set-up' of a work. Everything from here on out should be just pure plot and character development.

I'll try to update as soon as possible! See you next chapter!