Chapter Four- Clan Duty

"I found a special girl, Father. Her name's Kagome and her family are shrine keepers."

"That is special," Tóga marveled. "You must turn her, my boy. Once she is, she can turn the rest of her family. How many are there?"

"Just three. Her mother, grandfather, and a little brother."

Tóga was officially interested. A widow? Maybe she'll be my new mate. "Three," he said out loud. "That's good and they can aid us in turning others. Well done."

"Thanks. She…asked me out to the movies Saturday afternoon."

"She asked you? My, she is a bold one."

"That's what I like about her. When we locked eyes, I saw strength and confidence in them. She is exactly what I want in a mate. She seemed to like it when I kissed the back of her hand before I left."

Tóga smiled. "A nice touch. Such a gesture works wonders on girls and women."

"Sota, I just met an unusual-looking, but sweet guy. He could be the one for me."

"That's great, sis. Tell me about him."

"Well, he's got long silver hair and amber-gray eyes. His name's Inuyasha and he lives with an older brother and his dad who home-schools him."

"That's a lot different from Koga. I'd like to meet him."

"I'm sure you will if I still like him after a date or two. You know Mom will want to meet him when I tell her I'm seeing someone."

"She may not like it as she's trying to fix you up with Koga."

"I'll just tell her that Koga's not for me. He's pushy, persistent, and not considerate of my feelings or plans. Inuyasha was willing to sit and listen to me."

"Inu. That means 'dog'," Sota said. "You sure he's not a werewolf?"

"Positive. We were close enough to where I would smell wolf on him. He's definitely human and don't worry, I'll be honest with him once I fully trust him."

"When are you going to see him again?"

"Saturday. I asked him out to the movies."

"You asked him?"

"Uh-huh. He didn't seem to mind. Maybe he likes confident girls." Kagome knew some of her confidence came from being a wifewolf but she also had a good deal of self-confidence. And I plan to show that to Inuyasha Saturday.

Inuyasha busied himself with gang affairs and his plans for the date during the week. Some of the newly-turned were not giving him the proper respect or were being too arrogant or reckless with their new status. He had to talk sense to those reckless and arrogant members. He stated that he was the leader and he was the one who decided when to turn humans. He further told them to keep in mind that they were immortal but not invincible. He reiterated their weaknesses to garlic and crosses and once they had knelt and reaffirmed their oath to follow and his orders, he dismissed them before summoning the disrespectful ones. It took his most loyal members and his brother to round them up and bring them to him. They then took up positions either by the closed doors or the room's perimeter.

Inuyasha stood before his chair and swept his gaze at the vampires in the group. He folded his arms. "I called you here to make a point. You have not been showing me the proper respect and that needs to stop. I will not tolerate it."

"We did not ask to be vampires," one called out and others nodded in agreement.

Inuyasha stormed over to the one who shouted, seized his shirt, and brought their faces close together. "When one wishes to speak to me, they come to me and kneel before speaking," he snarled. "Is that clear?"

"Y-yes," he answered.

Inuyasha released him, went back to the front, and began pacing back and forth as he continued to speak. "In the ancient past, a newly-turn's loyalty was to the one who turned him or her. It was acceptable for a time as it was just one mentor and one student, but gradually some became couples and had children. Loyalty became love as they raised their children who would turn others instead of simply drinking blood. It was clear that clans needed to be formed in order to insure that the humans remained ignorant of our existence. The heads of those clans were given to the oldest vampire families and thus it has remained for millennia. My father led this clan for countless centuries before passing it to me a hundred years ago and serving me as an advisor. He taught me what I have to do as clan leader and I adjusted my role to fit into human society. These days, gangs hold a good deal of power and fear. I then put forward the attitude and social behavior of a gang leader. My brother and some others are recognized as members of my gang but we all have the ability to turn others. However, they and you will do so when I say so. You will only drink blood when you attack. I am the leader and you are to follow my commands. Is that understood?" He waited for a response and then added, "This is where you kneel and say, 'Yes, we understand.'"

The group automatically knelt and repeated, "Yes, we understand."

"Good. You are dismissed." Inuyasha sat down as the group departed. Sesshomaru strode over to his brother, knelt, and said, "Do you think they will show proper respect now?"

"If they don't, I expect you, Father, or Sango to remind them or bring them to me so that I can remind them…with harsh punishment."

Sesshomaru bared his fangs in a pleasurable smile. "Very good, brother. By the way, Father told me of the girl you met earlier in the week and that she asked you out on a date."

Inuyasha gave him a suspicious look. "Are you mocking me?" he asked dangerously.

"Not at all. If Kagome is the one you want, I have no objections. I am happy for you."

"She is the one. She is confident and I sense a depth of strength that I glimpsed in her eyes. I hope to know more about her while on our date. Sesshomaru, how are things going with your courting?"

"Quite well. Rin is very taken with me. I sense the time to tell her I'm a vampire is drawing near."

"Do you think she'll take it well? How long have you been together now?"

"We've been together for nearly two years. I know everything about her and she knows almost everything about me. When I tell her, I hope she takes it well. I will make it clear that I do love her as I had said six months into our relationship and I am now ready to take it to a new level, one different from most relationships. I will also tell her that I will not force her to be a vampire. Naturally, I will tell her the pros and cons of our kind."

"Of course. I plan to do the same with Kagome after some dates which will tell me if this relationship will work."

"If I may, Inuyasha, I suggest you act like a human teenager. It will get Kagome to open up to you."

Inuyasha looked thoughtful before saying, "Good point. I will act human on our date." I certainly acted that way when we met, he added silently.