Chapter Text
“Get it!”
“Over there!”
Ginta splashed through the water with enthusiastic and unrefined vigor, doing more to drench the wolves around him than catch the fish he was after. Hakkaku was helping him out of sheer responsibility, and Aka was trying to set up a trap upriver, but Kouga and the others were just enjoying the show.
“How are you so bad at this?” he called out to them as Ginta came up emptyhanded once more.
“They’re fast!” Ginta panted, bracing his hands on his knees.
“And they’re smaller than any we’d go after at home,” Hakkaku added mournfully, and he turned to Haiiro. “Are you sure there’s no sign of deer or boars around? Hell, even rabbits?”
The large grey wolf lifted her head up from where she was slumped over with the rest of the hunting party, and sadly shook her head.
“There will have to be more prey once we get further away from the mountains,” Aka said, trying to sound reassuring. “Otherwise the humans wouldn’t be able to survive off the land. The tanuki said there were humans up here, right?”
“He just said that Naraku was this way, and that Inuyasha’s pack was up here somewhere,” Kouga shrugged. “Besides, there are humans everywhere. There has to be prey around.”
“Just not the humans,” Aka clarified with a wry grin.
“No, not the humans,” Kouga huffed. “And not their livestock, either. We don’t want to start any fights.”
Hakkaku’s hand darted into the water and he pulled out a fish with a shout of triumph. Ginta immediately tackled him into a hug, which naturally sent them both crashing into the water, allowing the fish to escape. Hakkaku shot Ginta an open-mouthed, mortified look, but Ginta burst out laughing, and the rest of the pack soon followed. Hakkaku abandoned the fish and instead wrestled Ginta into the water in fair retribution. Aka wisely stepped out of the river to give them more room to maneuver without the risk of her getting wet. She sat down amongst the wolves, absently petting the first head that maneuvered its way onto her lap. Kouga snorted but couldn’t find it in him to tell them to get back to the task at hand – it was nice to see them having fun for a change.
He leaned back on the rocks, propped his head up with his hands and let the spring sun pour down on him. The wolves let out contented sighs and whines, the occasional tail thumping lazily. But then there was an uptick of a heartbeat, and several heads rose in unison to look out into the forest behind them. Kouga followed their gaze, searching for what had drawn their attention. Haiiro’s ears flicked and her large brown eyes met Kouga’s.
“Speaking of humans,” she said, a wry note in her rasping voice.
“How many?” he asked, straining his ears to pick up the heartbeat. He knew that his nose wasn’t as good as his wolves’.
“Just the one, we think,” Haiiro said slowly, the other wolves nodding in agreement. “It’s coming this way.”
“Then don’t worry,” Kouga said firmly. “And stay down. We’re not a threat to them, and they might be able to give us some information about the land. We just need to not scare them off.”
He still placed himself between the encroaching human and his pack, sitting down so that his side faced the forest while he busied himself with snapping the twigs off a branch. The wolves stayed down, as requested, but their ears twitched continuously. Ginta and Hakkaku had gone back to fishing in relative silence. They were all listening intently to the quiet snap of a twig, the brush of clothes against ferns, the soft hum of a song that the human – the child, it sounded like – was singing.
They were all trying and failing to look relaxed when the young girl stepped out of the forest. Her hands and bare feet were dirty, her long hair tangled, and her yellow and orange kosode was ripped and worn. She was playing with a flower in her hands, and looked up in surprise when she saw them.
“Oh!” she said, startled but not afraid as a human child should be. “I’m sorry, I didn’t see you there. Is this your territory? I…”
She trailed off, her eyes moving past Kouga to rest on the collection of wolves behind him. They were on their best behaviour, tails wagging in vague greeting, but the child looked petrified. Her eyes were wild with fear and her entire body had seized up in obvious terror. The flower slipped from her fingers and floated to the ground.
“Rin!” a different voice screeched from the woods, angry and chiding, and Kouga could smell the scent of a demon. He frowned. Was this girl a half-demon? Was she in her mortal form? There seemed no other reason for her to be hanging around a demon at her age. But the second set of footsteps was crashing through the underbrush, and Kouga knew that demons tended to react poorly if they thought their children were being threatened.
“Look,” he said, pushing himself to his feet. “We’re not going to-”
The girl gasped and stumbled back a few steps, her heartbeat pounding wildly and fear souring her scent. The demon’s screech sounded again, much closer this time. Kouga held up his hands and took a step away in turn, silently willing the rest of his pack to stay put. The child hadn’t moved. A moment later, a squat little imp waving a staff burst from the forest’s edge. He skidded to a stop as soon as he saw the other demons, and then shoved himself in front of the child.
“Stay back, Rin!” he ordered, and then surprise twisted his features. “It’s you!”
“Yeah, it’s me,” Kouga growled warily. The imp’s scent was vaguely familiar, and he knew they’d met before. Recently, if memory served. Wasn’t this that dog Sesshomaru’s imp? Then who the hell was the human?
“What are you doing in this region?” the imp asked, lowering his staff slightly. “This is far from your territory, isn’t it?”
“I could say the same to you,” Kouga said stiffly.
The imp drew himself up haughtily. “My lord has no reason to explain his movements to the likes of you. Now, be on your way.” He glanced behind him, and something approaching worry flickered across his face. He turned back to the wolves with renewed anger. “What did you do to the human?” he asked accusingly.
“Nothing!” Kouga snapped. “I don’t know what’s wrong with her.”
The girl was visibly trembling. She had one hand reached out towards the imp and hadn’t taken her eyes off of the wolves.
~*~
The countryside had turned to a blur below him, comprised of nothing but weak demons and human settlements and a definite lack of Naraku. Their search was fruitless, and this whole journey so far had been useless. He should never have left. He should never have listened to his idiotic little brother. He would have to find Naraku through his own powers.
Sesshomaru tapped on A-Un’s side, directing the dragon to turn around. They had been searching all day, but he wanted to make one final pass before returning to his charges. Rin would have wandered off to find food already, and Jaken would keep her safe, so there was no need to rush back. He needed no such sustenance for himself for the time being, which made him question why he was so eager to return. It was the dangers posed by an unknown territory, he decided. He had not journeyed to this area for a few centuries, and much had changed. Humans tended to do that. They changed the very landscape around them, driven by their petty whims with no regard to the world around them. He didn’t know why he endured their presence.
A-Un was making a wide, sweeping pass over the valley below when something flashed through Sesshomaru’s mind. He did not know how he was able to catch the scent from so far away, but all he knew was there was terror soaking through Rin’s usual sweet smell. He launched himself off A-Un’s back and tore through the sky towards the place that all his senses were honing. He was vaguely aware of a roar bellowing behind him as A-Un turned in pursuit, no doubt having picked up on his distress. Not that he was distressed, mind, only…intrigued. If someone had insulted him by endangering his charges, he would have to respond accordingly.
No further thoughts emerged in his mind as red began to seep across his vision. He could detect other scents now, filthy and thick and vaguely familiar. He flew even faster, his youki a swirling cloud around him in an incredibly obvious beacon to any other demons around. He would usually not risk such a display, but in that moment he cared very little.
He crashed to the ground so hard that his feet punched two divots into the stone, landing perfectly in between Jaken and the wolf demon standing in front of him. The wolf swore and jumped back, startled, and Sesshomaru attacked. He didn’t bother with Tokijin, merely aimed his poison-laced claws at the wolf’s throat. The rest of the pack, who had been hanging back until that moment, rushed forward to defend their leader. And yet they seemed unsure. They had fought side-by-side only a few months ago, and it was not demon custom to turn on former allies without due cause. It was that fact alone that kept Sesshomaru from ripping the wolf’s head off, and satisfied himself with tightening his fingers around the delicate neck.
“What the hell?” the wolf wheezed, kicking and struggling as Sesshomaru lifted him off the ground. “What are you doing?”
“Leave,” Sesshomaru hissed. “Now.”
“We were going to!” the wolf gasped, and then coughed as Sesshomaru’s fingers tightened even further. “We didn’t do anything to the kid!”
An image of Rin, still and lifeless on the ground, surrounded by the scent and tracks of wolves seared behind his eyes. He threw the wolf to the ground with a snarl. To his credit, the wolf demon held out an arm to instruct the rest of his mongrels to stay back, even as the rest of the wolves, demons and animals alike, bared their teeth and growled threateningly. Sesshomaru levelled his gaze at the leader, challenging him to try and defy him.
“We didn’t come here looking for a fight!” the leader snapped as he climbed stiffly to his feet. “Not with you, anyway.”
He pointedly turned his back and began walking away. The rest of the pack slowly followed, some glancing back with visible reluctance. Once Sesshomaru was sure that they were truly leaving, he turned back to his charges. Jaken still stood with his staff at the ready, anger swirling around him. A-Un was standing firmly above Rin, using their legs to protect her on all sides, their tail lashing. The girl herself was sat on the ground, legs tucked up to her chest and her chin resting on her knees as she curled into herself. The abject terror had faded from her scent a little, and was quickly being replaced by exhaustion, vague nausea, and misery.
“Rin,” he said quietly.
She looked up at him with eyes glassy with unshed tears. “Yes?”
He floundered for what to say for a moment. He didn’t know how to tell her that he knew exactly who these wolves were to her, and that he would rip them apart without a moment’s hesitation if she so desired. That it was mostly because he did not want to upset her further that he had abstained.
“You were going to catch some fish, were you not?”
Her mouth opened and closed noiselessly for a moment, and then a watery smile spread across her lips. “Yes, of course.” She pushed herself to her feet and hurried past him, no longer meeting his gaze. But within a moment she was examining the river, perhaps a little more intensely than usual, but still with her usual determination. A-Un lumbered after her and lay down at the water’s edge, keeping watch over her.
He felt eyes on him, and he barely turned to glance after the wolves. They were a good distance away, not in any sort of hunting or attack formation, but the leader had still slowed them all to a stop.
“You know,” the wolf’s voice drifted back to him, too quiet for any ears to pick up except for those of a daiyoukai. “Inuyasha would be pissed if either of us killed the other. We’re not exactly his pack, but we’re something. So keep your hands to yourself from now on.”
Sesshomaru sneered and turned his back on the wolf.
“What an asshole,” Kouga muttered, taking off again with the rest of the pack. He set a slower pace this time, now that he was fairly sure that the dog wouldn’t come after them. But he still made sure to stick close to the others, not using his speed to pull on ahead as he usually did.
“What was his problem?” Hakkaku asked grumpily.
“I dunno,” Kouga grunted. “He reacted the same way the first time I met him. Even the mutt wasn’t so pissy.”
“Does Inuyasha even know that his brother’s out here?” Ginta asked.
“Now there’s a thought,” Kouga said, slowing to a stop once more. “We should probably meet up with him at some point anyway, just to see what he knows. We can tell him to keep his brother in line.”
He shifted their path slightly to the west and stopped once they’d come across a tall tree. Leaving the rest of his pack to rest for a moment, Kouga climbed to the top and surveyed the area. He couldn’t see any signs of Inuyasha and his pack, but he caught a vague scent in the air. It was too diluted to tell exactly who it was, but it was the distinctive smell of dog. Kouga jumped back to the ground and they set off in that direction. As they followed the trail, the scent became more distinctive and was quickly joined by others. Kouga smiled to himself as the warm scent of Miroku greeted him amongst the rest. He’d be glad to see his human again.
They travelled across the valley at rapid speed, covering ground as quickly as they had on their unyielding journey this far north. They avoided the two human settlements lodged inside the valley and instead skirted along the top of the cliffs. It didn’t take long for a run-down old hut to come into view. There were several bodies huddled around a fire just outside. He knew the mutt would smell him, and sure enough, there was a bristling pup glowering at him as soon as he jumped down the side of the ravine to meet them. Inuyasha stepped in front of the rest of his pack, already reaching for his ridiculous sword. Kouga cocked an eyebrow, unimpressed.
“Looking for a fight already? You never learn, do you, puppy?”
“Back off, Kouga,” Inuyasha growled. “Whatever you want, you can find it elsewhere.”
Kouga peered past the half-demon to rake his eyes over Miroku and the other human, Sango. They were both startlingly pale, with dark bruises under their eyes. There was a hint of pain in their scents, and they looked dead on their feet. It sent guilt-laced rage surging through Kouga.
“Damn it all!” he snapped, pushing bodily past Inuyasha. “What did you do to them this time?”
Inuyasha grabbed Kouga’s arm with a snarl and dragged him away, placing himself in front of the humans once more.
“Back off,” he repeated, low and dangerous. Kouga could see the hair-thin line holding the half-demon’s control in place, the tension shaking through his muscles. Kouga held up his hands dramatically.
“Calm down, dog breath. I’m not bothering with you today. I just want you to keep your brother on a leash.”
Surprise and distaste flashed across Inuyasha’s face. “Sesshomaru’s here?”
Kouga scowled. “What, you didn’t bring him with you?”
“Not directly…” Inuyasha muttered. “Why? You scared of him?”
“Ha!” Kouga snorted, head rearing back like a pissed-off bird. “I’m not afraid of any mongrel! I just want to make sure that he doesn’t go sniffing around where he shouldn’t. I won’t play nice if he does.”
“I can’t wait to see him eat you alive,” Inuyasha grinned with prominent teeth.
“Let’s not do this,” Miroku’s voice sounded quietly behind the pup, gently chiding and wry with vague humour, but also laden with exhaustion.
Inuyasha’s ears flattened onto his head and his shoulders hunched, but he didn’t take his eyes off Kouga. “I just want to know what business a mangy wolf has all the way up here.”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Kouga drawled, crossing his arms. “I’m here looking for Naraku, same as you. It was your tanuki that told me to come here.”
“What?” Inuyasha whirled around to stare accusatorily at Miroku, as though the human were responsible. Maybe he was? It was a nice thought if it was true. Kouga knew he had to step in regardless.
“Don’t blame him,” he said, cutting off Inuyasha’s immediate protest that he wasn’t. “When you came crawling to the Northern Clan, you knew that we were in this together. Destroying Naraku has to come first, so put your stupid pride aside and accept that you can’t do this without me!”
Inuyasha’s mouth flew open to snap an angry reply, but then he seemed to catch himself. He let out a huffing breath and folded his arms in turn. “I’m not saying you can’t get your own revenge, I just don’t particularly want to be smothered with the stink of wolf while we search. You can happily fuck off to look for him on your own, and we’ll let you know when we find him first.”
“So rude,” Kouga muttered, shaking his head. “Why don’t you shove-”
“Have you eaten?” Sango cut him off sharply, looking past him to where his wolves were watching from higher up the ravine. “We found a good river for fish nearby, and we have plenty to share.”
She gestured at a pile of fish sitting next to the fire, and several more skewered on sticks roasting on the flames. It wouldn’t be enough for his whole pack, but Kouga wasn’t about to turn down the offer.
“That’s very kind of you,” Kouga said, bowing pointedly at her and then angling to include Miroku in the gesture as well.
Miroku sent Inuyasha a slightly apologetic look as the wolf pack moved in. He held out a hand surreptitiously in silent support, but Inuyasha shook his head ever so slightly and stepped back to watch from under the shelter of the storehouse. He glared at them as Kouga and a few of the wolves sat down around the fire, while the rest of the pack headed off, following his scent trail to the river. The bastards. He knew that he’d caught about five times as many fish as his pack needed – it was his way of coping with seeing them so unwell – but that didn’t mean that Kouga and his fleabags could just help themselves! At least they were all behaving, and the worst Kouga did was send Miroku constant smiles. Miroku vaguely returned them but had placed himself by Inuyasha’s side, and pressed their shoulders together. Inuyasha loved the monk so much. He wasn’t being obvious about their relationship, as neither of them had felt the need to inform Kouga of it to avoid more conflict, but he had always been so good about setting boundaries with the wolf. It set Inuyasha at ease in a way that words couldn’t express. Kouga was a nuisance, but he trusted Miroku to handle things.
“It’s so kind of you to worry about me,” Kouga was saying to Miroku, his mouth full of fish. The rest of his pack had returned and were eating around the fire as well.
“We’re after the same goal,” Miroku replied diplomatically. “We might as well help each other.”
“Exactly!” Kouga nodded, glancing pointedly at Inuyasha, who scowled. “And yet it is a sign of your wisdom and kind heart. Thank you, Miroku.”
Miroku hummed lightly, and no one bothered to point out that it had been Sango’s idea. Inuyasha was fairly sure that Kouga was just being an asshole on purpose.
“So your brother,” Kouga said after a while. “Why is he so snippy?”
“Probably because he has even less patience for mangy wolves than I do,” Inuyasha shot back. “Though I’m impressed at his restraint. He would have ripped you to shreds if he really wanted to.”
“Like I’d be taken out by a puppy!” Kouga scoffed. “But I have to admit, he didn’t even try to fight. Just told us to leave. Seemed really protective over that human of his.”
Inuyasha shared a look with Miroku and Sango, and Kirara’s head perked up from where she was curled around Shippo.
“Was she a small girl?” Sango asked. “Long hair?”
“Yeah,” Kouga shrugged. “She was pretty scared of us for some reason.”
Sango frowned. “She seemed comfortable with demons before. What did you do to frighten her?”
“Nothing!” Kouga said, sounding offended. “She froze up as soon as she saw us.”
A large grey wolf stood from where she was laying with the others and walked over to sit in front of Kouga. “We may have the answer,” she said in a low, rasping voice.
“Oh yeah?” Kouga asked curiously, crunching down on the fish bones.
“I have been talking over the matter with the others,” the wolf said. “And we believe that we encountered the girl once before, at a human village that we…hunted. It was the village before we first encountered Miroku.” She glanced over at Inuyasha and his pack before returning her gaze to Kouga. “None of the other wolves remember hunting her directly, but we could smell her on other packmates. But it does not make sense. We remember the smell of her blood.”
Kouga nodded slowly. “So why would you attack if not to kill her?”
Inuyasha snarled quietly. “Just how many people do you think your lot has killed?” he asked pointedly. “You wonder why I don’t trust you, but what you’ve done is unforgivable.”
“I don’t need your trust!” Kouga snapped, but even he seemed subdued.
Miroku hummed thoughtfully, though he didn’t say what was on his mind. He was running through the events leading up to their first meeting with Kouga, and the beginning of an idea was swirling around in his mind, not yet formed.
“Do you smell that?” Shippo’s voice piped up, and every wolf, demon, and hanyou immediately lifted their nose to sniff the air.
“Demon’s coming,” Kouga said, pushing to his feet. “We’ve seen a lot of them out and about recently.”
“So have we,” Inuyasha growled, crossing his arms. “But it’s funny that they didn’t bother us until you showed up.”
Kouga glared at him. “You saying I had something to do with this?”
“Maybe I am!” Inuyasha shot back. “Every time you show up, everything goes wrong! You’re nothing but trouble!”
“Says the guy who can’t keep his own fucking pack safe for more than a day at a time!” Kouga shouted, and Inuyasha bared his teeth.
Meanwhile, an insect demon with large pincers crawled over the top of the cliff and began rampaging towards them. Sango vaulted onto Kirara’s back as she took to the air while the wolf demons leapt to their feet.
“This thing’s probably after your Jewel shards that you’re flaunting around,” Inuyasha growled at Kouga. “Because you don’t care what happens, you just like showing off!”
The demon was approaching. Sango threw Hiraikotsu and cut off one of its pincers. The large grey wolf leapt forward and sunk her teeth into the other limb, wrenching it to the side.
“Me showing off?” Kouga asked incredulously. “Like your sword has any reason to be that big! It’s so impractical!”
Ginta and Hakkaku jumped over the demon’s head and plunged their spears into its back, while Aka shoved her spear lengthwise into the demon’s mouth and wrenched it to the side, knocking it off balance.
“At least I’m strong enough to actually use it!” Inuyasha grinned predatorily. “I bet that you can’t even touch it, let alone lift it!”
Miroku had wrapped a few sutras around the head of his staff and flung himself at the demon’s head, bringing his staff down solidly with a blast of spiritual power. The demon shrieked as its skull split open, and it fell over, dead. Miroku landed lightly with a small wince, and lifted a hand in prayer.
“Amitabha,” he breathed, and then shot a glance over at Inuyasha and Kouga. “Thanks for your help.”
Inuyasha looked mildly horrified as his ears flattened against his head, but Kouga scowled. “You see, mutt? This is what I mean! You can’t keep your own pack safe!”
“You were no better!” Inuyasha snapped, bristling even more. “You didn’t lift a finger! It was my pack that killed the damn thing!”
“You may have a point about the Jewel shards, though,” Miroku interrupted gently as he walked over to them. “We have managed to keep demons from constantly coming after us by concealing the shards’ power, but they may be drawn to yours.”
“You’ve hidden the power?” Kouga asked, intrigued, although he realized that he couldn’t sense any power from the shards that he knew Miroku still possessed.
“Here,” Miroku said, pulling a small wooden box from his robes. A sutra was wrapped tightly around it. “I’ve found a ward that keeps the energy contained inside. That way, no one else can sense or interact with its power.”
“That’s amazing!” Kouga said, a lopsided grin spreading across his face. “I meant it when I said you keep on getting better and better. Do you think you could make me one of those?”
“I’m not sure,” Miroku admitted, brushing past the compliment. “It took me quite a while to work out this one. I don’t believe it will harm you to be in contact with it, but I don’t know how it will interact with your youki on a longer basis. Besides, I don’t know how long they would last on a person rather than an object, especially being stuck to your skin.”
“Fair,” Kouga shrugged. “I can outrun any demon that comes after me, anyway.” He stepped forward and took Miroku’s hands in both of his. “And I wouldn’t want to put you in danger.”
“Alright,” Sango sighed, still looking peeved from where she was leaning on Kirara.
“Watch out for yourself,” Miroku warned. “I can sense another demon coming.”
Kouga sniffed the air, but Inuyasha beat him to it. “I wouldn’t worry about stopping this one,” he grinned. “I think the wolf should say put right here and wait for him.”
Kouga scowled and whirled on the hanyou. “Did you tell him to come here?”
“How would I have done that?” Inuyasha asked flatly. “He probably just realized that you were still in the area and wanted to rip your head off.”
The wolves shifted around nervously, unsure of what to do as the scent of another dog demon drew closer. Kouga planted himself between his pack and the encroaching asshole, while Inuyasha stalked past him to meet his brother. Sesshomaru landed a ways down the valley, already scowling. His dragon touched down even further behind him, the imp and the human on their back.
“Sesshomaru,” Inuyasha greeted coldly, walking over to him. “What are you doing here?”
Sesshomaru sniffed lightly. “I thought it would be obvious. I’m after Naraku, seeing as you have failed to kill him thus far.”
“Well you won’t find him here,” Inuyasha said, voicing the thoughts that he and his pack had been skirting around for the past few days. “There are too many loose demons around. Wherever he’s hiding, the area will either be wiped clean or full of his minions. So you have no reason to be sniffing around here. You can head further northeast.”
“Your incompetence gives me all the more reason,” Sesshomaru said coolly. “I must ensure that you haven’t walked right past him. Besides,” his eyes darted past Inuyasha to lock onto Kouga. “I’m not here for you.”
“Oh, come on!” Kouga groaned. “I left you alone! You can’t just come after me again!”
“I told you to be gone,” Sesshomaru growled softly.
“What, from this whole territory?” Kouga snapped. “You wish. I’m not going to cross your path by choice, but I’m not going out of my way for your convenience, either!”
Inuyasha sighed, casting a glance at where the rest of his pack was watching, clearly letting him figure this out on his own, thank you very much.
“Uncle Inuyasha,” a quiet voice came from behind him, and he spun around. Rin was standing next to A-Un, one knuckle pressed nervously to her lower lip. “Are you friends with that demon?”
He frowned. He could smell the fear on her, and it sparked his protective instincts, despite him having no obligation to lift a finger in her defense. “Not really. He’s just a nuisance that I know. Why?”
She didn’t answer, but her heart was pounding. This was different from the fearless child he’d seen accompanying Sesshomaru before. What was going on?
“You pissy whelp,” Kouga growled, crossing his arms and sneering at Sesshomaru. “If you’re so much better than your brother, then how come you haven’t found Naraku, either?”
Now, Inuyasha knew that Miroku had asked him to show restraint around Kouga. He knew that he hadn’t managed to avoid rising to the wolf’s taunts as much as his partner would have liked, but he still considered himself to be at least making an effort to just brush Kouga off. It seemed that he had been using a lot more restraint than he’d previously thought, based on Sesshomaru’s reaction. The taunt wasn’t even out of Kouga’s mouth before Sesshomaru was throwing himself at the wolf, Tokijin blazing in his hand. Kouga swore and leapt back, only his Jewel-enhanced speed saving him from the intense attack. The rest of his pack leapt to his defense, prompting Sesshomaru to lash out with his sword. Inuyasha dove in between the two demons and shoved Sesshomaru back with a fist to his chest.
“Stop it!” he snapped. “This is pointless! All you’re doing is wasting your energy and killing off an ally.”
“How could this mongrel be an ally to me?” Sesshomaru spat.
“Why the hell would I ever fight alongside this asshole?” Kouga asked at the same time.
Inuyasha’s groan turned into a growl. “Do you not remember the cat demons? We all fought together because we had to, and Naraku is a much worthier opponent than those kittens could ever be!”
Kouga snarled and Sesshomaru darted around Inuyasha to try and stab the wolf. As Inuyasha tried to keep them apart, Sango walked over to Rin.
“Hello, sweetheart,” she said gently. “Remember me? We’re just going to have you take a few steps back so you don’t accidentally get hurt.”
“Lord Sesshomaru would never hurt me,” Rin said, confused.
“Yes, well, no one over there is thinking clearly right now,” Sango said, hiding the exasperated scorn in her voice.
“Listen,” Miroku was saying to the rest of Kouga’s pack at the same time. “Trust Inuyasha to calm them both down. If you join in the fight, Sesshomaru will see the situation as a threat and be more likely to kill someone.”
“But why would Inuyasha care?” Hakkaku asked, watching his pack leader narrowly avoid a swing of Sesshomaru’s sword. “Doesn’t he hate Kouga?”
Miroku shrugged lightly. “Yes, well, as he said, we have more use for each other as allies than as enemies.”
“I will not defile Tokijin with your filthy blood,” Sesshomaru said to Kouga, sheathing his sword. The ends of his fingers glowed green. “I can kill you easily enough with this.”
Kouga’s eyes widened and he had to jump back even further to avoid the extended reach of Sesshomaru’s poisoned light whip. Inuyasha groaned and then dove out of the way to avoid a strike aimed at him.
“Oh, what, you’re going after me now?” he asked incredulously, barely restraining himself from reaching for Tessaiga. “What kind of stuck-up, arrogant-”
Sesshomaru ignored him and moved in a flash, appearing right in Kouga’s path and throwing the length of poison at him. Kouga spun out of the way and the whip snapped against the earth at Miroku’s feet, where the monk had been on his way towards Sango. Inuyasha’s eyes turned red and he flung himself at Sesshomaru with a roar.
“Oh, no,” Miroku said, sharing a look with Sango. She was still partially shielding Rin with her body, while Kirara – with Shippo on her head – was standing beside A-Un, blocking the dragon from being able to join the fray. Not that either head seemed particularly inclined to do so. Jaken was more of a risk, his staff clenched tightly in his hands, but Shippo was keeping a close eye on him.
“Miroku,” Ginta said sharply, and Miroku followed the demon’s pointing finger to where a weasel demon was scurrying along the base of the cliff towards them. Miroku nodded at Sango and handed her a few sutras as he passed her. He met the weasel as it approached, sniffing over the scene.
“There are Sacred Jewel shards here,” the demon said, eyeing him suspiciously.
“Yes, and now is not a good time to seek them out,” Miroku replied flatly. “As you can see, there are many individuals here who would not hesitate to kill you. I suggest you leave.”
The weasel screeched a laugh and attacked. Miroku whacked it on the head with his staff. A heartbeat later, the large grey wolf soared over his head and tackled the weasel to the ground with her jaws on its throat. Sango’s voice sounded from behind him and he stepped out of the way to give her access with Hiraikotsu, but she wasn’t looking at the weasel. A solid dozen demons were approaching from all directions, all no doubt drawn by the disturbance of the fight and the energy of the Jewel shards. None of them looked powerful enough to be a real danger, but there were no doubt more on their way, and Miroku wasn’t particularly looking forward to a long battle. He also wasn’t allowed to use his wind tunnel, under strict orders from Inuyasha and Sango who insisted that he couldn’t put any more strain on his body until the effects of the drain on his soul had faded. Sango was in slightly better shape, but she would still be fighting at a disadvantage from her own exhaustion. They needed Inuyasha to take the lead in this, but he was busy being kicked in the chest by Kouga while Sesshomaru attempted to cut both of their heads off.
“Form a circle,” he called to the wolf pack. “Cover each other’s backs and face them all head-on. A-Un,” he said next, turning to the two-headed dragon. “You can’t take off with those demons in the sky. Stay in the middle of the circle and protect Rin.”
One head nodded while the other clamped their jaws over the back of the girl’s kosode and bounded past the first line of wolves into the forming circle. Kirara flew overhead and deposited Shippo on the dragon’s back. Sango had lined Hiraikotsu with sutras and poison, while the wolf demons had their spears at the ready. A large, six-armed demon with deep purple skin was thundering towards them down the opposite wall of the ravine, lips pulled back to expose a set of large fangs. Inuyasha was the first to snap out of his grudge match with the others and took off towards the demon, sending the Wind Scar racing towards it. A swarm of worm demons were flying towards them from above, and Sesshomaru easily leapt into the air to cut through them with a long sweep of Tokijin. A centipede demon burst from the ground and Aka immediately threw a spear through one of its eyes. Hiraikotsu chopped off its head a moment later. Kouga tore out the spear and kicked the severed head at a boar demon, knocking it to the ground. He tossed the spear back at Aka and took off towards a large furred demon with poison dripping from a stinger on its tail. Miroku plunged the head of his staff into the back of the boar demon and sent a wave of spiritual power into its body, helped by a few of the wolves to keep it from struggling as it died.
Jaken sent a wave of fire into the air to ward off another swarm of flying demons, and Miroku’s heart sank to see several Saimyosho amongst them. He saw Kouga pinning the furred demon to the ground and rushed over to help kill it when a bird demon dove for him. He lifted his staff over his head and formed a spiritual barrier before Inuyasha tore through the bird demon with Tessaiga. He barely landed and raked his eyes over Miroku before he’d set off towards a snake demon. Miroku noted with a mixture of relief and pride that his eyes were solidly amber, and his youki was a controlled light swirling around him.
There were more demons appearing all the time, but now that everyone was fighting, their opponents were dropping as soon as they appeared. Kirara was directing all the flying demons into the jaws of the wolves. Occasionally one of A-Un’s heads would hurl a blast of lightning into the air, but mostly they were standing guard over Rin and Shippo. Inuyasha and Sesshomaru were cutting through the more powerful demons while the others worked together to take on the more numerous but weaker opponents. In a lull, Miroku watched Kouga snatch Jaken from the jaws of a mantis demon and tear off its head, only to spin around and punch a hole through a worm demon that had gotten a little too close to the children for comfort. Miroku also saw Sesshomaru’s gaze following the young wolf. His expression was carefully blank, but Miroku had spent enough time around the Inu Lord’s brother to be able to read him with some accuracy. He was impressed with Kouga, both his speed and his willingness to protect those not in his pack. He saw the wolf’s use as an ally, and he didn’t like it. Good. Let this challenge his preconceived notions. They couldn’t afford another petty squabble like this.
Sesshomaru all but confirmed Miroku’s suspicions as he turned and strode across the battlefield to tear away a bear demon that was threatening to overpower Aka. Sesshomaru cut off the demon’s head and Aka whirled around, surprised. She didn’t say anything, but then nodded behind Sesshomaru to where a large spider was rushing towards them. The spider spewed a line of poison-laced silk at the pair of them. Aka jumped out of the way but Sesshomaru simply blocked the stream with Tokijin. Aka and several of the wolves tore off the spider’s legs, giving Sesshomaru easy access to its heart.
“You didn’t have to do that,” Sesshomaru told the wolf demon gruffly. She gave him an incredulous look and then rushed to help her companions without a word. He did not like that at all.
The attacking demons were all but gone. The few who hadn’t been killed were fleeing back into the mountains. Kouga wiped the guts off his hands and gave a cursory once-over of all of his pack, and then Inuyasha’s pack as well for the hell of it. He’d known that Miroku was safe, of course, as the monk had the full protection of two packs. But no one was seriously injured at all. A few of the wolves had a scratch or two, but nothing that would slow them down for more than a couple days. The ground was littered with bodies, and yet it had barely felt like a real battle.
“Shit!” Hakkaku’s voice sounded as he tripped over one of the demon carcasses. He looked up at Ginta imploringly. “A little help?”
“Sorry,” Ginta said with an easy shrug. “Every man for himself.”
Hakkaku stuck his tongue out at Ginta and then threw a severed beetle limb at the back of his head. Hakkaku then cackled as Ginta tackled him to the ground, while the rest of the wolf pack looked on with mild amusement. Inuyasha sniffed over each member of his pack, with Shippo firmly attached to his arm, and then nodded reassuringly at Miroku’s questioning glance. He followed the monk’s gaze to where Sesshomaru stood alone at the edge of the battlefield, stiff and silent. Inuyasha rolled his eyes, but Miroku’s expression was thoughtful and almost a little sympathetic.
“I hope this has shown you both what idiots you’ve been,” Inuyasha called out to him and Kouga both. “None of us know this territory. If you insist on fighting like a couple of children, you’re going to get nothing but trouble.”
“I’d take a fight any day rather than put up with a dog chasing my tail,” Kouga said, arms crossed, but then he relented. “But it’s good to see that you can hold your own. If we do end up facing Naraku together, I’d much rather have you covering my back than biting it.”
“You are a fool to think that your power is anywhere near the realm of mine,” Sesshomaru said flatly. “Although your sheer numbers do provide a useful distraction to lesser demons.”
Kouga looked offended but Inuyasha shrugged. “That’s as close to a ‘thank you’ as you’re going to get,” he told the wolf firmly. “Hell, it’s more than I’ve ever gotten.”
“Aw, I know that you dogs aren’t known for your manners,” Kouga grinned, and Inuyasha huffed in annoyance. “We fight good, though. We should do it again sometime, once we find Naraku.”
“Then I think we should make an agreement,” Miroku said calmly, drawing everyone’s attention. “To not kill each other, at least until after Naraku’s dead.”
Inuyasha grimaced, but nodded. “A truce is the only plan that makes sense right now.”
“I can agree to that,” Kouga said. “After all, it’s not me who’s been picking a fight.”
Sesshomaru didn’t agree to the proposition, but he didn’t disagree, either. He walked over to Rin and glanced over her as the wolves let her and A-Un out of the circle. Kouga eyed them both for a moment, and then made a decision.
“You lot,” he said, gesturing towards three of his wolf demons and a handful of wolves. “I think you need an introduction to our new friends.” He turned to Sesshomaru, but his words were meant for more than just him. “These are the newest members of my pack. They joined after I enacted the law that banned any of my wolves from harming humans. We know how to do things right, and we know how to change our ways to get there. We’re committed to this, whether you trust us or not.”
Once again Sesshomaru just stared blankly like a statue, but there was a sour twist to Rin’s scent. Kouga met the girl’s eyes steadily, and sighed to himself as she shrank back a little. He started towards her slowly, keeping his movements as non-threatening as possible.
All the muscles along Sesshomaru’s body tightened as he saw the wolf approaching Rin, and his hand was already reaching for Tokijin. But then Inuyasha found himself reaching for his brother’s shoulder and tugging him back slightly.
“Let him talk to her,” he advised softly.
Sesshomaru glared at him, eyes flashing red in warning, but Inuyasha ignored him. To his everlasting surprise, Sesshomaru’s hand dropped to his side and he stayed put as he watched with unblinking intensity as Kouga knelt in front of Rin.
“Hey,” the wolf said gently. “It’s Rin, right?” She nodded once. “I’m Kouga. I know we didn’t properly meet before, but you still know me and my wolves, don’t you?” Another nod, and he frowned tightly. “I’m not going to ask, because it’s not my place. I know that we hurt you. I just want to tell you that we’re sorry – I’m sorry. I was a different person back then. I didn’t realize…well, a lot of things. I should never have acted the way I did, and I can’t make up for the lives my pack and I have taken. But I’ll promise you this, okay? We will never hurt you again. We will make sure that no wolf demon, from any pack, hurts you ever again. And if you ever need help, we’ll be there. I’ll make sure of it.”
Tears welled in Rin’s eyes, and she snatched a ragged breath. “I… I don’t want to be scared anymore.”
Kouga pressed his lips together and swallowed hard. “And I promise to do whatever I can to help with that.” He paused, obviously at a bit of a loss. “Can I give you a hug?”
Rin was quiet for a moment, considering, and then she nodded. Kouga opened his arms and let her walk into them at her own pace. She still seemed a little unsure, but as he wrapped his arms around her, she visibly began to relax. A few tears slipped down her cheeks, but all the demons could sense the relief and beginnings of happiness in her scent. Sesshomaru was making a low growling sound, but Inuyasha shot him a glare and he tapered off. There was also an odd thumping coming from the embrace. It took everyone a moment to realize that it was Kouga’s tail wagging firmly against the ground. Rin realized this too, seeing it over the wolf’s shoulder, and her face absolutely lit up.
“I didn’t know demon’s tails could do that!” she said, stepping back and fear banished in the light of overjoyed discovery. “Lord Sesshomaru, does your tail wag as well?”
Inuyasha then had the unrivaled pleasure of seeing his brother die a little inside. Sesshomaru didn’t deign that question with a response, but Inuyasha was almost positive that if it had been literally anyone else who asked that question, they would be dead.
Kouga felt warm breath on his back and glanced behind him to see Haiiro hovering tentatively to the side. Kouga glanced between her and the child. Rin looked a little nervous, but held out her hand. Haiiro slowly stepped forward and pressed her muzzle against the girl’s palm.
“Hello, little one,” she rumbled.
“Oh!” Rin said in surprise, and a shy smile broke out over her face once more. “I didn’t know that you could talk! Is that common amongst wolves? Are you a demon, too?”
“I am not,” Haiiro hummed. “But those of us in packs with the demons become more like demons over time. I am the only wolf here who can speak, and so I wish to speak for all of us wolves to say that we also vow to protect you. You are pack now, little one.”
“I would love that,” Rin said softly. It looked as though she wanted to throw her arms around the wolf’s neck, but an older fear dug its claws into her and held her back. Instead she petted Haiiro’s head gently and then shuffled back to stand under the shelter of A-Un.
“Well, that solves that, then,” Kouga said, stretching in a façade of laziness. “I guess we’ll see you all later. Send out some kind of signal if you somehow find Naraku first, will ya? You’ll hear from us when we beat you to it, though.”
Sesshomaru’s lip curled but he didn’t rise to the bait. He watched as Kouga gathered his wolves around him and started at an easy pace away down the valley.
“Come on,” Kouga said once they were a safe distance from the others, jerking his head to the side. “We’re heading back to the rest of the pack.”
“What?” Ginta and Hakkaku asked in unison.
“We’re giving up right after we’ve found out where Naraku might be?” Ginta asked.
“And right when we formed an alliance?” Hakkaku added incredulously.
“We’re calling together the forces,” Kouga said, as though it were obvious. “We’re going to leave everyone who can’t travel with the Northern Clan and bring every available warrior into the hunting party to fight Naraku. Besides,” he glanced pointedly over the rest of his pack. “It’s about time we reunite some pining lovebirds.”
Aka’s head shot up from where she was cuddling one of the wolves against her. “I’m not sulking.”
“Please,” Ginta scoffed.
“You’ve been a grump ever since we left,” Hakkaku said, biting down his grin.
“Like you can talk!” Aka snapped dramatically. “You try being away from your mate for a few months and see how well you take it!”
Ginta and Hakkaku both winced and shuffled closer to each other in horror at the thought. Aka nodded pointedly and sighed. Kouga grimaced. He didn’t like being away from the more vulnerable members of his pack for so long, and he hated keeping mates apart. It would be better for everyone if they made this shift. But…
“Wait,” Hakkaku said suddenly, turning back to Kouga. “You want to clear out the den entirely? We’ll lose the territory!”
“No other pack will dare to challenge our claim, whether we’re there or not,” Kouga muttered. “And the Northern Clan will help us fight off any other demons that try to move in while we’re gone.” He met Ginta and Hakkaku’s incredulous stares. “I don’t like it any more than you, but we can’t keep this up. Once we kill Naraku, we won’t have to split up the pack anymore and we can all go home together.”
“Home to our territory,” Hakkaku clarified.
“Not the Northern Clan,” Ginta said quietly.
Kouga’s face scrunched in confusion and discontent. “Why the hell would we stay with the Clan?”
He was met with a flat look from Ginta, Hakkaku, Aka, and several of his wolves.
“They’re useful allies to have!” he insisted. “They’ll back us up in a fight and Ayame will make sure they go after Naraku once we find him. That’s it! It’s not like-”
He cut himself off sharply. Several pairs of eyebrows raised.
“It’s not like anything!” he snapped, turning away. “Move your asses! The sooner we leave, the sooner we get home.”
No one could argue with that. Many of the wolves were whining happily as they ran, excited to see their kin. Aka was smiling so hard that her scent was drenched with joy. They all knew that she’d be stuck to Kuro’s side for at least a fortnight. Not that they could blame her. They were all looking forward to being a full pack once more, even if it meant that more of their family would be in danger.
~*~
Inuyasha made the excuse of searching around to make sure that there were no more demons in the area. Miroku was fairly certain that he was still feeling the effects of almost having transformed, and just needed to run off some excess energy. But as he disappeared, and Sango was washing the blood from Hiraikotsu, and Rin and Shippo were chatting excitedly together next to Kirara and A-Un, Miroku figured he might as well take advantage of the opportunity. He walked casually over to Sesshomaru, who was still standing off to the side. There was no real reason for him to be sticking around, but Miroku had a sneaking suspicion that Rin was enjoying her “uncle’s” pack too much to tear her away, and that Sesshomaru wouldn’t be letting her out of his sights for a while.
“You know,” he started calmly, not even looking at the inu-youkai. “All of this has made me think back to the first time our three parties fought together, against the leopard cat clan. You remember?”
Of course Sesshomaru remembered, but Miroku was more interested in prompting the slight inclination of his head, the proof that he was listening and waiting to hear Miroku’s point.
“I remember that you performed some astounding feats with Tokijin then, too,” Miroku said with carefully controlled interest. “And with Tenseiga, too.”
He could tell by the slightest line of tension that emerged on Sesshomaru’s upper lip that he knew exactly what he was referring to. He would have to cut right to the chase.
“You revived Rin, didn’t you?”
“I don’t see why that’s any business of yours,” Sesshomaru said stiffly. It was more of a response than Miroku was expecting.
“I was merely surprised. I didn’t think that you had any fondness for humans.”
“I did it to serve my own purposes,” Sesshomaru said, a warning in his voice. “That is all.”
“That’s why I brought it up.” Miroku pressed his lips together. “You’ve met Kikyo. Can you revive her? She may pose the biggest threat to Naraku out of any of us.”
Sesshomaru was quiet for a long moment, but Miroku knew that he’d surprised the demon. “Tenseiga can rejoin the soul to the body, that is all. If the soul has already departed, there is nothing that I can do. Her soul has already been altered after death. It is far too late for her.”
Miroku nodded. “Fair enough. I just thought I’d ask.”
There was another pause and then Sesshomaru said softly, almost gently, “It cannot break your curse.”
It was Miroku’s turn to be surprised, not only at the information offered so freely, but that it seemed as though Sesshomaru had thought this over before. “I didn’t think that it could,” he said, too startled for any nuance.
Sesshomaru walked away without a word, gestured to Rin who promptly left Shippo to climb onto A-Un’s back with Jaken, and then they rose into the air. Miroku watched as they flew away.
Inuyasha saw them go, and knew that it was safe to return. He’d already been in a bad mood, but all the fighting had caused his youki to become agitated, and he was having a hard time convincing it to shut up. He didn’t think that he could stand to be around Kouga or Sesshomaru for any longer, even with the agreement not to kill one another. He just wanted to settle down with his pack and have a peaceful night for once.
He slowly made his way back to the storehouse, where Miroku was sat by the fire roasting the last of the fish that had been abandoned. The others were already inside, in all likelihood trying to get an early night’s sleep. The demon corpses had been purified by Miroku and broken down by Kirara and Shippo’s combined fire, judging by the singed smell. A flash of guilt went through Inuyasha for having left his pack to clean everything up alone. He set about shoving the remaining bones off to the side, at least clearing a path around the storehouse so no one tripped in the night.
And then Inuyasha felt eyes on him. He glanced up just in time to see Miroku look away, turning his attention back to the roasting meat. Inuyasha frowned, watched the monk for a while until Miroku finally met his eyes. There was a soft question there, slightly raised brows, but at Inuyasha’s continued frown, Miroku simply offered him a warm smile and busied himself with brushing the dirt from his robes. Inuyasha pushed to his feet and walked over to the monk, crouched down beside him expectantly.
“You okay?” he asked quietly.
“Mm-hmm,” Miroku hummed, still avoiding his gaze and a gentle smile curving his lips.
“Then what’s going on?”
There was a slight pause, and violet eyes lifted to meet his before moving away once more. “I’m just waiting.”
“For what?”
“To see if you’ll tell me what’s bothering you.”
Inuyasha opened his mouth then closed it again, his immediate protest dying on his lips.
“You don’t have to,” Miroku added gently. “Just know that I’m here if you need to talk.”
It was different than it had been before, when they’d promised to tell each other everything – it was the inevitable outcome of too long hiding things from the other. Perhaps this was inevitable as well, the next step after they both figured out that there were some things that didn’t have to be shared. But Inuyasha couldn’t help but hearing Miroku’s voice in his head, asking how Inuyasha would feel if their situations were reversed. Inuyasha knew that he wasn’t exactly subtle in his desires to know everything that was on Miroku’s mind.
“Just the usual.” A safe answer, and he knew it wasn’t enough. “I didn’t like being separated from you when there was danger in that cave, and I hated running away and leaving you there. And I didn’t feel comfortable leaving you with Kikyo, even if Sango was there.” He swallowed, fingers clenching where they rested on his thighs. “And I hate seeing both you and Sango so roughed up. And I hate that even though I want to find Naraku more than anything, I know that you two aren’t in a good place to fight him right now.”
Miroku shuffled over on his knees so that he could rest his head on Inuyasha’s shoulder, and the hanyou gratefully pressed a kiss into his hair.
“I’m so proud of you for taking care of Shippo and Kirara back then,” Miroku said, not bothering with the usual empty reassurances. “And thank you for trusting me.”
Inuyasha huffed a breath and wrapped Miroku in his arms. He smiled despite himself, caught up in how much he loved this damn, ridiculous human.
“The alliance will make things better, I think,” he offered.
“It’s good to have allies,” Miroku said warmly. “Even if they are a little unruly.”
“No doubt,” Inuyasha huffed. “I guess we’ll see what tomorrow brings.”
Miroku chuckled quietly and kissed him soundly. “I suppose we will.”