InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Every Heart ❯ Chapter 20

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Author’s Note: Wow! Just a quick note to say “thank you” to that wonderful person who recc’d this story to the IYFG! That’s quite an honor, something completely unexpected and yet so very special! Not only did it bring some fandom recognition to this story, but it brought some wonderful comments and reviews as well. So – thank you to everyone who’s read, reviewed, and/or recc’ed! I can’t even begin to express how much I appreciate your support.

Want to see the ultimate author’s notes for this story? Visit me at LJ! Explanations, clarifications, spoilers available!

Disclaimer: The Inuyasha concept, story, and characters are copyright Rumiko Takahashi and Viz Media.

The title “House of the Moon” is original to Resmiranda’s Tales from the House of the Moon. It is used here in homage to said fantastic story.

This is merely one girl’s dream of life after “The End.”




“That’s it…just a bit…more…” she mumbled softly.

Sango circled her husband, running a critical eye down the length of his body. She untied and retied the sash at his waist, until it settled around him to her satisfaction. “Done,” she announced. “What do you think?”

Miroku took a step back and looked down. “What do you think?” he asked, uncertainty lacing his voice. “You’re the true taijiya, after all.”

Sango gave him a small smile, her eyes misting over a little. “I think it’s perfect,” she said. “I designed the plates especially for you.” She circled him once again. “Can you move around?”

He took an experimental step forward, then another. He twisted his upper body around, glancing at the plates covering his lower back. “I suppose it will take some getting used to,” he mused, turning forward once more. “At least I don’t have to wield a weapon.”

She smiled as she watched him, picking up his staff and giving it a hard thrust upward, testing the flexibility of the armor that covered his arms. She had never expected to have such a reaction to her work; after all, she had been designing armor for the better part of her life. But somehow, seeing how well it protected her husband, her heart swelled with newfound pride.

The plates were made of youkai bone, which she had dyed a deep purple, in honor of his monk’s robes. Combined with the sleek black bodysuit and the sparkle of his golden staff, it completed a dashing look for her equally dashing husband. She had also made special cuffs to hold plates over his arms and hands, as added protection.

“You can store the sacred sutras anywhere,” she said, catching his attention. “I’m still finding hidden compartments on the armor Father made for me.”

He laughed as he examined the concave pieces carefully tied to his shoulders. “What, no poison powders for me?” he teased her.

She shook her head. “I don’t have enough for you and Kohaku,” she replied, missing the light note in his voice. She gazed across the way to her family home, where Kohaku was sheltering the villagers from the western lands.

Miroku gathered her in a careful embrace, mindful of the sharp points of bone encasing his hands. “It’s okay,” he assured her softly. “We’re going to be okay.”

“I just wish I felt more certain about this,” she worried. “He wants this quest for all the wrong reasons.”

“Do you really think so?” he mused. “He speaks the truth; he wishes to redeem himself in the eyes of man. His sense of honor gives him no other choice.”

She sighed, turning her face against his shoulder. “Why can’t my forgiveness be enough?”

He gave her a slight squeeze. “When you have suffered as he has, I suspect you can never feel completely whole again. He wishes to fight, and that’s a good thing. He will work through this, and your support is very important. You must not judge him.”

“He won’t be able to fight the likes of Koga on his own,” she sighed. “And I’m not so sure we could fight him either, considering he was once our ally.”

“Hm.” Miroku set his mouth in a grim line. It was true; sending Kohaku, determined though he was, into a headlong clash with Koga was akin to sending lambs to the slaughter. Koga would have no mercy on him; in addition to being a demon-slayer, he was a human. He was food, as far as the wolf prince was concerned.

“Perhaps we should bring Inuyasha with us,” Miroku said aloud, completing his mental train of thought. “He would come in pretty handy if it is Koga we’re dealing with – a bit of youkai power on our side.”

Sango shrugged, tightening her hold around his waist. “I wonder if Kagome ever returned,” she mused. I can’t imagine being separated from the one I love, she thought.

“I hope so, for his sake,” her husband replied.

A knock sounded on the door of the hut. Sango disengaged herself from Miroku and opened the door, coming face to face with her younger brother.

He appeared stoic as he stood before her. “We are ready to leave,” he informed his sister.

She nodded. “All right, let’s set out at daybreak,” she returned. “Did your armor fit okay?”

He gave a slight bow. “Yes,” he said. “Thank you.”

Sango pursed her lips as she stared at him. Ever since deciding to take on this mission, he had become a different person, somber and silent and distant. For all that she wanted to hold him close, as she had when they were younger, he was pushing her away, guarding his heart and his mind.

It only made her more determined to protect him.

“I’ll see you in the morning,” he said, arching into another bow. He turned away from her, walking back towards their family home, resolution obvious in each step.

Sango closed the door and looked back at Miroku, who had taken the opportunity to change into his usual robes. She could feel the wheels of destiny spinning forward, out of her control.

“Send Hachi for Inuyasha,” she said, her voice hushed. “We’re leaving tomorrow.”

He nodded, pressing a kiss to her temple as he passed her at the door. “I’ll always protect you,” he said, the whisper of his touch moving across her belly. “Whatever it takes.”

Inuyasha held Kagome in his arms, perfectly content to stay where he was for the rest of his life. He was seated at the base of the well, Kagome sprawled across his lap, her arms linked around his waist, her head resting on his shoulder, her eyes closed, a small smile gracing her lips. They had been like this for the greater part of the evening, alternating between chatting and kissing and touching and generally becoming reacquainted with each other.

He studied her as she lay in his arms, still trying to come to grips with everything that had happened. Only now was he coming through the shock of actually seeing her again, of being able to hold her and kiss her and do all those things he’d only dreamed of before. There was no hesitation in her accepting his robe, of allowing his scent to be imprinted on her. That meant a great deal to him, something he would probably never be able to adequately express in words.

He leaned down, burying his nose in the hollow of her shoulder, where the material of his haori met her skin. The mixture of their scents had not yet lessened, and it sent a thrill of pleasure through his body to inhale it yet again. No regret, he thought. It was all worth it, just to get to this moment.

“Inuyasha.”

He felt a hand on the back of his head, fingers curling into his hair and stroking it lightly. He smiled as he looked up to see she had opened her eyes, the look of love shining brightly at him.

“Shouldn’t we go back to the village?” she asked him.

He kissed her. “Maybe I want you all to myself for a little while,” he replied, pressing her close.

She gave him a satisfied smirk. “You have me,” she reminded him, tweaking his ear. “But we have other friends, too, you know.”

“Feh,” he muttered. He flattened his ears against his head to keep them away from her ticklish fingers. “They can wait.”

She tugged lightly on the beads around his neck. “Don’t make me use this,” she teased, a sentiment that only earned her a dark look from him.

“Wench,” he muttered, though he couldn’t resist kissing her again. He would never grow tired of that particular activity.

“Please?” she murmured. “Tell me what’s happened to everyone. Is Rin still here? What about Sango and Miroku?”

He sighed as he pulled his head away from hers. “When I imagined you begging for me, this is not what you were saying,” he muttered.

“Inuyasha!” she cried, scandalized. She couldn’t keep a straight face for more than a few seconds, dissolving into peals of laughter. It was, however, effective in breaking the heady mood.

He looked out across the dark forest, his expression thoughtful. “Sesshoumaru came back for Rin,” he began, wrapping his arms around Kagome once more. “They returned to the House of the Moon, along with Shippo. The little runt just couldn’t forgive me for letting you go.”

His embrace tightened around her, and she glanced up. “It wasn’t your fault,” she said.

His mouth was set in a firm line. “Feh. Tell that to him,” he grumbled.

She pressed on. “And Sango? Miroku?”

His expression softened. “They found Kohaku,” he said. “They are living in Sango’s village.”

“Oh.” Kagome wasn’t sure why she expected their group to have reformed in Kaede’s village during her absence, but she found her heart strangely sad at the idea of not being reunited with everyone now that she was back.

“You’ll see them again,” Inuyasha said, upon seeing her drawn expression. “We can go to their village and surprise them.”

“Okay.” She smiled at the idea; she had missed the monk and the demon-slayer quite a bit.

Kagome’s heart lurched momentarily as she felt her body being picked up. Inuyasha set her down carefully on her own two feet. “I suppose we should go to the village,” he said, sounding a bit put out. “I won’t make you stay out here all night in the cold.”

She gave him a surprised look. “You haven’t been there in awhile?”

He shook his head. “Ever since Rin and Shippo left…what was left for me there? After the way they treated you…” His hands clenched into fists, but after a moment, he relaxed. “Besides, I’m sure Kaede wants to know you’re back.”

He knelt in front of her. “Come on,” he grunted. “Climb on.”

She gathered her things, stuffing her clothes in her bag and strapping the bows to her back once again. She approached him slowly, pushing his hair to one side as she tried to balance everything on her own back before climbing onto his.

It took her a few moments to settle down, and she stifled a giggle as Inuyasha impatiently grabbed the backs of her legs. He’s always in a hurry once he makes up his mind to do something, she thought as she wrapped her arms securely around his neck.

He coiled his body low to the ground before pushing off, gliding into the air with effortless ease. Kagome shifted slightly during flight, her body sinking low against his back from the weight of her pack. His elbows locked under her knees, holding her steady as he bounded through the forest.

He couldn’t be irritated with her for wanting to see their friends, especially not when she was clinging to him like this, her scent soft in his nostrils. She was happy, and that in turn made him happy.

Now if only she’d stop tickling his ears!

He felt a movement on the tip of his ear, and he flicked said appendage automatically, trying to disrupt whatever was there. Gentle laughter floated around him as Kagome realized what he was doing.

“Myoga!” she cried, reaching up to rescue the flea before Inuyasha could scratch him away.

“Lady Kagome!” he replied, unable to disguise his surprise. “How wonderful it is to see you again!”

Inuyasha skidded to a stop. “What do you want, flea?” he demanded, grabbing Kagome’s arm to glare down at the tiny youkai resting in her palm.

“Master Inuyasha, I have been searching for you for days now!” Myoga cried, aghast at Inuyasha’s flagrant disregard for his troubles. “Your brother demands your assistance!”

“He does, does he?” Inuyasha mocked. “What right does he have to demand anything from me?”

“Perhaps that isn’t the right word,” Myoga stuttered, pacing back and forth in Kagome’s palm. “He asked me to find you and bring you back to the House of the Moon. He wishes you to return” – yes, that sounds better, Myoga thought to himself – “to protect Rin in his absence.”

“Absence?” Kagome piped up. “Where did he go?”

Myoga gave her a smile. “Much like Master Inuyasha, he intends to claim a mate, and has gone to fetch her from her lands.”

Kagome blushed prettily at the implication of his comment. Before she could respond, Inuyasha opened his mouth.

“Doesn’t he have a castle guard?” he asked. “Why does he need me there?”

Myoga gave him a meaningful look. “Lord Sesshoumaru protects Rin as his ward, but she is, after all, only human. He knows that even his most loyal vassals would not hesitate to harm her for it, especially if they harbored rebellious tendencies.”

Inuyasha scowled. “No doubt,” he grumbled.

Kagome tightened her grip on Inuyasha’s shoulder. “We should go,” she said to him. “We can’t leave Rin alone with only Shippo for protection!”

Inuyasha nodded in agreement. He’d grown rather close to the little girl in the short time they’d spent together, and he didn’t want anything to happen to her at the hands of his fellow inuyoukai.

“Wonderful!” Myoga bounced up and down a few times. “Let us depart!”

Inuyasha shook his head. “No, we’re not leaving right now,” he informed the flea. “I’m taking Kagome back to the village tonight. We’ll go tomorrow.”

“But, Master Inuyasha – !”

“No,” he repeated. “I will not go running off to Sesshoumaru’s home. He doesn’t own me.”

“Youkai!”

The screams of the villagers broke through the calm morning air, waking Kagome from a deep, coma-like sleep. She had barely cracked her eyes open before noticing Inuyasha was already on his feet, Tessaiga drawn.

“Inuyasha?” she said, her voice cracking with sleep. “What’s going on?”

“Stay here,” he commanded, taking off like a shot through the door of Kaede’s hut.

She sat up, pushing a hand through her tangled hair, as her mind slowly came into focus. Am I really here? she wondered hazily, eyeing her simple surroundings. She glanced down at the pallet on the floor, hardly the cushioning of the mattress that she’d grown used to in the last few months.

A child-like squeal broke her from her reverie. She stood up, belting the haori snugly across her waist, and moved towards the door, drawn by the strange sounds from the crowd.

“Please, don’t hurt me!” came the quivering cry. The villagers were standing around in a loose ring, eyeing the youkai they’d caught with curiosity as it begged for its life. The shivering beige mass transformed in a cloud of smoke, revealing the hulking form of Hachi.

Inuyasha sheathed Tessaiga, warding off the villagers with a glare and a flick of the wrist as he approached the trembling raccoon youkai. “Hachi, what brings you here?” he asked, sitting next to him.

“Hachi!” Kagome cried, rushing forward as the villagers dissipated. She ignored their disbelieving stares at her rumpled appearance, her attention solely focused on the two demons before her.

Hachi’s eyes widened as she approached. “Lady Kagome!” he breathed. “How wonderful to see you again!” As she stooped down beside Inuyasha, he noticed she was wearing the hanyou’s haori. Well well well, he thought happily to himself. It’s about time!

“Likewise!” she replied. “How are Miroku and Sango?”

“That is what brings me here,” he said sagely, glancing between the two. “They are setting off on a youkai hunt and request your assistance!”

Confused stares greeted this statement.

“Let me start at the beginning,” he said, settling himself on the ground. “Kohaku has regained his memories of his time under Naraku’s command.”

Kagome gasped in surprise. Hachi nodded, verifying her thoughts. “Yes, it was as bad as you can imagine, according to Master Miroku, but everyone seems to have recovered. Things were going swimmingly until they received a request for youkai extermination. A set of villagers from the western lands appeared and asked them to return with them, to rid their village of mountain-top demons!”

“The western lands?” Inuyasha repeated slowly. “But that’s Sesshoumaru’s domain.”

“Oh, really?” Hachi asked. “Well, it doesn’t seem to be him, or else I’m sure Master Miroku and his lady wife would never agree to this mission.”

“Wife?!” Kagome squealed, a smile blooming on her face.

Hachi mirrored her expression. “Yes, yes, they are married now!” he confirmed. “Anyway, they didn’t want to accept this quest when they heard that it might be targeting Koga’s wolf demon tribes, but Kohaku insisted. He told them they could accompany him or not, but he was going!”

Inuyasha’s jaw dropped. “Koga? That kid will never survive!”

“We have no certain word that it is Koga we will be facing, but even those wolf youkai not under his command are bloodthirsty brutes. They have already started their journey, but they wish for you to join them.” Hachi eyed Inuyasha thoughtfully as the hanyou digested the information.

“The only wolf tribe in the western lands is Koga’s,” a new voice piped up. Myoga bounced onto Inuyasha’s shoulder, making his presence heard, if not seen.

Hachi gasped. “Oh, no! That means certain trouble,” he said, wringing his hands.

Inuyasha’s heart seized at Myoga’s next words. “It’s even worse,” the flea youkai cried. “Koga is at the House of the Moon right now, in Lord Sesshoumaru’s stead!”

“What do you mean?” Kagome asked. “I thought that’s why you needed Inuyasha to go there!”

Myoga shook his head. “Lord Sesshoumaru has his father’s instincts in some matters. He knew that Inuyasha would be reluctant to honor familial ties, considering their tenuous relationship. Therefore, he installed Koga at the castle before he actually left, to keep some semblance of order in his absence.” He paused as a new thought came to his mind. “I wonder…”

“What?” Inuyasha choked out, grabbing the flea to keep him from hopping across his shoulder.

“There is a human village in the valley to the south of the House of the Moon,” Myoga said slowly. “Perhaps they felt the brunt of Lord Sesshoumaru’s battle for the castle a few months ago.”

Hachi glanced down at Myoga. “The villagers did say something about war games,” he mused. “But their main worry was the wolf youkai. They claimed trouble from them in the past.”

Inuyasha shook his head. “Either way, Miroku, Sango, and Kohaku are heading into Sesshoumaru’s lands. They will be prime targets for the youkai that reside in those mountains, wolf demon or otherwise.” He stood up, folding his arms across his chest.

Kagome quickly followed. “And Rin,” she said, fear growing even as she voiced her thoughts. “If Sesshoumaru’s vassals somehow learn of this battle…”

“…Rin could be in danger,” Inuyasha concluded. “Damn that selfish Sesshoumaru! How could he do this?!”

Myoga waved his arms, trying to grab their attention. “I wouldn’t be so worried about that right now,” he shouted. “My lord should be halfway home with his bride by now! The more immediate concern should be your friends and this foolish mission they have undertaken!”

“Right,” Inuyasha confirmed. “We have to help them.”

Kagome nodded. “Yes,” she agreed. “Give me five minutes to get ready, and we can leave right away!”

Before it’s too late, she added silently, rushing back into Kaede’s hut.