InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Tale of Ever After ❯ Chapter 342

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

I do not own InuYasha or any of the characters created by Rumiko Takahashi

Chapter 342

It was, for the moment, a quiet time in the front of Toshiro's house. The ground still was damp from the previous night's rain, but that didn't stop everybody from tending to their work. Yasuo's daughter Umi was outside, doing laundry, and a dog nosed around her work until he got splashed by her shaking out a towel. Somewhere, a rooster crowed, but out of the line of sight. Somewhere behind the house, Shigeru, always hating to have to work, was cursing at the fate that was making him have to take a load of straw somewhere, and the evilness of working in mud.

"Your ojiisan ought to be putting some of those words into work, Choki-kun," Asami said. She was sitting on the verandah, a packed basket to her right, and a carry cloth on her back.

Choki, a boy of about 16, but stocky for his years, was sitting nearby. He shrugged. "Not much anybody's been able to do about him since Ojiisan died. And even he could only do so much. He's lucky Toshiro-sama feeds him."

"He should be more like Michio," said the third person there, a man in his thirties, who was leaning up against the house wall. He had a rake and hoe leaning on the wall next to him, and looked irritated. "He may have woman troubles, but that man knows how to keep busy. I saw Michio running toward Tsuneo's already this morning, and running back towards his own place, and then a little later, saw him walking with Houshi-sama back again. I wonder what he's up to? It's got to be better than this waiting around. I hate waiting."

"You heard what Toshiro-sama said, Mutsuo-ojisan," Asami said, shaking her head. "Fumio-sama is coming over here to introduce us to Maeme-obasan's family, and we're supposed to wait until he comes."

"I wonder if he'll be here before lunch," Choki said. "I'd hate to miss lunch."

"You can hate missing lunch if you want to, Choki-kun. I just hate standing around doing nothing," Mutsuo said. "That's worse than missing a meal. I ought to be working on the rice transplant bed today. But no, I'm here watching Umi-chan do laundry."

The door mat rattled and a small, elderly woman stepped outside. "Complaining already? And you haven't even started to work yet. What is Fumio-sama going to think about you?" Nanami, the eldest woman in Toshiro's household, house manager and Sayo's right hand, terrorizer of small boys doing things they shouldn't, stepped out of the doorway, inspecting the three people in front of her. She evidently could intimidate more than small boys from the way the three jumped as she spoke.

"Uh," Mutsuo said, straightening himself up. "What will he think of me? That as long as he keeps me busy, I'm an excellent worker, Haha-ue."

"Nanami-obaasan!" Asami said, standing up. "We're doing what Toshiro-sama asked us to do, wait here."

Choki, reluctantly, got up himself, kept his eyes to himself, and wisely said nothing.

"You're almost as bad as Daiki-chan, boy," Nanami said, shaking her head, and popping her son lightly on his arm. She took in the other two. "So, are you ready? I expect the best out of you three. And for all of you to work hard while you're gone."

"Haha-ue, you sound like you're getting ready to send us off on a long journey, not some work on the other side of the village," Mutsuo said. Recovered from the surprise of her joining them on the verandah, he grinned at her cheekily, far less intimidated by her manner than the other two, and shifted the hoe he had balanced. "Cook a lot. I bet I'll be coming home hungry. And you know how Choki eats."

Nanami gave him a hard look. "Don't get that attitude with me, Mutsuo," she said, crossing her arms, and looking up into his grinning face, very similar to her older one. Somehow, even though she was a good bit smaller than he was, it was still an intimidating posture. "You might be my youngest boy, but you still have to answer to Toshiro-sama...and to me. Do our ko proud, and remember what a hard time Maeme-chan has had, and so have her boys. I don't want to hear about Fumio coming back and complaining how we don't take care of our own."

He nodded. "Fumio-sama's a good man. And I've heard some stories about that family…"

"Just be kind and do what you're asked to," the elderly woman said to the teenage boy standing next to her son. "That goes for you, too, Choki. I know your ojisan sets a bad example. Don't be like Shigeru. Work hard, and make the ko proud."

The boy, tall and thin, but with a determined look to his face nodded. "Yes, Nanami-obaasan. I promise."

She nodded and went over to stand next to Asami, who looked at Nanami with nervous excitement. "What we are doing for that family may fall hardest on you, child. Unlike these two bullheads," she said, nodding towards the men, "you need to stay with Maeme and her boys until Fumio is sure Maeme is recovered enough to not need a friendly face to be with her. Nights can be hard when everything changes so much, which is why we want you to stay there. You will help as she needs help."

"Yes, Nanami-obaasan," Asami said, nodding.

"I don't think either Sukeo or Nakao will be half the handful that Daiki is, so I don't suspect to see you running across the village chasing either one of them."

That made the girl smile, a small brief flash, and she nodded.

"But be circumspect around Sukeo. He's a little older than you, and reaching that age where girls need to remember that," the older woman said. "Don't come home with troubles."

This made Asami blush as it dawned on her what Nanami meant by that, and then her eyes grew wide. "I will be careful, Nanami-obaasan."

"And if you need anything, be sure to send one of these bullheads home or to Fumio-sama and let us know."

"I will," Asami replied, nodding. She grew rather surprised when the elderly woman reached out and gave her a hug.

"You've been here every day since you were six, Asami-chan, running errands, helping me, taking care of the children. You even being at the other side of the village is going to feel so strange." Nanami rested her hand on the girl's head. "Take care, and help Maeme become strong enough to let you come home."

While Nanami, looking small and frail with her years, but bearing the presence of a winning general, talked to the three in front of her, Toshiro stepped out of the house and watched his housekeeper with a growing grin on his face. Crossing his arms at the scene before him, he tried hard not to laugh or say anything, but he couldn't quite control himself, and a small chuckle escaped.

The older woman spun around surprisingly fast, ready to give the laugher the same intimidating look as she had given to the people in front of her but relaxed when she saw who it was.

"And what is so funny, Toshiro-sama?" the old woman asked.

"Oh, I was reminded of a time a long time ago, Nanami-chan, when I was a young man and my otousan took me down to Odawara Castle, and I saw an important samurai talking to his foot soldiers just like that," Toshiro explained. "Although I must admit, he was a bit taller than you. And I think your troops are taking you more seriously than his did."

Mutsuo snickered, just a little, and Nanami gave him a look, but Choki nodded briskly.

"We do, Toshiro-sama, we do. We know what awaits us if we don't," the teenager said.

The old woman rolled her eyes and let out a sigh. "It's important that they remember their house, and their ko. We wouldn't want them to give you a bad reputation, Toshiro-sama."

Toshiro leaned against the post supporting the verandah roof. "After all these years, Nanami, I am pretty sure my reputation's determined, for good or ill," he said. "People will think what they want about this old man. But thank you."

There was a crash, a boy's yelp and a female shriek from within the house.

"Now that's a new sound," Toshiro said, looking towards the door.

Nanami shook her head. "Well, I better go see how Kameyo-chan is doing with Daiki. I know she's done some work with caring for children, but I don't want her running home tonight to Isamu and Yaya with horror stories about our boys. Now to find Yasuo."

"Probably a good idea," the older man said nodding. "I guess Yasuo is over at the birthing house. He needs to get out to the fields near Michio's place."

"Bah. Today, this morning he needs to get back to the house," Nanami said, scowling. "He can help chase after that son of his this morning until Kameyo finds her way with him. He owes her that."

Her crossed arms and sharp look brooked no interference. Toshiro took a deep breath and nodded.

"Somebody's coming," Choki said, looking down the road.

The group turned and watched.

"It's not Fumio and his crowd," Mutsuo said. "My eyesight might not be as good as yours, Choki, but there's not a single man with them."

"It looks...it looks like Benika," Choki said. "And maybe Sora. And someone else."

There was another yell from inside of the house.

"Bah. I don't have time for this nonsense," Nanami said. "You deal with her, Toshiro-sama. I don't want to hear whatever lies she's spinning today." Spinning around, she stormed back inside.

 

InuYasha, totally unaware of the high drama taking place on the other side of the village, made his way toward Kaede's house. As he passed Sango and Miroku's place, he could hear no sign of the monk, but heard Sango tell the girls a tale about how the good youkai prince got enchanted by an evil youkai and ran off a cliff chasing butterflies before being rescued by the good taijiya.

He listened for a moment, and grinned. "Somehow, that's not exactly how I remember it," he said, before hurrying down the hill.

Reaching Kaede's house, he was surprised to find both her and Rin missing, but it didn't take him long to track them down in the old miko's garden patch. Rin, happily kneeling in the wet earth, was pulling up some weeds, while Kaede was using a hoe.

"Ah, InuYasha," the old woman said. "How is Kagome-chan doing this morning? Better, I hope?"

"Yeah," he said, nodding. "That nasty medicine you made did the job. She didn't even need the second dose."

"And so, are you taking my advice about getting away for a few days?" she asked, hitting a clod of dirt with the blade of her hoe.

"There's an old hot springs by an abandoned monastery I know about," the hanyou said, nodding. "Should help keep her from trying to use her spiritual powers in bad ways for a while. She'll like the spring."

"Good, good," the miko said, nodding approvingly. "Sometimes, an onsen is the best cure for what ails us."

Rin tugged out a particularly stubborn weed. "Rin misses traveling sometimes," she said, putting the troublesome plant in her basket. "Rin never knew where her lord was going to take her." She looked up at the hanyou. "Sometimes, it was not so nice. But sometimes...Rin still misses some of those places."

"Yeah," InuYasha said, not exactly sure of how to respond. "Maybe when you're older, you can get to visit some of the good places again."

She looked doubtful, but nodded. "Rin hopes you and Kagome-obasan have a good time."

The hanyou sighed.

Kaede, catching the way things were drifting, decided to change the subject. "So, InuYasha, is there some other reason you came to find me?"

"Remember that big yellow bag of Kagome's we put into the shrine?" he said. "I'd like to get it out and take it home."

"Feel free. It is Kagome-chan's after all." She looked at him, and smiled a little. "You might find something in it that would amuse you. I'd be surprised if you don't"

Not sure of what she meant, he shrugged. "Feh. I just though it'd be better for the trip than a carry cloth."

"Maybe so, InuYasha, maybe so. Have a good day, no matter what." She turned back to her work.

"Tell Kagome-obasan Rin will come by and check her garden while you're gone," Rin said.

With a nod of his head, he hurried off to the shrine.