InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Change of Heart - A Sesshoumaru & Inuyasha Story ❯ Inuyasha Comes Home ( Chapter 14 )

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

Inuyasha had been to the Castle of the Western Lands, the Tsuki no Kyûden, many times before. However, it had been over a year since the last time, when he’d brought Rin home, and he’d never seen the inside. Each time before, just feeling the pull of his brother’s Youki, he could tell that if he walked inside he’d probably never want to leave. Like before, he followed that same pull, but this time it was like a beacon on a dark night.

The traveling was easy, flying freely from tree to tree, except for one tough moment… He’d thought, for an instant, how nice it had been when they’d been chasing Naraku, to feel Kagome on his back... But no, he wasn’t going to think of the past anymore. No matter what she had felt for him back then, as she grew older, she had changed into a completely different person.

‘Well, maybe not so different. She used the rosary all the time to punish me even back then. I should’ve seen it all coming.’ He shook his head… ‘No! I have to stop thinking of the past. There’s nothing to be gained by it. I’m going to try to only look forward now… That life is now my old life, and only those I care for will be a part of my new one.’

After a day and a half of traveling, at dawn on the second day, he crested a hill as he flew from treetop to treetop, and there in front of him… ‘Wow…’ was all he could think. He’d never seen the beautiful castle as it was now, bathed in the rays of the sun’s first light. He was about 30 miles away, but he could easily see it. He knew it was on a cliff overlooking the ocean, but he’d never seen that side of it. Now he’d finally be able to.  

One would expect a castle-complex in the Japanese style, and it was, but instead of being constructed of stone and wood on the outside, as all others in this era were, it was all stone. White stone walls that shimmered opalescent in the early morning sunlight; bright white stone tiles on the multiple roof levels; some of the buildings towering more than six stories.

He had seen some pictures in Kagome’s time of Japanese castles built after this era, and this resembled some, but it was far more beautiful, and was so huge it looked like multiple castles put together. The river that came from the nearby mountains, and encircled the castle and adjacent village, sparkled as if shards of adamant had been scattered across its surface before flowing over the cliff to the ocean below. It was truly modern in every sense, and yet beautifully traditional at the same time.

He just stood at the top of a tree, shocked into stillness for a few minutes. He could only think that it looked even more beautiful, now that he knew he didn’t have to leave it ever again. Then he shook himself out of his daze and took off even faster than before.

***

Sesshoumaru had been feeling his little brother getting closer for the last day and night, and had been eagerly anticipating his arrival; unable to sleep at all.

As he felt him drawing ever nearer, he rose from his early-morning work at his desk and moved swiftly to the front gates, where his arrival was noticed immediately by the guards posted there.

It was very rare for him to come out for any occasion. ‘But my Otouto coming home is not just any occasion, is it?’ Sesshoumaru allowed a smile to cross his lips at that thought.

He did not notice how his smile affected his guards…how they instantly cringed, wondering who was going to die painfully.

Sesshoumaru looked out across the fields and homes that were built around the Castle Village below, staring into the distance with anticipation. ‘What will he think of his new home? Have I done everything possible to assure he is comfortable and made to feel at home here?’ Thoughts tumbled through Sesshoumaru’s mind, a very rare thing to happen to him.

Suddenly, he saw him. Just a small speck of red and flowing bright white in the distance, shooting with demonic speed across the outlying fields, coming straight towards the castle. So he watched, waiting with anticipation.

It seemed to the DaiYoukai that it took forever, but finally, there he was. Slowing to walk up the path to the main gates, with his shoulders held back in pride, was his beautiful Little Brother, glowing in the early morning light.

He could wait no longer. He had been struggling with his Youki for days, and now Inuyasha was finally here.

Sesshoumaru defied convention even further and moved to meet his brother before he could reach the gates. They came to a stop in front of each other, and just stared into nearly identical pairs of eyes for a moment. Then Sesshoumaru reached out both hands.

Inuyasha’s eyes widened slightly, before he placed his hands into his brother’s. Feeling Sesshoumaru’s fingers wrap tightly around his hands did something to the young Hanyou. His knees felt weak suddenly, and he had no idea why.

Sesshoumaru did, however. He smiled at his brother, kept one of his hands in his, and turned to lead him through the gates and into the castle.

***

Inuyasha had always been greatly impressed when he ran through the well-tended fields and nearby village before, but he had noticed even more this time.

The farmers were strong and healthy looking, with nice homes set to the side of the fields. Healthy, well-clothed children played with each other. Even more impressive were the villages surrounding the castle. The people were all clean and well-fed. The homes were in perfect condition and very sturdy, not anything like the flimsy huts in most villages. There were both youkai and human villages, with the village closest to the castle having youkai and humans living side by side, a fact that had surprised him since his first trip here.

So he told himself he shouldn’t be surprised with the grandeur of the inside of the castle; and yet he was. It was strikingly beautiful.

Everywhere he looked it was white: the floors of white marble, the walls of white moonstone, and the incredibly high ceilings of rainbow moonstone. The walls of the entire entrance hallway were covered, from floor to ceiling, with carvings of his ancestors.

This castle certainly was a ‘Palace of the Moon’.

Sesshoumaru looked at his brother, and could not help but smile again. (He was going to have to figure this out, this desire to smile each time his little brother did something. It was going to ruin his reputation.) His baby brother was standing next to him, and still holding his hand, but turning in partial circles taking in as much as he could see, all with his mouth hanging open in awe.

“Otouto, I will bring you back later for a tour of the castle. That carving there, the largest one, is of Chichue,” he pointed before turning back to Inuyasha. “I thought, for now, you would like to bathe and rest for a short time before the morning meal is served. Does that sound agreeable?” Sesshoumaru asked.

Inuyasha pulled his gaze away from the wall with his father’s likeness with great difficulty. He’d always been an outcast. To see that he had family, and a family like this, it was overwhelming. He turned to Sesshoumaru, “Yeah, that does sound good. Um…where are the baths? If you point me in the right direction, I can just go. I’m sure you’re busy…”

Sesshoumaru cocked one eyebrow at his little brother. “Inuyasha, as a Lord of the West yourself, you have your own private bathing area just off your private suite of rooms. I plan to take you there. Moreover, since I am the Lord of the West, I can spend this day as I wish. I wish to spend it with you. May I?”

Inuyasha looked a little shell-shocked. “Uh, yeah, of course. I… I’ve just never been inside a place like this. It’ll be nice to be able to relax in a bath though, and maybe even doze off for a while. I’ve never done that before. I always had to be on guard.”

Sesshoumaru did not allow his sadness at Inuyasha’s comment to show. It was his fault that the boy had never known any type of security. At least he now had a chance now to make up for that.

Sesshoumaru motioned to one of the two guards standing just inside the front doors they had walked through. “Hiroki, please make it known to all in the castle that my younger brother, Lord Inuyasha, is now in residence.”

“Yes, My Lord,” Hiroki replied with a bow to them both. Then he turned and moved away to do as his Lord had asked.

Next, Sesshoumaru waved to a female servant, “Kaori, please double-check to make certain the bathing area in my brother’s room is stocked properly; it is where he is currently headed.”

“Yes, My Lord,” she bowed and hurried off.

“Ya’ know, you don’t have to go to all this trouble for me Aniki. I appreciate it, but it’s not necessary,” Inuyasha said.

“Nonsense. It is my pleasure, Otouto, as I enjoy your company. Also… I have…failed you greatly in the past, and all I can do is try to change the future. I am…very glad you are here... In addition, the servants here will be happy to know they are serving you well. I will assign a personal servant to you later, if that is alright with you,” Sesshoumaru explained.

“Huh? I’ve never had any servants. Why would I need one?” Inuyasha was confused.

“Because, Little Brother, they can be of help to you. They can get things you want or need. They can help you with your clothing, as some of it will be much more elaborate than the robe of the Fire Rat or the kimonos you now have. Formal types of clothing will only be worn for formal functions, but you will have to wear them at those times. And by giving you a personal servant now, you can begin to be comfortable with them.”

“I hadn’t even thought about wearing formal clothes. Yeah, I guess what you’re sayin’ makes sense. I just don’t want ‘em close by all the time. I’m not really used to all this.” Inuyasha seemed overwhelmed.

“Relax Otouto. I will not throw you into formal functions right away.” Sesshoumaru winked at his brother, touching him lightly on the shoulder.

“Yeah, yeah…just show me where I can get cleaned up, will ya’?” Inuyasha grumbled good-naturedly.

“Of course. Follow me Little Brother.” Sesshoumaru reached for his hand again, and began to lead him through the castle. Inuyasha blushed. It was going to take some getting used to, Sesshoumaru being so affectionate, but he decided he liked it.

His thoughts changed as they walked. ‘Does Sesshoumaru still want me as his mate, or is this just him being brotherly? Gosh, I really do need some sleep.’

He couldn’t remember the last time he’d slept in a real bed, laying down. Even in his travels with his Pack, during the times they would stay in a human lord’s mansion, he would still sleep sitting up. And the last few years, when he would lay down, it was only on light padding over a wooden floor. What would it feel like to lie down on a real mattress while sleeping? And he couldn’t wait for a private bath. He was excited about it, which he felt was kind of silly, but he couldn’t help it.

Sesshoumaru had so many things he wanted to say to his brother. However, seeing him stare at each wall they passed, he felt he should just stay silent and allow Inuyasha to take in as much as he could at his own pace right now.

After walking in and out of grand hallways and huge formal dining rooms, they exited out into a series of outer walkways. Continuing past multiple buildings and through more gardens than Inuyasha could count, they finally came to a huge, six-story structure at the rear of the castle-complex. Upon entering, Inuyasha noticed that it was made with the same stone on this first level as all the other buildings were. However, on this building’s first floor there was a huge, three-story-high, curving staircase made of rainbow moonstone.

“This stairway leads to the Family Wing of the castle, Inuyasha,” Sesshoumaru said as he led Inuyasha past the guards standing at the bottom of the stairs. This was the most secure portion of the entire castle, and it was where the Lord of the West and his family resided. Of course, only Sesshoumaru and Rin had lived here lately…but now Inuyasha would be here too. Sesshoumaru felt a warmth spread in his chest at the thought.

After walking down interior hallways with the smoothest wood floors Inuyasha had ever walked on, Sesshoumaru finally stopped about halfway down an enormous hallway between two sets of double-doors.

Pointing to the massive double-doors at the very end of the hall he said, “Those doors at the end lead to the three levels of the mated-Lord’s chambers. They were Chichue’s, and will not be used again until I am mated.” He gave Inuyasha a smile that made the Hanyou’s knees weak again and he blushed. Sesshoumaru’s smile widened.

He then waved to the doors on their right, “Now, these doors lead to my rooms,” and turning fully to his left he continued, “And these are the doors to your rooms.”

Inuyasha had turned towards Sesshoumaru’s room and was amazed at the carvings on the wooden doors, reaching out instantly to touch them. The kanji for Sesshoumaru’s name were done in beautiful calligraphy and were surrounded by carvings of InuYoukai. The doors themselves were carved from white cedar. They were stunning; so it was reluctantly that he turned away from the doors, to look towards where Sesshoumaru was saying his room would be.

There he was shocked once again.

He was standing before yet another set of beautiful wooden doors. This time carved from red cedar, and also filled with carvings of InuYoukai. But here, Inuyasha saw the kanji for his name, done in the same beautiful calligraphy. He could tell immediately that whoever had carved Sesshoumaru’s doors had carved his as well.

Inuyasha could only stare, taking in each little detail. Then he suddenly noticed that it was his father’s true-form that was carved around the kanji for his name. He spun around quickly, and verified that it was the same on Sesshoumaru’s doors.

Sesshoumaru could guess what Inuyasha was thinking. “Inuyasha, Chichue carved these doors himself. He wanted us to know he would always be there to protect us.”

Inuyasha was shaken to the core. ‘I’ve been homeless all my life. Always fighting, never having enough to eat, or a place to sleep; and to find out that here, I’ve had a place that should have been mine. I should have been protected and cared for.’ It hurt in a way he could barely tolerate.

Sesshoumaru had apologized, and he knew he was sincere; he had been apologizing repeatedly since they first had started meeting nearly five years ago. He had already asked Inuyasha to allow him to make it up to him.

It was only these recent memories of his brother’s efforts that allowed him to withstand the raging torrent of over two centuries of emotions welling up inside of him.

In a strained voice he said, “Sesshoumaru, I… I want us to be closer…and… I don’t want to ruin what we’ve built so far, so I… I’m fighting for control…because I want to be able…to just simply talk to you…as my brother. I want to explain how this affects me,” Inuyasha whispered harshly.

Sesshoumaru wanted to understand…it was the only way he could ever begin to fix things. “Yes, Inuyasha, tell me. Please, hold nothing back.” He squeezed the boy’s hand tightly.

Inuyasha continued in a voice choked with emotion, “I… I have so many things swirling in my mind and heart right now. I’m angry, and bitter, knowing what I could have had, how my life could have been so vastly different. And that… It makes me want to strike out and hurt you in the same way I’ve hurt my entire life.”

He choked up for a moment, then continued, “But your honesty, and even before now, how we’ve been trying to become more like true brothers, tells me you’re truly sincere in regretting our past, and that makes me want to hold on to you. It’s so fucking hard, to hold it all in at one time.”

“Can I, um… Can I have some privacy for a while?” Inuyasha finished quietly, his eyes never leaving the doors to his room.

“Of course, Otouto. I am truly sorry. If I could change my past actions, I would, without any hesitation. Nevertheless, I want you to know, that even though I am the predominant cause of most of the dreadful years of your life, I would like the opportunity to make the rest of your life the complete opposite. Can you believe that?” Sesshoumaru whispered, all while still holding Inuyasha’s hand, stroking the back of it with his fingers.

“Yes, Aniki, I understand. I do believe you, or I’d never have come here. I’ll bathe and rest for a while. Just let me know when the meal is, and I’ll be there,” Inuyasha replied quietly.

“I will come and get you for the meal. Until then, relax Brother, you have plenty of time,” Sesshoumaru replied.

With that, Sesshoumaru pushed open the doors to Inuyasha’s room. “If you need anything, there are ropes attached in each corner of each room of your suite. Pull on one and a servant will come. Until later, Little Brother.”

Sesshoumaru slowly let go of Inuyasha’s hand and watched him walk into his rooms alone. He wished he could follow, but it was not yet time for that. He only hoped he had not ruined any chances they had for the future with his past actions.

He closed Inuyasha’s doors, turned slowly, and entered his own rooms instead.

~tbc

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MM doesn’t format things like I want them. So if you want the Japanese translations of anything, just ask.
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