InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Mating Season ❯ …Others have greatness thrust upon them. ( Chapter 74 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: SplendentGoddess 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 12.29.2006 | Updated On: 08.18.2008 | Pages: 2 | Words: 4.6K | Visits: 9.4K | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 12.29.2006 | Updated On: 08.18.2008 | Pages: 2 | Words: 4.6K | Visits: 9.4K | Status: Completed
Blanket Disclaimer:
Inuyasha, and the characters therein, are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. I am in no way affiliated with Takahashi, or VIZ Productions.
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Chapter 74 - …Others have greatness thrust upon them.
“Well well well,” Inuyasha chuckled, rereading the letter, “Looks like Flea-Bag is movin’ on up in the world.” he snickered, secretly glad for the guy.
“You can say that again.” Jaken chuckled, also remembering Kouga from before. “Mating the Queen will do that to you.” he snickered himself.
“But the letter said that Kouga was the Ookami no Taisho.” Kagome pointed out, mildly confused.
“Only on paper…” Inuyasha explained. “That’s a formality done out of respect for other youkai, most specious of which are all male-dominating. But everyone knows that with wolves, it’s the she-wolf who calls the shots in mated pairs.”
“So who would someone deal with if they were dealing with the North?” Kagome asked.
“Kouga…” Inuyasha and Jaken answered simultaneously, though Inuyasha added, “But he can’t make any real decisions without Ayame’s say-so, and amongst their own people, she’s the ruler.
“I guess I understand…” she muttered, still more or less wrapping her brain around the fact that Kouga and Ayame ruled the North at all, regardless of which one was technically above the other in rank.
“Lord Sesshoumaru has said that, as the subsequent Lord of the West, dealing with matters such as these falls under your jurisdiction.” Jaken explained.
“Keh, he just doesn’t want to go ‘cause he’s afraid they’ll tear into Kagura.”
“I’m not so sure that’s it…” Kagome spoke thoughtfully, “After all, it certainly seems as though they’re willing to leave the past in the past.” she considered, adding “I’m sure your brother doesn’t wish to make such a journey with their newborn, and also, don’t forget about Rin.” she whispered the girl’s name.
Inuyasha’s ears lowered as he grew slightly pale, “Oh yeah…” he muttered, shivering at the memory of when he’d been informed of the details surrounding the girl’s resurrection. He always had been curious, but when Sesshoumaru confided in him the reason for her death, he’d found a whole new reason to hate Kouga. Of course, he realized that that had been before they’d ever even met the guy, and he’d kept good on his word to not harm humans since then, even proceeding to save Rin’s life once. Still…he doubted Kouga even knew about that bit of ‘history’ between himself and the Inu no Taisho, pretty sure that their only concern regarding Sesshoumaru was Kagura’s ‘involvement’ with the tribe. Suddenly, just him and Kagome going alone was looking a whole lot better.
“I suppose you’re right…” Inuyasha finally added aloud, then smirking to cover up his discontentment, he asked sarcastically “We always did say we’d go check on the wimpy wolf, didn’t we?” closing off with a wink.
Kagome knew him well enough to not take his mood change at face value. He was just as good as her with plastering on a phony smile when the situation called for it, but when something bothered him, actually bothered him, it took him a while to fight off his demons, no pun intended. Kagome knew that hearing the poor girl had been chased through the woods by beasts, ripped to shreds, had reminded him of his own childhood. Mortal wolves would have been no threat to him, but he’d confided in her long ago the story of his early years, running for his life virtually his daily routine, going days without slept lest something find him and he never wake up.
Jaken, thankfully obvious to the suddenly despondent atmosphere of the room, happily took his leave after his duty to deliver the message had been fulfilled. Inuyasha sent Jaken on his way with the message that they would depart for the North without delay.
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“You got everything?”
“Let’s see…” Kagome replied, opening her backpack to be certain.
The trip North would be longer than one day, so they wanted to make sure they were fully prepared. Besides her arrows and bow, Kagome also carried good ol’ faithful, the yellow monstrosity simply having been too big a part of the family to be left behind when she stopped returning to the future. It was funny, she no longer even thought of that place as “her time” and this place “the past” but rather, the feudal era was her home, and the place the well used to lead to…that was the future. Still, she was not ashamed to cling to the certain creature comforts she had permitted herself to bring with her, a book of matches being an excellent example. Besides matches, and blankets, she had some dried meats, in case there was poor hunting along the way, plus two plastic bottles of clean water. Medical supplies were a given, along with changes of under clothes. At least neither she nor her men required changes in their entire ensemble, which saved a lot of room in her bag for other essentials, like more diapers. At first it had seemed funny to her, to nearly always wear the exact same outfit, day in and day out, but the material cleaned itself, and the clothes were never soiled or in need of changing. It didn’t take long for her to get used to the idea, and now, it was a convenience she cherished. One less thing to worry about among the daily chores. Aside from her own underwear, and temporarily, Kazuki’s diapers, she had no other laundry to wash! Sure, their clothes would need a good soaking were they to get covered in oh, say blood, but they hadn’t had a fight in quite some time now. The battle with Daikomaru was nearly five months ago, and Kagome seriously hoped that they wouldn’t see another enemy like that for a long, long time, if it was necessary to see one at all. She’d love nothing more than peace and quiet for the rest of their years, but somehow, still living in the “feudal era” didn’t make that seem all too likely. Still, she cherished the peaceful times they’d had so far, even all the more so, knowing that their tranquility could come to a stop at any time, without warning.
Securing her backpack and arrows upon her back, Kagome next secured little Kazuki in the carrier she wore across her front. It took a moment to get everyone situated, but after a bit, she got herself comfortable upon her mate’s back, Kazuki tucked securely between them, but not in danger of being crushed. Sliding her arm through her bow, she ensured the use of both hands to firmly grip Inuyasha’s shoulders, while her weapon rested across her back. Her quiver completely full, the backpack she wore next to it nearly bursting at the seems, the extra weight hardly seemed to phase her at all. Giving the signal that she was secured and ready, Inuyasha took off at an alarming rate. It wasn’t necessarily that he was in a hurry, but he was simply so much faster than he used to be, if he didn’t deliberately try to hinder his speed. Tilting her head to the side, in part to keep the wind from blinding her face, Kagome smiled when she spotted the “hawk” Shippo had become. He was rather plump for a hawk, and his wide, child eyes, made the bird look rather cartoony, in her opinion, but she had to hand it to the kid, he was fast. During their training, Inuyasha had slowly increased his speed, day by day, bit-by-bit, so that Shippo wouldn’t necessarily notice the deliberate increase, but be pushed that much more nonetheless. The results were rather impressive. Kagome was quite certain that no real bird could fly as quickly as he was, in order to keep up with them.
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H e was nervous, admittedly, but why shouldn’t he be? The last time he’d seen them was nearly two years ago, and the visit had only lasted for about ten minutes, as he apologized for the time before then, when he’d nearly captured and raped Kagome. How does one regain socializing status after a thing like that? “Hi there. I know I tried to kidnap your wife the last time we met, and you ran a sword through my gut, but never mind that. How have you been?” probably wasn’t gonna cut it.
Kouga had always thought he’d have to face them again, one day, when they came after his jewel shards, but that hadn’t happened, he sighed with dejection. He recalled all too vividly the day Kagura had decided to show up. It had surprised him that she merely defended herself, attacking not a single one of their people, save for himself, and even then, she barely left any flesh wounds, only doing what was necessary to cut the shards from his legs. Apparently, the wind sorceress had been telling the truth when she’d claimed that she had been under Naraku’s rule, and that most of the things she had done were under his orders and against her own wishes. The wolf-youkai had realized that Naraku had wanted them all dead, and that sparing them had in fact been against orders. He was actually surprised that Naraku hadn’t slain Kagura for her disobedience, but he supposed that since he himself had been slain not long after completing the jewel, that maybe he simply hadn’t had the opportunity. Then again, there were rumors regarding that sword Sesshoumaru carried…Whatever the case, Kagura was alive, and that was fortunate, Kouga decided.
He was no enemy of the West, and wasn’t planning on becoming one, either. True, he had been a personal enemy of Inuyasha, but hoped that he and the mutt--er…Lord, could put their differences behind them. Damn…that was gonna take some getting used to. But one thing was for sure, there was no way he’d be as stupid as the East, and dare even thinking about rising against the West in challenge. The Lady of the West alone could probably wipe out their entire pack, but if she needed help, her mate could probably fell them in his sleep. Sure, he was the Ookami no Taisho, but Kouga was not a Taiyoukai, and neither was Ayame. If Sesshoumaru wanted to, he could easily rise up against them, and capture the North. Not that he would, either, Kouga knew, since Sesshoumaru simply wasn’t that way. At least, not from what he’d heard. He never had to deal with any of that political stuff before. His family wasn’t the ruling family of the North, after all, Ayame’s was…but that was his family, now.
Truth be told, he was more concerned about somebody else rising up against them, which was one of the reasons why Ayame had sent out her introductions to the other compass lands, and extended invitation to the West. He wasn’t really concerned about the other two established domains. The East, in a way, was actually more vulnerable than themselves right for the time being, which was a good thing, for the North. He also knew the South wouldn’t rise; they were fairly peaceful, and their surrounding lands desolate, which was why nobody else ever bothered threatening them. No, Kouga’s main concern, and Ayame’s too, was some random youkai who thought he was strong enough to take them on. Someone who was really power hungry might even decide to try and take the North and the East, and then that would become a concern of the West. If they got in on the ground floor with establishing relations with the Inu clan, it would benefit everyone in the long run. He wanted an alliance. Not some stupid, save face, assess your weaknesses, alliance - like what the East had had with the West - but a genuine, honest, scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours, alliance. Yes, in a way, it was like conceding defeat, basically coming out and saying “If we’re in trouble, we’ll need your help!” But if he could word it right, then maybe he could get them to see that helping them would also be helping themselves. After all, wouldn’t you rather have somebody ruling your neighboring kingdom that you knew wasn’t a threat to yourself? If somebody ever concurred the wolves, then there’d be no telling what the West might be up against in the future. Kouga also knew that such an alliance would also mean that, were the West ever under attack once more, that he and his people would be required to come to their aid, too. His wolves might not be the strongest youkai in the world, but they weren’t weak, either, and also, there was strength in numbers. Sesshoumaru had fortunately not lost too many soldiers during Daikomaru’s raid, but he had been grossly outnumbered. If there was one area in which Kouga dominated, it was that the joint forces of both the remains of his own pack, as well as Ayame’s entire pack, by far made them the highest numbering domain by head count.
Now, with word that the wolves have detected their scents on the approach, he knew his time for hesitation was over. His thoughts had been running away with him as he waited, but now, the waiting was over. They were there.
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Entering wolf territory was like entering a room. The mortal wolves apparently knew the boundaries of their masters’ land, and did not venture beyond their borders, nor did the wolf youkai themselves seem to venture beyond their chosen realm. Their scent had been getting steadily stronger as the hanyou and his small family approached. Light, but distinguishable on the breeze nonetheless. But as soon as they crossed the designated border, however, it was literally like stepping through a doorway. Suddenly, the scent of wolf was everywhere. It would be truly disconcerting for someone who had ventured there by mistake. That was, assuming that person had a decent enough sense of smell to even warn them of something like that. Otherwise, they would probably be quite surprised to suddenly find themselves surrounded by wolves, as they themselves now were. However, it was clear that those wolves were there as guides, sent to offer safe passage into the heart of the den. One of them, the apparent leader select of that particular group, woofed softly in what they understood as a basic “Follow us.” Fortunately, the ookami native tongue was also fairly similar to the inu and kitsune languages. There was a difference in dialect, though, what could almost be considered having an accent; a concept that Kagome chuckled at quietly. Just how, exactly, did a bark have an accent compared to other barks? Good luck explaining that one to anybody else. She chuckled again. But the bottom line was that they understood, and Inuyasha had promptly barked back their compliance, as the wolves all turned and trotted toward the heart of the mountain. It was a good thing Kouga had sent guides, otherwise it would have taken Inuyasha forever to track them by scent alone. There were literally trails everywhere, and once they got to the maze of dens, Kouga and Ayame’s scents were actually indistinguishable amongst the other wolves, at least in such close quarters.
He was sure their scents had all pierced through the air like daggers, though, and he wasn’t wrong. Every single wolf, mortal and youkai alike, knew that they were there. But they also knew that they were there on invitation, so the hanyou and his pack received no hostilities, as most lower youkai simply went about their business, some pausing to bow briefly as they passed. Most of those wolves, they found, were actually Ayame’s pack-mates, and strangers to them. However, it didn’t take long for two wolves that they did know to seek them out.
“Sister!” a twin set of voices called in unison.
“Ginta! Hakkaku!” Kagome cried, happily accepting the hugs of greeting she received, careful not to crush Kazuki in the process, who also earned himself two playful hair ruffles as the wolves each pulled away.
Though Kouga had finally stopped pining over Kagome, and actually kept his word to Ayame, pleasing her grandfather, by mating the she-wolf and merging their tribes, he had announced at that time that Kagome was still to be considered an honorary member of the pack. Wolves were nothing without their honor, and when he’d vowed that she would forever be welcome among his people, he’d meant it. He had also kept his word that they would no longer harm humans. That was actually the only difficulty he’d had with the merge. His pack had never had a problem with it, considering they knew that he was courting the miko, and slaying humans would undoubtedly injure his chances of mating with the mortal girl. They all liked Kagome, and when he announced her continued sisterhood, it was clear that human meat would still forever remain off their diet. But Ayame’s tribe had taken no such vow, and had continued to hunt humans from time to time, raiding the occasional village…all the typical youkai stuff that he himself had once been guilty of doing. Kouga had actually put his foot down to Ayame, not as desperate for the union as she herself was, and had insisted that they must stop killing humans, forever, or he would not join her tribe. Ayame liked Kagome, once she realized that the miko’s heart had belonged to the hanyou, and that she did not encourage Kouga’s affections. If it were up to her, she would happily honor Kouga’s promise to the miko without question. She loved Kouga, and would have wanted to become his mate anyway, even if her grandfather was not pushing for the union. But since he was, she went to him with Kouga’s guidelines. After all, he would be the Ookami no Taisho once he passed, and ultimately, the decision would be made at that time, regardless, she skillfully informed her grandfather. Smiling the best smile his old canine muzzle could muster, the elder wolf, and ultimate decision maker, gave his personal word to Kouga that they would no longer harm human beings. At that assurance, the prince of the brown tribe officially joined with the heiress to the North, and their two packs were one.
That had later proven to be one of the smartest tactical moves the North had ever made, and the first actual decision as future Ookami no Taisho, that earned him a lot of respect among Ayame’s people. It was known that while the current Inu no Taisho had thought of consuming humans as “disgusting”, he had truly not cared much either way. A sort of “to each his own” point of view. But since then, his hanyou half-brother had been granted status as ruling partner, who was mated to a mortal woman, any future offspring of that union undoubtedly going to be three-quarters human. Also, Sesshoumaru himself had finally put rumors to rest regarding the true status of the human ward he himself had become known to care for, officially announcing her status as adopted pup, though not heiress. With as integrated as humans had become in the lives of the Inu clan, not hunting the species was suddenly critical. There was plenty of other food, after all.
Ginta and Hakkaku led Kagome and her boys toward the main cave, which would function as the conference/dinning room for the time being. They had heard rumor that she’d been pupped, and wasn’t surprised to see the whelp, but they also hadn’t missed the fact that the pup was half youkai, by scent, not one-quarter. However that was possible, they didn’t know, but they were also pretty sure that Inuyasha didn’t used to have youkai crests. Wisely, they figured all would be revealed in due time, and knew that it wasn’t their place to ask those sort of questions at the moment.
Shippo seemed nervous, at first, to be around so many ookami, considering how they had originally captured him along with Kagome when Kouga had first entered the picture, and how he’d nearly been eaten before Kagome had come to his rescue. But he shook it off, knowing that they’d be able to smell his unease, and also knowing that his parents would protect him. He surprised himself in that moment. Though little Shippo had been calling Kagome and Inuyasha mom and dad off and on for over a year by that point, he’d always truly thought of them as Kagome and Inuyasha in his mind. They were his adopted parents…he knew that, and loved them for it more than he figured they realized sometimes. But still, he’d always kept a special place in his heart for his real parents, knowing that his current guardians wouldn’t have had it any other way. Now, that was the first time that he could recall, that he’d honestly thought of the couple as his parents in his mind, as though no other adults had ever existed in his life prior to the hanyou and miko. Shippo knew he would never forget his biological family, but they were gone, and the kitsune knew that they’d want him to be happy. The first time he’d called Inuyasha “Otou” had been a genuine slip of the tongue, caught up in the feel of the father-son moment, but now, when he truly took a moment to think about it, he realized…Inuyasha was his father. Not his guardian, or his sensei, or his master, but a genuine, bonafide parent. Inuyasha was his real father, and Kagome was his real mother, and even though Kazuki was their first biological child, they had both made it openly clear that they considered him to be their first pup. If he weren’t currently surrounded by so many wolves, and forced to put up a brave front of strength and position, Shippo knew he would have broken down into tears right then and there. Happy tears.
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He’d thought he had been prepared, or at the very least, as prepared as possible given the circumstances. That was, however, quickly proven not to be the case. Sensing his two most loyal surviving members of the brown pack on the approach, Kouga knew their ‘company’ was with them, even before the scents of dog, human, and fox had reached his nose. But when they did, Kouga found himself doing a double-whiff, convinced his nose was playing tricks on him. The involuntary shivers he felt run down to the very core of his youki, however, quickly dispelled the hopeful delusion that he had been mistaken. The mutt was much more powerful than he’d been the last time they’d met…Kagome too…and why did he smell two hanyou? Besides Shippo - whom he had been somewhat certain would be joining them - he distinctly scented a fourth member of Inuyasha’s party. In truth, another pup had been expected, but something was very, very wrong… Definitely inu-hanyou, *sniff*… it smelled much like Inuyasha…*sniff*… with a mixture of Kagome thrown in. But, it could not be their pup, could it? A hanyou? A genuine half-breed, fifty-fifty? How was that even possible?
As nervous as he suddenly was, Kouga at least decided to find relative relief in the fact that Sesshoumaru’s party had not joined them, as well. The invitation was extended to all, and they could have ended up with their hands quite full, if everyone had decided to take them up on it. But Ayame had told him at the time of writing her notice that she’d suspected that Sesshoumaru and Kagura would more than likely respond with a polite decline to their offer. The messenger she’d sent to deliver the scrolls had returned from the West with word from the Taiyoukai that it would be Inuyasha, and his mate and pups, which would be making the journey, alone. The term ‘pups’, in plural, had not been lost on them, and while the ookami suspected that the kitsune orphan had been included in the count, the statement nonetheless confirmed the rumors they had heard regarding Kagome having become with-child. There were many rumors they’d heard regarding the Inu-tachi over the years, including foolish rubbish that Kagome was supposedly somehow from the future, but the rumors regarding her miko strength were paid close attention to. He was well aware of the defeat of Naraku, as were many, and rumor had had it that she’d even managed to summon youkai strength from her bond with which to purify Daikomaru. A feat even Midoriko would have had difficulty accomplishing. But the fall of the Tora no Taisho was fact, not rumor, and the Taiyoukai’s subsequent disappearance (in other words, the lack of a giant, monstrous corpse) made substantiating that particular rumor rather effortless. Tsukie made no attempt to hide the truth regarding her deceased mate’s foolhardy attempt at conquest, nor the strength of the miko whom she had had the opportunity to meet in person. In the tigress’ mind, she had no doubt to the truth of the tale, which, to that day, still circled the compass lands. The underlying word spread across the land was…Don’t fuck with the West.
Hence the purpose for today’s meeting…
“Welcome!” Kouga suddenly heard his mate bellow cheerfully, snapping him back into the here and now, only to grimly discover that everyone was standing directly before him, not ten feet away. He cringed in mild embarrassment, then recovering quickly, moved forward to greet his guests as well.
Inuyasha, and the characters therein, are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. I am in no way affiliated with Takahashi, or VIZ Productions.
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Chapter 74 - …Others have greatness thrust upon them.
“Well well well,” Inuyasha chuckled, rereading the letter, “Looks like Flea-Bag is movin’ on up in the world.” he snickered, secretly glad for the guy.
“You can say that again.” Jaken chuckled, also remembering Kouga from before. “Mating the Queen will do that to you.” he snickered himself.
“But the letter said that Kouga was the Ookami no Taisho.” Kagome pointed out, mildly confused.
“Only on paper…” Inuyasha explained. “That’s a formality done out of respect for other youkai, most specious of which are all male-dominating. But everyone knows that with wolves, it’s the she-wolf who calls the shots in mated pairs.”
“So who would someone deal with if they were dealing with the North?” Kagome asked.
“Kouga…” Inuyasha and Jaken answered simultaneously, though Inuyasha added, “But he can’t make any real decisions without Ayame’s say-so, and amongst their own people, she’s the ruler.
“I guess I understand…” she muttered, still more or less wrapping her brain around the fact that Kouga and Ayame ruled the North at all, regardless of which one was technically above the other in rank.
“Lord Sesshoumaru has said that, as the subsequent Lord of the West, dealing with matters such as these falls under your jurisdiction.” Jaken explained.
“Keh, he just doesn’t want to go ‘cause he’s afraid they’ll tear into Kagura.”
“I’m not so sure that’s it…” Kagome spoke thoughtfully, “After all, it certainly seems as though they’re willing to leave the past in the past.” she considered, adding “I’m sure your brother doesn’t wish to make such a journey with their newborn, and also, don’t forget about Rin.” she whispered the girl’s name.
Inuyasha’s ears lowered as he grew slightly pale, “Oh yeah…” he muttered, shivering at the memory of when he’d been informed of the details surrounding the girl’s resurrection. He always had been curious, but when Sesshoumaru confided in him the reason for her death, he’d found a whole new reason to hate Kouga. Of course, he realized that that had been before they’d ever even met the guy, and he’d kept good on his word to not harm humans since then, even proceeding to save Rin’s life once. Still…he doubted Kouga even knew about that bit of ‘history’ between himself and the Inu no Taisho, pretty sure that their only concern regarding Sesshoumaru was Kagura’s ‘involvement’ with the tribe. Suddenly, just him and Kagome going alone was looking a whole lot better.
“I suppose you’re right…” Inuyasha finally added aloud, then smirking to cover up his discontentment, he asked sarcastically “We always did say we’d go check on the wimpy wolf, didn’t we?” closing off with a wink.
Kagome knew him well enough to not take his mood change at face value. He was just as good as her with plastering on a phony smile when the situation called for it, but when something bothered him, actually bothered him, it took him a while to fight off his demons, no pun intended. Kagome knew that hearing the poor girl had been chased through the woods by beasts, ripped to shreds, had reminded him of his own childhood. Mortal wolves would have been no threat to him, but he’d confided in her long ago the story of his early years, running for his life virtually his daily routine, going days without slept lest something find him and he never wake up.
Jaken, thankfully obvious to the suddenly despondent atmosphere of the room, happily took his leave after his duty to deliver the message had been fulfilled. Inuyasha sent Jaken on his way with the message that they would depart for the North without delay.
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“You got everything?”
“Let’s see…” Kagome replied, opening her backpack to be certain.
The trip North would be longer than one day, so they wanted to make sure they were fully prepared. Besides her arrows and bow, Kagome also carried good ol’ faithful, the yellow monstrosity simply having been too big a part of the family to be left behind when she stopped returning to the future. It was funny, she no longer even thought of that place as “her time” and this place “the past” but rather, the feudal era was her home, and the place the well used to lead to…that was the future. Still, she was not ashamed to cling to the certain creature comforts she had permitted herself to bring with her, a book of matches being an excellent example. Besides matches, and blankets, she had some dried meats, in case there was poor hunting along the way, plus two plastic bottles of clean water. Medical supplies were a given, along with changes of under clothes. At least neither she nor her men required changes in their entire ensemble, which saved a lot of room in her bag for other essentials, like more diapers. At first it had seemed funny to her, to nearly always wear the exact same outfit, day in and day out, but the material cleaned itself, and the clothes were never soiled or in need of changing. It didn’t take long for her to get used to the idea, and now, it was a convenience she cherished. One less thing to worry about among the daily chores. Aside from her own underwear, and temporarily, Kazuki’s diapers, she had no other laundry to wash! Sure, their clothes would need a good soaking were they to get covered in oh, say blood, but they hadn’t had a fight in quite some time now. The battle with Daikomaru was nearly five months ago, and Kagome seriously hoped that they wouldn’t see another enemy like that for a long, long time, if it was necessary to see one at all. She’d love nothing more than peace and quiet for the rest of their years, but somehow, still living in the “feudal era” didn’t make that seem all too likely. Still, she cherished the peaceful times they’d had so far, even all the more so, knowing that their tranquility could come to a stop at any time, without warning.
Securing her backpack and arrows upon her back, Kagome next secured little Kazuki in the carrier she wore across her front. It took a moment to get everyone situated, but after a bit, she got herself comfortable upon her mate’s back, Kazuki tucked securely between them, but not in danger of being crushed. Sliding her arm through her bow, she ensured the use of both hands to firmly grip Inuyasha’s shoulders, while her weapon rested across her back. Her quiver completely full, the backpack she wore next to it nearly bursting at the seems, the extra weight hardly seemed to phase her at all. Giving the signal that she was secured and ready, Inuyasha took off at an alarming rate. It wasn’t necessarily that he was in a hurry, but he was simply so much faster than he used to be, if he didn’t deliberately try to hinder his speed. Tilting her head to the side, in part to keep the wind from blinding her face, Kagome smiled when she spotted the “hawk” Shippo had become. He was rather plump for a hawk, and his wide, child eyes, made the bird look rather cartoony, in her opinion, but she had to hand it to the kid, he was fast. During their training, Inuyasha had slowly increased his speed, day by day, bit-by-bit, so that Shippo wouldn’t necessarily notice the deliberate increase, but be pushed that much more nonetheless. The results were rather impressive. Kagome was quite certain that no real bird could fly as quickly as he was, in order to keep up with them.
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H e was nervous, admittedly, but why shouldn’t he be? The last time he’d seen them was nearly two years ago, and the visit had only lasted for about ten minutes, as he apologized for the time before then, when he’d nearly captured and raped Kagome. How does one regain socializing status after a thing like that? “Hi there. I know I tried to kidnap your wife the last time we met, and you ran a sword through my gut, but never mind that. How have you been?” probably wasn’t gonna cut it.
Kouga had always thought he’d have to face them again, one day, when they came after his jewel shards, but that hadn’t happened, he sighed with dejection. He recalled all too vividly the day Kagura had decided to show up. It had surprised him that she merely defended herself, attacking not a single one of their people, save for himself, and even then, she barely left any flesh wounds, only doing what was necessary to cut the shards from his legs. Apparently, the wind sorceress had been telling the truth when she’d claimed that she had been under Naraku’s rule, and that most of the things she had done were under his orders and against her own wishes. The wolf-youkai had realized that Naraku had wanted them all dead, and that sparing them had in fact been against orders. He was actually surprised that Naraku hadn’t slain Kagura for her disobedience, but he supposed that since he himself had been slain not long after completing the jewel, that maybe he simply hadn’t had the opportunity. Then again, there were rumors regarding that sword Sesshoumaru carried…Whatever the case, Kagura was alive, and that was fortunate, Kouga decided.
He was no enemy of the West, and wasn’t planning on becoming one, either. True, he had been a personal enemy of Inuyasha, but hoped that he and the mutt--er…Lord, could put their differences behind them. Damn…that was gonna take some getting used to. But one thing was for sure, there was no way he’d be as stupid as the East, and dare even thinking about rising against the West in challenge. The Lady of the West alone could probably wipe out their entire pack, but if she needed help, her mate could probably fell them in his sleep. Sure, he was the Ookami no Taisho, but Kouga was not a Taiyoukai, and neither was Ayame. If Sesshoumaru wanted to, he could easily rise up against them, and capture the North. Not that he would, either, Kouga knew, since Sesshoumaru simply wasn’t that way. At least, not from what he’d heard. He never had to deal with any of that political stuff before. His family wasn’t the ruling family of the North, after all, Ayame’s was…but that was his family, now.
Truth be told, he was more concerned about somebody else rising up against them, which was one of the reasons why Ayame had sent out her introductions to the other compass lands, and extended invitation to the West. He wasn’t really concerned about the other two established domains. The East, in a way, was actually more vulnerable than themselves right for the time being, which was a good thing, for the North. He also knew the South wouldn’t rise; they were fairly peaceful, and their surrounding lands desolate, which was why nobody else ever bothered threatening them. No, Kouga’s main concern, and Ayame’s too, was some random youkai who thought he was strong enough to take them on. Someone who was really power hungry might even decide to try and take the North and the East, and then that would become a concern of the West. If they got in on the ground floor with establishing relations with the Inu clan, it would benefit everyone in the long run. He wanted an alliance. Not some stupid, save face, assess your weaknesses, alliance - like what the East had had with the West - but a genuine, honest, scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours, alliance. Yes, in a way, it was like conceding defeat, basically coming out and saying “If we’re in trouble, we’ll need your help!” But if he could word it right, then maybe he could get them to see that helping them would also be helping themselves. After all, wouldn’t you rather have somebody ruling your neighboring kingdom that you knew wasn’t a threat to yourself? If somebody ever concurred the wolves, then there’d be no telling what the West might be up against in the future. Kouga also knew that such an alliance would also mean that, were the West ever under attack once more, that he and his people would be required to come to their aid, too. His wolves might not be the strongest youkai in the world, but they weren’t weak, either, and also, there was strength in numbers. Sesshoumaru had fortunately not lost too many soldiers during Daikomaru’s raid, but he had been grossly outnumbered. If there was one area in which Kouga dominated, it was that the joint forces of both the remains of his own pack, as well as Ayame’s entire pack, by far made them the highest numbering domain by head count.
Now, with word that the wolves have detected their scents on the approach, he knew his time for hesitation was over. His thoughts had been running away with him as he waited, but now, the waiting was over. They were there.
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Entering wolf territory was like entering a room. The mortal wolves apparently knew the boundaries of their masters’ land, and did not venture beyond their borders, nor did the wolf youkai themselves seem to venture beyond their chosen realm. Their scent had been getting steadily stronger as the hanyou and his small family approached. Light, but distinguishable on the breeze nonetheless. But as soon as they crossed the designated border, however, it was literally like stepping through a doorway. Suddenly, the scent of wolf was everywhere. It would be truly disconcerting for someone who had ventured there by mistake. That was, assuming that person had a decent enough sense of smell to even warn them of something like that. Otherwise, they would probably be quite surprised to suddenly find themselves surrounded by wolves, as they themselves now were. However, it was clear that those wolves were there as guides, sent to offer safe passage into the heart of the den. One of them, the apparent leader select of that particular group, woofed softly in what they understood as a basic “Follow us.” Fortunately, the ookami native tongue was also fairly similar to the inu and kitsune languages. There was a difference in dialect, though, what could almost be considered having an accent; a concept that Kagome chuckled at quietly. Just how, exactly, did a bark have an accent compared to other barks? Good luck explaining that one to anybody else. She chuckled again. But the bottom line was that they understood, and Inuyasha had promptly barked back their compliance, as the wolves all turned and trotted toward the heart of the mountain. It was a good thing Kouga had sent guides, otherwise it would have taken Inuyasha forever to track them by scent alone. There were literally trails everywhere, and once they got to the maze of dens, Kouga and Ayame’s scents were actually indistinguishable amongst the other wolves, at least in such close quarters.
He was sure their scents had all pierced through the air like daggers, though, and he wasn’t wrong. Every single wolf, mortal and youkai alike, knew that they were there. But they also knew that they were there on invitation, so the hanyou and his pack received no hostilities, as most lower youkai simply went about their business, some pausing to bow briefly as they passed. Most of those wolves, they found, were actually Ayame’s pack-mates, and strangers to them. However, it didn’t take long for two wolves that they did know to seek them out.
“Sister!” a twin set of voices called in unison.
“Ginta! Hakkaku!” Kagome cried, happily accepting the hugs of greeting she received, careful not to crush Kazuki in the process, who also earned himself two playful hair ruffles as the wolves each pulled away.
Though Kouga had finally stopped pining over Kagome, and actually kept his word to Ayame, pleasing her grandfather, by mating the she-wolf and merging their tribes, he had announced at that time that Kagome was still to be considered an honorary member of the pack. Wolves were nothing without their honor, and when he’d vowed that she would forever be welcome among his people, he’d meant it. He had also kept his word that they would no longer harm humans. That was actually the only difficulty he’d had with the merge. His pack had never had a problem with it, considering they knew that he was courting the miko, and slaying humans would undoubtedly injure his chances of mating with the mortal girl. They all liked Kagome, and when he announced her continued sisterhood, it was clear that human meat would still forever remain off their diet. But Ayame’s tribe had taken no such vow, and had continued to hunt humans from time to time, raiding the occasional village…all the typical youkai stuff that he himself had once been guilty of doing. Kouga had actually put his foot down to Ayame, not as desperate for the union as she herself was, and had insisted that they must stop killing humans, forever, or he would not join her tribe. Ayame liked Kagome, once she realized that the miko’s heart had belonged to the hanyou, and that she did not encourage Kouga’s affections. If it were up to her, she would happily honor Kouga’s promise to the miko without question. She loved Kouga, and would have wanted to become his mate anyway, even if her grandfather was not pushing for the union. But since he was, she went to him with Kouga’s guidelines. After all, he would be the Ookami no Taisho once he passed, and ultimately, the decision would be made at that time, regardless, she skillfully informed her grandfather. Smiling the best smile his old canine muzzle could muster, the elder wolf, and ultimate decision maker, gave his personal word to Kouga that they would no longer harm human beings. At that assurance, the prince of the brown tribe officially joined with the heiress to the North, and their two packs were one.
That had later proven to be one of the smartest tactical moves the North had ever made, and the first actual decision as future Ookami no Taisho, that earned him a lot of respect among Ayame’s people. It was known that while the current Inu no Taisho had thought of consuming humans as “disgusting”, he had truly not cared much either way. A sort of “to each his own” point of view. But since then, his hanyou half-brother had been granted status as ruling partner, who was mated to a mortal woman, any future offspring of that union undoubtedly going to be three-quarters human. Also, Sesshoumaru himself had finally put rumors to rest regarding the true status of the human ward he himself had become known to care for, officially announcing her status as adopted pup, though not heiress. With as integrated as humans had become in the lives of the Inu clan, not hunting the species was suddenly critical. There was plenty of other food, after all.
Ginta and Hakkaku led Kagome and her boys toward the main cave, which would function as the conference/dinning room for the time being. They had heard rumor that she’d been pupped, and wasn’t surprised to see the whelp, but they also hadn’t missed the fact that the pup was half youkai, by scent, not one-quarter. However that was possible, they didn’t know, but they were also pretty sure that Inuyasha didn’t used to have youkai crests. Wisely, they figured all would be revealed in due time, and knew that it wasn’t their place to ask those sort of questions at the moment.
Shippo seemed nervous, at first, to be around so many ookami, considering how they had originally captured him along with Kagome when Kouga had first entered the picture, and how he’d nearly been eaten before Kagome had come to his rescue. But he shook it off, knowing that they’d be able to smell his unease, and also knowing that his parents would protect him. He surprised himself in that moment. Though little Shippo had been calling Kagome and Inuyasha mom and dad off and on for over a year by that point, he’d always truly thought of them as Kagome and Inuyasha in his mind. They were his adopted parents…he knew that, and loved them for it more than he figured they realized sometimes. But still, he’d always kept a special place in his heart for his real parents, knowing that his current guardians wouldn’t have had it any other way. Now, that was the first time that he could recall, that he’d honestly thought of the couple as his parents in his mind, as though no other adults had ever existed in his life prior to the hanyou and miko. Shippo knew he would never forget his biological family, but they were gone, and the kitsune knew that they’d want him to be happy. The first time he’d called Inuyasha “Otou” had been a genuine slip of the tongue, caught up in the feel of the father-son moment, but now, when he truly took a moment to think about it, he realized…Inuyasha was his father. Not his guardian, or his sensei, or his master, but a genuine, bonafide parent. Inuyasha was his real father, and Kagome was his real mother, and even though Kazuki was their first biological child, they had both made it openly clear that they considered him to be their first pup. If he weren’t currently surrounded by so many wolves, and forced to put up a brave front of strength and position, Shippo knew he would have broken down into tears right then and there. Happy tears.
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He’d thought he had been prepared, or at the very least, as prepared as possible given the circumstances. That was, however, quickly proven not to be the case. Sensing his two most loyal surviving members of the brown pack on the approach, Kouga knew their ‘company’ was with them, even before the scents of dog, human, and fox had reached his nose. But when they did, Kouga found himself doing a double-whiff, convinced his nose was playing tricks on him. The involuntary shivers he felt run down to the very core of his youki, however, quickly dispelled the hopeful delusion that he had been mistaken. The mutt was much more powerful than he’d been the last time they’d met…Kagome too…and why did he smell two hanyou? Besides Shippo - whom he had been somewhat certain would be joining them - he distinctly scented a fourth member of Inuyasha’s party. In truth, another pup had been expected, but something was very, very wrong… Definitely inu-hanyou, *sniff*… it smelled much like Inuyasha…*sniff*… with a mixture of Kagome thrown in. But, it could not be their pup, could it? A hanyou? A genuine half-breed, fifty-fifty? How was that even possible?
As nervous as he suddenly was, Kouga at least decided to find relative relief in the fact that Sesshoumaru’s party had not joined them, as well. The invitation was extended to all, and they could have ended up with their hands quite full, if everyone had decided to take them up on it. But Ayame had told him at the time of writing her notice that she’d suspected that Sesshoumaru and Kagura would more than likely respond with a polite decline to their offer. The messenger she’d sent to deliver the scrolls had returned from the West with word from the Taiyoukai that it would be Inuyasha, and his mate and pups, which would be making the journey, alone. The term ‘pups’, in plural, had not been lost on them, and while the ookami suspected that the kitsune orphan had been included in the count, the statement nonetheless confirmed the rumors they had heard regarding Kagome having become with-child. There were many rumors they’d heard regarding the Inu-tachi over the years, including foolish rubbish that Kagome was supposedly somehow from the future, but the rumors regarding her miko strength were paid close attention to. He was well aware of the defeat of Naraku, as were many, and rumor had had it that she’d even managed to summon youkai strength from her bond with which to purify Daikomaru. A feat even Midoriko would have had difficulty accomplishing. But the fall of the Tora no Taisho was fact, not rumor, and the Taiyoukai’s subsequent disappearance (in other words, the lack of a giant, monstrous corpse) made substantiating that particular rumor rather effortless. Tsukie made no attempt to hide the truth regarding her deceased mate’s foolhardy attempt at conquest, nor the strength of the miko whom she had had the opportunity to meet in person. In the tigress’ mind, she had no doubt to the truth of the tale, which, to that day, still circled the compass lands. The underlying word spread across the land was…Don’t fuck with the West.
Hence the purpose for today’s meeting…
“Welcome!” Kouga suddenly heard his mate bellow cheerfully, snapping him back into the here and now, only to grimly discover that everyone was standing directly before him, not ten feet away. He cringed in mild embarrassment, then recovering quickly, moved forward to greet his guests as well.