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Hanyou Wars	By : inumom Category: InuYasha > Het - Male/Female > InuYasha/Kagome Views: 3736 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.

Chapter List
- 5
- 6
- 7
Disclaimer: As much as I hate to say it, they�re not mine�.yet.

6. The Long Hot Spring

Although they both had some slight reservations about whether or not the well would accept Takara as family, they were only passing concerns--if the well would let the people they had traveled with on their search for the Shikon no Tama through, there was no reason to think that it would deny the child entrance into Kagome�s home world. In point of fact, the transition was made without incident: once the strange blue light faded away, the three stood on the bottom of the well looking up at the wooden roof of the Higurashi shrine�s well house.
The child�s ears twitched in surprise as he wrinkled his nose at the twenty-first century smells that the older hanyou had learned to at least partly ignore. �It stinks here,� he grumbled.
With a wry glance at her mate, Kagome shook her head. �Sorry. It�s because there are so many people and so many machines in a really small area. I hope you can get used to it.�
Instantly sorry that he had insulted what was apparently her home, Takara flattened his ears to his head, looking decidedly uncomfortable. �Sorry. I didn�t mean anything by it.�
The woman reached up to take the hand her mate extended down into the well. �I know you didn�t. Just between us, it takes me a while to get used to it when I come back here--and this is where I grew up.�
Refusing any help, the child scrambled up the ladder leading to the top of the well. Once he joined the adults at the top, they led him from the well house. As they stood in the small courtyard in the middle of the shrine, the boy�s ears twitched rapidly in every direction as he tried to catch and understand all of the thousands of noises common to the modern era. From their vantage point at the top of the shrine complex, he looked out over the city. �What is all that?�
Kagome smiled indulgently. �That�s a city. That�s how most people live in my world.�

�But--where do they grow their food?�
She got them started in the direction of the house while she explained. �Most people don�t grow their own food any more. Most people don�t hunt, either. Instead, there are huge farms outside the cities where small numbers of people grow food that they send to the cities to feed the rest. Most meat is raised on farms, too, and people have actually worked out ways to farm fish in the rivers and oceans.�
Opening the door, she removed her shoes, calling out to anyone who might be home. When there was no answer, she searched through the kitchen, finding a note from her mother explaining that she had gone to the market for a little extra food for tonight�s dinner and that she would be back soon. Since no one else seemed to be around, she decided that it would probably be simplest to just give the child a quick tour of the premises.

*

The tour progressed smoothly as they went quickly through the house. Even though Takara had to have been confused by the normal furnishings of a twenty-first century residence, he made no sign. She briefly wondered if this was in fact a hanyou characteristic--something to do with being unable to show any signs of weakness to a potential enemy, or something like that. She supposed that the supreme self-confidence the child shared with her mate might have some survival value: perhaps an enemy would be cautious enough to make a fatal mistake--or even refuse to fight at all--in the face of that kind of attitude.
The situation began to unravel when she led them into the shrine itself. As she was explaining what she knew of the history of the family�s shrine, a small, grey-haired human male emerged from the nearby storage room and was taking in the scene with wide eyes. This, he thought, was why he had tried to discourage his granddaughter from mating the hanyou--how could she be bringing youkai into the shrine itself?
Moving forward as quickly as his aged body would allow, he reached into his kimono and threw a seal at the small, ebony-haired figure standing next to the human woman. �Demon begone!� he cried.
Reading the child�s reactions almost before he himself felt them, the adult hanyou leapt forward, snarling. He cornered the old man in the shrine, claws poised to strike--
�No! He doesn�t understand!�
Turning, Inuyasha saw his mate kneeling on the floor, arms wrapped around the shivering child. Turning his back on his prey with studied indifference, he returned to the pair. �Are you all right?�
Kagome nodded. �I think so.� She turned her attention to the old man still standing in shock on the other side of the shrine. �How could you, Jiichan?!? He�s just a little boy!� She was nearly trembling with anger, her normally gentle aura seeming to expand in her rage.
The old man took a closer look, horrified to see that his granddaughter was in fact correct: the demon he had thought had invaded the shrine was nothing more than a frightened child. Sinking to his knees, he whispered, �Forgive me�.�
Her voice was still hard, although her expression had already started to soften slightly. �Didn�t Mama tell you? This is Takara--we found him in the forest after he escaped from slavers who capture and sell hanyou children. He�s been staying with us while he heals. In time, I hope that he�ll be able to lead us to the people who hurt him. For now, though, I�m just glad that he�s agreed to stay with us for a while.�
�I didn�t know--I looked in here and saw him, and I could see that he wasn�t human. All I could think of was that the shrine was being invaded�.�
The adult hanyou shook his head, seeing that the boy had calmed down somewhat once he realized that the seal hadn�t actually hurt him. �Forget it, Jiji. There�s no real harm done. Where are the others?�
Still contrite, the old priest gestured at the gate leading to the outside of the shrine. �They went to the market--I expect they�ll be back any time. Go inside. I�ll tell them you�re here when they get home.�

*

After the combination of the hundreds of new things assaulting his senses and the confrontation in the shrine, the boy was beginning to show signs of stress--eyes darting around, ears twitching erratically, he began to fidget until Kagome noticed his growing distress and led her two hanyou companions outside to the Goshinboku. She gestured at a bench at the base of the sacred tree, but her mate had other ideas. Grabbing the human woman and the hanyou child in a tight grip, he leaped up into the tree, jumping from branch to branch until he found a spot to his liking. Settling back against the massive bole, he pulled his mate into his lap before pulling the boy against them, locking the two firmly against his body in a gentle but unbreakable embrace.
With a light rub to the child�s silky canine ears, Kagome shook her head. �I�m sorry, Takara--I didn�t realize that it would be so overwhelming for you.�
�Feh!� the adult hanyou snorted into her hair. �It didn�t bother me!�
She raised an eyebrow in mock disdain. �That�s because all you cared about was getting your precious shard detector back.�
�Damn straight!�
Takara looked from one to the other with something between confusion and surprise. Their words were harsh, almost abusive, but the pair�s scents, tones of voice, and body language all told a very different story. Rather than a serious battle for dominance, it seemed as though he was watching the telling of a favorite story, or the recollection of a cherished memory.
Inhaling deeply, the boy whispered, �Somebody�s coming.�
Deciding to turn the moment into a lesson, Inuyasha just nodded. �Who is it?� As the child�s eyes flickered toward the open area beneath the tree, the adult hanyou continued, �Don�t look. What the hell�s the good of having an inuhanyou nose if you don�t use it? Now,� he said, his tone softening just the slightest bit, �What do you smell?�
Closing his eyes, Takara inhaled deeply a few times. �There are two of them--no, three--all human. One of them is the old man from before. There�s a female,� he continued, glancing at the woman in whose lap he rested. �She�s older than you are, but still young enough to bear pups. The other one is a male. He�s physically mature, but still young: he hasn�t mated yet. Their scents are a lot alike, but I don�t think either of the males is the female�s mate--they smell alike, but their scents aren�t all over each other. Not the way yours are.�
While the silver-haired hanyou nodded in approval, Kagome explained the nature of her relationships with each of the others. With a regretful look at her mate, Kagome sighed and said, �I guess we should get down there. We still have to get to our appointment this afternoon.�
The child�s ears flattened momentarily. �You�re leaving me here?�
Kagome nodded slowly, a shadow falling across her normally cheerful features. �Just for a little while. We had to come here to consult with a�healer, so we thought that you could visit with my family in the meantime.�
At the mention of a healer, the boy�s attention focused sharply. �Are you sick?�
The shadows in her eyes deepened. �No, I�m not sick.� She sighed, trying to decide exactly how much of the situation the boy would be able to understand. �We�ve been mated for several years now, and haven�t been able to have a pup. It seems that it takes help from very advanced healers for a hanyou to become a parent. We�ll have to be coming here for treatments for a while.�
Takara looked form one to the other. �Why?�
The adult hanyou blinked. �Why what?�
�Why would you want to have pups? Do you really think it�s a good idea to create more things like us?�
She frowned thoughtfully before answering. �I think,� she said with a meaningful glance at her mate, �That people like you are the single best hope for a final, lasting peace between humans and youkai. Neither side believes it, but each seems to have qualities that the other lacks--joining the two only makes sense.�
Rather than waste further time on theories and idle speculation, the silver-haired hanyou grabbed his two charges and rolled negligently off the branch, landing in a crouch beneath the tree so lightly that they never felt the jolt. Looking at the human figures before her, Kagome said, �Mama, Souta--don�t turn around until I finish.� The three stood slowly, the child in the middle, hands clasped tightly. �We have Takara with us, and he�s still a little nervous. He�s already had one bad scare today, and I don�t want it to happen again.� With a deep breath, she continued, �Okay. You can turn around now.�
They turned slowly, not wishing to frighten their guest. For his part, the hanyou boy began to relax slightly, as he realized that there was neither hostility nor fear in the scents of the people before him. The woman set down her bags and got down on one knee, holding out a hand in an attempt to convince the child that she posed no threat. Her voice was soft, her words calming as she tried to coax the boy into taking even a single step away from his protectors.
�Takara? I�m Kagome�s mother. You�re safe here.�
The boy took a careful sniff in her direction, followed by a tentative step. He paused for a moment, until a reassuring growl from the adult hanyou convinced him that these humans at least were indeed as harmless as they smelled.
With a flicker of her eyes at the inuhanyou pair, the older woman turned to her daughter. �You have a little time before your appointment--why not come inside for something to eat?� With a glance at the child, she continued, �I have something inside that I bet you�re going to like.�
By the time they were finished with the quick lunch of instant ramen, the human inhabitants of the shrine knew that they had made a new friend. As Souta disappeared outside with the hanyou boy and a soccer ball, the older woman turned to her daughter. �I think he�ll be fine here for a few hours. Do you mind if I give him a few cookies later on? He�s so thin.�
Kagome sighed. �I know. His mother died when he was born, that the people in her village didn�t give a damn whether he lived or died, so he left there when he was four or five. He lived by himself in the wilds for a couple of years, until the slavers caught him. They only fed him enough to keep him from dying, not enough to keep him in good health. I think it�s going to be a long road back for him, but I also think we�ll be able to get him there if he decides to stay with us for a while.� Glancing up at the clock on the wall, she grabbed her mate by the hand. �If we�re going to get to our appointment, we have to be leaving now.�
Determined to find a solution to the problem of hanyou infertility, he nodded silently and followed her from the room.

*

This time, they each knew what to expect from the appointment. After checking in, they were separated and taken to different rooms within the clinic interior. The hanyou glared at the little plastic cup he had been given and reached into the pocket of his jeans, pulling out the little paper bag his mate had given him on the way there with the explanation that it would �help make things easier.�
He smirked a little as he opened the bag, removing a sealed plastic bag of the kind the humans in this world used to store food. For the life of him, he couldn�t imagine how a plastic bag could help make the process any easier. Opening the bag, he got his answer as the intoxicating fragrance surrounded him like a warm blanket. With a much softer smile he reached into the bag and extracted a small scrap of lace-trimmed silk--the undergarment his mate had been wearing earlier that very day.
Just maybe, he thought, this wouldn�t be so tough after all�.

*

The two sat under the Goshinboku, watching the two youngsters playing a sort of one-on-one version of soccer. Although Souta, at sixteen, was much larger than the hanyou child, Takara�s natural speed and agility--in spite of his debilitated condition--made them more evenly matched.
The woman sitting there looked up at the young man next to her. �Did it help at all?�
He grinned broadly. �Didn�t you notice? It didn�t take nearly as long as last time.� He shifted uneasily on the bench. �Damn. I wish they could find someplace else to put their medicine.�
�Still,� she said, resting a hand on his arm, �It was pretty good news, wasn�t it?�
He nodded absently, pulling her tighter against himself. �If you say so. I didn�t really understand most of what she said.�
She laughed softly. �Neither did I, but I got enough of it so I can explain it in more detail. It seems that the medicine they gave you last week is starting to work already--you�re making more live sperm than can be accounted for by the time of year. Since your heat cycle won�t be coming on for several weeks yet, it wouldn�t normally be as high as it is right now without the drugs.� She sighed, leaning against him. �I�m just sorry that we�ll have to give up our cycle this year.�
He surprised her by his reaction. He shrugged, running his thumb lightly over the mark on her shoulder. �No matter, love,� he whispered, his voice taking on the rough, slightly deeper tone that indicated a growing level of desire. �I�m sure we can think of plenty of things to do both before and after my cycle--and even if we can�t mate, I think I can find other ways to satisfy you.�
She shivered in the chilly late afternoon breeze, and decided that she was actually looking forward to learning exactly what her inventive mate was planning. �Maybe,� she said, reaching up to run a fingertip lightly along the edge of a fur-covered triangular ear, �We should think about getting home.�
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Hanyou Wars