Chapter Text
Hanyou no Yashahime
Season 3
The invitation
The following morning, Setsuna was up early, as always. She gave a yawn and looked at her still sleeping twin, an almost reluctant smile spreading across her face as Towa let out a slight snore. Getting up, she headed to wash herself and dress, and in short order she was ready for the day. Outside she could hear the whistling in the air that sounded like someone practicing with a weapon, and she paused to pick up both her wakizashi and Yukari no Tachikiri before heading out into the cold early morning light. Wandering along one of the roads that led out of the village, she soon came across Hisui. She knew that the slayers had visited for the funeral a week ago, but had not known that Hisui had remained behind. Although he was a master at using the Hiraikotsu, a giant youkai bone boomerang that had been in his family for at least three generations, he was also proficient with his wakizashi. Many were made of iron or steel, but Hisui's was different, in that although the base of the blade was made of metal, molten youkai scales had been bonded to the sword to make it more unique. Setsuna watched for several minutes, silently noting his form and how he executed his moves. She noticed at least three times when his slices and cuts were badly timed, but he was still a capable opponent and certainly not one to be underestimated. Finally he ran down and sheathed his weapon in a single move, blowing out a heavy breath. Setsuna applauded, soon drawing his attention. For many males, finding out they had just been observed in practicing with their weaponry would be some cause for embarrasment, but Hisui simply inclined his head respectfully towards her. Whilst it was true he had quite a crush on her, he was also very good at hiding how he felt. So far, Setsuna was unaware of how Hisui felt towards her, and viewed the older slayer as a good friend and nothing more, although she had wondered as to the nature of their friendship. She approached her comrade.
"You were doing quite a good job practicing."
Hisui shrugged as he turned to face her fully.
"Thank you. I've still got a way to go before I'm quite as good as some others."
"Are the other slayers back as well?"
"No, they joined Uncle Kohaku in the far north near the sea. A rock dragon is proving quite difficult to defeat after there was an earthquake."
"Perhaps you should ask my uncle or even my father for help. Both have terrific weapons to use. Maybe I could join in now that I have my new weapon."
Hisui shook his head and indicated the horizon. Not too far above where the sun would be was a thin crescent moon. Realisation dawned on Setsuna; in just two days, she would lose her yoki for the night, and in her case, become very susceptible to the cold as well. She bit at her lip and pondered what to do out loud.
"Well even if we took Kirara and we didn't have a time to be there, I think the place you mean is a long way off. Perhaps we should try something more local that we could do in one day."
Setsuna rubbed her chin thoughtfully before an idea struck her. She drew her wakizashi and smiled lightly at Hisui.
"I promise I'll be gentle on you."
Hisui shook his head as he drew his own weapon once again.
"You shouldn't hold back."
"Very well then, I won't."
Pirouetting on her toes, Setsuna launched a violent upward slash at Hisui. However, the older teen appeared to have seen her very move coming before she even launched it, and managed to not just avoid the blow, but also slapped the flat of his blade against hers, catching her totally off guard and causing her to lose her balance, leaving her looking shocked. She fell unceremoniously onto the ground, and felt a rueful smile break across her features as Hisui lowered his weapon and held a hand out to her. She was pulled up, silently noting how firm his grip was, and shook her head.
"I... didn't quite believe that was possible. I must be too used to the Yukari no Tachikiri."
"I can help to train you more if you like, Setsuna."
Inclining her head respectfully to her comrade in arms, Setsuna began to copy the motions made by the slayer. For at least an hour, the two drilled without pause, until finally Setsuna was able to copy his movements without flaw. By the time the two were finished with their practice, both were tired, hungry, thirsty and feeling very keen to change into something else. Setsuna blew out a long sigh.
"I haven't practiced quite as much as I should have been. Shall we get something to eat?"
Hisui nodded and gestured towards a hut nearby, one that Setsuna soon recognised as his temporary home. The fire pit in the centre of the main room was deeper than most, and full of broken pieces of dried wood. Oddly enough, four pieces of metal framed the outside of the fire pit. Pouring some water into a metal pot, Hisui soon had the fire going and the water heating up. Setsuna sat down, leaning against the wall as she exhaled, already feeling her strength returning to her. She slowly turned her attention fully onto her older friend.
"Say, Hisui?"
Hisui looked up as he ladled rice into the pot of boiling water.
"Yes?"
"What will you do now with Princess Aiya? Will you stop being a slayer and go to live with her?"
Hisui twitched, but spoke up anyway.
"I'm... well, no. I'm not in love with her, if that's what you think."
Setsuna blinked, surprised by his declaration.
"Really? But she's rich, young, pretty, and she seems very much in love with you. You did save her, twice, if what I heard is right. If you asked her father for her hand in marriage, then he'd almost certainly agree."
Hisui shook his head.
"I don't think that the princess is the one for me."
His indigo eyes briefly found Setsuna's, and the two locked gazes for a second before she looked away. After several minutes, Setsuna spoke up again.
"What if I was to help you get her attention?"
"You mean, get the princess to fall in love with me even more?"
"Exactly."
Hisui shook his head as he cracked a couple of eggs into a crude pan and set it over the fire to cook.
"If I did marry the princess, well, even with her money and lands and company, I wouldn't be happy. She's a nice girl but, well, not the one for me. I think I'm in love with someone else."
Setsuna began to fidget with her mokomoko, suddenly feeling warm for reasons she couldn't explain.
"Are you perhaps..."
She gulped and looked at Hisui as their food was nearly ready. Hisui picked up two bowls and placed them to one side when suddenly Setsuna began to growl and stormed over to the entrance.
"Moroha!"
Snickering, the shihanyou girl grinned at her cousin.
"Hey, you should be happy to see me! I got some good news for all of us, you too Hisui!"
Setsuna grabbed her rambunctious cousin by the collar of her Fire Rat Robe.
"And what is this news?"
"We've all been invited to see the wolf tribe whenever we like! My foster parents sent me a message! They suggested that it should..."
"I'm not interested in that kind of stuff."
Releasing her cousin, Setsuna turned and began to return to the hut when the scent of salt and moisture came to her on the crisp morning air. A little surprised, Setsuna turned to see Moroha looking shocked and tearful. She had lost count of the number of times Towa had been emotional in her presence, but Moroha was almost as hardened a persona as she was, and the only times she had witnessed her crying was during her reunion with her mother and father and the death of her mentor Yawaragi, although she also knew that Moroha had shed tears when she had been killed by Kirinmaru. Belatedly, she realised that Moroha had been raised by the wolf tribe just as much as she had been raised by the kind bat hanyou Shiori, and that although she was with her blood family now, she must retain great affection for the ones who had loved and protected her for the last fifteen years. Her stern expression melted as tears fell from Moroha's eyes, an expression of pain on her features.
"I thought... I was more to you... than this, Setsuna."
"Look, I didn't say you weren't. It's just..."
Moroha snapped at her. For a split second, her eyes looked as if they were the gold hue they turned when she became Beniyasha.
"Forget it! I don't want you to come to the wolf tribe with me! In fact, I don't want you around me!"
She ran off into the village, still crying. Setsuna was about to give chase when Hisui came out of his hut and put a hand on her shoulder.
"Don't go chasing after her, not yet. You'll make her more upset. Come on, have something to eat."
Setsuna gave a deep sigh and followed Hisui back into the hut, and picked up the bowl of egg and rice he handed her. She ate quietly, and Hisui made no effort to talk until the hanyou girl had finished her breakfast. Setting aside his empty bowl, he looked at Setsuna until she finally returned his look.
"I can't believe I said that to her. Moroha wasn't obsessed with finding her parents, but when she did, she was crying out of sheer joy, and I was really happy for her. I should have thought more about what to say. It was, well, it was tactless of me to say that I didn't care about meeting her foster parents."
Hisui nodded slowly.
"You regret saying that to her?"
"Yes, of course I do."
"Do you really want to go and meet them?"
"I'm, well, I'm not certain. I think I'd feel left out if I was the only one not allowed to go."
"What you should do is this. Do you know her favourite foods?"
"Moroha will eat pretty much anything. But I do know she really likes that meat called pork."
Hisui thought hard.
"I have a job to go to in three days. Come with me, we'll split the reward, then you can buy Moroha some of that and try to make up with her then. I can try to ask if they want it done sooner rather than later if you want to risk doing it before new moon."
Setsuna nodded, her face set.
"Please do. I want to make up for my mistake."
"I'll send a carrier pigeon then. Go and tell Inuyasha and Kagome what happened, but if Moroha's there, don't go in. If she's with her parents, try and find Towa or Riku."
Thanking the slayer for his advice, Setsuna set out across the village. Sniffing the air, she soon discovered that Moroha was not in her parent's home. She walked up to the large hut and nearly collided with her aunt as she walked around the corner with a woven basket of damp clothing. Kagome quickly recovered herself and smiled at her niece, but soon gathered something was wrong.
"What's happened, Setsuna? You look very down."
In as few words as possible, Setsuna explained what had happened with her rash putdown to Moroha. Kagome was silent as she related the incident, then looked thoughtful before gesturing for her to follow her. As she placed the clothes out to dry, she began to talk to her.
"Well I can tell it really wasn't anything done on purpose. You were probably talking about something important. But what I think you should do is this; let me and Inuyasha know when you leave to go on this hunt. When you're due to come back, let us know again, and I'll get Inuyasha to take Moroha on a hunt. When they get back, you will be here and you can apologise to her then. Alright?"
Setsuna mentally reviewed Kagome's plan and nodded slowly. She quietly worked alongside her, and in short order all of the washing was hung out to dry. Kagome picked up her basket and turned to look at Setsuna, who still appeared troubled.
"Try not to think of it too much. We'll have this sorted out soon."
Quite unexpectedly, Inuyasha emerged from inside his home, casually sniffing the air and looking unsurprised to see only Setsuna present.
"You got an early start again today. I think your sister's still asleep."
Setsuna's eyes widened slightly, but soon a small smile spread across her features.
"I suppose I should have guessed that she would be."
She walked inside the hut and entered the small room she and Towa shared. Sure enough, her twin was still asleep. Outside, she could casually hear Kagome filling Inuyasha in on the plan to mend the rift between Moroha and Setsuna. She returned her attention to her sister and smiled as she woke up. Towa blearily smiled in return before giving a large yawn.
"Morning, big sister."
Towa blinked owlishly a few times before stretching and sitting up.
"Have you been up for hours already, training away?"
Setsuna shrugged and was about to say she had been training with Hisui when she tensed. Outside, she could hear that Moroha had come back, still sounding upset and bringing the scent of frustration, hurt and tears with her. Both parents tried to speak to their daughter, but Moroha simply sniffed loudly and walked inside. She paused and then turned and left again, having picked up Setsuna's scent inside the house. Towa looked in askance at her sister.
"What's happened? Moroha seems to be upset, I could smell her crying."
Sighing, Setsuna explained how she had upset their cousin unintentionally and that she was going to try to mend the damage she had caused. Towa listened quietly, nodding as her sister related the tale to her. Finally she spoke up.
"You're doing the right thing by trying to make up with her, Setsuna. I just hope..."
She paused as she sniffed the air. Although not quite as adept as her sister was, she could still identify certain people. Soon, she turned to the hanging curtain and and brushed it back.
"Hisui's here. Are you going on a mission together?"
"Yes, I should be done with it by the end of the day if we go today. If it's tomorrow, it becomes a bit trickier, because I'll have to finish before nightfall. New moon."
Nodding, Towa got up and followed her sister out of their room to where Hisui was talking with Kagome and Inuyasha. She greeted the slayer politely before turning back inside to get cleaned up. Hisui inclined his head respectfully to Setsuna's aunt and uncle before holding up a piece of paper.
"We're in luck, they are keen for this problem to be sorted soon. If we go now, we can arrive by midday, track and slay the youkai that's causing the trouble by late afternoon, and be back here by dark. Are you ready, Setsuna?"
Affirming that she was, Setsuna bade farewell to her relatives and soon made her way across the village. However, just as they were leaving the village, a thought crossed the mind of the hanyou slayer. Her father's draconic steed Ah-Un was grazing in the very next field. Using the twin-headed dragon, they could both shave off their travel time and have serious backup if things went sour. Although not especially close to the dragon, Kagome had told her of how Ah-Un had destroyed many zombie soldiers in a huge battle before she was born and had not seemed at all affected by the exertion. Also, simply by dint of being chosen by Sesshoumaru himself spoke to the fact that the dragon was no pushover. Setsuna nudged Hisui and they both headed towards the grazing dragon.
Minutes later, Hisui, Setsuna and Ah-Un were heading towards their destination. Persuading Ah-Un to co-operate had been easier done than said, as he had a docile nature and a deep bond with her mother. Following the fire that had separated her from Towa, she had ridden Ah-Un to Shiori's village. After perhaps twenty minutes of flight, they arrived at a small town that certainly looked as if it had been experiencing youkai related trouble. As they descended towards the town, four oni lumbered out of the woods. Setsuna elegantly leapt off Ah-Un's back and held her naginata ready. However, before she could begin her charge to engage the enemy, Ah-Un roared and shot lightning at the lumbering foes, turning them to ash in seconds. Hisui dismounted the dragon in surprise and caressed the back of his heads. Setsuna shook her head in surprise as several townfolk approached.
"You're the slayers we asked for?"
"Never seen a battle like that."
"Didn't waste any time at all!"
The people cheered wholeheartedly for their saviours. Hisui quietly sent the carrier pigeon he had brought with him back to Inuyasha, asking him to take Moroha on a hunt so they could return unhindered. Setsuna took the praise in her stride, although she did crack a smile or two for the children. Soon the town leader approached, carrying a bag of money.
"We cannot thank you enough. Will this be enough?"
Hisui took the bag of money, weighed it quietly, then removed roughly half of the coins and passed them back to the surprised looking leader.
"There is one thing we would like."
"What will it be? Silks? Spices? Jewelry?"
Glancing at Setsuna, who was being bombarded with questions by a young girl aged about 9 or 10, he relayed their request.
It was approaching sunset as the trio returned to Kaede's village. To the south, they could glimpse Inuyasha running with Moroha in hot pursuit. Taking the hint, Setsuna quietly urged Ah-Un to fly lower to avoid detection. Soon, they landed outside Hisui's hut, and took the time to thank and feed Ah-Un, although the dragon was purely herbivorous and would only eat plant matter. He eyed Setsuna and Hisui steadily, licked both of them with affection, and strode off towards the fields to the north of the village. Hisui smiled and rubbed off the dragon's saliva.
"Well, that was easier than we thought. We should take Ah-Un with us on more slaying missions."
Setsuna examined her reward, a large sack of wrapped meat. The town had indeed had pigs as livestock, and had agreed quite readily to giving her the best cuts of meat from one they had recently killed as her half of the reward. She thanked Hisui warmly and hefted it up and strode towards her aunt's hut, feeling unusually nervous. Unseen by the hanyou girl, Hisui smiled at her as she departed.
As she neared home, Moroha was feeling tense, worried and still saddened by Setsuna's reaction to the invitation earlier in the day. She had failed to catch so much as a rabbit in her hunt with her father, which only served to sour her mood further. Her mind drifted to the incident that morning, and she scowled as she trudged along after her father. Koga and Ayame, the two leaders of the tribe of wolves, had raised her as if she was their own daughter until she was ten, although two male wolves who acted as Koga's lieutenants had taught her how to run, fight and spar bare-handed. Her thinned blood had been a taboo subject until Ayame had explained where she had come from on her fifth birthday, which had also been when Hachiemon had visited, bringing her incredibly rare Fire Rat Robe clothing. It had reacted to her weak yoki by not growing the way Inuyasha's had, and left her exposed but never too cold. By the time she passed her tenth birthday, a relative of Ayame's had volunteered to train her using her rouge. Yawaragi had not held back in her training methods, but it had been selling her to Jyubei that had stung. As she came to a stop in the fading light, Inuyasha paused and rejoined her. His nose twitched as he rejoined his daughter.
"Hey, whatcha thinkin' of?"
Moroha sighed.
"Lots of stuff, dad. The fights with Kirinmaru and Zero, not knowing where you'd been for so long, the death of Rion, finally overcoming everything, Kaede dying and this fight with Setsuna today."
Inuyasha ruffled his daughter's hair, drawing a light smile from her as she looked up at him.
"Myoga came by this morning, said he's gonna talk to Hosenki about this jewel Towa and Riku found. Perhaps we'll get some answers. Anyway, who was Rion?"
"She was Kirinmaru's daughter. She lived in a kind of, well, a shell form."
"Yeah? I once... knew someone who did that. Was she killed in a fight or something?"
"Towa wasn't really clear about it. Said something about haku and kon."
Inuyasha sighed as he turned back towards the village.
"Soon as Myoga gets back, I'm gonna try and get you to Totosai so you can have your blood sealed. Something nasty can happen when you get backed into a corner during a fight, and if you fall asleep for a whole day afterwards, it could be real messy."
Moroha fell into step beside her father, her hand wrapping around his. Inuyasha looked at his daughter and gave a smile, and the two walked in relative silence back to the village. By the time they were a quarter mile from their home, Moroha's nose twitched, smelling the cooking meat over the fire. Her eyes shone, and she pulled her father along behind her as she broke into a run. She brushed aside the hanging mat that would soon be replaced by a proper door and froze upon seeing Setsuna tending to the roasting pork. Her cousin looked up at her, her expression apologetic.
"Moroha, I'm really sorry for this morning."
The shihanyou girl said nothing as she freed herself from her father's grip and walked straight past her and into her room. She laid down on her futon and wrestled with herself about what to do. On one hand, she wanted to give Setsuna a piece of her mind until her dark-haired hanyou cousin was practically begging for her forgiveness. Her foster family had meant the world to her when she was little, and to be shot down, however unintentionally, stung terrifically. On the other, she wanted to forgive her and show her everything in the mountains where the wolves lived. The scent of the succulent meat cooking in the main room was urging her towards the latter choice, and she remained silent as Towa, Riku, Inuyasha, Kagome and Setsuna all tried to get her to talk. After an hour of waiting for the food to cook, Kagome finally announced to her daughter that it was time to eat. Moroha ventured out and joined her family and Riku, silently holding her bowl out for a portion of the meat. Kagome sliced off a large piece and placed it in her daughter's dish, and Moroha gave an indistinct grunt before choosing to forgo the chopsticks and picking the meat up by hand and taking the time to enjoy the rich flavour. The others ate in relative silence, and when Moroha held her bowl out for a second helping, her mother wasted no time in giving her what she wanted. As she ate, she found her eyes flickering to Setsuna more and more. Although far less demonstrative than her twin, Setsuna was hardly an ice queen. It dawned on Moroha more and more that her cousin genuinely was sorry, and when she finished her food, she got up and embraced Setsuna from behind.
"Guess we all make mistakes. Alright, no hard feelings."
Setsuna gave a half smile as her cousin embraced her with greasy hands. She got up and let her embrace her properly before speaking up.
"S-so when is the invitation for?"
"Koga said that before winter sets in is good. If we left in a couple of weeks we could stay awhile and still get back in good time. Not sure about you, but I think there's a funny smell in the air lately."
"You think we'll have a hard winter?"
"It's difficult to say. But yes. Do you feel it too, dad?"
Inuyasha nodded slowly.
"Yeah, I've felt it before. I guess I'll need your help more than I thought to get the house renovated before the snow sets in. Can you help tomorrow, Setsuna, Towa?"
Both twins affirmed that they could, with Riku offering his own assistance. As Inuyasha and Kagome began to clear away after their evening meal, Setsuna and Moroha ventured outside to talk a little more. By now it was properly dark, and there was no moon in the sky. The bright evening star was just above the distant hillside, and Setsuna squinted as she looked at it.
"I never quite noticed that that star looks like a tiny crescent moon before. I'm glad we patched things up between us."
Moroha looked up at the bright star and shrugged.
"I probably was about to walk in on you and Hisui when..."
Setsuna whirled around, a definite red blush suffusing her cheeks.
"N-no! There's nothing going on between us! Hisui's a really strong and really reliable friend."
Moroha smiled but let her cousin's denial stand. After quickly washing her hands in the stream near Kaede's former hut, she returned to her home and joined her family around the fire.
Some distance away, Myoga finished describing the gem Riku and Towa had found, along with Riku's belief it was one of the few remaining Meidou Stones. Hosenki pondered, scratching his chin.
"And they say the stone itself is cracked?"
"Indeed, Hosenki. It may no longer work at all. You should visit them soon and find out all you can about it."
"I will, I can be there by tomorrow."
Myoga hopped outside and was soon on the back of a bird, returning to Inuyasha's village at speed.