May 2008
Title:How It Could Have Been; ch 73, Special Needs
Author:petalears
Universe:AU
Rating:PG
Summary: Settling differences.
Quote:"I know how men in exile feed on dreams of hope." - Aeschylus, 525-456 BC.
Special Needs
Sesshoumaru of course knew when his brother returned and had prepared himself to apologise when Inuyasha came to him. He was not prepared however for the very firm knock on the shoji door signifying that his father wanted to speak with him first. Inu no Taishou informed his eldest pup of the choices he’d given Inuyasha and of the boy’s reply, he also told Sesshoumaru of his own promise to Chouko and Kaoru. He was also pleased with the response; his pup’s heart rate had rocketed with alarm, which meant that Sesshoumaru was by no means blasé at the threat of discipline, and he was not hardened to his father’s displeasure.
Then the father left as he recognised his second son’s signature youki outside of the door and he met Inuyasha with a smile. The small hanyou however looked serious and said that he had changed his mind about seeing Sesshoumaru yet, he wanted to wait until later. Inu no Taishou said that that was his prerogative; Sesshoumaru would wait in his room until his brother was ready to see him. Inuyasha had been fine, just wanting to see his brother and make sure that everything was alright, but suddenly he felt very angry and the feeling shook him.
Sesshoumaru though felt worse, he’d overheard Inuyasha and felt his brother move away; he’d not considered that Inuyasha would ever refuse to see him and his heart ached. Did Inuyasha no longer think that Sesshoumaru was his best friend because of his jealous behaviour? His youkai almost howled in desperation; another unusual occurrence, but Sesshoumaru was not thinking straight, he had allowed his envy to get out of his control and he had hurt his precious brother.
Inuyasha was left to ponder on his own anger and what to do about it. He had already asked his father not to punish the older boy and at the time he meant it, but now for some inexplicable reason he felt that Shu had been let off too easily. All he now knew was that he had enough resentment to want to hit Sesshoumaru himself. Inuyasha’s ears twitched in annoyance and he could still feel the twinges from the bruising which wound him up even more, and psyched him up enough to go and see Sesshoumaru.
When he was called on to enter, Inuyasha walked in and straight up to his older brother and quick as a flash he punched Sesshoumaru on the jaw. The older boy was astounded, the punch hadn’t hurt him but the audacity was astonishing and he looked with fury on the smaller pup, whose clenched fist was now down at his side. Identical eyes burning with identical anger glared back at him; completely unafraid, because even though Inuyasha knew that his brother was far more powerful than he was, he knew that his Shu would never harm him.
But Inuyasha was not used to harbouring such anger and after striking his blow, he quickly deflated feeling close to tears, but he didn’t cry; he just kept staring at his brother, waiting. Sesshoumaru was still slightly shocked by his brother’s attack, apart from remembering that he had no right to be angry at Inuyasha when he was supposed to be apologising. But Inuyasha hadn’t quite finished yet, all of his sister’s wise words about reassuring his brother had gone out of his mind while his brain seethed.
"You have really pissed me off Shu...you’ve made me mad and very cross." Inuyasha swore at his brother for the first time and this more than anything jolted his older brother into recognising his responsibility to ease the pup’s mind. He was just about to speak when Inuyasha carried on, airing his grievances. "You have dispected me Shu...you haven’t got the right to do that: I know I is not Alpha, but I can tell you not to be like you are with me." He finished, breathing deeply and trying to control his emotion. It was all Sesshoumaru could do not to smile at the serious boy. So the pup had very hurt feelings, he felt disrespected, which meant that Inuyasha’s self awareness of his sense of worth was changing as he grew older.
"I said a lot of things to you Inuyasha that I had no right to say and believe me I don’t think them either. I was being unreasonable and taking it out on you. I also hurt your ears and I am very sorry about that, I didn’t think I’d pinched them as hard as I did, and yet I can see they are still bruised. The sight shames me, it will not happen again."
"Feh, I don’t care about none of that Shu, I know you was upset and didn’t mean it, and that you’re sorry; don’t forget I can feel your youkai like you can me. It wasn’t what you did that was dispectful or made me mad, it was why you was upset, made me pissed." Inuyasha’s speech was getting slovenly again, so he took a breath to calm down, but it wasn’t working very well. Sesshoumaru listened carefully, it seemed that Inuyasha had more surprises apart from his newly found expletive; the child’s understanding had matured somewhat and the older boy had forgotten that their bond worked both ways.
"What did I do then to disrespect you Inuyasha?" Sesshoumaru asked softly and waited for the answer. He was waiting a long time, it was not easy for the pup to formulate his reply, Inuyasha knew in his heart what he meant, but to get Shu to understand was suddenly doubtful, however the boy had to try.
"Why did you get all cross and unhappy Shu...why? You thought that Ryou would take me away from you didn’t you?"
"I sought to warn you..."
"You is not telling the truth. You thought I would love him more than you and you was jealous that I might forget you and only want to play with Ryou. You must think I am not very nice if you think I would do that. Ryou is my brother like Hiroto and you and Yori and Sora; I love him, but why would you think I would leave you...I is bonded to you, I remember lots of things sharing with you that I don’t have with anyone else...lots and lots of things. Have you forgotted me then when new ones come along?
"You know I haven’t...only once did you think that."
"I remember; when I took out my fangs and claws."
"You remember? You weren’t nasty though, not like me; you would probably be better off forming a new bond."
"I am not like you Shu, but you will make me bloody pissed if you keep talking nonsense and I will let Papa punish you lots if it happens again." Inuyasha was so earnest and his face so tense that he made Sesshoumaru want to pick him up for a cuddle, but he thought that the pup’s pride would be hurt if he thought he wasn’t being taken seriously.
"Very well Inuyasha, I consider myself warned and it will not happen again. Do you think you can forgive This Sesshoumaru?"
"No, I don’t know who he is...but I will forgive you My Shu." Inuyasha climbed onto Sesshoumaru’s lap and stared at him almost nose to nose. "You must spect me Shu, I deserve it...I love you and don’t like it when you is sad."
"I’m not sad anymore Inuyasha and I love you too...I was just scared for a while, I didn’t think of it as disrespecting you, I would never mean to do that." Sesshoumaru wrapped his tail round his brother and held him tight, he didn’t say anything and neither did Inuyasha, but the point had been made. The older boy had noticed sometimes the spark of red in the hanyou’s eyes while he’d been talking and knew that Inuyasha’s youkai too had been upset by the lack of confidence in him shown by his Alpha brother.
So to make amends, Sesshoumaru raised his youki to settle the inner part of his brother’s soul and makeup, before starting his soporific growling that would help the boy to calm. The effect though made both of them drowsy, and soon they were asleep and their balances were restored once more, to the relief of their parents who came to find them some time later. In fact everything now fell into place for Sesshoumaru where his brother was concerned; ever since Inuyasha demanded that he be respected, he had opened the older boy’s eyes as to the hanyou’s heritage.
Of course Inuyasha was due the same honour as the rest of his family, but it took Sesshoumaru’s jealousy to make him realise he hadn’t been honest with himself, and that he hadn’t held his brother in the same high regard he would require and deserved. So strongly did he feel this now, that when his youngest brother was presented, Sesshoumaru nearly caused a diplomatic incident. One ambassador congratulated the parents on the enviable power in the West now that there were three strong sons along with an equally worthy daughter too.
The Lady smiled demurely but with fire in her eyes, said in no uncertain terms that they actually had four strong sons. The ambassador had laughed heartily, and congratulated Inu no Taishou on his loyal mate as she seemed to willingly include the ‘dare he say it’, hanyou mistake. But it was Sesshoumaru who had to be reprimanded for growling and baring his fangs, as he snarled that Inuyasha was every bit a Son of the West as the rest of them. The ambassador had merely smiled condescendingly at the young hanyou, over the eldest son’s head, making Sesshoumaru want to rip out the youkai’s heart, because the last thing Inuyasha needed was to realise that very few people considered him to be of any worth at all.
Inu no Taishou had of course to ignore the ambassador’s snide comments publically, it was part of the diplomatic world; but he wrote a letter to the Lord he represented and told him to strip the ambassador of his privileges and get a new one, if he wanted to continue to deal with the West. The message went further than the one Lord of course, and more care was spent in the future when dealing with Inu no Taishou. No one was naive however and knew that the tolerance was only when the General or his representative was present.
Over the next thirty years, life progressed well for Inuyasha and both his families, and it was a time that the boy looked back on with great pleasure. Ryou eventually had joined his brothers in the school room; he was very like his eldest brother most of the time, but he did have a wicked smile which illuminated his face when he was up to mischief. Unlike Inuyasha or Hiroto who could rarely hide what they were thinking, Ryou could deadpan just as well as Sesshoumaru and no one could tell until too late if he was up to no good. But beneath it all he was a good humoured pup and his games were not cruel; besides he adored his brothers and sister and hated being in trouble.
The three younger boys would often go to Inuyasha’s farm with their other friends in tow and play games in the surrounding forest as well; honing skills they would need when they were older and also finding fascination in the human tenants. Thankfully young youkai played in very similar ways to human children, albeit with more energy and with more use of their wooded playground; but they were recognisable young to the adults who lived on the farm.
Often there would be an evening meal for them all, prepared by the guards with copious help from the boys, made from whatever they’d hunted and usually there was rice and vegetables to roast and other things from the humans who were fond of Inuyasha and his friends. Sometimes they would camp in the farm grounds too, safe from harm, but still different enough to be exciting. Swimming in the river as it flowed away from the drinking water and surfing down the waterfalls were also favourite pastimes and running and jumping over the various fences made for good obstacle races.
It became such a fun and interesting thing to do for all of the boys that their school fellows often asked parents and guardians to let them spend some of their holidays in the West so that they could join the brothers on the farm. Inu no Taishou encouraged the activity and welcomed all of the boys who wanted to stay, after all it was not their fault that their parents only invited two of his three younger boys to sometimes stay in return.
Inuyasha’s friends were genuine, they had shared their education and some of the ups and downs with him and their scents didn’t lie, but it was different when it came to the social aspect of their lives. The father often got invites for Hiroto or Ryou to visit with one or the other of their friends for various activities, all with the said motive of introducing the boys to influential people, but these invites never included Inuyasha. At first Inu no Taishou got angry, who did these people think they were? He was the most influential of them all except for this one fact; no one else seemed to want to accept his hanyou son.
However he also genuinely thought and was backed up by his very protective mate, that all of their pups were still far too young to be socialising away from their territories and without their parents in any case, so none of the offers were taken up. It was deemed far healthier for their boys to play around the Western Palace and Inuyasha’s Farm and if any of the others wanted to join them, they were welcome. Inuyasha had also made two more special friends in the last few years; two boys a good few years older than Inuyasha who had special needs and weren’t part of the school.
Inu no Taishou had come to hear via Ambassador Susumu of two families whose lives would benefit from understanding by their own Lords. Susumu’s brother, Lord Akimitsu of the Northern Kitsune had hosted a gathering of minor Lords to keep up to date on what was happening in their local provinces. In the course of the discussions, concerns had been raised about two separate hanyou and what should be done about them. The families had been left almost entirely alone and ostracised from their communities in the belief that the hanyou would inevitably die; yet neither had obliged and both were thriving.
The consensus of opinion was that because both families were moderately wealthy and came from influential stock, they had a higher and healthier standard of living; the hanyou offspring therefore had a better quality of life. But they were undesirable for all that and should be disposed of, in case any others got the wrong impression of what was acceptable. The Cardinal Lord of the North didn’t want to get involved officially, his powerful neighbour West had a hanyou of his own and it was well cared for, so advice was sought and Susumu was sent back to his old master.
Susumu explained it all to Inu no Taishou, expounding on discussions he’d had with his brother about the two hanyou and their families. Between them they worked out strong reasons and arguments for the safety of the families, focusing on the benefits that would come from such knowledgeable youkai. Inu no Taishou also said that in the best interests of future peaceful negotiations with the West, the hanyou should not only be protected, but that actively hunting them should be made illegal.
This was not the answer that had been hoped for, but was not unexpected; there were times when the Lords wished that Inu no Taishou had been killed that night his hanyou was born, so that his high moral sense didn’t influence the world around them. But then again, they had enjoyed more peace and prosperity under his oversight which was all to the good; it was only the animalistic youkai that relished bloodshed really. The Northern Lord said that he could not take on that responsibility; too many people were willing to take the risk and the law into their own hands, so he offered jurisdiction over the two homesteads while the hanyou lived, to his counterpart in the West.
They were both close to Western land in any case, and guardianship would not be hard to implement; so Inu no Taishou accepted the offer and soon went on personal visits to the two families. They were already expecting some form of authority, and were visibly afraid until they saw that not only had the Lord had come himself, but he’d brought along his own hanyou son. Inu no Taishou was also quick to put them at ease, and soon the tensions eased and hope was born that their sons could perhaps know what it was like to have a friend.
Inu no Taishou however knew he’d struck gold while speaking to the two sets of parents and he marvelled at the short sightedness of his contemporaries, when it came to those who were different to themselves. Their loss would be the West’s gain, but he was too experienced not to realise that not many were likely to realise that or to see past their horror at a mixed breed child. While their fathers spoke together, the two children sized each other up and started to tentatively get acquainted, while sharing sweet treats provided by the mother.
Inuyasha’s first new friend was a boy called Jinenji; his father was a horse youkai, whose beauty spoke of a distinguished lineage. He told Inu no Taishou that he was the youngest of seven, and his family still cared about him and his son, but were afraid to lose their social standing if this were acknowledged. Jinenji’s mother was a very pretty girl, fiercely protective of her shy son who towered above her already and whose bulk dwarfed his father’s humanoid figure. Like all hanyou, he was partially transformed and would never be able to fully do so. Both father and son though were expert on the herbs and remedies that they grew on their own land.
The others were a shrine family and their son’s name was Gyuoh; only the parents were the reverse of Jinenji’s, with the mother being a bovine youkai. Once again, the boy’s parents were handsome people, and so was the boy. He was different to both Inuyasha and Jinenji in that he was human by day and a partially transformed bullock during the night. Unlike Jinenji however who was mild tempered, this boy was more sullen; but he too had a gift, he and his father were scholars and the boy had a far sighted and enquiring mind with the intelligence to search for his answers.
Due to the need for secrecy about their vulnerable times, neither boy would attend school, but careful arrangements were agreed for visits. Izumo hoped that his son Gyuoh would settle down with a promised friendship; life had never been easy for him and the family had thought of seeking the rumoured Island of Houraijima, where many hanyou families were said to have made their home. Gyuoh was sensitive about his hanyou looks as was Jinenji; neither had the obvious cuteness of Inuyasha. But the pup was a friendly soul and told them he didn’t see why they were different; there were many different forms of youkai at the Palace.
It took some time to become more natural for the boys, but eventually they came to know each other and also Inuyasha’s siblings well. Their parents too reaped the benefits from the protection given them and the acceptance of the Western Lord; slowly but surely, they were re-united with some of the members of their extended families. All in all everything was working out to the best it could do and Inu no Taishou only had one major concern; how to explain to Inuyasha when he realised that his new friends human parent was still young and healthy because of being mated, while his own had succumbed to old age.
Author:petalears
Universe:AU
Rating:PG
Summary: Settling differences.
Quote:"I know how men in exile feed on dreams of hope." - Aeschylus, 525-456 BC.
Special Needs
Sesshoumaru of course knew when his brother returned and had prepared himself to apologise when Inuyasha came to him. He was not prepared however for the very firm knock on the shoji door signifying that his father wanted to speak with him first. Inu no Taishou informed his eldest pup of the choices he’d given Inuyasha and of the boy’s reply, he also told Sesshoumaru of his own promise to Chouko and Kaoru. He was also pleased with the response; his pup’s heart rate had rocketed with alarm, which meant that Sesshoumaru was by no means blasé at the threat of discipline, and he was not hardened to his father’s displeasure.
Then the father left as he recognised his second son’s signature youki outside of the door and he met Inuyasha with a smile. The small hanyou however looked serious and said that he had changed his mind about seeing Sesshoumaru yet, he wanted to wait until later. Inu no Taishou said that that was his prerogative; Sesshoumaru would wait in his room until his brother was ready to see him. Inuyasha had been fine, just wanting to see his brother and make sure that everything was alright, but suddenly he felt very angry and the feeling shook him.
Sesshoumaru though felt worse, he’d overheard Inuyasha and felt his brother move away; he’d not considered that Inuyasha would ever refuse to see him and his heart ached. Did Inuyasha no longer think that Sesshoumaru was his best friend because of his jealous behaviour? His youkai almost howled in desperation; another unusual occurrence, but Sesshoumaru was not thinking straight, he had allowed his envy to get out of his control and he had hurt his precious brother.
Inuyasha was left to ponder on his own anger and what to do about it. He had already asked his father not to punish the older boy and at the time he meant it, but now for some inexplicable reason he felt that Shu had been let off too easily. All he now knew was that he had enough resentment to want to hit Sesshoumaru himself. Inuyasha’s ears twitched in annoyance and he could still feel the twinges from the bruising which wound him up even more, and psyched him up enough to go and see Sesshoumaru.
When he was called on to enter, Inuyasha walked in and straight up to his older brother and quick as a flash he punched Sesshoumaru on the jaw. The older boy was astounded, the punch hadn’t hurt him but the audacity was astonishing and he looked with fury on the smaller pup, whose clenched fist was now down at his side. Identical eyes burning with identical anger glared back at him; completely unafraid, because even though Inuyasha knew that his brother was far more powerful than he was, he knew that his Shu would never harm him.
But Inuyasha was not used to harbouring such anger and after striking his blow, he quickly deflated feeling close to tears, but he didn’t cry; he just kept staring at his brother, waiting. Sesshoumaru was still slightly shocked by his brother’s attack, apart from remembering that he had no right to be angry at Inuyasha when he was supposed to be apologising. But Inuyasha hadn’t quite finished yet, all of his sister’s wise words about reassuring his brother had gone out of his mind while his brain seethed.
"You have really pissed me off Shu...you’ve made me mad and very cross." Inuyasha swore at his brother for the first time and this more than anything jolted his older brother into recognising his responsibility to ease the pup’s mind. He was just about to speak when Inuyasha carried on, airing his grievances. "You have dispected me Shu...you haven’t got the right to do that: I know I is not Alpha, but I can tell you not to be like you are with me." He finished, breathing deeply and trying to control his emotion. It was all Sesshoumaru could do not to smile at the serious boy. So the pup had very hurt feelings, he felt disrespected, which meant that Inuyasha’s self awareness of his sense of worth was changing as he grew older.
"I said a lot of things to you Inuyasha that I had no right to say and believe me I don’t think them either. I was being unreasonable and taking it out on you. I also hurt your ears and I am very sorry about that, I didn’t think I’d pinched them as hard as I did, and yet I can see they are still bruised. The sight shames me, it will not happen again."
"Feh, I don’t care about none of that Shu, I know you was upset and didn’t mean it, and that you’re sorry; don’t forget I can feel your youkai like you can me. It wasn’t what you did that was dispectful or made me mad, it was why you was upset, made me pissed." Inuyasha’s speech was getting slovenly again, so he took a breath to calm down, but it wasn’t working very well. Sesshoumaru listened carefully, it seemed that Inuyasha had more surprises apart from his newly found expletive; the child’s understanding had matured somewhat and the older boy had forgotten that their bond worked both ways.
"What did I do then to disrespect you Inuyasha?" Sesshoumaru asked softly and waited for the answer. He was waiting a long time, it was not easy for the pup to formulate his reply, Inuyasha knew in his heart what he meant, but to get Shu to understand was suddenly doubtful, however the boy had to try.
"Why did you get all cross and unhappy Shu...why? You thought that Ryou would take me away from you didn’t you?"
"I sought to warn you..."
"You is not telling the truth. You thought I would love him more than you and you was jealous that I might forget you and only want to play with Ryou. You must think I am not very nice if you think I would do that. Ryou is my brother like Hiroto and you and Yori and Sora; I love him, but why would you think I would leave you...I is bonded to you, I remember lots of things sharing with you that I don’t have with anyone else...lots and lots of things. Have you forgotted me then when new ones come along?
"You know I haven’t...only once did you think that."
"I remember; when I took out my fangs and claws."
"You remember? You weren’t nasty though, not like me; you would probably be better off forming a new bond."
"I am not like you Shu, but you will make me bloody pissed if you keep talking nonsense and I will let Papa punish you lots if it happens again." Inuyasha was so earnest and his face so tense that he made Sesshoumaru want to pick him up for a cuddle, but he thought that the pup’s pride would be hurt if he thought he wasn’t being taken seriously.
"Very well Inuyasha, I consider myself warned and it will not happen again. Do you think you can forgive This Sesshoumaru?"
"No, I don’t know who he is...but I will forgive you My Shu." Inuyasha climbed onto Sesshoumaru’s lap and stared at him almost nose to nose. "You must spect me Shu, I deserve it...I love you and don’t like it when you is sad."
"I’m not sad anymore Inuyasha and I love you too...I was just scared for a while, I didn’t think of it as disrespecting you, I would never mean to do that." Sesshoumaru wrapped his tail round his brother and held him tight, he didn’t say anything and neither did Inuyasha, but the point had been made. The older boy had noticed sometimes the spark of red in the hanyou’s eyes while he’d been talking and knew that Inuyasha’s youkai too had been upset by the lack of confidence in him shown by his Alpha brother.
So to make amends, Sesshoumaru raised his youki to settle the inner part of his brother’s soul and makeup, before starting his soporific growling that would help the boy to calm. The effect though made both of them drowsy, and soon they were asleep and their balances were restored once more, to the relief of their parents who came to find them some time later. In fact everything now fell into place for Sesshoumaru where his brother was concerned; ever since Inuyasha demanded that he be respected, he had opened the older boy’s eyes as to the hanyou’s heritage.
Of course Inuyasha was due the same honour as the rest of his family, but it took Sesshoumaru’s jealousy to make him realise he hadn’t been honest with himself, and that he hadn’t held his brother in the same high regard he would require and deserved. So strongly did he feel this now, that when his youngest brother was presented, Sesshoumaru nearly caused a diplomatic incident. One ambassador congratulated the parents on the enviable power in the West now that there were three strong sons along with an equally worthy daughter too.
The Lady smiled demurely but with fire in her eyes, said in no uncertain terms that they actually had four strong sons. The ambassador had laughed heartily, and congratulated Inu no Taishou on his loyal mate as she seemed to willingly include the ‘dare he say it’, hanyou mistake. But it was Sesshoumaru who had to be reprimanded for growling and baring his fangs, as he snarled that Inuyasha was every bit a Son of the West as the rest of them. The ambassador had merely smiled condescendingly at the young hanyou, over the eldest son’s head, making Sesshoumaru want to rip out the youkai’s heart, because the last thing Inuyasha needed was to realise that very few people considered him to be of any worth at all.
Inu no Taishou had of course to ignore the ambassador’s snide comments publically, it was part of the diplomatic world; but he wrote a letter to the Lord he represented and told him to strip the ambassador of his privileges and get a new one, if he wanted to continue to deal with the West. The message went further than the one Lord of course, and more care was spent in the future when dealing with Inu no Taishou. No one was naive however and knew that the tolerance was only when the General or his representative was present.
Over the next thirty years, life progressed well for Inuyasha and both his families, and it was a time that the boy looked back on with great pleasure. Ryou eventually had joined his brothers in the school room; he was very like his eldest brother most of the time, but he did have a wicked smile which illuminated his face when he was up to mischief. Unlike Inuyasha or Hiroto who could rarely hide what they were thinking, Ryou could deadpan just as well as Sesshoumaru and no one could tell until too late if he was up to no good. But beneath it all he was a good humoured pup and his games were not cruel; besides he adored his brothers and sister and hated being in trouble.
The three younger boys would often go to Inuyasha’s farm with their other friends in tow and play games in the surrounding forest as well; honing skills they would need when they were older and also finding fascination in the human tenants. Thankfully young youkai played in very similar ways to human children, albeit with more energy and with more use of their wooded playground; but they were recognisable young to the adults who lived on the farm.
Often there would be an evening meal for them all, prepared by the guards with copious help from the boys, made from whatever they’d hunted and usually there was rice and vegetables to roast and other things from the humans who were fond of Inuyasha and his friends. Sometimes they would camp in the farm grounds too, safe from harm, but still different enough to be exciting. Swimming in the river as it flowed away from the drinking water and surfing down the waterfalls were also favourite pastimes and running and jumping over the various fences made for good obstacle races.
It became such a fun and interesting thing to do for all of the boys that their school fellows often asked parents and guardians to let them spend some of their holidays in the West so that they could join the brothers on the farm. Inu no Taishou encouraged the activity and welcomed all of the boys who wanted to stay, after all it was not their fault that their parents only invited two of his three younger boys to sometimes stay in return.
Inuyasha’s friends were genuine, they had shared their education and some of the ups and downs with him and their scents didn’t lie, but it was different when it came to the social aspect of their lives. The father often got invites for Hiroto or Ryou to visit with one or the other of their friends for various activities, all with the said motive of introducing the boys to influential people, but these invites never included Inuyasha. At first Inu no Taishou got angry, who did these people think they were? He was the most influential of them all except for this one fact; no one else seemed to want to accept his hanyou son.
However he also genuinely thought and was backed up by his very protective mate, that all of their pups were still far too young to be socialising away from their territories and without their parents in any case, so none of the offers were taken up. It was deemed far healthier for their boys to play around the Western Palace and Inuyasha’s Farm and if any of the others wanted to join them, they were welcome. Inuyasha had also made two more special friends in the last few years; two boys a good few years older than Inuyasha who had special needs and weren’t part of the school.
Inu no Taishou had come to hear via Ambassador Susumu of two families whose lives would benefit from understanding by their own Lords. Susumu’s brother, Lord Akimitsu of the Northern Kitsune had hosted a gathering of minor Lords to keep up to date on what was happening in their local provinces. In the course of the discussions, concerns had been raised about two separate hanyou and what should be done about them. The families had been left almost entirely alone and ostracised from their communities in the belief that the hanyou would inevitably die; yet neither had obliged and both were thriving.
The consensus of opinion was that because both families were moderately wealthy and came from influential stock, they had a higher and healthier standard of living; the hanyou offspring therefore had a better quality of life. But they were undesirable for all that and should be disposed of, in case any others got the wrong impression of what was acceptable. The Cardinal Lord of the North didn’t want to get involved officially, his powerful neighbour West had a hanyou of his own and it was well cared for, so advice was sought and Susumu was sent back to his old master.
Susumu explained it all to Inu no Taishou, expounding on discussions he’d had with his brother about the two hanyou and their families. Between them they worked out strong reasons and arguments for the safety of the families, focusing on the benefits that would come from such knowledgeable youkai. Inu no Taishou also said that in the best interests of future peaceful negotiations with the West, the hanyou should not only be protected, but that actively hunting them should be made illegal.
This was not the answer that had been hoped for, but was not unexpected; there were times when the Lords wished that Inu no Taishou had been killed that night his hanyou was born, so that his high moral sense didn’t influence the world around them. But then again, they had enjoyed more peace and prosperity under his oversight which was all to the good; it was only the animalistic youkai that relished bloodshed really. The Northern Lord said that he could not take on that responsibility; too many people were willing to take the risk and the law into their own hands, so he offered jurisdiction over the two homesteads while the hanyou lived, to his counterpart in the West.
They were both close to Western land in any case, and guardianship would not be hard to implement; so Inu no Taishou accepted the offer and soon went on personal visits to the two families. They were already expecting some form of authority, and were visibly afraid until they saw that not only had the Lord had come himself, but he’d brought along his own hanyou son. Inu no Taishou was also quick to put them at ease, and soon the tensions eased and hope was born that their sons could perhaps know what it was like to have a friend.
Inu no Taishou however knew he’d struck gold while speaking to the two sets of parents and he marvelled at the short sightedness of his contemporaries, when it came to those who were different to themselves. Their loss would be the West’s gain, but he was too experienced not to realise that not many were likely to realise that or to see past their horror at a mixed breed child. While their fathers spoke together, the two children sized each other up and started to tentatively get acquainted, while sharing sweet treats provided by the mother.
Inuyasha’s first new friend was a boy called Jinenji; his father was a horse youkai, whose beauty spoke of a distinguished lineage. He told Inu no Taishou that he was the youngest of seven, and his family still cared about him and his son, but were afraid to lose their social standing if this were acknowledged. Jinenji’s mother was a very pretty girl, fiercely protective of her shy son who towered above her already and whose bulk dwarfed his father’s humanoid figure. Like all hanyou, he was partially transformed and would never be able to fully do so. Both father and son though were expert on the herbs and remedies that they grew on their own land.
The others were a shrine family and their son’s name was Gyuoh; only the parents were the reverse of Jinenji’s, with the mother being a bovine youkai. Once again, the boy’s parents were handsome people, and so was the boy. He was different to both Inuyasha and Jinenji in that he was human by day and a partially transformed bullock during the night. Unlike Jinenji however who was mild tempered, this boy was more sullen; but he too had a gift, he and his father were scholars and the boy had a far sighted and enquiring mind with the intelligence to search for his answers.
Due to the need for secrecy about their vulnerable times, neither boy would attend school, but careful arrangements were agreed for visits. Izumo hoped that his son Gyuoh would settle down with a promised friendship; life had never been easy for him and the family had thought of seeking the rumoured Island of Houraijima, where many hanyou families were said to have made their home. Gyuoh was sensitive about his hanyou looks as was Jinenji; neither had the obvious cuteness of Inuyasha. But the pup was a friendly soul and told them he didn’t see why they were different; there were many different forms of youkai at the Palace.
It took some time to become more natural for the boys, but eventually they came to know each other and also Inuyasha’s siblings well. Their parents too reaped the benefits from the protection given them and the acceptance of the Western Lord; slowly but surely, they were re-united with some of the members of their extended families. All in all everything was working out to the best it could do and Inu no Taishou only had one major concern; how to explain to Inuyasha when he realised that his new friends human parent was still young and healthy because of being mated, while his own had succumbed to old age.