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Chapter 10: A Short Break

Kagome opened her eyes to the view of her own room's white ceiling. Blinking at this drab vista for several minutes, she tried to make her brain organize the last events she rememberd. A fight with Inuyasha, running for the well...Kikyo had come...and...she'd been hurt? Trapped? And...it was a blank after that.

Then how did I end up in my room? she wondered to herself. Was last night all a dream? Did I come through the well and dream it?

Worried, Kagome sat up in bed. No, it couldn't have been a dream! Her throat ached a little when she swallowed--Kikyo had tried to strangle her! But...how had she gotten free?

Her strange half-dreams the night before...she'd been sobbing through all of them, so certain that after she'd passed out--or died; she hadn't been sure--Kikyo had taken Inuyasha to Hell with her. Many of her half-remembered dreams had been of him falling into fiery torment, his golden eyes pleading at her... And after them, the last, most vivid dream of the previous night...

"What happened?" she wondered, getting up off the bed. Her pack--it was sitting in her desk chair, right where she normally put it when she got back. She'd been sleeping in her clothes, but her shoes were...at the foot of her bed, where she usually put them. Something about that dream nagged her...

She gasped. "Inuyasha!" Where was he? Was he safe on the other side of the well? Had Kikyo gotten him? Was he the one who brought her back to her room? Kagome hurried over to her window and peered out toward the wellhouse when as sudden presence made her look down.

There he was. Inuyasha slept curled up in a ball in the tree outside her room, face tense, ears pivoting about at the slightest noise. He twitched in his sleep, as though he were having a difficult dream as well.

Despite their problems of the night before, Kagome couldn't help a small smile. Somehow, he must've freed them from Kikyo and brought her home. He saved me from her...and he even brought me home through the well of his own accord! How sweet of him! Just when I start thinking he's the biggest jerk who ever walked the planet, he goes and does something wonderful for my sake. He must really be bushed, not to wake up from the sound of my footsteps or my breathing...or however he always knows when I'm around.

Deciding not to wake him, Kagome retreated into her room. Quietly tiptoeing through the still-sleeping house, she hit the bathroom and freshened up, then changed into clean clothes. She felt much better when she did--ready to face the day, to take on any challenge, demon or otherwise. She was ready to begin another full day of puppy-sitting with Inuyasha when she got back to her window. Her face fell when she peered out to call to him.

Inuyasha was gone.

Shirokiba pounced on him the moment he emerged from the well. The wolf-dog demon's eyes were wide and alarmed, and he seeemed...bristly with agitation. "Where the hell have you been, mutt? I sensed power and I smelled a stranger all over the place, but I couldn't find you! What happened here last night?"

With a groan, Inuyasha flopped down on his side near a tree. The overcast, cloudy morning perfectly reflected his emotions--dim and threatening. "You don't want to know," he muttered. He was healed, but still feeling stiff and sore from the ordeal.

"Yes I do," Shirokiba growled. "That's why I'm asking."

"Kikyo happened."

The wolf-dog let out a startled grumble, then sat down beside him. "Damn. Pretty bad then, huh?"

"No kidding. And no, I don't want to talk to you about it, so don't ask." Inuyasha opened his eyes. "Is Ginnezu around here?"

"I don't know. I haven't seen her since yesterday morning."

With a sigh, the dog-demon rolled over on his back and pillowed his head on his arms. "That witch tried to kiss me last night."

Shirokiba snorted. "Yes; she does seem to have become rather...attached to you. Did she get you?"

"Hell no! She got Kagome all upset about it, though."

"Mm." For a long time, the two half-breeds said nothing.

"Is Ginnezu really as sweet as she seems?" Inuyasha asked after a while.

Shirokiba leaned back against the tree with a sigh. "I'm not sure. She is very intelligent, and can be coy when she wishes, but I've never known her to be vicious or cruel. However...it has been at least ten years since I spent any time near her."

"Were you two involved?"

"Not at all!" Shirokiba stared at him, looking almost offended. "I'd rather not even consider the possibility. My mother's only a Gray Dog, and my father was a wild wolf-demon. I'm not suitable mate material--and Lord Ginpatsu would have strung me up by my own intestines."

Inuyasha let out a short snort of laughter. "Picky. So what's the difference between you and me? My mother's a human, for pity's sake. Why isn't he pitching a fit about that?"

"Bloodlines," Shirokiba said simply. "I guess he figures that no demon at all is better than a Wolf or even a lower caste of Dog. Your father counts for a lot, y'know. You never knew Lord Seibunishi, so you have no real idea where you're coming from--and what you really are."

"Heh. I know Sesshomaru."

"Phew! Don't even compare the two! He's a bastard."

"I thought I was the bastard."

They both chuckled at the joke. "Don't sell yourself short, mutt," Shirokiba said with an affectionate half-smile. "Humans aren't so bad, actually. A lot of 'em are pretty damn dangerous warriors. Some of the Western barbarians from the mainland could probably eat your half-brother alive. They just don't live here."

Inuyasha sat up, interested. "Really?"

"I've met a few in my travels. I don't know why so many demons have this raging superiority complex, yourself included..." Shirokiba trailed off, staring through the canopy into the sky beyond. "Anyway, Sesshomaru doesn't have much of Seibunishi in him, despite what you might think. And he's striped, so it would count against him--or it would have, in the old times."

"What do you mean?" Inuyasha asked, cocking an ear curiously.

"Don't you know?" Shirokiba regarded him, amused. "Well, I guess not. I forgot--I spent so much time back then teaching you to survive that I didn't teach you a damn thing about your own kind."

"So tell me now!"

"Okay! Settle down, mutt." Shirokiba shifted to get more comfortable. "Way back when, when the first dog-demons were only a few generations removed from the ancient Wolf Packs, the White Dogs became the leaders of all the Clans of Dogs. The Clans were separated by colors--White, Silver, Gray, Black, Brown, Red, and Yellow, and their power ranked in that order in the hierarchy. Those of impure colors--say, a Brown Dog with yellow marks, or a Silver with black spots, were considered commoners. Those whose true color could not be discerned were clanless vagabonds who usually just returned to the wild Wolf Packs--thus the mottled color of most wolf-demons we meet nowadays. Those who were solid-colored ranked higher--and those with the most vivid of the colors were the leaders of that particular Clan. The Silver Daimyo's family is one, as well as the Black Daimyo's family and the Brown Daimyo's family, among others."

"And the White family," Inuyasha interjected softly.

"Yes--the White Dog leading family, spoken of as the Mashiro-Inu. One of the only families left in that Clan."

"Why is color so important?"

Shirokiba shrugged. "No one really knows. It was decided by power, first--and just so happened that the strongest Dogs had the brightest colors. It seemed that the purity of color somehow indicated purity of strength. To this day no one knows why."

"Mm. I still don't see the point of complaining about colors and stripes, though."

"A Dog's markings and color tell you of his status. In a way, that's good, because you can tell where you stand without having to say a single word. A Red Dog with brown markings stands lower than a pure Red, but higher than a Red with yellow marks."

"All about status, huh?"

"Essentially, yeah." Shirokiba stretched, yawning. "Well, if you were a full dog-demon, you'd have a status higher than Sesshomaru."

Inuyasha blinked. "I...would be greater than him?"

Shirokiba chuckled. "Heh--hell yes. It's something he can't hide even in his human-like form. You've seen him turn into his Dog form, haven't you?"

"Yes, and he tried to kill me when he did it, too," Inuyasha growled. "It's not an experience I'd like to repeat, thanks."

"Didn't you see his stripes?"

Inuyasha shrugged. "I don't remember. He was a big giant dog-demon trying to eat me, so I didn't stop to look for details."

"Stupid mutt. You should have teased him about it. You should see his tail fluff when I do that."

Inuyasha gaped at his friend. "You tease Sesshomaru?"

"Yeah." Shirokiba gave him a challenging look. "Jealous?"

"Yes! How the hell do you get away with it?" Inuyasha demanded.

"I can run really, really fast."

Inuayasha stared at him for a moment, then burst out laughing. "You chicken! I thought you bad-mouthed him to his face!"

"I do--but then I leave really quick afterwards. He hates my guts."

"Join the club," Inuyasha chuckled, wiping a tear of mirth from his eye. "So, big bro has ugly stripes, huh?"

"Yup--big black stripes on his face, legs, and belly when he's in Dog form. He can't hide 'em even when he shrinks himself to a human form." Shirokiba snorted. "You should see Lady Yukishima, his mother--she looks like a tiger."

"And that's a bad thing, right?"

"Well, it would have been long ago, and still would be if the Dogs were more picky, but..." Shirokiba shrugged. "Times change, mutt. But you're like Lord Seibunishi--no markings at all."

"Huh?" Inuyasha looked over his own arms as if seeing them for the first time, looking for any color flaws in his pale skin or faint coat of hair.

"If you could turn full Dog, you'd be pure white, like snow," Shirokiba told him frankly. "You are a true White Dog, even if you can't unleash what's inside you."

"How do you know all this?" Inuyasha asked, a bit sharp. "You didn't seem this smart when I was living with you."

"I was trying to save your scrawny butt from Sesshomaru, you idiot. He knew you were alive--but if he ever found out where you were it would've been the end. I taught you to survive, not to be an expert in Dog Clan history and culture."

"No kidding." Inuyasha leaned against the same tree Shirokiba did, on the opposite side. "I wish...sometimes...that my father hadn't died."

"Most of the Clans do," Shirokiba said softly. A strange smile lit his features when he caught a faint scent drifting across the air. In a few moments, Inuyasha would notice it, too--when he wasn't buried in nostalgia. "No one ever dared challenge him; he ruled longer than any White Daimyo in history. He was one of the oldest and most powerful Great Demons in the land when he died. He was one of the best leaders the Dog Clans have ever known; some say the best since the great Yuki-Inu himself."

Even Inuyasha knew of Yuki-Inu, the first Daimyo of the Dog Clans, the first Great Demon of the West, the first true White Dog of the Seppakuinu family. Suddenly, his nose twitched. "Kagome!" Without hesitation, he sprang straight up from the ground and landed on the rim of the well ten feet away. Peering in, his golden eyes met a pair of sparkling blue ones that shone at him from the depths.

"Hello, Inuyasha!" she greeted him, remarkably cheerful despite her ordeal.

"K-Kagome...you came...!" Inuyasha stuttered at her.

"I was just listening to you and Shirokiba talk about your dad," Kagome said, smiling at him. "Don't let me interrupt you!"

"You...you idiot!" Inuyasha burst out. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Kagome's sweet smile shattered, and she jerked back, stung. "I-Inuyasha...?"

"Why aren't you home in bed?" he demanded. "You almost got killed last night!"

Kagome's face changed from hurt to just a bit sad. He wasn't angry--he was actually concerned for her.

"Now I really want to know what happened." Shirokiba walked up and looked into the dark hole. With a weary sigh, he whacked Inuyasha in the back of the head, sending him catapaulting face-first into the well--just as effective as a sit. "Why were you standing there berating her?" he called after the shocked dog-demon. "Help the lady out!"

Inuyasha pushed himself up, spitting dirt. "Damn you, wolf-dog! Only Kagome gets to shove me around like that!" he snarled up at his friend, shaking an angry fist. A snicker from Shirokiba and a giggle from Kagome made him realize what his statement sounded like, and he blushed furiously and stumbled over his own tongue. "Uh...I mean--that is...I--"

"I know what you mean," Kagome said, her giggles tempered with a slightly sad look. "Can you help me up?"

"Oh...uh, sure." The half-demon helped her onto his back, scooped up her pack in one arm, and made the edge of the well in a single bound. Shirokiba politely helped Kagome dismount, while Inuyasha dropped her pack outside and hopped over the rim.

"Go on telling your story, Shirokiba!" Kagome encouraged. "It was just getting interesting."

Inuyasha stared at her, askance. "Y-you've been listening?"

"Only for a couple minutes," Kagome answered solemnly. "I figured you'd notice me pretty quick, with your nose."

"I still say you should be home resting," the dog-demon grumbled.

Kagome shouldered her pack and grinned at him gamely. "This is my way of paying you back for saving my life from Kikyo. I'm going shard-hunting with you, and you don't have to ask me or go find me or anything. I left a note for my parents and said I wasn't coming back for anything. You've got me for five more days--I promise. No dates, no tests, no school, nothing."

"Kagome...!" Inuyasha gaped at her, awed by what she was willingly giving up for him. Of her own accord, she was coming with him to do anything he wanted--and he didn't have to cajole, coerce, or demand anything of her. "I...you...it's...uh..." He scratched behind one ear, unable to think of anything adequate to say. "Um...thank you."

"You're a lucky man, mutt," Shirokiba said softly. "So, Kagome, you want to hear about Lord Seibunishi..."

Kagome nodded, then set down her pack beneath a tree--unknowingly, the same one the demons had just vacated. "Sure. I'm sure Inuyasha wants to hear whatever you were going to say, too."

They sat forming a circle near the base of the tree, one storyteller and two listeners.

"Lord Seibunishi, the Great Demon of the West, was a wise and firm ruler of the Dog Clans as well as the other demons in his region," Shirokiba began. "He was certainly the biggest Dog I've ever seen, and white as the snow on the highest peaks. His strength was the strength of an avalanche; no creature, Dog nor demon, could match him..."

And as he listened, Inuyasha could not keep the rapt expression from his face, nor the eager sparkle from his eyes as his best friend told him of his father...in far greater detail and depth than he ever had before.

When they reached the village, Kagome was happy to see Kaede, but more than that she was raring to go find more Shikon Jewel shards for Inuyasha's sake. Sure, she was a bit tired, but what did that matter to her? She was the guardian of the Jewel now, and durn it, she was supposed to be doing her job, not sitting around at home!

While Kagome chatted with Kaede about any news of the shards, Inuyasha pulled Shirokiba aside. "Listen, wolf-dog," the half-demon said softly just outside Kaede's door. "I'm going to take Kagome with me this afternoon--she really wants to go. We might pick up Shippo on our way through if he catches up to us, but the others I don't care about."

"And...why is this important to me?" Shirokiba asked, one brow raised.

"I want you to stay here and keep Ginnezu out of trouble," Inuyasha said firmly.

"Hmph! Better luck asking the sun not to rise."

"Look, just stay here and distract her, okay?" Inuyasha growled. "She and Kagome don't get along, and I can tell Kagome's not feeling well, so..."

"I get it...you don't want Ginnezu horning in on Kagome and upsetting her more," Shirokiba sighed. "Kagome's not feeling well and you're still taking her out on this...'shard hunt?'"

Inuyasha frowned. "No. Not really. She thinks we are, but...I'm just going to take her around the countryside, show her some pretty sights, and then we're coming home. No shards, no trouble."

Shirokiba stared at him for a minute. "Am I talking to Inuyasha, here? Are you actually passing up prime shard-hunting opportunities, mutt?"

Inuyasha blushed a little, but still scowled and grumbled. "Kikyo almost strangled her to death last night. She still hasn't recovered."

"She looks pretty perky to me," the wolf-dog demon commented. "And how did you get her away from--?"

"Shut up! I told you not to ask!" Inuyasha snapped loudly. "Just do as I say!"

"Okay, okay! Jeeze, you don't have to bite my head off..." Shirokiba shrugged and sauntered away.

"Keep an eye out for Kagome's friends Sango and Miroku," Inuyasha called after him. "They should come by any time now. Don't let them fight with Ginnezu."

Shirokiba rolled his eyes to the heavens. "No wonder I never told him about his heritage before," he grumbled to himself. "I knew what would happen the moment he understood. Acts like a spoiled prince, now..."

To be continued...