Protecting You
xxredemption-love-and-liesxx

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Chapter 4
Myths

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Notes: Kinda different to what I had originally planned for this story, but still gives the same message in a way. I think there'll be one more chapter, and a prologue maybe.

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Totosai banged his hammer against black metal in order to form a new sword. He kept silent, other than his repeated banging of the hammer. The inuyokai had a heavy scowl on his face as he sat around impatiently, waiting for Myoga to hurry up and show up.

"Where is he?" Inuyasha snarled, glaring over at the demon had forged his weapon, "I don't have all day."

Totosai paused his banging, glancing over at the hanyou, "What do you want to know, Inuyasha? I may be able to help you."

"Probably not," Inuyasha said automatically, "It's… something to do with inuyokai."

"Which is?"

The hanyou growled lowly, getting annoyed at the entire situation, "Sesshoumaru's mate is pregnant, and the prick doesn't want her to have it because he reckons she'll die if she gives birth. I dunno where he's figured it out from, but he reckons it."

Totosai let out a heavy breath, "Certain species of yokai are incompatible with ningen. Their sizes and even their forms make it difficult for female ningen to give birth. For example, there have been cases of larger male demons being with female humans, and the women cannot take the amount of stress on their bodies. There is also the factor of how long pregnancy lasts. Ningen cannot surpass ten months during pregnancy, but if their body is put to the limits, even for a short amount of time, they can die also."

"And what about inuyokai?"

"That… I do not know. I know of certain cases, but inuyokai are very… prestigious. I wonder though, could rumours of ningen dying during childbirth stop inuyokai from conceiving children with their partners?" Totosai asked rhetorically, before resuming his next work.

Inuyasha took in the old man's words, but still… he could not just make assumptions. Totosai is not sure either. Of course, it was frowned upon when a yokai and a ningen were bound, but pregnancy occurs. He had heard from Kagome that there ways to stop it in her times, but seeing as she did not return all that often, they had to rely on her cycle. Of course, that was really the only way to avoid it in these times.

Sesshoumaru either was not thinking, or they just ignored her cycle, thinking that nothing would happen. Though, following the cycle did not have a definite chance of stopping a mate from getting pregnant, but… it was reliable to some degree.

"Inuyasha!"

Whack! Inuyasha slapped his face and watched as the small flee fell to the ground like paper. The flea popped back up, and looked at Inuyasha with a grin. Inuyasha picked the little demon up between his clawed fingers.

"I need your help."

"With?" Myoga asked, squirming to get out of his master's clawed fingers, "Can you—"

Inuyasha did not drop the tiny yokai, "It's about Sesshoumaru and his mate."

With that, the flea demon stopped struggling and looked at his master with confusion evident. Inuyasha sighed and decided to explain everything in order to get the information he needed.

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Her hazel eyes opened as she stared up at the ceiling. She felt the warmth of the soft pelt wrapped around her. She snuggled into it, imagining that her mate was holding her. However, she was not sure if she would get what she wanted most. Her fingers dug into the soft fur of the mokomoko.

"Did you end up sleeping better?" Kagome's soft voice asked.

She heard laughter from outside, and the familiar voice of the kitsune. Obviously, Ichiro and Shippou were playing outside. That kind of brought a smile onto her face, hearing the two 'children' playing together. It also brought a feeling of sadness to her chest. The poignant thoughts were going through her head, and it nearly brought tears to her eyes, but she stayed strong and refused to cry.

"Yes, I did," Rin answered just a softly, "but at the same time, this is making me miss Sesshoumaru even more."

She heard Kagome shuffle around within the small building, "That's the bond you two share. It'd be hurting him too, Rin."

She knew, kami she knew. But it still hurt. It really hurt.

"I know…"

The priestess leaned down, coming into view of Rin, "Come on. We should do something today. It's unhealthy to stay inside all day."

"Okay."

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The four of them were wandering through the village, talking to some of the villagers. Rin had noticed in the watery reflection of the river that her tummy was becoming more prominent, although it would not be thought she was pregnant right away. Most of the villagers would just assume that she had gained weight, or something like that.

Shippou was chatting easily with Kagome's first born. The two were close, that was easy to see. It made Rin feel quite cheerful, seeing the two play around. While Shippou was older than Ichiro, it seemed that the young kitsune was as playful as ever. Although, she knew he could be rather serious, and was considered to be quite strong is contrast to other kitsune. While not matching up to Inuyasha, the boy was a lot more useful. However, it could be presumed that Ichiro would surpass him.

"It's nice here, isn't it?" Kagome asked, glancing over at her younger friend, "I'm glad Inuyasha and I decided to stay."

"It's nice back at home too," Rin said, "Sesshoumaru makes the place look nice. He seems cold, but he enjoys seeing beautiful scenery."

Kagome giggled, "He doesn't seem like the sort to like things like that."

Rin silently agreed. It had surprised her when she first went to his home. She had been so used to travelling that she did not really think he had a place to return to. She also did not think that it would be so masterfully decorated. But, it is something that she has gotten accustomed to, so she could not have it any other way.

The sapphire-eyed priestess looked up, giving an impression of being frightened, "Hey… Rin, you need to go back home. Take Ichiro with you."

"What's—"

"Just go. Some yokai are passing through," Kagome said, not taking her eyes off of something, "Shippou… I might need your help with this."

The young woman gripped onto her crimson bow, ready to use the weapon if need be. Rin had noticed that Kagome carried it around with her. Did she think something might happen today? No, she would not have allowed Rin or Ichiro out if that were the case.

"Okay, I'll do it… Be safe," Rin said, picking up the young hanyou who seemed like he wanted to stay with his mother.

"Mama! I can help—I'm strong, like Papa!" the boy cried, but did nothing to get out of Rin's arms.

"I know you're strong, but you don't know how yokai can be. They won't stop, even for a child like you. Even then, you may provoke them," Kagome explained as quickly as she could, "Please, Rin, take him."

Shippou added in, "Kagome will be too worried for you. She won't be able to focus."

With that, Ichiro kept quiet, with tears shining in his brilliant gold eyes. The boy wanted to stay with his mother, anyone could see that.

After that, Rin headed off back to Kagome's home.

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"… Really?" Inuyasha asked, looking genuinely surprised, "So it's not—"

Myoga shook his head, "Pretty much. Sesshoumaru was believing rumours that his own kinsmen had spread. It's not his fault. Inu no Taisho had spread the rumours to begin with. He did not want any of his people to be with people. Funny, seeing as he broke his own rule."

The hanyou looked genuinely surprised, almost as if he had expected his elder brother to be correct, "But Sesshoumaru would have researched it on his own? There had to have been other ningen birthing hanyou."

"Yes, but… other yokai would have aided him with his research," Myoga explained, "Many are unhappy with his choice of a human."

"Oh…"

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Kagome ran along the dirt path, trying to find the yokai she had sensed. The young woman halted to a stop when the yokai were weaker yokai than she had expected.

"Stop!" she called loudly.

Almost instantly, the small group of yokai halted, and looked in her general direction.

One said, almost too quietly, "We are passing through, miko. We are not here to harm this pitiful village."

Kagome did not believe them right away, instead fixing them with a thick glare, "I don't believe you. There's no way—"

"It is, miko," another said in a rough, scratchy voice, "We wish to enter Inuyasha's Forest in order to get to where we need to go."

"Then go around," Kagome growled lowly, "It's not that hard. You're scaring everyone here. I'm not saying there are no good yokai, but lately, we have been plagued by evil ones."

"Yeah! Hurry up and go!" Shippou cried, but he was blatantly ignored by the yokai.

The yokai growled lowly, but another spoke, "Our apologies. We shall go around, then."

With that, the group of three turned and headed out of the village. Kagome let out a heavy exhale, annoyed that her time was wasted like that. Still, it was better than fighting with them. The young woman turned on her heel, only to crash into—

"Hey, watch where you're—Inuyasha?" the young woman blinked a few times before blushing profusely, "Uh… sorry."

Inuyasha rose a silver eyebrow, looking confused, "What's with you?"

"Yokai. Wasting time."

The hanyou sighed, letting out a heavy breath, "Alright. I'd be pissed too. Fuck… I could smell yokai, but I didn't think much of it. Didn't cause ya any trouble?"

"No, they just wanted to pass through. Apparently they needed to get to that forest," Kagome said, puffing her cheeks and crossing her arms over her chest, "I'm so annoyed."

"Me too!" Shippou huffed, hugging onto Kagome's leg before hissing, "Those stupid yokai! Why did they need to come through?"

"Tsk, aren't you forgetting you're a yokai?" Inuyasha asked, giving Shippou a deadly look, "And let go of Kagome, will ya? Seriously, you woulda run away scared."

"Bleehhhh!" Shippou poked his tongue out at the older inuyokai, squeezing his eyes shut, "Shut up, Inuyasha! You wouldn't get it. I'm a good yokai. There are good yokai. Maybe not many, but I'm good."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah… Y'er only good if you get something out of. What do you want, pipsqueak?" Inuyasha asked, before promptly picking the kitsune up by his tail.

"Inuyasha!"

"Let go! Let go!"

"What, Kagome? He's being irritating. He just wants something," Inuyasha said defensively, "That's all he wants."

Kagome growled in a very not so human way, stomping her foot before muttering those words, causing Inuyasha to go head first into the ground.

"Stupid, Inuyasha!" Shippou growled, having moved swiftly to not get squished by the larger creature, "I'm here to see Ichiro, you know! I talk to him quite a bit and teach him things!"

Kagome nodded her head, "It's true."

"And what has the runt been teaching him—"

"Mama! Papa!"

The couple turned their heads in the direction of the shrill cry. Instantly thinking the worst, Inuyasha jumped onto his feet and unsheathed his weapon. Kagome was also worried, still clutching her bow.

"Is everything over?" Rin asked when she came into view, with Ichiro by her side.

The two parents relaxed almost right away when they noticed their son. Of course, they were glad Rin was fine too, but they were worried about their son the most. After all, a parent's love is one of the strongest things.

"Yep," Inuyasha answered for Kagome, "Apparently, they wasted her time."

Ichiro jumped into Kagome, knocking over Shippou who whined in response. Kagome patted the young hanyou and smiled.

"So everything's okay?" the young child asked, looking up at his mother.

"Yep. C'mon," she looked at everyone who had gathered, "Let's head back."

"Wait…" Rin said, "Did you… Did you find out, Inuyasha?"

The hanyou nodded, but did not say anything else. He instead followed Kagome, Ichiro and Shippou who had already started heading back. Obviously he wanted to talk about when they got to the privacy of their small home.

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Sesshoumaru watched the small, green demon go on about something that had happened during one of the many patrols Sesshoumaru sets up with his servants. Though, his mind was elsewhere. He was trying to focus in on his beloved's thoughts, as he felt hope spark through her emotions like wildfire. His fingers dug into the palm of his hand. What could have possibly caused such a change in her hope?

Digging through the surface of her thoughts, he supposed she did not really know if the child would kill her, but Inuyasha's return from seeing Myoga made her feel hopeful. Still, he did not understand why she would allow her feelings to become so powerful that if, she is let down, it will no doubt hurt. Then again, he does not really understand emotions in the same way ningen do. Not that yokai have no emotions, but their emotions are… well… not as strong. Tears do not come as easily to yokai, unless events or circumstances arise.

He could tell that she was praying to kami that her thoughts are correct, that he, Sesshoumaru is wrong. He wishes that it were that case he was wrong, but he trusted his advisors. He did not need an heir, anyways. Inuyokai like himself live for a long time, and another inuyokai would have come and taken his place. It was just how things would need to be.

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The group of four made their way back to Inuyasha's home. The four of them stayed outside rather than entering the small house, wanting to stay out in the cool breeze. Ichiro and Shippou were sitting on a large, flat rock, while Kagome and Inuyasha were sitting on the porch of the cottage. Rin was cross-legged, in front of the two of them.

"So, I'm guessin' you wanna know about everything, then?" Inuyasha asked, resting his weapon against his chest.

It appears that was a habit, as he nearly always had the blade with him. Maybe it gave him a feeling of safety?

Kagome seemed to already know what was going on, and was resting peacefully against her mate. She had her eyes closed, and seemed to be trying to rest.

Rin nodded her head, wishing for everything to become clear. She wanted to return home, to the safety of her mate's arms. However… if things did not go the way she wants, she would flee. She would run, and continue running until he caught up with her, and even then, she would continue to run. She would protect the child within her, even if it caused her death.

"Well," Inuyasha cleared his throat before finally giving the answer Rin needs to know, "Kinda seems like my brother was pretty fuckin' wrong."

Rin blinked at the pure bluntness of his statement. Then, happiness spread through her and she felt oddly calm. Joy and relief were the main emotions she was feeling, and tears pricked her eyes. These tears signified her sheer delight.

Shippou and Ichiro were clearly not paying attention, and were now sparring. Ichiro showed that he had the typical claws of an inuyokai, although his were similar to Inuyasha's. He clawed at Shippou, who transformed into a small bat, flittering into the air and dodging the child's hits. It seemed like Shippou had learnt new transformations. Or he just never used everything he had.

Rin watched the two, and was hoping that those two children would accept her baby like her baby will no doubt accept them. Though, she knew Ichiro and Shippou were kind-hearted, and would accept anyone who would play with them.

"Sesshoumaru was pretty serious about it. There's a reason for it," Inuyasha said, having allowed Rin time to think, "Inuyokai were one of the many yokai who did not accept hanyou into their lineage. Often, these hanyou were erased in family lines, and that often caused confusion when those hanyou offspring appeared in order to learn about their history. Though, seems like my father was the one that created the rule in the first place."

At this, Rin allowed shock to show on her face. She had heard that Inu no Taisho was accepting of ningen because of his mate. However, maybe even he did not care for ningen to begin with, much like Sesshoumaru was in the past. Though, Sesshoumaru's hate for humans stemmed from his father not giving any attention to himself and his mother.

"Yeah, I was pretty surprised too, Otou-chan kinda made it clear that humans were not burdens," the hanyou said, taking his hands off of his weapon and moving it to the side, before pulling his mate into his lap, "In order to stop inuyokai from mating with ningen, he created a rumour that stated that inuyokai and ningen are incompatible, as Myoga said, anyways. But this was clearly not true, seeing as I didn't kill my mother."

Yes… but it could also be luck… Rin thought sadly.

"And there were other hanyou around. Some are different than I am. All I got was these silly ears," with that Inuyasha allowed his ears to twitch to prove a point, "But, I'm similar to a ningen, as are normal inuyokai too. Myoga said that, while there is always the risk, it's not that high in inuyokai. It was just a scare tactic taught to Sesshoumaru, but seeing as Otou-chan died, Sesshoumaru couldn't ask."

"Then why didn't any of the researchers find this?" Rin asked, remembering that Sesshoumaru had said he had looked everywhere; she knew he would have used his own team as well.

"Because it is frowned upon when yokai are mated with ningen," Kagome said, answering on Inuyasha's part, "Hanyou aren't exactly… wanted by anyone. Only the parents, really."

Inuyasha looked somewhat offended by his mate's words, but did nothing to push her off.

Kagome seemed to sense this and said: "I'm meaning, people that don't really know what you're like. Other children would not play with you when you were younger, and adult ningen would not give you any respect. It's because hanyou are considered different to ningen and yokai."

The inuyokai let out a snort, "Those people pissed me off most."

Smiling softly at Rin, Kagome stated: "It should be fine for this child to be born. It's just… rumours that inuyokai and ningen cannot breed. It's a way to scare people. Honestly, I'd talk to these researchers of nii-san's," a wince from Inuyasha, "and sort them out."

Rin nodded, agreeing with Kagome's words, "So… I'll be fine?"

"Yep, just usual childbirth worries," Inuyasha said, wrapping his arms around his mate's waist.

The girl broke out in a bright grin, finally feeling happy.

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Tbc