Disclaimer: Inuyasha - Sengoku o-Togi Zoushi (Inu-Yasha: A Feudal Fairy Tale) is the love child of Takahashi Rumiko and is distributed here in the United States by Viz. This work was created for my personal enjoyment only; no money will be made from this story. I have no right to use Takahashi-sama's characters in any manner whatsoever... but I am hoping she does not mind my borrowing them for a bit.

duende

.:joyfully numb:.
prologue

bleak desolation, in a beam of sun
like an angel, you'll come
in a dream, blessed one
and make me
joyfully numb

-Duende; Delerium (Karma)

Sango grimaced and felt her stomach lurch sickly as she examined the corpse. Shooing away the gathering flies from the large gash in the dead man's neck, she assessed the gruesome evidence before her. She originally suspected a bear-youkai had killed the young man, but as she leaned closer to examine the bite marks on the face and neck, she began to doubt.

Wolf-youkai..?

The taiji-ya frowned at the thought. The wounds certainly looked like classic marks from a feeding wolf-youkai, but the only wolf-tribe in the area had been the Yourouzoku and Naraku wiped them out the night of his demise. And she knew of only one Yourouzoku left, certainly he wouldn't do such a thing.

Could there have been more than one survivor?

Sango bit her lip as she studied the wounds on what was left of the arms. The man had been killed by a wolf-youkai, she was certain of it now. But if another tribe had moved into the area, she would have heard some sort of rumor about it. Wolf-youkai patrolled their territory and marked the boundaries on a regular basis. They would have been seen, their presence felt - there would be no hiding - she would know if another tribe had claimed the land, but none had.

This was the work of a lone wolf-youkai. If it had been a pack, there would be nothing left of the name except broken bones and bloodied clothes. This was a sloppy kill and a hurried meal. As much as she wanted to believe that some other member of the Yourouzoku had survived, Sango knew that to be untrue. Naraku had been thorough when he slaughtered the Yourouzoku - there was nothing left of the tribe, save for the prince himself.

Kouga, have you gone mad? What has happened to you?

Kirara sniffed the corpse and turned anxious eyes to her master. Sango swallowed back her nausea as she reached out to stroke her head. Mangled corpses were nothing new, but knowing the murderer personally was. If he was killing humans now, she'd have to stop him... but she didn't know if she'd be able to kill him.

Composing herself as quickly as she could, Sango stood and faced the village chief. "Thank you, Ichiro-san. I'm finished here."

"It wasn't a bear at all... was it?" he asked, his voice hinting at the mournful rage building in his heart.

"No sir," she said as she rubbed her palms against her hip, wiping away the sweat of her unease. "A wolf-youkai killed him. I'm certain of it."

Ichiro's eyes looked past Sango to watch the remains of his son being gathered and carried away for burial. The taiji-ya resisted the urge to look back with a thin line of stubbornness. The image of blood, bone and flesh torn to shreds was already permanently imprinted upon her mind.

The village chief swallowed once and blinked hard before turning his attention back to the exterminator.

"A wolf-youkai killed Jiro?" he asked. "Just one? You're sure?"

"There hasn't been a pack of wolf-youkai seen in this area in over a year," Sango's lips twitched into a pained frown, "And the fact that we can identify the body and only one person was killed suggests that there was only one attacker. There would have been far more damage and casualties if it had been an attack by a pack of wolves."

Ichiro turned his face away from her, showing his profile as she blinked away tears and she instantly regretted the bluntness of her words. A simple 'yes' would have been sufficient, but she had said too much.

"I see," he whispered, eyes downcast and expression pained. Then, after a beat of silence, he cleared his throat, squared his shoulders and gazed at Sango with such scrutiny that she had to resist the urge to fidget. The man before her was no longer the heartbroken father, but the village leader.

"I know the stories about you," he said. "Your reputation is very impressive, but you seem far too petite to be able to handle a wolf-youkai. Even a lone one."

The taiji-ya said nothing.

With a grunt, the chief held out his hand and made beckoning motions with his fingers, "Let me see it."

Sango raised her brows in question.

"Your weapon."

Without a word, Sango unclasped Hiraikotsu from her back and held it out for the village chief. He lifted it out of her grasp with the expectation that it would be light only to nearly drop it when his fingers lost their grip. Sango caught it before it fell and bit back a smirk when she saw the chieftain's surprised expression.

He took it from her again, this time with the knowledge of what to expect. He hefted it twice and thumped it against the earth once.

"I've never seen a weapon like this," he said. "It's remarkable."

"My father made it."

Ichiro raised a brow, "Your father is a taiji-ya, too?"

"He was," she said. "My entire family was. I am the only one left."

The chieftain handed the weapon back, "How much?"

"Pardon me?"

"My son deserves justice and if something isn't done, this monster will only kill again. Won't it?"

Jaw clenched, Sango nodded once.

"I must think of our village," he said. "How much will it cost for you to exterminate it?"

• • •

Tender red scars marred the flesh of both his legs forming the epicenter of his physical ails and a reminder of all that he had lost. The wound should be healed. The scars should be nothing but a faint, jagged line running down the sides of his calves. His legs should be solid and strong like they were before the shards were inserted. He should be as he was before the shards... before her.

Bitterness swelled up inside him like an old friend as thoughts of Kagome filtered across his mind. She was supposed to be the happiness at the end of the story, the shelter from the storm. She was supposed to be his mate and the mother of his pups. She was supposed to be his everything...

...but he lost her. Forever.

Everything was gone. The Yourouzoku, Kagome, the Shikon no Tama... even Naraku and Kagura...

Gone.

He failed to protect his people. He failed to earn Kagome's love as mate. He failed to avenge his comrades.

What was left to live for?

Kouga leaned back against the tree and closed his eyes as anguish ran rampant through his soul. He should have let that human kill him. Death by the hand of some weak man was the least he deserved. Had he been more rational, Kouga would have let him do just that. Unfortunately, wild instinct and the pangs of hunger dictated otherwise. It wasn't until his face and claws were smeared with blood and human flesh dangled from his mouth did he realize what he was doing.

Realization brought repulsion. Repulsion brought nausea. Throat and bowels suddenly constricted and churned, causing him to gag and spit. He never considered preying upon humans to be cannibalistic, but after Kagome, he did.

Kouga fled the scene as quickly as he could, shame fueling his escape. He purged his guilt and scrubbed away his sin, but the phantom sensations of clawing and chewing his way through human flesh remained. For a brief moment, Kouga was glad Kagome would never learn of what he had done. Still, his memory was more than enough to intensify his desire to die.

A familiar scent wafting flirtatiously on the evening breeze caught his attention, briefly diverting him from his self-loathing. Curiosity peaked, he inhaled the scent deeply, allowing the uniqueness of it play with his memories.

He frowned and inhaled once more, doubting the keenness of his nose. He knew this scent...

Sango... what are you doing here?

Kouga snorted and tasted the air for a third time, this time detecting the subtle aroma of textile marred with sweat and dirt. This new information brought a clearer image in his mind. One of the last time he saw the taiji-ya, though this time the overwhelming stench of blood and miasma was absent.

Pushing aside unpleasant memories, Kouga concentrated on the scent as he strained his ears to hear her. He was being tracked. Slowly and steadily, the taiji-ya girl was seeking him out and he knew without question what she was coming for and why.

His aqua blue eyes opened to a waxing twilight as a thoughtful expression appeared on the face of the last Yourouzoku in the Western Lands. The taiji-ya was dressed and ready for battle, the hunter was now the hunted and Kouga almost smiled at his good fortune.

Perhaps she could finish the job that the human male could not.

duende: The ability to attract others through personal magnetism and charm.