The Power in Me

By Ammie Hawk

Disclaimer: Repeat after me, I do not own Inuyasha or Harry Potter.

AN: This chapter was a complete bitch to write. It moves the plot along at least, which is something. Hopefully I will be able to plug away at this one, considering I already have the sequel for it started (which is sadly part of the problem I'm having writing this one). Anyway, sit back and enjoy.

Chapter 3

Sesshomaru very carefully lifted the chibi into his arms, not wanting to wake his brother, and made his way out of the room. He took a seat across the hall, knowing that if he took the child too far away from Inuyasha, he would never hear the end of it. He settled the boy on his lap and spent some time gathering his thoughts.

"So, tell me, little one," he said quietly, "what is your name?"

"Hawry, Hawry Potter," the boy answered automatically.

"It is nice to meet you, Harry, I am Lord Sesshomaru."

"Word Se-Sessh-Sessypoo," Harry stumbled over the name. "It nice to meet you, too, Word Sesshypoo."

"Sesshomaru," he corrected.

"Tat what I said," the chibi pouted, "Sesshypoo."

"How old are you, Harry?" the dog demon took a deep, calming breath, it wouldn't do to kill the most recent addition to Inuyasha's pack after all.

Three small fingers rose into the air in front of them. Well, that made a bit more sense, and he could forgive the butchering of his name, for now.

"Now, tell me, Harry, where are your parents?" he shook his head, getting back to the topic at hand.

"They dead," the little rave head bowed. "They die in car cwash. I wive wif Aunt P'tunia an' Unc'e Vernon and Dudwey."

"And where are they?"

"I no know," he shrugged. "We were visiting shwines, and Dudwey pushed me down well. Ten I wake up wif Puppy and Shippo."

"Why do you call Inuyasha Puppy?" Sesshomaru asked curiously.

"Cause tat what he is," green eyes looked up seriously and he grabbed at the top of his head, pulling his wayward hair slightly. "He got ears. Tey weally soft."

"They are," he agreed with a nod. "But Shippo has a tail, why is he not a puppy?"

"Cause he Shippo, duh," Harry said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"What the…?" a cry from the room caused them both to turn. "Where the hell is he? Kid? Where are you?"

A moment later, Inuyasha appeared in the bedroom doorway. He froze as amber eyes fell on the pair of them. He stiffened slightly at the sight of his elder brother holding the boy on his lap.

"What are you doing here, Sesshomaru?" he crossed his arms over his chest.

"I was asked to speak with the child," he smirked slightly. "His name is Harry, he's three, and his parents are dead. And from what I understand," he glanced down at the chibi in his lap, "It was your cousin that pushed you, correct?" Harry nodded. "His cousin, Dudwey…"

"No," the boy interrupted, "Dud-wey."

A frown marred the demon lord's features as he studied the chibi.

"Dudley?" he questioned, trying to decipher the toddler speak.

"Uh-huh," he nodded again. "Dudwey."

"Very well," Sesshomaru looked back at his brother. "His cousin, Dudley, pushed him down a well."

"Okay," Inuyasha ran a hand through his hair, "that kinda explains why he's here, but not really. Anyway, it doesn't help with how I'm supposed to talk with him. Isn't there something you can do about that?"

"I am not a wizard, Inuyasha," gold eyes rolled in mild annoyance. "The most I can do is act as interpreter until the two of you speak each other's languages. I'd be more than happy to teach you both, however, that would require you returning with him to the Western Lands."

"What?" the half demon stared at him incredulously. "No. There's no way in hell I'm going with you."

"As you wish," Sesshomaru shrugged, finally getting to his feet, the boy still in his arms. "However, Harry is coming with me."

"Like hell," Inuyasha was in front of him in an instant, reaching for the chibi. "The kid stays with me."

"Is Puppy mad at me?" green eyes filled with tears as he shrunk into the daiyoukai's arms. "I sorry. I not do it again. Jus pwease don't be mad at me."

"He's not mad at you," the demon rubbed his back soothingly. "He's actually mad at me. Inuyasha, I would suggest you calm yourself. You are scaring the boy. And this is exactly why he is coming with me. He does not understand you, and if you continue to have these outbursts, like you are prone to having, you will do nothing but frighten him."

Inuyasha looked at him in confusion before his eyes drifted to the chibi in his brother's arms. The green eyes that were peeking at him from beneath the black fringe were quickly filling with tears. The Hanyou's expression cleared instantly. He reached out and pulled the now unresisting chibi into his arms.

"Shh," he cradled the boy against his chest, and began patting his back. "It's okay. I got you. You're okay now."

Sesshomaru wisely kept his mouth shut as the younger male soothed the child, his actions speaking much louder than his words ever could. If the daiyoukai was prone to such things, he would have smiled at the sight of his future mate with the child in his arms. He knew in that moment he had made the right decision in laying claim to the Hanyou, even if the other was uneducated and uncertain on the matter.

"Perhaps," he cleared his throat slightly, reigning in his wayward thoughts before they took him to a place his brother was not ready for yet, "it would be best if we took this into the room, as the pup is now sleeping and we don't want to wake the rest of the house."

Wide amber eyes glanced down at the chibi in his arms, to find that his brother was indeed right. The boy was, in fact, asleep once more, his small hands fisted tight on his shirt.

"Yeah, fine," Inuyasha agreed reluctantly. "But if you wake Shippo up, I'll kill you myself."

"I wouldn't dream of waking the kit," Sesshomaru replied calmly, though he was slightly confused, he hadn't seen the young fox when he'd been in the room before. "I didn't intend to wake Harry either, he just happened to wake up."

"A likely story," the younger male scoffed.

He led the way back into the bedroom. He silently padded over to the futon he'd been sleeping on and placed the chibi down next to the still sleeping fox. Sesshomaru saw now how he had overlooked the kitsune, as he was situated on the far side of the futon and, loathe as he was to admit it, he'd been distracted by his younger brother.

"So," the daiyoukai leaned against the wall, as Inuyasha sat on the edge of the futon next to the pups, "I will take Harry with me to the Western Lands as soon as he wakes again, and you have had the chance to say your goodbyes."

"That ain't happenin', Sesshomaru," gold eyes narrowed into a glare.

"Inuyasha," his brother said in his patented monotone, "you saw what happened in the hall. The child does not understand you. He cannot stay here without someone who speaks his language, and I must return to my realm."

The Hanyou scoffed, but turned his head away. He knew his brother spoke the truth even if it irritated him to no end. There was no way he could take care of the chibi on his own as long as they spoke two different languages. He reached up and absently began scratching his neck.

"Does it truly bother you that much?" the elder's brow lowered into a barely discernable frown.

"Huh?" Inuyasha gave him a confused look. "What're you talkin' about?"

"The mark," his eyes shifted to the other's neck. "I noticed earlier that it was row and irritated."

"Eh," he shrugged, quickly removing his hand. "It itches a bit. Nothin' I can't handle."

"Of course," he inclined his head in agreement. "Regrettably, however, I fear the mark will continue to bother you until the claiming is complete."

"Or it'll just go away," amber eyes narrowed into a glare. "I mean, it's getting better. I'm sure it'll be gone in a few days at this rate."

The daiyoukai's brow lowered into a frown. With how irritated it had been when he'd seen it earlier it should still be really bothering the Hanyou. Then again, with how stubborn his brother was, he could be brushing it off. With that thought in mind, he pushed off the wall and made his way over to the younger male.

"What are you doing?" Inuyasha snapped, leaning away from the approaching male.

"Relax, Inuyasha," he soothed quietly. "I am not going to hurt you, I just want to see the mark."

Inuyasha raised his hand to his neck protectively. The elder male took a deep, calming breath so he didn't growl at the other's childishness, before reaching out and gently wrapping his hand around his brother's wrist. Gently, yet with enough force to get him to comply, he eased the hand away.

To his surprise, the once angry red mark was now a much lighter shade of pink. His scowl turned contemplative as he reached out and brushed his fingers lightly against the mark. Inuyasha let out a barely audible sigh at the touch, causing the elder's expression to soften.

"St-stop it," the Hanyou stuttered, but didn't pull away.

Before anything else could be said or done, the door slid open behind them. Both brothers tensed at the unexpected intrusion, and Sesshomaru's hand rose in preparation for attack, his claws glowing green as he gathered his poison. He dispelled it, however, as they recognized the panting and slightly disheveled form of their host.

"Inu-yasha," he leaned heavily against the doorframe.

"Miroku!" the Hanyou was at the monk's side in an instant. "What's wrong? Are we under attack?"

"The-the baby…" he panted.

"The baby's attacking?" Inuyasha cocked his head to the side in confusion.

His answer caused his older brother to rub his forehead in exasperation, an uncharacteristic display for the usually well controlled daiyoukai. The younger male possessed many admirable qualities, but he could be so dense at times.

"The… baby's… coming…" Miroku finally managed to get out.

"Wh-what?" his amber eyes widened in shocked surprise.

"Go, Inuyasha," Sesshomaru shook his head, "be with your friends. I shall remain here with the children."

The Hanyou hesitated, unsure what to do. The decision was made for him, however, as Miroku seized his arm and began dragging him from the room. Once they were gone, Sesshomaru settled in to wait for the two boys to awaken.

He watched as the little fox shifted in his sleep and drew the small human into his arms. The kit's actions made it obvious that the new child was already accepted into this strange makeshift family Inuyasha had created for himself. He hated to take this all away from the Hanyou, after everything he'd been through in his life, but it wasn't truly up to him. The boy had to come with him to the Western Lands, there was no getting around that. What Inuyasha chose to do after that was up to him.

Though, whether his little brother accompanied him or not, he would not go too far or be gone for too long. He had less than a month to win the younger male's affections after all, or he risked Inuyasha falling into the madness of an unfulfilled claim. Loathe as he was to admit it, he would never allow that to happen. If Inuyasha refused to accept him as his mate, he would remove his claim from the Hanyou.

It would hurt to let him go, especially after all the time and effort he had already put into the courting, and it was unlikely he would find another he found suitable, but he refused to force himself on the younger male or be with someone who didn't want to be with him. But he was not going to give up easily, even if he had to resort to, he shuddered even thinking it, more human methods to win the Hanyou over. Of course, to do that he would have to ask for some help, another cringe worthy thought. Perhaps it would not hurt to spend a bit more time here and speak with the monk and demon slayer about it, they were Inuyasha's closest friends after all.

Ammie: Okay, so as I said, this is getting really hard to write since I want to focus on the sequel. However, I am trying to get this one finished before I move on with that one. In the mean time, I'm open for suggestions on things Sesshomaru could do to woo the reluctant Inuyasha into being with him. Anyway, please let me know what you think.