The Coyote Child
Chapter Four
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The Coyote Child
By Terri
Disclaimer: I don’t own
Inuyasha. Sole copyright belongs to Viz and Rumiko
Takashi. I’m poor so don’t sue.
Rating: R for later chapters.<
Pairing: Inuyasha/Kagome
Summary: Inuyasha and Kagome
are asked to adopt a coyote-hanyou baby from
Email feedback to:
tci100@psu.edu
Webpage:
http://www.wordsmiths.net/Botta
*******
Chapter Four
The
following morning found them all up early and down in the Holiday Inn’s lobby
eating the complimentary breakfast before
Yukio had slept well and he felt relatively good when he woke up. During the
night, he had retriethe the pup from the car seat/bassinet he had been placed
in and cuddled with him in bed. His mother didn’t want the pup bonding to her
until the situation with his birth parents was resolved, so she had taken to
letting him sleep in the car seat. To be separated from his caregivers was
unnatural for the pup, especially one so young, and he was fussy and worried.
Yukio,
never one to resist a pup’s cries of distress, took up the role his mother was
reluctant to fill, and tried to see to the pup’s emotional needs. It was better
for him to do it because he was a male and the pup was less likely to bond with
him in the short-term. He knew if the coyote-hanyou did end up becoming brother
number fifteen, his mother would raise him no differently from any of the
others and would bring him into bed with her for at least the first two years,
but for now he was happy to have the warm bundle of pup with him. The infant,
drawn to his body heat, snuggled against his chest and his little heart
provided comforting background noise to sleep by, although he was awake
immediately the moment the pup moved or made a noise.
The Holiday
Inn offered a simple breakfast of cold cereal, fruit, pastries, milk, juice,
and coffee. There was also hot water and packets for oatmeal, hot chocolate and
tea. Yukio made himself two bowls of oatmeal, ate two cheese
with coffee while he listened to his parents chat quietly over their own meals.
His father was wearing his ‘Don’t Annoy the Anger Management Class Dropout’
shirt, and it was earning quite a number of chuckles. Emma sat across from him,
smelling of soap and shampoo, and they exchanged pleasantries as the Cree woman
ate a bowl of cereal and a banana. He had very little to say to her beyond
emphasizing that the previous night had been a great deal of fun. She once
again brought up the subject of The Sugar Bowl in
and he once again avoided giving her a direct answer by saying he didn’t know
how busy he would be.
It wasn’t
that he was against going with her. He knew that an evening out would probably
be very nice and they would both have a good time, but he remained conflicted.
He acknowledged the fact that there was something about her that drew him in.
She was pretty, intelligent and had a vibrant personality. Her sense of humor
was dry like his own and she caught most of his
obscure references to movies, books and television. However he also knew that
the thought of a relationship didn’t appeal to him. If it was friendship that
she wanted, he was happy to provide company and companionship, but somehow he
doubted that just being friends was on her agenda. While not coming directly
out and saying that she was interested in a romantic relationship, she was
certainly leaning heavily in that direction and he wasn’t sure what would be a
good way to let her down lightly.
She seemed
to be figuring it out on her own, however, because she had toned down her ‘feminine
wiles’ tactics and was now keeping a respectful distance, engaging him in
meaningful conversation and speaking to him in a mature, steady voice. She’d
also either neglected to or had purposefully chosen not to put on any false
scent, but if anything that had only made her more attractive to him because
she smelled more purely of her own scent and not of manufactured perfume. He
negated the effects her scent had on him by placing his coffee directly under
his nose and by training his senses on the pup he had in his lap.
The other
Natives sat around them, eating their own meals and the conversations were soft
and congenial. It seemed that all of them had slept well and were ready for
another day of driving. Kagome was eager to get on the road because she wanted
to be in
before the stores closed. She still needed to make a concealment anchor for the
pup and she was hoping to find some items in one of
seemed interested in helping his mother make the locus and Kagome welcomed her
input. No one questioned the day’s travel itinerary or the destination, and
they left as soon as all of them had finished eating.
Their early
start paid off and they were on the road by
Inuyasha was a little heavy on the gas pedal, and they grabbed lunch when they
stopped for gas. In the Jeep, he mostly listened to his mother and Lori talk
about power items and locus stones. Their conversation confirmed what he had
started to suspect: that Lori was a Navajo Medicine Woman who had come along
for spiritual protection.
The drive
to
took them just over seven hours. Normally it would have taken close to eight
but their earlier haste put them about half an hour ahead of schedule, and they
arrived at The Grand Summit Hotel just before
The hotel was a typical ski resort made in the style of a wilderness lodge with
lots of wood and open spaces. It was the central hotel of The Canyons resort
village and flanked by shops and ski lifts. Guests could ski right up to the
hotel from the slopes, although said slopes were closed until the ski season
began.
“
approached the VIP desk. “We are so happy to see you today. I have been
instructed to inform you that you have been upgraded to one of our
three-bedroom suites courtesy of Mr. Sims our general manager.”
“That was
very nice of him,” his mother replied. “Please thank him for us.”
“The suite
sleeps ten very comfortably,” the man told them. “The master bedroom is
outfitted with a king size bed and the remaining two bedrooms have two queens
each. There is also a full kitchen and living room with a Queen
folding, rollaway twin bed in the storage closet. Will you be
needing a crib for your little one?”
“That won’t
be necessary, but thank you,” Kagome answered, patting the pup’s back as he
rested in the baby sling looped across her shoulder.
“In that
case, welcome to the Grand Summit Hotel. Please sign here and I’ll give you
r par pass keys. How many copies would you like for your party?” he asked,
giving Inuyasha the guest registration form.
“Four
should do, thank you,” his mother said.
The
concierge programmed four pass keys, assembled the welcome pack with coupons,
local information, schedules and maps, and they were ready to go a few minutes
later.
“This hotel
is very nice,” Emma commented as they made their way through the lobby to the
elevators. “I can see why your mother wanted to stay here.”
“It’s also
one of my father’s designs. He drew up the original plans for the complex. We
didn’t build it though. Uncle took the blueprints and outsourced it to a local
contractor,” he replied.
“Oh? Is
that a good thing or a bad thing?”
“Good
thing. It’s better to hire local workers for a project. They know who can be
trusted to do honest business and who can’t. They know the resources at their
disposal and can usually negotiate better deals for materials. Also hiring
lo hel helps the community so they’re less likely to resent the construction,”
he explained.
“That’s
good then. I’m glad to see that you and your father are so concerned about
people. Then again, Grandfather always admired your family for that.”
She wasn’t
patronizing him and he knew it. Her concern for the quality of life of the
general populace was genuine and it was one of the things that made her so
attractive.
“We lived
in a two class society for a very long time. We witnessed first-hand what it is
like when only a few have all of the wealth and power while the rest barely
survive. The peasants of
bore the brunt of starvation, war and poverty while the ruling class enjoyed
luxury upon luxury. It led to a great deal of bloodshed and death. The strength
of a nation lies not in its leaders but in its working classes. If you support
them and raise them up, they can do amazing things.”
She smiled
at him as they walked down the hall to their room, bringing up the rear of
their group.
“You sound
like a political science major.”
He
shrugged. “I just know what I’ve lived and I’ve lived through a lot.”
Her eyes
grew thoughtful and hooded. “I can imagine that you have.”
He stopped
and indicated that she should go ahead of him into the suite, and she gave him
a littod aod as she passed.
Once they
had settled into the room, they all went downtown to shop.
Film Festival and as such there were many eclectic shops and venues that
catered to the type of visitor who frequented an ‘art town.’ Even when the film
festival wasn’t going on, there were always performances and films and other
activities to attend and enjoy. Not to mention the numerous restaurants and
bars offering music, food and spirits to a lively crowd. The atmosphere was
friendly and casual, and even the Navajos seemed to be enjoying themselves.
was happy to find jewelry making supplies at C & C Indian Art, and Lori
helped her select stones and materials that were favorable Medicine for
Navajos. At first Lori was apprehensive about making the cord for the necklace
out of a lock of Inuyasha’s hair because she worried about a ‘black miko’
getting a hold of the hair and using it to make a curse, but Kagome assured her
that her own ‘miko blessings’ would protect the cord from being used for evil.
The only real
damper of the evening came just before dinnertime, when they entered another
store that specialized in Native art. One display of pottery caught Lori’s eye
and she seemed very concerned about it. Billy and Michael saw her examining a
pot and something on it made them all very, very unhappy. They began whispering
in Dineh, the language of their tribe in hushed,
upset voices.
“What’s
going on?” Yukio asked Emma as David joined the Navajos in inspecting the
pottery.
“The
pottery is stolen,” she replied in a sad voice.
“It is? How
do they know?”
She gave
him a stricken look. “There are holes, badly patched, on the bottoms of the
pots. That marks them as grave goods. The only way they could have gotten grave
goods is if they raided a native burial site.”
Yukio
frowned and a low growl built in his throat. To desecrate a grave was a very
dishonorable thing, and he hated the thought of anyone taking something from a
burial mound in order to make a profit.
“
he heard Yukio’s growling.
“The
pottery they’re looking at was stolen from a grave,” he answered with barely
contained fury.
“Oh no,”
Kagome gasped.
Just then
Lori let out a cry of alarm and David dropped the pot he was holding as if he
had been burned. It shattered on the laminate wood floor and dark gray dust
scattered everywhere.
“Hey!” the
saleswoman shouted, stomping over to them. “What are you doing? You’d better
pay for that!”
Lori did
not answer but continued to let out a keening cry as David turned three shades
of pasty white. At the same time he began to smell the unmistakable stench of
black magic, and from the look on his mother’s face she was sensing it too.
He didn’t
know what corpse dust was, but he could garner a pretty good guess and whatever
it was, it was not of the good.
Three
things happened next in very quick succession. Lori fell to her knees as Billy
and Michael dragged her and David away from the broken pot. The saleswoman
called the police. And his mother shoved the pup into his arms as she grabbed a
bow and arrow from a wall display and fired a purifying bolt into the center of
the gray dust. There was a bright flash of white light and he felt the
purifying energy obliterate the black aura from the ashes.
“What was
that?” Emma gasped, wide-eyed.
The other
Natives were staring too, slack-jawed and stunned. Lori finally stopped keening
and stared at his mother in awe.
“
and got rid of that shouki,” Inuyasha replied as if
his answer explained everything and resolutely moved to guard the broken pot
until the authorities got there.
Emma looked
to him for translation as his mother went over to Lori and David and touched
their trembling hands.
“My mother
purified the corpse dust,” he said gently.
“She did?”
He nodded.
“I told you. My mother is a miko. She has great spiritual powers.”
Emma
blinked at him. “I know you told us, but…” She glanced over at the others. Lori
was crying but the Navajo woman seemed to be more relieved than anything else.
“But I’ve never seen anything like that.”
He
shrugged. “I don’t think that’s a bad thing.”
“Did… did
your mother have to do that a lot while you were growing up?” she asked
carefully.
glad to see that she hasn’t lost any of her touch. She didn’t hesitate for even
a second and her arrow, if anything, was over-powered.”
Emma was
silent for a long moment. “You really have lived through a lot, haven’t you,”
she commented finally, her voice soft with realization.
He nodded,
casting about the small store for any other threats. His hackles were up and
his protective instincts were on overdrive. In his arms, the pup was quiet but
awake, his big eyes peering up at him from the baby sling.
statement with a rub to the pup’s bottom.
Emma placed
herself at his side, her own eyes following his as he scanned the room. Somehow
her presence was comforting, as if she was silently telling him that she had
his back. It was odd. Usually it was one of his parents or siblings that took
up the defensive position next to him in a dangerous situation. Miaka had
always screamed and run for cover whenever danger struck, and she had never
offered her strength to his.
In stark
contrast, the Cree woman now stood at his shoulder, back straight, eyes
studying the store for anything he may have overlooked. There was no fear in
her scent. Anger, yes. But fear? No. She kept her head high and her expression
neutral- a warrior’s face and posture, and he was suddenly glad she was there.
her people haven’t had the easiest time of it either,’
He looked
at her and caught her eye, giving her a reassuring smile. She seemed surprised
for a moment, then smiled back before returning her
eyes to the watching of the store. He did notice, however, that she stood a
little taller and moved slightly closer to him.
The police
arrived but what they had been told was a case of vandalism of merchandise soon
turned into a full-fledged investigation of grave robbing and the sale of
stolen goods. A representative from the local tribal council was called to
verify the claims that the pottery were burial
offerings and all hell broke loose from there. Lori was still badly shaken, but
his mother’s arrow had gone a long way towards making the woman feel safe. She
and David had scrubbed their hands raw in the bathroom in an effort to get the
corpse dust off of them, and Kagome had done more purification to make sure no
The tribal
representative made arrangements for all of them to go to the house of a local
Medicine Man for a cleansing ceremony, and less than an hour later they found
themselves in the living room of a Hopi elder named Sun Hawk although everyone
called him Tom.
“I want to
thank you,” Tom said after the cleansing ritual had been completed. “We’ve
suspected that store of selling burial offerings for a while but this was the
first time we’ve been able to prove it. I am sorry that it caused you such a
scare though.”
“We are
glad that we could help,” Lori replied shakily. “I should have known the pot
was corpse dust the moment I saw it had a lid and warned David not to touch it.
I am glad that Kagome was able to banish the curse so quickly.”
The
Medicine Man turned dark eyes towards his mother and he wasn’t sure if he liked
the look in them. He and his father had removed themselves from the circle as
soon as Tom had completed the ritual, and they now sat on the floor with their
backs against the nearest wall. He had the pup with him, but the little one was
sleeping. He seemed quite oblivious to the world around him as long as he was
fed, dry and warm.
Lori tells me you are a Medicine Woman.”
Yukio could
see the color rise in his mother’s cheeks but she answered calmly.
“Yes. I am
a miko. From what Lori has told me, that
is very similar to a Medicine Woman.”
Tom nodded.
“If you hadn’t acted when you did, the corpse dust could have brought very
serious harm to everyone there. Corpse dust is a curse of the worst kind. To
find a pot of corpse dust being sold in a store where any unsuspecting
individual could have bought it is very disturbing. The consequences could have
been dire.”
“I only did
what felt right. The aura on the dust was very corrupted. I couldn’t let it go
unpurified.”
“And you
were right to do what you did. Thank you,” Tom assured her.
“You’re
welcome.”
“So, what
brings you to
Tom asked.
“We’re on
our way bto tto the Navajo Nation,” Michael replied, but did not elaborate.
Yukio got
the distinct impression that the young Navajo had purposefully left the
question half answered. Tom looked over at him, the pup and his father and,
once again, he felt a little uneasy. The man’s eyes were wiser than his years,
and Yukio wouldn’t put it past him to be able to see completely through the
concealment spells. He knew Lori could see a little bit of what they really
looked like, and Emma could see flashes in her peripheral vision, but he was
pretty sure Tom could see their true forms without any distortion.
“I see,”
was all Tom said thoughtfully.
“We’re
leaving early tomorrow morning for Kayenta,” Lori
added.
“Well, I
wish you safe journeys. Have you eaten yet?”
“No, we
were on our way to dinner when we went into the store with the stolen pottery,”
David answered.
“Well, I am
sure I can provide you with a hearty meal of beans and frybread,”
Tom offered, then cracked a huge grin. “Or we could just order out for pizza.”
“Pizza
sounds good,” David agreed.
“You’re
sure? I could make frybread if you’d prefer.”
“No, pizza
is fine,” Michael insisted as Tom hed.hed.
Yukio got
the impression that the frybread reference was
somewhat of a joke and he made a mental note to ask Emma about it later. His
father wasn’t a big fan of pizza but he would eat it if he had to. Tom had a
delivery menu for a local Italian place that made pasta dinners as well as the
usual pizza and hoagies, and they ordered from that. Even though there were
nine of them, they only ordered three pizzas because Kagome wanted eggplant
parmesan and his father ordered a stromboli.
He got the local equivalent of Mel’s Meat Lovers in a large while the others
split a sausage and mushroom and a green peppers, onions and olives. Despite
protests, his father insisted on paying for the food and wouldn’t even let the
others pay the deliveryman’s tip.
The pizza
was passable, but not better than Mel’s. Still it was a decent meal for the
money and he had no complaints. His mother liked her dinner and Inuyasha said
nothing about the quality, or lack thereof, of his
pup while they ate, but he let Michael answer since he was the pup’s uncle. His
respect for the young Navajo grew as he quickly realized that Michael was
trying to truthfully answer the questions without revealing anything about the
true nature of the hanyous among them. As for himself, when he had to answer a
question, he kept it brief and as honest as possible. They weren’t lying to
Tom. They just weren’t telling him everything. Somehow, he thought the old Hopi
knew, however, because he’d get a little glint in his eye whenever they were
stammering for the right words to answer another one of his innocently placed
questions.
“We thank
you again for your hospitality and the cleng rng ritual,” Lori said after the
pizza was eaten and the dishes cleaned. “However we must return to our hotel.
We have a long drive tomorrow and we need to get some sleep.”
“I’m glad
that I was able to help, although in truth your miko did most of my work for
me,” Tom replied as they all stood.
“Still,
your knowledge and company was greatly appreciated,” Billy assured him.
“Thank you
for helping us catch grave robbers and those who
profit from them.”
Yukio gave
the pup to his mother as they began to file out of the man’s small one-bedroom
apartment. The pup had made noise only when he needed something and he had to
admit that the infant was the quietest pup he’d ever seen. Even though he was
not even two weeks old and could barely turn himself
over, he was still much calmer and sweet tempered than he remembered most pups.
Michael said the pup was taking after Sara because she was a sweet and
gentle-tempered young woman herself. The Navajo had told him that his sister’s
nature and soft voice.
“And this
little one,” Tom said as they were passing, putting out a hand to touch the
pup’s chest.
The pup,
roused from a sound sleep by the touch, let out a startled cry that had
Inuyasha charging to Kagome’s side.
“Easy. I
don’t mean him any harm and I didn’t mean to frighten him,” the Hopi elder
apologized, then addressed the pup in Hopi, speaking
gently and softly to him.
The pup
turned his small head to face the wizened Elder, his amber eyes blinking slowly
at him. He was silent until Tom finished speaking, then he gave a single yip in
answer as if he had understood every word the man had spoken. While they were
shocked by the pup’s reply, the Hopi Medicine Man merely smiled and nodded as
if receiving an answer from a 12-day old pup was the most natural thing in the
world.
“May you
have safe jou>journeys. I hope to see you again sometime
when you have more time to sit with an old man and trade stories,” Tom
commented fondly to him and his parents.
Yukio
blinked at him, then replied, “Maybe someday. The next
time we’re here, we’ll look you up.”
His father
gave him a raised-eyebrow that clearly said, ‘We will?’ but he otherwise kept
quiet.
“It was a
pleasure to meet you,” his mother said, giving a little bow.
Tom bowed
to her. “The pleasure was mine. Thank you.”
“Take care
and thanks again,” she repeated as they headed out the apartment door.
“Be safe.”
wanted a hot tub,” Inuyasha complained, which only meant that he was tired of
the formalities because they were making him uncomfortable.
“Inuyasha,
don’t be rude,” Kagome chastised.
“I’m not!”
his father insisted.
His mother
just sighed and called him a
they entered the hallway of Tom’s apartment building. The Natives were ahead of
them, walking towards the elevator.
“I heard
that.”
“Good.”
mal> Yukio was
the last to leave and he gave the Hopi man a bow of his own. “Take care.”
“Safe
travels, Dog-brother. I hope that I will see you again. I know there are many
things you can teach me before I return to the earth. Look after the little
one. He is very special.”
He wasn’t
terribly surprised to hear the man call him ‘dog-brother’ but a shiver of old
fear ran up his spine anyway and he stared at Tom for a good three or four
seconds before nodding. The old man just gave him a knowing smile and wink.
“I will.
Thanks,” he finally answered.
“Take
care.”
father’s voice yelled from the elevator.
Tom laughed
and Yukio gave him a little shrug, then hurried to
join the rest of them at the end of the hall.
********
Emma was
dreaming. She was in the forest near herldholdhood home, running along the
narrow deer trails like she used to do as a little girl. She was jubilant, free
and untamed as the wilderness, and joy surged through her as her feet barely
touched the ground. Running just ahead of her, darting in and out of the trees
was a magnificent white dog, his full white tail waving like a flag. The dog
wasn’t fleeing from her and she didn’t appear to be chasing it. Rather they
were running together and he, for she somehow knew the dog was male, was
leading the way.
They ran,
trees, over the hills and across the streams, down into the gullies. There was
nothing but forest before and behind them, nothing but the earth and the smell
of the pines, nothing but the unfettered joy of running free with nothing but
the wind at their backs. She couldn’t rememberime ime when she’d felt so light
and unfettered. There were no worries, no dangers or responsibilities. There
was only her, and the forest, and the dog.
The trees
broke suddenly and she followed the dog into a small clearing. She immediately
recognized it as an old meeting place where her family used to picnic while she
was growing up. Logs had been placed around a central fire-pit ringed with
stones and a fire burned low in it now. She could smell the distinct odor of
tobacco and white sage wafting up in the graoke.oke. Standing on the opposite
side of the clearing was her grandfather and she knew he had been waiting for
her. Even though he had been dead for eight years, she wasn’t surprised to see
him. Those who had passed on often used the dream world to visit or relay
messages. His face was painted in bright ceremonial colors and he was dressed
in full regalia with a fur cap and feathers in his hair. The dog circled around
and sat on the edge of the clearing about halfway between her and her
grandfather.
“Grandfather,”
she said, coming to stand an arm’s length away from him.
“Forest-Child,”
he answered, calling her by her Cree name. “You have found him.”
She knew
who he meant. Years ago he had told her stories of the half-dogs and confided
in her their secrets. It was his belief that she would become part of the
family by marrying their son.
“He does
not want me,” she stated simply. It was true. Yukio, if he was the son her
grandfather had spoken of, was making it plainly clear that he was not
interestn ron romantic involvement. ‘But
he spoke of brothers. Perhaps he will lead me to the one I am meant to marry.’
“Do not let
his actions deter you. He speaks from his pain.”
“I fear
there is too much for him to open his heart,” she admitted.
Her
grandfather shook his head. “The outcome has already been decided. You must
stay the course. It is your calling.”
“You have
told me since I was a little girl that I was destined to join the family of the
dogs, but are you sure he is the one?”
“He is with
you now. You followed him here. Already you begin to share the same dreams.”
She turned
to look where the dog had been and gasped when she saw a naked man crouched in
its place. White hair cascaded down over the pale shoulders, brushing the
ground, as he raised his head to look at her. She saw his face; his golden eyes
stared into hers, and…
She woke
up.
Emma drew a
deep breath, her heart still pounding in her ears, the paralysis of sleep still
making her limbs tingle as it faded. It was dark in the room and she could hear
the soft breathing of another occupant, but she didn’t know whshe she was at
first. A few moments later she remembered her cousin coming to her for help and
the trip down from
out the family of half-dogs.
We’re headed down to
It took her
about ten minutes but she eventually sat up and shook off the last effects
the
the dream. She remembered only bits and pieof iof it, but she knew it was
important. Her grandfather had been in it as well as a white dog
her.
Quietly so
as not to disturb Lori who was sleeping in the other bed, she stood up and
reached for her cotton robe. The clock on the nightstand read
stomach grumbled.
money with me. I wonder if anything is open this early in the morning. The
welcome pack is on the kitchen counter. It’ll tell me if there are any 24-hour
places to get food.’
Walking on
silent feet, she made her way to the bedroom door and slipped out, closing it
behind her with a soft click. The suite was palatial compared to her little
apartment on the Enoch Reserve, and the kitchen was huge. She made her way over
to the peninsula countertop and noticed that there was a light on in the living
room area. A glance revealed Yukio lying on the couch. He was still dressed in
his jeans and T-shirt, but he hadn’t pulled out the bed in the sleeper sofa. He
had the baby on his chest, one hand on the infant’s back, while the other held
a book. He was looking directly at her so she knew he had seen her. As always
when she was looking at him, she saw glimpses of his true form in her
peripheral vision, making his concealed form a little disconcerting when she
looked at him full on.
eyes?’ she wondered. All she remembered of the man’s face in her dream was
his intense gold eyes. ‘Will he ever show
me what he really looks like?’
He was
staring at her as she stared at him, a small frown on his face, and she figured
that she’d better go talk to him.
“Is
everything alright?” he asked her in a hushed voice.
“Yes. I
just woke up and was a little hungry.”
She watched
him mark his place with a bookmark as he closed the book and put it aside. She
caught a glimpse of the cover, but it was written in Japanese.
class=GramE>“Couldn’t sleep. Weird dreams,” he answered, shifting
position so he could support the baby as he sat up.
“Oh? What
kind of dreams?”
He shook
his head. “I don’t remember much of them. Mostly I was running in the woods.”
She gulped
and tried to quell the butterflies in her stomach. “Was there anyone running
with you?” ‘Is he really the one?’
“I think
so, but I never saw who it was. In any case, I figured I’d read a while then
try to get some more sleep.”
He raked a
hand through his black hair and saw taw the flash of white again.
“So, you’re
hungry?”
She blushed
and nodded. “Yeah. It’s okay though. I was going to
see if anything was open.”
He frowned
a little. “It’s off season, so maybe not. Let me call down to the front desk
and see if they’re still serving room service.”
“There’s no
need to do that. I can just go down and get something from the vending
machines.”
“It isn’t a
problem. Besides, I thought you modern women are always watching what you eat,”
“I don’t
think a bag of potato chips is going to break my diet.”
He
chuckled, his eyes sparkling. “Potato chips were one of the first things my
mother ever gave to my father. He’d never had them before. He called them
prefers ramen over pretty much anything else. Here, can you take the pup for a
moment?”
He offered
her the baby in his blanket and she took him, supporting him under his bottom
and cradling him against her. She saw the new necklace Kagome and Lori had made
for him that evening, then noticed that the talisman Yukio had loaned the baby
was now back around his neck.
Yukio
picked up the phone before she could protest and called down to the front desk.
“Hi, this
is Yukio Fushikenwa in
I was wondering if any room service is still available.” He waited for the
person on the other end to answer. “Uh huh. Hmmm, I
don’t know. Let me ask.” He looked at her, one hand over the receiver. “She
says the kitchen is closed but they have pre-made sandwiches that they can
bring up if you want one of them. Usually they have turkey, ham and roast
beef.”
“
if they have it will be fine.” ‘A
sandwich is better than junk food. I’m glad this hotel thought enough ahead to
prepare for guests with late night munchies. I guess that kind of service is
what makes them a luxury resort.’
He nodded.
“Okay.” Then he took his hand off the receiver and spoke into the phone. “One
turkey and one roast beef. Yeah, that’s all. Just charge it to the room. Thanks
very much.” He hung up and turned to her. “It’ll be here in twenty minutes.”
“You didn’t
hav do do that,” she insisted.
He
shru. “I. “I’m hungry too and there’s no sense in eating alone.”
“Hungry?
I’m sure you are. You only ate a wholeza fza for dinner,” she joked.
appetites! Both of them should be obese with how much they eat, yet I don’t
think there’s a spare ounce of flesh on either of them.’
“Yeah, I
know. I’m wasting away,” he answered, patting his stomach.
The baby
began to rouse and made little noises.
“Feeding
time,” Yukio said, holding out his hands to take the infant.
“I think he
has your appetite,” she commented dryly as she handed him over.
“
that he’s getting fed whenever he fusses, he’ll start to gain some weight.
Right, pup?”
She smiled
as Yukiozledzled the baby then stood up, taking him to the kitchen and getting
a bottle ready. Watching him care for the infant, and seeing how attentive he
was to the baby’s needs, was endearing.
say if he had any of his own. When I called patepaternal, he said he had lots
of brothers and sisters, but never mentioned sons or daughters.’
“You and
your wife didn’t have children?” she blurted out, then regretted it immediately
when she saw his eyes darken with pain. ‘Way
to go, idiot.’ “I’m sorry. It’s none of my business.”
“No. It’s
okay. No, we didn’t have any pups. Hanyous like me have a lot of trouble siring
pups. We need help to do it. It wasn’t until fertility clinics and in-vitro
fertilization that hanyous were able to have pups. Miaka died long before any
of those things were available. My little brother Ian is seven and he was the
first hanyou-human cross pup ever born alive.”
“I’m sorry
to bring up a sensitive subject. Sometimes my mouth runs away with me.”
He shrugged
as much as he could while holding the bottle for the nursing baby. “It’s okay.
It’s a logical question to ask.”
“I
shouldn’t pry into someone’s personal business. Please accept my apologies.”
stupider? Grandfather told me to stay the course, but I don’t think he meant
for me to do it quite this way. All I keep doing is ripping open his wounds.’
“Apology
accepted.”
They fell
silent and she looked down at her hands for a few awkward moments. The baby
sucked noisily from the bottle Yukio held for him but otherwise there was no
sound.
“I do know
how it looks,” Yukio said suddenly, breaking the silence.
“Hmm?” she
asked, confused.
“I just like them. Always have. I was three when my parents adopted my brother
family and I’ll learn more about him. I noticed that he keeps redirecting the
subject every time things get a little to close to home.’
Yukio
leaned against the counter and a thoughtful look came to his face. “Like me in
that he is a hanyou, yes, but he isn’t an inu-hanyou.
He’s a koumori hanyou.”
“
“Bat.”
laughter as she recalled the numerous stories of the fictitious bat-boy touted
on the front cover of American gossip newspapers.
bat-youkai, a hyakki koumori,
a terror bat. Nasty bastards.”
His
explanation and clarification sobered her and she nodded.
“His mother
was raped by one of them. She came to the village we lived in to have the pup
and left him with us,” he went on, moving the baby to his shoulder to be
burped. “My parents were the only parents he ever knew.”
“I’m sure
they raised him well.”
He gave her
a smile that reached his eyes.
realized.
“They did.
He was a challenge because he wasn’t as resilient as I was. He was… delicate
and fine-boned. Still is.”
“Does he
look… much like a bat?”
Yukio shook
his head. “About as much as I look like a do/p>
/p>
She blinked
at him and he shrugged. “Remember what the pup looked like when you first
brought him to us, before my mother made the concealment locus?”
She nodded
that she did.
“I look a
bit like that.”
She was
just about to ask him if he also had white hair and golden eyes, but a knock on
the door interrupted them.
A woman
dressed in a uniform came in wheeling a cart. On the cart were two
saran-wrapped plates with sandwiches and snack-size bags of potato chips.
“I also
have an assortment of drinks for you to choose from, sir,” the woman said,
lifting the lid off a large ice bucket.
“Got
Pepsi?” he asked.
“I’ll take
one of them.”
“What do
you have that’s colorless?” she asked. She hated sodas with caramel coloring.
They always left a nasty film on her teeth.
The woman
paused and looked at her inventory. “I have Sprite and Ginger Ale.”
The woman
lifted a can of Ginger Ale out of the ice and placed it next to the can of
Pepsi on the tray.
“Thank
you,” she said.
“Will you
need any condiments for your sandwiches?”
“Have you
got mustard and mayo?” Yukio asked.
“I’ll take
one of each.”
“Just mayo
for me, thanks,” she added.
The woman
pulled out packets of mustard and mayonnaise from a plastic tub on the lower
shelf of the cart and placed them on the tray next to the sandwiches.
“Wilere
ere
be anything else?” the employee asked.
“No, that’s
everything. Thanks,” Yukio replied, handing the woman a tip Emma had seen him
take out of his back pocket and lifting the tray from the rolling cart.
“Thank you
very much, Sir. Have a good evening.”
“You too,”
he replied.
The woman
wheeled the cart out and Emma shut the door as Yukio brought tray ray over to
the table. Just then they heard another door open and she looked over to see
Inuyasha standing in the doorway of the master bedroom. He cast about, his face
frowning and she got the impression that he’d been roused out of a deep sleep
and wasn’t happy about it. She watched him scan the runtiuntil his eyes fell on
her and Yukio, then he tipped his head back and rolled his eyes with a derisive
snort.
Yukio
snorted back, ripped the plastic cover off his sandwich and threw the bag of
potato chips clear across the room toward his father. Her eyes widened when
Inuyasha caught the bag without so much as a blink and opened it with a soft
pop. He gave another snort, shoved a chip into his mouth, then went back into
the bedroom and closed the door without ever saying a word.
Yukio shook
his head and let out a soft chuckle.
“If he
keeps catching us like this, he’s going to get the wrong idea,” she teased
lightly. ‘If I joke with him, it might
put him more at ease with me.’
“He already
has the wrong idea,” Yukio replied, slathering mayo and mustard on his roast
beef and Swiss sandwich.
“That’s
funny. Parents make the worst matchmakers, but it’s usually the mothers not the
fathers that push,” she noted, sitting down and putting the baby in her lap.
“Oh I’m
sure I’ll hear my mother’s opinion. My father will tell her we’re out here and
she’ll give me sly looks all day long in the car tomorrow,” he answered, going
into the living room area to retrieve the car seat bassinet.
He took the “My Yukio She sighed. “I’m sure “He was the “I remember “And he She watched “I agree He looked “I know. “Thank you
baby from her and put him in the bassinet, then put the carrier on the table so
they could keep an eye on him.
grandfather was the same way,” she admitted, inspecting her sandwich. It looked
very good. She took off the tomato but left the lettuce and spread mayo on one
side.
nodded. “Your grandfather was a good man.”
“He is sorely missed.”
he is. He didn’t trust us at first, but my father brought him around.”
first man who ever went out of his way to keep his word to us. My grandfather
told me about the fiasco Wetaskiwin,” she commented.
that. The original contractor was charged with fraud,” he said, taking a huge
bite of his food.
used substandard materials. Your father took over the project, redid everything
properly and renegotiated the contract for less than what the previous bidder
demanded. Grandfather said it was the first time he had ever done business with
someone who didn’t just say he was honest but who actually was honest and
fair.”
Yukio pop open his soda and take a drink. “My family is very honorable. There
was a time when honor was all that we had. Honor is very important to us. It’s
one of the reasons why we are doing this. There is no honor in taking a woman’s
pup away from her against her will.”
with you. But I must warn you that it might not be as easy as it seems. Lori
and Billy are very worried about retribution. They don’t want anything to
happen to the tribe and Michael is very concerned about his sister’s safety.>
>
at her and his face grew resolute. “I promise you. Nothing will happen to the
pup or his mother.”
I’m just warning you that things might not go smoothly.”
for the warning. We will keep our eyes open and try to be ready for the worst.
I am hoping it won’t come to that. I am also hoping that we’ll find out what
happened to the pup’s fath
She nodded
and took a bite from her sandwich. “His absence is the real mystery here, isn’t
it?”
“Yeah it
is. In this era, no youkai would abandon a mate and pup like this.
“What makes
you think he has honor? It is Coyote after all,” she countered.
We value the Pack above all else.”
“But many
coyotes are solitary,” she pointed out.
“Only when
prey is scarce and large prey is not to be found. But you’re also making a big
mistake here. Coyote-youkai are no more like the
animal coyote than I am like a dog. We share behaviors and traits with our
animal cousins, but they are
coyote with the youkai who bears his image.”
It was a
gentle rebuke but she felt it just the same and she lowered her eyes. “I’m
sorry if I’ve offended you.”
“You
haven’t offended me. I‘m just telling you like it is.”
“And you
would know better than I in this matter,” she admitted, taking another bite.
knottertter. That’s not arrogance, it’s just the truth. We know how to deal
with other youkai whereas you have no experience with them,” he stated simply,
finishing off his sandwich.
“I didn’t
think you were being arrogant. If anything, you have been remarkably plain and
straightforward about all of this.”
“Thanks.”
She took a
moment to eat her food and offer him the bag of potato chips.
“You sure?”
he asked.
“I’m not
overly fond of the plain ones. I like sour cream and onion or sour cream and
cheddar flavor.”
He gave her
a grin as he ripped open the bag. “Mmmmm, sour cream
and cheddar flavor is yummy.”
He is as mercurial as smoke on the wind.’ “So when do you think we’ll get
to Kayenta?”
“If we
leave by 10, we should be there by 7. I think it will take around 9 hours. Once
we get off the interstate and have to travel on secondary roads, it’ll be
slower going.”
“But
beautiful,” she added.
“Oh yes,
it’ll be very tifutiful. I’m just hoping we don’t get stuck behind a camper.”
She giggled
and remembered the weapon he had drawn on the first day they met. “You’ll just
have to draw that huge sword of yours and cut it in half.”
“Screw
that. I’ll blast the damn thing off the road in one blow.”
“Where did
you get that sword anyway? I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“It’s a
youkai-blade. It’s made from my father’s fang. All of my brothers have swords
like it.”
Yukio
nodded and finished off the chips. “Each of us got one when we came of age.
They were made by a famous youkai sword smith and each one is uniquely designed
to meet the needs of its wielder.”
“It sounds
like a very special gift.”
“It is.
Kenshuga has saved my life more than once.”
“Is
Kenshuga the name of the sword?”
imaginative when it came to naming things.”
“Somehow,
I’m not surprised to hear that.”
He chuckled
and finished off his soda just as she finished her meal and drink.
“Well, it’s
almost
know my father will want to get an earlart.art. You should try to get some
sleep,” he said.
“Yes, I
should. Thank you for the food.”
“It’s no
problem.”
She stood,
gathered the plates and trash, and took them into the kitchen while Yukio changed
the baby’s diaper and held him again.
“So I’ll
see you in a few hours,” she said.
He laughed
softly and smiled. “I will.”
Goodnight.”
She gave
him a final smile and returned to the room she shared with Lori.
thought as she settled back into bed. ‘Maybe
this isn’t as hopeless as I originally thought.’
She closed
her eyes and let sleep take her as she went back to the land of dreams, her
grandfather, and golden-eyed white dogs.