Brave Hearts (Sesshomaru Fanfiction)

3. Father Dearest

“We have followed you long enough! I assure you we are capable of taking care of ourselves and finding Lord Sesshomaru without your help.” Jaken stated confidently after a moment of following Koga. The wolf demon turned around to face the little imp. 

“Fine – have it your way.”He shrugged. “It’s not like I wanted to see that ol’ sourpuss anyway.” 

“Watch your tongue, you!” retorted Jaken in such a way that both Rin and Hana could not resist giggling. 

Just then, something had suddenly caught the wolf girl’s attention – there was another wolf demon near. No, it wasn’t just any ordinary wolf demon. Hana could sense that it was her father who was near. She turned to look back at where they’d just come from, and then looked at Koga. 

“About that...,” she interrupted his squabble with Jaken. “Could you please take Master Jaken and Rin to Lord Sesshomaru? I have something I need to do.” Hana asked Koga in the most unsuspicious way she could manage before suddenly turning and running back down the path which they’d come from – eventually disappearing into the shadows and giving Koga no time to oppose. 

Lord Sesshomaru would surely have her head for leaving Rin with that wolf demon, but something told her that she had something urgent to attend to. 

She’d followed the scent of her father all the way to a steep hill which seemed to end at a cliff. Going further up the hill, she could tell that the cliff overlooked the Southern Wolf Tribe. Suddenly, she was stopped by the sight of a dark figure standing out in the distance. She recognized it to be that of her father. 

Cautiously and quietly, the wolf demon walked closer to her father who had his back turned towards her as he looked out over the cliff thoughtfully. If not for his scent, and if he had much longer hair that was white instead of brown and had it let out of its ponytail, she would have probably mistaken him for Sesshomaru. 

“Welcome back, Hana,” his voice was low, and even from such a great distance, she could hear him. At the sound of her father’s voice, Hana could think of one question only. 

“Why?” She asked him, images of numerous wolves sinking their teeth into her body swirling through her mind. She quickly stepped closer to him, but was suddenly stopped by the sound of growling coming from the trees all around her. She froze. 

“It seems that they don’t recognize your scent. If you come any closer they’ll be sure to attack.” 

Her father’s tone of voice had a sinister ring to it; it was almost as if he’d changed after so long. 

There was no way this man could have possibly been her father. 

With the amount of questions running through the young girl’s mind, there was nothing she could do but stand there and figure out what she would say next. 

Had he gone mad and power-hungry? Why else would he try to do something such as challenge Sesshomaru? Any normal father would be more than happy to see their daughter back home – not have her and her companions imprisoned. 

“Nothing to say...?” He turned around slowly, revealing the wicked smirk on his face. “Fine then, I shall go first.” 

“When we had found out about your leaving, as any father would be, I was, of course, distressed. But a part of me was also angry - angry at the fact that I had to be burdened with such a weak and pathetic daughter that would even think of running away from her duties.” He stepped closer, further closing the gap between them. Hana stood unmoving, glaring at her father as he explained himself. 

“At first I had thought that you wouldn’t have lasted long out in the forests of feudal Japan, but here you are standing before me.” He chuckled, though it had also sounded like a low growl. “I needed something to occupy my time during your absence, and I soon found that something to be power. That was when I learnt of the ‘powerful’ dog demon that ruled the lands in the west. And suddenly, I wanted his power – his lands.