𝗣𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗦; 𝗜𝗡𝗨𝗬𝗔𝗦𝗛𝗔

11

It was nearly night time a the village, Kikyo had just tended to her last patient of the day. There had been a minor outbreak of the cold in the village and even with her limited medical skills, some people died from it. In the following days to come, there would be funerals for the recently departed. Kikyo did a small prayer for the dead, hoping that they would find peace in the afterlife.

One of Kikyo's newer patient's, Tashi, gifted her a shakuhachi*. A shakuhachi was a flute type of instrument. Her patient was a man in his late thirties, who was once a travelling musician but that all changed when he met his wife, Yuki. The two of them ended up settling down in the village and the rest was history. As a thank you for helping to care him, Tashi gifted Kikyo a shakuhachi that was in his possession and proceeded to give her lessons on how to use it.

Kikyo of course was grateful to Tashi for spending the time to teach her on how to use the instrument. Even if she didn't have much free time to practice it. Kaede was the first to arrive at their hut, she enthusiastically greeted her Kikyo, when she arrived. Kaede was telling Kikyo all about what she had learned today from Asuka. How to properly gut a fish and cook it. Kaede had been taught the basics by Kikyo but her sister was only an amateur at best when preparing and cooking food.

"Onee-sama, I learned to gut the fish like this... and Asuka-sensei also taught me... Did you know how much spices can be used for a stew?... Honey can be used to sweeten the tea..." Kaede went on and on, explaining what she had learned. She eventually tired herself out and fell asleep, next to Kikyo. Said miko smiled at her sleeping sister.

Kikyo felt a feeling of restlessness, she tried to go to sleep but found that she couldn't. She turned her brown eyes to look at the shakuhachi on the table. "I could waste some energy,'' mused Kikyo, moving to get the shakuhachi then walking outside to find a place to play the instrument.

Breathing in the nights air, Kikyo strolled around, going to the edge of the village. Stopping when she was faced with a sakura tree, she climbed up and sat on a branch. She took a moment to watch her surroundings even though it was dark, some areas were lit up by the moon. Kikyo pulled out her instrument, and looked at it fondly.

Kikyo placed the top of the shakuhachi at her lips and began playing the first song the came into her head. The once silent place was replaced by the melody of Kikyo's instrument. Hearing a twig snap beneath her, Kikyo stopped playing, losing balance on the branch. She fell straight down, only to be caught by a pair of arms.

"Sesshomaru-san," Kikyo shakily breathed out, looking up to the man that was holding her bridal style. "My apologies... that you had to see this," Kikyo lightly blushed in embarrassment. He gently placed her down onto the ground. "Thank you, Sesshomaru-san."

"Kikyo-san, you should be more careful next time," told Sesshomaru. "I would hate to see that the only intelligent human would die in such a pitiful way." Kikyo hummed in response. It seemed that Sesshomaru did care about her
He looked at the instrument in Kikyo's hand. "In return for saving you, Kikyo-san. Play a song on that instrument that you hold."

"As you wish Sesshomaru-san," Kikyo said. "Would you like anything specific played? Sesshomaru took a moment to think of a song.

"Something soothing," replied Sesshomaru as they both sat down in the dry grass. Kikyo nodded to him and brought the instrument up to her mouth to play it again. Sesshomaru shut his eyes and took in the music that Kikyo was playing.

Flashback

The Inutashio or Sesshomaru's father stood at the base of a beach, fatally wounded with blood seeping through his clothes and armor.

"Do you insist on going?" Asked Sesshomaru, staring at his injured father.

"Will you stop me, Sesshomaru?" Replied Inutashio with another question.

"I will not try to stop you. However, before you go you must entrust the swords, tensaiga and sounga to me," said Sesshomaru.

"And if I refuse, Sesshomaru? Will you kill me?" Questioned Inutashio. "Do you desire power so much? Why do you seek power?"

"The path that I walk is the one of supreme conquest. And it is power that will reveal the way," told Sesshomaru.

"Supreme conquest? Tell me Sesshomaru, do you have someone to protect?" Asked Inutashio.

"Someone to protect?"

End

'Someone to protect, chichi-san?' thought Sesshomaru as he watched Kikyo play the instrument. 'She doesn't need to be protected. Although, someone must stop her from doing something stupid," he thought back to catching the failing miko. 'Kikyo-san does play well for a human. Chichi-san, are you laughing in your grave?'

"Sesshomaru-san, is their another song that you would like me to play?" Asked Kikyo.

"Do so, Kikyo-san," told Sesshomaru. 'Chichi-san, how did you develop feelings for a human like Izayoi-san?'

The miko and the daiyokai spent another hour in each others company. Before, Sesshomaru told Kikyo to go back to her hut and rest. "Did you feel that? The presence of another yokai," said Kikyo as she was going to deal with it, only to be pulled back by Sesshomaru.

"As if I would let an unarmed miko go see a yokai," told Sesshomaru. "Go back to your imouto," Kikyo would have protested but the Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed, warning her not to complain. "I'm not doing this for you, I simply don't like other yokai going on my territory." Kikyo smiled at him, bidding him farewell.

Japanese terms

Shakuhachi is a Japanese and ancient Chinese longitudinal, end-blown flute that is made of bamboo.

Chichi is one of the versions of father.