Curiosity - Chapter 8 - "Awaken Thy Spirit"

Sesshomaru stared coolly at his father after the outburst. There was no way he would help this human come back as his father had. "No, it mustn't be done father. What has she done that makes her deserve a second chance in this world?"

Touga's red tinged eyes narrowed with anger as he stared at his eldest son. How could he say such a thing! She had understood him as his first mate never had, showed how much she loved him openly, was never afraid of him as so many others were, and most of all, she birthed him a son. A son that proved just how deep their love ran, to the point that she as willing to have a family with him even with the fear of rejection from her own kind.

"Mate must come back! Mate do much..."

"Hn, she never did anything of worth, much like the other humans of this world." Sesshomaru interrupted.

"Pup wrong. Not like others, mate care."

"That weak woman never cared for you..."

"Grrrrr... must respect alpha-female pup!" Touga's inner beast was getting quite angry now. Anymore of this would certainly make him take on his true form.

The cold eyes of a son narrowed to stare at his father. How dare he say such a thing! That human was not his alpha-female, the only person to fill that position was his own mother. "That woman does not have the knowledge to be alpha-female, yet alone understand the inuyoukai way."

What was said next, would begin the drift between father and son.

"The only thing that woman ever did for you was lead you to your early demise!" Sesshomaru snarled through his teeth.

It took all of Touga's strength to hold back his inner beast from attacking his son. Why did Sesshomaru have to be this way? Why couldn't he have gotten more of his father's attitude instead of being so much like his mother? "Wait, could this be what father saw in his last vision? He said, 'The eldest son does nothing to help thy mate, so calling her back will be your fate.' That means Sesshomaru doesn't care, so he will not assist me in bringing her back."

Sesshomaru could tell that he had little time before he really had trouble on his hands, or in his case hand, so he bid Touga farewell.

"If you truly desire to fetch back your woman from the grave, that will be all on your shoulders. I will have absolutely no part of it." And with that, an energy ball took place where Sesshomaru was and floated away at top speed.

In the moments after Sesshomaru left, hundreds of trees became victims of Touga's claws. Now, he was taking deep breaths, attempting to calm his inner beast along with his anger.

"So, that part of father's prophecy did come true after all." Touga spoke as he looked towards the waning sun in the west. "I had better get going, the quicker I leave, the faster I will have her back in my arms."

With that last thought, Touga began his long trek towards his "lost" love. It took him well into the night, but he finally made it close to where his mate lay. About two hundred yards away from her grave he slowed to a walk. Why you ask... simple, he was afraid. Him, once the most renowned Western Lord was scared. This was one of the last things he had ever wanted to do, he never wanted to have to stand before his mate's grave.

Plus, he just needed those extra seconds to sort through the questions that had been seeping into his mind during his entire trek here.

How exactly would he bring her back? Yatsuo had said that she would need a power to guide her, but what is that power? Is it something that would need to be found? What were the consequences if she couldn't be brought back? All the questions disappeared from his mind when he finally saw the one thing he had been dreading.

Before him, a mere ten foot away, stood the gravestone of his love. Touga felt a burning sensation behind his eyes, and something wet flow down his cheek. He reached up to wipe the wetness away and to see what it was. When he pulled his hand back, a lone drop of water laid on the tip of his finger.

"A tear? I guess I genuinely did care about her."

He looked up to tree behind where she lay and a memory from long ago came back to him. "That's right, we planted that sakura tree after we mated. I remember her saying that by planting it in our favorite spot, that the larger it grew throughout the years, the more our love would grow for one another. God how I miss her."

Soft amber eyes turned to fall back to the gravestone of his loved one. Three of his large steps was all it took to place him directly in front of it, and he kneeled down to get a closer look. A solitary claw reached up to trace the name on the stone, and the burning sensation once again returned to Touga's eyes.

"My love, what have I done?" He spoke barely above a whisper, "I should have ran with you and Inuyasha to safety that night, not stayed to avenge you. You must have thought that in a sense, I had abandoned you. I assure you that I didn't, nor never would have in a million years. Have you any idea how much I truly..." Emotions were running wild now and he knew he should hold them back, but it was finally time to let this out.

"How much I honestly loved you? When I first saw you I knew you were who father spoke of, for I fell instantly in love. But I guess it doesn't matter now does it? Father's prophesies have always come true and he said my love alone wouldn't bring you back." He closed his eyes and took a couple of deep breaths before continuing again.

"I'm so sorry that I wasn't there for you or our son my mate. If I only knew the way to bring you back, I would do it in a heartbeat."

Unbeknownst to Touga, a figure stood behind him. It wasn't an evil being, but a kind and gentle one. A smile slowly appeared on his face as he watched the man before him confess his love towards his dead mate.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw and felt the pulsing of an unknown power coming from the grave. "It is time." A mysterious voice whispered on the wind.

The figure twisted its head to look behind him and extended out his hand, "Come my dear, your time to return is upon us." Suddenly another figure appeared just beyond the first and clasp his hand before coming to stand beside him. "You will take good care of him, won't you?"

A feminine giggle answered part of his question, "Of course I will, finally we will be together again." The woman started walking towards the grave, but paused and glanced back towards her companion. "Thank you for keeping me company over the years, Yatsuo."

A hearty laugh preceded her reply, "Anytime my dear, but hopefully we won't have this happen again anywhere in the near future." And with that, he disappeared.

The woman started walking back towards the grave and once there, she leaned down and touched the stone. When she touched it, she began to feel herself pulsing along with the odd power. "Soon we will be together again my love."

It was at this time that Touga had noticed the magic pulsing around him. Fearing that a demon had snuck up on him in his moment of grief, he backed away and prepared for battle. But what he saw astonished him. Underneath the full moon's glow, he saw the outline of a woman taking shape, and he started to hear a heartbeat. Before he knew it he could see the woman's full head of long, luscious black hair, along with her exquisite kimono. At that moment, his mind came to a screeching halt,

"Wait, I recognize that kimono. I got it for..." His thoughts were interrupted when the woman turned around and finally revealed her face.

Warm brown eyes greeted soft amber and lit up with happiness as a she uttered a signal word. "Beloved."

Not even a second had passed before she was engulfed in Touga's warm embrace.

"Izayoi."