The Hell Doctor
Four days had gone by since Tsuyoi's funeral. All was peaceful again at Heiwa. Meioshi was tending to her small rice fields with no new patients for the day and all funeral services taken care of for now. She had to take it easy since her body was now scarred from the ceremonial punishment wounds and the burning of her crest tattoo/markings. While farming wasn't necessarily taking things too easy, it did take her mind off recent events. Sloshing in the mud to plant her last batch of new stalks of rice for the upcoming fall season, Meioshi took a few steps back before continuing her planting. She would be harvesting a great deal of her crops soon. Feeling her breathing become labored and her chest pounding, Meioshi rose up from her bent-over position and took some deep breaths to calm herself down. The pain from her new scars flared up every now and then, but she was able to push through and medicate the worst of it. Perseverance was key but patience was crucial.
Retrieving a canteen of water from the side, she drank some before pouring a small amount on her neck to cool down and continued working when she felt better. Her large hat provided the shade she needed to continue the last portion of the rice field. With her basket emptied, she climbed out of the muddy waters and started wiping her hands. Hearing a horse and carriage, Meioshi stopped for a moment to listen in on the approaching company. She didn't have any medical appointments for today. Maybe it was just a visitor? The horse and carriage didn't come any closer, so she took her basket and moved to her next crop of plants to be tended to. The fruit orchards were beautifully flowered this spring. Retrieving her canteen, she drunk some more water before she heard footsteps hustling towards her. Before she knew it, two men dressed in fine robes and a woman dressed in a beautiful kimono were bowing before her. They were the emperor's attendants.
"Pardon me, Lady Meioshi?" the woman said in a gentle voice. Meioshi couldn't really see her face through her floppy, wide-brimmed hat, but she turned to her as though she could. The maid then said, "The emperor requests your attendance to the family luncheon. We are here to escort you there."
Meioshi knew this maid quite well. Her name was Zakaza. She worshipped the emperor and was rumored to be in love with him, but it appeared that her feelings were one-sided, and the emperor had his eye on another. Mainly, the doctor who just finished planting rice in the mud. Zakaza can't stand Meioshi for a number of reasons she refuses to disclose to anyone, but she remains faithful to the emperor and bites her tongue in his presence when addressing Meioshi. The doctor never says anything to Zakaza about the matter; instead, she remains quiet and only teases her occasionally.
Meioshi, however, was genuinely surprised at the sudden invitation. She said, "Already? I visited shortly after the funeral."
The maid giggled a bit then replied, "His highness seems to enjoy your company. It is a great honor."
Meioshi immediately became suspicious at the pleasantries Zakaza was presenting. She could be a nasty, little lady behind that perfect pale skin and finely-set face. Pretending all was well herself, the doctor said, "I'm hardly in an appropriate state of dress for the occasion, but I will ready myself accordingly. Thank you."
Right as Meioshi picked up the brim of her hat to see Zakaza's face, the maid opened her eyes slowly and gave Meioshi an evil grin the likes of which no man will ever see. She then said in a joking but intentional manner, "As long as you don't dress like a common whore, it should be fine."
There she is! Meioshi thought, smiling as though she were holding back a laugh.
She then leaned forward to whisper, "I already know you hate me. You don't have to pretend."
"I don't hate you," Zakaza said, pushing back her lovely length of hair with a gentle hand. She had a nice, glittering ring on one of her fingers and long manicured nails that could easily be sharpened into claws if she wanted to finally gouge Meioshi's eyes out. Zakaza then rose to stand, finally seeing Meioshi's disgustingly beautiful face, and continued, "I only worry for his highness and the company he chooses to keep. He typically isn't near heathens."
Meioshi smiled brightly and responded, "Then I'll have to reassure the palace that I'm no such thing. When his highness comes into my arms, I'll be sure to protect him as I had before."
Just to screw with her, Meioshi gave Zakaza a cat-like grin before lowering her eyelids to give a suggestive and seductive look that meant only one thing to the maid. If the doctor wanted the emperor for herself, she could get him... unlike Zakaza who assists in dressing and undressing the emperor. Her prize was always within reach, but someone else would always gain the upper hand in polishing and cleaning the emperor and it was the doctor. No longer giving Meioshi the evil smile like before, Zakaza almost fully erased her expression until she sensed something. At first, she heard something stomping on the ground nearby; then, she heard munching like something was chewing; finally, she saw a dragon walking behind Meioshi and taking fruit from one of her trees. The doctor turned around with a curious expression on her face before seeing Aa and Un foraging in her orchard. That only meant one thing: Sesshomaru was back.
Oh no... Meioshi thought, a drop of sweat falling down from the side of her head.
"Who is that over there?" Zakaza asked, turning to none other than the western lord himself.
Meioshi didn't want to look. She didn't even want to turn around, so she inhaled deeply first and stiffly peeked at the maid to make sure she didn't ask the question out of fear. She didn't. She was blushing. Meaning, Sesshomaru was easy on her eyes and her emperor didn't exist for a minute. While the doctor thought that was a good thing, she was pretty sure Sesshomaru wouldn't like the attention much. He already didn't take well to compliments about his appearance, but, then again, it could just be what she says about him and not everyone else. Maybe he wouldn't mind the maid. Sesshomaru didn't know what was going on, but he returned to the doctor's estate for two reasons: one, to retrieve Kirameku Ha because another killing had been reported; two, to possibly fight Meioshi in the event that the old man refuses to come with him quietly for interrogation. Somehow, the dragon actually knew where to go to find Meioshi. He didn't know she did something recognizable for the dragon to pick up on her trail, but, when the beast went digging in her fruit, Sesshomaru could only assume one thing. She fed him those fruits at one point. Typical.
Seeing Meioshi in farming clothes was different. He had only ever seen her in armor and the funerary attire up until this point. To see her toil away at something more mundane sort of reestablished her actual status as a working woman and not really a warrior or delicate nurse. The maid that was talking to her was exactly the opposite. Her regal kimono just oozed royalty, or at least the servant of a royal family, and the other two men were dressed in messenger clothes. He was familiar with their lot at the House of Inu. When the maid asked who he was, he almost immediately slipped into that defiant mode he was known for at home, but he remained quiet and instead waited for Meioshi to turn to him.
Pinching the bridge of her nose, Meioshi answered with some annoyance, "Good morning, gentlemen of the west. I've no time to scuffle with you, Lord Sesshomaru. I've harvesting to finish and an appointment with his highness in a few hours. Can it wait?"
"No," Sesshomaru answered without hesitation.
Meioshi dropped her head and shoulders a bit before turning around and asking, "Very well. What seems to be the trouble?"
"I respected your request to leave your shrine for the grievers. Another demon was murdered in the Mujina Woodlands. Same as the last ones. Hand over your sensei or I will take him by force," Sesshomaru said, narrowing his eyes at the doctor.
Sucking air between her teeth and squinting her eyes, Meioshi pressed her lips together, blinked, and then asked with a squeak in her voice, "Can it wait until after lunch instead?"
"No," Sesshomaru answered quickly.
"Of course not," Meioshi said, rolling her eyes and rubbing her forehead. "I'll have to postpone that invitation to another day, Lady Zakaza. Lord Sesshomaru requires my immediate presence."
"I understand," Zakaza replied, bowing gently. "I will inform his highness immediately. Perhaps you can attend the luncheon with his lordship there. I'm sure he wouldn't mind meeting the emperor. After all, you did encourage the young lord to learn to expand his political influence through other venues. This could prove to be educational for him."
Oh, sure, go ahead and get me publicly killed... Meioshi thought, turning her eyes to the side.
"Quite possibly. Our status as associates is pending, but a tense situation can be a great learning experience. I'll consider it afterwards," Meioshi replied, bowing respectfully to the emperor's attendants.
Zakaza and the men returned the bow and walked away quietly, but the maid had one final thought before entering the carriage to leave. No way a handsome man like that would fall for the likes of her. He's too perfect and too... gorgeous... Maybe I can help him get rid of her. She's been a pain in the ass since she came to the palace with the emperor. She's all he ever talks about! Lord Sesshomaru... rolls off the tongue nicely.
"Right then," Meioshi said with a sigh before folding her arms. "This is the second time you've brought up a situation in these woodlands. Lord Moeru wasn't able to gather much from the other demons at the funeral or elsewhere, and Lord Aka wasn't aware of it either. Before I surrender anything to you, what in heaven's name is going on here?"
"It's like we said, you insufferable woman!" Jaken argued. "Something's been killing demons from both the Anaguma clan and Bake-danuki clan in the Mujina Woodlands. They're rival clans who only recently started working together to make better use of the territory. Right around the time we left from here after helping you fight that wall demon, an attacker has been draining victims of their insides and leaving behind bite marks that have been frozen closed. Some areas in the murder scene have marred trees like something twisted them. Others have marks in the ground like someone used a lot of force to move someplace rapidly. Your sensei seemed like a viable suspect due to the lack of struggle between attacker and victim. The only thing we can't fathom is the need to drain a demon's insides."
"Or the motive to start a war," Sesshomaru chimed in calmly.
"Hate to say it, but my sensei isn't capable of such an attack. Main reason being the bite wounds were frozen shut," Meioshi said, unfolding her arms and placing her hands on her hips. "He's as human as they come. He doesn't have control over any elemental magic."
"What about his speed? No human should be capable of keeping up with Lord Sesshomaru!" Jaken argued.
"He can't move that fast," Meioshi replied with a proud smirk. "That's just his years of training speaking for him. My grandfather chose him to fight in his group of warriors for a reason. His unnatural control of speed, sound, and surrounding made him an impeccable fighter in his youth. He was just using a fighting technique that uses his opponent's attributes against themselves. Don't worry, though. He felt that short scuffle in his lower back the next morning. Nature's universal law of checks and balances will do that."
"What about you? Don't you have that ice sword?" Jaken questioned.
"Well, yeah, but I don't bite people," Meioshi replied, raising an eyebrow and waving a hand before putting it down. "These attacks might be related to the black wall demon, but it's not directly involving me or my people this time. This is the work of something else, I'm afraid. While I don't normally do this, I do owe you for your help. I'll fight you using the snow sword so you can see for yourself. It might give you some kind of clue if it has an after effect. Otherwise, you may have to go back to the crime scene and look into other details like age groups of the victims, social standings, combat affinity, things like that. There has to be something missing in the details. You just need to keep an eye open for it."
"I accept your challenge," Sesshomaru said after some silence. "But your sensei is still a suspect."
Meioshi smiled gently at him before saying, "I understand. There's a forest overlooking a valley near here. It's just beyond the farmlands if you remember. That valley actually leads you straight back to Heiwa from the other side where the fishing boats dock near the pebble stone beaches. You can test my sword there."
"Don't be late," Sesshomaru said, walking away from her silently. "We're leaving Jaken."
"Yes, Lord Sesshomaru! We're leaving, you scaly horse!" Jaken said, making the dragon roar and then leave the fruit trees be.
________________________________________
The cliff was actually a beautiful accent piece to the landscaping of nature. The valley may have been empty down below, but a thin stream of freshwater decorated it with a string of clear blue. Sesshomaru merely stood there, waiting for the time to hurriedly pass by, but he took his time to admire the scenery. The sun was setting and gave the valley a bronze coloring from the onset of orange coming to the sky. It felt like so much was happening so quickly in the span of a month, but, in reality, not that much was occurring in between high-intensity moments. There was time to sort of catch one's breath and think about things. Maybe that's why Sesshomaru was repeating the doctor's words in his head. An attack pattern was only as influential as the victim pattern. What was the connection between them all? At first, the victims were simply passersby checking for damage from the odd snowstorm that came through; then, it became guards; lastly, higher-ranking officers like the chief inspector and a royal guard. Ambassador Norihisa had just left the crime scene to report his findings, but he wasn't attacked at all. These attacks are strictly going for the Woodland demons. Why? Maybe there was other evidence he was missing.
The dragon growled a bit before turning around to look into the forest. The doctor was here. Sesshomaru walked into the forest alone, anticipating it to be covered in snow as an effect of the snow sword, but the forest was fine and the air still warm. As he walked further along, he heard some chewing and then drinking. There she was. His rival and today's opponent eating her lunch on a small mat. It was a small bowl of rice with meat and vegetables on the side. A fruit salad seemed to be the dessert. He didn't smell sake filling the air, but he did smell sweet water. It smelled like it was soaked in fruit so maybe she was drinking a form of fruit juice. Everything was in small portions, though. Watching her enjoy her small lunch, she reached for a vegetable with her chopsticks before stopping right above the bowl with a smile on her face and looking up slowly. She sensed his presence, apparently. When their eyes locked, she blushed a bit from embarrassment and chuckled.
"Sorry, I thought you'd be gone for a little longer."
"What are you doing?" Sesshomaru asked with annoyance in his tone and twitching of his eyebrow.
"I was hungry," Meioshi replied, scratching her cheek cutely while the chopsticks remained in her other hand. Her sword was seated next to her, resting in place and being well-behaved in not summoning a blizzard from its enchanted bodice. Picking up her rice bowl, she said while still nibbling her sticks, "I'll share some with you if you're hungry, too."
"No," Sesshomaru responded, narrowing his eyes at her.
"If you say so," Meioshi replied, nibbling on the ends of her chopsticks. She continued eating in peace as though he weren't there before a thought came to mind. She then asked, "Did you have time to think about how you were going to approach your murder case, Lord Sesshomaru?"
"This is no business of yours," Sesshomaru answered coldly.
"Such a mean old dog..." Meioshi mumbled, continuing her lunch. "Oh, well, thought I'd be more help in the medical field of that. Guess you got it from here. I should probably tell you that I won't be in Heiwa for a while in a few days. I'm leaving for work. Sensei will be gone as well to visit family, but he should be back before I return home. If you want, you're welcome to stay in the guest inn on my estate or the guest hotel in the village upon your next visit should you ever return after this duel or before either of us return home for interrogation. You can also go with Lord Jaken to ask my apprentice, Kyoko, for help. She's very good with detective work and wouldn't mind helping you as long the boys can tag along, of course. AND, it is imperative that you get permission from her mother to go. If Tsukushi says no, the answer is no."
"I don't know what you're trying to do, but I don't need your nagging for this task," Sesshomaru stated, growling slightly. "You may have gained my respect as a warrior, but you are still an enemy and a suspect. Your charity is unnecessary. Putting a child's life in danger is probably your worst decision yet, and you expect me to just trust you so fluidly. I trusted you once for Jaken's sake. Don't expect me to continue to trust you with everything else."
"Oh, good, then we're in agreement," Meioshi said with a smile, silencing Sesshomaru. She placed her chopsticks down and gradually held a solemn expression in her face. She then said in a serious tone, "I don't know what your intentions are, and I don't believe you're just here to find a new opponent. It's a senseless motive that concerns me because if you're so willing to attack innocents all from a lack of evidence for a specific murderer, then I've no doubt you'd threaten the livelihoods of the people I care about and others just as a show of power. I don't know much about the House of Inu, according to everyone else's accounts, but your actions are telling me that you're completely unfit for a title as ruler or even the work of a guardian spirit. You've yet to explain to me why you wanted to assist me before, and the only excuses you've given me were that you wanted to fight strong opponents or that you wanted to fulfill my request in killing me. I, specifically, wanted you to unleash your power for a strategized attack. While I am responsible for wording things incorrectly, this is no excuse for you to persistently seek battle with me. Furthermore, you are not my second! Before investigating the crime scene yourself, you automatically jumped to the conclusion that my sensei had something to do with this when you only met him once and he was unarmed. You never saw him fight up until someone's funeral, which you so dishonorably chose to disrupt with your thirst for gratification, and you upset other mourners who were participating in a rite withheld from most demons! The only reason I offered any form of help to you was because you seemed to not know why you wanted to help me. You were just compelled to do so. I respected you as a man before for that reason alone. I do not and will not respect you as warrior until you start acting like one the way I have done for you!"
That brought back memories Sesshomaru never wanted to see again. Meioshi didn't have a singular, pleasant, accented, feminine voice in that moment. She had two distinctive voices coupled with it that made his skin crawl. Moments in time when he felt like nothing stirred up within him. He didn't know how long he stood there in complete silence at those words. He only knew that Meioshi was packing away her lunch items in silence and placing them elsewhere before she stood before him with her sword in hand.
"Since you want to use this fight for proof of my involvement in these killings, I'll use this fight as proof that you are a true warrior to be respected," Meioshi said, unsheathing Baohu qi Voluptatis and releasing a high amount of energy. "Show me that you are more than just a boy with flashy might."
Sesshomaru quietly unsheathed Bakusaiga with a new form of nervousness until he remembered his companions and his journey until this moment. He refused to be nothing again. He refused to be denied his place as a warrior again. He refused to be downsized by another warrior of equal power again. He refused to let Meioshi get the better of him with just a few words. Gathering his power to form the blue dragon, Sesshomaru was set on nearly killing his rival until she did something he wasn't prepared for. She crossed her arms in front of her and unleashed power so deep within her it shook the earth. Surrounded by a barrier of black winds, Meioshi's hair went from the wavy, black high ponytail to a crimson red one. The whites of her eyes changed to black and her lovely hazel irises burned that orange she had before as a Netherworld predator. Ice formed new armor on her body and the sword radiated with power. She was the Master of the Winter now.
Rushing at Sesshomaru, she slashed at the dragon and split the power in half before letting the sword absorb the energy to turn into half a snowflake. Ripping at Sesshomaru's body in different directions, she disarmed him a couple of times before he hurriedly reacted to blocking the attack. He controlled the other split half of the dragon, which still had the head, and used it to bite at Meioshi to stun her. He was able to slash at her quite a few times before she was able to recover and block the rest of his attack. Materializing spikes of ice from the ground, Meioshi disrupted his attack speed by punching the ice to form a blooming lotus and leapt from ice shard to ice shard to multiple-angle attack that surprised Sesshomaru. Grabbing him to throw him into a tree, she went to bust open his armor before he dodged the attack and punched her away from him with a burst of poison and power. She was stunned from the drain damage, but she didn't slow down in her attacks. She let Sesshomaru parry her several times before unleashing enough arctic force to decimate a large area of trees in the forest.
The ground was rattling from the impact of the colliding energies. Summoning the other half of the snowflake from her previous attack, Meioshi jumped away from Sesshomaru and disappeared in a snow flurry before slashing at him a couple more times before kicking him with full force. In a final move, she hit him with enough power to chip Bakusaiga and send Sesshomaru flying over the cliff. Jaken's voice calling him as he descended to the valley below was all that she heard. She didn't hear what Sesshomaru was thinking about, but she thought she heard a child crying from somewhere. Dismissing her power, Meioshi sheathed her sword and looked around for the child she thought she heard. When she didn't find anything, she returned to her spot where she had her lunch and picked her medical kit. She may not have understood Sesshomaru's intentions. She may not fully trust him anymore than he trusted her. But, she took the oath of medicine for a reason years ago. The pain in her chest from the ceremonial punishment was a reminder to herself to aid those who have fallen. Knowing that Sesshomaru wouldn't accept it and would rather die than be insulted further, Meioshi picked her doctor's overcoat and her medical kit and looked to the side where the cliff descended to the valley quietly before deciding to heal Sesshomaru's wounds whether he liked it or not. There might be a second chance in his future to prove he was a good warrior since she felt in her heart that he was a good man.
Why do you fight, Sesshomaru? Meioshi thought. Who did you see... when you looked at me like that?