"Lord Sesshomaru! You're back!" Jaken cheered.
He was lying back in his bed with a cup of some kind of beverage and a thin blanket across his shoulders, completely relaxed and enjoying the coolness of the fall air, while Kirameku Ha was lying back half-dressed and half-asleep on his own bed with some sort of towel across his shoulders. Both fabrics looked to be of fine quality. Ah-Un were chewing on some fruit with content but looked up at the western lord with interest. Sesshomaru took notice to the slippers, or what looked like fuzzy slippers, on the imp's feet first. Jaken doesn't wear slippers. He then looked over to the dragon, taking note of their brushed mane and clean paws. Unless the old man brought a brush with him, he was sure they didn't have such an item on their persons. Ever. Neither did anyone typically sharpen or clean Ah-Un in the history of their travels. Lastly, he glanced at the old man who was dozing off. Sesshomaru was able to see a couple of battle scars on the old man's chest and took note to his shapely torso. His physique didn't go away with the times, but at least the sensei was dressed in thinner clothing to keep cool. Though mighty in battle, Kirameku Ha couldn't fight one particular enemy in the night: sleep. Eventually, he let slumber claim him.
"Are you enjoying this trip, Jaken?" Sesshomaru questioned with faint amusement in his tone.
"Honestly, I think I'm just being spoiled because the doctor's sensei is here. She visited while you were gone," Jaken replied, taking a sip of his tea.
Sesshomaru's brow twitched with displeasure at that, and he growled, "What?"
Jaken flinched at his response and said, "Well, Lord Kirameku Ha was making dinner while you left to dig up information, me lord. Meioshi had come to check on him, and he mentioned being unusually hot as of late so she performed her duties accordingly. He looked a lot better."
"Did you... also feel sick?" Sesshomaru asked with worry replacing his tone. Much like the amusement, the worry was faint and foreign to Jaken.
"Not particularly. I just wanted a foot rub. It was exquisite," Jaken said, blushing from the memory. "Being a doctor certainly has its perks."
So, she spoiled them all while he was away. Women. There was no need to do all of this. It's only been three days since they started their journey. Was it not obvious they just wanted to be spoiled? If this was what they wanted, he could have brought them to a ryokan for a night! Oh... no, he couldn't. Kirameku Ha was a human. That would complicate the reservation process. Well... fine! Two could play at that game! He's been in battle like Kirameku Ha. He gets him. He would know how to care for a war veteran best without the need to spoil him! As for Jaken...! He wasn't going to rub his feet, but he'd at least look into finding a healer for his condition. If Meioshi gave him another massage, she must have been checking for signs of further poisoning. He supposed they would have to return to the Vermillion Forest after this trip if it was even successful.
"Oh, did you find the information you were looking for, me lord?" Jaken asked, hoping to change the subject.
"In part, yes," Sesshomaru responded, walking over to his own bed. Really, he shouldn't be calling any of the sleeping mats, beds, but the way they were dressed up seemed more like beds. He sat down on his and continued, "We will be looking for a place called the Century Wasteland in the morning. It has a gate made of jade and a small strip of silver sand leading out to an island full of junk. We might see a floating boat around it."
"Will we be needing Nintojo then, me lord?" Jaken asked.
"Yes, we should make it there within a few days' time if it's further west. Otherwise, it may just take another day or two in either direction besides," Sesshomaru replied. "Did the doctor come here alone?"
"Yes, me lord. We actually took a short stroll to get food for Ah-Un. The munchers over there found a treasure by an orange tree, but the doctor left it. Said something about it probably being savings for someone. We did make wishes on the orange tree, though. That was nice," Jaken said. "Ah-Un made a wish for a new bed. Kirameku Ha wished for a new gardening hat. His current one makes the back of his neck itch from the loose straw pieces. Oh, he also wished for a new shovel to dig up smaller plants or babies from the parent plants that are trying to spread. Meioshi wished for new slippers for the coming winter, specifically for the village's holiday season. They host winter parties around that time. She did leave something at the orange tree, though. It looked like it was for someone. She wouldn't say who. I'm sure it was just another wish too embarrassing for her to say aloud."
Jaken snuggled into his bed comfortably before mumbling something inaudible and falling asleep himself. Ah-Un followed after. No one seemed to notice that the western lord's pupils had dilated or that he had grown quiet. About twenty minutes had passed before he finally stood up to find this treasure tree. It wasn't very far from the campsite at all. He spotted a piece of paper stuck to the tree with a piece of silver and magenta ribbon hanging from the bottom. Closer inspection revealed that the silver piece was actually a small crescent moon. He pulled the paper off the tree and turned it to the other side to see forgiveness written in small print. He couldn't tell if he was daydreaming or if the doctor had put a spell on the note, but he somehow could feel her presence nearby.
"Do you think you're ready, Lord Sesshomaru?" she would probably ask in that accented voice of hers.
An orange dropped from the tree as he was thinking of an answer. He stood aside to catch the fruit but didn't tear his eyes away from the paper. He inelegantly harrumphed at his uncharacteristic behavior and ripped the skin off the orange to bite into its flesh. When he was finished devouring the fruit, he tossed the remaining seeds and skin on the ground and spun around to return to camp. He then said, "I don't need your nagging, witch. Stop spoiling my traveling party and worry about yourself. Winter will be harsh this year."
"You're one ripe bastard, aren't ye?" a strange voice remarked. Sesshomaru stopped walking and only turned his head slightly to the side. That malodorous stench could only be one thing, a pygmy. Said creature hopped around the tree in one particular spot, head spinning in full, uninterrupted rotation with its jaws open in a crooked smile and fingers wiggling with mischievous excitement. He then said, "A pretty girl made a wish did she, did she. Just for ye, for ye, and ya take the gift meant for the wish granter and discount her own simple wish. What an ass be ye! A lesson ye must learn. The pygmy's curse doth ye earn! To rid ye of my curse, my curse, solve the riddle or it will grow worse. It can't be seen. It can't be felt. It can't be heard. It can't be smelt. It hides behind stars and under hills and empty holes it fills. It comes first and follows after. Ends life. Kills laughter."
Grabbing an orange from the tree, the pygmy threw the fruit at Sesshomaru's head and hung from a branch with glee. The western lord caught the offensive, rotten fruit in his claw, but it burst and the scent of a terrible spirit surrounded him before disappearing along with the pygmy...
The next morning, Jaken led the way to their destination and used Nintojo to lead them to an island out west, but Kirameku Ha took notice to a ghoul entering the mouth of the female head on the staff and she rattled violently before pulling Jaken in a different direction. This confused Sesshomaru, but the old man remained silent. They were going south instead. When they reached the destination the staff led them to, they did find an island with luscious flora and white sands with silver speckles in the form of rocks or crystals along the beach, but it wasn't the place that they were looking for.
"Is this the place, Lord Sesshomaru?" Jaken asked.
"No," Sesshomaru answered, frowning with displeasure.
Jaken tried to use the staff again with more specific details, but Kirameku Ha caught that ghostly form again entering the staff head's mouth before it rattled violently and rocketed Jaken to a new location...
Meioshi, Homugi, and Yuko were walking together to their own destination. Yuko was happily leading the way and picking different flowers of interest along the way. She gave a few to Homugi for her to make a flower necklace or crown. Homugi smiled lightly at Yuko and added different colors and shapes to her jewelry. A blue arrow suddenly sped past the doctor and was jammed in a nearby tree.
"What's that?" Homugi asked, taking note to the paper strapped to the arrow. At first, she thought they were being attacked, but Meioshi hummed in question and yanked the arrow out.
She read the note to herself in silence then laughed...
"Poor fella," Meioshi joked, smiling brightly. "Guess he'll be south for a while."