"Oh. Still out with the boys then, silly old dog?" a familiar voice giggled.
The men turned around with exception to Sesshomaru, who was fuming at the fact that the hatamoto of the dragon warrior clan put a truth curse (or whatever the hell kind of spell it was!) on him, and smiled or smirked at Meioshi as she waved her hello. She was carrying a large rice gourd on her back, more water and more wine in smaller pots this time that could be carried with one hand, and a personal bag of items in the other hand. Her large trademark hat was on her head, and a manto or some sort of jacket made of seaweed and swamp moss was covering her entire body. All that could really be seen of her were her hands, long hair, and half of her legs. They were bandaged and only swimming slippers protected her feet. Her shapely body, which was typically covered anyway, was really covered up now. A smaller friend and ally in the form of a colorful bird with an extravagant tail was walking by the doctor's side as she carried her goods.
"Oh gods, it's you. I demand to be brought home immediately so I don't have to look at him," the Green Pheasant said.
"... Witch. Where is the wine you stole from these worm warriors?" Sesshomaru inquired with annoyance after taking a deep breath.
"Did you just ignore me?" the Green Pheasant questioned, offended by the notion of being ignored. His personality was too large to be ignored!
"I wish I could ignore you," Sesshomaru growled.
"Excuse the hell outta me!" the Green Pheasant roared, using his wing to cover his breast like one would use a hand. "Has anyone ever thought to ask how my last couple of days have gone since being dragged away from my wife and children by this bum of a lady child?"
"I beg your pardon!" Meioshi responded with a large gasp.
"Don't you sass me! This is absolute balderdash! I don't see why that moppet even needs to purify Susu-harai. It's a literal rubbish heath!" the Green Pheasant argued.
"I told you I owe him the favor! And have you seen that rubbish heath? It's a mess! How are you supposed to enjoy a cruise on your esteemed vessel when it can barely move?" Meioshi argued, gaining Sesshomaru's attention. What favor was she talking about?
"He's not supposed to be cruising!" the Green Pheasant argued, stomping his talon down like a proper foot. "What he can do is weave in between realms like a normal guardian of limbo."
"Nevertheless, he still needs to be able to get from one place to another without the rubbish. The agreement was I assist with that. Now, what is going on out here to where a silly old dog and his band of merry men are even in the direction of another holy city? No part of their journey should have led them here," Meioshi replied, walking up closer to the group of gents. "Shojo sake doesn't belong to the dragon warriors, as a matter of fact; however, they did have a nice selection that I was interested in. Enough to steal a smaller bottle. I plan to enjoy it on my next vacation!"
"This is exactly the kind of foolishness I had to deal with! WHY DID YOU TAKE THEIR SAKE!?" the Green Pheasant argued, snatching the small bottle strapped to Meioshi's hip off her person.
"What? Look at that bottle's artwork! It's lovely! It has my favorite flower on it and everything!" Meioshi whined.
"Don't you give me that pout! The dragons are beginning to move anyway," the Green Pheasant said, nodding to the sky and watching Meioshi perk up at this detail.
Sesshomaru turned to give her his attention before he noticed something quite... unusual. Meioshi was wearing makeup... lovely makeup, actually. Her lashes were pressed with kohl and dusted with shimmering powder. The lids of her eyes were decorated with shimmery blues and greens like... well, water dragon scales. Her cheekbones weren't dusted with the traditional red or pink blush to accentuate the height of her cheeks, but she instead had gold and a brown clay paste on them that made her natural beauty shine through. His lordship had only then come to realize that although Meioshi was quite Nihonese... she wasn't... How could he say it? She didn't seem to be a traditional Nihonese woman. Sure, the ladies might have painted their skin white for certain occasions, but most women were darker than the white paint and had lovely skin tones. In fact, Sesshomaru had a preference for women who showed their natural selves. The paint was boring. Then again, Sesshomaru had always had strange tastes, and they only became stranger after his time spent chasing Naraku mixed with encounters with different ladies and allies. Taking in Meioshi's features some more, Sesshomaru started to really notice her feline eyes and wavy hair. Her lips were red and dusted with more gold, and her forehead had beauty marks on it like the day they visited Emperor Kunimatsu for lunch before the big parade. He only knew this because she lifted her hat up to smile and take in the fresh air. She looked up with this dreamy expression in her eyes, and she smiled... beautifully when the clouds parted and dragons took to the sky or the waters.
That smile... Sesshomaru thought. You smiled at me like that when I told you to stop spoiling your old uncle, Kirameku Ha. How are your smiles... so magnetic and encompassing? I don't understand. Rin, whose smile melted the frost inside of me and made me see the good in a casual and simple life, was always the warmest I had ever seen. I would rush to her... just to be home again. To feel like... someone's hero, someone's pride and joy, someone's bright spot in the world. It felt good being that... I used to be that. Perhaps not a hero..., but I had someone that I looked up to once. I was once an accomplishment. I was once... a child like her. With you..., something is different about you. Your smile is the next day, the new day, the day I wish would hurry up and meet me. If Rin is the smile of the present, you are the smile of the future. It doesn't have to be warm to be bright. It doesn't have to be cold to be anticipatory. It just is.
"Yo, Doc. The hell are you doing stealing stuff from dragons? I thought you were bold, not suicidal," Yamashi remarked, putting his hands on his hips as he approached his friend.
"Ah, I had a favor I owed to someone important. I'll be out a little bit longer. But..., I came to see this clan for a personal reason as well. A man there - no, I should say a friend of my grandfather - deserved to know of his old friend's funeral. I have come to understand that my grandfather's transformation at the parade was that old man's gift to us. I... was very happy to hear that. And grateful! I miss my Jiji so much..." Meioshi said softly, eyes watering. "But, I've another grandfather to say goodbye to and another friend to inform of the loss. So, you won't be seeing much of me for a while. Consider it a grieving holiday for me. However, you, Prince Yamashi will be gone as well. Did you forget our arrangement?"
"You know better," Yamashi replied, smiling with amusement and earning a glance from Sesshomaru.
Startling everybody, a deep, blood-curdling snarl came from his lordship's direction. Even his highness frightened himself a bit! He wasn't sure what it was about their exchange, but Sesshomaru was not a fan of Yamashi speaking with the good doctor in a flirtatious manner. Obviously, Yamashi had his sights on Yuko, but... well..., he didn't like it, alright! No flirting with the doctor unless good intentions were shown!
"O-ho. What's this?" Yamashi questioned, narrowing his eyes with amusement. "That's a very strong roar. You can feel the poisonous burn in the air."
"What? You don't like dragons or something?" Meioshi asked innocently, shrugging.
"He has a different kind of problem with them," Reijiro responded, twirling the turtle charm around his finger with a knowing smirk.
"What arrangement are you talking about?" Sesshomaru questioned, snapping his eyes to Reijiro and that accursed turtle.
"Overseas business, actually. It's how we make income," Meioshi answered, nodding to Yamashi. "This one is the head of trade and commerce for Heiwa's choice demons. You might be interested in learning more about it, Lord Sesshomaru. Since you participated in the bakeoff and won, this is a grand opportunity for you to learn about the demons who visit us from other worlds and the ones who live in Heiwa. They call us by a different name and all. We, natives, say Nihon is the place where we live, but we are Japeng to the outside world. Since you enjoy a good scuffle, you might like to learn about other warrior cultures as well. Yamashi loves that most of all. He's a lot stronger than he used to be because of that. Those inhibitors on his wrists were more for decoration than anything. His domestication inhibitors are a little harder to find. I, however, have guests to meet and an emperor to enjoy a luncheon with before we send him away for school. My little ones will also be learning overseas trade and hospitality, and Prince Yamashi has some family planning to discuss with me before we leeave."
"Family planning?" Yamashi questioned, raising a brow but keeping his amused smile in place despite hearing and seeing Reijiro's and Sesshomaru's surprised expressions.
"Yes. Yuko's final examination for medical practice is soon, and I've looked at your business records over the last couple of years. You are both ready to begin thinking about children and investing in furthering your careers or your families," Meioshi said quite seriously and professionally, earning a gasp from Yamashi.
"We... are?" Yamashi responded so softly and humbly that he may as well have been a different person. No matter how small his voice became, the happiness in his soul gave him a mesmerizing glow. "My Yuko, you - ?"
Meioshi placed her containers down, reached out to touch Yamashi's face, and said softly, "You've done well, Prince Yamashi. It has been an honor to disgrace your clansmen and to fight for your independence and freedom, to mentor you as a rogue and beyond, and to watch you grow as a man. You have shown true development of your character from the dark entity always trying to kill me to this charismatic and teasing troublemaker. I have nothing more to teach you, young prince. I am now merely a guide into your next phase in life. Take this time with his lordship there to think about how you want to take care of your wife... and your sons and daughters. You have much to leave behind for them now."
While Sesshomaru didn't like it, didn't want to see it, he couldn't help but observe closely what happened next. Yamashi dropped his trusted axe and practically leaped into Meioshi's arms to embrace her. Ultimately, the man just broke down and cried, but he wasn't sad. In fact, he couldn't have been any happier. His tears turned into silver beads. It was a trait of domesticated demons in Heiwa. Their tears turned into treasures when they were emotionally peaked. When Lord Aka had reunited with Arimasa's soul, his tears turned to gold beads. Many sailors and beach visitors had collected the gold beads. Their celebration from that alone made the heritage festival, Henka no Koshin, even more a staple for the year. Meioshi laughed at Yamashi's reaction, even the part where he lifted her off the ground and twirled her around a bit. To anyone else, you would have thought Yamashi and Meioshi were the real couple, but they were only a teacher and student. The student was happy that he graduated from one phase of school and into the next. It was hard for Sesshomaru to truly be angry anymore; in fact, he was curious about his rival again. Shouldn't she be married and thinking about children herself?
"What about you, witch? You are very beautiful..." Sesshomaru mumbled to himself so faintly he may as well have been silent.
The turtle charm glimmered before it went silent. Reijiro just smirked before turning to Sesshomaru. He was fully amused.
"Oh, speaking of which, you and Lord Sesshomaru should probably hurry up and return to Heiwa," Meioshi said.
"Why?" Yamashi asked, placing the doctor down.
"The weevil demons that Lord Sesshomaru attracted with his sweets are currently destroying kitchens everywhere because of the fire rat demons' leftover crumbs from the many offerings everyone tried to give them. Plus, they kind of kidnapped a couple of the bakers. They're looking for you, lordship," Meioshi informed, turning to Sesshomaru. "You might want to control that."
"Why am I bothering myself with a couple of bugs?" Sesshomaru questioned, annoyed at the prospect.
"You attracted a King Weevil," Meioshi said with a proud smile. "You're the first demon in history to do it. That sugar is the rarest of all."
"HE WHAT!?" Ichi exclamined, mouth dropping to the ground.
"The King Weevil is also single and kidnapping the finest ladies. Yuko was one of them."
"... ... WHAT!?" Yamashi roared.